The use of micro-orifice nozzles and swirl in a small HSDI engine operating at a late split-injection LTC regime

Abstract

This paper describes the investigation of low-temperature combustion (LTC) in a small single-cylinder research high-speed direct injection (HSDI) diesel engine. This engine is representative of passenger car turbocharged diesel engines equipped with a particulate trap and an oxidation catalyst. A medium-load operation mode has been evaluated where the diesel fuel is injected in two injection events close to top dead centre, and high levels of exhaust gas recirculation are used (near stoichiometric air-fuel ratios). The combustion is characterized by extremely low emission of nitrogen oxides (of the order of 10–15 parts per million) and low combustion noise. Three injector nozzles have been tested with 6, 12, and 18 orifices. The orifice diameters are in the range 70–120 μM and have been chosen to obtain injector nozzles with the same hydraulic flow. All three nozzles have been tested at a condition without swirl and at a mean swirl number of 1.7. The effects of the nozzle orifice number and swirl have been investigated by means of analysis of fuel spray, combustion, and emissions. It was found that when the number of orifices is increased, the rate of heat release during the first half of combustion is enhanced. However, during the second part of the combustion, interactions between sprays worsen the air-fuel mixing process and reduce the rate of heat release. Swirl was found to amplify the effects of spray interactions. While normally swirl speeds up the combustion in the second half of the combustion, the opposite happens when spray-spray interaction occurs.