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Autoignition of n-decane Droplets in the Low-, Intermediate-, and High-temperature Regimes from a Mixture Fraction Viewpoint

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Abstract

Detailed numerical simulations of isolated n-decane droplets autoignition are presented for different values of the ambient pressure and temperature. The ignition modes considered included single-stage ignition, two-stage ignition and cool-flame ignition. The analysis was conducted from a mixture fraction perspective. Two characteristic chemical time scales were identified for two-stage ignition: one for cool-flame ignition, and another for hot-flame ignition. The appearance and subsequent spatial propagation of a cool flame at lean compositions was found to play an important role in the ignition process, since it created the conditions for activating the high-temperature reactions pathway in regions with locally rich composition. Single-stage ignition was characterized by a single chemical time scale, corresponding to hot-flame ignition. Low-temperature reactions were negligible for this case, and spatial diffusion of heat and chemical species mainly affected the duration of the ignition transient, but not the location in mixture fraction space at which ignition first occurs. Finally, ignition of several cool flames of decreasing strength was observed in the cool-flame ignition case, which eventually lead to a plateau in the maximum gas-phase temperature. The first cool flame ignited in a region where the fuel / air mixture was locally lean, whereas ignition of the remaining cool flames occurred at rich mixture compositions.

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Abbreviations

C p, g, α :

Heat capacity of gaseous species α

C l :

Liquid heat capacity

ΔH v :

Enthalpy of vaporization

h g, α :

Specific enthalpy of gaseous species α

κ :

Gaseous thermal conductivity

k l :

Liquid thermal conductivity

ρ g :

Gas density

ρ l :

Liquid density

\(\dot {\omega }_{\alpha }\) :

Reaction rate of gaseous species α

R d :

Droplet radius

T g :

Gas temperature

T l :

Liquid temperature

u g :

Radial gas velocity

V g, α :

Diffusion velocity of gaseous species α

Y α :

Mass fraction of gaseous species α

W tot :

Evaporation rate

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Author notes

  1. G. Borghesi

    Present address: Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore, CA, 94550, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA

    G. Borghesi

  2. Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, CB2 1PZ, Cambridge, UK

    E. Mastorakos

Authors
  1. G. Borghesi
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  2. E. Mastorakos
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Correspondence to G. Borghesi.

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Borghesi, G., Mastorakos, E. Autoignition of n-decane Droplets in the Low-, Intermediate-, and High-temperature Regimes from a Mixture Fraction Viewpoint. Flow Turbulence Combust 96, 1107–1121 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10494-016-9710-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10494-016-9710-0

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