Combustion processes in CSTR: The bifurcation analysis of the H2-O2 system

A method for the analysis of combustion processes in continuous stirred tank reactors is described. The method, based on the results of the bifurcation theory, appears to be efficient and fast and allows the ignition diagram in the plane temperaturepressure to be plotted. This diagram presents much more information than the traditional one obtained by analysis in the time domain. Moreover, the map can give suggestions on the experimental strategy to be followed in the search for interesting dynamic behaviour. The method is applied to the analysis of the H,-0, system for a stoichiometric mixture at 4 and 6 s residence times, in the pressure range 0.05-0.20 atm and for temperatures between 600 and 900 K. The results provided by the developed method and some literature experimental data are compared.