CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Need of the technology:

Today fossil fuels are widely used as a source of energy in various different fields
like power plants, internal & external combustion engines, as heat source in
manufacturing industries, etc. But its stock is very limited and due to this
tremendous use, fossil fuels are depleting at faster rate. So, in this world of energy
crisis, it is inevitable to develop alternative technologies to use renewable energy
sources, so that fossil fuels can be conserved. One of the major fields in which
fossil fuels are used is Internal Combustion Engine. An alternative of IC Engine is
“COMPRESSED AIR ENGINE”. It is an engine which will use compressed air to
run the engine. It is cheap as it uses air as fuel, which is available abundantly in
atmosphere.

1.2 Compressed air:

Compressed air is a gas, or a combination of gases, that has been put under greater
pressure than the air in the general environment. Current applications using
compressed air are numerous and diverse, including jackhammers, tire pumps, air
rifles, and aerosol cheese. According to proponents, compressed air also has a great
deal of potential as a clean, inexpensive, and infinitely renewable energy source.
Its use is currently being explored as an alternative to fossil fuels.

1.2.1 Behavior of compressed air:

Compressed air is clean, safe, simple and efficient. There are no dangerous exhaust
fumes of or other harmful by products when compressed air is used as a utility. It is
a non-combustible, non-polluting utility. When air at atmospheric pressure is
mechanically compressed by a compressor, the transformation of air at 1 bar into
air at higher pressure (up to 414 bar) is determined by the laws of thermodynamics.
They state that an increase in pressure equals a rise in heat and compressing air
creates a proportional increase in heat. Boyle's law explains that if a volume of a
gas (air) halves during compression, then the pressure is doubled.
Charles' law states that the volume of a gas changes in direct proportion to the
temperature. These laws explain that pressure, volume and temperature are
proportional; change one variable and one or two of the others will also change,
according to this equation: (P1 V1) / T1 = (P2 V2)/T2

1.3 Compressed air engine:

 Compressed air engine is a type of motor which does mechanical work by

expanding compressed air. Air Powered Engine is an alternative technology which
uses compressed air to run the engine and thus eliminates the use of fossil fuels.
Exhaust temperature of it will be slightly less than atmospheric temperature (i.e.
20-25°C) and thus helps in controlling global warming and reducing temperature
rise caused due to other means.

Compressed air engine converts potential energy of air into mechanical energy or
mechanical work.

1.3.1 Types of compressed air engine:

The potential energy of compressed air engine can converts into mechanical work
through either linear or rotary motion. Linear motion can come from either a
diaphragm or piston actuator, while rotary motion is supplied by either a vane type
air motor or piston air motor.

In order to achieve linear motion from compressed air, a system of pistons is most
commonly used.  The compressed air is fed into an air-tight chamber that houses
the shaft of the piston. Another type of pneumatic motor, known as a rotary vane
motor, uses air to produce rotational motion to a shaft.  The rotating element is a
slotted rotor which is mounted on a drive shaft. Each slot of the rotor is fitted with
a freely sliding rectangular vane. Compressed air strikes on the vanes which pushes
the vanes creating the rotational motion of the central shaft.
1.3.2 Current and future trends:

MDI (Motor Development International), France has proposed a range of vehicles

made up of Air Pod, One Flow Air, City Flow Air, Mini Flow Air and Multi Flow
Air. One of the main innovations of this company is its implementation of its
"active chamber", which is a compartment which heats the air (through the use of a
fuel) in order to double the energy output.

Tata Motors, India, as of January 2009 had planned to launch a car with an MDI
compressed air engine in 2011. In December 2009 Tata's vice president of
engineering systems confirmed that the limited range and low engine temperatures
were causing problems. Tata Motors announced in May 2012 that

they have assessed the design passing phase 1, the "proof of the technical concept"
towards full production for the Indian market. Tata has moved onto phase 2,
"completing detailed development of the compressed air engine into specific
vehicle and stationary applications".

Air Car Factories South Africa is proposing to develop and build a compressed air
engine.

