Internal Water Gathering Container in Diesel Fuel Tanks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Fuel tank systems with external gathering containers for water separation are sensitive to cold weather and require additional space on the vehicle chassis, limiting accessibility and increasing the frequency of emptying due to their external placement.
Innovation Solution
A fuel tank design with a gathering container integrated within the tank, allowing for reduced cold weather sensitivity, increased accessibility, and larger water accumulation capacity, featuring a separate container with internal placement and strategic aperture configuration for efficient water stratification and drainage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a gathering container is placed externally on the chassis, then it is easily accessible for emptying, but it occupies additional space and is highly sensitive to cold weather
Solution Approach 1:
The gathering container is merged with the fuel tank by placing it inside the fuel tank's internal space. This integration allows the container to benefit from the fuel tank's thermal insulation and protective structure, reducing cold weather sensitivity while utilizing existing vehicle space without additional chassis mounting requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The gathering container is nested within the fuel tank, with the container positioned inside the fuel tank's internal volume. This nesting arrangement protects the water-containing container from cold weather exposure while the fuel surrounding it provides thermal insulation, and the container remains accessible through openings in the fuel tank structure.
2Ease of operation
If a gathering container is placed externally on the chassis, then it is easily accessible for emptying, but it requires additional space on the vehicle chassis
Solution Approach 1:
The gathering container is merged with the fuel tank by placing it inside the fuel tank's internal space. This integration allows the container to benefit from the fuel tank's thermal insulation and protective structure, reducing cold weather sensitivity while utilizing existing vehicle space without additional chassis mounting requirements.
3Ease of manufacture
If a gathering container is placed externally on the chassis, then it can be positioned conveniently, but it has limited water accumulation capacity and requires frequent emptying
Solution Approach 1:
The gathering container is nested within the fuel tank, with the container positioned inside the fuel tank's internal volume. This nesting arrangement protects the water-containing container from cold weather exposure while the fuel surrounding it provides thermal insulation, and the container remains accessible through openings in the fuel tank structure.
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
The internal gathering container reduces cold weather sensitivity, optimizes space usage, and simplifies water evacuation, enabling larger water volumes to be stored before emptying, while maintaining efficient water-diesel separation and engine fuel supply.
Implementation Method 1
a layer of diesel will stratify on the surface of the water volume because of the difference in density between water and diesel
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
The invention relates to a fuel tank comprising a filling aperture (4) for fuel (6) and a drain aperture (8) for fuel (6), in which a gathering container (14) for water (16) separated from diesel (7) is arranged within the fuel tank (2), the gathering container (14) comprises at least one filling aperture (20) and at least one drain aperture (22), and the fuel tank (2) comprises an inlet aperture (32) through which a flow of a mixture of water (16) and diesel (7) separated by a filter (62) is intended to be able to pass into the gathering container (14), and also an outlet aperture (34) through which a flow of water (16) is intended to be able to pass out from the gathering container (14).