Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

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Fuel
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/fuel

Characterization of PF ames under different swirl conditions based

on visualization systems
A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado , A. Gil, B. Pea
Centre of Research for Energy Resources and Consumption (CIRCE), C/Mariano Esquillor Gmez, 15, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain

h i g h l i g h t s
 Inuence of swirl number on different combustion ames has been studied in detail.
 Flame luminous information is captured by means of a CCD based visualization system.
 Relevant variations concerning dynamical and physical ame features are presented.
 Spatialtemporal characterization of ames highlights the effect of swirl increase.
 A new approach to frequency analysis of semi-industrial PF ames is performed.

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 30 September 2012
Received in revised form 5 December 2012
Accepted 23 May 2013
Available online 11 June 2013
Keywords:
Swirl
Image processing
CCD camera
Pulverized coal
Gas ame

a b s t r a c t
The complex phenomena underlying reacting ows are at present an active research topic for improving
efciency and control of industrial combustion processes. The present study assesses the use of a reliable
and low cost visualization system based on CCD (charged couple device) technology for the identication
of different ame states as a function of swirl number. The experiments were performed in a 500 kWth
pulverized coal (PF) swirl burner. The visualization system was previously used for similar analysis of
an atmospheric gas swirl burner of 50 kWth. Both ames were analyzed under low and high swirl conditions in order to identify possible common features concerning swirl ames. The analysis procedure proposed in this work extracts different statistical and spectral parameters from the intensity of radiation
stored by each CCD element. The representation of ame features as two-dimensional distributions
has led to the identication of typical structures in swirl ows and has allowed us to detect changes
in ame structure as swirl number increases. Besides, the quantication of aforementioned parameters
has led to relevant ndings concerning frequency analysis and ame stability as a function of swirl. Specically, results show that the characteristic frequency in terms of ame icker is sensible to changes in
swirl conditions.
2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Pulverized fuel (PF) ames from swirl burners involve many
inuential variables and exhibit large spatial and temporal variations in ow dynamics and heat release. In spite of the vast amount
of related literature, the complexity of reacting ows under PF
ames demands a deeper understanding based on reliable experimental data at industrial scale. Among the potential techniques
currently under research, ame visualization-based systems provide a non-intrusive alternative for the analysis of ame structure.
In this context, advanced technologies such as Particle Image
Velocimetry (PIV) or Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) have been
widely used in recent years [14]. These laser-based diagnostic
Corresponding author. Tel.: +34 976 762 562; fax: +34 976 762 616.
E-mail address: anagc@unizar.es (A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado).
0016-2361/$ - see front matter 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2013.05.077

methods provide very accurate information from the ame in

terms of its internal structure, ow oscillations or associated instabilities. Nevertheless, their applicability is mainly restricted to very
particular environments: free of soot, with no presence of multicomponent fuels or multiple phases and under atmospheric pressure [5]. In addition to this, large physical scales and the consequent reduced optical access to the ame, make very difcult
their practical implementation on industrial combustion systems.
There are numerous experimental analyses of gaseous swirl
ames that usually include reactive conditions and that lead to
the spatial characterization of ames. Table 1 includes a summary
of these experiences indicating remarkable details and measurements performed in each case. However, literature concerning
experimental analysis of pulverized fuel ames including reactive
conditions and leading to spatial characterization is limited to a
few studies [6,7].

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A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

Nomenclature
CCD
D
f
HSB
IRZ
LDA
LPP
LSB
L
PF
PLIF
PVC
Q

charged couple device

nozzle diameter (m)
characteristic frequency (Hz)
high swirl burner
internal recirculation zone
laser doppler anemometry
lean premixed prevaporized
low swirl burner
characteristic length (m)
pulverized fuel
planar laser induced uorescence
precessing vortex core
volumetric ow rate (m3/s)

Re
S-PIV
Sg,s
St
St
V

a
l
/

CCD based visualization systems offer a cost-effective alternative for monitoring and characterization of combustion ames given its robustness and simplicity of design [8,9]. Different studies
performed through this techniques have provided valuable information concerning ame temperature and emissivity [1012], soot
concentration [13,14] or quantitative measurements of radical
emissions [15]. Vision-based techniques have been also used for
the analysis and assessment of biomass co-ring at industrial
scales [9,16] nding interesting results that suggest different impacts on ame characteristics.
The present experimental work deals with the challenge to obtain a better understanding of strongly radiating turbulent and
reacting ows from the images acquired with a high speed CCD

