Experimental Analysis of Oxy-Fuel Combustion in Diesel Engines with Insights on Adaptations and Performance

Oxy-fuel Combustion (OFC) in diesel engines is a transformative advancement, replacing traditional air intake with pure oxygen to enhance combustion efficiency and enable precise control over engine performance. This study adapted a Conventional Air Combustion (CAC) diesel engine to OFC by sealing the air intake and introducing oxygen directly into the inlet manifold. Precise oxygen injection via a Tomasetto Achille IT01 rail gas injector and enhanced sealing mechanisms ensured a stable, uncontaminated combustion environment, critical for assessing OFC performance. Experimental trials at 25% engine load demonstrated that 0.77 grams of oxygen per cycle maintained stable combustion under OFC. Introducing 40% Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) reduced oxygen consumption to 0.462 grams per cycle. Performance comparisons revealed that Brake Thermal Efficiency (BTE) dropped from 20.1% under CAC to 16.2% in OFC and further to 14.8% in OFC+EGR. Brake Specific Fuel Consumption (BSFC) increased from 420.2 g/kWh in CAC to 473.5 g/kWh in OFC and 527.7 g/kWh in OFC+EGR. These findings underscore the need for optimization to recover efficiency losses. They also establish essential insights into OFC’s potential as a cleaner and potentially more efficient combustion method for diesel engines, emphasizing its promise for future advancements. KEYWORDS Diesel combustion, engine optimization, oxygen Injection, oxygen injection, specific fuel-consumption, thermal efficiency