Modelling of heat transfer in radiating and combusting systems

TT he solution Of reactive flow problems with radiative heat transfer requires a radiation model which is simultaneously accurate, fast and compatible with the algorithm employed to solve the transport equations. In the present paper, a review of the most commonly used methods to predict radiative heat transfer in combustion chambers is presented. Among them, three methods that satisfy the above requirements are described in more detail; namely the discrete transfer, the discrete ordinates and the finite volume method. Some examples of results obtained for simple test cases are presented where predictions obtained with some of the most well known models are compared. An important issue within the radiation modelling domain is the evaluation of the radiative properties of gases and particulate matter that are commonly found in the combustion products. Therefore, in the second part of the paper, the problems related to the evaluation of the radiative properties of the combustion products, i.e. participating gaseous species and particles, are focused and the methods used to solve these problems are described.