Basics of Computational Combustion Modelling

Dr. Gavin Tabor

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Combustion p.1

Why study Combustion?

Combustion of hydrocarbons important fuel source

Power generation Aircraft, rocket propulsion Cars etc Marine applications

Combustion rapid chemical reaction between fuel and oxidant (air). Usually involves uid ow. Understand + model processes improve power generation, decrease polutants.
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Combustion p.2

Physical basis
Complex area of investigation :

Combustion affects uid ow. Heat release T change physical properties. Also buoyancy drives ow Fluid ow affects combustion. Brings reactants together, removes products. Can determine rate of combustion, and even extinguish ame.

Overall, combustion rapid chemical reaction between fuel and oxidiser.

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However details vary treat different regimes differently.

Combustion p.3

Combusion regimes

Non-premixed combustion Regions of fuel + oxidiser separate, Combustion occurs at interface Premixed combustion Fuel and oxidiser mixed at molecular level Regions of burned and unburned gas, separated by (thin) ame Partially premixed combustion somewhere between

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Combustion p.4

Some examples
Premixed :

Spark ignition (IC) petrol engines Lean burn gas turbines Household burners Bunsen burner (blue ame regime) Direct injection (DI) petrol engines Aircraft gas turbines

Partially premixed :

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Combustion p.5

Examples non-premixed
Non-premixed :

Diesel engines Aircraft gas turbines Furnaces Candles, res

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Combustion p.6

Flame structure
Premixed combustion Flame propagating in laminar ow is characterised by : Laminar ame speed thickness
sL , lF

Combustion rate controlled by molecular diffusion processes (DL diffusivity)

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Combustion p.7

Chemistry
Dimensional analysis gives :
DL lF = sL

linking these processes. Chemical reaction time

lF tL = sL
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Combustion p.8

Turbulent ame structure

This is more complex. Turbulence characterised by turbulence intensity Integral, Kolmogorov scales Turbulent Reynolds number
u lI , u lI ReT =

Characteristic turbulent eddy turnover time

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lI tT = u

Combustion p.9

Damkhler number
Compare importance of turbulence and combustion Damkhler number
tT l I sL Da = = tL u lF

ratio of eddy turnover time to burning effect of turbulence on chemical processes Measure of local distortion of the ame Relative strength of turbulence.

Other measures :
lF /
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u /sL

Combustion p.10

Flame structure
In more detail, 3 regions :
Oxidant Fuel Inner Layer T

Oxidation Layer Preheat Zone

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Flame Propagation

Combustion p.11

Flame structure
1. a preheat zone, 2. an inner layer of fuel consumption, 3. the oxidation layer. Thickness of the inner layer
l = l F

For stoichoimetric methane at 1 atmosphere,

lF = 0.175 mm
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and

= 0.1

Combustion p.12

Non-premixed combustion

No obvious characteristic velocity scale Dene a characteristic diffusion thickness lD Flame still divided into fuel consumption and oxidation layers Oxidation layer
l = lD

of more importance.

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Combustion p.13

Modelling direct approach

We can approach the problem in a simple way :

Combustion chemical reaction process combining reactants to form products Write balance equations for species Solve together with continuity and momentum equations

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Combustion p.14

Mass fraction
Dene Mass fraction Yi the mass of the species per unit mass of the mixture. Transport equation
Yi + .Yi u = .Di Yi + Si t

Source term represents addition/removal due to combustion

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Combustion p.15

Temperature equation
Also need transport equation for some measure of the energy say temperature T .
T + .T u = .DT + ST t

Source term represents radiation, pressure work, energy release.

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Combustion p.16

Reactive scalars
Often group everything together as reactive scalars
i = {Y1 , Y2 , . . . , Yn , T }

with transport equation

i + .i u = .Di i + Si t

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Combustion p.17

Problems
Problems with this approach : 1. n often quite large! detail 100s of reactions for combustion process. Invoke QSSA to reduce to manageable proportions (1-5).
Elementary reaction mechanisms

2. Turbulence still unaccounted for!! Turbulence introduces too many details to calculate. Use Reynolds averaging to eliminate details, replace by a model.
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Combustion p.18

Moment methods
Turbulence modelling replace small scale detail of turbulence with (cheaper) turbulence model. Similar process used in combustion modelling average to remove details, then substitute a model. Density of uid variable use Favre averaging.
ux (x, t) = ux + ux

Here
ux = 0
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and thus

ux ux =

Combustion p.19

Favre averaging

Useful for modelling when density varies : NSE contain terms such as
ux uy

Using Favre averaging this becomes

ux uy = ux uy + ux uy

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Use this to derive mean ow equations (Favre-averaged NSE) and equations for k and a turbulence model for compressible ow.

Combustion p.20

Moment methods cont.

Favre averaged equation for reactive scalars :
i + .i u = .Di i .u i + Si t

High Re, so molecular diffusivity D can be ignored. Two terms cause problems :
.u i

representing turbulent transport the mean chemical source term

and
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Si

Combustion p.21

Specic models
Different combustion models arrise from different approaches to these terms range from cheap and inaccurate to precise and expensive. E.g. Eddy Breakup Model Spalding (1971)

assumes turbulent mixing determines chemical reaction rate gives simple model for chemical source term combine with k model for turbulence cheap to compute. Requires extensive tuning.

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Combustion p.22

PDF Transport
Probability Distribution Function

methods

turbulence can be described/modelled in terms of correlation functions turbulent processes combustion can also be described/modelled in terms of correlations joint PDF of velocity and reactive scalars
P (u, ; x, t)

Potentially more accurate. Also very expensive.

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Combustion p.23

Flamelet methods
Main alternative methodology. High Re, Da ame fronts very thin consider as 2d sheet which :

separates burnt and unburnt gas (premixed combustion) separates fuel and air (non-premixed) is distorted by mean ow and by turbulence propagates by burning.

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Location of ame sheet specied by indicator function.

Combustion p.24

Indicator function
Premixed combustion : progress variable
T Tu c= Tb T u

or

YP c= YP,b

0 < c < 1 : 1 represents burned gas, 0 unburned.

Some intermediate value represents ame centre.

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Combustion p.25

1-d representation
Plotting c across the ame :
1 c Unburned Burned

0 c = 0.5 = flame centre

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Combustion p.26

Flame wrinking
Flame will be wrinkled by turbulence on scales too small to simulate

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Combustion p.27

Averaging
Average equation
c + .cu = .u c + Sc t

Need to model :
u c turbulent transport term Sc reaction term

but now have a manageable set of equations.

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Combustion p.28

Other models
Other versions
ame surface density G -equation

Non-premixed combustion use mixture fraction Z .

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Combustion p.29

Counter-gradient transport

Final note : modelling of u c often uses gradient transport assumption

u c = Dt c

However this is frequently wrong counter-gradient transport.

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Combustion p.30