Use of Adaptive Injection Strategies to Increase the Full Load Limit of RCCI Operation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hanson, Reed; Ickes, Andrew; Wallner, Thomas

Dual-fuel combustion using port-injection of low reactivity fuel combined with direct injection (DI) of a higher reactivity fuel, otherwise known as reactivity controlled compression ignition (RCCI), has been shown as a method to achieve low-temperature combustion with moderate peak pressure rise rates, low engine-out soot and NOx emissions, and high indicated thermal efficiency. A key requirement for extending to high-load operation is moderating the reactivity of the premixed charge prior to the diesel injection. One way to accomplish this is to use a very low reactivity fuel such as natural gas. In this work, experimental testing was conducted on amore » 13 l multicylinder heavy-duty diesel engine modified to operate using RCCI combustion with port injection of natural gas and DI of diesel fuel. Engine testing was conducted at an engine speed of 1200 rpm over a wide variety of loads and injection conditions. The impact on dual-fuel engine performance and emissions with respect to varying the fuel injection parameters is quantified within this study. The injection strategies used in the work were found to affect the combustion process in similar ways to both conventional diesel combustion (CDC) and RCCI combustion for phasing control and emissions performance. As the load is increased, the port fuel injection (PFI) quantity was reduced to keep peak cylinder pressure (PCP) and maximum pressure rise rate (MPRR) under the imposed limits. Overall, the peak load using the new injection strategy was shown to reach 22 bar brake mean effective pressure (BMEP) with a peak brake thermal efficiency (BTE) of 47.6%.« less

Regional Influence of Aerosol Emissions from Wildfires Driven by Combustion Efficiency: Insights from the BBOP Campaign

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Collier, Sonya; Zhou, Shan; Onasch, Timothy B.

Wildfires are important contributors to atmospheric aerosols and a large source of emissions that impact regional air quality and global climate. In this study, the regional and nearfield influences of wildfire emissions on ambient aerosol concentration and chemical properties in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States were studied using real-time measurements from a fixed ground site located in Central Oregon at the Mt. Bachelor Observatory (~2700 m a.s.l.) as well as near their sources using an aircraft. In addition, the regional characteristics of biomass burning aerosols were found to depend strongly on the modified combustion efficiency (MCE), anmore » index of the combustion processes of a fire. Organic aerosol emissions had negative correlations with MCE, whereas the oxidation state of organic aerosol increased with MCE and plume aging. The relationships between the aerosol properties and MCE were consistent between fresh emissions (~1 h old) and emissions sampled after atmospheric transport (6–45 h), suggesting that biomass burning organic aerosol concentration and chemical properties were strongly influenced by combustion processes at the source and conserved to a significant extent during regional transport. In conclusion, these results suggest that MCE can be a useful metric for describing aerosol properties of wildfire emissions and their impacts on regional air quality and global climate.« less

Regional Influence of Aerosol Emissions from Wildfires Driven by Combustion Efficiency: Insights from the BBOP Campaign

DOE PAGES

Collier, Sonya; Zhou, Shan; Onasch, Timothy B.; ...

2016-07-11

Wildfires are important contributors to atmospheric aerosols and a large source of emissions that impact regional air quality and global climate. In this study, the regional and nearfield influences of wildfire emissions on ambient aerosol concentration and chemical properties in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States were studied using real-time measurements from a fixed ground site located in Central Oregon at the Mt. Bachelor Observatory (~2700 m a.s.l.) as well as near their sources using an aircraft. In addition, the regional characteristics of biomass burning aerosols were found to depend strongly on the modified combustion efficiency (MCE), anmore » index of the combustion processes of a fire. Organic aerosol emissions had negative correlations with MCE, whereas the oxidation state of organic aerosol increased with MCE and plume aging. The relationships between the aerosol properties and MCE were consistent between fresh emissions (~1 h old) and emissions sampled after atmospheric transport (6–45 h), suggesting that biomass burning organic aerosol concentration and chemical properties were strongly influenced by combustion processes at the source and conserved to a significant extent during regional transport. In conclusion, these results suggest that MCE can be a useful metric for describing aerosol properties of wildfire emissions and their impacts on regional air quality and global climate.« less

Forest Fire Smoldering Emissions from Ponderosa Pine Duff in Central Washington

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baker, S. P.; Lincoln, E.; Page, W.; Richardson, M.

2017-12-01

Forest fire smoldering combustion is a significant contribution to pollution and carbon emissions. Smoldering combustion produces the majority of carbon monoxide (CO), methane (CH4), volatile organic compounds (VOC), and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emitted by forest fires when it occurs. The emission factor for PM2.5 and many VOCs are correlated with the modified combustion efficiency (MCE), which is the ratio of CO2 emitted, to the sum of emitted CO2 and CO. MCE is a measure of the relative ratio of flaming and smoldering combustion, but its relationship to the physical fire process is poorly studied. We measured carbon emission rates and individual emission factors for CO, CO2, CH4, and VOC's from smoldering combustion on Ponderosa pine /Douglas-Fir forest sites in central Washington. The emission factor results are linked with concurrent thermal measurements made at various depths in the duff and surface IR camera imagery. The MCE value ranged from .80 to .91 and are correlated with emission factors for 24 carbon compounds. Other data collected were fuel moistures and duff temperatures at depth increments. This goal of this research is the creation of a database to better predict the impacts of air pollution resulting from burns leading to smoldering combustion.

Amide and Ester-Functionalized Humic Acid for Fuel Combustion Enhancement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riggs, Mark

Humic acid is a class of naturally occurring molecules composed of large sheet-like regions of cyclic aromatic hydrocarbon networks with surface and edge functional groups including phenols, carboxylic acids, and epoxides. These naturally occurring molecules are found in brown coal deposits near lignite formations. Humic acid has gained attention from the scientific community as a precursor for graphene. Graphene is a 2-dimensional honeycomb structure of fully unsaturated carbon atoms that has exceptional material properties and inherent aromaticity. Graphene's incredible properties are matched by the difficulty associated with reproducibly manufacturing it on a large scale. This issue has limited the use of graphene for commercial applications. The polar functional groups of humic acid contribute to the hydrophilic nature of the molecule, limiting its miscibility in any alkyl-based solvent. Surfactants containing long alkyl chains can affect the miscibility of the molecule in an organic solvent. Surfactants are often difficult to remove from the system. It is theorized that alkylation of the functional sites of humic acid can affect the hydrophilic nature of the molecule, and effectively enable its dispersion into organic solvents without simultaneous incorporation of surfactants. This dissertation investigated the amidation and esterification of humic acid molecules extracted from leonardite. The resulting change in the modified humic acid dispersibility in organic solvents and its potential usage as a fuel additive were evaluated. Butyl, hexyl, octyl, and decyl amide-modified and ester-modified humic acids were synthesized. These products were characterized to confirm successful chemical reaction through thermogravimetric analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The decyl-modified humic acids remained suspended in kerosene mixtures for longer than 1 week. Other organo-humic acids showed varying degrees of flocculation. The modified humic acid samples were diluted with kerosene to identify the influence on combustion properties. Butyl-modified humic acid samples decreased the molar enthalpy of combustion. Hexyl, octyl, and decyl-modified humic acids improved the combustion values. Decyl amide-modified humic acid showed the largest improvement of these mixtures with a 0.9% increase from the expected molar enthalpy of combustion with a loading percentage of 0.36% in kerosene. Octyl amide-modified and octyl ester-modified humic acid mixtures were prepared in 0.05, 0.1, and 1% loading percentage dilutions to study the effect of modified humic acid loading percent on combustion properties. The 0.1% dilution showed the largest increase of the expected molar enthalpy of combustion by 1.14% and 0.4% for amide-modified HA and ester-modified HA, respectively.

Feasibility demonstration of a road vehicle fueled with hydrogen-enriched gasoline

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoehn, F. W.; Dowdy, M. W.

1974-01-01

Evaluation of the concept of using hydrogen-enriched gasoline in a modified internal combustion engine in order to make possible the burning of ultralean mixtures. The use of such an engine in a road vehicle demonstrated that the addition of small quantities of gaseous hydrogen to gasoline resulted in significant reductions in exhaust emissions of carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides as well as in thermal efficiency improvements of the engine performance.

Numerical analysis of combustion characteristics of hybrid rocket motor with multi-section swirl injection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Chengen; Cai, Guobiao; Tian, Hui

2016-06-01

This paper is aimed to analyse the combustion characteristics of hybrid rocket motor with multi-section swirl injection by simulating the combustion flow field. Numerical combustion flow field and combustion performance parameters are obtained through three-dimensional numerical simulations based on a steady numerical model proposed in this paper. The hybrid rocket motor adopts 98% hydrogen peroxide and polyethylene as the propellants. Multiple injection sections are set along the axis of the solid fuel grain, and the oxidizer enters the combustion chamber by means of tangential injection via the injector ports in the injection sections. Simulation results indicate that the combustion flow field structure of the hybrid rocket motor could be improved by multi-section swirl injection method. The transformation of the combustion flow field can greatly increase the fuel regression rate and the combustion efficiency. The average fuel regression rate of the motor with multi-section swirl injection is improved by 8.37 times compared with that of the motor with conventional head-end irrotational injection. The combustion efficiency is increased to 95.73%. Besides, the simulation results also indicate that (1) the additional injection sections can increase the fuel regression rate and the combustion efficiency; (2) the upstream offset of the injection sections reduces the combustion efficiency; and (3) the fuel regression rate and the combustion efficiency decrease with the reduction of the number of injector ports in each injection section.

Theoretical and observational assessments of flare efficiencies.

PubMed

Leahey, D M; Preston, K; Strosher, M

2001-12-01

Flaring of waste gases is a common practice in the processing of hydrocarbon (HC) materials. It is assumed that flaring achieves complete combustion with relatively innocuous byproducts such as CO2 and H2O. However, flaring is rarely successful in the attainment of complete combustion, because entrainment of air into the region of combusting gases restricts flame sizes to less than optimum values. The resulting flames are too small to dissipate the amount of heat associated with 100% combustion efficiency. Equations were employed to estimate flame lengths, areas, and volumes as functions of flare stack exit velocity, stoichiometric mixing ratio, and wind speed. Heats released as part of the combustion process were then estimated from a knowledge of the flame dimensions together with an assumed flame temperature of 1200 K. Combustion efficiencies were subsequently obtained by taking the ratio of estimated actual heat release values to those associated with 100% complete combustion. Results of the calculations showed that combustion efficiencies decreased rapidly as wind speed increased from 1 to 6 m/sec. As wind speeds increased beyond 6 m/sec, combustion efficiencies tended to level off at values between 10 and 15%. Propane and ethane tend to burn more efficiently than do methane or hydrogen sulfide because of their lower stoichiometric mixing ratios. Results of theoretical predictions were compared to nine values of local combustion efficiencies obtained as part of an observational study into flaring activity conducted by the Alberta Research Council (ARC). All values were obtained during wind speed conditions of less than 4 m/sec. There was generally good agreement between predicted and observed values. The mean and standard deviation of observed combustion efficiencies were 68 +/- 7%. Comparable predicted values were 69 +/- 7%.

Emission Modeling of an Interturbine Burner Based on Flameless Combustion

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Since its discovery, the flameless combustion (FC) regime has been a promising alternative to reduce pollutant emissions of gas turbine engines. This combustion mode is characterized by well-distributed reaction zones, which potentially decreases temperature gradients, acoustic oscillations, and NOx emissions. Its attainment within gas turbine engines has proved to be challenging because previous design attempts faced limitations related to operational range and combustion efficiency. Along with an aircraft conceptual design, the AHEAD project proposed a novel hybrid engine. One of the key features of the proposed hybrid engine is the use of two combustion chambers, with the second combustor operating in the FC mode. This novel configuration would allow the facilitation of the attainment of the FC regime. The conceptual design was adapted to a laboratory scale combustor that was tested at elevated temperature and atmospheric pressure. In the current work, the emission behavior of this scaled combustor is analyzed using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and chemical reactor network (CRN). The CFD was able to provide information with the flow field in the combustor, while the CRN was used to model and predict emissions. The CRN approach allowed the analysis of the NOx formation pathways, indicating that the prompt NOx was the dominant pathway in the combustor. The combustor design can be improved by modifying the mixing between fuel and oxidizer as well as the split between combustion and dilution air. PMID:29910533

Thermal radiation transfer calculations in combustion fields using the SLW model coupled with a modified reference approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Darbandi, Masoud; Abrar, Bagher

2018-01-01

The spectral-line weighted-sum-of-gray-gases (SLW) model is considered as a modern global model, which can be used in predicting the thermal radiation heat transfer within the combustion fields. The past SLW model users have mostly employed the reference approach to calculate the local values of gray gases' absorption coefficient. This classical reference approach assumes that the absorption spectra of gases at different thermodynamic conditions are scalable with the absorption spectrum of gas at a reference thermodynamic state in the domain. However, this assumption cannot be reasonable in combustion fields, where the gas temperature is very different from the reference temperature. Consequently, the results of SLW model incorporated with the classical reference approach, say the classical SLW method, are highly sensitive to the reference temperature magnitude in non-isothermal combustion fields. To lessen this sensitivity, the current work combines the SLW model with a modified reference approach, which is a particular one among the eight possible reference approach forms reported recently by Solovjov, et al. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jqsrt.2017.01.034, 2017]. The combination is called "modified SLW method". This work shows that the modified reference approach can provide more accurate total emissivity calculation than the classical reference approach if it is coupled with the SLW method. This would be particularly helpful for more accurate calculation of radiation transfer in highly non-isothermal combustion fields. To approve this, we use both the classical and modified SLW methods and calculate the radiation transfer in such fields. It is shown that the modified SLW method can almost eliminate the sensitivity of achieved results to the chosen reference temperature in treating highly non-isothermal combustion fields.

Emissions of trace gases from Australian temperate forest fires: emission factors and dependence on modified combustion efficiency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guérette, Elise-Andrée; Paton-Walsh, Clare; Desservettaz, Maximilien; Smith, Thomas E. L.; Volkova, Liubov; Weston, Christopher J.; Meyer, Carl P.

2018-03-01

We characterised trace gas emissions from Australian temperate forest fires through a mixture of open-path Fourier transform infrared (OP-FTIR) measurements and selective ion flow tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) and White cell FTIR analysis of grab samples. We report emission factors for a total of 25 trace gas species measured in smoke from nine prescribed fires. We find significant dependence on modified combustion efficiency (MCE) for some species, although regional differences indicate that the use of MCE as a proxy may be limited. We also find that the fire-integrated MCE values derived from our in situ on-the-ground open-path measurements are not significantly different from those reported for airborne measurements of smoke from fires in the same ecosystem. We then compare our average emission factors to those measured for temperate forest fires elsewhere (North America) and for fires in another dominant Australian ecosystem (savanna) and find significant differences in both cases. Indeed, we find that although the emission factors of some species agree within 20 %, including those of hydrogen cyanide, ethene, methanol, formaldehyde and 1,3-butadiene, others, such as acetic acid, ethanol, monoterpenes, ammonia, acetonitrile and pyrrole, differ by a factor of 2 or more. This indicates that the use of ecosystem-specific emission factors is warranted for applications involving emissions from Australian forest fires.

An assessment of thermodynamic merits for current and potential future engine operating strategies

DOE PAGES

Wissink, Martin L.; Splitter, Derek A.; Dempsey, Adam B.; ...

2017-02-01

The present work compares the fundamental thermodynamic underpinnings (i.e., working fluid properties and heat release profile) of various combustion strategies with engine measurements. The approach employs a model that separately tracks the impacts on efficiency due to differences in rate of heat addition, volume change, mass addition, and molecular weight change for a given combination of working fluid, heat release profile, and engine geometry. Comparative analysis between measured and modeled efficiencies illustrates fundamental sources of efficiency reductions or opportunities inherent to various combustion regimes. Engine operating regimes chosen for analysis include stoichiometric spark-ignited combustion and lean compression-ignited combustion including HCCI,more » SA-HCCI, RCCI, GCI, and CDC. Within each combustion regime, effects such as engine load, combustion duration, combustion phasing, combustion chamber geometry, fuel properties, and charge dilution are explored. Model findings illustrate that even in the absence of losses such as heat transfer or incomplete combustion, the maximum possible thermal efficiency inherent to each operating strategy varies to a significant degree. Additionally, the experimentally measured losses are observed to be unique within a given operating strategy. The findings highlight the fact that in order to create a roadmap for future directions in ICE technologies, it is important to not only compare the absolute real-world efficiency of a given combustion strategy, but to also examine the measured efficiency in context of what is thermodynamically possible with the working fluid and boundary conditions prescribed by a strategy.« less

An assessment of thermodynamic merits for current and potential future engine operating strategies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wissink, Martin L.; Splitter, Derek A.; Dempsey, Adam B.

The present work compares the fundamental thermodynamic underpinnings (i.e., working fluid properties and heat release profile) of various combustion strategies with engine measurements. The approach employs a model that separately tracks the impacts on efficiency due to differences in rate of heat addition, volume change, mass addition, and molecular weight change for a given combination of working fluid, heat release profile, and engine geometry. Comparative analysis between measured and modeled efficiencies illustrates fundamental sources of efficiency reductions or opportunities inherent to various combustion regimes. Engine operating regimes chosen for analysis include stoichiometric spark-ignited combustion and lean compression-ignited combustion including HCCI,more » SA-HCCI, RCCI, GCI, and CDC. Within each combustion regime, effects such as engine load, combustion duration, combustion phasing, combustion chamber geometry, fuel properties, and charge dilution are explored. Model findings illustrate that even in the absence of losses such as heat transfer or incomplete combustion, the maximum possible thermal efficiency inherent to each operating strategy varies to a significant degree. Additionally, the experimentally measured losses are observed to be unique within a given operating strategy. The findings highlight the fact that in order to create a roadmap for future directions in ICE technologies, it is important to not only compare the absolute real-world efficiency of a given combustion strategy, but to also examine the measured efficiency in context of what is thermodynamically possible with the working fluid and boundary conditions prescribed by a strategy.« less

Enhancing SNCR-aided combustion with oxygen addition

DOEpatents

Kobayashi, Hisashi; Wu, Kuang Tsai; Bool, III, Lawrence E.

2004-03-09

NOx emissions from combustion are reduced, NOx reduction efficiency by SNCR is improved, and other efficiencies are realized, by injecting oxygen into a fuel-rich combustion zone under controlled conditions.

Baseline tests of the EPC Hummingbird electric passenger vehicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Slavik, R. J.; Maslowski, E. A.; Sargent, N. B.; Birchenough, A. G.

1977-01-01

The rear-mounted internal combustion engine in a four-passenger Volkswagen Thing was replaced with an electric motor made by modifying an aircraft generator and powered by 12 heavy-duty, lead-acid battery modules. Vehicle performance tests were conducted to measure vehicle maximum speed, range at constant speed, range over stop-and-go driving schedules, maximum acceleration, gradeability limit, road energy consumption, road power, indicated energy consumption, braking capability, battery charger efficiency, and battery characteristics. Test results are presented in tables and charts.

Cavity Coupled Aeroramp Injector Combustion Study

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-08-01

Lin 5 Taitech Inc., Beavercreek, OH, 45430 The difficulties with fueling of supersonic combustion ramjet engines with hydrocarbon based fuels...combustor to not force the pre- combustion shock train out of the isolator and, in a full engine with inlet, cause an inlet unstart and likely...metric used to quantify engine performance is the combustion efficiency. Figure 9 shows the comparison of the combustion efficiency as a function of

Combustion-chamber Performance Characteristics of a Python Turbine-propeller Engine Investigated in Altitude Wind Tunnel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Campbell, Carl E

1951-01-01

Combustion-chamber performance characteristics of a Python turbine-propeller engine were determined from investigation of a complete engine over a range of engine speeds and shaft horsepowers at simulated altitudes. Results indicated the effect of engine operating conditions and altitude on combustion efficiency and combustion-chamber total pressure losses. Performance of this vaporizing type combustion chamber was also compared with several atomizing type combustion chambers. Over the range of test conditions investigated, combustion efficiency varied from approximately 0.95 to 0.99.

A Systematic Method for the Condition Assessment of Central Heating Plants in Air Force Logistics Command

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-09-01

Oil Combustion/Fuel System 59 Derivation of HTHW Plant Condition Indices ...... ................. .. 65 Distribution System . ........ .. 66 HTHW...with Load ..... ............... .. 54 3. Boiler Efficiency Curve for Gas Combustion . 61 4. Boiler Efficiency Curve for Oil Combustion . 62 v List of...147 6. Round One Relative Responses for Gas and Oil Combustion/Fue System .... ............ . 147 7. Round One Relative Responses for Coal - Combustion

Review of Membrane Oxygen Enrichment for Efficient Combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ariono, Danu; Kusuma Wardani, Anita

2017-07-01

Oxygen enrichment from air is a simple way of increasing the efficiency of combustion process, as in oxy-combustion. Oxy-combustion has become one of the most attracting combustion technologies because of its potential to address both pollutant reduction and CO2 capture. In oxy-combustion, the fuel and recycled flue gas are combusted with oxygen enriched air (OEA). By using OEA, many benefits can be obtained, such as increasing available heat, improving ignition characteristics, flue gas reduction, increasing productivity, energy efficiency, turndown ratio, and flame stability. Membrane-based gas separation for OEA production becomes an attractive technology over the conventional technology due to the some advantages, including low capital cost, low energy consumption, compact size, and modularity. A single pass through membrane usually can enrich O2 concentration in the air up to 35% and a 50% concentration can be achieved with a double pass of membrane. The use of OEA in the combustion process eliminates the presence of nitrogen in the flue gas. Hence, the flue gas is mainly composed of CO2 and condensable water that can be easily separated. This paper gives an overview of oxy-combustion with membrane technology for oxygen enrichment process. Special attention is given to OEA production and the effect of OEA to the efficiency of combustion.

Development of generalized pressure velocity coupling scheme for the analysis of compressible and incompressible combusting flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, C. P.; Wu, S. T.

1992-01-01

The objective of this investigation has been to develop an algorithm (or algorithms) for the improvement of the accuracy and efficiency of the computer fluid dynamics (CFD) models to study the fundamental physics of combustion chamber flows, which are necessary ultimately for the design of propulsion systems such as SSME and STME. During this three year study (May 19, 1978 - May 18, 1992), a unique algorithm was developed for all speed flows. This newly developed algorithm basically consists of two pressure-based algorithms (i.e. PISOC and MFICE). This PISOC is a non-iterative scheme and the FICE is an iterative scheme where PISOC has the characteristic advantages on low and high speed flows and the modified FICE has shown its efficiency and accuracy to compute the flows in the transonic region. A new algorithm is born from a combination of these two algorithms. This newly developed algorithm has general application in both time-accurate and steady state flows, and also was tested extensively for various flow conditions, such as turbulent flows, chemically reacting flows, and multiphase flows.

Detonation engine fed by acetylene-oxygen mixture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smirnov, N. N.; Betelin, V. B.; Nikitin, V. F.; Phylippov, Yu. G.; Koo, Jaye

2014-11-01

The advantages of a constant volume combustion cycle as compared to constant pressure combustion in terms of thermodynamic efficiency has focused the search for advanced propulsion on detonation engines. Detonation of acetylene mixed with oxygen in various proportions is studied using mathematical modeling. Simplified kinetics of acetylene burning includes 11 reactions with 9 components. Deflagration to detonation transition (DDT) is obtained in a cylindrical tube with a section of obstacles modeling a Shchelkin spiral; the DDT takes place in this section for a wide range of initial mixture compositions. A modified ka-omega turbulence model is used to simulate flame acceleration in the Shchelkin spiral section of the system. The results of numerical simulations were compared with experiments, which had been performed in the same size detonation chamber and turbulent spiral ring section, and with theoretical data on the Chapman-Jouguet detonation parameters.

Rocket injector anomalies study. Volume 1: Description of the mathematical model and solution procedure

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Przekwas, A. J.; Singhal, A. K.; Tam, L. T.

1984-01-01

The capability of simulating three dimensional two phase reactive flows with combustion in the liquid fuelled rocket engines is demonstrated. This was accomplished by modifying an existing three dimensional computer program (REFLAN3D) with Eulerian Lagrangian approach to simulate two phase spray flow, evaporation and combustion. The modified code is referred as REFLAN3D-SPRAY. The mathematical formulation of the fluid flow, heat transfer, combustion and two phase flow interaction of the numerical solution procedure, boundary conditions and their treatment are described.

Iridium-Coated Rhenium Combustion Chamber

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schneider, Steven J.; Tuffias, Robert H.; Rosenberg, Sanders D.

1994-01-01

Iridium-coated rhenium combustion chamber withstands operating temperatures up to 2,200 degrees C. Chamber designed to replace older silicide-coated combustion chamber in small rocket engine. Modified versions of newer chamber could be designed for use on Earth in gas turbines, ramjets, and scramjets.

On the Potential of Hydrogen-Powered Hydraulic Pumps for Soft Robotics.

PubMed

Desbiens, Alexandre B; Bigué, Jean-Philippe Lucking; Véronneau, Catherine; Masson, Patrice; Iagnemma, Karl; Plante, Jean-Sébastien

2017-12-01

To perform untethered operations, soft robots require mesoscale power units (10-1000 W) with high energy densities. In this perspective, air-breathing combustion offers an interesting alternative to battery-powered systems, provided sufficient overall energy conversion efficiency can be reached. Implementing efficient air-breathing combustion in mesoscale soft robots is notoriously difficult, however, as it requires optimization of very small combustion actuators and simultaneous minimization of fluidic (e.g., hydraulic) losses, which are both inversely impacted by actuations speeds. To overcome such challenges, this article proposes and evaluates the potential of hydrogen-powered, hydraulic free-piston pump architecture. Experimental data, taken from two combustion-driven prototypes, reveal (1) the fundamental role of using hydrogen as the source of fuel to reduce heat losses, (2) the significant impact of compression ratio, equivalence ratio, and surface-to-volume ratio on energy conversion efficiency, and (3) the importance of load matching between combustion and fluidic transmission. In this work, a small-bore combustion actuator demonstrated a 20% efficiency and a net mean output power of 26 W, while a big-bore combustion actuator reached a substantially higher efficiency of 35% and a net mean output power of 197 W. Using the small-bore combustion actuator, the hydrogen-powered, hydraulic free-piston pump provided a 4.6% overall efficiency for a 2.34 W net mean output power, thus underlying the potential of the approach for mesoscale soft robotic applications.

AIR EMISSIONS FROM COMBUSTION OF SOLVENT REFINED COAL

EPA Science Inventory

The report gives details of a Solvent Refined Coal (SRC) combustion test at Georgia Power Company's Plant Mitchell, March, May, and June 1977. Flue gas samples were collected for modified EPA Level 1 analysis; analytical results are reported. Air emissions from the combustion of ...

Simulation study on combustion of biomass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, M. L.; Liu, X.; Cheng, J. W.; Liu, Y.; Jin, Y. A.

2017-01-01

Biomass combustion is the most common energy conversion technology, offering the advantages of low cost, low risk and high efficiency. In this paper, the transformation and transfer of biomass in the process of combustion are discussed in detail. The process of furnace combustion and gas phase formation was analyzed by numerical simulation. The experimental results not only help to optimize boiler operation and realize the efficient combustion of biomass, but also provide theoretical basis for the improvement of burner technology.

Rotating arc spark plug

DOEpatents

Whealton, John H.; Tsai, Chin-Chi

2003-05-27

A spark plug device includes a structure for modification of an arc, the modification including arc rotation. The spark plug can be used in a combustion engine to reduce emissions and/or improve fuel economy. A method for operating a spark plug and a combustion engine having the spark plug device includes the step of modifying an arc, the modifying including rotating the arc.

FY2015 Annual Report for Alternative Fuels DISI Engine Research.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sjöberg, Carl-Magnus G.

2016-01-01

Climate change and the need to secure energy supplies are two reasons for a growing interest in engine efficiency and alternative fuels. This project contributes to the science-base needed by industry to develop highly efficient DISI engines that also beneficially exploit the different properties of alternative fuels. Our emphasis is on lean operation, which can provide higher efficiencies than traditional non-dilute stoichiometric operation. Since lean operation can lead to issues with ignition stability, slow flame propagation and low combustion efficiency, we focus on techniques that can overcome these challenges. Specifically, fuel stratification is used to ensure ignition and completeness ofmore » combustion but has soot- and NOx- emissions challenges. For ultralean well-mixed operation, turbulent deflagration can be combined with controlled end-gas auto-ignition to render mixed-mode combustion that facilitates high combustion efficiency. However, the response of both combustion and exhaust emissions to these techniques depends on the fuel properties. Therefore, to achieve optimal fuel-economy gains, the engine combustion-control strategies must be adapted to the fuel being utilized.« less

Combustion studies of coal derived solid fuels by thermogravimetric analysis. III. Correlation between burnout temperature and carbon combustion efficiency

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rostam-Abadi, M.; DeBarr, J.A.; Chen, W.T.

1990-01-01

Burning profiles of 35-53 ??m size fractions of an Illinois coal and three partially devolatilized coals prepared from the original coal were obtained using a thermogravimetric analyzer. The burning profile burnout temperatures were higher for lower volatile fuels and correlated well with carbon combustion efficiencies of the fuels when burned in a laboratory-scale laminar flow reactor. Fuels with higher burnout temperatures had lower carbon combustion efficiencies under various time-temperature conditions in the laboratory-scale reactor. ?? 1990.

Mercury removal from coal combustion flue gas by modified fly ash.

PubMed

Xu, Wenqing; Wang, Hairui; Zhu, Tingyu; Kuang, Junyan; Jing, Pengfei

2013-02-01

Fly ash is a potential alternative to activated carbon for mercury adsorption. The effects of physicochemical properties on the mercury adsorption performance of three fly ash samples were investigated. X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and other methods were used to characterize the samples. Results indicate that mercury adsorption on fly ash is primarily physisorption and chemisorption. High specific surface areas and small pore diameters are beneficial to efficient mercury removal. Incompletely burned carbon is also an important factor for the improvement of mercury removal efficiency, in particular. The C-M bond, which is formed by the reaction of C and Ti, Si and other elements, may improve mercury oxidation. The samples modified with CuBr2, CuCl2 and FeCl3 showed excellent performance for Hg removal, because the chlorine in metal chlorides acts as an oxidant that promotes the conversion of elemental mercury (Hg0) into its oxidized form (Hg2+). Cu2+ and Fe3+ can also promote Hg0 oxidation as catalysts. HCl and O2 promote the adsorption of Hg by modified fly ash, whereas SO2 inhibits the Hg adsorption because of competitive adsorption for active sites. Fly ash samples modified with CuBr2, CuCl2 and FeCl3 are therefore promising materials for controlling mercury emissions.

Effect of diluted and preheated oxidizer on the emission of methane flameless combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hosseini, Seyed Ehsan; Salehirad, Saber; Wahid, M. A.; Sies, Mohsin Mohd; Saat, Aminuddin

2012-06-01

In combustion process, reduction of emissions often accompanies with output efficiency reduction. It means, by using current combustion technique it is difficult to obtainlow pollution and high level of efficiency in the same time. In new combustion system, low NOxengines and burners are studied particularly. Recently flameless or Moderate and Intensive Low oxygen Dilution (MILD) combustion has received special attention in terms of low harmful emissions and low energy consumption. Behavior of combustion with highly preheated air was analyzed to study the change of combustion regime and the reason for the compatibility of high performance and low NOx production. Sustainability of combustion under low oxygen concentration was examined when; the combustion air temperature was above the self-ignition temperature of the fuel. This paper purposes to analyze the NOx emission quantity in conventional combustion and flameless combustion by Chemical Equilibrium with Applications (CEA) software.

Cleaner, More Efficient Diesel Engines

ScienceCinema

Musculus, Mark

2018-01-16

Mark Musculus, an engine combustion scientist at Sandia National Laboratories, led a study that outlines the science base for auto and engine manufacturers to build the next generation of cleaner, more efficient engines using low-temperature combustion. Here, Musculus discusses the work at Sandia's Combustion Research Facility.

Ultra-high efficiency moving wire combustion interface for on-line coupling of HPLC

PubMed Central

Thomas, Avi T.; Ognibene, Ted; Daley, Paul; Turteltaub, Ken; Radousky, Harry; Bench, Graham

2011-01-01

We describe a 100% efficient moving-wire interface for on-line coupling of high performance liquid chromatography which transmits 100% of carbon in non-volatile analytes to a CO2 gas accepting ion source. This interface accepts a flow of analyte in solvent, evaporates the solvent, combusts the remaining analyte, and directs the combustion products to the instrument of choice. Effluent is transferred to a periodically indented wire by a coherent jet to increase efficiency and maintain peak resolution. The combustion oven is plumbed such that gaseous combustion products are completely directed to an exit capillary, avoiding the loss of combustion products to the atmosphere. This system achieves the near complete transfer of analyte at HPLC flow rates up to 125 μL/min at a wire speed of 6 cm/s. This represents a 30x efficiency increase and 8x maximum wire loading compared to the spray transfer technique used in earlier moving wire interfaces. PMID:22004428

Impact of Combustion Efficiency of Open Biomass Burning on the Mixing State of Black Carbon Containing Particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

PAN, X.; Kanaya, Y.; Taketani, F.; Miyakawa, T.; Inomata, S.; Komazaki, Y.; Tanimoto, H.; Uno, I.; Wang, Z.

2014-12-01

Open biomass burning (OBB) experiments were performed in the laboratory environment to investigate the mixing state of refractory black carbon (rBC) in fresh smoke and its dependence on combustion state. A Single-Particle Soot Photometer (SP2) was adopted to measure variation of number size distribution of rBC-containing particles in high temporal resolution. General combustion state of each OBB case was indicated by modified combustion efficiency (MCE) using accumulated enhancement of mixing ratios of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide during the experiments. We found that mass equivalent diameter (MED) of rBC increased apparently with increase of MCE values, indicating the flaming-dominant combustion tend to produce the rBC particles with relative larger size, probably because of coagulation processes in high concentration condition. Coating thickness of rBC-containing particle was calculated by leading edge only fitting (LEO-fitting) method. In the present study we defined the rBC-containing particles with shell/core (S/C) ratio larger than 2 as "thickly coated" and that less then 1.5 as "thinly coated". As a result, thickly coated rBC particles normally had a relatively small core (MED of rBC less than 150 nm) and its number fraction showed an evident decrease as a function of MCE value, whereas, larger rBC particles (MED larger than 150 nm) were normally thinly coated. Number fraction of both thinly coated and uncoated rBC particles had an positive correlation with MCE value. Substantial amount of light scattering particles (LSP) observed in the smoldering-dominant OBB plumes could partially explain the increase of number fraction of coated rBC particles. ΔrBC/ΔCO ratio showed a good positive correlation with MCE with an average value of 16.8 (1.2 - 51.6) ng/m3/ppbv, and ΔrBC/ΔCO2 ratio was found 628.7 ng/m3/ppmv, generally consistent with previous studies.

Multi-stage combustion using nitrogen-enriched air

DOEpatents

Fischer, Larry E.; Anderson, Brian L.

2004-09-14

Multi-stage combustion technology combined with nitrogen-enriched air technology for controlling the combustion temperature and products to extend the maintenance and lifetime cycles of materials in contact with combustion products and to reduce pollutants while maintaining relatively high combustion and thermal cycle efficiencies. The first stage of combustion operates fuel rich where most of the heat of combustion is released by burning it with nitrogen-enriched air. Part of the energy in the combustion gases is used to perform work or to provide heat. The cooled combustion gases are reheated by additional stages of combustion until the last stage is at or near stoichiometric conditions. Additional energy is extracted from each stage to result in relatively high thermal cycle efficiency. The air is enriched with nitrogen using air separation technologies such as diffusion, permeable membrane, absorption, and cryogenics. The combustion method is applicable to many types of combustion equipment, including: boilers, burners, turbines, internal combustion engines, and many types of fuel including hydrogen and carbon-based fuels including methane and coal.

Preliminary Results of an Altitude-Wind-Tunnel Investigation of a TG-100A Gas Turbine-Propeller Engine. V; Combustion-Chamber Characteristics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gensenheyner, Robert M.; Berdysz, Joseph J.

1947-01-01

An investigation to determine the performance and operational characteristics of the TG-1OOA gas turbine-propeller engine was conducted in the Cleveland altitude wind tunnel. As part of this investigation, the combustion-chamber performance was determined at pressure altitudes from 5000 to 35,000 feet, compressor-inlet rm-pressure ratios of 1.00 and 1.09, and engine speeds from 8000 to 13,000 rpm. Combustion-chamber performance is presented as a function of corrected engine speed and.correcte& horsepower. For the range of corrected engine speeds investigated, over-all total-pressure-loss ratio, cycle efficiency, ana the frac%ional loss in cycle efficiency resulting from pressure losses in the combustion chambers were unaffected by a change in altitude or compressor-inlet ram-pressure ratio. The scatter of combustion- efficiency data tended to obscure any effect of altitude or ram-pressure ratio. For the range of corrected horse-powers investigated, the total-pressure-loss ratio an& the fractional loss in cycle efficiency resulting from pressure losses in the combustion chambers decreased with an increase in corrected horsepower at a constant corrected engine speed. The combustion efficiency remained constant for the range of corrected horse-powers investigated at all corrected engine speeds.

Soot, organics and ultrafine ash from air- and oxy-fired coal combustion

EPA Science Inventory

This paper is concerned with determining the effects of oxy-combustion of coal on the composition of the ultrafine fly ash. To this end, a 10 W externally heated entrained flow furnace was modified to allow the combustion of pulverized coal in flames under practically relevant s...

Soot, organics, and ultrafine ash from air- and oxy-fired coal combustion

EPA Science Inventory

This paper/presentation is concerned with determining the effects of oxy-combustion of coal on the composition of the ultrafine fly ash. To this end, a 10 W externally heated entrained flow furnace was modified to allow the combustion of pulverized coal in flames under practicall...

The comparative analysis of heat transfer efficiency in the conditions of formation of ash deposits in the boiler furnaces, with taking into account the crystallization of slag during combustion of coal and water-coal fuel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salomatov, V. V.; Kuznetsov, G. V.; Syrodoy, S. V.

2017-11-01

The results of the numerical simulation of heat transfer from the combustion products of coal and coal-water fuels (CWF) to the internal environment. The mathematical simulation has been carried out on the sample of the pipe surfaces of the combustion chamber of the boiler unit. The change in the characteristics of heat transfer (change of thermochemical characteristics) in the conditions of formation of the ash deposits have been taken into account. According to the results of the numerical simulation, the comparative analysis of the efficiency of heat transfer has been carried out from the furnace environment to the inside pipe coolant (water, air, or water vapor) from the combustion of coal and coal-water fuels. It has been established that, in the initial period of the boiler unit operation during coal fuel combustion the efficiency of heat transfer from the combustion products of the internal environment is higher than when using CWF. The efficiency of heat transfer in CWF combustion conditions is more at large times (τ≥1.5 hours) of the boiler unit. A significant decrease in heat flux from the combustion products to the inside pipe coolant in the case of coal combustion compared to CWF has been found. It has been proved that this is due primarily to the fact that massive and strong ash deposits are formed during coal combustion.

Fabrication of a Combustion-Reacted High-Performance ZnO Electron Transport Layer with Silver Nanowire Electrodes for Organic Solar Cells.

PubMed

Park, Minkyu; Lee, Sang-Hoon; Kim, Donghyuk; Kang, Juhoon; Lee, Jung-Yong; Han, Seung Min

2018-02-28

Herein, a new methodology for solution-processed ZnO fabrication on Ag nanowire network electrode via combustion reaction is reported, where the amount of heat emitted during combustion was minimized by controlling the reaction temperature to avoid damaging the underlying Ag nanowires. The degree of participation of acetylacetones, which are volatile fuels in the combustion reaction, was found to vary with the reaction temperature, as revealed by thermogravimetric and compositional analyses. An optimized processing temperature of 180 °C was chosen to successfully fabricate a combustion-reacted ZnO and Ag nanowire hybrid electrode with a sheet resistance of 30 Ω/sq and transmittance of 87%. A combustion-reacted ZnO on Ag nanowire hybrid structure was demonstrated as an efficient transparent electrode and electron transport layer for the PTB7-Th-based polymer solar cells. The superior electrical conductivity of combustion-reacted ZnO, compared to that of conventional sol-gel ZnO, increased the external quantum efficiency over the entire absorption range, whereas a unique light scattering effect due to the presence of nanopores in the combustion-derived ZnO further enhanced the external quantum efficiency in the 450-550 nm wavelength range. A power conversion efficiency of 8.48% was demonstrated for the PTB7-Th-based polymer solar cell with the use of a combustion-reacted ZnO/Ag NW hybrid transparent electrode.

Combustion Limits and Efficiency of Turbojet Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barnett, H. C.; Jonash, E. R.

1956-01-01

Combustion must be maintained in the turbojet-engine combustor over a wide range of operating conditions resulting from variations in required engine thrust, flight altitude, and flight speed. Furthermore, combustion must be efficient in order to provide the maximum aircraft range. Thus, two major performance criteria of the turbojet-engine combustor are (1) operatable range, or combustion limits, and (2) combustion efficiency. Several fundamental requirements for efficient, high-speed combustion are evident from the discussions presented in chapters III to V. The fuel-air ratio and pressure in the burning zone must lie within specific limits of flammability (fig. 111-16(b)) in order to have the mixture ignite and burn satisfactorily. Increases in mixture temperature will favor the flammability characteristics (ch. III). A second requirement in maintaining a stable flame -is that low local flow velocities exist in the combustion zone (ch. VI). Finally, even with these requirements satisfied, a flame needs a certain minimum space in which to release a desired amount of heat, the necessary space increasing with a decrease in pressure (ref. 1). It is apparent, then, that combustor design and operation must provide for (1) proper control of vapor fuel-air ratios in the combustion zone at or near stoichiometric, (2) mixture pressures above the minimum flammability pressures, (3) low flow velocities in the combustion zone, and (4) adequate space for the flame.

Experiments and Model Development for the Investigation of Sooting and Radiation Effects in Microgravity Droplet Combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Choi, Mun Young; Yozgatligil, Ahmet; Dryer, Frederick L.; Kazakov, Andrei; Dobashi, Ritsu

2001-01-01

Today, despite efforts to develop and utilize natural gas and renewable energy sources, nearly 97% of the energy used for transportation is derived from combustion of liquid fuels, principally derived from petroleum. While society continues to rely on liquid petroleum-based fuels as a major energy source in spite of their finite supply, it is of paramount importance to maximize the efficiency and minimize the environmental impact of the devices that burn these fuels. The development of improved energy conversion systems, having higher efficiencies and lower emissions, is central to meeting both local and regional air quality standards. This development requires improvements in computational design tools for applied energy conversion systems, which in turn requires more robust sub-model components for combustion chemistry, transport, energy transport (including radiation), and pollutant emissions (soot formation and burnout). The study of isolated droplet burning as a unidimensional, time dependent model diffusion flame system facilitates extensions of these mechanisms to include fuel molecular sizes and pollutants typical of conventional and alternative liquid fuels used in the transportation sector. Because of the simplified geometry, sub-model components from the most detailed to those reduced to sizes compatible for use in multi-dimensional, time dependent applied models can be developed, compared and validated against experimental diffusion flame processes, and tested against one another. Based on observations in microgravity experiments on droplet combustion, it appears that the formation and lingering presence of soot within the fuel-rich region of isolated droplets can modify the burning rate, flame structure and extinction, soot aerosol properties, and the effective thermophysical properties. These observations led to the belief that perhaps one of the most important outstanding contributions of microgravity droplet combustion is the observation that in the absence of asymmetrical forced and natural convection, a soot shell is formed between the droplet surface and the flame, exerting an influence on the droplet combustion response far greater than previously recognized. The effects of soot on droplet burning parameters, including burning rate, soot shell dynamics, flame structure, and extinction phenomena provide significant testing parameters for studying the structure and coupling of soot models with other sub-model components.

A double-stage tube furnace--acid-trapping protocol for the pre-concentration of mercury from solid samples for isotopic analysis.

PubMed

Sun, Ruoyu; Enrico, Maxime; Heimbürger, Lars-Eric; Scott, Clint; Sonke, Jeroen E

2013-08-01

High-precision mercury (Hg) stable isotopic analysis requires relatively large amounts of Hg (>10 ng). Consequently, the extraction of Hg from natural samples with low Hg concentrations (<1-20 ng/g) by wet chemistry is challenging. Combustion-trapping techniques have been shown to be an appropriate alternative. Here, we detail a modified off-line Hg pre-concentration protocol that is based on combustion and trapping. Hg in solid samples is thermally reduced and volatilized in a pure O2 stream using a temperature-programmed combustion furnace. A second furnace, kept at 1,000 °C, decomposes combustion products into H2O, CO2, SO2, etc. The O2 carrier gas, including combustion products and elemental Hg, is then purged into a 40% (v/v) acid-trapping solution. The method was optimized by assessing the variations of Hg pre-concentration efficiency and Hg isotopic compositions as a function of acid ratio, gas flow rate, and temperature ramp rate for two certified reference materials of bituminous coals. Acid ratios of 2HNO3/1HCl (v/v), 25 mL/min O2 flow rate, and a dynamic temperature ramp rate (15 °C/min for 25-150 and 600-900 °C; 2.5 °C/min for 150-600 °C) were found to give optimal results. Hg step-release experiments indicated that significant Hg isotopic fractionation occurred during sample combustion. However, no systematic dependence of Hg isotopic compositions on Hg recovery (81-102%) was observed. The tested 340 samples including coal, coal-associated rocks, fly ash, bottom ash, peat, and black shale sediments with Hg concentrations varying from <5 ng/g to 10 μg/g showed that most Hg recoveries were within the acceptable range of 80-120%. This protocol has the advantages of a short sample processing time (∼3.5 h) and limited transfer of residual sample matrix into the Hg trapping solution. This in turn limits matrix interferences on the Hg reduction efficiency of the cold vapor generator used for Hg isotopic analysis.

A flamelet model for supersonic non-premixed combustion with pressure variation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Guo-Yan; Sun, Ming-Bo; Wu, Jin-Shui; Wang, Hong-Bo

2015-08-01

A modified flamelet model is proposed for studying supersonic combustion with pressure variation considering that pressure is far from homogenous in a supersonic combustor. In this model, the flamelet database are tabulated at a reference pressure, while quantities at other pressure are obtained using a sixth-order polynomial in pressure. Attributed to merit of the modified model which compute coefficients for the expansion only. And they brought less requirements for memory and table lookup time, expensive cost is avoided. The performance of modified model is much better than the approach of using a flamelet model-based method with tabulation at different pressure values. Two types of hydrogen fueled scramjet combustors were introduced to validate the modified flamelet model. It was observed that the temperature is sensitive to the choice of model in combustion area, which in return will significantly affect the pressure. It was found that the results of modified model were in good agreement with the experimental data compared with the isobaric flamelet model, especially for temperature, whose value is more accurately predicted. It is concluded that the modified flamelet model was more effective for cases with a wide range of pressure variation.

Experimental investigation on secondary combustion characteristics of airbreathing rockets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mano, Takeshi; Eguchi, Akihiro; Shinohara, Suetsugu; Etou, Takao; Kaneko, Yutaka; Yamamoto, Youichi; Nakagawa, Ichirou

Empirical correlations of the secondary combustion efficiency of the airbreathing rocket were derived. From the results of a series of experiments employing a connected pipe facility, the combustion efficiency was related to dominant parameters. The feasibility of the performance prediction by one-dimensional analysis was also discussed. The analysis was found to be applicable to the flow processes in the secondary combustor, which include two-stream mixing and combustion.

Mixing and combustion enhancement of Turbocharged Solid Propellant Ramjet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Shichang; Li, Jiang; Zhu, Gen; Wang, Wei; Liu, Yang

2018-02-01

Turbocharged Solid Propellant Ramjet is a new concept engine that combines the advantages of both solid rocket ramjet and Air Turbo Rocket, with a wide operation envelope and high performance. There are three streams of the air, turbine-driving gas and augment gas to mix and combust in the afterburner, and the coaxial intake mode of the afterburner is disadvantageous to the mixing and combustion. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out mixing and combustion enhancement research. In this study, the numerical model of Turbocharged Solid Propellant Ramjet three-dimensional combustion flow field is established, and the numerical simulation of the mixing and combustion enhancement scheme is conducted from the aspects of head region intake mode to injection method in afterburner. The results show that by driving the compressed air to deflect inward and the turbine-driving gas to maintain strong rotation, radial and tangential momentum exchange of the two streams can be enhanced, thereby improving the efficiency of mixing and combustion in the afterburner. The method of injecting augment gas in the transverse direction and making sure the injection location is as close as possible to the head region is beneficial to improve the combustion efficiency. The outer combustion flow field of the afterburner is an oxidizer-rich environment, while the inner is a fuel-rich environment. To improve the efficiency of mixing and combustion, it is necessary to control the injection velocity of the augment gas to keep it in the oxygen-rich zone of the outer region. The numerical simulation for different flight conditions shows that the optimal mixing and combustion enhancement scheme can obtain high combustion efficiency and have excellent applicability in a wide working range.

Control of the low-load region in partially premixed combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ingesson, Gabriel; Yin, Lianhao; Johansson, Rolf; Tunestal, Per

2016-09-01

Partially premixed combustion (PPC) is a low temperature, direct-injection combustion concept that has shown to give promising emission levels and efficiencies over a wide operating range. In this concept, high EGR ratios, high octane-number fuels and early injection timings are used to slow down the auto-ignition reactions and to enhance the fuel and are mixing before the start of combustion. A drawback with this concept is the combustion stability in the low-load region where a high octane-number fuel might cause misfire and low combustion efficiency. This paper investigates the problem of low-load PPC controller design for increased engine efficiency. First, low-load PPC data, obtained from a multi-cylinder heavy- duty engine is presented. The data shows that combustion efficiency could be increased by using a pilot injection and that there is a non-linearity in the relation between injection and combustion timing. Furthermore, intake conditions should be set in order to avoid operating points with unfavourable global equivalence ratio and in-cylinder temperature combinations. Model predictive control simulations were used together with a calibrated engine model to find a gas-system controller that fulfilled this task. The findings are then summarized in a suggested engine controller design. Finally, an experimental performance evaluation of the suggested controller is presented.

Improve Your Boiler's Combustion Efficiency: Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) Steam Energy Tips No.4

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

2002-03-01

Operating your boiler with an optimum amount of excess air will minimize heat loss up the stack and improve combustion efficiency. Combustion efficiency is a measure of how effectively the heat content of a fuel is transferred into usable heat. The stack temperature and flue gas oxygen (or carbon dioxide) concentrations are primary indicators of combustion efficiency. Given complete mixing, a precise or stoichiometric amount of air is required to completely react with a given quantity of fuel. In practice, combustion conditions are never ideal, and additional or ''excess'' air must be supplied to completely burn the fuel. The correctmore » amount of excess air is determined from analyzing flue gas oxygen or carbon dioxide concentrations. Inadequate excess air results in unburned combustibles (fuel, soot, smoke, and carbon monoxide) while too much results in heat lost due to the increased flue gas flow--thus lowering the overall boiler fuel-to-steam efficiency. The table relates stack readings to boiler performance. On well-designed natural gas-fired systems, an excess air level of 10% is attainable. An often stated rule of thumb is that boiler efficiency can be increased by 1% for each 15% reduction in excess air or 40 F reduction in stack gas temperature.« less

Submerged combustion melting processes for producing glass and similar materials, and systems for carrying out such processes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Charbonneau, Mark William

Processes of controlling submerged combustion melters, and systems for carrying out the methods. One process includes feeding vitrifiable material into a melter vessel, the melter vessel including a fluid-cooled refractory panel in its floor, ceiling, and/or sidewall, and heating the vitrifiable material with a burner directing combustion products into the melting zone under a level of the molten material in the zone. Burners impart turbulence to the molten material in the melting zone. The fluid-cooled refractory panel is cooled, forming a modified panel having a frozen or highly viscous material layer on a surface of the panel facing the moltenmore » material, and a sensor senses temperature of the modified panel using a protected thermocouple positioned in the modified panel shielded from direct contact with turbulent molten material. Processes include controlling the melter using the temperature of the modified panel. Other processes and systems are presented.« less

MECHANISM AND KINETICS OF THE FORMATION OF NOX AND OTHER COMBUSTION POLLUTANTS. PHASE II. MODIFIED COMBUSTION

EPA Science Inventory

The report gives Phase II results of a combined experimental/theoretical study to define the mechanisms and kinetics of the formation of NOx and other combustion pollutants. Two experimental devices were used in Phase II. A special flat-flame burner with a controlled-temperature ...

Pyrolysis oil combustion in a horizontal box furnace with an externally mixed nozzle

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Combustion characteristics of neat biomass fast-pyrolysis oil were studied in a horizontal combustion chamber with a rectangular cross-section. An air-assisted externally mixed nozzle known to successfully atomize heavy fuel oils was installed in a modified nominal 100 kW (350,000 BTU/h nominal cap...

Injection Principles from Combustion Studies in a 200-Pound-Thrust Rocket Engine Using Liquid Oxygen and Heptane

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heidmann, M. F.; Auble, C. M.

1955-01-01

The importance of atomizing and mixing liquid oxygen and heptane was studied in a 200-pound-thrust rocket engine. Ten injector elements were used with both steel and transparent chambers. Characteristic velocity was measured over a range of mixture ratios. Combustion gas-flow and luminosity patterns within the chamber were obtained by photographic methods. The results show that, for efficient combustion, the propellants should be both atomized and mixed. Heptane atomization controlled the combustion rate to a much larger extent than oxygen atomization. Induced mixing, however, was required to complete combustion in the smallest volume. For stable, high-efficiency combustion and smooth engine starts, mixing after atomization was most promising.

Improved multiple-shot gun for use as a combustion stability rating device

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sokolowski, D. E.

1973-01-01

A program was conducted to develop and experimentally evaluate an improved version of a modified machine gun for use as a device for rating the relative combustion stability of various rocket combustors. Following the results of a previous study involving a caliber .30 machine gun, a caliber .50 machine gun was modified in order to extend the charge-size range of the device. Nitrocellulose charge sizes ranging from 1.004 to 9.720 grams were fired at rates up to four shots per second. Shock pressures up to 25,512 kN/sq m were measured near the end of a shortened gun barrel. A minimal resistance type of check valve permitted the gun to fire into pressurized regions; back pressures up to 3448 kN/sq m abs were tested. The final modified assembly was evaluated during combustion stability tests on rocket combustors burning a FLOX-methane propellant combination.

Effect of Premixed Fuel Preparation for Partially Premixed Combustion with a Low Octane Gasoline on a Light-Duty Multi-Cylinder Compression Ignition Engine

DOE PAGES

Dempsey, Adam B.; Curran, Scott; Wagner, Robert M.; ...

2015-05-12

Gasoline compression ignition concepts with the majority of the fuel being introduced early in the cycle are known as partially premixed combustion (PPC). Previous research on single- and multi-cylinder engines has shown that PPC has the potential for high thermal efficiency with low NOx and soot emissions. A variety of fuel injection strategies has been proposed in the literature. These injection strategies aim to create a partially stratified charge to simultaneously reduce NOx and soot emissions while maintaining some level of control over the combustion process through the fuel delivery system. The impact of the direct injection strategy to createmore » a premixed charge of fuel and air has not previously been explored, and its impact on engine efficiency and emissions is not well understood. This paper explores the effect of sweeping the direct injected pilot timing from -91° to -324° ATDC, which is just after the exhaust valve closes for the engine used in this study. During the sweep, the pilot injection consistently contained 65% of the total fuel (based on command duration ratio), and the main injection timing was adjusted slightly to maintain combustion phasing near top dead center. A modern four cylinder, 1.9 L diesel engine with a variable geometry turbocharger, high pressure common rail injection system, wide included angle injectors, and variable swirl actuation was used in this study. The pistons were modified to an open bowl configuration suitable for highly premixed combustion modes. The stock diesel injection system was unmodified, and the gasoline fuel was doped with a lubricity additive to protect the high pressure fuel pump and the injectors. The study was conducted at a fixed speed/load condition of 2000 rpm and 4.0 bar brake mean effective pressure (BMEP). The pilot injection timing sweep was conducted at different intake manifold pressures, swirl levels, and fuel injection GTP-15-1067, Dempsey 2 pressures. The gasoline used in this study has relatively high fuel reactivity with a research octane number of 68. The results of this experimental campaign indicate that the highest brake thermal efficiency and lowest emissions are achieved simultaneously with the earliest pilot injection timings (i.e., during the intake stroke).« less

New Metamaterials with Combined Subnano - and Mesoscale Topology for High-efficiency Catalytic Combustion Chambers of Innovative Gas Turbine Engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knysh, Yu A.; Xanthopoulou, G. G.

2018-01-01

The object of the study is a catalytic combustion chamber that provides a highly efficient combustion process through the use of effects: heat recovery from combustion, microvortex heat transfer, catalytic reaction and acoustic resonance. High efficiency is provided by a complex of related technologies: technologies for combustion products heat transfer (recuperation) to initial mixture, catalytic processes technology, technology for calculating effective combustion processes based on microvortex matrices, technology for designing metamaterials structures and technology for obtaining the required topology product by laser fusion of metal powder compositions. The mesoscale level structure provides combustion process with the use of a microvortex effect with a high intensity of heat and mass transfer. High surface area (extremely high area-to-volume ratio) created due to nanoscale periodic structure and ensures catalytic reactions efficiency. Produced metamaterial is the first multiscale product of new concept which due to combination of different scale level periodic topologies provides qualitatively new set of product properties. This research is aimed at solving simultaneously two global problems of the present: ensure environmental safety of transport systems and power industry, as well as the economy and rational use of energy resources, providing humanity with energy now and in the foreseeable future.

Method of controlling cyclic variation in engine combustion

DOEpatents

Davis, L.I. Jr.; Daw, C.S.; Feldkamp, L.A.; Hoard, J.W.; Yuan, F.; Connolly, F.T.

1999-07-13

Cyclic variation in combustion of a lean burning engine is reduced by detecting an engine combustion event output such as torsional acceleration in a cylinder (i) at a combustion event (k), using the detected acceleration to predict a target acceleration for the cylinder at the next combustion event (k+1), modifying the target output by a correction term that is inversely proportional to the average phase of the combustion event output of cylinder (i) and calculating a control output such as fuel pulse width or spark timing necessary to achieve the target acceleration for cylinder (i) at combustion event (k+1) based on anti-correlation with the detected acceleration and spill-over effects from fueling. 27 figs.

Method of controlling cyclic variation in engine combustion

DOEpatents

Davis, Jr., Leighton Ira; Daw, Charles Stuart; Feldkamp, Lee Albert; Hoard, John William; Yuan, Fumin; Connolly, Francis Thomas

1999-01-01

Cyclic variation in combustion of a lean burning engine is reduced by detecting an engine combustion event output such as torsional acceleration in a cylinder (i) at a combustion event (k), using the detected acceleration to predict a target acceleration for the cylinder at the next combustion event (k+1), modifying the target output by a correction term that is inversely proportional to the average phase of the combustion event output of cylinder (i) and calculating a control output such as fuel pulse width or spark timing necessary to achieve the target acceleration for cylinder (i) at combustion event (k+1) based on anti-correlation with the detected acceleration and spill-over effects from fueling.

Trend and future of diesel engine: Development of high efficiency and low emission low temperature combustion diesel engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ho, R. J.; Yusoff, M. Z.; Palanisamy, K.

2013-06-01

Stringent emission policy has put automotive research & development on developing high efficiency and low pollutant power train. Conventional direct injection diesel engine with diffused flame has reached its limitation and has driven R&D to explore other field of combustion. Low temperature combustion (LTC) and homogeneous charge combustion ignition has been proven to be effective methods in decreasing combustion pollutant emission. Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) and Particulate Matter (PM) formation from combustion can be greatly suppressed. A review on each of method is covered to identify the condition and processes that result in these reductions. The critical parameters that allow such combustion to take place will be highlighted and serves as emphasis to the direction of developing future diesel engine system. This paper is written to explore potential of present numerical and experimental methods in optimizing diesel engine design through adoption of the new combustion technology.

Effect of grain port length-diameter ratio on combustion performance in hybrid rocket motors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cai, Guobiao; Zhang, Yuanjun; Tian, Hui; Wang, Pengfei; Yu, Nanjia

2016-11-01

The objectives of this study are to develop a more accurate regression rate considering the oxidizer mass flow and the fuel grain geometry configuration with numerical and experimental investigations in polyethylene (PE)/90% hydrogen peroxide (HP) hybrid rocket. Firstly, a 2-D axisymmetric CFD model with turbulence, chemistry reaction, solid-gas coupling is built to investigate the combustion chamber internal flow structure. Then a more accurate regression formula is proposed and the combustion efficiency changing with the length-diameter ratio is studied. A series experiments are conducted in various oxidizer mass flow to analyze combustion performance including the regression rate and combustion efficiency. The regression rates are measured by the fuel mass reducing and diameter changing. A new regression rate formula considering the fuel grain configuration is proposed in this paper. The combustion efficiency increases with the length-diameter ratio changing. To improve the performance of a hybrid rocket motor, the port length-diameter ratio is suggested 10-12 in the paper.

Combustion method for assay of biological materials labeled with carbon-14 or tritium, or double-labeled

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huebner, L. G.; Kisieleski, W. E.

1969-01-01

Dry catalytic combustion at high temperatures is used for assaying biological materials labeled carbon-14 and tritium, or double-labeled. A modified oxygen-flask technique is combined with standard vacuum-line techniques and includes convenience of direct in-vial collection of final combustion products, giving quantitative recovery of tritium and carbon-14.

Study on key technologies of optimization of big data for thermal power plant performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mao, Mingyang; Xiao, Hong

2018-06-01

Thermal power generation accounts for 70% of China's power generation, the pollutants accounted for 40% of the same kind of emissions, thermal power efficiency optimization needs to monitor and understand the whole process of coal combustion and pollutant migration, power system performance data show explosive growth trend, The purpose is to study the integration of numerical simulation of big data technology, the development of thermal power plant efficiency data optimization platform and nitrogen oxide emission reduction system for the thermal power plant to improve efficiency, energy saving and emission reduction to provide reliable technical support. The method is big data technology represented by "multi-source heterogeneous data integration", "large data distributed storage" and "high-performance real-time and off-line computing", can greatly enhance the energy consumption capacity of thermal power plants and the level of intelligent decision-making, and then use the data mining algorithm to establish the boiler combustion mathematical model, mining power plant boiler efficiency data, combined with numerical simulation technology to find the boiler combustion and pollutant generation rules and combustion parameters of boiler combustion and pollutant generation Influence. The result is to optimize the boiler combustion parameters, which can achieve energy saving.

Preliminary Results of an Altitude-Wind-Tunnel Investigation of an Axial-Flow Gas Turbine-Propeller Engine. 5; Combustion-Chamber Characterisitcs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Geisenheyner, Robert M.; Berdysz, Joseph J.

1948-01-01

An investigation to determine the performance and operational characteristics of an axial-flow gas turbine-propeller engine was conducted in the Cleveland altitude wind tunnel. As part of this investigation, the combustion-chamber performance was determined at pressure altitudes from 5000 to 35,000 feet, compressor-inlet ram-pressure ratios of 1.00 and 1.09, and engine speeds from 8000 to 13,000 rpm. Combustion-chamber performance is presented as a function of corrected engine speed and corrected horsepower. For the range of corrected engine speeds investigated, overall total-pressure-loss ratio, cycle efficiency, and the fractional loss in cycle efficiency resulting from pressure losses in the combustion chambers were unaffected by a change in altitude or compressor-inlet ram-pressure ratio. For the range of corrected horsepowers investigated, the total-pressure-loss ratio and the fractional loss in cycle efficiency resulting from pressure losses in the combustion chambers decreased with an increase in corrected horsepower at a constant corrected engine speed. The combustion efficiency remained constant for the range of corrected horsepowers investigated at all corrected engine speeds.

Preliminary thermodynamic study for an efficient turbo-blower external combustion Rankine cycle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romero Gómez, Manuel; Romero Gómez, Javier; Ferreiro Garcia, Ramón; Baaliña Insua, Álvaro

2014-08-01

This research paper presents a preliminary thermodynamic study of an innovative power plant operating under a Rankine cycle fed by an external combustion system with turbo-blower (TB). The power plant comprises an external combustion system for natural gas, where the combustion gases yield their thermal energy, through a heat exchanger, to a carbon dioxide Rankine cycle operating under supercritical conditions and with quasi-critical condensation. The TB exploits the energy from the pressurised exhaust gases for compressing the combustion air. The study is focused on the comparison of the combustion system's conventional technology with that of the proposed. An energy analysis is carried out and the effect of the flue gas pressure on the efficiency and on the heat transfer in the heat exchanger is studied. The coupling of the TB results in an increase in efficiency and of the convection coefficient of the flue gas with pressure, favouring a reduced volume of the heat exchanger. The proposed innovative system achieves increases in efficiency of around 12 % as well as a decrease in the heat exchanger volume of 3/5 compared with the conventional technology without TB.

Energy Efficient Engine (E3) combustion system component technology performance report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burrus, D. L.; Chahrour, C. A.; Foltz, H. L.; Sabla, P. E.; Seto, S. P.; Taylor, J. R.

1984-01-01

The Energy Efficient Engine (E3) combustor effort was conducted as part of the overall NASA/GE E3 Program. This effort included the selection of an advanced double-annular combustion system design. The primary intent of this effort was to evolve a design that meets the stringent emissions and life goals of the E3, as well as all of the usual performance requirements of combustion systems for modern turbofan engines. Numerous detailed design studies were conducted to define the features of the combustion system design. Development test hardware was fabricated, and an extensive testing effort was undertaken to evaluate the combustion system subcomponents in order to verify and refine the design. Technology derived from this effort was incorporated into the engine combustion hardware design. The advanced engine combustion system was then evaluated in component testing to verify the design intent. What evolved from this effort was an advanced combustion system capable of satisfying all of the combustion system design objectives and requirements of the E3.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dempsey, Adam B.; Curran, Scott; Wagner, Robert M.

