Ignition and subsequent flame spread over a thin cellulosic material

Both ignition and flame spread on solid fuels are processes that not only are of considerable scientific interest but that also have important fire safety applications. Both types of processes, ignition and flame spread, are complicated by strong coupling between chemical reactions and transport processes, not only in the gas phase but also in the condensed phase. In most previous studies, ignition and flame spread were studied separately with the result that there has been little understanding of the transition from ignition to flame spread. In fire safety applications this transition is crucial to determine whether a fire will be limited to a localized, temporary burn or will transition into a growth mode with a potential to become a large fire. In order to understand this transition, the transient mechanisms of ignition and subsequent flame spread must be studied. However, there have been no definitive experimental or modeling studies, because of the complexity of the flow motion generated by buoyancy near the heated sample surface. One must solve the full Navier-Stokes equations over an extended region to represent accurately the highly unstable buoyant plume and entrainment of surrounding gas from far away. In order to avoid the complicated nature of the starting plume problem under normal gravity, previous detailed radiative ignition models were assumed to be one-dimensional or were applied at a stagnation point. Thus, these models cannot be extended to include the transition to flame spread. The mismatch between experimental and calculated geometries means that theories cannot be compared directly with experimental results in normal gravity. To overcome the above difficulty, theoretical results obtained without buoyancy can be directly compared with experimental data measured in a microgravity environment. Thus, the objective of this study is to develop a theoretical model for ignition and the transition to flame spread and to make predictions using the thermal and chemical characteristics of a cellulosic material which are measured in normal gravity

Spin dependence in the pp-wave resonance of 139La⃗+n⃗{^{139}\vec{\rm{La}}+\vec{n}}

We measured the spin dependence in a neutron-induced $p$-wave resonance by using a polarized epithermal neutron beam and a polarized nuclear target. Our study focuses on the 0.75~eV $p$-wave resonance state of $^{139}$La+$n$, where largely enhanced parity violation has been observed. We determined the partial neutron width of the $p$-wave resonance by measuring the spin dependence of the neutron absorption cross section between polarized $^{139}\rm{La}$ and polarized neutrons. Our findings serve as a foundation for the quantitative study of the enhancement effect of the discrete symmetry violations caused by mixing between partial amplitudes in the compound nuclei

Reynolds number effect on the turbulent mixing; numerical studies using DNS with adaptive mesh refinement

Mixing processes in turbulent fluid motion are of fundamental interest in many situations in engineering practice. Due to its practical importance in a vast number of applications, the geometric configuration of the jet in cross-flow has been studied extensively in the past years. Recently the question has received significant attention, whether the unsteady behavior of the jet in cross flow can e influenced by either active or passive means in order to control and enhance mixing process. In the present study we use the direct numerical simulation (DNS) approach along with an adaptive mesh refinement technique to investigate the Reynolds number effect on the mixing process. The numerical computations are carried out for three different Reynolds numbers, Re = 3.17×103, Re = 6.34×103 and Re = 9.51×103. The study shows that the Reynolds number plays a key role in the mixing process in the way that the mixing increases with the Reynolds number. © 2011 by Marcel Ilie

Dynamics of the flowfield generated by the interaction of twin inclined jets of variable temperatures with an oncoming crossflow

International audienceThe present paper examines the common configuration of ``twin inclined jets in crossflow'' that is widely present in several industrial and academic, small and large-scale applications. It is particularly found in aerodynamic and engineering applications like VTOL aircrafts, the combustion mixing process and other chemical chambers. It can also be found in some domestic applications like chimney stacks or water discharge piping systems in rivers and seas. The twin jets considered in this work are elliptic as inclined with a 60A degrees angle and arranged inline with the oncoming crossflow according to a jet spacing of three diameters. They are examined experimentally in a wind tunnel. The corresponding data is tracked by means of the particle image velocimetry technique in order to obtain the different instantaneous and mean dynamic features (different velocity components, vortices, etc.). The same case is numerically reproduced by the resolution of the Navier-Stokes equations by means of the finite volume method together with the Reynolds stress model second order turbulent closure model. A non-uniform mesh system tightened close to the emitting nozzles is also adopted. The comparison of the measured and calculated data gave a satisfying agreement. Further assumptions are adopted later in order to improve the examined configuration: a non-reactive fume is injected within the discharged jets and the jets' temperature is varied with reference to a constant mainstream temperature. Our aim is to evaluate precisely the impact of this temperature difference on the flow field, particularly on the dynamics of the jets in a crossflow. This parameter, namely the temperature difference, proved mainly to accelerate the discharged jet plumes in the direction of the main flow, which enhanced the mixing, particularly in the longitudinal direction. The mixing in the other directions was also increased due to the weaker density of the jets, which enabled them to progress relatively unhindered before undergoing the impact of the crossflow