Flame Characteristics and Abnormal Combustion of Methane Port Injection and Isooctane Direct Injection with Injection Timings Considered
Publication: Journal of Energy Engineering
Volume 149, Issue 5
Abstract
Natural gas (NG) is a low-carbon fuel that can achieve low carbon emissions and high efficiencies. However, the low mean molecular mass and low energy density of methane result in low engine performance, and blending methane with gasoline is an effective way of improving the performance of NG engines. In this study, flame characteristics (including abnormal combustion) and engine performance are optically studied under methane port injection and isooctane direct injection conditions. The results indicate that the addition of isooctane can significantly increase the power output of NG engines. Under partial-load conditions, the minimum ignition advance for best IMEP is delayed with the addition of isooctane because of the higher flame speed of isooctane, and isooctane addition primarily improves the turbulent flame propagation rather than the initial flame formation. As for the isooctane injection timing, the indicated mean effective pressure (IMEP) first increases and then decreases with the delay in isooctane injection. The hot spots in the flame images confirm that late injection results in isooctane inhomogeneity, which reduces the engine’s thermal efficiency. At high loads, the low energy density of methane can lower the knocking intensity, even in the presence of auto-ignition at a speed of . The knocking pressure can lead to the ejection of oil droplets, which can increase the flame speed in the subsequent cycle.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
This study is supported by the Graduate Innovative Fund of Wuhan Institute of Technology (CX2022468) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51909195).
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Energy Engineering
Volume 149 • Issue 5 • October 2023
Copyright
© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Dec 13, 2022
Accepted: Apr 14, 2023
Published online: Jun 19, 2023
Published in print: Oct 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Nov 19, 2023
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