Burning of Algae-Derived Biofuel Droplets and Their Mixtures with Jet Fuel

This paper reports new results about the combustion dynamics of hydroprocessed renewable jet fuel droplets derived from heterotrophic algae (AHRJ) burning under conditions that promote one-dimensional transport dynamics and near spherically symmetric burning conditions. Results are compared between Jet-A and three AHRJ/Jet-A mixtures containing 25, 50, and 75% AHRJ by volume. The results show that AHRJ droplets burn slightly faster than Jet-A and have a significantly reduced sooting propensity. Detailed chemical analysis also shows that AHRJ contains virtually no aromatics while the aromatic content of Jet-A was 16% by volume. The influence of composition on the burning rate is explained using a simple scaling argument that illustrates the importance of liquid density and other properties.