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SAE TECHNICAL
PAPER SERIES 2002-01-3316

Exhaust System Design for a Four

Cylinder Engine
Badih Jawad, Christopher Biggs and Bradley Klein
Lawrence Technological University

Reprinted From: Proceedings of the 2002 SAE Motorsports

Engineering Conference and Exhibition
(P-382)

Motorsports Engineering
Conference & Exhibition
Indianapolis, Indiana
December 2-5, 2002

400 Commonwealth Drive, Warrendale, PA 15096-0001 U.S.A. Tel: (724) 776-4841 Fax: (724) 776-5760 Web: www.sae.org
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ISSN 0148-7191
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Exhaust System Design for a Four Cylinder Engine
Badih Jawad, Christopher Biggs and Bradley Klein
Copyright © 2002 SAE International
ABSTRACT
The 2002 Lawrence Technological University Formula
SAE team set out to develop a tuned exhaust system for
a restricted Honda CBR 600 F4i engine. The exhaust
system was targeted for maximizing low rpm torque
while maintaining a broad flat torque curve without a
significant loss of high rpm horsepower. In order to do
this, considerable attention had to be given to the
exhaust primary tracts, collector and silencer designs.
To test theory, two equal length, fully adjustable headers
were manufactured and tested on an engine
dynamometer. Experimentally, the optimal exhaust
design to meet our vehicles needs was determined.
INTRODUCTION
The Formula SAE competition is a worldwide event that
takes place annually in Pontiac, Michigan. The
competition allows universities to compete for top honors
in race as well as design and marketing events.
Vehicles are significantly redesigned every year, and
certain restrictions are imposed. For powertrain, the
main restrictions are a 610cc max displacement four-
stroke engine and 20 mm intake restriction.
The Lawrence Technological University Formula Team
utilizes a 600 cc Honda F4i engine for its durability,
weight and midrange power. Due to the fact that the
competition imposes an intake restriction, a significant
redesign of engine breathing functions is necessary.
In order to optimize the performance of the car research
and design changes were implemented. The goal of the
powertrain was to make changes in order to create a
broad flat torque curve without suffering a loss in overall
horsepower.
Testing was conducted on a Super Flow SF901
dynamometer to establish the effects of changing
variables in the exhaust system on torque and
horsepower curves as well as durability factors. Many
iterations were necessary to accommodate all possible
variations of the exhaust system.
2002-01-3316
Lawrence Technological University
EXHAUST HEADER DESIGN
PRIMARY TRACT LENGTH
The first and most important area for exhaust flow
leaving the port is the exhaust primary tract, or “primary”.
The exhaust primaries are the tubes that run from the
exhaust port of the head to the first junction or
“collector”. The length and diameter of these tubes have
a tremendous impact on the performance of the header.
Properly designed primary tracts allow for exhaust
scavenging to be maximized in a given rpm range.
Exhaust scavenging is needed to remove residual
exhaust gasses from the cylinder near the end of the
exhaust stroke. Residual exhaust gasses can be
trapped in the cylinder due to the finite time it takes for a
smooth closing of the exhaust valve. To keep residual
gases and valvetrain wear to a minimum, the exhaust
cam has a certain amount of lag angle after TDC (1).
The exhaust valve lag angle can be used to suck out any
further residual exhaust gases left in the cylinder with
properly timed pressure waves. This exhaust cam lag
angle combined with the intake cam lead angle allows
for the exiting exhaust gas to help pull a fresh intake
charge into the cylinder before the intake stroke
commences (2). This is commonly referred to as “valve
overlap”.
Residual exhaust gasses are scavenged by a
rarefraction wave. This wave is created on the exhaust
stroke when the pressure wave created by the leaving
gas reaches the collector and expands. This expansion
causes a momentary drop in the density of the air in the
collector. The elasticity of the air causes a negative
