This real-time measuring system for combustion gas temperatures is the first in the world to include a method and device (sensor installed in the spark plug) capable of continuously and accurately measuring gas temperatures within a combustion chamber and is an indispensable technology for developing environmentally-friendly engines.
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| Purpose | ||
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| A method for measuring gas temperatures was developed so that conditions within a combustion chamber could be accurately analyzed for the purpose of making fuel-efficient, clean-emission Homogeneous-Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engines* commercially viable. * HCCI engine
HCCI engine is an engine which ignites by taking in an air-fuel mixture like a gasoline engine and uses high-compression like a diesel engine. It is an example of an ideal internal- combustion engine which is able to combust even extremely thin fuel. In order to actualize this technology, it is necessary to continually adjust fuel thickness and the gas temperature within the combustion chamber to optimum levels. |
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| Features |
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A sensor installed inside the spark plug makes it possible
to measure the absorption of infrared radiation by water
molecules*. This allows for continuous and highly accurate
measurement of gas temperatures within the combustion
chamber, which had been difficult to measure directly and
accurately until now.
* Temperature is calculated from the level of |
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| Basic structure |
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Two special infrared lasers pass through the inside of the combustion chamber, and an optical receiver measures the intensity of the infrared radiation that reflects back. The temperature is calculated based on the amount of the infrared radiation that is absorbed within the combustion chamber. Methods for measuring the temperature using water molecules were jointly developed with Stanford University. Physical Science Inc. (PSI) worked with Nissan to develop the system and manufacture the devices.
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