ISSN Online: 2377-424X
ISBN Print: 978-1-56700-421-2
International Heat Transfer Conference 15
Simulation Study of Regenerator of Stirling Engine Used for Solar Energy Thermal Power Generation
Abstract
The efficiency of dish thermal power generation system for solar energy utilization will be affected by the performance of regenerator which is the key component in Stirling engine. A theoretical simulation model was established based on single-blow method to study the influence of different porosity, regenerator matrix, and working fluid on the heat transfer and flow characteristics in regenerator. From the result, the following conclusion can be drawn. (1) Increasing porosity can shorten the stabilization time of regenerator and make Stirling engine start easily. The pressure drop of working fluid was also decreased. At a low Reynolds number, resistance coefficient can be reduced significantly. However, the total power of Stirling engine will be decreased due to the decrease of regenerator effectiveness.(2) When ceramic material was used as matrix, the regenerator has a fast heating up and short stabilization time. During the heating up, temperature gradient inside regenerator was big, axial heat conduction loss was small while regenerator effectiveness was low. However, copper has the opposite effect compared with ceramic. The performance of stainless steel used as the matrix is between ceramic material and copper.(3) When hydrogen was used in regenerator, the regenerator has a fast heating up, short stabilization time, and good heat transfer performance. The performance of helium was worse then hydrogen , but better than air. Under the same power output, the pressure drop of hydrogen gas was smallest, air biggest, and helium gas medium.