2.

PERFORMANCE AND THERMODYNAMIC CYCLES OF IC ENGINES

2.1 PERFORMANCE OF IC ENGINES
2.1.1 Geometrical properties of reciprocating engines
2.1.2 Nomenclature
 Cylinder bore (d): The nominal inner diameter of the working cylinder is called the
cylinder bore and is designated by the letter d and is usually expressed in millimeter
(mm)
 Piston area (A): the area of a circle of diameter equal to the cylinder bore is called the
piston area and is designated by the letter A and is usually expressed in centimeter square
( )
 Stroke (L): the nominal distance through which a working piston moves between two
successive reversals of its direction of motion is called the stroke and is designated by the
letter L and is usually expressed in millimeter (mm).
 Stroke to bore ratio: (L/d) ratio is an important parameter in classifying the size of the
engine.
If d , it is called under square engine. If , it is called square engine. If d , it is
called over square engine
An over square engine can operate at higher speed because of larger bore and shorter
stroke

Figure 1. Top and bottom dead centers

 Displacement or swept volume ( ): the nominal volume swept by the working piston
when travelling from one dead center to the other is called the displacement volume. It is
expressed in terms of cubic centimeter (cc) and given by
=
 Cubic capacity or engine capacity: the displacement volume of a cylinder multiplied by
number of cylinders in an engine will give the cubic capacity or the engine capacity. For
example, if there are K cylinders in an engine, then

1
  Clearance volume ( ): the nominal volume of the combustion chamber above the piston
when it is at the top dead center is the clearance volume. It is designated as and is
expressed in cubic centimeter (cc).
 Compression ratio (r): it is the ratio of the total cylinder volume when the piston is at the
bottom dead center, , to the clearance volume, . It is designated by the letter r.

The following parameters define the basic geometry; of a reciprocating engine (see Fig. 2):
Compression ratio rc :

Where , is the displaced or swept volume and , is the clearance volume.

Ratio of cylinder bore to piston stroke:

Ratio of connecting rod length to crank radius:

In addition, the stroke and crank radius are related by

Typical values of these parameters are: = 8 to 12 for SI engines and = 12 to 24 for CI

engines; B/L = 0.8 to 1.2 for small- and medium-size engines, decreasing to about 0.5 for large
slow-speed CI engines; R = 3 to 4 for small- and medium-size engines, increasing to 5 to 9 for
large slow-speed CI engines.
The cylinder volume V at any crank position ө is:

Figure 2. Geometry of cylinder, piston, connecting rod, and

Crankshaft

2
Where, B = bore, L = stroke, I = connecting road length, a = crank radius, ө = crank angle.
Where, s is the distance between the crank axis and the piston pin axis (Fig. 2), and is given by
1/2

An important characteristic speed is the mean piston speed :

Where, N is the rotational speed of the crankshaft. Mean piston speed is often a more appropriate
parameter than crank rotational speed for correlating engine behavior as a function of speed. For
example, gas-flow velocities in the intake and the cylinder all scale with . The instantaneous
piston velocity S is obtained from:

2.1.3. Engine power

In general the energy flow through the engine is expressed in three distinct terms. They are
indicated power, , friction power, and brake power, . Indicated power can be computed
from the measurement of forces in the cylinder and brake power may be computed from the
measurement of forces at the crankshaft of the engine. The friction power can be estimated by
motoring the engine or other methods. It can also be calculated as the difference between the
and if the two are known, then,

2.1.3.1 Indicated mean effective pressure ( )

Indicated power, , can be computed from the measurement of forces developed in the cylinder,
the pressure of the expanding gases.

The pressure in the cylinder varies throughput the cycle and the variation can be expressed with
respect to volume or crank angle rotation to obtain diagrams respectively.
However, such a continuous variation does not readily lend itself to simple mathematical
analysis in the computation of . If an average pressure for one cycle can be used, then the
computations become far less difficult.

