Method of and apparatus for improving the efficiency of internal combustion engines

• US 4,774,810 A
• Filed: 11/16/1987
• Issued: 10/04/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/1982
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Bidwell Howard A US Citizen
• Original Assignee: Stephen Masiuk
• Inventors: Bidwell, Howard
• Primary Examiner(s): Hart, Douglas
• Application Number:
  US07/121,055
• Time in Patent Office: 323 Days
• Field of Search: 60/274, 60/280, 60/600, 60/601, 60/605, 60/606, 60/611
• US Class Current: 60/605.1
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 1/04 with fuel-air mixture admission into cylinder
• CPC Class Codes: F02B 3/06 with compression ignition compression ignition engines using air or gas for blowing fuel into compressed air in cylinder F02B13/02
• CPC Class Codes: F02M 25/00 Engine-pertinent apparatus for adding non-fuel substances or small quantities of secondary fuel to combustion-air, main fuel or fuel-air mixture adding secondary air to fuel-air mixture F02M23/00; adding exhaust gases F02M26/00; fuel-injection apparatus operating simultaneously on two or more fuels or on a liquid fuel and another liquid F02M43/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/12 Improving ICE efficiencies

Abstract

An arrangement of interrelated automatically responsive accesories for an Otto type internal combustion engine wherein an exhaust driven turbine rotor housing is directly connected to the engine exhaust manifold outlet, with the full exhaust flame kinetic energies impinging with full maximum velocity-thrust force against the turbine rotor vaning, at a flow rate variously intensified by the volumes of oxygen and hydrogen gases being fed to the engine intake in accordance to engine speed and load conditions may determine.

Claims

1. Fluid motor means driven by exhaust energy directly from an internal combustion engine manifold outlet including:

a turbine and supercharger and electric generator axially mounted on a drive shaft,

the turbine transferring the energy from the engine exhaust to a motive fluid for rotating the drive shaft of the supercharger and electric generator,

a source of an air/fuel mixture for delivery to the supercharger,

a gas generator automatically energized by the total electric generator output exclusively upon the rotation thereof,

an induction solenoid coil in the power line between the electric and gas generators with a solenoid armature being shiftable responsively to the amperage of the current in the power line to the gas generator,

a valved by-pass disposed between the inlet and outlet of the supercharger,

a mechanical linkage between the armature and a valve of the by-pass,

with the air/fuel mixture fed to the engine being automatically variable according to the quantities of oxygen and hydrogen fed to the engine intake

and with the pressure and volume of the air/fuel mixture flowing from the supercharger to the engine being at a rate in consonance with the separate selected flow of oxygen and hydrogen to the engine intake.

2. In an internal combustion engine having an exhaust driven turbine, the improvement in apparatus for automatically controlling a sequenced series of events involving a plurality of interrelated components including:

a supercharger driven by the turbine,

a valved by-pass within the supercharger between the inlet and outlet thereof,

an electric generator driven by the turbine,

means for creating an variable air/fuel mixture for delivery from the supercharger to the engine,

means for trickling water to the supercharger for conversion into super heated steam for facilitating the converting of the air/fuel mixture to a gaseous state,

a gas generator energized by the electric generator for creating supplies of hydrogen and oxygen gases with the hydrogen gas being separately delivered to the engine intake and with the oxygen gas being separately delivered to the exhaust turbine inlet,

an ammeter and solenoid in the current line extending from the electric generator to the gas generator,

a mechanical linkage operated by the solenoid and connected to a valve in the by-pass for actuating the valve and therewith controlling the amount of the air/fuel mixture fed to the engine in consonance with the volume of hydrogen and oxygen fed to the engine,

the above-recited elements being adapted and arranged foir lessing the floe of air/fuel mixture to the engine as the charges of hydrogen and oxygen gases are increased as regulated by the valve in the by-pass in the supercharger responsively to the current flow from the electric generator to the gas generator.

3. In an internal combustion engine including an exhaust propelled system for carrying exhaust fluid from the engine and a turbine adapted to utilize energy in the exhaust fluid, wherein the improvement comprises:

a source of an air/fuel mixture,

a supercharger connected with the exhaust propelled system and adapted to utilize energy in the exhaust fluid for increasing the pressure of the air/fuel mixture delivered from the source to the supercharger,

an electric generator driven by the exhaust system, a gas generator energized by the electric generator for generating hydrogen and oxygen gases,

delivery means for separately delivering hydrogen and oxygen gases to the engine,

delivery means for delivering the air/fuel mixture from the supercharger to the engine for reaction with the hydrogen and oxygen gases,

a valved bypass in the supercharger connected with the supercharger inlet and outlet with a valve in the bypass being mechanically and electrically responsive to the amperage value flow in the power line between the electric and gas generators.

4. In a multi-component interconnected automatic-responsive internal combustion engine waste heat reclamation system, comprising the steps:

automatically feeding hydrogen gas to the engine intake for reducing the volume of the carbureted liquid fuel/air mixture intake in consonance with feeding oxygen gas selectively as allowed by the increased maximum extracting of velocity and heat energies, boosted in part by a selected variable quantity volume flow of oxygen gas enriched engine exhaust jet expanded directly against vaning of an exhaust driven auxiliary air inducing and heat conditioning rotor, the rotor in turn propelling a supercharger rotor and a direct connected low voltage high amperage D.C. electric generator for respectively supercharging the engine intake content and energizing a hydrogen-oxygen gas generator, altering the engine intake content while simultaneously altering the exhaust content by increasing the exhaust velocity thrust against the rotor vaning, simultaneously blending heat conditioned auxiliary air directly into the exhaust for additionally increasing the secondary combustion activity within the exhaust turbine rotor and thereby obtaining additional thrust against the rotor vaning while consuming the unburned hydrocarbons to a maximum CO₂ content.