Car that runs on compressed air

(CNN) -- A Korean company has created a car engine that 
runs on air. 

The engine, which powers a pneumatic-hybrid electric vehicle 
(PHEV), works alongside an electric motor to create the power 
source.

The system eliminates the need for fuel, making the PHEV 
pollution-free.

Cheol-Seung Cho, of Energine Corporation, told CNN the 
system is controlled by a computer inside the car, which 
instructs the compressed-air engine and electric motor what to do.

The compressed air drives the pistons, which turn the vehicle's 
wheels.

The air is compressed using a small motor, powered by a 
48-volt battery, which powers both the air compressor and 
the electric motor.

Once compressed, the air is stored in a tank, Cho said.

"The compressed air is used when the car needs a lot of energy, 
such as for starting up the car and acceleration. The electric 
motor comes to life once the car has gained normal cruising 
speed."

He said the system was relatively simple to manufacture and 
could be easily adapted to any conventional engine system.

"You could say our car has two hearts pumping. That is, 
we have separate motors running at different times, both at 
the time when they can perform most efficiently."

Cho also said the system could reduce the cost of vehicle 
production by about 20 percent, because there was no need 
to build a cooling system, fuel tank, spark plugs or silencers.

Cho hoped to see PHEVs on streets in the near future.

Peter Kemp, editor of "Petroleum Intelligence Weekly," 
told CNN that one of the biggest challenges for the invention 
was persuading the general public to embrace it.

"For this invention to take off, you'd need to get the backing 
of a major manufacturer. The major manufacturers that are 
looking at hybrid motors at the moment are looking at 
fuel cells -- battery with a gasoline diesel combination," he said.

Kemp said Toyota, which has released a hybrid car, had sold 
about 150,000 of the environmentally friendly model worldwide.

"But that is over several years. There is a lot of demand for that 
car but that is the only one that is really available and nobody 
knows whether Toyota is making any money out of it."