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Use of water diesel emulsions in diesel engines reduces simultaneously smoke and NOx emissions. However the ignition delay increases and there is a rise in the HC and CO levels as well. In this work hydrogen peroxide was added to water diesel emulsion and tested in a diesel engine. Initially the engine was run with water diesel emulsion (water to diesel ratio of 0.4:1). The water diesel emulsion with a H2O2/diesel ratio of 0.05 was used. The single cylinder diesel engine was tested at the rated speed of 1500 rpm. Brake thermal efficiency increased with hydrogen peroxide from 32.6% to 33.5% as compared to the plain emulsion at full load. These values are even better than neat diesel operation. CO and HC levels decreased significantly with the addition of H2O2. HC with the neat diesel engine at full load was 50 ppm. It rose to 75 ppm with water diesel emulsion and was controlled to 50 ppm when H2O2 was used. This is due to the strong oxidizing nature of H2O2.

Experiments were conducted on a single cylinder 160cc, four stroke gasoline SI engine. Preliminary experiments were conducted on the base engine to characterize the nature of CBC (cycle by cycle) variations and the influencing parameters. The results have indicated that as the ignition advances, Peak pressure increases and its COV (Coefficient of variation) reduces. IMEP increases up to MBT (Minimum advance for Best Torque) timing and its COV reduces. HC emission and BSFC are minimum at MBT timing. The best AFR (main jet) and spark timing are selected based on low CBC variations and good performance. The engine behavior with this best timing and AFR were taken as the base line data for comparison. The combustion geometry improvement method like dual spark plug and swirl chamber (SC) with multi torch ignition is considered to be more effective for combustion rate enhancement.

The effect of variation in injection pressure and Injection timing on the performance and exhaust emission characteristics of a direct injection, naturally aspirated Diesel engine operating on Diesel and Diesel-Biodiesel Blends were studied. A three-way factorial design consisting of four levels of injection pressure (150,210, 265,320 bar), four levels of injection timing (19° btdc, 21.5° btdc, 26° btdc, and 30.5° btdc) and five different fuel types (D100, B10, B20, B40, and B60) were employed in this test. The experimental analysis shows that when operating with Linseed Oil Methyl Ester-Diesel blends, we could increase the injection pressure by about 25% over the normal value of 20MPa. The engine performance and exhaust emission characteristics of the engine operating on the ester fuels at advanced injection timing were better than when operating at increased injection pressure.

A diesel engine was operated with karanja oil, bio-diesel obtained from karanja oil (BDK) and diesel as pilot fuels while LPG was used as primary fuel. LPG supply was varied from zero to the maximum value that the engine could tolerate. The engine output was kept at different constant levels of 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% of full load. The thermal efficiency improved at high loads. Smoke level was reduced drastically at all loads. CO and HC levels were reduced at full load. There was a slight increase in the NO level. Combustion parameters indicated an increase in the ignition delay. Peak pressure and rate of pressure rise were not unfavorably affected. There was an increase in the peak heat release rate with LPG induction. The amount of LPG that could be tolerated with out knock at full load was 49%, 53% and 61% on energy basis with karanja oil, BDK and diesel as pilots.

A personal computer (PC) based electronic governor was developed in this work for a diesel engine. A stepper motor was used to actuate the rack of the inline fuel pump of the engine with a bell crank lever. The digital output of the system was used to control the stepper motor using special hardware. This governor was tested under different steady and transient operating conditions. The electronic governor performed satisfactorily. In most cases the speed settled down in time duration comparable to that with the mechanical governor. The electronic governor could operate with no change in the mean speed with engine output. The performance was very sensitive to the P, I and D parameters of the control software. It was felt that the system could be improved with a stepper motor of finer steps and higher torque.

The paper discusses the potential of a conventional light duty indirect injection diesel engine for operation under naturally aspirated and turbocharged conditions. An exhaust gas New Garret air turbocharger with waste-gate control was used for the present investigations. The results of an extensive experimental programme using an 2.4 liter in-line four-cylinder engine are presented to predict the pressure crank angle diagram, brake power output, brake specific energy consumption, delay period, rate of pressure rise, volumetric efficiency, peak cylinder pressure, exhaust gas temperature and coefficient of variation. The paper also presents some numerical results and a comparison between computed and experimental pressure crank angle diagram for turbocharged diesel engine.

A Comprehensive computer simulation model was developed for a single cylinder spark ignition engine to simulate the Compression, Combustion, Expansion, Exhaust and Intake processes including the heat losses through the cylinder walls. The gas exchange processes were simulated with the help of a finite difference scheme and a separate boundary condition was developed for the throttle action on a conventional carburetor. The model after validating with the experimental data was used to arrive at the optimum duration and lift of the intake valve corresponding to different throttle positions of the equivalent conventional engine. These optimum values were used in the design of a 3 dimensional cam. Based on this design a new variable valve timing engine (VVT) has been designed and developed. Comparison between the computed and experimental data for the VVT engine was observed to be satisfactory.

