JP2014224472A - Fuel supply device for internal combustion engine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the size and weight of an alcohol adsorption device.SOLUTION: A fuel supply device 20 includes a fuel tank 21 to be filled with alcohol mixed gasoline (mixed fuel F1) as fuel, a first fuel supply pipe 24 for supplying the mixed fuel F1 to an engine body 10, an alcohol adsorption device 44 including mesoporous silica 45 as an alcohol adsorption material, and a second injector 42 for supplying low-alcohol fuel F2 treated by the alcohol adsorption device 44 to the engine body 10. At the cool start of an engine, it supplies the low-alcohol fuel F2 to the engine body 10.

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel supply apparatus for an internal combustion engine, and more particularly to a fuel supply apparatus for an internal combustion engine that uses alcohol-mixed gasoline as a fuel.

  It is known to use alcohol mixed gasoline as a fuel for an internal combustion engine. In addition, when the mixed fuel is used, there is a demand for supplying alcohol and gasoline at an arbitrary ratio according to the required load of the engine. Therefore, a vehicle equipped with two fuel tanks, a gasoline tank and an alcohol tank, has been proposed. However, mounting two fuel tanks is inconvenient because it is necessary to replenish two types of fuel.

  In view of such a situation, Patent Document 1 discloses a step of adsorbing alcohol contained in a mixed fuel to an alcohol adsorbent under pressure, and desorbing alcohol adsorbed on the alcohol adsorbent from the alcohol adsorbent under reduced pressure. A gasoline-alcohol separation method comprising a step of causing the reaction to occur. In the separation method of Patent Document 1, either polyvinyl alcohol or zeolite is used as the alcohol adsorbent.

JP 2010-90747 A

  By the way, the gasoline-alcohol separator is required to be small and light, especially for in-vehicle applications, and the prior art including Patent Document 1 still has room for improvement. Since the mixed fuel contains some moisture, if polyvinyl alcohol is used as the adsorbent, the adsorbent may be dissolved in the fuel and supplied to the engine. There is a concern that the exhaust performance will be adversely affected.

A fuel supply device for an internal combustion engine according to the present invention includes a fuel tank filled with alcohol-mixed gasoline as a fuel, a first fuel supply pipe connected to the fuel tank and supplying the fuel to the internal combustion engine body, and an alcohol adsorption And an alcohol adsorbing device containing mesoporous silica as a material, and a second fuel supply pipe for supplying the low alcohol fuel treated by the alcohol adsorbing device to the internal combustion engine body.
In addition, it is preferable that the low alcohol fuel is supplied to the internal combustion engine body when the internal combustion engine is cold started.

  According to the above configuration, by using mesoporous silica that has a high alcohol adsorbing ability and is insoluble in the mixed fuel, the alcohol adsorbing device can be reduced in size and weight without impairing the performance of the internal combustion engine. Moreover, since the fuel with a reduced alcohol concentration can be obtained on-board, there is no trouble of replenishing two types of fuel. Furthermore, when the alcohol concentration is high, the startability of the internal combustion engine at the time of cold deteriorates. However, according to the above-described configuration, the low alcohol fuel is supplied at the time of cold start, so that the internal combustion engine is good even at the time of cold. Can be ensured.

The mesoporous silica has a center pore diameter of preferably 2 nm to 10 nm, and more preferably 3 nm to 7 nm.
According to this configuration, the alcohol adsorption ability can be further improved, and the alcohol adsorption device can be further reduced in size and weight.

  According to the fuel supply device for an internal combustion engine according to the present invention, the alcohol adsorption device can be reduced in size and weight. In addition, good startability of the internal combustion engine when cold can be ensured.

