JP2009138570A - Fuel reforming device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fuel reforming device capable of improving total fuel consumption in a case when a reformed gas is supplied in operation of an internal combustion engine. <P>SOLUTION: A reforming fuel injection amount control part provided on an ECU 60 performs a supply amount limitation control to be the control for decrease the injection amount of the reforming fuel when a reforming fuel remaining amount to be the fuel for generating the reformed gas is not larger than the predetermined amount of Qfuel. Therefore, the reforming fuel hardly runs down, and even when the reforming fuel remaining amount becomes a little, the reforming fuel can be suppressed from being run out before the main fuel to be the fuel used in the operation of the engine. The reformed gas is generated in the operation of the engine over a long time thereby, the reformed gas can be continued to supply into the engine 1 as required, and therefore a reforming effect by supplying the reformed gas into the engine 1 can be maintained. In the result, the total fuel consumption in the case when the reformed gas is supplied in the operation of the engine 1 can be improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel reformer. In particular, the present invention relates to a fuel reformer that generates reformed gas combustible in an internal combustion engine by flowing exhaust gas injected with reforming fuel through a reforming catalyst.

  In a conventional internal combustion engine, in order to achieve both improvement in fuel efficiency and securing of driving performance, reforming fuel is reformed to generate a reformed gas having a large calorific value, and the generated reformed gas is used as the internal combustion engine. There are some which make these both compatible by burning. For example, in an engine fuel supply device described in Patent Document 1, a separator that separates alcohol and gasoline from a mixed fuel of alcohol and gasoline, a reformer that reforms a part of the alcohol separated by the separator, and The gasoline, alcohol and reformed gas separated by the separator are supplied to the intake system in different operating regions. Since gasoline, alcohol, and reformed gas have different characteristics at the time of combustion, it is possible to achieve both improvement in fuel efficiency and securing of driving performance by changing the fuel to be supplied according to the operating region.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 3-43458

  When reforming the fuel, a separator is provided as in the fuel supply device of the engine described in Patent Document 1, and gasoline and alcohol are supplied to the engine by separating them with the separator, If the separator is provided, the structure becomes complicated and control may be difficult. For this reason, conventional fuel reformers include fuels such as gasoline for operating an internal combustion engine, and reforming fuels such as alcohol, which are the basis for generating reformed gas, in separate fuel tanks or the like. Are stored in separate storage means. This eliminates the need to provide a separator, thus simplifying the structure, and eliminates the need to separate the fuel mixture of gasoline and alcohol with the separator, thus facilitating control.

  However, when the fuel for operating the internal combustion engine and the reforming fuel are stored in separate storage means in this way, the consumption rates of both fuels may be different. For example, if the reforming fuel consumes faster than the fuel that operates the internal combustion engine, and the reforming fuel runs out first, the reformed gas cannot be generated. It becomes impossible to obtain the effect of reforming. In other words, if the reforming fuel runs out before the fuel that operates the internal combustion engine, the reformed gas cannot be generated, so the reformed gas cannot be supplied to the internal combustion engine, and the fuel efficiency is improved. There is a possibility that the reforming effect such as will be reduced.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to provide a fuel reformer that can improve the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the internal combustion engine.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, a fuel reforming apparatus according to the present invention reforms exhaust gas discharged from a cylinder of an internal combustion engine mounted on a vehicle, and reforms the fuel. Reforming fuel supply means for supplying reforming fuel, which is the original fuel, to the exhaust gas; and in the flow direction of the exhaust gas for supplying the reforming fuel by the reforming fuel supply means A reformer is located downstream of the reforming fuel supply means, and generates a reformed gas combustible in the cylinder by causing an endothermic reaction of the reforming fuel using heat of the purifying means. Quality reforming means, reforming fuel storage means for storing the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means, and reforming fuel supply means are provided so as to be controllable, and Storage of the reforming fuel stored in the quality fuel storage means. When the amount is less than or equal to a predetermined amount, the amount of reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means is reduced compared to when the amount of reforming fuel stored is greater than a predetermined amount. Reforming fuel supply means control means for performing supply amount restriction control, which is control for supplying the reforming fuel in a region where the reforming effect is high by burning reformed gas in the cylinder. Features.

  In the present invention, when the amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, the reformed gas is burned in the cylinder while reducing the amount of reforming fuel supplied. Since supply amount restriction control, which is control for supplying reforming fuel in a region where the reforming effect is high, is performed, it is possible to prevent the reforming fuel from being lost before the fuel used for the operation of the internal combustion engine. As a result, the reformed gas can be generated for a long time during the operation of the internal combustion engine, and the reformed gas can be continuously supplied to the internal combustion engine as necessary. In the supply amount restriction control, the reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high. Therefore, even if the supply amount of the reforming fuel is decreased, the reforming by supplying the reformed gas to the internal combustion engine is performed. The quality effect can be maintained. As a result, it is possible to improve the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the internal combustion engine.

  The fuel reformer according to the present invention is mounted on a vehicle as a driving means together with a motor, and the battery is charged when the remaining amount of electric power of a battery as a power source of the motor is a predetermined amount or less. Purifying means for purifying exhaust gas discharged from the cylinder of the internal combustion engine that can be operated, and reforming fuel supply means for supplying reforming fuel, which is a fuel to be reformed, to the exhaust gas And the downstream side of the reforming fuel supply means in the flow direction of the exhaust gas that supplies the reforming fuel by the reforming fuel supply means. A reforming means for generating a reformed gas combustible in the cylinder by making an endothermic reaction using the heat of the gas, and a reforming fuel for storing the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means Fuel storage means and the reforming The fuel supply means is provided to be controllable, and the amount of the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means is less than a predetermined amount, and the internal combustion engine does not perform the charging operation. In this case, the reformed gas is supplied to the cylinder while reducing the supply amount of the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means as compared with the case where the storage amount of the reforming fuel is larger than a predetermined amount. The amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means is controlled by performing supply amount limiting control, which is control for supplying the reforming fuel in a region where the reforming effect by burning in the region is high. And a reforming fuel supply means control means that does not perform the supply quantity restriction control when the internal combustion engine performs the charging operation at a predetermined amount or less.

  In the present invention, when the amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means is not more than a predetermined amount and the internal combustion engine does not perform the charging operation, the amount of reforming fuel supplied is reduced. Therefore, the reformed gas can be generated over a long time during the operation of the internal combustion engine. In this case, since the reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high, the reforming by supplying the reforming gas to the internal combustion engine even when the supply amount of the reforming fuel is decreased. The effect can be maintained, and the total fuel consumption can be improved when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the internal combustion engine.

  In addition, when the amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means is equal to or less than a predetermined amount and the internal combustion engine performs a charging operation, the supply amount restriction control is not performed, and thus the thermal efficiency is low. Can improve fuel efficiency. In other words, the operation of the internal combustion engine is controlled so that the thermal efficiency is higher during normal operation, but during charging operation, it is necessary to generate more power than during normal operation, so a larger torque is output than during normal operation. Drive in the state to do. For this reason, the thermal efficiency during the charging operation is lower than that during the normal operation. Therefore, during the charging operation, the reforming effect by supplying the reformed gas is higher than that during the normal operation. Further, the supply amount restriction control is not performed during the charging operation with low thermal efficiency, and the supply of the reforming fuel is continued, so that deterioration of fuel consumption due to operation in an operation state with low thermal efficiency can be suppressed. As a result, the total fuel consumption can be improved when the reformed gas is supplied during the operation of the internal combustion engine.

  Further, in the fuel reforming apparatus according to the present invention, the reforming fuel supply means control means is a reforming reference in which the temperature of the exhaust gas is a reference temperature for determining whether or not to supply the reforming fuel. When the temperature is higher than the temperature, the reforming fuel supply means supplies the reforming fuel. When the temperature of the exhaust gas is lower than the reforming reference temperature, the reforming fuel supply means performs the reforming fuel supply means. Control for stopping the supply of reforming fuel is performed, and the supply amount restriction control is performed by increasing the reforming reference temperature compared to the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. The reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high while reducing the supply amount of the reforming fuel supplied by the supply means.

  In the present invention, the supply amount restriction control is performed by increasing the reforming reference temperature used to determine whether or not to supply reforming fuel. Therefore, the reforming fuel is supplied only in a region where the reforming effect is high. it can. Specifically, since the reforming means generally reforms the reforming fuel by an endothermic reaction, the temperature range in which the reforming fuel can be reformed is a range of a predetermined temperature or higher. Further, such reforming means is easier to reform in the high temperature region than in the low temperature region, and easily generates reformed gas. For this reason, when the supply amount restriction control is performed, the reforming fuel is supplied only in a temperature range where more reformed gas can be generated by increasing the reforming reference temperature. Improvement effect such as improvement of fuel efficiency is high. As a result, the total fuel consumption can be improved when the reformed gas is supplied during the operation of the internal combustion engine.

  In the fuel reforming apparatus according to the present invention, the reforming fuel supply means control means may perform the reforming when compared with a case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed when the supply amount restriction control is performed. Supplying the reforming fuel in a region where the reforming effect is high while reducing the supply amount of the reforming fuel by reducing the supply amount per unit time of the reforming fuel supplied by the fuel supply means It is characterized by doing.

  In the present invention, the supply amount restriction control is performed by reducing the supply amount of reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means per unit time, so that the reforming is performed over a long time during the operation of the internal combustion engine. Gas can be generated. In addition, when the supply amount of reforming fuel per unit time is reduced, the reforming effect itself is reduced, but the degree of reduction is not proportional to the reduction amount of reforming fuel, and the reforming effect is reduced. The degree of reduction is smaller than the degree of reduction of the reforming fuel. For this reason, even when the reforming fuel is reduced, the deterioration of the fuel consumption is relatively small with respect to this reduction amount. In other words, even when the reforming fuel is reduced, the reforming effect is not lowered so much. Therefore, the reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high. Therefore, even when the supply amount of the reforming fuel is decreased, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the fuel consumption. As a result, it is possible to improve the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the internal combustion engine.

  In the fuel reforming apparatus according to the present invention, the reforming fuel supply means control means may perform the reforming only when the operation of the internal combustion engine is in a knock region when the supply amount restriction control is performed. By supplying the reforming fuel to the fuel supply means, the supply amount of the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means is reduced as compared with the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. The reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high.

  In the present invention, the supply amount restriction control is performed by supplying the reforming fuel only when the operation of the internal combustion engine is in the knock region, so that the reforming fuel can be supplied only in the region where the reforming effect is high. Specifically, when the reformed gas is supplied to the internal combustion engine, there is also an effect of improving knocking. Therefore, when the operation of the internal combustion engine is in a knock region where knocking occurs, supplying reforming fuel, Knocking can be suppressed by the reformed gas. For this reason, when supply amount restriction control is performed, a high reforming effect is obtained with a small amount of reforming fuel by supplying reforming fuel only when the operation of the internal combustion engine is in the knock range. be able to. As a result, knocking can be suppressed while improving the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the internal combustion engine.

  Further, in the fuel reforming apparatus according to the present invention, the reforming fuel supply means control means determines the main fuel that is used for the operation of the internal combustion engine in determining whether or not to perform the supply amount restriction control. The supply amount restriction control may be performed when the ratio of the storage amount of the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage unit to the storage amount of the main fuel stored in the main fuel storage unit is less than a predetermined value. It is characterized by determining including.

  In this invention, when determining whether or not to perform supply amount restriction control, the ratio of the storage amount of the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage device to the storage amount of the main fuel in the main fuel storage device It is judged including. In other words, the ratio of the storage amount of the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage unit to the storage amount of the main fuel stored in the main fuel storage unit in the supply amount restriction control in the above-described invention is larger than a predetermined value. In this case, the supply amount restriction control is not performed. For this reason, even when the amount of reforming fuel stored is small, when the amount of main fuel stored is small, the reforming fuel and the main fuel disappear at the same time, so there is no reforming fuel. It is possible to prevent the internal combustion engine from being operated in a state where no reformed gas is generated. Therefore, even when the amount of reforming fuel stored is small, when the amount of main fuel stored is small, the reforming fuel is supplied, so that the time for obtaining the reforming effect becomes long. As a result, the total fuel consumption can be improved when the reformed gas is supplied during the operation of the internal combustion engine.

  The fuel reformer according to the present invention has an effect that the total fuel consumption can be improved when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the internal combustion engine.

  Embodiments of a fuel reformer according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments. In addition, constituent elements in the following embodiments include those that can be easily replaced by those skilled in the art or those that are substantially the same.

  FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an engine including a fuel reformer according to a first embodiment. A fuel reformer 3 shown in the figure is provided in an engine 1 which is an internal combustion engine. The engine 1 provided with the fuel reformer 3 has four cylinders 5 arranged in series. Further, the engine 1 communicates with the cylinder 5, and an intake passage 10 that is a passage through which air sucked into the cylinder 5 flows, and fuel is burned in the cylinder 5, and then discharged from the cylinder 5. An exhaust passage 20 through which exhaust gas flows is connected. These intake passages 10 and exhaust passages 20 are branched into four passages according to the number of cylinders 5, and the branched passages correspond to the four cylinders 5 and communicate with the inside of the cylinders 5. It is connected to the.

  Of the intake passage 10 and the exhaust passage 20, an injector 11, which is a main fuel supply means that can supply main fuel, which is fuel used for operation of the engine 1, to the cylinder 5 during operation of the engine 1. Is arranged. The injector 11 is provided so that the main fuel can be supplied to the cylinder 5 by injecting the main fuel into the cylinder 5 during operation of the engine 1. A throttle valve 12 that can open and close the intake passage 10 is disposed upstream of the injector 11 in the flow direction of the air flowing through the intake passage 10, and the intake passage is further upstream of the throttle valve 12. An air flow meter 13 capable of detecting the flow rate of air flowing through the inside 10 is provided. An air cleaner 14 for removing impurities in the air flowing into the intake passage 10 is provided at the inlet of the intake passage 10 thus formed.

