joewee350

I was looking online and ran across this article about what seems to be a simple engine design with great potential.

http://www.saintjohn.nbcc.nb.ca/heri...lin/Rotary.htm

I would like any information anyone could find on this topic. I thought it would be a good topic to discuss why this engine never worked out. If it is indeed 500hp and a small package I would have thought it would be in tons of vehicles. Just a topic for some thoughtful discussion.

Awake455

IIRC, this is a modified version of a K-cycle engine times two. I don't have any of the ME books from my IC engines classes near me so I can't relay the authors' thoughts on this design.

chuntington101

how the hell does this engine work???

Z06PSI

iTrader: (33)

I am thinking that the pistons are more like lifters in the fact that they rotate on the bottom of a lobe (like a cam) in the middle. As the pistons rotate along the lobe they will move up and down causing compression. Neat idea and it cold work. This along with F1 pneumatic valves you could see some crazy rpm's in the 30K to 40K area.

LS_RX-7

Reminds me of the RandCam engine design. Not saying it's the same, just similar.

joewee350

Makes me wish I had Bill Gates amounts of money. I would spend it making things like this happen. Anybody else have any technical or knowledgeable info about this engine?

LTSpeed

That's a variation on the dynacam engine used as far back as WW2 to power torpedoes. The dynacam layout is actually cleaner, but there have always been issues with component wear and sealing. The biggest plus is incredible torque in a small package.

There was a company making dynacams that went bust a few years back trying to build them for light aircraft. They had a really lousy business plan and so-so engineering, but the basic idea is sound. I actually offered to help them with development and engineering, but they went belly-up before serious negotiations got going. Quite a shame.

The power and torque curves would make for an odd feeling street car though--not too unlike the old Chrysler turbine powered car.

2002_Z28_Six_Speed

iTrader: (19)

Wouldn't a piston engine last longer?

LTSpeed

Longer than what? The Bricklin-Turner and Dynacam are pistons engines, but their layout makes valving and timing control difficult. There are also some lubrication issues. The do handle internal stresses better and are more mechanically efficient than V6/v8's though.

It's hard to say what would last longer compared to today's engines. The car engine has had very intensive development for more than 100 years, whereas the other ideas have, at best, 1% of the man-hours in them.

If you're comparing to a turbine engine, the edge goes to the turbine. It has so few moving parts and the power requirements needed for a car would come nowhere near stressing all but a toy-sized unit. It could be made virtually bullet-proof for an automotive application. (This isn't true for airplanes, where every ounce of weight is critical.) The problem with turbines is putting the power to the road. They aren't very drivable.