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TABLE of CONTENTS
Introduction Carbon Build-up The Technical Side The Chemistry The Physics Other Components Affected by Carbon Deposits Driving Conditions Oil-based Carbon Build-up The Effects of Carbon Build-up on Performance Carbon Deposit Treatments and Remedies A Revolutionary New Method The Process The Results The Evidence Dynamometer Results Conclusion
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Introduction
The purpose of this report is to present comprehensive information to automotive journalists. Epoch, along with its local partners wish to invite you to witness product demonstrations, perform tests using the cars of your choosing, including dynamometer and mile speed and time tests both before and after our carbon cleaning procedure. Information regarding the causes of carbon deposit build-up, effects on engine components and performance, available remedies and benefits are included. We hope this report proves useful and interesting, and will warrant your visit to see and evaluate the benefits of our innovative technology. In a nutshell, Epoch has created a Carbon Cleaning System that uses ordinary soft water, which is electrolyzed into a mixed oxygen-hydrogen gas. Our system makes this gas on demand, so there are no issues regarding the storage of oxygen or hydrogen gases. Traditional methods for carbon cleaning are well known. Expensive mechanical removal is perhaps the costliest, time consuming and least popular method in use today. The most popular method is using fuel additives, which are advertised as being effective in eliminating carbon deposits while you drive. While I will not go into the possible health and environmental issues related to the handling and use of these chemical additives, in general, they must be used regularly to be effective and do not prove able to remove the hard carbon that comes from long-term build up. One very common main ingredient in these types of products, including the ones used by new car dealerships, is formaldehyde, the same controversial chemical that is used for embalming. More recently, a number of chemical-based carbon cleaning systems have been gaining momentum in the market. While they do seem to be more effective than the fuel additive method, the procedure is quite costly; up to $200 each time. Epochs Carbon Cleaning System uses no chemicals. Oxy-hydrogen gas produces absolutely no pollution when burned, making it the most environment-friendly fuel known to man. The entire procedure takes less than one hour, including setup, cleaning and finishing. In fact, it is easy. Simply connect the output hose from our system to either a vacuum port or the air intake of an engine. With the engine running at normal operating temperature, simply turn on our system and wait forty minutes. Then remove our output hose and replace the vacuum line if needed. The rest of this report includes a lot of information about the effects of carbon build up, and the benefits of using our system. In our own testing, we have seen significant improvements in horsepower and torque, with engines running smoother and more fuel efficient, with the added bonus of improving tailpipe emissions. The other notable advantage is that it is really quite affordable. We estimate that the end-user fee for this procedure will be between 25 and 50% less expensive than the $200 method, and the positive effect lasts for at least 6 months in a normal personal use car. If you want to skip all the boring details, please go to page 20 for information and results.
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Carbon Build-Up
Carbon is a natural byproduct of the combustion process of fossil fuels, which is vented through a vehicles exhaust system. As such, it is normal for a thin layer of carbon to cover engine parts and exhaust components that come into contact with the combustion process. With the introduction of unleaded fuel back in the 1970s, carbon deposits were greatly reduced. However, more recent changes in regulations of fuels additives have led to increases of carbon deposit build-up once again. Normally, carbon deposits do not present a noticeable problem to drivers until they become excessive. But the effects of carbon build-up are present in almost all vehicles on the road today. The introduction of contaminants into the combustion process such as oil, poor fuel quality or overly rich fuel mixtures, as well as poor driving habits or driving in such conditions as inner-city and stop-and-go traffic can cause more rapid carbon build-up that will become excessive and reduce engine performance; ultimately requiring costly service or repairs if left unchecked. Many automotive technicians and enthusiasts are well aware that severe combustion chamber carbon buildup can create significant drivability issues with todays engines. Demands for more powerful and fuel efficient engines have resulted in a complex system of sensors, engine management computers, emissions components and highly refined internal geometries, all built to much tighter specifications than in the past. The good news is that drivers enjoy a better ride. The bad news is that onboard control systems often mask the onset of problems until they become more pronounced, and therefore more serious. It's all too rare, however, for the automotive service industry and drivers alike to focus on the fact that carbon buildup and slowly deteriorating performance is a gradual (and mostly unnoticed) process that not only affects engine performance but fuel economy and emissions as well. Combining the reality of today's high fuel cost with a focus on lowering emissions, increasing engine efficiency and life span, engine decarbonization services offer a genuine benefit to consumers and a great opportunity for preventive maintenance (PM) business.
