Solar Powered Stirling Like Engine

http://www.BuildSomethingUseful.com This is a small motor I built. It is definitely an external combustion engine but is it a Stirling Engine? I've heard it referred to as a Hot Air Engine and a Lamina Flow Engine. Whatever you call it, it can run with the heat from the sun and that's pretty cool.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Stirling
• Engine
• solar
• power

[RMSSSANTOS]

excelente.

[BuildSomethingUseful]

@RMSSSANTOS Gracias.

[AlBarathur]

What you needed was a black metal ring fit on the tube where the sunlight hits to spread the heat and avoid the crack. The crack occurred because sunlight heated some thin filament of metal to a very high temperature causing thermal stress on the glass tube. To be honest I find people needlessly use glass tubes for these engines, all that you need is to know exactly the length of the steel wool section inside the tube, and adjust the flame using the measurements and use a metal tube instead.

[BuildSomethingUseful]

@AlBarathur Yes, I think glass is a very bad idea when it comes to using the sun and a magnifying glass. A larger fresnel lens would probably even melt the glass. I'm going to start using stainless steel some time in the future.

[AlBarathur]

@BuildSomethingUseful Keep in mind though that metal conduct heat differently than glass. If the whole pipe is metal, you might need some serous heat dissipation, or maybe not, it is hard to tell

[BuildSomethingUseful]

@AlBarathur I hear you. I would use a very thin walled stainless steel but the thermal conductivity of stainless steel is right between glass and aluminum according to a quick google search. 

[BuildSomethingUseful]

@moabseeker I'm glad you like it, thanks for commenting.

[moabseeker]

Great Video!

[theCROfna]

nice revs there

[johngagne1]

Robert Stirling only invented the regenerator concept which increases efficiency.

So without a regenerator, it is just a heat engine.

Very nice and simple one though.