Rotary engine with fluid injection cooling
A rotary engine, has: an outer body defining a rotor cavity; a rotor within the rotor cavity, the outer body and the rotor defining a combustion chamber; a pilot subchamber defined by the outer body and having an outlet communicating with the rotor cavity; a pilot injector having a pilot tip in communication with the pilot subchamber; a main injector having a tip in communication with the rotor cavity, the main injector having a fuel inlet fluidly connected to a fuel source, a fluid inlet fluidly connected to a fluid source, and an injector outlet in fluid communication with the rotor cavity independently of the pilot subchamber, the main injector having: a fuel-injection configuration in which the main injector connects the fuel source to the combustion chamber vi; and a fluid-injection configuration in which the main injector connects the fluid source to the combustion chamber.
1. A rotary engine, comprising:
an outer body defining a rotor cavity;
a rotor rotationally received within the rotor cavity, the outer body and the rotor defining a combustion chamber of variable volume in the rotor cavity;
a pilot subchamber defined by the outer body, the pilot subchamber having an outlet in fluid flow communication with the rotor cavity;
a pilot injector having a pilot tip in communication with the pilot subchamber;
a main injector having a tip in communication with the rotor cavity at a location spaced apart from the outlet of the pilot subchamber, the main injector having a fuel inlet fluidly connected to a fuel source, a fluid inlet fluidly connected to a fluid source, and an injector outlet in fluid communication with the rotor cavity independently of the pilot subchamber, the main injector having:
a fuel-injection configuration in which the main injector fluidly connects the fuel source to the combustion chamber via the injector outlet; and
a fluid-injection configuration in which the main injector fluidly connects the fluid source to the combustion chamber via the injector outlet.
2. The rotary engine of claim 1 , comprising a controller operatively connected to the main injector and to the pilot injector, the controller having a processing unit and a computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon causing the processing unit to:
inject the fuel into the combustion chamber with the main injector;
inject the fluid into the combustion chamber before a temperature of a mixture of air and the fuel into the combustion chamber reaches an auto-ignition temperature; and
ignite of the mixture by igniting a pilot mixture of the fuel and the air into the pilot subchamber.
3. The rotary engine of claim 2 , wherein the instructions cause the processing unit to inject the fluid into the combustion chamber before a volume of the combustion chamber reaches a minimum volume.
4. The rotary engine of claim 1 , wherein the injector outlet of the main injector includes a fuel outlet and a fluid outlet distinct from the fuel outlet, the fuel outlet fluidly connected to the fuel source in the fuel-injection configuration, the fluid outlet fluidly connected to the fluid source in the fluid-injection configuration.
5. The rotary engine of claim 1 , wherein the fuel is one or more of hydrogen and liquified natural gas.
6. The rotary engine of claim 1 , wherein a distance between the tip of fuel injector and the pilot subchamber is less than a distance between two adjacent apexes of the rotor.
7. The rotary engine of claim 1 , wherein the injector is a dual-needle injector.
8. The rotary engine of claim 1 , wherein the fluid includes liquid water.
9. A method of mitigating auto-ignition of a mixture of air and fuel into a combustion chamber of a rotary engine, the combustion chamber defined by an outer body and a rotor received in a rotor cavity of the outer body, the outer body defining a pilot subchamber communicating with the combustion chamber, the method comprising:
injecting the fuel into the combustion chamber while bypassing the pilot subchamber with a main injector;
compressing the mixture by decreasing a volume of the combustion chamber with a rotation of the rotor;
cooling the mixture by injecting a fluid into the combustion chamber while bypassing the pilot subchamber with the main injector; and
igniting the mixture by igniting a pilot mixture of the fuel and the air into the pilot subchamber and by injecting the pilot mixture into the combustion chamber.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the injecting of the fluid into the combustion chamber includes injecting the fluid into the combustion chamber before a temperature of the mixture reaches an auto-ignition temperature.
11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the injecting of the fluid into the combustion chamber includes injecting the fluid into the combustion chamber before a volume of the combustion chamber reaches a minimum volume.
12. The method of claim 9 , wherein the injecting of the fluid and the injecting of the fuel includes injecting the fluid via a fluid outlet of the main injector and injecting the fuel via a fuel outlet of the main injector, the fuel outlet being distinct than the fluid outlet.
13. The method of claim 9 , wherein the injecting of the fuel includes injecting one or more of hydrogen and liquified natural gas.
14. The method of claim 9 , wherein a distance between a tip of main injector and the pilot subchamber is less than a distance between two adjacent apexes of the rotor.
15. The method of claim 9 , wherein the injecting of the fluid includes injecting the fluid including water being in a liquid phase.
16. A hydrogen-powered rotary engine, comprising:
an outer body defining a rotor cavity;
a rotor rotatable within the outer body, the outer body and the rotor defining a combustion chamber of variable volume in the rotor cavity;
a pilot subchamber defined by the outer body, the pilot subchamber having an outlet in fluid flow communication with the rotor cavity;
a pilot injector having a pilot tip in communication with the pilot subchamber;
a main injector having a tip in communication with the rotor cavity at a location spaced apart from the outlet of the pilot subchamber, the main injector having a fuel inlet fluidly connected to a source of hydrogen, a fluid inlet fluidly connected to a fluid source, and an injector outlet in fluid communication with the rotor cavity independently of the pilot subchamber, the main injector having:
a fuel-injection configuration in which the main injector fluidly connects the source of hydrogen to the combustion chamber via the injector outlet; and
a fluid-injection configuration in which the main injector fluidly connects the fluid source to the combustion chamber via the injector outlet.
17. The hydrogen-powered rotary engine of claim 16 , comprising a controller operatively connected to the main injector and to the pilot injector, the controller having a processing unit and a computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon causing the processing unit to:
inject the fuel into the combustion chamber with the main injector;
inject the fluid into the combustion chamber before a temperature of a mixture of air and the fuel into the rotor cavity reaches an auto-ignition temperature; and
ignite of the mixture by igniting a pilot mixture of the fuel and the air into the pilot subchamber.
18. The hydrogen-powered rotary engine of claim 17 , wherein the instructions cause the processing unit to inject the fluid into the rotor cavity before a volume of the combustion chamber reaches a minimum volume.
19. The hydrogen-powered rotary engine of claim 16 , wherein the outlet of the main injector includes a fuel outlet and a fluid outlet spaced apart from the fuel outlet, the fuel outlet fluidly connected to the source of hydrogen in the fuel-injection configuration, the fluid outlet fluidly connected to the fluid source in the fluid-injection configuration.
20. The hydrogen-powered rotary engine of claim 16 , wherein the fluid includes water in a liquid phase and alcohol.