An improved rotary engine and method for determining the contours of the sealing surfaces thereof. The improved engine provides for maintaining a predetermined, optimal gap between the sealing surfaces during rotation. The gap may be parallel or angled, and may be positive or negative so as to form an interference engagement. The rotors of the engine may be provided with mirror-image sealing surfaces so as to prevent development of excessive back-lash and clearance, and also to permit efficient reverse operation. The sealing surfaces may also be provided with recesses for interrupting the seal at predetermined points in the rotational cycle, for enhanced wear characteristics and/or to accommodate abrasive or shear-sensitive fluids.
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims priority of U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 60/086,838, which was filed May 26, 1998 and is a continuation in part of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/085,139, which was filed May 26, 1998 and now matured into U.S. Pat. No. 6,036,463 which is a continuation of U.S. Pat. No. 08/401,264 filed Mar. 9, 1995 now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 5,755,196.
A plasma-vortex engine (20), consisting of a plasmatic fluid (22) circulating in a closed loop (44) encompassing a fluid heater (26), an expansion chamber (30), and a condenser (42), is provided. The expansion chamber (30) is formed of a housing (64) and two end plates (66, 68), and encompasses a rotor (72) to which a plurality of vanes (74) is coupled. A shaft (36) is coupled to the rotor (72) through the endplates (66, 68). During operation, the fluid heater (26) heats the plasmatic fluid (22) to produce a plasma (86), which is then injected into the expansion chamber (30). The plasma (86) expands both hydraulically and adiabatically and exerts an expansive force (94) against one of the vanes (74). A vortex generator (96) coupled to the expansion chamber generates a vortex (100) within the plasma (86), which exerts a vortical force (102) against that one vane (74). The rotor (72) and shaft (36) rotate in response to the expansive and vortical forces (94, 102). The plasma (86) is exhausted from the expansion chamber (30) and is condensed back into the plasmatic fluid (22) by the condenser (42).
