Flame Lift-off Research Articles

On the Liftoff of Diffusion Flame: An Experimental and Analytical Study

Abstract The effect of lip thickness of fuel nozzle on the liftoff of an attached diffusion methane flame with and without a coflow was experimentally and analytically investigated. Three fuel nozzles made of a long pipe with the same internal diameter but different nozzle lip thickness were tested. The co-airflow was also varied to assess its impact on the liftoff of jet diffusion flame. The results showed that the effect of fuel nozzle lip thickness on the liftoff of a free jet flame (i.e., no coflow) is marginal. However, the presence of a weak to moderate coflow (0.05 m/s < Uco < 0.3 m/s) reduced the liftoff velocity of an attached flame. The reduction rate of the liftoff velocity with co-airflow was found to be more significant for the fuel nozzle with the smaller lip thickness. At a relatively higher coflow (Uco > ∼0.3 m/s), a more pronounced drop in the liftoff velocity with coflow was observed. Flow field characteristics obtained using PIV measurements showed that the coflow stream experienced a transition to the turbulent regime for Uco > ∼0.3 m/s range which is believed to cause the inception of the flame liftoff to occur. A model for predicting the liftoff velocity of an attached flame in the presence of a coflow was developed based on the stoichiometric mixture velocity equation. This model showed good agreement with the present experimental data. However, although it can predict successfully the observed trends in the literature, further experiments are required to generalize it.

Investigation of flame characteristics of hydrogen jet issuing into a hot vitiated nitrogen/argon/carbon dioxide coflow

Fundamental characteristics of hydrogen flame in diluted atmosphere may have important guiding value for controlling the operation of argon-circulated hydrogen engines. In this paper, the impact of thermal-atmosphere (T ≥ 940 K, N2/O2, Ar/O2 and CO2/O2) on the flame characteristics of hydrogen jet were investigated experimentally and numerically based on a controllable active thermal-atmosphere burner. The effects of different diluents on flame liftoff height and luminosity were quantitatively analyzed and the different luminosity of the hydrogen jet flame under different dilution gas atmosphere was explained with the chemical reaction kinetics. Different critical temperatures exist in different atmospheres. The flame luminosity is in the increasing order of CO2/O2-, Ar/O2- and N2/O2-atmosphere. The analysis speculates that CO2* is generated in the flame of CO2/O2-atmosphere. The difference in axial velocity and mixture fraction under different dilution gas atmospheres is mainly influenced by the thermal atmosphere and the physical properties of the dilution gas, which also has a great influence on the jet before the autoignition occurs.

Radiation Model of Horizontal Jet Flame Governed by Buoyancy and Momentum

AbstractBuoyancy causes a horizontal jet flame to bend upward when it loses sufficient initial momentum. Therefore, the variation in flame trajectory must be considered to accurately predict the thermal radiant flux of a horizontal jet flame governed by buoyancy and momentum. We introduce the flame trajectory equation into the linear source equation of radiation to establish a new model. The flame length ratio is calculated by flame trajectory length, horizontal projected flame length, and vertical projected flame height in the new model. This paper also presents a formula for flame lift-off distance and flame radiant fraction. We further list the geometric parameters of the horizontal-kite shape, tile-kite shape, and flame trajectory models. Comparing the experimental data and model predictions shows that the flame trajectory model is more accurate than the horizontal-kite and tile-kite models, especially when the Froude number is low. We also study the effects of flame lift-off distance and flame length ratio on predictive accuracy. The flame trajectory model computes quickly, and a normal laptop computer needs only 1.08 s to get a picture with 24,000 data points.

