ORBITAL SUPPORTS LOTUS ENGINEERING WITH OMNIVORE ENGINE PROGRAM
Orbital is working collaboratively with Lotus Engineering with the supply of hardware and technical support to the OMNIVORE Concept Engine program.
The OMNIVORE concept engine is a program led by Lotus Engineering in conjunction with Queen's University Belfast to develop an engine which maximises fuel efficiency when operating on a wide range of renewable fuels.
The engine features an innovative variable compression ratio system and uses a two-stroke operating cycle with direct fuel injection making the OMNIVORE engine ideally suited to flex-fuel operation with a higher degree of optimisation than is possible with existing engine designs. The results of the engine testing will be used to model vehicle performance and fuel consumption efficiency potential.
Orbital's support to Lotus Engineering is with provision of the FlexDI™ direct injection system and technical assistance, including Orbital's developments with HCCI (Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition) to maximise the combustion benefits from the direct injection system. As a part of this collaboration, Orbital will be able to share in the information generated by the program, and to be able to jointly publish results.
Mr Terry Stinson, Orbital CEO and Managing Director comments: "We are pleased to be involved with this program through Lotus Engineering. We see this as an important program having potential long term benefits to both the consumer in improved fuel consumption and in also helping to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions from future automotive engines. The OMNIVORE program aligns very well with Orbital's alternative fuel strategies"
Mike Kimberley, Chief Executive Officer of Group Lotus Plc said: "The automotive industry is now focusing on its environmental obligations to reduce CO2 emissions and improve efficiencies and we are seeing the high technology capabilities of Lotus Engineering being in strong demand. The OMNIVORE concept will employ novel engine architecture to achieve a high thermal efficiency when fuelled on any alcohols or gasoline and the engine design will significantly increase fuel efficiency for sustainable alcohol fuels. In partnership with Orbital and Queen's University Belfast we look forward to progressing the research development and the demonstration of this environmentally conscious transport solution."
The OMNIVORE programme complements the recently unveiled Lotus Exige 270E Tri-fuel as part of Lotus' research to understand the complex combustion process involved in running on mixtures of alcohol fuels and gasoline, which will be important for a successful transition from today's fuels to the sustainable, synthetic fuels of the future. For more information on the OMINVORE engine program, please visit the following Lotus website: http://www.grouplotus.com/mediacentre/
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