Hi Carl,
Main point is, you’r learning by doing…
There are advantages in “wet” gas as for reducing the dust going further
There are disadvantages as the temperature gets carried over further…
One very nice note: you use knowhow from your and others experiences and not just follow the lines on a plan to build an exact copy of somebody’s design…
As many builders here on DOW, all kinds of mcGyvers, once we know that it can work, we collect stuff and build for our purposes…
Now that you have some more insight ( and more will come ) set your goal and build to the limits…
We are here to read , follow and give you some guidance…
I checked everything out today, and I did not find any moisture in the filter after it had cooled overnight, so I think I managed to keep the water drip to a level where it was all being consumed. I am really thinking the high temp steam generator is promising, as it never burped out a bunch of water. If liquid water gets as far as my nozzle, i can see the reaction dim way down as it all boils off, and I suspect that might have been letting some sneak through on my previous setup.
I am starting to think a little bit about building this units big brother - probably migrating to a 55 gallon drum and mounting everything into some sort of rolling cart, or trailer. I also want to eliminate as much flex hose as possible, and plumb everything with steel hard-lines. I was pretty impressed that my filter stayed as cool as it did well into my run, and it seems like more steel surfaces to ditch any heat that makes it into the gas-stream could help with runtime. Also, if I am going to make it mobile, I will want to stiffen it up a bit, so it doesnt shake itself to death when i move it.
I do have a little lawn tractor that doesnt have a mowing deck, and I kinda want to see how it would run on woodgas… It might not be glamorous driving on wood, but it would be a start! Right now my system is mostly plumbed with 1" piping, but im thinking that it might be worth up-sizing so I could later run larger engines. How much diameter would I need for an 18hp engine? I cant seem to find the engine specs, its a kohler CV492-27506 says the manual.
Hi Carl, In my experiance a one inch pipe should be fine for a 18hp engine. Actually should be good up to 25hp. A bigger concern is the size of your gasifier. An 18hp engine can pull more gas than a smaller one so the oxidation zone will be bigger. using the 55 gallon drum for the gasifier will really help keep the walls cool as well as give you longer run times. Go for it! Watch out for the water drip as it is easy to put too much in. If your filter is collecting water then the unit is being feed too much as some of the water is not being broken down. Better running with less than too much,
My 2 cents
Gary in Pa
If to much acidity works on the butterfly valves, or to much oxydation on the aluminium, try to install a filter layer of iron /steel wool in the gas stream, with some dripping space below it. If any moister is acidic, it will react with the steel wool and be reduced into harmless rust before it reaches the inner parts of your engine. ( rust does work wonders if it is at the right place ) so the rust is a must
Hi Don , if the butterfly sticks so bad that it cannot be moved with small needle nose pliers back and forth then what i do is , remove the float bowl from the carb and look below where the pin is that the butter fly attaches too you will see a mound of aluminum , thats the bottom of the pin right there , and drill a small hole up till its against the pin i then get a small punch and knock the pin upwards just a little and then drip some release oil down the hole, ( i use ATF fluid mixed with acetone 50/50 mix ) i leave that for a while to soak in and works like a dream , i just ease the butter fly backwards and forwards after a while and it free’s up nicely , i leave the hole uncovered and replace the float bowl .
Dave
