Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

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Fuel
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/fuel

Studying combustion and cyclic irregularity of diethyl ether as supplement fuel

in diesel engine
D.C. Rakopoulos, C.D. Rakopoulos , E.G. Giakoumis, A.M. Dimaratos
Internal Combustion Engines Laboratory, Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Zografou Campus,
9 Heroon Polytechniou St., 15780 Athens, Greece

h i g h l i g h t s
" Experimental diesel engine fueled on 24% DEE supplement in diesel, at various loads.
" HRR diagrams delayed, pressures, temperatures, heat loss reduced, leaner operation.
" Stochastic techniques showed combustion stability with random cyclic irregularity.
" Moreover, no effect on cyclic irregularity of injection process or DEE/diesel blend.

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 13 December 2012
Received in revised form 6 January 2013
Accepted 7 January 2013
Available online 29 January 2013
Keywords:
Diesel engine
Diethyl ether blend
Combustion
Cyclic irregularity
Heat release and stochastic analysis

a b s t r a c t
An experimental study is conducted to evaluate the effects of using diesel fuel blend with diethyl ether
(DEE) 24% by vol., a promising fuel that can be produced from biomass (bio-DEE), on the combustion
behavior of a standard, direct injection, Hydra diesel engine. Combustion chamber and fuel injection
pressure diagrams are obtained at four loads, using a high-speed, data acquisition and processing system.
A heat release analysis of the experimentally obtained cylinder pressure diagrams and plots of histories in
the combustion chamber of the gross heat release rate (HRR) and other related parameters, reveal some
interesting features of the combustion mechanism when using DEE blend. Cylinder pressures and
temperatures are reduced, HRR diagrams are delayed, and the engine runs overall a little leaner at
reduced heat losses, with the DEE blend compared to neat diesel fuel for all loads. Moreover, given the
shown low ignition quality of DEE/diesel fuel blend and reports for unstable engine operation at high
DEE blending ratios, the strength of cyclic (combustion variation) irregularity is examined as reected
in the pressure indicator diagrams, by analyzing for the maximum pressure and rate as well as dynamic
injection timing and ignition delay, using stochastic analysis for averages, coefcients of variation, probability density functions, auto-correlations, and cross-correlation coefcients. The stochastic analysis
reveals the randomness of uctuation phenomena observed in the engine, and the cross-correlation coefcients showed that neither the injection process nor the DEE/diesel fuel blend had practical effect on
cyclic irregularity.
2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Stringent imposed emissions regulations have forced researchers to focus their interest on the domain of engine- or fuel-related
techniques [14]. Moreover, the ever increasing energy demands
in the energy generation and transport sectors, coupled with the
limited availability of fossil fuels and their detrimental environmental effects, has guided research to seek alternative fuels for
gradually substituting conventional ones [57]. Among those,
bio-fuels have received increasing attention due to their attractive
Corresponding author. Tel.: +30 210 7723529; fax: +30 210 7723531.
E-mail address: cdrakops@central.ntua.gr (C.D. Rakopoulos).
0016-2361/$ - see front matter 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2013.01.012

features of being renewable in nature and reducing the net CO2

emissions, and have been used in both conventional diesel and gasoline engines [812].
The share of bio-fuels in the automotive fuel market is expected
to grow rapidly in the next decade. In 2009, the new European regulation (Directive 2009/28/EC) introduced new targets for the
European Union member states (among those Greece), stating that
each state shall ensure that the share of energy from renewable
sources in all forms of transport in 2020 is at least 10% of the corresponding nal energy consumption [13,14]. In the USA, the environmental protection agency renewable fuel standard version 2
(EPA-RFS2) and the Californian low-carbon fuel standard are
driving the US market [15]. The most promising bio-fuels for fossil

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D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

Nomenclature
cv
h
he
m
N
p
Q
r
R
br
R

specic heat capacity under constant volume

(J/kg K)
sampling time interval (s)
(sensible) specic enthalpy (J/kg)
cylinder charge mass (kg), or maximum lag number
number of raw data values
pressure (Pa)
heat (J)
lag number
specic gas constant (J/kg K)
auto-correlation function of time record

