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Experimental Brake Specific Fuel Consumption (BSFC) data are presented for two engines as a function of engine speed, load, outlet coolant temperature and inlet oil temperature. The engines used in the study were the Cummins VT-903 (turbocharged) and the Caterpillar 3208, both being direct-injection and four-cycle. The data were taken for the Cat 3208 engine using a fractional factorial statistical method which reduced the total test matrix from 256 to 64 data points. The experimental data are used in the development of BSFC regression equations as a function of load, speed, outlet coolant temperature and inlet oil temperatures. A mathematical parameter for expressing quantitatively the change of BSFC per 10°F change in coolant and oil temperature is presented. It was found that an increase in the coolant and/or oil temperatures had the effect of reducing BSFC in both engines.

Research octane ratings do not adequately define the antiknock performance of gasolines in cars on the road; gasoline sensitivity, composition, and other fuel properties also have effects. Specific correlation equations can express the effects of the fuel properties, but a different equation is needed for each car and speed. With the aid of simple statistics, the different equations can be combined to yield the Customers' Antiknock Rating, or CAR. The CAR of a gasoline is uniquely related to the percentage of cars the gasoline will power without knocking; even in simplified form, CAR is much better than Research rating. The use of CAR improves comparisons of gasolines, quality control, evaluations of processes, and projections of future antiknock quality. Although the CAR is more complex than Research rating, it has many advantages; we are using it and hope the automotive and petroleum industries will consider adopting something like it in the future.

In this study, the effects of an oxidation catalytic converter (OCC) on regulated and unregulated emissions from a 1991 prototype Cummins I.10-310 diesel engine fueled with a 0.01 weight percent sulfur fuel were investigated. The OCC's effects were determined by measuring and comparing selected raw exhaust emissions with and without the platinum-based OCC installed in the exhaust system, with the engine operated at three steady-state modes. It was found that the OCC had no significant effect on oxides of nitrogen (NOX) and nitric oxide (NO) at any mode, but reduced hydrocarbon (HC) emmissions by 60 to 70 percent. The OCC reduced total particulate matter (TPM) levels by 27 to 54 percent, primarily resulting from 53 to 71 percent reductions of the soluble organic fraction (SOF). The OCC increased sulfate (SO42-) levels at two of the three modes (modes 9 and 10), but the overall SO42- contribution to TPM was less than 6 percent at all modes due to the low sulfur level of the fuel.