DLR - Institute of Combustion Technology

Chemical Kinetics Department

Reducing pollutant emissions and increasing combustion efficiency while simultaneously taking aspects of economic efficiency into account is one of the greatest challenges in the development of novel combustion technologies. In recent years, modeling and simulation have proved to be excellent new tools for addressing these challenges. Experimental techniques in combination with numerical models are therefore applied rigorously by the Department to predict the reaction kinetics of combustion processes and the formation of pollutants for various fuels, and in this way to achieve progress in the optimization of combustion processes.

Abteilung Gasturbinen

Im Fokus der Forschungsaktivitäten der Gruppe „Gasturbine“ steht die Erforschung, Entwicklung und Umsetzung von gasturbinenbasierten Kraftwerksanlagen für eine nachhaltige dezentrale Strom- und Wärmebereitstellung.

Numerical Simulation Department

Numerical simulation of the physical and chemical processes in low-emission combustion chambers of aircraft engines or industrial gas turbines requires advanced computation methods. Reliably and accurately predicting pollutant formation, wall heat load, noise emission, as well as the stability and efficiency of combustion are the paramount aims of numerical simulation research.

Combustion diagnostics department

Advanced laser-based measurement techniques provide new insights into physicochemical combustion processes. These techniques can visualise flame structures, detect flow relations in the combustion chamber, and can measure how the concentrations of combustion-relevant species are distributed and what temperatures are present.

Gruppe Chemische Analytik

Chemische und instrumentelle Analytik sind in der modernen Verbrennungsforschung ein unverzichtbares Arbeitsgebiet, insbesondere um die Emissionen bei Verbrennungsprozessen detailliert zu analysieren und Maßnahmen für die Schadstoffreduzierung abzuleiten. Während mit Laserdiagnostik reaktive, kurzlebige Spezies wie z. B. OH – Radikale direkt in der Flamme online gemessen werden können, werden durch die instrumentelle und chemische Analytik die mehr oder weniger stabilen Endprodukte der Verbrennung erfasst.

High-pressure Experiments group

Combustor testing at relevant operation conditions (pressure, temperature, flow field) is still a key in gas turbine combustor development. The “High-pressure Experiments” group is therefore operating the optically accessible high-pressure combustor rig Stuttgart (HBK-S). The research work of the group is focused on fuel flexible gas turbine combustors.