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French company claims 35% efficiency improvement with thermal energy recovery system

 
2,129 views May 5, 2009

heat2power hasn’t revealed how its new system will work but promises fuel efficiency gains of between 15 and 35%

heat2power hasn’t revealed how its new system will work but promises fuel efficiency gains of between 15 and 35%

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Despite decades of modern advancements, it’s common knowledge that internal combustion engines are far from efficient when it comes to transmitting the energy stored in the fuel they burn into real motion. In the recent past we’ve seen regenerative braking, engine stop-start and direct injection systems appear on new cars in an effort to boost efficiency but there’s still a lot that can be done.

One avenue that’s been receiving a lot of interest recently is thermoelectric power generation, a process where electricity is generated from wasted exhaust gases. Some of the leaders in this field include BMW, Volkswagen and Honda, and already we’ve seen prototypes that offer improvements in fuel economy of around 5%.

Now, a Paris-based company by the name of heat2power hopes to improve the efficiency of internal combustion engines by also capturing wasted heat from a car’s exhaust. According to heat2power, only around 30% of the energy released by burning fuel is actually used for moving a car’s wheels. The other 70% is lost through radiation, the cooling system and the exhaust system, the latter two of which account for around 65% of total energy used.

By developing new technology that reduces the amount of energy wasted on the exhaust system, heat2power can reclaim around one-third of the energy typically lost on the exhaust and recycle it to be used for propulsion.

The result of this shift of energy is improvement in overall efficiency for internal combustion engines. In fact, heat2power is claiming that its technology will result in fuel savings from around 15 to 35% in all driving conditions, with similar reductions predicted for C02 emissions figures.

To gain this extra efficiency, only minor modifications are necessary. The engine block and architecture remain the same, while the power outputs are also left untouched. In the interest of full disclosure, however, heat2power does admit that the weight of the cars will be slightly affected. Nevertheless the technology is compatible with all fuel types, as well as with electric hybrid vehicles.



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