Believe it or not, but the idea of energy independence is not such a far fetched concept anymore, especially when it comes to applying it on individuals. Better put, you can find ways to harvest green energy and produce the electricity you need without much effort. Take this 3D printed Stirling engine whose model you can download online. The only thing you need is a printer.
Before we take an in-depth approach at this toy-looking piece of mechanics, let us go back to High School memories for a second and remember what a Stirling engine is. You know, it’s that heat engine that operates by cyclic compression and expansion of air or other gas at different temperatures.
It is designed to create a net conversion of heat energy to mechanical work and has been around for almost 200 years. It was what us humans used back in the age steam engines were the best way to get things going.
German engineer Andreas Haeuser from Hodenhagen, Lower Saxony, Germany took this mechanical principle and switched into an affordable, 21st century green engine.
Apart from the 3D printing material it only takes a few simple hand tools to build. He claims all the materials are commercially available and easy to obtain. As we said, it can work with solar power, even in less sunny days using reflector mirrors which can be mounted to increase the efficiency.
In case you now somebody that owns a 3D printer you’re at a download away from getting your Stirling engine. Haeuser sells the schematic files for just EUR 10 ($11) which is a bargain. The resulting engine might not power your car quite yet, but you could use it for things like pumping water or generating electricity for your desk lamp. Feel free to take a closer look at the video below to get a proper grip of the innovative design and tell us your ideas to make use of it.
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