Power Generation: Sustainability

[Shock35]

Does anyone have any experience adding a dual fuel conversion kit to a diesel genset? I would appreciate successes and pitfalls from various installations and applications.

[jduine · Accepted solution]

Dear Shocker35,

Important: 

- Practical gas/diesel ratios can be around 60/40% @ 80% of the continous output the engines (do not believe 80% gas @ standby load for example..... just not possible),

- Make sure the engine has "proven" protection against knock !!!!!

- Work only with "expereience" people and ask for their reference list,

- Make sure the Methan Number of the gas is better that 80 (LPG or Fieldgas will reduce the gas/diesel ratios < 20% -> which is not economical to convert),

- Other word used for dual-fuel is "bi-fuel"

in case you like to have more information just ask!!!

[rtjn2]

Dear Shocker35 

                  I have installed many bi fuel systems, and as jduine states the normal gas substitution % is about 60% gas 40% diesel. Probably the most important factor determining this rate is the load and its stability. Another saving not  often mentioned is on the oil change period which can be significantly increased if verified with oil sampling.

[jduine]

Found a intresting website: www.bi-fuel.net regarding bi-fuel technology/suppliers.

[rtjn2]

I have installed bi fuel systems on many engines with different applications in various locations throughout the world. Usual substitution rate is 60% gas 40% diesel. The more constant the load the better the substitution can be. I have seen spectacular failures caused by operators making adjustments to increase the substitution rates. And of course more kits are appearing on the market.

[t300dle]

Has anybody fitted a bi-fuel installation to a Caterpillar ACERT engine, such as a C32?

The C32 uses the integrated Cat governing system plus multiple pulse injection cycles. I wonder what would happen in those control processes when a combustible gas enters the cylinders and the energy input rate increases. I wonder if the multiple injection pulses could be adversely affected by the gas combustion process (ie, maybe the initial fuel injection pulse may be too lean to promote combustion)?

[RM_FNTS]

We tried it on a couple of C27's

could not get even close to the substitution levels we were aiming for, may be 5% maximum

What we experienced was as soon as you introduced gas to the intet the engine boost pressure increased dramatically.

This spike in boost would either cause the Bi-Fuel system to shutdown because the boost pressure exceded the operating setpoint.

If you opened the setpiont up the ADEM would generate an excessive boost code

This dramatic increase in boost may be caused by the multiple injection pulse or the timing map?

[shawn]

I have recently installed our dual fuel kit on a 2007 CAT  C32. At 40% load we acheived at 70/30 ratio of gas to deisel. Above this load level we acheived 50% displacement.

Shawn Meredith

Senior Engineer

Hythane Company

[t300dle]

Shawn, did you experience any of the problems exhibited by the above C27 conversion (such as high boost pressures)? If so, how does your installation act to control those issues? I will be making contact with your Australian parent company, to see if they can offer us your conversion kits.