Indian researchers build low-cost solution to enhance engine performance

New Delhi, Sep 13
Researchers at the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), an autonomous research and development centre of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), have developed a low-cost solution that can enhance the performance of engines vehicles.

Called nanosecond laser surface texturing, it helps to increase lubrication of the moving parts within the engine and thus boosts engine performance.

Internal combustion (IC) engines represent the backbone of modern transport, but the friction and wear between moving parts pose a big challenge to their performance. It causes enormous energy loss and, as a result, low fuel economy.

Nanosecond laser surface texturing aims to address this problem, the researchers said.

“This timely approach seeks to enhance tribological performance (lubrication of the moving parts within the engine) in gray cast iron applied to a diversity of critical engine components, which include piston rings and cylinder liners,” said the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Thermal and frictional dissipation consume a significant proportion of the energy supplied to IC engines. The frictional losses for IC engines are nearly 50 per cent in the piston-cylinder system.

Of these, it has been found that 70-80 per cent occur in the piston rings: top compression ring, oil control ring, and second compression ring.

The extent of these losses depends largely on the tribology - the study of friction, wear, and lubrication of the moving parts within the engine, said the team.

Nanosecond lasers with a 100 nanosecond pulse duration and a wavelength of 527 nanometers, can produce high-quality surface textures rather cost-effectively, making it a more practical solution for industrial applications.

In tests conducted under different conditions, the laser-textured surface demonstrated high improvement in reducing friction and raising wear resistance.

The results were not limited to the combustion engine.

“Optimising laser textured surfaces holds immense potential for improving component performance in general from various industries ranging from the automotive industry to manufacturing,” the team noted.