Heat transfer analysis of a diffusion flame leading edge near a cold, chemically inert surface

This numerical investigation of lifted diffusion flames examines the interaction of flame and surface from a heat transfer perspective. Conduction is the primary mode of heat loss from the laboratory-scale flame. Heat flux profiles to the lower chemically inert boundary are obtained for three different models: a finite-rate chemistry model, a simplified heat conduction model, and the limiting case Burke–Schumann model. Generalizations are made about the shape of the heat flux profiles to the anchoring boundary, as well as the practical usefulness of the presented models. A characteristic flame thickness is also defined from the generalized heat flux shape.