Concept in Definition ABC

Cars, refrigerators, gas boilers, appliances air conditioning and many other machines need a system to regulate the temperature. The thermostat is the device used to keep the temperature of a machine within the appropriate limits for its proper functioning.

The regulation of this device allows that the electrical systems related to the temperature of the machines (for example, the air conditioners or the thermos) adapt to the temperature environment. Most of them are electronic, although some are metallic. Currently many of these devices are digital and, therefore, can be programmed so that the temperature of the machine remains within a certain threshold over time.

The thermostat of a car

The thermostat device is located next to the coolant duct and in this way ensures that the liquid that goes to the radiator maintains the correct temperature. A car thermostat is used to prevent the antifreeze in the engine from exceeding the ideal operating temperature when the engine is cold.

With this system the car works with the correct degree of temperature and, at the same time, a consumption from fuel more moderate and vehicle emissions are more optimal. Thus, if the thermostat does not work properly, the car's engine will deteriorate as a whole.

The origin of thermostats

Already in Ancient Rome heating systems of buildings were used from the control of the flow of hot underground water and for this, gates were used that were opened and closed. However, it was not until Industrial Revolution when the first versions of current thermostats appeared. Steam boilers needed a device so that the temperature was always correct.

Today's technology as we know it would not exist if thermostats had not been invented. In this sense, one of the most important advances in the history of humanity occurred with the appearance of the first refrigerators that allowed to maintain the temperature of the food.

Without refrigeration and without intervention of the thermostats that produces it, we could not consume fresh food normally. By 1880 there were already more than 3,000 patents for refrigerators. The simple fact of having a refrigerator at home has served to avoid having to go to the market every day and so that food is preserved for much longer. All of this would not have been possible without a thermostat system inside the fridge.

Photos: Fotolia - Highwaystarz / Ruslan Ivantsov