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NASA NTRS2003

National Combustion Code Validated Against Lean Direct Injection Flow Field Data

Most combustion processes have, in some way or another, a recirculating flow field. This recirculation stabilizes the reaction zone, or flame, but an unnecessarily large recirculation zone can result in high nitrogen oxide (NOx) values for combustion systems. The size of this recirculation zone is crucial to the performance of state-of-the-art, low-emissions hardware. If this is a large-scale combustion process, the flow field will probably be turbulent and, therefore, three-dimensional. This research dealt primarily with flow fields resulting from lean direct injection (LDI) concepts, as described in Research & Technology 2001. LDI is a concept that depends heavily on the design of the swirler. The LDI concept has the potential to reduce NOx values from 50 to 70 percent of current values, with good flame stability characteristics. It is cost effective and (hopefully) beneficial to do most of the design work for an LDI swirler using computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided engineering (CAE) tools. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes are CAE tools that can calculate three-dimensional flows in complex geometries. However, CFD codes are only beginning to correctly calculate the flow fields for complex devices, and the related combustion models usually remove a large portion of the flow physics.

Iannetti, Anthony C.↗

NASA NTRS2005

National Combustion Code Used To Study the Hydrogen Injector Design for Gas Turbines

Hydrogen, in the gas state, has been proposed to replace Jet-A (the fuel used for commercial jet engines) as a fuel for gas turbine combustion. For the combustion of hydrogen and oxygen only, water is the only product and the main greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, is not produced. This is an obvious benefit of using hydrogen as a fuel. The situation is not as simple when air replaces oxygen in the combustion process. (Air is mainly a mixture of oxygen, nitrogen, and argon. Other components comprise a very small part of air and will not be mentioned.) At the high temperatures found in the combustion process, oxygen reacts with nitrogen, and this produces nitrogen oxide compounds, or NOx--the main component of atmospheric smog. The production of NOx depends mainly on two variables: the temperature at which combustion occurs, and the length of time that the products of combustion stay, or reside, in the combustor. Starting from a lean (excess air) air-to-fuel ratio, the goal of this research was to minimize hot zones caused by incomplete premixing and to keep the residence time short while producing a stable flame. The minimization of these two parameters will result in low- NOx hydrogen combustion.

Iannetti, Anthony C.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Computational Study of Modeling Fully-coupled Combustor-Turbine Interactions by the Open National Combustion Code (OpenNCC)

We investigate the flow fields inside the combustor and the high-pressure turbine including the stator and moving rotors, from the Energy Efficient Engine (E3) program. We then compare the fully-coupled simulations results with the prior results from the sequential approach, where key performance metrics for the combustor and HPT are compared. The results will provide one example of the impact of performing fully-coupled combustor/HPT simulations relative to sequential (one-way coupled) combustor and HPT simulations.

CFD↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Computational Study of Modeling Fully-coupled Combustor-Turbine Interactions by the Open National Combustion Code (OpenNCC)

CFD↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Numerical Study of Combustor-Turbine Interactions Using Open-National Combustion Code (OpenNCC)

CFD↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Combustor-Turbine Interactions By Using the Open National Combustion Code (OpenNCC) and the Glenn-HT Code

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

CFD hot-streaks↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Combustor-Turbine Interactions By Using the Open National Combustion Code (OpenNCC) and the Glenn-HT Code

We develop the methodology of coupling two different computational fluid dynamic (CFD) codes, OpenNCC and Glenn-HT, in order to investigate the unsteady flow fields inside the combustor and around the first-stage stator of a high-pressure turbine (HPT) from the energy efficient engine (E 3 ) program. In our coupling strategy, OpenNCC, a time accurate unstructured mesh multi-phase combustion CFD code, is applied to the combustor region and Glenn-HT, a structured mesh CFD code designed for turbine applications, is utilized inside the HPT region. As a proof of concept, we first simulate the three-dimensional airflow over the backward facing step and compared the predicted pressure coefficient against experimental data. We then considered a Jet-A/Air combustor with the NASA single learn direct injector (LDI) as a reacting flow test case. Here, Glenn-HT is used in the downstream of the combustor and assumes that the working fluid is a single gas (i.e., air) where the properties of the gas are taken from time- and area-averaged values at the combustor exit. A fully coupled combustor-turbine simulation using both OpenNCC and Glenn-HT was conducted on the E 3 combustor and a detailed analysis done pertaining to how a realistic combustor outflow affects migration of hot-streaks and its impact on the aerodynamic behavior inside the HPT. It is found that the combustion dynamics (i.e., the switching main and pilot flame strength) significantly alters the aerodynamic behavior inside the HPT including hot-streak migration. Variations of the temperature and the velocity magnitude in the passage could be up to ±75 and ±15. These large variations are an important part of the combustor-turbine interactions, which are overlooked by a single component simulation of the HPT while imposing the steady inflow boundary condition at the HPT inlet. Finally, it is observed the strong density gradient associated with the hot-streaks and the pressure gradient at the passage significantly enhances the baroclinic torque, affecting the vorticity field.

