Abstract:
An integrated system and process for improving internal combustion engine performance consists of four components: (1) an acetone-based fuel additive phase, (2) a fuel pre-heating and polarization phase, (3) an ionized hydrogen-oxygen plasma injection phase, and (4) a microprocessor-ECM interface phase to optimize the combined performance of the other three components.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to an integrated system and process for improving the performance of internal combustion engines. Combustion efficiency is increased and exhaust emissions are reduced by the combined effects of: (1) introducing an acetone-based fuel additive in the fuel tank. (2) pre-heating and polarizing the fuel, and (3) mixing a plasma of ionized hydrogen and oxygen with the intake air. This integrated system and process produces synergistic fuel additives with superior combustion characteristics. 
     With respect to the first component of the present invention, the use of acetone-based fuel additives to improve fuel efficiency is known in the prior art. One example of such a fuel additive is disclosed in Smith, U.S. Pat. No. 6,123,742. Acetone acts as a surfactant with respect to gasoline, reducing the surface tension of the liquid fuel so that it forms finer droplets that vaporize more readily. In the Smith patent disclosure, as in the present invention, acetone is mixed with xylene, the latter being an aromatic hydrocarbon which boosts the fuel&#39;s octane rating. 
     The acetone-based fuel additive component of the present invention differs from those disclosed in the prior art because it is formulated specifically to work in concert with the other two components of this invention. The composition of the additive and the ratio of its fuel mixture are optimized to complement the other fuel enhancement features of this invention. 
     With respect to the second component of this invention, a number of fuel preheaters are disclosed in the prior art, including Zabenskie, U.S. Pat. No. 4,015,567; Laramee, U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,533; Favreau et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,841,943; Ray, U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,137; Huang, U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,555; and Lambert, Sr., et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,118,451. These preheaters operate on the basis of a heat-exchange process between the fuel and hot-water side of the engine cooling system, as does the present invention. The prior art fuel preheaters in some instances produce a super-heated fuel (e.g., Favreau, et al.) and in other instances a vaporized fuel (e.g., Lambert, Sr., et al.). But none of the prior art devices produce a polarized preheated fuel, as does the present invention. The effect of the second component of the present invention is not only to preheat the fuel, but also to polarize the fuel&#39;s covalent hydrocarbon bonds, thereby rendering the hydrocarbon molecules more rapidly and completely combustible. 
     With respect to the third component of this invention, the prior art encompasses several devices for generating gaseous hydrogen-oxygen mixtures to be mixed with fuel prior to combustion. Examples are Ross, U.S. Pat. No. 7,143,722, Larocque, U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,648 and DeSouza, Pub. No. U.S. 2001/0003276. These devices all use an electrolysis cell to electrolyze water into hydrogen and oxygen. 
     In the electrolysis process, positively-charged hydrogen ions are generated at the cathode, while negatively charged oxygen ions are generated at the anode. In the prior art electrolysis devices, however, no effort is made to retain the ionized state of the generated gases, which simply revert to molecular hydrogen H 2  and oxygen O 2 . Consequently, these devices fail to take advantage of the superior combustion characteristics of an ionized hydrogen-oxygen mixture. 
     In the present invention, on the other hand, the ionized H + /O −  plasma is not mixed with the fuel, but instead it is drawn from an electrolysis cell directly into the engine&#39;s air intake manifold by a Venturi injector. Consequently, the gaseous hydrogen and oxygen remain in an ionized state when they mix with the atomized fuel at the fuel injection ports. Since the fuel itself has already been polarized by the second component of this invention, moreover, the resulting air-fuel mixture is a highly combustible blend of ionized hydrogen-oxygen plasma and enhanced, pre-heated polarized fuel. 
     Consequently, the present invention presents a unique combination of synergistic fuel additives, fuel pre-heating, fuel polarization, and ionized hydrogen-oxygen injection. The overall result is an ionized gaseous plasma containing enhanced fuel which, when introduced into the engine&#39;s cylinders, combusts within optimum efficiency, both maximizing energy recovery and minimizing polluting residuals. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to maximize the fuel energy efficiency of internal combustion engines while simultaneously minimizing combustion residuals that cause harmful emissions. 
