Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Spherical Piston Internal Combustion Engine

Efficient centrifugal engine with no toxic emissions
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This engine is designed to use Hydrogen Peroxide (H²O²) mixed with Liquid Hydrogen (H) as fuel. Alcohol and Carbon based substances may also be used but Hydrogen will produce the cleanest results.

When Hydrogen Peroxide is forced through a Silver (S) screen, the Silver acts as a catalyst that causes the H²O² molecule to violently rip apart, yielding steam (H²O) and free Oxygen (O). If Hydrogen is introduced at this time, it will mix with the free Oxygen to form a highly combustible fuel. If all of this takes place inside of a small chamber, the pressurized (by the steam) fuel will burn if provided a source of ignition. This is the basic principle behind rocket engines. This engine is basically a rocket engine that has been wrapped around an axis.

Catalyzed Hydrogen Peroxide and Hydrogen are injected into the chamber through an opening in the cylinder wall (Intake Port). The fuel mixture expands and heats up as the cylinder rotates clockwise as viewed from the front of the engine. When the Intake Port reaches and aligns with the Igniter, an electrical charge ignites the fuel mixture, creating a fast burning and highly compressed gas (if Hydrogen is used, the gas is all steam). As the cylinder continues to rotate, the Exhaust Port (offset from the Intake Port) aligns with the Exhaust Chamber, providing an outlet for the expanding gas. As the gas expands out of the Exhaust Chamber, it produces thrust upon the opposite side of the chamber, forcing the cylinder in a clockwise direction. This is one cycle. Each cylinder contains two chambers, each opposite one another around the axis, so you will get two power cycles per revolution, per cylinder. Any number of cylinders may be installed in-line to produce the power required. An engine with two cylinders would have four total chambers. Each chamber is set an equal distance apart around the axis, so this engine would have four power cycles per revolution.

When the fuel mixture enters a chamber, expands, and ignites, the chamber will heat to over 1000°C. In order to maximize efficiency and utilize this heat, the second (and possibly third) cycle for every chamber is injected with highly pressurized and super heated water. This water was previously cycled through the engine block to collect radiant heat and help keep the engine block at a manageable temperature. Once the super heated and pressurized water is injected into the very hot chamber, it will quickly expand into highly pressurized steam creating a fuel-free power cycle.

Since this engine depends upon extremely high temperatures for maximum performance, typical engine materials such as Iron and Aluminum will not work. The cylinders should be made of ceramic and other exotic materials (Carbon Fiber/Carbon Carbon) that can stand up to the temperatures and pressures utilized.

A long-standing problem of how to seal a rotating assembly such as this can be solved two-fold. First, since the cylinder and engine block wall are made of ceramic, they can be highly polished so that a mere microscopic space is necessary between them so they don’t touch. Second, this space can be filled with high-pressure steam (higher pressure than inside the cylinder) to prevent combustion chamber pressure bleed-off. Finally, any leakage of steam into the chamber will only increase the engines efficiency.

As this engine has only one moving part, the main cylinder assembly, simple ceramic water bearings can be utilized for near friction free, low maintenance assembly. No oil is necessary for lubrication. A high-pressure centrifugal pump can be added to the rotating assembly to provide cooling and injection water for the engine. As exhaust gasses (steam) cool, they can be collected and reused in the engine.

Since the Hydrogen Peroxide/Hydrogen fuel mixture provides its own Oxygen supply, no outside air is required. This means that the SPICE engine can operate in the absence of oxygen, such as underwater or even in deep space. Also, the only exhaust this engine produces is water…no Carbon Dioxide and no Nitrates.

This engine is unique and novel because…

1. It operates with minimal vibration, causing less wear and tear due to operational stress 2. Due to its simple design, it will require low maintenance 3. It uses very few parts 4. It transfers its energy directly to the drive shaft 5. It is very fuel efficient and runs on renewable fuel 6. It can operate at high rpms, making more power 7. It produces zero harmful emissions 8. It produces pure water as exhaust, which can be used for other purposes or recycled for the engine 9. It requires no oil or fossil fuel for operation 10. It can operate under water or in outer space without air

Suggested Uses:

1. Electrical power production 2. Transportation 3. Space exploration

Kaveman, Mar 07 2011

German Type XVII submarine http://en.wikipedia...Type_XVII_submarine
Peroxide engines aren't new. [8th of 7, Mar 07 2011]

[link]






       Basically a rocket propelled crankshaft ?
FlyingToaster, Mar 07 2011
  

       More like a drive shaft, no cranking. Wish I could upload a drawing. Envision a ball shoved onto a rod. Inside of the ball are the two chambers that look like Yen and Yang from the front.
Kaveman, Mar 07 2011
  

       Thanks, "driveshaft" was the word I was looking for... so a harnessed rocket pulse "Hero" engine. Well... rockets *are* as efficient as Carnot cycle engines... [+] but I can't parse all your details.
FlyingToaster, Mar 07 2011
  

       We really, really need a <sub> tag.
nineteenthly, Mar 07 2011
  

       Is this spherical or cylindrical?
RayfordSteele, Mar 07 2011
  

       My first vision was as spheres but I have also drawn it up with cylinders...I think the cylinders may offer more combustion chamber area in a engine and therefore would provide more power. But my super duper catchy title doesn't work with cylinders!
Kaveman, Mar 07 2011
  

       Spherical Piston Internal Combustion Engine...S.P.I.C.E.
Kaveman, Mar 07 2011
  

       The Hellmuth Walter WWII engines did use high test peroxide such as what I'm calling for here but in a different way and his reciprocating and turbine engines met many problems...his experiments in rocket engines are more along the lines of my uses here.
Kaveman, Mar 07 2011
  
      
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