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Cycle resolved LDA measurements of the tangential velocity component, made along a diameter of two combustion chambers (toroidal and square) during the compression stroke of a diesel engine operating at 600 and 1000 rpm, are discussed. Indirect measurements of lateral integral length scales determined by single point autocorrelation technique are presented. Finally direct measurements of lateral integral length scales made by a new laser doppler velocimeter system based on two probe volume technique are reported.

The present paper reports the results of an experimental investigation carried out on a four-stroke single- cylinder D.I. diesel engine (100 x 95mm bore x stroke) with the aim to evaluate the effects of a four-lobe square combustion chamber on the gaseous and particulate emissions. Fluid-dynamic behaviour of the axisymmetric toroidal and four-lobe square chambers was investigated by Laser Doppler Anemometry. Engine tests at 2000 and 3000 rpm for different start of combustion (SOC) and A/F ratio are reported. Particulate, HC and NOx emission index measured under different operating conditions are given. In addition, the volatile content of the particulates produced from the two chambers at various engine operative conditions was measured by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Finally, the catalytic activity of a metal-oxide-based catalyst in the combustion of particulate was also evaluated by TGA.

The present paper aims at investigating the flow field behavior within a reciprocating engine under motoring conditions. Simultaneous two velocity components of the air velocity were acquired at different engine speeds within the cylinder at different radii from the cylinder axis. Mean motion, integral time scales and Reynolds shear stresses, for the radial and tangential components, were estimated from the instantaneous velocity data by applying an ensemble averaging technique. The integral time scale was obtained from the single point time autocorrelation function whereas, the Reynolds shear stresses were computed through the estimate of the degree of the fluctuations correlation. Tests, carried out at 1,000, 1,500, and 2,000 rpm, showed that the tangential mean motion scales approximately with engine speed whereas a radial inward motion can be observed during the last part of compression.

In the last years, there has been an increasing concern on the emission of ultrafine particles in the atmosphere. A detailed study of formation and oxidation of these particles in the environment of the diesel cylinder presents many experimental difficulties due to the high temperatures, pressures and extremely reactive intermediate species. In this paper, in order to follow the different phases of diesel combustion process, high temporal and spatial resolution optical techniques were applied in the optically accessible chamber of diesel engine, at 2000 rpm and A/F=80:1 and 60:1. Simultaneous extinction, scattering and flame chemiluminescence measurements from UV to visible were carried out, in order to study the diesel combustion process from the droplet ignition to the formation of soot, through the growth of its precursors.

A second generation of Common-Rail injection systems is coming into production making feasible multiple injection strategies. This paper aims to assess the capability of multiple injection in reducing NOx and soot emissions of HSDI Diesel engines. The analysis has been carried out at a characteristic point of the EUDC emission test cycle by using a customized version of the CFD code Kiva3, with updated sub-models developed by University of Bologna and University of Wisconsin. In particular, a recent modification has been introduced in the fuel conversion rate calculation in order to account for turbulence non-equilibrium effects. Different multiple injection profiles and combustion chamber configurations have been simulated and their effects on mixture formation, heat release rate and NOx and soot formation have been analyzed. The main target was to comply with emission standards without significant loss in engine performance.

An experimental investigation, using the Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) technique, was carried out to investigate the complex structure of the intake flow in a commercial four-cylinder automotive Diesel engine. The attention was focused on the evaluation of the mean motion and turbulence intensity by using a steady state test rig with dynamic valve flow arrangements, supplying a flow rate of 17.4m3/h, that corresponds to the actual flow rate of the engine running at 2,000 rpm. The LDA tests were performed with the engine head mounted on a plexiglas cylinder, having the same diameter as that of the real engine, equipped with optical accesses. The intake manifold was connected to a flow bench tester to simulate the actual flow rates of the engine. Measurement points were located within the cylinder at different distances from the cylinder axis, on two orthogonal diameters, and at different depths from the engine head.

Polychromatic extinction and chemiluminescence techniques, from ultraviolet to visible, were applied in an optical diesel engine, in order to analyze the temporal and spatial evolution of a high pressure fuel jet interacting with a swirling air motion. A fully flexible Common Rail fuel injection system equipped with a single hole nozzle was used. The experiments were performed at fixed engine speed and air/fuel ratio for three injection strategies. The first one consisted of a main injection to compare with those operating at low pressure injection. The other ones were based on a pilot and main injections, typical of current direct injection diesel engines, with different dwell time. A detailed investigation of the mixture formation process inside the combustion chamber during the ignition delay time was performed. The liquid and vapor fuel distribution in the combustion chamber was obtained analyzing the polychromatic extinction spectra.

