I have been doing a lot of research into diesel technology and future developments. From what I can see the potential future looks bright. Looking back into history the only problem I see is the time to bring to market. Many of these great ideas unfortunately I will never see in the mainstream more than likely in my lifetime. This is very unfortunate as these are brilliant engine designs that have an immediate need now and not a hundred years from now!
A few engine designs that I did not cover in previous posts that I think are very relevant to this thread are the (OPRE) Opposed Piston Pulling Rod Engine, (PatOP) Single Crankshaft Opposed piston Engine, and (PatPOC) Single Crankshaft Opposed piston Engine of different design. These engines can be considered offspring of the Junkers Doxford engine. These are opposed piston engines that are direct injected with diesel. With some modification they can also be spark ignited gas guzzlers! These engines spend more time at BDC and increase piston dwell to increase engine efficiency among other improvements. They have far less parts as well as far less moving parts then a conventional diesel today. They are far lighter and much more compact in design. They can literally fit under the seat of your car how is that for packaging.
In my humble opinion this is where I see the future of the diesel engine for its simplicity and efficiency advantages.
Here is the website where you can find very detailed explanations of how the engines work there advantages as well as comparisons. There are also lots of animations and videos of the prototypes for viewing. A very well done site with tons to share and learn from. My hats off to Mr. Pattakon for developing these engines and sharing them with us through his website
Website Link =
http://www.pattakon.com/pattakonOPRE.htm
GH..