1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a fuel supply device for an internal combustion engine according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In the fuel supply device for an internal combustion engine according to the first embodiment of the present invention, a low alcohol fuel supply system is extracted and shown. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the center pore diameter of the mesoporous silica mounted in the fuel supply apparatus of the internal combustion engine which is 1st Embodiment of this invention, and ethanol adsorption amount. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation state (at the time of an internal combustion engine start) of the fuel supply apparatus of the internal combustion engine which is 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation state (at the time of silica reproduction | regeneration) of the fuel supply apparatus of the internal combustion engine which is 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation state (at the time of alcohol adsorption | suction) of the fuel supply apparatus of the internal combustion engine which is 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the fuel supply apparatus of the internal combustion engine which is 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the operating state of the fuel supply apparatus of the internal combustion engine which is 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the operating state of the fuel supply apparatus of the internal combustion engine which is a modification of 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment>
The fuel supply device 20 for an internal combustion engine according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. Although the fuel supply device 20 is described as being mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile, the application of the present invention is not limited to this. The configuration of the fuel supply device 20 can be applied to, for example, a stationary internal combustion engine installed other than the moving body.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a fuel supply device 20 and an internal combustion engine to which fuel is supplied by the device, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an extracted low alcohol fuel supply system 40 of the fuel supply device 20. is there. The internal combustion engine exemplified here is a four-cylinder engine for driving a vehicle.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an engine body 10 constituting an engine has a cylinder 11, an intake port 12 connected to an intake pipe, an exhaust port 13 connected to an exhaust pipe, an intake valve 14 that opens and closes the intake port 12, and opens and closes an exhaust port 13. The exhaust valve 15 and the like are provided. The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1 is a port injection type in which injectors 25 and 42 of a fuel supply device 20 described later are installed in the intake port 12. The combustion injection method may be a so-called direct injection method in which fuel is directly injected into the cylinder 11.

  The fuel supply device 20 includes a fuel tank 21 filled with alcohol-mixed gasoline (hereinafter referred to as “mixed fuel F1”) as fuel. The fuel tank 21 is preferably provided with a fuel pump 22 for pumping the mixed fuel F1 and an alcohol concentration sensor 23 for detecting the alcohol concentration in the mixed fuel F1. The fuel tank 21 can be filled with general gasoline, but the characteristic function of the fuel supply device 20 is exhibited when the mixed fuel F1 is used.

  The driving state of the fuel supply device 20 at the time of cold start of the engine is controlled by the control device 30. The alcohol concentration detected by the alcohol concentration sensor 23 is preferably used for control by the control device 30, as will be described in detail later.

  The fuel supply device 20 includes a fuel supply pipe 24 connected to the fuel tank 21. The fuel supply pipe 24 is a pipe for supplying the mixed fuel F <b> 1 to the engine body 10, and is connected to a plurality of (four) injectors 25 corresponding to each cylinder 11 via the delivery pipe 26. The fuel supply pipe 24 and the injector 25 are a fuel supply system used during normal operation of the engine other than during cold start. That is, the mixed fuel F1 filled in the fuel tank 21 is injected from the injector 25 as it is.

  The fuel supply device 20 includes a low alcohol fuel supply system 40 in addition to the normal fuel supply system. The low alcohol fuel supply system 40 includes an alcohol adsorbing device 44 (hereinafter simply referred to as “adsorbing device 44”) including mesoporous silica 45 as an alcohol adsorbing material. The low alcohol fuel supply system 40 is a facility for adsorbing alcohol by the adsorption device 44 and reducing the alcohol concentration in the mixed fuel F1. Hereinafter, the mixed fuel in which the alcohol is reduced in concentration by the adsorption device 44 is referred to as “low alcohol fuel F2” and is used separately from the mixed fuel F1.

  The low alcohol fuel supply system 40 includes a second fuel supply pipe 41 branched from the fuel supply pipe 24. The fuel supply pipe 41 is a pipe for supplying the low alcohol fuel F <b> 2 to the engine body 10, and is connected to a plurality (four) of injectors 42 corresponding to each cylinder 11 via the delivery pipe 43. That is, the fuel supply device 20 includes an injector 42 dedicated to the low alcohol fuel F2 separately from the injector 25 that injects the mixed fuel F1. Note that the fuel supply pipe 41 may be directly connected to the fuel tank 21.

