Post, September 22, 2014 • Elaine Oran, a professor of engineering at the University of Maryland, gave the keynote address on “Understanding explosions: From catastrophic accidents to the creation of the universe.” (Photos by Dino Vournas) The 35th International Combustion Symposium, the premier conference on combustion science and application held on August 3–8 in San...
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ACME: Climate Modeling Powered by DOE Supercomputers, Tamed by Uncertainty Quantification
Post, September 22, 2014 • Facing increasing evidence of climate change, scientists around the world are working to improve climate modeling, hoping to provide decision makers solid projections to guide the development of mitigating policies. Khachik Sargsyan is leading a Sandia effort to strengthen climate models through uncertainty quantification (UQ) for the Accelerated Climate Model...
August Visitor Departures
Post, November 24, 2014 • Many of the students and faculty visiting the CRF under the DOE Office of Science Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS) program returned to their universities in August. To learn more about their work at the CRF, click on the links below. Samira Iqbal, 6/2/14 – 8/7/14, Host: Ethan...
Bob Hwang is New Transportation Energy Center Director
Post, February 11, 2014 • In December, Sandia National Laboratories announced the appointment of Bob Hwang as the new director of the Transportation Energy Center, which includes the Combustion Research Facility (CRF). Bob Carling, who served as director of the Transportation Energy Center from 2008 to 2013, retired in December after 37 years at Sandia....
CRF Research Seeks to Improve Confidence in Large Eddy Simulations
Post, May 30, 2014 • Allowing solutions unattainable with direct numerical simulation and offering far greater accuracy than conventional engineering methods, large eddy simulation (LES) is now widely used for studying complex thermophysics in propulsion and power systems. However, because LES demands extremely complex tools, predictive LES has been problematic, leading to sometimes ambiguous results...
CRF Researchers Honored by DOE
Post, July 10, 2014 • Two Sandians received the DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Program achievement award. Pictured (from left to right) are Erika Sutherland (DOE FCTO), Brian Somerday, Chris San Marchi, and Will James (DOE FCTO). The Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Meeting held on June 17, 2014, gave two DOE groups, the...
CRF Reunion Luncheon Brings Together Staff, Retirees, Postdocs, and Visitors
Post, September 12, 2014 • With more than100 visiting researchers each year, many paths cross at the Combustion Research Facility. The CRF reunion luncheon, held during the 35th International Symposium on Combustion in San Francisco the first week of August, brought together a number of current staff, retirees, past and present postdocs, and other visitors....
CRF Seismic Retrofit Complete
Post, September 29, 2014 • The installation of new exterior concrete/steel seismic buttress walls, which are attached to the building steel framework. They reinforce the building structure so the building acts like one “box” during an earthquake. On Friday, Sept. 12, Sandia National Laboratories completed a three-year seismic retrofit of the Combustion Research Facility’s (CRF’s)...
CRF Visitors, January 2014
Post, March 12, 2014 • Adam Wahab 9/16/2013-1/21/2014 Host: Wayne Staats During a several-month visit, Adam Wahab assisted Wayne Staats, Jeff Koplow, Justin Vanness, and Ryan Gorman in developing a new lighting technology that uses a variant of the Sandia Cooler—a highly efficient heat exchanger for microelectronic devices—to cool the LED array. Specifically, Adam created...
CRF Visitors, March 2014
Post, May 5, 2014 • Xinyu Zhao Xinyu Zhao 1/13/14-3/7/14 Host: Jackie Chen Xinyu Zhao is a roving postdoctoral fellow at the Combustion Energy Frontier Research Center (a DOE-funded center led by Princeton University focused on predictive modeling to improve the design of advanced engines) who is co-mentored by Dan Haworth of Pennsylvania State University...
Daniel Dedrick serves on California Energy Commission’s 10th Integrated Energy Policy Report Workshop Panel
Post, April 28, 2014 • Daniel Dedrick On April 10, Daniel Dedrick participated in the California Energy Commission’s (CEC) 10th Integrated Energy Policy Report Workshop, "The State of Alternative Transportation Technologies Over the Next 10 Years." Daniel was a member of the Hydrogen Fueling Systems Panel, along with Aaron Harris of Air Liquide; Matt McClory...
Dennis Siebers Leaves Behind a Lasting Legacy in Engine Combustion Research
Post, July 8, 2014 • Dennis Siebers Nearly 40 years ago, Dennis Siebers was drawn to Sandia for the opportunity to perform “exceptional service in the national interest.” In July, his 38-year career at Sandia, most of it spent in the CRF, came to a close with his retirement. “It’s difficult to measure the impact...
Download a Special Edition of the CRF News
Post, October 22, 2014 • Download a special edition of the CRF News. This printable pdf newsletter includes coverage of the 35th International Symposium on Combustion, Robert Barlow's Alfred C. Egerton Gold Medal from the Combustion Institute, the CRF's 2014 Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists Program, Dennis Seibers' retirement, and more.
