Evaluation of engine performance and emission studies of waste cooking oil methyl ester and blends with diesel fuel in marine engine

Waste cooking oil was transesterified with methanol using sodium hydroxide as a catalyst to obtain Waste Cooking Oil Methyl Ester (WCOME). It was basically characterized through FT-IR spectrum and NMR studies. Blends such as B10 (90% diesel+10% WCOME) and B20 (80% diesel+20% WCOME), D100 (100% Diesel) were tested in a compression ignition diesel engine. The fuel properties such as density, viscosity, flash point, fire point and calorific value was determined following American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM): Engine performance and emission parameters namely Brake Specific Fuel Consumption (BSFC), Brake Thermal Efficiency (B 1b), Exhaust Emissions of CO, HC, NOx and CO2, and Smoke Density etc., were analyzed for those test fuels at different loads with constant engine speed of 1500 rpm. Experimental results showed that the B20 blend is most suitable candidate for both engine performance and emission studies.