Materials Today: Proceedings 45 (2021) 2697–2701

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Impact of Tamarindus Indica biodiesel blends on performance and

exhaust emissions characteristics of light duty compression
ignitionengine
Jayashri N Nair a,⇑, Y V.V. Satyanarayana Murthy b
a
VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Technology, Hyderabad 500090, Telangana, India
b
GITAM Insitute of Technology, Vishakhapanam 530045, Andhra Pradesh, India

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Tamarind (Tamarindus Indica) is an integral part of South Indian cuisine. Its pulp is used to add sourness
Received 30 October 2020 to south Indian curries. However tamarind seeds which are having a considerable amount of lipid in it are
Received in revised form 30 October 2020 thrown away. Our main objective is to produce Tamarind biodiesel (TB) from tamarind seed oil and inves-
Accepted 17 November 2020
tigate its effect on performance and exhaust emissionsof CI engine. Oil was extracted from Tamarind
Available online 27 January 2021
seeds and was converted to biodiesel by transesterification process with NaOH as catalyst. Tests were
performed using TB5, TB10, TB15 blends with 1500 rpm rated speed and compression ratio of18. The per-
Keywords:
formance test results revealed that BTE of B15 was greater in comparison to other blends as well as diesel.
Tamarind biodiesel
Transesterification
However BSFC for TB blends were greater compared to neat diesel. Considerable reductions in exhaust
Performances emissions were observed with TB blends. TB10 showed apical reduction of 27% in CO and 15% reduction
Emissions in smoke. TB5 showed 25% HC reduction followed by TB10 with 19.25% reductions. TB15 showed 19.36%
of highest NOx reduction followed by TB10 with 10.7% NOx reduction. TB10 proved to give optimum test
results for performance and emissions. From the results it can be concluded that TB can be considered as
a viable option for biodiesels.
Ó 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Confer-
ence on Advances in Materials Research – 2019.

1. Introduction it. Exhaustion of Non renewable sources, increasing price of crude

It is estimated that there will be a steep rise in energy consump-
tionglobally by 2030 [1,2]. Whether its transportation, agriculture
or industrypetroleum fuel, play a key role as they are easily avail-
able and have excellent combustion properties. Consumption of
petroleum fuels results in hazardous emissions which effects
human being and also environment. But the emissions produced
by it has a grave effects on human body as well as environment.
We human beings cannot sustain without air. Normal human
beings breathe10.8 m3 of air per day. Majority of the portion of
air comprises of nitrogen and oxygen [3]. The NOx emissions from
burning of petroleum fuels forms smog in the air, which leads to
respiratory problems in human beings [4]. Rapidly depleting petro-
leum reserves are a major concern as most of power producing
engines and power consuming engines are highly dependent on
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: jadiumts2@outlook.com (J.N Nair).
oil and global warming has generated more interest in alternative
and environmentally friendly sources of fuel. Consequently it
becomes very important to explore renewable alternative fuels
options that are easily available, has less negative impact on envi-
ronment, and it should be technically feasible. Biodiesel reflects
identical characteristics as that of ND and is also renewable source
of energy [5]. It can be producedfrom edible and non-edible oils.
Large variety of biodiesels can be extracted from castor, canola,
soybean, mahua, coconut, sunflower, palm oil etc. for compression
ignition engine by transesterification method by adding methanol
in presence of catalyst.
Many authors have studied the impact of methyl esterson per-
formance and on light duty as well as heavy duty engine. In one
such study diminution in torque and BP and increment in BSFC
with all three coconut blend samples were perceived by author
[6]. Similar results were obtained with biodiesel from waste mus-
tard oil with superior calorific value of 40.404 MJ/kg. It showed 8–
13% higher BSFC and 5–6% lower BTE compared to neat diesel [7].

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.11.537
2214-7853/Ó 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the International Conference on Advances in Materials Research – 2019.
Jayashri N Nair and Y V.V. Satyanarayana Murthy Materials Today: Proceedings 45 (2021) 2697–2701

Nomenclature

BTE Brake thermal efficiency HC Hydrocarbon

BSFC Brake specific fuel consumption (kg/kW-hr) ND Neat Diesel
CO Carbon Mono Oxide
CC Combustion Chamber
TB Tamarind Biodiesel
NaOH Sodium Hydroxide CV Calorific value

Lower BP value with biodiesel is accounted to lower CV, high den-
sity and high viscosity than ND. Formation of poor mixture also
decreases BP. High specific gravity of biodiesel increases the BSFC
as more mass of fuel in induced per fuel injection. Contrary to this
study, Jatropha biodiesel and Mahua biodiesel showed increase in
brake power and brake thermal efficiency with torque for all pre-
pared test fuels [8,9]. Tests were conducted with biodiesels on twin
cylinder engine with Cardonal biodiesel. It was observed that the
brake power increased and brake specific energy conversion
decreased with increase in brake power. Brake thermal efficiency
increased with higher brake power and emission levels (CO,HC,
NOX) were nominal up to 20% blends [10]. Many researchers have
reported low carbon monoxide, unburned hydrocarbon and smoke
opacity emissions with biodiesel [11]. However NOX remains mat-
ter of concern with the use of biodiesel as reported in many liter-
atures. Percentage of biodiesel in neat diesel also effects the
performance of the engine. Decrease in BTE and increment in BSFC
for higher proportion of Pongamia biodiesel were reported [12].
High viscosity and density is the major reason for increased BSFC
for Pongamia biodiesel. High density causes more mass to induce
in the CC consequently increasing BSFC. Lower CV also plays
important role in increased BSFC of biodiesel as more fuel is con-
sumed to produce the same power out. Decrement in CO and HC
have been reported with increase in Pongamia biodiesel proportion
in ND which can be accounted to excess oxygen molecules in bio-
diesel which promotes efficient combustion [13]. More availability
of oxygen molecules may also result in excess NOx emissions in
case of biodiesel as more oxygen molecules will rise the combus-
tion temperature in CC. Increased proportion of Pongamia in ND
has resulted in ascending NOx emissions at engine exhaust [14].
Contradict to above explanation some researchers have claimed
considerable reduction in NOx with increase in Pongamia biodiesel
[15].
Tamarind (Tamarindus Indica) isgrownpan India. Tamarind
fruit is used excessively in cooking in southern parts of India. Seeds
of tamarind are generally thrown away. Few studies conclude that
seed of Tamarind contain oil and fatty acids which makes it a
viable option as a renewable energy source [16,17]. Very few
researches have experimented with this oil. In a study different
blends of tamarind methyl esters were tested at three different
injection pressures [18]. It was reported that blend with 15% of
Tamarind biodiesel had the same properties as diesel. BTE
added to the heated oil in the presence of catalyst NaOH 1% by
weight. NaOH was used as catalyst to increase the reaction rate
as it was readily available and is less expensive. The solution was
stirred continuously for half an hour and was then kept to settle
for 24 h in separating funnel. This resulted in formation of glycerin
which settled down at bottom and biodiesel at the top. Separated
TB from funnelwas washed with distilled water to remove sus-
pended particles. Properties of blends and ND were tested and
listed in Table 1. Properties revealed that kinematic viscosity was
high for the produced biodiesel and also with available literature
review blends were prepared with less proportion of biodiesel.
Blends were prepared using ND and tamarind biodiesel in propor-
tions by volume as TB5 (5% TB + 95% ND), TB10 (10% TB + 90% ND)
and TB 15 (15% TB + 85% ND) [20,21]. Tests were performed on a
single cylinder engine with rated load of 3.5 kW and constant
speed of 1500 rpm with optimum CRof 18. Specifications of the
engine are mentioned in Table 2. Fig. 1 depicts line diagram of
engine setup. Eddy current dynamometer was used for load varia-
tions. Experimental set up has a separate panel with hardware
interface. Cooling water for engine water jacket and calorimeter
water flow are measured with rotameters. A battery, starter and
battery charger is provided for engine electric start arrangement.
Emissions were measured with AVL five gas Analyzer. AVL437
smoke meter was used for measuring the smoke density. Tamarind
biodiesel blends were prepared (TB5, TB10, TB15) and tested and
were compared with neat ND.
3. Engine performance characteristic analysis
BSFC descends with increment in BP as depicted in Fig. 2a. BSFC
was observed to be higher at lower loads and minimum at full
loadfor TB blends as well as for ND. TB5 and TB10 depicted 4%
Table 1
Properties of ND and TB.
Property ND TB Standard
Cetane No 45–55 59 ***
Calorific Value(kJ/kg) 50,076 33,356 ***
Kinematic Viscosity (mm2/sec) 2.78 6 D445
Flash point(◦C) 55 121 D93
Density kg/m3 850 0.905 ***