Experimental study on the flame stability and color characterization of cylindrical premixed perforated burner of condensing boiler by image processing method

In this paper, a cylindrical premixed perforated burner which is mostly used in condensing boilers is investigated by image processing methods. The burner is experimentally analyzed in its operating heating capacities (11.7–17.1 kW) and equivalence ratios (0.4–1.2). Flame properties were studied using digital images by CCD camera and color processing techniques. The method devised a procedure for finding a reliable relation between a digital image color and flame characteristics in the visible wavelength domain. It is observed that by decreasing the equivalence ratio from 1.2 to 0.4, the flame color changed from green with yellow and then blue. Besides, flame lift-off and blow off were also observed. Lower flammability limit is in the equivalence ratio of 0.44. The optimum conditions of the burner, which is defined by the stable blue flame, are found in the equivalence ratio of 0.7–0.73. Moreover, RGB analysis is used to find the stable operation of the burner. This stable optimum condition can be defined as the intersection of two intensities’ component of Red and Blue in image processing of the flame.

Blowout of non-premixed turbulent jet flames with coflow under microgravity condition

The blowout behavior of non-premixed turbulent coflow jet flames under microgravity environment was studied experimentally by utilizing a 3.6 s drop tower. Variations of flames leading to liftoff as well as blowout were examined by varying the coflow velocity and compared with those obtained under the normal gravity condition. A modeling work was conducted to incorporate the effects of the gravity (buoyancy) and coflow velocity on blowout behavior. Major findings include: (1) the flame length in microgravity was longer than that in normal gravity and decreased with increasing coflow velocity. The flame in microgravity showed more intense yellow luminosity with larger sooting zone; (2) the flame liftoff height increased with increasing coflow velocity in both gravity levels. The flame base was closer to the burner in microgravity as compared with that in normal gravity; (3) the blowout velocity in microgravity was appreciably larger than that obtained in normal gravity; and (4) a physical model based on Damköhler number was developed by using similarity solutions to characterize the differences in the blowout limits considering both the coflow and gravity (buoyancy) effects. The proposed model can successfully predict the experimental data. This work provided new data and basic scaling analysis for blowout limit of non-premixed turbulent jet flames considering both the coflow and gravity (buoyancy) effects.

Numerical assessment of MILD combustion enhancement through plasma actuator

One promising solution to achieve moderate or intense low-oxygen dilution (MILD) combustion under lower temperatures may be using non-equilibrium plasma discharge. Plasma assisted combustion can extend the flammability limits by reducing the auto-ignition temperature of the reactants and can be a great approach to achieve steady MILD combustion under extreme conditions through decreasing ignition delay time. In particular, the influence of the outlet flows from a co-flowing cylindrical dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) on the CH4/N2 combustion under MILD combustion has been investigated numerically through some simplifications on plasma discharge. A three streams coaxial burner are modeled in a 2D-axisymmetric computational domain by a steady state approach. On the whole, different effects of simplified non-equilibrium plasma discharging, fuel dilution, and oxygen concentration of the preheated oxidizer on MILD combustion regimes are studied. It is found that applying the plasma discharge to the flame region, leads to an intensification of the reaction zone, increment of the rate of heat release by around a factor of 3, and 30% reduction of flame lift-off. Different aspects of plasma effect through chemical kinetics, mixing, and thermal heating on MILD combustion are investigated. Apart from all the benefits of plasma such as improving the mixing, it has a momentous impact on both the reaction zone length and its diameter via improving the ignition delay time.

A novel combined baffle-cavity micro-combustor configuration for Micro-Thermo-Photo-Voltaic applications

The major issues of Micro-Thermo-Photo-Voltaic (MTPV) micro-combustors are flame instabilities, which narrow the operational range, and non-uniform wall temperature, which lowers the overall efficiency. The purpose of the present research is to propose a novel micro-combustor with combined baffle and cavity configuration to address these issues. For this aim, a numerical modeling approach is validated and used. The performance of the improved combustor is compared with another recent baffle-bluff configuration. It is shown that the novel design improves the average wall temperature by 36.4 K and mitigates its standard deviation by 13.4 K. Moreover, using the optimal baffle thickness, these enhancements can be augmented by 4% raise of average wall temperature, 62% increase of temperature uniformity, and 20% reduction in overall emission. The baffle length of 0.6 times the combustor length and thickness of 0.0625 times the baffle spacing result in the optimal operation due to the flame lift-off in the upstream direction. According to the sensitivity analysis, the most effective geometrical parameters are the baffle length and thickness. It is expected that using this novel micro-combustor with optimized design parameters improves the overall efficiency of MTPV systems.

