Fluid flow through porous material is relevant in different fields of engineering, such as in engine and vehicle development, and can be supported through CFD simulation. Numerical simulations at the pore-scale can be used to replace or reduce expensive laboratory measurements. These methods offer a valuable opportunity to connect the pore-scale properties of the porous material with displacement processes on the continuum-scale. Furthermore, they allow researchers to specify crucial flow properties, e.g., capillary pressure, which are crucial for REV-scale research. Three main methods, direct numerical, pore network modeling, and hybrid approaches, are widely used in order to analyze the pore-scale mechanics of fluid flow behavior through porous materials with CFD simulations. The present comprehensive review demonstrates and highlights the significant advantages, disadvantages, and critical challenges in the pore-scale fluid flow simulations. The main challenges include the characterization of material properties, and up-scaling process from pore to continuum or field-scale.
To date, huge amounts of money have been invested in the development of internal combustion engines to reach the current level of technology. High specific power and good thermal efficiency have been achieved, thanks to which, internal combustion engines are now widely used. However, the driving force behind the developments is no longer the high performance, but the compliance with strict emission standards. Future emissions regulation, namely Euro 7, will be challenging for engine and vehicle manufacturers. One possible technical solution may be to use a stoichiometric air-fuel mixture on the entire engine map to meet the requirements of the Euro 7 emission standard. This article analyzes the change in Euro regulations in the light of Euro 7, as well as the theoretical background of the λ = 1 operation. Several technical possibilities to achieve the stoichiometric ratio, such as e.g. water injection or variable compression ratio are presented.