Materials Today: Proceedings 43 (2021) 3842–3846

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Materials Today: Proceedings

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The effect of mixed nano-additives on performance and emission

characteristics of a diesel engine fuelled with diesel-ethanol blend
R. Hussain Vali, M. Marouf Wani
Department of Mechanical Engineering, NIT Srinagar, Srinagar, India

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: The use of ethanol in diesel engine is getting attention because of their significant impact on emission
Received 11 August 2020 reduction. However, previous work reported that the introduction of ethanol in diesel fuel decreases
Accepted 21 November 2020 the performance of the diesel engine. Therefore the study focuses on improving the performance as well
Available online 25 January 2021
as the emission characteristics of the diesel engine by adding mixed nanoadditives to the diesel-ethanol
blend. The concentration of mixed nanoadditives (Al2O3 and TiO2) 50 ppm and 100 ppm were added to
Keywords: diesel-ethanol blend in the presence of a surfactant with the help of ultrasonic agitation. Significant
Nanoadditive
improvements in performance parameters such as BTE and BFSC have been observed after addition of
Diesel-ethanol blend
Performance
nanoadditives. The reduction in NOx, CO and UBHC emissions were also observed with the addition of
Emission nanoadditives whereas the emission of CO2 was increased.
Ó 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Confer-
ence on Nanoelectronics, Nanophotonics, Nanomaterials, Nanobioscience & Nanotechnology.

1. Introduction therefore made in the presence of a surfactant for a homogeneous

The demand for the consumption of fossil fuel is increasing all
over the world in day-by-day, and fossil fuels are depleting rapidly
due to their limited availability. The extensive use of fossil fuels
causes changes in the environment and is having a serious effect
on living beings. Also, increasing stringent emission regulations
in all over the world forces the researchers to search the alterna-
tives for fossil fuels. Different bio-fuels are being developed by
the many researchers as an alternative to diesel fuel, such as bio-
diesel and alcohol fuels [1]. Ethanol is a one of the renewable alco-
hol fuel produced by fermentation of agricultural products. Local
ethanol production reduces dependence on diesel fuel imports
and also boosts the economy of countries, especially agriculture
based economy countries like India [2]. The application of ethanol
in the diesel engine is increasing more widely owing to its signifi-
cant effects on the exhaust emission of the diesel engine. However,
ethanol is not employed as direct fuel in diesel engines due to its
lower viscosity, cetane number and heat content, but it can use
as a blend of diesel fuel [3]. Unlike gasoline, ethanol is not homo-
geneously mixed with diesel fuel due to the difference in its phys-
ical and chemical properties. The diesel-ethanol mixtures are
E-mail address: hussainvali_2017@nitsri.net (R. Hussain Vali)
mixture. Surfactants lower the interfacial tension of liquids, [4,5].
Several researchers have attempted to test the effect of diesel-
ethanol blends in varying proportions on diesel engine working
characteristics, [6,7]. Labeckas et al. [8] used ethanol–diesel blends
as test fuel and reported that NOx and HC emissions were
decreased with ethanol–diesel blends compared to base diesel.
Arkadiuszet et al.[9] performed tests on diesel engines with
diesel-ethanol-biodiesel blends and observed increases in ignition
delay and BSFC, and reductions in BTE. They also reported reduc-
tions in CO, NOx emissions, and increased UBHC, CO2 with
increased concentrations of ethanol. Some other studies have
reported similar results with increased concentration of ethanol
in diesel fuel that decreases the smoke and NOx emissions and this
is attributed that the presence of higher oxygen content in ethanol
enhances the rate of combustion [10]. However, the addition of
ethanol reduces the cetane number and calorific value, which leads
to reductions in the performance parameters of the engine. This
can be overcome by adding various additives to the diesel fuel.
Recently, the use of metal oxide nanoparticles as an additive to die-
sel fuel has attracted the attention of many researchers.
Nanoparticles are high energy density additives and have a high
catalytic activity with high surface-to-volume ratio, which
improves the fuel properties and combustion characteristics of

