ANALYTICAL METHOD FOR STIRLING ENGINES AND COOLERS

For aiding the design and improving the performance of various Stirlin g engines and coolers, a Stirling engine thermodynamic and mechanical analysis, SETMA, has been developed and examined. A simple SETMA, whos e working space is divided into five control volumes, has been develop ed to enable easy, accurate prediction of the performance of Stirling machines. In this paper, the SETMA and fundamental equations are given in detail. Several examinations of the applicability of SETMA are dis cussed, comparing the calculated and experimental results of two types of actual engines. The calculation accuracy can be markedly improved by optimizing the friction-loss factors and heat transfer coefficients and carefully scanning of the dimensions of the working space. For ca lculations of the thermodynamic properties used by SETMA, it was clari fied that the SRK equation of state is more reliable than the ideal-ga s equation when analyzing higher-pressure-charged Stirling machines.