Anyone Studying Combution

Aero51

Hey, I'm just curious if anyone is studying/ has studied CFD and combustion. I'm going to be entering graduate school soon in this field and would like to hear about others experiences. Thanks.

Pkruse

The company I work for sells test rigs for studying combustion in gas turbines. The people who buy them invest millions to study combustion, and have been collecting data for decades. But it is proprietary so they keep it to themselves. If you want access to this knowledge base, you might seek employment or internship from one of the engine OEM's.

bigfooted

Well... I liked it! It is a nice combination of interesting physics, tough mathematics, numerical methods and high-tech practical applications. Also, I was never out of a job after I finished

Aero51

Nice, what aspect did you study? Right now I am pretty sure I will be researching turbulent combustion modeling in HCCI engines with CFD.

bigfooted

I studied mostly turbulent combustion and spray combustion, PDF methods and flamelet methods.
HCCI is a very hot topic right now, with some very interesting challenges. Especially with regards to controlling ignition delay and certain unwanted combustion products. In the US I only know the group in Berkeley and Stanford doing HCCI, but probably almost any combustion group is investigating it. Make sure to go to a conference and talk to other people in the field. Input from other people, especially from outside your own group, can give some nice insights.

Aero51

Yeah I hope to attend a few. I am really excited to learn some thermodynamics too. I've been teaching myself statistical thermodynamics and I find the subject incredibly rich.