scholarly journals The Effect of Catalyst Placement on the Stability of a U-Bend Catalytic Heat-Recirculating Micro-Combustor: A Numerical Investigation

Catalysts ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 1560
Author(s):  
Niket S. Kaisare ◽  
Valeria Di Sarli

This study investigates the combined effect of catalyst placement and solid thermal conductivity on the stability of a U-bend catalytic heat-recirculating micro-combustor. The CFD code ANSYS Fluent 2020 R1 was used for two-dimensional simulations of lean premixed propane/air combustion by varying the inlet gas velocity, i.e., the input power. Three configurations were compared at low (3 W/(m K)) and high (30 W/(m K)) wall thermal conductivity: (A) the configuration in which both inner and outer walls are catalyst coated; (B) only the inner wall is catalyst coated; and (C) only the outer wall is catalyst coated. Numerical results show that, at low thermal conductivity, configuration (B) exhibits the same resistance to extinction as configuration (A), whereas at high thermal conductivity, configurations (B) and (C) exhibit much lower resistance to blowout than configuration (A). Accordingly, for low-power systems, which typically lose stability via extinction and thus require low-conductive materials, an optimal catalyst placement can be the partial coating of configuration (B). Conversely, for high-power systems, which are prone to blowout and thus require high-conductivity materials, a full coating of both the inner and outer walls is needed to guarantee higher stability. To elucidate these findings, a detailed analysis of the combustion behavior of the three configurations is presented.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 5418
Author(s):  
Valeria Di Sarli

The effect of differentiating the thermal conductivity between inner and outer walls on the stability of a U-bend catalytic heat-recirculating micro-combustor was investigated. To this end, a two-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed using the commercial code ANSYS Fluent (release 2020 R1) and, for different combinations of values for the inner and outer thermal conductivities, simulations of lean pre-mixed propane/air combustion were performed by varying the inlet gas velocity. Numerical results have shown that extinction is mainly ruled by the inner wall, whereas the outer wall controls blowout. Differentiating the thermal conductivity has been found to be an effective strategy to jointly exploit the better extinction resistance of low-conductive (i.e., insulating) materials, required by the inner wall, and better blowout resistance of highly conductive materials, required by the outer wall, thus enlarging the stable operating window of the catalytic micro-combustor compared to the use of the same material for both walls.


Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (20) ◽  
pp. 3821 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Yang ◽  
Zhihong He ◽  
Lei Zhao ◽  
Shikui Dong ◽  
Heping Tan

Improving the flame stability and thermal behavior of the micro-combustor (MC) are major challenges in microscale combustion. In this paper, the micro combustions of an H2/air premixed flame in a swirl MC with various channel diameters (Din = 2, 3, 4 mm) were analyzed based on an established three-dimensional numerical model. The effects of hydrogen mass flow rate, thermal conductivity of walls, and the preferential transport of species were investigated. The results indicated that the flame type was characterized by the presence of two recirculation zones. The flame was anchored by the recirculation zones, and the anchoring location of the flame root was the starting position of the recirculation zones. The recirculation zones had a larger distribution of local equivalence ratio, especially in the proximity of the flame root, indicating the formation of a radical pool. The combustion efficiency increased with an increasing Din due to the longer residence time of the reactants. Furthermore, the MC with Din = 2 mm obtained the highest outer wall temperature distribution. However, the MC with Din = 4 mm had a better uniformity of outer wall temperature and large emitter efficiency due to the larger radiation surface. An increase in thermal conductivity boosts the thermal performance of combustion efficiency, emitter efficiency, and wall temperature uniformity. But there is a critical point of thermal conductivity that can increase the thermal performance. The above results can offer us significant guidance for designing MC with high thermal performance.


