Four researchers from Simulation of reactive Thermo-Fluid Systems (STFS), TU Darmstadt contributed to the ASME Turbo Expo 2025 in Memphis. Among the many innovative topics, hydrogen combustion received notable attention, reflecting its growing importance in the field and its key role on the way toward decarbonization.

Fun challenge: Actually, there were five scientists from STFS at the conference. Can you spot the fifth one in the pictures?

Our Contributions & Key Discussions:

We contributed to key topics including turbulent hydrogen combustion, dual-fuel combustion, soot modeling, and thermo-acoustics.

What stood out for me personally: bridging fundamental and applied research through high-performance computing.

Philipp Koob presented two papers:

• „Comprehensive Modeling of the Cause-and-Effect Chain in Aero-Engine Combustor Simulations: From Primary Breakup to Soot Formation“
  
  • From primary breakup to soot formation: exploring sensitivities across the full modeling chain in aero engines.
• „Exploring Soot Pathways: High-Fidelity LES Investigation of Soot Formation and Oxidation in RQL Combustion Systems Under Real Conditions“
  
  • Introducing a region-wise combustor classification to identify key mixing and quenching effects.

Florian Uetrecht:

• „Assessment of a Hybrid LES-CAA Method for Predicting Flame Responses in Swirl-Stabilized Combustion under various acoustic excitations“
  
  • Validating a hybrid LES-CAA approach for flame transfer function prediction under acoustic forcing—benchmarking against experimental data.

Vinzenz Schuh:

• „An Extended Artificially Thickened Flame Model for Turbulent Hydrogen and Hydrogen-Enriched Flames With Intrinsic Instabilities Under Gas Turbine Relevant Conditions“
  
  • Presenting a new efficiency function to capture thermo-diffusive instabilities in lean H₂ flames—enabling accurate predictions across relevant gas turbine conditions.

Sofya Buro:

• „Development and Assessment of Dual-Fuel Capabilities in Next-Generation Aero-Engine Injectors for Hydrogen and SAF“
  
  • Demonstrating a CFD-based optimization workflow for H₂/SAF dual-fuel injectors—assessing retrofitting potential while meeting current emission regulations.

Global Networking at Its Best in the City of Blues:

We had inspiring conversations with colleagues from all over the world on new future collaborations.

…and yes, great local blues music to top it off!