Spray Structure Research Articles

Droplet size, spray structure and droplet velocity mapping in hollow cone sprays using SLIPI-based techniques

The Structured Laser Illumination Planar Imaging (SLIPI) technique received significant attention in recent years due to notable improvements in the measurement of droplet size and the visualization of internal structure in both dilute and dense sprays. However, despite the improvements, the technique remains limited to these microscopic characteristics of the spray, primarily due to the complexity of the optical setup and image acquisition process. In this article, the capabilities of the SLIPI application are exploited, specifically employing the 3p-SLIPI-LIF/Mie (SLSD), and combined application of 1p-SLIPI-LIF & PIV (1p-SLIPI-PIV) for mapping of both Sauter Mean Diameter (SMD) and mean droplet velocity in combination with detailed spray structure analysis. The measurements were carried out in hollow cone sprays operated at the range of injection pressures from 25 to 107 bar. The results obtained using the SLIPI techniques were compared with the Phase Doppler Anemometry (PDA) measurements showing good agreement for both the SMD and mean droplet velocity. The significant improvements in the important microscopic characteristics (droplet size & velocity) and visualization of the internal structure in a wider flow field of hollow cone sprays allowed detailed analysis and understanding of the dispersed phase flow owing to the suppression of diffused light resulting from the multiple scattering effects.

Segment-based Eulerian-Lagrangian transition method for flat nozzle spray atomization simulation

This paper presents a novel segment-based Eulerian-Lagrangian transition method for predicting the primary and secondary breakup behavior of a flat nozzle spray. It combines the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method for simulating liquid sheet disintegration and primary breakup with the Discrete Phase Model (DPM) method for secondary breakup. The VOF simulation predicts the varying thickness and local velocity characteristics of the liquid sheet from the center region to the edge region near the nozzle exit. Meanwhile, the proposed segment-based linear stability analysis in this study is capable of predicting the initial droplet variation resulting from primary breakup, considering the varying behavior of the liquid sheet from different regions. The simulation results match reasonably well with experimental data at both macroscopic and microscopic levels, effectively predicting the overall spray structure, mass flow rate, and droplet size variations across different regions with good accuracy. Both experimental and numerical data show that the Sauter mean diameter (SMD) values differ between the center and edge regions, with the edge region displaying larger droplets than the center region. This indicates that the segment-based approach is crucial for successfully predicting the spatial distributions of droplet size characteristics.

An Improved Comprehensive Atomization Model for Pressure Swirl Atomizers

This study presents an improved comprehensive atomization model for a pressure swirl atomizer. The model integrates internal flow predictions, linear instability analysis of a swirling annular liquid sheet, primary atomization sub-model, and droplet velocity sub-model. Measurement data combined with the inviscid theory model predict the internal flow, providing liquid sheet velocity and thickness at the atomizer outlet. The dispersion relation of surface disturbances is obtained through linear instability analysis. A primary breakup predictive model for particle size distribution is constructed based on the wavelength and growth rate within the full unstable wavenumber range of the dispersion relation. Assuming uniform circumferential distribution and a normal distribution of spray angles, the droplet velocity is assigned according to the liquid sheet velocity. The model is implemented into Eulerian–Lagrangian simulations as initial conditions for discrete phase droplets to simulate the spray field. Results show the model can accurately predict the Sauter mean diameter with an error of less than 6% and effectively predicts the spray structure and spray cone angle. The dependency of the model on its parameters is also studied, determining that the values of the ligament constant and dispersion angle have an obvious impact on the prediction of Sauter mean diameter and spray structure.

Application of KH-RT model in lifting flame of methanol jet atomization

Abstract For the methanol jet atomization in a co-flow gas lifting flame, the self-developed WAVE model and KH-RT model were employed using the Saturne program to simulate the primary breakup of the jet column and the atomization of spray particles. Additionally, the unsteady flamelet model was utilized to simulate the combustion process. Comparing the calculated flame lifting height, droplet diameter distribution, and velocity distribution with experimental results demonstrates the atomization model’s ability to accurately capture the methanol fuel atomization process. This comparison verifies the reliability of both the atomization and combustion models, indicating their high accuracy. The study shows that upon injection from the nozzle, methanol fuel rapidly diffused, creating a cone-shaped spray structure. The high concentration of OH radicals is located close to the boundary between the regions of OH radical distribution and methanol distribution, gradually spreading downstream of the methanol jet. Furthermore, an increase in fuel flow rate resulted in a reduction in the flame’s lift height.

