Coal-water slurry fuel internal combustion engine and method for operating same

An internal combustion engine fueled with a coal-water slurry comprising in combination an engine block having a cylinder with a reciprocating piston therein, a cylinder head attached to the engine block for defining with the cylinder and the piston a main combustion chamber, means for introducing a charge of air into the main combustion chamber, first fuel injecting means supported by the cylinder head and in registry with the main combustion chamber for directly injecting into the combustion chamber a major portion of a coal-water slurry charge required for a power cycle of the engine, and ignition means for the major portion of the coal-water slurry charge provided by pilot chamber means supported by the cylinder head and comprising wall means defining and enclosing a pilot combustion chamber at a location spaced from the main combustion chamber, passageway means interconnecting the pilot combustion chamber and the main combustion chamber, and second fuel injecting means supported by the pilot chamber means and in registry with the pilot combustion chamber for injecting a minor portion of the coal-water slurry charge into the pilot combustion chamber for combustion thereof with a portion of the air introduced into the main combustion chamber and conveyed into the pilot combustion chamber through said passageway means to provide a stream of hot combustion gases conveyable through said passageway means into the main combustion chamber for effecting the ignition of the major portion of said coal-water slurry charge injected into the main combustion chamber, and means associated with said pilot combustion chamber for heating the portion of air conveyed into the pilot combustion chamber to a temperature adequate to ignite said minor portion of the coal-water slurry charge upon the admixture therewith in the pilot combustion chamber.