Here’s something I discovered via a post on the Journal of Nuclear Physics. Press releases from NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, and Nirvana Energy Systems, a Silicon Valley startup are announcing the development of what they call the Thermo Acoustic Power Stick (TAPS).
According to the NASA Glenn press release, TAPS “is designed to convert a home’s natural gas supply into electricity, providing the home with its own mini power plant, or micro-grid”, and is based on a NASA “Stirling propulsion technology” which “uses acoustic waves instead of mechanical parts to convert and transfer energy for electrical power generation”. Technology from Xerox PARC in Palo Alto also contributed to the TAPS system.
The Nirvana Energy press release describes TAPS as a “micro-combined heat and power (µ-CHP) system for home use that converts gas into electricity and provides for domestic water and space heating” and states that the system “is silent, compact and provides the home energy needs at a fraction of the cost of grid supplied power and heating.”
Nirvana Energy co-founder Jim Gibbons says “the Power Stick, which can operate continuously, will allow customers to lower their energy bills by creating both their own electric power and sufficient heat for domestic water and space heating purposes. Where permitted, consumers will also have the option of selling excess electric power back to the grid, thus becoming net producers of electricity for their communities”.
I have to say that after reading both these press releases, I am still not quite sure what the TAPS system is. Nirvana describes it as being “small in size, less than 32″ in length, and 8-10″ in diameter while producing 2-4 KWe and 15-35 KWh. The TAPS™ unit weighs less than 60 pounds”. Since NASA mentions Stirling technology, it will apparently operate from a heat source — natural gas is mentioned, but perhaps any heat source (LENR?) would be sufficient. When informed about this press release, Andea Rossi stated on the JONP: “You are right, very interesting!Thank you for the information”. We know that Rossi has been looking for a way to use Stirling engines with the E-Cat, so maybe this is an idea he finds intriquing.
NASA states that TAPS is going to be tested throughout the year, and will be released to the marketplace once testing, certification and regulatory approval is complete — no timeframe provided.