  The adsorption device 44 is installed in the middle of the fuel supply pipe 41. The adsorption device 44 includes a container filled with mesoporous silica 45 that is an alcohol adsorbent. The shape and dimensions of the container are not particularly limited, and can be appropriately changed according to the engine displacement or the like. Although not shown, in order to prevent the mesoporous silica 45 from flowing out from the adsorption device 44, it is preferable to provide a filter or the like at the entrance / exit of the container filled with the mesoporous silica 45, or to cover the mesoporous silica 45 with a filter or the like. Examples of suitable filters include sintered bodies such as ceramics having pores, metal meshes, and nonwoven fabrics.

  The mesoporous silica 45 is porous silica having pores having a pore diameter of 1.5 nm to 50 nm. In the present specification, porous silica having a central pore diameter of 1.5 nm to 50 nm is defined as mesoporous silica. Here, the central pore diameter is measured by a nitrogen gas adsorption method. The mesoporous silica 45 selectively adsorbs alcohol in the mixed fuel F1. The alcohol contained in the mixed fuel F1 is mainly ethanol.

FIG. 3 shows the relationship between the center pore diameter of the mesoporous silica 45 and the ethanol adsorption amount.
As is apparent from FIG. 3, the mesoporous silica 45 has a higher ethanol adsorption capacity per unit weight than the zeolite. The ethanol adsorption amount per unit volume is also mesoporous silica 45> zeolite. Therefore, by using the mesoporous silica 45 as the alcohol adsorbent, the adsorber 44 can be made smaller and lighter than when zeolite is used. The ethanol adsorption capacity was calculated from the change in ethanol concentration in the mixed fuel before and after the adsorbent was charged after the adsorbent was charged into the mixed fuel in which ethanol and gasoline were mixed at a weight ratio of 1: 1 and stirred for 1 hour. . The ethanol concentration in the mixed fuel was analyzed by gas chromatography, and the ethanol adsorption capacity was calculated by dividing the weight of the adsorbed ethanol by the weight of the adsorbent.

  The mesoporous silica 45 has particularly excellent ethanol adsorption ability when the pore diameter is in a specific range. Specifically, the central pore diameter is preferably 2 nm to 10 nm, and particularly preferably 3 nm to 7 nm. As a result of intensive studies focusing on the ethanol adsorption ability of the mesoporous silica 45, the present inventors have found that there is an optimum pore diameter for ethanol adsorption. As shown in FIG. 3, the mesoporous silica 45 exhibits an ethanol adsorption ability that is substantially constant in the range of 3 nm to 7 nm after the ethanol adsorption ability increases with an increase in the central pore diameter. descend.

  The adsorption device 44 includes equipment for regenerating the mesoporous silica 45. That is, since the mesoporous silica 45 cannot adsorb a predetermined amount or more of alcohol, the mesoporous silica 45 is repeatedly used by performing a regeneration process for desorbing the adsorbed alcohol. The adsorption device 44 preferably includes heating means 46 that heats the mesoporous silica 45 to vaporize and desorb the adsorbed alcohol as one of the regeneration facilities.

  The heating means 46 is, for example, a heater provided around the container that stores the mesoporous silica 45. Alternatively, the mesoporous silica 45 may be heated using engine exhaust gas or engine or transmission lubricating oil. Since the alcohol adsorbed on the mesoporous silica 45 is mainly ethanol, it is desirable that the heating means 46 can heat the mesoporous silica 45 to about 80 ° C. or higher during the regeneration process.

