Understanding Ignition Delay Effects With Pure Component Fuels in a Single-Cylinder Diesel Engine

In order to better understand how future candidate diesel fuels may affect combustion characteristics in diesel engines, 21 pure component hydrocarbon fuels were tested in a single-cylinder diesel engine. These pure component fuels included normal alkanes (C6–C16), normal primary alkenes (C6–C18), isoalkanes, cycloalkanes/-enes, and aromatic species. In addition, seven fuel blends were tested, including commercial diesel fuel, U.S. Navy JP-5 aviation fuel, and five Fischer–Tropsch synthetic fuels. Ignition delay was used as a primary combustion metric for each fuel, and the ignition delay period was analyzed from the perspective of the physical delay period followed by the chemical delay period. While fuel properties could not strictly be varied independently of each other, several ignition delay correlations with respect to physical properties were suggested. In general, longer ignition delays were observed for component fuels with lower liquid fuel density, kinematic viscosity, and liquid-air surface tension. Longer ignition delay was also observed for component fuels with higher fuel volatility, as measured by boiling point and vapor pressure. Experimental data show two regimes of operation: For a carbon chain length of 12 or greater, there is little variation in ignition delay for the tested fuels. For shorter chain lengths, a fuel molecular structure is very important. Carbon chain length was used as a scaling variable with an empirical factor to collapse the ignition delay onto a single trend line. Companion detailed kinetic modeling was pursued on the lightest fuel species set (C6) since this fuel set possessed the greatest ignition delay differences. The kinetic model gives a chemical ignition delay time, which, together with the measured experimental ignition delay, suggests that the physical and chemical delay period have comparable importance. However, the calculated chemical delay periods capture the general variation in the overall ignition delay and could be used to predict the ignition delay of possible future synthetic diesel fuels.