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Heat engines and heat pumps

for the future

Sunoba

Renewable Energy Systems

Welcome to the web site for Sunoba Pty Ltd.

This business was formed to commercialise a new heat engine and heat pump, known respectively as BEE (Barton Evaporation Engine) and BDE (Barton Drying Engine).

In simple terms, heat engines turn heat energy into useful work. They are used to generate electricity or provide mechanical power for vehicles and equipment. Examples include Otto or Diesel engines for vehicles, Brayton engines for jet aeroplanes, and Rankine steam turbines to generate electricity.

Heat pumps use work to increase the temperature of a heat reservoir. Common examples are refrigerators and reverse-cycle air conditioners.

The BEE and BDE are based respectively on evaporation and condensation of water in an air-vapour mixture at reduced pressure. These devices were invented by the founder of the company.

The thermodynamic cycle for the BEE involves

hot dry air + water → power + cooled moist air

and, at first glance, appears to violate the 2^nd law of thermodynamics. In fact, this is not so since there is entropy increase as water evaporates into vapour. The entropy gain in the vapour offsets the entropy loss in the air as it is cooled. Entropy in the system is not spontaneously reduced during the cycle.

An experimental BEE was built and tested successfully in mid 2008 (see photograph at right).

Current priorities are to

· gain a better understanding of the performance of the BEE for power generation from passive solar heat collection, and

· identify industrial collaborators so that R&D can be continued, with the goal of building a prototype BEE.

Blog for 2010

25 August (seminar at QUT)

19 August (Tech Report on the simulations)

9 August (simulations complete)

22 July (tweak required for canopy model)

12 July (simulations complete for 6 months)

22 June (results from January 2010)

11 June (daily power output simulation)