Engine Parameters and

Performance

1
 Geometric Properties

VC
TC Piston displacement: y = l + a - s
y B

L
(
s = a cosq + l 2 − a 2 sin 2 q )
1/ 2

When the piston is at TC (s= l+a) the cylinder

BC volume equals the clearance volume Vc

The cylinder volume at any crank angle is:

l
s
B 2
Connecting rod V = Vc + Ac y = Vc + (l + a − s )
4
Maximum displacement, or swept, volume:
q
a B 2
Vd = L
4
Compression ratio:

For most engines B ~ L VBC Vc + Vd

rc = =
(“square engine”) VTC Vc
2
 Geometric Properties

VC Average piston velocity: U p = 2 LN

TC
B Where N is the rotational speed of the crank shaft
in units revolutions per second
L
Average piston speed for standard auto engine is
about 15 m/s. Ultimately limited by material
BC strength. Therefore engines with large strokes run
at lower speeds
“Over square engines” (B > L) with light pistons
l
s have higher rev limits (Formula 1 cars)

q
a

3
 Geometric Properties

VC Average piston velocity: U p = 2 LN

TC
B Where N is the rotational speed of the crank shaft
in units revolutions per second
L
Average piston speed for standard auto engine is
about 15 m/s. Ultimately limited by material
BC strength. Therefore engines with large strokes run
at lower speeds
“Over square engines” (B > L) with light pistons
l
s have higher rev limits

(
s = a cosq + l 2 − a 2 sin 2 q )
1/ 2

q
ds
a Instantaneous piston velocity: Up =
dt
Up   cosq 
= sin q 1 + 
Up 2  (
(l / a )2 − sin 2 q )
1/ 2


4
Piston Velocity vs Crank Angle

R = l/a

5
 Piston Acceleration
1/ 2
  a 2 2 
Piston displacement is: s = a cos q + l 1 −   sin q 
 l 
 
For most modern engines (a/l)2 ~ 1/9

Using series expansion approximate (1-e)1/2 ~ 1-(e/2) and subst q = wt

 a 
2

So s = a cos wt +  l − sin 2 wt 
 2l 

Substituting sin 2 wt = (1 − cos 2wt ) / 2

 a 
2

yields s = a cos wt +  l − (1 − cos 2wt ) 

 4l 
differentiating
d 2s 2 a 
= a w  cos w t + cos 2w t 
dt 2  l 
6
 Piston Inertia Force

The inertia force is simply the piston mass multiplied by the acceleration

d 2s  a 
Inertia Force = − m 2 = − amw 2  cos wt + cos 2wt 
dt  l 
Primary term Secondary term

• The maximum force occurs at TC, q = wt = 0 → F ~ amw2

• The primary term varies at the same speed as the crankshaft

and the secondary term varies at twice the crank shaft speed

• For a very long connecting rod (a/l) << 1 secondary term vanishes
and the force is harmonic

• Complete cancellation of the forces is possible for in-line 6 and 8

as well as for V-12 and V-16
7
 Torque and Power

Torque is measured off the output shaft using a dynamometer.

Stator Force F
Rotor

N
Load cell

The torque exerted by the engine is T:

T = F b units : Nm = J

8
 Torque and Power

Torque is measured off the output shaft using a dynamometer.

Stator Force F

Rotor

N
Load cell

The torque exerted by the engine is T:

T = F b units : J

The power W delivered by the engine turning at a speed N and

absorbed by the dynamometer is:
 rad  rev 
W = w  T = (2  N )  T units :   ( J ) = W (1 kW = 1.341 hp)
 rev  s 

Note: w is the shaft angular velocity in units rad/s 9

 Brake Power

Torque is a measure of an engine’s ability to do work and power is

the rate at which work is done

Note torque is independent of crank speed.

The term brake power, Wb , is used to specify that the power is
measured at the output shaft, this is the usable power delivered by
the engine to the load.

The brake power is less than the power generated by the gas in
the cylinders due to mechanical friction and parasitic loads (oil
pump, air conditioner compressor, supercharger, etc…)

The power produced in the cylinder is termed the indicated

power,Wi .

