Generator set with Stirling engines supplied with thermal energy by an external body

Abstract

A generator set with Stirling engines supplied with thermal energy by an external body, characterized in that this external body transmits, by thermal conduction to the heat exchanger of the Stirling engines constituting the device, the energy necessary for their operation. In particular embodiments, by way of non-limiting example, a metallic external body in the shape of a hexagonal prism could supply six to eight Stirling engines equipped with electric generators, thus multiplying the total electrical production capacity by six or eight, with an energy consumption very close to that required for the operation of a single one of these engines.This device can, depending on different modes of implementation, serve as an auxiliary generator, empower individual homes, also ensure autonomy for buildings where the supply of electricity is strategic, such as hospitals or mobile hospital units, allow the charging of electric vehicles and participate in the energy transition through the production of boilers, ovens and even blast furnaces that themselves produce the energy necessary for their operation.

Description

Title of the invention: Generator set with Stirling engines supplied with thermal energy by an external body

[0001] The invention relates to a generator set using an external body to supply thermal energy to several Stirling engines.

[0002] In the case of current devices producing electricity using Stirling engines, the energy used serves to directly heat the exchanger of these Stirling engines; they generally require the production of heat of around 550°C to produce about 1000 watts of electricity, as is the case in a non-limiting example for the MEC 1.0 kW Stirling engine marketed by MICROGEN®.

[0003] The laws of physics demonstrate that heat transfer by conduction is multidirectional; thus, an external body can have different shapes, allowing it to heat several Stirling engine heat exchangers. As a non-limiting example, a metallic external body in the shape of a hexagonal prism, heated to a temperature of 550°C at the six faces constituting its hexagonal shape and the two other faces forming the base and the apex of this prism, could power six to eight Stirling engines equipped with electric generators, thereby multiplying the total electrical output. This would allow, again as a non-limiting example, a device using MEC 1.0 kW Stirling engines marketed by MICROGEN® to produce 6000 to 8000 watts, with an energy consumption very close to that required for the operation of a single one of these engines.

[0004] The present invention relates to a generator set using an external body enabling the operation of several Stirling engines; it is characterized in that this external body transmits by thermal conduction, at the level of the exchanger of the Stirling engines associated with the device, the heat necessary for their operation.

[0005] According to particular embodiments.

[0006] The external body can be integrated or be one with the exchangers of the Stirling engines constituting the device.

[0007] The external body can be solid or hollow, made of one or more heat-resistant materials and can be heated by any carbon-based thermal energy source, such as, by way of non-limiting example, gas, oil, glue or wood and its derivatives.

[0008] The external body can be solid or hollow, made of one or more heat-resistant materials and can be heated by any solar thermal energy source.

[0009] The external body can be solid or hollow, made of one or more heat-resistant materials and can be heated by any geothermal thermal energy source.

[0010] The external body can be solid or hollow, made of one or more heat-resistant materials, and can be heated by any device using electrical energy.

[0011] Non-limiting examples of external bodies using electrical energy.

[0012] The external body may be hollow to receive the heating element(s), such as, in non-limiting examples, resistors or halogen bulbs.

[0013] The external body can be hollow and constitute a Faraday cage containing a dielectric material heated by microwaves.

[0014] The external body can be made of a ferromagnetic material and be heated by a wound inductor.

[0015] The external body can be made of any heat-resistant materials and be heated by one or more lasers.

[0016] Different variants can be envisaged in the use of the external body.

[0017] The external body can be heated to significantly higher temperatures and separated by passive external bodies allowing temperature adaptation to the heat supply of the Stirling engines associated with it, it can thus serve jointly as a heating element in all systems requiring heat production.

[0018] This device can also be integrated into any device having at least one part to be heated to a sufficient temperature to be able to serve as an external body, as in non-limiting example this may be the case with boilers, ovens, cooking ranges or blast furnaces.

[0019] The device may include different temperature control systems at hot part level of Stirling engines with electronic regulators or passive external bodies or a combination of both with movable passive external bodies whose positioning is controlled by an electronic board.

[0020] The device may include different cooling systems for the cold part Stirling engines.

[0021] Fan-supported fin systems may be used in mobile systems.

[0022] Fluid cooling systems with remote heat exchangers may be provided in the case of fixed installations.

[0023] Since Stirling engines are reversible, their drive allows them, depending on the direction of rotation, to produce heat up to approximately 700°C or cold down to approximately -200°C. Systems with fluids cooled by Stirling engines in cooling mode can also be provided so that the device is self-sufficient in cooling, while the heat required to heat the external body can be supplied by a Stirling engine in heating mode. reversible driven by mechanical energy, such as, by way of non-limiting example, using wind or hydraulic energy.

