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Effect of Excessive Air Ratio on Hydrogen-fueled Spark Ignition Engine with High Compression Ratio Using Direct Injection System toward Higher Brake Power and Thermal Efficiency

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Abstract

Hydrogen is advantageous for use in internal combustion engines (ICEs) because of its high laminar flame speed and carbon-neutral characteristics. However, because of its low minimum ignition energy, abnormal combustions such as back-fire, pre-ignition, and knocking hinder its efficient supply as a fuel to ICEs under near stoichiometric conditions. Hence, in this study, the effect of various excessive air ratios (λ) on the performance of a hydrogen-fueled spark ignition engine using port fuel injection (PFI) was evaluated under wide-open throttle conditions. After determining the highest limit for the maximum brake torque, a hydrogen direct injection (DI) system was applied under the same λ and abnormal combustion limits to improve the brake power (BP). Results show that at 1,500 rpm, a maximum BP of 14.7 kW was achieved under a λ value of 1.4 with PFI; however, it can be increased up to 21.1 kW using DI with the same brake thermal efficiency under a compression ratio of 14.

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Abbreviations

ATDC:

after top dead center

BP:

brake power

BSNOx:

brake specific NOx

BTDC:

before top dead center

BTE:

brake thermal efficiency

DI:

direct injection

EGR:

exhaust gas recirculation

FC:

fuel cell

HRR:

heat release rate

H2 :

hydrogen

ICE:

internal combustion engine

MBT:

maximum brake torque timing

MFBx:

mass fraction burned x %

NA:

natural aspiration

NO:

nitric oxide

NOx:

nitrogen oxides

NO2 :

nitrogen dioxides

PFI:

port fuel injection

Pmax:

maximum in-cylinder pressure

PRRmax :

maximum in-cylinder pressure rise rate

SI:

spark ignition

TDC:

top dead center

Tmax:

maximum averaged in-cylinder temperature

TWC:

three-way catalyst

WOT:

wide open throttle

λ:

excessive air ratio

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Acknowledgement

This study was supported by a grant from the Basic Research Program funded by the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (grant number NK231F), Jeonbuk National University, and National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korean government (MSIT) (NRF-2021R1G1A1004451).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Engine Research Department, Environmental and Energy Research Division, Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, Daejeon, 34103, Korea

    Yongrae Kim, Cheolwoong Park, Sechul Oh & Young Choi

  2. Advanced Transportation Machinery Research Center & Division of Mechanical System Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonbuk, Jeonju-si, 54896, Korea

    Junho Oh & Jeongwoo Lee

Authors
  1. Yongrae Kim
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  2. Cheolwoong Park
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  3. Junho Oh
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  4. Sechul Oh
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  5. Young Choi
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  6. Jeongwoo Lee
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Correspondence to Jeongwoo Lee.

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Kim, Y., Park, C., Oh, J. et al. Effect of Excessive Air Ratio on Hydrogen-fueled Spark Ignition Engine with High Compression Ratio Using Direct Injection System toward Higher Brake Power and Thermal Efficiency. Int.J Automot. Technol. 24, 79–89 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12239-023-0008-7

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