<P> A steam turbine consists of one or more rotors (rotating discs) mounted on a drive shaft, alternating with a series of stators (static discs) fixed to the turbine casing . The rotors have a propeller - like arrangement of blades at the outer edge . Steam acts upon these blades, producing rotary motion . The stator consists of a similar, but fixed, series of blades that serve to redirect the steam flow onto the next rotor stage . A steam turbine often exhausts into a surface condenser that provides a vacuum . The stages of a steam turbine are typically arranged to extract the maximum potential work from a specific velocity and pressure of steam, giving rise to a series of variably sized high - and low - pressure stages . Turbines are only efficient if they rotate at relatively high speed, therefore they are usually connected to reduction gearing to drive lower speed applications, such as a ship's propeller . In the vast majority of large electric generating stations, turbines are directly connected to generators with no reduction gearing . Typical speeds are 3600 revolutions per minute (RPM) in the USA with 60 Hertz power, and 3000 RPM in Europe and other countries with 50 Hertz electric power systems . In nuclear power applications the turbines typically run at half these speeds, 1800 RPM and 1500 RPM . A turbine rotor is also only capable of providing power when rotating in one direction . Therefore, a reversing stage or gearbox is usually required where power is required in the opposite direction . </P> <P> Steam turbines provide direct rotational force and therefore do not require a linkage mechanism to convert reciprocating to rotary motion . Thus, they produce smoother rotational forces on the output shaft . This contributes to a lower maintenance requirement and less wear on the machinery they power than a comparable reciprocating engine . </P> <P> The main use for steam turbines is in electricity generation (in the 1990s about 90% of the world's electric production was by use of steam turbines) however the recent widespread application of large gas turbine units and typical combined cycle power plants has resulted in reduction of this percentage to the 80% regime for steam turbines . In electricity production, the high speed of turbine rotation matches well with the speed of modern electric generators, which are typically direct connected to their driving turbines . In marine service, (pioneered on the Turbinia), steam turbines with reduction gearing (although the Turbinia has direct turbines to propellers with no reduction gearbox) dominated large ship propulsion throughout the late 20th century, being more efficient (and requiring far less maintenance) than reciprocating steam engines . In recent decades, reciprocating Diesel engines, and gas turbines, have almost entirely supplanted steam propulsion for marine applications . </P> <P> Virtually all nuclear power plants generate electricity by heating water to provide steam that drives a turbine connected to an electrical generator . Nuclear - powered ships and submarines either use a steam turbine directly for main propulsion, with generators providing auxiliary power, or else employ turbo - electric transmission, where the steam drives a turbo generator set with propulsion provided by electric motors . A limited number of steam turbine railroad locomotives were manufactured . Some non-condensing direct - drive locomotives did meet with some success for long haul freight operations in Sweden and for express passenger work in Britain, but were not repeated . Elsewhere, notably in the U.S.A., more advanced designs with electric transmission were built experimentally, but not reproduced . It was found that steam turbines were not ideally suited to the railroad environment and these locomotives failed to oust the classic reciprocating steam unit in the way that modern diesel and electric traction has done . </P>

The machine that converts heat energy in steam to electricity is called a