What is the difference between ic engine and ec engine?
IC & EC engines are heat engines and they convert heat into
work. Example of an IC engine is a petrol engine and example of an
EC engine is Steam Engine. The main differences between them are
listed below:
1) Combustion: The main difference is where the combustion takes
places. In IC engines fuel combustion takes place inside the
cylinder, whereas in EC engines it takes place outside the engine
cylinder.
2) The temperature and pressure in an IC engines is much higher
than those of EC engines.
3) IC engines are made of materials that are better resistant to
heat and pressure than in EC engines.
4) In IC engines the piston is directly connected to connecting
rod, whereas in an EC engine there is a stuffing box.
5) Efficiency is higher for IC engines.
6) Boilers are required for EC engines to store water, which is
to be converted to steam. But IC engines require only a much
smaller tank to store fuel.
7) EC engines, unlike IC engines cannot be started or stopped
quickly, because it takes time to initiate boiling of water and
generate steam.
8) IC engines are lighter than EC engines.
9) IC engines are cheaper compared to EC engines.