Flameless Combustion as an Alternative for Improving the Efficiency of Thermal Systems: State-of-the-Art Review

The increasing energy demand and polluting emissions have generated a growing number of studies into technologies that can be used to mitigate both problems worldwide. Among the alternatives for improving the efficiency of thermal processes, the flameless combustion regime has been presented as one of the most promising options because it enables high thermal performance by enhancing heat transfer and the combustion process, with the consequent reduction in polluting emissions. For that reason, this article reviews the state of the art of said technology, emphasizing the associated phenomenological aspects, the main characteristics of the regime, its stability, the mechanisms to obtain it, and a series of national and international studies in which fossil and alternative fuels were used. Finally, some cases in which such regime has been implemented at the industrial level are discussed.