System Injects Water & Ethanol To Create Cleaner Fuel

System Injects Water & Ethanol To Create Cleaner Fuel ENERGY Alternative Fuels 34-4-3 CleanFlex Power Systems cuts fuel costs and extends engine life with a water/ethanol/diesel fuel mix in diesel engines. The patented dual fuel system can run diesel engines on a mix of 5 percent diesel fuel and 95 percent 120-proof ethanol. That's 5 gal. of diesel fuel, 57 gal. of pure ethanol and 38 gal. of water for every 100 gal. of the mix. "We can go to such a high percentage of 120-proof ethanol without worrying about lubricity for two reasons," explains Ron Preston, president, CleanFlex Power Systems. "We bypass the injector pumps, which is where most of the lubrication is needed, and when the ethanol/water is injected into the combustion chamber, the water turns to steam, which has a lubrication effect of its own. In fact, today's low sulfur fuel is a dry fuel, and a lot of engines are being affected. We believe our system will extend engine life." Preston says the CleanFlex technology can reduce fuel consumption by 10 to 30 percent and boost horsepower that much as well. The system uses a separate tank for the ethanol/water mix and a delivery system that sends water to the cylinders through the air intakes. It's in the cylinders that the higher energy diesel fuel mixes with the lower energy ethanol/water mix. The result is a slower, cooler and more complete burn with the additional power provided by water turning to steam. CleanFlex engineer Kevin Kenney equates the system to putting a steam engine inside a diesel engine. The combination of a cleaner burn, more power and lower fuel costs has attracted the attention of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Canadian National railroads and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). "Third party independent tests completed on a diesel locomotive provided by one of the railroads went very well," says Preston. "We saw expected reductions of up to 50 percent in nitrous oxides, but particulate matter reductions were more significant than expected." Preston says some alterations were made for the giant diesels, but the system was essentially the same as is run in farm tractors. "We are also working with the EPA for approval of our system for on-road trucks," says Preston. "We are in the process of getting certified. We believe we are a piece of the answer for meeting Tier 4 emissions standards." Preston explains that most Tier 4 technology is designed to treat pollutants after they have been produced in the engine. CleanFlex, he says, is actually a pretreatment, preventing the pollutants from ever being produced. "We think we are very close to meeting their requirements and getting approval to convert existing diesels to meet Tier 4 standards," says Preston. Meanwhile CleanFlex is continuing to expand its market in Canada and the U.S. with farm equipment dealers. Preston says a website is under development to help direct buyers to established dealers. In the meantime, he refers inquiries himself. Installing a system takes approximately half a day and costs between $5,000 and $7,500, depending on the engine. It's what Preston calls a "non-invasive" install, but he recommends that it be done only by a professional mechanic. "If you ever need to run pure diesel, simply shut off our system, and it will operate the way it did when it left the factory," says Preston. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, CleanFlex Power Systems, 4827 Pioneer Blvd., Lincoln, Neb. 68506 (ph 402 858-1800).

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