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Okoro et al. Int. J. Res. Chem. Environ. Vol.

2 Issue 2 April 2012(102-105)



(102)


International Journal of Research in Chemistry and Environment
Vol. 2 I ssue 2 April 2012(102-105)
ISSN 2248-9649
Research Paper

Calorimetric Determination of Energy Content of Alcohol fuels
and Blends with Kerosene

*Linus N. Okoro
1
, David Okwuanalu
1
, Clifford Nwaeburu
2

1
Department of Petroleum Chemistry, School of Arts and Sciences, American University of Nigeria,
Lamido Zubairu Way, Yola By-Passs. P.M.B. 2250 Yola, Adamawa State, NIGERIA
2
Ruprecht-Karls-University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, GERMANY

(Received 25
th
January 2012, Accepted 18
th
February 2012)

Abstract- In this research we explored the calorific or heat value of alcohol fuels as well as blends with
kerosene by using both glass and bomb calorimeters comparatively. The calorific values obtained from the
combustion of alcohol fuels from glass calorimeter were very much lower than those obtained from bomb
calorimeter, as a result of heat loss in glass calorimer. The heat values, obtained by glass calorimeter, of
methanol, ethanol, propanol, butanol, and pentanol gave 6.3MJ/Kg, 10.64MJ/Kg, 15.27MJ/Kg, 20.84MJ/Kg,
and 22.56MJ/Kg respectively, while the heat values of methanol, ethanol, propanol, butanol, and pentanol,
using the bomb calorimeter gave 16.36MJ/kg, 21.6MJ/Kg, 30.75MJ/Kg, 32.13MJ/Kg, and 36.1MJ/Kg
respectively. It is observed that the heat value of each blend is greater as the percent of alcohol increases, but
as the percent alcohol exceeds the percent kerosene, the heat value starts to decrease. Generally, the heating
values of alcohol fuels increase as the carbon atoms increases and the heating values of these alcohol fuels
increase as the percent oxygen decreases.

Keywords: Alcohol fuels, Kerosene, Blends, Heat value, Calorimeter.

Introduction
Alcohol fuels are obtained from alcohols and have
been used a lot in the past. Methanol, ethanol and other
alcohols are very good fuels with very high octane ratings
[1]
. Alcohol fuels are often called bio alcohols because of
their sources. The most common bio-alcohols are methanol
and ethanol. Fossil fuels and biomass are the main sources
of methanol and ethanol. Mathewson had earlier stated that
methanol and ethanol are two types of alcohol fuels used in
cars
[2]
.

Whereas ethanol is produced from a variety of
renewable resources, most commonly corn and sugarcane,
methanol is produced from renewable resources as well,
but mainly from natural gas. Mathewson further confirmed
that although ethanol indeed reduces the toxicity of car
exhaust, it can as well be very corrosive, and can absorb
water and dirt easily, which can result to damage as well as
corrode the inside of block engine, if the ethanol
contaminants are not properly filtered.

Blume, in one of his recent papers affirmed alcohol
as an excellent alternative motor fuel for gasoline engines,
and that the major advantage of alcohol is that it can be
burned in existing vehicles with little or no modification,
with little emissions released, thereby reducing air pollution
[1,3]
.

Alcohol Fuels: Runnion reported that ethanol is produced
from fermentation of the sugars found in grains, such as
corn and wheat, potato wastes, cheese whey, corn fiber, rice
straw, sawdust, urban wastes, and yard clippings
[4]
.
Ethanol, due to its possible environmental and long-term
economical advantages over fossil fuel when used as a fuel
for the internal combustion of car engines, often in
combination with other fuels, is attracting so much
attention
[5]
. On the other hand, methanol is known as a
light, volatile, colorless, and flammable, and is used for
producing biodiesel via the transesterification reaction
[6]
.

Other useful alcohol fuels include propanol, which
is formed naturally in little quantity during most
fermentation processes
[7]
; Butanol, has been found
naturally as a minor product in the fermentation of sugars
and other carbohydrates is a product of petrochemical
feedstock, propylene; as well, 1-pentanol which according
to Lide et al, can be used as a replacement for gasoline
[8]
.

Okoro et al. Int. J. Res. Chem. Environ. Vol.2 Issue 2 April 2012(102-105)

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Table 2
List of Materials and Their Manufacturers

Materials Source
Methanol 99.8% pure, Fluka, Sigma-Aldrich Labochemikalien
Ethanol 96% v/v. Fisher Scientific, UK
Propanol 99%. Fisher Scientific, UK
Butanol 99% extra pure. Acros Organics, New Jersey, USA
Pentanol 99% +. Acros Organics, New Jersey, USA
Analytical Balance Adam PW 254
Bomb Calorimeter ECO CAL
2K
Thermometer
Kerosene NNPC Mega Station Yola, Adamawa State

The glass calorimetric method and the bomb calorimetric method were employed in this research to determine the heating
values
[12]
.

