WEnComMag: Water Enhanced Combustion Efficiency through Magnetic treatment and water infusion

DossierHT.KIEM.01.008
StatusLopend
Startdatum1 juli 2024
Einddatum30 juni 2025
RegelingKIEM HighTech 2024-2025
Thema's
  • Sleuteltechnologieën 20-23
  • Bètatechniek
  • Sleuteltechnologieën en duurzame materialen

The ongoing debate over the use of fossil fuels, particularly diesel, in engines due to concerns about global climate change has prompted the exploration of alternative propulsion methods and fuels. Despite various proposed alternatives, diesel engines continue to play a vital role in the global market [1]. This discussion has spurred innovations aimed at enhancing the performance and sustainability of diesel engines, including the utilization of biodiesel mixtures, synthetic fuels, and water-in-diesel emulsions (W/D emulsions) [2-5]. Scientific evidence indicates that the presence of water in water-diesel emulsions can improve engine performance and reduce emissions, such as particulate matter and NOx [6,7]. This performance enhancement is attributed to the phenomenon of micro-explosion, or secondary atomization, caused by the differing boiling points of water and diesel [8]. The rapid temperature increase during fuel injection leads to the explosive vaporization of dispersed water droplets, breaking up the diesel emulsion into smaller droplets and resulting in a shorter combustion time. Various processes, including membrane emulsification, ultrasound emulsification, and high shear stirring, are employed to create these emulsions, often necessitating the use of surfactants for stability [9]. This research proposes a two-fold approach: firstly, the use of Electrohydrodynamic Atomization (EHDA, or electrospray) to create stable water-diesel emulsions. Secondly, the employment of magnetic fields in treating both diesel and water-diesel emulsions. EHDA is already used in several applications, such as drug encapsulation, bioencapsulation, thin film coatings and is also known for its ability to form stable emulsions. [10-13]. For the second approach, it has been shown that nanobubbles can be formed [17] and stabilized due to the electric charging action of magnetic fields [18]. We hypothesize that the charged bubbles can further stabilize the diesel-water emulsion and also enhance the explosive evaporation due to the additional Coulomb forces in play.

Contactinformatie

Consortiumpartners

bij aanvang project
  • Bright Spark B.V.
  • General Incorporated Association Green Earth Again
  • IPF Implosions Photonenfeldforschung GmbH
  • Stichting Wetsus, European Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Water Technology