In recent years, the development and use of biofuels have received considerable attention due to the high demand for environmentally acceptable (green) fuels. Most of the recent studies have looked at the processes of converting vegetable oils into biodiesel. It is well known vegetable oil to biodiesel conversion involves many processes including transesterification, which makes biodiesel costly and time-consuming to produce. In this study, the effects of blending high-viscosity fresh and used corn oils with low-viscosity diesel and jet fuel mixed with butanol and ethanol were studied. Several corn oil-based blends were formulated and characterized to understand the effect of composition on viscosity, fuel stability and energy content. The formulated corn oil blends were combusted in a 30 kW modified combustion chamber to determine the corresponding NOx and CO emission levels, along with CO₂ levels. Used corn oil was made by simply heating fresh corn oil for a fixed period of time (about 44 hours), and was characterized by quantifying its total polar material (TPM), iodine value, free fatty acid content, and peroxide value. The combustion experiments were conducted at a constant heat output of 68,620 kJ/hr (19 kW), to observe and study the effects of equivalence ratio, swirl number, and fuel composition on emissions. Used corn oil blends exhibited better combustion performance than fresh corn oil blends, due in part to the higher unsaturation levels in fresh corn oil. NOx emissions for used corn oil increased with swirl number. Among all the blends, the one with the higher amount of diesel (lower amount of corn oil) showed higher NOx emissions. The blend with fresh corn oil showed decreasing NOx with increasing equivalence ratio at swirl number 1.4. All blends showed generally decreasing CO trends at both swirl numbers at very lean conditions. The diesel fuel component as well as the alcohols in the blends were also important in the production of pollutants. Compared to the diesel-based blends mixed with used corn oil, butanol, and ethanol, the jet fuel-based blends showed higher NOx levels and lower CO levels at both swirl numbers.

O presente trabalho propõe a execução de ensaios de medição do número de swirl em bancada de fluxo em regime permanente, com a utilização de um dispositivo modular e dutos de admissão do cabeçote de um motor diesel produzidos via prototipagem rápida (PR). A medição do número de swirl com dutos produzidos via PR, traz como principais vantagens: reprodutibilidade dos ensaios, facilidade de simular e mensurar o número de swirl dos potenciais desvios no processo de fundição ou usinagem, além da redução no tempo para o desenvolvimento de novas geometrias dos dutos de admissão. O trabalho é experimental e uma unidade do cabeçote estudado foi encaminhado para o laboratório da EPUSP e o número de swirl medido para posterior comparação dos dados. Após a fase inicial de aquisição de dados e ajustes no projeto do dispositivo, essa unidade do cabeçote foi seccionada e digitalizada para que a geometria interna fosse reproduzida via prototipagem rápida. Os dutos de admissão foram montados no dispositivo modular para a realização dos testes em bancada. Todos os testes foram realizados no mesmo equipamento e com o mesmo sistema de controle, com o intuito de reduzir o número de variáveis externas na aquisição de dados. Quando realizou-se a comparação das médias dos resultados do número de swirl do cabeçote e do dispositivo modular com o uso de prototipagem rápida não foram encontradas diferenças estatisticamente significantes. O método proposto representou o escoamento de ar da admissão do modelo de cabeçote analisado. / The present work proposes to execute steady state bench test, swirl number measurements, using a modular device and cylinder head intake ports from a diesel engine manufactured via rapid prototype (RP) techniques. Swirl number measurements with intake ports produced by RP, bring as main advantages: Tests reproducibility, easy to measure the swirl number variances in consequence of potential casting or machining process deviations besides of time reduction to the development of new intake ports geometry. The research is experimental and one sample of the investigated cylinder head was sent to the laboratory and the swirl number was measured for later results comparison. After the early development phase of data acquisition and design improvements, this cylinder head sample was then sectioned and digitalized as to know to have the same internal geometry in the intake ports produced via rapid prototype. The intake ports were assembled in the modular device to perform bench tests. All tests were performed in the same rig and with the same control system with aiming to reduce the external variables during data acquisition. When the mean results analysis was performed in order to compare the results between cylinder head and modular device using rapid prototype, no statistically significant changes were found. The proposed method represented the investigated cylinder head´s intake air flow.

