Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) is a private university located in&nbsp;Tamil Nadu, India. Founded in 1984, as Vellore Engineering College, the institution offers 20 undergraduate, 34 postgraduate, four integrated and four research programs. It has campuses in Vellore, Amravati, Bhopal and Chennai.

VIT is one of the top ranked private universities in India according to NIRF, THE and QS Rankings.&nbsp;Govt. of India has recognized&nbsp;VIT, Vellore as an&nbsp;Institution of Eminence. This has allowed VIT to take independent quality initiatives and move up in world ranking.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

VIT University

The intention of this test is to efficiently use waste cooking oils (WCOs) that are used globally for cooking and frying purposes. In most cases, these used cooking oils (UCOs)/WCOs are disposed in an unstandardized manner that can cause soil contamination and may affect the groundwater if disposed in large quantities. Recent studies are exploring new vegetable oils that are surplus available all over the country and are especially non-edible. Most of these oils can be extracted from seeds through transesterification and can be attempted to be used for fueling engines, some of the oils are mahua oil, jatropha, lemongrass oil, mango seed oil, and so on. Alike extraction of vegetable oils from seeds, we can extract useful forms of WCOs in the same technique to make sure WCO can be used in a CI engine. Interesting outputs were witnessed when the WCO and neat diesel (ND) blends were fueled in a dual-fuel (DF) diesel engine. In a DF engine, a volatile liquid or gaseous fuel bearing higher octane value is inducted along with air through the intake manifold and compressed to a temperature less than its self-ignition point. In addition, a pilot fuel (with a higher cetane value) is injected through the conventional injection technique which initiates the combustion in the primary fuel-air mixture. Hydrogen looks very attractive for DF operation as “primary fuel”. As well the pilot fuel is WCO and neat diesel (ND) blends. WCOB was mixed with mineral diesel fuel by a volume fraction of 50% (WCOB50). In addition to this pure hydrogen was inducted into the intake along with air at the volume flow rate of 4, 6 and 8 lpm (liter per minute). Tests were conducted in a single-cylinder farming based direct injection light-duty diesel engine at several load conditions. At first, test results were correlated with ND fuel and WCOB50 fuel at all loads. WCOB50 fuel indicates a negligible reduction in brake thermal efficiency (BTE) when compared to ND fuel. Further, in this test, the influence of hydrogen induction on tailpipe exhaust emissions of a CI engine fueled with WCOB is examined. © 2020 Taylor &amp; Francis Group, LLC.

Department of Automotive Engineering

School of Mechanical Engineering

Vellore Campus

Energy Sources, Part A: Recovery, Utilization and Environmental Effects

Extracting methyl-ester from waste cooking oil for fueling a light duty diesel engine–a dual fuel approach

Fuel injection pressure and fuel injection timing are significant injection parameters, which have a greater impact on engine performance, combustion, and emission. The main focus of this work is on improving the emissions and performance of the single cylinder diesel engine by changing the injection parameters with the engine being powered by novel Syzygium cumini oil biodiesel at various proportions (i.e., B30,70,100). In addition to that, the investigations were directed towards achieving the effective usage of biodiesel for the substitution of fast depleting diesel fuel. The experimental work was conducted on single cylinder, water-cooled, direct injection compression ignition engine at a constant speed of 1500 rpm with static fuel injection timing 23° before top dead centre and pressure of 200 bar. The engine tests were conducted at different fuel injection pressures (200, 220, 240 and 260 bar) and different injection timings (21, 23 and 25 oCA BTDC). Advancing the injection timing by 2 deg crank angle and increasing the fuel injection pressure to 240 bar resulted in superior performance. For instance, brake thermal efficiency of diesel and B30 increased by 17.85% and 16.66% respectively. While retarding fuel injection timing to 21-degree crank angle had an adverse effect on engine performance. B30 blend gave a superior performance compared with the other biodiesel blends. By advancing injection timing and increasing fuel injection pressure, hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions for B30 blend were found to be 46.15% and 15.9% lesser than static fuel injection conditions. Maximum of 28.7% reduction in smoke emission was observed for advancing injection timing and increasing fuel injection pressure compared with the static injection conditions. But, nitric oxide emissions were relatively higher for advance injection timing and higher fuel injection pressure. The results led to the decision that advance injection timing and increasing fuel injection pressure could be chosen as better injection parameters for a diesel engine being powered by novel Syzygium cumini oil biodiesel with the massive reduction in emissions. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd

World University root node

Journal of Cleaner Production

An assessment on injection pressure and timing to reduce emissions on diesel engine powered by renewable fuel

Foremost aim of this work is to study the influence of hydrogen induction on tail pipe exhaust emissions of a compression ignition engine fueled with waste cooking oil biodiesel (WCOB). Waste cooking oil biodiesel was mixed with mineral diesel fuel by a volume fraction of 50% (WCOB50). In addition to this pure hydrogen was inducted into the intake along with air at the volume flow rate of 2, 4 and 6 lpm. The test was conducted in a single cylinder agricultural based direct injection light duty diesel engine at various load conditions. At first, test results were correlated with neat diesel fuel and WCOB50 fuel at all loads. WCOB50 fuel indicates an insignificant reduction in BTE when compared to neat diesel fuel. Emission study revealed that WCOB50 usage moderately increases NOx emission and depreciates CO, HC and smoke opacity. However, hydrogen enrichment significantly decreased exhaust emissions such as smoke opacity, HC and CO except for NOx emission. Also, the BTE of the engine gradually improved with the increasing volume flow rate of hydrogen in the intake. At maximum power output in cylinder pressure and heat release rate were found to be higher for maximum hydrogen flow rate. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd

Energy

Engine’s behavior on hydrogen addition of waste cooking oil fueled light duty diesel engine - A dual fuel approach

The current work aims at assessing the single cylinder, diesel engine fueled with nano-emulsion of orange peel oil biodiesel. The orange oil was elicited from orange peels through solvent extraction method then converted into methyl ester. By using the solvent extraction method, the orange peel oil (Limonene) yield was achieved up to 82.3%. Later, nanofluid was prepared in two different concentrations by doping 50 and 100 ppm of TiO2 nanoparticles. The orange oil biodiesel nano-emulsions namely OOME-T50 and OOME-T100 were prepared with the proportion of 88% of pure orange oil methyl ester, 10% of TiO2 nanofluid and 2% of span-80 as a surfactant. Experiments were performed with prepared fuels (pure OOME, OOME-T50 and OOME-T100) in a test engine and its results were discussed. The BTE of the engine increased up to 1.4% and 3.0% with OOME OOME-T50 and OOME-T100 fuels when correlated with pure OOME fuel. However, neat diesel fuel indicates maximum BTE at peak load condition. Significant reduction of about 24.2%, 9.7%, 18.4%, 16.0% in smoke, NOx, CO and HC were observed for OOME-T100 nano-emulsion fuel as correlated to pure OOME at peak load. Also, it can be noted that the cylinder peak pressure and heat release rate were increased for OOME nano-emulsion fuels when compared to pure OOME at greatest power output. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd

Renewable Energy

A study on performance, emission and combustion characteristics of diesel engine powered by nano-emulsion of waste orange peel oil biodiesel

The emission and combustion characteristics of diesel engine operated under reactivity controlled compression ignition (RCCI) mode are investigated in this study. A separate electronic fuel injector was mounted on the intake manifold of the engine meant for RCCI operation. RCCI mode of operation was conducted by injecting “n-butanol” as low reactivity fuel into the intake, and “mahua oil” as high reactivity fuel directly into the combustion chamber. Experimental results reported that smoke and nitric oxide (NO) emissions are significantly reduced by 45.4% and 33.1% through RCCI mode when compared with single fuel mode (mahua oil) at peak load. Carbon monoxide (CO) and unburnt hydrocarbon (HC) emissions were substantially increased at part load conditions in RCCI mode by increasing n-butanol energy share, while both HC and CO emissions were reduced at maximum power output. About 6.2% increase in brake thermal efficiency (BTE) of the engine was found when operated in RCCI mode, with up to 20% of n-butanol share; beyond this energy share, a marginal drop in BTE was noted at peak load. A substantial rise in cylinder pressure and heat release rate (HRR) was found while operating in RCCI mode. At part load, ignition delay was found to be longer in RCCI operation, but at supreme load condition, it was reduced. It was concluded that RCCI mode of operation improved the engine’s performance and similarly reduced smoke and NO emissions. © 2020, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Emission Control Science and Technology

Experimental Assessment of Effects of n-Butanol on Performance, Emission, and Combustion Characteristics of Mahua Oil Fueled Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition (RCCI) Engine

