Introduction

Diagram demonstrating how heat flows from high to low temperature and, as a result, outputs work.[12]
Diagram demonstrating how heat flows from high to low temperature and, as a result, outputs work.

 

In the last section we talked briefly about how heat is transferred into mechanical energy. This happens when water is heated and produces steam, which then moves either a piston or a turbine. This section will explore the physics behind the steam engine and how the field of thermodynamics was drastically enhanced due to it's discovery.