An Investigation of the Effects of Fuel Composition on Combustion Characteristics in a T-63 Combustor

Résumé du livre

A T63 combustor was instrumented to allow measurement ofcenterline distributions of temperature and soot size and concentration using water-cooled probes. Three-wavelength light transmission measurements were also made at two locations to determine the mean soot size and NOx concentrations were measured in the exhaust duct. Five fuels of varying composition were used in the combustor and initial tests were conducted using two smoke-suppressant fuel additives. The data indicated that the aft region of the combustor contained a large, low temperature recirculation zone, surrounded by an annular region of higher temperature and lower soot concentration. Light transmissionn measurements appeared to yield reasonable particle size data when compared to collected samples. However, the extent of agglomeration in the collection probes was unknown. Smoke-suppressant fuel additives were found to have reduced effectiveness in the present test series, apparently due to unheated inlet air which was employed. NOX levels increased significantly with increasing combustor exhaust temperature (or fuel-air ratio). Soot concentration increased and transmittance decreased with increasing fuel-air ratio. The mean soot particle size was found to be between 0.21 and 0.26 micronns, independent of fuel composition and fuel-air ratio.