2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:41
With the constant rise in fuel prices, the installation of LPG equipment on a car is becoming increasingly popular. This is not surprising. Having spent several thousand rubles on HBO, you can drive on fuel, the price of which is half that of gasoline. Typically, the installation of gas-balloon equipment is carried out on gasoline cars. Their engines are more suitable for operation on natural or reduced gas. But there are also diesel cars with LPG. Can a diesel engine be converted to gas? Is it worth it to install such equipment? See our today's article for answers to these questions.
Diesel Features
As we said earlier, HBO is installed mainly on gasoline engines. If we consider gas diesel, only domestic trucks MAZ and KamAZ can serve as an example. On passenger cars, such equipment is not found. Why is it so rare to install gas on a diesel engine? The answer is simple, and it lies in the principle of fuel ignition.
As you know, gasoline engines set fire to the mixture with the help of auxiliary devices. They are candles. When the fuel-air mixture is supplied to the chamber, theyproduce a spark that ignites the fuel. Due to the fact that gasoline ignites from third-party devices, such engines have a low compression ratio. Now it is about ten to twelve units. And if we consider the engines of Soviet trucks, then there are six at all. The only point is the octane number of gas, which is higher than that of gasoline. If for the latter it reaches 98, then for gas it reaches at least 102. But in order for the engine to work properly on this mixture, the electronic control unit automatically corrects ignition angles and other parameters in real time.
As for diesel engines, there are no classic spark plugs. The mixture ignites from a high compression ratio. The air is heated under pressure so that the temperature in the chamber reaches 400 degrees Celsius. As a result, the mixture ignites and the piston produces a power stroke. Someone will say that there are spark plugs in a diesel engine. Yes, some motors have them. But these are completely different - glow plugs. They allow cold starts without difficulty, preheating the fuel. Such candles have a completely different structure and principle of operation. By the way, the minimum compression ratio for a diesel engine is 20 units. If the indicator is less, the engine simply will not start. In modern car engines, the compression ratio can reach 30 units.
Thus, if the use of HBO on a gasoline engine does not causedifficulties during operation (since the fuel is ignited by candles), then the diesel engine is not able to "digest" such a mixture.
Why is it difficult to convert a diesel engine to gas?
There are several factors that complicate the process of installing and operating HBO on such an internal combustion engine:
- Ignition temperature. If in a diesel engine the fuel ignites spontaneously at 400 degrees, then the gas burns at 700 and above. It doesn't matter if it's methane or propane-butane.
- No candles. Whatever the degree of compression in a diesel engine, it is not enough to heat the gas mixture to the auto-ignition temperature. Therefore, installing third-party spark plugs is indispensable.
- Octane number. Diesel fuel has an OC of 50 units. Gas has at least 102. If such fuel enters a diesel engine, it will go haywire (this is uncontrolled operation of the engine at high speeds). There are several ways to solve the problem. This is a correction of the compression ratio, or a decrease in the octane number of the gas mixture.
Installation Methods
There are several mounting methods:
- With a complete engine overhaul.
- With the introduction of the Dual Fuel system.
Which is better to use? Below we will look at what the features of each technology are.
Complete makeover
What is the essence of this method? The bottom line is simple - the diesel engine is completely converted to gas. Moreover, after such an intervention, it will no longer operate on its “native” fuel - only on gas.
To prevent the unit from running wild, its compression ratio is adjusted. It is about 12:1. This is the only way the engine can "digest" fuel with a high octane rating. Next, a mixture ignition system is installed. There are no special mechanisms here. For arson, ordinary candles are used, as in gasoline engines.
What is the disadvantage of such a remake? Due to the need to carry out a whole range of works, the cost of reinstallation can reach 200 or more thousand rubles. This is ten times more expensive than converting a gasoline car to gas. Therefore, the savings are highly questionable. Moreover, such a motor will have reduced power and torque.
Dual Fuel System
This is the scheme used on some modifications of MAZ and KamAZ trucks. This is a combined fuel supply system. At the moment, this is the cheapest, correct and easily implemented option. The cost of alteration is about 70-85 thousand rubles. The peculiarity of the system is that there is no need to install spark plugs. To ignite methane (or propane-butane), diesel fuel itself is used. As for the main components of the system, it is still the same gas reducer, hoses and lines, as well as fuel storage tanks.
How does it work?
Starting the engine is carried out only on diesel fuel. After that, the gas reducer comes into play. It feeds the mixture into the combustion chamber through the intake valve. The gas goes along with oxygen. Along with this, the camera getssmall amount of diesel. When the piston almost reaches top dead center, the diesel fuel ignites. Its temperature is about 900 degrees, which is already enough for spontaneous combustion of methane or propane. Thus, two types of fuel burn in the chamber at once. The efficiency of such a motor is unchanged, except that the portion of diesel is reduced by an order of magnitude.
What kind of gas can be put on a diesel engine? You can install both propane and methane systems. But there are pitfalls here. According to reviews, gas installed on a diesel engine shows itself differently. If we talk about propane, its percentage in the mixture is relatively small - up to 50 percent. In the case of methane, up to 60 percent of the gas is used. Thus, the portion of diesel supplied to the chamber is reduced. This has a positive effect on savings. But it is impossible to completely limit the supply of diesel. Otherwise, such a mixture simply will not ignite without extraneous sources.
Is it profitable?
Consider the feasibility of converting a diesel engine to gas. Since such an engine still needs a portion of the original fuel (in our case, diesel fuel), the savings are not so significant. If the gasoline engine runs entirely on gas, the cost of fuel costs is exactly halved. But in our case, the savings will be only 25 percent, tobish one and a half times. And this despite the fact that the price of installing the Dual Fuel system is at least 70 thousand rubles.
It's easy to calculate how long this system will pay for itself. Under favorable conditions, the payback of HBO on a diesel engine will come in 70-100 thousand kilometers. And only after this run you will start saving. That is why gas is put on a diesel engine only in rare cases, and even then - on domestic trucks. On passenger cars, such a system is practically never found.
Summing up
So, we found out if it is possible to install gas on a diesel engine. Due to a different principle of operation, the installation of HBO on such a motor requires large alterations. And as a result, all the same, this unit will require, albeit a small, but a portion of diesel. There are savings from the use of such equipment. But it is so insignificant that no one bothers with the question "is it worth installing gas on a diesel engine." High payback periods and installation complexity are the main factors that prevent the use of LPG equipment on a diesel engine.
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