This discussion group is for people who know that it is possible to convert existing ambient temperature heat energy into work. This is not about Perpetual Motion Machines that are intended to violate the second law. To do that, the machine would have to take heat from a single reservoir and convert “all of it” into work as in the Kelvin-Planck statement of the second law.

Said statement tells us that it is not possible to take heat from a single reservoir and convert it completely into work. To explain that I have written my own definition of a Perpetual Motion Machine of the second kind which follows.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
In the Kelvin-Planck statement that word "COMPLETELY" means 100%, so it all boils down to this.

If it's 100% efficient, then inside a closed system you could use that 100% efficient engine to turn a brake drum to convert the mechanical energy back into heat to go around through the engine again. And again and again.

No engine can be 100% efficient even if the low temperature reservoir were absolute zero degrees because of losses such as frictional and energy converted into sound waves, so there can be no such thing as a Perpetual Motion Machine of the Second kind.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
This does not mean that we can’t take heat from a single reservoir and convert “some portion” of it into work. Indeed, the little drinking bird does just that.

I simply believe that something better than the little bird is possible and I also believe that it can be done without evaporation. I hope you do too and have some ideas to discuss.