Investigation effect of hydrogen addition on the performance and exhaust emissions of Pongamia pinnata biodiesel fueled compression ignition engine

In the recent decades, the energy demand for transport and industrial sector has increased considerably. Fossil fuels which were the major fuel source for decades are no more sustainable. Biodiesel is an efficient alternative compared to depleting fossil fuels. The prospect of biodiesel as the best alternative fuel is a reliable source compared to depleting fossil fuels. Hydrogen is also considered as an attractive alternative fuel producing low emission with improved engine performance. This paper investigates the performance and emission characteristics of a single cylinder compression ignition engine using hydrogen as an inducted fuel and biodiesel, aka Pongamia pinnata as injected fuel. The experiments are conducted for different quantities of hydrogen induction through the intake manifold in order to improve the performance of the engine. The performance parameters such as brake thermal efficiency, brake specific fuel consumption, exhaust temperature and emission quantities like HC, NO_X, CO, CO₂ of biodiesel fueled CI engine with variable mass flow rate of hydrogen are investigated. The performances of biodiesel combined with hydrogen at varying mass flow rates are also compared. The 10 LPM hydrogen induction with biodiesel provided 0.33% increase of brake thermal efficiency compared with diesel and increase of 3.24% to biodiesel at 80% loading conditions. The emission of HC decreased by 13 ppm, CO decreased by 0.02% by volume and CO₂ decreased by 3.8% by volume for biodiesel with induction of hydrogen at 10 LPM to that of neat biodiesel for 80% load conditions.     

Experimental investigation on the performance and emission characteristics of a diesel engine by varying the injection pressure and injection timing using mixed biodiesel

Biodiesel is a promising fuel for compression ignition engines instead of diesel fuel. Due to the depletion of diesel fuel, an alternative fuel can be used in an engine. The experiments were conducted on a four-stroke, single cylinder CI engine. In this present investigation, an attempt has been made to study the influence of injection pressure (IP) and injection timing (IT) on the performance and emission characteristics of diesel engines by using mixed biodiesel (Thevetia peruviana, Jatropha, Pongamia, and Azadirachta indica). The injection pressure is varied from 200 to 230 bar and the injection timing is varied from 23 to 29° bTDC at an increment of 10 bar and 2° bTDC, respectively, and the results were compared with diesel. From this study, the results showed that the brake thermal efficiency (BTE) was increased by 2.4% with an increase in injection pressure and 1.5% with an increase in the injection timing for the maximum load, but lesser than diesel. Furthermore, a reduction of 5.08% of brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC) has been noticed for the rise in IP and IT with loads but higher than diesel. The reduction was 34.17%, 53.85%, and 29.7% and 29.17%, 53.85%, and 21.95% of hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and smoke emissions, respectively, at 230 bar injection pressure and at 27° bTDC injection timing. Also, a significant increase in nitrogen oxides (NO_x) and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions at the maximum load was observed by increasing the injection pressure and injection timing.     

A numerical study on the effects of EGR and spark timing to combustion characteristics and NOx emission of a GDI engine

EGR is one of the most significant strategies for reducing especially nitrogen oxides (NO_x) emissions from internal combustion engines. The thermal efficiency of spark ignition engines is lower than compression ignition engines because of its lower compression ratio. If the compression ratio is increased to obtain higher thermal efficiency, there may be a knocking tendency in spark ignition engines. EGR can be used in order to reduce NO_x emissions and avoid knocking phenomena at higher compression ratios. In-cylinder temperature at the end of combustion is decreased and heat capacity of fresh charge is increased when EGR applied. Besides EGR, spark timing is another significant parameter for reducing exhaust emissions such as nitrogen oxides, and unburned hydrocarbon (UHC). In this study the effects of EGR and spark timing on spark ignition engine were investigated numerically. KIVA codes were used in order to model combustion process. The combustion process has been modeled for a single cylinder, four stroke and gasoline direct injection (GDI) spark ignition engine. The results showed that in-cylinder pressure and heat release rate decrease as EGR ratio increase. In-cylinder pressure increases with the advancing of spark timing. Advancing spark timing increases the heat release rate and in-cylinder temperature. The simulation results also showed that EGR reduced exhaust gas temperature and NO_x emissions.     

