Lpg - Liquid Phase Injection - Soon ?

[Jonn01]

I am posting this as I found it....

We briefly discuss, below, the benefits of using LPG as a vehicle fuel, replacing the more expensive and polluting petrol or diesel.

LPG is a far more convenient fuel to use than compressed natural gas (CNG), offers much greater range, far easier handling and is normally cheaper, in cents per therm in the cylinder, than CNG.

It is our belief that there are substantial economic benefits to be gained by promoting the use of LPG globally and the pollution improvement is obvious from the fact that using LPG in vehicles instead of petrol results in 40% less carbon dioxide being emitted and 45% less nitrous oxides. See below under “Emissions”.

It is our view that the Commonwealth Government has given its support to the LPG project, in terms of the direct assistance to the liquid LPG system we have finalized and the subsidy on the conversions to LPG, plus favourable excise treatment, to obtain the greenhouse benefits, benefits to foreign exchange and benefits to Australian industry. AusIndustry has calculated that if all spark ignition engines (SI) in Australia ran on LPG it would consume 50% of our annual LPG production.

India and China are moving to LPG, Russia is seeking to use its LPG by supplying neighbouring countries (Europe and China, etc.) and overall, use of LPG is growing rapidly. Germany has added over 2,400 LPG retail outlets in 2006 and 2007, or more than we have in the whole of Australia.

As is shown in the attached papers, an LPG optimized vehicles will run on mono LPG at a compression ratio of 12:1 or very nearly, to obtain the maximum thermal efficiency from the engine.

An independent description of the project is contained in SAE paper 2005-01-0246, presented to the SAE conference in Detroit, USA, in May 2005. A copy of the paper is herewith. The paper was prepared at The University of Melbourne.

The paper lists the savings in greenhouse gasses which can be achieved by use of the LPG liquid injection technology described in the website www.lpgli.com.

Savings of some five tonnes of carbon dioxide per vehicle, per annum, can be achieved as is shown by the following calculation:-

For cars, the figures contained in the SAE Paper, by Paul Baker, give the C02 savings.

He estimates a saving of 0.4 of a kilogram of CO2, per kilowatt hour, compared to petrol.

For 30,000 kilometres travelled at an average of 60 km per hour this is 500 hours of engine operation, multiplied by the average kilowatts involved, say 25 kW from the engine as an average, which comes to 12,500 kWH for the year, multiplied by the saving of 0.4 kilograms per kWh is 5,000 kilograms per annum or 5.0 tonnes of CO2.

We have gained most of the funding that we need for the Australian market (it has cost $15,000,000 overall, including $4,000,000 from our Federal Government).

Our liquid LPG system, by and large, offers 10% improvements in:-

power,

torque

emissions

distance travelled per litre, (actually 11%) over sequential gas injection of LPG and greater improvement OVER, LPG fumigation, or throttle body introduction of LPG, as currently practiced by Ford.

The SAE paper, attached, reviewed, as per normal, by three independent experts, will give you the major differences in favour of liquid LPG injection.

The extract below summarises some advantages:

“Key innovations and technical features of the products

Liquid LPG changes to a gas extremely rapidly at normal atmospheric pressure and temperatures above minus 40 degrees C. The "freezing" effect of this phase change is well known, the volume expanding by 243 times. Hence, injection of liquid LPG does not displace air and densifies the combustion charge with beneficial results on combustion, particularly emissions. It is called the "volumetric effect".

“Product Differentiation

The LPG-Liquid-Inject System is a significant innovation on existing gaseous LPG systems. Patents and copyright protect these important differences. Imitators exist, but are still unable to duplicate the performance and economic benefits delivered through the superior design and know how. The unique properties are described below:

· The “volumetric effect” is the phase change in the LPG, from liquid to gas, as it is squirted into the inlet manifold. It has the effect of rapidly cooling the incoming air, thus increasing the density of the charge in the cylinder, providing combustion benefits. The process is only achieved by liquid fuel injection. No gaseous LPG fuel system can achieve this densifying of the fuel charge, as they all draw in LPG that is already in a gaseous state occupying 243 times the volume of the LPG liquid. Hence air is displaced, combustion efficiency reduced. The liquid injection system, in keeping the LPG liquid, saves the capital cost, maintenance cost and the space occupied by the “convertor” which converts the liquid LPG to gas in older systems. The convertor blocks up and needs replacement which is expensive.

