A monolithic heater body may include a combustor body, a hot-side heat exchanger body, and an eductor body. The combustor body may define a combustion chamber and a conditioning conduit circumferentially surrounding the combustion chamber. The conditioning conduit may fluidly communicate with the combustion chamber at a distal portion of the combustion chamber. The hot-side heat exchanger body may define a hot-side heat exchanger that includes a heating fluid pathway fluidly communicating with a proximal portion of the combustion chamber. The eductor body may define an eduction pathway fluidly communicating with a downstream portion of the heating fluid pathway and a proximal portion of the conditioning conduit.

There is disclosed a heat exchanger comprising: a plurality of first fluid channels, a plurality of conduits for interconnecting the first fluid channels, a plurality of second fluid channels, a plurality of conduits for interconnecting the second fluid channels, wherein the heat exchanger is configured as a plurality of repeating units, each repeating unit comprising: a base plate comprising a first opening, and a first conduit extending from the plate, the shape of the opening corresponding to the shape of the conduit.

A monolithic heat exchanger body for inputting heat to a closed-cycle engine may include a plurality of heating walls and heat sink, such as a plurality of heat transfer regions. The plurality of heating walls may be configured and arranged in an array of spirals or spiral arcs relative to a longitudinal axis of an inlet plenum. Adjacent portions of the plurality of heating walls may respectively define a corresponding plurality of heating fluid pathways therebetween, for example, fluidly communicating with the inlet plenum. At least a portion of the heat sink may be disposed about at least a portion of the monolithic heat exchanger body. The heat sink may include a plurality of working-fluid bodies, for example, including a plurality of working-fluid pathways that have a heat transfer relationship with the plurality of heating fluid pathways. Respective ones of the plurality of heat transfer regions may have a heat transfer relationship with a corresponding semiannular portion of the plurality of heating fluid pathways. Respective ones of the plurality of heat transfer regions may include a plurality of working-fluid pathways fluidly communicating between a heat input region and a heat extraction region.

A system including a closed cycle engine having a piston body defining a hot side and a cold side and having a piston assembly movable within the piston body. An electric machine is operatively coupled with the piston assembly. A control system includes one or more sensors operable to detect a piston movement characteristic of the piston assembly movable within the piston body. A controller is communicatively coupled with the one or more sensors and a controllable device. The controller is configured to determine a control command based at least in part on data received from the one or more sensors. The control command is selected based at least in part to cause the electric machine operatively coupled with the piston assembly to generate a preselected electrical power output. The controller provides the determined control command to the controllable device. The controllable device is operable to control an input to an engine working fluid disposed within the piston body.

There is disclosed a heat exchanger comprising a first channel, for communicating between a first channel inlet and a first channel outlet, a second channel for communicating between a second channel inlet and a second channel outlet, a third channel for communicating between a third channel inlet and a third channel outlet, a first conduit interconnecting the first channel and the third channel, and thereby defining a first group of interconnected channels, the first conduit extending through the second channel.

A heat exchanger comprising: a core comprising first fluid channels, for guiding a first fluid, wherein each of the first fluid channels comprises a plurality of spur conduits interconnecting with at least one of another of the first fluid channels; a manifold for first fluid input comprising an input port which communicates with an input chamber for a first fluid, the chamber branching to form a plurality of first-fluid core-input channels; and a manifold for first fluid output comprising a plurality of first-fluid core-output channels which lead into an output chamber communicating with an output port, wherein each first fluid channel in the core communicates between a respective first-fluid core-input channel and a respective first-fluid core-output channel.

A monolithic heater body includes a combustor body and an eductor body. The combustor body has an annulus with an outward annular wall and an inward annular wall. The annulus defines a conditioning conduit between the outward annular wall and the inward annular wall, and a combustion chamber circumferentially surrounded by the inward annular wall. A distal portion of the conditioning conduit fluidly communicates with a distal portion of the combustion chamber. The eductor body defines a plurality of eductive pathway couplets circumferentially spaced about a perimeter of the annulus. Respective ones of the eductive pathway couplets have a motive pathway and an eduction pathway respectively oriented oblique to the annulus and fluidly communicating with the conditioning conduit. Respective ones of the plurality of motive pathways are configured to provide a jet of intake air from a corresponding plurality of intake air pathways to the conditioning conduit.

A controller configured to: acquire a temperature of a first component and a temperature of a second component; and adjust a thermal resistance of a medium between the first component and the second component based on the acquired temperature of the first component, the acquired temperature of the second component, a first temperature limit of the first component, and a second temperature limit of the second component.

The invention concerns a vehicle condenser having a substantially parallel epipedic shape and comprising stacked plates, which are parallel with a substantially vertical plane and define alternate coolant chambers and refrigerant chambers between each other. The vehicle condenser is divided into three consecutive groups of refrigerant chambers and comprises at least one combination, on one side of the vehicle condenser, of a larger refrigerant outlet, that leads a main flow of refrigerant from one group of refrigerant chambers to a larger refrigerant inlet of a following group of refrigerant chambers, and, vertically opposite to said larger refrigerant outlet, a smaller refrigerant outlet, that leads a residual flow of refrigerant from said one group of refrigerant chambers to a smaller refrigerant inlet of said following group of refrigerant chambers.

An energy conversion apparatus may include an engine assembly, such as a monolithic engine assembly, that includes a first heater body and a first engine body. The first heater body may define a first portion of a first monolithic body or at least a portion of a first monolithic body-segment. The first engine body may define a second portion of the first monolithic body or at least a portion of a second monolithic body-segment operably coupled or operably couplable to the first heater body. The engine assembly may include a second heater body and/or a second engine body. The second heater body may define a portion of a second monolithic body or a third monolithic body-segment. The second engine body may define a portion of the second monolithic body or a fourth monolithic body-segment operably coupled or operably couplable to the second heater body and/or the first engine body.