UV Visible Spectroscopic Measurements of Dual-Fuel PCCI Engine

Balaban Drago Rzvan

Ecole Polytechnique de l'Universit d'Orlans 19/03/2010/ 1

ABSTRACT

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19/03/2010/ 2

ABSTRACT
In this work, optical diagnostics were applied in a transparent DI diesel engine equipped with the head of Euro5 commercial engine and the last generation CR injection system. In order to realize the PCCI combustion the injection of neat bio-ethanol was performed in the intake manifold and European commercial diesel fuel was injected into the cylinder.

Ecole Polytechnique de l'Universit d'Orlans

19/03/2010/ 3

ABSTRACT
UV-visible imaging and spectroscopic measurements were performed in the engine in order to investigate the autoignition of the charge and the combustion process, respectively.

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19/03/2010/ 4

INTRODUCTION

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INTRODUCTION
One of the major contributors to the greenhouse effect is the transport sector due to the heavy increasing of the traffic level. This is why, especially in developing countries reasonably political decisions must be taken to address this problem. In addition, the declining supply of mineral fuels is becoming a limiting factor.

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19/03/2010/ 6

INTRODUCTION
The solutions to this problem are: Replacing fossil source energy with bio-energy introducing bio fuels blending bio fuels with petroleum-based ones
(this two alternatives are not mutually exclusive)

Advanced combustion strategies

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ADVANCED COMBUSTION STRATEGIES

Advanced combustion strategies could help to reduce pollutant emission while keeping constant the performance. Premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI) has been shown to be a promising strategy to simultaneously reduce NOx and soot emissions while realizing improved fuel economy.

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ADVANCED COMBUSTION STRATEGIES

In this work, bio-ethanol is added to the intake air so that the dual-fuel PCCI combustion is realized. European commercial diesel fuel and pure bioethanol were used. The first one was injected directly in the cylinder. But because the solubility of the bio-ethanol in diesel depends on many variables it was decided not to blend the two fuels in the tank but to mix them directly into the cylinder injecting the bio-ethanol in the intake manifold.
Ecole Polytechnique de l'Universit d'Orlans 19/03/2010/ 9

ADVANCED COMBUSTION STRATEGIES

Measurements were carried out in a single cylinder optical engine. Several injection strategies were tested varying the amount of bio-ethanol. The PCCI combustion was investigated by imaging and spectral measurements of the natural emissivity both in the visible (VIS) and in the near ultraviolet (UV).

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19/03/2010/ 10

EXPERIMENTAL APPARATUS

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OPTICAL SINGLE CYLINDER ENGINE

The optical single-cylinder diesel engine used for combustion diagnosis was equipped with the combustion system architecture and injection system of a four-cylinder standard engine. The transparent single-cylinder engine has been equipped with head and Common Rail (CR) injection system of the fourcylinder, 16 valves, 1.9 l standard production engine.

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OPTICAL SINGLE CYLINDER ENGINE

The engine lay-out with the experimental apparatus

Ecole Polytechnique de l'Universit d'Orlans 19/03/2010/ 13

OPTICAL SINGLE CYLINDER ENGINE

Engine and injection system specifications

The optical engine utilized a conventionally extended piston with crown window which provided full view of combustion bowl by locating an appropriate 45 UV-visible fixed mirror inside the extended piston.

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OPTICAL SINGLE CYLINDER ENGINE

The production intake manifold of the engine was modified to set an electronic port fuel injector (PFI) generally used in modern gasoline engines. It was a production one suitable for gasoline and E85 fuel. It was fed by an automotive electrical pump able to reach up to 3.5 bar injection pressure and it was used with pure ethanol fuel.

(Variable swirl actuator)

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OPTICAL SINGLE CYLINDER ENGINE

In order to realize a kinetically controlled combustion process it was necessary to increase the ignition delay of the diesel fuel that is highly reactivity. Bio-ethanol mixed with diesel fuel allowed reaching this objective and improve further the combustion process in terms of performance and emission. In particular, it is low reactive fuel; it has high oxygen content and free aromatics compounds, and has a smaller LHV and density than diesel fuel. Finally, the larger research octane number (RON), with respect to gasoline, could permit to operate both with high compression ratio and high boost.
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ENGINE OPERATING CONDITIONS

The diesel fuel was injected by means of single main injection. For all the investigated strategies, the injection starts at 6 ca before TDC, has a duration of 450s and a pressure of 800 bar. The bio-ethanol injections were performed in the intake manifold at 3.5 bar, when both the intake and the exhaust valves were closed , so that the ethanol had sufficient time to evaporate and to mix well with the intake air.

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RESULTS

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RESULTS

The aim of this work was to characterize PCCI combustion realized with bio-ethanol/diesel fuels in an optical CR diesel engine. To this aim, the dual-fuel reactivity controlled compression ignition mode was compared with conventional diesel combustion by means of optical and thermodynamic measurements.