The study of unsteady gas exchange processes in the intake and exhaust systems of an internal combustion engine is presented in this paper. A finite difference scheme is used for solving the equations defining these systems. The transient properties like the pressure, temperature and velocity in these systems are computed by the present scheme and are compared with the results obtained using the pressure measuring devices and an ultrasonic instrument which can simultaneously measure the gas temperature and velocity.

In this work, a 7.45 cc capacity glow plug based two-stroke engine for mini aircraft applications was evaluated for its performance, emissions and combustion. It uses a fuel containing 65% methanol, 25% castor oil and 10% nitromethane by volume. Since test rigs are not readily available for such small engines, a reaction type test bed with low friction linear and rolling element bearings was developed and used successfully. The propeller of the engine acted as the load and also the flywheel. Pressure time diagrams were recorded using a small piezoelectric pressure transducer. Tests were conducted at two different throttle positions and at various equivalence ratios. The brake thermal efficiency was generally in the range of 4 to 17.5% depending on the equivalence ratio and throttle position. IMEP was between 2 and 4 bar. It was found that only a part of the castor oil that was supplied participated in the combustion process.

This study deals with the development of an internal EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) system for NOx reduction on a six cylinder, turbocharged intercooled, off-road diesel engine based on a modified cam with secondary lift. One dimensional thermodynamic simulation model was developed using a commercially available code. MCC heat release model was refined in the present work by considering wall impingement of the fuel as given by Lakshminarayanan et al. The NOx prediction accuracy was improved to a level of 90% by a generic polynomial fit between air excess ratio and prediction constants. Simulation results of base model were correlating to more than 95% with experimental results for ISO 8178 C1 test cycle. Parametric study of intake and exhaust valve events was conducted with 2IVO (Secondary Intake Valve Opening) and 2EVO (Secondary Exhaust Valve Opening) methods. Combinations of different opening angles and lifts were chosen in both 2IVO and 2EVO methods for the study.

Use of methanol and ethanol in conventional diesel engines is associated with problems on account of the high self ignition temperature of these fuels. The Hot Surface Ignition (HSI) method wherein a part of the injected fuel is made to touch an electrically heated hot surface for ignition, is an effective way of utilizing these fuels in conventional diesel engines. In the present work two types of HSI engines, one using a large ceramic base and the other using a conventional glowplug were developed. These engines were tested with methanol, M.spirit (about 90 % methanol and 10 % ethanol) and diesel. The results of performance, fuel economy emissions and combustion parameters including heat release rates for these fuels with both the types of HSI engines are presented. Diesel engines are commonly used as primemovers in the mass transportation and agricultural sectors because of their high brake thermal efficiency and reliability.

The increasing use of natural gas as a vehicle fuel has generated considerable research activity to characterize the performance of engines utilizing this fuel. A light duty prechamber diesel engine was run under naturally aspirated and turbocharged CNG- Diesel dual fuel mode at four engine speeds 1100, 1400, 1700 and 2000 rpm. The maximum percentage of CNG substitution continues up to the engine knock limited power. The experimental results indicate a fall in brake power under naturally aspirated CNG-Diesel dual fuel mode compared to neat diesel operation. It was due to decrease in volumetric efficiency and slower combustion. Although turbocharged dual fuel operation shows an increase in brake power as well as an improvement in brake specific energy consumption as it provides a better air/fuel mixing and improves the homogeneous natural gas/air charge.

Conventional two-stroke spark-ignition (SI) engines have difficulty meeting the ignition requirements of lean fuel-air mixtures and high compression ratios, due to their breaker-operated, magneto-coil ignition systems. In the present work, a breakerless, high-energy electronic ignition system was developed and tested with and without a platinum-tipped-electrode spark plug. The high-energy ignition system showed an improved lean-burn capability at high compression ratios relative to the conventional ignition system. At a high compression ratio of 9:1 with lean fuel-air mixtures, the maximum percentage improvement in the brake thermal efficiency was about 16.5% at 2.7 kW and 3000 rpm. Cylinder peak pressures were higher, ignition delay was lower, and combustion duration was shorter at both normal and high compression ratios. Combustion stability as measured by the coefficient of variation in peak cylinder pressure was also considerably improved with the high-energy ignition system.

This paper reviews the current research work on Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) concept for diesel engines to meet future tightened emission norms. Heavy duty diesel engines are facing conflict between the goal of emission reduction and optimization of fuel consumption. In response to social demands and progressively strengthened emission regulations, diesel engines have been made cleaner through various means such as the combustion chamber, high pressure fuel injection, and turbocharger. In recent years, high pressure fuel injection has been considered as an effective method to reduce Particulate Matter (PM) by improving atomization and better air utilization, however, resulting in an increased Nitric Oxides (NOx) formation due to high temperature combustion. To fulfill future tightened emission norms, further developments on diesel engine technology and combustion improvements are required for simultaneous reduction of NOx and PM emissions as opposed to a trade-off.

The homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engines emit low levels of smoke and NOx emissions. However, control of ignition, which is mainly controlled by fuel composition, the equivalence ratio and the thermodynamic state of the mixture, is a problem. In this work, acetylene was as the fuel for operating a compression ignition engine in the HCCI mode at different outputs. The results of thermal efficiency and emissions have been compared with base diesel operation in the (compression ignition) CI mode. The relatively low self ignition temperature, wide flammability limits and gaseous nature were the reasons for selecting this fuel. Charge temperature was varied from 40 to 110°C. Thermal efficiencies were almost equal to that of CI engine operation at the correct intake charge temperature. NO levels never exceeded 20 ppm and smoke levels were always lower than 0.1 BSU. HC emissions were higher and were sensitive to charge temperature and output.

Experimental investigations relating to the use of producer gas in a spark ignition engine are reported in the proposed paper. The experimental setup consists of a single cylinder diesel engine converted to operate on a spark ignition engine mode coupled to a swinging field electrical dynamometer. A downdraft closed top charcoal gasifier has been used to generate the producer gas. After cooling and cleaning, it is fed to a venturi type gas carburetor, which ensures proper mixing of gas and air before it enters the engine. Testing of the converted engine was carried out under gasoline mode at a specified compression ratio. However subsequent tests on producer gas operation were performed at different compression ratios. The significant outcome of the present investigations include the satisfactory conversion of diesel engine to a spark ignition mode for neat producer gas operation and satisfactory operation of gas carburetor designed and developed for the purpose.

The methyl ester of karanja oil, known as biodiesel, is receiving increasing attention as an alternative fuel for diesel engine. This paper presents the results of investigations carried out in studying the fuel properties of karanja oil methyl ester (KOME) and its blend with diesel from 20% to 80% by volume and in running a DI diesel engine with these fuels. Engine tests have been carried out with the aim of obtaining performance characteristics such as Brake specific fuel consumption(BSFC), brake thermal efficiency, brake power, exhaust gas temperature, emission such as CO, UBHC, NOx, smoke opacity and combustion parameters to evaluate and compute the behavior of the diesel engine running on KOME and its blends with diesel fuel. The addition of KOME to diesel fuel has significantly reduced CO, UBHC and smoke emissions but it increases the NOx emission slightly.

Use of vegetable oils in diesel engines results in increased smoke and reduced brake thermal efficiency. Dual fuel engines can use a wide range of fuels and yet operate with low smoke emissions and high thermal efficiency. In this work, a single cylinder diesel engine was converted to use vegetable oil (Jatropha oil) as the pilot fuel and methanol as the inducted primary fuel. Tests were conducted at 1500 rev/min and full load. Different quantities of methanol and Jatropha oil were used. Results of experiments with diesel as the pilot fuel and methanol as the primary fuel were used for comparison. Brake thermal efficiency increased in the dual fuel mode when both Jatropha oil and diesel were used as pilot fuels. The maximum brake thermal efficiency was 30.6% with Jatropha oil and 32.8% with diesel. Smoke was drastically reduced from 4.4 BSU with pure Jatropha oil operation to 1.6 BSU in the dual fuel mode.

In a dual fuel engine a primary fuel that is generally a gas is mixed with air, compressed and ignited by a small pilot- spray of diesel as in a diesel engine. Dual fuel engines generally suffer from the problem of lower brake power and lower peak engine cylinder pressure due to lower volumetric efficiency, although an improvement in brake specific energy consumption is observed compared to pure diesel mode. Results indicate that with an increase in percentage of CNG substitution the brake power decreases. The exhaust gas temperature and peak cylinder pressure also decrease. The rate of pressure rise is higher at lower engine speeds (1100, 1400 rev/min), although at 1700 and 2000 rev/min it is lower. The delay period throughout the engine speed shows an increasing trend. The coefficient of variation is also higher throughout the engine speeds and shows an increasing trend. The brake specific energy consumption is lower at 1100, 1400 and 1700 rev/min and at 2000 rev/min it is higher.

A single cylinder, direct injection diesel engine was run on water diesel emulsion at a constant speed of 1500 rpm under variable load conditions. Water to diesel ratio of 0.4 on the mass basis was used. Tests indicated a considerable reduction in smoke and NO levels. This was accompanied by an increase in brake thermal efficiency at high outputs. HC & CO levels, ignition delay and rate of pressure rise went up. The heat release rate in the premixed burn period was higher. When the oxygen concentration in the intake air was enhanced in steps up to 25% along with the use of water diesel emulsion, the brake thermal efficiency was improved and there was a further reduction in the smoke level. HC and CO levels also dropped. NO emission went up due to increased temperature and oxygen availability. An oxygen concentration of 24% by volume was optimal as the NO levels were near about base diesel values.