Lutherman

lots of info

You have an intuitive grasp of this topic. Thank you for sharing, because it gives us all another perspective to work from. I hope you will pursue your world-changing ambition, and I hope when you find the answer in the workshop you will still want to share it with the world.

Keep in touch,
Luther

great post, thank you

The air engine you describe sounds like Lee Rogers' engine which was a 4-cycle air engine. At some speeds the car was able to keep its own tanks full. He had two patents if you want to see them, google Leroy K Rogers.

I have to study your post more carefully. Can you tell us the name of the inventor and where they live?

Regarding the vortex tube, I read that if it is adjusted too far to one side, the cold end will actually induce atmosphere instead of blowing cold air out.

I wonder if you live in Italy, can you try to find out what happened to air engine inventor Antonio Soro? He lived in Australia but had some very bad problems and had to go back to Italy to join the army, it was that or life in prison in Australia. However I think his engine was for real and he had witnesses saying so. He returned to Italy in 1918 to join the army, is there any way I can find out what he did with the rest of his life?

Thanks,
Luther
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Canned Thunder

hydraulic air pumps

Ram pumps of all sizes have been made, that is like you say a kind of hydraulic pneumatic design but in reverse. The hydro power combined with air pressure is used only to pump water back uphill. The air pressure is thrown away.

Just imagine a normal piston compressor with the pushing done by hydraulic fluid on the back side of the piston, instead of a piston rod. I think the RAMifications are somewhat astounding.

Luther

This is in regards to the air car designs of Bill Truitt. I have been finding recurring mentions of "hydraulic air pumps" in the ever-expanding literature on self-fueling air cars, which has prompted me to go back again to Bill Truitt's design and question the one part of it I never could figure out.

Other inventors are found making big claims for this kind of air compressor whatever it is. One even states that when using hydraulic power to compress air, there is an inherent overunity situation. Anybody know why? Something about force multiplication or what?

My guess on Truitt's pumps is that they comprised a small hydraulic pump and an air piston in the same unit. The air piston would be reciprocated by hydraulic fluid on the non-air side instead of a piston rod. I can see a big advantage in doing this. Maybe even the machine could be started without an unloader, kind of important since Truitt's pumps--several pairs of them--were directly geared into the car's rear end by a power take off shaft, so they pumped air the whole time the car was moving. Without a clutch it would be hard to start the car because of the air pumps.

Maybe the hydraulic instead of mechanical action would allow the car to start easy without unloading first like most compressors would have to be done.

As for really exotic ideas, think about this. Any resistance on the part of the air being compressed is going to push back on the hydraulic fluid, whose pressure goes up drastically at the slightest push since it is incompressible. So wouldn't compressing air with hydraulics be like cutting daisies with a chainsaw? OK if there's a reason for it.

If anyone has real world knowledge of what a hydraulic air pump is and what they are used for, please clue me in. I haven't been able to find such a thing on the market. If they really do perform miracle stunts then no doubt they were taken off the market when someone figured that out.

Luther