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Detailed exhaust speciation measurements were made on an HCCI engine fueled with iso-octane over a range of fueling rates, and over a range of fuel-stratification levels. Fully premixed fueling was used for the fueling sweep. This sweep extended from a fuel/air equivalence ratio (ϕ) of 0.28, which is sufficiently high to achieve a combustion efficiency of 96%, down to a below-idle fueling rate of ϕ = 0.08, with a combustion efficiency of only 55%. The stratification sweep was conducted at an idle fueling rate, using an 8-hole GDI injector to vary stratification from well-mixed conditions for an early start of injection (SOI) (40°CA) to highly stratified conditions for an SOI well up the compression stroke (325°CA, 35°bTDC-compression). The engine speed was 1200 rpm. At each operating condition, exhaust samples were collected and analyzed by GC-FID for the C1 and C2 hydrocarbon (HC) species and by GC-MS for all other species except formaldehyde and acetaldehyde.

This paper investigates flow and combustion in a full-cycle simulation of a four-stroke, three-valve HCCI engine by visualizing the flow with pathlines. Pathlines trace massless particles in a transient flow field. In addition to visualization, pathlines are used here to trace the history, or evolution, of flow fields and species. In this study evolution is followed from the intake port through combustion. Pathline analysis follows packets of intake charge in time and space from induction through combustion. The local scalar fields traversed by the individual packets in terms of velocity magnitude, turbulence, species concentration and temperatures are extracted from the simulation results. The results show how the intake event establishes local chemical and thermal environments in-cylinder and how the species respond (chemically react) to the local field.

Previous studies have shown that fuels with higher laminar flame speed also have increased tolerance to EGR dilution. In this work, the effects of fuel laminar flame speed on both lean and EGR dilute spark ignition combustion stability were examined. Fuels blends of pure components (iso-octane, n-heptane, toluene, ethanol, and methanol) were derived at two levels of laminar flame speed. Each fuel blend was tested in a single-cylinder spark-ignition engine under both lean-out and EGR dilution sweeps until the coefficient of variance of indicated mean effective pressure increased above thresholds of 3% and 5%. The relative importance of fuel laminar flame speed to changes to engine design parameters (spark ignition energy, tumble ratio, and port vs. direct injection) was also assessed.

Multi-zone CFD simulations with detailed kinetics were used to model iso-octane HCCI experiments performed on a single-cylinder research engine. The modeling goals were to validate the method (multi-zone combustion modeling) and the reaction mechanism (LLNL 857 species iso-octane) by comparing model results to detailed exhaust speciation data, which was obtained with gas chromatography. The model is compared to experiments run at 1200 RPM and 1.35 bar boost pressure over an equivalence ratio range from 0.08 to 0.28. Fuel was introduced far upstream to ensure fuel and air homogeneity prior to entering the 13.8:1 compression ratio, shallow-bowl combustion chamber of this 4-stroke engine. The CFD grid incorporated a very detailed representation of the crevices, including the top-land ring crevice and head-gasket crevice. The ring crevice is resolved all the way into the ring pocket volume. The detailed grid was required to capture regions where emission species are formed and retained.

Many studies suggest that lean-NOx SCR proceeds via oxidation of NO to NO2 by oxygen, followed by the reaction of the NO2 with hydrocarbons. On catalysts that are not very effective in catalyzing the equilibration of NO+O2 and NO2, the rate of N2 formation is substantially higher when the input NOx is NO2 instead of NO. The apparent bifunctional mechanism in the SCR of NOx has prompted the use of mechanically mixed catalyst components, in which one component is used to accelerate the oxidation of NO to NO2, and another component catalyzes the reaction between NO2 and the hydrocarbon. Catalysts that previously were regarded as inactive for NOx reduction could therefore become efficient when mixed with an oxidation catalyst. Preconverting NO to NO2 opens the opportunity for a wider range of SCR catalysts and perhaps improves the durability of these catalysts. This paper describes the use of a non-thermal plasma as an efficient means for selective partial oxidation of NO to NO2.

We have converted a Caterpillar 3406 natural gas spark ignited engine to HCCI mode and used it as a test bed for demonstrating advanced control methodologies. Converting the engine required modification of most engine systems: piston geometry, starting, fueling, boosting, and (most importantly) controls. We implemented a thermal management system consisting of a recuperator that transfers heat from exhaust to intake gases and a dual intake manifold that permits precise cylinder-by-cylinder ignition control. Advanced control methodologies are used for (1) minimizing cylinder-to-cylinder combustion timing differences caused by small variations in temperature or compression ratio; (2) finding the combustion timing that minimizes fuel consumption; and (3) tuning the controller parameters to improve transient response.

