Renault have confirmed that both the Renault Sport F1 Team and Red Bull Racing team will receive a substantial performance upgrade in their Power Units in time for the Canadian Grand Prix. Whilst timing of this upgrade has been known for some time, Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz confirmed during Free Practice 2 coverage of the Bahrain Grand Prix that the upgrades will be focused on the introduction of a Homogeneous charge compression ignition system.

Homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) formed the basis of the Mercedes Power Unit upgrade seen at the Italian Grand Prix in 2015. The impact of this system for Mercedes bought performance in line with V10 power units of old. HCCI s a form of internal combustion in which well-mixed fuel and oxidizer (typically air) are compressed to the point of auto-ignition. As in other forms of combustion, this exothermic reaction releases chemical energy into a sensible form that can be transformed in an engine into work and heat.

Such an upgrade with the Power Unit will likely also see fuel and lubricant supplier, Total, introduce new fuel compounds, which could further improve the performance. Through 2015 Total were able to reduce the levels of oil and lubricants required for the Renault power unit by 50% delivering a substantial weight saving for teams.

For more information on HCCI check out the Wikipedia definition here