Vortex formation in a proposed detonation internal combustion engine
- Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL (United States)
A possible configuration for taking advantage of detonation combustion in an internal combustion engine is described, which uses a separate detonation combustion chamber that discharges tangentially into a vortex chamber formed by the piston and cylinder at top dead center. The vortex chamber is designed to efficiently store a portion of the kinetic energy produced by the detonation wave in the form of a vortex, which would subsequently be converted into static pressure. By placing this chamber above the piston surface, the detonation and primary shock waves are directed parallel to the piston surface, thus avoiding potentially destructive loads to the piston. The rapid burning followed by mixing with air in the vortex chamber may reduce the formation of NOx and unburned hydrocarbons as compared to conventional combustion. Such a configuration may efficiently take advantage of clean-burning slow-deflagrating fuels such as natural gas to yield constant volume-type efficiencies. Shock wave propagation through the vortex chamber was simulated to qualitatively observe the vortex storage and rapid mixing characteristics. 30 refs.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 117641
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Propulsion and Power, Vol. 11, Issue 3; Other Information: PBD: May 1995
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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