Laminar Flame Speeds and Extinction Stretch Rates of Selected Aromatic Hydrocarbons

Authors:   X. Hui, A. K. Das, K. Kumar, C. J. Sung, S. Dooley, and F. L. Dryer

Direct link to the paper:   http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2012.02.045

Abstract:

The laminarflamespeeds and premixed extinction limits of n-propylbenzene, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene, and toluene have been studied experimentally to assess the effects of different alkyl substitutions to the benzene ring on flame propagation and extinction. The experiments were carried out in a twin-flame counterflow setup under atmospheric pressure. The laminarflamespeeds of fuel/air mixtures at two unburned mixture temperatures of 400 K and 470 K were determined over an equivalence ratio range of ϕ = 0.7–1.4. Additionally, the extinctionstretchrates of fuel/O2/N2mixtures at an unburned mixture temperature of 400 K were measured over an equivalence ratio range of ϕ = 0.8–1.6, with an oxidizer composition of 16% O2 and 84% N2 by mole. The experimental laminarflamespeeds and extinctionstretchrate values were compared to simulated results, for each fuel, using detailed kinetic models available in the literature. The simulation results were found to be in reasonable agreement with the current experimental data, except for 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, where the model under-predicts the extinction limits significantly. Sensitivity and flux analyses were conducted to identify reactions and species to which the computed results were most sensitive.

Citation:   X. Hui, A. K. Das, K. Kumar, C. J. Sung, S. Dooley, and F. L. Dryer, “Laminar Flame Speeds and Extinction Stretch Rates of Selected Aromatic Hydrocarbons,” Fuel 97, 695–702, (2012).