US4409931A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Combustion and pollution control system
Assignee: OWEN WICKERSHAM AND ERICKSON PC
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Filing: 1980-09-25
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Granted: 1983-10-18
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Expires: 2000-09-25
Abstract
Abstract A controlled amount of a fluid (steam or water or a solution of water plus additives) is injected into an internal combustion engine to improve combustion, efficiency, and to reduce emissions. The amount of the fluid injected is controlled in response to engine need. The steam is generated by the heat produced by the engine. Combustion gas temperature is used to control the amount of steam produced by varying the fluid flow through one or more fixed or variable orifice control valves. The steam is injected in a piston engine to cool peak temperatures, to prevent detonation and pre-ignition, to smooth out hot spots, to prevent auto-ignition or dieseling, and to use the vapor energy in the expansion cycle to increase low speed torque and acceleration. The steam is used to cause full retard of the vacuum spark advance during acceleration at full load from low speed, and a large amount of steam is injected at this point in the cycle to prevent pre-ignition and detonation. Ultrasonic energy is added to the injected steam to produce better mixing and distribution. Hydrogen is also injected to permit better combustion with higher amounts of air. The hydrogen is produced by the interaction of a catalyst on the steam and fuel hydrocarbons and ultrasonic energy. At times exhaust gas and other additives, such as hydrogen peroxide, methyl alcohol and ammonia are injected.
Inventors
- 👤 John E. Lindberg
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-30 23:40
CPC Classifications
F; F02; F02M; F02M25/00; F02B; F02B43/00; F02B43/08; F02B43/10; F02B3/00; F02B3/06; F02B47/00; F02B51/00; F02B51/04; F02B51/06; Y; Y02; Y02T; Y02T10/00; Y02T10/10; Y02T10/12; Y02T10/30; Y10; Y10S; Y10S123/00; Y10S123/12
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 67
Claim 1
Independent Claim
70 words
A method for providing improved combustion and reduced emissions in an internal combustion engine having a combustion zone and an exhaust, comprising feeding both fuel and controlled amounts of an aqueous fluid into said combustion zone, and in response to engine need to vary the fluid-fuel ratio according to varying combustion conditions, automatically increasing the weight ratio of said aqueous fluid to said fuel during and responsive to engine acceleration.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
70 words
A method for providing improved combustion and reduced emissions in an internal combustion engine having a combustion zone and an exhaust, comprising feeding both fuel and controlled amounts of an aqueous fluid into said combustion zone, and in response to engine need to vary the fluid-fuel ratio according to varying combustion conditions, automatically increasing the weight ratio of said aqueous fluid to said fuel during and responsive to engine acceleration.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
37 words
The method of claim 1 wherein the aqueous fluid is steam and including the step of injecting some liquid water with the steam on acceleration to increase the heat absorbing capacity of the injected steam and water.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
11 words
The method of claim 1 including decreasing said ratio during deceleration.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
42 words
The method of claim 1 including controlling the feeding of the additional amount of fluid during acceleration by engine vacuum, sensing the vacuum at a point in the engine induction system where the amount of the vacuum increases with increased engine power.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 1 comprising feeding the fluid to the engine through the idle screw.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
50 words
The method of claim 2 including storing the water to be supplied during acceleration in a flexible-walled accumulator and collapsing the flexible wall of the accumulator in response to increasing engine vacuum on acceleration to produce at least part of the increased amount of water on acceleration of the engine.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
61 words
The method of claim 1 including the steps of mixing a hydrocarbon with water and heating the resultant mixture in a reactor to convert the water to steam and to form precombustion reaction products, and feeding the steam and reaction products to said combustion chamber as at least a portion of said aqueous fluid and as a portion of said fuel.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 7 including regulating the flow of the mixture into the reactor by a variable orifice controlled in response to the temperature of the exhaust gases.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
62 words
The method of claim 1 including feeding water from a reservoir, converting the water to steam, injecting the steam into the engine at a point where the vacuum increases with increasing engine power, and maintaining the level of the water in the reservoir at a static head which is equal to the engine vacuum at idle RPM at said point of injection.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
70 words
The method of claim 1 including the steps of sensing in said engine a vacuum that decreases with increasing engine power, controlling the feeding of the aqueous fluid to said combustion zone in response to the sensed vacuum, and feeding the controlled amount of said fluid through a variable restrictor which provides a restriction to fluid flow that decreases in relation to a decreasing sensed engine vacuum during engine operation.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 10 including shutting off the flow of fluid at a sensed vacuum value equal to that produced at engine idle.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
55 words
The method of claim 10 including converting a decreasing vacuum field to an increasing vacuum effect by inverter means comprising a piston having one surface subjected to exhaust gas pressure for increasing the feed of fluid at low sensed vacuums, and changing the restriction of said variable restrictor in response to the changing vacuum effect.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
