Abstract

The application of laser spectroscopy to the hostile, yet easily perturbed, environments of practical combustion devices is anticipated to afford considerable advances in combustion technology in the coming years. Of various laser approaches, coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) appears to be the most promising approach for the remote, spatially and temporally precise measurement of temperature and major species in practical combustion systems. Over the last several years, the development of CARS has progressed from simple flames of increasing complexity to practical application in afterburning jet engines, internal combustion engines, furnaces and a myriad of other devices. Considerable effort has been expended over this period to extend the capabilities and applicability of CARS, e.g. to higher pressures, to more particle laden systems, etc. In this presentation, recent research activities in our laboratory along these lines will be discussed.

© 1987 Optical Society of America