Environmental benefits of co-combustion of light fuel oil with waste glycerol

The global increase in biodiesel production releases surplus of waste glycerol. Therefore, it is of great importance to find a cheap and fast method for its utilization. The present study considers possibilities and opportunities of the use of waste glycerol as an addition to light fuel oil for heating purposes. The waste glycerol has been co-combusted with light oil at few different mass ratios in a heating chamber equipped with an integrated oil burner. The glycerol additions revealed a relatively small influence on heating efficiency and heat exchange. For mixtures containing glycerol, a noticeable decrease in the content of hazardous components (SO2, NOx, and CO) in exhaust gas was observed.