Search Results

The finite nature and instability of fossil fuel supply has led to an increasing and enduring investigation demand of alternative and regenerative fuels. The Institute for Combustion Engines at the RWTH Aachen University carried out an investigation program to explore the potential of tailor made fuels to reduce engine-out emissions while maintaining engine efficiency and an acceptable noise level. To enable optimum engine performance a range of different hydrocarbons having different fuel properties like cetane number, boiling temperature and different molecular compositions have been investigated. Paraffines and naphthenes were selected in order to better understand the effects of molecular composition and chain length on emissions and performance of an engine that was already optimized for advanced combustion performance. The diesel single-cylinder research engine used in this study will be used to meet Euro 6 emissions limits and beyond.

Fuel properties are always considered as one of the main factors to diesel engines concerning performance and emission discussions. There are still challenges for researchers to identify the most correlating and non-correlating fuel properties and their effects on engine behavior. Statistical analyses have been applied in this study to derive the most un-correlating properties. In parallel, sensitivity analysis was performed for the fuel properties as well as to the emission and performance of the engine. On one hand, two different analyses were implemented; one with consideration of both, non-aromatic and aromatic fuels, and the other were performed separately for each individual fuel group. The results offer a different influence on each type of analysis. Finally, by considering both methods, most common correlating and non-correlating properties have been derived.