IUPUI is Indiana's premier urban research university. The campus enrolls more than 30,000 students in 21 schools and academic units.
Razi Nalim
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Engineering and Technology Combustion & Propulsion Laboratory
mnalim@iupui.edu
Pressure-gain combustion clean efficient jet engines and power plants
The gas turbine has been an enormously successful power plant for aircraft and marine propulsion, and electric power generation, due to its light weight, smooth and reliable operation, low emissions, and varied applications. Nevertheless, it is not very efficient in converting fuel energy to useful work, due to fundamental thermodynamic limitations imposed by turbomachinery technology. I am investigating potential alternative thermodynamic cycles and pulsed combustion systems for propulsion and gas turbine applications, developng a key new component called a wave rotor combustor. My industry collaboration with Rolls Royce North American Technologies, Inc. is taking this concept into commercial use. Laboratory experiments and computer simulations at IUPUI are seeking evidence that the theoretical performance predicted for the wave rotor combustor can be acheived in practice. This evidence will drive development work by industry. The research into wave rotor combustion in engines involves the disciplines of mechanical engineering, physics, electrical engineering, and chemistry. The gas flows and heat transfers are core mechanical engineering subjects; fuel oxidation and pollutant formation are chemical processes; experimental methods for measuring combustion processes require optical and laser physics; ignition, data acquisition and control are electrical engineering topics. IU has patented 3 of my inventions related to this technology, and a fourth has been licensed pending patent.
