多孔介质中预混火焰猝熄及自稳定性研究

分析了多孔介质中预混火焰的猝熄效应,试验测定了一系列工况下泡沫陶瓷的猝熄直径和自稳定范围,为多孔介质燃烧器的开发设计提供了依据。通过分析发现,猝熄直径受到多个参数的影响,包括：混合气体的流速u、预混气体的层流火焰传播速度SL、燃烧室空管Re、预混气体的导温系数a、当量比φ以及多孔介质固体温度Ts。通过对多孔介质中燃烧的自稳定性试验研究,发现了多孔介质燃烧器中火焰稳定极限(吹脱极限和回火极限)与多孔介质平均孔径和气流速度及燃烧当量比的关系。     

An analysis of sub-limit flame dynamics using opposite propagating flames in mesoscale channels

The excess enthalpy flames and their dynamics below the flammability limit are studied by considering two flames that propagate in opposite directions in parallel channels. The model enables the coupling between the external heat loss, convection preheating, diffusion transport and finite rate chemistry. Analytical expressions for the flame temperature, separation distance, and extinction limit are obtained. The results show that flame extinction can be caused by the external heat loss without heat conduction of inner wall in the streamwise direction. The heat recirculation across the separating wall dramatically increases the flame speed and extends the flammability limit. It is shown that the maximum and minimum flame speeds corresponding respectively to the fast and slow flame modes exist at all separation distances between the two flames. It is found that the flame can adjust its separation distance to adapt to the variation of heat loss, heat recirculation and fuel concentration. There exists a maximum flame separation distance beyond which sub-limit flame does not exist. The results also showed that heat recirculation significantly extends the flammability limit. Furthermore, at low fuel concentrations, the flame can be stabilized in a narrow range of separation distance. The present study not only generalized the previous analyses of the heat recirculation flames but also provided a model for the study and control of sub-limit flames in micro power devices and reactors.     

Analytical and experimental study of premixed methane–air flame propagation in narrow channels

This study investigates analytically and experimentally the influence of preheat temperature on flame propagation and extinction of premixed methane–air flame in single quartz tubes with inner tube diameters of 3.9, 3, 2 and 1 mm respectively. The effects of preheat temperature, tube diameter, equivalence ratio and mixture flow rate on the flame speed and extinction conditions are determined. The analytical results show that high preheat temperature of the mixture can effectively suppress flame quenching, and the occurrence of stable solution in the slow flame branch extends the flammability limit leading to possible flame propagation in mini channels. Experimental results confirm that the flame speed increases and the flammability limit shifts toward the fuel lean direction either through increasing the preheat temperature or decreasing the mixture flow rate, or both. Decrease of propagating flame speed is observed before the stoichiometric equivalence ratio at high preheat temperatures. The analytical model provides insights into how propagating flame in mini channels can be sustained; however, the model is only good at predicting flame speed near the fuel lean branch. Influence of Cu²⁺ ions exchanged zeolite 13X catalyst on flame speed is also addressed. It is noted that the zeolite based catalyst can lower the preheat temperature requirement in order to sustain the flame propagation in narrow channels.     

A numerical investigation on combustion characteristics of H2/air mixture in a micro-combustor with wall cavities

Combustion characteristics of H₂/air mixture in a micro-combustor with wall cavities were investigated numerically. The effects of inlet velocity, equivalence ratio, and the length–depth ratio of the cavity were studied. The results show that at a high enough velocity the flame splits in the middle which leads to a large amount of fuel leakage and a sharp decrease in the conversion rate of hydrogen. Meanwhile, the flame splits at the inner wall which gives rise to two high temperature regions and double temperature peaks at outer wall. Moreover, the flame-splitting limit is extended at a higher equivalence ratio due to a more intensive reaction. Furthermore, the flame-splitting limit increases for a larger length–depth ratio of the cavity, whereas the wall temperature level decreases. Therefore, excessive large length–depth ratios are not beneficial for this type of micro-combustors if the combustor walls are used as heat sources of thermoelectric or thermal photovoltaic devices.     

