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The identification of fuel blends using software strategies and the oxygen sensor are widely known for flex fuel and naturally aspirated engines in Brazil, since its first launch in 2003. It represents a cost effective alternative to identify the ethanol content in the fuel, which is being used in the combustion, with an accurate performance and reduced complexity. With the introduction of flex fuel vehicles equipped with turbocharger, especially the ones with Direct Injection (DI) technology, an ethanol sensor as an additional product has been used so far to identify the ethanol content in the fuel blend. Such engine types may be more sensitive to fuel mixture deviations, since it works with higher loads, more combustion chamber pressure and an extended temperature range in comparison with the normally aspirated applications. Due to these reasons, worst-case scenarios with high ethanol content deviation could cause damage to the engine and exhaust hardware.

Time Domain Reflectometery (TDR) is a Radio Frequency (RF) technology that has been used for many years to find cable breaks and measure fluid levels in industrial processes. The technology uses picosecond length pulses and the associated reflections off the fluid surface in a time of flight measurement to determine fluid height. TDR signals have additional information that can be processed and utilized for Integrated Vehicle Health Management (IVHM) applications. For example, when water collects in the fuel tank, TDR is capable of identifying and measuring the amount of water. This can allow the water sumps to be drained on condition instead of on a schedule. In addition, electromagnetic properties of the fluid can be determined, such as the dielectric constant, which can be used to identify mis-fueling situations, contaminants in the fluid, and potentially other fluid health properties.