BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to air engines and, more particularly, to an air engine incorporating an improved super heated self compressed rotary turbine.

2. Description of the Related Art

An improved super-heated self-compressed rotary air turbine is taught and described in U.S. Pat. No. 10,480,343 in the name of the present inventor and incorporated by reference as if fully rewritten herein. Such a system teaches a built-in, outside-in axial flux generator provided for providing power to heaters in thermal communication with the walls of the turbine chambers. Moisture within the working fluid is thus heated, making steam and thereby increasing the pressure of the working fluid. The compression caused by the turbine rotation also increases temperature. The discharge of each turbine chamber is feeding a nozzle, giving it the impression of a sprinkler. Such a turbine design is very efficient and also triples the shaft power with extended torque radius resulting from the increased reaction force of the nozzles. The shaft power drives a main generator, and after passing over the turbine the air stream maintains half of its initial energy. The remaining energetic air stream left is then cycled to the compressor, thereby completing the cycle. In operation, a DC bus voltage, which is the main generator, can remain approximately constant, regardless of the load. Input to the compressor can be regulated with the rpm of the compressor motor and the current to the heaters in the turbine.

When the turbine of the '343 reference was initially designed it incorporated heating elements designed to be able to heat up working fluid in each of the plurality of arcuate shaped chambers such as to heat the fluid contents as it flows through the chambers. However, continued development has led to discoveries for improvements to modify such an air engine in which the superheating of the working fluid could be provided without the electric heating elements, but rather from the supercharged air flow. The generation of such a high enough heat range was totally unexpected.

Consequently, an improved air engine incorporating a super-heated, self-compressed air rotary turbine is provided.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide new technology for a steam engine for producing work output.

It is a feature of the present invention to provide an improved turbine having a greater number of expansion chambers and an improved radial compressor supercharger in order to eliminate the need for internal heaters.

Briefly described according an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, an improved air engine is provided for operating on a recirculation of superheated air-steam working fluid. The turbine has a first fluid intake, a first fluid discharge and a power output shaft, said power output shaft providing rotation power output generated from a change in entropy of the combines air-steam working fluid through the turbine. A power turbine superheats the working fluid discharge and includes a turbocharger in operational communication with an electric DC motor, and a compressor mechanically driven by the turbocharger. The discharge from the compressor forms the turbine intake. A water injection system may be further provided for adding steam to the working fluid reticulation circuit. A drive motor operatively coupled to the turbine may be used for startup to bring the turbine up to operational rotation speeds. A DC generator operatively coupled to recharge a battery driving the drive motor or for providing electrical power output

The main turbine includes an improved rotating core assembly forming a greater number (i.e., 16 instead of 8) desending chambers to provide increased air flow volume and increased power output without the need for the addition of internal heat from electric heaters (as provided in the prior art).

Advantages of the present improvements allow for increase torque and shaft power upwards of a 250% as compared to known configurations of recirculating compressed air engines.

Further objects, elements, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent in the course of the following description.

