Seminar Report on

EFFECTIVE METHODS TO IMPROVE

PERFOMANCE AND EMISSIONS OF SI ENGINE
FUELLED BY BIOGAS

SEMINAR REPORT 2014

ABSTRACT
For understanding performance and combustion parameters at various
compression ratio a single cylinder diesel engine was modified to operate as a biogas
operated spark ignition engine. The engine was operated at 1500 rpm at throttle
opening of 25% and 100% at various equivalence ratios. The performance, emissions
and combustion characteristics with different compression ratios are compared. It has
been found from the results that the higher the compression ratio, the higher the brake
thermal efficiency. When the compression ratio was above a critical value of 13:1,
brake power and thermal efficiency increased little. At higher compression ratios
above 13:1, increased NOx, HC, and CO emissions were measured .In the study of
hydrogen blending in biogas engine a 8-L spark ignition engine fueled by biogas with
various methane concentrations which we called the N2 dilution test was performed
in terms of its thermal efficiency, combustion characteristics and emissions. The
engine was operated at a constant engine rotational speed of 1800 rpm under a 60 kW
power output condition and simulated biogas was employed to realize a wide range of
changes in heating value and gas composition. The N2 dilution test results show that
an increase of inert gas in biogas was beneficial to thermal efficiency enhancement
and NOx emission reduction. H2 fractions ranging from 5 to 30% were blended to the
biogas and the effects of hydrogen addition on engine behavior were evaluated. The
engine test results indicated that the addition of hydrogen improved in-cylinder
combustion characteristics, extending lean operating limit as well as reducing THC
emissions while elevating NOx generation.

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CONTENTS

CHAPTER NO

PAGE NO

1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 LITERATURE SURVEY

2 VARIABLE COMPRESSION RATIO TEST

2.1 EXPERIMENTAL SETUP AND EXPERIMENTS

2.2 RESULTS AND DISCUSSSIONS

13

3 EFFECT OF HYDROGEN BLENDING

18

3.1EXPERIMENTAL SETUP

18

3.2RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

21

3.3 HYDROGEN ADDITION TEST-LEAN ENGINE OPERATION

27

4 CONCLUSIONS

31

REFERENCE

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LIST OF FIGURES
FIGURE

PAGE NO

2.1 .Experimental setup of variable compression ratio test. . 10

2.21 .Variation of brake power with equivalence ratio at full throttle.. 13
2.22Variation of brake thermal efficiency
with equivalence ratio at full throttle..
2.23 Variation of brake thermal efficiency

.14

with equivalence ratio at part throttle .

. 15
2.24Variation of HC emissions with equivalence ratio at full throttle..
16
2.25Variation of NOx emissions with equivalence ratio at full throttle 17
3.1.Experimental setup of hydrogen blending test
19
3.21Fow rate of each component of biogas with N2 dilution ratio ..21
3.22Variation of thermal efficiency, combustion stability,
manifold air pressure With N2 dilution ratio
22
3.23Variation of HC, NOx emissions with N2 dilution ratio ...... 23
3.24.Flow rate of each component of hydrogen biogas blend fuel
With hydrogen concentration
24
3.25.Variation of thermal efficiency with H2 concentration .25
3.26Effect of hydrogen addition on THC and NOx emissions 26
3.31 Variation of thermal efficiency for various H2-biogas blend fuels
As a function of excess air ratio .27
3.32Variation of THC emissions with excessair ratio. 29
3.33Variation of NOx emissions with excess air ratio 30

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LIST OF TABLES
TABLE NO
2.1
3.1

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TABLE NAME
PAGE NO
Base engine Specifications of
Variable compression ratio test10
Base engine Specifications of
Hydrogen blending test .19

SEMINAR REPORT 2014

NOMENCLATURE

COV
CR
EAR
HC
IMEP
MBT
NOX
BTDC

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Coefficient of variation
Compression ratio
Excess air ratio
Hydrocarbon
Indicated mean effective pressure
Minimum advance for best torque
Nitrogen oxides
Before top dead centre

