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Pre-chamber combustion (PCC) has re-emerged in recent last years as a potential solution to help to decarbonize the transport sector with its improved engine efficiency as well as providing lower emissions. Research into the combustion process inside the pre-chamber is still a challenge due to the high pressure and temperatures, the geometrical restrictions, and the short combustion durations. Some fundamental studies in constant volume combustion chambers (CVCC) at low and medium working pressures have shown the complexity of the process and the influence of high pressures on the turbulence levels. In this study, the pre-chamber combustion process was investigated by combustion visualization in an optically-accessible pre-chamber under engine relevant conditions and linked with the jet emergence inside the main chamber. The pre-chamber geometry has a narrow-throat. The total nozzle area is distributed in two six-hole rows of nozzle holes.

The high-pressure isobaric combustion has been proposed as the most suitable combustion mode for the double compre4ssion expansion engine (DCEE) concept. Previous experimental and simulation studies have demonstrated an improved efficiency compared to the conventional diesel combustion (CDC) engine. In the current study, isobaric combustion was achieved using a single injector with multiple injections. Since this concept involves complex phenomena such as spray to spray interactions, the computational models were extensively validated against the optical engine experiment data, to ensure high-fidelity simulations. The considered optical diagnostic techniques are Mie-scattering, fuel tracer planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF), and natural flame luminosity imaging. Overall, a good agreement between the numerical and experimental results was obtained.

Pre-chamber combustion (PCC) is a promising engine combustion concept capable of extending the lean limit at part load. The engine experiments in the literature showed that the PCC could achieve higher engine thermal efficiency and much lower NOx emission than the spark-ignition engine. Improved understanding of the detailed flow and combustion physics of PCC is important for optimizing the PCC combustion. In this study, we investigated the gas exchange and flame jet from a narrow throat pre-chamber (PC) by only fueling the PC with methane in an optical engine. Simultaneous negative acetone planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) imaging and OH* chemiluminescence imaging were applied to visualize the PC jet and flame jet from the PC, respectively. Results indicate a delay of the PC gas exchange relative to the built-up of the pressure difference (△ P) between PC and the main chamber (MC). This should be due to the gas inertia inside the PC and the resistance of the PC nozzle.

Pre-chamber combustion (PCC) allows an extension on the lean limit of an internal combustion engine (ICE). This combustion mode provides lower NOx emissions and shorter combustion durations that lead to a higher indicated efficiency. In the present work, a narrow throat pre-chamber was tested, which has a unique nozzle area distribution in two rows of six nozzle holes each. Tests were carried out in a modified heavy-duty engine for optical visualization. Methane was used as fuel for both the pre-chamber and the main chamber. Seven operating points were tested, including passive pre-chamber mode as a limit condition, to study the effect of pre- and main-chamber fuel addition on the pre-chamber jets and the main chamber combustion via chemiluminescence imaging. A typical cycle of one of the tested conditions is explained through the captured images. Observations of the typical cycle reveal a predominant presence of only six jets (from the lower row), with well-defined jet structures.

Pre-chamber combustion (PCC) enables leaner air-fuel ratio operation by improving its ignitability and extending flammability limit, and consequently, offers better thermal efficiency than conventional spark ignition operation. The geometry and fuel concentration of the pre-chamber (PC) is one of the major parameters that affect overall performance. To understand the dynamics of the PCC in practical engine conditions, this study focused on (i) correlation of the events in the main chamber (MC) with the measured in-cylinder pressure traces and, (ii) the effect of fuel concentration on the MC combustion characteristics using laser diagnostics. We performed simultaneous acetone planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) from the side, and OH* chemiluminescence imaging from the bottom in a heavy-duty optical engine. Two different PC Fueling Ratios (PCFR, the ratio of PC fuel to the total fuel), 7%, and 13%, were investigated.

Isobaric combustion has been proven a promising strategy for high efficiency as well as low nitrogen oxides emissions, particularly in heavy-duty Diesel engines. Previous single-cylinder research engine experiments have, however, shown high soot levels when operating isobaric combustion. The combustion itself and the emissions formation with this combustion mode are not well understood due to the complexity of multiple injections strategy. Therefore, experiments with an equivalent heavy-duty Diesel optical engine were performed in this study. Three different cases were compared, an isochoric heat release case and two isobaric heat release cases. One of the isobaric cases was boosted to reach the maximum in-cylinder pressure of the isochoric one. The second isobaric case kept the same boost levels as the isochoric case. Results showed that in the isobaric cases, liquid fuel was injected into burning gases. This resulted in shorter ignition delays and thus a poor mixing level.