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The ever-increasing price of fuel in recent years has become a very emotional hot topic. Creating an environment-friendly and affordable solution that can save real dollars every time drivers pull up to a gas pump and reduce engine emissions is truly a win-win proposition for all. Putting carbon cleaning services on the top of preventative maintenance service schedules will make real bottom line sense to both service centers and customers. Engine carbon deposits have a measurable effect on performance, emissions and fuel economy. Routine carbon cleaning has been shown to prevent these problems, and remedial cleaning removes more severe deposits that have already formed. The methods vary, as do the results. However, Epoch Energy Technology Corp has developed a truly innovative method that is most effective, environment friendly, noninvasive, simple, fast and affordable. Epochs method also requires no messy clean up, since the entire process is done via a vacuum hose to the engines intake manifol d or through the air intake. More about this remarkable creation can be found later in this article.
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that O2 sensor bank. These scenarios are common on vehicles whose fuel systems have not been regularly maintained. Injectors need to be very clean for optimum system performance and fuel economy. Although a PCM (in closed loop) can alter injector flow by reducing injector pulse width, it cannot control a single faulty individual injector. Just one inefficient injector will affect the overall performance and fuel efficiency of an engine. Aside from issues relating to fuel quality, the environmental heat injectors are subject to will invariably cause internal as well as injector tip clogging. Every day, unburned fuel additives adhere to injector pintles and orifices and will eventually alter injector flow volume and fuel spray patterns. After an engine is stopped, the injector tips become a heat sink and will bake residual fuel and/or fuel additives onto the nozzle tips. Eventually, this will cause such symptoms as lack of engine performance, leaking injectors and damage to other components such as O2 sensors and catalytic converters when multiple cylinders are over-fueled to compensate for one or more under-fueled cylinders as the PCM attempts to maintain the stoichiometric ratio. But way before these issues become severe, a significant reduction in fuel economy will occur. Part of the fuel injector's job is to atomize fuel by physically turning the liquid fuel supplied to the fuel rail into very tiny droplets. But in order for the fuel to be fully combusted and release as close to 100% of its energy as possible, it must be vaporized. Only after vaporization can the fuel effectively mix with oxygen to form an efficient combustible mix. Even in a brand-new engine, total vaporization of fuel will never take place. Over time, the problem of inefficient atomization from restricted injectors will build carbon deposits on the valves, pistons, etc. Because carbon deposits are a very poor heat conductor, the fuel vaporization process eventually will become less and less effective and consequently, will reduce individual cylinder combustion efficiency, waste fuel, decrease performance and create more undesirable emissions. This becomes a vicious cycle, since it lends itself to becoming an ever increasing problem. Carbon deposits create the foundation for even greater deposits to form. So exactly how and why does carbon residue accumulate? The number 1 reason is that there's always some degree of combustion inefficiency in the chamber to begin with. But the wasted energy from incomplete combustion that results in carbon accumulation in the first place can also accelerate and compound the waste of fuel energy.
