Loren K.

Beard, PhD

Internal Improvements to Conventional IC Engines to Improve

Fuel Efficiency

California Air Resources Board

International Vehicle Technology Symposium
March 11, 2003
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Disclaimer

DaimlerChrysler Corporation believes that the

State of California is preempted from adopting fuel
economy or tailpipe CO2 emissions standards for
new vehicles by the Energy Policy and
Conservation Act of 1975.

However, we believe there is value in discussions

on fuel efficiency technologies in a technical
arena, among a group of international experts.
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Incremental Improvements in the Fuel Efficiency of a 4.7L V-8 Engine

Petroleum will dominate as a

source of motor vehicle fuel for at
least the next twenty years.
Gasoline will provide at least a
majority of the light duty motor
vehicle fuel in North America.
Diesel will become increasingly
important as a means of reducing
the use or petroleum.
Incremental improvements in the
fuel efficiency of internal
combustion engines will provide
the only significant opportunity to
reduce petroleum usage in the
short- to mid-term.
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Focusing on four areas of optimization for 4.7L V-8

Cycle thermodynamics enable a 1.5 compression ratio increase

- Intake port, air-gap thermal barrier
- On-demand, piston oil squirters
- Precision cooling system

Gas exchange losses (Pumping losses)

- Charge motion control valves with EGR

Friction losses
- Crankshaft offset
- Shortened coolant jacket
- Reduced oil ring tension

Parasitic losses
- Engine oil pumps, offset-mounted G-rotor oil pump
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Cycle thermodynamics: Intake port, air-gap thermal barrier

Fuel Injector

Air Gap
Air Gap

Air-Gap Intake Port Thermal Barrier

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Cycle thermodynamics: Intake port, air-gap thermal barrier

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Cycle thermodynamics: On-demand piston oil squirters

Control Solenoid
Oil
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Cycle Thermodynamics: Precision cooling system

All cylinders and pistons

at the same temperature.
Temperature uniformity
around cylinders.

Experimental external coolant manifolds

allow tailoring flow cylinder-by-cylinder
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Cycle Thermodynamics: Charge motion control valves with EGR

Valve closed Valve open

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Friction Losses: Crankshaft offset

Source: Musashi Inst. of Technology

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Friction Losses: Crankshaft offset

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Friction Losses: Shortened coolant jacket

All cylinders and pistons at the same temperature.

New design Traditional design

Cylinder block
Reduction of water jacket size
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Friction Losses: PCV oil-air separators

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Parasitic Losses: Engine oil pumps

Current Proposed
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Parasitic Losses: Engine oil pumps

Primary timing drive with

the new oil pump
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The Potential For Diesel

The only proven technology for large improvements in fuel efficiency across a range
of products is the diesel engine.
Fuel efficiency improvements of 25-40% have been realized.
The modern, high pressure, electronically controlled, common rail diesel fuel
system has led to major improvements in PM, NVH, and performance.
The diesel engine faces major hurdles in the U. S. market:
The cost premium compared to a comparable gasoline engine cannot be
recovered by most drivers with gasoline priced at about $2/ballon
The diesel has an image of a noisy, smoky, smelly powerplant in the U.S. This
perception needs to be overcome
NOx emissions standards in both federal, and California regulations will require a
major breakthrough in diesel aftertreatment.
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Conclusions

A number of incremental improvements can be made to improve the fuel efficiency

of the conventional spark-ignited gasoline engine.
There are four categories that all engine technologies fall into:
1.) Cycle Thermodynamic improvements
2.) Pumping losses
3.) Friction losses
4.) Parasitic losses
The efficiencies realized by each of the technologies are not additive in a
straightforward way (i.e. 2 + 2 does not necessarily equal 4)
The technologies cannot be introduced to an entire family of engines in a short
period of time. Typically, these kinds of improvements can be made sometime
during the product cycle, when other changes are being made (e.g., crankshaft
offset).
Incremental improvements in fuel efficiency of the internal combustion engine offer
the only opportunity for significant reductions in petroleum usage and CO2
emissions reductions in the short- to mid-term.