Caterpillar Inc.

Andrew J Loetz

Aaron Ness

Eric Lee Schroeder

Jaswinder Singh

Adam Joseph Clute

Christopher Lee Batta

Sri Harsha Uddanda

Brett A Zook

John Robert Brubaker

Jonathan William Anders

David Todd Montgomery

Christopher Ronald Gehrke

Jack Albert Merchant

Joshua Lynn Ratts

Patrick J Seiler

Naga Krishna Chaitanya Kavuri

Yongxian Gu

Lucas Allen Burger

Nicholas Edwin Wainscott

Mary Louise Yeager

Venkat Vijay Kishore Turlapati

Deepti Bhosekar

Ryan Mchael Snodgrass

Joel Hiltner

A piston may have an annular body including a crown portion defining a longitudinal axis, a radial direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, a plane containing the longitudinal axis and the radial direction, and a contoured combustion bowl. In the plane containing the longitudinal axis and the radial direction, the crown portion includes a radially outer squish surface, and a swirl pocket having a reentrant surface that extends axially downwardly and radially outwardly from the squish surface defining a tangent that forms a reentrant angle with the squish surface that ranges from 53.0 degrees to 57.0 degrees.

Low compression natural gas engine piston bowl for improved combustion stability

A combined heat and power system for generating power using a hydrogen internal combustion engine and producing usable heat from the exhaust gases of the hydrogen internal combustion engine is described. The system includes a heat exchanger and reduction device, such as a catalytic converter. The heat exchanger may extract heat from the exhaust gases upstream of the catalytic converter and thereby control the heat of exhaust gases provided to the catalytic converter for reduction of exhaust gases. The catalytic converter may use hydrogen as a reducing agent, thereby using the same fuel source for powering the engine and reduction of the exhaust gases rather than separate working fluids. The heat exchanger and/or operating parameters of the system may be controlled to control a temperature of exhaust gases at the catalytic converter and thereby control efficiency of the conversion of exhaust gases.

Selective catalytic reduction for hydrogen engines

An engine system includes a cylinder block, and a cylinder head attached to the cylinder block and including exhaust ports. Exhaust collection passages are formed in the cylinder head and each fluidly connect to one of the exhaust ports. An unburned hydrocarbon (UHC) emissions mitigation conduit fluidly connects to the exhaust ports to route UHC to an oxidation catalyst or for recirculation.

Engine system configured for unburned hydrocarbon (HC) collection from exhaust port

A piston for an internal combustion engine includes a piston skirt and a piston crown attached to the piston skirt. The piston crown includes a combustion face forming a piston rim extending circumferentially around a piston center axis, and a combustion bowl. The combustion face further forms a bowl edge defining an intersection of the combustion bowl and the piston rim, and includes a reentrant surface extending between the bowl edge and a bowl outer wall. A ratio of a bowl max dimension to a bowl opening dimension is from about 1.10 to about 1.15.

Piston and engine system using same

Operating a gaseous fuel engine system includes conveying hydrogen fuel and hydrocarbon fuel into a cylinder in a gaseous fuel engine for combustion. Operating a gaseous fuel engine system further includes receiving an increased engine power output request, boosting a power output of the gaseous fuel engine by varying a ratio of the hydrogen fuel and the hydrocarbon fuel combusted in the cylinder, and varying an in-cylinder combustion parameter based on the varying a ratio. Perturbation to a performance profile of the gaseous fuel engine is thereby limited. Related apparatus and control logic is also disclosed.

Gaseous fuel engine operating strategy for improved derating performance using varied ratio fuel blend

A piston for an internal combustion engine includes a piston skirt and a piston crown attached to the piston skirt and including a combustion face. The combustion face forms a piston rim and a combustion bowl. A bowl edge defines an intersection of the combustion bowl and the piston rim, and a reentrant surface defining a reentrancy angle extends between the bowl edge and a bowl outer wall. A ratio of a bowl depth dimension coincident with the piston center axis to a compression height dimension coincident with the piston center axis is from about 0.30 to about 0.35.