CFD hot-streaks↗

NASA NTRS2003

Combustor Simulation

The goal was to perform 3D simulation of GE90 combustor, as part of full turbofan engine simulation. Requirements of high fidelity as well as fast turn-around time require massively parallel code. National Combustion Code (NCC) was chosen for this task as supports up to 999 processors and includes state-of-the-art combustion models. Also required is ability to take inlet conditions from compressor code and give exit conditions to turbine code.

Norris, Andrew↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Time-History Statistics of Soot Formation in A Model Gas Turbine Combustor

Soot formation is a complex dynamic and intermittent process determined by properties of the fuel, combustor design, and combustor operation. Although the major steps in soot formation (i.e., formation of precursors, inception, growth and evolution) are similar for a variety of carbonaceous fuels, applications, and operating conditions, it remains unclear when the temporal transition between these steps occurs. An engineering prediction tool coupled with computational fluid physics (CFD), therefore needs to accurately model all these complex steps. To develop such a model, we propose the time-history concept for understanding the time dependency of soot formation as a function of local properties (i.e., temperature, velocity, local fuel air ratio, etc.). We continue our previous work with modeling the DLR aero-combustor [1] with our updated in-house CFD code, Open National Combustion Code (OpenNCC), that now includes a Multiple Time-Scale Flamelet Progress Variable approach and a the semi-empirical two-equation soot model. We injected massless tracer particles upstream of the injector region of the combustor to collect time-history statistics of the solution variables. The correlations between the collected statistics with respect to the experimental soot volume fraction data showed that time-history effect of certain flow variables, including turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), and multiple species is indeed important for soot formation. We then conducted a time-history based correlation analysis to determine the key species and the concentration ranges critical for soot formation (C6H5-based nucleation, acetylene-based surface growth, and oxidation with OH and O2). Based on the time-history correlation coefficient (THCC) analysis, we propose possible modifications to improve the current two-equation model.

LES↗

NASA NTRS1998

LSPRAY: Lagrangian Spray Solver for Applications With Parallel Computing and Unstructured Gas-Phase Flow Solvers

Sprays occur in a wide variety of industrial and power applications and in the processing of materials. A liquid spray is a phase flow with a gas as the continuous phase and a liquid as the dispersed phase (in the form of droplets or ligaments). Interactions between the two phases, which are coupled through exchanges of mass, momentum, and energy, can occur in different ways at different times and locations involving various thermal, mass, and fluid dynamic factors. An understanding of the flow, combustion, and thermal properties of a rapidly vaporizing spray requires careful modeling of the rate-controlling processes associated with the spray's turbulent transport, mixing, chemical kinetics, evaporation, and spreading rates, as well as other phenomena. In an attempt to advance the state-of-the-art in multidimensional numerical methods, we at the NASA Lewis Research Center extended our previous work on sprays to unstructured grids and parallel computing. LSPRAY, which was developed by M.S. Raju of Nyma, Inc., is designed to be massively parallel and could easily be coupled with any existing gas-phase flow and/or Monte Carlo probability density function (PDF) solver. The LSPRAY solver accommodates the use of an unstructured mesh with mixed triangular, quadrilateral, and/or tetrahedral elements in the gas-phase solvers. It is used specifically for fuel sprays within gas turbine combustors, but it has many other uses. The spray model used in LSPRAY provided favorable results when applied to stratified-charge rotary combustion (Wankel) engines and several other confined and unconfined spray flames. The source code will be available with the National Combustion Code (NCC) as a complete package.

