Omnivorous Engine Could Run on Gasoline, Ethanol, and Butanol

September 9th, 2008 by Ariel Schwartz

Wouldn’t it be nice to have car with an engine that would happily accept any fuel regardless of its origins? The US Department of Energy’s Argonne Laboratory is developing an engine that may make that dream a reality.

The lab is attempting to create an “omnivorous engine” that can run on any blend of gasoline, ethanol and butanol. And unlike flex-fuel engines currently on the market that use ethanol or gasoline, the omnivorous engine could theoretically run at peak efficiency regardless of the fuel mixture.

The omnivorous engine will use sensors to evaluate the characteristics of the fuels being used. If sensors determine that the engine isn’t running at peak levels, it will make adjustments to parameters like spark timing and injection strategy.

Since the lab’s approach is both simple and cost-effective, it can be rolled out for commercial use quickly. Argonne hasn’t released details of the engine’s release date, but it will be a welcome advance in vehicle technology.

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