Savery steam pump
Bomba de vapor de Savery ('amiga del minero')
- Date
- 1698 · confidence high
- Place
- London, England
- Credited to
- Thomas Savery
- People
- 👤 Thomas Savery1650–1715
- Field
- Matter & energy
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What it is
A pistonless pump that drew up water using the vacuum created by steam condensation and forced it out by direct pressure; the first patented (1698) and commercially sold steam engine. It was ineffective in deep mines because of the pressures involved and the risk of explosion.
The Marquess of Worcester (1663) and Papin had described similar devices; the dispute over who 'invented' the steam engine encompasses Worcester, Savery, Papin and Newcomen.
What it led to
- The first commercial application of steam power
- A broad patent that forced Newcomen to go into partnership with Savery
- Demand for mine drainage as a driver of energy innovation
Built on
- Magdeburg hemispheres1654
- Steam digester (pressure cooker)1679
- Hero's aeolipile and the experiments of Della Porta and Worcester