Experimental Performance Analysis of Lower Concentration Blends of Thumba Methyl Ester with Diesel

In all over the world the demand of energy is increasing day by day and fossil fuels are depleting at a very fast rate, therefore to fulfill the energy demand of the world there is a need to find out an alternative fuel and in this depleting fossil fuel era Biodiesel is one of the best available energy source to overcome the world’s energy demand. There is a long list of shrubs, trees, and herbs available abundantly in India, which can be exploited for the production of biodiesel. Citrullus Colocynthis (Thumba, non-edible oil), easily available in western Rajasthan and can be efficiently used for production of biodiesel. In the present study single cylinder, water-cooled, four stroke, naturally aspirated variable compression ratio multifuel diesel engine is used with lower concentration blends of thumba methyl ester with diesel. The study show that low concentration blends of methyl ester of thumba up to 30% by volume with diesel can be used successfully and satisfactorily with no major reduction in engine performance. Keywords—Thumba Methyl Ester, Variable Compression Ratio Diesel Engine, Biodiesel, Vegetable oil