scholarly journals Experimental investigations of ion current in liquid-fuelled gas turbine combustors

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 172-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Christopher Wollgarten ◽  
Nikolaos Zarzalis ◽  
Fabio Turrini ◽  
Antonio Peschiulli

This work covers investigations of the static and dynamic behaviour of a confined, co-swirled and liquid-fuelled airblast injection system. The focus lies on the application of ion current sensors for the qualitative measurement of the heat release rate or for flame monitoring purposes in complex technical combustion processes. The ion current sensor is to operate in a feedback control loop in order to react on combustion dynamics in real time. The first part of the work analyses experimental data, which were obtained with different techniques, e.g. dynamic pressure, chemiluminescence, fine-wire thermocouples and ion current. The results show that the thermo-acoustic instability and the precessing vortex core generate an interaction mode. The frequency of this interaction mode is the difference of the other two modes. This has not yet been observed for partially premixed and liquid-fuelled injection systems before and also was not detected by the chemiluminescence of the flame. The ion current measurement technique is able to detect the helical mode of the precessing vortex core as well as the interaction frequency, leading to the conclusion that the chemical reactions are influenced by this helical structure. Contour maps of the frequencies reveal this influence in the outer shear layer. The second part of the study focused on the ion current probe as a method to predict static combustion instabilities, such as lean blowout. According to the results, the ion current is a fast responding method to detect lean blowout, provided that the detector is mounted at a suitable position. Measurements at different positions in the flame were compared with phase-locked chemiluminescence measurements. Precursors in the ion current signal for lean-blowout prediction were found using a statistical approach, which is based on ion peak distance. The precursor events allow for the use of this approach with a feedback control loop in future applications.

Author(s):  
P Yazdabadi ◽  
A J Griffiths ◽  
N Syred

Experimental investigations have been carried out to examine the effect of downstream pipework configurations on the precessing vortex core (PVC) generated within the exhaust region of a cyclone dust separator. Characterization of the PVC using a non-dimensionalized frequency parameter (NDFP) was used to determine the relationship between Reynolds number and geometrical swirl number of the cyclone. The results show that the NDFP tends towards an asymptotic value for Reynolds numbers of about 50 000 and high swirl numbers (> 3.043). This value is reached earlier with lower swirl numbers. It was concluded that any exhaust pipework configuration produced a significant drop in the PVC frequency, and certain configurations either delayed or promoted the development of the PVC.


Author(s):  
Finn Lückoff ◽  
Moritz Sieber ◽  
Christian Oliver Paschereit ◽  
Kilian Oberleithner

The precessing vortex core (PVC) represents a helical-shaped coherent flow structure typically occurring in both reacting and nonreacting swirling flows. Until now, the fundamental impact of the PVC on flame dynamics, thermoacoustic instabilities, and pollutant emissions is still unclear. In order to identify and investigate these mechanisms, the PVC needs to be controlled effectively with a feedback control system. A previous study successfully applied feedback control in a generic swirling jet setup. The next step is to transfer this approach into a swirl-stabilized combustor, which poses big challenges on the actuator and sensor design and placement. In this paper, different actuator designs are investigated with the goal of controlling the PVC dynamics. The actuation strategy aims to force the flow near the origin of the instability—the so-called wavemaker. To monitor the PVC dynamics, arrays of pressure sensors are flush-mounted at the combustor inlet and the combustion chamber walls. The best sensor placement is evaluated with respect to the prediction of the PVC dynamics. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is used to evaluate the passive impact of the actuator shape on the mean flow field. The performance of each actuator design is evaluated from lock-in experiments showing excellent control authority for two out of seven actuators. All measurements are conducted at isothermal conditions in a prototype of a swirl-stabilized combustor.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 175682771985623 ◽  
Author(s):  
Finn Lückoff ◽  
Kilian Oberleithner

