Question

What are some examples from everyday life of heat engines?

Answer 1

Heat engine

1. A heat engine is a machine that turns heat into mechanical energy. This is illustrated schematically as follow
   
2. It receives heat from a reservoir, does labor like raising weights and moving a piston, and then releases heat energy into the sink.
3. The heat engine's objective is to transform heat energy into meaningful work.
4. One of the most basic types of a heat engines is the Carnot engine.
5. There are two types of heat engines:
   5.1 External combustion engine: A steam engine is an example of an external combustion engine.
   5.2 Internal combustion engine: A car engine is an example of an internal combustion engine.
6. A heat engine is a device that transforms the chemical energy of fuel into heat energy. This heat energy is put to good use in the form of mechanical work.
7. A basic heat engine consists of a chamber with a piston that confines gas in a cylinder. When the gas is heated, the piston moves upwards, and when the gas cools, the piston moves lower.
8. To move the piston backward and forwards, a cooling and heating cycle is required.
9. Here are a few examples of heat engines that we utilize in our daily lives:
   9.1 A steam engine is a heat engine that works with steam as a working fluid.
   9.2 A variety of transport gadgets are powered by steam engines.
   9.3 Compression-ignition engines use the heat of compression to start the ignition process and burn the fuel.
   9.4These engines are used in larger transport applications such as trucks and buses.