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Novel Technology Cut Emissions and Boosts Engine Efficiency

5 February 1999

Novel Technology Cut Emissions and Boosts Car, Truck and Locomotive Engine Efficiency

    ENGLEWOOD, N.J., Feb. 4 -- The internal combustion engine is
here to stay for the next twenty years, so we've got to live with it.  That's
despite impressive advances in fuel cells, electric batteries for cars and
trucks, solar cells, and other alternatives.  Can IC engines be made to run
more cleanly in the meantime?  Researchers at Argonne National Laboratory
think so, and have devised a way to slash harmful particulates and NOx
emissions while increasing gross power in diesel engines.
    According to Variable Air Composition for Internal Combustion Engines, a
new Futuretech report from Technical Insights, this technology may help engine
manafactuers meet stringent environmental standards that are coming online
over the next five years.  It opens avenues of research that could result in
cleaner, lighter, more fuel-efficient engines.
    "Argonne has come up with a hollow polymer fiber membrane filter-based
air-separation system that pumps oxygen-enriched combustion air into the
engine," says Peter Katz, publisher.  "The membrane separates air into
oxygen-rich and nitrogen-rich streams.  The oxygen-rich air stream feeds into
the engine, where the extra oxygen improves combustion."
    The optimized oxygen-enrichment strategy allows, for the first time,
simultaneous reduction in both NOx (by 15%) and particulates (by 60%), solving
emissions problems at the source, while locomotive tests have shown an
increase in gross power of 15%.
    "The locomotive industry will likely be the first to adopt this
technology," adds Katz, "as it faces tough emissions regulations that the
Argonne system should help them comply with.  Next in line is the heavy truck
industry.  The truly exciting long-term prospects hinge on the passenger car
market -- Argonne estimates that diesel cars would emit 28% less greenhouse
gases over the total energy cycle, including refining and vehicle use."
    Variable Air Composition for Internal Combustion Engines features a
concise overview of the new separation technology, and how it works.  It
includes an assessment of the likely commercial impact of the technology, and
compares the new technology with other emission-reduction systems.  Like all
of the Futuretech series, it details funding, development, and licensing
opportunities, and lists key patents.  Readers get full contact information,
including names, mail and e-mail addresses, phone and fax numbers of key
developers.
    Further Details: Peter Savage, Editor-in-Chief, Technical Insights/John
Wiley & Sons, 32 North Dean St., Englewood NJ 07631, 201-227-4910.  E-mail:
insights@wiley.com.  URL: http://www.wiley.com/technical-insights.