by efoda » Wed Oct 18, 2006 11:48 am
Hi Kumaran,
I've thought a lot about the open top design, and while it works great for home use, I don't think it is rigourous enough to handle automotive applications... especially if they are more severe applications (trucks, many hills, bad roads, etc).
In this situation I feel Bob's sealed cell design would be the only design I can think to date that could stand the rigorous use test. Look under Bob Boyce's projects under sealed cell for plans and under adam666's projects for a very fine example of a sealed cell. Not sure what adam's efficiency was, though, don't think he ever posted it. Doesn't seem too many people have replicated the sealed cell design, Bob mentioned Tero as well. There are definitely execution challenges with that design, but if it can be executed well, will be well worth the effort.
I most likely will be trying the sealed cell, but I'm still allowing my mind a bit more time to try and come up with another solution that solves the ease of use/fabrication of the open top cell yet has the resliency of the sealed. My hopes aren't high as I've been racking my brains for the last month or so, it's a bit of a tall order.
Good luck with your project Kumaran