Alternative Fuels For Internal Combustion Engines

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ALTERNATIVE FUELS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES: AN OVERVIEW

OF THE CURRENT RESEARCH
Chapter · January 2013

DOI: 10.13140/2.1.3008.5920
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INTERNATIONAL
ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT
FOUNDATION
Alternative Fuels Research Progress
Editor: Maher A.R. Sadiq Al-Baghdadi www.IEEFoundation.org
Chapter **
A LTERNATIVE F UELS FOR I NTERNAL C OMBUSTION

E NGINES : A N O VERVIEW OF THE C URRENT R ESEARCH
Ahmed A. Taha 1, Tarek M. Abdel-Salam 2, Madhu Vellakal 1

1
National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA.
2
Departments of Engineering, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA.
Abstract
Alternative fuels research has been on going for well over many years at a number of institutions. Driven by oil
price and consumption, engine emissions and climate change, along with the lack of sustainable fossil fuels,
transportation sector has generated an interest in alternative, renewable sources of fuel for internal combustion
engines. The focus has ranged from feed stock optimization to engine-out emissions, performance and durability.
Biofuels for transportation sector, including alcohols (ethanol, methanol...etc.), biodiesel, and other liquid and
gaseous fuels such as methane and hydrogen, have the potential to displace a considerable amount of petroleum-
based fuels around the world. First generation biofuels are produced from sugars, starches, or vegetable oils. On the
contrary, the second generation biofuels are produced from cellulosic materials, agricultural wastes, switch grasses
and algae rather than sugar and starch. By not using food crops, second generation biofuel production is much more
sustainable and has a lower impact on food production. Also known as advanced biofuels, the second-generation
biofuels are still in the development stage. Combining higher energy yields, lower requirements for fertilizer and
land, and the absence of competition with food, second generation biofuels, when available at prices equivalent to
petroleum derived products, offer a truly sustainable alternative for transportation fuels. There are main four issues
related to alternative fuels: production, transportation, storage, handling and usage. This chapter presents a review
of recent literature related to the alternative fuels usage and the impact of these fuels on fuel injection systems, and
fuel atomization and sprays for both spark-ignition and compression-ignition engines. Effect of these renewable
fuels on both internal flow and external flow characteristics of the fuel injector will be presented.
Copyright © 2013 International Energy and Environment Foundation - All rights reserved.
Keywords: Internal combustion engines; Alternative fuels.
1. Introduction
At present two-third of world energy demand is met by fossil fuels like petroleum and natural gas. Limited reserves
of fossil fuels and their unequal distribution have resulted in the fuel cost to raise several folds in last decade [1].
Fast depletion of fossil fuels is urgently demanding an exhaustive research effort to find out the viable alternative
Copyright © 2013 International Energy and Environment Foundation. All rights reserved.
2 Chapter * In: Alternative Fuels Research Progress. pp.***-***
fuels for meeting sustainable energy demand with minimum environmental impact. In the future, our energy
systems will need to be renewable and sustainable, efficient and cost- effective, convenient and safe [2]. Renewable
resources are more evenly distributed than fossil and nuclear resources, and energy potential from renewable
resources are more than three orders of magnitude higher than current global energy use. Today’s energy system is
unsustainable because of incompetent issues as well as environmental, economic, and geopolitical concerns that
have implications far into the future [3] (Figure 1).
The use of petroleum-derived fuel causes emissions of particulate matters, sulphur and polyaromatic hydrocarbons
through exhaust. The increasing use of petroleum fuel will intensify the local air pollution and magnify the local
warming caused by CO2 emission [3]
in addition to other greenhouse gases like CH4, NOx, etc. The health-related effects of diesel pollutants and the
other toxic substances liberated during the operation of the piston- type internal combustion engines (ICE) should
be highly and critically considered. Among these are the nitrogen oxides (NOx), soot, carbon monoxide (CO),
hydrocarbons (HC), aldehydes, cancer producing substances, compounds of sulphur and lead [1].
For more than a century, hydrocarbon fuels have played a leading role in propulsion and power generation.
However, increase in stringent environment regulations on exhaust emissions and anticipation of the future
depletion of worldwide petroleum reserves provides strong encouragement for research on alternative fuels [5]. As a
result various alternative fuels (such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG), hydrogen,
vegetable oils, bio gas, producer gas) are being considered as substitutes for hydrocarbon-based fuel and to reduce
exhaust emissions [2]. It has already been shown that alternative fuels offer an opportunity to reduce harmful
emission while keeping other engine characteristics within acceptable limits [6-12].
Spray characteristics such as primary break-up, penetration length and secondary droplet sizes are affected by fuel
composition such as viscosity [13], surface tension [14], density, latent heat of vaporization, thermal conductivity,
specific heat capacity, boiling points and heat of combustion [15]. Viscosity and density of fuel greatly influences
the atomization and vaporization patterns. These fuel properties are temperature dependent. Thus fuel inlet
temperature plays a very important role in fuel atomization process. At higher temperature viscosity of fuel
decreases which enhances the atomization of highly viscous fuels such as biodiesels.
There is another category of alternative fuels for powering vehicles, which are, either still under studies or can’t be
used on a commercial level. This includes using compressed air, water, electric power and wood pellets (also known
as biomass).
The objective of this chapter is to summarize the recent research work that has been done in the area of alternative
fuels and their use either as a replacement to the traditional petroleum fossil fuels or as an additive in internal
combustion engines. Special consideration has been given to the spray and atomization characteristics of these fuels
and what design modifications should be introduced to the current injection systems to accommodate the properties
of the alternative fuels and reap their best benefits.
Figure 1. World total automotive fuel consumption projections [3].
Chapter * In: Alternative Fuels Research Progress. pp.***-*** 3
2. Hydrogen
Hydrogen-burning internal combustion engines trace their roots back to some of the very earliest developments in
internal combustion engine development. In 1807 Isaac de Rivas built the first hydrogen internal combustion
engine, and although the design had serious flaws, it was a more than 50 years ahead of the development of gasoline
internal combustion engines [16]. Hydrogen can be used in both fuel cell vehicles (FRCVS) and hydrogen internal
combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, and both technologies are currently being developed.
Hydrogen is expected to be one of the most important fuels in the near future to meet the stringent emission norms.
The use of the hydrogen as fuel in the internal combustion engine represents an alternative to replace the
hydrocarbons fuels, which produce polluting gases such as carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbon (HC) during
combustion [2]. It is a long-term renewable and less-polluting fuel. In addition hydrogen with its clean burning
characteristics and better performance drives more interest in it as a fuel. When it is burnt in an internal combustion
engine, the primary combustion product is water with no CO2 although NOx emissions are formed when hydrogen is
used [17, 18].
2.1 Advantages of using hydrogen in ICE
Wide range of flammability: Compared to nearly all other fuels, hydrogen has a wide flammability range (4-75%
versus 1.4-7.6% volume in air for gasoline). It also allows for a lower combustion temperature, lowering emissions
of criteria pollutants such as nitrous oxides (NOx) [16].
High diffusivity: Hydrogen has very high diffusivity. This ability to disperse into air is considerably greater than
gasoline and is advantageous for two main reasons. Firstly, it facilitates the formation of a uniform mixture of fuel
and air. Secondly, if a hydrogen leak develops, the hydrogen disperses rapidly. Thus, unsafe conditions can either
be avoided or minimized [19].
Flame velocity and adiabatic flame: Hydrogen burns with a high flame speed, allowing for hydrogen engines to
more closely approach the thermodynamically ideal engine cycle (most efficient fuel power ratio) when the
stoichiometric fuel mix is used. However, when the engine is running lean to improve fuel economy, flame speed
slows significantly [16].
Due to the higher self ignition temperature of hydrogen, compared to that of the conventional diesel fuel, the
compression temperature will not be high enough to ignite hydrogen therefore it can’t be used as a sole fuel in
compression ignition engines (CIE) but can be used in a dual-fuel mode. In a dual-fuel engine hydrogen is used as
the main fuel, which is inducted/carbureted or injected into the intake air while combustion is initiated by the diesel
fuel that acts as an ignition source. The pilot fuel (diesel) quantity may be in the range of 10-30% while the rest of
the energy is supplied by the main fuel (hydrogen) [2].
2.2 Disadvantages of using hydrogen in ICE

