Aerodynamics and combustion of axial swirlers

A multipoint lean direct injection (LDI) concept was introduced recently in non-premixed combustion to obtain both low NOx emissions and good combustion stability. In this concept, a key feature is the injection of finely atomized fuel into the high-swirling airflow at the combustor dome that provides a homogenous, lean fuel-air mixture. In order to achieve the fine atomization and mixing of the fuel and air quickly and uniformly, a good swirler design should be studied.;The focus of this dissertation is to investigate the aerodynamics and combustion of the swirling flow field in a multipoint Lean Direct Injector combustor. A helical axial-vaned swirler with a short internal convergent-divergent venturi was used. Swirlers with various vane angles and fuel nozzle insertion lengths have been designed. Three non-dimensional parameter effects on non-reacting, swirling flow field were studied: swirler number, confinement ratio and Reynolds number. Spray and combustion characteristics on the single swirler were studied to understand the mechanism of fuel-air mixing in this special configuration. Multi-swirler interactions were studied by measuring the confined flow field of a multipoint swirler array with different configurations. Two different swirler arrangements were investigated experimentally, which include a co-swirling array and a counter-swirling array. In order to increase the range of stability of multipoint LDI combustors, an improved design were also conducted.;The results show that the degree of swirl and the level of confinement have a clear impact on the mean and turbulent flow fields. The swirling flow fields may also change significantly with the addition of a variety of simulated fuel nozzle insertion lengths. The swirler with short insertion has the stronger swirling flow as compared with the long insertion swirler. Reynolds numbers, with range of current study, will not alter mean and turbulent properties of generated flows. The reaction of the spray dramatically changes the gas phase velocity distribution, while the convergent-divergent nozzle strongly affects the spray velocity profiles. The multipoint flow field has a very complicated structure, especially for the flow structure near the swirler exit, where very strong interactions exit among the adjacent swirlers. Multipoint swirler arrays with the recessed center swirler will alter flow structure significantly. There is a short strong central recirculation zone in both co-swirler and counter-swirler recessed arrays, which may increase the operability range of the multipoint swirl-venturi LDI combustor.