Convective heat transfer from a partially premixed impinging flame jet. Part II: Time-resolved results

This is the second of a two-part paper on heat transfer from an impinging flame jet reporting time-resolved results. Axial and radial profiles of time-resolved local heat fluxes of methane-air jet flames impinging normal to a cooled plate are reported, including the root mean square (RMS), probability distribution function (PDF), and the power spectral density (PSD) of the heat flux fluctuations as a function of equivalence ratio, Reynolds number, and nozzle-plate spacing. The RMS, PDF, and PSD of the heat flux signal from the stagnation point and along the plate revealed correlation of the local heat flux to the flame structure. Impingement heat flux from premixed nozzle-stabilized flames was characterized by small RMS fluctuations and frequency behavior indicating the formation of weak, buoyancy-driven vortex structures at the shear layer between the hot gases surrounding the flame and the ambient air. Conversely, diffusion flames were characterized by much larger RMS fluctuations and PSD’s indicating the development of much larger vortex structures. Time-resolved heat flux for lifted flames varied according to flame structure and combustion intensity. PSD magnitudes were related to the range of temperatures in the flow; greater temperature ranges produced larger heat flux variations. The contributing frequencies were related to the duration of the heat flux fluctuation; more rapid changes in heat flux produced higher frequency content.     

Impinging premixed butane/air circular laminar flame jet--influence of impingement plate on heat transfer characteristics

Experimental studies were performed to study the heat transfer characteristics of an impingement flame jet system consisting of a premixed butane/air circular flame jet impinging vertically upward upon a horizontal rectangular plate at laminar flow condition. There were two impingement plates manufactured with brass and stainless steel respectively used in the present study. The integrated effects of Reynolds number and equivalence ratio of the air/fuel jet, and distance between the nozzle and the plate (i.e. nozzle-to-plate distance) on heat transfer characteristics of the flame jet system had been investigated. The influence in using impingement plate with different thermal conductivities, surface emissivities and roughnesses on heat flux received by the plate was examined via comparison, which had not been reported in previous literatures. A higher resistance to heat transfer had been encountered when the stainless steel impingement plate of lower thermal conductivity was used, which led to a significantly lower heat flux at the stagnation region. However, the heat flux distribution in the wall-jet region of the plate was only slightly affected by using different impingement plates. Because of the significantly lower heat transfer, more fuel was not required to consume and existed at the stagnation region of the stainless steel impingement plate, which would be burned latter in the wall-jet region to release its chemical energy and enhance the local heat flux there.     

Influences of nozzle-plate spacing on boiling heat transfer of confined planar dielectric liquid impinging jet

We have investigated the single-phase and boiling heat transfer of dielectric liquid under the Reynolds numbers (2000, 3000 and 5000) and under nozzle-plate spacing (H/W; 0.5, 1.0 and 4.0) in a submerged impinging jet system. The boiling incipience increases in proportion to the Reynolds number and in inverse proportion to the nozzle-to-surface spacing. The critical heat flux at H/W = 1.0 is lower than those of outer spacings, such as H/W = 0.5 and 4.0, due to the characteristics of the jet impingement heat transfer distribution. We suggest a correlation equation of nozzle-plate spacing (H/W) having the lowest CHF for various jet velocities.     

Heat transfer of a row of three butane/air flame jets impinging on a flat plate

Experiments were performed to investigate the heat transfer characteristics of a row of three premixed, laminar, butane/air flame jets impinging on a water-cooled flat plate. The between-jet interference was found to reduce the heat transfer rate in the jet-to-jet interacting zone due to the depressed combustion. The interference became stronger when the jet-to-jet spacing and/or the nozzle-to-plate distance were/was small. The positive pressure existed in the between-jet interacting zone caused the asymmetric flame and heat transfer distribution of the side jet. The meeting point of the spreading wall jets of the central and the side jets did not occur at the midpoint of the neighboring jets, but at a location shifted slightly outwards. The maximum local heat flux and the maximum area-averaged heat flux occurred at a moderate nozzle-to-plate distance of 5d with a moderate jet-to-jet spacing of 5d. The lowest area-averaged heat flux was produced when both the jet-to-jet spacing and the nozzle-to-plate distance were small. Comparing with a single jet under the same experimental conditions, the heat transfer rates in both the stagnation point and the maximum heat transfer point were shown to be enhanced in a row of three-jet-impingement system. The present study provided detailed information on the heat transfer characteristics of a row of three in-line impinging flame jets, which had rarely been reported in previous study.     