Optical investigation of mixing-controlled combustion using a novel transgenic plant oil

Fuels derived from plant oils hold promise as alternatives to petroleum-derived fuels due to their renewable production strategies, and potential to reduce net carbon emissions. Due to their high viscosity and cloud point, and low volatility however, direct use of plant oils in engines, without transesterification, poses a challenge. Recently, genetic modification has been used to alter plant lipid biosynthesis, producing novel oils that may overcome some of these challenges. In this study, 3-acetyl-1, 2-diacyl-sn-glycerol (Ac-TAG), extracted from a strain of transgenic Camelina Sativa, was studied in an optically-accessible diesel engine. Simultaneous high-speed shadowgraphy and OH* chemiluminescence imaging data were collected to obtain measurements of jet development, liquid penetration, ignition location, and flame liftoff length. A conventional diesel fuel and untransformed neat camelina oil were run at the same conditions as the Ac-TAG fuel for comparison. Even though the Ac-TAG fuel had significantly lower viscosity than the neat camelina oil, no significant differences were observed between Ac-TAG and neat camelina oil in any of the quantities studied. Relative to diesel, the biofuels had greater liquid penetration, shorter liftoff lengths and ignition delay, and consistently ignited farther upstream.

Static Flame Stability of Circumferentially Arranged Fuel Port Inverse Jet Non-Premixed Flame Burner

ABSTRACT This paper presents experimental studies on flame appearance and static flame stability characteristics of inverse jet flame (IJF) using a circumferentially arranged fuel port (CAFP) burner by following two different methods, namely, Protocol I and Protocol II. In the case of Protocol I, experiments are conducted for a fixed air flow rate, by varying fuel flow rate whereas, in the case of Protocol II, by varying air flow rate for a fixed fuel flow rate. In Protocol I, the flame is lifted off from the burner rim unlike in Protocol II. Moreover, the flame base becomes unstable at higher fuel flow rate before the occurrence of flame liftoff for Protocol I. Momentum flux ratio (MFR) and overall equivalence ratio parameters are considered to obtain insights on the phenomenon with variation of flame liftoff height in CAFP-based IJF burner. An attempt has also been made to analyze the hysteresis effect on the flame liftoff. In contrast to the normal jet diffusion flame, the hysteresis effect is observed at lower MFR, and is absent particularly when the base flame gets strongly anchored to the burner rim for higher MFR. On the other hand, in Protocol II, with an increase in air velocity, the inverse jet diffusion flame is no longer diffusion controlled, rather mixing controlled. In addition, the flame blowoff for Protocol I is attributed to occurrence of leaner overall equivalence ratio obtained by reduction of fuel flow rate whereas global strain rate governs flame blowout for Protocol II. In addition to flame blowout and liftoff, the main flame for Protocol II experiences local extinction and re-ignition at certain conditions with increase in the global strain rate at certain threshold value. In addition, semi-empirical correlations based on Peclet number for main flame extinction, flame blowout and flame blowoff are proposed in the present study which can be employed for designing CAFP-based IJF-based combustor system.

Experimental data-based reduced-order model for analysis and prediction of flame transition in gas turbine combustors

In lean premixed combustors, flame stabilisation is an important operational concern that can affect efficiency, robustness and pollutant formation. The focus of this paper is on flame lift-off and re-attachment to the nozzle of a swirl combustor. Using time-resolved experimental measurements, a data-driven approach known as cluster-based reduced-order modelling (CROM) is employed to (1) isolate key flow patterns and their sequence during the flame transitions, and (2) formulate a forecasting model to predict the flame instability. The flow patterns isolated by the CROM methodology confirm some of the experimental conclusions about the flame transition mechanism. In particular, CROM highlights the key role of the precessing vortex core (PVC) in the flame detachment process in an unsupervised manner. For the attachment process, strong flow recirculation far from the nozzle appears to drive the flame upstream, thus initiating re-attachment. Different data-types (velocity field, OH concentration) were processed by the modelling tool, and the predictive capabilities of these different models are also compared. It was found that the swirling velocity possesses the best predictive properties, which gives a supplemental argument for the role of the PVC in causing the flame transition. The model is tested against unseen data and successfully predicts the probability of flame transition (both detachment and attachment) when trained with swirling velocity with minimal user input. The model trained with OH-PLIF data was only successful at predicting the flame attachment, which implies that different physical mechanisms are present for different types of flame transition. Overall, these aspects show the great potential of data-driven methods, particularly probabilistic forecasting techniques, in analysing and predicting large-scale features in complex turbulent combustion problems.