The exhaust passage 20 is provided with an O ₂ sensor 35 which is an exhaust gas component detection means capable of detecting an exhaust gas component, further purifies the exhaust gas and reforms the reforming fuel. The catalyst part 30 which performs is provided. The catalyst unit 30 includes a purification catalyst 31 that is a purification means for purifying the exhaust gas. Further, the catalyst unit 30 is provided with a reforming catalyst 32 which is reforming means for generating reformed gas combustible in the cylinder 5 from reforming fuel which is reforming fuel. The reforming catalyst 32 is disposed around a purifying catalyst 31 provided in the catalyst unit 30. For example, a rhodium-based catalyst is used. Further, the catalyst unit 30 is provided with a purification catalyst temperature sensor 36 which is a purification means temperature detection means capable of detecting the temperature of the purification catalyst 31.

  The exhaust passage 20 is branched upstream of the catalyst unit 30 in the flow direction of the exhaust gas flowing in the exhaust passage 20, and one of the branched passages is a main passage of the exhaust passage 20. This is the exhaust main passage 21. Further, the other passage among the branched passages of the exhaust passage 20 is a reforming passage 22. The reforming passage 22 has one end connected to the exhaust main passage 21 and the other end connected to the catalyst unit 30. In the reforming passage 22 formed in this way, a reforming fuel injector 25 which is a reforming fuel supply means capable of supplying reforming fuel, which is a fuel to be reformed, to the exhaust gas. Is provided. The reforming fuel injector 25 can supply the reforming fuel to the exhaust gas by injecting the reforming fuel into the reforming passage 22.

  The reforming passage 22 provided with the reforming fuel injector 25 has one end connected to the exhaust main passage 21 and the other end connected to the catalyst unit 30, and the exhaust gas flowing in the reforming passage 22. Flows from the side connected to the exhaust main passage 21 to the side connected to the catalyst unit 30. For this reason, the reforming fuel injector 25 is located upstream of the catalyst unit 30 in the flow direction of the exhaust gas flowing through the reforming passage 22. Therefore, in other words, the reforming catalyst 32 provided in the catalyst unit 30 is positioned downstream of the reforming fuel injector 25 in the flow direction of the exhaust gas that supplies the reforming fuel by the reforming fuel injector 25. ing.

  Further, an EGR gas passage 40 is connected to the catalyst portion 30, and the EGR gas passage 40 is provided between the catalyst portion 30 and the intake passage 10 in the direction in which the exhaust gas flows. That is, the EGR gas passage 40 connects the catalyst unit 30 and the intake passage 10. In the EGR gas passage 40 thus provided, the exhaust gas flowing from the catalyst unit 30 to the EGR gas passage 40 and the reformed gas generated by the reforming catalyst 32 flow from the catalyst unit 30 side to the intake passage 10 side. It is formed to be able to. That is, the EGR gas passage 40 is a recirculation passage through which the reformed gas can flow into the intake passage 10 of the cylinder 5.

  The EGR gas passage 40 is provided with an EGR cooler 41 that is a cooling means capable of cooling the exhaust gas and the reformed gas flowing through the EGR gas passage 40. The EGR cooler 41 circulates through the engine 1 and includes cooling water (not shown) that is a cooling medium that cools the engine 1 during operation of a vehicle (not shown) on which the engine 1 is mounted, and exhaust gas and reformed gas. The exhaust gas and the reformed gas are reduced in temperature by exchanging heat with the cooling water.

  The EGR gas passage 40 is a portion between the portion where the EGR cooler 41 is provided and the portion connected to the intake passage 10, that is, the portion connected to the intake passage 10 in the EGR gas passage 40. An EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42 capable of opening and closing the inside of the EGR gas passage 40 is disposed in the vicinity.

  In addition, the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22 provided in this way are formed in a straight line with the catalyst portion 30 to which both passages are connected being sandwiched. Specifically, the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22 are connected to the catalyst unit 30 in a direction substantially orthogonal to the flow direction of the exhaust gas flowing in the exhaust main passage 21, and further, the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22 are connected to a position substantially opposed to the catalyst unit 30. As a result, portions of the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22 that are connected to the catalyst unit 30 are linearly formed with the catalyst unit 30 interposed therebetween.

  The exhaust passage 20 thus formed is also provided on the downstream side of the catalyst unit 30 in the flow direction of the exhaust gas flowing through the exhaust main passage 21. That is, the exhaust passage 20 is formed to communicate from the upstream side to the downstream side of the catalyst unit 30 in the exhaust gas flow direction. The exhaust passage 20 is provided with exhaust gas temperature detection means capable of detecting the temperature of the exhaust gas flowing in the exhaust passage 20 at a position downstream of the catalyst unit 30 in the flow direction of the exhaust gas flowing in the exhaust main passage 21. An exhaust temperature sensor 37 is provided.

  An injector 11 provided in the intake passage 10 is provided in a vehicle on which the engine 1 is mounted, and is connected to a main fuel tank 51 that stores main fuel. The main fuel tank 51 includes a main fuel feed pump 52 that can send the main fuel in the main fuel tank 51 to the outside. The main fuel in the main fuel tank 51 is injected into the injector 11 by the main fuel feed pump 52. It is provided so that it can be supplied. Further, the main fuel tank 51 is provided with a main fuel remaining amount sensor 53 which is a main fuel remaining amount detecting means capable of detecting the remaining amount of main fuel stored in the main fuel tank 51. In the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, the main fuel stored in the main fuel tank 51, that is, the fuel used for the operation of the engine 1 is a fuel in which gasoline and alcohol fuel are mixed. Yes.

  Similarly, the reforming fuel injector 25 provided in the reforming passage 22 is connected to a reforming fuel tank 55 that stores the reforming fuel. The reforming fuel tank 55 includes a reforming fuel feed pump 56 that can send the reforming fuel in the reforming fuel tank 55 to the outside. The fuel is provided so as to be supplied to the reforming fuel injector 25 by the reforming fuel feed pump 56. Further, the reforming fuel tank 55 is a reforming fuel that is a reforming fuel remaining amount detecting means capable of detecting the remaining amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel tank 55. A remaining amount sensor 57 is provided. In the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel tank 55, that is, the reforming fuel reformed by the reforming catalyst 32 is alcohol fuel. ing.

These injector 11 and reforming fuel injector 25, throttle valve 12, EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42, air flow meter 13, O ₂ sensor 35, purification catalyst temperature sensor 36, exhaust temperature sensor 37, main fuel remaining amount sensor 53, The reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57 is connected to an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) 60 that controls each part of the vehicle.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a main part of the fuel reformer shown in FIG. The ECU 60 is provided with a processing unit 61, a storage unit 75, and an input / output unit 76, which are connected to each other and can exchange signals with each other. In addition, the injector 11 connected to the ECU 60, the reforming fuel injector 25, the throttle valve 12, the EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42, the air flow meter 13, the O ₂ sensor 35, the purification catalyst temperature sensor 36, the exhaust gas temperature sensor 37, the main The fuel remaining amount sensor 53 and the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57 are connected to an input / output unit 76, and the input / output unit 76 communicates signals with the throttle valve 12, the purification catalyst temperature sensor 36, and the like. Perform input / output. In addition, the storage unit 75 stores a computer program for controlling the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment. The storage unit 75 is a hard disk device, a magneto-optical disk device, a nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory (a storage medium that can be read only such as a CD-ROM), or a RAM (Random Access Memory). A volatile memory or a combination thereof can be used.

  The processing unit 61 includes a memory and a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The processing unit 61 includes a throttle valve control unit 62 that can control the opening and closing of the throttle valve 12. An intake air amount acquisition unit 63 capable of acquiring one intake air amount.

  The processing unit 61 includes a main fuel injection amount control unit 64 that is a main fuel supply means control unit that can control the injection amount of the main fuel injected from the injector 11 by controlling the injector 11, and a reforming fuel injector. 25, the amount of reforming fuel injected from the reforming fuel injector 25 is controlled by controlling the reforming fuel injector 25, and the reforming fuel injector 25 is controlled. When the storage amount of the reforming fuel stored in the fuel tank 55 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, the reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 is compared with the case where the storage amount of the reforming fuel is larger than the predetermined amount. A reforming fuel supplier that performs supply amount limiting control, which is control for injecting reforming fuel in a region where the reforming effect is high by burning the reformed gas in the cylinder 5 while reducing the fuel injection amount. The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 is a control unit, and a EGR gas flow rate adjustment EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve control unit 66 controls capable of opening and closing of the valve 42, the.

  The processing unit 61 obtains a main fuel remaining amount that is a main fuel remaining amount obtaining unit that obtains the remaining amount of main fuel stored in the main fuel tank 51 based on the detection result of the main fuel remaining amount sensor 53. This is a reforming fuel remaining amount obtaining means for obtaining the remaining amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel tank 55 from the detection results of the unit 67 and the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57. From the detection result of the reforming fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68 and the exhaust temperature sensor 37, the exhaust gas temperature, that is, the exhaust gas temperature acquisition unit 69 that acquires exhaust gas temperature, that is, the exhaust gas temperature, and the reforming fuel. A reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 that determines whether or not the remaining amount of reforming fuel acquired by the remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is greater than a predetermined amount.

  The control of the fuel reformer 3 controlled by the ECU 60 is performed by, for example, the processor 61 reading the computer program into a memory incorporated in the processor 61 based on the detection result by the exhaust temperature sensor 37 or the like. Control is performed by operating the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42 or the like according to the result of the calculation. At that time, the processing unit 61 appropriately stores a numerical value in the middle of the calculation in the storage unit 75 and retrieves the stored numerical value to execute the calculation. In addition, when controlling the fuel reformer 3 in this way, you may control by the dedicated hardware different from ECU60 instead of the said computer program.

  The fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. The vehicle on which the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment is mounted has a throttle valve control unit 62 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60 according to the opening degree of an accelerator pedal (not shown) provided in the vehicle interior during driving. Controls the opening of the throttle valve 12. As a result, air corresponding to the opening of the throttle valve 12 flows through the intake passage 10. When air flows into the intake passage 10, the flow rate of the air is detected by the air flow meter 13, and the detection result of the air flow meter 13 is acquired by the intake air amount acquisition unit 63 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60.

  The intake air amount acquired by the intake air amount acquisition unit 63 is transmitted to the main fuel injection amount control unit 64 of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60 together with information on the operation state such as the opening degree of the accelerator pedal, and related to the transmitted operation state. The injector 11 is controlled by the main fuel injection amount control unit 64 according to the information, and the injector 11 is operated. During the operation of the engine 1, the main fuel in the main fuel tank 51 is supplied to the injector 11 by the main fuel feed pump 52 provided in the main fuel tank 51, so that the main fuel injection amount control unit 64 operates the injector 11. Thus, the injector 11 injects the main fuel into the intake passage 10 according to the control by the main fuel injection amount control unit 64.

  Thus, by injecting the main fuel from the injector 11 into the intake passage 10, the injected main fuel is mixed with the air flowing through the intake passage 10 and flows into the intake passage 10 as an air-fuel mixture. The air-fuel mixture flowing in the intake passage 10 branches along the intake passage 10 formed by branching, and is sucked into the four cylinders 5 of the engine 1.

  The air-fuel mixture sucked into the cylinders 5 burns the main fuel in the air-fuel mixture in the combustion stroke of each cylinder 5, and the exhaust gas after combustion flows out from the cylinders 5 into the exhaust passage 20 in the exhaust stroke. When exhaust gas flows into the exhaust passage 20, most of the exhaust gas passes through the exhaust main passage 21 of the exhaust passage 20, flows into the catalyst unit 30, and flows into the purification catalyst 31 provided in the catalyst unit 30. The exhaust gas flowing into the purification catalyst 31 is purified by the purification catalyst 31, flows into the exhaust passage 20 located on the downstream side of the catalyst unit 30 in the exhaust gas flow direction, and is released to the atmosphere. Further, when the exhaust gas passes through the purification catalyst 31 in this way, the heat of the exhaust gas is transmitted to the purification catalyst 31, and thus the temperature of the purification catalyst 31 rises due to the heat of the exhaust gas.

  On the other hand, some of the exhaust gas flowing through the exhaust passage 20 flows into the reforming passage 22. A part of the exhaust gas flows in the reforming passage 22 as described above, and the reforming passage 22 is provided with a reforming fuel injector 25. The reforming fuel injector 25 is provided so that the reforming fuel can be injected into the exhaust gas flowing in the reforming passage 22, and the amount of injection is the reforming fuel that the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60 has. The injection amount control unit 65 is provided so as to be controllable. That is, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 can operate the reforming fuel injector 25 by controlling the reforming fuel injector 25, and the reforming fuel injector 25 includes a reforming fuel injector 25. The reforming fuel in the reforming fuel tank 55 is supplied by the reforming fuel feed pump 56 provided in the fuel tank 55. Therefore, when the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 operates the reforming fuel injector 25, the reforming fuel injector 25 is reformed according to the control by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65. The fuel is injected into the reforming passage 22.

  Further, during operation of the engine 1, the exhaust gas temperature, which is the temperature of the exhaust gas, is acquired by the exhaust gas temperature acquisition unit 69 of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60 from the detection result of the exhaust gas temperature sensor 37. A reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 that controls the reforming fuel injector 25 is a reforming unit that determines whether the exhaust gas temperature acquired by the exhaust gas temperature acquiring unit 69 is a reference temperature for injecting the reforming fuel. When the temperature is higher than the quality reference temperature, the reforming fuel is injected into the reforming fuel injector 25. When the exhaust temperature acquired by the exhaust temperature acquisition unit 69 is lower than the reforming reference temperature, the reforming fuel injector Control to stop the reforming fuel injection by 25 is performed.