Analysis of emission reduction in ethyne–biodiesel-aspirated diesel engine

The present experimental work investigates the use of ethyne gas in biodiesel-fueled diesel engine at different flow rate of 1, 2, and 3 L/min and is compared with diesel operation. This work is aimed to examine the outcome of ethyne gas by dual-fuel operation on emission characteristics of neat biodiesel-fueled stationary diesel engine. The oil derived from mustard seeds are employed as a source for biodiesel. The work was carried out at 2100 rpm (speed) and at an optimal compression ratio of 17. Based on the outcome of this investigation, the maximum reduction in hydrocarbon (25.1%), carbon monoxide (17.24%), and smoke emission (24.8%) was observed for biodiesel–ethyne at 3 L/min than the neat biodiesel. However, NO_x emissions were found to be 15.8% higher for ethyne–biodiesel fueling at 3 L/min owing to increase in combustion gas temperature than neat biodiesel.     

An experimental apparatus for testing biodiesels based on a CFR engine—setup and validation with different methyl ester blends

A cooperative fuel research (CFR) engine was modified and instrumented in order to control operating conditions and to measure engine parameters and in-cylinder pressure diagrams. Aiming at the comparison of different alternative fuels, an experimental procedure was defined, including cetane number (CN) evaluation and the definition of engine operating quantities in different working points, for fixed levels of compression ratio (CR) and injection advance. An investigation was made considering several blends of methyl-esters of rapeseed oil (RME) and of a mix of vegetable oils (VOME) with conventional diesel oil. The defined experimental procedure was applied to assess CN, engine brake thermal efficiency (bte) and exhaust emissions. Results show that the biodiesel content has a positive influence on soot emissions, with strong reduction, while thermal efficiency and NO_X emissions are negatively affected, which can be justified taking into account fuel properties and changes in combustion process. As observed outcomes are generally in line with those presented in literature, the facility proved to be a suitable tool for basic investigations on alternative fuels to be used in specific applications.     

Experimental investigations on direct injection diesel engines using grape seed oil methyl ester with different bowl geometries

In this paper, the performance of direct injection diesel engine was experimentally investigated under the influence of two different pistons’s geometry deep bowl combustion chamber (DBCC) and toroidal combustion chamber (TCC) compared with standard piston combustion chamber (SPCC) geometry. The experiments were carried out standard atmospheric conditions of 1.01325 bar and 30 ± 2 °C. The piston bowl was designed and developed without modifying the compression ratio of the engine. The investigations were carried out with B25 (25% GOME + 75% diesel), B50 (50% GOME + 50% diesel), B75 (75% GOME +25% diesel) and B100 (100% GOME) by volume blends for three different bowl geometries. The thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was given the importance of higher in-cylinder temperature for the mass change of GOME leads to a more premixed phase of combustion. The results showed that DBCC has better combustion characteristics when compared with SPCC and TCC for all the blends. The B25 and B50 blends showed good combustion characteristics with DBCC and SPCC individually. While TCC showed average engine characteristics for all the blends categorically, the brake thermal efficiency for B25 blend confirmed a 4.7% higher than SPCC-diesel with DBCC piston, and the smoke, CO (Carbon monoxide), and HC (Hydrocarbon) are reduced by 9.2%, 30.7%, and 4.6%, respectively. Thus, the B25 blend in a DBCC piston engine was observed to be the distinction than other configurations. The results confirmed that the DBCC is a good option for B25 blend.     

