Experimental study of the effect of the spray cone angle on the temperature distribution in a can micro-combustor

Abstract

Abstract In this study, the performance of a can micro-combustor of a micro turbine is studied experimentally. The purpose of this study is to show the coupling effect of air flow rate and fuel injection on temperature distribution and flame blowoff limits in the combustion chamber. In this regard, by changing the spray cone angle, the flame structure and the characteristics of the combustion chamber are investigated. In the present study, the liquid kerosene is injected through a pressure swirl atomizer. Experiments have been done for various conditions of air flow rates and fuel injection angles. The combustion zone at the main part of the chamber is investigated by measuring temperature distribution. The results show the significant effect of fuel injection angle on flame structure. By changing the air flow rate, in fact, the effect of fuel injection angle is studied for different overall equivalence ratios from extreme lean to rich conditions. By increasing the fuel injection angle, flame stabilization is accessible even for extreme lean conditions. The more intense combustion zones occur near the liner which can potentially cause structural problems.