The RVCR is a significant improvement when compared to other rotary engines being developed. It is the first commercial viable rotary variable compression ratio engine, combining into one high-tech powertrain, the specific output and performance advantages of rotary motors and the thermal efficiency gains from VCRs.
The adoption of the RVCR engine by manufacturers will have a very positive impact on a European and global scale. The project addresses many important worldwide challenges related to environmental sustainability and reducing emissions to targets set, in particular the 2020 targets set by the EU stating a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels. The EU’s goal is juxtaposed by the growing demand for oil. In 2013 global demand was 90.79 millions of barrels per day (mb/d), and this has grown to 97.03 mb/d in 2016. A gain of 1.2mb/d is expected in 2017. This increased demand for oil means that the Earth’s known oil reserves will be exhausted in approximately 50 years. The RVCR engine is more efficiency and can consume green sources of fuel as well as petrol/diesel, thus ensuring sustainaibility and environmental friendliness, minising dependence on oil. The European Environment Agency estimates that road transport contributes 21% of the EU’s total CO2 emissions and passenger cars are responsible for 14%. Transport CO2 emissions in the EU grew by 23% between 1990 and 2010 whereas other sectors reduced their emissions by 14% on average over the same period making it the worst performing sector under the Kyoto Treaty. This has given rise to urgent and increasing pressure globally to drastically reduce the fuel consumption and pollution created by road transport. Currently in the EU, the average passenger car produces about 2.6 tonnes of CO2 per year. The RVCR is up to 30% more efficient meaning that the average CO2 produced by a car could be reduced to about 1.8 tonnes of CO2.
