Author Topic: Abandon Spark Plugs for Laser Ignition?  (Read 2638 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

velocity

  • Guest
Abandon Spark Plugs for Laser Ignition?
« on: July 13, 2011, 02:09:32 PM »
I found this fascinating and it makes perfect sense, but testing the concept in LSR would prove interesting especially since they are touting "lean running".  - LSL

THE DETROIT BUREAU

Updated rotary engine would run leaner, more fuel efficient.

by Paul A. Eisenstein on Jun.29, 2011

The Mazda Kabura concept makes its debut in Detroit.

The rotary engine is the powertrain of the future – and always will be, declares the engineers who have spent frustrating decades trying to overcome the once-promising Wankel engine’s drawbacks.

Small, light and powerful, the rotary seemed destined for glory, with makers such as General Motors, Mazda and American Motors among the many manufacturers committed to using the engine back in the 1970s.  But then the first Mideast energy crisis struck and all but Mazda were forced to abandon the Wankel due to its relatively poor fuel economy.

Over the years, Mazda has scaled back rotary applications but never abandoned the technology – and now, the Japanese maker may have come up with an intriguing solution, using a laser ignition system, instead of conventional spark plugs to boost the Wankel’s fuel efficiency.

The British magazine AutoCar quotes a “senior,” albeit unidentified Mazda engineer involved with the ongoing development of Mazda’s next-generation rotary, known as the 16X Renesis.

The idea is that a high-power laser can generate the temperatures needed in lieu of an electric spark to ignite the air/fuel mixture in the Renesis.  In turn, that would permit the new engine to run extremely lean – which translates into significantly better mileage if it can work.

A laser could also be used to more accurately control the timing of the ignition process than a conventional spark ignition system.  Lasers can produce incredibly hot pulses that last the smallest fraction of a second – researchers hoping to trigger a controlled fusion process use beams of cohesive light to recreate the incredible heat seen in the core of the sun.

A laser ignition device could prove significantly smaller than the typical spark plug – perhaps a third of an inch wide and half an inch long.  It would likely be made of ceramics to survive the harsh environment inside a rotary engine.

Using a laser for the rotary engine “was absolutely possible,” the source told AutoCar.

It might also be critical if the Wankel engine is going to survive in a world of increasingly tough emissions and mileage regulations.  Mazda had to pull the RX-8, its last global model using the rotary, out of the European market because it couldn’t meet the latest Continental clean air standards.

Should the concept work, a production version of the 16X Renesis would likely grow from the initial 1.3 liters to 1.6, according to the magazine.  But the overall package has shrunk – and it has shed weight by switching to aluminum.

There’s no word on where a new rotary might appear, though a production version of the Mazda Kabura concept might be one possibility as a replacement for the current RX-8.

Offline manta22

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4137
  • What, me worry?
Re: Abandon Spark Plugs for Laser Ignition?
« Reply #1 on: July 13, 2011, 03:38:47 PM »
We've already hashed this out on another previous forum

Regards, Neil  Tucson.
Regards, Neil  Tucson, AZ

Offline Peter Jack

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3776
Re: Abandon Spark Plugs for Laser Ignition?
« Reply #2 on: July 13, 2011, 05:37:37 PM »
Why the repeat post?

Offline John Burk

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 695
Re: Abandon Spark Plugs for Laser Ignition?
« Reply #3 on: July 13, 2011, 06:39:46 PM »
Wankels should be designed to run hotter . The large surface area that kills milage would not matter if it was 500 deg . Direct injection could prevent pre-ignition .