Time-resolved X-ray radiography of sprays from Engine Combustion Network spray a diesel injectors

A significant hurdle to the understanding of sprays is the link between nozzle geometry and the fluid distribution in the spray. X-ray radiography can help to clarify this link by providing quantitative measurements of the spray density in the near-nozzle region, including at the exit plane. The current work describes x-ray radiography measurements performed at Argonne National Laboratory under the "Spray A" conditions of the Engine Combustion Network. Four injector samples have been studied, and model-dependent reconstructions have been used to generate 3D maps of the average fuel density as a function of time. These measurements reveal differences between the sprays from nominally identical injectors that can be interpreted in terms of previously measured geometric differences in the injector nozzles.