Ecomotors. The pollution-free engine. During the World War II, for
some American aircrafts they used the engines with cylinders that,
along with fuel, were injected a minor portion of water.
Coming in contact with burning fuel and white-hot surfaces of
the piston and the cylinder, the water boiled, and the expanding
steam helped the actuation gases to jog the piston and do
the useful work.
The water, transforming into the steam when boiling or
evaporating, expanded in volume by 1700 times (under atmospheric
pressure), which considerably increased the power, torque and
efficiency factor of the engines.
It provided not only for fuel economy and increase of power for 10-15%,
but also for facilitation of the cooling system because the cylinders
were cooled with water rather internally than externally. Because of
their complexity, the engines with water-injection into the cylinders
were not used on a large scale. The contemporary science and
technology, especially electronics, achieved impressive progress, and
now that the oil prices are constantly increasing, it's high time to
return to these undeservingly forgotten, but very potential engines.
The electronics should control the precise dose of the injected water
and its pre-warming from external walls of the cylinder in order to
make the water's temperature, before the injection, as much as
possible approach the steam point which inevitably rises in the
compressed gas medium. The electronics also can control the warming
up of the fuel and air entering the cylinders.
The more effective direct water-cooling of the scorching,
intensively rubbing piston rings, the piston and the cylinder,
extends the operations of the engine. Injected water and
steam make it possible to create the required form and
speed of the flame expansion, and thus, to prevent the
explosive effects (detonation) and, without any harm for the
engines, to increase the pressure of the fuel mixture and use the
cheaper low-octane gasoline.
The water injected into the cylinder will low down the
temperature of the burning gases and thus constraint the
content of toxic nitrates forming out of atmospheric nitrogen
at high temperature.
As it's widely known, the air consists of about 79% of that
nitrogen, and of only 21% of oxygen necessary for the
fuel burning. For example, a hardly smouldering kindling
treated into the test-tube with clear oxygen instantly flares up.
Thus, it is necessary to increase the percentage composition of the
oxygen in the air coming into the cylinder, or, respectively,
decrease the presence of the nitrogen, which does not only sustain
the combustion, but like sand and water, which are used for putting
out the fires, opposes it.
In order to disengage oxygen, or at least nitrogen, the modern
industry uses the cumbrous cascades of evaporators and
condensers, characterized by considerable energy consumption
but low efficiency.
Effectiveness and endurance of membrane molecular filters
are not sufficient either. It is easier to increase the
content of oxygen in the air mass by means of a swiftly
spinning centrifugal machine, where the comparatively
heavy elements of oxygen (molecular mass 32) will push out
the lighter elements of nitrogen (molecular mass 28).
Obviously, it is impossible to get the pure oxygen in such
a way. But if, in the air coming into the cylinder, we
reduce the nitrogen content by two from 79% to 40%,
the oxygen content will increase by almost three times
from 21% to 60%, and the energy released under burning
conditions, will increase by 5-7 times!
In such intensive burning conditions the fuel will be
fully combusted. Obligatory for all automobiles neutralizer, which
robs the engine of its power in order to burn down the toxic odds of
unburned fuel, carbon soot, carbon oxide, and in case of low quality
fuel, hydrogen sulphide, will become unnecessary.
By reducing the nitrogen in the air coming into the cylinders,
we will decrease the quantity of nitrogen oxide discharge, which
otherwise causes acid rains, harmful not only for every living
organism on the Earth, but also for landmarks, various
buildings, constructions, and even for the paint coating of
the automobiles.
It is possible to separate the oxygen and nitrogen elements by
their different intensity of magnetization by means of the
preliminary ionization. The air, fuel, injected water and,
then, the combustion materials could be magnetized at high
temperatures and ionized at low ones.
By means of circumjacent inductance coils protected by
heat-resistant ceramics, it is possible to create the
required form of the fuel mixture densely bunch it in the
center, regularly distribute it about the whole cylinder,
or relocate it to the cylinder's walls and the speed of
its inflammation.
Increasing that we could augment the power, and reducing it
prevent detonation. It would not be amiss to make use of
that energy as the speed of the flame spread in case of
explosion, compared to that of controlled (restricted)
burning, is by 5-20 times and more higher, depending on
the compression ratio and other conditions.
Due to the excessive air pressure it is possible, without
power reduction, to considerably reduce the quantity of the
fuel flowing into the cylinder. Certainly, the engine stability
should be relevant to the tension imposed, and the control algorithm
for the 'explosion-motor' should be thought up.
At that, in order to lessen the unwanted consequences from
the working gas impacts, it is better to make the upper part
of the piston or its junction with the piston rod the wrist,
slightly springy.
The pistons and cylinders, exposed to strong emanation of the
flame, could be manufactured not only of iron or lighter
aluminum and magnesium, but also of ceramics, and still
better of single-crystalline silicon or germanium, which in
the sun batteries produce energy.
That energy, through the electric motor, could help the
pistons to turn the crankshaft. And what if the
semiconducting silicon in photovoltaic arrays could be
replaced by tetravalent crystallized carbon - heatproof
and the most solid artificial diamond, which could be
used for production of the pistons and cylinders, or
just their surfaces?
Sometimes, on submarines, in the outer space, and deep
under the ground, at high-power stations and domiciliary,
they already use the ecofriendly Stirling engines.
There, in the absolutely enclosed space, and preferably under high
pressure (200-500 atmospheres), the helium, heated up from the
furnace with external warming up system, expands and on the other
side of the cylinder, in the special refrigerator, it is cooled down,
which is relatively 'constricted'. The resulting pressure
differential, above the piston and below it, pushes the piston
component and then the other cylinders or the stored energy of the
revolving fly take over. It could be turbines instead of pistons as
well.
'Stirling' can work on any fuel: solid, liquid, gaseous, from
sun energy, atomic reactor, and from any source of heat, not even
connected with burning Let us consider the power, coefficient of
efficiency, the highest maximum turning torque on the low rpm (due to
which 'Stirling' can surpass overstrains, and at that, unlike other
engines, does not fail, and allows to do without a gear-box).
It is efficient, undemanding of the fuel and lubricants,
unpretentious and simple to maintain, multi-applicable and
noiseless.
It is characterized by quick start in winter season, durability,
not large unit weight and compactness, profitable prime cost,
reliability and many other. Having fantastic properties, for
some reason, Stirling engines still go unnoticed by
manufacturers of stock cars.
For the sake of ecology it is necessary to develop and
integrate not only hybrid and hydrogen automobile power
units.
Bezukladnikov Vasilij Alexandrovich.
Poste restante 347913,
The City of Taganrog,
Rostov region, Russia.
