Effects of Intrinsic Flame Instabilities On Thermoacoustic Oscillations in Lean Premixed Gas Turbines

Thermoacoustic instabilities are commonly encountered in the development of aeroengines and rocket motors. Research on the fundamental mechanism of thermoacoustic instabilities is beneficial for the optimal design of these engine systems. In the present study, a thermoacoustic instability model based on the lean premixed gas turbines (LPGT) combustion system was established. The longitudinal distribution of heat release caused by the intrinsic instability of flame front is considered in this model. Effects of different heat release distributions and characteristics parameters of the premixed gas (Lewis number Le, Zeldovich Number and Prandtl number Pr) on thermoacoustic instability behaviors of the LPGT system are investigated based on this model. Results show that the LPGT system features with two kinds of unstable thermoacoustic modes. The first one corresponds to the natural acoustic mode of the plenum and the second one corresponds to that of the combustion chamber. The characteristic parameters of premixed gases have a large impact on the stability of the system and even can change the system from stable to unstable state.

Nonlinear combustion instability analysis of a bluff body burner based on the flame describing function

Lean premixed combustion is a common form of combustion organization in power equipment and propulsion systems. In order to understand the dynamic characteristics of lean premixed flame and predict and control its combustion instability, it is necessary to obtain its flame describing function (FDF). Based on the open source CFD toolbox, OpenFOAM, the dynamic K-equation model, and the finite rate Partially Stirred Reactor (PaSR) model were used to perform large eddy simulations (LES) of lean premixed combustion, and the response of the unsteady heat release rate to single-frequency harmonic disturbances was studied. The response of the unsteady heat release rate was characterized by the FDF, and the response of the unsteady heat release rate to the two-frequency harmonic disturbance was studied. The results show that the quantitative heat release rate response and flame dynamics have very proper accuracy. In the single-frequency harmonic disturbance, as the forcing frequency increases, the curling behavior of the flame surface and the instantaneous vortex structure change; the nonlinear kinematics effect is manifested by the entrainment of the vortex. At lower forcing frequencies, the heat release response changes linearly with the increase of forcing amplitude; at intermediate frequencies, the heat release response exhibits obvious nonlinear behavior; at high frequencies, the heat release response to amplitude changes decreases. The introduction of the second harmonic disturbance will significantly reduce the response range of the total heat release rate and make the combustion more stable.