Ignition Delay Time Measurements of C2HX Fuels and Comparison to Several Detailed Kinetics Mechanisms

Recent results from experiments and modeling by the authors are reviewed for the ignition of acetylene, ethylene, and ethane in oxygen/argon mixtures at temperatures between 1000 and 2300 K and pressures near 1 atm. The ignition measurements were obtained behind reflected shock waves using emission from electronically excited OH and CH radicals to monitor the reaction progress. While many discrepancies exist amongst previous studies for these lower-order hydrocarbons, the accuracy afforded by the present experiments provides conclusive evidence verifying the trends seen in certain studies from the literature. Several modern, detailed chemical kinetics mechanisms were compared to the new results with some models showing quite good agreement with both ignition delay times and species profiles, particularly for stoichiometric mixtures. However, improvement is still required to match the entire range of fuel concentrations, temperatures, and mixture ratios, particularly for fuel-rich mixtures.

Ignition Delay Time Measurements of C2HX Fuels and Comparison to Several Detailed Kinetics Mechanisms Conference Paper