Ferrari Files Patent Using Pulse Jet Tech On Road Cars
Ferrari want to accelerate, change aerodynamics, and increase handling potential of their cars with pulse jets. Absolutely yes.
To be honest, this news seems like something that would come out of the Lamborghini camp. Pulse jet thrusters on a car. It’s pure Lambo madness. But nope, this patent belongs to Ferrari. We are definitely not complaining. According to TheDrive, the patent with the pulse jets covers two forms of thrusters. Both of which share various levels of absurdity. One is a compressed air thruster, and the other is the already mentioned pulse jet.
The theory is somewhat similar to the Ferrari F1 blown diffusers that appeared in F1 a number of years ago. The theory is that more air flow over certain parts of the bodywork would effectively increase that bodywork’s role in creating downforce. More air flowing through the rear diffuser, for instance, would create an even greater negative pressure area. So, they aren’t really used like rocket propulsion, but they would add a bit of a boost to whichever direction they are aimed.
The way things work for the air compressed version is simple, yet complicated. Air tanks are filled with compressed air via pump that is connected to the axles. Given they have to compress to about 13,000 PSI in their tanks, there’s an in-line intercooler system to retain air density. Then each thruster has five nozzles in increasing sizes. Narrow nozzles flow air at a high rate for long durations, and wider nozzles flow the same rate at lower durations when the tanks might not be fully filled up.
Then there’s the pulse jets. These would be “supplied with a liquid fuel (typically, the same liquid fuel supplying [the] internal combustion heat engine.)” So gasoline fueled pulse jets. For anyone who doesn’t know, pulse jets are remarkably loud, and the same can be said for compressed air, too. Both systems would apparently be leaving their respective thrusters at supersonic speed. So while engines might not have the wail of V12’s in the past, new cars will sound truly out-of-this-world.
Interestingly, the gasoline pulse jets technically wouldn’t count towards emissions, even if the thrusters are of the fuel burning pulse jet type. As far as we know, EPA doesn’t account for that. Ferrari may very well re-write the rules.
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