A car running on liquid nitrogen

Anti-polluting, economical, safe: a prototype vehicle running on liquid nitrogen offers many promises. 

United States 05/08/1997 - Engineering apprentices at the University of Washington have just developed a car that runs on liquid nitrogen. According to them, their prototype would be less polluting and safer than electric or gas cars.

In the vehicle, humorously nicknamed “smogmobile”, liquid nitrogen is converted into gas by the heat of the ambient air. Nitrogen turned gaseous drives an air motor which propels the vehicle.

Our atmosphere is composed of 78% nitrogen. Smogmobile emissions - even multiplied by several millions - would therefore remain undetectable. Better: the plant that would produce liquid nitrogen would get its supplies from the ambient air. At the same time, the plant could collect carbon dioxide or other pollutants and dispose of them in an environmentally friendly manner.

According to Abe Hertzberg, project director, the smogmobile is less polluting than the electric car - whose lead-acid battery disposal remains a problem.

Read an article on cryogenic storage

Source: www.cybersciences.com