Reactive flows include a broad range of phenomena, such as flames, detonations, chemical lasers, the earth's atmosphere, stars and supernovae, and perhaps even the elementary particle interactions in the very early stages of the universe. There are striking physical differences among these flows, even though the general forms of the underlying equations are all quite similar. Therefore, considerations and procedures for constructing numerical models of these systems are also similar. The obvious and major differences are in the scales of the phenomena, the input data, the mathematical approximations that arise in representing different contributing physical processes, and the strength of the coupling among these processes.

For example, in flames and detonations, there is a close coupling among the chemical reactions, subsequent heat release, and the fluid dynamics, so that all of the processes must be considered simultaneously. In the earth's upper atmosphere, which is a weakly ionized plasma in a background neutral wind, the chemical reactions among ionized gases and the fluid dynamics are weakly coupled. These reactions take place in the background provided by the neutral gas motions. The sun's atmosphere is highly ionized, with reactions among photons, electrons, and ionized and neutral atomic species, all in the presence of strong electromagnetic fields. A Type Ia supernova creates the heavier elements in the periodic table through a series of strongly coupled thermonuclear reactions that occur in nuclear flames and detonations. The types of reactions, the major physical processes, and the degree and type of coupling among the processes vary substantially in these systems. Sometimes reactions are essentially decoupled from the fluid flow, sometimes radiation is important, and sometimes diffusive transport effects are important.