10
 Indicated Work per Cycle

Given the cylinder pressure data over the operating cycle of the engine one
can calculate the work done by the gas on the piston. This data is
typically given as P vs V

The indicated work per cycle is given by Wi =  PdV

Compression Power Exhaust Intake

W>0
11
W<0 W<0 W>0
 Indicated Work per Cycle

Given the cylinder pressure data over the operating cycle of the engine one
can calculate the work done by the gas on the piston. This data is
typically given as P vs V

The indicated work per cycle is given by Wi =  PdV

A WA > 0

WB < 0

Compression Power Exhaust Intake

W>0
12
W<0 W<0 W>0
 Work per Cycle
Gross indicated work per cycle – net work delivered to the piston over
the compression and expansion strokes only:

W i,g = area A + area C (>0)

Pump work – net work delivered to the gas over the intake and exhaust
strokes:

W p = area B + area C (<0)

Net indicated work per cycle – work delivered over all strokes:

W i,n = W i,g – W p = (area A + area C) – (area B + area C)

= area A – area B

13
 Indicated Power

Indicated power:
WN (kJ cycle)( rev s )
Wi = i
nR rev cycle

where N – crankshaft speed in rev/s

nR – number of crank revolutions per cycle
= 2 for 4-stroke
= 1 for 2-stroke

Power can be increased by increasing:

• the engine size, Vd
• compression ratio, rc
• engine speed, N

14
 Indicated Work at WOT

The pressure at the intake port is just below atmospheric pressure

Po Pintake

Pintake

The pump work (area B+C) is small compared to the gross indicated
work (area A+C)

W i,n = W i,g - W p = area A - area B

15
 Indicated Work at Part Throttle

The pressure at the intake port is significantly lower than atmospheric pressure

Pintake

The pump work (area B+C) can be significant compared to gross indicated
work (area A+C)

W i,n = W i,g - W p = area A - area B

16
 Indicated Work with Supercharging

Engines with superchargers or turbochargers have intake pressures

greater than the exhaust pressure, yielding a positive pump work

Compressor

Pintake

W i,n = area A + area B

Supercharge increases the net indicated work but is a parasitic load

since it is driven by the crankshaft
17
 Mechanical Efficiency

Some of the power generated in the cylinder is used to overcome engine

friction and to pump gas into and out of the engine.

The term friction power,W f , is used to describe collectively these power

losses, such that:

W f = Wi , g − Wb

Friction power can be measured by motoring the engine.

The mechanical efficiency is defined as:

Wb Wi , g − W f W f
m = = = 1−

Wi , g 
Wi , g Wi , g

18
 Mechanical Efficiency, cont’d

• Mechanical efficiency depends on pumping losses (throttle position) and

frictional losses (engine design and engine speed).

• Typical values for automobile engines at WOT are:

90% @2000 RPM and 75% @ max speed.

• Throttling increases pumping power and thus the mechanical efficiency

decreases, at idle the mechanical efficiency approaches zero.

19
 Power and Torque versus Engine Speed at WOT

W  N  T and W  N  Wcycle so T  Wcycle

Rated brake power

There is a maximum in the brake power
versus engine speed called the rated
1 kW = 1.341 hp brake power (RBP).
At higher speeds brake power decreases as
friction power becomes significant compared
to the indicated power Wb = Wi , g − W f

Max brake torque There is a maximum in the torque versus

speed called maximum brake torque (MBT).
Brake torque drops off:
• at lower speeds do to heat losses
• at higher speeds it becomes more difficult to
ingest a full charge of air.
20
 Indicated Mean Effective Pressure (IMEP)

imep is a fictitious constant pressure that would produce the same

work per cycle if it acted on the piston during the power stroke.
Wi Wi  nR imep  Vd  N imep  Ap  U p
imep = = → Wi = =
Vd Vd  N nR 2  nR

imep is a better parameter than torque to compare engines for design and
output because it is independent of engine size, Vd.

Brake mean effective pressure (bmep) is defined as:

Wb 2  T  nR bmep  Vd
bmep = = → T=
Vd Vd 2  nR

21
The maximum bmep of a good engine designs is well established:

Four stroke engines:

SI engines: bmep= 850-1050 kPa*

CI engines: bmep= 700 -900 kPa

Turbocharged SI engines: bmep= 1250 -1700 kPa

Turbocharged CI engines: bmep= 1000 - 1200 kPa

Two stroke engines:

Standard CI engines comparable bmep to four stroke

Large slow CI engines: 1600 kPa

*Values are at maximum brake torque and WOT

Note, at the rated (maximum) brake power the bmep is 10 - 15% less

Can use above maximum bmep in design calculations to estimate engine

displacement required to provide a given torque or power at a specified
speed.
22
 Maximum BMEP
Wb 2  T  nR
bmep = =
Vd Vd

• The maximum bmep is obtained at WOT at a particular engine speed

• Closing the throttle decreases the bmep

• For a given displacement, a higher maximum bmep means more torque

• For a given torque, a higher maximum bmep means smaller engine

• Higher maximum bmep means higher stresses and temperatures in the

engine hence shorter engine life, or bulkier engine.