  When the reforming fuel injector 25 injects reforming fuel under the control of the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, the reforming fuel is mixed with the exhaust gas flowing through the reforming passage 22 and mixed. In this state, it flows into the catalyst unit 30. Thus, the exhaust gas that has flowed into the catalyst unit 30 while being mixed with the reforming fuel passes through the reforming catalyst 32 provided in the catalyst unit 30.

  Here, the reforming catalyst 32 is disposed around the purification catalyst 31 and integrated with the purification catalyst 31 in the catalyst unit 30, but the purification catalyst 31 is exhaust gas flowing from the exhaust main passage 21. The temperature is increased by transferring the heat of the gas. For this reason, the heat of the purification catalyst 31 whose temperature has increased in this way is transmitted to the reforming catalyst 32, and the temperature of the reforming catalyst 32 also rises. Thus, when the exhaust gas mixed with the reforming fuel passes through the reforming catalyst 32, the reforming catalyst 32 reforms the exhaust gas mixed with the reforming fuel while applying heat to the exhaust gas. Then, reformed gas is generated.

  That is, the temperature of the reforming catalyst 32 is increased by the heat of the exhaust gas being transmitted through the purification catalyst 31, but when reforming the exhaust gas and the reforming fuel by the action of the reforming catalyst 32. Uses this heat and reforms by endothermic reaction. Thus, the reforming catalyst 32 installed in the catalyst unit 30 modifies the exhaust gas and the reforming fuel by using the heat transmitted from the exhaust gas when the purification catalyst 31 purifies the exhaust gas. The reformed gas can be generated. The reformed gas generated by this reforming contains hydrogen and carbon monoxide and is a combustible gas.

  Thus, the reformed gas generated by reforming the reforming fuel with the reforming catalyst 32 and the exhaust gas that passes through the reforming catalyst 32 without being reformed into the reformed gas are recirculated to the engine 1. It flows into the EGR gas passage 40 as EGR gas which is a reflux gas. The EGR gas that has flowed into the EGR gas passage 40 passes through the EGR cooler 41. At that time, the EGR cooler 41 exchanges heat between the EGR gas and the cooling water. Thereby, the temperature of the EGR gas decreases.

  The EGR gas whose temperature has been lowered by the EGR cooler 41 further flows through the EGR gas passage 40 and moves toward the EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42. The EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42 is provided so as to be controllable by an EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve control unit 66 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60. The EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve control unit 66 controls the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42. By controlling, the opening degree of the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42 is adjusted.

  Here, the EGR gas passage 40 in which the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42 is provided is connected to the intake passage 10, but the EGR gas is divided between the air flowing in the intake passage 10 and the EGR gas flowing in the EGR gas passage 40. The pressure of EGR gas flowing in the passage 40 is higher than that of air flowing in the intake passage 10. For this reason, in a state where the intake passage 10 and the EGR gas passage 40 communicate with each other, the EGR gas flowing in the EGR gas passage 40 flows into the intake passage 10.

  Therefore, when the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42 is controlled by the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve control unit 66 and the opening degree of the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42 is increased, the intake passage 10 for the EGR gas flowing in the EGR gas passage 40 is used. The amount of inflow into the interior increases, and when the opening of the EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42 is reduced, the amount of inflow of EGR gas into the intake passage 10 decreases.

  An amount of EGR gas corresponding to the opening degree of the EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42 flows in the intake passage 10 as described above, and this EGR gas contains reformed gas. It contains combustible gases such as hydrogen and carbon monoxide. For this reason, when fuel burns in the cylinder 5 into which EGR gas has flowed, the reformed gas also burns together with the fuel. In particular, since hydrogen is a gas that rapidly burns, when hydrogen burns, the hydrogen in the cylinder 5 burns at a rapid burning rate.

  Further, the reformed gas combusted in the cylinder 5 as described above has a higher calorific value than the mixed fuel of gasoline and alcohol fuel, which is the main fuel used for the operation of the engine 1, and thus the reformed gas combusted. In some cases, the output of the engine 1 increases. Therefore, when the reformed gas contained in the EGR gas is burned, when the output of the engine 1 is made constant, the throttle valve 12 is closed and injected from the injector 11 as compared with the case where the reformed gas is not burned. Reduce the amount of main fuel injection.

  During the operation of the engine 1, the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60 indicates the main fuel remaining amount that is the amount of main fuel stored in the main fuel tank 51 based on the detection result of the main fuel remaining amount sensor 53. Obtained by the main fuel remaining amount obtaining unit 67. Similarly, from the detection result of the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57, the reforming fuel remaining amount, which is the amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel tank 55, is determined by the processing unit of the ECU 60. Obtained by the reforming fuel remaining amount obtaining unit 68 of 61. The reforming fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68 acquires the reforming fuel as described above, but the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 acquires the reforming fuel acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68. When the remaining amount is equal to or less than the predetermined amount, supply amount restriction control is performed to reduce the injection amount of the reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a relationship between the exhaust temperature and the fuel efficiency improvement effect when the supply amount restriction control is performed in the fuel reformer according to the first embodiment. The horizontal axis in FIG. 3 indicates the temperature of the exhaust gas discharged from the engine 1, and the vertical axis indicates the magnitude of the fuel efficiency improvement effect when the reformed gas is supplied to the engine 1 by the fuel reformer 3. ing. When the supply amount restriction control is performed by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, specifically, the reforming fuel injector is set by raising the reforming reference temperature compared to the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. The amount of reforming fuel injected at 25 is decreased.

  In other words, when the reforming fuel remaining amount is greater than the predetermined amount, the reforming reference temperature, which is a reference temperature for determining whether or not to inject the reforming fuel, has injected the reforming fuel into the exhaust gas. In this case, a reformable exhaust temperature that is an exhaust temperature at which the reforming catalyst 32 can reform the reforming fuel is set. Thereby, the reforming fuel injector 25 injects the reforming fuel when the exhaust gas temperature is equal to or higher than the reformable temperature.

  On the other hand, when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, the reforming reference temperature is set to be more reforming fuel at the reforming catalyst 32 when the reforming fuel is injected into the exhaust gas. Can be reformed, and a high reforming effect exhaust temperature that is an exhaust temperature capable of generating more reformed gas is set. Here, when the reforming fuel is injected into the exhaust gas, the reforming fuel is easily reformed by the reforming catalyst 32 as the exhaust temperature increases. That is, the reforming fuel is reformed as the exhaust gas temperature increases, and a large amount of reformed gas is easily generated. Therefore, as shown by the reforming effect line 83 in FIG. The fuel efficiency improvement effect by supplying gas to the engine 1 increases. The high reforming effect exhaust temperature 82 is an exhaust temperature at which a reforming effect such as a fuel efficiency improvement effect due to the generation of a large amount of reformed gas is increased, and the temperature is higher than the reformable exhaust temperature 81. It has become.

  When the reforming fuel remaining amount is equal to or less than the predetermined amount, the reforming reference temperature is set to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature 82 so that the reforming fuel injector 25 has the exhaust temperature of the high reforming effect exhaust temperature. In the case of 82 or more, the reforming fuel is injected.

  As described above, when the reforming reference temperature is set to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature 82, the region in which the reforming fuel is injected is compared with the case where the reforming reference temperature is set to the reformable exhaust temperature 81. It is limited only when the exhaust temperature is in a high temperature region. For this reason, when the injection amount of the reforming fuel is viewed comprehensively, the injection amount of the reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 decreases. Therefore, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 increases the reforming reference temperature when the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, While the amount of reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 is decreased, the reforming fuel is injected in a region where the reforming effect by burning the reformed gas in the cylinder 5 is high.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure of the fuel reformer according to the first embodiment. Next, a control method of the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, that is, a processing procedure of the fuel reformer 3 will be described. In the processing procedure of the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, first, the exhaust gas temperature is acquired (step ST101). In this acquisition, the detection result of the exhaust temperature detected by the exhaust temperature sensor 37 is transmitted to the exhaust temperature acquisition unit 69 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60 and acquired by the exhaust temperature acquisition unit 69.

  Next, the remaining amount of reforming fuel is acquired (step ST102). In this acquisition, the result of detection of the reforming fuel remaining amount detected by the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57 is transmitted to the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60, and the reforming fuel is detected. Obtained by the remaining amount obtaining unit 68.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the remaining amount of reforming fuel> Qfuel (step ST103). In this determination, it is determined whether or not the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is larger than a predetermined amount Qfuel that determines whether the reforming fuel remaining amount is large or small. The determination is made by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60. When this determination is made, the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is transmitted to the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70, and the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 The remaining amount of fuel for reforming is compared with Qfuel. The Qfuel used for this determination is stored in advance in the storage unit 75 of the ECU 60 as a predetermined amount for determining whether or not the remaining amount of reforming fuel in the reforming fuel tank 55 is sufficient.

  If it is determined by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 (step ST103) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is higher than Qfuel, the reforming reference temperature is set to the reformable exhaust temperature ( Step ST104). The reforming reference temperature is set by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65. Note that the reformable exhaust temperature substituted for the reforming reference temperature is an exhaust temperature that can reform the reforming fuel by the reforming catalyst 32 when the reforming fuel is injected into the exhaust gas. It is stored in the storage unit 75 of the ECU 60.

  Next, reforming fuel is injected in a region above the reforming reference temperature (step ST105). In this control, when the exhaust temperature acquired by the exhaust temperature acquisition unit 69 is equal to or higher than the reforming reference temperature, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25 to inject reformed gas. That is, the reforming fuel is injected in a region where the exhaust gas temperature is equal to or higher than the reforming reference temperature and reformed by the reforming catalyst 32 to generate reformed gas. In this case, since the reforming reference temperature is the reformable exhaust temperature, in other words, when the exhaust temperature is equal to or higher than the reformable exhaust temperature, the reforming fuel is injected to generate the reformed gas. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  On the other hand, if it is determined by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 (step ST103) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is equal to or lower than Qfuel, the reforming reference temperature is set to the high reforming effect. The exhaust temperature is set (step ST106). The reforming reference temperature is set by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65. Note that the high reforming effect exhaust temperature substituted for the reforming reference temperature can reform more reforming fuel by the reforming catalyst 32 when the reforming fuel is injected into the exhaust gas. The exhaust gas temperature at which more reformed gas can be generated is stored in advance in the storage unit 75 of the ECU 60 in the same manner as the reformable exhaust gas temperature.

  After the reforming reference temperature is set to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature, the reforming fuel is injected in the region above the reforming reference temperature in the same manner as when the reforming reference temperature is set to the reformable exhaust temperature (step) ST105). In this control, when the exhaust temperature acquired by the exhaust temperature acquisition unit 69 is equal to or higher than the reforming reference temperature, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25 to inject the reformed gas. In other words, the reformed gas is injected when the exhaust temperature is equal to or higher than the high reforming effect exhaust temperature. As a result, the reforming fuel is injected in a region where the exhaust temperature is equal to or higher than the reforming reference temperature, or in a region where the exhaust temperature is equal to or higher than the high reforming effect exhaust temperature, and the reforming catalyst 32 reforms the reformed gas. Generate. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  In the fuel reforming apparatus 3 according to the first embodiment, in the supply amount restriction control, when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is greater than Qfuel, the reforming reference temperature is set to the reformable exhaust temperature, and the reforming fuel is set. When the remaining amount is less than Qfuel, the reforming reference temperature is set to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature, so that the reforming fuel injection region is limited to the region where the exhaust temperature is equal to or higher than the high reforming effect exhaust temperature. To do. That is, by limiting the injection region of the reforming fuel when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or less than Qfuel, compared to the injection region of the reforming fuel when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is greater than Qfuel. The supply amount of reforming fuel is limited.

  Next, comparison of fuel consumption between the case where the supply amount restriction control is performed and the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed will be described. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an engine operation mode in a case where fuel consumption is compared. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for comparison of fuel consumption when the supply amount restriction control is performed and when the supply amount restriction control is not performed. When comparing the fuel consumption between the case where the supply amount restriction control is performed and the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the A mode in which the engine 1 is in an operating state with a low rotational speed and a small torque as shown in FIG. The operation is alternately performed in the B mode in which the rotational speed is high and the torque is large. In the A mode and the B mode, the exhaust temperature is higher because the rotational speed of the engine 1 is higher and the torque is larger in the B mode than in the A mode. For this reason, the B mode has a higher reforming effect and better fuel efficiency than the A mode (FIG. 6).

  Further, when the engine 1 is operated alternately in the A mode and the B mode, the reforming fuel is also injected according to the operating state, but the operation is performed by injecting the reforming fuel during the operation of the engine 1. The remaining amount of reforming fuel decreases with time. Then, when the fuel remaining amount for reforming is equal to or lower than Qfuel for determining whether or not the remaining amount of reforming fuel is sufficient, the fuel reforming apparatus 3 according to the first embodiment performs supply amount restriction control.

  In this supply amount restriction control, the reforming fuel is injected only when the exhaust gas temperature is high. Therefore, the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than Qfuel, the exhaust temperature during operation in the A mode is lower than the high reforming effect exhaust temperature, and the exhaust temperature during operation in the B mode is the high reforming effect exhaust. When the temperature is higher than the temperature, the reforming fuel is injected only when operating in the B mode. That is, in the supply amount restriction control, as shown by the supply amount restriction control consumption line 85 (FIG. 6), which is a line representing how the reforming fuel is consumed during the supply amount restriction control, the reforming fuel is A The fuel for reforming is not consumed when operating in the mode, and the fuel for reforming is consumed only when operating in the B mode.