Effect of heat treatment on corrosion resistance of Al2O3-TiO2 ceramic coating impregnated with aluminum phosphate

The atmospheric plasma spray process (APS) is a well-established and widely employed technology used to create various types of coating for the fabrication of numerous industrial applications. Speciallity, this process is considered as a suitable technique for fabricating ceramic coatings. However, the structure of thermal spray coatings consists of particles, semi-molten particles, oxides, pores, and cracks that significantly influence the coating properties, especially their erosion-corrosion resistance. In this study, the Al2O3-40TiO2 coating applied by APS was penetrated with aluminum phosphate (APP) by ultrasonic excitation method, and then, the effect of heat treatment after the sealing on corrosion protection of Al2O3-40TiO2 ceramic coating was investigated. The results show that, after being impregnated with APP, the heat treatment at 800 oC assures the coating a lower porosity and better corrosion resistance than heat treatments at 400 and 600 oC. The existence of the durable crystalline phases Al(PO3)3 (Cubic), Al2P6O18 (Monoclinic), and AlPO4 (Orthorhombic) on the surface of the sample heat-treated at 800 oC has contributed to enhancing the corrosion resistance of the Al2O3-40TiO2 coating.

Experimental Investigation of Superheated Liquid Injection in Quiescent and Supersonic Crossflow

This research delves into liquid fuel injection in scramjet combustors, with a focus on the effects of injector length-to-diameter (L/D) ratios and temperatures, spanning from ambient to superheated states. Efficient atomization within the short residence times of liquid-fueled supersonic combustors is crucial for maximizing combustion efficiency. Initial investigations in a quiescent environment aimed to isolate the impact of injector geometry and temperature, utilizing quantitative analysis and diffused backlit illumination to demonstrate that heating fuel beyond its boiling point significantly enhances atomization and dispersion. A notable finding is that higher L/D ratios led to a quicker initiation of flash boiling. Subsequent analyses under supersonic crossflow, using two-dimensional planar laser-induced fluorescence, support these observations. The study further employs spray structure and spatiotemporal characteristic analyses, coefficient of variation, and proper orthogonal decomposition, revealing enhanced flashing atomization at higher L/D ratios. This underscores the critical role of injector design and temperature in optimizing fuel atomization in scramjet engines, highlighting the nuanced interplay between physical injector characteristics and thermal properties in achieving efficient combustion.

Near-field spray atomization characteristics at the end of injection under flash-boiling and non-flash-boiling conditions

Spray at the end of injection is a significant source of soot and particle number (PN) emissions from gasoline direct injection (GDI) engines owing to poor atomization and incomplete combustion. This study aimed to understand the spray characteristics at the end stage under various engine operating conditions. The near-field spray was recorded using a back-lit optical method coupled with a signal control device, a heating system and a fuel supply device. An innovative image processing method for quantifying spray atomization characteristics at the end of spraying was developed, and more comprehensive spray atomization data, such as the droplet area, droplet number, and Sauter mean diameter (SMD), were extracted from the image. It was found that after injection, the spray area decreased and then increased again, followed by large droplet formation, which is believed to be caused by the ball bouncing. The averaged SMD decreased 49.0 % by increasing SD from −73 °C to 42 °C. During ball bouncing (approximately 0.1 ms AEOI), all SD conditions showed more droplets, and the number of droplets under slight flash boiling conditions is the most. Ball bouncing and flash boiling jointly promote the large spray structure to break into large droplets due to limited breakup. In addition, under flash boiling conditions, as the injection pressure increases from 10 MPa to 35 MPa, the averaged SMD decreases by 35.0 % due to the promoted atomization and droplet accelerated evaporation.

