PhD student – HyNOISE Doctoral Candidate (DC2): Combustion noise from H2/Air flames and dynamics during ignition and steady operation of H2/Air in longitudinal and annular combustors

Doctorat / PhD Profil chercheur : First Stage Researcher (R1) Type de contrat : Temporary Date limite de candidature : 31 Dec 2026 - 23:59 (Europe/Rome) Programme UE : Horizon Europe - MSCA Domaine : Physics » Applied physics

About HyNOISE HyNOISE is a Doctoral Network aimed to train doctoral candidates able to face current and future challenges in the prediction and control of direct and indirect noise generated by hydrogen flames. Four specific research objectives will be pursued: 1) Unveil the dynamics and sound pressure level generated during unsteady ignition and flashback process 2) Investigate the direct broadband sound generated due to the coupling between unsteady flame dynamics and flame-flame interactions, hydrodynamic and thermo- diffusive instabilities, and turbulence. 3) Understand physical mechanisms leading to the onset of thermoacoustic instabilities coupled with different modes at either with a specific focus on high frequencies 4) Study the contribution of convective waves to combustion noise and thermoacoustic instabilities. Multiple hydrogen-air archetypes typical of air-breathing hydrogen combustion systems in both single and annular multi-injector configurations will be investigated. In a collaborative partnership between academic and industry partners who are major European gas turbine manufacturers, HyNOISE bring relevant expertise together and to pursue solutions for hydrogen through integration and combination of unique and advanced theoretical, high-fidelity modelling and experimental expertise. This will lead to the development of new models and tools able to correctly predict hydrogen flame dynamics and its resulting pressure field, and, on this basis, developing control and mitigation methods to overcome current limitations in hydrogen combustion systems and design innovative, quiet, and stable combustion devices. The technologies developed will stimulate the green transition in the power generation and transport sectors, thus contributing to the achievement of the EU's challenging decarbonization goals. About the host organization The EM2C (Energétique, Moléculaire et Macroscopique, Combustion) is a laboratory of the CNRS (CNRS UPR 288) located in CentraleSupélec (CS), which is part of the Université Paris-Saclay. It comprises about 100 people and focuses on the topics of combustion, plasmas, and heat and mass transfer. The team involved in the project is the combustion dynamics team created under the impulse of Prof. Sébastien Candel, renowned expert in the field of combustion instabilities. The team’s efforts focus on the experimental analysis and the reduced-order modelling of flame and combustor dynamics in configurations that are relevant for the fields of aerospace and energy production. Individual Research Project (IRP) Problem Definition The project aims to investigate noise radiated by confined H2-Air flames, light round ignition dynamics of these flames and combustion instabilities coupled by azimuthal modes in an annular configuration. The injector that will be used employs crossflow injection of hydrogen in a swirled air flow. Investigations of the noise emitted by H2-air combustion will be performed in the single injector setup called SICCA. Since it is possible to operate the rig with conventional hydrocarbons in premixed (for gaseous fuels) or spray (for liquid fuels) mode while keeping the same general injector geometry, comparisons will be carried out to highlight the specificities of the noise from hydrogen combustion. Flame Transfer functions and their weakly nonlinear extension in the form of Flame Describing functions will be measured and will also serve as an input for the third part of the proposed work, which aims to predict the stability of the annular chamber MICCA. The ignition dynamics of the annular chamber MICCA when operated with hydrogen will also be studied. Previous investigations have indeed shown that the light-round phase of the ignition process gives rise to a pressure excursion and a subsequent flashback of the flame into the injector. Because of the high burning velocity of hydrogen, one may expect that this phenomenon will occur as well in the present case. This will be studied using dynamic pressure sensors to record the pressure wave induced by ignition in combination with high-speed imaging of the flame during this process. The third goal is to investigate self-excited dynamics of the annular chamber under different operating conditions. Previous studies have shown that, depending on the operating point, combustion can be stable or unstable, and in the latter case be coupled with azimuthal modes that can be spinning, standing or of mixed type. Preliminary investigations have shown that, when operated with hydrogen, high-order azimuthal modes, characterized by high frequencies, can be triggered. To investigate these phenomena, pressure fluctuation and heat release rate measurements will be carried out and coupled with LOM analytical models to develop predictive tools and find ways of reducing azimuthal combustion instabilities. Research Objectives Measure combustion noise in the single injector test rig SICCA and compare with hydrocarbon flames. Measure the Flame Transfer Functions of H2-Air flames in SICCA, targeting high frequencies. Perform experiments on ignition dynamics with hydrogen with a focus on pressure excursion. Measure stability maps of MICCA in a broad operating domain. Combine the previous results into a reduced order model to investigate predictive capabilities. Expected Results Spectral signatures of H2-Air flame in SICCA and comparison to those of conventional hydrocarbons. Flame Transfer Functions will be documented. Measurements of the pressure excursion during ignition of the MICCA chamber. Stability map of the MICCA annular test rig burning hydrogen. A stability analysis will be carried out in parallel thanks to a data-driven low order analytical model leveraging flame describing functions and injection unit impedances measured on separate rigs. Secondments Technical University of Berlin (Germany, ca. 2 months): develop the LOM for stability analyses in annular combustion chambers. Czestochowa University of Technology (Poland, ca. 3 months): exchange data on ignition process in SICCA and contribute to the design of the active control strategy The IRP will have a strong link to other IRPs from different DCs for: Work on develop joint flame control strategies Work on Low-Order Modelling Provision of input and data

