08/18/2026
By Marley O'Neil

The Francis College of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, invites you to attend a master’s thesis defense by Colin Wildman.

  • Thesis title: “Simulations of Salt Flow and Deposition in Premixed and Non-Premixed Burner Systems for Marine Applications”
  • Date: Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026
  • Time: noon – 2 p.m.
  • Location: Southwick Hall 240

Committee

  • Advisor: Noah Van Dam, Associate Professor, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell
  • John Hunter Mack, Professor, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell
  • David Willis, Associate Professor, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Abstract

Future unmanned ocean-going vessels will require robust propulsion systems capable of operating for extended periods in saline marine environments. Experimental testing of salt transport, deposition, and surface degradation under these conditions can be costly and time-consuming, creating a need for computational models capable of accurately predicting salt particle behavior and deposition. This work used computational fluid dynamics to investigate the transport of ingested salt particles through reacting flows and to improve the prediction of particle deposition on internal surfaces. The Sandia Flame D non-swirling piloted jet burner and Cambridge swirl bluff-body burner were modeled as non-premixed and premixed combustion systems, respectively. Simulations were performed using CONVERGE CFD with Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes and Large-Eddy Simulation turbulence approaches. Baseline cases without salt particles were first compared with available experimental measurements, and then salt loading based on military testing standards was introduced into the inflows.

In the Sandia Flame D configuration, particles introduced through the co-flow generally traveled around the reaction zone, resulting in limited changes to the large-scale flame structure while indicating potential accumulation on downstream surfaces. In the Cambridge burner, particles were distributed more uniformly throughout the combustion region and interacted more strongly with flame-holding surfaces near the bluff body. With the predicted deposition dependent on the treatment of particle–wall impacts, a physics-based wall-interaction approach, the Critical Velocity Model, was implemented in CONVERGE through user-defined functions. The implementations were verified against corresponding MATLAB calculations and evaluated in a U-bend geometry over multiple particle diameters, inlet velocities, and mixed-size particle distributions. The model produced different capture and rebound behavior, demonstrating that deposition prediction was sensitive to particle size and operating conditions. Together, the burner and U-bend simulations provide a framework for connecting salt-particle transport, wall impact behavior, and deposition risk. The results highlight the importance of particle treatment when assessing the durability of marine combustion systems.