SEMINAR REPORT 2014

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Biogas is typically composed of 40-60% of methane and rest of inert gases
such as nitrogen(N2) and (CO2).however its main composition varies by origin.There
for it is difficult to establish optimum and consistent air- fuel mixture conditions and
combustion phasing in order to ensure a stable operation of I C engines. In addition a
significant amount of inert gases contained in biogas affects in-cylinder combustion
charecteristics,reducing flame propagation speed which increase average length of
combustion duration and ignition delay.One of the efforts to overcome these
drawbacks is a rise of compression ratio in a biogas engine.it enables improvements
in engine performance, especially in thermal efficiency and power output. However,
an increased compression ratio can also exacerbate knock tendency and produce more
nitrogen oxides (NOx) and hydrocarbon (HC) emissions.Although the presence of
inert gases in biogas can suppress knock vulnerability and NOx emission, modifying
piston (in an SI based engine) or replacing the diesel injectors by spark plugs (in a CI
based engine) to achieve a high compression ratio will require extra cost.
Another approach for better engine performance is a biogas diesel dual fuel
engine.In this case, mixture of gaseous fuels and fresh air is supplied to a cylinder and
then, a small amount of diesel-like fuel is injected to ignite the combustible mixture.
Since it is usually converted from a diesel CI engine, the dual fuel engine has a high
compression ratio. This means that it can achieve higher efficiency than a biogas
dedicated SI engine. In addition, the injected diesel fuel behaves as multi-point
ignition sources so that higher burning speed and relatively complete combustion can
occur inside a combustion chamber. The other way to improve biogas engine
performance is to add hydrogen (H2) in gaseous fuels. Hydrogen is well known for its
excellent combustion characteristics and has been considered as a combustion
enhancer for a gas engine fueled by natural gas or methane.Several researchers
reported that use of H2-natural gas or H2-methane blend fuels cannot Furthermore,
this multi-point ignition can make in-cylinder combustion process less sensitive to
composition fluctuation of biogas, leading to stable onsite engine operations. Despite
these advantages, the dual fuel engine is expensive together with high maintenance
cost compared with a SI engine. It also suffers the possibility of frequent injector
failures due to reduced cooling effect by a decrease in injected fuel and has issues on
engine durability due to high in-cylinder pressure in power generation applications
The other way to improve biogas engine performance is to add hydrogen (H2) in
gaseous fuels. Hydrogen is well known for its excellent combustion characteristics

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and has been considered as a combustion enhancer for a gas engine fuelled by natural
gas or methane.Several researchers reported that use of H2-natural gas or H2-methane
blend fuels can not only extend lean operation limit of the engine but also decrease
HC and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions while increasing NOx.However, most of
these studies have focused on transportation applications.In addition, since all these
previous works were carried out with biogas of relatively high methane concentration
(more than 60%) and target power less than 20 kW, further research on a power
generation engine with lower quality biogas less than 40% methane fraction needs to
be done which is actually the case requiring an assistance of combustion promoter
such as hydrogen. In this study, an experimental investigation on a naturally aspirated
(NA), 8-L spark ignition engine fueled by biogas with various methane
concentrations e which we called the N2 dilution test e was performed in terms of its
thermal efficiency, combustion characteristics and emissions. The engine was
operated at a constant engine rotational speed of 1800 rpm under a 60 kW power
output condition and simulated biogas was employed to realize a wide range of
changes in heating value and gas composition. Then, as a way to achieve stable
combustion for the lowest quality biogas, H2 addition tests were carried out in
various excess air ratios. H2 fractions ranging from 5 to 30% were blended to the
biogas and the effects of hydrogen addition on engine behavior were evaluated.
Moreover, as one of the main results, a set of optimum operating conditions for
maximum efficiency and minimum emission was suggested in terms of excess air
ratio,spark ignition timing, hydrogen addition rate and so on.

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1.1 LITERATURE SURVEY

Experiments conducted on a Ricardo engine using simulated biogas at
different speeds, compression ratios and equivalence ratios revealed that the presence
of CO2 can significantly lower NOx emissions However cylinder pressures, power
and brake thermal efficiency were lower as compared to other gaseous fuels and the
level of unburnt hydrocarbon emission was also higher. Also it has been reported that
it is possible to significantly increase the Compression Ratio (CR) as an effective
means of improving biogas fuelled engines performance when CO2 is present. They
also found that an increase in compression ratio with biogas resulted in an increase in
brake thermal efficiency, HC and NOx emissions. The influence of reduction in the
concentration of CO2 in biogas was studied experimentally in a constant speed spark
ignition engine at different equivalence ratios with a compression ratio of 13:1.It has
been found that with a reduction in the CO2 level there was a significant
improvement in the performance and reduction in emissions of hydrocarbons
particularly with lean mixtures. Also it has been reported that a reduction in the CO2
level by 10% seemed to be sufficient for reducing HC levels and the NO levels were
also not significant. Macari et al.developed a spark-ignited engine to operate on
landfill gas without any derating of power from the standard natural gas rating.
Crookes examined the performance and emissions from spark and compression
ignition engines running on a variety of biofuels, including simulated biogas and
commercial seed oil. Tests were performed at an engine speed of 2000 rpm w h a
relative air fuel ratio ranging from rich to the lean misfire limit and compression
ratios of 11:1 and 13:1 (before onset of detonation) in the SI mode. Raising the
compression ratio is known to have the effect of increasing in cylinder temperature,
NOx and HC. NOx was again found to reduce by dilution with either CO2 or N2,
except at the highest fraction of N2.
Porpatham conducted experiments on a biogas fuelled SI engine with different
hydrogen proportions (5%, 10% and 15%) on the energy basis. They found that
addition of hydrogen in small quantities to biogas can improve power and thermal
efficiency and reduce HC emissions. They also found that beyond 15% hydrogen the
need to retard the ignition timing to control knock and there is a reduction in cycle by
cycle variations in combustion with lean mixtures. Rakopoulos and Michos examined
the availability analysis on a spark ignition engine fuelled with biogas- hydrogen
blends during the closed part of the engine cycle, with volumetric fractions of
hydrogen up to 15%. It has been reported that the addition of increasing amounts of
hydrogen in biogas promotes the degree of reversibility of the burning process.