_ plD
Reynolds number: Re 4m=
stereo particle image velocimetry
geometric secondary swirl: Sg,s = 2/3  tan a
Strouhal number: St = (f  L)/V
alternative Strouhal number, frequency parameter:
St  f  D3e =Q
uid velocity (m/s)
vane angle
dynamic viscosity at ambient temperature (kg/m s)
airfuel ratio

camera. Specically, the effect of changes in swirl number is investigated in two different ames. On the one hand, the visualization
system is used in a laboratory scale atmospheric gas ame, being
the results physically interpretable from comparison with PIV
measures. On the other hand, the procedure is applied to a semiindustrial scale burner of pulverized fuel, involving a participating
media and a more complicated ow dynamics.
Both facilities and the visualization system are described in Section 2. A ame visualization system based on a high-speed CCD
camera was used to capture the image sequences containing the
spatialtemporal luminous information from the ame. After a
suitable digital image processing, different ame features are obtained in terms of statistical and spectral parameters. Results are

Table 1
Summary of experimental analysis performed in swirl ames using advanced technologies.
Ref.

Fuel

React.

Technology

Burner

Conditions

Measurements

[1]
[2]
[3]

Propane

Yes
No
No

S-PIV
LDA,acoustic
LDA, ow visualization

atmosph. LPP
vortex burner
Front wall (scale 1/10)

Low/high S
Re = 15,000; S = 1.01
Diff. congurations

[4]

N.g.

yes

PIV, LDA, photography

S = 0.82;20 kW

[38]

Methane

Yes

[39]

Methane

Yes

S-PIV, PLIF, Rayleigh

scattering
PIV, OH-PLIF imaging

Lean non-premixed swirlstabilized

Stratied premix.
turbulent LSB
Premix. turbulent LSB

Velocities, frequencies, ow structures, vorticity

Velocities, ow structures
Interaction swirling jets, ow visualization,
velocities
Two injection topologies, velocities,
temperatures
Velocities, temperatures, fuel distribution

[40]

Methane

Yes

S-PIV, OH-PLIF

[41]

N.g.

Yes

[42]

Yes

[6]

Gas
(unspecif.)

No

10.3 kW; / = 0.75; S = 0.55;

Re = 15,000
a = 45, diff. operation
pressures
2740 kW;Re = 20,000
30,000; S = 0.5; / = 0.62
S = 0.3440.410

[37]

Propane

Yes

CH-chemiluminiscence,
photography, acoustic
PIV, OH-PLIF, Rayleigh
thermometry
Hot-lm sensor,
visualization
LDA,high speed

Gas turbine model

combustor
Premix. swirler injector

[43]

No

[44]

Methane

Yes

[45]
[46]

N.g.
Methane

Yes
Yes

[47]

Methane

Yes

[48]

Gas
(unspecif.)
Gas
(unspecif.)
Coal

Yes

[49]
[7]

No
Yes

LDA, high-speed lming,

acoustic
LDA,OH-PLIF, Raman
scatt., chemilm.
OH-PLIF, PIV, Raman spect.
LDA, OH/CH-PLIF, Raman
scatt.
LDA, CH-PLIF, Raman scatt.
Photography, emission
spect.
PIV, hot-wire anem., highspeed photo
PIV, LES

LSB
Coal burner

2740 kW; / = 0.62

Re = 77221; / = 0.7

Velocities, OH concentration, ame fronts,

structures
Velocity elds,ame structures
Combust. instabilities,oscillations, CH
concentrations
Velocities, vorticity, temperature
Flow visualization, fractal dimension,turbulence

Premix. atmosph. camera,

acoustic, chemilm.
Changeable blade swirler

S = 01.5

Frequency analysis

Re = 16,000; S = 1

Velocities, structures, frequencies

Lean premix.

2530 kW; / = 0.70.83

Lean premixed
Gas turbine model
combustor
Gas turbine combustor

Different pressures
7.634.9 kW

Velocities, OH concentration, temperature,

instabilities
Velocity elds, OH concentration
Flow elds

Re = 750060,000;
S = 0.550.9
a = 3065

Flow eld, species and temperature

measurements, visualization of reaction zones
Species distribution,structure

Re = 570061,000; S = 0.6
3.7; conned/unconf.
S = 0.91

Structure, PVC, IRZ dependency with geometric

and ow features
Velocities,species concentration,temperature,
PIVLES comparison

Lean direct injection

Lean swirl
Swirl coal burner

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A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

Fig. 1. Atmospheric gas swirl burner (courtesy of M. Legrand). (a) Real image and (b) scheme of the top and front view of the burner geometry [1]. Dimensions are in mm.

presented either spatially or as quantitative data depending on the

analysis procedure.
Section 3 briey denes the processing procedure and the corresponding outcomes which are later interpreted as ame parameters. Section 4 presents the results concerning the two ames and
discussion of their main ndings. The conclusions and perspectives
are nally summarized in Section 5.

