Inventors:
William A. Lynch - Cohasset MA, US
Neal A. Sondergaard - Severna Park MD, US
Assignee:
The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy - Washington DC
International Classification:
F01K 13/00
Abstract:
A metal fuel combustion system and method for producing energy. The energy may be used to drive a water vessel such as a submarine. The system and method comprises a combustion device having inner and outer combustion chambers. The metal fuel comprises aluminum, magnesium, and silicon, and is preferably in the form MgAlSi, and is preferably burnt using water as an oxidant. The byproduct of and the metal oxide byproduct is MgAlSiO, which has an appearance and consistency similar to basaltic sea sand. In addition to the combustion device, the system may include additional energy producing elements such as fuel cells, thermoelectric cells, and photovoltaic cells.