DFG EXC 236: Tailor Made Fuels from Biomass

Copyright: © Picture: TMFB Research fields of the TMFB-cluster

The research cluster “Tailor-Made Fuels from Biomass” (TMFB) analyzes novel biofuels from the original biomass to its use in a gasoline or diesel engine. The cluster approaches the production of biofuels via a selective (bio-) chemical synthesis based on lignin, under the constraint of preserving the environment and reducing the emissions of the engine. Developing biofuels incorporates various fields of research such as biological-, chemical- and mechanical engineering. Therefore, several institutes of the RWTH Aachen University participate in the TMFB-research cluster.

Within this framework, the Institute of Heat and Mass Transfer experimentally analyses the spray break-up and mixture formation of the various fuel candidates under engine-like conditions. For simulating in-cylinder conditions, specialized high-pressure chambers are used. Their windows allow the application of different optical measurement techniques such as Phase-Doppler-Anemometry, Particle-Image-Velocimetry, Laser-Induced-Fluorescence, Laser-Correlated-Velocimetry, High-Speed-Visualizations or Ballistic-Imaging.