Chemical Kinetic Model Development and Flow Reactor Studies of Biodiesel Fuel Blends

Principal Investigators

Anthony J. Marchese, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Colorado State University
Fort Collins, CO 80524
Email: marchese@colostate.edu
Telephone: (970) 491-2328

Project Summary

This  study represents a combined experimental and numerical modeling effort aimed at developing a fundamental understanding of the effects of oxygenated species similar to those found in biodiesel on emissions from diesel fuels.  The objectives of the study are as follows:

• Identify one or more oxygenated species with similar essential characteristics to the long chain methyl esters present in today’s biodiesel fuels.
• Develop a chemical kinetic model of the surrogate oxygenated specie(s).
• Develop an oxygenated fuel blend model by incorporating the oxygenated species chemical kinetic model into a previously developed n-heptane model of Held, Marchese and Dryer
• Perform flow reactor experiments using the Princeton Variable Pressure Flow Reactor to test the chemical kinetic oxygenated blend mechanism.

The experiments and modeling were done by Rowan University Professor Anthony Marchese in the combustion laboratories of Prof. Frederick L. Dryer at Princeton University.  Marchese was on sabbatical leave from Rowan University during the 2003-2004 academic year, where he devoted full time to this project.

• Work In Progress Poster, 30th International Symposium on Combustion, Chicago, IL, July 2004.

• Gail, S., Thomson, M., Sarathy, S. M., Syed, S. A., Dagaut, P., Dievart, P., Marchese, A. J. and Dryer, F. L. (2006). A Wide Range Kinetic Modeling Study of Methyl Butanoate. Proc. Combust Inst . Accepted for Publication.

Last updated: August 30, 2006