Fuel properties to enable lifted-flame combustion
- Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI (United States)
The Fuel Properties to Enable Lifted-Flame Combustion project responded directly to solicitation DE-FOA-0000239 AOI 1A, Fuels and Lubricants for Advanced Combustion Regimes. This subtopic was intended to encompass clean and highly-efficient, liquid-fueled combustion engines to achieve extremely low engine-out nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) as a target and similar efficiency as state-of-the-art direct injection diesel engines. The intent of this project was to identify how fuel properties can be used to achieve controllable Leaner Lifted Flame Combustion (LLFC) with low NOx and PM emissions. Specifically, this project was expected to identify and test key fuel properties to enable LLFC and their compatibility with current fuel systems and to enhance combustion models to capture the effect of fuel properties on advanced combustion. Successful demonstration of LLFC may reduce the need for after treatment devices, thereby reducing costs and improving thermal efficiency. The project team consisted of key technical personnel from Ford Motor Company (FMC), the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW), Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories (LLNL). Each partner had key roles in achieving project objectives. FMC investigated fuel properties relating to LLFC and sooting tendency. Together, FMC and UW developed and integrated 3D combustion models to capture fuel property combustion effects. FMC used these modeling results to develop a combustion system and define fuel properties to support a single-cylinder demonstration of fuel-enabled LLFC. UW investigated modeling the flame characteristics and emissions behavior of different fuels, including those with different cetane number and oxygen content. SNL led spray combustion experiments to quantify the effect of key fuel properties on combustion characteristics critical for LLFC, as well as single cylinder optical engine experiments to improve fundamental understanding of flame lift-off, generate model validation data, and demonstrate LLFC concurrent with FMC efforts. Additionally, LLNL was added to the project during the second year to develop a detailed kinetic mechanism for a key oxygenate to support CFD modeling. Successful completion of this project allowed the team to enhance fundamental understanding of LLFC, improve the state of current combustion models and increase understanding of desired fuel properties. This knowledge also improves our knowledge of how cost effective and environmentally friendly renewable fuels can assist in helping meet future emission and greenhouse gas regulations.
- Research Organization:
- Ford Motor Company, Detroit, MI (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- EE0005386
- OSTI ID:
- 1203046
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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