Parametric Study of Ignition and Combustion Characteristics From a Gasoline Compression Ignition Engine Using Two Different Reactivity Fuels

Author(s):  
Khanh Cung ◽  
Toby Rockstroh ◽  
Stephen Ciatti ◽  
William Cannella ◽  
S. Scott Goldsborough

Unlike homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) that has the complexity in controlling the start of combustion event, partially premixed combustion (PPC) provides the flexibility of defining the ignition timing and combustion phasing with respect to the time of injection. In PPC, the stratification of the charge can be influenced by a variety of methods such as number of injections (single or multiple injections), injection pressure, injection timing (early to near TDC injection), intake boost pressure, or combination of several factors. The current study investigates the effect of these factors when testing two gasoline-like fuels of different reactivity (defined by Research Octane Number or RON) in a 1.9-L inline 4-cylinder diesel engine. From the collection of engine data, a full factorial analysis was created in order to identify the factors that most influence the outcomes such as the location of ignition, combustion phasing, combustion stability, and emissions. Furthermore, the interaction effect of combinations of two factors or more was discussed with the implication of fuel reactivity under current operating conditions. The analysis was done at both low (1000 RPM) and high speed (2000 RPM). It was found that the boost pressure and air/fuel ratio have strong impact on ignition and combustion phasing. Finally, injection-timing sweeps were conducted whereby the ignition (CA10) of the two fuels with significantly different reactivity were matched by controlling the boost pressure while maintaining a constant lambda (air/fuel equivalence ratio).

Author(s):  
Anita I. Ramírez ◽  
Sibendu Som ◽  
Lisa A. LaRocco ◽  
Timothy P. Rutter ◽  
Douglas E. Longman

There has been an extensive worldwide search for alternate fuels that fit with the existing infrastructure and would thus displace fossil-based resources. In metabolic engineering work at Argonne National Laboratory, strains of fuel have been designed that can be produced in large quantities by photosynthetic bacteria, eventually producing a heavy alcohol called phytol (C20H40O). Phytol’s physical and chemical properties (cetane number, heat of combustion, heat of vaporization, density, surface tension, vapor pressure, etc.) correspond in magnitude to those of diesel fuel, suggesting that phytol might be a good blending agent in compression ignition (CI) engine applications. The main reason for this study was to investigate the feasibility of using phytol as a blending agent with diesel; this was done by comparing the performance and emission characteristics of different blends of phytol (5%, 10%, 20% by volume) with diesel. The experimental research was performed on a single-cylinder engine under conventional operating conditions. Since phytol’s viscosity is much higher than that of diesel, higher-injection-pressure cases were investigated to ensure the delivery of fuel into the combustion chamber was sufficient. The influence of the fuel’s chemical composition on performance and emission characteristics was captured by doing an injection timing sweep. Combustion characteristics as shown in the cylinder pressure trace were comparable for the diesel and all the blends of phytol at each of the injection timings. The 5% and 10% blends show lower CO and similar NOx values. However, the 20% blend shows higher NOx and CO emissions, indicating that the chemical and physical properties have been altered substantially at this higher percentage. The combustion event was depicted by performing high-speed natural luminosity imaging using endoscopy. This revealed that the higher in-cylinder temperatures for the 20% blend are the cause for its higher NOx emissions. In addition, three-dimensional simulations of transient, turbulent nozzle flow were performed to compare the injection and cavitation characteristics of phytol and its blends. Specifically, area and discharge coefficients and mass flow rates of diesel and phytol blends were compared under corresponding engine operating conditions. The conclusion is that phytol may be a suitable blending agent with diesel fuel for CI applications.


Author(s):  
Marcus Grochowina ◽  
Daniel Hertel ◽  
Simon Tartsch ◽  
Thomas Sattelmayer

