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The objective of this study was to examine the operating characteristics of a light duty multi cylinder compression ignition engine with regular gasoline fuel at low engine speed and load. The effects of fuel stratification by means of multiple injections as well as the sensitivity of auto-ignition and burn rate to intake pressure and temperature are presented. The measurements used in this study included gaseous emissions, filter smoke opacity and in-cylinder indicated information. It was found that stable, low emission operation was possible with raised intake manifold pressure and temperature, and that fuel stratification can lead to an increase in stability and a reduced reliance on increased temperature and pressure. It was also found that the auto-ignition delay sensitivity of gasoline to intake temperature and pressure was low within the operating window considered in this study.

A method for non-intrusive measurement of spark plug fouling, burn quality, pre-ignition and spark characteristics is described. The technique relies on a continuous monitoring of the leakage current to the spark plug centre electrode, via a high voltage diode stand off arrangement. By way of demonstration, the system operation is reported for investigations of cold start plug fouling.

Recent studies in the USA have revealed that the catalysts (which are universally fitted to gasoline automobiles) are failing in service to an unacceptable extent. Although the reasons for the failures are not completely clear, it seems that misfiring, leading to highly exothermic reaction in the catalyst, may be responsible for the damage. Legislation is to be enacted later in this decade to address this problem by requiring on board diagnostic (OBD) systems which can measure misfire, as well as catalyst hydrocarbon (HC) conversion efficiency. Although some ideas have been suggested for the OBD requirements, no fully satisfactory sensor technology has yet appeared. This paper describes a novel hydrocarbon sensor based on a surface catalysis principle. The fundamental studies reported here have been made with the automobile application in mind. A catalytic chemi-ionisation model is proposed in order to enhance our understanding of this surface ionisation.

One of the limits on the maximum fuel efficiency benefit to be gained from turbocharged, downsized gasoline engines is the occurrence of low speed pre-ignition (LSPI). LSPI may lead to high pressures and extreme knock (megaknock or superknock) which can cause severe engine damage. Though the mechanism leading to megaknock is not completely resolved, LSPI is thought to arise from local auto-ignition of areas in the cylinder which are rich in low ignition delay “contaminants” such as engine oil and/or heavy ends of gasoline. These contaminants are introduced to the combustion chamber at various points in the engine cycle (e.g. entering from the top land crevice during blow-down or washed from the cylinder walls during DI wall impingement). This paper describes a method for testing the propensity of different contaminants to cause a local pre-ignition in a gasoline engine. During one cycle, a small amount of contaminant is injected into one cylinder of a 4 cylinder engine.

Common-rail fuel injection systems on modern light-duty diesel engines are effectively able to respond instantaneously to changes in the demanded injection quantity. In contrast, the air-system is subject to significantly slower dynamics, primarily due to filling/emptying effects in the manifolds and turbocharger inertia. The behavior of the air-path in a diesel engine is therefore the main limiting factor in terms of engine-out emissions during transient operation. This paper presents a simple mean-value model for the air-path during throttled operation, which is used to design a feed-forward controller that delivers very rapid changes in the in-cylinder charge properties. The feed-forward control action is validated using a state-of-the-art sampling system that allows true cycle-by-cycle measurement of the in-cylinder CO₂ concentration.

Partially premixed compression ignition (PPCI) engines operating with a low temperature highly homogeneous charge have been demonstrated previously using conventional diesel fuel. The short ignition delay of conventional diesel fuel requires high fuel injection pressures to achieve adequate premixing along with high levels of EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) to achieve low NOx emissions. Low load operating regions are typified by substantial emissions of CO and HC and there exists an upper operating load limitation due to very high rates of in-cylinder gas pressure rise. In this study mixtures of gasoline and diesel fuel were investigated using a multi-cylinder light duty diesel engine. It was found that an increased proportion of gasoline fuel reduced smoke emissions at higher operating loads through an increase in charge premixing resulting from an increase in ignition delay and higher fuel volatility.

