Influence of Areca Nutshell-Reduced Graphene Oxide, Isopropanol, and Exhaust Gas Recirculation in an Internal Combustion Engine

Abstract

Regulations governing pollution, declining fossil fuel supply, and technological breakthroughs in renewable fuels all have a profound influence on the development of alternative fuels. This current research focuses on the influence of nanoadditives with alcohol in an exhaust gas recirculation-cooled engine. As nanoadditives have high thermal conductivity and alcohol has high oxygen content, they work synergistically to speed up the catalytic process and increase the combustion rate. The areca nutshell-reduced graphene oxide with a mass fraction of 25 pmm was ultrasonically blended with two isopropanol-diesel mixtures 10% isopropanol + 90% diesel (IDR10) and 20% isopropanol + 80% diesel (IDR20), respectively, and tested in a single-cylinder, 4-stroke internal-combustion engine at a typical injection timing of 23° TDC with an EGR rate of 20%. The results of experiments showed that IDR10 has better combustion and emission parameters than other fuel blends. Compared to other biodiesel blends, the IDR10 blend has 2.3% less BSFC and 2.45% more BTE. The IDR10 blend has lower HC emissions by 42.85%, CO emissions by 33.34%, NOxemissions by 2.42%, and smoke emissions by 15.4%.