Turbocharged Engine Cooling Circuit Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
The acceleration response of vehicles equipped with turbocharged engines is not adequately improved by existing cooling systems, as they fail to effectively manage coolant flow rates and temperatures during engine acceleration, leading to inefficiencies in turbocharging and exhaust energy suppression.
Innovation Solution
A cooling apparatus with a high-temperature-side and low-temperature-side cooling circuit, where the electronic control unit adjusts the flow rate of high-temperature coolant around the exhaust port and increases the flow rate of low-temperature coolant to enhance cooling performance, sharing cooling resources to improve turbocharging pressure and intake air amount, and advances ignition timing for optimal engine response.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If coolant flows around the exhaust port to cool the engine, then the engine temperature is controlled, but the exhaust gas temperature decreases leading to reduced turbocharging efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling circuit is divided into a first cooling circuit that supplies coolant to the exhaust port area and a second cooling circuit that supplies coolant to other engine parts. This segmentation allows independent control of coolant flow to different regions, enabling exhaust gas temperature maintenance while ensuring overall engine cooling effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the flow rate of coolant in the first cooling circuit based on engine operating conditions. During acceleration, the flow rate is reduced to maintain exhaust temperature and turbocharging efficiency, while during normal operation, the flow rate is increased to ensure engine cooling. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction between maintaining exhaust temperature and ensuring engine cooling.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a single cooling circuit is used, then the system is simple, but it cannot simultaneously optimize engine cooling and turbocharging efficiency under varying operating conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into multiple circuits with independent flow control, enabling the system to adapt to different operating conditions. The first cooling circuit targets the exhaust port area while the second cooling circuit serves other engine parts, providing specialized cooling where needed and improving overall system adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling system is designed to perform multiple functions through its dual-circuit architecture. It can selectively cool different engine regions based on operational requirements, providing both engine temperature control and exhaust gas temperature management capabilities within a single integrated system.
3Speed
If coolant flow rate around the exhaust port is increased, then engine cooling is improved, but exhaust energy is reduced and acceleration response deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts coolant flow rate in the first cooling circuit based on detected acceleration conditions. During acceleration, the flow rate is reduced to maintain exhaust gas temperature and energy, improving turbocharging response and acceleration performance. The system monitors engine operating parameters and modifies coolant flow accordingly, resolving the contradiction between acceleration response and thermal management.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling system operates in different modes depending on the operating phase. During acceleration phases, the first cooling circuit flow is reduced, while during normal cruising or high-load phases, the flow is increased to enhance cooling. This periodic adjustment of cooling intensity based on operational phases optimizes both acceleration response and thermal management.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution effectively suppresses the decrease in exhaust temperature, increases turbocharging pressure, and enhances acceleration response by allocating cooling performance margins from the high-temperature circuit to the low-temperature circuit, improving engine torque and thermal efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
The high-temperature-side cooling portion and the low-temperature-side cooling portion are shared at least in part
Data Source
AI summary
In a cooling apparatus including a high-temperature-side radiator in a high-temperature-side cooling circuit supplying a high-temperature coolant to a cylinder head, a low-temperature-side radiator in a low-temperature-side cooling circuit supplying a low-temperature coolant to an intercooler, and an electronic control unit, the high-temperature-side cooling circuit includes a first coolant passage where the high-temperature coolant flows around an exhaust port, a second coolant passage where the high-temperature coolant flows through the cylinder head without flowing around the exhaust port, and a flow rate adjustment valve adjusting a flow rate of the high-temperature coolant flowing through the first coolant passage. The electronic control unit executes a response improvement process for controlling the flow rate adjustment valve to reduce the flow rate of the high-temperature coolant flowing through the first coolant passage, and for controlling the low-temperature-side pump to increase a flow rate of the low-temperature coolant circulating through the low-temperature-side cooling circuit.