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Modelling studies of the oxidation and autoignition of alkanes, aromatics, and their mixtures at high pressure between 600 and 1500 K. Reduction of detailed mechanisms. Measurement of soot formation.

Author: Dr. Ahmad Saylam

Document type: Doctoral thesis

Original thesis date:

Archival status: The thesis was completed in 2005 and later deposited as an open digital archival record. The DOI identifies the archival deposit; it does not change the original thesis date.

Scientific scope: Experimental and modelling investigation of hydrocarbon oxidation and autoignition, detailed chemical-kinetic mechanisms, mechanism reduction, validation, and soot and aromatic-species measurements.

Archival DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.19438123

Zenodo record: https://zenodo.org/records/19438123

Abstract

Understanding and controlling combustion phenomena requires close interaction between experiments and modelling. The two approaches are presented together because the complexity of hydrocarbon oxidation often prevents complete elucidation of all chemical pathways.

The work examines the difficulty of improving detailed oxidation mechanisms, including an investigation of isooctane chemistry. Detailed hydrocarbon mechanisms can contain hundreds of species and thousands of reactions, creating a need for smaller mechanisms that retain the behaviour relevant to autoignition and oxidation.

A mechanism-reduction approach was therefore developed and applied. Predictive thermokinetic mechanisms were constructed, reduced and evaluated against new experimental measurements and data from earlier work and the literature.

The thesis also includes optical and laser-diagnostic investigations of soot particles and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in a methane flame, thereby connecting gas-phase chemistry, mechanism analysis and particle-formation diagnostics.

Principal research contributions

  • analysis of oxidation and autoignition chemistry for alkanes, aromatics and selected mixtures over high-pressure conditions;
  • development and evaluation of detailed thermokinetic mechanisms;
  • reduction of large kinetic mechanisms using reaction-rate and sensitivity information;
  • validation against rapid-compression-machine measurements and published experimental data;
  • investigation of soot particles and aromatic intermediates using optical and laser-diagnostic methods.

Scope and application boundary

The thesis establishes a substantial research basis for mechanism-development, reduction and validation workflows. Individual mechanisms and reduced models remain dependent on their fuels, thermodynamic range, reactor assumptions, experimental database and target observables.

Use in modern CFD, engine simulations, alternative fuels or new pressure and temperature ranges requires renewed validation and, where appropriate, updating of thermodynamic, transport and kinetic data.

Full text

Availability of the thesis for reading does not by itself grant reuse rights beyond those stated in the deposited document or repository record.

Recommended citation

Saylam, A. (2005). Modelling studies of the oxidation and autoignition of alkanes, aromatics, and their mixtures at high pressure between 600 and 1500 K. Reduction of detailed mechanisms. Measurement of soot formation. Doctoral thesis. Archival DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19438123