Nano-particle Study on Non-thermal Plasma Exhaust from Waste Cooking Oil Biodiesel Combustion through Optical and Scanning Mobility Sizers

Ascending usage of alternative fuel is primarily due to the fossil fuel predicament. A campaign for renewable energy to upsurge biofuel from wasted oil is progressively addressed. This has encouraged biodiesel to be applied for agricultural and transport sectors as a diesel fuel substitution. Diesel engines are favorable in fuel efficiency that relates to a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Typically, diesel combustion products are a concern for nitrogen oxides inversion of particulate matter. Nevertheless, non-thermal plasma (NTP) is a technique that can mitigate these emissions and may affect to particulate matter characterization. This paper demonstrates a study on the particulate matter-related emissions under NTP state of a four-cylinder diesel engine fueled with waste cooking oil biodiesel (WCO) in comparison to regular diesel.Anoptical and scanning mobility sizers were used to analyze the particle number and its related characteristics.Basically, the total particle number and surface area concentrations were higher for WCO at the smaller size, leading to the lesser total particle mass. When NTP charger was equipped, the particle masses were reduced for both fuels as caused by electrostatic phenomena that combine small particles to a larger size with lesser concentration. A greater extent of particle coagulation for regular diesel was observed. The NTP charger simultaneously reduced particulate matter and nitric oxide emissions.Keywords: biodiesel; diesel; emission; non-thermal plasma; particulate matter; waste cooking oi