Interesting Development

"CAcoalminer" (CAcoalminer)
06/14/2016 at 12:52 • Filed to: None

So, today I learned that a company called LiquidPiston has developed a super light go-kart engine that weighs 4 pounds and makes 3 hp. While this may not sound very impressive at first, when you realize that current go-kart engines produce about 6.5 hp but weigh 40 pounds, the benefits really stun you (at least they did me). However, the best part is that these are rotary engines. Keeping this in mind, I immediately thought of Mazda and how they want to bring back the rotary but have huge challenges to overcome. Well, if Mazda and LiquidPiston were able to collaborate and scale these engines up to sports car levels of performance, then we could potentially see this come to fruition sooner than we ever thought possible:

I know I’m being overly optimistic but I find it exciting to think about regardless.

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DISCUSSION (17)

StingrayJake > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 12:57

3 HP still doesn’t sound like enough to push my (used to be very, now just moderately) fat ass around a track at a good pace.

Sam > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 12:58

I wonder if they could make a 40 pound engine that makes 30hp. I’m guessing that the scaling isn’t actually linear, but they could pump some serious power out of a larger engine I’d assume.

Aaron M - MasoFiST > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 12:59

I could see this technology potentially solving some of the efficiency and torque production issues of a Wankel engine due to the interesting internal rotor design, which is likely now possible due to better metallurgy and manufacturing techniques.

However, the maintenance, oiling and seal issues remain.

HammerheadFistpunch > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 13:02

Rotaries always had great power to weight, their biggest problems are:

Fuel consumption

Oil consumption

Seal consumption

(its got the consumption)

as well as meeting emissions regs.

CAcoalminer > Aaron M - MasoFiST
06/14/2016 at 13:02

Very good point. I wonder how they plan to address those issues.

TheHondaBro > HammerheadFistpunch
06/14/2016 at 13:04

It’s got consumption, baby. It’s got consumption right up the yin yang!

HammerheadFistpunch > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 13:07

interesting concept though. Air cooled and it looks like they moved the apex seals from the rotor to the housing. Also, clever intake air routing

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CAcoalminer > HammerheadFistpunch
06/14/2016 at 13:08

From the PM article I added to my post:

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CAcoalminer > Aaron M - MasoFiST
06/14/2016 at 13:09

The PM article addresses some of the issues:

The basic idea is similar to a Wankel rotary , but turned on its head. Where the rotor holds the seals in a normal Wankel, the housing does that job in the X1 engine. This allows significant reduction in oil consumption over a regular rotary motor. Other enhancements include direct injection, a high compression ratio at 18:1, and a dramatic change to the geometry of the combustion chamber, which maintains a constant volume during ignition. This change means the air-fuel mixture auto-ignites like a diesel, and can be burned much longer than normal. The result is a more complete combustion ending in low emissions and very high chamber pressures. This high pressure is allowed to act on the rotor until it reaches nearly atmospheric pressures, so almost all the available energy is extracted before the exhaust is physically pushed out. Again, this is different than a normal internal combustion engine, which releases very energetic, high-pressure exhaust gas.

HammerheadFistpunch > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 13:11

yeah, I just watched their video. Its a cool concept for sure.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 13:16

For outdoor tracks, it could be interesting. Though I don’t see very many Go Kart track operators getting these unless they cost the same or less than what they’re already using.

And for indoor tracks, electric Karts are the way.

I recently tried some electric Karts at an indoor track near me.

The Karts themselves were fine. The problem was they used crappy lead acid batteries that had to be charged after every race. And it looked like they didn’t have a truly fast charging setup.

So they’d run some karts while charging others.

And they have some periods where there was no racing because all Karts were being charged.

But the biggest benefit was the air quality... no exhaust fumes. And that matters a lot if you have asthma or going in a group where some have asthma.

CAcoalminer > Sam
06/14/2016 at 13:20

Well, in the PM article from 2012 I added to my post, they had an engine that was 80 lbs and made 40 hp. I’m not sure if they ever further refined this particular engine as the article talks about how they’re focused on smaller engines for things like lawnmowers, UAVs, etc.

Aaron M - MasoFiST > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 13:23

They also acknowledge that the engine requires the same basic sealing as a Wankel on their website. They discuss ways in which their engine can be better lubricated than a traditional Wankel, but ultimately the core issue is that both side sealing and apex sealing expose the seals to significantly more wear than ring sealing does in a piston engine. The only development that would significantly increase the durability would be some form of oil scavenging that emulated the mechanical action of piston rings.

maristgrad > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 13:58

I only weigh 181 and even I would prefer stronger engine performance over weight savings

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 14:07

That would make a sweet scooter. 40hp, ultra light motor with a CVT? You can streamline the body a bit more and have an ultra efficient copact mode of transportation that can still keep up with cars and trucks and whatnot.

CAcoalminer > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
06/14/2016 at 17:32

Exactly. There are a ton of possibilities with this technology.

Nauraushaun > CAcoalminer
06/14/2016 at 23:04

You’ve mentioned weight and power, what about other constraints? Is it reliable? Does it cost an astronomical amount?

A light and powerful engine alone isn’t enough.