Abstract
Spray characteristics of conventional diesel fuel and bio-diesel fuel(methyl-ester of soybean oil) were compared, in terms of spray tip penetration and spray angle, by using a commercial high pressure common rail injection system for light-duty DI Diesel engines. The experiments were carried out under the non-evaporating condition at ambient density(8.8, $15.6 kg/\textrm{m}^3$) and injection pressure(75, 135 MPa). The experimental method was based on a laser sheet scattering technique. Spray tip penetrations of bio-diesel fuel were longer, on the whole, than those of conventional diesel fuel, except for lower injection pressure(75 MPa) under lower ambient density$(8.8 kg/\textrm{m}^3)$. But spray near angle and spray far angle of bio-diesel fuel were smaller than those of conventional diesel fuel, implying spray angle is related to the growth rate of spray tip penetration. The experimental results of spray tip penetration agreed well with the calculated values by the Wakuri et al.'s correlation based on the momentum theory.
