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Recent Advances and Applications of Biofuel
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Recent Advances and Applications of Biofuel

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2022) | Viewed by 8257

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Rafael Estevez

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departamento de Química Orgánica, Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Química Fina y Nanoquímica (IUNAN), Universidad de Córdoba, Campus de Rabanales, Edificio Marie Curie, E-14071 Córdoba, Spain
Interests: heterogeneous catalysis; glycerol valorization; biofuels; bioadditives; microwave-assisted processes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Although the ignition compression (C.I.) engine was originally designed to work with pure vegetable oils as fuel, more than a century ago it was adapted to be used with fuels of fossil origin. Nevertheless, there would be no technical difficulties in returning to the primitive design with the idea of using biofuels of renewable origin, such as vegetable oils. The main drawback is found in the one billion C.I. engines that are currently in use, which would have to undergo a modification in the injection system in order to adapt it to the higher viscosity of vegetable oils in comparison with that exhibited by fossil fuel.

This Special Issue aims to collect studies that provide recent advances and applications of biofuels, providing different technical solutions to make possible the smooth transition from the current state to a new circumstance in which diesel engines will work by employing solely renewable biofuels. Thus, in addition to conventional biodiesel obtained by catalytic or enzymatic transesterification of triglycerides, all the studies providing effective solutions to allow the use of fats and oils as biofuels in diesel engines, without having to perform any modification in them, will be welcomed. Moreover, this Special Issue is aimed also at collecting those studies related but that are not limited to the production and engineering development of alternative high-quality biofuels from vegetable oils, obtained by hydrotreating triglycerides (greendiesel), the production of novel biofuels that integrate glycerol in their composition and the development of diesel and biodiesel additives. These biofuels seek to achieve 100% atom efficiency because neither glycerol nor any byproduct is obtained. Thus, the overall production process of the biofuel is in large extension simplified.

Dr. Rafael Estevez
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • transesterification
  • biodiesel
  • alkaline catalysis
  • acid catalysis
  • hydrotreating of triglycerides
  • green diesel
  • biodiesel-like biofuels
  • gliperol
  • DMC-BioD
  • ecodiesel
  • lipases
  • additives