48 words
The method of claim 12 including storing water in a water storage tank, taking feed water from the storage tank, adding exhaust pressure to the water storage tank, and applying the pressure existing above the water in the storage tank to said piston surface of the inverter means.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
49 words
The method of claim 1 including draining, at a point prior to feeding to the engine, the fluid at certain conditions of operation such as, engine off and engine idle and deceleration, to prevent the feeding of the fluid to the engine in said selected conditions of engine operation.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
44 words
The method of claim 6 including distending the flexible wall of the accumulator in response to decreasing engine vacuum on deceleration to accumulate at least some of the water in the accumulator to produce a decreased amount of fluid on deceleration of the engine.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of claim 1 comprising controlling the feeding and amount of the fluid by the exhaust pressure from the engine exhaust.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 1 comprising controlling the feeding and amount of the fluid by the temperature of the gases exhausted from said engine.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of claim 1 wherein the feeding and amount of the fluid is controlled by the power output of the engine.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
17 words
The method of claim 1 having means for automatically cutting off the fluid when the engine stops.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
35 words
The method of claim 1 including generating superheated steam, maintaining the steam superheated until the steam is injected in the combustion zone, and decreasing the quality of the superheated steam with increase in engine power.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
35 words
The method of claim 1 including converting water to steam in a flash boiler by heat developed from the combustion and injecting the steam as said aqueous fluid into the fuel-air mixture for the engine.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
132 words
The method of claim 21 including generating the steam in a flash boiler having two passageways, one for water inlet flow and one for steam outlet flow, and wherein the flash boiler includes a first element made of one material having one coefficient of thermal expansion and connected to a valve seat and a second element made of a second material having a coefficient of thermal expansion less than said one material and connected to a movable valve element and wherein the two passageways are concentric, with the water inlet flow passageway disposed next to the second material having a coefficient of thermal expansion less than said one material so that the inflowing water maximizes the cooling effect on said second element, especially during acceleration, to provide, in itself, a control function.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
54 words
The method of claim 21 including maintaining the flash boiler partially full of water so that on acceleration an extra amount of steam is produced by the sudden increase in temperature of the combustion and increased conversion of the water in the partially full flash boiler concurrent with the sudden increase of the temperature.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 21 including pumping water to the flash boiler by a pump responsive to acceleration of the engine.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of claim 21 including increasing the flow of water to the flash boiler by conducting exhaust gas from the engine exhaust to the water supply for said flash boiler.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
10 words
The method of claim 25 including rectifying the exhaust pressure.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of claim 21 including generating the steam in a flash boiler exposed to the full combustion temperature at the surface of the combustion chamber.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of claim 27 including placing a heat pipe around the seat of an exhaust valve to heat the flash boiler.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
50 words
The method of claim 21 wherein the engine has an automatic choke system and including supplying at least a part of the steam produced in the flash boiler to a bi-metal control element of an automatic choke system to provide rapid removal of the enrichment necessary to start the engine.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method of claim 21 including injecting additives from the group consisting of H 2 O 2 , ammonia, and upper cylinder lubricants and anti-valve sticking agents by an acceleration pump operative only on acceleration of the engine.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
58 words
The method of claim 21 including supplying water to the flash boiler at a constant feed pressure, reducing the impedance in the flow system to a level where the flow system will flow more than enough steam to meet the engine need, and then cutting down on the flow by metering the flow in response to engine need.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
85 words
The method of claim 31 including metering the water flow into the flash boiler by a variable orifice valve having a valve element movable with respect to a valve seat, retracting the valve element from the valve seat on an increase in the temperature in the combustion zone and contouring the valve element and valve seat relative to one another to produce a varying area for fluid flow which is matched to the engine's need corresponding to each amount of retraction of the valve element.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
57 words
The method of claim 1 including controlling the feeding of the fluid to said combustion zone through the entire range of operation of the engine from start-up, through idle, through acceleration, at all power levels, through deceleration and at shut-off, and supplying the amount and quality of steam needed by the engine for each condition of operation.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method of claim 1 including regulating the feeding of said fluid to said combustion zone in response to the engine heat at a selected location in the engine and modulating the regulated feed in response to engine vacuum.
