uncleheed Posted March 30, 2004 Share Posted March 30, 2004 Has anyone else heard the story about the magic petrol tablet that was supposed to have been invented in Sheffield in the 60's or 70's? I heard that a man from Sheffield invented a tablet that he put in a car with a tank full of water and then added his tablet and the car ran around an airfield for a day. He then marketed it to the oil companies,and ESSO or BP showed an interest. Then when he struck a deal,no-one heard any more about the tablet. When i first heard the tale i thought it was cobblers,but when you think about it,the oil companies would want it swept under the carpet wouldn't they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saxon51 Posted March 30, 2004 Share Posted March 30, 2004 It wouldn't be the same bloke who invented the magic water tablet would it? It was designed to save you having to hump gallons of water around in the desert. "To produce 1 gallon of crystal clear water, simply place one tablet in a container and dissolve in 1 gallon of water." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
little malc Posted April 1, 2004 Share Posted April 1, 2004 As an old-un I heard this story some time ago, the invention was a bit more than a tablet, but apparently, it converted water to Hydrogen and oxygen in a gas form, which was then able to be used in a car converted to run on gas, the patent was bought by one of the big oil companies, who then promptly buried it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Killian Posted April 1, 2004 Share Posted April 1, 2004 Originally posted by little malc As an old-un I heard this story some time ago, the invention was a bit more than a tablet, but apparently, it converted water to Hydrogen and oxygen in a gas form, which was then able to be used in a car converted to run on gas, the patent was bought by one of the big oil companies, who then promptly buried it. very strange as my father-in-law once told me a story of a teacher at Motherwell technical college in Scotland who seemingly invented an engine which ran on some sort of water mixture and was 'bought over' by one of the big oil companies. this was in the late 60's. same story rehashed maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy1702 Posted April 2, 2004 Share Posted April 2, 2004 I've heard this about a car that runs on water somewhere before. I'm pretty sure it did actually exist, but both the oil companies AND the government (who take about £8 for every £10 you spend on fuel in tax) would no doubt like to keep it quiet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushbaby Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 What time of year did this story come out? Wouldn't have been early April would it..??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyclone Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 the energy required to split water into hydrogen and oxygen is exactly the same as the energy it produces when it recombines. In a world where things work at 100% effficiency that is. Since we don't live in that world, some energy is lost (well, not lost, but not useful to us) during the conversion in both directions. So that story is quite patently a load of ballony. Next we'll be using the perpetual motion machine to drive our horsless carriages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Miguel Posted May 27, 2004 Share Posted May 27, 2004 Has anyone read Ben Elton's political satire 'Gridlock' which deals with the inventor of the first successful non-oil powered engine. Instead of him making a mint, he gets assassinated as there is too much money in oil and it would spoil everything. Makes you think, eh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derek Posted May 31, 2004 Share Posted May 31, 2004 Can't remember too many details, but there was a small motor engineering place towards the bottom end of Walkley, whose name eludes me at the moment, that came up with a way of getting power and performance with minimal fuel consumption, or something along those lines. This was in the early to mid seventies when trouble in the middle east had sent oil prices sky high. The product or system was reviewed in the motoring press at the time and was received very enthusiastically by all concerned until it dissappeared without trace and the firm went back to repairing cars. This may be related to your question, sorry I can't be more specific but it might jog a memory somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncleheed Posted June 1, 2004 Author Share Posted June 1, 2004 Maybe with the news reports today that petrol will be hitting 93p a litre,someone can dig out the old plans for the 'tablet'and scupper the government/oil compnies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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