Biodiesel derived from corn oil - A fuel substitute for diesel

In present scenario, consumption of energy is steadily increasing in all sectors due to increase in population and improved lifestyle. Ever growing demand for energy results in increasing of dependency over fossil fuels. The depleting nature of such energy sources and increasing nature of energy demand are causing serious energy concerns about the future energy security. Use of biodiesel may be one of the solutions to overcome the future energy demand, and production of biodiesel is an interesting avenue for researchers. In this research work, since corn oil has comparable properties of diesel, an attempt was made to produce biodiesel from corn oil and evaluate the performance, combustion and emission characteristics of diesel engine using corn oil biodiesel blended with diesel at different proportions as fuel. The outcome of this research work revealed that the production of biodiesel from corn oil is possible and the experimental observations resulted in a comparable performance, combustion and emission parameters with those of diesel.