Katerina Swanson
Diesel fuel, also known as diesel oil, heavy oil, or simply diesel, is a liquid fuel designed for use in diesel engines, which are named after their inventor, Rudolf Diesel. Diesel engines are a type of internal combustion engine that uses compression, rather than ignition, to burn the fuel, and therefore diesel fuel needs good compression ignition characteristics. Diesel fuel is most commonly derived from the fractional distillation of petroleum fuel oil, but alternative sources such as biodiesel, biomass-to-liquid (BTL), and gas-to-liquid (GTL) diesel are becoming more common.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Common names | Diesel oil, heavy oil, biodiesel, petrodiesel, gas oil, DERV, Solar |
| Origin | Diesel fuel was invented by Rudolf Diesel in 1892. |
| Composition | Liquid fuel |
| Source | Petroleum, crude oil, biomass materials, vegetable seed oil, shale oil, peanut oil, biodiesel, biomass-to-liquid, gas-to-liquid, etc. |
| Use | Used in diesel engines, generators, boilers for steam engines, aircraft engines, etc. |
| Heat value | Number 2 diesel fuel: 139,500 BTUs per gallon; Number 1 diesel fuel: 125,500 BTUs per gallon |
| Cetane rating | No. 2 diesel: 46-48; No. 1 diesel: 51-53; Pure cetane: 100 |
| Viscosity | Decreases as temperature increases |
| Sulphur content | Ultra-low-sulphur diesel (ULSD) has substantially lower sulphur content |
| Corrosion tendency | Measured by the reaction with copper, brass, or bronze parts of the fuel system |
| Ash content | Measured by burning a sample in an open crucible and expressing weight as a percentage of the original sample |
| Volatility | Ability of a liquid to change into a vapour |
| Specific gravity | Defined as the ratio of the density of the fuel to the density of water |
| Wax content | Affects engine performance in cold conditions |
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What You'll Learn
Diesel fuel is a distillate fuel oil
Diesel fuel, also known as diesel oil, heavy oil, or simply diesel, is a distillate fuel oil. It is a liquid fuel designed for use in a diesel engine, which is a type of internal combustion engine. Diesel engines are named after their inventor, German engineer Rudolf Diesel, who patented his original design in 1892.
Diesel fuel is a distillate of petroleum fuel oil, also known as petrodiesel in academic circles. It is produced from various sources, most commonly petroleum, but can also be derived from biomass materials. In the United States, most diesel fuel is refined from crude oil at petroleum refineries, producing an average of 11 to 12 gallons of diesel fuel from each 42-gallon barrel of crude oil.
Distillate fuel oil, specifically No. 2 distillate, can be used as either a diesel fuel or a fuel oil. It has a distillation temperature of 640 degrees Fahrenheit at the 90-percent recovery point and meets the specifications defined in ASTM Specification D 975. This type of distillate fuel oil is used in high-speed diesel engines, such as those found in railroad locomotives, trucks, and automobiles.
No. 1 distillate, or No. 1 fuel oil, is another light distillate fuel oil with a distillation temperature of 400 to 550 degrees Fahrenheit, depending on the recovery point. It is primarily used as fuel for portable outdoor stoves and heaters rather than in diesel engines.
The use of diesel fuel is widespread, powering trucks, trains, boats, barges, buses, and farm and construction equipment. Diesel fuel is also used in diesel engine generators to provide backup and emergency power supply for industrial facilities, large buildings, hospitals, and remote villages.
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It is refined from crude oil
Diesel fuel is a liquid fuel designed for use in diesel engines, which are a type of internal combustion engine. Diesel engines rely on compression to burn, rather than ignition, and do not have spark plugs. Diesel fuel is thicker than gasoline, and provides more power and mileage per gallon.
Diesel fuel is refined from crude oil, which is converted into transportation fuels, such as gasoline, jet fuel, and diesel fuel. Diesel fuel is a fractional distillate of petroleum fuel oil, a mixture of hydrocarbons obtained by distillation of crude oil. The composition of the crude can vary from thin light-coloured brownish or greenish crude oils of low density, to thick and black oils resembling melted tar. The thin, low-density oils are called "high-gravity" crude oils, and the thick, high-density oils are called "low-gravity" crude oils.
The United States produces an average of 11 to 12 gallons of diesel fuel from each 42-gallon barrel of crude oil. The refining process involves separating the crude oil feedstock into streams of increasingly higher boiling points, which are called straight-run products. The material that is too heavy to vaporise in atmospheric distillation is removed from the bottom of the column. The most common conversion processes are catalytic cracking and hydrocracking, which involve "cracking" large molecules into smaller ones.
