Editing Stirling engine (section)

===21st-century developments===
{{Further|Solar-powered Stirling engine}}
By the turn of the 21st century, Stirling engines were used in the dish version of [[Concentrated Solar Power]] systems. A mirrored dish similar to a very large satellite dish directs and concentrates sunlight onto a thermal receiver, which absorbs and collects the heat and using a fluid transfers it into the Stirling engine. The resulting mechanical power is then used to run a generator or alternator to produce electricity.<ref name="NREL_CSP" />

The core component of [[micro combined heat and power]] (CHP) units can be formed by a Stirling cycle engine, as they are more efficient and safer than a comparable steam engine. By 2003, CHP units were being commercially installed in domestic applications, such as home electrical generators.<ref name="BBC_CHP" />

In 2013, an article was published about [[scaling law]]s of free-piston Stirling engines based on six characteristic [[Dimensionless quantity|dimensionless groups]].<ref name="scaling" />