Claim 36
Independent Claim
75 words
A method of improving a combustion process of the kind in which a fuel is mixed with air and vaporized and then burned in a combustion chamber of an engine, said method comprising, injecting an aqueous fluid into the combustion chamber, and controlling the amount of fluid injected in response to a condition of the combustion including increasing the flow rate of fluid to the combustion chamber with increasing heat generation in the combustion chamber.
Claim 37
Independent Claim
75 words
A method of improving a combustion process of the kind in which a fuel is mixed with air and vaporized and then burned in a combustion chamber of an engine, said method comprising, injecting an aqueous fluid into the combustion chamber, and controlling the amount of fluid injected in response to a condition of the combustion including increasing the flow rate of fluid to the combustion chamber with increasing heat generation in the combustion chamber.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
31 words
A method as defined in claim 35 wherein the engine has an exhaust and wherein said increasing heat generation is measured by the temperature of the exhaust from the combustion chamber.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
30 words
A method as defined in claim 35 wherein the combustion chamber is a combustion chamber of an engine and the condition is the amount of energy flow through the engine.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
28 words
A method as defined in claim 35 wherein the combustion chamber is an engine combustion chamber and the condition is the brake mean effective pressure of the engine.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
67 words
Apparatus for providing improved combustion and reduced emissions in an internal combustion process engine comprising the combination of a combustion chamber, means for feeding fuel into said combustion chamber, means for injecting controlled amounts of an aqueous fluid into said combustion chamber, and means in response to engine need for increasing the weight ratio of said aqueous fluid to said fuel during and responsive to engine acceleration.
Claim 42
Dependent Claim
67 words
Apparatus for providing improved combustion and reduced emissions in an internal combustion process engine comprising the combination of a combustion chamber, means for feeding fuel into said combustion chamber, means for injecting controlled amounts of an aqueous fluid into said combustion chamber, and means in response to engine need for increasing the weight ratio of said aqueous fluid to said fuel during and responsive to engine acceleration.
Claim 43
Dependent Claim
34 words
The apparatus of claim 39 comprising the combination of an induction system having a carburetor and a port immediately below the carburetor, and means for injecting said controlled amounts of fluid into said port.
Claim 44
Dependent Claim
16 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including means for feeding lean-out air in combination with the fluid.
Claim 45
Dependent Claim
27 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including fluidic drain valve means for draining excess fluid from the inlet to the engine on engine shut-down and on engine deceleration.
Claim 46
Dependent Claim
29 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including vacuum control means for controlling the feeding and amount of fluid in response to vacuum generated by the induction system of the engine.
Claim 47
Dependent Claim
46 words
The apparatus of claim 43 wherein the control means include converter means for converting a decreasing vacuum field to an increasing vacuum effect and comprising a variable restrictor and means for decreasing its restriction to fluid flow with a decreasing sensed engine vacuum during engine operation.
Claim 48
Dependent Claim
30 words
The apparatus of claim 44 wherein the converter means include a piston having one surface subjected to exhaust gas pressure for increasing the feed of fluid at low sensed vacuums.
Claim 49
Dependent Claim
125 words
The apparatus of claim 39 having flash boiler means with two passageways, one for water inlet flow and one for steam outlet flow, said flash boiler means including a first element made of one material having one coefficient of thermal expansion and connected to a valve seat and a second element made of a second material having a coefficient of thermal expansion less than said one material and connected to a movable valve element said two passageways being concentric, with the water inlet flow passageway disposed next to the second material having a coefficient of thermal expansion less than said one material so that the inflowing water maximizes the cooling effect on said second element, especially during acceleration, to provide, in itself, a control function.
Claim 50
Dependent Claim
119 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including flash boiler means for converting water to steam by heat developed from the combustion process, vacuum control acceleration means for injecting an extra amount of water into the flash boiler on acceleration and comprising a chamber, a vacuum actuated diaphragm and piston associated with the chamber for drawing water into the chamber on start-up of the engine when vacuum is produced, spring means for forcing the piston downwardly to force the water out of the chamber on acceleration when the engine vacuum decreases and conduit means for conducting the water forced out of the chamber to the flash boiler for conversion to steam in the flash boiler simultaneously with acceleration of the engine.
