Dynamic simulation of liquefied petroleum gas vaporisation for burners

This study numerically describes the transient behaviours of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) natural vaporisation in a cylinder using an experimentally validated model. The model can be applied to easily predict transient compositions and thermophysical properties during the vaporisation process under various conditions. A simple graphical design procedure is presented to determine the Wobbe Index and the corresponding composition as design references for gas burners to avoid incomplete combustions. The effects of initial composition, surrounding temperature and discharge rate of LPG on both the LPG natural vaporisation and the residue amount in the cylinder are simulated and investigated. The results demonstrate that the present work may serve as a useful tool to evaluate the LPG behaviours throughout the vaporisation, design or retrofit gas burners, and predict the unburned residue.