Investigation of the Effects on Performance and Emissions of Biodiesel Obtained from Safflower Oil by Microwave Heating

In the current work, biodiesel production from safflower oil was executed with modified household home microwave oven. Engine tests were performed at full load and different engine speeds such as 1400, 1800, 2200, 2600 and 3000 rpm. Test engine was operated with diesel and B15 (15% safflower oil biodiesel and 85% diesel blend). The highest engine torque was achieved at 1800 rpm for both fuels. Moreover, combustion analysis was conducted at 1800 rpm. The influences of test fuels on torque, power, thermal efficiency, CO and HC emissions. In-cylinder pressure and heat release rate were also evaluated at 1800 rpm. The highest in-cylinder pressure and heat release rate decreased with B15 according to diesel. The engine torque of B15 fuel was 2.66% lower according to diesel. The specific fuel consumption (SFC) with B15 fuel raised on average by 9.28% compared to diesel. Maximum effective efficiency was determined as 26.86% and 26.27% with diesel and B15, respectively. HRR and in-cylinder pressure were obtained lower for B15 according to diesel. CO emissions were observed to decrease by an average of 12.53% with B15 fuel according to diesel. Compared with diesel fuel, B15 reduced HC and CO emissions by an average of 14.8% and 12.53%, respectively.