Now the "heart" that gives life to most man-machine is an internal combustion engine (ICE).However, it was not always.
From past to present
before the era of the internal combustion engine for a long time the cornerstone of technological progress was a steam turbine.This is the rare case where the invention are so successful that are still used in our time, however, a number of improvements.Note that should not be confused with steam turbines and classic cars running on a couple (same locomotive).They have a different working principle, and the efficiency is incomparable.
steam turbine.The invention
believed that the first such turbine developed and implemented in the metal Swede P. Laval.Back in 1889 there was a need for an effective engine for the milk separator, the ability to create rotation with at least 100 revolutions per second.The principle of operation of the turbine was quite simple: on a surface fixed to the cylinder axis of the blade housed in the jet that struck the superheated steam from a container near the boiler.The potential energy of the pair transformed into kinetic energy, causing the cylinder to rotate.Laval empirically determined that the best results are obtained if the flow of steam will escape through the cone-shaped nozzle, rather than straight tubes.
However, better known steam turbine Englishman Charles A. Parsons.He developed it is almost parallel with Laval, but not only improved, but also guessed connected to an electric generator (the prototype of the modern system GD).
In 1894, he created a vehicle driven by an engine based on the steam turbine (the maximum speed of 60 km / h).The idea was so successful that after 1900 most of the warships were equipped with such engines.
Our time
Of course, since the invention of the first models and the steam turbine has been upgraded, and design flaws corrected.Classical turbine plant includes two components: a fixed stator with block nozzles and the rotating rotor (cylinder) from its housing placed on the blades.Depending on the direction of the jet of steam, distinguish two kinds of rotor design - radial and axial.The first are the echoes of the initial decisions: they steam propagation vector perpendicular to the axis of the cylinder, and the blades are parallel to it.In the axial direction coincides with the axis of the pair, and the rotation is created by the specific orientation of the blades.
more efficient use of steam energy possible in steam turbines with multiple cylinders (multihull).However, due to bulkiness and complexity of design such solutions are used where their use is economically justified.Cylinders housings may be located on a common axis and be mechanically independent.The system seals and diaphragms prevent the abnormal operation of the entire installation (fence outside air leaking steam bypass degrees and so forth.).
development of technology steam turbines
At low levels of vapor pressure and low power turbine classic insufficiently effective.They were replaced by steam screw machine.This Russian development is a natural evolution of the original model.Inside the case are placed rotors with helical blades.The incoming steam fills the space between the teeth next screws, turn and going further supply stops.Further, the cavity portion of the resulting vapor expands, it does work on the rotation of the screw rotor.This design makes better use of the energy accumulated steam.
