Brickley Engine - Less Friction, Better Mileage

Friction in the engine itself lowers your car's gas mileage. Instead of begin converted to useful work, some of the energy in the fuel is wasted in the form of heat or noise. Mainly heat. The Brickley engine design aims to rearrange the cylinders and crankshaft arms to reduce this friction. A Brickley engine is an internal combustion engine with specially connected pistons that move along paths to a very high tolerance. Because the piston stroke is defined to a couple thousands of an inch, the piston skirts can be eliminated or reduced. So far this engine exists only as a patent. I doubt there are working models. Not to say I doubt they will work, just that there is still no prototype. Apparently the Brickley design can eliminate 35% of the engine friction. This could give a 15% to 20% increase in vehicle mileage.

One other interesting bit of information was a list of components and their contribution to friction in a typical engine. Here is the breakdown of engine friction by part according to Mike Brickley, the engine designer:

Research attributes the following approximate amounts to the various components: crankshaft 18%, connecting rods 15%, accessories 10%, camshaft 15%, piston rings 21%, piston skirts 21%.

Engine Friction Breakdown

Component	Friction
Piston Rings	21%
Piston Skirts	21%
Crankshaft	18%
Camshaft	15%
Connecting Rods	15%
Accessories	10%