Raju, Manthena S.↗

NASA NTRS1998

EUPDF: Eulerian Monte Carlo Probability Density Function Solver for Applications With Parallel Computing, Unstructured Grids, and Sprays

The success of any solution methodology used in the study of gas-turbine combustor flows depends a great deal on how well it can model the various complex and rate controlling processes associated with the spray's turbulent transport, mixing, chemical kinetics, evaporation, and spreading rates, as well as convective and radiative heat transfer and other phenomena. The phenomena to be modeled, which are controlled by these processes, often strongly interact with each other at different times and locations. In particular, turbulence plays an important role in determining the rates of mass and heat transfer, chemical reactions, and evaporation in many practical combustion devices. The influence of turbulence in a diffusion flame manifests itself in several forms, ranging from the so-called wrinkled, or stretched, flamelets regime to the distributed combustion regime, depending upon how turbulence interacts with various flame scales. Conventional turbulence models have difficulty treating highly nonlinear reaction rates. A solution procedure based on the composition joint probability density function (PDF) approach holds the promise of modeling various important combustion phenomena relevant to practical combustion devices (such as extinction, blowoff limits, and emissions predictions) because it can account for nonlinear chemical reaction rates without making approximations. In an attempt to advance the state-of-the-art in multidimensional numerical methods, we at the NASA Lewis Research Center extended our previous work on the PDF method to unstructured grids, parallel computing, and sprays. EUPDF, which was developed by M.S. Raju of Nyma, Inc., was designed to be massively parallel and could easily be coupled with any existing gas-phase and/or spray solvers. EUPDF can use an unstructured mesh with mixed triangular, quadrilateral, and/or tetrahedral elements. The application of the PDF method showed favorable results when applied to several supersonic-diffusion flames and spray flames. The EUPDF source code will be available with the National Combustion Code (NCC) as a complete package.

Raju, M. S.↗

NASA NTRS2004

EUPDF-II: An Eulerian Joint Scalar Monte Carlo PDF Module : User's Manual

EUPDF-II provides the solution for the species and temperature fields based on an evolution equation for PDF (Probability Density Function) and it is developed mainly for application with sprays, combustion, parallel computing, and unstructured grids. It is designed to be massively parallel and could easily be coupled with any existing gas-phase CFD and spray solvers. The solver accommodates the use of an unstructured mesh with mixed elements of either triangular, quadrilateral, and/or tetrahedral type. The manual provides the user with an understanding of the various models involved in the PDF formulation, its code structure and solution algorithm, and various other issues related to parallelization and its coupling with other solvers. The source code of EUPDF-II will be available with National Combustion Code (NCC) as a complete package.

Raju, M. S.↗

NASA NTRS1998

EUPDF: An Eulerian-Based Monte Carlo Probability Density Function (PDF) Solver. User's Manual

EUPDF is an Eulerian-based Monte Carlo PDF solver developed for application with sprays, combustion, parallel computing and unstructured grids. It is designed to be massively parallel and could easily be coupled with any existing gas-phase flow and spray solvers. The solver accommodates the use of an unstructured mesh with mixed elements of either triangular, quadrilateral, and/or tetrahedral type. The manual provides the user with the coding required to couple the PDF code to any given flow code and a basic understanding of the EUPDF code structure as well as the models involved in the PDF formulation. The source code of EUPDF will be available with the release of the National Combustion Code (NCC) as a complete package.

Raju, M. S.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Overview of High-Fidelity Modeling Activities in the Numerical Propulsion System Simulations (NPSS) Project

A high-fidelity simulation of a commercial turbofan engine has been created as part of the Numerical Propulsion System Simulation Project. The high-fidelity computer simulation utilizes computer models that were developed at NASA Glenn Research Center in cooperation with turbofan engine manufacturers. The average-passage (APNASA) Navier-Stokes based viscous flow computer code is used to simulate the 3D flow in the compressors and turbines of the advanced commercial turbofan engine. The 3D National Combustion Code (NCC) is used to simulate the flow and chemistry in the advanced aircraft combustor. The APNASA turbomachinery code and the NCC combustor code exchange boundary conditions at the interface planes at the combustor inlet and exit. This computer simulation technique can evaluate engine performance at steady operating conditions. The 3D flow models provide detailed knowledge of the airflow within the fan and compressor, the high and low pressure turbines, and the flow and chemistry within the combustor. The models simulate the performance of the engine at operating conditions that include sea level takeoff and the altitude cruise condition.