increased as the proportion of biodiesel as well as injection pres-

sure increased. Blends showed diminished smoke with increment
in injection pressure. T15 showed optimum results, however its Table 2
Specifications of engine.
NOx emissions were higher than all the blends. Addition of addi-
tives to tamarind biodiesel emanated in significant reduction in Manufacturer Apex innovations
smoke emissions [19]. However NOx and specific fuel consumption Engine type 4 S, Single CylinderDiesel Engine
increasedwith additives. Power rating 3.50 KW at 1500 rpm
Stroke 110 mm
Bore 87.5 mm
Capacity 661 cc
2. Experimental method Compression ratio 12:1–18:1
Injection variation 0–25° BTDC
Tamarind oil was preheated to 60 °C to ensure that moisture Dynamometer Eddy current
Calorimeter Tube in tube
content is completely removed. Methanol of 30% by volume was
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Jayashri N Nair and Y V.V. Satyanarayana Murthy
Fig. 1. Experimental diesel engine setup.
and 5% increase in the BSFC as compared to ND. TB 15 showed less
fuel consumption than rest of the blends as well as ND by 3% [22–
24].However at peak load, all fuel samples showed the same BSFC.
With the ascending load BTE decreases for TB blends and ND as
depicted in Fig. 2b.TB5, TB10 and TB15 blend shows 14%, 15%
Fig. 2a. BSFC Vs Load.
Fig. 2b. BTE Vs Load.
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Materials Today: Proceedings 45 (2021) 2697–2701
and 25% increase of brake thermal efficiency respectively than
ND. This can be attributed to the lower calorific value of the blends
and as well as less fuel consumption of blend as compared to ND.
TB15 displayed highest BTEof 33.73% which is 21% higher than the
ND .The results are identical with Dhana Raju et al. [19] whereta-
marind biodiesel blendwith 20% biodiesel shows maximum
of31.41 % of BTE. High oxygen content of TB catalysed complete
combustion which ultimately increased the BTE of the blends.
4. Engine exhaust emissions characteristic analysis
4.1. CO emissions
Incomplete combustion is one of the reasons for CO concentra-
tionsin engine exhaust. With increment in load CO emission dimin-
ishes for TB blends and NDas discerned from Fig. 3a.CO
concentration diminished for TB blends than ND. Reduced CO
emissions of 19%,27% and 22% were observed for TB5, TB10 and
TB15 blends againstND. Higher CN of TB blends resulted in a lower
possibility offormation of a fuel-rich zone which promoted less CO
emissions [25]. Also biodiesels contain more oxygen molecules
which increases the reaction rate in the CC. This increases combus-
tion temperature which facilitates complete combustion of fuel. At
8 kg load TB 10 showed the highest percentage decrease of CO
emission of 42.8% than ND.
4.2. HC emissions
At higher loads the HC emissions increases for TB blends as well
as ND as discerned from Fig. 3b. However, TB blends exhibited less
HC emissions than ND which was also reported by Dhana Raju
et al. [19] with TB. HC emissions ascended with increment inbio-
diesel percentage. Blends TB5, TB10 and TB15 showed reduction
in HC emissions by 25%, 19.25% and 14.56% respectively commen-
surate to ND. Reduction in HC emission shows complete combus-
tion of blends due to high oxygen content of TB blends. At full
load HC emissions for ND, TB5, TB10 and TB15 were 49, 53, 59
and 49 ppm respectively. Minimum HC emission was noted to be
16 ppm for TB5 blend at 25% load.
4.3. NOX emissions
Fig. 4a demonstrates NOx emissions against load. Increment in
NOx emissions for all fuel sample was noted with the ascending
Jayashri N Nair and Y V.V. Satyanarayana Murthy Materials Today: Proceedings 45 (2021) 2697–2701

