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The development of steam power was crucial to the Industrial Revolution because it was the main source of power that operated the machinery used in industry.
The developments in equipment helped to increase production, formed the basis of railway transport and introduced new machinery for agriculture.
The first steam engine
The Industrial Revolution would not have happened without the steam engine.
The first steam engine was not invented by Thomas Savery in 1696, as many books claim. Savery’s engine filled a cylinder with steam, and then cooled it, thereby condensing it. This created a vacuum that sucked up water from the mine. It did not work.
Watt's improved engine of 1788
The first working steam engine was Thomas Newcomen’s atmospheric engine first used in a mine in Dudley in 1712. He used the vacuum created by condensing the steam to power a piston. The piston was attached to pump rods, which worked a pump to pump out the mines.
James Watt working in partnership with Matthew Boulton took the steam engine and developed it further. The improvements he made created the machine that became the basis of all the power in the Industrial Revolution. Watt’s inventions included:
Watt's inventions 1765-1788
| Date | Invention | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1765 | Separate condenser | Watt cooled the steam by exhausting it into a separate chamber. The cylinder could, therefore, always be kept hot and the separate condenser always cool. This meant huge amounts of fuel were saved. |
| 1781 | Sun and planet gear | Turned the up-and-down motion of the piston into a rotary motion, which allowed the steam engine to be used to power machinery and wheels. |
| 1782 | Dual action | Abandoned atmospheric pressure and used steam pressure to force the piston both ways. This invention became the basis of the steam train. |
| 1788 | Governor | Regulated the admission of steam into the cylinder, which not only made the engines safer, but meant they could be kept at a regular speed. |
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