REPORT

INTRODUCTION
1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION
A spark plug

is a device for delivering electric current from an ignition system to

the combustion chamber of a spark-ignition engine to ignite the compressed fuel/air mixture by
an spark, while maintaining combustion pressure within the engine chamber. Position of spark
plug plays a vital role in the performance and combustion of fuel in engine.
Modern automobile engines must fulfill challenging conditions in terms of efficiency and
pollutant emissions while keeping performance. The answer to these constraints has been the
development of new modes of combustion and change in parameters.
Today, there is a wide variety of spark plug designs available. Evaluating the differences between
spark plugs is beneficial in helping the engine to perform efficiently. Major types of spark plug
designs in production include standard J-gap, fine center and/or ground electrodes, surface gap,
multiple ground electrodes, and their combinations. The design of spark plug center and ground
electrodes is an important factor which plays a key role in the effectiveness of spark plugs.
Due to environmental concerns, increasingly restricted norms on pollutant emissions of gas
turbine plants or engines have been set up in recent and future years.Based on diffusion regimes
for reasons of safety and stability, combustion in gas turbines produces large amounts of
pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NOx) or carbon monoxide (CO). One of the many solutions
is to switch to Lean Premixed Prevaporized (LPP) regimes where a more or less uniform lean
mixture of fuel and air is supplied in order to reduce flame temperature and thus the emission of
thermal NOx. However, when operated in lean conditions, gas turbines often exhibit strong
combustion dynamics that may lead to stability issues such as combustion instabilities, flashback
or blowout.
This can be altered with change in the parameters of injector design and working.

2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

The work by Dr. M.R. MODARRES RAZAVI, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Faculty of
Engineering. P.O. Box 91775-1111, Mashhad, IRAN was published under the name The Effect
of Spark Plug Position on Spark Ignition Combustion
Study was carried out to determine the way in which position of spark plug affects combustion in
spark ignition engine using the developed quasi-dimensional cycle simulation (using two-zone
burning model) program. To model the geometric interaction between the propagating flame and
the general cylindrical combustion chamber. Eight different cases were recognized. Appropriate
equations to calculate the flame area (AF), the burned and the unburned volume (Vb & Vu) and
the heat transfer areas related to the burned and unburned regions were derived and presented for
each case.

Figure 1, Eight different modes of flame front interactions with combustion chamber walls and
piston area, with spark eccentricity.

Figure 2, Flame area versus flame radius and crank angle from top dead center for
[a] disc chamber with side ignition.
[b] disc chamber with center ignition.
It is concluded from the work by Dr. M.R. MODARRES RAZAVI, By increasing the percentage
of eccentricity the flame area, rate of burning, turbulent flame velocity, maximum pressure,
torque output will decrease.

The change in eccentricity of spark plug changes the effectiveness on combustion chamber of a
engine.
Research work COMPRESSION CHAMBER OF AN SI ENGINE WITH THE
INCREASING OF THE TURBULENCE by STANISLAV BEROUN, Etal conclude that
turbulent combustion zone there is the distribution of temperature change as a consequence of
the pulsating character of the turbulent diffusion. Processes in the turbulent zone combustion
have a very usual character, therefore the process of combustion is very dependent both on the
speed of chemical reaction in the zone of turbulent flame, and on the character and the intensity
of the turbulence.
The intensity of the turbulence in the cylinder charge has a positive effect on the whole course of
the burning of the cylinder charge Suitable setup of the turbulence in the compression volume
accelerates the course of burning from the first stage of burning has an important effect on the
another process of burning: its dynamics and stability is increased with the increasing of the
turbulence led to the lower inter cycle variability of the working cycle parameters of an SI
engine.
1-D SIMULATION OF A SPARK DISCHARGE IN AIR ,work carried out by M. SCHA
FER, R. SCHMIDT and J. KO HLER Institut fu r Physikalische Elektronik Universita t
Stuttgart Pfaffenwaldring 47, D-70569 Stuttgart, Germany, shows that Four basic phases of the
spark channel development has been identified as breakdown, shock-determined expansion,
emission of a shock wave, and, the diffusion-dominated phase. Energy transfer takes place
primarily during the breakdown phase and later again with the beginning of the diffusion phase,
when the axial temperatures and therefore the conductivity is sufficiently low. Because the
formation of the final temperature profile does not strongly depend on the time function of
energy deposition into the plasma, a cylindrical channel with homogeneous energy distribution at
ambient mass density might be chosen as the initial condition. The pressure within this cylinder
must be sufficiently high (300 bar) to create a strong shock and provide a phase of self-similar
propagation. The increase of thermal energy in the plasma channel is 4055% of the electrical
energy provided during breakdown. The influence of radiation loss rises with the breakdown
energy deposited. For these calculations with maximum breakdown energy of 2 J/m, the

