Investigation on ethanol-glycerol blend combustion in the internal combustion sparkignited engine. Engine performance and exhaust emissions

Abstract The paper presents results from investigation on a new type of fuel which can be implemented for the both automotive and power industry. The proposed fuel is of a completely renewable origin based on ethanol and glycerol at the ratio of 3:1 (75% and 25%), respectively. Hence, it does not contribute to unsustainable CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. The analysis of combusting the ethanol-glycerol blend in the spark-ignited reciprocating engine was focused on engine performance, combustion thermodynamics, and toxicity content in the exhaust gases. The analysis was conducted as a comparative analysis for gasoline and ethanol, which were treated as reference fuels. The toxic emissions of CO, NOx, and unburnt hydrocarbons (UHC) did not differ remarkably from the gasoline emissions tests. The engine performance expressed by the indicated mean effective pressure deteriorated less than 3%. It was found that the ethanol-glycerol blend at the ratio of 3:1 (75/25%) can be directly applied as a substitute fuel for either gasoline or ethanol in internal combustion engines in the automotive and power industry.