Explosion Characteristics of Hydrogen(Ammonia) Fuel with Various Cracking Ratios for Power Generation

Mingyu Kim; Inho Kim; Keeman Lee

doi:10.15231/jksc.2025.30.4.049

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2025 Vol.30, Issue 4 Preview Page Next Page

Research Article

Explosion Characteristics of Hydrogen(Ammonia) Fuel with Various Cracking Ratios for Power Generation 크래킹 비율에 따른 발전용 수소(암모니아) 연료의 폭발특성

31 December 2025. pp. 49-57

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Abstract

Ammonia is being explored as a carbon-free fuel; however, its narrow flammability limits, low laminar burning velocity, and high ignition energy make it difficult to use as a commercial fuel. To overcome these limitations, the addition of hydrogen has been widely investigated. In this study, the explosion characteristics of ammonia cracking fuel were experimentally examined in a cylindrical constant-volume combustion chamber, with the ammonia cracking ratio and equivalence ratio as key variables, and the results were compared with corresponding heat loss behavior. As the cracking ratio increased, the maximum explosion pressure (P_max) and index (K_G) increased, while the explosion duration (t_c) and heat loss (q_tr) decreased. With respect to the equivalence ratio, both the maximum explosion pressure and index increased under lean conditions up to Φ = 1.1 and then decreased under rich conditions. Schlieren imaging of the flame reaction zone revealed that buoyancy instability dominated at a cracking ratio of 7%, hydrodynamic instability at 16%, and thermo-diffusive instability at 62%. The thermo-diffusive instability was found to enhance the explosion characteristics.

Keywords

Ammonia cracking ratio

Maximum explosion pressure

Heat loss

Explosion index

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Information

Publisher :The Korean Society of Combustion
Publisher(Ko) :한국연소학회
Journal Title :Journal of the Korean Society of Combustion
Journal Title(Ko) :한국연소학회지
Volume : 30
No :4
Pages :49-57
Received Date : 2025-12-08
Revised Date : 2025-12-14
Accepted Date : 2025-12-14
DOI :https://doi.org/10.15231/jksc.2025.30.4.049

Journal of the Korean Society of Combustion ISSN:1226-0959(Print) 2466-2089(Online) 한국연소학회지

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