Application of deep artificial neural networks to multi-dimensional flamelet libraries and spray flames

The “curse of dimensionality” has limited the applicability and expansion of tabulated combustion models. While the tabulated flamelet model and other multi-dimensional manifold approaches have shown predictive capability, the associated tabulation involves the storage of large lookup tables, requiring large memory as well as multi-dimensional interpolation subroutines, all implemented during runtime. This work investigates the use of deep artificial neural networks to replace lookup tables in order to reduce the memory footprint and increase the computational speed of tabulated flamelets and related approaches. Specifically, different strategic approaches to training the artificial neural network models are explored and a grouped multi-target artificial neural network is introduced, which takes advantage of the ability of artificial neural networks to map an input space to multiple targets by classifying the species based on their correlation to one another. The grouped multi-target artificial neural network approach is validated by applying it to an n-dodecane spray flame using conditions of the Spray A flame from the Engine Combustion Network and comparing global flame characteristics for different ambient conditions using a well-established large-eddy simulation framework. The same framework is then extended to the simulations of methyl decanoate combustion in a compression ignition engine. The validation studies show that the grouped multi-target artificial neural networks are able to accurately capture flame liftoff, autoignition, two-stage heat release and other quantitative trends over a range of conditions. The use of neural networks in conjunction with the grouping mechanism as performed in the grouped multi-target artificial neural network produces a significant reduction in the memory footprint and computational costs for the code and, thus, widens the operating envelope for higher fidelity engine simulations with detailed mechanisms.

Observations on the Role of Auto-Ignition in Flame Stabilization in Turbulent Non-Premixed Jet Flames in Vitiated Coflow

Turbulent combustion of non-premixed jets issuing into a vitiated coflow is studied at coflow temperatures that do not significantly exceed the fuel auto-ignition temperatures, with the objective of observing the global features of lifted flames in this operating temperature regime and the role played by auto-ignition in flame stabilization. Three distinct modes of flame base motions are identified, which include a fluctuating lifted flame base (mode A), avalanche downstream motion of the flame base (mode B), and the formation and propagation of auto-ignition kernels (mode C). Reducing the confinement length of the hot coflow serves to highlight the role of auto-ignition in flame stabilization when the flame is subjected to destabilization by ambient air entrainment. The influence of auto-ignition is further assessed by computing ignition delay times for homogeneous CH4/air mixtures using chemical kinetic simulations and comparing them against the flow transit time corresponding to mean flame liftoff height of the bulk flame base. It is inferred from these studies that while auto-ignition is an active flame stabilization mechanism in this regime, the effect of turbulence may be crucial in determining the importance of auto-ignition toward stabilizing the flame at the conditions studied. An experimental investigation of auto-ignition characteristics at various jet Reynolds numbers reveals that turbulence appears to have a suppressing effect on the active role of auto-ignition in flame stabilization.

Lift-off flames of propane under a variety of co-flow conditions

This study aimed at understanding the effects of co-flow condition on lift-off characteristics of the propane jet flame. A co-flow burner system was used to provide free jet condition, air co-flow condition and vitiated co-flow condition. In vitiated co-flow, methane was the co-flow fuel, and the co-flow equivalence ratios of methane/air mixtures changed from 0.5 to 0.7. On the basis of the results, the flame issuing into air-co-flow showed a higher lift-off height compared to the flame not issuing into a co-flow (i.e. free jet condition), with a faster increment rate simultaneously. In the vitiated co-flow condition, a conversion of lift-off height changing tendency was observed with the increment of flow rate and equivalence ratio of the co-flow. As the cases remained the same equivalence ratio, the cases with lower co-flow rates showed higher lift-off heights in the early combustion period. The lift-off height increased with the equivalence ratio in the cases with low co-flow rate, however, it decreased at high co-flow rate. It could be observed in the captured images that the ignition process was accelerated with the increment of equivalence ratio and co-flow rate.

