Mazda successfully eliminates the spark plug

[kscarbel2]

Nikkei  /  January 9, 2017

Mazda will introduce a new gasoline engine at the end of 2018 that offers 30% better fuel efficiency by using pressure, not spark plugs, to ignite fuel.

This will be the first practical application of the technology, called homogeneous charge compression ignition. Though Mazda is developing electric vehicles too, the automaker thinks the internal combustion engine will continue to account for the majority of new-vehicle sales for the foreseeable future and that the company's technology will give it a leg up on the competition.

Homogeneous charge compression ignition, or HCCI, is the black art of of internal combustion engines that aims to produce diesel-like fuel efficiency for the cost of gasoline.

Although some of its competitors have developed and subsequently given up on the tech, Mazda confirmed that the next-generation of “SkyActiv” engines will employ HCCI technology, improving fuel economy by 30 percent and at the same time reducing exhaust emissions.

According to Nikkei, a new SkyActiv family of engines is set to debut under the hood of the next-gen Mazda3 in 2018 before making its way into other vehicles.

In simple terms, an engine that uses HCCI burns the air/fuel mix using pressure instead of with spark plugs, just like a diesel.

At 14:1, Mazda's gasoline engines already have some of the highest compression ratios out there, but a move to HCCI means cranking up the compression to 18:1.

While the tech sounds relatively straightforward, using HCCI means dealing with a number of side issues. It's one of those "on paper" ideas that compounds problems when put into practice. Heat, revs, and fuel must all be carefully managed as gasoline doesn't burn the same way as diesel.

If the new HCCI engines are successful, Mazda will have out-engineered GM, Daimler, and Hyundai, all of which have tried and failed to develop HCCI engines in a cost-effective package.

With the market moving towards electrification, it's interesting to see Mazda still focusing so heavily on traditional internal combustion gasoline engines. It's an indication of where they see the market heading for the next few years. Although the automaker has been hesitant to move forward with hybrid and electric powertrains, Mazda will begin mass production of electric vehicles in 2019.

[Dirtymilkman]

What ever happened with the ceramic engine ideas? No cooling needed. 

[kscarbel2]

2 hours ago, Dirtymilkman said:

What ever happened with the ceramic engine ideas? No cooling needed. 

That was Isuzu, as I recall. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

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October 27, 1983

Isuzu Motors said Thursday it has developed a ceramic internal combustion engine that is capable of generating more power than the conventional type while cutting fuel consumption by half.

The prototype, a 1,995 cc turbo-charged diesel model, will be displayed at the Tokyo Motor Show opening Friday.

Developed together with Kyocera, the leading Japanese industrial ceramics products maker, the combustion chamber of the ceramic engine is built with the highly heat-resistant material that is capable of withstanding up to 2,000 degrees (C) of heat without a cooling system.

Test results show that the ceramic engine can generate 30 percent more power at half the level of fuel consumption.

Isuzu, however, stressed that the model is only a prototype and that the company still has to iron out durability and other unspecified technical problems before the engine can be put into commercial use.

Specifically Isuzu engineers will have to make the ceramics more durable. The material, while highly heat-resistant, cracks easily, auto experts said.

The Isuzu spokesman confirmed durability is among the unresolved technical problems but indicated the Isuzu engineers would be able to overcome them.

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United States patent on ceramic engine design - https://www.google.com/patents/US5063881

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[Phase 1]

Honda worked on a spark-less two stroke engine quite a few years ago - although they still needed to have spark at idle RPM's. I never heard of it going into production. A conventional two stroke under the right conditions can continue to run with the ignition turned off. That led Honda to the experiments with it.    http://dwolsten.tripod.com/articles/jan97.html

 

[Timmyb]

Good on Mazda. Electric vehicles are still a long way off and it's good to see a bit of r&d go into the internal combustion engine. 

Can is run on any fuel? Or does it need a higher octane rating?

[kscarbel2]

Tim, Mazda says it is a gasoline engine.

http://www2.mazda.com/en/publicity/release/2011/201105/110517a.html

[kscarbel2]

Mazda claims new gasoline engine is world's most efficient

Nikkei Asian Review  /  August 8, 2017

TOKYO -- Mazda Motor has developed what it claims is the world's most fuel-efficient gasoline-powered engine, the carmaker said Tuesday. 

Called the Skyactiv-X, the engine is the first gasoline model that ignites the fuel-air mixture through compression, like a diesel engine. Standard engines use sparks to set off combustion.

Diesel fuel self-ignites at high temperatures. The Japanese carmaker said self-ignition enables higher fuel efficiency than spark-ignition, which tends to cause the fuel to burn unevenly inside the combustion chamber.

Mazda says the Skyactiv-X is 20-30% more fuel efficient than its current Skyactiv-G engine.

Going with gasoline

Mazda's focus on diesel and gasoline engines contrasts with its rivals' embrace of electric vehicles.

Germany's Volkswagen, for instance, has shifted toward electric cars after it was revealed that the company had manipulated mileage numbers for its diesel engines.

Volvo, meanwhile, says it will only sell electric or hybrid cars from 2019.

Some governments are moving in the same direction, with the U.K. and France declaring they will ban sales of gasoline and diesel cars by 2040. 

Mazda argues that a faster way to bring greenhouse gas emissions under control is to make diesel and gasoline cars more efficient.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Mazda executives cited a forecast saying that 85% of vehicles sold in 2035 will still use internal combustion engines, as a greater share of car sales will come from developing countries that have little or no infrastructure for electric vehicles, such as charging stations and extensive power networks.

Mazda is not ignoring electric cars, however. It plans to develop electric vehicles with Toyota Motor, with which the company announced a comprehensive capital and business partnership last week.

On Tuesday, Mazda said it will roll out hybrid and electric vehicles in 2019. 

For now, however, the company intends to focus on improving on its diesel and gasoline engines.

Mazda is looking to develop hybrids, which run on electric motors at slower speeds and on gasoline engines at higher speeds. It says that developing a hybrid will be easier with a more efficient engine, as that would enable the use of a much smaller motor and battery than seen in current hybrids.

"I think [the British and French governments] know that electric cars won't be able to replace gasoline cars so soon," said Kiyoshi Fujiwara, Mazda's chief of innovation.

Fujiwara added that he thinks "internal combustion engines will continue to play a role" because they incorporate hybrid and other emission-reducing technologies.