The first law of thermodynamics categorically states that energy cannot be created or destroyed. This ideal has been clung onto by scientists for many years and is not usually questioned as it makes perfect sense.

However there is the possibility of a challenge to this law, which has had a lot of scientists reeling. Results from experiments, using an apparatus being fed with water, might have indicated a condition known as over unity ¾ more energy is created than is supplied to the system. This has still to be proven

Before I start delving into the misty depths of thermodynamics it is important to note that the principle has already been put into commercial use in range of different applications from paper mills to phosphating processes. Both require heat to operate effectively which is supplied as either steam, water or a combination of both. The unit claims to offer an efficiency of 100 per cent.

The Hydrosonic Pump, available from Hydro Dynamics in the USA, was designed as a more energy efficient way of creating steam or hot water. It does this by using shock waves and cavitation, within the water, to generate the levels of heat required. Because it uses mechanical energy there is no risk of fire due to its ‘combustionless’ method of operation, it is therefore tagged as a non-explosive device.

The pump normally consists of a rugged steel rotor, which exhibits a number of cavities drilled into it, completely enclosed by a steel cylindrical housing with two circular plates at each end. The rotor, which is secured to a drive shaft, can then be driven mechanically by an electric motor, a fossil fuel engine, wind power or any available power source which satisfies its input demands.

It has other advantages over more traditional heating systems which makes it eminently suitable for a variety of industrial processes. In operation the temperature of the rotor, the surrounding case and the liquid inside remains in equilibrium as the process temperature changes. Because there is no temperature differential the conditions do not suit the build up of scale on cooler surfaces. This fact enables Hydro Dynamics to offer customers a lifetime guarantee against scaling.

The company has constructed pumps out of a number of different materials, which will enable it to adapt the architecture to numerous applications. Rotors, which have exhibited good heating characteristics, include those made from composites, aluminium, carbon steel and 304 or 316 stainless steel. The determining factor in the material selection is usually what the heated media will be. It is obvious that an aluminium rotor is not suitable for caustic solutions. Most applications are served well with carbon steel or 304 stainless steel. More information at www.hydrodynamics.com

How does it work?

The process basically gives water (or any aqueous solution or fluid, pure or impure) the ride of its life, ending in it being converted into steam, hot water or a combination of the two.

The fluid experiences many different processes, all occurring simultaneously, leading to its heating. The first step is the introduction of the fluid, under pressure, into the central rotor. Initially it experiences a shearing stress as it enters the chamber which in turn creates a small amount of heat. This shearing stress increases as the fluid travels further across the rotor towards the outlet ports.

Once the rotor has reached sufficient speed the fluid is drawn into the cavities on the outer surface of the rotor. This then creates a pressure drop which will rise eventually matching and surpassing the centrifugal pressure of the rotor. When the pressure in the pocket reaches a pressure level greater than the centrifugal force the water can flow out, however it is instantaneously drawn into another cavity and the process is repeated.

This process continually cycles creating millions of shock waves per minute which create microscopic bubbles as they flow through the fluid. As these bubbles breakdown and implode they release energy in the form of heat which is immediately imparted into the water, raising its temperature. Cavitation also plays its part as bubbles are also formed as the liquid passes over the lip of the rotor bore. The fluid finally leaves the assembly at a substantially higher temperature than when it entered.

The company has managed to tune the architecture of the pump to such an extent that the bubbles collapse within the bore of the rotor and not at the surface, where cavitational damage, seen in many fluid systems, can occur. This also ensures that all the heat energy is transferred into the fluid enabling it to leave the outlet as steam or hot water.

The designer of the unit and founder of Hydro Dynamics, Jim Griggs, first noticed the phenomena when he worked on an energy conservation project. He noticed that a cold feed water supply line to a heating system was warm. When this was mentioned to a maintenance engineer, the engineer informed him of a water hammer problem they were experiencing. After research concerning shock waves travelling through liquids it became obvious to Jim that the power could be harnessed. In 1993 the company got its first patent for the process which was followed by others around the world.

The scary stuff

The physical description of how this concept works is fairly straightforward. It is the results which can cause the problems.

Griggs’ machine and those of a Russian researcher Dr Yuri S Potapov have been demonstrated to create more energy, in the form of steam, than is supplied to the motor to drive the rotor. This phenomenon, known as over unity, has attracted a lot of attention from sceptics and believers alike. Potapovs idea is claimed to work autonomously for several months

The device which Griggs has developed can produce 10 to 50 per cent excess power as steam or hot water in the kilowatt range, according to Infinite Energy Magazine. On the other hand Potapov’s device, which uses a vortex method, is claimed to produce 400 to 1,000 per cent excess energy. Both units have been installed in various sites around the US and CIS and reports state that they do indeed lower heating bills. Other devices exist which used ultrasound induced cavitation to produce the same result.

Hydro Sonic’s unit has been the subject of three tests by a leading US technical university. The university apparently demonstrated a coefficient of performance of 1.28:1 meaning there was a case for over unity. Kelly Hudson, of Hydro Sonics, says, "Unfortunately Einstein has more credibility than me." Which is why the company are actively pursuing its commercial potential before the over unity question comes into play.

Is there something new here? Patents do exist based around the idea going back to the 30s but it seems that it is only recently that this idea has become commercially viable. When researching the article I decided that the shear glut of information available should not be taken as proof that it works, but when both the Russian Space Agency and NASA (which has three pumps under investigation) are mentioned as investigating the principles and method of operation, my caution did recede, even if only a little bit.

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