Presented byNobin Babu

7433
S7 Mech

Air car is one of the alternative power vehicles

currently gaining recognition.

It uses high pressure compressed air stored in a tank

to drive the engine.

The high pressure air from the tank is slowly throttled

into the engine where it drives pistons. The piston
motion powers the vehicle just like in ICE vehicles.

The compressed air tank has to be very strong, as the

pressure at full capacity is around 4500 psi.

The

tank is made of carbon fibre which doesnot rupture

in the case of crashes.
There

are no emissions

These

cars are mostly suitable for city and in-town

driving where the speeds are lower.
It

can be combined with a hybrid gasoline/diesel or an

electric plant and regenerative braking.

History

Basic engine parts

Technology

Working

Advantages

Disadvantages

The Company

The Tata agreement

Dennis Papin apparently came up with the idea of using

compressed air (Royal Society London, 1687).

In 1976 Ray Starbard from Vacaville, California developed

a truck that is able to drive on compressed air.

At present (2008) Indias largest automaker is set to

start producing the worlds first commercial airpowered vehicle. The Air Car, developed by exFormula1 engineer Guy Negre for Luxembourg-based
MDI.

Guy negre with his MINI CAT

air car

The six-seater taxi, which should be available in India this year(2008)

The engine can be viewed as a heart of a vehicle which

pumps air and fuel instead of blood.

All engines are design to convert fuel and air into rotary
motion in order to drive cars wheels.

In a multi-cylinder engine, the cylinders usually are

arranged in one of three ways: inline, V or flat (also
known as horizontally opposed or boxer).

The core of the engine is the cylinder, with the piston

moving up and down inside the cylinder.

(Basic Engine Parts cont..)

The main parts of the engine are as follows:

Valves
The intake and exhaust valves open at the proper
time to let in air and fuel and to let out exhaust.
Piston
A piston is a cylindrical piece of metal that moves
up and
down inside the cylinder.
Piston rings
Piston rings provide a sliding seal between the
outer edge of
the piston and the inner edge of the
cylinder.

Connecting rod
The connecting rod connects the piston to the crankshaft.
It can rotate at both ends so that its angle can change as
the piston moves and the crankshaft rotates.

Crankshaft
The crankshaft turns the piston's up and down motion into
circular motion just like a crank on a jack-in-the-box does.

Sump
The sump surrounds the crankshaft. It contains some
amount
of oil, which collects in the bottom of the sump
(the oil pan).

1) Engines

Compressed air cars are powered by engines, fueled by

compressed air, which is stored in a tank under high
pressure such as 30 MPa (4500 psi or 300 bar).

The storage tank is likely to be made of carbon-fiber in

order to reduce its weight while achieving the necessary
strength.

Instead of mixing fuel with air and burning it to drive

pistons with hot expanding gases; compressed air cars
use the expansion of compressed air to drive their
pistons.

(Engine contd..)

It has been used since 1930s in cars and in

Formula 1 as a start-up engine, as well as for the
propulsion of torpedoes.

Compressed air motors rely on the pressure within

the tank, which decreases as air is drawn off.

2) Storage tanks

Storage tanks tanks hold 90 cubic metres of air

compressed to 300 bars.
These are the same tanks used to carry the liquid gas
used by buses for public transport.
In the case of a major accident, where the tanks are
ruptured, they would crack, as they are made of carbon
fibre.

(Storage tanks fig..)

An elongated crack would appear in the tank,

without exploding, and the air would simply
escape, producing a loud but harmless noise.

3)The Air Car body

The MDI air car body is built with fibre and injected
foam, as are most of the cars on the market today.

This technology has two main advantages: cost and

weight.

Nowadays the use of sheet steel for car bodies is only

because of cost - it is cheaper to serially produce sheet
steel bodies than fibre ones.

(Air Car body contd..)

Fibre is safer (it doesn't cut like steel), is easier to

repair (it is glued), doesn't rust etc.

MDI is currently looking into using hemp fibre to

replace fibre-glass, and natural varnishes, to
produce 100% non-contaminating bodywork.

In MDIs air engine, 90m3 of compressed air is stored in fibre

tanks.

The expansion of this air pushes the pistons and creates

movement .

MDIs design uses a pair of air driven pistons, one large and
one small, to turn a crankshaft that produces a rotational
force.

Since there is no combustion and the only engine heat comes

from friction, the engine can be made primarily from
lightweight aluminum.

The atmospheric temperature is used to re-heat the

engine and increase the road coverage.

The air conditioning system makes use of the expelled

cold air.

Due to the absence of combustion and the fact there is no

pollution, the oil change is only necessary every 31.000
miles.

Zero Pollution

Expansion of the compressed air reduces its

temperature.

Transportation of the fuel would not be required

due to drawing power off the electrical grid. This
presents significant cost benefits. Pollution created
during fuel transportation would be eliminated.

Expansion of the compressed air reduces its

temperature and heat from the passenger
compartment may be cooled using a heat
exchanger, providing both relief from hot weather
by air conditioning and increased efficiency.

Possibility to refill air tank at home (using domestic

power socket).

Energy is used to charge the high pressure tank, which

tank - in turn energizes the propulsion.

When the air is expanded in the engine, it will cool down

via adiabatic cooling and loose pressure.

Cold temperatures will also encourage the engine to ice

up.

Long refill time when refilled using a home or low-end

system (circa 4 hours).

The Company

"Motor Development International" (MDI) is a

small, family-controlled company located at Carros.

Their technical team have developed the engine

technology and the technologically advanced car it
powers.

MDI has researched and developed the Air Car over

10 years.

Tata Motors is India's largest automobile company.

Tata has signed an agreement with MDI for application in

India of MDI's engine technology, and believes the engine
is viable.

The agreement between Tata Motors and MDI envisages

Tata's supporting further development and refinement of
the technology, and its application and licensing for India.

The French company, now after 14 years, is near

production of a revolutionary new technology with the
potential to completely reinvent the automobile
industry.

Negre's engine is finally complete. It has met all

government regulations and will soon be mass
produced.

The company has developed and road tested several

prototypes that have exceeded expectations.

The air car does not resemble any vehicles currently

available in the United States.

There are several different models including a minivan,

pickup truck, family car, and a small urban car for city
driving that resembles a Mini Cooper.

Once Negre's cars hit the mainstream market, he

hopes to expand the uses of air-powered engines.

These engines have the capability to become one of

the largest technological advances of modern time.

[1] Popular mechanics : June 2007 issue.

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_powered_car
[3] http://www.theaircar.com/faq.html
[4] Thermodynamic Analysis of Compressed Air Vehicle
Propulsion.

http://www.efcf.com/reports/

[5] http://www.gizmag.com/go/3185/
[6] http://auto.howstuffworks.com/engine2.html