Abstract: A hydraulic combustion accumulator includes a cylinder divided into a combustion chamber and a hydraulic fluid chamber by a free reciprocating piston. An injection mechanism is provided for separately injecting a combustion fuel and air into the combustion chamber. The combustion fuel preferably includes at least one of ammonia and hydrogen. An ignition mechanism ignites the combustion gas in the combustion chamber thereby causing the piston to apply a pressurizing force to a hydraulic fluid contained in the hydraulic fluid chamber. A control unit controls the operation of the injection mechanism and ignition mechanism such that, in a preferred embodiment, multiple ignitions are achieved during a single combustion stroke of the piston. The hydraulic combustion accumulator can be utilized in a propulsion system as either a primary propulsion power source or a secondary propulsion power source.

Abstract: A rotating fiber array molecular driver is disclosed which includes a magnetically suspended and rotated central hub to which is attached a plurality of elongated fibers extending radially therefrom. The hub is rotated so as to straighten and axially extend the fibers and to provide the fibers with a tip speed which exceeds the average molecular velocity of fluid molecules entering between the fibers. Molecules colliding with the sides of the rotating fibers are accelerated to the tip speed of the fiber and given a momentum having a directional orientation within a relatively narrow distribution angle at a point radially outward of the hub, which is centered and peaks at the normal to the fiber sides in the direction of fiber rotation. The rotating fiber array may be used with other like fiber arrays or with other stationary structures to form molecular momentum transfer devices such as vacuum pumps, molecular separators, molecular coaters, or molecular reactors.