Federal-Mogul Says Piston Ring Boosts Fuel Economy, Cuts Emissions and Oil Use
By Scott Doggett August 19, 2010
Federal-Mogul Corp. today announced the availability of its two-piece patented LKZ oil ring design for direct-injection gasoline engines that the company says improves fuel economy, reduces carbon tailpipe emissions and increases the amount of time between oil changes.
The company says the oil ring - also known as piston ring, which is an open-ended ring that fits into a groove on the outer diameter of a piston in an internal combustion engine or steam engine - reduces oil consumption by up to 50 percent and friction by up to 15 percent, compared to the best conventional two-piece oil rings.
This innovation and ones like it that improve the fuel efficiency of internal combustion engines are a big deal when you consider the fact that despite all the recent talk about electric-drive vehicles, the vast majority of vehicles 10 years from now are likely to be powered by conventional petrol-powered engines.
Federal-Mogul Senior Vice President Rainer Jueckstock said in a statement today that there are "very few technologies that provide such an easily implemented improvement in fuel economy and emissions reduction as LKZ rings."
Typical piston rings apply equal pressure to the cylinder bore on the downstroke, toward the crankcase, and on the upstroke, toward the combustion chamber. The LKZ ring combines a stepped surface and taper on its contacting edge, which provides a well-defined pressure to the cylinder wall on the down-stroke and a significantly lesser effect on the upstroke, the company said.
The down-stroke pressure more effectively returns the oil that lubricates the cylinder to the oil pan, as opposed to allowing oil to enter the combustion chamber, where it may create carbon on the spark plug or on the cylinder head and increase oil consumption.
The LKZ ring is so effective in pulling oil away from the combustion chamber and in reducing oil consumption that the company claims it was able to improve ring tension and reduce friction.
"Reduced ring friction requires less energy, which means better fuel economy and less CO2 emissions," said Johannes Esser, Federal-Mogul's director of engineering, rings and liners.
He said the LKZ ring, unlike conventional oil rings, also provides consistent low oil consumption over the life of the engine by reducing carbon build-up on critical parts of the piston, such as just above the compression ring.
Carbon build-up on the piston can lead to cylinder liner damage and increased oil consumption.
LEAVE A COMMENT