Gas self-ignition in a plane vortex chamber

Abstract

This paper describes the numerical modeling of gas flow in a plane vortex chamber by using the Navier–Stokes equations. The model is based on the laws of conservation of mass, momentum, and energy for nonstationary two-dimensional compressible gas flow in the case of axial symmetry with a tangential component of the gas velocity. The processes of viscosity, thermal conductivity, and turbulence are accounted for. It is shown that the transition of the kinetic energy of gas into thermal energy as a result of transfer processes leads to the formation of hot spots in the boundary layers near the walls of the chamber. The gas temperature at these hot spots can exceed the gas combustion temperature, while the gas remains rather cold in the neighboring regions. This could be the reason for the cold gas self-ignition observed in the experiments. The turbulence of the flow and the processes of mixing and diffusion of the components make a significant contribution to the capacity of gas self-ignition.