Nanomaterials-Enabled Biodiesel Composition Detector

The Department of Energy is seeking an innovative sensor technology for in situ composition monitoring of biodiesel blends, targeting the need for off-road vehicles. Presently, there is no monitoring of blend composition. Actively knowing the ratio between biodiesel and petroleum diesel in the blends will allow engines to operate with optimized combustion/emissions providing long-term benefits both economically and environmentally. During the proposed project, the company will develop a nanomaterials-enabled biodiesel fuel composition detector. Overall, the proposed sensor will be a standalone device that could be easily integrated into the vehicle, providing in-line, real-time biodiesel composition information to the vehicle engine control unit, allowing optimized fuel usage. In Phase I, the project team will: (1) develop, (2) validate, and (3) optimize the sensing chemistry, focusing on chemiresistive and impedance detection of fuel composition. Benchtop prototypes will be constructed. The algorithm will also be preliminarily developed by combining the data across different channels. The sensor performance will be evaluated using biodiesel/petroleum diesel blends with different ratios. The influence of operational parameters, including temperature, flow rate and pressure will also be evaluated. The successful completion of this project and development of the sensor technology will help promote biodiesel blends with higher biodiesel ratio and eventually replace traditional diesels completely. This would benefit the whole biodiesel industry value-chain from the biodiesel manufacturers to biodiesel engine/vehicle manufacturers, and ultimately to the users ľ the agriculture and construction industry and military. This results in a positive impact over the national environment, economy, and energy security. Further, the sensor platform can be expanded to target other chemicals, for either industrial process monitoring or environmental monitoring needs.