Cryogenic Fuel Supply for Locomotive Engines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing technologies face technical challenges in supplying gaseous fuel to internal combustion engines in locomotives, particularly with high-pressure direct injection of natural gas, leading to issues like gas injector failures, cryogenic LNG pump handling, engine control system software, and fuel system leaks, which have hindered the development of commercially viable natural gas locomotives that can match or improve upon diesel emissions.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that store gaseous fuel at cryogenic temperatures on a tender car, pump it to a high pressure, vaporize it, and convey it to the engine, maintaining pressure between 310 bar and 575 bar, with advanced notice of operating changes to manage pressure fluctuations, and using waste heat for vaporization, along with a gaseous-fuel/air mixture introduction into combustion chambers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-generated harmful factors
If high pressure injection (3000-4500 psi) is used to improve combustion efficiency and reduce emissions, then power and emissions performance are improved, but gas injector failures and fuel system leaks occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the pressure parameter from high pressure (3000-4500 psi) to low pressure (85-125 psi) injection, fundamentally altering the operating conditions to avoid injector failures and fuel system leaks while maintaining combustion effectiveness through the two-stroke engine's compression process
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of injecting fuel at high pressure during compression, the patent inverts the approach by injecting at low pressure and relying on the two-stroke compression process to achieve the necessary combustion conditions, turning the engine cycle itself into the pressure-building mechanism rather than the injection system
2Productivity
If cryogenic LNG pumps are used to handle liquid natural gas, then fuel delivery is enabled, but pump failures and technical difficulties occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes the phase transition of natural gas from liquid to gas form, storing fuel as liquid LNG at cryogenic temperatures and allowing it to vaporize naturally during delivery, eliminating the need for complex cryogenic pumps and their associated reliability issues
Solution Approach 2:
The system allows the cryogenic fuel to self-vaporize through heat exchange with the environment and engine components, eliminating the need for active cryogenic pumping and reducing mechanical complexity and failure points
3Reliability
If low pressure injection (85-125 psi) is used to improve reliability, then injector failures are reduced, but combustion efficiency and power output are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the fuel injection system with the two-stroke engine's compression process, where the low-pressure injected fuel is compressed during the compression stroke to achieve the necessary combustion conditions, combining the injection and compression functions to maintain both reliability and power
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables efficient and stable supply of gaseous fuel to internal combustion engines, reducing emissions and overcoming previous technical limitations, allowing for improved combustion performance and reduced pressure fluctuations, thereby enhancing the feasibility of natural gas as a locomotive fuel.
Implementation Method 1
storing the gaseous fuel at a cryogenic temperature in a cryogenic storage tank on the tender car
Implementation Method 2
pumping the gaseous fuel to a first pressure from the cryogenic storage tank
Implementation Method 3
waste heat from the internal combustion engine can be transferred to the gaseous fuel at the first pressure such that the gaseous fuel vaporizes
Implementation Method 4
accumulating the vaporized gaseous fuel such that pressure fluctuations of the gaseous fuel due to changing operating conditions of the internal combustion engine are reduced
Implementation Method 5
conveying the vaporized gaseous fuel to the internal combustion engine for combustion
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus and method for supplying gaseous fuel from a tender car to an internal combustion engine on a locomotive comprising storing the gaseous fuel at a cryogenic temperature in a cryogenic storage tank on the tender car; pumping the gaseous fuel to a first pressure from the cryogenic storage tank; vaporizing the gaseous fuel at the first pressure; and conveying the vaporized gaseous fuel to the internal combustion engine; whereby a pressure of the vaporized gaseous fuel is within a range between 310 bar and 575 bar.