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CHAPTER 2
VARIABLE COMPRESSION RATIO TEST
`
Studies were conducted at IIT Madras on effect of compression ratio on
performance and combustion of a biogas fuelled spark ignition engine.In the present
study, a stationary, single cylinder agricultural diesel engine with a rated output of 4.4
kW at 1500 rpm was converted to operate as a gas engine using biogas as the fuel.
Table 1 shows the specifications of the modified engine. The tests were conducted at
1500 rpm at two throttle openings namely 25% and 100% of maximum were
evaluated at various equivalence ratios and number of compression ratios ranging
from 9.3:1, 11:1, 13:1 and 15:1. The best spark timing was maintained for all the
loads. Instruments were provided for obtaining the performance, emission, and
combustion characteristics of the engine. Performance parameters like brake thermal
efficiency, exhaust gas temperature, emissions of HC, CO and NO and combustion
parameters like ignition delay, peak pressure, heat release rate and cycle by cycle
variations in indicated mean effective pressure were studied and compared.
2.1 EXPERIMENTAL SETUP AND EXPERIMENTS:
Fig 2.1 shows the schematic diagram of the experimental setup used in this
work. A diesel engine was modified because it can withstand high compression ratios
and knock. This engine was tested with different compression ratios between 9.3:1
and 15:1.In this work combustion chamber was modified to a hemispherical shape by
forming a bowl on the piston. Different compression ratios were obtained by
changing the volume of the piston bowl and clearance height simultaneously, while
maintaining the calculated maximum squish velocity at 4 m/s.Table 2.1 shows the
specifications of the engine

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Table 2.1 [2]

fig 2.1 [2]

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The engine was coupled to an electrical dynamometer, which can control the speed in
the closed loop mode. Airflow was measured with turbine type flow meter . With
surge tank connected on suction side. Biogas was generated from cow dung in a fixed
dome plant and collected in a flexible bag and brought near to the engine and sucked
from the collection bag by a diaphragm pump and sent to a floating drum placed near
the engine for maintaining a constant pressure of about 2 kPa (gauge). Fuel was
throttled by a control valve and the gas flow was measured with a positive
displacement gas flow meter.The volume flow rate was converted to mass basis from
multiplying its actual density. The stoichiometric air fuel ratio was calculated from
known concentration of methane and carbon dioxide. The equivalence ratio was
determined from measured air and fuel flow rate. The fuel was inducted into the
throat of the venturi. Mixture flow rate was controlled by the throttle. The engine is
equipped with an electronically controlled Capacitor Discharge Ignition (CDI)
system. A PC based spark advancing system using LAB VIEW software along with a
FPGA module (Field Programmable Gate Array) was used. It takes the input from the
angle encoder and fires the spark at a specified crank angle. Instruments were
provided for obtaining the performance, emission, and combustion characteristics of
the engine. The standard deviation (SD) and coefficient of variation (COV) of IMEP
have also been calculated. Following are the formulae used for the calculations.

COVimep =
2
STD imep = [1/100 100
=1( )]

Mean imep =100

=1

100

where COVimep is the coefficient of variation of IMEP for 100 consecutive cycles,
Mean imep the mean value of IMEP for 100 cycles, STD imep = Standard deviation
of IMEP for 100 cycles, and IMEP is the indicated mean effective pressure.
The exhaust gas is analyzed with a Flame Ionization Detector (FID) for HC emission,
chemiluminescent analyzer for NOx and Non-Dispersive Infra-Red (NDIR) for CO
emissions. The instrument was periodically calibrated using the calibration gas which
contained a known mixture of NO and NO2 in the background of nitrogen. The HC
analyzer was calibrated using standard calibration gas which contained a known
mixture of methane and nitrogen. The measured HC was in methane equivalent. The
list of instruments used in this study is given in Table.3. The uncertainty in any

