in-use performance testing of butanol-extended fuel in...

1

In-Use Performance Testing of Butanol-Extended Fuel in Recreational Marine Engines

Wolfgang WukisiewitschVice President R&D

BRP Powertrain GmbH & Co KG

2

1. W

hy

Eth

an

ol?

• Ethanol has been the primary fuel extender:– Historically, yields of ethanol were high

relative to other biologically derived

alternative fuels

– Ethanol was an available replacement

for MTBE which was known to cause

significant environmental related issues

– Government subsidies and low-interest loans for ethanol producers have lead to many ethanol production facilities across the U.S

– The establishment of the U.S Renewable fuels standard mandated specific quantities of ethanol production

– Ethanol reduces dependency on foreign sources of oil

• Issues with ethanol – Ethanol is hygroscopic, meaning it has an

affinity for water.

– Terminal blending is required as ethanol

can not be shipped in pipelines (due to its

corrosive nature, water solubility, and

strong solvency)

– Ethanol at 15% by volume contains approximately 5% oxygen. Increasing ethanol content in gasoline increases the oxygen level causing open loop engines to experience increased combustion temperatures

– Ethanol raises the Reid

Vapor Pressure of gasoline

which increases evaporative emissions.

RVP (KPa)

2.28

13.79

31.03

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Butanol Ethanol GasolineR

eid

Va

po

r P

ress

ure

(K

Pa

)

3

2. Is

su

es

wit

h e

tha

no

l

Phase Separation

4

2. Is

su

es

wit

h e

tha

no

l

• Specific to the marine environment– The majority of boats use an open-vented

fuel system in which water is more likely

to enter the fuel system which results in

phase-separation of the fuel.

– Ethanol causes deterioration in many fiberglass fuel tanks which are structurally part of the boat

– The usage frequency of boats, especially in northern climates, results in a greater likelihood of fuel/fuel system related issues

5

2. Is

su

es

wit

h e

tha

no

l

Higher quantities of ethanol beyond 10% by volume will only exacerbate these issues.

6

3. E

15

NR

EL

Re

po

rt

• Based on data and tests conducted by the National Renewable Fuels Laboratory, E15 has caused substantial damage to marine engines.

• E15 marine outboard engine failed exhaust valves. Metlabanalysis showed excessive metal temperatures caused a reduction in fatigue strength.

Failed Exhaust Valves from 300 HP Mercury Verado Outboard Engine

7

3. E

15

NR

EL

Re

po

rt

• Damaged rod bearing at 235 hours operated on E15.

• Gasoline (E15) and oil is mixed in two-stroke engine. Impact of E15 on solvency and lubricity of oil is unknown.

Damaged rod

and bearing from E15 engine

Undamaged rod and bearing

8

So why the push to E15?

US Gasoline + Ethanol Consumption 1991 - 2011 and Renewable Fuels Standard

(RFS-II) Total Renewable Fuel Requirements through 2022

[Billion gallons per year]

100

108

116

124

132

140

148

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

Year

Gaso

lin

e p

lus E

than

ol

Co

nsu

mp

tio

n

0

7

14

21

28

35

42

Fu

el

Eth

an

ol

Pro

du

cti

on

,

Ren

ew

ab

le F

uel

Man

date

an

d %

eth

an

ol

in g

aso

lin

e p

oo

l

Gasoline plus ethanol consumption Fuel Ethanol ConsumptionRFS-II Quantities % ethanol in gasoline poolMTBE Production

9

20

07

-2

01

1

Global Financial Crisis

% Ethanol in Gasoline Pool = 10%

J.Wasil

10

5. S

olu

tio

ns

– Solutions:

• Quickly start consuming more gasoline (unlikely)

• Realign the RFS to match the new fuel demand reality (unlikely - does nothing to address the growth of the ethanol industry)

• Raise the amount of ethanol allowed in gasoline (E15 waiver request granted – source of much debate, will cause issues)

• Find another alternative fuel that can better satisfy the RFS volumes without affecting millions of existing engines

The US Market was saturated with ethanol in 2010. The industry cannot

continue to grow beyond that of exports.

What is Butanol?

• A four carbon alcohol (C4H9OH), colorless, neutral liquid of medium volatility with a characteristic banana-like odor.

• Traditional petrochemical derived - Generally used to make other chemicals, or used as a solvent or an ingredient in formulated products such as cosmetics.