  Therefore, when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than Qfuel, the reforming fuel is not injected during operation in the A mode, so the reforming fuel is injected to generate reformed gas. Compared with fuel efficiency. In other words, when the reforming fuel injection is stopped 87 when operating in the A mode, the fuel consumption is worse than before the reforming fuel injection is stopped, but the exhaust temperature is low in this A mode. Therefore, the operation mode has a low reforming effect. Therefore, even when the reforming fuel injection is stopped while operating in the A mode, the deterioration of the fuel consumption due to the loss of the reforming effect due to the stop of the reforming fuel injection is reduced. Further, since the reforming fuel is injected only when the exhaust temperature is higher than the high reforming effect exhaust temperature, the consumption amount of the reforming fuel is reduced and the remaining amount of reforming fuel is hardly lost.

  In contrast, when the supply amount restriction control is not performed even when the reforming fuel remaining amount is equal to or lower than Qfuel, the reforming fuel is continuously injected as before the remaining reforming fuel amount becomes equal to or less than Qfuel. . That is, the reforming fuel is injected both when the engine 1 is operated in the A mode and when it is operated in the B mode. For this reason, the reforming fuel is supplied as shown by a no-supply-rate-limiting-control consumption line 86 (FIG. 6), which is a line representing how the reforming fuel is consumed when the supply-rate limiting control is not performed. The consumed speed becomes faster compared to the case where the amount limiting control is performed.

  That is, when the supply amount restriction control is performed, the reforming fuel is injected only during operation in the B mode, whereas when the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the reforming fuel is operated in the A mode and in the B mode. Since the fuel is injected in both cases, when the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the rate of consumption of the reforming fuel is equivalent to the amount of injection during operation in the A mode as compared with the case where the supply amount restriction control is performed. Becomes faster. Therefore, when the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the reforming fuel is completely consumed earlier than when the supply amount restriction control is performed, and the reforming fuel in the reforming fuel tank 55 disappears. When the reforming fuel runs out, the reforming effect due to the generation of reformed gas is lost, but the effect of the lack of the reforming effect is more in operation in the B mode than in the A mode. It is getting bigger.

  That is, the A mode is an operation mode with a low reforming effect because the exhaust temperature is low, and the B mode is an operation mode with a high reforming effect because the exhaust temperature is high. As a result, the fuel efficiency of the B mode is greatly improved due to the high reforming effect. Therefore, when the reforming fuel is lost, the B mode is more affected by the loss of the reforming fuel than the A mode. Becomes larger. For this reason, the fuel efficiency of the B mode is greatly deteriorated as compared with the time before the reforming fuel is used, as in the case of the reforming fuel consumption 88 shown in FIG. In this case, the deterioration of fuel consumption is caused by stopping the injection of reforming fuel during operation in the A mode by performing the supply amount restriction control when the remaining amount of reforming fuel becomes Qfuel or less. The degree of deterioration is greater.

  For this reason, when the fuel consumption during the operation of the engine 1 is viewed comprehensively, when the remaining amount of reforming fuel becomes Qfuel or less, the supply amount restriction control is not performed as compared with the case where the supply amount restriction control is performed. In this case, the fuel consumption tends to deteriorate. In other words, the fuel consumption is better when the supply amount restriction control is performed than when the supply amount restriction control is not performed.

  The above fuel reformer 3 is configured to burn the reformed gas in the cylinder 5 while reducing the injection amount of the reforming fuel when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or less than the predetermined amount Qfuel. Since the supply amount restriction control, which is a control for supplying the reforming fuel in a region where the reforming effect is high, is performed, the reforming fuel is hardly lost. For this reason, even when the remaining amount of the reforming fuel is reduced, it is possible to suppress the disappearance of the reforming fuel before the main fuel that is the fuel used for the operation of the engine 1. Thereby, the reformed gas can be generated over a long time during the operation of the engine 1, and the reformed gas can be continuously supplied to the engine 1 as necessary. Further, in the supply amount restriction control, the reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high. Therefore, even when the supply amount of the reforming fuel is decreased, the reforming by supplying the reformed gas to the engine 1 is performed. The quality effect can be maintained. As a result, the total fuel consumption can be improved when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the engine 1.

  In the fuel reforming apparatus according to the first embodiment, the supply amount restriction control is performed by setting the reforming reference temperature used for determining whether or not to inject the reforming fuel as the high reforming effect exhaust temperature. Therefore, the reforming fuel can be supplied only in a region where the reforming effect is high. Specifically, since the reforming catalyst 32 reforms the reforming fuel by an endothermic reaction, the temperature range in which the reforming fuel can be reformed is a range of a predetermined temperature or higher. Further, such a reforming catalyst 32 is easier to reform in the high temperature region than in the low temperature region, and easily generates reformed gas. For this reason, when the supply amount restriction control is performed, the reforming fuel is injected only in a temperature range where more reformed gas can be generated by increasing the reforming reference temperature. Improvement effect such as improvement of fuel efficiency becomes high. As a result, it is possible to improve the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during the operation of the engine 1 more reliably.

  The fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, but the supply amount restriction control reduces the injection amount of reforming fuel per unit time. This is characterized by the fact that Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted and the same reference numerals are given. FIG. 7 is a main part configuration diagram of the fuel reforming apparatus according to the second embodiment. The fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment is provided in the engine 1 (see FIG. 1) similarly to the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment (see FIG. 1), and the reforming fuel injector 25 is provided in the exhaust passage 20. A reforming passage 22 is provided. Further, the exhaust passage 20 is provided with a catalyst portion 30 in which a purification catalyst 31 and a reforming catalyst 32 are provided and to which an EGR gas passage 40 is connected, and the EGR gas passage 40 connected to the catalyst portion 30 includes The end located on the opposite side of the end connected to the catalyst unit 30 is connected to the intake passage 10. The EGR gas passage 40 is provided with an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42 that can open and close the inside of the EGR gas passage 40.

  The ECU 60 included in the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment includes a processing unit 61, a storage unit 75, and an input / output unit 76, similar to the ECU 60 included in the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment. ing. Among them, the processing unit 61 includes at least a throttle valve control unit 62, an intake air amount acquisition unit 63, a main fuel injection amount control unit 64, a reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, and an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve control. Unit 66, main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67, reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68, exhaust temperature acquiring unit 69, and reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70.

  The fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. When the engine 1 including the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment is operated, the throttle valve 12 is controlled by the throttle valve control unit 62 according to the accelerator pedal opening. An amount of air corresponding to the air flows into the intake passage 10. The amount of intake air flowing through the intake passage 10 is detected by the air flow meter 13 provided in the intake passage 10, and the detection result is acquired by the intake air amount acquisition unit 63.

  Further, an injector 11 is provided in the intake passage 10, and by controlling the injector 11 with the main fuel injection amount control unit 64, an amount of main fuel based on the intake air amount acquired by the intake air amount acquisition unit 63 is controlled. Fuel is injected from the injector 11. When the main fuel is injected from the injector 11, the main fuel is mixed with the air flowing through the intake passage 10 and is taken into each cylinder 5 of the engine 1 in the state of the air-fuel mixture.

  The air-fuel mixture sucked into the cylinder 5 is combusted in the combustion stroke of the cylinder 5, and the gas after combustion becomes exhaust gas and flows from the inside of each cylinder 5 to the exhaust passage 20 in the exhaust stroke. The exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust passage 20 flows into the exhaust main passage 21 and the reforming passage 22. Among these, the exhaust gas flowing into the exhaust main passage 21 passes through the purification catalyst 31 in the catalyst unit 30 and is purified by the purification catalyst 31. At that time, the temperature of the purification catalyst 31 rises due to the heat of the exhaust gas.

  On the other hand, a part of the exhaust gas flowing through the exhaust passage 20 flows into the reforming passage 22 where the reforming fuel injector 25 is provided. The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25 according to the operating state of the engine 1, so that the reforming fuel injector 25 is controlled by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65. The reforming fuel corresponding to the above is injected into the exhaust gas in the reforming passage 22.

  As a result, the reforming fuel flows into the catalyst unit 30 in a state of being mixed with the exhaust gas flowing through the reforming passage 22 and passes through the reforming catalyst 32 provided in the catalyst unit 30. Since the reforming catalyst 32 is disposed around the purification catalyst 31 and is integrated with the purification catalyst 31, when the temperature of the purification catalyst 31 rises due to the heat of the exhaust gas, the heat of the purification catalyst 31 is improved. The temperature of the reforming catalyst 32 is also increased. Thus, when the exhaust gas mixed with the reforming fuel passes through the reforming catalyst 32, the reforming catalyst 32 reforms the exhaust gas mixed with the reforming fuel while applying heat to the exhaust gas. Then, reformed gas is generated.

  The reformed gas generated by the reforming catalyst 32 and the exhaust gas that passes through the reforming catalyst 32 without being reformed into the reformed gas flows through the EGR gas passage 40 as EGR gas, and the EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve control unit The flow rate is adjusted by adjusting the opening degree of the EGR gas flow rate adjusting valve 42 at 66, and flows into the intake passage 10. The EGR gas including the reformed gas that has flowed into the intake passage 10 is sucked into the engine 1 together with the air-fuel mixture of the air flowing through the intake passage 10 and the main fuel. When the air-fuel mixture containing the reformed gas is sucked into the engine 1, the reformed gas burns in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1 together with the fuel in the air-fuel mixture.

  Since the reformed gas combusted in the cylinder 5 in this way has a higher calorific value than the main fuel used for the operation of the engine 1, the output of the engine 1 increases when the reformed gas burns. Therefore, when the reformed gas contained in the EGR gas is burned, when the output of the engine 1 is made constant, the injection amount of the main fuel injected from the injector 11 is reduced.

  During the operation of the engine 1, the remaining amount of main fuel stored in the main fuel tank 51 is acquired by the main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67 from the detection result of the main fuel remaining amount sensor 53, and reforming is performed. The remaining amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel tank 55 is acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 from the detection result of the remaining fuel level sensor 57. The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls supply amount restriction when the remaining amount of reforming fuel, which is the remaining amount of reforming fuel acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68, is equal to or less than a predetermined amount. And the amount of reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 is decreased.

  FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the relationship between the reforming fuel injection amount and the fuel consumption when the supply amount restriction control is performed in the fuel reforming apparatus according to the second embodiment. In the figure, the horizontal axis represents the reforming fuel injection amount, which is the fuel injection amount of the reforming fuel, and the vertical axis represents the fuel consumption that combines the fuel consumption of the main fuel and the fuel consumption of the reforming fuel. . When the supply amount restriction control is performed by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, specifically, the reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 is compared with the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. By reducing the injection amount per unit time, the injection amount of the reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 is reduced.

  Here, when the reforming fuel is injected into the exhaust gas, as the reforming fuel injection amount, which is the injection amount of the reforming fuel, increases, more reforming gas is generated, and the reforming effect increases. The fuel efficiency is improved by combining the fuel efficiency of the main fuel with the fuel efficiency of the reforming fuel. In other words, the relationship between the reforming fuel injection amount and the fuel consumption increases as the reforming fuel injection amount increases up to a certain reforming fuel injection amount as shown by the fuel consumption line 100 in FIG. .

  However, the reforming effect of the reformed gas does not increase when the reformed gas supply amount reaches a predetermined amount even if the reformed gas supply amount is further increased. There is a limit to the effect of improving the fuel consumption. When the reforming fuel injection amount is increased beyond this limit value, the reforming effect is not improved, and the consumption amount of the reforming fuel is merely increased. As for the reforming fuel injection amount, the injection amount at which the fuel consumption that changes in accordance with the reforming fuel injection amount is in the best state is the optimum value. The reforming fuel injection amount and the fuel consumption have such a relationship, but the normal operation injection amount 101 that is the reforming fuel injection amount during normal operation of the engine 1 is the reforming fuel injection amount. The injection amount is the optimum value at.

  On the other hand, when the supply amount restriction control is performed, the supply amount restriction control injection amount 102 which is the reforming fuel injection amount at the time of the supply amount restriction control is made smaller than the injection amount 101 during the normal operation. Since the injection amount 102 at the time of supply amount restriction control is smaller than the normal operation injection amount 101 which is the optimum value of the reforming fuel injection amount, the fuel consumption is the normal operation injection amount 101. Although worse than the case of injection, the injection amount of reforming fuel per unit time is smaller than that in the case of injection at the normal operation injection amount 101. Thereby, the injection amount of the reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 decreases. That is, in the fuel reforming apparatus 90 according to the second embodiment, the unit of reforming fuel that is injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 is compared with the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed when the supply amount restriction control is performed. Reduce the amount of injection per hour.

