Skip to main content
European Commission logo print header
Contenu archivé le 2019-03-15

OPERATION OF AUTOMOTIVE DIESEL ENGINE WITH WATER IN OIL EMULSION

Objectif



THE INTRODUCTION OF WATER FINELY MIXED WITH FUEL IN THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER PROVIDES A BETTER ATOMISATION OF THE FUEL ITSELF AND THEREFORE A CLOSER MIXING WITH THE AIR; THIS RESULTS IN MORE RAPID AND COMPLETE COMBUSTION.

BESIDES FUEL SAVING, CONSIDERABLE ECOLOGICAL ADVANTAGES MAY BE ACHIEVED DUE TO THE FACT THAT NITROGEN DIOXIDE (DUE TO LOWER COMBUSTION TEMPERATURE) AND SMOKE CONTENT (DUE TO MORE COMPLETE COMBUSTION) IN THE EXHAUST GASES ARE DRASTICALLY LOWERED. FURTHERMORE, THE REDUCTION OF THE COMBUSTION TEMPERATURE IMPROVES THE ENGINE RELIABILITY DUE TO LOWER MECHANICAL STRESSES AND MAY PERMIT REDUCTION OF EXCESS AIR AND A RISE IN THE SPECIFIC POWER OUTPUT.

IN THIS STUDY, THE BEHAVIOUR OF VARIOUS DIESEL ENGINES OPERATING ON EMULSION UNDER DIFFERENT CONDITIONS WAS TESTED. THE NOVELTY OF THE PROPOSED EMULSIFYING SYSTEM IS BASED ON THE USE OF A STATIC DEVICE OF GREATLY REDUCED SIZE AND HIGHER RELIABILITY. THE MAIN ECONOMIC ADVANTAGES ARE REDUCED SPECIFIC FUEL CONSUMPTION, POSSIBLE USE OF LESS EXPENSIVE FUEL, LOWER MAINTENANCE COSTS AND SAVING OF LUBRICATING OIL DUE TO CLEANER OPERATION OF THE ENGINE. POSITIVE TEST BENCH RESULTS (WITH AN AUTOMOTIVE HIGH SPEED DIESEL ENGINE) LEAD TO ROAD TESTS OF TWO LIGHT DUTY TRUCKS WITH URBAN AND HIGHWAY CYCLES. THE MAIN OBJECTIVES OF THESE TESTS WERE : TO INVESTIGATE SYSTEM RELIABILITY, TO SET A SUITABLE WATER-FUEL RATIO AND TO LEARN THE DRIVERS' OPINION. DURING THE ROAD TESTS NO SERIOUS TROUBLES WERE FOUND AND VEHICLE DRIVEABILITY WAS PRACTICALLY UNCHANGED.

FOLLOWING THESE TESTS, ONE LIGHT DUTY TRUCK WAS TESTED ON A ROLLER BENCH. EXPERIMENTS HAVE SHOWN THAT THE SPECIFIC FUEL CONSUMPTION HAS DIFFERENT TRENDS WITH SPEED. AT 40 KM/H IT INCREASES WHEN THE WATER/OIL RATIO RAISES, WHILE AT 65 KM/H IT IS PRACTICALLY CONSTANT AND AT 95 KM/H IT DECREASES. ENERGY SAVINGS OF UP TO 3.7 % CAN BE OBTAINED WITH 14 % OF EMULSIFIED WATER. THE EXHAUST TEMPERATURE IS REDUCED AS A FUNCTION OF WATER/OIL RATIO AT 40 AND 95 KM/H, WHILE IT REMAINS CONSTANT AT 65 KM/H. SMOKE IS ALWAYS REDUCED AND AT 95 KM/H FOR A 15 % EMULSION IT IS ONLY 1/3 OF THE FUEL OIL VALUE. THE NITROGEN OXIDE IS ALWAYS REDUCED (E.G. BY 50 % WITH 15 % EMULSION AND A SPEED OF 65 KM/H). THE CO CONTENT IS GENERALLY REDUCED, EXCEPT AT LOW SPEED, WHERE IT INCREASES WHEN THE EMULSIFIED WATER INCREASES. SIMILAR RESULTS WERE OBTAINED WITH BENCH TESTS WITH A HIGH SPEED DIESEL ENGINE (FOR A GENERATOR UNIT) USING LIGHT FUEL OIL AND HEAVY FUEL OIL. IN ALL THESE TESTS, OPERATION WAS REGULAR, TROUBLE FREE AND THERE WAS NO INFLUENCE ON THE ENGINE RELIABILITY.

THE EMULSION QUALITY IS CHARACTERISED BY FOUR MAIN PARAMETERS : WATER/OIL RATIO, MEAN DROPLET-DIAMETER, DROPLET DIAMETER FREQUENCY AND STABILITY AS A FUNCTION OF TIME. TESTS ON THE STABILITY OF THE EMULSION PRODUCED BY THE EMPLOYED DEVICE INDICATED THAT THIS WAS ABOUT 15 SECS AND THAT THE COMPLETE SEPARATION TIME WAS 180 SECS.

Thème(s)

Data not available

Appel à propositions

Data not available

Régime de financement

Data not available

Coordinateur

Agip Solar 77
Contribution de l’UE
Aucune donnée
Adresse
Via del Commercio 1/A
00146 Roma
Italie

Voir sur la carte

Coût total
Aucune donnée