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A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2017) | Viewed by 60391

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Prof. Dr. Evangelos G. Giakoumis

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Guest Editor

School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Athens, Greece
Interests: diesel engine performance and emissions during transient operation; turbocharging; driving cycles; use of biofuels in engines; second-law analysis of IC Engines
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The present Special Issue of Energies aims to gather innovative research and highlight recent advances on the very timely and sensitive subject of exhaust emissions from internal combustion engines. It is a well established fact that exhaust emissions from engines contribute significantly to environmental pollution and greenhouse gases on a global scale. As a result, during the last few decades, on the one hand, emission limits have become increasingly stringent, and, on the other hand, emission production mechanisms and control measures, either internal or in the form of after-treatment devices, have been in the focal point of research. Topics of interest for the Special Issue include (but are not limited to):

Production mechanisms and pollutants formation in spark ignition engines;
Production mechanisms and pollutants formation in diesel engines;
Recent advances in emission legislation;
Exhaust after-treatment systems: three-way catalysts, oxidation catalysts, diesel and gasoline particulate filters, selective catalytic reduction, NO_x adsorbers;
Internal measures for emissions control (exhaust gas recirculation, water injection, etc);
Driving cycle effects on pollutants emissions;
Combustion noise from diesel engines;
Alternative fuels and biofuels effects on pollutants emissions (ethanol, butanol, biodiesel, ether, Fischer Tropsch, etc.);
Recent advances in exhaust emissions experimentation;
Influence of alternative combustion systems, such as HCCI, PCCI and RCCI, on pollutants formation.

Prof. Dr. Evangelos G. Giakoumis
Guest Editors

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Keywords

SI and diesel engine emission mechanisms
exhaust after-treatment systems
driving cycles
use of alternative fuels and biofuels in engines
transient engine operation
experimental analyses
advanced combustion systems (HCCI, PCCI, etc.)
combustion noise radiation

Published Papers (11 papers)

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Editorial

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183 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Diesel and Spark Ignition Engines Emissions and After-Treatment Control: Research and Advancements

by Evangelos G. Giakoumis

Energies 2017, 10(11), 1882; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10111882 - 16 Nov 2017

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3245

Abstract

One of the major risks mankind has encountered during recent years is, without a doubt, the anthropogenic contribution to environmental pollution [...]
Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

7518 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Control Applied to a Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engine Test Bench under Transient Operation: Impact on Engine Performance and Pollutant Emissions

by Ismael Payo, Luis Sánchez, Enrique Caño and Octavio Armas

Energies 2017, 10(11), 1690; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10111690 - 25 Oct 2017

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5259

Abstract

This work presents a methodology to adjust the electronic control system of a reciprocating internal combustion engine test bench and the effect of the control parameters on emissions produced by the engine under two extreme situations: unadjusted and adjusted, both under transient operation. The aim is to provide a tuning guide to those in charge of this equipment not needed to be experts in control engineering. The proposed methodology covers from experimental plant modelling to control parameters determination and experimental validation. The methodology proposed includes the following steps: (i) Understanding of test bench and mathematical modeling; (ii) Model parameters identification; (iii) Control law proposal and tuning from simulation and (iv) Experimental validation. The work has been completed by presenting a comparative experimental study about the effect of the test bench control parameters on engine performance profiles (engine speed, engine torque and relative fuel air ratio) and on regulated gaseous emissions (nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons concentrations) and the profile of number of particles emitted. The whole process, including experimental validation, has been carried out in a test bench composed of a turbocharged, with common rail injection system, light duty diesel engine coupled to a Schenck E-90 eddy current dynamometric brake and its related Schenk X-act control electronics. The work demonstrates the great effect of the test bench control tuning under transient operation on performance and emissions produced by the engine independently of the engine accelerator position demanded before and after the test bench tuning. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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1943 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Theoretical Study of the Effects of Spark Timing on the Performance and Emissions of a Light-Duty Spark Ignited Engine Running under Either Gasoline or Ethanol or Butanol Fuel Operating Modes

by Roussos G. Papagiannakis, Dimitrios C. Rakopoulos and Constantine D. Rakopoulos

Energies 2017, 10(8), 1198; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10081198 - 13 Aug 2017

Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4679

Abstract

Much research is ongoing to find suitable alternate fuels in order to reduce the exhaust emission levels without deteriorating the basic performance characteristics of conventional spark-ignited (SI) engines. One of the methods to achieve the above problem is the use of alcohols as full supplement fuels to normal gasoline. At the same time, many related research studies have shown that the use of alcohols has a negative impact on some basic engine performance characteristics, e.g., brake power output, etc. On the other hand, spark timing is one of the critical engine operating parameters that significantly influences the combustion mechanism inside the combustion chamber of a SI engine. Therefore, the primary objective of the present work is to investigate the effect of spark timing on the performance and emissions characteristics of a conventional, four-stroke, SI engine running under three different fuel operating modes, viz. with conventional gasoline or ethanol or butanol. The specific investigation is conducted by using an in-house, comprehensive, two-zone phenomenological model. The predictive ability of the model is tested against pertinent experimental data and it is found that the computed results are in good agreement with the respective experimental ones. For all test cases examined herein, the results concern basic engine performance characteristics, i.e., cylinder pressure, power output, specific fuel consumption etc., as well as NO and CO emissions. The main objectives of the work were to record and evaluate the impact that spark timing has on the performance characteristics and emitted pollutants of a conventional SI engine, operating under either conventional gasoline or ethanol or butanol fuel operating modes. Moreover, it deals with the determination of an optimum combination between the type of fuel used and the spark timing, so that probable undesirable effects on engine performance characteristics would be avoided. By comparing this investigation results, it is revealed that the use of alcohols as a full substitute fuel of gasoline accompanied with an appropriate alteration of the spark timing, could be a promising solution to improving both the efficiency and environmental behavior of a light-duty, spark-ignited (SI) engine, without causing any harmful problems to the engine operational lifetime. The conclusions from the study may prove valuable for the application of this technological solution to existing conventional SI engines. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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3634 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Comparative Study of the Effect of Turbocompounding and ORC Waste Heat Recovery Systems on the Performance of a Turbocharged Heavy-Duty Diesel Engine

by Amin Mahmoudzadeh Andwari, Apostolos Pesiridis, Vahid Esfahanian, Ali Salavati-Zadeh, Apostolos Karvountzis-Kontakiotis and Vishal Muralidharan

Energies 2017, 10(8), 1087; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10081087 - 26 Jul 2017

Cited by 32 | Viewed by 6789

Abstract

In this study the influence of utilization of two Waste Heat Recovery (WHR) strategies, namely organic Rankine cycle (ORC) and turbocompounding, have been investigated based on the performance of a heavy-duty diesel engine using 1-D simulation engine code (GT-Power) in terms of Brake Specific Fuel Consumptions (BSFC) at various engine speeds and Brake Mean Effective Pressures (BMEP). The model of a 6-cylinder turbocharged engine (Holset HDX55V) was calibrated using an experimental BSFC map to predict engine exhaust thermodynamic conditions such as exhaust mass flow rate and exhaust temperature under various operating conditions. These engine exhaust conditions were then utilized to feed the inlet conditions for both the ORC and turbocompounding models, evaluating the available exhaust energy to be recovered by each technology. Firstly the ORC system model was simulated to obtain the power that can be generated from the system. Having this additional power converted to useful work, the BSFC was observed to reduce around 2–5% depending upon engine’s speed and BMEP. The initial model of the engine was then modified by considering a second turbine representing turbocompounding heat recovery system. The BSFC was increased due to the back-pressure from the second turbine, but the energy generated from the turbine was sufficient to reduce the BSFC further. However, by application of turbocompounding no improvement in BSFC was achieved at low engine’s speeds. It is concluded that ORC heat recovery system produces a satisfactory results at low engine speeds with both low and high loads whereas at medium and high engine speeds turbocompounding heat recovery system causes higher BSFC reduction. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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3915 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental Investigation of the Effect of Biodiesel Blends on a DI Diesel Engine’s Injection and Combustion

by Dimitrios N Tziourtzioumis and Anastassios M Stamatelos

Energies 2017, 10(7), 970; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10070970 - 11 Jul 2017