喷管内传递特性对微尺度扩散火焰的影响

对均匀空气流中微尺度甲烷扩散燃烧进行了数值模拟,重点考察微喷管内的流动和传热传质对微尺度燃烧特性的影响.结果表明,在低流速下,内径为0.3 mm的微喷管内进气速度为1.0 m/s时燃料与空气的混合已经发生,混合气被管外的热量预热,同时火焰的热损失增加.在喷管直径一定时,减小燃料喷出速度,传热传质现象对微尺度甲烷扩散火焰特性的影响增强;当进气速度为0.5 m/s时,甲烷在微喷管内开始燃烧,放出热量.在进行微尺度解析计算时,必须包含一定的喷管区域.     

天然气-氢气-空气混合气火焰传播特性研究

在定容燃烧弹内研究了初始条件为常温常压的灭然气-氢气-空气混合气火焰传播规律,得到了不同掺氢比例和燃空当量比下混合气的层流燃烧速率、质量燃烧流量和马克斯坦长度,结合火焰传播照片,分析了火焰的稳定性并预测了大尺寸火焰稳定性的演变趋势。研究结果表明,随着天然气中掺氢比例的增加,混合气的燃烧速率增加,且增长速率逐渐加快,马克斯坦长度值减小,火焰的稳定性下降。各种掺氢比例下,随当量比的增加,马克斯坦长度值增加,火焰的稳定性增加。掺氢比例高于80％时,随着火焰的传播,其不稳定性将明显增加。     

Stability characteristics of non-premixed turbulent jet flames of hydrogen and syngas blends with coaxial air

The stability characteristics of attached hydrogen (H₂) and syngas (H₂/CO) turbulent jet flames with coaxial air were studied experimentally. The flame stability was investigated by varying the fuel and air stream velocities. Effects of the coaxial nozzle diameter, fuel nozzle lip thickness and syngas fuel composition are addressed in detail. The detachment stability limit of the syngas single jet flame was found to decrease with increasing amount of carbon monoxide in the fuel. For jet flames with coaxial air, the critical coaxial air velocity leading to flame detachment first increases with increasing fuel jet velocity and subsequently decreases. This non-monotonic trend appears for all syngas composition herein investigated (50/50 → 100/0% H₂/CO). OH^∗ chemiluminescence imaging was performed to qualitatively identify the mechanisms responsible for the flame detachment. For all fuel compositions, local extinction close to the burner rim is observed at lower fuel velocities (ascending stability limit), while local flame extinction downstream of the burner rim is observed at higher fuel velocities (descending stability limit). Extrema of the non-monotonic trends appear to be identical when the nozzle fuel velocity is normalized by the critical fuel velocity obtained for the single jet cases.     

不同散热条件下微燃烧的数值模拟

散热是影响微尺度燃烧器燃烧稳定性的重要因素之一.本实验通过在一个长40 mm、内径2 mm、外径4 mm的石英玻璃直圆管表面施加不同的外部吹风温度,控制其表面散热.研究4、107、756℃外部风温下,微燃烧器的工作性能,其中燃料混合气体流量为0.16、0.28、0.32 L/min.实验测得燃烧器壁面温度,结合数值模拟研究内部燃烧过程.计算结果显示,提高燃料流量或外部风温可以提升反应强度、抑制熄火.如在风温107℃时,燃料气体当量配比下,当流量由0.16 L/min上升到0.32 L/min时,峰值温度由1538 K上升到1620 K;在流量0.28 L/min时,燃料气体当量配比下,当外部风温由4℃上升到756℃时,峰值温度由1592 K上升到1731K.     

多孔介质钝体火焰稳定性

提出采用多孔介质材料制作钝体火焰稳定器,旨在利用其通透和弥散性能改善钝体后燃空比,从而提高火焰稳定性.通过对实心钝体、平均孔径为1.27,mm和0.32,mm的多孔介质钝体尾迹冷态流场、钝体火焰及其稳定特性对比实验,发现基于来流速度和钝体特征长度尺度的雷诺数对实心和多孔介质钝体回流区产生特性影响较大.多孔介质钝体回流区出现在x/D=1,其长度为(0.8～1.0)D,回流强度35%;实心钝体产生的回流区紧贴钝体,长度为1.4D、回流强度为82%.当空气伴流速度为6.0,m/s时,实心钝体燃料流速度小于3.1,m/s时熄火,而平均孔径为1.70,mm和0.32,mm的多孔介质则分别在实心钝体燃料流速度小于1.6,m/s和0.9,m/s后才熄火.由于多孔介质渗透和弥散作用,钝体后燃料空气混合更好,可获得更宽的火焰稳定范围.当燃料速度相同时,多孔介质钝体熄火的空气伴流速度更大;当相同燃料和空气伴流条件时,多孔介质火焰刚性更强,燃烧更充分.     

