Impact of Temperature on the Spray Characteristics of Jatropha Curcas Biodiesel and Diesel Fuel Blends

There is an increasing demand of energy because of an increase in the number of vehicles with internal combustion engines, because of which industrial and automotive fields are concerned about fossil fuel depletion, environmental issues, and energy conservation. These challenges force the world to explore other alternative sources of energy. The extensive use of biodiesel as compression ignition engine fuel has further compelled the researchers to regulate the emission and improve the engine performance. Fuel spray behavior affects mixture formation, and this affects engine combustion and performance. This research work involves the evaluation of the relationship between spray parameters of used Jatropha curcas biodiesel fuel, including spray penetration, cone angle, and preheating temperature, compared with diesel fuel, conducted at ambient condition. In addition to this, the high-speed spray pattern photography is undertaken by using single-hole and multi-hole injectors. The spray behavior is analyzed through spray parameters such as spray cone angle and spray penetration for all test fuels. The fuel temperature has a strong relationship with spray behavior at high temperatures; as the fuel temperature increases, the spray tip penetration decreases due to the evaporation of the fuel having a low boiling point and good fuel atomization, which leads to smaller droplets and an increase in spray cone angle with the increase in temperature.

Automated summary

The increasing demand for energy due to the rise in vehicles with internal combustion engines has raised concerns in industrial and automotive fields about fossil fuel depletion, environmental issues, and energy conservation. This has driven the world to explore alternative sources of energy. The use of biodiesel as engine fuel has prompted researchers to regulate emissions and enhance engine performance.