Dual-fuel (DF) engines offer great fuel flexibility combined with low emissions in gas mode. The main source of energy in this mode is provided by gaseous fuel, while the diesel fuel acts only as an ignition source. For this reason, the reliable autoignition of the pilot fuel is of utmost importance for combustion in DF engines. However, the autoignition of the pilot fuel suffers from low compression temperatures caused by Miller valve timings. These valve timings are applied to increase efficiency and reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. Previous studies have investigated the influence of injection parameters and operating conditions on ignition and combustion in DF engines using a unique periodically chargeable combustion cell. Direct light high-speed images and pressure traces clearly revealed the effects of injection parameters and operating conditions on ignition and combustion. However, these measurement techniques are only capable of observing processes after ignition. In order to overcome this drawback, a high-speed shadowgraph technique was applied in this study to examine the processes prior to ignition. Measurements were conducted to investigate the influence of compression temperature and injection pressure on spray formation and ignition. Results showed that the autoignition of diesel pilot fuel strongly depends on the fuel concentration within the spray. The high-speed shadowgraph images revealed that in the case of very low fuel concentration within the pilot spray, only the first stage of the two-stage ignition occurs. This leads to large cycle-to-cycle variations and misfiring. However, it was found that a reduced number of injection holes counteract these effects. The comparison of a diesel injector with ten-holes and a modified injector with five-holes showed shorter ignition delays, more stable ignition and a higher number of ignited sprays on a percentage basis for the five-hole nozzle.


Author(s):  
Liu Shenghua ◽  
Wang Ziyan ◽  
Ren Jiang

A natural gas and diesel dual-fuel turbocharged compression ignition (CI) engine is developed to reduce emissions of a heavy-duty diesel engine. The compressed natural gas (CNG) pressure regulator is specially designed to feed back the boost pressure to simplify the fuel metering system. The natural gas bypass improves the engine response to acceleration. The modes of diesel injection are set according to the engine operating conditions. The application of honeycomb mixers changes the flowrate shape of natural gas and reduces hydrocarbon (HC) emission under low-load and lowspeed conditions. The cylinder pressures of a CI engine fuelled with diesel and dual fuel are analysed. The introduction of natural gas makes the ignition delay change with engine load. Under the same operating conditions, the emissions of smoke and NOx from the dual-fuel engine are both reduced. The HC and CO emissions for the dual-fuel engine remain within the range of regulation.


Author(s):  
Marcus Grochowina ◽  
Michael Schiffner ◽  
Simon Tartsch ◽  
Thomas Sattelmayer

Dual-Fuel (DF) engines offer great fuel flexibility since they can either run on gaseous or liquid fuels. In the case of Diesel pilot ignited DF-engines the main source of energy is provided by gaseous fuel, whereas the Diesel fuel acts only as an ignition source. Therefore, a proper autoignition of the pilot fuel is of utmost importance for combustion in DF-engines. However, autoignition of the pilot fuel suffers from lower compression temperatures of Miller or Atkinson valve timings. These valve timings are applied to increase efficiency and lower nitrogen oxide engine emissions. In order to improve the ignition, it is necessary to understand which parameters influence the ignition in DF-engines. For this purpose, experiments were conducted and the influence of parameters such as injection pressure, pilot fuel quantity, compression temperature and air-fuel equivalence ratio of the homogenous natural gas-air mixture were investigated. The experiments were performed on a periodically chargeable combustion cell using optical high-speed recordings and thermodynamic measurement techniques for pressure and temperature. The study reveals that the quality of the Diesel pilot ignition in terms of short ignition delay and a high number of ignited sprays significantly depends on the injection parameters and operating conditions. In most cases, the pilot fuel suffers from too high dilution due to its small quantity and long ignition delays. This results in a small number of ignited sprays and consequently leads to longer combustion durations. Furthermore, the experiments confirm that the natural gas of the background mixture influences the autoignition of the Diesel pilot oil.


CFD letters ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Fatin Farhanah Zulkurnai ◽  
Wan Mohd Faizal Wan Mahmood ◽  
Norhidayah Mat Taib ◽  
Mohd Radzi Abu Mansor

Reactivity controlled compression ignition (RCCI) engine give advantages over conventional diesel engine with the promising engine power and good control on NOx and soot emission. The trend of the RCCI concept is still new and Is very important to control the ignition in order to control the combustion progress and emission. The objective of this study is to provide data on the combustion characteristics and emission of diesel as high reactive, and ethanol as the low reactive fuel in the RCCI engine. The engine speed and injection timing were varied. Simulation work was conducted by using the Converge CFD software based on the Yanmar TF90 diesel engine parameter. Results show that operating the engine at low speed resulting in better engine performance and low carbon emissions due to the sufficient oxygen contents. For the high-speed engine, advancing the injection timing improves the fuel and air reactivity and steeper the equivalence ratio gradient, which result in a complete combustion process.


