Kit "Nitinol Engine" AstroMedia

Kit AstroMedia for building the "Nitinol Engine".

Cardboard kit for a fully functional nitinol motor with hot water drive

Fascinating feature

The heart of this unusual heat engine is a ring of very thin (0.3 mm) nitinol wire. All it takes is a little hot water and the nitinol motor starts to spin and paw nonstop.
Nitinol, an alloy of nickel and titanium, has very special properties: When hot it is stiff and elastic like spring steel, but below a certain temperature it becomes malleable like soft iron. You can repeat this as many times as you like, Nitinol always returns to its old shape when heated, suddenly and with surprising force. The snap temperature of our Nitinol ring is 45°.

Here's how it works

In air, the wire is soft; when immersed in hot water at 50°, it suddenly becomes stiff and straight. But because the grooved wheel forces it to curve, it must move upward. As it does so, it drags a new piece of wire behind it into the hot water, and the operation starts over again. The basic principle, invented by Frederic Wang in 1985, is effective even at low temperature differences and has great future potential for alternative energy production.

product details:

• pre-cut and printed construction board
• 6 x DIN A4
• with detailed construction instructions
• with numerous accessories such as nitinol ring, axles and wheels
• the tin can and tea lamp are not included in delivery
• dimensions of the assembled object: approximately 16 x 14 x 19 cm, without connecting rods
• Construction time is about 7 hours.