Demonstrations

Stirling Engine

Code Number :	4F30.10
Disclaimer:	Reprinted by permission of Dick Berg, University of Maryland, for use on this website. The demonstrations contained and referenced herein are listed for the purposes of cataloging and describing physics demonstrations which should be conducted only under the direction of a trained instructional support professional or physicist. These demonstrations are not presented for the purpose of being conducted by persons unconnected to this Facility and/or persons not consulting with or being supervised by the recognized instructional support professional or physicist and his/her staff. The University is responsible only for those demonstrations carried out using its own equipment using established safety and scheduling policies, and bears no responsibility for those choosing to use this source material for their own purposes. All demonstrations described and contained herein are public domain, and can also be found in reference materials in libraries, bookstores, and electronic sources. Further information regarding legal liability in use of demonstrations and labs will be found on the web site Injuries in School/College Laboratories in USA. The University of Iowa Disclaimers: University of Iowa Disclaimer All Rights Reserved..
Condition :	Excellent
Principle :	Thermal/Carnot Cycles
Area of Study :	Heat and Fluids
Equipment :	Stirling Engine, Fuel Pellets, Bunsen Burner, Grill Lighter, Graphite Lubricant -- Only if needed!!, 3 - in - 1 Household Oil.
Procedure :	The fuel pellets seem to run this the best although the Bunsen burner will work. Lubrication is critical as any friction will keep the engine from starting or running. A drop of oil on the two flywheel bearings and the main piston shaft will usually be required. DO NOT OVER LUBRICATE THE PISTON SHAFT!! DO NOT USE OIL ON THE EXTERNAL SILVER PISTON - A very small amount of graphite is to be used ONLY WHEN NEEDED!! When the heated chamber reaches a sufficient temperature a small turn of the flywheel in the counterclockwise direction will start the engine.

Web Sites

Randall D. Peters, "The Stirling Engine-Refrigerator: Rich Pedagogy from Applied Physics." http://xxx.lanl.gov/html/physics/0112061

"Chapter 5: Thermodynamics: Building Simple Heat Engines." www.scitoys.com

American Stirling Co. www.stirlingengine.com

Let's Build a Can Stirling Engine

http://www.bekkoame.ne.jp/~khirata/english/mk_can.htm

References

H. Richard Crane, "How Things Work: The Stirling Engine - 173 Years Old and Running," TPT, Vol. 28, # 4, p. 252, (April 1990).

R. D. Spence and C. L. Foil. "Stirling Engines for Demonstration." TPT, Vol. 20, # 1, p. 38, (January 1982).

Raul A. Simon, "Stirling's Cycle and the Second Law of Thermodynamics," AJP, p. 496, Vol. 52, No. 6, (June 1984).

Harvey S. Leff, " Heat Engines and the Performance of External Work", AJP, Vol. 46, # 3, p. 218, March 1978.

Hn - 4: Freier and Anderson, A Demonstration Handbook for Physics.

Jearl Walker, " The Amateur Scientist: A Backyard Version of the Stirling Engine Can Be Built with Common Materials," The Amateur Scientist, (January, 1990).

Jearl Walker, "Experiments with the Externam-Combustion Fluidyne Engine, Which Has Liquid Pistons," The Amateur Scientist, (April, 1985).

Graham Walker, "The Stirling Engine," Scientific American, (August 1973).

Richard Fitzgerald, "Traveling-Wave Thermoacoustic Heat Engines Attain High Efficiency," Physics Today, p. 19.

James R. Senft, "An Introduction to Stirling Engines," Moriya Press, 1993.

Ron Hipschman, "Heat Pump," Exploratorium Cookbook II, p. 129.1 - 129.4.

"Stirling Engine" & "Stirling - the Forgotten Engine," The New Illustrated - Science and Invention Encyclopedia.

A Brief History of Stirling Cycle Engines.

Mail Questions and Comments to: Dale Stille