Assessment of Kusum Biodiesel and Octanol Blends on Diesel Engine Performance and Emissions: A Comprehensive Study of Efficiency Trade-offs and Environmental Benefits

This paper aims to investigate the effect of Kusum biodiesel and octanol blends on Kirloaskar TV1 single cylinder diesel engine in terms of performance and emission. The tested blends, KB10O10D80, KB20O10D70, KB30O10D60, and KB40O10D50, revealed a significant decrease in emissions such as CO, HC, and smoke with an increase in biodiesel content at different engine loads. In particular, the KB10O10D80 blend, which had the lowest biodiesel content, recorded a CO reduction of 2. 8% to 14. 7%, HC reduction of 17. 9% to 21. 1% and smoke reduction of 3. 45% to 18. 18%, compared to diesel. However, the highest blend, KB40O10D50, recorded the highest emissions decrease with a reduction of CO by 27%, and a reduction of HC by 65. 8% reduction in HC, and a 72. 73% reduction in smoke at lower engine loads. But the study also found that brake thermal efficiency (BTE) reduced and brake specific energy consumption (BSEC) increased with the increase in biodiesel content. KB10O10D80 had the least reduction in BTE with the maximum reduction being 19. 78% at 75% load and a moderate increase in BSEC, with an 11. 66% increase at 100% load. However, the efficiency loss was the highest in KB40O10D50, but the emissions were reduced to the highest extent. Additionally, NOx emissions increased slightly, with KB10O10D80 showing a rise of 0.1% to 1.81%, and KB40O10D50 recording up to a 5.36% increase at full load. These findings underscore the trade-offs between environmental benefits and engine performance. The presence of octanol, an oxygenated additive, improved combustion efficiency. However, the KB20O10D70 produced better performance and notably reduced emission.