Investigation of Dual-Fuel Combustion by Different Port Injection Fuels (Neat Ethanol and E85) in a DE95 Diesel/Ethanol Blend Fueled Compression Ignition Engine

Abstract

This paper investigated the effect of different substitution ratios of neat ethanol (E100) and ethanol–gasoline blend E85 on in-cylinder combustion, engine efficiency, and exhaust emissions, in a dual-fuel diesel engine, using the ethanol–diesel blend (DE95). Experimental studies realized at 1400 rpm, 1600 rpm, and 1800 rpm engine speeds under constant engine load of 50% (20 Nm). For each engine speed, the injection timing of diesel and E95 fuels at 24 °CA bTDC kept constant while low-reactivity fuels (i.e., E100 and E85) substitution ratio changed in the range of 59–83%. The results showed that premixed fuels in different SRs have an impact on shaping engine emissions, ignition delay (ID), in-cylinder pressure, and heat-release rate. Also, at the dual-fuel experimental studies in all engine speeds, NOx about 47–67% decrease compared to single fuel conditions of reference diesel and DE95, and smoke opacity remained unchanged around 0.1 FSN, whereas HC and CO increased in the range of 20–50%. However, E85/DE95 and E100/DE95 dual-fuel combustion achieved lower brake thermal efficiency (BTE) and combustion efficiency compared to single diesel fuel combustion. On the other hand, in dual-fuel combustion conditions, despite the low combustion efficiency, premixed E85 fuel offered higher engine efficiency and lower exhaust emissions than E100.