Effects of thermal barrier coating on the performance and combustion characteristics of a diesel engine fueled with biodiesel produced from waste frying cottonseed oil and ultra-low sulfur diesel

In this study, the top surfaces of piston and valves of a four-strokes and direct-injection diesel engine have been coated—with no change in the compression ratio—with a 100 μm of NiCrAl lining layer via plasma spray method and this layer has later been coated with main coating material with a mixture of 88% of ZrO₂, 4% of MgO and 8% of Al₂O₃ (400 μm). Then, after the engine-coating process, ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) as base fuels and its blend with used frying cottonseed oil derived biodiesel in proportion of 20%, volumetrically, have been tested in the coated engine and data of combustion and performance characteristics on full load and at different speeds have been noted. The results, which were compared with those obtained by uncoated-engine operation, showed that thermal efficiency increased, and engine noise reduced. Cylinder gas pressure values obtained from the diesel engine which has been coated with thermal barriers have been found to be somewhat higher than those of the uncoated-engine. Also, maximum pressure values measured in both engines and under the same experimental conditions through the use of test fuel have been obtained after TDC. Moreover, heat release rate and heat release have occurred earlier in the coated-engine. NOx emissions were increased while CO and HC emissions were remained almost the same with a little bit decrease.     

Engine Performance and Emission Characteristics of Plastic Oil Produced from Waste Polyethylene and Its Blends with Diesel Fuel

The overall objective of this study was to explore the utility of waste plastics as a potential source of diesel fuel. An experimental study was conducted to evaluate the use of various blends of plastic oil produced from waste polyethylene (WPE) with diesel fuel (D). WPE was degraded thermally and catalytically using sodium aluminum silicate as a catalyst. The oil collected at optimum conditions (414°C–480°C range and 1 h reaction time) was fractionated at different temperatures and fuel properties of the fractions were measured. Plastic oil was blended with diesel fuel at the volumetric ratios of 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 100%. Fuel properties of blends are found comparable with those of diesel fuel within the EN 590 Diesel Fuel standard and they can also be used as fuel in compression ignition engines without any modification. Engine performance and exhaust emission studies of 5% WPE-D (WPE5) blend were performed. Experimental results showed that carbon monoxide (CO) emission is decreased by 20.63%, carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission is increased by 3.34%, and oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) emission is increased by 9.17% with WPE-D (WPE5) blend compared to diesel fuel.     

Impact of various blends of Mimusops elengi methyl esters on performance and emission characteristics of a diesel engine

The basic objective of the research work was to study the effect of various blends of Mimusops elangi methyl ester (MEME) on engine performance, combustion, and emission characteristics of a single-cylinder direct-injection compression ignition engine, running at constant speed. The raw oil was extracted from Mimusops elangi seeds through mechanical crusher. The neat MEME was obtained through transesterification process and mixed with diesel in versatile proportions of 10% of MEME (10% MEME–90% Diesel), 20% of MEME(20% MEME–80% Diesel), 30% of MEME(30% MEME–70% Diesel), 40% of MEME(40% MEME–60% Diesel), and 100% MEME on a volume basis. Their properties were validated based on ASTM standards. Experimental investigation revealed that the 20% blend resulted in 4.18%, 5.12% more prominent performance characteristics of brake thermal efficiency, brake specific energy consumption, and superior emission diminution of 5.26% of HC, 16.6% of CO, 6.2% of smoke when compared with base diesel fuel, despite marginal penalty of 5.26% of carbon dioxide and 4.8% of oxides of nitrogen emission at full load condition. Characteristics of combustion parameters like pressure inside the cylinder and rate of the heat released were superior for 20% blend of MEME at the peak load condition.     

Ignition advancement study for optimized characteristics of a raw biogas operated spark ignition engine

In the current investigation, raw biogas obtained from rural sectors was used as the alternative to gasoline fuel in the spark ignition (SI) engine. The performance and efficiency are mainly dependent on the combustion phasing for which “ignition timing” is an effective tool in a SI engine. Hence, the objective of the present work is to understand the effect of “variable ignition timing” for a biogas-fueled SI engine. For this purpose, a single cylinder, 4-stroke, SI engine of rated power 4.5 kW was operated with raw biogas at a compression ratio (CR) of 10. By maintaining a speed of 1650 rpm, the engine was operated in wide open (WOT) and part throttle (PT) mode with an equivalence ratio of 0.81 and 0.83, respectively. It was observed that the biogas fueled SI engine was found to be operative only within the ignition advance (IA) range of 33–47° CA bTDC both in WOT and PT conditions. The results showed optimal brake power (BP), brake thermal efficiency (BTE) and brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC) are achieved at 45° CA bTDC. The average peak cylinder pressure, neat heat release rate (NHRR) and mean gas temperature (MGT) are also observed to be maximum while CO and HC emission at this point of IA were found to be minimum. Due to controlled and complete combustion, CO₂ and NO_x concentration in the exhaust emission were found to be higher at this point of ignition timing.     