Gasoline compression ignition concepts with the majority of the fuel being introduced early in the cycle are known as partially premixed combustion (PPC). Previous research on single- and multi-cylinder engines has shown that PPC has the potential for high thermal efficiency with low NOx and soot emissions. A variety of fuel injection strategies has been proposed in the literature. These injection strategies aim to create a partially stratified charge to simultaneously reduce NOx and soot emissions while maintaining some level of control over the combustion process through the fuel delivery system. The impact of the direct injection strategy to createmore » a premixed charge of fuel and air has not previously been explored, and its impact on engine efficiency and emissions is not well understood. This paper explores the effect of sweeping the direct injected pilot timing from -91° to -324° ATDC, which is just after the exhaust valve closes for the engine used in this study. During the sweep, the pilot injection consistently contained 65% of the total fuel (based on command duration ratio), and the main injection timing was adjusted slightly to maintain combustion phasing near top dead center. A modern four cylinder, 1.9 L diesel engine with a variable geometry turbocharger, high pressure common rail injection system, wide included angle injectors, and variable swirl actuation was used in this study. The pistons were modified to an open bowl configuration suitable for highly premixed combustion modes. The stock diesel injection system was unmodified, and the gasoline fuel was doped with a lubricity additive to protect the high pressure fuel pump and the injectors. The study was conducted at a fixed speed/load condition of 2000 rpm and 4.0 bar brake mean effective pressure (BMEP). The pilot injection timing sweep was conducted at different intake manifold pressures, swirl levels, and fuel injection GTP-15-1067, Dempsey 2 pressures. The gasoline used in this study has relatively high fuel reactivity with a research octane number of 68. The results of this experimental campaign indicate that the highest brake thermal efficiency and lowest emissions are achieved simultaneously with the earliest pilot injection timings (i.e., during the intake stroke).« less

A new technique for thermodynamic engine modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matthews, R. D.; Peters, J. E.; Beckel, S. A.; Shizhi, M.

1983-12-01

Reference is made to the equations given by Matthews (1983) for piston engine performance, which show that this performance depends on four fundamental engine efficiencies (combustion, thermodynamic cycle or indicated thermal, volumetric, and mechanical) as well as on engine operation and design parameters. This set of equations is seen to suggest a different technique for engine modeling; that is, that each efficiency should be modeled individually and the efficiency submodels then combined to obtain an overall engine model. A simple method for predicting the combustion efficiency of piston engines is therefore required. Various methods are proposed here and compared with experimental results. These combustion efficiency models are then combined with various models for the volumetric, mechanical, and indicated thermal efficiencies to yield three different engine models of varying degrees of sophistication. Comparisons are then made of the predictions of the resulting engine models with experimental data. It is found that combustion efficiency is almost independent of load, speed, and compression ratio and is not strongly dependent on fuel type, at least so long as the hydrogen-to-carbon ratio is reasonably close to that for isooctane.

[Study on the calcium-based sorbent for removal fluorine during coal combustion].

PubMed

Li, Shu-ling; Qi, Qing-jie; Liu, Jian-zhong; Cao, Xin-yu; Zhou, Jun-hu; Cen, Ke-fa

2004-03-01

In the paper, the reaction of CaO-HF and fluorine removal mechanics at high temperature by blending calcium-based sorbents with coal during coal combustion were discussed, and test results about fluorine retention during coal combustion in fluidized bed and chain-grate furnace were reported. The results identified that lime and calcium-based sorbets developed can restratin the emission of fluorine during coal combustion. The efficiency of fluorine removal can reach 66.7%-70.0% at Ca/F 60-70 by blending lime with coal in fluidized bed combustion, and the efficiency of fluorine removal are between 57.32% and 75.19% by blending calcium-based sorbets with coal in chain-grate furnace combustion. Blending CaO or lime with coal during coal combustion can remove SO2 and HF simultaneously.

A Basic Behavior of CNG DI Combustion in a Spark-Ignited Rapid Compression Machine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Zuohua; Shiga, Seiichi; Ueda, Takamasa; Jingu, Nobuhisa; Nakamura, Hisao; Ishima, Tsuneaki; Obokata, Tomio; Tsue, Mitsuhiro; Kono, Michikata

A basic characteristics of compressed natural gas direct-injection (CNG DI) combustion was studied by using a rapid compression machine. Results show that comparing with homogeneous mixture, CNG DI has short combustion duration, high pressure rise due to combustion, and high rate of heat release, which are considered to come from the charge stratification and the gas flow generated by the fuel injection. CNG DI can realize extremely lean combustion which reaches 0.03 equivalence ratio, φ. Combustion duration, maximum pressure rise due to combustion and combustion efficiency are found to be insensitive to the injection modes. Unburned methane showed almost the same level as that of homogeneous mixture combustion. CO increased steeply with the increase in φ when φ was greater than 0.8 due to the excessive stratification, and NOx peak value shifted to the region of lower φ. Combustion inefficiency maintains less than 0.08 in the range of φ from 0.1 to 0.9 and increases at very low φ due to bulk quenching and at higher φ due to excessive stratification. The combustion efficiency estimated from combustion products shows good agreement with that of heat release analysis.

40 CFR 63.1431 - Process vent annual epoxides emission factor plan requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

..., recovery, or recapture device, along with the expected percent efficiency. (iii) Annual emissions after the... section, kg/yr. R = Expected control efficiency of the combustion, recovery, or recapture device, percent....1426(c) to determine the epoxide control efficiency of the combustion, recovery, or recapture device...

40 CFR 63.1431 - Process vent annual epoxides emission factor plan requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., recovery, or recapture device, along with the expected percent efficiency. (iii) Annual emissions after the... section, kg/yr. R = Expected control efficiency of the combustion, recovery, or recapture device, percent....1426(c) to determine the epoxide control efficiency of the combustion, recovery, or recapture device...

Homogeneous charge combustion of aqueous ethanol

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2001-02-01

The goal of this research is to reduce nitrous oxide (NOx) and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions and to retain the performance characteristics of a diesel engine by modifying the in-cylinder combustion process. To accomplish this goal, a direct-injected...

Super low NO.sub.x, high efficiency, compact firetube boiler

DOEpatents

Chojnacki, Dennis A.; Rabovitser, Iosif K.; Knight, Richard A.; Cygan, David F.; Korenberg, Jacob

2005-12-06

A firetube boiler furnace having two combustion sections and an in-line intermediate tubular heat transfer section between the two combustion sections and integral to the pressure vessel. This design provides a staged oxidant combustion apparatus with separate in-line combustion chambers for fuel-rich primary combustion and fuel-lean secondary combustion and sufficient cooling of the combustion products from the primary combustion such that when the secondary combustion oxidant is added in the secondary combustion stage, the NO.sub.x formation is less than 5 ppmv at 3% O.sub.2.

Waste plastics as supplemental fuel in the blast furnace process: improving combustion efficiencies.

PubMed

Kim, Dongsu; Shin, Sunghye; Sohn, Seungman; Choi, Jinshik; Ban, Bongchan

2002-10-14

The possibility of using waste plastics as a source of secondary fuel in a blast furnace has been of recent interest. The success of this process, however, will be critically dependent upon the optimization of operating systems. For instance, the supply of waste plastics must be reliable as well as economically attractive compared with conventional secondary fuels such as heavy oil, natural gas and pulverized coal. In this work, we put special importance on the improvement of the combustibility of waste plastics as a way to enhance energy efficiency in a blast furnace. As experimental variables to approach this target, the effects of plastic particle size, blast temperature, and the level of oxygen enrichment were investigated using a custom-made blast model designed to simulate a real furnace. Lastly, the combustion efficiency of the mixture of waste plastics and pulverized coal was tested. The observations made from these experiments led us to the conclusion that with the increase of both blast temperature and the level of oxygen enrichment, and with a decrease in particle size, the combustibility of waste polyethylene could be improved at a given distance from the tuyere. Also it was found that the efficiency of coal combustion decreased with the addition of plastics; however, the combustion efficiency of mixture could be comparable at a longer distance from the tuyere.

Study on atomization and combustion characteristics of LOX/methane pintle injectors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fang, Xin-xin; Shen, Chi-bing

2017-07-01

Influences of main structural parameters of the LOX/methane pintle injectors on atomization cone angles and combustion performances were studied by experiments and numerical simulation respectively. In addition, improvement was brought up to the structure of the pintle injectors and combustion flow fields of two different pintle engines were obtained. The results indicate that, with increase of the gas-liquid mass flow ratio, the atomization cone angle decreases. In the condition of the same gas-liquid mass flow ratio, as the thickness of the LOX-injection gap grows bigger, the atomization cone angle becomes smaller. In the opposite, when the half cone angle of the LOX-injection gap grows bigger, the atomization cone angle becomes bigger. Moreover, owing to the viscous effects of the pintle tip, with increase of the 'skip distance', the atomization cone angle gets larger. Two big recirculation zones in the combustor lead to combustion stability of the pintle engines. When the value of the non-dimensional 'skip distance' is near 1, the combustion efficiency of the pintle engines is the highest. Additionally, pintle engines with LOX injected in quadrangular slots can acquire better mixing efficiency of the propellants and higher combustion efficiency as the gas methane can pass through the adjacent slots. However, the annular-channel type of pintle injectors has an 'enclosed' area near the pintle tip which has a great negative influence on the combustion efficiency.

Nitrogen oxides emissions from the MILD combustion with the conditions of recirculation gas.

PubMed

Park, Min; Shim, Sung Hoon; Jeong, Sang Hyun; Oh, Kwang-Joong; Lee, Sang-Sup

2017-04-01

The nitrogen oxides (NO x ) reduction technology by combustion modification which has economic benefits as a method of controlling NO x emitted in the combustion process, has recently been receiving a lot of attention. Especially, the moderate or intense low oxygen dilution (MILD) combustion which applied high temperature flue gas recirculation has been confirmed for its effectiveness with regard to solid fuel as well. MILD combustion is affected by the flue gas recirculation ratio and the composition of recirculation gas, so its NO x reduction efficiency is determined by them. In order to investigate the influence of factors which determine the reduction efficiency of NO x in MILD coal combustion, this study changed the flow rate and concentration of nitrogen (N 2 ), carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and steam (H 2 O) which simulate the recirculation gas during the MILD coal combustion using our lab-scale drop tube furnace and performed the combustion experiment. As a result, its influence by the composition of recirculation gas was insignificant and it was shown that flue gas recirculation ratio influences the change of NO x concentration greatly. We investigated the influence of factors determining the nitrogen oxides (NO x ) reduction efficiency in MILD coal combustion, which applied high-temperature flue gas recirculation. Using a lab-scale drop tube furnace and simulated recirculation gas, we conducted combustion testing changing the recirculation gas conditions. We found that the flue gas recirculation ratio influences the reduction of NO x emissions the most.

Energy from Waste--clean, efficient, renewable: transitions in combustion efficiency and NOx control.

PubMed

Waldner, M H; Halter, R; Sigg, A; Brosch, B; Gehrmann, H J; Keunecke, M

2013-02-01

Traditionally EfW (Energy from Waste) plants apply a reciprocating grate to combust waste fuel. An integrated steam generator recovers the heat of combustion and converts it to steam for use in a steam turbine/generator set. This is followed by an array of flue gas cleaning technologies to meet regulatory limitations. Modern combustion applies a two-step method using primary air to fuel the combustion process on the grate. This generates a complex mixture of pyrolysis gases, combustion gases and unused combustion air. The post-combustion step in the first pass of the boiler above the grate is intended to "clean up" this mixture by oxidizing unburned gases with secondary air. This paper describes modifications to the combustion process to minimize exhaust gas volumes and the generation of noxious gases and thus improving the overall thermal efficiency of the EfW plant. The resulting process can be coupled with an innovative SNCR (Selective Non-Catalytic Reduction) technology to form a clean and efficient solid waste combustion system. Measurements immediately above the grate show that gas compositions along the grate vary from 10% CO, 5% H(2) and 0% O(2) to essentially unused "pure" air, in good agreement with results from a mathematical model. Introducing these diverse gas compositions to the post combustion process will overwhelm its ability to process all these gas fractions in an optimal manner. Inserting an intermediate step aimed at homogenizing the mixture above the grate has shown to significantly improve the quality of combustion, allowing for optimized process parameters. These measures also resulted in reduced formation of NO(x) (nitrogenous oxides) due to a lower oxygen level at which the combustion process was run (2.6 vol% O(2,)(wet) instead of 6.0 vol% O(2,)(wet)). This reduction establishes optimal conditions for the DyNOR™ (Dynamic NO(x) Reduction) NO(x) reduction process. This innovative SNCR technology is adapted to situations typically encountered in solid fuel combustion. DyNOR™ measures temperature in small furnace segments and delivers the reducing reagent to the exact location where it is most effective. The DyNOR™ distributor reacts precisely and dynamically to rapid changes in combustion conditions, resulting in very low NO(x) emissions from the stack. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of a bulk calorimeter and heat balance for determination of supersonic combustor efficiency

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcclinton, C. R.; Anderson, G. Y.

1980-01-01

Results are presented from the shakedown and evaluation test of a bulk calorimeter. The calorimeter is designed to quench the combustion at the exit of a direct-connect, hydrogen fueled, scramjet combustor model, and to provide the measurements necessary to perform an analysis of combustion efficiency. Results indicate that the calorimeter quenches reaction, that reasonable response times are obtained, and that the calculated combustion efficiency is repeatable within + or -3 percent and varies in a regular way with combustor model parameters such as injected fuel equivalence ratio.

A two-dimensional numerical study of the flow inside the combustion chambers of a motored rotary engine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shih, T. I. P.; Yang, S. L.; Schock, H. J.

1986-01-01

A numerical study was performed to investigate the unsteady, multidimensional flow inside the combustion chambers of an idealized, two-dimensional, rotary engine under motored conditions. The numerical study was based on the time-dependent, two-dimensional, density-weighted, ensemble-averaged conservation equations of mass, species, momentum, and total energy valid for two-component ideal gas mixtures. The ensemble-averaged conservation equations were closed by a K-epsilon model of turbulence. This K-epsilon model of turbulence was modified to account for some of the effects of compressibility, streamline curvature, low-Reynolds number, and preferential stress dissipation. Numerical solutions to the conservation equations were obtained by the highly efficient implicit-factored method of Beam and Warming. The grid system needed to obtain solutions were generated by an algebraic grid generation technique based on transfinite interpolation. Results of the numerical study are presented in graphical form illustrating the flow patterns during intake, compression, gaseous fuel injection, expansion, and exhaust.

Accounting Methodology for Source Energy of Non-Combustible Renewable Electricity Generation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Donohoo-Vallett, Paul

As non-combustible sources of renewable power (wind, solar, hydro, and geothermal) do not consume fuel, the “source” (or “primary”) energy from these sources cannot be accounted for in the same manner as it is for fossil fuel sources. The methodology chosen for these technologies is important as it affects the perception of the relative size of renewable source energy to fossil energy, affects estimates of source-based building energy use, and overall source energy based metrics such as energy productivity. This memo reviews the methodological choices, outlines implications of each choice, summarizes responses to a request for information on this topic,more » and presents guiding principles for the U.S. Department of Energy, (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) to use to determine where modifying the current renewable source energy accounting method used in EERE products and analyses would be appropriate to address the issues raised above.« less

A two-dimensional numerical study of the flow inside the combustion chamber of a motored rotary engine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shih, T. I-P.; Yang, S. L.; Schock, H. J.

1986-01-01

A numerical study was performed to investigate the unsteady, multidimensional flow inside the combustion chambers of an idealized, two-dimensional, rotary engine under motored conditions. The numerical study was based on the time-dependent, two-dimensional, density-weighted, ensemble-averaged conservation equations of mass, species, momentum, and total energy valid for two-component ideal gas mixtures. The ensemble-averaged conservation equations were closed by a K-epsilon model of turbulence. This K-epsilon model of turbulence was modified to account for some of the effects of compressibility, streamline curvature, low-Reynolds number, and preferential stress dissipation. Numerical solutions to the conservation equations were obtained by the highly efficient implicit-factored method of Beam and Warming. The grid system needed to obtain solutions were generated by an algebraic grid generation technique based on transfinite interpolation. Results of the numerical study are presented in graphical form illustrating the flow patterns during intake, compression, gaseous fuel injection, expansion, and exhaust.

Effect of low-density polyethylene on smoke emissions from burning of simulated debris piles.

PubMed

Hosseini, Seyedehsan; Shrivastava, Manish; Qi, Li; Weise, David R; Cocker, David R; Miller, John W; Jung, Heejung S

2014-06-01

Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) plastic is used to keep piled debris from silvicultural activities--activities associated with development and care of forests--dry to enable efficient disposal by burning. The effects of inclusion of LDPE in this manner on smoke emissions are not well known. In a combustion laboratory experiment, 2-kg mixtures of LDPE and manzanita (Arctostaphylos sp.) wood containing 0, 0.25, and 2.5% LDPE by mass were burned. Gaseous and particulate emissions were sampled in real time during the entire flaming, mixed combustion phase--when the flaming and smoldering phases are present at the same time--and during a portion of the smoldering phase. Analysis of variance was used to test significance of modified combustion efficiency (MCE)--the ratio of concentrations of fire-integrated excess CO2 to CO2 plus CO--and LDPE content on measured individual compounds. MCE ranged between 0.983 and 0.993, indicating that combustion was primarily flaming; MCE was seldom significant as a covariate. Of the 195 compounds identified in the smoke emissions, only the emission factor (EF) of 3M-octane showed an increase with increasing LDPE content. Inclusion of LDPE had an effect on EFs of pyrene and fluoranthene, but no statistical evidence of a linear trend was found. Particulate emission factors showed a marginally significant linear relationship with MCE (0.05 < P-value < 0.10). Based on the results of the current and previous studies and literature reviews, the inclusion of small mass proportions of LDPE in piled silvicultural debris does not appear to change the emissions produced when low-moisture-content wood is burned. In general, combustion of wet piles results in lower MCEs and consequently higher levels of emissions. Current air quality regulations permit the use of burning to dispose of silvicultural piles; however, inclusion of low-density polyethyelene (LDPE) plastic in silvicultural piles can result in a designation of the pile as waste. Waste burning is not permitted in many areas, and there is also concern that inclusion of LDPE leads to toxic air emissions.

A Two-Zone Multigrid Model for SI Engine Combustion Simulation Using Detailed Chemistry

DOE PAGES

Ge, Hai-Wen; Juneja, Harmit; Shi, Yu; ...

2010-01-01

An efficient multigrid (MG) model was implemented for spark-ignited (SI) engine combustion modeling using detailed chemistry. The model is designed to be coupled with a level-set-G-equation model for flame propagation (GAMUT combustion model) for highly efficient engine simulation. The model was explored for a gasoline direct-injection SI engine with knocking combustion. The numerical results using the MG model were compared with the results of the original GAMUT combustion model. A simpler one-zone MG model was found to be unable to reproduce the results of the original GAMUT model. However, a two-zone MG model, which treats the burned and unburned regionsmore » separately, was found to provide much better accuracy and efficiency than the one-zone MG model. Without loss in accuracy, an order of magnitude speedup was achieved in terms of CPU and wall times. To reproduce the results of the original GAMUT combustion model, either a low searching level or a procedure to exclude high-temperature computational cells from the grouping should be applied to the unburned region, which was found to be more sensitive to the combustion model details.« less

Detailed performance analysis of the A.A.D. - concept B

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sekar, R.; Tozzi, L.

1983-01-01

New concepts for engine performance improvement are seen through the adoption of heat regeneration techniques; advanced methods to enhance the combustion; and higher efficiency air handling machinery, such as the positive displacement helical screw expander and compressor. Each of these concepts plays a particular role in engine performance improvement. First regeneration has a great potential for achieving higher engine thermal efficiency through the recovery of waste energy. Although the concept itself is not new (this technique is used in the gas turbine), the application to reciprocating internal combustion engines is quite unusual and presents conceptual difficulties. The second important area is better control of the combustion process in terms of heat transfer characteristics, combustion products, and heat release rate. The third area for performance improvement is in the adoption of high efficiency air handling machinery. In particular, positive displacement helical expander and compressor exhibit an extremely high efficiency over a wide range of operating conditions.

Fruit pomace as a fuel

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mason, N.; Davis, D.C.; Hyde, G.M.

1983-12-01

In this study the solid waste (pomace) from grape and apple juice processing was chemically analyzed to determine high heating value. Grape pomace combustion was simulated at several excess air levels and combustion products were analyzed. Then grape pomace was actually burned in a concentric vortex furnace at several levels of excess air to determine combustion efficiency and to confirm flue gas pollutant characteristics. The results show that apple and grape pomace are chemically similar to wood from the combustion standpoint and that furnace slagging is not a problem because the ash fusion temperatures are considerably higher than combustion temperatures.more » The grape pomace burned at efficiencies of 44 to 61 percent with only low pollution hazard.« less

40 CFR Table 3 to Subpart Lllll of... - Requirements for Performance Tests a,b

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., THC destruction efficiency, THC outlet concentration, or combustion efficiency standards, the sampling... combustion efficiency or THC standards a. Measure the concentration of carbon dioxideb. Measure the... method 25A in appendix A to part 60 of this chapter 10. Each control device used to comply with the THC...

40 CFR Table 3 to Subpart Lllll of... - Requirements for Performance Tests a,b

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

..., THC destruction efficiency, THC outlet concentration, or combustion efficiency standards, the sampling... combustion efficiency or THC standards a. Measure the concentration of carbon dioxideb. Measure the... method 25A in appendix A to part 60 of this chapter 10. Each control device used to comply with the THC...

40 CFR Table 3 to Subpart Lllll of... - Requirements for Performance Tests a,b

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

..., THC destruction efficiency, THC outlet concentration, or combustion efficiency standards, the sampling... combustion efficiency or THC standards a. Measure the concentration of carbon dioxideb. Measure the... method 25A in appendix A to part 60 of this chapter 10. Each control device used to comply with the THC...

40 CFR Table 3 to Subpart Lllll of... - Requirements for Performance Tests a b

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

..., THC destruction efficiency, THC outlet concentration, or combustion efficiency standards, the sampling... combustion efficiency or THC standards a. Measure the concentration of carbon dioxideb. Measure the... method 25A in appendix A to part 60 of this chapter 10. Each control device used to comply with the THC...

40 CFR Table 3 to Subpart Lllll of... - Requirements for Performance Tests a,b

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

..., THC destruction efficiency, THC outlet concentration, or combustion efficiency standards, the sampling... combustion efficiency or THC standards a. Measure the concentration of carbon dioxideb. Measure the... method 25A in appendix A to part 60 of this chapter 10. Each control device used to comply with the THC...

[Separation of PM2.5 from coal combustion with phase change].

PubMed

Yan, Jin-pei; Yang, Lin-jun; Zhang, Xia; Sun, Lu-juan; Zhang, Yu; Shen, Xiang-lin

2008-12-01

The influence of two methods of gas moisture conditioning on removal efficiency of PM2.5 from coal combustion with addition of atomized droplets and steam was investigated. The particles size distribution and number concentration were measured in real time by electrical low pressure impactor (ELPI). The results show that collection efficiency of PM2.5 from coal combustion can be highly improved with steam condensational enlargement. Particle stage collection efficiency increases with the particles, especially for those smaller than 0.3 microm. The separation efficiency can be improved by 60% with the size of particles increasing from 0.03 microm to 0.3 microm for 0.1 kg/m3 of steam addition. The removal efficiency is independent of the gas temperature at the inlet of conditioning chamber for steam addition. But it increases with the gas temperature obviously for atomized droplets addition, which can be improved by 30% with increasing gas temperature from 136 degrees C to 256 degrees C. High removal efficiency of PM2.5 from coal combustion can be obtained with atomized droplets evaporation in hot flue gas except for steam addition.

Co-combustion of anthracite coal and wood pellets: Thermodynamic analysis, combustion efficiency, pollutant emissions and ash slagging.

PubMed

Guo, Feihong; Zhong, Zhaoping

2018-08-01

This work presents studies on the co-combustion of anthracite coal and wood pellets in fluidized bed. Prior to the fluidized bed combustion, thermogravimetric analysis are performed to investigate the thermodynamic behavior of coal and wood pellets. The results show that the thermal decomposition of blends is divided into four stages. The co-firing of coal and wood pellets can promote the combustion reaction and reduce the emission of gaseous pollutants, such as SO 2 and NO. It is important to choose the proportion of wood pellets during co-combustion due to the low combustion efficiency caused by large pellets with poor fluidization. Wood pellets can inhibit the volatilization of trace elements, especially for Cr, Ni and V. In addition, the slagging ratio of wood pellets ash is reduced by co-firing with coal. The research on combustion of coal and wood pellets is of great significance in engineering. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Stability analysis of a liquid fuel annular combustion chamber. M.S. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcdonald, G. H.

1979-01-01

The problems of combustion instability in an annular combustion chamber are investigated. A modified Galerkin method was used to produce a set of modal amplitude equations from the general nonlinear partial differential acoustic wave equation. From these modal amplitude equations, the two variable perturbation method was used to develop a set of approximate equations of a given order of magnitude. These equations were modeled to show the effects of velocity sensitive combustion instabilities by evaluating the effects of certain parameters in the given set of equations. By evaluating these effects, parameters which cause instabilities to occur in the combustion chamber can be ascertained. It is assumed that in the annular combustion chamber, the liquid propellants are injected uniformly across the injector face, the combustion processes are distributed throughout the combustion chamber, and that no time delay occurs in the combustion processes.

NETL - Thermogravimetric Analysis Laboratory

ScienceCinema

Richards, George

2018-06-22

Researchers in NETL's Thermal Analysis Laboratory are investigating chemical looping combustion. As a clean and efficient fossil fuel technology, chemical looping combustion controls CO2 emissions and offers a promising alternative to traditional combustion.

Mercury Adsorption and Oxidation over Cobalt Oxide Loaded Magnetospheres Catalyst from Fly Ash in Oxyfuel Combustion Flue Gas.

PubMed

Yang, Jianping; Zhao, Yongchun; Chang, Lin; Zhang, Junying; Zheng, Chuguang

2015-07-07

Cobalt oxide loaded magnetospheres catalyst from fly ash (Co-MF catalyst) showed good mercury removal capacity and recyclability under air combustion flue gas in our previous study. In this work, the Hg(0) removal behaviors as well as the involved reactions mechanism were investigated in oxyfuel combustion conditions. Further, the recyclability of Co-MF catalyst in oxyfuel combustion atmosphere was also evaluated. The results showed that the Hg(0) removal efficiency in oxyfuel combustion conditions was relative high compared to that in air combustion conditions. The presence of enriched CO2 (70%) in oxyfuel combustion atmosphere assisted the mercury oxidation due to the oxidation of function group of C-O formed from CO2. Under both atmospheres, the mercury removal efficiency decreased with the addition of SO2, NO, and H2O. However, the enriched CO2 in oxyfuel combustion atmosphere could somewhat weaken the inhibition of SO2, NO, and H2O. The multiple capture-regeneration cycles demonstrated that the Co-MF catalyst also present good regeneration performance in oxyfuel combustion atmosphere.

Fundamental modelling of pulverized coal and coal-water slurry combustion in a gas turbine combustor

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chatwani, A.; Turan, A.; Hals, F.

1988-06-01

A large portion of world energy resources is in the form of low grade coal. There is need to utilize these resources in an efficient and environmentally clean way. The specific approach under development by us is direct combustion in a multistage slagging combustor, incorrporating control of NO/sub x/, SO/sub x/, and particulates. The toroidal vortex combustor is currently under development through a DOE contract to Westinghouse and subcontract to ARL. This subscale, coal-fired, 6MW combustor will be built and become operational in 1988. The coal fuel is mixed with preheated air, injected through a number of circumferentially-located jets orientedmore » in the radius axis planes. The jets merge at the centerline, forming a vertically directed jet which curves around the combustor dome wall and gives rise to a toroidal shaped vortex. This vortex helps to push the particles radially outward, hit the walls through inertial separation and promote slagging. It also provides a high intensity flow mixing zone to enhance combustion product uniformity, and a primary mechanism for heat feed back to the incoming flow for flame stabilization. The paper describes the essential features of a coal combustion model which is incorporated into a three-dimensional, steady-state, two-phase, turbulent, reactive flow code. The code is a modified and advanced version of INTERN code originally developed at Imperial College which has gone through many stages of development and validation.« less

Detonation Jet Engine. Part 1--Thermodynamic Cycle

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bulat, Pavel V.; Volkov, Konstantin N.

2016-01-01

We present the most relevant works on jet engine design that utilize thermodynamic cycle of detonative combustion. The efficiency advantages of thermodynamic detonative combustion cycle over Humphrey combustion cycle at constant volume and Brayton combustion cycle at constant pressure were demonstrated. An ideal Ficket-Jacobs detonation cycle, and…

Enhanced Efficiency of Internal Combustion Engines By Employing Spinning Gas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Geyko, Vasily; Fisch, Nathaniel

2014-02-27

The efficiency of the internal combustion engine might be enhanced by employing spinning gas. A gas spinning at near sonic velocities has an effectively higher heat capacity, which allows practical fuel cycles, which are far from the Carnot efficiency, to approach more closely the Carnot efficiency. A gain in fuel efficiency of several percent is shown to be theoretically possible for the Otto and Diesel cycles. The use of a flywheel, in principle, could produce even greater increases in the efficiency.

Enhanced efficiency of internal combustion engines by employing spinning gas.

PubMed

Geyko, V I; Fisch, N J

2014-08-01

The efficiency of the internal combustion engine might be enhanced by employing spinning gas. A gas spinning at near sonic velocities has an effectively higher heat capacity, which allows practical fuel cycles, which are far from the Carnot efficiency, to approach more closely the Carnot efficiency. A remarkable gain in fuel efficiency is shown to be theoretically possible for the Otto and Diesel cycles. The use of a flywheel, in principle, could produce even greater increases in efficiency.

Optimization of operation conditions and configurations for solid-propellant ducted rocket combustors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Onn, Shing-Chung; Chiang, Hau-Jei; Hwang, Hang-Che; Wei, Jen-Ko; Cherng, Dao-Lien

1993-06-01

The dynamic behavior of a 2D turbulent mixing and combustion process has been studied numerically in the main combustion chamber of a solid-propellant ducted rocket (SDR). The mathematical model is based on the Favre-averaged conservation equations developed by Cherng (1990). Combustion efficiency, rather than specific impulse from earlier studies, is applied successfully to optimize the effects of two parameters by a multiple linear regression model. Specifically, the fuel-air equivalence ratio of the operating conditions and the air inlet location of configurations for the SDR combustor have been studied. For a equivalence ratio near the stoichiometric condition, the use of specific impulse or combustion efficiency will show similar trend in characterizing the reacting flow field in the combustor. For the overall fuel lean operating conditions, the change of combustion efficiency is much more sensitive to that of air inlet location than specific impulse does, suggesting combustion efficiency a better property than specific impulse in representing the condition toward flammability limits. In addition, the air inlet for maximum efficiency, in general, appears to be located at downstream of that for highest specific impulse. The optimal case for the effects of two parameters occurs at fuel lean condition, which shows a larger recirculation zone in front, deeper penetration of ram air into the combustor and much larger high temperature zone near the centerline of the combustor exit than those shown in the optimal case for overall equivalence ratio close to stoichiometric.

Research on optimization of combustion efficiency of thermal power unit based on genetic algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Qiongyang

2018-04-01

In order to improve the economic performance and reduce pollutant emissions of thermal power units, the characteristics of neural network in establishing boiler combustion model are analyzed based on the analysis of the main factors affecting boiler efficiency by using orthogonal method. In addition, on the basis of this model, the genetic algorithm is used to find the best control amount of the furnace combustion in a certain working condition. Through the genetic algorithm based on real number encoding and roulette selection is concluded: the best control quantity at a condition of furnace combustion can be combined with the boiler combustion system model for neural network training. The precision of the neural network model is further improved, and the basic work is laid for the research of the whole boiler combustion optimization system.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Magdalena Zaharia; Veena Sahajwalla; Byong-Chul Kim

The present study investigates the effect of addition of waste rubber tires on the combustion behavior of its blends with coke for carbon injection in electric arc furnace steelmaking. Waste rubber tires were mixed in different proportions with metallurgical coke (MC) (10:90, 20:80, 30:70) for combustion and pyrolysis at 1473 K in a drop tube furnace (DTF) and thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA), respectively. Under experimental conditions most of the rubber blends indicated higher combustion efficiencies compared to those of the constituent coke. In the early stage of combustion the weight loss rate of the blends is much faster compared to thatmore » of the raw coke due to the higher volatile yield of rubber. The presence of rubber in the blends may have had an impact upon the structure during the release and combustion of their high volatile matter (VM) and hence increased char burnout. Measurements of micropore surface area and bulk density of the chars collected after combustion support the higher combustion efficiency of the blends in comparison to coke alone. The surface morphology of the 30% rubber blend revealed pores in the residual char that might be attributed to volatile evolution during high temperature reaction in oxygen atmosphere. Physical properties and VM appear to have a major effect upon the measured combustion efficiency of rubber blends. The study demonstrates that waste rubber tires can be successfully co-injected with metallurgical coke in electric arc furnace steelmaking process to provide additional energy from combustion. 44 refs., 11 figs., 2 tabs.« less

FY 2007 Progress Report for Advanced Combustion Engine Technologies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None, None

2007-12-01

Advanced combustion engines have great potential for achieving dramatic energy efficiency improvements in light-duty vehicle applications, where it is suited to both conventional and hybrid- electric powertrain configurations. Light-duty vehicles with advanced combustion engines can compete directly with gasoline engine hybrid vehicles in terms of fuel economy and consumer-friendly driving characteristics; also, they are projected to have energy efficiencies that are competitive with hydrogen fuel cell vehicles when used in hybrid applications.Advanced engine technologies being researched and developed by the Advanced Combustion Engine R&D Sub-Program will also allow the use of hydrogen as a fuel in ICEs and will providemore » an energy-efficient interim hydrogen-based powertrain technology during the transition to hydrogen/fuelcell-powered transportation vehicles.« less

Optical and chemical characterization of aerosols emitted from coal, heavy and light fuel oil, and small-scale wood combustion.

PubMed

Frey, Anna K; Saarnio, Karri; Lamberg, Heikki; Mylläri, Fanni; Karjalainen, Panu; Teinilä, Kimmo; Carbone, Samara; Tissari, Jarkko; Niemelä, Ville; Häyrinen, Anna; Rautiainen, Jani; Kytömäki, Jorma; Artaxo, Paulo; Virkkula, Aki; Pirjola, Liisa; Rönkkö, Topi; Keskinen, Jorma; Jokiniemi, Jorma; Hillamo, Risto

2014-01-01

Particle emissions affect radiative forcing in the atmosphere. Therefore, it is essential to know the physical and chemical characteristics of them. This work studied the chemical, physical, and optical characteristics of particle emissions from small-scale wood combustion, coal combustion of a heating and power plant, as well as heavy and light fuel oil combustion at a district heating station. Fine particle (PM1) emissions were the highest in wood combustion with a high fraction of absorbing material. The emissions were lowest from coal combustion mostly because of efficient cleaning techniques used at the power plant. The chemical composition of aerosols from coal and oil combustion included mostly ions and trace elements with a rather low fraction of absorbing material. The single scattering albedo and aerosol forcing efficiency showed that primary particles emitted from wood combustion and some cases of oil combustion would have a clear climate warming effect even over dark earth surfaces. Instead, coal combustion particle emissions had a cooling effect. Secondary processes in the atmosphere will further change the radiative properties of these emissions but are not considered in this study.

Efficient volatile metal removal from low rank coal in gasification, combustion, and processing systems and methods

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bland, Alan E.; Sellakumar, Kumar Muthusami; Newcomer, Jesse D.

Efficient coal pre-processing systems (69) integrated with gasification, oxy-combustion, and power plant systems include a drying chamber (28), a volatile metal removal chamber (30), recirculated gases, including recycled carbon dioxide (21), nitrogen (6), and gaseous exhaust (60) for increasing the efficiencies and lowering emissions in various coal processing systems.

Renewable Energy Laboratory Development for Biofuels Advanced Combustion Studies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Soloiu, Valentin A.

2012-03-31

The research advanced fundamental science and applied engineering for increasing the efficiency of internal combustion engines and meeting emissions regulations with biofuels. The project developed a laboratory with new experiments and allowed investigation of new fuels and their combustion and emissions. This project supports a sustainable domestic biofuels and automotive industry creating economic opportunities across the nation, reducing the dependence on foreign oil, and enhancing U.S. energy security. The one year period of research developed fundamental knowledge and applied technology in advanced combustion, emissions and biofuels formulation to increase vehicle's efficiency. Biofuels combustion was investigated in a Compression Ignition Directmore » Injection (DI) to develop idling strategies with biofuels and an Indirect Diesel Injection (IDI) intended for auxiliary power unit.« less

Characterization of Combustion Dynamics, Detection, and Prevention of an Unstable Combustion State Based on a Complex-Network Theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gotoda, Hiroshi; Kinugawa, Hikaru; Tsujimoto, Ryosuke; Domen, Shohei; Okuno, Yuta

2017-04-01

Complex-network theory has attracted considerable attention for nearly a decade, and it enables us to encompass our understanding of nonlinear dynamics in complex systems in a wide range of fields, including applied physics and mechanical, chemical, and electrical engineering. We conduct an experimental study using a pragmatic online detection methodology based on complex-network theory to prevent a limiting unstable state such as blowout in a confined turbulent combustion system. This study introduces a modified version of the natural visibility algorithm based on the idea of a visibility limit to serve as a pragmatic online detector. The average degree of the modified version of the natural visibility graph allows us to detect the onset of blowout, resulting in online prevention.

Study of Forebody Injection and Mixing with Application to Hypervelocity Airbreathing Propulsion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Axdahl, Erik; Kumar, Ajay; Wilhite, Alan

2012-01-01

The use of premixed, shock-induced combustion in the context of a hypervelocity, airbreathing vehicle requires effective injection and mixing of hydrogen fuel and air on the vehicle forebody. Three dimensional computational simulations of fuel injection and mixing from flush-wall and modified ramp and strut injectors are reported in this study. A well-established code, VULCAN, is used to conduct nonreacting, viscous, turbulent simulations on a flat plate at conditions relevant to a Mach 12 flight vehicle forebody. In comparing results of various fuel injection strategies, it is found that strut injection provides the greatest balance of performance between mixing efficiency and stream thrust potential.

Reynolds number effects in combustion noise

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seshan, P. K.

1981-01-01

Acoustic emission spectra have been obtained for non-premixed turbulent combustion from two small diameter laboratory gas burners, two commercial gas burners and a large gas burner in the firebox of a Babcock-Wilcox Boiler (50,000 lb steam/hr). The changes in burner size and firing rate represent changes in Reynolds number and changes in air/fuel ratio represent departure from stoichiometric proportions. The combustion efficiency was measured independently through gas analysis. The acoustic spectra obtained from the various burners exhibit a persistent shape over the Reynolds number range of 8200-82,000. The spectra were analyzed for identification of a predictable frequency domain that is most responsive to, and readily correlated with, combustion efficiency. A simple parameter (consisting of the ratio of the average acoustic power output in the most responsive frequency bandwidth to the acoustic power level of the loudest frequency) is proposed whose value increases significantly and unmistakably as combustion efficiency approaches 100%. The dependence of the most responsive frequency domain on the various Reynolds numbers associated with turbulent jets is discussed.

Method of operating a coal gasifier

DOEpatents

Blaskowski, Henry J.

1979-01-01

A method of operating an entrained flow coal gasifier which comprises the steps of firing coal at two levels in a combustion zone with near stoichiometric air, removing molten ash from the combustion zone, conveying combustion products upwardly from the combustion zone through a reduction zone, injecting additional coal into the combustion products in the reduction zone and gasifying at least a portion of the coal to form low BTU gas, conveying the gas to a point of use, including also reducing gasifier output by modifying the ratio of air to coal supplied to the upper level of the combustion zone so that the ratio becomes increasingly substoichiometric thereby extending the gasification of coal from the reduction zone into the upper level of the combustion zone, and maintaining the lower level of coal in the combustion zone at near stoichiometric conditions so as to provide sufficient heat to maintain effective slagging conditions.

Influence of the Structure of a Solid-Fuel Mixture on the Thermal Efficiency of the Combustion Chamber of an Engine System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Futko, S. I.; Koznacheev, I. A.; Ermolaeva, E. M.

2014-11-01

On the basis of thermodynamic calculations, the features of the combustion of a solid-fuel mixture based on the glycidyl azide polymer were investigated, the thermal cycle of the combustion chamber of a model engine system was analyzed, and the efficiency of this chamber was determined for a wide range of pressures in it and different ratios between the components of the combustible mixture. It was established that, when the pressure in the combustion chamber of an engine system increases, two maxima arise successively on the dependence of the thermal efficiency of the chamber on the weight fractions of the components of the combustible mixture and that the first maximum shifts to the side of smaller concentrations of the glycidyl azide polymer with increase in the pressure in the chamber; the position of the second maximum is independent of this pressure, coincides with the minimum on the dependence of the rate of combustion of the mixture, and corresponds to the point of its structural phase transition at which the mole fractions of the carbon and oxygen atoms in the mixture are equal. The results obtained were interpreted on the basis of the Le-Chatelier principle.

Comparison of fuel value and combustion characteristics of two different RDF samples.

PubMed

Sever Akdağ, A; Atımtay, A; Sanin, F D

2016-01-01

Generation of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) tends to increase with the growing population and economic development of the society; therefore, establishing environmentally sustainable waste management strategies is crucial. In this sense, waste to energy strategies have come into prominence since they increase the resource efficiency and replace the fossil fuels with renewable energy sources by enabling material and energy recovery instead of landfill disposal of the wastes. Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF), which is an alternative fuel produced from energy-rich Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) materials diverted from landfills, is one of the waste to energy strategies gaining more and more attention. This study aims to investigate the thermal characteristics and co-combustion efficiency of two RDF samples in Turkey. Proximate, ultimate and thermogravimetric analyses (TGA) were conducted on these samples. Furthermore, elemental compositions of ash from RDF samples were determined by X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analysis. The RDF samples were combusted alone and co-combusted in mixtures with coal and petroleum coke in a lab scale reactor at certain percentages on energy basis (3%, 5%, 10%, 20% and 30%) where co-combustion processes and efficiencies were investigated. It was found that the calorific values of RDF samples on dry basis were close to that of coal and a little lower compared to petroleum coke used in this study. Furthermore, the analysis indicated that when RDF in the mixture was higher than 10%, the CO concentration in the flue gas increased and so the combustion efficiency decreased; furthermore, the combustion characteristics changed from char combustion to volatile combustion. However, RDF addition to the fuel mixtures decreased the SO2 emission and did not change the NOx profiles. Also, XRF analysis showed that the slagging and fouling potential of RDF combustion was a function of RDF portion in fuel blend. When the RDF was combusted alone, the slagging and fouling indices of its ash were found to be higher than the limit values producing slagging and fouling. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

High Efficiency, Low Emissions Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) Engines

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gravel, Roland; Maronde, Carl; Gehrke, Chris

2010-10-30

This is the final report of the High Efficiency Clean Combustion (HECC) Research Program for the U.S. Department of Energy. Work under this co-funded program began in August 2005 and finished in July 2010. The objective of this program was to develop and demonstrate a low emission, high thermal efficiency engine system that met 2010 EPA heavy-duty on-highway truck emissions requirements (0.2g/bhp-hr NOx, 0.14g/bhp-hr HC and 0.01g/bhp-hr PM) with a thermal efficiency of 46%. To achieve this goal, development of diesel homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) combustion was the chosen approach. This report summarizes the development of diesel HCCI combustionmore » and associated enabling technologies that occurred during the HECC program between August 2005 and July 2010. This program showed that although diesel HCCI with conventional US diesel fuel was not a feasible means to achieve the program objectives, the HCCI load range could be increased with a higher volatility, lower cetane number fuel, such as gasoline, if the combustion rate could be moderated to avoid excessive cylinder pressure rise rates. Given the potential efficiency and emissions benefits, continued research of combustion with low cetane number fuels and the effects of fuel distillation are recommended. The operation of diesel HCCI was only feasible at part-load due to a limited fuel injection window. A 4% fuel consumption benefit versus conventional, low-temperature combustion was realized over the achievable operating range. Several enabling technologies were developed under this program that also benefited non-HCCI combustion. The development of a 300MPa fuel injector enabled the development of extended lifted flame combustion. A design methodology for minimizing the heat transfer to jacket water, known as precision cooling, will benefit conventional combustion engines, as well as HCCI engines. An advanced combustion control system based on cylinder pressure measurements was developed. A Well-to-wheels analysis of the energy flows in a mobile vehicle system and a 2nd Law thermodynamic analysis of the engine system were also completed under this program.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Guo, Hua

Combustion represents a key chemical process in energy consumption in modern societies and a clear and comprehensive understanding of the elemental reactions in combustion is of great importance to a number of challenging areas such as engine efficiency and environmental protection. In this award, we proposed to develop new theoretical tools to understand elemental chemical processes in combustion environments. With the support of this DOE grant, we have made significant advances in developing new and more efficient and accurate algorithms to characterize reaction dynamics.

Environmental assessment of combustion modification controls for stationary internal combustion engines. Final report Sep 78-Jul 79

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lips, H.I.; Gotterba, J.A.; Lim, K.J.

1981-07-01

The report gives results of an environmental assessment of combustion modification techniques for stationary internal combustion engines, with respect to NOx control reduction effectiveness, operational impact, thermal efficiency impact, capital and annualized operating costs, and effects on emissions of pollutants other than NOx.

Study of shock-induced combustion using an implicit TVD scheme

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yungster, Shayne

1992-01-01

The supersonic combustion flowfields associated with various hypersonic propulsion systems, such as the ram accelerator, the oblique detonation wave engine, and the scramjet, are being investigated using a new computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code. The code solves the fully coupled Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations and species continuity equations in an efficient manner. It employs an iterative method and a second order differencing scheme to improve computational efficiency. The code is currently being applied to study shock wave/boundary layer interactions in premixed combustible gases, and to investigate the ram accelerator concept. Results obtained for a ram accelerator configuration indicate a new combustion mechanism in which a shock wave induces combustion in the boundary layer, which then propagates outward and downstream. The combustion process creates a high pressure region over the back of the projectile resulting in a net positive thrust forward.

Effect of design changes and operating conditions on combustion and operational performance of a 28-inch diameter Ram-jet engine / T. B. Shillito and Shigeo Nakanishi

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shillito, T B; Nakanishi, Shigeo

1952-01-01

The results of an altitude test-chamber investigation of the effects of a number of design changes and operating conditions on altitude peformance of a 28-inch diameter ram jet engine are presented. Most of the investigation was for a simulated flight Mach number of 2.0 above the tropopause. Fuel-air distribution, gutter width, the presence of a pilot flame, cimbustion-chamber-inlet temperature, and exhaust-nozzle throat area were found to have significant effects on limits of combustion. Combustion efficiency increased with increasing combustion-chamber-inlet temperature and was adversely affected by an increase in the exhaust-nozzld area. Similiar lean limits of combustion were obtained for both Diesel fuel and normal heptane, but combustion efficiences obtained with Diesel fuel were lower than those obtained with normal heptane.

Energy Efficient Engine combustor test hardware detailed design report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burrus, D. L.; Chahrour, C. A.; Foltz, H. L.; Sabla, P. E.; Seto, S. P.; Taylor, J. R.

1984-01-01

The Energy Efficient Engine (E3) Combustor Development effort was conducted as part of the overall NASA/GE E3 Program. This effort included the selection of an advanced double-annular combustion system design. The primary intent was to evolve a design which meets the stringent emissions and life goals of the E3 as well as all of the usual performance requirements of combustion systems for modern turbofan engines. Numerous detailed design studies were conducted to define the features of the combustion system design. Development test hardware was fabricated, and an extensive testing effort was undertaken to evaluate the combustion system subcomponents in order to verify and refine the design. Technology derived from this development effort will be incorporated into the engine combustion system hardware design. This advanced engine combustion system will then be evaluated in component testing to verify the design intent. What is evolving from this development effort is an advanced combustion system capable of satisfying all of the combustion system design objectives and requirements of the E3. Fuel nozzle, diffuser, starting, and emissions design studies are discussed.

Afterburner Performance of Circular V-Gutters and a Sector of Parallel V-Gutters for a Range of Inlet Temperatures to 1255 K (1800 F)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brandstetter, J. Robert; Reck, Gregory M.

1973-01-01

Combustion tests of two V-gutter types were conducted in a 19.25-in. diameter duct using vitiated air. Fuel spraybars were mounted in line with the V-gutters. Combustor length was set by flame-quench water sprays which were part of a calorimeter for measuring combustion efficiency. Although the levels of performance of the parallel and circular array afterburners were different, the trends with geometry variations were consistent. Therefore, parallel arrays can be used for evaluating V-gutter geometry effects on combustion performance. For both arrays, the highest inlet temperature produced combustion efficiencies near 100 percent. A 5-in. spraybar - to - V-gutter spacing gave higher efficiency and better lean blowout performance than a spacing twice as large. Gutter durability was good.

Los Alamos National Security, LLC Request for Information on how industry may partner with the Laboratory on KIVA software.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mcdonald, Kathleen Herrera

2016-02-29

KIVA is a family of Fortran-based computational fluid dynamics software developed by LANL. The software predicts complex fuel and air flows as well as ignition, combustion, and pollutant-formation processes in engines. The KIVA models have been used to understand combustion chemistry processes, such as auto-ignition of fuels, and to optimize diesel engines for high efficiency and low emissions. Fuel economy is heavily dependent upon engine efficiency, which in turn depends to a large degree on how fuel is burned within the cylinders of the engine. Higher in-cylinder pressures and temperatures lead to increased fuel economy, but they also create moremore » difficulty in controlling the combustion process. Poorly controlled and incomplete combustion can cause higher levels of emissions and lower engine efficiencies.« less

[Fluorine removal efficiency of organic-calcium during coal combustion].

PubMed

Liu, Jing; Liu, Jian-Zhong; Zhou, Jun-Hu; Xiao, Hai-Ping; Cen, Ke-Fa

2006-08-01

Effectiveness of calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) and calcium acetate(CA) as feasible HF capture were studied by means of fixed bed tube furnaces. The effects of temperature, particle diameter and Ca/S molar ratio on the fluorine removal efficiency were studied. By contract with CaCO3 at the same condition, we find that the HF capture effectiveness of those sorbents is superior to CaCO3, especially at high temperature. At 1 000 - 1 100 degrees C, the efficiency of fluorine removal during coal combustion of CMA is 1.68 - 1.74 times as that of CaCO3; the efficiency of fluorine removal during coal combustion of CA is 1.28 - 1.37 times as that of CaCO3.

Emissions of Parent, Nitro, and Oxygenated Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons from Residential Wood Combustion in Rural China

PubMed Central

SHEN, Guofeng; TAO, Shu; WEI, Siye; ZHANG, Yanyan; WANG, Rong; WANG, Bin; LI, Wei; SHEN, Huizhong; HUANG, Ye; CHEN, Yuanchen; CHEN, Han; YANG, Yifeng; WANG, Wei; WANG, Xilong; LIU, Wenxin; SIMONICH, Staci L. M.

2012-01-01

Residential wood combustion is one of the important sources of air pollution in developing countries. Among the pollutants emitted, parent polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (pPAHs) and their derivatives, including nitrated and oxygenated PAHs (nPAHs and oPAHs), are of concern because of their mutagenic and carcinogenic effects. In order to evaluate their impacts on regional air quality and human health, emission inventories, based on realistic emission factors (EFs), are needed. In this study, the EFs of 28 pPAHs (EFPAH28), 9 nPAHs (EFPAHn9) and 4 oPAHs (EFPAHo4) were measured for residential combustion of 27 wood fuels in rural China. The measured EFPAH28, EFPAHn9, and EFPAHo4 for brushwood were 86.7±67.6, 3.22±1.95×10−2, and 5.56±4.32 mg/kg, which were significantly higher than 12.7±7.0, 8.27±5.51×10−3, and 1.19±1.87 mg/kg for fuel wood combustion (p < 0.05). Sixteen U.S. EPA priority pPAHs contributed approximately 95% of the total of the 28 pPAHs measured. EFs of pPAHs, nPAHs, and oPAHs were positively correlated with one another. Measured EFs varied obviously depending on fuel properties and combustion conditions. The EFs of pPAHs, nPAHs, and oPAHs were significantly correlated with modified combustion efficiency and fuel moisture. Nitro-naphthalene and 9-fluorenone were the most abundant nPAHs and oPAHs identified. Both nPAHs and oPAHs showed relatively high tendencies to be present in the particulate phase than pPAHs due to their lower vapor pressures. The gas-particle partitioning of freshly emitted pPAHs, nPAHs and oPAHs was primarily controlled by organic carbon absorption. PMID:22765266

A numerical study on combustion process in a small compression ignition engine run dual-fuel mode (diesel-biogas)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ambarita, H.; Widodo, T. I.; Nasution, D. M.

2017-01-01

In order to reduce the consumption of fossil fuel of a compression ignition (CI) engines which is usually used in transportation and heavy machineries, it can be operated in dual-fuel mode (diesel-biogas). However, the literature reviews show that the thermal efficiency is lower due to incomplete combustion process. In order to increase the efficiency, the combustion process in the combustion chamber need to be explored. Here, a commercial CFD code is used to explore the combustion process of a small CI engine run on dual fuel mode (diesel-biogas). The turbulent governing equations are solved based on finite volume method. A simulation of compression and expansions strokes at an engine speed and load of 1000 rpm and 2500W, respectively has been carried out. The pressure and temperature distributions and streamlines are plotted. The simulation results show that at engine power of 732.27 Watt the thermal efficiency is 9.05%. The experiment and simulation results show a good agreement. The method developed in this study can be used to investigate the combustion process of CI engine run on dual-fuel mode.

Mechanism of influence water vapor on combustion characteristics of propane-air mixture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larionov, V. M.; Mitrofanov, G. A.; Sachovskii, A. V.; Kozar, N. K.

2016-01-01

The article discusses the results of an experimental study of the effect of water vapor at the flame temperature. Propane-butane mixture with air is burning on a modified Bunsen burner. Steam temperature was varied from 180 to 260 degrees. Combustion parameters changed by steam temperature and its proportion in the mixture with the fuel. The fuel-air mixture is burned in the excess air ratio of 0.1. It has been established that the injection of steam changes the characteristics of combustion fuel-air mixture and increase the combustion temperature. The concentration of CO in the combustion products is substantially reduced. Raising the temperature in the combustion zone is associated with increased enthalpy of the fuel by the added steam enthalpy. Reducing the concentration of CO is caused by decrease in the average temperature in the combustion zone by applying steam. Concentration of active hydrogen radicals and oxygen increases in the combustion zone. That has a positive effect on the process of combustion.

Real-time combustion control and diagnostics sensor-pressure oscillation monitor

DOEpatents

Chorpening, Benjamin T [Morgantown, WV; Thornton, Jimmy [Morgantown, WV; Huckaby, E David [Morgantown, WV; Richards, George A [Morgantown, WV

2009-07-14

An apparatus and method for monitoring and controlling the combustion process in a combustion system to determine the amplitude and/or frequencies of dynamic pressure oscillations during combustion. An electrode in communication with the combustion system senses hydrocarbon ions and/or electrons produced by the combustion process and calibration apparatus calibrates the relationship between the standard deviation of the current in the electrode and the amplitudes of the dynamic pressure oscillations by applying a substantially constant voltage between the electrode and ground resulting in a current in the electrode and by varying one or more of (1) the flow rate of the fuel, (2) the flow rate of the oxidant, (3) the equivalence ratio, (4) the acoustic tuning of the combustion system, and (5) the fuel distribution in the combustion chamber such that the amplitudes of the dynamic pressure oscillations in the combustion chamber are calculated as a function of the standard deviation of the electrode current. Thereafter, the supply of fuel and/or oxidant is varied to modify the dynamic pressure oscillations.

Heart of the Hearth: Making the Popular Clean, Not the Clean Popular - Technology Research, Development, and Tools for Clean Biomass Cookstoves

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gist, Ryan

This technical report summarizes the work completed by BioLite in fulfilment of the US DOE EERE award. The work plan focused on three key objectives: developing an optimized combustion system that demonstrates high combustion efficiency and low PM 2.5 and CO emissions, integrate the system into popular stove phenotypes – side-fed rocket stove architecture like the BioLite HomeStove, and the Patsari chimney stove in Mexico such that they maintain their important phenotypical characteristics, independently evaluate quantitative fuel and emissions performance of the integrated ‘Turbo-Patsari’ in Mexican households. The project activities were organized into six major tasks: A. Develop, fabricate, andmore » test proof-of-concept prototypes B. Develop field prototypes, assess user feedback and field performance C. Define revised stove design for pre-production model, Identify manufacturing requirements and estimated cost to build, Conduct reliability, emissions, and performance testing of pre-production Turbo-Patsari D. Build pre-production Turbo-Patsari stove combustion cores E. Conduct pre-production field trials F. Summarize field trial results and evaluate Turbo-Patsari for potential volume production. A two-pronged approach was adopted for the above tasks. The first involved building a modular test platform that allowed parametric variation of multiple stove design parameters that directly affect its performance – heat output, thermal efficiency, and emissions. The second part of the approach comprised of building a surrogate Patsari based on GIRA’s specifications that could then be modified or retrofitted for optimum performance based on the learnings from the modular test platform. The following sections of the report will describe the findings of tests on these platform, the subsequent development, design, and installation of the Turbo-Patsari, and finally the in-home field trial.« less

A modified Brownian force for ultrafine particle penetration through building crack modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Chen; Zhao, Bin

2017-12-01

Combustion processes related to industry, traffic, agriculture, and waste treatment and disposal increase the amount of outdoor ultrafine particles (UFPs), which have adverse effects on human health. Given that people spend the majority of their time indoors, it is critical to understand the penetration of outdoor UFPs through building cracks in order to estimate human exposure to outdoor-originated UFPs. Lagrangian tracking is an efficient approach for modeling particle penetration. However, the Brownian motion for Lagrangian tracking in ANSYS Fluent®, a widely used software for particle dispersion modeling, is not able to model UFP dispersion accurately. In this study, we modified the Brownian force by rewriting the Brownian diffusion coefficient and particle integration time step with a user-defined function in ANSYS Fluent® to model particle penetration through building cracks. The results obtained using the modified model agree much better with the experimental results, with the averaged relative error less than 14% for the smooth crack cases and 21% for the rough crack case. We expect the modified Brownian force model proposed herein to be applied for UFP dispersion modeling in more indoor air quality studies.

Stability analysis of a liquid fuel annular combustion chamber. M.S. Thesis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcdonald, G. H.

1978-01-01

High frequency combustion instability problems in a liquid fuel annular combustion chamber are examined. A modified Galerkin method was used to produce a set of modal amplitude equations from the general nonlinear partial differential acoustic wave equation in order to analyze the problem of instability. From these modal amplitude equations, the two variable perturbation method was used to develop a set of approximate equations of a given order of magnitude. These equations were modeled to show the effects of velocity sensitive combustion instabilities by evaluating the effects of certain parameters in the given set of equations.

Staged combustion with piston engine and turbine engine supercharger

DOEpatents

Fischer, Larry E [Los Gatos, CA; Anderson, Brian L [Lodi, CA; O'Brien, Kevin C [San Ramon, CA

2006-05-09

A combustion engine method and system provides increased fuel efficiency and reduces polluting exhaust emissions by burning fuel in a two-stage combustion system. Fuel is combusted in a piston engine in a first stage producing piston engine exhaust gases. Fuel contained in the piston engine exhaust gases is combusted in a second stage turbine engine. Turbine engine exhaust gases are used to supercharge the piston engine.

Staged combustion with piston engine and turbine engine supercharger

DOEpatents

Fischer, Larry E [Los Gatos, CA; Anderson, Brian L [Lodi, CA; O'Brien, Kevin C [San Ramon, CA

2011-11-01

A combustion engine method and system provides increased fuel efficiency and reduces polluting exhaust emissions by burning fuel in a two-stage combustion system. Fuel is combusted in a piston engine in a first stage producing piston engine exhaust gases. Fuel contained in the piston engine exhaust gases is combusted in a second stage turbine engine. Turbine engine exhaust gases are used to supercharge the piston engine.

Interaction of pulsating and spinning waves in condensed phase combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Booty, M.R.; Margolis, S.B.; Matkowsky, B.J.

1986-10-01

The authors employ a nonlinear stability analysis in the neighborhood of a multiple bifurcation point to describe the interaction of pulsating and spinning modes of condensed phase combustion. Such phenomena occur in the synthesis of refractory materials. In particular, they consider the propagation of combustion waves in a long thermally insulated cylindrical sample and show that steady, planar combustion is stable for a modified activation energy/melting parameter less than a critical value. Above this critical value primary bifurcation states, corresponding to time-periodic pulsating and spinning modes of combustion, emanate from the steadily propagating solution. By varying the sample radius, themore » authors split a multiple bifurcation point to obtain bifurcation diagrams which exhibit secondary, tertiary, and quarternary branching to various types of quasi-periodic combustion waves.« less

Design and Development of a CPCI-Based Electronics Package for Space Station Experiments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kolacz, John S.; Clapper, Randy S.; Wade, Raymond P.

2006-01-01

The NASA John H. Glenn Research Center is developing a Compact-PCI (CPCI) based electronics package for controlling space experiment hardware on the International Space Station. Goals of this effort include an easily modified, modular design that allows for changes in experiment requirements. Unique aspects of the experiment package include a flexible circuit used for internal interconnections and a separate enclosure (box in a box) for controlling 1 kW of power for experiment fuel heating requirements. This electronics package was developed as part of the FEANICS (Flow Enclosure Accommodating Novel Investigations in Combustion of Solids) mini-facility which is part of the Fluids and Combustion Facility s Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR). The CIR will be the platform for future microgravity combustion experiments and will reside on the Destiny Module of the International Space Station (ISS). The FEANICS mini-facility will be the primary means for conducting solid fuel combustion experiments in the CIR on ISS. The main focus of many of these solid combustion experiments will be to conduct applied scientific investigations in fire-safety to support NASA s future space missions. A description of the electronics package and the results of functional testing are the subjects of this report. The report concludes that the use of innovative packaging methods combined with readily available COTS hardware can provide a modular electronics package which is easily modified for changing experiment requirements.

Use of calophyllum inophyllum biofuel blended with diesel in DI diesel engine modified with nozzle holes and its size

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vairamuthu, G.; Sundarapandian, S.; Thangagiri, B.

2016-05-01

Improved thermal efficiency, reduction in fuel consumption and pollutant emissions from biodiesel fueled diesel engines are important issues in engine research. To achieve these, fast and perfect air-biodiesel mixing are the most important requirements. The mixing quality of biodiesel spray with air can be improved by better design of the injection system. The diesel engine tests were conducted on a 4-stroke tangentially vertical single cylinder (TV1) kirloskar 1500 rpm water cooled direct injection diesel engine with eddy current dynamometer. In this work, by varying different nozzles having spray holes of 3 (base, Ø = 0.280 mm), 4 (modified, Ø = 0.220 mm) and 5 (modified, Ø = 0.240 mm) holes, with standard static injection timing of 23° bTDC and nozzle opening pressure (NOP) of 250 bar maintained as constant throughout the experiment under steady state at full load condition of the engine. The effect of varying different nozzle configuration (number of holes), on the combustion, performance and exhaust emissions, using a blend of calophyllum inophyllum methyl ester by volume in diesel were evaluated. The test results showed that improvement in terms of brake thermal efficiency and specific fuel consumption for 4 holes and 5 holes nozzle operated at NOP 250 bar. Substantial improvements in the reduction of emissions levels were also observed for 5 holes nozzle operated at NOP 250 bar.

