Quote:
Originally Posted by jamesqf
As for heat recovery systems, a truck can carry quite a bit more weight than an airplane.
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The idea of the micro turbine engine is to provide high power in a very small size and weight. To gain a few more percentage points of thermal efficiency would require not just an increase in mass but an increase in volume. Intake air can be pre-heated and compressed using the exhaust stream of the turbine, but at the gas flow volumes needed to be effective, the size of your power pack increases tremendously.
A 500 hp micro turbine with intake heater and pre-compressor would be larger and weigh almost as much as a 500 hp diesel engine. At that point, why go with the turbine? Though of course you would have to add back the weight and volume of a diesel's cooling and transmission needs.