Abstract: As an important concept in physics, mechanical work refers to the accumulation of moving distances in the direction of force. In the process of exploring science, people often think about how to improve effi ciency and liberate productivity. With the continuous development of society, how to apply the basic physical definition of mechanical work to the field of thermal energy and power engineering has received extensive attention from scholars. Based on this, the article fi rst explains the application of mechanical work in thermal energy and power engineering, and then proposes several optimization strategies for these problems, aiming to provide certain help to improve the effi ciency of industrial production.