liquid fuels substitutes/supplements are: bio-alcohols and bioethers primarily used for spark-ignition engines, and vegetable oils
[16], bio-diesels [17], bio-ethanol [1820] and bio-butanol [2124]
mixed in small proportions with diesel fuel for diesel engines.
Works originating from this laboratory studied the performance
and emissions behavior of the present single-cylinder, standard
diesel engine, fueled with blends of diesel fuel with the most
promising of those bio-fuels, such as: vegetable oils and bio-diesels
of various origins [13,25], ethanol [26], n-butanol [27], or diethyl
ether (DEE) [28], and with blends of cottonseed oil and its bio-diesel with either n-butanol or DEE with no diesel fuel at all [29]. The
above investigations were extended on a six-cylinder, turbocharged, direct injection, Mercedes-Benz bus diesel engine used
by the Athens Urban Transport Organization, fueled with blends
of diesel fuel with vegetable oils and bio-diesels [30,31], ethanol
[32], or n-butanol [33].
The lowest carbon-chain ether, dimethyl ether (DME), CH3OCH3, has been experimented as an ignition-improving additive
or replacement in diesel engines with success for lowering smoke
and nitrogen oxides emissions [34,35]. However, as DME is a gaseous fuel, its use in vehicles requires some engine fuel injection
system modications [36], while the corresponding fuel delivery
infrastructure is not currently suitable for distributing large quantities of gaseous fuels. Thus, a more appropriate fuel (ether) may be
diethyl ether (DEE), CH3CH2OCH2CH3, which is a fuel with similar
attractive properties to DME for use in diesel engines but in liquid
form (at ambient conditions). It can be produced from ethanol,
which is produced itself from biomass [26], via a dehydrating process, thus being also a bio-fuel (bio-DEE).
DEE has several favorable properties for diesel engines [36],
including exceptional cetane number, reasonable energy density
for on-board storage, high oxygen content, low autoignition
temperature, broad ammability limits, and high miscibility with
diesel fuel. Bailey et al. [36] had reported a review of the subject
up to 1997 to identify the potential of DEE as a transportation fuel.
Even up to date the testing of DEE in diesel engines performanceand emissions-wise is limited to very few works [3741], which
were reviewed by the authors [28].
Thus, it is made obvious that a gap exists for the study of combustion mechanism of this bio-fuel when fueling diesel engines,
with the relevant information being rare and incomplete, and with
some works reporting adverse behavior at higher DEE/diesel fuel
blend ratios or loads. Unlike works [37,39] that did not report
any engine stability problems though working up to high DEE/diesel fuel blends (30%) and loads, two works [40,41] reported unstable and heavy smoke engine operation with higher than 15% DEE/
diesel fuel blends. In the light of the above and especially the always shown low ignition quality (higher ignition delay) behavior
of DEE/blends (despite the DEE high cetane number [36]) that
may give rise to unstable operation [19], a pertinent investigation

b xy
R
t
T
V

cross-correlation function between time records x(t)

and y(t)
time (s)
absolute temperature (K)
cylinder volume (m3)

Greek symbols
H
fuel lower caloric value (J/kg)
q
density (kg/m3)
q^ xy
sample cross-correlation coefcient
u
crank angle (deg)

is called for the detailed combustion mechanism and strength of its

cyclic irregularity (variability), by examining any cause and effect
relationships.
Therefore, this work reports the results of systematic experimental investigation on a standard, experimental, four-stroke, single-cylinder, Hydra, Ricardo/Cussons, naturally aspirated diesel
engine, which possesses high versatility and control over the variation of its operating parameters. It is a continuation of previous
work [28], where performance and emissions results were presented using various blends of diesel fuel with DEE, examining
the inuence of varying the DEE/diesel fuel blending ratio (92/8,
84/16 and 76/24). The current work examines the inuence of load,
the detailed combustion characteristics and the possible driving to
unstable engine operation, at various loads, for the highest blending ratio that is more likely prone to cyclic irregularity.
Two strong tools are used here for treating the experimentally
obtained cylinder pressure diagrams, viz. heat release analysis [42]
and stochastic techniques [43], which are reviewed briey in later
sections. The stochastic techniques of auto- and cross-correlation
functions are powerful, objective, scientic tools for removing
the noise from signals and uncover any useful harmonics, thus
disclosing information on any cause and effect relationship, e.g.
here any instability due to fuel low ignition quality or erratic pump
operation.
Concluding this section, it is to be noted that DEE is an isomer of
butanol (the counterpart of ethanol), a very promising fuel for
which extensive research is carried out at present. It may then be
worth stating a brief comparison of the emission-wise behavior
for the same conditions and engine, fueled with the same percentages (in diesel fuel) of either n-butanol, reported in [27], or DEE,
reported in [28], both by the present group. With increasing percentage of either n-butanol or DEE in the blends, it was reported
[27,28] decrease of emitted smoke, nitrogen oxides and carbon
monoxide, and increase of unburned hydrocarbons, with no fuel
penalty. This is a noteworthy similar behavior of those isomer
bio-fuels, showing a remarkable simultaneous decrease in both
emitted soot and nitrogen oxides.

2. Experimental engine test facilities, measuring apparatus and

procedure
Facilities to monitor and control engine variables such as speed,
load, water and lube oil temperatures, fuel and air ows, are installed on a fully automated test bed, single-cylinder, four-stroke,
water cooled, Ricardo/Cussons, Hydra, high-speed, experimental
standard engine. It has the ability to operate on the Otto (sparkignition) or direct injection (DI) diesel or indirect injection (IDI)
diesel, four-stroke principle. Here, it is used as a naturally aspirated, DI diesel engine having a re-entrant, bowl-in-piston

