Eighteenth Symposium (International) on Combustion

THE EFFECT

The Combustion Institute, 1981

OF SWIRL BURNER AERODYNAMICS

FORMATION

ON NO x

T. C. CLAYPOLE AND N. SYRED

Department of Mechanical Engineering and Energy Studies, University College, Newport Road, Cardiff,
CF2 1TA United Kingdom

The problem of pollutant formation in swirling gas flames is a subject of current research
at Cardiff University. This paper concentrates on the influence of the levels of swirl on
the aerodynamics and NO x emissions at a constant load.
Measurements of mean temperature, local velocity and N O - - N O x concentrations were taken
for swirl numbers from .63 to 3.04. From these a net NO~ flow through sections of the
flame were calculated.
The flames have been classified into 4 broad groups dependent on the influence of the
recirculation zone on flame stabilization. These changes in flame type coincide with other
changes in the flow structure, as can be seen from the effects on the precessing vortex
core. A model based on well stirred and plug flow reactors is proposed for the flows.
The results highlight errors in interpretation that can occur by only considering the
concentration measurements. In order to establish the source of pollutants in a swirl combustor,
it is essential to consider the pollutant mass flow profiles.
The formation of NOx in these flows occur in the flame front. The recirculation zone,
despite its long residence times and moderate temperatures, does not contribute to NO x
formation.

Introduction

Experimental Combustors

A need to preserve the environment has led to

a considerable demand for improvements in methods
of burning fuels. Improvements in the design of
combustors require an increased knowledge of their
dynamics.
When swirl is applied to the combustion air of
a burner, a complex, highly turbulent flow field
is established which produces very stable flames.
Despite the extensive use of swirl in combustors,
there is little information available on its effect on
pollutant formation. The aerodynamics play a major
role in the chemical reactions (and therefore the
pollutant formation) in the flame as they dictate
the rate and conditions under which active species
are brought together.
Recent work at Cardiff has been directed towards
the problem of NO x formation in swirling gas diffusion flames. This paper concentrates on the influence
o f the levels of swirl on the aerodynamics and NOx
emissions at constant load.

The body of the combustor is shown in Fig. 1.

Several outlet geometries were available as well as
a central radial fuel injector. Inserts were used to
increase the tangential momentum of the flow by
reducing the area of the tangential inlets, thus
increasing the swirl. Natural gas (predominantly
methane) was supplied axially to the combustor,
which was operated at a constant input power of
approximately 100 kW. Air, at 10% above that required for a stoichiometric mixture, was supplied
tangentially.
The geometric swirl number Sg was taken as a
non-dimensional measure of the tangential momentum supplied to the flow.
angular momentum flux
Swirl Number S =
r e axial momentum flux
If perfect mixing and conservation of momentum
81

COMBUSTION GENERATED POLLUTION

82

determined using a thermo-electron type IOA chemiluminescent analyser.

The local mean temperatures were obtained by
time averaging the signal from a bare wire platinum/platinum rhodium thermocouple.

~io

Results and Discussion

3-

The flames are classified into 4 broad groups:

a) the flame stabilized in a non-recirculatingjet
b) the flame stabilized in the wake of the recirculation zone
c) the flame stabilized on the boundary of the
recirculation zone

FiG. 1. Outlet geometries and radial gas injector;

Mark II Combustor.

is assumed, then the swirl number can be defined

in terms of the geometry of the combustor.
Sg =

ro II re
At

where

[Tangential Flow T
L

~ ~ w

_]

re = radius of the exits

ro
= radius of tangential inlets from the
centre of the combustor
At = area of the tangential inlets

Experimental Techniques
The instantaneous velocities were measured by
dual beam laser anemometry. As the flame contained
areas of reversed flow direction, in addition to very
high turbulence, it was necessary to use frequency
shift to make the anemometer directionally sensitive.
By rotating the radial diffraction grating I used to
split the input laser beam, a frequency shift is
obtained between the two first order beams used
for the anemometer. The signal, collected from the
forward scattered light, was analysed using a counter
developed at Sheffield University, linked to a PDP
11/03 micro computer. 2
The flame was sampled with an aerodynamically
quenching quartz probe. As the flame temperatures
are relatively low, and in the light of previous work, a
it was felt unnecessary to adopt a more sophisticated
sampling system. The NO, NO~ concentrations were

r
re

Key
Contour
1
2
3
Z.
5

Sg
0.63
0.90
1.26
1.56
3.04

F I G . 2. R e v e r s e f l o w z o n e s .

