Internal-combustion engines – Water and hydrocarbon
Patent
1996-10-08
1998-06-02
Solis, Erick R.
Internal-combustion engines
Water and hydrocarbon
123 25P, 123 25Q, F02B 4702
Patent
active
057586063
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a national stage of PCT/SE95/00026 filed 16 Jan. 1995 and based upon Swedish national application 9400652-5 of 25 Feb. 1994 under the International Convention.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method for supplying water or another vapor to the intake air of an internal combustion engine, and to a device for carrying out the method.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The principle of supplying water vapour to the intake air of an engine is known. This is done, inter alia, in so-called turbo-charged internal combustion engines. Such moistening of the air yields, above all, a reduction of emissions of nitric oxide. This is of particular interest in engines which operate with excess air and therefore cannot be provided with three-way catalysts. It is also known to supply, in the same manner, evaporated fuel to alcohol-powered engines.
A device for supplying water vapor to the intake air of the engine is disclosed in Patent Specification U.S. Pat. No. 4,632,067. In this device, like in other known devices applied in the same manner, water vapor forms by direct heating of the water by a heating element, whereupon the water vapor is mixed with the air that is supplied to the engine. This technique of evaporating the water requires high-grade energy in relatively large amounts. Moreover, the regulation of the amount of supplied water vapor (or some other vapor) is difficult, since the vapor must be supplied in a well-balanced amount per liter of air for optimum results and, frequently, the flow of the intake air strongly varies during short periods.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a method for supplying water or another vapor to the intake air of an engine and to a device for carrying out the method, which eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior-art techniques and drastically reduce the levels of nitric oxide emissions from the internal combustion engine, while simultaneously increasing the degree of utilization of the fuel.
This object is achieved in a method for supplying vapor to intake air that is supplied to an internal combustion engine which comprises the steps of contacting, in a moistening means, the intake air with liquid, the vapor being simultaneously fed into the intake air and the liquid into the moistening means, and causing the intake air and the liquid to flow in opposite directions through the moistening means.
According to the invention the intake air is compressed before the vapor is supplied, and using the energy inherent in the cooling water or exhaust gases of the engine the liquid forming the vapor is preheated before feeding it thereof into the moistening means. The liquid can be fed into an upper part of the moistening means and dispersed into a mist. The mist is permitted to fall freely down through the moistening means. The intake air is fed into a lower part of the moistening means and the intake air is caused to flow up through the mist.
According to the invention the liquid is caused to flow into an upper part of the moistening means and the liquid is spread over a body arranged in the moistening means and caused to flow downwardly along this body. The intake air is fed into a lower part of the moistening means and caused to flow upwards along the body.
A device for supplying vapor to the intake air that is supplied to an internal combustion engine then comprises a moistening means which has a first connection for feeding liquid into the moistening means and a second connection for feeding the intake air into the moistening means. The moistening means is adapted to carry out the supply of vapor to the intake air by contacting the intake air and the liquid with each other, while the flow in opposite directions through the moistening means in the device further comprises a preheater which is connected to the first connection of the moistening means for preheating the liquid before feeding it into the moistening means, the preheater being connecte
REFERENCES:
patent: 4625681 (1986-12-01), Sutekiyo
patent: 4725226 (1988-02-01), Balsiger et al.
patent: 5125377 (1992-06-01), Mezheritsky
patent: 5131229 (1992-07-01), Kriegler et al.
patent: 5396866 (1995-03-01), Kuntz
Olsson Lars-Ola
Rosen Per
Dubno Herbert
Munters Euroform GMBH
Solis Erick R.
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