Public Defense in Mechanical Engineering, M.Sc. Michal Wojcieszyk

Renewable fuels for compression ignition engines in various transport modes: effect of fuel properties on end-use performance

Nowadays, the transport sector is heavily dependent on fossil resources. However, renewable fuels in combination with efficient internal combustion engines offer immediate solutions to reduce the carbon footprint of transportation. Fuels like hydrotreated vegetable oil, traditional biodiesel, biomass-to-liquid diesel or e-fuels could replace fossil diesel used in passenger cars, heavy-duty vehicles, or marine vessels. This doctoral thesis supports the development of renewable transport fuels by applying modeling methods for quick and cost-efficient end-use evaluation of various liquid fuel options compatible with compression ignition engines. The novel modeling approach utilizing fuel property characteristics gave insights on fuel economy as well as CO2 emissions for neat renewable components and their blends with fossil diesel. The results from the modeling work represent the collective effect of the most significant fuel properties on end-use performance from the fleet perspective. The developed state-of-the-art models for light-duty, heavy-duty, and marine sectors were implemented in online tools and together with provided recommendations are important assistance for policymakers and the transport fuel industry. The outcomes of the dissertation serve for an unbiased comparison of the most promising fuel options that could be fitted to the existing infrastructure with minimum effort. 

Doctoral Student: Michal Wojcieszyk

Opponent: Professor Antonio Garcia Martinez, Technical University of Valencia (Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV)), Spain

Custos:Professor Martti Larmi, Aalto University School of Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering

The public defense will be organized as a hybrid event - on campus in Lecture Hall 216, Otakaari 4 and on Zoom.

Thesis is publicly displayed 10 days prior to the defense in the publication archive Aaltodoc of Aalto University. 

Contact information of the doctoral student: Michal Wojcieszyk, michal.wojcieszyk@aalto.fi, +358504723055

Doctoral theses in the School of Engineering: https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi/handle/123456789/49