DEVELOPMENT AND HEAT TRANSFER SIMULATION OF EPOXIDIZED JATROPHA BIOLUBRICANT FOR SPARK IGNITION ENGINES
DEVELOPMENT AND HEAT TRANSFER SIMULATION OF EPOXIDIZED JATROPHA BIOLUBRICANT FOR SPARK IGNITION ENGINES
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Date
2021-04
Authors
JA'AFARU, Aliyu
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Abstract
Vegetable oils need to be chemically modified before being used for biolubricant production for
internal combustion engines applications. One of the most effective chemical modifications for
vegetable oils is epoxidation of its double bonds. In this work, Crude Jatropha oil (CJO) was
epoxidized using peracid generated in-situ by the reaction of formic acid and hydrogen peroxide
using sulfuric acid as catalyst. FTIR and Iodine Value were used to confirm the formation of
epoxides. Epoxidized Jatropha biolube (EJBL) was produced by two stage transesterification; the
first is aimed at producing an intermediate product-methyl ester of the jatropha oil, while the
second uses the methyl ester as a reactant to produce a polyol ester (biolubricant) using
Trimethylolpropane (TMP). The EJBL was blended with B023232/B023333 additive from 1 %
to 10 % by volume with 1 % increments. The physico-chemical properties of the blends were
determined and the blend whose physico-chemical properties are close to that of reference oil
was chosen for the engine test. A TecQuipment TD201 small engine test set located at the heat
engine laboratory of Mechanical Engineering Department Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, was
used for engine performance test. The Equipment manufacturer specified that SAE30 or 10W30
engine oil should be used on the engine. The epoxidation process has improved the thermal and
oxidative stabilities of the jatropha oil from 76oC to 130oC. The physico-chemical analyses of the
EJBL and its blends show that EJBLO5 is close to SAE 30. It was observed that EJBL05 is
better than SAE 30 in Viscosity Index, Flash Point, Pour Point, Evaporation Loss, Specific Heat
Capacity, Coefficient of thermal Conductivity and demulsibility. The torque developed by the
test engine (TecQuipment TD 201 ) within the test range used ( 0- 3450 rev min-1) for EJBL05
were 0 – 9.9 Nm and for SAE 30 ( reference engine oil ), 0 – 9.4 Nm; Similarly the engine
Brake Powers for EJBL05 were 0 – 3577 W and for SAE30, 0 – 3396 W; The Brake Mean
Effective Pressures ( BMEP ) for EJBL05 were 0 – 6.22 bar and for SAE 30, 0 - 5.99 bar. The
Brake Specific Fuel Consumptions (BSFC) for EJBL05 were 0 – 0.3492 kg kWh-1 and for
SAE30, 0 – 0.3762 kg kWh-1. The simulated results obtained for oil temperatures, engine outer
surface temperatures and exhaust valve temperatures were close to the experimented results with
R2 value of 0.988, 0.969 and 0.977 respectively; signifying that the simulation was valid.
Description
A PHD THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE SCHOOL OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES
AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEGREE IN
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING,
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING,
AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY,
ZARIA, NIGERIA
Keywords
DEVELOPMENT,, HEAT TRANSFER SIMULATION,, EPOXIDIZED JATROPHA BIOLUBRICANT,, SPARK IGNITION ENGINES.