Wear, durability, and lubricating oil performance of a straight vegetable oil (Karanja) blend fueled direct injection compression ignition engine

Abstract

Depletion of fossil fuel resources and resulting associated environmental degradation has motivated search for alternative transportation fuels. Blending small quantity of Karanja oil (straight vegetable oil) with mineral diesel is one of the simplest available alternatives, which can be put into application immediately. Two identical direct injection compression ignition (DICI) engines were subjected to long-term endurance test for comparing long-term durability performance of 10% blend of Karanja oil with mineral diesel (K10) vis-à-vis mineral diesel. Carbon deposits, wear of vital engine components, and effect of new fuel (Karanja oil blend) on lubricating oil were analyzed in a long-term endurance test spanning over 512 h engine operation. Wear of liner, piston, piston rings, valves, gudgeon pin, crank pin, bearings, etc., of K10 fueled engine was found to be comparable to mineral diesel fueled engine. Iron, lead, chromium, zinc metal debris in the lubricating oil were found to be lower for K10 fueled engine compared to diesel fueled engine, however, aluminum content in the lubricating oil of K10 engine was slightly higher than diesel fueled engine. Karanja oil proved to be potential partial substitute for mineral diesel in DICI engine without substantial hardware modifications.