Synergistic Impact of Alcohol Type and CeO₂ Nanoparticles on the Performance and Emission of an RCCI Engine Fueled with Sapota Biodiesel
J. Environ. Nanotechnol., Volume 14, No 4 (December 2025) pp. 248-257
Abstract
This study investigates experimentally the combined effect of alcohol type (hexanol and butanol) and cerium oxide (CeO2) nanoparticles (at a fixed concentration of 5-15ppm) on performance, combustion and emission of a reactivity-controlled compression ignition (RCCI) engine fueled with sapota oil methyl ester (SOME). Butanol and hexanol were used as low reactivity fuel, while SOME (B20) was the high reactivity fuel with blended CeO2 nanoparticles at 5–15 ppm. The novelty of this work lies in integrating lower-chain (butanol), higher-chain (hexanol) alcohols and nanoparticle catalysis to deliver the first systematic RCCI comparison to-date. Upto 3% improvement in brake thermal efficiency and a brake specific energy consumption reduction of about 6% were observed with CeO2 addition. Hydrocarbon, CO and smoke opacity decreased markedly, whereas NOx emissions increased moderately (4–6%), owing to the higher in-cylinder temperature. Detailed combustion analysis showed the advanced heat release and the increase in peak in-cylinder pressure observed near top dead centre, especially with hexanol–CeO2 blends. In conclusion, the B20D70HEX10C15 blend showed the most well-balanced trade-off between performance enhancement and emission reduction.
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