A Novel In Situ Flamelet Tabulation Methodology for the Representative Interactive Flamelet Model

ABSTRACTA priori flamelet tabulation methods have been used extensively to model premixed and non-premixed combustion in Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) and large Eddy simulations (LES). Pre-tabulation of flamelet libraries have led to significant cost reduction of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations. However, these tabulation methods rely on certain simplifying assumptions. The dimensionality of the flamelet manifolds and size of flamelet libraries are also constrained due to memory and computational limitations. This limits the applicability and predictive capability of flamelet models. The traditional representative interactive flamelet (RIF) approach with multiple flamelets on the other hand involves online solution of flamelet equations and presumed probability density function (PDF) integration at each computational cell, making it attractive but computationally expensive and not suitable for LES with large cell counts. The current work discusses the development of a novel methodology that combines the advantages of an online flamelet solver along with the computational efficacy of tabulated models. The novel in situ tabulation approach consists of creating a flamelet table at each computational time step using the unsteady flamelet equations. The flamelets are then integrated in real time based on their respective scalar dissipation rate histories. This approach is capable of including history effects and unsteady chemical kinetic effects as it involves the online solution of unsteady flamelets. Implementation and comprehensive validation of the new framework is carried out against gas-jet flames as well as spray flames at high pressures. The approach is first validated for a partially premixed methane gas-jet flame in a RANS framework. The temperature and species mass fractions are compared against experimental results at different locations of a lifted flame. The approach is able to capture the transient flame characteristics. The model is then validated against an n-dodecane spray flame at high pressures in an LES framework with a 103-species n-dodecane chemistry mechanism. The model is able to capture ignition delays and flame liftoff of the n-dodecane spray over varying ambient temperature conditions. Due to the offsetting of presumed PDF integration cost, the proposed framework is shown to be faster than the traditional RIF approach, and the speedup over RIF increases with an increase in the cell count. This framework enables use of the RIF model for large cell count LES simulations.

Investigations on flame liftoff characteristics in liquid-kerosene fueled supersonic combustor equipped with thin strut

The flame characteristics of liftoff and attachment in supersonic combustor fueled with liquid kerosene were investigated by the methods of numerical simulation and experiment. A thin strut was equipped in the center of the combustor acting as the flame holder, and the function of fuel injection was also achieved by the thin strut. In the experimental and numerical conditions, the Mach number in the inlet of the combustor is 2.8, with the stagnation state of Tt=1680 K, Pt=1.87 MPa. The flame images during the experiment process are captured by high speed camera, with the camera parameter of 8000 frames per second, and the pressure distributions in the combustor are also recorded by the pressure sensors. Results show that the flame structure could be divided into two statuses, namely flame liftoff status and flame attachment status, and both the equivalence ratio and the plasma jet ignitor could make an influence on the flame status. By analyzing the flow field characteristics obtained by numerical simulation, the formation mechanism of the flame liftoff phenomenon is discussed, and the flame status depends on both the fuel premixed process and flame propagation characteristics. Further, to investigate the influence of equivalence ratio on the flame liftoff characteristic, an experiment with a linearly increasing equivalence ratio from 0.3 to 0.76 is conducted. The hysteresis of flame liftoff distance is found in different equivalence ratio changing paths, and the path response characteristics are probed. The conclusions of this article is helpful for having an understanding of propagation process and revealing the combustion stabilization mechanism in the thin strut-equipped scramjet combustor.

