Experiment No.

: 5
Operating Characteristics of Diesel Engines under varying
Compression Ratio
ME 3431: IC ENGINES LAB
Shrikant Karwa (me11b014)

AIM: To understand the operating characteristics of a 4-stroke Diesel Engine under varying Compression
Ratios.
To obtain the variations of Cylinder Pressures, Mass Fraction of Fuel Burnt, Heat released and Gas
Temperature graphs for 3 different compression ratios and compare the values.

OBSERVATIONS:
1. Engine Details
Engine Specifications
Cylinder Bore
Stroke Length
Connecting Rod Length
Compression Ratio
Swept Volume

One cylinder, four-stroke, constant speed,

water-cooled, diesel engine
87.50 mm
110.00 mm
234.00 mm
Variable (15,17 and 18)
661.45 cc

2. Combustion Parameters
Specific Gas Constant

1 KJ/kg-K

Air Density
Adiabatic Index
Polytrophic Index
Cylinder Pressure Reference
TDC reference

1.17 kg/m^3
1.41
1.28
4
0

3. Performance Parameters
Orifice Diameter and Coefficient of
Discharge
Dynamometer Arm Length
Fuel Pipe Diameter
Fuel Density
Calorific value of Fuel
Ambient Temperature

20mm, 0.6
185mm
12.40mm
830 kg/m^3
42000 KJ/kg.
27 C.

4. Combustion Results:
The following graphs are combustion reports of the experiment. They include pressure and
temperature measurements inside the cylinder versus the crank angle. These graphs include the
Cylinder Pressure Graph, the P-V graph, Mass Fraction Burnt Graph; Heat Release Graph, Mean
Gas Temperature Graph and the Fuel Pressure Lines.
The graphs of compression ratio 15, 17 and 18 are arranged together and comparison and
reasoning is stated below.
The results are as follows:

CR 16

CR 17

CR 18

Cylinder pressure graph

The peak pressure in the CR 16 is 48 bar, in CR 17 is 53 bar and in CR 18 is 66bar. Thus the peak
pressure decreases with decrease in compression ratio. Since the fuel in compressed more, it releases
more energy during combustion which leads to a higher peak pressure. Apart from the increase in peak
pressure, this graph is similar to all compression ratios.

CR 16

CR 17

CR 18

Mass fraction Burnt Graph

The start of combustion (SOC) for all the cases is nearly the same. But the mass fraction of fuel burnt in a
given amount of time is the highest for CR 18. As the compression ratio increases the mass fraction of fuel
burnt increases. This is because as the compression ratio increases, the fuel is more and more tightly
packed. Thus when the fuel ignites, the flame spreads to a larger mass of fuel in a short period of time
which is evident from the graph results. At 5 crank angle, the amount of fuel burnt in CR15 ,CR17, CR18 is
nearly 10%, 50%, 60% respectively.

CR 16

CR 17

CR 18

NET HEAT RELEASE GRAPH

These graphs show the net heat released during combustion versus the crank angle. The maximum
amount of heat released is in CR18. This is a result of packing the same amount of fuel in a smaller
volume. Hence, the heat released is more. As the compression ratio increases, the net heat release
increases. Also it can be observed that the peak of the net heat release curve shifts towards the left as the
compression ratio increases. Since the rate of burning is higher, the peak shifts towards the left. The peak
shifts by about 10 as the compression ratio increases from CR16 to CR18.

CR 16

CR 17

CR 18

MEAN GAS TEMPERATURE GRAPH

This graph represents the mean gas temperature versus the crank angle. As the compression ratio
increases, the temperature of the gases increases. Spontaneous combustion is similar to confined
explosion occurring in the IC engine. As the compression ratio increases, the same amount of fuel is
confined to a smaller space. Hence the peak temperature increases with increasing compression ratio. As
the mass of fuel burns faster for a higher compression ratio, the mean gas temperature for CR18 peaks at
a lower crank as compared to CR15.
CONCLUSION: Normal diesel engines are operated between compression ratios 14 to 23 (different
injection systems). The diesel engine will operate at is maximum performance when in this range of
compression ratios. If the compression ratio is kept very low, incomplete combustion results in the emission
of dense white fumes. The compression ratio must be kept at the ideal value to ensure good performance
characteristics.