Nitinol engine - amazing stuff!

All I can find on the market are toys and models, but the raw materials are very inexpensive:
https://shop.nitinol.com/shop/?slug=index.php&cPath=28

Anybody know of a functioning model?

In theory, it should work great. In practice, there are a few details that need attention. For instance, not all nitinol is created equal. Some of what you can buy require very low temperatures to "deactivate" their shape, so check the activation temps before purchasing.

Nitinol is a pretty glaring example of free energy suppression, IMHO. Strange the way the program was shut down even though they had a working model of a nitinol motor operating.

Another great use for nitinol might be as an automatic solar tracker for solar panels. I read about this invention that turns the panels with the sun as it moves across the sky, but I'm not positive nitinol was the alloy used for that.

As the sun moves across the sky, it would heat up newly exposed nitinol springs, which would turn the turntable the solar panels are on as they tighten, keeping the solar panels in the sun without using electricity or a motor.

Seems like a pretty simple concept. Nitinol is supposed to last for a very long time, so maybe this would be durable and breakdowns less frequent.

Very informative stuff

I would propose that the Nitinol could also be used in a solar tracker to lock the solar panels in place against a tendency to drift off of target ,First the clamping
action would save on wear and tear on the system reducing material costs that show up in start-up costs and later as maintenance/maintenance costs down the
road, a very simple Arduino type computer could then check a couple of times a second if the NITINOL had cooled/warmed enough to unclip the gears with one
end of the wire, possibly opening or closing an Electrical switch at the other end of the same wire to energize one or other of a set of drive motors (if Needed-)
(see Bill B,s Alternate Plan ) allowing the articulated mechanism to 'hunt the Sun', until the Nitinol wire is again uncovered-warmed / Covered-cooled !

Bill B. I always follow you with interest,if you find the information on the sun-tracking unit please share even if Nitinol is not involved! A. L.

I have set my watch button on this Forum Thread and will follow it with interest ! For the Good of the Craft, and the Future ! Pyro AL !

Thanks, Allen.
Your idea for nitinol sun tracking looked good to me. A lot more precise than using just the sun for heat.

Don't be too disappointed if you see a few real duds from me, though. A lot of my ideas are unworkable or aren't better solutions to anything. LOL. I keep trying, though, looking for the ones that might change things for the better.

Nitinol engines are a fairly elusive thing. Most people just build their own. Just a word of warning, make sure you're using SHAPE MEMORY nitinol, not superelastic. Most of the nitinol available on the market today is superelastic. If you order from www.KelloggsResearchLabs.com, you can get all kinds of shape memory nitinol for the cheapest price anywhere. Also, we're in the process of filing a patent on a functional generator that generates power from the daily change in air temperature (not solar).

Check it out. www.KelloggsResearchLabs.com

It's a real honor to meet you, Joe. Thank you for taking a look and responding. And thank you for the link.

Would you explain the difference between superplastic and shape memory, please?
I know shape memory springs back into whatever shape the nitinol was cast in to begin with when heat is applied. Or, at least I think I know that.
What does the superplastic nitinol do, exactly? I read that no heat needs to be applied for the nitinol to recover its original shape and it can take a load of up to ten percent. What does that mean, please? Does it still go limp when exposed to cold? What triggers it to regain its original shape?

Also, I threw up a post titled "windup technology".
It is about using nitinol in a wind up spring mechanism to store energy and release it on demand. My thinking is that it should be easier to wind it up when cold, then heat it before releasing the the lock for a strong energy release. Feel free to comment, or not if you can't. Or, use anything of value to you in the post, if it's viable.

I understand you may not be able to respond to that post. You need to succeed at what you're attempting and I wouldn't want to interfere with that. Good luck with your invention. Be careful and stay safe. I don't want to read about you as yet another case of free energy suppression. What you're attempting is a good thing, something needed in this world right now, so do whatever it takes to get it done. Also, consider setting up a contingency plan to release the info on your machine to the public if it looks like you will not be allowed to move forward with your plan to commercialize it.

Again, it was really good to meet you. People like you give me hope that my children's future will be brighter than their present.

The difference between superelastic and shape memory nitinol is pretty basic, but it throws a lot of people off. On the visible level, superelastic nitinol is very springy--you would have a very hard time putting a kink in it. Whereas shape memory nitinol can be bent at low temperatures and then heated to be restored to the original shape. Unfortunately, this process is very complex on the microscopic level, so it is tough to use in engineering aspects. Right now, we're trying to build some good Q&A message boards on our website to really help people work with nitinol, so feel free to drop by and ask some questions. Thanks!