Small quenching distance: Hydrogen has a small quenching distance (0.6 mm for hydrogen versus 2.0 mm for
gasoline), which refers to the distance from the internal cylinder wall to where the combustion flame extinguishes.
This implies that it is more difficult to quench a hydrogen flame than the flame of most other fuels, which can
increase backfire since the flame from a hydrogen-air mixture more readily passes a nearly closed intake valve, than
a hydrocarbon-air flame [16, 19].
Minimum ignition source energy: The minimum ignition source energy is the minimum energy required to ignite a
fuel-air mix by an ignition source such as a spark discharge. For a hydrogen and air mix it is about an order of
magnitude lower than that of a petrol-air mix 0.02 mJ as compared to 0.24 mJ for petrol - and is approximately
constant over the range of flammability. This is illustrated in Figure 2. Unfortunately, the low ignition energy means
that hot gases and hot spots on the cylinder can serve as sources of ignition, creating problems of premature ignition
and flashback [20, 21].
Low density: The most important implication of hydrogen’s low density is that without significant compression or
conversion of hydrogen to a liquid, a very large volume may be necessary to store enough hydrogen to provide an
adequate driving range. Low density also implies that the fuel-air mixture has low energy density, which tends to
reduce the power output of the engine. Thus when a hydrogen engine is run lean, issues with inadequate power may
arise [16].
Figure 2. Minimum ignition energy of hydrogen in air [21].
2.3 Hydrogen ICE fuel induction techniques

The pros, cons and challenges of the following three hydrogen induction mechanisms were investigated [19, 21-25];
1. The fuel carburetion method (CMI) shown in Figure 3a.
2. The inlet manifold and inlet port injection shown in Figure 3b.
3. The direct injection system shown in Figure 3c.
The direct injection of hydrogen was proved to be the most efficient one compared to other methods. The power
output of a direct injection hydrogen engine was 20% more than for a gasoline engine and 42% more than a
hydrogen engine using a carburetor [23].
2.4 Hydrogen injector specifications

A fuel injection system performs two basic functions: fuel pressurization and fuel metering. When dealing with
gaseous fuels, only the metering function is required to be carried out by the injection system as the pressurization is
performed separately [23]. Many different types of injector have been used in both inlet manifold and direct
cylinder injection hydrogen internal combustion engines. As has already been indicated, the design of inlet manifold
or inlet port injectors is less challenging as lower injection pressures are required. For direct cylinder injectors, not
only must the design accommodate for higher injection pressure against the cylinder pressure, but the equipment
must also be capable of withstanding the hostile environment of the combustion chamber [21]. Lubrication between
(a)
(b)
(c)
Figure 3. Hydrogen induction mechanisms [21].
the injector moving parts also makes the design of direct injector more complicated. Typical injector construction is
illustrated in Figure 4.
Two types of injectors are available for use in D.I. systems. One is a low-pressure direct injector (LPDI) and the
other one is a high-pressure direct injector (HPDI). Low- pressure direct injector injects the fuel as soon as the
intake valve closes when the pressure is low inside the cylinder. The high-pressure direct injector injects the fuel at
the end of the compression stroke [24].
2.5 Hydrogen spray specifications

Smaller amounts of hydrogen when injected into a diesel engine, makes the fuel more heterogeneous and better
premixed for combustion. Spray characteristics is defined by spray shape, spray tip penetration and spray angle.
Spray angle is the most important since it defines the axial and radial distribution of the fuel. Mohammed S.E et al.
[27] studied the spray characteristics of compressed natural gas and hydrogen fuels. They used a high-speed
Schlieren technique under ambient conditions to study the effects of narrow cone angle and wide cone angle
injection and injection pressure on spray pattern as shown in Figures 5, 6.
Figure 4. Hydrogen injector [26].

