Utilization of Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) in a Euro 6 Dual-Loop EGR Diesel Engine: Behavior as a Drop-In Fuel and Potentialities along Calibration Parameter Sweeps

Stefano d’Ambrosio (), Alessandro Mancarella and Andrea Manelli
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Stefano d’Ambrosio: Energy Department, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy
Alessandro Mancarella: Energy Department, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy
Andrea Manelli: Energy Department, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Torino, Italy

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 19, 1-17

Abstract: This study examines the effects on combustion, engine performance and exhaust pollutant emissions of a modern Euro 6, dual-loop EGR, compression ignition engine running on regular EN590-compliant diesel and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO). First, the potential of HVO as a “drop-in” fuel, i.e., without changes to the original, baseline diesel-oriented calibration, was highlighted and compared to regular diesel results. This showed how the use of HVO can reduce engine-out emissions of soot (by up to 67%), HC and CO (by up to 40%), while NO x levels remain relatively unchanged. Fuel consumption was also reduced, by about 3%, and slightly lower combustion noise levels were detected, too. HVO has a lower viscosity and a higher cetane number than diesel. Since these parameters have a significant impact on mixture formation and the subsequent combustion process, an engine pre-calibrated for regular diesel fuel could not fully exploit the potential of another sustainable fuel. Therefore, the effects of the most influential calibration parameters available on the tested engine platform, i.e., high-pressure and low-pressure EGR, fuel injection pressure, main injection timing, pilot quantity and dwell-time, were analyzed along single-parameter sweeps. The substantial reduction in engine-out soot, HC and CO levels brought about by HVO could give the possibility to implement additional measures to limit NO x emissions, combustion noise and/or fuel consumption compared to diesel. For example, higher proportion of LP EGR and/or smaller pilot quantity could be exploited with HVO, at low load, to reduce NO x emissions to a greater extent than diesel, without incurring penalties in terms of incomplete combustion species. Conversely, at higher load, delayed main injection timings and reduced rail pressure could reduce combustion noise without exceeding soot levels of the baseline diesel case.

Keywords: pollutant emissions; diesel engine; HVO; drop-in fuel; ECU calibration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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