Application of Ultrasound Energy for Biodiesel Production of Non-Edible Oils and CI Engine Performance Testing

This paper presents the comparative details of biodiesel production process using low frequency ultrasonic energy (28-33 kHz) and conventional mechanical stirrer method. For this purpose, two different non-edible oils namely Thumba (Citrullus colocyntis) and Waste Cooking Oil (WCO) are used as the biodiesel feedstock. The experiments have been performed for molar ratio (alcohol/oil) 6:1 and 4.5:1, with three different catalyst percentages (0.5%, 0.75% and 1%) of Potassium Hydroxide. The important chemical and physical properties of (Thumba) and Waste Cooking Oil biodiesel were determined and compared with diesel. It is observed that the density and viscosity values of both the biodiesels are within the permissible limits but still higher than petroleum diesel. Further an experimental investigation has been carried out on a four cylinder, diesel engine operating on diesel and biodiesel blends [BIO, B20, and B30] of Thumba and WCO. The significant conclusions of present study are: (i) Biodiesel production through ultrasound energy seems to be a relatively simple, efficient, time saving, eco-friendly and industrially viable process, (ii) The trends for percentage variations of performance parameters for biodiesel blends (in reference to diesel as baseline) do not show any deterioration.(hi) There is tremendous improvement in smoke reduction while operating with biodiesel as compared to petroleum diesel.