Numerical Simulation of Electric Spark Ignition in Atmospheric Pressure Methane-Air Mixtures

Sloane, Thompson M.

doi:10.1080/00102209008951657

Cited by 20 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Clearly, the actual absolute fuel quantities concerned are very small at this stage in the cycle. This eect is likely to be related to the acceleration of the reverse, decomposition, reactions discussed by Sloane [19] and reported upon by the present authors in previous investigations of ignition source eects [13].…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 67%

A comparison of the relative effects of fuel composition and ignition energy on the early stages of combustion in a natural gas spark ignition engine using simulation

Yossefi

Belmont

Ashcroft

et al. 2000

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part D:

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Spark ignition engines operating on natural gas (NG) show advantages over petrol and diesel alternatives in terms of precatalyst emissions. However, such engines are affected much more than their petrol counterparts by the long combustion delay of the main fuel component, methane. The sensitivity of combustion delay to fuel/diluent chemistry means that this issue is exaggerated by the presence in the NG of variable concentrations of higher hydrocarbons and of inorganic components, arising from the worldwide variability of NG or from the use of exhaust gas recirculation. The present article reports on a study using a large-scale three-dimensional simulation, incorporating computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and fully detailed chemical kinetics, of the early stages of NG combustion in a spark ignition engine. The focus is on comparing the relative influences of gas composition (i.e. the ethane content of the NG, and carbon dioxide in the oxidant/diluent) with the effects of ignition source location and energy on the early progress of the combustion. The results of the studies show that, although the presence of ethane enhances the combustion propagation rate and reduces delay time, and carbon dioxide has the reverse effect, the influences of the characteristics (energy and location) of the ignition source dominate over quite large changes in mixture composition. These findings have practical ramifications for the development of strategies for reducing combustion delay time in NG-fuelled engines.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 67%

A comparison of the relative effects of fuel composition and ignition energy on the early stages of combustion in a natural gas spark ignition engine using simulation

Yossefi

Belmont

Ashcroft

et al. 2000

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part D:

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show abstract

“…That is, the spark channel radius increases with time during the spark duration. Test calculations in which the spark channel radius was allowed to increase with time for a methaneeair mixture during the spark duration have yielded results that differed by only a few percent or less from those obtained using a fixed spark channel radius [24]. To demonstrate the correctness of our code, we applied three models in which the spark channel radius changed with time ( Fig.…”

Section: Effects Of the Energy Supply Procedures On The Miementioning

confidence: 94%

“…Sloane et al [24] investigated the effect of the spark channel radius on the MIE for a methaneeair mixture by using detailed first-step and third-step reaction models. They reported that even though the values of the MIE were different, the tendencies of the MIE versus spark channel radius were similar.…”

Section: Effects Of the Spark Channel Radius On The Miementioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical study on the spark ignition characteristics of hydrogen–air mixture using detailed chemical kinetics

Han¹,

Yamashita²,

Hayashi³

2011

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

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“…As compared to the model by Kravchik et al (1995), the reaction mechanism used is extremely simple, which provides computational simplicity and a reduced computational time burden. The reaction rate for dissociation of nitrogen was taken from Sloane (1990). The reactions for the combined three-step mechanism are: C3H8 + 3.5O2 -> 3CO + 4H2O (RX 1") CO + 0.5O2 <-> CO2 (RX 2") N2 + M <-> N + N + M (RX 3") The reaction rates are given by: The subscripts f and b represent the forward and backward reactions, respectively, and the units are in cm-sec-mole-kcal-Kelvin.…”

Section: 3a2 Chemical Kinetics Mechanism and Ionization (Model 1)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Railplug Ignition System for Enhanced Engine Performance and Reduced Maintenance

Ezekoye¹,

Hall²,

Matthews³

2005

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This Final Technical Report discusses the progress that was made on the experimental and numerical tasks over the duration of this project. The primary objectives of the project were to 1) develop an improved understanding of the spark ignition process, and 2) develop the railplug as an improved ignitor for large bore stationary natural gas engines.We performed fundamental experiments on the physical processes occurring during spark ignition and used the results from these experiments to aid our development of the most complete model of the spark ignition process ever devised. The elements in this model include 1) the dynamic response of the ignition circuit, 2) a chemical kinetics mechanism that is suitable for the reactions that occur in the plasma, 3) conventional flame propagation kinetics, and 4) a multi-dimensional formulation so that bulk flow through the spark gap can be incorporated. This model (i.e., a Fortran code that can be used as a subroutine within an engine modeling code such as KIVA) can be obtained from Prof. Ron Matthews at rdmatt@mail.utexas.edu or Prof. DK Ezekoye at dezekoye@mail.utexas.edu.Fundamental experiments, engine experiments, and modeling tasks were used to help develop the railplug as a new ignitor for large bore natural gas engines. As the result of these studies, we developed a railplug that could extend the Lean Stability Limit (LSL) of an engine operating at full load on natural gas from φ = 0.59 for operation on spark plugs down to φ = 0.53 using railplugs with the same delivered energy (0.7 J). However, this delivered energy would rapidly wear out the spark plug. For a conventional delivered energy (<0.05 J), the LSL is φ = 0.63 for a spark plug. Further, using a permanent magnet to aid the plasma movement, the LSL was extended to φ = 0.54 for a railplug with a delivered energy of only 0.15 J/shot, a typical discharge energy for commercial capacitive discharge ignition systems. Here, it should be noted that railplugs and the associated ignition circuit should not cost much more than a conventional spark ignition system. Additionally, it is believed that the railplug performance can be further improved via continued research and development.iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARYThis Final Technical Report discusses the progress that was made on the experimental and numerical tasks over the duration of this project. The primary objectives of the project were to 1) develop an improved understanding of the spark ignition process, and 2) develop the railplug as an improved ignitor for large bore stationary natural gas engines.Due to these two objectives, the experimental subtasks involved 1) detailed measurements regarding the physical processes occurring during spark ignition, and 2) measurements of the factors that affect railplug performance. Similarly, the modeling subtasks involved developing an improved model for the conventional spark ignition process and developing a model for railplug performance and ignition.The four phases of spark ignition are ...

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Numerical Simulation of Electric Spark Ignition in Atmospheric Pressure Methane-Air Mixtures

Cited by 20 publications

References 14 publications

A comparison of the relative effects of fuel composition and ignition energy on the early stages of combustion in a natural gas spark ignition engine using simulation

A comparison of the relative effects of fuel composition and ignition energy on the early stages of combustion in a natural gas spark ignition engine using simulation

Numerical study on the spark ignition characteristics of hydrogen–air mixture using detailed chemical kinetics

Railplug Ignition System for Enhanced Engine Performance and Reduced Maintenance

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