Basically, the Motive Power Testing Facility will be created through three major renovations: (1) Construction of a control isolation room; (2) Implementation of computerized engine control and monitoring; (3) Acquisition of fuel/emissions monitoring and assessment. 

 The most essential renovation will be the construction of a control isolation room within the Engines Testing Laboratory, which is shown in the appended figure. This containment room will be located within the laboratory, directly off of the main hallway, isolating the students and staff from the exhaust and noise hazards of the engines. Keeping the engines separated from the operators will aid in containing any engine material and/or fires in the rare event of a catastrophic failure. Isolation from the engine noise will eliminate the need for ear protection, the present use of which makes effective communication difficult when the engines are in operation. 

The second renovation will be the implementation of computer control and monitoring of each test engine. This will require the incorporation of new flowrate, temperature, and pressure transducers on each engine, and in some cases upgrading or replacement of the engine dynamometers. In addition, each engine will be fitted with computer-actuated control tranducers which will allow dynamic computer control of each engine. A set of modern, fast personal computers will be acquired to facilitate both the dynamic control and data acquisition for each engine.  This new control/monitoring system will allow dynamic, as well as static, engine load testing to be incorporated as part of our instructional program. This additional capability can also be utilized by both project students and our SAE student competition groups for simulation of the dynamic engine loading and response characteristic of high-performance driving and racing conditions. Other applications of this dynamic control capability might also include the determination of the effects of throttle setting, ignition timing, changes in manifold configuration, or supercharging on engine performance under rapidly varying loads. 

One severe limitation of the present laboratory is the inability to monitor and accurately assess fuel characteristics and engine exhaust gases---particularly important properties in effective fuel testing and pollution assessment. Thus, the third major renovation will be the implementation of both fuel analysis equipment capable of establishing the octane value of fuels, and an exhaust gas analysis system capable of on-line, real-time computerized measurements of O2, HaCb (hydrocarbons), CO, and NOx. Used in combination, the exhaust gas analyzer and fuel analysis equipment will allow the examination of the emission behavior of engines using various fuels and fuel additives. 

Once renovated, the Thomas E. Jackson Motive Power Testing Facility will make the Engines Testing Laboratory a first rate undergraduate teaching laboratory, that will also support both undergraduate and graduate research on fuels, pollution, and performance enhancements. Several research possibilities are already under consideration, such as the study of direct fuel injection configurations that have the potential to create more homogeneous fuel/air distributions. Another possibility is an examination of alternative fuels engines, such as a natural gas engine that is presently being implemented in our laboratory. The emission characteristics of such clean”engines are of particular interest, and the newly implemented monitoring and control capabilities would allow performance, fuel, and exhaust characteristics to be directly compared with conventional gasoline engines. Progress in these and other new areas will of course depend a great deal on the development of external support and interactions with industrial and government partners, which will be actively pursued.