Alcohol/water injection
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Post Fiend
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 5,983
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Alcohol/water injection
I have no doubt that is cools the intake charge, simple physics explains this. However (and I have no idea 'how much') doesn't the AW injection displace some volume of fuel/air and hence lower power? Probably not, otherwise we wouldn't use it. But I'm kind of curious, what percentage of cylinder volume is occupied by the unburnable AW mix? Also, on the other hand, N2O has a tremedous cooling/density effect while the additional N2 serves simply as more molecules to 'expand' as the combution energy is transferred to the non combutible gasses in the cylinder. Pehaps the alcohol burns and the vaporous wather serves to expand.
(Can you tell I'm tortured by curiosity?)
(Can you tell I'm tortured by curiosity?)
Post Fiend
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 6,214
Likes: 13
From: New Jersey
As the water/alcohol evaporates in the hot intake charge, it absorbs heat. Less heat, means denser intake charge and the supercharger has more "room" to compress towards it's limit.
The exact balance between intake charge shrinkage and water/alcohol evaporation can be calculated, but expect to be doing mathematics for most of the weekend
The alcohol burns for the most part, which is a nice side benefit as well. It doesn't have the same BTU as gasoline (alcohol is much lower), but it does burn.
The water vapor (steam) will clean the chambers, pistons, top ring and so on. Free engine steam cleaning
Also remember that gasoline and alcohol burn at different rates. Alcohol offers more of a "slow burn" than gasoline.
Use a junkyard or spare engine, and experiment. You'll find some interesting results as you change the mixture of fuel, water, and alcohol. Just don't overdo water by itself.... you don't want to hydrolock the engine. Been there, snapped that crank.
The exact balance between intake charge shrinkage and water/alcohol evaporation can be calculated, but expect to be doing mathematics for most of the weekend
The alcohol burns for the most part, which is a nice side benefit as well. It doesn't have the same BTU as gasoline (alcohol is much lower), but it does burn.
The water vapor (steam) will clean the chambers, pistons, top ring and so on. Free engine steam cleaning
Also remember that gasoline and alcohol burn at different rates. Alcohol offers more of a "slow burn" than gasoline.
Use a junkyard or spare engine, and experiment. You'll find some interesting results as you change the mixture of fuel, water, and alcohol. Just don't overdo water by itself.... you don't want to hydrolock the engine. Been there, snapped that crank.
