Abstract: A reduced shedding regenerator and method are disclosed with regenerator surfaces to minimize shedding of particles from the regenerator thereby alleviating a source of potential damage and malfunction of a thermal regenerative machine using the regenerator.

Abstract: A burner assembly is taught for a heater head of an external combustion engine. Preferably, the external combustion engine is a Stirling cycle machine. The burner assembly includes a housing having a cavity sized to receive a heater head and a matrix burner element carried by the housing and configured to transfer heat to a received heater head. A fuel inlet also communicates with the housing for delivering fuel to the matrix burner element and an exhaust outlet communicates with the housing for delivering combustion gases from the matrix burner element to an exterior of the housing. According to another version, a burner and engine assembly are taught for generating power from a Stirling cycle machine. The burner/engine assembly includes a Stirling cycle power generator in combination with the above-recited burner assembly.