A Car That Runs on Air is coming to India

A Car That Runs on Air is coming to India

Tata Motors, India largest automotive company, on Feb. 5, 2007 announced that it has signed an agreement with Moteur Development International (MDI) of France, inventors of the car, to develop a car that runs on compressed air, thus making it very economical to run and be almost totally pollution free. This article in Rediff India Abroad and the MDI website gives further details.

The air engine has 4 two-stage pistons, i.e. 8 compression and/or expansion chambers on one crankshaft. The pistons work in two stages: one motor stage and one intermediate stage of compression/expansion. They have two functions: to compress ambient air and refill the storage tanks; and to make successive expansions (reheating air with ambient thermal energy) thereby approaching isothermic expansion. It has injection similar to normal engines, but uses a special crankshaft and pistons, which remain at top dead center for about 70 degrees of the crankshaft's cycle; this allows more power to be developed in the engine. The engine is powered by compressed air, stored in a carbon-fiber tank containing 90 cubic meters (3178 cubic feet) of air at 30 MPa (4500 psi).

The expansion of this air pushes the pistons and creates movement. The atmospheric temperature is used to re-heat the engine and increase the range.

The cars have the following characteristics:

· Are light weight vehicle that can reach speeds up to 220 kmph.

· MDI's vehicle's have fiberglass bodies which makes them light, silent urban car.

· The vehicles do not have normal speed gages. Instead, they will have a small computer screen

· Both ends of the seat belt are anchored to the vehicles floor for greater safety.

· The vehicle's uses a patented electric system that makes the car 20 kilos lighter and considerably quieter.

· There are no keys - just an access card that can be read by the car from your pocket.

· In the single energy mode MDI cars consume around US$1.00 (Rs 45) every 60 miles (100 km).

· There is no pollution from the car.

· The vehicle's driving range is close to twice that of the most advanced electric cars (from 200 to 180 miles (300 km) or 8 hours of operation).

· The recharging of the car will be done at gas stations in 2 to 3 minutes at a price of Rs 90, once the market is developed.

· The car also has a small compressor that can be connected to an electrical network (220V or 380V) and will recharged the tanks completely in 3 or 4 hours.

· The car's oil (a liter of vegetable) only needs to be changed every 50,000 km.

· The temperature of the exhaust is between 0 and 15 degrees below zero and can be used for air conditioning of the car.

The car will be produced in both a single engine compressed air cars, the MiniCAT and CityCAT and a dual engine hybrid, a compressed air engine plus a multi-fuel internal combustion engine.

The hybrid has been conceived as much for the city as the open road and will be available in all MDI vehicles. The engines will work exclusively with compressed air while it is running under 50 km/h in urban areas. But when the car is running at speeds over 50 km/h, the engines will switch to fuel mode. The engine will be able to use gasoline, biodiesel, natural gas, LNG, alcohol, etc. It was not clear whether the air engine would also be used as an ICE or whether two engines would be employed in the hybrid.

Engines will be available with 2, 4 and 6 cylinders. When the air tanks are empty the driver will be able to switch to fuel mode.

The car -- MiniCAT -- could cost around US$8,000 (Rs 350,000) in India and would have a range of around 180 miles (300 km) between refuels. The cost of a refill would be about US$2.00 (Rs 90).

Specifications:

MiniCAT

The smallest and most innovative: three seats, minimal dimensions.

· Airbag, air conditioning, ABS, 3 seats, 1.5 m3.

· Dimensions: 2.65m, 1.62m, 1.64m

· Weight: 750 kg

· Maximum speed: 110 kmh

· Mileage: 200 - 300 km

· Maximum load: 270 Kg

· Recharging time: 4 hours (Mains connector)

· Recharge: 3 minutes (Air station)

CityCAT

A more spacious car with seats which can face different directions. The vehicle's design is based on the needs of a typical family.

· Airbag, air conditioning, 6 seats.

· Dimensions: 3.84m, 1.72m, 1.75m

· Weight: 750 kg

· Maximum speed: 110 kmh

· Mileage: 200 - 300 km

· Max load: 500 Kg

· Recharge time: 4 hours (Mains connector)

· Recharge time: 3 minutes (Air station)

Although there is no official word on when the car will be commercially manufactured for India, reports say that it will be sooner than later.

