Research

Joining forces to cut emissions

Published 30 June 2011

The University of Brighton and a Sussex-based Ricardo UK, world leaders in engineering technology consultancy, are joining forces in a project to find ways of cutting carbon emissions in heavy-duty vehicles.

Most car makers today produce electric or low-emission hybrid vehicles but heavy-duty trucks and similar vehicles are proving more difficult to convert.

Ricardo and the university will look for solutions, funded in part by the UK Technology Strategy Board. Ricardo and the university submitted a winning feasibility study to the board's recent Disruptive technologies in low carbon vehicles' competition.

Ricardo, based in Shoreham, and university scientists will model and evaluate an advanced "split-cycle" combustion system that will increase engine efficiency.

Unlike previous research which focused on refining existing four-stroke engines, the 'CoolR' project will examine a new concept based on a split cycle, temperature controlled system, which increases engine efficiency.

Ricardo has successfully demonstrated a 'split-cycle isothermal compression' engine for power generation engine 'IsoEngine', but by using the freezing ingredient, liquid cryogen, Ricardo hopes to produce a 40 per cent energy efficiency, significantly better than other technologies.

The one-year feasibility project will address questions industry will face from the new technology and the work needed to take CoolR forward.

Dr David Mason, who is leading on the research for the university, said: "This is an exciting project that should enable us to start realising the potential demonstrated in feasibility studies that we conducted in collaboration with Ricardo. Reducing carbon emissions is crucial in combating global warming and we are confident CoolR can make a significant contribution to that task."

Nick Owen, project director for research and collaboration at Ricardo, said: "The global imperative to reduce the carbon footprint of road transportation is now almost universally accepted.

"While electrification, hybridization and improvements of the existing internal combustion engine offer a pathway to sustainability for light vehicles, a major problem remains in the heavy duty sector.

"By fundamentally reviewing the underlying thermodynamics of the internal combustion engine in a manner unseen for many decades, we believe that the CoolR spilt cycle cryogenic injection combustion concept offers the prospect of very significant improvements in thermal efficiency and hence reduced carbon dioxide emissions in the economically crucial heavy vehicle sector."

CoolR is one of two projects to be led by Ricardo – out of a total of 15 announced by the Technology Strategy Board as winners of its recent competition – and selected to receive government support.

For further information see www.innovateuk.org.