Omnivorous Engine Could Run on Gasoline, Ethanol, and Butanol
Wouldn’t it be nice to have car with an engine that would happily accept any fuel regardless of its origins? The US Department of Energy’s Argonne Laboratory is developing an engine that may make that dream a reality.
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The lab is attempting to create an “omnivorous engine” that can run on any blend of gasoline, ethanol and butanol. And unlike flex-fuel engines currently on the market that use ethanol or gasoline, the omnivorous engine could theoretically run at peak efficiency regardless of the fuel mixture.
The omnivorous engine will use sensors to evaluate the characteristics of the fuels being used. If sensors determine that the engine isn’t running at peak levels, it will make adjustments to parameters like spark timing and injection strategy.
Since the lab’s approach is both simple and cost-effective, it can be rolled out for commercial use quickly. Argonne hasn’t released details of the engine’s release date, but it will be a welcome advance in vehicle technology.
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Looks like a good step, but to really get the most out of each fuel source you would need a variable compression ratio.
Yay for way too expensive and complex methods to ever make it into the market…..
@Willy: Expensive and complex? Their solution looks like it’s piggybacking on existing engine sensors and electronics. Shouldn’t be too much more expensive, and electronics have a habit of getting cheaper over time.
well the main thing is efficient burning of fuel and would the sensors in it resist the high pressure created for tat !!!!!
How about building an engine that burns something that doesn’t cause global warming? Wouldn’t it be nice to have car with an engine that would happily accept any fuel regardless of its origins?