1.3.3 Applications:
The compressed air engine can be used in many vehicles. Some of its applications
to be used as engine for vehicles are:
a) Mopeds Jem Stansfield, an English inventor has been able to convert a regular
scooter to a compressed air moped. This has been done by equipping the scooter
with a compressed air engine and air tank.
b) Buses MDI makes MultiCATs vehicle that can be used as buses or trucks.
RATP has also already expressed an interest in the compressed-air pollution-free
bus.
c) Locomotives Compressed air locomotives have been historically used as mining
locomotives and in various areas.
d) Trams Various compressed-air-powered trams were trialed, starting in 1876 and
has been successfully implemented in some cases.
e) Watercraft and aircraft Currently, no water or air vehicles exist that make use of
the air engine. Historically compressed air engines propelled certain torpedoes.
1.4 Proven fact:

“Research by MDI shows that an Air Powered Car can travel 171 km by using
electricity costing about Rs. 80-100 which would cost about Rs. 570 for a normal
S.I. engine car giving an average of 15 kmpl.”

1.5 Project overview:

In the present study, emphasis was given to conversion of a four stroke single cylinder SI
engine into a compressed air engine with minimum possible modification of the
existing design. The design is based on a rather simple working principle.

1.6 Structural design:

In the present study, a hero Honda cd 100ss motor cycle engine has been used for
modification into compressed air engine. There are several structural change
required to be done to run the engine with compressed air.
 CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW

1.About present work

2.History
3. Study of the Compressed Air Engine.
4.Scuba cylinder
5.Pressure regulator
6.Description of electro-mechanical circuit for pulse injection of compressed air
7.Description of Solenoid valve for pulse injection of compressed air and exhaust.
2.1 About the present work:
In this chapter, literature review on the related topics is discussed. First a brief
introduction of various component used, and describing the working principle of
each component and review of all the literature related to the component. Finally
conclusions are drawn from the presented literature to arrive at the detailed scope
of the present work.
 Fig: Line diagram of compressed air vehicle

2.2 History:

a) The first compressed-air vehicle was devised by Bompas, a patent for a

locomotive being taken out in England in 1828. There were two storage tanks
between the frames, with conventional cylinders and cranks. It is not clear if it was
actually built. (Knight, 1880)

b) The first recorded compressed-air vehicle in France was built by the Frenchmen
Andraud and Tessie of Motay in 1838. A car ran on a test track at Chaillot on the
9th July 1840, and worked well, but the idea was not pursued further.

c) In 1848 Barin von Rathlen constructed a vehicle which was reported to have
been driven from Putney to Wandsworth (London) at an average speed of 10 to 12
mph.

d) At the end of 1855, a constructor called Julienne ran some sort of vehicle at
Saint-Denis in France, driven by air at 25 atmospheres (350 psi), for it to be used
in coal mines.

e) Compressed air locomotives were use for haulage in 1874 while the Simplon
tunnel was being dug. An advantage was that the cold exhaust air aided the
ventilation of the tunnel.

g) The compressed-air locos were soon withdrawn due to a number of accidents,

possibly caused by icing in the pipes of the brakes, which were also worked by
compressed air.
2.3 Study of the Compressed Air Engine:

The laws of physics dictate that uncontained gases will fill any given space. The
easiest way to see this in action is to inflate a balloon. The elastic skin of the
balloon holds the air tightly inside, but the moment you use a pin to create a hole in
the balloon's surface, the air expands outward with so much energy that the balloon
explodes. Compressing a gas into a small space is a way to store energy. When the
gas expands again, that energy is released to do work. That's the basic principle
behind what makes an air car go.

The first air cars will have air compressors built into them. After a brisk drive,
you'll be able to take the car home, put it into the garage and plug in the
compressor. The compressor will use air from around the car to refill the
compressed air tank. Unfortunately, this is a rather slow method of refueling and
will probably take up to two hours for a complete refill. If the idea of an air car
catches on, air refueling stations will become available at ordinary gas stations,
where the tank can be refilled much more rapidly with air that's already been
compressed. Filling your tank at the pump will probably take about three minutes.

The first air cars will almost certainly use the Compressed Air Engine (CAE)
developed by the French company, Motor Development International (MDI). Air
cars using this engine will have tanks that will probably hold about 3,200 cubic
feet (90.6 kiloliters) of compressed air. The vehicle's accelerator operates a valve
on its tank that allows air to be released into a pipe and then into the engine, where
the pressure of the air's expansion will push against the pistons and turn the
crankshaft. This will produce enough power for speeds of about 35 miles (56
kilometers) per hour. When the air car surpasses that speed, a motor will kick in to
operate the in-car air compressor so it can compress more air on the fly and
provide extra power to the engine. The air is also heated as it hits the engine,
increasing its volume to allow the car to move faster.

India's Tata Motors will likely produce the first air car in the marketplace in the
next few years. Tata Motors' air car will also use the CAE engine.

