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Investigation of optical prechamber spark plug and dual laser pulses for ignition

dc.contributor.authorLoccisano, Frank Christopher, author
dc.contributor.authorYalin, Azer P., 1972-, advisor
dc.contributor.authorMarchese, Anthony John, 1967-, committee member
dc.contributor.authorRoberts, Jacob L., committee member
dc.date.accessioned2007-01-03T05:15:44Z
dc.date.available2007-01-03T05:15:44Z
dc.date.issued2011
dc.description.abstractLaser ignition has the potential to increase efficiency and reduce pollutant emissions of natural gas engines. The work presented in this thesis focuses on investigate the reasons behind lower indicated mean effective pressures (IMEPs) obtained in laser ignition tests of Caterpillar G3516C engine when operated with hollow core fibers, and experimentally investigating the effect of using dual laser pulses to increase the total amount of energy deposited in a laser spark. To address the low IMEP, succinct tests were performed on the Caterpillar G3516C engine with a non-fueled electric prechamber plug, a non-fueled laser prechamber plug, and an open chamber laser plug. Test data showed that the open chamber laser plug exhibited a high degree of combustion instability, while the prechamber electrical and laser plug showed similar (improved) performance with the prechamber laser plug having a slightly higher degree of combustion variability. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was performed to examine the turbulent flow inside the optical prechamber. The CFD found that to optimize the use of the optical prechamber the spark should be located in the bottom half of the prechamber to reduce the quenching due to turbulence. Bench top experiments were also performed to examine the possibility of increasing the energy in the laser spark by employing dual laser pulses. The first pulse would initiate the spark while the second pulse deposits additional energy into the spark. It was shown that initial spark can absorb 80 to 90% energy of the second pulse if the inter-pulse separation (Δt) is about 20 to 40 nanoseconds. Overall, better understanding of the use of optical prechamber sparkplugs, as well as the use of dual laser pulses to increase the amount of energy deposited into the spark, will aid in the progression of a practical laser ignition system.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediummasters theses
dc.identifierLoccisano_colostate_0053N_10322.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10217/47289
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2000-2019
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjectCFD
dc.subjectdual pulse
dc.subjectignition
dc.subjectlaser
dc.subjectplasma
dc.subjectprechamber
dc.titleInvestigation of optical prechamber spark plug and dual laser pulses for ignition
dc.typeText
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineMechanical Engineering
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (M.S.)

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