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Cyclone Power Technologies has recently made some very bold claims in the field of energy. By developing what they call the Green Revolution engine, Cyclone claims to be able to satisfy the energy needs of any automobile, heavy truck or power generating plant through the use of low emissions alternative fuels.
It seems that each passing day brings to light new energy technologies. Biofuels like ethanol, E85 and biodiesel are routinely showing up at pumps across the country. The Cyclone Green Revolution engine, however, approaches the energy crunch from a different angle.
Described as an “external combustion” engine, as opposed to the typical internal combustion motor found under the hood of modern automobiles, the Green Revolution is not tied to any specific class of fuel.
In fact, one of the most astounding attributes of this motor is that it can be run on varying grades of diesel, jet fuel, ethanol, conventional gas, biofuel or even trash and agricultural waste – basically, anything that will combust.
How is this possible? The Green Revolution engine burns whatever fuel it is provided with in a centrifugal combustion chamber. This design allows for any unburned fuel to stay outside of the chamber until it can be completely burned. The heat generated by this process is used to expand water and drive the blades of a turbine, or move pistons.
As the details of the combustion process are completely divorced from the mechanical aspects of power generation, this motor offers a range of fuel diversity not available with internal combustion. The Cyclone engine also makes the most of its small form factor, generating 2.5 horsepower per cubic inch compared with the typical 1.5 horsepower per cubic inch of a traditional internal combustion motor.
There are other significant benefits to the Green Revolution engine. As the burn process is achieved at a much lower and more controllable temperature than internal combustion, emissions are greatly reduced, meaning that the engine has a significant positive environmental impact.
The starting torque of this engine is also high enough that it does not require a transmission in order to gain a mechanical advantage – eliminating a costly vehicle component. The engine also has no need for an external cooling system in order to maintain proper engine operating temperature, eliminating the necessity of a radiator or any extensive tubing or piping in the engine bay.
The advantages of the Cyclone engine are obvious, and the concepts associated with this form of energy generated date back as far as 1929. Why, then, is the Green Revolution not being installed under the hood of every car around the world? Like the electric car, the Green Revolution engine is still considered an experimental technology.
While Cyclone is confident that they will be able to find practical applications for their motor, they are still in the process of courting major players in both the automobile and energy markets in order to deploy their technology on a large scale.
It is hard to argue against the adoption of an engine that is as environmentally friendly and efficient as the Green Revolution.