An experimental and numerical investigation, using the Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) technique and a 3D fluid-dynamic code (KIVA 3V), was carried out in a prototype engine under steady-state conditions. The aim of the present activity was the flow field characterization and the effect of the intake geometry on the in-cylinder tumble flow. A new steady flow test rig designed for capturing the tumble motion within a test cylinder, made by a blower and an engine head, was assembled to simulate the intake flow. The engine head was mounted on an aluminum cylinder, having the same bore as the real engine. The cylinder was provided with optical accesses on the periphery and a flat optical window located at the bottom to a depth equal to the stroke of the engine. The cylinder was also equipped with two cylindrical ducts, used as air outflow ports.

Conventional methods to measure gas concentrations and, in particular, NO are typically based on sampling by valve, sample treatment and subsequent analysis. These methods suffer low spatial and temporal resolution. The introduction of high energy lasers in combination with fast detection systems allowed to detect the NO distribution inside optically accessible Diesel engines. In this paper, a high spatial and temporal resolution in-situ technique based on ultraviolet - visible absorption spectroscopy is proposed. The characterization of the combustion process by the detection of gaseous compounds from the start of combustion until the exhaust phase was performed. In particular, this technique allows the simultaneous detection of NO and OH absolute concentrations inside an optically accessible Diesel combustion chamber.

The paper illustrates an experimental and numerical investigation of the flow generated by an intake port model for a heavy duty direct injection (HDDI) Diesel engine. Tests were carried out on a steady state air flow test rig to evaluate the global fluid-dynamic efficiency of the intake system, made by a swirled and a directed port, in terms of mass flow rate, flow coefficients and swirl number. In addition, because the global coefficients are not able to give flow details, the Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) technique was applied to obtain the local distribution of the air velocity within a test cylinder. The steady state air flow rig, made by a blower and the intake port model mounted on a plexiglas cylinder with optical accesses, was assembled to supply the actual intake flow rate of the engine, setting the pressure drop across the intake ports atûP=300 and 500 mm of H2O.

In-cylinder measurements of turbulent integral length scales, carried out during the last 60 degrees of the compression stroke at 600 and 1,000 rpm by a two-probe volume LDV system, were used to assess the capability of the k-ε model used in KIVA-II code. The objective of the paper is to address the following question: what is the most reasonable definition of turbulent length scale in the k-ε model for engine applications? The answer derived from the comparison between KIVA predictions and experiments that showed a fair agreement between the computed turbulent length scale and the measured lateral integral length scale. The agreement is a result of proper choice of the initial swirl ratio and turbulent kinetic energy at inlet valve closure (IVC) by taking into account the LDV measurements and the value of the constant Cμε in the k-ε model equations that relates the turbulent length scale to k and ε.

Tangential component of velocity and turbulence were measured in three locations in the re-entrant combustion chamber of a motored single-cylinder d.i. Diesel engine (0.435 liter, 21:1 compression ratio) using a Laser Doppler Velocimetry system. Moreover, a modified LDV system with two-probe volume was used to measure directly lateral integral length scales of the velocity tangential component at two engine speeds. The measurements were made on a horizontal plane at 5 mm below the engine head from 100 degrees before TDC to 60 degrees after TDC of both the compression and expansion strokes. The engine was motored at 1,000 and 1,500 rpm respectively. An ensemble-averaging technique was performed to analyze the instantaneous velocity information supplied by two Burst Spectrum Analyzers. The lateral integral length scale was obtained from the integral of the spatial correlation coefficient of the velocity fluctuation for different separation.

This paper illustrates the results of an experimental characterization of a high pressure diesel spray injected by a common rail (CR) injection system both under non-evaporative and evaporative conditions. Tests have been made injecting the fuel with a single hole injector having a diameter of 0.18 mm with L/D=5.56. The fuel has been sprayed at 60, 90 and 120 MPa, with an ambient pressure ranging between 1.2 to 5.0 MPa. The spray evolution has been investigated, by the Mie scattering technique, illuminating the fuel jet and acquiring single shot images by a CCD camera. Tests under non-evaporative conditions have been carried out in an optically accessible high pressure vessel filled with inert gas (N2) at diesel-like density conditions. The instantaneous fuel injection rate, obtained with a time resolution of 10 microseconds, has been also evaluated by an AVL Fuel Meter working on the Bosch Tube principle.

