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Effect of additives on fuel properties and emission characteristics of micromulsion biofuels from palm oil
Author(s)
Lumyong, Pichit
Wichadee, Sasiwimon
Khaodhiar, Sutha
Sabatini, David A.
Date Issued
July 12, 2017
Type
Conference Paper
Abstract
Microemulsiflcation is one of the novel techniques to reduce viscosity of vegetable oils to avoid durability problems in diesel engines. Microemulsion biofuels are transparent, thermodynamically stable, and single-phase mixtures of vegetable oils and ethanol in the presence of surfactants and co-surfactants. Additives have also been included in microemulsion biofuel formulations to improve their stability and fuel properties; however, there is limited research on the effect of additives on emission characteristics of microemulsion biofuels. In this study, microemulsion biofuels were formulated from palm oil/diesel blend (1:1 v/v), ethanol, surfactant, and co-surfactants. Five additives, ethylene glycol butyl ether (EGBE), diethylene glycol ethyl ether (DEGEE), propylene glycol ethyl ether (PGEE), dipropylene glycol methyl ether (DPGME), and ethyl acetate (EA), were used to study the effect of additives on phase behaviors, fuel properties, and emission characteristics. The results showed that studied additives could improve some fuel properties of microemulsion biofuels with negligible effect on phase stability. Additionally, it was found that carbon monoxide (CO) emissions from microemulsion biofuels with DEGEE and EA, and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from microemulsion biofuels with all additives were lower than those from diesel and biodiesel. Therefore, DEGEE and EA can be considered as promising additives for microemulsion biofuel formulations, which can improve fuel properties as well as can significantly reduce CO and NOx emissions below the levels of diesel and biodiesel. These encouraging results offer options of additives for biofuel applications.
Citation
Conference Proceedings 2017 17th IEEE International Conference on Environment and Electrical Engineering and 2017 1st IEEE Industrial and Commercial Power Systems Europe Eeeic I and Cps Europe 2017, 2017