On-Board Fuel Vapor Separation for Multi-Fuel Vehicle

An engine system for a vehicle, comprising:

• an internal combustion engine including at least one cylinder;
• an air intake passage communicating with the cylinder;
• an in-cylinder fuel injector configured to inject a first fuel directly into the cylinder;
• a second fuel injector configured to deliver a second fuel to the cylinder;
• a fuel system coupled with the in-cylinder fuel injector and the second fuel injector, said fuel system configured to receive a liquid fuel mixture including the first fuel and the second fuel, and at least partially separate a fuel vapor generated from the liquid fuel mixture into the first fuel and the second fuel so that the first fuel includes a greater concentration of an alcohol component than the second fuel;
• and
• a control system configured to vary an amount of the first fuel injected by the in-cylinder fuel injector relative to an amount of the second fuel delivered by the second fuel injector in response to an operating condition.

An engine system for a vehicle, comprising:

• an internal combustion engine including an air intake passage;
• a fuel storage tank;
• an evaporator configured to receive a fuel mixture from the fuel storage tank via a fuel passage and to vaporize a higher volatility fuel from a lower volatility fuel contained in the fuel mixture;
• a vapor separation system including at least a first adsorption canister and a second adsorption canister arranged in parallel;
• a vapor passage fluidly coupling a vapor formation region of the evaporator with an inlet of each of the first and second adsorption canisters of the separation system;
• a fuel vapor purging passage fluidly coupling the air intake passage of the engine with an outlet of each of the first and second adsorption canisters;
• and
• a control system configured to:
• operate the evaporator to vaporize the higher volatility fuel from the lower volatility fuel;
• and
• during a first mode, pass the higher volatility fuel through the first canister to adsorb a hydrocarbon fraction of the higher volatility fuel at the first canister while purging fuel vapors from the second canister to the air intake passage of the engine;
• and
• during a second mode, pass the higher volatility fuel through the second canister to adsorb the hydrocarbon fraction of the higher volatility fuel at the second canister while purging fuel vapors including the hydrocarbon fraction adsorbed during the first mode from the first canister to the air intake passage of the engine.