Experimental investigation on performance and emissions of a VCR engine fuelled by biodiesel/diesel blends

As the global market for fuel increased exponentially, there was a dramatic decline of fossil fuels which led to an extensive discovery of biodiesel as an alternate fuel for diesel engines. The current research investigates the influence of neem oil biodiesel-diesel blends on the performance and emission characteristics of a variable compression ratio (VCR) engine. The experiments were conducted with B5, B10, B15, B20 and B25 blends of neem oil biodiesel in a VCR engine at a constant speed of 1500 rpm, varying the load and at compression ratios (CRs) of 16:1,17:1 and 18:1. The impact of increasing the CRs on the performance and emissions of neem oil biodiesel blends has been thoroughly investigated in this study. The BTE, SFC and EGT improved with increase in CR. The fuel samples were evaluated and compared to conventional diesel, which had great improvement in emission characteristics. The outcomes of this study show that neem oil biodiesel blends may be utilized as a diesel alternative in diesel engines without requiring any engine changes. CR 18:1 may be justified as the best optimal CR for any fuel. Copyright (c) 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Conference on Materials, Processing & Characterization.