Implementation and Analysis of the Pre-Chamber Ignition Concept in a SI Engine for Passenger Car Applications

Abstract

The global greenhouse gas emissions increase since the start of the Industrial Revolution has become a serious hazard to human life. In addition to power generation and industry, transportation, with the rise in the total vehicle number in the last decades, is one of the main contributors to this exponential increase of global warming-causing gases. In fact, cities such as Barcelona or Madrid, among many others, are imposing traffic restrictions to mitigate this situation. However, mankind is still on time to reverse this negative tendency and fix the environmental issue for the upcoming generations.The main goal of the present Thesis focuses on the study, implementation and analysis of the passive pre-chamber ignition concept in a near-future light-duty passenger car application. To be more specific, the investigation addresses the physical phenomena involving the combustion process when pre-chamber ignition system is used in a spark-ignition engine. Then, some strategies to improve thermal efficiency while employing this concept are applied. Finally, with all the knowledge gathered, basic guidelines for a pre-chamber pre-design are presented.The first approach to the concept consists of its direct implementation in the engine, obtaining experimental results in three different operating conditions in terms of engine load and speed. Furthermore, different prechamber geometries are also evaluated. Although its direct implementation is relatively straightforward by exchanging the spark plug, understanding some of the relevant phenomena related to the combustion process, such as gas exchange or jet-tip penetration, is extremely difficult without the support of computational tools. This is the main reason supporting the use of 1D numerical tools in the present Thesis, since with proper modeling based on experimental data, further knowledge can be obtained in those situations where experimental evaluations are not feasible. These 1D tools have the benefits of their low computational cost and their ability to provide reasonably good results in a short period of time. ix xv[8] F. D. Sabatino, P. J. Martinez-Hernandiz, R. N. Rosa, and I. Ekoto. "Investigation of the effects of passive pre-chamber nozzle pattern and ignition system on engine performance and emissions". International Journal of Engine Research 0 (0), 2022.