Abstract: Provided is a fuel injection valve capable of stably injecting a fuel formed into a thin film. The fuel injection valve includes: a valve seat including a fuel path and a valve seat portion therein; a valve member including an abutment portion configured to sit on the valve seat portion, for opening and closing the fuel path through separation and contact of the abutment portion away from and with the valve seat portion; and a fuel chamber brought into communication with the fuel path, in which: the fuel chamber includes slit-like injection holes for injecting a fuel; and each of the injection holes has a slit-like shape for making fuel flows to collide against each other in a long axis direction of each of the injection holes to form a liquid film in a direction crossing the long axis direction.

Abstract: A first circulation channel connects a first heat demand part and first supply heat exchanger with its forward route and return route. Supply and discharge channels are connected to a first heat accumulation tank, which accommodates a second heat medium heated in the first supply heat exchanger and supplied via the supply channel. A heat accumulation switching valve changes over communication of the second heat medium serving as hot heat or cold heat flowing from the first supply heat exchanger and supplied to the first heat demand part without branching to the supply channel or branching to the supply channel and supplied to the first heat accumulation tank. A heat-accumulating hot-water-supplying air conditioner operates at a first temperature when the second heat medium from the first supply heat exchanger branches to the supply channel, and at a second lower temperature when the second heat medium does not branch to the supply channel.

Abstract: Provided is a fuel injection valve capable of stably injecting a fuel formed into a thin film. The fuel injection valve includes: a valve seat including a fuel path and a valve seat portion therein; a valve member including an abutment portion configured to sit on the valve seat portion, for opening and closing the fuel path through separation and contact of the abutment portion away from and with the valve seat portion; and a fuel chamber brought into communication with the fuel path, in which: the fuel chamber includes slit-like injection holes for injecting a fuel; and each of the injection holes has a slit-like shape for making fuel flows to collide against each other in a long axis direction of each of the injection holes to form a liquid film in a direction crossing the long axis direction.

Abstract: An exhaust heat regeneration system includes: an evaporator for cooling engine cooling water; an expansion device for expanding the refrigerant heated through the evaporator so as to generate a driving force; a condenser for cooling the refrigerant passing through the expansion device to condense the refrigerant; and a pump for pressure-feeding the refrigerant cooled through the condenser to the evaporator, in which: the expansion device is coupled to the pump by a shaft, and the expansion device and the pump are housed within the same casing to constitute a pump-integrated type expansion device; and the pump includes a high-pressure chamber through which the refrigerant to be discharged to the evaporator flows, the high-pressure chamber being provided on the expansion device side, or a low-pressure chamber through which the refrigerant flowing from the condenser flows, the low-pressure chamber being provided on the expansion device side.

Abstract: In a case of a refrigerant amount being short when a Rankine cycle starts operating, because the pressure difference does not occur across a refrigerant pump, refrigerant cannot be injected from a bypass circuit to the Rankine cycle, and therefore super-cooling degree cannot be controlled. An exhaust heat recovery system is provided that can adjust the super-cooling degree even in the case of the pressure difference not occurring across the refrigerant pump. The system includes a refrigerant tank, for storing refrigerant, which is connected by pipes to the low-pressure circuit side and the high-pressure circuit side of the Rankine cycle through a low-pressure-side valve and a high-pressure-side valve, respectively, and a temperature adjuster for adjusting internal temperature of the refrigerant tank.

Abstract: An exhaust gas purification device is provided. The device includes: in an exhaust gas passage for a combustion exhaust gas containing a nitrogen oxide, a hydrocarbon, and an oxygen in a larger amount than a theoretical reaction amount with respect to the hydrocarbon to flow therethrough, in order from upstream, a first catalyst part for selectively reducing a nitrogen oxide; a plasma discharge part for generating a plasma; a second catalyst part for selectively reducing a nitrogen oxide; and a purifying catalyst part for purifying a reducing agent.

