Otto Cycle

Related terms:

Enthalpy, Ethanol, Exergy, Hydrocarbon, Methane, Monomer, Nitrogen, Oxide,

Propylene

View all Topics

Internal Combustion Engines

Charles L. ProctorII, in Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology (Third
Edition), 2003

III.C Air-Standard Otto Cycle

The Otto cycle is the theoretical cycle of interest when one is considering recip-
rocating SI engines. The four-stroke Otto cycle is made up of the following four
internally reversible processes: 1–2, isentropic compression; 2–3, constant-volume
heat addition; 3–4, isentropic expansion; and 4–1, constant-volume heat rejection.

The actual exhaust and intake stroke has been replaced by process 4–1, as described
in Section IV.A. Representation of the Otto cycle on a pressure–volume (PV) diagram
and temperature–entropy (TS) diagram is provided in Fig. 2.
FIGURE 2. Process diagrams for the Otto cycle.

Thermodynamic analysis of the Otto cycle produces a simple relationship among the
thermal efficiency of the Otto cycle th, Otto, compression ratio r, and specific-heat
ratio k:

(3)

The influence of compression ratio and specific-heat ratio on the thermal efficiency
of the Otto cycle is shown in Fig. 3. For a given specific-heat ratio, thermal efficiency
increases dramatically with increasing compression ratio at low values of r. Beyond
r = 10, however, thermal efficiency curves flatten out, and the benefit of operating
at higher and higher compression ratios lessens. In practice, the working fluid in
the SI engine is an air–fuel mixture during the compression process. This places
practical limits on the compression ratio due to preignition of hydrocarbon fuels
commonly used in SI engines. Consequently, conventional SI engines are seldom
designed with compression ratios greater than 10. This factor will be fully addressed
in Section IV.A.

FIGURE 3. Influence of compression ratio and specific-heat ratio on thermal ef-

ficiency of the Otto cycle.

The various curves for the specific-heat ratio k show that thermal efficiency
decreases with decreasing k. A practical consideration to be addressed at this point is
the realistic selection of values of k. Maximum k is realized when the working fluid
is monatomic; however, no IC engine can work with an inert gas. In practice, the
nitrogen in the air used in the engine limits k to less than 1.4, and the fuels used
in IC engines react to form carbon dioxide, water, and other, heavier hydrocarbon
molecules, which further reduces k. A commonly selected value of k is 1.4 for the
compression stroke and 1.3 for the expansion stroke.

> Read full chapter

Gas Power and Air Cycles

Bahman Zohuri, in Physics of Cryogenics, 2018

13.7 Otto Cycle

The air-standard Otto cycle is the idealized cycle for spark-ignition internal combus-
tion engines. This cycle is shown above on P–V and T-s diagrams. The spark-ignition
engine is modeled with this Otto cycle.

The Otto cycle 1 → 2 → 3 → 4 consists of following four processes:

Process 1 → 2: Reversible adiabatic compression of air;

Process 2 → 3: Heat addition at constant volume;
Process 3 → 4: Reversible adiabatic expansion of air;
Process 4 → 1: Heat rejection at constant volume.

Since processes 1 → 2 and 3 → 4 are adiabatic processes, the heat transfer during the
cycle takes place only during processes 2 → 3 and 4 → 1, respectively. Mathematically
speaking, the processes for the Otto cycle are described on the two charts that are
shown in Fig. 13.16. Therefore, thermal efficiency th can be written as

Figure 13.16. Otto cycle on P–V and T-s diagrams.

(13.22)

Note the two heat transfer processes taking place during the constant-volume
processes for which the work is zero and the result is that Eq. (13.22) takes the form
of:

(13.23)

Consider “m” kg of working fluid, and assume each quantity in Eq. (13.23) to be a
positive process, then we have

(13.24)

Substituting the set of Eq. (13.24) into Eq. (13.23), we can write
(13.25)

Eq. (13.25) can be rearranged and presented as follows:

(13.26)

For isentropic (reversible adiabatic) processes 3 → 4 and 1 → 2, we can write the
following form for Eq. (13.26):

(13.27)

But using the fact that V1 = V4 and V3 = V2, we see that

(13.28)

Utilizing the relationships of Eq. (13.28) allows writing Eq. (13.26) to obtain the final
form of thermal efficiency th as

(13.29)

Defining the parameter , that is called the CR, then Eq. (13.28) can be simplified to:

(13.30)

From Eq. (13.15), it can be observed that the efficiency of the Otto cycle is mainly the
function of CR for the given ratio of Cp and Cv. If we plot the variations of the thermal
efficiency with increase in CR for different gases, the curves are obtained as shown
in Fig. 13.17. Beyond certain values of CRs, the increase in the thermal efficiency
is very small, because the curve tends to be asymptotic. However, practically, the CR
of petrol engines is restricted to a maximum of 9 or 10 due to the phenomenon of
knocking at high CRs. The same equation also indicates that the higher the CR, the
higher the thermal efficiency.