The first oil refineries were built in the 1850s by Ignacy Łukasiewicz in Poland, and the refined products were used in kerosene lamps, artificial asphalt, machine oil, and lubricants. The first diesel engine was designed by Rudolf Diesel to use coal dust as fuel, but he recognised that liquid petroleum products might be better fuels than coal. The engine was redesigned for operation with liquid fuels, resulting in a successful prototype in 1895.
Today, diesel fuel is widely used in motor vehicles, particularly trucks, trains, boats, barges, and buses. It is also used in diesel engine generators to generate electricity, particularly in remote areas.
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It is used in motor vehicles
Diesel fuel is used in motor vehicles that have diesel engines. These engines are named after their inventor, Rudolf Diesel, who patented his original design in 1892. Diesel engines are a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition occurs without a spark, as a result of air compression and then fuel injection.
Diesel engines are commonly found in freight and delivery trucks, trains, boats, barges, farm, construction, and military vehicles, as well as some cars and light trucks. In 2022, the U.S. transportation sector consumed about 125 million gallons of diesel fuel per day, accounting for about 15% of total U.S. petroleum consumption. Diesel engines are well-suited for these vehicles due to their fuel efficiency, reliability, and power. They can handle demanding construction work, such as lifting steel beams, digging foundations and trenches, drilling wells, paving roads, and moving soil and rocks.
Diesel fuel is also used in diesel-engine generators to provide electricity in remote areas, such as villages in Alaska, and as a backup or emergency power supply for industrial facilities, large buildings, hospitals, and electric utilities.
The use of biodiesel and renewable diesel is increasing, with biodiesel being produced from biomass materials and vegetable seed oils. Ultra-low-sulfur diesel (ULSD) is another type of diesel fuel that has substantially lowered sulfur content to reduce air pollution emissions. As of 2016, almost all petroleum-based diesel fuel available in the UK, mainland Europe, and North America is ULSD.
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It is also used in diesel engine generators
Diesel fuel is used in diesel engine generators to generate electricity. Diesel generators are commonly used in industrial facilities, large buildings, institutional facilities, hospitals, and electric utilities as a backup or emergency power supply. They are also used as the primary source of electricity in remote villages, such as in Alaska.
Diesel generators are known for their durability, fuel efficiency, and low maintenance requirements. They burn less fuel per kilowatt-hour than gasoline generators, making them more economical to operate. Additionally, diesel fuel is less flammable than gasoline, adding a layer of safety for backup power applications.
Diesel generators come in various sizes and configurations, from small portable generators to large industrial ones, making them accessible and adaptable to different budgets and needs. The affordability of diesel fuel also contributes to the overall cost-effectiveness of these generators.
The use of diesel generators provides a reliable and efficient source of power for homes, businesses, and industrial facilities, particularly in remote or rural areas where other power sources may not be readily available or reliable.
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Diesel fuel has colloquial names like heavy oil
Diesel fuel, also called diesel oil, heavy oil, or simply diesel, is any liquid fuel specifically designed for use in a diesel engine. Diesel engines are a type of internal combustion engine in which fuel ignition occurs without a spark as a result of the compression of inlet air and then the injection of fuel. Thus, diesel fuel requires good compression ignition characteristics.
The most common type of diesel fuel is a specific fractional distillate of petroleum fuel oil, which is produced by the fractional distillation of crude oil between 200 and 350 °C at atmospheric pressure. This results in a mixture of carbon chains that typically contain between 9 and 25 carbon atoms per molecule. However, alternatives that are not derived from petroleum, such as biodiesel, biomass-to-liquid (BTL), or gas-to-liquid (GTL) diesel, are increasingly being developed and adopted. To distinguish these types, petroleum-derived diesel is sometimes called petrodiesel in academic circles.
Diesel fuel is mostly used in high-speed diesel engines, especially motor-vehicle engines, but not all diesel engines run on diesel fuel. For example, large two-stroke watercraft engines typically use heavy fuel oils instead of diesel fuel. Diesel fuel has many colloquial names; most commonly, it is simply referred to as diesel. In the United Kingdom, diesel fuel for road use is commonly called diesel or sometimes white diesel to differentiate it from a reduced-tax agricultural-only product.
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Frequently asked questions
Diesel fuel is a liquid fuel designed for use in diesel engines, which are a type of internal combustion engine. Diesel fuel is thicker than gasoline and provides more power and mileage per gallon.
Diesel fuel is made from a mixture of hydrocarbons obtained by distilling crude oil. It can also be made from biomass materials.
Diesel fuel is used in motor vehicles such as trucks, trains, boats, barges, and buses. It is also used in diesel engine generators to generate electricity.
Yes, diesel fuel is thicker than gasoline and provides more power and mileage. Diesel engines do not have spark plugs and rely on compression to burn the fuel.
Diesel engines offer better fuel efficiency, engine reliability, and power. They are built to withstand higher compression, making them more reliable and longer-lasting than gasoline engines.
