Have you heard about the magnetic motor? We explain its viability and resolve any doubts about its operation.
Since the beginning of humanity, access and use of Energy sources They have shaped the course of each and every one of the civilizations that have populated our planet. Although we believe we are very different from our ancestors, those who lived in caves, the truth is that we share the same struggle to take advantage of the energy resources available to heat us, feed us, transport ourselves and, ultimately, progress.
He energy challenge of our civilization has been diverted to the climatic plane. We want cleaner energies that do not produce greenhouse gas emissions. However, if we analyze all the energy sources that humans have used to date, we will see that we have always been evolving towards technologies that produce less impact on our environment. Either by not destroying forests, or simply by saving costs.
However, we still have the same problems as our ancestors. Despite our advances in science, we have not been able to create a machine capable of producing unlimited and sustainable energy. Nuclear fusion energy seems to be the only solution that can achieve this goal. The best physicists of our era work there. On the other hand, there are experiments such as magnetic motora machine that, on paper, would be capable of generating energy perpetually.
What is a magnetic motor? Where are you from?
Can you make a motor using magnets? We are not talking about the well-known permanent magnet electric motors that many electric cars have, but about machines based solely on magnetism and attraction between magnets.
Magnetism has fascinated many scientists and inventors for centuries. There is evidence that this type of generators began to be worked on more than 800 years ago. However, it is since the 19th century that many people have tried to develop motor prototypes using only magnets.
The best known magnetic motor today is the Perendev, a propellant that gained some notoriety after the figure of Michael Brady. On the Internet it is possible to find many plans to replicate it, although the scientific community has always shown its most absolute rejection of the invention.
How does a magnetic motor work?
The question in this case would have to be more like “how is a magnetic motor supposed to work”. Until now, the magnetic motor It has only been developed at a theoretical level. On YouTube you will find many videos of people who claim that they have made a fully functional one—both the Perendev and many other previous versions. But, for some unknown reason, they don't want to show it to us.
In any case, defenders of this technology claim that the magnetic motor works indefinitely thanks to placing the magnets so that the magnetic fields are constantly in a state of repulsion. They might need a small boost at start-up, but then could run without the need for electrical power or mechanical power externally.
The magnetic motor enters into what we call “perpetual motion engine”something that, with science ahead, is non-viable by contradicting several of the laws of thermodynamics, as we will see a little later in this article.
What is the difference between a magnetic motor and one with permanent magnets?
There are great differences between magnetic motors and permanent magnet motors. The use of these seconds is widespread, especially in the electric car market.
He operation of a permanent magnet motor it's simple. The magnets are fixed inside the motor, creating a constant magnetic field. When electricity passes through coils of wire in the motor, it creates a electric field that interacts with the magnetic field of the magnets. This interaction produces a force that turns the motor rotor. Thus, electrical energy is converted into mechanical movement, driving the motor. It is a clean and very efficient propellant, although it is true that it is expensive to manufacture.
On the other hand, The magnetic motor does not require electrical current. Apparently, they must generate movement continuously, playing only with the attraction and repulsion of the magnets themselves.
Why are magnetic motors unviable?
The idea of being able to build a perpetual motion engine is undoubtedly fascinating. However, the laws of physics They are quite the spoilsports in this sense. In practice, there is no evidence that there is a single functional prototype that makes use of this technology.
If you still have your doubts, here we leave you the main reasons why this engine cannot be put into practice:
First Law of thermodynamics
The law of conservation of energy states that energy cannot be created or destroyed. It can only be transformed from one form to another.
Humanity has tried to violate this principle countless times, but physics has always gotten its way. The magnetic motor suggests being able to produce perpetual motion without using external energy. That is, the magnetic motor could create energy from nothing.
Second principle of thermodynamics
The theoretical approach of the magnetic motor also contradicts the second law of thermodynamics, which says that all systems tend to move towards the entropy or disorder.
Basically, the magnetic motor is described as an ideal motor. It is capable of moving perpetually, without heating up and without losing effectiveness due to friction. Therefore, we would be talking about a closed system that works perpetually without increasing its entropy. Another point for physics.
Principle of conservative forces
Another reason why the magnetic motor has gained so much fame is simply due to the lack of knowledge about how magnetic forces—and forces in general—work. When we play with two magnets we feel the force of attraction or repulsion, but sometimes we do not manage to fully understand how they work.
A simple example to understand this principle of conservative forces is to think about a ferris wheel. When you get in the cabin and go up to the high point, you win potential energy. For this, electrical energy has previously been needed to move the attraction. Then, when the wheel takes you back to the ground, that potential energy decreases and you gain kinetic energy. When the attraction stops and you return to the ground, you are the same as at the beginning. You have no more energy than when you started.
Magnets work in a similar way. They can push or pull other objects, but in the end, this action is like the person who rides the Ferris wheel: everything goes back to how it started. If you try to use magnets to spin something constantly, you will find that, just like the carnival ride example, eventually everything returns to its starting point without having gained anything extra.
Technical challenge
There are some designs of magnetic motors that can reach produce movement. For a while and after a good push, of course. To all this, we must add that the energy required to maintain the movement of the system will always be greater than the energy that can be produced. Hence some of the defenders of these engines claim that they are not very practical.
To all this, we should add, as we have said before, the friction and air resistance. No matter how much it is said that these machines could operate uninterruptedly, friction and air resistance itself would end up slowing down the movement.
Lack of adoption at the industrial level
Some defenders of the viability of magnetic motors maintain that they work perfectly, but that they are not manufactured because they are expensive to produce. cost of magnets. However, logic tells us that, if this engine were possible, someone would have managed to replicate one in the real world. It will not be for companies that have plenty of money in this world.
Other sympathizers of these engines defend that there are all kinds of conspiracies to bury this technology. In any case, after hundreds of years of experiments and much literature on the subject, everything seems to indicate that the magnetic motor is nothing more than a scam to attract the unwary.
Magnetic motor. Is it a fraud?
It all depends on how you look at it. The truly beautiful thing about science is the power investigate freely, regardless of what the rest of the scientific community says. History is full of cases like that of Nikola Tesla or the Wright brothers, who were the subject of ridicule and skepticism, even though they were right. A more recent example would be that of James Dyson, who had to move heaven and earth to convince investors to finance his cyclonic vacuum cleaner. Other engineers considered that what is now the leading technology in its sector was unviable.
Everything that has been researched to date on the magnetic motor is not in vain. After all, it is important for humanity Know what works and what doesn't. However, the magnetic motor has also been used as a bait to make all kinds of scams. Therefore, we cannot affirm that it is a fraud in itself; It is simply an unviable invention because it is incompatible with the laws of physics themselves.
What happened to the Perendev engine?
Perendev Group's magnetic motor did not have a happy ending. At the beginning of this century, Mike Brady obtained financing from a good number of clients interested in his generator. Brady claimed to be able to make electromechanical generators capable of producing 100 kW, so he soon filled his pockets with a million euros.
Obviously, Perendev Group never delivered any device to any of its 41 clients. After a multitude of complaints, Brady was arrested in 2010. He was later accused of fraud and sentenced to 5 years and 9 months in prison.
We have reached the end. If you have come this far because of a publication you have seen on social networks about this type of motors, now you know that they are really viable. However, if you want to learn a little more about mechanics and systems that do work, we invite you to take a look at this article in which we explain how electric car engines work. If you prefer a read on conventional mechanics, check out this other article on how a car transmission works.