Abstract: A first circulation channel connects a first heat demand part and first supply heat exchanger with its forward route and return route. Supply and discharge channels are connected to a first heat accumulation tank, which accommodates a second heat medium heated in the first supply heat exchanger and supplied via the supply channel. A heat accumulation switching valve changes over communication of the second heat medium serving as hot heat or cold heat flowing from the first supply heat exchanger and supplied to the first heat demand part without branching to the supply channel or branching to the supply channel and supplied to the first heat accumulation tank. A heat-accumulating hot-water-supplying air conditioner operates at a first temperature when the second heat medium from the first supply heat exchanger branches to the supply channel, and at a second lower temperature when the second heat medium does not branch to the supply channel.

Abstract: An exhaust heat regeneration system includes: an evaporator for cooling engine cooling water; an expansion device for expanding the refrigerant heated through the evaporator so as to generate a driving force; a condenser for cooling the refrigerant passing through the expansion device to condense the refrigerant; and a pump for pressure-feeding the refrigerant cooled through the condenser to the evaporator, in which: the expansion device is coupled to the pump by a shaft, and the expansion device and the pump are housed within the same casing to constitute a pump-integrated type expansion device; and the pump includes a high-pressure chamber through which the refrigerant to be discharged to the evaporator flows, the high-pressure chamber being provided on the expansion device side, or a low-pressure chamber through which the refrigerant flowing from the condenser flows, the low-pressure chamber being provided on the expansion device side.

Abstract: In a case of a refrigerant amount being short when a Rankine cycle starts operating, because the pressure difference does not occur across a refrigerant pump, refrigerant cannot be injected from a bypass circuit to the Rankine cycle, and therefore super-cooling degree cannot be controlled. An exhaust heat recovery system is provided that can adjust the super-cooling degree even in the case of the pressure difference not occurring across the refrigerant pump. The system includes a refrigerant tank, for storing refrigerant, which is connected by pipes to the low-pressure circuit side and the high-pressure circuit side of the Rankine cycle through a low-pressure-side valve and a high-pressure-side valve, respectively, and a temperature adjuster for adjusting internal temperature of the refrigerant tank.

Abstract: The output of a fuel cell stack is kept consumed in an external load through a power converter having a constant-current operating function for keeping an output current of the fuel cell stack at a constant value, until an output voltage of the fuel cell stack reaches an operable lower limit voltage value of the power converter after stopping the supply of oxidant-containing gas to a cathode while maintaining the supply of hydrogen-containing gas to an anode. When the output voltage of the fuel cell stack falls below the operable lower limit voltage value, the output of the fuel cell stack is connected to a short-circuit resistor. Thereafter, a reformer is stopped when the output voltage of the fuel cell stack reaches approximately zero.

Abstract: An exhaust gas purification device is provided. The device includes: in an exhaust gas passage for a combustion exhaust gas containing a nitrogen oxide, a hydrocarbon, and an oxygen in a larger amount than a theoretical reaction amount with respect to the hydrocarbon to flow therethrough, in order from upstream, a first catalyst part for selectively reducing a nitrogen oxide; a plasma discharge part for generating a plasma; a second catalyst part for selectively reducing a nitrogen oxide; and a purifying catalyst part for purifying a reducing agent.

Abstract: A fuel cell power generating apparatus includes a fuel cell that generates electric power by an electrochemical reaction between a fuel gas and an oxidizer gas; a fuel gas generating section connected to the fuel cell and generating the fuel gas; a raw fuel supply line that supplies a raw fuel to the fuel gas generating section; opening/closing sections that discharge a liquid raw material that is part of the raw fuel to the raw fuel supply line; a pressure section that feeds the liquid raw material to the opening/closing sections; and a control section controlling the opening/closing sections by sequentially transmitting pulse-like open signals at shifted times to respective opening/closing sections.

Abstract: The output of a fuel cell stack is kept consumed in an external load through a power converter having a constant-current operating function for keeping an output current of the fuel cell stack at a constant value, until an output voltage of the fuel cell stack reaches an operable lower limit voltage value of the power converter after stopping the supply of oxidant-containing gas to a cathode while maintaining the supply of hydrogen-containing gas to an anode. When the output voltage of the fuel cell stack falls below the operable lower limit voltage value, the output of the fuel cell stack is connected to a short-circuit resistor. Thereafter, a reformer is stopped when the output voltage of the fuel cell stack reaches approximately zero.

