I-Corps: Controlled-Trajectory Rapid Compression and Expansion Machine

I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是通过为燃烧和燃料表征提供强大和高通量的实验仪器，特别是为运输部门提供清洁能源解决方案。仅在美国，以内燃机为主的运输业就占总能源消耗的28%左右，占石油总消耗的70%，占温室气体排放总量的27%。该部门提高能效和降低排放的关键在于更好地了解燃烧过程的物理和化学特征，从而开发先进的发动机和替代燃料，特别是来自可再生资源的燃料。可控轨迹快速压缩膨胀机(CT-RCEM)通过对传统快速压缩机械(RCM)进行重大改进，满足了燃烧领域的这一迫切需求。CT-RCEM具有改变RCM市场的潜力，并为包括大学、政府研究实验室、汽车行业和石油和天然气行业在内的最终用户带来独特的好处。这个I-Corps项目使用了一个带有高速大力电液致动器的精密运动控制器，以缓解传统RCM的最基本限制，即固有的刚性致动系统。RCM的典型操作，顾名思义，是通过燃烧室中活塞的高速运动来快速压缩空气-燃料混合物，导致燃料点火。相关数据为了解燃烧特性提供了有价值的信息。然而，压缩过程中的活塞轨迹高度依赖于设备，操作参数的任何变化都需要硬件干预和随后的重新校准，导致重复性和再现性问题以及实验之间的较长周转时间。可控轨迹快速压缩膨胀机以其精确可控的驱动系统缓解了这一限制。通过以数字方式改变分配给运动控制器的活塞参考轨迹，可以改变活塞运动轮廓。这种定制活塞轨迹的能力使CT-RCEM比传统的RCM提供了显著的优势和新的能力。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is to enable clean energy solutions for combustion systems and renewable fuels by providing a powerful and high throughput experimental instrument for combustion and fuel characterization, especially for the transportation sector. In the U.S alone, the transportation sector, which is dominated by internal combustion engines, accounts for about 28% of total energy consumption, 70% of the total petroleum consumption and 27% of the total greenhouse emissions. The key to higher energy efficiency and lower emissions for this sector lies in a better understanding of physical and chemical characteristics of combustion processes leading to the development of advanced engines as well as alternative fuels, especially from renewable sources. The controlled trajectory rapid compression and expansion machine (CT-RCEM) addresses this pressing need of the combustion community by offering significant improvements over the conventional rapid compression machines (RCM). The CT-RCEM has the potential to transform the RCM market and bring unique benefits to end users that include universities, government research laboratories, automotive industry and oil and gas industry. This I-Corps project uses a precise motion controller with a high speed large force electrohydraulic actuator to mitigate the most fundamental limitation of the conventional RCM, an inherently rigid actuation system. The typical operation of an RCM involves, as the name suggests, rapid compression of air-fuel mixture by high speed motion of a piston in combustion chamber, leading to the ignition of the fuel. The associated data provides valuable insight into the combustion characteristics. However, the piston trajectory during this compression process is highly facility dependent and any changes in the operating parameters require hardware intervention and subsequent recalibration, leading to repeatability and reproducibility issues as well as a long turnaround time between experiments. The controlled trajectory rapid compression and expansion machine alleviates this limitation with its precisely controllable actuation system. The piston motion profile can be changed by digitally changing the piston reference trajectory assigned to the motion controller. This ability to tailor the piston trajectory allows the CT-RCEM to provide significant advantages and new capabilities over the conventional RCM.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.