Simple Device Claimed To Boost Fuel Efficiency By Up To 20%

Ponca City, We love you writes "Temple University physics professor Rongjia Tao has developed a simple device that could dramatically improve fuel efficiency in automobiles by as much as 20 percent. The device, attached to the fuel line of a car's engine near the fuel injector, creates an electric field that thins fuel, reducing its viscosity so that smaller droplets are injected into the engine. Because combustion starts at the droplet surface, smaller droplets lead to cleaner and more efficient combustion. Six months of road testing in a diesel-powered Mercedes-Benz automobile showed an increase from 32 miles per gallon to 38 mpg, a 20 percent boost, and a 12-15 percent gain in city driving. 'We expect the device will have wide applications on all types of internal combustion engines, present ones and future ones,' Tao wrote in the study published in Energy & Fuels. 'This discovery promises to significantly improve fuel efficiency in all types of internal combustion engine powered vehicles and at the same time will have far-reaching effects in reducing pollution of our environment,' says Larry F. Lemanski, Senior Vice President for Research and Strategic Initiatives at Temple."

Comments

Theoretically ridiculous

[Ancient_Hacker]

First problem, if electric fields reduced viscosity or surface tension, it would have been discovered like 100 years ago. Thousands of scientists have put stuff in electric fields. it's mighty unlikely none of them noticed this effect.

Secondly, there are totally free and reliable ways of reducing viscosity, like wrapping the fuel line around the exhaust manifold. Free, does not require any fancy electronics, and has the added benefit of actually working.

Re:Blind testing needed

[aurispector]

The article was the first that demonstrated that the concept can work - and it does so in spades. There is clearly an effect worthy of further testing - initial research should always establish whether or not there is an effect to test. Your suggestion would be the next step in testing. Once the lab results pan out you can go to field testing. If the results continue to be this significant you could skip field testing and go directly to marketing.

The blind testing suggested above is completely useless when you can directly measure results with lab equipment. Wrong method, wrong application.