自从世界上第一輛鉄路运輸用机車,于1833年由俄国切列班諾夫父子發明出来到現在,已經100多年了。在这一个多世紀的时間里,蒸汽机的性能得到了很大的發展,在交通运輸上起了很大的作用。直到目前为止,世界上的机車总数,仍然要算蒸汽机車最多,在絕大多数国家的鉄路上,还占着很重要的地位。現在在我国鉄路上所行駛的机車,全部是以煤为燃料的蒸汽机車,这些蒸汽机車不但可以使用到社会主义,即使在共产主义时代,在我們的运輸事業上仍然有一定的作用。但是不可否認;蒸汽机車本身,存在着許多缺点,愈来愈不能滿足現代交通运輸事業上不断增長的需要。蒸汽机車的效率極低,目前最好的蒸汽机車的效率也不能超过10％,至于一般蒸汽机車的效率只有5—7％,这是蒸汽机車的主要缺点之一。其次蒸汽机車需要消耗大量的燃料和水,这样就需要沿途为它建立許多供給燃料和水的設备,并且大大限制了它的活动范圍。随着科学技术的發展,目前已具备了創造更完善的、新型机車的条件,出現了电力机車、內燃机車、燃气輪机車、煤气机車和原子能机車等效率較高的机車。它們將逐渐代替蒸汽机車担当交通运輸上日益增漲的繁重任务。 Since the world’s first locomotive transport locomotive was invented in 1833 by Russia’s Cherepov and his son, it has been more than 100 years. For more than a century, the performance of the steam engine has been greatly improved and it has played a significant role in transportation. Until now, the total number of locomotives in the world still counts as the largest number of steam locomotives, and it still occupies an important position in the vast majority of countries. The locomotives that are currently on our country’s winding roads are all coal-fueled steam locomotives. These steam locomotives can be used not only for socialism, but even in the era of communism, they still have a certain role in our transportation business. However, it cannot be denied that there are many shortcomings in steam locomotives themselves, and they are increasingly unable to meet the ever-increasing demands of modern transportation. The efficiency of steam locomotives is extremely low, and the efficiency of the best steam locomotives currently cannot exceed 10%. As for the general steam locomotives, the efficiency is only 5-7%, which is one of the major drawbacks of steam locomotives. Secondly, steam locomotives need to consume large quantities of fuel and water, which requires the establishment of many equipment for supplying fuel and water along the way, and greatly limits the scope of its activities. With the development of science and technology, the conditions for the creation of better and new types of locomotives are now available, and there are more efficient locomotives such as electric locomotives, diesel locomotives, gas turbine locomotives, gas locomotives, and atomic locomotives. . They will gradually replace the steam locomotives as a heavy task in increasing transportation.