The experience gained from the design and operation of two previous prototypes will be used as the basis for the system design and performance evaluation of a third generation free-piston stirling linear alternator system capable of reliably producing 1.5 kw of 60 hz 120 vac single phase power or… More

The planned work includes the design, fabrication, test, and reporting of a spin lubricated piston/ alternator in an existing free-piston stirling engine (fpse). this work is supplemental to an ongoing effort to demonstrate the spin lubrication of the displacer in the same 1 kw fpse. this engine is… More

One of the important factors affecting stirling engine efficiency and performance is the pumping loss through the heat exchanger loop. the flow through these heat exchanger loop. the flow through these heat exchangers is oscillatory, a condition for which sufficient test data does not exist. it has… More

Design, data reduction analysis, fabrication and initial testing will be performed for a stirling-cycle test rig capable of measuring thermal flux across regenerators under oscillating flow conditions similar to those encountered in modern stirling machines. this will be achieved by the addition of… More

Success in the international competition to improve electronic systems depends upon the development of better means for removing heat and producing low temperatures. compared to current technology, the required refrigerators must be more compact and reliable, require no maintenance orskill to… More

Sunpower proposes to design microstructures for heat transfer in novel stirling microrefrigerators inside multi-chip module packages for removing heat at low temperatures from wafer scale integrated circuits in space systems. the microrefrigerator exploits the material properties, mechanical… More

Sunpower, Inc., proposes to demonstrate an electrically-driven free-piston Stirling refrigerator for Combat Medical Units. This silent, energy-efficient, highly reliable refrigerator will provide required cooler and freezer compartment temperatures without using a traditional compressor or CFCs. The… More

Sunpower proposes to design the regenerator-displacer component of a novel duplex free-piston Stirling micro-refrigerator for cold electronics in aerospace applications. The micro-refrigerator, to be located inside microelectronics packages, exploits the material properties, mechanical designs, tiny… More

Sunpower proposes to investigate the feasibility of highly-efficient multi-stage pulse-tube cryocoolers for cooling loads in the range of 10 to 100 mW at temperatures of 10 to 12 K, satisfying the requirements of NASA SBIR subtopic 17.04, Thermal Control and Cryogenic Systems. These cryocoolers will… More

Sunpower proposes to investigate the feasibility of highly-efficient multi-stage pulse-tube cryocoolers for cooling loads in the range of 10 to 100 mW at temperatures of 10 to 12 K, satisfying the requirements of NASA SBIR subtopic 17.04, Thermal Control and Cryogenic Systems. These cryocoolers will… More

The innovation is a small, highly efficient, long life, low mass free-piston Stirling engine for low power applications. This machine is innovative because in addition to its small mass and physical dimensions it is anticipated to have 35 percent higher efficiency than engines now being considered… More

The innovation is a small, highly efficient, long life, low mass free-piston Stirling engine for low power applications. This machine is innovative because in addition to its small mass and physical dimensions it is anticipated to have 35 percent higher efficiency than engines now being considered… More

Sunpower proposes to investigate the feasibility of highly-efficient multi-stage pulse-tube cryocoolers for cooling loads in the range of 10 to 100 mW at temperatures of 10 to 12 K, satisfying the requirements of NASA SBIR subtopic 17.04, Thermal Control and Cryogenic Systems. These cryocoolers will… More

Sunpower will introduce thermoacoustic Stirling heat engine (TASHE) technology into its existing Stirling convertor technology to eliminate the moving mechanical displacer. The displacer function will be performed by a thermal buffer tube and supporting thermoacoustic components containing no… More

NASA seeks highly efficient, long life solar dynamic power conversion systems. The requirements for these missions emphasize low mass and high conversion efficiencies. A reliable and highly efficient Stirling convertor would provide mission planners with less costly spacecraft power options than… More

Proposed for development is a proof-of-concept prototype for the final stage of a multistage cryocooler. This final stage comprises a high frequency pulse tube cold head that cools from an intermediate temperature of 10?20 K down to below the critical temperature of helium (5.2 K) using an… More

The proposed effort will result in a design of a 30 kWe dual opposed alpha free-piston Stirling engine power conversion system for space applications, and provide proof of concept by the operation of a practical alpha engine. The stepped piston three-cylinder alpha FPSE has shown the highest… More

In Phase Sunpower looked at Thermoacoustic Stirling Heat Engines (TASHEs). These ranged from a TASHE which was sized for the heat from a single General Purpose Heat Source (GPHS), to a larger unit sized for a Venus mission. We also looked at different types of cooler to produce both electrical… More