Problems faced in

atomization of
Biodiesel
Seminar review 1
Why Biodiesel?
Diesel which is obtained from crude oil, is non-
renewable while Biodiesels are Methyl esters obtained
from plant and animal oils and biological wastes, is from
renewable sources.
Bioiesel leaves lower levels of soot.
Though Biodiesel costs 1.5 times more than diesel, it is
better for air and saves resources.
Its usage reduces greenhouse gases due to carbon
recycling.
Reported cases of better anti-knock qualities and
combustion stability.
Problems faced with Biodiesel

Due to its fluid properties, spray characteristics of

Biodiesel are different which requires modifications of
the present diesel engines.
The performance is affected due to its different physical
and chemical properties.
How Biodiesels are different?
Higher viscosity
Lower calorific value
Slightly higher density
How these properties affect?
Higher BSFC because of lower calorific value.
Higher viscosity causes slower injection rates.
Due to its oxygen content, HC and CO emissions are
lower depending on operating conditions.
Change in injection duration due to viscosity.
Effects on fuel atomization
Atomization is a very important process which supports
combustion and affects emission in IC engines.
Biodiesels have different physical properties which
impact the atomization process.
Higher viscosity affects spray velocity and breakup.
Lower calorific value requires larger duration of
injection.
Higher latent heat(ethanol) results in slower
evaporation.
Lower vapor pressure results in lower volatility which
retards combustion.
Literature
The literature under current perusal are
A Review on Atomization and Sprays of Biofuels for IC
Engine Applications
and
Spray characterization of straight vegetable oils at
high injection pressures.
Fuels discussed
The physical properties, breakup process and spray
characteristics of plant oils Jatropha and Pongamia oils
along with blends of Dimethyl Ether are discussed.
Non-evaporating sprays are discussed first to
understand the droplet distribution and spray structure.
Spray structure
It is defined mainly by

Spray tip penetration

Plume angle

Spray tip velocity

Spray tip penetration
A point where the total fuel
evaporation rate in the spray equals the
fuel injection rate.
This region from nozzle tip to the tip of
the liquid region is called liquid length.
It determines whether there will be
liquid spray impingement over the
chamber walls.
Fuel properties like temperature and
density have a strong effect on the
liquid length, while injection pressure
seems to have little effect.
Plume angle
Plume angle determines the spread of
droplets and air entrainment.
Hot air entrainment gives the energy
for vaporization, whereas the energy
released by combustion doesnt play a
role here.
Comparison through experimental
results
The biodiesels mainly considered are Jatropha oil, Palm
oil and Pongamia oil.
The experimental observations are made by capturing
the images of spray using high definition camera. To
visualize droplets, high shutter speeds are used.
Various injection pressures and ambient pressures are
used to determine the effects.
Observations are mainly on he physical parameters
such as plume angle, tip penetration and breakup
process.
Observations
Spray tip penetration of Biodiesel greater than Diesel.

Spray plume angle of Biodiesel smaller than Diesel.

Break up of Biodiesel slower than Diesel.

Volumetric injection rate of Biodiesel lower than Diesel.

Observations
Longer injection delay observed for Biodiesel.
Lower mass flow rate for injections of shorter duration.
Slower deformation resulting in bigger droplet
diameters observed in Biodiesels.
Reasons

The higher viscosity and surface tension were observed

to be the reasons of the mentioned differences in
behavior.
Observations on droplet size
distribution
Droplet sizes determine air-fuel mixing and evaporation.
Important parameter of droplet size is Sauter Mean
Diameter(SMD).
Bio-diesel showed higher SMD than diesel which
indicates worse evaporation and mixing characteristics.
This behavior is attributed to coalescence of the
droplets after 20 mm from the tip.
The breakup process depends on this microscopic
behavior.
What is Breakup process?

Common rail diesel injectors disintegrate fuel into

ligaments or droplets within short distance from the
nozzle. This is called Primary atomization.
This near nozzle breakup process mainly depends on
injection pressure than ambient pressure and is
attributed to aerodynamics forces and turbulence
enhancement due to cavitation.
Behavior in primary atomization
Biodiesel shows slower rate of penetration
Narrower plume angle has been observed for Biodiesel.
This is because of the different inner nozzle cavitation
behavior.
Secondary breakup types
Secondary atomization
The droplets from primary further breakup due to the
aerodynamic forces caused by interaction of the
droplets with the surrounding.
The modes are Vibrational, Bag type, Multi-mode,
Sheet-stripping and Catastrophic breakup.
Various modes of secondary atomization of Biodiesel
showed slower breakup and larger fragments as
compared to diesel.
The various secondary atomization modes are
generated by varying Weber numbers, the ratio of
inertial to surface tension force.
Reacting spray
Various parameters of interest in the reacting spray
study are
1. Liquid spray
2. Tip penetration
3. Lift-off height (length of spray which is not enveloped
by the flame),
4. Ignition delay
5. Combustion species concentrations
Reacting spray
Lift-off height, ignition delay, HC and NOx concentration
provide information on spray evaporation and
combustion.
The fuel rich part in the inner region of spray burns
partially and forms soot cloud which burns when
exposed to oxygen.
NOx forms at outer region.
Ignition delay has implications on the soot and NOx
formation.
Reacting spray comparison
Biodiesel shows longer liquid length due to density,
slower breakup and lower volatility.
Shorter ignition delay because of higher cetane number.
Biodiesel indicated faster combustion rate.
Need for further research
Spray atomization studies so far are discussed
separately for primary and secondary breakups. So
there is a need for a holistic study covering from tip to
end.
The importance of various secondary modes needs to
be found out for Biodiesel systems for optimizing.
Different combustion characteristics indicate the need
for optimization of the chamber parameters.