As the piston moves back and forth between TDC and BDC (fig. 7), the process lines on the
diagram indicate the successive states of the working fluid through the cycle. The
indicated net work of the cycle is represented by the area 1234 enclosed by the process lines for
that cycle. If the area of rectangle ABCD equals area 1234, the vertical distance between the
horizontal lines AB and CD represents the indicated mean effective pressure, imep. It is a mean
value expressed in N/m2, which when multiplied by the displacement volume, , gives the same
indicated net work as it actually produced with the varying pressures.

3
 Figure 7. diagram for an ideal four stroke cycle engine

2.1.3.2. Indicated power

Power is defined as the rate of doing work. In the analysis of the cycle the net work is expressed
in kJ/Kg of air. This may converted to power by multiplying by the mass flow rate of air through
the engine in Kg per unit time. Since the net work obtained from the diagram is the net
work produced in the cylinder as measured by an indicator diagram, the power based there on is
termed indicator power, .

By definition:

4
Where



 L = length of the stroke (m)
 A = area of the piston ( )
 N = speed in revolutions per minute (rpm)
 n = number of power strokes
N/2 for four stroke and N for two stroke engines
 K = number of cylinders

2.1.3.3.Brake power (

The rotational force available at the delivery point, at the engine crankshaft and the power
corresponding to it. This power is interchangeably referred to as brake power, shaft power or
delivered power.

The brake power is usually measured by attaching dynamometer to the drive shaft of the engine.
Such a device sets up measurable forces counteracting the forces delivered by the engine, and the
determined value of this measured forces is indicative of the forces being delivered.

Figure 8. Prony brake

By using the geometry of a simple prony brake as the basis, a formula can now be developed for
computing the brake power delivered by the engine. Work has been defined as the product of
force and the distance through which the point of application of force moves. Then the drive
shaft of the engine turns through one revolution any point on the periphery of the rigidly attached
wheel moves through a distance equal to (fig. 8). During this movement, a friction force,
is acting against the wheel. The force is thus acting through the distance , and producing
work.

5
Thus,

The torque, , produced by the drive shaft is opposed by a turning moment equal to the product
of the length of the moment arm and the force measured by the scale.

Where

Therefore

The product of the moment arm R and the measured force, F, is termed the torque of the engine
and is usually in Nm. Torque, T, is the uniform or fluctuating turning moment, or twist, exerted
by a tangential force acting at a distance from the axis of rotation. For an engine operating at a
given speed and delivering a given power, the torque must be a fixed amount, or the product of F
and R must be constant (T=FR). In such case, if R is decreased, F will increase proportionally
and vice versa.

The brake power can also be written as

2.1.3.4. Brake mean effective pressure

Indicated mean effective pressure may be considered to consist of and ‘ two

hypothetical pressures. Friction mean effective pressure is that portion of which is
required to overcome friction loss and brake mean effective pressure is the portion which
produces the useful power delivered by the engine.

Since is that portion of which goes into the development of useful power, it has
the same relationship to as has , or

6
For a given engine L, A, n and K are constants. Since and ‘ ’ have the same
relationship to one another as do and , can similarly expressed as

And also

2.1.4. Engine efficiencies

The engine performance is indicated by the term efficiency, .

 Indicated thermal efficiency,

 Brake thermal efficiency ( )
 Mechanical efficiency ( )
 Volumetric efficiency ( )
 Relative efficiency or efficiency ratio
2.1.4.1.Indicated thermal efficiency,

Indicated thermal efficiency is the ratio of energy in the indicated power, ip, to the input fuel
energy in appropriate units.

2.1.4.2.Brake thermal efficiency ( )

Brake thermal efficiency is the ratio of energy in the brake power, , to the input fuel energy in
appropriate units.

7
 2.1.4.3.Mechanical efficiency ( )

Mechanical efficiency is defined as the ratio of brake power (delivered power) to the indicated
power (power provided to the piston)

It can also be defined as the ratio of the brake thermal efficiency to the indicated thermal
efficiency

Energy losses in friction, pumping, etc.

