India successfully built pneumatic cars

This car does not pollute the environment, as it runs on air.

In 2007, Indian automaker Tata signed an agreement with French auto maker Motor Development International. Their idea is to build a car that can run on compressed air. Now, Tata says they are testing two cars with engines powered by this fuel. The next step is to open the manufacturing plant to put the model into production.

Compressed air motors are not new ideas. The first model was introduced more than a century ago, and it was used in mining for decades before the electric motor became popular. Even today, compressed air is also being used in many technical tools.

Tata's pneumatic car model. (Source: Discovery)

Compressed air cars also operate in the same way as internal combustion engines: the fuel generates pressure on the piston to operate the crankcase to keep the car running. The difference is that in pneumatic engines, the pistons are operated by air instead of gasoline. Researchers in Sweden have experimented with pneumatic single-cylinder models.

The only problem is the force. Compressed air only helps the car run about 30 - 35 miles per hour. To improve air quality, cars need more air by using a built-in compressor. The compressor can be powered by electric or gasoline. But this also helps the car reduce emissions considerably compared to gasoline engines.

Another issue is the range of the car. Like all other vehicles, air-conditioned cars can run until the fuel runs out. The compressed air reserves need fuel tanks made of materials that are stronger than steel to hold huge amounts of compressed air.

Compressed gas is less dangerous than gas and hydrogen. But the problem is that loading the fuel tank requires a minimum of 2 hours.

Tata seems to be the only car manufacturer to actually produce a pneumatic car. Honda unveiled an idea for the 2010 pneumatic car, which it named Zero Pollution Motors , but it has not come up yet.