Pistonless rotary engine: Difference between revisions

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A pistonless rotary engine is an internal combustion engine that does not use pistons in the way a reciprocating engine does. Designs vary widely but typically involve one or more rotors, sometimes called rotary pistons. Although many different designs have been constructed, only the Wankel engine has achieved widespread adoption.

The term rotary combustion engine has been used as a name for these engines^{[citation needed]} to distinguish them from early (generally up to the early 1920s) aircraft engines and motorcycle engines also known as rotary engines. However, both continue to be called rotary engines and only the context determines which type is meant, whereas the "pistonless" prefix is less ambiguous.

Pistonless rotary engines

A pistonless rotary engine replaces the linear reciprocating motion of a piston with more complex compression/expansion motions with the objective of improving some aspect of the engine's operation, such as: higher efficiency thermodynamic cycles, lower mechanical stress, lower vibration, higher compression, or less mechanical complexity. As of 2006^[update] the Wankel engine is the only successful pistonless rotary engine, but many similar concepts have been proposed and are under various stages of development. Examples of rotary engines include:

Production stage

Wankel engine
LiquidPiston engine
Beauchamp Tower's nineteenth century spherical steam engine (in actual use as a steam engine, but theoretically adaptable to use internal combustion)

Development stage

Engineair engine
Hamilton Walker engines
Libralato rotary Atkinson cycle engine
Nutating disc engine
Quasiturbine
RKM engine, German: RotationsKolbenMaschine
Sarich orbital engine
Swing-piston engine, Trochilic
Wave disk engine