A grid-independent dispersion approach for large-eddy simulation of spray

This study proposes a subgrid-scale (SGS) dispersion approach for large-eddy simulation (LES) of spray. Rather than associating the turbulence correlation timescale used in the dispersion approach with the computational grid, we put forward an approximation of this timescale proportional to the Kolmogorov timescale. The Kolmogorov scale kinetic energy is added to the variance of the stochastic part of the SGS dispersion velocity to account for the effects of micro-scale flows on droplets. The proposed approach supports the notion of grid-independent LES and is illustrated for two benchmark Engine Combustion Network's Spray-A cases, including a vaporizing spray case and a non-vaporizing spray case. We investigate the performance of the approach in LESs of two cases by comparing it with other dispersion approaches. In particular, the investigation mainly covers spray structures, vapor and liquid penetrations, and mass fraction profiles. Results obtained using the proposed approach shows the statistics of the simulated spray cases that exhibit both good agreement with measurements and a noticeable improvement over simulations based on other tested approaches. The approach also yields more consistent results under different grid resolutions, which shows its ability to achieve LESs in non-uniform grids.

Topology characteristics of liquid ammonia swirl spray flame

The utilization of liquid ammonia in gas turbines can reduce energy loss and start-up time. However, the flash boiling phenomenon and the high latent heat of liquid ammonia make the spray flame difficult to stabilize. Increasing the preheated air temperature or adding a small amount of hydrogen as a piloted fuel are considered as effective methods to enhance the stability. To understand the flame topological structure, simultaneous Mie scattering and planar laser-induced fluorescence of OH (OH-PLIF) techniques were used to visualize the liquid ammonia spray structure and flame region information. Results show that the liquid ammonia swirl spray flame exhibits the flame topological structure of distinct zoning characteristics, including the droplet zone, the mixing zone, and the flame zone. Increasing the preheated air temperature accelerates the evaporation of liquid ammonia, leading to an increase in the local equivalence ratio and radial flame splitting. At lower air temperature conditions, increasing the hydrogen blending ratio has minimal impact on the flame topological structure. However, at higher temperature conditions, hydrogen blending significantly promotes reaction intensity upstream and reduces the flame lift-off height, which makes the mixing zone smaller. In general, to achieve a better flame stability effect, the two factors need to be reasonably matched, which has important reference value for the development of liquid ammonia fueled gas turbine combustors.

ANALYZING THE HEAT AND FLOW CHARACTERISTICS IN SPRAY COOLING BY USING AN OPTIMIZED RECTANGULAR FINNED HEAT SINK

Rapid advancements in technology constantly keep the need for thermal systems, which have high performance, on the agenda and direct the attention of researcher-engineers to the studies on improving the heat transfer. Spray cooling process depends on many parameters including nozzle diameter, surface area, surface geometry, critical heat flux, mass flow, gravity, spraying angle, and surface slope. One would need results from many experiments to better analyze the spray structure. In the present study, by using the rectangular-finned heat sinks optimized for spray cooling and those called "general," the heat and flow characteristics in spray cooling were analyzed. Water was used as the cooling fluid and the cooling fluid was atomized by using an air-supported atomized. The experiments were conducted with six air-to-liquid ratio (ALR) values, three different jet heights, three different spraying times, three different fin heights, and three different fin widths. The results are presented in the Nusselt number-air-to-liquid ratio (Nu-ALR) and jet thickness-jet velocity (<i>t<sub>jet</sub> -U<sub>jet</sub></i>) diagrams. It was determined that the ALR value tended to decrease with increasing Nusselt numbers. For the determined ALR values, Nusselt numbers decreased as the fin height increased. It was concluded that Nusselt numbers tended to decrease at all fin widths as the ALR value increased. In addition, considering the parameters examined for the rectangular-finned heat sink, separate correlations were developed for the Nusselt number, spray angle, and jet thickness.

The effect of oil-in-water emulsion pesticide on the evolution of liquid sheet rim disintegration and the spraying distribution

Oil-based emulsions often used as agricultural chemical formulations to control pests and weeds. The instability of emulsion spray is an important challenge. In this work, the effects of liquid sheet rim disintegration on spray angle and spraying distribution were studied by visualization method. The results show that the addition of emulsion change the way of rim disintegration and this change may be responsible for the improvement of spray angle and spraying distribution uniformity compared with water spray. In emulsion spray, the typical feature of rim disintegration is the asymmetric “half-moon” shaped holes, which leads to earlier disintegration at the edge of the liquid sheet. The hole coalescence at the rim of liquid sheet may be the reason for the increase of spray angle, because it divides the liquid sheet into small liquid masses and breaks the inward contraction trend of the cohesive attraction of liquid mass. Only 0.02% addition of emulsion, the spray angle could be increased by 8°, the typical liquid sheet breakup length (typical length) and the liquid sheet rim breakup length (rim length) from 23.297 mm to 18.609 mm reduce to 16.3 mm and 9.099 mm, and the spraying distribution curve become more uniform. In addition, the effects of spray structure on spraying distribution characteristics under different concentrations and spray pressures are also discussed. This study could provide a reference for the optimal use of pesticide formulations in the field, the reduction of pesticide waste and environmental pollution, and the establishment of atomization and fragmentation models.

