Permittivity of diesel fossil fuel and blends with biodiesel in the full range from 0% to 100%: Application to biodiesel content estimation

Abstract

The relative permittivity of diesel fossil fuel and blends with biodiesel from soybean, in the full range from pure diesel to 100% biodiesel, was determined at temperatures between 298.0 K and 333.0 K (controlled within ±0.1 K), using an airtight cell. Measurements were made in the frequency range from 1 kHz to 100 kHz; this frequency range is suitable for the use of low-cost, portable equipment and also for the development of automotive sensors. The relative uncertainty of the measurements was below 1%. Experimental values of permittivity were satisfactorily fitted to a simple model as a function of temperature and composition. The RMS uncertainty of the fitting was 1.2%. The model parameters were determined from experimental results and verified by multiple regression analysis, with very good agreement. In addition, a model was proposed to estimate the composition of diesel/biodiesel blends from permittivity and temperature measurements. The parameters of the model were obtained by a multiple regression analysis; the RMS uncertainty of the composition estimation was below 2.5%. The results presented in this work describe accurately the dependence of the permittivity of diesel fuel with temperature and also validate and extend previously reported models for biodiesel-rich blends with diesel fossil fuel, allowing the estimation in the full composition range with good accuracy.