Posted on 10/23/2005 5:33:20 AM PDT by yankeedame
New car to run on iron filings
The Daily Telegraph
October 21, 2005
THE green car of the future could run on a tankful of iron filings, it was claimed yesterday.
US scientist Dave Beach believes such a car would produce almost no pollution and be more fuel-efficient. Given a high enough temperature, powdered iron ignite, releasing energy. Rockets already use metal power. Aluminium is sprinkled into the space shuttle's solid rockets to give them an extra boost.
But to kick off combustion in most metals requires temperatures of at least 2000C, which would melt the average engine.
Dr Beach suspected the answer was to create very fine metal grains measuring millionths of a millimetre. Heating them to 250C could make them burn and unlike larger particles they did not vaporise or melt.
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From http://www.manoramaonline.com/
10/23/05:
Washington: Future cars could be run with a modified engine and a tank full of metal and could travel three times as far as the equivalent petrol powered vehicle, visualises a US researcher.
Dave Beach, a scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, says chunks of metal such as iron, aluminium or boron could be turned into powder and they will become highly reactive at high temperature, reports New Scientist.
Ignite it, and it releases copious quantities of energy, he was quoted as saying in the report.
Rockets already use metal power. Aluminium is sprinkled into the space shuttle's solid rockets to give them an extra boost, says another report in NEWS.com.au.
Even if this worked, it would have to emit a lot of iron oxide exhaust. Even if iron oxide is not particularly poisonous, I wouldn't think rust particles settling on everything could be called pollution free.
Secondly, most of the iron that we get comes from an oxide ore. You have to expend a lot of energy to produce the "fuel". Hydrogen has the same problem. It's just a way to store energy produced somewhere else, not a primary source.
As a fuel, iron is just like hydrogen. It is not a source of energy, there is little or no free iron available on the Earth. You have to make it from oxidized iron. And to do that, you need an energy source.
LOL!
It would cut down on highway deaths. ;)
Very fine particles autoignite - and sometimes explode. Example - grain elevators.
We were making fine zinc particles in a pilot plant -- discovered that, when drying, the fresh zinc surface reacted with oxygen in the air and autoignited with a blue-green flame.
"My old Datsun tried this by itself and it didn't end well....
LQ"
I once had a Toyota Celica that did the same thing.....and I thought it was just a "rice grinder". Go figure!
Put "iron filings" in your engine block?
You might get really good gas mileage for the first mile.
Then, in the second mile, your vehicle and the tow truck combined wouldn't be doing as well.
Swell, a Daisy Cutter on wheels!
ha-ha!
my old toyota attempted to create the proper degrees required to convert! We should have 'wed them'.
I think that they have already tried using taliban muslims over in Afghanistan. Haven't seen a paper on the results yet.
It's more than a little convenient that the exhaust from burning gasoline, coal, and natural gas is gaseous. Burning metals such as iron, boron, and aluminum produces a solid - which weighs more than the fuel did, being combined now with oxygen. Either the car litters, or it gains weight as it approaches empty.
You probably reheat pizza at 400 F, which is only 204 C. Not 250 C (482 F).
Reduce it and reuse it perhaps.
You get in a rickshaw and point a six shooter at the driver.
"Very fine particles autoignite - and sometimes explode. Example - grain elevators."
How about coal? The air temp inside a diesel engine is quite high at the point of maximum compression. If you could come up with an injector for coal dust, it just might work.
Right!
A mixture of powdered aluminum and powdered iron is also what makes up "Thermite" grenades which burn right through an engine block or a tank's armor in a matter of seconds!
Harnessing it to do useful work is another matter, however.
Just drain the oil from your engine. Viola!
Watching TV and all the talk about the Miers nomination
I was wondering if they can get a car to run on legal filings
That would be great
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