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Old 20-07-2009, 23:40   #113
WJM
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Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 9
Sterling cooling in rough offroad conditions: vibrations & off-camber

Hello dear Group,

Let me be the one to revive this thread again, this time possibly for the longest time since it's last hartbeat....)


Several years ago, I added the GlobalCooling link (both .nl and .com) on my website....at that time, I contacted the Dutch office by email more than once, but never got any answer....so I more or less rated it as either 'vaporware', or industrial prices equalling that of gold.

Only today, while adding & updating a bunch of fridge/freezer links on my homepage, I got distracted once again with this intrigueing product (also because I recently came across a German Thermocon medical box with -28C specification), and wandered into this forum, with it's lovely discussion.
Of course, after the first excitement I was heartbroken to hear that there *was* a consumer-grade product out there, but that it didn't sell, and vanished from the market at rockbottom prices....without me having a chance to grab one (despite high shipping cost from USA to NL).

That said, the note on this max-12-degree-angle raises 2 more, similar offroad-related, questions:

1) at steeper angles (give and take the specific orientation), does the Stirling unit just quit operating, binary-style, complety off, or does it keep working, with degraded output and/or efficiency?
(note that worst-case offroad is more than just a steep angle, it can also mean a vehicle completely tipping over, 90 degree or more)
(also note that there is only one compressor type that can stand such abuse, the Kissmann half-hermetic unit, because it is an oil-free concept (stock Danfoss (with oil) can take only 30 degree, Kissmann-modified Danfoss 45 degrees (although there are conflicting notes whether that is allowed continuously or only briefly), and Engel/Sawafuji 60 degrees (which I learned only recently, not many sites mentioning it))
(actually, I have been pondering about adding an emergency tipp-over detector (mercury level switch), into/onto the compressor's electronics box....just not sure how vibration-sensitive such mercury switches would be, in offroad-context (vibrations))
(alternatively, I would just create an on/off switch at the dashboard, to avoid at least the non-emergency extremes (steep uphill/downhill trajects))

2) which leads me to the second question: can the Stirling concept operate under continuous harsh vibrations?
I have been told the stock Danfoss and even the Kissmann-modified Danfoss don't like a worst-case vibration scenario, because of the oil starting to foam....not sure how the Engel/Sawafuji would rate though.
Kissmann Sr. himself says their oil-less half-hermetic, until production ended, sold as hot-cakes in the middle east, as OEM equipment on Mercedes dump trucks for construction sites....apparently this type of compressor was the only one to survive that harsh environment over time)
(that said, automotive airconditioning doesn't suffer from worst-case vibrations either, and that one contains oil too....)

Thanx for any information, opinion or clarification on both subjects!

PS: anyone seen a Colemand for sale recently?.... )
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