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Temp. differential sources

Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2003 8:29 pm
by tcadeau
I have just recently learned of what a Stirling engine is and have been absorbing any info that I can. It seems to me that temperature differential is the biggest concern for "air" engines. Do you think an engine could be constructed that would use natural extreme sources such as the core of volcanoes or even Earth's high core temperatures? Obviously the size of the engine is a consideration but I'm thinking power generation for small cities. Would this even be possible?
Trev

Response to Temp. differential sources

Posted: Fri Sep 05, 2003 12:38 pm
by stan.hornbaker
The difference in the Absolute temperatures of the source and sink are absolutely critical to the operation of a Stirling engine. The earth as a heat source and the atmosphere as a heat sink are quite appealing at first glance. A number of practical considerations are: the means of conducting or conveying heat from the source to the engine, the size and design of the engine to drive the generator, the auxilliaries required, etc. This suggests itself a good project for an advanced engineering degree.

Anyone who has not read all of the posts in all of the forums on this board should do so. Also do searches on the web for the many sites having to do with building model Stirling engines, also the companies that sell working machines for specialized applications at $15,000 to $20,00 US. You will find a small book by American Stirling available on this site, and "Air Engines" by Finkelstein & Organ is available from The American Society of Mechanical Engineer for about $80.