https://ojs.sciltp.com/journals/ijamm <p>The International Journal of Automotive Manufacturing and Materials is the leading journal in its respective field, peer reviewed, and published in Australia. The journal presents new findings and developments in the automotive field as well as related disciplines. Its scope covers the principles, methodologies, theoretical studies, experimental studies, numerical studies, product designs, manufacturing engineering and material engineering topics related to this field.</p> Scilight Press en-US International Journal of Automotive Manufacturing and Materials 2653-777X https://ojs.sciltp.com/journals/ijamm/article/view/1011 <p class="categorytitle"><em>Review</em></p> <h1>A Novel Concept: Utilizing Curtailed Wind and Solar Power for Straw Crushing to Achieve Biomass Energy Storage</h1> <div class="abstract_title"> <p><strong>Xiying Zhou ¹, Bing Hu ¹, Huan Zhang ¹, Yuguang Zhou ², Hongqiong Zhang ³, Quanguo Zhang ⁴, and Zhiping Zhang ^1,*</strong></p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>¹Henan International Joint Laboratory of Biomass Energy and Nanomaterials, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63 Wenhua Road, Zhengzhou 450002, China</p> <p>²College of Engineering, China Agricultural University, No. 17 Qinghua Donglu, Beijing 100083, China</p> <p>³College of Engineering, Northeast Agricultural University, No. 600 Changjiang Street, Xiangfang District, Harbin 150030, China</p> <p>⁴Modern Agricultural Engineering Research Institute, Huanghe S&amp;T University, No.666 Zijingshan South Road, Zhengzhou 450044, China</p> <p>* Correspondence: zhangzhiping715@163.com</p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Received: 30 October 2024; Revised: 20 March 2025; Accepted: 21 March 2025; Published: 2 April 2025</p> </div> <p><strong class="label">Abstract: </strong>With various countries setting strategic goals for peaking carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality, the global demand for clean energy is showing an increasing trend. On the one hand, wind and solar energy, as the two main pillars of renewable energy, are widely promoted due to their clean and low-carbon environmental benefits. However, the intermittency and instability of these two types of energy have become the primary causes of challenges in new energy consumption and grid integration. On the other hand, a large amount of agricultural waste is produced globally each year, and biomass energy has huge potential. However, in our country, agricultural waste cannot be effectively utilized, one of the important reasons is that the transportation of raw materials is difficult, and some power plants opt to pulverize straw before transporting it, but the straw crushing consumes a lot of energy. This article proposes an innovative model: The straw-crushing plant is combined with the wind power station, and the straw is crushed by abandoning wind and light. This collaborative energy storage mode will effectively alleviate the dual problems of new energy consumption and agricultural waste management. This article, through the analysis of relevant data research indicates that provinces represented by Henan, Hebei, and Shandong not only boast abundant straw resources but also lead in total installed wind and solar power capacity. Rough estimates reveal that Henan Province wastes 1.2 billion kWh of wind and solar power annually, while Hebei Province discards 4 billion kWh yearly. This curtailed wind-solar-straw energy storage system can increase renewable energy utilization efficiency by 3–4%. Compared to traditional grid-based crushing methods, it reduces energy costs for straw pretreatment by 30–40% and achieves a 15–20% reduction in carbon emissions over its full lifecycle. This system offers an innovative approach to integrating renewable energy integration with agricultural circular economy development. It holds a certain guiding significance for the field of new energy consumption and storage.</p> Xiying Zhou Bing Hu Huan Zhang Yuguang Zhou Hongqiong Zhang Quanguo Zhang Zhiping Zhang Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 2025-04-02 2025-04-02 1 1 10.53941/ijamm.2025.100007 https://ojs.sciltp.com/journals/ijamm/article/view/1025 <p class="categorytitle"><em>Article</em></p> <h1>Flash-Boiling Spray Dynamics: Ethanol and Gasoline Compared Through X-ray and Schlieren Diagnostics</h1> <div class="abstract_title"> <p><strong>Weidi Huang and Hongliang Luo *</strong></p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>College of Power and Energy Engineering, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin 150001, China</p> <p>* Correspondence: luohl@hrbeu.edu.cn</p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Received: 22 March 2025; Revised: 2 April 2025; Accepted: 7 April 2025; Published: 9 April 2025</p> </div> <p><strong class="label">Abstract: </strong>Flash-boiling sprays in gasoline direct injection (GDI) engines play a pivotal role in achieving efficient fuel-air mixing, yet their dynamics under superheated conditions remain poorly understood, particularly for multi-component fuels. This study bridges this gap by employing advanced X-ray phase-contrast imaging (XPCI) and schlieren techniques to investigate ethanol and gasoline sprays, offering unprecedented insights into near-nozzle and