E F F E C T OF SWIRL BURNER AERODYNAMICS ON NO= FORMATION

, 'f' !l,lo

83

x
re
5

,li
N

', ,

$g =

0.90

re

Stream funct~n

.Temperature [K} Contours

Key
.....
....

u <10%
~( > 9 0 %

Fie. 3. Top 'A' without Injector (Sg = .90).

d) the recirculation zone extending downstream of
the flame.
Type 'a' flames are formed at low flow rates or
swirl numbers. The swirl applied to the inlet air
had comparatively little influence on the flame,
which stabilized on the axial jet of gas as a turbulent
diffusion flame. The flame was long, yellow and
highly luminous, indicating poor mixing. This flow
state occurs before the phenomena of vortex breakclown,4 and the formation of a recirculation zone. 5
These flames were not investigated in depth because
of the minor role of swirl. However, they do highlight
a problem associated with small combustors, which
is that the small size leads to a comparatively low
Reynolds number. If the swirl is not increased to
compensate for this, the vortex breakdown does not
occur, so that in place of a compact flame based
on a strong reeirculation zone, one obtains a long
turbulent diffusion flame with poor mixing.
As the general trends for the outlet geometries
are the same, the other three flame types will be
examined by considering the flame produced by
exit 'A' without a central injector for Sg = .63 to
3"04. The reverse flow zone (henceforth r.f.z) increases in size with Sg, initially in width until at
Sg --- 1.3 it is restricted by the diameter of the outlet.

It then steadily increases in length (Fig. 2). There

is a steady increase in recirculated mass flow from
1% at Sg = .63 to 11% at Sg = 3.04.
A recirculation zone is not formed until Sg =
0.63. This aerodynamic blockage increases the velocities in the exit of the combustor, blowing the
flame downstream until it stabilizes in the wake
of the r.f.z. The flame contains yellow streaks indicating poor mixing despite the turbulence in this
region. This is a type 'b' flame, where the recirculation zone acts in a similar manner to a mechanical
blockage. The axial jet of fuel appears to intermittently penetrate the reverse flow zone. The r.f.z.
was a weak, highly unstable, low temperature structure.
As the level of swirl is increased, the flame then
moves upstream and stabilizes on the recirculation
zone boundary. The forward flow in the exit was
in the form of a highly stable swirling jet: Breakdown
of this jet occurs (at x/r~ = 1.6) accompanied by
a rapid expansion of the mean temperature contours
across the streamlines (Fig. 3) indicating that ignition of the gas occurred in this region. The majority
of the chemical reactions occur in the downstream
end of the recirculation flow.
A stable r.f.z, has also formed which extends into
the combustor (axial directional intermittency, "y >

84

COMBUSTION GENERATED P O L L U T I O N

1.0
/

"

5
x
ce

re

&

//
9

Sg = 1.56
56

' II11,1

4
Stream function
Key
.....

_r
re

Temperature {K ) Contours
~ <10%

> 90%
Fic. 4. Top 'A' without injector (Sg = 1.56).
90%, indicating that the majority of the instantaneous velocity readings were negative). There is little
chemical reaction in this region and it contains
predominantly high temperature exhaust gas. The
contents of the r.f.z, which enters the combustor
diffuse rapidly outwards and mix with the isothermal
flow where they are quenched.
The area of unsteady flow (90% > 7 > 10%)
between the two most stable areas of the flow show
the distortion of the r.f.z, by the passage of a
precessing vortex core (PVC) discussed later. This
broadens the mean temperature gradients between
the high temperature r.f.z, and the isothermal swirling jet.
This is a type 'c' flame. The improved mixing,
particularly in the reaction zones, produces a blue
flame.
Further increasing Sg causes the reaction region
to occupy more of the recirculation zone. However
at Sg = 1.56, the fluctuating tail of reverse flow
(90% > 7 > 10%) extends beyond the visible flame
front (Fig. 4), and intermittently recirculates lower
temperature burnt gases into the centre of the reaction region, producing a quenching effect. Therefore, this is a type 'd' flame.
There is still some ignition of the gases in the
well stirred region where the swirling jet breaks

