3.5: Heat Engines
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- 47168
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Figure 3.5.1 illustrates energy conversions in an automobile.
Figure 3.5.1. Energy conversions that occur in an automobile
Any device that converts thermal energy into mechanical energy—such as an automobile or a power plant—is called a heat engine. In these devices, high temperature heat (thermal energy) produced by burning a fuel is partly converted to mechanical energy to do work and the rest is rejected into the atmosphere, typically as a low temperature exhaust. Figure 3.5.2 shows an example of a heat engine.
Figure 3.5.2. Heat engine