single-acting

American  

[sing-guhl-ak-ting] / ˈsɪŋ gəlˈæk tɪŋ /

adjective

1. (of a reciprocating engine, pump, etc.) having pistons accomplishing work only in one direction.

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single-acting British  

adjective

1. (of a reciprocating engine or pump) having a piston or pistons that are pressurized on one side only Compare double-acting

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Etymology

Origin of single-acting

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

single-acting

Q.--in the double-acting engine the piston is pushed by the steam both ways, whereas in the single-acting engine it is only pushed one way?

From A Catechism of the Steam Engine by Bourne, John, C.E.

By single-acting is meant that the air cylinders compress their respective volumes of air once every revolution.

From Scientific American Supplement, No. 799, April 25, 1891 by Various

Their engines are single-acting, and the small or high-pressure cylinder is placed on the top of the larger or low-pressure cylinder.

From A History of the Growth of the Steam-Engine by Thurston, Robert H.

This led to the construction of single-acting inverted oscillating engines with high and low pressure cylinders, and with admission and exhaust ports to avoid the complication and weight of eccentric and valves.

From A History of Aeronautics by Vivian, Evelyn Charles

The double-acting engine, unlike the single-acting pumping engine, required a piston rod that would push as well as pull.

From Kinematics of Mechanisms from the Time of Watt by Ferguson, Eugene S.