Claim 51
Dependent Claim
53 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including regulator means for controlling the feed of fluid to said combustion chamber and comprising thermal controlled valve means and discriminator means for modulating the regulated feed of fluid from the regulator means comprising a fluidic drain valve and a flexible walled accumulator, both responsive to engine vacuum.
Claim 52
Dependent Claim
54 words
The apparatus of claim 48 wherein the fluid is fed into the bottom of the discriminator means and wherein the discriminator means create at engine idle and during engine deceleration a void in the top part of a flexible walled accumulator for preventing feed of fluid to the engine at idle and during deceleration.
Claim 53
Dependent Claim
93 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including acceleration control means for feeding an additional amount of fluid during acceleration in response to engine vacuum, and wherein said acceleration control means include a flexible walled accumulator for storing water and collapsible in response to increasing engine vacuum on acceleration to feed at least some of the fluid in the accumulator to the engine on acceleration and distensible in response to decreasing engine vacuum on deceleration to accumulate at least some of the fluid in the accumulator to produce a decreased amount of fluid on deceleration.
Claim 54
Dependent Claim
68 words
A reactor unit for generating steam and precombustion reaction products for feeding into a combustion zone of an internal combustion engine and comprising converter means for converting water to steam and for converting a first material to precombustion reaction products and control means for controlling the feed of the steam and precombustion reaction products of said combustion zone of the engine in response to an engine operating condition.
Claim 55
Dependent Claim
68 words
A reactor unit for generating steam and precombustion reaction products for feeding into a combustion zone of an internal combustion engine and comprising converter means for converting water to steam and for converting a first material to precombustion reaction products and control means for controlling the feed of the steam and precombustion reaction products of said combustion zone of the engine in response to an engine operating condition.
Claim 56
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 1 including controlling the flow of said fluid to said combustion zone in response to heat flux produced by the engine.
Claim 57
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method of claim 52 including controlling said fluid flow by controlling the orifice of a variable orifice valve by first and second thermally expansible control elements.
Claim 58
Dependent Claim
43 words
The method of claim 53 including using the flow of the fluid controlled by the valve to provide a regenerative feedback for additional repositioning of the variable orifice valve on a change of heat flux occuring during dynamic change in engine operating conditions.
Claim 59
Dependent Claim
27 words
The method of claim 1 including disassociating at least a substantial portion of the aqueous fluid into free hydrogen and oxygen gases before feeding to the engine.
Claim 60
Dependent Claim
69 words
The method of claim 55 including feeding the aqueous fluid and fuel to a reactor, subjecting the reactor to the heat of the combustion gases of the engine, and using a catalyst within the reactor which is effective to lower the temperature at which the fuel and aqueous fluid are reformed into gaseous precombustion reaction products within the reactor, and then feeding the resultant materials to said combustion zone.
Claim 61
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method of claim 1 including feeding the aqueous fluid into said combustion zone in response to engine exhaust pressure.
Claim 62
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method of claim 1 including controlling the feed of the aqueous fluid to said combustion zone by a computer responsive to at least one engine operating condition.
Claim 63
Dependent Claim
12 words
The method of claim 58 wherein said condition is exhaust gas temperature.
Claim 64
Dependent Claim
36 words
The method of claim 58 including reacting fuel with the aqueous fluid in a reactor and controlling both the flow of the aqueous fluid and the flow of the fuel to the reactor by the computer.
Claim 65
Dependent Claim
30 words
The method of claim 1 including controlling the feeding of the aqueous fluid to the combustion zone by a pulse pump operated by pulsations in the engine exhaust gas pressure.
Claim 66
Dependent Claim
28 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including heat flux control means for the fluid flow and comprising a variable orifice valve responsive to heat flux produced by the engine.
Claim 67
Dependent Claim
29 words
The apparatus of claim 39 including means for disassociating at least a substantial portion of the aqueous fluid into free hydrogen and oxygen gases before feeding to the engine.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1986-10-17 | 1987-04-18 | 1987-10-18 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1990-10-17 | 1991-04-18 | 1991-10-18 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1994-10-17 | 1995-04-18 | 1995-10-18 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |