Wear Assessment in a Karanja Oil Methyl Ester Biodiesel Fueled 38.8 L Military CIDI Engine

Karanja biodiesel is prepared using Karanja oil and methanol by the process of transesterification. Use of Karanja oil methyl ester (KOME) in a 780 hp CIDI military engine was found to be a highly compatible alternative fuel with low emission characteristics. Engine was operated for 100 hours each using pure karanja biodiesel and mineral diesel fuel, respectively. These were subjected to long-term endurance tests. Lubricating oil samples, drawn from both fuelled engine after a fixed interval of 20 hours, were subjected to elemental analysis. Atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) was done for quantification of various metal debris concentrations. Wear metals were found lower for a biodiesel operated engine system. Lubricating oil samples were also subjected to ferrography indicating lower wear debris concentrations for a biodiesel-operated engine. Scanning electron microscopy was also conducted on the cylinder liner surfaces exposed to wear. The additional lubricating properly of KOME present in the fuel resulted in lower wear and improved life of moving components in a biodiesel-fuelled engine.