PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF IDI SLOW SPEED DIESEL ENGINE ON PRE-HEATED JATROPHA OIL

Abstract

Diesel Engines have proved its utility in agriculture and transportation, sector of India. Slow speed diesel engine helps in agriculture and rural electrification in developing countries. However, the concerns about long term availability of petroleum diesel and environmental degradation caused by burning of diesel fuel have mandated that renewable alternative to diesel fuel should be expeditely explored to overcome these twin problems. Vegetable oils have always been considered as a good alternative to diesel for last many decades and oil derived from Jatropha curcas plant has been considered as a sustainable substitute to diesel fuel. Difficulties encountered with the use of straight vegetable oil in diesel engine are reported by various researchers. These problems are mainly attributed to high viscosity and low volatility of vegetable oil. The modification of Jatropha oil to biodiesel through process of transesterification is one of the most acceptable methods of overcoming the abov...