A Project Report on

COMPRESSED AIR ENGINE

In partial fulfilment of requirements for the degree of

Bachelor of Engineering In
Mechanical Engineering

To

JAWAHARLAL NEHRU TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY ANANTAPUR,

ANANTHAPURAMU

SUBMITTED BY:
NAME: B. HEMANTH
Reg . No : (19AT1A0343)

Under the Guidance of

Mr. A.SRINIVAS M. Tech

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

G. PULLAIAH COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

(Autonomous)
Accredited by NAAC with 'A' Grade of UGC, Approved by AICTE, New Delhi & Permanently Affiliated to JNTUA, Anantapur ,
(Recognized by UGC under 2(f) &12(B) & ISO 9001:2008 Certified Institution)
Nandikotkur Road, Kurnool, A.P-518452.
www.gpcet.ac.in
2020-2021

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 G. PULLAIAH COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY
(Autonomous)
Accredited by NAAC with 'A' Grade of UGC, Approved by AICTE, New Delhi & Permanently Affiliated to JNTUA, Anantapur ,
(Recognized by UGC under 2(f) &12(B) & ISO 9001:2008 Certified Institution)
Nandikotkur Road, Kurnool, A.P-518452.
www.gpcet.ac.in

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the Project report entitled “COMPRESSED AIR ENGINE” being submitted in partial fulfilment
of the requirement for the award of the degree of Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering to Jawaharlal
Nehru Technological University Anantapur, Anantapur is a record of bona fide work carried out by the following student
under my guidance and supervision.

The results embodied in this project report have not been submitted to any other university or institute for the
award of any Degree or Diploma.

B.HEMANTH (19AT1A0343)

Mr. A.SRINIVAS MTech.

Asst. Professor

Mr. Javeed MTech., (Ph.D.,)

Asst. Professor

Head of the Department

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express our deep sense of gratitude and our sincere thanks to our seminar Mr. A.SRINIVAS for
his guidance, valuable suggestions, and support in the completion of the seminar report successfully on time.

I also thank our HOD S. Javeed M. Tech., (Ph.D.) Department of Mechanical Engineering, G. Pullaiah College of
Engineering and Technology, Kurnool for his encouragement towards the completion of the work.

I owe indebtedness to our principal Dr. C. Srinivasa Rao, M.E., Ph. D. G. Pullaiah College of Engineering and
Technology, Kurnool for providing us the required facilities.

I am extremely grateful to our Chairman, Mr. G. V. M. Mohan Kumar, of G. Pullaiah College of Engineering
and Technology, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh for providing the necessary facilities.

I gratefully acknowledge and express my thanks to the teaching and non-teaching staff of the Mechanical
Engineering Department.

I would like to express my love and affection to our parents for their encouragement throughout this work.

B.HEMANTH (19AT1A0343)

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 PAGE INDEX
1.INTRODUCTION 6
2.LITERATURE REVIEW 7
2.1 Air Powered Engine 7
2.2 Study of Compressed Air Storage System as Clean Potential Energy For 21 Century 7
2.3 Compressed Air Engine Storage System Based Engine for Running Light Vehicles 9
2.4 Vehicle Operation on Compressed Air by Inversion of Slider Crank Mechanism 12
2.5 Air pod-The Mini Car 13
3.RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS 14
3.1 Advantages of Compressed Air Vehicle 14
4.CONCLUSION 15

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 ABSTRACT

The latest trend in the automotive industry is to develop lightweight vehicles. Every automotive industry is
looking to reduce the weight of the vehicle as it helps in the better handling of the vehicle and increases the
efficiency of the vehicle. Today, heavy vehicles are known for producing a large number of harmful gases like
CO2, SO2, etc. which act as the major source of global warming. So, research is going on to find a lightweight
vehicle that does not pollute the environment. One of the alternatives is the use of compressed air to generate
power to run an automobile. Due to the unique and environmentally friendly properties of air, it is considered
as one of the future fuels which will run the vehicles. So, in this paper, an effort is made to study the extent of
research done and the potential advantages and disadvantages of compressed air technology.

