Combustion Characteristics of Spray Flames of Soy Methyl Ester and Diesel Blends

摘要

Spray flames of blends of Soy Methyl Ester (SME) and Diesel No. 2 fuel were characterized in this study. The fuel was atomized and mixed with air in a heated environment at an initial equivalence ratio of 0.64 in order to simulate lean-burning conditions. Measurements of global emissions, in-flame concentration profiles and in-flame temperature profiles were carried out. The atomization air and the co-flow air flow rates were maintained constant for all the experiments. The global emission indices of CO and NO_x decreased as the volumetric content of SME was increased in the blends. The peak temperature in the flames decreased with the increase in biofuel content in the blend. The inflame NOx concentration profiles at 25% flame height mirrored the temperature profiles in the flames, indicating that the thermal mechanism of NOx formation may be dominant in these flames.