International Journal of Engineering and Technical Research (IJETR)

ISSN: 2321-0869, Volume-3, Issue-3, March 2015

Experimental Investigation of Performance and

Emission Characteristics of Diesel Engine with
Jatropha Biodiesel Blends
Amol Bharat Varandal, & Prof. Nitin Malviya

It is possible to use jatropha biodiesel in the diesel engines as

Abstract The scarcity of reserves of petroleum and a fuel if cleaned and properly converted to combustible diesel
environmental pollution issues have led to the search for more oil.
environmental friendly and renewable fuels. This study
evaluates the use of jatropha biodiesel blends as an alternative II. II. EXPERIMENTS
fuel for diesel engines. This experimental analysis is carried out Experimental study is carried out on a Kirloskar make, 1C,
to determine the effect of using biodiesel blends (i.e. B20 to B50)
3.5 kW, constant speed 1500rpm Variable Compression Ratio
on the performance and exhaust emissions in a Variable
Compression Ratio (VCR) diesel engine equipped with eddy (VCR) diesel engine. Performance tests are conducted on an
current dynamometer. The thermal performance and emissions engine at fixed compression ratio of CR18 and varying load
characteristics are evaluated by operating the engine at preset (25%, 50%, 75% and 100%) using jatropha biodiesel with
compression ratio 18, and varying loads in steps of 3 kg. The diesel blends (B20 to B50) to determine BSFC , BThE and
thermal performance parameters evaluated are brake thermal ExGT. Engine emissions such as CO, HC and NOx were
efficiency (BTHE), and brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC) measured by using gas analyzer.
and Exhaust Gas Temperature (ExGT). The emission
constituents measured are carbon monoxide (CO), unburnt 2.1. Experimental set-up
hydrocarbons (UHC) and Oxides of nitrogen (NOx). It was
The specifications of the Kirloskar engine are given in Table
found that the performance parameters of the biodiesel blends
did not differ greatly from those of diesel fuel. A slight decrease 1. The engine with fixed compression ratio can be modified
in thermal efficiency, with an increase in brake specific fuel by providing additional variable combustion space. Tilting
consumption (BSFC), was noticed with the biodiesel blends. The cylinder block method is one of the arrangements which can
CO and HC emissions were reduced for the blends while NOx be used to vary the combustion space volume. The
was increased remarkably for the biodiesel blends. experimental study is conducted at various loads and hence an
accurate and reliable load measuring system is a must. The
Index Terms Biodiesel, Diesel Engine, Engine load measuring system of this experimental test rig consists of
Performance, Emission Characteristics. a dynamometer of eddy current type, a load cell of strain
gauge type and a loading unit. The load is applied by
supplying current to the dynamometer using a loading unit.
I. INTRODUCTION
The load applied to the engine is measured by a load cell.
The continual rise in the prices of crude oil and depletion in
the reservoirs of the crude oil, increasing hazard to Table 1 Engine Specifications
environment due to exhaust emissions, the problem of global Manufacturer M/s Kirloskar Oil Engines Ltd.
warming have adversely impacted the developing countries
Model TV 1
like India. From the point of view of long term energy
security, it is necessary to develop new alternative fuels with Cycle 4 Strokes
properties comparable to petroleum based fuels. Jatropha Rated Power 3.5 kW @
biodiesel as an alternative fuel for diesel engine offers an 1500 RPM
advantage because of its comparable fuel properties with Type of Combustion System Direct Injection
diesel fuel. It was described that engine parameters such as No. of Cylinders 1 Cylinder
CR and Load were found to have major effect on
Bore/Stroke 87.5 /110 mm
performance and emissions of diesel engine when run with
biodiesel and its blend with diesel [13]. Hence an Compression Ratio 17.5 : 1 Modified to
experiment is carried out to study the performance of a diesel VCR 12 to18 : 1
Swept Volume 0.661 cc
engine operated with biodiesel blends at varying load.
Type of Cooling Water Cooled