327

D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

combustion chamber. It has a cylinder bore of 80.26 mm, a piston

stroke of 88.90 mm, a compression ratio of 19.8:1, and a speed
range of 10004500 rpm. The Bosch fuel injection pump has an
11 mm diameter plunger, and the Bosch injector nozzle has four
holes, 0.25 diameter each. The injector opening pressure is
250 bar, and the injection advance (at pump spill) can be varied
from 0 to 40 crank angle (CA). The engine is mounted on a fully
automated test bed and coupled to a McClure DC motoring dynamometer, equipped with a load cell for engine torque measurements. Full details can be found in past publications by the
authors, e.g. [25,26].
For measuring the cylinder pressure, a Kistler 6125B miniature
piezoelectric transducer is used, ush mounted to the cylinder
head and connected to a Kistler 5008 charge amplier. Also, a Kistler 4067A2000 piezoelectric transducer connected to a Kistler
4618A2 charge amplier is tted on the injector side of the pipe
linking the injection pump and injector, to provide the fuel
pressure signal. A Tektronix TDC (Top Dead Center) magnetic
pick-up marker is used for time reference. These output signals
are routed to the input of a Keithley DAS-1801ST A/D board installed on a Pentium III PC, which can acquire input data at a total
throughput rate of 312.5 ksamples/s from up to eight differential
analogue inputs, utilizing also dual-channel Direct Memory Access
operation. Control of this high-speed data acquisition system is
achieved by a developed computer code based on the TestPoint
control software.
The conventional diesel fuel was supplied by Aspropyrgos
Reneries of the Hellenic Petroleum SA, representing the typical,
Greek automotive, low sulfur (0.035%) diesel fuel (gas oil). The
diethyl ether (DEE) (otherwise called ethyl ether or more simply
ether) was purchased from local commercial representatives certied to a purity of 99.7% (analytical grade), and was blended with
the normal diesel fuel. Preliminary solubility evaluation tests with
blending ratios up to 30/70 proved that the mixing was excellent
with no phase separation for a period of days, thus requiring no
emulsifying agent. The properties of diesel fuel and DEE are shown
in Table 1. The density of the 24% DEE blend used was measured at
0.810 kg/m3. It is true that addition of a low viscosity fuel (cf. values in Table 1) to diesel fuel, such as DEE or ethanol, can reduce
lubricity and create potential wear problems in sensitive fuel
pump designs [20]. Thus, reduction of lubricity is one of the reasons for keeping low their percentage in the blends, apart from
the effect of reduced viscosity on spray.
In previous work [28], performance (brake specic fuel consumption and thermal efciency) and regulated emissions results
were reported at full load, for blends of diesel fuel with 8%, 16%
and 24% (by vol.) of DEE. Here, detailed combustion analysis and
stability results are presented for the highest 24% blend, denoted
hereafter and in the gures as DEE24-D. The engine is working at
the same speed of 2000 rpm and static (pump spill) injection timing of 29 CA before TDC, at various loads, viz. no-load, low load,
medium load and high load, corresponding to brake mean effective
pressures (b.m.e.p.) of 0.00, 1.40, 2.57 and 5.37 bar, respectively.
Owing to the differences among the lower caloric values and oxygen contents of the fuels, the comparison is effected at the same
b.m.e.p., i.e. load, and not injected fuel mass or airfuel ratio.
Combustion chamber (indicator) and injector pressure diagrams are obtained, where pressures are measured with accuracy
better than within 1% of full-scale output, while the accuracy of
the analogue input readings of the data acquisition system is within 0.01%. These pressures are directly measured quantities (generic) possessing inherently the inaccuracy of the piezoelectric
transducers stated, which form the seeds for the computations
of the various heat release and stochastic analysis parameters.
The present test engine installation is a standard, versatile, experimental one with very accurate instruments and controls to keep

Table 1
Properties of diesel fuel and diethyl ether (DEE).
Fuel properties

Diesel fuel

Diethyl ether
CH3CH2OCH2CH3

Density at 20 C (kg/m3)
Cetane number
Lower caloric value (MJ/kg)
Kinematic viscosity (mm2/s)
Bulk modulus of elasticity (bar)
Boiling point (C)
Latent heat of evaporation (kJ/kg)
Oxygen (% weight)
Stoichiometric air/fuel ratio

837
50
43
2.6 (at 40 C)
16,000
180360
250
0
15.0

713
>125
33.9
0.23 (at 20 C)
13,000est.
35
355
21.6
11.2

the same speed and load conditions, having also the capabilities
of keeping constant the temperatures (lube oil, cooling water,
etc.). Then, for experiments conducted in the same day, the repeatability is expected to be very good for the various fuels tested.
3. Background of experimental data heat release analysis
In the study of combustion process in diesel engines, an important means to analyze combustion characteristics is the calculation
and analysis of heat release rates (HRRs) according to actual
measurements of pressures in the combustion chamber [4244],
with a corresponding diagram of the fuel injection pressure assisting towards this side. The experimental cylinder pressure (indicator) diagrams are here directly processed in connection with the
pertinent application of the energy and state equations. The results
of the analysis for the HRR and other related parameters in the
combustion chamber reveal some interesting features, which aid
the interpretation of the combustion mechanism associated with
the use of DEE/diesel fuel blend in the diesel engine. Towards that
side assist also the widely differing physical and chemical properties of DEE against the normal diesel fuel, which forms the baseline case.
The method of processing the experimental cylinder pressure
diagrams and their analysis for heat release has been reported in
detail in previous publications, e.g. [26,44]. Thus, only a brief outline will be given below. A recording is made of the cylinder pressure data for ten cycles in a contiguous le, with a sampling rate
corresponding to 0.5 CA. A signal from a magnetic pick-up, simultaneously recorded, indicates the position of the TDC in each cycle.
Then, the mean of the cylinder (indicator) and the fuel pressure
diagrams are obtained, while a light smoothing for the pressure
signals is applied that is based on performing a four-data points
weighted smoothing. This seems to offer reasonable compromise
between no-loss of valuable signal information and relatively
smooth values for the rst derivative of pressure with respect to
crank angle.
The measured pressure data processed for the heat release analysis concern the closed part of the thermodynamic cycle. A spatial
uniformity of pressure, temperature and composition in the combustion chamber (single-zone model), at each instant of time or
during a crank angle step or instantaneous cylinder volume, is assumed. By combining the rst law of thermodynamics and the
perfect gas state equation in differential form for the cylinder gas
content, the net heat release rate dQn/du (with respect to crank angle) is derived as [4547]:



dV
dp pV dm
dV
dm
p
V

he
p
du
du m du
du
du

with the perfect gas equation of state pV mRT

dQ n cv

du
R

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D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

Thus, the corresponding gross heat release rate dQg/du, which is the
energy released from the combustion of fuel is given by:

dQ g dQ n dQ w

du
du
du

Term dQw/du stands for the rate of heat transferred to the combustion chamber walls, which is calculated by using the formula of
Annand [48].
By knowing the fuel lower caloric value, the fuel burned mass
rate dmfb/du is computed as:

dmfb
1 dQ g

du
H du

If the differential equations are integrated [26] from the point of

inlet valve closing event up to any crank angle, one can obtain the
respective cumulative values in the chamber of Qg and mfb. The
specic internal energies (sensible part) of the components are
given [49] as fourth order polynomial expressions of T. Similar
expressions are then derived for the specic enthalpies, heat
capacities and their ratio, by applying the thermodynamic relations connecting these quantities for a perfect gas [46]. The mixture properties are then computed by knowing the prevailing gas
composition, as calculated by knowing the air and the fuel mass
burned mfb up to the point in question [26,49] and the temperature
T calculated from Eq. (3).
4. Background of experimental data stochastic analysis
An internal combustion engine may display variations in the
cylinder pressure from one cycle to another, even under nominally
constant operating conditions [50]. Any deviation in the pressure
time development reduces the efciency and reliability of the engine, increases its noise and exhaust-gas emissions, and is one of
causes of power uctuations [51]. Measurements and analysis of
cycle-by-cycle variations in spark-ignition engines have been
made by many investigators [52,53]. However, it seems that corresponding analyzes for diesel engines have not kept pace, though
randomness in the cylinder pressure was known to exist, probably
because of the lower strength cycle-by-cycle pressure variations
occurring in diesel engines.
A short literature review for this phenomenon in diesel engines
has been presented in [19], which deals with the engine in hand
with ethanol/diesel fuel blends. Wing [54] was the rst to deal,
in depth, with this aspect of diesel engine operation. His experimental study concerned a multi-cylinder, four-stroke, DI diesel
engine having a rotary distributor fuel injection pump, which
was suspect and proved to be the culprit of cyclic pressure variations (irregularity). Sczomak and Henein [55] in an extensive
experimental investigation on a CFR pre-chamber diesel engine
operating with various low-ignition quality fuels, correlated cyclic
pressure variations with ignition delay and dynamic injection timing, and pointed out that low cetane number fuels can cause cyclic
irregularity in diesel engines.
Following the heat release analysis above, the present work focuses on the study of cyclic combustion variations in the engine
running with DEE/diesel fuel blend at the same operating conditions. The need for such a complementary study emanates from
the reporting in some works (stated in the Introduction) of diesel
engine unstable operation with DEE/diesel fuel blends, and more
generally motivated by the always reported behavior of those
blends presenting higher ignition delay than the neat diesel fuel
(cf. also next section), despite the much higher cetane number of
DEE [36]. Thus, by showing a low-ignition quality fuel behavior
they need to be investigated in that respect according to the nd-

ings of Sczomak and Henein [55]. The combustion cyclic variability

(irregularity) is tackled here in the way it is reected in the pressure indicator diagrams, by analyzing for the maximum pressure
and pressure rate, dynamic injection timing and ignition delay,
using stochastic analysis techniques.
For the stochastic analysis a recording is made of the cylinder
and fuel measured pressure data for 480 cycles in a contiguous le,
with a sampling rate corresponding to 0.5 CA. In contrast to the
previously described HRR analysis, for the stochastic analysis the
480 pressure diagrams (cycles) are used separately (the mean is
meaningless here), again with light smoothing, since by denition
the parameters drawn from them will form the data record values
to be statistically processed. For assessing the errors involved with
the number of cycles chosen [43], the variations of the mean value
and the standard deviation of the maximum pressures and pressure rates were plotted against the number of cycles, revealing that
a number of cycles greater than 400 form a safe limit.
By processing the fuel (injection) pressure diagram, the static
injection timing (at the injector) was determined at the crank angle
where this pressure rises above the almost constant residual in the
connecting pipe pressure value, after the (pump spill) injection
timing event. The dynamic injection timing was assumed to coincide with the crank angle where the fuel pressure reaches the value
of the injector nozzle opening pressure, immediately following the
event of static injection timing [26]. The difference between dynamic injection timing and pump spill timing forms the injection
delay.
By processing the cylinder pressure diagram, the ignition timing
was located at the crank angle u where the rst derivative of pressure with respect to u changes slope, immediately following the
event of dynamic injection timing, going from a negative to a positive value and so presenting a local minimum. The ignition timing
was then determined either by using this condition, or by locating
the corresponding zeroing crank angle of the second derivative of
pressure with respect to u, assuming that this signal is smooth
enough. Note that with every differentiation of the pressure signal
the noise-to-signal ratio increases, while if over-smoothing is applied this zero point might disappear as being ill conditioned.
The difference between the ignition and dynamic injection timing
forms the ignition delay. From the rst and second derivatives of
cylinder pressure diagrams with respect to u, the crank angles of
maximum values of the rst derivative of pressure and the pressure itself can be computed, bearing also in mind that they immediately follow the ignition timing and in that order.
The following statistical quantities are used for the analysis of
the N raw data values ui (i = 1, 2, ... , N) of a time record: averages,
standard deviations, and probability density functions, with the
Gaussian (or normal) probability density function with the same
mean value and standard deviation as that of the data record also
computed [56]. For computation of the auto- and cross-correla has been subtions of the parameters involved, the mean value u
tracted from each value ui, i.e. the new time history record is
 i 1; 2; . . . ; N where h is
considered xt xt 0 nh ui  u
the sampling time interval and n = 1, 2, ... , N.
The auto-correlation function is estimated by direct computation after any linear trend removal. For N data values xi
(i = 1, 2, ... , N), from a transformed record x(t), the estimated autocorrelation function at the time displacement rh is dened by the
formula [56,57]:

br
R

Nr
1 X
xi xir
N  r i1

r 0; 1; 2; . . . ; m

br
where r is the lag number, m the maximum lag number, and R
the estimate of the true value Rr at lag r, corresponding to the

329

D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

displacement rh. A normalized value for the auto-correlation

b r by R
b 0 ; where
function is obtained by dividing R

b0 R
b x 0 1
R
N

N
X

x2i x2

Nr
1 X

xi y
N  r i1 ir

and

b yx
R

Nr
1 X

y xir
N  r i1 i

All pressure diagrams in this section are mean-smooth, which

are then processed to produce the other related parameters. They
are presented below in the two fourfolded Figs. 1 and 2.
Fig. 1a shows at the four loads considered the fuel (injection)
pressure against crank angle diagrams for the neat diesel fuel
and the DEE24-D blend. First it can be seen that with increasing engine load the injection duration increases (as more fuel is injected)

80

Cylinder pressure (bar)

Fuel pressure (bar)

5. Discussion of the heat release analysis combustion results

400

60

40
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

200
20

0
-40

-20

-20

20

-10

10

20

30

40

Degrees crank angle

Degrees crank angle

(b)

(a)
2000
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

30

20

1600

Temperature (K)

40

Gross heat release rate (J/deg.)

x2 y 2

100

Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar

DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

600

b x 0 R
b y 0
R

The maximum value of r should normally be [57] less than 10%

of N. The normalization of the cross-correlation function denes
the sample cross-correlation coefcient:

800

b
R

i1

The cross-correlation between two time records x(t) and y(t) at

lag numbers r = 0, 1, 2, . . . , m is:

b xy
R

b
R

xy
xy
q
q^ xy rh q

1200

800

Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar

DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

10
400

0
-10

10

20

Degrees crank angle

(c)

30

40

-20

-10

10

20

30

40

Degrees crank angle

(d)

Fig. 1. Fuel (injection) pressure (a), cylinder pressure (b), gross heat release rate (c), and cylinder temperature (d) against crank angle diagrams, at the four loads, for the neat
diesel fuel and the 24% diethyl ether blend cases.

330

D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

0.6

600

Equivalence ratio

Cumulative gross heat release (J)

800

Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar

DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

400

0.4

0.2

200

0
-20

20

40

60

-40

80

40

(b)

5000

300

4000

200

Cumulative heat loss (J)

Heat transfer coefficient (W/m2 K)

(a)

3000

Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar

DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

2000

80

Degrees crank angle

Degrees crank angle

100

Diesel, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar

DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=5.37 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
DEE24-D, b.m.e.p.=2.57 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
DEE24, b.m.e.p.=1.40 bar
Diesel, b.m.e.p.=0. bar
DEE24, b.m.e.p.=0. bar

1000

-100

-20

20

40

-80

-40

40

Degrees crank angle

Degrees crank angle

(c)

(d)

80

120

Fig. 2. Cumulative gross heat release (a), equivalence (fuelair) ratio (b), heat transfer coefcient (c), and cumulative heat loss (d) against crank angle diagrams, at the four
loads, for the neat diesel fuel and the 24% diethyl ether blend cases.

for both fuels and the same holds true for the injection pressures.
Further, for each load considered, the DEE fuel pressure diagram is
distorted with respect to the corresponding neat diesel fuel one.
Specically, its uprising leg acquires a lower gradient, which is
translated into a delay of the dynamic injection timing, and
furthermore its maximum value is slightly reduced and its nal
falling leg delayed.

The different densities ql and bulk moduli of elasticity Kbm of

blends inuence the whole injection process [58,59] following
the simplied analysis of Obert [60]. For a jerk pump when its
plunger begins to compress the uid, a pressure wave is propagated down the connecting pipe, at essentially the speed of sound
as = (Kbm/ql)1/2, reaching eventually the injector needle in order to
open it. Thus, depending on the values of these properties the

331

0.6

80

0.4

75

Mean for Diesel fuel

Mean for DEE 24%
COV for Diesel fuel
COV for DEE 24%

70

0.2

2
Mean for Diesel fuel
Mean for DEE 24%
COV for Diesel fuel
COV for DEE 24%

b.m.e.p. (bar)

b.m.e.p. (bar)

(a)

(b)
2.6

9.6

2.4

2.2

9.2

8.8

8.4

1.8

Mean for Diesel fuel

Mean for DEE 24%
COV for Diesel fuel
COV for DEE 24%

1.6

0
0

10

b.m.e.p. (bar)

(c)

Mean of ignition delay (deg.)

Mean of dynamic injection timing (deg. bTDC)

65

8
4

COV of maximum pressure rate (%)

0.8

10

2.4

5.6
2.2

5.2
2
4.8

1.8
4.4

COV of ignition delay (%)

85

Mean of maximum pressure rate (bar/deg.)

COV of maximum pressure (%)

90

COV of dynamic injection timing (%)

Mean of maximum pressure (bar)

D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

Mean for Diesel fuel

Mean for DEE 24%
COV for Diesel fuel
COV for DEE 24%

1.6
0

b.m.e.p. (bar)

(d)

Fig. 3. Cyclic variation, as a function of load, expressed as mean values and coefcients of variation (COV) of the maximum cylinder pressure (a), maximum rate of cylinder
pressure rise (b), dynamic injection timing (c), and ignition delay (d), for the neat diesel fuel and the 24% diethyl ether blend cases.

dynamic injection timing is affected despite that the pump spill

timing is kept constant, as here for all fuel samples tested. The bulk
modulus of elasticity of DEE is not known, but is expected to be
much lower than the diesel fuel one and near to the ethanol value
at around 13,000 bar [28,61]. Using the values of ql and Kbm from
Table 1, as is computed as 1382.6 m/s and 1350.3 m/s for the diesel
fuel and the DEE, respectively, showing indeed a relatively later
arrival of the pressure pulse at the injector needle for the DEE case.
Fig. 1b shows, at the four loads considered, the cylinder pressure against crank angle diagrams for the neat diesel fuel and the
DEE24-D blend, focusing on their part around hot TDC. First it
can be seen that the pressures increase with load (with the
compression lines remaining the same), while the ignition delay
decreases with engine load for both fuels due to the increasing
gas temperatures with load. One can observe that for each load
considered, the DEE blend start of combustion occurs later (the
pressure rise due to combustion starts later) with respect to the
corresponding neat diesel fuel one, while its maximum pressure

falls and occurs later. The start of combustion is delayed as a

consequence of synergy of the lower dynamic injection timing
(cf. Fig. 1a) and increased ignition delay.
It is worth explaining this behavior also in conjunction with
Fig. 1c, which shows the corresponding gross heat release rate
(HRR) diagrams. First it can be seen that the ignition delay
decreases with engine load for both fuels (since temperatures
increase), while the heat release rate values become higher. For
the higher loads, both parts of combustion, i.e. the premixed combustion (the part under the rst sharp peak) and the diffusion
combustion (the last part under the second rounded peak), are
apparent with the diffusion combustion diminishing with load
decrease. One can again observe that for each load considered,
the ignition delay for the DEE24-D blend is higher than the corresponding one for the neat diesel fuel case. The increase of ignition
delay of DEE when blended with diesel fuel has also been reported
early in [35] and by later investigators despite its much higher
cetane number than diesel fuel, with possible explanations

332

D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

1.2

0.8

Auto-correlation function (norm.)

Auto-correlation function (norm.)

1.2

MAX. PRESSURE RATE

High load
Diesel fuel
DEE 24%

0.4

-0.4

0.8

IGNITION DELAY
High load
Diesel fuel
DEE 24%

0.4

-0.4
0

10

20

30

40

50

10

20

30

Cycle difference

Cycle difference

(a)

(b)

40

50

Fig. 4. Normalized auto-correlation functions of the maximum rate of pressure rise (a), and ignition delay (b), at the high engine load, for the neat diesel fuel and the 24%
diethyl ether blend cases.

provided in [62,28], while the decreasing dynamic injection timing

and the higher latent heat of evaporation of DEE (see Table 1) here
contribute also towards this side (injection into a lower temperature environment). Further, it is observed that the premixed
combustion (area under the rst sharp peak) of the DEE blend
seems to decline against the corresponding neat diesel fuel case,
thus leading to lower pressures and temperatures during the initial
part of combustion process.
Fig. 1d shows the corresponding cylinder temperature diagrams. First it can be seen that there is a temperature increase with
engine load [45] for both fuels. One can observe that for each load
considered, with respect to the neat diesel fuel case, the temperatures for the DEE24-D blend are lower up to around their maximum values and appear delayed (cf. previous paragraph for the
premixed part of combustion), while later on during expansion
they seem to recover and even slightly switch over the corresponding diesel fuel ones. The latter is due to the delayed and prolonged
(last) part of diffusion combustion (area under the second
rounded peak in the HRR diagrams). It is reminded here that this
is a computed mixed temperature due to the inherent single-zone
assumptions of the heat release analysis followed.
The observed above increase of delay of the fuel pressure and
heat release rate diagrams (and consequent fall in cylinder pressures and temperatures) with the use of DEE in the diesel fuel
blend, points to the inuence on the combustion and emissions
formation processes [59,61]. This is effected through a later and
slower spray development with possible impingement on the combustion chamber walls [58], apart from any possible poor fuel
injection (and so atomization) due to vapor locks because of the
high volatility of DEE as mentioned in [40,41].
Fig. 2a shows the corresponding cumulative gross heat release
diagrams. One can observe that for each load considered, the
cumulative gross heat release curve for the DEE24-D blend lies,
at the beginning, a little lower than the corresponding one for
the neat diesel fuel case and catches up later on into the expansion
stoke, thus revealing the slower rate of combustion as also explained with reference to Fig. 1c above. Then, the corresponding
nal (almost) equal cumulative gross heat release values are translated into the same brake thermal efciency, given the constant
engine speed and load. Fig. 2b shows the corresponding fuelair

equivalence ratio (i.e. the actual fuelair ratio divided by its stoichiometric value) diagrams. One can observe that for each load
considered, the fuelair equivalence ratio curve for the DEE24-D
blend lies a little lower than the corresponding one for the neat
diesel fuel case. This proves that the engine runs overall a little
leaner with the DEE24-D blend, at least at the beginning, for the
same engine load and speed conditions, noting that the calculation
of fuelair equivalence ratio was made by considering all the fuelbound oxygen.
Fig. 2c shows the corresponding gas side heat transfer coefcient (from the cylinder gas to the combustion chamber walls) diagrams. One can observe that these diagrams follow in shape closely
the corresponding ones of (cylinder) temperatures (cf. Fig. 1d). This
is explained as the gas side heat transfer coefcients are computed
from the relevant formula of Annand [48], which is an increasing
monotonic function of gas temperature T. It can be easily proved
by assuming, for example, variation laws [45] of gas thermal conductivity kgas = T0.75, and dynamic viscosity lgas = T0.62. Fig. 2d
shows the corresponding cumulative heat loss (to the combustion
chamber walls) diagrams. One can observe that for each load considered, the cumulative heat loss curve for the DEE24-D blend lies
a little lower than the corresponding one for the neat diesel fuel
case. This is due to the lower cylinder temperatures and heat transfer coefcients encountered with the DEE blend case (cf. Figs. 1d
and 2c), as the cumulative heat loss is effectively the integral, over
the cycle, of the product of these two quantities.

6. Discussion of the stochastic analysis results of combustion

parameters
In the gures to follow, results are presented at all four loads
considered, and for the neat diesel fuel and the blend of 24% (by
vol.) diethyl ether (DEE) in diesel fuel. From the large amount of
data collected at each operating condition, only representative
sample plots are presented owing to imposed conservation of
space. Preliminary tests to determine the extent of cyclic variation
in combustion over the load range examined, used both the maximum cylinder pressure and the maximum cylinder pressure rate as
measures of the cyclic variation (the effect). Their variations are

D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

1
0.8

Correlation coefficients

0.6
0.4
0.2
0
-0.2

Diesel, pr. - pr. rate

DEE24-D, pr. - pr. rate
Diesel, dyn. inj. - pr. rate
DEE24-D, dyn. inj. - pr. rate
Diesel, dyn. inj. - ign. del.
DEE24-D, dyn. inj. - ign. del.
Diesel, ign. del. - pr. rate
DEE24-D, ign. del. - pr. rate

-0.4
-0.6
-0.8
-1
0

b.m.e.p. (bar)
Fig. 5. Correlation coefcients between dynamic injection timing (dyn. inj.) and
maximum rate of pressure rise (pr. rate), dynamic injection timing (dyn. inj.) and
ignition delay (ign. del.), ignition delay (ign. del.) and maximum rate of pressure rise
(pr. rate), and maximum cylinder pressure (pr.) and maximum rate of pressure rise
(pr. rate), as a function of load, for the neat diesel fuel and the 24% diethyl ether
blend cases.