Experimental study and theoretical analysis of local heat transfer distribution between smooth flat surface and impinging air jet from a circular straight pipe nozzle

An experimental investigation is performed to study the effect of jet-to-plate spacing and Reynolds number on the local heat transfer distribution to normally impinging submerged circular air jet on a smooth and flat surface. A single jet from a straight circular nozzle of length-to-diameter ratio (l/d) of 83 is tested. Reynolds number based on nozzle exit condition is varied between 12,000 and 28,000 and jet-to-plate spacing between 0.5 and 8 nozzle diameters. The local heat transfer characteristics are estimated using thermal images obtained by infrared thermal imaging technique. Measurements for the static wall pressure distribution due to impinging jet at different jet-to-plate spacing are made. The local heat transfer distributions are analyzed based on theoretical predictions and experimental results of the fluid flow characteristics in the various regions of jet impingement. The heat transfer at the stagnation point is analyzed from the static wall pressure distribution. Semi-analytical solution for heat transfer in the stagnation region is obtained assuming an axisymmetric laminar boundary layer with favourable pressure gradient. The heat transfer in the wall jet region is studied considering fluid flow over a flat plate of constant heat flux. However, heat transfers in the transition region are explained from reported fluid dynamic behaviour in this region. Correlations for the local Nusselt numbers in different regions are obtained and compared with experimental results.     

An experimental and numerical study of stagnation point heat transfer for methane/air laminar flame impinging on a flat surface

A combined experimental and numerical study has been conducted to determine the stagnation point heat transfer for laminar methane/air flame impinging on a flat surface. Effects of Reynolds number, equivalence ratio and burner diameter on stagnation point heat flux were examined experimentally at different separation heights. Maximum stagnation point heat flux was obtained when the flat surface was closest to the tip of the inner premixed reaction zone. Heat flux decreased along the axial direction when the separation distance was further increased from the tip of inner reaction zone. There was a secondary rise in heat flux at the stagnation point at larger separation distances. Correlations were developed for stagnation point Nusselt number. Numerical simulations were carried out using a commercial CFD code (FLUENT) for laminar methane/air flame impinging on a flat surface for various separation distances. Results were compared with those found experimentally. The reason for conducting the simulations was to (a) gain more insight into how the presence of the plate affects the flame and the flow and temperature fields and (b) to explain the reason for high heat flux when the tip of the inner reaction zone was very close to the stagnation point.     

Streamwise distribution of the recovery factor and the local heat transfer coefficient to an impinging circular air jet

An investigation of the radial distribution of the recovery factor and the local heat transfer for an axisymmetric impinging air jet formed by a smooth nozzle is described. The recovery factor is dependent on the jet nozzle to impingement plate spacing, but is independent of jet Reynolds number. The maximum stagnation region heat transfer occurs at a nozzle to impingement plate spacing of about eight jet diameters. A correlation is obtained for the average heat transfer from the surface.     

Local heat transfer distribution on a smooth flat plate impinged by a slot jet

Experimental investigation of local heat transfer distribution on a smooth flat plate impinged by a normal slot jet is conducted. Present study concentrates on the influence of jet-to-plate spacing (z/b) and Reynolds number on the fluid flow and heat transfer distribution. A single slot jet with an aspect ratio (l/b) of about 50 is chosen to get the fully developed flow at the nozzle exit. Reynolds number based on slot width is varied from 4200 to 12,000 and jet-to-plate spacing (z/b) is varied from 0.5 to 12. The local heat transfer coefficients are estimated from the thermal images obtained from infrared thermal imaging camera. Measurement for the static wall pressure is carried out for various jet-to-plate spacings at a Reynolds number of 12,000. Normalized value of turbulence and velocity are measured using hot wire anemometer along the streamwise direction (x/b) for jet-to-plate spacings (z/b) of 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12. The entire flow field is divided into three regimes namely stagnation region (laminar boundary layer associated with favorable pressure gradient), transition region (associated with increase in turbulence intensities and heat transfer) and turbulent wall jet region. Semi-empirical correlation for the Nusselt number in the stagnation region is proposed. Heat transfer characteristics in the transition region are explained based on the fluid dynamic behavior from the hot wire measurements. Semi-empirical correlation for the Nusselt number in the wall jet region is presented using the velocity profile obtained from the hot wire measurements.     

