A STUDY OF SOME FUEL PROPERTIES OF LOCAL ETHANOL BLENDED WITH DIESEL FUEL

Some fuel properties of local ethanol blended with diesel were experimentally determined to establish their suitability for use in compression ignition engines. Six blends (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30%) of ethanol by volume with diesel were used. The properties determined were; relative density, viscosity, cloud and pour point, flash point and calorific value. The results show that both the relative density and viscosity of the blends decreased as the ethanol content in the blends were increased. The cloud point was found to be 50C for all the blends and diesel while the pour point of –5,-7,-10,-13 and-36oC were obtained for diesel and blends with 5, 10, 15 and 20% ethanol content respectively. The pour point for two blends (25 and 30%) were not reached. Flash point of 74oC was obtained for diesel while 24, 25, 27, 25, 25 and 26oC were obtained for blends with 5, 10, 15, 20 25 and 30% ethanol respectively. Calorific values of 44515, 43632, 43632, 43192, 42745, 41874, 41004, and 40577 kJ/kg were obtained for diesel and the ethanol-diesel blends respectively. Based on the findings of this study, blends with 5,10, 15 and 20 percent ethanol content were found to have acceptable fuel properties for use as supplementary fuel in farm engines. Key words: Alternative fuels, Alcohol, Properties, Blends.