Comparison of Turbocharging and Pressure Wave Supercharging of a Natural Gas Engine for Light Commercial Trucks and Vans

Norbert Zsiga, Mario A. Skopil, Moyu Wang, Daniel Klein and Patrik Soltic
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Norbert Zsiga: Automotive Powertrain Technologies Laboratory, Empa Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland
Mario A. Skopil: Antrova AG, Hofwisenstrasse 13, 8260 Stein am Rhein, Switzerland
Moyu Wang: Automotive Powertrain Technologies Laboratory, Empa Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland
Daniel Klein: FPT Motorenforschung AG, Schlossgasse 2, 9320 Arbon, Switzerland
Patrik Soltic: Automotive Powertrain Technologies Laboratory, Empa Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 17, 1-24

Abstract: To increase the efficiency of a natural gas engine, the use of a Miller camshaft was analysed. To avoid a decline in the low-end torque and also in the transient response, a pressure wave supercharger (Comprex™) was compared to the conventional single-stage turbocharger. The analyses for this conceptual comparison were performed experimentally, and the data were then used to run simulations of driving cycles for light commercial vehicles. A torque increase of 49% resulted at 1250 rpm when the Comprex™ was used in combination with a Miller camshaft. Despite the Miller camshaft, the Comprex™ transient response was still faster than the turbocharged engine. Using the same camshaft, the turbocharged engine took 2.5-times as long to reach the same torque. Water injection was used to increase the peak power output while respecting the temperature limitations. As the Comprex™ enables engine braking by design, we show that the use of friction brakes was reduced by two-thirds. Finally, a six-times faster catalyst warmup and an up to 90 ° C higher exhaust gas temperature at the three-way catalytic converter added to the benefits of using the Comprex™ supercharger. The known drawbacks of the Comprex™ superchargers were solved due to a complete redesign of the machine, which is described in detail.

Keywords: turbocharging; pressure wave supercharging; boosting; low-end torque; Miller valve timing; exhaust aftertreatment; transient operation; exhaust brake; Comprex; water injection (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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