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measured parameter was estimated based on Gaussian distribution method with

confidence limits of 2r (95.45% of measured data lie within the limits of 2r of
mean). For the analysis, 20 sets of readings have been taken at the same engine
operating condition

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2.2RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

1. Variation of brake power with equivalence ratio at full throttle.

Fig.2.21 [2]
The variation of brake power with equivalence ratio is shown in Fig 2.21 for
all the compression ratios at full throttle opening. We find that as the compression
ratio goes up the peak power increases due to the improvement in the thermal
efficiency. The leanest point shown in the figure corresponds to the condition just
before the onset of misfire. The range of equivalence ratios covered the lean misfire
limit on one side to the knock limit on the rich side. It may be noted that the lean limit
is defined as the lowest equivalence ratio beyond which misfire occurs. On the rich
side there is a drop in power output with increase in the compression ratio due to the
need to retard the spark timing to prevent knock. This particularly evident with the
higher compression ratio. It is seen that the lean misfire limit gets extended as the
compression ratio increases. The lean limit indicated by misfire is an equivalence
ratio of 0.64 with a compression ratio of 15:1 as against 0.77 with that of a
compression ratio of 9.3:1. Thus an increase in compression ratio extends the lean
limit of operation because of higher gas Temperatures and lesser dilution by the
residual exhaust gases. We find that the increase in the brake power becomes least
significant as we move to higher compression ratios. Even the thermal efficiency of
the ideal Otto cycle exhibits this trend. The peak poweroutput with a compression

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ratio of 15:1 is 4.8 kW and it is 10% higher than that with a compression ratio of
9.3:1 is 4.4 kW.

2.Variation of brake thermal efficiency with equivalence ratio at full throttle

Fig.2.22 [2]
From fig 2.22 we can find that the brake thermal efficiency at full throttle
improves significantly when the compression ratio is raised as expected. With an
increase in compression ratio from 9.3:1 to 15:1, the peak brake thermal efficiency
increases from 23% to 26.8%. The difference between the thermal efficiencies at the
two compression ratios between 9.3:1 and 11:1 is significant. Apart from the
thermodynamic advantage the increase in the compression ratio also rises the
combustion rate as shown later even with lean mixtures

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3. Variation of brake thermal efficiency with equivalence ratio at part throttle

Fig.2.23 [2]
Fig. 2.23 shows the variation of brake thermal efficiency at part throttle. A
rise in the compression ratio increases the brake thermal efficiency slightly. However,
at high equivalence ratios it is observed that the brake thermal efficiency is lower
with the highest compression ratio of 15:1. With increase in compression ratio from
11:1 to 15:1, the peak brake thermal efficiency increases from 18% to 20%. Percent
increase in thermal efficiency with 100% throttle is 16.5% and at 25% throttle the
value is 11%

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4. Variation of hydrocarbon emission with equivalence ratio at full throttle

Fig.2.24 [2]
At any equivalence ratio an increase in the compression ratio results in an increased
level of hydrocarbon emissions as seen in Fig 2.24 At full throttle condition increase
in the compression ratio results in a rise in the mass of unburned fuel in the crevices.
In addition a rise in the compression ratio reduces the post oxidation of HC in the
exhaust since the exhaust temperature is lowered as seen Fig. 6 At an equivalence
ratio of 0.94 the compression ratio increased from 9.3:1 to 15:1, HC level increases
from 1184 ppm to 2000 ppm

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5.Variation of NOX emission with equivalence ratio at full throttle

Fig.2.25 [2]
Nitric oxide emission levels are seen in Fig 2.25 at full throttle condition. An
increase in the compression ratio resulted in increased levels of NO emission. This is
due to increase in peak gas temperature. At an equivalence ratio of 0.98 the
compression ratio increased from 9.3:1 to 15:1, NO level increases from 2125 ppm to
2650 ppm, which is significant. The rise in the NO level is not so dominant till a
compression ratio of 13:1

