Developing detailed chemical kinetic mechanisms for fuel combustion

This paper discusses a brief history of chemical kinetic modeling, with some emphasis on the development of chemical kinetic mechanisms describing fuel oxidation. At high temperatures, the important reactions tend to be those associated with the H ₂ /O ₂ and C ₁ -C ₂ sub-mechanisms, particularly for non-aromatic fuels. At low temperatures, and for aromatic fuels, the reactions that dominate and control the reaction kinetics are those associated with the parent fuel and its daughter radicals. Strategies used to develop and optimize chemical kinetic mechanisms are discussed and some reference is made to lumped and reduced mechanisms. The importance of accurate thermodynamic parameters for the species involved is also highlighted, as is the little-studied importance of collider efficiencies of different third bodies involved in pressure-dependent reactions.