The MDI headquarters are located in Luxembourg while the prototype factory is in the south of France, where 60 people are employed. According to the MDI website "At the moment the construction of the first serial production factory is being completed, at the same location."

Currently licenses for manufacture and distribution have been sold to companies in Spain, Portugal, Brazil, South Africa, India, Great Briton, France and the United States. ZevCAT has the license in the US.

This technology competes with the electric car. The claimed advantage of compressed air over electric storage is that it is less expensive, has a faster recharge time and pressure vessels have a longer lifetime compared to batteries. Both technologies have hurdles to overcome, demonstrating that the air engine/compressed air system is as light, efficient and cheap as available electric motors/batteries. The main issues to me are that the air engine has not been proven to be dependable and advanced batteries are still too expensive. According to Gizmag the signing of the Tata agreement has made the prospects of very cost-effective mass production are now a distinct possibility. According to Wikepedia : as of March 2007 the Air car is not in production; they have been said to be going into production "soon" since at least 1998. In 2003 Wired had a fairly negative article on the company. An Australian rotary air engine, the Di Pietro Rotary Air Engine, appears to be further along in development and they have a small demonstration vehicle in use. In retrospect it appears that I should have written this piece about the DiPetro engine, but maybe a later post.

A discussion of the energy efficiencies of an air engine vehicle vs an electric vehicle would breakdown into the efficiency of the air compressor and air engine vs the efficiency of batteries and motors in the electric car, which I am sure the electric car would win. However because of the potentially low initial cost, low maintence cost and low operating cost compared to a fossil fueled vehicle the "air car" could find a niche market if it could be marketed before low cost batteries are available.

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Explanation of Love & Marraige

A student asks a teacher, "What is love?"

The teacher said, "in order to answer your question, go to the wheat field
and choose the biggest wheat and come back.
But the rule is: you can go through them only once and cannot turn back o
pick."
The student went to the field, go thru first row, he saw one big wheat, but
he wonders....may be there is a bigger one later.
Then he saw another bigger one... but may be there is an even bigger one
waiting for him.
Later, when he finished more than half of the wheat field, he start to
realize that the wheat is not as big as the previous one he saw, he
know he has missed the biggest one, and he regretted.
So, he ended up went back to the teacher with empty hand.
The teacher told him, "...this is love... you keep looking for a better
one, but when later you realise, you have already miss the person...."


*"What is marriage then?" the student asked.

The teacher said, "in order to answer your question, go to the corn field
and choose the biggest corn and come back. But the rule is: you can go
through them only once and cannot turn back to pick."
The student went to the corn field, this time he is careful not to repeat
the previous mistake, when he reach the middle of the field, he
has picked one medium corn that he feel satisfy, and come back to the
teacher.
The teacher told him, "this time you bring back a corn.... you look for one
that is just nice, and you have faith and believe this is the best one you
get.... this is marriage."*

Note :

I had collected this information from my friend.Thanks for my friend and credit for this message goes to my friend.

Photos

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A Friend's Greeting

A Friend's Greeting

I'd like to be the sort of friend that
you have been to me;
I'd like to be the help that
you've been always glad to be;

I'd like to mean as much to you
each minute of the day
As you have meant, old friend of mine,
to me along the way.

I'd like to do the big things and
the splendid things for you,
To brush the gray from out your skies
and leave them only blue;

I'd like to say the kindly things that
I so oft have heard,
And feel that I could rouse your soul
the way that mine you've stirred.

I'd like to give you back the joy
that you have given me,
Yet that were wishing you a need
I hope will never be;

I'd like to make you feel as rich as I,
who travel on
Undaunted in the darkest hours with you to
lean upon.

I'm wishing at this time that I
could but repay
A portion of the gladness that
you've strewn along my way;

And could I have one wish this year,
this only would it be:
I'd like to be the sort of friend
that you have been to me.