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CHAPTER 3
EFFECT OF HYDROGEN BLENDING
Biogas SI engines can have high compression ratio which will make the
working cycle thermodynamically more efficient.Normally,diesel engine that use a
high compression ratios are modified by adopting proper combustion chamber shape
to run on biogas in the S I mode. It is very essential to maintain the correct air to fuel
ratio and spark timing as the fuel has poor combustion qualities due to presence of
CO2.Other fuels like hydrogen and L P G that have better combustion characteristics
in terms of flammability range, flame velocity and calorific value. We can improve
performance of biogas engine by adding those in small quantities.
3.1 EXPERIMENTAL SETUP
In this study, an experimental investigation on a naturally aspirated, 8-L spark
ignition engine fueled by biogas with various methane concentrations which we
called the N2 dilution test was performed in terms of its thermal efficiency,
combustion characteristics and emissions. The engine was operated at a constant
engine rotational speed of 1800 rpm under a 60 kW power output condition and
simulated biogas was employed to realize a wide range of changes in heating value
and gas composition. Then, as a way to achieve stable combustion for the lowest
quality biogas, H2 addition tests were carried out in various excess air ratios. H2
fractions ranging from 5 to 30% were blended to the biogas and the effects of
hydrogen addition on engine behavior were evaluated. Moreover, as one of the main
results, a set of optimum operating conditions for maximum efficiency and minimum
emissions was suggested in terms of excess air ratio, spark ignition timing, hydrogen
addition rate and so on. The biogas plant site expected to install the biogas engine
after its development requires constant power output of 60 kW. To achieve this target
power using biogas as low heating value as 20% of methane, a large engine
displacement volume is necessary. Therefore, in this study, an 8 L, 6-cylinder natural
gas engine was selected as a base engine. Table 3.21 shows the specifications of the
engine and Fig 3.1.shows a schematic of the experimental setup. Several
modifications were made to the natural gas engine for use of biogas. Since intake
manifold pressures were maintained below 1 bar for all the operating conditions, the
turbocharger of the engine was removed so that fresh air was naturally aspirated.

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Fig 3.1 [1]

Table 3.1 [1]

Fig 3.1 shows a schematic of the experimental setup. From this biogas engine
experiment of replacing CO2 to N2,it is reported that the effects of CO2 in biogas on
engine performance and emissions are not of chemical origin but mainly compatible
with the thermal influence of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) to elevate heat
capacity of the in-cylinder charge, and overall trends of N2 dilution results are not
noticeably different from those described in CO2 dilution. Therefore, in this study,
simulated biogas was supplied using natural gas and N2 instead of CO2. In real
biogas, there exist impurities such as hydrogen silphide and ammonia (NH3), but they

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are not taken into consideration here since their amounts are negligible. Natural gas
was provided from a compressed gas supply line distributed by Korea Gas
Corporation To simulate as high as 80% of N2 concentration in biogas, liquid
nitrogen was vaporized through a forced evaporator with an electric heater and
delivered to a small surge tank placed upstream of the ETA for mixing with natural
gas. Regulating and metering devices were fitted in each gas supply line to control the
composition of the simulated biogas. Though most engine experiments were
performed with these flow controlling devices, the ETA was also tested with low
pressure (0.3 bar) natural gas from a separate gas line in order to prepare for an actual
operation of the engine in the biogas plant site at Jeong-eup, South Korea.
To add hydrogen to simulated biogas, a mass flow controller was mounted
downstream of high pressure hydrogen bottles and hydrogen line was merged with
the other gas supply lines in the surge tank for complete mixing This study was
designed with two major parts.ie N2 dilution and H2 addition experiments. In theN2
dilution test, simulated biogas fuels with varying methane concentrations (and thus
varying N2 concentration accordingly) were provided to the engine so as to determine
a set of operating conditions for Table 3.1Base engine specifications. The power
output requirement of the engine was set to 60 kW and engine revolution speed was
fixed at 1800 rpm to synchronize 60 Hz AC electricity. Spark timing sweeps were
carried out for all the test conditions in order to determine the minimum advance for
best torque (MBT). Coefficient of variation (COV) for the indicated mean effective
pressure (IMEP) which represents the cyclic variation was calculated from incylinder
pressure data to evaluate a degree of combustion stability at a given operating
condition.
Excess air ratio of the N2 dilution test was maintained at stoichiometry to
ensure stable combustion even for the biogaswith 20% heating value of natural gas
(80% N2 dilution) while excess air ratios for the hydrogen addition tests were varied
from stoichiometry to lean operation limit to decide optimum operating conditions for
both maximum efficiency and minimum NOx emissions. The engine operating
conditionswere determined by adjusting a throttle valve opening to achieve the torque
requirements as well as a desired excess air ratio.the thermal efficiency and exaust
emissions for biogas hydrogen mixture fuel is compared with those of biogas without
hydrogen addition.

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3.2 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

1. N2 Dilution test
Fig 3.21 indicates the measured flow rates of natural gas and N2 at each fuel
mixture condition in the N2 dilution test. While the level of natural gas to achieve a
target power output was almost constant, the corresponding nitrogen flow rate was
drastically increased to match the concentration within simulated biogas. Especially,
80% N2 dilution required about 2.5 times higher nitrogen flow rate than 60% case
which can induce sudden changes in engine behavior.
Moreover, if nitrogen mostly acts a role of EGR, the 80% N2 dilution was equivalent
to about 32% of EGR and such a large amount of EGR considerably affects
Combustion phenomena in a spark ignition engine.

1. Flow rate of N2 and Natural gas with N2 dilution ratio

Fig 3.21 [1]

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2.Variation of thermal efficiency,COV IMEP and MAP with N2 concentration in

biogas

Fig 3.22 [1]

Fig3.22 demonstrates the changes in manifold air pressure (MAP), thermal
efficiency and COVIMEP with respect to N2 dilution ratio in biogas. As a portion of
inert gas in the fuel went up, MAP increased, leading to reduction of pumping loss.In
addition, less cooling loss to coolant and thermal dissociation occured with higher
N2dilution due to lower combustion temperature. All these effects resulted in an
increase of the thermal efficiency to 31.1% at 80% nitrogen dilution as shown in the
figure

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3.Variations of NOX,THC emissions with N2 dilution

Fig 3.23 [1]

Fig 3.23 shows the variations of THC and NOx emissions as a function of N2
dilution ratio at the MBT timing. The increased inert gas induced a decrease in flame
propagation velocity, advancing the MBT spark ignition timing. In general this
advanced spark timing leads to a reduction in THC and a rise in NOx when using
high energy density fuels such as natural gas and gasoline. However, in biogas, the
opposite tendencies were observed. i.e., NOx formation was significantly lessened
while THC emissions increased. The variations in these emission measurement values
can be explained by decreased combustion temperature and subsequently lowered
oxidative capacity of the post-combustion, respectively, due to reduced flame
propagation speed at high inert gas conditions.
2. H2 addition test
Hydrogen is well known for its outstanding combustion characteristics including
a wide range of flammability, rapid flame speed, short quenching distance and high
adiabatic flame temperature. Such characteristics enable stable combustion of low
energy density fuels as well as low exhaust emissions even in the low load region
when hydrogen is added in the fuels.Some of these features of hydrogen, however,
can also induce disadvantages in actual H2 or H2 dominated fuel SI engine
applications such as low thermal efficiency and abnormal combustion (backfire, and

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premature ignition) at a high load limit. Especially, there are several studies that the
significant cooling loss due to the short quenching distance and high laminar burning
speed makes thermal efficiency of a H2 engine lower than that of a hydrocarbon (e.g.
methane) fueled engine at high load conditions.
In the H2 addition test, the biogas with the lowest heating value was selected
as a main fuel. As mentioned in Fig. 3.23, a significant amount of biogas e 80% of
which was N2 , was required to achieve the target power output in this fuel condition,
which can inevitably lead to relatively high hydrogen supply rates under the
experimental conditions of the 5 to 30% H2 concentrations. Therefore, it is important
to compare the flow rate of each species in the blended fuel in order to understand the
effects of hydrogen addition on engine behavior.

4.Flow rate of H2, NG and N2 with Hydrogen concentration

Fig 3.24 [1]

Fig.3.24 illustrates such measurement results in a stoichiometric engine
operation under the power output of 60 kW at the MBT timing. As shown in the
figure, hydrogen flow rate was significantly raised with an increase of H2
concentration in the total fuel flow rate. Under a fixed energy density condition for
every fuel blend, it became more than a half of total combustible gases at the 20% H2
fraction condition and reached about 70% at the 30% H2 addition. On the contrary,

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N2 in fuel was replaced by hydrogen. Therefore, its fraction was decreased from 80%
to 57% which was roughly equivalent to EGR rate of 32 and 22%, respectively.
Moreover, high hydrogen flow rates and decreased inert gas considerably affected incylinder combustion characteristics so that some features of engine performance
became similar to H2 dominated fuel engines

5.Variations of thermal efficiency with hydrogen concentration

Fig 3.25[1]
Fig.3.25 indicates the changes of thermal efficiency as a function of hydrogen
concentration in the blended fuel with spark ignition timing sweeps at MBT. Before
H2 was introduced, the MBT spark timing occurred at 50 degree (BTDC) and the
peak thermal efficiency was measured at about 31%. As soon as hydrogen was added,
the MBT timing started to be retarded due to the increased flame propagation speed
and was detected at 16 degree (BTDC) in the 30% H2 blended condition.
Unlike the MBT spark timing, thermal efficiency showed the peak value of
32% at the 5% H2 addition. Then it was decreased as H2 concentration rose. This
tendency implies that the beneficial impacts of the improved degree of constant

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volume combustion by H2 addition on thermal efficiency were limited to low H2

addition
6. Variations of THC and NOX emissions with hydrogen concentration

Fig 3.26[1]
Fig 3.26 shows THC and NOx emission variations with respect to hydrogen
concentration at stoichiometry and the MBTspark ignition timing. As H2 fraction was
raised, not only was the natural gas flow rate,the only source of carbon atoms are
reduced as in Fig.11 but combustion efficiency was also promoted. Thus, THC
emissions dropped drastically less than 330 ppm. Conversely, NOx emissions were
elevated from 97 ppm to 258 ppm with an increase in hydrogen due to higher peak
combustion temperature caused by faster burning speed.

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3.3 H2 ADDITION TEST-LEAN ENGINE OPERATION

The stoichiometric H2 addition tests indicated that an appropriate amount of
hydrogen addition to biogas can be beneficial to thermal efficiency, combustion
characteristics and THC emissions. However, it is also observed that even for the
lowest energy density fuel with significant inert gas, too much blending of H2 e in
this study, higher than 5% e is not always helpful, causing a considerable increase in
NOx emissions as well as exacerbation of thermal efficiency. Especially, the NOx
emission levels obtained in the entire operations cannot satisfy the government
regulations (50 ppm, 15% O2), leading to the need for the lean engine operation.

7.Variations of thermal efficiency with excess air ratio

Fig3.31 [1]
The thermal efficiency results for varying H2 concentrations and excess air ratios
are given in Fig3.32 .Up to 5% H2 concentration, only stoichiometric engine
operation was possible due to the deterioration of in-cylinder combustion stability in a
lean operating range. For higher hydrogen percentages, however, not only stable
combustion was realized in lean mixture conditions, but also thermal efficiency was
improved as excess air ratio went lean. This tendency can be attributed to several

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factors. More intake air was induced to the cylinder in a lean EAR, resulting in the
reduced pumping loss which eventually raised engine efficiency. Combustion
temperature was also lowered in a lean air/fuel mixture, which subsequently lessened
cooling loss. Furthermore, the increase of the theoretical efficiency for lean mixtures
was contributed by the enhancement of thermal efficiency. The figure also shows that
the trend of higher thermalefficiency for lower hydrogen blending was maintained in
each EAR condition, indicating that cooling energy loss was still an important factor
even in lean engine operations. Unlike higher H2 concentration cases which
demonstrate a monotonous increase of engine efficiency, the 10% hydrogen addition
has a peak thermal efficiency of 32.3% at an EAR of 1.3 which is the maximum value
for the entire conditions including both lean and stoichiometric operations. Moreover,
the efficiency drop at an EAR of 1.4 suggested that combustion enhancement by
adding 10% H2 was not high enough at the air/fuel ratio owing to the large amount of
N2 and excessive air. The lean operation limit was expanded up to 1.4 where the wide
open throttle was reached, meaning that hydrogen acted as an effective combustion
enhancer in the biogas engine. Yet, EAR window was rather narrow since the volume
of biogas-hydrogenblend itself was substantial and occupied a considerable portion of
the cylinder.

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8.Variations of THC emission with excess air ratio

Fig 3.33 [1]

Fig.3.33 describes THC emission results with respect to excess air ratio and
hydrogen fractions. Regardless of the air/ fuel ratio, more hydrogen addition
produced less THC emissions due to promoted combustion characteristics. In terms of
excess air ratio, THC emission levels were increased as the mixture went further lean
after passing an EAR of 1.2 due to the elevated possibility of incomplete combustion.
Especially, it can be seen that the degree of this THC rise was relatively lower for
higher H2 addition. For example, THC emission with the 30% hydrogen blending
was increased from 119 ppm at EAR of 1.2 to 294 ppm at EAR of 1.4 while being
raised from 345 ppm to 952 ppm in the 10% H2. This result is not only because more
hydrogen in the fuel allowed further improvement of lean combustion, but also
because less natural gas which was the only source of hydrocarbon was introduced to
the engine.

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9.Variation of NOX emission with excess air ratio

Fig 3.34 [1]

NOX emissions for varying EAR and hydrogen concentration are shown in fig
3.34 Here overall NOx emissions are low due to presence of inert gas.in addition
maximum NOX emissions are occurred at an EAR of 1.1 for entire fuel conditions.for
maximum efficiency condition which was found at an EAR of 1.3 and 10% hydrogen
blending,curresponding NOX emissions was measured at 85.5 ppm.