Investigation of the structural and reactants properties on the thermal characteristics of a premixed porous burner

Porous burners offer attractive features such as competitive combustion efficiency, high power ranges, and lower pollutant emissions. In the present study, the thermal characteristics of a porous burner are numerically investigated for a range of operating conditions and design specifications within a practical range. The premixed flame propagation of a methane/air mixture in a ceramic porous medium is simulated through an unsteady, one-dimensional model. The combustion process is modeled using a suitable single-step chemical kinetics. The reaction location is not predetermined, thus the flame is allowed to float within the solid matrix or to run off from either side of the porous medium. The numerical results indicate that flame stability and thermal characteristics of the burner are strongly dependent on the inlet mixture specifications and the solid matrix structural properties. For a fixed value of the inlet firing rate, the combustion products temperature will increase by an increase in the inlet gas temperature, an increase in the matrix porosity, or by a decrease of the matrix pore density. Among the geometrical properties, the burner length has virtually no effect on the burner performance. An increase in the solid matrix porosity or burner firing rate will increase the efficiency of the preheating zone, while increasing the inlet gas temperature or matrix pore density will cause a reduction in this efficiency. Simulation results also suggest that in order to prevent flame blow-out or flash-back, critical values of the burner settings and design parameters must be avoided.     

The Impact of Preheating on Stability Limits of Premixed Hydrogen–Air Combustion in a Microcombustor

For the purpose of investigating the effects of preheating on microcombustion, an experiment of premixed flame in a microcombustor with inner diameter of 2 mm is conducted. The reactants are preheated, with the preheating temperatures of 23, 250, and 500°C, respectively. According to the experimental results, proper preheating temperature enhances the flame stability to some extent. For example, at 0.08 L/min, the stability limits change from 0.336–5.185 to 0.347–5.704, while the preheating temperature increases from 23°C to 250°C. Computational fluid dynamic simulation reveals that preheating intensifies the reaction, and increases the reaction temperature accordingly. Therefore, the micro flame has higher stability after preheating. But in the cases with extremely high preheating temperature of 500°C, blowout becomes more serious. According to the simulation results, the thermal expansion of preheated reactants increases the flow velocity in the micro-scale combustor. Subsequently, the imbalance between flow velocity and burning velocity causes blowout.     

Parametric studies of a side wall quench layer

A parametric study of the structure of the side wall quench layer has been performed. An atmospheric pressure premixed hydrocarbonair flame was stabilized on a porous sintered bronze disk and flat plate was located perpendicular to the undisturbed flame. Spontaneous Raman spectroscopy was used to measure temperature and hydrocarbon number densities, with emphasis on the near wall fields. A propane flame with a cooled copper side wall at fuel lean stoichiometric ratio φ = 0.87 was studied as a nominal case. Various combinations of stoichiometry (φ = 0.69, 0.87, 1.0), fuel species (propane, butane, ethylene), and wall conditions (cooled copper, platinum, and Teflon and heated cast iron) were studied.     

Experimental investigation on the partial oxidation of methane with the effect of shrunk structure

Hydrogen energy is an ideal clean energy to solve the expanding energy demand and environmental problems caused by fossil fuels. In order to produce hydrogen, a double-layer porous media burner with shrunk structure was designed to explore the partial oxidation (POX) of methane. And the combustion temperature, species concentration and reforming efficiency were studied under different shrunk parameters and operating conditions. The results indicated that the shrunk structure greatly influenced the flame position and temperature distribution. The flame moved to the downstream section with the decreasing of the inner shrunk diameter and the increasing of the shrunk height. When the diameter of the filled Al₂O₃ pellets was 8 mm, the hydrogen yield reached the highest value of 43.8%. With the increasing of equivalence ratio, the reforming efficiency increased first and then decreased, and the maximum value of 53.0% was reached at φ = 1.5. However, the reforming efficiency and axial temperature kept increasing when the inlet velocity increased from 10 to 18 cm/s. The corresponding results provided theoretical reference for the control of flame position and species production by the design of shrunk structure in porous media burner.     

