📋 Tender Overview
Aluminum Steam Combustion For Clean Energy
Metal Fuels Are Emerging As A Zero-Carbon, High-Energy Density Replacement For Fossil Fuels Due To Their Availability And Recyclability Using Renewable Energy. Aluminum (Al) Powder Has Been Investigated Mostly In Air/O2 As An Additive In Solid Rocket Engines. Recently, Al Continuous Pressurized Combustion In Steam Has Attracted Considerable Interest For On-Demand Co-Production Of High-Temperature Heat And H2. Combustion In Pressurized Steam Lowers Flame Temperatures And Minimizes Emissions Of Undesirable And Hard-To-Collect Al2O3 Nanoparticles. Quantitative Understanding Of The Dynamics Of Multi-Phase And Multi-Scale Al-Steam Flames, Driven By Microscopic Transport Processes, Phase Changes, As Well As Homogeneous And Heterogeneous Chemical Reactions At The Particle Level, Is Largely Lacking. A-Steam Will Unravel The Fundamental Properties Of Pressurized Al-Steam Flames For The Entire Scientific Chain, From Single Particles To Turbulent Flames With Millions Of Particles, Through A Well-Orchestrated Combination Of High-Fidelity Simulations, Advanced Modeling, And Tailored Experiments. We Will Combine And Develop Our Unique Computational Capabilities In Fully Resolved Direct Numerical Simulations (Fr-Dns) At The Particle Level, Novel Particle-In-Cell (Pic) Models Considering Particle-Attached/Particle-Detached Flames And Al2O3 Nanoparticle Formation, Carrier-Phase Dns (Cp-Dns), And Large Eddy Simulations (Les) Of Turbulent Confined Flames. The Unique Combination Of Numerical Studies And Tailored Experiments Will Lead To A Substantial Breakthrough In Knowledge By Quantifying Physicochemical Processes In Al-Steam Combustion, Bridging The Gap Between Single Particles And Turbulent Flames. Our Numerical-Experimental Database Of Reference Al-Steam Flames, Together With Science-Based Best Practice Guidelines For Future Al Burners, Will Also Empower The Broader Metal Fuel Research Community And Guide Future System Design And Implementation Of This Carbon-Free Technology.
Funded Under
European Research Council (Erc)
Total Cost
€ 2 498 481,00
Eu Contribution
€ 2 498 481,00
Coordinated By
Technische Universitat Darmstadt
Germany
Start Date
1 October 2024
End Date
30 September 2029
Objective
Metal fuels are emerging as a zero-carbon, high-energy density replacement for fossil fuels due to their availability and recyclability using renewable energy. Aluminum (Al) powder has been investigated mostly in air/O2 as an additive in solid rocket engines. Recently, Al continuous pressurized combustion in steam has attracted considerable interest for on-demand co-production of high-temperature heat and H2. Combustion in pressurized steam lowers flame temperatures and minimizes emissions of undesirable and hard-to-collect Al2O3 nanoparticles. Quantitative understanding of the dynamics of multi-phase and multi-scale Al-steam flames, driven by microscopic transport processes, phase changes, as well as homogeneo
