FLASH POINT

Flash point is the lowest temperature at which a liquid can form an ignitable mixture in air near
the surface of the liquid. The lower the flash point, the easier it is to ignite the material.
OR
The flash point of a volatile material is the lowest temperature at which it can vaporise to form
an ignitable mixture in air. Measuring a flash point requires an ignition source. At the flash point,
the vapor may cease to burn when the ignition source is removed.

Gasoline (petrol) is a fuel for use in a spark-ignition engine. The fuel is mixed with air within its
flammable limits and heated above its flash point, then ignited by the spark plug. To ignite, the
fuel must have a low flash point, but in order to avoid pre-ignition caused by residual heat in a
hot combustion chamber, the fuel must have a high auto-ignition temperature.
Diesel fuel flash points vary between 52 and 96C (126 and 205 F). Diesel is suitable for use in
a compression-ignition engine. Air is compressed until it has been heated above the auto-ignition
temperature of the fuel, which is then injected as a high-pressure spray, keeping the fuel-air mix
within flammable limits. In a diesel-fueled engine, there is no ignition source (such as the spark
plugs in a gasoline engine). Consequently, diesel fuel must have a high flash point and a low
auto-ignition temperature.

THE CALORIFIC VALUE OF A FUEL

The calorific value of a fuel is the quantity of heat produced by its combustion - at constant
pressure and under "normal" conditions (i.e. to 0oC and under a pressure of 1,013 mbar).
The combustion process generates water vapor and certain techniques may be used to recover the
quantity of heat contained in this water vapor by condensing it.
The Higher Calorific Value (or Gross Calorific Value - GCV) suppose that the water of
combustion is entirely condensed and that the heat contained in the water vapor is recovered.
The Lower Calorific Value (or Net Calorific Value - NCV) suppose that the products of
combustion contains the water vapor and that the heat in the water vapor is not recovered.

Fuel

Higher Calorific Value

(Gross Calorific Value - GCV)
kJ/kg

Acetone
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29,000

Btu/lb

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Alcohol, 96%

30,000

Anthracite

32,500 - 34,000

14,000 - 14,500

Bituminous coal

17,000 - 23,250

7,300 - 10,000

Butane

49,510

20,900

Carbon

34,080

Charcoal

29,600

12,800

Coal

15,000 - 27,000

8,000 - 14,000

Coke

28,000 - 31,000

12,000 - 13,500

Diesel

44,800

19,300

Ethanol

29,700

12,800

Ether

43,000

Gasoline

47,300

Glycerin

19,000

Hydrogen

141,790

61,000

Lignite

16,300

7,000

Methane

55,530

Oils, vegetable

39,000 - 48,000

Peat

13,800 - 20,500

Petrol

48,000

Petroleum

43,000

Propane

50,350

Semi anthracite

26,700 - 32,500

Sulfur

9,200

Tar

36,000

Turpentine

44,000

Wood (dry)

14,400 - 17,400

6,200 - 7,500

kJ/m3

Btu/ft3

Acetylene

56,000

Butane C4H10

133,000

Hydrogen

13,000

Natural gas

43,000

Methane CH4

39,820

20,400

5,500 - 8,800

11,500 - 14,000

Propane C3H8

101,000

Town gas

18,000
kJ/l

Btu/gal

Gas oil

38,000

164,000

Heavy fuel oil

41,200

177,000

Kerosene

35,000

154,000

1 kJ/kg = 0.4299 Btu/ lbm = 0.23884 kcal/kg

1 Btu/lbm = 2.326 kJ/kg = 1.8 kcal/kg

VOLATILITY
In chemistry and physics, volatility is the tendency of a substance to vaporize. Volatility is
directly related to a substance's vapor pressure. At a given temperature, a substance with higher
vapor pressure vaporizes more readily than a substance with a lower vapor pressure.

The term is primarily written to be applied to liquids; however, it may be used to describe the
process of sublimation which is associated with solid substances, such as dry ice (solid carbon
dioxide) and ammonium chloride, which can change directly from the solid state to a vapor
without becoming liquid.

VOLATILITY AND ENGINE OPERATION

The ability of a liquid to change to vapor is known as VOLATILITY. All liquids tend to vaporize
at atmospheric temperatures, but their rates of vaporization vary. The rate of vaporization
increases as the temperature increases and as the pressure decreases. (Temperature is more
important than pressure.) In general, for a given temperature, a highly volatile fuel will vaporize
more readily and at a faster rate than a fuel with a lower volatility.

The volatility of fuel affects engine starting, length of warm up period, fuel distribution, and
engine performance. (When compared to diesel fuel (F-76), gasoline is much more volatile.)
High volatility, however, can also result in fuel dilution of the lube oil in the crankcase. The ways
in which volatility can affect engine operation are discussed in the sections that follow.

