Combustion chamber heat

[Robert Harris]

Just a random thought.  Spark Ignitions have been around
since the turn of the century, and unlike any other part of the
engine, have remained essentially unchanged - simply 
refined.  We still start the fire with an itty bitty flame and wait
until it slowly spreads thru the chamber.

Has anyone given any serious thought to using industrial strength
gas lasers or similar technology?  Picture instead of a small
flame starting at the plug and radiating outward, a shaped beam 
of energy fanning thru the chamber - igniting virtually all the fuel
almost instantly thru out the chamber.  Potential benefits - almost
total combustion, more power, very little power robbing spark 
advance needed, etc.

I picture something like a quartz window screwed in where the plug
now goes, a large, flexible fiber optic light pipe going from the plug
to the laser and a high speed high power laser for each cylinder being
fired by control electronics.  I'd pick its light frequency to be
harmonically
related to either the hydrogen or carbon atoms resonance to get
maximum energy transfer.  What would be nicer would be to steal some
star wars weapons stuff.  Don't matter what the source or type of energy
beam - heck I'd even use a phasor beam (if it was remotely connected to
reality) - just as long as I could fire the whole chamber almost
simultaneously.

I know its possible, what I am hoping is that out there some where, some
lab
guy has hidden away knowledge of  industrial strength lasers that might be 
adapted to an experiment and is willing to share it with the rest of us.

Won't see anything like this in production for years - cost you know.  If
it costs
$1.00 more and you make a million cars, thats almost enuff saved to pay for
a party for the president if you don't do it.  Probably won't see it in the
U.S.A.
Anything powerful enuff to light the fire will be labeled as a munition by
the 
CIA or banned as a terrorist weapon not usable for hunting or sporting
purposes
by our president.

Now I realize that the preceding idea was not discussed in the
fourth edition of the holy grail by some long dead European dude
before the onset of senility and probably has not hitten popular
hot rodding or thermodynamics 101, but, I've got new asbestos
panty liners so I thought I'd ask.  Besides, if the technology is
ready, and I can steal it, I really don't care what the world thinks

-----     Cut here - personal comment follows -----
Q: What's the difference between Jane Fonda and Bill Clinton?
A: She had the balls to go to Viet Nam
  
Robert Harris <bob at bobthecomputerguy.com>


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