KDF Search Results

The compatibility of plastic materials used in fuel storage and dispensing applications was determined for test fuels representing gasoline blended with 25 vol.% ethanol and gasoline blended with 16 and 24 vol.% isobutanol. Plastic materials included those used in flexible plastic piping and fiberglass resins. Other commonly used plastic materials were also evaluated. The plastic specimens were exposed to Fuel C, CE25a, CiBu16a, and CiBu24a for 16 weeks at 60oC.

The present study experimentally investigates spark-ignited combustion with 87 AKI E0 gasoline in its neat form and in
mid-level alcohol-gasoline blends with 24% vol./vol. iso-butanol-gasoline (IB24) and 30% vol./vol. ethanol-gasoline (E30).
A single-cylinder research engine is used with a low and high compression ratio of 9.2:1 and 11.85:1 respectively. The
engine is equipped with hydraulically actuated valves, laboratory intake air, and is capable of external exhaust gas

A global energy crop productivity model that provides geospatially explicit quantitative details on biomass
potential and factors affecting sustainability would be useful, but does not exist now. This study describes a
modeling platform capable of meeting many challenges associated with global-scale agro-ecosystem modeling.
We designed an analytical framework for bioenergy crops consisting of six major components: (i) standardized
natural resources datasets, (ii) global field-trial data and crop management practices, (iii) simulation units and

Net benefits of bioenergy crops, including maize and perennial grasses such as switchgrass, are a function of several factors including the soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestered by these crops. Life cycle assessments (LCA) for bioenergy crops have been conducted using models in which SOC information is usually from the top 30 to 40 cm. Information on the effects of crop management practices on SOC has been limited so LCA models have largely not included any management practice effects.

The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 is an omnibus energy policy law designed to move the United States toward greater energy security and independence. A key provision of EISA is the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), which requires the nation to use 36 billion gallons per year (BGPY) of renewable fuel in vehicles by 2022.* Ethanol is the most widely used renewable fuel, and increasing the allowable ethanol content from 10% to 15% is expected to push renewable fuel consumption to as much as 21 BGPY.

The present study experimentally investigates spark-ignited combustion with 87 AKI E0 gasoline in its neat form
and in midlevel alcohol−gasoline blends with 24% vol/vol isobutanol−gasoline (IB24) and 30% vol/vol ethanol−gasoline (E30).
A single-cylinder research engine was used with an 11.85:1 compression ratio, hydraulically actuated valves, laboratory intake air,
and was capable of external exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). Experiments were conducted with all fuels to full-load conditions

The present study experimentally investigates spark-ignited combustion with 87 AKI E0 gasoline in its neat form
and in midlevel alcohol−gasoline blends with 24% vol/vol isobutanol−gasoline (IB24) and 30% vol/vol ethanol−gasoline (E30).
A single-cylinder research engine is used with an 11.85:1 compression ratio, hydraulically actuated valves, laboratory intake air,
and was capable of external exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). Experiments were conducted with all fuels to full-load conditions

Abstract: Unfavorable weather can significantly impact the production and provision of agriculture-based biomass feedstocks such as Miscanthus and switchgrass. This work quantified the impact of regional weather on the feedstock production systems using the BioFeed modeling framework. Weather effects were incorporated in BioFeed by including the probability of working day (pwd) parameter in the model, which defined the fraction of days in a specific period such as two weeks that were suitable for field operations.

The increasing demand for bioenergy crops presents our society with the opportunity to design more sustainable landscapes. We have created a Biomass Location for Optimal Sustainability Model (BLOSM) to test the hypothesis that landscape design of cellulosic bioenergy crop plantings may simultaneously improve water quality (i.e. decrease concentrations of sediment, total phosphorus, and total nitrogen) and increase profits for farmer-producers while achieving a feedstock-production goal.

The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 is an omnibus energy policy law designed to
move the United States toward greater energy security and independence. A key provision of EISA is the
Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) which requires the nation to use 36 billion gallons per year (BGPY) of
renewable fuel in vehicles by 2022.1 Ethanol is the most widely used renewable fuel, and increasing the
allowable ethanol content from 10% to 15% is expected to push renewable fuel consumption to 21BGPY.

This article summarises the compatibility of six elastomers – used in fuel
storage and delivery systems – with test fuels representing gasoline blended
with up to 85% ethanol. Individual coupons were exposed to test fuels for four
weeks to achieve saturation. The change in volume and hardness, when wetted
and after drying, were measured and compared with the original condition.

The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 was an omnibus energy policy law designed to move the United States toward greater energy security and independence.1 A key provision of EISA modified the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) which requires the nation to increase the volume of renewable fuel blended into transportation fuels from 7.5 billion gallons by 2012 to 36 billion gallons by 2022. Ethanol is the most widely used renewable fuel, and increasing the ethanol content in gasoline to 15% offers a means of getting significantly closer to the 36 billion gallon goal.

Spark-ignition (SI) engines with direct-injection (DI) fueling can improve fuel economy and vehicle power beyond
that of port fuel injection (PFI). Despite this distinct advantage, DI fueling often increases particle number emissions, such that SI
exhaust may be subject to future particle emissions regulations. In this study, ethanol blends and engine operating strategy are
evaluated for their effectiveness in reducing particle emissions in DI engines. The investigated fuels include a baseline emissions

Ethanol offers significant potential for increasing the
compression ratio of SI engines resulting from its high octane
number and high latent heat of vaporization. A study was
conducted to determine the knock limited compression ratio
of ethanol - gasoline blends to identify the potential for
improved operating efficiency. To operate an SI engine in a
flex fuel vehicle requires operating strategies that allow
operation on a broad range of fuels from gasoline to E85.
Since gasoline or low ethanol blend operation is inherently

The compatibility of elastomer materials used in fuel dispensers was assessed for a gasoline standard containing 0, 10, 17, and 25 volume percent of aggressive ethanol. Specimens of fluorocarbon, fluorosilicone, acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR), styrene butadiene rubber (SBR), silicone rubber, neoprene and polyurethane were immersed in test fuels flowing at a rate of 0.8m/s for 4 weeks at 60oC and then dried for 20h at 60oC.

The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 was an omnibus energy policy law designed
to move the United States toward greater energy security and independence. A key provision of EISA is
the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) which requires the nation to use 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel
in vehicles by 2022. Ethanol is the most widely used renewable fuel, and a significant portion of the
36 billion gallon goal can be achieved by increasing the ethanol in gasoline to 15%. In fact in March

Adding bioenergy to the U.S. energy portfolio requires long‐term profitability for bioenergy producers and
long‐term protection of affected ecosystems. In this study, we present steps along the path toward evaluating both sides of
the sustainability equation (production and environmental) for switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) using the Soil and Water
Assessment Tool (SWAT). We modeled production of switchgrass and river flow using SWAT for current landscapes at a

The compatibility of selected metals representative of those commonly used in dispensing
systems was evaluated in an aggressive E20 formulation (CE20a) and in synthetic gasoline
(Reference Fuel C) in identical testing to facilitate comparison of results. The testing was
performed at modestly elevated temperature (nominally 60°C) and with constant fluid flow in an
effort to accelerate potential interactions in the screening test.
Based on weight change, the general corrosion of all individual coupons exposed in the vapor

As the US begins to integrate biomass crops and residues into its mix of energy feedstocks, tools are needed to measure the long-term sustainability of these feedstocks. Two aspects of sustainability are long-term potential for profitably producing energy and protection of ecosystems influenced by energy-related activities. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) is an important model used in our efforts to quantify both aspects. To quantify potential feedstock production, we used SWAT to estimate switchgrass yields at a national scale.

We quantify the emergence of biofuel markets and its impact on U.S. and world agriculture for the coming decade using the multi-market, multi-commodity international FAPRI (Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute) model. The model incorporates the trade-offs between biofuel, feed, and food production and consumption and international feedback effects of the emergence through world commodity prices and trade.