Glow2D Federal Mogul Ignition s.r.l.

R. Rossi

L. Formaggia

C. Ferrari

S. Micheletti, B. Savini, L. Valentino, A. Veneziani

February 2003

November 2003

progetti/federal_mogul

2D Mathematical modeling and numerical simulation of a glow-plug

With new technology, diesel engines are now competing on equal terms with the performance on their gasolinefuell counterparts, while meeting ever stricter emission control legislation. For this purpose, glow plugs have been designed for these new breeds of diesel engines, smoother, cleaner and more powerful than their predecessors. Basic glow plug design In its simplest form, a glow plug is a heating element of known resistance introduced into either the prechamber or the combustion chamber, so that the element comes into contact with the fuelair mixture. When the plug receives a current from the electrical system, the element heats up. As the initial charges of fuel pumped into a cold engine by the fuel injection system comes into contact with the glow plug, the temperature of the mixture is increased, enabling even a cold engine to achieve compression ignition. Single coil glow plug design delivers longlife cold starting performance. These glow plugs achieve a warmup time of 20-30 seconds, and are valued in applications where durability is paramount. Twin coil glow plug The twin coil design features two coils with different electrical properties, a heating coil in the tip, a regulating coil of variable resistance in the body of the sheath. The resistance characteristics of this coil control the temperature rise to give fastest possible warm up times. The heating coil heats rapidly for fast starting in cold conditions and maintains high temperature after engine starts for reduced emissions.