• Can be biologically derived in a fermentation process

• Butanol exists in four (4) different isomers:

The structure of the four

(4) isomers of butanol in

comparison to ethanol

(a two carbon alcohol (C2H5OH))

6. B

uta

no

la

s a

fu

el-

ex

ten

de

r

11

Properties of Butanol - Overview

Gasoline

(EEE)

Ethanol1-

butanol2-

butanol3-

butanolIso-

butanol

Composition (C,H,O) (% mass)

86, 14, 0

52, 13, 35

65,

13.5, 21.5

65,

13.5, 21.5

65,

13.5, 21.5

65,

13.5, 21.5

RON 97 107.4 98.3 106 105 105.1

MON 88.3 88.2 84.4 92 89 89.3

Melting point (ºC) - -112 -79.9 -114.7 25.5 -108

Energy content (MJ/kg)

42.9 25.6 32.9 32.9 32.9 32.8

Density (kg/L) 0.742 0.789 0.81 0.81 0.79 0.81

Energy content

relative to gasoline (%)

- 64 84 84 82 83

Solubility in water <0.1Fully

miscible7.7 7.6

6. B

uta

no

la

s a

fu

el-

ex

ten

de

r

12

(R+M)/2 = 97.2(R+M)/2 = 97.8

136. B

uta

no

la

s a

Fu

el

Ex

ten

de

r • Properties of butanol

– Less susceptible to phase separation means butanolcould be successfully delivered in existing pipelines

– Eliminates need for splash-blending

– Least corrosive of alcohols

– Higher energy content – can be blended into gasoline at higher percentages than ethanol

Adding water to ethanol and butanol

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7. T

es

t B

oa

ts

Figure 1. 18’ Mako boat with 175 HP Evinrude Direct Fuel Injection Outboard

Figure 2. 24’ SeaDoo Challenger boat with 215 HP Rotax engine

Table 2: Engine Specifications

Evaluate 16% isobutanol-extended

fuel over summer boating season (50 hrs)

15

8. T

es

t M

eth

od

-M

PS

S

• Marine Portable Bag Sampling System (MPSS)

– Developed for the U.S EPA Marine Green House Gas reporting requirement.

– First portable emissions sampling system used to evaluate emissions from recreational boats operated on-water.

– Integrated 5-gas emissions analyzer

– Contains sample preparation unit / chiller

– Filters, pumps, sampletimer, condensation pumps, flow meters, mass flow

Figure 3: MPSS Bag Sampling System

In-Use Emissions Evaluation of Butanol

Fuel

16

8. T

es

t M

eth

od

-M

PS

S

• Marine Test Cycle

– Laboratory ISO 8178 discrete test modes

– On-water sampling method according to NTE procedure

Figure 7. Example of EPA NTE test zone. Red points indicate the standard ISO 8178

test points

Table 4. ISO 8178 Marine Test Cycle

EPA NTE ZONE and Standard ISO 8178 Test Points

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

0

10

00

20

00

30

00

40

00

50

00

60

00

70

00

80

00

90

00

RPM

To

rqu

e (

nm

)

High Load Line

Boat Load

Low Load Line

Constant Speed Lines

ICOMIA Cycle

-20

0

20

40

60

80

100

0 20 40 60 80 100

Engine Speed (% of Rated)

En

gin

e T

orq

ue

(%

of

Ra

ted

)

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9. R

esu

lts

Figure 9. Evinrude E-TEC emission results sample bag 1 and 2 CO grams per ICOMIA

hour

Figure 8. Evinrude E-TEC emission results sample bag 1 and 2 HC and NOx grams per

ICOMIA hour

Evinrude E-TEC 175 H.P Bag 1 and Bag 2 HC and NOx mass

emissions grams/hour Indolene vs. 16.1% Isobutanol

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Em

issio

ns g

/hr

Indolene Bag 1 220.4 63.3


Isobutanol Bag 1 219.4 87.1


HC NOx

Evinrude E-TEC 175 H.P Bag 1 and Bag 2 CO mass emissions

grams/hour Indolene vs. 16.1% Isobutanol

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

CO

Em

issio

ns g

/hr

Indolene Bag 1 3758.3


Isobutanol Bag 1 3097.3


CO

• Evinrude E-TEC Outboard

– Bag 1 and Bag 2 results – Indolene vs. isobutanol

– HC, NOx and CO

– Good repeatability between test 1 and test 2

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9. R

esu

lts

• Evinrude E-TEC

– Estimated weighted power kW using throttle position and RPM look-up

– Tests comfortably under the limit and within expected range

Evinrude E-TEC average HC+NOx g/kW-hr indolene vs. isobutanol calculated from estimated

power

Evinrude E-TEC Estimated (power)

