Open Access

Environmental Sustainability Improvement on Polycarbonate Fuel with Nano-additives for Cleaner Engine Performance

K. Sakunthala, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Government College of Engineering, Salem, TN, India S. Padmanabhan, padmanabhan.ks@gmail.com
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Vel Tech Rangarajan Dr. Sagunthala R&D Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, TN, India S. Premnath, Department of Automobile Engineering, Sri Venkateswara College of Engineering, Sriperumbudur, TN, India S. Mahalingam, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sona College of Technology, Salem, TN, India S. Ganesan, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, TN, India V. Vijayan Department of Mechanical Engineering, K. Ramakrishnan College of Technology, Trichy, TN, India

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Abstract

The increasing plastic waste has posed an environmental challenge that calls for radical, innovative measures in the form of a pyrolysis process to convert plastics into alternative fuels. This reduces detritus waste and provides renewable energy. Nano-additives enhance the performance of recovered fuel properties and comply with strict emission standards. In this research, a supplementary fuel recovered from polycarbonate (PC) plastic waste along with magnesium oxide (MgO) was investigated in a diesel engine. This investigation tested the performance of a 20% blend ratio of polycarbonate fuel with 50 and 100 ppm of MgO. A 20% blend ratio of polycarbonate fuel with 50 ppm of MgO resulted in increased combustion efficiency and reductions of harmful emissions such as hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and specific fuel consumption (SFC). This study also explored the impact of engine load and nanoparticle concentration on the environmental sustainability of hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide using contour plots. All these advancements should contribute to achieving global sustainability goals, promoting cleaner energy solutions, and significantly reducing the impact of plastic wastes associated with fuel emissions.

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Reference

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