Testing the Smoke Formation Properties of Compression Ignition Engine Fuels in Premixed Open Flames - A Promising Approach

The black smoke emission from diesel engines is determined to a great extent by the smoke formation properties of the fuels used. For various reasons, a test method would be desirable enabling the smoke formation tendency of a fuel to be ascertained outside the diesel engine where other fuel properties do not affect the result.

It is shown that the smoke formation properties of pure hydrocarbons and practical engine fuels in premixed open flames appear to be representative of the black smoke emission from diesel engines. This represents a starting point in the development of a method enabling the direct determination of the smoke formation properties of compression ignition engine fuels and fuel components.