High-pressure isobaric combustion used in the double compression expansion engine (DCEE) concept was proposed to obtain higher engine brake thermal efficiency than the conventional diesel engine. Experiments on the metal engines showed that four consecutive injections delivered by a single injector can achieve isobaric combustion. Improved understanding of the detailed fuel-air mixing with multiple consecutive injections is needed to optimize the isobaric combustion and reduce engine emissions. In this study, we explored the fuel spray characteristics of the four-consecutive-injections strategy using high-speed imaging with background illumination and fuel-tracer planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) imaging in a heavy-duty optical engine under non-reactive conditions. Toluene of 2% by volume was added to the n-heptane and served as the tracer. The fourth harmonic of a 10 Hz Nd:YAG laser was applied for the excitation of toluene.

Partially premixed combustion (PPC) is an operating mode that lies between the conventional compression ignition (CI) mode and homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) mode. The combustion in this mixed mode is complex as it is neither diffusion-controlled (CI mode) nor governed solely by chemical kinetics (HCCI mode). In this study, CFD simulations were performed to evaluate flame index, which distinguishes between zones having a premixed flame and non-premixed flame. Experiments performed in the optical engine supplied data to validate the model. In order to realize PPC, the start of injection (SOI) was fixed at −40 CAD (aTDC) so that a required ignition delay is created to premix air/fuel mixture. The reference operating point was selected to be with 3 bar IMEP and 1200 rpm. Naphtha with a RON of 77 and its corresponding PRF surrogate were tested. The simulations captured the general trends observed in the experiments well.

Homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) experiments were run with the aid of a Cooperative fuel research (CFR) engine, operating at 600 rpm and under very lean conditions (ϕ = 0.3). This study seeks to examine the combustion behavior of different fuels by finding the pressure-temperature (p-t) conditions that instigate the start of combustion, and the transition from low temperature combustion to principal combustion. The pressure-temperature diagram emphasizes p-t conditions according to their traces through the compression stroke. In each fuel tested, p-t traces were examined by a sweep of the intake temperature; and for each experimental point, combustion phasing was maintained at top dead center by adjusting the compression ratio of the engine. In addition to the p-t diagram, results were analyzed using a compression ratio-intake temperature diagram, which showed the compression ratio required with respect to intake temperature.

The present study experimentally examines the low-temperature autoignition area of isooctane within the in-cylinder pressure-in-cylinder temperature map. Experiments were run with the help of a Cooperative Fuel Research (CFR) engine. The boundaries of this engine were extended so that experiments could be performed outside the domain delimited by research octane number (RON) and motor octane number (MON) traces. Since homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) combustion is governed by kinetics, the rotation speed for all the experiments was set at 600 rpm to allow time for low-temperature heat release (LTHR). All the other parameters (intake pressure, intake temperature, compression ratio, and equivalence ratio) were scanned, such as the occurrence of isooctane combustion. The principal results showed that LTHR for isooctane occurs effortlessly under high intake pressure (1.3 bar) and low intake temperature (25 °C).

In-cylinder visualization, combustion stratification, and engine-out particulate matter (PM) emissions were investigated in an optical engine fueled with Haltermann straight-run naphtha fuel and corresponding surrogate fuel. The combustion mode was transited from homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) to conventional compression ignition (CI) via partially premixed combustion (PPC). Single injection strategy with the change of start of injection (SOI) from early to late injections was employed. The high-speed color camera was used to capture the in-cylinder combustion images. The combustion stratification was analyzed based on the natural luminosity of the combustion images. The regulated emission of unburned hydrocarbon (UHC), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) were measured to evaluate the combustion efficiency together with the in-cylinder rate of heat release.

Full cycle simulations of KAUST optical diesel engine were conducted in order to provide insights into the details of fuel spray, mixing, and combustion characteristics at different start of injection (SOI) conditions. Although optical diagnostics provide valuable information, the high fidelity simulations with matched parametric conditions improve fundamental understanding of relevant physical and chemical processes by accessing additional observables such as the local mixture distribution, intermediate species concentrations, and detailed chemical reaction rates. Commercial software, CONVERGE™, was used as the main simulation tool, with the Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) turbulence model and the multi-zone (SAGE) combustion model to compute the chemical reaction terms. SOI is varied from late compression ignition (CI) to early partially premixed combustion (PPC) conditions.

This study demonstrates the combustion stratification from conventional compression ignition (CI) combustion to partially premixed combustion (PPC). Experiments are performed in an optical CI engine at a speed of 1200 rpm for diesel and naphtha (RON = 46). The motored pressure at TDC is maintained at 35 bar and fuelMEP is kept constant at 5.1 bar to account for the difference in fuel properties between naphtha and diesel. Single injection strategy is employed and the fuel is injected at a pressure of 800 bar. Photron FASTCAM SA4 that captures in-cylinder combustion at the rate of 10000 frames per second is employed. The captured high speed video is processed to study the combustion homogeneity based on an algorithm reported in previous studies. Starting from late fuel injection timings, combustion stratification is investigated by advancing the fuel injection timings. For late start of injection (SOI), a direct link between SOI and combustion phasing is noticed.

