Manifold pressure, fuel mixture, and water injection

[Dave Williams]

-> of an overrich fuel/air mixture. It will be noted that the total
-> specific consumption of liquid, i.e. fuel plus water, is not so very
-> much greater than when running on a very rich mixture of fuel alone."
->
-> Has anyone done any research/published on this topic recently?

 Not that I'm aware of.  I've been fortunate enough to read through
Ricardo's book, which seems to have quite thoroughly covered the
subject.

 You need to keep in mind that it takes a *LOT* of water when you're
working with high boost.  John DeArmond, the former moderator of the
hotrod list, used to run over 30psi guage pressure on his turbocharged
Datsun six.  The car would empty a three gallon tank after a short
session of spirited driving.  He finally picked up some trash in the
water pickup which resulted in a spectacular engine meltdown, complete
with crankcase fire.  I had the opportunity to examine the remains and
it wasn't pretty.  John was talking about rigging a circuit with a water
flow sensor and boost sensor to cut the spark if the water flow was
interrupted under load.  20/20 hindsight, <sigh>.


 Water is very efficient for cooling the intake charge and as an
anti-detonant, but if you are in a cold area, intend to run long
distances under load (like a tow rig or motorhome), or run long races, a
conventional intercooler might be the best solution.  It won't freeze or
run empty, anyway.