Total Nitrogen Determination in Bio-based Fuels According to ASTM D4629 – Standard Test Method for Trace Nitrogen in Liquid Hydrocarbons by Syringe/Inlet Oxidative Combustion and Chemiluminescence Detection The production of alternative fuels becomes increasingly popular, as they provide a way to respond to both, the growing demand for energy and the goal to reduce carbon emissions. In addition to technologies based on the fermentation of starch and sugar, and the transesterification or hydrocracking of plant and animal oil (first generation biofuels), processes based on the conversion of cellulose-rich biomass and waste appear to be promising (second generation biofuels). With the use of biogenic materials for fuel production, their inherently high content of harmful hydrocarbons containing nitrogen, sulfur and chlorine has to be monitored. The desired TN content is far below 1 ppm, in general it should be around 100 ppb N.
Diesel is a mixture of various hydrocarbons that is produced during the fractionated distillation of crude oil. Its boiling interval is in the range of 150 to 390° C. Diesel is used mainly as fuel for automobiles. It can contain traces of organically bound chlorine, sulfur and nitrogen originating either from natural sources or from additives. During combustion of the fuel, these compounds form environmental pollutants. As these pollutants are hazardous to the human health and the environment, their content (N, S, Cl) should be kept as small as possible. To ensure the product quality and adhere to legal limit values a permanent quality control is essential.