2. Experimental setup
Two different experimental facilities were used for the study. In
a rst stage, a laboratory premixed gas swirl burner (50 kWth) was
used. The purpose was to characterize the ame and establish the
basis for the subsequent analysis of a 500 kWth PF ame, where the

visualization of the whole ame was not possible. This enables

swirl ame comparison at very different scales, providing useful
information to complement the current analysis as a tool for the
identication of swirled ame features.

2.1. Test rigs

The laboratory scale facility comprising the gas burner belongs
to the Thermal Engineering, Energy and Atmosphere (ITEA) group
from Carlos III University, Spain. The atmospheric burner was designed to study swirl ames by means of visual analysis. Accordingly, its geometry allows good optical access to the whole ame.
Fig. 1 shows the geometry and dimensions of the burner. The main
body corresponds to a cylindrical plenum and two coaxial central

Fig. 2. Experimental test facility: 500 kWth PF swirl burner.

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Table 2
Camera specications.

Table 3
Fuel characterization.

Parameter
Active area (mm)
Active pixels
Signal/noise ratio
Electronic shutter
Operating temperature
Dimensions (H  W  L)
Spectral range
Max. Spectral response
Focal length

Coal
6.4 (h)  4.8 (v)
659 (h)  494 (v)
>50 dB (0 dB gain)
1/10,000 s
5 C to +45 C
Head 17  46 mm (  D)
CCU 44  29  66 mm
4001000 nm
500 nm
7 mm

pipes ending with a nozzle of 26 mm diameter. Two symmetrical

opposite pipes with tangential outlets are used to generate the
swirl motion. The radial distance of these two pipes can be adjusted to control the swirl level. An air-propane ow is premixed
and then fed into the burner. Further details about burner geometry and design can be found in Refs. [1,17].
Pulverized coal combustion experiments were performed in a
500 kWth test facility (Fig. 2). It consists of a downward oriented
swirl burner dedicated to pulverized fuels (mainly biomass and
coal) [18]. The premixed burner has two coaxial injectors for primary and secondary air, a refractory quarl to promote ame stability an a cylindrical combustion chamber of 3 m long and 1 m of
internal diameter. Different ports along the furnace are available
for probe installation. Additionally the facility is fully instrumented
and monitored through and advanced control and data acquisition
system. Coal is introduced with primary air by the inner duct of the
burner and is swirled by a volute. With regard to secondary air, a
movable-vane swirler mechanism provides the rotational motion
to the air ow. The swirl number is controlled with high precission
by adjusting the vanes angle (a). The geometric swirl number definition is given by this expression Sg,s = 2/3  tan a. Secondary air is
preheated up to 250 C with an additional natural gas burner in order to enhance combustion efciency. A multifuel feeding system
provides the on-line regulation of the real mass ow of fuels. Pollutant emissions are measured at stack using a complete analyzer
system with gas sampling, sample conditioning, analyzer and system control units. The set of standard analyzers are composed of
NDIR (Non-dispersive Infrared) absorption photometers and electrochemical sensor for O2. Further details can be found on Refs.
[19,20].

2.2. Visualization system

The ame monitoring system, based on a CCD (charged coupled
device) camera was designed for the visualization of combustion
ames in both, atmospheric and highly conned enclosures [21].
The harsh environment during tests in the PF facility and the small
dimensions of the inspection ports determined the nal design of
the probe. On the one hand, the system relies on a 17 mm remote
head, located at the end of the probe, which accommodates the active sensor and is tted to an optical assembly. On the other hand,
a protective system keeps low work temperatures and good lens
conditions. It consists of a cylindrical water-cooled jacket made
of stainless steel with a purgue of air and dimensions: 680 mm
long and 35 mm outer diameter. This probe is inserted in one of
the inspection ports near the burner throat. This arrangement provides a suitable ame view area of 315 mm (h)  230 mm (v),
approximately.
As regards camera specications its main characteristics are
listed in Table 2. It achieves a high-speed frame rate of 120 frames/
s (fps) which allows a suitable frequency analysis [22].

