Numerical Investigation on the Performance of a 4-Stroke Engine with Different Passive Pre-Chamber Geometries Using a Detailed Chemistry Solver

Simone Bigalli, Iacopo Catalani, Francesco Balduzzi, Nicola Matteazzi, Lorenzo Agostinelli, Michele De Luca and Giovanni Ferrara
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Simone Bigalli: Department of Industrial Engineering (DIEF), Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via di Santa Marta 3, 50139 Firenze, Italy
Iacopo Catalani: Department of Industrial Engineering (DIEF), Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via di Santa Marta 3, 50139 Firenze, Italy
Francesco Balduzzi: Department of Industrial Engineering (DIEF), Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via di Santa Marta 3, 50139 Firenze, Italy
Nicola Matteazzi: HPE-COXA, Via R. Dalla Costa 620, 41122 Modena, Italy
Lorenzo Agostinelli: HPE-COXA, Via R. Dalla Costa 620, 41122 Modena, Italy
Michele De Luca: HPE-COXA, Via R. Dalla Costa 620, 41122 Modena, Italy
Giovanni Ferrara: Department of Industrial Engineering (DIEF), Università degli Studi di Firenze, Via di Santa Marta 3, 50139 Firenze, Italy

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 14, 1-18

Abstract: Pre-chamber turbulent jet ignition represents one of the most promising techniques to improve spark ignition engines efficiency and reduce pollutant emissions. This technique consists of igniting the air-fuel mixture in the main combustion chamber by means of several hot turbulent flame jets exiting a pre-chamber. In the present study, the combustion process of a 4-stroke, gasoline SI, PFI engine equipped with a passive pre-chamber has been investigated through three-dimensional CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) analysis. A detailed chemistry solver with a reduced reaction mechanism was employed to investigate ignition and flame propagation phenomena. Firstly, the combustion model was validated against experimental data for the baseline engine configuration (i.e., without pre-chamber). Eventually, the validated numerical model allowed for predictive simulations of the pre-chamber-equipped engine. By varying the shape of the pre-chamber body and the size of pre-chamber orifices, different pre-chamber configurations were studied. The influence of the geometrical features on the duration of the combustion process and the pressure trends inside both the pre-chamber and main chamber was assessed and discussed. Since the use of a pre-chamber can extend the air-fuel mixture ignition limits, an additional sensitivity on the air-fuel ratio was carried out, in order to investigate engine performance at lean conditions.

Keywords: CFD; CONVERGE; numerical simulation; combustion; ICE; gasoline; 4-stroke; TJI; pre-chamber (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: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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