down forming an area of high turbulence. However,

the flow of hot active species around the eye of
the recirculation zone plays an increasingly important role in the flame stabilization mechanism.
These trends continue with increasing swirl. At
Sg = 3.04, there is considerable quenching in the
centre of the flame. The chemical reactions occur
predominantly around the eye of the recirculation
zone and also there is some reaction in the r.f.z.
Previous work s has shown that fundamental
changes in the flow structure accompany the changes
in flame type. These manifest as alterations of the
precessing vortex core (PVC)J The PVC occurs after
a r.f.z, has been established and is a vortex which
precesses about the axis of the burner on the boundary of the reverse flow zone. It has also been found
in vortex whistles and cyclone separators. 8 Its role
in the combustor is still uncertain, but it appears
from the water modelling work of Asquith 9 that it
acts as a rapid transport mechanism, transferring
flow from the back wall of the combustor into the
downstream end of the recirculation zone. It also
makes a considerable contribution to the turbulence
in the exit of the combustor. This is particularly
valuable as it increases the mixing in the air-gas
mixture prior to combustion. The feedback control
of the oscillation of the PVC is via the r.f.z.

E F F E C T OF SWIRL BURNER AERODYNAMICS ON NO~ FORMATION

R~iot s~ti~ i,x,f}

Pvlc.

Combustive stole (oxial fuel)

Precessing Vortex Core in Swirl Burner

2.C
Total flow
m3/min
10

NO RF'C or PVC presen~

lt0
210
Geometnc Sw,r~ Number

[]

30
1 PVC

2 PVC

PVC with
I Domlr'cf't
No R.~Z
~r P','C
.~rese~t

~]

FIc. 5. Occurrence of single and double PVC

structures for Top 'A' without injector.

85

With the type 'b' flame, the flow structure is similar

to the isothermal state, the flame being located
primarily downstream of the region where the PVC
is most dominant. However, the frequency of
oscillation is reduced as a result of a change in
the temperature of the r.f.z.
With the type 'c' flame a change in flow structure
has occurred. A second PVC, diametrically opposed
to the first, has formed. The size of this PVC develops
as the level of swirl is increased, until there are
two equal PVC's. This occurs when the type 'd'
flame is present.
The occurrence of these PVC flow structures is
shown in Fig. 5. The discontinuity at Sg = .90 occurs
at the transition region from type 'b' to type 'c'
flames, it corresponds to the onset of a double PVC.
The high levels of turbulence, coherent structures
and time dependent nature of the flow, as well as
high diffusion rates across streamlines render this
type of flow exceedingly difficult to predict. It is
felt that a reasonable approach would be to represent
the major structures in the flow by a series of well
stirred and plug flow regions, as shown schematically in Fig. 6. This is a development of that proposed
in ref. 10 and is derived from as assessment of all
the measurement parameters. The size of the well
stirred reactors and the plug flow increase with the
swirl level. This causes the movement of the reaction
zone as summarised in Table I. Of interest is WSR.3,
which at Sg = .63 is the source of ignition. At Sg
FLOW OUT

WSR 3

r.s

ws,

V,sofhe, , '
mixing
region

WSR 1

I
I

~ -

__<
FLOW IN

KEY:REGION
Mixing Region
WSR1
WSR 2
WSR 3

LOCATION
Forward swirling isothermal iet
Eye of Recirculotion zone
~reokdown region of swirling forward jet
Downstream slognation poinl of r f z

PLF 1
PLF 2

Stable r f z 1~>90%)
Exhaust flow

FIc. 6. a) Flow regions within a swirl combustor; b) Schematic model of swirl combustor.

