Prospects of 2, 5-Dimethylfuran as a Fuel: Physico-chemical and Engine Performance
Characteristics Evaluation
7th International Symposium on Feedstock Recycling of Polymeric Materials (7th ISFR 2013)
New Delhi, India, 23-26 October 2013
Mritunjay Kumar Shukla*, Eshan Singh, Nishan Singh, Satish Singal
Indian institute of Petroleum Dehradun
E-mail: mshukla@iip.res.in
Abstract
Due to the recent developments of improved production methods of 2, 5-dimethylfuran, (knownas DMF) from waste biomass, it is being considered as a next generation biofuels. Energy
content of DMF is comparable to that of gasoline. However little is known about its behavior inS.I. engines. Therefore, this work reviews the current status of technological developments
regarding production from biomass, safety and environmental concerns and presents anexperimental evaluation of its blend with gasoline in terms of physico-chemical properties andengine.
Keywords: 2, 5-Dimethylfuran, Biomass, Biofuels, Engines
Introduction
Search for new fuel alternatives is becoming more insistent in view of the growing concerns ofenvironmental pollution, energy security and future of oil supplies, and, improving engine
technologies. Most of the promising fuels of bio-origin like biodiesel, methane, methanol,ethanol and Fischer–Tropsch fuels are gaining prominence. Synthesis of new furan based fuels
for use in vehicle applications biofuels by next-generation methods of production from biomass
is one of the most exciting developments of recent times with the long-term objective to develop
the best possible combination of fuel components to meet the requirements of futuristic
combustion processes. Furan based fuels have received renewed interest because of increasedeconomic demand for new sources of energy from waste biomass. Progress in the developmentof furan-based fuels has been made in terms of a selective catalytic defunctionalization withhomogeneous transition metal catalyst in a multiphase reaction system which enables ahydrogen free pathway to furans. Among these 2,5-dimethylfuran (25DMF) is a potential
biofuels candidate. Its blending research octane number makes it nearly twice as effective on amolar basis as ethanol .Also its energy density is close to that of gasoline. The laminar burning
velocity of 2,5-DMF closely matches that of gasoline. 2-5, DMF can be chemicallysynthesized from authentic, inedible, lignocelluloses material, untreated maize leaves and waste
biomass, but other routes are also promising. This paper presents a review of development ofproduction pathways of 2, 5-dimethylfuran from biomass, evaluation of its fuel properties,environmental concerns along with experimental engine studies. Important fuel properties like
RVP, VLI, Distillation density and surface tension for 5 %( v/v), 2-5 dimethylfuran blend isgasoline are experimently determined and their effect on engine operation is discussed.
Comparative evaluation of Engine performance of 5% (v/v) 2,5-dimethylfuran blend
1

Prospects of 2, 5-Dimethylfuran as a Fuel: Physico-chemical and Engine
Performance Characteristics Evaluation
7th International Symposium on Feedstock Recycling of Polymeric Materials (7th ISFR 2013)
New Delhi, India, 23-26 October 2013

is gasoline have been carried out on a constant speed carbureted S.I. engine and results arediscussed.
Methodology
For the present investigation, 5% 2, 5-dimethylfuran was blended with gasoline (v/v) by ‘splashblending’. Physicochemical properties like density, surface tension, distillation, flash point, RVPof blend were analyzed as per ASTM methods. These blends were then observed for 2-3 weeks
for any visible separation Engine test was carried out on gasoline run gen-set which consists ofConstant speed SI engine coupled with a self-excited brushless alternator.Resistive load bank
was used for electrical loading of the gen-set, equipped with Voltmeter, Ammeter and Frequency
meter for measurement of the load. The load bank was a singlephase load circuit consisting of a
combination of stable resistive elements of appropriate rating, wired such that the total load
current is adjustable to any value up to 125% of Max. Full throttle current of the gen-set under
test was measured with accuracy of ±0.1 Amp. Voltmeter and Ammeter were AC RMS meters,
direct acting analog/digital type conforming to BIS 1248 (part 4), and accuracy class 1. The
range of frequency meter was 45 to 65 Hz.
Results and Discussion
Test results of 5 %( v/v) 2,5-dimethylfuran blend of gasoline in a SI genset reveal that its
volumetric fuel consumption is similar to gasoline.2,5-dimethylfuran blend burns faster thangasoline.No considerable change in fuel consumption. Slight power drop at full load wasobserved. CO and HC emissions decresed on all loads while NO emissions were observed to beslightly high.
Conclusions
2,5-dimethylfuran seems to be a feasible bio-fuel candidate due to favorable properties. Its 5 %(v/v) blend with gasoline exhibits comparable engine performance characteristics. However
economic pathways of its production from biomass need to be developed.
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2Prospects of 2, 5-Dimethylfuran as a Fuel: Physico-chemical and Engine
Performance Characteristics Evaluation
7th International Symposium on Feedstock Recycling of Polymeric Materials (7th ISFR 2013)
New Delhi, India, 23-26 October 2013

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3Prospects of 2, 5-Dimethylfuran as a Fuel: Physico-chemical and Engine
Performance Characteristics Evaluation
7th International Symposium on Feedstock Recycling of Polymeric Materials (7th ISFR 2013)
New Delhi, India, 23-26 October 2013