About HyNOISE

HyNOISE is a Doctoral Network aimed to train doctoral candidates able to face current and future challenges in the prediction and control of direct and indirect noise generated by hydrogen flames. Four specific research objectives will be pursued: 1) Unveil the dynamics and sound pressure level generated during unsteady ignition and flashback process 2) Investigate the direct broadband sound generated due to the coupling between unsteady flame dynamics and flame-flame interactions, hydrodynamic and thermo- diffusive instabilities, and turbulence. 3) Understand physical mechanisms leading to the onset of thermoacoustic instabilities coupled with different modes at either with a specific focus on high frequencies 4) Study the contribution of convective waves to combustion noise and thermoacoustic instabilities. Multiple hydrogen-air archetypes typical of air-breathing hydrogen combustion systems in both single and annular multi-injector configurations will be investigated. In a collaborative partnership between academic and industry partners who are major European gas turbine manufacturers, HyNOISE bring relevant expertise together and to pursue solutions for hydrogen through integration and combination of unique and advanced theoretical, high-fidelity modelling and experimental expertise. This will lead to the development of new models and tools able to correctly predict hydrogen flame dynamics and its resulting pressure field, and, on this basis, developing control and mitigation methods to overcome current limitations in hydrogen combustion systems and design innovative, quiet, and stable combustion devices. The technologies developed will stimulate the green transition in the power generation and transport sectors, thus contributing to the achievement of the EU's challenging decarbonization goals.

About the host organization

The EM2C (Energétique, Moléculaire et Macroscopique, Combustion) is a laboratory of the CNRS (CNRS UPR 288) located in CentraleSupélec (CS), which is part of the Université Paris-Saclay. It comprises about 100 people and focuses on the topics of combustion, plasmas, and heat and mass transfer. The team involved in the project is the combustion dynamics team created under the impulse of Prof. Sébastien Candel, renowned expert in the field of combustion instabilities. The team’s efforts focus on the experimental analysis and the reduced-order modelling of flame and combustor dynamics in configurations that are relevant for the fields of aerospace and energy production.

Individual Research Project (IRP)

Problem Definition

The project aims to investigate noise radiated by confined H2-Air flames, light round ignition dynamics of these flames and combustion instabilities coupled by azimuthal modes in an annular configuration. The injector that will be used employs crossflow injection of hydrogen in a swirled air flow. Investigations of the noise emitted by H2-air combustion will be performed in the single injector setup called SICCA. Since it is possible to operate the rig with conventional hydrocarbons in premixed (for gaseous fuels) or spray (for liquid fuels) mode while keeping the same general injector geometry, comparisons will be carried out to highlight the specificities of the noise from hydrogen combustion. Flame Transfer functions and their weakly nonlinear extension in the form of Flame Describing functions will be measured and will also serve as an…