Biodiesel has attracted a great deal attention recently as an alternative fuel due\r\nto increasing fuel prices and the imperative to reduce emissions. Among a wide range of\r\nbiodiesel resources, microalgae are a promising alternative fuel source because of the high\r\nbiomass, lipid productivity and environmentally friendliness. Microalgae is also a non-edible\r\nfood, therefore, there will be no impact on the human food supply chain. In this work,\r\npetroleum diesel (PD) and biodiesel from the microalgae Chlorella protothecoides\r\n(MCP-B20) blend have been used to examine the performance and the emission of a\r\n25.8 kW agriculture tractor engine. Two engine speeds at maximum power take off (PTO)\r\npower and torque have been selected for analysis using analysis of variance (ANOVA).\r\nThe results showed that there is no significant difference between the engine performance\r\nwhen microalgae biodiesel blend (MCP-B20) and PD were used. However, a significant\r\nreduction in CO, CO2 and NO emissions was found when MCP-B20 was used. These\r\noutcomes give strong indication that microalgae can be successfully used in tractors as\r\nalternative fuel.
Loading....