Measurements of combustion properties in a microwave enhanced flame

Microwave induced flame speed enhancement is quantified in a laminar, premixed CH4/air wall stagnation flat flame. Experiments were performed in a high Q microwave cavity with the cavity tuned so that the maximum microwave field is located in the vicinity of a flat flame front. Equivalence ratios were varied between 0.6 and 0.8. When the flame is radiated by a continuous wave microwave field of approximately 5 kV/cm, the flame front is observed to move towards the burner exit and stabilize at a standoff distance corresponding to a flame speed increase of up to 20%. No microwave discharge is observed, indicating that the enhanced flame speed arises from microwave energy deposited directly into the reaction zone through coupling to the weakly ionized gas in that region. Laser diagnostics were performed to quantify temperature increase, the laminar flame speed enhancement, and changes in the OH radical concentration through filtered Rayleigh scattering, particle image velocimetry, and planar laser induced fluorescence, respectively. These measurements indicate that microwave radiation may prove to be an effective means to non-invasively control and enhance flame stability in combustors.