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Decarbonisation of the transport sector, whilst reducing pollutant emissions, will likely involve the utilisation of multiple strategies, including hybridisation and the use of alternative fuels such as advanced biofuels as mandated by the EU. Alcoholysis of lignocellulosic feedstocks, using n-butanol as the solvent, can produce such potential advanced biofuel blends. Butyl blends, consisting of n-butyl levulinate (nBL), di-n-butyl ether, and n-butanol, were selected for this study. Three butyl blends with diesel, two at 10 vol% biofuel and one at 25 vol% biofuel, were tested in a Euro 6b-compliant diesel hybrid vehicle to determine the influence of the blends on regulated emissions and fuel economy. Real Driving Emissions (RDE) were measured for three cold start tests with each fuel using a Portable Emissions Measurement System (PEMS) for carbon monoxide (CO), particle number (PN), and nitrogen oxides (NO_X = NO + NO₂). When using the butyl blends, there was no noticeable change in vehicle drivability and only a small fuel economy penalty of up to 5% with the biofuel blends relative to diesel. CO, NO_X, and PN emissions were below or within one standard deviation of the Euro 6 not-to-exceed limits for all fuels tested. The CO and PN emissions reduced relative to diesel by up to 72% and 57%, respectively. NO_X emissions increased relative to diesel by up to 25% and increased with both biofuel fraction and the amount of nBL in that fraction. The CO emitted during the cold start period was reduced by up to 52% for the 10 vol% blends but increased by 25% when using the 25 vol% blend. NO_X and PN cold start emissions reduced relative to diesel for all three biofuel blends by up to 29% and 88%, respectively. It is envisaged that the butyl blends could reduce net carbon emissions without compromising or even improving air pollutant emissions, although optimisation of the after-treatment systems may be necessary to ensure emissions limits are met. Full article

This article describes a new approach to determining the optimal amount of state financial support provided to business entities. It is shown that there are three available methods to support economic agents. The most cost-effective option is subsidizing business entities to expand their current assets. It has been revealed that there are not just optimal amounts of government financial support but also optimal not-to-exceed amounts that make it possible to identify the boundaries of the so-called highly productive state of the economy. In this case, when the economy is highly productive, the prices of goods (services) fall, workers spend their savings, and the volume of production increases. This ultimately leads to an increase in the well-being of the population. The differential equations are the basis for the model, which is similar to the model of a simple two-sector single-product economy. The Monte Carlo method is used to determine the optimal not-to-exceed amount for government financial support. The identification of such intervals allows us to determine the amount of state financial support that will lead to a highly productive state and will not contribute to an unreasonable expansion of the budget expenditure. This study’s results can be utilized by government authorities for the development of a comprehensive system of state financial support for entrepreneurship. Business entities can use the results of this research concerning the calculation of the optimal not-to-exceed amount of financial support. Full article