Fig. 3a. OEmissions Vs Load. Fig. 4a. NOx Vs Load.

load. Decrease in fuel-to-air ratio with ascending BP, increases

average gas temperature in CC which promotes NOx production.
NOx emissions largely depend upon the combustion temperature.
Combustion temperature depends upon the amount of air inducted
in CC as well as oxygen proportion of biodiesel. Tamarind methyl
ester contains more oxygen molecules. The results depict less
NOx emissions from TB blends which is also reported by Dhana
Raju et al.[19].TB5, TB10 and TB15 showed 15%, 10.7% and
19.36% reduction in NOx emission as compared to ND respectively.
TB 15 is showing the least NOx emissions.

4.4. Smoke emissions

TB blends are emitting comparatively less smoke than ND as

depicted in Fig. 4b. This reduction in smoke is accounted to higher
oxygen proportion of biodiesel which causes complete combustion
and expedites oxidation of soot. TB5, TB10 and TB15, shows 12%,
Fig. 4b. Smoke Vs Load.
15% and 10% reduction in smoke emissions as compared to ND.
Lack of aromatic components and higher CN could be basis for less
smoke emissions with TB blends [26]. Accruement in smoke emis-
sions were observed with rising proportion of biodiesel in blendbut
were still less than the ND. Nonetheless at peak conditions the
smoke emissions decreased for ND but for the blends it continued
to increase. This result is in line with the results reported by Bahar
et al. [18].
CO2 emissions ascended with the rising load as depicted in
Fig. 5. ND showed highest CO2 emissions followed by TB10 blend

Fig. 5. CO2 Vs Load.

with 25% reduction. This is justified from Fig. 3a where TB10

Fig. 3b. HC Emissions Vs Load.
showed minimum CO emissions. CO2 emissions less than ND can
be accounted to lower C:H ratio of biodiesel [27]. But ND depicted
highest CO emissions as well as CO2 emissions. According to few
authors higher CO2 emissions are clear indication of complete com-
bustion and 11% oxygen of biodiesel [28].

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Jayashri N Nair and Y V.V. Satyanarayana Murthy
5. Conclusions
Above experiment focussed on engine performance and emis-
sion characteristics using TB blends against ND. TB5, TB10, TB15
andND were used for test. The BSFC values for TB blends were
lower compared to ND as percentage increase of brake power with
load was higher in comparison to expending fuel. TB15 showed the
least BSFC value. BTE of TB blends were higher than the ND which
can be accounted to high oxygen content of the biodiesel which
assists in efficient combustion. TB blends showed excellent emis-
sion results. All the emissions were reduced compared to the ND.
TB10 blend displayed optimum results for performance and emis-
sions of ND engine. It can be deduced that TB can be used without
any modification in engine. The investigation leads towards
exploring capability of Tamarind seed oil as alternative fuel.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
N. Jayashri Nair: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software,
Writing - review & editing. Y V.V. Satyanarayana Murthy: Data
curation, Writing - original draft.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing finan-
cial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared
to influence the work reported in this paper.
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