Combustion and emissions of RP-3 jet fuel and diesel fuel in a single-cylinder diesel engine

The combustion characteristics and emission behaviors of RP-3 jet fuel were studied and compared to commercial diesel fuel in a single-cylinder compression ignition (CI) engine. Engine operational parameters, including engine load (0.6, 0.7, and 0.8 MPa indicating the mean effective pressure (IMEP)), the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) rate (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30%), and the fuel injection timing ( - 20, - 15, - 10, and - 5 degrees crank angle (CA) after top dead center (ATDC)) were adjusted to evaluate the engine performances of RP-3 jet fuel under changed operation conditions. In comparison to diesel fuel, RP-3 jet fuel shows a retarded heat release and lagged combustion phase, which is more obvious under heavy EGR rate conditions. In addition, the higher premixed combustion fraction of RP-3 jet fuel leads to a higher firststage heat release peak than diesel fuel under all testing conditions. As a result, RP-3 jet fuel features a longer ignition delay (ID) time, a shorter combustion duration (CD), and an earlier CA50 than diesel fuel. The experimental results manifest that RP-3 jet fuel has a slightly lower indicated thermal efficiency (ITE) compared to diesel fuel, but the ITE difference becomes less noticeable under large EGR rate conditions. Compared with diesel fuel, the nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions of RP-3 jet fuel are higher while its soot emissions are lower. The NOx emissions of RP-3 can be effectively reduced with the increased EGR rate and delayed injection timing.

Automated summary

The combustion characteristics and emission behaviors of RP-3 jet fuel were studied in a single-cylinder compression ignition engine. RP-3 jet fuel showed a retarded heat release and lagged combustion phase compared to diesel fuel, with a higher premixed combustion fraction leading to a higher first-stage heat release peak. RP-3 jet fuel also had a longer ignition delay time, shorter combustion duration, and earlier CA50 than diesel fuel. Higher EGR rates and delayed injection timing effectively reduced the NOx emissions of RP-3 jet fuel.