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countryside quickly made him famous as a local Mr Fixit. "If a firm had a technical problem, I found I could normally offer them two or three solutions within a couple of days", he says. Eventually, word about Cuthbert reached as far as Aberdeen, Scotland, where the mighty Shell Oil picked his brains on how to deal with their Brent Spar oil platform problem. After environ- mentalists had forced the company to abandon their initial propos- al to sink the Spar in the North Sea, Shell had decided to float the platform and bring it ashore for dismantling, and were looking for the best way to do it. Cuthbert showed them how they could freeze the seawater around the rig to strengthen and seal the struc- ture, and then pump out the water to float it on its side, ready for towing. Although Shell finally used a more conventional flotation technique, they had taken the ice idea seriously. "Cuthbert's ideas certainly had merit," recalls Eric Fowlds of Shell. But time is now running out for Cuthbert himself. Desperate to find a backer for his turbine, he has decided on a high-risk strategy. In order to attract investment, he has published the technology on the Internet, but without the protection of a full patent; he has only been able to afford a limited patent for one year—and the patent has just a few months left to run. al to sink the Spar in the North Sea, Shell had decided to float the | NEW APPLICATIONS FOR FERROFLUIDS platform and bring it ashore for dismantling, and were looking for In the meantime, Cuthbert's bedroom is knee-deep in drawings the best way to do it. Cuthbert showed them how they could for a new invention for the scrap metal industry. This time, the freeze the seawater around the rig to strengthen and seal the struc- idea came to him "in a few days", after Shell had introduced him ture, and then pump out the water to float it on its side, ready for _to Britain's leading scrap metal company, Mayer Parry Recycling. towing. Although Shell finally used a more conventional flotation Impressed by his inventiveness, Mayer Parry then showed him technique, they had taken the ice idea seriously. "Cuthbert's ideas round their huge metal reclamation plant, hoping to pick his certainly had merit," recalls Eric Fowlds of Shell. brains. "I was very impressed by the Mayer Parry operation, but I A HYBRID TURBINE/ENGINE could see several areas where I could suggest improvements," Oil platform problems one day, engines the next. Small-time says Cuthbert. "They asked me to come up with some ideas, and I inventors are fond of engines—they have lots of little bits to gave them three suggestions, one of which was a metal separation improve on—but eight years ago Cuthbert had more than tinker- technique based on ferrofluid—a magnetic liquid." ing refinements in mind. "I realised nobody had made a new Back in his workshop, he happened to have a bottle of ferroflui engine for a hundred years, apart from Wankel; he was a brilliant —_ left over from some long-forgotten experiment. First develope! inventor, but even his engine has prob- for NASA in the 1960s, ferrofluids are lems," says Cuthbert. "So I decided to tiny, magnetised metal particles in an try and re-design the perfect engine oil suspension. They have now foun from scratch." uses in a variety of specialise It took him six months to come up applications, from loudspeakers to with something that would satisfy him. .-according to his calculations, rotary seals—but in relatively small Early in 1993, he sent the drawings to the hybrid engine should have quantities. Cuthbert had half a jar of the giant Perkins Diesel company who the stuff and immediately set to work, invited him to make a presentation to "incredible power", enabling an testing it with whatever bits of metal their chief technical designers. It was a ocean liner to be run by an he had to hand. bold, unique concept that was a hybrid . . oY Mayer Parry bosses saw the result- of a conventional engine and a turbine. engine the size of a Mini Car. ing demonstration—literally in one of The power generation system was Cuthbert's old teacups—and shortly incorporated inside the turbine itself, afterwards commissioned him to pre- with the rotation being provided by a sent a design for an industrial-size clever waveform shape of the turbine metal separator. Within weeks he had discs. Cuthbert explained how, accord- come up with a system, and a small- ing to his calculations, the hybrid engine should have "incredible scale prototype was built. In November 1999, in conditions of ower", enabling an ocean liner to be run by an engine the size of _—__ great secrecy, the ferrofluid separator was started up—and it a Mini car. worked. Perkins' designers were impressed, calling it a "novel and sim- "Cuthbert's metal separator is a very, very significant advance," ple concept which offers potential", and eagerly suggested "mov- says Mike Glossop, who runs the UK division of Ferrofluidics, ing the concept forward into a working model". Two months Inc., the world's leading manufacturer of ferrofluids. "Cuthbert is later, however, they suddenly went cold on the idea, cancelling all the first person to have invented a workable metal reclamation further meetings. Cuthbert rang to ask why. "Perkins apologised system using liquid magnets. This is a real breakthrough." rofusely," he recalls, "but said that their financiers had advised Cheap, efficient, metal reclamation has obvious environmental them to drop my turbine as it would be ‘detrimental’ to their busi- benefits, particularly in Britain where landfill sites for waste are ness. I guess it was too much of a competitor to their existing becoming scarce. But Glossop also foresees the Cuthbert separa- range of turbines." tor revolutionising the mining industries, making it far cheaper to The money men also appeared to be behind Cuthbert's next extract precious metals from crude ores. failed attempt to interest big business. He took the hybrid Although Cuthbert is happy enough with the prototype separa- turbine/engine idea to Cray Marine, the large British defence tor, he has since thought of an even better way of doing it. So he contractor, who seemed to be as impressed as Perkins by the is now designing a top-secret Mark 2 version, based on an entirely concept and went so far as to calculate the engine's potential different principle. Mayer Parry has earmarked £500,000 for it. output. They confirmed Cuthbert's own figures, showing it But, with a mind like Tony Cuthbert's, playing about with any should develop at least 10 times more power than existing new material is bound to set off a chain reaction of turbines. Cray were keen to develop the concept into a working —_—inventiveness—and ferrofluids have done just that. "Magnetic prototype, but not without external finance. However, they liquid is really weird stuff," he says excitedly, "so I knew there couldn't find a venture capital bank to back it. "Time was the was bound to be lots more to do with it." Sure enough, whilst deciding factor; the one bank that showed interest wanted a quick _ buried in the details of his magnetic separators, he was able to capital return," says Cuthbert, ruefully. came up with a fistful of applications. Understandably, given his 56 + NEXUS APRIL — MAY 2000