Abstract: A device for controlling an internal combustion engine capable of estimating the amount of NOx emission within short periods of time maintaining high precision and realizing improved control performance without increasing the cost as a result of not using map data in the ROM. The device includes NOx operation circuit for estimating the amount of NOx in the exhaust gas from a theoretical formula and an empirical formula based upon the intake air amount Qa, intake air temperature To, pressure Pb, air-fuel ratio &lgr; and EGR rate &bgr;, and control circuit for controlling at least either the NOx purifying catalyst or the combustion state in the internal combustion engine in order to lower the amount of NOx emission.

Abstract: A device for controlling an internal combustion engine capable of estimating the amount of NOx emission within short periods of time maintaining high precision and realizing improved control performance without increasing the cost as a result of not using map data in the ROM. The device includes NOx operation means 34A for estimating the amount of NOx in the exhaust gas from a theoretical formula and an empirical formula based upon the intake air amount Qa, intake air temperature To, pressure Pb, air-fuel ratio &lgr; and EGR rate &bgr;, and control means for controlling at least either the NOx purifying catalyst 17 or the combustion state in the internal combustion engine in order to lower the amount of NOx emission.

Abstract: A free-piston Vuilleumier heat pump in which displacers having a spring-operated resonance system, controls the heating energy and cooling energy outputs by controlling strokes of a hot displacer and a cold displacer. The control of the displacer strokes is performed by controlling the working gas temperature in a hot working space. Furthermore, the control of the displacer strokes may be performed by controlling a motor output while keeping the operation frequency of the motor mounted for at least one of the hot displacer and the cold displacer, in the vicinity of a resonance frequency which is determined by the driving system of the hot displacer and the cold displacer.

Abstract: In a Vuilleumier heat pump, hot and cold displacers are supported by coil springs in respective buffer chambers. Further, there are respectively provided forced vibration systems of the hot and cold displacers using, as exciting force, force applied to respective displacer rods due to a difference between a pressure fluctuation of a working gas in an inner working space and a pressure in the buffer chambers. A linear motor is also provided to drive the hot displacer so as to reciprocate. It is thereby possible to provide the Vuilleumier heat pump in which a mechanism for driving the hot and cold displacers can have a small-sized and simplified structure, and no restriction is imposed on an arrangement of hot and cold cylinders.

Abstract: A seal mechanism for a Stirling engine has an upper and lower piston ring mounted on a displacer piston with a space therebetween and at least one piston ring mounted on a power piston. The seals produced by the piston rings of the displacer piston are given directionality in opposite directions so that the pressure within the space between the upper and lower piston rings is always higher or lower than the pressure within the expansion space and the compression space of the engine. In a preferred embodiment, the displacer piston rings each comprise two loosely-fitting outer rings which surround an inner ring. Air vents are formed in one surface of each of the inner rings between the center and the outer surface of the inner ring. The inner rings of the upper and lower piston rings are oriented so that the air vents face in opposite directions. Means for imparting directionality in the same direction to the seals produced by the power piston rings may also be provided.

Abstract: An apparatus for preventing lubricating oil from rising to the working spaces of a Stirling engine has a first and a second oil-absorbing member disposed within a cylindrical member in which a rod reciprocates. The first oil-absorbing member is secured to the rod with its outer periphery in sliding contact with the inner wall of the cylindrical member, and the second oil-absorbing member is secured to the cylindrical member with its inner periphery in sliding contact with the rod. A first baffle plate having a hole which is larger than the rod is secured to the cylindrical member immediately below and in intimate contact with the second oil-absorbing member. The first baffle plate makes the flow speed of gas through the second oil-absorbing member higher from above to below than from below to above. As a result, oil is continually blown downwards by a blast of accelerated gas and is returned to the crankcase of the engine.

Abstract: A heat exchanger for a Stirling engine has a domed cylinder which serves as a high-temperature cylinder and a regenerator housing. The domed cylinder has a smoothly-changing cross-sectional shape so that stress concentrations will not develop therein. A thin inner liner which is inserted into the domed cylinder divides the inside of the domed cylinder into an expansion space and a regenerator space. A cylindrical regenerator is coaxially disposed inside the regenerator space. A cylindrical cooler is coaxially disposed below the regenerator with its inner surface forming the outer periphery of the compression space of the engine. The expansion space and the regenerator space are connected with one another by a plurality of heater tubes which are secured to the domed cylinder.