Billionaire Boys Club Member Forum (BBCMF)

[mick]

when injected into a fuel-air mixture, plasma ions trigger a chemical chain reaction that's entirely different than the chemical reactions that a spark ignites. The fuel still releases similar amounts of energy, but unlike with conventional fuel burning, the reaction doesn't create any NOX. It also causes the fuel to burn more thoroughly, almost completely eliminating methane. "The fuel chemistry is completely different when you inject plasma," says Biswas.

That may sound too good to be true, but it's based on physics that have been known for decades. Nothing has ever come of it because plasma igniters are typically the size of refrigerators and cost thousands of dollars. The big innovation from Biswas and his fellow researchers involves enlisting electronics and new fabrication techniques to shrink plasma igniters down to reasonable size and cost—Biswas estimates his device would cost about $20 in mass production.

Cars equipped with plasma spark plugs could have a big impact on efforts to tame climate change. But trucks, boats, planes and helicopters may be a bigger opportunity. Unlike cars, all-electric versions of heavier, higher-powered vehicles can't yet match the range of gas or diesel engines at a reasonable cost.