A Computer Program for the Prediction of Solid Propellant Rocket Motor Performance. Volume 3

DTIC Science & Technology

1975-07-01

following losses: two-dimensional/two-phase (coupled), nozzle erosion, kinetics, boundary layer, combustion efficiency, submergence . The program...loss •Two dimensional or divergence less •Finite Rate Kinetics loss •Boundary Layer Loss •Combustion Efficiency - • Submergence Loss •Erosion...counted twice. The iforcmcr.tioned assumptions are describ- ed In Section US, The submergence efficiency, ijgno* ^* rased on an empirical

Near-zero emissions combustor system for syngas and biofuels

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yongho, Kim; Rosocha, Louis

2010-01-01

A multi-institutional plasma combustion team was awarded a research project from the DOE/NNSA GIPP (Global Initiative for Prolifereation Prevention) office. The Institute of High Current Electronics (Tomsk, Russia); Leonardo Technologies, Inc. (an American-based industrial partner), in conjunction with the Los Alamos National Laboratory are participating in the project to develop novel plasma assisted combustion technologies. The purpose of this project is to develop prototypes of marketable systems for more stable and cleaner combustion of syngas/biofuels and to demonstrate that this technology can be used for a variety of combustion applications - with a major focus on contemporary gas turbines. Inmore » this paper, an overview of the project, along with descriptions of the plasma-based combustors and associated power supplies will be presented. Worldwide, it is recognized that a variety of combustion fuels will be required to meet the needs for supplying gas-turbine engines (electricity generation, propulsion), internal combustion engines (propulsion, transportation), and burners (heat and electricity generation) in the 21st Century. Biofuels and biofuel blends have already been applied to these needs, but experience difficulties in modifications to combustion processes and combustor design and the need for flame stabilization techniques to address current and future environmental and energy-efficiency challenges. In addition, municipal solid waste (MSW) has shown promise as a feedstock for heat and/or electricity-generating plants. However, current combustion techniques that use such fuels have problems with achieving environmentally-acceptable air/exhaust emissions and can also benefit from increased combustion efficiency. This project involves a novel technology (a form of plasma-assisted combustion) that can address the above issues. Plasma-assisted combustion (PAC) is a growing field that is receiving worldwide attention at present. The project is focused on research necessary to develop a novel, high-efficiency, low-emissions (near-zero, or as low as reasonably achievable), advanced combustion technology for electricity and heat production from biofuels and fuels derived from MSW. For any type of combustion technology, including the advanced technology of this project, two problems of special interest must be addressed: developing and optimizing the combustion chambers and the systems for igniting and sustaining the fuel-burning process. For MSW in particular, there are new challenges over gaseous or liquid fuels because solid fuels must be ground into fine particulates ({approx} 10 {micro}m diameter), fed into the advanced combustor, and combusted under plasma-assisted conditions that are quite different than gaseous or liquid fuels. The principal idea of the combustion chamber design is to use so-called reverse vortex gas flow, which allows efficient cooling of the chamber wall and flame stabilization in the central area of the combustor (Tornado chamber). Considerable progress has been made in design ing an advanced, reverse vortex flow combustion chamber for biofuels, although it was not tested on biofuels and a system that could be fully commercialized has never been completed.« less

High efficiency power generation from coal and wastes utilizing high temperature air combustion technology (Part 1: Performance of pebble bed gasifier for coal and wastes)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kosaka, Hitoshi; Iwahashi, Takashi; Yoshida, Nobuhiro

1998-07-01

A new concept of a gasifier for coal and wastes is proposed where entrained bed and fixed pebble bed are combined. Main features of this pebble bed gasifier are high efficiency molten slag capture, high efficiency gasification and compactness. Coal and RFD combustion experiments using the pebble bed gasifier demonstrated high efficiency capture and continuous extraction of molten slag as well as complete char combustion with extra ordinarily short residence time of pulverized coal and crushed RDF at the temperature level of about 1,500 C within the pebble bed. Durability tests using high temperature electric furnace has shown that highmore » density alumna is a good candidate for pebble material.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McMeeking, Gavin R.; Kreidenweis, Sonia M.; Baker, Stephen

We characterized the gas- and speciated aerosol-phase emissions from the open combustion of 33 different plant species during a series of 255 controlled laboratory burns during the Fire Laboratory at Missoula Experiments (FLAME). The plant species we tested were chosen to improve the existing database for U.S. domestic fuels: laboratory-based emission factors have not previously been reported for many commonly-burned species that are frequently consumed by fires near populated regions and protected scenic areas. The plants we tested included the chaparral species chamise, manzanita, and ceanothus, and species common to the southeastern US (common reed, hickory, kudzu, needlegrass rush, rhododendron,more » cord grass, sawgrass, titi, and wax myrtle). Fire-integrated emission factors for gas-phase CO{sub 2}, CO, CH{sub 4}, C{sub 2-4} hydrocarbons, NH{sub 3}, SO{sub 2}, NO, NO{sub 2}, HNO{sub 3} and particle-phase organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), SO{sub 4}{sup 2-}, NO{sub 3}{sup -}, Cl{sup -}, Na{sup +}, K{sup +}, and NH{sub 4}{sup +} generally varied with both fuel type and with the fire-integrated modified combustion efficiency (MCE), a measure of the relative importance of flaming- and smoldering-phase combustion to the total emissions during the burn. Chaparral fuels tended to emit less particulate OC per unit mass of dry fuel than did other fuel types, whereas southeastern species had some of the largest observed EF for total fine particulate matter. Our measurements often spanned a larger range of MCE than prior studies, and thus help to improve estimates for individual fuels of the variation of emissions with combustion conditions.« less

Low-Emission combustion of fuel in aeroderivative gas turbines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bulysova, L. A.; Vasil'ev, V. D.; Berne, A. L.

2017-12-01

The paper is the first of a planned set of papers devoted to the world experience in development of Low Emission combustors (LEC) for industrial Gas Turbines (GT). The purpose of the article is to summarize and analyze the most successful experience of introducing the principles of low-emission combustion of the so-called "poor" (low fuel concentration in air when the excess air ratio is about 1.9-2.1) well mixed fuelair mixtures in the LEC for GTs and ways to reduce the instability of combustion. The consideration examples are the most successful and widely used aero-derivative GT. The GT development meets problems related to the difference in requirements and operation conditions between the aero, industrial, and power production GT. One of the main problems to be solved is the LEC development to mitigate emissions of the harmful products first of all the Nitrogen oxides NOx. The ways to modify or convert the initial combustors to the LEC are shown. This development may follow location of multiburner mixers within the initial axial envelope dimensions or conversion of circular combustor to the can type one. The most interesting are Natural Gas firing GT without water injection into the operating process or Dry Low emission (DLE) combustors. The current GT efficiency requirement may be satisfied at compressor exit pressure above 3 MPa and Turbine Entry temperature (TET) above 1500°C. The paper describes LEC examples based on the concept of preliminary prepared air-fuel mixtures' combustion. Each combustor employs its own fuel supply control concept based on the fuel flow-power output relation. In the case of multiburner combustors, the burners are started subsequently under a specific scheme. The can type combustors have combustion zones gradually ignited following the GT power change. The combustion noise problem experienced in lean mixtures' combustion is also considered, and the problem solutions are described. The GT test results show wide ranges of stable operation at needed levels of NOx and CO emissions. The world experience analysis and generalization and investigation of the further development directions for the high performance GT will assist development of domestic LEC for prospective GTs.

Annual Report: DOE Advanced Combustion Systems & Fuels R&D; Light-Duty Diesel Combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Busch, Stephen

Despite compliance issues in previous years, automakers have demonstrated that the newest generation of diesel power trains are capable of meeting all federal and state regulations (EPA, 2016). Diesels continue to be a cost-effective, efficient, powerful propulsion source for many light- and medium-duty vehicle applications (Martec, 2016). Even modest reductions in the fuel consumption of light- and medium duty diesel vehicles in the U.S. will eliminate millions of tons of CO2 emissions per year. Continued improvement of diesel combustion systems will play an important role in reducing fleet fuel consumption, but these improvements will require an unprecedented scientific understanding ofmore » how changes in engine design and calibration affect the mixture preparation, combustion, and pollutant formation processes that take place inside the cylinder. The focus of this year’s research is to provide insight into the physical mechanisms responsible for improved thermal efficiency observed with a stepped-lip piston. Understanding how piston design can influence efficiency will help engineers develop and optimize new diesel combustion systems.« less

Performance Charts for a Turbojet System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Karp, Irving M.

1947-01-01

Convenient charts are presented for computing the thrust, fuel consumption, and other performance values of a turbojet system. These charts take into account the effects of ram pressure, compressor pressure ratio, ratio of combustion-chamber-outlet temperature to atmospheric temperature, compressor efficiency, turbine efficiency, combustion efficiency, discharge-nozzle coefficient, losses in total pressure in the inlet to the jet-propulsion unit and in the combustion chamber, and variation in specific heats with temperature. The principal performance charts show clearly the effects of the primary variables and correction charts provide the effects of the secondary variables. The performance of illustrative cases of turbojet systems is given. It is shown that maximum thrust per unit mass rate of air flow occurs at a lower compressor pressure ratio than minimum specific fuel consumption. The thrust per unit mass rate of air flow increases as the combustion-chamber discharge temperature increases. For minimum specific fuel consumption, however, an optimum combustion-chamber discharge temperature exists, which in some cases may be less than the limiting temperature imposed by the strength temperature characteristics of present materials.

Direct Numerical Simulation of Turbulent Multi-Stage Autoignition Relevant to Engine Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Jacqueline

2017-11-01

Due to the unrivaled energy density of liquid hydrocarbon fuels combustion will continue to provide over 80% of the world's energy for at least the next fifty years. Hence, combustion needs to be understood and controlled to optimize combustion systems for efficiency to prevent further climate change, to reduce emissions and to ensure U.S. energy security. In this talk I will discuss recent progress in direct numerical simulations of turbulent combustion focused on providing fundamental insights into key `turbulence-chemistry' interactions that underpin the development of next generation fuel efficient, fuel flexible engines for transportation and power generation. Petascale direct numerical simulation (DNS) of multi-stage mixed-mode turbulent combustion in canonical configurations have elucidated key physics that govern autoignition and flame stabilization in engines and provide benchmark data for combustion model development under the conditions of advanced engines which operate near combustion limits to maximize efficiency and minimize emissions. Mixed-mode combustion refers to premixed or partially-premixed flames propagating into stratified autoignitive mixtures. Multi-stage ignition refers to hydrocarbon fuels with negative temperature coefficient behavior that undergo sequential low- and high-temperature autoignition. Key issues that will be discussed include: 1) the role of mixing in shear driven turbulence on the dynamics of multi-stage autoignition and cool flame propagation in diesel environments, 2) the role of thermal and composition stratification on the evolution of the balance of mixed combustion modes - flame propagation versus spontaneous ignition - which determines the overall combustion rate in autoignition processes, and 3) the role of cool flames on lifted flame stabilization. Finally prospects for DNS of turbulent combustion at the exascale will be discussed in the context of anticipated heterogeneous machine architectures. sponsored by DOE Office of Basic Energy Sciences and computing resources provided by the Oakridge Leadership Computing Facility through the DOE INCITE Program.

APPLICATION OF PULSE COMBUSTION TO SOLID AND HAZARDOUS WASTE INCINERATION

EPA Science Inventory

The paper discusses the application of pulse combustion to solid and hazardous waste incineration. otary kiln incinerator simulator was retrofitted with a frequency-tunable pulse combustor to enhance the efficiency of combustion. he pulse combustor excites pulsations in the kiln ...

Coal desulfurization during the combustion of coal/oil/water emulsions: an economic alternative clean liquid fuel. Interim report, October 1978-November 15, 1979

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dooher, J. P.

1979-11-15

The rheological and combustion properties of coal/water/oil mixtures have been investigated. In addition the use of alkaline additives to remove the sulfur oxide gases has been studied. Results on stability and pumpability indicate that mixtures of 50% by weight of coal and stoichiometric concentrations of alkaline absorbents are pumpable. Correlation between viscometer data and pumping data follows a power law behavior for these mixtures. Thermal efficiencies are about the same as for pure oil. Combustion efficiencies are approximately 97%. It is possible to remove in a small scale combustion from 50 to 80% of the sulfur dioxide gases.

Parametric investigation of secondary injection in post-chamber on combustion performance for hybrid rocket motor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cai, Guobiao; Cao, Binbin; Zhu, Hao; Tian, Hui; Ma, Xuan

2017-11-01

The objective of this effort is to study the combustion performance of a hybrid rocket motor with the help of 3D steady-state numerical simulation, which applies 90% hydrogen peroxide as the oxidizer and hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene as the fuel. A method of secondary oxidizer injection in post-chamber is introduced to investigate the flow field characteristics and combustion efficiency. The secondary injection medium is the mixed gas coming from liquid hydrogen peroxide catalytic decomposition. The secondary injectors are uniformly set along the circumferential direction of the post-chamber. The simulation results obtained by above model are verified by experimental data. Three influencing parameters are considered: secondary injection diameter, secondary injection angle and secondary injection numbers. Simulation results reveals that this design could improve the combustion efficiency with respect to the same motor without secondary injection. Besides, the secondary injection almost has no effect on the regression rate and fuel sueface temperature distribution. It is also presented that the oxidizer is injected by 8 secondary injectors with a diameter of 7-8 mm in the direction of 120°in post-chamber is identified as the optimized secondary injection pattern, through which combustion efficiency, specific impulse efficiency as well as utilization of propellants are all improved obviously.

Symposium on Combustion /International/, 16th, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass., August 15-20, 1976, Proceedings

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1977-01-01

Aspects of combustion technology in power systems are considered, taking into account a combustion in large boilers, the control of over-all thermal efficiency of combustion heating systems, a comparison of mathematical models of the radiative behavior of a large-scale experimental furnace, a concentric multiannular swirl burner, and the effects of water introduction on diesel engine combustion and emissions. Attention is also given to combustion and related processes in energy production from coal, spray and droplet combustion, soot formation and growth, the kinetics of elementary reactions, flame structure and chemistry, propellant ignition and combustion, fire and explosion research, mathematical modeling, high output combustion systems, turbulent flames and combustion, and ignition, optical, and electrical properties.

COMBUSTION MODIFICATION CONTROL OF NITROGEN OXIDES (EPA/600/F-95/012)

EPA Science Inventory

EPA's efforts in research and development of nitrogen oxide (NOx) control technologies by
means of modifying the combustion process have played a major role in reducing stationary
source NOx emissions by over 3 million tons (2.73 x 10^6 tonnes) annually, and have led to at<...

Regeneratively cooled coal combustor/gasifier with integral dry ash removal

DOEpatents

Beaufrere, Albert H.

1983-10-04

A coal combustor/gasifier is disclosed which produces a low or medium combustion gas for further combustion in modified oil or gas fired furnaces or boilers. Two concentric shells define a combustion volume within the inner shell and a plenum between them through which combustion air flows to provide regenerative cooling of the inner shell for dry ash operation. A fuel flow and a combustion air flow having opposed swirls are mixed and burned in a mixing-combustion portion of the combustion volume and the ash laden combustion products flow with a residual swirl into an ash separation region. The ash is cooled below the fusion temperature and is moved to the wall by centrifugal force where it is entrained in the cool wall boundary layer. The boundary layer is stabilized against ash re-entrainment as it is moved to an ash removal annulus by a flow of air from the plenum through slots in the inner shell, and by suction on an ash removal skimmer slot.

Steam generator on-line efficiency monitor

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, R.K.; Kaya, A.; Keyes, M.A. IV

1987-08-04

This patent describes a system for automatically and continuously determining the efficiency of a combustion process in a fossil-fuel fired vapor generator for utilization by an automatic load control system that controls the distribution of a system load among a plurality of vapor generators, comprising: a first function generator, connected to an oxygen transducer for sensing the level of excess air in the flue gas, for generating a first signal indicative of the total air supplied for combustion in percent by weight; a second function generator, connected to a combustibles transducer for sensing the level of combustibles in the fluemore » gas, for generating a second signal indicative of the percent combustibles present in the flue gas; means for correcting the first signal, connected to the first and second function generators, when the oxygen transducer is of a type that operates at a temperature level sufficient to cause the unburned combustibles to react with the oxygen present in the flue gas; an ambient air temperature transducer for generating a third signal indicative of the temperature of the ambient air supplied to the vapor generator for combustion.« less

Injection system used into SI engines for complete combustion and reduction of exhaust emissions in the case of alcohol and petrol alcohol mixtures feed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ispas, N.; Cofaru, C.; Aleonte, M.

2017-10-01

Internal combustion engines still play a major role in today transportation but increasing the fuel efficiency and decreasing chemical emissions remain a great goal of the researchers. Direct injection and air assisted injection system can improve combustion and can reduce the concentration of the exhaust gas pollutes. Advanced air-to-fuel and combustion air-to-fuel injection system for mixtures, derivatives and alcohol gasoline blends represent a major asset in reducing pollutant emissions and controlling combustion processes in spark-ignition engines. The use of these biofuel and biofuel blending systems for gasoline results in better control of spark ignition engine processes, making combustion as complete as possible, as well as lower levels of concentrations of pollutants in exhaust gases. The main purpose of this paper was to provide most suitable tools for ensure the proven increase in the efficiency of spark ignition engines, making them more environmentally friendly. The conclusions of the paper allow to highlight the paths leading to a better use of alcohols (biofuels) in internal combustion engines of modern transport units.

Performance gains by using heated natural-gas fuel in an annular turbojet combustor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marchionna, N. R.

1973-01-01

A full-scale annular turbojet combustor was tested with natural gas fuel heated from ambient temperature to 800 K (980 F). In all tests, heating the fuel improved combustion efficiency. Two sets of gaseous fuel nozzles were tested. Combustion instabilities occurred with one set of nozzles at two conditions: one where the efficiency approached 100 percent with the heated fuel; the other where the efficiency was very poor with the unheated fuel. The second set of nozzles exhibited no combustion instability. Altitude relight tests with the second set showed that relight was improved and was achievable at essentially the same condition as blowout when the fuel temperature was 800 K (980 F).

Measurements of admittances and characteristic combustion times of reactive gaseous propellant coaxial injectors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Janardan, B. A.; Daniel, B. R.; Zinn, B. T.

1979-01-01

The results of an experimental investigation that was concerned with the quantitative determination of the capabilities of combustion processes associated with coaxial injectors to amplify and sustain combustor oscillations was described. The driving provided by the combustion process was determined by employing the modified standing-wave method utilizing coaxial injectors and air-acetylene mixtures. Analyses of the measured data indicate that the investigated injectors are capable of initiating and amplifying combustion instabilities under favorable conditions of injector-combustion coupling and over certain frequency ranges. These frequency ranges and the frequency at which an injector's driving capacity is maximum are observed to depend upon the equivalence ratio, the pressure drop across the injector orifices and the number of injector elements. The characteristic combustion times of coaxial injectors were determined from steady state temperature measurements.

A comparative evaluation on the emission characteristics of ceramic and metallic catalytic converter in internal combustion engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leman, A. M.; Jajuli, Afiqah; Rahman, Fakhrurrazi; Feriyanto, Dafit; Zakaria, Supaat

2017-09-01

Enforcement of a stricter regulation on exhaust emission by many countries has led to utilization of catalytic converter to reduce the harmful pollutant emission. Ceramic and metallic catalytic converters are the most common type of catalytic converter used. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance of the ceramic and metallic catalytic converter on its conversion efficiency using experimental measurement. Both catalysts were placed on a modified exhaust system equipped with a Mitshubishi 4G93 single cylinder petrol engine that was tested on an eddy current dynamometer under steady state conditions for several engine speeds. The experimental results show that the metallic catalytic converter reduced a higher percentage of CO up to 98.6% reduction emissions while ceramic catalytic converter had a better reduction efficiency of HC up to 85.4% and 87.2% reduction of NOx.

Rich-burn, flame-assisted fuel cell, quick-mix, lean-burn (RFQL) combustor and power generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Milcarek, Ryan J.; Ahn, Jeongmin

2018-03-01

Micro-tubular flame-assisted fuel cells (mT-FFC) were recently proposed as a modified version of the direct flame fuel cell (DFFC) operating in a dual chamber configuration. In this work, a rich-burn, quick-mix, lean-burn (RQL) combustor is combined with a micro-tubular solid oxide fuel cell (mT-SOFC) stack to create a rich-burn, flame-assisted fuel cell, quick-mix, lean-burn (RFQL) combustor and power generation system. The system is tested for rapid startup and achieves peak power densities after only 35 min of testing. The mT-FFC power density and voltage are affected by changes in the fuel-lean and fuel-rich combustion equivalence ratio. Optimal mT-FFC performance favors high fuel-rich equivalence ratios and a fuel-lean combustion equivalence ratio around 0.80. The electrical efficiency increases by 150% by using an intermediate temperature cathode material and improving the insulation. The RFQL combustor and power generation system achieves rapid startup, a simplified balance of plant and may have applications for reduced NOx formation and combined heat and power.

Study of CeO2 Modified AlNi Mixed Pillared Clays Supported Palladium Catalysts for Benzene Adsorption/Desorption-Catalytic Combustion

PubMed Central

Li, Jingrong; Yang, Peng; Qi, Chenze

2017-01-01

A new functional AlNi-pillared clays (AlNi-PILC) with a large surface area and pore volume was synthesized. The performance of adsorption/desorption-catalytic combustion over CeO2-modified Pd/AlNi-PILC catalysts was also studied. The results showed that the d001-value and specific surface area (SBET) of AlNi-PILC reached 2.11 nm and 374.8 m2/g, respectively. The large SBET and the d001-value improved the high capacity for benzene adsorption. Also, the strong interaction between PdCe mixed oxides and AlNi-PILC led to the high dispersion of PdO and CeO2 on the support, which was responsible for the high catalytic performance. Especially, 0.2% Pd/12.5% Ce/AlNi-PILC presented high performance for benzene combustion at 240 °C and high CO2 selectivity. Also, the combustion temperatures were lower compared to the desorption temperatures, which demonstrated that it could accomplish benzene combustion during the desorption process. Furthermore, its activity did not decrease after continuous reaction for 1000 h in dry air, and it also displayed good resistance to water and the chlorinated compound, making it a promising catalytic material for the elimination of volatile organic compounds. PMID:28809809

Study of CeO₂ Modified AlNi Mixed Pillared Clays Supported Palladium Catalysts for Benzene Adsorption/Desorption-Catalytic Combustion.

PubMed

Li, Jingrong; Zuo, Shufeng; Yang, Peng; Qi, Chenze

2017-08-15

A new functional AlNi-pillared clays (AlNi-PILC) with a large surface area and pore volume was synthesized. The performance of adsorption/desorption-catalytic combustion over CeO 2- modified Pd/AlNi-PILC catalysts was also studied. The results showed that the d 001 -value and specific surface area ( S BET ) of AlNi-PILC reached 2.11 nm and 374.8 m²/g, respectively. The large S BET and the d 001 -value improved the high capacity for benzene adsorption. Also, the strong interaction between PdCe mixed oxides and AlNi-PILC led to the high dispersion of PdO and CeO₂ on the support, which was responsible for the high catalytic performance. Especially, 0.2% Pd/12.5% Ce/AlNi-PILC presented high performance for benzene combustion at 240 °C and high CO₂ selectivity. Also, the combustion temperatures were lower compared to the desorption temperatures, which demonstrated that it could accomplish benzene combustion during the desorption process. Furthermore, its activity did not decrease after continuous reaction for 1000 h in dry air, and it also displayed good resistance to water and the chlorinated compound, making it a promising catalytic material for the elimination of volatile organic compounds.

Combustion performance and heat transfer characterization of LOX/hydrocarbon type propellants, volume 2

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schoenman, L.

1983-01-01

A data base which relates candidate design variables, such as injector type, acoustic cavity configuration, chamber length, fuel film-cooling, etc., to operational characteristics such as combustion efficiency, combustion stability, carbon deposition, and chamber gas-side heat flux was generated.

Furnace devices aerodynamics optimization for fuel combustion efficiency improvement and nitrogen oxide emission reduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Volkov, E. P.; Prokhorov, V. B.; Arkhipov, A. M.; Chernov, S. L.; Kirichkov, V. S.; Kaverin, A. A.

2017-11-01

MPEI conducts researches on physical and mathematical models of furnace chambers for improvement of power-generation equipment fuel combustion efficiency and ecological safety. Results of these researches are general principles of furnace aerodynamics arrangement for straight-flow burners and various fuels. It has been shown, that staged combustion arrangement with early heating and igniting with torch distribution in all furnace volume allows to obtain low carbon in fly ash and nitrogen oxide emission and also to improve boiler operation reliability with expand load adjustment range. For solid fuel combustion efficiency improvement it is practical to use high-placed and strongly down-tilted straight-flow burners, which increases high-temperature zone residence time for fuel particles. In some cases, for this combustion scheme it is possible to avoid slag-tap removal (STR) combustion and to use Dry-bottom ash removal (DBAR) combustion with tolerable carbon in fly ash level. It is worth noting that boilers with STR have very high nitrogen oxide emission levels (1200-1800 mg/m3) and narrow load adjustment range, which is determined by liquid slag output stability, so most industrially-developed countries don’t use this technology. Final decision about overhaul of boiler unit is made with regard to physical and mathematical modeling results for furnace and zonal thermal calculations for furnace and boiler as a whole. Overhaul of boilers to provide staged combustion and straight-flow burners and nozzles allows ensuring regulatory nitrogen oxide emission levels and corresponding best available technology criteria, which is especially relevant due to changes in Russian environmental regulation.

Advanced Light-Duty SI Engine Fuels Research: Multiple Optical Diagnostics of Well-mixed and Stratified Operation.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sjoberg, Carl Magnus Goran; Vuilleumier, David

Ever tighter fuel economy standards and concerns about energy security motivate efforts to improve engine efficiency and to develop alternative fuels. This project contributes to the science base needed by industry to develop highly efficient direct injection spark ignition (DISI) engines that also beneficially exploit the different properties of alternative fuels. Here, the emphasis is on lean operation, which can provide higher efficiencies than traditional non-dilute stoichiometric operation. Since lean operation can lead to issues with ignition stability, slow flame propagation and low combustion efficiency, the focus is on techniques that can overcome these challenges. Specifically, fuel stratification is usedmore » to ensure ignition and completeness of combustion but this technique has soot and NOx emissions challenges. For ultra-lean well-mixed operation, turbulent deflagration can be combined with controlled end-gas autoignition to render mixed-mode combustion for sufficiently fast heat release. However, such mixed-mode combustion requires very stable inflammation, motivating studies on the effects of near-spark flow and turbulence, and the use of small amounts of fuel stratification near the spark plug.« less

On the energy efficiency of cyclic mechanisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Briskin, E. S.; Kalinin, Ya. V.; Maloletov, A. V.; Chernyshev, V. V.

2014-01-01

We consider cyclic mechanisms with one degree of freedom driven by engines of various types such as alternating and direct current motors, internal combustion engines, etc. We pose the problem of modifying the mechanism structure by joining additional links or by varying the parameters or operation mode of the original mechanism so as to minimize the thermal losses in the driving motor. The solution is based on the minimization of the functional determining the irreversible power losses. We show that, for the engines considered, all cyclic mechanisms with one degree of freedom should satisfy a fundamental condition ensuring the minimum of losses. We consider two examples, one of which corresponds to actually existing mechanisms.

The efficiency of combustion turbines with constant-pressure combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Piening, Werner

1941-01-01

Of the two fundamental cycles employed in combustion turbines, namely, the explosion (or constant-volume) cycle and the constant-pressure cycle, the latter is considered more in detail and its efficiency is derived with the aid of the cycle diagrams for the several cases with adiabatic and isothermal compression and expansion strokes and with and without utilization of the exhaust heat. Account is also taken of the separate efficiencies of the turbine and compressor and of the pressure losses and heat transfer in the piping. The results show that without the utilization of the exhaust heat the efficiencies for the two cases of adiabatic and isothermal compression is offset by the increase in the heat supplied. It may be seen from the curves that it is necessary to attain separate efficiencies of at least 80 percent in order for useful results to be obtained. There is further shown the considerable effect on the efficiency of pressure losses in piping or heat exchangers.

Modeling complex chemical effects in turbulent nonpremixed combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Nigel S. A.

1995-01-01

Virtually all of the energy derived from the consumption of combustibles occurs in systems which utilize turbulent fluid motion. Since combustion is largely related to the mixing of fluids and mixing processes are orders of magnitude more rapid when enhanced by turbulent motion, efficiency criteria dictate that chemically powered devices necessarily involve fluid turbulence. Where combustion occurs concurrently with mixing at an interface between two reactive fluid bodies, this mode of combustion is called nonpremixed combustion. This is distinct from premixed combustion where flame-fronts propagate into a homogeneous mixture of reactants. These two modes are limiting cases in the range of temporal lag between mixing of reactants and the onset of reaction. Nonpremixed combustion occurs where this lag tends to zero, while premixed combustion occurs where this lag tends to infinity. Many combustion processes are hybrids of these two extremes with finite non-zero lag times. Turbulent nonpremixed combustion is important from a practical standpoint because it occurs in gas fired boilers, furnaces, waste incinerators, diesel engines, gas turbine combustors, and afterburners etc. To a large extent, past development of these practical systems involved an empirical methodology. Presently, efficiency standards and emission regulations are being further tightened (Correa 1993), and empiricism has had to give way to more fundamental research in order to understand and effectively model practical combustion processes (Pope 1991). A key element in effective modeling of turbulent combustion is making use of a sufficiently detailed chemical kinetic mechanism. The prediction of pollutant emission such as oxides of nitrogen (NO(x)) and sulphur (SO(x)) unburned hydrocarbons, and particulates demands the use of detailed chemical mechanisms. It is essential that practical models for turbulent nonpremixed combustion are capable of handling large numbers of 'stiff' chemical species equations.

Modelling of the combustion velocity in UIT-85 on sustainable alternative gas fuel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smolenskaya, N. M.; Korneev, N. V.

2017-05-01

The flame propagation velocity is one of the determining parameters characterizing the intensity of combustion process in the cylinder of an engine with spark ignition. Strengthening of requirements for toxicity and efficiency of the ICE contributes to gradual transition to sustainable alternative fuels, which include the mixture of natural gas with hydrogen. Currently, studies of conditions and regularities of combustion of this fuel to improve efficiency of its application are carried out in many countries. Therefore, the work is devoted to modeling the average propagation velocities of natural gas flame front laced with hydrogen to 15% by weight of the fuel, and determining the possibility of assessing the heat release characteristics on the average velocities of the flame front propagation in the primary and secondary phases of combustion. Experimental studies, conducted the on single cylinder universal installation UIT-85, showed the presence of relationship of the heat release characteristics with the parameters of the flame front propagation. Based on the analysis of experimental data, the empirical dependences for determination of average velocities of flame front propagation in the first and main phases of combustion, taking into account the change in various parameters of engine operation with spark ignition, were obtained. The obtained results allow to determine the characteristics of heat dissipation and to assess the impact of addition of hydrogen to the natural gas combustion process, that is needed to identify ways of improvement of the combustion process efficiency, including when you change the throttling parameters.

Predicting the ultimate potential of natural gas SOFC power cycles with CO2 capture - Part A: Methodology and reference cases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campanari, Stefano; Mastropasqua, Luca; Gazzani, Matteo; Chiesa, Paolo; Romano, Matteo C.

2016-08-01

Driven by the search for the highest theoretical efficiency, in the latest years several studies investigated the integration of high temperature fuel cells in natural gas fired power plants, where fuel cells are integrated with simple or modified Brayton cycles and/or with additional bottoming cycles, and CO2 can be separated via chemical or physical separation, oxy-combustion and cryogenic methods. Focusing on Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) and following a comprehensive review and analysis of possible plant configurations, this work investigates their theoretical potential efficiency and proposes two ultra-high efficiency plant configurations based on advanced intermediate-temperature SOFCs integrated with a steam turbine or gas turbine cycle. The SOFC works at atmospheric or pressurized conditions and the resulting power plant exceeds 78% LHV efficiency without CO2 capture (as discussed in part A of the work) and 70% LHV efficiency with substantial CO2 capture (part B). The power plants are simulated at the 100 MW scale with a complete set of realistic assumptions about fuel cell (FC) performance, plant components and auxiliaries, presenting detailed energy and material balances together with a second law analysis.

Energy Analysis of n-Dodecane Combustion in a Hetero/Homogeneous Heat-Recirculating Microreactor for Portable Power Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waits, C. M.; Tolmachoff, E. D.; Allmon, W. R.; Zecher-Freeman, N. E.

2016-11-01

An energy analysis is presented for n-dodecane/air combustion in a heat recirculating Inconel microreactor under vacuum conditions. Microreactor channels are partially coated with platinum enabling operating with coupled heterogeneous and homogeneous reactions. The radiant efficiency, important for thermophotovoltaic energy conversion, was found to decrease from 57% to 52% over 5 different runs covering 377 min of operation. A similar decrease in combustion efficiency was observed with 6%-8% energy lost to incomplete combustion and 5%- 6% lost through sensible heat in the exhaust. The remaining thermal loss is from unusable radiation and conduction through inlet and outlet tubing. Changes in the Inconel microreactor geometry and emissivity properties were observed.

FY2016 Advanced Combustion Engine Annual Progress Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None, None

The Advanced Combustion Engine research and development (R&D) subprogram within the DOE Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) provides support and guidance for many cutting-edge automotive technologies under development. Research focuses on addressing critical barriers to commercializing higher efficiency, very low emissions advanced internal combustion engines for passenger and commercial vehicles.

FY2014 Advanced Combustion Engine Annual Progress Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

2015-03-01

The Advanced Combustion Engine research and development (R&D) subprogram within the DOE Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) provides support and guidance for many cutting-edge automotive technologies under development. Research focuses on addressing critical barriers to commercializing higher efficiency, very low emissions advanced internal combustion engines for passenger and commercial vehicles.

DEMONSTRATION BULLETIN: THE PYRETRON OXYGEN BURNER, AMERICAN COMBUSTION TECHNOLOGIES, INC.

EPA Science Inventory

The Pyretron is a burner which is designed to allow for the injection of oxygen into the combustion air stream for the purpose of increasing the efficiency of a hazardous waste incinerator. The SITE demonstration of the Pyretron took place at the U.S. EPA's Combustion Re...

NETL- High-Pressure Combustion Research Facility

ScienceCinema

None

2018-02-14

NETL's High-Pressure Combustion Facility is a unique resource within the National Laboratories system. It provides the test capabilities needed to evaluate new combustion concepts for high-pressure, high-temperature hydrogen and natural gas turbines. These concepts will be critical for the next generation of ultra clean, ultra efficient power systems.

Radiation/Catalytic Augmented Combustion.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-05-01

enhanced combustion processes, utilizing pulsed and continuous VUV light- serces . Similarly, the catalytic technique has provided efficient combustion...tures we had a pl /cx LiF lens with a focal length of 200 nm, and a MgF2 window 2 nmn in thickness. Although these materials are considered to be among

FY2015 Advanced Combustion Engine Annual Progress Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Singh, Gurpreet; Gravel, Roland M.; Howden, Kenneth C.

The Advanced Combustion Engine research and development (R&D) subprogram within the DOE Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) provides support and guidance for many cutting-edge automotive technologies under development. Research focuses on addressing critical barriers to commercializing higher efficiency, very low emissions advanced internal combustion engines for passenger and commercial vehicles.

Highly efficient 6-stroke engine cycle with water injection

DOEpatents

Szybist, James P; Conklin, James C

2012-10-23

A six-stroke engine cycle having improved efficiency. Heat is recovered from the engine combustion gases by using a 6-stroke engine cycle in which combustion gases are partially vented proximate the bottom-dead-center position of the fourth stroke cycle, and water is injected proximate the top-dead-center position of the fourth stroke cycle.

Numerical investigation of CAI Combustion in the Opposed- Piston Engine with Direct and Indirect Water Injection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pyszczek, R.; Mazuro, P.; Teodorczyk, A.

2016-09-01

This paper is focused on the CAI combustion control in a turbocharged 2-stroke Opposed-Piston (OP) engine. The barrel type OP engine arrangement is of particular interest for the authors because of its robust design, high mechanical efficiency and relatively easy incorporation of a Variable Compression Ratio (VCR). The other advantage of such design is that combustion chamber is formed between two moving pistons - there is no additional cylinder head to be cooled which directly results in an increased thermal efficiency. Furthermore, engine operation in a Controlled Auto-Ignition (CAI) mode at high compression ratios (CR) raises a possibility of reaching even higher efficiencies and very low emissions. In order to control CAI combustion such measures as VCR and water injection were considered for indirect ignition timing control. Numerical simulations of the scavenging and combustion processes were performed with the 3D CFD multipurpose AVL Fire solver. Numerous cases were calculated with different engine compression ratios and different amounts of directly and indirectly injected water. The influence of the VCR and water injection on the ignition timing and engine performance was determined and their application in the real engine was discussed.

Method of combustion for dual fuel engine

DOEpatents

Hsu, Bertrand D.; Confer, Gregory L.; Shen, Zujing; Hapeman, Martin J.; Flynn, Paul L.

1993-12-21

Apparatus and a method of introducing a primary fuel, which may be a coal water slutty, and a high combustion auxiliary fuel, which may be a conventional diesel oil, into an internal combustion diesel engine comprises detecting the load conditions of the engine, determining the amount of time prior to the top dead center position of the piston to inject the main fuel into the combustion chamber, and determining the relationship of the timing of the injection of the auxiliary fuel into the combustion chamber to achieve a predetermined specific fuel consumption, a predetermined combustion efficiency, and a predetermined peak cylinder firing pressure.

Liquid fuel vaporizer and combustion chamber having an adjustable thermal conductor

DOEpatents

Powell, Michael R; Whyatt, Greg A; Howe, Daniel T; Fountain, Matthew S

2014-03-04

The efficiency and effectiveness of apparatuses for vaporizing and combusting liquid fuel can be improved using thermal conductors. For example, an apparatus having a liquid fuel vaporizer and a combustion chamber can be characterized by a thermal conductor that conducts heat from the combustion chamber to the vaporizer. The thermal conductor can be a movable member positioned at an insertion depth within the combustion chamber that corresponds to a rate of heat conduction from the combustion chamber to the vaporizer. The rate of heat conduction can, therefore, be adjusted by positioning the movable member at a different insertion depth.

Graphite fiber surface treatment to improve char retention and increase fiber clumping

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Paul, J. T., Jr.; Weldy, W. E.

1980-01-01

Composites containing carbon and graphite fibers can release fibers into the atmosphere during a fire. This release can potentially cause failure in some types of electrical equipment. Reduced fiber dispersion during and after combustion will reduce risks. Epoxidized char forming systems were synthesized which will react with commercially available surface treated carbon fiber. Fibers modified with these char formers retained adhesion in a specific epoxy matrix resin. Small scale combustion testing indicates that using these char former modified fibers in laminates will help to reduce the dispersement of fibers resulting from exposure to fire without sacrificing resin to fiber adhesion.

Effects of low-temperature pretreatment on enhancing properties of refuse-derived fuel via microwave irradiation.

PubMed

Liu, Zhen; Wang, Han-Qing; Zhou, Yue-Yun; Zhang, Xiao-Dong; Liu, Jian-Wen

2017-07-01

The present study focuses on pretreatment of enhancing the properties of refuse-derived fuel (RDF) via low-temperature microwave irradiation. These improved properties include lower chlorine content, a more porous surface structure and better combustion characteristics. In this study, low-temperature microwave irradiation was carried out in a modified microwave apparatus and the range of temperature was set to be 220-300℃. We found that the microwave absorbability of RDF was enhanced after being partly carbonized. Moreover, with the increasing of the final temperature, the organochlorine removal ratio was greatly increased to 80% and the content of chlorine was dramatically decreased to an extremely low level. It was also interesting to find that the chlorine of RDF was mainly released as HCl rather than organic chloride volatiles. The finding is just the same as the polyvinyl chloride pyrolysis process. In addition, pores and channels emerged during the modifying operation and the modified RDF has better combustibility and combustion stability than traditional RDF. This work revealed that low-temperature modification of RDF via microwave irradiation is significant for enhancing the quality of RDF and avoiding HCl erosion of equipment substantially.

The development of an electrochemical technique for in situ calibrating of combustible gas detectors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shumar, J. W.; Lantz, J. B.; Schubert, F. H.

1976-01-01

A program to determine the feasibility of performing in situ calibration of combustible gas detectors was successfully completed. Several possible techniques for performing the in situ calibration were proposed. The approach that showed the most promise involved the use of a miniature water vapor electrolysis cell for the generation of hydrogen within the flame arrestor of a combustible gas detector to be used for the purpose of calibrating the combustible gas detectors. A preliminary breadboard of the in situ calibration hardware was designed, fabricated and assembled. The breadboard equipment consisted of a commercially available combustible gas detector, modified to incorporate a water vapor electrolysis cell, and the instrumentation required for controlling the water vapor electrolysis and controlling and calibrating the combustible gas detector. The results showed that operation of the water vapor electrolysis at a given current density for a specific time period resulted in the attainment of a hydrogen concentration plateau within the flame arrestor of the combustible gas detector.

Experimental study of combustion in hydrogen peroxide hybrid rockets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wernimont, Eric John

Combustion behavior in a hydrogen peroxide oxidized hybrid rocket motor is investigated with a series of experiments. Hybrid chemical rocket propulsion is presently of interest due to reduced system complexity compared to classical chemical propulsion systems. Reduced system complexity, by use of a storable oxidizer and a hybrid configuration, is expected to reduce propulsive costs. The fuel in this study is polyethylene which has the potential of continuous manufacture leading to further reduced system costs. The study investigated parameters of interest for nominal design of a full scale hydrogen peroxide oxidized hybrid rocket. Amongst these parameters is the influence of chamber pressure, mass flux, fuel molecular weight and fuel density on fuel regression rate. Effects of chamber pressure and aft combustion length on combustion efficiency and non-acoustic combustion oscillations are also examined. The fuel regression behavior is found to be strongly influenced by both chamber pressure and mass flux. Combustion efficiencies in the upper 90% range are attained by simple changes to the aft combustion chamber length as well as increased combustion pressure. Fuel burning surface is found to be influenced by the density of the polyethylene polymer as well as molecular weight. The combustion is observed to be exceptionally smooth (oscillations less than 5% zero-to-peak of mean) in all motors tested in this program. Tests using both a single port fuel gain and a novel radial flow hybrid are also performed.

Staged, High-Pressure Oxy-Combustion Technology: Development and Scale-Up

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Axelbaum, Richard; Kumfer, Benjamin; Gopan, Akshay

The immediate need for a high efficiency, low cost carbon capture process has prompted the recent development of pressurized oxy-combustion. With a greater combustion pressure the dew point of the flue gas is increased, allowing for effective integration of the latent heat of flue gas moisture into the Rankine cycle. This increases the net plant efficiency and reduces costs. A novel, transformational process, named Staged, Pressurized Oxy-Combustion (SPOC), achieves additional step changes in efficiency and cost reduction by significantly reducing the recycle of flue gas. The research and development activities conducted under Phases I and II of this project (FE0009702)more » include: SPOC power plant cost and performance modeling, CFD-assisted design of pressurized SPOC boilers, theoretical analysis of radiant heat transfer and ash deposition, boiler materials corrosion testing, construction of a 100 kWth POC test facility, and experimental testing. The results of this project have advanced the technology readiness level (TRL) of the SPOC technology from 1 to 5.« less

Methane, Black Carbon, and Ethane Emissions from Natural Gas Flares in the Bakken Shale, North Dakota.

PubMed

Gvakharia, Alexander; Kort, Eric A; Brandt, Adam; Peischl, Jeff; Ryerson, Thomas B; Schwarz, Joshua P; Smith, Mackenzie L; Sweeney, Colm

2017-05-02

Incomplete combustion during flaring can lead to production of black carbon (BC) and loss of methane and other pollutants to the atmosphere, impacting climate and air quality. However, few studies have measured flare efficiency in a real-world setting. We use airborne data of plume samples from 37 unique flares in the Bakken region of North Dakota in May 2014 to calculate emission factors for BC, methane, ethane, and combustion efficiency for methane and ethane. We find no clear relationship between emission factors and aircraft-level wind speed or between methane and BC emission factors. Observed median combustion efficiencies for methane and ethane are close to expected values for typical flares according to the US EPA (98%). However, we find that the efficiency distribution is skewed, exhibiting log-normal behavior. This suggests incomplete combustion from flares contributes almost 1/5 of the total field emissions of methane and ethane measured in the Bakken shale, more than double the expected value if 98% efficiency was representative. BC emission factors also have a skewed distribution, but we find lower emission values than previous studies. The direct observation for the first time of a heavy-tail emissions distribution from flares suggests the need to consider skewed distributions when assessing flare impacts globally.

Fuel properties to enable lifted-flame combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kurtz, Eric

The Fuel Properties to Enable Lifted-Flame Combustion project responded directly to solicitation DE-FOA-0000239 AOI 1A, Fuels and Lubricants for Advanced Combustion Regimes. This subtopic was intended to encompass clean and highly-efficient, liquid-fueled combustion engines to achieve extremely low engine-out nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) as a target and similar efficiency as state-of-the-art direct injection diesel engines. The intent of this project was to identify how fuel properties can be used to achieve controllable Leaner Lifted Flame Combustion (LLFC) with low NOx and PM emissions. Specifically, this project was expected to identify and test key fuel properties to enablemore » LLFC and their compatibility with current fuel systems and to enhance combustion models to capture the effect of fuel properties on advanced combustion. Successful demonstration of LLFC may reduce the need for after treatment devices, thereby reducing costs and improving thermal efficiency. The project team consisted of key technical personnel from Ford Motor Company (FMC), the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW), Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories (LLNL). Each partner had key roles in achieving project objectives. FMC investigated fuel properties relating to LLFC and sooting tendency. Together, FMC and UW developed and integrated 3D combustion models to capture fuel property combustion effects. FMC used these modeling results to develop a combustion system and define fuel properties to support a single-cylinder demonstration of fuel-enabled LLFC. UW investigated modeling the flame characteristics and emissions behavior of different fuels, including those with different cetane number and oxygen content. SNL led spray combustion experiments to quantify the effect of key fuel properties on combustion characteristics critical for LLFC, as well as single cylinder optical engine experiments to improve fundamental understanding of flame lift-off, generate model validation data, and demonstrate LLFC concurrent with FMC efforts. Additionally, LLNL was added to the project during the second year to develop a detailed kinetic mechanism for a key oxygenate to support CFD modeling. Successful completion of this project allowed the team to enhance fundamental understanding of LLFC, improve the state of current combustion models and increase understanding of desired fuel properties. This knowledge also improves our knowledge of how cost effective and environmentally friendly renewable fuels can assist in helping meet future emission and greenhouse gas regulations.« less

Drive cycle simulation of high efficiency combustions on fuel economy and exhaust properties in light-duty vehicles

DOE PAGES

Gao, Zhiming; Curran, Scott J.; Parks, James E.; ...

2015-04-06

We present fuel economy and engine-out emissions for light-duty (LD) conventional and hybrid vehicles powered by conventional and high-efficiency combustion engines. Engine technologies include port fuel-injected (PFI), direct gasoline injection (GDI), reactivity controlled compression ignition (RCCI) and conventional diesel combustion (CDC). In the case of RCCI, the engine utilized CDC combustion at speed/load points not feasible with RCCI. The results, without emissions considered, show that the best fuel economies can be achieved with CDC/RCCI, with CDC/RCCI, CDC-only, and lean GDI all surpassing PFI fuel economy significantly. In all cases, hybridization significantly improved fuel economy. The engine-out hydrocarbon (HC), carbon monoxidemore » (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and particulate matter (PM) emissions varied remarkably with combustion mode. The simulated engine-out CO and HC emissions from RCCI are significantly higher than CDC, but RCCI makes less NOx and PM emissions. Hybridization can improve lean GDI and RCCI cases by increasing time percentage for these more fuel efficient modes. Moreover, hybridization can dramatically decreases the lean GDI and RCCI engine out emissions. Importantly, lean GDI and RCCI combustion modes decrease exhaust temperatures, especially for RCCI, which limits aftertreatment performance to control tailpipe emissions. Overall, the combination of engine and hybrid drivetrain selected greatly affects the emissions challenges required to meet emission regulations.« less

Method and Apparatus for Thermal Spraying of Metal Coatings Using Pulsejet Resonant Pulsed Combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Paxson, Daniel E. (Inventor)

2014-01-01

An apparatus and method for thermal spraying a metal coating on a substrate is accomplished with a modified pulsejet and optionally an ejector to assist in preventing oxidation. Metal such as Aluminum or Magnesium may be used. A pulsejet is first initiated by applying fuel, air, and a spark. Metal is inserted continuously in a high volume of metal into a combustion chamber of the pulsejet. The combustion is thereafter controlled resonantly at high frequency and the metal is heated to a molten state. The metal is then transported from the combustion chamber into a tailpipe of said pulsejet and is expelled therefrom at high velocity and deposited on a target substrate.

Fluidized coal combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moynihan, P. I.; Young, D. L.

1979-01-01

Fluidized-bed coal combustion process, in which pulverized coal and limestone are burned in presence of forced air, may lead to efficient, reliable boilers with low sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide emissions.

Effects of fuel nozzle design on performance of an experimental annular combustor using natural gas fuel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wear, J. D.; Schultz, D. F.

1972-01-01

Tests of various fuel nozzles were conducted with natural gas fuel in a full-annulus combustor. The nozzles were designed to provide either axial, angled, or radial fuel injection. Each fuel nozzle was evaluated by measuring combustion efficiency at relatively severe combustor operating conditions. Combustor blowout and altitude ignition tests were also used to evaluate nozzle designs. Results indicate that angled injection gave higher combustion efficiency, less tendency toward combustion instability, and altitude relight characteristics equal to or superior to those of the other fuel nozzles that were tested.

Simulated afterburner performance with hydrogen peroxide injection for thrust augmentation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Metzler, Allen J; Grobman, Jack S

1956-01-01

Combustion performance of three afterburner configurations was evaluated at simulated altitude flight conditions with liquid augmentation to the primary combustor. Afterburner combustion efficiency and stability were better with injection of high-strength hydrogen peroxide than with no injection or with water injection. Improvements were observed in afterburner configurations with and without flameholders and in a short-length afterburner. At a peroxide-air ratio of 0.3, combustion was stable and 85 to 90 percent efficient in all configurations tested. Calculated augmented net-thrust ratios for peroxide injection with afterburning were approximately 60 percent greater than those for water injection.

Performance Investigation on an Ultra-compact Interstage Turbine Burner with Trapped-vortex Slot Inlet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Hongtao; Luo, Guangqi; Guan, Lei; Zeng, Jianchen

2017-10-01

Ultra-Compact Combustor (UCC), which is one of mainstream design concepts of Interstage Turbine Burner (ITB), has the advantages of compact structure and high combustion efficiency. A design concept of an UCC with trapped-vortex slot inlet was proposed and numerical simulation of the stability, emissions, internal flow velocity and temperature distribution was carried out. The results indicated that the UCC with trapped-vortex slot inlet could enhance the mixing of combustion mixture and the mainstream airflow, improve the combustion efficiency, outlet temperature and the uniformity of outlet temperature field.

ALS LOX/H2 subscale coaxial injector testing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dexter, Carol E.

1991-01-01

Tests of a 40K subscale LOX/H2 coaxial LOX swirl injector conducted without injector or chamber degradation are reported. Chamber pressures ranged from 1572 to 2355 psia with overall mixture ratios from 5.04 to 6.39. The highest characteristic velocities were measured when the mixture ratio across the injector face was uniform. Scarfing of the outer row LOX posts had the largest effect on chamber heating rates. As a result of the tests, the LSI design was modified to arrange the outer row LOX posts in a circular pattern, eliminate O/F biasing and fuel film cooling, and modify the interpropellant plate to allow for larger pressure differentials during the start and cutoff transients. Testing of a 100 K LOX/H2 coaxial LOX swirl injector involved chamber pressure ranging from 700 to 2500 psia with overall mixture ratios from 3.2 to 8.8. Stable combustion was observed to a fuel temperature of 90R and characteristic velocity efficiencies were good.

On the potential for BECCS efficiency improvement through heat recovery from both post-combustion and oxy-combustion facilities.

PubMed

Dowell, N Mac; Fajardy, M

2016-10-20

In order to mitigate climate change to no more than 2 °C, it is well understood that it will be necessary to directly remove significant quantities of CO 2 , with bioenergy CCS (BECCS) regarded as a promising technology. However, BECCS will likely be more costly and less efficient at power generation than conventional CCS. Thus, approaches to improve BECCS performance and reduce costs are of importance to facilitate the deployment of this key technology. In this study, the impact of biomass co-firing rate and biomass moisture content on BECCS efficiency with both post- and oxy-combustion CO 2 capture technologies was evaluated. It was found that post-combustion capture BECCS (PCC-BECCS) facilities will be appreciably less efficient than oxy-combustion capture BECCS (OCC-BECCS) facilities. Consequently, PCC-BECCS have the potential to be more carbon negative than OCC-BECCS per unit electricity generated. It was further observed that the biomass moisture content plays an important role in determining the BECCS facilities' efficiency. This will in turn affect the enthalpic content of the BECCS plant exhaust and implies that exhaust gas heat recovery may be an attractive option at higher rates of co-firing. It was found that there is the potential for the recovery of approximately 2.5 GJ heat per t CO 2 at a temperature of 100 °C from both PCC-BECCS and OCC-BECCS. On- and off-site applications for this recovered heat are discussed, considering boiler feedwater pre-heating, solvent regeneration and district heating cases.

40 CFR 60.4310 - What types of operations are exempt from these standards of performance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... turbine emission control techniques and combustion turbine efficiency improvements are exempt from the NOX... Standards of Performance for Stationary Combustion Turbines Applicability § 60.4310 What types of operations are exempt from these standards of performance? (a) Emergency combustion turbines, as defined in § 60...

40 CFR 60.4310 - What types of operations are exempt from these standards of performance?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... turbine emission control techniques and combustion turbine efficiency improvements are exempt from the NOX... Standards of Performance for Stationary Combustion Turbines Applicability § 60.4310 What types of operations are exempt from these standards of performance? (a) Emergency combustion turbines, as defined in § 60...

Downhole steam generator with improved preheating, combustion, and protection features

DOEpatents

Fox, R.L.

1981-01-07

For tertiary oil recovery, a downhole steam generator is designed which provides for efficient counterflow cooling of the combustion chamber walls and preheating of the fuel and water. Pressure-responsive doors are provided for closing and opening the outlet in response to flameout, thereby preventing flooding of the combustion chamber. (DLC)

Analyses of extracted biodiesel and petroleum diesel exhaust particle and the effects on endothelial cell toxicity and antioxidant response.

EPA Science Inventory

Biodiesel (BD) is a renewable energy source and is readily substituted in diesel engines. Combustion of biodiesel is cleaner due to the efficiency of the fuel to completely combust. Biodiesel combustion emissions contain less CO, PAHs, aldehydes, and particulate matter (PM) mas...

Technology Being Developed at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory: Ultra-Low- Emission Combustion Technologies for Heat and Power Generation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cheng, Robert K.

2001-01-01

The Combustion Technologies Group at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has developed simple, low-cost, yet robust combustion technologies that may change the fundamental design concept of burners for boilers and furnaces, and injectors for gas turbine combustors. The new technologies utilize lean premixed combustion and could bring about significant pollution reductions from commercial and industrial combustion processes and may also improve efficiency. The technologies are spinoffs of two fundamental research projects: An inner-ring burner insert for lean flame stabilization developed for NASA- sponsored reduced-gravity combustion experiments. A low-swirl burner developed for Department of Energy Basic Energy Sciences research on turbulent combustion.

Lean, Premixed-Prevaporized (LPP) combustor conceptual design study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dickman, R. A.; Dodds, W. J.; Ekstedt, E. E.

1979-01-01

Four combustion systems were designed and sized for the energy efficient engine. A fifth combustor was designed for the cycle and envelope of the twin-spool, high bypass ratio, high pressure ratio turbofan engine. Emission levels, combustion performance, life, and reliability assessments were made for these five combustion systems. Results of these design studies indicate that cruise NOx emission can be reduced by the use of lean, premixed-prevaporaized combustion and airflow modulation.

Infrared measurements of a scramjet exhaust. [to determine combustion efficiency

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reed, R. A.; Slack, M. W.

1980-01-01

Diagnostic 2 - 5 mm infrared spectra of a hydrogen burning scramjet exhaust were measured with an interferometer spectrometer. Exhaust gas temperatures and water vapor partial pressures were determined from the observed intensity and spectral profile of the H2O 2.7 mm infrared emission band. Overall engine combustion efficiencies were derived by combining these measurements with the known engine operating conditions. Efficiencies fall (70 - 50 percent) as fuel equivalence ratios rise (0.4 - 1.0). Data analysis techniques and sensitivity studies are also presented.

Triggered instabilities in rocket motors and active combustion control for an incinerator afterburner

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wicker, Josef M.

1999-11-01

Two branches of research are conducted in this thesis. The first deals with nonlinear combustion response as a mechanism for triggering combustion instabilities in solid rocket motors. A nonlinear wave equation is developed to study a wide class of combustion response functions to second-order in fluctuation amplitude. Conditions for triggering are derived from analysis of limit cycles, and regions of triggering are found in parametric space. Introduction of linear cross-coupling and quadratic self-coupling among the acoustic modes appears to be how the nonlinear combustion response produces triggering to a stable limit cycle. Regions of initial conditions corresponding to stable pulses were found, suggesting that stability depends on initial phase angle and harmonic content, as well as the composite amplitude, of the pulse. Also, dependence of nonlinear stability upon system parameters is considered. The second part of this thesis presents research for a controller to improve the emissions of an incinerator afterburner. The developed controller was experimentally tested at the Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC), on a 50kW-scale model of an afterburner for Naval shipboard incinerator applications. Acoustic forcing of the combustor's reacting shear layer is used to control the formation of coherent vortical structures, within which favorable fuel-air mixing and efficient combustion can occur. Laser-based measurements of CO emissions are used as the performance indicator for the combustor. The controller algorithm is based on the downhill simplex method and adjusts the shear layer forcing parameters in order to minimize the CO emissions. The downhill simplex method was analyzed with respect to its behavior in the face of time-variation of the plant and noise in the sensor signal, and was modified to account for these difficulties. The control system has experimentally demonstrated the ability (1) to find optimal control action for single- and multi-variable control, (2) to maintain optimal control for time-varying operating states, and (3) to automatically adjust auxiliary fuel in response to changing stoichiometry of the incoming waste pyrolysis gas. Also presented but not tested in the experiments are an expert-type model-guidance feature to aid convergence of the controller to optimum control, and methodology for maintaining flammability.

Assessment of Literature Related to Combustion Appliance Venting Systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rapp, V. H.; Less, B. D.; Singer, B. C.

In many residential building retrofit programs, air tightening to increase energy efficiency is often constrained by safety concerns with naturally vented combustion appliances. Tighter residential buildings more readily depressurize when exhaust equipment is operated, making combustion appliances more prone to backdraft or spill combustion exhaust into the living space. Several measures, such as installation guidelines, vent sizing codes, and combustion safety diagnostics, are in place with the intent to prevent backdrafting and combustion spillage, but the diagnostics conflict and the risk mitigation objective is inconsistent. This literature review summarizes the metrics and diagnostics used to assess combustion safety, documents theirmore » technical basis, and investigates their risk mitigations. It compiles information from the following: codes for combustion appliance venting and installation; standards and guidelines for combustion safety diagnostics; research evaluating combustion safety diagnostics; research investigating wind effects on building depressurization and venting; and software for simulating vent system performance.« less

Simultaneous identification of multi-combustion-intermediates of alkanol-air flames by femtosecond filament excitation for combustion sensing.

PubMed

Li, Helong; Chu, Wei; Xu, Huailiang; Cheng, Ya; Chin, See-Leang; Yamanouchi, Kaoru; Sun, Hong-Bo

2016-06-02

Laser filamentation produced by the propagation of intense laser pulses in flames is opening up new possibility in application to combustion diagnostics that can provide useful information on understanding combustion processes, enhancing combustion efficiency and reducing pollutant products. Here we present simultaneous identification of multiple combustion intermediates by femtosecond filament excitation for five alkanol-air flames fueled by methanol, ethanol, n-propanol, n-butanol, and n-pentanol. We experimentally demonstrate that the intensities of filament-induced photoemission signals from the combustion intermediates C, C2, CH, CN increase with the increasing number of carbons in the fuel molecules, and the signal ratios between the intermediates (CH/C, CH/C2, CN/C, CH/C2, CN/CH) are different for different alkanol combustion flames. Our observation provides a way for sensing multiple combustion components by femtosecond filament excitation in various combustion conditions that strongly depend on the fuel species.

Progress towards an Optimization Methodology for Combustion-Driven Portable Thermoelectric Power Generation Systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Krishnan, Shankar; Karri, Naveen K.; Gogna, Pawan K.

2012-03-13

Enormous military and commercial interests exist in developing quiet, lightweight, and compact thermoelectric (TE) power generation systems. This paper investigates design integration and analysis of an advanced TE power generation system implementing JP-8 fueled combustion and thermal recuperation. Design and development of a portable TE power system using a JP-8 combustor as a high temperature heat source and optimal process flows depend on efficient heat generation, transfer, and recovery within the system are explored. Design optimization of the system required considering the combustion system efficiency and TE conversion efficiency simultaneously. The combustor performance and TE sub-system performance were coupled directlymore » through exhaust temperatures, fuel and air mass flow rates, heat exchanger performance, subsequent hot-side temperatures, and cold-side cooling techniques and temperatures. Systematic investigation of this system relied on accurate thermodynamic modeling of complex, high-temperature combustion processes concomitantly with detailed thermoelectric converter thermal/mechanical modeling. To this end, this work reports on design integration of systemlevel process flow simulations using commercial software CHEMCADTM with in-house thermoelectric converter and module optimization, and heat exchanger analyses using COMSOLTM software. High-performance, high-temperature TE materials and segmented TE element designs are incorporated in coupled design analyses to achieve predicted TE subsystem level conversion efficiencies exceeding 10%. These TE advances are integrated with a high performance microtechnology combustion reactor based on recent advances at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). Predictions from this coupled simulation established a basis for optimal selection of fuel and air flow rates, thermoelectric module design and operating conditions, and microtechnology heat-exchanger design criteria. This paper will discuss this simulation process that leads directly to system efficiency power maps defining potentially available optimal system operating conditions and regimes. This coupled simulation approach enables pathways for integrated use of high-performance combustor components, high performance TE devices, and microtechnologies to produce a compact, lightweight, combustion driven TE power system prototype that operates on common fuels.« less

Electrorheology for energy production and conservation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Ke

Recently, based on the physics of viscosity, we developed a new technology, which utilizes electric or magnetic fields to change the rheology of complex fluids to reduce the viscosity, while keeping the temperature unchanged. The method is universal and applicable to all complex fluids with suspended particles of nano-meter, submicrometer, or micrometer size. Completely different from the traditional viscosity reduction method, raising the temperature, this technology is energy-efficient, as it only requires small amount of energy to aggregate the suspended particles. In this thesis, we will first discuss this new technology in detail, both in theory and practice. Then, we will report applications of our technology to energy science research. Presently, 80% of all energy sources are liquid fuels. The viscosity of liquid fuels plays an important role in energy production and energy conservation. With an electric field, we can reduce the viscosity of asphalt-based crude oil. This is important and useful for heavy crude oil and off-shore crude oil production and transportation. Especially, since there is no practical way to raise the temperature of crude oil inside the deepwater pipelines, our technology may play a key role in future off-shore crude oil production. Electrorehology can also be used to reduce the viscosity of refinery fuels, such as diesel fuel and gasoline. When we apply this technology to fuel injection, the fuel droplets in the fuel atomization become smaller, leading to faster combustion in the engine chambers. As the fuel efficiency of internal combustion engines depends on the combustion speed and timing, the fast combustion produces much higher fuel efficiency. Therefore, adding our technology on existing engines improves the engine efficiency significantly. A theoretical model for the engine combustion, which explains how fast combustion improves the engine efficiency, is also presented in the thesis. As energy is the key to our national security, we believe that our technology is important and will have a strong impact on energy production and conversation in the future.

Method of combustion for dual fuel engine

DOEpatents

Hsu, B.D.; Confer, G.L.; Zujing Shen; Hapeman, M.J.; Flynn, P.L.

1993-12-21

Apparatus and a method of introducing a primary fuel, which may be a coal water slurry, and a high combustion auxiliary fuel, which may be a conventional diesel oil, into an internal combustion diesel engine comprises detecting the load conditions of the engine, determining the amount of time prior to the top dead center position of the piston to inject the main fuel into the combustion chamber, and determining the relationship of the timing of the injection of the auxiliary fuel into the combustion chamber to achieve a predetermined specific fuel consumption, a predetermined combustion efficiency, and a predetermined peak cylinder firing pressure. 19 figures.

Flex Fuel Optimized SI and HCCI Engine

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhu, Guoming; Schock, Harold; Yang, Xiaojian

The central objective of the proposed work is to demonstrate an HCCI (homogeneous charge compression ignition) capable SI (spark ignited) engine that is capable of fast and smooth mode transition between SI and HCCI combustion modes. The model-based control technique was used to develop and validate the proposed control strategy for the fast and smooth combustion mode transition based upon the developed control-oriented engine; and an HCCI capable SI engine was designed and constructed using production ready two-step valve-train with electrical variable valve timing actuating system. Finally, smooth combustion mode transition was demonstrated on a metal engine within eight enginemore » cycles. The Chrysler turbocharged 2.0L I4 direct injection engine was selected as the base engine for the project and the engine was modified to fit the two-step valve with electrical variable valve timing actuating system. To develop the model-based control strategy for stable HCCI combustion and smooth combustion mode transition between SI and HCCI combustion, a control-oriented real-time engine model was developed and implemented into the MSU HIL (hardware-in-the-loop) simulation environment. The developed model was used to study the engine actuating system requirement for the smooth and fast combustion mode transition and to develop the proposed mode transition control strategy. Finally, a single cylinder optical engine was designed and fabricated for studying the HCCI combustion characteristics. Optical engine combustion tests were conducted in both SI and HCCI combustion modes and the test results were used to calibrate the developed control-oriented engine model. Intensive GT-Power simulations were conducted to determine the optimal valve lift (high and low) and the cam phasing range. Delphi was selected to be the supplier for the two-step valve-train and Denso to be the electrical variable valve timing system supplier. A test bench was constructed to develop control strategies for the electrical variable valve timing (VVT) actuating system and satisfactory electrical VVT responses were obtained. Target engine control system was designed and fabricated at MSU for both single-cylinder optical and multi-cylinder metal engines. Finally, the developed control-oriented engine model was successfully implemented into the HIL simulation environment. The Chrysler 2.0L I4 DI engine was modified to fit the two-step vale with electrical variable valve timing actuating system. A used prototype engine was used as the base engine and the cylinder head was modified for the two-step valve with electrical VVT actuating system. Engine validation tests indicated that cylinder #3 has very high blow-by and it cannot be reduced with new pistons and rings. Due to the time constraint, it was decided to convert the four-cylinder engine into a single cylinder engine by blocking both intake and exhaust ports of the unused cylinders. The model-based combustion mode transition control algorithm was developed in the MSU HIL simulation environment and the Simulink based control strategy was implemented into the target engine controller. With both single-cylinder metal engine and control strategy ready, stable HCCI combustion was achived with COV of 2.1% Motoring tests were conducted to validate the actuator transient operations including valve lift, electrical variable valve timing, electronic throttle, multiple spark and injection controls. After the actuator operations were confirmed, 15-cycle smooth combustion mode transition from SI to HCCI combustion was achieved; and fast 8-cycle smooth combustion mode transition followed. With a fast electrical variable valve timing actuator, the number of engine cycles required for mode transition can be reduced down to five. It was also found that the combustion mode transition is sensitive to the charge air and engine coolant temperatures and regulating the corresponding temperatures to the target levels during the combustion mode transition is the key for a smooth combustion mode transition. As a summary, the proposed combustion mode transition strategy using the hybrid combustion mode that starts with the SI combustion and ends with the HCCI combustion was experimentally validated on a metal engine. The proposed model-based control approach made it possible to complete the SI-HCCI combustion mode transition within eight engine cycles utilizing the well controlled hybrid combustion mode. Without intensive control-oriented engine modeling and HIL simulation study of using the hybrid combustion mode during the mode transition, it would be impossible to validate the proposed combustion mode transition strategy in a very short period.« less

Smoke and fire characteristics for cerrado and deforestation burns in Brazil - BASE-B experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ward, D. E.; Susott, R. A.; Kauffman, J. B.; Babbitt, R. E.; Cummings, D. L.; Dias, B.; Holben, B. N.; Kaufman, Y. J.; Rasmussen, R. A.; Setzer, A. W.