Figure 3 energy distribution

2.1.4.4.Volumetric efficiency ( )

This is one of the very important parameters which decide the performance of four stroke
engines. Four stroke engines have distinct suction stroke and therefore the volumetric efficiency
indicates the breathing ability of the engine. It is to be noted that the utilization of the air is what
going to be determine the power output of the engine. Hence an engine must be able to take in as
much air as possible.

Volumetric efficiency is defined as the volume flow rate of air into the intake system divided by
the rate at which the volume is displaced by the system.

8
Where is the inlet density

An alternative equivalent definition for equivalent definition for volumetric efficiency is

It is to be noted that irrespective of the engine whether SI, CI or gas engine, volumetric rate of
air flow is what to be taken into account not the mixture flow.

If is taken as the atmospheric air density, then represents the pumping performance of the
entire inlet system. If it is taken as the air density in the inlet manifold, then represents the
pumping performance of the inlet port and valve only.

The normal range of volumetric efficiency at full throttle for SI engine is between 80 to 85%
whereas for CI engine is between 85 to 90%. Gas engines have much lower volumetric
efficiency since gaseous fuel displaces air and therefore the breathing capacity of the engine is
reduced.

2.1.4.5.Relative efficiency or efficiency ratio

Relative efficiency or efficiency ratio is the ratio of thermal efficiency of an actual cycle to that
of the ideal cycle.

2.1.5. Other engine performance parameters

2.1.5.1 Specific fuel consumption (sfc)

The fuel consumption characteristics of an engine are generally expressed in terms of specific
fuel consumption in kilograms of fuel per kilowatt hour. It is an important parameter that reflects
how good the engine performance is. It is inversely proportional to the thermal efficiency of the
engine.

Brake specific fuel consumption and indicated specific fuel consumption, abbreviated as bsfc
and isfc, are the specific fuel consumptions on the basis of bp and ip respectively.

9
 2.1.5.2 Fuel air (F/A) or air fuel ratio (A/F)

The relative proportions of the fuel and air in the engine are very important from the stand point
of combustion and the efficiency of the engine. This is expressed as a ratio of the mass of the
fuel to that of the air or vice versa.

In SI engine the fuel air ratio particularly remain a constant over a wide range of operation. In CI
engines at a given speed the air flow does not vary with load, it is the fuel flow that varies
directly with load. Therefore, the term fuel-air ratio is generally used instead of air fuel ratio.

A mixture that contains just enough air for complete combustion of all the fuel in the mixture is
called a chemically correct or stoichiometric fuel-air ratio.

The ratio of actual fuel-air ratio to stoichiometric fuel-air ratio is called equivalence ratio and is
donated by

Accordingly = 1 means stoichiometric (chemically correct mixture), means lean mixture

and means rich mixture.

2.1.5.3 Calorific value (CV)

Calorific value of a fuel is the thermal energy released per unit quantity of the fuel when the fuel
is burned completely and the products of combustion are cooled back to the initial temperature of
the combustible mixture. Other terms used for the calorific value are heating value and heat of
combustion.

10
 2.2. THERMODYNAMIC CYCLES OF IC ENGINES

2.2.1. AIR STANDARD CYCLE

The accurate analysis of internal combustion engine processes is very complicated. In order to
understand them it is advantageous to analyze the performance of an idealized closed cycle that
closely approximates the real cycle. One such approach is the air standard cycle, which is based
on the following assumptions:

 The working medium is assumed to be a perfect gas and follows the relation

or

 There is no change in the mass of the working medium.