     It is another object of the present invention to increase internal combustion engine efficiency by recovering waste heat from the engine cooling system and using that heat to pre-heat the fuel so as to make it more readily combustible. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to further improve the combustibility of the fuel by passing it through an annular array of magnets during the preheating process in order to polarize the fuel, thereby weakening its covalent bonds and rendering the fuel more readily combustible. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to inject directly into the engine&#39;s intake manifold ionized hydrogen and oxygen gases generated by the electrolysis of water, and to have the ionized H + /O −  plasma mix with the atomized polarized fuel downstream of the fuel injectors to produce a highly combustible combination of hydrogen-oxygen plasma and enhanced, pre-heated polarized fuel. 
     It is yet a further object of the present invention to introduce an acetone-based additive to the fuel in a vehicle&#39;s fuel tank, with the additive being so formulated and so proportioned to the fuel as to render the fuel more tractable to the pre-heating, polarization and plasma injection processes. 
     These and other beneficial results are achieved through a three-stage fuel enhancement process, comprising: 
     1. An acetone-based fuel additive stage, 
     2. A fuel preheating and polarization stage, and 
     3. An ionized hydrogen-oxygen plasma injection stage. 
     The fuel additive stage is implemented by introducing an acetone-based fuel additive directly into a vehicle&#39;s tank. By reducing the surface tension of the liquid fuel, the acetone in the additive enables the fuel to atomize into finer droplets and to vaporize more readily. Inclusion of xylene in the additive works to weaken the covalent hydrocarbon bonds of the fuel. Thus the fuel is pre-conditioned and rendered more tractable to the subsequent preheating and polarization stage. 
     In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the fuel additive comprises equal volumes of three constituents: acetone, xylene and a conditioning lubricant. The xylene boosts the fuel&#39;s octane rating and thus improves engine performance. The conditioning lubricant, which serves to protect the engine and further condition the fuel, comprises, by volume: one part Accelerator™ octane booster; one part Energy Release™ cylinder coating; three parts GP-7 two-cycle auto racing oil, and three parts Lucas™ auto racing oil. The additive is mixed with fuel in the vehicle&#39;s fuel tank at a ratio of 3 fluid ounces of additive to 10 gallons of fuel. 
     The fuel preheating and ionization stage utilizes a heat-exchanger manifold which is installed in the hot-water side of the engine cooling system, typically upstream of the radiator. The heat-exchanger manifold comprises an inner sleeve, through which the fuel flows, and an outer sleeve, through which or along which the hot engine coolant circulates, thereby transferring heat to the fuel. The inner sleeve comprises a series of interconnected annular or tubular magnets, such that the fuel flows through the apertures of the magnets and is polarized by the magnetic field. The heated and polarized fuel then flows from the heat-exchanger manifold into the fuel injectors, where it is atomized and injected into the airflow to the engine cylinders at the fuel injection ports. 
     The ionized hydrogen-oxygen fuel enhancement stage utilizes an electrolysis cell, preferably of the type disclosed in the patents of Yull Brown, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,014,777 and 4,081,656, to generate a plasma consisting of two parts H +  ions to one part O −  ions. The hydrogen-oxygen plasma is drawn out of the electrolysis cell by a Venturi injector, which utilizes a partial vacuum created by the flow of intake air across a Venturi opening or tube. An microprocessor optimizer is used in conjunction with the vehicle&#39;s engine and emissions sensors to set the air-to-fuel ratio in order to adjust for the increased energy content of the enhanced fuel-plasma mixture. 
     As a result of the process and associated apparatus of this invention, the fuel injectors receive an additive-conditioned preheated polarized fuel with optimal atomization/vaporization characteristics, and inject it into an intake airflow containing ionized hydrogen and oxygen plasma. This highly combustible mixture is fed to the engine cylinders at the optimal air-to-fuel ratio set by the optimizer. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a flow chart illustrating the process of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective exploded view of the heat-exchanger manifold according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIGS. 3A and 3B  are, respectively, lateral and transverse cross section views of the heat-exchanger manifold according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , the preferred embodiment of the present invention  10  is designed to be implemented and installed in a motor vehicle having an internal combustion engine  11 , a fuel tank  12 , a fuel pump  13 , a water pump  14 , a radiator  15 , an exhaust manifold  16 , one or more engine/emissions sensors  17 , and a catalytic converter  18 . Comprising the engine  11  are a throttle plate  19 , a plurality of cylinders  20 , a plurality of fuel injectors  21 , a plurality of injection ports  22 , an intake manifold  23 , and an engine control module (ECM)  24 . 