Multiscale numerical modeling of a complete spray evolution including breakup of liquid jet injection in gaseous cross flow

A direct coupling of the Volume of Fluid method (VOF) and the Lagrangian Particle Tracking (LPT) technique within a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) framework is revisited and assessed by numerically investigating a liquid jet injection into a cross-flowing air (JICF). To close the subgrid scale (SGS) terms appropriate SGS models are considered. In particular, an interfacial SGS term is included into the VOF scalar transport equation in order to achieve a suitable LES and to describe properly the liquid column and the break-up processes (primary and secondary). The dilute spray region including the droplets resulting from the secondary breakup is solved using the LPT approach. Since the latter allows the cell size to be multiple times larger than the droplet diameter, this reduces the computational expenses significantly making it possible to handle the simulation of the whole spray evolution including the complete liquid atomization without complex tunable atomization models. For this purpose, two operating conditions of a JICF existing in the literature are considered. The achieved results are first presented in terms of mesh sensitivity, required computational costs and impact of the interfacial SGS term. Next, comparisons between pure VOF/LES and VOF/LPT/LES for both qualitative features and quantitative properties are provided and discussed. In overall, a good agreement with experiments for the quantitative properties is reported. It is especially found that both the Rosin–Rammler and Gaussian distributions offer nearly a more accurate fit to the particle size distribution except for the range from 0 to 10 μm. Together with the detailed characteristics of vortices evolving and an extended breakup regime map, the spray characteristics including the spray structure are well captured. Finally, even though the interfacial SGS term has an evident influence on the jet and atomization dynamics, its impact on quantitative properties is not so prominent under these operating conditions.

Near-field plume-to-plume interaction of multi-hole GDI injector under elevated ambient density conditions

Spray collapse can occur in the multi-hole injector under elevated ambient density conditions due to the plume-to-plume interaction. Numerous studies have investigated spray collapse in high ambient density conditions, but limited literature is available regarding the near-field plume-to-plume interaction triggering the spray collapse due to the optical density of the spray in the near field. In this study, an X-ray phase-contrast imaging (XPCI) technique that can visualize the spray structure and dynamics in the near field is applied to resolve the optical difficulties. With this method, the plume-to-plume interaction of a multi-hole gasoline direct injection injector is analyzed by measuring the transverse spray droplet size and axial velocity distributions under various ambient densities and injection pressures. The results showed that in the high ambient density condition with the low injection pressure, the spray droplet size started to increase, and the axial velocity remained stagnant from around 3 mm axial location as a result of plume-to-plume interaction and following spray collapse. The region of large droplets appeared asymmetric based on the hole arrangement. As the injection pressure increased in the high ambient density condition, the plume-to-plume interaction was suppressed in the near field and the spray collapse appeared farther downstream. Through the results, the spray collapse phenomenon and associated mechanism in the near field were discussed considering the droplet collision/coalescence and pressure structure in the spray.

Numerical Analysis on Effect of Structural Parameters on Flow Field and Internal Trajectory in Gas–Steam Ejection Systems

This paper aims to study the influence of the structure of spray holes and throats on the flow field and the internal trajectory of the gas–steam ejection device. The compressible Navier–Stokes equations, discrete ordinate methods and RNG k-ε turbulence model are utilized to simulate the two-phase flow of the rocket gas with multispecies and the water sprays. The comparison between numerical results and experimental data confirms the accuracy and effectiveness of this model. The simulation analysis on the cases of the ejection process with multiple spray hole diameters, number of spray holes, total spray area, and throat diameter are conducted. The shock wave structure inside the gas–steam ejection device is examined. The simulation results show that, instead of the spray hole diameter and number, the total spray area and secondary nozzle throat diameter are the key factors that affect the flow field and internal trajectory of the gas–steam ejection device. Under the existing spray structure, the maximum number of spray holes is 300 to achieve the stability of the flow field and internal ballistic trajectory of gas–steam ejection devices. By comparing the throat diameters of multiple secondary nozzles, it was found that the minimum throat diameter of the secondary nozzles should be no less than 100 mm. The results could be valuable for the design of gas–steam ejection devices.