 All the processes that constitute the cycle are reversible.
 Heat is assumed to be supplied from a constant high temperature source and not from
chemical reactions during the cycle.
 Some heat is assumed to be rejected to a constant low temperature sink during the cycle.
 It is assumed that there are no heat losses from the system to the surroundings.
 The working medium has constant specific heats throughout the cycle.
 The physical constants , , and of working medium are the same as those of air
at standard atmospheric conditions. For example in SI units,

Due to these assumptions, the analysis becomes over simplified and the results do not agree with
those of the actual engine. Work output, peak pressure, peak temperature and thermal efficiency
based on air standard cycles will be the maximum that can be attained and will differ
considerably from those of the actual engines.

2.2.1.1.THE OTTO CYCLE

Nicolaus otto (1876) proposed a constant volume heat addition cycle which forms the basis for
the working of today’s spark ignition engines. The cycle is shown on diagrams
in fig. 3 (a) and (b) respectively.

11
 Figure 3 Otto cycle

When the engine is working on full throttle, the process on the diagram
represents suction and exhaust processes and their effect is nullified. The process
represents isentropic compression of the air when the piston moves from bottom dead center to
top dead center. During the process heat is supplied reversibly at constant volume. The
processes represent isentropic expansion and constant volume heat rejection
respectively.

 Thermal efficiency

The thermal efficiency of Otto cycle can be written as

Considering constant volume processes , the heat supplied and rejected of air
can be written as

Considering isentropic process , we have

and

But the volume ratios are equal to the compression ratio, . Therefore,

Therefore

12
From equation (1), it can be easily shown that

Note that the thermal efficiency of Otto cycle is a function of compression ratio and the ratio
of specific heats, . As is assumed to be a constant to any working fluid, the efficiency is
increased by increasing the compression ratio. Further, the efficiency is independent of heat
supplied and pressure ratio.

Figure 4 effect of and on efficiency for Otto cycle

 Work output

The net work output for an Otto cycle can be expressed as

Also

13
Therefore

 Mean effective pressure

The mean effective pressure of the cycle is given by

Thus, it can be seen that the work output is directly proportional to pressure ratio, . The mean
effective pressure which is an indication of the internal work output increases with a pressure
ratio at a fixed value of compression ratio and ratio of specific heats. For an Otto cycle, an
increase in the compression ratio leads to an increase in mean effective pressure as well as the
thermal efficiency.

14
 2.2.1.2.The diesel cycle

In actual spark ignition engines, the upper limit of compression ratio is limited by the self-
ignition temperature of the fuel. This limitation on the compression ratio can be circumvented if
air and fuel are compressed separately and brought together at the time of combustion. In such an
arrangement fuel can be injected in to the cylinder which contains compressed air at a higher
temperature than the self-ignition temperature of the fuel. Hence the fuel ignites on its own
accord and requires no special device like an ignition system in a spark ignition engine. Such
engines work on heavy liquid fuels. These engines are called compression ignition engines and
they work on ideal cycle known as diesel cycle. The difference between Otto and diesel cycle is
in the process of heat addition. In Otto the heat addition takes place at constant volume whereas
in diesel cycle it is at constant pressure. For this reason the diesel cycle is often referred to as the
constant pressure cycle.

Figure 5 diagrams for diesel cycle

To analyze the diesel cycle the suction and exhaust strokes, represented by ,
are neglected as in the case of the Otto cycle. Here, the volume ratio is the compression ratio,

. The volume ratio is called the cut-off ratio, .

 Thermal efficiency

The thermal efficiency of the diesel cycle is given by

15
Considering the process

Considering the constant pressure process , we have

From equation (1) and (2), we have

Considering process , we have

From equations (3) and (4) we have

16
It may be noted that the efficiency of the diesel cycle is different from that of the Otto cycle only
in the bracketed factor. This factor is always greater than unity. Hence for a given compression
ratio, the Otto cycle is more efficient. In diesel engine the fuel cut-off ratio, , depends on
output, being maximum for maximum output. Therefore, unlike the Otto cycle the air standard
efficiency of the diesel cycle depends on output. The higher efficiency of the Otto cycle as
compared to the diesel cycle for the same compression ratio is of no practical importance. In
practice the operating compression ratios of diesel engines are much higher compared to spark
ignition engines working on Otto cycles. The normal range of compression ratio for diesel
engine is 16 to 20 whereas for spark ignition engines it is 6 to 10. Due to the higher compression
ratios used in diesel engines the efficiency of a diesel engine is more than that of gasoline engine.

