Effects of hydrocarbon compositions and methanol concentration in high-percentage methanol fuels on the performance of Otto-type vehicles and Diesel-type vehicles

摘要

In Japan, a methanol fuel blended with 15 Vol% gasoline (RG-M85 fuel) is used for operatingOtto-type methanol vehicles mainly for ensuring cold startability. For Diesel-type methanol vehicles,a neat methanol fuel (M100 fuel) is used to ensure the performance of the catalytic converter andbetter NOx emission control while maximizing the brake specific energy consumption. However,unified methanol fuel specifications are more desirable in order to popularize and spread the use ofmethanol-fueled automobiles. The object of this study, therefore, is to determine a methanol fuelformulation that can be used by both Otto-type as well as Diesel-type methanol vehicles. The resultsof the Phase 1 study can be summarized as follows. For the hydrocarbon blending material, aparaffinic fraction consisting mainly of C5 and C6 appeared suitable and the proper methanolconcentration for such a fuel was determined to be in the range of 92 to 95 Vol%.