In this study, we apply periodic flow excitation of the precessing vortex core at the centerbody of a swirl-stabilized combustor to investigate the impact of the precessing vortex core on flame shape, flame dynamics, and especially thermoacoustic instabilities. The current control scheme is based on results from linear stability theory that determine the precessing vortex core as a global hydrodynamic instability with its maximum receptivity to open-loop actuation located near the center of the combustor inlet. The control concept is first validated at isothermal conditions. This is of utmost importance for the proceeding studies that focus on the exclusive impact of the precessing vortex core on the combustion dynamics. Subsequently, the control is applied to reacting conditions considering lean premixed turbulent swirl flames. Considering thermoacoustically stable flames first, it is shown that the actuation locks onto the precessing vortex core when it is naturally present in the flame, which allows the precessing vortex core frequency to be controlled. Moreover, the control allows the precessing vortex core to be excited in conditions where it is naturally suppressed by the flame, which yields a very effective possibility to control the precessing vortex core amplitude. The control is then applied to thermoacoustically unstable conditions. Considering perfectly premixed flames first, it is shown that the precessing vortex core actuation has only a minor effect on the thermoacoustic oscillation amplitude. However, we observe a continuous increase of the thermoacoustic frequency with increasing precessing vortex core amplitude due to an upstream displacement of the mean flame and resulting reduction of the convective time delay. Considering partially premixed flames, the precessing vortex core actuation shows a dramatic reduction of the thermoacoustic oscillation amplitude. In consideration of the perfectly premixed cases, we suspect that this is caused by the precessing vortex core-enhanced mixing of equivalence ratio fluctuations at the flame root and due to a reduction of time delays due to mean flame displacement.


Author(s):  
Finn Lückoff ◽  
Moritz Sieber ◽  
Christian Oliver Paschereit ◽  
Kilian Oberleithner

The precessing vortex core (PVC) represents a helical-shaped coherent flow structure typically occurring in both reacting and non-reacting swirling flows. Until now the fundamental impact of the PVC on flame dynamics, thermoacoustic instabilities and pollutant emissions is still unclear. In order to identify and investigate these mechanisms, the PVC needs to be controlled effectively with a feedback control system. A previous study successfully applied feedback control in a generic swirling jet setup. The next step is to transfer this approach into a swirl-stabilized combustor, which poses big challenges on the actuator and sensor design and placement. In this paper, different actuator designs are investigated with the goal of controlling the PVC dynamics. The actuation strategy aims to force the flow near the origin of the instability — the so-called wavemaker. To monitor the PVC dynamics, arrays of pressure sensors are flush-mounted at the combustor inlet and the combustion chamber walls. The best sensor placement is evaluated with respect to the prediction of the PVC dynamics. Particle image velocimetry is used to evaluate the passive impact of the actuator shape on the mean flow field. The performance of each actautor design is evaluated from lock-in experiments showing excellent control authority for two out of seven actuators. All measurements are conducted at isothermal conditions in a prototype of a swirl-stabilized combustor.


2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 65-76
Author(s):  
I. Barmina ◽  
A. Kolmickovs ◽  
R. Valdmanis ◽  
S. Vostrikovs ◽  
M. Zake

AbstractWith the aim to control and improve the thermo-chemical conversion of straw pellets, the experimental investigations of the DC electric field effect on the combustion dynamics and heat energy production were made. The electric field effect on the gasification/combustion characteristics was studied using three different positions of the positively charged electrode in flame. First, the electrode was positioned coaxially downstream the flame flow. Next, the electrode was positioned coaxially upstream the flame flow and, finally, the electrode was positioned across the downstream flow. The bias voltage of the electrode varied in the range from 0.6 up to 1.8 kV, while the ion current in flame was limited to 5 mA. The results of experimental investigations show that the DC electric field intensifies the thermal decomposition of straw pellets and enhances mixing of volatiles with air causing changes in combustion dynamics and heat energy production, which depend on position and the bias voltage of the electrode. The increase in the average volume fraction of CO2 (by 6 %) and the decrease in the mass fraction of unburned volatiles in the products (CO by 60 % and H2 by 73 %) for the upstream field configuration of the electrode and the ion current 0.5–1.8 mA indicate more complete combustion of volatiles.


