Current Status and Perspectives of the Thermomolecular Engine Developing

Abstract

Fundamentally new concept of a heat engine on the basis of heterogeneous working body, consisting of liquid and lyophobic towards it capillary-porous matrix was proposed in the middle of 80's. Unusualness of a new thermodynamic cycle and engine is that the interface of condensed heterogeneous lyophobic systems (HWB), "liquid- rigid solid capillary-porous matrix", the carrier of free surface energy, serves as a working body (in thermodynamic sense) instead of traditional gas/steam. It was first proposed to use potential energy of intermolecular interaction instead of kinetic energy of random (thermal) gas / vapor molecules motion.