Reaction front propagation in nonadiabatic exothermic reaction flow systems

A general analysis of the reaction wave propagation in nonlinear exothermic nonadiabatic diffusion‐convection‐reaction systems is presented. The following topics are considered: approximation of temperature profiles based on the idea of infinitesimaly thin reaction front, estimation of maximum temperature, estimation of the conversion at the hot spot, a priori calculation of the front velocity, analysis of the self‐ignition phenomena and their relation to wave propagation, and discussion of the effect of the heat loss parameter on the direction of propagation and shape of traveling waves. A comparison of the analytical work with exact numerical results reveals excellent agreement. The main objective of this paper is to provide a definite analysis of reaction wave propagation in reacting flow systems.