In memory of:

Photo taken April 7th, 2010

The Mojave Dreamer Who Built a Radical Clean Engine

Nick was a Bulgarian-born inventor and machinist who lived in Ridgecrest, California. Born in 1941, he escaped communist Bulgaria at age 19 by sneaking across the border at night, past guard towers and barbed wire, eventually making his way to the United States after time in a refugee camp.

He worked as a skilled machinist for Kaiser Aerospace in Burbank, building parts for Boeing, Sandia, Grumman, and even components for the Apollo Lunar Excursion Module. In the 1970s, frustrated by the oil crisis and America's growing dependence on foreign oil, Nick taught himself chemistry, physics, and steam engineering. He spent years developing a unique turbine engine designed to run on a simple mix of hydrogen peroxide, sugar (or other biomass), and manganese dioxide as a catalyst.

The system broke down hydrogen peroxide into steam and oxygen, then used that oxygen to burn the sugar cleanly. The result? Superheated steam that spun a turbine. It produced mostly water vapor with a small amount of CO₂ from the renewable sugar source — making it theoretically very low-pollution and climate-neutral when using biomass. Tests by Eka Chemicals engineers confirmed impressive efficiency and near-zero harmful emissions.

Nick built a working demonstrator out of junkyard parts. He even installed one in an old Volkswagen Bug. It ran... but slowly and with a loud jet-like roar. He dreamed of a real production version that could challenge gasoline engines and help free the world from oil dependence.

He was quite the character — handlebar mustache, cigarillos, big personality, and a determined underdog spirit. I first met him while working at Quoin International in Ridgecrest. You’d see him riding his bike around town or picking up supplies (like sugar) from the local supermarket for his “fuel.”

A 2002 documentary project called STEAM tried to tell his story and get attention for his invention. Sadly, despite patents, successful tests, and years of effort, Nick’s dream never fully took off. Big industry, funding struggles, and timing worked against him.

Nick passed away in 2016. He was a true American dreamer — a self-taught immigrant genius who just wanted to build something better for the world. Even though it didn’t change the world the way he hoped, his story is still inspiring.

Nick hired me in 2002 to model the components of his motor.
It was a pleasure working with him.