How to Make a Model Hot-Air Engine

By HENRY GREENLY

T HE hot-air engine, except perhaps for

the water-motor, is the simplest of all
prime movers to reproduce in miniature.
No boiler is required, no danger attends its
task is finished, sees the wheels go round, he
is sufficiently rewarded. If it will also drive
some other light running machine so much the
better.
use, and within a very few seconds of lighting The hot-air engine, originally called the
the lamp it is ready to start. For these reasons "caloric engine," is a comparatively ancient
the writer has chosen the hot-air engine as the invention, dating from 1807. Theoretically it
subject matter for the first article of the winter should be a perfect heat engine (which the
session. A hot-air engine is certainly a be- steam engine is certainly not), but there are
ginner's model. Of course, such an engine so many practical difficulties in the design
cannot be made to develop much power, but and construction that it is in reality one of
what model engine does ? Under ordinary the most inefficient of all machines used for
circumstances so long as the maker, when his providing power from the latent heat of coal.
Although in
the early
fifties Erics-
son built a
l a r g e pas-
senger-
carrying
ship driven
b y hot-air
engines,
readers
must aban-
don any
idea of
using an
e n g i n e of
this type
for the pur-
p o se of
driving a
locomotive
or a e r o -
plane. The
weight per
horse-power
is excessive ;
q u i t e two
hundred
times more
than that of
a modern
aeroplane
petrol-
motor.
There are
two systems
under which
hot-air
engines
work: t h e
 HOW TO MAKE A MODEL HOT-AIR ENGINE
"closed" cycle and the " o p e n " cycle. The the given amount of air trapped in the apparatus.
former deals with a given quantity of air which Both require constant replenishing, and what
is locked up in the apparatus, and which is is just as important, the air in the cylinders
heated and cooled down alternately. This must have no chance of getting out. The dis-
system is the one which the writer lias adopted placer cylinder and piston must be quite air-
for the model illustrated herewith. As will be
seen by the explanatory diagram, Fig. 2, two
cylinders are employed, the larger one (the
displacer cylinder) being closed at both ends,
and the smaller (power) cylinder open at one
end. The closed end of the power cylinder is
connected by a pipe to the displacer cylinder.
Inside the displacer cylinder is a large drum
or piston which does not quite fit the cylinder.
The function of this piston is to force the air
from one end of the displacer cylinder to the
other, the upper end being cooled by a water
jacket, the lower end being placed in the
furnace and subjected to the heat of the fire
or lamp. This action, of course, causes the air
to expand and contract, and therefore to
force out or relieve the pressure from the
piston in the power cylinder. In Fig. 2 the
displacer piston is at the top of its stroke, and FIG. 3.—How a hot-air engine works—the suction stroke.
tight, the gland and the power piston must
be in the same condition, and at the same time
work quite freely. The variation in pressure
in a hot-air engine is very small—one or two
pounds per square inch—and therefore friction
must be reduced to the minimum.
But to come to the construction of a working
model hot-air engine, which is the raison
d'etre of this article. No expensive materials
are required, and no castings, except one for
the flywheel. A collection of tinned iron cans,
some strip and flat brass, steel wire for shafts
and piston-rods, a short length of 3/16" copper
pipe, and some drawn tube for the power
piston and cylinder, should be made before
commencing the work. With regard to the
tins the sizes of the displacer, cylinder, and its
furnace and water-jacket may have to be
modified to suit the supplies, but a Lyle's
2lb. syrup tin would work well for furnacej
FIG. 3.—HOW a hot-air engine works—the power stroke. and a stout air-tight canister 2-1/2" dia. by

the air is in contact with the walls of the

cylinder which are being heated by the lamp.
The air expands and forces down the power
piston. At the end of the power stroke the
displacer piston moves downward, the crank of
this pistonjbeing placed at right angles to the
power crank. The air passes to the upper end
of the displacer cylinder through the space
between piston and cylinder |walls and is
cooled. Fig. 3 shows this action at the most
favourable point of the stroke, the air con- F I G . 4.—A suggested implement for cutting round holes
tracting and relieving the pressure on the in end of tin canister.
power piston. The process is repeated with
every revolution of the engine. The fire 4-1/4" high for the displacer cylinder. The dis-
provides for the heating and expansion, and placer piston should not be more than 2-1/4"
the cold water for the extraction of the heat diameter by 2-1/16" high. The joints of the
and contraction of the working medium, viz., cylinder should all be rolled joints. The
 THE CAPTAIN
bottom of the tin must be the bottom of the
cylinder, and as this is subjected to the heat
of the lamp, a plain soldered-in end will not
do. Although solder is of no use alone, any
tendency of the rolled-end joint or side seam
to leak may be stopped by soldering from the

