- Author
-
Richards, C. D.
- Title
- P3 Micro Power Generator. BFRL Fire Research Seminar. VHS Video.
- Coporate
- Washington State Univ., Pullman
- Report
-
Video
May 29, 2001
- Keywords
-
power supply
- Abstract
- The P3 Micro Power System is a highly flexible and portable power supply with a power density well above that possible with any electrochemical battery. Creating that superior power supply is made possible by an innovative approach wherein a new type of heat engine, a micro heat engine, is created. The result will be an engine that is cheap to produce, highly efficient, extremely fuel flexible and that can be scaled to produce power from milliwatts to tens of Watts. The creation of a micro engine that is both highly efficient and relatively simple to manufacture is being achieved with a three-part strategy. First, thermal power is converted to mechanical power through the use of a novel thermodynamic cycle that approaches the ideal vapor Carnot cycle. This cycle eliminates the requirement to manufacture complex micromachines such as rotary compressors and turbines, but still delivers high second law efficiency. Second, mechanical power is converted into electrical power through the use of a piezoelectric ceramic generator that can be manufactures using MEMS fabrication techniques but still delivers high conversion efficiency. Third, since micro-manufacturing methods excel at producing many identical copies of two-dimensional structures, the engine design is based on a simple, modular, two-dimensional structure. The design, fabrication, and performance of the P3 Micro Power System will be reviewed and discussed.