Stirling Engine with One Adiabatic Cylinder

摘要

It is shown that integration around the P-V loop of a Stirling-like cycle with an adiabatic expansion or compression space is possible through careful application of the ideal gas laws. The result is a set of closed-form solutions for the work output, work input, and efficiency for ideal gases. Previous analyses have yielded closed-form solutions only for machines in which all spaces behave isothermally, or that have other limitations that simplify the arithmetic but omit important aspects of real machines. The results of this analysis, although still far removed from the exact behavior of real, practical engines, yield important insights into the effects observed in computer models and experimental machines. These results are especially illuminating for machines intended to operate with fairly small temperature differences. Heat pumps and low-technology solar-powered engines might be included in this category.