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The Chemistry
Hexane (C6H14) is the primary chemical compound found in gasoline. Hard carbon deposits that accumulate in a gasoline engine are always an indicator of wasted energy from incomplete conversion of a specific type of hydrocarbon (hexane) to carbon dioxide. Like any other chemical, hexane can be separated into other substances only by a chemical reaction. In the case of an internal combustion engine, that reaction is combustion. When the hydrocarbons (HCs) contained in gasoline burn, the chemical reaction involves molecular oxygen. Theoretically, this type of combustion should have only two byproducts left over; carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O). Of course, in the real world of a gasoline engines four-stroke process, the reaction that takes place will never be total and complete. During the combustion process, heat transforms unconsumed vaporized HCs into a solid or hard substance known as an activated carbon. Activated carbon will accumulate on hot components within the combustion chamber in a grainy composition containing many small cracks and edges exposed at its surface, making it extremely porous and a natural absorbent of additional raw or un-reacted hydrocarbons. Obviously, PCM cold enrichment strategy is required even in the case of a brand-new engine because sufficient vaporization of atomized fuel on cold internal parts is impossible to achieve. The inevitability of carbon buildup will eventually result in engine performance issues such as engine loss of power and responsiveness, stalling, etc. Injectors spray their fuel volume very close to the beginning of an intake stroke; it's only later in the stroke that the inlet valve actually opens in order to draw air and fuel into the cylinder. Small portions of the atomized hydrocarbons sprayed by injectors will invariably be absorbed and transformed by heat into additional activated carbon residue. Direct injection engines do not suffer from this particular problem, but most engines today do not employ direct injection, opting for fuel rail injection instead.
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Heavily carbon-coated combustion chamber components like pistons and cylinder walls become a very effective fuel sponge, absorbing greater and greater quantities of raw hydrocarbons. This causes a lean air/fuel charge to be drawn into the chamber, resulting in a less efficient combustion stroke with additional unconsumed HCs available to be transformed into activated carbon deposits. Over time, increasingly leaner-than desired air/fuel mixtures will be created through absorption of raw HCs to preexisting activated carbon during each successive intake stroke cycle. Carbon residue expands more and more, growing like a fungus and all the while wasting energy and creating the potential for other issues such as pre-ignition or poor valve sealing or sticking. While it's normal to expect that some degree of unconsumed hydrocarbons will remain from even the most efficient results of an inherently imperfect combustion process, a cars tailpipe can be a good indicator of how much carbon "waste" and buildup has been occurring inside the combustion chamber. Obviously, a black and sooty tailpipe indicates greater combustion inefficiency and fuel waste.
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The Physics
Carbon buildup in the combustion chamber will also affect heat transfer. You might already be aware that an additional heat buildup of just 30 to 40F from excessive combustion chamber carbon deposits can cause preignition, resulting in a reduction in fuel economy, and that PCM-adjusted timing retardation from an active knock sensor signal will cause even greater loss of engine efficiency. But did you know that excessive hard carbon deposits also effectively reduce an engine's volumetric efficiency? During the combustion and exhaust strokes, the cylinder head and piston rings that contact the cylinder walls absorb some portion of the heat of cylinder combustion; however, the piston crown acts as the primary heat sink. Depending on the heat transfer characteristics of a particular engine, the amount of heat initially absorbed (and temporarily stored) by the piston during the combustion and exhaust portions of the engine strokes can be significant. A portion of this stored heat is inevitably transferred to the air/fuel charge during the intake and compression strokes. Heat transferred to the induction charge should be enough only to improve evaporation of the fuel to avoid condensation on the cylinder walls. Heavily carbon-coated piston and combustion chamber surfaces that inordinately raise the temperature of the incoming intake mixture into the combustion chamber result in air/fuel mixtures that attain relatively higher temperatures at the end of the intake stroke than at its start, and this in turn can reduce volumetric efficiency. So just like restricted injectors issues, carbon deposits are undesirable, but over time become unavoidable. These energy-absorbing deposits build up not only on components directly exposed to the combustion chambersuch as pistons, rings and valves-but also on injector tips, throttle bodies, EGR passages and exhaust components. Deposits create cold performance and fuel economy concerns long before they show up as a severe drivability issue.
