Search Results (5)

Although bio-hydrogenated diesel (BHD) offers drop-in compatibility and high oxidative stability, its poor lubricity remains a critical barrier to long-term engine deployment. Previous studies have primarily relied on short-term tribological assessments, leaving insufficient empirical data on sustained wear behavior under realistic conditions. This study addresses that gap through a 200 h durability evaluation of BHD–biodiesel blends in a single-cylinder diesel engine under constant load conditions per Thai Industrial Standard TIS 2618-2557. Five fuels, namely diesel, pure BHD, BHD90, BHD70, and pure biodiesel, were tested to identify the critical biodiesel threshold for optimal tribological and oxidative performance. BHD90 (90% BHD + 10% biodiesel) emerged as the optimal formulation, delivering the lowest torque reduction (11.2%) and minimal iron wear particles (101 ppm), while preserving oxidation stability. Biodiesel concentrations exceeding 10% induced accelerated lubricant oxidation through hygroscopic effects, negating the lubricity benefits. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis of piston carbon deposits further revealed that higher biodiesel blends produced more oxygenated compounds, whereas pure BHD and diesel generated predominantly aliphatic hydrocarbons. These findings establish a mechanistic relationship between fuel composition, oxidation, and wear under endurance conditions, providing a practical guideline for renewable diesel formulation that balances lubrication performance, oxidation control, and long-term engine durability. Full article

Two different methods of production of bio-hydrogenated diesel (BHD), simply called green diesel from rice bran oil (RBO), were performed. In the first route, a direct hydrotreating reaction of RBO to BHD catalysed by Pd/Al₂O₃ was performed in a high-pressure batch reactor. Operating conditions were investigated as follows: catalyst loading (0.5 to 1.5% wt.), temperature (325 to 400 °C), initial hydrogen (H₂) pressure (40 to 60 bar) and reaction time (30 to 90 min). The optimal condition was obtained at 1% wt catalyst loading, 350 °C, 40 bar H₂ pressure and 60 min. Yields of crude/refined biofuels and BHD achieved were approximately 98%, 81.71% and 73.71%, respectively. In another route, transesterification together with hydrotreating reactions of rice bran methyl ester (RBME) to BHD was performed using the optimal conditions obtained from the first route. The amount of 98% crude biofuel was obtained and was equivalent to production yields of refined biofuel (85.71%) and BHD (68.51%). Furthermore, physical and chemical properties of both RBO/RBME green diesel were also considered following ASTM standard methods. In summary, both catalytic reactions were achieved in the range of a low-speed industrial diesel and were further recommended for BHD or green diesel production from RBO. Full article

The development of new bio-based diesel substitutes can improve their compatibility with diesel engines. Nevertheless, for actual implementation, their environmental and economic performance needs to be studied. This study quantified the eco-efficiency of three bio-based diesels, viz., fatty acid methyl ester (FAME), partially hydrogenated FAME (H-FAME), and bio-hydrogenated diesel (BHD), to address the perspective of producers as well as policymakers for implementing the advanced diesel alternatives. The eco-efficiency was assessed as a ratio of life cycle costing as the economic indicator and three different environmental damages—human health, ecosystem quality, and resource availability. The eco-efficiency of FAME was the most favorable among all the potential substitutes with regard to human health and ecosystem quality, but the least favorable for resource availability impact. Even though BHD was beneficial in terms of life cycle costing, it was the least preferable when considering human health and ecosystem quality, though it performed the best for resource availability. H-FAME was also promising, in line with FAME. It is suggested that the technologies for BHD production should be improved, especially the catalyst used, which contributed greatly to environmental impacts and costs. Full article

Thailand has been implementing its Alternative Energy Development Plan aiming to replace 20–25% of fossil fuels with locally produced biofuels by 2036. The partial substitution of fossil diesel with fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) derived from palm oil is one of the major options but blending beyond 20% of FAME is a concern for use in conventional diesel engines. This problem has led to the consideration of other bio-based diesels also derived from palm oil; namely, partially hydrogenated fatty acid methyl ester (H-FAME) and bio-hydrogenated diesel (BHD). This study performed a comparative life cycle assessment of various bio-based diesels using the ReCiPe life cycle impact assessment method. The results showed that in comparison to fossil diesel, bio-based diesels have superior performance for global warming and fossil resource scarcity, but an inferior performance for eutrophication, terrestrial acidification, human toxicity, and land use. Considering the collective environmental damages, BHD performed the worst for human health, and all the bio-based diesels showed poor performance for ecosystem quality, while diesel showed poor performance for resource availability. Among the bio-based diesel products, BHD has higher environmental burdens than FAME and H-FAME. Improvements have been suggested to enhance the environmental performance of the bio-based diesels. Full article

Bio-hydrogenated diesel (BHD), derived from vegetable oil via hydrotreating technology, is a promising alternative transportation fuel to replace nonsustainable petroleum diesel. In this work, a novel Pt-based catalyst supported on N-doped activated carbon prepared from polypyrrole as the nitrogen source (Pt/N-AC) was developed and applied in the palm oil deoxygenation process to produce BHD in a fixed bed reactor system. High conversion rates of triglycerides (conversion of TG > 90%) and high deoxygenation percentage (DeCO_x% = 76% and HDO% = 7%) were obtained for the palm oil deoxygenation over Pt/N-AC catalyst at optimised reaction conditions: T = 300 °C, 30 bar of H₂, and LHSV = 1.5 h⁻¹. In addition to the excellent performance, the Pt/N-AC catalyst is highly stable in the deoxygenation reaction, as confirmed by the XRD and TEM analyses of the spent sample. The incorporation of N atoms in the carbon structure alters the electronic density of the catalyst, favouring the interaction with electrophilic groups such as carbonyls, and thus boosting the DeCO_x route over the HDO pathway. Overall, this work showcases a promising route to produce added value bio-fuels from bio-compounds using advanced N-doped catalysts. Full article