ICE ceramic coatings

TAR tratke at gpu.srv.ualberta.ca
Tue Mar 19 04:01:35 GMT 1996


On Tue, 19 Mar 1996, Stephen Lamb wrote:

> ......... although engine builders have been experimenting
> with ceramics for a number of years now - I believe some diesel engines now
> use pistons 'crowned' with a ceramic barrier.

Stephen, 

You are absolutely correct, This technology is being used in large
displacement diesel engines normally found in Natural Gas tranmission
facilities.  I believe a number of manufacturers are toying with the
concept for commercial applications. There are a number of definate
advantages to using a ceramic barrier on piston crowns and cylinder heads. 
Ceramic coating technology is a fairly new field of application for both
diesel and propane powered vehicles.  In fact, the most common coating
material I've heard being used is a Zirconium-Oxide blend.  In deisel
engines, the result of ceramic coatings is lower emissions (especially
during throttle transitions) and improved engine efficiency. However, the
materials engineers still have problems getting an even coating and have
an even harder time preventing cracks in the coatings. 

The distinct advantage in propane powered vehicles comes not from the
lowered emmissions, but rather from the insulating properties of
Zirconium-Oxide.  Propane tends to burn a lot hotter than gasoline
engines, furthermore many people run higher compression ratios to gain
some of the horsepower lost from a propane conversion.  This usually
results in decreased engine life.  By using a ceramic coating, the heat
normally transferred out the piston top and cylinder head is greatly
reduced resulting in cooler oil and coolant temperatures.  An added bonus
is increased engine efficiency and a cleaner tail-pipe. 

One project I have on the go right now is a propane conversion on a 1996
Chrysler minivan. It is a competition among major universities accross
North America sponsored in part by the SAE, called the LPGV challenge
(Liquified Petroleum Gas Vehicle).  One of the fuel systems we are working
on is direct liquid propane injection and ceramic coated pistons and
cylinder heads.  Should prove to be an interesting project.  PS: if any of
you have tried this before, I would appreciate any information you could
give me, we are all novices with direct injection and would sure like some
insight into some solutions for this most difficult engineering problem. 

Thanks a million gang,

Todd Ratke,
tratke at gpu.srv.ualberta.ca



More information about the Diy_efi mailing list