pressure wave (rarefaction) to be reflected back to the
still open exhaust valve. The negative pressure outside
of the cylinder allows the residual gases to flow out (2).
Changing the length of the primary tract determines how
long the wave will take to travel from the cylinder, to the
collector and back. The longer the tube, the longer the
time needed. The finite time that the valve is open gets
smaller as engine rpm builds, so a longer tube will
perform better at lower engine speeds. A simplified
equation to solve for tube length is given on page 2.
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L=(Υt*C)/(.12*N)
Where:
L=length of primary tract in m
Υt=crankshaft angular displacement in degrees
C=speed of sound through exhaust gas in m/s
N=speed of the engine crankshaft in rpm
The crankshaft angular displacement for this formula has
been experimentally determined to be 160 degrees (2).
The approximate speed of sound through exhaust gas is
518 m/s.
PRIMARY TRACT DIAMETER
The exhaust primary tube diameter is also vital in
designing a high performance exhaust system. If the
cross-sectional area through the tube is too small,
increased flow losses will occur and higher backpressure
will result. Exhaust backpressure lowers overall output
due to the increased work the engine must do to push
out gases. If the cross-sectional area through the tube
is too high, the velocity in the tube will be insufficient to
promote good exhaust scavenging (2).
COLLECTOR
The first exhaust expansion point is commonly referred
to as the collector. An exhaust collector design should
maximize flow and allow for the type of exhaust
scavenging desired.
4:1 Collector
The 4:1 collector brings the four primary exhaust tracts
into one expansion point to generate one large
scavenging wave [Figure 1]. For maximum
performance, the 4:1 collector should be merged to
eliminate the flat spot in the center of the tubes. Merging
the primaries together allows for minimal turbulence that
helps to decrease flow losses. A 4:1 collector
theoretically has the most flow, thus it should have the
best high engine speed performance.
Figure 1: 4:1 Merged Exhaust Collector
As a rule, when sizing the exit tube from the collector,
the tube size should be increased at least a 0.25 inch
(6.35mm). A 4:1 collector can be sized even larger, due
to the fact that all four primaries meet into one.
360° Tri –Y Collector
The 360° degree collector brings cylinders 360° apart in
the firing order into one primary junction. In a four-
cylinder engine, two primary junctions are created. The
two primary junctions are then brought together into a
third [Figure 2]. This type of collector configuration
allows for three scavenging waves. An expansion wave
is created at the primary and secondary junctions. A
third wave is reflected from the closed exhaust valves on
the cylinder 360° out of phase back to the open exhaust
port. These three waves are offset slightly to create a
broader rpm range for scavenging.
Another benefit of the 360° collector is the separation of
overlapping exhaust events. The Honda CBR F4i has a
firing order of 1-2-4-3. When cylinder 2 is on the
exhaust stroke, cylinder 1 is on the intake stroke. Due to
valve overlap, the exhaust valve on cylinder 1 is still
open on the beginning of the intake stroke to scavenge
residual gasses. Cylinder 2 is just completing exhaust
blowdown, thus cylinder pressures are very high.
Exhaust blowdown occurs to get cylinder pressures as
close to atmospheric as possible before the exhaust
stroke begins. This means high pressure exhaust
gasses from cylinder 2 could impede or flow into cylinder
1 and diminish performance. The 360° collector brings
primaries from 1 and 4 and 2 and 3 together first, and
then brings those two together.
Figure 2: 360° Tri-Y Exhaust Collector
180° Tri-Y Collector
The final type of collector configuration is the 180°
degree Tri –Y collector. This type of collector looks
exactly like the 360° Tri-Y, but groups cylinders 180° out
of phase in the firing order. Grouping cylinders 180°
degrees out of phase in the firing order brings about
overlapping exhaust event problems already discussed.
The only advantage to this system is the ease of
