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Investigation of Variable Displacement Oil Pump and Its Influence On Fuel Economy For A 1.5 L 3 Cylinder Diesel Engine
Investigation of Variable Displacement Oil Pump and Its Influence On Fuel Economy For A 1.5 L 3 Cylinder Diesel Engine
Citation: Sithick basha, A., Vinaya Murthy, V., Rengaraj, C., Dharan R, B. et al., “Investigation Of Variable Displacement Oil Pump and Its
Influence on Fuel Economy for a 1.5 L, 3 Cylinder Diesel Engine,” SAE Technical Paper 2023-01-0465, 2023, doi:10.4271/2023-01-0465.
Abstract
be addressed as VDOP) that was adapted to a 1.5-liter 3
T
he Introduction of Corporate Average Fuel Economy Cylinder Diesel Engine. This approach helps the system to
(henceforth will be addressed as CAFE) regulations reduce parasitic losses as the oil flow is regulated based on the
demand suitable technological upgrades to meet the mechanical needs of the engine. The flow is regulated with
significant increase in targets of vehicle fleet fuel economy. help of a solenoid valve which receives input from the ECU.
Engine Downsizing and Friction Reduction measures help in The engine Oil Pump has a major role in enabling the transfer
getting one step closer to the target. In a Conventional Oil of lubricant to all moving engine components. The demand
Pump, the pump discharge flow and pressure are a direct majorly depends on engine performance characteristics,
function of operating speed. There is no control over lubricant bearing clearances, operating temperatures, and wear
flow which results in increased power and fuel consumption behavior of engine components. The paper explains the
due to its unnecessary pumping characteristics irrespective boundary conditions for VDOP design packaging, challenges
of the actual engine demand. This paper discusses the intro- in system adaptation, impact on engine lubrication circuit,
duction of a variable displacement oil pump (henceforth will performance, and friction reduction benefit.
1. Introduction
The function of the oil pump in an IC engine is to lubri-
I
mproving the fuel economy of the internal combustion cate and cool all the rotating or moving components.
engine has become the need of the hour in the current Conventionally constant displacement or single-stage oil
situation. With the introduction of the government norms pump will be used for the engine focused for this study. The
like BS6.2 to control emissions and CAFE to reduce vehicle various oil consumers of the engine need the oil at certain
fuel consumption, automakers must implement new technolo- minimum oil pressure at all engine operating conditions to
gies to optimize fuel consumption. The variable displacement ensure the safety of the engine. In the existing oil pump
oil pump is one of the few technologies globally used for discharge flow rate and pressure is a direct function of the
improving the fuel economy of the IC engine. This paper engine rpm and oil temperature. Having no additional control
focuses on adapting the variable displacement oil pump in a over the pump discharge pressure, the oil pump supplies with
1.5-liter 3-cylinder diesel engine. higher oil pressure than the requirement at higher engine rpm
and lower oil temperature conditions. This excess oil pressure
TABLE 1 Engine specifications leads to the increased power consumption of the oil pump
and impacts the overall engine fuel consumption.
Engine displacement 1493 CC With the introduction of the variable displacement oil
volume
pump, the pump discharge pressure can be controlled using a
Bore x stroke 83 x 92 mm solenoid valve. The engine oil pressure requirement can be esti-
Number of cylinders 3 inline mated by calculating the requirements of individual oil
Max. Power & Torque 100 hp & 260 Nm consumers. The ECU can measure the engine oil pressure via an
Oil pump Constant displacement Gerotor oil pump oil pressure sensor at all operating conditions. If the engine oil
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pressure is more than the estimated value, then using the solenoid FIGURE 1 Engine speed vs pump discharge pressure trend
value (henceforth will be addressed as SV) the oil pump discharge for various types of oil pump displacement settings
pressure can be reduced by ECU signal. By implementing VDOP,
the parasitic losses of the oil pump can be avoided or reduced,
and the engine fuel economy can be improved.
This study presents the working principle of VDOP, the
challenges in packaging and integration, redefining the oil
pressure limits based on the various consumer requirements,
impact on the engine lubrication circuit. The paper also
discusses the validation of VDOP performance and its overall
benefit in fuel economy.
