Ethanol Blends Research Articles

Performance analysis of biofuel-ethanol blends in diesel engine and its validation with computational fluid dynamics.

The engine tests aimed to produce comparable data for fuel consumption, exhaust emissions, and thermal efficiency. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) program FLUENT was used to simulate the combustion parameters of a direct injection diesel engine. In-cylinder turbulence is controlled using the RNG k-model. The model's conclusions are validated when the projected p-curve is compared to the observed p-curve. The thermal efficiency of the 50E50B blend (50% ethanol, 50% biofuel) is higher than the other blends as well as diesel. Diesel has lower brake thermal efficiency among the other fuel blends used. The 10E90B mix (10% ethanol, 90% biofuel) has a lower brake-specific fuel consumption (BSFC) than other blends but is slightly higher than diesel. The temperature of the exhaust gas rises for all mixtures as the brake power is increased. CO emissions from 50E50B are lower than diesel at low loads but slightly greater at heavy loads. According to the emission graphs, the 50E50B blend produces less HC than diesel. NOx emission rises with increasing load in the exhaust parameter for all mixes. A 50E50B biofuel-ethanol combination achieves the highest brake thermal efficiency, 33.59%. The BSFC for diesel is 0.254 kg/kW-hr at maximum load, while the BSFC for the 10E90B mix is 0.269 kg/kW-hr, higher than diesel. In comparison to diesel, BSFC has increased by 5.90%.

Comparative Assessment of Low-Concentration Ethanol and Waste Fish Oil Biodiesel Blends on Emission Reduction and Performance Improvement in Variable Compression Ratio Engine

Comparative Assessment of Low-Concentration Ethanol and Waste Fish Oil Biodiesel Blends on Emission Reduction and Performance Improvement in Variable Compression Ratio Engine

A study on puffing and micro-explosion characteristics of diesel/ethanol/tetrahydrofuran blend fuel droplets

ABSTRACT Tetrahydrofuran (THF) is a biofuel that can be added to improve the solubility of ethanol in diesel. To explore the effect of surfactants, the puffing and micro-explosion characteristics of ethanol diesel/THF (DTE) blend droplets are investigated experimentally in comparison to a counterpart blend of ethanol diesel/biodiesel (DBE). Results show that with a rise in temperature, the puffing delay time decreases rapidly opposite to the fluctuation ratio; however, the puffing delay time rises with the ethanol content, whereas the fluctuation ratio remains about constant. Moreover, the tetrahydrofuran mainly participates in the early evaporation stage resulting in more prone to the edge mode for DTE droplets, which is in contrast to the DBE droplets, which prefer the inner mode. The micro-explosion strength of DTE droplets is lower than that of DBE due to the more likely occurrence of the edge mode, but the corresponding growth rate of DTE (15.2%, 25.4%, and 56.8%) with temperatures of 573 K, 623 K, and 723 K is higher than that of DBE droplets (8.8%, 20.4%, and 48.7%). A numerical model is also established for the present blend droplets, and the simulations reveal that the THF may additionally influence the heat absorption by the liquid and hence the superheat point of ethanol, which is responsible for the bubble formation and the micro-explosion.

Design and Characterization of Baricitinib Incorporated PLA 3D Printed Pills by Fused Deposition Modeling: An Oral Pill for Treating Alopecia Areata.

This study aimed to develop three-dimensional (3D) baricitinib (BAB) pills using polylactic acid (PLA) by fused deposition modeling. Two strengths of BAB (2 and 4% w/v) were dissolved into the (1:1) PEG-400 individually, diluting it with a solvent blend of acetone and ethanol (27.8:18:2) followed by soaking the unprocessed 200 cm~6157.94 mg PLA filament in the solvent blend acetone-ethanol. FTIR spectrums of the 3DP1 and 3DP2 filaments calculated and recognized drug encapsulation in PLA. Herein, 3D-printed pills showed the amorphousness of infused BAB in the filament, as indicated by DSC thermograms. Fabricated pills shaped like doughnuts increased the surface area and drug diffusion. The releases from 3DP1 and 3DP2 were found to be 43.76 ± 3.34% and 59.14 ± 4.54% for 24 h. The improved dissolution in 3DP2 could be due to the higher loading of BAB due to higher concentration. Both pills followed Korsmeyer-Peppas' order of drug release. BAB is a novel JAK inhibitor that U.S. FDA has recently approved to treat alopecia areata (AA). Therefore, the proposed 3D printed tablets can be easily fabricated with FDM technology and effectively used in various acute and chronic conditions as personalized medicine at an economical cost.