packaging. Header primary tubes do not have to be
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crossed before the collector, which makes it an option in
tight clearance applications.
Variable Collector
Variably adjustable exhaust collectors have recently
emerged on Honda sportbikes. The Honda Titanium
Exhaust Valve (HTEV) is available on 929 cc engines
and incorporates 4:1, 360°, and 180° collector
configurations. Theoretically, this would allow for the
best possible collector configuration for each engine
speed range by using a servo motor to actuate a valve
after the primary exhaust tracts (3). Although this type of
system has potential benefits, it would be hard to
develop in our time frame and patent laws would have to
be delt with.
EXHAUST SILENCER DESIGN
In a racing exhaust system, the silencer must be
compact, light, create as little backpressure as possible,
and meet noise requirements.
The simplest and most effective design seems to be the
straight through absorptive type muffler. Absorption
silencers work by dissipating the sound energy in a
porous medium (4). This type of silencer consists of a
tube with perforated holes in it for exhaust gas to pass
through, a mesh of various materials to absorb sound
energy, and a skin to hold it all together.
To allow for the best flow possible, the diameter of the
silencer should match the exhaust collector diameter.
There should be at least a small section of solid tubing
from the collector to the muffler to allow the flow to
become laminar before entering. Holes in the tube
inside of the muffler should be punched, rather then
drilled. This will allow for a nozzleing effect to facilitate
gas flow through the hole and into the absorptive
material and impede flow in the reverse direction. The
perforated holes need a diameter of at least 3 mm in
order to obtain the desired flow and minimize any
chances of particles clogging the holes (5).
The absorptive material inside of the muffler must be
able to withstand high steady state temperatures. A
stainless steel wire mesh should be wrapped directly
around the perforated tube to help absorb heat. The
stainless steel should then be wrapped in a fiberglass
mesh to absorb the sound pressure waves. Finally, a
thin layer of aluminum may be utilized around the
fiberglass to further protect the skin from heat.
The muffler skin holds every thing together as well as
dictate overall volume. As a rule, an absorptive type
muffler should have a volume of about 10 X the engine
volume for one cylinder (5). The Honda F4i has a single
cylinder displacement of 150 cm3, so a muffler volume of
1500 cm3 would be adequate. The muffler skin can made
be of various types of material. But, in order to make the
muffler as light as possible, metals like aluminum and
titanium or composites like carbon fiber should be used.
Careful consideration should be taken to make sure the
skin can withstand the exhaust temperatures the muffler
reaches.
Figure 3: Cut-Away of an Absorptive-Type Muffler
EXHAUST HEADER TESTING
All exhaust testing was done at Lawrence Technological
University on a modified Super Flow SF901 engine
dynamometer with Windyn software. In order to produce
accurate and repeatable runs, loading began at 5000
rpm and ended at 12000 rpm. It was determined that
this was acceptable due to the fact that the normal
operating range is greater than 5000 rpm for the engine
in our application.
In order to test all possible header design configurations,
an adjustable header was made out of mild steel. The
first header made utilized 1.375 in (34.92mm) diameter
primaries and was increased .250 in (6.35mm) at every
junction. This size was chosen as a starting point
because the unrestricted Honda CBR F4i utilizes them.
Primary tube lengths were adjustable from 22 in to 38 in
and slip on collectors were made for the three
configurations possible.
Testing consisted of a fuel map for each combination,
then three to five acceleration dynamometer pulls. The
runs were checked for repeatability and averaged. All
numbers reported are SAE corrected.
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Figure 4: Graph of different primary lengths with 360° collector configuration