Estimating Relevance of Organic Carbon,Nitrogen, and Phosphorus Loads to a Blackwater River Estuary1

Abstract: In blackwater river estuaries, a large portion of external carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus load are combined in complex organic molecules of varying recalcitrance. Determining their lability is essential to establishing the relationship between anthropogenic loads and eutrophication. A method is proposed in which organic C, N, and P are partitioned into labile and refractory forms, based upon first‐order decay estimated by biochemical oxygen demand relative to total organic carbon, and C:N and C:P ratios as a function of organic carbon lability. The technique was applied in developing total maximum daily loads for the lower St. Johns, a blackwater Atlantic coastal plain river estuary in Northeast Florida. Point source organic nutrients were determined to be largely labile. Urban runoff was found to have the highest relative labile organic N and P content, followed by agricultural runoff. Natural forest and silviculture runoff were high in refractory organic N and P. Upstream labile C, N, and P loads were controlled by autochthonous production, with 34‐50% of summer total labile carbon imported as algal biomass. Differentiation of labile and refractory organic forms suggests that while anthropogenic nutrient enrichment has tripled the total nitrogen load, it has resulted in a 6.7‐fold increase in total labile nitrogen load.     

Usability of food industry waste oils as fuel for diesel engines

Two cogeneration units were each fitted with a prechamber (IDI) diesel engine in order to test the feasibility of using waste oils from the food industry as a fuel source, and additionally to test emissions generated by the combustion of these fuels. Esterified waste oils and animal fats as well as mustard oil were tested and compared to the more or less "common" fuels: diesel, rapeseed oil and rapeseed methyl ester. The results show that, in principle, each of these fuels is suitable for use in a prechamber diesel engine. Engine performance can be maintained at a constant level. Without catalytic conversion, the nitrogen oxides emissions were comparable. A significant reduction in NO(x) was achieved through the injection of urea. Combining a urea injection with the SCR catalytic converter reduced NO(x) emissions between 53% and 67%. The carbon monoxide emissions from waste oils are not significantly different from those of "common" fuels and can be reduced the same way as of hydrocarbon emissions, through utilization of a catalytic converter. The rate of carbon monoxide reduction by catalytic conversion was 84-86%. A lower hydrocarbon concentration was associated with fuels of agricultural origin. With the catalytic converter a reduction of 29-42% achieved. Each prechamber diesel engine exhibited its own characteristic exhaust, which was independent of fuel type. The selective catalytic reduction of the exhaust emissions can be realized without restriction using fuels of agricultural origin.     

The Thermodynamic Performance of a Double-Acting Traveling-Wave Thermoacoustic Engine with Liquid-Water Piston

A double-acting traveling-wave thermoacoustic engine with liquid-water piston (DTTELP) was proposed by the authors. This article conducted numerical simulation on its performance for the cases of with and without acoustical loads. The effects of mean working pressure and water-piston mass on its non-load performance were firstly discussed. Then, the output performance of this novel thermoacoustic engine under fixed heating temperature was analyzed. Also, influences of different heating temperatures on the performance of this engine were discussed. According to the simulation, the novel double-acting thermoacoustic heat engine (TTHE) is very efficient and a maximum thermal efficiency can reach about 51% when the heating temperature is 1500 K.     

