Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708

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Energy
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Primary air entrainment characteristics for a self-aspirating burner: Model

and experiments
A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai*
Combustion and Engine Research Laboratory (CERL) Department of Mechanical Engineering, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi (KMUTT), 126 Suksawat 48 Road,
Bangmod, Thungkru, Bangkok 10140, Thailand

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Experimental and theoretical investigations of primary air entrainment characteristics of a self-aspirating
Received 30 July 2009 burner are presented. Emphasis was made on experiments, which were performed using both hot and
Received in revised form cold tests; and a correlation between them is proposed. The level of primary air entrainment is measured
15 December 2009
using an oxygen sensor and a particle image velocimetry system. Experimental results are used to
Accepted 16 December 2009
Available online 13 January 2010
validate the predicted ones, which are obtained by constructing a theoretical model basing on simple
momentum and energy conservation principles. It is found that the model predictions agree with the
experimental data for a similar system. Primary air entrainment is a function of fuel gas flow rate, fuel gas
Keywords:
Self-aspirating burner type, injector geometry, mixing tube geometry, and burner port geometry. The level of primary air
Primary air entrainment entrainment increases with increasing momentum rate of the fuel gas. The hot test gives about a 22
Primary aeration percentage point (37% relative) lower PA value than that of the cold test because of the preheating effect
PIV caused by combustion. A first correlation between the hot test and the cold one for primary air
Empirical formula entrainment is proposed. It is recommended that the preheating effect caused by combustion in a self-
aspirating burner not be neglected when designing the burner.
Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Self-aspirating burners designed to be fueled by liquefied
petroleum gas (LPG) are very popular for cooking in the household
sector in Thailand. They are the only choice for gaseous fuel avail-
able for the household sector, transportation fuel by automobiles,
and conversion of heat to power in industry and manufacturing
industry using LPG as a feed stock in Thailand. Among them, the
household sector accounts for about 54% of the country’s total LPG
consumption [1], as shown in Fig. 1. Therefore, the higher the
performance of the self-aspirating burners being used in the
country, the larger the amount of energy that can be saved by this
major sector.
Much research on self-aspirating burners has been carried out to
improve thermal performance and to reduce pollutant emissions
by developing the burner port geometry and the combustion
system. Jugjai et al. [2] and Hou et al. [3] studied the thermal
performance improvement of self-aspirating burners which used
LPG as fuel. They found that thermal efficiency can be increased by
* Corresponding author. Tel.: þ662 470 9128; fax: þ662 470 9111.
E-mail address: sumrueng.jug@kmutt.ac.th (S. Jugjai).
changing the flow pattern of the flame from a radial flow to
a swirling central flow. Jugjai and Rungsimuntuchart [4] applied the
heat recirculation principle to the self-aspirating burners by
employing a porous heat exchanger in combination with the
swirling central flow burner (SB). The preheating temperature of
the mixture can be increased up to 300  C without flashback. The
results showed that the thermal efficiency of the proposed burner
[4] is higher than that of a conventional radial flow burner (CB) by
about 30 percentage points (50% relative). However, the emission of
CO by the proposed burner [4] was relatively high by more than
5000 ppm at 0% of excess O2.
Previous designs of the self-aspirating burners were not performed
efficiently because of poor correlation between geometry of a fuel
injector, a mixing tube and a burner head. This results in low primary
air entrainment. Moreover, through the preheating effect of the
primary air [4], the amount of air entrainment [5] is further reduced
because of an increase in the flow resistance. Therefore, incomplete
combustion is taken place with a high level of CO emissions.
In this regard, precise prediction of a value of the primary air
entrainment is of importance for more complete combustion of the
self-aspirating burners. Based on momentum and energy conser-
vation principles for the mixing process inside a circular tube,
Pritchard et al. [6] proposed a simplified theoretical formulation for

0360-5442/$ – see front matter Ó 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.energy.2009.12.020
1702 A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai / Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708