Author(s):  
A.M. Zetty Akhtar ◽  
M.M. Rahman ◽  
K. Kadirgama ◽  
M.A. Maleque

This paper presents the findings of the stability, thermal conductivity and viscosity of CNTs (doped with 10 wt% graphene)- TiO2 hybrid nanofluids under various concentrations. While the usage of cutting fluid in machining operation is necessary for removing the heat generated at the cutting zone, the excessive use of it could lead to environmental and health issue to the operators. Therefore, the minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) to replace the conventional flooding was introduced. The MQL method minimises the usage of cutting fluid as a step to achieve a cleaner environment and sustainable machining. However, the low thermal conductivity of the base fluid in the MQL system caused the insufficient removal of heat generated in the cutting zone. Addition of nanoparticles to the base fluid was then introduced to enhance the performance of cutting fluids. The ethylene glycol used as the base fluid, titanium dioxide (TiO2) and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) nanoparticle mixed to produce nanofluids with concentrations of 0.02 to 0.1 wt.% with an interval of 0.02 wt%. The mixing ratio of TiO2: CNTs was 90:10 and ratio of SDBS (surfactant): CNTs was 10:1. The stability of nanofluid checked using observation method and zeta potential analysis. The thermal conductivity and viscosity of suspension were measured at a temperature range between 30˚C to 70˚C (with increment of 10˚C) to determine the relationship between concentration and temperature on nanofluid’s thermal physical properties. Based on the results obtained, zeta potential value for nanofluid range from -50 to -70 mV indicates a good stability of the suspension. Thermal conductivity of nanofluid increases as an increase of temperature and enhancement ratio is within the range of 1.51 to 4.53 compared to the base fluid. Meanwhile, the viscosity of nanofluid shows decrements with an increase of the temperature remarks significant advantage in pumping power. The developed nanofluid in this study found to be stable with enhanced thermal conductivity and decrease in viscosity, which at once make it possible to be use as nanolubricant in machining operation.


2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 2663-2681
Author(s):  
Rizk El- Sayed ◽  
Mustafa Kamal ◽  
Abu-Bakr El-Bediwi ◽  
Qutaiba Rasheed Solaiman

The structure of a series of AlSb alloys prepared by melt spinning have been studied in the as melt–spun ribbons  as a function of antimony content .The stability  of these structures has  been  related to that of the transport and mechanical properties of the alloy ribbons. Microstructural analysis was performed and it was found that only Al and AlSb phases formed for different composition.  The electrical, thermal and the stability of the mechanical properties are related indirectly through the influence of the antimony content. The results are interpreted in terms of the phase change occurring to alloy system. Electrical resistivity, thermal conductivity, elastic moduli and the values of microhardness are found to be more sensitive than the internal friction to the phase changes. 


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (14) ◽  
pp. 4150
Author(s):  
Lluís Monjo ◽  
Luis Sainz ◽  
Juan José Mesas ◽  
Joaquín Pedra

Photovoltaic (PV) power systems are increasingly being used as renewable power generation sources. Quasi-Z-source inverters (qZSI) are a recent, high-potential technology that can be used to integrate PV power systems into AC networks. Simultaneously, concerns regarding the stability of PV power systems are increasing. Converters reduce the damping of grid-connected converter systems, leading to instability. Several studies have analyzed the stability and dynamics of qZSI, although the characterization of qZSI-PV system dynamics in order to study transient interactions and stability has not yet been properly completed. This paper contributes a small-signal, state-space-averaged model of qZSI-PV systems in order to study these issues. The model is also applied to investigate the stability of PV power systems by analyzing the influence of system parameters. Moreover, solutions to mitigate the instabilities are proposed and the stability is verified using PSCAD time domain simulations.


In the first part of this paper opportunity has been taken to make some adjustments in certain general formulae of previous papers, the necessity for which appeared in discussions with other workers on this subject. The general results thus amended are then applied to a general discussion of the stability problem including the effect of the trailing wake which was deliberately excluded in the previous paper. The general conclusion is that to a first approximation the wake, as usually assumed, has little or no effect on the reality of the roots of the period equation, but that it may introduce instability of the oscillations, if the centre of gravity of the element is not sufficiently far forward. During the discussion contact is made with certain partial results recently obtained by von Karman and Sears, which are shown to be particular cases of the general formulae. An Appendix is also added containing certain results on the motion of a vortex behind a moving cylinder, which were obtained to justify certain of the assumptions underlying the trail theory.


2006 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 313-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel L. Schwartz ◽  
Taylor Martin

If distributed cognition is to become a general analytic frame, it needs to handle more aspects of cognition than just highly efficient problem solving. It should also handle learning. We identify four classes of distributed learning: induction, repurposing, symbiotic tuning, and mutual adaptation. The four classes of distributed learning fit into a two-dimensional space defined by the stability and adaptability of individuals and their environments. In all four classes of learning, people and their environments are highly interdependent during initial learning. At the same time, we present evidence indicating that certain types of interdependence in early learning, most notably mutual adaptation, can help prepare people to be less dependent on their immediate environment and more adaptive when they confront new environments. We also describe and test examples of learning technologies that implement mutual adaptation.


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