1992-01-01

Five test fires were performed during August and September 1990 in the cerrado (savannalike region) in central Brazil (three fires) and tropical moist forest (two fires) in the eastern Amazon. This paper details the gases released, the ratios of the gases to each other and to particulate matter, fuel loads, and the fraction consumed (combustion factors), and the fire behavior associated with biomass consumption. Models are presented for evaluating emission factors for CH4, CO2, CO, H2, and particles less than 2.5 micron diam (PM2.5) as a function of combustion efficiency. The ratio of carbon released as CO2 (combustion efficiency) for the cerrado fires averaged 0.94 and for the deforestation fires it decreased from 0.88 for the flaming phase to less than 0.80 during the smoldering phase of combustion. For tropical ecosystems, emissions of most products of incomplete combustion are projected to be lower than previous estimates for savanna ecosystems and somewhat higher for fires used for deforestation purposes.

The reuse of spent mushroom compost and coal tailings for energy recovery: comparison of thermal treatment technologies.

PubMed

Finney, Karen N; Ryu, Changkook; Sharifi, Vida N; Swithenbank, Jim

2009-01-01

Thermal treatment technologies were compared to determine an appropriate method of recovering energy from two wastes - spent mushroom compost and coal tailings. The raw compost and pellets of these wastes were combusted in a fluidised-bed and a packed-bed, and contrasted to pyrolysis and gasification. Quantitative combustion parameters were compared to assess the differences in efficiency between the technologies. Fluidised-bed combustion was more efficient than the packed-bed in both instances and pellet combustion was superior to that of the compost alone. Acid gas emissions (NO(x), SO(x) and HCl) were minimal for the fluidised-bed, thus little gas cleaning would be required. The fuels' high ash content (34%) also suggests fluidised-bed combustion would be preferred. The Alkali Index of the ash indicates the possibility of fouling/slagging within the system, caused by the presence of alkali metal oxides. Pyrolysis produced a range of low-calorific value-products, while gasification was not successful.

iss053e098185

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-10-12

iss053e098185 (Oct. 12, 2017) --- Flight Engineer Paolo Nespoli works inside the Harmony module to configure the Combustion Integrated Rack and enable the Advanced Combustion Microgravity Experiment (ACME). The primary and secondary goals of ACME are the improved fuel efficiency and reduced pollutant production in practical combustion on Earth, and spacecraft fire prevention through innovative research focused on materials flammability.

Coal-water mixture fuel burner

DOEpatents

Brown, T.D.; Reehl, D.P.; Walbert, G.F.

1985-04-29

The present invention represents an improvement over the prior art by providing a rotating cup burner arrangement for use with a coal-water mixture fuel which applies a thin, uniform sheet of fuel onto the inner surface of the rotating cup, inhibits the collection of unburned fuel on the inner surface of the cup, reduces the slurry to a collection of fine particles upon discharge from the rotating cup, and further atomizes the fuel as it enters the combustion chamber by subjecting it to the high shear force of a high velocity air flow. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide for improved combustion of a coal-water mixture fuel. It is another object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for introducing a coal-water mixture fuel into a combustion chamber in a manner which provides improved flame control and stability, more efficient combustion of the hydrocarbon fuel, and continuous, reliable burner operation. Yet another object of the present invention is to provide for the continuous, sustained combustion of a coal-water mixture fuel without the need for a secondary combustion source such as natural gas or a liquid hydrocarbon fuel. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a burner arrangement capable of accommodating a coal-water mixture fuel having a wide range of rheological and combustion characteristics in providing for its efficient combustion. 7 figs.

Physicochemical characterization of fine particles from small-scale wood combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lamberg, Heikki; Nuutinen, Kati; Tissari, Jarkko; Ruusunen, Jarno; Yli-Pirilä, Pasi; Sippula, Olli; Tapanainen, Maija; Jalava, Pasi; Makkonen, Ulla; Teinilä, Kimmo; Saarnio, Karri; Hillamo, Risto; Hirvonen, Maija-Riitta; Jokiniemi, Jorma

2011-12-01

Emissions from small-scale wood combustion appliances are of special interest since fine particles have been consistently associated with adverse health effects. It has been reported that the physicochemical characteristics of the emitted particles affect also their toxic properties but the mechanisms behind these phenomena and the causative role of particles from wood combustion sources are still mostly unknown. Combustion situations vary significantly in small-scale appliances, especially in batch combustion. Combustion behaviour is affected by fuel properties, appliance type and operational practice. Particle samples were collected from six appliances representing different combustion situations in small-scale combustion. These appliances were five wood log fuelled stoves, including one stove equipped with modern combustion technology, three different conventional combustion appliances and one sauna stove. In addition, a modern small-scale pellet boiler represented advanced continuous combustion technology. The aim of the study was to analyze gas composition and fine particle properties over different combustion situations. Fine particle (PM 1) emissions and their chemical constituents emerging from different combustion situations were compared and this physicochemical data was combined with the toxicological data on cellular responses induced by the same particles (see Tapanainen et al., 2011). There were significant differences in the particle emissions from different combustion situations. Overall, the efficient combustion in the pellet boiler produced the smallest emissions whereas inefficient batch combustion in a sauna stove created the largest emissions. Improved batch combustion with air-staging produced about 2.5-fold PM 1 emissions compared to the modern pellet boiler (50.7 mg MJ -1 and 19.7 mg MJ -1, respectively), but the difference in the total particulate PAH content was 750-fold (90 μg MJ -1 and 0.12 μg MJ -1, respectively). Improved batch combustion and conventional batch combustion showed almost the same PM 1 emissions (51.6 mg MJ -1), but a 10-fold difference in total particulate PAH emissions (910 μg MJ -1). These results highlight that same PM 1 emissions can be associated with very different chemical compositions, potentially leading to different toxic properties of the particles. Thus, changing from an old, less efficient, combustion appliance to a modern appliance can have a greater impact on toxic properties than the emitted PM 1 mass might indicate.

Low-temperature metal-oxide thin-film transistors formed by directly photopatternable and combustible solution synthesis.

PubMed

Rim, You Seung; Lim, Hyun Soo; Kim, Hyun Jae

2013-05-01

We investigated the formation of ultraviolet (UV)-assisted directly patternable solution-processed oxide semiconductor films and successfully fabricated thin-film transistors (TFTs) based on these films. An InGaZnO (IGZO) solution that was modified chemically with benzoylacetone (BzAc), whose chelate rings decomposed via a π-π* transition as result of UV irradiation, was used for the direct patterning. A TFT was fabricated using the directly patterned IGZO film, and it had better electrical characteristics than those of conventional photoresist (PR)-patterned TFTs. In addition, the nitric acid (HNO3) and acetylacetone (AcAc) modified In2O3 (NAc-In2O3) solution exhibited both strong UV absorption and high exothermic reaction. This method not only resulted in the formation of a low-energy path because of the combustion of the chemically modified metal-oxide solution but also allowed for photoreaction-induced direct patterning at low temperatures.

Method and Apparatus for Thermal Spraying of Metal Coatings Using Pulsejet Resonant Pulsed Combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Paxson, Daniel E. (Inventor)

2010-01-01

An apparatus and method [or thermal spraying a metal coating on a substrate is accomplished with a modified pulsejet and optionally an ejector to assist in preventing oxidation. Metal such a Aluminum or Magnesium may be used. A pulsejet is first initiated by applying fuel, air. and a spark. Metal is inserted continuously in a high volume of meta1 into a combustion chamber of the pulsejet. The combustion is thereafter. controlled resonantly at high frequency and the metal is heated to a molten state. The metal is then transported from the combustion chamber into a tail pipe of said pulsejet and is expelled therefrom at high velocity and deposited on a target substrate.

One-step solution combustion synthesis of pure Ni nanopowders with enhanced coercivity: The fuel effect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khort, Alexander; Podbolotov, Kirill; Serrano-García, Raquel; Gun'ko, Yurii K.

2017-09-01

In this paper, we report a new modified one-step combustion synthesis technique for production of Ni metal nanoparticles. The main unique feature of our approach is the use of microwave assisted foam preparation. Also, the effect of different types of fuels (urea, citric acid, glycine and hexamethylenetetramine) on the combustion process and characteristics of resultant solid products were investigated. It is observed that the combination of microwave assisted foam preparation and using of hexamethylenetetramine as a fuel allows producing pure ferromagnetic Ni metal nanoparticles with enhanced coercivity (78 Oe) and high value of saturation magnetization (52 emu/g) by one-step solution combustion synthesis under normal air atmosphere without any post-reduction processing.

Combustion characteristics of an SI engine fueled with biogas fuel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Lei; Long, Wuqiang; Song, Peng

2017-04-01

An experimental research of the effect of H2 substitution and CO2 dilution on CH4 combustion has been carried out on a spark ignition engine. The results show that H2 addition could improve BMEP, thermal efficiency, CO and THC emissions. NOX emissions increased for higher low heating value (LHV) of H2 than CH4. CO2 dilution could effective reduce NOX emission of H2-CH4 combustion. Although engine performance, thermal efficiency and exhaust get unacceptable under high fuel dilution ratio (F.D.R.) conditions, it could be solved by decreasing F.D.R. and/or increasing hydrogen substitution ratio (H.S.R.).

Technical assessment of discarded tires gasification as alternative technology for electricity generation.

PubMed

Machin, Einara Blanco; Pedroso, Daniel Travieso; de Carvalho, João Andrade

2017-10-01

Concern about contamination associated with the disposal of tires has led to the search for technologies to reuse discarded tires, which include the use of Tire Derived Fuel (TDF) as fuel in advanced thermal-conversion processes, this allows the energy use of these wastes at affordable costs and reduces the environmental impact on scrap tires disposal. A theoretical assessment of the technical viability of TDF gasification for electric and thermal power generation, from the producer gas combustion in an internal combustion engine and in a gas turbine, was performed. The combustion of producer gas derived from the gasification of TDF in an internal combustion engine driving a generator (ICE-G) appears as the more efficient route for electricity generation when compared with the efficiency obtained with the use of gas turbine (GT-G). A higher global efficiency, considering the electric and thermal generation efficiency can be expected with the use of TDF producer gas in GT-G, where is expected an overall efficiency of 77.49%. The assessment shows that is possible produces up to 7.67MJ and 10.62MJ of electric and thermal energy per kilogram of TDF gasified using an ICE-G and up to 6.06MJ and 13.03MJ of electric and thermal energy respectively per kilogram of gasified TDF using a GT-G. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Numerical Investigation of the Impact of the Compressor Operation Mode on Working Process of the Combustion Chamber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orlov, M. Yu; Lukachev, S. V.; Anisimov, V. M.

2018-01-01

The method of integrated compressor/combustor simulation was used to investigate the impact of flow distortion, appeared due to compressor blades, during the combustion chamber workflow. The method was improved in terms of generating a common grid and of principles of the boundary conditions settings. The geometric model includes four geometric volume bodies: guide vanes of the penultimate stage of high-pressure compressor, the impeller and guide vanes of the last stage and the flow path of combustion chamber. The calculation was carried out for some operation mode of the engine (nominal, 0.7 of nominal and 0.5 of nominal regimes) with and without compressor. The results were compared with the results of combustion chamber simulation without the compressor. Simulations showed that blade wakes extend up to the flame tube head. These wakes influence on the flame tongue, pressure field, temperature and velocity in the recirculation-mixing zone. It can influence on combustion efficiency, ecological performance and on temperature field at the combustor outlet. Thus, the simulations, which take into account combustion chamber and compressor, are more fully represent the characteristics of the working process of the combustion chamber and increase the efficiency of the design of new products.

Third-harmonic generation and scattering in combustion flames using a femtosecond laser filament.

PubMed

Zang, Hong-Wei; Li, He-Long; Su, Yue; Fu, Yao; Hou, Meng-Yao; Baltuška, Andrius; Yamanouchi, Kaoru; Xu, Huailiang

2018-02-01

Coherent radiation in the ultraviolent (UV) range has high potential applicability to the diagnosis of the formation processes of soot in combustion because of the high scattering efficiency in the UV wavelength region, even though the UV light is lost largely by the absorption within the combustion flames. We show that the third harmonic (TH) of a Ti:sapphire 800 nm femtosecond laser is generated in a laser-induced filament in a combustion flame and that the conversion efficiency of the TH varies sensitively by the ellipticity of the driver laser pulse but does not vary so much by the choice of alkanol species introduced as fuel for the combustion flames. We also find that the TH recorded from the side direction of the filament is the Rayleigh scattering of the TH by soot nanoparticles within the flame and that the intensity of the TH varies depending on the fuel species as well as on the position of the laser filament within the flame. Our results show that a remote and in situ measurement of distributions of soot nanoparticles in a combustion flame can be achieved by Rayleigh scattering spectroscopy of the TH generated by a femtosecond-laser-induced filament in the combustion flame.

Light-Duty Drive Cycle Simulations of Diesel Engine-Out Exhaust Properties for an RCCI-Enabled Vehicle

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gao, Zhiming; Curran, Scott; Daw, C Stuart

2013-01-01

In-cylinder blending of gasoline and diesel fuels to achieve low-temperature reactivity controlled compression ignition (RCCI) can reduce NOx and PM emissions while maintaining or improving brake thermal efficiency compared to conventional diesel combustion (CDC). Moreover, the dual-fueling RCCI is able to achieve these benefits by tailoring combustion reactivity over a wider range of engine operation than is possible with a single fuel. However, the currently demonstrated range of stable RCCI combustion just covers a portion of the engine speed-load range required in several light-duty drive cycles. This means that engines must switch from RCCI to CDC when speed and loadmore » fall outside of the stable RCCI range. In this study we investigated the impact of RCCI as it has recently been demonstrated on practical engine-out exhaust temperature and emissions by simulating a multi-mode RCCI-enabled vehicle operating over two urban and two highway driving cycles. To implement our simulations, we employed experimental engine maps for a multi-mode RCCI/CDC engine combined with a standard mid-size, automatic transmission, passenger vehicle in the Autonomie vehicle simulation platform. Our results include both detailed transient and cycle-averaged engine exhaust temperature and emissions for each case, and we note the potential implications of the modified exhaust properties on catalytic emissions control and utilization of waste heat recovery on future RCCI-enabled vehicles.« less

Boeing B-29 Superfortress at the Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory

NASA Image and Video Library

1947-05-21

The NACA’s Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory used a Boeing B-29 Superfortress as a testbed for ramjet investigations in the late 1940s. NACA Lewis conducted a wide variety of studies on ramjets to determine basic operational data necessary to design missiles. This information included the relationship between combustion chamber and inlet pressure and temperature, velocity of the fuel-air ratio to the ignition characteristics, and combustion efficiency. Although wind tunnel and test stand studies were important first steps in determining these factors, actual flight tests were required. Lewis engineers modified the B-29 so that the ramjet could be stored in the bomb bay. Once the aircraft reached the desired altitude and speed the ramjet was suspended 52 inches below the bomb bay. The ramjet’s angle-of-attack could be independently adjusted, and a periscope permitted a view of the test article from inside the aircraft. Measurements were taken in free-stream conditions between 5,000 and 30,000 feet. The test flights, which began in April 1947, were flown at speeds up to Mach 0.51 and altitudes of 5,000 to 30,000 feet. The researchers first determined that 14,000 feet was the maximum altitude at which the engine could be ignited by spark. Flares were used to start the engine at altitudes up to 30,000 feet. Overall the ramjet operated well at all speeds and altitudes. Significant changes in fuel flow were successful at lower altitudes, but produced combustion blowout above 20,000 feet.

Proinflammatory effects of cookstove emissions on human bronchial epithelial cells.

PubMed

Hawley, B; Volckens, J

2013-02-01

Approximately half of the world's population uses biomass fuel for indoor cooking and heating. This form of combustion typically occurs in open fires or primitive stoves. Human exposure to emissions from indoor biomass combustion is a global health concern, causing an estimated 1.5 million premature deaths each year. Many 'improved' stoves have been developed to address this concern; however, studies that examine exposure-response with cleaner-burning, more efficient stoves are few. The objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of traditional and cleaner-burning stove emissions on an established model of the bronchial epithelium. We exposed well-differentiated, normal human bronchial epithelial cells to emissions from a single biomass combustion event using either a traditional three-stone fire or one of two energy-efficient stoves. Air-liquid interface cultures were exposed using a novel, aerosol-to-cell deposition system. Cellular expression of a panel of three pro-inflammatory markers was evaluated at 1 and 24 h following exposure. Cells exposed to emissions from the cleaner-burning stoves generated significantly fewer amounts of pro-inflammatory markers than cells exposed to emissions from a traditional three-stone fire. Particulate matter emissions from each cookstove were substantially different, with the three-stone fire producing the largest concentrations of particles (by both number and mass). This study supports emerging evidence that more efficient cookstoves have the potential to reduce respiratory inflammation in settings where solid fuel combustion is used to meet basic domestic needs. Emissions from more efficient, cleaner-burning cookstoves produced less inflammation in well-differentiated bronchial lung cells. The results support evidence that more efficient cookstoves can reduce the health burden associated with exposure to indoor pollution from the combustion of biomass. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Preliminary tests of an advanced high-temperature combustion system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wear, J. D.; Trout, A. M.; Smith, J. M.; Jacobs, R. E.

1983-01-01

A combustion system has been developed to operate efficiently and with good durability at inlet pressures to 4.05 MPa (40 atm), inlet air temperatures to 900 K, and exhaust gas temperatures to 2480 K. A preliminary investigation of this system was conducted at inlet pressures to 0.94 MPa (9 atm), a nominal inlet air temperature of 560 K, and exhaust gas temperatures to 2135 K. A maximum combustion efficiency of 98.5 percent was attained at a fuel-air ratio of 0.033; the combustion efficiency decreased to about 90 percent as the fuel-air ratio was increased to 0.058. An average liner metal temperature of 915 K, 355 kelvins greater than the nominal inlet air temperature, was reached with an average exhaust gas temperature of 2090 K. The maximum local metal temperature at this condition was about 565 kelvins above the nominal inlet air temperature and decreased to 505 kelvins above with increasing combustor pressure. Tests to determine the isothermal total pressure loss of the combustor showed a liner loss of 1.1 percent and a system loss of 6.5 percent.

Future Automotive Aftertreatment Solutions: The 150°C Challenge Workshop Report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zammit, Michael; DiMaggio, Craig L.; Kim, Chang H.

2013-10-15

With future fuel economy standards enacted, the U.S. automotive manufacturers (OEMs) are committed to pursuing a variety of high risk/highly efficient stoichiometric and lean combustion strategies to achieve superior performance. In recognition of this need, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has partnered with domestic automotive manufacturers through U.S. DRIVE to develop these advanced technologies. However, before these advancements can be introduced into the U.S. market, they must also be able to meet increasingly stringent emissions requirements. A significant roadblock to this implementation is the inability of current catalyst and aftertreatment technologies to provide the required activity at the muchmore » lower exhaust temperatures that will accompany highly efficient combustion processes and powertrain strategies. Therefore, the goal of this workshop and report is to create a U.S. DRIVE emission control roadmap that will identify new materials and aftertreatment approaches that offer the potential for 90% conversion of emissions at low temperature (150°C) and are consistent with highly efficient combustion technologies currently under investigation within U.S. DRIVE Advanced Combustion and Emission Control (ACEC) programs.« less

Numerical Investigation Into Effect of Fuel Injection Timing on CAI/HCCI Combustion in a Four-Stroke GDI Engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Li; Zhao, Hua; Jiang, Xi; Kalian, Navin

2006-02-01

The Controlled Auto-Ignition (CAI) combustion, also known as Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI), was achieved by trapping residuals with early exhaust valve closure in conjunction with direct injection. Multi-cycle 3D engine simulations have been carried out for parametric study on four different injection timings in order to better understand the effects of injection timings on in-cylinder mixing and CAI combustion. The full engine cycle simulation including complete gas exchange and combustion processes was carried out over several cycles in order to obtain the stable cycle for analysis. The combustion models used in the present study are the Shell auto-ignition model and the characteristic-time combustion model, which were modified to take the high level of EGR into consideration. A liquid sheet breakup spray model was used for the droplet breakup processes. The analyses show that the injection timing plays an important role in affecting the in-cylinder air/fuel mixing and mixture temperature, which in turn affects the CAI combustion and engine performance.

The NACA Apparatus for Studying the Formation and Combustion of Fuel Sprays and the Results from Preliminary Tests

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rothrock, A M

1933-01-01

This report describes the apparatus as designed and constructed at the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory, for studying the formation and combustion of fuel sprays under conditions closely simulating those occurring in a high-speed compression-ignition engine. The apparatus consists of a single-cylinder modified test engine, a fuel-injection system so designed that a single charge of fuel can be injected into the combustion chamber of the engine, an electric driving motor, and a high-speed photographic apparatus. The cylinder head of the engine has a vertical-disk form of combustion chamber whose sides are glass windows. When the fuel is injected into the combustion chamber, motion pictures at the rate of 2,000 per second are taken of the spray formation by means of spark discharges. When combustion takes place the light of the combustion is recorded on the same photographic film as the spray photographs. The report includes the results of some tests to determine the effect of air temperature, air flow, and nozzle design on the spray formation.

Heat regenerative external combustion engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duva, Anthony W.

1993-03-01

It is an object of the invention to provide an external combustion expander-type engine having improved efficiency. It is another object of the invention to provide an external combustion engine in which afterburning in the exhaust channel is substantially prevented. Yet another object of the invention is to provide an external combustion engine which is less noisy than an external combustion engine of conventional design. These and other objects of the invention will become more apparent from the following description. The above objects of the invention are realized by providing a heat regenerative external combustion engine. The heat regenerative external combustion engine of the invention comprises a combustion chamber for combusting a monopropellant fuel in order to form an energized gas. The energized gas is then passed through a rotary valve to a cylinder having a reciprocating piston disposed therein. The gas is spent in moving the piston, thereby driving a drive shaft.

Combustion characteristics of eastern white pine bark and Douglas fir planer shavings. Technical Progress Report No. 5, September 16, 1977--September 15, 1978

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Junge, D.C.

1978-12-01

Significant quantities of wood residue fuels are presently being used in industrial steam generating facilities. Recent studies indicate that substantial additional quantities of wood residue fuels are available for energy generation in the form of steam and/or electricity. A limited data base on the combustion characteristics of wood residue fuels has resulted in the installation and operation of inefficient combustion systems for these fuels. This investigation of the combustion characteristics of wood residue fuels was undertaken to provide a data base which could be used to optimize the combustion of such fuels. Optimization of the combustion process in industrial boilersmore » serves to improve combustion efficiency and to reduce air pollutant emissions generated in the combustion process. Data are presented on the combustion characteristics of eastern white pine bark mixed with Douglas fir planer shavings.« less

A Study on the Effect of Stratified Mixture Formation on Combustion Characteristics in a Constant Volume Combustion Chamber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Kihyung; Lee, Changhee; Jeoung, Haeyoung

It is well known that a lean burn engine caused by stratified mixture formation has many kinds of advantages to combustion characteristics, such as higher thermal efficiency and lower CO, NOx levels than conventional homogeneous mixture combustion. Although this combustion can achieve low fuel consumption, it produces much unburned hydrocarbon and soot because of inhomogeneity of the charge mixture in the combustion chamber. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the effect of mixture formation on combustion characteristics in order to obtain the stable lean combustion. In this paper, fundamental studies for stratified combustion were carried out using a constant volume combustion chamber. The effect of mixture formation on the combustion characteristics in the chamber was examined experimentally. In addition, the effect of turbulence on stratified charge combustion process was observed by schlieren photography. From this study, as the swirl intensity increases, (Sv)max is rapidly enhanced and the period of combustion is shortened. We also find that the stratification degree can be quantified by using burning velocity and it was controlled by induced air pressure and turbulent intensity.

Effect of E85 on RCCI Performance and Emissions on a Multi-Cylinder Light-Duty Diesel Engine - SAE World Congress

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Curran, Scott; Hanson, Reed M; Wagner, Robert M

2012-01-01

This paper investigates the effect of E85 on load expansion and FTP modal point emissions indices under reactivity controlled compression ignition (RCCI) operation on a light-duty multi-cylinder diesel engine. A General Motors (GM) 1.9L four-cylinder diesel engine with the stock compression ratio of 17.5:1, common rail diesel injection system, high-pressure exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) system and variable geometry turbocharger was modified to allow for port fuel injection with gasoline or E85. Controlling the fuel reactivity in-cylinder by the adjustment of the ratio of premixed low-reactivity fuel (gasoline or E85) to direct injected high reactivity fuel (diesel fuel) has been shownmore » to extend the operating range of high-efficiency clean combustion (HECC) compared to the use of a single fuel alone as in homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) or premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI). The effect of E85 on the Ad-hoc federal test procedure (FTP) modal points is explored along with the effect of load expansion through the light-duty diesel speed operating range. The Ad-hoc FTP modal points of 1500 rpm, 1.0bar brake mean effective pressure (BMEP); 1500rpm, 2.6bar BMEP; 2000rpm, 2.0bar BMEP; 2300rpm, 4.2bar BMEP; and 2600rpm, 8.8bar BMEP were explored. Previous results with 96 RON unleaded test gasoline (UTG-96) and ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) showed that with stock hardware, the 2600rpm, 8.8bar BMEP modal point was not obtainable due to excessive cylinder pressure rise rate and unstable combustion both with and without the use of EGR. Brake thermal efficiency and emissions performance of RCCI operation with E85 and ULSD is explored and compared against conventional diesel combustion (CDC) and RCCI operation with UTG 96 and ULSD.« less

An adaptive least-squares global sensitivity method and application to a plasma-coupled combustion prediction with parametric correlation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Kunkun; Massa, Luca; Wang, Jonathan; Freund, Jonathan B.

2018-05-01

We introduce an efficient non-intrusive surrogate-based methodology for global sensitivity analysis and uncertainty quantification. Modified covariance-based sensitivity indices (mCov-SI) are defined for outputs that reflect correlated effects. The overall approach is applied to simulations of a complex plasma-coupled combustion system with disparate uncertain parameters in sub-models for chemical kinetics and a laser-induced breakdown ignition seed. The surrogate is based on an Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) expansion, such as widely used in statistics, with orthogonal polynomials representing the ANOVA subspaces and a polynomial dimensional decomposition (PDD) representing its multi-dimensional components. The coefficients of the PDD expansion are obtained using a least-squares regression, which both avoids the direct computation of high-dimensional integrals and affords an attractive flexibility in choosing sampling points. This facilitates importance sampling using a Bayesian calibrated posterior distribution, which is fast and thus particularly advantageous in common practical cases, such as our large-scale demonstration, for which the asymptotic convergence properties of polynomial expansions cannot be realized due to computation expense. Effort, instead, is focused on efficient finite-resolution sampling. Standard covariance-based sensitivity indices (Cov-SI) are employed to account for correlation of the uncertain parameters. Magnitude of Cov-SI is unfortunately unbounded, which can produce extremely large indices that limit their utility. Alternatively, mCov-SI are then proposed in order to bound this magnitude ∈ [ 0 , 1 ]. The polynomial expansion is coupled with an adaptive ANOVA strategy to provide an accurate surrogate as the union of several low-dimensional spaces, avoiding the typical computational cost of a high-dimensional expansion. It is also adaptively simplified according to the relative contribution of the different polynomials to the total variance. The approach is demonstrated for a laser-induced turbulent combustion simulation model, which includes parameters with correlated effects.

Computations of Combustion-Powered Actuation for Dynamic Stall Suppression

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jee, Solkeun; Bowles, Patrick O.; Matalanis, Claude G.; Min, Byung-Young; Wake, Brian E.; Crittenden, Tom; Glezer, Ari

2016-01-01

A computational framework for the simulation of dynamic stall suppression with combustion-powered actuation (COMPACT) is validated against wind tunnel experimental results on a VR-12 airfoil. COMPACT slots are located at 10% chord from the leading edge of the airfoil and directed tangentially along the suction-side surface. Helicopter rotor-relevant flow conditions are used in the study. A computationally efficient two-dimensional approach, based on unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS), is compared in detail against the baseline and the modified airfoil with COMPACT, using aerodynamic forces, pressure profiles, and flow-field data. The two-dimensional RANS approach predicts baseline static and dynamic stall very well. Most of the differences between the computational and experimental results are within two standard deviations of the experimental data. The current framework demonstrates an ability to predict COMPACT efficacy across the experimental dataset. Enhanced aerodynamic lift on the downstroke of the pitching cycle due to COMPACT is well predicted, and the cycleaveraged lift enhancement computed is within 3% of the test data. Differences with experimental data are discussed with a focus on three-dimensional features not included in the simulations and the limited computational model for COMPACT.

Altitude-wind-tunnel investigation of tail-pipe burning with a Westinghouse X24C-4B axial-flow turbojet engine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fleming, William A; Wallner, Lewis E

1948-01-01

Thrust augmentation of an axial-flow type turbojet engine by burning fuel in the tail pipe has been investigated in the NACA Cleveland altitude wind tunnel. The performance was determined over a range of simulated flight conditions and tail-pipe fuel flows. The engine tail pipe was modified for the investigation to reduce the gas velocity at the inlet of the tail-pipe combustion chamber and to provide an adequate seat for the flame; four such modifications were investigated. The highest net-thrust increase obtained in the investigation was 86 percent with a net thrust specific fuel consumption of 2.91 and a total fuel-air ratio of 0.0523. The highest combustion efficiencies obtained with the four configurations ranged from 0.71 to 0.96. With three of the tail-pipe burners, for which no external cooling was provided, the exhaust nozzle and the rear part of the burner section were bright red during operation at high tail-pipe fuel-air ratios. With the tail-pipe burner for which fuel and water cooling were provided, the outer shell of the tail-pipe burner showed no evidence of elevated temperatures at any operating condition.

Low-cost high-efficiency GDCI engines for low octane fuels

DOEpatents

Kolodziej, Christopher P.; Sellnau, Mark C.

2018-01-09

A GDCI engine has a piston arranged within a cylinder to provide a combustion chamber. According to one embodiment, the GDCI engine operates using a method that includes the steps of supplying a hydrocarbon fuel to the combustion chamber with a research octane number in the range of about 30-65. The hydrocarbon fuel is injected in completely stratified, multiple fuel injections before a start of combustion and supplying a naturally aspirated air charge to the combustion chamber.

Diesel fuel burner for diesel emissions control system

DOEpatents

Webb, Cynthia C.; Mathis, Jeffrey A.

2006-04-25

A burner for use in the emissions system of a lean burn internal combustion engine. The burner has a special burner head that enhances atomization of the burner fuel. Its combustion chamber is designed to be submersed in the engine exhaust line so that engine exhaust flows over the outer surface of the combustion chamber, thereby providing efficient heat transfer.

Atomization and combustion performance of antimisting kerosene and jet fuel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fleeter, R.; Parikh, P.; Sarohia, V.

1983-01-01

Combustion performance of antimisting kerosene (AMK) containing FM-9 polymer was investigated at various levels of degradation (restoration of AMK for normal use in a gas turbine engine). To establish the relationship of degradation and atomization to performance in an aircraft gas turbine combustor, sprays formed by the nozzle of a JT8-D combustor with Jet A and AMK at 1 atmosphere (atm) (14.1 lb/square in absolute) pressure and 22 C at several degradation levels were analyzed. A new spray characterization technique based on digital image analysis of high resolution, wide field spray images formed under pulsed ruby laser sheet illumination was developed. Combustion tests were performed for these fuels in a JT8-D single can combustor facility to measure combustion efficiency and the lean extinction limit. Correlation of combustion performance under simulated engine operating conditions with nozzle spray Sauter mean diameter (SMD) measured at 1 atm and 22 C were observed. Fuel spray SMD and hence the combustion efficiency are strongly influenced by fuel degradation level. Use of even the most highly degraded AMK tested (filter ratio = 1.2) resulted in an increase in fuel consumption of 0.08% to 0.20% at engine cruise conditions.

Advanced Boost System Developing for High EGR Applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sun, Harold

2012-09-30

To support industry efforts of clean and efficient internal combustion engine development for passenger and commercial applications • This program focuses on turbocharger improvement for medium and light duty diesel applications, from complete system optimization percepective to enable commercialization of advanced diesel combustion technologies, such as HCCI/LTC. • Improve combined turbocharger efficiency up to 10% or fuel economy by 3% on FTP cycle at Tier II Bin 5 emission level.

Controlling urban air pollution caused by households: uncertainty, prices, and income.

PubMed

Chávez, Carlos A; Stranlund, John K; Gómez, Walter

2011-10-01

We examine the control of air pollution caused by households burning wood for heating and cooking in the developing world. Since the problem is one of controlling emissions from nonpoint sources, regulations are likely to be directed at household choices of wood consumption and combustion technologies. Moreover, these choices are subtractions from, or contributions to, the pure public good of air quality. Consequently, the efficient policy design is not independent of the distribution of household income. Since it is unrealistic to assume that environmental authorities can make lump sum income transfers part of control policies, efficient control of air pollution caused by wood consumption entails a higher tax on wood consumption and a higher subsidy for more efficient combustion technologies for higher income households. Among other difficulties, implementing a policy to promote the adoption of cleaner combustion technologies must overcome the seemingly paradoxical result that efficient control calls for higher technology subsidies for higher income households. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Idle efficiency and pollution results for two-row swirl-can combustors having 72 modules

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biaglow, J. A.; Trout, A. M.

1975-01-01

Two 72-swirl-can-module combustors were investigated in a full annular combustor test facility at engine idle conditions typical of a 30:1 pressure-ratio engine. The effects of radial and circumferential fuel scheduling on combustion efficiency and gaseous pollutants levels were determined. Test conditions were inlet-air temperature, 452 K; inlet total pressure, 34.45 newtons per square centimeter; and reference velocity, 19.5 meters per second. A maximum combustion efficiency of 98.1 percent was achieved by radial scheduling of fuel to the inner row of swirl-can modules. Emission index values were 6.9 for unburned hydrocarbons and 50.6 for carbon monoxide at a fuel-air ratio of 0.0119. Circumferential fuel scheduling of two 90 degree sectors of the swirl-can arrays produced a maximum combustion efficiency of 97.3 percent. The emission index values were 12.0 for unburned hydrocarbons and 69.2 for carbon monoxide at a fuel-air ratio of 0.0130.

Thermal efficiency and environmental performances of a biogas-diesel stationary engine.

PubMed

Bilcan, A; Le Corre, O; Delebarre, A

2003-09-01

Municipal and agricultural waste, and sludge from wastewater treatment represent a large source of pollution. Gaseous fuels can be produced from waste decomposition and then used to run internal combustion engines for power and heat generation. The present paper focuses on thermal efficiency and environmental performances of dual-fuel engines fuelled with biogas. Experiments have been carried out on a Lister-Petter single cylinder diesel engine, modified for dual-fuel operation. Natural gas was first used as the primary fuel. An empirical correlation was determined to predict the engine load for a given mass flow rate for the pilot fuel (diesel) and for the primary fuel (natural gas). That correlation has then been tested for three synthesized biogas compositions. Computations were performed and the error was estimated to be less than 10%. Additionally, NOx and CO2 contents were measured from exhaust gases. Based on exhausts gas temperature, the activation energy and the pre-exponential factor of an Arrhenius law were then proposed, resulting in a simpler mean to predict NOx.

Combustion physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jones, A. R.

1985-11-01

Over 90% of our energy comes from combustion. By the year 2000 the figure will still be 80%, even allowing for nuclear and alternative energy sources. There are many familiar examples of combustion use, both domestic and industrial. These range from the Bunsen burner to large flares, from small combustion chambers, such as those in car engines, to industrial furnaces for steel manufacture or the generation of megawatts of electricity. There are also fires and explosions. The bountiful energy release from combustion, however, brings its problems, prominent among which are diminishing fuel resources and pollution. Combustion science is directed towards finding ways of improving efficiency and reducing pollution. One may ask, since combustion is a chemical reaction, why physics is involved: the answer is in three parts. First, chemicals cannot react unless they come together. In most flames the fuel and air are initially separate. The chemical reaction in the gas phase is very fast compared with the rate of mixing. Thus, once the fuel and air are mixed the reaction can be considered to occur instantaneously and fluid mechanics limits the rate of burning. Secondly, thermodynamics and heat transfer determine the thermal properties of the combustion products. Heat transfer also plays a role by preheating the reactants and is essential to extracting useful work. Fluid mechanics is relevant if work is to be performed directly, as in a turbine. Finally, physical methods, including electric probes, acoustics, optics, spectroscopy and pyrometry, are used to examine flames. The article is concerned mainly with how physics is used to improve the efficiency of combustion.

Hybrid Automotive Engine Using Ethanol-Burning Miller Cycle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Weinstein, Leonard

2004-01-01

A proposed hybrid (internal-combustion/ electric) automotive engine system would include as its internal-combustion subsystem, a modified Miller-cycle engine with regenerative air preheating and with autoignition like that of a Diesel engine. The fuel would be ethanol and would be burned lean to ensure complete combustion. Although the proposed engine would have a relatively low power-to-weight ratio compared to most present engines, this would not be the problem encountered if this engine were used in a non-hybrid system since hybrid systems require significantly lower power and thus smaller engines than purely internal-combustion-engine-driven vehicles. The disadvantage would be offset by the advantages of high fuel efficiency, low emission of nitrogen oxides and particulate pollutants, and the fact that ethanol is a renewable fuel. The original Miller-cycle engine, named after its inventor, was patented in the 1940s and is the basis of engines used in some modern automobiles, but is not widely known. In somewhat oversimplified terms, the main difference between a Miller-cycle engine and a common (Otto-cycle) automobile engine is that the Miller-cycle engine has a longer expansion stroke while retaining the shorter compression stroke. This is accomplished by leaving the intake valve open for part of the compression stroke, whereas in the Otto cycle engine, the intake valve is kept closed during the entire compression stroke. This greater expansion ratio makes it possible to extract more energy from the combustion process without expending more energy for compression. The net result is greater efficiency. In the proposed engine, the regenerative preheating would be effected by running the intake air through a heat exchanger connected to the engine block. The regenerative preheating would offer two advantages: It would ensure reliable autoignition during operation at low ambient temperature and would help to cool the engine, thereby reducing the remainder of the power needed for cooling and thereby further contributing to efficiency. An electrical resistance air preheater might be needed to ensure autoignition at startup and during a short warmup period. Because of the autoignition, the engine could operate without either spark plugs or glow plugs. Ethanol burns relatively cleanly and has been used as a motor fuel since the invention of internal-combustion engines. However, the energy content of ethanol per unit weight of ethanol is less than that of Diesel fuel or gasoline, and ethanol has a higher heat of vaporization. Because the Miller cycle offers an efficiency close to that of the Diesel cycle, burning ethanol in a Miller-cycle engine gives about as much usable output energy per unit volume of fuel as does burning gasoline in a conventional gasoline automotive engine. Because of the combination of preheating, running lean, and the use of ethyl alcohol, the proposed engine would generate less power per unit volume than does a conventional automotive gasoline engine. Consequently, for a given power level, the main body of the proposed engine would be bulkier. However, because little or no exhaust cleanup would be needed, the increase in bulk of the engine could be partially offset by the decrease in bulk of the exhaust system. The regenerative preheating also greatly reduces the external engine cooling requirement, and would translate to reduced engine bulk. It may even be possible to accomplish the remaining cooling of the engine by use of air only, eliminating the bulk and power consumption of a water cooling system. The combination of a Miller-cycle engine with regenerative air preheating, ethyl alcohol fuel, and hybrid operation could result in an automotive engine system that satisfies the need for a low pollution, high efficiency, and simple engine with a totally renewable fuel.

Simultaneous identification of multi-combustion-intermediates of alkanol-air flames by femtosecond filament excitation for combustion sensing

PubMed Central

Li, Helong; Chu, Wei; Xu, Huailiang; Cheng, Ya; Chin, See-Leang; Yamanouchi, Kaoru; Sun, Hong-Bo

2016-01-01

Laser filamentation produced by the propagation of intense laser pulses in flames is opening up new possibility in application to combustion diagnostics that can provide useful information on understanding combustion processes, enhancing combustion efficiency and reducing pollutant products. Here we present simultaneous identification of multiple combustion intermediates by femtosecond filament excitation for five alkanol-air flames fueled by methanol, ethanol, n-propanol, n-butanol, and n-pentanol. We experimentally demonstrate that the intensities of filament-induced photoemission signals from the combustion intermediates C, C2, CH, CN increase with the increasing number of carbons in the fuel molecules, and the signal ratios between the intermediates (CH/C, CH/C2, CN/C, CH/C2, CN/CH) are different for different alkanol combustion flames. Our observation provides a way for sensing multiple combustion components by femtosecond filament excitation in various combustion conditions that strongly depend on the fuel species. PMID:27250021

Combustion characteristics of lodge pole pine wood chips. Technical progress report No. 15, September 16, 1978-September 15, 1979

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Junge, D.C.

1979-09-01

Significant quantits of wood resiue fuels are presently being used in industrial steam generating facilities. Recent studies indicate that substantial additional quantities of wood residue fuels are available for energy generation in the form of steam and/or electricity. A limited data base on the combustion characteristics of wood residue fuels has resulted in the installation and operation of inefficient combustion systems for these fuels. This investigation of the combustion characteristics of wood residue fuels was undertaken to provide a data base which could be used to optimize the combustion of such fuels. Optimization of the combustion process in industrial boilersmore » serves to improve combustion efficiency and to reduce air pollutant emissions generated in the combustion process. This report presents data on the combustion characteristics of lodge pole pine wood chips. The data were obtained in a pilot scale combustion test facility at Oregon State University.« less

Instrumentation and Performance Analysis Plans for the HIFiRE Flight 2 Experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gruber, Mark; Barhorst, Todd; Jackson, Kevin; Eklund, Dean; Hass, Neal; Storch, Andrea M.; Liu, Jiwen

2009-01-01

Supersonic combustion performance of a bi-component gaseous hydrocarbon fuel mixture is one of the primary aspects under investigation in the HIFiRE Flight 2 experiment. In-flight instrumentation and post-test analyses will be two key elements used to determine the combustion performance. Pre-flight computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analyses provide valuable information that can be used to optimize the placement of a constrained set of wall pressure instrumentation in the experiment. The simulations also allow pre-flight assessments of performance sensitivities leading to estimates of overall uncertainty in the determination of combustion efficiency. Based on the pre-flight CFD results, 128 wall pressure sensors have been located throughout the isolator/combustor flowpath to minimize the error in determining the wall pressure force at Mach 8 flight conditions. Also, sensitivity analyses show that mass capture and combustor exit stream thrust are the two primary contributors to uncertainty in combustion efficiency.

Efficient Flame Detection and Early Warning Sensors on Combustible Materials Using Hierarchical Graphene Oxide/Silicone Coatings.

PubMed

Wu, Qian; Gong, Li-Xiu; Li, Yang; Cao, Cheng-Fei; Tang, Long-Cheng; Wu, Lianbin; Zhao, Li; Zhang, Guo-Dong; Li, Shi-Neng; Gao, Jiefeng; Li, Yongjin; Mai, Yiu-Wing

2018-01-23

Design and development of smart sensors for rapid flame detection in postcombustion and early fire warning in precombustion situations are critically needed to improve the fire safety of combustible materials in many applications. Herein, we describe the fabrication of hierarchical coatings created by assembling a multilayered graphene oxide (GO)/silicone structure onto different combustible substrate materials. The resulting coatings exhibit distinct temperature-responsive electrical resistance change as efficient early warning sensors for detecting abnormal high environmental temperature, thus enabling fire prevention below the ignition temperature of combustible materials. After encountering a flame attack, we demonstrate extremely rapid flame detection response in 2-3 s and excellent flame self-extinguishing retardancy for the multilayered GO/silicone structure that can be synergistically transformed to a multiscale graphene/nanosilica protection layer. The hierarchical coatings developed are promising for fire prevention and protection applications in various critical fire risk and related perilous circumstances.

Numerical Simulation of Wall Heat Load in Combustor Flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Panara, D.; Hase, M.; Krebs, W.; Noll, B.

2007-09-01

Due to the major mechanism of NOx generation, there is generally a temperature trade off between improved cycle efficiency, material constraints and low NOx emission. The cycle efficiency is proportional to the highest cycle temperature, but unfortunately also the NOx production increases with increasing combustion temperature. For this reason, the modern combustion chamber design has been oriented towards lean premixed combustion system and more and more attention must be focused on the cooling air management. The challenge is to ensure sufficiently low temperature of the combustion liner with very low amount of film or effusion cooling air. Correct numerical prediction of temperature fields and wall heat load are therefore of critical interest in the modern combustion chamber design. Moreover, lean combustion technology has shown the appearance of thermo-acoustic instabilities which have to be taken into account in the simulation and, more in general, in the design of reliable combustion systems. In this framework, the present investigation addresses the capability of a commercial multiphysics code (ANSYS CFX) to correctly predict the wall heat load and the core flow temperature field in a scaled power generation combustion chamber with a simplified ceramic liner. Comparison are made with the experimental results from the ITS test rig at the University of Karlsruhe [1] and with a previous numerical campaign from [2]. In addition the effect of flow unsteadyness on the wall heat load is discussed showing some limitations of the traditional steady state flow thermal design.

Numerical Modeling of Fuel Injection into an Accelerating, Turning Flow with a Cavity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Colcord, Ben James

Deliberate continuation of the combustion in the turbine passages of a gas turbine engine has the potential to increase the efficiency and the specific thrust or power of current gas-turbine engines. This concept, known as a turbine-burner, must overcome many challenges before becoming a viable product. One major challenge is the injection, mixing, ignition, and burning of fuel within a short residence time in a turbine passage characterized by large three-dimensional accelerations. One method of increasing the residence time is to inject the fuel into a cavity adjacent to the turbine passage, creating a low-speed zone for mixing and combustion. This situation is simulated numerically, with the turbine passage modeled as a turning, converging channel flow of high-temperature, vitiated air adjacent to a cavity. Both two- and three-dimensional, reacting and non-reacting calculations are performed, examining the effects of channel curvature and convergence, fuel and additional air injection configurations, and inlet conditions. Two-dimensional, non-reacting calculations show that higher aspect ratio cavities improve the fluid interaction between the channel flow and the cavity, and that the cavity dimensions are important for enhancing the mixing. Two-dimensional, reacting calculations show that converging channels improve the combustion efficiency. Channel curvature can be either beneficial or detrimental to combustion efficiency, depending on the location of the cavity and the fuel and air injection configuration. Three-dimensional, reacting calculations show that injecting fuel and air so as to disrupt the natural motion of the cavity stimulates three-dimensional instability and improves the combustion efficiency.

The combustion properties analysis of various liquid fuels based on crude oil and renewables

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grab-Rogalinski, K.; Szwaja, S.

2016-09-01

The paper presents results of investigation on combustion properties analysis of hydrocarbon based liquid fuels commonly used in the CI engine. The analysis was performed with aid of the CRU (Combustion Research Unit). CRU is the machine consisted of a constant volume combustion chamber equipped with one or two fuel injectors and a pressure sensor. Fuel can be injected under various both injection pressure and injection duration, also with two injector versions two stage combustion with pilot injection can be simulated, that makes it possible to introduce and modify additional parameter which is injection delay (defined as the time between pilot and main injection). On a basis of this investigation such combustion parameters as pressure increase, rate of heat release, ignition delay and combustion duration can be determined. The research was performed for the four fuels as follows: LFO, HFO, Biofuel from rape seeds and Glycerol under various injection parameters as well as combustion chamber thermodynamic conditions. Under these tests the change in such injection parameters as injection pressure, use of pilot injection, injection delay and injection duration, for main injection, were made. Moreover, fuels were tested under different conditions of load, what was determined by initial conditions (pressure and temperature) in the combustion chamber. Stored data from research allows to compare combustion parameters for fuels applied to tests and show this comparison in diagrams.

Transient flow characteristics of a high speed rotary valve

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Browning, Patrick H.

Pressing economic and environmental concerns related to the performance of fossil fuel burning internal combustion engines have revitalized research in more efficient, cleaner burning combustion methods such as homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI). Although many variations of such engines now exist, several limiting factors have restrained the full potential of HCCI. A new method patented by West Virginia University (WVU) called Compression Ignition by Air Injection (CIBAI) may help broaden the range of effective HCCI operation. The CIBAI process is ideally facilitated by operating two synchronized piston-cylinders mounted head-to-head with one of the cylinders filled with a homogeneous mixture of air and fuel and the other cylinder filled with air. A specialized valve called the cylinder connecting valve (CCV) separates the two cylinders, opens just before reaching top dead center (TDC), and allows the injection air into the charge to achieve autoignition. The CCV remains open during the entire power stroke such that upon ignition the rapid pressure rise in the charge cylinder forces mass flow back through the CCV into the air-only cylinder. The limited mass transfer between the cylinders through the CCV limits the theoretical auto ignition timing capabilities and thermal efficiency of the CIBAI cycle. Research has been performed to: (1) Experimentally measure the transient behavior of a potential CCV design during valve opening between two chambers maintained at constant pressure and again at constant volume; (2) Develop a modified theoretical CCV mass flow model based upon the measured cold flow valve performance that is capable of predicting the operating conditions required for successful mixture autoignition; (3) Make recommendations for future CCV designs to maximize CIBAI combustion range. Results indicate that the modified-ball CCV design offers suitable transient flow qualities required for application to the CIBAI concept. Mass injection events were experimentally mapped as a function of valve speed, inter-cylinder pressure ratios and volume ratios and the results were compared to compressible flow theoretical models. Specifically, the transient behavior suggested a short-lived loss-mode initiation closely resembled by shock tube theory followed by a quasi-steady flow regime resembling choked flow behavior. An empirical model was then employed to determine the useful range of the CCV design as applied to a four-stroke CIBAI engine cycle modeled using a 1-D quasi-steady numerical method, with particular emphasis on the cyclic timing of the CCV opening. Finally, a brief discussion of a high-temperature version of the CCV design is presented.

Combustion Research aboard the ISS Utilizing the Combustion Integrated Rack and Microgravity Science Glovebox

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sutliff, T. J.; Otero, A. M.; Urban, D. L.

2002-01-01

The Physical Sciences Research Program of NASA has chartered a broad suite of peer-reviewed research investigating both fundamental combustion phenomena and applied combustion research topics. Fundamental research provides insights to develop accurate simulations of complex combustion processes and allows developers to improve the efficiency of combustion devices, to reduce the production of harmful emissions, and to reduce the incidence of accidental uncontrolled combustion (fires, explosions). The applied research benefit humans living and working in space through its fire safety program. The Combustion Science Discipline is implementing a structured flight research program utilizing the International Space Station (ISS) and two of its premier facilities, the Combustion Integrated Rack of the Fluids and Combustion Facility and the Microgravity Science Glovebox to conduct this space-based research. This paper reviews the current vision of Combustion Science research planned for International Space Station implementation from 2003 through 2012. A variety of research efforts in droplets and sprays, solid-fuels combustion, and gaseous combustion have been independently selected and critiqued through a series of peer-review processes. During this period, while both the ISS carrier and its research facilities are under development, the Combustion Science Discipline has synergistically combined research efforts into sub-topical areas. To conduct this research aboard ISS in the most cost effective and resource efficient manner, the sub-topic research areas are implemented via a multi-user hardware approach. This paper also summarizes the multi-user hardware approach and recaps the progress made in developing these research hardware systems. A balanced program content has been developed to maximize the production of fundamental and applied combustion research results within the current budgetary and ISS operational resource constraints. Decisions on utilizing the Combustion Integrated Rack and the Microgravity Science Glovebox are made based on facility capabilities and research requirements. To maximize research potential, additional research objectives are specified as desires a priori during the research design phase. These expanded research goals, which are designed to be achievable even with late addition of operational resources, allow additional research of a known, peer-endorsed scope to be conducted at marginal cost. Additional operational resources such as upmass, crewtime, data downlink bandwidth, and stowage volume may be presented by the ISS planners late in the research mission planning process. The Combustion Discipline has put in place plans to be prepared to take full advantage of such opportunities.

Efficient and Safe Chemical Gas Generators with Nanocomposite Reactive Materials

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-11-30

ammonia borane has been developed that involves the reaction of mechanically alloyed Al·Mg powder with water as a source of heat for ammonia borane...Edward L. Dreizin, Evgeny Shafirovich. Hydrogen generation from ammonia borane and water through combustion reactions with mechanically alloyed...on combustion of hydrogen-generating mixtures It is known that ammonia borane (AB) forms combustible mixtures with gelled water and nanoscale

Ab Initio-Based Predictions of Hydrocarbon Combustion Chemistry

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-07-15

There are two prime objectives of the research. One is to develop and apply efficient methods for using ab initio potential energy surfaces (PESs...31-Mar-2015 Approved for Public Release; Distribution Unlimited Final Report: Ab Initio -Based Predictions of Hydrocarbon Combustion Chemistry The...Office P.O. Box 12211 Research Triangle Park, NC 27709-2211 hydrocarbon combustion, ab initio quantum chemistry, potential energy surfaces, chemical

Application of a Modified Gas Chromatograph to Analyze Space Experiment Combustion Gases on Space Shuttle Mission STS-94

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coho, William K.; Weiland, Karen J.; VanZandt, David M.

1998-01-01

A space experiment designed to study the behavior of combustion without the gravitational effects of buoyancy was launched aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia on July 1, 1997. The space experiment, designated as Combustion Module-1 (CM-1), was one of several manifested on the Microgravity Sciences Laboratory - 1 (MSL-1) mission. The launch, designated STS-94, had the Spacelab Module as the payload, in which the MSL-1 experiments were conducted by the Shuttle crewmembers. CM-1 was designed to accommodate two different combustion experiments during MSL-1. One experiment, the Structure of Flame Balls at Low Lewis-number experiment (SOFBALL), required gas chromatography analysis to verify the composition of the known, premixed gases prior to combustion, and to determine the remaining reactant and the products resulting from the combustion process in microgravity. A commercial, off-the-shelf, dual-channel micro gas chromatograph was procured and modified to interface with the CM-1 Fluids Supply Package and the CM-1 Combustion Chamber, to accommodate two different carrier gases, each flowing through its own independent column module, to withstand the launch environment of the Space Shuttle, to accept Spacelab electrical power, and to meet the Spacelab flight requirements for electromagnetic interference (EMI) and offgassing. The GC data was down linked to the Marshall Space Flight Center for near-real time analysis, and stored on-orbit for post-flight analysis. The gas chromatograph operated successfully during the entire SOFBALL experiment and collected 309 runs. Because of the constraints imposed upon the gas chromatograph by the CM-1 hardware, system and operations, it was unable to measure the gases to the required accuracy. Future improvements to the system for a re-flight of the SOFBALL experiment are expected to enable the gas chromatograph to meet all the requirements.

Measurement of host-to-activator transfer efficiency in nano-crystalline Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}:Eu{sup 3+} under VUV excitation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Waite, Christopher; Mann, Rusty; Diaz, Anthony L., E-mail: DiazA@cwu.edu

2013-02-15

We have conducted a systematic study of the excitation and reflectance spectra of nano-crystalline Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}:Eu prepared by combustion synthesis. Excitation through the host lattice becomes relatively more efficient as the firing temperature of the precursor is increased, while reflectance properties remain essentially unchanged. Using these data, host-to-activator transfer efficiencies were calculated for excitation at the band edge of Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}, and evaluated using a competition kinetics model. From this analysis we conclude that the relatively low luminous efficiency of these materials is due more to poor bulk crystallinity than to surface loss effects. - Graphical abstract: Themore » low luminous efficiency of nano-crystalline Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}:Eu{sup 3+} prepared by combustion synthesis is due to poor bulk crystallinity rather than surface loss effects. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We report on the optical properties of Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}:Eu{sup 3+} prepared by combustion synthesis. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Host-to-activator transfer efficiencies under VUV excitation were calculated. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The low luminous efficiency of these materials is due to poor bulk crystallinity.« less

Advanced Laser Based Measurements in Porous Media Combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tedder, Sarah A.

2009-01-01

We present measurements using dual-pump dual-broadband coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering spectroscopy (DP-DBB-CARS) inside a porous media burner. This work continues our previous measurements in such combustion systems. The existing setup was significantly modified with the aim of providing improved data quality and data rate, reduction of interferences and additional species information. These changes are presented and discussed in detail. The CARS technique was expanded to a dual-pump dual-broadband CARS system which in principle enables acquisition of temperatures together with relative H2/N2- and O2/N2- species concentrations. Experimental complexity was reduced by the use of a modified spectrometer enabling the detection of both signals, vibrational and rotational CARS, with only one detection system.

Pulse Detonation Propulsion

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

constant-pressure ( Brayton ) cycle used in gas turbines and ramjets. The advantages of PDE for air- breathing propulsion are simplicity and easy scaling...constant-volume, and detonative combustion cycles will be referred to as Brayton , Humphrey, and PDE cycles. The efficiency of thermodynamic cycles O’ODD...efficiency of Brayton cycle, as 0G HH =′ , i.e., 0==constpχ (3) Constant-volume combustion (point E in Fig. 1) results in temperature K 2647/0E

Wood Combustion Behaviour in a Fixed Bed Combustor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tokit, Ernie Mat; Aziz, Azhar Abdul; Ghazali, Normah Mohd

2010-06-01

Waste wood is used as feedstock for Universiti Teknologi Malaysia's newly-developed two-stage incinerator system. The research goals are to optimize the operation of the thermal system to the primary chamber, to improve its combustion efficiency and to minimize its pollutants formation. The combustion process is evaluated with the variation of fuel's moisture content. For optimum operating condition, where the gasification efficiency is 95.53%, the moisture content of the fuel is best set at 17%; giving outlet operating temperature of 550°C and exhaust gas concentrations with 1213 ppm of CO, 6% of CO2 and 14% of O2 respectively. In line to the experimental work, a computational fluid dynamics software, Fluent is used to simulate the performance of the primary chamber. Here the predicted optimum gasification efficiency stands at 95.49% with CO, CO2 and O2 concentrations as 1301 ppm, 6.5% and 13.5% respectively.

Energy distribution analysis in boosted HCCI-like / LTGC engines – Understanding the trade-offs to maximize the thermal efficiency

DOE PAGES

Dernotte, Jeremie; Dec, John E.; Ji, Chunsheng

2015-04-14

A detailed understanding of the various factors affecting the trends in gross-indicated thermal efficiency with changes in key operating parameters has been carried out, applied to a one-liter displacement single-cylinder boosted Low-Temperature Gasoline Combustion (LTGC) engine. This work systematically investigates how the supplied fuel energy splits into the following four energy pathways: gross-indicated thermal efficiency, combustion inefficiency, heat transfer and exhaust losses, and how this split changes with operating conditions. Additional analysis is performed to determine the influence of variations in the ratio of specific heat capacities (γ) and the effective expansion ratio, related to the combustion-phasing retard (CA50), onmore » the energy split. Heat transfer and exhaust losses are computed using multiple standard cycle analysis techniques. Furthermore, the various methods are evaluated in order to validate the trends.« less

Quantitative Detection of Combustion Species using Ultra-Violet Diode Lasers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pilgrim, J. S.; Peterson, K. A.

2001-01-01

Southwest Sciences is developing a new microgravity combustion diagnostic based on UV diode lasers. The instrument will allow absolute concentration measurements of combustion species on a variety of microgravity combustion platforms including the Space Station. Our approach uses newly available room temperature UV diode lasers, thereby keeping the instrument compact, rugged and energy efficient. The feasibility of the technique was demonstrated by measurement of CH radicals in laboratory flames. Further progress in fabrication technology of UV diode lasers at shorter wavelengths and higher power will result in detection of transient species in the deeper UV. High sensitivity detection of combustion radicals is provided with wavelength modulation absorption spectroscopy.

Trace gas emissions from burning Florida wetlands

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cofer, Wesley R., III; Levine, Joel S.; Lebel, Peter J.; Winstead, Edward L.; Koller, Albert M., Jr.; Hinkle, C. Ross

1990-01-01

Measurements of biomass burn-produced trace gases were obtained using a helicopter at low altitudes above burning Florida wetlands on November 9, 1987, and from both helicopter and light-aircraft samplings on November 7, 1988. Carbon dioxide normalized emission ratios for carbon monoxide, hydrogen, methane, total nonmethane hydrocarbons, and nitrous oxide were obtained over burning graminoid wetlands consisting primarily of Spartina bakeri and Juncus roemerianus. Some interspersed scrub oak and saw palmetto were also burned. No significant differences were observed in the emission ratios determined for these gases from samples collected over flaming, mixed, and smoldering phases of combustion during the 1987 fire. Combustion-categorized differences in emission ratios were small for the 1988 fire. Combustion efficiency was relatively good (low emission ratios for reduced gases) for both fires. It is believed that the consistently low emission ratios were a unique result of graminoid wetlands fires, in which the grasses and rushes burned rapidly down to standing water and were quickly extinguished. Consequently, the efficiency of the combustion was good and the amount and duration of smoldering combustion was greatly deminished.

Heavy-Duty Low-Temperature and Diesel Combustion & Heavy-Duty Combustion Modeling

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Musculus, Mark P.

Regulatory drivers and market demands for lower pollutant emissions, lower carbon dioxide emissions, and lower fuel consumption motivate the development of clean and fuel-efficient engine operating strategies. Most current production engines use a combination of both in-cylinder and exhaust emissions-control strategies to achieve these goals. The emissions and efficiency performance of in-cylinder strategies depend strongly on flow and mixing processes associated with fuel injection. Various diesel engine manufacturers have adopted close-coupled post-injection combustion strategies to both reduce pollutant emissions and to increase engine efficiency for heavy-duty applications, as well as for light- and medium-duty applications. Close-coupled post-injections are typically shortmore » injections that follow a larger main injection in the same cycle after a short dwell, such that the energy conversion efficiency of the post-injection is typical of diesel combustion. Of the various post-injection schedules that have been reported in the literature, effects on exhaust soot vary by roughly an order of magnitude in either direction of increasing or decreasing emissions relative to single injections (O’Connor et al., 2015). While several hypotheses have been offered in the literature to help explain these observations, no clear consensus has been established. For new engines to take full advantage of the benefits that post-injections can offer, the in-cylinder mechanisms that affect emissions and efficiency must be identified and described to provide guidance for engine design.« less

The effect of insulated combustion chamber surfaces on direct-injected diesel engine performance, emissions, and combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dickey, Daniel W.; Vinyard, Shannon; Keribar, Rifat

1988-01-01

The combustion chamber of a single-cylinder, direct-injected diesel engine was insulated with ceramic coatings to determine the effect of low heat rejection (LHR) operation on engine performance, emissions, and combustion. In comparison to the baseline cooled engine, the LHR engine had lower thermal efficiency, with higher smoke, particulate, and full load carbon monoxide emissions. The unburned hydrocarbon emissions were reduced across the load range. The nitrous oxide emissions increased at some part-load conditions and were reduced slightly at full loads. The poor LHR engine performance was attributed to degraded combustion characterized by less premixed burning, lower heat release rates, and longer combustion duration compared to the baseline cooled engine.

Air-steam hybrid engine : an alternative to internal combustion.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-03-01

In this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 1 project, an energy-efficient air-steam propulsion system has been developed and patented, and key performance attributes have been demonstrated to be superior to those of internal combustion e...

