Computational-and-Experimental Study of Pulsating Combustion in the Model Combustion Chamber

Аuthors

Gurakov N. I.^*, Zubrilin I. A.^**, Ivanov R. A.^***

Samara National Research University named after Academician S.P. Korolev, Moskovskoe shosse, 34, Samara, Russia

*e-mail: nikgurakov@gmail.com
**e-mail: zubrilin416@mail.ru
***e-mail: r.a.ivanov1625@gmail.com

Abstract

The article presents the results of the computational-and-experimental study of pressure pulsations occurring in the gas turbine installation combustion chamber. The high-amplitude pressure pulsations occur due to the lean combustion mode organization in the combustion chamber to reduce of pollutants emissions, such as NOx, evolved while fuel combustion. The design of the model combustion chamber includes the following components: an inlet pipe for supplying heated air; a fuel supply system of the main injectors; premixer with an axial swirler; a pilot fuel injector; a flame tube, and an outlet section. To determine the pressure pulsations experimentally, a pulsations measurement system, which includes an acoustic probe with a pressure pulsation sensor installed in it, is employed. The Large Eddy Simulation approach is applied in this work to compute turbulent flows in combination with the Flamelet Generated Manifold combustion model to simulate pulsations in the flame front during combustion in the combustion chamber model and compare them with the measured values of pressure pulsations. Besides, the analysis of the combustion domain eigen frequency values was performed with account for the gas parameters distribution in the flame tube volume. The results of the experimental study allowed revealing that the high-amplitude pulsations of the gas pressure in the laboratory combustion chamber were being observed only at two frequencies, namely at 444 and 522 Hz. Comparison of the obtained results with two different types of pressure pulsation sensor installations demonstrates that qualitatively the pressure pulsations are being observed at the same frequencies. The difference in the pressure pulsation amplitudes may be stipulated by the acoustic energy dissipation in the probe cavity.
It was found by the results of modeling in a three-dimensional non-stationary formulation by the LES approach that the heat release pulsation values are being observed at the frequencies of 420 and 579 Hz, which is in good agreement with the pressure pulsations obtained experimentally at these frequencies. The values of pressure pulsations spectrum herewith obtained by the LES demonstrate a peak value at the frequency of approximately 750 Hz, and the pressure pulsations amplitudes, obtained at the frequencies corresponding to the experimental ones are substantively lower.
Based on the temperature values distribution in the flame tube obtained by the LES, analysis of the gas volume pulsations eigen frequencies (modal analysis) was performed with account for the acoustic impedance at the computational area inlet. The modal analysis results allowed obtaining the first longitudinal mode with the frequency of 710 Hz. The pressure pulsations absence at this frequency in the experiment may mean that the value of the Rayleigh integral product (the product of the heat release pulsations and pressure pulsations) appeared to be less than the acoustic energy dissipation coefficient. Hence, the energy was not added to the acoustic field. To confirm this assumption, additional studies are required.

Keywords:

gas turbine installation, combustion chamber, thermoacoustic instability, pressure pulsations, acoustic probe, LES approach, pulsation spectra, Rayleigh criterion, eigen frequency values analysis, lean air-fuel mixture combustion

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