Effects of aromatic on soot characteristics of aviation fuel surrogates in diffusion flames
Abstract
Co-annular smoke-free laminar diffusion wick-fed flames of dodecane and its blended with various amounts of propylbenzene of 10, 20, 25 vol.% have been used to study soot formation characteristics. Dodecane and propylbenzene are selected as the surrogates for paraffin class and aromatic class of aviation fuel. A light extinction method is adopted to determine the total soot volume (TSV) as a function of flame height (Hf) and fuel mass consumption rate (FMCR). An empirical model has been built to predict soot formation of dodecane and propylbenzene (Do/PB) mixtures as the function of two variables of FMCR and concentration of propylbenzenet (%PB). TSVs of Do/PB mixtures increase with increasing Hf, FMCR and %PB. The effect of Hf, FMCR and %PB on soot formation are respectively expressed as the quadratic, power law and linear functions. The result of current work creates a database for optimizing the trade-off impacts of aromatic in aviation fuel. This information is of high importance when blending aromatic to bio-paraffins, which is produced from triglycerides and fatty acids in the vegetable by hydrotreating process, for using as a fuel in aircraft engines