Air-powered Autos (Star Trek Technology - A Car That Breathes Air, Just Like You Do. Unbelievable.)

MIT Technology Review ^ | September 19, 2002 | John Harney

[nightdriver]

"explains that, in the tanks, the air is both cooled to minus 100 degrees Centigrade and compressed to 4,500 pounds per square inch.

OUCH! We have to carry a tank full of 4500psi tank of air? Imagine how high that would blow that 1500lb car with its occupants when it ruptures in a wreck.

A partially filled scuba tank will tear the rear end completely off of a car when it lets loose. This thing is a virtual bomb!

[Thermalseeker]

To this day I have never heard or seen anything more about this guy.

In today's news, Guy Negre, French inventor of the air compression engine was found dead on a Detroit, MI, street of an apparent self inflicted gunshot wound. Negre was in Detroit to discuss his new technology with representatives from Ford, Crysler, and General Motors.........

[taxcontrol]

Ok guys,

This is an energy TRANSFER technology. Basicly it stores compressed air to power the car rather that storing gas or electricity. This tech replaces only the fuel tank or the battery - not the need for energy.

Rather, the need for energy must still be supplied for both the compression and cooling of the air. Even if this is done at a filling station, the energy required to perform this operation is required from the electrical grid.

Thus, this would move the power production requirement back to the power plant - which I would suspect would require a MASSIVE upgrade in capacity (Kalifornia, are you listening?).

Now you may argue that power production at a power plant is cleaner / more efficient that burning gasoline - but that is a different arguement.

[myself6]

Here is the link to the patent.


http://164.195.100.11/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect2=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&d=PALL&RefSrch=yes&Query=PN%2F4292804

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

...the air is both cooled to minus 100 degrees Centigrade and compressed to 4,500 pounds per square inch.

How'd you like one of those bombs to go off right in front of you at rush hour on the highway? Not me.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

To this day I have never heard or seen anything more about this guy.

Yeah, because the big oil companies got together and had him offed.    </sarcasm>

[BansheeBill]

Found this photo of an MDI car apparently painted as a taxi. I think they could use some restyling work before trying to sell this thing in the US.

[Principled]

Why not post a link to the thread instead of just complaining....

[mad puppy]

Now, turn on the heater in snow country or the air conditioner in the summer.

I would LOVE a zero emissions car! It would appeal to by green side, not to mention the side of me that wants to radically reduce our oil dependancy (thus returning the middle east to the 1700's, again ). It will happen, someday, but I don't think today is the day.

My question about this potential car is: if it relies on the outside air to heat the -100 degree air from the tanks, what happens when the outside air is -10 and not 85? Does the engine still 'turn over' or just 'hissss'? Does the range go for from 125 miles to 10?

[Labyrinthos]

it will go from zero to 50 mph in seven seconds

That's the accelearation when driving in reverse. When going forward, the accleration rate is 0 to 50 in 41.6 seconds. Nevertheless, the car should sell very well in France and in other Eurosnot countries with a long history of appeasement.

[Redcloak]

Air tanks at 4.5kpsi? That ought to be fun when they rupture in a collision.

[Labyrinthos]

The car would travel at 70 mph.

That's pretty funny. Can you imagine driving only 70 mph on the Florida Turnpike or on I-95? Where I live, the rush hour traffic (which lasts most of the day)is bumper to bumper at 85 mph. Any slower than that, and you're inviting road rage and could cause a serious accident.

[balrog666]

My question about this potential car is: if it relies on the outside air to heat the -100 degree air from the tanks, what happens when the outside air is -10 and not 85? Does the engine still 'turn over' or just 'hissss'? Does the range go for from 125 miles to 10?

Another excellent question. This thing is a long way from being on a showroom floor.

[Marie]

I was waiting for someone to say it. LOL

[wasp69]

--next will be leprechauns running on treadmills, sipping on nectar for an energy source--

Or crickets eating pop-rocks.

[Gorzaloon]

Oh for heaven's sake.

If you built it light enough, you could probably PEDAL a car at 55.

These scams and IPO or hopeful funding frauds are getting technically worse all the time.

I'm sure more patient people will explain the thermodynamics of low grade heat energy.

[wattsmag2]

the air is both cooled to minus 100 degrees Centigrade and compressed to 4,500 pounds per square inch.

I would not want to be riding this bomb.

[RandallFlagg]

"The only major problem that we noticed,” he continues, “was that it was quite noisy"

Well, how the heck are we gonna be able to listen to Savage, Sean and Rush on the way to work?!

[laker_dad]

There was another thread on this today. He is selling franchises for plants to produce these things at 10 million a piece. He'll make money, but I doubt anyone else will.

[laker_dad]

http://209.157.64.200/focus/news/756587/posts

By the way, that's $10 million for the PLANT franchise, not the car!