Dearman Engine Company: Proof of Market in Leeds

The Dearman Engine Company (DEC) is harnessing liquid air to deliver cleaner (zero
emission) and cheaper transport and refrigeration globally. The Dearman engine (DE) is a
novel piston engine powered by the expansion of liquid air (LA); the exhaust is clean, cold
air. We are an additive enabling technology with a number of applications - refrigeration,
waste heat recovery and zero emission vehicles. The DE is simple, cheap to build, requires
very low maintenance and has low environmental impact; providing fuel and cost savings;
meeting societal objectives and harnessing renewable energy. Since there is surplus liquid
nitrogen production capacity in many countries, a skeleton fuel supply infrastructure already
exists. The UK, for example, has enough spare capacity to supply more than 15,000
refrigerated delivery trucks (approx. 10% of UK fleet). Independent economic modeling
shows that the DE is cheaper to run than diesel, and can pay for itself in less than 1 yr of
operation. The adoption of LA technologies in heavy-duty vehicles could save Britain 1.3
billion litres of diesel and over a million tonnes of carbon by 2025. We propose to undertake a
detailed market study for a single region –Leeds – to model and establish the market potential
for the deployment of DE applications at city level. We will also consider the impact of
multiple application from one fuelling point and the optimum mix of fleet applications and
vehicle types to deliver maximum economic value (direct e.g. diesel savings and indirect e.g.
NHS cost by improved air quality) and environmental / air quality impact from one fuelling
depot. A LA system level view may unlock greater combined benefits in economic returns,
use of capital, environmental or other terms. This study will inform the strategic plan for
Leeds with clear impacts, planning and investment decisions for DEC, improve the case
business case for integrated LA systems and be commercially valuable to the wider growing
LA market.