Diesel spray interaction with highly porous structures for supporting of liquid distribution in space and its vaporization

If a free high velocity jet (Diesel spray) propagating in space outwards of the nozzle exit collides (impinges onto) with highly porous structure (PM) the results of such an interaction is characterized by significant radial spreading of the spray, reduced axial penetration length, significantly increase spray surface area, reduced propagating velocity after interaction with PM and enhanced vaporization if the porous structure is hot. Due to those effects a very quick spray distribution in space is observed. This effect can, for example, be used for mixture homogenization for a clean combustion process. The rapid radial spreading of the spray by interaction with a porous structure is a result of multi-jet splitting. To some extent, Diesel jet interaction with a three-dimensional porous structure could be simulated by jet interaction with small cylindrical obstacles simulating wall junctions of a real porous medium. Based on the principles of spray interaction with porous structure there are two different cases to be considered: 1-porous medium in the form of thin ring positioned around the fuel nozzle (called distribution nozzle); 2-porous medium in the form of three-dimensional volumetric reactor. In the case of the distribution nozzle the target is to distribute fuel in space outside the porous ring and to enhance the vaporization process. In the case of combustion reactor the spray interacts with a number of wall junctions inside the porous structure and the main target is to homogeneously distribute the spray in PM volume, to evaporate the fuel and to mix with combustion air. The jets leaving diesel nozzle very early interact with porous ring resulting in a shining-like fuel distribution in space: for a cold ring a multi-jet splitting is responsible for observed fuel distribution in space; for a hot porous ring a superposition of fuel distribution and fuel vaporization must be considered.