Research

The growing demand for mobility, the scarcity of fossil resources, and the population's increasing interest in the environment are creating an area of tension that is the subject of intense social debate and in which the research group is active. Low-temperature combustion (LTC) represents a promising concept for creating more sustainability in this area of tension.

So far, the main obstacles preventing large-scale technical use of LTC processes have been unstable process behavior, especially in transient operation, and the only limited characteristic map range of LTC. The overarching goal continues to be the stabilization of combustion processes to ensure high efficiency and low emissions, as well as the expansion of the map range into high and low partial loads through the application of innovative multiscale control approaches. In order to apply the combustion process in vehicle engines, all transient processes must be reliably controlled.

In the first funding period, following the development of the fundamental methods, the project workgroup has already succeeded in demonstrating the high potential of the proposed optimization-based multiscale control concept with regard to efficiency increases and the reduction of raw emissions.

FOR 2401 therefore intends to stick to its strategy for further projects. For the performance of a significant contribution to the technical utilization of the LTC, the following main objectives are relevant:

• Building a basic understanding of LTC processes
• Multiscale control methodology including customized algorithms
• Integration of the air path control into the multiscale control system
• System identification through new sensor concepts
• Tailored measurement algorithms for experimental model matching
• Potential of coupling LTC with renewable fuels