HC+NOx g/kW-hr Indolene vs. isobutanol

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

16.0

18.0

20.0

Indolene isobutanol

HC

+ N

Ox

g/k

W-h

r

NOx HC

9.4

10.3

Emissions Limit: 16.4 g/kW-hr

9.5%


CO g/kW-hr Indolene vs. isobutanol

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Indolene isobutanol

CO

g/k

W-h

r

CO

124

102

Emissions Limit: 300 g/kW-hr

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9. R

esu

lts

• Evinrude E-TEC



Evinrude E-TEC average CO g/kW-hr indolene vs. isobutanol calculated from estimated power

~17%


All Regulated Components HC+NOx+CO g/kW-hr

Indolene vs. isobutanol

0.0

20.0

40.0

60.0

80.0

100.0

120.0

140.0

160.0

Indolene isobutanol

Em

iss

ion

s g

/kW

-hr

NOx HC CO

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9. R

esu

lts

• Evinrude E-TEC


– All regulated components HC+NOx+CO

Evinrude E-TEC all regulated components g/kW-hr indolene vs. isobutanol calculated from estimated

power

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9. R

esu

lts

• SeaDoo Challenger

– Bag 1 and Bag 2 results – Indolene vs. isobutanol

– HC, NOx and CO

– Good repeatability between test 1 and test 2

Figure 14. SeaDoo emission results sample bag 1 and 2 CO grams per ICOMIA hour

Figure 13. SeaDoo boat emission results sample bag 1 and 2 HC and NOx grams per

ICOMIA hour

SeaDoo Jetboat Bag 1 and Bag 2 HC and NOx mass emissions

grams/hour Indolene vs. 16.1% Isobutanol

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Em

issio

ns g

/hr





HC NOx

SeaDoo Jetboat Bag 1 and Bag 2 CO mass emissions grams/hour

Indolene vs. 16.1% Isobutanol

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

CO

Em

issio

ns g

/hr





CO

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6. R

esu

lts




SeaDoo Challenger average HC+NOx g/kW-hr indolene vs. isobutanol calculated from estimated

power

SeaDoo Estimated (power)

HC+NOx g/kW-hr Indolene vs. isobutanol

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

16.0

18.0

20.0

Indolene isobutanol

HC

+ N

Ox

g/k

W-h

r

NOx HC

11.92 11.91

Emissions Limit: 16.1 g/kW-hr

Same

SeaDoo Challenger Estimated (power)

CO g/kW-hr Indolene vs. isobutanol

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Indolene isobutanol

CO

g/k

W-h

r

CO

128

84

Emissions Limit: 300 g/kW-hr

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9. R

esu

lts




SeaDoo Challenger average CO g/kW-hr indolenevs. isobutanol calculated from estimated power

~35%

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9. R

esu

lts



– All regulated components HC+NOx+CO

SeaDoo Challenger all regulated components

g/kW-hr indolene vs. isobutanol calculated from estimated power

SeaDoo Estimated (power)

All Regulated Components HC+NOx+CO g/kW-hr

Indolene vs. isobutanol

0.0

20.0

40.0

60.0

80.0

100.0

120.0

140.0

160.0

Indolene isobutanol

Em

iss

ion

s g

/kW

-hr

NOx HC CO

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9. R

esu

lts

• Expected Enleanment

– The CO enleanment caused by 16.1% isobutanol(partially oxidized fuel) is within the typical range of E10

Figure 18. Percent Reduction in Open-loop Engines Mass CO relative to Non-oxygenated Indolene Certification Fuel. The enleanment for B16.1 fuel is similar to typical enleanment of

E10

CO Average Enleanment (%) and Range Relative to Non-oxygenated

Test Fuel (10% ethanol vs. 16.1% isobutanol)

-50

-45

-40

-35

-30

-25

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

10% ethanol 16.1% isobutanol

% e

nle

an

men

t

26

10

. C

on

clu

sio

n

• Conclusion:

– The boats and engines operated on a 16% isobutanol-extended fuel performed well over the 50 hour field test program

• No engine runability, startability or other issues were reported

– Field emission testing results using a 16% isobutanol-extended fuel relative to a non-oxygenated indolenetest fuel indicate:

• No change in HC+NOx for the supercharged four-stroke engine

• Slight increase in HC+NOx for the two-stroke direct fuel injection engine.

– Carbon Monoxide emissions were reduced on both boats using a 16% isobutanol-extended fuel.

– CO emissions on isobutanol are within normal expected ranges of E10

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10

. C

on

clu

sio

n

Where do we go from here?

• DOE interest in butanol-extended fuels

• The marine industry is leading up one of the largest and most comprehensive recreational marine study using an advanced biofuel other than ethanol with Argonne National Laboratory and U.S Department of Energy oversight

• DOE interest in fuel comingling gasoline/ethanol/butanol to lower RVP

• Continued tests with the Department of Energy

in-use performance testing of butanol-extended fuel in...

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