Comprehensive study on using hydrogen-gasoline-ethanol blends as flexible fuels in an existing variable speed SI engine

The rising human population is causing the utilization of enormous amounts of fossil fuels to fulfill energy needs. Various renewable sources are used as fossil fuels however those resources are not powerful in supplanting customary non-renewable energy sources like gasoline in vehicles. The depletion of conventional fossil fuel utilized in a vehicle contributes to an increased portion of air contamination and is a danger to human well-being. Also, to maintain the supply demand, many active types of research have been carried out in mixing a higher percentage of ethanol over gasoline and further moving towards flex-fuel vehicles. But there arises a problem of knocking and higher CO, and HC emissions from the engine. To overcome the above problem, ethanol could be mixed in a higher percentage over gasoline with the help of hydrogen assistance and can completely avoid the problem of knocking and reducing CO and HC emissions. In this research, the combustion, emission, and performance characteristics of a variable-speed gasoline engine fuelled with ethanol-blended gasoline along with hydrogen assistance are taken for investigation at variable speeds like 1800, 1600, 1400, and 1200 rpm. Hydrogen is added to blended fuel (E30) which has better combustion, emission, and performance than other blended fuels. Hydrogen addition is done at 2, 3, and 4 ms respectively. The outcomes showed that the E30 + H2 at 3 ms has better combustion, emission, and performance, still, the emission of NOx is higher in comparison with all the other blends due to complete combustion. Thus, a two-stage analysis has been done, one is making a comparison among various blends of ethanol, and the second one is the comparison among the various energy shares of hydrogen.

Influence of additive mixed ethanol-biodiesel blends on diesel engine characteristics

Automobile pollution has escalated the environmental degradation manifold, causing climate change. Numerous research works are being carried out to find alternative fuels that can improve efficiencies and limit emission levels. The present research work focuses on experimental investigation of DICI-VCR engine is performed to evaluate the performance and emission (PCE) characteristics using ethanol and Al2O3 nanoparticle blended biodiesel. Nine blends of biodiesel, diesel, and ethanol were prepared on v/v basis. Biodiesel was mixed in constant proportions and Al2O3 nanoparticles were added as additives in the blends with the proportion of 100 ppm. Physical and chemical properties were tested and found within the limits of ASTM D6751 and ASTM D975 standards. Experiments were conducted at constant compression ratio (18:1) with variable loading at full throttle condition. The study showed that the reduction in performance and emission characteristics such as brake thermal efficiency, mechanical efficiency, volumetric efficiency, carbon monoxide, and hydrocarbons ranges from 3.7% to 8.7%, 3.4% to 9.9%, 0.3% to 0.6%, 7.5% to 26.5%, and 8% to 27% respectively whereas increment in brake specific fuel consumption, exhaust gas temperature, carbon dioxide, and oxides of nitrogen as 4.5% to 22.4%, 0.9% to 4.8%, 17.5% to 43%, 4% to 9% respectively observed in comparison with neat diesel.

