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In the study presented in this paper, a vehicle driving cycle simulation of the pneumatic hybrid has been conducted. The pneumatic hybrid powertrain has been modeled in GT-Power and validated against experimental data. The GT-Power engine model has been linked with a MATLAB/simulink vehicle model. The engine in question is a single-cylinder Scania D12 diesel engine, which has been converted to work as a pneumatic hybrid. The base engine model, provided by Scania, is made in GT-power and it is based on the same engine configuration as the one used in real engine testing. During pneumatic hybrid operation the engine can be used as a 2-stroke compressor for generation of compressed air during vehicle deceleration and during vehicle acceleration the engine can be operated as a 2-stroke air-motor driven by the previously stored pressurized air.

The current research focuses in understanding how inlet pressure, EGR, combustion phasing, engine speed and pilot main ratio are affecting the main parameters of the combustion (e.g. efficiency, NOx, soot, maximum pressure rise rate) in the novel concept of injecting high octane number fuels in partially premixed combustion. The influence of the above mentioned parameters was studied by performing detailed sweeps at 32 bar fuel MEP (c.a. 16-18 bar gross IMEP); three different kinds of gasoline were tested (RON: 99, 89 and 69). The experiments were ran in a single cylinder heavy duty engine; Scania D12. At the end of these sweeps the optimized settings were computed in order to understand how to achieve high efficiency, low emissions and acceptable maximum pressure rise rate.

When simulating homogenous charge compression ignition or HCCI using one-dimensional models it is important to have the right combustion parameters. When operating in HCCI the heat release parameters will have a high influence on the simulation result due to the rapid combustion rate, especially if the engine is turbocharged. In this paper an extensive testing data base is used for showing the combustion data from a turbocharged engine operating in HCCI mode. The experimental data cover a wide range, which span from 1000 rpm to 3000 rpm and engine loads between 100 kPa up to over 600 kPa indicated mean effective pressure in this engine speed range. The combustion data presented are: used combustion timing, combustion duration and heat release rate. The combustion timing follows the load and a trend line is presented that is used for engine simulation. The combustion duration in time is fairly constant at different load and engine speeds for the chosen combustion timings here.

This paper presents a computational study of the effects of fuel and thermal stratifications on homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) combustion process in a personal car sized internal combustion engine. Stratified HCCI conditions are generated using a negative valve overlap (NVO) technique. The aims of this study are to improve the understanding of the flow dynamics, the heat and mass transfer process and the onset of auto-ignition in stratified charges under different internal EGR rate and NVO conditions. The fuel is ethanol supplied through port-fuel injection; the fuel/air mixture is assumed to be homogenous before discharging to the cylinder. Large eddy simulation (LES) is used to resolve in detailed level the flow structures, and the mixing and heat transfer between the residual gas and fresh fuel/air mixtures in the intake and compression strokes.

A Scania 13 1 engine modified for single cylinder operations was run using nine fuels in the boiling point range of gasoline, but very different octane number, together with PRF20 and MK1-diesel. The eleven fuels were tested in a load sweep between 5 and 26 bar gross IMEP at 1250 rpm and also at idle (2.5 bar IMEP, 600 rpm). The boost level was proportional to the load while the inlet temperature was held constant at 303 K. For each fuel the load sweep was terminated if the ignitibility limit was reached. A lower load limit of 15 and 10 bar gross IMEP was found with fuels having an octane number range of 93-100 and 80-89 respectively, while fuels with an octane number below 70 were able to run through the whole load range including idle. A careful selection of boost pressure and EGR in the previously specified load range allowed achieving a gross indicated efficiency between 52 and 55% while NOx ranged between 0.1 and 0.5 g/kWh.

An estimation model which uses the gross heat release data and the fuel energy to estimate the total amount of emissions and unburned Hydro Carbon (HC) is developed. Gross heat release data is calculated from a self-tuned heat release method which uses in-cylinder pressure data for computing the energy released during combustion. The method takes all heat and mass losses into account. The method estimates the polytropic exponent and pressure offset during compression and expansion using a nonlinear least square method. Linear interpolation of polytropic exponent and pressure offset is then performed during combustion to calculate the gross heat release during combustion. Moreover the relations between the emissions specifically HC and Carbon Monoxide (CO) are investigated. The model was validated with experimental data and promising results were achieved.

This work has focused on studying the in-cylinder pressure fluctuations caused by rapid HCCI combustion and determine what they consist of. Inhomogeneous autoignition sets up pressure waves traversing the combustion chamber. These pressure waves induce high gas velocities which causes increased heat transfer to the walls or in worst case engine damage. In order to study the pressure fluctuations a number of pressure transducers were mounted in the combustion chamber. The multi transducer arrangement was such that six transducers were placed circumferentially, one placed near the centre and one at a slight offset in the combustion chamber. The fitting of six transducers circumferentially was enabled by a spacer design and the two top mounted transducers were fitted in a modified cylinder head. During testing a disc shaped combustion chamber was used. The results of the tests conducted were that the in-cylinder pressure experienced during rapid HCCI-combustion is inhomogeneous.

