Investigation of nitrogen-diluted syngas non-premixed flames measured by planar laser-induced fluorescence of hydroxyl and particle image velocimetry

In order to investigate the effects of nitrogen dilution on combustion behaviour of syngas flames, a model combustor with optical access for swirl non-premixed flames was developed. Experimental results from planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) of OH and particle image velocimetry (PIV) are presented. The syngas consists of hydrogen and carbon monoxide of volume fraction ratio kept at 0.78. Up to 60 per cent (by volume) of nitrogen was added into syngas, as well as reference fuels including methane, hydrogen, and carbon monoxide, for dilution. Flow fields obtained by PIV reveal that the averaged typical swirling flow structure is not influenced by dilution content, which has more effect on turbulence intensities in recirculation zones and shear layers. Additionally, analysis of reaction zones and regions of burnt gas from OH-PLIF measurement shows that although syngas flame burns closer to fuel spray exit than methane, the latter shows more combustion stability, probably because of the different stabilization mechanisms for these two flames. With less support from hot burned gases in recirculation zones, the content of hydrogen plays a crucial role in syngas flame stabilization. Experimental results also imply that the increase of dilution content in fuel leads to less flame opening angle and thinner flame base.