Revolutionary Compressed-Air Car to be Manufactured in India

17 May 2007 - 20:51

Revolutionary Virtually Pollution Free Compressed-Air Car to be Manufactured by Tata Motors

In a groundbreaking and revolutionary move, Tata Motors, India's largest automotive manufacturer, recently signed an agreement with French company MDI (Moteur Developpement International) to manufacture the first commercial compressed air car based on an MDI design.

The Mini C.A.T will be a light car for the urban environment, with a fiberglass body. As a result it will be astonishingly cost-efficient and non-polluting, only 1 euro per 100 km, a petrol car will generally cost around 10 euros per 100 km. It runs on compressed air and has a range of around 200 to 300 km, or 8 hours, with a top speed of 68 mph.

Once the car becomes available, petrol stations will need to be adapted to offer compressed air. It will take only two to three minutes to fill the car up with compressed air, which is expected to cost around 1.5 euros.

In case of emergency the car also has a small compressor which can be connected to the mains electricity supply and which will refill the tank in 3 to 4 hours.

There is no combustion involved, consequently there are no residues, and the 1 litre of vegetable oil only needs to be changed every 50,000 km.

The Principle behind the Engine

90m3 of compressed air is stored in fibre tanks. This expands and pushes the pistons, thus creating movement. The atmospheric temperature re-heats the engine and increases road coverage. The cold air expelled is used in the air conditioning system.

The company responsible for the design of the car is "Moteur Development International" (MDI) in the south of France. The technology is protected by more than 30 International patents and MDI is seeking licensees. According to the company, 50 factories in Europe, America and Asia have already signed contracts.

Tata Motors

Tata has signed an agreement with MDI to apply MDI's engine technology in India, which it describes as "efficient, cost-effective, scalable, and capable of other applications such as power generation".

Under the agreement Tata will be able to support further development and refinement of the technology, and also its application and licensing for India.

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