I am attempting to analyze the significance of minor species within the framework of supersonic combustion inside a model combustor. Your insights on this topic would be greatly appreciated.
The reaction mechanism H2 + O2 includes hundreds reactions with known rate constants. It's a time consuming job to look through the data bases. Check NIST website.
In the H2-O2 combustion system, the HO2 radical plays several significant roles:
Chain Branching: HO2 radicals contribute to radical chain branching reactions, influencing the overall reaction kinetics in combustion systems [5].
Intermediate Species: HO2 radicals serve as intermediate species in various reactions, leading to the formation of important compounds such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) through termination steps [4].
Reaction Kinetics: HO2 radicals are involved in reactions with other radicals and species, affecting the combustion kinetics and the overall efficiency of the combustion process [3].
Flame Chemistry: Understanding the presence and behavior of HO2 radicals helps in elucidating flame chemistry, aiding in the design and optimization of combustion systems [2].
HO2 radical is one of the intermediates important at lower temperatures in a premixed flame structure. Supersonic combustion occurs in diffusion mode and the temperature range is about 1000 K to 3000 K and residence times available for combustion will be about a millisecond. What matters is heat release and on this the peroxyl radical has little influence. To my mind it is a closed issue. You are welcome to pursue what may turn out to be not-so-significant subject. You might like to read some our publications in late nineties (you can see www.hsmukunda.in)