  A check valve 47 is preferably provided on the downstream side (injector 42 side) of the adsorption device 44 of the fuel supply pipe 41. Thereby, the backflow of the fuel from the injector 42 side can be prevented. Furthermore, even when the ethanol concentration of the fuel in the adsorption device 44 existing in the ethanol adsorption process is higher than the low ethanol fuel on the injector 42 side downstream from the check valve 47, in order to prevent diffusion due to the ethanol concentration difference, An increase in ethanol concentration on the injector 42 side can be prevented. Further, it is preferable to provide a valve for controlling the supply of the mixed fuel F <b> 1 to the adsorption device 44 on the upstream side (fuel tank 21 side) of the adsorption device 44 of the fuel supply pipe 41. In the present embodiment, a two-way valve 48 is provided as the valve.

  An alcohol reflux pipe 50 (hereinafter simply referred to as “reflux pipe 50”) is installed on the downstream side of the adsorption apparatus 44 or between the adsorption apparatus 44 and the check valve 47 of the fuel supply pipe 41. The reflux pipe 50 is a pipe for returning alcohol desorbed from the mesoporous silica 45 to the fuel tank 21. The reflux pipe 50 is preferably provided with a valve that is opened when the mesoporous silica 45 is regenerated. In the present embodiment, a two-way valve 49 is provided as the valve. The reflux pipe 50 is preferably provided with an alcohol condensing device 51 (hereinafter simply referred to as “condensing device 51”). The condensing device 51 plays a role of liquefying the alcohol evaporated during the regeneration process. The condensing device 51 is water-cooled or air-cooled, and includes a water-cooling mechanism using engine cooling water, for example.

  As described above, the control device 30 is a device that controls the driving of the fuel supply device 20 when the engine is cold started. When the alcohol concentration of the mixed fuel is high, the startability of the engine in the cold state deteriorates. However, the low alcohol fuel F2 is supplied during the cold start by the control of the control device 30, and a good engine even in the cold state is obtained. Ensure startability. The control device 30 includes a cold start control means 31, an adsorption control means 32, and a regeneration control means 33 in order to control the drive of the fuel supply device 20 during the cold start of the engine.

  The control device 30 may be configured as a part of an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) that performs control of the fuel supply device 20 and the entire engine during normal traveling, or as a separate ECU. It may be configured. The ECU constituting the control device 30 is a microcomputer provided with a CPU, an input / output port, a memory, and the like. Each function of the control device 30 can be realized by executing software.

  The cold start control means 31 determines whether the mixed fuel F1 or the low alcohol fuel F2 is used for starting the engine. When it is determined that the engine is started using the low alcohol fuel F2, the operation of the two-way valve 48 and the like is controlled as will be described in detail later, and the low alcohol fuel F2 processed by the adsorption device 44 is controlled. Supply to the engine body 10.

  The cold start control means 31 acquires, for example, the temperature measured by a temperature sensor (not shown) and the alcohol concentration of the mixed fuel F1 measured by the alcohol concentration sensor 23, and performs the above determination based on the information. . The temperature sensor measures, for example, the temperature in the vicinity of the engine body 10, the coolant temperature, the outside air temperature, or the like. For example, when the temperature threshold value related to the cooling water temperature and the concentration threshold value related to the alcohol concentration are set, the cooling water temperature is lower than the temperature threshold value, and the alcohol concentration in the mixed fuel F1 is higher than the concentration threshold value, the low alcohol It can be determined that the engine is started using the fuel F2. Or you may perform the said determination only on the basis of temperature.

  The adsorption control means 32 performs control for generating the low alcohol fuel F2. The adsorption control means 32 controls the operation of the two-way valve 48 and the like to supply the mixed fuel F1 to the adsorption device 44 at a timing when fuel supply from the low alcohol fuel supply system 40 is not performed, for example, during normal operation of the engine. Adsorb and separate alcohol.

  The regeneration control means 33 performs control for desorbing alcohol from the mesoporous silica 45 and recovering (regenerating) the alcohol adsorption ability. The regeneration control means 33 controls the operation of the heating means 46, the two-way valve 49, etc. at the timing when the fuel supply from the low alcohol fuel supply system 40 is completed, for example, during normal operation of the engine, to supply alcohol from the mesoporous silica 45. Vaporized and desorbed and collected in the fuel tank 21.