Moisture (as received,%wb)

Proximate analysis (%d.b)
Ash
Volatile matter
Fixed carbon
Ultimate analysis (%d.b)
Carbon
Hydrogen
Nitrogen
Sulfur
HHV (MJ/kg), (d.b)
Mean particle diameter (mm)

2.30
14.60
26.00
57.10
69.60
4.00
2.05
0.50
27.80
0.045

A full characterization stage was reported in a previous work

(Ref. [20]) but it is briey presented here. This reduces the distortion in the acquired ame images caused by thermal uctuation or
electronic noise from the system which could lead to misinterpretations. Following parameters were dened and quantied: nonuniform responsivity, instrumental background, noise ratio and
saturation equivalent exposure [21]. They depend on the CCD sensor physical structure and the conversion process into an electrical
signal. Several tests in absence of light were performed in order to
create a master dark frame which was built from the time average
of gray values for each individual pixel. By subtracting this frame to
each image, the systematic error is removed. This is the rst step of
the processing procedure. The global performance parameter for
non-uniformity was quantied as the standard deviation of the
dark frame, being around 2.53%, which is an acceptable gure.
Thermal uctuation and electrical noise under dark conditions
were also estimated for every pixel as the standard deviation composing the time signal (around 1%). Finally, size and distortion of
the visualized area were analyzed through a set of tests performed
on a graph paper uniformly illuminated. The nal resulting images
were scaled using this experimental tting.
2.3. Fuel and experimental program
Tests were rst conducted in the 50 kWth atmospheric swirl
burner. Several air-propane mixtures were premixed and then
burned under high (HSB) and low (LSB) swirl conditions. Swirl
number for the LSB conguration was set around 0.48 while for
HSB it was near 0.6. It was controlled by changing inner/outer ow
ratio. Reynolds conditions (Re), referred to the total mass ow rate,
were similar for both situations (Re = 14,000). CCD camera was located perpendicular to the ame vertical axis to permit a complete
ame view (see Fig. 4a).
Table 4
Summary of main parameters of combustion tests.
Furnace operating conditions
Thermal Power input (kWth)
Coal feed rate (kg/h)
Excess air (%)
Primary air to fuel ratio
Primary air
Flow rate (kg/h)
Temperature (C)
Geometric swirl number
Reynolds number
Secondary air
Flow rate (kg/h)
Temperature (C)
Geometric swirl number (nominal)
Reynolds number
Mean furnace temperature (C)
Swirl numbers (Sg,s)

500
68.4
14.6 1.5
2.3
157.4 0.08
15
1.54
19,144
503.2 12.30
254
0.67
25,800
980 15
0.28; 0.40; 0.67; 0.79; 1.20

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Fig. 3. Outline of the processing procedure leading to different ame characterization.

With regard to experiments performed in the 500 kWth pulverized fuel swirl burner, a wider range of swirl numbers was analyzed, as it is indicated in Table 4. The fuel used in the tests was
a South African coal, with low sulfur content and pulverized to a
mean particle size of 0.045 mm. Ultimate and proximate analyses
are shown in Table 3. According to particle size distribution analysis, 100% of the pulverized coal is under 0.1 mm and 70% under
0.055 mm.
Experimental research at laboratory large scale mainly consist
on combustion tests varying secondary swirl number, while maintaining the other relevant parameters nearly constant (Table 4).
Once steady conditions have been achieved in the combustion
chamber, after a suitable preheating time, secondary swirl number
is progressively modied by adjusting the secondary vane angle
using a vane actuator. Each swirl position is xed during a suitable
time period (not less than 15 min) and an average of 34 videos are
then recorded for each swirl condition. Furnace gas temperature
was around 980 15 C. A slight temperature increase could not
be avoided due to the slow warming of refractory walls.
Although most of the videos were recorded at stable conditions,

Table 5
Flame parameters denition.
Signal
characterization

Statistical/spectral
parameter

Flame brightness

Mean value (
x)

Fluctuation
amplitude
Oscillation
frequency

Standard deviation (r)

Flicker (F)

Mathematical
expression
P

x N1 N
i1 xi

q
P
r N1 Ni1 xi  x2
PN1
jX fk jfk
F Pk0
N1
k0

jX fk j

some ame images were also registered at transition stages, when

swirl conditions were changing (while secondary vanes were in
motion). Transition periods take few minutes until vanes reach
the correct angle. During this interval, the ame is continuously recorded in order to analyze it under variable conditions. Frame rate
(120 fps), electronic shutter (1/10,000), iris aperture and time
duration (42 s) were the same for all the videos.
3. Analysis procedure
Luminous radiation from the ame reaches the CCD sensor and
is converted into an electric charge. The charge from each cell is
transformed into a pixel gray value (ranging from 0 to 255) in
the corresponding image. According to the camera acquisition
speed, 120 images per second (fps) are recorded and transmitted
to the frame grabber installed in the PC, where they are nally
stored. A collection of thousands of images containing the luminous ame information is the basis for the subsequent analysis.
It is made over each video starting with the correction of non-uniformity patterns (Section 2.2) followed by the calculation of the
different ame parameters explained below. The video represents
a three-dimensional matrix of gray values, where two dimensions
correspond to space and the third one to time. Fig. 3 outlines the
two different analyses that can be done as a function of data
selection.
 Spatial analysis: the time signal of each individual pixel is analyzed through statistical and spectral methods. The corresponding results are represented in form of two dimensional spatial
distributions which leads to a qualitative characterization of
the ame area.

