Experimental Investigation on the Influences of Bluff-Body’s Position on Diffusion Flame Structures

Author(s):  
Yiheng Tong ◽  
Mao Li ◽  
Jens Klingmann ◽  
Shuang Chen ◽  
Zhongshan Li

Effects of the bluff-body’s position on diffusion flame structures and flame instability characteristics were investigated experimentally. A flame regime diagram together with the corresponding flow fields were proposed to evaluate the influences caused by the alternation of bluff-body’s position. The disk shape bluff-body was placed 10 mm downstream or at the same height with the annular channel exit. The bulk velocity of the annular air flow varied from 0 to 8.6m/s while the central jet fuel velocity ranged from 0 to 30m/s. Various flame patterns including the recirculation zone flame, the stable diffusion jet flame, split-flashing flame and lifted flame were observed and recorded with a high speed camera. It is found that the flame has approximately the same patterns with different bluff-body’s positions, except for cases with high air flow rate (Ua > 6.8m/s) and low fuel flow rate (Uj < 5m/s). Under that operating conditions, placing the disk bluff-body 10 mm above the annular channel could better stabilize the flame. High speed Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) was also used to get deeper insight into the characteristics of the flow fields and flame stabilization. The size and strength of the recirculation zone downstream of the bluff-body altered with the changing of bluff-body’s position and other operating conditions. The recirculation zone, in the burner with the bluff-body placed 10 mm above the air channel exit, was found larger and stronger than that in the other burner geometry. In the reacting case, a recirculation bubble was formed besides the bluff-body’s outer wall which enhanced the flame stabilization. It is also found that the combustion changed the flow fields by enlarging the recirculation bubbles downstream of the bluff-body.

Author(s):  
Arman Ahamed Subash ◽  
Haisol Kim ◽  
Sven-Inge Möller ◽  
Mattias Richter ◽  
Christian Brackmann ◽  
...  

Abstract Experimental investigations were performed using a standard 3rd generation dry low emission (DLE) burner under atmospheric pressure to study the effect of central and pilot fuel addition, load variations and H2 enrichment in a NG flame. High-speed OH-PLIF and OH-chemiluminescence imaging were employed to investigate the flame stabilization, flame turbulence interactions, and flame dynamics. Along with the optical measurements, combustion emissions were recorded to observe the effect of changing operating conditions on NOX level. The burner is used in Siemens industrial gas turbines SGT-600, SGT-700 and SGT-800 with minor hardware differences. This study thus is a step to characterize fuel and load flexibility for these turbines. Without pilot and central fuel injections in the current burner configuration, the main flame is stabilized creating a central recirculation zone. Addition of the pilot fuel strengthens the outer recirculation zone (ORZ) and moves the flame slightly downstream, whereas the flame moves upstream without affecting the ORZ when central fuel injection is added. The flame was investigated utilizing H2/NG fuel mixtures where the H2 amount was changed from 0 to 100%. The flame becomes more compact, the anchoring position moves closer to the burner exit and the OH signal distribution becomes more distinct for H2 addition due to increased reaction rate, diffusivity, and laminar burning velocity. Changing the load from part to base, similar trends were observed in the flame behavior but in this case due to the higher heat release because of increased turbulence intensity.


Author(s):  
Arman Ahamed Subash ◽  
Haisol Kim ◽  
Sven-Inge Möller ◽  
Mattias Richter ◽  
Christian Brackmann ◽  
...  

Abstract Fuel and load flexibility have been increasingly important features of industrial gas turbines in order to meet the demand for increased utilization of renewable fuels and to provide a way to balance the grid fluctuations due to the unsteady supply of wind and solar power. Experimental investigations were performed using a standard 3rd generation dry low emission (DLE) burner under atmospheric pressure conditions to study the effect of central and pilot fuel addition, load variations and hydrogen (H2) enrichment in a natural gas (NG) flame. High-speed kHz planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) of OH radicals and imaging of OH chemiluminescence were employed to investigate the flame stabilization, flame turbulence interactions, and flame dynamics. Along with the optical measurements, combustion emissions were also recorded to observe the effect of changing operating conditions on NOX level. The burner is used in Siemens industrial gas turbines SGT-600, SGT-700 and SGT-800 with no hardware differences and the study thus is a step to characterize fuel and load flexibility for these turbines. Without pilot and central fuel injections in the current burner configuration, the main flame is stabilized creating a central recirculation zone (CRZ). Addition of the pilot fuel strengthens the outer recirculation zone (ORZ) and moves the flame anchoring position slightly downstream, whereas the flame moves upstream without affecting the ORZ when central fuel injection is added. The flame was investigated utilizing H2/NG fuel mixtures where the H2 amount was changed from 0 to 100%. The results show that the characteristics of the flames are clearly affected by the addition of H2 and by the load variations. The flame becomes more compact, the anchoring position moves closer to the burner exit and the OH signal distribution becomes more distinct for H2 addition due to increased reaction rate, diffusivity, and laminar burning velocity. Changing the load from part to base, similar trends were observed in the flame behavior but in this case due to the higher heat release because of increased turbulence intensity.


