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Natick Soldier Reinvents the Camp Stove

NATICK SOLDIER SYSTEMS CENTER

In an age when camp stoves are mature devices based on proven technology, innovation has stalled while manufacturers compete for fastest boil time, a contest which has not led to smaller, more efficient designs. Meanwhile, the military has adopted as its single “battlefield fuel” JP-8, a kerosene-like turbine fuel that is much more difficult to burn in a camp stove than consumer-friendly performance fuels like white gas or propane. Long aware of the need for improved burner technologies, Leigh Knowlton and Don Pickard of the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Center (NSC) have researched several approaches ranging from the mundane (ceramic fiber wicks) to the exotic (electrostatic atomization).

Applications

Military and Commercial Significance:
Enter the capillary force vaporizer (CFV) developed by Vapore, Inc., of Alameda, Calif. Made of layered ceramic and looking somewhat like an antacid tablet, the CFV is a durable solid-state device that generates a jet of vapor from unpressurized liquid fuels.
It uses capillary forces to transport liquid, and heat to vaporize it, eliminating the need for mechanical pumping and pressurized fuel tanks. This technology is well-suited for camp stoves, and it enables dramatic reductions in size, weight, and complexity.
To reinvent the camp stove using CFV technology, NSC teamed up with Cascade Designs of Seattle, Wash. Because the military market is relatively small, commercial adoption appears key to making new burner
technology affordable.
The new stove is about 40% lighter empty and reduces the weight of fuel to be carried by 50%, qualities the warfighter and the serious outdoor enthusiast alike can appreciate.
NSC believes the technology is coming soon to a sporting goods store near you. Cascade Designs unveiled a commercial version of the new stove at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market 2004, where it was declared
“Star of the Show” by Outside Magazine.

Provenance

Original: https://dodtechmatch.com/dod/successstories/view.aspx?id=60176
Archived copy: Wayback Machine snapshot

This record was recovered from a public web archive of dodtechmatch.com and is preserved for historical reference. It may be outdated. Not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Defense. Contact details from the original listing have been withheld.