Highly homogeneous compression ignition is difficult to achieve in a direct injection diesel engine. The difficulty of achieving adequate fuel vaporization and the problems of fuel spray wall impingement are the main factors. Limitation of the maximum operating load results from high rates of pressure rise that occur in this combustion regime. The levels of HC and CO emissions are raised substantially when compared with conventional combustion and remain a significant emission factor. In this study, two methods of achieving highly homogeneous combustion in a direct injection diesel engine were investigated, Nissan MK type and early injection. The effects of fuel injection pressure, injection timing, EGR level, EGR cooler efficiency and compression ratio were examined using a conventional 4 cylinder 2.0L common rail diesel engine with 18.4:1 and 14.4:1 compression ratios.

A novel Fast Response Chemiluminescence Detector and a Fast Flame Ionization detector have been used to examine the instantaneous NO and unburnt hydrocarbon concentration in the cylinder and exhaust port of a DI Diesel engine. The in-cylinder results indicate very high levels of NO in the premixed phase of combustion, followed by generally lower levels during the diffusion burning phase. Hydrocarbon signals also indicate significant detail. The in-cylinder uHC signal is consistent with the probe location being between two of the fuel sprays. Both in-cylinder and exhaust results indicate rather high cyclic variability in the NO levels at steady conditions. Variations in the timing and structure of the exhaust uHC signal during the valve open period with load may give insight into the fuel spray/air motion.

A novel mechanical method of achieving a rapid switch between stoichiometric and lean conditions for SI engines is explored. Two and three throttle configurations, a switch strategy which employs a standard intake manifold and an assembly of pipes and throttle(s), are investigated numerically by using a one-dimensional engine simulation program based on the method of characteristics. The results indicate that it is possible to achieve rapid AFR switch without a torque jump, i.e. unperceptible to the driver.

Models often use time rather than strokes (crank-angle) as the independent variable to describe engine dynamics despite the fact that the dynamics of an internal combustion engine are intrinsically linked to the combustion events. In this paper, two models are developed in parallel in which not only the independent variable is changed but the notion of mass flows as well: flows are in [g/s] for the time-based model and in [g/st] for the event-based model. Both models are of the same computational complexity and show the same accuracy in validation. The investigation of the model properties shows that variations in the flow-related parameters are reduced by a factor of two to five for the event-based model. However, those of the crankshaft dynamics are increased. It is concluded that the model should be chosen in context of the control system to be designed.

Particulate emissions from IC engines associated with transient engine conditions are very important (similar to the legislated gaseous emissions). This is true both during real-world and test cycle driving. This paper describes an instrument for measuring the number of particles, and their spectral weighting, in the 5nm to 1000nm size range, with a time response of 200ms. This is achieved via an electrostatic classification technique, consisting of a diffusion charger followed by a multi-element, constant voltage, classifier. Conversion of the data to other metrics, such as mass, is also described. Results are presented from artificial test aerosols and from light and heavy duty diesel engines on standard test cycles.

The parameterization of variable geometry turbochargers for mean-value modeling is typically based on compressor and turbine flow and efficiency maps provided by the supplier. At low turbocharger speeds, and hence low airflows, the heat exchange via the turbocharger housing affects the temperature-based measurements of the efficiencies. Therefore, the low-speed operating regime of the turbocharger is excluded from the supplied maps and mean-value models mainly rely on extrapolation into this region, which is regularly met in emission drive cycles, and hence of significance. This paper presents experimental data from a 2.0-liter turbocharged common-rail diesel engine. While the flow maps extend from the high-speed region in a natural way, the efficiency maps are severely affected by the heat transfer effect. It is argued that this effect should be included in the mean-value model.

This paper is concerned with the Residual Gas Fraction measurement and estimation on a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine. A novel in-cylinder gas sampling technique was employed to obtain cyclic dynamic measurements of CO2 concentration in the compression stroke and in combination with CO2 concentration measurements in the exhaust stroke, cyclic Residual Gas Fraction was measured. The measurements were compared to estimations from a physical, 4-cylinder, single-zone model of the HCCI cycle and good agreement was found in steady engine running conditions. Some form of oscillating behaviour that HCCI exhibits because of exhaust gas coupling was studied and the model was modified to simulate this behaviour.

