Looking into the Prechamber of a Lean-Burn Gas Engine

• Published in: JSME International Journal Series B Fluids and Thermal Engineering Vol. 40; no. 2; pp. 320 - 327
• Main Authors: WOLFF, Dagmar, TAMURA, Masayuki, TAI, Hideo, SAKURAI, Teruhiro
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tokyo The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers 1997; Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers; Japan Science and Technology Agency
• Subjects: Acetone; Applied sciences; Computer simulation; Energy; Energy. Thermal use of fuels; Engines and turbines; Equipments for energy generation and conversion: thermal, electrical, mechanical energy, etc; Exact sciences and technology; Flow visualization; Fluorescence; Jets; Lean-Burn Gas Engine; LIF; Mixing; Mixture Formation; Nitrogen; Prechamber; Visualization; Mixing; Combustion chamber; Flow(fluid); Fluorescence; Lean mixture; Internal combustion engine; Natural gas; Acetone
• ISSN: 1340-8054; 1347-5371
• DOI: 10.1299/jsmeb.40.320

Quartz prechamber models have been installed in a constant volume test rig(CVR)for the investigation of prechamber mixing processes. Planar laser induced fluorescence of acetone has been used for a 2-dimensional visualization of flow structure and quantitative analysis of mixture formation. The prechamber was initially filled with acetone seeded in nitrogen. A jet of lean mixture in an actual lean-burn gas engine was simulated using a flow of pure nitrogen from the CVR. Two different shapes of prechambers were investigated and the dominant influence on the mixing process is presented. Special emphasis was laid on the analysis of mixture homogeneity at ignition timing. The investigations provided an insight into the flow structures inside prechambers. The dominant influence of prechamber shape, especially around its mouth, on flow structures as well as on mixture homogeneity at ignition timing was proved.