Major sources of hydrocarbon emissions in a premixed charge compression ignition engine

Although premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI) combustion engines are praised for potentially high efficiency and clean exhaust, experimental engines built to date emit more hydrocarbons (HCs) and carbon monoxide (CO) than the conventional machines. These compounds are not only strictly controlled components of the exhaust gas of road vehicles but are also an energy loss indicator. The prime objective of this study was to investigate the major sources of the HCs formed in the combustion chamber of an experimental PCCI engine in order to suggest some effective technologies for HC reduction. In this study, to explore the dominant sources of HC emissions in both operation modes, a single cylinder engine was prepared such that it could operate using either conventional diesel combustion or PCCI combustion. Specifically, the contributions of the top-ring crevice volume in the combustion chamber and the bulk quenching of the lean mixture were investigated. To understand the influence of the shape and magnitude of the crevice on HC emissions, the engine was operated with 12 specially prepared pistons with different top-ring crevices installed one after another. The engine emitted proportionally more HCs as the depth of the crevice increased as long as the width remained narrower than the prevailing quench distance. The top-ring-crevice-originated exhaust HCs comprised approximately 31% of the total HC emissions in the baseline condition. In a series of tests to estimate the effects of bulk quench on exhaust HC emissions, intake air was heated from 300K to 400K in steps of 25K. With the intake air heated, HC and CO emissions decreased with a gradually diminishing rate to zero at 375K. In conclusion, the most dominant sources of HC emissions in PCCI engines were the crevice volumes in the combustion chamber and the bulk quenching of the lean mixtures. The key methods for reducing HC emissions in PCCI engines are minimizing crevice volume in the combustion chamber and maximizing intake air temperature allowed based on the permissible NOx level.     

Aerodynamic design optimization of rear body shapes of a sedan for drag reduction

This study proposes an aerodynamically optimized outer shape of a sedan by using an Artificial Neural Network (ANN), which focused on modifying the rear body shapes of the sedan. To determine the optimization variables, the unsteady flow field around the sedan driving at very fast speeds was analyzed by CFD simulation, and fluctuations of the drag coefficient (C _D ) and pressure around the car were calculated. After consideration of the baseline result of CFD, 6 local parts from the end of the sedan were chosen as the design variables for optimization. Moreover, an ANN approximation model was established with 64 experimental points generated by the D-optimal methodology. As a result, an aerodynamically optimized shape for the rear end of the sedan in which the aerodynamic performance is improved by about 5.64% when compared to the baseline vehicle is proposed. Finally, it is expected that within the accepted range of shape modifications for a rear body, the aerodynamic performance of a sedan can be enhanced so that the fuel efficiency of the sedan can be improved. The YF SONATA, a sedan manufactured by Hyundai Motors Corporate, played a major role in this research as the baseline vehicle.     

Study of an optimized gas strut layout to improve opening and closing quality

The most important factor in gas strut design is determining an optimized layout. If the layout is not optimized, vehicle operators will have a suboptimal experience when opening and closing the tailgate. A poor layout of the gas struts causes operators to work excessively when they open/close the tailgate, and vehicle owners will incur additional expenses due to deterioration in the body quality of the vehicle. Thus, an optimized gas strut layout is very important, even if it does not seem interesting. This paper describes the tailgate operation process and focuses on determining an optimized gas strut layout for opening/closing the tailgate easily.     

Fuel consumption of fuel cell hybrid vehicles considering battery SOC differences

Fuel cell hybrid vehicles (FCHVs) have become one of the most promising candidates for future transportation due to current energy supply problem and environmental problem. Fuel economy is an important factor in FCHVs. In order to properly evaluate the fuel economy of an FCHV, the initial battery state of charge (SOC) and the final battery SOC have to be identical so that the effect of the battery energy usage on the fuel economy is neglected. In the simulation or in the real driving, however, the final battery SOC is usually different from the initial battery SOC, and the final battery SOC often depends on the power management strategy. To consider the difference between the two battery SOC values, the concept of equivalent fuel consumption is presented by two methods. One is based on the relationship between delta SOC and delta fuel consumption, and the other is based on the optimal control theory. Two rule-based power management strategies for an FCHV are presented, and for each strategy, the fuel economy is evaluated based on the two methods. The characteristics of the two methods are discussed and compared, and the superior one is selected based on the comparison.     

FE modeling method for a headform used in pedestrian protection simulations

Finite element models of headforms are used in experimental simulations of pedestrian protection. In this study, a quick and accurate method for FE modeling of the headforms was developed. This method entailed the initial definition of the dimensional parameters for the mass, centroid, and inertial moment properties of the headform. The equations governing these properties were constructed using the dimensional parameters as design variables. The dimensional parameters meeting the requirements of the relevant regulations were obtained by solving these three equations. A design optimization model was constructed for the material parameters of the outer part of the headform. In this model, the parameters of the material used in the FE model were considered as design variables; the difference between the peak acceleration in a side-impact simulation test and the average value of the regulated acceleration range was used as the objective function; the first-order natural frequency, which was required to be greater than 5,000 Hz, was defined as one of the constraints; the peak drop acceleration, which was required to be within the regulated range of values, was defined as the second constraint. The material parameters were obtained by solving the optimization model. These material parameters meet the dynamic requirements of the regulations for headforms. Based on these three parameters, an FE model of a headform can be constructed quickly and accurately.     

