Experimental investigation on a di diesel engine using coconut fatty acid distillate as a fuel by different methodologies

Abstract

The consumption of fossil fuel has increased in the recent decade due to rapid industrialization, transportation and modern civilization. The transportation sector depends on liquid fuel derived from fossil fuels. The growing demand for conventional fuels creates a serious threat to the sustainability of fossil fuels, an increase in fuel cost, fuel demand and environmental concerns. Various non-edible oils were utilized as fuel for diesel engines, however, the cost of the oil (feedstock) is nearly 50-70% of the overall cost of the biodiesel. A new source of low-cost fuel Coconut Fatty Acid Distillate (CFAD), non-edible and a by-product obtained during the coconut oil refining process can be one of the alternatives to diesel. Direct use of CFAD in diesel engines can greatly reduce the cost and time involved in converting it into biodiesel. But CFAD is transformed into biodiesel to improve its physicochemical properties and to achieve better engine characteristics when used in blended form with diesel. newlineIn the present work, the characteristics of a diesel engine fuelled with CFAD and its biodiesel derivative were evaluated using various methodologies. The transesterification reaction parameters were optimized to achieve the maximum yield of CFAD biodiesel using the Taguchi approach. The physicochemical properties of CFAD and its biodiesel (CFAB) were measured as per the ASTM standards and found that they are comparable with conventional diesel. newline