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 COMPRESSED AIR ENGINE

1.INTRODUCTION

The first compressed air vehicle was established in France by Polish engineer Louis Mokeski in 1870. It was
patented in 1872 and 1873 and was tested in Paris in 1876. The working principle of Mekarski’s engine was
the use of energy stored in compressed air to increase the gas enthalpy of hot water when it is passed through
hot water. Another application of compressed air to drive vehicles comes from Uruguay in 1984, where
Armando Regusci has been involved in constructing these machines. He constructed a four-wheeler with a
pneumatic engine which travelled 100 km on a single tank in 1992.
The Air Car was developed by Luxembourg-based MDI Group founder and former Formula One engineer
Guy Negra is who works on a compressed air engine (CAE). He developed compressed air- 4- cylinders engine
run on-air and gasoline in 1998 which he claims to be zero-pollution cars. It uses compressed air to push its
pistons when running at speeds under 35 mph and at higher speeds of 96 mph, the compressed air was heated
by a fuel (biofuel, gasoline, or diesel), due to which the air expanded before entering the engine. The fuel
efficiency of about 100 mpg was observed.
Lightweight vehicles are the next advancement in the development of automobiles. Reducing the weight of
the vehicle has many advantages as it increases the overall efficiency of the vehicle, helps in improving
manoeuvrability, requires less energy to stop and run the vehicle. The latest researches are going on around the
world to come up with innovative ideas. But global warming is also one of the problems which are affecting
man. The temperature of the earth is increasing drastically and this, in turn, is causing climatic changes. Fossil
fuels are widely used as a source of energy in various fields like power plants, internal & external combustion
engines, the heat source in manufacturing industries, etc. But its stock is very limited and due to this
tremendous use, fossil fuels are diminishing at a faster rate. So, in this world of the energy crisis, it is necessary
to develop alternative technologies to use renewable energy sources, so that fossil fuels can be conserved.
One of the major sources of pollution is the smoke coming out from automobiles. So, an alternative way of
producing the running the vehicle must be made so that we can prevent further damage to the earth. The
alternative sources of energy available are solar, electric, atmospheric air, etc. Air acts like a blanket for the
earth. It is a mixture of gasses, which makes it neutral and non-polluting. It has the property to get compressed
to very high pressure and retain it for a long time. It is cheap and can be found abundantly in the atmosphere.
So, it can be used as an alternative fuel for automobiles. Much research is going on in this field and
scientists are trying to improve the effectiveness of this technology. It is experimentally found that the
efficiency of the vehicle ranges from 72-95%. So, this can be considered as one of the preferable choices to run
the vehicle. C

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2.LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Air Powered Engine

Prof. B.S. Patel et al. tried to develop a compressed air engine by modifying a 4-stroke, single-cylinder SI
engine by replacing the spark plug with a pulsed pressure valve and using compressed air as the working fluid.
The working of the engine is explained theoretically and the cost analysis is made which shows that the
compressed air engine is cheap when compared to the conventional SI engine.

2.2 Study of Compressed Air Storage System as Clean Potential Energy for 21st Century
Dr. Bharat Raj Singh and Dr. Onkar Singh conducted an experiment in which they used a vaned type novel air
turbine as a prime mover for a motorbike. In this experiment, they tried to gain an output of 6.50 to 7.20 HP for
the starting torque requirements of 500 to 750 rpm at 4 to 6 bars air pressure to running speeds of 2000 to 3000
rpm using 2 to 3 bars air pressure. The test

was
conducted in HBTI Kanpur and the below diagrams show the test rig setup and its layout:

