Open Access

Performance, Combustion, and Emission Characteristics of CeO2-doped Cottonseed Biodiesel in a Non-road Diesel Engine

Elumalai P V, elumalai@adityauniversity.in
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Aditya University, Surampalem, AP, India Senthur N S, senthurns@gmail.com
Department of Mechanical Engineering, New Prince Shri Bhavani College of Engineering and Technology, Chennai, TN, India
ORCID Ashwin Prabhu G , ashwin.prabhu1990@gmail.com
Department of Mechanical Engineering, St. Joseph’s College of Engineering, Chennai, TN, India
ORCID Sivamurugan P , drsivamurugan@veltech.edu.in
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Vel Tech Rangarajan Dr. Sagunthala R and D Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, TN, India Dhineshbabu N R , babudhinesh2009@gmail.com
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering T. John Institute of Technology, Bangalore, KA, India
ORCID Choon Kit Chan, choonkit.chan@newinti.edu.my
Department of Mechanical Engineering, INTI International University, Sembilan, Malaysia Vikorn Tanaratchat vikorn.t@siu.ac.th
Department of Engineering and Technology, Shinawatra University, Thani, Thailand

---

---

---

Abstract

The present study investigates the effect of incorporating cerium oxide (CeO₂) nanoparticles on the performance, combustion, and emissions of a cottonseed biodiesel–diesel blend in a constant-speed, non-road diesel engine. CeO₂ nanoparticles were synthesized using a precipitation–ultrasonic method and introduced into a 30% cottonseed biodiesel blend (CSO30) at three concentrations: 20, 40, and 60 ppm. All experiments were conducted on a single-cylinder, 4-stroke, water-cooled, direct-injection diesel engine at 1500 rpm with loads ranging from 0 to 16 kg. Evaluations were based on key performance parameters, including brake thermal efficiency (BTE) and brake-specific fuel consumption (BSFC), combustion characteristics including in-cylinder pressure and cumulative net heat release rate, and exhaust emissions including CO, HC, NOₓ, and smoke opacity. CSO30 exhibited lower brake thermal efficiency and a higher brake-specific fuel consumption than diesel at full load, due to its lower calorific value and higher viscosity. Adding CeO₂ nanoparticles improved combustion quality and fuel conversion efficiency. Among the tested blends, CSO30-N60 (with 60 ppm CeO₂ nanoparticles) exhibited optimal performance, achieving a BTE of 30.8% compared to 30.2% for CSO30, while improving BSFC by approximately 13% at full load, thus approaching diesel performance (32% BTE). Emissions analysis showed that CeO₂-doped blends significantly reduced regulated exhaust emissions. The CSO30-N60 blend showed reductions of 11.9% in hydrocarbons, 17.7% in nitrogen oxides, and 17% in smoke opacity under full-load conditions compared to diesel. The maximum reduction in carbon monoxide was observed for the CSO30-N20 blend, reaching 43.8%. The findings indicate that CeO₂ nanoadditives significantly enhance the combustion efficiency of cottonseed biodiesel blends, achieving performance levels close to diesel while reducing exhaust emissions, making them suitable for non-road diesel engine applications. The addition of CeO₂ nanoparticles improved the performance of the cottonseed biodiesel blends, enabling near-diesel performance, while neat diesel still exhibited the highest brake thermal efficiency. Overall, the results demonstrate that CeO₂ nanoadditives substantially improve the combustion efficiency of cottonseed biodiesel blends, enabling near-diesel performance while simultaneously reducing exhaust emissions, making them suitable for non-road diesel engine applications.

Full Text

Reference

---

Dwivedi, G. and Sharma, M. P., Prospects of Biodiesel from Pongamia in India, Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev., 32, 114–122 (2014).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2014.01.009

Dhairiyasamy, R., Bunpheng, W., Kit, C. C. and Hasan, N., Comparative Performance and Emission Analysis of Soybean and Algae Biodiesels in Low Heat Rejection Engines, Energy Sci. amp; Eng., 13(4), 1732–1748(2025).

https://doi.org/10.1002/ese3.2090

Esonye, C., Onukwuli, O. D., Ofoefule, A. U. and Ogah, E. O., Multi‐Input Multi‐Output (MIMO) ANN and Nelder‐Mead’s Simplex Based Modeling of Engine Performance and Combustion Emission Characteristics of Biodiesel‐Diesel Blend in CI Diesel Engine, Appl. Therm. Eng., 151, 100–114 (2019).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2019.01.101

Fan, X., Wang, X. and Chen, F., Biodiesel production from crude cottonseed oil: an optimisation process using response surface methodology, Open Fuels Energy Sci. J., 4, (2021). DOI:10.2174/1876973X01104010001

Hoque, E., Emon, M. I. H., Anik, M. T., Islam, M. A., Hasan, I., Ahmed, T., Zia, U. A., Hossain, M. and Ismail, M., A review of non-edible indigenous seeds feedstock in Bangladesh for biodiesel: Production, fuel properties and combustions performance, Green Technol. Sustain., 3(4), 100240 (2025).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.grets.2025.100240

