insulating the pistons

Discussion on Stirling or "hot air" engines (all types)
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nurotoxin
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon May 10, 2010 6:43 am

insulating the pistons

Post by nurotoxin »

Hi! I'm new to this forum and this is my first post and this question has been in my brain for some time now.
Now that I am planning to build my own Alpha engine and have found you folks I am going to ask the questions.

What I understand is that the better the heat transfer in the working gas from the Heat side to the Cool side
the better the power output. So any heat transferred between the 2 cylinders not in the working gas (through the
case, pistons, connecting rods, and crank shaft) is bad news. Is this correct?

What I want to know is what do you think of either covering the pistons or making the pistons of a material
that conducts heat poorly. Also what I was thinking of is insulating the cylinder and connecting bolts from the
case with asbestos or cork to prevent heat transfer that way.

What do you think
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