Stirling engine or steam?

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michael11747
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Jan 24, 2007 10:13 pm
First Name: mike
Last Name: rutkowski

Stirling engine or steam?

Post by michael11747 »

hello, i am debating on using either a Stirling engine or a steam
engine in my machine which will power a house with solar energy and
try to make a profit by selling excess electricity.

my main problem is this: what kind of metal (or any type of
material) can i use, which will not melt when heated with a fresnal
lense? the lense will utilize a heliostat which pretty much means
whatever im shooting it at will get pretty hot. would it be better
to heat a boiler full of water in this sense so i don't liquify my
Stirling engine? i have devised a way to boil water with a fresnal
lense so i could even use that heat to run the engine. which then
naturally leads me to my next question.

would a steam engine be better for this purpose? i have an ample
supply of water (700 gpm), a way to heat the water, and all i need
is a steam engine. where do i get one? i would like to experiment
with both types of engines.

i believe the steam engine will be more powerful. much more
actually, but it's not about power right now. i am more interested
in safety.

so i have a toss up between the two engines. all of my parts are
costing me under 200 dollars right now. the next and last expense
will be the engines. every part i have is from a landfill or dump,
or bought at a thrift shop. expense is an issue as always, so that
should be considered as well.

i look forward to your answers!
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