Isabel Malico

Numerical Study on the Influence of Radiative Properties in Porous Media Combustion

The importance of radiation and of radiative properties (extinction coefficient, scattering albedo and scattering phase function) in inert porous media combustion was numerically assessed. The two-dimensional mass, momentum, solid and gas energy, and species conservation equations were solved. Emission, absorption and scattering by the porous media were taken into consideration and the S 6 approximation was used to solve the radiative transfer equation. The temperature profiles are very sensitive to a perturbation in the radiative coefficients, particularly when the scattering albedo is increased

Effect of different downstream temperatures on the performance of a two-layer porous burner

The influence of considering different downstream temperatures on the performance of a two-layer porous burner is studied numerically. A 3D numerical model based on a unit cell was implemented to correctly predict the momentum, heat and mass transfer at the interface of the two layers. Two operating modes are simulated corresponding to the burner radiating to cold and hot environments. When the burner radiates to a hot environment, its radiative heat losses are lower and, as a consequence, the temperatures and pollutants emissions are higher. Additionally, the flame front moves upstream and stabilizes nearer the interface of the two layers.

Modeling the Pore Level Fluid Flow in Porous Media Using the Immersed Boundary Method

This chapter demonstrates the potential of the immersed boundary method for the direct numerical simulation of the flow through porous media. A 2D compact finite differences method was employed to solve the unsteady incompressible Navier–Stokes equations with fourth-order Runge–Kutta temporal discretization and fourth-order compact schemes for spatial discretization. The solutions were obtained in a Cartesian grid, with all the associated advantages. The porous media is made of equal size square cylinders in a staggered arrangement and is bounded by solid walls. The transverse and longitudinal distances between cylinders are equal to two cylinder diameters and at the inlet a fully developed velocity profile is specified. The Reynolds number based on the cylinder diameter and maximum inlet velocity ranges from 40 to 80. The different flow regimes are identified and characterised, along with the prediction of the Reynolds number at which transition from steady to unsteady flow takes place. Additionally, the average drag and lift coefficients are presented as a function of the Reynolds number.