Author(s):  
Tong Li ◽  
Yibin Wang ◽  
Ning Zhao

The simple frigate shape (SFS) as defined by The Technical Co-operative Program (TTCP), is a simplified model of the frigate, which helps to investigate the basic flow fields of a frigate. In this paper, the flow fields of the different modified SFS models, consisting of a bluff body superstructure and the deck, were numerically studied. A parametric study was conducted by varying both the superstructure length L and width B to investigate the recirculation zone behind the hangar. The size and the position of the recirculation zones were compared between different models. The numerical simulation results show that the size and the location of the recirculation zone are significantly affected by the superstructure length and width. The results obtained by Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes method were also compared well with both the time averaged Improved Delayed Detached-Eddy Simulation results and the experimental data. In addition, by varying the model size and inflow velocity, various flow fields were numerically studied, which indicated that the changing of Reynolds number has tiny effect on the variation of the dimensionless size of the recirculation zone. The results in this study have certain reference value for the design of the frigate superstructure.


2017 ◽  
Vol 140 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christoph A. Schmalhofer ◽  
Peter Griebel ◽  
Manfred Aigner

The use of highly reactive hydrogen-rich fuels in lean premixed combustion systems strongly affects the operability of stationary gas turbines (GT) resulting in higher autoignition and flashback risks. The present study investigates the autoignition behavior and ignition kernel evolution of hydrogen–nitrogen fuel mixtures in an inline co-flow injector configuration at relevant reheat combustor operating conditions. High-speed luminosity and particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements in an optically accessible reheat combustor are employed. Autoignition and flame stabilization limits strongly depend on temperatures of vitiated air and carrier preheating. Higher hydrogen content significantly promotes the formation and development of different types of autoignition kernels: More autoignition kernels evolve with higher hydrogen content showing the promoting effect of equivalence ratio on local ignition events. Autoignition kernels develop downstream a certain distance from the injector, indicating the influence of ignition delay on kernel development. The development of autoignition kernels is linked to the shear layer development derived from global experimental conditions.


Author(s):  
M. Vardelle ◽  
P. Fauchais ◽  
A. Vardelle ◽  
A.C. Léger

Abstract A study of the flattening and cooling of particles plasma-sprayed on a substrate is presented. The characteristic parameters of the splats are linked to the parameters of the impacting particles by using an experimental device consisting of a phase Doppler particle analyzer and a high-speed pyrometer. However, during the long experiments required to get reliable correlations, it was observed that variations in plasma spray operating conditions may alter the particles behavior in the plasma jet. Therefore, a simple and easy-to-use system was developed to control in real time the spray jet. In this paper, the effect of carrier gas flow rate, arc current and powder mass flow rate is investigated. The results on zirconia and alumina powders show the capability of the technique to sense the particle spray position and width.


Author(s):  
B. R. Nichols ◽  
R. L. Fittro ◽  
C. P. Goyne

Many high-speed, rotating machines across a wide range of industrial applications depend on fluid film bearings to provide both static support of the rotor and to introduce stabilizing damping forces into the system through a developed hydrodynamic film wedge. Reduced oil supply flow rate to the bearings can cause cavitation, or a lack of a fully developed film layer, at the leading edge of the bearing pads. Reducing oil flow has the well-documented effects of higher bearing operating temperatures and decreased power losses due to shear forces. While machine efficiency may be improved with reduced lubricant flow, little experimental data on its effects on system stability and performance can be found in the literature. This study looks at overall system performance of a test rig operating under reduced oil supply flow rates by observing steady-state bearing performance indicators and baseline vibrational response of the shaft. The test rig used in this study was designed to be dynamically similar to a high-speed industrial compressor. It consists of a 1.55 m long, flexible rotor supported by two tilting pad bearings with a nominal diameter of 70 mm and a span of 1.2 m. The first bending mode is located at approximately 5,000 rpm. The tiling-pad bearings consist of five pads in a vintage, flooded bearing housing with a length to diameter ratio of 0.75, preload of 0.3, and a load-between-pad configuration. Tests were conducted over a number of operating speeds, ranging from 8,000 to 12,000 rpm, and bearing loads, while systematically reducing the oil supply flow rates provided to the bearings under each condition. For nearly all operating conditions, a low amplitude, broadband subsynchronous vibration pattern was observed in the frequency domain from approximately 0–75 Hz. When the test rig was operated at running speeds above its first bending mode, a distinctive subsynchronous peak emerged from the broadband pattern at approximately half of the running speed and at the first bending mode of the shaft. This vibration signature is often considered a classic sign of rotordynamic instability attributed to oil whip and shaft whirl phenomena. For low and moderate load conditions, the amplitude of this 0.5x subsynchronous peak increased with decreasing oil supply flow rate at all operating speeds. Under the high load condition, the subsynchronous peak was largely attenuated. A discussion on the possible sources of this subsynchronous vibration including self-excited instability and pad flutter forced vibration is provided with supporting evidence from thermoelastohydrodynamic (TEHD) bearing modeling results. Implications of reduced oil supply flow rate on system stability and operational limits are also discussed.