Author(s):  
David T. Klos ◽  
Sage L. Kokjohn

This paper uses detailed computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling with the kiva-chemkin code to investigate the influence of injection timing, combustion phasing, and operating conditions on combustion instability. Using detailed CFD simulations, a large design of experiments (DOE) is performed with small perturbations in the intake and fueling conditions. A response surface model (RSM) is then fit to the DOE results to predict cycle-to-cycle combustion instability. Injection timing had significant tradeoffs between engine efficiency, emissions, and combustion instability. Near top dead center (TDC) injection timing can significantly reduce combustion instability, but the emissions and efficiency drop close to conventional diesel combustion levels. The fuel split between the two direct injection (DI) injections has very little effect on combustion instability. Increasing exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) rate, while making adjustments to maintain combustion phasing, can significantly reduce peak pressure rise rate (PPRR) variation until the engine is on the verge of misfiring. Combustion phasing has a very large impact on combustion instability. More advanced phasing is much more stable, but produces high PPRRs, higher NOx levels, and can be less efficient due to increased heat transfer losses. The results of this study identify operating parameters that can significantly improve the combustion stability of dual-fuel reactivity-controlled compression ignition (RCCI) engines.


Author(s):  
Hoin Kang ◽  
Jerald A. Caton ◽  
Seangwock Lee ◽  
Seokhwan Lee ◽  
Seungmook Oh

LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) has been widely used as an alternative fuel for gasoline and diesel vehicles in light of clean fuel and diversity of energy resources. But conventional LPG vehicles using carburetors or MPI fuel injection systems can’t satisfy the emissions regulations and CO2 targets of the future. Therefore, it is essential to develop LPG engines of spark ignition or compression ignition type such that LPG fuel is directly injected into the combustion chamber under high pressure. A compression ignition engine using LPG is the ideal engine with many advantages of fuel economy, heat efficiency and low CO2, even though it is difficult to develop due to the unique properties of LPG. This paper reports on numerical and experimental studies related to LPG fuel for a compression ignition engine. The numerical analysis is conducted to study the combustion chamber shape with CATIA and to analyze the spray and fluid behaviors with FLUENT for diesel and LPG (n-butane 100%) fuels. In one experimental study, a constant volume chamber is used to observe the spray formation for the chamber pressure 0 to 3MPa and to analyze the flame process, P-V diagram, heat release rate and emissions through the combustion of LPG fuel with the cetane additive DTBP (Di-tert-butyl peroxide) 5 to 15 wt% at 25MPa of fuel injection pressure. In engine bench tests, experiments were performed to find the optimum injection timing, lambda, COV and emissions for the LPG fuel with the cetane additive DTBP 5 to 15 wt% at 25MPa fuel injection pressure and 1500 rpm. The penetration distance of LPG (n-butane 100%) was shorter than that of diesel fuel and LPG was sensitive to the chamber pressure. The ignition delay was in inverse proportion to the ambient pressure linearly. In the engine bench tests, the optimum injection timing of the test engine to the LPG fuel with DTBP 15 wt% was about BTDC 12° CA at all loads and 1500 rpm. An increasing of DTBP blending ratio caused the promotion of flame and fast burn and this lead to reduce HC and CO emissions, on the other hand, to increase NOx and CO2 emissions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (10) ◽  
pp. 1059-1072 ◽  
Author(s):  
Metin Korkmaz ◽  
Dennis Ritter ◽  
Bernhard Jochim ◽  
Joachim Beeckmann ◽  
Dirk Abel ◽  
...  

In order to counteract the drawbacks of conventional diesel combustion, which can lead to high indicated specific nitric oxide and indicated specific particulate matter emissions, a promising diesel-dual-fuel concept is investigated and evaluated. In this study, methane is used as supplement to liquid diesel fuel due to its benefits like high knock resistance and clean combustion. A deep understanding of the in-cylinder process is required for engine design and combustion controller development. To investigate the impact of different input parameters such as injection duration, injection timing, and substitution rate on varying output parameters like load, combustion phasing, and engine-out emissions, numerous investigations were conducted. Engine speed, global equivalence ratio, and injection pressure were held constant. The experiments were carried out in a modified single-cylinder compression ignition engine. The results reveal regimes with different dependencies between injection timing of diesel fuel and combustion phasing. This work demonstrates the potential of the diesel-dual-fuel concept by combining sophisticated combustion control with the favorable combustion mode. Without employing exhaust gas recirculation, TIER IMO 3 emissions limits are met while ensuring high thermal efficiency.


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