Joe Kellogg : Thanks for stoping by, you're a member now come back often and share, I can easily envision lots of switching jobs that would save thousands
of electrical motors, and servos! We are looking into finding a phase-changing material in the 100 degree f range ,a Nitinol switch could allow heating
one area to capacity with a properly positioned heat shielded location possibly allowing the heat transfer from one area to a series of other areas! much of
our research is for off the grid low or no Electrical input to Solar and bio-mass heating units.

We would be only too happy to look at what is Generally available out there from other sites that you want to recommend 'toy' or not!

With the thousands of 'Craft-y' members who visit these forums, you have a large Audience and we share almost every thing we do here Big AL

The most people on line at one time at this site was 12,476, december last year, with the number of new members we have gained since then, that record will
fall any day now ! A. L.

Who would I talk to about buying advertising space?

I would be the person to contact.

The main problem with nitinol engines is durability. Though it can be built they don't last. There was a lot of research into this at one time.

Max Kennedy : I was thinking in terms or using Nitinals shape-changing abilities to activate switches and physically unlock/release machines that incorporate a simple
range of motion in their operations, or as a Safety Stop when out of temp ranges were detected ! Have you noted any thing but toys that activate switches ?

For the Craft ! be safe, keep warm ! Pyrological Big Al - As always, your comments and Questions are Solicited and are Welcome ! A. L.

Max Kennedy wrote:The main problem with nitinol engines is durability. Though it can be built they don't last. There was a lot of research into this at one time.

You're right, there was a lot of research done into this. As a result of being a part of that research, we can offer nitinol that is optimized against shape memory fatigue and, under most circumstances, the nitinol will out last you. If you're interested in discussing this in greater detail, please come on over to the nitinol discussion forum at www.KelloggsResearchLabs.com

https://www.kelloggsresearchlabs.com/node/30933#comment-109906

This link should take you right to his new forum.

Thanks! I couldn't seem to get the HTML to work on this message board.

Joe, would a small cook pot made of Nitinol be out of the realm of possibility for hikers?

At ambient temp you smash it flat and fold it up to fit better into a backpack. Put it on a camp stove & it springs into a little cook pot.

It would probably be way too expensive right now or making it to correctly respond to these temperatures would be too difficult, but maybe someday it will be viable.

Just another possible use to file away until such time as its feasible.

It's certainly possible to build such a pot, but it would cost several hundred dollars. I'm pretty sure you could make something almost as good out of aluminum for a small fraction of the cost.

I figured it would be too expensive for now. But, who knows what the future holds? Maybe the price of Nitinol will come down at some point. Or, maybe the thought of an entire home cookware set that takes up almost no room folded up in a single cabinet will catch on at some point, driving demand and eventually bringing the price down through mass quantity. Wealthy people would be able to afford it at first, but maybe in time the price would come down enough for a wider customer base.

Or maybe it won't. Just trying to think of more possible uses for this amazing material. I believe things made of Nitinol that we haven't even thought of yet will eventually become commonplace in the future.

Bill, I agree with Joe, I don't foresee the price coming down enough to make that concept feasible for a while. There are quite a few uses of nitinol but its usage is still relatively low compared to alternatives. At this point there just isn't enough commercial usage of nitinol to create a price drop. I run a metal fabrication shop Modern Grinding and we occasionally have nitinol scraps. Feel free to reach out if you have any interesting permie projects you are working on.

Hi guys,

Why do you think Nitinol motor is a "free energy" device, much less a suppressed one? It requires two separate temp sources (hot source & cold sink), as such, it is a variation of thermodynamic engine... it is no more "free energy", than your average diesel . Now, it could potentially run on waste heat, but "free energy" it is not!

regards,M

Michal Byrne wrote:Hi guys,

Why do you think Nitinol motor is a "free energy" device, much less a suppressed one? It requires two separate temp sources (hot source & cold sink), as such, it is a variation of thermodynamic engine... it is no more "free energy", than your average diesel . Now, it could potentially run on waste heat, but "free energy" it is not!

regards,M

I think that energy that you don't have to pay for is close enough to "free energy" for most of us.

Joe Kellogg wrote:Nitinol engines are a fairly elusive thing.  Most people just build their own.  Just a word of warning, make sure you're using SHAPE MEMORY nitinol, not superelastic.  Most of the nitinol available on the market today is superelastic.  If you order from www.KelloggsResearchLabs.com, you can get all kinds of shape memory nitinol for the cheapest price anywhere.  Also, we're in the process of filing a patent on a functional generator that generates power from the daily change in air temperature (not solar).  

Check it out.  www.KelloggsResearchLabs.com

Hi Joe, not sure if you're watching permies any more but I'd love to get an update on your functional generator.