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The paper reports on the optical investigation of a multiple spark ignition system carried out in a closed vessel in inert gas, and in an optical access engine in firing condition. The ignition system features a plug-top ignition coil with integrated electronics which is capable of multi-spark discharges (MSD) with short dwell time. First, the ignition system has been characterized in constant ambient conditions, at different pressure levels. The profile of the energy released by the spark and the cumulated value has been determined by measuring the fundamental electrical parameters. A high speed camera has been used to visualize the time evolution of the electric arc discharge to highlight its shape and position variability. The multiple spark system has then been mounted on an optical access engine with port fuel injection (PFI) to study the combustion characteristics in lean conditions with single and multiple discharges.

The paper describes an experimental research which addressed the study of a 4-cylinder, spark-ignited, port-fuel-injected, production engine modified for hydrogen-methane blend fueling. The original engine was a 2.8-liter, naturally aspirated, methane-fuelled engine. The engine modifications included two fuel injectors per port and ECU replacement for controlling lean burn combustion and enabling real-time variation of the fuel blend, based on an alpha-N mapping approach. Since hydrogen infrastructures are an issue and its production costs are still today very high, pure hydrogen usage is not a viable solution for near future vehicles. In view of this, in the present paper, the maximum volumetric concentration of hydrogen in methane has been set to 35% (which on a mass basis corresponds to 6.3%). The variability of the fuel mixture has been achieved by installing two separate fuel lines connected to two fuel rails: a total of 8 injectors are installed.

The emissions limits of CO2 for vehicles are becoming more stringent with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improve fuel economy. The New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) is adopted to measure emissions for all new internal combustion engines in the European Union, and it is performed on cold vehicle, starting at a temperature of 22°C ± 2°C. Consequently, the cold-start efficiency of internal combustion engine is becoming of predominant interest. Since at cold start the lubricant oil viscosity is higher than at the target operating temperature, the consequently higher energy losses due to increased frictions can substantially affect the emission cycle results in terms of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. A suitable thermal management system, such as an exhaust-to-oil heat exchanger, could help to raise the oil temperature more quickly.