At Thermal machines are devices capable of converting thermal energy into mechanical energy, being used mainly as means of transport and in industries. We can cite as examples the automotive vehicles, the steam engine and the steam turbine. It's impossible to imagine our life without these devices, which are getting better every day.
The first device that used this same operating principle was the Herón machine, in the 1st century d. Ç. In 1698, Thomas Savery created the first with practical utility, which was used to extract water from mines. Later, around 1712, this Savery machine was perfected by Thomas Newcomen and was also used to lift loads.
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However, thermal machines only gained prominence in the 18th century, when James Watt (1736) – 1819), in 1763, created a machine that had greater efficiency than those hitherto known. Thus, they began to be used in industry and on a large scale, which was an enormous contribution to the Industrial Revolution.
It was in 1804 that steam engines were used for locomotion. The steam locomotive, built by Richard Trevithick, was capable of transporting 450 people at a speed of 24 km/h, much slower than what we are used to today. After the locomotive, came cars, the first was produced in 1885, by the German Engineer Karl Benz, and had a gasoline engine.
Mind Map: Thermal Machines
*To download the mind map in PDF, Click here!
Thermal machines were fundamental for the technological development of humanity, starting with the Industrial Revolution, the means of transport and the production of energy. It is currently impossible to imagine our lives without these devices, which, every day, are being improved, thus contributing to our quality of life.
* Mind Map by Me. Rafael Helerbrock
By Mariane Mendes
Graduated in Physics
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
TEIXEIRA, Mariane Mendes. "History of Thermal Machines"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/fisica/historia-das-maquinas-termicas.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
