Emissions from High-Speed Direct Injection Diesel Engines Using Palm Ethyl Ester Fuel Produced with Potassium Ethoxide Catalyst

Particle pollution released from diesel engines is an important environmental concern.A replacement of regular diesel by fatty acid esters is continuously studied to reduce pollutants.This paper presents the experimentation of Palm Ethyl Ester (PEE) and its blends, running on a High-Speed Direct Injection (HSDI) diesel engine at a constant speed of 3,000 rpm under various electrifications.PEE was transesterified by palm olein and anhydrous ethanol under the alcohol/oil molar ratio of 6:1 catalyzed by potassium ethoxide at 1%.The neat and blended PEE in regular diesel indicated the reduction of exhaust emissions in the HSDI engine.The unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, black smoke, and particulate matter were reduced by 30%, 49%, 36%, and 45%, respectively.The nitric oxide was elevated by 14%.Additionally, the brake thermal efficiency decreased, and the brake specific fuel consumption increased by 9% and 24%, respectively.The PEE blended with increasing regular diesel led to the improvement of engine performance and the decrease of nitric oxide according to regular diesel proportions increased.