0.75 m sec 1.0 m sec 3.0 m sec 4.0 m sec 5.0 m sec 6.25 m sec
Figure 5. Schlieren image of pure hydrogen, (upper) Wide Angle at 1.2 MPa,
(lower) Wide Angle at 1.8 MPa [27].
They observed that hydrogen fuel spray penetrates faster and has a wider cone angle which is due to the lower
density of hydrogen than compressed natural gas as shown by comparing figures 5 and 6. Wider angle injection has
larger spray cone angle which will help in good mixing of the fuel. As the injection pressure increases there was an
increase in cone angle and penetration as can be seen in figure 5.
0.75 m sec 1.0 m sec 3.0 m sec 4.0 m sec 5.0 m sec 6.25 m sec
Figure 6. Schlieren image CNG, (upper) Wide Angle at 1.2 MPa, (lower) Wide Angle at 1.8 MPa [27].
2.6 Hydrogen-natural gas mixtures
Natural gas has been used in spark-ignition and compression-ignition engines but due to its slow burning velocity
and the poor lean-burn capability it can’t be used as the only fuel, since it will lead to large cycle-by-cycle
variations and a decrease in the engine power output and increase in the fuel consumption [28]. The remedy for that
is to add hydrogen to natural gas, which improves the burning velocity and mitigates the effect of the cycle-by-cycle
variations. Adding hydrogen to natural gas leads to less exhaust emissions, better fuel economy, and higher thermal
efficiency [2]. One of the biggest challenges using hydrogen-natural gas (HCNG) mixture as a fuel is determining
the most suitable hydrogen/natural gas ratio. Over dosing the hydrogen fraction leads to abnormal combustion such
as pre-ignition, knock and backfire unless the spark timing and air-fuel ratio are adequately adjusted [29].
3. Biodiesel
The use of vegetable oils and their derivatives as fuel in diesel engine is not a new idea. The concept of using
vegetable oil as fuel dated back to 1895. Rudolf Diesel developed the first diesel engine, which was run with
vegetable oil in 1900 [30, 31]. The first engine was run using groundnut oil as fuel. Although, petroleum was
discovered later, it replaced vegetable oils as engine fuel due to its abundant supply [1]. Currently under new
technological developments, biofuel are gaining importance for their use in the diesel engines [1].
Vegetable oils from crops such as soybean, peanut, sunflower, rape, coconut, karanja, neem, cotton, mustard,
jatropha, linseed and coster have been evaluated in many parts of the world in comparison with other non-edible
oils [32]. Vegetable oils are renewable as they are produced from vegetables. They are greener to the environment
as they seldom contain sulphur element [33]. Among the many advantages of bio-diesel, they are non-toxic, degrade
four times faster than diesel, pure bio-diesel degrades 85-88% in water, blending of bio-diesel with diesel fuel
increases engine efficiency, their higher flash point makes the storage safer, they are an oxygenated fuel so its
oxygen content makes its fatty compounds suitable as diesel fuel by “cleaner” burning, don’t produce greenhouse
effect because the amount of CO2 emissions balances with the amount of CO2 absorbed by the plants producing
vegetable oils [30]. The combustion of bio-diesel has reported to emit lesser pollutants compared to diesel as it has
no sulphur content and shows decreasing emissions of PAH, CO, CO2, HC, soot and aromatics [30].
Biodiesel being an oxygenated and sulfur-free fuel lead to more complete combustion and lower emissions. But the
energy content or the calorific value of biodiesel is less than that of diesel fuel; also it has higher viscosity and
density. A considerable improvement in these properties can be obtained by mixing diesel and biodiesel and then
using the blends. Biodiesel and biodiesel/ petro diesel blends, with their higher lubricity levels, are increasingly
being utilized as an alternative fuel [1].
Among the disadvantages of the bio-diesel is the slight decrease in fuel economy on energy basis (about 10% for
pure bio-diesel), more expensive due to less production of vegetable oil [30]. NOx emissions are slightly more than
the conventional diesel fuel but could be reduced by EGR or dual fuel mode [30]. The major disadvantage of
vegetable oils is their inherent high viscosity as reported by Wang el al [33]. Modern diesel engines have fuel
injection system that is sensitive to viscosity change. High viscosity may lead to poor atomization of the fuel,
incomplete combustion, choking of the injectors, ring carbonization and accumulation of the fuel in the lubricating
oils. To avoid this problem and to improve the performance, there are methods to reduce the viscosity of the
vegetable oil such as fuel blending. The significantly higher cloud and pour points compared to diesel fuel may
cause problems during cold weather. Vegetable oils cause high carbon deposits, ring sticking, scuffing of the engine
liner and injection nozzles failure [30].
Kegl, et al. [6] studied the optimization of the injection system of both diesel and biodiesel fuels separately. The
tested fuels are neat diesel fuel D2 conforming to European standard EN 590 and neat biodiesel fuel B100
conforming to European standard EN 14214. The biodiesel is produced from rapeseed oil. The optimization results
using diesel and biodiesel are compared to each other to show the influence of fuel type on final design and
performance of the system. Experimentally, the injection system was tested using a mechanically controlled fuel
injection system and numerically it was investigated using a one-dimensional flow model in the authors’ own
mathematical model BKIN [7, 34]. Generally, the numerical simulation agreed quite well with the experiment,
which increased the confidence in using the mathematical model only in studying the influence of different fuels on
the injection and fuel spray characteristics. The presented results showed the following conclusions; 1)
Optimization may lead to significant improvements of the injection process regardless of the fuel used. One must
note, however, that the optimal design depends significantly on the fuel type. This is true for both geometrical and
control design variables. 2) Owing to quite different optimal designs, it seems that a diesel engine, equipped with
the injection system under consideration, cannot run very efficiently with both tested fuels. It has to be adjusted
either to D2 or B100. 3) From the numerical results it also follows that with both fuels satisfactory performance
regarding harmful emissions may be obtained. The calculated numbers (fuelling during needle lifting and needle
closing) might even indicate that in that view B100 might perform slightly better than D2 [6].
Vegetable oil can be directly used as a diesel fuel and may be used for running an engine. The blending of vegetable
oil with diesel fuel was experimented successfully by various researchers. In 1980, a Brazilian company used pre
combustion chamber engines with a mixture of 10% vegetable oil to maintain total power without any modification
in engine. A blend of 20% oil and 80% diesel was used successfully. It has been proved that the use of 100%
vegetable oil is also possible with some minor modification in the fuel system. The high fuel viscosity with the use
of vegetable oils caused major problems in CI engines [1].
Forson et al. [35] used Jatropha oil in proportion of 97.4:2.6%; 80:20% and 50:50% blends of diesel and Jatropha
oil by volume in CI engine. It was found that carbon dioxide emissions were similar for all fuel blends. The test
further showed increase in brake thermal efficiency and brake power and reduction of specific fuel consumption for
Jatropha oil and its blends with diesel fuel. But the most significant conclusion from the study is that the 97.4% and
2.6% diesel and Jatropha fuel blend produce maximum value of the brake power and brake thermal efficiency as
well as minimum value of the specific fuel consumption. D97.4: B2.6 fuel blend yielded the highest cetane number
and even better engine performance than the diesel fuels. It was suggested that Jatropha oil could be used as an
ignition accelerator additive for diesel fuel.
Puhan Sukumar et al. [36] found that straight vegetable oil can be used in diesel engines. Their high viscosity, low
volatility and cold flow properties have led to the investigation of various derivatives. In this study Mahua oil was
trans-esterified with methanol using sodium hydroxide as a catalyst to obtain mahua oil methyl ester and was tested
in a single cylinder four-stroke diesel engine to evaluate the performance and emissions. Pramanik [37] studies the
effect of temperature on the viscosity of biodiesel and Jatropha oil. Significant improvement in engine performance
observed as compared to vegetable oil alone but specific fuel consumption and exhaust gas temperature were
reduced due to increase in viscosity of vegetable oil. From engine test results it has been established that 40–50% of
Jatropha oil can be substituted for diesel giving acceptable thermal efficiency without any engine modification and
preheating of the fuel blends.
The performance of rapeseed oil blends in a diesel engine was investigated by Nwafor [38]. The experimental result
showed that a mixing ratio of 30% and 70% diesel rapeseed ratio was practically optimal in ensuring relatively high
thermal efficiency of engine. Knocking problem encountered at light loads was attributed to the longer ignition
delays due to the low cylinder temperature. Operation with vegetable fuel oil offered a net reduction in HC
emissions compared with base line results. The 50:50 blends competed favourably with diesel oil and offer a
reasonable substitute for diesel fuels.
The use of alcohol and cotton oil as alternative fuels for internal combustion engines was investigated by Nan et al.
[39]. The study aimed at better understanding of the fuel properties of alcohol and basic principles of conversion in
order to provide the representative cross section of converting diesel engine and gasoline engine to blended fuel.
The performance test of diesel engine burning cotton/diesel blend oil was carried out. The report studied the
combustion of biomass gas in lean pattern produced from the vaporous circulating fluidized bed (VCFB)
gasification system. A 2135D diesel engine is modified into a spark ignition (SI) gas engine. The gas fuelled (GF)
engine characteristics were studied experimentally. Results indicated that the specific energy consumption Q and
thermal efficiency were satisfactory at high torque. The influence of air/gas (AG) ratio on the combustion rate and
minimum ignition energy is discussed.
Rajesh et al. [1] ran an extensive report on the properties of finished biodiesels, which are produced, mainly from
vegetable oils and feedstock with a main component of fatty acids. The fatty acid compositions influence the
properties of biodiesel. These properties are both physical and chemical properties, including the fuel properties
(cetane number, viscosity, density, bulk modulus, and pour point), combustion characteristics (fuel injection timing,
ignition delay and ignition timing) and exhaust emissions (HC, CO, NOx and smoke).
3.1 Internal injector flow with biodiesel

