Measurement and modeling of the generation and the transport of entropy waves in a model gas turbine combustor

• Published in: International journal of spray and combustion dynamics Vol. 9; no. 4; pp. 299 - 309
• Main Authors: Wassmer, Dominik, Schuermans, Bruno, Paschereit, Christian Oliver, Moeck, Jonas P
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.12.2017
• Subjects: Entropy wave; equivalence ratio fluctuation; temperature measurement; reactor model; dispersion; transport model
• ISSN: 1756-8277; 1756-8285
• DOI: 10.1177/1756827717696326

Indirect combustion noise is caused by entropy spots that are accelerated at the first turbine stage. These so-called entropy waves originate from the equivalence ratio fluctuations in the air–fuel mixture upstream of the flame. As entropy waves propagate convectively through the combustion chamber, they are subject to diffusion and dispersion. Because of the inherent difficulty of accurately measuring the burned gas temperature with sufficient temporal resolution, experimental data of entropy waves are scarce. In this work, the transfer function between equivalence ratio fluctuations and entropy fluctuations is modeled by a linearized reactor model, and the transport of entropy waves is investigated based on a convection-diffusion model. Temperature fluctuations are measured by means of a novel measurement technique at different axial positions downstream of the premixed flame, which is forced by periodic fuel injection. Experiments with various flow velocities and excitation frequencies enable model validation over a wide range of parameters.