  Here, an example of the drive control procedure of the fuel supply device 20 during the cold start of the engine will be described with reference to FIGS.

  When the engine is started, as described above, for example, based on the temperature measured by a temperature sensor (not shown) (engine cooling water temperature or the like) and the alcohol concentration of the mixed fuel F1 measured by the alcohol concentration sensor 23, or cooling water. Whether or not to start the engine using the mixed fuel F1 is determined based only on the temperature or the like. At this time, the engine is stopped, and the two-way valve 48 is closed as shown in FIG.

  When it is determined that the engine is started using the low alcohol fuel F2, that is, when it is difficult to start the engine with the mixed fuel F1, the two-way valve 48 is opened as shown in FIG. The two-way valve 49 is closed except during the regeneration process of the mesoporous silica 45. The mixed fuel existing in the adsorption device 44 before this operation is the low alcohol fuel F2 in which alcohol is adsorbed by the mesoporous silica 45. Therefore, when the two-way valve 48 is opened and the fuel pump 22 pumps the mixed fuel F1 from the fuel tank 21 and operates the injector 42, the processed low alcohol fuel F2 is supplied to the engine body 10.

When the low alcohol fuel F2 is supplied to the engine body 10, it is necessary to prevent the mixed fuel F1 from flowing to the downstream side of the adsorption device 44 in a jet state, that is, the mixed fuel F1 and the mesoporous silica 45 are brought into contact with each other. The following (1)-(3) can be illustrated as the countermeasure.
(1) Before executing the above operation, the volume of the low alcohol fuel F2 filled in the adsorption device 44 is made larger than the volume of the mixed fuel F1 flowing into the adsorption device 44 by the above operation.
(2) The positions of the inlet and outlet of the adsorption device 44 are shifted so that the positions are separated as much as possible.
(3) The mixed fuel F1 is diffused at the inlet of the adsorption device 44 so as to be evenly contacted with the mesoporous silica 45, and a filter or the like is installed to slow down the inflow speed.

  When the engine is started, the two-way valve 48 is closed as shown in FIG. 4C, and the supply of the mixed fuel F1 to the low alcohol fuel supply system 40 is stopped. Thereafter, the injector 25 is operated to supply the mixed fuel F1 to the engine body 10 from a normal fuel supply system. The time for supplying the low alcohol fuel F2 is a very short time until the engine speed reaches a predetermined value, for example, at the moment of engine start.

  A series of procedures illustrated in FIG. 4 is executed by the function of the cold start control means 31 of the control device 30. In the above description, the low alcohol fuel F2 is supplied when it is difficult to start the engine with the mixed fuel F1, but the low alcohol fuel supply system 40 is always operated to start the low alcohol fuel F2 when starting the engine. It is good also as what supplies. According to this method, a temperature sensor and a determination circuit are unnecessary, and a low-cost system can be constructed.

  When the supply of the low alcohol fuel F2 by the low alcohol fuel supply system 40 is completed, the mesoporous silica 45 is regenerated in preparation for the next fuel supply. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5D, the two-way valve 49 is opened to open the reflux pipe 50, and the mesoporous silica 45 is heated by the heating means 46 in this state. As a result, the alcohol adsorbed on the mesoporous silica 45 is vaporized, and the pressure in the adsorption device 44 increases due to the phase change of the alcohol. The vaporized alcohol flows into the condenser 51 through the reflux pipe 50, is liquefied by the condenser 51, and is returned to the fuel tank 21. Thus, the alcohol adsorption ability of the mesoporous silica 45 is recovered and the regeneration process is completed. When the regeneration process is completed, the two-way valve 49 is closed as shown in FIG.

