Towards Net-Zero Emissions by 2050: From What (Fuels) to How (Burns) (SHELL)

该项目符合英国该部门的脱碳战略计划，即交通脱碳计划，目标是到2050年实现温室气体净零排放。将回答两个研究问题：未来交通和能源部门的无碳燃料将是什么？这些燃料在燃烧特性方面表现如何？特别注意氢(和/或氨)的湍流燃烧，它发生在几乎所有与燃烧有关的应用中，包括燃气轮机、锅炉、熔炉、发动机、爆炸和火灾。深入了解湍流燃烧的基本现象，对于发展先进的燃烧技术，实现零排放和高能效是至关重要的。由于复杂的湍流-化学相互作用，预混湍流燃烧引起了实验者、模型师和理论家的极大关注。这种强烈的相互作用给测量湍流燃烧速度带来了最大的挑战，湍流燃烧速度被定义为进入火焰前沿的气体速度。传统上，压力升高法能够从定容燃烧容器内的压力迹线推导出层流燃速。然而，如果燃烧过程中涉及到强湍流，这种方法会带来更多的统计不确定性。其他方法，如纹影照相法，通常假定燃烧气体的绝热密度/温度，而不考虑拉伸效应。因此，本项目致力于通过测量燃烧速度和利用激光分析进行火焰结构和动力学分析来准确地表征预混湍流火焰。这项研究的成果将是一种独特的爆炸火焰传播和燃烧动力学的高速摄影技术。这将大大提高对预混湍流火焰的理解，并表征新开发的无碳燃料的湍流燃烧速度，确保其在全球能源转型背景下的成功应用。这名学生将成为一个成熟的燃烧研究小组的成员。利兹主办EPSRC流体动力学博士培训中心，学生将成为该中心的准成员，受益于提供的额外培训。

This project is in line with the UK strategic plan for decarbonisation for the sector, i.e. the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, with the aim to achieve 'net zero' greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Two research questions will be answered: what will be the carbon free fuels for the future transport and energy sectors? How do these fuels perform in terms of the burning characteristics? Particular attentions are given to the turbulent combustion of hydrogen (and/or ammonia) that takes place in nearly all combustion-related applications, including gas turbines, boilers, furnaces, engines, explosions and fires. A thorough understanding of the basic phenomena of turbulent combustion is essential to develop advanced combustion technologies to achieve zero emissions and high energy efficiency. Premixed turbulent combustion attracts the most attention from experimentalists, modellers, and theoreticians, due to a complex turbulence-chemistry interaction. This strong interaction brings the greatest challenge to measure a turbulent burning velocity that is defined as the gas velocity into the flame front. Conventionally, the pressure rise method is capable to be used for deriving the laminar burning rate from a pressure trace inside a constant volume combustion vessel. However, this method brings more statistic uncertainties if strong turbulences get involved in the combustion process. Other methods, e.g. Schlieren photography, often assume an adiabatic density/temperature of burned gas and do not take into account the stretch effect. Therefore, this project seeks to accurately characterize the premixed turbulent flame by measuring the burning velocity and the flame structure and kinetics analysis using laser analysis. The outcome of the research will be a unique technique of high speed photography of explosive flame propagation and combustion kinetics. This will greatly enhance the understanding of premixed turbulent flame, as well as characterize the turbulent burning velocity of newly developed carbon-free fuels and ensure their successful application in the context of the global energy transition. The student will become part of an established Combustion research group. Leeds hosts the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Fluid Dynamics, of which the student will be an associate member, benefiting from the additional training provided.