Manson engine

The Manson engine is a hot air engine that was first described by A. D. Manson in the March 1952 issue of Newnes Practical Mechanics-Magazines.[1] Manson Engines can be started both ways (clockwise and anti-clockwise).[2] It has a stepped piston. The front part is acting as a displacer and the back part as work piston (displacer and piston move as a single component).[3][1] The engine only requires three moving parts (piston,[3] piston rod and crank).

Animation
Photo

The engine is double acting,[1] as it is using both the expansion of the warmed air and the contraction of cooling air to exploit work.[3][4][5]

The engine has no commercial or practical application. The engines are built mainly as desk toys, physics demonstrations, and novelties.[2]

Functioning mechanism
Drawing based on the original design[1]
ideal PV-Diagramm[6][7]
  • Phase 1 (cooling down the work medium, suction stroke)
    • when the Piston is moved towards the heat source, the hot gas inside the engine is moved to the cool side of the cylinder.
    • the gas is cooled there, resulting in a drop in pressure, further moving the piston towards the heat source.
  • Phase 2 (top dead centre)
    • When the piston reaches top dead centre, the inlet valve is open, releasing the vacuum.
    • the flywheel keeps the piston moving
  • Phase 3 (heating up the work medium, expansion stroke)
    • when the piston is moving away from the heat source, the air is pushed towards the heat source.
    • the air is then heating up, resulting in the air expanding and the piston being further pushed away from the heat source
  • Phase 4 (bottom dead centre)
    • when the piston reaches bottom dead centre, the exhaust valve is open, releasing the build up pressure and hot air.
    • the flywheel keeps the piston moving

Differences to Stirling engines

Stirling engines are typically closed systems, while the Manson Engines are open system.[3][5][8][2] The displacer and work piston of the Manson Engine have zero phase angle.[4]

Variations
Manson-Ruppel-Engine[9]

The valve/gas paths are considered by some to be complicated to manufacture, so various variants exists with improved/modified simplified vales/gas paths.[9][10]

Sources
  1. "The Manson experimental double acting engine". www.stirlingengines.org.uk.
  2. "Nano Disc - Horizontal - From www.stirlingengine.co.uk". Stirlingengine.co.uk.
  3. "Manson". techref.massmind.org.
  4. "New generation of hot air engines: Manson engine".
  5. "Manson". www.geocities.ws.
  6. "Principes de fonctionnement du moteur Manson". December 22, 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-12-22.
  7. "Manson-Motor". www.w-haag.de.
  8. https://journeymans-workshop.uk/images/downloads/manson.pdf
  9. C2 DE 19904269 C2, Michael Ruppel, "Heißluftmotor - Heat engine has a simplified design with combined piston and valve and with alternate sides of the piston vented in either limits of the piston movement", published 2000-11-9, issued 2001-6-5
  10. GB application 2554458A, Christopher Guise, "Improvement to Manson engine", published 2000-11-09
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