Apparatus for feeding water into the air/fuel mixture passage of an

Abstract

Apparatus for feeding water to the air/fuel mixture passage between the air/fuel mixing device and combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine including a main conduit for supplying water to the mixture passage, a valve member for opening and closing the conduit, the valve member being biased into the closed position, a diaphragm communicating on one side directly to the mixture passage for actuating the valve member to an open position and on the other side through a pressure delay chamber with the mixture passage, wherein the conduit is opened only by a relatively abrupt increase in pressure in the mixture passage, and the closing is delayed until the pressure equalizes across the diaphragm. Water may be supplied to the conduit directly by a pump, or by a pressure differential or by means of a reservoir having access to a water supply. Water may be pumped into and out of the reservoir by a diaphragm or a piston in the reservoir, the diaphragm being actuated by a pressure differential, or the piston being actuated by a pressure differential or by the accelerator. A smaller ancillary conduit may by-pass the valve member, and a stop valve, sensitive to the pressure differential between the mixture passage and the atmosphere, may shut off both the main conduit and the ancillary conduit when the engine is not operating. The feeding of water into the mixture passage reduces the nitrogen oxides contained in the exhaust gases and improves the fuel consumption.