Experimental investigation of a single trapped-vortex combustor with a slight temperature raise

The performance of an annular slight temperature-raise single trapped vortex combustor was experimentally investigated in simulation conditions. The slight temperature-raise TVC, consisting of an inlet rig, an outlet rig, and a cavity, was placed coaxially outside of the combustor liner. Liquid fuel and hot air were premixed, and then injected from the inner face of an afterbody. The evaluation performed on the slight temperature-raise single trapped vortex combustor involved ignition, lean blow out, emissions, efficiency, exit temperature profile, and combustor liner temperatures. The Mach numbers of main air were between 0.3 and 0.6, the air flow rates into the cavity were 15–150 g/s, and fuel/air mixtures with a temperature of 293, 423, and 573 K, were tested. As a result, for a temperature raise of 100–200 K, stable combustion was achieved at a high Mach number of main air, as well as at low blowout limit for fuel air ratio (as low as 0.002). The combustion efficiency obtained was above 96% in most conditions, the ignition overall fuel air ratio was about 0.0054, and the NOx emission was less than 20 ppm (15% oxygen).