Abstract
Objectives: Performance and emissions of internal combustion (spark ignition) engine generator is investigated using the representative biogas composition from an anaerobic co-digestion mixture of various agricultural biomass wastes present in Mindanao, Philippines such as rice hull, coconut shell, cow manure as feedstock. Methods: The gases from the representative biogas composition are then fed to the 30kW engine generator and investigated the power generated, and its exhaust emissions. Findings: Results indicated that the variation of energy generated can be related to the electrical power produced from the engine unit to power the electrical appliances used at the same flow rate and pressure. At 1.4 kW electrical load and heating value of the purified biogas as 50 MJ kg-1, the consumption of biogas was observed to be the same. The engine also showed comparable efficiency ranging from 6.26% to 7.00% at 1.4 kW load. Further, the CO2 emission is observed to be 5.40% and amount of other emission pollutants are extremely few (nearly zero) using the representative biogas fuel in the engine. Thus, biogas fuel can be used directly as fuel in the spark ignition engine. Application: The biogas fuel can be used to other engines, but it requires some minor engine modifications in order to correct the compression ratio, spark ignition timing due to the slower flame speed of biogas fuel. Keywords: Biofuels, Biogas, Biomass, Engine Emissions, Engine Performance
Highlights
Biogas from anaerobic digestion is a potential source of renewable energy
It shows that there is no significant difference in combustion efficiency while using purified biogas (99% CH4), at a fixed electrical load of 1.4 kW
The variation of energy generated can be related to the electrical power load (Figure 4), produced from the natural gas engine unit to power the electrical load, provided that has the same flow rate and pressure
Summary
Biogas from anaerobic digestion is a potential source of renewable energy It can be used for the production of process heat and electricity in engines, turbines and fuel cells. CO2 and N2, differs in heat capacity and their influences on combustion that gives impact on the overall performance of biogas. Some factors such as the preparation technique and sources of raw material lead to the change of components of the biogas, which is a restriction to the extensive and efficient use of gaseous fuels in internal combustion (IC) engines. Many researchers have attempted to utilize bio-methane (biogas) with various gas components in an internal combustion engine
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