stirling engine

make no apologies for this not being a model boat I just thought it might be of interest to some.

Basically this is a Stirling or hot air engine. It works by shunting air from the hot end of the displacer cylinder to the cold end causing the air to contract rapidly pulling the power cyinder inwards turning the crank and flywheel this raises the displacer piston shunting the cold air to the hot end of the cylinder causing it to expand so pushing the power piston out and so on. this example is constructed from an old cola can cardboard a balloon (to act as a diaphram in place of the power cylinder) and some od bits of wire and a foil pie dish





The designs and a ready made displacer cylinder I found on ebay for under a tenner and when put together she works well.

Video of her working

Very clever Phil, but it will take a BIg hull to fit it in!!

Thanks Barry it is more a display model to demonstrate a principle. however I have considered making a more compact version to run an alternator to power a small electrtic motor (they don't have a lot of tourque built like this) that could maybe go in a boat time will tell



something like this

The flywheels would have to be aluminium with neodynium magnets in the holes for the alternator, one on each fly wheel shoud produce about 6v with enough amps between them to run a small electric motor fast enough to turn a small (ish) prop