Sensor for Injection Rate Measurements

Abstract: A vast majority of the medium and high speed Diesel engines are equipped withmulti-hole injection nozzles nowadays. Inaccuracies in workmanship and changinghydraulic conditions in the nozzles result in differences in injection rates between individualinjection nozzle holes. The new deformational measuring method described in the paperallows injection rate measurement in each injection nozzle hole. The differences in injectionrates lead to uneven thermal loads of Diesel engine combustion chambers. All today knownmeasuring method, such as Bosch and Zeuch give accurate results of the injection rate indiesel single-hole nozzles. With multihole nozzles they tell us nothing about possibledifferences in injection rates between individual holes of the nozzle. At deformationalmeasuring method, the criterion of the injected fuel is expressed by the deformation ofmembrane occurring due to the collision of the pressure wave against the membrane. Thepressure wave is generated by the injection of the fuel into the measuring space. For eachhole of the nozzle the measuring device must have a measuring space of its own into whichfuel is injected as well as its measuring membrane and its own fuel outlet. Duringmeasurements procedure the measuring space must be filled with fuel to maintain anoverpressure of 5 kPa. Fuel escaping from the measuring device is conducted into thegraduated cylinders for measuring the volumetric flow through each hole of the nozzle.Themembrane deformation is assessed by strain gauges. They are glued to the membrane andforming the full Wheatstone’s bridge. We devoted special attention to the membrane shapeand temperature compensation of the strain gauges.