A Shock Tube and Chemical Kinetic Modeling Study of Methy Ethyl Ketone Oxidation

Abstract

Shock-tube ignition delay times for methy ethyl ketone (MEK; or 2-butanone) were measured at a reflected shock pressure of 1 atm (±2%) in the temperature range of 1250–1850 K at equivalence ratios of 0.5–2.0 for dilute mixtures in argon with fuel concentrations of 1.0%, 1.5%, and 2.0%. Rate constants for unimolecular fuel decomposition reactions were treated for falloff in pressure and temperature, with 9-parameter fits in the Troe formulism. A detailed chemical kinetic submechanism was developed and coupled to an existing C₄ mechanism comprising 234 species and 1,369 reversible reactions. Model simulations show generally good agreement when compared to the available experimental data. MEK may be used as a fuel tracer, and thus further ignition delay time measurements were carried out by adding MEK to n-heptane in order to test the effect on ignition delay timing of blending these fuels together. It was found that autoignition characteristics of n-heptane remained unaffected by the presence of MEK fuel tracer.

Keywords:

• Kinetics
• Methyl ethyl ketone
• Oxidation
• Shock tube

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Financial support from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology for an Embark Fellowship are gratefully acknowledged.

Notes

Note: BDE ˭ Bond Dissociation Energy.