Experimental investigation of near-field spray characteristics of RP3 aviation fuel based on multivariable sensitivity and uncertainty analysis

The utilization of aviation kerosene RP3 in diesel engines and ground vehicles has attracted more attention due to the implementation of the army's Single Fuel Concept. To explore the characteristics of the RP3 near-field spray primary breakup, experimental studies were carried out via the diffuser back-illumination imaging (DBI) method under single-hole injectors accommodated to varied engine spray circumstance. The critical factors of the variability in RP3 spray characteristics response were figured out by constructing a one-dimensional active subspace to perform multivariable synergistic effects via sensitivity analysis. Moreover, the uncertainties associated with unstable cavitation within nozzle were quantified with a varied array of operating conditions. In comparison to diesel, it is indicated that, there is a range of critical cavitation, in where greater uncertainties in spray cone angles are exhibited, especially for RP3. RP3 tends to form a ‘mushroom’ spray structure, with a smaller spray cone angle compared to diesel, but the disparity gradually diminishes as the fuel injection pressure increases. The gradual transition from ‘needle’ to ‘mushroom’ shape in RP3's near-field spray structure is revealed with increased fuel injection pressure, and the appearance time of the ‘mushroom’ structure advances with higher ambient pressures. Based on the active space construction, the sensitivity analysis discovers that the spray cone angle is dominantly influenced by ambient pressure and cavitation within the nozzle, thus providing a new perspective on analyzing test data without the expense of single variable statistical work.

Application of high-frequency water injection for the performance improvement of waste-heat-recovery boilers

It has been discussed that injecting water into the intake air can increase thermal efficiency and reduce NOx emissions simultaneously in waste-heat-recovery boilers (WHRB). To increase the evaporation rate of the injected water and recover more thermal energy through the heat exchanger, the water injection amount needs to be controlled properly and droplets in the spray need to be distributed homogeneously with the smallest droplets possible. To achieve this, this study introduces a high-frequency injection strategy that can generate strong in-nozzle turbulence, thus promoting spray atomization and supplying continuous water to the heat exchanger. Three different injection frequencies are applied to investigate water spray characteristics. The water spray structure is visualized using the Mie-scattering technique, and the droplet size is measured using the laser diffraction method. In addition, practical boiler tests are performed to confirm the effect of the high-frequency water injection on the boiler performance. The experimental results showed that the mean droplet size decreased, and the spatial and temporal homogeneity of the spray distribution was improved as the injection frequency increased. As a result of the higher water injection frequency, the evaporation rate and thermal efficiency of the boiler increased, and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions decreased.

Sequence2Self: Self-supervised image sequence denoising of pixel-level spray breakup morphology

Optical imaging of fast and transient phenomena such as the turbulent breakup of liquid sprays exhibit low signal-to-noise ratios due to the limited illumination intensity relative to the short exposure time. Image denoising is required to facilitate physical studies over these data but is challenging due to the absence of clean ground-truths and the stringency of the denoising task (e.g., strong and complex noise, limited resolution, preserving physical fidelity), preventing supervised and existing un-/self-supervised deep learning methods. To this end, Sequence2Self (Seq2S) is proposed, an extension of Self2Self (S2S) to image sequences that leverages both the signal’s spatial and temporal correlation. Seq2S is demonstrated on time-resolved x-ray phase contrast imaging of liquid jet fuel sprays in a gas turbine combustor, which possesses all of challenges detailed above. Experiments are conducted across four fuels with different breakup morphology using various state-of-the-art methods. Overall, many of the methods failed and Seq2S was most successful: (1) Accurate spray structures were reconstructed with consistent evolution across frames void of artifacts. (2) The performance was robust, invariant to the hyperparameter choice. (3) Computational time is short and can be made eligible for real-time denoising. In particular, the images denoised by Seq2S showed spray droplet diameter distributions with near-zero Kullback–Leibler divergence (0.01 ± 0.01) to a cleaner reference, whereas the second best method yielded 0.06 ± 0.03. This suggests that Seq2S can be reliably used prior to subsequent quantitative spray analyses as it retains (if not, improves) the statistical physical properties of the data.

