Straight vegetable oil

Abstract

The application of straight vegetable oil (SVO) to CI engine is discussed in this chapter. Compared to biodiesel, SVO has several advantages, but it suffers from undesirable properties such as high viscosity, lower heating value, low cetane number, etc. Initially, the property of SVO, particularly viscosity and density, is analyzed. Performance, combustion, and emission characteristics of SVO in CI engines and in gas turbine are followed. SVO can be successfully used in CI engine through fuel modification such as blended SVO, emulsified SVO, and SVO with additives and engine modification such as preheated SVO, dual-fueled SVO, and newly designed engine. Simultaneous modification of fuel and engine can be one of the categories for the application of SVO to CI engines. Although not so many researches can be found in the literature, the studies on combustion and emission characteristics of SVO in gas turbine can be classified into two categories, i.e., neat SVO and blended SVO with diesel or other fuels such as biodiesel and kerosene.