Sixty years ago this month, the May 1960 issue of Popular Science featured this as the next big thing, although it never quite caught on. It was a silent engine for the lawnmower, outboard motor, chain saw, or almost anything else. You would light it with a match. If using it with an outboard motor, it would probably be a good idea to bring along some waterproof matches to avoid rowing back to shore.

Then engine was a variation on the Stirling engine, which alternately heats and cools air, deriving power from the differential pressures.  The Wikipedia article is long and interesting, but the section entitled “Applications” is only three lines long, and doesn’t mention outboard motors, chain saws, or lawnmowers.  You can buy a Stirling engine, such as the one shown at left, and in fact, we have one.  It’s a very interesting novelty item, and we’ve even coaxed enough power out of it to light an LED.  But it’s not something with many practical applications.

In the short story Fallout Shelter Journal by Clement R. Dodge, the North Koreans develop an undetectable submarine by patiently using Stirling engines to recharge electric submarines from thermal vents on the ocean floor.  Maybe they got the idea from this magazine.