Ronald L. Graves

Fuel Economy and Emissions of the Ethanol-Optimized Saab 9-5 Biopower

Saab Automobile recently released the BioPower engines, advertised to use increased turbocharger boost and spark advance on ethanol fuel to enhance performance. Specifications for the 2.0 liter turbocharged engine in the Saab 9-5 Biopower 2.0t report 150 hp (112 kW) on gasoline and a 20% increase to 180 hp (134 kW) on E85 (nominally 85% ethanol, 15% gasoline). While FFVs sold in the U.S. must be emissions certified on Federal Certification Gasoline as well as on E85, the European regulations only require certification on gasoline. Owing to renewed and growing interest in increased ethanol utilization in the U.S., a European-specification 2007 Saab 9-5 Biopower 2.0t was acquired by the Department of Energy and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for benchmark evaluations. Results show that the vehicle’s gasoline equivalent fuel economy on the Federal Test Procedure (FTP) and the Highway Fuel Economy Test (HFET) are on par with similar U.S.-legal flex-fuel vehicles. Regulated and unregulated emissions measurements on the FTP and the US06 aggressive driving test (part of the supplemental FTP) show that despite the lack of any certification testing requirement in Europe on E85 or on the U.S. cycles, the vehicle is within Tier 2, Bin 5 emissions levels (note that full useful life emissions have not been measured) on the FTP, and also within the 4000 mile (6400 km) US06 emissions limits. Emissions of hydrocarbon-based hazardous air pollutants are higher on Federal Certification Gasoline while ethanol and aldehyde emissions are higher on ethanol fuel. The advertised power increase on E85 was confirmed through acceleration tests on the chassis dynamometer as well as on-road.

Effects of Intermediate Ethanol Blends on Legacy Vehicles and Small Non-Road Engines, Report 1 - Updated

Intended for policymakers and others who make decisions about, and set guidelines for, the proper use of intermediate ethanol blends such as E20 in both vehicle engines and other engine types.

Identification of Potential Efficiency Opportunities in Internal Combustion Engines Using a Detailed Thermodynamic Analysis of Engine Simulation Results

Current political and environmental concerns are driving renewed efforts to develop techniques for improving the efficiency of internal combustion engines. A detailed thermodynamic analysis of an engine and its components from a 1st and 2nd law perspective is necessary to characterize system losses and to identify efficiency opportunities. We have developed a method for performing this analysis using engine-simulation results obtained from WAVE , a commercial engine-modeling software package available from Ricardo, Inc. Results from the engine simulation are post-processed to compute thermodynamic properties such as internal energy, enthalpy, entropy, and availability (or exergy), which are required to perform energy and availability balances of the system. This analysis is performed for all major components (turbocharger, intercooler, EGR cooler, etc.) of the engine as a function of crank angle degree for the entire engine cycle. With this information, we are able to identify potential efficiency opportunities as well as guide engine experiments for exploring new technologies for recovering system losses.

Emission control research to enable fuel efficiency: Department of energy heavy vehicle technologies

The Office of Heavy Vehicle Technologies supports research to enable high-efficiency diesel engines to meet future emissions regulations, thus clearing the way for their use in light trucks as well as continuing as the most efficient powerplant for freight-haulers. Compliance with Tier 2 rules and expected heavy duty engine standards will require effective exhaust emission controls (after-treatment) for diesels in these applications. DOE laboratories are working with industry to improve emission control technologies in projects ranging from application of new diagnostics for elucidating key mechanisms, to development and tests of prototype devices. This paper provides an overview of these R and D efforts, with examples of key findings and developments.

Review of Diesel Exhaust Aftertreatment Programs

The DOE Office of Heavy Vehicle Technologies (OHVT) and its predecessor organizations have maintained aggressive projects in diesel exhaust aftertreatment since 1993. The Energy Policy Act of 1992, Section 2027, specifically authorized DOE to help accelerate the ability of U. S. diesel engine manufacturers to meet emissions regulations while maintaining the compression ignition engines inherently high efficiency. A variety of concepts and devices have been evaluated for NOx and Particulate matter (PM) control. Additionally, supporting technology in diagnostics for catalysis, PM measurement, and catalyst/reductant systems are being developed. This paper provides a summary of technologies that have been investigated and provides recent results from ongoing DOE-sponsored R and D. NOx control has been explored via active NOx catalysis, several plasma-assisted systems, electrochemical cells, and fuel additives. Both catalytic and non-catalytic filter technologies have been investigated for PM control.

The Effect of Aromatics and Cycloparaffins on Dl Diesel Emissions

The effects of the chemical composition of Diesel fuels on emissions is a critical issue for future Diesel fuels and synthetic fuels. In order to understand these effects, a series of fuels prepared from blends of pure hydrocarbons were studied in a single cylinder, DI Diesel engine. the base fuel was a 2:1 mixture by volume of iso-octane and tetradecane. The exhaust emissions measured were: CO, CO 2 , O 2 , NO x , UHC, aldehydes, particulates, and soluble organic fraction

Summary Report on the Transportation Combustion Engine Efficiency Colloquium Held at USCAR, March 3 and 4, 2010

This report summarizes results from an invited two-day colloquium of twenty-nine combustion engine experts from academia, industry, and national labs that was convened March 3rd and 4th, 2010, at the headquarters of the United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR) in Southfield, Michigan. The colloquium was held at the request of The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Freedom Car and Vehicle Technologies (OFCVT) to review and assess the current state of transportation combustion engine technology from theoretical and practical perspectives. In the ensuing discussions, the experts were able to reach a broad consensus on some important questions regarding current fuel efficiency limits. They also identified technology barriers and recommended specific near and longer-term RD (2) Arrive at a consensus on the theoretical and practical fuel efficiencies that can be achieved; and (3) Recommend near and longer-term R&D priorities for DOE to consider in developing their strategic planning for reaching efficiency goals. This report summarizes the main discussion points and recommendations that emerged from the meeting. Included are areas where there is widespread consensus and areas where there are still important technical uncertainties and wide ranging opinions.