  In the fuel reforming apparatus 90 according to the second embodiment, when the supply amount restriction control is performed, the fuel injection efficiency itself is reduced in order to reduce the injection amount per unit time of the reforming fuel. The degree of reduction is not proportional to the reduction amount of reforming fuel. That is, the fuel efficiency improvement effect is not proportional to the reforming fuel injection amount as shown in FIG. 8, and in the vicinity of the normal operation injection amount 101, even if the reforming fuel injection amount is reduced, the fuel efficiency is improved. Does not get much worse. For example, when the relationship between the fuel injection amount for reforming and the fuel consumption is illustrated as shown in FIG. 8, the curve having a convex shape with the fuel consumption near the optimum value (the normal operation injection amount 101) as the apex on the side with good fuel consumption. Can be expressed as

In this case, as an example of the reforming fuel injection amount, the reforming fuel injection amount at the normal operation injection amount 101 is Q, and the reforming fuel injection amount at the supply amount restriction control injection amount 102 is Q / 2 is assumed to be ½ of the reforming fuel injection amount at the normal operation injection amount 101. Further, when the reforming fuel injection amount is reduced from the normal operation injection amount 101 (Q) to the supply amount restriction control injection amount 102 (Q / 2), the displacement amount of the deterioration in fuel efficiency is ΔSFCa, and the normal operation is performed. Displacement amount of deterioration in fuel efficiency when the reforming fuel injection amount is reduced from the time injection amount 101 (Q) to the reforming fuel injection stop time 103 (0) when the reforming fuel injection is stopped Is ½ of ΔSFCb. When the fuel injection amount for reforming and the fuel consumption are expressed as described above, the deterioration of the fuel consumption when the injection amount during normal operation 101 (Q) is reduced from the injection amount 102 during supply limit control (Q / 2). The displacement amount ΔSFCa is from the normal operation injection amount 101 (Q) to the reforming fuel injection stop time 103 (0), which is the stop time of the reforming fuel injection, as shown in the following equation (1). When it is reduced, it becomes less than ½ of the displacement amount ΔSFCb of the deterioration of fuel consumption.
ΔSFCa <(1/2) × ΔSFCb (1)

  As described above, when the reforming fuel injection amount is reduced, the degree of deterioration of the fuel consumption due to the reduction of the reforming fuel injection amount is smaller than the degree of reduction of the reforming fuel injection amount. . For this reason, even when the reforming fuel is reduced, the deterioration of the fuel efficiency is relatively small with respect to this reduction amount. In other words, even when the reforming fuel is reduced, the effect of improving the fuel efficiency is not much reduced. Therefore, the reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the effect of improving the fuel efficiency is relatively high.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of the fuel reformer according to the second embodiment. Next, a control method of the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment, that is, a processing procedure of the fuel reformer 90 will be described. In the processing procedure of the fuel reforming apparatus 90 according to the second embodiment, first, based on the detection result of the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor, the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60 performs reforming. The remaining amount of fuel is acquired (step ST201).

  Next, the remaining amount of reforming fuel acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 and the Qfuel stored in the storage unit 75 are converted by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60. In comparison, the reforming fuel remaining amount determining section 70 determines whether or not the reforming fuel remaining amount> Qfuel (step ST202).

  If it is determined by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 (step ST202) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is greater than Qfuel, the reforming fuel is injected at a normal injection amount ( Step ST203). This control is performed by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 60. The storage unit 75 stores in advance the amount of reforming fuel injection during normal operation of the engine 1, that is, the reforming fuel corresponding to the operating state of the engine 1 when the reforming fuel remaining amount is greater than Qfuel. Is stored as a normal injection amount. The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25 so that the injection amount of the reforming fuel becomes the normal injection amount stored in the storage unit 75. Thereby, the reforming fuel injector 25 injects the reforming fuel with a normal injection amount. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  On the other hand, if it is determined by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 (step ST202) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is equal to or lower than Qfuel, the injection amount is reduced and reforming is performed. Fuel is injected (step ST204). This control is performed by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 as in the case where it is determined that the reforming fuel remaining amount is greater than Qfuel. That is, the storage unit 75 stores the injection amount of reforming fuel when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than Qfuel, and this injection amount is when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is greater than Qfuel. That is, the injection amount per unit time is smaller than the injection amount of reforming fuel during normal operation of the engine 1. The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 stores the injection amount of reforming fuel stored in the storage unit 75, and the injection amount per unit time is smaller than the injection amount during normal operation of the engine 1. The reforming fuel injector 25 is controlled so as to reach the quantity. Thereby, the reforming fuel injector 25 injects reforming fuel while reducing the injection amount. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  Next, comparison of fuel consumption between the case where the supply amount restriction control is performed and the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed will be described. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of comparison of fuel consumption when the supply amount restriction control is performed and when the supply amount restriction control is not performed. When the engine 1 is in operation, the reforming fuel is injected according to the operating state, so that the remaining amount of reforming fuel decreases as the operation time elapses, and the remaining amount of reforming fuel becomes equal to or lower than Qfuel. In the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment, the supply amount restriction control is performed.

  Here, when the fuel consumption is compared between the case where the supply amount restriction control is performed and the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the A mode and the B mode (see FIG. 5), as in the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment. In the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment, the reforming effect is higher in the B mode than in the A mode, and the fuel consumption is higher than that in the A mode. It becomes better (FIG. 10).

  Further, when the engine 1 is operated alternately in the A mode and the B mode, the reforming fuel is also injected according to the operating state, but the operation is performed by injecting the reforming fuel during the operation of the engine 1. The remaining amount of reforming fuel decreases with time. When the remaining amount of reforming fuel becomes equal to or less than Qfuel for determining whether or not the remaining amount of reforming fuel is sufficient, the fuel reforming apparatus 90 according to the second embodiment supplies a supply amount. Perform limit control.

  In the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment, the supply amount restriction control is performed by reducing the injection amount of the reforming fuel per unit time. That is, in the supply amount restriction control, the supply amount restriction control is performed as shown by the supply amount restriction control consumption line 105 (FIG. 10), which is a line representing the manner of consumption of the reforming fuel during the supply amount restriction control. Compared with the supply line 106 without the supply amount restriction control (FIG. 10), which is a line representing the manner of consumption of the reforming fuel when there is no fuel, the manner of fuel reduction is gradual. That is, the consumption speed of the reforming fuel is slowed down.

  Further, when the engine 1 is operated alternately in the A mode and the B mode, the reforming fuel remaining amount becomes equal to or lower than Qfuel, so that when the supply amount restriction control is performed in this way, the reforming fuel This injection amount reduces the injection amount per unit time in both the A mode and the B mode. In the case where the injection amount of the reforming fuel is reduced while the reforming fuel is injected, the reforming effect is reduced as the injection amount is reduced. For this reason, when the injection amount of the reforming fuel per unit time is reduced, the reforming effect is reduced in both the A mode and the B mode, so that the fuel consumption is deteriorated in both operation modes.

  As described above, when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is lower than Qfuel, the fuel reforming apparatus 90 according to the second embodiment reduces the injection amount of reforming fuel, but the reforming fuel injection amount is reduced. The degree of reduction in the reforming effect when the amount is reduced is around the optimum value of the reforming fuel injection amount, even if the reforming fuel injection amount is reduced, the reforming effect does not decrease much. Therefore, when the reforming fuel injection amount is reduced 107 (FIG. 10), the reforming effect can be obtained with the effect slightly reduced.

  On the other hand, when the supply amount restriction control is not performed even when the reforming fuel remaining amount becomes Qfuel or less, the reforming fuel is injected in the same manner as before the reforming fuel remaining amount becomes Qfuel or less. Keep doing. For this reason, the reforming fuel is supplied as shown by a consumption line 106 without supply amount restriction control (FIG. 10), which is a line representing how the reforming fuel is consumed when the supply amount restriction control is not performed. The consumed speed becomes faster compared to the case where the amount limiting control is performed.

  That is, when the supply amount restriction control is performed, the injection amount of the reforming fuel is reduced, whereas when the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the normal operation is performed even when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or less than Qfuel. Continue to inject the reforming fuel at the injection amount in the state. Therefore, when the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the reforming fuel is completely consumed earlier than when the supply amount restriction control is performed, and the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel tank 55 disappears. .

  Further, when the reforming fuel is used up, the reforming effect due to the generation of reformed gas is lost. However, the reforming effect is lost in the B mode because the reforming effect is larger than that in the A mode. Thus, when the reforming fuel is not injected, the reforming effect in the B mode is greatly reduced. For this reason, when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than Qfuel, and when the reforming fuel is consumed in the reforming fuel tank 55, the reforming fuel is consumed (108) (FIG. 10). The fuel efficiency in the B mode is greatly deteriorated.

  Therefore, when the fuel consumption during the operation of the engine 1 is viewed comprehensively, when the supply amount restriction control is performed and when the supply amount restriction control is not performed, the supply amount restriction is performed more than when the supply amount restriction control is performed. When the control is not performed, the overall fuel consumption tends to deteriorate. In other words, the fuel consumption is better when the supply amount restriction control is performed than when the supply amount restriction control is not performed.

  The fuel reformer 90 described above reduces the injection amount per unit time of the reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 when the reforming fuel remaining amount becomes Qfuel or less. Since the supply amount restriction control is performed, the reformed gas can be generated for a long time during the operation of the engine 1. In addition, when the amount of reforming fuel injected per unit time is reduced, the reforming effect itself is reduced, but the degree of reduction is not proportional to the amount of reforming fuel reduction, and the reforming effect is reduced. The degree of reduction is smaller than the degree of reduction of the reforming fuel. For this reason, even when the injection amount of the reforming fuel is reduced, the deterioration of the fuel consumption is relatively small with respect to the reduction amount. In other words, even when the injection amount of the reforming fuel is reduced, the fuel consumption is improved. Since the quality effect does not decrease so much, the reforming fuel is injected in a region where the reforming effect is high. Therefore, even when the injection amount of the reforming fuel is decreased, it is possible to suppress deterioration of fuel consumption. As a result, it is possible to improve the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during the operation of the engine 1.

  The fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, but the supply amount restriction control is performed by injecting the reforming fuel only in the knock region. There is a feature in the point. Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted and the same reference numerals are given. FIG. 11 is an overall configuration diagram of an engine including the fuel reformer according to the third embodiment. The fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment is provided in the engine 1 in the same manner as the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, and the exhaust passage 20 is reformed in which a reforming fuel injector 25 is provided. A passage 22 is provided. Further, the exhaust passage 20 is provided with a catalyst portion 30 in which a purification catalyst 31 and a reforming catalyst 32 are provided and to which an EGR gas passage 40 is connected, and the EGR gas passage 40 connected to the catalyst portion 30 includes The end located on the opposite side of the end connected to the catalyst unit 30 is connected to the intake passage 10. The EGR gas passage 40 is provided with an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42 that can open and close the inside of the EGR gas passage 40.

  Each of the cylinders 5 of the engine 1 is provided with a knock sensor 115 serving as a knock detection unit that detects knocking that occurs during operation of the engine 1. The knock sensor 115 is connected to the ECU 120 like other sensors.

  FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram of a main part of the fuel reformer according to the third embodiment. In addition, the ECU 120 included in the fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment includes a processing unit 61, a storage unit 75, and an input / output unit 76, similar to the ECU 60 included in the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment. ing. Among them, the processing unit 61 includes at least a throttle valve control unit 62, an intake air amount acquisition unit 63, a main fuel injection amount control unit 64, a reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, and an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve control. Unit 66, main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67, reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68, exhaust temperature acquiring unit 69, and reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70.

  Further, the processing unit 61 includes a knock acquisition unit 121 that is a knock acquisition unit that acquires the occurrence state of knocking during operation of the engine 1 from the detection result of the knock sensor 115, and the knock acquisition unit 121 acquired by the knock acquisition unit 121. From the occurrence state, the engine 1 includes a knock range determination unit 122 that is a knock range determination unit that determines whether the engine 1 is operating in the knock range.

  The fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. The basic operation during operation of the engine 1 including the fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment is the same as that of the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment and the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment. To do. That is, the mixture of the main fuel and air is combusted in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1, and the temperature of the purification catalyst 31 is raised by the heat of the exhaust gas after combustion. Further, the reformed gas is generated by flowing the exhaust gas injected with the reforming fuel to the reforming catalyst 32 provided integrally with the purification catalyst 31.

  The reformed gas generated by the reforming catalyst 32 flows into the intake passage 10 as EGR gas, and is taken into the engine 1 together with the mixture of air and main fuel flowing through the intake passage 10. When the air-fuel mixture containing the reformed gas is sucked into the engine 1, the reformed gas burns in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1 together with the fuel in the air-fuel mixture. Thereby, the injection quantity of the main fuel injected from the injector 11 can be reduced.

  Further, during operation of the engine 1, the main fuel remaining amount is acquired by the main fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 67 from the detection result by the main fuel remaining amount sensor 53, and from the detection result by the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57. The reforming fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68 acquires the reforming fuel remaining amount.

  The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 performs supply amount restriction control when the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, and the reforming fuel injector 25. The injection amount of the reforming fuel injected at is reduced.

  FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the relationship between the reforming fuel injection amount and the fuel consumption when the supply amount restriction control is performed in the fuel reforming apparatus according to the third embodiment. The horizontal axis in the figure indicates the torque of the engine 1, and the vertical axis indicates the thermal efficiency. In the fuel reforming apparatus 110 according to the third embodiment, when the supply amount restriction control is performed by the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, specifically, the operation of the engine 1 is performed in a knock region where knocking occurs. By injecting the reforming fuel into the reforming fuel injector 25 only in the case, the amount of reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 is reduced as compared with the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. The reforming fuel is injected in a region where the reforming effect is high. That is, when the supply amount restriction control is performed, the reforming fuel is not injected when the operation of the engine 1 is in the non-knock region where knocking is not generated, and the operation of the engine 1 is performed in the knock region. In this case, the reforming fuel injector 25 is controlled by the reforming fuel injection amount controller 65 so that the reforming fuel is injected.

  Here, the relationship between the torque and the thermal efficiency of the engine 1 when knocking occurs will be described. When the reforming fuel is not injected and the fuel reforming control is not performed, the fuel reforming shown in FIG. As indicated by the thermal efficiency line 126 without control, the thermal efficiency is low in the region where the torque is low, and the thermal efficiency increases as the torque is increased.

  When the torque is increased, the thermal efficiency is also increased in this way. However, when both the torque and the thermal efficiency are increased, knocking occurs when the torque is higher than a predetermined value. In the operating state of the engine 1, when the torque is increased, the boundary where knocking occurs in this way is the knock boundary 127, and the operating area where the torque is lower than the knock boundary 127 is the non-knock area. An operation region where the torque is higher than that of the knock region 127 is a knock region. The thermal efficiency during the operation of the engine 1 increases as the torque increases in the non-knock region as indicated by the thermal efficiency line 126 without fuel reforming control. When the torque further increases and enters the knock region beyond the knock boundary 127, knocking occurs in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1. For this reason, in the knock region, even when the torque is increased, the thermal efficiency tends to decrease.

