PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATIONS OF STIRLING ENGINES

C. D. West Oak Ridge National Laboratory

VAN NOSTRAND REINHOLD New York

CONTENTS

Preface/v

1. STIRLING ENGINES AND THEIR APPLICATORS/1

Basic Principles/1 Characteristics of the Stirling Engine/6 Applications/9

Artificial Heart Power/9 Underwater Power Units/11 Space Power/14 Remote Power Sources/15 Military Ground Power/17 Heat Pumping/18 Automotive Engines/21 Solar Thermal Conversion/22

Summary/24 Recommended Further Reading/25

2. THE STIRLING ENGINE CYCLE/27

Displacer Action/27 Power Piston/30 Work Output/30 Adiabatic Losses/33 Transient Heat Transfer or Hysteresis Loss/42 Appendix Gap Losses/48 Pressure Drop or Windage Loss/53 Leakage Losses/55 Summary/56 Recommended Further Reading/56

3. KINEMATIC ENGINESGAMMA, BETA AND ALPHA/57

Single Acting Engines/57 Gamma Engines/57

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x Contents

Beta Engines/58 Alpha Engines/60

Double Acting Engines/63 Franchot Engine/63 Siemens Engine/64

Piston Drive Mechanisms/66 Simple Crankshaft/67 Rhombic Drive/68 Ross Linkage/70 Swash Plate/70

Power Control/73 Summary/74

4. HYBRID AND FREE PISTON ENGINES/75

Hybrid Engines/75 The Ringbom Engine/75 The Martini Displacer/79

Single Acting Free Piston Engines/83 Gamma Free Piston Engine/83 Beta Free Piston Engine/85 Overdriven and Resonant Free Piston Engines/86

Centering Ports/89 Double Acting Free Piston Engines/91

Free Piston Siemens Engine/91 Balanced Compounding/92

Summary/94 Recommended Further Reading/94

5. PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS OF REAL ENGINES/95

Power Output/95 Efficiency/99 External Heat Source/102 Exhaust Emissions/104 Quietness and Smoothness/105 Reject Heat Availability/107 Longevity and Reliability/109 Summary/111

6. STIRLING ENGINE ANALYSIS/113

First Principles and Correlations/114 Analytical Techniques/120

Contents xi

Closed Form Thermodynamic Solutions/120 Linear Harmonie Analysis/121

Vector or Phasor Analysis/132 Computer Modeling of Stirling Machines/136 Summary/141 Recommended Further Reading/141

PRINCIPLES OF STIRLING ENGINE HEAT EXCHANGERS/143

Working Fluid Heat Exchangers/144 Regenerator/144 Heaters and Coolers/151 Heat Transfer Rate/154

External Heat Exchangers/155 The Air Preheater/153 Final Heat Sink/157

Isothermalization and Direct Cylinder Heat Transfer/158 Oscillating Flow Effects/162 Summary/164

TWO HIGH PERFORMANCE ENGINES/185

The United Stirling 4-95/165 General Layout/167 Engine and Heat Exchangers/168 Seals/174 Drive Unit/179 Power and Combustor Control/179 Heat Sources/180 The 4-95An Appreciation/186

The Sunpower Spike/186 Dynamics/187 Engine and Heat Exchangers/189 Transient Heat Transfer, Appendix Gap and Conduction

Losses/191 Heat Sources/193

Summary/193

INNOVATIVE CONCEPTS/195

The Thermomechanical Generator/195 The Fluidyne Liquid Piston Engine/200

xii Contents

The Sunpower Rice Husk Engine/206 The Martini Three-Layer Displacer/209 Two-Phase Working Fluids/211 Summary/216 Recommended Further Reading/216

APPENDIX 1 THE VUILLEUMIER MACHINE/217

APPENDIX 2 EFFICIENCY TERMS FOR STIRLING ENGINE SYSTEMS

by / . L. Crowley/221

REFERENCES/231

Name Index/241

Organizational Index/243 Subject Index/245