2. Benefits of VDOP
In this section, the different types of oil pumps and the benefits
of variable displacement oil pumps over the other types There is a further benefit from the two-stage to the three-
are shown. stage oil pump. In a three-stage oil pump, the pump outlets
have two pressure valves that are interlinked with the pump
inlet. Due to this complex connection, the three-stage oil
2.1. Different Types of the Oil pumps are not the most widely preferred. In a continuously
Pump variable displacement oil pump, the discharge pressure can
be exactly matched with the engine requirements.
The oil pumps used in IC engines are classified based on
The maximum benefit in oil pump power consumption
various parameters such as:
comes from the continuously variable displacement oil pump
1. Pump rotor type as it can exactly match the engine requirement and there will
a. Gerotor be a very minimal parasitic loss. Hence for this current engine
application, a vane-type, fully variable oil pump is chosen.
b. Spur gear/twin gear
c. Vane type
2. Pump displacement 3. Working Principle of
a. Constant displacement
VDOP
b. Two-stage
The VDOP uses the solenoid valve to control the pump outlet
c. Three-stage
pressure. Figure 2 shows the block diagram of the VDOP
d. Continuously variable working principle.
3. Pump packaging location
a. Chain system driven FIGURE 2 Block diagram of variable oil pump
working principle
b. Crankshaft nose driven
Like every oil pump, the oil flow is pressurized from the
inlet to the outlet due to the rotation of the rotor. The area 4. Design Challenges &
between the rotor and the stator reduces in the rotating direc-
tion, which causes the outflow of the pressurized oil. The oil
Considerations
pump discharge pressure is a direct function of the eccen- The existing engine oil pump is a constant displacement with
tricity between the rotor and the stator. The continuously a pressure relief valve. This oil pump is crankshaft driven,
variable oil pump has a mechanism that the vary the eccen- Gerotor type that is integrated into the engine front cover.
tricity of the oil pump during its operation, which restricts Figure 4 shows the pump with an inlet connected to the oil
the amount of oil flow through the rotor and reduces the pump pan strainer and a pump outlet connected to the crankcase.
outlet pressure. The eccentricity of the pump is changed using Figure 4 also shows the complete oil circuit of the engine
a moving stator that is packaged inside the VDOP housing with all the consumers. The oil pump outlet (unclean oil)
against a spring. There is a small oil chamber between the enters the crankcase and into the oil cooler and filter. Once
stator & the housing on the opposite side of the spring. The the oil is cooled and filtered, it (clean oil) enters the main oil
solenoid valve of the VDOP has three ports, application port, gallery (henceforth will be addressed as MOG). In the current
pressure port and leak-off port. The oil from the engine main engine, there is an oil pressure switch to monitor the oil
oil gallery is connected to the application port of the pressure in the event it reaches below the minimum required
solenoid valve. value during the engine operation and gives the signal to the
The pressure port of the solenoid valve is connected to the passenger. From MOG, the oil is supplied to the piston cooling
chamber between the stator and the housing. The oil from the jet and the main bearing shell. The other part of the MOG
leak off port is drained back to the oil pan. Using the ECU, the enters he cylinder head oil gallery for lubricating the camshaft
oil flow from the solenoid valve pressure port to the chamber is bearing, vacuum pump, fuel pump and HLA. There is another
controlled. With the help of oil pressure that builds in the oil flow path that goes to the chain tensioner and turbocharger.
chamber between the stator and housing, the stator can
be moved against the spring load. This movement of the stator
reduces the eccentricity of the pump and as a result, reduces the 4.1. P
ackaging of VDOP
pump discharge pressure. Figure 3 shows the two extreme limits
of the VDOP. Figure 3 (a) shows the scenario with maximum
Solenoid Valve
pump outlet pressure for the given engine rpm. There is no oil The major challenge in implementing the VDOP is that it must
flow from the solenoid valve (SV) and the chamber and the be integrated into the front cover within the current packaging
VDOP will function with the maximum eccentricity. Figure 3 envelope. There must be additional oil galleries that must
(b) shows the scenario with minimum pump outlet pressure for supply oil from MOG to the inlet of the SV and outlet of the
the same engine rpm. We have maximum oil flow from the SV SV back to the VDOP and from SV leak off back to the oil
pressure port to the chamber. The stator has moved against the pan. It is functionally beneficial to package the SV closer to
spring load by the maximum possible distance & the pump will the VDOP. This will reduce the oscillation of the VDOP
function with minimum eccentricity. discharge pressure during the SV operation. This will also
The oil pressure sensor must be packaged after the pump help in the packaging of the oil channel from SV to VDOP,
discharge in the oil circuit to measure the oil pressure in real- which is critical for the SV operation response time.
