Study of the Effects of Ethanol Use on a Ford Escort Fitted with an Old Technology Engine

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects on the engine's efficiency and exhaust gas emissions by the use of ethanol/gasoline blends in conventional technology vehicles. The fuels E0, E10, E20 and E50 were tested in a 1300cc old technology vehicle without a catalytic converter. The measurements of the engine's brake torque, revolutions and fuel consumption were accomplished on a chassis dynamometer for different engine loads and with different gear ratios. Regarding the exhaust gas emissions, the concentrations of CO₂ , CO, HC and NO_x were recorded. The results have shown that increasing the ethanol percentage in the blend has decreased the CO and HC emissions but increased the NO_x emissions. For fuels E10 and E20 an increase on the engine's brake torque and power along with a decrease in fuel consumption were observed. For E50, both brake torque and power were reduced. The CO₂ emissions were increased as the ethanol concentration increased. The best overall results were obtained by using the E20 blend.