My new CHP project …. Learning as I go. Feel free to comment.

[Dyslexicbloke]

Hi folks,
I have decided to document my progress, or lack of it, in the hope that what I learn may be of help to others.

My primary system components are a bit of a departure from the conventional wisdom, a Chinese horizontal diesel being the most obvious. For the rest of the project I will be looking at ways to utilise cheep components wherever possible whilst looking at innovative ways to control and manage the system.

I don’t anticipate that all the ideas will work and even if they do I may find that there is no advantage to adopting them in comparison to a more conventional approach.
However I hope that in attempting to solve problems and innovate I will gain a deep understanding of what is going on with the system as a whole, even when that knowledge is a result of a failed experiment.

My starting point is an engine, a Kukje KD120 ( Changfa 195 Esque ), coupled to an ST3 with belts.
I have added an AVR to the ST3 and the system is running happily on red diesel

At the moment, and probably for the duration of the development period, my components will be bolted to a sturdy timber frame.
Once I have a working system it will be relocated to a purpose built enclosure and fixed to a cast plinth.

The Pic shows what I have now, running at 45Hz (low power mode) and producing 220V which is charging my batteries at circa 500W

I have all sorts of stuff on order right now, gotta love fleabay, and will post details and pics when they have all arrived.

Al 

[desperate]

Hallo Al,

good stuff, I watch with interest as I may have a big diseasel to play with in the not too distant, one thing though I would be a bit nervous of your timber base soaking up fuel and oil and being a bit of a risk.

All the best

Desp

[renewablejohn]

Double check whether the engine is actually set up for red diesel. My chinese jinma tractor came with a clear liquid in the tank and ran perfect. Put red diesel in and it started to smoke. Turns out the tractor was set up to run on kerosene so that is what we used for the last 11 years.

[murraymint]

Just out of interest, how would a setup like this translate in an urban environment, particularly the noise and fumes aspect.

[jotec]

Like it,
Watching with interest
D ick

[Eleanor]

Alistair, looking forward to seeing your progress. We have Gertie who is probably not a twin or even a sibling but could be a cousin. Also has an ST alternator but at the moment is languishing in the Old Tin Shed due to lack of attention. Presumably you have already worshipped at the shrines of KenB and Frotter? It will be good to see your ideas and it may inspire us to get Gertie going  

[Eleanor]

PS Nearly forgot. We've got TWO caravans 

[Jonah]

PS Nearly forgot. We've got TWO caravans 

If it's a caravan contest, maybe I could join in....   blinkin' cold at the moment though aren't they.....

Marc

[Dyslexicbloke]

Hi folks …
She is running on red in the pic and as you can see no smoke despite the covered environment.
I get literally 1 or two puffs of light smoke when she fires up from cold but other than that just clear exhaust even at 3.5 KW (Just a short test).

I have been reading loads of stuff from all over the place including both that you mentioned. I have also solicited many opinions from within these forums. Many of the things I have learned should help me avoid known pitfalls whilst, more general stuff has contributed significantly to my planning.

You’re right about the timber but as I said its just a test bed whilst I get things organised.

Obviously I don’t know yet but I expect to be able to get the thing quite quiet and the fumes shouldn’t be any worse than any other engine. Even with only the silly little pot silencer it much quieter than a 3 KW open frame petrol.

Next post ….. Things to do. I need a plan of action anyway!

[Dyslexicbloke]

The next steps….

Control ….

Build an actuator to replace the governor control with 3 micro switch detectable positions.
Min / Start / Max (I'v started this and should have it working over the weekend)

Add an RPM sensor, reflective off the flywheel, with an open collector output.

Add standard vehicle alternator to maintain the starting battery. This will need to be done after the tank and fan are removed. If it looks like it's going to be a big job, requireing parts I cant easily make, I will simply rework the charging system to piggy back of my site batteries fro now.

Cooling ….

