Pulstar Spark Plug Facts
01-05-09, 05:28 PM
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Pulstar Spark Plug Facts
Hi, I am with Enerpulse, the maker of Pulstar pulse plugs. I have seen many here talking about our product and would like to help answer questions about it. For the time being, see the Peer Review below.
PEER REVIEW
Subject: Pulstar™ pulse plugs
Technology: Peaking the current of a spark plug’s discharge by increasing its capacitance.
Claim: Pulse plugs (spark plugs with high power capacitors) increase the peak current during the creation of a large, fast growing flame kernel, which in a spark ignited IC engine improves the combustion process resulting in more work extracted from the same amount of fuel.
Review: Dr. Michael A.V. Ward
Review:
A typical automotive coil stores about 50 mj of energy for delivery into the breakdown spark followed by the arc discharge (~200ma) and ending with the glow discharge (~50ma). The efficiency of these respective phases is 90%, 50% and 30%.
At 50 pF, and 20 Kv breakdown voltage, The pulse plug has a relatively high breakdown spark which delivers approximately 10 mj of energy. The breakdown spark is a low erosion spark, enabling long electrode life even though the current peaks at the order of 1,000 amperes within a period of about 10 nanoseconds.
The peak power of the pulse plug discharge is 10 mj/10 nsecs or approximately 1 Megawatt. This very high power is what makes the pulse plug so effective as compared to regular spark plug. The result of this high power spark is that a shock wave is produced that enhances fuel ignitability. In test conducted in a combustion “bomb” a capacitor-enhanced spark plug extended the lean limit from 21:1ARF to 23:1 AFR.
In conclusion, the efficiency and high current discharge of the Pulstar™ pulse plug has proven to enhance the combustion process.
References:
Maly and Ziegler, C47/83, IMechE 1983, University of Stuttgart, W. Germany.
Knystautas, R. and Lee, J. H, Comb. and Flame, V. 27, pp. 221-228, 1976
Andreev, S. I. and Vanyukov, M. P, Sov. Phys. Tech. Phys., V. 6, No. 8, pp. 700-708, 1962
Sorensen, T. P. and Ristic, V. M., J. Appl. Phys., V. 48, No. 1, pp. 114-117, 1977
Maly, R. and Vogel, M., Seventeenth Symposium (International) on Combustion, pp. 821-831, 1979.
Southwest Research Institute, private communication, 2007
About the Reviewer
Michael A.V. Ward PhD, Harvard University. Currently, President of Combustion Electromagnetics, Inc. Dr. Ward has over twenty patents in the fields of lean burn ignition and engine design, and is extensively published in plasma physics, electromagnetics, ignition and combustion, journals: the Journal of Applied Physics, Combustion and Flame, Journal of Microwave Power, the SAE, and others. Dr. Ward was awarded “Best Paper of the Year” in 1981 by the International Microwave Power Institute for his pioneering work on microwave stimulated combustion. His work has been featured in international magazines including The Economist, Harvard Magazine, Design News, Electronics World, Automotive News, and others.
For those unfamiliar with Pulstar here is fact No. 1:
The science behind Pulstar is well understood and measurable. Where all spark plugs have a peak power of about 50 watts, Pulstar has a peak power of more than 500 watts. When your ignition system calls for a spark it first charges Pulstar’s capacitor and then releases the accumulated power in a powerful spark, which can peak as high as a megawatt in 2 nanoseconds. The rest of the spark duration is the exactly the same as a spark plug.
Here is Pulstar Fact No. 2
The science behind Pulstar™ is call Pulsed Power Technology or PPT, which has its epicenter in Sandia National Laboratories. PPT is the science of accumulating power and then releasing it in an instantaneous pulse. Basically, PPT compresses electrical power to generate exponentially more instantaneous power than the power supplied (see http://www.sandia.gov/pulsedpower
Make sure you check out their “Z Accelerator” and you will understand what compressing power is all about).
Fact No. 3
Some people think that iridium spark plugs have more power than regular copper spark plugs. This is not true. All spark plugs have only 50 watts of peak power and power is what ignites fuel. It is true that iridium spark plugs last longer and have a more stabile spark. But, if you want better ignition you need pulse plugs, which are 10 times more powerful than iridium.
PEER REVIEW
Subject: Pulstar™ pulse plugs
Technology: Peaking the current of a spark plug’s discharge by increasing its capacitance.
