WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -The coal-fired steam engine was in many respects the decisive technology of the Industrial Revolution. Steam power was first applied to pump water out of coal mines.

Detailed explanation-2: -That source was fossil fuels-coal, oil, and natural gas, though coal led the way-formed underground from the remains of plants and animals from much earlier geologic times. When these fuels were burned, they released energy, originally from the Sun, that had been stored for hundreds of millions of years.

Detailed explanation-3: -They were powered by air pressure pushing a piston into the partial vacuum generated by condensing steam, instead of the pressure of expanding steam. The engine cylinders had to be large because the only usable force acting on them was atmospheric pressure.

Detailed explanation-4: -By the mid-19th century, the industrial revolution brought a significant shift in energy sources with the usage of coal, mainly for steam engines, but increasingly for power plants. The use of thermal energy to generate mechanical energy was the core driver of this transformation.

Detailed explanation-5: -The earliest steam engines were the scientific novelties of Hero of Alexandria in the 1st century ce, such as the aeolipile, but not until the 17th century were attempts made to harness steam for practical purposes.