Kumar, T. D., Hussain, S. S. and Ramesha, D. K., Effect of a zinc oxide nanoparticle fuel additive on the performance and emission characteristics of a CI engine fuelled with cotton seed biodiesel blends, Mater. Today: Proc., 26, 2374–2378 (2020).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.02.509

Mohammed, A. S., Ancha, V. R. and Atnaw, S. M., Optimization of biodiesel production from Croton Macrostachyus seed oil with calcium oxide (CaO) catalyst and Characterization: Potential assessment of seed and kernel, Energy Convers. Manage., 24, 100791(2024).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecmx.2024.100791

Nabi, M. N., Rahman, M. M. and Akhter, M. S., Biodiesel from cottonseed oil and its effect on engine performance and exhaust emissions, Appl. Therm. Eng., 29(11–12), 2265–2270 (2009).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2008.11.009

Odufuwa, O. Y., Tartibu, L. K. and Kusakana, K., Effects of soybean biodiesel on a DI diesel engine performance, emissions and combustion Characteristics, Fuel, 115, 875–883 (2014).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2012.10.081

Onukwuli, D. O., Emembolu, L. N., Ude, C. N., Aliozo, S. O. and Menkiti, M. C., Optimization of biodiesel production from refined cotton seed oil and its characterization, Egypt. J. Petrol., 26(1), 103–110 (2017).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejpe.2016.02.001

Papadopoulos, C. E., Lazaridou, A., Koutsoumba, A., Kokkinos, N., Christoforidis, A. and Nikolaou, N., Optimization of cotton seed biodiesel quality (critical properties) through modification of its FAME composition by highly selective homogeneous hydrogenation, Bioresour. Technol., 101(6), 1812–1819 (2010).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2009.10.016

Qi, D. H., Chen, H., Geng, L. M. and Bian, Z. H. Y., Experimental studies on the combustion characteristics and performance of a direct injection engine fueled with biodiesel/diesel blends, Energy Convers. Manage., 51, 2985–2992 (2010).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2010.06.042

Ramalingam, K., Kandasamy, A., Balasubramanian, D. and Palani, M., Forecasting of an ANN model for predicting behaviour of diesel engine energised by a combination of two low viscous biofuels, Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res., 27, 24702–24722 (2020).

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-06222-7

Sabri, A. M., Talib, N., Sani, A. S. A. and Kunar, S., Investigation on the performance of modified vegetable oil lubricants with single and hybrid nanoparticle additives for MQL applications, Tribol. Int., 214, 111314(2026).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.triboint.2025.111314

Shankar, A. A., Pentapati, P. R. and Prasad, R. K., Biodiesel synthesis from cottonseed oil using homogeneous alkali catalyst and using heterogeneous multi-walled carbon nanotubes: Characterization and blending studies, Egypt. J. Petrol., 26(1), 125–133 (2017).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejpe.2016.04.001

Sinha, D. and Murugavelh, S., Biodiesel production from waste cotton seed oil using low-cost catalyst: Engine performance and emission characteristics, Perspect. Sci., 8, 237–240 (2016).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pisc.2016.04.038

Soosai, M. R., Moorthy, I. M. G., Varalakshmi, P. and Yonas, C. J., Integrated global optimization and process modelling for biodiesel production from non-edible silk-cotton seed oil by microwave-assisted transesterification with heterogeneous calcium oxide catalyst, J. Clean. Prod., 367, 132946 (2022).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.132946

Sundar, K. and Udayakumar, R., Comparative evaluation of the performance of rice bran and cotton seed biodiesel blends in VCR diesel engine, Energy Rep., 6, 795–801 (2020).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egyr.2019.12.005

Saravanan, A., Murugan, M., Sreenivasa, R. M. And Parida, S., Performance and emission characteristics of a variable-compression-ratio CI engine fueled with dual biodiesel blends of Rapeseed and Mahua, Fuel, 263, 116751(2020).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2019.116751

Shaisundaram, V. S., Elumalai, P. V., Padmanabhan, S., Ramachandran, U. N., Tripathi, A. K., Yaping, C., Goud, B. N.and Prabhakar, S., Impact of metal oxides on thermal response of zirconia coated diesel engines fueled by Momordica biodiesel machine learning insights, Sci. Rep., 15(1), 26457(2025).

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-04033-0

Venkatesan, H., John, G. J. and Sivamani, S., Evaluating the combustion and emission phenomenon of algal and cotton seed biodiesel as fuel for compression ignition engine, World J. Eng., 16(2), 222–231 (2019).

https://doi.org/10.1108/WJE-09-2018-0300

Woldetensy, H. Z., Zeleke, D. S. and Tibba, G. S., Study of the impact on emissions and engine performance of diesel fuel additives made from cotton and castor blended seed oils, Heliyon, 11(1) (2025).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2025.e41659

Yeneneh, K. and Sufe, G., Sustainable biodiesel production from cottonseed oil using a nickel-doped eggshell heterogeneous catalyst optimized via response surface methodology, Sci. Rep., 15(1), 32132 (2025).

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-17529-6