Nomenclature W Wobbe number, MJ/m3

x axial distance, mm
A cross-section area, mm2
A/F air-fuel ratio Greek symbol
Cd discharge coefficient 3 roughness, mm
CL loss coefficient n kinematic viscosity of entrained air, m2/s
D diameter, mm r density, kg/m3
LHV low heating value, J/kg s relative density of gas
m_ mass flow rate, kg/s h dimensionless pressure efficiency
M_ momentum rate, kg-m/s2
%O2 oxygen concentration, % Subscripts
P pressure, N/m2 a entrained air
P average pressure, N/m2 c cold state (at room temperature)
PA primary aeration, % co2 carbon dioxide
q heat input, W g gas fuel (LPG)
r radial distance, mm h hot state
R entrainment ratio i injector outlet
t time, s m mixture
T temperature,  C o ambient
T average temperature,  C p burner port
u velocity, m/s stoi. stoichiometric
V_ volume flow rate, m3/s t throat

calculating the level of primary air entrainment. The result showed
that primary air entrainment is a function of fuel gas flow rate, type
of fuel gas, injector geometry, mixing tube geometry, and burner
port geometry. Singh et al. [7] performed a finite element model
which was developed to predict the level of primary air entrain-
ment for the cold test case. Their results were then compared with
the theoretical results determined by Pritchard et al. [6]. It was
found that the studied results were close to the theoretical ones [7],
as primary air entrainment is higher when the density of fuel gas is
high. Singh et al. [8] then performed an experimental study to
determine the primary air entrainment of the cold test case, and
then compared their results with the theoretical ones of Pritchard’s
group [6]. It was found that measured primary air entrainment is
higher when the ratio of burner port to injector orifice diameter is
increased. The measured primary air entrainment agreed well with
the theoretical results [6].
However, most of the studies mentioned above deal only with
the maximum level of primary air entrainment, and are also
limited to the cold test case. The preheating effect caused by
combustion was overlooked, thus limiting the thorough investi-
gation of a self-aspirating burner operation and its possible
application to a heat recirculating combustion system for efficient
energy conservation. In the present work, theoretical and
FEED STOCK
16%
experimental studies were performed for both hot and cold test
cases to gain more understanding of primary air entrainment
characteristics. All of these cases were studied in a wide range of
operations of the self-aspirating burner to optimize the operating
range of the burner with high primary air entrainment. To validate
the accuracy of the proposed theoretical formulation, theoretical
and experimental results both with and without combustion were
compared. The obtained empirical formula lead to a better
understanding of the influences of parameters which affect
primary air entrainment. This information may be helpful in
designing a high-performance burner in the future.
2. Modeling of primary air entrainment of a self-aspirating
burner
The primary air entrainment characteristics of a self-aspirating
burner are studied based on simple momentum and energy
conservation principles. The following assumptions are invoked for
simplifying the analytical formulation: one-dimensional, incom-
pressible, non-reacting, and isothermal flow.
Considering an injector with cross-sectional area Ai, as shown in
Fig. 2, the pressure of LPG Pi is adjusted by a pressure regulator, and
the LPG is injected into a mixing tube. The potential energy of the
high pressure gas supplied is converted into the kinetic energy of
an emerging gas jet. Therefore, by conservation of energy, the
possible maximum heat input can be written as
pffiffiffiffi
q ¼ 12:78Ai WCdi Pi (1)
and one obtains

q
AUTOMOBILE Ai ¼ pffiffiffiffi (2)
COOKING 12:78WCdi Pi
14%
54%
As shown in equation (2), Ai depends on the heat input (q) of fuel
gas, Wobbe number (W), gas fuel supply pressure (Pi), and the
INDUSTRY
discharge coefficient (Cdi). The value of Cdi depends on the orifice
16%
shape and the Reynolds number of flow through the orifice [9]. At
a specified value of both heat input and gas fuel supply pressure, Ai
acts as an indicator of the possible maximum velocity of an
Fig. 1. Consumption of LPG in Thailand. emerging fuel gas jet.
 A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai / Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708 1703

Fig. 2. Primary air entrainment of a self-aspirating burner model.