Author(s):  
Parviz Enany ◽  
Oleksandr Shevchenko ◽  
Carsten Drebenstedt

AbstractThis paper presents experimental studies on the optimization of air–water flow in an airlift pump. Airlift pumps use compressed gas to verticall transport liquids and slurries. Due to the lack of theoretical equations for designing and predicting flow regimes, experimental investigations must be carried out to find the best condition to operate an airlift pump at high efficiency. We used a new air injection system and different submergence ratios to evaluate the output of a simple pump for vertical displacement of water in an underground mine. The tests were carried out in a new device with 5.64 m height and 10.2 cm circular riser pipe. Three air-jacket pipes, at different gas flows in the range of 0.002–0.09 m3/s were investigated with eight submergence ratios. It was found that with the same air flow rate, the most efficient flow of water was achieved when an air jacket with 3 mm diameter holes was used with a submergence ratio between 0.6 and 0.75. In addition, a comparison of practical results with two theoretical models proposed by other investigators showed that neither was able to accurately predict airlift performance in air–water flow mode.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnab Mukherjee ◽  
Nishanth Muthichur ◽  
Chaitali More ◽  
Saarthak Gupta ◽  
Santosh Hemchandra

Author(s):  
Mark Frederick ◽  
Kiran Manoharan ◽  
Joshua Dudash ◽  
Brian Brubaker ◽  
Santosh Hemchandra ◽  
...  

Combustion instability, the coupling between flame heat release rate oscillations and combustor acoustics, is a significant issue in the operation of gas turbine combustors. This coupling is often driven by oscillations in the flow field. Shear layer roll-up, in particular, has been shown to drive longitudinal combustion instability in a number of systems, including both laboratory and industrial combustors. One method for suppressing combustion instability would be to suppress the receptivity of the shear layer to acoustic oscillations, severing the coupling mechanism between the acoustics and the flame. Previous work suggested that the existence of a precessing vortex core (PVC) may suppress the receptivity of the shear layer, and the goal of this study is to first, confirm that this suppression is occurring, and second, understand the mechanism by which the PVC suppresses the shear layer receptivity. In this paper, we couple experiment with linear stability analysis to determine whether a PVC can suppress shear layer receptivity to longitudinal acoustic modes in a nonreacting swirling flow at a range of swirl numbers. The shear layer response to the longitudinal acoustic forcing manifests as an m = 0 mode since the acoustic field is axisymmetric. The PVC has been shown both in experiment and linear stability analysis to have m = 1 and m = −1 modal content. By comparing the relative magnitude of the m = 0 and m = −1,1 modes, we quantify the impact that the PVC has on the shear layer response. The mechanism for shear layer response is determined using companion forced response analysis, where the shear layer disturbance growth rates mirror the experimental results. Differences in shear layer thickness and azimuthal velocity profiles drive the suppression of the shear layer receptivity to acoustic forcing.


Author(s):  
Kilian Oberleithner ◽  
Steffen Terhaar ◽  
Lothar Rukes ◽  
Christian Oliver Paschereit

Isothermal swirling jets undergoing vortex breakdown are known to be susceptible to self-excited flow oscillations. They manifest in a precessing vortex core and synchronized growth of large-scale vortical structures. Recent theoretical studies associate these dynamics with the onset of a global hydrodynamic instability mode. These global modes also emerge in reacting flows, thereby crucially affecting the mixing characteristics and the flame dynamics. It is, however, observed that these self-excited flow oscillations are often suppressed in the reacting flow, while they are clearly present at isothermal conditions. This study provides strong evidence that the suppression of the precessing vortex core is caused by density stratification created by the flame. This mechanism is revealed by considering two reacting flow configurations: The first configuration represents a detached steam-diluted natural gas swirl-stabilized flame featuring a strong precessing vortex core. The second represents a natural gas swirl-stabilized flame anchoring near the combustor inlet, which does not exhibit self-excited oscillations. Experiments are conducted in a generic combustor test rig and the flow dynamics are captured using PIV and LDA. The corresponding density fields are approximated from the seeding density using a quantitative light sheet technique. The experimental results are compared to the global instability properties derived from hydrodynamic linear stability theory. Excellent agreement between the theoretically derived global mode frequency and measured precession frequency provide sufficient evidence to conclude that the self-excited oscillations are, indeed, driven by a global hydrodynamic instability. The effect of the density field on the global instability is studied explicitly by performing the analysis with and without density stratification. It turns out that the significant change on instability is caused by the radial density gradients in the inner recirculation zone and not by the change of the mean velocity field. The present work provides a theoretical framework to analyze the global hydrodynamic instability of realistic combustion configurations. It allows relating the flame position and the resulting density field to the emergence of a precessing vortex core.


2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denis Porfiriev ◽  
Anastasiya Gorbunova ◽  
Igor Zavershinsky ◽  
Semen Sugak ◽  
Nonna Molevich

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