On the influence of electronically excited oxygen molecules on combustion of hydrogen-oxygen mixture

This communication reports on the experimental observation of the shortening of the induction zone length in a premixed mode of combustion in a subsonic H(2)-O(2) low pressure flow due to the presence of oxygen molecules excited to the singlet a (1)Delta(g) electronic state. The low pressure electric glow discharge was used to produce singlet oxygen molecules. The analysis showed that even a small number of O(2)(a(1)Delta(g) ) molecules (similar to 1%) in the H(2)-O(2) mixture allows one to noticeably reduce the ignition delay length and to ignite the mixture at a lower temperature. The results obtained exhibit the possibility to intensify the combustion of a hydrogen-oxygen mixture by means of excitation of O(2) molecules by electrical discharge at low pressure (P = 10-20 Torr).