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INJECTION, IGNITION, AND COMBUSTION

The self-ignition point of a fuel is a function of temperature, pressure, and time. In a properly
operating diesel engine, the intake air is compressed to a high pressure (increases the
temperature), and the injection of fuel starts a few degrees before the piston reaches TDC. The
fuel is ignited by the heat of compression shortly after fuel injection starts and combustion
continues throughout the injection period. Combustion in a diesel engine is much slower than it
is in a gasoline engine, and the rate of pressure rise is relatively small.

Immediately after injection, the atomized fuel partially evaporates with a resultant chilling of the
air in the immediate vicinity of each fuel particle. However, the extreme heat of compression
rapidly heats and vaporizes the fuel droplets to the self-ignition point and combustion begins.
The fuel particles burn as they mix with the air. The smaller particles burn rapidly, but the larger
particles take more time to ignite because heat must be transferred into them to bring them to the
self-ignition point.

There is always some delay between the time fuel is injected and the time it reaches the selfignition point. This delay is commonly referred to as IGNITION DELAY or lag. The duration of
the ignition delay is dependent upon the characteristics of the fuel, the temperature and pressure
of the compressed air in the combustion space, the average size of the fuel particles, and the
amount of turbulence present in the space. As combustion progresses, the temperature and
pressure within the space rise rapidly; therefore, the ignition delay of fuel particles injected later
in the combustion process is less than in those injected earlier. In a diesel engine, the delay
period between the start of injection and the start of self-ignition is sometimes referred to as the
first phase of combustion. The second phase of combustion is ignition of the fuel injected during
the first phase and the rapid spread of the flame through the combustion space, as injection
continues. The resulting increases in temperature and pressure reduce the ignition lag for the fuel
particles entering the combustion space during the remainder of the injection period.

Remember, only a portion of the fuel has been injected during the first and second phases. As the
remainder of the fuel is injected, the third or final phase of combustion takes place. The increase
in temperature and pressure during the second phase is sufficient to cause most of the remaining
fuel particles to ignite with practically no delay in the third phase as they come from the injection
equipment. The rapid burning during the final phase of combustion causes an additional, rapid
increase in pressure.

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The knock that occurs during the normal operation of a diesel engine should not be confused
with detonation. Generally, DETO-NATION in a diesel engine is caused by a simultaneous
combustion of all particles of the fuel spray in the cylinder. COMBUSTION (DIESEL) KNOCK
in a diesel engine is directly related to the amount of ignition delay and will take place at the end
of the second phase. Diesel knock occurs from the rapid burning of large amounts of fuel
(gathered in the cylinder before combustion begins). Whether combustion is normal or whether
detonation occurs is de-termined by the amount of fuel that is ignited instantaneously. The
greater the amount of fuel that ignites at one time, the greater the pressure rise and the more
severe the knock.

Detonation in a diesel engine is generally caused by too much delay in ignition. The greater the
delay, the greater the amount of fuel that accumulates in the cylinder before ignition. When the
ignition point of the excess fuel is reached, all of this fuel ignites simultaneously, causing
extremely high pressures in the cylinder and an undesirable knock. Thus, detonation in a diesel
generally occurs at what is normally considered to be the start of the second phase of
combustion. Detonation in a diesel may occur when the engine is not warmed up sufficiently or
when fuel injection equipment is not operating properly. These conditions may allow excessive
fuel to accumulate in the cylinder.

Even though diesel fuel must have the ability to resist detonation, it must ignite spontaneously at
the proper time under the pressure and temperature conditions existing in the cylinder. The ease
with which a diesel fuel ignites and the manner in which it burns determines the ignition quality
of the fuel. The ignition quality of a diesel fuel is determined by its CETANE RATING, or
CETANE NUMBER. In fact, the cetane rating of a diesel fuel is identified by its cetane number.
The higher the cetane number, the less lag there is between the time the fuel enters the cylinder
and the time it begins to burn.

The cetane number of a diesel fuel is derived from a comparison test. The cetane number of
diesel fuel is the numerical result of an engine test designed to evaluate fuel ignition delay. To
establish the cetane number scale, two reference fuels are used, cetane and heptamethylnonane.
Cetane has an excellent ignition quality (100), and heptamethylnonane has a very poor ignition
quality (15). The cetane rating of a fuel in which the ignition quality is unknown can be
determined by a comparison of the performance of the fuel with that of a reference fuel. The
cetane number represents the percentage of pure cetane in a reference fuel that will just match
the ignition quality of the fuel being tested. A higher cetane number means a quicker burning of
the fuel, a condition that tends to result in easier engine starting, particularly in cold weather.

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