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Self-Supercharging Engine Under Development By Oaktec
A supercharger is an engine component that compresses air and feeds it to the engine to increase its performance. Usually, superchargers are powered by the crankshaft itself, which means some of the engine's power is lost to run the air compressor.
Now, a ‘self-supercharging' engine is under development in the United Kingdom that's said to be significantly more energy efficient, more powerful and low on emission.
Also Read: Renault's Answer To Ford's Super Efficient EcoBoost Engines
Currently being developed by British engineering and development company Oaktec that specialises in energy efficient vehicle design, the test unit has a capacity of 400cc, with a single cylinder and is based on a Yamaha racing diesel engine. Oaktec co-founder Paul Andrews believes his engine has vast capabilities with a wide variety of applications, other than just use in automobiles.
In automobiles thought, this engine could be used as a low cost electricity generator in electric vehicles, acting as a range extender. Besides electric vehicles the engine could be employed in small aircrafts, electric taxis, tuk-tuks and even to provide electricity in under developed villages.
One of the main reasons for its versatility, its developer says, is its low manufacturing cost. Unlike most novel engines the self-supercharging engine uses conventional and readily available, off-the-shelf components, thus reducing its manufacturing cost.
Additionally, the engine is said to be highly fuel tolerant, capable of extracting energy from a wide variety of fuel such as, propane, petrol, diesel, bio-ethanol and bio-methane.
Andrews has not revealed how exactly the engine works, only saying, the self-supercharging action comes from making use of gases inside the engine. Though that sounds like turbocharging, we can be sure there's more to it than what Andrews is ready to reveal right now.
Oaktec is looking to partner with automobile manufacturers to help it develop multi-cylinder and different versions of their self-supercharging engine.
Reported by Autocar UK, the self-supercharging engine was showcased at the Niche Vehicle Symposium in Gaydon, an event organised by the Niche Vehicle Network.
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