The four-year Integrated Project (IP) 'New Integrated Combustion System for future Passenger Car Engines' (NICE) was started to develop a new integrated combustion system that, independent of the type of fuel (i.e. fuel neutral), is able to achieve the fuel conversion efficiency of the DI diesel engine, while complying with a zero-impact emission level. As a result of the achieved knowledge and realized technologies of such an integrated combustion system, innovative Diesel- and Otto-cycle engines will be developed that can be considered as by-products of the NICE research. These by-products will allow Europe to maintain leadership in the production of internal combustion engines in the years 2010 - 2015, while allowing the completion of the integrated combustion system in an innovative powertrain. The IP NICE consists of the integration of three sub-projects characterised by specific technological objectives like 'Enlarged HCCI-Diesel combustion process under transient operation', 'Compressed / Spark Ignited variable engine' and 'Future natural gas Internal Combustion engines with Diesel equivalent fuel consumption' as well as the crossover subproject 'Improved CFD tools and modelling'. So far, the state-of-the-art monitoring, the concept and design phase, the procurement as well as the engine build up has been completed. Tests with mule and single-cylinder engines have been carried out. The knowledge created during these tests will be used for further improvements of the subsystems as well as the development of the coming multicylinder engines (A). For the covering abstract of the conference see ITRD E212343.
Abstract