The influence of methyl butyrate and n-butanol on the laminar burning characteristics of RP-3: An experimental and kinetic modeling study

An experimental study was conducted to investigate the oxidation of methyl butyrate (MB), n-butanol, RP-3 aviation kerosene, and their binary mixtures in laminar premixed flames. The experiments were carried out using the spherical flame method under conditions of P0 = 0.1/0.2/0.3 MPa, T0 = 470 K, phi = 0.8-1.4, and the volume mixing ratio is 20%, 50% and 80%. The effects of adding two potential C4 oxygenated fuels to RP-3 on the laminar burning velocity (SL) and flame instability were first evaluated. A new skeletal mechanism was proposed for this blended fuel system based on the CRECK mechanism, and the new experimental results were extensively used to validate this skeletal mechanism. The results showed that the addition of MB and n-butanol caused a slight decrease and increase, respectively, in the SL of RP-3. After adding 50 % MB and 50% n-butanol, the peak SL of RP-3 decreased by 3.5 cm/s and increased by 2.1 cm/s, respectively. Furthermore, the addition of esters was more favorable for reducing flame instability. Reaction path analysis and flame structure analysis revealed that the effects of adding MB and n-butanol on the oxidation pathway of RP-3 were mainly concentrated in primary oxidation reactions, and their effects on the SL were mainly attributed to changes in the concentrations of OH and H radicals.