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EGRNo engine is 100% combustion-efficient. Some carbons will normally exit through the exhaust system. Activated carbon is then reintroduced back through the intake via the EGR system and tends to build up and clog EGR passages. Engines having excessive oil consumption can also exacerbate the problem. Oil-based carbons can build up when piston rings become worn, enabling oil to leak past the rings from the crankcase. Oil can also be drawn into the combustion chamber from worn intake valves or valve guides. Oil-based carbon deposits will appear to have a wet and sticky consistency, as opposed to the drier activated carbon deposits that are caused from inefficient or incomplete combustion. InjectorsAside from the injector issues mentioned earlier, carbon deposits that build up on fuel injector tips (from heat soak) will inevitably cause an uneven fuel pattern spray. As the spray pattern degrades to unevenly atomized patterns, an increase in carbon buildup will also occur.
RingsMany of today's engines use aluminum pistons and other components. Since aluminum pistons experience higher thermal expansion characteristics than cylinder walls, they must be designed to have adequate clearance at the most extreme temperature conditions. The expansion rates between the pistons and cylinder bore walls will be at its greatest under full-load engine conditions, so under partial load conditions, the aluminum piston-to-cylinder wall clearance is greater than the optimum amount. This increase in the space between pistons and cylinder walls increases the likelihood of carbon buildup in the ring area.
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Spark PlugsAccording to spark plug manufacturers, carbon fouling accounts for the majority of all spark plug troubles. NGK states that carbon deposits that build up on the firing end of a spark plug will form a conductive path from the center electrode and down the insulator nose to where the insulator meets the metal shell. This will allow for the electrical current to leak through. When voltage is applied under certain conditions, the carbon path may allow enough current to prevent proper voltage to build up at the gap, and a misfire will occur.
Additional ComponentsCarbon deposits can also accumulate on the throttle body and intake manifold as well as in the catalytic converter and on oxygen sensors. Underlying component faults that cause cylinder combustion efficiency to be any less than what the engine was designed to deliver when new will accelerate like that of a ticking carbon-deposit time bomb. For example, if the ignition system produces a lower-than-normal spark in one or more cylinders, more unburned fuel will result (higher HCs) and increased deposits will accumulate. Too much fuel in the chamber (running rich), EGR system faults and dirty, dripping or clogged fuel injectors will all lead to more wasted energy and greater combustion inefficiency. This unburned fuel will accumulate in the form of carbon deposits in the combustion chamber. Performing repairs to damage from carbon deposits are limited to only those components serviced or replaced during the procedure. For example, if the catalytic converter is replaced, it will function normally only if the other components are operating within appropriate tolerances. However, if carbon deposits are still present inside combustion chambers, higher than normal amounts of carbon will exhaust into the new converter, shortening its life span and operating efficiency. That's why a good carbon cleaning procedure after performing any emissions-related repair is also highly recommended.
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Driving Conditions
Driving habits can also impact the amount of carbon build up. Highway driving tends to cause the engine to get sufficiently hot so as to burn away some contaminants that would otherwise become deposits. Driving at highway speeds under normal engine temperatures does minimize carbon deposit build-up inside an engine, but that, too, is relative to many other factors. If engine components are not operating at maximum efficiency, even high engine RPM at full operating temperatures will still allow for build-up of carbon, albeit at a lesser rate. Unfortunately, short trips and either inner-city or extensive amounts of driving in heavy stop-and-go traffic tend to promote the buildup of carbon deposits. Driving with a heavy foot or frequent hard acceleration is also conducive to engine inefficiency, especially with a cold engine. Another factor related to driving habits that should be mentioned here is that if an engine is not at peak efficiency, the driver will tend to push the accelerator pedal down more to compensate for the lack of power and engine response thus pouring more fuel into the combustion process. This burns more fuel and at even less efficiency, thus causing more carbon. As the engine performance deteriorates, the driver pushes more and more fuel, making the situation even worse still in a downward spiral that will end only after the engine has been properly serviced. There are many that say that if you get out on a little travelled road, you can gun the engine to accelerate as quickly as possible, pushing the engine to its redline (maximum allowed RPM). This will work if you have a long enough road, the ability to sustain these high speed long enough to blow out the cylinders, no fear of getting a speeding ticket, and no fear of injury resulting from getting into an accident from driving this way! Perhaps many years ago, this might have been the cheap method of choice, but with never-ending traffic, police radar, traffic cameras and all the other of lifes distractions, this is certainly not recommended by anyone today. In fact, trying it might cause even more carbon to build up, since heavy acceleration under load absolutely results in a rich fuel mixture.
