The NRC Aerospace Research Centre has a multitude of Combustion and spray test facilities to support the research, testing and validation of low-emissions, fuel-flexible combustion systems, as well as fuel spray nozzles and injectors at realistic high-pressure conditions.
High-pressure combustion test cells
| Maximum Capacity | Instrumentation | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air flowrate | Air pressure, absolute |
Rig air temperature | Natural gas | Liquid fuels (Jet A-1, Diesel, other) | ||
| TC 1 | 21.5 kg/s (47.5 lb/s) |
2170 kPA (315 psi) |
922 K (1200 °F) |
0.68 kg/s (1.5 lb/s) |
0.77 kg/s (1.7 lb/s) |
Pressure sensors, thermocouples, strain gauges, noise, flow meters, Emission analyzers |
| TC 2 | 24 kg/s (53 lb/s) |
2170 kPA (315 psi) |
922 K (1200 °F) |
0.68 kg/s (1.5 lb/s) |
1.36 kg/s (3.0 lb/s) |
Pressure sensors, thermocouples, strain gauges, noise, flow meters, Emission analyzers |
| TC 3 | 6.4 kg/s (14 lb/s) |
1930 kPA (280 psi) |
922 K (1200 °F) |
0.34 kg/s (0.75 lb/s) |
0.25 kg/s (0.57 lb/s) |
Pressure sensors, thermocouples, strain gauges, noise, flow meters, Emission analyzers |
TC 1
TC 3
Specialized spray facilities
| Capacity | Fuels | Other | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel flowrate | Rig pressure, absolute |
Air flow rate | Fuel temperature | |||
| High pressure spray facility (HPSF) | 205 kg/hr (452 lb/hr) |
2068 kPa (300 psi) |
4.5 kg/s (10 lb/s) |
Ambient | Mil-C | See Non-intrusive optical diagnostics below |
| Atmospheric pressure spray facility (APSF) | 68 kg/hr (150 lb/hr) |
Ambient | 0.23 kg/s (0.5 lb/s) |
Ambient | Mil-C | |
| Optically accessible single injector system (OASIS) facility | 68 kg/hr (150 lb/hr) |
1034 kPa (150 psi) |
0.14 kg/s (0.3 lb/s) |
588 K (599 °F) |
Jet-A, Diesel and various biofuels | |
High-Pressure Spray Facility (HPSF)
Optically Accessible Single Injector System (OASIS) Facility
Low-pressure Optically-Accessible Combustion Rig (LOACR)
| Capacity | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Air flow rate | Air pressure | NG flow rate | |
| 18 lb/min | 120 psi | 2 lb/min | High temperature air will be available in 2014/15. |
Low-pressure Optically-Accessible Combustion Rig (LOACR)
Optically Accessible Combustion Rig (OACR)
High-pressure Optically Accessible Combustion Rig modular construction facilities housing a variety of combustion hardware with diameter up to 45 cm (18 inch) and length up to 120 cm (47 inch). Five-way optical access is suitable to cater to any state-of-the-art laser based combustion and fuel diagnostics.
| Capacity | Fuels | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air flow rate | Rig pressure, absolute |
Air temperature | ||
| Main air | 14.5 kg/s (32 lb/s) |
2068 kPa (300 psi) |
922 K (1200 °F) |
Designed for various liquid and gaseous fuels |
| Cooling air | 6.6 kg/s (14 lb/s) |
2068 kPa (300 psi) |
Ambient | |
High-pressure optically accessible combustion rig (OACR)
Emissions control and measurement
Online equipment to analyze exhaust gases including O2, CO2, CO, NOx and unburned hydrocarbons
| Species | Analyzer | Potential Ranges | Instrument Specification for Repeatability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carbon Monoxide (CO) | Rosemount Analytical NGA 2000 NDIR | min: 0-100 ppm; max: 0-3000 ppm |
+/- 1% FS |
| Carbon Monoxide (CO) | Rosemount Analytical MLT ULCO NDIR | min: 0-10 ppm; max: 0-2500 ppm |
+/- 1% FS (for ranges > 20 ppm) |
| Carbon Monoxide (CO) | Rosemount Analytical 880A NDIR | min: 0-1%; max: 0-12% |
+/- 1% FS |
| Carbon Dioxide (CO2) | Rosemount Analytical NGA 2000 NDIR | min: 0-2%; max: 0-20% |
+/- 1% FS |
| Oxygen (O2) | Rosemount Analytical NGA 2000 Paramagnetic | min: 0-1%; max: 0-25% |
+/- 1% FS |
| Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) | Rosemount Analytical NGA 2000 WCLD | min: 0-10 ppm; max: 0-1000 ppm |
+/- 0.5% FS |
| Unburned Hydrocarbons (UHC) | Rosemount Analytical NGA 2000 HFID | min: 0-10 ppm; max: 0-10000 ppm |
+/- 1% FS |
Non-intrusive optical diagnostics
Laser Sheet Dropsizing (LSD) using ND:YAG lasers in the UV wavelength.
- Planar Laser Induced Fluorescence (PLIF) for quantitative planar measurement of fuel fraction using acetone as a marker.
- Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) for planar 2D and 3D velocity measurements
- Laser Sheet Dropsizing (LSD) for planar droplet visualization and sizing
- Phase Doppler Particle Analyzer for spatially resolved measurements of drop diameter (0.5 to 800 μm) and particle velocity (to 1,000 m/s, 2D correlated)
- Malvern Laser Diffraction Particle Analyzer for spray particles and droplet size distribution measurement in real-time (0.1 to 2000 microns)
Other measurement capabilities
Available experimental techniques include temperature and multi-hole pressure probe measurements; multi-wire, hot-wire, and surface-mounted hot-film measurements; schlieren flow visualization; 2D and 3D particle image velocimetry; PDPA; PLIF; surface temperature measurement with liquid crystals; and surface pressure measurement with pressure sensitive paint. Data acquisition and control systems are developed in-house.
Full instrumentation for measuring and recording gas and liquid temperatures, pressures and flow rates, wall temperatures, and combustor exit gas temperatures and gas composition profiles, using water-cooled rakes.