摘要 |
An emulsion fuel is provided which is usable as a fuel for combusting an internal combustion engine under an appropriate combustion condition. A slight amount of air is added to, and is mixed with, a liquid mixture between a fuel oil as a continuous phase and water as a dispersed phase. In this manner, since air bubbles reduced in buoyancy is hydrophobic, the air bubbles do not adhere the surfaces of water droplets, and are dispersed in the fuel oil, increasing a gas-liquid interfacial area (combustion surface area) and exerting surface activity (similar to the function of a surfactant) due to electrostatic polarization. This makes it possible to prevent the coalescence of fine water droplets and stabilize the water droplets in the emulsion fuel. As a result, in the emulsion fuel, dispersion of water droplet diameters is homogenized, and even if the emulsion fuel is combusted by means of combustion equipment, for example, good combustion efficiency can be ensured, and further, a disadvantage that soot or black smoke is generated can be eliminated.
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