Submersible Robot Diesel Recycles Its Exhaust

An Anonymous Coward writes: "This might be a good weekend topic to kick around. Trends in Japan has a short article on an undersea robot that uses a contained diesel. 'The engine itself is a completely closed system that needs no intake of air to run and chemically processes exhaust gas inside the robot. On-board devices reinfuse the exhaust with oxygen after removing its carbon dioxide and reuse the gas in the fuel mixture. The seawater is kept clean, as no gas is released.' Any /.'s working with this tech? Can it be applied to low emission vehicles?"

Comments

Not so fast.

[small_dick]

I expect that whatever oxygenator they are using on the exhaust may be extremely expensive to implement on POVs.

It could be a catalyst, for example, that costs big $$ to make, and could be toxic and expensive to displose of when finished.

There's no magic here. In the past I've been a huge fan of EVs, but am disolusioned by the slow rate at which battery energy density has improved, especially considering the toxicity and expense of the new materials -- even compared to lead.

Slowly, I'm warming up to the hybrids. Something must be done to cut down on fossil fuel usage.