Sunflower Oil as a Fuel Extender in Direct Injection Turbocharged Diesel Engines

The paper presents the results of a research project to evaluate performance and durability of direct injection turbocharged diesel engines using sunflower oil and blends thereof. Alcaline refined sunflower oil and three different blends of sunflower oil and diesel fuel were comparatively tested against #2 diesel fuel for: physical and chemical characteristics, fuel injection system performance, short term engine performance, propensity to nozzle deposits buildup, limited durability operation and low temperature starting capability.

Test results are presented for the various phases of the project and correlations between the fuel characteristics and engine acceptability are discussed.