Internal flow of the fuel injectors have a great impact on the spray characteristics, such as the atomization,
penetration, and cone angle before impingement on the cylinder wall which in turn affects the performance of the
engine and emissions. Therefore, many studies on the internal flow of fuel injectors have been conducted. To reduce
exhaust emissions from engine combustion, recent studies have been conducted to apply alternative fuels that
contain large amounts of atomic oxygen in place of the diesel fuel in a diesel engine [40].
The study of the internal flow of the fuel injector nozzle is impeded by several factors. The nozzles are typically
about a millimetre long and a fraction of a millimetre in diameter. The flow through the holes moves at very high
speeds, on the order of hundreds of meters per second. Furthermore, the flow is transient, with injection duration on
the order of a few milliseconds. Because of these complications, direct observation of the nozzles is quite difficult.
In addition, the internal flow may be a two-phase flow, which adds another level of complexity to the problem [41].
The flow inside the nozzle is highly affected by the formation of cavitation. Cavitation can be defined as the
dynamic process of gas cavity growth and collapse in a liquid, and has a great effect on both the fuel injection
process and the performance of an engine. Cavitation develops when the pressure is less than the saturation pressure
[42]. Previous studies showed that cavitation induces to a mass flow collapse [43-45]. In addition, cavitation
generates vapour into the flow which in turn increases the maximum velocity in the liquid core. Cavitation also
increases spray cone angle and so it is expected to improve the air-fuel mixing process and the reasons still
remained unclear [45-47].
Many models were developed to study the flow inside the injector and to help getting better understanding of the
cavitation effects in diesel injectors. [45-56]. Numerical work by Battistoni and Grimaldi [48] compared standard
diesel fuel and methyl ester of soybean oil. The results of their work showed that extent of cavitation regions is
highly affected by the nozzle shape and slightly affected by the fuel type. This slight difference in cavitation areas
was explained to be due to the high range of pressure variation inside of the injector compared to the saturation
values. When the behavior of the internal nozzle flow of a standard diesel fuel had been numerically modeled and
compared against a biodiesel fuel (soybean oil) at cavitating and non-cavitating conditions, it was found that
biodiesel injects more fuel and reaches later critical cavitation conditions as shown in Figure 7 [49]. For this reason
cavitation intensity is lower for the same pressure conditions. Also, because of the decrease of injection velocity and
cavitation intensity for the biodiesel, the air–fuel mixing process gets worse [49].
Som et al. [55] conducted a detailed numerical study with two CFD codes, Fluent 6.3 and Converge to compare the
injector flow and the spray characteristics of biodiesel with petrodiesel. The study showed that the cavitation of the
biodiesel was less than petrodiesel due to its lower vapour pressure. A significant difference was found between the
injector flow characteristics of biodiesel and diesel fuels. The cavitation and turbulence levels are significantly
lower for biodiesel compared with those for diesel, and this was attributed to the lower vapor pressure of biodiesel.
Also, it was found that the injection velocity, discharge coefficient, and mass flow rate are lower for biodiesel, due
to its higher viscosity. In order to account for the viscous losses, biodiesel would need to be injected at about 60 K
higher temperature compared to diesel [55].
The effect of fuel density and fuel viscosity on the flow characteristics through a Diesel injector was experimentally
studied by Dernotte et al [56]. They tested a nozzle equipped with three conical convergent orifices and measured
the mass flow rate with nine fuels. Their results showed that fuel viscosity affects the discharge coefficient for a
range of pressure difference between 25 and 55 MPa. An increase in fuel viscosity from 0.6 to 7 mm2/s induces a
decrease in the discharge coefficient by 10% at 25 MPa of pressure difference and 2% at 55 MPa. For higher-
pressure differences up to 180 MPa, no significant impact of fuel viscosity was observed. Dernotte et al [56]
reported that, over the entire pressure range, the discharge coefficient increases with the pressure difference up to a
maximum value. They observed that fuel density does not have a significant influence on the discharge coefficient.
Figure 7. Comparison of vapour field average (Pinj = 80 MPa, Pback = 17 and 18 MPa) [49]
3.2 Problems associated with vegetable oil used in CI engines