Bisacodyl in aqueous co-solvent solutions of isopropanol/methanol/ethanol: Solubility modeling, preferential solvation and density functional theory study

At the microscopic level, quantitative analysis of molecular surface was used to highlight the electrostatic properties of acidity/basicity of bisacodyl. The -C = O and -N = groups are the principal targets of electrophilic attack because they have the lowest global electrostatic potentials, ranging from −157.6 kJmol−1 to −144.8 kJmol−1. The Hirshfeld partition analysis-based independent gradient model was used to visually examine the weak interactions between bisacodyl and the solvents, including methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, and water. The isothermal shake-flask method was used to evaluate the bisacodyl solubility in three aqueous co-solvent blends of isopropanol, methanol, and ethanol, under 101.2 kPa. The solubility data of bisacodyl in neat methanol is increased from 5.507 to 44.86 to 10-4 when the temperature rose from 278.15 to 323.15 K, whereas it climbed from 1.134 to 17.94 to 10-4 in neat isopropanol. The solubility variation is mostly caused by solvent–solvent interactions, which are explained by the solubility parameter, and solute–solvent interactions, which are explained by the dipolarity-polarizability of the solute. Three models—the Jouyban-Acree model, the modified van't Hoff-Jouyban-Acree-model, and the modified Wilson model were used to analyze the connection between solubility and experimental temperature and cosolvent composition, producing the largest relative average deviation of 9.41%. At temperatures between 293.15 K and 313.15 K, the preferred solvation of bisacodyl was examined using a method based on inverse Kirkwood-Buff integrals. The preferred solvation parameters of bisacodyl had positive values in the medium and rich concentrations of isopropanol/NMP (taken from a published work)/methanol/ethanol, suggesting that bisacodyl was preferentially solvated by these solvents. A quartic polynomial formulation of the interaction term as a function of the Hildebrand solubility parameter using an EHSA was used to accurately describe the solubility of bisacodyl in the four solutions. The dissolution of bisacodyl was entropy-driven process in all solvent mixtures.

Experimental study on combustion and emission characteristics of ethanol-gasoline blends in a high compression ratio SI engine

The utilization of spark induced compression ignition (SICI) is a proven method to extend the operation load range, improve thermal efficiency as well as ensure robust control of the combustion process of homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI). However, negative valve overlap (NVO), intake-charge heating, and other methods of achieving SICI and the knock occurrence limit its load range and industrialization. In this paper, the effects of ethanol blending with different excess air ratios (λ) on the knock and combustion characteristics, output power, indicated thermal efficiency (ITE), and emissions were investigated in a high compression ratio (CR), single-cylinder, four-stroke SICI engine. The experimental results show that weak stratification increases the knock intensity, while strong stratification suppresses knock tendency at the stoichiometric ratio. Ethanol addition can suppress knock tendency, reduce the randomness of knock and improve the combustion stability. In comparison with pure gasoline, the IMEP and ITE of E100 increase by 6.3–15.1% and 6.8–9.1% at different λ, respectively. For conditions with low ethanol blending ratio (such as 0% or 10%) and λ with 1.0 or 1.2, knock is the limitation to further improve its thermal efficiency, while fuel economy is more affected by the overall combustion phase with an increase in ethanol blending ratio and λ. There exists a non-monotonic correlation between the NOx, THC, and CO emissions and the ethanol blending ratio due to the competing effects of oxygen-containing properties, higher latent heat of evaporation (LHE), intake-charge cooling effect, and higher combustion temperature. Ethanol blending, except for E100, does not exhibit the PN reduction tendency. Knock deteriorates PN emissions, especially in nucleation mode, and ethanol blending shifts its size distribution towards nucleation mode.

Ethanol blending in petrol: A techno - commercial overview

Due to fast depletion of fossil fuels, there is a need to explore ways to circumvent or to reduce their use. Largely populated countries like India need to be more concerned about this. In the last decade, India started blending ethyl alcohol (ethanol, EtOH) in petrol (gasoline). Presently Indian petrol suppliers blend about 10 % EtOH by volume, which is expected to rise to 20 % by 2024. Like any engineering solution, ethanol blending is accompanied by own merits and demerits. This review aims at assessing the effect of ethanol blending in spark ignition internal combustion engines based on technical and commercial aspects. Effect of EtOH blending on the engine performance and emission has been discussed in detail. Various parameters related to fuel quality like the concentration of EtOH present and the amount of water present - which affect the performance - are also discussed. EtOH blending affects the emission and compatibility issues might arise which is discussed. Routes of production of EtOH may change the techno - commercial aspects of any process. This aspect is discussed along with the amount of EtOH blended, since this may help in shaping up the future policy decisions. Contradictions and gaps are highlighted to provide a direction for future studies. Indian and global scenario is also discussed to a considerable detail.

