In-cylinder water measurements in an operating IC engine using a multi-wavelength measurement architecture

H. McCanna,b, S. Karagiannopoulosa, P. Wrighta, A. Tsekenisa, S. Beggc

aSchool of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Manchester, P.O. Box 88, Sackville Street Manchester M13 9PL, UK

bNow at The School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, The King?s Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3JL, UK

c Sir Harry Ricardo Laboratories, University of Brighton, Brighton, UK

Abstract

There is great interest in automotive R&D to image in-cylinder distributions of residual species from the previous combustion cycle, and water is a promising marker for this purpose. However, the near-IR absorption spectroscopy of water is characterized by many narrow lines. We report here engine tests of a recently published multi-wavelength measurement scheme. Three beams were launched through an optically accessed single-cylinder research engine, each carrying three wavelengths. Data from motored and fired operation are reported. Although not yet fully calibrated, the data are of good quality, and demonstrate many of the anticipated features of the engine cycle.

Keywords: chemical; species; tomography; water; engine