Date: Tue, 1 Nov 2005 07:49:53 -0800
Reply-To: Shawn Wright <swright@ZUIKO.SLS.BC.CA>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Shawn Wright <swright@ZUIKO.SLS.BC.CA>
Subject: Re: Fuel ponderings
In-Reply-To: <43678B8A.3080300@charter.net>
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Where do you buy your coffee?? I need some of that... ;-)
On 1 Nov 2005 at 9:36, John Rodgers <inua@CHARTER.NET> wrote:
> Given that the engines in use today in vehicles are heat engines, and
> the fuels that are used to provide that heat have specific values of
> BTU's per pound, how does one increase fuel efficiency, i.e., increase
> the miles per gallon on fuel?
>
> Reduce vehicle weight is one way.
> Reduce friction.
> Streamlining for the vehicle.
> Better fuel metering.
> Congress legislating that it be so??
>
> What else???
>
> Is it really possible to get more BTU's from a pound of fuel than a
> pound of fuel has?? What good does better mixture control and
> vaporization actually do? Given better mixture control and vaporization,
> can fuel efficiency actually be increased beyond where it is now, just
> on that basis?
>
> The whole business about fuels and fuel efficiencies is about energy
> exchange without energy loss. Is it possible??
>
> Given E = MC2, - the potential for large energy release from a tiny bit
> of matter - we have so much "potential" energy in the form of solid
> matter that it is mindboggling, yet even with Einstein's equation we
> cannot tap that energy in a truly controllable way The rock simply
> sits there or there is a big "Bang". Doesn't seem to be any "In between"
> point where we can meter off a bit of all that energy as we need it. I
> suppose one might consider an atomic pile as a controlled metering, but
> it is really a a controlling of natural radiation being emitted from a
> radio active substance. Not quite the same as deliberately "cracking"
> an atom of inert solid matter in a controlled way to siphon off a
> specific amount of it's energy.
>
> I really would like to be able to stick my banana peel and a beer - can
> and all - into the power generator on my Vanagon and fire up the "Flux
> Capacitor".
>
> There it is............this mornings pondering at coffee!
>
> Regards,
>
> John Rodgers
> 88 GL driver
>
Shawn Wright
http://zuiko.sls.bc.ca/~swright
'85 Jetta D
'88 Westy 1.6TD 5 speed
(see progress at http://members.shaw.ca/vwdiesels)
'82 Diesel Westy
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