Patent Application
20140116391
The present disclosure is directed to a fuel system and, more particularly, to a fuel system having a blocking member for a gaseous fuel injector.
Due to the rising cost of liquid fuel (e.g. diesel fuel) and ever increasing restrictions on exhaust emissions, engine manufacturers have developed dual-fuel engines. An exemplary dual-fuel engine provides injections of a low-cost gaseous fuel (e.g. natural gas) through air intake ports of the engine's cylinders. The gaseous fuel is introduced with clean air that enters through the intake ports and is ignited by liquid fuel that is injected during each combustion cycle. Because a lower-cost fuel is used together with liquid fuel, cost efficiency may be improved. In addition, the combustion of the gaseous and liquid fuel mixture may result in a reduction of harmful emissions.
Use of a gaseous fuel injector separate from a liquid fuel injector, in a dual-fuel application, can result in the gaseous fuel injector being exposed to contaminants. These contaminants can build up inside a nozzle of the gaseous fuel injector and hinder the efficiency of the gaseous fuel injector and the fuel system overall.
One attempt to address this issue is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,679,538 that issued to Foster on Jul. 14, 1987. In particular, the '538 patent discloses a dual-fuel engine that includes an inlet pipe connected at one end to a gas source and at an opposite end to the side of an engine cylinder via an inlet port. A reed valve assembly is installed between the end of the inlet pipe and the inlet port. The reed valve assembly opens when the inlet port is uncovered by the piston and closes when the inlet port is covered by the piston.
Although the reed valve assembly of the '538 patent may provide some protection of the inlet pipe from contaminants, it is less than optimal. In particular, the reed valve assembly is located behind the inlet port and the port seal. This creates a space adjacent the inside of the cylinder that may be exposed to combustion by-products and oil from inside the combustion chamber. Build-up of these materials in this space could affect the efficiency of the gaseous fuel injector.
The disclosed fuel system is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above and/or other problems of the prior art.
In one aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a fuel system for an engine. The fuel system may include a gaseous fuel injector configured to inject gaseous fuel into a cylinder of the engine. The gaseous fuel injector may include an end fluidly connected to an air intake port and a tip creating an axial flow path for the gaseous fuel directed toward a center of the cylinder. The fuel system may also include a blocking member located in the axial flow path at a distal end of the tip. The blocking member may include at least one aperture to allow the gaseous fuel to pass through the blocking member on the axial flow path.
In another aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a method of injecting fuel into an engine. The method may include directing gaseous fuel through a nozzle and towards a center of a cylinder of the engine. The method may additionally include directing the gaseous fuel through a blocking member at a distal end of the nozzle to dislodge materials gathered on a face of the blocking member. The method may also include directing the gaseous fuel out of the nozzle and into a combustion chamber of the cylinder.
Within engine cylinder liner 18, piston 24 may be configured to reciprocate between a bottom-dead-center (BDC) or lower-most position, and a top-dead-center (TDC) or upper-most position. In particular, piston 24 may be an assembly that includes a piston crown 26 pivotally connected to a rod 28, which may in turn be pivotally connected to a crankshaft 30. Crankshaft 30 of engine 10 may be rotatably disposed within engine block 12 and each piston 24 coupled to crankshaft 30 by rod 28 so that a sliding motion of each piston 24 within liner 18 results in a rotation of crankshaft 30. Similarly, a rotation of crankshaft 30 may result in a sliding motion of piston 24. As crankshaft 30 rotates through about 180 degrees, piston crown 26 and connected rod 28 may move through one full stroke between BDC and TDC. Engine 10, being a two-stroke engine, may have a complete cycle that includes a power/exhaust/intake stroke (TDC to BDC) and an intake/compression stroke (BDC to TDC).
During a final phase of the power/exhaust/intake stroke described above, air may be drawn into combustion chamber 22 via one or more gas exchange ports (e.g., air intake ports) 32 located within a sidewall of cylinder liner 18. In particular, as piston 24 moves downward within liner 18, a position will eventually be reached at which air intake ports 32 are no longer blocked by piston 24 and instead are fluidly communicated with combustion chamber 22. When air intake ports 32 are in fluid communication with combustion chamber 22 and a pressure of air at air intake ports 32 is greater than a pressure within combustion chamber 22, air will pass through air intake ports 32 into combustion chamber 22. It is contemplated that gaseous fuel (e.g. methane or natural gas), may be introduced into combustion chamber 22 (e.g. radially injected) through at least one of air intake ports 32. The gaseous fuel may mix with the air to form a fuel/air mixture within combustion chamber 22.