A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

803

Fig. 4. Spatial distribution of ame features under low (LSB) and high (HSB) swirl conditions in a 50 kWth propane swirl burner. (a) Snapshots of real images, (b) Mean value
(ame brightness, g.v.), (c) Standard deviation (luminous uctuation amplitude, g.v.) and (d) Flicker (Hz).

 Temporal analysis: gray values contained in each image are

averaged. Therefore just one temporal ame luminous signal
is obtained for each video. From that signal, ame features are
calculated leading to a quantitative estimation of the ame
state.
Statistical and spectral ame parameters linked to geometrical,
luminous and oscillating properties are calculated from the ame

videos using specic processing algorithms [20]. Table 5 shows

the mathematical expression for each parameter considered in
the analysis. All the equations are referred to a base set of gray values (x1 . . . xi . . . xN) which depends on the type of analysis. These
parameters comprise different statistical moments: mean value
and standard deviation, which can be interpreted as the ame
brightness and the amplitude of the ame luminous uctuations,
respectively. Both are expressed in gray units (g.v.) that range from

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Apart from statistical parameters, the Fast Fourier Transform

(FFT) is used to calculate the Power Spectral Density (fk) and an
averaged frequency, called icker (F). This parameter corresponds
to the mean frequency at which the ame uctuates. Those uctuations are caused by the variability of heat release, turbulent mixing and the resulting eddies existing in a combustion ame [24].
Therefore, it can be used as an estimator of different ame condition and combustion efciency [25].
4. Results and discussion

Fig. 5. Averaged gray values (g.v) corresponding to the central axis for both ames,
showing the relative displacement as swirl number is increased.

0 to 255 according to the camera specications. Flame brightness is

usually related to the ame size, the volatile content of the fuel and
the radiation level of chamber walls, when they are present [23]. At
this point, it is important to take into account the existing differences of luminous emission between the gas and the PF ame.
They are later commented in more detail but the main difference
is related to the contribution of particles in the PF ame. Therefore,
the information provided by this parameter cannot be interpreted
in the same way concerning the two ames.

In this section main results regarding both ames are presented

and discussed. It must be noticed that the sources of ame radiation strongly depends on fuel composition and combustion conditions. Consequently, these facts must be taken into account for a
correct interpretation of the ame parameters.
Specically, spontaneous emission of electromagnetic radiation
is derived mainly from solid material (soot, ash, particles), from
some gas molecules (basically CO2 and H2O), due to the high temperature reached in ames, and nally, from several excited species coming from specic chemical reactions [26]. In the PF ame
the contribution of particles represents most of the radiation
reaching the sensor element, while for the gas ame luminous
emission is derived from the other sources. Besides, the connement of the PF ame inuences its structure and behavior [27]
apart from the interference of thermal radiation from furnace walls
and participating media [5].
Therefore, it is important to bear in mind these obvious differences between the two ames which makes that the results cannot

Fig. 6. Comparison of ame front location obtained from different analyses performed in the same burner. (a) PIV measurements (turbulent kinetic energy (m2/s2)) for LSB
and HSB conditions, white lines represent the approximate averaged ame front location [1] and (b) Standard deviation distributions (g.v.) from spatial analysis for LSB and
HSB conditions. Countours of high standard deviation values dene similar ame fronts.

A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

be considered fully comparable. Nevertheless, luminous information from both ames allows a suitable rst-step characterization
in terms of dynamical structure and oscillatory behavior under different swirl conditions.

4.1. Results from atmospheric gas ame

A thorough ame characterization had been performed by
means of Stereo Particle Image Velocimetry (S-PIV) in a previous
work [1]. Low and High Swirl Burner congurations (LSB and
HSB respectively) under isothermal and reactive conditions were
covered in the study. Reactive ow results have been compared
to current analysis in order to improve the interpretation of the
results.
Here, LSB and HSB congurations were tested under reactive
conditions leading to two different ow topologies. Fig. 4 shows
the actual image and the spatial distribution of ame parameters
for both swirl conditions applied to the propane ame. Brightness
distribution (mean gray value) clearly reveals the great difference
in ame shape between high and low swirl conditions (Fig. 4b).
Since the gray level is, in a rough sense, directly related to temperature [12], concentric distribution of brightness levels represents
an approximate map of ame temperatures. Accordingly, the core

