Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model

In this study, a numerical simulation of non-reacting flow inside a gas turbine combustor model was performed. The main target of this investigation is to get physical insight of the main vortex, responsible for the efficient mixing of fuel and air. Such models are necessary for developing and optim...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Eldrainy, Yehia A., Mohd. Jaafar, Mohammad Nazri, Mat Lazim, Tholudin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Faculty of Mechanical Engineering 2008
Subjects:
Online Access:http://eprints.utm.my/8737/
http://eprints.utm.my/8737/1/YAEldrainy2008-Numerical_Investigation_Of_The_Flow_Inside.pdf
_version_ 1848891755715362816
author Eldrainy, Yehia A.
Mohd. Jaafar, Mohammad Nazri
Mat Lazim, Tholudin
author_facet Eldrainy, Yehia A.
Mohd. Jaafar, Mohammad Nazri
Mat Lazim, Tholudin
author_sort Eldrainy, Yehia A.
building UTeM Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description In this study, a numerical simulation of non-reacting flow inside a gas turbine combustor model was performed. The main target of this investigation is to get physical insight of the main vortex, responsible for the efficient mixing of fuel and air. Such models are necessary for developing and optimization of real combustors. Combustor swirler assists the fuel-air mixing process by producing recirculation region which can act as flame holders as well. Therefore, proper selection of a swirler is needed to stabilize the flame, to enhance combustor performance and to reduce NOx emissions. For that reason, several axial swirlers with different configurations were employed to show their effects on primary zone aerodynamics performance. The three-dimensional, steady, turbulent and isothermal flow inside the combustor model was simulated using a finite volume based CFD code FLUENT 6.2. The combustor model geometry was created by means of solid model CAD software then the meshing was generated using GAMBIT preprocessing software subsequently, and the solution and the results analysis were carried out in a FLUENT solver. The effects of different swirlers’ configurations and inlet mass flow rate on flow dynamics were examined. A two recirculation zones were predicted, the first one is a central recirculation and located in the region immediately downstream of the swirler and the second is corner recirculation and located in the upstream corner of the combustion chamber. The results show that swirlers’ configuration and inlet mass flow rate have a significant effect on the combustor flowfield and pressure losses. By the mean that as swirl number increases the central recirculation zone size, turbulence production and pressure loss increase.
first_indexed 2025-11-15T21:03:01Z
format Article
id utm-8737
institution Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
institution_category Local University
language English
last_indexed 2025-11-15T21:03:01Z
publishDate 2008
publisher Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling utm-87372010-09-20T09:36:45Z http://eprints.utm.my/8737/ Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model Eldrainy, Yehia A. Mohd. Jaafar, Mohammad Nazri Mat Lazim, Tholudin TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery In this study, a numerical simulation of non-reacting flow inside a gas turbine combustor model was performed. The main target of this investigation is to get physical insight of the main vortex, responsible for the efficient mixing of fuel and air. Such models are necessary for developing and optimization of real combustors. Combustor swirler assists the fuel-air mixing process by producing recirculation region which can act as flame holders as well. Therefore, proper selection of a swirler is needed to stabilize the flame, to enhance combustor performance and to reduce NOx emissions. For that reason, several axial swirlers with different configurations were employed to show their effects on primary zone aerodynamics performance. The three-dimensional, steady, turbulent and isothermal flow inside the combustor model was simulated using a finite volume based CFD code FLUENT 6.2. The combustor model geometry was created by means of solid model CAD software then the meshing was generated using GAMBIT preprocessing software subsequently, and the solution and the results analysis were carried out in a FLUENT solver. The effects of different swirlers’ configurations and inlet mass flow rate on flow dynamics were examined. A two recirculation zones were predicted, the first one is a central recirculation and located in the region immediately downstream of the swirler and the second is corner recirculation and located in the upstream corner of the combustion chamber. The results show that swirlers’ configuration and inlet mass flow rate have a significant effect on the combustor flowfield and pressure losses. By the mean that as swirl number increases the central recirculation zone size, turbulence production and pressure loss increase. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering 2008-12 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://eprints.utm.my/8737/1/YAEldrainy2008-Numerical_Investigation_Of_The_Flow_Inside.pdf Eldrainy, Yehia A. and Mohd. Jaafar, Mohammad Nazri and Mat Lazim, Tholudin (2008) Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model. Jurnal Mekanikal (26). pp. 162-176. ISSN 0127-3396
spellingShingle TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
Eldrainy, Yehia A.
Mohd. Jaafar, Mohammad Nazri
Mat Lazim, Tholudin
Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model
title Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model
title_full Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model
title_fullStr Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model
title_full_unstemmed Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model
title_short Numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model
title_sort numerical investigation of the flow inside primary zone of tubular combustor model
topic TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
url http://eprints.utm.my/8737/
http://eprints.utm.my/8737/1/YAEldrainy2008-Numerical_Investigation_Of_The_Flow_Inside.pdf