Ammonia/hydrogen mixtures in an SI-engine: Engine performance and analysis of a proposed fuel system

In recent years there has been increasing focus on using metal ammine complexes for ammonia storage. In this paper a fuel system for ammonia fuelled internal combustion engines using metal ammine complexes as ammonia storage is analyzed. The use of ammonia/hydrogen mixtures as an SI-engine fuel is investigated in the same context. Ammonia and hydrogen were introduced into the intake manifold of a CFR-engine. Series of experiments with varying excess air ratio and different ammonia to hydrogen ratios was conducted. This showed that a fuel mixture with 10 vol.% hydrogen performs best with respect to efficiency and power. A comparison with gasoline was made, which showed efficiencies and power increased due to the possibility of a higher compression ratio. The system analysis showed that it is possible to cover a major part of the necessary heat using the exhaust heat. It is proposed to reduce the high NO(x) emissions using SCR as exhaust after treatment. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.