Publications

The combustion chemistry of morpholine (l-oxa-4-aza-cyclohexane) was investigated under laminar, premixed low-pressure conditions. Morpholine, as a heterocyclic secondary amine with numerous industrial applications, was studied as a model fuel which simultaneously contains oxygen and nitrogen heteroatoms. Stable and radical intermediates and products of the combustion process in a slightly fuel-rich φ = 1.3 (C/O = 0.41) flat premixed morpholine-oxygen- argon flame at 40 mbar (4kPa) were identified. A detailed fuel destruction scheme is proposed based on combined measurements using two different in situ molecular beam mass spectrometry (MBMS) techniques. The results are discussed with special attention to hydrocarbon, oxygenated and N-containing compounds important in pollutant emission. © 2009 The Combustion Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The combustion of 1-propanol and 2-propanol was studied in low-pressure, premixed flat flames using two independent molecular-beam mass spectrometry (MBMS) techniques. For each alcohol, a set of three flames with different stoichiometries was measured, providing an extensive data base with in total twelve conditions. Profiles of stable and intermediate species, including several radicals, were measured as a function of height above the burner. The major-species mole fraction profiles in the 1-propanol flames and the 2-propanol flames of corresponding stoichiometry are nearly identical, and only small quantitative variations in the intermediate species pool could be detected. Differences between flames of the isomeric fuels are most pronounced for oxygenated intermediates that can be formed directly from the fuel during the oxidation process. The analysis of the species pool in the set of flames was greatly facilitated by using two complementary MBMS techniques. One apparatus employs electron ionization (EI) and the other uses VUV light for single-photon ionization (VUV-PI). The photoionization technique offers a much higher energy resolution than electron ionization and as a consequence, near-threshold photoionization-efficiency measurements provide selective detection of individual isomers. The EI data are recorded with a higher mass resolution than the PI spectra, thus enabling separation of mass overlaps of species with similar ionization energies that may be difficult to distinguish in the photoionization data. The quantitative agreement between the EI- and PI-datasets is good. In addition, the information in the EI- and PI-datasets is complementary, aiding in the assessment of the quality of individual burner profiles. The species profiles are supplemented by flame temperature profiles. The considerable experimental efforts to unambiguously assign intermediate species and to provide reliable quantitative concentrations are thought to be valuable for improving the mechanisms for higher alcohol combustion.

Abstract not provided.

Polyynic structures in fuel-rich low-pressure flames are observed using VUV photoionization molecular-beam mass spectrometry. High-level ab initio calculations of ionization energies for C2nH2 (n = 1-5) and partially hydrogenated CnH4 (n = 7-8) polyynes are compared with photoionization efficiency measurements in flames fuelled by allene, propyne, and cyclopentene. C2nH2 (n = 1-5) intermediates are unambiguously identified, while HC≡C-C≡C-CH=C= CH2, HC≡C-C≡C-C≡C-CH=CH2 (vinyltriacetylene) and HC≡C-C≡C-CH=CH-C≡CH are likely to contribute to the C7H4 and C8H4 signals. Mole fraction profiles as a function of distance from the burner are presented. C7H4 and C8H4 isomers are likely to be formed by reactions of C2H and C4H radicals but other plausible formation pathways are also discussed. Heats of formation and ionization energies of several combustion intermediates have been determined for the first time. © the Owner Societies.

Abstract not provided.