Jatropha oil methyl ester as diesel engine fuel - an experimental investigation

Abstract

The use of jatropha oil as a fuel for diesel engines is gaining more interest. Biodiesel is defined as a transesterified alternative fuel obtained from vegetable oils or animal fats having properties comparable to those of diesel. In the present investigation a methyl ester derived from jatropha oil (JOME) was considered as fuel. This paper presents a comparative study on the use of JOME and its blends of 20 and 50% on a volume basis with standard diesel as a source of fuel for a compression ignition engine. The engine tests were carried out at 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% load using a single-cylinder, fourstroke, constant speed diesel engine to study the performance, emission and combustion characteristics of these fuels. The results showed a 21% reduction in smoke, 17.9% reduction in HC emissions and 16% reduction in CO emissions for 20% JOME, with a 3.8% increase in NOx emission at full load. JOME and its blends showed a slight decrease in thermal efficiency and increase in the specific fuel consumption but at an acceptable level. There was a 2.8% decrease in brake thermal efficiency for the 20% JOME blend at full load. Among the blends, 20% JOME showed better results compared to 50% JOME and can be used as an alternative fuel in DI diesel engines.