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1713 KiB  
Article
Use of Spent Coffee Ground as an Alternative Fuel and Possible Soil Amendment
by Lukáš Jeníček, Barbora Tunklová, Jan Malaťák, Michal Neškudla and Jan Velebil
Materials 2022, 15(19), 6722; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15196722 - 27 Sep 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3901
Abstract
Spent coffee ground is a massively produced coffee industry waste product whose reusage is beneficial. Proximate and ultimate and stochiometric analysis of torrefied spent coffee ground were performed and results were analyzed and compared with other research and materials. Spent coffee ground is [...] Read more.
Spent coffee ground is a massively produced coffee industry waste product whose reusage is beneficial. Proximate and ultimate and stochiometric analysis of torrefied spent coffee ground were performed and results were analyzed and compared with other research and materials. Spent coffee ground is a material with high content of carbon (above 50%) and therefore high calorific value (above 20 MJ·kg−1). Torrefaction improves the properties of the material, raising its calorific value up to 32 MJ·kg−1. Next, the phytotoxicity of the aqueous extract was tested using the cress test. The non-torrefied sample and the sample treated at 250 °C were the most toxic. The sample treated at 250 °C adversely affected the germination of the cress seeds due to residual caffeine, tannins and sulfur release. The sample treated at 350 °C performed best of all the tested samples. The sample treated at 350 °C can be applied to the soil as the germination index was higher than 50% and can be used as an alternative fuel with net calorific value comparable to fossil fuels. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances and Applications of Biofuel)
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18 pages, 2347 KiB  
Article
Advanced Biofuels from ABE (Acetone/Butanol/Ethanol) and Vegetable Oils (Castor or Sunflower Oil) for Using in Triple Blends with Diesel: Evaluation on a Diesel Engine
by Laura Aguado-Deblas, Francisco J. López-Tenllado, Diego Luna, Felipa M. Bautista, Antonio A. Romero and Rafael Estevez
Materials 2022, 15(18), 6493; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15186493 - 19 Sep 2022
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2203
Abstract
From a technical and economic point of view, our aim is to provide viable solutions for the replacement of fossil fuels which are currently used in internal combustion diesel engines. In this research, two new biofuels composed of second-generation vegetable oils (SVO),used oil [...] Read more.
From a technical and economic point of view, our aim is to provide viable solutions for the replacement of fossil fuels which are currently used in internal combustion diesel engines. In this research, two new biofuels composed of second-generation vegetable oils (SVO),used oil sunflower (SO) or castor oil (CO), and the ABE blend (acetone/butanol/ethanol) were evaluated. ABE is an intermediate product from the fermentation of carbohydrates to obtain bio-butanol. Besides, the ABE blend exhibits suitable properties as biofuel, such asvery low kinematic viscosity, reasonable energy density, low autoignition temperature, and broad flammability limits. Diesel/ABE/SVO triple blends were prepared, characterized and then, tested on a diesel engine, evaluating power output, consumption, and exhaust emissions. The power output was slightly reduced due to the low heating values of ABE blend. Also, engine consumed more fuel with the triple blends than with diesel under low engine loads whereas, at medium and high loads, the fuel consumption was very similar to that of diesel. Regarding exhaust gas emissions, soot wasnotably reduced, and nitrogen oxides (NOx) and carbon monoxide (CO2) emissions were lower or comparable to that of diesel, while the CO emissions increased. The use of these biofuels allows the replacement of high percentagesof diesel without compromising engine power and achievinga significant reduction in pollution emissions. Furthermore, a notable improvement in cold flow properties of the fuel blends is obtained, in comparison with diesel. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances and Applications of Biofuel)
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13 pages, 660 KiB  
Article
Dispersed Power Production in Terms of the Potential of Briquettes Made from Straw and Willow as Renewable Sources of Energy
by Kamil Roman, Emilia Grzegorzewska, Patrycja Zatoń, Anita Konieczna, Sylwia Oleńska, Kinga Borek and Adam Świętochowski
Materials 2022, 15(15), 5235; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma15155235 - 28 Jul 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1632
Abstract
The rapid development of agricultural technologies has triggered new possibilities of using plant waste as fuel. Briquetting plant material is one of the methods of using crop residue as permanent energy carriers. Nevertheless, to maintain the normalised properties of briquettes, their small-scale production [...] Read more.
The rapid development of agricultural technologies has triggered new possibilities of using plant waste as fuel. Briquetting plant material is one of the methods of using crop residue as permanent energy carriers. Nevertheless, to maintain the normalised properties of briquettes, their small-scale production should follow an established and well-considered deliberate technological process limiting production costs. The material to be used for energy production should, in particular, be pre-prepared in terms of crushing and moisture content to ensure the right product parameters. The article aims to provide an analysis of briquettes with varied physicochemical parameters to determine and order homogenous groups for selected parameters characteristic for briquettes made from various bioenergy materials. The specific aim of the article required a statistical analysis as a tool for separating the selected factors. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was involved, together with a post-hoc Duncan test. The analyses demonstrated that the briquette composition, such as bulk value, moisture, and ash content can enhance the briquette quality. In discussion, the straw used was compared with other kinds of agricultural biomass samples and considerable differences were identified. The chemical analysis showed a high content of carbon (from 42.64 to 45.66%) and oxygen (from 47.60 to 49.68%). The percentage share of hydrogen in the chemical structure of the materials accounted for approximately 6%. The ash content found while investigating various straw types ranged from 3.67 to 4.26%, making it lower than reported in the literature. The study also looked at the energetic potential of straw and wood biomass. It was noticed that bioenergetic sources are much potentially higher than the materials used in the traditional power sector. Especially where it concerns an unlimited source that can be provided to the bio-energetic sector. The study is intended to focus the future energy sector on the use of bioenergy in terms of applying straw to energy production purposes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances and Applications of Biofuel)
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