Three rules to (mostly) explain why heat pumps work Heat pump parts and what they do Tying it together: The refrigeration cycle More on heat pumps and clean energy A heat pump is a super-efficient, all-in-one electric heating and cooling system. Sometimes called mini-splits, they ...
Rotary pumps work in exactly the opposite way toturbines. Where a turbine captures energy from a liquid or gas that's moving of its own accord (for example, the wind in the air around us or the water flowing in a river), a pump uses energy (typically supplied through anelectric motoror...
In 1839, Sir William Grove invented the first fuel cell. He knew that by sending an electric current through water, it could be split into hydrogen and oxygen (a process called electrolysis). He hypothesized that by reversing the procedure, you could produce electricity and water. He created ...
In winter, heat pumps work exactly the same way. But this time they pick up heat from outside and move it into your home. Of course, it’s sometimes freezing outside when you want to use your heater. But the air doesn’t need to be warm— it just needs to be warmer than the re...
Electric motorMotors are quite different from gasoline engines—and not just in the fuel they burn. An engine needs to spin round relatively quickly to work efficiently (usually thousands of times a minute), but a car's wheels never go that fast. The power an engine can produce at any ...
How Modern Fuel Pumps Work Near the tip of the gas pump nozzle is a small hole, and a small pipe leads back from the hole into the handle. Suction is applied to this pipe using a Venturi. When the tank is not full, air is being drawn through the hole by the vacuum, and the ai...
while also decreasing your overall energy use. what electric heating looks like heat pumps heat pumps can both heat and cool your home on 100% electric power, completely eliminating the burning of natural gas or propane typically required to heat. in the winter, they work by extracting heat fr...
Do heat pumps come as standard? No, not all cars come with a heat pump as standard. Brands such as BMW, Porsche and Tesla offer them as standard on their electric cars, but others, such as Audi, Cupra, Kia, Skoda and Volkswagen offer them as an optional extra. Before buying an elect...
Electricity is made much the same way on the electric grid: power plants are basically super-sized versions of this elementary science experiment. As described in greater detail in our Electrical Generation section, the goal of power plants is to spin a turbine to create electricity. Historically...
Heat pumps also work extremely efficiently, because they simply transfer heat rather than burn fuel to create it. This makes them a little greener than a gas-burning furnace. And they don't just heat and cool buildings. They work best in moderate climates, so if you don't experience ...