Figure 13.17. Effect of compression ratio and on efficiency for Otto cycle.

Example 13.6

A spark-ignition engine is proposed to have a CR of 10 while operating with a low

temperature of 200°C and a low pressure of 200 kPa. If the work output is to be
1000 kJ/kg, calculate the maximum possible thermal efficiency and compare with
that of a Carnot cycle. Also calculate the MEP (see Section 13.7.1 for MEP).

Solution
The Otto cycle provides the model for this engine. The maximum possible thermal
efficiency for the engine would be

Since process 1 → 2 is isentropic, we find that

The net work for the cycle is given byor

But, for the isentropic process 3 → 4

Solving the last two equations simultaneously (a practice left for the readers), we find
T3 = 3508K and T4 = 1397K, so that (applying Eq. 13.15)

The Otto cycle efficiency is less than that of a Carnot cycle operating between the
limiting temperatures because the heat transfer processes in the Otto cycle are not
isothermal:

We have

Thus,

13.7.1 Mean Effective Pressure (MEP; Otto Cycle)

Generally, MEP is defined as the ratio of the net work done to the displacement
volume of the piston.

Let us consider “m” kg of working substance.

(13.31)

(13.32)

Knowing that by now R is the universal ideal gas constant and is the specific heat
index, their relation between each other is defined as

(13.33)

Substituting Eq. (13.33) into Eq. (13.32) will result in an equation and relation for
mean effective pressure (MEP) defined as

(13.34)
Now,

(13.35)

Let,

(13.36)

or,

(13.37)

Therefore,

(13.38)

Then,

(13.39)

(13.40)

Example 13.7

Consider an air-standard Otto cycle with a CR of 8. At the beginning of the com-

pression stroke, the temperature is 300K and pressure is 100 kPa. Thermal energy
q is supplied at 1840 kJ/kg. Given that Cv for air is 0.7176 kJ/kg K, determine:1.The
temperature and pressure at the terminal points of all the processes;2.The thermal
efficiency;3.The work done per kilogram air; and4.The mean effective pressure.

Solution

It is given that T1 = 300K; P1 = 100 kPa and 1.Process 1 → 2 is isentropic. Therefore,-

Process 2 → 3 is a constant volume process. Hence,Therefore,For a constant volume
process3 → 4 is an isentropic process. Hence,2.The thermal efficiency th is given
by Eq. (13.29), so we have3.The work done per kilogram air is4.The mean effective
pressure can be calculated as follows:

> Read full chapter

Most efficient engine

Yousef Haseli, in Entropy Analysis in Thermal Engineering Systems, 2020
5.2.3 Otto cycle
The operation of the Otto cycle on a p-V diagram is shown in Fig. 5.3. The cycle
comprises four processes: adiabatic compression 1 → 2, isochoric heat addition 2 → 3,
adiabatic expansion 3 → 4, and isochoric heat removal 4 → 1. Thus, for the Otto cycle,
we have V2 = V3, V4 = V1, CR = V1/V3, and PR = p3/p1. The thermal efficiency of the
Otto cycle is [5]

Fig. 5.3. A p-V diagram of the Otto cycle.

(5.13)

Applying the first law to the adiabatic compression process 1 → 2 gives . Thus, Eq.
(5.13) may be rewritten as

(5.14)

For the Otto cycle, Tmax = T3 and Tmin = T1. So, from the relation , one finds
PR = CR · TR.

> Read full chapter

Irreversible engines—Closed cycles

Yousef Haseli, in Entropy Analysis in Thermal Engineering Systems, 2020

7.3 Otto cycle

In the Otto cycle, the heat addition and removal processes take place at constant
volume. The rates of heat transferred to and rejected from the air are obtained as

(7.22)

(7.23)
where CR = V1/V2 denotes the compression ratio and the temperature at states 2 and
4 are determined using the following equations.

