Numerical and experimental analysis of the combustion in a Single-Cylinder research engine with passive TJI pre-chamber operating with hydrated ethanol

Abstract

Advanced ignition systems, such as turbulent jet ignition, have the capacity to improve the combustion process of internal combustion engines, increasing fuel conversion efficiency and reducing emissions, especially when applied with ethanol biofuel. Technologies that take advantage of the local energy potential, taking into account the geographic, demographic and social characteristics of each country, increase the diversity of solutions for the sustainable future of the transport sector. The present work aims to develop a system with a passive pre-chamber operating in turbulent jet ignition mode, applied to a single-cylinder research engine with a stoichiometric air–fuel mixture of ethanol. Numerical simulations were carried out and experimentally validated applying the commercial software CONVERGE CFD. The results showed that the optimized configuration presented higher fuel conversion efficiency, when compared to conventional spark ignition, thus producing greater savings per kilometer driven and lessing the dependence on fossil fuels. The pre-chambers with both lateral holes and a central hole showed a maximum NOx reduction of 5.9 g/kWh, reducing the second half of combustion by 6.2 crank angle degrees and the first half of combustion by up to 1.8 crank angle degrees compared to SI. This indicates a potential for increasing the compression ratio for pre-chamber configurations without the occurrence of knock. Furthermore, there is a direct relationship between the quenching of the jets after exiting the pre-chamber holes and turbulence, with quenching occurring when turbulent kinetic energy was greater than 15000 m2/s2.