time. This measured pressure is compared against the required
pressure value by the ECU to form closed-loop monitoring.
If the measured oil pressure valve is higher than the required
FIGURE 4 The existing engine oil galleries with all its
value, then the ECU signals the SV to open the pressure port
oil consumers
to reduce the pump eccentricity. If the measured oil pressure
is less than the required value, then the pump eccentricity is
increased using the SV. This is the general working principle
of a continuously variable oil pump.
4.3. S
olenoid Valve Inlet &
Outlet Oil Galleries
Figure 9 shows the oil pump cover has an internal oil circuit
which in turn is connected to the inlet of the solenoid valve
The packaging of the SV within the engine, inside the (application port). The outlet of the solenoid valve (pressure
front cover, was explored. The challenge in that proposal was port) is connected back to the VDOP and enclosed between
that the wiring harness from the SV must be routed from the front cover & oil pump cover. The oil from the leak-off
inside to outside with a leakproof joint. As the VDOP is inte- port of the solenoid valve flows back to the oil pan via a hole
grated into the front cover, the SV and its connector will also in the oil pump cover.
be very close to the chain drive system. Packaging the SV The complete engine oil circuit including VDOP SV oil
outside the front cover seems to be the best option from a connections is shown in figure 10. As mentioned earlier, the
wiring harness point of view. Even after packaging SV outside oil pressure sensor is mandatory for the working of VDOP,
the front cover, the routing of the wiring harness from SV is hence the existing oil pressure switch has been removed and
still a critical task, due to proximity with the belt system. A
wiring harness pigtail with a separate sheet metal bracket for
FIGURE 7 The rubber gasket interface between the
proper clipping and parking of the connector was made for
crankcase and oil pump cover
this application. Figure 6 shows the packaging location of the
SV in the front cover and its wiring harness routing.
FIGURE 9 The oil circuit for the SV inlet & outlet via the oil FIGURE 11 Main oil gallery pressure with existing
pump cover conventional oil pump
FIGURE 13 Oil pump power consumption reduction scope FIGURE 14 The front cover along with the variable oil
pump child parts
6. Structural Simulation
Results
The front cover integrated variable oil pump design is
completed. As a next step in the designing process, various
CAE analyses will be performed for the virtual validation of
the design. Most of the simulation will be focused on the oil
pump housing region of the front cover and the oil pump
cover. The virtual validation of the VDOP child parts like the
rotor and stator are not covered in this study.
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FIGURE 16 The contact pressure value at the cover 6.2.2. Load Condition The weight of the rotor, vanes,
interface with 6 bar oil pressure condition control spring and solenoid valve is assigned as mass point
linkage to the respective interface surface. The weight of the
oil is also created as mass points and applied to the
housing surfaces.
The simulation result, the final contact pressure between the The first mode shape of the front cover and the oil pump
oil pump cover and the front cover interface is shown in figure cover is shown in figure 19. From the simulation results, the
16. The negative value in the legend shows the opening gap first mode frequency is 1220 Hz, which is much higher than
between the covers. As an internal guideline, up to 20 microns the acceptance criteria for this engine application. Therefore,
of the gap is acceptable based on previous experience. Based on the oil pump will not be subjected to resonance during its
the results, the gap between the covers is within the acceptable operating condition.
limit. Hence it can be concluded that the M6 screw quantity,
location and tightening torque are acceptable for this interface.
FIGURE 19 The first mode shape of the front cover & oil
pump cover
6.2. Modal Analysis
After the completion of the contact analysis, as a next step,
modal analysis for the front cover housing is performed.