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

On behalf of the Department of Energy's Office of FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies, we are pleased to introduce the Fiscal Year (FY) 2004 Annual Progress Report for the Advanced Combustion Engine R&D Sub-Program. The mission of the FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies Program is to develop more energy efficient and environmentally friendly highway transportation technologies that enable Americans to use less petroleum for their vehicles. The Advanced Combustion Engine R&D Sub-Program supports this mission by removing the critical technical barriers to commercialization of advanced internal combustion engines for light-, medium-, and heavy-duty highway vehicles that meet future Federal and state emissionsmore » regulations. The primary objective of the Advanced Combustion Engine R&D Sub-Program is to improve the brake thermal efficiency of internal combustion engines from 30 to 45 percent for light-duty applications by 2010; and 40 to 55 percent for heavy-duty applications by 2012; while meeting cost, durability, and emissions constraints. R&D activities include work on combustion technologies that increase efficiency and minimize in-cylinder formation of emissions, as well as aftertreatment technologies that further reduce exhaust emissions. Work is also being conducted on ways to reduce parasitic and heat transfer losses through the development and application of thermoelectrics and turbochargers that include electricity generating capability, and conversion of mechanically driven engine components to be driven via electric motors. This introduction serves to outline the nature, current progress, and future directions of the Advanced Combustion Engine R&D Sub-Program. The research activities of this Sub-Program are planned in conjunction with the FreedomCAR Partnership and the 21st Century Truck Partnership and are carried out in collaboration with industry, national laboratories, and universities. Because of the importance of clean fuels in achieving low emissions, R&D activities are closely coordinated with the relevant activities of the Fuel Technologies Sub-Program, also within the Office of FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies. Research is also being undertaken on hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engines to provide an interim hydrogen-based powertrain technology that promotes the longer-range FreedomCAR Partnership goal of transitioning to a hydrogen-fueled transportation system. Hydrogen engine technologies being developed have the potential to provide diesel-like engine efficiencies with near-zero emissions.« less

Characterization of Engine Control Authority on HCCI Combustion as the High Load Limit is Approached

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Szybist, James P; Edwards, Kevin Dean; Foster, Matthew

2013-01-01

While the potential emissions and efficiency benefits of homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) combustion are well known, realizing the potentials on a production intent engine presents numerous challenges. In this study we focus on characterizing the authority of the available engine controls as the high load limit of HCCI combustion is approached. The experimental work is performed on a boosted single-cylinder research engine equipped with direct injection (DI) fueling, cooled external exhaust gas recirculation (EGR), and a hydraulic valve actuation (HVA) valve train to enable the negative valve overlap (NVO) breathing strategy. Valve lift and duration are held constant whilemore » phasing is varied in an effort to make the results as relevant as possible to production intent cam-based variable valve actuation (VVA) systems on multi-cylinder engines. Results presented include engine loads from 350 to 650 kPa IMEPnet and manifold pressure from 98 to 190 kPaa at 2000 rpm. It is found that in order to increase engine load to 650 kPa IMEPnet, it is necessary to increase manifold pressure and external EGR while reducing the NVO duration. Both NVO duration and fuel injection timing are effective means of controlling combustion phasing, with NVO duration being a coarse control and fuel injection timing being a fine control. NOX emissions are low throughout the study, with emissions below 0.1 g/kW-h at all boosted HCCI conditions, while good combustion efficiency is maintained (>96.5%). Net indicated thermal efficiency increases with load up to 600 kPa IMEPnet, where a peak efficiency of 41% is achieved. Results of independent parametric investigations are presented on the effect of external EGR, intake effect of manifold pressure, and the effect of NVO duration. It is found that increasing EGR at a constant manifold pressure and increasing manifold pressure at a constant EGR rate both have the effect of retarding combustion phasing. It is also found that combustion phasing becomes increasingly sensitive to NVO duration as engine load increases. Finally, comparisons are made between three commonly used noise metrics (AVL noise meter, ringing intensity (RI), and maximum pressure rise rate (MPRR)). It is found that compared to the AVL noise meter, RI significantly underestimates combustion noise under boosted conditions.« less

Microwave-Assisted Ignition for Improved Internal Combustion Engine Efficiency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DeFilippo, Anthony Cesar

The ever-present need for reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with transportation motivates this investigation of a novel ignition technology for internal combustion engine applications. Advanced engines can achieve higher efficiencies and reduced emissions by operating in regimes with diluted fuel-air mixtures and higher compression ratios, but the range of stable engine operation is constrained by combustion initiation and flame propagation when dilution levels are high. An advanced ignition technology that reliably extends the operating range of internal combustion engines will aid practical implementation of the next generation of high-efficiency engines. This dissertation contributes to next-generation ignition technology advancement by experimentally analyzing a prototype technology as well as developing a numerical model for the chemical processes governing microwave-assisted ignition. The microwave-assisted spark plug under development by Imagineering, Inc. of Japan has previously been shown to expand the stable operating range of gasoline-fueled engines through plasma-assisted combustion, but the factors limiting its operation were not well characterized. The present experimental study has two main goals. The first goal is to investigate the capability of the microwave-assisted spark plug towards expanding the stable operating range of wet-ethanol-fueled engines. The stability range is investigated by examining the coefficient of variation of indicated mean effective pressure as a metric for instability, and indicated specific ethanol consumption as a metric for efficiency. The second goal is to examine the factors affecting the extent to which microwaves enhance ignition processes. The factors impacting microwave enhancement of ignition processes are individually examined, using flame development behavior as a key metric in determining microwave effectiveness. Further development of practical combustion applications implementing microwave-assisted spark technology will benefit from predictive models which include the plasma processes governing the observed combustion enhancement. This dissertation documents the development of a chemical kinetic mechanism for the plasma-assisted combustion processes relevant to microwave-assisted spark ignition. The mechanism includes an existing mechanism for gas-phase methane oxidation, supplemented with electron impact reactions, cation and anion chemical reactions, and reactions involving vibrationally-excited and electronically-excited species. Calculations using the presently-developed numerical model explain experimentally-observed trends, highlighting the relative importance of pressure, temperature, and mixture composition in determining the effectiveness of microwave-assisted ignition enhancement.

Evaluation and Improvement of Liquid Propellant Rocket Chugging Analysis Techniques. Part 2: a Study of Low Frequency Combustion Instability in Rocket Engine Preburners Using a Heterogeneous Stirred Tank Reactor Model. Final Report M.S. Thesis - Aug. 1987

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bartrand, Timothy A.

1988-01-01

During the shutdown of the space shuttle main engine, oxygen flow is shut off from the fuel preburner and helium is used to push the residual oxygen into the combustion chamber. During this process a low frequency combustion instability, or chug, occurs. This chug has resulted in damage to the engine's augmented spark igniter due to backflow of the contents of the preburner combustion chamber into the oxidizer feed system. To determine possible causes and fixes for the chug, the fuel preburner was modeled as a heterogeneous stirred tank combustion chamber, a variable mass flow rate oxidizer feed system, a constant mass flow rate fuel feed system and an exit turbine. Within the combustion chamber gases were assumed perfectly mixed. To account for liquid in the combustion chamber, a uniform droplet distribution was assumed to exist in the chamber, with mean droplet diameter determined from an empirical relation. A computer program was written to integrate the resulting differential equations. Because chamber contents were assumed perfectly mixed, the fuel preburner model erroneously predicted that combustion would not take place during shutdown. The combustion rate model was modified to assume that all liquid oxygen that vaporized instantaneously combusted with fuel. Using this combustion model, the effect of engine parameters on chamber pressure oscillations during the SSME shutdown was calculated.

NASA Microgravity Combustion Science Research Plans for the ISS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sutliff, Thomas J.

2003-01-01

A peer-reviewed research program in Microgravity Combustion Science has been chartered by the Physical Sciences Research Division of the NASA Office of Biological and Physical Research. The scope of these investigations address both fundamental combustion phenomena and applied combustion research topics of interest to NASA. From this pool of research, flight investigations are selected which benefit from access to a microgravity environment. Fundamental research provides insights to develop accurate simulations of complex combustion processes and allows developers to improve the efficiency of combustion devices, to reduce the production of harmful emissions, and to reduce the incidence of accidental uncontrolled combustion (fires, explosions). Through its spacecraft fire safety program, applied research is conducted to decrease risks to humans living and working in space. The Microgravity Combustion Science program implements a structured flight research process utilizing the International Space Station (ISS) and two of its premier facilities- the Combustion Integrated Rack of the Fluids and Combustion Facility and the Microgravity Science Glovebox - to conduct space-based research investigations. This paper reviews the current plans for Microgravity Combustion Science research on the International Space Station from 2003 through 2012.

Characterization of Particle Combustion in a Rijke Burner

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-11-01

Rijke Burner 14 3.1 Introduction 14 3.2 Acoustics 14 3.3 Eperimental Procedure 17 3.3.1 Apparatus 17 3.3.2 Data Reduction 19 3.4 Burner...response of the modified Rijke burner, 2) The experimental procedures, including design modifications of the burner and data reduction, and 3...have been modified and improved significantly. The following sections describe the major design changes made in the modified Rijke burner and its

Stochastic modelling of turbulent combustion for design optimization of gas turbine combustors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mehanna Ismail, Mohammed Ali

The present work covers the development and the implementation of an efficient algorithm for the design optimization of gas turbine combustors. The purpose is to explore the possibilities and indicate constructive suggestions for optimization techniques as alternative methods for designing gas turbine combustors. The algorithm is general to the extent that no constraints are imposed on the combustion phenomena or on the combustor configuration. The optimization problem is broken down into two elementary problems: the first is the optimum search algorithm, and the second is the turbulent combustion model used to determine the combustor performance parameters. These performance parameters constitute the objective and physical constraints in the optimization problem formulation. The examination of both turbulent combustion phenomena and the gas turbine design process suggests that the turbulent combustion model represents a crucial part of the optimization algorithm. The basic requirements needed for a turbulent combustion model to be successfully used in a practical optimization algorithm are discussed. In principle, the combustion model should comply with the conflicting requirements of high fidelity, robustness and computational efficiency. To that end, the problem of turbulent combustion is discussed and the current state of the art of turbulent combustion modelling is reviewed. According to this review, turbulent combustion models based on the composition PDF transport equation are found to be good candidates for application in the present context. However, these models are computationally expensive. To overcome this difficulty, two different models based on the composition PDF transport equation were developed: an improved Lagrangian Monte Carlo composition PDF algorithm and the generalized stochastic reactor model. Improvements in the Lagrangian Monte Carlo composition PDF model performance and its computational efficiency were achieved through the implementation of time splitting, variable stochastic fluid particle mass control, and a second order time accurate (predictor-corrector) scheme used for solving the stochastic differential equations governing the particles evolution. The model compared well against experimental data found in the literature for two different configurations: bluff body and swirl stabilized combustors. The generalized stochastic reactor is a newly developed model. This model relies on the generalization of the concept of the classical stochastic reactor theory in the sense that it accounts for both finite micro- and macro-mixing processes. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Combustion of Drops and Sprays of Heavy Fuel Oils and Their Emulsions.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-12-01

Details of the Injector Mount .... .............. ... 144 5. Arrangement to Remove Soot from Windows .. ......... ... 145 6. Modified Injector Plug...the carbon deposits could be attributed to the increased residual carbon Residual fuel oils are known to contain polynuclear aromatic and naphthenic ...cleaned to remove the fine soot which clings to the windows and can- not be blown away by the jets. (iv ) For spray combustion tests, as the nozzles

Effects of spark plug configuration on combustion and emission characteristics of a LPG fuelled lean burn SI engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ravi, K.; Khan, Manazir Ahmed; Pradeep Bhasker, J.; Porpatham, E.

2017-11-01

Introduction of technological innovation in automotive engines in reducing pollution and increasing efficiency have been under contemplation. Gaseous fuels have proved to be a promising way to reduce emissions in Spark Ignition (SI) engines. In particular, LPG settled to be a favourable fuel for SI engines because of their higher hydrogen to carbon ratio, octane rating and lower emissions. Wide ignition limits and efficient combustion characteristics make LPG suitable for lean burn operation. But lean combustion technology has certain drawbacks like poor flame propagation, cyclic variations etc. Based on copious research it was found that location, types and number of spark plug significantly influence in reducing cyclic variations. In this work the influence of single and dual spark plugs of conventional and surface discharge electrode type were analysed. Dual surface discharge electrode spark plug enhanced the brake thermal efficiency and greatly reduced the cyclic variations. The experimental results show that rate of heat release and pressure rise was more and combustion duration was shortened in this configuration. On the emissions front, the NOx emission has increased whereas HC and CO emissions were reduced under lean condition.

A perspective on the range of gasoline compression ignition combustion strategies for high engine efficiency and low NOx and soot emissions: Effects of in-cylinder fuel stratification

DOE PAGES

Dempsey, Adam B.; Curran, Scott J.; Wagner, Robert M.

2016-01-14

Many research studies have shown that low temperature combustion in compression ignition engines has the ability to yield ultra-low NOx and soot emissions while maintaining high thermal efficiency. To achieve low temperature combustion, sufficient mixing time between the fuel and air in a globally dilute environment is required, thereby avoiding fuel-rich regions and reducing peak combustion temperatures, which significantly reduces soot and NOx formation, respectively. It has been demonstrated that achieving low temperature combustion with diesel fuel over a wide range of conditions is difficult because of its properties, namely, low volatility and high chemical reactivity. On the contrary, gasolinemore » has a high volatility and low chemical reactivity, meaning it is easier to achieve the amount of premixing time required prior to autoignition to achieve low temperature combustion. In order to achieve low temperature combustion while meeting other constraints, such as low pressure rise rates and maintaining control over the timing of combustion, in-cylinder fuel stratification has been widely investigated for gasoline low temperature combustion engines. The level of fuel stratification is, in reality, a continuum ranging from fully premixed (i.e. homogeneous charge of fuel and air) to heavily stratified, heterogeneous operation, such as diesel combustion. However, to illustrate the impact of fuel stratification on gasoline compression ignition, the authors have identified three representative operating strategies: partial, moderate, and heavy fuel stratification. Thus, this article provides an overview and perspective of the current research efforts to develop engine operating strategies for achieving gasoline low temperature combustion in a compression ignition engine via fuel stratification. In this paper, computational fluid dynamics modeling of the in-cylinder processes during the closed valve portion of the cycle was used to illustrate the opportunities and challenges associated with the various fuel stratification levels.« less

A perspective on the range of gasoline compression ignition combustion strategies for high engine efficiency and low NOx and soot emissions: Effects of in-cylinder fuel stratification

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dempsey, Adam B.; Curran, Scott J.; Wagner, Robert M.

Many research studies have shown that low temperature combustion in compression ignition engines has the ability to yield ultra-low NOx and soot emissions while maintaining high thermal efficiency. To achieve low temperature combustion, sufficient mixing time between the fuel and air in a globally dilute environment is required, thereby avoiding fuel-rich regions and reducing peak combustion temperatures, which significantly reduces soot and NOx formation, respectively. It has been demonstrated that achieving low temperature combustion with diesel fuel over a wide range of conditions is difficult because of its properties, namely, low volatility and high chemical reactivity. On the contrary, gasolinemore » has a high volatility and low chemical reactivity, meaning it is easier to achieve the amount of premixing time required prior to autoignition to achieve low temperature combustion. In order to achieve low temperature combustion while meeting other constraints, such as low pressure rise rates and maintaining control over the timing of combustion, in-cylinder fuel stratification has been widely investigated for gasoline low temperature combustion engines. The level of fuel stratification is, in reality, a continuum ranging from fully premixed (i.e. homogeneous charge of fuel and air) to heavily stratified, heterogeneous operation, such as diesel combustion. However, to illustrate the impact of fuel stratification on gasoline compression ignition, the authors have identified three representative operating strategies: partial, moderate, and heavy fuel stratification. Thus, this article provides an overview and perspective of the current research efforts to develop engine operating strategies for achieving gasoline low temperature combustion in a compression ignition engine via fuel stratification. In this paper, computational fluid dynamics modeling of the in-cylinder processes during the closed valve portion of the cycle was used to illustrate the opportunities and challenges associated with the various fuel stratification levels.« less

Cytotoxic and genotoxic responses of human lung cells to combustion smoke particles of Miscanthus straw, softwood and beech wood chips

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arif, Ali Talib; Maschowski, Christoph; Garra, Patxi; Garcia-Käufer, Manuel; Petithory, Tatiana; Trouvé, Gwenaëlle; Dieterlen, Alain; Mersch-Sundermann, Volker; Khanaqa, Polla; Nazarenko, Irina; Gminski, Richard; Gieré, Reto

2017-08-01

Inhalation of particulate matter (PM) from residential biomass combustion is epidemiologically associated with cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases. This study investigates PM0.4-1 emissions from combustion of commercial Miscanthus straw (MS), softwood chips (SWC) and beech wood chips (BWC) in a domestic-scale boiler (40 kW). The PM0.4-1 emitted during combustion of the MS, SWC and BWC were characterized by ICP-MS/OES, XRD, SEM, TEM, and DLS. Cytotoxicity and genotoxicity in human alveolar epithelial A549 and human bronchial epithelial BEAS-2B cells were assessed by the WST-1 assay and the DNA-Alkaline Unwinding Assay (DAUA). PM0.4-1 uptake/translocation in cells was investigated with a new method developed using a confocal reflection microscope. SWC and BWC had a inherently higher residual water content than MS. The PM0.4-1 emitted during combustion of SWC and BWC exhibited higher levels of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), a greater variety of mineral species and a higher heavy metal content than PM0.4-1 from MS combustion. Exposure to PM0.4-1 from combustion of SWC and BWC induced cytotoxic and genotoxic effects in human alveolar and bronchial cells, whereby the strongest effect was observed for BWC and was comparable to that caused by diesel PM (SRM 2 975), In contrast, PM0.4-1 from MS combustion did not induce cellular responses in the studied lung cells. A high PAH content in PM emissions seems to be a reliable chemical marker of both combustion efficiency and particle toxicity. Residual biomass water content strongly affects particulate emissions and their toxic potential. Therefore, to minimize the harmful effects of fine PM on health, improvement of combustion efficiency (aiming to reduce the presence of incomplete combustion products bound to PM) and application of fly ash capture technology, as well as use of novel biomass fuels like Miscanthus straw is recommended.

Combustion and operating characteristics of spark-ignition engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heywood, J. B.; Keck, J. C.; Beretta, G. P.; Watts, P. A.

1980-01-01

The spark-ignition engine turbulent flame propagation process was investigated. Then, using a spark-ignition engine cycle simulation and combustion model, the impact of turbocharging and heat transfer variations or engine power, efficiency, and NO sub x emissions was examined.

Design of a Premixed Gaseous Rocket Engine Injector for Ethylene and Oxygen

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-12-01

and uniform combustion zone. An engine will benefit by having a greater characteristic exhaust velocity efficiency (ηc*), less soot production and...the challenges of designing a premixed injector. The design requirements for the engine are to provide a wide range of combustion pressure... Engineering Original Premixed Injector1 Downstream of the three inch combustion chamber a bolt-on conical nozzle was attached. This nozzle had a

Emission studies from combustion of empty fruit bunch pellets in a fluidized bed combustor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fazli Othaman, Muhamad; Sabudin, Sulastri; Faizal Mohideen Batcha, Mohd

2017-08-01

Malaysia is producing a very large amount of biomass annually from milling activities of oil palm. This biomass is currently being used efficiently in many ways including as fuel for boilers together with fossil fuels. This paper reports the emission characteristics from biomass combustion in a swirling fluidized bed combustor (SFBC). Pelletized empty fruit bunch (PEFB), one of largest biomass produced from oil palm industries were used as fuel in the present study. Combustion experiments were conducted with several quantitiesof excess air: 20%, 40%, 60% and 80% for a constant fuel feedrate of 30kg/hr. The effect of excess air was investigated for three major emissions gaseous namely CO, CO2 and NOx. Fly ash produced from the combustion was also analysed to find the contents of unburnt carbon and other impurities. From the results, it was found that the emission of CO decreased from 64 ppm to 40 ppm while the amount of CO2 increased slightly with the increasing of excess air from 20% to 80%. The NOx emission also increased from 290 ppm to 350 ppm because of N2 in the EA reacts with O2 due to high combustion temperature. The combustion efficiencies of about 99% obtained in the present study, showing the prospects of using SFBC in commercial scale.

Low NO.sub.x multistage combustor

DOEpatents

Becker, Frederick E.; Breault, Ronald W.; Litka, Anthony F.; McClaine, Andrew W.; Shukla, Kailash

2000-01-01

A high efficiency, Vortex Inertial Staged Air (VIStA) combustor provides ultra-low NO.sub.X production of about 20 ppmvd or less with CO emissions of less than 50 ppmvd, both at 3% O.sub.2. Prompt NO.sub.X production is reduced by partially reforming the fuel in a first combustion stage to CO and H.sub.2. This is achieved in the first stage by operating with a fuel rich mixture, and by recirculating partially oxidized combustion products, with control over stoichiometry, recirculation rate and residence time. Thermal NO.sub.X production is reduced in the first stage by reducing the occurrence of high temperature combustion gas regions. This is achieved by providing the first stage burner with a thoroughly pre-mixed fuel/oxidant composition, and by recirculating part of the combustion products to further mix the gases and provide a more uniform temperature in the first stage. In a second stage combustor thermal NO.sub.X production is controlled by inducing a large flow of flue gas recirculation in the second stage combustion zone to minimize the ultimate temperature of the flame. One or both of the first and second stage burners can be cooled to further reduce the combustion temperature and to improve the recirculation efficiency. Both of these factors tend to reduce production of NO.sub.X.

Advancing predictive models for particulate formation in turbulent flames via massively parallel direct numerical simulations

PubMed Central

Bisetti, Fabrizio; Attili, Antonio; Pitsch, Heinz

2014-01-01

Combustion of fossil fuels is likely to continue for the near future due to the growing trends in energy consumption worldwide. The increase in efficiency and the reduction of pollutant emissions from combustion devices are pivotal to achieving meaningful levels of carbon abatement as part of the ongoing climate change efforts. Computational fluid dynamics featuring adequate combustion models will play an increasingly important role in the design of more efficient and cleaner industrial burners, internal combustion engines, and combustors for stationary power generation and aircraft propulsion. Today, turbulent combustion modelling is hindered severely by the lack of data that are accurate and sufficiently complete to assess and remedy model deficiencies effectively. In particular, the formation of pollutants is a complex, nonlinear and multi-scale process characterized by the interaction of molecular and turbulent mixing with a multitude of chemical reactions with disparate time scales. The use of direct numerical simulation (DNS) featuring a state of the art description of the underlying chemistry and physical processes has contributed greatly to combustion model development in recent years. In this paper, the analysis of the intricate evolution of soot formation in turbulent flames demonstrates how DNS databases are used to illuminate relevant physico-chemical mechanisms and to identify modelling needs. PMID:25024412

Combustion and Conversion Efficiency of Nanoaluminum-Water Mixtures

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-12-01

Sabourin b, Vigor Yang b, Richard A. Yetter b, Steven F. Son c, and Bryce C. Tappan d a The Pennsylvania State University—Altoona, Altoona, PA, USA...smpp/title~content=t713456315 Combustion and Conversion Efficiency of Nanoaluminum-Water Mixtures Grant A. Risha a; Justin L. Sabourin b; Vigor Yang b...Online Publication Date: 01 December 2008 To cite this Article Risha, Grant A., Sabourin , Justin L., Yang, Vigor, Yetter, Richard A., Son, Steven F. and

Combustion characteristics of Douglas Fir planer shavings. Technical progress report No. 4, September 16, 1977--September 15, 1978

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Junge, D.C.

1978-12-01

Significant quantities of wood residue fuels are presently being used in industrial steam generating facilities. Recent studies indicate that substantial additional quantities of wood residue fuels are available for energy generation in the form of steam and/or electricity. A limited data base on the combustion characteristics of wood residue fuels has resulted in the installation and operation of inefficient combustion systems for these fuels. This investigation of the combustion characteristics of wood residue fuels was undertaken to provide a data base which could be used to optimize the combustion of such fuels. Optimization of the the combustion process in industrialmore » boilers serves to improve combustion efficiency and to reduce air pollutant emissions generated in the combustion process. This report presents data on the combustion characteristics of Douglas Fir planer shavings. The data were obtained in a pilot scale combustion test facility at Oregon State Univerisity. Other technical reports present data on the combustion characteristics of: Douglas Fir bark, Red Alder sawdust, Red Alder bark, Ponderosa pine bark, Hemlock bark, and Eastern White Pine bark. An executive summary report is also available which compares the combustion characteristics of the various fuel species.« less

The combustion behavior of diesel/CNG mixtures in a constant volume combustion chamber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Firmansyah; Aziz, A. R. A.; Heikal, M. R.

2015-12-01

The stringent emissions and needs to increase fuel efficiency makes controlled auto-ignition (CAI) based combustion an attractive alternative for the new combustion system. However, the combustion control is the main obstacles in its development. Reactivity controlled compression ignition (RCCI) that employs two fuels with significantly different in reactivity proven to be able to control the combustion. The RCCI concept applied in a constant volume chamber fuelled with direct injected diesel and compressed natural gas (CNG) was tested. The mixture composition is varied from 0 - 100% diesel/CNG at lambda 1 with main data collection are pressure profile and combustion images. The results show that diesel-CNG mixture significantly shows better combustion compared to diesel only. It is found that CNG is delaying the diesel combustion and at the same time assisting in diesel distribution inside the chamber. This combination creates a multipoint ignition of diesel throughout the chamber that generate very fast heat release rate and higher maximum pressure. Furthermore, lighter yellow color of the flame indicates lower soot production in compared with diesel combustion.

Augmentor emissions reduction technology program. [for turbofan engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Colley, W. C.; Kenworthy, M. J.; Bahr, D. W.

1977-01-01

Technology to reduce pollutant emissions from duct-burner-type augmentors for use on advanced supersonic cruise aircraft was investigated. Test configurations, representing variations of two duct-burner design concepts, were tested in a rectangular sector rig at inlet temperature and pressure conditions corresponding to takeoff, transonic climb, and supersonic cruise flight conditions. Both design concepts used piloted flameholders to stabilize combustion of lean, premixed fuel/air mixtures. The concepts differed in the flameholder type used. High combustion efficiency (97%) and low levels of emissions (1.19 g/kg fuel) were achieved. The detailed measurements suggested the direction that future development efforts should take to obtain further reductions in emission levels and associated improvements in combustion efficiency over an increased range of temperature rise conditions.

Rotating Detonation Combustion: A Computational Study for Stationary Power Generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Escobar, Sergio

The increased availability of gaseous fossil fuels in The US has led to the substantial growth of stationary Gas Turbine (GT) usage for electrical power generation. In fact, from 2013 to 2104, out of the 11 Tera Watts-hour per day produced from fossil fuels, approximately 27% was generated through the combustion of natural gas in stationary GT. The thermodynamic efficiency for simple-cycle GT has increased from 20% to 40% during the last six decades, mainly due to research and development in the fields of combustion science, material science and machine design. However, additional improvements have become more costly and more difficult to obtain as technology is further refined. An alternative to improve GT thermal efficiency is the implementation of a combustion regime leading to pressure-gain; rather than pressure loss across the combustor. One concept being considered for such purpose is Rotating Detonation Combustion (RDC). RDC refers to a combustion regime in which a detonation wave propagates continuously in the azimuthal direction of a cylindrical annular chamber. In RDC, the fuel and oxidizer, injected from separated streams, are mixed near the injection plane and are then consumed by the detonation front traveling inside the annular gap of the combustion chamber. The detonation products then expand in the azimuthal and axial direction away from the detonation front and exit through the combustion chamber outlet. In the present study Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is used to predict the performance of Rotating Detonation Combustion (RDC) at operating conditions relevant to GT applications. As part of this study, a modeling strategy for RDC simulations was developed. The validation of the model was performed using benchmark cases with different levels of complexity. First, 2D simulations of non-reactive shock tube and detonation tubes were performed. The numerical predictions that were obtained using different modeling parameters were compared with analytical solutions in order to quantify the numerical error in the simulations. Additionally, experimental data from laboratory scale combustors was used to validate 2D and 3D numerical simulations. The effects of different modeling parameters on RDC predictions was also studied. The validated simulation strategy was then used to assess the performance of RDC for different combustion chamber geometries and operating conditions relevant to GT applications. As a result, the limiting conditions for which continuous detonation and pressure gain combustion can be achieved were predicted and the effect of operating conditions on flow structures and RDC performance was assessed. The modeling strategy and the results from this study could be further used to design more efficient and more stable RDC systems.

Influence of low-temperature combustion and dimethyl ether-diesel blends on performance, combustion, and emission characteristics of common rail diesel engine: a CFD study.

PubMed

Lamani, Venkatesh Tavareppa; Yadav, Ajay Kumar; Narayanappa, Kumar Gottekere

2017-06-01

Due to presence of more oxygen, absence of carbon-carbon (C-C) bond in chemical structure, and high cetane number of dimethyl ether (DME), pollution from DME operated engine is less compared to diesel engine. Hence, the DME can be a promising alternative fuel for diesel engine. The present study emphasizes the effect of various exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) rates (0-20%) and DME/Diesel blends (0-20%) on combustion characteristics and exhaust emissions of common rail direct injection (CRDI) engine using three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation. Extended coherent flame model-3 zone (ECFM-3Z) is implemented to carry out combustion analysis, and k-ξ-f model is employed for turbulence modeling. Results show that in-cylinder pressure marginally decreases with employing EGR compared to without EGR case. As EGR rate increases, nitrogen oxide (NO) formation decreases, whereas soot increases marginally. Due to better combustion characteristics of DME, indicated thermal efficiency (ITE) increases with the increases in DME/diesel blend ratio. Adverse effect of EGR on efficiency for blends is less compared to neat diesel, because the anoxygenated region created due to EGR is compensated by extra oxygen present in DME. The trade-off among NO, soot, carbon monoxide (CO) formation, and efficiency is studied by normalizing the parameters. Optimum operating condition is found at 10% EGR rate and 20% DME/diesel blend. The maximum indicated thermal efficiency was observed for DME/diesel ratio of 20% in the present range of study. Obtained results are validated with published experimental data and found good agreement.

Solid fuel combustion system for gas turbine engine

DOEpatents

Wilkes, Colin; Mongia, Hukam C.

1993-01-01

A solid fuel, pressurized fluidized bed combustion system for a gas turbine engine includes a carbonizer outside of the engine for gasifying coal to a low Btu fuel gas in a first fraction of compressor discharge, a pressurized fluidized bed outside of the engine for combusting the char residue from the carbonizer in a second fraction of compressor discharge to produce low temperature vitiated air, and a fuel-rich, fuel-lean staged topping combustor inside the engine in a compressed air plenum thereof. Diversion of less than 100% of compressor discharge outside the engine minimizes the expense of fabricating and maintaining conduits for transferring high pressure and high temperature gas and incorporation of the topping combustor in the compressed air plenum of the engine minimizes the expense of modifying otherwise conventional gas turbine engines for solid fuel, pressurized fluidized bed combustion.

Combustion and inorganic bromine emission of waste printed circuit boards in a high temperature furnace

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ni Mingjiang, E-mail: xiaohanxi_2@163.com; Xiao Hanxi; Chemistry and Chemical Engineering School, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan

2012-03-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The combustion efficiency of waste printed circuit boards (PCBs) depends on temperature, excess air factor, and high temperature zone residence time. Temperature has the most significant impact. Under the proposed condition, combustion of waste PCBs alone is quite complete within the furnace. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer High temperature prompts a more complete bromine release and conversion. When temperature is high enough, 99.9% organobrominated compounds, the potential precursors for brominated dixoins formation, are destroyed efficiently and convert to inorganic bromine in flue gas, as HBr and Br{sub 2}. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Temperature has crucial influence over the inhibition of HBr conversion to Br{sub 2},more » while the oxygen partial pressure plays a reverse role in the conversion to a very small extent. Increasing temperature will decrease the volume percentage ratio of Br{sub 2}/HBr in flue gas greatly. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The thermodynamic equilibrium approach of bromine conversion was investigated. The two forms of inorganic bromine in flue gas substantially reach thermodynamic equilibrium within 0.25 s. Under the proposed operating condition, the reaction of Br transfer and conversion finish. - Abstract: High temperature combustion experiments of waste printed circuit boards (PCBs) were conducted using a lab-scale system featuring a continuously-fed drop tube furnace. Combustion efficiency and the occurrence of inorganic bromine (HBr and Br{sub 2}) were systematically studied by monitoring the main combustion products continuously. The influence of furnace temperature (T) was studied from 800 to 1400 Degree-Sign C, the excess air factor (EAF) was varied from 1.2 to 1.9 and the residence time in the high temperature zone (RT{sub HT}) was set at 0.25, 0.5, or 0.75 s. Combustion efficiency depends on temperature, EAF and RT{sub HT}; temperature has the most significant effect. Conversion of organic bromine from flame retardants into HBr and Br{sub 2} depends on temperature and EAF. Temperature has crucial influence over the ratio of HBr to Br{sub 2}, whereas oxygen partial pressure plays a minor role. The two forms of inorganic bromine seem substantially to reach thermodynamic equilibrium within 0.25 s. High temperature is required to improve the combustion performance: at 1200 Degree-Sign C or higher, an EAF of 1.3 or more, and a RT{sub HT} exceeding 0.75 s, combustion is quite complete, the CO concentration in flue gas and remained carbon in ash are sufficiently low, and organobrominated compounds are successfully decomposed (more than 99.9%). According to these results, incineration of waste PCBs without preliminary separation and without additives would perform very well under certain conditions; the potential precursors for brominated dioxins formation could be destroyed efficiently. Increasing temperature could decrease the volume percentage ratio of Br{sub 2}/HBr in flue gas greatly.« less

Improving the operating effectiveness of the shaft kilns of magnesite combine

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Utenkov, A.F.; Sinitsyn, E.A.; Gor'kova, T.V.

1986-11-01

The authors analyze the combustion efficiency of a natural gas-fired tunnel kiln and propose design and performance modifications to the burner and fuel systems to provide for optimum combustion and utilization of the calorific value of the fuel.

Comparison of numerical techniques for integration of stiff ordinary differential equations arising in combustion chemistry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Radhakrishnan, K.

1984-01-01

The efficiency and accuracy of several algorithms recently developed for the efficient numerical integration of stiff ordinary differential equations are compared. The methods examined include two general-purpose codes, EPISODE and LSODE, and three codes (CHEMEQ, CREK1D, and GCKP84) developed specifically to integrate chemical kinetic rate equations. The codes are applied to two test problems drawn from combustion kinetics. The comparisons show that LSODE is the fastest code currently available for the integration of combustion kinetic rate equations. An important finding is that an interactive solution of the algebraic energy conservation equation to compute the temperature does not result in significant errors. In addition, this method is more efficient than evaluating the temperature by integrating its time derivative. Significant reductions in computational work are realized by updating the rate constants (k = at(supra N) N exp(-E/RT) only when the temperature change exceeds an amount delta T that is problem dependent. An approximate expression for the automatic evaluation of delta T is derived and is shown to result in increased efficiency.

Dual-Mode Free-Jet Combustor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trefny, Charles J.; Dippold, Vance F., III; Yungster, Shaye

2017-01-01

The dual-mode free-jet combustor concept, pictured in figure 1, is described. It was introduced in 2010 as a wide- operating-range propulsion device using a novel supersonic free-jet combustion process. The unique feature of the free-jet combustor pictured in figure 1a, is supersonic combustion in an unconfined free-jet that traverses a larger subsonic combustion chamber to a variable nozzle. During this mode of operation, the propulsive stream is not in contact with the combustor walls, and equilibrates to the combustion chamber pressure. To a first order, thermodynamic efficiency is similar to that of a traditional scramjet under the assumption of constant-pressure combustion. Qualitatively, a number of possible benefits to this approach are obvious.

Slurry burner for mixture of carbonaceous material and water

DOEpatents

Nodd, D.G.; Walker, R.J.

1985-11-05

The present invention is intended to overcome the limitations of the prior art by providing a fuel burner particularly adapted for the combustion of carbonaceous material-water slurries which includes a stationary high pressure tip-emulsion atomizer which directs a uniform fuel into a shearing air flow as the carbonaceous material-water slurry is directed into a combustion chamber, inhibits the collection of unburned fuel upon and within the atomizer, reduces the slurry to a collection of fine particles upon discharge into the combustion chamber, and regulates the operating temperature of the burner as well as primary air flow about the burner and into the combustion chamber for improved combustion efficiency, no atomizer plugging and enhanced flame stability.

Numerical investigation of the staged gasification of wet wood

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Donskoi, I. G.; Kozlov, A. N.; Svishchev, D. A.; Shamanskii, V. A.

2017-04-01

Gasification of wooden biomass makes it possible to utilize forestry wastes and agricultural residues for generation of heat and power in isolated small-scale power systems. In spite of the availability of a huge amount of cheap biomass, the implementation of the gasification process is impeded by formation of tar products and poor thermal stability of the process. These factors reduce the competitiveness of gasification as compared with alternative technologies. The use of staged technologies enables certain disadvantages of conventional processes to be avoided. One of the previously proposed staged processes is investigated in this paper. For this purpose, mathematical models were developed for individual stages of the process, such as pyrolysis, pyrolysis gas combustion, and semicoke gasification. The effect of controlling parameters on the efficiency of fuel conversion into combustible gases is studied numerically using these models. For the controlling parameter are selected heat inputted into a pyrolysis reactor, the excess of oxidizer during gas combustion, and the wood moisture content. The process efficiency criterion is the gasification chemical efficiency accounting for the input of external heat (used for fuel drying and pyrolysis). The generated regime diagrams represent the gasification efficiency as a function of controlling parameters. Modeling results demonstrate that an increase in the fraction of heat supplied from an external source can result in an adequate efficiency of the wood gasification through the use of steam generated during drying. There are regions where it is feasible to perform incomplete combustion of the pyrolysis gas prior to the gasification. The calculated chemical efficiency of the staged gasification is as high as 80-85%, which is 10-20% higher that in conventional single-stage processes.

Optical sensor system for time-resolved quantification of methane concentrations: Validation measurements in a rapid compression machine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bauke, Stephan; Golibrzuch, Kai; Wackerbarth, Hainer; Fendt, Peter; Zigan, Lars; Seefeldt, Stefan; Thiele, Olaf; Berg, Thomas

2018-05-01

Lowering greenhouse gas emissions is one of the most challenging demands of today's society. Especially, the automotive industry struggles with the development of more efficient internal combustion (IC) engines. As an alternative to conventional fuels, methane has the potential for a significant emission reduction. In methane fuelled engines, the process of mixture formation, which determines the properties of combustion after ignition, differs significantly from gasoline and diesel engines and needs to be understood and controlled in order to develop engines with high efficiency. This work demonstrates the development of a gas sensing system that can serve as a diagnostic tool for measuring crank-angle resolved relative air-fuel ratios in methane-fuelled near-production IC engines. By application of non-dispersive infrared absorption spectroscopy at two distinct spectral regions in the ν3 absorption band of methane around 3.3 μm, the system is able to determine fuel density and temperature simultaneously. A modified spark plug probe allows for straightforward application at engine test stations. Here, the application of the detection system in a rapid compression machine is presented, which enables validation and characterization of the system on well-defined gas mixtures under engine-like dynamic conditions. In extension to a recent proof-of-principle study, a refined data analysis procedure is introduced that allows the correction of artefacts originating from mechanical distortions of the sensor probe. In addition, the measured temperatures are compared to data obtained with a commercially available system based on the spectrally resolved detection of water absorption in the near infrared.

Constraining Carbonaceous Aerosol Climate Forcing by Bridging Laboratory, Field and Modeling Studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dubey, M. K.; Aiken, A. C.; Liu, S.; Saleh, R.; Cappa, C. D.; Williams, L. R.; Donahue, N. M.; Gorkowski, K.; Ng, N. L.; Mazzoleni, C.; China, S.; Sharma, N.; Yokelson, R. J.; Allan, J. D.; Liu, D.

2014-12-01

Biomass and fossil fuel combustion emits black (BC) and brown carbon (BrC) aerosols that absorb sunlight to warm climate and organic carbon (OC) aerosols that scatter sunlight to cool climate. The net forcing depends strongly on the composition, mixing state and transformations of these carbonaceous aerosols. Complexities from large variability of fuel types, combustion conditions and aging processes have confounded their treatment in models. We analyse recent laboratory and field measurements to uncover fundamental mechanism that control the chemical, optical and microphysical properties of carbonaceous aerosols that are elaborated below: Wavelength dependence of absorption and the single scattering albedo (ω) of fresh biomass burning aerosols produced from many fuels during FLAME-4 was analysed to determine the factors that control the variability in ω. Results show that ω varies strongly with fire-integrated modified combustion efficiency (MCEFI)—higher MCEFI results in lower ω values and greater spectral dependence of ω (Liu et al GRL 2014). A parameterization of ω as a function of MCEFI for fresh BB aerosols is derived from the laboratory data and is evaluated by field data, including BBOP. Our laboratory studies also demonstrate that BrC production correlates with BC indicating that that they are produced by a common mechanism that is driven by MCEFI (Saleh et al NGeo 2014). We show that BrC absorption is concentrated in the extremely low volatility component that favours long-range transport. We observe substantial absorption enhancement for internally mixed BC from diesel and wood combustion near London during ClearFlo. While the absorption enhancement is due to BC particles coated by co-emitted OC in urban regions, it increases with photochemical age in rural areas and is simulated by core-shell models. We measure BrC absorption that is concentrated in the extremely low volatility components and attribute it to wood burning. Our results support enhanced light absorption by internally mixed BC parameterizations in models and identify mixed biomass and fossil combustion regions where this effect is large. We unify the treatment of carbonaceous aerosol components and their interactions to simplify and verify their representation in climate models, and re-evaluate their direct radiative forcing.

Emissions from prescribed burning of agricultural fields in the Pacific Northwest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holder, A. L.; Gullett, B. K.; Urbanski, S. P.; Elleman, R.; O'Neill, S.; Tabor, D.; Mitchell, W.; Baker, K. R.

2017-10-01

Prescribed burns of winter wheat stubble and Kentucky bluegrass fields in northern Idaho and eastern Washington states (U.S.A.) were sampled using ground-, aerostat-, airplane-, and laboratory-based measurement platforms to determine emission factors, compare methods, and provide a current and comprehensive set of emissions data for air quality models, climate models, and emission inventories. Batch measurements of PM2.5, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and polychlorinated dibenzodioxins/dibenzofurans (PCDDs/PCDFs), and continuous measurements of black carbon (BC), particle mass by size, CO, CO2, CH4, and aerosol characteristics were taken at ground level, on an aerostat-lofted instrument package, and from an airplane. Biomass samples gathered from the field were burned in a laboratory combustion facility for comparison with these ground and aerial field measurements. Emission factors for PM2.5, organic carbon (OC), CH4, and CO measured in the field study platforms were typically higher than those measured in the laboratory combustion facility. Field data for Kentucky bluegrass suggest that biomass residue loading is directly proportional to the PM2.5 emission factor; no such relationship was found with the limited wheat data. CO2 and BC emissions were higher in laboratory burn tests than in the field, reflecting greater carbon oxidation and flaming combustion conditions. These distinctions between field and laboratory results can be explained by measurements of the modified combustion efficiency (MCE). Higher MCEs were recorded in the laboratory burns than from the airplane platform. These MCE/emission factor trends are supported by 1-2 min grab samples from the ground and aerostat platforms. Emission factors measured here are similar to other studies measuring comparable fuels, pollutants, and combustion conditions. The size distribution of refractory BC (rBC) was single modal with a log-normal shape, which was consistent among fuel types when normalized by total rBC mass. The field and laboratory measurements of the Angstrom exponent (α) and single scattering albedo (ω) exhibit a strong decreasing trend with increasing MCEs in the range of 0.9-0.99. Field measurements of α and ω were consistently higher than laboratory burns, which is likely due to less complete combustion. When VOC emissions are compared with MCE, the results are consistent for both fuel types: emission factors increase as MCE decreases.

Active Combustion Control for Aircraft Gas Turbine Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DeLaat, John C.; Breisacher, Kevin J.; Saus, Joseph R.; Paxson, Daniel E.

2000-01-01

Lean-burning combustors are susceptible to combustion instabilities. Additionally, due to non-uniformities in the fuel-air mixing and in the combustion process, there typically exist hot areas in the combustor exit plane. These hot areas limit the operating temperature at the turbine inlet and thus constrain performance and efficiency. Finally, it is necessary to optimize the fuel-air ratio and flame temperature throughout the combustor to minimize the production of pollutants. In recent years, there has been considerable activity addressing Active Combustion Control. NASA Glenn Research Center's Active Combustion Control Technology effort aims to demonstrate active control in a realistic environment relevant to aircraft engines. Analysis and experiments are tied to aircraft gas turbine combustors. Considerable progress has been shown in demonstrating technologies for Combustion Instability Control, Pattern Factor Control, and Emissions Minimizing Control. Future plans are to advance the maturity of active combustion control technology to eventual demonstration in an engine environment.

Emission factors of particulate matter, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and levoglucosan from wood combustion in south-central Chile.

PubMed

Jimenez, Jorge; Farias, Oscar; Quiroz, Roberto; Yañez, Jorge

2017-07-01

In south-central Chile, wood stoves have been identified as an important source of air pollution in populated areas. Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus), Chilean oak (Nothofagus oblique), and mimosa (Acacia dealbata) were burned in a single-chamber slow-combustion wood stove at a controlled testing facility located at the University of Concepción, Chile. In each experiment, 2.7-3.1 kg of firewood were combusted while continuously monitoring temperature, exhaust gases, burn rate, and collecting particulate matter samples in Teflon filters under isokinetic conditions for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon and levoglucosan analyses. Mean particulate matter emission factors were 2.03, 4.06, and 3.84 g/kg dry wood for eucalyptus, oak, and mimosa, respectively. The emission factors were inversely correlated with combustion efficiency. The mean emission factors of the sums of 12 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in particle phases were 1472.5, 2134.0, and 747.5 μg/kg for eucalyptus, oak, and mimosa, respectively. Fluoranthene, pyrene, benzo[a]anthracene, and chrysene were present in the particle phase in higher proportions compared with other polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons that were analyzed. Mean levoglucosan emission factors were 854.9, 202.3, and 328.0 mg/kg for eucalyptus, oak, and mimosa, respectively. Since the emissions of particulate matter and other pollutants were inversely correlated with combustion efficiency, implementing more efficient technologies would help to reduce air pollutant emissions from wood combustion. Residential wood burning has been identified as a significant source of air pollution in populated areas. Local wood species are combusted for home cooking and heating, which releases several toxic air pollutants, including particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Air pollutant emissions depend on the type of wood and the technology and operational conditions of the wood stove. A better understanding of emissions from local wood species and wood stove performance would help to identify better biomass fuels and wood stove technologies in order to reduce air pollution from residential wood burning.

An a priori study of different tabulation methods for turbulent pulverised coal combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luo, Yujuan; Wen, Xu; Wang, Haiou; Luo, Kun; Jin, Hanhui; Fan, Jianren

2018-05-01

In many practical pulverised coal combustion systems, different oxidiser streams exist, e.g. the primary- and secondary-air streams in the power plant boilers, which makes the modelling of these systems challenging. In this work, three tabulation methods for modelling pulverised coal combustion are evaluated through an a priori study. Pulverised coal flames stabilised in a three-dimensional turbulent counterflow, consisting of different oxidiser streams, are simulated with detailed chemistry first. Then, the thermo-chemical quantities calculated with different tabulation methods are compared to those from detailed chemistry solutions. The comparison shows that the conventional two-stream flamelet model with a fixed oxidiser temperature cannot predict the flame temperature correctly. The conventional two-stream flamelet model is then modified to set the oxidiser temperature equal to the fuel temperature, both of which are varied in the flamelets. By this means, the variations of oxidiser temperature can be considered. It is found that this modified tabulation method performs very well on prediction of the flame temperature. The third tabulation method is an extended three-stream flamelet model that was initially proposed for gaseous combustion. The results show that the reference gaseous temperature profile can be overall reproduced by the extended three-stream flamelet model. Interestingly, it is found that the predictions of major species mass fractions are not sensitive to the oxidiser temperature boundary conditions for the flamelet equations in the a priori analyses.

CO-FIRING COAL: FEEDLOT AND LITTER BIOMASS FUELS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dr. Kalyan Annamalai; Dr. John Sweeten; Dr. Sayeed Mukhtar

2000-10-24

The following are proposed activities for quarter 1 (6/15/00-9/14/00): (1) Finalize the allocation of funds within TAMU to co-principal investigators and the final task lists; (2) Acquire 3 D computer code for coal combustion and modify for cofiring Coal:Feedlot biomass and Coal:Litter biomass fuels; (3) Develop a simple one dimensional model for fixed bed gasifier cofired with coal:biomass fuels; and (4) Prepare the boiler burner for reburn tests with feedlot biomass fuels. The following were achieved During Quarter 5 (6/15/00-9/14/00): (1) Funds are being allocated to co-principal investigators; task list from Prof. Mukhtar has been received (Appendix A); (2) Ordermore » has been placed to acquire Pulverized Coal gasification and Combustion 3 D (PCGC-3) computer code for coal combustion and modify for cofiring Coal: Feedlot biomass and Coal: Litter biomass fuels. Reason for selecting this code is the availability of source code for modification to include biomass fuels; (3) A simplified one-dimensional model has been developed; however convergence had not yet been achieved; and (4) The length of the boiler burner has been increased to increase the residence time. A premixed propane burner has been installed to simulate coal combustion gases. First coal, as a reburn fuel will be used to generate base line data followed by methane, feedlot and litter biomass fuels.« less

Beryllium particle combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Prentice, J. L.

1972-01-01

A two-year study of the combustion efficiency of single beryllium droplets burning in a variety of oxidizers (primarily mixtures of oxygen/argon and oxygen/nitrogen) is summarized. An advanced laser heating technique was used to acquire systematic quantitative data on the burning of single beryllium droplets at atmospheric pressure. The research confirmed the sensitivity of beryllium droplet combustion to the chemistry of environmental species and provides experimental documentation for the nitrogen-induced droplet fragmentation of burning beryllium droplets.

Fluidized-bed calciner with combustion nozzle and shroud

DOEpatents

Wielang, Joseph A.; Palmer, William B.; Kerr, William B.

1977-01-01

A nozzle employed as a burner within a fluidized bed is coaxially enclosed within a tubular shroud that extends beyond the nozzle length into the fluidized bed. The open-ended shroud portion beyond the nozzle end provides an antechamber for mixture and combustion of atomized fuel with an oxygen-containing gas. The arrangement provides improved combustion efficiency and excludes bed particles from the high-velocity, high-temperature portions of the flame to reduce particle attrition.

Characterization of coals for circulating fluidized bed combustion by pilot scale tests

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lopez, L.A.; Cabanillas, A.C.; Becerra, J.O. de

1995-12-31

The major part of the Spanish coal supply is low range coal with both high ash (20--40%) and sulfur (1--8%) content. The use of this coal, by conventional combustion processes in power and industrial plants, implies a very high environmental impact. The Circulating Fluidized Bed Combustion process enables an efficient use of this coal. The Centro de Investigaciones Energeticas, Medioambientales y Tecnologicas is carrying out a program with the intention of assisting companies in evaluating fuel quality impact, using atmospheric fluidized bed combustion. This paper reviews the major results of the fuel program in order to determine the fluidized bedmore » combustion performance of four fuels. Two lignites, a bituminous coal and an anthracite. The two lignites have very high sulfur content (7% and 8%) but the sulfur is organic in one case and pyritic in the other. The bituminous coal and the anthracite have 1% and 2% sulfur content respectively and the sulfur is pyritic in these cases. In order to reduce the sulfur in the flue gases, a high calcium content limestone has been used as sorbent. The combustion trials have been done in a circulating fluidized bed pilot plant with a 200 mm inside diameter and a height of 6.5 m. The influence of temperature, fluidization velocity, oxygen excess, Ca/S ratio and coal properties have been studied in relation to the combustion efficiency, sulfur retention, CO and NO{sub x} emissions.« less

Waste burning and heat recovery characteristics of a mass burn incineration system.

PubMed

Chen, Wei-Hsin

2003-02-01

An experimental investigation on waste combustion characteristics of a mass burn incinerator is conducted in this study. Three different charging modes, including operator manipulation, periodic feeding, and temperature control, are taken into consideration. The results indicate that the burning characteristics in the combustion chambers are closely related to the operating modes. For the operator manipulation where the wastes are sent into the incinerator in two short periods, the entire temperature distribution of the primary combustion chamber can be partitioned into two parts, thereby yielding waste group combustion. Temperature oscillations in both the primary and secondary combustion chambers are characterized for the periodic feeding. However, because of the shorter charging period and smaller amount of waste, the burning interaction between the two chambers is initially weak and becomes notable in the final stage. When temperature control is performed, the burning oscillation of the primary combustion chamber is further amplified so the combustion interaction is drastic. These exhibitions are mainly caused by the competition between endothermic and exothermic reactions. The instantaneous heat exchange efficiency of the cyclone heat recovery system (CHRS) installed in the incineration system is also evaluated to obtain details of energy recovery behaviors. As a result, the efficiency tends to decrease linearly with increasing temperature of hot flue gas. This arises from the fact that heat loss from the gas to the environment is increased when the temperature of the former is higher, even though the temperature gradient across the cyclone is enlarged.

A method for aircraft afterburner combustion without flameholders

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Birmaher, Shai

2009-12-01

State of the art aircraft afterburners employ spray bars to inject fuel and flameholders to stabilize the combustion process. Such afterburner designs significantly increase the length (and thus weight), pressure losses, and observability of the engine. This thesis presents a feasibility study of a compact 'prime and trigger' (PAT) afterburner concept that eliminates the fuel spray bars and flameholders and, thus, eliminates the above-mentioned problems. In this concept, afterburner fuel is injected just upstream or in between the turbine stages. As the fuel travels through the turbine stages, it evaporates, mixes with the bulk flow, and undergoes some chemical reactions without any significant heat release, a process referred to as 'priming'. Downstream of the turbine stages, combustion could take place through autoignition. However, if fuel autoignition does not occur or if autoignition does not produce a combustion zone that is stable and highly efficient, then a low power pilot, or 'trigger', can be used to control the combustion process. The envisioned trigger for the PAT concept is a jet of product gas from ultra-rich hydrocarbon/air combustion that is injected through the afterburner liner. This 'partial oxidation' (POx) gas, which consists mostly of H2, CO, and diluents, rapidly produces radicals and heat that accelerate the autoignition of the primed mixture and, thus, provide an anchor point for the afterburner combustion process. The objective of this research was to demonstrate the feasibility of the PAT concept by showing that (1) combustion of fuel injected within or upstream of turbine stages can occur only downstream of the turbine stages, and (2) the combustion zone is compact, stable and efficient. This was accomplished using two experimental facilities, a developed theoretical model, and Chemkin simulations. The first facility, termed the Afterburner Facility (AF), simulated the bulk flow temperature, velocity and O2 content through a turbojet combustor, turbine stage and afterburner. To model the PAT concept, Jet-A was injected upstream of the simulated turbine stage and a H2 jet was used to trigger the primed Jet-A combustion process downstream of the turbine stage. H2 was used because POx gas was not available for experiments. The second facility, termed the Propane Autoignition Combustor (PAC), was essentially a scaled-down, simplified version of the AF. The PAC experiments focused on the trigger stage of the PAT concept, using H 2 in lieu of POx gas and employing measurement techniques that were in some ways more detailed than in the AF experiments. The developed model simulated the physics of fuel priming in the AF and predicted the Jet-A autoignition location. It was used to predict and interpret the AF results and to study the feasibility of the PAT concept at pressures outside the AF operating range. Finally, the Chemkin simulations were used to examine the effect of several POx gas compositions on the Jet-A/vitiated-air autoignition process; to compare the POx and H2 triggers; and to explore several reasons for why POx gas and H2 are suitable trigger mechanisms. he experimental, theoretical, and numerical results obtained in this investigation indicated that the PAT concept provides a feasible approach to afterburner combustion. The experiments in the AF showed that the ignition delay of Jet-A is sufficiently long to allow fuel injection within turbine stages without significant heat release upstream of the afterburner. In the AF experiments without the H2 trigger, Jet-A combustion was achieved through autoignition; however, the autoignition combustion zone exhibited large axial fluctuations and low combustion efficiency. The H2 trigger was able to shift the combustion zone upstream, make it more compact, reduce fluctuations in its axial position, and raise the combustion efficiency to nearly 100%. The PAC experiments also showed that a H2 trigger can shift the combustion zone upstream, make it more compact, and increase the combustion efficiency. The PAC results were obtained with lower O 2 content and higher equivalence ratios than in the AF. Therefore, the combined AF and PAC results suggested that the PAT concept is feasible over a wide range of operating conditions. The developed model showed good agreement with the AF results. It also predicted that the PAT concept is feasible at bulk flow pressures outside the AF operating range. Finally, the Chemkin results showed that both the H2 and POx gas triggers can significantly reduce the ignition delay time of primed Jet-A/vitiated air mixtures. Thus, POx gas is a suitable trigger for the PAT concept and should be tested in future experimental investigations.

Evaluation of Requirements for Militarization of 3-kW Free-Piston Stirling Engine Generator Set

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-01-01

MEASURED COMPONENT EFFICIENCIES ... .......... .... 3-29 3-8 TDE MEASURED SYSTEM EFFICIENCIES............. 3-29 3-9 PARAMETERS FOR THE COMBUSTOR AIR ...chamber liner I Tgniter * External heater head. 2-8 S .. w 04 w 1 𔃼-9 The fuel and air are supplied to the combustor from an external fuel/ air control sys...tern. The inlet air is preheated by the combustion exhaust in a folded foil preheater. The preheated air enters the combustion chamber through a

Hybrid fluidized bed combuster

DOEpatents

Kantesaria, Prabhudas P.; Matthews, Francis T.

1982-01-01

A first atmospheric bubbling fluidized bed furnace is combined with a second turbulent, circulating fluidized bed furnace to produce heat efficiently from crushed solid fuel. The bed of the second furnace receives the smaller sizes of crushed solid fuel, unreacted limestone from the first bed, and elutriated solids extracted from the flu gases of the first bed. The two-stage combustion of crushed solid fuel provides a system with an efficiency greater than available with use of a single furnace of a fluidized bed.

Effect of Outside Combustion Air on Gas Furnace Efficiency.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-10-15

Support Agency REPORT FESA-TS-2104 EFFECT OF OUTSIDE COMBUSTION AIR ON GAS FURNACE EFFICIENCY THOMAS E. BRISBANE Q KATHLEEN L. HANCOCK u JOHNS - MANVILLE SALES...and Dilution Air With No Furnace Setback. 93 AO-A113 4~84 . JOHNS - MANVILLE SALES CORP DENVER CO RESEARCH AND OEV--ETC F/6 13/ 1 EFFECT OF OUTSIDE...NUMBER(S) Thomas E. Brisbane, Kathleen L. Hancock DAAK 70-78-D-0002 9. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS 1O. PROGRAM ELEMENT. PR.;ECT, TASK Johns

Detection of combustion start in the controlled auto ignition engine by wavelet transform of the engine block vibration signal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Seonguk; Min, Kyoungdoug

2008-08-01

The CAI (controlled auto ignition) engine ignites fuel and air mixture by trapping high temperature burnt gas using a negative valve overlap. Due to auto ignition in CAI combustion, efficiency improvements and low level NOx emission can be obtained. Meanwhile, the CAI combustion regime is restricted and control parameters are limited. The start of combustion data in the compressed ignition engine are most critical for controlling the overall combustion. In this research, the engine block vibration signal is transformed by the Meyer wavelet to analyze CAI combustion more easily and accurately. Signal acquisition of the engine block vibration is a more suitable method for practical use than measurement of in-cylinder pressure. A new method for detecting combustion start in CAI engines through wavelet transformation of the engine block vibration signal was developed and results indicate that it is accurate enough to analyze the start of combustion. Experimental results show that wavelet transformation of engine block vibration can track the start of combustion in each cycle. From this newly developed method, the start of combustion data in CAI engines can be detected more easily and used as input data for controlling CAI combustion.

Emission characteristics of refractory black carbon aerosols from fresh biomass burning: a perspective from laboratory experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pan, Xiaole; Kanaya, Yugo; Taketani, Fumikazu; Miyakawa, Takuma; Inomata, Satoshi; Komazaki, Yuichi; Tanimoto, Hiroshi; Wang, Zhe; Uno, Itsushi; Wang, Zifa

2017-11-01

The emission characteristics of refractory black carbon (rBC) from biomass burning are essential information for numerical simulations of regional pollution and climate effects. We conducted combustion experiments in the laboratory to investigate the emission ratio and mixing state of rBC from the burning of wheat straw and rapeseed plants, which are the main crops cultivated in the Yangtze River Delta region of China. A single particle soot photometer (SP2) was used to measure rBC-containing particles at high temporal resolution and with high accuracy. The combustion state of each burning case was indicated by the modified combustion efficiency (MCE), which is calculated using the integrated enhancement of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide concentrations relative to their background values. The mass size distribution of the rBC particles showed a lognormal shape with a mode mass equivalent diameter (MED) of 189 nm (ranging from 152 to 215 nm), assuming an rBC density of 1.8 g cm-3. rBC particles less than 80 nm in size (the lower detection limit of the SP2) accounted for ˜ 5 % of the total rBC mass, on average. The emission ratios, which are expressed as ΔrBC / ΔCO (Δ indicates the difference between the observed and background values), displayed a significant positive correlation with the MCE values and varied between 1.8 and 34 ng m-3 ppbv-1. Multi-peak fitting analysis of the delay time (Δt, or the time of occurrence of the scattering peak minus that of the incandescence peak) distribution showed that rBC-containing particles with rBC MED = 200 ± 10 nm displayed two peaks at Δt = 1.7 µs and Δt = 3.2 µs, which could be attributed to the contributions from both flaming and smoldering combustion in each burning case. Both the Δt values and the shell / core ratios of the rBC-containing particles clearly increased as the MCE decreased from 0.98 (smoldering-dominant combustion) to 0.86 (flaming-dominant combustion), implying the great importance of the rapid condensation of semi-volatile organics. This laboratory study found that the mixing state of rBC particles from biomass burning strongly depends on its combustion processes, and overall MCE should be taken carefully into consideration while the climate effect of rBC particles from open biomass burning is simulated.

Fuel Combustion and Engine Performance | Transportation Research | NREL

Science.gov Websites

. Through modeling, simulation, and experimental validation, researchers examine what happens to fuel inside combustion and engine research activities include: Developing experimental and simulation research platforms develop and refine accurate, efficient kinetic mechanisms for fuel ignition Investigating low-speed pre

An investigation of co-combustion municipal sewage sludge with biomass in a 20kW BFB combustor under air-fired and oxygen-enriched condition.

PubMed

Kumar, Rajesh; Singh, Ravi Inder

2017-12-01

The behavior of municipal sewage sludge (MSS) with biomass (Guar stalks (GS), Mustard Husk (MH), Prosopis Juliflora Wood (PJW)) has been investigated in a 20kW bubbling fluidized bed (BFB) combustor under both air-fired (A-F) and oxygen-enriched (O-E) conditions. The work presented is divided into three parts, first part cover the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), second part cover the experimental investigation of BFB combustor, and third part covers the ash analysis. TGA was performed with a ratio of 50%MSS/50%biomass (GS, MH, PJW) and results show that 50%MSS/50%GS has highest combustion characteristic factor (CCF). The experimental investigation of BFB combustor was performed for two different ratios of MSS/biomass (50%/50% and 25%/75%) and the combustion characteristics of blends were distinctive under both A-F and O-E condition. Despite 50%MSS/50%GS showing the highest combustion performance in TGA analysis, it formed agglomerates during burning in BFB. Due to this formation of large amount of agglomerates, de-fluidization was observed in the combustor bed after 65-75min in A-F conditions. The rate of de-fluidization increased under O-E condition. The de-fluidization problem disappeared when the share of MSS was reduced to 25%, but small amounts of the agglomerate were still present in the bed. With oxygen enhancement, the combustion efficiency of BFB combustor was improved and flue gasses were found within permissible limit. The maximum conceivable combustion efficiency (97.1%) for BFB combustor was accomplished by using 50% MSS/50%PJW under O-E condition. Results show that a ratio of 25%MSS/75%biomass combusted successfully inside the BFB combustor and extensive work is required for efficient utilization of significant share of MSS with biomass. SEM/EDS analyses were performed for agglomerate produced and for the damaged heater to study the surface morphology and compositions. The elemental heterogeneity of fly ash generated during MSS/biomass combustion was analyzed using Microwave Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (MP-AES). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Process and apparatus for afterburning of combustible pollutants from an internal combustion engine

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Laurent, P.A.

1978-07-04

In a process for the afterburning of the combustible pollutants from an internal combustion engine, in order to automatically reduce the secondary induction rate when power increases without using a controlling valve actuatd by the carburetor venturi depression, there is provided a volumetric efficiency of the secondary air pump linked to and activated by the engine and a volumetric efficiency which decreases when the ratio between its back pressure and suction pressure increases, this reduction being achieved through the proper selection of the pump volumetric compression ratio r: between 0.6 c and 1.3 c when a steeply decreasing trend ismore » required, and above 1.3 c if a slower and slower decreasing trend is required. To perform this process an afterburner apparatus has a nitrogen oxide reducing catalyst placed inside the afterburner reactor on the gas stream immediately at the outlet of a torus, in which the gases are homogenized and their reaction with preinjection air is terminated.« less

Space shuttle orbital maneuvering engine platelet injector program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

A platelet face injector for the Orbit Maneuvering Engine (OME) on the space shuttle was evaluated as a means of obtaining additional design margin and lower cost. The program was conducted in three phases. The first phase evaluated single injection elements, or unielements; it involved visual flow studies, mixing experiments using propellant simulants, and hot firings to assess combustion efficiency, chamber wall compatibility, and injector face temperatures. In the second phase, subscale units producing 600 lbf thrust were used to further evaluate the orifice patterns chosen on the basis of unielement testing. In addition to combustion efficiency, chamber and injector heat transfer, the subscale testing provided a preliminary indication of injector stability. Full scale testing of the selected patterns at 6,000 lbf thrust was performed in the third phase. Performance, heat transfer, and combustion stability were evaluated over the anticipated range of OMS operating conditions. The effects on combustion stability of acoustic cavity configuration, including cavity depth, open area, inlet contour, and other parameters, were investigated.

Practical application of computer programs for supersonic combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Groves, F. R., Jr.

1972-01-01

Experimental data were interpreted using two supersonic combustion computer programs. The P1 program is based on a conventional boundary layer treatment of the mixing of concentric gas streams and complete combustion chemistry. The H1 program is based on a modified boundary layer approach which accounts for radial pressure gradients in the flow and also incorporates a finite rate chemistry calculation. The objective of the investigation was to compare the experimental data with theoretical predictions of the two programs with special emphasis on the prediction of radial pressure gradients by the H1 program. A test of the H1 program was also desired through comparison with the experimental data and with the P1 program.

Detection of frequency-mode-shift during thermoacoustic combustion oscillations in a staged aircraft engine model combustor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kobayashi, Hiroaki; Gotoda, Hiroshi; Tachibana, Shigeru; Yoshida, Seiji

2017-12-01

We conduct an experimental study using time series analysis based on symbolic dynamics to detect a precursor of frequency-mode-shift during thermoacoustic combustion oscillations in a staged aircraft engine model combustor. With increasing amount of the main fuel, a significant shift in the dominant frequency-mode occurs in noisy periodic dynamics, leading to a notable increase in oscillation amplitudes. The sustainment of noisy periodic dynamics during thermoacoustic combustion oscillations is clearly shown by the multiscale complexity-entropy causality plane in terms of statistical complexity. A modified version of the permutation entropy allows us to detect a precursor of the frequency-mode-shift before the amplification of pressure fluctuations.

From fire whirls to blue whirls and combustion with reduced pollution.

