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In the present paper, a new methodology for the estimation of the mass delivered by a single hole of a GDI injector is presented and discussed. The GDI injector used for the activity featured a five-hole nozzle characterized by three holes with the same diameter and two holes with a larger diameter. The different holes size guarantees a significant difference in terms of mass flow. This new methodology is based on global momentum flux measurement of each single plume and on its combination with the global mass measurement made with the gravimetric principle. The momentum flux is measured by means of a dedicated test bench that detects the impact force of the single spray plume at different distances. The sensing device is moved in different positions and, in each point, the force trace averaged over several injection events is acquired. The global mass delivered by the injector is measured by collecting and weighing the fuel flown during a defined number of consecutive injections.

In the next incoming future the necessity of reducing the raw emissions leads to the challenge of an increment of the thermal engine efficiency. In particular it is necessary to increase the engine efficiency not only at full load but also at partial load conditions. In the open literature very few technical papers are available on the partial load conditions analysis. In the present paper the analysis of the effect of the throttle valve rotational direction on the mixture formation is analyzed. The engine was a PFI 4-valves motorcycle engine. The throttle valve opening angle was 17.2°, which lays between the very partial load and the partial load condition. The CFD code adopted for the analysis was the FIRE AVL code v. 2013.2. The exhaust, intake and compression phases till TDC were simulated: inlet/outlet boundary conditions from 1D simulations were imposed.

This paper presents the further development of an electro-hydraulic camless valve actuation system for internal combustion engines. The system (Hydraulic Valve Control - HVC) is an open loop device for engine valve fully flexible camless actuation. Valve timing and duration are controlled by a pilot stage governed by a solenoid, fast-acting, three-way valve. Valve lift is controlled by varying the oil pressure of the power stage. The system exploits an energy recovery working principle that plays a significant role in reducing the power demand of the whole valve train. In the present paper a new HVC actuator design is presented and its performances in terms of valve lift profile, repeatability and landing are discussed. Experimental data obtained by the application of the HVC system to a motored, single-cylinder research engine have been used to support the numerical evaluation of the potentialities of non-conventional valve actuation in engine part-load operation.

Among variable valve actuation systems, fully flexible systems such as camless devices are the most attractive valvetrains for near-future engines. This paper presents a research activity about an electro-hydraulic camless system for internal combustion engines. The Hydraulic Valve Control (HVC) system uses hydraulic forces to open the valve while a mechanical spring is used for the closure. The system is fed by an hydraulic pump and two pressure regulators which provide two different pressure levels: a high pressure level (approximately 100 bar) for the pilot stage and a low adjustable pressure level (from 20 to 90 bar) for the actuator power stage. The valve opening duration is controlled by varying the timing of the opening signal of the pilot stage; the valve lift is adjusted varying the oil pressure of the power stage. From a general point of view, the HVC system is an open loop device for engine valve actuation.

In the present paper, a detailed numerical and experimental analysis of a spray momentum flux measurement device capability is presented. Particular attention is devoted to transient, engine-like injection events in terms of spray momentum flux measurement. The measurement of spray momentum flux in steady flow conditions, coupled with knowledge of the injection rate, is steadily used to estimate the flow mean velocity at the nozzle exit and the extent of flow cavitation inside the nozzle in terms of a velocity reduction coefficient and a flow section reduction coefficient. In the present study, the problem of analyzing spray evolution in short injection events by means of jet momentum flux measurement was approached. The present research was based on CFD-3D analysis of the spray-target interaction in a momentum measurement device.

The present paper describes the effect of thermal conditions on the hydraulic behavior of Diesel common rail injectors, with a particular focus on low temperatures for fuel and injector body. The actual injection system thermal state can significantly influence both the injected quantity and the injection shape, requiring proper amendments to the base engine calibration in order to preserve the combustion efficiency and pollutant emissions levels. In particular, the introduction of the RDE (Real Driving Emission) test cycle widens the effective ambient temperature range for the homologation cycle, this way stressing the importance of the thermal effects analysis. An experimental test bench was developed in order to characterize the injector in an engine-like configuration, i.e. fuel pump, piping, common rail, pressure control system and injectors.

In the present work, an experimental and numerical analysis of high pressure Diesel spray evolution is carried out in terms of spray momentum flux time history and instantaneous injection rate. The final goal of spray momentum and of injection rate analyses is the evaluation of the nozzle outlet flow characteristics and of the nozzle internal geometry possible influences on cavitation phenomena, which are of primary importance for the spray evolution. Further, the evaluation of the flow characteristics at the nozzle exit is fundamental in order to obtain reliable boundary conditions for injection process 3D simulation. In this paper, spray momentum data obtained in ambient temperature, high counter-pressure conditions at the Perugia University Spray Laboratory are presented and compared with the results of 3D simulations of the momentum rig itself.

This paper presents the current research activity about an electro-hydraulic camless valve actuation system for internal combustion engines. From a general point of view, this system (Hydraulic Valve Control - HVC) is an open loop device for engine valve fully flexible camless actuation. In the HVC system, the valve actuation timing and duration are controlled by varying the driving signal of the pilot stage, which is governed by a solenoid, fast-acting, three-way valve; the valve lift is adjusted by varying the oil pressure of the power stage. This system uses hydraulic forces to open the engine valve while a mechanical spring is used for its closure. The HVC key element is a spool valve, which operates as a three way / three position valve. This element is designed in order to ensure the synchronization of its own motion with that of the poppet valve mass-spring system.

In this work an experimental analysis is performed to evaluate the influence of different flow bench test conditions and system configurations on the flow characteristics in the intake system of a high performance 4-valve, SI Internal Combustion Engine: valve lift, test pressure drop, throttle valve aperture, throttle valve opening direction in respect to the intake system layout (i.e. clockwise/counterclockwise), presence of the tumble adaptor. To this aim, experimental tests are performed on a Ducati Corse racing engine cylinder head, by measuring the discharge coefficient and the tumble coefficient. The several experimental data obtained by combining the different operational and geometrical parameters are analysed and discussed.

The present work concerns the analysis of a concept for a new variable valve actuation system for internal combustion engines, denoted HVC (Hydraulic Valve Control system). The system is an electro-hydraulic device which aims at minimizing the power consumption required for the valve actuation. Unlike lost motion devices, where the excess pumped oil is wasted in order to control the lift profile, the HVC system uses a reduced quantity of energy to ensure the actual lift profile. For that reason interesting potentialities to increase the global fuel conversion efficiency of the engine are expected, in addition to the benefits deriving from the control flexibility. The HVC system has been modeled by means of an hydraulic simulation tool, useful for the dynamic analysis of mechanical and hydraulic systems. In this work the main elements of the device will be described and their relevant modeling parameters will be discussed.

In an earlier study, a novel type of diesel fuel injector was proposed. This prototype injects fuel via porous (sintered) micro pores instead of via the conventional 6-8 holes. The micro pores are typically 10-50 micrometer in diameter, versus 120-200 micrometer in the conventional case. The expected advantages of the so-called Porous Fuel Air Mixing Enhancing Nozzle (PFAMEN) injector are lower soot- and CO2 emissions. However, from previous in-house measurements, it has been concluded that the emissions of the porous injector are still not satisfactory. Roughly, this may have multiple reasons. The first one is that the spray distribution is not good enough, the second one is that the droplet sizing is too big due to the lack of droplet breakup. Furthermore air entrainment into the fuel jets might be insufficient. All reasons lead to fuel rich zones and associated soot formation.