Experimental investigation on engine performances,combustion characteristics and emission of exhaust gases of VCR engine fuelled with cottonseed oil methyl ester blended with diesel

This research work investigates the engine performances, combustion characteristics, and emission of exhaust gases of variable compression ratio engine fuelled with cottonseed oil methyl ester (COME) and diesel at different blends. The analysis showed that heat release rate and cylinder pressure is higher for diesel than COME blends. Higher BTE is obtained at the maximum load condition. The higher BTE and lower SFC are obtained for blend B15 as 42.17% and 0.2 kg/kW-hr at brake mean effective pressure (BMEP) of 4.64 bar. Also it is found that the peak cylinder gas pressure and combustion duration increases when the BMEP increases. At the BMEP of 3.51 bar, higher HRR is observed as 18.12 J/deg. Increase in HRR is obtained as 6.07% for B30 at BMEP of 4.64 bar when compared to diesel. Ignition delay decreased by 13.16% for B100, by the increment of blend proportions when compared to diesel, at BMEP of 4.64 bar. Lower smoke, HC and CO emissions are observed when increasing the blend proportions, whereas the nitric oxide emissions increases due to the better combustion resulted in higher temperatures. At BMEP of 4.64 bar, the CO emissions are reduced to 25.24% for neat biodiesel when compared with the diesel.     

Investigation the effect of adding graphene oxide into diesel/higher alcohols blends on a diesel engine performance

ABSTRACT

This article aims to study the influence of the addition of graphene oxide nanoparticles (GO) to diesel/higher alcohols blends on the combustion, emission, and exergy parameters of a CI engine under various engine loads. The higher alcohols mainly n-butanol, n-heptanol, and n-octanol are blended with diesel at a volume fraction of 50%. Then, the 25 and 50 mg/L concentrations of GO are dispersed into diesel/higher alcohols blends using an ultrasonicator. The GO structures are examined using TEM, TGA, XRD and FTIR. The findings show that there is a reduction in p_max. and HRR when adding higher alcohols with diesel fuel. Regarding engine emission, there is a significant improvement in emissions formation with adding higher alcohols. The addition of GO into diesel/higher alcohols blends improves the brake thermal efficiency by 15%. Moreover, the p_max. and HRR are both enhanced by 4%. The CO, UHC and smoke formation are reduced considerably by 40%, 50 and 20%, respectively, while NO_x level is increased by 30% with adding GO. Finally, adding high percentages of n-butanol, n-heptanol, and n-octanol with diesel fuel with the presence of GO has the potential to achieve ultra-low CO, UHC, and smoke formation meanwhile keeping high thermal efficiency level.     

WATERSHED OPTIMIZATION OF AGRICULTURAL BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES: CONTINUOUS SIMULATION VERSUS DESIGN STORMS1

ABSTRACT: Nonpoint source (NPS) models and expert opinions are often used to prescribe best management practices (BMPs) for controlling NPS pollution. An optimization algorithm (e.g., a genetic algorithm, or GA) linked with a NPS model (e.g., Annualized AGricultural Nonpoint Source pollution model, or AnnAGNPS), can be used to more objectively prescribe BMPs and to optimize NPS pollution control measures by maximizing pollutant reduction and net monetary return from a watershed. Pollutant loads from design storms and annual loads from a continuous simulation can both be used for optimizing BMP schemes. However, which strategy results in a better solution (in terms of providing water quality protection) for a watershed is not clear. The specific objective of the study was to determine the differences in watershed pollutant loads, in an experimental watershed in Pennsylvania, resulting from optimization analyses performed using pollutant loads from a series of five 2‐yr 24‐hr storm events, a series of five 5‐yr 24‐hr storm events, and cumulative pollutant loads from a continuous simulation of five years of weather data. For each of these three different event alternatives, 100 near optimal solutions (BMP schemes) were generated. Sediment (Sed), sediment nitrogen (SedN), dissolved N (SolN), sediment organic carbon (SedOC), and sediment phosphorus (SedP) loads from a different five‐year period (an evaluation period) suggest that the optimal BMP schemes resulting from the use of annual cumulative pollutant loads from a continuous simulation of five years of weather data provide smaller cumulative NPS pollutant loads at the watershed outlet.     

