HOT SURFACE IGNITION OF ETHANOL, GASOLINE, E-85, DIESEL AND E-DIESEL

摘要

While ignition of flammable and combustible liquids by hot surfaces is a well-known hazard in the chemical processing, automotive and aviation industries, only a limited amount of research has been conducted to understand the ignition mechanism. Recent studies [1-3] have been conducted to better understand this phenomenon for common fluids and fuels in the automotive industry. However, there are very few data on the ignition characteristics of the increasingly popular automotive bio-fuels, such as E-85 and E-diesel. E-85 is composed of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline, whereas E-diesel is a blend of standard No. 2 diesel fuel containing up to 15% ethanol and a proprietary additive to maintain blend stability and certain fuel properties such as cetane number and lubricity. Currently E-diesel fuels are considered experimental. They can be used legally in off-road applications but for on-road use special permission must be obtained from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In this paper, we present the results from over 600 ignition tests using a reproducible testing apparatus which includes: a temperature controlled hot plate, a controlled volume of liquid injected onto the hot surface and a quiescent environment. Tests were conducted to study the ignition characteristics of these bio-fuels and compare the results to commonly used gasoline and diesel. Hot surface ignition tests were conducted using 100% ethanol, gasoline (89 Octane), E-85, diesel and E-diesel. Based on the results of the tests, the propensity for the various fuels to ignite on a hot surface was addressed.