Development of a novel cyclonic flow combustion chamber for achieving MILD/Flameless Combustion

The present study investigates the characteristics of MILD/Flameless Combustion in a prismatic (20x20x5 cm(3)) laboratory-scale burner. The main pre-heated flow rate composed by diluent and oxygen and the fuel (at environmental temperature) are fed inside the combustion chamber from one side. Diametrically opposed the feeding configuration is reproduced, thus realizing a cyclonic flow field inside the reactor. The outlet is located on the top of the chamber. The system is provided with a quartz window and some thermocouples to measure the temperature profiles inside the burner. The oxidation process of C3H8/O-2 mixtures diluted in N-2 was studied varying external parameters of the system, namely inlet temperatures (up to 1200K) and equivalence ratio (lean to reach mixtures) to identify the combustion regimes in a non-premixed facility. A numerical simulation of fluid dynamics in the chamber was performed to give proper indications concerning the design of the chamber. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licensestby-nc-nd40/). Peer-review under responsibility of the Engineering Department, Lancaster University