SOOT AND PAH PRODUCTION FROM SPRAY COMBUSTION OF DIFFERENT HYDROCARBONS BEHIND REFLECTED SHOCK-WAVES

The combustion/pyrolysis of three chemically different hydrocarbons, t oluene, n-heptane, and propanol-1, has been investigated in reflected shock waves. The formation of soot and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon s (PAHs) has been studied, and the factors which influence the product ion of these compounds during liquid spray combustion have also been i nvestigated at temperatures between 1000 and 3000 K and pressures of 2 -25 bar. The results indicate that formation of soot and PAH is signif icantly dependent on the chemical properties of fuel, temperature, and oxygen concentration, but the pressure dependence is found to be mini mal in the pressure range less than 25 bar. The results are instrument al in adding to our understanding of the soot and PAH formation chemis try. (C) 1998 by The Combustion Institute.