This rotation I have taken on the responsibility of developing the transient control of a hydrogen-fuelled internal combustion engine. Alongside colleagues we have developed the strategy from first principles to use a differential-pressure sensor over mass airflow meter (MAF) for the added benefits of lower cost, efficient engine packaging and lower MAF sensor drift. I have thoroughly enjoyed testing our control in a model-in-the-loop Simulink environment then debugging and tuning the response. I have also taken a novel design of experiments (DoE) approach to base calibration using a 1-D model of the engine, derived from steady-state test results, to optimise the air path for maximum brake thermal efficiency then minimum NOx emissions. I am looking forward to calibrating the combustion control elements with a physical DoE from the steady-state results and then optimising these base calibrations over a range of drive cycles.

This rotation I developed my skills as a Test Automation engineer, utilising the Horiba STARS software platform to program logic for our mechanical systems and facilitate testing. I cooperated with the test engineers at Ricardo to understand the bespoke requirements of each testbed and unit under test. I quickly developed my skills and took on many projects such as testing a large single-cylinder marine engine, on-highway multi-cylinder engines, off-highway electric motors and the sHYpS hydrogen fuel cell. Each of these incurred its own challenges such as writing boost control logic, oil pressure control logic, creating gas stream selection systems and much more. I overcame many of these challenges in a small team under high time pressure through iterative design and simulation. I believe I have developed a fantastic understanding of test equipment, test procedures and programming (not exclusively in STARS) over these months. It has also been a fantastic opportunity to expand my internal combustion engine knowledge and experience their testing firsthand.