多孔介质太阳能吸热器性能分析

采用4种多孔骨架中辐射传输模型,包括:忽略多孔骨架内部辐射模型(模型A)、Rosseland模型(模型B)、均匀内热源模型(模型C)与吸热器中辐射传输满足Beer定律的模型(模型D),推导得到了局部非热平衡条件下4种模型所对应的吸热器中多孔骨架温度、空气温度和吸热器热效率的解析解,分析了多孔骨架孔隙率、导热系数和孔隙直径对吸热器性能的影响。结果表明,对模型A和模型B,吸热器中最高温度位于吸热器进口处;对模型C,吸热器中最高温度位于吸热器出口处;而在模型D中,吸热器中吸热器内部或吸热器的出口处温度最高。吸热器效率取决于多孔骨架导热系数、孔隙率和孔隙直径等参数,当吸热器中内热源均匀分布时,吸热器效率是最高的。     

Performance optimization of microbial fuel cells using carbonaceous monolithic air-cathodes

Bamboo charcoal tube (BCT) has been demonstrated to be the air-cathode for microbial fuel cells (MFCs). To enhance the performance of MFCs with BCT cathodes, we herein focus on optimizing BCT diameters and doping with nitrogen and phosphorus elements to improve the physical and chemical properties of BCT cathodes. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses indicated that the cathode with 35 mm inner diameter had relatively ideal pore size distribution. Polarization curves, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry results suggested that the cathode (35 mm inner diameter) delivered the highest power density of 7.5 ± 0.6 W m⁻³ among the cathodes with different diameters (27, 31, 35 and 39 mm). It was mainly because of its high oxygen reduction reaction performance, low cathode resistance, and beneficial effects on anode biofilm. In addition, rotating disk electrode (RDE) tests revealed that nitrogen and phosphorus doping could significantly improve the ORR catalytic activity of cathode by around 25% in the limiting current density.     

Increasing the efficiency of radiant burners by using polymer membranes

Gas-fired radiant burners are used to convert fuel chemical energy into radiation energy for various applications. The radiation output of a radiant burner largely depends on the temperature of the combustion flame. In fact, the radiation output and, thus, the radiant efficiency increase to a great extent with flame temperature. Oxygen-enriched combustion can increase the flame temperature without increasing fuel cost. However, it has not been widely applied because of the high cost of oxygen production. In the present work, oxygen-enriched combustion of natural gas in porous radiant burners was studied. The oxygen-enriched air was produced passively, using polymer membranes. The membranes were shown to be an effective means of obtaining an oxygen-enriched environment for gas combustion in the radiant burners. Two different porous radiant burners were used in this study. One is a reticulated ceramic burner and the other is a ceramic fibre burner. The experimental results showed that the radiation output and the radiant efficiency of these burners increased markedly with rising oxygen concentrations in the combustion air. Also investigated were the effects of oxygen enrichment on combustion mode, and flame stability on the porous media.     

Numerical investigation on the self-ignition and combustion characteristics of H2/air in catalytic micro channel

The self-ignition of hydrogen/air is an important process in the micro thermophotovoltaic system. The transient numerical models of gas-phase reaction and catalytic reaction in the various catalytic micro combustors were built and verified. The self-ignition process of gas-phase reaction caused by catalytic reaction in the catalytic micro channel with conventional heat dissipation was studied. The self-ignition process could be divided into four stages, fuel diffusion stage - pure catalytic reaction stage - flame front moving stage - stable combustion stage. The ignition time and temperature limit at different inlet temperatures, inlet velocities and channel heights were analyzed. The results showed that the wall quenching effect, thermal effect and flame propagation effect are dominant at low temperature, medium temperature and high temperature respectively. The catalyst length and the mixture internal energy were the main factor at low inlet velocity and high inlet velocity respectively. The steady-state time was also studied in the various operation conditions. Finally, the catalytic combustion characteristics in the stable combustion stage were analyzed. The influence of inert section length, inlet temperature and inlet velocity on the maximum temperature and fuel conversion ratio were investigated.     

