Ghent University Combustion Chamber I (GUCCI): opening a window into the fundamentals of combustion engines

Victor Sileghem; Quinten Dejaegere; Sebastian Verhelst

doi:10.5281/zenodo.17435318

Ghent University Combustion Chamber I (GUCCI): opening a window into the fundamentals of combustion engines

Victor Sileghem; Quinten Dejaegere; Sebastian Verhelst

Publisher: Zenodo
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17435318
Repository: zenodo.org
Language: en

Abstract

Hard-to-electrify applications such as shipping and heavy machinery are in desperate need of sustainable fuels. The Ghent University Combustion Chamber I (GUCCI) is a unique experimental test facility designed to recreate the extreme conditions found inside combustion engines and to study the fundamental processes involved. This poster provides an overview of the setup's capabilities, as well as past and planned research. Thanks to its versatility, GUCCI enables investigations ranging from fuel property measurements to high-pressure fuel spray formation, combustion processes, and the impact of different fuels on these phenomena. Moreover, its optical access, combined with high-speed imaging techniques, allows researchers to study in detail what often remains hidden inside the "black box" of the engine. The setup has been operated since 2008, and has been used in multiple PhD and industrial projects. Initial studies focused on high-pressure fuel spray formation in marine diesel engines, providing valuable insights to optimize contemporary engines, as well as to characterize the impact of novel biofuels. More recently, the setup has been applied to measure laminar flame speeds, a key parameter for engine modelling. Today, GUCCI is being prepared to investigate E-fuels such as hydrogen and methanol. These fuels differ significantly from conventional fossil fuels, requiring novel combustion concepts to enable their use in tomorrows marine engines. The aim of this poster is to showcase our research and to connect with other researchers working with advanced high-speed imaging techniques.

Full text

Ghent University Combustion Chamber I - GUCCI An open window into the fundamentals of combustion engines EA08 –SUSTAINABLE THERMO-FLUID ENERGY SYSTEMS (STFES) ir. Victor Sileghem –ir. Quinten Dejaegere –Prof. Sebastian Verhelst What? Why? PC-MCC SI-MCC Optically accessible combustion chamber 4.1L cubical internal volume 150 mm optical ports 22.8 kg/m3–850K –0-21% O2 Study engine-relevant phenomena in a controlled environment Experimental possibilities High-speed optical diagnostics Schlieren MIE scattering Diffused back-illumination (DBI) •Marine fuel spray evaporation and combustion •Laminar burning velocity measurement Spark-Ignited Mixing-Controlled Combustion Evaluate: •Local ignitability •Flame growth and stabilization process Goals •Develop & validate spray models •Characterize fuel injectors •Evaluate renewable fuels Measure hard-to-simulate spray characteristics Schlieren MIE •Build reduced-order engine models Fundamental mixture property Liquid and gaseous fuels 2-15 bar –298 K •Validate chemical kinetics Up next: Novel spray ignition strategies Pre-Chamber enabled Mixing-Controlled Combustion Energy source Biomass or electricity? Prechamber Prechamber Injector Spark plug HPDI Injector Burning jet Main methanol injection Evaluate: •Pre-chamber design •Jet-spray interaction Renewable energy carriers for hard-to-electrify applications Energy density EA08 –Sustainable Thermo-Fluid Energy Systems ir. Victor Sileghem –ir. Quinten Dejaegere –Prof. Sebastian Verhelst [email protected] –[email protected] –[email protected]