Technical Paper
Dynamometer Testing of an Ethanol-Water Fueled Transit Van
2005-10-24
2005-01-3706
Previous research using catalytic igniters and ethanol water fueled mixtures has shown potential for lowering CO and NOx emissions while increasing engine efficiency over conventional engine configurations. Catalytic ignition systems allow combustion initiation over a much wider range of stoichiometry and water composition than traditional spark ignition systems. The platform explored in this research is a transit van converted to operate on either gasoline or ethanol water fuel mixtures. Special attention was devoted to improve cold starting and installing additional on board sensors and equipment for future testing. System features include integration of a wide band oxygen sensor, state-of-the-art engine management system, exhaust gas temperature sampling using platinum thin film resistive temperature devices and variable voltage control of catalytic igniters using DC-DC boost converters.