Preparation and properties of methanol–diesel oil emulsified fuel under high-gravity environment

A new process for preparation of methanol–diesel emulsified fuel with a rotating packed bed is proposed. The influence of additive amount, methanol content, rotational speed, liquid flow rate of diesel on the rheological characteristics, surface tension and stabilization was discussed. The result showed that the emulsified fuel appeared as proximately Newtonian behavior. The rheological characteristics of the emulsions were significantly dependent on the percentages of surfactants and methanol. The surface tension decreased obviously with the increase of the surfactants amount. With higher additive amount, lower methanol content, higher rotational speed and higher liquid flow rate, the methanol–diesel emulsified fuel showed better stabilization. Comparison with intermission operation, the stabilization of the emulsified fuel was achieved in 32 days with consecutive recycle of 3 times under the high-gravity fields. This method has potential application in industrial fields for its low surfactants, continuity, efficient processing and the ease of scaling-up.