A Novel Experiment Approach for Measurement Breakup Length, Cone Angle, Sheet Velocity, and Film Thickness in Swirl Air-Blast Atomizers

<div>Measuring the dynamic parameters of liquid fragments generated in the near-field of atomizing sprays poses a significant challenge due to the random nature of the fragments, the instability of the spray, and the limitations of current measuring technology. Precise determination of these parameters can aid in improving the control of the atomization process, which is necessary for providing suitable spray structures with appropriate flow rates and droplet size distributions for various applications such as those used in heat engines. In piston and gas turbine engines, controlling spray characteristics such as penetration, cone angle, particle size, and droplet size distribution is crucial to improve combustion efficiency and decrease exhaust emissions. This can be accomplished by adjusting the structural and/or operating parameters of the fuel supply system. This article aims to measure the breakup length, spray cone angle, axial velocity, breakup time, and liquid sheet film thickness for a swirl air-blast atomizer used in a gas-steam engine. The measurement was conducted using a shadowgraph imaging system developed specifically for this study, consisting of a high-speed camera, a lens, and a light source. While lasers are commonly used as light sources in the literature, this study utilized a special LED high-speed pulse light generator, which is cheaper, easier to handle, and provides a more uniform background. Images were processed using a MATLAB code developed for this study. Although the breakup zone is naturally random and the breakup location significantly varies with time, the novel method developed in this study helps quantify critical parameters under different operating conditions.</div>

The effect of split injection on fuel adhesion characteristics under static flow and cross-flow field conditions

The flat-wall wetting phenomenon is inevitable because of the smaller cylinder volume and higher injection pressure inside direct-injection spark ignition (DISI) engines. The fuel adhesion phenomenon after wall impingement negatively affects the fuel spray mixture formation, the fuel consumption, and the pollutant emissions. In this study, the effects of different fuel injection strategies on the wall-impingement behavior were compared under static flow and cross-flow field conditions. The refractive index matching (RIM) method and high-speed video (HSV) camera were adopted to measure the propagation of fuel adhesion and the spray structure of the vertical plane, respectively. Meanwhile, a dimensionless parameter named “deformation coefficient Id,” which is defined as the fuel adhesion length divided by the width, is proposed to evaluate the degree of distortion of the fuel adhesion. Therefore, when Id approaches 1, the fuel adhesion shape approaches a circle. The results show that the cross-flow promotes the diffusion of the fuel spray, which leads to an increase in the fuel adhesion area. The fuel adhesion shape is similar to that of a slender strip under cross-flow field conditions, but almost maintains a circle under static flow field conditions. The cross-flow decreased the average fuel adhesion thickness. Meanwhile, the cross-flow also promotes the evaporation of the adhered fuel on a flat-wall, which leads to a reduction in the fuel adhesion area and mass with time. Additionally, it was found that triple injection can decrease the fuel adhesion thickness, area, and mass ratio under cross-flow field conditions. To achieve carbon neutrality, optimizing fuel injection strategies to reduce emissions is one of the primary purposes of this study.

Evaluation of GDI spray structures under flash boiling and strong collapse conditions with diverse fuels

GDI (Gasoline Direct Injection) sprays are a matter of continuous research due to their potential for higher thermal efficiency and power output. Injections in GDI engines tend to happen at relatively high temperatures, which, combined with volatile fuels, are a perfect environment for flashing sprays, which are present in recently developed GDI engine passenger cars. Phenomena like flash boiling and especially spray collapse are still being investigated due to their complexity and impact on the engine performance. In the present research, the impact of different levels of flash boiling in the sprays is analyzed. Four surrogate mono-component fuels were tested with different volatile properties. Two optical techniques were carried out simultaneously: light extinction images (DBI) and frontal MIE scattering. The spray width was used to represent the radial expansion and study its relation with the spray collapse due to flash boiling. The degree of collapse was quantified by means of the instantaneous spray width variation for which three levels of collapse were identified. A novel MIE frontal approach was employed to study the spray surface evolution and the collapsing time by monitoring the nozzle tip clouding (opaquing) by the fuel. Results showed an increment of the width with the ratio of saturation to ambient pressure (Rp), as well as a strong correlation between the spray surface and the Rp at each fuel temperature when the spray is stabilized. Based on the MIE technique, three collapse instants were identified throughout the injection time depending on the Rp.