Design of a small scale rotating fluidized bed (RFB) with diameter of 4-6 cm to fluidize 40-80 mu m diameter particles was investigated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Simulations explored the impact of the following components on pressure drop and fluidized behavior of the device: particle size, particle density, outer...
Liquid transportation fuels require costly and time-consuming tests to characterize metrics, such as Research Octane Number (RON) for gasoline. If fuel sale restrictions requiring use of standard Cooperative Fuel Research (CFR) testing procedures do not apply, these tests may be avoided by using multivariate statistical models to predict RON and...
A dual-mode engine has been developed where in one mode all engine cylinders fire normally, providing locomotion for the vehicle. In the other mode, one cylinder of the engine is used to compress low pressure residential natural gas (NG), in multiple stages, to a standard U.S. compressed natural gas (CNG)...
Broadband absorption spectroscopy, by way of FTIR, was used to investigate the vapor cloud of a single millimeter sized liquid droplet suspended by a syringe as it evaporates at standard conditions. Single beam data were collected every 8 seconds resulting in a time-resolved record. Species concentrations were tracked using their...
Low-temperature combustion (LTC) engine concepts such as homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) offer the potential of improved efficiency and reduced emissions of NOₓ and particulates. However, engines can only successfully operate in HCCI mode for limited operating ranges that vary depending on the fuel composition. Unfortunately, traditional ratings such as...
A new metric for ranking the suitability of fuels in LTC engines was recently introduced, based on the fraction of potential fuel savings achieved in the FTP-75 light-duty vehicle driving cycle. In the current study, this LTC fuel performance index was calculated computationally and analyzed for a number of fuel...