Internal combustion engine equipped with fuel reforming system

Details Internal combustion engine equipped with fuel reforming system Internal combustion engine equipped with fuel reforming system

2000-04-05

2001-11-20

Wolfe, Willis R. (Department: 3747)

Internal-combustion engines

Combined devices

Generating plants

Reexamination Certificate

active

06318306

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to a process and system for reforming a hydrocarbon fuel and particularly to an internal combustion engine equipped with a fuel reforming system.
2. Background Information
A prior art internal combustion engine equipped with a fuel reforming device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Provisional Publication No. 52-98819.
In such an internal combustion engine, fuel (i.e., hydrocarbon fuel) is conveyed from a fuel tank to a separator by way of a pump. Within the separator, fuel is separated into a hydrocarbon gas which is a lower boiling point component and a liquid hydrocarbon which is a higher boiling point component. The hydrocarbon gas of a lower boiling point component is conveyed to a reforming device where it is reformed into a gas of a large hydrogen content, and supplied to an engine by way of a mixing device. The liquid hydrocarbon of a high boiling point component is kept unreformed and supplied to the engine by way of an injector.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Hydrocarbon has such characteristics that increase of the hydrocarbon content causes the boiling point to become higher but does not always cause the octane value to become higher. In the prior art internal combustion engine equipped with a fuel reforming system, the octane value of the liquid hydrocarbon which is a higher boiling point component and resulted from separation by the separator, is nearly equal to that of original hydrocarbon fuel. The internal combustion engine equipped with a fuel reforming device inherently aims at combusting an air-fuel mixture which is compressed to a high compression ratio by the use of a reformed gas for thereby making the thermal efficiency higher. The prior art internal combustion engine equipped with a fuel reforming system has a problem that the compression ratio cannot be made higher on consideration of the time of operation of the engine under supply of the liquid hydrocarbon.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide an internal combustion engine equipped with a fuel reforming system which is adapted to operated under supply of one of or both of a reformed gas and a liquid fuel, which can make higher the compression ratio at the time of operation under supply of the liquid fuel and thereby improve the fuel consumption and the output of the engine considerably.
To achieve the above object, the present invention provides an internal combustion engine equipped with a novel and improved fuel reforming system. The fuel reforming system comprises a reforming device for receiving a feed of hydrocarbon fuel, water and air and discharging a reformed gas mixture including a reformed gas and a hydrocarbon gas remaining unreformed, through reformation of the hydrocarbon fuel by a water vapor reformation reaction and a partial oxidation reaction, a cooling device for cooling the mixed gas drawn from the reforming device in such a manner that the hydrocarbon gas is condensed into a high octane liquid fuel and separated from the reformed gas, and a selection control device for controlling selection of the reformed gas and the high octane liquid fuel for use in the engine in accordance with an engine operating condition.


REFERENCES:
patent: 3717129 (1973-02-01), Fox
patent: 3901197 (1975-08-01), Noguchi et al.
patent: 3955941 (1976-05-01), Houseman et al.
patent: 4122802 (1978-10-01), Noguchi et al.
patent: 4161164 (1979-07-01), Muhlberg
patent: 4185595 (1980-01-01), Muhlberg
patent: 5515814 (1996-05-01), Cooke
patent: 52-98819 (1977-08-01), None

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