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efficiency of an engine. No engine can exceed the Carnot 
efficiency. (The second law of thermodynamics says you 
can’t get out more than you put in; you can only break even.) 
It takes good engineering and complex machines to achieve 
a significant fraction of the Carnot efficiency. Real Stirling 
engines can reach 50 percent of the maximum theoretical 
value, which is a very high percentage.

Stirling Engines Today

The modern uses of Stirling engines are invisible to almost 
everyone. There have been many research engines built in 
recent years, but there are only three areas where Stirling 
engines have made a dramatic impact. These are Stirling 
engines in submarines, in cryocoolers, and in science class-
rooms. 

Cryogenics is the science of things that are very cold, and 
Stirling engines can be used to produce extremely cold tem-
peratures. It’s not obvious, but a Stirling engine is reversible. 
If you warm one side and cool the other, you get mechanical 
work out. However, if you mechanical work in, by connect-
ing an electric motor, for example, one side will get hot and 
the other will get cold. In a correctly designed Stirling 
engine, the cold side will get extremely cold. In fact, Stirling 
engines used as cryocoolers have been made that will cool 
below 10 kelvin (K). Micro-sized Stirling engines have been 
produced in large numbers for cooling infrared chips down 
to 80 K for use in night vision goggles and infrared cameras.

Since Stirling engines are so efficient, an obvious question 
is: Why doesn’t my car have one?

Although a variety of prototype Stirling engine powered cars 
have been developed, they have not gained popularity 
because that have to warm up for 30 seconds to a minute 
before they will move. Most consumers have not been will-
ing to wait that long to get started. The low gas prices of the 
1980s and 1990s did not provide an economic incentive for 
consumers to switch to Stirling engines, and automobile 
companies have not had the incentive to research and 
develop more saleable engine designs. 

Stirling Engines in the Future

Future uses of Stirling engines could include applications in 
the maritime and aviation industries. Stirling engines would 
work exceptionally well for auxiliary power generators on 
pleasure boats, where their silence and efficiency would be 
value, and cooling water is plentiful. Some research has 
already been done in this area: the French research subma-
rine “Saga” is Stirling engine powered. Stirling engines 
would also work very well in airplanes where the air gets 
cooler as the plane climbs to altitude. Stirling engines would 
not lose as much power as they climb as conventional piston 
engines or jet engines. Stirling engines would operate with 
very low levels of vibration and noise. 

Technical Support

For assistance with any PASCO product, contact PASCO at:

For more information about the Low Delta T Stirling Engine 
and the latest revision of this Instruction Sheet, go to the 
PASCO web site at www.pasco.com and enter SE-8576A in 
the Search window.

Limited Warranty

For a description of the product warranty, see 

the PASCO catalog.

Copyright

The PASCO scientific 

012-06870B 

Low Delta T Stirling Engine Instruction Sheet

 is copy-

righted with all rights reserved. Permission is granted to non-profit 
educational institutions for reproduction of any part of this manual, 
providing the reproductions are used only in their laboratories and 
classrooms, and are not sold for profit. Reproduction under any other 
circumstances, without the written consent of PASCO scientific, is 
prohibited.

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States and/or in other countries. All other brands, products, or ser-
vice names are or may be trademarks or service marks of, and are 
used to identify, products or services of, their respective owners. For 
more information visit www.pasco.com/legal.

Address:

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10101 Foothills Blvd.
Roseville, CA 95747-7100

Phone:

+1 916 786 3800 (worldwide)
800-772-8700 (U.S.)

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