Delivering acceptable low end torque and good transient response is a significant challenge for all turbocharged engines. As downsized gasoline engines and Diesel engines make up a larger and larger proportion of the light-duty engines entering the market, the issue takes on greater significance. Several schemes have been proposed to improve torque response in highly boosted engines, including the use of electrical assist turbochargers and compressed air assist. In this paper we examine these methods with respect to their effectiveness in improving transient response and their relative performance along with some of the practical considerations for real world application. Results shown in this paper are from 1-D simulations using the Ricardo WAVE software package.

The information provided by the in-cylinder pressure signal is of great importance for modern engine management systems. The obtained information is implemented to improve the control and diagnostics of the combustion process in order to meet the stringent emission regulations and to improve vehicle reliability and drivability. The work presented in this paper covers the experimental study and proposes a comprehensive and practical solution for the estimation of the in-cylinder pressure from the crankshaft speed fluctuation. Also, the paper emphasizes the feasibility and practicality aspects of the estimation techniques, for the real-time online application. In this study an engine dynamics model based estimation method is proposed. A discrete-time transformed form of a rigid-body crankshaft dynamics model is constructed based on the kinetic energy theorem, as the basis expression for total torque estimation.

Recent work has investigated the use of O₂ concentration in the intake manifold as a control variable for diesel engines. It has been recognized as a very good indicator of NOX emissions especially during transient operation, however, much of the work is concentrated on estimating the O₂ concentration as opposed to measuring it. This work investigates Universal Exhaust Gas Oxygen (UEGO) sensors and their potential to be used for such measurements. In previous work it was shown that these sensors can be operated in a controlled pressure environment such that their response time is of the order 10 ms. In this paper, it is shown how the key causes of variation (and therefore potential sources of error) in sensor output, namely, pressure and temperature are largely mitigated by operating the sensors in such an environment. Experiments were undertaken on a representative light-duty diesel engine using modified UEGO sensors in the intake and exhaust system.

A key challenge in achieving good transient performance of highly boosted engines is the difficulty of accelerating the turbocharger from low air flow conditions (“turbo lag”). Multi-stage turbocharging, electric turbocharger assistance, electric compressors and hybrid powertrains are helpful in the mitigation of this deficit, but these technologies add significant cost and integration effort. Air-assist systems have the potential to be more cost-effective. Injecting compressed air into the intake manifold has received considerable attention, but the performance improvement offered by this concept is severely constrained by the compressor surge limit. The literature describes many schemes for generating the compressed gas, often involving significant mechanical complexity and/or cost. In this paper we demonstrate a novel exhaust assist system in which a reservoir is charged during braking.

Simple air-path models for modern (VGT/EGR equipped) diesel engines are in common use, and have been reported in the literature. This paper addresses some of the shortcomings of control-oriented models to allow better prediction of the cylinder charge properties. A fast response CO2 analyzer is used to validate the model by comparing the recorded and predicted CO2 concentrations in both the intake port and exhaust manifold of one of the cylinders. Data showing the recorded NOx emissions and exhaust gas opacity during a step change in engine load illustrate the spikes in both NOx and smoke seen during transient conditions. The predicted cylinder charge properties from the model are examined and compared with the measured NOx and opacity. Together, the emissions data and charge properties paint a consistent picture of the phenomena occurring during the transient. Alternative strategies for the fueling and cylinder charge during these load transients are investigated and discussed.

This paper describes a novel catalytic oxidation sensor which represents an attempt to realise a practical sensor for on vehicle detection of catalyst efficiency and misfire. Via experimental and modelling approaches, promising characteristics are established, which could mean that an application to the on-vehicle detection of catalyst efficiency and misfire is feasible.

The transport of fuel during cold start in the intake of a port-injected engine has been investigated using a standard engine with very little modification. A fast response FID sampling from the intake manifold is used to measure the instantaneous vapor concentration during the start. At short times after the start, the engine is stopped, and the port under investigation isolated. The engine is then warmed up by passing hot water through it and at the same time is flushed with hot air, in the port and the cylinder. This evaporates the liquid fuel, and by integrating the vapor concentration multiplied by mass flow of the displaced gas, the fuel mass in the isolated port and cylinder is measured. It is shown how the mass of liquid in the port at the time at which the engine is stopped can reliably be related to the concentration measurement. By stopping the engine at different times after the start, detailed accounting of the fuel transport as a function of time since start can be made.