ABSTRACT
Combustion is a rapid, self-sustaining chemical reaction that releases a significant amount of heat and as such involves elements of chemical kinetics, transport processes, thermodynamics and fluid mechanics. Combustion is a key element in many technological applications in modern society. In itself, combustion is one of the most important processes in the world economy. Combustion underlies almost all systems of energy generation, domestic heating and transportation propulsion. Microgravity combustion scientists undertake experiments both in ground-based microgravity facilities and in orbiting laboratories and study how flames behave under microgravity conditions. While microgravity is the operational environment related to Earth-orbiting space laboratories, it is important to note that “ground-based facilities” allowing gravity reduction also serve the scientific community and enable relevant combustion studies to be carried out.
