Space Forum / Space Flight / June 2005

Subtle correction:  a new *gas turbine* has been announced.  The
difference is significant.  What's novel is the convenient packaging:
compressor, burner, and turbine on one side of one rotating disk.  The
turbine part itself is, as best I can tell, nothing new or remarkable --
it looks like a straightforward impulse turbine.

Don't immediately see any reason why it would be especially inefficient,
although having only one turbine stage is not great.  Putting one section
after another radially does mean greater diameter, higher centrifugal
forces, and hence perhaps greater structural and materials problems.

Its big assets are that it's basically simple and cheap and durable
(assuming it works well enough not to require tricky fiddling with the
details), like most turbines it's not fussy about fuel, and the simple
configuration means it doesn't care too much if the fuel is a bit dirty.
The clear winner application is powering military vehicles and equipment,
where durability and wide fuel tolerance are strongly desired; the
runner-up is remote-area oil/gas work, where cruddy unrefined fuel is
easily had and maintenance is expensive.

Gut feeling:  none of the above.  It doesn't represent a major advance
in any of the dimensions those systems care about.

Almost certainly not.  Those aren't gas turbines.