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Overview of NASA Lewis Research Center free-piston Stirling engine technology activities applicable to space power systemsA brief overview is presented of the development and technological activities of the free-piston Stirling engine. The engine started as a small scale fractional horsepower engine which demonstrated basic engine operating principles and the advantages of being hermetically sealed, highly efficient, and simple. It eventually developed into the free piston Stirling engine driven heat pump, and then into the SP-100 Space Reactor Power Program from which came the Space Power Demonstrator Engine (SPDE). The SPDE successfully operated for over 300 hr and delivered 20 kW of PV power to an alternator plunger. The SPDE demonstrated that a dynamic power conversion system can, with proper design, be balanced; and the engine performed well with externally pumped hydrostatic gas bearings.
Document ID
19880014871
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Slaby, Jack G.
(NASA Lewis Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Date Acquired
August 13, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1987
Publication Information
Publication: New Mexico Univ., Transactions of the Fourth Symposium on Space Nuclear Power Systems
Subject Category
Energy Production And Conversion
Accession Number
88N24255
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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