Soot reduction for cleaner Compression Ignition Engines through innovative bowl templates

Considering the need of pollutant emissions reduction and the high cost of the after-treatment systems, in-cylinder solutions for pollutant reduction are becoming more and more relevant. Among different proposals, new piston geometries are considered an attractive solution for reducing both soot and nitrogen oxides emissions in compression ignition engines. For this reason, this paper evaluates the soot formation and combustion characteristics of a novel piston geometry proposal, called stepped lip-wave, for light-duty engines. It is compared with other two well-known bowl geometries: re-entrant and stepped lip. The study was performed in an optical single-cylinder direct injection compression ignition engine. Two optical techniques (2 color pyrometry and OH* chemiluminescence) were applied for analyzing soot formation in each piston geometry. Test were performed at different engine loads, fuel injection characteristics and exhaust gas recirculation configuration. The re-entrant piston presents higher soot formation and a slower late oxidation process in comparison with the other two geometries. Stepped lip and stepped lip-wave present similar soot formation levels. However, stepped lip-wave showed a more efficient and faster soot oxidation process during the final combustion stages. Results confirm the potential of the stepped lip-wave concept to reduce soot emissions and achieve a cleaner energy production system.