Measurement of ion current signal from HCCI combustion was performed. The aim of the work was to investigate if a measurable ion current signal exists and if it is possible to obtain useful information about the combustion process. Furthermore, influence of mixture quality in terms of air/fuel ratio and EGR on the ion current signal was studied. A conventional spark plug was used as ionization sensor. A DC voltage (85 Volt) was applied across the electrode gap. By measuring the current through the gap the state of the gas can be probed. A comparison between measured pressure and ion current signal was performed, and dynamic models were estimated by using system identification methods. The study shows that an ion current signal can be obtained from HCCI combustion and that the signal level is very sensitive to the fuel/air equivalence ratio.

A known problem of the HCCI engine is its lack of direct control and its requirements of feedback control. Today there exists several different means to control an HCCI engine, such as dual fuels, variable valve actuation, inlet temperature and compression ratio. Independent of actuation method a sensor is needed. In this paper we perform closed-loop control based on two different sensors, pressure and ion current sensor. Results showing that they give similar control performance within their operating range are presented. Also a comparison of two methods of designing HCCI timing controller, manual tuning and model based design is presented. A PID controller is used as an example of a manually tuned controller. A Linear Quadratic Gaussian controller exemplifies model based controller design. The models used in the design were estimated using system identification methods. The system used in this paper performs control on cycle-to-cycle basis. This leads to fast and robust control.

Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) holds great promises for good fuel economy and low emissions of NOX and soot. The concept of HCCI is premixed combustion of a highly diluted mixture. The dilution limits the combustion temperature and thus prevents extensive NOX production. Load is controlled by altering the quality of the charge, rather than the quantity. No throttling together with a high compression ratio to facilitate auto ignition and lean mixtures results in good brake thermal efficiency. However, HCCI also presents challenges like how to control the combustion and how to achieve an acceptable load range. This work is focused on solutions to the latter problem. The high dilution required to avoid NOX production limits the mass of fuel relative to the mass of air or EGR. For a given size of the engine the only way to recover the loss of power due to dilution is to force more mass through the engine.

This study applies Closed-Loop Combustion Control (CLCC) using Fast Thermal Management (FTM) on a multi cylinder Variable Compression Ratio (VCR) engine together with load control, to achieve a favorable combustion phasing and load at all times. Step changes of set points for combustion phasing, Compression Ratio (CR), and load together with ramps of engine speed with either constant load, i.e. load control enabled, or constant fuel amount are investigated. Performances of the controllers are investigated by running the engine and comparing the result with CLCC using VCR, which was used in an earlier test. Commercial RON/MON 92/82 gasoline, which corresponds to US regular, is used in the transient tests. Limitations to the speed ramps are further examined and it is found that choice of fuel and its low temperature reaction properties has large impact on how the CLCC perform.

Interest in ion current sensing for HCCI combustion arises when a feedback signal from some sort of combustion sensor is needed in order to determine the state of the combustion process. A previous study has revealed that ion current sensors in the form of spark plugs can be used instead of expensive piezoelectric transducers for HCCI combustion sensing. Sufficiently high ion current levels were achieved when using relatively rich mixtures diluted with EGR. The study also shows that it is not the actual dilution per se but the actual air/fuel equivalence ratio which is important for the signal level. Conclusions were made that it is possible to obtain information on combustion timing and oscillating wave phenomena from the measurements. However, the study showed that the ion current is local compared to the pressure which is global in the combustion chamber.

This paper presents a strategy for closed-loop control of a multi cylinder turbo charged Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine. A dual fuel port injection system allows control of combustion timing and load individually for each cylinder. The two fuels used are isooctane and n-heptane, which provides a wide range of autoignition properties. Cylinder pressure sensors provide feedback and information regarding combustion. The angle of 50% heat release is calculated in real time for each cycle and used for timing feedback. Inlet air preheating is used at low loads to maintain a high combustion efficiency.

A 6-cylinder truck engine is modified for turbo charged dual fuel Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine operation. Two different fuels, ethanol and n-heptane, are used to control the ignition timing. The objective of this study is to demonstrate high load operation of a full size HCCI engine and to discuss some of the typical constraints associated with HCCI operation. This study proves the possibility to achieve high loads, up to 16 bar Brake Mean Effective Pressure (BMEP), and ultra low NOx emissions, using turbo charging and dual fuel. Although the system shows great potential, it is obvious that the lack of inlet air pre heating is a drawback at low loads, where combustion efficiency suffers. At high loads, the low exhaust temperature provides little energy for turbo charging, thus causing pump losses higher than for a comparable diesel engine. Design of turbo charger therefore, is a key issue in order to achieve high loads in combination with high efficiency.