Keenan reported that the latent heat of
vaporization, defined as the amount of extra heat required
to change the liquid to a gas when boiled, should be
considered alongside volatility
[9]
. He found that gasoline
has a latent heat of about 140 Btu/lb; methanol, 474 Btu/lb;
and ethanol, 361 Btu/lb. In his research, Brinkman
observed that, gasoline fuel vaporization of the gasoline
fuel in air leads to a drop in temperature of about 40
o
F
[10]
.

Hence, that following the trend therefore, the
temperature drop for ethanol will be more than twice that of
gasoline, and that of methanol will be over three times as
much
[10]
. The effect of these drops in temperature is that
the mass density of the fuels becomes greater when the fuel
is entering the engine. Therefore, this shows that alcohol
fuels have greater mass density than gasoline. It can
therefore be said that the greater the latent heat, the greater
the heat required and this is the clear reason why alcohols
require more heat than gasoline. It has been observed that
shortening the distance travelled by the fuel to the cylinder
could reduce the chances of condensation and fuel
distribution problems. Practically, for engines that have
been converted to alcohol, enough heat should be supplied
once they are warmed up, and according to Cavagnaro, the
problem with high performance racing engines is starting
the engine when it is cold
[11]
.

Further, when burning a particular fuel, energy is
released and the amount of energy released is a very
important property of such fuel, and is referred to as the
energy content of that fuel. Turner et al, in one of his
comparative study of the heat value of both the gasoline
and ethanol observed that the oxygen of the alcohol has no
effect on the fuel value because the hydroxyl group
combines with a hydrogen atom to produce water
[6]
.
Methanol volatility, defined as the ability of a substance to
be vaporized, has been found to contain less than half the
heating value of gasoline whereas ethanol contains about
60% of the heat value of gasoline
[10]
. In this research we
explored the calorific or energy content of alcohol fuels as
well as blends with kerosene calorimetrically.

Material and Methods
Determination of Heat Content of Alcohol Fuels Using a
Glass Calorimeter: A 100ml round bottom flask was
weighed empty in grams, and was filled with 100 ml iced
water of about 4
o
C and reweighed in grams. 20ml of the
alcohol fuel is measured with a pipette and poured into a
reagent bottle and this was weighed in grams (g). The
reagent bottle is placed under the round bottom flask and
the alcohol fuel is lit and allowed to heat up the water in the
round bottom flask to about 40
o
C. The reagent bottle is
now reweighed in order to get the weight of the reagent
bottle after combustion. This weight is now subtracted from
the previous weight of the reagent bottle and with this; the
mass of fuel burned was obtained. In order to calculate the
heat of combustion of the alcohol, the heat, q, is calculated
using the formula:
q = mCT .. (1)

The m above is the mass of water that is heated;
C
p
is the specific heat capacity of water and has a value of
4.18J/
o
C and T is the change in temperature of the water
as it is heated. Dividing equation 1 above by mass of fuel
burnt, gives the heat of combustion.
q = mC
p
T/Kg ... (2)
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Table 3
Heat Content of Alcohol Fuels Obtained Using Glass Calorimeter

Methanol Ethanol Propanol Butanol Pentanol
Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 1 Trial 2
Mass of fuel
burnt 2.81 2.94 1.82 1.89 1.28 1.28 1.0 0.9 0.89 0.87
Temp. change
(
o
C) 32 33 36 37 36 36 37 36 37 37
Heat of water
(MJ) 17.36 17.89 19.45 20.07 19.54 19.56 20.04 19.47 20.04 20.10
Average heat
of combustion
(MJ/Kg)
6.30 10.64 15.27 20.84 22.56

Determination of Heat Content of Alcohol Fuels Using
Bomb Calorimeter: The bomb calorimeter was used in
this research to determine the heat of combustion of alcohol
fuels.

Results and Discussion
Glass Calorimeter: Using the glass calorimeter, the heat
content of the methanol, ethanol, propanol, butanol and
pentanol were obtained. From Table 3 and Figure 1, it is
observed that as the carbon atoms increases, the heat of
combustion increases. Meanwhile, as the carbon atom
increases, the percentage oxygen also decreases in each
alcohol thereby making the heat of combustion to increase.



Figure 1: Heat of Combustion of Alcohol Fuels



Figure 2: Heat Values of Alcohol Fuels
Bomb Calorimeter: Accurate and standard heat values for
each alcohol fuel were obtained using the bomb calorimeter
to determine the heat of combustion. The heat of
combustion obtained for methanol was 16.36MJ/Kg; for
ethanol was 21.9MJ/Kg; for propanol was 30.75MJ/Kg; for
butanol was 32.13MJ/Kg; and for pentanol was 36.1MJ/Kg.
From figure 2, it is observed that the heat value increases as
the level of alcohol increases. This is because of the
increase in the number of carbon atoms in the alcohols.