(7.24)

(7.25)

The net power production and the thermal efficiency of the cycle are obtained as
follows.

(7.26)

(7.27)

Fig. 7.4 shows the normalized power and the efficiency of the Otto cycle varying
with the compression ratio at  = 1.4, com = 0.85 and exp = 0.90. Like the Brayton
cycle, the maximum power design is different from that of the maximum efficiency.
The optimum compression ratio leading to a maximum power output happens to be
less than that which yields a maximum thermal efficiency. Solving and ∂  /∂ CR = 0,
one obtains

Fig. 7.4. Variation of the normalized power output and the thermal efficiency of
the irreversible Otto cycle with the compression ratio,  = 1.4, com = 0.85, and
exp = 0.90.

(7.28)

(7.29)

where and are already defined in Eqs. (7.12) and (7.13).

A substitution of Eq. (7.28) into Eq. (7.26) leads to an expression for the maximum
power.
(7.30)

The rate of total entropy generation can be determined by Eq. (7.14) with the use of
Eqs. (7.22) and (7.23). Hence,

(7.31)

Minimization of with respect to the compression ratio gives

(7.32)

The optimum pressure given by Eq. (7.32) is different from those of the maximum
power output and maximum thermal efficiency, which means that the operational
regime at minimum entropy generation rate is not the same as that of the maximum
power, nor that of the maximum efficiency. Furthermore, it can be shown with
a similar procedure discussed in Section 7.2 for the Brayton cycle that the power
output of the Otto cycle would be negative at minimum entropy generation rate.
Thus, it is not desirable to operate the engine at minimum entropy generation.

> Read full chapter

Oxidation Catalysts
Guido Busca, in Heterogeneous Catalytic Materials, 2014

11.3.11.1 Catalytic converters

The aftertreatment of Otto-cycle gasoline engines is satisfactorily achieved by the
so-called Three-Way Catalysts (TWC), a technology developed after the 1970s allow-
ing the efficient abatement of unburnt hydrocarbons (HC), CO, and NOx. As it is
well known, such catalysts are active for the reactions of CO and hydrocarbon total
oxidation and also for the reaction

(11.27)

CO + NO → CO2 + ½N2

The original TWC composition was Pt–Rh on alumina, deposed on ceramic

monolyths. In recent years,198,199 typical TWC formulations have included Pd as the
active metal, ceria–zirconia as promoters according to the Oxygen Storage Capacity
of ceria and the thermal stability of zirconia, and alumina as support as well as other
minor components mainly present in order to enhance thermal stability. Perovskite
materials can also be present to help limiting of noble metal sintering. The use of the
different noble metal formulation (Pt–Rh, Pd–Rh, Pd only) is due in part to purely
economic reasons, resulting from the high cost and scarcity of Rh and from the
variable relative prices of Pd and Pt. The addition of gold could improve activity at
low temperature.200

Improvements in catalyst technologies and optimized engine calibrations allowed a

substantial reduction of noble metal content in the converter, now even less than
1 g. Zoning also allows to optimize the use of noble metals, with higher loading on
the front of catalyst, to aid light-off, and lower amounts in the rear portion where
mostly Rh is deposed.

> Read full chapter

Latest fuel injection systems on medi-

um speed engines used for IMO tier 3
requirements in 2016
D.C. Jay, ... F. Cavressi, in Fuel Systems for IC Engines, 2012

6.1 Background
Since 1994 Wärtsilä has offered DF gas engines which operated on the Otto cycle to
burn gas, and could switch over to diesel fuel or HFO operation using a diesel cycle.
The cylinder compression ratio is reduced because of the gas operation requirement
(no knocking), thus the cylinder pressure rating was reduced on diesel fuel operation
relative to a pure straight diesel fuelled engine. To compensate for the cylinder
output reduction the standard engine bore is enlarged relative to the pure diesel fuel
engine. These engines called W32DF, W50DF and W34DF have collected just over 3
million hours of successful operation in September 2011, which is a world leadership
landmark (5). One of this system’s key components is the fuel injector which consists
of a 2 nozzle system. In reality its 2 different types of injection system situated side by
side, operating independently, wrapped within the one injector holder. The injection
system has to date employed a jerk pump system to deliver on ‘diesel mode’ through
a main nozzle, sized for full load diesel operation, but during ‘Gas mode’ the smaller
neighbouring nozzle running on a CR principle, would inject the pilot diesel fuel
amount into the main combustion chamber for ignition, and premixed gas would be
provided by means of a separate gas admission valve in the engine intake manifold.