6.2.1. Boundary Condition The front cover mountings
to the crankcase and cylinder head are considered to be fixed
in all directions. The bonded contact is assigned between the
oil pump cover and the front cover interface.
There are two extremes for the VDOP solenoid valve. The
one extreme is the SV operating in 0% PWM. In this operating
condition, there is no flow through the SV and the VDOP
operated at maximum eccentricity and delivers the maximum
oil pressure/flow for the given engine rpm. The other extreme
is the SV operating in 100% PWM. In this condition, the
maximum amount of flow will pass through the SV to VDOP.
The VDOP will operate with minimum eccentricity and
delivers minimum flow for the given engine rpm.
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FIGURE 23 Measured MOG pressure with VDOP at two FIGURE 25 Target & measured oil pressures of critical oil
oil temperatures consumers at 120°C oil temperature
The VDOP with 0% SV PWM must always deliver the oil pressure at the turbocharger inlet is slightly less than the target
pressure equal to or more than the target pressure at all engine at low engine rpm from idle rpm to 1500 rpm. Although it is
speeds. Similarly, at 100% PWM, the oil pressure must slightly less, this oil pressure with VDOP is equal to the oil
be closer to the minimum requirement of the engine, in order pressure achieved with the existing oil pump. The engine with
the reduce the pressure at every engine operating condition. VDOP is subjected to various durability tests and the final
The below figure 23 shows the MOG pressure with VDOP tested parts such as the fuel pump, turbocharger & piston are
& 0% PWM for 60° C and 120° C oil temperatures. Even at sent to respective suppliers for post-validation analysis. The
high oil temperature conditions, the MOG pressure is meeting return parts are investigated by the supplier and found accept-
the target pressure requirement. able based on their internal criteria. The details of the dura-
Using the SV PWM, the MOG pressure is exactly matched bility validation test (part level, engine level & vehicle level)
with the target pressure during the trial. Figure 24 shows the and its results are considered for a future paper, and it is not
PWM % that was used by the ECU for acquiring the target covered in the current scope.
MOG pressure. The engine with the existing conventional oil pump and
The required oil pressure at the main oil gallery is the engine with VDOP were tested in the transient dyno test
achieved at all the engine rpm for different oil temperatures. bed. The engine in this test setup is connected to an electric
The PWM % of the SV is automatically adjusted by ECU by motor that can simulate any engine rpm & torque. The engine
measuring the real-time MOG oil pressure & comparing it will operate to overcome the motor torque at a selected engine
with the target. The oil pressure at different consumers was speed. Thirteen critical operating points were selected for the
also measured using a pressure gauge at the test bed level. evaluation of the BSFC. The BSFC values of the base engine
Figure 25 shows the measured oil pressure at different with a conventional Gerotor oil pump are compared with the
consumers against the target. BSFC of the engine with VDOP, refer the figure 26. An average
The actual oil pressure at the turbocharger inlet is more benefit of 1.5% BSFC was observed due to the implementation
than the requirement at higher engine rpm. The measured oil of the VDOP.
FIGURE 24 VDOP SV PWM values for matching the MOG FIGURE 26 Engine BSFC measured at various
pressure with the target pressure operating points
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Definitions/Abbreviations
References CAFE - Corporate Average Fuel economy
VDOP - Variable Displacement Oil Pump
1. Bitsis, D.C. and Miwa, J., “Optimization of Heavy Duty SV - Solenoid Valve
Diesel Engine Lubricant and Coolant Pumps for Parasitic PCJ - Piston Cooling Jet
Loss Reduction,” SAE Technical Paper 2018-01-0980, 2018,
https://doi.org/10.4271/2018-01-0980. MOG - Main Oil Gallery
2. Nishida, Y., Toyoda, F., Terashima, H., Ono, H. et al., CAE - Computer Aided Engineering
“Development of Continuously Variable Discharge Oil ECU - Engine Control Unit
Pump,” SAE Technical Paper 2018-01-0932, 2018, https://doi. PWM - Pulse Width Modulation
org/10.4271/2018-01-0932.
NEDC - New European Drive Cycle
3. Kandavalli, P., Karthi, R., Suresh Kumar, S., and Anand, M.,
“Benefits of Variable Discharge Oil Pump on Performance of
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