The influence of fuel type and partial premixing on the structure and behaviour of turbulent autoigniting flames

This paper explores turbulent autoignition and flame stabilisation for a range of fuels, utilising a jet in a hot coflow burner. Jet fuels including: hydrogen, dimethyl ether and hydrocarbons ranging from CH4 to C4H8 are investigated with the influence of partial premixing, dilution and hot coflow temperature. Simultaneous acoustic emission measurements and high-speed chemiluminescence imaging at 10 kHz are performed; investigating the flame lift-off dynamics and to study the initiation and evolution of autoignition kernels. For all fuels studied, a common trend is found for increasing coflow temperatures; where a transition from high lift-off flames exhibiting an autoignition kernel dominated flame stabilisation mechanism, to lower lift-off flames exhibiting a premixed flame propagation stabilisation mechanism. Three key findings are reported: (i) common to all fuels studied for the high lift-off flames, the lift-off height vs. time follows a sawtooth-like trend. The leading edge of the main flame body (flame base) drifts downstream with near constant velocity, whilst upstream of the flame base autoignition kernels form and grow rapidly merging with the flame base; thereby lowering the tip of the flame base. (ii) High amplitude acoustic emission events correlate well with auto-ignition kernel flame base merging events for high lift-off flames, for the fuels studied. The ethylene flames produced the highest sound levels for a given mean lift-off height. (iii) In the high lift-off height regime, the lift-off height for all fuels scales well with corresponding simple 0-D auto-ignition delay calculations. The good correlation of the lift-off height scaling with the computed autionition delay implies that chemical kinetics, rather than turbulent mixing controls the processes at the base of these flames for higher lift-off height flames, indicating that autoignition is the dominant stabilising mode.

The role of strain rate, local extinction, and hydrodynamic instability on transition between attached and lifted swirl flames

The coupling between fluid strain rate, local flame extinction, hydrodynamic instability, and flame lift-off was studied in premixed swirl flames using multi-kHz repetition-rate OH* chemiluminescence (CL), OH planar laser induced fluorescence (PLIF), and stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (S-PIV). Over 50 different combinations of fuel composition (CH4/H2 ratio), equivalence ratio, and reactant preheat temperature were studied, allowing systematic variation of the reactant-to-product density ratio, laminar flame speed, and Lewis number. Depending on the test conditions, the flame could either be stably attached to the nozzle, stably lifted, or intermittently transitioning between attached and lifted states. Transition between stabilization states was linked with the transition between convective instability and absolute instability at the flame base; formation of an m=1 (m denotes the azimuthal wavenumber) globally unstable wave was associated with the lifted flame, which was manifested by a helical precessing vortex core (PVC). The minimum bulk velocity at which the flame was stably lifted was linearly correlated with the laminar flame extinction strain rate, while none of the other commonly reported key parameters governing hydrodynamic instability was able to collapse the data alone. Hence, lift-off was associated with a relatively constant Damköhler number based on the bulk fluid strain rate and extinction strain rate. The roles of local strain and extinction on the transition process were further elucidated by the cases with intermittent lift-off/reattachment. The probability of the flame being in the lifted state was roughly linearly correlated with the degree of local extinction at the flame base while the flame was still in the attached state. Moreover, this probability also was linearly related to the ratio of fluid-dynamic strain rate to extinction strain rate, but not the fluid-dynamic strain rate itself. These results demonstrate the importance of predicting extinction and hydrodynamic stability for predicting the attachment state of swirl flames.

A Large Eddy Simulation Study on the Effect of Devolatilization Modelling and Char Combustion Mode Modelling on the Structure of a Large-Scale, Biomass and Coal Co-Fired Flame

