US 4,068,638 AGranted

Fuel vaporizing method and apparatus

OwnerFarrell G. Butler, Jr.inventor

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Abstract

Methods and apparatus are provided for increasing the vaporized proportion of a stream of volatile liquid fuel supply to an internal combustion engine. The non-volatilized portions of the fuel discharged from the carburetor are traveled over a plurality of flow surfaces, such as the surfaces of a layer of metal balls and the like, whereby the fuel mixture will not only be more evenly distributed, but whereby the liquid portion therein will also convert to a vapor before entering the intake manifold of the engine. In addition, a coil of tubing is also preferably provided with one end arranged to receive fresh air heated by the exhaust manifold of the engine, and with the other end downwardly directed from the layer of balls to the intake manifold, whereby the hot air will not only heat and further enhance vaporization of any remaining fuel liquids, but will also create a downdraft further redistributing the fuel vapor being supplied to the engine.

Claims5

Dependent claims

In an engine or the like employing a volatile liquid fuel and having carburetor means and internal combustion cylinder means, the improvement in combustion therewith comprising

housing means interconnected therewith and having an intake port for receiving fuel from the carburetor means and an outlet port for defining a flow path from the carburetor means to the combustion cylinder means,
a plate member positioned in said housing adjacent said intake port and laterally disposed across said flow path and having a plurality of apertures therein of a size increasing as a function of their relative lateral displacement from the axial center of said flow path,
support means spaced apart from said plate member and disposed laterally across said flow path in said housing,
a plurality of spherical members disposed in close proximity between said support means and said plate member,
tubular means having a first end connected to a source of heated air and extended along a circuitous path in close proximity to said said support means for supplying heat to said spherical members and having a second end disposed along the axial center of said flow path for discharging said heated air along said flow path toward said outlet port, and
adjustment means interposed in said tubular means for regulating said heat supplied to said spherical members.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.