Libertine is developing novel power generation technology with the potential to substantially improve the efficiency of heavy goods vehicles by recovery of exhaust waste heat to permit engine downsizing and/or serve auxiliary power loads. Further automotive applications in heat recovery and low carbon power generation are anticipated. At the heart of Libertine’s technology is an innovative linear expander-generator which integrates a low friction free piston mover with a high efficiency linear generator. In the first automotive application, this expander-generator will be incorporated into small scale (15-30kWe) waste heat recovery systems converting 10-20% of waste heat to power. Nidec SR Drive will contribute to the program with the development of a linear switched reluctance generator and associated controls that will be evaluated in a test cell environment to determine the feasibility of such machines as a thermally-tolerant, magnet-free alternative to present linear machine designs, many of which incorporate permanent magnets.