Performance and emission characteristics of diesel engines running on gaseous fuels in dual-fuel mode

Abstract

Conventional fossil fuels are being substituted with alternative green fuels because of their greenhouse gas emissions and pollution problems, which pose a severe threat to the environment. Several studies have reported the usage of biodiesel and gaseous fuels in both single and dual-fuel modes. Gaseous fuels such as producer gas, biogas, syngas, and hydrogen produced from renewable biomass could potentially be used along with biodiesel in dual-fuel engines. Still, these are the least investigated in terms of their use as potential energy carriers. This review article encapsulates the viability as well as the impact of various gaseous fuels, including producer gas, biogas, compressed natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, syngas, and hydrogen, in dual-fuel mode diesel engines with the aim of evaluating the performance, emission, and combustion behavior at various induction as well as operational parameters. Considering emission behaviors of diesel engines fueled with producer gas, biogas, compressed natural gas, and hydrogen, it is found that hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions increase in the range 17.5–31.4% and 11.73–23.6%, respectively. On the contrary, oxide of nitrogen and smoke opacity tend to reduce from 14.3 to 18.2% and 21.4%36.5–63.7%, respectively. Moreover, there is a slight deterioration in performance characteristics for diesel engines fueled with producer gas, biogas, compressed natural gas, and hydrogen in the range of 2.1–8.84% for brake thermal efficiency, and 3.1–7.3% for brake-specific energy consumption. In addition, the combustion characteristics of gaseous fuels is also discussed in detail. Moreover, a SWOT analysis has been carried out with an emphasis on possibilities for usage of gaseous fuels in dual-fuel diesel engines. Finally, the limitations and perspectives of using gaseous fuels are also critically presented.