Session: 04-29 Hydrogen II

Submission Number: 178824

Large Eddy Simulation of a Dual-Fuel Swirled Spray Burner Operating With Hydrogen 

Hydrogen is under evaluation as a low-emission fuel candidate for future aviation systems.
Despite its environmental advantages, its low volumetric energy density presents substantial en-
gineering challenges, particularly in aircraft design and airport fuel handling infrastructure. As
an interim solution, fuel-flexible combustion systems, designed to operate efficiently with both
hydrogen and conventional hydrocarbons, offer a viable route toward gradual decarbonization
of the aviation sector.
However, the inherent complexity of dual-fuel burners, characterized by multi-regime operation
and diverse fuel properties, poses several challenges for their numerical modeling. Furthermore,
hydrogen’s high reactivity and non-unity Lewis number further exacerbate these challenges.
To address these modelling challenges, high-fidelity Large Eddy Simulation (LES) incorporat-
ing finite-rate chemistry is one of the most effective tools for capturing the complex dynamics
of reactive flows involving hydrogen or hydrocarbons mixtures. Within this framework, the Dy-
namic Thickened Flame Model (DTFLES) has shown promise for modelling hydrogen flames.
However, its applicability to dual-fuel systems,especially those featuring interactions between
hydrogen jets and non-premixed hydrocarbon sprays, remains underexplored and requires fur-
ther investigation.
Building on this foundation, the present study evaluates the performance of the DTFLES in
simulating reactive flows within laboratory-scale swirled spray burners operating with hydrogen
and hydrocarbon spray injection. To mitigate computational expense while preserving chemi-
cal fidelity, an analytically reduced mechanism is developed using the ARCANE reduction tool,
ensuring the retention of key intermediate species essential for accurate combustion modeling.
The model’s capability to capture multi-fuel, multi-phase interactions is assessed through direct
comparison with experimental diagnostics, including OH-PLIF imaging and flame temperature
measurements.
 

Presenting Author: Nicola Scopolini Università degli Studi di Firenze

Presenting Author Biography: Nicola Scopolini is a Ph.D. student at the Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Florence. He graduated in 2023 in mechanical engineering and his background includes CFD modeling of reactive flow, mainly for gas turbine applications. Currently, his his Ph.D. project regards the study of multi-regime and multi-fuel flames (mainly with hydrogen-hydrocarbons blends) under the supervision of Professor Antonio Andreini.

Authors:

Nicola Scopolini Università degli Studi di Firenze
Matteo Amerighi Università degli Studi di Firenze
Antonio Andreini Università degli Studi di Firenze