Investigation of the thermal characteristics on a Self-aspirating Porous Medium Burner

Abstract

The research deals with the investigation of the thermal characteristics on which affect flame structures and thermal performance of a self-aspirating porous medium burner (SPMB). The simulation of SPMB is analyzed using one dimensional, volume-average approach and local thermal non-equilibrium model coupling with adopting the basic jet theorem (Composite Variable by Schvab-Zelovich Transformation) on cylindrical laminar jet in case of the combustion of free jet of fuel issuing into quiescent air. The rate of fuel consumption is described by single-step arrhenius rate equation and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is served as fuel. The predicted results are used for further improvement of SPMB. Thermal characteristics that are investigated are firing rate, equivalence ratio, optical thickness and porosity. Both gas-solid temperature profiles throughout simulation domain are reported and burner performance is presented by heat recirculation and radiant output efficiencies. Predicted results show that the effect of equivalence ratio and firing rate is significant and strong influence on combustion location, temperature structures, post flame length and burner performance. Further improvement of SPMB should be focused on: firstly, primary air entrainment, secondly, the entrainment of jet diffusion flames for the beneficial radiation feedback of jet diffusion flame.