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The present paper is concerned with part of the work performed by Renault, IFPEN and Politecnico di Torino within a research project founded by the European Commission. The project has been focused on the development of a dedicated CNG engine featuring a 25% decrease in fuel consumption with respect to an equivalent Diesel engine with the same performance targets. To that end, different technologies were implemented and optimized in the engine, namely, direct injection, variable valve timing, LP EGR with advanced turbocharging, and diluted combustion. With specific reference to diluted combustion, it is rather well established for gasoline engines whereas it still poses several critical issues for CNG ones, mainly due to the lower exhaust temperatures. Moreover, dilution is accompanied by a decrease in the laminar burning speed of the unburned mixture and this generally leads to a detriment in combustion efficiency and stability.

Engine knock is an important phenomenon that needs consideration in the development of gasoline fueled engines. In our days, this development is supported by the use of numerical simulation tools to further understand and subsequently predict in-cylinder processes. In this work, a model tool chain based on detailed chemical and physical models is proposed to predict the auto-ignition behavior of fuels with different octane ratings and to evaluate the transition from harmless auto-ignitive deflagration to knocking combustion. In our method, the auto-ignition and emissions are calculated based on a new reaction scheme for mixtures of iso-octane, n-heptane, toluene and ethanol (Ethanol consisting Toluene Reference Fuel, ETRF). The reaction scheme is validated for a wide range of mixtures and every desired mixture of the four fuel components can be applied in the engine simulation.

CNG is one of the most promising alternate fuels for passenger car applications. CNG is affordable, is available worldwide and has good intrinsic properties including high knock resistance and low carbon content. Usually, CNG engines are developed by integrating CNG injectors in the intake manifold of a baseline gasoline engine, thereby remaining gasoline compliant. However, this does not lead to a bi-fuel engine but instead to a compromised solution for both Gasoline and CNG operation. The aim of the study was to evaluate the potential of a direct injection spark ignition engine derived from a diesel engine core and dedicated to CNG combustion. The main modification was the new design of the cylinder head and the piston crown to optimize the combustion velocity thanks to a high tumble level and good mixing. This work was done through computations. First, a 3D model was developed for the CFD simulation of CNG direct injection.

Reducing NOx tailpipe emissions is one of the major challenges when developing automotive Diesel engines which must simultaneously face stricter emission norms and reduce their fuel consumption/CO2 emission. In fact, the engine control system has to manage at the same time the multiple advanced combustion technologies such as high EGR rates, new injection strategies, complex after-treatment devices and sophisticated turbocharging systems implemented in recent diesel engines. In order to limit both the cost and duration of engine control system development, a virtual engine simulator has been developed in the last few years. The platform of this simulator is based on a 0D/1D approach, chosen for its low computational time. The existing simulation tools lead to satisfactory results concerning the combustion phase as well as the air supply system. In this context, the current paper describes the development of a new NOx emission model which is coupled with the combustion model.

This paper presents a new 0D phenomenological approach to predict the combustion process in diesel engines operated under various running conditions. The aim of this work is to develop a physical approach in order to improve the prediction of in-cylinder pressure and heat release. The main contribution of this study is the modeling of the premixed part of the diesel combustion with a further extension of the model for multi-injection strategies. In phenomenological diesel combustion models, the premixed combustion phase is usually modeled by the propagation of a turbulent flame front. However, experimental studies have shown that this phase of diesel combustion is actually a rapid combustion of part of the fuel injected and mixed with the surrounding gas. This mixture burns quasi instantaneously when favorable thermodynamic conditions are locally reached. A chemical process then controls this combustion.