General Electric Company
ENERGY CONVERSION APPARATUS

Abstract:

An engine body may include a piston body comprising a piston chamber and a regenerator body comprising a regenerator conduit. An engine body may include a working-fluid heat exchanger body comprising a plurality of working-fluid pathways fluidly communicating between the piston chamber and the regenerator conduit. Additionally, or alternatively, an engine body may include a heater body comprising a plurality of heating fluid pathways and the plurality of working-fluid pathways. The heating fluid pathways may have a heat transfer relationship with the working fluid pathways. The working-fluid pathways may fluidly communicate between the piston chamber and the regenerator conduit. The engine body may include a monolithic body defined at least in part by the piston body, the regenerator body, and the working-fluid heat exchanger body, and/or defined at least in part by the piston body, the regenerator body, and the heater body.