Ce travail traite de la dynamique des flammes turbulentes prémélangées confinées et swirlées soumises à des perturbations de vitesses acoustiques. L'objectif général est d'acquérir une compréhension des mécanismes régissant la réponse de ces flammes et d'en tirer des méthodes de prévision des instabilités de combustion. Les écoulements swirlés sont d'abord examinés en termes de nombre de swirl et de nouvelles expressions sont données pour cette quantité. On traite notamment des effets de perturbations de vitesse et une expression est proposée qui tient compte des fluctuations de vitesses dans l'écoulement. Le système utilisé pour l'étude expérimentale comprend une cavité amont, un injecteur équipé d'un swirler et un tube à flamme transparent permettant la visualisation directe du mouvement de la flamme. Deux points de fonctionnement sont étudiés correspondant à des vitesses débitantes différentes. La cavité amont et le tube à flamme du brûleur peuvent être facilement changés pour étudier plusieurs configurations différentes. L'acoustique du brûleur est également analysée au moyen d'une approche de cavités couplées pour déterminer les fréquences de résonance du système en configuration non-réactive. Des expériences sont menées pour mesurer les fréquences propres du système et l'estimation du coefficient d'amortissement est réalisée à partir de la réponse du système à une modulation externe. Un critère de découplage des mode acoustiques est proposé. La dynamique de l'écoulement est examinée en termes de conversion de modes au niveau de la vrille (swirler) ou dans une grille d'aubes. Cette partie du travail, effectuée au moyen de simulations numériques montre que lorsqu'une grille ou une vrille sont soumis à une onde acoustique, le swirler donne naissance à une onde azimutale convective en plus de l'onde acoustique axiale transmise. Les deux types de swirlers, axial et radial, donnent lieu à ce mécanisme, un fait confirmé par des expériences. Il est montré que ce processus de conversion de mode a un impact important sur la dynamique de la flamme swirlée. La dynamique de la combustion est ensuite analysée en mesurant la fonction de transfert généralisée ainsi que les distributions de taux de dégagement de chaleur au cours du cycle d'oscillation. La fonction de transfert est utilisée pour déterminer la réponse de la flamme à des perturbations acoustiques se propageant dans l'écoulement en amont de la flamme. Il est aussi montré que le nombre de Strouhal est un groupe sans dimensions qui permet de caractériser la réponse de la flamme. La dynamique est également analysée au moyen d'un ensemble de diagnostics comprenant des sondes de pression, un photomultiplicateur et un vélocimètre laser Doppler. Un modèle pour la fonction de transfert linéaire de la flamme est dérivé théoriquement à partir d'une description de la flamme au moyen de l'équation pour une variable de champ G. Les mécanismes physiques de la réponse de la flamme sont identifiés : enroulement tourbillonnaire et fluctuations du nombre de swirl. L'enroulement tourbillonnaire est associé à l'onde acoustique transmise en aval du swirler et qui pénètre dans la chambre de combustion. Tandis que les fluctuations du nombre de swirl sont directement liées aux mécanismes de conversion de mode au swirler qui induit différentes vitesses pour les perturbations axiales et azimutales. L'enroulement tourbillonnaire enroule l'extrémité de la flamme tandis que les fluctuations du nombre de swirl agissent sur l'angle de la flamme. Ces deux mécanismes en compétition se combinent de manière constructive ou destructive conduisant à des gains faibles ou élevés dans la réponse de la flamme en fonction de la fréquence. Ces mécanismes sont retrouvés par simulation aux grandes échelles (LES). / This work is concerned with the dynamics of premixed confined turbulent swirling flames submitted to acoustic velocity disturbances. The general objective is to gain an understanding of the mechanisms governing the response of these flames and to derive predictive methods for combustion instabilities. Swirling flows are first reviewed in terms of swirl numbers and novel expressions for them are given. Perturbed form of the swirl number are suggested taking into account acoustic disturbances in the flow. The experimental system comprises an upstream manifold, an injector equipped with a swirler and a transparent flame tube allowing direct visualization of the flame motion. Two operating points are investigated corresponding to different bulk velocities. The upstream manifold and the flame tube of the burner can be easily change to test several configurations. The burner acoustic is also analyzed in term of coupled cavities approach to determined the resonant frequencies of the system in non reactive cases. Experiments are carried out to measure the system eigen frequencies and the estimate damping coefficient of the various burners arrangements. A criterion for decoupling acoustic mode is suggested. The flow dynamics is examined in terms of mode conversion occurring at the swirler or downstream an airfoil cascade. This part of the work, carried out with numerical simulations, shows that when submitted to an acoustic wave, a swirler gives rise to an azimuthal convective wave in addition to the transmitted acoustic wave. Both axial and radial swirlers are prone to this mechanism as confirmed by experiments. It is found that this mode conversion process has a strong impact on the flame dynamics in swirling flames combustors. Combustion dynamics is then analyzed by measuring the flame describing function (FDF) of this burner. This FDF is used to determine the response of the flame to acoustic velocity disturbances propagating on the upstream flow. It is shown that the Strouhal number is a suitable dimensionless group to characterize the swirling flame response. The flame dynamics is also analyzed with an ensemble of diagnostics including pressure probes, photomultipliers and laser Doppler velocimeter (LDV). A model for the linear swirling flame transfer function is derived theoretically. The physical mechanisms driving the response of the flame are identified : vortex rollup and swirl number fluctuations. The vortex rollup is associated to the acoustic wave transmitted downstream of the swirler and entering in the combustor while the swirl number fluctuations are directly linked to the mode conversion mechanisms downstream the swirler which induced different axial and azimuthal speeds upstream the flame. The rollup phenomena acts at the extremity of the flame while swirl number fluctuations act on the flame angle. These competiting mechanisms act constructively or destructively leading to low or high gains in the flame response depending on the frequency. These mechanisms are retrieved by large eddy simulations of the flame dynamics. Finally, an instability analysis is carried out by combining the experimental flame describing function (FDF) and an acoustic model of the combustor to determine the frequency and the amplitude of the velocity disturbances at the limit cycle. A good agreement between predictions and experiments is obtained in most cases indicating that the method is suitable subject to further developments.

