How do Steam Engines Work?

These models are amazing. Props to the animator(s).

I'm in 7th grade and working on the steam engine timeline and how it worked. This helped me so much and you deserve more credit than is given!

I found it interesting and well done. Being an engineer, though, I want more detail! There are so many components to a late model locomotive and I want to know about them all!

What you have shown is a Portable Engine , not a traction engine. The main difference is that a portable engine lacks a drivetrain, so it is not self propelled. They were moved by horses to wherever they where needed. Traction engines came later when portable engines were modified or redesigned with steering systems, fuel and water storage, operator's platforms, and most importantly, a drivetrain to the rear wheels.

2:16 This is not a traction engine. it is a portable engine used for powering machinery using a belt off of the flywheel. it does not have the driving gear to move itself. they have a drawbar hitch on the front that is hitched to a traction engine to move it. And as for the steam being trapped inside the boiler, every steam powered machine has to have a safety mechanism on it. on a boiler is a safety valve witch will open at the maximum safe working pressure releasing excess steam so it does not put the boiler under strain and risk it having an explosion.

In your next videos related to engines, please do include how the valves/ports are timed.

the end of the vid was a little preachy, but rest of the video was Grade A+ content

Great video Teddy!!

Excellent explanation of how power moves to a large scale! Way more than that teakettle whistle! Beautiful...Forwarded this to lots of folks!

yesterday I searched for this, finally you uploaded with a concept that is so good. thank you for the new knowledge that you have shared

The principle on which the steam engine operates is so simple a child of seven or eight years can grasp it readily. The details of making it work reliably, with a tolerable maintenance burden and with slightly better than dismal efficiency filled the careers of mechanical engineers for a century.

Well explained. Without wanting to sound negative these types of engines were only a few percent efficient. Most of the energy was lost as heat and only a part of the potential energy in the steam was converted into work. Having said that-- These must be the most exciting and inspiring engines ever devised.

This was great content, really well-made. Keep up the good work!

I was directed to your channel from google when I searched how does a screen touch works. And now I love your channel.

way to go! I really like the illustrations of how to change the molecules' pattern of bouncing around . I also really liked the thought bubbles of what those people, our ancestors, were thinking

This is fascinating. The principles are probably somewhat similar to how our cars operate today, only using combustion instead of steam. Its all very interesting.

I think more than anything those people were thinking: "Holy shit this thing is fucking loud!" "What did you say?" "I SAID ITS FUCKING LOUD!!"

This video was great. I finally understand how steam engines work! Thank you

Thank you so much! For the longest time I’ve been trying to make a compressed air engine out of Lego and this video is the reason I was able to do so! It showed me how important a flywheel is and that is the one thing my invention lacked. Again thank you!

Beautiful video, well explained and animated. Thank you.