High Fuel-to-Air Ratio (FAR) Development Tool

The objective is to develop a simulation tool capable of accurate predictions of the complex mixing process in gas turbine engine combustors, applicable to complex geometry, multi-physics problems, and combustion in lean and high FAR regions. Because of the importance of the mixing process, the simulation tool will be based on the large-eddy simulation technique. The code will be based on our unstructured LES code CHARLES, which is highly specialized and optimized for LES. The code uses appropriate LES filters and numerical methods. A state-of-the-art combustion model using detailed chemical kinetics for JP-8 fuel will be developed and employed to describe turbulence/chemistry interactions in gas turbine combustion. It is also proposed here to use the simulation tool to gain a better understanding of the interaction of combustion and the mixing process and to enable better control of the burnout of high FAR regions. The work will be performed in collaboration with our industrial partners from Pratt & Whitney Group, a division of the United Technologies Corporation, who will be involved in code development, capability assessment, validation with a real engine experiment, and the application of the LES tool in combustor performance optimization.