Output details
15 - General Engineering
University of Oxford
A study of mixture preparation and PM emissions using a direct injection engine fuelled with stoichiometric gasoline/ethanol blends
Mie scattering has characterised the fuel injection process and its subsequent dispersion. The Particulate Matter (PM) emissions were found to increase with the ethanol content – it was hypothesised that this was attributable to mixture inhomogeneity, which was verified by in-cylinder hydrocarbon measurements. Follow-on work has been with Jaguar (CASE studentship), including the use of Gasoline/Ethanol/Methanol (GEM) blends (devised by Lotus) to have the same volumetric energy density as E85. The initial results suggest that increasing the methanol content reduces PM emissions – a significant result since the pending PM legislation for direct injection engines will be difficult to meet.