Study of different exhaust gas recirculation configurations and their impact on turbocharged spark ignition engines

Resumen

This PhD-Thesis is framed in the context of a growing awareness and concern in society about pollution and its effect on people's health, as well as the influence of greenhouse gases on climate change. In this sense, transportation has not been an exception, and legislation has been reated to regulate both polluting emissions and greenhouse gases in an increasingly strict manner, continually challenging companies in the sector and engine manufacturers to increase efficiency and cleanliness of their propulsive systems. The objective of this work is to study the impact that different exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) systems have on a spark ignition, direct injection, turbocharged engine, with a variable timing and within the downsizing trend. It should be noted that the engine under study is mass-produced without EGR and is currently used in passenger utility cars, so the project has been always linked to current events in the sector, and the advances and discoveries of the studies presented here can be useful in real applications. These exhaust gas recirculation systems aim to increase the efficiency of spark ignition engines, reducing the disadvantage they present with respect to compression ignition engines, while maintaining emission levels. Said disadvantage in efficiency lies mainly in a lower compression ratio in order to avoid autoignition and in the use of stoichiometric operation for the optimal operation of the aftertreatment system.