Comparison of Heat Values Obtained From Bomb
Calorimeter and Glass Calorimeter: Comparison of the
heat values gotten from glass calorimeter and the bomb
calorimeter is very important. The heat values, determined
by glass calorimeter, of methanol, ethanol, propanol,
butanol, and pentanol gave 6.3MJ/Kg, 10.64MJ/Kg,
15.27MJ/Kg, 20.84MJ/Kg, and 22.56MJ/Kg respectively
while the heat values of methanol, ethanol, propanol,
butanol, and pentanol, using the bomb calorimeter gave
16.36MJ/kg, 21.6MJ/Kg, 30.75MJ/Kg, 32.13MJ/Kg, and
36.1MJ/Kg respectively. This follows that for both
calorimetric determinations, all the heat values follow an
ascending trend, which is clearly seen in figures 1 and 2,
due to the increase in carbon atoms and reduction in
percent oxygen. There is therefore a clear difference in the
heat values obtained from both calorimeters. This is
practically because, during the use of the glass calorimeter,
the heat lost to the fuel is equal to the heat gained by water
and the heat lost to the surrounding. Therefore, due to the
heat lost to the surrounding by the fuel, the heat gained by
the water is reduced; hence, the heat value of the alcohol
fuel is drastically reduced.

Nevertheless, using the bomb calorimeter which is
adiabatic, there is no heat lost to the surrounding so all the
heat lost by the fuel is equally gained. This is the reason
why the bomb calorimeter calorific values obtained gave a
more accurate heat value for substances better than the
glass calorimeter.

Blend of Kerosene and Alcohols: Blending alcohol with
kerosene is observed to give very high heat values. 0.332g
of a blend of 95% kerosene and 5% methanol (M5) gave a
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heating value of 38.76MJ/Kg. 0.328g M10 blend gave a
heat value of 39.33MJ/Kg, and 0.328g M15 gave a heat
value of 39.54MJ/Kg. Furthermore, 0.321g of a blend of
95% kerosene and 5% ethanol (E5) gave a heat value of
48.75MJ/Kg. 0.33g of E10 gave a heat value of
49.22MJ/Kg. 0.323g of E15 had a heat value of
49.51MJ/Kg and 0.323g E80 heat value was determined to
be 45.95MJ/Kg. The blending of alcohol fuels and kerosene
follows a pathway, which is clearly seen in figure 3 below.
The heat value of each blend is greater as the percent of
alcohol increases, but as the percent alcohol exceeds the
percent kerosene, the heat value starts to decrease.



Figure 3: Heat of Combustion for Blends of Kerosene
with Alcohols

Comparison of Kerosene Blends with Pure Alcohols:
Pure methanol and ethanol have heating values of 16.3-
6MJ/Kg and 21.6MJ/Kg respectively. Kerosene blends with
these alcohols M5, M10, M15, E5, E10, E15, and E80 have
heating values of 38.76MJ/Kg, 39.33MJ/Kg, 39.54MJ/Kg,
48.75MJ/Kg, 49.22MJ/Kg, 49.51MJ/Kg, and 45.95MJ/Kg
respectively. From the data, the heat values of blends are
greater than the heat values of pure methanol and ethanol
respectively. This is due to excess carbon atoms in kero-
sene.

Comparison of Kerosene Blends with Pure Kerosene:
Pure kerosene has a heating value of 46.2MJ/Kg. The ble-
nds of ethanol with kerosene had heat values greater than
kerosene although E80 was lower but close to the heat
value of kerosene. The blending of kerosene with these
alcohols is what reduces the carbon emission to the atmos-
phere when the blended kerosene is used as cooking fuels
at home.

Comparison of Pure Alcohols with Pure Kerosene and
Pure Gasoline: Pure alcohols such as methanol, ethanol,
propanol, butanol, and pentanol have heating values of
16.36MJ/kg, 21.6MJ/Kg, 30.75MJ/Kg, 32.13MJ/Kg, and
36.1MJ/Kg respectively. The heating value of pure
kerosene is 46.2MJ/Kg and the heating value of pure
gasoline is 46MJ/Kg. Therefore, it is seen that the heating
values of the alcohol fuels will approach the heating values
of kerosene and gasoline if the carbon atom of the alcohol
fuels increases. However, blending both fuels with
kerosene and gasoline produces better fuels that have
higher octane ratings and fuels that emit little or no carbon
to the surroundings when it is combusted.

Conclusion
Accurate heating values of alcohol fuels can be obta-
ined by using a bomb calorimeter. The heating values of
alcohol fuels increase as the carbon atoms increases and the
heating values of these alcohol fuels increase as the percent
oxygen decreases. It was observed that blending is a better
way of making gasoline and kerosene emit lesser amounts
of carbon when combusted. In this case, blending kerosene,
which is mainly used as a cooking fuel in homes, reduces
the soot carbon emissions that stick on cooking pots.

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(1980)

3. Voloch M., Hong J., and Ladisch M. R., Dehydration of Etha-
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8. Lide D.R., CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 87th
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10. Brinkman N.D., Ethanol Fuel - A single-cylinder engine
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