Fuel and Combustion

Fuel and Combustion

Predicting of Physical Properties and Atomization Characteristics of the Biofuel Derived from Chlamydomoinas Microalga

Authors
Amir Omidvar 1
Elham Amini 2
1 Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Shiraz University of Technology,, Iran
2 Department of Microbiology, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
Abstract
The overall objective of present research is to provide insight into physical properties and atomization characteristics of the Chlamydomonas algal biofuel. Biofuels are produced mainly from oil crops, animal fat and waste cooking oil. Because of low productivity and efficiency, these sources are not suitable for continuous and large-scale production of biofuel. Microalgae appear to be the only source of renewable biodiesel that is capable of meeting the global fuel demand. According to a novel physiological-molecular research, the naturally isolated microalga Chlamydomonas sp. MCCS 026 can be used as a valuable feedstock for biofuel production in our country. This species has high growth rate and lipid content requiring just a simple and low-cost culture medium. However, these benefits do not guarantee the practical usage of this new green fuel in DI engines. In order to employ a biodiesel well, it is necessary to know its key properties, i.e. density, viscosity and surface tension. These properties are closely related to the molecular structures of its fatty acid components. This study presents a predictive analytical investigation of the effects of viscosity, density and surface tension on atomization characteristics of the new suggested green fuel. Results from statistical analysis showed that Chlamydomonas algal fuel had near-similar properties to the petroleum diesel fuel. The atomization analysis indicated that for the same operating conditions, the novel biofuel shows better spray characteristics than well-known biofuels, i.e. soybean and canola methyl esters. Also, the results showed that the quality of this new biofuel is higher than other alga-based biofuels.
Keywords
Biofuel
Microalga
Chlamydomonas
Atomization
Physical properties
1.     Erazo, J., Sequera, A., Parthsarathy, R., and Gollahalli, S. R., “Comparison of Spray Characteristics of Biodiesel and Diesel fuel,” AIAA 4816, 2007.
2.     Murillo, S., Lĭguez, J. L., Porterio, J., Geranada, E., and Moran, J. C., “Performance and Exhaust Emissions in the Use of Biodiesel in Outboard Diesel Engines,” Fuel, 86, pp 1765-1771, 2007.
3.   زنوزی، ع؛ قبادیان، ب؛ توکلی هشجین، ت؛ فیض الله نژاد، م؛ و باقرپور، ح؛ "تأثیر ترکیب سوخت­های دیزل و بیودیزل حاصل                  از پسماند روغن­های خوراکی در عملکرد موتور اشتعال تراکمی(CI)،" نشریه علمی- پژوهشی سوخت و احتراق، سال اول، شماره اول، ص 53- 60، شهریور 1387.
4.   نجفی، ب؛ پیروزپناه، و؛ و قبادیان، ب؛ "تأثیر استفاده از بیودیزل در کاهش آلایندگی موتور دیزل،" مجموعه مقالات اولین کنفرانس احتراق ایران، دانشگاه تربیت مدرس، تهران، ایران، بهمن ماه 1384.
5.                 Tyson, S. K., “Biodiesel Handling and Use Guidelines,” US Department of Energy, DOE/GO;102004, 1999.
6.     Almeida, S. C. A., Belchior, C. R., Nascimento, M. V. G., Viera, L. S. R., and Fleury, G., “Performance of a Diesel Generator Fuelled with Palm Oil,” Fuel, 81, pp 2097-2102, 2002.
7.     Bhatti, H. N., Hanif, M. A., Qasim, M., and Rehman, A., “Biodiesel Production from Waste Tallow,” Fuel, 87, pp 2961-2966, 2008.
8.                 Lam, S. C. A., “Biodiesel Droplet Combustion,” MS.c Thesis, University of Windsor, Ontario, Canada, 2007.
9.     Altiparmak, D., Keskin, A., Koca, A., and Guru, M., “Alternative Fuel Properties of Tall Oil Fatty Acid Methyl Ester-Diesel Fuel Blends,” Bioresource Technology, 98, pp. 241-246, 2007.
10.  Preyra-Irajo, G. A., Izqaierdo, N. G., Covi, M., Nolasco, S. M., Quiroz, F., and Aguirrezabal, L. A. N., “Variability in Sunflower Oil Quality for Biodiesel Production: A Simulation Study,” Biomass and Bioenergy, 33, pp. 459-468, 2009.
