Automotive Engine Alternatives

269 Pages·1987·11.13 MB·English

by  Charles A. Amann (auth.)

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Edited by
Robert L. Evans
The University of British Columbia
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
SPRINGER SCIENCE+BUSINESS MEDIA, LLC
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
International Symposium on Alternative and Advanced Automotive Engines (1986:
Vancouver, B.C.)
Automotive engine alternatives.
"Proceedings of the International Symposium on Alternative and Advanced Auto-
motive Engines, held August 1I-12, 1986, in Vancouver, B.C., Canada"-T.p. verso.
"Sponsored by EXPO 86 and the University of British Columbia"-Pref.
Includes bibliographies and index.
Contents: How shall we power tomorrow's automobiles?lCharles A. Amann - The
stratified charge engine conceptiDuane Abata-The dual-fuel engine/Ghazi A.
Karim - [etc.] 1. Automobiles - Motors - Technological innovations - Congresses. 1.
Evans, Robert L. II. Expo 86 (Vancouver, B.C.) III. University of British Columbia.
IV. Title.
TL21O.l47 1986 629.25 87-6949
ISBN 978-1-4757-9350-5 ISBN 978-1-4757-9348-2 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4757-9348-2
Proceedings of the International Symposium on Alternative and Advanced Automotive
Engines, held August 1I-12, 1986, in Vancouver, B.C., Canada
© 1987 Springer Science+Business Media New York
Originally published by Plenum Press, New York in 1987
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1s t edition 1987
AII rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming,
recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher
PREFACE
This book contains the proceedings of the International Symposium on
Alternative and Advanced Automotive Engines, held in Vancouver, B.C., on
August 11 and 12, 1986. The symposium was sponsored by EXPO 86 and The
University of British Columbia, and was part of the specialized periods
program of EXPO 86, the 1986 world's fair held in Vancouver. Some 80
attendees were drawn from 11 countries, representing the academic, auto
motive and large engine communities.
The purpose of the symposium was to provide a critical review of the
major alternatives to the internal combustion engine. The scope of the
symposium was limited to consideration of combustion engines, so that
electric power, for example, was not considered. This was not a reflec
tion on the possible contribution which electric propulsion may make in
the future, but rather an attempt to focus the proceedings more sharply
than if all possible propulsion systems had been considered. In this way
all of the contributors were able to participate in the sometimes lively
discussion sessions following the presentation of each paper.
The internal combustion engine, as applied to automotive propulsion,
is probably undergoing a more rapid rate of evolution than at any time
since the early part of this century. This rapid change is due to several
factors, not the least of which are regulations designed to improve fuel
economy and reduce exhaust emissions. Both of these factors have led
engine designers to be more innovative than in the past and have led to an
increased market share for the diesel engine, which until recently was
primarily limited to the heavy vehicle market, with one or two excep
tions.
Advances in digital electronics in recent years, and in particular
the micro-processor, have provided the engine designer with a whole new
arsenal of techniques for providing engine control. Electronic control
systems have been rapidly introduced, particularly on spark-ignition
engines, with the result that remarkable improvements in both fuel economy
and exhaust emissions have been achieved. This rapid development in
conventional engine technology has meant that the developers of truly
alternative engines, such as the Stirling engine, are faced with a moving
target as they try to break into a market which has been dominated by the
reciprocating internal combustion engine for some six decades.
v
It was in this exciting climate of rapid change in engine design and
development that the symposium was convened. If one conclusion were to be
drawn from the symposium, it would have to be that the conventional
internal combustion engine is likely to be the major automotive prime
mover to the end of the century. It may appear as either a spark-ignition
or diesel engine, or perhaps part way in between as a stratified-charge
engine, but it is unlikely to be replaced by a radically new design.
Through evolution, rather than revolution, engine designers will be trying
to meet the twin challenges of improved fuel economy and reduced exhaust
emissions.
R.L. Evans
Vancouver, B.C.
vi
CONTENTS
How Shall We Power Tomorrow's Automobile?
Charles A. Amann
General Motors Research Laboratory •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 1
A Review of the Stratified Charge Engine Concept
Duane Abata
Michigan Technological University ••.•••••••••.•••••••••.•••••••• 37
The Dual Fuel Engine
Ghazi A. Karim
The University of Calgary •••••.••••••.••••••••••••••••••••.••••• 83
