Investigation of the Impact of Castor Biofuel on the Performance and Emissions of Diesel Engines

Fossil fuel is a non-renewable fuel, and with the development of modern industry and agriculture, the storage capacity of fossil fuels is constantly decreasing. In this study, a systematic study and analysis were conducted on the combustion characteristics, engine performance, and exhaust emission characteristics of castor biodiesel-diesel blends and pure diesel fuel in different proportions at different speeds of a single-cylinder four-stroke diesel engine under constant load. The castor biodiesel required for the experiment is generated through an ester exchange reaction and mixed with diesel in proportion to produce biodiesel-diesel blends. The experimental results show that as an oxygenated fuel with a higher cetane number, the CO, HC, and smoke emissions of diesel and B80 blend fuel at 1800 rpm were reduced by 16.9%, 31.6%, and 68%, respectively. On the contrary, the NOx and CO2 emissions increased by 17.3% and 34.6% compared to diesel at 1800 rpm. In addition, due to its high viscosity and low calorific value, the brake thermal efficiency and brake-specific fuel consumption of the biodiesel-diesel blends are slightly lower than those of diesel, but the biodiesel-diesel blends exhibit lower exhaust gas temperatures. Comparing B80 and diesel fuel at 1800 rpm, the BSFC of diesel at 1800 rpm is 3.12 kg/W center dot h, whereas for B80 blended fuel, it increases to 4.2 kg/W center dot h, and BTE decreases from 25.39% to 21.33%. On the contrary, B60 blended fuel exhibits a lower exhaust emission temperature, displaying 452 degrees C at 1800 rpm. Based on the experimental results, it can be concluded that castor biodiesel is a very promising clean alternative fuel with low waste emissions and good engine performance.