Now the "heart" that gives life to most man-made machines is the internal combustion engine (ICE). However, this was not always the case.
From past to present
Before the ICE era, the steam turbine was a cornerstone of technological progress for a long time. This is the rare case when inventions are so successful that they continue to be used in our time, however, with a number of improvements. Note that you should not confuse steam turbines and classic steam engines (the same engine). They have a different operating principle, and the efficiency is incomparable.
Steam turbine. Invention
It is believed that for the first time such a turbine was developed and embodied in metal by Swede P. Laval. Back in 1889, the need arose for an efficient engine for a milk separator, capable of generating rotation with a frequency of at least 100 revolutions per second. The principle of operation of the turbine was quite simple: on the surface of the cylinder fixed on the axis of the cylinder, blades were placed, which were hit by a jet of superheated steam from a nearby boiler. The potential energy of the vapor was converted into kinetic, bringing the cylinder into rotation. Laval experimentally determined that the best results can be achieved if the vapor stream is pulled out through cone-shaped nozzles, rather than straight tubes.
However, the steam turbine of the Englishman C. A. Parsons is better known. He developed it almost simultaneously with Laval, but not only improved it, but also guessed to connect it to an electric generator (the prototype of the modern GD system).
In 1894, he created a ship powered by a steam turbine engine (maximum speed of about 60 km / h). The idea was so successful that after 1900 most warships were equipped with similar motors.
Nowadays
Of course, since the invention and the first models, the steam turbine has been modernized, and the design flaws are eliminated. A classic steam turbine installation includes two components: a fixed stator with a nozzle block and a rotating rotor (cylinder) with blades placed on its body. Depending on the direction of the steam jet, two types of rotor design are distinguished - radial and axial. The former are echoes of the original solutions: in them the vapor propagation vector is perpendicular to the axis of the cylinder, and the blades are parallel to it. In axial directions, the direction of steam motion coincides with the axis, and rotation is created due to the special orientation of the blades.
It is possible to use steam energy more efficiently in steam turbines with several cylinders (multi-case). However, due to the bulkiness and complexity of the design, such solutions are applied where their use is economically justified. The cylinders of the housings can be placed both on a common axis and can be mechanically independent. The system of seals and diaphragms prevents abnormal operation of the entire installation (external air intake, steam leakage, bypassing degrees, etc.).
Steam Turbine Technology Development
At low steam pressure levels and low power, classic turbines are not efficient enough. They were replaced by a steam screw machine. This Russian development is a natural evolution of the original model. Inside the case are rotors with helical blades. The incoming steam fills the space between the teeth of the nearest screws, a revolution occurs and further supply is stopped. Further, in the steam cavity, the portion obtained expands and does the job of rotating the screw rotor. This design allows more fully use the energy stored in the steam.