downstream behaviors. The work reveals that ethanol’s distinct single-component properties trigger unambiguous flash-boiling phenomena (e.g., plume merging, upward curling), while gasoline’s complex composition suppresses homogeneous phase change, challenging conventional flash-boiling frameworks. XPCI captures persistent liquid cores near the nozzle exit under superheating—a critical yet overlooked feature—highlighting the interplay between inertial forces and vaporization kinetics. The study further demonstrates how flash boiling redistributes spray momentum, enhancing radial dispersion while reducing axial penetration, with implications for mitigating tip wetting and wall impingement. By correlating droplet size, velocity profiles, and phase-change dynamics, this research not only advances and refines the fundamental understanding of flash-boiling atomization but also provides actionable insights for optimizing combustion efficiency and reducing emissions in next-generation GDI engines.</p> Weidi Huang Hongliang Luo Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 2025-04-09 2025-04-09 2 2 10.53941/ijamm.2025.100008 https://ojs.sciltp.com/journals/ijamm/article/view/2504000565 <p class="categorytitle"><em>Article</em></p> <h1>Experimental Study on the Deflagration to Detonation Transition of Hydrogen Mixture under Elevated Pressure and Temperature Conditions</h1> <div class="abstract_title"> <p><strong>Xiao Yu, Long Jin, Linyan Wang, Navjot Sandhu, and Ming Zheng *</strong></p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Department of Mechanical, Automotive and Materials Engineering, University of Windsor, 401 Sunset Avenue, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada</p> <p>* Correspondence: mzheng@uwindsor.ca</p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Received: 26 March 2025; Revised: 7 April 2025; Accepted: 14 April 2025; Published: 24 April 2025</p> </div> <p><strong class="label">Abstract: </strong>In this paper, the deflagration to detonation transition (DDT) process of a hydrogen-air mixture is investigated using a small tube with an inner diameter of 11.1 mm. A rapid compression machine (RCM) is utilized to compress the mixture, attaining high pressure and temperature to resemble engine applications. Both piezoelectric pressure transducers and ion sensors are used to detect the flame front, calculating the flame propagation speed. The background absolute pressure before DDT is adjusted from 20 kPa to 810 kPa via a combination of charging pressure and RCM compression, while the background temperature is adjusted from 296 K to 460 K with spark timing adjustment after the compression process of RCM. It is observed that background pressure is an important parameter that decides the existence of a successful DDT process, while background temperature offers a limited contribution to accelerating the flame speed within 1 m tube length.</p> Xiao Yu Long Jin Linyan Wang Navjot Sandhu Ming Zheng Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 2025-04-24 2025-04-24 3 3 10.53941/ijamm.2025.100009 https://ojs.sciltp.com/journals/ijamm/article/view/2504000589 <p class="categorytitle"><em>Article</em></p> <h1>Research on Electrical Boost Technology for Medium-Duty Diesel Engines</h1> <div class="abstract_title"> <p><strong>Yong Yin *, Jiao Mi, Yanting Zhao, and Zihao Liu</strong></p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle Technical Center, Wuhan 430056, China</p> <p>* Correspondence: yinyong@dfcv.com.cn</p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Received: 28 August 2024; Revised: 15 December 2024; Accepted: 25 April 2025; Published: 30 April 2025</p> </div> <p><strong class="label">Abstract: </strong>To meet the increasingly stringent fuel consumption standards and reach the internationally advanced carbon emission levels, the electrification of diesel engine accessories is an important technological approach for energy conservation and emission reduction. Compared with the turbocharging system of traditional diesel engines, the electric boosting system can further improve the charging efficiency of diesel engines and enhance the low-speed torque, transient response, etc. Based on the one-dimensional engine performance simulation software, this paper respectively studies the influence of the electric boosting system on the overall performance of a mass-produced medium-sized diesel engine platform and the corresponding hybrid platform. Firstly, the influence of different layout forms of the electrical boost on the engine performance is studied based on the diesel engine platform. The results show that the series layout form is superior to the parallel one. When the electrical boost is arranged in series at the front, the low-speed torque is increased by 13%, the intake air volume is increased by 44%, and the brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC) is improved by 12%. When arranged in series at the rear, the torque is increased by 11%, the intake air volume is increased by 37%, and the BSFC is improved by 11%. However, considering that if the power consumption of the electrical boost’s motor is sourced from the engine, the BSFC will deteriorate. With the expansion of future diesel engine electrification technologies, the motor can use the electric energy generated by brake power recovery and waste