 Work output

The net work output for a diesel cycle is given by

17
  Mean effective pressure

The expression for mean effective pressure can be shown to be

18
 2.2.2. Fuel-air cycles and their analysis

Introduction

In actual engine, the working fluid is a mixture of air, fuel vapor and residual gases from the
previous cycles. Further, the specific heats of the working fluids are not constant, increase with
temperature. Finally, the products of combustion are subjected to a certain dissociation at high
temperature. If the actual physical properties of the gases in the cylinder before and after the
combustion are taken in to account, a reasonably close values to the actual pressure and
temperatures existing within the engine cylinder can be estimated. The mean effective pressures
and efficiencies, calculated by this analysis, in the case of well designed engines are higher only
by a few percent from the actual values obtained by tests. The analysis based on the actual
properties of the working medium, fuel and air, is called the fuel-air cycle analysis and even this
analysis has simplifying assumptions. However, they are more justifiable and close to the actual
conditions than those used in the air standard cycle analysis.

2.2.2.1.Fuel-Air cycles and their significance

By air standard cycle analysis, it is understood how the efficiency is improved by increasing the
compression ratio. However, analysis cannot bring out the effect of air-fuel ratio on the thermal
efficiency because the working medium was assumed to be air. By fuel-air cycle analysis it will
be possible to bring out the effect of fuel air ratio on thermal efficiency and also study how the
peak pressure and temperature during the cycle vary with respect to fuel-air ratio. The fuel-air
cycle analysis takes into account the following:

i. The actual composition of the cylinder gases: the cylinder gases contains fuel, air, water
vapor and residual gas. The fuel-air ratio changes during the operation of the engine
which changes the relative amount of CO2, water vapor etc.
ii. The variation in the specific heat with temperature: specific heats increase with
temperature except for monoatomic gases. Therefore, the values of ‘γ’ also changes with
temperature.
iii. The effect of dissociation: the fuel-air do not completely combine chemically at high
temperature (above 1600K) and this leads to the presence of CO, N 2 and O2 at
equilibrium conditions.
iv. The variation in the number of molecules: the number of molecules present after
combustion depends upon fuel-air ratio and upon the pressure and temperature after the
combustion.
v. There is no chemical change in either fuel or air prior to combustion.
vi. Compression and expansion processes are friction less.
vii. There is no heat exchange between the gases and cylinder walls in any process, i.e. they
are adiabatic.
viii. The fuel is completely vaporized and perfectly mixed with air.
ix. The burning takes place instantaneously at top dead center (at constant volume).

19
  Composition of cylinder gases

The air-fuel ratio changes during the engine operation. This change in air-fuel ratio affects the
composition of the gases before combustion as well as after combustion particularly the
percentage of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, water vapor etc. in the exhaust gases.

In four stroke engine, fresh charge as it enters the engine cylinder, comes into contact with the
burnt gases left in the clearance space of the previous cycle. The amount of exhaust gases in
clearance space varies with speed and load on the engine.

 Variable specific heats

All gases, except mono atomic gases, show an increase in a specific heat with temperature. The
increase in specific heat does not follow any particular law. However, over the temperature range
generally encountered for gases in heat engines (300K to 2000K) the specific heat curve is nearly
a straight line which may be approximately expressed in the form

Where , and are constants. Now

Where is the characteristic gas constant.

Above 1500K the specific heat increases much more rapidly and may be expressed in the form

The physical explanation for increase in specific heat is that as the temperature is raised, larger
fractions of the heat would be required to produce motion of the atoms within the molecules.
Since temperature is the result of motion of the molecules, as a whole, the energy which goes
into moving the atoms does not contribute to proportional temperature rise. Hence more heat is
required to raise the temperature of unit mass through one degree at higher levels. This heat by
definition is the specific heat. For air the values are:

at 300K at 300K

at 2000K at 2000K

20
Since the difference between and is constant, the value of γ decreases with increase in
temperature. Thus, if the variation of specific heats is taken into account during the compression
stroke, the final temperature and pressure would be lower than if constant values of specific heat
are used. This point is illustrated in fig 4.1.

Figure 4.1. Loss of power due to variation specific heat

With variable specific heats, the temperature at the end of compression will be 2l, instead of 2.
The magnitude of drop in temperature is proportional to the drop in the value of ratio of specific
heats. For the process 1-2, with constant specific heats

With variable specific heats

Where note that = and

For given values of , and the magnitude of depend on K. constant volume combustion,
from point will give a temperature instead of . This is due to the fact that the rise in the
value of because of variable specific heat, which reduces the temperature.

The process 2l-3l is heat addition with the variation in specific heat. From 3l, if expansion takes
place at constant specific heats, this would result in the process 3l-4ll whereas actual expansion
due to variable specific heat will result in 3l-4l and 4l is higher than 4ll. The magnitude in the

21
difference between 4l and 4ll is proportional to the reduction in the value of γ. Consider the
process 3l4ll

For process 3l4l

Reduction in the value of K due to variable specific heat results in increase of temperature from
to

 Dissociation

Dissociation process can be considered as the disintegration of combustion products at high

temperature. Dissociation can also be looked as the reverse process to combustion. During
dissociation the heat is absorbed whereas during combustion the heat is liberated. In IC engines,
mainly dissociation of CO2 into CO and O2 occurs, whereas there is a very little dissociation of
H2O.

The dissociation of CO2 into CO and O2 starts commencing around 1000 0c and the reaction
equation can be written as:

CO2 2CO + O2

Similarly, the dissociation of H2O occurs at temperatures above 1300 0c and is written as:

H2O 2H2 + O2

The presence of CO and O2 in the gases tends to prevent dissociation of CO2, this is noticeable in
a rich fuel mixture, which, by producing more CO, suppresses dissociation of CO2. On the other
hand, there is no dissociation in the burnt gases of a lean fuel-air mixture. This is mainly due to
the fact that the temperature produced is too low for this phenomenon to occur. Hence, the
maximum extent of dissociation occurs in the burnt gases of the chemically correct fuel-air
mixture when the temperatures are expected to be high but decreases with the leaner and reacher
mixtures.

In case of internal combustion engines heat transfer to the cooling medium causes a reduction in
the maximum temperature and pressure. As the temperature falls during the expansion stroke the
separated constituents recombine, the heat absorbed during dissociation is thus again released,
but it is too late in the stroke to recover entirely the lost power. A portion of this heat is carried
away by the exhaust gases.

22
Figure 4.2 shows a typical curve that indicates the reduction in the temperature of the exhaust
gas mixtures due to dissociation with respect to air-fuel ratio. With no dissociation maximum
temperature is attained at chemically correct air-fuel ratio. With dissociation maximum
temperature is obtained when mixture is slightly rich. Dissociation reduces the maximum
temperature by about 3000c even at the chemically correct air-fuel ratio.

Figure 4.2 Effect of dissociation on temperature

The effect of dissociation on output power is shown in fig 4.3 for a typical four stroke spark
ignition engine operating at constant speed. If there is no dissociation, the brake power output is
maximum when the mixture ratio is stoichiometric. The shaded area between the brake power
graphs shows the loss of power due to dissociation. When the mixture is quite lean there is no
dissociation. As the air-fuel ratio decreases, i.e. as the mixture becomes rich the maximum
temperature rises and dissociation commences. The maximum dissociation occurs at chemically
correct mixture strength. As the mixture becomes richer, dissociation effect tends to decline due
to incomplete combustion.

