Flash point and refractive index measurements of diesel and biodiesel, and their binary blends with n-butanol and n-pentanol

The use of n-butanol (BU) and n-pentanol (PE) as biofuels has gained much attention in recent years. As they have high oxygen content, they could be a future option to be used in Diesel engines for mixing with diesel fuel (DF), biodiesel (BD) and their blends, resulting in lower pollutant emissions. Flash point (FP) is used to regulate fuel handling and storage conditions. Refractive index (RI) has been used for the characterization of BD/DF blends and the estimation of light refraction in several combustion-related studies. Several works focusing on the use of BU and PE in blends with either DF or BD in Diesel engines have been recently carried out. However, less information is available in the literature concerning the measurements of properties such as the FP and the RI of these blends. This paper presents experimental measurements of FP and RI (from 15 to 40 ?C) for BD and DF, and their binary blends with BU and PE in the full range of composition. The RI and FP of the studied BD and DF, as well as their blends with BU and PE, are also estimated using regression equations as a function of their composition.