We describe a CHEMKIN-based multi-zone model that simulates the expected combustion variations in a single-cylinder engine fueled with iso-octane as the engine transitions from spark-ignited (SI) combustion to homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) combustion. The model includes a 63-species reaction mechanism and mass and energy balances for the cylinder and the exhaust flow. For this study we assumed that the SI-to-HCCI transition is implemented by means of increasing the internal exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) at constant engine speed. This transition scenario is consistent with that implemented in previously reported experimental measurements on an experimental engine equipped with variable valve actuation. We find that the model captures many of the important experimental trends, including stable SI combustion at low EGR (~0.10), a transition to highly unstable combustion at intermediate EGR, and finally stable HCCI combustion at very high EGR (~0.75).

Experimental tests were conducted on a Cummins B5.9 direct-injected diesel engine fueled with biodiesel blends. 20% and 50% blend levels were tested, as was 100% (neat) biodiesel. Emissions of particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx), hydrocarbons (HC) and CO were measured under steady-state operating conditions. The effect of biodiesel on total PM emissions was mixed; however, the contribution of the volatile organic fraction to total PM was greater for higher biodiesel blend levels. When only non-volatile PM mass was considered, reductions were observed for the biodiesel blends as well as for neat biodiesel. The biodiesel test fuels increased NOx, while HC and CO emissions were reduced. PM collected on quartz filters during the experimental runs were analyzed for carbon-14 content using accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS).

The influence of the addition of oxygenated hydrocarbons to diesel fuels has been studied, using a detailed chemical kinetic model. Resulting changes in ignition and soot precursor production have been examined. N-heptane was used as a representative diesel fuel, and methanol, ethanol, dimethyl ether, dimethoxymethane and methyl butanoate were used as oxygenated fuel additives. It was found that addition of oxygenated hydrocarbons reduced the production of soot precursors. When the overall oxygen content in the fuel reached approximately 30-40 % by mass, production of soot precursors fell effectively to zero, in agreement with experimental studies. The kinetic factors responsible for these observations are discussed.

We have developed a methodology for predicting combustion and emissions in a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) Engine. This methodology combines a detailed fluid mechanics code with a detailed chemical kinetics code. Instead of directly linking the two codes, which would require an extremely long computational time, the methodology consists of first running the fluid mechanics code to obtain temperature profiles as a function of time. These temperature profiles are then used as input to a multi-zone chemical kinetics code. The advantage of this procedure is that a small number of zones (10) is enough to obtain accurate results. This procedure achieves the benefits of linking the fluid mechanics and the chemical kinetics codes with a great reduction in the computational effort, to a level that can be handled with current computers.

Homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) is a new combustion technology that may develop as an alternative to diesel engines with high efficiency and low NOx and particulate matter emissions. This paper describes the HCCI research activities being currently pursued at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and at the University of California Berkeley. Current activities include analysis as well as experimental work. On analysis, we have developed two powerful tools: a single zone model and a multi-zone model. The single zone model has proven very successful in predicting start of combustion and providing reasonable estimates for peak cylinder pressure, indicated efficiency and NOx emissions. This model is being applied to develop detailed engine performance maps and control strategies, and to analyze the problem of engine startability. The multi-zone model is capable of very accurate predictions of the combustion process, including HC and CO emissions.

We present the effect of EGR, at a set fuel flow rate and intake temperature, on the operating parameters of timing of combustion, duration of combustion, power output, thermal efficiency, and NOx emission; which is remarkably low. We find that addition of EGR at constant inlet temperature and constant fuel flow rate has little effect on HCCI parameter of start of combustion (SOC). However, burn duration is highly dependent on the amount of EGR inducted. The experimental setup at UC Berkeley uses a 1.9-liter 4-cylinder diesel engine with a compression ratio of 18.8:1 (offered on a 1995 VW Passat TDI). The engine was converted to run in HCCI mode by addition of an 18kW air pre-heater installed in the intake system. Pressure traces were obtained using four water-cooled quartz pressure transducers, which replaced the Diesel fuel injectors. Gaseous fuel (propane or butane) flowed steadily into the intake manifold.

This research investigates a control system for HCCI engines, where equivalence ratio, fraction of EGR and intake pressure are adjusted as needed to obtain satisfactory combustion. HCCI engine operation is analyzed with a detailed chemical kinetics code, HCT (Hydrodynamics, Chemistry and Transport), that has been extensively modified for application to engines. HCT is linked to an optimizer that determines the operating conditions that result in maximum brake thermal efficiency, while meeting the peak cylinder pressure restriction. The results show the values of the operating conditions that yield optimum efficiency as a function of torque and rpm. The engine has high NOx emissions for high power operation, so the possibility of switching to stoichiometric operation for high torque conditions is considered. Stoichiometric operation would allow the use of a three-way catalyst to reduce NOx emissions to acceptable levels.

