Steam Engine

Presented by:
P . Deepak Kumar
Overview of presentation

• History of steam engine

• Classification of steam engine
• Working principle of steam engine
• Components of steam engine
• References/Bibliography
1. History of steam engine
-Thomas Savery (1650-1715)
-Thomas Newcomen 1663-1729
-James Watt (1736-1819)

A steam engine is a heat

engine that performs
mechanical work using
steam as its working fluid.
 …history continued
Thomas Savery (1650-1715)
Thomas Savery was an English military
engineer. He had been working on solving
the problem of pumping water out of coal
mines. His machine consisted of a closed
vessel filled with water into which steam
under pressure was introduced. This
forced the water upwards and out of the
mine shaft. Then a cold water sprinkler
was used to condense the steam. This
created a vacuum which sucked more
water out of the mine shaft through a
bottom valve.
Thomas Newcomen (1663-1729)

Thomas Newcomen was an English

blacksmith. The Newcomen steam
engine used the force of atmospheric
pressure to do the work. Thomas
Newcomen's engine pumped steam
into a cylinder. The steam was then
condensed by cold water which
created a vacuum on the inside of the
cylinder. The resulting atmospheric
pressure operated a piston, creating
downward strokes.
James Watt (1736-1819)
James Watt was a Scottish inventor and
mechanical engineer, born in Greenock, who was
renowned for his improvements of the steam
engine. In 1765, James Watt while working for
the University of Glasgow was assigned the task
of repairing a Newcomen engine, which was
deemed inefficient but the best steam engine of
its time. Most notable was Watt's 1769 patent for
a separate condenser connected to a cylinder by a
valve. Unlike Newcomen's engine, Watt's design
had a condenser that could be cool while the
cylinder was hot.
Modern Steam Engine is based on
the principle of Rankine Cycle
 Classification of Steam Engines
1. Based on axis of engine:
Orientation of cylinder axis
I. Horizontal steam engine
II. Vertical steam engine
2. Based on speed of engine:
I. High speed engine- speed of 250rpm and above
II. Medium speed engine- speed 100 to 250 rpm
III. Slow speed engine- speed 100rpm and below
3. Based on type of steam action:
I. Double acting steam engine
II. Single acting steam engine
Horizontal Steam Engine
Double Action Steam Engine
Single Action Steam Engine
4. Based on expansive or non expansive type of
working:
I. Steam is injected throughout the piston stroke
II. Steam is injected partially piston stroke and
partially expansion
5. Based on type of exhaust from engine:
I. Condensing engine
II. Non-condensing engine
6. Based on number of stages:
Number of stages of expansion in steam engine
I. Single stage
II. Two stage
III. Three stage
IV. Four stage
7. Based on number of cylinders:
I. Simple steam engine: one cylinder
II. Compound steam engine: more than one
cylinder
8. Based on type of governing:
I. Throttle governed engine
II. Cut-off governed engine
9. Based on type of application:
I. Stationary engine
II. Marine engine
III. Locomotive engine
Marine Steam Engine
Compound Steam Engine
Working of Steam Engine
Steam from the boiler
enters the steam chest
and is admitted to the
front end of the cylinder
by the valve slide.
The high pressure steam
presses the piston
backward, driving
the engine wheels
around one half turn
At the end of the piston
stroke the valve shifts,
allowing the expended
steam to escape through
the exhaust port.

Sliding valve
At the end of the
forward stroke, the
steam is released
from the rear portion
of the cylinder
At the same time, the
valve slide begins
admitting high pressure
steam to the back end
of the cylinder.
This presses the piston
forward, pulling the
engine wheels around
another half turn.
Working of Steam Engine
 Components of Steam Engine
1. Piston and Piston rod
2. Piston rings
3. Connecting rod
4. Crank and crank shaft
5. Stuffing box
6. Crosshead and guide
ways
8. Eccentric
9. Slide valve
Piston and Piston Rod
• A piston is made of cast iron and acts as a sliding
round plug inside of the cylinder. It is secured to
the piston rod by a nut.

• The piston rod is round, made of steel, the top end

is secured to the piston, the bottom end to the
crosshead. To prevent steam from blowing out of
the cylinder around the rod, metallic type packing
is installed around the rod in the stuffing box.
Piston Rings
• To prevent the steam from flowing through the
clearance between the piston and cylinder walls
piston rings are installed.

• They are constructed of fine grade cast iron and

have a sliding fit in a groove around the outside of
the piston. The plain snap type piston ring is made
oversize and is held out tight against the cylinder
wall by the tension in the ring, set up by its having
to be compressed when installed.
Connecting Rod
• The connecting rod is made of steel.

• It connects piston with the crosshead with

bearings so that the crankpin is free to turn as the
crank moves.
Crank and Crank Shaft
• The crank is made of steel and consists of the
following parts.
– Webs which are the two side pieces connecting
the crankshaft with the crankpin.
– Crankpin which is a round steel pin between
the outer ends of the crank webs, around which
the crankpin bearing is fitted.

• The crankshaft is a large round steel shaft to

which the cranks are attached.
Stuffing Box
• Stuffing box is a kind of packing box through
which the reciprocating shaft/rod passes and
leakage across the reciprocating member is
prevented.
Crosshead and Guide ways
• A crosshead is a square steel block rigidly fastened
to the bottom end of the piston rod. On the
forward and after side of the block is a round steel
pin known as the crosshead pin, around which the
crosshead bearings fit.
• The guide is a flat face made of cast iron and
bolted against the column. The astern guide
consists of two cast iron side bars which fit around
the outside of the slipper preventing it from being
pulled away from the guide when the engine is
turning in the astern motion.
Eccentric
• The eccentrics which move the engine valves up
and down are merely an off center or eccentric
wheel secured around and keyed to the outside of
the crankshaft.

• The motion of the moving eccentric is transmitted

to the eccentric rod by the eccentric strap which
extends entirely around the outside of the
eccentric, the eccentric turning inside of it.
Slide Valve
• Slide valve is used in steam engine for quantitative
regulation of supply of live steam into cylinder and
exhaust of dead steam from cylinder.

• Slide valve is operated by the valve rod connected

to eccentric rod and eccentric.

• It is of two type:
1. D-slide valve
2. Piston valve
 References/ Bibliography

1. Animated engines-Illustrates a variety of engines

2. Howstuffworks- “How Steam Engines Work”
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_engine
4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_engine_history
Thanks for your
kind attention