Engines
An engine is a machine that converts energy into force and motion. Possible sources of energy include heat, chemical energy in a fuel, nuclear energy, and solar radiation. The force and motion usually take the form of output torque delivered to a rotating shaft. (Torque is the twisting effort developed around a center of rotation. In an engine it is conceptually quantified by the product of the radius from the center of the output shaft to a second point at which a tangential force is applied, and the magnitude of that applied tangential force.) In contrast, the output of a jet or a rocket engine is simply the thrust force derived from its high-velocity exhaust jet.
Most often the input energy to an engine is derived through combustion of a fuel. The result is a combustion engine. Combustion engines can be classified according to the nature of their combustion and its initiation. Possible combinations are depicted in Figure 1. First, combustion may occur either continuously or intermittently. Second, that combustion may occur either external to the engine or internally, within the engine.
In the continuous external-combustion engine, a fuel is burned outside the confines of the machine responsible for the conversion of energy into useful work.
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