Investigation of performance and environmental impact of diesel engine fuelled with biodiesel blend

Investigation of performance and environmental impact of diesel engine fuelled with biodiesel blend

Supervision team:

Assoc Prof Ibrahim Sultan, Dr Apurv Kumar, and Dr Truong Phung

Project outline:

The current reliance on innovative technologies in all aspects of life has pushed the world energy consumption to rates which are quickly depleting natural resources available to mankind.  In order to preserve these resources for future generations, developed countries are undertaking measures to decrease their dependence on fossil fuel and achieve a shift towards renewable and cleaner energy resources. This includes the utilisation of biodiesel and biodiesel blends in conventional diesel engines.

Since biodiesel is produced from various sources which include both food-crop and non-food-crop feedstock, the composition of biodiesel is therefore totally different from that of fossil diesel. Hence, it is important to investigate the effect of various biodiesel blends on the performance of diesel engines and the composition of the exhaust gases, i.e.: oxides of carbon (COx), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), unburned hydrocarbon, small particles, and other emission gases. This project will utilise various biodiesel blends and look at both the diesel engine performance and the composition of exhaust produced by such blends. The experimental work will be conducted on a rig available at the School of Science and Engineering.

This project aims to inform both biodiesel manufacturers and users the environmental impact of such a fuel and is expected to run in collaboration with local industrial partners who share our interest in this research project.