Experimental investigation of the effects of ethanol-diesel mixture on the performance and emissions of the thermal barrier coated diesel engine

Abstract

In this study, the effects of thermal barrier coating (TBC) and diesel-ethanol mixture fuel on carcinogenic and greenhouse-causing harmful emissions from diesel engines were experimentally investigated. In the first stage, the combustion chamber parts of the single cylinder diesel engine were coated with ceramic Al2O3–TiO2 material with low thermal conductivity. Plasma spray method was used as the coating method. Then, coated and uncoated engines were run on diesel fuel. In the second stage, ethanol-diesel mixture containing 5% ethanol E5 (v/v) was used in both engines. In both stages, the engines were operated at full load and at different engine speeds and compared in terms of emissions and performance. Combustion improved as the effect of the increased in-cylinder temperature thanks to the low heat transfer with TBC. Therefore, an increase in engine power occurred. However, when E5 fuel was used in the TBC engine, the engine power decreased slightly. In the coated engine, HC and CO emissions have been significantly reduced. NOx emission increased with the effect of the thermal barrier coating, but decreased by 18% with the addition of ethanol in the TBC engine due to lower calorific value of ethanol.