Abstract

MAESTRE-CAMBRONEL, Daniel; HERNANDEZ-COMAS, Brando  and  DUARTE-FORERO, Jorge. Experimental and economic assessment of alkaline electrolyzer for dual-fuel operation in low-displacement diesel engines. Dyna rev.fac.nac.minas [online]. 2021, vol.88, n.219, pp.68-77.  Epub Mar 14, 2022. ISSN 0012-7353.  https://doi.org/10.15446/dyna.v88n219.92439.

This investigation evaluated the integration of an alkaline electrolyzer for dual-fuel operation in an experimental test bench of a diesel engine from a techno-economic viewpoint. The characterization of the electrolyzer operation indicated that higher electrolyte (KOH) concentrations (30 - 40% w/w) improve the overall performance since less voltage is required for electrolysis, thus featuring higher efficiencies (50 - 60%) and hydrogen production (4 - 6 LPM). The economic analysis demonstrated that hydrogen cost remains competitive (4.3 - 5.6 USD/kg), and it is greatly dependent on the electrolyte concentration. Additionally, the operation of the engine with hydrogen injection at 20 LPM and a palm biodiesel blend reduced the fuel consumption rate between 10 - 31% depending on the load rate when compared to pure diesel. In contrast, dual-fuel operation generated a minor reduction in fuel conversion efficiency (< 5%), which reflects on the power output. Overall, this technology stands as a promising avenue to improve the fuel utilization ratio.

Keywords : alkaline electrolyzer; diesel engine; economic analysis; fuel consumption; hydrogen.

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