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Sound drives new age engine

Dr David Proctor with pulse combustor - CSIRO

Dr David Proctor with prototype pulse combustor - CSIRO

A new kind of super-efficient combustion technology developed in Australia is claimed to halve energy consumption, and produce no total hydrocarbons or carbon monoxide.

The New Generation Pulse Combustion process has been developed by CSIRO's Division of Thermal and Fluids Engineering. Its developers claim the technology is so efficient it could halve energy consumption in Australia, which is currently struggling to bring greenhouse gas emissions under control.

Homeowners could benefit from Pulse Combustion through cheaper water heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration. Industry applications are wide-ranging and include foundries in the steel and smelting industry, commercial refrigeration, ore processing in mining, and boilers in hospitals.

The technology is literally sweet music to the ears. Sound waves are generated which produce a pulsing effect inside the engine. This causes any exhaust gases which have not been burnt up to recirculate through the system, virtually eliminating exhaust gases. These unburnt gases constantly re-ignite a series of flames which provide the heat for the system, like passing on a baton in a race.

The engine's efficiency is further helped by the fact that it does not need a fan to ventilate the burner - the particular shape of the burner sets up a combustion instability that causes it to continually aerate itself.

While the technology has been around for a while, there have been several obstacles to its commercial development. One of the challenges has been how to reduce the high burning temperatures without shutting down the flame. CSIRO has now found a technological solution which reduces the burning rate by 60 per cent, enough to make it attractive to industry.

Tags: science-and-technology, engineering