Combustion, Performance and Emission Analysis of an Oxygen-Controlling Downsized SI Engine

Abstract

In the present study, experiments were carried out in a single-cylinder downsized SI engine with different rates of oxygen (15% to 27% by volume in the total mixture of intake gases except fuel) and equivalence ratios (from 0.45 to 1). Therefore, the oxygen volume fraction is due to oxygen enrichment or nitrogen dilution. The study of the impact of controlling the oxygen concentration on the combustion characteristics and emissions was performed at 1 400 rpm, at several loads (Indicated Mean Effective Pressure (IMEP) from 400 to 1 000 kPa). For each operation point, the spark advance and the intake pressure were adjusted simultaneously in order to maintain the load and obtain a minimum value of the indicated Specific Fuel Consumption (SFC). The effect of the oxygen concentration on the engine combustion characteristics was simulated by using the commercial software AMESim, with the combustion model developed by IFP Energies nouvelles, and an adapted algorithm was used to avoid residual gas calibration. By implementing a correlation for the laminar burning velocity, the in-cylinder pressures were perfectly predicted with a maximum pressure relative error of less than 2% for almost all the operating points. The classification of engine combustion according to the Peters-Borghi diagram, gives a deeper insight into the interaction between turbulence and the flame front.