| Gasoline, Steam Engine Hybrid? |
| Written by Matt James | ||
| Monday, 28 May 2007 | ||
If somebody tells you that adding a little bit of water to your engine can get you 40% better mileage, they're probably blowing a lot of hot air. If Bruce Crower, winner of the 2007 Popular Science Invention Award tells you it's possible, be prepared to be blown away. In today's gasoline and diesel engines, the four strokes of the piston - intake of air, compression of the air/fuel mixture, combustion of fuel, and exhaust of the resulting fumes - generates temperatures above 1500°F. Crower's new engine design harnesses this otherwise wasted heat by injecting water onto the blazing hot piston. The water instantly vaporizes and expands in volume 1,600 times to power the piston through another two strokes. The resulting steam is then recaptured and fed through a condenser to be used again. Not only does this increase the amount of power produced by the engine by about 40%, it cools the engine as it operates, completely eliminating the need for a cooling system. No radiator, no coolant, no water pump... it could shave as much as 1000 lbs off the weight of semi-truck engines. Best of all, the technology could be used in any kind of internal combustion engine. Gasoline, hybrid, series hybrid, biodiesel, and it would always save huge amounts of fuel. No word yet on when we might see this in passenger cars, but the designer's credentials and a working prototype mean it's not more than a few years off. via Popular Science
Comments
(19)
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written by Greenearth , May 29, 2007
You have a great site.
Look forward to visiting again.
written by Greenearth , May 29, 2007
Look forward to visiting again.
Thanks!
written by Matt James , May 29, 2007
Thanks for stopping by!
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written by giorgio , May 29, 2007
somewhere, someone already do it as a change of they're personal car (search for "auto ad acqua" on youTube). waiting for their "few years" could mean that we have time to forget this possibility to run our engines better. Bye
hmm
written by Tobias , May 29, 2007
this is news I like to hear, but I also think it will probably die a silent death. but lets not lose hope!
"No radiator, no coolant, no water pump
written by Space , May 29, 2007
Where does the water condensates if there is no radiator?
And how is it injected in the engine if there is no pump? And isn't water being a coolant here? This seems to be a cooling system that recycles some of the energy rather than just dissipate it entirely as heat.
Re:No radiator, no coolant, no water pum
written by CF , May 29, 2007
"Where does the water condensates if there is no radiator?" Not to sound like a jackass, but in the condenser like it says in the article. A radiator would make the most sense, but I guess that they might use a compressor. How they would drive it I don't know. Most likely belt driven in place of the water pump. I think an electric one would draw too many amps. I wish there were more technical specs on the idea.
"And how is it injected in the engine if there is no pump?" I think they mean no more water pump in the traditional sense. One that is belt driven to run the coolant system. But there would most likely be a pump for the water like there is a pump for the gas lines. Electric, not belt driven. If I had to guess I would assume that the water is injected similar to how fuel is injected. And that would lead me to assume that it's also fuel injected. No need for a carburetor when you are already injecting something. However, I can't tell if there is a carb or not in the linking article's pict. "And isn't water being a coolant here? This seems to be a cooling system that recycles some of the energy rather than just dissipate it entirely as heat. " Essentially yes. Heat is energy, so why not try to harness it, even if it is a byproduct, and use as much as we can? Also this isn't as radical as it might seem. Turbo Prob airplanes did this several decades ago. Although the water injection wasn't on it's own stroke, it was with the air fuel mixture.
what if it gets cold?
written by dave , May 30, 2007
the tank with water would freeze where I live about half the year, then what?
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written by Ben , May 30, 2007
Great idea, still can be significantly improved.
reply
written by Space , May 30, 2007
CF, a condenser IS a radiator.
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written by calahulabuddy , June 05, 2007
I am a mechanic and inventor, I can fully understand the mechanics and the alterations needed for the injection process to be in time with each stroke. I can see using an alcohol based, such as window cleaner, in the winter time and using a magnetic oil heater to make the starts easier. I do think there may need to be alterations for the heating system for the interior of the automobile, such as an electric heating system. The alternators of today pump out a great deal of amps, especially for diesel engines. They have to produce enough power to operate the glow plugs and the electronic fuel injectors.
I had another idea in mind, but I believe this one will be the wave of the future, and running on green fuels. Thanks
six times engine = power 50% below 4T e
written by Dido , June 12, 2007
six times engine = power 50% below 4T engine
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written by Nerris Fatcher , June 12, 2007
Great idea, still can be significantly improved.
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written by pumps , July 06, 2007
I am glad that people with this ingenuity exists. There was one guy in Florida who develop an engine on HHO systems. Always overlooked before.
the system
written by TERRY FRASER , July 18, 2007
No problems about water freezing the system ,they had these problems many years ago, and were taken care of. With all the replies of what should be done and not be done, I bet there could be a real working steam hybrid engine that may be similiar to the subject at hand.
six times engine = power 50% below 4T en
written by wewantutopia , February 16, 2008
"six times engine = power 50% below 4T engine"
Why would you think that? A four stroke cycle has only 1 power stroke while this 6 stroke cycle has 2 power strokes. 1/4 or 2/6. I looks like the 6 stoke will create more power
steam hybrid
written by Lyle Clark , May 06, 2008
I have been running a steam hybrid system in my 96 Dakota off and on for a year, when working the mileage increases from 22 to about 32 miles per gallon ( been having pump problems ) Cost is less than 500 dollars but should run a bit less once the bugs are out.
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written by mohamad , June 07, 2008
Tanks for your info. give me more info about diagram six stroke engine
Engr
written by nt , August 27, 2008
Anyone thought about the metallurgy required for that kind of heat cycling? That could be a deal killer, although it is not my area of expertise...
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