Veres, Joseph P.↗

NASA NTRS2007

NASA 9-Point LDI Code Validation Experiment

This presentation highlights the experimental work to date to obtain validation data using a 9-point lean direct injector (LDI) in support of the National Combustion Code. The LDI is designed to supply fuel lean, Jet-A and air directly into the combustor such that the liquid fuel atomizes and mixes rapidly to produce short flame zones and produce low levels of oxides of nitrogen and CO. We present NOx and CO emission results from gas sample data that support that aspect of the design concept. We describe this injector and show high speed movies of selected operating points. We present image-based species maps of OH, fuel, CH and NO obtained using planar laser induced fluorescence and chemiluminescence. We also present preliminary 2-component, axial and vertical, velocity vectors of the air flow obtained using particle image velocimetry and of the fuel drops in a combusting case. For the same combusting case, we show preliminary 3-component velocity vectors obtained using a phase Doppler anemometer. For the fueled, combusting cases especially, we found optical density is a technical concern that must be addressed, but that in general, these preliminary results are promising. All optical-based results confirm that this injector produces short flames, typically on the order of 5- to-7-mm long at typical cruise and high power engine cycle conditions.

Hicks, Yolanda R.↗

NASA NTRS2009

CFD Simulation on the J-2X Engine Exhaust in the Center-Body Diffuser and Spray Chamber at the B-2 Facility

A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) code is used to simulate the J-2X engine exhaust in the center-body diffuser and spray chamber at the Spacecraft Propulsion Facility (B-2). The CFD code is named as the space-time conservation element and solution element (CESE) Euler solver and is very robust at shock capturing. The CESE results are compared with independent analysis results obtained by using the National Combustion Code (NCC) and show excellent agreement.

Wang, Xiao-Yen↗

NASA NTRS2008

An Idealized, Single Radial Swirler, Lean-Direct-Injection (LDI) Concept Meshing Script

To easily study combustor design parameters using computational fluid dynamics codes (CFD), a Gridgen Glyph-based macro (based on the Tcl scripting language) dubbed BladeMaker has been developed for the meshing of an idealized, single radial swirler, lean-direct-injection (LDI) combustor. BladeMaker is capable of taking in a number of parameters, such as blade width, blade tilt with respect to the perpendicular, swirler cup radius, and grid densities, and producing a three-dimensional meshed radial swirler with a can-annular (canned) combustor. This complex script produces a data format suitable for but not specific to the National Combustion Code (NCC), a state-of-the-art CFD code developed for reacting flow processes.

Iannetti, Anthony C.↗

NASA NTRS1999

NCC: A Multidisciplinary Design/Analysis Tool for Combustion Systems

A multi-disciplinary design/analysis tool for combustion systems is critical for optimizing the low-emission, high-performance combustor design process. Based on discussions between NASA Lewis Research Center and the jet engine companies, an industry-government team was formed in early 1995 to develop the National Combustion Code (NCC), which is an integrated system of computer codes for the design and analysis of combustion systems. NCC has advanced features that address the need to meet designer's requirements such as "assured accuracy", "fast turnaround", and "acceptable cost". The NCC development team is comprised of Allison Engine Company (Allison), CFD Research Corporation (CFDRC), GE Aircraft Engines (GEAE), NASA Lewis Research Center (LeRC), and Pratt & Whitney (P&W). This development team operates under the guidance of the NCC steering committee. The "unstructured mesh" capability and "parallel computing" are fundamental features of NCC from its inception. The NCC system is composed of a set of "elements" which includes grid generator, main flow solver, turbulence module, turbulence and chemistry interaction module, chemistry module, spray module, radiation heat transfer module, data visualization module, and a post-processor for evaluating engine performance parameters. Each element may have contributions from several team members. Such a multi-source multi-element system needs to be integrated in a way that facilitates inter-module data communication, flexibility in module selection, and ease of integration.

Liu, Nan-Suey↗