High Efficiency Engine Technologies Program

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Caterpillar's Product Development and Global Technology Division carried out a research program on waste heat recovery with support from DOE (Department of Energy) and the DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory. The objective of the program was to develop a new air management and exhaust energy recovery system that would demonstrate a minimum 10% improvement in thermal efficiency over a base heavy-duty on-highway diesel truck engine. The base engine for this program was a 2007 C15 15.2L series-turbocharged on-highway truck engine with a LPL (low-pressure loop) exhaust recirculation system. The focus of the program was on the development of high efficiency turbomachinery and a high efficiency turbocompound waste heat recovery system. The focus of each area of development was as follows: (1) For turbine stages, the focus was on investigation and development of technologies that would improve on-engine exhaust energy utilization compared to the conventional radial turbines in widespread use today. (2) For compressor stages, the focus was on investigating compressor wheel design parameters beyond the range typically utilized in production, to determine the potential efficiency benefits thereof. (3) For turbocompound, the focus was on the development of a robust bearing system that would provide higher bearing efficiencies compared to systems used in turbocompound power turbines in production. None of the turbocharger technologies investigated involved addition of moving parts, actuators, or exotic materials, thereby increasing the likelihood of a favorable cost-value tradeoff for each technology. And the turbocompound system requires less hardware addition than competing bottoming cycle technologies, making it a more attractive solution from a cost and packaging standpoint. Main outcomes of the program are as follows: (1) Two turbine technologies that demonstrated up to 6% improvement in turbine efficiency on gas stand and 1-3% improvement in thermal efficiency in on-engine testing. (2) A compressor technology that demonstrated 1.5% improvement in compressor efficiency on gas stand compared to production available compressors. (3) A power turbine with high efficiency bearing system that demonstrated excellent rotordynamic stability throughout the required speed range, up to 60,000 rpm. (4) A predicted improvement (using engine simulation) in engine thermal efficiency of 7% at the peak torque design point, when combining the technologies developed in this program.