Vegetable oils as effective additives and replacements of diesel fuel in agriculture machinery engines

The article presents the results of experimental studies of possible partial replacement of traditional diesel fuel by biofuel. The term biofuel refers to a mixture of diesel fuel with vegetable oils such as palm or peanut oils. The optimal supply of vegetable oils is determining under conditions of preservation or deterioration of diesel engine performance in the range of 5 ... 8%. The experiments suppose a diesel engine operation without any interfering within design or regulation of the diesel engine and its fuel equipment. Hydrogen peroxide or kerosene is used to improve the physicochemical properties of vegetable oils. It has been found that under these constraints, the optimal supply of palm oil is 20%. In case of peanut oil, experimentally found that its volume part in biofuel can be increased up to 40%. To provide an equal density and viscosity of the biofuel and the base diesel fuel 30% of diesel fuel were replaced by kerosene. In the range of low and medium engine loads, an emission of main toxic components of nitrogen oxides NOx, emission of solid carbon particles with exhaust gas C, carbon oxides changes insignificantly, and even decreases. The concentration of unburned hydrocarbons is significantly reduced. At engine loads above 50% for peanut oil and 75% for palm oil biofuels, presumably due to worse mixture formation, there is a sharp decrease in nitrogen oxide emissions and an increase in carbon monoxide concentrations. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.