India develops world’s first engine to run on mix fuel

It all started in the year 1986 in Durgapur(West Bengal). A professor was teaching working of an Internal Combustion (IC)engine at the National Institute of Technology, in a class of Mechanical Engineering. Whilst he was teaching,a student asked the professor if the piston could be used in revolving motion, instead of using in vertical motion.The piston revolving around itself will make the engine small, easy to use and more efficient. After listening to this question a wave of laughter spread in the class and the point got lost as the topic its seriousness. But this inquisitive student, who had asked the question, did not get disheartened. In his quest to find the answer, he made a wooden model of an engine with revolving motion at home and started studying more about it. This proved as a precursor to the making of a revolutionary innovator who developed the RVCR engine technology that can work on any type of fuel. This Innovator was Das ArgiKamat.

This radical innovation by Mr. Kamat can give a new direction to the Global Automobile Industry.This Indian innovation is patented in over 51 countries. America’s research organization - Lockheed Martin Corporation had organized Global 1500 Best Innovationsrecently, where this technology was positioned in first 8 best innovations and on behalf of an organization ICSquare of Texas University, this technology was elected to develop America’s Commercial Schemes. Mr. Kamat can very well be regarded as the first Indian Technologist to achieve this laurel.Besides that, this technology will also be presented in Engine Expo 2013-14to be held in October at Automobile Industry’s alma mater– Detroit. University of Maryland has also proposed to use this RVCR technology in wind energy sector.

RVCR stands for Rotary Variable Compression Ratio. From the efforts put in by Kamat for facilitation and more efficient Engine Manufacturing Processes; he developed the RVCR technology, and while studying it more, he developed new revolutionary innovation i.e. RVCR Multi-fuel Capacity Engine which works on mixed fuel. Kamat got into detail study of the engines based on IC technology working on various fuels. He studied their arrangements, explored for the similarities and differences in their compression ratio and the reason behind it. Every fuel has its fixed compression ratio and engines are also designed as per this fixed compression ratios. IC engines also follow this principle. Moreover once the engine is created, it is impossible to make amends. Considering this Mr. Kamat decided to develop an engine that would be in a separate chamber while compression ratios could be adjusted using external devices. This would facilitate efficient and effective use of any fuel type. Mr. Kamat’s continuous experimentation helped him develop an engine that regulated fuel combustion pressure to aid rotary motion. This provided a breakthrough in the vertical motion technology. Even after dedicating 5 years to achieve the desired engine, his journey did not stop.

 Das ArgiKamat applied for an intellectual property right or patent in the year 1999 and today this technology is patented under his name in 51 technologically developed countries across the globe. According to Mr. Kamat, “Research has been conducted on this technology since 1920 however it was only on the conventional vertical piston engine. RVCR is the first and only researched and developed Indian innovation. Vehicles like Cars, motorcycles, trucks, tractors, as well as power generators, ships, and defense related machineries can use developed using this technology. This not only saves around 30% of the fuel but also reduces the engine size. Engines that can run on petrol, diesel, LPG, CNG, biofuel, etc will offer new dimensions to this field and also support the national economy in a big way”.

Kamat was born in Kerala and was raised in Bhillai, Madhya Pradesh, as his father was posted there for a project. He graduated in Mechanical engineering from Durgapur and joined Merchant Navy. After working there for 13 years, MrKamat quit his job to start a mechanical research and development firm ion Kochi called, GYATK RVCR Operators Private Ltd. He developed his dream RVCR engine in the year 2007. Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation availed him with a venture capital loan of three lakh rupees. Not to mention this invention was more time consuming than anticipated, and there was a point in time when he had shelved all his money and was still working for over 17 hours a day. He was very well supported by his family during this phase. Mr. Kamat reckoned, “Research and Development proved to be very expensive. I have invested more than 6 to 8 crore rupees in the effort and most of it was self financed. I guess I had to jump from being a scientist to an entrepreneur. Twice I was on the verge of Bankruptcy and I learned a lot from the phase… But I never lost focus. I made some really good and intelligent friends during this phase and they are equally credited with this innovation that is all set to revolutionaries the automotive world. A feeling that this innovation will be India’s contribution to the world, kept us motivated”. Mr. Kamat showcased his invention at the International engine expo 2010 in Germany and as expected it garnered praise from all corners. Auto majors like Volkswagon, BMW, requestedKamat for a demonstration while the organizers took special interest in their work. Indian tricolors waved in their full glory at Stuttgart, Germany that day. There never have been such technological advances done in the country since Independence. We have always been a huge market place for the countries world over. Hundreds of vehicles are sold in the country but never with an Indian Engine. On this backdrop, a scientist like Das ArgiKamat independently invented an advanced engine that is giving a new direction to the world’s automotive industry is exceptionally astonishing. An Indian innovator dedicatedly worked to accomplish that no other technologically advanced country in the world could, is certainly something to be proud of.