Impact of Diesel Butyl Palmitate Fuel Blend on Engine Performance, Emissions, Soot Nanostructure and Morphology Characteristics

Abstract Butyl palmitate is a long-chain fatty acid ester, similar to fatty acid methyl esters that formulate biodiesel. Butyl palmitate was synthesized in the laboratory by esterification of palmitic acid recovered from depolymerized plastic waste from Malviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur, India. Butanol used for reaction was purchased from market. The synthesized Butyl palmitate was then tested as a fuel in engine. In this experimental investigation, the impact of diesel and BP25 (75% (v/v) diesel blended with 25%(v/v) butyl palmitate) fuel was evaluated on engine performance, emissions, soot morphology, and nano structural properties. For a comparatives analysis, the experiments were carried out at 3.5 kW@1500rpm in a water cooled, single cylinder, four-stroke diesel engine. The study investigated performance (brake thermal efficiency), combustion (in-cylinder pressure), emissions (HC, CO, NOx), and soot characteristics (morphology, nanostructure via TEM, Raman, and FTIR analyses) of the test fuels. This sustainable biofuel and overall experimental investigation contribute to societal goals such as public health and climate action.