The Steam Engine

The Steam Engine

In the 1700’s, it was a significant challenge to remove water from the mines, and the common way of removing this water was to use a series of buckets on a system operated by horses.
However this method consumed a lot of time and money as the animals required feeding, veterinary care and housing.
Steam being used to pump water was invented by Thomas Savery in 1698.
In his own words, this method provided an ‘’engine to raise water by fire.’’

Thomas Newcomen (1663-1729) was a blacksmith and for 10 years, experimented to develop the first successful steam engine to remove water through a pipe from mines.
He was forced to establish a firm with Thomas Savery.

James Watt (1736-1819) was a first rate instrument maker who was asked to fix a lab scale model of the Newcomen pump.
Watt recognised that the lack of full function was due to a flaw in an undersized boiler.

Whilst trying to fix the lab scale model, Watt discovered the main reason the full-sized engines consumed such vast quantities of steam.
The implementation of the solution did not come easily.

Watt was later introduced to Matthew Boulton, who as was an industrialist with a vision to have all craftsmen working in a common building, a factory. This introduction was an important one as it helped the invention create the steam engine revolution.
Boulton recognized the potential application of the engine for much more than pumping water.

In November 1774, Watt wrote to his father:

"The business I am here about has turned out rather successful; that is to say, the fire engine I have invented is now going, and answers much better than any other that has yet been made.’’

The steam engine is important because it gave us our modern world and networked electricity.
Without steam turbines there would be no industrial production of electricity.
It improved production techniques and provided cheaper goods with better quality.
The steam ships and railways improved and quickened communications.
The railways gave us standard time.

March 2^nd, 2013, 17:14, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_engine
Mary Bellis, http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blsteamengine.htm
Carl Lira, Brief History of the Steam Engine, 11/22/12, http://www.egr.msu.edu/~lira/supp/steam/