Reduction in automotive emissions by ethanol blending in SI engine: A review

Stricter emissions norms and poor air quality resulted in the searching for eco-friendly fuels for automobiles. Fossil fuel burning is the major cause of pollutants such as nitrogen oxide (NOX), hydrocarbon (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2) and particulate matter (PM). Ethanol is one of the best feasible alternative energy sources out of the eco-friendly fuels available for use in automobiles. Ethanol can be blended and used in conventional gasoline engines with ease. Ethanol blending is achieved at various percentages to analyze the effect on exhaust emission constituents. Results depicted that ethanol-blended gasoline can reduce PM, CO and HC emissions significantly while variations are visible in case of NOX and CO2 emissions.

Emissions of PAHs, Nitro-PAHs and Quinones (Oxy-PAHs) Associated to PM1.0 and PM2.5 Emitted by a Diesel Engine Fueled with Diesel-Biodiesel-Ethanol Blends

Emissions of PAH, nitro-PAHs, and oxy-PAHs from a diesel engine fueled with diesel-biodiesel-ethanol blends need to be controlled and reduced, as they are unregulated emissions harmful to the environment and human health. The objective of this work was to investigate the effect of ethanol concentration on diesel engine emissions when fueled with diesel–biodiesel–ethanol blends. Ethanol was added with biodiesel–diesel blends. Diesel B7 and two ternary blends, B7E3 and B7E10, with 3% and 10% ethanol, were tested and studied in a diesel engine to determine engine performance characteristics and particulate matter emissions and to quantify polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) associated with PM1.0 and PM2.5. Under the same engine conditions, 18 PAHs, 27 nitro-PAHs, and 6 quinones (oxy-PAHs) were determined by GC–MS in real samples obtained from the engine. The mean concentrations of PACs found in the B7, B7E3, and B7E10 blends for PM1.0 ranged from 0.1 µg m−3 (coronene) to 118.1 µg m−3 (2-nitrofluorene). The concentrations for PM2.5 ranged from 0.1 µg m−3 (acenaphthylene) to 99.7 µg m−3 (2-nitrofluorene). Potent mutagens benzanthrone (BA) and 3-nitrobenzanthrone (3-NBA) were found at concentrations ranging from 0.10 µg m−3 to 1.9 µg m−3 and 0.3 µg m−3 to 1.6 µg m−3, respectively. Low molecular weight (LMW) PAHs were mainly PACs bounded to the PM1.0 and PM2.5 particles emitted by B7E10. Flow properties were improved by adding 3% and 10% ethanol to biodiesel. B7E3 and B7E10 blends presented low fuel consumption and a reduction in the emission factor (EF) by the engine. B7E10 blending showed a smaller total concentration of ∑PAH (26.8 µg m−3), ∑nitro-PAH (85.4 µg m−3), and ∑oxy-PAH (6.0 µg m−3) associated with PM2.5 particles compared PM1.0.

Investigation on performance, combustion and emission characteristics of biodiesel - Ethanol blends with hydrogen in CI engine

The current research work focus on the utilization of hydrogen as a fuel in CI engine has been increased tremendously, since it is a zero-emission fuel. But higher self-ignition temperature than conventional fuel, makes to operate in dual fuel mode condition in CI engine. The diesel or biodiesel along with hydrogen in a CI engine results in the improvement in the performance but increase of NO. In order to minimize the NO emission, addition of ethanol with jamun B20 biodiesel blend (biodiesel-diesel-ethanol) and two ternary blends such as B20E05 and B20E10 are formed. In the present study, biodiesel along with H2 is admitted in the CI engine. Ethanol addition reduces combustion temperature and act as cetane improver for the biodiesel. This induces better combustion of the fuel and reduce NO. The biodiesel production from jamun seed is carried out through transesterification process. H2 of 4 lpm is allowed at the air inlet and jamun B20 blend is injected through the fuel injector. Improvement of brake thermal efficiency and increase in the NO are observed for the hydrogen with biodiesel operated CI engine. The performance and emission behaviors of CI engine done for the test samples. At full load condition (ternary blend) B20E05 assisted H2 shows the drastic reduction of NO emission of 8.2% than B20 assist H2 blend. In other hand emission like hydrocarbon, carbon monoxide and smoke opacity show a notable reduction for B20E05 blend assist H2 than other test sample fuel. The thermal efficiency is 30.98% for B20E05 assist H2 and it is 7.55% and 4.7% higher than B20 and B20E05 assist H2 blend respectively.

