Thursday, August 21, 2008

Compressed Air Car

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Part Three
of my post on the
AirCar



AirCars Developer Guy Negre


Just by way of a bit of a wrap up on the postings about Guy Negre's AirCar, I have included some pictures and just a very few facts I have garnered from here and there.




Fill her up!


Filling an AirCar from with the on-board compressor using an electrical socket takes about 4 hours to complete the fill. This statement was heard from the designer Guy Negre in and interview on the “Science Channel”

The MDI AirCar project will not be limited to the U.S. and Indian markets. There are already plans to export the vehicle to 12 other countries including Germany, Israel and South Africa. There are also plans for a hybrid version that will feature a small petrol-powered compressor to fill the tanks when they’re running low.



Guy Negre in the driving seat



The bigger CityCat has an engine rated at a very respectable 56kW which is capable of moving the six-seater at up to 96mph. At speeds below 38 mph the car runs on 100% compressed air. Above 38 mph the CityCat cuts in its heater to improve power and range. The burner can use petrol, ethanol or bio-fuels as its heat source, and emits just 45g/km CO2. That is less than one half the emissions of the Toyota Prius hybrid.

I wish the developers all the best and really hope that this one is a runner.



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1 comment:

Ben Oldfield said...

I think you need to look at the efficiency of the air car. A lot of energy is lost in compressing the air (it gets very hot and has to be cooled) and in expanding it even before it's used in the piston. Compressed air power was extensively used in the mining industry but they have moved to electrial and hydraulic power due to the poor efficiency and high cost.