Effects of Particulate Matter Emissions of Diesel Engine using Diesel–Methanol Blends

In this work, palm methyl ester (PME) was added to methanol–biodiesel fuel in order to reduce the emissions. For diesel engines, alcohols are receiving increasing attention because they are oxygenated and renewable fuels. Therefore, in this study, the effect of the PM emission level of a four-cylinder, naturally aspirated, indirect injection diesel engine has been experimentally investigated by using methanol-blended diesel fuel from 0% to 20% with an increment of 5%. The effects of methanol on particulate matter (Laurens, Koolwijk, & De Maat) components, soluble organic fraction (SOF) and dry soot (DS) using different types of fuel blend were investigated. Using a composite filter, the ester–methanol–diesel characteristics such as mass concentration in terms of PM, SOF and DS were analyzed under different engine operating conditions. The results show that the combination of 10% of methanol with 20% of palm methyl ester produces lower PM emissions. It is shown that PME20M10 of methanol–biodiesel fuel can reduce the PM emissions effectively for all load conditions

7E analysis of a conceptual utility-scale land-based solar photovoltaic power plant

Large scale solar PV systems have a high priority among clean energy initiatives across the world. A comprehensive and more realistic analysis of the solar PV power plant is not reported yet. This study performs the energy, exergy, economic, environmental, energoeconomic, exergoeconomic, and enviroeconomic (7E) analysis of conceptual 5Â MW land-based solar photovoltaic power plant in five locations of Malaysia. Solar irradiation and climate data for each location are collected from the meteorological database of RETScreen software. The energy, economic, and environmental performance of the proposed solar PV system is predicted using RETScreen software. The exergy, energoeconomic, exergoeconomic, and enviroeconomic parameters are assessed using Microsoft excel based mathematical model. It is observed that the solar PV system proposed for all the selected locations will operate sufficiently well with a minimum 80 performance ratio (PR). The capacity utilization factor (CUF) varied between 17.04 (Site 2) and 14.25 (Site 4). The exergy efficiency varied between 11.35 (Site 2) and 12.65 (Site 4). The lowest value of the Payback period and LCOE is estimated to be 7.9 years and 0.102 respectively for the Site 2 solar PV system with consideration of GHG reduction revenue. The reduction in the GHG emissions is highest in Site 2, which is equivalent to 975.4 acres of forest and 1479.8 tonnes of waste recycled. Site 2 has the lowest exergoeconomic and energoeconomic parameters, as well as the highest enviroeconomic parameter. Hence, it is concluded that Site 2 has the best condition for implementation of solar PV system (80 PR, 17.04 CUF, 11.35 exergy efficiency, 7.9 years simple payback period, 17.10 internal rate of return, 0.102 USD LCOE, 4291 tCO2 avoided/annum, 0.0147Â kWh/USD, 1.096 kW/USD, 42,916 USD) based on 7E analysis

Analysis of solar PV glare in airport environment: Potential solutions

Solar PV plants are being installed in many airports around the globe. Reflection from the solar PV arrays is a big concern for airport stakeholders. This paper aims to assess the glare occurrence and its impact from the proposed solar PV plant installed in an airport. The prediction of glare is carried out with the help of computational software for a randomly selected area within the boundary of Kuantan airport, Malaysia. The selected zone is not suitable for solar installations as per FAA's glare policy. In the selected area (Apv), the duration of glare on ATCT from solar modules installed is 6778 min (green and yellow glare). Also, the flight path is free from any kind of glare occurrence. Glare occurs between March to mid-October, mostly from 7.00 a.m. to 8.00 a.m. Green and Yellow glare last up to 10 min and 30 min respectively in a year. In this regard, remedial steps for mitigating possible glare are discussed. Glare prediction helps in the early adoption of suitable remedial measures against glare hazard. © 2019 The Author(s)Universiti Malaysia Pahang: RDU 18003, PGRS 1903172This study was supported by University Malaysia Pahang (UMP) through its Doctoral Reseach Scheme (DRS) , PGRS 1903172 and internal grant RDU 18003

Investigation on combustion parameters of palm biodiesel operating with a diesel engine

Biodiesel is a renewable and decomposable fuel which is derived from edible and non-edible oils. It has different properties compared to conventional diesel but can be used directly in diesel engines. Different fuel properties characterise different combustion-phasing parameters such as cyclic variations of Indicated Mean Effective Pressure (IMEP) and maximum pressure (Pmax). In this study, cyclic variations of combustion parameters such as IMEP and Pmax were investigated using a multi-cylinder diesel engine operating with conventional diesel and palm biodiesel. The experiments were conducted using different engine loads; 20, 40, and 60% at a constant engine speed of 2500 rpm. The coefficient of variation (COV) and standard deviation of parameters were used to evaluate the cyclic variations of the combustion phasing parameters for the test fuels at specific engine test conditions. It was observed that palm biodiesel has lower COV IMEP compared to conventional diesel but is higher in COV Pmax at higher engine loads respectively. In addition, palm biodiesel tends to have a higher recurrence for the frequency distribution for maximum pressure. It can be concluded from the study that the fuel properties of palm biodiesel have influenced most of the combustion parameters

Investigation of emissions characteristics of secondary butyl alcohol-gasoline blends in a port fuel injection spark ignition engine

Exhaust emissions especially from light duty gasoline engine are a major contributor to air pollution due to the large number of vehicles on the road. The purpose of this study is to experimentally analyse the exhaust pollutant emissions of a four-stroke port fuel spark ignition engines operating using secondary butyl alcohol–gasoline blends by percentage volume of 5% (GBu5), 10% (GBu10) and 15% (GBu15) of secondary butyl- alcohol (2-butanol) additives in gasoline fuels at 50% of wide throttle open. The exhaust emissions characteristics of the engine using blended fuels was compared to the exhaust emissions of the engine with gasoline fuels (G100) as a reference fuels. Exhaust emissions analysis results show that all of the blended fuels produced lower CO by 8.6%, 11.6% and 24.8% for GBu5, GBu10 and GBu15 respectively from 2500 to 4000 RPM, while for HC, both GBu10 and GBu15 were lower than that G100 fuels at all engine speeds. In general, when the engine was operated using blended fuels, the engine produced lower CO and HC, but higher CO2

Investigation of emissions characteristics of secondary butyl alcohol-gasoline blends in a port fuel injection spark ignition engine

Exhaust emissions especially from light duty gasoline engine are a major contributor to air pollution due to the large number of vehicles on the road. The purpose of this study is to experimentally analyse the exhaust pollutant emissions of a four-stroke port fuel spark ignition engines operating using secondary butyl alcohol–gasoline blends by percentage volume of 5% (GBu5), 10% (GBu10) and 15% (GBu15) of secondary butyl- alcohol (2-butanol) additives in gasoline fuels at 50% of wide throttle open. The exhaust emissions characteristics of the engine using blended fuels was compared to the exhaust emissions of the engine with gasoline fuels (G100) as a reference fuels. Exhaust emissions analysis results show that all of the blended fuels produced lower CO by 8.6%, 11.6% and 24.8% for GBu5, GBu10 and GBu15 respectively from 2500 to 4000 RPM, while for HC, both GBu10 and GBu15 were lower than that G100 fuels at all engine speeds. In general, when the engine was operated using blended fuels, the engine produced lower CO and HC, but higher CO2