Use of Palm oil Biodiesel Blends as a Fuel for Compression Ignition Engine

Problem statement: The increasing awareness of the environmental hazards and the alarming levels of air pollution have led to more restrictive regulations on engines emission control in recent years. Approach: The dwindling resources and rising cost of crude oil had resulted in an intensified search for alternate fuels. In the present study biodiesel (palm oil methyl ester) blends with diesel was investigated in a direct injection stationary diesel engine. The stationary engine test bed used consists of a single-cylinder four stroke diesel engine, eddy current dynamometer with computer control data acquisition system and exhaust emissions analyzer. Results: Engine tests were conducted at constant speed using neat diesel fuel and various proportions of biodiesel blends. The exhaust emissions such as CO, HC and NOx were measured using exhaust gas analyzer. Performance characteristics like brake thermal efficiency and specific fuel consumption were recorded. The differences in the measured emissions and performance of the biodiesel-diesel fuel blends from the baseline operation of the engine, i.e., when working with neat diesel fuel were determined and compared. Conclusion: It is concluded that the lower blends of biodiesel increased the brake thermal efficiency and reduced the fuel consumption. Biodiesel blends produces lower engine emissions than diesel. From the result, it has been established that 20-40% of palm oil biodiesel can be use as a substitute for diesel without any engine modifications.