Posted on 04/29/2016 10:51:22 AM PDT by DJ Taylor
Aquarius’s new take on internal combustion engines will be the big leap forward that vehicles need, says company founder.
The notoriously conservative car business – autos, after all, are still largely powered by the internal combustion engine, developed nearly 150 years ago – is in for big changes, according to Gal Fridman, chief marketing officer and co-founder of Aquarius Engines.
“Our enhanced engine design uses energy much more efficiently, and eliminates the valves and rods that cause energy loss,” he said. “If a car equipped with a modern standard internal combustion engine can go about 600 kilometers on a tank of gas, ours can more than double that.”
Founded in 2014 by Fridman, CTO Shaul Yaakoby and CEO Ariel Gorfung, Aquarius is the latest challenger to the hegemony of the internal combustion engine – the piston-driven machine that generates energy to turn wheels and open and close valves, providing the power that enables a several-ton hunk of steel, aluminum, and plastic to move.
Developed over a number of years in the mid-1800s, the internal combustion engine was first patented in 1860, and was in commercial production by the early 1900s.
“Over the years there have been incremental changes in IC engines, with the most recent innovation the development of the turbo engine, which uses air to pressure and power,” said Fridman. “But those have been very incremental, nothing like our take on engine technology in the Aquarius engine.”
Instead of the 4, 6, or 8 pistons that thrust up and down to turn the valves that move the wheels, the Aquarius engine features a horizontal-moving cylinder that generates energy to power two electric generators that power the car. The result is a much smaller engine without the thousands of complicated and hard-to-replace parts in standard engines; a small, efficient power-generating machine with fewer parts to wear out, and fewer parts to distribute energy to – meaning that there is less chance for the energy to dissipate, said Fridman.
“The Aquarius converts the piston’s movement into energy, which is immediately transferred to the electric generators instead of being dissipated to different components, like in standard IC engines. As a result, we can be twice as efficient, retaining double the energy and enabling drivers to travel as much as 1,300 kilometers on a single tank of gas, under ideal conditions. And the cars will not be more expensive than the ones currently on the market.”
More power and efficiency – and radically lower fuel costs – would no doubt be welcome by consumers. But would the industry – including the hundreds of thousands of garages, the tens of thousands of parts makers, the thousands of dealers, and the hundreds of manufacturers who are all part of the internal combustion ecosystem? And, according to Fridman, just setting up a new production facility for vehicles with slight variations on internal combustion engines could cost between $1 and $ 2 billion; how much would it cost to build a new infrastructure for an entire industry?
Many more billions, obviously – but according to Fridman, that will not be an impediment to the adoption of Aquarius engines. “If it were strictly up to industry, there might be some hesitation – but in this case, it is not up to industry, but to government, which has mandated a sharp drop in emissions for vehicles by 2020.”
My dad owns a diesel VW that gets crazy mileage...but with the emissions ‘scandal’, I believe diesels (in the US) will suffer a setback, and newer models will probably get poorer mileage in order to reduce emissions.
If I were much, much smarter, I would find a way to scavenge all the heat lost in an engine.
Absolutely!
For a mere $59.95 (plus shipping and handling), I can have one (No -- Two!) in your hands by tomorrow (drone delivery).
And, if you couple the magnet with the 100 MPG carburetor (that the Auto Companies don't want you to know about), you'll be the envy of all your friends and neighbors, as well as a being a "Save the Earth" Chick magnet.
You will be saving so much gas, the Gas Companies will be buying gas from You!
I have a special deal on the plans for the 100 MPG carb, which can be built, simply, cheaply, and from common parts everyone has laying around in their garage!
Make a few extra carbs because your neighbors will be banging on your garage door to get one from you.
The plans are only $79.99 (plus shipping and handling).
Act now and You'll get a free set of plans for building tires that will add an extra 20 MPG to your vehicle.
They can be made easily out of readily available Elmer's type glue and the used charcoal from your next barbecue party.
Hurry, so that You don't miss out on this "Once-In-A-Lifetime Deal!
But wait, if You order in the next 10 minutes .......!
8-)
Right, give us all your money...and good luck with that...thermodynamics don't apply to our product...marketing lingo has a proven track record at beating physics, after all...
I’ve been reading about miracle engines for 50 years now. And my 2015 vehicles are still powered by the same internal combustion engine from 50 years ago, albeit, with more emissions controls.
From the article:
“Aquarius is the latest challenger to the hegemony of the internal combustion engine”
‘hegemony of the internal combustion engine’???
Reporters are such Drama Queens! As soon as someone develops a more fuel efficient engine that is as reliable as the conventional IC engine AND hits the ever-changing EPA regulations then auto makers, small aircraft & marine engine manufacturers, lawnmowers, generator sets..... will flock to it.
or the OPOC-EcoMotors engine opoc engine how it works
will probably be the next candidate to replace the conventional IC engine. Both are opposed pistons in Cylinder designs.
BUMP!
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