Laser Diagnostic Methods for Biofuel Analysis

Author: Thomas Machamer, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Co-Author: Hayley Benson, Department of Mechanical Engineering

Mentor: Dr. Prasoon Diwakar, Department of Mechanical Engineering

In this paper, a novel method of conducting near-real-time analysis of the products of biofuels is presented. The biofuels are to be developed at Colorado State University for use in internal combustions engines. This method will use microneedle electrodes to collect soot particles which will then be monitored by laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy as well as with laser induced incandescence. The shape of the tip of microneedles will be changed to investigate which geometries allow for the most efficient soot collection as well as how effective it is at mass examination by the laser during each test. Some tip shapes to be investigated are a flat tip (essentially a control test), a concave dome and a convex dome. Collection times are also to be varied in order to analyze general soot output for short time intervals as well as overall pollutant production for long term use.