I'iG. 5.—Clip for holding displacer cylinder to furnace

casing.
FIG. 6.—Component'parts of gland on displacer cylinder.
inside of the tin. For flux, any of the soldering
pastes, resin, or spirits of salts " killed " with riveted on to the furnace. Another satisfactory
zinc, may be employed for this purpose. method of supporting the displacer cylinder in
The furnace casing is a tin placed bottom a fixed position from the base-board would be
upwards. The lower part is pierced with air- to solder strips on to the water-jacket and to
holes, and with a bring them right
large "nick" down to the base
through which the outside the furnace
l a m p is inserted. casing. The water-
The top also has jacket is a n o t h e r
holes to allow the tin with an open
products of com- top, soldered
bustion to escape, (soldering is suffi-
and, what is more Air f>if>e cient fixing owing
difficult, a hole in to the presence of
the end of the tin the water) on to
must be cut to fit the outside of the
the displacer cy- displacer cylinder.
linder. To do this The top end of
well a special tool cylinder is shown
working from a in the general
centre point is to drawing, F i g . i,
be advised, or the placed inside the
canister m a y be displacer cylinder.
placed on a wooden If a suitable lid
block held in the which will fit inside
lathe and the hole cannot be obtained,
in the end turned the top of the cy-
out. A s u i t a b l e linder may be fitted
tool is shown in w i t h an ordinary
Fig. 4, which sketch lid with an outside
is self-explanatory. flange, a n d t h e
As the furnace cooling w a t e r
casing cannot be allowed to flow all
soldered to the over the surface of
displacer cylinder, the lid. In some
and any riveted respects t h i s ar-
joint might cause r a n g e m e n t may
the latter to leak, improve the effi-
a clip arrangement ciency of the en-
is suggested. This gine. The idea is
is detailednn Fig. 5, illustrated in the
and is [made from diagrams Figs. 2
strip brass or iron, and 3.
and the ends are A packed gland
 HOW TO MAKE A MODEL HOT-AIR ENGINE
is necessary to allow is turned from a piece
the piston-rod, which of 1" rod brass, the
may be of 3/32" steel inside being lightened
wire, to pass through. as much as possible,
The piston-rod should as shown in the detail
be soldered and nutted drawing, Fig. 9. Then
into both ends of the the tipper part should
displacer drum. The be soldered to a piece
component parts of the of tube, and the whole
gland are shown in turned down to a tight
Fig. 6. The studs working fit in the
should be soldered into the lid, and to ensure a cylinder. To render it fairly air-tight and at
better joint should be made of brass wire in the same time quite free, the piston should
preference to steel. be ground in with pumice powder and oil.
The beam should be made of two strips of The abrasive should then be washed out of both
brass rod about 5/16" by 1/16" section, and the cylinder and piston with paraffin.
should be supported from two brackets of The connecting rod should be filed up out of
similar material soldered on to the side of the strip brass to the shape and length shown in
water-jacket. A swivel link built up of tube Fig. 9. It is attached to the piston by a
and plate (see Fig. 8) will be necessary to gudgeon-pin, which fits the former tightly, in
provide for the truly vertical movement of the usual gas or petrol engine fashion. The
the piston-rod. To the other end of the beam connecting rod may be kept central on the
a connecting rod of steel wire (an old cycle pin by placing two washers made of tube,
spoke) with brass blocks screwed on at each one on each side of the little end of the con-
end is required to transmit the motion from necting rod. The cylinder should be lubricated
the disc-crank on the end of the crank-shaft. with heavy oil. The stroke of the power cylinder
The bearings for the crank-shaft can be may be a little longer than that of the displacer
made out of p i s t o n . The
plate material cranks shown
(iron or brass), a r e of t h e
the bottom., d i s c variety.
being flanged The connecting
at right angles p i p e between
to provide a the power and
fixing to the displacer cylin-
base-board. ders should be
The bearing connected to
plate next to the latter quite
the power cy- c l o s e to t h e
linder may also water - jacket,
be flanged at so that the sol-
the top and der will not be
bored for the. melted by the
cylinder tube. h e a t of the
This may be lamp. All leaks
soldered in. s hould b e
The piston avoided. It is
must be turned; important that
and if a lathe t h e displacer
is not available crank s h o u l d
this part of the be set at 90
work must be degs. in ad-
given out to a vance of t h e
trade firm, or power crank.
the assistance The position
of a friend of d i s p l a c e r
possessing this c r a n k in ad-
useful tool vance of t h e
must be in- power c r a n k
voked. The settles the di-
piston is made rection of the
in two parts ; rotation of the
the upper part engine.