Studies on the effects of methane fraction and injection strategies in a biogas diesel common rail dual fuel engine

Biogas is an environment friendly renewable fuel which is a valuable resource in the current context of increased energy requirement and sustainability. The quality or the proportion of methane in biogas can vary significantly based on the raw material and method of production. This experimental work was aimed at evaluating the influence of such variations in composition on the energy conversion efficiency and emissions of a common rail dual fuel engine under different output conditions. The effects of post and pilot injection of diesel were also studied in this mode. Biogas with methane proportions in the range 24-68% could be utilized without significant changes in efficiency and emissions till a biogas energy share (BGES) of 60% when the injection timing of diesel was suitably adjusted. Higher than normal methane concentrations (normal: 51-53%) only elevated the NO levels with little impact on efficiency. However, when low proportions of methane were used NO could be controlled effectively particularly at low BGES. Simulation studies indicated that this reduction in NO is due to the lowered in-cylinder temperature rather than the reduced concentration of oxygen as a result of increased CO2. When the proportion of methane was decreased from 68% to 24% the start of injection of diesel had to be advanced by 3 degrees CA (at a BGES of 60%) to compensate for the increase in ignition delay and reduction in combustion rate. With pilot injection there was a reduction in smoke emission because of improved charge homogeneity due to the split injection process. However, post injection which is generally effective in diesel engines was not advantageous in the biogas diesel dual fuel (BDDF) mode because of the diffusion combustion the post injected fuel undergoes.