Figure 3 shows corrected horsepower and torque figures
from dynamometer runs with different length primaries.
The different colored curves are averaged, labeled by
primary size and collector type (AVG length collector or
AVG36360). In the lower rpm ranges (5000-7000) it can
be seen that lengthening the primary exhaust tracts does
in fact boost torque to a point. There is a progressive
step up in each length to about 34 in (863.6mm). At 34
in (863.6mm) and longer, the lower rpm torque curves
come together. This torque boost is needed in our
application to have maximum power coming out of
corners.
for our application. This length allows for the low rpm
torque boost, does not suffer too much midrange loss
and peaks with the rest
To see if a smaller diameter primary would allow for
more low rpm torque without a sacrifice elsewhere,
another mild steel header was made with 1.25 in
(31.75mm) tubing. Dynamometer testing showed lower
rpm torque peaks, but a substantial loss in overall
horsepower [Figure 5]. Clearly, the 1.375 in
(34.92mm)header was the best choice for our
application.

Throughout the mid engine speed range (5000-7000),

torque and horsepower curves follow the same general
form within about a 3 horsepower. This trend carries on
to 10000 rpm with the longer lengths slightly lower then
the shorter ones. Some sacrifice can be made for the
tremendous increase in power and torque seen in the
lower rpm ranges.

At the peak of power and torque, all lengths come

together. This seems to be attributed to the header not
seeing any higher flow losses with longer lengths as
expected, or the intake restriction impeding airflow. After
horsepower peaks, the longer length primaries began to
fall off. The power fall off occurs at a higher rate for
longer lengths, so flow losses are present. Power after
the peak is relatively unimportant for our application, as
the motor will not be revved over the max power point.

Given the data for a 1.375 in (34.92mm) diameter, a 34 Figure 5: Comparison of 1.25 in (31.75mm) and 1.375 in
in (863.6mm) primary tract would be the obvious choice (34.92mm) Diameter Primaries
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Figure 6: 26 in (660.4mm) Primary Length Header With
Three Different Collectors
Figure 7: 34 in (863.6mm)Primary Length Header With
Three Different Collectors
Figures 6 and 7 above show the three types of collector
configurations with a given length. The 26 in (660.4mm)
primary tract length was a good overall graphical
representation of the shorter lengths, and a 34 in
(863.6mm) tract was a good representation of the longer
lengths.
In a shorter length exhaust tract, the collector
configuration made a large difference in low engine
speed performance. The 4:1 collector has a
considerable loss in low rpm torque due to the fact that it
only has one scavenging wave present. The 360°
degree collector performed the best, while the 180°
collector almost equaled it. It would seem that the
header is above the length for overlapping exhaust
events to diminish performance greatly.
Throughout the mid-rpm range, the 360° collector
outperformed both the 4:1 and the 180°. Clearly, the
wider range of the 360° collector is helping scavenging
effects.
Higher engine speeds showed the 360° configuration to
again perform better then the 4:1 and 180°. The 4:1
should flow freer in theory to allow it to peak the highest,
but on our restricted motor this was not present.
Given the collector test data, the optimal choice for our
application seems to a 360° configuration. This type of
collector gives the best performance throughout the rpm
range. A variable collector would not have produced
enough benefit for the added weight and cost.
EXHAUST SILENCER TESTING
Silencer testing was completed in full acceleration and
steady state operation. This was done to assure
maximum temperatures were achieved and accurate
durability was accessed. Further assurance that this
would be a worst-case scenario was the absence of
airflow over the muffler.
Three different absorptive type mufflers were made. All
mufflers were 18 in (457.2mm) long and 4 in (101.6mm)
diameter. This was chosen due to the vast majority of
Honda sport bikes using this same size and in our sound
pressure range. The calculated volume comes out to be
3 3
about 1200 cm , so it is close to the 1500 cm previously
stated.
A carbon fiber composite skinned muffler was built first.
Carbon fiber brought lightweight and great aesthetic
appearance. End caps were made of mild steel for
testing purposes, and the center tube was punched and
rolled. The muffler was packed to theoretical
specifications and tested. Soon after the steady state
condition commenced, the resin to hold the carbon fiber
together started to melt and distort. Temperatures
measured up stream in the primaries showed 1500°F.
The carbon fiber resin used was not designed to
withstand the kind of temperatures reached. Upon
disassembling the muffler, the interior components were
found to hold up well. If carbon fiber were to be utilized
in our application, a higher temperature resin would have
to be used.
The next muffler made use of a .060 in (1.524mm)
aluminum skin. It was made to the same specifications
as the carbon fiber one and tested in the same way.
After a few hours of testing, the aluminum failed and a 3
in (76.2mm) hole was created near the inlet cap. The
aluminum skin could not withstand the intense heat
either. In order to use aluminum in our application, the
thickness would have to be increased.
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The only viable option left was Titanium. The high

melting point and low weight made it a good fit for our
application. It was determined that a production muffler
could be bought for about as much as one could be
made. A muffler was bought and tested in the same
manor as all of the others. It withstood the high
temperatures in durability testing easily.

