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Effects of temperature, pressure and global equivalence ratio on total ignition delay time in a constant volume spray combustion chamber were investigated for diesel fuel along with the primary reference fuels (PRFs) of n-heptane and iso-octane in relatively low temperature conditions to simulate unsteady spray ignition behavior. A KAUST Research ignition quality tester (KR-IQT) was utilized, which has a feature of varying temperature, pressure and equivalence ratio using a variable displacement fuel pump. A gradient method was adopted in determining the start of ignition in order to compensate pressure increase induced by low temperature heat release. Comparison of this method with other existing methods was discussed. Ignition delay times were measured at various equivalence ratios (0.5-1.7) with the temperatures of initial charge air in the range from 698 to 860 K and the pressures in the range of 1.5 to 2.1 MPa, pertinent to low temperature combustion (LTC) conditions.

In an effort of providing better understanding of regeneration mechanisms of diesel particulate matter (PM), this experimental investigation focused on evaluating the amount of heat release generated during the thermal reaction of diesel PM and the concentrations of soluble organic compounds (SOCs) dissolved in PM emissions. Differences in oxidation behaviors were observed for two different diesel PM samples: a SOC-containing PM sample and a dry soot sample with no SOCs. Both samples were collected from a cordierite particulate filter membrane in a thermal reactor connected to the exhaust pipe of a light-duty diesel engine. A differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) were used to measure the amount of heat release during oxidation, along with subsequent oxidation rates and the concentrations of SOCs dissolved in particulate samples, respectively.

The limited spatial area in conventional diesel particulate filter (DPF) systems requires frequent regenerations to remove collected particulate matter (PM) emissions, consequently resulting in higher energy consumption and potential material failure. Due to the complex geometry and difficulty in access to the internal structure of diesel particulate filters, in addition, many important characteristics in filtration processes remain unknown. In this work, therefore, the geometry of DPF membrane channels was modified basically to increase the filtration areas, and their filtration characteristics were evaluated in terms of pressure drop across the DPF membranes, effects of soot loading on pressure drop, and qualitative soot mass distribution in the membrane channels. In this evaluation, an analytical model was developed for pressure drop, which allowed a parametric study with those modified membranes.

At the current stage of engine technology, diesel engines typically require diesel particulate filter (DPF) systems to meet recent particulate emissions standards. To assure the performance and reliability of DPF systems, profound understanding of filtration and regeneration mechanisms is required. Among extensive efforts for developing advanced DPF systems, the development of effective thermal management strategies, which control the thermal runaway taking place in oxidation of an excess amount of soot deposit in DPF, is quite challenging. This difficulty stems mainly from lack of sufficient knowledge and understanding about DPF regeneration mechanisms, which need detailed information about oxidation of diesel particulate matter (PM). Therefore, this work carried out a series of oxidation experiments of diesel particulates collected from a DPF on a diesel engine, and evaluated the oxidation rates of the samples using a thermo-gravimetric analyzer (TGA).

An experimental study on effects of high-pressure injections in conjunction with split fuel injections were conducted on an AVL single cylinder DI diesel engine. Various injection schemes were studied through the use of an electronically controlled, common rail injection system capable of injection pressures up to 200 MPa and a maximum of six injections per combustion event. Up to 100 MPa of the fuel injection pressure, the higher injection pressures create faster combustion rates that result in the higher in-cylinder gas temperatures as compared to conventional low-pressure fuel injection systems. When applying high-pressure injections, particulate emission reductions of up to 50% were observed with no change in hydrocarbon emissions, reductions of CO emissions and only slightly higher NOx emissions. Over 100 MPa, on the other hand, the higher injection pressures still reduced up to almost zero-level of particulate emission, at the same time that the NO emission is reduced greatly.

Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) was added to diesel fuel to investigate the effect on ignition delay and soot oxidative reactivity. An ignition quality tester (IQT) was used to study the ignition propensity of MTBE blended diesel fuels in a reactive spray environment. The IQT data showed that ignition delay increases linearly as the MTBE fraction increases in the fuel. A four-stroke single cylinder diesel engine was used to generate soot samples for a soot oxidation study. Soot samples were pre-treated using a tube furnace in a nitrogen environment to remove any soluble organic fractions and moisture content. Non-isothermal oxidation of soot samples was conducted using a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA). It was observed that oxidation of ‘MTBE soot’ started began at a lower temperature and had higher reaction rate than ‘diesel soot’ across a range of temperatures.