Ceramic materials as an alternative for conventional spark plug electrodes

Walter Stefan Harrer, Manuel Gruber, Verena Melcher, Anton Tilz, Michael Engelmayer, Andreas Wimmer, Raul Bermejo

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftArtikelForschungBegutachtung

Abstract

Large gas engines are typically applied to compensate for peak loads and grid instabilities in the electric power supply. A key component of these engines is the spark plug. Because of the harsh conditions encountered in their use, the spark plug electrodes are subject to significant wear. Conventional electrodes are expensive due to the precious metal alloys they contain. As an alternative, ceramic materials from the groups of silicide, carbides, and nitrides were selected for preliminary experiments that investigate functional as well as mechanical properties and wear behavior. Because of the harsh conditions during operation, the new materials must have a high melting temperature, good thermal shock resistance, high thermal conductivity, and high corrosion/oxidation resistance as well as high density. It was found that the mechanical and thermomechanical properties of certain ceramic candidates are sufficient for application as spark plug electrodes. Furthermore, the chosen ceramic materials achieve an adequate performance in terms of secondary voltage trace and ignition behavior. However, wear resistance may not be sufficient for service times longer than the service time of existing spark plugs and further research is still necessary before ceramic electrodes may be established as a commercial alternative to existing electrodes.
OriginalspracheEnglisch
Seiten (von - bis)4393-4403
FachzeitschriftInternational journal of applied ceramic technology
Jahrgang2024
Ausgabenummer??? Stand: 30. September 2024
DOIs
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 2024

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Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s). International Journal of Applied Ceramic Technology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Ceramics Society.

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