  When the regeneration of the mesoporous silica 45 is completed, the mixed fuel F1 is supplied to the low alcohol fuel supply system 40 in preparation for the next fuel supply. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6 (f), the mixed fuel F 1 is supplied to the adsorption device 44 with the two-way valve 48 opened. At this time, the two-way valve 49 is closed and the injector 42 is not operating. When the filling of the mixed fuel F1 into the adsorption device 44 is completed, the two-way valve 48 is closed again as shown in FIG. 6 (g). Thus, the mesoporous silica 45 adsorbs the alcohol in the mixed fuel F1 until the next fuel supply to prepare the low alcohol fuel F2.

The amount of the low alcohol fuel F2 required, that is, the amount of the mixed fuel F1 supplied to the adsorption device 44 is preferably determined based on the following equation, for example.
Msupply = {(1-Ctarget) / (Csupply-Ctarget)} × Mad
Here, Msupply is the weight of the mixed fuel F1 supplied to the adsorption device 44, Csupply is the alcohol concentration in the mixed fuel F1 supplied to the adsorption device 44, Ctarget is the target alcohol concentration, and Mad is the amount of alcohol capable of adsorbing the mesoporous silica 45. is there. If the supply amount is smaller than Msupply, the alcohol concentration in the low alcohol fuel F2 can be made lower than the target alcohol concentration. From the viewpoint of improving the cold startability of the engine, Ctarget is preferably 50 wt% or less, and more preferably 20 wt% or less. Csupply is, for example, about 80 wt% to 90 wt%.

  As described above, according to the fuel supply device 20, it is possible to obtain the low alcohol fuel F2 with the alcohol concentration lowered on-board. The fuel supply device 20 uses the mesoporous silica 45 that has a high alcohol adsorbability and is insoluble in the mixed fuel, so that the adsorber 44 can be reduced in size and weight without impairing the performance of the engine. It is suitable for in-vehicle use. Further, by supplying the low alcohol fuel F2 at the time of cold start, good engine startability can be ensured even at the time of cold start.

  In the above, the low fuel alcohol F1 is prepared by supplying the mixed fuel F1 to the adsorption device 44 in advance during normal operation or the like, but the low fuel fuel F2 is supplied by supplying the mixed fuel F1 to the adsorption device 44 when the engine is started. May be obtained. That is, the mesoporous silica 45 adsorbs alcohol to generate the low alcohol fuel F <b> 2 during a short time during which the mixed fuel F <b> 1 passes through the adsorption device 44. In this case, the process shown in FIG. 6 becomes unnecessary, and the control process can be simplified.

Second Embodiment
A fuel supply device 60 for an internal combustion engine, which is a second embodiment of the present invention, will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. Hereinafter, differences from the first embodiment will be described in detail, and the same components as those in the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the fuel supply device 60 and an internal combustion engine to which fuel is supplied by the device. As shown in FIG. 7, the low alcohol fuel supply system 61 of the fuel supply device 60 includes a fuel tank 62 that stores the low alcohol fuel F <b> 2 processed by the adsorption device 44, and thus the fuel supply device of the first embodiment. Greatly different from 20. Further, in the low alcohol fuel supply system 61, a two-way valve 64 is provided between the adsorption device 44 and the fuel tank 62, and processing is performed for a predetermined time by the adsorption device 44 by opening the valve. The fuel flows into the fuel tank 62. Further, in the low alcohol fuel supply system 61, the reflux pipe 50 is attached to the upstream side of the adsorption device 44, and a three-way valve 65 that opens and closes the reflux pipe 50 and the fuel supply pipe 41 is provided.

  Here, an example of the drive control procedure of the fuel supply device 60 during the cold start of the engine will be described with reference to FIG.

  The fuel supply device 60 uses the low alcohol fuel F2 stored in the fuel tank 62 when the engine is cold started. Therefore, the low alcohol fuel F <b> 2 used for the cold start needs to be stored in the fuel tank 62. The low alcohol fuel F2 stored in the fuel tank 62 is pumped to the injector 42 by a fuel pump 63 installed in the tank at the cold start.