The LPG jet issued from the injector outlet to the throat of the 2
Ai rg V_ g
mixing tube can be considered as a confined jet, which undergoes qjhmax ¼ ¼ (7)
At 2
a pressure drop. Thus, the primary air is entrained and mixed with rm V_ m ð1 þ CL Þ
the LPG jet, forming a gas mixture in the mixing tube. The
2 2
momentum balance (assuming Ai << At and V_ a << V_ g ) can be defining R as an entrainment ratio, R ¼ V_ a =V_ g . Thus, V_ m ¼
written as V_ g ð1 þ RÞ and rm ¼ ðrg V_ g þ ra V_ a Þ=V_ m ¼ rg ðs þ RÞ=sð1 þ RÞ.
Therefore, equation (7) can be written as a function of R
2 2
rg V_ g rm V_ m qjhmax ¼
Ai
¼
s
(7.1)
ðPt  Po ÞAt ¼  (3) At ðs þ RÞð1 þ RÞð1 þ CL Þ
Ai At
From the throat to the burner port exit, the energy balance is Substituting equation (7.1) into (5.1), one obtains
expressed in the form
2
  rg V_ g ðs þ RÞð1 þ RÞð1 þ CL Þ
2 Pp  Po h ¼ $ (5.2)
rm V_ m max A2t 2s
Pp  Pt ¼ ð1  CL Þ (4)
2A2t
By substituting equation (5) into (5.2), one obtains
where CL is a loss coefficient for the mixing tube.  
At pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
From the burner port exit to the ambient, the energy balance for ¼ Cdp 1 þ CL (8)
a discharge is given by Ap h
max

2
From equation (7.1), an expression is also derived for R:
rm V_ m qffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
Pp  Po ¼ (5)
2A2p Cd2p ð1 þ sÞ  ð1  sÞ2 þAi ð1þC 4sAt
LÞ
Rjhmax ¼ (9)
Alternatively, PpPo can be obtained by combining equations (3) 2
and (4), and one obtains By assuming ð1  sÞ2  4sAt =Ai ð1 þ CL Þ and substituting equa-
tions (2) and (8) into (9), one obtains
2 2
rg V_ g rm V_ m sffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
pffiffiffiffi ffi
Pp  Po ¼  ð1 þ CL Þ (5.1) ð1 þ sÞ 12:78WCdi Pi sAp Cdp
Ai At 2A2t Rjhmax ¼ þ pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi (9.1)
2 q 1 þ CL
By introducing a dimensionless pressure efficiency h, which is
defined as the ratio of the static pressure at the burner port exit to Since m_ g LHV ¼ q, from equation (1), the momentum rate of fuel
the dynamic pressure of the LPG jet issuing from the injector orifice, gas is given by
one obtains pffiffiffiffi
_g ¼ m 12:78Ai ug WCdi Pi
M _ g ug ¼ (10)
P P LHV
h ¼ p 2 o (6)
r V_
g g
From equation (10), substituting this expression into equation
2A2i (9.1) gives
vffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
By using equation (5.1) and assigning q ¼ Ai =At , u
2 2 ð1 þ sÞ uM _ g LHV sAp Cdp
l ¼ ðrm V_ m =rg V_ g Þð1 þ CL Þ, equation (6) can then be written as Rjhmax ¼ þt pffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi (9.2)
2 Ai ug q 1 þ CL
h ¼ 2q  lq2 (6.1)
As shown in equation (9.2), the entrainment ratio R is a function
An optimum performance for a self-aspirating burner is given by of the momentum rate of fuel gasðM _ g Þ, type of fuel gas (LHVand s),
the maximum value of hðdh=dq ¼ 0Þ. burner port geometry (Ap), injector geometry (Ai), and mixing tube
Thus, from equation (6.1), h is maximum when geometry (At), through the relationship shown by equation (8).
1704 A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai / Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708