COMBUSTION GENERATED POLLUTION

86

TABLE I
Roles of p l u g f l o w a n d well stirred r e g i o n s
Sg

.63

.90

1.26

1.56

1.98

3.04

WSR 1

Small. P l a y s little part in

reactions

I n c r e a s i n g in size b u t
still p l a y s little part in
reactions.

I n c r e a s i n g in size. M a i n centre of
c o m b u s t o r reaction

WSR 2

Small. P l a y s little part in

reactions

S o m e reactions

M a i n reaction zone

L e s s reactions in this region. Increasi n g l y s u b j e c t to q u e n c h i n g f r o m

WSR 3

WSR 3

Source o f ignition

M a i n reaction zone

Reaction
occurring
in this region

I n c r e a s i n g in size. R e c i r c u l a t i n g l o w
temperature exhaust gases

PLF 1

Small. U n s t a b l e

I n c r e a s i n g in size a n d
stability. C o n t a i n s h i g h
temp. exhaust gases

I n c r e a s i n g in size. C o n t a i n s s o m e of
t h e reaction

PLF 2

Majority o f c o m b u s t i o n
o c c u r s in this region

C o n t a i n s e x h a u s t gases

re

x/
re

k
/

i j;
10

lo

Sg = 1.56
Sg : .90
I

FIG. 7. N O x c o n c e n t r a t i o n s (p.p.m.) T o p 'A" w i t h o u t injector.

r_
re

EFFECT OF SWIRL BURNER AERODYNAMICS ON NOx FORMATION

Sg
--.----063
1.2
0.90
10
1.26

(rag) 0.8
0.6
0"
0.2
O

x_
re

sg

1.2

9-

156

10

NOx
3.04

(rag) 0.8
0.6
Ol.
02
0

~.

t~

(Air flow = 1550 I/rain , C~s =150 I / rain )

N B Negcltive Net F/ow.s ore o Result Of NO x Bein 9 Prectomn~otly in R ~ Z

Fro. 8. Net NO x flow Vs. x/r, for top 'A'.

/(

1"0

87

= 3.04 when the reaction zone has moved upstream

to WSR.1, WSR.3 becomes the predominant source
of quenching.
The NO x concentrations H (Fig. 7) are typical of
those obtained for type 'c' and 'd' flames, with the
maximum NO~ concentrations located in the r.f.z.
In the type 'b' flame, the peak NO x concentrations
are located within the flame downstream of the r,f.z.
In the type 'b' flame, the peak NOx concentrations
are located within the flame downstream of the r.f.z.
The gas concentrations are not a reliable guide
to the NOx sources. If the mass flow rate is low,
the mass of NO, present will also be low. The local
mass flows were obtained from the mean axial
velocities, temperatures, and species concentrations
and these were combined with the NO x concentrations to obtain the mass flux of NO~. These were
integrated across the flame, taking account of the
flow through each of the transverse sections (Fig.
8), thus enabling the areas where NO~ is formed,
as opposed to where it collects, to be highlighted.
The major area of NO~ formation is the reaction
zone. This is best illustrated by the curve for Sg
= .63 where there is almost a step change in the
NOx flow on passing through the flame front. As
Sg is increased, the reaction zone moves upstream
and with it, the area in w h i c h the NO x is formed.
This can also be seen from the spatial distribution
NO~ mass flow (derived from the integration just
described) (Fig. 9). Since the direction of flow is
taken into account, one can obtain negative NO~
flow lines. NO x is predominantly formed in the

5
re

SQ = 1.56

Sg ~ 0.90
0

___

..s

0
0

re

FIG. 9. Net NO x (rag) contours for Top 'A' without injector.

