Hi,
My name is Leo Wong. I am a student that is currently attending California State University of the East Bay. I am a freshman and am currently taking business classes. The class that I am currently doing this blog for is Library. It is actually called Information Literacy. This blog is due on Tuesday March 18, 2008 by 5 p.m. Thanks for stopping by.
The topic I chose to discuss is about ceramic engine components. The benefits to using ceramic engine components would be their efficiencies as well as their durability. Many components in engine can be made out of ceramic. Ceramic is much lighter than steel which is usually used for the same components. The weight ratio between the two is 5.5:14 for ceramic: steel. This weight saving in itself makes it worthwhile to invest in this technology. Ceramics have been around for many thousands of years. It started with the baking of clay or any non-metallic material into a hardened substance. We now have the technology to synthesize a material almost equally as strong as diamond but still have the ability to mold it. This special feature allows for parts that used to be made out of metal to be cast into ceramic. Engine blocks are the newest innovation in this field. It is still in the research and development phase but will quickly be of mass production in the years to come. Engine parts are already being made out of ceramic or coated with ceramic like exhaust manifolds, valves, and intake manifolds. The way this works out with my cluster themes is because it has to do with the environment as well as energy. The ceramic rotary engine has the ability to run on many different types of fuels as well as allowing them to be flexible with different types of fuels.
APA citations for 2 websites for my topic.
Defazio Inc. Home. Defazio Rotary, Inc. Retrieved March 10, 2008, from
http://www.defazio-rotary.com/
CRE Technical Team. Ceramic Rotary Engines, Inc. Ceramic Rotary
Engines, Inc. Retrieved March 13, 2008, from
http://ceramicrotaryengines.com/
APA Citations for Academic Journals.
Santos, H., & Costa, M. (February 2008).
Evaluation of the conversion of ceramic and metallic three way catalytic converters.
Energy Conversion and Management, 49.March, 2008, from
http://apps.isiknowledge.com/full_record.do?product=WOS&search_mode=GeneralSearch&qid=1&SID=2DAfOAKCK6KpB8Fjo39&page=1&doc=4
This article consist of research done to find out whether having ceramic as a catalyst would allow for a cleaner burning vehicle. This was taken from the Web of Science search database.
Buyukkaya, E, & Cerit, M (2007). Thermal Analysis of Ceramic Coating Diesel Engine Pistons.
Surface and Coatings Technology, 202, Retrieved March 18, 2008, from http://apps.isiknowledge.com/full_record.do?product=WOS&search_mode=GeneralSearch&qid=1&SID=2DAfOAKCK6KpB8Fjo39&page=1&doc=9.
This article is about a test that was done to 4 diesel engine pistons. One was left uncoated and 3 were coated with each a different type of layer. Research was done in order to find out the different thermal reactions each coating had as well as what the thermal conductivity would be of each coating compared to the original test.
Taymaz, I, Cakir, K, & Mimaroglu, A Experimental study of effective efficiency in a ceramic coated diesel engine.
Surface and Coating Technologies, 200, Retrieved March 10, 2008, from http://apps.isiknowledge.com/full_record.do?product=WOS&search_mode=Refine&qid=3&SID=2DAfOAKCK6KpB8Fjo39&page=1&doc=3.
This article was about a test that was done to a 6 cylinder, fuel injected, turbocharged diesel engine. The engine was first tested without any coatings. After that baseline test, the engine was then coated with a ceramic composite which proved to with hold more heat which in turn reduces energy loss to coolant. This article begins by explaining the energy loss that happens in an engine.
APA Citations for Blogroll:
Sanchez, Edward (2007, September 20). Algae biodiesel: exponential efficiencies. Retrieved March 18, 2008, from
Algae Biodiesel: Exponential Efficiencies Web site: http://www.thecarblog.com/rants/algae_biodiesel_exponential_efficiencies.php
This is a blog about how corn and soybeans are promoted all the time as the next wave of cleaner energy when the statistics aren’t that promising. corn will only produce 18 gallons of oil per year and soybeans will only produce 48 gallons of oil per year. Algae on the other hand have an advantage of producing over 5,000 to 15,000 gallons a year.
Staff, (2008, March 18). Alternatice fuel bad for the earth. wait, what?. Retrieved March 18, 2008, from Alternatice Fuel Bad for the Earth. Wait, What? Web site: http://blogs.automotive.com/6233500/opinion/alternative-fuel-bad-for-the-earth-wait-what/index.html
This blog is a short one that talks about corn derived ethanol for our fuels. It quickly states that the fertilizer is getting into the Mississippi River causing an outgrowth of algae that is physically suffocating the marine layers below. This in turn leads to oxygen deprived dead zones in the water.
APA Citation for a book:
Bent, R. (Ed.). (2002). Energy Science, Policy, and the Pursuit of Sustainability (1st ed.). Indiana University: Island Press.
This book contains valuable information and statistics as to how energy is being used and how efficiently. The interesting statistic is that only 10% of the oil out of the ground is used to power a vehicle. The other 90% is used to obtain, transport, and refine the oil for vehicle consumption. Since we do weight less than 10% of our car weight for the general person, we are actually only using 1% of the oil in the ground to transport our bodies around. The editor comes from the Institute for Advanced Study at the Indiana University.
Link to my Delicious account:
http://del.icio.us/itzjuzme