This system today when operating on gas mode will be compliant to IMO tier 3 2016
emissions, the diesel fuel mode is compliant to Imo Tier 2.
> Read full chapter

Pollution, Environmental
M.E. Baur, in Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology (Third Edition), 2003

II.A.1 Combustion
Combustion (the rapid reaction of fuel substances with oxygen) has been employed
for warmth, cooking of food, and materials processing since prehistoric times, but
it assumed particular importance with the development of the heat engine in the
eighteenth century. A heat engine is a cyclic device by means of which a quantity
of heat generated in a high-temperature source is extracted and partially converted
to useful work (a portion of this heat, usually 60–70% of it, is necessarily lost to
a cold reservoir). The efficiency of a heat engine, that is, the ratio of useful work
generated to total heat extracted, increases with the temperature difference between
the hot and cold reservoir, other things being equal; it is thus advantageous to
operate an engine cycle with as high a temperature as possible in the hot reservoir.
This is the principal reason why the classical steam engine, the key to the industrial
revolution, is now rarely employed; it has a maximum operating temperature not
much in excess of 100 °C and a typical efficiency of about 8%, whereas much higher
peak temperatures and efficiencies (25–45%) are achieved in internal combustion
engines (automobile or Otto engine, diesel engine, turbine).

The chemical process of combustion can be represented as

where CHxOy is the generic stoichiometric formula for a fuel molecule. For
high-grade coal, x, y ≈ 0; for petroleum hydrocarbons, x ≈ 2 and y ≈  0; for cellulose
(wood, biomass), x = 2, y = 1; for ethyl alcohol, x = 3, y = 1/2; for natural gas
(methane), x = 4, y = 0. The amount of heat from combustion per mole of carbon
varies substantially between these fuels: about 300 kJ for coal, wood, and biomass;
600 kJ for petroleum and ethyl alcohol; 900 kJ for methane. In the simplified scheme
above, combustion appears innocuous, because both CO2 and H2O are normal
components of the atmosphere. However, the amount of CO2 thus generated and
deposited in the atmosphere, principally since 1900, is believed to be sufficient to
substantially modify earth's heat balance (Section III.C.1). In 1990, world production
of energy by combustion of fossil fuels (coal, petroleum, natural gas) was 295 quads;
this was expected to rise to about 365 quads by 2000; estimated emission of CO2 to
the atmosphere from this energy production was 5 × 1014 moles in 1990 and was
expected to be about 6 × 1014 moles in 2000 (these emission factors correspond
to a mean emission rate of 1 mole carbon as CO2 per 590 kJ of heat produced).
Also, engine combustion is not complete, and varying amounts of CO (carbon
monoxide), HC (residual hydrocarbons), and elemental C (particulate carbon, or
soot) are released in the exhaust gases. The CO is directly toxic, because it bonds
to hemoglobin, the oxygen-transporting pigment in blood, displacing oxygen and
resulting in asphyxiation. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the HC mix
enter the gas phase directly, whereas less volatile compounds may attach to particles
(soot, dust, ash, aerosols) and remain in the atmosphere for a considerable time.
The elemental C in the exhaust gas adds to the background burden of particulates.
Inhalation of the HC species, whether as VOCs in the gas phase or adsorbed species
on particulates, can be directly harmful; further many of them contribute to the
complex chemistry of smog (Section III.C.1).

Two other characteristics of combustion are of importance for environmental pollu-

tion:

1. At the elevated temperature encountered in some internal combustion en-

gines, most notably the Otto cycle engine employed in conventional automo-
biles, the major constituents of air, N2 (nitrogen) and O2 (oxygen), partially
react to form NO, nitric oxide. NO together with other oxides of nitrogen
are collectively termed NOx; they are important in the development of photo-
chemical smog and acid rain, as well as being undesirable components of the
atmosphere in their own right.
2. Fossil fuels contain impurities that enter the atmosphere on combustion
and cause deleterious effects. The most important of these is sulfur, which
occurs in coals and petroleum hydrocarbons at levels up to several percent
by weight; combustion yields the gaseous species SO2 and other oxides of
sulfur, collectively denoted SOx. Atmospheric chemical reactions convert SO2
to SO3 and then, in the presence of water, to H2SO4, sulfuric acid, a principal
component of acid rain, snow, and fog (Section IV.B). In addition to natural
impurities, fuel additives whose function is to increase the smoothness and
efficiency of engine operation may be present. The most notable such
additive from the standpoint of pollution is lead, in the form of the compound
Pb(C2H5)4, lead tetraethyl, added to gasoline to increase octane (antiknock)
rating. Lead from “ethyl” gasoline is believed to have been a major contributor
to the lead burden in the bodies of urban residents in developed countries.
During the 1980s its use was gradually discontinued in the United States,
where it is now prohibited.

