Impact of Rail Pressure on Soot Morphology and Nanostructure
Peng Ye, The Pennsylvania State University
We will survey recent work from our Ford 6.4L test engine operated under 3 different common rail pressures and two loads with regard to engine combustion behavior (heat release rates, cylinder temperatures), soot nanostructure (fringe lengths and tortuosity) and fractal dimensions. What we have observed is significant variations in soot mass emissions and soot morphology, but almost no impact on soot nanostructure. This suggests that the soot formation process is largely unaltered by the change in rail pressure, but that the availability of soot precursor materials serves to limit the mass of soot that is formed and the size and shape of the soot aggregates.