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Abstract

The paper reviews progress in the development of methods for calculating the properties of gas turbine combustion chambers, with particular attention being devoted to combustion and turbulence-combustion interactions. For conventional combustion chambers with non-premixed combustion it is argued that a conserved scalar approach, where burning is presumed to be ‘fast’, is capable of providing an accurate representation of heat-releasing processes. The approach can also be extended to include NO₂ formation, at least under conditions where it is formed under high-temperature conditions. However, if carbon monoxide and unburnt hydrocarbon emissions or partially premixed combustion is to be considered, then a more complete description of combustion is needed and the probability density function (PDF) transport equation method here represents a promising approach. It is demonstrated that the method, when combined with a simple chemical reaction mechanism, is capable without modification of reproducing the major properties of non-premixed, partially premixed and premixed turbulent flames.

Keywords

mathematical modelling turbulent combustion gas turbines

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Mathematical modelling of turbulent combustion for gas turbines

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