Turbobike Web Site www.Turborick.com
I think that water injection was used in the old turbocharged Corvair Spyder. Water injection was also available on turbocharged fighter planes like the Corsair and kicked in when emergency power was needed at low altitudes. Some engines actually injected a water/methanol mix. I also seem to remember seeing some crude bike installations maybe using windshield washer pumps. It does seem like a good idea. Here's some stuff I found on the web - Here's a company that sells components for water injection systems: http://www.aquamist.co.uk/cp/cp.html Also http://bert.netcolony.com/members/csdaytona/water.html Water injection systems are only needed in turbo charged engines. The system has been around for a long time since it was already used in some World War II aircraft engines. A water injection system works similarly to a fuel injection system only it injects water instead of fuel. In high pressure turbocharged engines the air/fuel mixture that enters the cylinders can explode prematurely (before the spark plug ignites, effect also known as engine knock) due to the extreme engine environment conditions. This situation results in severe engine damage in the long run (piston piercing). To avoid damaging the engine, water is injected in the combustion chambers in order to provide a water/air/fuel mixture which not only burns more efficiently and avoids spontaneous detonation but also provides additional cylinder and piston cooling. There are mainly three variations of water injection devices. They are dependent on the location of the water injector(s). The first technique consists of injecting water at the entrance of the intake manifold. The second injects water at the exit pipe of the intercooler. The third technique injects water at the entry of the intercooler and is only used in competition vehicles. In this latter variation most of the in-cylinder detonation prevention is done by injecting additional fuel which is used as coolant (i.e. not burned). How water injection works The system, usually, is made up of 3 elements. A water injector (similar to a fuel injector) a high pressure pump (capable of 3 to 4 bar pressure and sometimes even more) and a pressure sensor connected to the inlet manifold. The most advanced systems add 3D cartography similar to what is used in fuel injection systems. When the pressure in the inlet manifold exceeds a certain, predefined, value the system starts injecting water. The cartographic based devices take into account many more parameters such as inlet air temperature, air/fuel ratio, ... Copyright 1997-1999 by Tryphon Georgallides, all rights reserved. from http://www.fortunecity.com/silverstone/morgan/161/how/waterinj.htm: Water injection systems are mainly used on turbo-charged engines. It works similarly to a fuel injection system only it injects water instead of fuel. In high pressure turbo-charged engines the air/fuel mixture that enters the cylinders can explode prematurely due to the extreme conditions. This situation results in severe engine damage in the long run (piston piercing). To avoid this, water is injected in the combustion chambers, usually through the intercooler, in order to provide a water/air/fuel mixture which not only burns more efficiently but also provides additional cylinder and piston cooling. The use of water injection seems to have re-emerged in recent times. APS (sellers of a performance kit for Subaru WRX's) have included it as part of their package and others such as aquamist sell independent kits. There is a great deal of skepticism amongst tuners about the benefits and the effectiveness of water injection. However, some of the manufacturers, such as aquamist, do have some very comprehensive kits that incorporate features such as 3d mapping. Good luck, Pat Inniss inniss@sprynet.com http://home.sprynet.com/~inniss/ ----- Original Message ----- From: Bob Buehler <ribicf@hotbot.com> To: Turbo Bike Mailing List <turbobike@natvideo.com> Sent: Thursday, September 30, 1999 9:04 PM Subject: [turbobike] Water injection > Hi Gang: > > I need some advice on water injection. I was told or read somewhere that water injection was relitively simple and inexpensive and would alow for the use compression ratios of 9 or 10 to 1 as is found with stock pistons. I believe it also was supposed to inhibit detonation using stock compression ratios even at boost pressures as high as 12 or 14 psi. ><snip>