About the project
Hydrogen offers a clean route to decarbonise aviation, but its flames can be prone to thermoacoustic instabilities, which are undesirable in aviation engines. This project investigates these instabilities in hydrogen jets-in-crossflow, an important configuration for efficient mixing and stable low-carbon combustion.
Through experiments and theoretical modelling, the research will uncover instability mechanisms and prediction models crucial for designing safe, low-carbon combustion systems.
The transition to hydrogen-fueled combustion is vital for achieving net-zero aviation and power generation. However, hydrogen flames are prone to thermoacoustic instabilities, which arise from the coupling between unsteady heat release rate and chamber acoustics. These instabilities can cause severe noise, vibration, and even structural failure. Understanding and controlling them is therefore essential for developing stable, low-carbon combustors.
A promising approach for hydrogen combustion involves a jet-in-crossflow configuration, where high-velocity hydrogen jets are introduced into an air stream to ensure rapid mixing and flame stabilisation. While effective, preliminary observations indicate that such flames can undergo transverse oscillations, synchronising with the acoustic modes of the combustor and exhibiting coupled oscillatory behaviour in a multiple flame configuration.
This behaviour raises a fundamental question: how do longitudinal flow fluctuations induce transverse flame motion, and under what conditions does the system become unstable?
This project will tackle these questions through systematic experiments and numerical simulations.
Initially, a canonical multi-jet burner will be developed to study hydrogen flame behaviour across a range of momentum flux ratios, identifying critical conditions for instability onset.
Subsequently, the burner will be exposed to controlled acoustic perturbations to measure flame transfer functions and construct low-order predictive models for instability prediction.
The outcomes will provide valuable insights for designing next-generation hydrogen and low-carbon combustors, enabling cleaner, safer, and more efficient propulsion and energy systems.
The School of Engineering is committed to promoting equality, diversity inclusivity as demonstrated by our Athena SWAN award. We welcome all applicants regardless of their gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or age, and will give full consideration to applicants seeking flexible working patterns and those who have taken a career break. The University has a generous maternity policy, onsite childcare facilities, and offers a range of benefits to help ensure employees’ well-being and work-life balance. The University of Southampton is committed to sustainability and has been awarded the Platinum EcoAward.
