http://www.gear6.net/2006/03/sixstroke_engin.html#more

WWII radial engine Navy and Marine fighters used water injection as an emergency power boost to suck out the last vestiges of thermal efficiency. There used to be a wire across the throttle stop, that if a Zero got on your tail you would put it into a dive and push the throttle forward. Water was direct port injected into the cylinders metered by pressure in reserve tank and orifice size. Only worked for about twenty seconds but the steam gave momentary boost in performance.

Mechanics hated it because of damage to pistons, but at least it got the bird home usually.


Larger Dave

Racers use water in fuel (crazy as that sounds since most of us would be horrified to know water was in our tank!) because water does produce steam but it also boost the compression. Since water does not burn and it cannot be compressed like air, any water in the combustion chamber takes up space that air would normally use. And for what its worth... my Dad shot down a couple Zero's in "The Big One". Kevin

If I am reading this right, Bruce appears to be injecting water as a mist to make steam on what would be TDC of the suck stroke under pressure and then using the created pressurized steam to push the piston back around to another suck stroke then suck and run a standard 4-cycle until the next suck stroke, inject water and repeating!!

Can you say, "chitti-bang, chitti-bang!!"...

I gotta bad feeling that metal fatigue will set in fast..

But I hope it works out..

I will say this, that Bruce can use the exhaust heat of a regular engine to heat and create steam in a steam generator and then use the steam to run a steam turbine or a good old piston steam engine like was used on the RR.

This is just a "Combined Cycle" set-up like a lot of gas turbine "peaking power plants" are doing to to up the eff. of the power plant waay up there!! Usually they add a duct burner to heat the exhaust even hotter before it goes into the steam generator, (Boiler, if you will)...

pdq67