Committee Chair

Shi, Yunye

Committee Member

Ranjan, Rateesh; Margraves, Charles H.

Department

Dept. of Engineering

College

College of Engineering and Computer Science

Publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Place of Publication

Chattanooga (Tenn.)

Abstract

As the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions grows, research into alternative fuels is becoming increasingly important. Biofuels, such as biodiesel and ethanol, are already used in the transportation sector. Rising biodiesel production generates byproducts like glycerol and surplus alcohols, which are also candidates for combustion applications. This study explores both conventional and alternative fuels, including butanol and biocrude from Algal. Droplet combustion experiments were performed to analyze the combustion characteristics of the fuels. Using the suspended droplet method, various droplet sizes were tested. The results show that combustion progresses through distinct stages: preheating, swelling, and burning. While hydrocarbon fuels exhibited swelling and followed the D² law, fuels like ethanol, methanol, and algal oil displayed micro-explosions, deviating from this behavior. Flame characteristics also varied across fuel types. For example, blending butanol with gasoline reduced soot formation, and incorporating biodiesel into high-cetane diesel affected the burning rate and decreased soot emissions.

Acknowledgments

I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to my advisor, Dr. Yunye Shi, for her unwavering patience, support, and guidance throughout my research journey. This project would not have been possible without her continuous motivation and encouragement. I would like to express my gratitude to my thesis committee members, Dr. Margraves and Dr. Ranjan, for their time and interest in this research. I would like to acknowledge Mark Anton Airport for their generous donation of Jet A fuel, which was instrumental in my study. Additionally, I am grateful to Pacific Northwest National Laboratories for providing the algal oil sample, which offered valuable insights. My sincere thanks go to Blake Bradley for his generous contribution of time and access to his 3D printer. The design and prototyping process would not have progressed as swiftly without his support. My gratitude goes out to my mom and dad, who provided unwavering support throughout my graduate school career. I would not have succeeded without their encouragement. Finally, I would like to express my appreciation for the National Science Foundation ERI Award #2301490, which provided essential resources for this research. This work would not have been possible without their generous funding.

Degree

M. S.; A thesis submitted to the faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Science.

Date

12-2024

Subject

Algal biofuels; Alternative fuels--Combustion; Biomass energy--Climatic factors; Butanol as fuel; Ethanol as fuel

Keyword

alternative fuels; droplet combustion; suspended droplet; combustion

Document Type

Masters theses

DCMI Type

Text

Extent

xiv, 133 leaves

Language

English

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Date Available

1-1-2026

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Available for download on Thursday, January 01, 2026

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