Heat transfer systems for internal combustion engines and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9546631-B2
Application number	US-201414459851-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 14, 2014
Priority date	Aug 14, 2014
Publication date	Jan 17, 2017
Grant date	Jan 17, 2017

Abstract

A heat transfer system for use in an internal combustion engine and related methods are disclosed. The heat transfer system may be configured to absorb and transfer heat from a combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine. The heat transfer system may also be configured to reintroduce absorbed and/or transferred heat into the internal combustion engine via a fuel injector or another suitable device. Removal of the heat from the combustion chamber may reduce a quantity of work required or used for compression of a first combustion fluid, increase a charge density in the combustion chamber, and/or increase the compression ratio of the engine. Additionally, the heat transfer system may be designed such that it may be used to retrofit an existing internal combustion engine.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A compression-ignition internal combustion engine comprising:
a combustion chamber; and
a heat absorption element comprising a plurality of microchannels configured for passage of a first cooling fluid, the heat absorption element in communication with an interior volume of the combustion chamber, wherein the heat absorption element is configured to absorb at least a portion of an amount of heat generated by work done on a first combustion fluid disposed in the interior volume of the combustion chamber, wherein the heat absorption element is further configured to transfer at least a portion of the absorbed heat to the first cooling fluid, wherein the first cooling fluid flows intermittently through the plurality of microchannels of the heat absorption element, wherein at least a portion of the first cooling fluid egresses from the plurality of microchannels of the heat absorption element during at least a portion of a power stroke, and wherein the microchannels are channels having laminar flow at operating conditions and a height-to-width ratio of about 1 or greater.

2. The engine of claim 1 , wherein the heat absorption element is configured to absorb more heat during a first time period in comparison to during a second time period.

3. The engine of claim 1 , wherein the first cooling fluid comprises a fuel, and wherein at least a portion of the heated fuel is introduced into the interior volume of the combustion chamber during at least a portion of a power stroke.

4. The engine of claim 1 , wherein the heat absorption element is further configured to transfer at least a portion of the absorbed heat to a heat sink.

5. The engine of claim 4 , wherein at least a portion of the absorbed heat is transferred to the heat sink via the first cooling fluid.

6. The engine of claim 5 , wherein the heat sink comprises a second cooling fluid.

7. The engine of claim 6 , wherein the first cooling fluid is in thermal communication with the second cooling fluid.

8. The engine of claim 5 , wherein the heat sink comprises a fuel.

9. The engine of claim 4 , wherein the heat sink comprises both a second cooling fluid and a fuel.

10. The engine of claim 4 , wherein the heat sink is thermally coupled to the first cooling fluid via a heat exchanger.

11. The engine of claim 4 , further comprising a heat pipe configured to transfer heat from the heat absorption element to the heat sink.

12. The engine of claim 11 , wherein the heat pipe is configured to transfer the first cooling fluid between at least the plurality of microchannels of the heat absorption element and the heat sink.

13. The engine of claim 8 , wherein the fuel is heated, and wherein a fuel injector is configured to introduce at least a portion of the heated fuel into the interior volume of the combustion chamber.

14. The engine of claim 1 , wherein the heat absorption element further comprises a phase change material.

15. A compression-ignition internal combustion engine system comprising:
one or more variable-volume combustion chambers; and
a heat transfer system comprising one or more heat absorption elements, wherein each heat absorption element is in communication with an interior volume of at least one of the combustion chambers, wherein the one or more heat absorption elements are configured to absorb heat from the interior volume of the one or more combustion chambers, wherein the one or more heat absorption elements are configured to transition from a low-profile configuration to a deployed configuration for a first time period, and wherein the one or more heat absorption elements are further configured to transition from the deployed configuration to the low profile configuration for a second time period.

16. The engine system of claim 15 , wherein the interior volume of the one or more combustion chambers is configured to receive a volume of a first combustion fluid during at least a portion of an intake stroke,
wherein the one or more combustion chambers are configured to compress the volume of the first combustion fluid during at least a portion of a compression stroke,
wherein the heat transfer system is configured to absorb at least a portion of the heat from the first combustion fluid during at least a portion of the compression stroke, and
wherein the heat transfer system is configured to transfer at least a portion of the absorbed heat from the one or more combustion chambers to a heat sink.

17. The engine system of claim 15 , wherein a volume of a first combustion fluid is disposed in the interior volume of the one or more combustion chambers, and
wherein the one or more heat absorption elements are configured to transfer a portion of a total amount of heat from the one or more combustion chambers to a first cooling fluid during a compression stroke.

18. The engine system of claim 17 , wherein the first cooling fluid comprises a fuel, and wherein at least a portion of the heated fuel is configured to be introduced into the interior volume of the one or more combustion chambers during at least a portion of a power stroke.

19. The engine system of claim 17 , wherein the first cooling fluid comprises fuel.

20. The engine system of claim 16 , further comprising a heat pipe configured to transfer heat from the heat absorption element to the heat sink.

21. The engine system of claim 20 , wherein the heat pipe is configured to transfer a first cooling fluid between at least the heat absorption element and the heat sink.

22. The engine system of claim 16 , wherein the heat sink comprises both a second cooling fluid and a fuel.

23. The engine system of claim 22 , wherein at least a portion of the absorbed heat is transferred to the second cooling fluid and at least a portion of the absorbed heat is transferred to the fuel.

24. The engine system of claim 19 , wherein the heated fuel is introduced into the interior volume of the one or more combustion chambers at a predetermined time.

25. The engine system of claim 24 , further comprising:
a fuel injector, wherein the fuel injector is coupled to both the one or more combustion chambers and the one or more heat absorption elements; and
wherein the fuel injector is configured to introduce at least a portion of the heated fuel into the interior volume of the one or more combustion chambers at the predetermined time.

26. The engine system of claim 15 , wherein the one or more heat absorption elements comprise a plurality of channels configured for passage of a first cooling fluid.

27. The engine system of claim 26 , wherein the channels are microchannel heat transfer elements.

28. A method of increasing a maximum charge density in a combustion chamber of a compression-ignition internal combustion engine comprising:
disposing a heat absorption element in communication with an interior volume of a combustion chamber, wherein the heat absorption element is configured to absorb heat from the interior volume of the combustion chamber;
introducing a volume of a first combustion fluid into the interior volume of the combustion chamber;
compressing the volume of the first combustion fluid;
absorbing at least a portion of a total amount of heat generated by the compression of the first combustion fluid into the heat absorption element;
introducing a volume of a second combustion fluid into the interior volume of the combustion chambe

Assignees

• Elwha Llc

Inventors

• Kare Jordin T
• Wood Jr Lowell L

Classifications

• F02M53/02 Primary

  with fuel-heating means, e.g. for vaporising · CPC title

• F02M31/125

  Fuel · CPC title

• F02B3/06

  with compression ignition (compression ignition engines using air or gas for blowing fuel into compressed air in cylinder F02B13/02) · CPC title

• F01P2003/005

  the liquid being fuel · CPC title

• F02M53/043

  with cooling means other than air cooling · CPC title