Short notice given only substantially as follows: Researchers at the University of Washington are developing a new zero-emission propulsion concept that uses liquid nitrogen as the fuel. The principle of operation is like that of a steam engine, except there is no combustion involved. Instead, liquid nitrogen at -196 degree C is pressurised and then vaporized in a heat exchanger by the ambient temperature of the surrounding air. The resulting high-pressure nitrogen gas is fed to an engine that operates like a reciprocating steam engine, converting pressure to mechanical power. The only exhaust is nitrogen. The concept is being trialled on a converted mail delivery van with a radial five-cylinder 15 hp air motor that drives the front wheels through a five-speed manual transmission. At present the tank is pressurized with gaseous nitrogen to develop system pressure but a cryogenic liquid pump is planned for the future. A liquid nitrogen car with a 60 gallon tank will have a range of up to 200 miles and refilling will take only 10-15 minutes.
The car that runs on nitrogen
Design Engineering, London ; Aug ; 6
2001
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