Cited by 26 | Viewed by 4567

Abstract

Differences in the evolution of combustion in a single cylinder, DI (direct injection) diesel engine fuelled by B20 were observed upon processing of the respective indicator diagrams. Aiming to further investigate the effects of biodiesel on the engine injection and combustion process, the injection characteristics of B0, B20, B40, B60, B80 and B100 were measured at low injection pressure and visualized at low and standard injection pressures. The fuel atomization characteristics were investigated in terms of mean droplet velocity, Sauter mean diameter, droplet velocity and diameter distributions by using a spray visualization system and Laser Doppler Velocimetry. The jet break-up characteristics are mainly influenced by the Weber number, which is lower for biodiesel, mainly due to its higher surface tension. Thus, Sauter mean diameter (SMD) of sprays with biodiesel blended-fuel is higher. Volume mean diameter (VMD) and arithmetic mean diameter (AMD) values also increase with blending ratio. Kinematic viscosity and surface tension become higher as the biodiesel blending ratio increases. The SMD, VMD and AMD of diesel and biodiesel blended fuels decreased with an increase in the axial distance from spray tip. Comparison of estimated fuel burning rates for 60,000 droplets’ samples points to a decrease in mean fuel burning rate for B20 and higher blends. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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5610 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Effect of Fuel Injection Strategy on the Carbonaceous Structure Formation and Nanoparticle Emission in a DISI Engine Fuelled with Butanol

by Simona Silvia Merola, Adrian Irimescu, Silvana Di Iorio and Bianca Maria Vaglieco

Energies 2017, 10(7), 832; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10070832 - 22 Jun 2017

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 5491

Abstract

Within the context of ever wider expansion of direct injection in spark ignition engines, this investigation was aimed at improved understanding of the correlation between fuel injection strategy and emission of nanoparticles. Measurements performed on a wall guided engine allowed identifying the mechanisms involved in the formation of carbonaceous structures during combustion and their evolution in the exhaust line. In-cylinder pressure was recorded in combination with cycle-resolved flame imaging, gaseous emissions and particle size distribution. This complete characterization was performed at three injection phasing settings, with butanol and commercial gasoline. Optical accessibility from below the combustion chamber allowed visualization of diffusive flames induced by fuel deposits; these localized phenomena were correlated to observed changes in engine performance and pollutant species. With gasoline fueling, minor modifications were observed with respect to combustion parameters, when varying the start of injection. The alcohol, on the other hand, featured marked sensitivity to the fuel delivery strategy. Even though the start of injection was varied in a relatively narrow crank angle range during the intake stroke, significant differences were recorded, especially in the values of particle emissions. This was correlated to the fuel jet-wall interactions; the analysis of diffusive flames, their location and size confirmed the importance of liquid film formation in direct injection engines, especially at medium and high load. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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3759 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Impact of Copper Loading on NH₃-Selective Catalytic Reduction, Oxidation Reactions and N₂O Formation over Cu/SAPO-34

by Kirsten Leistner, Florian Brüsewitz, Kurnia Wijayanti, Ashok Kumar, Krishna Kamasamudram and Louise Olsson

Energies 2017, 10(4), 489; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10040489 - 05 Apr 2017

Cited by 30 | Viewed by 5814

Abstract

We developed a procedure for aqueous ion exchange to obtain different Cu loadings of Cu/SAPO-34 (between 0 and 2.6 wt %.) The catalysts were washcoated on monoliths and characterised with respect to their activity and selectivity under standard selective catalytic reduction (SCR), fast SCR, NH₃ oxidation and NO oxidation reactions. They were further characterised using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), H₂-temperature programmed reduction (H₂-TPR), ultraviolet (UV)-vis spectroscopy and NH₃ adsorption. As expected, activity of all reactions increased with copper loading, due to increased number of active sites. However, the N₂O formation during standard and fast SCR yielded interesting mechanistic information. We observed that N₂O formation at low temperature increased with copper loading for the standard SCR reaction, while it decreased for fast SCR. The low-temperature N₂O formation during fast SCR thus occurs predominantly over Brønsted sites. Species responsible for N₂O formation during standard SCR, on the other hand, are formed on the copper sites. We further found that the fast SCR reaction occurs to a significant extent even over the H/SAPO-34 form. The Brønsted sites in SAPO-34 are thus active for the fast SCR reaction. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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7779 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of a Diesel-Engined Vehicle’s Performance and Emissions during the WLTC Driving Cycle—Comparison with the NEDC

by Evangelos G. Giakoumis and Alexandros T. Zachiotis

Energies 2017, 10(2), 240; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10020240 - 16 Feb 2017

