Production and characterization of biomixture fuels from raw oil feed stock and the effect of ionic liquid as an additive on biomixture fuels

Abstract

The present experimental investigation focuses on improving the properties of biomixture fuel samples by using a novel additive such as 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium chloride (ionic liquid). Biomixture fuel samples have been prepared from the waste cooking and soapnut biodiesels after the individual transesterification process of each raw oil. The transesterified biodiesels were blended together through a method of biomixture in various proportions such as SWME-1, SWME-2, SWME-3, SWME-4, and SWME-5 respectively. The compositions of fatty acids for individual prepared biomixture samples were investigated through gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify the characterization of fuel samples. The characteristics of all five biomixture blends were examined and the test results revealed that SWME-4 and SWME-5 considered as optimum blends shows the improved properties and perfectly satisfying the standard limits of BIS, ASTM, and EN testing methods. Five percent of ionic additive added to the optimum blends SWME-4 and SWME-5 denoted as a SWME4BMPyCL5 and SWME5BMPyCL5 are selected for further experimental investigation. It was observed that the overall SFA of the fuel samples increased significantly (from 24% for SWME-1 to 59% for SWME5BMPyCL5) by adding an ionic additive and increasing % of WCME in the SOME fuel blends. Experimental results indicated that saturated fatty acids, oxidation stability, cold flow properties, and cetane number were increased while viscosity, flash point, density, iodine number, free fatty acid, and heating value reduced as compared to biomixture samples and all biodiesel individual fuel samples respectively. Based on experimental investigation results, it has been concluded that the novel approach of ionic additive added to the biomixture samples can improve the properties of fuel.