Combustion of a single magnesium particle in water vapor

The combustion of magnesium particles in water vapor is of interest for underwater propulsion and hydrogen production. In this work, the combustion process of a single magnesium particle in water vapor is studied both experimentally and theoretically. Combustion experiments are conducted in a combus...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inChinese physics B Vol. 24; no. 9; pp. 324 - 331
Main Author 黄利亚 夏智勋 张为华 黄序 胡建新
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published 01.09.2015
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Summary:The combustion of magnesium particles in water vapor is of interest for underwater propulsion and hydrogen production. In this work, the combustion process of a single magnesium particle in water vapor is studied both experimentally and theoretically. Combustion experiments are conducted in a combustor filled with motionless water vapor. Condensation of gas-phase magnesia on the particle surface is confirmed and gas-phase combustion flame characteristics are observed. With the help of an optical filter and a neutral optical attenuator, flame structures are captured and determined. Flame temperature profiles are measured by an infrared thermometer. Combustion residue is a porous oxide shell of disordered magnesia crystal, which may impose a certain influence on the diffusivity of gas phases. A simplified one-dimensional, spherically symmetric, quasi-steady combustion model is then developed. In this model, the condensation of gas-phase magnesia on the particle surface and its influence on the combustion process are included, and the Stefan problem on the particle surface is also taken into consideration. With the combustion model, the parameters of flame temperature, flame diameter, and the burning time of the particle are solved analytically under the experimental conditions. A reasonable agreement between the experimental and modeling results is demonstrated, and several features to improve the model are identified.
Bibliography:The combustion of magnesium particles in water vapor is of interest for underwater propulsion and hydrogen production. In this work, the combustion process of a single magnesium particle in water vapor is studied both experimentally and theoretically. Combustion experiments are conducted in a combustor filled with motionless water vapor. Condensation of gas-phase magnesia on the particle surface is confirmed and gas-phase combustion flame characteristics are observed. With the help of an optical filter and a neutral optical attenuator, flame structures are captured and determined. Flame temperature profiles are measured by an infrared thermometer. Combustion residue is a porous oxide shell of disordered magnesia crystal, which may impose a certain influence on the diffusivity of gas phases. A simplified one-dimensional, spherically symmetric, quasi-steady combustion model is then developed. In this model, the condensation of gas-phase magnesia on the particle surface and its influence on the combustion process are included, and the Stefan problem on the particle surface is also taken into consideration. With the combustion model, the parameters of flame temperature, flame diameter, and the burning time of the particle are solved analytically under the experimental conditions. A reasonable agreement between the experimental and modeling results is demonstrated, and several features to improve the model are identified.
11-5639/O4
magnesium,particle,combustion
ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
ISSN:1674-1056
2058-3834
1741-4199
DOI:10.1088/1674-1056/24/9/094702