Conceptual stage

Gerotor engine
Internally Radiating Impulse Structure: IRIS engine

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+{{short description|Internal combustion engine}}
 {{About|pistonless design|other uses of this term|rotary engine (disambiguation)|the early piston design|rotary engine}}
+{{more citations needed|date=April 2016}}
+[[File:Rotary Engine Photo Sequence 01.gif|thumb|[[Libralato engine]] ]]
+A '''pistonless rotary engine''' is an [[internal combustion engine]] that does not use [[piston]]s in the way a [[reciprocating engine]] does. Designs vary widely but typically involve one or more [[wikt:rotor|rotor]]s, sometimes called '''rotary pistons'''. Although many different designs have been constructed, only the [[Wankel engine]] has achieved widespread adoption.
-{{refimprove|date=April 2016}}
-A '''pistonless rotary engine''' is an [[internal combustion engine]] that does not use [[piston]]s in the way a [[reciprocating engine]] does, but instead uses one or more [[wikt:rotor|rotor]]s, sometimes called '''rotary pistons'''. An example of a pistonless rotary engine is the [[Wankel engine]].
-The term '''rotary combustion engine''' has been suggested{{By whom|date=July 2010}} as an alternative name for these engines{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}} to distinguish them from early (generally up to the early 1920s) [[aircraft engine]]s and [[motorcycle engine]]s also known as ''[[rotary engine]]s''. However, both continue to be called ''rotary engines'' and only the context determines which type is meant.
+The term '''rotary combustion engine''' has been used as a name for these engines{{Citation needed|date=July 2010}} to distinguish them from early (generally up to the early 1920s) [[aircraft engine]]s and [[motorcycle engine]]s also known as ''[[rotary engine]]s''. However, both continue to be called ''rotary engines'' and only the context determines which type is meant, whereas the "pistonless" prefix is less ambiguous.
 ==Pistonless rotary engines==
-The basic concept of a pistonless rotary engine avoids the reciprocating motion of the piston with its inherent [[vibration]] and rotational-speed-related mechanical [[Stress (physics)|stress]]. {{As of|2006}} the Wankel engine is the only successful pistonless rotary engine, but many similar concepts have been proposed and are under various stages of development. Examples of rotary engines include:
+A pistonless rotary engine replaces the linear reciprocating motion of a piston with more complex compression/expansion motions with the objective of improving some aspect of the engine's operation, such as: higher efficiency [[Thermodynamic cycle|thermodynamic cycles]], lower [[Stress (mechanics)|mechanical stress]], lower vibration, higher [[Compression ratio|compression]], or less mechanical complexity. {{As of|2006}} the Wankel engine is the only successful pistonless rotary engine, but many similar concepts have been proposed and are under various stages of development. Examples of rotary engines include:
-;Production stage:
+;Production stage
+*[[Wankel engine]]
-{{div col|3}}
+*[[LiquidPiston]] engine
-* [[Beauchamp Tower]]'s nineteenth century [http://www.aqpl43.dsl.pipex.com/MUSEUM/POWER/tower/tower.htm spherical steam engine] (theoretically adaptable to use internal combustion)
+* Beauchamp Tower's nineteenth century [https://web.archive.org/web/20180119014044/http://www.aqpl43.dsl.pipex.com/MUSEUM/POWER/tower/tower.htm spherical steam engine] (in actual use as a steam engine, but theoretically adaptable to use internal combustion)
-* The [[Wankel engine]]
-;Development stage:
+;Development stage
-* The [[Baylin engine]] <ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=TCEDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA130&dq=popular+science+1930&hl=en&ei=UY3MTsHTAsyltwfyz5xa&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CD4Q6AEwAzhG#v=onepage&q&f=true "How the Baylin Engine Works."] ''Popular Mechanics'', July 1946, pp. 131-132.</ref>
-* The [[Angelo Di Pietro (inventor)#Di Pietro Motor|Engineair engine]]
+*[[Angelo Di Pietro (inventor)#Di Pietro Motor|Engineair engine]]
+*[[Hamilton Walker (New Zealand)|Hamilton Walker]] engines
-* The [[Liquidpiston]] engine
+*Libralato rotary [[Atkinson cycle]] engine
-* The Crankless engine [http://www.crankless.net]
+*[[Nutating disc engine]]
-* The [[Hamilton Walker (New Zealand)|Hamilton Walker]] engine
+*[[Quasiturbine]]
-* The Libralato rotary [[Atkinson cycle]] engine
+*[[RKM engine]], {{langx|de|RotationsKolbenMaschine}}
-* The [[Quasiturbine]]
+*[[Sarich orbital engine]]
-* The Ramgen [[Integrated Supersonic Component Engine]]
+*[[Swing-piston engine]], Trochilic<!-- see talk page -->
-* The [[Rand cam engine]]
+*[[Wave disk engine]]
-* The [[RKM engine]], {{lang-de|RotationsKolbenMaschine}}
-* The [[Sarich orbital engine]]
+;Conceptual stage
-* The [[Tri-Dyne Engine]]<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=FyoDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA45&dq=popular+science+1930&hl=en&ei=RJLlTt-gB8edgweY-smBBg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDMQ6AEwADhu#v=onepage&q&f=true "Tri-Dyne: Slick New Rotary Engine Could Lick the Wankel."] ''Popular Science'', July 1969, pp. 45-47 & 160-162.</ref>
+*[[Gerotor]] engine
-* The [[Trochilic engine]] <!-- see talk page -->
-* The [[Wave disk engine]]
+*Internally Radiating Impulse Structure: [[IRIS engine]]
-* The Moto Turbine Radiale by Jean Claude Lefeuvre [http://dai.ly/aFvCa5]
-* The [[Jonova engine]]
-* The Renault-Rambler lobular rotor engine (Spanish pat nº 0313466)
-;Conceptual stage:
-* The [[Gerotor]] engine
-* The Rotary Engine by Jose-Ignacio Martin-Artajo, SI [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziM7Cfv_wYU]
-* The Jose Maria Bosch-Barata engines ( Spanish pats nºs 0228187, 0254176 and 0407242)
-* The Cruz-Antonio Lopez-Contreras engines- Cross Aeronautics, Huelva, Spain [http://crossaeronautics.com/]
-{{div col end}}
 ==See also==
 * [[Range extender (vehicle)]]
-== References ==
-{{Reflist}}
 == Further reading ==
-* Jan P. Norbye: 'Rivals to the Wankel: A Roundup of Rotary Engines', Popular Science, Jan 1967, pp 80-85.
+* Jan P. Norbye: 'Rivals to the Wankel: A Roundup of Rotary Engines', Popular Science, Jan 1967, pp 80–85. [https://books.google.com/books?id=CSEDAAAAMBAJ]
+* [https://www.macsmotorcitygarage.com/ramblers-forgotten-1964-rotary-engine/?fbclid=IwAR2iWLJPySVAqwdxyR9EqQPKJxcsqfRTj7dNfLpcTo7aO2AvDdPR6xMqO-U Article referencing the October 1964 issue of Mechanix Illustrated and the AMC/Rambler rotary]
-{{Piston engine configurations}}
 {{Heat engines}}
 {{Authority control}}
-[[Category:Pistonless rotary engine|*]]
-[[Category:Piston engine configurations]]
+[[Category:Pistonless rotary engine| ]]
 [[Category:Proposed engines]]
 [[Category:Engine technology]]

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