This work focuses on the impact of the devolatilization and char combustion mode modelling on the structure of a large-scale, biomass and coal co-fired flame using large eddy simulations. The coal modelling framework previously developed for the simulation of combustion in large-scale facilities is extended for biomass capabilities. An iterative procedure is used to obtain devolatilization kinetics of coal and biomass for the test-case specific fuels and heating conditions. This is achieved by calibrating the model constants of two empirical models: the single first-order model and the distributed activation energy model. The reference data for calibration are devolatilization yields obtained with predictive coal and biomass multistep kinetic mechanisms. The variation of both particle density and diameter during char combustion is governed by the conversion mode, which is modelled using two approaches: the power law using a constant parameter that assumes a constant mode during char combustion and a constant-free model that considers a variable mode during combustion. Three numerical cases are considered: single first-order reaction with constant char combustion mode, distributed activation energy with constant char combustion mode, and single first-order reaction with variable char combustion mode. The numerical predictions from the large eddy simulations are compared with experimental results of a high co-firing rate large-scale laboratory flame of coal and biomass. Furthermore, results from single particle conversion under idealised conditions, isolating the effects of turbulence, are presented to assist the interpretation of the predictions obtained with large eddy simulations. The effects of the devolatilization and conversion mode modelling on the flame lift-off, flame length, and spatial distribution and radial profiles of O2 and CO2 are presented and discussed. Both the devolatilization and conversion mode modelling have a significant effect on the conversion of particles under idealised conditions. The large eddy simulations results show that the devolatilization model has a strong impact on the flame structure, but not on the flame lift-off. On the other hand, for the tested numerical conditions, the char combustion mode model has a marginal impact on the predicted results.

Modelling compression ignition engines by incorporation of the flamelet generated manifolds combustion closure

Tabulated chemistry models allow to include detailed chemistry effects at low cost in numerical simulations of reactive flows. Characteristics of the reactive fluid flows are described by a reduced set of parameters that are representative of the flame structure at small scales so-called flamelets. For a specific turbulent combustion configuration, flamelet combustion closure, with proper formulation of the flame structure can be applied. In this study, flamelet generated manifolds (FGM) combustion closure with progress variable approach were incorporated with OpenFOAM® source code to model combustion within compression ignition engines. For IC engine applications, multi-dimensional flamelet look-up tables for counter flow diffusive flame configuration were generated. Source terms of non-premixed combustion configuration in flamelet domain were tabulated based on pressure, temperature of unburned mixture, mixture fraction, and progress variable. A new frozen flamelet method was introduced to link one dimensional reaction diffusion space to multi-dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) physical space to fulfill correct modelling of thermal state of the engine at expansion stroke when charge composition was changed after combustion and reaction rates were subsided. Predictability of the developed numerical framework were evaluated for Sandia Spray A (constant volume vessel), Spray B (light duty optical Diesel engine), and a heavy duty Diesel engine experiments under Reynolds averaged Navier Stokes turbulence formulation. Results showed that application of multi-dimensional FGM combustion closure can comprehensively predict key parameters such as: ignition delay, in-cylinder pressure, apparent heat release rate, flame lift-off , and flame structure in Diesel engines.

An experimental/numerical investigation of the role of the quarl in enhancing the blowout limits of swirl-stabilized turbulent non-premixed flames

The blowout limits of methane/air non-premixed swirl-stabilized flames were measured with and without quarl. The addition of a quarl significantly enhances the flame blowout limits. The transition from attached flame to blowout was mapped. To explore the role of the quarl, a series of OH-PLIF/PIV experiments, coupled with large eddy simulations (LES) using a transported probability density function (PDF) model, were carried out on flames with and without quarl over a wide range of fuel jet velocity, Uf. The results show that the mean flow field is characterized by two recirculation zones. The existence of the quarl enhances this flow field by triggering a larger scale of reversal flow, penetrating deeply upstream into the quarl. This results in much earlier fuel, extending down into the air tube, where a diffusion flame is stabilized around the stoichiometric mixture contour and locally low scalar dissipation rates. The relative delay in fuel/air mixing in non-quarl flames results in a locally strong scalar dissipation rate layer overlapping the stoichiometric mixture contour, and thus, the flame is highly sensitive to local extinction with increasing fuel jet velocity. At high Uf, in the liftoff flame region, the existence of the quarl enhances the jet spreading and a weak recirculation zone around the highly strained jet is observed. Together with fuel jet spreading, partial oxidization of the mixture upstream the lifted flame base creates a wider range of burnable mixture along the axis in the quarl flames. On the contrary, the high scalar dissipation rate and the absence of a recirculation region in the proximity of the fuel nozzle in the non-quarl flame give rise to an earlier blowout.