A number of problems are encountered while using vegetable oil directly as a diesel engine fuel. High viscosity of
vegetable oil is the major constraint in using straight vegetable oil as diesel engine fuel. The ultimate effect is
reducing the life of engine. The high viscosity increases the problem of fuel injection and atomization and
contributes to incomplete combustion making cold start difficult, nozzle clogging, excessive engine deposits, ring
sticking, and contamination of lubricating oil. Poor volatility makes vegetable oil difficult to vaporize and ignite,
this results in thermal cracking resulting in heavy smoke emission and carbon deposits in the combustion chamber.
The problems of high viscosity can be overcome to a great extent by various techniques, such as heating, dilution,
emulsification and esterification [1].
Giannelos et al. [57] reported viscosity of tobacco oil fuel is important to its flow through pipeline, injector nozzles,
orifices and for atomization of a fuel in cylinder and suggested to prohibit its direct use as an alternative fuel in
diesel engine, but it could be used in blends with diesel or after catalytic trans-esterification.
Mittelbach [58] reported higher content of phosphorous in unrefined rapeseed oil methyl ester can lead to higher
particulate emissions which may influence the operation of catalytic converter. Higher content of water in biodiesel
might reduce the storage ability or lead to separation of water when blending with diesel. He also suggested free
glycerol can be easily removed by washing steps. Higher content of glycerol may cause problems during storage or
in the fuel injection system due to separation of glycerol, or can lead to injector fouling or the formation of higher
aldehyde emissions. A higher content of triglycerides may cause formation of deposits at the injection nozzle, at the
piston and at valves.
Bhatt et al. [59] reported problems of carbon deposition on injector tip, piston head, valve faces and piston ring
grooves was more with pure karanja and Mahua oil along with pumping and atomization problems for karanja and
rice bran oil.
Huzayyin et al. [60] reported, short-term test indicated good potential for most vegetable oil fuels. However, long
term endurance tests show that there are some problems, such as injector chocking, ring sticking, gum formation
and lubricating oil thickening. These problems are related to high viscosity and non-volatility of neat vegetable oil.
Poor atomization patterns associated with high fuel viscosity results in increasing the combustion chamber deposits
and the introduction of unburned fuel in the lubricating oil.
Rao and Gopalkrishnan [61] reported considerable drop in thermal efficiency for neem, palm, rice bran and karanja
oil and found lowest efficiency for rice bran oil due to its maximum density and viscosity. Also reported higher
delay period than that of diesel for all the vegetable oils, and neem has highest ignition delay. Only a marginal
variation in peak pressure from that of diesel oils except for neem oil which is due to its higher combustion delay.
Reported drop in combustion duration for all vegetable oils by about 1-2º CA whereas for neem oil 6-8º CA. Also
reported that pure oil of peanut and soybean produced heavy smoke and deposition, they also cause starting
difficulties. They also carried out experiments with neem, palm, rice bran and karanja oil and reported considerable
increase in smoke, poor combustion characteristics of oil due to high viscosity and poor volatility. Rice bran oil,
having the maximum density and viscosity among the oil tested, gave the lowest efficiency. Repugnant odor was
noticed while operating the engine with palm oil.
Karaosmanoglu et al. [62] reported, during the test for sunflower oil, the engine experienced no significant
difference in drop or increase of power, fuel consumption and balancing force. Also reported further 5min start/heat
up and shut down with diesel fuel, were quite helpful.
Antony and Samaga [63] reported that comparing the performance of diesel and groundnut oil, the performance of
diesel is superior at all loads. The higher exhaust temperature of vegetable oil is an indication of their delayed
combustion, partly because of their slower combustion rates and partly due to prolonged injection on account of
their lesser calorific value and hence lesser thermal efficiency. Negligible heat release immediately after injection
before the uncontrolled stage of combustion was reported as well. This corresponds to the delay period, which is
higher than diesel by 1-2º CA, the difference being less at higher loads. Peak rate of heat release and hence the peak
rate of pressure rise was lower for the vegetable oil. Peak burned gas temperatures were slightly higher, which
correspondingly increase the peak equilibrium NO and CO concentrations for the vegetable oil.
It was found that higher exhaust temperatures of vegetable oils (groundnut oil) is an indication of their delayed
combustion, partly because of their slower combustion rates and partly due to prolonged injection on account of
their lesser calorific value [63]. Crude Jatropha carcus gave higher brake specific energy consumption at all loads;
crude Jatropha oil gave very low magnitude of brake thermal efficiency in comparison with diesel [64]. Also it is
reported that there is an increase in exhaust gas temperature for all the operating conditions of vegetable oil
compared to diesel fuel operation [64].
Jajoo and Keoti [65] reported nozzle deposits formed with both soybean and rapeseed oils are harder and required
moderate scraping for removal. He also reported economic study of vegetable oils reveal that vegetable oils are not
an economic substitute for diesel at present.
Gopalkrishnan et al. [66] reported high carbon residue causes heavy smoke emission and carbon deposition on the
injection nozzle tips and in the combustion chamber. These problems are less pronounced in indirect injection
engines
3.3 Biodiesels’ spray performance:

Viscosity and surface tension have a significant effect on the spray characteristics of biodiesels [14, 67]. It is been
observed that increase in density increases friction losses which in turn decreases the nozzle outlet velocity. High
viscous liquids tend to decrease the injected volume and overall penetration. A study by Allen et al [68, 69]
indicates that viscosity and surface tension of bio-diesels can be higher than that of a diesel. Fuel with a higher
viscosity is observed to mitigate the instabilities in a liquid jet which are required for the disintegration of the jet
enabling better atomization [70]. Formation of droplets can be also substantially reduced with an increase in surface
tension of the fuel. Higher viscosity and surface tension tend to affect the atomization and droplet formation of the
fuel.
Spray propagation and nozzle outlet velocities of Ethanol, 1-Butanol, 1-Decanol, iso-Octane, n-Dodecane, n-
Heptane and Tetrahydrofurfuryl-alcohol were studied by Mathieu et al [67]. In their study they investigated spray
penetration using shadowgraph and measured nozzle outlet velocity from an injector used for gasoline direct
injection and has an outward nozzle, which enables to form hollow cone sprays. Relatively low injection pressure
and short energizing duration were used. Properties of the fuels analyzed are as presented in Table 1.
Table 1. Fundamental fuel properties at 300 K [67].
Ethanol 1-Butanol 1-Decanol n-Heptane Iso-Octane n-Dodecane THFA

Density 784 804 824 680 689 744 1048
[kg/m3]
Viscosity 1.04 2.41 10.54 0.38 0.47 1.36 4.6823
[mPas]
Surface 21.94 24.21 28.24 19.64 18.18 24.76 37.14
Tension
[mN/m]
Images of spray penetration of different fuels obtained using shadowgraph were post-processed and can be seen in
Figure 8.
They concluded that high viscous fuels exit later from an injector than a low viscous one, which causes reduction in
the amount of fuel being injected. Spray penetration varies accordingly to amount of fuel injected in the early phase.
But a clear relationship between the nozzle outlet velocity and spray penetration wasn’t established in their study.
Figure 8. Comparison of spray structures 400 µs after energizing the injector [67].
Dimethyl ether as an alternative fuel for compression ignition engines was study by Arcoumanis et al [71]. DME
vaporizes because of its low boiling point at atmospheric pressure immediately into the engine cylinder. It is also
found to be volatile to the Conditions in-cylinder. Based on different experimental investigation of dimethyl ether
injection under various operating conditions, DME was classified based on ambient pressure. Under low ambient
pressure injection, flash boiling of DME occurs and tip penetration of DME is less than or equal to that of a diesel
fuel. Wider cone angle is formed with DME when compared to diesel.
The process by which fuel disintegrates into small droplets with the help of an atomizer is known as atomization.
Comparison of atomization characteristics of blends of biodiesel fuel in diesel engines can be done with the help of
drop size correlations. Diameter of a drop whose volume-to-surface area equals that of a spray is known as Sauter
Mean diameter (SMD) which can be used to study the atomization characteristics of bio-diesel [72]. Magnitude of
the SMD is dependent on physical properties of the liquid fuel, density of ambient gas and injection pressure
differential. Elkotb [73] studied the effects of fuel kinematic viscosity, surface tension on Sauter Mean Diameter.
Ahmed et al [74] performed a comparative analysis of atomization characteristics of 3 pure biodiesel and 6
biodiesel-Diesel No. 2 blends with respect to that of Diesel No. 2. Coconut blended biodiesel, which had low
density, viscosity and surface tension yielded the smallest SMD (28.1µm) whereas peanut blended biodiesel which
had highest density, viscosity and surface tension had the largest SMD (36.4µm). Smaller droplet size in a diesel
engine enhances mixing and complete combustion of the fuel.
4. Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)

LPG is typically a mixture of several gases in varying proportions. Major constituent gases are propane (C3H8) and
butane (C4H10), with minor quantities of propene (C3H6), various butanes (C4H8), iso-butane, and small amounts
of ethane (C2H6). The composition of commercial LPG is quite variable [75]. 55% of the LPG is processed from
natural gas purification. The other 45% comes from crude oil refining [76]. One of the advantages of LPG is its high
octane number (110+) that allows for compression ration (CR) to be high up to 15:1, which is in the range of 8:1 to
9.5:1 for gasoline engines [77].
4.1 LGP as an alternative fuel for ICE
The gaseous nature of the fuel/air mixture in an LPG vehicle’s combustion chambers eliminates the cold-start
problems associated with liquid fuels. LPG defuses in air fuel mixing at lower inlet temperature than is possible
with either gasoline or diesel. This leads to easier starting, more reliable idling, smoother acceleration and more
complete and efficient burning with less unburned hydrocarbons present in the exhaust. In contrast to gasoline
engines, which produce high emission levels while running cold, LPG engine emissions remain similar whether the
engine is cold or hot. Also, because LPG enters an engine’s combustion chambers as a vapor, it does not strip oil
from cylinder walls or dilute the oil when the engine is cold. This helps to have a longer service life and reduced
maintenance costs of engine. Also helping in this regard is the fuel’s high hydrogen-to-carbon ratio (C3H8), which
enables propane-powered vehicles to have less carbon build-up than gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles. LPG
delivers roughly the same power, acceleration, and cruising speed characteristics as gasoline. Its high octane rating
means engine’s power output and fuel efficiency can be increased beyond what would be possible with a gasoline
engine without causing destructive knocking. Such fine-tuning can help compensate for the fuel’s lower energy
density. The higher ignition temperature of gas compared with petroleum based fuel leads to reduced auto ignition
delays, less hazardous than any other petroleum based fuel and expected to produce less CO, NOx emissions and
may cause less ozone formation than gasoline and diesel engines [75].
4.2 Required engine modifications