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.11.1021
2214-7853/Ó 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Conference on Nanoelectronics, Nanophotonics, Nanomaterials,
Nanobioscience & Nanotechnology.
R. Hussain Vali and M. Marouf Wani Materials Today: Proceedings 43 (2021) 3842–3846

the diesel engine. Seela et al. [11] used CeO2 nanoparticles incorpo- Table 1
rated biodiesel blends and found increased fuel heating value and Specifications of nanoparticles.

improved emission and performance characteristics of the diesel Item Specifications

engine. Nagarajan et al. [12] have performed experiments on diesel Manufacturer Nano Research Lab, Nano Research Lab,
engine fuelled with carbon nanotubes blended waste fishing net India India
oil. Results showed the BTE increase of 3.83% and BSFC reduction Molecular formula Al2O3 TiO2
of 3.87%, as well as a significant reduction in CO, NOx, HC and Average particle size 30 – 50 nm 10–20 nm
Specific surface area 120–140 m2/g 200–220 m2/g
smoke emissions. Similar results have been reported in some other (SSA)
research studies, [13,14]. Based on the literature, it was found that Color Appearance White White
a good amount of work has been done on diesel-ethanol blends, Morphology Spherical Spherical
and very few studies have been done on different nano-additives Purity 99.9% 99.9%
with different test fuel blend that are limited. To the best of the
author’s knowledge, none of the studies reported the effect of Electron Microscopy) analysis was performed to analyze the struc-
mixed nano-additives blended diesel-ethanol blend on the perfor- tural morphology of Al2O3 and TiO2 nanoparticles shown in Fig. 1
mance and emission characteristics of the diesel engine. The aim of (a and b). The specifications of Al2O3 and TiO2 nanoparticles were
this study is to determine the effect of mixed nano-additives (Al2O3 shown in the Table 1 and it is varied by 50 ppm (25 ppm Al2O3
and TiO2) incorporated diesel-ethanol blend on the performance and 25 ppm TiO2) and 100 ppm (50 ppm Al2O3 and 50 ppm TiO2)
and emission characteristics of the diesel engine. The single cylin- in diesel-ethanol blend. The diesel, ethanol and mixed nanoparti-
der VCR diesel engine was employed for this study. TiO2 and Al2O3 cles (Al2O3 and TiO2) were blended with the help of Ultrasonicator
nanoparticles were used as fuel additives. (Fig. 2). Three types of test blends were prepared and their proper-
ties shown in Table 2.
2. Materials and methods The single cylinder DI VCR diesel engine was used for this
experimental investigation and the specifications are listed in
The commercially available diesel and ethanol were used as test Table 3. The schematic layout of the experimental test setup is
fuels for this study. Tween-80 and Span-80 surfactants were used shown in Fig. 3. The hydraulic dynamometer was used to load
for the homogeneous blending and stability of the diesel-ethanol the engine. The airflow and fuel flow were measured with an ori-
mixture. Al2O3 and TiO2 nanoparticles were used as a fuel additive fice manometer and a cantilever type load cell. The speed of the
and were purchased from Nano Research lab India. SEM (Scanning engine was measured using the proximity pressure sensor. The
temperature of the exhaust gas measured with K-type thermocou-
ple. The engine analysis software developed by the Tech-ed has an
interface with different test parameters and analyzes the data dur-
ing the experiment. The exhaust emissions of the engine, such as
CO, HC, NOx and CO2 were measured with the Pantron multi-gas
analyser made by the Pantron Automation Pvt. Ltd.

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Brake Specific fuel consumption (BSFC)

Variation in BSFC for different test fuel blends with different

loads is shown in Fig. 4. It has been observed that rapid decreases
in BSFC up to 50% load and after that gradual decrease was
observed for all test blends. Adding ethanol to diesel fuel increases
the BSFC value. This is due to a decrease in calorific value of fuel
which leads more fuel supply at same power output resulting in
increased BSFC. It was also observed that the BSFC decreased by

Fig. 1. SEM of (a) Al2O3 and (b) TiO2. Fig. 2. Ultrasonicator bath.