&
re

88

COMBUSTION GENERATED POLLUTION

reaction zone with negligible formation within the

r.f.z. This also shows the rapid diffusion of the r.f.z.
contents within the combustor as the boundary of
recirculated NO~ extends beyond the zero streamline.
Despite containing high concentrations of NO~
there is little net NO~ flow in the recirculation zone.
The flow inside the recirculation zone is in equilibrium and the concentration is dependent on the
average temperature inside the recirculation zone.
At Sg = 3.04, much of the NO~ in the exhaust
gases is recirculated into the flame front. Reducing
reactions doubtless then occur in this region, lowering the total NO x emissions.~'~3 However, the combustion efficiency is lowered.
The values of maximum NO concentration are
similar to those found by Gupta et al ~2 for a type
'd' flame. They also found that the maximum NO
concentrations were located in the r.f.z.
The spatial distribution of NO given by Sadakata
and Beer ~3 show similarly shaped contours to the
type 'b' flame. However, the maximum concentrations and mean temperatures are higher.
In view of the low flame temperatures (< 1800
K) and the rapid increase of NO~ in the flame fronts,
the NO (the precursor of NO~) is probably generated
by the prompt mechanism.TM This is further supported by considering the mixing of the reactants prior
to combustion. In the type 'b' flame, the mixing
is least effective and leads to local fuel rich zones,
thus giving higher levels of NO than with the type
'c' flame, which has a larger well stirred reactor
zone on the boundary of the recirculation zone. Also
the local temperatures are similar, whereas the
amount of NO~ produced is not.
In view of the difficulties establishing the extent
of NO to NO2 reactions in the probe ~ the results
are for the most part considered in terms of total
NOx. For types 'b' and 'd' flames quenching zones
are found around the r.f.z, within the combustor.
As cooler combustion products are recirculated from
downstream by the r.f.z, with type 'd' flame quenching also occurs in the centre of the flame. High
levels of NO 2 are found in such regions. Moreau
and Borghi ~Bsuggest that despite probe reactions,
measurement of high NO 2 levels do reflect NO to
NO2 reaction in the flames. In view of this, it is
likely that quenching reactions as suggested by Oven
et a l t7 a r e occurring.
The quarl reduced entrainment and enhanced
recirculation, especially at low swirl numbers. A
type 'c' flame occurred at Sg = .63, indicating the
strength of the r.f.z. Although the quarl produces
a most satisfactory flame at low values of Sg when
fired into open environments, as soon as such
burners are fired into furnaces or enclosures, the
effect is drastically altered and a parallel outlet
section is better.
The radial injector had little effect on the mean
properties of the flow, including NO x emissions,

although it did improve stability as a result of its

wake. The fuel injector disturbed the oscillation of
the PVC breaking it into random turbulence as
opposed to the regular signal observed with the other
configurations. This is of advantage in practical
systems, where coupled oscillations can be a major
problem.5

Conclusions
The flames produced by a swirl stabilized combustor, can be grouped into 4 types, dependent on
the influence of the recirculation zone on flame
stabilisation. The changes in flame type also coincide with other changes in flow structure, as can
be seen from the effects on the PVC. Of these, the
type 'c' flame, which produces a well stirred combustion in the recirculation zone, is the most satisfactory.
The most effective way of achieving this type
of flame is the quarl outlet (which enhances recirculation) with Sg = .63 (to minimise pressure losses).
A short parallel section is also essential to produce
a symmetrical flame. The use of a radial fuel injector
disturbs the continuous oscillations of PVC and
transforms it into random turbulence.
A model based on well stirred and plug flow
regions and the complete set of velocity, temperature
and gas concentration measurements, has been
proposed for the flow with combustion.
The NO~ concentration contours are similar to
those found by others. However, the results highlight
the errors in interpretation that can occur by only
considering the concentration measurements. In
view of this, it is felt that to establish the source
of pollutants in swirl combustor, it is essential to
consider the pollutant mass flow profiles.
The formation of NO x in this highly turbulent
combustion system is predominantly in the flame
front. The highest NO x output is with the turbulent
diffusion flame, type 'b' stabilised in the wake of
the recirculation zone. Although the results have
been presented primarily in terms of NOx, it should
be appreciated that NO is the main precursor of
NOx and that the rate of formation of NO is the
major influence on the amount of NO~ formed.
The moderate flame temperatures and the rapid
formation of NO, indicate that the NO is formed
via the 'prompt' mechanism. The reduction in NO,
NOx emissions by the change from a type 'b' to
a type 'c' is probably a result of better mixing prior
to combustion with the latter flame. This tends to
eliminate local imbalances of reactants which produce fuel rich regions of combustion.
The recirculation zone, despite elevated temperatures, does not appear to play a major role in the
formation of NO~. Although NO~ concentrations are
high and related to mean temperature, little, if any,

