Abstract
In this study, neat castor oil having a high viscosity of 226.2 cSt is taken as a base fuel replacing diesel in a CI engine. To improve the combustion characteristics of NCO, various methods like transesterification, blending with diesel and blending with low viscous biofuel namely pine oil (P) were adopted. Pine oil has viscosity of 1.3 cSt, which is only about 1/3rd compared to diesel fuel. On the contrary, low cetane number of pine oil limits its share ratio (30% by volume) due to engine knocking problems. The merits and demerits of the properties of castor oil and pine oil are mutually balanced causing a NO-smoke tradeoff. For comparison purpose, diesel was blended 30% by volume with NCO. All the tests were done in a single cylinder CI engine with rated power of 5.2 kW at 1500 rpm. Diesel, neat castor oil (NCO), castor oil methyl ester (COME), NCO70 + P30 and NCO70 + D30 were tested to assess the comparative performance, emission and combustion characteristics at different load conditions. NO emission for diesel is 8.2 g/kWh and for NCO and COME it is 5.2 g/kWh and 8.99 g/kWh respectively. The smoke opacity is 57% for diesel and it exceeds 100% for NCO at full load whereas it is 69% for COME. NCO70 + P30 blend increases NO emission to 7.1 g/kWh and reduces smoke opacity to 85% compared to neat castor oil. Very low viscosity and better volatility of pine oil, blending it with NCO improves brake thermal efficiency from 23.73% to 29.07% whereas it is 29.73% and 32.93% for COME and diesel operations respectively. While, COME exhibited better combustion compared to other techniques, considering NO-smoke tradeoff and laborious tranesterification process, NCO70 + P30 is considered optimum since the performance, combustion and emission characteristics approach closer to COME operation.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bajpai S, Das LM (2014) Experimental investigations of an IC engine operating with alkyl esters of Jatropha, Karanja and Castor seed oil. Energy Procedia 54:701–717
Devan PK, Mahalakshmi NV (2009) A study of the performance, emission and combustion characteristics of a compression ignition engine using methyl ester of paradise oil–eucalyptus oil blends. Appl Energy 86(5):675–680
Dias JM, Araújo JM, Costa JF, Alvim-Ferraz MCM, Almeida MF (2013) Biodiesel production from raw castor oil. Energy 53:58–66
Geo VE, Nagarajan G, Nagalingam B (2008) Studies on dual fuel operation of rubber seed oil and its bio-diesel with hydrogen as the inducted fuel. Int J Hydrog Energy 33(21):6357–6367
Kania D, Yunus R, Omar R, Rashid SA, Jan BM (2015) A review of biolubricants in drilling fluids: recent research, performance, and applications. J Pet Sci Eng 135:177–184
Kasiraman G, Nagalingam B, Balakrishnan M (2012) Performance, emission and combustion improvements in a direct injection diesel engine using cashew nut shell oil as fuel with camphor oil blending. Energy 47(1):116–124
Banoth BN, Kadavakollu KR (2016) Performance and emission of VCR-CI engine with palm kernel and eucalyptus blends. Perspect Sci 8:195–197
Lin YS, Lin HP (2011) Spray characteristics of emulsified castor biodiesel on engine emissions and deposit formation. Renew Energy 36(12):3507–3516
Martin MLJ, Geo VE, Singh DKJ, Nagalingam B (2012) A comparative analysis of different methods to improve the performance of cotton seed oil fuelled diesel engine. Fuel 102:372–378
Martin MLJ, Geo VE, Nagalingam B (2017) Effect of fuel inlet temperature on cottonseed oil–diesel mixture composition and performance in a DI diesel engine. J Energy Inst 90(4):563–573
Murillo S, Míguez JL, Porteiro J, Granada E, Morán JC (2007) Performance and exhaust emissions in the use of biodiesel in outboard diesel engines. Fuel 86(12–13):1765–1771
Panneerselvam N, Ramesh M, Murugesan A, Vijayakumar C, Subramaniam D, Kumaravel A (2016) Effect on direct injection naturally aspirated diesel engine characteristics fuelled by pine oil, Ceiba pentandra methyl ester compared with diesel. Transp Res Part D: Transp Environ 48:225–234
