Alasdair Cairns

Exhaust Gas Recirculation for Improved Part and Full Load Fuel Economy in a Turbocharged Gasoline Engine

The work was concerned with the use of exhaust gas recirculation to minimise CO 2 and pollutant emissions over a wide operating range in a multi-cylinder research engine. Under part-load conditions a combination of internal and external EGR was used to invoke controlled auto ignition combustion and improve fuel consumption. Outside the CAI regime, small additional fuel savings could be made by employing reduced EGR rates in spark ignition combustion mode. At boosted high load conditions a comparison of excess fuel, excess air and cooled external EGR charge dilution was made. It was apparent that cooled EGR was a more effective suppressant of knock than excess air, with combustion phasing further advanced towards the optimum and improved combustion stability achieved over a wider operating range. The full load emissions reduction potential of EGR was also demonstrated, with emissions of CO 2 reduced by up to 17% and engine-out HC and CO decreased by up to 80%.

An Optical Study of Spray Development and Combustion of Ethanol, Iso-Octane and Gasoline Blends in a DISI Engine

In recent times regulatory pressure to reduce CO 2 emissions has driven research towards looking at blending fossil fuels with alternatives such as crop-produced alcohols. The alcohol of interest in this paper is ethanol and it was studied in mixtures with gasoline and iso -octane in an optical sparkignition engine, running at 1500 RPM at low-load operation with 0.5 bar absolute intake plenum pressure. Specifically, tests involved fuels of 100% gasoline and 100% iso -octane, so that differences between multi and single-component fuels could be compared within this environment. A mixture of 25% ethanol with 75% iso -octane was also tested and compared. Finally, mixtures of highpercentage of ethanol (85% ethanol) in gasoline and in iso -octane were used in the study and compared. Tests were undertaken using a standard port injection system as well as a direct injection system so an appraisal of both mixture preparation methods could be made. Initially, a high-speed imaging study of the in-cylinder spray formation was undertaken with the direct injection system for different injection timings and engine-head temperatures under motoring engine conditions. The engine was also run with continuous firing using all fuels. In-cylinder pressure data were collected at 0.2° crank angle resolution for each cycle and synchronized with simultaneous high-speed flame imaging at 1° crank angle resolution for a series of 100 consecutive cycles for all test points. The flame images were processed to quantify the evolution of an equivalent flame radius.

A Study of Gasoline-Alcohol Blended Fuels in an Advanced Turbocharged DISI Engine

This work was concerned with evaluation of the performance and emissions of potential future biofuels during advanced spark ignition engine operation. The fuels prepared included three variants of gasoline, three gasoline-ethanol blends and a gasoline-butanol fuel altogether covering a range of oxygen mass concentrations and octane numbers to identify key influencing parameters. The combustion of the fuels was evaluated in a turbocharged multi-cylinder direct fuel injection research engine equipped with a standard three-way catalyst and an external EGR circuit that allowed use of either cooled or non-cooled EGR. The engine operating effects studied at both part and boosted high load conditions included fuel injection timing and pressure, excess air tolerance, EGR tolerance and spark retard limits. A number of blends were also mapped at suitable sites across the European drive cycle under downsized engine conditions. Relative in-vehicle fuel economies were then determined via drive cycle simulation and compared to a naturally aspirated gasoline PFI engine.

Lean Boost and External Exhaust Gas Recirculation for High Load Controlled Auto-Ignition

This work was concerned with increasing the attainable load during gasoline controlled auto-ignition combustion in a multi-cylinder direct fuel injection research engine. To extend the peak output under naturally aspirated conditions it proved favourable to combine internal and external exhaust gas recirculation under stoichiometric fuelled conditions. During turbocharged high load operation it was beneficial in terms of fuel economy to dilute the charge with a combination of internally re-circulated exhaust gases and excess air. Replacing a proportion of these diluents with externally re-circulated burned gases appeared to facilitate lower emissions of HC and CO. The highest load generated via boost was limited by increasing peak in-cylinder pressure and falling gas exchange efficiency. Regardless, the use of boost increased the load at which CAI could be invoked without lean NOx after-treatment.

Pre Versus Post Compressor Supply of Cooled EGR for Full Load Fuel Economy in Turbocharged Gasoline Engines

The work was concerned with applying cooled EGR for improved high load fuel economy and reduced pollutant emissions in a turbocharged gasoline engine. While the thermodynamic benefits of EGR were clear, challenges remain to bring the technique to market. A comparison of pre and post compressor EGR supply indicated that post-compressor routing allowed higher compressor efficiencies to be maintained and hence reduced compressor work as the mass flow of EGR was increased. However, with this post-compressor routing, attaining sufficient EGR rate was not possible over the required operating map. Furthermore, at higher engine speeds where the pre-turbine exhaust pressure was greater than the intake plenum pressure, the timing of peak in-cylinder pressure was not as readily advanced towards the optimum. In addition, when using a pre-turbine EGR pick-up, the EGR circuit dead volume had to be closed-off to maintain low-speed torque, insinuating some form of hot-side shut-off valve may be required.