805

of this structure represents the more intense combustion zone of

the ame, with recirculation of active species due to the radial adverse pressure gradient generated by swirling ow [28]. Therefore
this area may correspond to the internal recirculation zone (IRZ)
identied in experimental and numerical studies [29,30].
Another typical effect of swirl ames that can be appreciated in
the tests is the attachment of the ame to the burner nozzle when
swirl number is increased [28,31]. Fig. 5 shows graphically this effect. The analysis is applied to Fig. 4b where mean values distribution of both ames (HSB and LSB) is illustrated. AA and BB
sections represent the mean gray values obtained from these
images versus axial dimension, and they correspond to the central
axis of the ame. The relative displacement of the ame front between both swirl conditions can be easily observed and quantied
in approximately 7 mm.
Flow structure produced by swirl burners is characterized by
the presence of strong toroidal recirculation zones which are
mainly responsible of ame stabilization [28,32]. Those zones of
reversal ow have been extensively documented and they are usually represented by spatial distribution of streamlines which are
calculated from measured time-mean velocity distribution (see,
for example Fig.1.2 in Ref. [27]). These lines set constant stream
conditions and show two circular ow structures which produce
the formation of the internal recirculation bubble. Recirculation
patterns created in these areas affect the hot products and species
from chemical reactions which are responsible of luminous emission. Standard deviation of this luminous uctuation along the
ame area is the basis for the current analysis. When it is analyzed,
the resulting spatial distributions (Fig. 4c) show specic circular
zones with constant values indicating the presence of particular
structures similar to those established by theoretical streamlines
which have been also dened for this particular burner [17]. These
results are obtained under different swirl conditions being evident
even with low swirl number. This fact suggests that standard deviation values obtained from spatial analysis are related to the ow
patterns and associated dynamics and highlight the importance of
this parameter as a potential tool for the analysis of ame
structure.
As regards icker distribution, frequency along the two ames
is very different. Under HSB conditions, the ame shows lower
oscillation frequencies than ame under LSB conditions. In both
cases frequency increases in the radial direction, being highest in
the ame visible boundary.
In addition, higher swirl causes an increase of both the width
and length of the ame reverse ow zone, a well-known effect
[28]. In the current analysis, the area of higher brightness also increases in size for higher swirl numbers, as can be shown in Fig. 4b.
In addition, the location of the two toroidal zones changes with increased swirl, standing closer to the nozzle. This effect also indicates the attachment of the ame under HSB conditions.
Finally, comparison between S-PIV measurements under reactive conditions and current results has shown some similarities.
Legrand et al. [1] identied the approximate ame front location
by computation from seeding density gradients (white lines in
Fig. 6a). In the current analysis similar ame front boundaries have
been determined, located by means of standard deviation spatial
distributions. Black lines in Fig. 6b) represent the contour of high
standard deviation values which approximately match with the
ame fronts found by PIV measurements.
4.2. Pulverized coal ame results

Fig. 7. Averaged values of (a) CO, (b) NOx, and (c) SO2 emissions as a function of
swirl number corresponding to pulverized coal combustion tests.

4.2.1. Pollutant emissions

CO, SO2 and NOx emissions trends as a function of swirl number
were analyzed and compared with luminous radiation parameters.
Fig. 7 shows averaged values during the corresponding time period

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A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

Fig. 8. Spatial distribution of ame features under relative low swirl conditions (LSB). All gures correspond to the pulverized coal ame operating under nominal conditions.

as function of swirl. CO emissions were low, showing good combustion performance for all swirl conditions. A slight reduction in
CO concentration with swirl number can be appreciated in
Fig. 7a), although standard deviation greatly increases at the highest swirl number (1.2), which may be attributed to an increase of
ame uctuation amplitude.
NOx emissions trends with swirl strongly reect differences in
mixing patterns. Increase and decrease of NOx with swirl have been
experimentally reported [31]. The NOx reduction at lowto-medium swirl ames is attributed to ame stabilization because
the enhancement of the fuelair mixing process. Under fuel rich
conditions in the near burner region fuel-nitrogen is mostly devolatilized and reacts favoring N2 formation over NOx. Our results
(Fig. 7b) show a NOx decrease starting with the nominal swirl
number with a previous increase for lower values indicating an
improvement in the mixing process [31]. This initial trend might
indicate that mixing of secondary air with volatile products takes
place prior to complete combustion which produces that oxygen
react with the fuel nitrogen to form NO. This could result in a slight
increment of NOx before the mixing improvement.
Finally, SO2 concentration slightly increases with swirl number
(Fig. 7c). As expected, an inverse dependence of SO2 and CO emissions with swirl number can be appreciated in Fig. 7a and c, as SO2
emissions are directly related to fuel sulfur content and combustion completion.
4.2.2. Results from digital analysis
Results from atmospheric swirl ame measurements and emission trends enables more accurate description of PF ame features

