Measurements and empirical correlations in predicting biodiesel-diesel blends' viscosity and density

One of the attempts to limit the use of fossil fuels in automobiles is to replace them partially or totally with clean and renewable fuels. Among renewable fuels, biodiesel has emerged as an important alternative to petroleum diesel fuel. Therefore, in this study, first, biodiesel was produced from hazelnut oil, which is agricultural product at Black Sea region of Turkey, by means of transesterification reaction. The produced biodiesel was blended with Ultra Force Euro diesel fuel at the volume ratios of 5, 10, 15, 20, 50 and 75% which are called as B5, B10, B15, B20, B50 and B75 as usual, respectively. Second, the densities and kinematic viscosities of each blends were measured at average climate conditions as 10, 20, 30 and 40 degrees C by following international ISO 4787 and DIN 53015 standards. Finally, new models were derived through the least squares regression method for density-temperature, kinematic viscosity-biodiesel fraction, kinematic viscosity-temperature and kinematic viscosity-density relationships, and compared with well-known models previously published in literature to determine the well-matched models. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.