Experimental and Modeling Study of Wall Film Effect on Combustion Characteristics of Premixed Flame in a Constant Volume Combustion Bomb

The primary objective of the present study was to investigate the impact of wall film on the combustion characteristics of premixed flames in internal combustion engines through the joint experimental and numerical techniques. The interaction between the premixed methane-air flame and n-dodecane film attached to the wall of a constant volume combustion bomb was experimentally examined. The flame propagation processes, as well as pressure evolution were quantitatively characterized. Then, computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation was performed incorporating the combustion chemistry model. To enable efficient simulation of the chemically reacting flow in engine chambers, a simplified modeling approach based on a two-step reaction scheme was developed. A compact reaction model for the selected model fuel n-dodecane was constructed and reduced to include 35 chemical species and 180 reactions. The flame propagation process of the premixed flame and its interaction with dry and wet walls was studied. The results showed that the propagation of the premixed flame could be divided into four stages, and the existence of the slit structure increased the instability of the flame structure in the near-wall region. The wall film tended to promote emissions, producing more unburned hydrocarbons, soot precursors and aldehydes.

A study on the influence of ignition energy on ignition delay time and laminar burning velocity of lean methane/air mixture in a constant volume combustion chamber

This study presents the effect of ignition energy (Eig) on ignition delay time (tdelay) and uncertainty of laminar burning velocity (Su0) measurement of lean methane/air mixture in a constant volume combustion chamber. The mixture at an equivalence ratio of 0.6 is ignited using a pair of electrodes at the 2-mm spark gap. Eig is measured by integrating the product of voltage V(t) and current I(t) signals during a discharge period. The in-chamber pressure profiles are analyzed using the pressure-rise method to obtain tdelay and Su0. Su0 approximates 8.0 cm/s. Furthermore, the increasing Eig could shorten tdelay, leading to a faster combustion process. However, when Eig is greater than a critical value, called minimum reliable ignition energy (MRIE), the additional elevating Eig has the marginal effect on tdelay and Su0. The existence of MRIE supports to optimize the ignition systems and partly explains why extreme-high Eig>> MRIE has less contribution to engine performance.

First-Order Phase Transformation at Constant Volume: A Continuous Transition?

We describe a first-order phase transition of a simple system in a process where the volume is kept constant. We show that, unlike what happens when the pressure is constant, (i) the transformation extends over a finite temperature (and pressure) range, (ii) each and every extensive potential (internal energy U, enthalpy H, Helmholtz energy F, and Gibbs energy G), and the entropy S is continuous across the transition, and (iii) the constant-volume heat capacity does not diverge during the transition and only exhibits discrete jumps. These non-intuitive results highlight the importance of controlling the correct variables in order to distinguish between continuous and discontinuous transitions. We apply our results to describe the transition between ice VI and liquid water using thermodynamic information available in the literature and also to show that a first-order phase transition driven in isochoric condition can be used as the operating principle of a mechanical actuator.