  On the other hand, hydrogen and carbon monoxide contained in the reformed gas generated by reforming the reforming fuel have a high octane number, so the reforming fuel is injected and the reformed gas is supplied to the engine 1. If this happens, knocking is less likely to occur. Specifically, when the reforming fuel is supplied to the engine 1, the knock boundary moves to the high load side, that is, the high torque side, so that the non-knock region becomes wide and knocking hardly occurs. For this reason, when the reforming fuel is injected, the thermal efficiency at the time of high load is significantly higher than the case where the reforming fuel is not injected, as shown by the thermal efficiency line 125 at the time of fuel reforming control in FIG. To improve.

  In other words, the reformed gas generated by reforming the reforming fuel also has a knock improving effect that reduces knocking. Therefore, the reforming effect when the reforming fuel is injected is not in the non-knock region. The knocking area is higher than that.

  Therefore, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, when the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is a predetermined amount or less, is a high load region, that is, the reforming fuel. By injecting the reforming fuel into the reforming fuel injector 25 only in the knock region when the fuel is not injected, the reforming effect is obtained while reducing the amount of reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25. The reforming fuel is injected in a high region.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure of the fuel reformer according to the third embodiment. Next, a control method of the fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment, that is, a processing procedure of the fuel reformer 110 will be described. In the processing procedure of the fuel reforming apparatus 110 according to the third embodiment, first, the reforming fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 120 performs reforming based on the detection result of the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57. The remaining fuel amount is acquired (step ST301).

  Next, the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 120 compares the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 with the Qfuel stored in the storage unit 75. Then, the reforming fuel remaining amount determination unit 70 determines whether or not the reforming fuel remaining amount> Qfuel (step ST302).

  If it is determined by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 (step ST302) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is greater than Qfuel, the reforming fuel injection is normally controlled (step ST303). ). This control is performed by the processing unit 61 of the ECU 120 so that the reforming fuel can be injected from the reforming fuel injector 25 with the injection amount stored in the storage unit 75 during normal operation of the engine 1. This is performed by controlling the reforming fuel injector 25 with the fuel injection amount control unit 65. Thereby, the reforming fuel injector 25 injects the reforming fuel with a normal injection amount. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  On the other hand, when it is determined by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 (step ST302) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is equal to or less than Qfuel, a knocking state is acquired (step ST304). . In this acquisition, the knocking detection result of the engine 1 detected by the knock sensor 115 is transmitted to the knock acquisition unit 121 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 120 and is acquired by the knock acquisition unit 121.

  Next, it is determined whether the engine 1 is operating in the knock range (step ST305). This determination is performed by the knock range determination unit 122 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 120. The knocking state determination unit 122 is informed of the knocking state of the engine 1 acquired by the knocking acquisition unit 121, and the knocking region determination unit 122 is operating in the knocking region based on the transmitted knocking state. Determine. That is, when the knocking state transmitted from the knock acquisition unit 121 indicates that the engine 1 is knocking, the knock region determination unit 122 determines that the engine is operating in the knock region. When the knocking state transmitted from the knock acquisition unit 121 indicates that the engine 1 has not been knocked, it is determined that the engine is operating in the non-knock region.

  If it is determined by the knock region determination unit 122 (step ST305) that the engine 1 is operating in the knock region, the reforming fuel is injected (step ST306). That is, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25 to cause the reforming fuel injector 25 to inject reforming fuel. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  On the other hand, when it is determined by the knock region determination unit 122 (step ST305) that the engine 1 is not operating in the knock region, that is, it is determined that the engine 1 is operating in the non-knock region, the reforming The fuel injection is stopped (step ST307). In this way, even when the reforming fuel injection is stopped, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25 to stop the operation of the reforming fuel injector 25. Thereby, the injection of the reforming fuel injected from the reforming fuel injector 25 is stopped. After the control to stop the injection of the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  The fuel reformer 110 described above performs the supply amount restriction control by injecting the reforming fuel only when the engine 1 is operating in the knocking range, so that the reforming fuel is supplied only in the region where the reforming effect is high. Can be jetted. Specifically, when the reformed gas is supplied to the engine 1, there is also an effect of improving knocking. Therefore, when the operation of the engine 1 is in the knocking region where knocking occurs, the reforming fuel is injected, Knocking can be suppressed by the reformed gas. For this reason, when supply amount restriction control is performed, a high reforming effect is obtained with a small amount of reforming fuel by injecting reforming fuel only when the engine 1 is operating in the knocking range. be able to. As a result, knocking can be suppressed while improving the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the engine 1.

  The fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment, but the engine 1 is provided as one of a plurality of driving means included in the hybrid device 138. The determination of whether or not the supply amount restriction control is performed is characterized in that it includes the remaining amount of electricity of the battery 144 that is a power source of the motor 140 provided as one of the plurality of driving means. Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted and the same reference numerals are given. FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a main part of a vehicle equipped with an engine including a fuel reformer according to a fourth embodiment. The engine 1 including the fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment is mounted on a hybrid vehicle, which is a vehicle 135 on which a hybrid device 138 having a plurality of driving means is mounted. The engine 1 includes the hybrid device 138. This is provided as one of the driving means. In addition, the hybrid device 138 includes a motor 140 that operates by electricity as another driving means, and both the engine 1 and the motor (motor generator) 140 can generate a driving force when the vehicle 135 travels. It has become. The hybrid device 138 includes a generator (motor generator) 141 that receives the output of the engine 1 and generates power. The engine 1, the motor 140, and the generator 141 are connected by a power split mechanism 142. Has been. The power split mechanism 142 is connected to the drive wheels 147 of the vehicle 135 via a speed reducer 145 and a drive shaft 146. The power split mechanism 142 distributes the output of the engine 1 to the generator 141 and the drive wheel 147 and transmits the output from the motor 140 to the drive wheel 147, and the drive force is transmitted via the speed reducer 145 and the drive shaft 146. It functions as a transmission that changes speed when transmitted to the drive wheels 147.

  The motor 140 is an AC synchronous motor, is connected to the inverter 143, and is driven by AC electricity. The inverter 143 converts the electricity stored in the battery 144 mounted on the vehicle 135 from direct current to alternating current and supplies it to the motor 140, and converts the electricity generated by the generator 141 from alternating current to direct current to convert the battery 144. It is provided so that it can be stored. Thus, the battery 144 is provided as a power source for the motor 140 when the motor 140 is driven. The generator 141 basically has the same configuration as the motor 140 described above, and has a configuration as an AC synchronous motor. In this case, the motor 140 mainly outputs the driving force, whereas the generator 141 mainly receives the output of the engine 1 to generate electric power.

  The motor 140 mainly generates a driving force, but can also generate electric power (regenerative power generation) by using the rotation of the driving wheel 147, and can also function as a generator. In this case, since a regenerative brake can be applied to the drive wheels 147, the vehicle 135 can be braked by using this in combination with a foot brake or an engine brake that is a normal braking means. On the other hand, the generator 141 generates electric power mainly by receiving the output of the engine 1, but can also function as an electric motor driven by receiving electricity from the battery 144 via the inverter 143.

  Further, the engine 1, the motor 140, the generator 141, and the power split mechanism 142 are each connected to the ECU 150 and provided so as to be controllable by the ECU 150. The battery 144 is also connected to the ECU 150, and the ECU 150 can monitor the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144.

  Further, the fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment is provided in the engine 1 (see FIG. 1) similarly to the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment (see FIG. 1), and the exhaust passage 20 includes a reforming fuel injector. The reforming passage 22 is provided with 25. Further, the exhaust passage 20 is provided with a catalyst portion 30 in which a purification catalyst 31 and a reforming catalyst 32 are provided and to which an EGR gas passage 40 is connected, and the EGR gas passage 40 connected to the catalyst portion 30 includes The end located on the opposite side of the end connected to the catalyst unit 30 is connected to the intake passage 10. The EGR gas passage 40 is provided with an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42 that can open and close the inside of the EGR gas passage 40.

  FIG. 16 is a main part configuration diagram of a fuel reforming apparatus according to a fourth embodiment. The ECU 150 included in the fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment includes a processing unit 61, a storage unit 75, and an input / output unit 76, similar to the ECU 60 included in the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment. ing. Among them, the processing unit 61 includes at least a throttle valve control unit 62, an intake air amount acquisition unit 63, a main fuel injection amount control unit 64, a reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, and an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve control. Unit 66, main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67, reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68, exhaust temperature acquiring unit 69, and reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70.

  Further, the processing unit 61 includes an electric remaining amount acquisition unit 151 that is an electric remaining amount acquisition unit for acquiring an electric remaining amount of the battery 144, and an electric remaining amount of the battery 144 acquired by the electric remaining amount acquisition unit 151. And a remaining electric power determination unit 152 that determines whether or not the amount is greater than the fixed amount.

  The fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. The basic operation during operation of the engine 1 including the fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment described above. That is, the mixture of the main fuel and air is combusted in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1, and the temperature of the purification catalyst 31 is raised by the heat of the exhaust gas after combustion. Further, the reformed gas is generated by flowing the exhaust gas injected with the reforming fuel to the reforming catalyst 32 provided integrally with the purification catalyst 31.

  The reformed gas generated by the reforming catalyst 32 flows into the intake passage 10 as EGR gas, and is taken into the engine 1 together with the mixture of air and main fuel flowing through the intake passage 10. When the air-fuel mixture containing the reformed gas is sucked into the engine 1, the reformed gas burns in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1 together with the fuel in the air-fuel mixture. Thereby, the injection quantity of the main fuel injected from the injector 11 can be reduced.

  When the engine 1 including the fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment is operated, the engine 1 is operated as described above. The engine 1 is one of a plurality of driving means included in the hybrid device 138. When the vehicle 135 including the hybrid device 138 travels, the ECU 150 comprehensively controls driving by the engine 1, the motor 140, and the generator 141, which are driving means, according to the driving state of the vehicle 135.

  This control controls the outputs of the engine 1, the motor 140, and the generator 141, or performs so-called intermittent operation that repeats starting and stopping. The outputs of the engine 1, the motor 140, and the generator 141 are transmitted to the power split mechanism 142, and are transmitted from the power split mechanism 142 to the drive wheels 147 through the speed reducer 145 and the drive shaft 146 as drive power. As a result, the vehicle 135 on which the hybrid device 138 is mounted travels using the outputs of the engine 1, the motor 140, and the generator 141.

  Here, when the engine 1 is operated, the engine 1 is operated by a mixture of main fuel and air or a reformed gas generated from the reforming fuel as described above, but the motor 140 is connected to the battery 144. Operates with charged electricity. Specifically, when the battery 144 supplies electricity to the outside, it is supplied with direct current, whereas the motor 140 operates with alternating current electricity. For this reason, the electricity of the battery 144 once flows into the inverter 143, is converted into AC electricity by the inverter 143, and then flows into the motor 140. The motor 140 is operated by AC electricity supplied from the inverter 143.

  Further, the ECU 150 monitors the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144. When the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, the ECU 150 performs a charging operation that increases the amount of charge to the battery 144. Let it be done. In this charging operation, the power of the engine 1 is increased as compared with the normal operation, and the increased amount is used for charging the battery 144. Specifically, when charging the battery 144 using the power of the engine 1, the power of the engine 1 is divided into the generator 141 and the speed reducer 145 by the power split mechanism 142. Thereby, a part of the power of the engine 1 is used as a force for operating the generator 141, and the remaining power is used as a driving force for driving the vehicle 135 via the speed reducer 145. As described above, the power of the engine 1 is transmitted to the generator 141, whereby the generator 141 generates power, and the generated electricity is transmitted to the inverter 143. At that time, the electricity generated by the generator 141 is alternating current, whereas the battery 144 charges and discharges direct current electricity. Therefore, the electricity generated by the generator 141 is converted into direct current by the inverter 143, and the direct current is Is transmitted to the battery 144 in the state of electricity. The battery 144 is charged by electricity from the inverter 143.

  Further, during operation of the engine 1, the main fuel remaining amount is acquired by the main fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 67 from the detection result by the main fuel remaining amount sensor 53, and from the detection result by the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57. The reforming fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68 acquires the reforming fuel remaining amount.

  The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 is configured such that the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount and the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144 is greater than the predetermined amount. The supply amount restriction control is performed to reduce the amount of reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25. Further, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 does not perform the supply amount restriction control when the remaining amount of electricity of the battery 144 is equal to or less than the predetermined amount even when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or less than the predetermined amount.

  FIG. 17A is an explanatory diagram of a relationship between the rotational speed and torque during normal operation of an engine including the fuel reformer according to the fourth embodiment. In the figure, the horizontal axis indicates the rotational speed of the engine 1, and the vertical axis indicates the torque of the engine 1. In the hybrid device 138, the power of the engine 1 and the power of the motor 140 are used in combination as the driving force of the vehicle 135. Therefore, when the vehicle 135 travels, the engine 1 and the motor 140 can supplement each other's power. For this reason, the engine 1 provided in the hybrid device 138 does not need to be operated at a rotational speed having a low thermal efficiency in accordance with the vehicle speed when the vehicle is traveling at a low speed like the normal engine 1, for example, in a region where the thermal efficiency is high. You can continue driving.

