# Engine exhaust recovery

Turbochargers and turbo-compounding use exhaust energy in engines.

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/

Recovery and reuse · Heat to power and cogeneration · No. 127

- Recovery and reuse
- Heat grade: Medium
 Recovery and reuse · Heat to power and cogeneration · Foundation · Energy

Nearly every truck and ship engine reuses its own exhaust to spin a turbine at tens of thousands of rpm.

Chart: Illustration: Engine exhaust recovery

##### Where it comes from

A turbocharger uses fast, hot exhaust to pack more air into the engine; turbo-compounding adds a second turbine geared to the crankshaft, spinning above 40,000 rpm.

Accelleron, which calls itself the leader in high-power turbocharging, earned USD 1,263.1 million in 2025, up 23.5%, and built over 22,000 turbochargers that year.

##### Three things to know

1. Exhaust is the only engine heat hot enough for turbines; jacket water and oil heat stay below about 150 C.
2. Detroit dropped turbo-compounding from its DD15 truck engine in 2014 but kept it on the larger DD16.
3. A turbocharger upgrade trial on a COFCO ship averaged 3.5% fuel saving, avoiding 1,030 t of CO2 over 13 voyages.

##### The journey

1. 1 **Hot exhaust**Leaves cylinders at about 370-540 C
2. 2 **Turbocharger**Exhaust turbine drives an air compressor
3. 3 **Denser air**More air packed into each cylinder
4. 4 **Power turbine**Turbo-compounding returns energy to the crankshaft
5. 5 **Less fuel**Same power from a smaller engine

##### Go deeper pick a tab to open it in full

## Other sections

- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/correlation/index.md)
- [Science and thermodynamics](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/rc-sci/index.md)
- [Engineering and integration](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/rc-eng/index.md)
- [Economics and contracts](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/rc-econ/index.md)
- [Impact and additionality](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/rc-impact/index.md)
- [What to track](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/tracking/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/energy/e_engine_recovery/links/index.md)