Numerical Simulation

Distribution of temperature (left half) and CO concentration (right half) in a FLOX® combustion chamber

Developing low-emission gas turbine combustion chambers requires control over the physico-chemical processes that are involved. Due to the complexity of these processes and the ambitious aims being pursued (minimised pollutant emissions, low thermal and mechanical wall load, quiet and more stable operation), future development of state-of-the-art gas turbine combustion chambers will only be possible by combining systematic experimentation with numerical simulation.

The work carried out in the Numerical Simulation research department at the Institute of Combustion Technology is aimed at solving these problems. The following are priority areas of research:

• Pollutant formation in flames (e.g. soot, NO_x)
• Turbulent heat release with slow chemical kinetics (turbulence-chemistry interaction)
• Thermal and mechanical interaction of combustion chamber walls with hot gas flows; thermal radiation
• Periodically oscillating combustion processes, thermoacoustics, combustion noise
• Fuel atomization, spray preparation/vaporisation, alternative liquid fuels (Synfuels)
• Hybrid LES/RANS methods
• Supersonic combustion
• Applications of simulation methods to real combustion chambers of aircraft engines and stationary gas turbines

Research is also performed in cooperation with other research institutes and industrial enterprises at national and European level. Other work is being carried out in the context of internal DLR projects.

The research group uses combustion codes THETA, TRUST and TASCOM (for supersonic combustion) developed at the DLR, as well as commercial codes and company codes to perform this research work.