Not possible to fence the motorization chapter without mentioning the considerable importance of the pollution and consumption reduction system called "Econokit". A system that I have already used for years with satisfaction on board our previous catamaran. As this was a sailing boat, it was less important.
The principle consists of injecting into the engine's intake manifold a mixture of air saturated with moisture that has undergone molecular transformation by passing through a "reactor" heated to 300 degrees. The objective is to obtain a more complete combustion with a reduction in unburned gases.
Up to 40% fuel savings!
The resulting gain in fuel consumption is usually 25% on "conventional" engines, and can exceed 40%. The same is probably not true for modern engines with electronically controlled injection of the "common rail" type, but I don't know.
On Catafjord (my previous 60-foot sailing catamaran), I achieved a 40% gain. With the Lady, I have more difficulties to achieve this, because the engines are bigger and equipped with turbos. However, in the current state of my work, I have achieved more than 40% fuel savings, getting down to 0.63 liters/mile at 7.5 knots.
A system used on agricultural machines
These systems are widely used on tractors and other agricultural machines, where it is easy to find a way to heat the reactor by simply attaching it to the exhaust pipe with metal clamps.
It is not possible to do this with marine engines, because their design is governed by different rules (the exhaust is water-cooled), and there is no accessible place where such a temperature is available.
So I had to heat my reactors with electricity.
A toaster to heat up your..
I had to make a custom heater myself using tungsten wire recovered from a toaster that I had boned. My numerous tests finally led to excellent results that only need to be confirmed on the long term.
When the experiment is fully completed, it will be easy to have specific heaters made by any manufacturer. Notice to the amateurs..
In the next episode, the author explains modification of exhausts to limit smoke and dirt
