The Capstone turbine has, along with other technology, been a fantasy of mine for decades.
A BP colleague and I used to discuss the amazing technological achievement of Otto cycle and Diesel cycle engineers in developing exquisite detail in their engines, enabling the industrial revolution technologies to remain competitive far longer than I imagined they could.
Petrol and diesel engines are basically the industrial revolution of belts, cams, pistons, shafts, cogs, valves, pins, clips, lubricants, flames, fuels, cooling pipes and radiators, nuts, bolts, chains, pumps, filters and hundreds of little bits and pieces manufactured to very tight tolerances using very sophisticated metallurgy and all sorts of techniques combined with electronics, transducers, switches and the like, squished up from factory size to dinky little bundle costing hardly anything under the bonnet of cute little cars operating absurdly efficiently at thousands of rpm and performing for hundreds of thousands of kilometres in a wide range of conditions.
I dream of superconductors, fuel cells, methane to methanol, turbines, electric motors, photonics, electronics, transponders, computers, auto-drive in vehicles with one or two moving parts. In my most extreme imagination, one moving part = the vehicle levitated on superconductors inside intercontinental tubes traveling at 1000 kph.
One weakness of the Capstone microturbine is that thermodynamics beats little. Large power stations use fuel more efficiently. If the line losses and cost of distribution are not too high, then it's normally cheaper to have big power plants with battery change at service stations, rather than carting around fuel and turbines [or engines].
But being self-contained has serious merit too, perhaps off-setting the thermodynamic efficiency of going big in power stations.
The whole field is fascinating and land transport technology has not reached its highest form yet, by a long way.
One of the more likely interim steps is a little 1 or perhaps 2 person city vehicle run on batteries with electric motors in each wheel = 4 moving parts [5 if you count the vehicle but don't count windscreen wipers, doors, hand-brake].
The Fisher and Paykel washing machine motor design is a good starting point for the electric motors in the wheels.
Mqurice |
