The potential of a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine with variable compression ratio has been experimentally investigated. The experiments were carried out in a single cylinder engine, equipped with a modified cylinder head. Altering the position of a secondary piston in the cylinder head enabled a change of the compression ratio. The secondary piston was controlled by a hydraulic system, which was operated from the control room. Dual port injection systems were used, which made it possible to change the ratio of two different fuels with the engine running. By mixing iso-octane with octane number 100 and normal heptane with octane number 0, it was possible to obtain any octane rating between 0 and 100. By using an electrical heater for the inlet air, it was possible to adjust the inlet air temperature to a selected value. In this way it was possible to study the relationship between the fuel's octane number, the inlet air temperature and the compression ratio needed to get auto-ignition close to Top Dead Center (TDC). Different fuel mixture ratios of gasoline and diesel fuel have also been tested in the same manner. All tests were carried out with a constant air/fuel equivalence ratio (λ) of 3.0. The test results show that almost any liquid fuel can be used in an HCCI engine using a variable compression ratio. The indicated efficiency did not increase with increased compression ratio as much as expected. This was mainly due to a decrease in combustion efficiency with increased compression ratio. NOx emissions were overall very low, and did not increase much with increased compression ratio. With diesel fuel, smoke was generated in some cases. Emissions of unburned hydrocarbons were quite high for all cases and they increased with increased compression ratio.

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The Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) combustion progress has been characterized by means of high-speed fuel tracer Planar Laser Induced Fluorescence (PLIF) combined with simultaneous chemiluminescence imaging. Imaging has been conducted using a high-speed laser and detector system. The system can acquire a sequence of eight images within less than one crank angle. The engine was run at 1200 rpm on isooctane or ethanol and a slight amount of acetone was added as a fuel tracer, providing a marker for the unburned areas. The PLIF sequences showed that, during the first stage of combustion, a well distributed decay of fuel concentration occurs. During the later parts of the combustion process the fuel concentration images present much more structure, with distinct edges between islands of unburned fuel and products. The transition between the evenly distributed fuel oxidation in the beginning and the large structures at the end, is most likely the result of a gradual amplification of small temperature inhomogeneities and an expansion of burned gas compressing the unburned.

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A previously presented robust and fast diagnostic NOx model was modified into a predictive model. This was done by using simple yet physically-based models for fuel injection, ignition delay, premixed heat release rate and diffusion combustion heat release rate.The model can be used both for traditional high temperature combustion and for high-EGR low temperature combustion.It was possible to maintain a high accuracy and calculation speed of the NOx model itself. The root mean square of the relative model error is 16 % and the calculation speed is around one second on a PC. Combustion characteristics such as ignition delay, CA50 and the general shape of the heat release rate are well predicted by the combustion model. The model is aimed at real time NOx calculation and optimization in a vehicle on the road.