Research Experiences for Undergraduates in Automotive Technologies

Proposed Project:
Experimental Investigation of Inclined Spray Impact onto Surfaces

Direct fuel injection is now a standard technology in both gasoline and diesel engines. Nevertheless, neither the nozzle technology nor the operational parameters are considered optimal in terms of minimizing consumption or emissions. One difficulty lies in performing reliable simulations of the spray injection, propagation and evaporation in the combustion chamber. The present project addresses one aspect of these simulations, namely the spray/wall mpact, as would occur on cylinder liners or piston heads. The work is aimed at experimentally characterizing droplet/spray's wall impact under realistic conditions, i.e. at elevated pressures and temperature. For this a droplet generator and injection nozzles can be operated in a high-pressure chamber and a heated target is available. The process will be captured using high-speed imaging and quantitative data about droplet size and velocity will be obtained using a phase Doppler instrument. These investigations are accompanied by a strong theoretical modelling group. REU students would take part in the measurements and analysis of data. Mathlab experience would be helpful, as would an introductory course in fluid mechanics.

For more detailes, please visit:
• Chair of Fluid Mechanics and Aerodynamics (SLA)
• Research Group on Interfacial Phenomena

Back to PROJECT DESCRIPTIONS page...