Fig:1 Actual test rig setup

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 Fig:2 Test Layout Setup

It consists of an air compressor which was used to produce and store 300 psi (21 bar approx.) air and use it to
impact the compressed air on the vanes of the novel air turbine. The test was conducted at different inlet
pressures and the efficiencies of the turbine were found to vary from 72 to 97 %. The turbine had a d/D ratio of
0.7 and the results obtained we are follows:
 93% to 99% with a variation of 6%, at speed of rotation 500 rpm for injection pressure 20 psi to 100 psi.
 81.8% to 89.8% with a variation of 8%, at the speed of rotation 1000 rpm for injection pressure 20 psi to 100
psi.
 70.8% to 84.3% with a variation of 13.5%, at the speed of rotation 1500 rpm for injection pressure 20 psi to
100 psi.
 64.4% to 79.8% with a variation of 15.4%, at the speed of rotation 2000 rpm for injection pressure 20 psi to
100 psi.
 59.5% to 76.5% with a variation of 17%, at the speed of rotation 2500 rpm for injection pressure 20 psi to
100 psi.
 56.2% to 72.9% with a variation of 16.7%, at the speed of rotation 3000 rpm for injection pressure 20 psi to
100 psi. A graph given below was drawn for comparing Actual power concerning theoretical power and the
Speed of rotation in rpm:

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 Fig: 3 A graph comparing Actual power concerning theoretical power and the Speed of rotation in rpm

After conducting this research, they have concluded that overall performance of air turbine for working
pressure ranging from 2.7-6 bar is found varying from 72%-97%. This technology can be used in the future
automotive industry.

2.3 Compressed Air Energy Storage System Based Engine for Running Light Vehicle
Dr. Bharat Raj Singh and Dr. Onkar Singh have used a vaned type turbine as the prime mover and have
conducted three different experiments with different casing diameters of 50mm, 100mm, 150mm, with the
constant injection angle of 600, 2500 rpm speed of rotation and 6bars air pressure.

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 Fig: 4 The vaned air turbine

The results obtained after experiments were conducted are: 1) When D=50mm: 0.19 kW- 0.72 kW when rotor
to casing diameter ratios is of 0.95-0.80 and vane angle is kept 30o (vanes 12 nos.) and 0.87 kW- 1.0 kW when
rotor to casing diameter ratios are of 0.75-0.70 and vane angle is kept 36o (vanes nos. 10).

Fig: 5 Total power output (Wt.) versus vane angles when rotor/casing diameter (d/D) ratio is 0.70 when D=50 mm, 100 mm,
and 150 mm

2) When D=100mm 0.8 kW- 2.9 kW, when rotor to casing diameter ratios are of 0.95-0.80 and vane angle is
kept 30o (vanes nos. 12) and 3.5 kW- 4.0 kW, when rotor to casing diameter ratios are of 0.75-0.70 and vane
angle is kept 36o (vanes nos. 10)

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 Fig: 6 Total power output (Wt.) versus different Rotor / Casing ratio at different vane angle when D=100 mm

3) When D=150mm 1.9 kW- 6.5 kW, when rotor to casing diameter ratios are of 0.95-0.80 and vane angle is
kept 30o (vanes nos. 12), and 7.8 kW- 9.0 kW, when rotor to casing diameter ratios are of 0.75-0.70 and vane
angle is kept 36o (vanes nos. 10).

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 Fig: 7 Total power output (Wt.) versus different Rotor /Casing ratio at different vane angle when D=150 mm

The comparison of all the test cases is done and the results are tabulated:

Fig: 8 Total power output (Wt.) versus vane angles when rotor/casing diameter (d/D) ratio is 0.70 when D=50 mm, 100 mm,
and 150 mm

Thus, after this experiment, it is concluded that optimum shaft power output of a novel vaned type air turbine is
obtained when the design parameters for rotor diameter to casing diameter (d/D) ratios are kept between 0.70
to 0.75 and vane angle is 30-45o and the efficiency of the lightweight vehicle would be around 75-97%.