Figure 4.3 effect of dissociation on power

23
Dissociation effects are not so pronounced in a CI engine as in an SI engine. This is mainly due
to:

i. The presence of a heterogeneous mixture and

ii. Excess air to ensure complete combustion

Both these factors tend to reduce the peak gas temperature attained in the CI engine.

Figure 4.4 shows the effect of dissociation on P-V diagram of Otto cycle. Because of lower
maximum temperature due to dissociation the maximum pressure is also reduced and the state
after combustion will be represented by instead of 3. If there was no reassociation due to fall
of temperature during expansion the expansion process would be represented by 3l-4ll but due to
reassociation the expansion follows the path 3l-4l. By comparing with the ideal expansion 3-4, it
is observed that the effect of dissociation is to lower the temperature and consequently the
pressure at the beginning of the expansion stroke. This causes a loss of power and also
efficiency. Though during recombining the heat is given back it is too late to contribute a
convincing positive increase in the output of the engine.

Figure 4.4 effect of dissociation shown on a P-V diagram

 Effect of number of moles

As already mentioned the number of molecules present in the cylinder after combustion depends
upon the fuel-air ratio, type and extend of reaction in the cylinder. According to the gas law:

The pressure depends on the number of molecules or moles present. This has direct effect on the
amount of work the cylinder gases can impart on the piston.

24
  Comparison of air-standard and fuel-air cycles

The magnitude of difference between the two cycles can be attributed to the following factors:

 Character of the cycle (due to assumption)

 Equivalence ratio (actual F/A stoichiometric F/A)
 Chemical composition of the fuel

Figure 4.5 shows variation of efficacy with mixture strength of fuel-air cycle relative to that of
the air cycle showing the gain in efficiency as the mixture becomes leaner. It is seen from fig. 4.5
that the efficiency ratio (fuel-air cycle efficiency / air-standard cycle efficiency) increases as the
mixture becomes leaner and leaner tending towards the air standard cycle efficiency. It is to be
noted that this trend exists at all compression ratios.

Figure 4.5 Effect of relative fuel-air ratio on efficiency ratio.

At very low fuel-air ratio the mixture would tend to behave like a perfect gas with constant
specific heat. Cycles with lean to very lean mixtures tend towards air-standard cycles. In such
cycles the pressure and temperature rises. Some of the chemical reactions involved tend to more
complete as the pressure increases. These conditions apply to constant volume as well as
constant pressure cycles.

The simple air standard cycle analysis cannot predict the variation of thermal efficiency with
mixture strength since air is assumed to be the working medium. However, fuel-air cycle
analysis suggests that the thermal efficiency will deteriorate as the mixture supplied to an engine
is enriched. This is explained by the increasing losses due to variable specific heats and
dissociation as the mixture strength approaches chemically correct values. This is because; the
gas temperature goes up after combustion as the mixture strength approaches chemically correct
values. Enriching beyond the chemically correct ratio will lead to incomplete combustion and
loss in thermal efficiency. Therefore, it will appear that thermal efficiency will increase as the

25
mixture is made leaner. However, beyond a certain leaning, the combustion becomes erratic with
loss of efficiency. Thus the maximum efficiency is within the lean zone very near the
stoichiometric ratio. This gives rise to combustion loop, as shown in fig. 4.6 which can be plotted
for different mixture strengths for an engine running at constant speed and at constant throttle
setting. The loop gives an idea about the effect of mixture strength on the specific fuel
consumption.

Figure 4.6 specific fuel consumption vs mean effective pressure at constant speed and constant
throttle setting.

 Effect of operating variables

The effect of the common engine operating variables on the pressure and temperature within the
engine cylinder is better understood by fuel-air cycle analysis.

 Compression ratio

The fuel-air cycle efficiency increases with the compression ratio in the same manner as the air
standard cycle efficiency, principally for the same reason (more scope of expansion work). This
is shown in fig. 4.7.