Manuscript received March 06, 2015. Fuel Injection Inline

Mr. Amol Varandal, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sagar
Institute of Science & Technology, Gandhi Nagar, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh,
2.2. Biodiesel
India, Phone/ Mobile No.+918983056736.
Prof. Nitin Malviya, Department of Mechanical Engineering ,Sagar The biodiesel obtained from jatropha and its blend with diesel
Institute of Science & Technology, Gandhi Nagar, Bhopal Madhya Pradesh, was considered in this study. The jatropha biodiesel is
India purchased from commercial supplier from Pune. The pure

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 Experimental Investigation of Performance and Emission Characteristics of Diesel Engine with Jatropha Biodiesel
Blends

diesel is purchased from local petrol pump. The properties of

the biodiesel blends are as given in table 2.

Table 2 Properties of Diesel and Jatropha Biodiesel Blends

Properties Diesel J20 J30 J40 J50

Density
849 857 861 865 869
(Kg/m3)

Viscosity
4.38 4.47 4.51 4.56 4.61
(@ 40C)

CV 4135 4098 4061

42100 40257
(KJ/Kg) 2 4 9 Figure 2 Variation of BThE with Engine Load at Constant Speed
1500rpm at CR 18
III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
It can be observed from these figures that the parameters,
3.1. Engine performance which were responsible for giving best fuel economy, also
3.1.1 Brake Specific Fuel Consumption resulted in showing maximum BThE.
After the engine reached the stabilized working condition for The highest value of BThE using diesel was 34.02% whereas
each test, fuel consumption, torque applied and exhaust it was 31.99% and 31.27% in case of B20 and B30
temperature were measured from which BSFC, BTE were respectively. B50 gives BThE of 24.87% which lowest for all
computed. The variations of these parameters with respect to blends at same load conditions. Based on these results it can
load are presented in figure 1 to 3, at compression ratio of 18. be concluded that the performance of the engine with
biodiesel blends is comparable to that with diesel, in terms of
BThE. The change of load from 25% to full load resulted in
increase in BThE for biodiesel blends. This could be due to
the fact that biodiesel blends had lower volatility as compared
to diesel and therefore the improvement in their combustion
characteristics might have been relatively more at higher
temperatures resulting from higher loads than the
improvement in case of diesel with the same rise in load. The
brake thermal efficiency of the engine was low at part loads as
compared to the engine running on full load.

3.1.3 Exhaust Gas Temperature

The variation of exhaust gas temperature with the engine load
Figure 1 Variation of BSFC with Engine Load at Constant Speed
for all the blends of jatropha biodiesel are shown in figure 3 at
1500rpm at CR 18 the constant speed of 1500rpm.
Figure 3 shows that as the load increases the exhaust gas
It can be seen from Figure 1 that the BSFC lines for different temperature increases for the biodiesel blends. The diesel fuel
blends came closer to each other as load was increased from shows less exhaust gas temperature as compared to all the
25 to 100%, indicating a comparable performance of the biodiesel blends at all loads.
blends at higher load. The lowest BSFC values obtained using
diesel, B20 and B30, for full load were 0.25, 0.27 and 0.28
kg/kW-hr respectively. The variation in BSFC of different
blends was less at full load conditions than at part load;
possibly due to increased temperatures and consequently
increased efficiencies of the engine. Due to their low volatility
and higher viscosity, biodiesel might be performing relatively
better at higher compression ratios. The BSFC was observed
to decrease sharply with increase in load for all fuels. The
main reason for this could be that percent increase in fuel
required to operate the engine is less than the percent increase
in brake power due to relatively less portion of the heat losses
at higher loads. From the above discussions it could be
concluded that the BSFC is a function of biodiesel blend, and
load.

3.1.2 Brake Thermal Efficiency Figure 3 Variation of ExGT with Engine Load at Constant Speed
The variation of BThE of VCR engine obtained in this study 1500rpm at CR 18
is shown in Figure 2 as a function of load for compression 18.

