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Diesel-Like Direct-Injection Engine Gets 50 Percent Better MPG

Green Car Reports -- Using gasoline direct injection--but compression ignition, like a diesel vehicle--Delphi says its new engine would allow gasoline vehicles to rival the efficiency of hybrids. It would also eliminate some of diesel's less favorable characteristics. Technology Review (via Gizmag) reports that Delphi has solved some of the normal problems of getting gasoline to work well using compression--rather than spark--ignition. Delphi combines "a collection of engine-operating strategies that make use of advanced fuel injection and air intake and exhaust controls". Those strategies include injecting gasoline in timed bursts to reduce noise and maximize the speed at which fuel is burned.

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Submitted May 24, 2012 By: Piper0072

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eromitlab Champion Author Huntsville Posts:7,311 Points:1,451,160 Joined:May 2008	Message Posted: May 25, 2012 4:57:03 AM Ignore eromitlab Report Abuse Hey, check it out, innovation. We used to do that all the time here in America, even though it isn't as profitable as paying lobbyists and politicians for corporate welfare.
carranco Champion Author Georgia Posts:1,027 Points:271,465 Joined:Dec 2008	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 10:31:25 PM Ignore carranco Report Abuse Sounds good, but they don't give an arrival date.
fuel2use Champion Author Seattle Posts:3,615 Points:758,920 Joined:Dec 2010	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 1:39:14 PM Ignore fuel2use Report Abuse Lets see where it goes.
cgrey8 Champion Author Atlanta Posts:1,015 Points:260,730 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 11:11:40 AM Ignore cgrey8 Report Abuse I believe this will be the next big thing for cars. Looking over the history of technology in automtive engines, you'll see they have progressed as follows... First there was ethanol used to create the original combustion engine before gasoline was refined and literally a dampened rag in the airflow path was used as a carburetor. As the internal combustion engine matured, so did gasoline refinements. Then complex carburation (automatic choke control, multiple barrels, metering rods/springs, fueling jets, etc). Then more complex ignition systems (mechanical advance, then vacuum advance). Those advances there alone ran us strong until well into the 70s. Then came mechanical injection (a flop). But in the 80s, computer technology matured enough to bring on affordable electronic injection. The early versions were nothing more than computer controlled carburators. Then full-up throttlebody injection. Then finally port injection with an injector at each port, each improvement giving improved performance, fuel economy, emission control, and engine longevity. Computer control simultaneously gave us electronic ignition which was a HUGE game-changer again for performance, fuel economy, emissions, and durability...far more than most people realize. In the 90s, we got variable valve/cam timing which allowed for smaller engines to do the work that only bigger engines before could do. Adding 2 cams (DOHC) per head amplified this bringing us its full potential. Also in the 90s, ignition systems went away from distributors to distributorless ignition (coil packs and coil-on-plug setups). This squeezed a little more performance, fuel economy, and emissions reduction by allowing each cylinder to be individually optimized instead of limiting the entire engine to the "weakest" cylinder. A silent development that was perfected in the 2000s was the ability to model engines in a computer before they were even built into prototypes. Literally engineering teams could test and perfect different ideas on the fly all in a computer with moderate confidence that the results they were getting were as they would be in reality if they actually built what they designed. This saved the MASSIVE amount of R&D time required to actually make and test designs. This advancement alone is how all engines today are developed and is probably the most invisible advancement of all. In the late 2000s, we got direct injection which allowed even smaller engines to get more efficient by running much higher compressions than were possible on all older fueling designs. This technology mixed with turbos is how the Ford EcoBoost can make a small 4 cylinder perform like a moderate V6 but get the great fuel economy of a small engine. Likewise the small EcoBoost V6 used in the trucks and Taurus out perform the 4.6L V8 used in all other applications including the Mustang GT!!! Then add to the mix regenerative braking hybrid technology and that brings us to today. People say the combustion engine hasn't changed much. I say it is hardly recognizable to what our parents used to deal with. Back in the 50s and 60s, it wasn't unheard of to rebuild an engine every 50kmiles. Engines built today are lasting 250-300kmiles with proper maintenance and still passing emissions requirements. So never let it be said we haven't come a long way. The foreseeable things left to improve fuel economy are things like direct-injection-ignition which is what this article is about. I still suspect they will somehow pare this with laser ignition (lasers instead of spark plugs) to better control the burn. But laser ignition technology is still behind and hasn't been as promising in production as it was in the lab. And fundamental changes to the engine such as getting away from piston-driven technology or adding heat-recovery technology. We are already experimenting with things like fuel cells as alternatives to engines that still consume gasoline but progress just isn't going as fast as I thought it would particularly with GM making decent investments into it. Heat recovery has a LOT of promise. That's where we convert waste heat directly to electricity. That technology combined with hybrid battery/motor drivetrains could bring engines currently getting 30MPG well into the 60-70MPG range. The problem with these exotic alternatives are the components are expensive and at the moment, not durable and just don't justify themselves. So until they do, the best we can hope for are improvements on the tried-n-true internal combustion engine.
ObieDog Champion Author Maryland Posts:2,051 Points:877,270 Joined:Sep 2010	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 10:38:54 AM Ignore ObieDog Report Abuse Interesting.
GetMaxCashBack Veteran Author Trenton Posts:386 Points:174,525 Joined:Mar 2012	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 10:01:41 AM Ignore GetMaxCashBack Report Abuse Repost. Still in the making and may not come to fruition before pure electric takes the stage.
ErnieK9LO Champion Author North Dakota Posts:2,811 Points:568,530 Joined:Nov 2010	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 9:40:29 AM Ignore ErnieK9LO Report Abuse I will believe it when I see it
CapriceWagon Champion Author Washington Posts:1,014 Points:503,845 Joined:Feb 2008	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 9:18:10 AM Ignore CapriceWagon Report Abuse I'll believe it when I see it
Evilmaddog Champion Author British Columbia Posts:3,466 Points:985,250 Joined:Aug 2010	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 9:16:38 AM Ignore Evilmaddog Report Abuse ok
blupupher Champion Author Houston Posts:3,695 Points:775,745 Joined:Feb 2011	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 9:11:41 AM Ignore blupupher Report Abuse interesting.
Goatroper Champion Author Dallas Posts:6,690 Points:1,312,410 Joined:Apr 2004	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 9:08:27 AM Ignore Goatroper Report Abuse Interesting....but it sounds like they are reinventing the diesel, is this a solution in search of a problem?
bar1035 Champion Author Charlotte Posts:9,343 Points:1,325,920 Joined:Aug 2006	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 8:23:27 AM Ignore bar1035 Report Abuse We've seen this story posted before, yet the date on the story is May 23rd. Go figure
angel4me Champion Author San Jose Posts:2,814 Points:802,645 Joined:Dec 2010	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 8:18:37 AM Ignore angel4me Report Abuse it will take years before this gets into production
amoshins Champion Author Trenton Posts:2,306 Points:667,995 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 8:18:19 AM Ignore amoshins Report Abuse Sounds great - more encouraging than EVs
cdrrod Champion Author Wisconsin Posts:4,291 Points:810,500 Joined:Feb 2006	Message Posted: May 24, 2012 8:18:02 AM Ignore cdrrod Report Abuse Get this into production ASAP!