[en] We study the heat engine by a d-dimensional charged anti-de Sitter black hole by making a comparison between the small-large black hole phase transition and the liquid-vapor phase transition of water. With the help of the first law and equal-area law, we obtain an exact formula for the efficiency of a black hole engine modeled with a Rankine cycle with or without a back pressure mechanism. When the low temperature is fixed, both the heat and work decrease with the high temperature $T_1$. And the efficiency increases with $T_1$, while decreases with the charge q. For a Rankine cycle with a back pressure mechanism, we find that both the maximum work and efficiency can be approached at the high temperature $T_1$. In the reduced parameter space, it also confirms the similar result. Moreover, we observe that the work and efficiency of the black hole heat engine rapidly increase with the number of spacetime dimensions. Thus higher-dimensional charged anti-de Sitter black hole can act as a more efficient power plant producing the mechanical work, and might be a possible source of the power gamma rays and ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays.