Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from High Ethanol Content Fuels

Gardiner, David; Bardon, M. F.; Pucher, Greg

doi:10.2172/940679

Cited by 5 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Note that at similar vapor pressure levels, the flammability limits of the laboratory blends were significantly lower than those of the E10-E30 blends. This is consistent with earlier observations that the vapor pressure (DVPE value) alone does not adequately predict the flammability of the fuel tank vapors formed at low temperatures [1]. Evidently, the properties of the hydrocarbon portion of the fuel must be considered as well.…”

Section: Figure 8 Effect Of Vapor Pressure (Dvpe) On Upper Flammabilsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…As shown in Figure 2, the pressure rise values were either below 100 kPa or above 300 kPa. Similar behavior was also seen in the previous study [1]. The tests where only a low pressure rise was produced are believed to indicate cases where the mixture could be ignited by the apparatus, but only a small portion of the mixture in the chamber was burned.…”

Section: Figure 3 Maximum Rate Of Pressure Rise Of Field Fuel Samplessupporting

confidence: 82%

“…The project described in this report was carried out to examine the potential for flammable fuel/air mixtures to form in fuel tanks containing blends of ethanol and gasoline. The current project followed an earlier project [1] in which an experimental technique and a mathematical model were developed to investigate the flammability issue. The ethanol/gasoline blends evaluated in the first project were experimental fuels originally produced for vehicle drivability studies.…”

Section: Experimental Study 1 Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from Ethanol/Gasoline Fuels, Phase 2: Evaluations of Field Samples and Laboratory Blends

Gardiner¹,

Bardon²,

LaViolette³

2010

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Section: Figure 8 Effect Of Vapor Pressure (Dvpe) On Upper Flammabilsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Figure 3 Maximum Rate Of Pressure Rise Of Field Fuel Samplessupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Experimental Study 1 Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from Ethanol/Gasoline Fuels, Phase 2: Evaluations of Field Samples and Laboratory Blends

Gardiner¹,

Bardon²,

LaViolette³

2010

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“…The latter is derived from ethanol, which has lower vapor pressures intrinsically than the hydrocarbon-based analogs making them more susceptible to headspace explosions at ambient than current gasoline blends not containing oxygenates. Examples of research concerning these materials are found in the literature [27,28].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, fuels for future use modified and developed to reduce emissions-such as oxygenated blends-result in more explosive mixtures developing in gasoline containers [28]. It should also be noted that spill-resistant cans currently on the market which contain flame arrestors have been tested by the authors, and it has been found that they will not explode from an external ignition source irrespective of internal vapor conditions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Failure Analysis and Prevention of Fires and Explosions with Plastic Gasoline Containers

Stevick

Zicherman²,

Rondinone

et al. 2011

J Fail. Anal. and Preven.

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Explosions and fire incidents involving portable plastic gasoline containers manufactured for consumer use are known to occur frequently and are verified in databases, engineering literature, legal briefs, and newspapers. This project studied such incidents and presents findings from a comprehensive test program documenting conditions under which such incidents occur. Factors controlling resultant vapor headspace compositions and headspace ignitions and/or explosion occurrences include the following: mass of gasoline in relation to a particular container size, ambient temperature, and ''age'' of stored gasoline samples. Experimental results also demonstrated the effectiveness of flame arrestors to eliminate risk of explosion.

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Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from Ethanol/Gasoline Fuels; Phase 3: Effects of Winter Gasoline Volatility and Ethanol Content on Blend Flammability; Flammability Limits of Denatured Ethanol

Gardiner¹,

Bardon²,

Clark³

2011

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Background The flammability of a fuel blend in the head space of a storage tank is controlled by the vapor pressure of the blend. Conventional gasolines are so volatile that the headspace vapors are normally too rich to sustain combustion at most ambient temperatures. Only under very cold conditions does the vapor-air mixture in the tank become flammable. Because of its different vapor pressure and stoïchiometry, pure ethanol produces vapor-air mixtures in the tank that are flammable over a wide range of ambient temperatures. Blends of ethanol and gasoline form non-ideal mixtures in which the gasoline components render the vapor-air mixture in a tank too rich for combustion at warm temperatures. Like gasoline, as temperature drops, the vapor-air mixture becomes leaner and eventually falls into the flammable region. However, the mixture becomes flammable at higher temperatures than conventional gasoline, and so presents a hazard over a greater range of conditions if a suitable ignition source is present. Objectives of the Work Reported The mission of the US Department of Energy's Clean Cities program is to advance the energy, economic, and environmental security of the United States by supporting local decisions to adopt practices that reduce the use of petroleum in the transportation sector. Part of this program includes the replacement of petroleum by alternative and renewable fuels.

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Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from High Ethanol Content Fuels

Cited by 5 publications

References 10 publications

Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from Ethanol/Gasoline Fuels, Phase 2: Evaluations of Field Samples and Laboratory Blends

Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from Ethanol/Gasoline Fuels, Phase 2: Evaluations of Field Samples and Laboratory Blends

Failure Analysis and Prevention of Fires and Explosions with Plastic Gasoline Containers

Experimental and Modeling Study of the Flammability of Fuel Tank Headspace Vapors from Ethanol/Gasoline Fuels; Phase 3: Effects of Winter Gasoline Volatility and Ethanol Content on Blend Flammability; Flammability Limits of Denatured Ethanol

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