EERE Officials Visit CRF
Post, May 21, 2014 • Paul Miles leads David Danielson, on the far left, and the rest of the group through the small-bore diesel/light-duty diesel laboratory. On April 14, officials from the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) visited the Combustion Research Facility. The guests included David Danielson, EERE Assistant Secretary;...
Faculty and Students Pursue CRF Research under DOE Programs
Post, July 17, 2014 • Under the supervision of mentor Ethan Hecht, Samira Iqbal of Las Positas College works on a reactor that is used to characterize the kinetics of pulverized coal oxy-combustion under pressure. The DOE Office of Science Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS) initiative maintains a decades-long legacy of developing the...
February CRF Visitor Departures
Post, April 17, 2014 • Xiaoying Han Xiaoying Han 2/3/2014-2/14/2014 Host: Habib Najm As part of an ongoing collaboration with Habib Najm, Professor Xiaoying Han of Auburn University (Alabama) returned to the CRF to continue research on methods for model reduction in stochastic chemical systems. Prof. Han’s work is focused on developing a theoretical framework...
First Kevin E. Strecker Award Presented at Rice University
Post, May 30, 2014 • Joseph Barchas (middle) receives congratulations from Michelle Strecker and Randy Hulet, who was Kevin Strecker’s graduate advisor. The Combustion Research Facility (CRF) sends warm congratulations to Joseph Barchas of Rice University, the first recipient of the Rice University’s Kevin E. Strecker Award. Joseph received the $2,000 award from the Department...
Free-Piston Engines: A Possible Route to Hybrid-Electric Vehicles
Post, November 20, 2014 • A Sandia team is pursuing a novel route to hybrid-electric vehicles: the free-piston engine. So called because the piston is not mechanically linked to other engine systems, such as the crankshaft, the free-piston engine may provide greater efficiency than its conventional diesel and gasoline counterparts. Fueled by renewably sourced hydrogen,...
Habib Najm, Lyle Pickett, and Chris Carlen receive 2014 CRF awards
Post, November 25, 2014 • Robert Barlow, left, was awarded the Combustion Institute’s Alfred C. Edgerton Gold Medal. To his right are this year’s CRF awards recipients, Lyle Pickett, Habib Najm, and Chris Carlen, who were chosen by their peers. (Photos by Dino Vournas) The CRF is proud to announce Habib Najm as the winner...
New Conceptual Insights into Diesel Engine Fuel-Injection Processes
Post, March 12, 2014 • By Joe Oefelein By combining advanced theory and high-fidelity large eddy simulation, CRF researchers Rainer Dahms and Joe Oefelein have provided new conceptual insights that promise to improve the understanding and prediction of fuel-injection processes at high-pressure diesel engine conditions. Their results, which were corroborated by experiments performed by CRF...
New Diagnostic Capability Provides 3-D Measurements of Turbulent Flame Dynamics Using High-Repetition Rate Tomographic Particle Image Velocimetry
Post, July 24, 2014 • Capturing turbulence–flame interaction structure and studying time–history effects requires high-speed volumetric measurements performed at repetition rates sufficiently fast to resolve the relevant flow time scales. Advances in the CRF’s imaging diagnostic capabilities are overcoming these challenges to provide a more complete picture of the structure and dynamics of turbulence–flame interactions....
New Polarized-Depolarized Measurement Capability Extends Use of Raman/Rayleigh Methods to More Flame Types
Post, February 26, 2014 • By Robert Barlow Allowing single-shot measurements of all major species in nonsooting flames of simple fuels, such as H2 and CH4, spontaneous Raman scattering has been a key CRF laser diagnostic technique for fundamental turbulent-combustion studies. However, laser-induced fluorescence from soot precursors tends to interfere significantly with Raman scattering signals—limiting...
Paul Miles Appointed Manager of Engine Combustion Department
Post, July 8, 2014 • Paul Miles On June 6, Paul Miles became manager of the CRF’s Engine Combustion Department, which focuses on building the science base needed by industry to develop new generations of high-efficiency, clean engines. He took over the helm from departing manager Dennis Siebers, who recently retired from Sandia National Laboratories....
Portable Hydrogen Fuel Cell Unit to Provide Green, Sustainable Power to Honolulu Port
Post, April 3, 2014 • Clean hydrogen power that’s expected to lower emissions and reduce energy consumption will be coming to the Port of Honolulu in 2015 after the completion of a new fuel cell technology demonstration, one that could lead to a commercial technology for ports worldwide. A new fuel cell demonstration project led...
Postdoctoral Researcher Oliver Welz Moves on to Next Challenge
Post, April 15, 2014 • Oliver Welz Oliver Welz, a postdoctoral researcher in the CRF’s Combustion Chemistry group since 2010, will soon be taking on a new challenge as head of a research group in chemical kinetics at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany. In this position, the first step to becoming a full professor...
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