CRDI (COMMON RAIL DIRECT INJECTION) and its history

CRDi stands for Common Rail Direct Injection meaning, direct injection of the fuel into the cylinders of a diesel engine via a single, common line, called the common rail which is connected to all the fuel injectors.

Whereas ordinary diesel direct fuel-injection systems have to build up pressure anew for each and every injection cycle, the new common rail (line) engines maintain constant pressure regardless of the injection sequence. This pressure then remains permanently available throughout the fuel line. The engine’s electronic timing regulates injection pressure according to engine speed and load. The electronic control unit (ECU) modifies injection pressure precisely and as needed, based on data obtained from sensors on the cam and crankshafts. In other words, compression and injection occur independently of each other. This technique allows fuel to be injected as needed, saving fuel and lowering emissions.

More accurately measured and timed mixture spray in the combustion chamber significantly reducing unburned fuel gives CRDi the potential to meet future emission guidelines. CRDi engines are now being used in almost all Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Hyundai, Ford and many other diesel automobiles.

History

The common rail system prototype was developed in the late 1960s by Robert Huber of Switzerland and the technology further developed by Dr. Marco Ganser at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, later of Ganser-Hydromag AG (est.1995) in Oberägeri.

The first successful usage in a production vehicle began in Japan by the mid-1990s. Dr. Shohei Itoh and Masahiko Miyaki of the Denso Corporation, a Japanese automotive parts manufacturer, developed the common rail fuel system for heavy duty vehicles and turned it into practical use on their ECD-U2 common-rail system mounted on the Hino Ranger truck and sold for general use in 1995.[3] Denso claims the first commercial high pressure common rail system in 1995.[4]

Modern common rail systems, whilst working on the same principle, are governed by an engine control unit (ECU) which opens each injector electrically rather than mechanically. This was extensively prototyped in the 1990s with collaboration between MagnetiMarelli, Centro Ricerche Fiat and Elasis. After research and development by the Fiat Group, the design was acquired by the German company Robert Bosch GmbH for completion of development and refinement for mass-production. In hindsight, the sale appeared to be a strategic error for Fiat, as the new technology proved to be highly profitable. The company had little choice but to sell Bosch a licence, as it was in a poor financial state at the time and lacked the resources to complete development on its own.[5] In 1997 they extended its use for passenger cars. The first passenger car that used the common rail system was the 1997 model Alfa Romeo 156 2.4 JTD,[6] and later on that same year Mercedes-Benz introduced it in their W202 model.

Common rail engines have been used in marine and locomotive applications for some time. The Cooper-Bessemer GN-8 (circa 1942) is an example of a hydraulically operated common rail diesel engine, also known as a modified common rail.