Ways to increase diesel engine efficiency?

[user removed]

Piston in cylinder without reciprocation. The big end of the connecting rod rotates around the fixed crank journal. Combustion pressure pushes the cylinder head away from the piston, just the opposite of a reciprocating engine.

Now reverse the pistons and have them backwards of the illustration. No connecting rods, both pistons and cylinders oscillate relative to the crank journal as they rotate around the different eccentrics.

Piston in cylinder compression ignition without reciprocation. The engine block is the flywheel.

Animated Engines - Gnome Rotary

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BQwBGKxShk

regards
Mech

[NachtRitter]

Originally Posted by GreenHornet

Hey Nachtritter,

"What options are there for a more efficient diesel engine that's not reciprocating?"

So to answer your question there are many emerging diesel engine designs being currently tested and look very promising. Some are completely new designs and some are old designs with efficiency upgrades.

I will try my best to give a solid run down of the options.

...
<a lot of great stuff>
...

Ok this is not a comprehensive list but it gets the ball rolling into the what I like to call the new age of diesel fueled engines. The 21 century will be exciting as these technologies become mainstream and available. Feel free to add to the list as there are other exciting designs out there honestly my fingers are starting to hurt so add to this list at your leisure

GH

Wow! A lot of really interesting information in that list... Thanks, GH!!

[NachtRitter]

Originally Posted by Old Mechanic

Piston in cylinder without reciprocation. The big end of the connecting rod rotates around the fixed crank journal. Combustion pressure pushes the cylinder head away from the piston, just the opposite of a reciprocating engine.

Now reverse the pistons and have them backwards of the illustration. No connecting rods, both pistons and cylinders oscillate relative to the crank journal as they rotate around the different eccentrics.

Piston in cylinder compression ignition without reciprocation. The engine block is the flywheel.

Animated Engines - Gnome Rotary

regards
Mech

I'd remembered (after seeing the animation you posted) how the early airplanes had the entire engine rotating around the fixed pistons, though I can't picture something like that in a passenger vehicle.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Rolls-Royce made some Wankel-based Diesels in the 70s or 80s, I don't remember right now.

[GreenHornet]

Originally Posted by smokey442

Convert it to run as a homogenous charge compression ignition engine. No more need for turbocharger and near zero nitric oxide and hydrocarbon production when done correctly.

Good info Smokey and from what I have read thus far they are doing a lot of research into this possibility. The only issue they need to sort out is controlling it better once that is figured out they will have a very real and easily implemented way of increasing efficiency to over 50%.

Here is a good article that talks about it more in depth = Diesel used as gasoline 'spark plug' improves economy and emissions

GH

[GreenHornet]

Another interesting diesel fuel efficiency idea is to create a weak electric field to the fuel before injection. The electric field creates a less viscous diesel fuel. This technology promotes better diesel combustion reducing particulates and increasing fuel economy by up to 19% reported.

Here is a link to an article that talks about this technology = Fuel thinner turns diesel cars into greener machines - tech - 29 September 2008 - New Scientist

GH

[oil pan 4]

Originally Posted by GreenHornet

Here is a good article that talks about it more in depth = Diesel used as gasoline 'spark plug' improves economy and emissions

GH

"Because it’s less reactive and won’t burn so easily, gasoline could normally never fuel a diesel engine. However, the fuel-injected diesel becomes a kind of liquid spark plug, providing a kick-start for ignition. The fuel mix varies depending on circumstance: a heavily-laden truck might require a mix as high as 85% gasoline to 15% diesel, while a light load would require a roughly 50-50 blend. Fast-response fuel blending, in which an engine's fuel injection is programmed to produce the optimal gasoline-diesel mix based on real-time operating conditions, determines the correct mix."

Its called Diesel intake fumigation.
Yeah 1930s technology. The fumigation controls are the only thing new.

[GreenHornet]

Here is another interesting technology concept that I really like and allows multi fuel burning capability to virtually any ICE. Cool video that explains it very well.

Article link = Improved Internal Combustion Engines: Zajac Motors : Greentech Media

Website link with cool video = Home | Zajac Motors

GH

[oil pan 4]

Get a regular diesel engine and you have the potential to burn diesel, biodiesel, SVO as your primary fuels. And you can burn CNG, LPG, gasoline, methanol, ethanol, E85 as secondary fumigated fuels with out complex metering systems.

Gasoline engines cant do anything like that.

[GreenHornet]

Oil Pan,

This is very true a diesel can burn many fuels with modifications which makes it quite versatile in its own right and a major reason I favor it and will be using it in my projects moving forward.

The companies I included in previous posts are doing different things to increase efficiency which is interesting. This is different than SVO, Biodiesel, or fumigation systems. Will any of these systems be available to the do it yourself guy anytime soon? Probably not but its interesting to see what people are working on for the future.