Stirling Engine
Photography happens to be the focus of what I publish online, but by training I am something rather different. A chemical engineer.
What's that you ask? Well as I say to relatives, it's not chemistry really; it's more physical chemistry with lots of maths and logistics. Or taking what the chemists make in a test tube, and then scaling it up to 1000 tonnes per hour. So it's my somewhat nerdy interest in heat transfer and thermodynamics that's lead to this little morning project from Kontax Engineering being popped through my letterbox recently!
This particular kit is for a Stirling Engine, which uses a very small temperature difference between two plates to continually expand and contract air in the chamber between them.
I had a go at making a short video explaining how they work. This small engine a great tool for STEM activities in schools to demonstrate some of the key fundamentals of heat transfer, thermodynamics, and of course the gas laws.
This is not advertising for Kontax, but you would not be disappointed with the quality of kits they put out. The workmanship is fantastic and the instructions were very clear. You can buy it already put together for a small extra cost, but where's the fun in that!?
A nice (though expensive) stocking filler.
I need some other props for STEM activities, so I've also been researching into those drinking birds recently. Another heat engine that works in a totally different way by exploiting the low boiling point of dichloromethane. Another great one for STEM to lead on to Henry's Law, Dalton's law etc.
