Unsteady Combustor Physics

Developing clean, sustainable energy systems is a pre-eminent issue of our time. Most projections indicate that combustion-based energy conversion systems will continue to be the predominant approach for the majority of our energy usage. Unsteady combustor issues present the key challenge associated with the development of clean, high-efficiency combustion systems such as those used for power generation, heating or propulsion applications. This comprehensive study is unique, treating the subject in a systematic manner. Although this book focuses on unsteady combusting flows, it places particular emphasis on the system dynamics that occur at the intersection of the combustion, fluid mechanics and acoustic disciplines. Individuals with a background in fluid mechanics and combustion will find this book to be an incomparable study that synthesises these fields into a coherent understanding of the intrinsically unsteady processes in combustors.1. Overview and basic equations; 2. Decomposition and evolution of disturbances; 3. Hydrodynamic flow stability part I: introduction; 4. Hydrodynamic flow stability part II: common combustor flowfields; 5. Acoustic wave propagation part I: basic concepts; 6. Acoustic wave propagation part II: heat release, complex geometry, and mean flow effects; 7. Flame-flow interactions; 8. Ignition; 9. Internal flame processes; 10. Flame stabilization, flashback, flameholding and blowoff; 11. Forced response part I: flamelet dynamics; 12. Forced response part II: heat release dynamics.