2.4 Scuba cylinder:

A diving cylinder, scuba tank or diving tank is a gas cylinder used to store and

transport high pressure breathing gas as a component of a scuba set. It provides gas
to the scuba diver through the demand valve of a diving regulator.
Diving cylinders typically have an internal volume of between 3 and 18 litres (0.11
and 0.64 cu ft) and a maximum pressure rating from 200 to 300 bars (2,900 to
4,400 psi).
We used a scuba cylinder having a capacity of 6 litre and working pressure of upto
200 bar. We used scuba cylinder because of having low weight and high strength
that can withstand at high pressure to utilized maximum potential energy of stored
air for maximum time.
 Fig. Scuba cylinder with pressure regulator

2.5 Pressure regulator:

A pressure regulator is a valve that automatically cuts off the flow of a liquid or
gas at a certain pressure. Regulators are used to allow high pressure fluid supply
lines or tanks to be reduced to safe and/or usable pressures for various applications.
Pressure regulator are of two types:
a. Single stage pressure regulator
b. Double stage pressure regulator.
We used single stage pressure regulator having a range from 0 to 16 bar.
 Fig. working diagram of pressure regulator

2.6 Description of electro-mechanical circuit for pulse injection of compressed

air:
Fig. line diagram of contact breaker Fig. original contact breaker
circuit

Here the electro-mechanical circuit means the circuit completed with the help of
mechanical devices and electrical devices. The component of this circuit is spring,
insulating material and electrical wire. The main function of electro-mechanical
circuit is to control the opening and closing of solenoid valve according to piston
position. There is also another way to control the function of solenoid valve by
using PLC (programmable logic circuit) but it is quite difficult to design it so we
prefer electro-mechanical circiut.

2.7 Description of Solenoid valve for pulse injection of compressed air and
their exhaust:
 Fig. Crossectional diagram of solenoid valve

A solenoid valve is an electromechanically operated valve. The valve is controlled

by an electric current through a solenoid: in the case of a two-port valve the flow is
switched on or off. Solenoid valves are the most frequently used control elements
in fluidics. Their tasks are to shut off, release, dose, distribute or mix fluids. They
are found in many application areas. Solenoids offer fast and safe switching, high
reliability, long service life, good medium compatibility of the materials used, low
control power and compact design. We used two solenoid valve of different
operating range of pressure. The solenoid valve used for air injecting has a range
from 0 to 100 bar while the operating range of exhaust solenoid valve is 0 to 15
bar. The opening and closing of solenoid valve is controlled with battery and
contact breaker.

The one end of injecting solenoid valve is connected with compressed air cylinder
while other end is connected with a nozzle of diameter 5.5mm for injecting of
compressed air.The one end of exhaust solenoid valve is connected with engine
cylinder while other end is opened in atmosphere for exhaust of gas.
 CHAPTER 3
DESIGN AND FABRICATION

3.1 Design of Mechanical Components:

3.1.1 Design of Piston Head:

We removed old piston head and cam arrangement and make a new piston head
which is made by mild steel and contains two hole-Inlet and Exhaust Hole. We
used two solenoid valve for injection and exhaust of compressed air instead of cam
arrangement which operate opening and closing of inlet and exhaust valve.

We used also a small part of tube work as a sealing for protecting leakage of
compressed air from cylinder and it is kept place in between piston head and top
surface of cylinder.

Firstly, we used the hole of spark plug of the old piston head to inject compressed
air but we did not get proper amount of thrust to rotate engine at high rpm due to
loss of pressure due to bending in inlet port. Thus for getting proper thrust we
replace old piston head with our newly designed piston head.

3.1.2 Modification in engine cylinder:

We drilled two hole on the surface of cylinder for proper exhausting of compressed
air to avoid air baking (air jacking) phenomena which restrict rotation of engine.
Hole is placed at 44mm from TDC (at an angle of 7 degree before TDC) and
diameter of hole is 5mm of each .But this is not sufficient for exhaustion then we
used a exhaust solenoid valve at top of piston head to avoid air jacking.
3.2 Design of Contact breaker:-

In contact breaker we used two spring for opening and closing of inlet and exhaust
solenoid valve. Spring is used for contact breaker due to of its compressive
property. When spring is in contact with rotor (uninsulated part) then current is
supply to solenoid valve as a result valve of solenoid is open as a result inlet and
exhaust of compressed air takes place. When spring is in contact with insulated
part current is not supplied to solenoid valve as a result inlet and exhaust of
compressed air does not takes place.

The inlet spring is in contact with rotor after 5 degree upto 90 degree from TDC
for getting high thrust on piston.