When the type of fuel gas is specified, while keeping both Ap and Ai
constants, M _ g is considered to be a key parameter that significantly
affects R. In addition, Cdp depends on M _ g [9] and CL relies on both
M_ g and roughness. Therefore, when the momentum rate of fuel gas
M_ g is increased by increasing the gas supply pressure Pi, the
entrainment ratio R will be higher. As a result, the primary air
entrainment (or primary aeration) is expressed in the form
R of throat At ¼ 254.47 mm2, and overall cross-sectional area of the
PAc ¼  100
ðA=FÞstoi:
3. Experimental study of primary air entrainment of
a self-aspirating burner
The measurement of the value of the primary aeration of the
burner has been carried out in two cases: a hot test and a cold test.
The primary aeration of the hot test is measured by an oxygen
sensor, whereas that of the cold test is measured by both the
oxygen sensor and via the volumetric flow rate obtained by
applying a particle image velocimetry (PIV) system, as shown in
Fig. 3(a) and (b), respectively.
Fig. 3(a) shows a schematic diagram of the primary aeration
measurement using the oxygen sensor which is applied for both
hot and cold tests. It is composed of a self-aspirating burner with
cross-sectional area of injector Ai ¼ 0.64 mm2, cross-sectional area
(11)
burner port Ap ¼ 245.44 mm2. LPG is used as a fuel in the experi-
ment, and the oxygen sensor is used to measure oxygen concen-
tration with an accuracy of about 0.05%. An uncertainty analysis
was carried out with the method proposed by Kline and McClintock
[10]. Using a 95% confidence level, the maximum and minimum
uncertainties in the presented primary aeration were found to be
4.7% relative and 2.2% relative, respectively.

T6
a P1 P2 P3 P4

T7
4
Pp
T1 T2 T3 T4
x 6 T5

Primary air
5 Secondary air Secondary air
Throat
8
Burner head

3 Mixing tube 7
Primary air

2
1 9

b 18

20
Laser sheet
10

11

13
19

15
12
14
16
17

1. Fuel (LPG) 8. Oxygen sensor 14. Synchronizer

2. Pressure regulator 9. Computer 15. Atomizer
3. Flow meter 10. Equivalent single port 16. Carbon dioxide (CO2)
4. Mercury manometer burner 17. Air compressor
5. Injector orifice 11. Nd:YAG laser 18. Seeding box
6. Multiple port burner 12. Power generator 19. Water manometer
7. Sampling tube 13. CCD camera 20. Acrylic shield
Fig. 3. Schematic diagram of primary aeration experiment by oxygen sensor (a) and by particle image velocimetry (PIV) (b). 1. Fuel (LPG); 2. Pressure regulator; 3. Flow meter;
4. Mercury manometer; 5. Injector orifice; 6. Multiple port burner; 7. Sampling tube; 8. Oxygen sensor; 9. Computer; 10. Equivalent single-port burner; 11. Nd:YAG laser; 12. Power
generator; 13. CCD camera; 14. Synchronizer; 15. Atomizer; 16. Carbon dioxide (CO2); 17. Air compressor; 18. Seeding box; 19. Water manometer; 20. Acrylic shield.
 A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai / Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708 1705

In the hot test, the flow rates of LPG are controlled by a pres- 22
sure regulator . The flow meter is installed downstream of
a pressure regulator. The volume flow rates are measured in order
_ g Þ, 20
to calculate, respectively, the flow velocity (ug), mass flow rate ðm
and momentum rate ðM _ g Þ of the fuel gas. A mercury manometer
is used to measure the fuel pressure. Then, the gas emerges from an 18
injector orifice . On leaving the injector, the gas entrains the

O2 (%)
primary air by a momentum-sharing process between the
emerging gas and ambient air. The gas/air mixture enters the 16
mixing tube, and then is distributed uniformly to the multiple port
burner with premixed flame (hot test case). Meanwhile, the 14
oxygen concentration in the mixture is measured by using
Cold test
a sampling gas line , which is located at the burner head, and then Hot test
carried to the oxygen sensor . The primary aeration can be 12
calculated using equation (12): 0
0.000 .005 .010 .015 .020 .025 .030 .035
%O2 .
PAc; h ¼
ðA=FÞstoi: ð21  %O2 Þ
 100 (12) Mg (kg-m/s2)