A study on the effect of hydrogen enriched intake air on the characteristics of a diesel engine fueled with ethanol blended diesel

This work aims to replace conventional diesel fuel with low and no carbon fuels like ethanol and hydrogen to reduce the harmful emission that causes environmental degradation. Pursuant to this objective, this study investigated the performance, combustion, and emission characteristics of the diesel engine operated on dual fuel mode by ethanol-diesel blends with H2 enriched intake air at different engine loads with a constant engine speed of 1500 rpm. The results were compared to sole diesel operation with and without H2 enrichment. The ethanol/diesel was blended in v/v ratios of 5, 10, and 15% and tested in a diesel engine along with a 9 lpm H2 flow rate at the intake manifold. The results revealed that 10% ethanol with 9 lpm H2 combination gives the maximum brake thermal efficiency, which is 1% and 4.8% higher than diesel with and without H2 enrichment, respectively. The brake specific fuel consumption of the diesel-ethanol blends with H2 flow increased with increasing ethanol ratio in the blend. When the ethanol ratio increased from 5 to 10%, in-cylinder pressure and heat release rate were increased, whereas HC, CO, and NOx emissions were decreased. At maximum load, the CO and HC emission of 10% ethanol blend with 9 lpm H2 case decreased by about 50% and 28.7% compared to sole diesel. However, NOx emission of the same blend was 11.4% higher than diesel. From the results, the study concludes that 10% ethanol blended diesel with a 9 lpm H2 flow rate at the intake port is the best dual-fuel mode combination that gives the best engine characteristics with maximum diesel replacement.

To Study the Influence of Ethanol and EGR on Engine Performance and Emissions by the Integration of Taguchi and RSM for an Engine Fuelled with CAOME.

With the rise in fossil fuel consumption rate, depletion in reserves and stringent pollution norms resulted in search of renewable and carbon neutral fuel. Ethanol is one such fuel that can be obtained from various feedstock’s including grains and green matter with high starch and sugar content such as corn, sugar cane and sugar beets. Even castor oil methyl esters which is non-edible in nature also fulfils the requirement of fuel for internal combustion engine. The traditional experimental scheme requires more time for optimization and extensive experiments need to perform as it is possible to vary only one parameter at a time. This also result in increase in cost and it doesn’t provide interactive effect among the chosen variables. Mathematical models of Taguchi method using design of experiments (DOE) provide good results. By using DOE, Taguchi L27 orthogonal array is considered. Analysis of variance (ANOVA), Regression Equation and signal-to-noise (S/ N) ratio are obtained to predict the optimal parameters and to evaluate the influence of significant conditions on performance, emission and combustion characteristics. It is observed from the experiments that ethanol blend percentage and EGR influences on the output parameters.

Auto-ignition propensity of ethanol-, isobutanol-, and 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol-gasoline blends under premixed prevaporized conditions in a spark-ignition engine

