Simulation of Liquid Film Spreading on Tip of Spray Injector

The behaviors of fuel films adhering to the tip of a fuel injector for automotive gasoline direct-injection engines was simulated by the computational fluid dynamics. Liquid film adhering to the tip of the fuel injector is a source of carbon deposits; the film spreads on the surfaces of the tip and remains there under certain wetting conditions. The deposit build-up can clog the injector nozzles, which can alter the spray pattern, furthermore, deposits on the tips of injectors are a source of particulate matter (PM) discharged from the engine. In order to prevent air pollution, it is essential to develop a technology to reduce PM. The spread of fuel adhering to the tip of a fuel injector was simulated using the moving particle semi-implicit method, and a previously developed particle/grid hybrid method was used to study the effects of spray plumes. The simulated distribution of the film qualitatively agreed with the measured distribution of carbon deposits. Fuel film formed on the concave and convex wall surfaces. The fuel film and carbon deposits were unevenly distributed in the air flow direction. Investigation of the behaviors of floating droplets around the tip between fuel injections revealed that the droplets were pulled toward the tip wall due to a reverse air flow generated by the fuel plumes ejected by the injector nozzles. These droplets then merged as a part of the fuel film, which spread toward the injection nozzles due to the air flow directed at the nozzles. Some of the film was sucked into the spray plumes and then re-injected into the air region again. The simulated fuel film behaviors on the tip qualitatively agreed with the measured ones. Furthermore, the simulation showed that optimizing the surface shape of the fuel injector tip, particularly the concave portion, is important for reducing particulate matter.