Many propane vehicles are converted gasoline vehicles with relatively inexpensive conversion kits which include a
regulator/vaporizer that changes liquid propane to a gaseous form and an air/fuel mixer that meters and mixes the
fuel with filtered intake air before the mixture is drawn into the engine’s combustion chambers. Also included in
conversion kits is closed-loop feedback circuitry that continually monitors the oxygen content of the exhaust and
adjusts the air/fuel ratio as necessary. LPG vehicles additionally require a special fuel tank that is strong enough to
withstand the LPG storage pressure of about 130 pounds per square inch [75].
4.3 Engine technology for LPG vehicles

As the LPG is stored in liquid form under high pressure, it is needed to convert it into vaporized form before drawn
into the combustion chamber. LPG is not commonly used in dual-fuel diesel applications due to its relatively poor
knock resistance [77] For Spark ignition engine, there are two types of LPG engines, which are, 1) LPG is stored in
composite vessel at high pressure approximately at 10-20 bar. Supply to the engine is controlled by a regulator or
vaporizer, which converts the LPG to a vapor. The vapor is fed to a mixer located near the intake manifold, where it
is metered and mixed with filtered air before being drawn into the combustion chamber where it is burned to
produce power, just like gasoline. 2) LPG is fueled through direct injection in the SI engine.
5. Methanol
Interest in methanol as an alternative fuel for internal combustion (IC) engines started in the early 1970s due to
considerable increase in petroleum fuel prices in the world markets [78]. Methanol is produced by a variety of
process, the most common are as follows: distillation of wood; distillation of coal; natural gas and petroleum gas.
The raw materials for producing methanol may all be a carbon-containing material, that is residual oil, shale, peat,
tar sands and waste [69]. Methanol is produced in two steps. In the first step synthetic gas (H, + CO) is produced by
reaction of gasified raw material with steam at high temperature. In the second step methanol is produced from
compressed (50-200 bar) synthetic gas by a catalytic process (copper-based catalyst).Methanol had been recognized
earlier as a high-performance fuel for racing cars, on account of its high resistance to knocking combustion [79,80].
A Kowalewicz [81] reviewed and analyzed the literature data on the use of methanol as an alternative fuel for
internal combustion engines. The properties of methanol have been analyzed from the point of view of its
application to spark ignition (SI) and compression ignition (CI) engines. From this analysis it may be concluded that
fewer modifications to the engine are expected when methanol is used in SI engines than in CI engines. Neat
methanol is the most suitable, because all the positive properties of methanol as a fuel can be utilized. In the case of
SI engines, only minor modifications of the fuel system and/or addition of ignition improver to the fuel are required.
Use of methanol-gasoline blends of up to 15 percent methanol (by volume) and diesel oil-methanol blends of up to
20 percent methanol require only minor engine modifications. However, miscibility of methanol and conventional
fuels is poor; in order to avoid fuel separation, mixtures of these fuels require fuel additives. Methanol engines burn
cleaner and more efficiently, but have higher emissions of aldehydes, which increase with increasing mileage of the
vehicle. In the presence of an oxidation catalyst unburned methanol can be converted to formaldehyde and
simultaneously nitrous oxide to nitrogen dioxide. The advantage of engine fuelling with reformed methanol (CO +
H,) is shown. The reasons for better efficiency, performance and less emissions (except of aldehydes) of methanol-
fuelled SI engines in comparison with gasoline- and diesel oil-fuelled engines respectively have been analyzed.
Technical aspects of using methanol as an automotive fuel that have not yet been satisfactorily solved are pointed
out. The feasibility of the widespread use of methanol as a transportation fuel for SI engines is discussed from
technical, economic and ecological points of view. The introduction of methanol as automotive fuel should take
place in two steps. The first involves the use of methanol together with gasoline, the second one, neat methanol [82,
83].
6. Ethanol
Ethanol (C2H5OH) is a high performance, biomass fuel, which is produced mainly from biomass transformation, or
bioconversion. It can also be produced by synthesis from petroleum or mineral coal. It is considered the most suited
alcohol to be used as a fuel for spark ignition engines [84]. It has a high octane number and a high laminar flame
speed [85]. It has a neutral CO2 cycle. Current fuel standards (e.g. ASTM D4814) have already allowed up to 10%
ethanol content for regular gasoline and the use of E85 (85% ethanol and 15% gasoline in volume). Today’s
Flexible-fuel vehicles (FFV) have been equipped with the capability of running on any ethanol-gasoline blend from
E0 to E85. However, dedicated engine control schemes are yet to be developed to exploit some of the advantageous
fuel properties of ethanol and thus improve fuel economy and engine performance. For instance, since ethanol has a
higher octane number, the ignition timing could be adjusted accordingly to take advantage of its higher knock
resistance and thus maximize the engine output power [86]. Table 2 compares the most relevant ethanol and
gasoline properties. Such engine control optimization or more basic adaptations, such as cold-start fuel injection
amount, require the knowledge or estimation of the ethanol concentration in the fuel [87].
Drawbacks include its relatively low heating value and the fact that it is corrosive to metal and rubber parts of the
engine [88].
Also, high production of ethanol would create a food-fuel competition, resulting in higher costs for both [89]. Thus
the use of 100% ethanol in internal combustion engines on a wide scale is not plausible.
Table 2. Ethanol and gasoline properties [87].
Gasoline Ethanol
RON 92 111
Stoichiometric A/F ratio 14.3 9
Density (g/cm3) 0.74 0.79
Boiling Point (ºC) 20-300 78.5
Heat of Combustion (MJ/kg) 42.4 26.8
Enthalpy of vaporization (kJ/kg) 240 845
Curtis et al. [84] performed experimental tests on an engine using pure gasoline, 10% ethanol and 20% ethanol
blends. The results of the study show that 10% ethanol blends can be used in internal combustion engines without
any negative drawbacks or major modifications to the air/fuel system. The fuel conversion efficiency remains the
same, while CO emissions are greatly reduced. NOx and CO2 emissions for 10% ethanol blends and gasoline are
similar. 20% ethanol blends do not perform as well as pure gasoline does in spark ignition engines. It decreases the
fuel conversion efficiency and brake power of an engine, but still reduces CO emissions. Oliverio et al. [86] studied
the charge cooling effect for different fuel ethanol contents, its impact on the cylinder pressure evolution and the
feasibility of its use for fuel ethanol content estimation. A physical lumped-parameter model is utilized with
emphasis on fuel vaporization and charge cooling effect. The simulation was performed on two injection modes: 1)
Single injection (Si) mode: all the fuel is injected during the intake stroke, 2) Split injection (Sp) mode: a fraction of
the fuel is injected during the intake stroke, and the rest is injected early during compression stroke after IVC. In
order to validate the model developed and determine the relationship between ethanol content and residues,
experimental data were collected on a 2.0L Turbocharged SIDI VVT engine equipped Kistler 6125B in-cylinder
pressure sensors. Dynamometer tests were conducted at different engine operating points (speed and load) under
Single and Split injection modes for various gasoline-ethanol fuel blends. The comparison between experimental
and simulated residues shows a good match for all the tested operating points and fuel blends, which proves the
model capability to capture the effects of changes in ethanol concentration at different engine operating conditions.
6.1 Ethanol Spray Performance:
Spray characteristics of ethanol-gasoline blends (25%, 50%, 75% and 100% ethanol) were studied by Gao et al. [89]
using high-speed Schlieren technique. Their study concluded that with increase of ethanol fraction spray tip
penetration and spray angle increased in low ambient pressure conditions. A swirl- type injector at low pressure was
used for their experiment. All the blended fuels that they tested formed a hollow cone spray with wide spread angle
at low ambient temperature. There seems to be an initial spray slug formation in front of the main spray for the
blended fuels. High ambient pressure produced a compact spray pattern with relatively shorter penetration as shown
in Figure 9.
Matsumoto et al [94] studied imaging of fuels ranging from E0 to E100 when injected in a multi-hole gasoline
injector mimicking operating conditions as shown in Figure 10. They used a 3D CFD code named as CONVERGE
to study spray tip penetration and mass of injected fuel.
Figure 9. Schlieren images ethanol–gasoline blends (injection pressure 5.0 MPa, ambient pressure 0.1 MPa, Gao et
al. [72].
Figure 10. Effect of fuel composition, Tch=200C, Pch=1bar,Tfuel=60C, Matsumoto et al. [89].
7. Conclusion
In summary, it is well known that gasoline and diesel engines are the major sources of Greenhouse Gases (GHG)
emission. One of the main advantages of using biofuels instead of fossil fuel in the transportation sector is the
ability to minimize the GHG emissions from vehicles. The combustion of biofuels itself can be regarded as CO2
neutral. Nonetheless, the biofuel production life cycle has to be assessed to reach a conclusion about the overall
greenhouse gas balance. Hydrogen has clean burning characteristics and better performance. It has a wide range of
flammability and high diffusivity compared to all other fuels. On the other hand it is difficult to quench a hydrogen
flame than a flame of most other fuels. Also, it has a low density, which implies a reduction in the power output of
the engine. Currently ethanol is the most widely used renewable fuel in the United States with up to 10% by volume
blended into gasoline for regular spark ignition engines or up to 85% for use in Flex-Fuel vehicles designed to run
with higher concentrations of ethanol. Biodiesel is similarly used with 5-20% by volume blended into petroleum-
based diesel for compression ignition engines. Biodiesel fuel is methyl or ethyl esters derived from a broad variety
of renewable sources such as vegetable oils, animal fats and cooking oil. One of the drawbacks of pure biodiesel is
the reduction of power and maximum torque which may be due to the increase of the flame speed.
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Ahmed Taha is a Senior Computational Coordinator at the Private Secretor Program

