High-Pressure Gaseous Burner (HPGB) Facility Became Operational
A gas-fueled high-pressure combustion facility with optical access, developed over the last 3 years, is now collecting research data in a production mode. The High-Pressure Gaseous Burner (HPGB) rig at the NASA Glenn Research Center can operate at sustained pressures up to 60 atm with a variety of gaseous fuels and liquid jet fuel. The facility is unique because it is the only continuous-flow, hydrogen-capable 60-atm rig in the world with optical access. It will provide researchers with new insights into flame conditions that simulate the environment inside the ultra-high-pressure-ratio combustion chambers of tomorrow s advanced aircraft engines. The facility provides optical access to the flame zone through four fused-silica optical windows, enabling the calibration of nonintrusive optical diagnostics to measure chemical species and temperature. The data from the HPGB rig enable the validation of numerical codes that simulate gas turbine combustors.