Laboratory Investigation on Emission Characteristics of a Diesel Car Fuelled with Biodiesel Blends

Based on pure diesel, pure biodiesel, and two biodiesel blends at volumetric mixture ratio of 10% and 20%, NEDC emission tests were carried out on a Euro 3-compliant diesel car. Results showed that pure biodiesel and biodiesel blends had decreasing effects on CO and HC emissions under warm-up situations, but deteriorations of CO and HC emissions were observed under cold start-up and low vehicle speed operating conditions, and this caused increasing results of CO and HC emission factors in NEDC tests when substituting pure diesel with both of pure biodiesel and biodiesel blend of 20%. Pure biodiesel aroused an increase in NO_X emissions compared with pure diesel, but the two low mixture ratio biodiesel blends were observed in different increasing effects and even decreasing effects on NO_X emissions. Only pure biodiesel had limited increasing effects on CO₂ emissions. In the purpose of reducing vehicle emissions by fuelling alternative fuels, 10% is recommended volumetric mixture ratio of biodiesel blend for the test diesel car.