An experimental investigation of the performance and gaseous exhaust emissions of a diesel engine using blends of a vegetable oil

Experimental tests have been carried out to evaluate the performance and gaseous emission characteristics of a diesel engine when fuelled with vegetable oil and its blends of 25%, 50%, and 75% of vegetable oil with ordinary diesel fuel separately. Tests on ordinary diesel fuel have also been carried out for comparison purposes. A series of tests are conducted and repeated six times for each of the test fuels. The engine works at a fixed speed of 1500 rpm, but at different loads respectively, i.e. 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% of engine full loads. The performance and the emission characteristics of exhaust gases of the engine are analyzed and compared. The experimental results show that the basic engine performance – power output and fuel consumption are comparable to diesel when fueled with vegetable oil and its blends. The emission of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from vegetable oil and its blends are lower than that of pure diesel fuel. This emission character found in the tests to some extent is of significance for the practical application of vegetable oil to replace ordinary diesel fuel. The results for the other emissions are also shown in the figures and tables.