without ignoring the existing differences of luminous ame emission between both. It allows the connection between digital results
and the dynamical processes present in swirl ames.
The ve different swirl numbers tested have been arranged
according to high and low swirl conditions. The nominal swirl
number (0.67) divides both groups (LSB and HSB), and is included
in the LSB group. Qualitative results of ame features are presented
below according to this arrangement (Figs. 8 and 9).
Brightness contours (Fig. 8a) show an increase of ame width
and luminous level with the swirl rise. As a consequence of swirl
increase the spreading angle of the ame becomes wider. This effect, that can be observed in current spatial results, is already
known [28] and it has been also experimentally proved under similar conditions [33]. A brighter inner zone is noticeable for the
nominal swirl condition. This might indicate the formation of recirculation ows leading to the internal recirculation zone (IRZ).
Recirculation zones are only formed beyond a critical swirl number
>0.6 [28], which just matchs with the current nominal value
(0.67). This explains why this area does not appear in the ames
with lower swirl conditions. On the contrary, brightness distributions for HSB conditions (Fig. 9a) highlight the presence of this area
also showing the ame widening.
If the area of higher brightness is compared for all the ames
(LSB and HSB), one more feature concerning swirl ames can be
appreciated. According to experimental works [33], the volatile release and particle heating in the IRZ tends to be greater for intermediate swirl values. In this case, ame image corresponding to
nominal swirl conditions (0.67) shows in fact a larger and more
uniform area of maximum brightness (Fig. 8a). Bearing in mind

A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

807

Fig. 9. Spatial distribution of ame features under high swirl conditions (HSB). All gures correspond to the pulverized coal ame operating under nominal conditions.

Fig. 10. Time evolution of some ame features under different swirl conditions during a coal combustion test. Each value is extracted from the averaged luminous ame
signal of the corresponding video.

that volatile release increases ame brightness [16], the current

observation agrees with published results.
With regard to standard deviation distributions for LSB conditions, Fig. 8b shows how the area of higher values enlarges for

higher swirl numbers. According to the results obtained for the

atmospheric gas swirl ame, this feature is linked to ow patterns
and recirculation zones. Therefore, it can be deduced that increasing swirl number produces an increase of recirculation patterns

808

A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

also in the pulverized fuel ame. This result is veried also for HSB
conditions (Fig. 9b). The recirculation zone becomes much more
intense showing an elongation in the left side. Considering the
rounded shape of this new structure, it might correspond to the
swirled secondary air inlet. Intensication of recirculation patterns
consequently involves the improvement of mixing process. This effect agrees with the obtained NOx trend previously discussed.
Distribution of ame icker shows clear differences between
LSB and HSB conditions. For low swirl numbers (0.28 and 0.40),
distribution of averaged frequencies is similar, with a wide zone
of low frequency in the upper central part and a high frequency
band in the right (Fig. 8c). Nevertheless, for higher swirl numbers
the lower frequency zone apparently changes moving towards
the central left side (Fig. 9c). In consequence, higher frequencies
are moved and reallocated to the right and upper part of the ame.
The changes in oscillating frequencies reveals how the inner
dynamical behavior of the ame is altered by changing the swirl
number of secondary air ow.
Finally, some interesting conclusions can be deduced from
quantitative results. The evolution of ame parameters, obtained
from the averaged luminous signal, is measured during the tests.
In the course of transition stages, secondary vane angle is progressively modied according to the procedure detailed in Section 2.3.
In these periods ame stability is expected to be altered. In order to
evaluate the usefulness of ame features in detecting those variations several videos were recorded during these periods. Fig. 10
shows standard deviation and icker values along the different
swirl periods during a combustion test. Each value is derived from
the corresponding video. The evolution of both features clearly
show opposite trends. Additionally, they are notoriously altered
in the transition periods which proves its usefulness detecting
ame variations.
Apparently an increase in swirl number implies wider uctuation of ame luminous radiation and a magnication of low frequencies over the higher. The improvement in mixing patterns as
a result of the swirl rise explains the increment of the uctuation
amplitude. Otherwise, according to specic publications concerning icker measurements in ames [23], icker decrease indicates
that changes in ame geometry prevail over changes of heat release rates.
Another nding derived from temporal analysis is related to the
frequency variation of the luminous ame signal as function of
swirl condition. Frequency analysis concerning both, isothermal
and reacting swirl ow applications provides a suitable tool for
detection of PVC dynamics. Through the calculation of a widely
used dimensionless number, Strouhal number (St), swirling ows

