Theory of Flame Histories in Droplet Combustion at Small Stoichiometric Fuel-Air Ratios

Motivated by observations on the spherically symmetrical burning of single, free heptane droplets in quiescent helium-oxygen atmospheres, made in Spacelab aboard the Space Shuttle, the theory of droplet burning is extended for conditions under which the Burke-Schumann flame sheet lies in the outer transient zone. Account is taken of Lewis numbers different from unity and of radiant energy loss that sometimes leads to extinction. The asymptotic...