The present work aims to study the effect of adding an antioxidant additive (L-ascorbic acid) to orange peel oil biodiesel (OB20, 20% orange oil methyl ester + 80% diesel) in a diesel engine to decrease the exhaust emissions. Orange peel oil was extracted from the waste orange peels by solvent extraction method. Biodiesel was prepared by alkali transesterification process from the orange peel oil. Fuel samples are prepared with different percentage of antioxidant additive into biodiesel, 95% biodiesel + 5% L-ascorbic acid (OB20L5) and 90% biodiesel + 10% L-ascorbic acid (OB20L10). The experimental investigation reveals that the oxides of nitrogen emissions are significantly reduced for OB20L5 and OB20L10 when compared to OB20 and diesel fuel. Besides, the addition of an antioxidant additive to biodiesel in the engine slightly decreases the brake thermal efficiency (BTE) when compared to OB20 noticeably. Also, it was noted that the addition of antioxidant additive to OB20 slightly increases hydrocarbon, carbon monoxide and smoke emissions. © 2019, © 2019 Taylor &amp; Francis Group, LLC.

Experimental investigation on a performance and emission characteristics of single cylinder diesel engine powered by waste orange peel oil biodiesel blended with antioxidant additive

In this paper, the effects of hydrogen-blended LPG on performance, combustion, and emission behavior of mahua oil-fueled dual fuel engine were experimentally investigated and presented. Mahua oil (pilot fuel) was directly injected into the cylinder during compression stroke and gaseous fuels LPG and HLPG (primary fuel) was inducted into the intake manifold during suction stroke of the engine with variable flow rates such as 1,2,3, and 4 lpm (liter per minute) at 1-lpm interval. The investigation was carried out on diesel engine at speed of 1500 rpm with 3.7 kW rated power output. The following inferences were made from the experimental investigation. Brake thermal efficiency of the engine decreases for alternate fuel (neat mahua oil) mode of operation compared to conventional diesel fuel operation. On the other hand, brake thermal efficiency of neat mahua oil increases from 28% with single fuel operation to 29.3% under 5 lpm LPG dual fuel operation. Further improvement in brake thermal efficiency is noted when 1 lpm hydrogen is mixed with LPG flow. Eighty-three percent reduction in HC emission is observed for 11 lpm HLPG compared with 10 lpm LPG. Massive reduction in smoke formation is perceived for both LPG and HLPG flow rates. But NO emission is increased for both LPG and HLPG fuels compared to neat mahua oil. As a final point, the study abstracts that performance of the neat mahua oil-based compression ignition engine has been increased under dual mode by adding LPG and hydrogen. © 2019, © 2019 Taylor &amp; Francis Group, LLC.

International Journal of Green Energy

Experimental investigations on the influence of hydrogen and LPG mixtures on performance behavior of a mahua bio oil-powered dual fuel engine

This work aims at investigating the effect of oxygen enriched combustion with water injection at the intake on engine's performance, emission and combustion characteristics of a MO (mahua oil) fueled diesel engine. Initially, experiments were conducted with ND (neat diesel) and neat MO as fuels under variable power output conditions. Subsequently experiments were followed with MO as fuel with different oxygen concentrations such as 21.8%, 22.4%, 23.8% and 24.7% by volume. The optimal oxygen concentration was found based on the engine's BTE (brake thermal efficiency) as 23.8%. At the optimal oxygen concentration water injection was carried out at 1%, 2%, 3% and 4% by volume. The optimal amount of water injection was obtained as 2%. A comparative study was made for the optimal oxygen concentration and optimal water injection conditions. The maximum BTE was noted as 25.4% and 32.8% with neat MO and ND respectively at the maximum engine power output. However, oxygen enrichment increased the BTE with all concentrations and reached the maximum value of 30.6% at 23.8% oxygen enrichment at the maximum power output of 3.7 kW. The smoke, HC (hydrocarbon) and CO (carbon monoxide) emissions were significantly reduced with oxygen enrichment. At peak power output the smoke value was noted as 48% with 23.8% oxygen enrichment whereas it was 67% and 40% with neat MO and ND. However, oxygen enrichment increased the NO (nitric oxide) emissions at all concentrations. Injection of water along with intake air reduced the NO emissions considerably. Shorter ignition delay and combustion duration were observed with oxygen enrichment as compared to ambient oxygen operation. Water injection increased the ignition delay at all power outputs. The peak pressure and heat release rate were improved with oxygen enrichment as compared to neat MO operation. It was concluded that MO could be effective used as fuel in compression ignition engines by combusting it under oxygen enriched condition. The optimal oxygen concentration of 23.8% could be recommended for the highest BTE. However, the penalty in oxygen enrichment is the NO emission. Injection of water at the intake manifold could solve the problem of higher NO emissions. The optimal amount of water that could be injected without affecting the engines power and BTE could be recommended as 2% by volume. © 2018 SAE International. All Rights Reserved.

