First Name:
J.R.
Last Name:
Archer
Major Department:
Physics
Thesis Director:
Chris Thaxton
Date of Thesis:
May 2011
With increasing restrictions on emissions, it is becoming very important to find engines that can meet the new standards without losing efficiency. This work explores several different proposed methods at reducing emissions without sacrificing thermal efficiency, including using exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). Because EGR results in less oxygen available for combustion, the mixing of fuel and air is crucial. To achieve better mixing, different angles of spray for the fuel injector have been explored. The most promising solution is to create a variable angle fuel injector that is actively controlled to have the optimal angle at different points in the piston stroke. The proposed injector will be discussed and examined using an ANSYS computational fluid dynamics model.