  The generation timing of the low alcohol fuel F2 is determined based on the remaining amount of the fuel tank 62, for example. That is, when the low alcohol fuel F2 stored in the fuel tank 62 decreases, the low alcohol fuel F2 may be generated. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8A, the three-way valve 65 is opened to supply the mixed fuel F1 to the adsorption device 44, and the mesoporous silica 45 and the mixed fuel F1 are brought into contact with each other for a predetermined time to adsorb and separate alcohol. . As shown in FIG. 8B, it is preferable to close the two-way valve 64 and the three-way valve 65 during the alcohol adsorption process. The three-way valve 65 is open to the reflux pipe 50 side, for example.

  When the predetermined time has elapsed, as shown in FIG. 8C, the low alcohol fuel F <b> 2 processed by opening the two-way valve 64 is supplied to the fuel tank 62. Thus, the low alcohol fuel F2 used for cold starting of the engine can be stored in the fuel tank 62. As shown in FIG. 8D, when the mesoporous silica 45 is regenerated, the mesoporous silica 45 may be heated with the two-way valve 64 closed and the three-way valve 65 opened to the reflux pipe 50 side. As a result, the alcohol is desorbed from the mesoporous silica 45 and returned to the fuel tank 21. The low alcohol fuel F2 can be stored in the fuel tank 62 by repeating the series of operations shown in FIG.

  The fuel supply device 70 shown in FIG. 9 is different from the fuel supply device 60 illustrated in FIG. 8 in that the reflux pipe 50 is connected to the upstream side of the adsorption device 44 without passing through the three-way valve 65. In the fuel supply device 70, a two-way valve 71 is provided on the upstream side of the adsorption device 44 in the fuel supply pipe 41. In this case, it is not necessary to operate the valve when the mesoporous silica 45 is regenerated.

The design of the above embodiment can be changed as appropriate without departing from the object of the present invention.
For example, the embodiments described above may be combined. As a specific example, in the form shown in FIG. 1, there is a form in which the reflux pipe 50 is connected to the upstream side of the adsorption device 44 as shown in FIG. 9.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Engine body, 11 Cylinder, 12 Intake port, 13 Exhaust port, 14 Intake valve, 15 Exhaust valve, 16 Temperature sensor, 20 Fuel supply device, 21 Fuel tank, 22 Fuel pump, 23 Alcohol concentration sensor, 24, 41 Fuel supply Pipe, 25, 42 injector, 26, 43 delivery pipe, 30 control device, 31 cold start control means, 32 adsorption control means, 33 regeneration control means, 40 low alcohol fuel supply system, 44 alcohol adsorption device, 45 mesoporous silica, 46 Heating means, 47 Check valve, 48, 49 Two-way valve, 50 Alcohol reflux pipe, 51 Alcohol condensing device

Claims (4)

A fuel tank filled with alcohol-mixed gasoline as fuel;
A first fuel supply pipe connected to the fuel tank and supplying the fuel to an internal combustion engine body;
An alcohol adsorption device containing mesoporous silica as an alcohol adsorbent;
A second fuel supply pipe that supplies the low alcohol fuel treated by the alcohol adsorption device to the internal combustion engine body;
A fuel supply device for an internal combustion engine, comprising: The fuel supply device for an internal combustion engine according to claim 1,
A fuel supply device for an internal combustion engine, which supplies the low alcohol fuel to the internal combustion engine main body when the internal combustion engine is cold-started. The fuel supply apparatus for an internal combustion engine according to claim 2,
The mesoporous silica is a fuel supply apparatus for an internal combustion engine having a central pore diameter of 2 nm to 10 nm. The fuel supply apparatus for an internal combustion engine according to claim 2,
The mesoporous silica is a fuel supply apparatus for an internal combustion engine having a central pore diameter of 3 nm to 7 nm.

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