2.4 Vehicle Operating on Compressed Air by Inversion of Slider Crank Mechanism

A.A. Ke steetal. worked on the concept of inversed slider-crank mechanism to utilize compressed air to run a
vehicle [20]. In this experiment, a double-acting pneumatic cylinder was used in which the piston attached to a
pinion generated rotation motion. The below diagram shows the test setup:

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 Fig: 9 Test Setup

A prototype working on this principle is made and then tested, after the test, it is found that for 12liters of air
the prototype vehicles travel 50mts. From this experiment, it can be concluded that this mechanism can also be
utilized for running a vehicle. The prototype built is given below:

Fig: 10 Prototype

2.5 Air pod – The Mini Car

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Air Pod is an alternative fuel vehicle that was developed by Motor Development International, in collaboration
with India’s Tata Motors and Paris-based Air France. It works on compressed air. The Air Pod’s engine works
with the help of two linked cylinders. Compressed air flows into the smaller cylinder first at a constant pressure
of 20 bars. When the smaller piston bottoms out, the intake is closed, and the air in the small cylinder expands,
flowing into the larger cylinder. Both pistons then move to exhaust the expanded air, and the cycle begins
again. The 80 kg of compressed air in the Air Pod’s tank has the capacity of generating 11.2 kilowatt-hours of
mechanical energy when fully expanded at a constant temperature. The manufacturing plant has been set up in
Sardinia, Italy and it would be available in the market by summer 2014.

Fig: 11 The Air Pod

3.RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Compressed air technology allows engines that are both non-polluting and economical. With the use of non-
conventional energy sources such as compressed air engines, we can set a milestone in the field of green
technology because time demands to adopt green technology.

3.1 Advantages of compressed air powered vehicles:

In comparison to petrol or diesel-powered vehicles “air-powered vehicles” have the following advantages:
• Air, on its own, is non-flammable, abundant, economical, transportable, storable, and, most importantly, non-
polluting.
• Compressed air technology reduces the cost of vehicle production by about 20% because there is no need to
build a cooling system, fuel tank, spark plugs, or silencers.
• High torque for minimum volume.
• The mechanical design of the engine is simple and robust.

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• Low manufacture and maintenance costs as well as easy maintenance.
• Lighter vehicles would mean less abuse on roads, thus, resulting in longer-lasting roads.

• The price of fuelling air-powered vehicles will be significantly cheaper than current fuels.
• When the air is being compressed at reasonable speeds, it heats up. The heat given off during compression
could be reclaimed for space heating or water heating, or used in a Stirling engine.
• Transportation of the fuel would not be required due to drawing power off the electrical grid. This presents
significant cost benefits. Pollution created during fuel transportation would be eliminated. Compressed-air
vehicles are comparable in many ways even to electric vehicles and their potential advantages over electric
vehicles include:
• Compressed-air vehicles are unconstrained by the degradation problems associated with current battery
systems.
• Much like electrical vehicles, air-powered vehicles would ultimately be powered through the electrical grid
which makes it easier to focus on reducing pollution from one source, as opposed to the millions of vehicles on
the road.
• Compressed-air tanks can be disposed of or recycled with less pollution than batteries.
• The tank may be able to be refilled more often and, in less time, than batteries can be recharged, with
refuelling rates comparable to liquid fuels.
• The tanks used in a compressed air motor have a longer lifespan in comparison with batteries, which, after a
while suffer from a reduction in performance.

4.CONCLUSIONS:
It’s important to remember that while vehicles running on only compressed air might seem like a distant
dream, but they still have public interest due to their environmentally friendly nature. Compressed air for
vehicle propulsion is already being explored and now air-powered vehicles are being developed as a more fuel-
efficient means of transportation.
This paper explores the effective application of pneumatic power. Pneumatic vehicles will replace the
battery-operated vehicles used in industries. Pneumatic powered vehicle requires very less time for refuelling
as compared to battery-operated vehicle. On the whole, the technology is just about modifying the engine of
any regular IC engine vehicle into an Air Powered Engine. The Air Powered Engine technology is cheaper in
cost and maintenance, can be easily adapted by the masses, and doesn’t cause any kind of harm to the
environment. Instead, its widespread use will help mankind in controlling the serious problem of global
warming. At the end of this review, we conclude that the compressed air technology can be tested and
developed using the Vaned Type Novel Air Turbine as there are minimal losses and practically their efficiency
varies from 72-97% which is very high when compared to a conventional IC engine. Future developments can
be made by designing an ideal vehicle for this kind of engine.

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