Effects of Changing Drive Control Method of Idling Wood Size Reduction Machines on Fuel Consumption and Exhaust Emissions

Abstract

Operating conditions often fluctuate during processing of branches and sawmill offcuts using low-power wood size reduction machines (WSRMs), mainly due to changes in wood supply frequency. This results in relatively high proportions of idling time. Fuel consumption and associated exhaust emissions of WSRMs with combustion engines can be reduced by using innovative drive unit control systems during idling. The objective of the research was to determine the effects of two speed control systems on the fuel consumption and exhaust emissions of a WSRM with a two-cylinder cutting mechanisms driven by a small 9.5 kW spark ignition engine. Speed control system A (commercially available) had a substantially higher rotational speed than system B (an innovative, adaptive solution subject to patent application No. P433586). Pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) wood sawmill offcuts (average cross-sectional area, length and water content: 25×40 mm, 3000 mm and ca. 12, respectively) were used in system tests at a feed rate of ca. 5 pieces min-1. Material of this size is typically processed by such machines. Operating conditions were monitored by recording the rotational speed and torque. Emissions of harmful exhaust compounds–carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrocarbons (HC), and nitrogen oxides (NOx) – were recorded using a portable emission measurement system. Fuel consumption values were also calculated from the data. The following effects were observed: application of innovative system B resulted in 33% lower fuel consumption, as well as 30%, 37% and 33% lower CO, CO2 and NOx emissions, respectively, than system A, but at the same time 290% higher HC emissions were registered. In operating conditions with higher proportions of idling time, solution B provides even higher reductions in fuel consumption and exhaust emissions.

Effect of the Volumetric Flow Rate Measurement Methodology of Positive Pressure Ventilators on the Parameters of the Drive Unit

“…This is consistent with the characteristics of internal combustion engines, which are characterised by higher fuel consumption as the load increases or as they operate at higher power levels [20][21][22]. Such performance characteristics of small non-road spark-ignition engines are also seen in other applications [23].…”

Problems of operation of positive pressure ventilators on the basis of surveys of Polish officers of the State Fire Service

“…In the small-engine non-road designs used to drive rescue ventilators, the exhaust systems (which also dampen noise) through the compact design are quite small 69 , 70 . One way to reduce the negative impacts (noise 71 , emissions of harmful exhaust gases 35 , 72 , 73 , high temperatures 69 , 70 ) of internal combustion engines is to replace them with electric motors 74 , 75 . However, within the group of emergency ventilator drive units, as demonstrated by Warguła and Kaczmarzyk 36 on the Polish market the most popular are combustion powered ventilators with a power output ranging from 3.4 to 6.3 kW (approximately 50% of the market).…”

Evaluation of the State of Innovative Activity of Machine-Building Enterprise

“…The key to the successful development of machine-building production is the desire of the manufacturer to continuously master the production of new competitive technological machines [8,9], using effective technological processes for their manufacture [10,11], with the best indicators of their adaptability to the prototype to solve a specific technical problem under given conditions [12,13,14]. The development of the machine-building enterprise is achieved through its innovative activities [15,16,17].…”