3.1 Energy Conversion Devices

In the first lesson, we saw that energy can be transformed from one form to another, and during this conversion, all the energy that we put into a device comes out. However, all the energy that we put in may not come out in the desired form.

For example, we put electrical energy into a bulb and the bulb produces light (which is the desired form of output from a bulb), but we also get heat from the bulb (undesired form of energy from an electric bulb).

Therefore, energy flow into and out of any energy conversion device can be summarized in the diagram below:

Energy Flow Diagram for an Energy Conversion Device