I.C.

E Lecture 4
Dr: Aly Hassan Elbatran
 Engine Parts
Combustion Stoichiometry

The combustion process involves the chemical reaction of hydro carbon fuel with oxygen to produce
water vapor and CO2 . The maximum amount of chemical energy from the hydrocarbon fuel is when it
reacts with stoichiometric oxygen.

- The meaning of stoichiometric oxygen is defined as the amount of oxygen that is needed to convert all of the
carbon in the fuel to CO2 and all of the hydrogen to H2O.

The hydrocarbon reacts with air which is composed of man y substances. Nitrogen and oxygen are the
two most found substances in air with a nitrogen composition of 79%, by mole, and oxygen composition
of 21%. The stoichiometric combustion of isooctane with air is then:

2
 Combustion Reactions
For theoretical (stoichiometeric) reaction,  = 1

m m m
C n H m  (n  )(O2  3.76 N 2 )  nCO2  H 2O  (n  )  3.76 N 2
4 2 4
  ( FA) act /( FA) stoich  ( AF ) stoich /( AF ) act  1 / 

where: FA = mf/ma = fuel-air ratio

AF = ma/mf = air-fuel ratio
ma = mass of air
mf = mass of fuel
 = Excess air ratio
 = 1 stoichiometric, maximum energy released from fuel
 < 1 running lean, oxygen in exhaust
 > 1 running rich, CO and fuel in exhaust
For SI engines normally 0.9 <  < to 1.2
For lean mixture  <1,  >1

m m m
C n H m   (n  )(O2  3.76 N 2 )  nCO2  H 2O   (n  )  3.76 N 2  (  1)O2
4 2 4

For Rich mixture  >1,  <1

m m m
C n H m   (n  )(O2  3.76 N 2 )  nCO2  lCO  H 2O   (n  )  3.76 N 2
4 2 4
The number of moles can be obtained from the atomic mass
balance
 = 0.8
80% stoichiometric air = 80% theoretical air = 80% air = 20% deficiency of air
 = 1.33
133% stoichiometric oxygen = 133% theoretical oxygen = 133% oxygen = 33% excess
oxygen
Examples
1.Calculate the theoretical air-fuel ratio on a mole basis and mass basis
for the combustion of Octane, C8H18.
2. Isooctane is burned with 120% theoretical air in a small three-
cylinder turbocharged
automobile engine.
Calculate:
A. air-fuel ratio
B. fuel-air ratio
C. equivalence ratio if A/F)stoich =14.5
Four Stages Engine Parts in IC Engines
of Combustion

6
 Four Stages of Combustion in CI Engines

Start of
Injection End of
(spark) Injection (spark)

-20 -10 TC 10 20 30
 Combustion in Diesel Engine

Start of injection (spark) End of injection (spark)

Start of combustion
The combustion process proceeds by the following stages:

Delay Period

Premixed Uncontrolled combustion

Controlled combustion phase (cd)

After burning “Late combustion phase (de)”

 Ignition Delay

Ignition delay is defined as the time (or crank angle interval) from when the
fuel injection (spark) starts to the onset of combustion.

Both physical and chemical processes must take place before a significant
fraction of the chemical energy of the injected liquid is released.

Physical processes are fuel spray atomization, evaporation and mixing of fuel vapour with cylinder
air.

Good atomization requires high fuel-injection pressure, small injector hole

diam., optimum fuel viscosity, high cylinder pressure (large divergence angle).

Rate of vaporization of the fuel droplets depends on droplet diameter, velocity, fuel volatility,
pressure and temperature of the air.

•Chemical processes the precombustion reactions of the fuel, air and residual gas mixture which
lead to autoignition. Chemical delay is more effective for the duration of the ignition delay period.
 Premixed Uncontrolled combustion

– combustion of the fuel which has mixed with the air to within the flammability limits (air at high-temperature and
high- pressure) during the ignition delay period occurs rapidly in a few crank angles. The fuel injected during this stage
burns as soon as it is injected.

- If the amount of fuel collected in the combustion chamber during the ignition delay is much - high
heat release rate results in a rapid pressure rise which causes the diesel knock.
- For fuels with low cetane number in diesel engine, with long ignition delay, ignition occurs late in the
expansion stroke - incomplete combustion, reduced power output, poor fuel conversion efficiency.
- If the pressure gradient is in the range 0.4 - 0.5 MPa/o CA, engine operation is not smooth and engine
knock starts.
- This value should be in the range 0.2 to 0.3 MPa/o CA for smooth operation (max allowable value is 1.0
MPa/o CA).
 Controlled combustion phase (cd)

- after premixed gas consumed, the burning rate is controlled by the rate at which mixture
becomes available for burning.
- The rate of burning is controlled in this phase primarily by the fuel-air mixing process.
(Liquid fuel atomization, vaporization, preflame chemical reactions also effect the rate of heat
release).
- Heat release rate sometimes reaches a second peak (which is lower in magnitude) and then
decreases as the phase progresses.
- Generally it is desirable to have the combustion process near the TDC for low particulate (soot)
emissions and high performance (and efficiency).
 After burning “Late combustion phase (de)”

After burning “Late combustion phase (de)”

– heat release may proceed at a lower rate well into the expansion stroke (no additional fuel injected
during this phase).
- Combustion of any unburned liquid fuel and soot is responsible for this.
- The cylinder charge is nonuniform and mixing during this phase promotes more complete combustion and
less dissociated product gases. Kinetics is slower.