Many things can be used as car fuel. From rapeseed oil to electricity. However, Citroën came up with a completely unique hybrid technology that uses compressed air instead of electricity.
The first model to receive Hybrid Ai r technology is the small C3. But that's beside the point. The most important thing is how the whole system works. Hybrid Air consists of three parts – a classic Puretech combustion engine , a tank with compressed air and two engine hydraulic pumps . The entire system is connected to the front wheels using a planetary gearbox .
Hybrid Air uses one of three modes for driving. Air Mode uses only tanks with compressed air, which travels to the wheels through hydraulic pumps and a planetary gearbox. You will use this mode mainly in the city or better said at low speeds. In addition, the system stores kinetic energy and thus replenishes the tank with air. Petrol Mode uses a classic petrol engine and is particularly effective outside the city. Again, kinetic energy is stored. In Combined Mode , the combustion engine cooperates with hydraulic pumps and is mainly used if you need to accelerate quickly or for some reason get maximum power. For better understanding, watch the following video.
##Hybrid##
As I mentioned in the introduction, the first car with Hybrid Air technology will be the modernized C3 . In it, the VTi petrol unit will work with compressed air, while Citroën declares a consumption of 2.9 l/100 km and emissions of only 69 g CO2/km . It will certainly be interesting to watch the further development of this technology, which may not be disposable at all.
Source: Citroën
