Technology of Obtaining Mixed Alternative Fuel Based on Organic Substances for Mining Technological Transport Engines

Abstract In connection with the increase in the price of fuel based on hydrocarbons, the search and use of alternative types of fuel for machines in the mining and oil production industry is quite relevant today. Most of the existing alternative fuels by themselves cannot be considered as ready-to-use motor fuels. One of the ways to solve this problem is to use their mixtures with commercial fuels in certain ratios. This work deals with the development and research of the main characteristics of the mixer for obtaining mixed fuels based on diesel fuel and soybean oil, as well as the results of the study of the physical and operational properties of the obtained mixtures of different volume ratios of diesel fuel and soybean oil. The process of obtaining a mixed alternative fuel based on diesel fuel and soybean oil was implemented on a developed installation consisting of a mixer, the design of which is protected by a patent of Ukraine, and a gear pump. The study of the characteristics of the mixer as part of the installation showed that at a temperature of the components of the alternative fuel of 20°С, with a loss of full pressure on the mixer Δр ≈ (60-65) kPa, the volume consumption of soybean oil reached 10.7.10-6 m3/s. The time of preparation of the fuel mixture in the amount of 195 liters with a content of soybean oil of 10% ranged from 30 to 33 minutes. As research has shown, mixing soybean oil with diesel fuel in the amount of 5-50% vol. provides an improvement in viscosity-temperature properties and makes it possible to use such mixtures in diesel engines without changes in the design of the power supply system and regulation of fuel equipment, which characterizes soybean oil as a promising additive to diesel fuels to improve their technical and operational performance.