Step-type thermoacoustic system saturated with water vapor: Study for stabilization of low-temperature driving.

To lower the oscillation temperature of a thermoacoustic system, a method of supplying water vapor into a tube was previously presented. However, this method has a problem, that is, the oscillation becomes unstable. In this study, to resolve the instability of the oscillation due to the use of water vapor, the system supplied with water vapor is replaced with a step-type one. The step-type system using water vapor oscillated at a temperature lower than that of the straight-tube-type system by 170 K in air at atmospheric pressure, and it is expected that the sound wave output of the step-type system can be as much as 6.53 times that of the straight-tube-type system. It was confirmed that, by using this system, a high-power-output thermoacoustic system and a stable low-temperature driving can be realized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]