O presente trabalho propõe a execução de ensaios de medição do número de swirl em bancada de fluxo em regime permanente, com a utilização de um dispositivo modular e dutos de admissão do cabeçote de um motor diesel produzidos via prototipagem rápida (PR). A medição do número de swirl com dutos produzidos via PR, traz como principais vantagens: reprodutibilidade dos ensaios, facilidade de simular e mensurar o número de swirl dos potenciais desvios no processo de fundição ou usinagem, além da redução no tempo para o desenvolvimento de novas geometrias dos dutos de admissão. O trabalho é experimental e uma unidade do cabeçote estudado foi encaminhado para o laboratório da EPUSP e o número de swirl medido para posterior comparação dos dados. Após a fase inicial de aquisição de dados e ajustes no projeto do dispositivo, essa unidade do cabeçote foi seccionada e digitalizada para que a geometria interna fosse reproduzida via prototipagem rápida. Os dutos de admissão foram montados no dispositivo modular para a realização dos testes em bancada. Todos os testes foram realizados no mesmo equipamento e com o mesmo sistema de controle, com o intuito de reduzir o número de variáveis externas na aquisição de dados. Quando realizou-se a comparação das médias dos resultados do número de swirl do cabeçote e do dispositivo modular com o uso de prototipagem rápida não foram encontradas diferenças estatisticamente significantes. O método proposto representou o escoamento de ar da admissão do modelo de cabeçote analisado. / The present work proposes to execute steady state bench test, swirl number measurements, using a modular device and cylinder head intake ports from a diesel engine manufactured via rapid prototype (RP) techniques. Swirl number measurements with intake ports produced by RP, bring as main advantages: Tests reproducibility, easy to measure the swirl number variances in consequence of potential casting or machining process deviations besides of time reduction to the development of new intake ports geometry. The research is experimental and one sample of the investigated cylinder head was sent to the laboratory and the swirl number was measured for later results comparison. After the early development phase of data acquisition and design improvements, this cylinder head sample was then sectioned and digitalized as to know to have the same internal geometry in the intake ports produced via rapid prototype. The intake ports were assembled in the modular device to perform bench tests. All tests were performed in the same rig and with the same control system with aiming to reduce the external variables during data acquisition. When the mean results analysis was performed in order to compare the results between cylinder head and modular device using rapid prototype, no statistically significant changes were found. The proposed method represented the investigated cylinder head´s intake air flow.

No description available.

A burner is very important device in process furnaces that significantly affect the production of emissions during the combustion process. One of the key things in development of the modern low-NOX burners is the evaluation of flow field downstream of an axial blade swirler inside the burner. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is often used to predict the attributes of the flow. Predicted values should be validated with measurement. It is the reason why the velocity fields for several choosen swirlers were measured. The hot wire anemometry was choosen and the dual-sensor probe was used during the measurement. The data can be then used for CFD validation. This thesis describes procedure of measurement set-up. The experimental facility was designed according to the anemometry method. The new probe traversing system was designed, which provides desired accuracy. Five different swirlers were measured. Large data set, need for customized post-processing and control over calculation procedures lead to new software design. For each swirler the velocity profiles were gathered and the swirl numbers calculated. That final data were transferred in to graphical format. Uncertainty of measured data was calculated. Results show counter-rotating flow in some areas closed to the swirler. Some drawbacks of current measurement set-up are discussed. Based on the thesis reader can obtain the information and knowledge for consequent measurements of swirl burners velocity profiles.