  That is, during normal operation of the engine 1, as shown in FIG. 17A, the normal operation line 161, which is a line indicating the rotational speed and torque state of the engine 1 during normal operation, has a high thermal efficiency. Accordingly, it passes near the center of the thermal efficiency contour line 163, which is a contour line shown stepwise. That is, the thermal efficiency contour line 163 is displayed stepwise by a plurality of annular lines for each thermal efficiency level, and the thermal efficiency increases from the outside to the inside of the range divided by the thermal efficiency contour line 163. For this reason, the thermal efficiency is highest near the center of the thermal efficiency contour line 163, but the normal operation line 161 is shown in a state where the magnitude of the torque is almost constant through the vicinity of the center of the thermal efficiency contour line 163. Yes. That is, the engine 1 during normal operation is operated with high thermal efficiency.

  However, when the remaining amount of electricity of the battery 144 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, the engine 1 is charged and the power of the engine 1 is increased as compared with the normal operation. That is, the engine 1 is operated with increasing torque. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 17A, the charging operation line 162, which is a line indicating the state of the rotation speed and torque of the engine 1 during the charging operation, is generally compared with the normal operation line 161. Although the torque rises, when the torque rises as a whole as compared with the normal operation line 161, the torque efficiency is deviated from the contour line 163. Therefore, the thermal efficiency of the engine 1 during the charging operation is worse than the thermal efficiency of the engine 1 during the normal operation. Thus, since the thermal efficiency is deteriorated during the charging operation of the engine 1, the fuel consumption is deteriorated as compared with the normal operation.

  FIG. 17-2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a relationship between the rotational speed and the torque during the charging operation of the engine including the fuel reformer according to the fourth embodiment. During charging operation of the engine 1, since the torque is increased compared with that during normal operation, the thermal efficiency is deteriorated compared with that during normal operation. When the operation is supplied, the operation state in which the thermal efficiency is increased moves in the direction of the state in which the torque is increased as compared with the normal operation. That is, the reformed gas has a calorific value higher than that of the main fuel, so that the torque is likely to increase, and the operating state in which the thermal efficiency is high becomes an operating state in which the torque is larger than that during normal operation. For this reason, when the reformed gas is injected and the reformed gas is supplied to the engine 1, the thermal efficiency contour line 163 moves in a direction in which the torque increases as shown in FIG.

  In addition, since the torque is larger during charging operation than during normal operation, the charging operation line 162 shown in a state where the torque is larger than the normal operation line 161 is modified as shown in FIG. It overlaps with the thermal efficiency contour line 163 that has moved in the direction in which the torque increases by injecting the gas. That is, the torque during the charging operation of the engine 1 is larger than that during the normal operation, but the operating state in which the thermal efficiency is increased by injecting the reforming fuel moves in the direction of the state in which the torque increases. The operation state during operation is an operation state with high thermal efficiency. Thereby, when performing the charge operation, the fuel efficiency can be easily improved because the fuel can be operated with high thermal efficiency by injecting the reforming fuel.

  As described above, when the charging operation of the engine 1 is performed, the fuel efficiency is easily improved by injecting the reforming fuel. For this reason, even when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, when the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144 is small, the reforming fuel is injected, so that the reformed gas is discharged during the charging operation in which the torque increases. The fuel consumption can be improved by supplying, and a greater reforming effect can be obtained.

  FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure of the fuel reformer according to the fourth embodiment. Next, a control method of the fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment, that is, a processing procedure of the fuel reformer 130 will be described. In the processing procedure of the fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment, first, the exhaust temperature is acquired by the exhaust temperature acquisition unit 69 of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 150 from the detection result of the exhaust temperature sensor 37 (step ST401). Next, the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 150 acquires the reforming fuel remaining amount from the detection result of the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57 (step ST402).

  Next, the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 compares the reforming fuel remaining amount with the Qfuel stored in the storage unit 75 by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 150. Then, the reforming fuel remaining amount determination unit 70 determines whether or not the reforming fuel remaining amount> Qfuel (step ST403). If it is determined by the determination by the reforming fuel remaining amount determination unit 70 (step ST403) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is greater than Qfuel, the reforming fuel injection amount of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 150 is determined. The control unit 65 sets the reforming reference temperature to the reformable exhaust temperature stored in the storage unit 75 (step ST404).

  Next, reforming fuel is injected in a region above the reforming reference temperature (step ST405). That is, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25, and when the exhaust temperature acquired by the exhaust temperature acquisition unit 69 is equal to or higher than the reforming reference temperature, the reforming fuel is injected and the reforming fuel is injected. Generates quality gas. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  On the other hand, if it is determined by the reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70 (step ST403) that the reforming fuel remaining amount is equal to or less than Qfuel, the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144 is then determined. Obtain (step ST406). This acquisition is performed by the remaining electric power acquisition unit 151 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 150. Since the ECU 150 is connected to the battery 144, the remaining amount of electricity of the battery 144 is acquired by the remaining amount of electricity acquisition unit 151 from the state of electricity supplied from the battery 144.

  Next, it is determined whether the remaining amount of electricity is greater than the charge (step ST407). In this determination, the processing unit 61 of the ECU 150 determines whether or not the remaining amount of electricity acquired by the remaining amount of electricity acquisition unit 151 is greater than the predetermined amount of charge for determining whether the remaining amount of electricity is large or small. The remaining amount determination unit 152 makes the determination. When this determination is performed, the remaining amount of electricity acquired by the remaining electricity amount acquisition unit 151 is transmitted to the remaining electricity amount determination unit 152, and the remaining electricity amount determination unit 152 compares the remaining electricity amount with the charge. The charge used for this determination is stored in advance in the storage unit 75 of the ECU 150 as a predetermined amount for determining whether the remaining amount of electricity charged in the battery 144 is sufficient.

  If it is determined by the remaining electric power determination unit 152 (step ST407) that the remaining electric power is greater than Echarge, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 stores the reforming reference temperature in the storage unit 75. Is set to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature stored in step ST408.

  After the reforming reference temperature is set to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature, the reforming fuel is injected in the region where the exhaust temperature is equal to or higher than the reforming reference temperature, as in the case where the reforming reference temperature is set to the reformable exhaust temperature. (Step ST405). In other words, if the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than Qfuel and the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144 is higher than the charge, the reforming reference fuel temperature is set to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature, and the remaining amount of reforming fuel remains. For reforming in a region where reforming gas is burned in the cylinder 5 while reducing the amount of reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25 compared to the case where the amount is higher than Qfuel, the reforming effect is high. Supply amount restriction control, which is control for injecting fuel, is performed. In other words, since the charge control is not performed when the remaining amount of electricity of the battery 144 is greater than the charge, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 has the reforming fuel remaining amount equal to or lower than Qfuel and the engine 1 is When charging operation is not performed, supply amount restriction control is performed.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the remaining amount of electricity is equal to or less than the charge according to the determination in the remaining amount of electricity determination unit 152 (step ST407), the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 determines the reforming reference temperature. Is set to the reformable exhaust temperature stored in the ECU 150 (step ST404), and the reforming fuel is injected in a region where the exhaust temperature is equal to or higher than the reforming reference temperature (step ST405).

  That is, even when the remaining amount of fuel for reforming is equal to or lower than Qfuel, when the remaining amount of electricity in the battery 144 is equal to or lower than Echarge, the reforming reference temperature is set to the reformable exhaust temperature. As a result, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 does not perform the supply amount restriction control, and injects the reforming fuel as in the case where the remaining amount of reforming fuel is greater than Qfuel to generate reformed gas. Then, the reformed gas is supplied to the engine 1. In other words, since the charging operation is performed when the remaining amount of electricity of the battery 144 is equal to or less than the charge, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 has the remaining amount of reforming fuel equal to or less than Qfuel and the engine 1 is charged. When the operation is performed, the supply amount restriction control is not performed.

  The fuel reformer 130 described above sets the reforming reference temperature to the high reforming effect exhaust temperature when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than the predetermined amount Qfuel and the engine 1 does not perform the charging operation. By doing so, the amount of reforming fuel injection is reduced, so that reformed gas can be generated over a long period of time during operation of the engine 1. In this case, since the reforming fuel is injected in a region where the reforming effect is high, reforming by supplying reforming gas to the engine 1 even when the injection amount of the reforming fuel is reduced. The effect can be maintained, and the total fuel consumption can be improved when the reformed gas is supplied during operation of the engine 1.

  Further, when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than Qfuel and the engine 1 performs the charging operation, the supply amount restriction control is not performed, so that it is possible to improve fuel efficiency in a state where the thermal efficiency is low. In other words, the operation of the engine 1 is controlled so that the thermal efficiency is high during normal operation, but during charging operation, it is necessary to generate more power than during normal operation, so a larger torque is output than during normal operation. Drive in the state to do. For this reason, the thermal efficiency during the charging operation is lower than that during the normal operation. Further, when the reformed gas is supplied to the engine 1, the operating state in which the thermal efficiency is increased moves in a direction in which the torque is increased. Therefore, charging is performed by supplying the reformed gas during the charging operation of the engine 1. Operation can be in a state of good thermal efficiency. Therefore, by injecting the reforming fuel during the charging operation, the reforming effect by supplying the reformed gas becomes higher than that during the normal operation. In addition, during the charging operation where the thermal efficiency is low, the supply amount restriction control is not performed, and the fuel for reforming is continuously injected to increase the thermal efficiency during the charging operation, thereby operating in an operating state with low thermal efficiency. It is possible to suppress the deterioration of fuel consumption caused by As a result, it is possible to improve the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during the operation of the engine 1 more reliably.

  The fuel reforming apparatus 170 according to the fifth embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the fuel reforming apparatus 110 according to the third embodiment, but the main fuel remaining amount is determined when determining whether or not to perform the supply amount restriction control. This is characterized in that determination is made including supply amount restriction control when the ratio of the remaining amount of reforming fuel to the amount is equal to or less than a predetermined value. Since other configurations are the same as those of the third embodiment, the description thereof is omitted and the same reference numerals are given. FIG. 19 is a main part configuration diagram of the fuel reformer according to the fifth embodiment. The fuel reformer 170 according to the fifth embodiment is provided in the engine 1 (see FIG. 11) similarly to the fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment (see FIG. 11), and the reforming fuel injector 25 is provided in the exhaust passage 20. A reforming passage 22 is provided. Further, the exhaust passage 20 is provided with a catalyst portion 30 in which a purification catalyst 31 and a reforming catalyst 32 are provided and to which an EGR gas passage 40 is connected, and the EGR gas passage 40 connected to the catalyst portion 30 includes The end located on the opposite side of the end connected to the catalyst unit 30 is connected to the intake passage 10. The EGR gas passage 40 is provided with an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 42 that can open and close the inside of the EGR gas passage 40. A knock sensor 115 is provided in the plurality of cylinders 5 of the engine 1, and the knock sensor 115 is connected to the ECU 180.

  The ECU 180 included in the fuel reformer 170 according to the fifth embodiment includes a processing unit 61, a storage unit 75, and an input / output unit 76, similar to the ECU 120 included in the fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment. ing. Among them, the processing unit 61 includes at least a throttle valve control unit 62, an intake air amount acquisition unit 63, a main fuel injection amount control unit 64, a reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65, and an EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve control. Unit 66, main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67, reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68, exhaust temperature acquiring unit 69, reforming fuel remaining amount determining unit 70, knock acquiring unit 121, knock region And a determination unit 122.

  Further, the processing unit 61 reforms the main fuel remaining amount based on the main fuel remaining amount acquired by the main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67 and the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68. A remaining fuel ratio calculating unit 181 that is a remaining fuel ratio calculating unit that calculates a remaining fuel ratio that is a ratio of the remaining fuel amount, and the remaining fuel ratio calculated by the remaining fuel ratio calculating unit 181 is greater than a predetermined value. And a remaining fuel ratio determining unit 182 that is a remaining fuel ratio determining means for determining whether or not there is too much fuel.

  The fuel reformer 170 according to the fifth embodiment is configured as described above, and the operation thereof will be described below. The basic operation during operation of the engine 1 including the fuel reformer 170 according to the fifth embodiment is the same as that of the fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment described above. That is, the mixture of the main fuel and air is combusted in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1, and the temperature of the purification catalyst 31 is raised by the heat of the exhaust gas after combustion. Further, the reformed gas is generated by flowing the exhaust gas injected with the reforming fuel to the reforming catalyst 32 provided integrally with the purification catalyst 31.

  The reformed gas generated by the reforming catalyst 32 flows into the intake passage 10 as EGR gas, and is taken into the engine 1 together with the mixture of air and main fuel flowing through the intake passage 10. When the air-fuel mixture containing the reformed gas is sucked into the engine 1, the reformed gas burns in the cylinder 5 of the engine 1 together with the fuel in the air-fuel mixture. Thereby, the injection quantity of the main fuel injected from the injector 11 can be reduced.

  Further, during operation of the engine 1, the main fuel remaining amount is acquired by the main fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 67 from the detection result by the main fuel remaining amount sensor 53, and from the detection result by the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57. The reforming fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68 acquires the reforming fuel remaining amount.

  The reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 is configured so that the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 is equal to or less than a predetermined amount, and the ratio of the reforming fuel remaining amount to the main fuel remaining amount Is less than a predetermined amount, supply amount restriction control is performed to reduce the amount of reforming fuel injected by the reforming fuel injector 25.

  FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure of the fuel reformer according to the fifth embodiment. Next, a control method of the fuel reformer 170 according to the fifth embodiment, that is, a processing procedure of the fuel reformer 170 will be described. In the processing procedure of the fuel reformer 170 according to the fifth embodiment, first, based on the detection result of the reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 57, the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 180 reforms. The remaining fuel amount is acquired (step ST501). Next, the remaining amount of main fuel is acquired (step ST502). In this acquisition, the detection result of the main fuel remaining amount, which is the amount of main fuel stored in the main fuel tank 51 detected by the main fuel remaining amount sensor 53, is sent to the main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67 of the processing unit 61 of the ECU 180. It is transmitted and acquired by the main fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 67.

