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Investigation of the combustion characteristics and knock tendencies of neat C1–C4 alcohol fuels using a CFR engine

Olson, Andre Louis LU ; Tunér, Martin LU and Verhelst, Sebastian LU orcid (2024) In Fuel 381.
Abstract
Even though it is primarily used in blends with gasoline, neat ethanol is considered an excellent fuel for spark-ignition engines, as demonstrated by its widespread use as a transportation fuel in Brazil. The use of biologically produced alcohols in neat form has the potential to displace larger amounts of fossil fuels, compared to using them solely as oxygenate blend components. Consequently, further reductions in net CO2 emissions can be achieved. Besides ethanol, other lower alcohols also have the potential to be used as neat spark-ignition fuels, thus warranting further investigation. Therefore, this work provides a direct comparison, performed on a modified Waukesha CFR engine, of neat C1–C4 alcohols,... (More)
Even though it is primarily used in blends with gasoline, neat ethanol is considered an excellent fuel for spark-ignition engines, as demonstrated by its widespread use as a transportation fuel in Brazil. The use of biologically produced alcohols in neat form has the potential to displace larger amounts of fossil fuels, compared to using them solely as oxygenate blend components. Consequently, further reductions in net CO2 emissions can be achieved. Besides ethanol, other lower alcohols also have the potential to be used as neat spark-ignition fuels, thus warranting further investigation. Therefore, this work provides a direct comparison, performed on a modified Waukesha CFR engine, of neat C1–C4 alcohols, with ethanol being the reference fuel. The tests focused on the combustion characteristics and knock propensities of the different compounds. The experimental test procedure was comprised of spark-timing sweeps at two compression ratios, at stoichiometric conditions and constant engine speed. In summary, the results showed that, with the notable exception of n-butanol, the C1–C4 alcohols exhibited good combustion characteristics and knock resistance, indicating their strong potential as biofuels that can be used in neat form, thus offering an additional pathway to reduce the use of fossil energy in transportation. (Less)
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Fuel
volume
381
article number
133499
pages
15 pages
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • scopus:85207598910
ISSN
1873-7153
DOI
10.1016/j.fuel.2024.133499
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
fe69fa68-7398-49b2-9488-4e1507a2cab2
date added to LUP
2024-11-05 10:58:10
date last changed
2025-04-04 14:45:12
@article{fe69fa68-7398-49b2-9488-4e1507a2cab2,
  abstract     = {{Even though it is primarily used in blends with gasoline, neat ethanol is considered an excellent fuel for spark-ignition engines, as demonstrated by its widespread use as a transportation fuel in Brazil. The use of biologically produced alcohols in neat form has the potential to displace larger amounts of fossil fuels, compared to using them solely as oxygenate blend components. Consequently, further reductions in net CO<sub>2</sub> emissions can be achieved. Besides ethanol, other lower alcohols also have the potential to be used as neat spark-ignition fuels, thus warranting further investigation. Therefore, this work provides a direct comparison, performed on a modified Waukesha CFR engine, of neat C<sub>1</sub>–C<sub>4</sub> alcohols, with ethanol being the reference fuel. The tests focused on the combustion characteristics and knock propensities of the different compounds. The experimental test procedure was comprised of spark-timing sweeps at two compression ratios, at stoichiometric conditions and constant engine speed. In summary, the results showed that, with the notable exception of <i>n</i>-butanol, the C<sub>1</sub>–C<sub>4</sub> alcohols exhibited good combustion characteristics and knock resistance, indicating their strong potential as biofuels that can be used in neat form, thus offering an additional pathway to reduce the use of fossil energy in transportation.}},
  author       = {{Olson, Andre Louis and Tunér, Martin and Verhelst, Sebastian}},
  issn         = {{1873-7153}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{10}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{Fuel}},
  title        = {{Investigation of the combustion characteristics and knock tendencies of neat C<sub>1</sub>–C<sub>4</sub> alcohol fuels using a CFR engine}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2024.133499}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.fuel.2024.133499}},
  volume       = {{381}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}