Eventually, piston 24 will start an upward movement that blocks air intake ports 32 and compresses the air/fuel mixture. As the air/fuel mixture within combustion chamber 22 is compressed, a temperature of the mixture may increase. At a point when piston 24 is near TDC, a liquid fuel (e.g. diesel or other petroleum-based liquid fuel) may be injected into combustion chamber 22 via a liquid fuel injector 36. The liquid fuel may be ignited by the hot air/fuel mixture, causing combustion of both types of fuel and resulting in a release of chemical energy in the form of temperature and pressure spikes within combustion chamber 22. During a first phase of the power/exhaust/intake stroke, the pressure spike within combustion chamber 22 may force piston 24 downward, thereby imparting mechanical power to crankshaft 30. At a particular point during this downward travel, one or more gas exchange ports (e.g., exhaust ports) 34 located within cylinder head 20 may open to allow pressurized exhaust within combustion chamber 22 to exit and the cycle will restart.
Liquid fuel injector 36 may be positioned inside cylinder head 20 and configured to inject liquid fuel into a top of combustion chamber 22 by releasing fuel axially towards an interior of cylinder liner 18 in a generally cone-shaped pattern. Liquid fuel injector 36 may be configured to cyclically inject a fixed amount of liquid fuel, for example, depending on a current engine speed and/or load. In one embodiment, engine 10 may be arranged to run on liquid fuel injections alone or a smaller amount of liquid fuel mixed with the gaseous fuel. The gaseous fuel may be injected through air intake port 32 into combustion chamber 22 via any number of gaseous fuel injectors 38. The gaseous fuel may be injected radially into combustion chamber 22 through a corresponding air intake port 32 after the air intake port 32 is opened by movement of piston 24.
Engine 10, utilizing fuel system 14, may consume two types of fuels when it is run as a dual-fuel engine. It is contemplated that the gaseous fuel may produce between 40% and 85% of a total energy output of engine 10. For example, the gaseous fuel may produce between 60% and 65% of the total energy output, with the liquid fuel producing the remaining 35% to 40%. In any case, the liquid fuel can act as an ignition source such that a smaller amount will be necessary than what is needed for engine 10 if it were running on only liquid fuel.
Gaseous fuel injector 38 may include a nozzle 54, for example a converging nozzle having a converging portion 56 and a tip 58 connected at a distal end of converging portion 56. Tip 58 may create an axial flow path for gaseous fuel directed towards the center axis of cylinder 16. Converging portion 56 may increase upstream pressures of gaseous fuel to be injected into cylinder 16 through downstream tip 58. Converging portion 56 may have an included angle of approximately 60° relative to a center axis, with other angles in the range of about 50 to 70° possible. A pressure of injected gaseous fuel may be higher than that of the air inducted into cylinder 16 from air box 40. It is contemplated that the pressure of injected gaseous fuel may be approximately 2-4 bar greater than the inducted air. This pressure differential may be necessary to allow gaseous fuel to enter cylinder 16 during the time that air intake ports 32 are open and to overcome the flow of air from air box 40 through surrounding air intake ports 32. It is also possible for the higher pressure fuel to help pull air into the cylinder while air intake ports 32 are open.
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In some embodiments, multiple gaseous fuel injectors 38 may be associated with each cylinder 16. When multiple gaseous fuel injectors 38 are used, fuel injectors 38 may be positioned within generally opposing cylinder air intake ports 32, such that streams of fuel injected by these injectors 38 collide with each other inside of combustion chamber 22. For the purposes of this disclosure, the term “collide” may be interpreted as some degree of impact between the multiple streams of fuel, without regard to direction of the injections. To help ensure that opposing streams of fuel collide inside combustion chamber 22 at a general center of cylinder 16, fuel injectors 38 may be positioned within about 15° in either direction of being directly opposite each other. For example, fuel injectors 38 may be positioned within a range of about 165° to 195° from each other around a perimeter of cylinder 16. A resulting collision of two streams of fuel injected by injectors 38 may promote gaseous fuel retention and mixing inside cylinder 16. Fuel retention is an important consideration because the location of gaseous fuel injectors 38 inside air intake ports 32 could otherwise result in gaseous fuel being injected straight across combustion chamber 22 and out of an opposite air intake port 32. Utilization of multiple gaseous fuel injectors 38 may allow for fuel stream interactions that help to prevent gaseous fuel from escaping in this manner. Each gaseous fuel injector 38 may be connected to a common fuel source via a fuel supply line 52. Alternatively, each gaseous fuel injector 38 may be connected to separate fuel sources via separate fuel supply lines (not shown), if desired.
