An aqueous fuel for an internal combustion engine, the hidden pattent

Publication numberUSRE35237 EPublication typeGrantApplication numberUS 08/326,610Publication dateMay 14, 1996Filing dateOct 20, 1994Priority dateNov 22, 1989InventorsRudolf W. GunnermanOriginal AssigneeGunnerman; Rudolf W.

Aqueous fuel for internal combustion engine and method of combustion
US RE35237 E

Abstract

An aqueous fuel for an internal combustion engine is provided. The fuel comprises water from about 20 percent to about 80 percent by volume of the total volume of said fuel, and a carbonaceous fuel selected from the class consisting of ethanol, methanol, gasoline, kerosene fuel, diesel fuel, carbon-containing gaseous or liquid fuel, or mixtures thereof. A method for combusting an aqueous fuel in an internal combustion engine is provided. The method produces approximately as much power as the same volume of gasoline. The method comprises introducing air and aqueous fuel into a fuel introduction system for the engine. The fuel comprises water from about 20 percent to about 80 percent by volume of the total volume of the fuel, and a carbonaceous fuel from ethanol, methanol, gasoline, kerosene fuel, diesel fuel, carbon-containing gaseous or liquid fuel, or mixtures thereof, and introducing and combusting said air/fuel mixture in a combustion chamber or chambers in the presence of a hydrogen producing catalyst to operate the engine.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A novel fuel and fuel mixture, and novel method of combustion, have been discovered which will reduce pollutants produced by internal combustion engines operated with conventional carbonaceous fuels such as gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene fuels, alcohol fuels such as ethanol and methanol, and mixtures thereof. The new fuel mixture is also much less expensive than carbonaceous fuel such as gasoline or diesel fuel because its primary ingredient is water. The term "internal combustion engine" as used herein is intended to refer to and encompass any engine in which carbonaceous fuel is combusted with oxygen in one or more combustion chambers of the engine. Presently known such engines include piston displacement engines, rotary engines and turbine (jet) engines.
The novel aqueous fuel of the present invention has less than the potential energy of carbonaceous fuels but is nonetheless capable of developing at least as much power. For example, an aqueous fuel of the invention comprising water and gasoline has about 1/3 the potential energy (BTU's) of gasoline, but when used to operate an internal combustion engine, it Will produce approximately as much power as compared with the same amount of gasoline. This is indeed surprising and is believed to be due to the novel fuel mixture that results from the release of hydrogen and oxygen and the combustion of hydrogen when the novel aqueous fuel is introduced to a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine and combusted with relatively small amounts of combustion air in the presence of a hydrogen-producing catalyst by the novel method of the present invention.
In its broadest aspects, the aqueous fuel of the present invention comprises substantial amounts of water, e.g., up to about 70 to about 80 percent by volume of the total volume of aqueous fuel, and a gaseous or liquid carbonaceous fuel such as gasoline, ethanol, methanol, diesel fuel, kerosene-type fuel, other carbon-containing fuels, such as butane, natural gas, etc., or mixtures thereof. In utilizing this fuel with the novel method of the present invention, aqueous fuel and combustion air are introduced into the engine's fuel introduction system, for receiving and mixing fuel and combustion air and introducing the fuel/air mixture into the combustion chamber(s). Such systems may include a conventional carburetor or fuel injection system. Although it is not necessary for the practice of the invention, when using an engine with a carburetor, the combustion air may be preheated to from about 350 400 fuel injection system, the combustion air may be preheated from about 122 system. The air/fuel mixture is introduced into the combustion chamber or chambers and combusted in the presence of a hydrogen-producing catalyst which facilitates the dissociation of water in the aqueous fuel into hydrogen and oxygen so that the hydrogen is combusted with the carbonaceous fuel to operate the engine.
The term "hydrogen-producing catalyst" is used herein in its broadest sense. A catalyst as generally defined is a substance that causes or accelerates activity between two or more forces without itself being affected. In the present invention it is known that without this substance present in the combustion chamber, as described herein, combustion of the aqueous fuel does not take place in such a way as to produce the desired degree of power to operate the internal combustion engine.
Without intending to be bound by theory, it is believed that upon generation of an electric spark in a combustion chamber with a wet atmosphere in the presence of poles formed of hydrogen-producing catalyst, the electrical discharge electrifies the mass of water present in liquid or gaseous form, e.g., steam vapor, to enable the electric charge to travel to the negatively charged catalytic poles to effect discharge of the electric charge. Dissociation of water molecules appears to occur upon exposure of the mass of water molecules to the electric charge in combination with the heat of combustion resulting from combustion of the carbonaceous material component of the aqueous fuel during the compression stroke which, along with combustion of released hydrogen, provides the power to operate the engine.
Although in the presently preferred embodiment it is preferred to use two catalytic poles of hydrogen-producing catalyst, one, or more than two poles, also may be used to disperse the electric charge. In addition, although the normal spark of standard motor vehicle spark plug systems generating about 25000 to 28000 volts may be used, it is presently preferred to generate a hotter spark, e.g., generated by about 35000 volts. Electric spark generating systems are available of up to 90000 volts and it appears that higher voltages result in better dissociation of water molecules in the combustion chamber.