EFFECT OF ENGINE PARAMETERS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF CRDI ENGINE FUELED WITH COTTON SEED OIL NANO-BIODIESEL BLENDS

Impact of Injection Timing and Injector Opening Pressure on the performance of Common Rail Direct Injection (CRDI) diesel engine fuelled with cottonseed oil methyl ester biodiesel COTSEDOB B20 and its nanoparticle-enhanced counterpart. Addition of 100 ppm graphene nanoparticles was investigated for augmenting combustion efficiency and emission control. Engine tests were performed under varying IT (10°–20°bTDC) and IOP (600–1200 bar), at 80% load. The results revealed that advancing IT to 15°bTDC and increasing IOP to 1000 bar led to a substantial improvement in Brake Thermal Efficiency, with increases of 6.51% and 8.64% for COTSEDOB B20 and COTSEDOB B20 GNP100, respectively, compared to baseline conditions. Smoke emissions were reduced by 26% (B20) and 31%, while ignition delay and combustion duration were shortened, and peak pressure was significantly elevated. The GNP100 blend exhibited superior atomization, enhanced heat release, and cleaner combustion due to graphene's excellent thermal conductivity and catalytic properties. Although NOx emissions showed a moderate increase, the overall performance and environmental impact improved markedly with nanoparticle addition. The study confirms that COTSEDOB B20, particularly with graphene nanoparticle enhancement, offers a promising conduit toward cleaner and efficient diesel engine operation under optimized injection strategies.