Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Numerical comparison of HCCI combustion mode between a free piston linear engine and traditional crankshaft engine

  • Published:
Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The free piston linear engine (FPLE) eliminates the crankshaft components and supports variable compression ratio operation. This characteristic makes it as one of the most appropriate choices to adopt HCCI combustion mode. This work aims to reveal the preliminary characteristics of HCCI combustion in FPLE and compare it with traditional crankshaft engines (TCE). The HCCI combustion model of TCE and FPLE was established by using a chemical kinetic reaction mechanism, and it then was numerically calculated to obtain the combustion and emission performance. The results indicate that the typical two-stage reaction characteristic of HCCI combustion also occur in the FPLE. Although the final cumulative heat release of the two types of engines is approximately the same, the low-temperature reaction stage of FPLE comes later, which also leads to the lag of its high-temperature reaction stage. In addition, the TCE features with earlier heat release rate, higher peak pressure and temperature, and longer duration of high temperature, which are beneficial to promote the reaction of soot, thereby slightly reducing soot emissions, but also increasing NO emissions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12
Fig. 13

Similar content being viewed by others

Abbreviations

FPLE:

Free piston linear engine

TCE:

Traditional crankshaft engine

ECA:

Equivalent crank angle

HCCI:

Homogeneous charge compression ignition

TDC:

Top dead center

BDC:

Bottom dead center

EGR:

Exhaust gas recirculation

CFD:

Computational fluid dynamics

DAQ:

Data acquisition

References

  1. Wang Z, Liu H, Reitz RD. Knocking combustion in spark-ignition engines. Prog Energy Combust Sci. 2017;61:78–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Namar MM, Jahanian O. Energy and exergy analysis of a hydrogen-fueled HCCI engine. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2019;137(1):205–15.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Abdelmalek Z, Alamian R, Shadloo MS, Maleki A, Karimipour A. Numerical study on the performance of a homogeneous charge compression ignition engine fueled with different blends of biodiesel. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-020-09513-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Hung NB, Lim O. A review of free-piston linear engines. Appl Energy. 2016;178:78–977.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Jia BR, Mikalsen R, Smallbone A, Roskilly AP. A study and comparison of frictional losses in free-piston engine and crankshaft engines. Appl Therm Eng. 2018;140:217–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Yuan CH, Jing Y, Liu CZ, He YT. Effect of variable stroke on fuel combustion and heat release of a free piston linear hydrogen engine. Int J Hydrogen Energy. 2019;44:20416–25.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Yuan CH, Ren H, Jing Y, Xu J, He YT. The effect of motion on fuel diffusion and mixture preparation of a free-piston linear hydrogen engine. Int J Hydrogen Energy. 2019;40(10):4996–5006.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Murugapoopathi S, Vasudevan D. Performance, combustion and emission characteristics on VCR multi-fuel engine running on methyl esters of rubber seed oil. J Therm Anal Calorim. 2019;138(2):1329–43.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Mikalsen R, Roskilly AP. A review of free-piston engine history and applications. Appl Therm Eng. 2007;27(14):2339–522.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Aichlmayr HT, Kittelson DB, Zachariah MR. Micro-HCCI combustion: experimental characterization and development of a detailed chemical kinetic model with coupled piston motion. Combust Flame. 2003;135:227–48.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Khandal SV, Banapurmath NR, Gaitonde VN. Performance studies on homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engine powered with alternative fuels. Renew Energy. 2019;132:683–93.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Calam A, Solmaz H, Yilmaz E, Icingur Y. Investigation of effect of compression ratio on combustion and exhaust emissions in a HCCI engine. Energy. 2019;168:1208–16.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Anh TL, Duy VN, Thi HK, Xa HN. Experimental investigation on establishing the HCCI process fueled by N-heptane in a direct injection diesel engine at different compression ratios. Sustainability. 2018;10(11):3878.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Geng H, Wang Y, Jiang H, Li G, Tian X. Experimental study on HCCI combustion optimization of hydraulic free piston engine. Chin Intern Combust Engine Eng. 2017;38:9–14.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Wang Q, Wu F, Zhao Y, Bai J, Huang R. Study on combustion characteristics and ignition limits extending of micro free-piston engines. Energy. 2019;179:805–14.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Singh AP, Agarwal AK. An experimental investigation of combustion, emissions and performance of a diesel fuelled HCCI engine. SAE Technical Papers. 2012; 2014-01-1329.

  17. Zhen X, Yang W, Xu S, Zhu Y, Tao C, Tao X, Song M. The engine knock analysis—an overview. Appl Energy. 2012;92:628–36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Iida N, Kubo S, Yoshida Y, Kidoguchi K. Combustion analysis of methanol-fueled ATAC engine by spectroscopic observation. Trans Jpn Soc Mech Eng. 1993;59:4014–21.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Wang Q, Zhao Y, Wu F, Bai J. Study on the combustion characteristics and ignition limits of the methane homogeneous charge compression ignition with hydrogen addition in micro-power devices. Fuel. 2019;236:354–64.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Yuan CH, Liu Y, Han CJ, He YT. An investigation of mixture formation characteristics of a free-piston gasoline engine with direct-injection. Energy. 2019;173:626–36.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Yuan CH, Jing Y, He YT. Coupled dynamic effect of combustion variation on gas exchange stability of a free piston linear engine. Appl Therm Eng. 2020;173:115201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Yuan CH, Feng HH, He YT, Xu J. Combustion characteristics analysis of a free-piston engine generator coupling with dynamic and scavenging. Energy. 2016;102:637–49.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Veynante D, Vervisch L. Turbulent combustion modeling. Prog Energy Combust Sci. 2011;28:193–266.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. An Y, Jaasim M, Raman V, Pérez FEH, Hong GI, Johansson B. Homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) and partially premixed combustion (PPC) in compression ignition engine with low octane gasoline. Energy. 2018;158:181–91.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Taghavifar H, Nemati A, Walther JH. Combustion and exergy analysis of multi-component diesel-DME-methanol blends in HCCI engine. Energy. 2019;187:115951.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Tripathi R, Burke U, Ramalingam AK, Lee C, Davis AC, Cai L, Selim H, Fernandes RX, Heufer KA, Sarathy SM, Pitsch H. Oxidation of 2-methylfuran and 2-methylfuran/n-heptane blends: an experimental and modeling study. Combust Flame. 2018;196:54–70.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Andrae J, Brinck T, Kalghatgi GT. HCCI experiments with toluene reference fuels modeled by a semidetailed chemical kinetic model. Combust Flame. 2008;155:696–712.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Wang H, Yao M, Yue Z, Jia M, Reitz RD. A reduced toluene reference fuel chemical kinetic mechanism for combustion and polycyclic-aromatic hydrocarbon predictions. Combust Flame. 2015;162:2390–404.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Zheng Z, Yao M. Numerical study on the chemical reaction kinetics of n-heptane for HCCI combustion process. Trans CSICE. 2004;85:2605–15.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51805056) and the Open Foundation of Chongqing key laboratory of “human-vehicle-road” cooperation and safety for mountain complex environment (Grant No. 2018HVRC03). We express sincere gratitude to the sponsors.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Traffic and Transportation, Chongqing Jiaotong University, Chongqing, 400074, China

    Shan Zeng, Yuan Jing & Chenheng Yuan

  2. Chongqing Key Laboratory of “Human-Vehicle-Road” Cooperation and Safety for Mountain Complex Environment, Chongqing Jiaotong University, Chongqing, 400074, China

    Chenheng Yuan

Authors
  1. Shan Zeng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Yuan Jing
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Chenheng Yuan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chenheng Yuan.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zeng, S., Jing, Y. & Yuan, C. Numerical comparison of HCCI combustion mode between a free piston linear engine and traditional crankshaft engine. J Therm Anal Calorim 146, 1359–1369 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-020-10086-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-020-10086-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation