High pressure compressor with controlled cooling during the compression phase

A high pressure gas compressor unit adapted for use in combination with a high pressure gas storage receiver having gas stored under high pressure, and with a liquified gas storage receiver having gas stored in liquified form, the compressor unit comprising:

• a housing containing a high pressure gas compression cylinder with a high pressure displacement piston reciprocal in the gas cylinder, the gas cylinder and displacement piston forming in part a gas compression chamber;
• a gas supply passage in the housing connectable to a gas supply from a supply source of gas to be compressed, the gas supply passage periodically communicating with the gas compression chamber, wherein the gas supply delivers a charge of supply gas to the compression chamber for compression on displacement of the piston during a compression phase of the operating cycle of the compressor unit;
• a liquified gas supply passage in the housing communicating with the compression chamber and communicating with a liquified gas supply having gas stored in liquified form;
• a liquid coolant injector connected to the liquified gas supply passage, the injector having an injector nozzle communicating with the gas compression chamber, the liquid coolant injector being electronically actuated;
• a liquid pump means in the liquified gas supply passage between the fuel injector and the liquified gas supply, for pressurizing liquified gas supplied to the liquid coolant injector for pressurized injection into the compression chamber at any time during the compression phase of an operating cycle of the compressor unit;
• liquified gas regulation means for regulating a pulse of liquified gas injected into the compression chamber for mixing with the charge of supply gas during compression, wherein the liquified gas regulation means includes electronic control means for controlling the timing and duration of the pulse of liquified gas injected into the compression chamber to occur at any time during the compression phase of the operating cycle of the compressor unit for optimized cooling;
• a compressed gas discharge passage in the housing communicating with the compression chamber and communicating with the high pressure gas storage receiver;
• and,
• compressed gas regulation means for regulating the discharge of compressed gas from the compression chamber to the high pressure gas storage receiver, wherein the electronic control means comprises an electronic control module and the liquid coolant injector is electronically controlled by the electronic control module, wherein the electronic control module monitors the temperature of compressed gas discharged from the compression chamber and controls the timing and duration of the pulse of liquified gas injected into the compression chamber to occur at an optimized time during the compression phase.