Automotive Applications of Stirling Engines
G. Walker, O.R. Fauvel
The University of Calgary ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.•• 105
The Development Status of an Automotive Stirling Engine
Noel P. Nightingale
Mechanical Technology Inc •••••••••••••••••••••••••.••••••••••••. 125
The Adiabatic Engine for Advanced Automotive Applications
Roy Kamo
Adiabatics Inc. 143
Low Heat Rejection Diesel Engines
R.H. Thring
Southwest Research Institute 167
Present Status and Future View of Rotary Engines
A. Nagao, H. Ohzeki, Y. Niura
Mazda Motor Corporation • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • . • • • • • • 183
The Stratified Charge Rotary Engine
James w. Walker, Robert E. Mount
John Deere Technologies Inc •••••.••••.••••••..••.••••.•..•••.... 203
Turbo-Compound Diesel Engines
F .J. Wallace
University of Bath 219
Recent Advances in Variable Valve Timing
T.H. Ma
Ford Motor Company 235
vii
The Outlook for Conventional Automotive Engines
Bernard I. Robertson
Chrysler Corporation •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 253
..............................................................
Index 265
viii
HOW SHALL WE POWER TOMORROW'S AUTOMOBILE?
Charles A. Amann
Engine Research Department
General Motors Research Laboratories
Warren, Michigan
ABSTRACT
The thrust toward further gains in the fuel-utilization
efficiency of the passenger-car engine, without sacrificing
its many other desirable attributes, is continuing. The
search for an attractive alternative powerplant has always
been included in such efforts, but so far none has emerged.
Prominent on the list of contenders today are the Stirling
engine, the gas turbine, and the advanced diesel, including
uncooled versions incorporating structural ceramics. Large
scale production of none of these is projected for passenger
cars in the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, improvements
continue to be made to indicated thermal efficiency,
mechanical efficiency, and volumetric efficiency of the
spark-ignition engine. Supercharging and variable engine
geometry are additional options, and the advent of
electronic controls has proven beneficial. The spark
ignition engine promises the ability to operate on the
leading alternative fuels. Given the evolving scenario,
that engine is expected to remain dominant in passenger cars
to the end of this century.
INTRODUCTION
In just 15 years we will be into a new century. What kind of engine
will power our passenger cars for the rest of this one? That is a very
intriguing question.
The gasoline-fueled homogeneous-charge spark-ignition engine has
dominated the field for the past 2/3 of a century, but that has not always
been so. In 1900 that powerplant was in third place, behind the steam
engine and the battery-electric system. And there is no guarantee that
today's spark-ignition engine will retain its preeminent position in the
future. Certainly there is no shortage of competing alternatives.
The possibilities are indicated on the heat-engine tree of Fig. 1.
Both continuous-combustion and intermittent-combustion engines are
candidates. In both categories, combustion may occur either internal or
external to the engine. Of the resulting four possibilities, however, an
Fig. 1. Heat-engine tree.
attractive intermittently burning external-combustion engine has yet to be
identified.
In the continuous-external-combustion class, the Rankine-cycle steam
engine has the longest history behind it. In recent years the substitution
of various organic fluids for water in the steam engine has provided an
interesting variant. The Stirling-cycle engine, which has existed since
the early 1800s, is a continuous-external-combustion engine that uses a
gaseous working fluid, avoiding the phase change that characterizes the
Rankine cycle.
The leading continuous-internal-combustion candidate is based on the
Brayton cycle. The reciprocating Brayton-cycle engines was in use during
the last half of the 1800s. Ir has even been proposed for passenger-car
propulsion in modern times [1) , but the leading option in this engine
class is the non-reciprocating version, the gas turbine.
The intermittent-internal-combustion engine requires frequent periodic
ignition of gulps of cylinder charge. That ignition may be accomplished
either spontaneously, as the result of compression of the charge, or by
some forced means, usually by an electrical spark.
Going a step further in Fig. 1, ignition in the intermittent-internal
combustion engine may be effected in either a homogeneous or a stratified
charge of fuel and air. The compression-ignited stratified-charge engine
is recognized as the diesel. Homogeneous-charge compression-ignition has
been employed successfully in reciprocating engines [2,3), but limitations
placed on operating speed and load by reaction kinetics make it an unlikely
candidate for the passenger-car application [4]. In contrast, when
ignition is forced by a spark, both homogeneous and stratified charges
constitute viable possibilities for the automobile.
1Numbers in brackets designate references found at the end of this paper.
2