Model-Based Optimization and Pressure Fluctuation Control of Pressure Reservoir in Electrically Controlled Fuel Injection System for Single Cylinder Diesel Engine

Single-cylinder diesel engines usually employ mechanically actuated or time-type electrically controlled fuel injection systems. But due to the lack of flexibility to provide high pressure and fully varying injection parameters, fuel efficiency and emissions are poor. Although modern multi-cylinder engines have employed high pressure common rail fuel injection system for a long time, this technology has not been demonstrated in single-cylinder diesel engines. Due to the small installation space and little fuel injection amount of single cylinder diesel engine, high pressure common rail fuel injection system cannot be employed directly. In this study an electrically controlled high pressure fuel injection system of time-pressure-type (PTFS) for single-cylinder diesel engine was demonstrated. PTFS integrated the fuel pump and pressure reservoir (PR) to reduce installation space, which enabled it to match various kinds of single-cylinder diesel engines. However, the volume of the PR of PTFS is still limited, leading to obvious pressure fluctuation induced by periodic fuel pumping and injection. Pressure fluctuation might affect the stability and consistency of fuel injection, deteriorating the combustion and emissions of the engine further. This work established a mathematical model for the system, and studied the effect of the main parameters of the PR to the pressure fluctuations in the PR. The structure and dimensions of the system were optimized and a damping mechanism was proposed to reduce the pressure fluctuation. The optimized pressure fluctuation of PTFS achieved an acceptable level which can support steady and effective fuel injection. As a result, the fuel consumption efficiency and emission level of single cylinder diesel engine were enhanced.