Thermal performance of a premixed impinging circular flame jet array with induced-swirl

An array of three identical premixed butane–air-fired impinging circular flames with induced-swirl operating at low-pressure and low-Reynolds-number was developed. A swirling motion was imparted successfully to the flame by forcing the butane/air mixture through a specially designed burner assembly before ignition. The burner assembly consisting of a conical base and a nozzle tube into which a cylindrical bar fabricated with three spiral channels was inserted. Its thermal performance was compared with that of a similar impinging flame jet system without induced-swirl. Effects of varying the Reynolds number and the equivalence ratio of the butane/air mixture and the nozzle-to-plate distance on the thermal performance of each of these two impinging flame jet systems were studied. Experiments were conducted with different combinations of Reynolds number, equivalence ratio and nozzle-to-plate distance. In the present investigation, the Reynolds number ranged from 500 to 2500, the equivalence ratio ranged from 1.0 to 1.8 and the nozzle-to-plate distance ranged from 20 mm to 30 mm. To facilitate comparison, flame shapes of both impinging flame jet systems were also visualized by a high speed digital camera system. The comparison showed that the array of three small-scale, low-pressure and low-Reynolds-number premixed butane–air-fired impinging circular flame jets could enhance its thermal performance, with respect to heat transfer characteristics and blow-out limits, by incorporating an induced-swirl. The performance enhancement increased with increasing Reynolds number or equivalence ratio, but decreased with increasing nozzle-to-plate distance.     

Effect of jet-jet spacing on convective heat transfer to confined, impinging arrays of axisymmetric air jets

The effects of jet-jet spacing (X_n/D), low nozzle-plate spacings (H/D = 0.25, 1.0 and 6.0) and spent air exits located between the jet orifices were studied on the magnitude and uniformity of the convective heat transfer coefficients for confined 3 × 3 square arrays of isothermal axisymmetric air jets impinging normally to a heated surface. Local and average Nusselt numbers are presented for Reynolds number range of 3500–20 400. The local Nusselt numbers illustrate the (non)uniformity of the heat transfer and aid in understanding the variations in the average Nusselt number. The jet-jet spacing affects the convective coefficient by varying the influence of the adjacent jet interference and fraction of the impingement surface covered by the wall jet. The addition of spent air exits increased the convective coefficient and influenced the location of the optimum separation distance. In addition, significant enhancement of the uniformity and the convective coefficients was observed at H/D = 0.25 and 1.0 when compared to H/D = 6.0.     

Heat transfer and wall pressure characteristics of a twin premixed butane/air flame jets

Experimental studies were carried out to investigate the flame shape and the heat transfer and wall pressure characteristics of a pair of laminar premixed butane/air flame jets impinging vertically upon a horizontal water-cooled flat plate at jet Reynolds numbers of 800, 1000 and 1200, respectively. Equivalence ratio of the butane/air mixture was maintained constantly at unity. The flame shape, the pressure distribution on the impingement plate and the heat transfer from the flame to the plate were greatly influenced by the interference occurred between the two flame jets. This interference caused a sharp pressure peak at the between-jet midpoint and the positive pressures at the between-jet area, which led to the separation of the wall jet from the impingement plate after collision. Such interference became more significant when the non-dimensional jet-to-jet spacing (S/d) and the nozzle-to-plate distance (H/d) were reduced. Heat transfer in the interaction zone between the jets was at the lowest rate due to this interference at the smallest S/d ratio of 2.6, resulting from the separation of the high-temperature inner reaction zone of the flame from the impingement plate. On the other hand, the interference enhanced the heat transfer in the interaction zone between the jets when the S/d ratio was greater than 5, by enhancing the heat transfer coefficient. The average heat flux of the impingement plate was found to increase significantly with the increasing H/d ratio until H/d=6. The present study provided detailed information on flame shape and the heat transfer and wall pressure characteristics of a twin laminar pre-mixed impinging circular flame jets, which has rarely been reported in previous studies.     

Heat transfer from an impinging premixed butane/air slot flame jet

Experiments were performed to study the heat transfer characteristics of a premixed butane/air slot flame jet impinging normally on a horizontal rectangular plate. The effects of Reynolds number and the nozzle-to-plate distance on heat transfer were examined. The Reynolds number varied from 800 to 1700, while the nozzle-to-plate distance ranged from 2d_e to 12d_e. Comparisons were made between the heat transfer characteristics of slot jets and circular jets under the same experimental conditions. It was found that the slot flame jet produces more uniform heat flux profile and larger averaged heat fluxes than the circular flame jet.     

