Experimental Study on the effect of Di-Ethyl Carbonate in Performance, Combustion and Emission Characteristics of CI Engine Fueled with Karanja Oil Blended

Abstract

In today’s world where the earth chokes on the pollution caused everyday by the human society the need for alternative means of fuels is now more than ever. We need to find alternative fuel sources as soon as possible as the health and environmental problems caused by the fossil fuels, we use on a daily basis now exceed the benefits provided by them. However, fuel sources which are clean in nature such as hydrogen have not been researched thoroughly enough for them to be implemented in practical use and power sources such as electric power though researched thoroughly and in current use cannot be implemented on a larger scale in such a short period of time. Hence biofuels I.e., fuels extracted from feed crops are our best chance to reduce the effect of pollution caused by fossil fuels. Vegetable oils are one such fuel source that can potentially replace the fossil fuels with none or minimal modifications to the existing engines. In this experimental study, performance, emission and combustion characteristics of Karanja oil blends (K-10, K-20, K-30) with mineral diesel and 5%DEC (Di-ethyl carbonate) additive were investigated in a CI engine at different engine loads and constant engine speed. Combustion analysis revealed that the combustion duration increased significantly even with smaller concentration of Karanja oil in the fuel blend.