FUEL QUALITY OR ENGINE DESIGN: WHICH CONTROL DIESEL EMISSIONS?

THE EFFECTS OF FUEL PROPERTIES ON EMISSIONS ARE MUCH SMALLER THAN THOSE OF ENGINE DESIGN AND OPERATING CONDITIONS. IN MOST DIESEL ENGINES, CHANGING FROM A HIGH DENSITY TO A LOW DENSITY FUEL WILL REDUCE SMOKE AND EMISSIONS OF CARBON MONOXIDE AT WIDE OPEN THROTTLE. PART OF THE CHANGE IS DUE TO REDUCTION IN THE QUANTITY OF FUEL INJECTED, AND PART IS DUE TO THE GREATER SOOT-FORMING TENDENCY OF AROMATIC COMPOUNDS. IF THE ENGINE IS ADJUSTED TO YIELD THE SAME POWER ON ALL FUELS, DIFFERENCES AMONG FUELS ARE RELATIVELY SMALL. TESTS OF FOUR-STROKE ENGINES INDICATE THAT CHANGING FUEL--EVEN BY DRASTIC CHANGES IN BOILING RANGE AND HYDROCARBON COMPOSITION--HAS LITTLE EFFECT ON HYDROCARBON EMISSIONS. LIGHTER FUELS, WHICH WERE MORE VOLATILE, CAUSED HIGHER HYDROCARBONS IN TESTS OF A TWO-CYCLE ENGINE. CHANGING FUEL HAD NO SIGNIFICANT EFFECT ON NITRIC OXIDE IN ANY OF THE ENGINES USED.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Rept No SAE-730168
• Corporate Authors:

  American Oil Company

  Research and Development Department
  Whiting, Indiana,   United States  46394
• Authors:
  • Shamah, E
  • Wagner, T O
• Publication Date: 1973

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: 24 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aromatic hydrocarbons; Carbon monoxide; Density; Diesel engines; Fuels; Hydrocarbons; Pollutants; Smoke
• Subject Areas: Energy; Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00224476
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• Files: TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Dec 11 1973 12:00AM