Whatever Happened To That Compressed Air Car Anyway?

Dear Aaron,

I appreciate your comment, since any comment is better than silence - because it allows for reaction, which I take pleasure of providing.
"questionable science and wild engineering": science I will leave to scientists such as yourself, but the wild engineering I can clarify: MDI (the original inventors) have on the bench in their R&D lab, and to be built in a Nano quite soon (Jan 15), a high-efficiency engine (68%) producing 7kw for 14kgs of weight that will indeed push the car for 80 kms at max 80 kms/hr.
Lots more of clever - not wild - engineering goes into this engine, which is the first of a range going up to 350kw.

So yes, Tata will launch this technology with all the clever bits, it will definitely push Tata Motors to the forefront of motorcar history!
Big claim, patience please, you'll see.

The Peugeot development (with gov subsidies) was in fact based on a patent from MDI (abandoned since not efficient) wich will lapse in 2016 - reason why Peugeot cannot introduce their "invention" before that date!

Need more, contact me Aaron!

Peugoet DO plan to roll out their "invention" in 2016 for reasons as explained. They need to justify their subsidies and grants!
The fuel cost as per our calculations is modest, less than ONE EURO per 100 kms. That's with electricity at night-tarriff.
A far better solution is to use sunpower though, makes it a really zero emission vehicle.
Onboard the Nano we have installed 2 x 200 litre tanks in filament wound fiber, without intruding in the passenger volume, where the air will be stored at 250 bar.
For the rest you'll have to wait just a little bit longer, dear Aaron!

Do you have more info on the MDI efficient engine to be shown (hopefully) in Mid Jan/15?

@ Aaron: I did not miss any point. Any energy conversion incurs a loss, but the efficiency of the present MDI engine - 68% - plus some more engineering niceties will do fine. Thanks
@ Jim: Of course I have.
The MDI engine will run in vehicles in mid-Jan. To be shown by our partner at his discretion. Rest assured it exists, it runs, no ... it roars

What is the price of the vehicle? The problem is inefficiency. The car cannot be refueled fast enough and it cost more to power the air compressor than powering the engine. If air-powered cars were so good the Asian auto makers will have made them already.

Smarty, hi!
I think you choose your online pseudo wrongly!
Compared to a combustion engine powering a similar vehicle the compressed-air engine will be 5-7 times more cost-efficient, and total cost of ownership is what we are all looking for as a true comparison basis.
The reference to Asian auto makers is of course a lapsus. They were always the very last to introduce anything new, they built their business as copycats from the Toyota-start in the late 60's early 70'.
Easy to spit in the soup, much more difficult to bring a positive element to the discussion.

I recall a guy in Nantes or St Nazaire creating a compressed air vehicle around 2011 and announcing that it would cost about €3,500 on the road. I have not seen any reference to it since. I wonder what happened?

Ivor,
it was not in Nantes, nor in St Nazaire, but in Nice.
everybody seems nervous as to when (not if) this vehicle will be on the road.
well, it's not too far off now, the new very high efficiency engine is on the bench
we're doing the engine monitoring system
due to the limited energy in compressed air the efficiency had to be pushed to the extreme
we're close to 68% now
it's expected to be in the (Tata) demonstrator around mid-May and then it will of course it will explode your screen!
a little bit more patience
bye for now

Adriaenssen wrote on 2015, April 11 - 15:42 ......Thanks for that. I wondered if it was the same concept or the same engine. It got a big write up in our local paper " Ouest France" so I thought it was one of our towns. Much better to be working in Nice. Looking forward to seeing this engine in action. Hybrid seems to be the current way forward but that would mean duplicate engines I imagine, perhaps driving different axles. Save a lot on battery weight or would the air cylinders over compensate for that weight I wonder. Patience it is!

The compressed air car could work better if it were a hybrid with a small steam engine. The air motor would function as an air compressor when it is being recharged ( on onboard electric motor or detachable electrically powered crank would power it). The heat of compression would heat up water in an insulated hot water tank-steam accumulator. When the car is running the hot water would feed into a small flash boiler (yes it will use a little fuel) which will power a simple steam engine. The spent steam will then heat up the air motor. The air motor will effectively become a steam condenser, and the expanding air will pick up extra energy.

@ Joseph and all the other compressed-air fans on the othe side of my screen!
The idea is very good, but we have this:
- a small external burner in the circuit tank-engine will heat up the compressed air and expand its volume, thereby extending the range by 2-3X; we call this dual-fuel mode (air and whatever fuel). temperature will be controlled to 600°C, therefore no NOx will be formed and combustion being external and constant no toxic exhaust fumes will come off.
- then we have what is called internally "mode3" whereby the engine will be revved up from air in the tank, then one cylinder will be used as a compressor (yes we loose a bit of power here) and this air, lowly compressed, will go through the external burner and into the expansion cylinders. this mode is only valid and viable as from 70-80 kw engine, which will go on the bench in June (to be used initially on .... garbage trucks!) when the small (7kw) engine has gone in the Nano Air. A small air tank will still be in place for start-up and back-up(80-100 litres).
This "mode 3" engine will be used primarily in a production-generator, as ordered by the Dutch glasshouse industry.
Now, how cool is this?