Laser-Induced Fluorescence Fires Up Engine Research

Eli Margolith, OPOTEK; Yoshihiro Deguchi and Hiroyuki Nishida, Mitsubishi Jeavy Industries; and Ronald K. Hanson, Stanford University

As the world's sensitivity to environmental pollution increases, it is becoming increasingly important to understanding the overall nature of combustion. They key to this knowledge is precise and detailed measurement of the temperature, distribution and concentration of combustion products, including carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, oxygen, total hydrocarbons and oxides of nitrogen.
Planar laser-induced fluorescence is an excellent diagnostic technique for measuring species concentration because its strong signal intensity allows detection and accurate measurement of combustion product at the ppm level with high spatial and temporal resolution. Researchers in the US and Japan are using this techology to create next-generation engines that will burn cleaner and more efficiently. This article is accompanies by one sidebar:

New Device Simplifies Injection Seeding
The key to accomplishing this laser-induced fluorescence is a novel device that simplifies injection seeding, which is a technique that creates a compact, easy-to-align optical parametric oscillator with high tuning resolution.