Car leasing news: Lasers could make vehicles more fuel-efficient

Drivers looking for an eco-friendly vehicle to acquire on a car leasing deal might be interested in research suggesting lasers could hold the key to improving fuel efficiency on the road.

Set to be unveiled at the Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics in Baltimore, Maryland on May 2nd, the study by the National Institutes of Natural Sciences in Japan and the National Institute for Laser, Plasma and Radiation Physics in Romania indicates that replacing spark plugs with laser igniters could make cars greener.

Spark plugs create nitrogen oxide when they are ignited to generate power, while lasers do not require electrodes and therefore do not result in such emissions.

One of the authors of the research, Takunori Taira - whose team is working with a Toyota Group company - explained that lasers can boost fuel efficiency compared with spark plugs as they operate quicker.

"Timing - quick combustion - is very important," he remarked, adding: "The more precise the timing, the more efficient the combustion and the better the fuel economy."

Elsewhere, experts from Liverpool University and Ford Motor Company are currently working on a project funded by the Carbon Trust to develop laser ignition systems for new car engines that could cut exhaust emissions and boost engine efficiency.