Sound pressure testing had to be conducted next to

determine if noise requirements were met. Testing was
done in accordance to Formula SAE rules. The 2001
Lawrence Technological University Formula Car was
outfitted with the titanium muffler and tested outside to
mimic the type of testing at competition. Testing was
done in an open parking lot so no objects could reflect
sound waves. The weather was dry and sunny, with no
snow present on the ground to absorb sound pressure
waves. A microphone was set up at a distance of 3 feet
(914.4mm) away as stated by Formula SAE. The engine
was revved to 11000 rpm and sound pressure levels
were recorded.

The titanium muffler fit all of our requirements and
passed the noise test, so it was utilized in the final
exhaust system for the car.
FINAL EXHAUST SYSTEM
The final exhaust system chosen for the vehicle was a
34 in (863.6mm) length, 1.375 in (34.925mm) diameter,
360° configuration with a titanium muffler. Larger radius
bends in were incorporated to improve flow and further
minimize backpressure over previous Lawrence
Technological University designs. To further lighten the
system, the header was completely fabricated of
titanium.
Benchmarking the 2001 Lawrence Technological
Formula car showed that the mild steel header alone
weighed 10 lbs. The headers made for testing weighed
even more. Changing the material would allow for
considerable weight savings.
The manufacturability of titanium is similar to that of mild
steel. The increased hardness of titanium made for
slower machine speeds and longer machining time. To
ensure clean welds and obstruction free flow paths,
welding was done with an argon purge and flow through
the tube.
Figure 8: Comparison of 2001 and 2002 headers
Figure 8 shows a graph of the horsepower curves for the
2001 and 2002 headers. The 2002 header clearly
shows an increase in low rpm torque combined with a
peak about equal to the 2001 header. The longer
header clearly shows increased performance.
CONCLUSION
The 2002 Lawrence Technological University exhaust
system is designed for maximum performance and
durability. This was made possible through extensive
research, benchmarking and dynamometer testing.
Increased torque and power are made possible through
a header with tuned 34 in (863.6mm) length, 1.375 in
(34.925mm) diameter primary tracts and 360° collector
configuration along with a straight through absorptive
type muffler. The system has been lightened
substantially over previous designs through the
utilization of titanium.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors would like to thank Joe Noonchester, John
Logan, Ryan Wahl, JoHanna Pardee, and Anthony Tyll
for their invaluable assistance.

The final weight of the header was 7.5 lbs, 2.5 lbs lighter
then the 2001 car. The savings of the titanium is
amplified by the fact that the primaries on the 2001
vehicle are each 10 inches shorter each. On the
flowbench, the 2002 header flowed 7 cfm more at .350”
of valve lift. This shows an a decrease in back pressure
by eliminating the tight 90° bends found in the 2001
header.
CONTACT
Any questions concerning this paper may be directed to
Dr. Badih Jawad at JAWAD@ltu.edu, or Christopher
Biggs at cbiggs2002@hotmail.com. Dr. Jawad is the
LTU FSAE faculty advisor and a professor of mechanical
engineering at Lawrence Technological University.
Christopher Biggs and Bradley Klein are both
mechanical engineering students at Lawrence
Technological University as well as members of the
2002 Lawrence Technological University Formula SAE
team.
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REFERENCES
4. Nakayasu, Tetsuya, Yamada, Hajime, Suda, Toshikazu,
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Internal Combustion Engine,’ Prentice-Hall, 1997 Systems Equipped with a Variable Valve Control Device
for Enhancing of Engine Power,’ SAE 2001-01-0247
2. Heisler, Heinz, ‘Advanced Engine Technology,’ 2nd Edition,
Society of Automotive Engineers, 1999.
5. Smith, Philip H. and Morrison, John C. ‘Scientific Design of
Exhaust and Intake Systems,’ Bently Publishers, 2000.
3. Stone, Richard, ‘Introduction to Internal Combustion
nd
Engines,’ 2 Edition, Society of Automotive Engineers,
1997