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R. Hussain Vali and M. Marouf Wani Materials Today: Proceedings 43 (2021) 3842–3846

Table 2
Properties of test fuel blend.

Properties Diesel DE10S2 DE10S2TA50 DE10S2TA100

Density at 150C (kg/m3) 837 829 831 834
Kinematic Viscosity at 40 °C (cst) 2.65 2.27 2.29 2.34
Flash point 0C 52 19 20 20
Calorific value (kJ/kg) 44,890 42,870 43,140 43,260

Table 3 same power output. It was also noted that the addition of mixed
Specifications of the diesel engine. nanoadditives to the diesel-ethanol blend improves the BTE of
Description Specifications the engine and is proportional to the concentration of nanoaddi-
Type 4 S single cylinder water cooled tives. The possible reason for this is that nanoparticles have a
VCR DI diesel engine greater surface area with high catalytic activity that enhances the
Bore  Stroke 80  110 mm air fuel mixing and combustion reactions resulting in improved
Swept volume 552 cc BTE. The percentage increase of BTE for DE10S2TA100 blend at full
Injection Timing 24° bTDC
load was 13.88% and 3.29 compared to DE10S2 blend and diesel
Rated power up to 5 HP(3.7 KW)
Rated Speed 1500 rpm fuel.
Compression ratio 16.5:1

3.3. Carbon monoxide emission (CO)

adding of nanoparticles to the diesel-ethanol blend. The reduced
BSFC value is directly proportional to the increased concentration
of nanoparticles in the test fuel blend. The possible reason for this
is due to improved air–fuel mixing and increased fuel heating
value leading to better combustion resulting in a decrease in BSFC.
The BSFC decrease for DE10S2TA100 was 11.53% and 3.89% com-
pared to DE10S2 blend and diesel, at full load.
3.2. Brake thermal efficiency (BTE)
The BTE variation of the different blends with respect to differ-
ent loads is shown in Fig. 5. It has been found that the BTE of the
engine was increased by increasing the load. The minimum differ-
ence in BTE between the fuel blends was observed at lower loads,
and it showed maximum at higher loads. The addition of ethanol to
diesel fuel reduces the BTE shown in Fig. 5. This is be the result of
decreased fuel heating value and increased fuel consumption for
The emissions of CO were formed mainly because of the incom-
plete combustion caused by the lack of oxygen during the combus-
tion. Fig. 6 shows the variations in CO emissions of different test
blends with different loads. It was found that the emissions of
CO increased with increasing load. The possible reason for this is
the supply of a rich air fuel mixture at higher loads. It has also been
found that adding ethanol to diesel fuel increases CO emissions at
low loads and thereafter decreases with increased load. The reason
for this is that ethanol has higher oxygen content in its chemical
structure, which improves combustion resulting in lower CO emis-
sions. A further reduction in CO emissions was observed with the
mixed nanoparticles blended test fuels. This is result of higher cat-
alytic activity of nanoparticles, which improves the combustion.
The percentage of decrease in CO emissions for DE10S2TA50 blend
at full load was 24.73% and 6.99% compared to neat diesel and
DE10S2 blend, whereas for DE10S2TA100 blend it was 29.81%
and 13.27%.

Fig. 3. Schematic layout of experimental setup.