Panwar NL, Shrirame HY (2009) The emission characteristics of a compression ignition engine operating on castor oil methyl ester. Int J Global Warm 1(1/2/3):368
Panwar NL, Shrirame HY, Rathore NS, Jindal S, Kurchania AK (2010) Performance evaluation of a diesel engine fueled with methyl ester of castor seed oil. Appl Therm Eng 30(2–3):245–249
Redel-Macías MD, Pinzi S, Leiva-Candia DE, López I, Dorado MP (2017) Ternary blends of diesel fuel oxygenated with ethanol and castor oil for diesel engines. Energy Procedia 142:855–860
Scholz V, da Silva JN (2008) Prospects and risks of the use of castor oil as a fuel. Biomass Bioenergy 32(2):95–100
Senthil R, Sivakumar E, Silambarasan R (2015) Effect of di ethyl ether on the performance and emission characteristics of a diesel engine using biodiesel–eucalyptus oil blends. RSC Adv 5(67):54019–54027
Senthil R, Silambarasan R, Pranesh G (2016) Exhaust emissions reduction from diesel engine using combined Annona–Eucalyptus oil blends and antioxidant additive. Heat Mass Transf 53:1105–1112
Subramanian T, Varuvel EG, Martin LJ, Beddhannan N (2017) Effect of lower and higher alcohol fuel synergies in biofuel blends and exhaust treatment system on emissions from CI engine. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24(32):25103–25113
Tamilselvan P, Nallusamy N (2015) Performance, combustion and emission characteristics of a compression ignition engine operating on pine oil. Biofuels 6(5–6):273–281
Tamilvendhan D, Ilangovan V (2011) A performance, emission and combustion investigation on hot air assisted eucalyptus oil direct injected compression ignition engine. Mod Appl Sci 5(4):53–62
Thiyagarajan S, Edwin Geo V, Martin LJ, Nagalingam B (2016) Effects of low carbon bio fuel blends with Karanja oil methyl Ester in a single cylinder CI engine on CO2 emission and other performance and emission characteristics. Nat Environ Pollut Technol 15(4):1249–1256
Thiyagarajan S, Geo VE, Leenus JM, Nagalingam B (2017) Experimental investigation to reduce CO2 emission in a single cylinder CI engine using low carbon fuel blend with Karanja oil methyl ester and amine injection in the exhaust manifold. Int J Global Warm 13(3–4):278–295
Valente OS, da Silva MJ, Pasa VMD, Belchior CRP, Sodré JR (2010) Fuel consumption and emissions from a diesel power generator fuelled with castor oil and soybean biodiesel. Fuel 89(12):3637–3642
Vallinayagam R, Vedharaj S, Yang WM, Lee PS, Chua KJE, Chou SK (2013) Combustion performance and emission characteristics study of pine oil in a diesel engine. Energy 57:344–351
Vallinayagam R, Vedharaj S, Yang WM, Lee PS, Chua KJE, Chou SK (2014) Pine oil–biodiesel blends: a double biofuel strategy to completely eliminate the use of diesel in a diesel engine. Appl Energy 130:466–473
Vallinayagam R, Vedharaj S, Yang WM, Roberts WL, Dibble RW (2015) Feasibility of using less viscous and lower cetane (LVLC) fuels in a diesel engine: a review. Renew Sust Energ Rev 51:1166–1190
Wander PR, Altafini CR, Colombo AL, Perera SC (2011) Durability studies of mono-cylinder compression ignition engines operating with diesel, soy and castor oil methyl esters. Energy 36(6):3917–3923
Yingling GL, Onel S (2012) Regulatory agencies, pharmaceuticals, food, and cosmetics. In: Kirk-Othmer encyclopedia of chemical technology. https://doi.org/10.1002/0471238961.1608011825091407.a01.pub2
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher’s Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Prakash, T., Geo, V.E., Martin, L.J. et al. Evaluation of pine oil blending to improve the combustion of high viscous (castor oil) biofuel compared to castor oil biodiesel in a CI engine. Heat Mass Transfer 55, 1491–1501 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00231-018-2519-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00231-018-2519-8