Another unfulfilled dream of mankind is the perpetuum mobile. What it is? An engine that never stops. This is a kind of beautiful myth for representatives of pseudosciences. It has been theoretically proved that the existence of such an engine is impossible, but dreamers do not want to agree with this.
Literature and thermodynamics
So, perpetuum mobile - what is it? This is the perpetual motion machine, which, according to the first law of thermodynamics, will remain the impossible dream of mankind. But if this were possible, then such a device on an appropriate scale (and they will be much larger, because human greed knows no boundaries) will entail overheating of the Earth and, accordingly, terrifying cataclysms.
So it is better to firmly seal this dream on the pages of literature, which, in fact, many writers took care of. For example, in one of Shukshin’s works, the heroes speak of a perpetual motion machine:
- What kind of perpetual motion machine?
“Well, this one is a perpetuum mobile.” A normal perpetual motion machine that could not have been invented ...
Perpetual motion machines: modern classification
The eternal perpetuum mobile is an imaginary invention that works more and consumes less energy. In the modern world, it is customary to divide such engines into two types:
- The perpetual motion machine of the first kind is a device that works without the cost of energy. And of course, it is impossible to create such a device.
- The perpetual motion machine of the second kind - this machine at startup should turn all the heat that surrounds it into energy. It is also impossible to create such an engine based on the second law of thermodynamics.
After repeated attempts to create engines of the first and second kind, by the way, unsuccessful, they decided to consider thermodynamics as postulates that they are not in doubt.
History tour
Who dreamed of inventing a perpetuum mobile? As the pages of history show, everyone dreamed of creating such a device: from simple peasants to intelligent scientists. And even if you ask any modern person about it today, he will no doubt say that perpetuum mobile is a useful thing.
Already from the XII century, when society began to actively develop in various directions, people found out what it is - perpetuum mobile, and began to make their first attempts to create it. It all started with water wheels: looking at this invention, humanity began to desire more efficiency.
Now it’s hard to say where and when the idea of creating a perpetual motion machine arose. It is also impossible to say who was the first to submit such an idea. The earliest references to the perpetual motion machine were found in the records of the Indian poet and mathematician Bhaskara. Also, to our time, Arabic manuscripts of the 16th century have been preserved. Scientists believe that the ancestral home of the first perpetual motion machines is India. Around 1150, Bhaskara described in one of his poems a wheel with mercury vessels attached to the rim. The principle of operation of the first perpetuum mobile is quite simple. It is based on the fact that at different times different gravity forces act, which is created by the fluid that moves in the vessels.
In Europe, what a perpetuum mobile was learned in the era of the development of mechanics (about the 13th century). The idea of a perpetual motion machine gained widespread acceptance in the 16th-17th centuries. The number of perpetual motion projects grew very quickly, some of them were created and failed, and some remained drawn. For example, as drawings of the perpetual motion machine of Leonardo da Vinci.
Controversial issues
Each physicist will confirm: an engine that has already been set in motion once and is kept in this state independently and constantly is a perpetuum mobile, which is already an occasion for many polemic questions to arise.
One of the most noteworthy problems is maintaining perpetual motion. That is, the engine would need to be maintained in a state of strength, because no matter how you look, physical objects tend to wear out.
The second question arose on the basis of the so-called "intrinsic value." Scientists are constantly arguing about which engine can be called perpetual. For example, a device that, when fully assembled, will immediately start working on its own, or one that needs to be started manually.
In the first half of the 19th century, Johann Von Poppe made an interesting conclusion for his time: “The Perpetuum mobile is a chimera that has led many scientists to the quagmire of hopelessness. If we understand by the perpetual motion machine an object that all the time without additional external energy is in constant motion, and therefore not subject to ordinary earthly transience, then every rational person will realize for himself that the existence of such a thing is impossible. But if you call a perpetual motion machine a device that is able to constantly restore the root cause of its movement without external intervention until it stops from wear, then its invention is quite possible. "
In the Middle Ages, the creation of the perpetual motion machine was shrouded in a veil of secrecy, because of which many speculations and superstitions arose around. Some scholars considered the perpetuum mobile as significant as the philosopher's stone.
Unsuccessful attempts
The oldest design of the perpetual motion machine is similar to a gear wheel: in its recesses weights were attached, which reclined on hinges.
Their geometry is very simple: the loads on the left are closer to the axis than the loads on the right. In theory, according to the law of leverage, this was supposed to set the wheel in motion. According to the plan, during rotation, the goods should be folded to the right and retain the force directed to the movement. There is only one small “but”: the author did not take into account the fact that the loads on the right, although they have a longer lever, are inferior in quantity to the loads on the left, so if you make such a wheel, it will be stationary, since the moment of force on both sides is identical.
This experience was not the only one in the history of trial and error in creating a perpetual motion machine.
Illusion
Attempts to create a perpetuum mobile - the perpetual motion machine, the photos of which are presented in the article, lasted until the end of the 17th century. At this time, Cardano and Galileo began to insist that it was impossible to create such a device. Stephen Simon, listening to the most controversial opinions, opens the law on the equilibrium of the plane of inclination. This made it possible to substantiate the law of the addition of three forces in a triangle. Based on new laws and experimental results, by the end of the 18th century, the majority of scientists conclude that the perpetuum mobile is just an unrealizable illusion, which physicists have fun to think about at their leisure.
Today, there is a lot of debate and debate on this issue. Perhaps in the distant future, the dream will become a reality, but for now it remains only to think about how the perpetual motion machine will look and how it will help humanity.