Alcohol And Plasma Enhanced Prechambers For Higher Efficiency, Lower Emissions Gasoline Engines
OwnerLeslie Bromberg, Daniel R. Cohninventors
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Abstract
Optimized alcohol and plasma enhanced prechambers for engines powered by gasoline and other fuels are used to increase the range of prechamber operation and to reduce soot. The increased prechamber capability is employed to extend the limit of lean operation of the engines. It can also be used to extend the limit of heavy EGR operation and to enable higher RPM operation. The amount of alcohol used in the prechamber is preferably less than 2% of the fuel that is used in the engine cylinder. The alcohol for the prechamber can be entirely provided by onboard separation from a gasoline-alcohol fuel mixture.
Claims29
An engine that uses a prechamber to ignite a fuel air mixture in at least one cylinder where the prechamber is fueled with alcohol alone or with an alcohol-gasoline mixture;
- and where the fuel in the cylinder is alcohol alone, alcohol and gasoline or gasoline alone.
An engine that uses a prechamber to ignite a fuel air mixture in at least one cylinder where the prechamber is fueled with alcohol alone or with an alcohol-gasoline mixture;
- and where the fuel in the cylinder is gasoline alone or is a gasoline-alcohol mixture with a lower concentration of alcohol than the fuel in the prechamber;
- and where engine is operated at a leaner mixture or uses heavier EGR which is determined by a combustion stability limit than would be the case if the concentration of alcohol in the prechamber were not higher than in the cylinder.
An engine having at least one cylinder and a prechamber, wherein the prechamber uses alcohol alone or an alcohol-gasoline blend and where a different fuel is used in the cylinder.
An engine that uses a prechamber to ignite a fuel air mixture in at least one cylinder where the prechamber is fueled with alcohol alone, with an alcohol-gasoline mixture or with gasoline alone;
- and
- where the prechamber equivalence ratio is adjusted based on engine temperature so as to reduce emissions of hydrocarbons during a cold start period of 5 seconds or less.
An engine that uses a prechamber to ignite a fuel air mixture in at least one cylinder where the prechamber is fueled with alcohol alone, with an alcohol-gasoline mixture or with gasoline alone;
- and
- where the prechamber is ignited by an electrodeless discharge or by a high voltage discharge where arc does not occur.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.