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CHAPTER 4
CONCLUSIONS
Various methods can be adopted to improve the emission and combustion
characteristics of S I engine fuelled by biogas. From the results of various
compression ratio test it can be concluded thatthe lean misfire limit of combustion of
biogas under actual engine operating conditions gets considerably extended with
increase in compression ratio. The lean limit indicated by misfire is an equivalence
ratio of 0.64 with a compression ratio of 15:1 as against 0.77 with that of a
compression ratio of 9.3:1.There is an improvement in thermal efficiency and brake
power output with increase in compression ratio. The peak power output with a
compression ratio of 15:1 is 4.8 kW and it is 10%higher than that with a compression
ratio of 9.3:1 is 4.4 kW. With an increase in compression ratio from 9.3:1 to 15:1, the
peak brake thermal efficiency increases from 23% to 26.8%.There is an increase in
HC and NO level with rise in compression ratio. This is mainly due to the
improvement in combustion by way of extension of the lean limit and increase in the
combustion rate. At an equivalence ratio of 0.94 the compression ratio increased from
9.3:1 to 15:1, HC level increases from 1184 ppm to 2000 ppm and NO level increases
from 2125 ppm to 2650 ppm, which is significant.
From hydrogen blending test it can be concluded that the N2 dilution tests
were conducted to assess the effects of inert gas concentration (and therefore fuel
energy density) variations within biogas on performance and emission characteristics
of a spark ignition engine operated at a fixed excess air ratio of 1. As a portion of
inert gas in the fuel was raised, thermal efficiency was elevated due to a decrease in
both pumping loss and cooling loss. As a way to improve combustion stability for the
lowest energy density fuel (80% inert gas dilution case), H2 addition tests were
carried out in a stoichiometric excess air ratio. Due to fast flame propagation speed of
hydrogen, an increase of hydrogen concentration in the fuel blends enhanced
combustion characteristics so that combustion duration was shortened, THC
emissions were reduced, and NOx emissions were elevated. In addition, the
stoichiometric engine tests indicated that a moderate blending of hydrogen was
beneficial to engine efficiency. However, when H2 fraction went over about 5%,
cooling energy loss became dominant and efficiency dropped.
Finally, the engine was tested in various lean mixture conditions in order to
satisfy NOx regulations as well as to maximize thermal efficiency. As excess air ratio

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went lean, a competition was observed between deterioration of combustion stability

and a decrease in both pumping loss and cooling loss, resulting in peak engine
efficiency at EAR of 1.3 in 10% H2 concentration. However, since NOx production
in thiscondition still turned out to exceed the regulation value, two alternative
approaches e slight retardation of spark timing or a little leaner operation e which can
meet the emission standard without sacrificing considerable thermal efficiency were
suggested as an optimum and practical operating point for use in an actual biogas site
in the future.

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REFERENCE
[1].Cheolwoong Park,Seunghyun Park ,Yonggyu Lee, Changgi Kim, Sunyoup Lee
,Yasuo Moriyoshi.Perfomance and emission characteristics of a SI engine fueled by
low calorific biogas blended with hydrogen.Hydrogen energy 2011. Environmental
System Research Division, Engine Research Team, Korea Institute of Machinery and
Materials (KIMM), Republic of Korea,Department of Environmental System
Engineering,University of Science and Technology, Republic of Korea
[2].E. Porpatham, A. Ramesh , B. Nagalingam. Effect of compression ratio on the
performance and combustion of a biogas fuelled spark ignition engine.fuel 2011.
School of Mechanical and Building Sciences, VIT University, Vellore 632 014, India,
IC Engines Laboratory, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai 600 036,
India
[3].E. Porpatham, A. Ramesh , B. Nagalingam .Investigation on the effect of
concentration of methane in biogas when used as a fuel for a spark ignition
engine.Fuel 2008. School of Mechanical and Building Sciences, VIT University,
Vellore 632 014, India, IC Engines Laboratory, Indian Institute of Technology
Madras, Chennai 600 036, India
[4].Jingdang Huang,and R J crooks.Assessment of simulated biogas as a fuel for
spark ignition engine.department of mechanical engineering,Fujian agricultural
university,fuzhoi,Fujian,350002,peopls republic of china.

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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

1. What you mean by compression ratio?
Ans. It is the ratio of maximum volume of cylinder to minimum volume of cylinder.
ie, r =(Vc+Vs)/Vc
2. What you mean by coefficient of variation?
Ans. It is the statistical term used to represent cyclic variations
C O V = Standard deviation /mean
3.What is the flame propagation velocity of hydrogen?
Ans. It is 275 cm/sec.whereas flame propagation velocity of biogas is 25cm/sec.
4.What happens to spark timing when hydrogen is blended? And what is the reason?
Ans. Spark can be retarded from 50 degree BTDC to 16 degree BTDC when
hydrogen concentration is increased from 0% to 30%.the reason is due to enhanced
combustion characteristics due to higher flame propagation velocity of hydrogen.
5.what is the maximum possible efficiency of biogas fuelled engine?
Ans. The maximum possible efficiency is around 32%

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