PubMed

Xiao, Huahua; Gollner, Michael J; Oran, Elaine S

2016-08-23

Fire whirls are powerful, spinning disasters for people and surroundings when they occur in large urban and wildland fires. Whereas fire whirls have been studied for fire-safety applications, previous research has yet to harness their potential burning efficiency for enhanced combustion. This article presents laboratory studies of fire whirls initiated as pool fires, but where the fuel sits on a water surface, suggesting the idea of exploiting the high efficiency of fire whirls for oil-spill remediation. We show the transition from a pool fire, to a fire whirl, and then to a previously unobserved state, a "blue whirl." A blue whirl is smaller, very stable, and burns completely blue as a hydrocarbon flame, indicating soot-free burning. The combination of fast mixing, intense swirl, and the water-surface boundary creates the conditions leading to nearly soot-free combustion. With the worldwide need to reduce emissions from both wanted and unwanted combustion, discovery of this state points to possible new pathways for reduced-emission combustion and fuel-spill cleanup. Because current methods to generate a stable vortex are difficult, we also propose that the blue whirl may serve as a research platform for fundamental studies of vortices and vortex breakdown in fluid mechanics.

CO₂ carbonation under aqueous conditions using petroleum coke combustion fly ash.

PubMed

González, A; Moreno, N; Navia, R

2014-12-01

Fly ash from petroleum coke combustion was evaluated for CO2 capture in aqueous medium. Moreover the carbonation efficiency based on different methodologies and the kinetic parameters of the process were determined. The results show that petroleum coke fly ash achieved a CO2 capture yield of 21% at the experimental conditions of 12 g L(-1), 363°K without stirring. The carbonation efficiency by petroleum coke fly ash based on reactive calcium species was within carbonation efficiencies reported by several authors. In addition, carbonation by petroleum coke fly ash follows a pseudo-second order kinetic model. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A positivity-preserving, implicit defect-correction multigrid method for turbulent combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wasserman, M.; Mor-Yossef, Y.; Greenberg, J. B.

2016-07-01

A novel, robust multigrid method for the simulation of turbulent and chemically reacting flows is developed. A survey of previous attempts at implementing multigrid for the problems at hand indicated extensive use of artificial stabilization to overcome numerical instability arising from non-linearity of turbulence and chemistry model source-terms, small-scale physics of combustion, and loss of positivity. These issues are addressed in the current work. The highly stiff Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations, coupled with turbulence and finite-rate chemical kinetics models, are integrated in time using the unconditionally positive-convergent (UPC) implicit method. The scheme is successfully extended in this work for use with chemical kinetics models, in a fully-coupled multigrid (FC-MG) framework. To tackle the degraded performance of multigrid methods for chemically reacting flows, two major modifications are introduced with respect to the basic, Full Approximation Storage (FAS) approach. First, a novel prolongation operator that is based on logarithmic variables is proposed to prevent loss of positivity due to coarse-grid corrections. Together with the extended UPC implicit scheme, the positivity-preserving prolongation operator guarantees unconditional positivity of turbulence quantities and species mass fractions throughout the multigrid cycle. Second, to improve the coarse-grid-correction obtained in localized regions of high chemical activity, a modified defect correction procedure is devised, and successfully applied for the first time to simulate turbulent, combusting flows. The proposed modifications to the standard multigrid algorithm create a well-rounded and robust numerical method that provides accelerated convergence, while unconditionally preserving the positivity of model equation variables. Numerical simulations of various flows involving premixed combustion demonstrate that the proposed MG method increases the efficiency by a factor of up to eight times with respect to an equivalent single-grid method, and by two times with respect to an artificially-stabilized MG method.

Assessment of organic contaminants in emissions from refuse-derived fuel combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chrostowski, J.; Wait, D.; Kwong, E.

1985-09-01

Organic contaminants in emissions from refuse-derived fuel combustion were investigated in a 20-inch-diameter atmospheric fluidized-bed combustor. Combinations of coal/EcoFuel/MSW/toluene were burned inthe combustor with temperatures ranging from 1250 to 1550 degrees F. A Source Assessment Sampling System (SASS) was used to sample the stack gas; Level 1 methodology was used to analyze the organic-contaminant levels. Combustion efficiencies of 93 to 98 percent were achieved in the test burns. Combustion of the EcoFuel generated fewer organic emissions than combustion of coal at similar combustion temperatures. The fine particulate collected by the SASS train filter contained higher concentrations of extractable organics thanmore » the reactor fly ash and the SASS cyclone samples. Combustion of a toluene/EcoFuel mix generated a large number of benzene derivatives not seen in the combustion of pure EcoFuel. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were the dominant organic compounds contained in the XAD-2 resin extract from coal combustion. A number of different priority pollutants were identified in the samples collected.« less

CFD analysis of a rotary kiln using for plaster production and discussion of the effects of flue gas recirculation application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gürtürk, Mert; Oztop, Hakan F.; Pambudi, Nugroho Agung

2018-04-01

In this study, the CFD analysis of the rotary kiln is carried out for examining effects of various parameters on energy consumption and efficiency of the rotary kiln. The flue gas recirculation using in many applications is a useful method for combusting of fuel unburned in the flue gas. Also, effects of flue gas recirculation on the combusting of fuel, operating temperature and efficiency of the rotary kiln are discussed in this study. The rotary kiln, which is considered in this study, is used in plaster plant. Two different CFD models were created and these models are compared according to many parameters such as temperature distribution, mixture fraction, the mass fraction of O2, CO, CO and CH4 in the combustion chamber. It is found that the plaster plant has a great potential for an increase in energy efficiency. Results obtained for producers of rotary kiln and burner will be useful for determining better design parameters.

Fuel/oxidizer-rich high-pressure preburners. [staged-combustion rocket engine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schoenman, L.

1981-01-01

The analyses, designs, fabrication, and cold-flow acceptance testing of LOX/RP-1 preburner components required for a high-pressure staged-combustion rocket engine are discussed. Separate designs of injectors, combustion chambers, turbine simulators, and hot-gas mixing devices are provided for fuel-rich and oxidizer-rich operation. The fuel-rich design addresses the problem of non-equilibrium LOX/RP-1 combustion. The development and use of a pseudo-kinetic combustion model for predicting operating efficiency, physical properties of the combustion products, and the potential for generating solid carbon is presented. The oxygen-rich design addresses the design criteria for the prevention of metal ignition. This is accomplished by the selection of materials and the generation of well-mixed gases. The combining of unique propellant injector element designs with secondary mixing devices is predicted to be the best approach.

Engine combustion control at low loads via fuel reactivity stratification

DOEpatents

Reitz, Rolf Deneys; Hanson, Reed M; Splitter, Derek A; Kokjohn, Sage L

2014-10-07

A compression ignition (diesel) engine uses two or more fuel charges during a combustion cycle, with the fuel charges having two or more reactivities (e.g., different cetane numbers), in order to control the timing and duration of combustion. By appropriately choosing the reactivities of the charges, their relative amounts, and their timing, combustion can be tailored to achieve optimal power output (and thus fuel efficiency), at controlled temperatures (and thus controlled NOx), and with controlled equivalence ratios (and thus controlled soot). At low load and no load (idling) conditions, the aforementioned results are attained by restricting airflow to the combustion chamber during the intake stroke (as by throttling the incoming air at or prior to the combustion chamber's intake port) so that the cylinder air pressure is below ambient pressure at the start of the compression stroke.

An optical method for measuring exhaust gas pressure from an internal combustion engine at high speed

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leach, Felix C. P.; Davy, Martin H.; Siskin, Dmitrij; Pechstedt, Ralf; Richardson, David

2017-12-01

Measurement of exhaust gas pressure at high speed in an engine is important for engine efficiency, computational fluid dynamics analysis, and turbocharger matching. Currently used piezoresistive sensors are bulky, require cooling, and have limited lifetimes. A new sensor system uses an interferometric technique to measure pressure by measuring the size of an optical cavity, which varies with pressure due to movement of a diaphragm. This pressure measurement system has been used in gas turbine engines where the temperatures and pressures have no significant transients but has never been applied to an internal combustion engine before, an environment where both temperature and pressure can change rapidly. This sensor has been compared with a piezoresistive sensor representing the current state-of-the-art at three engine operating points corresponding to both light load and full load. The results show that the new sensor can match the measurements from the piezoresistive sensor except when there are fast temperature swings, so the latter part of the pressure during exhaust blowdown is only tracked with an offset. A modified sensor designed to compensate for these temperature effects is also tested. The new sensor has shown significant potential as a compact, durable sensor, which does not require external cooling.

An optical method for measuring exhaust gas pressure from an internal combustion engine at high speed.

PubMed

Leach, Felix C P; Davy, Martin H; Siskin, Dmitrij; Pechstedt, Ralf; Richardson, David

2017-12-01

Measurement of exhaust gas pressure at high speed in an engine is important for engine efficiency, computational fluid dynamics analysis, and turbocharger matching. Currently used piezoresistive sensors are bulky, require cooling, and have limited lifetimes. A new sensor system uses an interferometric technique to measure pressure by measuring the size of an optical cavity, which varies with pressure due to movement of a diaphragm. This pressure measurement system has been used in gas turbine engines where the temperatures and pressures have no significant transients but has never been applied to an internal combustion engine before, an environment where both temperature and pressure can change rapidly. This sensor has been compared with a piezoresistive sensor representing the current state-of-the-art at three engine operating points corresponding to both light load and full load. The results show that the new sensor can match the measurements from the piezoresistive sensor except when there are fast temperature swings, so the latter part of the pressure during exhaust blowdown is only tracked with an offset. A modified sensor designed to compensate for these temperature effects is also tested. The new sensor has shown significant potential as a compact, durable sensor, which does not require external cooling.

Laboratory measurements of emission factors of nonmethane volatile organic compounds from burning of Chinese crop residues

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Inomata, Satoshi; Tanimoto, Hiroshi; Pan, Xiaole; Taketani, Fumikazu; Komazaki, Yuichi; Miyakawa, Takuma; Kanaya, Yugo; Wang, Zifa

2015-05-01

The emission factors (EFs) of nonmethane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs) emitted during the burning of Chinese crop residue were investigated as a function of modified combustion efficiency in laboratory experiments. NMVOCs, including acetonitrile, aldehydes/ketones, furan, and aromatic hydrocarbons, were monitored by proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry. Rape plant was burned in dry conditions and wheat straw was burned in both wet and dry conditions to simulate the possible burning of damp crop residue in regions of high temperature and humidity. We compared the present data to field data reported by Kudo et al. (2014). Good agreement between field and laboratory data was obtained for aromatics under relatively more smoldering combustion of dry samples, but laboratory data were slightly overestimated compared to field data for oxygenated VOC (OVOC). When EFs from the burning of wet samples were investigated, the consistency between the field and laboratory data for OVOCs was stronger than for dry samples. This may be caused by residual moisture in crop residue that has been stockpiled in humid regions. Comparison of the wet laboratory data with field data suggests that Kudo et al. (2014) observed the biomass burning plumes under relatively more smoldering conditions in which approximately a few tens of percentages of burned fuel materials were wet.

Fluidized-bed combustion reduces atmospheric pollutants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jonke, A. A.

1972-01-01

Method of reducing sulfur and nitrogen oxides released during combustion of fossil fuels is described. Fuel is burned in fluidized bed of solids with simultaneous feeding of crushed or pulverized limestone to control emission. Process also offers high heat transfer rates and efficient contacting for gas-solid reactions.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

The Mira supercomputer at the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility helped Argonne researchers model what happens inside an engine when you use gasoline in a diesel engine. Engineers are exploring this type of combustion as a sustainable transportation option because it may be more efficient than traditional gasoline combustion engines but produce less soot than diesel.

40 CFR 97.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... any form of solid, liquid, or gaseous fuel derived from such material. Fossil fuel fired means, with... subpart H of this part. Boiler means an enclosed fossil or other fuel-fired combustion device used to... efficiency of electricity generation or steam production. Combustion turbine means an enclosed fossil or...

40 CFR 97.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... any form of solid, liquid, or gaseous fuel derived from such material. Fossil fuel fired means, with... subpart H of this part. Boiler means an enclosed fossil or other fuel-fired combustion device used to... efficiency of electricity generation or steam production. Combustion turbine means an enclosed fossil or...

40 CFR 97.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... any form of solid, liquid, or gaseous fuel derived from such material. Fossil fuel fired means, with... subpart H of this part. Boiler means an enclosed fossil or other fuel-fired combustion device used to... efficiency of electricity generation or steam production. Combustion turbine means an enclosed fossil or...

40 CFR 97.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... any form of solid, liquid, or gaseous fuel derived from such material. Fossil fuel fired means, with... subpart H of this part. Boiler means an enclosed fossil or other fuel-fired combustion device used to... efficiency of electricity generation or steam production. Combustion turbine means an enclosed fossil or...

40 CFR 97.2 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... any form of solid, liquid, or gaseous fuel derived from such material. Fossil fuel fired means, with... subpart H of this part. Boiler means an enclosed fossil or other fuel-fired combustion device used to... efficiency of electricity generation or steam production. Combustion turbine means an enclosed fossil or...

Simulation of fluidized bed combustors. I - Combustion efficiency and temperature profile. [for coal-fired gas turbines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Horio, M.; Wen, C. Y.

1976-01-01

A chemical engineering analysis is made of fluidized-bed combustor (FBC) performance, with FBC models developed to aid estimation of combustion efficiency and axial temperature profiles. The FBC is intended for combustion of pulverized coal and a pressurized FBC version is intended for firing gas turbines by burning coal. Transport phenomena are analyzed at length: circulation, mixing models, drifting, bubble wake lift, heat transfer, division of the FB reactor into idealized mixing cells. Some disadvantages of a coal FBC are pointed out: erosion of immersed heat-transfer tubing, complex feed systems, carryover of unburned coal particles, high particulate emission in off-streams. The low-temperature bed (800-950 C) contains limestone, and flue-gas-entrained SO2 and NOx can be kept within acceptable limits.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dernotte, Jeremie; Dec, John E.; Ji, Chunsheng

A detailed understanding of the various factors affecting the trends in gross-indicated thermal efficiency with changes in key operating parameters has been carried out, applied to a one-liter displacement single-cylinder boosted Low-Temperature Gasoline Combustion (LTGC) engine. This work systematically investigates how the supplied fuel energy splits into the following four energy pathways: gross-indicated thermal efficiency, combustion inefficiency, heat transfer and exhaust losses, and how this split changes with operating conditions. Additional analysis is performed to determine the influence of variations in the ratio of specific heat capacities (γ) and the effective expansion ratio, related to the combustion-phasing retard (CA50), onmore » the energy split. Heat transfer and exhaust losses are computed using multiple standard cycle analysis techniques. Furthermore, the various methods are evaluated in order to validate the trends.« less

Microgravity

NASA Image and Video Library

1997-11-01

The goal of the ELF investigation is to improve our fundamental understanding of the effects of the flow environment on flame stability. The flame's stability refers to the position of its base and ultimately its continued existence. Combustion research focuses on understanding the important hidden processes of ignitions, flame spreading, and flame extinction. Understanding these processes will directly affect the efficiency of combustion operations in converting chemical energy to heat and will create a more balanced ecology and healthy environment by reducing pollutants emitted during combustion.

Combustion characteristics of the LO2/GCH4 fuel-rich preburners for staged combustion cycle rocket engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ono, Fumiei; Tamura, Hiroshi; Sakamoto, Hiroshi; Sasaki, Masaki

1991-09-01

The combustion characteristics of Liquid Oxygen (LO2)/Gaseous Methane (GCH4) fuel rich preburners were experimentally studied using subscale hardware. Three types of preburners with coaxial type propellant injection elements were designed and fabricated, and were used for hot fire testing. LO2 was used as oxidizer, and GCH4 at room temperature was used as fuel. The tests were conducted at chamber pressures ranging from 6.7 to 11.9 M Pa, and oxidizer to fuel ratios ranged from 0.16 to 0.42. The test results, which include combustion gas temperature T(sub c), characteristic velocity C(sup *) and soot adhesion data, are presented. The T(sub c) efficiency and the C(sup *) efficiency were found to be a function of oxidizer to fuel ratio and chamber pressure. These efficiencies are correlated by an empirical correlation parameter which accounts for the effects of oxidizer to fuel ratio and chamber pressure. The exhaust plumes were colorless and transparent under all tests conditions. There was some soot adhesion to the chamber wall, but no soot adhesion was observed on the main injector simulator orifices. Higher temperature igniter gas was required to ignite the main propellants of the preburner compared with that of the LO2/Gaseous Hydrogen (GH2) propellants combination.

Process aspects in combustion and gasification Waste-to-Energy (WtE) units.

PubMed

Leckner, Bo

2015-03-01

The utilisation of energy in waste, Waste to Energy (WtE), has become increasingly important. Waste is a wide concept, and to focus, the feedstock dealt with here is mostly municipal solid waste. It is found that combustion in grate-fired furnaces is by far the most common mode of fuel conversion compared to fluidized beds and rotary furnaces. Combinations of pyrolysis in rotary furnace or gasification in fluidized or fixed bed with high-temperature combustion are applied particularly in Japan in systems whose purpose is to melt ashes and destroy dioxins. Recently, also in Japan more emphasis is put on WtE. In countries with high heat demand, WtE in the form of heat and power can be quite efficient even in simple grate-fired systems, whereas in warm regions only electricity is generated, and for this product the efficiency of boilers (the steam data) is limited by corrosion from the flue gas. However, combination of cleaned gas from gasification with combustion provides a means to enhance the efficiency of electricity production considerably. Finally, the impact of sorting on the properties of the waste to be fed to boilers or gasifiers is discussed. The description intends to be general, but examples are mostly taken from Europe. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Diesel engine emissions reduction by multiple injections having increasing pressure

DOEpatents

Reitz, Rolf D.; Thiel, Matthew P.

2003-01-01

Multiple fuel charges are injected into a diesel engine combustion chamber during a combustion cycle, and each charge after the first has successively greater injection pressure (a higher injection rate) than the prior charge. This injection scheme results in reduced emissions, particularly particulate emissions, and can be implemented by modifying existing injection system hardware. Further enhancements in emissions reduction and engine performance can be obtained by using known measures in conjunction with the invention, such as Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR).

Staged, High-Pressure Oxy-Combustion Technology: Development and Scale-Up

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Axelbaum, Richard; Xia, Fei; Gopan, Akshay

Washington University in St. Louis and its project partners are developing a unique pressurized oxy-combustion process that aims to improve efficiency and costs by reducing the recycling of flue gas to near zero. Normally, in the absence of recycled flue gas or another inert gas, combustion of fuel and oxygen results in a dramatic increase in temperature of the combustion products and radiant energy, as compared to combustion in air. High heat flux to the boiler tubes may result in a tube surface temperatures that exceed safe operating limits. In the Staged Pressurized Oxy-Combustion (SPOC) process, this problem is addressedmore » by staging the delivery of fuel and by novel combustion design that allows control of heat flux. In addition, the main mode of heat transfer to the steam cycle is by radiation, as opposed to convection. Therefore, the requirement for recycling large amounts of flue gas, for temperature control or to improve convective heat transfer, is eliminated, resulting in a reduction in auxiliary loads. The following report contains a detailed summary of scientific findings and accomplishments for the period of Oct. 1, 2013 to Sept 30, 2014. Results of ASPEN process and CFD modelling activities aimed at improving the SPOC process and boiler design are presented. The effects of combustion pressure and fuel moisture on the plant efficiency are discussed. Combustor pressure is found to have only a minor impact beyond 16 bar. For fuels with moisture content greater than approx 30%, e.g. coal/water slurries, the amount of latent heat of condensation exceeds that which can be utilized in the steam cycle and plant efficiency is reduced significantly. An improved boiler design is presented that achieves a more uniform heat flux profile. In addition, a fundamental study of radiation in high-temperature, high-pressure, particle-laden flows is summarized which provides a more complete understanding of heat transfer in these unusual conditions and to allow for optimization. The results reveal that for the SPOC design, absorption and emission due to particles is the dominant factor for determining the wall heat flux. The mechanism of “radiative trapping” of energy within the high-temperature flame region and the approach to utilizing this mechanism to control wall heat flux are described. This control arises, by design, from the highly non-uniform (non-premixed) combustion characteristics within the SPOC boiler, and the resulting gradients in temperature and particle concentration. Finally, a simple method for estimating the wall heat flux in pressurized combustion systems is presented.« less

Control Strategies for HCCI Mixed-Mode Combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wagner, Robert M; Edwards, Kevin Dean

2010-03-01

Delphi Automotive Systems and ORNL established this CRADA to expand the operational range of Homogenous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) mixed-mode combustion for gasoline en-gines. ORNL has extensive experience in the analysis, interpretation, and control of dynamic engine phenomena, and Delphi has extensive knowledge and experience in powertrain compo-nents and subsystems. The partnership of these knowledge bases was important to address criti-cal barriers associated with the realistic implementation of HCCI and enabling clean, efficient operation for the next generation of transportation engines. The foundation of this CRADA was established through the analysis of spark-assisted HCCI data from a single-cylinder research engine.more » This data was used to (1) establish a conceptual kinetic model to better understand and predict the development of combustion instabilities, (2) develop a low-order model framework suitable for real-time controls, and (3) provide guidance in the initial definition of engine valve strategies for achieving HCCI operation. The next phase focused on the development of a new combustion metric for real-time characterization of the combustion process. Rapid feedback on the state of the combustion process is critical to high-speed decision making for predictive control. Simultaneous to the modeling/analysis studies, Delphi was focused on the development of engine hardware and the engine management system. This included custom Delphi hardware and control systems allowing for flexible control of the valvetrain sys-tem to enable HCCI operation. The final phase of this CRADA included the demonstration of conventional and spark assisted HCCI on the multi-cylinder engine as well as the characterization of combustion instabilities, which govern the operational boundaries of this mode of combustion. ORNL and Delphi maintained strong collaboration throughout this project. Meetings were held on a bi-weekly basis with additional reports, presentation, and meetings as necessary to maintain progress. Delphi provided substantial support through modeling, hardware, data exchange, and technical consultation. This CRADA was also successful at establishing important next steps to further expanding the use of an HCCI engine for improved fuel efficiency and emissions. These topics will be address in a follow-on CRADA. The objectives are: (1) Improve fundamental understanding of the development of combustion instabilities with HCCI operation through modeling and experiments; (2) Develop low-order model and feedback combustion metrics which are well suited to real-time predictive controls; and (3) Construct multi-cylinder engine system with advanced Delphi technologies and charac-terize HCCI behavior to better understand limitations and opportunities for expanded high-efficiency operation.« less

Device Scale Modeling of Solvent Absorption using MFIX-TFM

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Carney, Janine E.; Finn, Justin R.

Recent climate change is largely attributed to greenhouse gases (e.g., carbon dioxide, methane) and fossil fuels account for a large majority of global CO 2 emissions. That said, fossil fuels will continue to play a significant role in the generation of power for the foreseeable future. The extent to which CO 2 is emitted needs to be reduced, however, carbon capture and sequestration are also necessary actions to tackle climate change. Different approaches exist for CO 2 capture including both post-combustion and pre-combustion technologies, oxy-fuel combustion and/or chemical looping combustion. The focus of this effort is on post-combustion solvent-absorption technology.more » To apply CO 2 technologies at commercial scale, the availability and maturity and the potential for scalability of that technology need to be considered. Solvent absorption is a proven technology but not at the scale needed by typical power plant. The scale up and down and design of laboratory and commercial packed bed reactors depends heavily on the specific knowledge of two-phase pressure drop, liquid holdup, the wetting efficiency and mass transfer efficiency as a function of operating conditions. Simple scaling rules often fail to provide proper design. Conventional reactor design modeling approaches will generally characterize complex non-ideal flow and mixing patterns using simplified and/or mechanistic flow assumptions. While there are varying levels of complexity used within these approaches, none of these models resolve the local velocity fields. Consequently, they are unable to account for important design factors such as flow maldistribution and channeling from a fundamental perspective. Ideally design would be aided by development of predictive models based on truer representation of the physical and chemical processes that occur at different scales. Computational fluid dynamic (CFD) models are based on multidimensional flow equations with first principle foundations. CFD models can include a more accurate physical description of flow processes and be modified to include more complex behavior. Wetting performance and spatial liquid distribution inside the absorber are recognized as weak areas of knowledge requiring further investigation. CFD tools offer a possible method to investigating such topics and gaining a better understanding of their influence on reactor performance. This report focuses first on describing a hydrodynamic model for countercurrent gas-liquid flow through a packed column and then on the chemistry, heat and mass transfer specific to CO 2 absorption using monoethanolamine (MEA). The indicated model is implemented in MFIX, a CFD open source software package. The user defined functions needed to build this model are described in detail along with the keywords for the corresponding input file. A test case is outlined along with a few results. The example serves to briefly illustrate the developed CFD tool and its potential capability to investigate solvent absorption.« less

Fast and slow active control of combustion instabilities in liquid-fueled combustors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Jae-Yeon

This thesis describes an experimental investigation of two different novel active control approaches that are employed to suppress combustion instabilities in liquid-fueled combustors. A "fast" active controller requires continuous modulation of the fuel injection rate at the frequency of the instability with proper phase and gain. Use of developed optical tools reveals that the "fast" active control system suppresses the instability by changing the nearly flat distribution of the phase between pressure and heat release oscillations to a gradually varying phase distribution, thus dividing the combustion zone into regions that alternately damp and drive combustor oscillations. The effects of these driving/damping regions tend to counter one another, which result in significant damping of the unstable oscillations. In contrast, a "slow" active controller operates at a rate commensurate with that at which operating conditions change during combustor operation. Consequently, "slow" controllers need infrequent activation in response to changes in engine operating conditions to assure stable operation at all times. Using two types of fuel injectors that can produce large controllable variation of fuel spray properties, it is shown that by changing the spray characteristics it is possible to significantly damp combustion instabilities. Similar to the aforementioned result of the "fast" active control study, "slow" change of the fuel spray properties also modifies the nearly flat phase distribution during unstable operation to a gradually varying phase distribution, resulting in combustor "stabilization". Furthermore, deconvolutions of CH*-chemiluminescence images reveal the presence of vortex-flame interaction during unstable operation. Strong driving of instabilities occurs where the mean axial velocity of the flow is approximately zero, a short distance downstream of the flame holder where a significant fraction of the fuel burns in phase with the pressure oscillations. It is shown that the "fast" and "slow" active control approaches suppress combustion instabilities in a different manner. Nevertheless, the both control approaches successfully suppress combustion instabilities by modifying the temporal and spatial behavior of the combustion process heat release that is responsible for driving the instability.

Pyrogasification of blended animal manures to produce combustable gas and biochar

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficiency of a skid-mounted pyrogasificaiton system for producing combustible gas from from animal manures: chicken litter, swine solids, and swine solids blended with rye grass. The skid-mounted pyrolysis system by the US Innovation Group, Inc. (USIG,...

Effect of oxy-combustion flue gas on mercury oxidation.

PubMed

Fernández-Miranda, Nuria; Lopez-Anton, M Antonia; Díaz-Somoano, Mercedes; Martínez-Tarazona, M Rosa

2014-06-17

This study evaluates the effect of the gases present in a typical oxy-coal combustion atmosphere on mercury speciation and compares it with the mercury speciation produced in conventional air combustion atmospheres. The work was performed at laboratory scale at 150 °C. It was found that the minor constituents (SO2, NOx, and HCl) significantly modify the percentages of Hg(2+) in the gas. The influence of these species on mercury oxidation was demostrated when they were tested individually and also when they were blended in different gas compositions, although the effect was different to the sum of their individual effects. Of the minor constituents, NOx were the main species involved in oxidation of mercury. Moreover, it was found that a large concentration of H2O vapor also plays an important role in mercury oxidation. Around 50% of the total mercury was oxidized in atmospheres with H2O vapor concentrations typical of oxy-combustion conditions. When the atmospheres have similar concentrations of SO2, NO, NO2, HCl, and H2O, the proportion of Hg(0)/Hg(2+) is similar regardless of whether CO2 (oxy-fuel combustion) or N2 (air combustion) are the main components of the gas.

Flame blowout and pollutant emissions in vitiated combustion of conventional and bio-derived fuels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, Bhupinder

The widening gap between the demand and supply of fossil fuels has catalyzed the exploration of alternative sources of energy. Interest in the power, water extraction and refrigeration (PoWER) cycle, proposed by the University of Florida, as well as the desirability of using biofuels in distributed generation systems, has motivated the exploration of biofuel vitiated combustion. The PoWER cycle is a novel engine cycle concept that utilizes vitiation of the air stream with externally-cooled recirculated exhaust gases at an intermediate pressure in a semi-closed cycle (SCC) loop, lowering the overall temperature of combustion. It has several advantages including fuel flexibility, reduced air flow, lower flame temperature, compactness, high efficiency at full and part load, and low emissions. Since the core engine air stream is vitiated with the externally cooled exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) stream, there is an inherent reduction in the combustion stability for a PoWER engine. The effect of EGR flow and temperature on combustion blowout stability and emissions during vitiated biofuel combustion has been characterized. The vitiated combustion performance of biofuels methyl butanoate, dimethyl ether, and ethanol have been compared with n-heptane, and varying compositions of syngas with methane fuel. In addition, at high levels of EGR a sharp reduction in the flame luminosity has been observed in our experimental tests, indicating the onset of flameless combustion. This drop in luminosity may be a result of inhibition of processes leading to the formation of radiative soot particles. One of the objectives of this study is finding the effect of EGR on soot formation, with the ultimate objective of being able to predict the boundaries of flameless combustion. Detailed chemical kinetic simulations were performed using a constant-pressure continuously stirred tank reactor (CSTR) network model developed using the Cantera combustion code, implemented in C++. Results have been presented showing comparative trends in pollutant emissions generation, flame blowout stability, and combustion efficiency. (Full text of this dissertation may be available via the University of Florida Libraries web site. Please check http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/etd.html)

The scaling of performance and losses in miniature internal combustion engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Menon, Shyam Kumar

Miniature glow ignition internal combustion (IC) piston engines are an off--the--shelf technology that could dramatically increase the endurance of miniature electric power supplies and the range and endurance of small unmanned air vehicles provided their overall thermodynamic efficiencies can be increased to 15% or better. This thesis presents the first comprehensive analysis of small (<500 g) piston engine performance. A unique dynamometer system is developed that is capable of making reliable measurements of engine performance and losses in these small engines. Methodologies are also developed for measuring volumetric, heat transfer, exhaust, mechanical, and combustion losses. These instruments and techniques are used to investigate the performance of seven single-cylinder, two-stroke, glow fueled engines ranging in size from 15 to 450 g (0.16 to 7.5 cm3 displacement). Scaling rules for power output, overall efficiency, and normalized power are developed from the data. These will be useful to developers of micro-air vehicles and miniature power systems. The data show that the minimum length scale of a thermodynamically viable piston engine based on present technology is approximately 3 mm. Incomplete combustion is the most important challenge as it accounts for 60-70% of total energy losses. Combustion losses are followed in order of importance by heat transfer, sensible enthalpy, and friction. A net heat release analysis based on in-cylinder pressure measurements suggest that a two--stage combustion process occurs at low engine speeds and equivalence ratios close to 1. Different theories based on burning mode and reaction kinetics are proposed to explain the observed results. High speed imaging of the combustion chamber suggests that a turbulent premixed flame with its origin in the vicinity of the glow plug is the primary driver of combustion. Placing miniature IC engines on a turbulent combustion regime diagram shows that they operate in the 'flamelet in eddy' regime whereas conventional--scale engines operate mostly in the 'wrinkled laminar flame sheet' regime. Taken together, the results show that the combustion process is the key obstacle to realizing the potential of small IC engines. Overcoming this obstacle will require new diagnostic techniques, measurements, combustion models, and high temperature materials.

The Effect of Ethanol Addition to Gasoline on Low- and Intermediate-Temperature Heat Release under Boosted Conditions in Kinetically Controlled Engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vuilleumier, David Malcolm

The detailed study of chemical kinetics in engines has become required to further advance engine efficiency while simultaneously lowering engine emissions. This push for higher efficiency engines is not caused by a lack of oil, but by efforts to reduce anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions, that cause global warming. To operate in more efficient manners while reducing traditional pollutant emissions, modern internal combustion piston engines are forced to operate in regimes in which combustion is no longer fully transport limited, and instead is at least partially governed by chemical kinetics of combusting mixtures. Kinetically-controlled combustion allows the operation of piston engines at high compression ratios, with partially-premixed dilute charges; these operating conditions simultaneously provide high thermodynamic efficiency and low pollutant formation. The investigations presented in this dissertation study the effect of ethanol addition on the low-temperature chemistry of gasoline type fuels in engines. These investigations are carried out both in a simplified, fundamental engine experiment, named Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition, as well as in more applied engine systems, named Gasoline Compression Ignition engines and Partial Fuel Stratification engines. These experimental investigations, and the accompanying modeling work, show that ethanol is an effective scavenger of radicals at low temperatures, and this inhibits the low temperature pathways of gasoline oxidation. Further, the investigations measure the sensitivity of gasoline auto-ignition to system pressure at conditions that are relevant to modern engines. It is shown that at pressures above 40 bar and temperatures below 850 Kelvin, gasoline begins to exhibit Low-Temperature Heat Release. However, the addition of 20% ethanol raises the pressure requirement to 60 bar, while the temperature requirement remains unchanged. These findings have major implications for a range of modern engines. Low-Temperature Heat Release significantly enhances the auto-ignition process, which limits the conditions under which advanced combustion strategies may operate. As these advanced combustion strategies are required to meet emissions and fuel-economy regulations, the findings of this dissertation may benefit and be incorporated into future engine design toolkits, such as detailed chemical kinetic mechanisms.

Combustion Dynamics and Control for Ultra Low Emissions in Aircraft Gas-Turbine Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DeLaat, John C.

2011-01-01

Future aircraft engines must provide ultra-low emissions and high efficiency at low cost while maintaining the reliability and operability of present day engines. The demands for increased performance and decreased emissions have resulted in advanced combustor designs that are critically dependent on efficient fuel/air mixing and lean operation. However, all combustors, but most notably lean-burning low-emissions combustors, are susceptible to combustion instabilities. These instabilities are typically caused by the interaction of the fluctuating heat release of the combustion process with naturally occurring acoustic resonances. These interactions can produce large pressure oscillations within the combustor and can reduce component life and potentially lead to premature mechanical failures. Active Combustion Control which consists of feedback-based control of the fuel-air mixing process can provide an approach to achieving acceptable combustor dynamic behavior while minimizing emissions, and thus can provide flexibility during the combustor design process. The NASA Glenn Active Combustion Control Technology activity aims to demonstrate active control in a realistic environment relevant to aircraft engines by providing experiments tied to aircraft gas turbine combustors. The intent is to allow the technology maturity of active combustion control to advance to eventual demonstration in an engine environment. Work at NASA Glenn has shown that active combustion control, utilizing advanced algorithms working through high frequency fuel actuation, can effectively suppress instabilities in a combustor which emulates the instabilities found in an aircraft gas turbine engine. Current efforts are aimed at extending these active control technologies to advanced ultra-low-emissions combustors such as those employing multi-point lean direct injection.

Automotive Stirling engine system component review

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hindes, Chip; Stotts, Robert

1987-01-01

The design and testing of the power and combustion control system for the basic Stirling engine, Mod II, are examined. The power control system is concerned with transparent operation, and the Mod II uses engine working gas pressure variation to control the power output of the engine. The main components of the power control system, the power control valve, the pump-down system, and the hydrogen stable system, are described. The combustion control system consists of a combustion air supply system and an air/fuel ratio control system, and the system is to maintain constant heater head temperature, and to maximize combustion efficiency and to minimize exhaust emissions.

Trace gas emissions from chaparral and boreal forest fires

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cofer, Wesley R., III; Levine, Joel S.; Sebacher, Daniel I.; Winstead, Edward L.; Riggan, Philip J.; Stocks, Brian J.; Brass, James A.; Ambrosia, Vincent G.

1989-01-01

Using smoke samples collected during low-level helicopter flights, the mixing ratios of CO2, CO, CH4, total nonmethane hydrocarbons, H2, and N2O over burning chaparral in southern California and over a burning boreal forest site in northern Ontario, Canada, were determined. Carbon dioxide-normalized emission ratios were determined for each trace gas for conditions of flaming, mixed, and smoldering combustion. The emission ratios for these trace gases were found to be highest for the smoldering combustion, generally thought to be the least efficient combustion stage. However, high emission ratios for these gases could be also produced during very vigorous flaming combustion.

Computational fluid dynamics combustion analysis evaluation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Y. M.; Shang, H. M.; Chen, C. P.; Ziebarth, J. P.

1992-01-01

This study involves the development of numerical modelling in spray combustion. These modelling efforts are mainly motivated to improve the computational efficiency in the stochastic particle tracking method as well as to incorporate the physical submodels of turbulence, combustion, vaporization, and dense spray effects. The present mathematical formulation and numerical methodologies can be casted in any time-marching pressure correction methodologies (PCM) such as FDNS code and MAST code. A sequence of validation cases involving steady burning sprays and transient evaporating sprays will be included.

Numerical Investigation of Hydrogen and Kerosene Combustion in Supersonic Air Streams

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Taha, A. A.; Tiwari, S. N.; Mohieldin, T. O.

1999-01-01

The effect of mixing schemes on the combustion of both gaseous hydrogen and liquid kerosene is investigated. Injecting pilot gaseous hydrogen parallel to the supersonic incoming air tends to maintain the stabilization of the main liquid kerosene, which is normally injected. Also the maximum kerosene equivalence ratio that can maintain stable flame can be increased by increasing the pilot energy level. The wedge flame holding contributes to an increased kerosene combustion efficiency by the generation of shock-jet interaction.

Combustion Characteristics of Nanoaluminum, Liquid Water, and Hydrogen Peroxide Mixtures

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-01-01

Sabourin a, Richard A. Yetter a, Grant A. Risha b, Steven F. Son c and B. C. Tappan d a The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA b...www.elsevier.com/locate/combustflame Combustion characteristics of nanoaluminum, liquid water, and hydrogen peroxide mixtures J.L. Sabourin a,∗, G.A. Risha b...Efficiency* Corresponding author. Fax: +1 (814) 865 3389. E-mail address: jls861@psu.edu (J.L. Sabourin ).0010-2180/$ – see front matter © 2008 The Combustion

Research on the influence of ozone dissolved in the fuel-water emulsion on the parameters of the CI engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wojs, M. K.; Orliński, P.; Kamela, W.; Kruczyński, P.

2016-09-01

The article presents the results of empirical research on the impact of ozone dissolved in fuel-water emulsion on combustion process and concentration of toxic substances in CI engine. The effect of ozone presence in the emulsion and its influence on main engine characteristics (power, torque, fuel consumption) and selected parameters that characterize combustion process (levels of pressures and temperatures in combustion chamber, period of combustion delay, heat release rate, fuel burnt rate) is shown. The change in concentration of toxic components in exhausts gases when engine is fueled with ozonized emulsion was also identified. The empirical research and their analysis showed significant differences in the combustion process when fuel-water emulsion containing ozone was used. These differences include: increased power and efficiency of the engine that are accompanied by reduction in time of combustion delay and beneficial effects of ozone on HC, PM, CO and NOX emissions.

An Extended Combustion Model for the Aircraft Turbojet Engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rotaru, Constantin; Andres-Mihăilă, Mihai; Matei, Pericle Gabriel

2014-08-01

The paper consists in modelling and simulation of the combustion in a turbojet engine in order to find optimal characteristics of the burning process and the optimal shape of combustion chambers. The main focus of this paper is to find a new configuration of the aircraft engine combustion chambers, namely an engine with two main combustion chambers, one on the same position like in classical configuration, between compressor and turbine and the other, placed behind the turbine but not performing the role of the afterburning. This constructive solution could allow a lower engine rotational speed, a lower temperature in front of the first stage of the turbine and the possibility to increase the turbine pressure ratio by extracting the flow stream after turbine in the inner nozzle. Also, a higher thermodynamic cycle efficiency and thrust in comparison to traditional constant-pressure combustion gas turbine engines could be obtained.

A Study on Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition Gasoline Engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaneko, Makoto; Morikawa, Koji; Itoh, Jin; Saishu, Youhei

A new engine concept consisting of HCCI combustion for low and midrange loads and spark ignition combustion for high loads was introduced. The timing of the intake valve closing was adjusted to alter the negative valve overlap and effective compression ratio to provide suitable HCCI conditions. The effect of mixture formation on auto-ignition was also investigated using a direct injection engine. As a result, HCCI combustion was achieved with a relatively low compression ratio when the intake air was heated by internal EGR. The resulting combustion was at a high thermal efficiency, comparable to that of modern diesel engines, and produced almost no NOx emissions or smoke. The mixture stratification increased the local A/F concentration, resulting in higher reactivity. A wide range of combustible A/F ratios was used to control the compression ignition timing. Photographs showed that the flame filled the entire chamber during combustion, reducing both emissions and fuel consumption.

Test results of low NO(x) catalytic combustors for gas turbines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ozawa, Y.; Hirano, J.; Sato, M.; Saiga, M.; Watanabe, S.

1994-07-01

Catalytic combustion is an ultralow NO(x) combustion method, so it is expected that this method will be applied to a gas turbine combustor. However, it is difficult to develop a catalytic combustor because catalytic reliability at high temperature is still insufficient. To overcome this difficulty, we designed a catalytic combust gas at a combustion temperature of 1300 C while keeping the catalytic temperature below 1000 C. After performing preliminary tests using LPG, we designed two types of combustor for natural gas with a capacity equivalent to one combustor used in a 20 MW class multican-type gas turbine. Combustion tests were conducted at atmospheric pressure using natural gas. As a result, it was confirmed that a combustor in which catalytic combustor segments were arranged alternately with premixing nozzles could achieve low NO(x) and high combustion efficiency in the range from 1000 C to 1300 C of the combustor exit gas temperature.

Analysis of effect of flameholder characteristics on lean, premixed, partially vaporized fuel-air mixtures quality and nitrogen oxides emissions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cooper, L. P.

1981-01-01

An analysis was conducted of the effect of flameholding devices on the precombustion fuel-air characteristics and on oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions for combustion of premixed partially vaporized mixtures. The analysis includes the interrelationships of flameholder droplet collection efficiency, reatomization efficiency and blockage, and the initial droplet size distribution and accounts for the contribution of droplet combustion in partially vaporized mixtures to NOx emissions. Application of the analytical procedures is illustrated and parametric predictions of NOx emissions are presented.

In-water gas combustion for thrust production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teslenko, V. S.; Drozhzhin, A. P.; Medvedev, R. N.

2017-07-01

The paper presents the results of experimental study for hydrodynamic processes occurring during combustion of a stoichiometric mixture propane-oxygen in combustion chambers with different configurations and submerged into water. The pulses of force acting upon a thrust wall were measured for different geometries: cylindrical, conic, hemispherical, including the case of gas combustion near a flat thrust wall. After a single charge of stoichiometric mixture propane-oxygen is burnt near the thrust wall, the process of cyclic generation of force pulses develops. The first pulse is generated due to pressure growth during gas combustion, and the following pulses are the result of hydrodynamic pulsations of the gaseous cavity. Experiments demonstrated that efficient generation of thrust occurs if all bubble pulsations are used during combustion of a single gas combustion. In the series of experiments, the specific impulse on the thrust wall was in the range 104-105 s (105-106 m/s) with account for positive and negative components of impulse.

Effect of Structural Parameters on the Combustion Performance of Platelet Engines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Yin; Liu, Weiqiang

2017-12-01

Numerical simulation was adopted to determine its flow and combustion characteristics by using gaseous methane and oxygen as the main propellants, the effects of nozzle space and expanding angle are examined for the single element splash platelet injector. Navier-Stokes (N-S) equations were solved for the gas-gas flow field with a reduced mechanism involving 9 species and 1 reaction. Results indicated that large corner recirculation zones are produced in the combustor head. This phenomenon consequently enhances mixing and stabilizes combustion, but non-uniformity in temperature contour is observed in the combustor head. Recirculation zone decreases as nozzle space increases, which induces the decrease of maximum temperature and high temperature regions, but it has little influence on the combustion efficiency and combustion length. The combustion length and maximum temperature decrease initially and then increase as expanding angle increases. Conversely, a D value of 2.4 mm and γ value of 60° are selected for the future works because of the shortest combustion length and minimum temperature of the injector faceplate.

Overview of IEA biomass combustion activities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hustad, J. E.

1994-07-01

The objectives of the International Energy Agency (IEA) bioenergy program are: (1) to encourage cooperative research, development and use of energy and the increased utilization of alternatives to oil; and (2) to establish increased program and project cooperation between participants in the whole field of bioenergy. There are four Task Annexes to the Implementing Agreement during the period 1992-1994: Efficient and Environmentally Sound Biomass Production Systems; Harvesting and Supply of Woody Biomass for Energy; Biomass Utilization; and Conversion of Municipal Solid Waste Feedstock to Energy. The report describes the following biomass combustion activities during the period 1992-1994: Round robin test of a wood stove; Emissions from biomass combustion; A pilot project cofiring biomass with oil to reduce SO2 emissions; Small scale biomass chip handling; Energy from contaminated wood waste combustion; Modeling of biomass combustion; Wood chip cogeneration; Combustion of wet biomass feedstocks, ash reinjection and carbon burnout; Oxidation of wet biomass; Catalytic combustion in small wood burning appliances; Characterization of biomass fuels and ashes; Measurement techniques (FTIR).

Vertical feed stick wood fuel burning furnace system

DOEpatents

Hill, Richard C.

1984-01-01

A new and improved stove or furnace for efficient combustion of wood fuel including a vertical feed combustion chamber for receiving and supporting wood fuel in a vertical attitude or stack, a major upper portion of the combustion chamber column comprising a water jacket for coupling to a source of water or heat transfer fluid and for convection circulation of the fluid for confining the locus of wood fuel combustion to the bottom of the vertical gravity feed combustion chamber. A flue gas propagation delay channel extending from the laterally directed draft outlet affords delayed travel time in a high temperature environment to assure substantially complete combustion of the gaseous products of wood burning with forced air as an actively induced draft draws the fuel gas and air mixture laterally through the combustion and high temperature zone. Active sources of forced air and induced draft are included, multiple use and circuit couplings for the recovered heat, and construction features in the refractory material substructure and metal component superstructure.

Japanese RDF-fired power generation system and fundamental research on RDF combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Narukawa, Kimihito; Goto, Hidenori; Chen, Y.

1997-12-31

Power generation from refuse derived fuel (RDF) is one of the new technologies for municipal solid waste (MSW) management. This technology is strongly attracting the attention of the Japanese government. The results of a feasibility study of this system in Japan is presented. To develop this highly efficient RDF-fired CFB generating process, combustibility and dechlorination characteristics of RDF were investigated by both the thermo-balance technique and combustion tests with an electric furnace. RDF combustion tests by a bench scale CFBC were carried out and then the following experimental results were obtained: (1) RDF can be combusted almost completely even inmore » small scale CFBC; (2) HCl and N{sub 2}O emissions are quite low at any conditions; and (3) NO{sub x} emissions are a little higher in single stage combustion, however they are reduced at 50% air bias ratio. Some of the results can be explained by a RDF combustion model.« less

Study on the valorization routes of ashes from thermoelectric power plants working under mono-and co-combustion regimes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barbosa, Rui Pedro Fernandes

The main objective of this thesis was to study new valorization routes of ashes produced in combustion and co-combustion processes. Three main valorization pathways were analyzed: (i)production of cement mortars, (ii) production of concretes, and (iii) use as chemical agents to remove contaminants from wastewaters. Firstly, the ashes produced during the mono-combustion of coal, co-combustion of coal and meat and bone meal (MBM), and mono-combustion of MBM were characterized. The aim of this study was to understand the ashes properties in extreme levels of substitution of coal by a residue with a high contamination of specific metals. The substitution of coal by MBM produced ashes with higher content of heavy metals. Secondly, the ashes coming from an industrial power plant working under mono-combustion(coal) and co-combustion conditions (coal+sewage sludge+MBM) were studied. The use of cofuels did not promote significant changes in the chemical and ecotoxicological properties of ashes. Fly ashes were successfully stabilized/solidified in cement mortar, and bottom and circulating ashes were successfully used as raw materials in concrete. The third step involved the characterization and valorization of biomass ashes resulting from the combustion of forestry residues. The highest concentrations of metals/metalloids were found in the lowest particle size fractions of ashes. Biomass ashes successfully substituted cement and natural aggregates in concretes, without compromising their mechanical, chemical, and ecotoxicological properties. Finally, the biomass ashes were tested as chemical agents to remove contaminants from wastewaters. The removal of P, mainly phosphates, and Pb from wastewaters was assayed. Biomass ashes presented a high capacity to remove phosphates. As fly ashes were more efficient in removing phosphates, they were further used to remove Pb from wastewaters. Again, they presented a high efficiency in Pb removal. New potential valorization routes for these ashes are now opened, contributing to improve their valorization rates.

Synthesis of functional materials in combustion reactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhuravlev, V. D.; Bamburov, V. G.; Ermakova, L. V.; Lobachevskaya, N. I.

2015-12-01

The conditions for obtaining oxide compounds in combustion reactions of nitrates of metals with organic chelating-reducing agents such as amino acids, urea, and polyvinyl alcohol are reviewed. Changing the nature of internal fuels and the reducing agent-to-oxidizing agent ratio makes possible to modify the thermal regime of the process, fractal dimensionality, morphology, and dispersion of synthesized functional materials. This method can be used to synthesize simple and complex oxides, composites, and metal powders, as well as ceramics and coatings. The possibilities of synthesis in combustion reactions are illustrated by examples of αand γ-Al2O3, YSZ composites, uranium oxides, nickel powder, NiO and NiO: YSZ composite, TiO2, and manganites, cobaltites, and aluminates of rare earth elements.

Primary emissions and secondary aerosol production potential from woodstoves for residential heating: Influence of the stove technology and combustion efficiency

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bertrand, Amelie; Stefenelli, Giulia; Bruns, Emily A.; Pieber, Simone M.; Temime-Roussel, Brice; Slowik, Jay G.; Prévôt, André S. H.; Wortham, Henri; El Haddad, Imad; Marchand, Nicolas

2017-11-01

To reduce the influence of biomass burning on air quality, consumers are encouraged to replace their old woodstove with new and cleaner appliances. While their primary emissions have been extensively investigated, the impact of atmospheric aging on these emissions, including secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation, remains unknown. Here, using an atmospheric smog chamber, we aim at understanding the chemical nature and quantify the emission factors of the primary organic aerosols (POA) from three types of appliances for residential heating, and to assess the influence of aging thereon. Two, old and modern, logwood stoves and one pellet burner were operated under typical conditions. Emissions from an entire burning cycle (past the start-up operation) were injected, including the smoldering and flaming phases, resulting in highly variable emission factors. The stoves emitted a significant fraction of POA (up to 80%) and black carbon. After ageing, the total mass concentration of organic aerosol (OA) increased on average by a factor of 5. For the pellet stove, flaming conditions were maintained throughout the combustion. The aerosol was dominated by black carbon (over 90% of the primary emission) and amounted to the same quantity of primary aerosol emitted by the old logwood stove. However, after ageing, the OA mass was increased by a factor of 1.7 only, thus rendering OA emissions by the pellet stove almost negligible compared to the other two stoves tested. Therefore, the pellet stove was the most reliable and least polluting appliance out of the three stoves tested. The spectral signatures of the POA and aged emissions by a High Resolution - Time of Flight - Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (Electron Ionization (EI) at 70 eV) were also investigated. The m/z 44 (CO2+) and high molecular weight fragments (m/z 115 (C9H7+), 137 (C8H9O2+), 167 (C9H11O3+) and 181 (C9H9O4+, C14H13+)) correlate with the modified combustion efficiency (MCE) allowing us to discriminate further between emissions generated from smoldering vs flaming conditions.

Study on performance of blended fuel PPO - Diesel at generator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prasetyo, Joni; Prasetyo, Dwi Husodo; Murti, S. D. Sumbogo; Adiarso, Priyanto, Unggul

2018-02-01

Bio-energy is renewable energy made from plant. Biomass-based energy sources are potentially CO2 neutral and recycle the same carbon atoms. In order to reduce pollution caused by fossil fuel combustion either for mechanical or electrical energy generation, the performance characteristic of purified palm oil blends are analyzed at various ratios. Bio-energy, Pure Plant Oil, represent a sustainable solution.A generator has been modified due to adapt the viscosity ofblended fuel, PPO - diesel, by pre-heating. Several PPO - diesel composition and injection timing were tested in order to investigate the characteristic of mixed fuel with and without pre-heating. The term biofuel refers to liquid or gaseous fuels for the internal combustion engines that are predominantly produced fro m biomass. Surprising result showed that BSFC of blended PPO - diesel was more efficient when injection timing set more than 15° BTDC. The mixed fuel produced power with less mixed fuel even though the calorie content of diesel is higher than PPO. The most efficient was 20% PPO in diesel with BSFC 296 gr fuel / kwh rather than 100% diesel with BSFC 309 gr fuel / kwh at the same injection timing 18° BTDC with pre-heating. The improvement of BSFC is caused by heating up of mixed fuel which it added calorie in the mixed fuel. Therefore, the heating up of blended PPO - diesel is not only to adapt the viscosity but also improving the efficiency of fuel usage representing by lower BSFC. In addition, torque of the 20% PPO was also as smooth as 100% diesel representing by almost the same torqueat injection timing 15° BTDC. The AIP Proceedings article template has many predefined paragraph styles for you to use/apply as you write your paper. To format your abstract, use the Microsoft Word template style: Abstract. Each paper must include an abstract. Begin the abstract with the word "Abstract" followed by a period in bold font, and then continue with a normal 9 point font.

LES/FMDF of turbulent jet ignition in a rapid compression machine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Validi, Abdoulahad; Schock, Harold; Toulson, Elisa; Jaberi, Farhad; CFD; Engine Research Labs, Michigan State University Collaboration

2015-11-01

Turbulent Jet Ignition (TJI) is an efficient method for initiating and controlling combustion in combustion systems, e.g. internal combustion engines. It enables combustion in ultra-lean mixtures by utilizing hot product turbulent jets emerging from a pre-chamber combustor as the ignition source for the main combustion chamber. Here, we study the TJI-assisted ignition and combustion of lean methane-air mixtures in a Rapid Compression Machine (RCM) for various flow/combustion conditions with the hybrid large eddy simulation/filtered mass density function (LES/FMDF) computational model. In the LES/FMDF model, the filtered form of compressible Navier-Stokes equations are solved with a high-order finite difference scheme for the turbulent velocity, while the FMDF transport equation is solved with a Lagrangian stochastic method to obtain the scalar (species mass fraction and temperature) field. The LES/FMDF data are used to study the physics of TJI and combustion in RCM. The results show the very complex behavior of the reacting flow and the flame structure in the pre-chamber and RCM.

Development of High Efficiency Clean Combustion Engine Designs for Spark-Ignition and Compression-Ignition Internal Combustion Engines

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Marriott, Craig; Gonzalez, Manual; Russell, Durrett

2011-06-30

This report summarizes activities related to the revised STATEMENT OF PROJECT OBJECTIVES (SOPO) dated June 2010 for the Development of High-Efficiency Clean Combustion engine Designs for Spark-Ignition and Compression-Ignition Internal Combustion Engines (COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT NUMBER DE-FC26-05NT42415) project. In both the spark- (SI) and compression-ignition (CI) development activities covered in this program, the goal was to develop potential production-viable internal combustion engine system technologies that both reduce fuel consumption and simultaneously met exhaust emission targets. To be production-viable, engine technologies were also evaluated to determine if they would meet customer expectations of refinement in terms of noise, vibration, performance, driveability, etc.more » in addition to having an attractive business case and value. Prior to this activity, only proprietary theoretical / laboratory knowledge existed on the combustion technologies explored The research reported here expands and develops this knowledge to determine series-production viability. Significant SI and CI engine development occurred during this program within General Motors, LLC over more than five years. In the SI program, several engines were designed and developed that used both a relatively simple multi-lift valve train system and a Fully Flexible Valve Actuation (FFVA) system to enable a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) combustion process. Many technical challenges, which were unknown at the start of this program, were identified and systematically resolved through analysis, test and development. This report documents the challenges and solutions for each SOPO deliverable. As a result of the project activities, the production viability of the developed clean combustion technologies has been determined. At this time, HCCI combustion for SI engines is not considered production-viable for several reasons. HCCI combustion is excessively sensitive to control variables such as internal dilution level and charge temperature. As a result, HCCI combustion has limited robustness when variables exceed the required narrow ranges determined in this program. HCCI combustion is also not available for the entire range of production engine speeds and loads, (i.e., the dynamic range is limited). Thus, regular SI combustion must be employed for a majority of the full dynamic range of the engine. This degrades the potential fuel economy impact of HCCI combustion. Currently-available combustion control actuators for the simple valve train system engine do not have the authority for continuous air - fuel or torque control for managing the combustion mode transitions between SI and HCCI and thus, require further refinement to meet customer refinement expectations. HCCI combustion control sensors require further development to enable robust long-term HCCI combustion control. Finally, the added technologies required to effectively manage HCCI combustion such as electric cam phasers, central direct fuel injection, cylinder pressure sensing, high-flow exhaust gas recirculation system, etc. add excessive on-engine cost and complexity that erodes the production-viability business« less

Application of C/C composites to the combustion chamber of rocket engines. Part 1: Heating tests of C/C composites with high temperature combustion gases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tadano, Makoto; Sato, Masahiro; Kuroda, Yukio; Kusaka, Kazuo; Ueda, Shuichi; Suemitsu, Takeshi; Hasegawa, Satoshi; Kude, Yukinori

1995-04-01

Carbon fiber reinforced carbon composite (C/C composite) has various superior properties, such as high specific strength, specific modulus, and fracture strength at high temperatures of more than 1800 K. Therefore, C/C composite is expected to be useful for many structural applications, such as combustion chambers of rocket engines and nose-cones of space-planes, but C/C composite lacks oxidation resistivity in high temperature environments. To meet the lifespan requirement for thermal barrier coatings, a ceramic coating has been employed in the hot-gas side wall. However, the main drawback to the use of C/C composite is the tendency for delamination to occur between the coating layer on the hot-gas side and the base materials on the cooling side during repeated thermal heating loads. To improve the thermal properties of the thermal barrier coating, five different types of 30-mm diameter C/C composite specimens constructed with functionally gradient materials (FGM's) and a modified matrix coating layer were fabricated. In this test, these specimens were exposed to the combustion gases of the rocket engine using nitrogen tetroxide (NTO) / monomethyl hydrazine (MMH) to evaluate the properties of thermal and erosive resistance on the thermal barrier coating after the heating test. It was observed that modified matrix and coating with FGM's are effective in improving the thermal properties of C/C composite.

Combustion characteristics of gas turbine alternative fuels

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rollbuhler, R. James

1987-01-01

An experimental investigation was conducted to obtain combustion performance values for specific heavyend, synthetic hydrocarbon fuels. A flame tube combustor modified to duplicate an advanced gas turbine engine combustor was used for the tests. Each fuel was tested at steady-state operating conditions over a range of mass flow rates, fuel-to-air mass ratio, and inlet air temperatures. The combustion pressure, as well as the hardware, were kept nearly constant over the program test phase. Test results were obtained in regards to geometric temperature pattern factors as a function of combustor wall temperatures, the combustion gas temperature, and the combustion emissions, both as affected by the mass flow rate and fuel-to-air ratio. The synthetic fuels were reacted in the combustor such that for most tests their performance was as good, if not better, than the baseline gasoline or diesel fuel tests. The only detrimental effects were that at high inlet air temperature conditions, fuel decomposition occurred in the fuel atomizing nozzle passages resulting in blockage. And the nitrogen oxide emissions were above EPA limits at low flow rate and high operating temperature conditions.

Characterization of aerosols and fibers emitted from composite materials combustion.

PubMed

Chivas-Joly, C; Gaie-Levrel, F; Motzkus, C; Ducourtieux, S; Delvallée, A; De Lagos, F; Nevé, S Le; Gutierrez, J; Lopez-Cuesta, J-M

2016-01-15

This work investigates the aerosols emitted during combustion of aircraft and naval structural composite materials (epoxy resin/carbon fibers and vinyl ester/glass fibers and carbon nanotubes). Combustion tests were performed at lab-scale using a modified cone calorimeter. The aerosols emitted have been characterized using various metrological devices devoted to the analysis of aerosols. The influence of the nature of polymer matrices, the incorporation of fibers and carbon nanotubes as well as glass reinforcements on the number concentration and the size distribution of airborne particles produced, was studied in the 5 nm-10 μm range. Incorporation of carbon fibers into epoxy resin significantly reduced the total particle number concentration. In addition, the interlaced orientation of carbon fibers limited the particles production compared to the composites with unidirectional one. The carbon nanotubes loading in vinyl ester resin composites influenced the total particles production during the flaming combustion with changes during kinetics emission. Predominant populations of airborne particles generated during combustion of all tested composites were characterized by a PN50 following by PN(100-500). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Assessing Spontaneous Combustion Instability with Nonlinear Time Series Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eberhart, C. J.; Casiano, M. J.

2015-01-01

Considerable interest lies in the ability to characterize the onset of spontaneous instabilities within liquid propellant rocket engine (LPRE) combustion devices. Linear techniques, such as fast Fourier transforms, various correlation parameters, and critical damping parameters, have been used at great length for over fifty years. Recently, nonlinear time series methods have been applied to deduce information pertaining to instability incipiency hidden in seemingly stochastic combustion noise. A technique commonly used in biological sciences known as the Multifractal Detrended Fluctuation Analysis has been extended to the combustion dynamics field, and is introduced here as a data analysis approach complementary to linear ones. Advancing, a modified technique is leveraged to extract artifacts of impending combustion instability that present themselves a priori growth to limit cycle amplitudes. Analysis is demonstrated on data from J-2X gas generator testing during which a distinct spontaneous instability was observed. Comparisons are made to previous work wherein the data were characterized using linear approaches. Verification of the technique is performed by examining idealized signals and comparing two separate, independently developed tools.

Specifics of phytomass combustion in small experimental device

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lenhard, Richard; Mičieta, Jozef; Jandačka, Jozef; Gavlas, Stanislav

2015-05-01

A wood pellet combustion carries out with high efficiency and comfort in modern pellet boilers. These facts help to increase the amount of installed pellet boilers in households. The combustion process quality depends besides the combustion conditions also on the fuel quality. The wood pellets, which don`t contain the bark and branches represent the highest quality. Because of growing pellet demand, an herbal biomass (phytomass), which is usually an agricultural by-product becomes economically attractive for pellet production. Although the phytomass has the net calorific value relatively slightly lower than the wood biomass, it is often significantly worse in view of the combustion process and an emission production. The combustion of phytomass pellets causes various difficulties in small heat sources, mainly due to a sintering of fuel residues. We want to avoid the ash sintering by a lowering of temperature in the combustion chamber below the ash sintering temperature of phytomass via the modification of a burner design. For research of the phytomass combustion process in the small boilers is constructed the experimental combustion device. There will investigate the impact of cooling intensity of the combustion chamber on the combustion process and emissions. Arising specific requirements from the measurement will be the basis for the design of the pellet burner and for the setting of operating parameters to the trouble-free phytomass combustion was guaranteed.

The oxycoal process with cryogenic oxygen supply.

PubMed

Kather, Alfons; Scheffknecht, Günter

2009-09-01

Due to its large reserves, coal is expected to continue to play an important role in the future. However, specific and absolute CO2 emissions are among the highest when burning coal for power generation. Therefore, the capture of CO2 from power plants may contribute significantly in reducing global CO2 emissions. This review deals with the oxyfuel process, where pure oxygen is used for burning coal, resulting in a flue gas with high CO2 concentrations. After further conditioning, the highly concentrated CO2 is compressed and transported in the liquid state to, for example, geological storages. The enormous oxygen demand is generated in an air-separation unit by a cryogenic process, which is the only available state-of-the-art technology. The generation of oxygen and the purification and liquefaction of the CO2-enriched flue gas consumes significant auxiliary power. Therefore, the overall net efficiency is expected to be lowered by 8 to 12 percentage points, corresponding to a 21 to 36% increase in fuel consumption. Oxygen combustion is associated with higher temperatures compared with conventional air combustion. Both the fuel properties as well as limitations of steam and metal temperatures of the various heat exchanger sections of the steam generator require a moderation of the temperatures during combustion and in the subsequent heat-transfer sections. This is done by means of flue gas recirculation. The interdependencies among fuel properties, the amount and the temperature of the recycled flue gas, and the resulting oxygen concentration in the combustion atmosphere are investigated. Expected effects of the modified flue gas composition in comparison with the air-fired case are studied theoretically and experimentally. The different atmosphere resulting from oxygen-fired combustion gives rise to various questions related to firing, in particular, with regard to the combustion mechanism, pollutant reduction, the risk of corrosion, and the properties of the fly ash or the deposits that form. In particular, detailed nitrogen and sulphur chemistry was investigated by combustion tests in a laboratory-scale facility. Oxidant staging, in order to reduce NO formation, turned out to work with similar effectiveness as for conventional air combustion. With regard to sulphur, a considerable increase in the SO2 concentration was found, as expected. However, the H2S concentration in the combustion atmosphere increased as well. Further results were achieved with a pilot-scale test facility, where acid dew points were measured and deposition probes were exposed to the combustion environment. Besides CO2 and water vapour, the flue gas contains impurities like sulphur species, nitrogen oxides, argon, nitrogen, and oxygen. The CO2 liquefaction is strongly affected by these impurities in terms of the auxiliary power requirement and the CO2 capture rate. Furthermore, the impurity of the liquefied CO2 is affected as well. Since the requirements on the liquid CO2 with regard to geological storage or enhanced oil recovery are currently undefined, the effects of possible flue gas treatment and the design of the liquefaction plant are studied over a wide range.