• For the same bmep 2-strokes have almost twice the power of 4-stroke

23
 Typical 1998 Passenger Car Engine Characteristics

Vehicle Engine Displ. Max Power Max Torque BMEP at BMEP at

type (L) (hp@rpm) (lb-ft@rpm) Max BT Rated BP
(bar) (bar)
Mazda L4 1.84 122@6000 117@4000 10.8 9.9
Protégé LX
Honda L4 2.25 150@5700 152@4900 11.4 10.4
Accord EX
Mazda L4 2.26 210@5300 210@3500 15.9 15.7
Millenia S Turbo
BMW L6 2.80 190@5300 206@3950 12.6 11.5
328i
Ferrari V8 3.50 375@8250 268@6000 13.1 11.6
F355 GTS
Ferrari V12 5.47 436@6250 398@4500 12.4 11.4
456 GT
Lamborghini V12 5.71 492@7000 427@5200 12.7 11.0
Diablo VT

24
 Road-Load Power

• A part-load power level useful for testing car engines is the power required
to drive a vehicle on a level road at a steady speed.

• The road-load power, Pr, is the engine power needed to overcome rolling
resistance and the aerodynamic drag of the vehicle.

Pr = (C R M v g + 1  a C D Av Sv2 )  Sv
2
Where CR = coefficient of rolling resistance (0.012 - 0.015)
Mv = mass of vehicle
g = gravitational acceleration
a = ambient air density
CD = drag coefficient (for cars: 0.3 - 0.5)
Av = frontal area of the vehicle
Sv = vehicle speed

*Modern midsize aerodynamic cars only need 5-6 kW (7-8 HP)

power to cruise at 90 km/hr, hence the attraction of hybrid cars! 25
 Drag Force Parameters

Auto manufacturers can control drag by reducing:

Vehicle frontal area:

2005 Corvette is 0.57 m2
Most cars around 0.8 m2
2006 Hummer H3 is 1.56 m2

Drag coefficient CD:

2004 Toyota Prius – 0.26
2005 Porsche Boxster – 0.29
1983 Audi 100 – 0.3
2006 Dodge Challanger – 0.33
2003 Hummer – 0.57
Formula 1 car – 0.7 to 1.1

26
 Hill Climbing Power and Acceleration

a
F=Mvg

For a 1500 kg car moving at 50 km/hr up a 10o incline:

PC = ( M v g sin a )  S v = 35 kW = 47 hp

F=Mva

For a 1500 kg car accelerating (constant) from 0-100 km/hr:

Pa = M v ( S v / t )  S v = 145 kW = 207 hp

27
 Specific Fuel Consumption

• For transportation vehicles fuel economy is generally given as mpg, or

L/100 km.

• In engine testing the fuel consumption is measured in terms of the fuel

mass flow rate m f .

• The specific fuel consumption, sfc, is a measure of how efficiently the

fuel supplied to the engine is used to produce power,
m f m f g
bsfc = isfc = units :
Wb Wi kW  hr

• Clearly a low value for sfc is desirable since for a given power level
the lesser the fuel consumed the better it is.

28
 Brake Specific Fuel Consumption vs Engine Size

• Bsfc decreases with engine size due to reduced heat losses from gas to
cylinder wall.

• Note cylinder surface to volume ratio increases with bore diameter.

cylinder surface area BL 1
= 2 
cylinder volume B L B
29
 Brake Specific Fuel Consumption vs Engine Speed

• There is a minimum in the bsfc versus engine speed curve

• At high speeds the bsfc increases due to increased friction i.e. smaller Wb

• At lower speeds the bsfc increases due to increased time for heat
losses from the gas to the cylinder and piston wall, and thus a smaller Wi

• Bsfc decreases with compression ratio due to higher thermal efficiency30

 Performance Maps

Performance map is used to display the bsfc over the engines full load
and speed range. Using a dynamometer to measure the torque and fuel
mass flow rate for different throttle positions you can calculate:

2  T  nR m f
bmep = bsfc = Wb = (2  N )  T
Vd Wb

bmep@WOT

Constant bsfc contours from a

two-liter four cylinder SI engine

31
 Engine Efficiencies

• The time for combustion in the cylinder is very short, especially at high N,
so not all the fuel may be consumed

• A small fraction of the fuel may not react and exits with the exhaust gas

• The combustion efficiency is defined as:

actual heat input Qin Q in

c = = =
theoretical heat input m f  QHV m f  QHV

where Qin = heat added by combustion per cycle

mf = mass of fuel added to cylinder per cycle
QHV = heating value of the fuel (chemical energy per unit mass)

