New Report of 20% milage increase by reducing viscosity of fuel

[htaylor]

I saw this first in Scientific American December 2008 page 42. so I looked up the original article in Energy & Fuels November 2008

Electrorheology Leads to Efficient Combustion

ACS Publications - Cookie absent

The typical laboratory test result of the Mercedes-Benz with a dynamometer is shown in Figure 7, At a fixed fuel consumption rate close to 500 g/h, the dynamometer measured the engine output. When the device was turned off, the average power output was 0.3677 hp. It increased to 0.4428 hp after the device was turned on. This indicates that the power output was improved by about 20.4% at the same fuel consumption rate. In other words, if the engine on the road is under the same condition as our laboratory test with the dynamometer, the fuel mileage will be increased by 20.4%. The laboratory test was repeated for 3 h and had an error within 5%.
figure

Figure 7. Laboratory test of Mercede-Benz 300D with a dynamometer. The average power output was originally about 0.368 hp and increased to 0.443 hp after the device was turned on.
A continuous road tests of the Mecedes-Benz 300D for 6 months showed that our device increased the fuel mileage significantly. On the highway, the device increased the fuel mileage from 32 miles per gallon (mpg) to 38 mpg. In city driving, the improvement of fuel mileage was not as good as that on the highway but was averaged at 12−15%.


Looks like another good starting place for better mileage

[Christ]

Are you sure that it says 500g/h? As in Gallons per Hour?

[bhazard]

grams

[ModelE]

wouldnt adding water just reduce the viscosity of the fuel, thereby improving mpg. not adding enough to mess anything up, of course.

[Frank Lee]

Isn't fuel about 98% vaporized in conventional systems?

[ConnClark]

This story has come up here before. There are some fishy things about this guys research. First he claims
" A continuous road tests of the Mecedes-Benz 300D for 6
months showed that our device increased the fuel mileage
significantly. On the highway, the device increased the fuel
mileage from 32 miles per gallon (mpg) to 38 mpg. "

I have never met a 300D owner that has gotten close to 32mpg and I know a few. Also the funding for this research is coming from a company that was busted by the FTC for selling fuel line magnets.

I'll give it serious thought when its confirmed by an independent lab or the EPA.

[ModelE]

Originally Posted by Frank Lee

Isn't fuel about 98% vaporized in conventional systems?

in EFI, maybe not carbeureted systems?

plus the 300D is/was a diesel, with indirect injection if i'm not mistaken. maybe it wouldnt work on gas engines? though i'm skeptical of it anyway

[Christ]

Or maybe it won't work at all...

Decreasing the viscosity of fuel is great... it makes your pump work less, and it flows easier through the injectors. When it comes to the time to actually burn the fuel, the viscosity doesn't mean much when the system is already working to vaporize the fuel to such an efficient level.

Lets say, at best, that it was already 90% efficient at vaporization. Reducing the viscosity of the fuel to ANY extent could only make it a max of 10% better. The closer to 100% you get, the less effect your work has, meaning that it would take a fluid with NO viscosity to reach 99% vaporization efficiency, given the best possible circumstances.

I'm not saying 100% is impossible, but you're not going to get it by adding water to your diesel.

[ConnClark]

We skeptics have a champion

http://arrow.utias.utoronto.ca/~ogul...09comb_eff.pdf

Device violates the first law of thermodynamics.

[Christ]

I read that and laughed... now my wife is mad at you... she was sleeping.

Thanks for the paper though!