Various types of internal combustion engines (gasoline or Otto cycle, diesel, turbine
or Joule-Brayton cycle) have assumed an important role in modern technology
because of their relative simplicity and high efficiency. Efforts to reduce the
levels of atmospheric pollution resulting from their operation encounter the obstacle
that increased efficiency and reduction of all pollutant species in exhaust tend
to be mutually inconsistent. For example, in the standard Otto cycle engine of
gasoline-powered vehicles, a high operating temperature favors efficiency but
also increases NOx production; manipulation of the air–fuel mixture ratio to reduce
NOx tends to augment HC and CO levels, as shown in Fig. 2. The diesel engine
has a longer period of fuel burn than does the standard Otto cycle engine and
hence is able to have higher efficiency at a lower maximum operating temperature
and produce relatively little NOx; for this reason diesel-powered vehicles have been
able to escape the severe emission control regulations applied to gasoline-powered
vehicles in the United States. However the slow fuel burning in diesel engines,
which extends through much of the expansion phase of the engine cycle, results
in the formation of oxygen-poor zones in which fuel pyrolysis occurs, generating
large quantities of particulate carbon (soot) in the exhaust. Because this soot has
the capacity to adsorb carcinogenic molecules from the exhaust and transport them
into the human lung, it appears likely that stringent control of diesel emissions will
ultimately be undertaken.

FIGURE 2. Effect of air–fuel ratio on exhaust emissions. [From Hodges, L. (1977).

“Environment Pollution,” 2nd ed. Holt, Rinehart & Winston, New York. Repro-
duced by permission of source, Battelle Memorial Laboratories, Columbus, Ohio.]

Considerable improvement in the amounts of NOx, CO, and HC released to the

environment by gasoline-powered vehicles has been achieved by improved engine
design, modification of fuels (maintaining octane levels by increasing the amount
of branched aliphatic hydrocarbons, while eliminating lead tetraethyl and reducing
the amounts of olefin and aromatic compounds present), and the introduction of
catalyst devices in the exhaust pathway, which increase the oxidation of CO and HC
and promote the decomposition of NO back to N2 and O2. Figure 3 illustrates trends
in the release of five of the criteria pollutants—the original criteria pollutant list
included VOCs, since replaced by ozone, O3—between 1970, when the imposition
of stringent emission control measures was in its initial phases, and 1981 when
these measures were well established. Important improvement in the emissions
of VOCs and CO (largely from vehicles) and of SOx and particulates (largely from
stationary sources such as power plants and factories) is evident. However, NOx
levels continued to rise during this interval. Subsequently, introduction of additional
control measures succeeded in first holding NOx production constant and then
reducing it somewhat, but this remains a serious problem area.

FIGURE 3. Air emissions by source and type of pollutant, 1970 and 1981. [From
Conservation Foundation. (1984) “State of the Environment, an Assessment at
Mid-Decade,” Washington, D.C. Reproduced by permission of the Conservation
Foundation.]

> Read full chapter

Combustion of Hydrocarbons
James G. Speight PhD, DSc, in Handbook of Industrial Hydrocarbon Processes, 2011

8.2 Combustion of liquid hydrocarbon fuels

The ignition and combustion of liquid fuels plays a major role in the operation of the
gasoline engine (internal combustion engine), diesel engine (compression engine),
gas turbines, and industrial burners.

Liquid fuels are usually burned as sprays of small liquid droplets, the droplets first
evaporating to produce a cloud of vapor which then burns in the gas phase.

The purpose of a gasoline car engine (the internal combustion engine) is to convert
gasoline into motion. In the engine, the gasoline ignites and is converted to motion
energy. The diesel engine is also an internal combustion engine but the hydrocarbon
fuel (diesel fuel) is not ignited by a spark but by an increase in pressure which creates
sufficient heat to ignite the fuel, thereby commencing the generation of energy.

