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Originally Posted by Rick & Connie
Craig,I don't remember the 1/3 loss of heat out of the exhaust. I don't know if I missed it before,or forgot it.
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I found it again. From page 3 of the old post, Jim H said, "Rough numbers are 33% of the heat energy in the fuel is converted to rotational energy, 33% is output to the coolant and 34% is output in the exhaust. The proportions will vary but total must equal the 100% input." That sounds about right to me, also.
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Originally Posted by Rick & Connie
I agree fuel cells are definitly a great improvement. But it's a shame they currantly still use fossile fuels because these are the simplest for of hydrogen to utilise at present.I know there are claims out there of people seperating H2 from water in small onboard reactors to power their piston engines.But EVERYTHING I have read also,says it currantly takes more energy to seperate the water,then you recieve in energy potential from the hydrogen.And one of the big problems with the process as of this time are the mineral deposits that accumulate on the electrodes,reducing their effectivness.But I wouldn't be suprised if H2 & O seperation can be made efficient simply by finding the right metals for the electrodes.And the right design.Something like the improvements made in lead acid battery design.
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I have to admit I know very little about the design details of fuel cells or the process details of separating H2 from gas. It will be interesting to see what happens with this technology, but it may be a while.
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Originally Posted by Rick & Connie
One last question on the Pinto we experimented with. Could the MPG improvements have come from that poor engine being pushed to it's thermal limits? I'm starting to believe the tar residue might have been coked oil instead of having anything to do with the fuel.
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You're probably right. I'm sure there are others here that know better than I, but I do know that running gas engines too lean can cause them to run very hot, and can cause damage. I would not be surprised if you cooked the poor old Pinto by running it too lean. I expect you would have seen a significant increase in mileage if you were that lean (and probably reduced power too). It does seem more likely that the "tar residue" in the engine was from the oil than the fuel. I doubt that fuel at high temperature would leave that kind of residue. Also, with a single carburetor you may not have been getting the same mixture to all the cylinders, so the outer cylinders may have been VERY lean. I'm sure there are other people here who have plenty of experience with the results of overheating engines. Fortunately, I haven't cooked one in a long time.