[Futura97]

I was thinking early this morning, and i know its not new and its probably been around for ages, but how hard is it to make a motor run on water. In my opinion this would probably run better than normal fuel, cause when you split water you get h2o, as im sure you all know. And you would all know that this is the two main keys to running a motor, Oxygen and a Fuel. And isn't hydrogen more potent than petrol?

And I was also thinking about cars that run on gas. If you have a car that runs on gas, why can't you fill up your tank at home? You could just have a dispenser and pump LPG straight into it and then be charged on your gas bill. That would be cool if you ask me.


Any replies welcome.....
Cheers
Matt

 

[Aussie Pete]

And I was also thinking about cars that run on gas. If you have a car that runs on gas, why can't you fill up your tank at home? You could just have a dispenser and pump LPG straight into it and then be charged on your gas bill. That would be cool if you ask me.

You can - but it is called CNG which is different to LPG. The range is lower because the gas cannot be stored as a liquid like LPG. Also, filling up requires a pump and takes more than the few minutes we are all used to.

 

[XR_Strider_GuY]

I've heard of a water powered engine being designed in the 1940's, however i reckon the oil companys have bought the design out, and naturally it was never revealed or put to production in favour of petrol engines. :redhrm: :redhrm: :redhrm:

 

[Guest]

Car on water

In order to run a car on water, you would first have to seperate the water into hydrogen and oxygen, which requires energy, so the whole purpose is defeated cos we need energy for this process. However, the opposite process of using hydrogen and oxygen joining together to create water causes the production of energy. This is the method some car manufacturers are experimenting with at the moment, I think BMW has progressed a lot with this.

 

[ST170ish]

EF_Falcon_GuY was that a steam turbine motor I remember seeing it somewhere...I think it was aussie too.

 

[EA S]

EF_Falcon_GuY was that a steam turbine motor I remember seeing it somewhere...I think it was aussie too.

You might be thinking of the (?) Ted Pritchard steam turbine developed by him in (?) Bendigo, Vic, in the 70's and 80's, which got a bit of publicity at the time and seemed to have some potential. There were some prototypes made and he might even still be at it.

There's been various claims to have cars run on water or with water injection that cuts fuel dramatically, but most of them turned out to be idiots or frauds, or both.

 

[Cobra]

EF if thats the case then couldnt we incorporate this to our internal combustion engines when the oil runs out of the ground and emission standards are at an all time high?

 

[Cobra]

Another solution after petrol is methanol. it runs alot cleaner and i think(?) it has a higher octane. I know its expensive but if it was mass produced it couldnt be much more than petrol.

 

[EA S]

Another solution after petrol is methanol. it runs alot cleaner and i think(?) it has a higher octane. I know its expensive but if it was mass produced it couldnt be much more than petrol.

I have a feeling that methanol or something similar is used in road cars in South America, maybe Brazil.

 

[Cobra]

I have a feeling that methanol or something similar is used in road cars in South America, maybe Brazil.

hmm never heard of that before. Must look into it then but I really would think If any Nation has mass produced methanol to be efficient and cheap then alot of other countires would eventually follow suit.

 

[xced]

the noly prob with methanol is you will use ~ 2x as much as normal petrol... and is dissolves rubber (all metal fuel lines etc), and its toxic
but you can run compression ratio up to 17:1 (or heaps of boost!) without detonation, and your engine will run heaps cooler and cleaner !

 

[EA S]

hmm never heard of that before. Must look into it then but I really would think If any Nation has mass produced methanol to be efficient and cheap then alot of other countires would eventually follow suit.

Can't say why I think this - some dim memory of hearing it years ago. Or maybe it was ethanol or something else. I have a feeling it was made from sugar cane or some plant product, but it's stuck in my mind as being in fairly wide use as an alternative to or in conjunction with petrol.

 

[EA S]

I was right. Here's a summary of a book on the topic. You'll need to scroll down the screen a bit when you go to:


http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0813114799/inktomi-bkasin-20/102-0756554-8282531

 

[Cobra]

Thanks EA S. I guess you were right. That book would be great to read. I wonder how things are right now though with the whole project. I doubt its got anywhere from the last 20 years but I reckon it would be possible if the whole world got behind it.

 

[EA S]

Cobra

The review didn't sound like the program was a great success, but that might have been due to local factors and maybe it would work elsewhere.

I've got a feeling that ethanol causes excessive wear or other problems in engines, but maybe that's only if they're not specifially designed for it.