· The precise metering of liquid injection gives the consumer a far superior LPG fuel system to those existing in the market place. This precise metering gives greater fuel economy, increasingly important as fuel prices rise, plus emissions are lowered.

· Emissions – the LPG Liquid Inject system is years in front of legislative requirements, reducing unburnt hydrocarbons (HC), carbon dioxide (CO²) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx). See Section 14. SAE Paper 2005-01-0246, “MPI Air/Fuel Mixing for Gaseous and Liquid LPG” shows that optimised liquid LPG injection, when compared to unleaded petrol injection, can achieve specific emissions reductions of 88% for hydrocarbons (HC), 45% for NOx, 40% for CO2, 92% for CO and a rise of 27% in thermal efficiency.

· Quite wrongly, liquid injection of LPG had a reputation (perhaps a convenient commercial one) of being too difficult.

· Research work in Australia has shown that it is not difficult, if basic physical principles are followed and controls carefully thought through. Correctly produced, it is cheaper to fit than other fuel systems for multi-cylinder engines.

Liquid injection as above is protected by patents in Australia and the US, plus copyright elsewhere; as is the recirculation of fuel and of dual fuels, I.e. a closed loop pressurised fuel system.”

By use of the controls being built, the optimised use of LPG in a SI engine leads to large cost savings to motorists and to a better environment for us all.

Our patented injectors, development of which is being finalized and they are the hold up, can handle the higher LPG pressures and can inject any liquid.

The engine management system (EMS) with the conversion kit, can "piggy back" on the vehicle EMS and adequately control the injection timing and sense the LPG composition, from temperature and pressure, to fine tune the engine with reference to the oxygen sensor, etc.

The manner in which the LPG is pumped around the system, by a submerged pump located in the tank, enables liquid LPG to be injected from the injectors at all times, gas bubbles are handled.

The cost of the liquid injection system should be lower than LPG gas injection systems that are currently used and which are less efficient, lacking the volumetric effect. It is more difficult to inject gas volumes accurately, than to inject liquid volumes, reflected in better emissions for the liquid injection system. Gas injectors are a high maintenance item.

For diesel substitution, the same basic system is used with electronic controls to carefully limit the volume of LPG used. When Ron Kukler (contractor in this matter), in his years at Shell, first used LPG to displace diesel, using a system managed by the driver, the result was that the drivers loved the increase in power and they "littered the Hume Highway" with destroyed diesels. Shell dropped the system.

The electronic system, now to be used, in conjunction with the knock sensor on the engine, prevents the destruction of the engine, still increasing power, lowering emissions and costs, as diesel is three times the cost of LPG.

Target market and competitive advantages

All SI engines can run on LPG. It is the best easily available fuel, having a high hydrogen to carbon ratio, therefore low emissions, properly used. It is a huge, global market.

Compared to petrol, work by mature age Ph.D. student, Paul Baker (contractor in this matter) at The University of Melbourne, supervised by the late Eric Milkins and now by Professor Harry Watson, has shown a 40% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, plus a 27% improvement in thermal efficiency.

The liquid system shows an approximate 10% advantage over gas LPG systems for weighted Euro 3 Specific emissions of NOx and CO2, also a 11% improvement in weighted Euro 3 thermal efficiency, which relates to distance travelled per unit volume of LPG.

There are two markets, the "misery market" where costs are paramount and an environmental market where emissions hold sway. Combinations exist, as in London, where the entry fee per vehicle of some $20 per day is waived if LPG is used as the fuel. Melbourne is threatening to adopt this fee.

This liquid LPG system can dominate both markets.

We aim for the "aftermarket" until all fears of warranty claims are eliminated, then for the vehicle manufacturers (OEM's), usually after two years of aftermarket experience. The current climate may help reduce this.

Cost of retrofitting the liquid LPG injection system in the after market is expected to be lower than the cost of fitting gas injection systems as it uses less equipment and can be fitted in less time.

In the OEM market, work with Holden (GM) demonstrated that a closed loop liquid injection LPG system can be fitted for less cost than a petrol system on the production line.

Diesels

In many countries, such as USA and China, diesels are being forced off the road as a result of poor emissions. Our system can assist in prolonging the life of such diesels, a substantial financial advantage.

Again, the OEM market will follow as we demonstrate the system and the demand for mixed fuels, already well established in a global sense, grows.

Enquiry, for a LPG for diesel substitution system, has been very strong from the aftermarket.

The EPA in USA claims that there are 11,000,000 diesels which require emission reductions to stay on the road and the liquid LPG injection system is thought to be, from studies of existing practice, the best answer available.

Outline of prior work

You may know the history of the system. The liquid LPG injection system was first produced as a dual fuel system, as "Liquiphase".

Invented in 1989-90, 30 vehicles converted to the then “liquiphase” system in 1992 and a number are still on the road. My own with 150,000 km on LPG, one with 320,000 km and one, used as a taxi, in excess of 900,000 km. Durability has been proven, the EMS failed on a lot, due to the injectors burning out the injector drivers. So we are building a new EMS and new injectors.

The Liquiphase system has been copied, most successfully by Vialle, although people complain about their pricing and they chose to use existing injectors which, we believe, cause problems after a while.

Injector development is meeting targets, other than time and is exciting. The injectors are now one quarter, or less, of the size used in the Propane Challenge (USA), or the work at The University of Melbourne, or other laboratories.

EMS hardware has been upgraded and is ready for the software which is being wriiten and settings obtained from target vehicles. The OEM's could assist by working on the EMS with our people, but choose not to, which is frustrating and expensive.

A flat tank for storing LPG has been developed, in NZ, at the request of potential users. Another, relatively flat tank is available from Europe. They are both, expensive, versus cylinders.

Not expected was demand for flat tanks (they are produced in NZ) from the trucking industry, but even in a heavy diesel truck space is becoming a premium. It is,of course, for the courier industry.

Now, there are adequate numbers of LPG retail outlets so that the more desirable mono LPG system can be introduced in Australia. In parts of Australia and in other countries, such as the UK, dual fuel is in demand (we are told, any views?). For these important and potentially rewarding markets we need to develop a seamless fuel changeover system. Petrol/LPG is the main dual fuel, but not the only one. Ethanol, or ethanol blend/LPG is a candidate.

Prior work on LPG substitution of diesel has been carried out with personnel from The University of Melbourne and support from Elgas, showing that 33.33% substitution of diesel with LPG is a safe percentage. Emissions were reduced, see attached paper, "Greenhouse Benefits of Diesel Fumigation by Liquid Injection of LPG".

A safe, electronically controlled system has to be produced from the experimental system which was utilised for the above paper.”

We are in the middle of the end for the LPGLI project . Commercial supplies should be available in some 4 months.

All the best for the festive season,

John Martin,

LPG-Liquid-Inject. Ltd.,

Ph. (03) 9866 6966

[Jonn01]

By the way thie above email was dated Jan 18, 2008.

Interesting ehh!!

[XRDOSE]

ive been thinkin about going LPG anyone know wat people are charging to convert a T to straight gas? and also who does it in melb?

[ratter]

ive been thinkin about going LPG anyone know wat people are charging to convert a T to straight gas? and also who does it in melb?

Talk to the boys at Australian LPG Warehouse 03 9770 2287.

They have Vapour LPG systems allready for the turbo cars and will shortly be releasing Liquid injection set up also, which should help make better power and better fuel economy

[seventytwo]

ive been thinkin about going LPG anyone know wat people are charging to convert a T to straight gas? and also who does it in melb?

I think these conversions will become very common in the next few years, I will be doing it myself once I get out of this backwater.

[Iconic Bionic]

Very interesting, but the viability will be so dependent on the conversion and installation cost to the customer.

A very real alternative for all of us, this does sound like. If the atypical reduction in performance with LPG can be avoided then greater interest wil result.

I.B.

[XRDOSE]

so what would happen with the tuning side of things? is it as easy to tune a petrol car as a LPG car with the flash tuner? will I need to change my injectors?

[seventytwo]

From what I have read, is that the piggy back computer that controls the LPG injectors just adds the extra gas required to match the petrol tune, so there is no need for a major retune.

[Superdan]

when lpg first came around I remember figures of around 5% power loss, can anyone confirm or denie?

[seventytwo]

I think because the old systems created a restriction in the intake it caused a power loss