Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Strontium Monoxide Measurements In Methane-Air Flames, Bobby J. Wimberly

Masters Theses

The spectroscopy of alkaline earth metal compounds has been an area of active research for several decades. This is at least in part stimulated by the application of these compounds to practical areas ranging from technology to medicine. The use of these compounds in the field of pyrotechnics was the motivation for a series of flame emission spectroscopy (FES) experiments with strontium containing compounds. Specifically, strontium monoxide (SrO) is studied as a candidate radiator for the diagnostic of methane-air flames.

SrO emissions have been observed in flames with temperatures in the range of 1200-1600-K for two compounds: strontium hydroxide and …

Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy For Analysis Of High Density Methane-Oxygen Mixtures, Matthew Dackman

Masters Theses

The applicability of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) toward greater than atmospheric density combustion diagnostics is examined. Specifically, this involves ascertaining the feasibility of measuring chemical equivalence ratios directly from atomic emission spectra at high density. The need for such measurement arises from the desire to quantify real time, localized combustion performance in weakly mixed flows. Insufficiently mixed flows generally result in unwanted byproducts, possess the propensity for overall combustion instability, and are increasingly likely to experience localized flame extinction.

We simulate methane/oxygen combustion in ambient pressures ranging 1 to 4 atmospheres, demonstrating these results to be analogous to what would …

A Six-Dimensional H2–H2 Potential Energy Surface For Bound State Spectroscopy, Robert Hinde

Chemistry Publications and Other Works

We present a six-dimensional potential energy surface for the (H₂)₂ dimer based on coupled-cluster electronic structure calculations employing large atom-centered Gaussian basis sets and a small set of midbond functions at the dimer’s center of mass. The surface is intended to describe accurately the bound and quasibound states of the dimers (H₂)₂, (D₂)₂, and H₂–D₂ that correlate with H₂ or D₂ monomers in the rovibrational levels (v, j) =(0,0), (0,2), (1,0), and (1,2). We employ a close-coupled approach to compute the …

Infrared-Active Vibron Bands Associated With Substitutional Impurities In Solid Parahydrogen, Robert Hinde

Chemistry Publications and Other Works

We present a model for the line shapes of infrared-active Q₁(0) vibron bands observed in solid parahydrogen doped with low concentrations of spherical substitutional impurities. The line shapes are highly sensitive to the H₂ vibrational dependence of the dopant–H₂ interaction. When this vibrational dependence is strong, the dopant can trap the infrared-active vibron in its first solvation shell; in this case, the trapped vibron manifests itself in the absorption spectrum as a narrow feature to the red of the pure solid’s vibron band.