Experimental Investigation of Oil Accumulation in Second Land of Internal Combustion Engines

Abstract

Blowback of engine oil suspended in combustion gases, when the gas flows from the piston second land back into the combustion chamber, is believed to contribute to oil consumption and hydrocarbon emissions in internal combustion engines. Oil accumulation in the region between top and second compression rings is a factor that influences this phenomenon. The effects of individual parameters, such as oil film thickness and viscosity, however, have still not been understood. The present study was aimed at constructing an experimental setup to study the effect of oil film thickness on oil accumulation in the second land of internal combustion engines. Due to the inherent difficulties of experimentation on production engines, a modeled piston-cylinder assembly was constructed. Total oil accumulation in the modeled second land after a single piston stroke was measured and compared to oil consumption in operating engines.