>I've actually been thinking of a similar effect by
>injecting water into a petrol engine. Similar effect
>except that the burning petrol is used to vapourise the
>water. It is a recognised technique for efficiency improvement.
>
>The benifits are quoted as reducing engine operating
>temperature while increasing mpgs. Most benifit is
>obtained if the timing is advanced somewhat.  Apparently
>the optimum mix is about 1/20 to 1/10 of the fuel so the
>effect is not massive. (maybe 5% improvement) I just have
>to be able to measure the fuel usage on the fly and meter
>the water appropriately.

The effect is similar to driving on a cool night, where you get two
effects - a greater intake of oxygen because the air is cooler, and
therefore denser, and also the possibility of some moisture in the air.

>And not care too much if I damage
>the engine, which is a sticking point at the moment.

The trick is probably not to have much water injected at all. You talk of 5%
to 10% of the fuel volume as water, but I have a feeling it is lower than
that.

My understanding is that part of the way it acts is the water is turned to
steam by the cylinder heat, and then the molecule is split up by the flame
making more oxygen available to burn, and then at the end of the burn any
free hydrogen and oxygen recombines to water.

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