Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Again, as a newbie, I'm sticking my hand up here with a Q.

I know very little about Stirling engines but reading thru threads, I see they get a mention a few places.

Why would you use a Stirling engine over solar power? What advantages do they have? They are low efficiency but this is not necessarily a problem if it is a small scale system, only if trying to upscale. But having said that my impression is that solar power is also adequate.

So what advantages are there and under what conditions would you use a Stirling instead of a solar?

Luisa

Do you know the efficiencies luisa? I don't.

BUT i do know that "normal" combustion engines have shocking efficiencies around 65% or something from emory, and solar panels are also really inefficient as far as solar radiation hitting survace Vs electrical energy out. But i guess the suns free!

Cost and/or Pollution?

There are many forms of solar energy.

I assume that you mean 'photovoltaics', there are many other forms like solar thermal, solar pond, solar chimneys

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_power
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photovoltaics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_pond

Indeed, one of the most interesting applications of Solar & Stirling Engines is their combined use in heliostats & parabolic reflectors.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_engine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stirling_engine

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_powe ... ing_engine

The costs of photovoltaic cells production in terms of energy & pollution is high, but they take sunlight all the way to electricity.

Other solar method generally produce heat for either its own sake (for hot water, process heat, desalination etc.) or to drive heat engines or rotor blade that produce rotary motion to drive axial shafts and/or electrical generators.

Here we have a two step method to produce electricity, but that require simpler methods to make and may produce less pollution in their making.

Stirling Engines & Solar Ponds are pet subjects of mine. If I can invent the compact Stirling Engine that can run on low temperature (solar) hot water, I'll go down in history with the geeks who invent Cold Fusion and the Electric Airliner!

Update: Disclosure, I have updated the Solar Ponds entry on wikipedia in the past.


Gnoll110

gnoll, you are correct, i was thinking of photovoltaics.............quite sort sighted of me! Interesting info.

Yes I meant photvoltaics. I don't know much about Stirlings but got the impression that people were thinking they were **the** way to go and wondered why.

I guess we'd stick with grid electricity for the moment but are thinking of going solar longer term.

I posted something about a fluidyne pump a while back.

http://backyardaquaponics.com/forum/vie ... t=fluidyne


Would be interesting to see if it actually did what was claimed.

I have never seen a working model of the fluidyne.

how is it that threads like that can be forgotten? oh, it was a month ago, so thats about 800 posts ago

Gome on guys revive the thread. We can have a "sterling off" i nominate J7au and lkb as the first two entrants

Eh - I'm working on the sequential GB water diverter, levelling off for the GH but more importantly getting fish organised for Friday.

To be honest - I wasn't following it earlier as I wasn't at that stage, have a look at it on the w'end just for u Steve (and j7)

Hi theres 2550 pictures of sterling engines in google images

Thanks F&F - you gonna do some research on it, that's fantastic

Any of you guys remeber the drinking bird,,, the hting that worked off evaporation and looked like it was drinking from a glass of water?

Was that a "fluidyne?" ..

Would it work scaled up?

Hee Hee ...

"Oh, stupid bird! I never should have put you in charge!" ..... The Simpsons

People, please remember there is energy generation & energy distribution. The grid is a distribution method only. It's the generation sources that needs the changes.


Southern California Edison (SCE) will be feeding Stirling/Solar power into the grid

I think the dishes that SCE are buying are about US$70K each, to supply 11 household. You could buy one of these and sell what you don't use back to the grid and generate carbon credit to sell?

I think an Australian company makes a one household Stirling/Solar disk too.

Goes hunting for link...

http://www.publish.csiro.au/?act=view_f ... 124p28.pdf

Yes Gnoll, I do appreciate the difference but my point is that we're not set up to go off-grid yet, maybe never, so rather than doing 2 things at once we'd start with the grid and then look later at going off-grid.

One of my workmates recently went solar with upload to the grid and his system cost him $20,000 + and he expects to get nothing back at all. Quite frankly I can't justify spending that much, even with the rebates, upfront right now (maybe never).

I have spoken recently with someone I know who is very knowledgeable about solar and this is his website if anyone is interested:

http://web.aanet.com.au/twoletters/

I know there's other sources too. But for now, aquaponics will be enough for me to deal with!

I think, generally speaking, that when most people say "grid" they mean reliant on the supply as and when it is given to us.

Besides, grid anything as a majority, will always be the using the cheapest option.