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RESULTS
The figure shows the histories of in-cylinder pressure, the rate of heat release (ROHR) and the combustion temperature at 1500 rpm for all the injection strategies investigated compared with premixed diesel combustion. The peak of the incylinder pressure remains almost constant and starts to decrease for the DOI 70 injection strategy.

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19/03/2010/ 20

RESULTS
To gain better understanding of the ethanol addition on combustion process, optical diagnosis was applied. Spectroscopic measurements and chemiluminescence images were recorded and analyzed together with the ROHR traces. In the range 1 - 4.5ca ATDC, the ROHR curve has a very slow rate indicating the development of the cool flame stage. From 4.5ca ATDC up to 8ca ATDC the ROHR curve shows a premixed behavior with the peak at 6.5ca ATDC. Kinetically controlled diffusive combustion was noted from 8ca up to 12ca ATDC.

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19/03/2010/ 21

RESULTS
The spectra acquired during the cool flame stage of the combustion in five different regions of interest along the center of combustion chamber were reported from 2.5ca to 4.5ca. In the right corner of the images the relative intensity for a better representation of the image are reported. In the same figure UV-VIS images, OH (hydroxide) and HCO (hydrogen carbonate) spatial distribution are analyzed.

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19/03/2010/ 22

RESULTS
In this figure, the spectra detected in the premixed combustion are reported. At 5.5ca ATDC, the spectra has a very distinct behavior characteristic of hot combustion. At 6.5ca ATDC the intensities of all the spectra continue to increase and OH (hydroxide) becomes the most dominant specie that we can consider as characteristic of the premixed combustion

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19/03/2010/ 23

RESULTS

The correlation between the integral OH (hydroxide) radical and heat release rate is reported for the several injection strategies investigated. The peaks of the integral OH move with the increase of the ethanol and are shifted farther from the TDC than the ROHR peak.

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SUMMARY / CONCLUSION

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SUMMARY / CONCLUSION
Dual-fuel PCCI combustion was realized in a DI optical engine fueled with commercial European fuel and pure bio-ethanol. Measurements were performed at fixed engine speed. Diesel fuel was injected in the combustion chamber by CR injection system at 800 bar and bioethanol in the intake manifold by commercial PFI system at 3.5 bar. The effect of different bio-ethanol amount was evaluated by thermodynamic and spectroscopic data analysis.

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19/03/2010/ 26

SUMMARY / CONCLUSION
The in-cylinder pressure curve showed that the peak pressure remains almost constant and starts to decrease for the highest amount of ethanol useful to guarantee the combustion. The increase of the ethanol amount induced the shift of the pressure peak location that moved away from the TDC, indicating the effect of the low cetane number.

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19/03/2010/ 27

SUMMARY / CONCLUSION
All the ROHR traces showed two-stage ignition behavior with the same start of combustion of the cool flame meanwhile the SOC of high temperature reactions happened at different crank angle varying the ethanol amount. In particular, they went away from the TDC, they had longer ignition delays caused by the reduced ignition ability of the charge at increasing the ethanol amount.

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19/03/2010/ 28

SUMMARY / CONCLUSION
The ROHR curves showed a well distinct premixed behavior. For DOI up to 20 crank angles, the ROHR curves had very narrow durations and peak locations close to the TDC; from DOI30 the premixed peaks decreased and they shifted away from the TDC. Their durations became longer demonstrating the ethanol inhibitor effect.

Ecole Polytechnique de l'Universit d'Orlans

19/03/2010/ 29

SUMMARY / CONCLUSION

Spectroscopic measurements and UV-VIS digital imaging were performed in order to investigate autoignition and combustion. During the cool flames stage, chemiluminescence spectra revealed the presence of CH, HCO (hydrogen carbonate), HCOH (hydroxymethylene), C , CN (cyanide).
2

Ecole Polytechnique de l'Universit d'Orlans

19/03/2010/ 30

SUMMARY / CONCLUSION
In particular, all the spectra presented a background due to HCO (hydrogen carbonate), HCOH (hydroxymethylene) radicals and several peaks due to the other radicals and species that superimposed it. When the second stage ignition occurs, a strong evidence of OH (hydroxide) and CH radicals was detected. Again they superimposed the background due to HCO (hydrogen carbonate), HCOH (hydroxymethylene) which start to transform into COO.

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19/03/2010/ 31

SUMMARY / CONCLUSION
HCO (hydrogen carbonate) and OH (hydroxide) radical were detected near the bowl wall where the fuel impinged showing the stratified reactivity of the mixture. In particular, OH was widely distributed in the chamber and during the whole combustion process. The OH integrated intensity for all conditions tested showed very strong dependency on the ROHR trace. This suggested the use of OH radical to follow the PCCI combustion timing even if the combustion is moving from premixed regime to a mixing controlled one.

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