[fireant911]

I post this information because others too may find it interesting. However, I am also extremely hesitant due to the practically guaranteed response by our resident expert on everything. To him – please stop as you are damaging the message board and, trust me, you are not convincing anyone of anything. Your pompous attitude is extremely unsettling and unwanted… To the real people here – I would be interested in knowing your thoughts about the process described below.

A plethora of gimmicks are available that are touted as a method to increase fuel mileage. Typically, all are quickly dispelled as being a complete waste of money. The following process, however, captivated my interest.

In the latest issue of Scientific American, there is a relatively short paragraph entitled “More Fluid Mileage” by Charles Q. Choi in the News Scan section. The point of the article is that by using electric fields on fuels that the viscosity of the fuel is decreased. By obtaining a less viscous liquid, smaller droplets of fuel (presumably greater atomization) can be injected in the vehicle’s engine. The smaller droplets of fuel, in turn, produce a more efficient engine. The article (which is not an advertisement) further states that this efficiency can approach 20%. Pennsylvania’s Temple University outfitted a diesel vehicle with such a device and the mileage per gallon increased 18.9% - from 32 to 38 mpg. The electrical consumption by the electric fields was less than 0.1 watt. The technical name of the process is Electrorheology and there was an earlier article in Scientific American in October, 1993 named “Electrorhelogical Fluids”.

Apparently, this is not a recent discovery; however, it may be in regards to the application in engines for increasing the efficiency. For those subscribers of Energy & Fuels, another article was to be available in the November 19 issue. Does anyone know anything or have any practical experience with this process?