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HYBRID FUEL

One of the major problem which we face today is the energy crisis. The non- renewable fossil fuels like petrol, diesel etc. are depleting for the past few decades. They are used in almost all fields. As they are depleting, leading to energy crisis. And we are in search of alternatives for the fossil fuels. Hybrid fuel is a best alternative to overcome this.

Hybrid fuel is nothing but water in oil microemulsion. The oil which we use here is vegetable oil. Vegetable oil is used because it has large hydrocarbon chain similar to diesel. It is to be noted that even the petroleum from which we get diesel is also formed in earth crust by modifying the plants and animals for decades. But vegetable oil can not be used as an alternative for diesel directly because the ignition lag is high due to its high viscosity. There are different methods to reduce the viscosity of vegetable oil like using it when its temperature is high, or using bio- diesel with the blend of diesel, or using hybrid fuel through microemulsification. The most practicable method is the microemulsification. By using a suitable surfactant we can prepare a homogeneous mixture which is having less viscosity than the vegetable oil.

Hybrid fuels are entirely different from bio-diesel though it is made from vegetable oils. The main difference is in the production: bio-diesel is produced via a chemical process called esterification whereas hybrid fuel is produced via microemulsification which is a physical process. When compared to bio diesel hybrid fuels has its own advantages such as its preparation is simple,it is a time saving process compare to bio-diesel, and it is more cost effective.