Water-returning engine
Encyclopedia
A water-returning engine was an early form of stationary steam engine
, developed at the start of the Industrial Revolution
in the middle of the 18th century. The first beam engine
s did not generate power by rotating a shaft but were developed as water pump
s, mostly for draining mine
s. By coupling this pump with a water wheel
, they could be used to drive machinery.
The steam engine was not, as widely held, the cause of the Industrial Revolution, but rather arose as a result of it. The primary power source of the Revolution, certainly in the 18th century, was the water wheel, not the steam engine.
s used to provide the draught for blast furnace
s and smelters. Although early furnaces may have been powered by human- or animal-powered bellows
,Smelters could even be blown by the directly water-powered trompe
. once the Industrial Revolution began the new enlarged furnaces were blown by water wheel-powered blowing house
s.
Smelters are most economically located near the source of their ore
, which may not have suitable water power available nearby. There is also the risk of drought interrupting the water supply, or of expanding demand for the furnace outstripping the available water capacity. In 1754 one furnace in the Weald
was so drought-stricken that its manager considered hiring workmen to turn the wheel as a treadmill
.
wrote to a customer, 'It will be convenient for us just now to roll a few tons because we have a full supply of water—and we cannot manufacture thin plate so well when our water is short.'
This variation in water wheel power according to the water available also led to developments in water wheel design, Rennie's venetian-blind 'hatch' allowed a controlled water flow, whatever the depth of the mill leat
, and unlike a simple sluice
could always offer the greatest head
possible.
The first practical examples of these engines were installed in 1742 at Coalbrookdale
and as improvements to the Carron Ironworks on the Clyde
in 1765. The first engines were atmospheric beam engines to either Newcomen, Smeaton
or Watt's systems. A cylinder was provided on opposite sides of the beam, one as the working cylinder supplied with steam and the other as the pumping cylinder. The engines were single-acting, the power stroke being downwards at the power cylinder, and the pump being a simple upward-acting bucket pump. The Watt engines were of Watt's early single-acting atmospheric designs. By the time of his later thermodynamic improvements, he had also developed his sun and planet gear
and could offer engines that rotated directly.
As well as blowing furnaces, the rotary output of the water wheel was also used to drive mills and factory equipment, by use of lineshafts. Old Bess
, a water-returning engine built by Boulton and Watt
to power their Soho Manufactory
, still survives in the Science Museum.
Water-returning engines were superseded by the rotative beam engine, that could power rotating machinery directly.
Stationary steam engine
Stationary steam engines are fixed steam engines used for pumping or driving mills and factories, and for power generation. They are distinct from locomotive engines used on railways, traction engines for heavy steam haulage on roads, steam cars , agricultural engines used for ploughing or...
, developed at the start of the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
in the middle of the 18th century. The first beam engine
Beam engine
A beam engine is a type of steam engine where a pivoted overhead beam is used to apply the force from a vertical piston to a vertical connecting rod. This configuration, with the engine directly driving a pump, was first used by Thomas Newcomen around 1705 to remove water from mines in Cornwall...
s did not generate power by rotating a shaft but were developed as water pump
Water Pump
Water Pump is one of the neighbourhoods of Gulberg Town in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. It is near main Water Pump that supplies fresh water to the city of Karachi....
s, mostly for draining mine
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
s. By coupling this pump with a water wheel
Water wheel
A water wheel is a machine for converting the energy of free-flowing or falling water into useful forms of power. A water wheel consists of a large wooden or metal wheel, with a number of blades or buckets arranged on the outside rim forming the driving surface...
, they could be used to drive machinery.
The steam engine was not, as widely held, the cause of the Industrial Revolution, but rather arose as a result of it. The primary power source of the Revolution, certainly in the 18th century, was the water wheel, not the steam engine.
Blowing engines
The origins of the water-returning engine begin with blowing engineBlowing engine
A blowing engine is a large stationary steam engine directly coupled to air pumping cylinders. They deliver a very large quantity of air at a pressure lower than an air compressor, but greater than a centrifugal fan....
s used to provide the draught for blast furnace
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
s and smelters. Although early furnaces may have been powered by human- or animal-powered bellows
Bellows
A bellows is a device for delivering pressurized air in a controlled quantity to a controlled location.Basically, a bellows is a deformable container which has an outlet nozzle. When the volume of the bellows is decreased, the air escapes through the outlet...
,Smelters could even be blown by the directly water-powered trompe
Trompe
A trompe is a water-powered gas compressor, commonly used before the advent of the electric-powered compressor. A trompe is somewhat like an airlift pump working in reverse....
