Even as electric vehicles become more common, many industries still depend on fuel-powered engines. Transportation, agriculture, shipping, and logistics continue to rely heavily on diesel engines, making cleaner fuel options an important part of the wider search for more sustainable energy solutions.
The study, which featured Prof. Ir. Dr Chan Choon Kit, Director of Postgraduate Studies and Professor at the Faculty of Engineering & Quantity Surveying, INTI International University, explored whether fuels derived from soybean oil and algae could serve as cleaner alternatives to conventional diesel.
A collaborative research study involving researchers from multiple institutions, including INTI International University, has explored whether biodiesel made from soybean oil and algae could offer cleaner alternatives to conventional diesel. The study examined how these fuels performed in regular diesel engines and specially modified engines designed to burn fuel more efficiently and reduce harmful emissions.
The study featured Prof. Ir. Dr Chan Choon Kit, Director of Postgraduate Studies and Professor at the Faculty of Engineering & Quantity Surveying at INTI International University. According to Prof Chan, the research was driven by growing interest in renewable fuels that could support more sustainable transport systems while making use of widely available natural resources.
“Biodiesel derived from renewable biological sources such as vegetable oils and algae offers several advantages, including biodegradability, lower emissions of pollutants, and the potential to reduce dependency on fossil fuels,” he explained.
Certain algae species can produce significant amounts of oil suitable for biodiesel production while requiring comparatively less land than traditional crops.
Biodiesel is produced from natural materials and has been studied as a potential means of reducing certain harmful emissions released into the environment. For industries that cannot immediately move away from diesel engines, fuels such as soybean- and algae-based biodiesel may offer a practical step towards cleaner operations.
The study focused on biodiesel made from soybean oil and algae. Soybean oil is a plant-based renewable resource, while algae has attracted increasing attention in renewable energy research because of their rapid growth rates and high oil content.
Algae is often associated with ponds or marine ecosystems, but certain species can produce significant amounts of oil suitable for biodiesel production. Researchers noted that some algae can double their biomass in less than 24 hours under suitable conditions, while requiring comparatively less land than traditional crops.
Researchers created several biodiesel blends using soybean oil and algae before testing them in both standard and specially modified diesel engines. These modified engines are designed to retain more heat, allowing fuel to burn more efficiently and potentially reducing waste and emissions.
The findings showed that the soybean-based biodiesel performed best overall among the fuels tested. It used fuel more efficiently and produced lower levels of certain harmful emissions than the other biodiesel blends in the study.
The modified engine also improved the combustion process by retaining more heat during operation. This allowed the fuel to burn more completely, resulting in lower emissions and improved overall efficiency.
For future fuel development, the findings suggest that soybean-based biodiesel may hold stronger immediate potential among the blends tested. At the same time, algae remains an important area of research because of its rapid growth, oil-producing ability, and lower land requirements compared with traditional crops.
The soybean-based biodiesel blend showed stronger fuel efficiency and produced lower levels of certain harmful emissions during testing, highlighting its potential as a cleaner fuel alternative for future transportation systems.
Prof Chan noted that while algae biodiesel showed encouraging potential, more research is still needed to improve its performance and efficiency before it can be adopted more widely.
“Research into renewable fuels is becoming increasingly important as industries continue searching for cleaner and more practical energy alternatives for the future,” he said.
The study adds to ongoing research on renewable fuels that may help reduce emissions in sectors that continue to depend on diesel engines. While biodiesel is not presented as a single solution to the world’s energy challenges, studies such as this help identify cleaner options that could support the transition towards more sustainable transport and industrial systems.
Through collaborative research, soybeans and algae are being examined not just as natural resources but as possible contributors to cleaner fuel technologies. For industries and transport systems that still depend on fuel-powered engines, such work may offer another step towards reducing pollution while cleaner energy solutions continue to develop