A Study of Alcohol Blended Fuels in an Unthrottled Single Cylinder Spark-Ignition Engine

This work involved study of the effects of alcohol blends on combustion, fuel economy and emissions in a single cylinder research engine equipped with a mechanical fully variable valvetrain on the inlet and variable valve timing on the exhaust. A number of splash blends of gasoline, iso-octane, ethanol and butanol were examined during port fuel injected early inlet valve closing operation, both with and without variable valve timing. Under low valve overlap conditions, it was apparent that the inlet valve durations/lifts required for full unthrottled operation were remarkably similar for the wide range of blends studied. However, with high valve overlap differences in burning velocities and internal EGR tolerances warranted changes in these valve settings. In turn, it was concluded that high ethanol content blends facilitated minimum throttling at the inlet valve itself and the largest relative savings in terms of fuel consumption, engine-out emissions of NOx and (corrected) unburned hydrocarbons.

The Effects of Two-Stage Cam Profile Switching and External EGR on SI-CAI Combustion Transitions

This work was concerned with use of two-stage cam profile switching to transition between SI and CAI combustion in a multi-cylinder direct fuel injection research engine. In order to achieve robust combustion mode changes, it proved necessary to switch the inlet and exhaust bank of tappets independently of one another. Practical issues addressed to improve tappet response included minimising tappet oil circuit dead volumes and reducing the oil pressure difference before and after a switch. When switching from SI to CAI combustion, it was possible to avoid misfire and operate the engine in a mixed-mode form of combustion. In addition, it was demonstrated that supplementary external EGR could be used to minimise transient peak knocking pressures during such transitions. Differences in overall engine noise levels during SI and CAI have also been qualified and some possible solutions are discussed.

Burn Rate Implications of Alternative Knock Reduction Strategies for Turbocharged SI Engines

This work is concerned with the analysis of different charge dilution strategies employed with the intention of inhibiting knock in a high output turbocharged gasoline engine. The dilution approaches considered include excess fuel, excess air and cooled external exhaust gas re-circulation (stoichiometric fuelling). Analysis was performed using a quasi-dimensional combustion model which was implemented in GT-Power as a user-defined routine. This model has been developed to provide a means of correctly predicting trends in engine performance over a range of operating conditions and providing insight into the combustion phenomena controlling these trends. From the modelling and experimental data presented, it would appear that the use of cooled externally re-circulated exhaust gases allowed fuel savings near to those achieved via excess air, but with improved combustion stability and combustion phasing closer to the optimum position.

Combining Unthrottled Operation with Internal EGR under Port and Central Direct Fuel Injection Conditions in a Single Cylinder SI Engine

This experimental work was concerned with the combination of internal EGR with an early inlet valve closure strategy for improved part-load fuel economy. The experiments were performed in a new spark-ignited thermodynamic single cylinder research engine, equipped with a mechanical fully variable valvetrain on both the inlet and exhaust. During unthrottled operation at constant engine speed and load, increasing the mass of trapped residual allowed increased valve duration and lift to be used. In turn, this enabled further small improvements in gas exchange efficiency, thermal efficiency and hence indicated fuel consumption. Such effects were quantified under both port and homogeneous central direct fuel injection conditions. Shrouding of the inlet ports as a potential method to increase in-cylinder gas velocities has also been considered.

The Effects of Charge Homogeneity and Repeatability on Particulates Using the PLIF Technique in an Optical DISI Engine

The work was concerned with visualisation of the charge homogeneity and cyclic variations within the planar fuel field near the spark plug in an optical spark ignition engine fitted with an outwardly opening central direct fuel injector. Specifically, the project examined the effects of fuel type and injection settings, with the overall view to understanding some of the key mechanisms previously identified as leading to particulate formation in such engines. The three fuels studied included a baseline isooctane, which was directly compared to two gasoline fuels containing 10% and 85% volume of ethanol respectively. The engine was a bespoke single cylinder with Bowditch style optical access through a flat piston crown. Charge stratification was studied over a wide spectrum of injection timings using the Planar Laser Induced Fluorescence (PLIF) technique, with additional variation in charge temperature due to injection also estimated when viable using a two-line PLIF approach. Overall, both gasoline-ethanol fuels generally exhibited a higher degree of stratification, albeit at least partly alleviated with elevated rail pressures. Under both warm and cold liner conditions the E10 fuel showed clear evidence of fuel droplets persisting up until ignition. Interestingly, with late injection timing the repeatability of the injection was superior (statistically) with higher ethanol content in the fuel, which may have been associated with the higher charge temperatures aiding control of the evaporation of the main mass of alcohol.