The principle behind any reciprocating internal combustion engine is the amount of
energy released in the form of expanding gas from the hydrocarbon fuel. The engine
creates a cycle that allows energy release in the form of controlled explosions that
occur many times per second.

Almost all cars currently use a four-stroke combustion cycle to convert gasoline into
motion (the Otto cycle, invented by Nikolaus Otto in 1867): (1) intake stroke, (2)
compression stroke, (3) combustion stroke, and (4) exhaust stroke.

To commence the cycle, the piston starts at the top of the cylinder, the intake valve
opens, and the piston moves down the cylinder to allow the engine to take in a
cylinder-full of air and gasoline (intake stroke). The piston moves back up to compress
this fuel/air mixture (compression stroke) and when the piston reaches the top of its
stroke, the spark plug emits a spark to ignite the gasoline (explosion stroke). Once
the piston hits the bottom of its stroke, the exhaust valve opens and the exhaust
gases leave the cylinder to go out the tailpipe (exhaust stroke) after which the engine
is ready for the next cycle, which commences with another intake of air and fuel.

The motion that comes out of an internal combustion engine is rotational because
the linear motion of the pistons is converted into rotational motion by the crankshaft,
which transmits the energy to the wheels.

The steam engine in old-fashioned trains and steam boats is the best example of an
external combustion engine. The fuel (coal, wood, oil) in a steam engine burns outside
the engine to create steam, and the steam creates motion inside the engine. Internal
combustion is a lot more efficient insofar as it requires less fuel per mile than the
external combustion engine. Furthermore, an internal combustion engine is much
smaller in size than an equivalent external combustion engine, thereby reducing
the overall weight of the vehicle to be transported. An aircraft using an external
combustion engine would not make it off the ground – the weight/fuel ratio (i.e.,
weight/energy ratio) would be too high.

> Read full chapter

Power Production by Biomass Gasificat-

ion Technologies
Antonio Molino, ... Antonio Donatelli, in Current Trends and Future Developments
on (Bio-) Membranes, 2019
3.1 Classification of ICE
There are several possible ways to classify ICE. Some of the forms of classification
of ICE are listed below (https://me-mechanicalengineering.com/internal-combus-
tion-engines-classification):

1. Based on basic engine design:•Reciprocating: single cylinder, multicylinder

in-line, V, radial, opposed cylinder, opposed piston•Rotatory: single motor,
multimotor
2. Based on ignition:•SI engine (commonly found as gasoline engines)•CI engine

3. Based on operating cycle:•Atkinson (for complete expansion SI Engine)•Diesel

(for the Ideal Diesel Engine)•Dual (for the Actual Diesel Engine)•Miller (for
Early/Late Inlet valve closing type SI Engine)•Otto (for the Convectional SI
Engine)
4. Based on working cycle (number of strokes):•Two-stroke engine: Clerk cycle
1879 and Day cycle•Four-stroke engine (Otto cycle)•Six-stroke engine
5. Based on fuel:•Convectional:-Crude oil derivatives; petrol, diesel-Other
sources; coal, bio-mass, tar stands, shale•Alternative-Petroleum derived: CNG,
LPG-Biomass derived: alcohols, vegetable oils, producer gas, biogas, hydro-
gen•Blending•Bi-fuel and dual fuel.

Typically an ICE is fed with fossil fuels, but there is a growing usage of alternative
fuel like biodiesel, hydrogen, biogas, CNG, LPG, bioethanol, or methanol; each has
its own advantages and is suitable for specific applications. Among new gaseous
alternative fuel for ICE, syngas offers a promising opportunity mainly in rural parts
where infrastructure is not developed for distribution of electricity and petroleum
production in irrigation, stand-alone power generation, and transportation sectors.