This paper describes the Homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) research activities being currently pursued at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and at the University of California Berkeley. Current activities include analysis as well as experimental work. HCCI is an old combustion technology that may now be developed with expectations of high efficiency, low NOx, and low particulate matter emissions; in short, an alternative to diesel engines. On analysis, we have developed two powerful tools: a single zone model and a multi-zone model. The single zone model has proven very successful in predicting start of combustion and providing reasonable estimates for peak cylinder pressure, indicated efficiency and NOX emissions. This model is being applied to develop detailed engine performance maps and control strategies, and to analyze the problem of engine startability.

This research work has focused on measuring the effect of fuel/air mixing on performance and emissions for a homogeneous charge compression ignition engine running on propane. A laser instrument with a high-velocity extractive probe was used to obtain time-resolved measurements of the fuel concentration both at the intake manifold and from the cylinder for different levels of fuel-air mixing. Cylinder pressure and emissions measurements have been performed at these mixing levels. From the cylinder pressure measurements, the IMEP and peak cylinder pressure were found. The fuel-air mixing level was changed by adding the fuel into the intake system at different distances from the intake valve (40 cm and 120 cm away). It was found that at the intake manifold, the fuel and air were better mixed for the 120 cm fuel addition location than for the 40 cm location.

A summary is presented of experimental results obtained from a Cummins B5.9 175 hp, direct-injected diesel engine fueled with oxygenated diesel blends. The oxygenates tested were dimethoxy methane (DMM), diethyl ether, a blend of monoglyme and diglyme, and ethanol. The experimental results show that particulate matter (PM) reduction is controlled largely by the oxygen content of the blend fuel. For the fuels tested, the effect of chemical structure was observed to be small. Isotopic tracer tests with ethanol blends reveal that carbon from ethanol does contribute to soot formation, but is about 50% less likely to form soot when compared to carbon from the diesel portion of the fuel. Numerical modeling was carried out to investigate the effect of oxygenate addition on soot formation. This effort was conducted using a chemical kinetic mechanism incorporating n-heptane, DMM and ethanol chemistry, along with reactions describing soot formation.

Many studies have shown that the addition of oxygen-bearing compounds to diesel fuel can significantly reduce particulate emissions. To assist in the evaluation of the environmental performance of diesel-fuel oxygenates, we have implemented a suite of diagnostic models for simulating the transport of compounds released to air, water, and soils/groundwater as well as regional landscapes. As a means of studying the comparative performance of DBM and TGME, we conducted a series of simulations for selected environmental media. Benzene and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) were also addressed because they represent benchmark fuel-related compounds that have been the subject of extensive environmental measurements and modeling. The simulations showed that DBM and TGME are less mobile than MTBE in soil because of reduced vapor-phase transport and increased retention on soil particles.

We have developed a methodology for predicting combustion and emissions in a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) Engine. The methodology judiciously uses a fluid mechanics code followed by a chemical kinetics code to achieve great reduction in the computational requirements; to a level that can be handled with current computers. In previous papers, our sequential, multi-zone methodology has been applied to HCCI combustion of short-chain hydrocarbons (natural gas and propane). Applying the same procedure to long-chain hydrocarbons (iso-octane) results in unacceptably long computational time. In this paper, we show how the computational time can be made acceptable by developing a segregated solver. This reduces the run time of a ten-zone problem by an order of magnitude and thus makes it much more practical to make combustion studies of long-chain hydrocarbons.

This paper shows how a computer can systematically remove non-essential chemical reactions from a large chemical kinetic mechanism. The computer removes the reactions based upon a single solution using a detailed mechanism. The resulting reduced chemical mechanism produces similar numerical predictions significantly faster than predictions that use the detailed mechanism. Specifically, a reduced chemical kinetics mechanism for iso-octane has been derived from a detailed mechanism by eliminating unimportant reaction steps and species. The reduced mechanism has been developed for the specific purpose of fast and accurate prediction of ignition timing in an HCCI engine. The reduced mechanism contains 199 species and 383 reactions, while the detailed mechanism contains 859 species and 3606 reactions. Both mechanisms have been used in numerical simulation of HCCI combustion.

A multi-zone model has been developed that accurately predicts HCCI combustion and emissions. The multi-zone methodology is based on the observation that turbulence does not play a direct role on HCCI combustion. Instead, chemical kinetics dominates the process, with hotter zones reacting first, and then colder zones reacting in rapid succession. Here, the multi-zone model has been applied to analyze the effect of piston crevice geometry on HCCI combustion and emissions. Three different pistons of varying crevice size were analyzed. Crevice sizes were 0.26, 1.3 and 2.1 mm, while a constant compression ratio was maintained (17:1). The results show that the multi-zone model can predict pressure traces and heat release rates with good accuracy. Combustion efficiency is also predicted with good accuracy for all cases, with a maximum difference of 5% between experimental and numerical results.