[0024] In view of the current state of the art, which makes it possible to heat a ceramic element with the energy produced by microwaves with less than 700 watts to the point of making it red-hot and approaching 900°C, as is the case with the melting furnaces of decorative glass elements, designed for use by individuals in their domestic microwave oven, and which even allow these melting furnaces to reach a temperature of 1650°C with a power of 1200 watts, one of the simplest embodiments of a generator group operating from an external body according to the invention would be to mount six Stirling engines, each equipped with a 1000 watt generator, such as, as a non-limiting example, the MEC 1.0 kW Stirling engines marketed by MICROGEN®, around a hexagonal external body forming a Faraday cage containing a ceramic element heated by two 500 watt SSPA solid-state amplifiers.

[0025] Since the device is designed to be used for sufficiently long periods of time so that the heat can be distributed sufficiently by thermal conduction throughout this dielectric element, and thus throughout the entire external body, there is no need to provide a wave distributor.

[0026] Since the temperature of the faces of this external body will be significantly greater than 550°C, the Stirling engine exchangers will be separated from this external body by passive bodies whose distance will be calibrated to allow these Stirling engines to receive only the thermal energy adapted to their operation. The coolant, necessary for the device's operation, will be cooled in a remote reservoir by a free-piston Stirling cooler driven by an 80-watt linear electric motor. This motor will be limited to a temperature slightly above the freezing point of the ultra-low temperature antifreeze coolant used, such as, but not limited to, LIQUI MOLY® KFS 11 coolant with a 2:1 dilution ratio and a freezing point of -68°C. A 90-watt pump, positioned downstream of the reservoir to prevent overheating, will circulate the coolant through six individual circuits to ensure uniform cooling of each Stirling engine.

[0027] The waveguides will also be partially cooled by the cooling circuit so that the SSPA solid state amplifiers do not suffer thermal damage.

[0028] The device will be equipped with a cable allowing connection to the ground of the electrical network to which it will be connected in order to receive the energy necessary for its operation and redistribute the energy produced by the six 1000 watt generators.

[0029] An emergency circuit breaker and an automatic circuit breaker system in case of overheating or abnormal electrical losses will be provided.

[0030] The device will be enclosed in a sealed box on which the control panel will be fixed and fixing points will be provided to fix the assembly to the wall which will support it.

[0031] In view of the foreseeable developments and improvements of Stirling engines, which have hitherto been little developed due to a lack of profitable outlets, and since it is already possible to heat a metallic element that can serve as an external body to temperatures higher than the temperatures required for the operation of a Stirling engine from electrical energy with a consumption of less than 700 watts, the device according to the invention can be designed from a single Stirling engine equipped with an electrical generator with a power greater than the losses and consumption of the device heating the external body.

[0032] Devices using multiple Stirling engines will now allow individual installations to produce energy to meet part of their consumption by selling surplus production to the grid operator to which they are connected. Since these devices can be self-cooling, mobile versions could be developed for electric vehicles or for activities requiring electricity production, such as mobile hospital units. These devices could also be integrated into furnaces, such as, but not limited to, bread ovens or blast furnaces, so that these systems could continuously produce energy from the thermal energy generated.

Claims

Demands

1. Generator set with Stirling engines supplied with thermal energy by an external body, characterized in that this external body transmits, by thermal conduction at the level of the exchanger of the Stirling engines constituting the device, the energy necessary for their operation.

2. Device according to claim 1 characterized in that the external body is independent and has a shape enabling it to be connected to one or more Stirling engine exchangers.

3. Device according to claim 1 characterized in that the external body is integrated or forms one with the heat exchanger(s) of the Stirling engine(s) constituting the device.

4. Device according to claims 1 to 3 characterized in that the external body is made of one or more heat-resistant materials and is heated by any source of thermal energy production.

5. Device according to claims 1 to 3 characterized in that the external body is made of one or more heat-resistant materials and is heated by any electrically powered devices.

6. Device according to claims 1 to 3 characterized in that the external body is made of one or more heat-resistant materials and is heated by any source of mechanical energy production through the use of heat produced by the Stirling cycle of one or more Stirling engines in reversible mode.

7. Device according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the cold part of the Stirling engines is cooled through the use of the cold produced by the Stirling cycle of one or more Stirling engines in reversible mode.

8. Device according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that it is equipped with a mechanical and / or electronic thermal regulation system for the hot part of Stirling engines.

9. Device according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the external body replaces the thermal energy source of another device to which it is associated.

10. A device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it is integrated into any device having at at least one room to be heated to a sufficient temperature to be able to serve as an external body.