heat recovery. Therefore, the effect of applying the electrical boost in the hybrid vehicle platform is studied. The results show that when the hybrid engine can achieve the same power and torque targets, the series-rear layout form is superior to the series-front one. The specific fuel consumption can be optimized by up to 11%. The rear layout requires the addition of an intercooler, which will lead to an increase in cost. In conclusion, the electric boosting system based on the hybrid platform not only has the advantages of fast dynamic response and solving the turbo lag problem, but also can enhance the vehicle’s power performance and fuel economy to a greater extent by optimizing the matching of the turbocharger and the electric boosting system. The electric boosting system based on medium-sized engines has a more promising commercialization prospect.</p> Yong Yin Jiao Mi Yanting Zhao Zihao Liu Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 2025-04-30 2025-04-30 4 4 10.53941/ijamm.2025.100010 https://ojs.sciltp.com/journals/ijamm/article/view/2504000591 <p class="categorytitle"><em>Article</em></p> <h1>Characterization of Rate of Injection for Low Carbon Fuels in the Common-Rail Direct Injection System</h1> <div class="abstract_title"> <p><strong>Simon LeBlanc, Binghao Cong, Xiao Yu, and Ming Zheng *</strong></p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Department of Mechanical, Automotive and Materials Engineering, University of Windsor, 401 Sunset Avenue, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada</p> <p>* Correspondence: mzheng@uwindsor.ca</p> </div> <div class="abstract_top"> <p>Received: 26 March 2025; Revised: 8 April 2025; Accepted: 25 April 2025; Published: 30 April 2025</p> </div> <p><strong class="label">Abstract: </strong>Internal combustion engines (ICEs) powered by liquid fuels remain the dominant powertrain system for heavy-duty road transportation, benefiting from the high energy density, ease of storage and transportation, and relatively low refueling pressure of traditional liquid hydrogen carbon fuel. However, concerns over tailpipe emissions and greenhouse gas (GHG) effects have driven the search for alternative fuels with lower carbon footprints. ICEs offer a key advantage during this transition, as they can operate on a variety of fuels, enabling a flexible approach to reducing harmful emissions and GHG while maintaining reliable power output. Alternative liquid fuels, such as dimethyl ether (DME), have shown great potential in mitigating environmental impacts while ensuring sufficient engine performance. However, the significantly different physical and chemical properties of renewable fuels necessitate the adoption of tailored combustion strategies to ensure optimal engine operation. In particular, the fuel injection strategy plays a pivotal role in governing the combustion process, as it directly influences fuel-air mixing, ignition characteristics, and hence, the combustion efficiency. Therefore, detailed characterization of the fuel injection process (rate of injection (ROI) profiles, injection delay, and injection quantities) is necessary for research and development of advanced combustion strategies. In this study, the ROI profiles for diesel, DME and polyoxymethylene dimethyl ethers (OME3) were measured using the Bosch long tube method, with diesel severed as the reference fuel. Comparative tests were conducted under varying injection pressures (300 bar to 900 bar) and injection durations (0.3 ms to 3 ms) to investigate the influence of fuel properties on ROI profiles. The results revealed that all three fuels exhibited comparable ROI at injection durations below 700 µs. However, at longer injection durations and higher pressures, significant differences emerged. At a 3 ms injection duration, DME consistently showed the lowest steady-state ROI, while OME3 exhibited the highest across all injection pressures. Furthermore, the discharge coefficient (Cd) increased with injection pressure and converged across three fuels at higher pressures. This indicated that, under those conditions, fuel density became the dominant factor influencing ROI, hence the injection quantities.</p> Simon LeBlanc Binghao Cong Xiao Yu Ming Zheng Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 2025-04-30 2025-04-30 5 5 10.53941/ijamm.2025.100011 https://ojs.sciltp.com/journals/ijamm/article/view/2505000671 <p>A crack occurred at the inlet pipe of a diesel engine supercharger during its operation, accompanied by an oil leakage phenomenon. This paper conducts an in-depth study on the cracking characteristics of the supercharger inlet pipe and its root causes from multiple aspects, including fracture analysis, simulation analysis, parts production process investigation, on-site assembly confirmation, and whole-machine modal measurement. Judging from the fracture morphology, the fundamental cause of the fracture is that the assembly displacement is excessive, and the installation stress generated thereby exceeds the design limit. As a result, stress concentration occurs at the fracture, leading to fatigue fracture during long-term repeated vibrations.</p> Chuanlong Yin Chaoqun Dai Wenjuan Li Guoqiang Yu Jifeng Deng Copyright (c) 2025 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 2025-05-21 2025-05-21 6 6 10.53941/ijamm.2025.100012