Design and construction of a solar-powered, thermoacoustically driven, thermoacoustic refrigerator

A thermoacoustically driven thermoacoustic refrigerator powered by solar thermal energy has been successfully built and tested. A 0.457 m diameter Fresnel lens focuses sunlight onto the hot end of a 0.0254 m diameter reticulated vitreous carbon prime mover stack, heating it to 475 degrees C, thereby eliminating the need for the most troublesome component in a heat driven prime mover, the hot heat exchanger. The high intensity sound waves produced by the prime mover drive a thermoacoustic refrigerator to produce 2.5 watts of cooling power at a cold temperature of 5 degrees C and a temperature span of 18 degrees C. (C) 2000 Acoustical Society of America.