Description
The Advanced Combustion Diagnostics group's research activities centre on detailed investigations in the fields of thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, combustion, heat and mass transfer. The research activities include the development of research methodologies for experimentation and analysis of well-controlled conditions that are directly relevant to practical combustion systems, such as engines, gas turbines and furnaces, and realistic fire scenarios. In the case of practical combustion system-based research, the key theme of the group's activities is aimed at providing a comprehensive understanding of problems relating to energy conversion and reacting flows through using advanced diagnostic tools, with the ultimate aim of maximising efficiency and minimising the trade-offs in stability, emission and cost. In the case of fire-based research, the group focuses on developing fire safety diagnostics innovations to safeguard communities from fire threats.
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Current HDR Projects (Click to read)
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Current UG Projects (Click to read)
Past Projects
Capacity
High pressure and temperature constant volume combustion chamber (CVCC)
The chamber is a preburn type that is similar to the facilities at Sandia National Laboratory and other global institutes. The CVCC has a cubical combustion chamber, measuring 100 mm on each side. The CVCC has six window ports and eight access ports for instrumentation and valves and is therefore highly configurable to suit diagnostic needs. Sapphire windows provide optical access to the combustion chamber from four sides, and the fuel injector can be mounted on any of the ports. The high pressure (up to 8MPa) and temperature (up to 1200K) condition within the chamber is generated by spark-igniting a premixed-charged combustible gas mixture that consists of acetylene, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. The fuel is injected into the chamber's centre when the targeted thermodynamic condition is reached after a cool-down period. In the CVCC, the optical windows are flat, the ambient temperature, pressure and composition (from 0 to 21% oxygen) conditions are highly-controlled, and minimal flow is induced. All these create an ideal environment for advanced optical and laser diagnostics.
High-power Nd:YAG pulsed laser
The high‐power Nd:YAG laser (Quantel Brilliant B, Q-smart 450) is capable of delivering a pulse energy of 450 mJ at 1064 nm and 10 Hz. The Nd:YAG laser is coupled with automatic second and third harmonic generator phase matching to produce beam output with wavelength of 355, 532 and 1064 nm, and is capable of operating up to a repetition rate of 20 Hz.
UV-enhanced, intensified CCD camera
The intensified CCD camera (Andor iStar ) is capable of capturing images in the ultraviolet-visible region (200-700 nm) at an image resolution of 1024 x 1024 pixels. The camera has a peak quantum efficiency of 25% in the UV region and is capable of operating at a minimum gate width of 100 ns.
High-speed CMOS color camera
The high-speed camera (Photron SA5) is capable of achieving a maximum frame rate of 1.5 mega frames per second with sub-microsecond exposure. The camera is equipped with a CMOS sensor with a 20 micro meter pixel, that can deliver an ISO light sensitivity of 1,000 and is used to observe combustion events through the optical access windows of the chamber.
Experimental diagnostic capabilities
There are many different diagnostics that can be and have been applied to the combustion vessel. A detailed description of these measurement techniques is provided below:
Dr Shaun Chan
Contact: qing.chan@unsw.edu.au
Webpage: https://research.unsw.edu.au/people/dr-shaun-chan
| HDR candidates | |||
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Ms Rachel Li |
Mr Patrick Rorimpandey |
Mr Bob Wan |
Mr Sensen Xing |
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Hydrogen combustion |
Dual-fuel combustion |
Hydrogen methane combustion |
Fire Evacuation |
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Education: Present: MPhil (Mechanical Engineering), UNSW Sydney, Australia 2021 – 2022: Master of Engineering Science (Mechanical), UNSW Sydney, Australia 2015 – 2020: Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering (Honours Class 2 Division 1), UNSW Sydney, Australia Bachelor of Computer Science (Distinction), UNSW Sydney, Australia |
Education: Present: PhD (Mechanical Engineering), UNSW Sydney, Australia 2014-2018: Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney (1st class), Australia |
Education: Present: Advanced Masters (Mechanical Engineering), UNSW Sydney, Australia 2019-2021: Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering, Deakin University, Australia 2016-2019: Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, China |
Education: Present: PhD (Mechanical Engineering), UNSW Australia 2013-2017: Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering, Jiangsu University, China |
| HDR graduates | |||
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Dr Paul Yip |
Dr Mark Zhai |
Mr Sensen Xing |
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Hydrogen jet combustion in engine-relevant conditions |
Characterisation of ignition, combustion and flame stabilisation for gasoline-like fuels under compression-ignition conditions |
Study of ignition and combustion characteristics of consecutive injections with iso-Octane and n-Heptane as fuels |
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2022: PhD in Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia |
2021: PhD in Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia |
2020: Advanced Master in Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia |
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| Dr Cheng Wang | Dr Islam Md Rizwanul Fattah | Mr Cheng Wang | Mr Michael Ming |
| Development of compartment fire | Flame-wall interaction in diesel engine environments | External irradiation effect on the growth and evolution of in-flame soot species | Combustion characterization of bio-fuels at high temperature and pressure environments |
| 2020: Phd in Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia | 2018: PhD in Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia | 2016: Advanced Master in Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia | 2018: Advanced Master in Mechanical Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia |
Enquiries for Ph.D. or M.E. Positions
We are always in search of capable and self-motivated individuals for PhD/ME students. We have experience in assisting local and international students to apply for research scholarships (Australian Postgraduate Award APA, Chinese Scholarship Council CSC, Science without Borders) to undertake a higher degree by research at UNSW. The group also offers top-up scholarships to Ph.D. students of exceptional research potential. For enquiries on available positions, please send your resume to Dr Shaun Chan (qing.chan@unsw.edu.au).