Joakim Bood

Thermometry in internal combustion engines via dual-broadband rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy

Rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) has since the beginning of the 1980s been developed as a non-intrusive tool for temperature measurements in combustion. Since the introduction of the dual-broadband concept in 1986, the quality of the technique has been much improved, and application to practical combustion situations facilitated. Since the first demonstration of its use in spark-ignition engines in 1993, several measurement campaigns in engines have been accomplished. These campaigns concerned temperature measurements in the unburned gas mixture before combustion as part of a larger project with the aim of improving the knowledge on the phenomenon of engine knock. In this paper, the results of this work are reviewed with a focus on the characteristics of the technique and the quality of the evaluated temperatures. Re-evaluations of data using an improved theoretical model are presented and compared with previous results. Moreover, the treatment of large data sets on single shots from spatial regions with conditions varying from unburned to burned gas is discussed. It is demonstrated that dual-broadband rotational CARS probing nitrogen and oxygen has a high potential for thermometry at the conditions in the unburned gas mixture. Merits and limitations of the technique are discussed and the issues treated are, among others, experimental problems, data evaluation, and single-shot temperature accuracy.

Simultaneous vibrational and pure rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy for temperature and multispecies concentration measurements demonstrated in sooting flames

The potential of measuring temperature and multiple species concentrations (N2, O2, CO) by use of combined vibrational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) and pure rotational CARS has been investigated. This was achieved with only one Nd:YAG laser and one dye laser together with a single spectrograph and CCD camera. From measurements in premixed sooting C2H4-air flames it was possible to evaluate temperatures from both vibrational CARS and rotational CARS spectra, O2 concentration from the rotational CARS spectra, and CO concentration from the vibrational CARS spectra. Quantitative results from premixed sooting C2H4-air flames are presented, and the uncertainties in the results as well as the possibility of extending the combined CARS technique for probing of additional species are discussed.

Detection of Hydrogen Peroxide Using Photofragmentation Laser-Induced Fluorescence

Photofragmentation laser-induced fluorescence (PF-LIF) is for the first time demonstrated to be a practical diagnostic tool for detection of hydrogen peroxide. Point measurements as well as two-dimensional (2D) measurements in free-flows, with nitrogen as bath gas, are reported. The present application of the PF-LIF technique involves one laser, emitting radiation of 266 nm wavelength, to dissociate hydrogen peroxide molecules into OH radicals, and another laser, emitting at 282.25 nm, to electronically excite OH, whose laser-induced fluorescence is detected. The measurement procedure is explained in detail and a suitable time separation between photolysis and excitation pulse is proposed to be on the order of a few hundred nanoseconds. With a separation time in that regime, recorded OH excitation scans were found to be thermal and the signal was close to maximum. The PF-LIF signal strength was shown to follow the same trend as the vapor pressure corresponding to the hydrogen peroxide liquid concentration. Thus, the PF-LIF signal appeared to increase linearly with hydrogen peroxide vapor-phase concentration. For 2D single shot measurements, a conservatively estimated value of the detection limit is 30 ppm. Experiments verified that for averaged point measurements the detection limit was well below 30 ppm.

The effect of knock on the heat transfer in an SI engine : Thermal boundary layer investigation using CARS temperature measurements and heat flux measurements

It is generally accepted that knocking combustion influences the heat transfer in SI engines. However, the effects of heat transfer on the onset of knock is still not clear due to lack of experimental data of the thermal boundary layer close to the combustion chamber wall. This paper presents measurements of the temperature in the thermal boundary layer under knocking and non-knocking conditions. The temperature was measured using dual-broadband rotational Coherent anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy (CARS). Simultaneous time-resolved measurements of the cylinder pressure, at three different locations, and the heat flux to the wall were carried out. Optical access to the region near the combustion chamber wall was achieved by using a horseshoe-shaped combustion chamber with windows installed in the rectangular part of the chamber. This arrangement made CARS temperature measurements close to the wall possible and results are presented in the range 0.1-5 mm from the wall. The engine was run with constant fuel flow under near stoichiometric conditions. Knocking and non-knocking conditions were achieved by using different mixtures of n-heptane and iso-octane. Copyright

Stray light suppression in spectroscopy using periodic shadowing

It is well known that spectroscopic measurements suffer from an interference known as stray light, causing spectral distortion that reduces measurement accuracy. In severe situations, stray light may even obscure the existence of spectral lines. Here a novel general method is presented, named Periodic Shadowing, that enables effective stray light elimination in spectroscopy and experimental results are provided to demonstrate its capabilities and versatility. Besides its efficiency, implementing it in a spectroscopic arrangement comes at virtually no added experimental complexity.

Rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) in nitrogen at high pressures (0.1-44 MPa) : Experimental and modelling results

Pure rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) has for the first time been investigated for pressures up to 44 MPa in nitrogen gas at room temperature. An atomic filter consisting of a heated cell with sodium vapour was successfully applied for suppression of stray light originating from the narrowband CARS pump laser beam. With increasing pressure the rotational CARS spectrum is smoothed gradually, and above around 10 MPa spectral lines are no longer resolvable. Experimental data were compared using Raman linewidths calculated with three different models: the energy corrected sudden scaling law (ECS), the modified exponential gap model (MEG), and a semi-classical ab initio model. All three models resulted in bad spectral fits when a linear scaling with pressure was employed. By using additional scale factors for the Raman linewidths the quality of the spectral fits and also the temperature accuracy were significantly improved. The resulting scale factors indicate a non-linear pressure dependence of the linewidths, and visualize a narrowing of the spectral envelope at the highest pressure, i.e. 44 MPa. The results indicate shortcomings in the present isolated line models and also emphasize the need for new experimental data on pure rotational Raman linewidths at high density. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley and Sons, Ltd. (Less)

QUANTITATIVE MEASUREMENTS OF SPECIES AND TEMPERATURE IN A DME-AIR COUNTERFLOW DIFFUSION FLAME USING LASER DIAGNOSTIC METHODS

A diffusion flame of dimethyl ether (DME) and air in a counterflow burner has been investigated experimentally by means of different laser-based methods. Quantitative measurements of temperature, O2 concentration, and OH concentration have been carried out using dual broadband rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy (CARS), Rayleigh scattering and laser-induced fluorescence (LIF). Furthermore a qualitative formaldehyde profile has been measured using LIF. The measured profile has been compensated for fluorescence signal quenching and the Boltzmann distribution to obtain a representative qualitative formaldehyde profile for the flame.

Single-laser shot fluorescence lifetime imaging on the nanosecond timescale using a Dual Image and Modeling Evaluation algorithm

A novel technique, designated dual imaging and modeling evaluation (DIME), for evaluating single-laser shot fluorescence lifetimes is presented. The technique is experimentally verified in a generic gas mixing experiment to provide a clear demonstration of the rapidness and sensitivity of the detector scheme. Single-laser shot fluorescence lifetimes of roughly 800 ps with a standard deviation of ~120 ps were determined. These results were compared to streak camera measurements. Furthermore, a general fluorescence lifetime determination algorithm is proposed. The evaluation algorithm has an analytic, linear relationship between the fluorescence lifetime and detector signal ratio. In combination with the DIME detector scheme, it is a faster, more accurate and more sensitive approach for rapid fluorescence lifetime imaging than previously proposed techniques. Monte Carlo simulations were conducted to analyze the sensitivity of the detector scheme as well as to compare the proposed evaluation algorithm to previously presented rapid lifetime determination algorithms.

Heat Release in the End-Gas Prior to Knock in Lean, Rich and Stoichiometric Mixtures With and Without Egr

SI Engine knock is caused by autoignition in the unburnt part of the mixture (end-gas) ahead of the propagating flame. Autoignition of the end-gas occurs when the temperature and pressure exceeds a critical limit when comparatively slow reactions - releasing moderate amounts of heat - transform into ignition and rapid heat release. In this paper the difference in the heat released in the end-gas - by low temperature chemistry - between lean, rich, stochiometric, and stoichiometric mixtures diluted with cooled EGR was examined by measuring the temperature in the end-gas with Dual Broadband Rotational CARS. The measured temperature history was compared with an isentropic temperature calculated from the cylinder pressure trace. The experimentally obtained values for knock onset were compared with results from a two-zone thermodynamic model including detailed chemistry modelling of the end-gas reactions. (Less)

Stray light rejection in rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy by use of a sodium-seeded flame

A common experimental problem with rotational coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy (CARS) is undesired spectral interference that is due to stray light from the primary laser beams. Also, for the most developed approach, dual-broadband rotational CARS, practical measurements often suffer from stray light interference from the narrow-band laser, inasmuch as the CARS signal is produced inherently in the spectral vicinity of the narrow-band laser beam. An optical filter does not provide a sufficiently sharp transmission profile, thus leading to signal loss and spectral distortion of the rotational CARS signal. An atomic filter consisting of a sodium-seeded flame is presented here as a solution to the problem, and its usefulness was demonstrated in dual-broadband rotational CARS experiments.