Search Results

For further increase in thermal efficiency of heavy-duty diesel engines, flexible regulation of the heat release rate (HRR) profile combined with higher compression ratio could have more rooms to improve indicated thermal efficiency by overcoming various drawbacks relevant to higher compression ratio. A new ideal HRR profile, which starts as a kind of delta shape to fulfil the isobaric cycle from top-dead-center (TDC) and is followed by the significant increase in HRR to reach the maximum cylinder pressure in the retarded timing, was proposed. We call it as ‘High-heels’ HRR profile from its two-step-increase delta shape. To confirm the potential of the ideal HRR profile by utilizing a single- cylinder heavy-duty diesel engine, a variable fuel injection rate equipment, novel combustion chamber designs, and an offset orifices nozzle were investigated as the technologies for modifying HRR profile.

The purpose of this study is to elucidate flame propagation behavior of homogeneous propane-air mixture under application of non-uniform electric field. A needle-shaped electrode was attached to the ceiling and a plate electrode was set at bottom of combustion chamber, so that the electric field was applied in the direction of the chamber's vertical axis. A homogeneous propane-air mixture was supplied at equivalence ratio of 1.0 and was ignited by leaser induced breakdown under atmospheric pressure and room temperature. It was found that the flame front and plate electrode were repelled each other and a thin air layer was formed between the flame and plate electrode when a relatively low positive DC non-uniform electric field was applied to the needle-shaped electrode. It might be thought that the induced current was generated in the flame front, so that the flame front and plate electrode repelled each other.

Spray characteristics such as spray shape and spatial distribution of droplet diameter remarkably influences on output and exhaust emissions of direct injection gasoline engines. Especially, spatial distribution of the droplet diameter after impingement of a spray against a piston cavity is one of the most important factors for output and exhaust emissions, but is not revealed sufficiently because of the difficulties of measurement. In this paper, a new laser holography method that can obtain spatial distribution of droplet diameter over the spray in a short time was developed. And with this method, differences of spatial distribution of Sauter mean diameter (SMD) of droplets between before and after impingement on a flat wall in a high-pressure chamber were revealed using a prototype injector. Effects of impinging angle and distance against the wall on spatial SMD distribution were also investigated.