Ford Nucleon: FORD"S ATOMIN CAR!
“During the 1950s, much of the world was quivering with anticipation over
the exciting prospects of nuclear power. Atomic energy promised to churn
out clean, safe electricity that would be ‘too cheap to meter’. It
seemed that there was no energy problem too large or too small for the
mighty atom to tackle during the glorious and modern Atomic Age. It was
during this honeymoon with nuclear energy – in 1957– that the Ford
Motor Company unveiled the most ambitious project in their history: a
concept vehicle which had a sleek futuristic look, emitted no harmful
vapours, and offered incredible fuel mileage far beyond that of the most
efficient cars ever built. This automobile of- the-future was called the
Ford Nucleon, named for its highly unique design feature… a pint
size atomic fission reactor in the trunk.
“Ford’s engineers imagined a world in which full-service recharging
stations would one day supplant petroleum fuel stations, where depleted
reactors could be swapped out for fresh ones lickety-split. The car’s
reactor setup was essentially the same as a nuclear submarine’s, but
miniaturized for automobile use. It was designed to use uranium fission to
heat a steam generator, rapidly converting stored water into high-pressure
steam which could then be used to drive a set of turbines. One steam
turbine would provide the torque to propel the car while another
would drive an electrical generator. Steam would then be condensed back
into water in a cooling loop, and sent back to the steam generator to
be reused. Such a closed system would allow the reactor to produce power as
long as fissile material remained.
“Using this system, designers anticipated that a typical Nucleon would
travel about 5,000 miles per charge. Because the power plant was
an interchangeable component, owners would have the freedom to select a
reactor configuration based on their personal needs, ranging anywhere from
a souped-up uranium guzzler to a low-torque, high-mileage version. And
without the noisy internal combustion and exhaust of conventional cars, the
Nucleon would be relatively quiet, emitting little more than a
turbine whine.
“The vehicle’s aerodynamic styling, one-piece windshield, and dual tail
fins (which are absent in some photographs) are reminiscent of
spacecraft from 1950s-era science fiction, but some aspects of the
Nucleon’s unique design were more utilitarian. For instance, its passenger
area was situated quite close to the front of the chassis, extending beyond
the front axle. This arrangement was meant to distance the passengers from
the atomic pile in the rear, and to provide maximum axle support to the
heavy equipment and its attendant shielding. Another practical
design aspect was the addition of air intakes at the leading edge of the
roof and at the base of the roof supports, apparently to be used as part of
the reactor’s cooling system.
“Ford’s nuclear automobile embodied the naive optimism of the
era. Most people were ignorant of the dangers of the atomic contraption,
as well as the risk that every minor fender-bender had the potential to
become a radioactive disaster. In fact, the Nucleon concept was often
received with great enthusiasm. Some sources even claim that the US
government sponsored Ford’s atomic car research program.
“The Nucleon’s silent, sleek, and efficient design was poised to secure
its place in the American lifestyle of the future. It seemed inevitable that
the internal combustion engine would fade into obscurity, becoming a quaint
relic of a pre-atomic past. But the Nucleon’s design hinged on
the assumption that smaller nuclear reactors would soon be developed, as
well as lighter shielding materials. When those innovations failed
to appear, the project was scrapped due to conspicuous impracticality; the
bulky apparatus and heavy lead shielding didn’t allow for a safe and
efficient car-sized package. Moreover, as the general public became
increasingly aware of the dangers of atomic energy and the problem
of nuclear waste, the thought of radioactive ‘atomobiles’ zipping
around town lost much of its appeal. Atoms had broken their promise;
the honeymoon was over. Ford never produced a working prototype,
nevertheless the Nucleon remains an icon of the Atomic Age. In spite of
the Nucleon’s flaws, its designers deserve a nod for their slapdash
ingenuity. Their reckless optimism demonstrates that one shouldn’t
consider a task impossible just because nobody has tried it yet – some
ideas need to be debunked on their own merit.” Ref: Alan Bellows, The
Atomic
Automobile, DamnInteresting.com, 27/8/06
