A Modular Flat-Flame Experimental Platform for Mechanistic Studies of Plasma-Assisted Ammonia/Methane Combustion

Recent efforts to reduce emissions of NOx, N2O, and NH3-slip in ammonia-methane (NH3/CH4) combustion using Nanosecond Repetitively Pulsed Discharges (NRPD) have relied largely on complex plasma-assisted combustion experiments in three-dimensional, turbulent, swirl-stabilized burners. In this work, we introduce a modular experimental platform based on a flat-flame McKenna burner to isolate and study the fundamental plasma-flame interactions that govern NRPD-assisted combustion of NH3/CH4/air mixtures. The burner-plasma assembly supports both nanosecond-spark and uniform-discharge operating modes when generating the plasma in the hot exhaust gases. Preliminary NO measurements, with NRPD applied either in the post-flame region or directly within the reaction zone, indicate a net NO penalty under the conditions tested. These results highlight the need for further mechanistic investigation of NRPD-driven chemistry in ammonia-methane flames and its implications for emissions reduction strategies.