Numerical analysis of structure, stability and entropy generation in biogas coflow diffusion flames

Abstract

Biogas is a gaseous biofuel predominantly composed of methane and carbon-dioxide. Stability of biogas flames strongly depend upon the amount of carbon-dioxide present in biogas, which varies with the source of biomass and reactor. In this paper, a comprehensive study on the stability and flame characteristics of coflow biogas diffusion flames is reported. Numerical simulations are carried out using reactive flow module in OpenFOAM, incorporated with variable thermophysical properties, Fick’s and Soret diffusion, and short chemical kinetics mechanism. Effects of carbon-dioxide content in the biogas, temperatures of the fuel or coflowing air streams (preheated reactant) and hydrogen addition to fuel or air streams are analyzed. Entropy generation in these flames is also predicted. Results show that the flame temperature increases with the degree of preheat of reactants and the flames show better stability with the preheated air stream. Preheating the air contributes to increased flame stability and also to a significant decrease in entropy generation. Hydrogen addition, contributing to the same power rating, is seen to be relatively more effective in increasing the flame stability when added to the fuel stream. Results in terms of flow, temperature, species and entropy fields, are used to describe the stability and flame characteristics.