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When increasing EGR from low levels to a level that corresponds to low temperature combustion, soot emissions initially increase due to lower soot oxidation before decreasing to almost zero due to very low soot formation. At the EGR level where soot emissions start to increase, the NOx emissions are low, but not sufficiently low to comply with future emission standards and at the EGR level where low temperature combustion occurs CO and HC emissions are too high. The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibilities for shifting the so-called soot bump (where soot levels are increased) to higher EGR levels, or to reduce the magnitude of the soot bump using very high injection pressures (up to 240 MPa) while reducing the NOx emissions using EGR. The possibility of reducing the CO and HC emissions at high EGR levels due to the increased mixing caused by higher injection pressure was also investigated and the flame was visualized using an endoscope at chosen EGR values.

Gasoline and gasoline-ethanol sprays from an outward-opening piezo-injector were studied in a constant volume/pressure chamber using high-speed imaging and phase doppler anemometry (PDA) under stratified cold start conditions corresponding to a vehicle ambient temperature of 243 K (−30°C/−22°F); in-cylinder air pressure of 5 bar, air temperature of 350 K (−30°C/−22°F) and fuel temperature of 243 K. The effects of varying in-cylinder pressure and temperature, fuel injection pressure and fuel temperature on the formation of gasoline, E75 and pure ethanol sprays were investigated. The results indicate that fuel composition affects spray behaviour, but less than expected. Furthermore, varying the temperature of the fuel or the air surrounding the spray also had minor effects. As expected, the fuel injection pressure was found to have the strongest influence on spray formation under stratified conditions.

Eight different cylinder pressure trace based knock detection methods are compared using two reference cycles of different time-frequency content, reflecting single blast and developing blast, and a test population of 300 knocking cycles. It is shown that the choice of the pass window used for the pressure data has no significant effect on the results of the different methods, except for the KI20. In contrast to other authors, no sudden step in the knock characteristics is expected; first, because the data investigated contain only knocking cycles, and second, because a smooth transition between normal combustion and knock is expected, according to recent knock theory. It is not only the correlation coefficient, but also the Kendall coefficient of concordance, that is used to investigate the differences between the knock classification methods.

When increasing EGR from low levels to levels corresponding to low temperature combustion, soot emissions first start to increase (due to reductions in soot oxidation), before decreasing to almost zero (due to very low rates of soot formation). At the EGR level where soot emissions start to increase, the NOx emissions are still low, but not low enough to comply with future emission standards. The purpose of this study was therefore to investigate the possibilities for moving the so-called “soot bump” (increase in soot) to higher EGR levels or reducing the magnitude of the soot bump. This involved an experimental investigation of parameters affecting the combustion and thus the engine-out emissions. The parameters investigated were: charge air pressure, injection pressure, EGR temperature and post injection (with different dwell times) for a wide range of EGR rates.

The spray formation and consequent atomization of an outward opening piezo-electric gasoline DI injector have been experimentally investigated in a constant pressure spray chamber. The sizes and velocities of the droplets and the resulting spray shape were evaluated, under different boundary conditions, using Planar Mie scattering and Planar Laser-induced Fluorescence (PLIF) in combination with Phase Doppler Anemometry (PDA) analyses and high-speed video photography. The use of piezo-electric actuation for gasoline DI injectors provides an additional means to control the atomization and spray shape that is not available with solenoid-driven injectors such as swirling and multi-hole type injectors. For instance, with piezo injectors up to four injections per cycle are possible, and the fuel flow rate can be controlled by adjusting needle lift. The captured high-speed video images show that a hollow-cone spray forms as the fuel exits the outward-opening nozzle.

Future demands for improvements in the fuel economy of gasoline passenger car engines will require the development and implementation of advanced combustion strategies, to replace, or combine with the conventional spark ignition strategy. One possible strategy is homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) achieved using negative valve overlap (NVO). However, several issues need to be addressed before this combustion strategy can be fully implemented in a production vehicle, one being to increase the upper load limit. One constraint at high loads is the combustion becoming too rapid, leading to excessive pressure-rise rates and large pressure fluctuations (ringing), causing noise. In this work, efforts were made to reduce these pressure fluctuations by using a late injection during the later part of the compression. A more appropriate acronym than HCCI for such combustion is SCCI (Stratified Charge Compression Ignition).