Claim: Pulse plugs (spark plugs with high power capacitors) increase the peak current during the creation of a large, fast growing flame kernel, which in a spark ignited IC engine improves the combustion process resulting in more work extracted from the same amount of fuel.
Review: Dr. Michael A.V. Ward
Review:
A typical automotive coil stores about 50 mj of energy for delivery into the breakdown spark followed by the arc discharge (~200ma) and ending with the glow discharge (~50ma). The efficiency of these respective phases is 90%, 50% and 30%.
At 50 pF, and 20 Kv breakdown voltage, The pulse plug has a relatively high breakdown spark which delivers approximately 10 mj of energy. The breakdown spark is a low erosion spark, enabling long electrode life even though the current peaks at the order of 1,000 amperes within a period of about 10 nanoseconds.
The peak power of the pulse plug discharge is 10 mj/10 nsecs or approximately 1 Megawatt. This very high power is what makes the pulse plug so effective as compared to regular spark plug. The result of this high power spark is that a shock wave is produced that enhances fuel ignitability. In test conducted in a combustion “bomb” a capacitor-enhanced spark plug extended the lean limit from 21:1ARF to 23:1 AFR.
In conclusion, the efficiency and high current discharge of the Pulstar™ pulse plug has proven to enhance the combustion process.
References:
Maly and Ziegler, C47/83, IMechE 1983, University of Stuttgart, W. Germany.
Knystautas, R. and Lee, J. H, Comb. and Flame, V. 27, pp. 221-228, 1976
Andreev, S. I. and Vanyukov, M. P, Sov. Phys. Tech. Phys., V. 6, No. 8, pp. 700-708, 1962
Sorensen, T. P. and Ristic, V. M., J. Appl. Phys., V. 48, No. 1, pp. 114-117, 1977
Maly, R. and Vogel, M., Seventeenth Symposium (International) on Combustion, pp. 821-831, 1979.
Southwest Research Institute, private communication, 2007
About the Reviewer
Michael A.V. Ward PhD, Harvard University. Currently, President of Combustion Electromagnetics, Inc. Dr. Ward has over twenty patents in the fields of lean burn ignition and engine design, and is extensively published in plasma physics, electromagnetics, ignition and combustion, journals: the Journal of Applied Physics, Combustion and Flame, Journal of Microwave Power, the SAE, and others. Dr. Ward was awarded “Best Paper of the Year” in 1981 by the International Microwave Power Institute for his pioneering work on microwave stimulated combustion. His work has been featured in international magazines including The Economist, Harvard Magazine, Design News, Electronics World, Automotive News, and others.
For those unfamiliar with Pulstar here is fact No. 1:
The science behind Pulstar is well understood and measurable. Where all spark plugs have a peak power of about 50 watts, Pulstar has a peak power of more than 500 watts. When your ignition system calls for a spark it first charges Pulstar’s capacitor and then releases the accumulated power in a powerful spark, which can peak as high as a megawatt in 2 nanoseconds. The rest of the spark duration is the exactly the same as a spark plug.
Here is Pulstar Fact No. 2
The science behind Pulstar™ is call Pulsed Power Technology or PPT, which has its epicenter in Sandia National Laboratories. PPT is the science of accumulating power and then releasing it in an instantaneous pulse. Basically, PPT compresses electrical power to generate exponentially more instantaneous power than the power supplied (see http://www.sandia.gov/pulsedpower
Make sure you check out their “Z Accelerator” and you will understand what compressing power is all about).
Fact No. 3
Some people think that iridium spark plugs have more power than regular copper spark plugs. This is not true. All spark plugs have only 50 watts of peak power and power is what ignites fuel. It is true that iridium spark plugs last longer and have a more stabile spark. But, if you want better ignition you need pulse plugs, which are 10 times more powerful than iridium.
Last edited by IanS; 01-05-09 at 08:09 PM.
01-05-09, 08:18 PM
#2
I approved this but please dont overstep your bounds. I also merged all 4 of your threads together. Please make sure and read the rules for being a vendor if you decide that you want to start throwing prices around.
This is your nice warning.
Very informative post btw.
This is your nice warning.
Very informative post btw.
01-06-09, 07:50 AM
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I went to the pulstar web site, and I can't even find plugs for any year RX7. Do you make them for RX7s?
http://www.pulstar.com/howtobuy.cfm
http://www.pulstar.com/howtobuy.cfm
01-06-09, 07:54 AM
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Sorry about the posts. I have never experienced the requirement to post 3 times before you can reply to others. I still can't.
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