     In the conventional functioning of the engine  11 , fuel from the fuel tank  12  is pumped by the fuel pump  13  to the fuel injectors  21 . The fuel injectors  21  atomize the fuel and periodically dispense it in discrete pulses through the injection ports  22  into an airflow that enters the engine through the intake manifold  23  under the regulation of the throttle plate  19 . The resulting air-fuel mixture is then drawn into multiple intake valves  25 , through which the air-fuel mixture passes into the cylinders  20  and is combusted. The air-to-fuel ratio of the mixture is regulated by the duration of the fuel injection pulses, which is in turn controlled by the ECM  24  based on monitoring of oxygen levels in the exhaust manifold  16  upstream of the catalytic converter  18  by the engine/emissions sensors  17 . 
     An acetone-based fuel additive  26  is introduced directly into the fuel tank  12 , preferably at a ratio of 3 fluid ounces of additive to 10 gallons of fuel. Preferably, the fuel additive  26  comprises equal volumes of acetone, xylene and a conditioning lubricant. By volume, the conditioning lubricant component consists of one part Accelerator™ octane booster, one part Energy Release™ cylinder coating, three parts GP-7 two-cycle racing oil, and three parts Lucas™ racing oil. 
     From the fuel tank  12 , the additive-conditioned fuel passes through a heat-exchanger manifold  27 , which is installed on the hot-water side of the engine&#39;s cooling system, typically in or on a section of radiator hose  28  upstream of the radiator  15 . The heat-exchanger manifold  27  can be installed alternately either within the upstream section of radiator hose  28  or on its outer surface. Referring to  FIGS. 2 ,  3 A and  3 B, the heat-exchanger manifold  27  comprises an inner sleeve  29 , through which the fuel flows, and an outer sleeve  30 , through which or across which hot engine coolant circulates and thereby transfers heat to the fuel. In the alternative embodiment, in which the heat-exchanger manifold  27  is attached to the outer surface of the upstream section of radiator hose  28 , heat is transferred from the hot engine coolant to the outer sleeve  30  through the radiator hose  28 . 
     The inner sleeve  29  comprises a series of interconnected annular or tubular magnets  31 , such that the fuel flows through the apertures  32  of the magnets  31  and is polarized by the magnetic field. The heated and polarized fuel then flows from the heat-exchanger manifold  27  into the fuel injectors  21 , where it is atomized and injected into the gases drawn into the intake manifold  23 . 
     The electrolysis cell  33  generates a plasma consisting of two parts H +  ions to one part O −  ions. The hydrogen-oxygen plasma is drawn out of the electrolysis cell by a Venturi injector  34 , which utilizes a partial vacuum created by the flow of intake air across a Venturi opening or tube. A microprocessor optimizer  35  interfaces with the vehicle&#39;s engine/emissions sensors  17  and ECM  24  to control the pulse duration of the fuel injectors  21  so that the air-to-fuel ratio is adjusted for the increased energy content of the enhanced fuel-plasma mixture. This function of the optimizer will typically result in a leaner air-to-fuel ratio than would otherwise be imposed by the ECM  24  alone as dictated by its default settings. 
     As a result of the process and associated apparatus of this invention, the cylinders  20  receive the pre-heated, polarized, additive-conditioned fuel optimally atomized and mixed with ionized hydrogen-oxygen plasma, such that the combustion efficiency is maximized and residual pollutants are minimized. 
     While this invention has been described with reference to a specific embodiment, the description is not to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiment, as well as other embodiments of the invention, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to this description. It is therefore contemplated that the appended claims will cover any such modifications or embodiments that fall within the true scope of this invention.