Topology optimization of gas flow channel routes in an automotive fuel cell

An efficient topology optimization method for fluid-structure problems was developed in an effort to determine the optimum flow channel route in a fuel cell bipolar plate from first principles. This study describes the derivation and solution of new mathematical equations for topology optimization combining a density-based algorithm, the interpolation method of moving asymptotes (MMA), and the incompressible Navier-Stokes equation with a term representing the chemical reaction between hydrogen and the catalyst. The present method is based on the finite element method with a newly developed reaction rate equation. In this model, a topology variable of 0 represents viscous flow, whereas a value of 1 indicates porous flow. The flow velocity and pressure were obtained from the Navier-Stokes equation and constraints and element matrices for sensitivity analyses during the optimization. MMA was utilized to calculate the optimum flow routes in the design domain. The influence of the key design parameter q and the pressure drop on the optimum topology were also investigated. The channel topology became smoother with decreasing q, and the number of channels increased with increasing pressure drop.     

Comparison of the optimum designs of center pillar assembly of an auto-body between conventional steel and ahss with a simplified side impact analysis

This study compares the optimum designs of center pillar assembly with advanced high-strength steel (AHSS) to that of conventional steel for crashworthiness and weight reduction in side impacts. A simplified side impact analysis method was used to simulate the crash behavior of the center pillar assembly with efficient computing time. Thickness optimization aims to perform an S-shaped deformation of the center pillar toward the cabin to reduce the injury level of a driver in a crash test. Center pillar members were regarded as an assembly of parts that are fabricated with tailor-welded blanks, and the thickness of each part was selected as a design variable. The thickness variables of parts that have significant effects on the deformation mechanism were extracted as the main design variables for thickness optimization based on the results of a sensitivity analysis with design of experiments. The optimization condition was constructed to induce an S-shaped deformation mode and reduce the weight of the center pillar assembly. An optimum design was obtained after several iterations with response surface methodology (RSM). Optimization was first performed with conventional steel and then with AHSS with the same procedure to optimize the crashworthiness of the center pillar assembly. After thickness optimization, optimum designs were applied to the full vehicle analysis to evaluate the validity of the optimization scheme with the simplified side impact analysis method. Then, the crashworthiness of optimum designs with conventional steel and AHSS were compared using the full vehicle analysis. This comparison demonstrates that AHSS can be more effectively utilized than conventional steel to obtain a lightweight design of an auto-body with enhanced crashworthiness.     

Prediction of the dimensional deformation of the addendum and dedendum after the warm shrink fitting process using a correction coefficient

The warm shrink fitting process is generally used to assemble automobile transmission parts (shafts/gears). However, this process causes a deformation in the addendum and dedendum of the gear depending on the fitting interference and gear profile, and this deformation causes additional noise and vibration between the gears. To address these problems, the warm shrink fitting process is analyzed by considering the error in the dimensional deformation of the addendum and dedendum found when comparing the results of a theoretical analysis and finite element analysis (FEA). A correction coefficient that reduces this error is derived through an analysis of the difference in the cross-sectional area between the shapes used for the theoretical analysis and that of the actual gear, and a closed-form equation to predict the dimensional deformation of the addendum and dedendum is proposed. The FEA method is proposed to analyze the thermal-structural-thermal coupled field analysis of the warm shrink fitting process (heating-fitting-cooling process). To verify the closed-form equation using the correction coefficient, measurements are made of actual helical gears used in automobile transmissions. The results are in good agreement with those given by the closed-form equation.     

双平面焊接圆管截面DKT节点的中心撑杆鞍点及冠点位置的应力集中系数(英文)

A set of parametric stress analyses was carried out for two-planar tubular DKT-joints under different axial loading conditions.The analysis results were used to present general remarks on the effects of the geometrical parameters on stress concentration factors(SCFs) at the inner saddle,outer saddle,and crown positions on the central brace.Based on results of finite element(FE) analysis and through nonlinear regression analysis,a new set of SCF parametric equations was established for fatigue design purposes.An assessment study of equations was conducted against the experimental data and original SCF database.The satisfaction of acceptance criteria proposed by the UK Department of Energy(UK DoE) was also checked.Results of parametric study showed that highly remarkable differences exist between the SCF values in a multi-planar DKT-joint and the corresponding SCFs in an equivalent uni-planar KT-joint having the same geometrical properties.It can be clearly concluded from this observation that using the equations proposed for uni-planar KT-connections to compute the SCFs in multi-planar DKT-joints will lead to either considerably under-predicting or over-predicting results.Hence,it is necessary to develop SCF formulae specially designed for multi-planar DKT-joints.Good results of equation assessment according to UK DoE acceptance criteria,high values of correlation coefficients,and the satisfactory agreement between the predictions of the proposed equations and the experimental data guarantee the accuracy of the equations.Therefore,the developed equations can be reliably used for fatigue design of offshore structures.     

Course stability and yaw motion of a ship in steady wind

In order to achieve safe navigation, it is important to be able to understand and calculate the effects of an external force on the maneuvering behavior of a ship. This paper analyzes the course stability and yaw motion of a ship traveling under steady wind conditions. A course stability criterion and approximate formulae for the yaw motion in steady wind, including the aero/hydrodynamic force derivatives for the ship, are derived. To confirm the reliability of the criterion and formulae, they were used to investigate a pure car carrier in steady wind. The results of this investigation revealed that course instability appears in the head and following wind directions, mainly under the influence of aerodynamic derivatives with respect to the yaw restoring forces. However, this course instability can be reduced by applying steering control. For winds ranging from head winds to beam winds, yaw oscillation appears when the period is relatively long and the damping is small. The analytical formulae derived here can be used to gain a better understanding of ship maneuvering behavior in steady wind.