Diesel-Ethanol Fuel Blends for Heavy Duty Diesel Engines - A Study of Performance and Durability

A study of “diesohol” - ethanol blended with diesel fuel - was made for both pre-chamber type and open-chamber type heavy duty diesel engines.

Performance tests were conducted to evaluate changes in power, fuel consumption, smoke and exhaust emissions for diesel fuel and blends of 10% and 20% ethanol. The open-chamber type engine fueled by 20% diesohol was subjected to a 500 hour durability test. Oil deterioration, wear of parts etc. were measured and promising results were found.