With Regards ,
Sugandh Sathiamoorthi

Lessons of the Square Watermelon

Lessons of the Square Watermelon

Japanese grocery stores had a problem. They are much smaller than their US counterparts and therefore don't have room to waste. Watermelons, big and round, wasted a lot of space. Most people would simply tell the grocery stores that watermelons grow round and there is nothing that can be done about it. That is how I would assume the vast majority of people would respond. But some Japanese farmers took a different approach. If the supermarkets wanted a square watermelon, they asked themselves, "How can we provide one?" It wasn't long before they invented the square watermelon.

The solution to the problem of round watermelons wasn't nearly as difficult to solve for those who didn't assume the problem was impossible to begin with and simply asked how it could be done. It turns out that all you need to do is place them into a square box when they are growing and the watermelon will take on the shape of the box.

This made the grocery stores happy and had the added benefit that it was much easier and cost effective to ship the watermelons. Consumers also loved them because they took less space in their refrigerators which are much smaller than those in the US meaning that the growers could charge a premium price for them.

What does this have do with anything besides square watermelons? There are a few lessons that can you can take away from this story which help you in all parts of your life. Here are a few of them:

Don't Assume: The major problem was that most people had always seen round watermelons so they automatically assumed that square watermelons were impossible before even thinking about the question. Things that you have been doing a certain way your entire life have taken on the aura of the round watermelon and you likely don't even take the time to consider if there is another way to do it. Breaking yourself from assuming this way can greatly improve your overall life as you are constantly looking for new and better ways to do things. This was one of the most difficult things for me to do because most of the assumptions I make, I don't even realize that I'm making them. They seem perfectly logical on the surface, so I have to constantly make an effort to question them.

Question habits: The best way to tackle these assumptions is to question your habits. If you can make an effort to question the way you do things on a consistent basis, you will find that you can continually improve the way that you live your life. Forming habits when they have been well thought out is usually a positive thing, but most of us have adopted our habits from various people and places without even thinking about them. I have changed a large number of habits that I have had after taking the time to question them and continue to do so. Some of them I have know idea where they came from while others I can trace to certain people or instances in my life. It's a never ending process, but by doing this, you can consistently strive toward making all aspects of your life more enjoyable instead of defaulting to what you have now.

Be creative: When faced with a problem, be creative in looking for a solution. This often requires thinking outside the box. Most people who viewed this question likely thought they were being asked how they could genetically alter water melons to grow square which would be a much more difficult process to accomplish. By looking at the question from an alternative perspective, however, the solution was quite simple. Being creative and looking at things in different ways in all portions of your live will help you find solutions to many problems where others can't see them. I am not a creative person, but I've found that the more that you look at things from different perspectives, the more creative I have become. It's a learned art and builds upon itself.

Look for a better way: The square watermelon question was simply seeking a better and more convenient way to do something. The stores had flagged a problem they were having and asked if a solution was possible. It's impossible to find a better way if you are never asking the question in the first place. I try to ask if there is a better way of doing the things that I do and I constantly write down the things I wish I could do (but currently can't) since these are usually hints about steps I need to change. Get into the habit of asking yourself, "Is there a better way I could be doing this?" and you will find there often is.

Impossibilities often aren't: If you begin with the notion that something is impossible, then it obviously will be for you. If, on the other hand, you decide to see if something is possible or not, you will find out through trial and error. Take away the lessons from the square watermelons and apply them to all areas in your life (work, finances, relationships, etc) and you will find that by consistently applying them, you will constantly be improving all aspects of your life.

The reason WHY a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue.

The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue.
-Anonymous




There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face.
-Ben Williams


A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.
-Josh Billings



The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.
-Andy Rooney



Dogs love their friends and bite their enemies, quite unlike people, who are incapable of pure love and always have to mix love and hate.




Anybody who doesn't know what soap tastes like never washed a dog.
-Franklin P. Jones




If your dog is fat, you aren't getting enough exercise .
-Unknown

My dog is worried about the economy because Alpo is up to $3.00 a can. That's almost $21.00 in dog money.
-Joe Weinstein

Women and cats will do as they please, and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea.
-Robert A. Heinlein


If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you; that is the principal difference between a dog and a man.
-Mark Twain


Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.
-Roger Caras

If you think dogs can't count, try putting three dog biscuits in your pocket and then give him only two of them.
-Phil Pastoret