Motor Vehicle Manufacturing Technology (September 1995)

Flow-Control Machining

Sponsor: Extrude Hone Corporation

• Project Performance Period: 9/15/1995 - 9/14/1999
• Total project (est.): $7,933,524.00
• Requested ATP funds: $3,909,280.00

In internal combustion engines, air is ingested and compressed into cavities where it mixes with fuel to establish more or less ideal conditions for combustion. The hollow passages that control the volume of air ingested as well as the combustion chamber cavities that determine the level of compression of that air at the point of ignition have a lot to do with performance, fuel efficiency, and emissions of automotive engines. Because the geometries of these cavities and passages are too complex to be machined at acceptable costs, they typically are cast, usually in aluminum. The resulting cavities and passages vary in shape and position, and their surfaces are rough and irregular, which is to say less than ideal. Extrude Hone Corporation, Ford Motor Company (Dearborn, MI), and General Motors Corporation (Pontiac, MI) jointly propose to develop a non-traditional finishing technique in which an abrasive fluid is passed through the cavity to fine tune the shapes and surfaces of engine cavities and passages. This capability will lead to high precision, conveniently adjustable flow capacities and combustion chamber volumes. In turn, these abilities ought to yield higher performance, more fuel efficient and cleaner burning engines that can be built at lower cost and in smaller production volumes than is currently possible. The central challenge of the project is to develop a thorough understanding of the relationship between the machining process and the performance of the resulting engine passage or cavity. From this will come process and performance models that will guide the machining process as it occurs. Besides engine applications, the technology would be applicable for the manufacture of hydraulic pumps and valves, medication delivery systems, aircraft turbine engines, and even rocket engine fuel orifices.

For project information:

Lawrence J. Rhoades, (412) 863-5970

Active Project Participants

• Ford Motor Company, Scientific Research Labs (Dearborn, MI)
  [Original, Active Member]
  
• General Motors Corporation, Powertrain Division (Pontiac, MI)
  [Original, Active Member]
  
• University of Nebraska at Lincoln (Lincoln, NE)
  [Original, Active Member]
  
• University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA)
  [Original, Active Member]
  

ATP Project Manager

Jack Boudreaux, (301) 975-3560
jack.boudreaux@nist.gov