K2_B01_T01 - Combustion Concepts for Passenger Cars - Combustion concepts and Aftertreatment

Improvement of passenger car diesel engine with special respect to pollutant emissions. Experimental investigations and simulations.

International studies and in-house research have shown that a new and fundamentally different combustion concept that uses a homogeneous premixed combustion has very promising advantages over current diesel combustion for passenger cars. Following the theory of HCCI (Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition), the concept is based on low-combustion temperature compared to the current diffusion high temperature diesel combustion. Studies and experimental investigations based on initial prototypes have shown the potential to meet future emission regulation limits without NOx exhaust aftertreatment, while still maintaining the low fuel consumption and high engine torque that make the diesel engine competitive to the gasoline engine. The main challenges (and the corresponding research imperatives) for a large-scale realization are controlling the start of the combustion under variable conditions, CO and HC emissions (simulation of mixture preparation and combustion), supercharging systems (transient simulation) and long-term stability. Subcontracting to the Institute for IC engines and thermodynamics in the planned volume of 1,4 Mio over 5 years will be necessary, in order to access the Institutes expertise (accumulated through such projects as Knet VKM) and its specific test facilities (highly flexible engine test bed for single and cylinder research engine) and measurement techniques (thermodynamic, exhaust emissions...).