Electric 914s, what are the numbers? Options

[fiid]

I was talking to mueller a while ago about building turbine engines out of turbo chargers, and he said that that was basically what an aircraft APU (auxillary power unit) does.

Which gets me to wondering. I think it would be really cool to build an electric 914 that is powered by a turbine generator running on CNG.

Is this viable? With Otmar's setup this would be an interesting way to get 1000 ft lbs, but still maintain range. Plus you ought to be able to get access to Californias HOV lanes (either by running CNG or as a hybrid.

What kind of power output can you get from a small turbine generator?

[airsix]

I see a few locomotives here and there that use turbine genereators vs. diesel. They look/sound cool pulling a grade with a high-piched whine and a 6ft blue flame shooting straight up.

You're not the first to think about this. But... I think on a car it would end up being much less efficient than direct drive from a piston engine.

Were you thinking about using a turbo from a car, or using an APU? If you were thinking about an APU you're going to fall out of your chair when you see the prices. About 15 years ago I worked for a big flight school and saw an APU from a Gulfstream II go for $100k.

-Ben M.