Discussion of “Dynamic modeling and simulation of a heat engine aerobot for atmospheric energy utilization” Wei Yao et al. Energy 79 (2015) 439-446

This paper presents a discussion of “Dynamic modeling and simulation of a heat engine aerobot for atmospheric energy utilization” Wei Yao et al. Energy 79 (2015) 439-446. In the discussed paper, a novel design called a heat engine aerobot was proposed to utilize the atmospheric low grade heat. Then a dynamic theoretical model was established to analyze the thermodynamic performance and conversion efficiency. However, some discrepancies in the basic principle and dynamic model of the heat engine aerobot were identified. It seemed that several main influencing factors are not considered and the solutions due to violation of constraints were not feasible. In this discussion, clarification regarding above-mentioned problem was presented.