Spray and combustion of gasoline and diesel were visualized under different ambient conditions in terms of pressure, temperature and density in a constant volume chamber. Three different ambient conditions were selected to simulate the three combustion regimes of homogeneous charge compression ignition, premixed charge compression ignition and conventional combustion. Ambient density was varied from 3.74 to 23.39 kg/m3. Ambient temperature at the spray injection were controlled to the range from 474 to 925 K. Intake oxygen concentration was also modulated from 15 % to 21 % in order to investigate the effects of intake oxygen concentrations on combustion characteristics. The injection pressure of gasoline and diesel were modulated from 50 to 150 MPa to analyze the effect of injection pressure on the spray development and combustion characteristics. Liquid penetration length and vapor penetration length were measured based on the methods of Mie-scattering and Schileren, respectively.

The liquid phase penetration of diesel sprays under reacting conditions is measured in an optical heavy-duty Direct Injection (DI) diesel engine. Hot gas reservoirs along the diffusion flames have previously been shown to affect the liftoff length on multi hole nozzles. The aim of this study is to see if they also affect the liquid length. The inter-jet spacing is varied together with the Top Dead Center density and the inlet temperature. To avoid unwanted interferences from the natural flame luminosity the illumination wavelength is blue shifted from the black body radiation spectrum and set to 448 nm. Filtered Mie scattered light from the fuel droplets is recorded with a high speed camera. The liquid fuel penetration is evaluated from the start of injection to the quasi steady phase of the jets. Knowledge of jet-jet interaction effects is of interest for transferring fundamental understanding from combustion vessels to practical engine applications.

Mixing in wall-jets was investigated in an optical heavy-duty diesel engine with several injector configurations and injection pressures. Laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) was employed in non-reacting conditions in order to quantitatively measure local equivalence ratios in colliding wall-jets. A novel laser diagnostic technique, Structured Laser Illumination Planar Imaging (SLIPI), was successfully implemented in an optical engine and permits to differentiate LIF signal from multiply scattered light. It was used to quantitatively measure local equivalence ratio in colliding wall-jets under non-reacting conditions. Mixing phenomena in wall-jets were analyzed by comparing the equivalence ratio in the free part of the jet with that in the recirculation zone where two wall-jets collide. These results were then compared to φ predictions for free-jets. It was found that under the conditions tested, increased injection pressure did not increase mixing in the wall-jets.

This article deals with study of ionization current sensing technique's signal characteristics while operating with pre-chamber spark plug to achieve plasma jet ignition in a 6 cylinder 9 liter turbo-charged natural gas engine under EGR and excess air dilution. Unlike the signal with conventional spark plug which can be divided into distinct chemical and thermal ionization peaks, the signal with pre-chamber spark plug shows a much larger first peak and a negligible second peak thereafter. Many studies in past have found the time of second peak coinciding with the time of maximum cylinder pressure and this correlation has been used as an input to combustion control systems but the absence of second peak makes application of this concept difficult with pre-chamber spark plug.

Optical engines of Bowditch design may suffer from distortion of the in-cylinder volume trace due to mechanical deformation from inertial, pressure and thermal forces. Errors in heat release calculation associated with such deformation were investigated in detail. The deformations were quantified by measuring the squish height during operation using high speed video. Deformations of all-metal engines were also estimated for comparison. The volume change caused by deformations did not change the calculated load significantly but caused errors in the heat release calculations both for optical and all metal engines. The errors at a given operating condition are smaller for all-metal engines but the importance is not necessarily smaller, since these engines normally are operated at higher loads. The errors can be eliminated by a corrected in-cylinder volume equation and a subtraction of heat release from a motored case.

This study investigates mode switching from spark ignited operation with early intake valve closing to residual gas enhanced HCCI using negative valve overlap on a port-fuel injected light-duty diesel engine. A mode switch is demonstrated at 3.5 bar IMEPnet and 1500 rpm. Valve timings and fuel amount have to be selected carefully prior to the mode switch. During mode transition, IMEPnet deviates by up to 0.5 bar from the set point. The time required to return to the set point as well as the transient behavior of the engine load varies depending on which control structure that is used. Both a model-based controller and a PI control approach were implemented and evaluated in experiments. The controllers were active in HCCI mode. The model-based controller achieved a smoother transition and while using it, the transition could be accomplished within three engine cycles.

Laser-Induced Incandescence (LII) has traditionally been considered a straightforward and reliable optical diagnostic technique for in-cylinder soot measurements. As a result, it is nowadays even possible to buy turn-key LII measurement systems. During recent years, however, attention has been drawn to a number of unresolved challenges with LII. Many of these are relevant mostly for particle sizing using time-resolved LII, but also two-dimensional soot volume fraction measurements are affected, especially in regions with high soot concentrations typically found in combustion engines. In this work the focus is on the specific challenges involved in performing high-repetition rate measurements with LII in diesel engines. All the mentioned issues might not be possible to overcome but they should nevertheless be known and their potential impact should be considered.