A renewable energy device includes a wheel rotatably mounted on a base to spin about an axis of rotation and having a plurality of hollow, barbell-shaped fluid subassemblies fixed symmetrically about the axis. The fluid subassemblies each have a longitudinal axis radiating away from the axis of rotation, a hollow outer end defining a circular, ring-shaped, outer travel path when rotated about the axis of rotation, a hollow inner end defining a circular, ring-shaped, travel path disposed within the outer travel path when rotated about the axis of rotation, a hollow conduit fluidically connecting the outer and inner ends to define an interior cavity, and a room-temperature-boiling-point fluid disposed in the interior cavity. Inner and outer thermal variance subassemblies cover approximately half of respective ones of the inner and outer travel paths on at least one side of the wheel.

Systems, apparatuses and methods in interoperating with multiple clean energy sources, such as pneumatic energy, electrical energy, hydrogen energy and steam energy, with engine configurations employing theses clean energy sources dynamically and synchronously. Further embodiments including fossil fuel energies.

There are various source of heat energy. Amongst the various sources Solar energy, waste heat form garbage, waste heat from transformers, waste heat from chemical reactions, waste heat from plant and machinery, heat from geo-thermal or the vast heat energy lying in the seas and oceans are some of the major ones which are free and unused. Apart from these, we can also produce heat energy from fuels like fossil fuels, hydrogen gas, forest products etc. A lot of heat energy is being wasted and though converted to mechanical or electric energy it is not that efficient. However, using the evaporation or sublimation and condensation process brought about through difference in temperature and the use of buoyancy factor to increase the efficiency of the energy production, the heat energy can be converted to mechanical or electrical energy in excess of hundred percent. Moreover, heat energy obtained from hydrolysis of some chemicals like salts or hydroxides and their dehydration for reuse or the heat stored as latent heat on melting of salts can be utilized for huge storage of energy for some months or more and use it through this invention method. The energy lying in the water under the oceans during winter can be easily utilized for production of huge energy when there are very low (freezing) temperatures on the surface of the earth.

The invention relates to a thermodynamic energy converter (1) with at least one first and one second volume element (10a, 10b) for enclosing a working medium (102) inside a variable inner volume, including a wall that divides the inner volume into heat exchanger compartments (110, 120) and a working compartment (200), wherein a partition (230) is formed inside the working compartment (200) which divides the working compartment (200) into a working chamber (210) supplied with the working medium (201) and a force transmission chamber (212) supplied with a displacement fluid (202), the heat exchanger compartments (110, 120) and the working chamber (210) are interconnected such that the working medium (102) inside the volume element (10a, 10b) has the same pressure, and each heat exchanger compartment (110, 120) is connected to the working chamber (210) via an inlet and an outlet that is formed separately from the inlet. According to the invention, a respective inlet or outlet is designed, as a connection between the heat exchanger compartments (110, 120) and the working chamber (210), with at least one rotary valve (220) so as to prevent a flow through at least one of the heat exchanger compartments (110, 120) and to support a flow through at least one other heat exchanger compartment (110, 120).

A method for converting heat to mechanical work including providing incoming heat transfer fluid (HTF) at a first temperature to a mixing chamber, providing incoming compressed gas at a second temperature to the mixing chamber, enabling the gas and the HTF to mix, producing a gas-and-HTF mix, enabling the HTF in the gas-and-HTF mix to heat the gas and isothermal expansion of the gas in the gas-and-HTF mix, limiting volume of the gas-and-HTF mix, thereby increasing pressure of the gas and causing acceleration of a flow of the gas-and-HTF mix, causing the gas-and-HTF mix to eject through a nozzle, thereby converting the heat of the HTF to kinetic energy, and using the kinetic energy to produce mechanical work. Related apparatus and methods are also described.

An apparatus includes a generator configured to generate electrical power. The apparatus also includes first and second tanks each configured to receive and store a refrigerant under pressure. The apparatus further includes a first piston assembly having a first piston that divides a volume within the first piston assembly into first and second spaces each configured to receive refrigerant from at least one of the tanks. In addition, the apparatus includes a second piston assembly having a second piston coupled to the first piston. The generator is configured to generate the electrical power based on movement of at least one of the first and second pistons. During use, flows of the refrigerant between the tanks and the spaces can be created based on a pressure differential, such as a pressure differential created by a temperature difference between the tanks.

Described herein are technologies of a heat engine that transforms a low-level temperature differential between a heat source and a heat sink into useful electrical power. One heat engine includes a hydro-electric turbine, a steam source configurable to generate steam from a hot water source, a condenser, and a slug intake bend in a first pipe coupled between the steam source and the condenser. The slug intake bend is configurable to receive a slug of water from a cold water source. The steam from the hot water source pushes the slug of water up a vertical distance to the condenser. The condenser is configurable to receive the slug of water and the steam and provide liquid water from the slug of water and steam to power the hydro-electric turbine.

A method for converting heat to mechanical work includes providing incoming heat transfer liquid (HTL) at a first temperature to a plurality of mixing chambers, providing incoming compressed gas at a second temperature to the plurality of mixing chamber, enabling the gas and the HTL to mix, producing a gas-and-HTL mix, enabling the HTL in the gas-and-HTL mix to heat the gas and isothermal expansion of the gas in the gas-and-HTL mix, limiting volume of the gas-and-HTL mix, thereby increasing pressure of the gas and causing acceleration of a flow of the gas-and-HTL mix, causing the gas-and-HTL mix to eject through a plurality of nozzles, thereby converting the heat of the HTL to kinetic energy to cause movement of the plurality of nozzles; and using the kinetic energy to produce mechanical work.

Apparatus for extracting useful work or electricity from low grade thermal sources comprising a chamber, a source of heated dense heat transfer fluid in communication with the chamber, a source of motive fluid in communication with the chamber, wherein the motive fluid comprises a liquid phase, a flow control mechanism cooperating with the source of heated dense heat transfer fluid and with the source of motive fluid to deliver said fluids into the chamber in a manner that said fluids come into direct contact with each other in the chamber to effect a phase change of the motive fluid from liquid to gas to increase the pressure within the chamber to yield pressurized fluids, and a work extracting mechanism in communication with the chamber that extracts work from the pressurized fluids by way of pressure let down.

Systems, apparatuses and methods in interoperating with multiple clean energy sources, such as pneumatic energy, electrical energy, hydrogen energy and steam energy, with engine configurations employing theses clean energy sources dynamically and synchronously. Further embodiments including fossil fuel energies.