For the cold test, a similar experiment is performed using the
same procedure as described for the hot test, but without
combustion. Good air ventilation is required for the cold test to
avoid the risk of explosion.
The pressure P and temperature T at different locations within
the mixing tube, as shown in Fig. 3(a), are also recorded. Seven
locations of temperature measurement, T1T7, from the mixing
tube inlet to the burner port exit, are performed with K-type
thermocouples. The average value of three thermocouples of T5, T6,
and T7 underneath the burner ring is used to represent the burner
port temperature ðT p Þ. Static pressure (P1P4) along the mixing
tube is measured using a water manometer. Static pressure under
the burner port is reported by using an average value of P p , which is
obtained by the same procedure as T p .
Fig. 3(b) shows a schematic diagram for measuring primary
aeration using the PIV technique. It is performed only for the cold
test to verify the measured results obtained by the oxygen sensor.
There are two major parts of the schematic diagram. The first is
an equivalent single-port burner of which the cross-section
area is equal to that of the existing multi-ports with the same
injector orifice and mixing tube. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is used as
a working gas instead of LPG for safety reasons. The second part
of the diagram is the PIV system. A pulsed Nd:YAG laser with
a wavelength of 532 nm is used to illuminate the seeding parti-
cles, which are carried along with the gas flow. The pulse energy
Fig. 5. Typical measured oxygen concentration of a self-aspirating burner.
of the laser is about 120 mJ/pulse, with a pulse duration of 5 ns
and a repetition rate of 15 Hz. A PowerView 2 M Plus CCD camera
(2-megapixel F/2.8 Nikon camera with a 28 mm lens) is used to
record the movement of the particles. An interferential filter at
532 nm is placed in front of the camera lens to reject visible light
at wavelengths other than 532 nm. Olive oil particles with
diameters of 6 mm are added to the flow of the primary air by
a TSI atomizer, model 9306 . The software used for data acqui-
sition and correlation processing is Insight 6, from TSI. Tecplot 10
is used for vector display.
The volume flow rates of CO2 ðV_ co2 Þ are controlled by a pres-
sure regulator and measured by the flow meter. The CO2 is injected
by the injector orifice into the mixing tube. Meanwhile, the olive oil
particles and the primary air from the air compressor are
supplied to the seeding box . The pressure within the seeding box
is maintained at an ambient condition, as measured by the water
manometer . The primary air and the olive oil particles will be
entrained into the mixing tube by a momentum-sharing process
between the injected gas and the surrounding air. The mixture is
distributed uniformly to the equivalent single-port burner, which is
covered by an acrylic shield to prevent a secondary air entrain-
ment. The velocity of the mixture at the burner port exit obtained

30 10
.
Mg (kg-m/s2)
25 0.0229
8 0.0192
0.0136
0.0079
20 0.0039
0.0023
6
u (m/s)

0.0014
0.0008
R

15

4
10 Singh et al. [7]
Singh et al. [8]
5 Pritchard et al. [6] 2
Present study eq.9.2

0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20
Dp /Di r (mm)
Fig. 4. Comparison between analytical and experiment results for R. Fig. 6. Typical measured velocity profiles at exit of the equivalent single-port.
1706 A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai / Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708

by the PIV is then used to calculate the volume flow rate of the 400
mixture ðV_ m Þ and the primary aeration, as follows:

