This work is devoted to generate knowledge and high quality experimental data of catalytic combustion at operational gas turbine conditions. The initial task of the thesis work was to design and construct a high pressure combustion test facility, where the catalytic combustion experiments can be performed at real gas turbine conditions. With this in mind, a highly advanced combustion test facility has been designed, constructed and tested. This test facility is capable of simulating combustion conditions relevant to a wide range of operating gas turbine conditions and different kinds of fuel gases. The shape of the combustor (test section) is similar to a “can” type gas turbine combustor, but with significant differences in its type of operation. The test combustor is expected to operate at near adiabatic combustion conditions and there will be no additions of cooling, dilution or secondary supply of air into the combustion process. The geometry of the combustor consists of three main zones such as air/fuel mixing zone, catalytic reaction zone and downstream gas phase reaction zone with no difference of the mass flow at inlet and exit. The maximum capacity of the test facility is 100 kW (fuel power) and the maximum air flow rate is 100g/s. The significant features of the test facility are counted as its operational pressure range (1 – 35 atm), air inlet temperatures (100 – 650 °C), fuel flexibility (LHV 4 - 40 MJ/m3) and air humidity (0 – 30% kg/kg of air). Given these features, combustion could be performed at any desired pressure up to 35 bars while controlling other parameters independently. Fuel flexibility of the applications was also taken into consideration in the design phase and proper measures have been taken in order to utilize two types of targeted fuels, methane and gasified biomass. Experimental results presented in this thesis are the operational performances of highly active precious metal catalysts (also called as ignition catalysts) and combinations of precious metal, perovskites and hexaaluminate catalysts (also called as fully catalytic configuration). Experiments were performed on different catalytic combustor configurations of various types of catalysts with methane and simulated gasified biomass over the full range of pressure. The types of catalysts considered on the combustor configurations are palladium on alumina (Pd/AL2O3), palladium lanthanum hexaaluminate (PdLaAl11O19), platinum on alumina (Pt/AL2O3),and palladium:platinum bi-metal on alumina (Pd:Pt/AL2O3). The influence of pressure, inlet temperature, flow velocity and air fuel ratio on the ignition, combustion stability and emission generation on the catalytic system were investigated and presented. Combustion catalysts were developed and provided mainly by the project partner, the Division of Chemical Technology, KTH. Division of Chemical Reaction Technology, KTH and Istituto di Ricerche sulla Combustione (CNR) Italy were also collaborated with some of the experimental investigations by providing specific types of catalysts developed by them for the specific conditions of gas turbine requirements. / <p>QC 20131125</p>

<div>Thermoacoustic instabilities in rocket engines have been studied for decades and models have been attempted, however, the heat release fluctuations and overall response</div><div>is still poorly understood. To understand the heat release mechanism in a rocket combustion chamber the effect of hydrodynamics and chemical kinetics on the mode/s of combustion need to be studied. Using prior simulations of the CVRC, an initial design for a new model rocket combustor was proposed. The new design improved on past experiments by having better control of all important boundary conditions; facilitate higher fidelity pressure and optical measurements with emphasis on quantifying the results and using them to validate simulation models of the design; and allow good control over the characteristic parameters of the injection mechanics. A prior simulation was done on the proposed design to allow fine tuning of the</div><div>design elements. Three distinct modes of self-excited instability were observed in the experiment, two of which transitioned between one another with a sweep in oxidizer</div><div>temperature. A number of configurations and operating conditions were tested, but the primary focus was on three oxidizer rich cases, at different oxidizer temperatures. The two extreme cases were compared to the simulations conducted. At low oxidizer temperatures there was good agreement, where at high oxidizer temperatures there</div><div>was a fairly good agreement in the type of mechanics observed, but there were a few discrepancies. The vortex shedding off of the fuel collar was captured using chemiluminescence measurements and compared quite well with the simulations. It was found that the fuel collar vortex shedding did not directly contribute to the generation of</div><div>instabilities.</div>