40 www.erpublication.org
 International Journal of Engineering and Technical Research (IJETR)
ISSN: 2321-0869, Volume-3, Issue-3, March 2015
The exhaust gas temperature for the diesel , J20, J30, J40 and Figure 5 Variation of HC with Engine Load at Constant Speed
J50 are 315 C, 320C , 324C,331 C and 335C respectively. 1500rpm at CR 18
It can be seen from the above figures that as the biodiesel B50 showed lower HC followed by the B40, B30 and B20 for
blend ratio increases the exhaust gas temperature also all loads. The trend is similar to that noted in earlier studies. It
increases. This is because more oxygen content in the is because of high hydrocarbon oxidation late in the
biodiesel blends as compared to diesel fuel which leads to expansion stroke. Complete combustion of blends takes place
complete combustion of biodiesel. It may be because of producing less amount of unburned HC. The HC emissions
higher viscosity, late burning of fuel particles take place on decreased as the oxygen in the combustion chamber
the walls of cylinder which will lead to higher gas increased, either with oxygenated fuels or oxygen-enriched
temperatures as compared to other blends. air. On the other hand, although biodiesel is less volatile than
diesel fuel, higher final distillation points have been reported
3.2. Engine Emission Characteristics for diesel fuel. This final fraction of diesel may not be
3.2.1 Carbon Monoxide completely vaporized or burnt, thereby increasing UHC
Figure 4 shows that the CO emissions for biodiesel blends are emissions. Therefore, lower UHC emissions can be expected
lower when compared to diesel. when biodiesel and biodiesel-diesel blended fuels are used in
a diesel engine.

3.2.3 Oxides of Nitrogen

Figure 6 shows that the NOx emission for biodiesel blends
and diesel at constant speed 1500rpm. The NOx emission for
biodiesel blends is more compared to diesel. With increase in
blend ratio the NOx emission increases. This can be attributed
to the variation of the maximum combustion temperature
inside the cylinder for both blends.

Figure 4 Variation of CO with Engine Load at Constant Speed

1500rpm at CR 18

The presence of CO in the exhaust gas of an engine is a

representation of the chemical energy of the fuel which is not
fully utilized. Generally, the CO emission is affected by the
fuel type, combustion chamber design and atomization rate,
engine load and engine speed. It is observed from the above
figures that the CO emission decreases with the increase in
load upto 75% load and at full load it sharply increases. The
possible reason for this sudden increase may be incomplete Figure 6 Variation of NOx with Engine Load at Constant Speed
combustion at full load. With percentage of biodiesel 1500rpm at CR 18
increasing in blend fuel, CO emissions of blend reduce. The
reasons for this behavior might be to more oxygen in biodiesel It can be observed that as the engine load increases, more fuel
and better oxidation reactions during the expansion stroke. is injected and the heat transfer per cycle decreases, resulting
in higher temperatures of the burning gas. This led to an
3.2.2 Hydrocarbons increase in the formation of NOx emissions. The biodiesel
Figure 5 shows the HC emission for biodiesel blends are and its blends were found to emit a larger amount of NOx,
lower that the diesel for all loads. while diesel fuel produced the lowest amount of NOx
emission. The NOx increase in the emissions may be
associated with the oxygen content of the biodiesel, since the
fuel oxygen may provide additional oxygen for the formation
NOx. One potential drawback to the use of biodiesel is
evidently the increase in NOx emissions. Although the
increase is small in comparison to the reductions in other
regulated pollutants, such NOx increases may be problematic
for ozone non-attainment areas.

IV. CONCLUSIONS
Based on the results of this study, it can be concluded that the
BSFC, BThE and ExGT of the engine are function of the
biodiesel blend and load. For the same operating conditions,
performance of the engine reduced with increase in biodiesel
percentage in the blend. However, with increase in load this

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 Experimental Investigation of Performance and Emission Characteristics of Diesel Engine with Jatropha Biodiesel
Blends

difference was reduced and the engine performance became

similar to that of diesel. Biodiesel could be safely blended
with pure diesel. B20 shows similar performance at any of the
load as that of the diesel. Biodiesel blends have shown
reduced emissions of CO and HC than that of the diesel. The
NOx emission is more for biodiesel blends than the diesel
fuel.

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