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From an emissions standpoint, the same environmental concerns that drove the development of unleaded fuels, high energy ignition systems and electronic fuel injection also greatly reduced carbon deposits. Prior to the mandated use of unleaded fuels, carbon deposit issues could accurately be described as substantial. Further reduction in carbon deposits were later accomplished by the addition of various chemicals to create detergent fuels, which help keep carbon deposits from adhering to hot metal surfaces like intake valves and fuel injectors. However, carbon waste deposits have reappeared with a vengeance in recent years. Since the EPA first established the minimum additive performance standards in 1995, most gasoline marketers have actually lowered the concentration level of detergent additives in their gasoline by up to 50%! Fuel octane and the quality or type of fuel used in an engine can also be an area of concern. Drivability Index (DI) is a measure of gasoline's total tendency to vaporize completely. A high DI number is less volatile than a low number. Premium grade gasoline for high-compression engines is rated at a higher DI (less volatile) than regular or midgrade gasoline for low and medium compression engines respectively. Since fuels with a higher DI number or octane burn more slowly, higher compression ratio engines typically use higher octane fuels to avoid heat-induced pre-ignition. However, when using a high-octane (less volatile) fuel than an engine was designed for, fuel will burn too slowly, resulting in incomplete combustion, increased carbon deposits and drivability concerns such as increased cold start problems and performance shortfalls during engine warm-up, hesitations and stalling at moderate ambient temperatures.
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might be, the cost benefit simply doesnt exist for this type of produc t requiring frequent or continuous use. There are more thorough carbon cleaning options available at most automotive service and repair facilities. Some of these solutions involve the use of special chemicals, pumps and vacuum devices, mixed solution delivery apparatus or even blasting equipment to remove stubborn deposits. In the past, if your engine had excessive carbon deposits, parts of the engine needed to be disassembled to do a thorough cleaning. Also, keep in mind that to do a comprehensive job, the entire procedure would require at least the removal of the intake manifold, fuel injection system, exhaust manifold, cylinder heads and all related components. In the most extreme cases, the entire engine would need to be taken apart to gain access to the cylinders, piston and rings. This is time consuming and very expensive! So how do most people deal with carbon deposit issues? A variety of carbon-cleaning equipment is available. One of the simplest methods is a chemical additive that's introduced to the plenum and fuel rail through a delivery system suspended from the hood by a hook. This type of equipment is pressurized by shop air to introduce strong chemical solvents to the fuel rail and induction systems in order to clean fuel injectors and help remove upper engine deposits. This method is not able to completely remove all carbon deposits, and requires that the engine oil and filter be replaced after the procedure to avoid permanent engine damage. This is because the strong chemicals used can compromise the engine oil and filter. There are also the issues of safety in handling the strong chemicals and environmental concerns about the waste create and the emissions produced during the procedure. A second option includes on-car cleaning machines that are connected to the vehicle's fuel system inlet and return lines with vehicle-specific adapters. This type of machine bypasses the fuel supply from the vehicle tank, replacing it with the fuel/solvent tank located inside the machine. A mixture of chemical cleaning solution and gasoline is supplied to the fuel rail to pass through the injectors and run the engine. Carbon and other contaminants in the injector nozzles, on the intake valves, in the combustion chamber, on the O2 sensor and in the catalytic converter are removed and exit through the exhaust system. This method also recommends changing engine oil and filter immediately after the
