Modeling and Optimization of Fuel-Mode Switching and Control Systems for Marine Dual-Fuel Engine

The marine dual-fuel engine can switch between diesel and gas modes according to the requirements of sailing conditions, fuel cost, and other working conditions to make sure the ship is in the best operating condition. In fuel-mode switching in engines, problems such as unstable combustion and large speed fluctuations are prone to occur. However, there are some disadvantages, such as poor safety, environmental pollution, and easy damage to the engine, when the large, marine dual-fuel engine is directly tested on the bench. Therefore, in this paper, a joint simulation model of a dual-fuel engine is built using GT Power and MATLAB/Simulink to investigate the engine’s transient process of fuel-mode switching, and the conventional fuel PID(Proportion Integral Differential) control system is optimized using the cuckoo search (CS) algorithm. The simulation results show that the dual-fuel engine model has good accuracy, and the response in transient conditions meets the manufacturer’s requirements. In the process of switching from gas mode to diesel mode, due to the rapid change in fuel, the engine parameters, such as speed, fluctuate significantly, which is prone to safety accidents. In the process of switching from diesel to gas mode, because the fuel switching is gentle, all parameters are relatively stable, and the possibility of safety accidents is slight. The fuel PID control system optimized based on the cuckoo search algorithm has a better engine control effect than the traditional fuel control system.