This paper discusses the compression ratio influence on maximum load of a Natural Gas HCCI engine. A modified Volvo TD100 truck engine is controlled in a closed-loop fashion by enriching the Natural Gas mixture with Hydrogen. The first section of the paper illustrates and discusses the potential of using hydrogen enrichment of natural gas to control combustion timing. Cylinder pressure is used as the feedback and the 50 percent burn angle is the controlled parameter. Full-cycle simulation is compared to some of the experimental data and then used to enhance some of the experimental observations dealing with ignition timing, thermal boundary conditions, emissions and how they affect engine stability and performance. High load issues common to HCCI are discussed in light of the inherent performance and emissions tradeoff and the disappearance of feasible operating space at high engine loads.

Combustion phasing in a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine can be achieved by affecting the time history of pressure and temperature in the cylinder. The most common way has been to control the inlet air temperature and thereby the temperature in the cylinder at the end of the compression stroke. However this is a slow parameter to control, especially cycle to cycle. A multi cylinder engine using Variable Compression Ratio (VCR) for controlling the compression temperature and consequently the combustion phasing is used in the experiments. Operating range in terms of speed and load is investigated in naturally aspirated mode. Trade-off between inlet air temperature and Compression Ratio (CR) is evaluated. Primary reference fuels, isooctane / n-heptane, are used during the tests. High speed HCCI operation up to 5000 rpm is possible with a fuel corresponding to RON 60. The effect of octane number with and without exhaust cam phasing is also investigated.

This paper discusses the effects of cooled EGR on a turbo charged multi cylinder HCCI engine. A six cylinder, 12 liter, Scania D12 truck engine is modified for HCCI operation. It is fitted with port fuel injection of ethanol and n-heptane and cylinder pressure sensors for closed loop combustion control. The effects of EGR are studied in different operating regimes of the engine. During idle, low speed and no load, the focus is on the effects on combustion efficiency, emissions of unburned hydrocarbons and CO. At intermediate load, run without turbocharging to achieve a well defined experiment, combustion efficiency and emissions from incomplete combustion are still of interest. However the effect on NOx and the thermodynamic effect on thermal efficiency, from a different gas composition, are studied as well. At high load and boost pressure the main focus is NOx emissions and the ability to run high mean effective pressure without exceeding the physical constraints of the engine.

Ion current measurements can give information useful for controlling the combustion stability in a multi-cylinder engine. Operation near the dilution limit (air or EGR) can be achieved and it can be optimized individually for the cylinders, resulting in a system with better engine stability for highly diluted mixtures. This method will also compensate for engine wear, e.g. changes in volumetric efficiency and fuel injector characteristics. Especially in a port injected engine, changes in fuel injector characteristics can lead to increased emissions and deteriorated engine performance when operating with a closed-loop lambda control system. One problem using the ion-current signal to control engine stability near the lean limit is the weak signal resulting in low signal to noise ratio. Measurements presented in this paper were made on a turbocharged 9.6 liter six cylinder natural gas engine with port injection.

This study applies Closed-Loop Combustion Control (CLCC) using Variable Compression Ratio (VCR) and cylinder balancing using variable lambda to solve the problem. Step changes of set points for combustion phasing, Compression Ratio (CR), and load together with ramps of engine speed and inlet air temperature are investigated. Performances of the controllers are investigated by running the engine at either a constant amount of injected fuel corresponding to an approximate load of 1.5 or 2.5 bar BMEP and/or constant speed of 2000 rpm. Commercial RON 92 gasoline is used in the test. The CLCC is found to be fast and effective and has a potential of handling step changes in a matter of cycles, while the speed and temperature ramps need some more optimization of the CLCC. The CR controller is very fast and has a time constant corresponding to three engine cycles at 2000 rpm.

The aim of this paper is to compile the state of the art of engine control and develop scenarios for improvements in a number of applications of engine control where the pace of technology change is at its most marked. The first application is control of downsized engines with enhancement of combustion using direct injection, variable valve actuation and turbo charging. The second application is electrification of the powertrain with its impact on engine control. Various architectures are explored such as micro, mild, full hybrid and range extenders. The third application is exhaust gas after-treatment, with a focus on the trade-off between engine and after-treatment control. The fourth application is implementation of powertrain control systems, hardware, software, methods, and tools. The paper summarizes several examples where the performance depends on the availability of control systems for automotive applications.