11.  Giannelos, P. N., Sxizas, S., Lois, E., Zannikos, F., and Anastopoulos, G., “Physical, Chemical and Fuel Related Properties of Tomato Seed Oil for Evaluating Its Direct Use in Diesel Engines,” Industrial Crops and Products, 22, pp. 193-199, 2005.
12.  Chisti, Y., “Biodiesel from Microalgae,” Biotechnology Advances, 25, pp 294-306, 2007.
13.  Chisti, Y., “Biodiesel from Microalgae Beats Bioethanol,” Trends in Biotechnology, 26, No. 3, pp. 126-131, 2008.
14.  Xu, H., Miao, X., and Wu, Q., “High Quality Biodiesel Production from a Microalga Chlorella Protothecoides by Heterotrophic Growth in Fermenters,” Journal of Biotechnology, 126, pp. 499-507, 2006.
15.  Mata, T. M., Martins, A. A., and Caetano, N. S., “Microalgae for Biodiesel Production and other Applications: A Review,” Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 14, pp. 217-232, 2010.
16.  Morowvat, M. H., Rasoul-Amini, S., and Ghasemi, Y., “Chlamydomonas as a “New” Organism for Biodiesel Production,” Bioresource Technology, 101, pp. 2059-2062, 2010.
17.  Ejim, C. E., Fleck, B. A., and Amirfazli, A., “Analytical Study for Atomization of Biodiesels and their Blends in a Typical Injector: Surface Tension and Viscosity Effects,” Fuel, 86, pp. 1543-1544, 2007.
18.  Knothe, G., “Dependence of Biodiesel Fuel Properties on the Structure of Fatty Acid Alkyl Esters,” Fuel Processing Technology, 86, pp. 1059-1070, 2005.
19.  Allen, C. A. W., Watts, K. C., and Ackman, R. G., “Predicting the Surface Tension of Biodiesel Fuels from their Fatty Acid Composition,” Journal of American Oil Chemists Society, 76, pp. 317-323, 1999.
20.  Allen, C. A. W., “Properties of Biodiesel Fuel Atomization Characteristics Based on Measured Properties,” Ph.D. Thesis, DalTech, Dalhousie University, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1998.
21.  Poling, B. E., Parausnitz, J. M., and O’Connel, J. P., The Properties of Gases and Liquids, McGraw-Hill, NewYork, 2001.
22.  Shu, Q., Yang, B., Yang, J., and Qing, S., “Predicting the Viscosity of Biodiesel Fuels Based on the Mixture Topological Index Method,” Fuel, 86, pp 1849-1854, 2007.
23.  Shu, Q., Wang, J., Peng, B., Wang, D., and Wang, G., “Predicting the Surface Tension of Biodiesel Fuels by Mixture Topological Index Method, at 313K,” Fuel, 87, pp. 3586-3590, 2007.
24.  Uryadov, V. G., Aristova, N. V., and Ofitserov, E. N., “Relationship between the Dynamic Viscosity of Hydrocarbons and the Wiener Topological Index,” Russian Journal of Physical Chemistry A, 81, No. 4, pp. 644-647, 2007.
25.  Uryadov, V. G., Aristova, N. V., and Ofitserov, E. N., “Topological Approach to Description of Dynamic Viscosity of Heteroatom-Containing Organic Compounds,” Chemistry and Computational Simulation Butlerov Communications, 3, No. 9, pp. 53-58, 2002.
26.  Sazhin, S. S., Feng, G., and Heikal, M. R., “A Model for Fuel Spray Penetration,” Fuel, 80, pp. 2171-2180, 2001.
27.  Chehroudi, B., and Bracco, F. V., “Structure of Transient Hollow Cone Spray,” SAE Report 880522, 1988.
28.  Pozorski, J., Sazhin, S., Waklawczyk, M., Crua, C., Kenneird, D., and Heikal, M., “Spray Penetration in Turbulent flow,” Flow Turbulence and Combustion, 68, pp. 153-165, 2002.
29.  Peterson, B. R., and Ghandhi, J. B., “Transient High-Pressure Hydrogen Jet Measurements,” SAE Report 2006-01-0652, 2006.
30.  Kumar, S., Watson, H., Milkins, E., and Edsen, J., “Combustion Modeling of Diesel Fuel, Seed Oil and Methyl Ester of Seed Oils,” SAE Report 861564, 1986.
31.  Lee, C. S., Park, S. W., and Known, S. I., “An Experimental Study on the Atomization and Combustion of Biodiesel-Blended Fuels,” Energy Fuels, 19, pp. 2201-2208, 2005.
32.  Yule, A. J., Mo, S. L., Tham, S. Y., and Aval, S. M., “Diesel Spray Structure,” ICLASS-85, London, UK, 1985.
33.  Ehimen, E. A., “Energy Balance of Microalgal-Derived Biodiesel,” Energy Sources, Part A: Recovery, Utilization, and Environmental Effects, 32, No. 12,  pp. 1111-1120, 2010.