. once the Industrial Revolution began the new enlarged furnaces were blown by water wheel-powered blowing house
Blowing House
A blowing house or blowing mill was a building used for smelting tin in Cornwall and on Dartmoor in Devon, in South West England. Blowing houses contained a furnace and a pair of bellows that were powered by an adjacent water wheel, and they were in use from the early 14th century until they were...
s.
Smelters are most economically located near the source of their ore
Ore
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
, which may not have suitable water power available nearby. There is also the risk of drought interrupting the water supply, or of expanding demand for the furnace outstripping the available water capacity. In 1754 one furnace in the Weald
Weald
The Weald is the name given to an area in South East England situated between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It should be regarded as three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the centre; the clay "Low Weald" periphery; and the Greensand Ridge which...
was so drought-stricken that its manager considered hiring workmen to turn the wheel as a treadmill
Treadmill
A treadmill is an exercise machine for running or walking while staying in one place. The word treadmill traditionally refers to a type of mill which was operated by a person or animal treading steps of a wheel to grind grain...
.
Rolling mills
As well as an inability to work in periods of drought, the amount of water available could also vary the power of machinery powered by it. The amount and type of work to be carried out by heavy industries could be influenced by the seasonal availability of water. In 1785 Kirkstall Forge near LeedsLeeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
wrote to a customer, 'It will be convenient for us just now to roll a few tons because we have a full supply of water—and we cannot manufacture thin plate so well when our water is short.'
This variation in water wheel power according to the water available also led to developments in water wheel design, Rennie's venetian-blind 'hatch' allowed a controlled water flow, whatever the depth of the mill leat
Leat
A leat is the name, common in the south and west of England and in Wales, for an artificial watercourse or aqueduct dug into the ground, especially one supplying water to a watermill or its mill pond...
, and unlike a simple sluice
Sluice
A sluice is a water channel that is controlled at its head by a gate . For example, a millrace is a sluice that channels water toward a water mill...
could always offer the greatest head
Hydrostatic head
When generating hydropower, the head is a general term used to describe the distance that a given water source has to fall before the point where power is generated. Ultimately the force responsible for hydropower is gravity, so a hydroelectricity plant with a tall/high head can produce more...
possible.
Water-returning engines
These restrictions led to the very earliest form of steam engine used for power generation rather than pumping, the water-returning engine. With this engine, a steam pump was used to raise water that in turn drove a water wheel and thus the machinery. Water from the wheel was then returned by the pump. These early steam engines were only suitable for pumping water, and could not be connected directly to the machinery.The first practical examples of these engines were installed in 1742 at Coalbrookdale
Coalbrookdale
Coalbrookdale is a village in the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire, England, containing a settlement of great significance in the history of iron ore smelting. This is where iron ore was first smelted by Abraham Darby using easily mined "coking coal". The coal was drawn from drift mines in the sides...
and as improvements to the Carron Ironworks on the Clyde
River Clyde
The River Clyde is a major river in Scotland. It is the ninth longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third longest in Scotland. Flowing through the major city of Glasgow, it was an important river for shipbuilding and trade in the British Empire....
in 1765. The first engines were atmospheric beam engines to either Newcomen, Smeaton
John Smeaton
John Smeaton, FRS, was an English civil engineer responsible for the design of bridges, canals, harbours and lighthouses. He was also a capable mechanical engineer and an eminent physicist...
or Watt's systems. A cylinder was provided on opposite sides of the beam, one as the working cylinder supplied with steam and the other as the pumping cylinder. The engines were single-acting, the power stroke being downwards at the power cylinder, and the pump being a simple upward-acting bucket pump. The Watt engines were of Watt's early single-acting atmospheric designs. By the time of his later thermodynamic improvements, he had also developed his sun and planet gear
Sun and planet gear
The sun and planet gear was a method of converting reciprocal motion to rotary motion and was utilised in a reciprocating steam engine....
and could offer engines that rotated directly.
As well as blowing furnaces, the rotary output of the water wheel was also used to drive mills and factory equipment, by use of lineshafts. Old Bess
Old Bess (beam engine)
Old Bess is an early beam engine built by the partnership of Boulton and Watt. The engine was constructed in 1777 and worked until 1848.The engine is most obviously known simply for being an early example of an engine built by Boulton and Watt...
, a water-returning engine built by Boulton and Watt
Boulton and Watt
The firm of Boulton & Watt was initially a partnership between Matthew Boulton and James Watt.-The engine partnership:The partnership was formed in 1775 to exploit Watt's patent for a steam engine with a separate condenser. This made much more efficient use of its fuel than the older Newcomen engine...
to power their Soho Manufactory
Soho Manufactory
The Soho Manufactory was an early factory which pioneered mass production on the assembly line principle, in Soho, Smethwick, England, during the Industrial Revolution.-Beginnings:...
, still survives in the Science Museum.
Water-returning engines were superseded by the rotative beam engine, that could power rotating machinery directly.