The effects of alcohol addition to gasoline on knock-limited operation were studied in an internal combustion engine. Ethanol, isobutanol (2-methyl-1-propanol), and methylbutenol (2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol) were splash-blended with a gasoline blendstock for oxygenate blending (BOB) and supplied to the engine in a well-mixed gaseous state. By operating the engine in this way, the chemical anti-knock properties of the fuel could be studied without including physical effects such as evaporative cooling. Each alcohol was blended with the BOB to make three blends. Ethanol was blended at 10, 20, and 30% by volume (E10, E20, and E30). Isobutanol and methylbutenol blends were matched to ethanol on an oxygen weight percentage basis resulting in blends of 16, 32, and 49% (I16, I32, and I49) and 18, 37, and 56% (M18, M37, and M56) by volume for isobutanol and methylbutenol, respectively. Additional fuels tested for reference included the neat BOB, a Tier 3 E10 emissions certification gasoline as well as primary reference fuels (PRF) with octane ratings of 87 (PRF87) and 100 (PRF100). The engine was operated at a fixed speed and stoichiometric equivalence ratio while knock-limited spark advance was located across a range of loads. At low blend levels, ethanol and methylbutenol blends exhibited similar knock-limited combustion phasing, slightly advanced from isobutanol. At mid-blend levels, the difference in combustion phasing of methylbutenol and ethanol over isobutanol increased further. At the highest blend level, ethanol and isobutanol showed approximately equal performance. Conversely, methylbutenol was able to operate at significantly advanced combustion phasing relative to the other two alcohols. At loads above 900 kPa gross indicated mean effective pressure (GIMEP), M56 exceeded the knock-limited combustion phasing of PRF100. The overall results of this study show that when compared on an oxygen weight percent basis, the order of chemical auto-ignition resistance for the three alcohols is isobutanol < ethanol < methylbutenol, with methylbutenol matching or exceeding ethanol’s knock-limited performance across the load range tested.

Investigating the Effect of a Diesel-Refined Crude Palm Oil Methyl Ester-Hydrous Ethanol Blend on the Performance and Emissions of an Unmodified Direct Injection Diesel Engine.

In this research, the optimum condition for the production of refined crude palm oil methyl ester from refined crude palm oil was investigated using the response surface method via the transesterification reaction in a batch process. The refined crude palm oil was obtained by vacuum distillation of crude palm oil to extract some of the free fatty acids from the oil, providing nutritional benefits and reducing the chemical consumption of the production process. The purity of methyl ester in the refined crude palm oil methyl ester was studied to adjust four independent variables: methanol content (11-23 vol %), concentration of potassium hydroxide (4-12 g/L), stirrer speed (100-500 rpm), and reaction time (9-45 min). The results showed that methyl ester had a purity of 96.91 wt % when synthesized under optimal conditions of 18.2 vol % methanol, a potassium hydroxide concentration of 10.0 g/L, a stirring speed of 380 rpm, and a reaction time of 36.4 min at 60 °C. Refined crude palm oil methyl ester was blended with diesel and ethanol to study the feasibility of using the diesel-refined crude palm oil methyl ester-hydrous ethanol blend in an unmodified diesel engine. A comparative study of fuel properties, emissions, and performance of the diesel-refined crude palm oil methyl ester-ethanol blend was used to assess the feasibility of fuel blends (D40RM50E10, D30RM60E10, D20RM70E10, and D10RM80E10) in diesel engines at various engine speeds and loads. The results showed that the D40RM50E10 blend provided the closest performance to diesel and was environmentally friendly, as it provided nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide emissions 32 and 55% lower than those with diesel, respectively. The test results indicated that the diesel-refined crude palm oil methyl ester-hydrous ethanol blend is an attractive alternative fuel in agricultural engines that reduces diesel consumption and benefits farmers and rural communities.

Modeling of combustion and emissions behavior on the effect of ethanol–gasoline blends in a four stroke SI engine

Researchers are increasingly coming up with creative solutions to reduce fuel consumption and harmful emissions due to the political unrest around crude oil and harsher environmental legislation around the globe. Using gasoline and ethanol blends as substitutes in SI engines is thought to be a promising approach. To lower the cost of experimental test, it is still necessary to provide a model to explore the emissions, performance and combustion of ethanol mixtures in petrol engine under various operating situations. A comprehensive quasi dimensional two zone model was used. This mathematical model could predict and analyze the engine combustion, emissions and performance parameters using MATLAB. The thermal efficiency was improved for E20 by 3%. Ethanol addition decreased SFC value by average 7.2% for E20 with respect to gasoline. In comparison to gasoline, the increases in output power were 1.1%, 3%, 4%, and 5.5% are obtained with E5, E10, E15, and E20. and 45% The highest increases in peak cylinder pressure and cylinder temperature for E20 about gasoline are 14 and 11%, respectively about gasoline. At 2500 rpm, the greatest percentage declines in NOx, CO, and HC emissions for E20 are 3.3, 23.5 and 45% about gasoline. The results of comparing the mathematical model’s validity to those acquired from experimental data and diesel RK software demonstrate that the MATLAB code is appropriate. The mathematical model proved that ethanol blending can be used up to 20% as alternative fuels to improve the gasoline engine performance, combustion and emissions.