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R. Hussain Vali and M. Marouf Wani
Fig. 4. Variation in BSFC of different test blends with load.
Fig. 5. Variation in BTE of different test blends with load.
3.4. Unburnt hydrocarbons emission(UBHC)
Fig. 7 illustrates the variation in UBHC of various test blends at
varying loads. The UBHC emissions were increased with increasing
load. It was also observed that the further increase in UBHC emis-
sions by adding ethanol to diesel fuel, and this is due to the high
latent heat of vaporization of ethanol causing decreased combus-
tion temperatures in the cylinder resulting in increased UBHC.
The UBHC emissions were decreased by adding mixed nanoaddi-
tives shown in Fig. 7. The high surface-to-volume ratio of nanopar-
ticles improves the contact between fuel and oxidizer resulting in
enhanced HC oxidation. At full load, the UBHC improvement for the
DE10S2TA100 blend was 2.17% and 14.18% compared to diesel and
DE10S2 blend.
3.5. Nitrogen oxides emission (NOx)
NOx emissions were formed when the nitrogen molecule
reacted with the oxygen molecule. Nitrogen molecules are more
active to combine with oxygen molecules at higher temperatures.
The variation in NOx emissions is shown in Fig. 8 for different test
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Materials Today: Proceedings 43 (2021) 3842–3846
Fig. 6. Variation in CO of different test blends with load.
Fig. 7. Variation in UBHC of different test blends with load.
blends at varying loads. By increasing the load, the NOx emissions
have been raised, and this is due to the increased cylinder temper-
atures as load increases. The addition of ethanol reduces NOx emis-
sions because ethanol has a high latent heat of vaporization, which
absorbs the heat from the cylinder walls and maintains lower com-
bustion temperatures. Further decrease in NOx was observed by
adding nanoparticles to the diesel-ethanol blend. The percentage
of NOx decrease for the DE10S2TA100 blend at full load was
15.24% and 11.34% compared to neat diesel and DE10S2 blend.
3.6. Carbon dioxide (CO2)
The variation in CO2 for various test blends at varying loads is
shown in Fig. 9. The emissions of CO2 were increased as the load
increased. The possible reason for this is that the combustion tem-
perature was increased by increasing the load, which increases the
oxidation of CO to CO2. Adding ethanol to diesel fuel decreases
emissions of CO2. This is attributed to ethanol having lower carbon
atoms in its chemical structure and also lower combustion temper-
atures resulting in reduced CO2. The addition of mixed nanoaddi-
R. Hussain Vali and M. Marouf Wani
Fig. 8. Variation in NOx of different test blends with load.
Fig. 9. Variation in CO2 of different test blends with load.
tives increases the CO2 emission, and this is due to the presence of
nanoparticles that improves the combustion rate. The amount of
CO2 increase for DE10S2TA100 blend at full load was 8.65% and
10.19% compared to diesel fuel and DE10S2 blend.
4. Conclusion
The aim of the current study is to investigate the impact of
mixed nanoadditives incorporated diesel ethanol blend in various
proportions on the performance and emission characteristics of
the diesel engine. The introduction of nanoadditives showed signif-
icant improvements in diesel engine performance and emission
characteristics. The following conclusions are drawn on the basis
of the findings from this study.
 The addition of nanoadditives (Al2O3 and TiO2) has shown sig-
nificant improvements in the BTE. The percentage of improve-
ment for DE10S2TA100 blend was 3.29% and 13.88%
compared with the diesel and the DE10S2 blend.
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Materials Today: Proceedings 43 (2021) 3842–3846
 The reduction in BSFC was observed by adding mixed nanoaddi-
tives to diesel-ethanol blend. DE10S2TA100 blend achieved
lower BSFC compared to diesel fuel and DE10S2 blend.
 The CO, NOx and UBHC emissions were reduced by adding of
mixed nano-additives and the corresponding reduction for the
DE10S2TA100 blend was 29.81%, 15.24% and 2.17% compared
to neat diesel.
The CO2 increase was observed as the concentration of mixed
nanoadditives increased and the percentage increase in CO2 for
the DE10S2TA100 blend was 10.19% compared to neat diesel fuel.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
R. Hussain Vali: Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation,
Writing - original draft. M. Marouf Wani: Supervision, Writing -
review & editing.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing finan-
cial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared
to influence the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the National Institute of Technology,
Srinagar, (Jammu and Kashmir), providing laboratory testing facil-
ity. The authors are further thankful for the nano research labora-
tory, Jharkhand, India for providing the required materials.
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