of the National Center of Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) of the University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Taha holds a Ph.D. in Computational Fluid
Dynamics (CFD) from Old Dominion University, Virginia, USA. Dr. Taha's research
work is in the area of Thermo/Fluids with emphasis on turbulence, combustion and
reacting flow, Renewable Energy, and Multiphysics.
E-mail address: taha@illinois.edu
Tarek M. Abdel-Salam is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at East Carolina

University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA. He received his Ph.D in Mechanical
Engineering from Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia, USA. His research
interests include fuel injection and alternative fuels, renewable energy, energy
management, wind energy, and solar energy.
E-mail address: abdelsalamt@ecu.edu
Madhu C Vellakal, Master of Science in mechanical engineering, University at

Buffalo, New York, US, 2010. His specialization is Computational Fluid Dynamics
and he currently works with The National Digital Engineering and Manufacturing
Consortium and helps Small and Medium Enterprises to adopt modelling and
simulation in their product development cycle. His research interests are CFD,
Reacting Flows, and Fluid-Structure Interaction. Mr. Vellakal is a Research
Programmer with National Center for Supercomputing Applications at University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
E-mail address: vcmadhu@illinois.edu
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ALTERNATIVE FUELS FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES: AN OVERVIEW

Chapter · January 2013

Ahmed Taha Tarek Abdel-salam

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A LTERNATIVE F UELS FOR I NTERNAL C OMBUSTION

Ahmed A. Taha 1, Tarek M. Abdel-Salam 2, Madhu Vellakal 1

Keywords: Internal combustion engines; Alternative fuels.

Figure 1. World total automotive fuel consumption projections [3].

2.2 Disadvantages of using hydrogen in ICE

Figure 2. Minimum ignition energy of hydrogen in air [21].

2.3 Hydrogen ICE fuel induction techniques

2.4 Hydrogen injector specifications

Figure 3. Hydrogen induction mechanisms [21].

2.5 Hydrogen spray specifications

Figure 4. Hydrogen injector [26].

3.1 Internal injector flow with biodiesel

3.2 Problems associated with vegetable oil used in CI engines

3.3 Biodiesels’ spray performance:

Table 1. Fundamental fuel properties at 300 K [67].

Ethanol 1-Butanol 1-Decanol n-Heptane Iso-Octane n-Dodecane THFA

4. Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)

4.2 Required engine modifications

4.3 Engine technology for LPG vehicles

Table 2. Ethanol and gasoline properties [87].

Ahmed Taha is a Senior Computational Coordinator at the Private Secretor Program

Tarek M. Abdel-Salam is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at East Carolina

Madhu C Vellakal, Master of Science in mechanical engineering, University at

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