I oNcoNTROL

B~11ss1
2012
511

Ytar 2013 2014 2015 2016

~ 11rsas 3.5 cars 3.5 cars
one c 2.5 cars 1.5 cars I car
:::--
evvcTION OF FORMATION OF POLLUTANTS
Z, RThis is achieved by the following:
1. Closed crankcase ventilation.
AIR----. INLEt
CLEANER MANIFOLD
2. Reducing evaporative emissions.
3. Redesigning the engine:
(i) Compression ratio
(ii) Combustion chamber CARBURETTOR E
H
(iii) Cooling system G
I
(iv) Valve liming N
E
(v) Fuel supply system
(vi) Ignition system
EHGIH E
4. Improving vehicle efficiency
~'---_-_-_-_-_-_-_-t-t CRANKCASE
5. Use of HCCI engine
6. Use of hybrid vehicles Fig. 18. J. Layout of Positive Crankcase Ventilation.
7. Improving driving efficiency and traffic condi-
Lions.
8. Improving on-board diagnostic systems.
3. CLOSED CRANKCASE VENTILATION
, There are two variations of this system, viz.,J_he p~sitive crankcase ventilation an~ the I:ix_ed orifice
s~~~m. In the ~ . f:ltered air ~rom_t~e carburettor air cleaner is introduced in the crankcase from w~re
it carries aw~y the blow-by gases ~nd the gasoli~ ~a~u£_s_to _t~~ngine inl~t_rrianifold throl!_gh a special
l'CVvafve. Thus the blow-by gases and the gasoline vapours enter the engine combustion chamber along-
with ireshcharge a~ are burnt there._-:-, .. r---i$1..'-'
The construction of the speciai(Pcy-valveis shown in Fig. 18.2 (a). It consists of a spring-loaded
tapered valve for flow control. The crankcase pressure and the manifold vacuum act together to close the
valve whereas the spring pressure tends to keep it open.
At idle and low speed crankcase emissions are very less due to lower cylinder pressure. Moreover,
manifold vacuum is high. Therefore, only a small flow through the PCV valve would be sufficient to keep
the crankcase clean. If the air flow through PCV at idle and low speed is high, it would cause the air-fuel
mixture to become excessively lean resulting in poor drivability4 High manifold vacuum at idle and low
speed would pull the valve to the right so as to maintain a small air flow [Fig. 18.2 (b)].
At normal speeds, blow-by increases and manifold vacuum decreases, due to which the valve moves
~owards left, increasing the flow. At high speeds or heavy loads when the throttle is held wide open, there
15_ practically no manifold vacuum acting on the valve, due io which the valve opens maximum [Fig. 18.2
(c)]. increasing the flow to maximum capacity of the PCV valve. However, at higher speeds a large volume
of air-fuel mixture flows through the carburettor. Therefore, greater flow of crankcase vapours through
PCV valve does not practically change the quality of the mixture. However, when the crankcase emissions
'!Xceed the flow rating of the PCV valve, the excess emissions are forced by the crankcase pressure to
bypass the PCV valve into the air cleaner.
. In case the engine backfires during cranking, a high pressure will be produced in the intake manifold.
Which would cause the' valve to 'back-seat', thereby sea1ing the inlet [Fig. 18.2 (d)]. Thus the crankcase is
Protected from the backfire.
512
AUTOMOBILE ENGINEER

TO INLET MANlt;.QLO

(a) (b)

(c) (d)
Fig. 18.2. P.C.V. Valve (a) Construction, (b) Operation at idle and low speed,
(c) High speed/load operation, (d) Preventing backfire during cranking.
In the Fixed Orifice s stem, a fixed orifice io the_ba.s.c_oi_the....c~arb.uretlO.t takesJhe place of the PCV
valve.
- The ow-by gases are diverted to the.. inlet
.........,._.-· - manifold through this orifice (Fig. 18.3).
In both these types of closed crankcase ventilation systems, the sludge and the other similar elements
during the course of time, clog the
PCV valve or the orifice which may
decrease and ultimately stop the flow
of the blow-by gases altogether,
which would affect the engine
~:;:: _ :~:·=:-WW-
performance very seriously. A coating
of oil on the air cleaner filter, apart
from various engine troubles, indi-
cates that service of the system is
needed urgently, which mainly
requires the cleaning of the P.C.V.
valve or the orifice, the air-cleaner
filter, hoses, etc.
4. REDUCING EVAP,ORATIVE
EMISSIONS
The petrol vap,_o.ur§ Jrom...the fuel
'--- ~
tank escape mto the atll)Qsph,ere J?y
--
evaporation or- "breathing'. With the
increase of femperature,-the air inside
r the fuel tank which carries petrol
vapours, expands and is thus forced
out through either the filter cap. vent
or the tank vent tube. When the tem-
perature decreases the air from
Fig. 18.3. Honda Fixed Orifice closed-crankcase ventilation system.
outside enters the tank. Thus with the
...._,,
~
 e~t1SSJON CONTROL
513
rcase and decrease of temperature th f ,
,nc os£hcre. Petrol is also lost from' lhe u\ 1 tank breathes', thereby discharging petrol vapours into the
a.!!!}. ing.Itis estimated that the losse ef car hurettor float bowl by evaporation when the engine is not
runr1 s rom t e fuel
rank and ca~~uretl~ ?re a~u!_ 10% of the total hydro- VAPOUA•LlllUtO
carhon em1ssJOn ol the engme1nro the atmosphere. CARBURETTOR SEPARATOR

