KIT | KIT-Bibliothek | Impressum | Datenschutz

High-fidelity Numerical Modelling of Spark Plug Erosion

Breden, Douglas; Karpatne, Anand; Suzuki, Kenta; Raja, Laxminarayan

Abstract:

Spark plug erosion is critical in determining the overall efficiency of a spark ignition engine. Over its lifetime, a spark plug is subject to millions of firings. Each spark event results in material erosion due to several mechanisms such as melting, vaporization, sputtering and oxidation. With electrode wear, the inter-electrode spacing increases and a larger voltage difference is required to initiate the spark. The probability of engine misfires also increases with electrode erosion. Once a critical gap is reached, the energy in the ignition coil is not enough to cause a spark breakdown, and the spark plug must be replaced. Due to the long relevant time scales over which erosion occurs, and the difficulty of analyzing the spark plug environment during operation, determining spark plug lifetime typically requires extensive field testing. A high fidelity commercial thermal plasma solver, VizSpark is used simulate electrode erosion due to spark events. The model preserves key arc physics such as current conservation, conjugate heat transfer, fluid flow and electrode ablation. The solution framework includes the capability of coupling high fidelity arc physics with a dynamically deforming spark-plug electrode. ... mehr


Verlagsausgabe §
DOI: 10.5445/IR/1000088318
Veröffentlicht am 08.06.2019
Cover der Publikation
Zugehörige Institution(en) am KIT Institut für Kolbenmaschinen (IFKM)
Publikationstyp Proceedingsbeitrag
Publikationsjahr 2018
Sprache Englisch
Identifikator ISBN: 978-3-8169-3449-3
urn:nbn:de:swb:90-883182
KITopen-ID: 1000088318
Erschienen in Ignition Systems for Gasoline Engines : 4th International Conference, December 6 - 7, 2018, Berlin, Germany. Ed.: M. Günther
Verlag expert-Verlag
Seiten 55-74
Relationen in KITopen
KIT – Die Forschungsuniversität in der Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft
KITopen Landing Page