mjcox2000 wrote:What type of heat engine can a hurricane be likened to? What is its source of heat and where does it exhaust the heat to? Assuming typical temperatures, pressures, etc. for the source of heat and exhaust (you may want to look up these typical values), what is its theoretical maximum efficiency?
A hurricane is a Carnot engine, since there's no fuel, just heat. Its source of heat is the tropical water, and its exhaust is the atmosphere. The temperature at the water's surface is 20°C and the temperature at the top of the hurricane is -40°C, giving an efficiency of 79.53%. Then you came over and reminded me that you need to subtract the value from one, so the actual Carnot efficiency is 20.47%.