A research report submitted to the School of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2016. / The self-heating of coals is a complex problem which has been occurring for centuries. This problem has been fatal to coal miners, an economical challenge to coal mines and a health risk in a release of greenhouse gases to the public in general. Therefore, everyone is affected by the self-heating of coal, which leads to spontaneous combustion when the ignition temperature is reached. There are many test methods that have been used to test spontaneous combustion in coal, but all have one common factor or disadvantage of requiring long periods of time before a conclusion can be deduced. This then creates a need for a rapid and reliable method to test the liability of coal to self-heat in the coal industry and thus the motivation for this project. The thermogravimetry analysis (TGA) method was selected to test the liability of coal to self-heat due to its short analytical duration. The Smith-Glasser oxidation test was selected to validate the TGA results obtained. The main aim of this project is to investigate the reliability of the TGA method to predict the propensity of coal to self-heat. 29 samples from different regions of South Africa were used, prepared to 250 μm for all the analyses and self-heating tests. All samples were analysed for proximate, calorific value, sulphur and petrographic properties before the spontaneous combustion liability tests began. The TGA method followed two tests: 1) the O2 adsorption and 2) the ignition test. Five different heating rates (3, 5, 7, 10, and 20) °C/min were run in order to obtain five derivative slopes which would be used to obtain the TGspc index. The oxygen adsorption test studies the mass increase at low temperature under exposure of air between the temperature ranges of 100 – 300°C. The Smith-Glasser oxidation test method studies the reaction of coal with O2 and calculates the O2 absorbed per amount of coal tested. The Smith-Glasser test results collaborated with most of the other analytical results, and with the TGA results to a certain extent. The TGA spontaneous combustion liability test requires additional analytical work to back up its results because the results do not appear as accurate as the Smith-Glasser oxidation test. It also requires repeatability tests to ensure the integrity of the results. / EM2017

A thesis submitted to the faculty of engineering university of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Johannesburg 1991 / Analysis of temperatures measured in an experimental coal bed (using the classical conductive-convective approach) confirm previously published permeabilities of similar beds, and furthermore validate the use of heat- transfer coefficients at exposed surfaces of coal stockpiles, The range of the estimated heat transfer coefficients is similar to natural convective coefficients at flat horizontal surfaces, which is expected. [Abbreviated Abstract. Open document to view full version] / GR2017

Les interactions entre décharges Nanosecondes Répétitives Pulsées et des écoulements de gaz laminaires sont étudiées. L’influence d’écoulements d’air stationnaires et instationnaires sur les régimes de décharges NRP est étudiée et les résultats interprétés au moyen de nombres adimensionnels afin de mettre en évidence l’effet synergétique du nombre d’impulsions appliquées, ainsi que de la puissance des pulses, sur le régime de décharge NRP observé. Une étude de l’effet de flammes méthane-air laminaires prémélangées sur des décharges NRP est ensuite présentée. Dans les deux configurations expérimentales utilisées, un effet de la flamme sur les décharges NRP en régime couronne est démontré. De plus, l’influence du mélange de gaz entre les électrodes sur la forme des décharges plasma est démontrée. Enfin, l’effet de décharges NRP en régime couronne sur des flammes plates laminaires prémélangées est étudié. Les décharges NRP entraînent un déplacement de la flamme vers l’amont. Des simulations numériques de flammes axisymétriques sont ensuite réalisées.Cette étude met en évidence l’effet des décharges NRP sur une flamme et donne des indications sur le phénomène à l’origine de cet effet, à savoir l’augmentation de la vitesse de flamme laminaire par le biais de la génération de chaleur et d’ozone par les décharges plasma. De plus, l’étude démontre l’effet opposé de mélanges réactifs sur les décharges NRP. Les décharges NRP sont modifiées par le phénomène de convection du gaz entre les électrodes ainsi que par la constitution de ce gaz. / The interactions between Nanosecond Repetitively Pulsed plasma discharges and laminar reactive flows are investigated.The influence of steady and unsteady air flows on the regimes of NRP discharges is investigated. The results are interpreted with the use of characteristic dimensionless numbers; this analysis allows to highlight a synergetic effect between the high-voltage pulses as well as the power of the pulses on the NRP discharge regime observed. Then, an investigation of the effect of laminar premixed methane-air flames on NRP discharges is presented. An effect of the flame on the NRP corona discharges is displayed; this effect is a function of the proximity of the flame to the discharges. the influence of the inter-electrode gas mixture on the shape of the plasma discharges is also visually assessed. Finally, the effect of NRP corona discharges on laminar premixed flat flames is investigated. The NRP discharges induce a displacement of the flame in the upstream direction which is verified with numerical simulations.This study displays the effect of NRP discharges on a flame and gives insights as to the phenomenon underlying this effect. Moreover, the study highlights the opposite effect of reactive mixtures on the NRP discharges. The visual modification of the NRP discharges is a function of the transport of the inter-electrode flow and of the nature of the gas itself.