The paper aims at providing information about the spray structure and its evolution within the combustion chamber of a heavy duty direct injection (HDDI) diesel engine. The spray penetration is investigated, firstly under quiescent conditions, injecting the fuel in a vessel under ambient temperature and controlled back pressure by both numerical and experimental analyses using the STAR-CD code and the imaging technique, respectively. Experimental results of fuel injection rate, fuel penetration, and spray cone angle are used as initial conditions to the code and for the comparison of predictions. The experimental investigation is carried out using a mechanical injection pump equipped by the heavy duty eight cylinder engine. Only one of its plungers has been activated and the fuel is discharged through a seven holes mechanical injector, 0.40 mm in diameter.

The paper describes some experiments carried out on two d.i. Diesel engines running with insulated pistons. Three different thermal barriers were tested; namely, a stainless steel cup, a Si3N4 cup and a stainless steel piston crown. The combustion process was characterized by heat release calculation and ignition delay measurements. The experiments showed that the indicated efficiency is not affected by thermal insulation adoption, Nox level increases while smoke level decreases consistently.

Two fuels having different aromatics content and different cetane numbers were tested in a direct injection diesel engine with thermally insulated pistons. Actually tests were carried out with a full aluminum piston, an aluminum piston modified to accept a stainless steel crown and a similar one coated with ceramic. Higher combustion noise and emissions were detected using the degraded fuel, having fixed the type of piston. Furthermore, the experiments showed that thermal barrier adoption has a positive effect on the combustion noise.

LDV measurements of the tangential component of the flow field velocity within the cylinder of a motored, real diesel engine are reported. A comparison of the fluid-dynamic behavior between toroidal and four-lobes square combustion chambers is shown. Tests were carried out over a range of engine speed of 500 and 1500 rpm. An ensemble-average data processing technique was used to analyze the velocity data recorded at 30 CAD BTDC and at TDC during compression stroke. The measurements were made at a depth of 3.0 mm from the piston head in two axial sections of the four-lobe combustion chamber. The results show that the four-lobe, square combustion chamber reduces the bulk swirl and increases the turbulence at the two engine speeds. The square cup transforms more of the kinetic energy of the bulk flows into turbulent kinetic energy than toroidal cup. At TDC the tangential velocity profile tends to solid body along the short section and to flat profile along the long section.

The behaviour of two combustion chambers, a toroidal and a turbulent one, has been compared. The engine performance in terms of imep and exhaust emissions were measured. Laser Doppler Anemometry technique was used to characterize the fluids dynamic aspect of combustion system. The axial asymmetry introduced in combustion chamber shape causes strong differences in the air flow field at the end of compression stroke. The tangential velocity profile is flattened to that obtained with toroidal chamber. Moreover the rms values of tangential velocity measured in turbulent combustion chamber are about three times higher than that measured in the toroidal chamber. At low engine speed the turbulent chamber allows to operate with low NOx levels without penalties of smoke emissions and fuel consumption as happens by using conventional toroidal chamber.

The Common-rail injection system has allowed achieving a more flexible fuel injection control in DI-diesel engines by permitting a free mapping of the start of injection, injection pressure, rate of injection. All these benefits have been gained by installing this device in combustion chambers born to work with the conventional distributor and in-line-pump injection systems. Their design was aimed to improve air-fuel mixing and therefore they were characterized by the adoption of high-swirl ports and re-entrant bowls. Experiments have shown that the high injection velocities induced by common rail systems determine an enhancement of the air fuel mixing. By contrast, they cause a strong wall impingement too. The present paper aims to exploit a new configuration of the combustion chamber more suited to CR injection systems and characterized by low-swirl ports and larger bowl diameter in order to reduce the wall impingement.

The influence of fuel composition on mixture formation and first stage of combustion, occurring in a small high swirl combustion chamber of an IDI Diesel engine, was analyzed from measurements of spectral extinction and flame emissivity. Measurements were carried out in an optically accessible combustion chamber in which an air swirling flow is forced from the main chamber through a tangential passage. A conventional injection system was used to inject Tetradecane, N-heptane and Diesel fuel. The distribution of liquid and vapor and the interaction of the jet with air swirl were detected by UV-visible extinction measurements. The autoignition phase was characterized by UV-visible chemiluminescence measurements. For all fuels examined, it was observed that initially the liquid fuel penetrates almost linearly with time until reaching a maximum characteristic length, slightly dependent on the fuel.