Spontaneous ignition delay characteristics of hydrocarbon fuel-air mixtures

The influence of pressure on the autoignition characteristics of homogeneous mixtures of hydrocarbon fuels in air is examined. Autoignition delay times are measured for propane, ethylene, methane, and acetylene in a continuous flow apparatus featuring a multi-point fuel injector. Results are presented for mixture temperatures from 670K to 1020K, pressures from 1 to 10 atmospheres, equivalence ratios from 0.2 to 0.7, and velocities from 5 to 30 m/s. Delay time is related to pressure, temperature, and fuel concentration by global reaction theory. The results show variations in global activation energy from 25 to 38 kcal/kg-mol, pressure exponents from 0.66 to 1.21, and fuel concentration exponents from 0.19 to 0.75 for the fuels studied. These results are generally in good agreement with previous studies carried out under similar conditions.