Cryogenics. The Dolphin N2 team are at the forefront of CryoPower “game-changing” technologies. How has the team grown & developed during 2018 & what can the Cryogenic technologies offer in the battle for reduced emissions & greater versatility for heavy duty engines, haulage & stationary power distribution?
Cryogenics & Cryopower are not necessarily a new concept, but the use of Liquid Nitrogen as a renewable & emission free fuel source is beginning to gain considerable traction. An article in the International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications recognised in 2016 that “Liquid nitrogen fueled vehicles can act as an excellent alternative for the traditional gasoline engines. Liquefied N2 at cryogenic temperatures can replace conventional fuels in cryogenic heat engines used as a propellant. The ambient temperature of the surrounding vaporizes the liquid form of N2 under pressure & leads to the formation of compressed N2 gas.” (1)
Over the past 10 years, Ricardo Plc & partners, including the University of Brighton, have been developing their CryoPower engine, based on the split cycle diesel engine. During this time, spin off company, Dolphin N2 was born. The Dolphin N2 name is in recognition of Sir Harry Ricardo, founder of Ricardo Plc & who designed a two-stroke 3. 3 litre engine in 1909, for his cousin Ralph Ricardo, who had started a small concern in a yard at Shoreham. This engine was used in the Dolphin car. (2)
Dolphin N2, now recognised as a company in their own right & headed up by CEO Simon Brewster; are bringing their game-changing CryoPower technology out of development & providing practical, feasible & reliant alternatives to traditional diesel engine technologies.
Simon Brewster says of the technology “CryoPower is a game-changing, commercially and environmentally attractive technology, whose time really has come” Furthermore, Simon Brewster goes on to say “The development of the conventional heavy duty engine is reaching the point of diminishing returns with regard to fuel efficiency and CO2; to go significantly beyond the current state of the art requires a completely new approach. CryoPower offers and promises a step-change improvement in both fuel efficiency and operating fuel cost”
Although the split-cycle engine concept is far from a new idea, what makes the Dolphin N2 CryoPower split cycle engine design so unique, is the ability to recover the exhaust gas heat as part of the compression process. As the compression process is carried out isothermally, this significantly reduces the temperature rise during compression through the use of a small jet of liquid nitrogen being added at the crucial moment. The cooled, highly compressed charge, then passes through a heat exchanger & subsequently recovers the heat within the engine, recouping energy which would otherwise be lost to the atmosphere.
The Dolphin N2 CryoPower split-cycle engine not only offers up to 90% less out emissions, but the operator & manufacturing costs are highly competitive. With up to 20-30% reduction in operator costs & fuel consumption, alongside the comparatively inexpensive materials & processes; the Dolphin N2 CryoPower technology really is an attractive environmentally sensitive & game-changing global product.
One fundamental part of the development of the CryoPower engine, is the collaboration that Ricardo Plc has with The University of Brighton. Professor Robert Morgan – Professor of Thermal Propulsion Systems, has been collaborating on the split-cycle engine with Ricardo since the 1990’s. Professor Morgan says of the CryoPower technologies “The CryoPower engine is fundamental to procurement, long distance freight & distributed back up generation”
Collaborations are at the very core of any development & the Dolphin N2 team, as it continues to grow, add more industry knowledge & expertise to bring the Dolphin N2 CryoPower engine technologies before a global audience.
Simon Brewster – CEO Dolphin N2 having joined Ricardo PLC in 2011 as a Chief Engineer, has seen several roles including: Head of Industrial & Large Engines, Director Industrial Engines, Director Industrial & Defence. He now heads up the Dolphin N2 team.
Benjamin West – Operations Manager Dolphin N2 has since leaving university, worked for some of the industry giants in Engineering excellence including the role of Senior Development Manager at Rolls Royce, Principal Design Engineer at MAN Diesel, Product Engineering Manager at Delphi Diesel & Technical Business Manager at Ricardo.
Nick Owen – Technical Director at Dolphin N2, brings his expertise in the low carbon transport & kilowatt-scale power sectors, heat-engine, battery, fuel cell & associated technologies to Dolphin N2. In December 2018, Nick was awarded an environment award from the IMechE’s automobile division, in recognition of his prize-winning presentation building the case for the global need for clean cold and power. (2) Nick said “The IMechE has a central role in promoting British innovation and I was pleased to receive an environment award for my presentation on clean cold and power. Cold is essential for food chains, data centres, home and workplace comfort. But it must be provided cleanly, especially as public awareness increases of the polluting nature of diesel.”
Rhys Pickett – Chief Engineer Dolphin N2 joined Ricardo PLC in 2008 & has undertaken a progressive series of roles. Rhys joined the Dolphin N2 team with a keen understanding of the technologies for the split cycle CryoPower engine & has been instrumental in collaborating with The University of Brighton in the building & testing of the cryo rig.
Helena Parrott – Executive VA & business support & Director of Virtually Smart Ltd, brings a wealth of business management skills & processes to the Dolphin N2 team, including but not exclusively: supporting the team with their day to day business operations, administrative expertise & executive support solutions.
In addition to the more established members of the Dolphin N2 team, the team has also welcomed some new members through 2018 into 2019. Fabrizio Treccarichi joined Dolphin N2 as an Engine Simulation Engineer, Katy-Jane Mason as content researcher/writer & social media manager & most recently Paul Metcalf joins the team as project engineer with specific focus on developing the subassemblies that will be required for the multi cylinder demonstrator.
The Dolphin N2 team continues to grow & develop the CryoPower engine technologies with a clear goal to create a sustainable & versatile solution to the heavy duty & haulage industries need to reduce their CO2 emissions. In addition, Dolphin N2 are now being recognised as innovators & pioneers for their ground-breaking technologies, which can & will make a global impact in the emissions reduction strategies of industry trend-setters & leaders.
Written by Katy-Jane Mason on behalf of Dolphin N2.
- https://www.academia.edu/29788656/Cryogenic_Liquid_Nitrogen_Vehicles_ZEV_S_
- http://www-g.eng.cam.ac.uk/millennium/achievements/ricardo/textpage.htm#’DOLPHIN’
- https://dearman.co.uk/nick-owen-recognised-with-imeche-environment-award/
