Kendal Bushe

W. Kendal Bushe
Associate Professor
B.Sc. (Alberta), Ph.D. (Cambridge)
ph: (604) 822-3398
fx: (604) 822-2403
email: wkb@mech.ubc.ca
website: kbspc.mech.ubc.ca

Research Interests

• Combustion
• Turbulence
• Numerical Simulation
• Computational Fluid Dynamics
• IC Engines
• Thermal Power Generation

Current Research Work

My research is in turbulent combustion. I have been developing methods for numerical simulation of turbulent combustion, including the development of a new modelling approach which has come to be known as Conditional Source-term Estimation. I have also been involved in experimental work; my research group has commissioned two different experimental facilities for the study of the ignition and combustion of methane and natural gas in engines.

• Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes
  • Here, the governing equations in their ensemble-averaged form are solved to obtain either steady or transient flow fields using both commercial CFD packages and in-house, flow-specific codes. Models must be provided for the dissipation of energy due to turbulence. In the case of reacting flows, models must also be provided for the averaged chemical source-terms. Applications range from fundamental studies to industrial applications for use in design optimization.
• Large Eddy Simulation
  • In LES, the governing equations are spatially filtered such that only the large scale motions in the flow are resolved on the computational grid. Models must be provided for the dissipation of energy at unresolved scales. In the case of reacting flows, models must be provided for the chemical source-terms as well because they are also under-resolved in simulations of most practical flames. Here we have been focusing on careful validation of models against DNS and experimental data for simple laboratory-scale flames.
• Fundamental ignition simulations
  • We are also studying autoignition using the relatively new Stochastic Particle Model, which solves the chemical Master equation using a Monte Carlo technique. Using this method, the autoignition delay time becomes a random variable. This study has significant implications for the operation and control of Homogeneous-Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engines.
• Shock-tube Research
  • We have been studying ignition experimentally using a shock-tube facility. Our earlier work involved examining ignition of homogeneous mixtures of gaseous fuels and air. We used that data to develop chemical kinetic mechanisms that are substantially better at predicting the autoignition of natural gas-like fuels in air under engine-relevant conditions. Our most recent work has been studying autoignition of turbulent jets of methane injected into the shock-tube using optical diagnostics. This data has been used for validation of our simulation tools.
• Single-Cylinder Research Engine
  • We have a unique diesel engine facility in which a 6-cylinder production diesel engine has been modified to fire on only one cylinder. This engine is fully instrumented for research purposes and we have been using this to study High-Pressure Direct-Injection (HPDI) of natural gas using exhaust gas recirculation (EGR).

Selected Publications

• H. Steiner and W. K. Bushe, “Large Eddy Simulation of a turbulent reacting jet with Conditional Source-term Estimation,” Physics of Fluids, 13(3), pp. 754-769, 2001.
• W. K. Bushe and H. Steiner, “Laminar Flamelet Decomposition for Conditional Source-term Estimation,” Physics of Fluids, 15(6), pp. 1564-1575, 2003.
• G. P. McTaggart-Cowan, P. G. Hill, W. K. Bushe & S. R. Munshi, “NOx reduction from a heavy-duty diesel engine with direct injection of natural gas and cooled exhaust gas recirculation,” International Journal of Engine Research, 5(2), pp. 175-191, 2004.
• J. Huang, P. G. Hill, W. K. Bushe and S. R. Munshi, “Shock-tube study of methane ignition under engine-relevant conditions: experiments and modeling,” Combustion and Flame 136(1), pp. 25-42, 2004.
• G. D. Sullivan, J. Huang, T. Wang, W. K. Bushe, and S. N. Rogak, “Emissions Variability in Gaseous Fuel Direct Injection Compression Ignition Combustion,” SAE 2005 Transactions: Journal of Engines, pp. 780-789, 2006.
• J. Huang and W. K. Bushe, “Experimental and kinetic study of autoignition in methane/ethane/air and methane/propane/air mixtures under engine-relevant conditions,” Combustion and Flame, 144(1), pp. 74-88, 2006.
• A. Frisque, J. Schnakenberg, J. Huang and W. K. Bushe, “Prediction of Variations in the Ignition Delay Time of Methane/Air with a Stochastic Particle Model,” Combustion Theory and Modelling, 10(2), pp. 241-256, 2006.
• G. P. McTaggart-Cowan, C. C. O. Reynolds and W. K. Bushe, “Natural Gas Fuelling for Heavy-Duty On-Road Use: Current Trends and Future Direction,” International Journal of Environmental Studies, 63(4), pp. 421-440, 2006.
• M. Wang, J. Huang and W. K. Bushe, “Simulation of a Turbulent Non-premixed Flame using Conditional Source-term Estimation with a Trajectory Generated Low-dimensional Manifold,” presented at the 31st International Symposium on Combustion, Heidelberg, Germany, 2006.