It has been previously shown that engine-out soot emissions can be reduced by using Fischer-Tropsch (FT) fuels, due to their lack of aromatics, compared to conventional Diesel fuels. In this investigation the engine-out emissions and fuel consumption parameters of an FT fuel derived from natural gas were compared to those of Swedish low sulfur diesel (MK1) when used in Low Temperature Combustion mode in a single cylinder heavy-duty diesel engine. The effects of varying Needle Opening Pressure (NOP), Charge Air Pressure (CAP) and Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) according to an experimental design on the measured variables were also assessed. CAP and EGR were found to be the most significant factors for the combustion and emission parameters of both fuels. Increases in CAP resulted in lower soot emissions due to enhanced charge mixing, however NOx emissions rose as CAP increased.

A single cylinder, naturally aspirated, four-stroke and camless (Otto) engine was operated in homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) mode with commercial gasoline. The valve timing could be adjusted during engine operation, which made it possible to optimize the HCCI engine operation for different speed and load points in the part-load regime of a 5-cylinder 2.4 liter engine. Several tests were made with differing combinations of speed and load conditions, while varying the valve timing and the inlet manifold air pressure. Starting with conventional SI combustion, the negative valve overlap was increased until HCCI combustion was obtained. Then the influences of the equivalence ratio and the exhaust valve opening were investigated. With the engine operating on HCCI combustion, unthrottled and without preheating, the exhaust valve opening, the exhaust valve closing and the intake valve closing were optimized next.

SI Engine knock is caused by autoignition in the unburnt part of the mixture (end-gas) ahead of the propagating flame. Autoignition of the end-gas occurs when the temperature and pressure exceeds a critical limit when comparatively slow reactions-releasing moderate amounts of heat-transform into ignition and rapid heat release. In this paper the difference in the heat released in the end-gas-by low temperature chemistry-between lean, rich, stochiometric, and stoichiometric mixtures diluted with cooled EGR was examined by measuring the temperature in the end-gas with Dual Broadband Rotational CARS. The measured temperature history was compared with an isentropic temperature calculated from the cylinder pressure trace. The experimentally obtained values for knock onset were compared with results from a two-zone thermodynamic model including detailed chemistry modeling of the end-gas reactions.

Projected stringent emissions legislation will make tough demands on engine development. For diesel engines, in which combustion and emissions formation are governed by the spray formation and mixing processes, fuel injection plays a major role in the future development of cleaner engines. It is therefore important to study the fundamental features of the fuel injection process. In an engine the fuel is injected at high pressure into a pressurized and hot environment of air, which causes droplet formation and fuel evaporation. The injected fuel then forms a gaseous phase surrounding the liquid phase. The amount of evaporated fuel in relation to the total amount of injected fuel is of importance for engine performance, i.e. ignition delay and mixing rate. In this paper, the fraction of evaporated fuel was determined for sprays, using different orifice diameters ranging from 0.100 mm up to 0.227 mm, with the aid of a high-pressure spray chamber.

The effects of injection pressure and duration on exhaust gas emissions, sooting flame temperature, and soot distribution for a heavy–duty single cylinder DI diesel engine were investigated experimentally. The experimental analysis included use of two–color pyrometry as well as “conventional” measuring techniques. Optical access into the engine was obtained through an endoscope mounted in the cylinder head. The sooting flame temperature and soot distribution were evaluated from the flame images using the AVL VisioScope™ system. The results show that the NOx/soot trade–off curves could be improved by increasing injection pressure. An additional reduction could also be obtained if, for the same level of injection pressure, the injection duration was prolonged.

Laws concerning to emissions from heavy duty (HD) internal combustion engines are becoming increasingly stringent. New engine technologies are therefore needed to satisfy these new legal requirements and reduce fossil fuel dependency. One way to achieve both objectives is to partially replace fossil fuels with alternatives that are more sustainable with respect to emissions of greenhouse gas, particulates and NOx. As a first step towards the development of a direct injected dual fuel engine using diesel fuel and renewable alcohols such as methanol or ethanol, we have studied ethanol (E100) sprays generated with a standard high pressure diesel fuel injection system in a high pressure/temperature spray chamber with optical access. The experiments were performed at a gas density of ∼27kg/m3 at ∼550 °C and ∼60 bar, representing typical operating conditions for a HD engine at low loads.

