Experimental investigation on the effect of hydrotreated vegetable oils as a renewable source: valorization of food waste

The rising fuel prices, depleting fossil fuel reserves and stringent pollution regulations compel the researchers to find alternative fuels for petrodiesel. Biodiesel and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) are produced from renewable sources and have competitive advantages over petrodiesel. While there were many articles on biodiesel and HVO production, there was limited research to compare the effectiveness of biodiesel and HVO obtained from different oil sources. The goal of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of biodiesel and HVO produced from waste cooking oil, neem oil, Mahua oil, rice bran oil, Karanja oil, and jatropha oil on engine performance and emissions. The oils were treated using transesterification to form biodiesel and hydrotreated to form HVO. HVO (25% and 100%) and biodiesel (25% and 100%) were tested at 1500 rpm in a four-stroke, single-cylinder, 4.3 kW direct ignition (DI) diesel engine without any modification. While the performance and emission characteristics of both biodiesel and HVO were better than petrodiesel. However, the HVOs was better than than biodiesel blends due to reduced density, lower aromatic content, high cetane index, and high heating value. The findings revealed that hydrotreatment of vegetable oils can be a good renewable alternative option to petrodiesel.