32
 Engine Efficiencies (2)

• The thermal efficiency is defined as:

work per cycle W W
th = = =
heat input per cycle Qin c  m f  QHV

or in terms of rates
power out W W
th = = =
rate of heat input Q in c  m f  QHV

• Thermal efficiencies can be given in terms of brake or indicated values

• Indicated thermal efficiencies are typically 50% to 60% and brake thermal
efficiencies are usually about 30%

33
 Engine Efficiencies (3)

• Fuel conversion efficiency is defined as:

W W
f = =
m f  QHV m f  QHV

Note: f is very similar to th, difference is th takes into account actual
fuel combusted.
m f
Recall: sfc =
W

Therefore, the fuel conversion efficiency can also be obtained from:

1
f =
( sfc)  QHV

34
 Volumetric Efficiency

• Due to the short cycle time at high engine speeds and flow restrictions
through the intake valve less than ideal amount of air enters the cylinder.

• The effectiveness of an engine to induct air into the cylinders is measured

by the volumetric efficiency:
actual air inducted ma n  m
v = = = R a
theoretical air  a  Vd  a  Vd  N

where a is the density of air at atmospheric conditions Po, To and for an

ideal gas a =Po / RaTo and Ra = 0.287 kJ/kg-K (at standard conditions
a= 1.181 kg/m3)

• Typical values for WOT are in the range 75%-90%, and lower when the
throttle is closed

35
 Volumetric Efficiency

Non-speed-dependent effects: (such as fuel vapor pressure) drop ηv. below 100
percent (curve A).
Charge heating: Heat transfer to the inlet mixture in the inlet manifold and port
decreases its density. Fuel heating and vaporization as well as air heating are
involved. Charge heating in the manifold and cylinder drops curve A to curve B. It
has a greater effect at lower engine speeds due to longer gas residence times.
Introduction and exhaust system flow friction:
Due to flow friction, pressure drops occur
in the inlet across the air filter,
carburetor/injector, throttle, and manifold.
Pressure drops also occur in the exhaust
across the exhaust valve , port, manifold,
catalyst, muffler and pipe. Frictional flow
losses increase as the square of engine
speed, and drop curve B to curve C.

36
 Volumetric Efficiency

Chocking: At higher engine speeds, the flow into the engine during at least part of the
intake process becomes choked. Once this occurs, further increases in speed do not
increase the flow rate significantly so volumetric efficiency decreases sharply (curve C to
D).
Ram Effect: The momentum of the air in the intake manifold towards the cylinder set up
during the intake stroke forces additional air into the cylinder while the intake valve remains
open after BC. The induction ram effect, at higher engine speeds, raises curve D to curve
E.
Back Flow: At low engine speed, a significant amount of mixture which entered the
cylinder during the intake stroke is pushed back into the intake by the moving piston during
the compression stroke prior to inlet valve closing. Late inlet valve closing, which allows
advantage to be taken of increased charging at higher speeds, results in a decrease in η v
at low engine speeds due to back flow (curves C and D to F

Valve Tuning: During the valve overlap period between inlet valve opening and exhaust
valve closing, both valves are open (Fig. 2.9). The amount of overlap, and engine speed,
affect the residual fraction which has an effect on volumetric efficiency. Intake and/or
exhaust valve tuning can increase the volumetric efficiency (often by a substantial amount)
over part of the engine speed range, curve F to G.

37
Four Stroke Valve Timing

38
 Energy Distribution for a SIE as a function of engine speed

The major part of the energy liberated inside the engine is lost
in the cooling at low speed. The energy lost in the exhaust
gas increases with the speed and it reaches about 35% of the
fuel energy at maximum

39
Engine operation and performance characteristics as a
function of engine speed for a typical SIE.

40
 Air-Fuel Ratio
• For combustion to take place the proper relative amounts of air and fuel
must be present in the cylinder.

The air-fuel ratio is defined as

ma m a
AF = =
m f m f

• For gasoline fuel the ideal AF is about 15:1, with combustion possible
in the range of 6 to 19.

• For a SI engine the AF is in the range of 12 to 18 depending on the

operating conditions.

• For a CI engine, where the mixture is highly non-homogeneous, the

AF is in the range of 18 to 70.

41
 Relationships Between Performance Parameters

By combining equations presented in this section the following additional

working equations are obtained:

 f v  N  Vd  QHV   a  (1 / AF )
W =
nR

 f v  Vd  QHV   a  (1 / AF )
T=
2  nR

mep =  f v  QHV   a  (1 / AF )

42