13 August 2008

Jaguar, Lotus and Queen's to develop biofuel research engine

The engineering half of sportscar manufacturer Lotus has announced a collaboration with Queen’s University Belfast and Jaguar Cars to develop an engine that maximises fuel efficiency when running on renewable fuels.

Dubbed the ‘omnivore’ concept. Lotus says it will employ novel engine architecture to achieve a high thermal efficiency when fuelled on any alcohols or gasoline.

Lotus Engineering is currently undertaking a design study and the build of a single cylinder research engine for completion in January 2009. Vehicle modeling will validate the reduction in vehicle CO2 emissions. Queen’s University of Belfast’s School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering will be adding its expertise in engine simulation, with Jaguar being a consultative partner.

Lotus believes this engine design will significantly increase fuel efficiency for sustainable bio alcohol fuels. The architecture features an innovative variable compression ratio system and uses a two-stroke operating cycle with direct fuel injection.

CEO Mike Kimberley (pictured) said: “The automotive industry is now focusing on its environmental obligations to reduce CO2 emissions and improve efficiencies and we are seeing the high technology capabilities of Lotus Engineering being in strong demand. Not only does our brand value of ‘performance through light weight’ fit perfectly with the necessary direction of the industry to produce lighter, more efficient vehicles, we are also working on all aspects of future fuels, investigating alternative powertrains to accommodate alcohol fuels as they enter the market.”

The project is sponsored by Defra (Department for the Environment and Rural Affairs) and the DOE NI (Department of the Environment Northern Ireland) through the Renewable Materials LINK Programme.

Author
Ken Hurst

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