Performance Enhancement of a Beta Type Rhombic Drive Stirling engine

ABSTRACT

Stirling engines maintain attraction because of their high energy conversion efficiencies. In this study, experimental comparison of a beta-type Stirling engine for two different rhombic-drive mechanisms was presented. In one of the rhombic mechanisms, spur gears were used and the gear shaft was supported in bearings from one side. In the other mechanism, two helical gears were placed on crankshafts and the crankshafts were supported in bearings from both sides. Rhombus lengths of the mechanisms were determined as 66 mm and 80 mm to provide same constant compression ratio of 2.5 for both configurations. Both mechanisms were used in the same beta-type Stirling engine having same cylinder, piston and displacer dimensions. Performance parameters of the engines were evaluated at different helium charge pressures (2–4 bar) and hot-end temperatures (400–600°C). The hot-end of the displacer cylinder was heated by a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) burner. The engine power increased by 132%, friction losses and gear noses were reduced by supporting the rhombic-drive mechanism from both side and using helical gears. The maximum output torque and power of the engine were obtained as 13.14 Nm at 428 rpm engine speed and 663 W at 800 rpm engine speed, respectively, at 600°C hot-end temperature and 4 bar charge pressure.     

Bio-Hydrogen Synthesis from Wastewater by Anaerobic Fermentation Using Microflora

Biological hydrogen production was investigated using biomass in palm oil mill effluent (POME) and artificial wastewater containing 10g glucose under anaerobic fermentation in a batch process. Activated POME sludge and different types of composts were collected as sources of inocula for the study. The anaerobic microflora was found to yield significant amounts of hydrogen. The experimental results show that the gas composition contained hydrogen (66–68%) and carbon dioxide (32–34%). Through out the study, methane gas was not observed in the evolved gas. The hydrogen production was accompanied with the formation of acetate and butyrate. Furthermore, the cumulative hydrogen data were fitted to a simple model developed from Gompertz Equation, where the lag phase time, hydrogen production potential and hydrogen production rate at various conditions were quantitatively estimated.     

ZrxMg1-xO supported cobalt catalysts for methane decomposition into COx-free hydrogen and carbon nanotubes

Zirconia-magnesia supported cobalt catalysts with various Zr/Mg atomic ratios were prepared and evaluated for non-oxidative catalytic decomposition of methane to produce CO_x-free hydrogen and carbon nanotube. The catalytic performance of the catalysts was performed in a continuous fixed bed flow reactor at 700°C under atmospheric pressure. The fresh and spent catalysts were characterized by XRD, TPR, BET, TEM, and Raman spectroscopy. The results showed that the change in Zr/Mg ratio of the mixed oxide support has a significant effect on the catalytic performance of the active Co metal. The catalyst 30%Co/Zr_0.8Mg_0.2 showed the highest activity and stability within the used series of catalysts with hydrogen yield reached up to 79%. Both Co/Mg_1.0 and Co/Zr_1.0 showed poor stability due to strong Co-Mg interaction and aggregation of Co species on Zr support, respectively. All catalysts produced mainly MWCNTs with different diameters depending on the Zr/Mg ratio. The outer diameter increased with increasing Zr content in the catalyst due to the enlargement of the particle size of cobalt as a result of aggregation.     

Performance of a diesel engine with water emulsified diesel prepared with optimized process parameters

An attempt has been made to produce stable water–diesel emulsion with optimal formulation and process parameters and to evaluate the performance and emission characteristics of diesel engine using this stable water–diesel emulsion. A total of 54 samples were prepared with varying water/diesel ratio, surfactant amount and stirring speed and water separation was recorded after 24 and 48 hr of emulsification. The recorded data were used in artificial neural network (ANN)-particle swarm optimization (PSO) technique to find the optimal parameters to produce water–diesel emulsion for engine testing. The predicted optimal parameters were found as 20% water to diesel ratio, 0.9% surfactant and 2200 rpm of stirrer for a water separation of 14.33% in one day with a variation of 6.54% against the actual value of water separation. Water–diesel emulsion fuel exhibited similar fuel properties as base fuel. The peak cylinder gas pressure, peak pressure rise rate and peak heat release rate for water–diesel were found higher as compared to diesel at medium to full engine loads. The improved air-fuel mixing in water–diesel emulsion enhanced brake thermal efficiency (BTE) of engine. The absorption of heat by water droplets present in water–diesel emulsion led to reduced exhaust gas temperature (EGT). With water–diesel emulsion fuel, the mean carbon monoxide (CO), unburned hydrocarbon and oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) emissions reduced by 8.80, 39.60, and 26.11%, respectively as compared to diesel.