Road map for ethanol blending &amp; prospective scope towards sustainable development in Indian scenario

Road map for ethanol blending &amp; prospective scope towards sustainable development in Indian scenario

Combustion and emission characterization of upgraded biomass fast pyrolysis oil in a swirl burner

Fast pyrolysis oil (FPO, also called bio-oil) is a biofuel made from thermal decomposition of renewable or waste biomass. However, the physiochemical properties of FPO have limited its widespread use in combustion applications. In this study, the impacts of FPO upgrading with multi-stage condensation, catalytic pyrolysis with ZSM-5, and ethanol blending were studied through characterization of physiochemical properties and combustion in a swirl burner. A commercially available FPO sample (COMM) and diesel were used to benchmark the upgraded FPO samples. The non-catalytic FPO (NC) sample produced with multi-stage condensation had 9.0wt% less oxygen and an HHV 2.2 MJ/kg higher than COMM. The FPO produced using ZSM-5 catalyst (CAT) had 19.0wt% less oxygen, an HHV greater by 7.4 MJ/kg, and lower viscosity than COMM. The CAT sample also had fewer low-molecular-weight compounds, showing a peak mass loss rate 70 °C higher than NC. The NC and CAT samples were also blended with 10vol% ethanol, which had minor effects on the measured physiochemical properties aside from improving volatility. Combustion was evaluated by measuring unburned hydrocarbon, CO, NOx, and particulate matter exhaust concentrations from a swirl burner as well as through flame visualization. Combustion of neat NC was stable, although compared to COMM, CO was ∼2-times higher and NOx was ∼2-times lower. In contrast, the CAT flame was unstable, resulting in the highest CO concentrations overall. Blending NC and CAT with 10vol% ethanol resulted in lower CO concentrations (NC: 88% less, CAT: 96% less) and higher NOx (NC: 2-times, CAT: 1.4-times) compared to neat FPO. Although catalytic upgrading and multi-stage condensation improved HHV, oxygen content, and viscosity, changes to these properties did not improve combustion performance. Ethanol blending emphasized the outsize role of volatility in improving furnace combustion relative to other measured physiochemical properties as reflected by the improved flame stability and exhaust composition.

An Experimental Investigation on the Characteristics of a Compression Ignition Engine Fuelled by Diesel-Palm Biodiesel–Ethanol/Propanol Based Ternary Blends

Issues such as rising fuel prices, fuel costs, and lowering reserves highlight the importance of research into sustainable fuels derived from biological sources. This study is focused on experiments on a CI engine using ethanol and propanol-based ternary blends. Palm biodiesel is kept constant at 40% volumetric concentration, while diesel and ethanol/propanol are varied in different batches. The results obtained with ternary blends were compared with reference fuel diesel, pure palm biodiesel, and a palm biodiesel–diesel binary blend. The ternary blends exhibit lower brake thermal efficiency and higher brake specific energy consumption than diesel and binary blends due to their lower calorific value. Despite in-fuel oxygen presence, lower brake specific oxides of nitrogen and smoke opacity were observed for engine operation with a ternary blend due to the predominant role of higher latent heat of vaporization and volatility of alcohols, but unburned hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions increased due to the interactive effect of a lower cetane number, higher latent heat of vaporization, and lower kinematic viscosity of alcohols when compared to reference fuels. Among the tested fuels, in-cylinder pressure was observed to decrease with ternary blends due to their lower calorific value, but a raised heat release rate was attributed to lower viscosity and faster burning of alcohols.