3.1.1 Gaseous alternative fuel for internal combustion engine: Syngas

Biomass gasification is a versatile process which produces syngas, H2, or other liquid
fuels, and can thereby meet the demand for electricity or thermal energy. However,
it has yet to become consolidated as a mature technology, and in most markets
it cannot compete with other methods of energy conversion (Kirkels and Verbong,
2011). The main product of gasification is syngas, whose composition can vary
significantly depending on the feedstock, particle size, gas and feedstock flow rate,
chemical reactor configurations, operating conditions or the gasification process,
gasifying agent and catalyst, and gas residence time. A more detailed review about
its properties and production techniques can be found in the literature (Lieuwen et
al., 2009).
This gas has: a heating value ranging from 4 to 7 MJ/Nm3 using air as a gasifying
agent or 10–28 MJ/Nm3 using steam or pure oxygen (Portofino et al., 2013; Iovane et
al., 2013; Molino et al., 2013a; Arena and Mastellone, 2005; Jianfen et al., 2009; Lahi-
jani and Zainal, 2011; Basu, 2010); a flammability limit, very important characteristic
in the safety and fuel for ICE, near those H2 and CO which are the main constituents;
a laminar flame velocity or burning velocity for the investigation of combustion
chamber operation which increases with an increase in H2/CO ratio of mixture
(Natarajan and Seitzman, 2010; Sridhar et al., 2005); extremely low pollutant levels
(environmentally friendly fuel). The prospect of syngas as a fuel in ICE is believed to
be very promising and cost-competitive when compared with other gaseous fuels
(Richards et al., 2010; Bridgewater, 2003).

> Read full chapter

Using alternative and renewable liq-

uid fuels to improve the environmen-
tal performance of internal combustion
engines: key challenges and blending
technologies
R.J. Pearson, J.W.G. Turner, in Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicle Technologies
for Improved Environmental Performance, 2014

3.8 Vehicle and blending technologies for alternative liquid

fuels: ethanol-gasoline and methanol-gasoline bi-fuel vehicles
Following the definitions of Kramer and Anderson (2012) a bi-fuel vehicle has
two independent fuel systems – one for each fuel. As such it is more expensive to
produce and purchase than a flex-fuel vehicle, but advantages can be accrued from
the targeted introduction of different fuels into the cycle. While Brazilian flex-fuel
vehicles can be thought of as bi-fuel insofar as they use a separate gasoline tank for
starting, which must be kept topped-up in addition to the main fuel tank, in some
recently-proposed bi-fuel vehicles more is made of the advantages of each individual
fuel.

In the concept proposed by Cohn et al. (2005) the main fuel used in a downsized
engine would be gasoline. The engine would be modified to operate with higher
boost pressures and/or compression ratio (i.e. a higher degree of downsizing and
Otto cycle efficiency for fuel economy at part load), and alcohol would be directly
injected to help suppress knock at high load. The alcohol would only be used when
 necessary. The gasoline could be directly injected via its own in-chamber injector,
but generally it is imagined that it would be introduced into the intake port via a
low-pressure injection system. The use of gasoline also permits cold start at low
ambient temperatures and would also contribute to particulate emissions compli-
ance. Cohn et al. (2005) performed some calculations showing that significant
improvements in overall fuel economy are possible, and their work was continued
in a US DOE-funded programme using a production direct-injection engine as
described by Stein et al. (2009), who demonstrate that approximately five volume
units of gasoline can be replaced by one unit of ethanol. The earlier work of Cohn
and co-workers similarly suggested that, despite its lower LHV, methanol could be
used to replace ethanol at the same volumetric rate; this was because the higher
enthalpy of vaporisation had a greater knock- suppression effect per volume unit of
directly-injected alcohol. Blumberg et al. (2008) have shown that using this approach,
it would be possible to use alcohol and gasoline bi-fuel engines in heavy duty trucks.

Bi-fuel operation of diesel engines using CNG as the main fuel but with pilot
injection of diesel for ignition purposes is also possible. Such conversions can offer
significant reductions in exhaust emissions. They would also permit operation on
diesel should the CNG tank be emptied, helping to avoid range anxiety. However,
future dedicated spark-ignition CNG engines are likely to be used as the infrastruc-
ture for vehicular use of natural gas develops, since the cost of the diesel injection
equipment (and associated exhaust after treatment (EAT) and fuel lines and tanks) is
very high compared to a spark ignition system and its simpler EAT. Such concepts
do allow the large recent finds of natural gas to be introduced to road transport,
and while it is not carbon-neutral, natural gas does bring a reduction in GHG
emission of over 20% due to its high hydrogen-to-carbon ratio (Hadler et al., 2011).
Furthermore, methane (the main constituent of natural gas) can be decarbonised
using biomethane or e-methane (also known as renewable power methane (Specht
et al., 2009; Breyer et al., 2011)), so that this route also provides a means of gradually
reducing fossil CO2 emissions.

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