E F F E C T O F SWIRL BURNER AERODYNAMICS ON NO x FORMATION

NO~ is formed in this area of the flow.
Although local NO~ levels can be enhanced by
probe reactions, the high levels measured indicate
that a NO to NO~ reaction is likely to be occurring
in the flame.

8. SYRED,N. ANDBEEn, J. M. 'Combustion in swirl-

9.

Acknowledgments

10.

The authors wish to acknowledge the financial

support of the Science Research Council for this
work.

11.

REFERENCES
1. WmLEY, G. 'The application of radial diffraction
gratings to laser anemometry'. AERE Report
R7886 1974, Harwell, UK.
2. NAIIM, S. 'An aerodynamic study of cyclonic
combustion with gaseous fuel'. Ph.D. Thesis,
University College Cardiff.
3. VINCE, I. M. 'Nitric oxide formation in flames'.
Ph.D. Thesis, Sheffield University UK, 1978.
4. SASPKAYA,T. 'An experimental investigation of
the vortex breakdown phenomena', US Naval
Postgraduate School. (NPS 59SL0071A) July
1970.
5. LtmCKEL,W. ANDFR1CHER, N. 'The characteristics
of swirl stabilised natural gas flames. Part 1:
Different flame types and their relation to flow
and mixing patterns', J. Inst. Fuel, June 1976.
pp. 103-112.
6. CLAyPOLE, T. C. AND SYRED, N. 'Coherent structures in swirl generators and combustors'. Paper
to be presented at ASME Fluids Engineering
Winter Annual Meeting 1980.
7. SrP,ED, N. AND BEEa, J. M. 'Effect of combustion
upon precessing vortex cores generated by swirl
combustors'. Proc. 14th Symposium (International) on Combustion 1972. pp. 537-550.

89

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

ing flows. A review'. Combustion and Flame

22, pp. 143-201 (1974).
ASQUITH,R. W. 'Performance and characteristics
of vortex flow controllers'. Ph.D. Thesis, Sheffield University UK, 1974.
CLAyPOLE,T. C. AND SYRED, N. 'NO x formation
in swirl stabilised combustors'. To be presented
at the 1980 Italian Flame Days, June 1980,
Milano Marrittima, Italy.
POMEROY, E. 'The chemistry of a swirl burner'.
Final Year Project no. 565, 1980, University
College Cardiff.
GUPTA,A. K., SYnED, N. ANDBEER, J. M. 'Fluctuating temperature a n d pressure effects on the noise
output of swirl burners'. Proc. 15th Symposium
(International) on Combustion 1974, pp. 13671377.
SADAaATA,M. ANDBEER, J. M. "Spatial distribution
of nitric oxide formation rates in a swirling
turbulent methane-air flame'. Proc. 16th
Symposium (International) on Combustion
1976, pp. 93-103.
FENIMORE,C. P. Proc. 13th Symposium (International) on Combustion 1971, pp. 375-380.
JOHNSON, G. M., SMITH, M. Y. AND MULCAHY, M.
F. R. "The presence of NO 2 in premixed flame'.
Proc. 17th Symposium (International) on Combustion, 1978, pp. 647-660.
MOREAU, P. AND BOBGHI, R. 'Experimental and
theoretical studies of nitrogen oxide--production in a turbulent premixed flame'. AIAA 18th
Aerospace Sciences Meeting, Pasadena, 1980,
AIAA-80-0078.
OVEN, J. J., McLEAN, W. J. AND GOOLOIN, F. C.
' N O - - N O 2 measurements in a methane fuelled
swirl stabilised combustor'. Paper presented at
Combustion Institute Central States Spring
technical meeting, Cleveland, Ohio, March
1977.