The U.S. Senate passed Senate Resolution 493 (S. Res. 493) designating July 11, 2014 as “Collector Car Appreciation Day.” The resolution was requested by the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) and its Automotive Restoration Market Organization (ARMO) and Hot Rod Industry Alliance (HRIA) Councils. The date marks the fifth commemoration in what has become an annual event to celebrate and raise awareness of the vital role automotive restoration and collection plays in American society.

“We thank the U.S. Senate for its continued recognition of the collector car hobby as a valued American tradition and pastime,” said SEMA Vice President of Government Affairs Steve McDonald. “With Australia and Canada joining the celebration, Collector Car Appreciation Day has now become an international recognition of the collector car industry and the millions of hobbyists it supports. A number of states and local governments have adopted similar commemorative declarations as well.”

All automotive enthusiasts are encouraged to take part in this year’s celebration by planning or attending events in their community. Through its grassroots hobbyist organization, the SEMA Action Network (SAN), SEMA is maintaining a list of scheduled events to commemorate the day at www.semasan.com/ccad.

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Internal combustion engines are poised for dramatic breakthroughs in improving efficiency with lower emissions, thanks in part to low-temperature combustion regimes. Such regimes show great efficiency and emissions potential, but they present optimization and control challenges that must be addressed before they enter the engine mainstream.

Caterpillar Inc., in Peoria, IL, turned to U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and its Virtual Engine Research Institute and Fuels Initiative (VERIFI), where experts are developing new engine combustion models that incorporate accurate descriptions of two-phase flows, chemistry, transport phenomena and device geometries to provide predictive simulations of engine and fuel performance. Caterpillar and Argonne have entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) along with Convergent Science, Inc., in Madison, WI, to further explore ways to predict how things work in diesel engine performance and emissions before any experimental work is conducted. This is the first such CRADA undertaken by VERIFI since its inception this spring.

Caterpillar anticipates that simulations developed by VERIFI’s researchers will reduce the time and cost of the design cycle for new engines, allow the rapid adaptation of fuels from new sources and lead to substantial increases in fuel economy while meeting future emissions standards. “Working with Argonne researchers will provide us access to their high-performance computing facilities and expertise in spray and combustion modeling that will improve our simulation practices at Caterpillar,” said Marcus Weber, team leader at Caterpillar.

Convergent Science is a world leader in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software development. The company’s flagship product, CONVERGE, is used for CFD simulations in many industries. The staff at Convergent Science are experts in CFD simulations, numerical methods, model development and implementation and were instrumental in adapting high-performance computing practices in the CONVERGE code.

VERIFI applies state-of-the-art tools in high-performance computing, combustion chemistry, CFD, and experimental validation techniques to develop high-fidelity, three-dimensional, end-to-end, combustion engine simulation/visualization and fuel simulation. Advances in high-performance computing enable VERIFI researchers to run engine simulations in parallel on thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of processors. While efficient scaling of engine simulations to such massively parallel machines remains a significant challenge, such calculations will ultimately allow not only the rapid engineering of specific engine designs, fuels and operation conditions, but also allow their optimization.

Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology. The nation’s first national laboratory, Argonne conducts leading-edge basic and applied scientific research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne researchers work closely with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and federal, state and municipal agencies to help them solve their specific problems, advance America’s scientific leadership and prepare the nation for a better future.

For more information, please visit science.energy.gov.

The post Caterpillar, Argonne Undertake Cooperative Virtual Engine Design appeared first on Engine Builder Magazine.

Read more here: Engine Builder Magazine

Internal combustion engines are poised for dramatic breakthroughs in improving efficiency with lower emissions, thanks in part to low-temperature combustion regimes. Such regimes show great efficiency and emissions potential, but they present optimization and control challenges that must be addressed before they enter the engine mainstream.

Caterpillar Inc., in Peoria, IL, turned to U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and its Virtual Engine Research Institute and Fuels Initiative (VERIFI), where experts are developing new engine combustion models that incorporate accurate descriptions of two-phase flows, chemistry, transport phenomena and device geometries to provide predictive simulations of engine and fuel performance. Caterpillar and Argonne have entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) along with Convergent Science, Inc., in Madison, WI, to further explore ways to predict how things work in diesel engine performance and emissions before any experimental work is conducted. This is the first such CRADA undertaken by VERIFI since its inception this spring.

Caterpillar anticipates that simulations developed by VERIFI’s researchers will reduce the time and cost of the design cycle for new engines, allow the rapid adaptation of fuels from new sources and lead to substantial increases in fuel economy while meeting future emissions standards. “Working with Argonne researchers will provide us access to their high-performance computing facilities and expertise in spray and combustion modeling that will improve our simulation practices at Caterpillar,” said Marcus Weber, team leader at Caterpillar.

Convergent Science is a world leader in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software development. The company’s flagship product, CONVERGE, is used for CFD simulations in many industries. The staff at Convergent Science are experts in CFD simulations, numerical methods, model development and implementation and were instrumental in adapting high-performance computing practices in the CONVERGE code.

VERIFI applies state-of-the-art tools in high-performance computing, combustion chemistry, CFD, and experimental validation techniques to develop high-fidelity, three-dimensional, end-to-end, combustion engine simulation/visualization and fuel simulation. Advances in high-performance computing enable VERIFI researchers to run engine simulations in parallel on thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of processors. While efficient scaling of engine simulations to such massively parallel machines remains a significant challenge, such calculations will ultimately allow not only the rapid engineering of specific engine designs, fuels and operation conditions, but also allow their optimization.

Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology. The nation’s first national laboratory, Argonne conducts leading-edge basic and applied scientific research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne researchers work closely with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and federal, state and municipal agencies to help them solve their specific problems, advance America’s scientific leadership and prepare the nation for a better future.

For more information, please visit science.energy.gov.

The post Caterpillar, Argonne Undertake Cooperative Virtual Engine Design appeared first on Engine Builder Magazine.

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The Drift Mania Canadian Championship (DMCC) is back with another banger. This time we headed out to Icar Circuit in Mirabel, Quebec to bring you coverage. We couldn’t have asked for a better day. The weather was awesome, and hot as hell but that didn’t hold anyone back! READ MORE

Drift Mania DMCC at Icar Circuit Mirabel Quebec

Drift Mania DMCC at Icar Circuit Mirabel Quebec originally appeared on Autoblog Canada on Mon, 30 Jun 2014 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Our list of “1,001 Car Things To Do Before You Die” includes countless aspirational, once-in-a-lifetime challenges, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to ignore the basics. “The List: Shorts” is a new subsection of The List that focuses on repairs, maintenance and attainable automotive fun – things every budding auto enthusiast can do without dropping a lot of cash.

For our first installment, host Jessi Combs demonstrates something every driver should know how to do: change a tire. Whether you’re met with an unexpected flat or need to swap your summer tires for winter wheels, knowing how to change a tire is essential automotive knowledge. Scroll down to see how it’s done.

The List Shorts #0255: Change a Tire

The List Shorts #0255: Change a Tire originally appeared on Autoblog Canada on Sun, 29 Jun 2014 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Read more here: Ownership & Repair