SAE Technical Papers

Investigations on the Combined Effect of Oxygen Enrichment and Water Injection Techniques on Engine's Performance, Emission and Combustion of a Mahua Oil Based Compression Ignition Engine

This paper presents a comprehensive study on using MO (Mahua oil) as fuel effectively in a diesel engine by adopting emulsification and TBC (Thermal Barrier Coating) techniques. A mono cylinder diesel engine was used for the study. Initially trials were made on the engine using neat diesel (ND), Neat Mahua oil (NMO) as fuels. In the second phase, NMO was converted into its stable emulsion (called as MOE) and tested in the engine. Finally thermal barrier coating of 0.2 mm was made on the piston, valves and cylinder head of the engine using the ceramic power of Al2O3 and the engine was tested using NMO and MOE as fuels in the TBC engine. Results indicated improvement in BTE (brake thermal efficiency) with MOE as compared to NMO mainly at high power outputs in the unmodified engine. The maximum BTE was found as 31.5% with ND, 27.2% with NMO and 30.4% with MOE at the peak power output. Reduced smoke, HC (hydrocarbon), CO (carbon monoxide) and NOx (oxides of nitrogen) emissions were found with MOE mainly at high power outputs. Engine with TBC mode significantly increased the performance and reduced all the emissions (except NOx) at all power outputs with both NMO and MOE. Combustion parameters indicated shorter ignition delay and combustion duration with both NMO and MOE under TBC mode. It was concluded that combining emulsification and TBC techniques could improve the performance of a diesel engine significantly using MO as fuel at all power outputs. Copyright © 2017 SAE International.

A Comprehensive Assessment on Combined Effect of Thermal Barrier Coating and Emulsification Techniques on Engine Behavior of a Mahua Oil Based Diesel Engine

This paper presents a comprehensive study on the influence of different high octane fuels (such as eucalyptus oil, ethanol and methanol) on combustion behaviour of a Mahua oil based dual fuel engine. A single cylinder diesel engine developing a power output of 3.7 kW at 1500 rpm was modified and tested under dual fuel mode of operation. Initially the engine was run using neat diesel (ND), neat Mahua oil (NMO) as fuels. In the second phase, the engine was operated in dual fuel mode by using a specially designed variable jet carburettor to supply the high octane fuels. Engine trials were made at 100% and 40% loads (power outputs) with varying amounts of high octane fuels up to the maximum possible limit. Results indicated significant improvement in combustion pressure and maximum rate of pressure rise in dual fuel operation with all the inducted fuels mainly at 100% load. The ignition delay was found to be higher for all the inducted fuels as compared to single fuel operation for both loads. The combustion duration reduced in dual fuel operation as compared to NMO operation at 100% load but increased at 40% load. Significant improvement in heat release rate was observed in the premixed combustion phase in dual fuel operation as compared to single fuel mode of operation. The optimal energy share for the best combustion behaviour was found to be 44.6%, 27.3% and 23.2% respectively for eucalyptus oil, ethanol and methanol at 100% load. Eucalyptus oil showed the best among the inducted fuels in raising the cylinder peak pressure and heat release rate with reduced ignition delay and combustion duration. In general, dual fuel operation showed inferior combustion behaviour at 40% load for all the inducted fuels. © 2017

Fuel

A comprehensive assessment on the effect of high octane fuels induction on engine's combustion behaviour of a Mahua oil based dual fuel engine

Department of Chemistry

School of Advanced Sciences

VIT Unitversity

Materials Research Express

Crystal structure and electronic properties of facile synthesized Cr2O3 nanoparticles

An organic–inorganic hybrid was synthesized using 2,2′-dipyridyl and MoO3 nanorods via simple hydrothermal method. Here, dipyridyl has acted as stretching molecule and bonded the MoO3 nanorods together along the length to form hybrid micro crystals.

RSC Advances

Systematic synthesis and analysis of change in morphology, electronic structure and photoluminescence properties of 2,2′-dipyridyl intercalated MoO3 hybrid nanostructures and investigation of their photocatalytic activity