Pool boiler heat transport system for a 25 kWe advanced Stirling conversion systemExperiments to determine alkali metal/enhanced surface combinations that have stable boiling at the temperatures and heat fluxes that occur in the Stirling engine are reported. Two enhanced surfaces and two alkali metal working fluids were evaluated. The enhanced surfaces were an EDM hole covered surface and a sintered-powder-metal porous layer surface. The working fluids tested were potassium and eutectic sodium-potasium alloy (NaK), both with and without undissolved noncondensible gas. Noncondensible gas (He and Xe) was added to the system to provide gas in the nucleation sites, preventing quenching of the sites. The experiments demonstrated the potential of an alkali metal pool boiler heat transport system for use in a solar-powered Stirling engine. The most favorable fluid/surface combination tested was NaK boiling on a -100 +140 mesh 304L stainless steel sintered porous layer with no undissolved noncondensible gas. This combination provided stable, high-performance boiling at the operating temperature of 700 C. Heat fluxes into the system ranged from 10 to 50 W/sq cm. The transition from free convection to nucleate boiling occurred at temperatures near 540 C. Based on these experiments, a pool boiler was designed for a full-scale 25-kWe Stirling system.
Document ID
19910053519
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Anderson, W. G. (Thermacore, Inc. Lancaster, PA, United States)
Rosenfeld, J. H. (Thermacore, Inc. Lancaster, PA, United States)
Saaski, E. L. (Research International, Inc. Bothell, WA, United States)
Noble, J. (Stirling Technology Co. Richland, WA, United States)
Tower, L. (Sverdrup Technology, Inc. Cleveland, OH, United States)
Date Acquired
August 15, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1990
Subject Category
Energy Production And Conversion
Meeting Information
Meeting: Intersociety Energy Conversion Engineering Conference