Cited by 35 | Viewed by 7465

Abstract

The present work presents results from an experimentally validated simulation code, regarding a turbocharged diesel-powered vehicle running on the recently developed worldwide light-duty vehicles WLTC driving cycle. The simulation is based on an engine mapping approach, with correction coefficients applied vis-à-vis the transient discrepancies encountered. Both performance and engine-out emission results are presented and discussed. As regards the latter, the concerned pollutants are soot and nitrogen monoxide. Since the WLTC driving cycle is scheduled to replace the NEDC in Europe from September 2017 with regard to the certification of passenger cars and light-duty trucks, a comparative analysis between the two test schedules is also performed for the engine/vehicle under study. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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2716 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A New Dynamic Injection System of Urea-Water Solution for a Vehicular Select Catalyst Reduction System

by Long Li, Wei Lin and Youtong Zhang

Energies 2017, 10(1), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/en10010012 - 23 Dec 2016

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4386

Abstract

Since the Euro-ІІІ standard was adopted, the main methods to inhibit NO_x production in diesel engines are exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) and select catalyst reduction (SCR). On these methods SCR offers great fuel economy, so it has received wide attention. However, there also exists a trade-off law between NO_x conversion efficiency and NH₃ slip under dynamic conditions. To inhibit NH₃ slip with high NO_x conversion efficiency, a dynamic control method for a urea water solution (UWS) injection was investigated. The variation phenomena of SCR conversion efficiency with respect to the cross-sensitivity characteristics of the NO_x sensor to NH₃ have been thoroughly analyzed. The methodology of “uncertain conversion efficiency curve tangent analysis” has been applied to estimate the concentration of the slipped NH₃. The correction factor “φ” of UWS injection is obtained by a comparative calculation of the NO_x conversion ability and subsequent NH₃ slip. It also includes methods of flow compensation and flow reduction. The proposed control method has been authenticated under dynamic conditions. In low frequency dynamic experiments, this control method has accurately justified the NH₃ slip process and inhibits the NH₃ emission to a lower level thereby improving the conversion efficiency to a value closer to the target value. The results of European transient cycle (ETC) experiments indicate that NH₃ emissions are reduced by 90.8% and the emission level of NO_x is close to the Euro-Ѵ standard. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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4557 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental Investigation on Wall Film Distribution of Dimethyl Ether/Diesel Blended Fuels Formed during Spray Wall Impingement

by Hanzhengnan Yu, Xingyu Liang, Gequn Shu, Xu Wang, Yuesen Wang and Hongsheng Zhang

Energies 2016, 9(11), 949; https://doi.org/10.3390/en9110949 - 16 Nov 2016

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 5036

Abstract

Dimethyl ether (DME)/diesel blended fuels are used to improve the emissions caused by spray wall impingement during the early injection period. However, experimental results have showed that the spray wall impingement still cannot be avoided due to the engine structure and low density of the in-cylinder charge at the early injection timing. Furthermore, the wall film formed in the spray wall impingement process directly affects fuel/air mixture formation, combustion, exhaust emissions and oil quality subsequently. In this paper, the wall film distribution of DME/diesel blended fuels formed during the spray wall impingement process has been experimentally investigated. The variations of wall film distribution, wall film area and average thickness with different injection pressures, impingement distances, impingement angles and blending ratios have been discussed under both dry wall and wet wall conditions. Results showed that the wall film distribution styles were mainly determined by the spray impingement momentum. The variation of the wall film area and average thickness were affected by three factors including the impingement momentum, wall film mass and fuel properties. Correlation analysis was introduced in order to evaluate the effect of each impact factor on the variation of wall film area and average thickness. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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11526 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Innovative Calibration Method for System Level Simulation Models of Internal Combustion Engines

by Ivo Prah, Ferdinand Trenc and Tomaž Katrašnik

Energies 2016, 9(9), 708; https://doi.org/10.3390/en9090708 - 05 Sep 2016

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5791

Abstract

The paper outlines a procedure for the computer-controlled calibration of the combined zero-dimensional (0D) and one-dimensional (1D) thermodynamic simulation model of a turbocharged internal combustion engine (ICE). The main purpose of the calibration is to determine input parameters of the simulation model in such a way as to achieve the smallest difference between the results of the measurements and the results of the numerical simulations with minimum consumption of the computing time. An innovative calibration methodology is based on a novel interaction between optimization methods and physically based methods of the selected ICE sub-systems. Therein physically based methods were used for steering the division of the integral ICE to several sub-models and for determining parameters of selected components considering their governing equations. Innovative multistage interaction between optimization methods and physically based methods allows, unlike the use of well-established methods that rely only on the optimization techniques, for successful calibration of a large number of input parameters with low time consumption. Therefore, the proposed method is suitable for efficient calibration of simulation models of advanced ICEs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Automotive Engines Emissions and Control)

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