Assignment 2

MCL 343

An Introduction to Combustion

1. What is the relationship between enthalpy of formation and

standardized enthalpy at a) temperature T0 b) any temperature T. Explain
the difference?
2. Plot the temperature and entropy with respect to the fraction of CO2
undissociated (refer page no. 38-39 in Turns book). What is the
composition at equilibrium?

Assume constant ̅ , for each species at temperature 3000 K.

, = 62.194 (kJ/ kmol-K), ̅ , = 37.213 (kJ/ kmol-K), ̅ , = 39.846 (kJ/ kmol-K)

3. Propane reacts with air.

i. Calculate the adiabatic flame temperature Tad for reactants at 298K at (a) constant
volume and (b) constant pressure conditions. Take Cp at Tmean (by assuming an
appropriate Tad) - Use Appendix A from book by Turns or Internet.

ii. Calculate the enthalpy of reaction for propane ∆H , when reactants are at a)
600K b) 900 K. Compare with the ∆H , when reaction takes place at 298 K. Take
cp at Tmean. Use Appendix A from book by Turns or Internet.

iii. Calculate the adiabatic flame temperature Tad (constant pressure) when reactants are
at a) 600K b) 900 K. Take cp at Tmean. Compare with the result from problem i(b)
and comment.

iv. Calculate the adiabatic flame temperature Tad (constant pressure) when reactants are
at 298 K but take cp as values at (a) 298 K and (b) 2400 K. Compare with result from
problem i(b) and comment.

4. Consider the constant pressure, adiabatic combustion of a stoichiometric (Φ=1) fuel-air

mixture where (A/F) stoic = 15. Assume the following simplified property for the fuel, air
and products with Tref m= 300 K :
 Fuel Air Products

Cp (J/kg-K) 3500 1200 1500

h0f,300(J/kg) 2 X 107 0 -1.25 X 106

A. Determine the adiabatic flame temperature for a mixture initially at 600 K.

B. Determine the heating value of the fuel at 600 K. Give units.

5. Consider the combustion of hydrogen (H2) with oxygen in a steady flow reactor as shown
in the sketch. The heat loss through the reactor walls per unit mass flow ( / ) is 187
kJ/kg. The equivalence ration is 0.5 and pressure is 5 atm.

A. Determine the mean molecular weight of combustion product gases in the outlet stream,
assuming no dissociation.
B. For the same assumption as in part A, determine the mass fractions of the species in the
outlet streams.
C. Determine the temperature in the product stream at the reactor outlet, again assuming no
dissociation. Furthermore, assume that all species have the same constant specific heats,
̅ , , equal to 40 kJ/kmol-K. The H2 enters at 300 K and O2 at 800 K.

6. The equivalence ration of a combustion process is often determined by extracting sample

of exhaust gas and measuring the concentration of major species. In a combustion
experiment using isooctane (C8H18), continuous gas analyser monitor the exhaust gas and
measure a CO2 concentration of 6 % by volume and a CO concentration of 1 % by
volume. The sample gas is not dried before the measurements are made.
A. What is the equivalence ration associated with this combustion process?
B. If an O2 analyser was monitoring the exhaust gas, what would it be reading?