The variation of indicated thermal efficiency with respect to the equivalence ratio for various
compression ratios is given in fig. 4.8. The equivalence ratio, ф, is defined as ratio of actual fuel-
air ratio to chemically correct fuel-air ratio on mass basis. The maximum pressure and maximum
temperature increase with compression ratio since the temperature, T2, and pressure, P2, at the
end of compression are higher. However, it can be noted from the experimental results (fig. 4.9)
that the ratio of fuel-air cycle efficiency to air-standard efficiency is independent of the
compression ratio for a given equivalence ratio for the constant volume fuel-air cycle.

26
  Fuel-air ratio
i. Efficiency: as the mixture is made lean (less fuel) the temperature rises due to
combustion will be lowered as a result of reduced energy input per unit mass of mixture.
This will result in lower specific heat. Further, it will lower the losses due to dissociation
and variation in specific heat. The efficiency is therefore, higher and in fact approaches
the air cycle efficiency as the fuel-air ratio is reduced as shown in fig. 4.10.

Figure 4.7 effect of compression ratio and mixture strength on efficiency

Figure 4.8 effect of mixture strength on thermal efficiency for various comression ratios

Figure 4.9 variation of efficiency with mixture strength for a constant volume fuel-air cycle

Figure 4.10 effect of mixture strength on thermal efficiency

ii. Maximum power: fuel-air ratio affects the maximum power output of the engine. The
variation is as shown in fig. 4.11. as the mixture becomes richer, after a certain point both
27
 efficiency and power output falls as can be seen from the experimental curve (fig. 4.10
and fig. 4.11). This is because in addition to higher specific heats and chemical
equilibrium losses, there is insufficient air which will result in formation of CO and H2
during combustion, which represents a direct wastage of fuel. However, fuel-air cycle
analysis cannot exactly imitate the experimental curve due to various simplifying
assumption made.

Figure 4.11 effect of fuel-air ratio on power

iii. Maximum temperature: at a given compression ratio the temperature after combustion
reaches a maximum when the mixture is slightly rich, i.e. around 6% as shown in fig.
4.12. at chemically correct ratio there is still some oxygen present at the point 3 (in p-V
diagram) because of chemical equilibrium effects a rich mixture will cause more fuel to
combine with oxygen at that point thereby raising the temperature T3. However, at richer
mixtures increased formation of CO counters this effect.

Figure 4.12 effect of equivalence ratio on T3 and p3

iv. Maximum pressure: the pressure of a gas in a given space depends upon its temperature
and the number of molecules. The curve of p3, therefore follows T3, but because of the
increasing number of molecules p3 does not start to decrease until the mixture is
somewhat richer than that for maximum T3 i.e. about 20% rich (fig. 4.12).
v. Exhaust temperature: the exhaust gas temperature, T4, is maximum at the chemically
correct mixture as shown in fig. 4.13. at this point the fuel and oxygen are completely
used up, as the effect of chemical equilibrium is not significant. At lean mixtures,

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 because of less fuel, T3 is less and hence T4 is less. At rich mixtures less sensible energy
is developed and hence T4 is less. That is T4 is at the chemically correct fuel-air ratio in
place of slightly rich fuel-air ratio (6%) as in case of T3. However, the behavior of T4
with compression ratio is different from that of T3 as shown in fig. 4.13. Unlike T3, the
exhaust gas temperature T4 is lower at high compression ratios, because the increased
expansion causes the gas to do more work on the piston leaving less heat to be rejected at
the end of the stroke. The same effect is present in case of air cycle analysis also.

Figure 4.13 effect of fuel-air ratio on the exhaust gas temperature

vi. Mean Effective Pressure (mep): the mean effective pressure increases with compression
ratio. It follows the trend of p3 and p4 and hence it is maximum at a fuel-air ratio slightly
richer than the chemically correct ratio as shown in fig. 4.14.

Figure 4.14 effect of fuel-air ratio on “mep”

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