A simple system to control these losses is shown

,n Fig. 18.4. The fuel tank . and the carburettor fl oa t
·hamber are not vente d mto the atmosphere The
L - - ~ - , , . , ,- - -- • y are VENT
VALVE
11~ 1cad, vented to.~ ;JlL,-~n c~nis!e~.~~ichadsorosth~ FUELTAHk
;2£our and stores It. lhe ~ ~ e p arator is. a FRESH

1.,hJmbcr o ~a~ Vapours go to the top of the AIR

..,cparator while hqurd petrol is returned to the tank.
flow o~ vapours from the f~el_tank ~s controlled by a To ENGi NE ----
CARBO~C~

mechanically o~rated vent valve or an electrically :J. 1

~ io-L-
0 -~
PURGE. CONTROL
VALVE.
operated soteno1d v~lve. The throttle linkage operates .
the mechanical valve so that it is open during idling Fig. 18.4. Layout of a Vapour Recovery System
which makes tlie vapour Oow•from the float chamber to the canister. When the throttle is opened, the vent
valve is closed. Likewise, with the ignition switch off, the electrical vent-valve is open. When the ignition
switch is on, the vent-valve is closed by the energization of the solenoid.
A special filler cap is employed on the fuel tank which maintains some pressure in the tank, that forces
fucl vapours form the tank to the carbon canister. When the engine is operated, fresh air removes the stored
vapours from the carbon in the carbon canister and carries them through the inlet manifold into the engine
combu5tion chamber to be burnt there. The control of flow of fuel vapours from the carbon canister is done
111 some cases by a special purge control valve which is operated usually by EGR port (discussed later)
vacuum. The purge control valve is closed when the engine is not running. When the engine is idling, the
valve remains closed. However, when the throttle is opened, vacuum applied to the purge control valve
opens it, allowing the vapours to be purged from the canister into the intake manifold.

5. DECREASING COMPRESSION RATIO

As the air standard efficiencies of both auto and diesel c_yclcs inc,rc~cs with increase of compression
ratio and the power devcl.ci.iici! direc tly depends on the cy lindcr pressure, higher ~a~~s of compression_~atio
a~ylindei:_ wessures have b~ep_traditionally usccJ for I.C. engines. However, with the gradual awarcne~
ofdecrcasing exhaust emissions it was seen that NOx and soot both increase wit= , ion
~ o'n l ~anct,reducectcompresslonratio in diesel engines· causes<lif~ tyin starting and lo~
temperature running.
Mazda of Japan have took up the challenge and developed 'Skyactive D' engine (used in Mazda
'Demeo' and 'Mazda z' vehicles) with compression ratio of only 14.0:1, which is claimed to be the lowest
o~a~y modem (20 13) production diesel engi~e in_the worl~. ptis low rati_o allows2..n~e comgkte ai_r/f~ ~
'11~1ng in the combustion c mbe th heJ mg m preventm the formation o NO a~ Maximum
curnbu5tion pressure in this are also lower b . . s th ,.heJgnited.at ID~i.e., so~e
Whatiavanced compared to high-pressure diesels. Th.rs enables a lo~gJ!. p_ower stroke, 1mprov1ng
effici:.nSY..
Apart from improved NOx/soot emissions, this engine also has lower fuel consumption and also
reduced CO in the exhaust. Additional advantages are:
I. Lower mechanical stresses in the engine structure and rotating assembly.
2. Reduced-;eight~which is about 20 kg less than the comparative ~tandard engin~.
3. Extended power band. 'Skyactive D' produces useful power till 5000 rpm m contrast to the
standard Mazda MZR engine, where power curve drops at 3500 rpm only.