Numerical simulation of TTIP/p-xylene precursor solution spray flames in the counterflow configuration

Abstract

Sprays of precursor solutions are used in flame spray pyrolysis (FSP) to produce functional nanoparticles with specific properties. The present study concerns the precursor titanium(IV) isopropoxide (TTIP) in p-xylene. A dilute monodisperse spray carried by an air stream is directed against an air stream to establish a counterflowing laminar spray flame. The complex thermophysical properties of the bi-component droplets are incorporated into the code as well as the detailed chemical reactions of the system with 213 chemical reactions among 52 species; the chemical reaction mechanism includes thermal decomposition of the TTIP and the combustion of p-xylene. The droplets are modeled using the multicomponent evaporation model. Drag and gravity forces are considered in the equation of droplet motion. Monodisperse spray flame structures are presented depending on the gas strain rate, the initial droplet size, the precursor mass loading as well as the equivalence ratio. The preferential evaporation of the more volatile p-xylene provides the gaseous fuel for combustion, and the thermal decomposition of the precursor TTIP considerably reduces the flame temperature.

Keywords

• Precursor solution
• TTIP/p-xylene
• Multicomponent droplets
• Laminar spray combustion
• Counterflow configuration