Piston optimized for combustion flame speed and compression ratio in engine system

Operating a gaseous fuel engine includes spark-igniting gaseous hydrogen fuel and air, and propagating combustion gases of the spark-ignited mixture outwardly from a spark gap. The propagating combustion gases are impinged upon a cone surface of a piston so as to limit a flame area of the propagating combustion gases. Additional gaseous hydrogen fuel and air is ignited in the combustion cylinder by way of the propagating combustion gases to urge a piston toward a bottom-dead-center position.

Gaseous fuel reciprocating engine and operating methodology for reduced hydrogen flame speed

Operating a gaseous fuel engine system includes spark-igniting a gaseous hydrogen fuel and air in a prechamber sparkplug to ignite a main charge containing gaseous hydrogen fuel and air in a cylinder. Operating the gaseous fuel engine system also includes determining a preignition condition and conveying cooling air to the prechamber sparkplug based on the preignition condition to limit preignition of gaseous hydrogen fuel and air in the prechamber sparkplug. Related apparatus and control logic is also disclosed.

Gaseous fuel engine and operating strategy for limiting preignition in prechamber sparkplug

A system and method for combustion in an engine includes a combustion chamber, a prechamber, and a fluid injector. The prechamber extends from a first end to a second is fluidly connected to the combustion chamber through at least one port positioned at the first end of the prechamber. The fluid injector is configured to introduce a fluid into the prechamber following combustion of an air-fuel mixture within the prechamber and positioned to introduce the fluid into the prechamber at the second end of the prechamber.

Prechamber fluid injection

A reformer system may include a reformer device having a fuel inlet, an air inlet and a gas outlet, a first valve set coupled to the fuel inlet and configured to selectively supply a reformer fuel flow from an engine fuel flow to the fuel inlet, a second valve set coupled to the air inlet and configured to selectively supply a reformer air flow from a compressor outlet air flow to the air inlet, and a controller in electrical communication with the first valve set and the second valve set. The controller may determine a target reformer fuel flow based on a target gas flow, determine a target reformer air flow based on the reformer fuel flow and a target air-to-fuel ratio, adjust the reformer fuel flow according to the target reformer fuel flow, and adjust the reformer air flow according to the target reformer air flow.

Natural gas fuel reformer control for lean burn gas engines

A prechamber assembly for a cylinder of a combustion engine is disclosed in which a plurality of ports placing a prechamber volume in fluid communication with the cylinder. A non-actuated, fixed orifice extends between the prechamber volume and a passageway formed in the prechamber assembly to permit combustion gases in the prechamber volume to enter the passageway. The passageway is configured to vent combustion gases therein out of the body. The orifice may reduce NOx emissions produced in the prechamber volume.

Vented pre-chamber assembly for an engine

A leak detection tool for a double walled fuel rail system is provided. The tool includes a body having a first end and a second end distal with respect to the first end. The tool includes a first passage extending from the first end at least partially towards the second end. The tool includes a second passage axially aligned with and extending from the first passage towards the second end. The tool includes a seat defined at an intersection of the first passage and the second passage. The tool also includes a sealing element provided in association with the seat within the second passage. The tool further includes a spring element provided within the second passage and in contact with the sealing element. The first end is configured to block fluid communication between outer passages of adjacent portions of the double walled fuel rail system.

Leak detection tool

A control system for an engine cylinder having a pre-chamber and a main chamber includes a pressure sensor being provided in the pre-chamber, and a processor coupled to the pressure sensor. The processor is configured to measure pre-chamber pressure using the pressure sensor, determine a peak pre-chamber pressure from the measured pre-chamber pressure, calculate an estimated main chamber pressure corresponding to the peak pre-chamber pressure from at least one cylinder condition at ignition, calculate a pressure ratio of the peak pre-chamber pressure to the estimated main chamber pressure, calculate a fuel parameter for at least one of the pre-chamber and main chamber from the pressure ratio to achieve a desired pressure ratio, and generate a control signal to provide fuel to at least one of the pre-chamber and main chamber in accordance with the fuel parameter.

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West Lafayette, IN, United States of America

Andrew J Loetz