Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
James Watt (born January 19, 1736, Greenock, Renfrewshire, Scotland—died August 25, 1819, Heathfield Hall, near Birmingham, Warwick, England) was a Scottish instrument maker and inventor whose steam engine contributed substantially to the Industrial Revolution.
The steam engine developed by the Scotsman James Watt (1736-1819) from 1769 was much more efficient in terms of power and fuel consumption than earlier models, and it significantly increased the possible uses for this key invention of the Industrial Revolution (1760-1840).
The Watt steam engine design was an invention of James Watt that became synonymous with steam engines during the Industrial Revolution, and it was many years before significantly new designs began to replace the basic Watt design.
Watt steam engine, steam engine invented by Scottish engineer James Watt in 1769. The Watt steam engine is considered the first truly efficient steam engine, as it solved the problem of energy wastage through the use of a separate condenser.
Watt introduced a design enhancement, the separate condenser, which avoided this waste of energy and radically improved the power, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness of steam engines. Eventually, he adapted his engine to produce rotary motion, greatly broadening its use beyond pumping water.
James Watt’s steam engine played a pivotal role in transforming industries, transportation and society during the Industrial Revolution. The Watt engine powered factories and mills, providing a reliable and efficient source of power.
Steam engines had been around as novelties for centuries, but the first practical ones were invented by the Englishmen Thomas Savery in 1698 and Thomas Newcomen about 1712. About the time Britannica was searching for its first editor, James Watt (1736–1819) was beginning a succession of improvements that would bring new and real efficiency to ...