Author(s):  
Michael J. Denton ◽  
Samir B. Tambe ◽  
San-Mou Jeng

The altitude relight of a gas turbine combustor is an FAA and EASA regulation which dictates the successful re-ignition of an engine and its proper spool-up after an in-flight shutdown. Combustor pressure loss, ambient pressure, ambient temperature, and equivalence ratio were all studied on a full-scale, 3-cup, single-annular aviation combustor sector to create an ignition map. The flame development process was studied through the implementation of high-speed video. Testing was conducted by placing the sector horizontally upstream of an air jet ejector in a high altitude relight testing facility. Air was maintained at room temperature for varying pressure, and then the cryogenic heat exchanger was fed with liquid nitrogen to chill the air down to a limit of −50 deg F, corresponding with an altitude of 30,000 feet. Fuel was injected at constant equivalence ratios across multiple operating conditions, giving insight into the ignition map of the combustor sector. Results of testing indicated difficulty in achieving ignition at high altitudes for pressure drops greater than 2%, while low pressure drops show adequate performance. Introducing low temperatures to simulate the ambient conditions yielded a worse outcome, with all conditions having poor results except for 1%. High-speed video of the flame development process during the relight conditions across all altitudes yielded a substantial effect of the pressure drop on ignitability of the combustor. An increase in pressure drop was associated with a decrease in the likelihood of ignition success, especially at increasing altitudes. The introduction of the reduced temperature effect exacerbated this effect, further hurting ignition. High velocity regions in the combustor were detrimental to the ignition, and high area, low velocity regions aided greatly. The flame tended to settle into the corner recirculation zone and recirculate back into the center-toroidal recirculation zone (CTRZ), spreading downstream and likewise into adjacent swirl cups. These tests demonstrate the need for new combustor designs to consider adding large recirculation zones for combustor flame stability that will aid in relight requirements.


2013 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 187-197 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrzej Kacprzak ◽  
Rafał Kobyłecki ◽  
Zbigniew Bis

Abstract The influences of various operating conditions including cathode inlet air flow rate, electrolyte temperature and fuel particles size on the performance of the direct carbon fuel cell DCFC were presented and discussed in this paper. The experimental results indicated that the cell performance was enhanced with increases of the cathode inlet gas flow rate and cell temperature. Binary alkali hydroxide mixture (NaOH-LiOH, 90-10 mol%) was used as electrolyte and the biochar of apple tree origin carbonized at 873 K was used as fuel. Low melting temperature of the electrolyte and its good ionic conductivity enabled to operate the DCFC at medium temperatures of 723-773 K. The highest current density (601 A m−2) was obtained for temperature 773 K and air flow rate 8.3×106 m3s−1. Itwas shown that too low or too high air flow rates negatively affect the cell performance. The results also indicated that the operation of the DCFC could be improved by proper selection of the fuel particle size.


Author(s):  
Ichiro Kumagai ◽  
Kakeru Taguchi ◽  
Chiharu Kawakita ◽  
Tatsuya Hamada ◽  
Yuichi Murai

Abstract Air entrainment and bubble generation by a hydrofoil bubble generator for ship drag reduction have been investigated using a small high-speed channel tunnel with the gap of 20 mm in National Maritime Research Institute (NMRI). A hydrofoil (NACA4412, chord length = 40 mm) was installed in the channel and an air induction pipe was placed above the hydrofoil. The flow rate of the entrained air was quantitatively measured by thermal air flow sensors at the inlet of the air induction pipe. The gas-liquid flow around the hydrofoil was visualized by a backlight method and recorded by a high-speed video camera. As the flow velocity in the channel increased, the negative pressure generated above the suction side of the hydrofoil lowered the hydrostatic pressure in the channel, then the atmospheric air was entrained into the channel flow. The entrained air was broken into small air bubbles by the turbulent flow in the channel. The threshold of air entrainment, the air flow rate, and gas-liquid flow pattern depends on Reynolds number, angle of attack (AOA), and hydrofoil type. We identified at least three modes of air entrainment behavior: intermittent air entrainment, stable air entrainment, and air entrainment with a ventilated cavity. At high flow speed in our experimental condition (9 m/s), a large volume of air bubbles was generated by this hydrofoil system (e.g. air flow rate was 50 l/min for NACA4412 at AOA 16 degrees), which has a high potential to reduce ship drag.


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