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Gasoline Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) combustion has been studied widely in the past decade. However, in HCCI engines using negative valve overlap (NVO), there is still uncertainty as to whether the effect of pilot injection during NVO on the start of combustion is primarily due to heat release of the pilot fuel during NVO or whether it is due to pilot fuel reformation. This paper presents data taken on a 4-cylinder gasoline direct injection, spark ignition/HCCI engine with a dual cam system, capable of recompressing residual gas. Engine in-cylinder samples are extracted at various points during the engine cycle through a high-speed sampling system and directly analysed with a gas chromatograph and flame ionisation detector. Engine parameter sweeps are performed for different pilot injection timings and quantities at a medium load point.

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.

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.

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.

Experiments to cyclically resolve the HC concentration emitted by an I.C. engine with improved sampling techniques are described. The results suggest that the technique is easy to use, and gives results which are comparable with those obtained by other methods.

Understanding mixture formation phenomena during the first few cycles of an engine cold start is extremely important for achieving the minimum engine-out emission levels at the time when the catalytic converter is not yet operational. Of special importance is the structure of the charge (film, droplets and vapour) which enters the cylinder during this time interval as well as its concentration profile. However, direct experimental studies of the fuel behaviour in the inlet port have so far been less than fully successful due to the brevity of the process and lack of a suitable experimental technique. We present measurements of the hydrocarbon (HC) concentration in the manifold and port of a production SI engine using the Fast Response Flame Ionisation Detector (FRFID).