Compound internal combustion engine


A compound internal combustion engine is a type of internal combustion engine (ICE) where gasses of combustion are expanded in two or more stages. A typical arrangement for a compound ICE is that the fuel/air is first combusted and expanded in one of two alternating 4-stroke combustion high-pressure (HP) cylinders, then having given up heat and losing pressure, it exhausts directly into a larger-volume low-pressure (LP) cylinder, where it is re-expanded extracting more work from it.

Rudolf Diesel's compound internal combustion engine

The crankshaft is arranged so the two high-pressure cylinders have synchronized reciprocating motion, while the low-pressure cylinder throw is positioned at a 180-degree phase difference from the high-pressure throws causing opposing reciprocating motion between the high-pressure and low-pressure cylinders.

History

Compound ICEs have been around for nearly as long as standard ICEs with the first patent being issued to Nicolaus Otto’s Deutz company in 1879; this design having likely been created by then Deutz employee Gottlieb Daimler.[1]

Other designs for compound ICEs were patented by well known engine designers Rudolf Diesel in 1892 and James Atkinson in 1903.[1]

The Eisenhuth Horseless Vehicle Company produced a series of automobiles with compound ICEs from 1900 -1908.

1905 Compound Model 4

The engines in these vehicles ranged from 2 cylinders (1908 model) to 6 cylinders (1907 model).[2]

In 2000 the design was “re-patented” as the five-stroke engine by Gerhard Schmitz. This design was prototyped by British engineering company Ilmor.

Compound ICE patents

  • Deutz 1879
  • Forest-Gallice 1888
  • Connelly 1888
  • Diesel 1892
  • Bales 1897
  • Atkinson 1903
  • Babled 1903
  • Butler 1904
  • Eisenhuth (multiple) 1904-1907
  • Abbot 1910
  • Schmitz 2000

See also

References

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