The possibilities for extending the range of engine loads in which soot and NOx emissions can be minimised by using low temperature combustion in conjunction with high levels of EGR was investigated in a series of experiments with a single cylinder research engine. The results show that very low levels of both soot and NOx emissions can be achieved at engine loads up to 50 % by reducing the compression ratio to 14 and applying high levels of EGR (up to approximately 60 %). Unfortunately, the low temperature combustion is accompanied by increases in fuel consumption and emissions of both HC and CO. However, these drawbacks can be reduced by advancing the injection timing. The research engine was a 2 litre direct injected (DI), supercharged, heavy duty, single cylinder diesel engine with a geometry based on Volvo's 12 litre engine, and the amount of EGR was increased by adjusting the exhaust back pressure while keeping the charge air pressure constant.

This paper reports an investigation of the association between flame kernel movement and cyclic variability and assesses the relative importance of this phenomenon, with all other parameters that show a cyclic variability held constant. The flame is assumed to be subjected to a “random walk” by the fluctuating velocity component of the flow field as long as it is of the order of or smaller than the integral scale. However, the mean velocity also imposes prefered convection directions on the flame kernel motion. Two-point LDA (Laser Doppler Anemometry) measurements of mean velocity, turbulence intensity and integral length scale are used as input data to the simulations. A quasi-dimensional computer code with a moving flame center position is used to simulate the influence of these two components on the performance of an S I engine with a tumble-based combustion system.

This paper presents an investigation of the effects of varying needle opening pressure (NOP) (375 to 1750 bar), engine speed (1000 rpm to 1800 rpm), and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) (0% to 20 %) on the combustion process, exhaust emissions, and fuel consumption at low (25 %) and medium (50 %) loads in a single cylinder heavy duty DI diesel research engine with a displacement of 2.02 l. The engine was equipped with an advanced two-actuator E3 Electronic Unit Injector (EUI) from Delphi Diesel, with a maximum injection pressure of 2000 bar. In previous versions of the EUI system, the peak injection pressure was a function of the injection duration, cam lift, and cam rate. The advanced EUI system allows electronic control of the needle opening and closing. This facilitates the generation of high injection pressures, independently of load and speed.

The objective of the study presented here was to examine the possibility of simultaneously reducing soot and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from a heavy duty diesel engine, using very high levels of EGR (exhaust gas recirculation). The investigation was carried out using a 2 litre DI single cylinder diesel engine. Two different EGR strategies were examined. One entailed maintaining a constant charge air pressure with a varied exhaust back pressure in order to change the amount of EGR. In the other strategy a constant pressure difference was maintained over the engine, resulting in different equivalence ratios at similar EGR levels. EGR levels of 60 % or more significantly reduced both soot and NOx emissions at 25 % engine load with constant charge air pressure and increasing exhaust back pressure. However, combustion under these conditions was incomplete, resulting in high emissions of carbon monoxide (CO), unburned hydrocarbons (HC) and high fuel consumption.

Spray characteristics of fossil Diesel fuel, hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) and two oxygenated fuel blends were studied to elucidate the combustion process. The fuels were studied in an optically accessible high-pressure/high-temperature chamber under non-combusting (623 K, 4.69 MPa) and combusting (823 K, 6.04 MPa) conditions. The fuel blends contained the long-chain alcohol 2-ethylhexanol (EH), HVO and either 20 vol.% Diesel or 7 vol.% rapeseed methyl ester (RME) and were designed to have a Diesel-like cetane number (CN). Injection pressures were set to 120 MPa and 180 MPa and the gas density was held constant at 26 kg/m3. Under non-combusting conditions, shadow imaging revealed the penetration length of the liquid and vapor phase of the spray. Under combusting conditions, the lift-off length and soot volume fraction were measured by simultaneously recording time-resolved two-dimensional laser extinction, flame luminosity and OH* chemiluminescence images.