Fig. 11. Frequency parameter (St) versus swirl number obtained from coal
combustion in a PF swirl burner.

are analyzed in terms of their precession frequencies. Theoretical

calculations (usually based on LES) are obtained and contrasted
to experimental measurements in order to validate the numerical
simulations. These are commonly performed by acoustic methods
which provide the characteristic frequency of a certain ow but
they are usually made under non-reactive conditions since the difculties to measure on real combustion ames.
Here,a frequency parameter dened in previous publications
[27,28,32] was calculated using icker as a characteristic frequency. This value is basically another form of Strouhal number
and it is directly derived from it. When Strouhal is applied to a burner, the velocity of the uid is derived from the isothermal burner
ow rate and based on the burner exhaust area. The characteristic
length is the corresponding burner exhaust diameter (De). Therefore, the difference between this parameter and the basis denition
of Strouhal is the term p/4. Many authors have used this alternative form of Strouhal number [3436].It is calculated using the following expression.

St

f  D3e
Q

where f is the characteristic frequency (icker value in this case,

Hz), De is the exit diameter of the burner (m) and Q is the total
air ow rate (m3/s). Fig. 11 shows the resulting trend by calculating
its value for the different frequencies obtained under each swirl
condition, where a parabolic evolution of St versus swirl intensity
is obtained. A total of 16 experimental data support the curve where
each point has been dened from different experiments performed
under similar swirl conditions. Several studies concerning swirling
ows show similar trends even using different frequency data,
which are usually obtained by means of acoustic techniques or
numerical methods [29,37]. This effect has not been studied before
on coal ames at semi-industrial scales due to the complexity of
measurements in these environments. In this sense, our analysis
represents a promising option to further progress in the understanding of pulverized coal ames.
5. Conclusions
An extensive experimental study of different swirl ames has
been performed by means of a CCD based visualization system.
The analysis was focused on a pulverized fuel ame of 500 kWth
under several swirl conditions. Additionally, an atmospheric gas
swirl ame of 50 kWth was also analyzed performing a similar
analysis in order to complement the results and obtain additional
information regarding different swirl ames. In this case, PIV measurements allowed to prove the usefulness of visualization system
to identify the ame dynamical differences when swirl changes.
The spatial characterization of both ames through statistical
and spectral parameters has led to the identication of typical
structures of swirl ames such as recirculation areas and ow patterns. Several differences concerning ame shape or oscillating frequency between low and high swirl conditions were detected. A
clear increase of ame width and spreading angle was noticed
for the coal ame with the swirl rise. Luminous ame intensity
in the inner area of the ame clearly increases from nominal value
and higher swirl numbers. This observation may be related to the
improvement of the mixing patterns as a result of the swirl rise.
The expected increase in recirculation patterns was also identied
through the remarkable variation in standard deviation values
which show a clear increment with the intensication of swirl.
Finally, several parameters from temporal analysis of the luminous ame radiation signal were proved to be potentially useful for
the identication of changes in the luminous ame rate and therefore to diagnose the actual state of the ame in terms of stability.

A. Gonzlez-Cencerrado et al. / Fuel 113 (2013) 798809

A modied Strouhal number has been dened by means of

ame icker, similarly as in the characterization of swirling ows.
From the analysis, an inverse dependence of swirl number with
this parameter has been found, which agrees with related literature predictions.
Pollutant emissions obtained in current experimental combustion tests have shown the expected trends, in accordance with an
improved mixing process as swirl number is increased. Particularly, NOx measurements exhibit close connections with swirl conditions and, in consequence, with other swirl-related parameters,
as icker. Further research is needed to nally establish a more
accurate trend.
In summary, in-depth ame characterization under very different swirl conditions allowed obtaining valuable information about
main variations of ame structure and oscillatory behavior. Up to
know, spatial details and frequency information could be only obtained using more advanced and complex technologies and almost
entirely focused in gas ames. In this sense, the actual system
means an innovative tool for ame analysis in a wide scale range
including PF ames under reactive conditions.
Acknowledgements
This work has been supported by the project ENE2010-16011
(Spanish Ministry of Science and Education, R&D Energy Program).
The authors gratefully acknowledge J. Nogueira and M. Legrand
(University Carlos III) for their support during the tests with the
gas burner and for the opportunity of using their facilities. Also
we whish to thank to C. Bartolom and I. Ramos, researchers of
the Thermal Division of CIRCE, for their help during tests.
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