A rapid compression machine study of the oxidation of propane in the negative temperature coefficient regime

The oxidation of propane has been studied in the temperature range 680–970 K at compressed gas pressures of 21, 27, and 37 atm and at varying equivalence ratios of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0. These data are consistent with other experiments presented in the literature for alkane fuels in that, when ignition delay times are plotted as a function of temperature, a characteristic negative coefficient behavior is observed. In addition, these data were simulated using a detailed chemical kinetic model. It was found that qualitatively the model correctly simulated the effect of change in equivalence ratio and pressure, predicting that fuel-rich, high-pressure mixtures ignite fastest, while fuel-lean, low-pressure mixtures ignite slowest. Moreover, reactivity as a function of temperature is well captured, with the model predicting negative temperature coefficient behavior similar to the experiments. Quantitatively the model is faster than experiment for all mixtures at the lowest temperatures (650–750 K) and is also faster than experiment throughout the entire temperature range for fuel-lean mixtures.