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procedure is completed. The same environmental and safety concerns exist with this rather costly method too due to the chemicals used. A third option is cleaning by chemical foam. Although slightly more effective in cleaning stubborn deposits inside the cylinders, clean up is extremely messy and chemical residue is harmful to both people and vehicles. Chemicals are fed into the cylinders via a compressed air tank, after the spark plugs have been removed. This causes the chemical agents to foam up, which is said to scrub the surfaces inside the combustion chambers. However, the relative position of each piston directly affects the foams ability to contact carbon coated surfaces, since each piston is in a different position within its cylinder. Once the foam has done its job, it must all be flushed out and completely removed from both internal and external engine surfaces. As this method also produces the most chemical waste, environmental and safety concerns must be strongly considered. As with the aforementioned methods, engine oil and filter changes are absolutely required to avoid catastrophic engine damage. Even these types of cleaning are typically only about 75% effective (or less) in cleaning fuel injectors, and usually not effective in totally removing carbon deposits deep within combustion chambers and catalytic converters. For this reason, only the first and second type of injector-cleaning equipment may be best suited for preventive maintenance types of services rather than for solving drivability issues arising from high-heatsoak engines or from injectors clogged by sediments such as rust or water contamination of ethanol blend fuels. Introducing solvents to an engine to chemically remove carbon does do a somewhat effective job in cleaning the tops of intake valves, but potentially plugged or disintegrating injector pintle baskets are not replaced and you have no way of knowing their condition without having the proper equipment to do so. The high-heat-soak conditions typical in the drive cycles of today's traffic-challenged commuters harden deposits trapped in injector inlet screens, and the injectors themselves make a totally effective chemical cleaning impossible. Even though some contaminants may become soft enough for chemicals to dislodge, some or all of the more stubborn deposits might not be cleaned.
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The Process
The process for carbon cleaning using the EPOCH EP-350B is quite simple.
The EP-350B is connected to the engines intake manifold via a vacuum hose. Water and carbon can be seen from the tailpipe after the 40-minute procedure has been completed and the engine revved to blow out residual material. When the oxy-hydrogen enriched fuel mixture ignites inside your engine, combustion is faster and more complete. This also causes any unburned residue to be burned. The bi-product of burning the oxygen-hydrogen gas from the EP-350B is ultra-high temperature steam. The combined effects of complete combustion with greater turbulence and force, increased combustion speed and the water vapor act in a similar manner as getting your carpet steam cleaned. All deposits are loosened and ejected from the engine and out of the vehicles exhaust.
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The Results
The photos below show before and after treatment inside the engine. The after photos are of exactly the same cylinders as the ones above them to most clearly show the differences. The original surfaces and markings are once again visible, which demonstrates the effectiveness of this treatment.
The Evidence
What follows are detailed emissions results before, during and after the carbon cleaning process was done on a number of cars. As you can see, every car yielded different results. This is of course due to a number of reasons including overall engine age and component condition, the amount of carbon build-up, type of engine, etc. While some vehicles show greater emission improvements than others, the overall trend is very positive indeed.
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Dynamometer Results
The following graphs represent testing done on three cars. The blue lines represent the engine performance prior to having the carbon cleaning. The red lines indicate power and torque after the carbon cleaning process was completed.
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Conclusion
Now that you know the facts, its up to you. Carbon cleaning engines can not only deliver an immediate reduction in overall fuel consumption (and cost) but also reduce long-term costs (and vehicle down time), and in diagnosing drivability faults by quickly eliminating carbon deposit related issues. The added benefits are that emissions will also improve as will engine horsepower and torque. For vehicles that fail the required emissions tests, this procedure can offer an affordable and immediate solution for lowering their emissions. Ignoring this vital PM Service will inevitably lead to the need to repair carbon damage and cause unnecessary sensor and catalytic converter failures and replacements. Also Available: The EP-130B for Carbon Cleaning motor Scooters; EP-560B & EP-1000B models for carbon cleaning heavy construction equipment, buses, trucks and a variety of large displacement engines.
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