PRESENTED BY:
Adam Klingbeil, Senior Engineer – Advanced Engine R&D
Wabtec Corporation

Sameera Wijeyakulasuriya, Project Manager
Convergent Science

With global efforts underway to transition to carbon-free mobility, hydrogen (H2) is receiving significant interest for its potential as an energy carrier. Several OEMs have already developed H2-powered internal combustion engines (H2ICEs), and auxiliary technologies around H2ICEs are being investigated to enable broader commercialization. Auxiliary technologies such as flame arrestors and durable storage tanks are necessary to ensure the safety of H2 combustion devices. Other ongoing research efforts are dedicated to studying processes that promote the proper operation of H2 devices, such as H2 injector flows and tank filling/emptying. CFD is an effective tool for designing H2-powered ICEs and gas turbines, as well as relevant auxiliary technologies. CFD provides insight into the governing physics of these systems and offers an economical method to test possible solutions and methods. However, H2 poses a number of modeling challenges: high injection velocities, low density, high mass diffusivity in air, wide flammability range, high burning velocities, and low ignition energy. In this webinar, we demonstrate how CONVERGE CFD software is uniquely suited to address these challenges for a variety of applications, including flame arrestors, self-ignition of H2 tank leakages, H2 tank filling and emptying, H2 fuel injection, rotating detonation engines, and H2ICEs. We take a closer look at a specific application of CONVERGE for analyzing a large-bore, medium-speed locomotive engine that is being modified for dual-fuel H2-diesel operation. The analysis explores the effect of temperature and compression ratio on the combustion event. Furthermore, additional analysis is investigating undesirable combustion events in the intake port.