Abstract
Research in and development of modern engine combustion systems must address an ever growing number of events related to mechanical, fluid dynamic and combustion processes. In the course of an engine development schedule, as well as in engine research, test facilities are required to enable analysis of engine processes long before final engine hardware can become available. For such purpose, the use of single cylinder engines (SCEs) has become best practice. A realistic assessment, however, has to be made of the usage of such engines: what is the benefit, when many aspects of the final multicylinder engine (MCE) will be substantially different? What benefit can be gained from the study of SCE processes and which of its operating modes are actually relevant for MCE development? This paper identifies test procedures in MCE development which are anticipated in SCE tests and gives a rating for the similarity, the relevance, the advantages and the benefits of SCE tests when compared with MCE processes. It will also identify processes, such as occur in transient testing, which are impractical to be simulated in SCE tests. The cost effective use of SCE hardware requires flexible and modular engine components as well as an SCE environment to support such flexibility without overrunning investment and operation efforts. We present system solutions which start with basic SCE functionality but allow step by step adaptation of system modules to cover ever increasingly challenging test requirements.
Keywords: Combustion, Engine, Single Cylinder, Optical, Measurement