Remove coolant tank/rad and add a closure plate with ½ bsp port and contact thermometer.
Add ‘T’ and drain cock to lower water port converting to ½ bsp in the process

Connect coolant pump and temporary tank, test system to ensure flow is adequate at max load.
(No point building controls until the new cooling loop is proven.)

If coolant flow rate is good enough test heat extraction via plate heat exchanger.
Initial tests should be with a convected output to the test tank again at full load.

Fuel ….

Fit and insulate new filter.

Hook up fuel pump, fuel pre-heater and injector line heating loop, test performance.
If no additional heating is required test run system on clean veg
If additional injector line heating is required pre heat engine on red and then test clean Veg

General ….
Evaluate progress thus far and plan next steps including details of the required control strategy for fuel and water circuits.

I will get some pic’s along the way, starting with some detailed shots of what I have now.

Al

[billi]

Perhaps a bit off topic   ,

I converted my Pickups  about 7 years ago   , did it my self ,after i got a quote for over 1200 Euro from a Irish  Veggie oil supplier  and his warning , that if i do it myself  , it is more or less illegal and i will not be able to buy tax exempted veggie oil here 

I got the whole gear for 260 Euro  in this shop

I am not up to date where to source all bits and pieces  and can not say if those prices are still fine  and competitive

Just thought  it might be handy

http://www.monopoel.de/catalog/index.php

Billi

[guydewdney]

The next steps….
Add standard vehicle alternator to maintain the starting battery. This will need to be done after the tank and fan are removed. If it looks like it's going to be a big job, requireing parts I cant easily make, I will simply rework the charging system to piggy back of my site batteries fro now.
Al

why not just use a battery charger - a 'dumb' one will be fine at 220v 45hz - cheap as chips, no fabrication required, no losses from belts/alternators etc...?

[HalcyonRichard]

Hi,
    Totally agree with Guy's good idea. In the good old days of the mini  - putting in a switching electric fan in place of the radiator fan saved 5% of fuel. I would think the pulley/alternator fan use the same percentage. Either a very low power trickle charger or a battery charger on a timer for each start is cheap and would save fuel.

P.S. I've turned slightly green with envy. 

Regards Richard

[Dyslexicbloke]

Thanks for the link Billi, good info and some of the prices arn't that bad at all and they seem to have a good selection of fittings.

The thought process RE an aditional Alt (12v) was to keep the starting system local so I didnt have to run big 12V cables from the gen shead to the battery and control enclosure.
However it hadnt occured to me that a simple cheep charger would do the job with much less effort and would still be local and independant of the main 12v site system.

A case of not seeing the wood for trees I think ..... Thanks for the suggestion i will be adopting it.

Off out to build the governer control actuator now .... pics later with a bit of luck.

Al

[Dyslexicbloke]

Well I have spent the afternoon tinkering ……. And now I have an actuator to replace the governor bias handle.

It isn’t going to win any engineering prizes but I am fairly pleased with the result. I only have hand tools and a battery drill so I had to build the thing up out of stock ally and standard nuts and bolts.

The feed screw is M4 threaded rod and the bushes are nylon, PCB posts, but will get replaced with brass as soon as I find some tube or posts with appropriate dimensions.

I spent a bit of time scratching my head about how to make / mount the round parts, I cant mill or drill anything accurately so it was a bit of a challenge.
The solution was surpassingly simple and effective … Good quality hose clips provide a way to clamp the round parts and simultaneously provide a convenient thread to mount the assembly with.

The travelling nut is made in a similar way, three M4 nuts encased in heat shrink, several layers, and slipped into short peace of ally tube which is split. A hose clip round the tube then clamps the nuts inside and also provides a fixing point for the carriage.

It only has two limit switches fitted right now and will need a third to determine the correct mid point for starting but as the positions of all three will need some experimentation I haven’t bothered yet.

End to end drive time is about 50s and I will probably only need 1/3 of that length which will depend on the strength of the spring I use.

I am going to link it to the engine with a small cable, probably from a bike, so the unit can be mounted somewhere solid and protected.

Al