V_ a V_ m  V_ co2
R ¼ ¼ (13) 300
_
V co2 V_ co2 T7
Tp

T (oC)
R T6
PAc ¼  100 (14) 200 T5
ðA=FÞstoi:
T4
4. Results and discussion
100
4.1. Validation of the model T3
T2 , T1
In order to validate the analytical results, the entrainment ratio
0
R for the cold test obtained from the present study is compared 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000
with other studies, as shown in Fig. 4. All work is performed based t (s)
on the same working gas (air) and aspect ratio (Dp/Di), which
_ g ¼ 0:0017 kg  m=s2 .
Fig. 8. Typical gas mixture temperature at M
varied from 13 to 30. The previous studies obtained by Singh et al.
[7], Singh et al. [8], and Pritchard et al. [6] were cold tests and were
performed, respectively, by a finite element model, an experi- _ g . The
a radial direction r have a parabolic shape at all ranges of M
mental study, and an analytical study. Results of the present study _ g . The obtained
velocity magnitudes decrease with decreasing M
are obtained using equation (9.2), with the assumption that the
velocity profiles will be used to calculate V_ m and PAc by equations
relative density of gas s is equal to 1. It is clearly found that the
(13) and (14), respectively.
entrainment ratio increases linearly with the aspect ratio, because
the pressure drop in the mixing tube decreases, leading to a high
level of primary air entrainment. Results from the present study _g
4.3. Primary aeration (PA) and its variation with M
agree well with the other works [6–8]. Hence, the analytical
formula obtained in this study is accurate. Fig. 7 shows a comparison of PA between theoretical (cold test)
results and measured values (cold and hot tests). It was observed
4.2. Measurement of O2 concentration and velocity profiles that the levels of PA for both theoretical and experimental results
rapidly increase with M _ g at the early stage. Results for the cold test
Fig. 5 shows typical oxygen concentrations of a self-aspirating obtained using the PIV technique are consistent with those
burner for both cold test and hot test. It is clear that the O2 obtained by the oxygen sensor. However, PIV results provide
concentration in both cases rapidly increases at the early stage with slightly lower values for PA than theoretical ones, having 3 ¼ 0 mm
an increasing momentum rate of fuel gas M _ g . After that, the O2 because of surface roughness of the mixing tube. The PIV results are
concentration is stable and no longer dependent on the momentum consistent with theoretical results when 3 ¼ 0.25 mm. Thus, the
rate, due to limitations of mixing tube and burner port sizes. The mixing tube used in the experiment has a surface roughness of
hot test gives about a 2–3 percentage point (10–15% relative) lower about 3 ¼ 0.25 mm, the value of which is close to that of cast iron
[11]. It is interesting to note that, within the studied range of M _ g,
O2 concentration than that of the cold test, because the preheating
effect causes expansion of the mixture and an increase in its the hot test gives about a 22 percentage point (37% relative) lower
viscosity. PA value than that of the cold test because of the preheating effect
Fig. 6 shows typical velocity profiles u at the exit of the equiv- caused by combustion.
alent single-port burner. It is clear that the velocity distributions in Fig. 8 shows typical temperature changes over time of the gas
mixture at M _ g ¼ 0.0017 kg-m/s2 for the hot test. By monitoring the

80
300

250
60

200
PA (%)

Tp (oC)

40
150

Cold test (eq.11) (ε = 0 mm) 100

20 Cold test (eq.11) (ε = 0.25 mm)
Cold test (PIV)
Cold test (oxygen sensor) 50
Hot test (oxygen sensor)
0 0
0.000 .005 .010 .015 .020 .025 .030 .035 0.000 .005 .010 .015 .020 .025 .030 .035
. 2 .
Mg (kg-m/s ) Mg (kg-m/s2)

Fig. 7. Typical primary aeration of a self-aspirating burner. Fig. 9. Typical average gas mixture temperature at the burner port.
 A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai / Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708 1707

200 60
Pp
150 Hot test P4 50
Cold test
+ 10%

PAh (Correlation)
100 40
P (Pa)

P3
- 10%
50 30
P1 P2
Atmospheric pressure
0 20

-50 10

-100 0
-50 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 0 10 20 30 40 50 60
x (mm) PAh (Experiment)

Fig. 10. Typical pressure drop along a self-aspirating burner at Fig. 12. Parity plot showing comparison between correlation and experimental data.
M_ g ¼ 0:0303 kg  m=s2 .