Thesis. 1976. M.S.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Mechanical Engineering. / Microfiche copy available in Archives and Engineering. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Julian A. LoRusso. / M.S.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1982. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Includes bibliographical references. / by John Adam Keklak. / M.S.

No description available.

Thermoacoustic engines convert thermal energy into acoustic energy with few or no moving parts, thus they require little maintenance, are highly reliable, and are inexpensive to produce. These traits make them attractive for applications in remote or portable power generation, where a linear alternator converts the acoustic power into electric power. Their primary application, however, is in driving thermoacoustic refrigerators, which use acoustic power to provide cooling at potentially cryogenic temperatures, also without moving parts. This dissertation examines the feasibility of a new type of thermoacoustic engine, where mean flow and an internal pulse combustion process replace the hot heat exchanger in a traditional closed cycle thermoacoustic engine, thereby eliminating the heat exchangers cost, inefficiency, and thermal expansion stresses. The theory developed in this work reveals that a large temperature difference must exist between the hot face of the regenerator and the hot combustion products flowing into it, and that much of the convective thermal energy input from the combustion process is converted into conductive and thermoacoustic losses in the regenerator. The development of the Thermoacoustic Pulse Combustion Engine, as described in this study, is designed to recover most of this lost thermal energy by routing the inlet pipes through the regenerator to preheat the combustion reactants. Further, the developed theory shows that the pulse combustion process has the potential to add up to 7% to the engines acoustic power output for an acoustic pressure ratio of 10%, with linearly increasing contributions for increasing acoustic pressure ratios. Computational modeling and optimization of the Thermoacoustic Pulse Combustion Engine yield thermal efficiencies of about 20% for atmospheric mean operating pressures, though higher mean engine pressures increase this efficiency considerably by increasing the acoustic power density relative to the thermal losses. However, permissible mean engine pressures are limited by the need to avoid fouling the regenerator with condensation of water vapor out of the cold combustion products. Despite lower acoustic power densities, the Thermoacoustic Pulse Combustion Engine is shown to be well suited to portable refrigeration and power generation applications, due to its reasonable efficiency and inherent simplicity and compactness.

Low temperature combustion (LTC) is an appealing new method of combustion that promises low nitric oxides and soot emissions while maintaining or improving on engine performance. The three main points of this study were to develop and validate an engine model in GT-Power capable of implementing LTC, to study parametrically exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) and injection timing effects on performance and emissions, and to investigate methods to decrease pressure rise rates during LTC operation. The model was validated at nine different operating points, 3 speeds and 3 loads, while the parametric studies were conducted on 6 of the 9 operating points, 3 speeds and 2 loads. The model consists of sections that include: cylinders, ports, intake and exhaust manifolds, EGR system, and turbocharger. For this model, GT-Power calculates the combustion using a multi-zone, quasi-dimensional model and a knock-induced combustion model. The main difference between them is that the multi-zone model is directly injected while the knock model is port injected. A variety of sub models calculate the fluid flow and heat transfer. A parametric study varying the EGR and the injection timing to determine the optimal combination was conducted using the multi-zone model while a parametric study that just varies EGR is carried out using the knock model. The first parametric study showed that the optimal EGR and injection timing combination for the low loads occurred at high levels of EGR (60 percent) and advanced injection timings (30 to 40 crank angle degrees before top dead center). The optimal EGR and injection timing combination for the high loads occurred at low levels of EGR (30 percent to 40 percent) and retarded injection timings (7.5 to 5 crank angle degrees before top dead center). The knock model determined that the ideal EGR ratio for homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) operation varied from 30 percent to 45 percent, depending on the operating condition. Three methods were investigated as possible ways to reduce pressure rise rates during LTC operation. The only feasible method was the multiple injection strategy which provided dramatically reduced pressure rise rates across all EGR levels and injection timings.