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Implementation of a Non-Surfactant Water-in-Diesel Emulsion Fuel in a Common Rail Direct Injection Diesel Vehicle

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Abstract

Water-in-diesel emulsion fuel has become a popular alternative fuel for diesel engines. The main limitation is related to its stability, whereby it relies heavily on surfactants to remain homogeneous, therefore causing production costs to rise. This paper highlights the application of real-time non-surfactant emulsion fuel supply system (RTES), a water/diesel emulsifying device without surfactants, to produce water-in-diesel emulsion fuel in a common rail direct injection diesel engine powered vehicle. In this study, RTES was installed near to the diesel fuel pump to ensure water-in-diesel emulsions were continuously fed to the engine. The test vehicle was set up on a roller dynamometer and operated following a modified West Virginia University (WVU) 5-Peak cycle. Fuel consumption and exhaust emissions were measured to determine the optimum water percentage of emulsion fuel and suitable timing for emulsion fuel to be introduced into the fuelling system based on the vehicle speed. The results revealed that the optimum water percentage of the emulsion fuel for the test vehicle is 10 wt%, as it was capable to reduce fuel consumption as well as nitrogen oxides and smoke emissions of a common rail direct injection diesel engine powered vehicle.

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Abbreviations

CO:

carbon monoxide

CO2 :

carbon dioxide

D2:

Malaysian low grade diesel Euro 2m

ECU:

engine control unit

E10:

10 wt% water-in-diesel

E15:

15 wt% water-in-diesel

E6.5:

6.5 wt% water-in-diesel

FTP:

federal test procedure

HC:

hydrocarbon

HWFET:

highway fuel economy test

NOx:

nitrogen oxides

OH:

hydroxide ion

RTES:

real-time non-surfactant emulsion fuel supply system

SUV:

sport utility vehicle

W/D:

water-in-diesel

WVU:

West Virginia University

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Acknowledgement

The authors would like to express their gratitude for the facilities provided by the Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT). Highest appreciation to the Ministry of Education Malaysia and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) for the financial support provided through the Transdisciplinary Research Grant (TDR) (Q.K130000.3543.05G08).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Advanced Vehicle System, Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Jalan Sultan Yahya Petra, Kuala Lumpur, 54100, Malaysia

    Hasbullah Abdul Rahman, Md. Mujibur Rahman, Wira Jazair Yahya, Tamanna E. Kaonain, Mohamad Qayyum Mohd Tamam, Ahmad Muhsin Ithnin & Fauzan Ahmad

  2. RTES Technology (M) Sdn. Bhd., Jalan Kebun, Klang Selangor, 41000, Malaysia

    Hasbullah Abdul Rahman

  3. College of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA Cawangan Johor, Kampus Pasir Gudang, Masai Johor, 81750, Malaysia

    Hasannuddin Abd Kadir

  4. School of Engineering and Physical Sciences, Heriot-Watt University Malaysia, Putrajaya, 62200, Malaysia

    Mohd Fareez Edzuan Abdullah

  5. Graduate School of Education, Okayama University, Okayama, 770-8530, Japan

    Hirofumi Noge

  6. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, 890-8580, Japan

    Chungpyo Hong, Takeshi Otaka & Eiji Kinoshita

Authors
  1. Hasbullah Abdul Rahman
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  2. Md. Mujibur Rahman
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  6. Mohamad Qayyum Mohd Tamam
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  7. Ahmad Muhsin Ithnin
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  8. Fauzan Ahmad
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  9. Mohd Fareez Edzuan Abdullah
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  10. Hirofumi Noge
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Correspondence to Wira Jazair Yahya.

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Abdul Rahman, H., Rahman, M.M., Yahya, W.J. et al. Implementation of a Non-Surfactant Water-in-Diesel Emulsion Fuel in a Common Rail Direct Injection Diesel Vehicle. Int.J Automot. Technol. 24, 1349–1358 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12239-023-0109-3

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