radiation loss was grad 4 2.4%. Radiation losses reduce the total efficiency by approximately
grad/2.
Research paper onThe effect of tumble and swirl flows on flame propagation in a four-valve
S.I. engine by Kihyung Lee, Etal accepted 19 November 2006 concludes that:
The effects of tumble and swirl flow on early flame propagation were studied in a four-valve SI
engine under lean mixture conditions with different inlet ports of various entry angles; 25, 20
and 15_and of various swirl control valves. The propagating flames were visualized with an
Image-intensified CCD camera and analyzed through image processing. The results revealed the
following:
(1) Flame images provided visual evidence of the advantageous effect of a tumbling motion and
inclined tumble on flame propagation. The flame images showed the turbulent propagating flame
to be deformed and convected by the tumble/swirl flow field.
(2) The intake port with entry angle of h = 20, among the three different entry angles, gave the
biggest initial flame due to the strong tumble and tumble-generated turbulence, which confirms
the results of previous flow and combustion analyses.
(3) The combination of moderate tumble and swirl generated by a swirl control valve (Case II in
this study) resulted in a improved initial flame development coupled with flame convection.

Fig3 Volume-averaged turbulence intensity for tumble ports (h = 25, 20, 15) (1250 rpm, A/F =
17).

A Review on Lean Combustion Technology for Internal Combustion Engines by Danaiah

P.*, Ravi Kumar P,Vinay Kumar D. National Institute of Technology, Warangal, India reveals
Fireball Combustion Chamber Engine Michal G May has developed the fireball combustion
chamber engine which consists of a compact combustion and has claimed successful operation
with homogeneous mixture of air fuel ratio around 26:1. In this engine, the exhaust valve is
recessed into a combustion chamber which is in the shape of small bath tub. The remaining
surface, including that of the inlet valve, is flat and virtually flush with the cylinder head faces
and functions as a wide squish area. This geometry induces a high swirl at about 10 to 20 degrees
btdc. A looping flow pattern results and rotating charge is concentrated in the open recess, where
it is ignited by a spark plug located in one corner and burns very rapidly. This configuration
allows the use of a high compression ratio without the risk of pre-ignition and knocking. A high
thermal efficiency and more complete combustion are thus achieved. Both fuel consumption and
emissions are reduced.
With the study carried out it, is concluded the position of spark plug effects the performance to
an extend in respect of flame radius, flame area, flame propagation. But studying about direct
injection gasoline engine over carburetor spark engine, it has following merits:
HIGHER COMPRESSION RATIO
TORQUE IMPROVED
TURBOCHARGING
CO2-15% REDUCED
SCAVENGING
DOWNSIZING(REDUCTION IN SIZE)
50% MORE TORQUEDUE TO HIGH PRESSURE INTAKE
So, with studying about the injectors for various parameters like turbulence created, spray cone,
spray velocity, flame development. Below are the related research works to injectors.
On the ignition and flame development in a spray-guided direct-injection spark-ignition
engine by Brian Peterson,David L. Reuss,Volker Sick,research work shows that Simultaneously
acquired high-speed fuel PLIF, PIV, and Mie scattering images were combined with spark
discharge measurements to investigate the increase in occurrence of rare combustion instabilities

in a SG-SIDI engine with increasing external dilution levels (026% by volume). Engine
parameters were selected to mimic low-load idle operating conditions that provided stable engine
performance with the occurrence of rare misfire and partial burn cycles. In-cylinder pressure
analysis was used to characterize engine and combustion performance, while high-speed fuel,
flow, and flame imaging characterized fuel injection, the mixing process, ignition, and early
flame development with crank angle time steps at the different spark timings and dilution levels.
Spark energy measurements showed sufficient spark energy was available for ignition and Mie
scattering images revealed that all cycles exhibited a flame kernel, but that failed to develop for
MF and PB cycles. Therefore, the spatial and temporal evolution of the fuel distribution, flow
velocity, and flame-kernel growth were further investigated to reveal differences between WB,
PB, and MF cycles.WB cycles exhibited a flame kernel that quickly propagated in the direction
of the expired spray plume and primarily remained in contact with a flammable mixture. The
flame quickly propagated into the flammable mixture located within the piston bowl, which
appeared to be necessary for subsequent combustion. PB cycles exhibited a flame kernel that did
not promptly move into the flammable mixture within the piston bowl. The flame kernel interacts
with the flammable mixture later within the engine cycle when the mixture becomes leaner due
to longer mixing times, and the flame is only capable of consuming a portion of the fuel mixture.
MF cycles exhibited a flame kernel that was quickly surrounded by fuel-lean mixtures, which
appeared to be insufficient for flame propagation. The flame kernel primarily remained near the
spark plug and decreased in size and eventually extinguished after the spark event.