The oxycoal process with cryogenic oxygen supply

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kather, Alfons; Scheffknecht, Günter

2009-09-01

Due to its large reserves, coal is expected to continue to play an important role in the future. However, specific and absolute CO2 emissions are among the highest when burning coal for power generation. Therefore, the capture of CO2 from power plants may contribute significantly in reducing global CO2 emissions. This review deals with the oxyfuel process, where pure oxygen is used for burning coal, resulting in a flue gas with high CO2 concentrations. After further conditioning, the highly concentrated CO2 is compressed and transported in the liquid state to, for example, geological storages. The enormous oxygen demand is generated in an air-separation unit by a cryogenic process, which is the only available state-of-the-art technology. The generation of oxygen and the purification and liquefaction of the CO2-enriched flue gas consumes significant auxiliary power. Therefore, the overall net efficiency is expected to be lowered by 8 to 12 percentage points, corresponding to a 21 to 36% increase in fuel consumption. Oxygen combustion is associated with higher temperatures compared with conventional air combustion. Both the fuel properties as well as limitations of steam and metal temperatures of the various heat exchanger sections of the steam generator require a moderation of the temperatures during combustion and in the subsequent heat-transfer sections. This is done by means of flue gas recirculation. The interdependencies among fuel properties, the amount and the temperature of the recycled flue gas, and the resulting oxygen concentration in the combustion atmosphere are investigated. Expected effects of the modified flue gas composition in comparison with the air-fired case are studied theoretically and experimentally. The different atmosphere resulting from oxygen-fired combustion gives rise to various questions related to firing, in particular, with regard to the combustion mechanism, pollutant reduction, the risk of corrosion, and the properties of the fly ash or the deposits that form. In particular, detailed nitrogen and sulphur chemistry was investigated by combustion tests in a laboratory-scale facility. Oxidant staging, in order to reduce NO formation, turned out to work with similar effectiveness as for conventional air combustion. With regard to sulphur, a considerable increase in the SO2 concentration was found, as expected. However, the H2S concentration in the combustion atmosphere increased as well. Further results were achieved with a pilot-scale test facility, where acid dew points were measured and deposition probes were exposed to the combustion environment. Besides CO2 and water vapour, the flue gas contains impurities like sulphur species, nitrogen oxides, argon, nitrogen, and oxygen. The CO2 liquefaction is strongly affected by these impurities in terms of the auxiliary power requirement and the CO2 capture rate. Furthermore, the impurity of the liquefied CO2 is affected as well. Since the requirements on the liquid CO2 with regard to geological storage or enhanced oil recovery are currently undefined, the effects of possible flue gas treatment and the design of the liquefaction plant are studied over a wide range.

Practical internal combustion engine laser spark plug development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Myers, Michael J.; Myers, John D.; Guo, Baoping; Yang, Chengxin; Hardy, Christopher R.

2007-09-01

Fundamental studies on laser ignition have been performed by the US Department of Energy under ARES (Advanced Reciprocating Engines Systems) and by the California Energy Commission under ARICE (Advanced Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engine). These and other works have reported considerable increases in fuel efficiencies along with substantial reductions in green-house gas emissions when employing laser spark ignition. Practical commercial applications of this technology require low cost high peak power lasers. The lasers must be small, rugged and able to provide stable laser beam output operation under adverse mechanical and environmental conditions. New DPSS (Diode Pumped Solid State) lasers appear to meet these requirements. In this work we provide an evaluation of HESP (High Efficiency Side Pumped) DPSS laser design and performance with regard to its application as a practical laser spark plug for use in internal combustion engines.

Experimental and Computational Study of Trapped Vortex Combustor Sector Rig With Tri-Pass Diffuser

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hendricks, R. C.; Shouse, D. T.; Roquernore, W. M.; Burrus, D. L.; Duncan, B. S.; Ryder, R. C.; Brankovic, A.; Liu, N.-S.; Gallagher, J. R.; Hendricks, J. A.

2004-01-01

The Trapped Vortex Combustor (TVC) potentially offers numerous operational advantages over current production gas turbine engine combustors. These include lower weight, lower pollutant emissions, effective flame stabilization, high combustion efficiency, excellent high altitude relight capability, and operation in the lean burn or RQL modes of combustion. The present work describes the operational principles of the TVC, and extends diffuser velocities toward choked flow and provides system performance data. Performance data include EINOx results for various fuel-air ratios and combustor residence times, combustion efficiency as a function of combustor residence time, and combustor lean blow-out (LBO) performance. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations using liquid spray droplet evaporation and combustion modeling are performed and related to flow structures observed in photographs of the combustor. The CFD results are used to understand the aerodynamics and combustion features under different fueling conditions. Performance data acquired to date are favorable compared to conventional gas turbine combustors. Further testing over a wider range of fuel-air ratios, fuel flow splits, and pressure ratios is in progress to explore the TVC performance. In addition, alternate configurations for the upstream pressure feed, including bi-pass diffusion schemes, as well as variations on the fuel injection patterns, are currently in test and evaluation phases.

Study of boron behaviour in two Spanish coal combustion power plants.

PubMed

Ochoa-González, Raquel; Cuesta, Aida Fuente; Córdoba, Patricia; Díaz-Somoano, Mercedes; Font, Oriol; López-Antón, M Antonia; Querol, Xavier; Martínez-Tarazona, M Rosa; Giménez, Antonio

2011-10-01

A full-scale field study was carried out at two Spanish coal-fired power plants equipped with electrostatic precipitator (ESP) and wet flue gas desulfurisation (FGD) systems to investigate the distribution of boron in coals, solid by-products, wastewater streams and flue gases. The results were obtained from the simultaneous sampling of solid, liquid and gaseous streams and their subsequent analysis in two different laboratories for purposes of comparison. Although the final aim of this study was to evaluate the partitioning of boron in a (co-)combustion power plant, special attention was paid to the analytical procedure for boron determination. A sample preparation procedure was optimised for coal and combustion by-products to overcome some specific shortcomings of the currently used acid digestion methods. In addition boron mass balances and removal efficiencies in ESP and FGD devices were calculated. Mass balance closures between 83 and 149% were obtained. During coal combustion, 95% of the incoming boron was collected in the fly ashes. The use of petroleum coke as co-combustible produced a decrease in the removal efficiency of the ESP (87%). Nevertheless, more than 90% of the remaining gaseous boron was eliminated via the FGD in the wastewater discharged from the scrubber, thereby causing environmental problems. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A method and instruments to identify the torque, the power and the efficiency of an internal combustion engine of a wheeled vehicle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egorov, A. V.; Kozlov, K. E.; Belogusev, V. N.

2018-01-01

In this paper, we propose a new method and instruments to identify the torque, the power, and the efficiency of internal combustion engines in transient conditions. This method, in contrast to the commonly used non-demounting methods based on inertia and strain gauge dynamometers, allows controlling the main performance parameters of internal combustion engines in transient conditions without inaccuracy connected with the torque loss due to its transfer to the driving wheels, on which the torque is measured with existing methods. In addition, the proposed method is easy to create, and it does not use strain measurement instruments, the application of which does not allow identifying the variable values of the measured parameters with high measurement rate; and therefore the use of them leads to the impossibility of taking into account the actual parameters when engineering the wheeled vehicles. Thus the use of this method can greatly improve the measurement accuracy and reduce costs and laboriousness during testing of internal combustion engines. The results of experiments showed the applicability of the proposed method for identification of the internal combustion engines performance parameters. In this paper, it was determined the most preferred transmission ratio when using the proposed method.

From fire whirls to blue whirls and combustion with reduced pollution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiao, Huahua; Gollner, Michael J.; Oran, Elaine S.

2016-08-01

Fire whirls are powerful, spinning disasters for people and surroundings when they occur in large urban and wildland fires. Whereas fire whirls have been studied for fire-safety applications, previous research has yet to harness their potential burning efficiency for enhanced combustion. This article presents laboratory studies of fire whirls initiated as pool fires, but where the fuel sits on a water surface, suggesting the idea of exploiting the high efficiency of fire whirls for oil-spill remediation. We show the transition from a pool fire, to a fire whirl, and then to a previously unobserved state, a “blue whirl.” A blue whirl is smaller, very stable, and burns completely blue as a hydrocarbon flame, indicating soot-free burning. The combination of fast mixing, intense swirl, and the water-surface boundary creates the conditions leading to nearly soot-free combustion. With the worldwide need to reduce emissions from both wanted and unwanted combustion, discovery of this state points to possible new pathways for reduced-emission combustion and fuel-spill cleanup. Because current methods to generate a stable vortex are difficult, we also propose that the blue whirl may serve as a research platform for fundamental studies of vortices and vortex breakdown in fluid mechanics.

From fire whirls to blue whirls and combustion with reduced pollution

PubMed Central

Xiao, Huahua; Oran, Elaine S.

2016-01-01

Fire whirls are powerful, spinning disasters for people and surroundings when they occur in large urban and wildland fires. Whereas fire whirls have been studied for fire-safety applications, previous research has yet to harness their potential burning efficiency for enhanced combustion. This article presents laboratory studies of fire whirls initiated as pool fires, but where the fuel sits on a water surface, suggesting the idea of exploiting the high efficiency of fire whirls for oil-spill remediation. We show the transition from a pool fire, to a fire whirl, and then to a previously unobserved state, a “blue whirl.” A blue whirl is smaller, very stable, and burns completely blue as a hydrocarbon flame, indicating soot-free burning. The combination of fast mixing, intense swirl, and the water–surface boundary creates the conditions leading to nearly soot-free combustion. With the worldwide need to reduce emissions from both wanted and unwanted combustion, discovery of this state points to possible new pathways for reduced-emission combustion and fuel-spill cleanup. Because current methods to generate a stable vortex are difficult, we also propose that the blue whirl may serve as a research platform for fundamental studies of vortices and vortex breakdown in fluid mechanics. PMID:27493219

Trace gas emissions from burning Florida wetlands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cofer, Wesley R.; Levine, Joel S.; Winstead, Edward L.; Lebel, Peter J.; Koller, Albert M.; Hinkle, C. Ross

1990-02-01

Measurements of biomass burn-produced trace gases are presented that were obtained using a helicopter at low altitudes above burning Florida wetlands on November 9, 1987, and from both helicopter and light-aircraft samplings on November 7, 1988. Carbon dioxide (CO2) normalized emission ratios (ΔX/ΔCO2; V/V; where X is trace gas) for carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), methane (CH4), total nonmethane hydrocarbons (TNMHC), and nitrous oxide (N2O) were obtained over burning graminoid wetlands consisting primarily of Spartina bakeri and Juncus roemerianus. Some interspersed scrub oak (Quercus spp) and saw palmetto (Screnoa repens) were also burned. No significant differences were observed in the emission ratios determined for these gases from samples collected over flaming, mixed, and smoldering phases of combustion during the 1987 fire. Combustion-categorized differences in emission ratios were small for the 1988 fire. Combustion efficiency was relatively good (low emission ratios for reduced gases) for both fires. We believe that the consistently low emission ratios were a unique result of graminoid wetlands fires, in which the grasses and rushes (both small-size fuels) burned rapidly down to standing water and were quickly extinguished. Consequently, the efficiency of the combustion was good and the amount and duration of smoldering combustion was greatly diminished.

Characteristics Of Cenospheres

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clayton, Richard M.; Back, Lloyd H.

1989-01-01

Studies conducted to determine structure and composition of cenospheres. Burn more slowly than original fuel, contribute to deposits, high-temperature corrosion, emissions of particles, and reduced efficiency of combustion in oil-fired furnaces and boilers, accounting 3 percent of original fuel in droplets. Contributes to efforts to burn fuel oil more completely to avoid deleterious effects of incomplete combustion.

Air pollution from aircraft. [jet exhaust - aircraft fuels/combustion efficiency

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heywood, J. B.; Chigier, N. A.

1975-01-01

A model which predicts nitric oxide and carbon monoxide emissions from a swirl can modular combustor is discussed. A detailed analysis of the turbulent fuel-air mixing process in the swirl can module wake region is reviewed. Hot wire anemometry was employed, and gas sampling analysis of fuel combustion emissions were performed.

Potential low cost, safe, high efficiency propellant for future space program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, D.

2005-03-01

Mixtures of nanometer or micrometer sized carbon powder suspended in hydrogen and methane/hydrogen mixtures are proposed as candidates for low cost, high efficiency propellants for future space programs. While liquid hydrogen has low weight and high heat of combustion per unit mass, because of the low mass density the heat of combustion per unit volume is low, and the liquid hydrogen storage container must be large. The proposed propellants can produce higher gross heat combustion with small volume with trade off of some weight increase. Liquid hydrogen can serve as the fluid component of the propellant in the mixtures and thus used by current rocket engine designs. For example, for the same volume a mixture of 5% methane and 95% hydrogen, can lead to an increase in the gross heat of combustion by about 10% and an increase in the Isp (specific impulse) by 21% compared to a pure liquid hydrogen propellant. At liquid hydrogen temperatures of 20.3 K, methane will be in solid state, and must be formed as fine granules (or slush) to satisfy the requirement of liquid propellant engines.

Enhancement of burning velocity by dissociated oxygen atoms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akashi, Haruaki; Yoshinaga, Tomokazu; Sasaki, Koichi

2015-09-01

Green technology, such as preventing global warming, has been developed for years. Researches on plasma assisted combustion is one of the technologies and have been done for investigating more efficient combustion, more efficient use of fossil fuel with plasmas or applying electric fields. In the ignition time delay analyses with the dissociated oxygen atoms which is generated by non-equilibrium plasma had significant effect on the ignition time. In this paper, dissociated oxygen could effect on burning velocity or not has been examined using CHEMKIN. As a result, no effect can be seen with dissociation degree of lower than 10-3. But there is an effect on the enhancement of burning velocity with higher degree of 10-3. At the dissociation degree of 5×10-2, the burning velocity is enhanced at a factor of 1.24. And it is found that the distributions of each species in front of preheat zone are completely different. The combustion process is proceeded several steps in advance, and generation of H2O, CO and CO2 can be seen before combustion in higher dissociation case. This work was supported by KAKENHI (22340170).

Efficient Defect Engineering for Solution Combustion Processed In-Zn-O thin films for high performance transistors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liang, Xiaoci; Wang, Chengcai; Liang, Jun; Liu, Chuan; Pei, Yanli

2017-09-01

The oxygen related defects in the solution combustion-processed InZnO vitally affect the field-effect mobility and on-off characteristics in thin film transistors (TFTs). We use photoelectron spectroscopy to reveal that these defects can be well controlled by adjusting the atmosphere and flow rate during the combustion reaction, but are hardly affected by further post-annealing after the reaction. In device performance, the threshold voltage of the InZnO-TFTs was regulated in a wide range from 3.5 V to 11.0 V. To compromise the high field-effect mobility and good subthreshold properties, we fabricate the TFTs with double active layers of InZnO to achieve vertical gradience in defect distribution. The resulting TFT exhibits much higher field-effect mobility as 17.5 cm2 · V-1 · s-1, a low reversed sub-threshold slope as 0.35 V/decade, and a high on-off ratio as 107. The presented understandings and methods on defect engineering are efficient in improving the device performance of TFTs made from the combustion reaction process.

Uncontrolled combustion of shredded tires in a landfill - Part 1: Characterization of gaseous and particulate emissions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Downard, Jared; Singh, Ashish; Bullard, Robert; Jayarathne, Thilina; Rathnayake, Chathurika M.; Simmons, Donald L.; Wels, Brian R.; Spak, Scott N.; Peters, Thomas; Beardsley, Douglas; Stanier, Charles O.; Stone, Elizabeth A.

2015-03-01

In summer 2012, a landfill liner comprising an estimated 1.3 million shredded tires burned in Iowa City, Iowa. During the fire, continuous monitoring and laboratory measurements were used to characterize the gaseous and particulate emissions and to provide new insights into the qualitative nature of the smoke and the quantity of pollutants emitted. Significant enrichments in ambient concentrations of CO, CO2, SO2, particle number (PN), fine particulate (PM2.5) mass, elemental carbon (EC), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were observed. For the first time, PM2.5 from tire combustion was shown to contain PAH with nitrogen heteroatoms (a.k.a. azaarenes) and picene, a compound previously suggested to be unique to coal-burning. Despite prior laboratory studies' findings, metals used in manufacturing tires (i.e. Zn, Pb, Fe) were not detected in coarse particulate matter (PM10) at a distance of 4.2 km downwind. Ambient measurements were used to derive the first in situ fuel-based emission factors (EF) for the uncontrolled open burning of tires, revealing substantial emissions of SO2 (7.1 g kg-1), particle number (3.5 × 1016 kg-1), PM2.5 (5.3 g kg-1), EC (2.37 g kg-1), and 19 individual PAH (totaling 56 mg kg-1). A large degree of variability was observed in day-to-day EF, reflecting a range of flaming and smoldering conditions of the large-scale fire, for which the modified combustion efficiency ranged from 0.85 to 0.98. Recommendations for future research on this under-characterized source are also provided.

Uncontrolled combustion of shredded tires in a landfill – Part 1: Characterization of gaseous and particulate emissions

PubMed Central

Downard, Jared; Singh, Ashish; Bullard, Robert; Jayarathne, Thilina; Rathnayake, Chathurika; Simmons, Donald L.; Wels, Brian R.; Spak, Scott N.; Peters, Thomas; Beardsley, Douglas; Stanier, Charles; Stone, Elizabeth A.

2014-01-01

In summer 2012, a landfill liner comprising an estimated 1.3 million shredded tires burned in Iowa City, Iowa. During the fire, continuous monitoring and laboratory measurements were used to characterize the gaseous and particulate emissions and to provide new insights into the qualitative nature of the smoke and the quantity of pollutants emitted. Significant enrichments in ambient concentrations of CO, CO2, SO2, particle number (PN), fine particulate (PM2.5) mass, elemental carbon (EC), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were observed. For the first time, PM2.5 from tire combustion was shown to contain PAH with nitrogen heteroatoms (a.k.a. azaarenes) and picene, a compound previously suggested to be unique to coal-burning. Despite prior laboratory studies’ findings, metals used in manufacturing tires (i.e. Zn, Pb, Fe) were not detected in coarse particulate matter (PM10) at a distance of 4.2 km downwind. Ambient measurements were used to derive the first in situ fuel-based emission factors (EF) for the uncontrolled open burning of tires, revealing substantial emissions of SO2 (7.1 g kg−1), particle number (3.5×1016 kg−1), PM2.5 (5.3 g kg−1), EC (2.37 g kg−1), and 19 individual PAH (totaling 56 mg kg−1). A large degree of variability was observed in day-to-day EF, reflecting a range of flaming and smoldering conditions of the large-scale fire, for which the modified combustion efficiency ranged from 0.85-0.98. Recommendations for future research on this under-characterized source are also provided. PMID:25663800

International Experience in Developing Low-Emission Combustors for Land-Based, Large Gas-Turbine Units: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' Equipment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bulysova, L. A.; Vasil'ev, V. D.; Berne, A. L.; Gutnik, M. N.; Ageev, A. V.

2018-05-01

This is the second paper in a series of publications summarizing the international experience in the development of low-emission combustors (LEC) for land-based, large (above 250 MW) gas-turbine units (GTU). The purpose of this series is to generalize and analyze the approaches used by various manufacturers in designing flowpaths for fuel and air in LECs, managing fuel combustion, and controlling the fuel flow. The efficiency of advanced GTUs can be as high as 43% (with an output of 350-500 MW) while the efficiency of 600-800 MW combined-cycle units with these GTUs can attain 63.5%. These high efficiencies require a compression ratio of 20-24 and a temperature as high as 1600°C at the combustor outlet. Accordingly, the temperature in the combustion zone also rises. All the requirements for the control of harmful emissions from these GTUs are met. All the manufacturers and designers of LECs for modern GTUs encounter similar problems, such as emissions control, combustion instability, and reliable cooling of hot path parts. Methods of their elimination are different and interesting from the standpoint of science and practice. One more essential requirement is that the efficiency and environmental performance indices must be maintained irrespective of the fuel composition or heating value and also in operation at part loads below 40% of rated. This paper deals with Mitsubishi Series M701 GTUs, F, G, or J class, which have gained a good reputation in the power equipment market. A design of a burner for LECs and a control method providing stable low-emission fuel combustion are presented. The advantages and disadvantages of the use of air bypass valves installed in each liner to maintain a nearly constant air to fuel ratio within a wide range of GTU loads are described. Methods for controlling low- and high-frequency combustion instabilities are outlined. Upgrading of the cooling system for the wall of a liner and a transition piece is of great interest. Change over from effusion (or film) cooling to convective steam cooling and convective air cooling has considerably increased the GTU efficiency.

A Highly Efficient Six-Stroke Internal Combustion Engine Cycle with Water Injection for In-Cylinder Exhaust Heat Recovery

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Conklin, Jim; Szybist, James P

2010-01-01

A concept is presented here that adds two additional strokes to the four-stroke Otto or Diesel cycle that has the potential to increase fuel efficiency of the basic cycle. The engine cycle can be thought of as a 4 stroke Otto or Diesel cycle followed by a 2-stroke heat recovery steam cycle. Early exhaust valve closing during the exhaust stroke coupled with water injection are employed to add an additional power stroke at the end of the conventional four-stroke Otto or Diesel cycle. An ideal thermodynamics model of the exhaust gas compression, water injection at top center, and expansion wasmore » used to investigate this modification that effectively recovers waste heat from both the engine coolant and combustion exhaust gas. Thus, this concept recovers energy from two waste heat sources of current engine designs and converts heat normally discarded to useable power and work. This concept has the potential of a substantial increase in fuel efficiency over existing conventional internal combustion engines, and under appropriate injected water conditions, increase the fuel efficiency without incurring a decrease in power density. By changing the exhaust valve closing angle during the exhaust stroke, the ideal amount of exhaust can be recompressed for the amount of water injected, thereby minimizing the work input and maximizing the mean effective pressure of the steam expansion stroke (MEPsteam). The value of this exhaust valve closing for maximum MEPsteam depends on the limiting conditions of either one bar or the dew point temperature of the expansion gas/moisture mixture when the exhaust valve opens to discard the spent gas mixture in the sixth stroke. The range of MEPsteam calculated for the geometry of a conventional gasoline spark-ignited internal combustion engine and for plausible water injection parameters is from 0.75 to 2.5 bars. Typical combustion mean effective pressures (MEPcombustion) of naturally aspirated gasoline engines are up to 10 bar, thus this concept has the potential to significantly increase the engine efficiency and fuel economy while not resulting in a decrease in power density.« less

Near Zero Emissions at 50 Percent Thermal Efficiency

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None, None

2012-12-31

Detroit Diesel Corporation (DDC) has successfully completed a 10 year DOE sponsored heavy-duty truck engine program, hereafter referred to as the NZ-50 program. This program was split into two major phases. The first phase was called Near-Zero Emission at 50 Percent Thermal Efficiency, and was completed in 2007. The second phase was initiated in 2006, and this phase was named Advancements in Engine Combustion Systems to Enable High-Efficiency Clean Combustion for Heavy-Duty Engines. This phase was completed in September, 2010. The key objectives of the NZ-50 program for this first phase were to: Quantify thermal efficiency degradation associated with reductionmore » of engine-out NOx emissions to the 2007 regulated level of ~1.1 g/hp-hr. Implement an integrated analytical/experimental development plan for improving subsystem and component capabilities in support of emerging engine technologies for emissions and thermal efficiency goals of the program. Test prototype subsystem hardware featuring technology enhancements and demonstrate effective application on a multi-cylinder, production feasible heavy-duty engine test-bed. Optimize subsystem components and engine controls (calibration) to demonstrate thermal efficiency that is in compliance with the DOE 2005 Joule milestone, meaning greater than 45% thermal efficiency at 2007 emission levels. Develop technology roadmap for meeting emission regulations of 2010 and beyond while mitigating the associated degradation in engine fuel consumption. Ultimately, develop technical prime-path for meeting the overall goal of the NZ-50 program, i.e., 50% thermal efficiency at 2010 regulated emissions. These objectives were successfully met during the course of the NZ-50 program. The most noteworthy achievements in this program are summarized as follows: Demonstrated technologies through advanced integrated experiments and analysis to achieve the technical objectives of the NZ-50 program with 50.2% equivalent thermal efficiency under EPA 2010 emissions regulations. Experimentally demonstrate brake efficiency of 48.5% at EPA 2010 emission level at single steady-state point. Analytically demonstrated additional brake efficiency benefits using advanced aftertreatment configuration concept and air system enhancement including, but not limited to, turbo-compound, variable valve actuator system, and new cylinder head redesign, thus helping to achieve the final program goals. Experimentally demonstrated EPA 2010 emissions over FTP cycles using advanced integrated engine and aftertreatment system. These aggressive thermal efficiency and emissions results were achieved by applying a robust systems technology development methodology. It used integrated analytical and experimental tools for subsystem component optimization encompassing advanced fuel injection system, increased EGR cooling capacity, combustion process optimization, and advanced aftertreatment technologies. Model based controls employing multiple input and output techniques enabled efficient integration of the various subsystems and ensured optimal performance of each system within the total engine package. . The key objective of the NZ-50 program for the second phase was to explore advancements in engine combustion systems using high-efficiency clean combustion (HECC) techniques to minimize cylinder-out emissions, targeting a 10% efficiency improvement. The most noteworthy achievements in this phase of the program are summarized as follows: Experimentally and analytically evaluated numerous air system improvements related to the turbocharger and variable valve actuation. Some of the items tested proved to be very successful and modifications to the turbine discovered in this program have since been incorporated into production hardware. The combustion system development continued with evaluation of various designs of the 2-step piston bowl. Significant improvements in engine emissions have been obtained, but fuel economy improvements have been tougher to realize. Development of a neural network control system progressed to the point that the system was fully functional and showing significant fuel economy gains in transient engine testing. Development of the QuantLogic injector with the capability of both a hollow cone spray during early injection and conventional diesel injection at later injection timings was undertaken and proved to be problematic. This injector was designed to be a key component in a PCCI combustion system, but this innovative fuel injector required significantly more development effort than this programâ's resources or timing would allow.« less

An evaluation of electronic cigarette formulations and aerosols for harmful and potentially harmful constituents (HPHCs) typically derived from combustion.

PubMed

Wagner, Karl A; Flora, Jason W; Melvin, Matt S; Avery, Karen C; Ballentine, Regina M; Brown, Anthony P; McKinney, Willie J

2018-06-01

U.S. FDA draft guidance recommends reporting quantities of designated harmful and potentially harmful constituents (HPHCs) in e-cigarette e-liquids and aerosols. The HPHC list comprises potential matrix-related compounds, flavors, nicotine, tobacco-related impurities, leachables, thermal degradation products, and combustion-related compounds. E-cigarettes contain trace levels of many of these constituents due to tobacco-derived nicotine and thermal degradation. However, combustion-related HPHCs are not likely to be found due to the relatively low operating temperatures of most e-cigarettes. The purpose of this work was to use highly sensitive, selective, and validated analytical methods to determine if these combustion-related HPHCs (three aromatic amines, five volatile organic compounds, and the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon benzo[a]pyrene) are detectable in commercial refill e-liquids, reference e-cigarette e-liquids, and aerosols generated from rechargeable e-cigarettes with disposable cartridges (often referred to as "cig-a-likes"). In addition, the transfer efficiency of these constituents from e-liquid to aerosol was evaluated when these HPHCs were added to the e-liquids prior to aerosol formation. This work demonstrates that combustion-related HPHCs are not present at measurable levels in the commercial and reference e-liquids or e-cigarette aerosols tested. Additionally, when combustion-related HPHCs are added to the e-liquids, they transfer to the aerosol with transfer efficiencies ranging from 49% to 99%. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Advanced CFD modelling of air and recycled flue gas staging in a waste wood-fired grate boiler for higher combustion efficiency and greater environmental benefits.

PubMed

Rajh, Boštjan; Yin, Chungen; Samec, Niko; Hriberšek, Matjaž; Kokalj, Filip; Zadravec, Matej

2018-07-15

Grate-fired boilers are commonly used to burn biomass/wastes for heat and power production. In spite of the recent breakthrough in integration of advanced secondary air systems in grate boilers, grate-firing technology needs to be advanced for higher efficiency and lower emissions. In this paper, innovative staging of combustion air and recycled flue gas in a 13 MW th waste wood-fired grate boiler is comprehensively studied based on a numerical model that has been previously validated. In particular, the effects of the jet momentum, position and orientation of the combustion air and recycled flue gas streams on in-furnace mixing, combustion and pollutant emissions from the boiler are examined. It is found that the optimized air and recycled flue gas jets remarkably enhance mixing and heat transfer, result in a more uniform temperature and velocity distribution, extend the residence time of the combustibles in the hot zone and improve burnout in the boiler. Optimizing the air and recycled flue gas jet configuration can reduce carbon monoxide emission from the boiler by up to 86%, from the current 41.0 ppm to 5.7 ppm. The findings of this study can serve as useful guidelines for novel design and optimization of the combustion air supply and flue gas recycling for grate boilers of this type. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

STE thrust chamber technology: Main injector technology program and nozzle Advanced Development Program (ADP)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1993-01-01

The purpose of the STME Main Injector Program was to enhance the technology base for the large-scale main injector-combustor system of oxygen-hydrogen booster engines in the areas of combustion efficiency, chamber heating rates, and combustion stability. The initial task of the Main Injector Program, focused on analysis and theoretical predictions using existing models, was complemented by the design, fabrication, and test at MSFC of a subscale calorimetric, 40,000-pound thrust class, axisymmetric thrust chamber operating at approximately 2,250 psi and a 7:1 expansion ratio. Test results were used to further define combustion stability bounds, combustion efficiency, and heating rates using a large injector scale similar to the Pratt & Whitney (P&W) STME main injector design configuration including the tangential entry swirl coaxial injection elements. The subscale combustion data was used to verify and refine analytical modeling simulation and extend the database range to guide the design of the large-scale system main injector. The subscale injector design incorporated fuel and oxidizer flow area control features which could be varied; this allowed testing of several design points so that the STME conditions could be bracketed. The subscale injector design also incorporated high-reliability and low-cost fabrication techniques such as a one-piece electrical discharged machined (EDMed) interpropellant plate. Both subscale and large-scale injectors incorporated outer row injector elements with scarfed tip features to allow evaluation of reduced heating rates to the combustion chamber.

Assesment of PM2.5 emission from corn stover burning determining in chamber combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hafidawati; Lestari, P.; Sofyan, A.

2018-04-01

Chamber measurement were conducted to determine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) emission from open burning of corn straw at Garut District, West Java. The of this study is to estimate the concentration of PM2.5 for two types of corn (corncobs and cornstover) for five varieties (Bisma, P29, NK, Bisma, NW). Corn residues were collected and then burned in the chamber combustion. The chamber was designed to simulate the burning in the field, which was observed in the field experiment that meteorological condition was calm wind. The samples were collected using a minivol air sampler. The assessment results of PM2.5 concentrations (mg/m3) from open burning experiment in the chamber for five varieties of corn cobs (Bisma, P29, NK, Bisi, NW) was 9.187; 2.843; 7.409; 3.781; 1.895 respectively. Concentration for corn stover burn was 2.060; 5.283; 4.048; 5.306 and 5.697 respectively. Fluctuations in the value of concentration among these varieties reflect variations in combustion conditions (combustion efficiency) and other parameters including water content, biomass conditions and the meteorological conditions. The combustion efficiency (MCE) of the combustion chamber simulation of corncobs ia lower than the MCE of corn stover, that the concentration PM2.5 more emitted from the burning of corn stover. The results of this study presented provide useful information for the development of local emission factors for PM2.5 from open burning of corn stover in Indonesia.

Numerical modelling of biomass combustion: Solid conversion processes in a fixed bed furnace

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karim, Md. Rezwanul; Naser, Jamal

2017-06-01

Increasing demand for energy and rising concerns over global warming has urged the use of renewable energy sources to carry a sustainable development of the world. Bio mass is a renewable energy which has become an important fuel to produce thermal energy or electricity. It is an eco-friendly source of energy as it reduces carbon dioxide emissions. Combustion of solid biomass is a complex phenomenon due to its large varieties and physical structures. Among various systems, fixed bed combustion is the most commonly used technique for thermal conversion of solid biomass. But inadequate knowledge on complex solid conversion processes has limited the development of such combustion system. Numerical modelling of this combustion system has some advantages over experimental analysis. Many important system parameters (e.g. temperature, density, solid fraction) can be estimated inside the entire domain under different working conditions. In this work, a complete numerical model is used for solid conversion processes of biomass combustion in a fixed bed furnace. The combustion system is divided in to solid and gas phase. This model includes several sub models to characterize the solid phase of the combustion with several variables. User defined subroutines are used to introduce solid phase variables in commercial CFD code. Gas phase of combustion is resolved using built-in module of CFD code. Heat transfer model is modified to predict the temperature of solid and gas phases with special radiation heat transfer solution for considering the high absorptivity of the medium. Considering all solid conversion processes the solid phase variables are evaluated. Results obtained are discussed with reference from an experimental burner.

Impacts of household coal and biomass combustion on indoor and ambient air quality in China: Current status and implication.

PubMed

Li, Qing; Jiang, Jingkun; Wang, Shuxiao; Rumchev, Krassi; Mead-Hunter, Ryan; Morawska, Lidia; Hao, Jiming

2017-01-15

This review briefly introduces current status of indoor and ambient air pollution originating from household coal and biomass combustion in mainland China. Owing to low combustion efficiency, emissions of CO, PM 2.5 , black carbon (BC), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons have significant adverse consequences for indoor and ambient air qualities, resulting in relative contributions of more than one-third in all anthropogenic emissions. Their contributions are higher in less economically developed regions, such as Guizhou (61% PM 2.5 , 80% BC), than that in more developed regions, such as Shanghai (4% PM 2.5 , 17% BC). Chimneys can reduce ~80% indoor PM 2.5 level when burning dirty solid fuels, such as plant materials. Due to spending more time near stoves, housewives suffer much more (~2 times) PM 2.5 than the adult men, especially in winter in northern China (~4 times). Improvement of stove combustion/thermal efficiencies and solid fuel quality are the two essential methods to reduce pollutant emissions. PM 2.5 and BC emission factors (EFs) have been identified to increase with volatile matter content in traditional stove combustion. EFs of dirty fuels are two orders higher than that of clean ones. Switching to clean ones, such as semi-coke briquette, was identified to be a feasible path for reducing >90% PM 2.5 and BC emissions. Otherwise, improvement of thermal and combustion efficiencies by using under-fire technology can reduce ~50% CO 2 , 87% NH 3 , and 80% PM 2.5 and BC emissions regardless of volatile matter content in solid fuel. However, there are still some knowledge gaps, such as, inventory for the temporal impact of household combustion on air quality, statistic data for deployed clean solid fuels and advanced stoves, and the effect of socioeconomic development. Additionally, further technology research for reducing air pollution emissions is urgently needed, especially low cost and clean stove when burning any type of solid fuel. Furthermore, emission-abatement oriented policy should base on sound scientific evidence to significantly reduce pollutant emissions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Building an Efficient Model for Afterburn Energy Release

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Alves, S; Kuhl, A; Najjar, F

2012-02-03

Many explosives will release additional energy after detonation as the detonation products mix with the ambient environment. This additional energy release, referred to as afterburn, is due to combustion of undetonated fuel with ambient oxygen. While the detonation energy release occurs on a time scale of microseconds, the afterburn energy release occurs on a time scale of milliseconds with a potentially varying energy release rate depending upon the local temperature and pressure. This afterburn energy release is not accounted for in typical equations of state, such as the Jones-Wilkins-Lee (JWL) model, used for modeling the detonation of explosives. Here wemore » construct a straightforward and efficient approach, based on experiments and theory, to account for this additional energy release in a way that is tractable for large finite element fluid-structure problems. Barometric calorimeter experiments have been executed in both nitrogen and air environments to investigate the characteristics of afterburn for C-4 and other materials. These tests, which provide pressure time histories, along with theoretical and analytical solutions provide an engineering basis for modeling afterburn with numerical hydrocodes. It is toward this end that we have constructed a modified JWL equation of state to account for afterburn effects on the response of structures to blast. The modified equation of state includes a two phase afterburn energy release to represent variations in the energy release rate and an afterburn energy cutoff to account for partial reaction of the undetonated fuel.« less

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Tonnemacher, G.C.; Killen, D.C.; Weinstein, R.E.

This paper reports on the results of an US Department of Energy (DOE) conceptual design evaluation. This is for an early commercial repowering application of advanced circulating pressurized fluidized bed combustion combined cycle technology (APFBC). Here, APFBC would repower an existing generation station, the Carolina Power and Light Company's (CP and L) L.V. Sutton steam station. Repowering concepts are presented for APFBC repowering of Unit 2 (226 MWe) and both Units 1 and 2 in combination (340 MWe total). This evaluation found that it is more economical to repower the existing coal-fired generation unit with APFBC than to build newmore » pulverized coal capacity of equivalent output. The paper provides a review of the DOE study and summarizes the design and costs associated with the APFBC concept. A DOE-sponsored Clean Coal Technology (CCT) demonstration program will pioneer the first commercial APFBC demonstration in year 2001. That 170 MWe APFBC CCT demonstration will use all new equipment, and become the City of Lakeland's C.D. McIntosh, JR. steam plant Unit 4. This all-coal technology is under development by DOE and equipment manufacturers. This paper's concept evaluation is for a larger implementation than the Lakeland McIntosh CCT project. The repowering of L.V. Sutton Unit 2 is projected to boost the energy efficiency of the existing unit from its present 32.0% HHV level to an APFBC-repowered energy efficiency of 42.2% HHV (44.1% LHV). A large frame Westinghouse W501F combustion turbine is modified for APFBC use. This produces a 225+ MWe class APFBC. At this size, APFBC has a wide application for repowering many existing units in America. The paper focuses on the design issues, shows how the APFBC power block integrates with the existing site, and gives a brief summary of the resulting system performance and costs.« less

Experimental study of combustion characteristics of nanoscale metal and metal oxide additives in biofuel (ethanol)

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

An experimental investigation of the combustion behavior of nano-aluminum (n-Al) and nano-aluminum oxide (n-Al2O3) particles stably suspended in biofuel (ethanol) as a secondary energy carrier was conducted. The heat of combustion (HoC) was studied using a modified static bomb calorimeter system. Combustion element composition and surface morphology were evaluated using a SEM/EDS system. N-Al and n-Al2O3 particles of 50- and 36-nm diameters, respectively, were utilized in this investigation. Combustion experiments were performed with volume fractions of 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10% for n-Al, and 0.5, 1, 3, and 5% for n-Al2O3. The results indicate that the amount of heat released from ethanol combustion increases almost linearly with n-Al concentration. N-Al volume fractions of 1 and 3% did not show enhancement in the average volumetric HoC, but higher volume fractions of 5, 7, and 10% increased the volumetric HoC by 5.82, 8.65, and 15.31%, respectively. N-Al2O3 and heavily passivated n-Al additives did not participate in combustion reactively, and there was no contribution from Al2O3 to the HoC in the tests. A combustion model that utilized Chemical Equilibrium with Applications was conducted as well and was shown to be in good agreement with the experimental results. PMID:21711760

Combustion characteristics and influential factors of isooctane active-thermal atmosphere combustion assisted by two-stage reaction of n-heptane

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lu, Xingcai; Ji, Libin; Ma, Junjun

2011-02-15

This paper presents an experimental study on the isooctane active-thermal atmosphere combustion (ATAC) which is assisted by two-stage reaction of n-heptane. The active-thermal atmosphere is created by low- and high-temperature reactions of n-heptane which is injected at intake port, and isooctane is directly injected into combustion chamber near the top dead center. The effects of isooctane injection timing, active-thermal atmosphere intensity, overall equivalence ratio, and premixed ratio on combustion characteristics and emissions are investigated. The experimental results reveal that, the isooctane ignition and combustion can be classified to thermal atmosphere combustion, active atmosphere combustion, and active-thermal atmosphere combustion respectively accordingmore » to the extent of n-heptane oxidation as well as effects of isooctane quenching and charge cooling. n-Heptane equivalence ratio, isooctane equivalence ratio and isooctane delivery advance angle are major control parameters. In one combustion cycle, the isooctane ignited and burned after those of n-heptane, and then this combustion phenomenon can also be named as dual-fuel sequential combustion (DFSC). The ignition timing of the overall combustion event is mainly determined by n-heptane equivalence ratio and can be controlled in flexibility by simultaneously adjusting isooctane equivalence ratio. The isooctane ignition regime, overall thermal efficiency, and NO{sub x} emissions show strong sensitivity to the fuel delivery advance angle between 20 CA BTDC and 25 CA BTDC. (author)« less

NOx Emission Reduction by Oscillating combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Institute of Gas Technology

2004-01-30

High-temperature, natural gas-fired furnaces, especially those fired with preheated air, produce large quantities of NO{sub x} per ton of material processed. Regulations on emissions from industrial furnaces are becoming increasingly more stringent. In addition, competition is forcing operators to make their furnaces more productive and/or efficient. Switching from preheated air to industrial oxygen can increase efficiency and reduce NO{sub x}, but oxygen is significantly more costly than air and may not be compatible with the material being heated. What was needed, and what was developed during this project, is a technology that reduces NO{sub x} emissions while increasing furnace efficiencymore » for both air- and oxy-fired furnaces. Oscillating combustion is a retrofit technology that involves the forced oscillation of the fuel flow rate to a furnace. These oscillations create successive, fuel-rich and fuel-lean zones within the furnace. Heat transfer from the flame to the load increases due to the more luminous fuel-rich zones, a longer overall flame length, and the breakup of the thermal boundary layer. The increased heat transfer shortens heat up times, thereby increasing furnace productivity, and reduces the heat going up the stack, thereby increasing efficiency. The fuel-rich and fuel-lean zones also produce substantially less NO{sub x} than firing at a constant excess air level. The longer flames and higher heat transfer rate reduces overall peak flame temperature and thus reduces additional NO{sub x} formation from the eventual mixing of the zones and burnout of combustibles from the rich zones. This project involved the development of hardware to implement oscillating combustion on an industrial scale, the laboratory testing of oscillating combustion on various types of industrial burners, and the field testing of oscillating combustion on several types of industrial furnace. Before laboratory testing began, a market study was conducted, based on the attributes of oscillating combustion and on the results of an earlier project at GTI and Air Liquide, to determine which applications for oscillating combustion would show the greatest probability for technical success and greatest probability for market acceptability. The market study indicated that furnaces in the steel, glass, and metal melting industries would perform well in both categories. These findings guided the selection of burners for laboratory testing and, with the results of the laboratory testing, guided the selection of field test sites.« less

NOx Emission Reduction by Oscillating Combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

John C. Wagner

2004-03-31

High-temperature, natural gas-fired furnaces, especially those fired with preheated air, produce large quantities of NO{sub x} per ton of material processed. Regulations on emissions from industrial furnaces are becoming increasingly more stringent. In addition, competition is forcing operators to make their furnaces more productive and/or efficient. Switching from preheated air to industrial oxygen can increase efficiency and reduce NO{sub x}, but oxygen is significantly more costly than air and may not be compatible with the material being heated. What was needed, and what was developed during this project, is a technology that reduces NO{sub x} emissions while increasing furnace efficiencymore » for both air- and oxy-fired furnaces. Oscillating combustion is a retrofit technology that involves the forced oscillation of the fuel flow rate to a furnace. These oscillations create successive, fuel-rich and fuel-lean zones within the furnace. Heat transfer from the flame to the load increases due to the more luminous fuel-rich zones, a longer overall flame length, and the breakup of the thermal boundary layer. The increased heat transfer shortens heat up times, thereby increasing furnace productivity, and reduces the heat going up the stack, thereby increasing efficiency. The fuel-rich and fuel-lean zones also produce substantially less NO{sub x} than firing at a constant excess air level. The longer flames and higher heat transfer rate reduces overall peak flame temperature and thus reduces additional NO{sub x} formation from the eventual mixing of the zones and burnout of combustibles from the rich zones. This project involved the development of hardware to implement oscillating combustion on an industrial scale, the laboratory testing of oscillating combustion on various types of industrial burners, and the field testing of oscillating combustion on several types of industrial furnace. Before laboratory testing began, a market study was conducted, based on the attributes of oscillating combustion and on the results of an earlier project at GTI and Air Liquide, to determine which applications for oscillating combustion would show the greatest probability for technical success and greatest probability for market acceptability. The market study indicated that furnaces in the steel, glass, and metal melting industries would perform well in both categories. These findings guided the selection of burners for laboratory testing and, with the results of the laboratory testing, guided the selection of field test sites.« less

Chemical Composition of African Biomass Burning Aerosols Over the Southeast Atlantic: Aerosol Mass Spectrometer Results from the 2016 and 2017 ORACLES Field Campaigns.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dobracki, A. N.; Howell, S. G.; Freitag, S.; Smirnow, N.; Podolske, J. R.

2017-12-01

Biomass burning (BB) is one of the largest contributors of anthropogenic aerosols in the atmosphere. During BB events, organic and inorganic gases and particles are emitted into the atmosphere. Because of their abundance, particle size, and radiative properties, BB aerosols play an important role in global climate. Southern Africa produces 30% of the Earth's BB aerosol particles. Organics, Nitrates, sulfates, and refractory black carbon, along with other chemical species are lofted into the free troposphere and transported over the Southeast Atlantic Ocean. However, considerate uncertainty remains in the chemical composition of these plumes with its large variety of organic and inorganic species. As part of the NASA ORACLES (ObseRvations of Aerosols above CLouds and their intEractionS) 2016 and 2017 airborne field campaigns, an Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS) was used to sample the chemical composition and chemical structure of the aerosol in this region. Results show constant vertical stratification within the plume over the course of the campaign (August 2017 / September 2016). Using nitrate (NO3) and organic carbon (OC) as two tracers, the structure of the September 2016 plume had a ratio of 1:8 (NO3:OC) in the upper plume (3km-5km), while the lower plume (1km-2.5km) had a ratio of 1:12 (NO3:OC). AMS measurements were supported by carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) measurements. This data revealed a modified combustion efficiency (MCE= ΔCO2/ΔCO2 + ΔCO) of <0.97 in the upper plume, and a higher MCE > 0.97 in the lower plume. An MCE above 0.9 represents efficient burning processes. Additionally, concentrations of C2(H2O)2 (m/z60), a common chemical fragment from breaking up carbohydrates (primarily levoglucosan) emitted by burning biomass only represented <1% of total organics throughout the campaign. These low concentrations are due to efficient combustion rather than oxidation during transport. These results are consistent with earlier studies of efficient fires.

Investigation on the effect of diaphragm on the combustion characteristics of solid-fuel ramjet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gong, Lunkun; Chen, Xiong; Yang, Haitao; Li, Weixuan; Zhou, Changsheng

2017-10-01

The flow field characteristics and the regression rate distribution of solid-fuel ramjet with three-hole diaphragm were investigated by numerical and experimental methods. The experimental data were obtained by burning high-density polyethylene using a connected-pipe facility to validate the numerical model and analyze the combustion efficiency of the solid-fuel ramjet. The three-dimensional code developed in the present study adopted three-order MUSCL and central difference schemes, AUSMPW + flux vector splitting method, and second-order moment turbulence-chemistry model, together with k-ω shear stress transport (SST) turbulence model. The solid fuel surface temperature was calculated with fluid-solid heat coupling method. The numerical results show that strong circumferential flow exists in the region upstream of the diaphragm. The diaphragm can enhance the regression rate of the solid fuel in the region downstream of the diaphragm significantly, which mainly results from the increase of turbulent viscosity. As the diaphragm port area decreases, the regression rate of the solid fuel downstream of the diaphragm increases. The diaphragm can result in more sufficient mixing between the incoming air and fuel pyrolysis gases, while inevitably producing some pressure loss. The experimental results indicate that the effect of the diaphragm on the combustion efficiency of hydrocarbon fuels is slightly negative. It is conjectured that the diaphragm may have some positive effects on the combustion efficiency of the solid fuel with metal particles.

Effect of exhaust gas recirculation on emissions from a flame-tube combustor using Liquid Jet A fuel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Marek, C. J.; Tacina, R. R.

1976-01-01

The effects of uncooled exhaust gas recirculation as an inert diluent on emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NO + NO2) and on combustion efficiency were investigated. Ratios of recirculated combustion products to inlet airflow were varied from 10 to 80 percent by using an inlet air ejector nozzle. Liquid Jet A fuel was used. The flame-tube combustor was 10.2 cm in diameter. It was operated with and without a flameholder present. The combustor pressure was maintained constant at 0.5 MPa. The equivalence ratio was varied from 0.3 to 1.0. The inlet air temperature was varied from 590 to 800 K, and the reference velocity from 10 to 30 m/sec. Increasing the percent recirculation from 10 to 25 had the following effects: (1) the peak NOx emission was decreased by 37 percent, from 8 to 5 g NO2/kg fuel, at an inlet air temperature of 590 K and a reference velocity of 15 m/sec; (2) the combustion efficiency was increased, particularly at the higher equivalence ratios; and (3) for a high combustion efficiency of greater than 99.5 percent, the range of operation of the combustor was nearly doubled in terms of equivalence ratio. Increasing the recirculation from 25 to 50 percent did not change the emissions significantly.

Performance of N95 FFRs Against Combustion and NaCl Aerosols in Dry and Moderately Humid Air: Manikin-based Study.

PubMed

Gao, Shuang; Kim, Jinyong; Yermakov, Michael; Elmashae, Yousef; He, Xinjian; Reponen, Tiina; Zhuang, Ziqing; Rengasamy, Samy; Grinshpun, Sergey A

2016-07-01

The first objective of this study was to evaluate the penetration of particles generated from combustion of plastic through National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)-certified N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) using a manikin-based protocol and compare the data to the penetration of NaCl particles. The second objective was to investigate the effect of relative humidity (RH) on the filtration performance of N95 FFRs. Two NIOSH-certified N95 FFRs (A and B) were fully sealed on a manikin headform and challenged with particles generated by combustion of plastic and NaCl particles. The tests were performed using two cyclic flows [with mean inspiratory flow (MIF) rates = 30 and 85 l min(-1), representing human breathing under low and moderate workload conditions] and two RH levels (≈20 and ≈80%, representing dry and moderately humid air). The total and size-specific particle concentrations inside (C in) and outside (C out) of the respirators were measured with a condensation particle counter and an aerosol size spectrometer. The penetration values (C in/C out) were calculated after each test. The challenge aerosol, RH, MIF rate, and respirator type had significant (P < 0.05) effects on the performance of the manikin-sealed FFR. Its efficiency significantly decreased when the FFR was tested with plastic combustion particles compared to NaCl aerosols. For example, at RH ≈80% and MIF = 85 l min(-1), as much as 7.03 and 8.61% of combustion particles penetrated N95 respirators A and B, respectively. The plastic combustion particles and gaseous compounds generated by combustion likely degraded the electric charges on fibers, which increased the particle penetration. Increasing breathing flow rate or humidity increased the penetration (reduced the respirator efficiency) for all tested aerosols. The effect of particle size on the penetration varied depending on the challenge aerosol and respirator type. It was observed that the peak of the size distribution of combustion particles almost coincided with their most penetrating particle size, which was not the case for NaCl particles. This finding was utilized for the data interpretation. N95 FFRs have lower filter efficiency when challenged with contaminant particles generated by combustion, particularly when used under high humidity conditions compared to NaCl particles. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Occupational Hygiene Society.

Three-dimensional modeling of diesel engine intake flow, combustion and emissions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reitz, R. D.; Rutland, C. J.

1992-01-01

A three-dimensional computer code (KIVA) is being modified to include state-of-the-art submodels for diesel engine flow and combustion: spray atomization, drop breakup/coalescence, multi-component fuel vaporization, spray/wall interaction, ignition and combustion, wall heat transfer, unburned HC and NOx formation, soot and radiation, and the intake flow process. Improved and/or new submodels which were completed are: wall heat transfer with unsteadiness and compressibility, laminar-turbulent characteristic time combustion with unburned HC and Zeldo'vich NOx, and spray/wall impingement with rebounding and sliding drops. Results to date show that adding the effects of unsteadiness and compressibility improves the accuracy of heat transfer predictions; spray drop rebound can occur from walls at low impingement velocities (e.g., in cold-starting); larger spray drops are formed at the nozzle due to the influence of vaporization on the atomization process; a laminar-and-turbulent characteristic time combustion model has the flexibility to match measured engine combustion data over a wide range of operating conditions; and finally, the characteristic time combustion model can also be extended to allow predictions of ignition. The accuracy of the predictions is being assessed by comparisons with available measurements. Additional supporting experiments are also described briefly. To date, comparisons with measured engine cylinder pressure and heat flux data were made for homogeneous charge, spark-ignited and compression-ignited engines. The model results are in good agreement with the experiments.

Numerical simulation of turbulent stratified flame propagation in a closed vessel

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gruselle, Catherine; Lartigue, Ghislain; Pepiot, Perrine; Moureau, Vincent; D'Angelo, Yves

2012-11-01

Reducing pollutants emissions while keeping a high combustion efficiency and a low fuel consumption is an important challenge for both gas turbine (GT) and internal combustion engines (ICE). To fulfill these new constraints, stratified combustion may constitute an efficient strategy. A tabulated chemistry approach based on FPI combined to a low-Mach number method is applied in the analysis of a turbulent propane-air flame with equivalence ratio (ER) stratification, which has been studied experimentally by Balusamy [S. Balusamy, Ph.D Thesis, INSA-Rouen (2010)]. Flame topology, along with flame velocity statistics, are well reproduced in the simulation, even if time-history effects are not accounted for in the tabulated approach. However, these effects may become significant when exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) is introduced. To better quantify them, both ER and EGR-stratified two-dimensional flames are simulated using finite-rate chemistry and a semi-detailed mechanism for propane oxidation. The numerical implementation is first investigated in terms of efficiency and accuracy, with a focus on splitting errors. The resulting flames are then analyzed to investigate potential extensions of the FPI technique to EGR stratification.

Correlations of catalytic combustor performance parameters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bulzan, D. L.

1978-01-01

Correlations for combustion efficiency percentage drop and the minimum required adiabatic reaction temperature necessary to meet emissions goals of 13.6 g CO/kg fuel and 1.64 g HC/kg fuel are presented. Combustion efficiency was found to be a function of the cell density, cell circumference, reactor length, reference velocity, and adiabatic reaction temperature. The percentage pressure drop at an adiabatic reaction temperature of 1450 K was found to be proportional to the reference velocity to the 1.5 power and to the reactor length. It is inversely proportional to the pressure, cell hydraulic diameter, and fractional open area. The minimum required adiabatic reaction temperature was found to increase with reference velocity and decrease with cell circumference, cell density and reactor length. A catalyst factor was introduced into the correlations to account for differences between catalysts. Combustion efficiency, the percentage pressure drop, and the minimum required adiabatic reaction temperature were found to be a function of the catalyst factor. The data was from a 12 cm-diameter test rig with noble metal reactors using propane fuel at an inlet temperature of 800 K.

Combustion synthesis of ceramic-metal composite materials in microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moore, John

1995-01-01

Combustion synthesis, self-propagating high temperature synthesis (SHS) or reactive synthesis provides an attractive alternative to conventional methods of producing advanced materials since this technology is based on the ability of highly exothermic reactions to be self sustaining and, therefore, energetically efficient. The exothermic SHS reaction is initiated at the ignition temperature, T(sub ig), and generates heat which is manifested in a maximum or combustion temperature, T(sub c), which can exceed 3000 K . Such high combustion temperatures are capable of melting and/or volatilizing reactant and product species and, therefore, present an opportunity for producing structure and property modification and control through liquid-solid, vapor-liquid-solid, and vapor-solid transformations.

Effect of flame-tube head structure on combustion chamber performance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gu, Minqqi

1986-01-01

The experimental combustion performance of a premixed, pilot-type flame tube with various head structures is discussed. The test study covers an extensive area: efficiency of the combustion chamber, quality of the outlet temperature field, limit of the fuel-lean blowout, ignition performance at ground starting, and carbon deposition. As a result of these tests, a nozzle was found which fits the premixed pilot flame tube well. The use of this nozzle optimized the performance of the combustion chamber. The tested models had premixed pilot chambers with two types of air-film-cooling structures, six types of venturi-tube structures, and secondary fuel nozzles with two small spray-cone angles.

Internal combustion engine

DOEpatents

Baker, Quentin A.; Mecredy, Henry E.; O'Neal, Glenn B.

1991-01-01

An improved engine is provided that more efficiently consumes difficult fuels such as coal slurries or powdered coal. The engine includes a precombustion chamber having a portion thereof formed by an ignition plug. The precombustion chamber is arranged so that when the piston is proximate the head, the precombustion chamber is sealed from the main cylinder or the main combustion chamber and when the piston is remote from the head, the precombustion chamber and main combustion chamber are in communication. The time for burning of fuel in the precombustion chamber can be regulated by the distance required to move the piston from the top dead center position to the position wherein the precombustion chamber and main combustion chamber are in communication.

Development and test of combustion chamber for Stirling engine heated by natural gas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Tie; Song, Xiange; Gui, Xiaohong; Tang, Dawei; Li, Zhigang; Cao, Wenyu

2014-04-01

The combustion chamber is an important component for the Stirling engine heated by natural gas. In the paper, we develop a combustion chamber for the Stirling engine which aims to generate 3˜5 kWe electric power. The combustion chamber includes three main components: combustion module, heat exchange cavity and thermal head. Its feature is that the structure can divide "combustion" process and "heat transfer" process into two apparent individual steps and make them happen one by one. Since natural gas can mix with air fully before burning, the combustion process can be easily completed without the second wind. The flame can avoid contacting the thermal head of Stirling engine, and the temperature fields can be easily controlled. The designed combustion chamber is manufactured and its performance is tested by an experiment which includes two steps. The experimental result of the first step proves that the mixture of air and natural gas can be easily ignited and the flame burns stably. In the second step of experiment, the combustion heat flux can reach 20 kW, and the energy utilization efficiency of thermal head has exceeded 0.5. These test results show that the thermal performance of combustion chamber has reached the design goal. The designed combustion chamber can be applied to a real Stirling engine heated by natural gas which is to generate 3˜5 kWe electric power.

Scramjet Combustor Characteristics at Hypervelocity Condition over Mach 10 Flight

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Takahashi, M.; Komuro, T.; Sato, K.; Kodera, M.; Tanno, H.; Itoh, K.

2009-01-01

To investigate possibility of reduction of a scramjet combustor size without thrust performance loss, a two-dimensional constant-area combustor of a previous engine model was replaced with the one with 23% lower-height. With the application of the lower-height combustor, the pressure in the combustor becomes 50% higher and the combustor length for the optimal performance becomes 43% shorter than the original combustor. The combustion tests of the modified engine model were conducted using a large free-piston driven shock tunnel at flow conditions corresponding to the flight Mach number from 9 to 14. CFD was also applied to the engine internal flows. The results showed that the mixing and combustion heat release progress faster to the distance and the combustor performance similar to that of the previous engine was obtained with the modified engine. The reduction of the combustor size without the thrust performance loss is successfully achieved by applying the lower-height combustor.

New-Generation Sealing Slurries For Borehole Injection Purposes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stryczek, Stanisław; Gonet, Andrzej; Wiśniowski, Rafał; Złotkowski, Albert

2015-12-01

The development of techniques and technologies thanks to which parameters of the ground medium can be modified makes specialists look for new recipes of geopolymers - binders for the reinforcing and sealing of unstable and permeable grounds. The sealing slurries are expected to meet a number of strict requirements, therefore it is important to find new admixtures and additives which could modify the fresh and hardened slurry. Special attention has been recently paid to the fluid ash - a by-product of the combustion of hard coals. However, the use of this additive is associated with the application of appropriate superplastifier. Laboratory analyses of rheological parameters of fresh sealing slurries and the ways of improving their liquidity by a properly selected third-generation superplastifier are presented in the paper. The slurries were based on Portland cement CEM I, milled granulated large-furnace slag and fly ash from fluidized-bed combustion of hard coal.

Capturing Cyclic Variability in EGR Dilute SI Combustion using Multi-Cycle RANS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Scarcelli, Riccardo; Sevik, James; Wallner, Thomas

Dilute combustion is an effective approach to increase the thermal efficiency of spark-ignition (SI) internal combustion engines (ICEs). However, high dilution levels typically result in large cycle-to-cycle variations (CCV) and poor combustion stability, therefore limiting the efficiency improvement. In order to extend the dilution tolerance of SI engines, advanced ignition systems are the subject of extensive research. When simulating the effect of the ignition characteristics on CCV, providing a numerical result matching the measured average in-cylinder pressure trace does not deliver useful information regarding combustion stability. Typically Large Eddy Simulations (LES) are performed to simulate cyclic engine variations, since Reynold-Averagedmore » Navier-Stokes (RANS) modeling is expected to deliver an ensemble-averaged result. In this paper it is shown that, when using RANS, the cyclic perturbations coming from different initial conditions at each cycle are not damped out even after many simulated cycles. As a result, multi-cycle RANS results feature cyclic variability. This allows evaluating the effect of advanced ignition sources on combustion stability but requires validation against the entire cycle-resolved experimental dataset. A single-cylinder GDI research engine is simulated using RANS and the numerical results for 20 consecutive engine cycles are evaluated for several operating conditions, including stoichiometric as well as EGR dilute operation. The effect of the ignition characteristics on CCV is also evaluated. Results show not only that multi-cycle RANS simulations can capture cyclic variability and deliver similar trends as the experimental data, but more importantly that RANS might be an effective, lower-cost alternative to LES for the evaluation of ignition strategies for combustion systems that operate close to the stability limit.« less

Factors influencing the stable carbon isotopic signature of methane from combustion and biomass burning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chanton, Jeffrey P.; Rutkowski, Christine M.; Schwartz, Candace C.; Ward, Darold E.; Boring, Lindsay

2000-01-01

Factors controlling the δ13C of methane released by combustion include the combustion efficiency of the fire and the δ13C of the fuel. Smoldering fires produced 13C-depleted methane relative to hot, flaming fires in controlled forest and grassland burns and within a wood stove. Pine forest burns in the southeastern United States produced methane which ranged from -21 to -30‰, while African grassland burns varied from -17 to -26‰, depending upon combustion phase. African woodland burns produced methane at -30‰. In forest burns in the southeastern United States, the δ13C of methane released with smoldering was significantly 13C depleted relative to methane released under hot flaming conditions. Methane released with smoldering was depleted by 2-3‰ relative to the fuel δ13C, but this difference was not significant. The δ13C of methane produced in a variety of wood stove conditions varied from -9 to -25‰ and also depended upon combustion efficiency. Similar results were found for methane produced by gasoline automobile engines, where the δ13C of methane varied from -9 to -22‰. For combustion occurring within the confining chamber of a wood stove or engine the δ13C of methane was clearly 13C enriched relative to the δ13C of the fuel, possibly because of preferential combustion of 12CH4 in the gas phase. Significant quantities of ethylene (up to 25 to 50% of methane concentrations) were produced in southeastern U.S. forest fires, which may have consequences for physiological and reproductive responses of plants in the ecosystem. Methane production in these fires varied from 0.2 to 8.5% of the carbon dioxide production.

Hot flue-gas spiking and recovery study for tetrachlorodibenzodioxins (TCDD) using Modified Method 5 and SASS (Source Assessment Sampling System) sampling with a simulated incinerator. Final report, May 1981-February 1982

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cooke, M.; DeRoos, F.; Rising, B.

1984-10-01

The report gives results of an evaluation of the sampling and analysis of ultratrace levels of dibenzodioxins using EPA's recommended source sampling procedures (Modified Method 5 (MM5) train and the Source Assessment Sampling System--SASS). A gas-fired combustion system was used to simulate incineration flue gas, and a precision liquid injection system was designed for the program. The precision liquid injector was used to administer dilute solutions of 1,2,3,4-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (1,2,3,4-TCDD) directly into a hot--260C (500F)--flue gas stream. Injections occurred continuously during the sampling episode so that very low gas-phase concentrations of 1,2,3,4-TCDD were continuously mixed with the flue gases. Recoveries weremore » measured for eight burn experiments. For all but one, the recoveries could be considered quantitative, demonstrating efficient collection by the EPA sampling systems. In one study, the components and connecting lines from a sampling device were analyzed separately to show where the 1,2,3,4-TCDD deposited in the train.« less

Optimization of Pressurized Oxy-Combustion with Flameless Reactor

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Malavasi, Massimo; Landegger, Gregory

2014-06-30

Pressurized OxyECombustion is one of the most promising technologies for utility-scale power generation plants. Benefits include the ability to burn low rank coal and capture CO 2. By increasing the flue gas pressure during this process, greater efficiencies are derived from increased quantity and quality of thermal energy recovery. UPA with modeling support from MIT and testing and data verification by Georgia Tech’s Research Center designed and built a 100 kW system capable of demonstrating pressurized oxyEcombustion using a flameless combustor. Wyoming PRB coal was run at 15 and 32 bar. Additional tests were not completed but sampled data demonstratedmore » the viability of the technology over a broader range of operating pressures, Modeling results illustrated a flat efficiency curve over 20 bar, with optimum efficiency achieved at 29 bar. This resulted in a 33% (HHV) efficiency, a 5 points increase in efficiency versus atmospheric oxy-combustion, and a competitive cost of electricity plus greater CO 2 avoidance costs then prior study’s presented. UPA’s operation of the bench-scale system provided evidence that key performance targets were achieved: flue gas sampled at the combustor outlet had non-detectable residual fly ashes, and low levels of SO3 and heavy-metal. These results correspond to prior pressurized oxy-combustion testing completed by IteaEEnel.« less

Loop-bed combustion apparatus

DOEpatents

Shang, Jer-Yu; Mei, Joseph S.; Slagle, Frank D.; Notestein, John E.

1984-01-01

The present invention is directed to a combustion apparatus in the configuration of a oblong annulus defining a closed loop. Particulate coal together with a sulfur sorbent such as sulfur or dolomite is introduced into the closed loop, ignited, and propelled at a high rate of speed around the loop. Flue gas is withdrawn from a location in the closed loop in close proximity to an area in the loop where centrifugal force imposed upon the larger particulate material maintains these particulates at a location spaced from the flue gas outlet. Only flue gas and smaller particulates resulting from the combustion and innerparticle grinding are discharged from the combustor. This structural arrangement provides increased combustion efficiency due to the essentially complete combustion of the coal particulates as well as increased sulfur absorption due to the innerparticle grinding of the sorbent which provides greater particle surface area.