The effects of hydrogen addition,inlet temperature and wall thermal conductivity on the flame-wall thermal coupling of premixed propane/air mixtures in meso-scale tubes

The effects of hydrogen addition, inlet temperature, wall thermal conductivity and wall thickness on the flame-wall coupling of the propane/air flames in a meso-scale tube are numerically investigated using a two dimensional model along with the detailed chemical mechanism. Higher wall thermal conductivity can result in preheating the fresh mixture uniformly in strongly flame-wall coupled system, which is vital to enhance the burning rate of fuel mixture. With the increase of wall thermal conductivity or hydrogen addition, the leading edge of the flame shifts from the wall to the axis, meanwhile the flame is more convex towards the unburned side near the leading edge. As the hydrogen addition and inlet temperature increase, the flame propagation speed increases significantly, while the maximum temperature and maximum total enthalpy decrease due to the reduced heat recirculation power. The flame propagation speed has a negative correlation with heat loss. The chemical reactions in preheat zone are enhanced at low wall thermal conductivity due to the higher inner wall temperature. Thinner combustor wall leads to higher flame speed and higher heat loss simultaneously. Results have implications on the choice of solid wall material and heat recirculation design in a stable meso-scale combustor for different fuels.     

Experimental investigation of combustion in porous heating burners

The combustion characteristics of liquefied petroleum gas inside porous heating burners have been investigated experimentally under steady-state and transient conditions. Cooling tubes were embedded in the postflame region of the packed bed of a porous heating burner. The flame speed, temperature profile, and [NO_x] and [CO] in the product gases were monitored during an experiment. Due to the heat removal by the cooling tubes, a phenomenon termed metastable combustion was observed; this is that only one flame speed exists at a particular equivalence ratio for maintaining stable combustion within the porous bed of the porous heating burner. This behavior is quite different from that of porous burners without cooling tubes, in which an extended range of flame speeds usually is found for maintaining stable combustion. After metastable combustion has been established in a porous heating burner, a change in the equivalence ratio will stop the metastable combustion and drive the flame out of the packed bed. From the steady-state results, the porous heating burner was shown to maintain stable combustion under fuel-lean conditions with an equivalence ratio lower than the flammability limit of a normal free-burning system. The flame speed in a porous heating burner was found to decrease with an increase in the length of the porous bed. Combustion within a porous heating burner has the features of low flame temperature, extended reaction zone, high preheating temperature and low emissions of NO_x and CO. The flame temperature ranged from 1050 to 1250 °C, which is ∼200 °C lower than the adiabatic flame temperature at the corresponding equivalence ratio. The length of the reaction zone could be more than 70 mm and the preheating temperature ranged from 950 to 1000 °C. Both [NO_x] and [CO] were low, typically below 10 ppm.     

生物质燃油燃烧特性分析

以小桐子油、小桐子生物柴油、地沟油、地沟油生物柴油、0#柴油作为研究对象,对这5种燃油的黏温特性进行了探究分析,同时在自行搭建的雾化燃烧试验平台研究燃油在炉内燃烧火焰体积、长度及火焰温度变化规律,试验结果表明燃烧温度越高,生物质燃油和0#柴油的运动黏度均减小,地沟油减少幅度最大为81.75%;试验条件相同情况下,0#柴油的火焰长度最大为288.209 mm,地沟油火焰长度的最小为207.814 mm,5种燃油燃烧温度在轴线方向先上升后下降,在径向方向波动较大;在不同工况下,随过量空气系数α或雾化压力p的增大,生物质燃油和0#柴油燃烧火焰体积及火焰长度均呈下降趋势;燃油火焰平均温度的变化趋势随过量空气系数α增大先增大后减小,随氧体积分数的增大一直上升,小桐子油增幅最大为25.90%.