Abstract
The problem of microbial growth in fuels, especially biofuels, is a very important issue. Water is a necessity for microbial growth to occur. Unfortunately, it is very hard to exclude all water from fuel systems during daily operations, especially when biodiesel is added to the fuel mix. The aim of this work was to investigate the impact of ionizing radiation on selected properties of fatty acids methyl esters in order to evaluate the possibility of using irradiation techniques to sterilize biodiesel and its blends. Ionizing radiation influences the chemical composition of biodiesel samples containing especially unsaturated bonds. Irradiation was performed in a specially designed flow system. The tested parameters were compared with the normative values from the ISO 14214 standard. Density, kinematic viscosity, flash point, water content and cold filter plugging point as a macroscopic parameters do not change despite their irradiation with ionizing radiation. Change was observed in microscopic parameters as oxidation stability and esters content. During irradiation, Rapeseed Methyl Ester (RME) samples formed oxidation products, which lower the oxidative stability. It was observed that, for esters content, requirements of the standard could be met in the case of using very small doses. In the case of RME samples saturated with water, the changes in the ester concentration were smaller, but the resulting products decreased the oxidation stability. Sterilization fatty acids methyl esters (FAME) was observed with the use of e beam radiation is to apply very low doses (up to 2 kGy) in a flow system without adding water. Sterilization FAME saturated by water requires the use of higher doses of radiation, which adversely affects the oxidative stability.
Highlights
Accepted: 2 March 2021Because of the finite resources of fossil fuels and the concern for environment, research on alternative fuels for automotive engines has been taking place for several decades
Sterilization fatty acids methyl esters (FAME) saturated by water requires the use of higher doses of radiation, which adversely affects the oxidative stability
In the case of Rapeseed Methyl Ester (RME) samples saturated with water, the sterilization dose is twice as high, which results from the possibility of the development of microbiological life in the water layer
Summary
Because of the finite resources of fossil fuels and the concern for environment, research on alternative fuels for automotive engines has been taking place for several decades. An important group of these fuels are biofuels [1]. Among them one of the most significant is biodiesel, that is, fatty acids methyl esters (FAME). Several advantages of biodiesel are worth mentioning, for example, the lack of sulfur, high flash point [2] and low CO, hydrocarbons (HC) and particulate matter (PM) emissions [3]. A significant drawback is unsatisfying oxidation stability [4], while biodegradability of FAME is an ambiguous issue. From the environmental point of view, high biodegradability (along with some other environmentally friendly properties of FAME [5])
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