Combustion Process in Internal Combustion Engines

General Process: The combustion process generally takes place eithe in a homogeneous or a heterogeneous fuel vapor air mixture.

Homogeneous mixture:

In this case the mixture is formed outside the engine cylinder and combustion is initiated inside the cylinder at a particular instant. The flame front spreads over a stationary combustible mixture or a mixture moving with particular velocity.

Heterogeneous mixture : s of gaseous fuel or atomized liquid fu oplets are injected in air and they bur e air in which the fuel is injected may stationary or moving. In both cases combustion takes place in the gaseous hase. Therefore when liquid droplet ar njected they must vaporize and form a por air mixture before combustion ma

he combustion process depen on:

* the nature and velocity of the chemical reaction * heat and mass transfer in the fla zone and heat transfer to the surroundings

In homogeneous gas mixture the fuel molecules and the air molecules are uniformly distributed. Therefore the rate of chemical reaction is high

In heterogeneous gas mixture the combustion rate is determined by the velocity of mutual diffusion of fuel vapors and air. The rate of chemical reaction comes in second. The diffusion rate is usually higher than the evaporation rate and therefore the combustion rate is determined by the rate of evaporation.

Homogeneous combustion

As soon as a homogeneous fuel vapor air mixture is ignited, a flame appears and it gradually spreads in the mixture. Flame propagation is caused by heat transfer and diffusion of burning fuel molecules from the combustion zone to the adjacen layer of fresh mixture. The adjacent layer is thereby heated above the self ignition temperature and consequently a flame appears in the layer.

The flame front is a narrow zone separating the fresh mixture form the combustion products. The velocity with which the flame front moves with respect to the unburned mixture is in a direction normal to its surface and is called the normal flame velocity

The flame velocity is dependent on the rate of chemical reaction in the flame front, the rate of heat transfer and diffusion of burning gas mixture from the flame front to the adjacent layer.

The maximum flame velocity is obtained when the mixture is slightly rich in fuel (=0.85 to 0.9) The flame velocity at atmospheric pressure and room temperature is within 30 -50 cm/sec. when the mixture is made comparatively leaner or richer in fuel the flame velocity decreases until reaching a minimum value of 8 10 cm/sec

When the flame velocity reaches these low values

e heat loss from the combustion zon eat release amount due to combustio

The flame will extinguish at this limiting condition. These mixture strength give the flame blow out conditions

When the combustible mixture has ufficiently strong turbulence or swirl, the velocity or flame front is appreciably ncreased. This is due to increase in heat transfer and gas diffusion produced by rbulent motion of the mixture. The flame ont is also distorted causing an increase in e surface area of combustion. This type of flame is called the turbulent flame and moves with a turbulent flame velocity

Heterogeneous combustion

The mechanism of combustion of heterogeneous mixtures, such as jets of gaseous fuel or droplets of atomized fuel injected in stationary or moving stream of air, is quite different from that of homogeneous mixture. The rate of combustion depends on the rate of diffusive mixing of fuel with air

In case of liquid fuel droplet, evaporation takes place from the surface and the vapor formed diffuse through the air. As soon as the fuel vapor air concentration is congenial, combustion takes place with the appearance of a flame.

Fuel vapor formed subsequently from the same droplet takes part in combustion as it passes through the flame zone. Reaction rate have less influence because combustion mainly depends on evaporation rate. Self ignition or spontaneous ignition of fuel air mixture, at the high temperature produced due to compression, is of primary importance in determining combustion.

Combustion can take place with very lean overall mixtures (air coefficient >4.0) when the mixture is heterogeneous. This type has local zones where the air coefficient has values between 0.85 and 0.9 corresponding to maximum rate of chemical reactions

Ignition usually starts at this zone and the flame produced helps to burn the fuel in the adjoining leaner mixture. If the overall mixture is not sufficiently lean (<1.3 to 1.4) combustion will start at zones whose fuel vapor air mixture is suitable for combustion between 0.85 and 0.9 but at some other zones the gaseous mixture will be too rich.