Heat transfer characteristics of an impinging inverse diffusion flame jet. Part II: Impinging flame structure and impingement heat transfer

This paper is the second part of the experimental study on exploring the feasibility of inverse diffusion flame (IDF) for impingement heating. The structures and heat transfer characteristics of an impinging IDF jet have been studied. Four types of impinging flame structure have been identified and reported. The distributions of the wall static pressure are measured and presented. The influences of the global equivalence ratio (), the Reynolds number of the air jet (Re_air), and the non-dimensional burner-to-plate distance (H/d_air), on the flame structure, and the local and averaged heat transfer characteristics, are reported and discussed. The highest heat transfer occurs when the tip of the flame inner reaction zone impinges on the plate. The heat transfer rate from the impinging IDF is found to be higher than that in the premixed flame jet due to the augmented turbulence level originated from the flame neck. This high heat transfer rate, together with its in-born advantage of no danger of flashback and low level of nitrogen oxides emission, demonstrates the blue, dual-structured, triple-layered IDF is a desirable alternative for impingement heating.     

Asymmetric entrainment effect on the local surface temperature of a flat plate heated by an obliquely impinging two-dimensional jet

The flow and temperature fields caused by a two-dimensional heating air jet obliquely impinging on a flat plate are experimentally characterized. Whilst the jet flow is discharged at Re_Dh = 8.2 × 10³ based on the hydraulic diameter of the orifice, D_h, and the jet exit-to-plate spacing (separation distance) is fixed at 8D_h, the impingement angle (inclination) is systematically decreased from 90° (normal impinging) to 30° (oblique impinging). A separate experiment is carried out for a two-dimensional cooling jet obliquely impinging on a heated plate (constant heat flux). The results demonstrate that the response of local surface temperature to plate inclination behaves in a completely different manner. For impinging jet cooling, the inclination (from normal impinging position) reduces the local effective temperature values at corresponding points about actual stagnation point, inclusive of it. For impinging jet heating, the inclination causes, conversely, an increase in local surface temperature including the stagnation point temperature. However, the shifting of the actual stagnation point towards the uphill side of the plate is consistently observed for both hot and cold jet cases. This newly found feature for an obliquely impinging jet is attributed to the combined effects of asymmetric entrainment and momentum redistribution (i.e., thickening/thinning of hydraulic boundary layers on each side of the plate with respect to the actual stagnation point).     

Heat transfer characteristics of an array of impinging pre-mixed slot flame jets

An experimental study was carried out to investigate the shape and the heat transfer characteristics of an array of three laminar pre-mixed butane/air slot flame jets impinging upwards normally on a horizontal water-cooled flat plate. The effects of jet-to-jet spacing and nozzle-to-plate distance were examined at the Reynolds number (Re) of 1000 and the equivalence ratio (?) of unity. Comparisons of the heat transfer characteristics between single and multiple slot flame jets, as well as multiple slot and round jets, were made. The between-jet interference decreased with increasing jet-to-jet spacing (s/d_e) and nozzle-to-plate distance (H/d_e). Strong interference was obtained at s/d_e = 1 and H/d_e = 2, at which the central jet was suppressed while the side jets were deflected towards their free sides. In addition, there was no minimum heat flux found in the inter-jet interacting zone, instead, a peak heat flux was obtained. Thermal performance was reduced when H/d_e became smaller than the length of the conical luminous reaction zone of the flame. A maximum average heat flux occurred at the moderate jet-to-jet spacing of s/d_e = 2.5 at Re = 1000, ? = 1 and H/d_e = 2. The resultant heat flux distribution of the central jet of a multiple slot jets system was higher than that of a single slot jet when the jet-to-jet spacing was small, but this advantage in thermal performance diminished when the jet-to-jet spacing was increased. Besides, the area-averaged heat flux of the multiple slot flame jets was higher than that of the multiple round flame jets arranged at the same geometric configuration.     

Time-resolved blowoff transition measurements for two-dimensional bluff body-stabilized flames in vitiated flow

Flame holding and blowoff characteristics of bluff-body stabilized, turbulent flames were measured in an enclosed rectangular duct with a triangular flame holder in vitiated, premixed flows. Blowoff stability margins were characterized with chemiluminescence measurements performed by high-speed imaging to capture flame dynamics during the approach to flame blow off. As the equivalence ratio was decreased, local extinctions along the flames interacting with shear layers surrounding the bluff body recirculation zone occurred with greater frequency and proximity to the wake stagnation zone. Decreased equivalence ratio resulted in extinction events at the trailing edge of the stagnation zone, which allowed reactants to be convected into the recirculation zone and burned behind the bluff body. Increasing reactant dilution of the recirculation zone eventually resulted in flame lift-off or extinction of the flame in the neighboring shear layer. These near field shear layer flames convected to the wake stagnation zone, and were eventually quenched. Simultaneous particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) and OH planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) measurements captured the flame edge location and aerodynamic behavior as blowoff was approached. Two-dimensional hydrodynamic stretch along the flame front and flow field vorticity maps were extracted from the combined PIV/OH PLIF data. The distribution of flame stretch shifted to greater values as the equivalence ratio decreased and is believed to be the cause of local flame extinction in the wake stagnation zone that starts the blowoff process.     

Emission of impinging swirling and non-swirling inverse diffusion flames

The overall pollutants emission from impinging swirling and non-swirling inverse diffusion flames (IDFs) was evaluated quantitatively by the ‘hood’ method. The results of in-flame volumetric concentrations of CO and NO_x and overall pollutants emission of CO and NO_x in terms of emission index were reported. The in-flame volumetric concentrations of CO and NO_x were measured through a small hole drilled on the impingement plate. In comparison with the corresponding open flame, the CO and NO_x concentrations for the impinging swirling IDF are greatly lowered due to the entrainment of much more ambient air which is related to the increased flame surface area. For the swirling and non-swirling IDFs, the EINO_x increases as the nozzle-to-plate distance (H) increases because more space is available for the development of the high-temperature zone in the free jet portion of the impinging flame, which favors the thermal NO formation. The variation of EICO with H is different for the impinging swirling and non-swirling IDFs because they have different flame structures. For both flames, the EICO is high when their main reaction zone or inner reaction cone is impinged and quenched by the copper plate. The parameters of air jet Reynolds number, overall equivalence ratio and nozzle-to-plate distance have significant influence on the overall pollutants emission of the impinging swirling and non-swirling IDFs and the comparison shows that the swirling IDF emits less NO_x and CO under most of the experimental conditions tested. Furthermore, it is found that compared with the open flames, the impinging flames emit lower level of NO_x and higher level of CO.     

Numerical Analysis of Jet Impingement Heat Transfer at High Jet Reynolds Number and Large Temperature Difference

Jet impingement heat transfer from a round gas jet to a flat wall was investigated numerically for a ratio of 2 between the jet inlet to wall distance and the jet inlet diameter. The influence of turbulence intensity at the jet inlet and choice of turbulence model on the wall heat transfer was investigated at a jet Reynolds number of 1.66 × 10⁵ and a temperature difference between jet inlet and wall of 1600 K. The focus was on the convective heat transfer contribution as thermal radiation was not included in the investigation. A considerable influence of the turbulence intensity at the jet inlet was observed in the stagnation region, where the wall heat flux increased by a factor of almost 3 when increasing the turbulence intensity from 1.5% to 10%. The choice of turbulence model also influenced the heat transfer predictions significantly, especially in the stagnation region, where differences of up to about 100% were observed. Furthermore, the variation in stagnation point heat transfer was examined for jet Reynolds numbers in the range from 1.10 × 10⁵ to 6.64 × 10⁵. Based on the investigations, a correlation is suggested between the stagnation point Nusselt number, the jet Reynolds number, and the turbulence intensity at the jet inlet for impinging jet flows at high jet Reynolds numbers.     

Jet impingement heat transfer – Part I: Mean and root-mean-square heat transfer and velocity distributions

Impinging jets provide a means of achieving high heat transfer coefficients both locally and on an area averaged basis. The current work forms the first stage of a two part investigation of heat transfer distributions from a heated flat surface subject to an impinging air jet for Reynolds numbers from 10,000 to 30,000 and non-dimensional surface to jet exit spacing, H/D, from 0.5 to 8. In the present paper, the relative magnitudes of the local heat transfer coefficients are compared to the fluctuating components and to the mean and root-mean-square local velocity components. It has been shown that at low nozzle to surface spacings (<2 diameters) secondary peaks in the radial heat transfer distributions are due to an abrupt increase in turbulence in the wall jet. In particular the velocity fluctuations normal to the impingement surface have a controlling influence on the enhancement in the wall jet.     

Flow field and heat transfer characteristics in an oblique slot jet impinging on a flat plate

An experimental study was performed to determine the effects of inclination of an impinging two dimensional slot jet on the heat transfer from a flat plate. Local Nusselt numbers and surface pressure distributions were determined depending on inclination angle, jet-to-plate spacing and Reynolds number. The results showed that the location of maximum heat transfer was mainly due to the angle of inclination. As the inclination angle increases, the location of the maximum heat transfer shifts towards the uphill side of the plate and the value of the maximum Nusselt number gradually increases at lower jet-to-plate spacings.