Shedding new light on a burning question

Abstract

Only recently, three-dimensional direct numerical simulations (DNS) with detailed chemistry have become possible. These types of simulations will have an important impact on combustion science because of the data they provide. Obtaining similar data sets through experimental characterization is very challenging and requires joint measurements of a multitude of chemical species concentrations in addition to temperature and velocity fields. Gruber et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 658, 2010, pp. 5–32) have performed a detailed chemistry DNS to understand the physics of flame/wall interactions. They found that flames interact with streamwise vortical structures close to the wall, and that these structures can push the flame towards or away from the wall. The flames get extinguish when they are too close to the wall. Interestingly, the extinction process actually causes an order-of-magnitude increase in heat release, and therefore, strongly amplifies wall heat transfer.