Analysis of the transient atomization characteristics of diesel spray using time-resolved PDPA data

The transient atomization characteristics of a single-hole diesel spray were investigated to clarify the time-dependent droplet formation process of the spray through time-resolved analysis of the droplet size data acquired by using a 2-D PDPA (phase Doppler particle analyzer). Comparisons among the three single-hole diesel nozzles on the atomization characteristics were made to confirm the effects of the hole-diameter. The hole diameter of the single-hole diesel nozzles varied with d_n=0.22, 0.32 and 0.42 mm. The time-resolved diameter, SMD (Sauter mean diameter) and AMD (arithmetic mean diameter) of droplets in diesel spray injected into still ambient air were measured. The SMD and AMD decreased with decreasing nozzle hole diameter. The SMD distribution along the spray centerline steeply decreased with increasing axial distance before reaching a constant value. In the time-dependent analysis of the SMD of the whole flow field, the SMD gradually increased with time after the initiation of injection, reached a maximum value, and then decreased.