Unsteady droplet combustion with fuel thermal expansion

Vedha Nayagam, Daniel L. Dietrich, Forman A. Williams

Index: 10.1016/j.combustflame.2018.01.035

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Abstract

Millimeter-size fuel droplets burning in microgravity show substantial thermal expansion at earlier times in their burning history. Here, we develop a simple model that accounts for thermal expansion of the liquid fuel and compare it against experimental measurements. The results show that excellent agreement with measured droplet-diameter histories throughout the hot-flame period of combustion is obtained when the effect of thermal expansion is included.