Developing Numerical Models for the Combustion and Soot Formation of Alternative Fuels

随着交通运输业的不断发展，人们对环境和气候变化的担忧不断上升，燃烧产生的烟尘（黑碳颗粒）和二氧化碳越来越受到关注。煤烟排放已被确定为北极融化的重要因素；大气中的小煤烟颗粒吸收阳光并使空气变暖，而较大的颗粒最终落到地面，它们较深的颜色加速了冰雪的融化。因此，减少烟尘颗粒形成和排放的技术发展仍然是研究人员的重要目标。当涉及到全球气候变化时，二氧化碳排放也是一个主要问题。二氧化碳是燃烧的必要副产品，但它的排放有可能通过使用替代燃料来减少。例如，从植物物质中提取的生物燃料排放的净二氧化碳较少，因为它们在生长过程中吸收和处理二氧化碳。这个研究项目将使用高性能的超级计算机来开发燃烧和烟灰形成的机械和化学过程的新型计算机模型。该研究计划的主要目标是完善预测燃烧产生的烟灰颗粒形成、运动和破坏的计算方法，用于一系列传统和替代燃料，包括生物基燃料。这些方法可以用来生成数据，这些数据将增加我们对燃烧过程的基本理解，并帮助我们了解在运输行业实施生物燃料的潜在影响。这将有助于确保新提出的燃料不会导致排放增加，并将为发动机和燃料开发提供设计工具，从而可以减少未来的排放。

As the transportation industry continues to expand and concerns over the environment and climate change continue to rise, combustion-generated soot (black carbon particulate) and carbon dioxide are growing concerns. Soot emissions have been identified as significantly contributing to Arctic thawing; small soot particles in the atmosphere absorb sunlight and warm the air, while larger particles eventually fall to the ground, where their darker colour speeds the melting of snow and ice. Thus, the development of techniques to reduce soot particle formation and emissions remains an important goal of researchers. Carbon dioxide emissions are also a major concern when it comes to global climate change. Carbon dioxide is a necessary by-product of combustion but its emissions have the potential to be reduced through the use of alternative fuels. Biofuels, for example, that are derived from plant matter emit less net carbon dioxide since they absorb and process it while they grow.This research program will use high-performance super-computing to develop novel computer models of the mechanical and chemical processes of combustion and soot formation. The primary goal of the research program is to perfect computational methods of predicting combustion-generated soot particle formation, movement, and destruction, for a range of conventional and alternative fuels, including bio-based fuels. Such methods could be used to generate data that will increase our fundamental understanding of combustion processes and help us understand the potential impact of implementing biofuels in the transportation industry. This will help ensure that newly proposed fuels will not lead to an increase in emissions, and will provide a design tool for engine and fuel development, which can lead to reduced emissions in the future.