Cellular instabilities of expanding hydrogen/propane spherical flames at elevated pressures: theory and experiment

An experimental and theoretical investigation of the onset of cellular instabilities on spherically expanding flames in mixtures of hydrogen and propane in air at elevated pressures was conducted. Critical conditions for the onset of instability were measured and mapped out over a range of pressures and mixture compositions. An asymptotic theory of hydrodynamic and diffusional-thermal cell development on flames in mixtures comprised of two scarce fuels burning in air was also formulated. Predicted values of Peclet number, defined as the flame radius at the onset of instability normalized by the flame thickness, were shown to compare favorably with the experimentally measured values. (c) 2004 The Combustion Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.