COMBUSTION CONTROL OF DIESEL SPRAYS BY MEANS OF LASER INDUCED PLASMA IGNITION

Abstract

In the recent years the engine research has been mainly focused on the pollutant emissions reduction and on increasing the efficiency. Many of the actual research efforts in the field of the Internal Combustion Engines are aimed to improve and develop new active strategies for emission reduction, particularly centered on new combustion concepts and a general improved combustion control. Their development requires the application of new experimental and theoretical tools, allowing both to be directly applied as an active pollutant control strategy and to permit to expand the basic knowledge of the governing processes fundamentals. This is the concept where the main objective of this Thesis is framed: the development and optimization of a new, non-intrusive and modulable ignition system that will allow the control on the position and timing of the ignition spot. Such system will be applied to the ignition of direct injection diesel sprays in order to expand the knowledge of the ignition process, particularly considering how the local conditions at the ignition are affecting the subsequent combustion development. In order to accomplish the proposed objective, the research work has been divided in two main blocks. The first one is focused on the development and optimization of the ignition system. Taking advantage of the possibilities granted by the laser plasma induction process and, once selected the best induction method for its application in an internal combustion engine environment, a process of optimization of the ignition system has been carried out. Such optimization process results to be of basic importance for this research development. In fact, the application of fully reliable ignition system is fundamental both in terms of its possible direct application for combustion modulation purposes and in terms of the new study possibilities that is able to deliver. At first, from an extensive literature survey upon the plasma laser induction process, the fundamental parameters to focus on for the application of the system to the ignition of direct injection fuel sprays have been obtained. Starting from these parameters, a first ignition system has been designed, and then its reliability in the plasma induction has been experimentally tested under ambient and engine-like conditions, applying an original optimization methodology. As a main result of this first work block, a fully optimized and completely reliable laser induced plasma ignition system has been obtained, and an original system validation and optimization method has been developed. The second work block corresponds to the application of the ignition system to a direct injection diesel spray under real engine conditions. This block aimed to accomplish two main goals: the determination of the system capabilities and limits for the spray ignition application and the development of a first experimental study regarding the influence of the local conditions at the ignition location on the subsequent development of diesel combustion. In order to do so, first the system ignition capability has been tested on a diesel spray, under an adequate set of thermodynamic conditions determined to maintain the maximum possible system feasibility. The results of this study, compared with the standard combustion diagnostics parameters for the autoignition event at the same conditions, proved its ignition capabilities. Then a parametric variation of the local timing and position of the induced plasma generation region has been carried out, in order to determine the effect of the local condition on the combustion development. By comparing the obtained results with standard autoignition parameters at the same conditions, interesting trends have been obtained, that underline the system ability to control and modulate the combustion event