Large quantities of petroleum products are released into the marine environment as result of tanker wrecks. Such catastrophic events have a dramatic impact on marine ecosystems, affecting a broad range of species. Seabirds are placed at the uppermost trophic level of the marine food chain. Therefore, important toxic effects are expected in these organisms. The recent Prestige oil spill gave the...

Biodiesel is a promising non-toxic and biodegradable alternative fuel used in the transport sector. Nevertheless, the higher viscosity and density of biodiesel poses some acute problems when it is used it in unmodified engine. Taking this into consideration, this study has been focused towards two objectives. The first objective is to identify the effect of temperature on density and viscosity ...

Since the early 1990s, it seems that the fuel cell might become the new key technology in the automotive sector leading to a change of paradigm in the next decades. Also in scientific discussion, fuel cells are researched on and described more intensively during the last ten years. The perspective to significantly reduce local emissions as well as to gain independence from crude oil has induced...

The soluble components of fuel oil are generally assumed to be the fraction that is toxic for organisms living in the water column. We have used a liquid phase bioassay with embryos of sea urchin to assess the toxicity of the water-soluble fraction (elutriate) of the fuel oil spilled when the tanker Prestige sank on 13 November 2002. Two methodologies to obtain elutriates were carried out in or...

Vegetable oils are renewable in nature and can be directly used as fuels in diesel engines. However, their high viscosity and poor volatility lead to reduced thermal efficiency and increased hydrocarbon, carbon monoxide and smoke emissions. Transesterification is one of the methods by which viscosity could be drastically reduced and the fuel could be adopted for use in diesel engine. This Ester...

The objective of this work was to study the formation of particles and their morphology and chemical composition in large-scale diesel engines operating with low-grade residual fuel oils. The effect of a Mg-based fuel oil additive on exhaust gas particles was also investigated. Particle characteristics were determined by means of the methods of aerosol technology, chemical analyses, and electro...

A noble low NOx combustion technology, based on partial oxidation combustion concept in a fuel rich combustion zone, is successfully applied in this research. The burner is designed such that a portion of fuel is heated and pre-vaporized in the furnace then injected into a fuel rich combustion zone so that a partial oxidation reaction occurs. The effects of equivalence ratio, thermal load, and ...

Jatropha curcas L. or physic nut belonging to family Euphorbiaceae is an all purpose, zero waste perennial plant. It is considered as a potential source of non-edible fuel producing plant along with its different medicinal properties and grows well in the tropical and subtropical climate in India. The seed contains 40-50 % viscous oil known as ‘curcas oil’. Petroleum based fuel are limited rese...

Bioremediation is an effective measure in dealing with such contamination, particularly those from petroleum hydrocarbon sources. The effect of soil amendments on diesel fuel degradation in soil was studied. Diesel fuel was introduced into the soil at the concentration of 5 % (w/w) and mixed with three different organic wastes tea leaf, soy cake, and potato skin, for a period of 3 months. Withi...