The exhaust spring is in contact with rotor from BDC to TDC for proper exhaust of
compressed air from cylinder. We also drill a hole before 7 degree from BDC to
avoid the baking action (Formation of air jacking) of piston due to improper
exhaust.

3.3 Fabrication and Assembly:

Firstly, we designed and fabricated some part of engine as we discussed above and
then assembled all part to make compressed air engine.

The following are the description about assembly:

We used pressure regulator which is fit in scuba cylinder for controlling the inlet
pressure of the engine cylinder. The regulator is connected with inlet solenoid
valve through a hose pipe. When we supply current to solenoid valve the
compressed air strike on piston and piston start moving. The inlet and exhaust
solenoid valve is connected with piston head through nozzle.
 3.4 Problem Faced:

We have faced many problem during our project:

 Initially we used spark plug hole for injecting compressed air then the piston of
engine does not rotate smoothly. We used modified piston head to overcome such
problem.
 Unavailability of components of desired specification in market as per the design is
also a big problem that we have faced.
 The main problem is formation of air cushion. During exhaustion air trap inside the
engine cylinder as a result engine stop suddenly. Then we used another solenoid
valve for exhaustion to overcome such problem.
 And another big problem that we have faced is contact breaker. A contact breaker
is a type of breaker which connect or disconnect the solenoid valve with battery
according to piston position. Instead of using PLC circuit we used electro-
mechanical contact breaker at engine rotor.
 CHAPTER 4
CONCLUSIONS OF THE PRESENT WORK

On the whole, the technology is just about modifying the engine of any regular IC
engine vehicle into an Air Powered Engine. The Air Powered Engine technology
is cheaper in cost and maintenance, can be easily adapted by the masses and it
doesn’t cause any kind of harm to the environment. Instead, its widespread use
will help mankind in controlling the serious problem of global warming.

It surely is the “Futuristic Mode of Transport.

4.1 Advantage of CAE:

4.1.1 Technical benefits:

The temperature of the engine while working will be slightly less than the ambient
temperature.

Smooth working of the engine due to very less wear and tear of the components.
There is no possibility of knocking.

No need of cooling systems and spark plugs or complex fuel injection systems.
4.1.2 Economic benefits:

No use of expensive fossil fuels as the free air is compressed and taken to use.

For this reason people can easily shift to the new technology.

Compressors use electricity for generating compressed air which is relatively much
cheaper and widespread.

Smooth working will lead to less wear & tear, so lesser maintenance cost.
4.2 Disadvantage of CAE:

Less power output

High pressure of compressed air may lead to bursting of storage tank.

Probability of air leakage.

Non availability of air stations to fill the air in the cylinder at required pressure.

Due to presence of cylindrical air tank, the whole system become bulky.

Comparatively overall speed of Compressed air Engine is lower than actual IC

engine.
4.3 Variation of RPM with PRESSURE at no load condition:

S.no Pressure(bar) Rpm(avg)

1. 7
2. 8
3. 9
4. 10
5. 11
6. 12
7. 13
8. 14

4.4 Variation of rpm with pressure at different loading condition:

S.no Pressure(bar) Load(newton) Rpm

1. 8 5
2. 8 10
3. 8 15
4. 10 5
5. 10 10
6. 10 15
7. 12 5
8. 12 10
9. 12 15
10. 14 10
11. 14 15
4.5 Calculation of torque, Indicated power & Brake power:

4.6 Graph between indicated power and pressure:

4.7 Graph between brake power and load:

4.8 Graph between pressure and rpm at no load and load:

 REFERENCES
1. Research Paper “Study on Development of Compressed Air Car for a
Practical use” Kato, Yuki*, Hayashi, A. Koichi, Yamada, Eisuke Aoyama
Gakuin Uni
2. Research Paper “ADAPTATION OF CLASSIC COMBUSTION ENGINES
TO COMPRESSED AIR SUPPLY” Wojciech SZOKA*, Dariusz
SZPICA**versity, Japan
3. Research Paper “Modification of an Si Engine into a Compressed Air
Engine to Work with Compressed Air or Gas” by Dr. Maglub Al Nur,
S.K.M.Asikul Islam , Debashish Saha and Aashique Alam Rezwan
4. Richard, M.G. The Air-Powered Motorcycle by Jem Stansfield,.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Air-powered-bicycle./
5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compressed-air_vehicle
6. http://auto.howstuffworks.com/fuel-efficiency/vehicles/air-car.htm
7. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9SseSV-_BM&hd=1