Evaluation of zero-dimensional stochastic reactor modelling for a Diesel engine application

Prediction of engine-out emissions with high fidelity from in-cylinder combustion simulations is still a significant challenge early in the engine development process. This article contributes to this fast evolving body of knowledge by focusing on the evaluation of NOx emission prediction capability of a probability density function–based stochastic reactor engine models for a Diesel engine. The research implements a systematic approach to the study of the stochastic reactor engine model performance, underpinned by a detailed space-filling design of experiments (DoE)-based sensitivity analysis of both external and internal parameters, evaluating their effects on the accuracy in matching physical measurements of both in-cylinder conditions and NOx output. The approach proposed in this article introduces an automatic stochastic reactor engine model calibration methodology across the engine operating envelope, based on a multi-objective optimization approach. This aims to exploit opportunities for internal stochastic reactor engine model parameters tuning to achieve good overall modelling performance as a trade-off between physical in-cylinder measurements accuracy and the output NOx emission predictions error. The results from the case study provide a valuable insight into the effectiveness of the stochastic reactor engine model, showing good capability for NOx emissions prediction and trends, while pointing out the critical sensitivity to the external input parameters and modelling conditions.