4.4. Correlation for primary aeration (PA)

temperature T, it was found that the temperatures of all locations
increased with time, until they reached certain values. Near the
burner port exit, the temperatures (T5T7) are relatively high
because of heat transferred to the gas by conduction through the
solid (mixing tube). The high temperature of the gas is actually
caused by combustion, which in turn causes high viscosity of the
gas and thus low primary aeration. Fig. 9 shows typical variation
with M _ g of the average gas mixture temperature at the burner port
ðT p Þ. It was found that T p decreases as M _ g increases, because of
a strong cooling effect caused by the high velocity of the gas
mixture as M _ g increases.
Fig. 10 shows typical variations of static pressures along the
mixing tube for both cold test and hot test. Both cases show similar
trends. At the mixing tube inlet, P1 is zero because of its repre-
sentation of an atmospheric pressure. Then, at the throat, the
pressure decreases and becomes negative (or vacuum) pressure P2,
which is helpful in primary aeration. Beyond the throat up to the
burner port exit the pressure slightly increases, which contributes
to the flow of fluid in the mixing tube. It is clearly seen that the
pressure distribution for the hot test is greater than that of the cold
test. This may be attributed to an expansion of the gas mixture
flowing inside the mixing tube, which in turn results in the
lowering of primary aeration.
50
40
30
PA (%)
To the authors’ best knowledge, earlier studies [6–8] pertaining
to models and experiments predicting primary aeration for a self-
aspirating burner were conducted only as cold tests (PAc). No
general models or empirical correlations are available which are
capable of predicting primary aeration as a function of temperature.
In the present study, however, the primary aeration for the hot
test PAh can be estimated from the cold test PAc. But, PAh must be
corrected to account for the effect of the temperature rise of the
mixture at the burner port exits caused by combustion.
The temperature rise significantly affects the physical properties of
the gas mixture, in particular the viscosity. Best-fit empirical corre-
lation for PAh as a function of PAc and temperature [12] has been
determined and proposed with the formula:

 0:09exp nh
nh nc
PAh ¼ PAc (15)
nc
where nh and nc are, respectively, kinematic viscosity of the
entrained air at the average port temperature T p and at the inlet
temperature of the mixing tube T1. This correlation is valid for
30 < T p < 300 C. Equation (15) provides the best value in
comparison with the experimental results, as shown in Fig. 11. This
is the first correlation obtained from this study. It can be concluded
that when the mixing tube dimensions and the type of mixture are
specified, the level of primary aeration will depend on the mixture
temperature ðT p Þ. Even though the present study considers only
a single size of the burner throat, the proposed empirical correla-
tion could also be used for predicting the PA of other size of the
burner throat provided that T p is known. T p is quite stable and is
not dependent on the throat size. The larger the firing rate in

a relatively large throat size, the stronger the cooling effect on the
gas mixture below the burner head. Thus, T p is almost constant
irrespective of the size of the burner throat.
20
Fig. 12 shows a parity plot of PAh obtained using equation (15)
and by experimenting with a surface roughness of the mixing tube
10 Hot test (Experiment) of 3 ¼ 0.25 mm. It was found that the maximum deviation between
Hot test (Correlation) the correlation and the experiment is within 10%.

0 5. Conclusions
0.000 .005 .010 .015 .020 .025 .030 .035
. 2
Mg (kg-m/s )  The key parameters affecting PAc are momentum rate of fuel
_ g Þ, type of fuel gas, injector geometry, mixing tube
gas ðM
Fig. 11. Primary aeration correlation of a self-aspirating burner. geometry, and burner port geometry.
1708 A. Namkhat, S. Jugjai / Energy 35 (2010) 1701–1708
 The PA level rapidly increases at the early stage with increasing
_ g . After that, it is stable and no longer be dependent on M _ g,
M
due to limitations of mixing tube and burner port sizes.
 Both experiments measuring the level of PA for the cold test, by
the oxygen sensor and by the PIV technique, give similar results.
However, the hot test gives about a 22 percentage point (37%
relative) lower PA value than that of the cold test because of the
preheating effect caused by combustion. Designing a mixing
tube based on a cold model is valid no more because of the
preheating effect caused by combustion. It is recommended that
the preheating effect be taken into consideration in designing
the mixing tube so as to obtain an accurate primary aeration.
 The empirical formula for predicting PAh in this study is accu-
rate, finding the maximum deviation between the correlation
and the experiment to be within 10%.
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