A team from Karabuk University in Turkey reports in a paper in the journal Biofuels that using Fe-Ni-TiO₂/activated carbon (AC) nanoparticles as an additive in a diesel–biodiesel fuel blend can improve engine performance and decrease emissions.

Biofuels, which are widely used as alternative fuels to reduce fossil fuel consumption and replace them with fossil fuel-like energy sources, are increasingly being supplemented with nanoparticles (NP) to overcome their limitations, including lower energy content and higher emissions. The study aimed to examine the impact of Fe-Ni-TiO₂/activated carbon (AC) nanoparticles, produced by the authors, on engine performance and emissions when added to diesel/biodiesel fuel blends.

—Çalhan and Ergani (2023)

The produced Fe-Ni-TiO₂/AC nanoparticles were used as an additive in palm oil (PO)/diesel fuel blends at 50 and 100 ppm concentrations. The results revealed that compared to standard diesel, employing Fe-Ni-TiO₂/AC NPs lowered emissions including smoke, carbon monoxide (CO), and hydrocarbon (HC) in all fuel blends while increasing nitrogen oxide (NO_x).

In the DNP30-100 fuel blend at 2500 W engine load, there was an increase in NO_x by 8% and a decrease in CO, HC, and smoke emissions by 70.3%, 86.3%, and 57.5%, respectively, compared to standard diesel.

A decrease of 11.38% was observed in brake-specific fuel consumption, while brake thermal efficiency increased by 16.59% compared to diesel.

Resources

• Rahman Çalhan & Songül Kaskun Ergani (2023) “The impacts of nano fuels containing Fe-Ni-TiO2/activated carbon nanoparticles on diesel engine performance and emission characteristics,” Biofuels doi: 10.1080/17597269.2023.2221881