High temperature produced at these zones due to combustion of a part of fuel will cause fuel molecules in these zones to crack without oxidation and form carbon particles. This is the reason for smoky exhaust of diesel engines at full load

Self Ignition

Spontaneous ignition of gaseous fuel jet or droplets of atomized liquid fuel injected into stationary or moving heated air, is called self ignition. Self ignition may also take place in homogeneous fuel vapor air mixture if its temperature is raised to a high value. In both cases the temperature of the fuel vapor air mixture must reach a value where the mixture burn spontaneously

This temperature is called the self ignition temperature.

Gaseous or liquid fuels injected in hot air whose temperature is equ or higher than the self ignition temperature, do not burn as soo as they are injected. Similarly combustion does not take place a soon as a homogeneous mixture heated to self ignition temperatur

There is always a time lag between the moment the fuel is injected or the homogeneous mixture is heated to self ignition temperature and the moment the flame appears. This time lag is called the ignition lag or

ignition delay ig

In case of liquid fuel the ignition lag consists of: 1. the time taken in forming the droplets evaporating the droplets and preparing th combustible fuel vapor air mixture. This i called the physical lag or physical delay. 2. the time taken by reacting gases before actual combustion starts. This called the chemical lag or chemical delay.

In case of gaseous or homogeneous gas mixture the ignition lag corresponds to the chemical lag only.

Ignition lag is greatly influenced by the temperature of the mixture. The chemical lag is reduced appreciably if the temperature is increased above the self ignition temperature. Increase in temperature has very little effect on physical lag.

Factors influencing ignition lag

Ignition lag of a fuel vapor air mixture mainly depends on reaction rate and rate of heat transfer from the reacting mixture. Therefore, the various factors which affect these two will also influence the ignition lag.

Pressure and temperature of the mixtur

nder the same conditions of heat transfer, the ition lag is inversely proportional to the rate o eaction. If the effects of P and T on a reaction te of a mixture is known then their effects on gnition lag can be estimated. The ignition lag ecreases with increase in pressure for all types of fuel though it is different for different fuels and for different temperature zones.

2. Mixture strength When a combustible mixture is diluted with cess air ( > 1), the rate of reaction diminish ecause the concentration of molecules in th mixture is reduced and some heat produce ring combustion is spent in heating the exc air; therefore the ignition lag increases. Enrichment of the mixture ( < 1) results in higher fuel concentration in the mixture an therefore, decreases the ignition lag.

The reaction rate is reduced after certain degree of enrichment ( < 1) due to nonavailability of sufficient oxygen molecules. Therefore, the ignition lag again increases

3. Additive compounds
Some compounds added with fuel in small quantities, influence the ignition lag of the fuel vapor air mixture

COMBUSTION IN SPARK IGNITION ENGINES

1. Phases of Combustion
In spark ignition engines a homogeneous mixture of vaporized liquid fuel (or gaseous fuel), air and residual gases is ignited by an electric spark. The charge near the spark gas burns soon after the spark is applied. A flame develops and spreads over the entire mixture.

1 spark point 1-2 First phase 2-3 second phase 3-4 third phase

From a flame trace (done by photography) it can be observed that flame travel can be divided into three periods.

The First Phase The Second Phase The Third Phase

Influence of some Important Factors on Combustion

1. Composition of mixture 2. Compression ratio 3. Load 4. Speed 5. Shape of combustion chamber

Abnormal Combustion in Spark Ignition Engines

*Detonation or knock *Pressure effects *Temperature effects *Time effects *Pre-ignition *Surface Ignition

Combustion Chamber for Spark Ignition Engines

Ignition System

Combustion in Compression Ignition Engines

Phases of Combustion

*Ignition lag phase or preparatory phase of combustion *Rapid combustion phase *Controlled combustion phase *After burning phase

Factors affecting combustion in compression ignition engines

*Fuel properties *Injection advance *Compression ratio *Pressure and Temperature of air at inlet *Speed of the engine pray characteristics and duration of inject *Motion of air in the combustion space

Abnormal Combustion in Compression Ignition Engine

* Knocking *Reduction of diesel knock

Combustion Chamber for Compression Ignition Engines