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Old 06-13-2010, 10:56 PM   #61 (permalink)
Shawn D.
Harebrained Idea Skeptic
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Alpharetta, GA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by thecheese429 View Post
Why not go low-tech, instead of keeping the ECU?

I had the idea of a "throttleless carburetor." It is just a throttle body with 2 jets. The jets meter their fuel by means of a tapered needle that pushes in to slow (or stop) flow, and pulls out to increase flow.

One needle has the gasoline, so whenever you push on the "go pedal" (sorry, I guess that in this application it really would be the "gas pedal") the gas needle opens. The other needle is water. It would be somewhat inversely proportional to the gas needle, so if the gas needle was almost closed (idle) the water would be injecting a good amount. If the gas needle was open (IE, flooring the pedal) the water would be injecting very little.
What you're suggesting is basically a Hilborn fuel injection setup, plus water injection. The problem with the concept is that Hilborns were made for full-throttle (or near full-throttle) use -- they worked well in that application, but are not great for driveability. Such a setup does not compensate for load or density and would be a step backwards.

Quote:
Originally Posted by thecheese429 View Post
The water and gas would both have to be pressurized, so that you don't care about the Bernoulli effect sucking the fuel (and water) out, like a normal carburetor.
If you don't have a venturi, you don't have the Bernoulli principle in effect.

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