  Next, the remaining fuel ratio is calculated (step ST503). This calculation is based on the fact that the main fuel remaining amount acquired by the main fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 67 and the reforming fuel remaining amount acquired by the reforming fuel remaining amount acquiring unit 68 are the fuel remaining amount that the processing unit 61 of the ECU 180 has. The amount ratio calculating unit 181 transmits the remaining fuel ratio, which is the ratio of the reforming fuel remaining amount to the main fuel remaining amount. That is, the remaining fuel ratio is (reforming fuel remaining / main fuel remaining).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the remaining fuel ratio> Xfuel (step ST504). This determination is based on whether or not the remaining fuel ratio calculated by the remaining fuel ratio calculating unit 181 is greater than a predetermined amount Xfuel that determines whether the remaining fuel ratio is large or small. Is determined by the remaining fuel ratio determination unit 182. When this determination is made, the remaining fuel ratio calculated by the remaining fuel ratio calculation unit 181 is transmitted to the remaining fuel ratio determination unit 182, and the remaining fuel ratio determination unit 182 calculates the remaining fuel ratio and Xfuel. Compare. Note that Xfuel used for this determination is stored in advance in the storage unit 75 of the ECU 180 as a predetermined amount for determining whether the ratio of the reforming fuel remaining amount to the main fuel remaining amount is sufficient.

  If it is determined by the remaining fuel ratio determination unit 182 (step ST504) that the remaining fuel ratio is greater than Xfuel, the reforming fuel injection is normally controlled (step ST505). This control is performed by the processing unit 61 of the ECU 180 so that the reforming fuel can be injected from the reforming fuel injector 25 with the injection amount stored in the storage unit 75 during normal operation of the engine 1. This is performed by controlling the reforming fuel injector 25 with the fuel injection amount control unit 65. Thereby, the reforming fuel injector 25 injects the reforming fuel with a normal injection amount. After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the remaining fuel ratio is equal to or less than Xfuel according to the determination in the remaining fuel ratio determining unit 182 (step ST504), the processing unit of the ECU 180 is detected based on the detection result of the knock sensor 115. The knock acquisition unit 121 included in 61 acquires the knocking state (step ST506). Next, based on the knocking state acquired by the knock acquisition unit 121, the knock region determination unit 122 included in the processing unit 61 of the ECU 180 determines whether the engine 1 is operating in the knock region (step ST507).

  If it is determined by the knock region determination unit 122 (step ST507) that the engine 1 is operating in the knock region, the reforming fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25. Then, the reforming fuel is injected (step ST508). After the control for injecting the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  On the other hand, if it is determined by the knock region determination unit 122 (step ST507) that the engine 1 is not operating in the knock region, that is, is operating in the non-knock region, the reforming The fuel injection amount control unit 65 controls the reforming fuel injector 25 to stop the reforming fuel injection (step ST509). After the control to stop the injection of the reforming fuel is performed, the processing procedure is exited.

  The fuel reformer 170 described above, when determining whether or not to perform the supply amount restriction control, makes a determination including the remaining fuel ratio that is the ratio of the remaining amount of reforming fuel to the remaining amount of main fuel. Yes. That is, the supply amount restriction control in the above-described invention is not performed when the remaining fuel ratio is larger than Xfuel which is a predetermined value. Even if the remaining amount of reforming fuel is small, if the remaining amount of main fuel is small, the reforming fuel and the main fuel disappear at the same time. Even when the fuel for fuel is continuously injected, the reforming fuel is unlikely to disappear before the main fuel. For this reason, even when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is small and the remaining amount of main fuel is small, even when the reforming fuel is continuously injected, the engine 1 is operated in a state where no reformed gas is generated. Can be suppressed. Therefore, even when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is low, when the remaining amount of main fuel is small, the time for obtaining the reforming effect is extended by injecting the reforming fuel. As a result, it is possible to improve the total fuel consumption when the reformed gas is supplied during the operation of the engine 1 more reliably.

  The fuel reformer 130 according to the fourth embodiment is configured such that the engine 1 included in the hybrid device 138 includes the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment. 1 may be a fuel reformer other than the fuel reformer 3 according to the first embodiment. For example, the fuel reformer 90 according to the second embodiment may be provided in the engine 1 included in the hybrid device 138. The fuel reformer provided in the engine 1 of the hybrid device 138 is configured so that, even when the remaining amount of reforming fuel is equal to or lower than Qfuel, which is a predetermined amount, when the remaining amount of electricity of the battery 144 is equal to or less than Echarge, As long as it is provided so as to normally control injection, the form is not limited.

  Similarly, the fuel reformer 170 according to the fifth embodiment determines the remaining amount of reforming fuel relative to the remaining amount of main fuel in determining whether or not the supply amount restriction control is performed by the fuel reformer 110 according to the third embodiment. However, the fuel reformer that determines whether or not to perform the supply amount restriction control including the remaining fuel ratio is the fuel reformer according to the third embodiment. The quality device 110 may be used.

  In the fuel reformer described above, the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22 are connected to the catalyst unit 30 in a direction substantially orthogonal to the flow direction of the exhaust gas flowing in the exhaust main passage 21. However, the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22 may be arranged in other forms. For example, the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22 flow from the reforming passage 22 into the catalyst unit 30, and further, the exhaust gas and the reformed gas flowing into the EGR gas passage 40 flow in the exhaust main passage 21. It may be formed so as to counter-flow in the flow direction of the exhaust gas flowing through. In the EGR gas passage 40 and the reforming passage 22, the exhaust gas in the reforming passage 22 supplied with the reforming fuel flows into the reforming catalyst 32 in the catalyst unit 30 and reformed by the reforming catalyst 32. As long as the gas is generated and the reformed gas and the exhaust gas are provided so as to flow into the EGR gas passage 40, the form is not limited.

  Further, the main fuel, which is the fuel used for the operation of the engine 1 including the fuel reformer described above, is a mixed fuel in which gasoline and alcohol fuel are mixed, and is reformed by the reforming catalyst 32. The quality fuel is alcohol fuel, but the main fuel and reforming fuel may be other fuels. If the main fuel and the reforming fuel are stored separately, the reforming fuel may be consumed before the main fuel. By applying the present invention, not limited to the type of fuel, it is possible to prevent the reforming fuel from being lost before the main fuel, and to maintain the reforming effect for a long time during operation of the engine 1. be able to.

  As described above, the fuel reformer according to the present invention is useful for a fuel reformer in which reformed gas is sucked into an internal combustion engine together with exhaust gas, and in particular, main fuel and reformed gas used for engine operation. This is suitable when the reforming fuel used for production is stored separately.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an engine including a fuel reformer according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is a principal part block diagram of the fuel reformer shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the relationship between the exhaust temperature in the case of performing supply amount restriction | limiting control with the fuel reformer which concerns on Example 1, and a fuel consumption improvement effect. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the fuel reformer according to the first embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the operation mode of an engine in the case of comparing a fuel consumption. It is explanatory drawing of the comparison of a fuel consumption with the case where supply amount restriction | limiting control is performed, and the case where supply amount restriction | limiting control is not performed. FIG. 6 is a main part configuration diagram of a fuel reformer according to a second embodiment. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a relationship between a reforming fuel injection amount and fuel consumption when supply amount restriction control is performed in a fuel reforming apparatus according to a second embodiment. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of a fuel reformer according to Embodiment 2. FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the comparison of a fuel consumption with the case where supply amount restriction | limiting control is performed, and the case where supply amount restriction | limiting control is not performed. FIG. 6 is an overall configuration diagram of an engine including a fuel reformer according to a third embodiment. FIG. 5 is a main part configuration diagram of a fuel reforming apparatus according to a third embodiment. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a relationship between a reforming fuel injection amount and fuel consumption when supply amount restriction control is performed in a fuel reforming apparatus according to a third embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of a fuel reformer according to a third embodiment. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a main part of a vehicle equipped with an engine equipped with a fuel reformer according to a fourth embodiment. FIG. 6 is a main part configuration diagram of a fuel reforming apparatus according to a fourth embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which shows the relationship between the rotation speed at the time of normal driving | operation of an engine provided with the fuel reforming apparatus which concerns on Example 4, and torque. It is explanatory drawing which shows the relationship between the rotation speed at the time of charge operation of an engine provided with the fuel reforming apparatus which concerns on Example 4, and a torque. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of a fuel reformer according to a fourth embodiment. FIG. 10 is a configuration diagram of a main part of a fuel reformer according to a fifth embodiment. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of a fuel reformer according to a fifth embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Engine 3, 90, 110, 130, 170 Fuel reformer 5 Cylinder 10 Intake passage 11 Injector 12 Throttle valve 20 Exhaust passage 21 Exhaust main passage 22 Reforming passage 25 Reforming fuel injector 30 Catalyst 31 Purification catalyst 32 Reforming catalyst 37 Exhaust temperature sensor 40 EGR gas passage 42 EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve 51 Main fuel tank 53 Main fuel remaining amount sensor 55 Reforming fuel tank 57 Reforming fuel remaining amount sensor 60, 120, 150, 180 ECU
Reference Signs List 61 processing unit 62 throttle valve control unit 63 intake air amount acquisition unit 64 main fuel injection amount control unit 65 reforming fuel injection amount control unit 66 EGR gas flow rate adjustment valve control unit 67 main fuel remaining amount acquisition unit 68 reforming fuel Remaining amount acquisition unit 69 Exhaust temperature acquisition unit 70 Reforming fuel remaining amount determination unit 75 Storage unit 115 Knock sensor 121 Knock acquisition unit 122 Knock area determination unit 138 Hybrid device 140 Motor 144 Battery 151 Electricity remaining amount acquisition unit 152 Electricity remaining amount Determination unit 181 Fuel remaining ratio calculation unit 182 Fuel remaining ratio determination unit

Claims (6)

Purification means for purifying exhaust gas discharged from the cylinder of the internal combustion engine mounted on the vehicle;
A reforming fuel supply means for supplying a reforming fuel, which is a fuel to be reformed, to the exhaust gas;
The reforming fuel supply means is located downstream of the reforming fuel supply means in the flow direction of the exhaust gas for supplying the reforming fuel, and the reforming fuel is used as heat of the purification means. Reforming means for generating a reformed gas combustible in the cylinder by making an endothermic reaction using
Reforming fuel storage means for storing the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means;
When the reforming fuel supply means is provided so as to be controllable, and the amount of the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means is less than a predetermined amount, the reforming fuel supply means Reforming effect by burning the reformed gas in the cylinder while reducing the supply amount of the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means as compared with the case where the storage amount is larger than a predetermined amount Reforming fuel supply means control means for performing supply amount restriction control, which is control for supplying the reforming fuel in a high region,
A fuel reformer characterized by comprising: When it is mounted on a vehicle as a driving means together with a motor, and the remaining amount of electric power of a battery as a power source of the motor is less than a predetermined amount, the battery is discharged from the cylinder of the internal combustion engine that can be charged for charging the battery Purification means for purifying the exhaust gas,
A reforming fuel supply means for supplying a reforming fuel, which is a fuel to be reformed, to the exhaust gas;
The reforming fuel supply means is located downstream of the reforming fuel supply means in the flow direction of the exhaust gas for supplying the reforming fuel, and the reforming fuel is used as heat of the purification means. Reforming means for generating a reformed gas combustible in the cylinder by making an endothermic reaction using
Reforming fuel storage means for storing the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means;
The reforming fuel supply means is provided to be controllable, and the amount of reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means is less than a predetermined amount, and the internal combustion engine is charged. When the operation is not performed, the reforming fuel supply unit supplies the reforming fuel while reducing the supply amount of the reforming fuel as compared with the case where the reforming fuel storage amount is larger than a predetermined amount. The reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage means by performing supply amount limiting control, which is control for supplying the reforming fuel in a region where the reforming effect by burning gas in the cylinder is high Reforming fuel supply means control means that does not perform the supply amount restriction control when the storage amount of the fuel is less than a predetermined amount and the internal combustion engine performs the charging operation;
A fuel reformer characterized by comprising:   When the temperature of the exhaust gas is higher than a reforming reference temperature, which is a reference temperature for determining whether or not to supply the reforming fuel, the reforming fuel supply means control means controls the reforming fuel. Control is performed to supply the reforming fuel to a supply means, and to stop the supply of the reforming fuel by the reforming fuel supply means when the temperature of the exhaust gas is lower than the reforming reference temperature. The supply amount restriction control supplies the reforming fuel to be supplied by the reforming fuel supply means by raising the reforming reference temperature compared to the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. The fuel reformer according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high while reducing the amount.   When the supply amount restriction control is performed, the reforming fuel supply means control means controls the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means compared to the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. 3. The reforming fuel is supplied in a region where the reforming effect is high while reducing the supply amount of the reforming fuel by reducing the supply amount per unit time. The fuel reformer as described.   When performing the supply amount restriction control, the reforming fuel supply means control means causes the reforming fuel supply means to supply the reforming fuel only when the operation of the internal combustion engine is in a knock range. Accordingly, the reforming fuel is supplied in the region where the reforming effect is high while reducing the supply amount of the reforming fuel supplied by the reforming fuel supply means as compared with the case where the supply amount restriction control is not performed. The fuel reformer according to claim 1 or 2, wherein fuel is supplied.   The reforming fuel supply means control means stores main fuel in a main fuel storage means for storing main fuel as fuel used for operation of the internal combustion engine in determining whether or not to perform the supply amount restriction control. 2. The determination including the supply amount restriction control when the ratio of the storage amount of the reforming fuel stored in the reforming fuel storage unit with respect to the amount is equal to or less than a predetermined value. The fuel reformer of any one of -5.

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