Process for Making Carbon-Carbon Turbocharger Housing Unit for Intermittent Combustion Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Northam, G. Burton (Inventor); Ransone, Philip O. (Inventor); Rivers, H. Kevin (Inventor)

1999-01-01

An improved. lightweight, turbine housing unit for an intermittent combustion reciprocating internal combustion engine turbocharger is prepared from a lay-up or molding of carbon-carbon composite materials in a single-piece or two-piece process. When compared to conventional steel or cast iron, the use of carbon-carbon composite materials in a turbine housing unit reduces the overall weight of the engine and reduces the heat energy loss used in the turbo-charging process. This reduction in heat energy loss and weight reduction provides for more efficient engine operation.

Carbon-Carbon Turbocharger Housing Unit for Intermittent Combustion Engines

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Northam, G. Burton (Inventor); Ransone, Philip O. (Inventor); Rivers, H. Kevin (Inventor)

1998-01-01

An improved, lightweight, turbine housing unit for an intermittent combustion reciprocating internal combustion engine turbocharger is prepared from a lay-up or molding of carbon-carbon composite materials in a single-piece or two-piece process. When compared to conventional steel or cast iron, the use of carbon-carbon composite materials in a turbine housing unit reduces the overall weight of the engine and reduces the heat energy loss used in the turbocharging process. This reduction in heat energy loss and weight reduction provides for more efficient engine operation.

Efficiency of the rocket engines with a supersonic afterburner

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sergienko, A. A.

1992-08-01

The paper is concerned with the problem of regenerative cooling of the liquid-propellant rocket engine combustion chamber at high pressures of the working fluid. It is shown that high combustion product pressures can be achieved in the liquid-propellant rocket engine with a supersonic afterburner than in a liquid-propellant rocket engine with a conventional subsonic combustion chamber for the same allowable heat flux density. However, the liquid-propellant rocket engine with a supersonic afterburner becomes more economical than the conventional engine only at generator gas temperatures of 1700 K and higher.

Numerical parametric studies of spray combustion instability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pindera, M. Z.

1993-01-01

A coupled numerical algorithm has been developed for studies of combustion instabilities in spray-driven liquid rocket engines. The model couples gas and liquid phase physics using the method of fractional steps. Also introduced is a novel, efficient methodology for accounting for spray formation through direct solution of liquid phase equations. Preliminary parametric studies show marked sensitivity of spray penetration and geometry to droplet diameter, considerations of liquid core, and acoustic interactions. Less sensitivity was shown to the combustion model type although more rigorous (multi-step) formulations may be needed for the differences to become apparent.

Combustion efficiency of a premixed continuous flow combustor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anand, M. S.; Gouldin, F. C.

1985-01-01

Exhaust gas temperature, velocity, and composition measurements at various radial locations at the combustor exit are presented for a swirling-flow continuous combustor of a confined concentric jet configuration operating on premixed propane or methane and air. The main objective of the study is to determine the effect of fuel substitution and of changes in outer flow swirl conditions on the combustor performance. It is found that there is no difference in observed properties for propane and methane firing; the use of either of the fuels results in nearly the same exit temperature and velocity profiles and the same efficiency for a given operating condition. A mechanism for combustion is proposed which explains qualitatively the changes in efficiency and pollutant emissions observed with changing swirl.

Evaporation And Ignition Of Dense Fuel Sprays

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bellan, Josette; Harstad, Kenneth G.

1988-01-01

Simple theoretical model makes useful predictions of trends. Pair of reports presents theoretical model of evaporation and ignition of sprayed liquid fuel. Developed as part of research in combustion of oil and liquid fuels derived from coal, tar sand, and shale in furnace. Work eventually contributes to increase efficiency of combustion and decrease pollution generated by burning of such fuels.

Computation of Reacting Flows in Combustion Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keith, Theo G., Jr.; Chen, K.-H.

2001-01-01

The objective of this research is to develop an efficient numerical algorithm with unstructured grids for the computation of three-dimensional chemical reacting flows that are known to occur in combustion components of propulsion systems. During the grant period (1996 to 1999), two companion codes have been developed and various numerical and physical models were implemented into the two codes.

Analysis of alternative pathways for reducing nitrogen oxide emissions.

PubMed

Loughlin, Daniel H; Kaufman, Katherine R; Lenox, Carol S; Hubbell, Bryan J

2015-09-01

Strategies for reducing tropospheric ozone (O3) typically include modifying combustion processes to reduce the formation of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and applying control devices that remove NOx from the exhaust gases of power plants, industrial sources and vehicles. For portions of the U.S., these traditional controls may not be sufficient to achieve the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for ozone. We apply the MARKet ALlocation (MARKAL) energy system model in a sensitivity analysis to explore whether additional NOx reductions can be achieved through extensive electrification of passenger vehicles, adoption of energy efficiency and conservation measures within buildings, and deployment of wind and solar power in the electric sector. Nationally and for each region of the country, we estimate the NOx implications of these measures. Energy efficiency and renewable electricity are shown to reduce NOx beyond traditional controls. Wide-spread light duty vehicle electrification produces varied results, with NOx increasing in some regions and decreasing in others. However, combining vehicle electrification with renewable electricity reduces NOx in all regions. State governments are charged with developing plans that demonstrate how air quality standards will be met and maintained. The results presented here provide an indication of the national and regional NOx reductions available beyond traditional controls via extensive adoption of energy efficiency, renewable electricity, and vehicle electrification.

Co-Optimization of Internal Combustion Engines and Biofuels

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McCormick, Robert L.

2016-03-08

The development of advanced engines has significant potential advantages in reduced aftertreatment costs for air pollutant emission control, and just as importantly for efficiency improvements and associated greenhouse gas emission reductions. There are significant opportunities to leverage fuel properties to create more optimal engine designs for both advanced spark-ignition and compression-ignition combustion strategies. The fact that biofuel blendstocks offer a potentially low-carbon approach to fuel production, leads to the idea of optimizing the entire fuel production-utilization value chain as a system from the standpoint of life cycle greenhouse gas emissions. This is a difficult challenge that has yet to bemore » realized. This presentation will discuss the relationship between chemical structure and critical fuel properties for more efficient combustion, survey the properties of a range of biofuels that may be produced in the future, and describe the ongoing challenges of fuel-engine co-optimization.« less

Improved Stirling engine performance using jet impingement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, D. C.; Britt, E. J.; Thieme, L. G.

1982-01-01

Of the many factors influencing the performance of a Stirling engine, that of transferring the combustion gas heat into the working fluid is crucial. By utilizing the high heat transfer rates obtainable with a jet impingement heat transfer system, it is possible to reduce the flame temperature required for engine operation. Also, the required amount of heater tube surface area may be reduced, resulting in a decrease in the engine nonswept volume and a related increase in engine efficiency. A jet impingement heat transfer system was designed by Rasor Associates, Inc., and tested in the GPU-3 Stirling engine at the NASA Lewis Research Center. For a small penalty in pumping power (less than 0.5% of engine output) the jet impingement heat transfer system provided a higher combustion-gas-side heat transfer coefficient and a smoothing of heater temperature profiles resulting in lower combustion system temperatures and a 5 to 8% increase in engine power output and efficiency.

Experimental study of the thermal-acoustic efficiency in a long turbulent diffusion-flame burner

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mahan, J. R.

1983-01-01

A two-year study of noise production in a long tubular burner is described. The research was motivated by an interest in understanding and eventually reducing core noise in gas turbine engines. The general approach is to employ an acoustic source/propagation model to interpret the sound pressure spectrum in the acoustic far field of the burner in terms of the source spectrum that must have produced it. In the model the sources are assumed to be due uniquely to the unsteady component of combustion heat release; thus only direct combustion-noise is considered. The source spectrum is then the variation with frequency of the thermal-acoustic efficiency, defined as the fraction of combustion heat release which is converted into acoustic energy at a given frequency. The thrust of the research was to study the variation of the source spectrum with the design and operating parameters of the burner.

Combustion distribution control using the extremum seeking algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marjanovic, A.; Krstic, M.; Djurovic, Z.; Kvascev, G.; Papic, V.

2014-12-01

Quality regulation of the combustion process inside the furnace is the basis of high demands for increasing robustness, safety and efficiency of thermal power plants. The paper considers the possibility of spatial temperature distribution control inside the boiler, based on the correction of distribution of coal over the mills. Such control system ensures the maintenance of the flame focus away from the walls of the boiler, and thus preserves the equipment and reduces the possibility of ash slugging. At the same time, uniform heat dissipation over mills enhances the energy efficiency of the boiler, while reducing the pollution of the system. A constrained multivariable extremum seeking algorithm is proposed as a tool for combustion process optimization with the main objective of centralizing the flame in the furnace. Simulations are conducted on a model corresponding to the 350MW boiler of the Nikola Tesla Power Plant, in Obrenovac, Serbia.

Holographic aids for internal combustion engine flow studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Regan, C.

1984-01-01

Worldwide interest in improving the fuel efficiency of internal combustion (I.C.) engines has sparked research efforts designed to learn more about the flow processes of these engines. The flow fields must be understood prior to fuel injection in order to design efficient valves, piston geometries, and fuel injectors. Knowledge of the flow field is also necessary to determine the heat transfer to combustion chamber surfaces. Computational codes can predict velocity and turbulence patterns, but experimental verification is mandatory to justify their basic assumptions. Due to their nonintrusive nature, optical methods are ideally suited to provide the necessary velocity verification data. Optical sytems such as Schlieren photography, laser velocimetry, and illuminated particle visualization are used in I.C. engines, and now their versatility is improved by employing holography. These holographically enhanced optical techniques are described with emphasis on their applications in I.C. engines.

Consider the DME alternative for diesel engines

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fleisch, T.H.; Meurer, P.C.

1996-07-01

Engine tests demonstrate that dimethyl ether (DME, CH{sub 3}OCH{sub 3}) can provide an alternative approach toward efficient, ultra-clean and quiet compression ignition (CI) engines. From a combustion point of view, DME is an attractive alternative fuel for CI engines, primarily for commercial applications in urban areas, where ultra-low emissions will be required in the future. DME can resolve the classical diesel emission problem of smoke emissions, which are completely eliminated. With a properly developed DME injection and combustion system, NO{sub x} emissions can be reduced to 40% of Euro II or U.S. 1998 limits, and can meet the future ULEVmore » standards of California. Simultaneously, the combustion noise is reduced by as much as 15 dB(A) below diesel levels. In addition, the classical diesel advantages such as high thermal efficiency, compression ignition, engine robustness, etc., are retained.« less

Fire toxicology program. JSC methodology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schneider, H.; Bafus, D.

1978-01-01

Toxicological testing of spacecraft materials was initiated in 1965. Toxicological evaluations of the pyrolysis/combustion products of candidate spacecraft materials were performed using a modified 142 liter Bethlehem Chamber equipped with a Linberg Model 55031 furnace external to the chamber. In all of the assessments, lethality was chosen as the endpoint. A new pyrolysis/combustion chamber was developed for toxicological testing and ranking of both spacecraft and aircraft materials. The pyrolysis/combustion chamber permits the use of both behavior and physiological measurements as indicators of incapacitation. Methods were developed which employ high resolution gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to generate chamber atmospheric profiles which indicate the reproductibility of pyrolysate concentrations. The atmospheric volatile profiles in combination with CO, CO2, and O2 analysis indicates that small chamber equipped with an internal furnace will give reproducible results.

Synthesis of functional materials in combustion reactions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhuravlev, V. D., E-mail: zhvd@ihim.uran.ru; Bamburov, V. G.; Ermakova, L. V.

2015-12-15

The conditions for obtaining oxide compounds in combustion reactions of nitrates of metals with organic chelating–reducing agents such as amino acids, urea, and polyvinyl alcohol are reviewed. Changing the nature of internal fuels and the reducing agent-to-oxidizing agent ratio makes possible to modify the thermal regime of the process, fractal dimensionality, morphology, and dispersion of synthesized functional materials. This method can be used to synthesize simple and complex oxides, composites, and metal powders, as well as ceramics and coatings. The possibilities of synthesis in combustion reactions are illustrated by examples of αand γ-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, YSZ composites, uranium oxides, nickelmore » powder, NiO and NiO: YSZ composite, TiO{sub 2}, and manganites, cobaltites, and aluminates of rare earth elements.« less

Altitude Performance Characteristics of Tail-pipe Burner with Variable-area Exhaust Nozzle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jansen, Emmert T; Thorman, H Carl

1950-01-01

An investigation was conducted in the NACA Lewis altitude wind tunnel to determine effect of altitude and flight Mach number on performance of tail-pipe burner equipped with variable-area exhaust nozzle and installed on full-scale turbojet engine. At a given flight Mach number, with constant exhaust-gas and turbine-outlet temperatures, increasing altitude lowered the tail-pipe combustion efficiency and raised the specific fuel consumption while the augmented thrust ratio remained approximately constant. At a given altitude, increasing flight Mach number raised the combustion efficiency and augmented thrust ratio and lowered the specific fuel consumption.

Odor intensity and characterization studies of exhaust from a turbojet engine combustor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Butze, H. F.; Kendall, D. A.

1973-01-01

Sensory odor tests of the exhaust from a turbojet combustor operating at simulated idle conditions were made by a human panel sniffing diluted exhaust gas. Simultaneously, samples of undiluted exhaust gas were collected on adsorbent substrates, subsequently removed by solvent flushing, and analyzed chemically by liquid chromatographic methods. The concentrations of the principal malodorous species, the aromatic (unburned fuel-related) and the oxygenated (partially burned fuel) fractions, as determined chromatographically, correlated well with the intensity of the odor as determined by sniffing. Odor intensity increased as combustion efficiency decreased. Combustor modifications which increased combustion efficiency decreased odor intensity.

The technological raw material heating furnaces operation efficiency improving issue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paramonov, A. M.

2017-08-01

The issue of fuel oil applying efficiency improving in the technological raw material heating furnaces by means of its combustion intensification is considered in the paper. The technical and economic optimization problem of the fuel oil heating before combustion is solved. The fuel oil heating optimal temperature defining method and algorithm analytically considering the correlation of thermal, operating parameters and discounted costs for the heating furnace were developed. The obtained optimization functionality provides the heating furnace appropriate thermal indices achievement at minimum discounted costs. The carried out research results prove the expediency of the proposed solutions using.

Sustainable and efficient biohydrogen production via electrohydrogenesis.

PubMed

Cheng, Shaoan; Logan, Bruce E

2007-11-20

Hydrogen gas has tremendous potential as an environmentally acceptable energy carrier for vehicles, but most hydrogen is generated from nonrenewable fossil fuels such as natural gas. Here, we show that efficient and sustainable hydrogen production is possible from any type of biodegradable organic matter by electrohydrogenesis. In this process, protons and electrons released by exoelectrogenic bacteria in specially designed reactors (based on modifying microbial fuel cells) are catalyzed to form hydrogen gas through the addition of a small voltage to the circuit. By improving the materials and reactor architecture, hydrogen gas was produced at yields of 2.01-3.95 mol/mol (50-99% of the theoretical maximum) at applied voltages of 0.2 to 0.8 V using acetic acid, a typical dead-end product of glucose or cellulose fermentation. At an applied voltage of 0.6 V, the overall energy efficiency of the process was 288% based solely on electricity applied, and 82% when the heat of combustion of acetic acid was included in the energy balance, at a gas production rate of 1.1 m(3) of H(2) per cubic meter of reactor per day. Direct high-yield hydrogen gas production was further demonstrated by using glucose, several volatile acids (acetic, butyric, lactic, propionic, and valeric), and cellulose at maximum stoichiometric yields of 54-91% and overall energy efficiencies of 64-82%. This electrohydrogenic process thus provides a highly efficient route for producing hydrogen gas from renewable and carbon-neutral biomass resources.

Ignition and combustion characteristics of metallized propellants

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mueller, D. C.; Turns, Stephen R.

1991-01-01

Over the past six months, experimental investigations were continued and theoretical work on the secondary atomization process was begun. Final shakedown of the sizing/velocity measuring system was completed and the aluminum combustion detection system was modified and tested. Atomizer operation was improved to allow steady state operation over long periods of time for several slurries. To validate the theoretical modeling, work involving carbon slurry atomization and combustion was begun and qualitative observations were made. Simultaneous measurements of aluminum slurry droplet size distributions and detection of burning aluminum particles were performed at several axial locations above the burner. The principle theoretical effort was the application of a rigid shell formation model to aluminum slurries and an investigation of the effects of various parameters on the shell formation process. This shell formation model was extended to include the process leading up to droplet disruption, and previously developed analytical models were applied to yield theoretical aluminum agglomerate ignition and combustion times. The several theoretical times were compared with the experimental results.

CFD modelling wall heat transfer inside a combustion chamber using ANSYS forte

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plengsa-ard, C.; Kaewbumrung, M.

2018-01-01

A computational model has been performed to analyze a wall heat transfer in a single cylinder, direct injection and four-stroke diesel engine. A direct integration using detailed chemistry CHEMKIN is employed in a combustion model and the Reynolds Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) turbulence model is used to simulate the flow in the cylinder. To obtain heat flux results, a modified classical variable-density wall heat transfer model is also performed. The model is validated using experimental data from a CUMMINs engine operated with a conventional diesel combustion. One operating engine condition is simulated. Comparisons of simulated in-cylinder pressure and heat release rates with experimental data shows that the model predicts the cylinder pressure and heat release rates reasonably well. The contour plot of instantaneous temperature are presented. Also, the contours of predicted heat flux results are shown. The magnitude of peak heat fluxes as predicted by the wall heat transfer model is in the range of the typical measure values in diesel combustion.

Dish Stirling solar receiver program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haglund, R. A.

1980-01-01

A technology demonstration of a Dish Stirling solar thermal electric system can be accomplished earlier and at a much lower cost than previous planning had indicated by employing technical solutions that allow already existing hardware, with minimum modifications, to be integrated into a total system with a minimum of development. The DSSR operates with a modified United Stirling p-40 engine/alternator and the JPL Test Bed Concentrator as a completely integrated solar thermal electric system having a design output of 25 kWe. The system is augmented by fossil fuel combustion which ensures a continuous electrical output under all environmental conditions. Technical and economic studies by government and industry in the United States and abroad identify the Dish Stirling solar electric system as the most appropriate, efficient and economical method for conversion of solar energy to electricity in applications when the electrical demand is 10 MWe and less.

NOx Binding and Dissociation: Enhanced Ferroelectric Surface Chemistry by Catalytic Monolayers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kakekhani, Arvin; Ismail-Beigi, Sohrab

2013-03-01

NOx molecules are regulated air pollutants produced during automotive combustion. As part of an effort to design viable catalysts for NOx decomposition operating at higher temperatures that would allow for improved fuel efficiency, we examine NOx chemistry on ferroelectric perovskite surfaces. Changing the direction of ferroelectric polarization can modify surface electronic properties and may lead to switchable surface chemistry. Here, we describe our recent work on potentially enhanced surface chemistry using catalytic RuO2 monolayers on perovskite ferroelectric substrates. In addition to thermodynamic stabilization of the RuO2 layer, we present results on the polarization-dependent binding of NO, O2, N2, and atomic O and N. We present results showing that one key problem with current catalysts, involving the difficulty of releasing dissociation products (especially oxygen), can be ameliorated by this method. Primary support from Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing, North America, Inc.

Thick thermal barrier coatings for diesel components

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yonushonis, T. M.

1991-01-01

An engineered thick thermal barrier coating consisting of multiple layers of zirconia and CoCrAlY with a zirconia top layer and having a system thermal conductance less than 410 w/m(exp 2)K exceeded the 100 hour engine durability goals set forth in this program. The thermal barrier coatings were intact at the test conclusion. Back to back single cylinder research engine tests were conducted with watercooled, metal hardware and oil-cooled, thermal barrier coating insulated hardware to determine apparent heat release and fuel economy. Apparent heat release data revealed that the insulated engine had a shorter ignition delay and a longer combustion duration than the metal engine. The insulated engine fuel economy was approximately two percent worse on average for this series of tests. There was no attempt to optimize engine efficiency of the insulated engine by modifying the engine timing, coating, or other techniques.

Comparing the greenhouse gas emissions from three alternative waste combustion concepts

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vainikka, Pasi, E-mail: pasi.vainikka@vtt.fi; Tsupari, Eemeli; Sipilae, Kai

2012-03-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Significant GHG reductions are possible by efficient WtE technologies. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer CHP and high power-to-heat ratio provide significant GHG savings. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer N{sub 2}O and coal mine type are important in LCA GHG emissions of FBC co-combustion. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Substituting coal and fuel oil by waste is beneficial in electricity and heat production. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Substituting natural gas by waste may not be reasonable in CHP generation. - Abstract: Three alternative condensing mode power and combined heat and power (CHP) waste-to-energy concepts were compared in terms of their impacts on the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from a heat and power generation system.more » The concepts included (i) grate, (ii) bubbling fluidised bed (BFB) and (iii) circulating fluidised bed (CFB) combustion of waste. The BFB and CFB take advantage of advanced combustion technology which enabled them to reach electric efficiency up to 35% and 41% in condensing mode, respectively, whereas 28% (based on the lower heating value) was applied for the grate fired unit. A simple energy system model was applied in calculating the GHG emissions in different scenarios where coal or natural gas was substituted in power generation and mix of fuel oil and natural gas in heat generation by waste combustion. Landfilling and waste transportation were not considered in the model. GHG emissions were reduced significantly in all of the considered scenarios where the waste combustion concepts substituted coal based power generation. With the exception of condensing mode grate incinerator the different waste combustion scenarios resulted approximately in 1 Mton of fossil CO{sub 2}-eq. emission reduction per 1 Mton of municipal solid waste (MSW) incinerated. When natural gas based power generation was substituted by electricity from the waste combustion significant GHG emission reductions were not achieved.« less

Vertical feed stick wood fuel burning furnace system

DOEpatents

Hill, Richard C.

1982-01-01

A stove or furnace for efficient combustion of wood fuel includes a vertical feed combustion chamber (15) for receiving and supporting wood fuel in a vertical attitude or stack. A major upper portion of the combustion chamber column comprises a water jacket (14) for coupling to a source of water or heat transfer fluid for convection circulation of the fluid. The locus (31) of wood fuel combustion is thereby confined to the refractory base of the combustion chamber. A flue gas propagation delay channel (34) extending laterally from the base of the chamber affords delayed travel time in a high temperature refractory environment sufficient to assure substantially complete combustion of the gaseous products of wood burning with forced air prior to extraction of heat in heat exchanger (16). Induced draft draws the fuel gas and air mixture laterally through the combustion chamber and refractory high temperature zone to the heat exchanger and flue. Also included are active sources of forced air and induced draft, multiple circuit couplings for the recovered heat, and construction features in the refractory material substructure and metal component superstructure.

Influences of diesel pilot injection on ethanol autoignition - a numerical analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burnete, N. V.; Burnete, N.; Jurchis, B.; Iclodean, C.

2017-10-01

The aim of this study is to highlight the influences of the diesel pilot quantity as well as the timing on the autoignition of ethanol and the pollutant emissions resulting from the combustion process. The combustion concept presented in this paper requires the injection of a small quantity of diesel fuel in order to create the required autoignition conditions for ethanol. The combustion of the diesel droplets injected in the combustion chamber lead to the creation of high temperature locations that favour the autoignition of ethanol. However, due to the high vaporization enthalpy and the better distribution inside the combustion chamber of ethanol, the peak temperature values are reduced. Due to the lower temperature values and the high burning velocity of ethanol (combined with the fact that there are multiple ignition sources) the conditions required for the formation of nitric oxides are not achieved anymore, thus leading to significantly lower NOx emissions. This way the benefits of the Diesel engine and of the constant volume combustion are combined to enable a more efficient and environmentally friendly combustion process.

Novel Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Power Cycle Utilizing Pressured Oxy-combustion in Conjunction with Cryogenic Compression

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brun, Klaus; McClung, Aaron; Davis, John

2014-03-31

The team of Southwest Research Institute® (SwRI) and Thar Energy LLC (Thar) applied technology engineering and economic analysis to evaluate two advanced oxy-combustion power cycles, the Cryogenic Pressurized Oxy-combustion Cycle (CPOC), and the Supercritical Oxy-combustion Cycle. This assessment evaluated the performance and economic cost of the two proposed cycles with carbon capture, and included a technology gap analysis of the proposed technologies to determine the technology readiness level of the cycle and the cycle components. The results of the engineering and economic analysis and the technology gap analysis were used to identify the next steps along the technology development roadmapmore » for the selected cycle. The project objectives, as outlined in the FOA, were 90% CO{sub 2} removal at no more than a 35% increase in cost of electricity (COE) as compared to a Supercritical Pulverized Coal Plant without CO{sub 2} capture. The supercritical oxy-combustion power cycle with 99% carbon capture achieves a COE of $121/MWe. This revised COE represents a 21% reduction in cost as compared to supercritical steam with 90% carbon capture ($137/MWe). However, this represents a 49% increase in the COE over supercritical steam without carbon capture ($80.95/MWe), exceeding the 35% target. The supercritical oxy-combustion cycle with 99% carbon capture achieved a 37.9% HHV plant efficiency (39.3% LHV plant efficiency), when coupling a supercritical oxy-combustion thermal loop to an indirect supercritical CO{sub 2} (sCO{sub 2}) power block. In this configuration, the power block achieved 48% thermal efficiency for turbine inlet conditions of 650°C and 290 atm. Power block efficiencies near 60% are feasible with higher turbine inlet temperatures, however a design tradeoff to limit firing temperature to 650°C was made in order to use austenitic stainless steels for the high temperature pressure vessels and piping and to minimize the need for advanced turbomachinery features such as blade cooling. The overall technical readiness of the supercritical oxy-combustion cycle is TRL 2, Technology Concept, due to the maturity level of the supercritical oxy-combustor for solid fuels, and several critical supporting components, as identified in the Technical Gap Analysis. The supercritical oxycombustor for solid fuels operating at pressures near 100 atm is a unique component of the supercritical oxy-combustion cycle. In addition to the low TRL supercritical oxy-combustor, secondary systems were identified that would require adaptation for use with the supercritical oxycombustion cycle. These secondary systems include the high pressure pulverized coal feed, high temperature cyclone, removal of post-combustion particulates from the high pressure cyclone underflow stream, and micro-channel heat exchangers tolerant of particulate loading. Bench scale testing was utilized to measure coal combustion properties at elevated pressures in a CO{sub 2} environment. This testing included coal slurry preparation, visualization of coal injection into a high pressure fluid, and modification of existing test equipment to facilitate the combustion properties testing. Additional bench scale testing evaluated the effectiveness of a rotary atomizer for injecting a coal-water slurry into a fluid with similar densities, as opposed to the typical application where the high density fluid is injected into a low density fluid. The swirl type supercritical oxy-combustor was developed from initial concept to an advanced design stage through numerical simulation using FLUENT and Chemkin to model the flow through the combustor and provide initial assessment of the coal combustion reactions in the flow path. This effort enabled the initial combustor mechanical layout, initial pressure vessel design, and the conceptual layout of a pilot scale test loop. A pilot scale demonstration of the supercritical oxy-combustion cycle is proposed as the next step in the technology development. This demonstration would advance the supercritical oxy-combustion cycle and the supercritical oxy-combustor from a current TRL of 2, Technology Concept, to TRL 6, Pilot Scale System Demonstrated in a Relevant Environment, and enable the evaluation and continued refinement of the supercritical oxy-combustor and critical secondary systems.« less

Downhole steam generator with improved preheating, combustion and protection features

DOEpatents

Fox, Ronald L.

1983-01-01

An apparatus for generation of steam in a borehole for penetration into an earth formation wherein feedback preheater means are provided for the fuel and water before entering the combustor assembly. First, combustion gases are conducted from the combustion chamber to locations in proximity to the water and fuel supplies. Secondly, both hot combustion gases and steam are conducted from the borehole back to the water and fuel supply. The water used for conversion to steam is passed in a countercurrent manner through a plurality of annular water flow channels surrounding the combustion chamber. In this manner, the water is preheated, and the combustion chamber is cooled simultaneously, thereby minimizing thermal stresses and deterioration of the walls of the combustion chamber. The water is injected through slotted inlets along the combustion chamber wall to provide an unstable boundary layer and stripping of the water from the wall for efficient steam generation. Pressure responsive doors are provided at the steam outlet of the combustor assembly. The outlet doors and fluid flow functions may be controlled by a diagnostic/control module. The module is positioned in the water flow channel to maintain a relatively constant, controlled temperature.

Catalytic Exhaust Gas Recirculation-Loop Reforming for High Efficiency in a Stoichiometric Spark-Ignited Engine through Thermochemical Recuperation and Dilution Limit Extension, Part 2: Engine Performance

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chang, Yan; Szybist, James P.; Pihl, Josh A.

This is the second part of a two-part investigation of on-board catalytic fuel reforming to increase the brake efficiency of a multicylinder, stoichiometric spark-ignited (SI) engine. In Part 1 of the investigation, we analytically and experimentally characterized the energetics and kinetics of a candidate reforming catalyst over a range of reforming equivalence ratios and oxygen concentration conditions to identify the best conditions for efficient reforming. In the present part of our investigation, we studied an engine strategy that combined exhaust gas recirculation (EGR)–loop reforming with dilution limit extension of the combustion. In our experiments, we found that, under an enginemore » operating condition of 2000 rpm and brake mean effective pressure (4 bar), catalytic EGR reforming made it possible to sustain stable combustion with a volumetric equivalent of 45%–55% EGR. Under this same operating condition with stoichiometric engine exhaust (and no reforming), we were only able to sustain stable combustion with EGR under 25%. In conclusion, these results indicate that multicylinder gasoline engine efficiency can be increased substantially with catalytic reforming combined with and higher EGR operation, resulting in a decrease of more than 8% in fuel consumption, compared to baseline operation.« less

Catalytic Exhaust Gas Recirculation-Loop Reforming for High Efficiency in a Stoichiometric Spark-Ignited Engine through Thermochemical Recuperation and Dilution Limit Extension, Part 2: Engine Performance

DOE PAGES

Chang, Yan; Szybist, James P.; Pihl, Josh A.; ...

2018-01-17

This is the second part of a two-part investigation of on-board catalytic fuel reforming to increase the brake efficiency of a multicylinder, stoichiometric spark-ignited (SI) engine. In Part 1 of the investigation, we analytically and experimentally characterized the energetics and kinetics of a candidate reforming catalyst over a range of reforming equivalence ratios and oxygen concentration conditions to identify the best conditions for efficient reforming. In the present part of our investigation, we studied an engine strategy that combined exhaust gas recirculation (EGR)–loop reforming with dilution limit extension of the combustion. In our experiments, we found that, under an enginemore » operating condition of 2000 rpm and brake mean effective pressure (4 bar), catalytic EGR reforming made it possible to sustain stable combustion with a volumetric equivalent of 45%–55% EGR. Under this same operating condition with stoichiometric engine exhaust (and no reforming), we were only able to sustain stable combustion with EGR under 25%. In conclusion, these results indicate that multicylinder gasoline engine efficiency can be increased substantially with catalytic reforming combined with and higher EGR operation, resulting in a decrease of more than 8% in fuel consumption, compared to baseline operation.« less

PM2.5 emissions and source profiles from open burning of crop residues

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ni, Haiyan; Tian, Jie; Wang, Xiaoliang; Wang, Qiyuan; Han, Yongming; Cao, Junji; Long, Xin; Chen, L.-W. Antony; Chow, Judith C.; Watson, John G.; Huang, Ru-Jin; Dusek, Ulrike

2017-11-01

Wheat straw, rice straw, and corn stalks, the major agricultural crop residues in China, were collected from six major crop producing regions, and burned in a laboratory combustion chamber to determine PM2.5 source profiles and speciated emission factors (EFs). Organic carbon (OC) and water-soluble ions (the sum of NH4+, Na+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, Cl-, NO3- and SO42-) are major constituents, accounting for 43.1 ± 8.3% and 27.4 ± 14.6% of PM2.5, respectively. Chloride (Cl-) and water-soluble potassium (K+) are the dominant ionic species, with an average abundance of 14.5 ± 8.2% and 6.4 ± 4.4% in PM2.5, respectively. The average K+/Cl- ratio is ∼0.4, lower than 2.8-5.4 for wood combustion. Similarity measures (i.e., Student's t-test, coefficient of divergence, correlations, and residual to uncertainty ratios) show the crop profiles are too similar for the species measured to be resolved from one another by receptor modeling. The largest difference was found between rice straw and corn stalk emissions, with higher OC and lower Cl- and K+ abundances (50%, 8%, and 3% of PM2.5, respectively) for corn stalks; lower OC, and higher Cl- and K+ abundances (38%, 21%, and 10% of PM2.5, respectively) for rice straw. Average EFs were 4.8 ± 3.1 g kg-1 for OC, 1.3 ± 0.8 g kg-1 for Cl- and 0.59 ± 0.56 g kg-1 for K+. Flaming and smoldering combustions resulted in an average modified combustion efficiency (MCE) of 0.92 ± 0.03, and low elemental carbon (EC) EFs (0.24 ± 0.12 g kg-1). OC/EC ratios from individual source profiles ranged from 12.9 ± 4.3 for rice straw to 24.1 ± 13.5 for wheat straw. The average K+/EC ratio was 2.4 ± 1.5, an order of magnitude higher than those from residential wood combustion (0.2-0.76). Elevated emission rates were found for OC (387 Gg yr-1) and Cl- (122 Gg yr-1), accounting for 44% and 14% of 2008 PM2.5 emissions in China.

40 CFR Table 1 to Subpart Lllll of... - Emission Limitations

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... achieving a total hydrocarbon (THC) destruction efficiency of 95.8 percent; d. Route the emissions to a... comply with the THC percent reduction or combustion efficiency standards. b The opacity limit can be...

40 CFR Table 1 to Subpart Lllll of... - Emission Limitations

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... achieving a total hydrocarbon (THC) destruction efficiency of 95.8 percent; d. Route the emissions to a... comply with the THC percent reduction or combustion efficiency standards. b The opacity limit can be...

40 CFR Table 1 to Subpart Lllll of... - Emission Limitations

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... achieving a total hydrocarbon (THC) destruction efficiency of 95.8 percent; d. Route the emissions to a... comply with the THC percent reduction or combustion efficiency standards. b The opacity limit can be...

Detection of cylinder unbalance from Bayesian inference combining cylinder pressure and vibration block measurement in a Diesel engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Emmanuel; Antoni, Jerome; Grondin, Olivier

2009-12-01

In the automotive industry, the necessary reduction of pollutant emission for new Diesel engines requires the control of combustion events. This control is efficient provided combustion parameters such as combustion occurrence and combustion energy are relevant. Combustion parameters are traditionally measured from cylinder pressure sensors. However this kind of sensor is expensive and has a limited lifetime. Thus this paper proposes to use only one cylinder pressure on a multi-cylinder engine and to extract combustion parameters from the other cylinders with low cost knock sensors. Knock sensors measure the vibration circulating on the engine block, hence they do not all contain the information on the combustion processes, but they are also contaminated by other mechanical noises that disorder the signal. The question is how to combine the information coming from one cylinder pressure and knock sensors to obtain the most relevant combustion parameters in all engine cylinders. In this paper, the issue is addressed trough the Bayesian inference formalism. In that cylinder where a cylinder pressure sensor is mounted, combustion parameters will be measured directly. In the other cylinders, they will be measured indirectly from Bayesian inference. Experimental results obtained on a four cylinder Diesel engine demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm toward that purpose.

Conceptual design of the Space Station combustion module

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morilak, Daniel P.; Rohn, Dennis W.; Rhatigan, Jennifer L.

1994-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to describe the conceptual design of the Combustion Module for the International Space Station Alpha (ISSA). This module is part of the Space Station Fluids/Combustion Facility (SS FCF) under development at the NASA Lewis Research Center. The Fluids/Combustion Facility is one of several science facilities which are being developed to support microgravity science investigations in the US Laboratory Module of the ISSA. The SS FCF will support a multitude of fluids and combustion science investigations over the lifetime of the ISSA and return state-of-the-art science data in a timely and efficient manner to the scientific communities. This will be accomplished through modularization of hardware, with planned, periodic upgrades; modularization of like scientific investigations that make use of common facility functions; and through the use of orbital replacement units (ORU's) for incorporation of new technology and new functionality. The SS FCF is scheduled to become operational on-orbit in 1999. The Combustion Module is presently scheduled for launch to orbit and integration with the Fluids/Combustion Facility in 1999. The objectives of this paper are to describe the history of the Combustion Module concept, the types of combustion science investigations which will be accommodated by the module, the hardware design heritage, the hardware concept, and the hardware breadboarding efforts currently underway.

Computational Analysis of the Combustion Processes in an Axisymmetric, RBCC Flowpath

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Steffen, Christopher J., Jr.; Yungster, Shaye

2001-01-01

Computational fluid dynamic simulations have been used to study the combustion processes within an axisymmetric, RBCC flowpath. Two distinct operating modes have been analyzed to date, including the independent ramjet stream (IRS) cycle and the supersonic combustion ramjet (scramJet) cycle. The IRS cycle investigation examined the influence of fuel-air ratio, fuel distribution, and rocket chamber pressure upon the combustion physics and thermal choke characteristics. Results indicate that adjustment of the amount and radial distribution of fuel can control the thermal choke point. The secondary massflow rate was very sensitive to the fuel-air ratio and the rocket chamber pressure. The scramjet investigation examined the influence of fuel-air ratio and fuel injection schedule upon combustion performance estimates. An analysis of the mesh-dependence of these calculations was presented. Jet penetration data was extracted from the three-dimensional simulations and compared favorably with experimental correlations of similar flows. Results indicate that combustion efficiency was very sensitive to the fuel schedule.

Combustion characteristics and design of hot water boiler

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Xuemin; Yang, Dinghua; Lu, Junfu; Guan, Jian; Qi, Guoli

2017-03-01

In order to understand the combustion characteristics of biomass, a detailed comparison with coal was made. There are many differences between biomass and coal in combustion characteristics. The burning rate of biomass is much higher than coal. The burning rate of biomass char is also higher than coal char. During biomass combustion, HCl, SO2 and NO x emissions mainly concentrate in volatile combustion stage, while CO2 emission mainly concentrates in char combustion stage. The slagging tendency of biomass ash is severer than coal ash and the adhesive force of biomass ash is higher. However, the wearing tendency of biomass ash is minor. Aiming at the particularity of biomass fuels, this paper briefly introduces the design of biomass hot water boilers. On this basis, a 2.8 MW biomass hot water boiler was developed and tested under the loads of 1.7 MW and 2.8MW. The running results show that the carbon content of bottom slag significantly decreases as the load increases. The boiler efficiency is higher than 85% under both loads.

DNS and LES/FMDF of turbulent jet ignition and combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Validi, Abdoulahad; Jaberi, Farhad

2014-11-01

The ignition and combustion of lean fuel-air mixtures by a turbulent jet flow of hot combustion products injected into various geometries are studied by high fidelity numerical models. Turbulent jet ignition (TJI) is an efficient method for starting and controlling the combustion in complex propulsion systems and engines. The TJI and combustion of hydrogen and propane in various flow configurations are simulated with the direct numerical simulation (DNS) and the hybrid large eddy simulation/filtered mass density function (LES/FMDF) models. In the LES/FMDF model, the filtered form of the compressible Navier-Stokes equations are solved with a high-order finite difference scheme for the turbulent velocity and the FMDF transport equation is solved with a Lagrangian stochastic method to obtain the scalar field. The DNS and LES/FMDF data are used to study the physics of TJI and combustion for different turbulent jet igniter and gas mixture conditions. The results show the very complex and different behavior of the turbulence and the flame structure at different jet equivalence ratios.

Numerical simulations of turbulent jet ignition and combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Validi, Abdoulahad; Irannejad, Abolfazl; Jaberi, Farhad

2013-11-01

The ignition and combustion of a homogeneous lean hydrogen-air mixture by a turbulent jet flow of hot combustion products injected into a colder gas mixture are studied by a high fidelity numerical model. Turbulent jet ignition can be considered as an efficient method for starting and controlling the reaction in homogeneously charged combustion systems used in advanced internal combustion and gas turbine engines. In this work, we study in details the physics of turbulent jet ignition in a fundamental flow configuration. The flow and combustion are modeled with the hybrid large eddy simulation/filtered mass density function (LES/FMDF) approach, in which the filtered form the compressible Navier-Stokes equations are solved with a high-order finite difference scheme for the turbulent velocity and the FMDF transport equations are solved with a Lagrangian stochastic method to obtain the scalar (temperature and species mass fractions) field. The hydrogen oxidation is described by a detailed reaction mechanism with 37 elementary reactions and 9 species.

Thermogravimetric investigation of the co-combustion between the pyrolysis oil distillation residue and lignite.

PubMed

Li, Hao; Xia, Shuqian; Ma, Peisheng

2016-10-01

Co-combustion of lignite with distillation residue derived from rice straw pyrolysis oil was investigated by non-isothermal thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The addition of distillation residue improved the reactivity and combustion efficiency of lignite, such as increasing the weight loss rate at peak temperature and decreasing the burnout temperature and the total burnout. With increasing distillation residue content in the blended fuels, the synergistic interactions between distillation residue and lignite firstly increased and then decreased during co-combustion stage. Results of XRF, FTIR, (13)C NMR and SEM analysis indicated that chemical structure, mineral components and morphology of samples have great influence on the synergistic interactions. The combustion mechanisms and kinetic parameters were calculated by the Coats Redfern model, suggesting that the lowest apparent activation energy (120.19kJ/mol) for the blended fuels was obtained by blending 60wt.% distillation residue during main co-combustion stage. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A comparison of thermal behaviors of raw biomass, pyrolytic biochar and their blends with lignite.

PubMed

Liu, Zhengang; Balasubramanian, Rajasekhar

2013-10-01

In this study, thermal characteristics of raw biomass, corresponding pyrolytic biochars and their blends with lignite were investigated. The results showed that pyrolytic biochars had better fuel qualities than their parent biomass. In comparison to raw biomass, the combustion of the biochars shifted towards higher temperature and occurred at continuous temperature zones. The biochar addition in lignite increased the reactivities of the blends. Obvious interactions were observed between biomass/biochar and lignite and resulted in increased total burnout, shortened combustion time and increased maximum weight loss rate, indicating increased combustion efficiencies than that of lignite combustion alone. Regarding ash-related problems, the tendency to form slagging and fouling increased, when pyrolytic biochars were co-combusted with coal. This present study demonstrated that the pyrolytic biochars were more suitable than raw biomass to be co-combusted with lignite for energy generation in existing coal-fired power plants. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Production, purification and utilization of biogas as fuel for internal combustion engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hernandez, Noel M.; Villanueva, Eliseo P.

2018-03-01

This study attempts to modify a 4-cylinder gasoline engine to run with a purified compressed biogas as substitute for fossil fuels. Water scrubbing method was used as the easiest purification technique to remove CO2 and iron filing for H2S. The pressurized raw biogas was fed in a low cost made portable floating type gas holder with volume capacity of 0.74 m3. The purified biogas was compressed using a reciprocating compressor through a two stage series of enrichment and moisture removal process using activated alumina into the steel cylinder to improve the quality of the methane content. The enriched biogas was filled in the LPG tank for 20 minutes at 10 bars at an average of 73.67% CH4 with no traces of H2S as storage for engine utilization. The modification involved the installation and mounting of LPG conversion kit. A comparative analysis of the performance and combustion characteristics of the engine was evaluated separately with gasoline and purified compressed biogas using electro-dynamometer as variable loads. The findings show that power output deterioration in compressed biogas was mainly due to high percentage of CO2 and other gases impurities. It also shows that because of the calorific value of biogas, the thermal efficiency is lesser than that of gasoline. It implies that the overall engine performance can be improved by removing undesirable gases in the mixture.

Smoke and fire characteristics for cerrado and deforestation burns in Brazil: BASE-B experiment

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ward, D.E.; Susott, R.A.; Babbitt, R.E.

1992-09-20

Fires of the tropical forests and savannas are a major source of particulate matter and trace gases affecting the atmosphere globally. A paucity of quantitative information exists for these ecosystems with respect to fuel biomass, smoke emissions, and fire behavior conditions affecting the release of emissions. Five test fires were performed during August and September 1990 in the cerrado (savannalike region) in central Brazil (three fires) and tropical moist forest (two fires) in the eastern Amazon. This paper details the gases released, the ratios of the gases to each other and to particulate matter, fuel loads and the fraction consumedmore » (combustion factors), and the fire behavior associated with biomass consumption. Models are presented for evaluating emission factors for CH{sub 4}, CO{sub 2}, CO, H{sub 2}, and particles less than 2.5 {mu}m diameter (PM2.5) as a function of combustion efficiency. The ratio of carbon released as CO{sub 2} (combustion efficiency) for the cerrado fires averaged 0.94 and for the deforestation fires it decreased from 0.88 for the flaming phase to <0.80 during the smoldering phase of combustion. For tropical ecosystems, emissions of most products of incomplete combustion are projected to be lower than previous estimates for savanna ecosystems and somewhat higher for fires used for deforestation purposes. 59 refs., 9 figs., 10 tabs.« less

Enhanced activity and stability of La-doped CeO2 monolithic catalysts for lean-oxygen methane combustion.

PubMed

Zhu, Wenjun; Jin, Jianhui; Chen, Xiao; Li, Chuang; Wang, Tonghua; Tsang, Chi-Wing; Liang, Changhai

2018-02-01

Effective utilization of coal bed methane is very significant for energy utilization and environment protection. Catalytic combustion of methane is a promising way to eliminate trace amounts of oxygen in the coal bed methane and the key to this technology is the development of high-efficiency catalysts. Herein, we report a series of Ce 1-x La x O 2-δ (x = 0-0.8) monolithic catalysts for the catalytic combustion of methane, which are prepared by citric acid method. The structural characterization shows that the substitution of La enhance the oxygen vacancy concentration and reducibility of the supports and promote the migration of the surface oxygen, as a result improve the catalytic activity of CeO 2 . M-Ce 0.8 La 0.2 O 2-δ (monolithic catalyst, Ce 0.8 La 0.2 O 2-δ coated on cordierite honeycomb) exhibits outstanding activity for methane combustion, and the temperature for 10 and 90% methane conversion are 495 and 580 °C, respectively. Additionally, Ce 0.8 La 0.2 O 2-δ monolithic catalyst presents excellent stability at high temperature. These Ce 1-x La x O 2-δ monolithic materials with a small amount of La incorporation therefore show promises as highly efficient solid solution catalysts for lean-oxygen methane combustion. Graphical abstract ᅟ.

Experimental and Computational Study of Trapped Vortex Combustor Sector Rig with Tri-pass Diffuser

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hendricks, Robert C.; Shouse, D. T.; Roquemore, W. M.; Burrus, D. L.; Duncan, B. S.; Ryder, R. C.; Brankovic, A.; Liu, N.-S.; Gallagher, J. R.; Hendricks, J. A.

2001-01-01

The Trapped Vortex Combustor (TVC) potentially offers numerous operational advantages over current production gas turbine engine combustors. These include lower weight, lower pollutant emissions, effective flame stabilization, high combustion efficiency, excellent high altitude relight capability, and operation in the lean burn or RQL (Rich burn/Quick mix/Lean burn) modes of combustion. The present work describes the operational principles of the TVC, and provides detailed performance data on a configuration featuring a tri-pass diffusion system. Performance data include EINOx (NO(sub x) emission index) results for various fuel-air ratios and combustor residence times, combustion efficiency as a function of combustor residence time, and combustor lean blow-out (LBO) performance. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations using liquid spray droplet evaporation and combustion modeling are performed and related to flow structures observed in photographs of the combustor. The CFD results are used to understand the aerodynamics and combustion features under different fueling conditions. Performance data acquired to date are favorable in comparison to conventional gas turbine combustors. Further testing over a wider range of fuel-air ratios, fuel flow splits, and pressure ratios is in progress to explore the TVC performance. In addition, alternate configurations for the upstream pressure feed, including bi-pass diffusion schemes, as well as variations on the fuel injection patterns, are currently in test and evaluation phases.

SnO2 promoted by alkali metal oxides for soot combustion: The effects of surface oxygen mobility and abundance on the activity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rao, Cheng; Shen, Jiating; Wang, Fumin; Peng, Honggen; Xu, Xianglan; Zhan, Hangping; Fang, Xiuzhong; Liu, Jianjun; Liu, Wenming; Wang, Xiang

2018-03-01

In this study, SnO2-based catalysts promoted by different alkali metal oxides with a Sn/M (M = Li, Na, K, Cs) molar ratio of 9/1 have been prepared for soot combustion. In comparison with the un-modified SnO2 support, the activity of the modified catalysts has been evidently enhanced, following the sequence of CsSn1-9 > KSn1-9 > NaSn1-9 > LiSn1-9 > SnO2. As testified by Raman, H2-TPR, soot-TPR-MS, XPS and O2-TPD results, the incorporation of various alkali metal oxides can induce the formation of more abundant and mobile oxygen species on the surface of the catalysts. Moreover, quantified results have proved that the amount of the surface active oxygen species is nearly proportional to the activity of the catalysts. CsSn1-9, the catalyst promoted by cesium oxide, owns the largest amount of surface mobile oxygen species, thus having the highest activity among all the studied catalysts. It is concluded that the amount of surface active and mobile oxygen species is the major factor determining the activity of the catalysts for soot combustion.

Numerical study of bituminous coal combustion in a boiler furnace with bottom blowing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zroychikov, N. A.; Kaverin, A. A.

2016-11-01

Results obtained by the numerical study of a solid fuel combustion scheme with bottom blowing using Ekibastuz and Kuznetsk bituminous coals of different fractional makeup are presented. Furnace chambers with bottom blowing provide high-efficiency combustion of coarse-grain coals with low emissions of nitrogen oxides. Studying such a combustion scheme, identification of its technological capabilities, and its further improvement are topical issues. As the initial object of study, we selected P-57-R boiler plant designed for burning of Ekibastuz bituminous coal in a prismatic furnace with dry-ash (solid slag) removal. The proposed modernization of the furnace involves a staged air inflow under the staggered arrangement of directflow burners (angled down) and bottom blowing. The calculation results revealed the specific aerodynamics of the flue gases, the trajectories of solid particles in the furnace chamber, and the peculiarities of the fuel combustion depending on the grinding fineness. It is shown that, for coal grinding on the mill, the overall residue on the screen plate of 90 µm ( R 90 ≤ 27% for Ekibastuz coal and R 90 ≤ 15% for Kuznetsk coal) represents admissible values for fuel grind coarsening in terms of economic efficiency and functional reliability of a boiler. The increase in these values leads to the excess of regulatory heat losses and unburned combustible losses. It has been established that the change in the grade of the burned coal does not significantly affect the flow pattern of the flue gases, and the particles trajectory is essentially determined by the elemental composition of the fuel.

High Efficiency, Clean Combustion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Donald Stanton

2010-03-31

Energy use in trucks has been increasing at a faster rate than that of automobiles within the U.S. transportation sector. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA) Annual Energy Outlook (AEO), a 23% increase in fuel consumption for the U.S. heavy duty truck segment is expected between 2009 to 2020. The heavy duty vehicle oil consumption is projected to grow between 2009 and 2050 while light duty vehicle (LDV) fuel consumption will eventually experience a decrease. By 2050, the oil consumption rate by LDVs is anticipated to decrease below 2009 levels due to CAFE standards and biofuel use. In contrast,more » the heavy duty oil consumption rate is anticipated to double. The increasing trend in oil consumption for heavy trucks is linked to the vitality, security, and growth of the U.S. economy. An essential part of a stable and vibrant U.S. economy is a productive U.S. trucking industry. Studies have shown that the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) is strongly correlated to freight transport. Over 90% of all U.S. freight tonnage is transported by diesel power and over 75% is transported by trucks. Given the vital role that the trucking industry plays in the economy, improving the efficiency of the transportation of goods was a central focus of the Cummins High Efficient Clean Combustion (HECC) program. In a commercial vehicle, the diesel engine remains the largest source of fuel efficiency loss, but remains the greatest opportunity for fuel efficiency improvements. In addition to reducing oil consumption and the dependency on foreign oil, this project will mitigate the impact on the environment by meeting US EPA 2010 emissions regulations. Innovation is a key element in sustaining a U.S. trucking industry that is competitive in global markets. Unlike passenger vehicles, the trucking industry cannot simply downsize the vehicle and still transport the freight with improved efficiency. The truck manufacturing and supporting industries are faced with numerous challenges to reduce oil consumption and greenhouse gases, meet stringent emissions regulations, provide customer value, and improve safety. The HECC program successfully reduced engine fuel consumption and greenhouse gases while providing greater customer valve. The US EPA 2010 emissions standard poses a significant challenge for developing clean diesel powertrains that meet the DoE Vehicle Technologies Multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP) for fuel efficiency improvement while remaining affordable. Along with exhaust emissions, an emphasis on heavy duty vehicle fuel efficiency is being driven by increased energy costs as well as the potential regulation of greenhouse gases. An important element of the success of meeting emissions while significantly improving efficiency is leveraging Cummins component technologies such as fuel injection equipment, aftertreatment, turbomahcinery, electronic controls, and combustion systems. Innovation in component technology coupled with system integration is enabling Cummins to move forward with the development of high efficiency clean diesel products with a long term goal of reaching a 55% peak brake thermal efficiency for the engine plus aftertreatment system. The first step in developing high efficiency clean products has been supported by the DoE co-sponsored HECC program. The objectives of the HECC program are: (1) To design and develop advanced diesel engine architectures capable of achieving US EPA 2010 emission regulations while improving the brake thermal efficiency by 10% compared to the baseline (a state of the art 2007 production diesel engine). (2) To design and develop components and subsystems (fuel systems, air handling, controls, etc) to enable construction and development of multi-cylinder engines. (3) To perform an assessment of the commercial viability of the newly developed engine technology. (4) To specify fuel properties conducive to improvements in emissions, reliability, and fuel efficiency for engines using high-efficiency clean combustion (HECC) technologies. To demonstrate the technology is compatible with B20 (biodiesel). (5) To further improve the brake thermal efficiency of the engine as integrated into the vehicle. To demonstrate robustness and commercial viability of the HECC engine technology as integrated into the vehicles. The Cummins HECC program supported the Advanced Combustion Engine R&D and Fuels Technology initiatives of the DoE Vehicle Technologies Multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP). In particular, the HECC project goals enabled the DoE Vehicle Technologies Program (VTP) to meet energy-efficiency improvement targets for advanced combustion engines suitable for passenger and commercial vehicles, as well as addressing technology barriers and R&D needs that are common between passenger and commercial vehicle applications of advanced combustion engines.« less

Super Boiler: Packed Media/Transport Membrane Boiler Development and Demonstration

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liss, William E; Cygan, David F

2013-04-17

Gas Technology Institute (GTI) and Cleaver-Brooks developed a new gas-fired steam generation system the Super Boiler for increased energy efficiency, reduced equipment size, and reduced emissions. The system consists of a firetube boiler with a unique staged furnace design, a two-stage burner system with engineered internal recirculation and inter-stage cooling integral to the boiler, unique convective pass design with extended internal surfaces for enhanced heat transfer, and a novel integrated heat recovery system to extract maximum energy from the flue gas. With these combined innovations, the Super Boiler technical goals were set at 94% HHV fuel efficiency, operation on naturalmore » gas with <5 ppmv NOx (referenced to 3%O2), and 50% smaller than conventional boilers of similar steam output. To demonstrate these technical goals, the project culminated in the industrial demonstration of this new high-efficiency technology on a 300 HP boiler at Clement Pappas, a juice bottler located in Ontario, California. The Super Boiler combustion system is based on two stage combustion which combines air staging, internal flue gas recirculation, inter-stage cooling, and unique fuel-air mixing technology to achieve low emissions rather than external flue gas recirculation which is most commonly used today. The two-stage combustion provides lower emissions because of the integrated design of the boiler and combustion system which permit precise control of peak flame temperatures in both primary and secondary stages of combustion. To reduce equipment size, the Super Boiler's dual furnace design increases radiant heat transfer to the furnace walls, allowing shorter overall furnace length, and also employs convective tubes with extended surfaces that increase heat transfer by up to 18-fold compared to conventional bare tubes. In this way, a two-pass boiler can achieve the same efficiency as a traditional three or four-pass firetube boiler design. The Super Boiler is consequently up to 50% smaller in footprint, has a smaller diameter, and is up to 50% lower in weight, resulting in very compact design with reduced material cost and labor costs, while requiring less boiler room floor space. For enhanced energy efficiency, the heat recovery system uses a transport membrane condenser (TMC), a humidifying air heater (HAH), and a split-stage economizer to extract maximum energy from the flue gas. The TMC is a new innovation that pulls a major portion of water vapor produced by the combustion process from the flue gases along with its sensible and latent heat. This results in nearly 100% transfer of heat to the boiler feed water. The HAH improves the effectiveness of the TMC, particularly in steam systems that do not have a large amount of cold makeup water. In addition, the HAH humidifies the combustion air to reduce NOx formation. The split-stage economizer preheats boiler feed water in the same way as a conventional economizer, but extracts more heat by working in tandem with the TMC and HAH to reduce flue gas temperature. These components are designed to work synergistically to achieve energy efficiencies of 92-94% which is 10-15% higher than today's typical firetube boilers.« less

Combustor kinetic energy efficiency analysis of the hypersonic research engine data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoose, K. V.

1993-11-01

A one-dimensional method for measuring combustor performance is needed to facilitate design and development scramjet engines. A one-dimensional kinetic energy efficiency method is used for measuring inlet and nozzle performance. The objective of this investigation was to assess the use of kinetic energy efficiency as an indicator for scramjet combustor performance. A combustor kinetic energy efficiency analysis was performed on the Hypersonic Research Engine (HRE) data. The HRE data was chosen for this analysis due to its thorough documentation and availability. The combustor, inlet, and nozzle kinetic energy efficiency values were utilized to determine an overall engine kinetic energy efficiency. Finally, a kinetic energy effectiveness method was developed to eliminate thermochemical losses from the combustion of fuel and air. All calculated values exhibit consistency over the flight speed range. Effects from fuel injection, altitude, angle of attack, subsonic-supersonic combustion transition, and inlet spike position are shown and discussed. The results of analyzing the HRE data indicate that the kinetic energy efficiency method is effective as a measure of scramjet combustor performance.

Installation and testing of a cummins Qsk19 lean burn natural gas engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sutley, Franklin H.

The goal for a more efficient engine will never disappear. Over the years many different techniques have been explored within the common goal of higher efficiency. Lean combustion has proven to be effective at increasing efficiencies as well as reducing emissions. The purpose of this thesis is to install a modern Cummins QSK19G and perform certain test that will explore the lean combustion limits and other methods that could possibly increase efficiency even more. The entire installation and instrumentation process is documented within this thesis. The engine was installed in the Engines and Energy Conversion Laboratory at Colorado State University. The engine was installed with the hopes of instilling the desire for endless future tests from Cummins as well as other companies seeking this type of research engine. The lean limit was explored in the most detail. Cummins supplied a test plan that satisfied their desired stopping at a lean limit when the coefficient of variance of indicated mean effective pressure reached 5%. For the curiosity of others involved and this thesis, the lean limit was explored further until the engine could no longer ignite the ultra-lean combustion mixture. Friction accounts for a significant loss in a modern internal combustion engine. One role of the engine oil is to reduce these frictional losses as much as possible without causing increased wear. A test was conducted on the QSK19G to explore the effects of varying the engine oil viscosity. Frictional losses of two different viscosity oils were compared to the stock engine oil losses. The fact that reducing oil viscosity reduces frictional losses was proven in the test.

Theoretical and Experimental Investigations of Ignition, Combustion and Expansion Processes of Hypergolic Liquid Fuel Combinations at Gas Temperatures up to 3000 K. Thesis - Rhein-Westfalia Technical Coll., 1967

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schulz, Harry

1987-01-01

The ignition, combustion, and expansion characteristics of hypergolic liquid propellant mixtures in small rocket engines are studied theoretically and experimentally. It is shown by using the Bray approximation procedure that the reaction H + OH + M = H2O + M (where M is the molecular mass of the gas mixture) has a strong effect on the combustion efficiency. Increases in recombination energies ranging from 30 to 65% were obtained when the rate of this reaction was increased by a factor of 10 in gas mixtures containing 90% oxygen. The effect of aluminum additions and various injection techniques on the combustion process is investigated.

Modeling of electron behaviors under microwave electric field in methane and air pre-mixture gas plasma assisted combustion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akashi, Haruaki; Sasaki, K.; Yoshinaga, T.

2011-10-01

Recently, plasma-assisted combustion has been focused on for achieving more efficient combustion way of fossil fuels, reducing pollutants and so on. Shinohara et al has reported that the flame length of methane and air premixed burner shortened by irradiating microwave power without increase of gas temperature. This suggests that electrons heated by microwave electric field assist the combustion. They also measured emission from 2nd Positive Band System (2nd PBS) of nitrogen during the irradiation. To clarify this mechanism, electron behavior under microwave power should be examined. To obtain electron transport parameters, electron Monte Carlo simulations in methane and air mixture gas have been done. A simple model has been developed to simulate inside the flame. To make this model simple, some assumptions are made. The electrons diffuse from the combustion plasma region. And the electrons quickly reach their equilibrium state. And it is found that the simulated emission from 2nd PBS agrees with the experimental result. Recently, plasma-assisted combustion has been focused on for achieving more efficient combustion way of fossil fuels, reducing pollutants and so on. Shinohara et al has reported that the flame length of methane and air premixed burner shortened by irradiating microwave power without increase of gas temperature. This suggests that electrons heated by microwave electric field assist the combustion. They also measured emission from 2nd Positive Band System (2nd PBS) of nitrogen during the irradiation. To clarify this mechanism, electron behavior under microwave power should be examined. To obtain electron transport parameters, electron Monte Carlo simulations in methane and air mixture gas have been done. A simple model has been developed to simulate inside the flame. To make this model simple, some assumptions are made. The electrons diffuse from the combustion plasma region. And the electrons quickly reach their equilibrium state. And it is found that the simulated emission from 2nd PBS agrees with the experimental result. This work was supported by KAKENHI (22340170).

Penetration of Combustion Aerosol Particles Through Filters of NIOSH-Certified Filtering Facepiece Respirators (FFRs).

PubMed

Gao, Shuang; Kim, Jinyong; Yermakov, Michael; Elmashae, Yousef; He, Xinjian; Reponen, Tiina; Grinshpun, Sergey A

2015-01-01

Filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) are commonly worn by first responders, first receivers, and other exposed groups to protect against exposure to airborne particles, including those originated by combustion. Most of these FFRs are NIOSH-certified (e.g., N95-type) based on the performance testing of their filters against charge-equilibrated aerosol challenges, e.g., NaCl. However, it has not been examined if the filtration data obtained with the NaCl-challenged FFR filters adequately represent the protection against real aerosol hazards such as combustion particles. A filter sample of N95 FFR mounted on a specially designed holder was challenged with NaCl particles and three combustion aerosols generated in a test chamber by burning wood, paper, and plastic. The concentrations upstream (Cup) and downstream (Cdown) of the filter were measured with a TSI P-Trak condensation particle counter and a Grimm Nanocheck particle spectrometer. Penetration was determined as (Cdown/Cup) ×100%. Four test conditions were chosen to represent inhalation flows of 15, 30, 55, and 85 L/min. Results showed that the penetration values of combustion particles were significantly higher than those of the "model" NaCl particles (p < 0.05), raising a concern about applicability of the N95 filters performance obtained with the NaCl aerosol challenge to protection against combustion particles. Aerosol type, inhalation flow rate and particle size were significant (p < 0.05) factors affecting the performance of the N95 FFR filter. In contrast to N95 filters, the penetration of combustion particles through R95 and P95 FFR filters (were tested in addition to N95) were not significantly higher than that obtained with NaCl particles. The findings were attributed to several effects, including the degradation of an N95 filter due to hydrophobic organic components generated into the air by combustion. Their interaction with fibers is anticipated to be similar to those involving "oily" particles. The findings of this study suggest that the efficiency of N95 respirator filters obtained with the NaCl aerosol challenge may not accurately predict (and rather overestimate) the filter efficiency against combustion particles.

10 CFR 431.82 - Definitions concerning commercial packaged boilers.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

..., and functional (or hydraulic) characteristics that affect energy consumption, energy efficiency, water consumption, or water efficiency. Btu/h or Btu/hr means British thermal units per hour. Combustion efficiency...) For service water heating in buildings but does not meet the definition of “hot water supply boiler...

Engine combustion control at low loads via fuel reactivity stratification

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Reitz, Rolf Deneys; Hanson, Reed M.; Splitter, Derek A.

A compression ignition (diesel) engine uses two or more fuel charges during a combustion cycle, with the fuel charges having two or more reactivities (e.g., different cetane numbers), in order to control the timing and duration of combustion. By appropriately choosing the reactivities of the charges, their relative amounts, and their timing, combustion can be tailored to achieve optimal power output (and thus fuel efficiency), at controlled temperatures (and thus controlled NOx), and with controlled equivalence ratios (and thus controlled soot). At low load and no load (idling) conditions, the aforementioned results are attained by restricting airflow to the combustionmore » chamber during the intake stroke (as by throttling the incoming air at or prior to the combustion chamber's intake port) so that the cylinder air pressure is below ambient pressure at the start of the compression stroke.« less

Operating characteristics of a hydrogen-argon plasma torch for supersonic combustion applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barbi, E.; Mahan, J. R.; O'Brien, W. F.; Wagner, T. C.

1989-01-01

The residence time of the combustible mixture in the combustion chamber of a scramjet engine is much less than the time normally required for complete combustion. Hydrogen and hydrocarbon fuels require an ignition source under conditions typically found in a scramjet combustor. Analytical studies indicate that the presence of hydrogen atoms should greatly reduce the ignition delay in this environment. Because hydrogen plasmas are prolific sources of hydrogen atoms, a low-power, uncooled hydrogen plasma torch has been built and tested to evaluate its potential as a possible flame holder for supersonic combustion. The torch was found to be unstable when operated on pure hydrogen; however, stable operation could be obtained by using argon as a body gas and mixing in the desired amount of hydrogen. The stability limits of the torch are delineated and its electrical and thermal behavior documented. An average torch thermal efficiency of around 88 percent is demonstrated.