distinct and obviously have a close reference to the combustion

process itself but, in any case, a rather strong degree of correlation
exists between those as will be shown in last Fig. 5. The dynamic
injection timing was chosen [54] as potential cause of any inuence of the injection process on the cyclic variation, while the
ignition delay was chosen as corresponding potential cause of
any inuence of the fuel [55].
Fig. 3a and b presents the cyclic variation of the maximum
cylinder pressure and the maximum rate of cylinder pressure rise,
respectively, expressed as mean values and coefcients of variation
(COV), i.e. standard deviation divided by the mean value, as a function of the engine b.m.e.p. (load) for the cases of the neat diesel fuel
and the 24% addition of DEE in the blend. Fig. 3c and d presents the
corresponding cyclic variations of the dynamic injection timing
and the ignition delay, respectively. The observed variation (mean
values) with either the load or the addition of DEE in the blend has
already been discussed with reference to Fig. 1ac. From Fig. 3ad,
one can conclude, by observing the coefcients of variation (COV)
values, that the addition of DEE in the blend, at least for up to 24%
DEE, does not practically affect the cyclic variability (irregularity)
with respect to the neat diesel fuel case, which in any case is
already small.
The probability density functions of the experimental maximum cylinder pressure, pressure rate, dynamic injection timing
and ignition delay, for the neat diesel fuel and the 24% addition
of DEE in the blend cases, followed quite closely the corresponding Gaussian ones (computed) having the same mean value and
standard deviation. They showed a slightly different skewness
(in the range 0.1 to +0.1) and kurtosis (in the range 0.2 to
0.6) against the corresponding values of zero for the Gaussian
ones. Hence, the error of the analysis will be insignicant if a
normal distribution is assumed for the purpose of determining
the statistical nature of the above four parameters, as has already
been tacitly assumed in previous Fig. 3. This implies that the
cause of the uctuations of these parameters is rather random
(stochastic) and does not depend on its value of any other cycle,
i.e. on any residual effects of previous combustions taken place in
the cylinder [43,54].

333

Fig. 4a and b shows sample normalized auto-correlation functions of the maximum rate of pressure rise and the ignition delay,
respectively, for the cases of the neat diesel fuel and the 24% addition of DEE in the blend, at the high engine load (b.m.e.p. = 5.37 bar). The auto-correlation function for the other engine loads and
the other parameters were similar, not exceeding the critical value
(0.20) at the 1% signicance level. From observation of the autocorrelation values, it is concluded that there is no correlation
between the uctuations of different cycles, thus conrming the
same conclusion as of the sample probability density functions discussed above.
For examining the inuence of the injection process (potential
cause) and the kind of fuel used via its cetane number (another
potential cause) on the cyclic pressure variation, a crosscorrelation analysis was carried out. This computed the degree
of correlation between the dynamic injection timing and the
maximum rate of pressure rise, between the dynamic injection
timing and the ignition delay, and between the ignition delay
and the maximum rate of pressure rise. Also, the degree of
correlation between the maximum cylinder pressure and the
maximum rate of pressure rise is presented only for reference.
The reason is that the values of the maximum rate of pressure
rise were selected as the measure of cyclic variation (the effect)
in the combustion chamber.
Thus, Fig. 5 presents all these correlation coefcients (Eq. (8)
with r = 0) for the cases of the neat diesel fuel and the 24% addition
of DEE in the blend, as a function of load. It can be observed that
there is a minimal to slight correlation of these parameters (absolute values much less than 0.5), with the exception of the expected
rather strong (positive) correlation between the maximum cylinder pressure and the maximum cylinder rate of pressure rise [43]
that seems to be decreasing with load.
All the results of the above analysis indicate clearly that neither
the injection process (through the dynamic injection timing), nor
the kind of DEE/diesel fuel blend used (through the shown low
ignition quality) have any practical effect on the above cyclic variations (irregularity). Therefore, there is no unstable operation of
the engine at least for up to 24% addition of DEE. These ndings
are in accord with works [37,39] that did not report any stability
problems though working up to high DEE blending ratios (30%)
and loads, thus not encountering the ndings of the two works
[40,41], reporting unstable and heavy smoke engine operation
with higher than 15% (up to 25%) of DEE in its blends with diesel
fuel. The latter researchers (working on essentially the same engine) attributed this behavior to erratic combustion, possibly due
to phase separation of the blends that resulted in cavitations
(vapor locks because of the high volatility of DEE) in the fuel line
and injector nozzle, thus leading eventually to poor fuel injection
(large droplets) in the combustion chamber. It is noticed that their
injection system was already operating in (or over) the limit for the
neat diesel fuel with high smoking at the high load points, and thus
deteriorating its performance when a different fuel (DEE blends)
was tried.

7. Conclusions
An extended experimental study is conducted to evaluate and
compare the use of DEE, a promising bio-fuel, as supplement to
the conventional diesel fuel in a high-speed, direct injection diesel
engine, operating at four loads.
A heat release analysis of the experimentally obtained pressure
diagrams revealed that with the use of DEE blend against neat diesel fuel, at all loads, the fuel injection pressure diagrams are delayed (with the uprising leg inclined), dynamic injection timing
decreased, ignition delay increased, maximum cylinder pressures

334

D.C. Rakopoulos et al. / Fuel 109 (2013) 325335

and temperatures decreased, while the engine runs overall a little

leaner with reduced heat losses.
The acquired data were statistically analyzed and shown in this
paper for the maximum pressure and its maximum rate of pressure
rise, the dynamic injection timing, and the ignition delay. The cycle-by-cycle variation was expressed as the mean and coefcient
of variation of these parameters. The analysis of probability density
and auto-correlation functions of the various parameters, revealed
the randomness (stochastic nature) of uctuation phenomena
observed in the engine. Cross-correlation coefcients showed
clearly that neither the injection process (through the dynamic
injection timing) nor the DEE/diesel fuel blend used (through the
cetane number) have any practical effect on the above cyclic
variations (irregularity). Thus, there is no unstable operation of
the engine at least for up to 24% addition of DEE in its blend with
diesel fuel.

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