Energy and exergy analysis of VCR engine fueled with rubber-seed oil methyl ester using response surface methodology

This study presents a comprehensive analysis of the thermodynamic performance of a variable compression ratio engine fueled with rubber-seed oil methyl ester blended with diesel. The objective is to evaluate the energy and exergy characteristics according to the first and second laws of thermodynamics for various compression ratios and supercharging pressures. A 3.5 kW engine with compression ratios values ranging from 18:1 to 22:1 and SC pressures of 0, 0.25, and 0.5 bar (g) at 80% load was considered. The inlet manifold pressure was controlled using a centrifugal-type blower (1.5 m3/min, 350 W, 240 V AC) with an adjustable valve. Key fuel energy parameters including shaft energy, cylinder pressure, brake specific energy consumption, thermal efficiency, heat release rate, absorbed energy by cooling water, exhaust gas temperature, exergy efficiency, exergy destruction, exhaust energy, and emissions were analyzed. Results showed significant improvements in shaft energy (35.51%), thermal efficiency (35.37%), and heat release rate (25.17 J/°CA) for compression ratios 20 and supercharging pressure of 0.25 bar, with a reduction in brake specific energy consumption of 2.912 kJ/s kW. The second law efficiency and irreversibility were observed to be 60.31% and 0.0118 kW/K, respectively. Experimental findings demonstrated a reduction in carbon monoxide (25.12%) and hydrocarbon (40%) under the aforementioned conditions. Response surface methodology was employed to predict optimal operating conditions, and the equations were validated using analysis of variance and p-test. The D-optimality test facilitated the determination of optimal operating parameters for different responses through multi-objective optimization techniques. Individual desirability values were combined to obtain a composite desirability of 0.9054. The study identified compression ratios 18 with a supercharging pressure of 1.78 bar as the optimum operating condition for 20% fuel blends in a low-speed agricultural diesel engine, resulting in a remarkable improvement of 41.24% in energy efficiency and 68.45% in exergy efficiency, with minimal emissions.