Further exemplary embodiments of fuel system 14 may include additional gaseous fuel injectors 38. For instance, a third gaseous fuel injector (not shown) may be positioned within a third air intake port 32 of cylinder 16 and be configured to inject additional gaseous fuel into combustion chamber 22. Gaseous fuel injectors 38 may be generally evenly spaced or staggered around cylinder 16 to create a desired colliding spray pattern. The injection of gaseous fuel from each gaseous fuel injector 38 may occur substantially simultaneously. Alternatively, gaseous fuel injectors 38 may be configured to inject at different times, such that an injection from one injector 38 begins after the injection from another fuel injector 38 has already begun. Further, one fuel injector 38 may inject a larger quantity of fuel than another fuel injector 38 during a given cycle. One of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that other quantities and arrangements of multiple gaseous fuel injectors 38 may be possible.
In some embodiments, a blocking member 60 may be disposed at a distal end of tip 58 to help keep the tip end clear of foreign objects and debris while allowing free flow of gaseous fuel from gaseous fuel injector 38. In an exemplary embodiment, blocking member 60 is a coalescing filter that allows gaseous fuel to flow freely into cylinder 16 while inhibiting other materials, such as lubricant and combustion by-products from entering injector 38. Gaseous fuel injector 38 may be arranged to inject gaseous fuel at a velocity capable of dislodging materials gathered on a face of the coalescing filter off of blocking member 60 and into cylinder 16. Blocking member 60 may alternatively be another type of mechanism that allows flow out of nozzle 54 and prevents flow into it, such as a passive reed valve. It is also contemplated that blocking member 60 may incorporate both a coalescing filter and a reed valve, if desired.
Blocking member 60 may be placed either at an outer edge of or inside tip 58. In either instance, blocking member 60 may be placed in the axial flow path created by tip 58. Blocking member 60 may include an inner face oriented toward converging portion 56 of nozzle 54 and an oppositely disposed outer face oriented toward combustion chamber 22. Blocking member 60 may include at least one aperture for allowing gaseous fuel to pass through. In addition, blocking member 60 may be placed such that the inner face is substantially perpendicular to the axial flow path of the gaseous fuel, such that gaseous fuel may not be required to change direction as it passes from the inner face to the outer face, through blocking member 60. Materials from inside of combustion chamber 22 may gather on the outer face of blocking member 60.
Retrofit kit 80 may additionally include one or more replacement cylinder liners 70 that have pre-drilled holes 72 for receiving mounting hardware 48 (e.g. bolts) that mount gaseous fuel injectors 38 at air intake ports 32, either inside air box 40 to wall 42 or directly to cylinder liner 18. Mounting hardware 48 may further include a mounting plate for positioning a gaseous fuel injector 38. If a mounting plate is included, it may include holes for allowing air to flow through, to help prevent mounting hardware 48 from blocking air flow through air intake ports 32. A set of instructions 74 for properly installing the components of kit 80 may also be included. One of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that retrofit kit of
Fuel system 14 may be used in a new dual-fuel engine or retrofitted into an existing single-fuel engine. Fuel system 14 may be a substitute for a diesel-only system in order to utilize the associated engine in a cleaner and more cost-efficient manner.
Combustion of the dual-fuel mixture may produce combustion by-products that mostly exit combustion chamber 22 through an exhaust port 34 in cylinder head 20. However, once piston 24 uncovers air intake ports 32 in a subsequent cycle, leftover combustion by-products may gather inside nozzle 54 of any gaseous fuel injectors 38 associated with cylinder 16. Other materials (e.g. lubricant), may also find their way into nozzle 54. Blocking member 60 may be provided at the distal end of nozzle 54 to assist in preventing harmful build up of these materials. For instance, a coalescing filter may be placed at the distal end portion of nozzle 54, at tip 58. The filter may be a metal screen that urges the foreign materials to coalesce into larger droplets on an outer face of the filter. Gaseous fuel that is injected through the filter and into cylinder 16 may dislodge the foreign materials gathered on the filter and direct them away from nozzle 54 and back into combustion chamber 22. Further, placement of blocking member 60 in the axial flow path created by tip 58 may allow gaseous fuel to flow through blocking member 60 without changing direction, which may help prevent loss of fuel velocity. Blocking member 60 may additionally or alternatively include a valve that remains closed unless the gaseous fuel injector 38 is injecting fuel into cylinder 16. The valve may be a simple flap that blocks foreign materials from entering tip 58 of nozzle 54.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the disclosed engine and fuel system. Other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the disclosed fuel system. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents.
