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DEVOTED TO THE GENERATION WD
TRANSMISSION OF POWER

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POWER

January 1 to June J(J, I VI I

PAGE

Betterment. Power-plant. Hunt *673

Bibbins. Gas-power progress 33

Bicalky roof fan ventilator *897

Bigelow-Hornsby boilers, Hartford *330
Binding Power's : filing clippings, etc.
Lambowin TO, Levy 238. Parks
3S6. Miles 464. Foulk 467. Went-
worth. Bell *611. Ed. 696. Case

780. McKelway 884, Andrews 1002

Binns. Boiler explosion. Verona *436

— Pressure tank explodes *583

— Dangerous bag 831
Blake. A. D. Flow of steam and design

of nozzles *597

— Penn. terminal service plant *944
Blake. J. E.. pulverized-coal system *204. 405
Blast-furnace plant. Empire. Maujer

*366, Rice *938
Bleeder connections — Engine runs *44. 318
Blood. Lighting property improve-
ments 681
Blower. Cent.. Oxford furnace *366. *938
Blower. Fan. horsepower. Guy *904
Blowing engines. Reciprocating. Trinks *975
Blowoff connection. Kavanagh *913
Blowoff. etc. — Globe valves 84
Blowoff pipe. Check valve in. Henlow *961
Blowoff pipe. Frederickson *123
Blowoff-pine protection. Hamilton 612
Blowoff pining. Hamilton's. Critchlow

169. Steindorff 429

Blowoff system : concrete sump *153

Blowoff tank accident. Pittsfield 474

Blowoff valve left open. Binns 814

Blowoff valve. Powell "Cyclone" *898

Blowoff valves — Correction 251

Boat. Gas-power. "Holzapfel I" 643

Boddie. Setting brushes accurately *194

BOILER

— See also "Steam." "Blowoff."
"Water." •Corrosion." "Coal."
"Oil." "Furnace," "Fire." "Grate,"
"Gas." "Carbon dioxide." etc.
— Accidents and education 1009

— Accumulators. Vradenlmrgh 168

— Air bleeder. Critchlow 48

—Air. Cold. Effect. Purnell 280

— Air-leakage questions. Dixon 924

— Air pump cleaned boiler. Korzeneski 123
— Air required per pound of coal.

Rogers *876

— Ammonia still. Poiler used as, ex-
ploded *933
— Arch changes to nrevent smoke 397
— Arches. Raike Bldg. plant *58
— Fag. T'a aprons. Binns 831
— Pas. Effects of. on safetv 323
— Beading flues. McGahey *202. Beaton 354
— Bigelow-Hornsbv boilers. Hartford *330
— Plowing out boilers 505
— Boiler house. Industrial-plant. Miller *151
— Boiler plant considered as factory ;

various losses. Bancel *911

— Boilermakers* convention. Omaha 899

— Bracing. Ouestions on 53. 173

— Bulletin. Boiler-room. Boston El. *759

— C. & N. W. terminal— R. & W.
boilers — Settings for heavy over-
loads
— Cleaners — Tube blowers *275. *317.

502
— Cleaning. Experiment in. Miles
— Coal handling modern boiler room,

5th Ave. bldg.. X. Y.
— Comnound. Disincrustating
— Compound. Eagle "Perolin"
—Compound feeder. Chambers
— Comnovmd. Graphite as a. Trumbo

PAGE

BOILER

averted ; sheared rivets.

Wagner
— Condemn the old boiler

— Cornell fuel economizer 129, 319,
— Corrosion of boilers. Edge

— Cutting in boiler with others
— Dangerous boiler. Operating. Utz

497. Brown

— Dennison Mfg. Co.'s Wickes boilers

— Deterioration <>f boilers. McGahey

— Draft regulation. Harris

— Driving boilers at economical rates
— Cost charts. £dl«r

— Economical steam generation. Kav-
anagh

— Economy. Boiler room. Holder

— Economy. Steam boiler — C02. Rogers;
Walters

— Edge Moor boilers. Worcester
— Efficiency. Combustion and. Wool-
son 17'

— Efficiency of boiler and furnace

— Efficiency of 82.36 p. c. — Keeler
boilers for Panama. Kent 167,
Cannell 204. l.d.

— Efficient installation with econo-
mizer. Mason

— Emergencies. Boiler-room. Row

— Engineer's confession — Boiler opera-

tion. Warren. *186. *370, Van

Valkenburg
— Explodes, 30-year old boiler, Rush-

ville
— Explosion. Arcadia. La. Howse
— Explosion, Augusta, Ga. Kirlin

*514

*::02.

*048

164

♦TOO
869
789

*49fi

925

391

910
35 S

from dynamite avoided
Ideal laundry, Verona.

111. Class Co.'s, Alton.

Loco, boiler, Tex. 363,

817

*754

9 2 .'!

847

*S35

Sill
314

*S28

, 389
468

360

►183
82

464

*221

*895

548

— Explosion

Binns
— Explosion
— Explosion,

Binns
— Explosion,

Rockwell
— Explosion,

Greer
— Explosion, Mt. Wash.. Ky.
— Explosion on "Delaware"
— Explosion. Pabst, suit

321. Pavler. Doe
— Explosion. Phila.. Nuss & Co.
— Explosion, Pittsfield— Overpressure

on old boiler 87, Johnson *89,

Starke 241, Griffin 280, Robbins

363, Hogan
— Explosions, Causes of. McGahey,

Everett 281. Wilson
— Explosion, ' Donkey-engine boiler,

Ore.
— Explosion, Georgetown, S. C, Atl.

Coast Lumber Co.'s
— Explosion, Heating-boiler, kills two

— Union E. L. & P. Co., St. Louis
— Explosion — Tube blow-out. Rowe

wood mill, Winsted. Strait
— Explosions and water hammer.

Clark 62, Critchlow 48, Little
— Explosions in America
— Explosions in Germany. Rathman
— Explosions, Lap-seam, Remedy. Oil

Drummer
— Explosions, None in Montana
— Explosions — Place responsibility 541,

King
—Explosions, Several recent 208, 290,
— Explosions, etc. — Who is responsi-
ble?
— Factor of safety, old boilers
— Factor of safety ; water pressure
— Failures. Boiler and tube. Speller

43, Payler
— Feed-pipe arrangement. Walters
— Feed-pipe suspension — Note
— Feed pipes clogged 40,

— Feed-water treatment, Brandes
— Feeding, Boiler, Economic. Bascom
— Firing a boiler. Crusland
— Firing, pulverized coal. Worth *264,
— Flue blows out. Flour mill. Mo.
— Flue welding in repairs. Jeffery
— Foam, Boilers. Stewart 814, Tur-
ner
— Gage-cock experiments. Wakeman
— Gas explosions in boiler flues. Ing-
ham
— Gas, Flue, analysis, Value of; draft;

coal waste, etc. Hays
— Gas speeds. High ; experimental

boiler. Nieolson 22

— Gas velocity. High. Strohmeyer
— Grates, Auto, shaking, Dold Co.'s
— Heating boilers, Amoskeag mills
— Heating boilers. Rating of
— Horizontal boilers, 200-h.p. Benefiel
— Horsepower and boilers. Parson

*962
322

*436

1016

483
626
401, 542, 544
251, 299,

499
363

536
318
475
*543
*790
703

319

875
242

235

279
437

748
468
173

86
354
771
243
397
122
534
465
251
*115

1006
*596

639

867

245

412
*413

*768
248
166
240

— Horsepower, weight, etc. 218, 240, 244, 854
— Hudson-Manhattan power sta. *98

— Idle boilers. Care of 663

— Improvements, Desirable, in boilers
— Joints, settings, heating sur-
face, factor of safety, vertical
boilers, large units, blank pipe
flanges, Manning boilers and other
topics. Dean *761, 900. Terman 1008
— Increasing capacity. Callaway 155

— Inspection, Federal— Loco., station-
ary ; license laws 86, 276, 322. 354,

359, 389
— Inspection laws. Dixon 392

— Inspection law, N. Y., needed. Walters 608
— Inspection legislation 359

— Inspection of plates. B. P. F. 394
— Inspector, Assisting the, Hanks 575
— Inspector's dream. Terlene 444

— Inspector's fees. Allegheny co., Penn. 219

— Inspectors; Am. Inst, of Boiler 396, 401
— Inspectors and engineers. Eaton

652, Cultra • 851

— Inspectors disagree. King 846

— -Insurance, Boiler. Jamson 610

Joints, Butt and strap, Advantage 173. 820
— Lap cracks 173, 540

— Lap seams. Calculating; table of

rivet values. Hogan S75. 990

— Loco, boiler — Heater tests *295

— Loco, tube treatment. Speller *802

— Low water causes leaks. Pinkert 313
— Low water — What to do 92

— Manchester steam-raising rules 605
— Manholes in boilers. Hanna 42

— Manning boilers, Amoskeag Mills *404

— Manning boilers, Feed-water entrance

to 931

— Mass. rejected boilers put elsewhere 970
— Modern boiler plant, Holyoke — Am.

Writing Paper Co.'s — B. & W.

boilers. Rogers *254

— Novel boiler construction. Richards *738
--Ohio Board of Rules 940

PAGE
BOILER

— Oil fuel. Collins *764. Blair 1008

— Oil-fuel furnace. Baltimore *953

— oil fuel. High efficiency with : Pac.
Lt. & Power Co.'s B. & W. boil-
ers. Clarke *720
— Old boilers doomed by modern laws.

Faulkner *374

—Overload test. N. Y. Cent. shop-
Franklin and Edge Moor boilers
447, Clarke 652. (Parker down-
flow boiler of Colo. Fuel & Iron
Co. > Dieckhaus 852

— Patch on boiler sheet 435

— Patching second hand boiler. Walters *81
— Proof of the pudding 172

— Return-tubular boilers. Progress in

— Settings and fittings. Kavanagh *913
— Rivets — Catch question 394

— Riveting boiler plates. Jeffery *67

— Selection ; grate surface. Fischer 218

— Setting and steam jet. DeMotte

*461, Smith *615. Prew, Klein *649

— Setting, Boiler. Trofatter *428

— Setting, Boiler, Kilgour *399

— Setting horizontal-tubular boilers.
Jeter *2. Cole *277, Zeuerlund
*690, Dean *761, 900. Terman 1008

— Skimmer caused scale. Westwood 815

— Smoke preventers — Steam-jet con-
trol. Hawkins *770
-—Smoke prevention — Steam jet. Odell *66
— Solvents. Introducing. Williams 47,
Miles 128, 815, Utz *204. Keith.
Martin *355, Lee
— Steel. Testing. Wise
— Strap plates. Thickness of

— Strengths. Stay and seam
— Stress in sheets 360, Wetwter *i;v_\

Risteen. Clark. Fitts
— Stress on stays. S. B. S.

— Superheaters on various boilers
— Test figures. Reliability of 245,
— Test. Hydrostatic: yield poinl
— Test — Peculiar result. Knight
— Tools for placing P.. & w. boiler

baffle brick and springing tubes.
J. Keers'
— Topics for discussion. Viall
— Topics for discussion — Is steam
formed under water? How after
explosion? etc. Payler 387, Bonn
539, Prew oil. Brockman 817

— Total pressure in boiler 358

— Tube expander, I'sing. Morgan *352

— Tube explosion. Alkali Rubber Co. 290

— Tube failures 43, 86

— Tubes. Effect of heavy loads on.

Allison *376

— Tubes. Pitting of. M. F. H. 820

— Tubes. Precautions vs. bursting 207

— Fnexpected happenings. 1 1 387

— Unloading boilers. F. A. B. 694

— Warnings. Boiler-room. Manchester 336
— Washing boilers externally. Benefiel 239
— Waste heat boilers. Dreyfus *.>57. 579

— Water. Boiler with little 855

— Water. Feed, problem — How often
must boiler be cleaned with com-
bination water? Mason S47
— Water hammer burst valve *460
— Water. No — Burnt sheet. Rockwell 886
— Water-tube boilers. Special setting

for. Kunze *338

— Watkinson's lectures — Smoke abate-
ment, etc. 479. 526
— White-hot boiler stampeded firemen.

*495

614

•565

244

209

*T42
394
*12
429
783
813

325
200

Hilbert
— Wieboldt

set for
Bolt heads.

bldg. — Kroeschell boilers
low headroom. Monnett *216
Preserving. Stacey 462
Bolt-hole marker. Noble *196
Bolts. Net diameter of 616
Bolting rotor bars. Fenkhausen *3S0
Bonom steam turbine *726
Bonus and merit system combined 579
Bonus system in fireroom. Williams 535
Boott mill flywheel explosion *24T
Boston El. boiler-room bulletin *759
Bowser & Co.'s producer plant *643
Brace. Bit. as wrench. Proppitt *39
Bradford. J. C. Death of 626
Bradford automatic valves *789
Bradlee. Limitations of scientific effi-
ciency 675
Brandes feed-water treatment 397
Brass. Crank pin. adjustment 610
Brasses, Crank-pin. Reinforced. Little 1004
Brine. Calcium-chloride. Specific heat

of. Fairview 697

Brine foamed. Place *81

Bristol recording thermometers *174

British Metallic Packing Co.'s regulator *481
British rolling mills, Engines in.

Mackenzie 638
Brockman. Most economical vacuum *906
Bromwell flywheel explosion *488
Brooklyn Edison profit sharing 87
Brown, It. G. Reducing motion, gas-
engine indicator *234
Brown. Boverie turbine test 599. 618, 740
Brush. See also "Commutator," "Elec-
tricity."

January I to June 30. 1911

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POWER

January 1 to, June 30, 1911

PAGE

Corrosion of water-cooled exhaust
pipes. Wild 735, Herter 960,
Leese "1UUU

Corrosion. Questions on 92, 358

Cost. See also '•Central station," "Iso-
lated." etc.
Cost analysis. Industrial-power. Jenk-

lns •950, 969

Cost charts — Driving boilers at eco-

nomical rates 83o

Cost figures. Wells Power Co. Wilcox i <5
Cost of industrial power. Parker and
Hibner before engineering socie-
ties 469, 471. 506. Creelman 612._
Jackson 650, 838
Cost of operating small water works.

Scarth „„ 690
Costs. Central-sta. Jackson 260, 691.

Van Winkle 46^. 966

Costs, Hotel power 47, 278

Costs. Operating — Gas-power and cen-
tral-sta. comparisons. Rushmore
S12, 1001, Brown 965, De Wolf

998, 1000

Costs. Operating. Publicity of 396

Costs Steam-plant installation. Noble 572
Cotton Mfrs.. Natl. Asso. 663, 675
Coupling. Hanger, Self-oiling, Wil-

liamson *' o

Coupling. Motor-generator, at Orange *<J8

Couplings. Friction. .Tahnke *560, *669
Couplings. Shaft, and inertia effects.

Smith 994

Coutie. William — A pioneer 130
Covering. See also "Piping."

Covering. Magnesia, on boiler setting *2oo
Crane. C H., Reciprocating engine and

low-pres. turbine 28
Crane. J. B.. Easilv built switchboard *957
Crane troubles. Side-stepping. Price 570
Crane, Loco.. Coal-handling *830
Crank, Engine. Drilling. Corm *350
Crank-pin brass adjustment 610
Crank-pin brasses. Reinforced. Little 1004
Crank pin. Broken, Engine ran with 848
Crank-pin oiler, Nugent's *843
Crank pin. Fressure on 209, 435
Crank-pin repair. Grove *736
Crank pin. Truing. Taylor *165
Crank-pin turning device. Walters *124
Crosshead buckled 419
Crosshead pound. Mann 351
Crosshead shoe, Loose. Cooper *461
Crosshead stop. Does it? Stover, Pul-
len *45. Coburg 167, Grossbaum
•205. Kingsley *242. Smallwood *356
Cultra. Regulation of rotary con-
verters 845
Ounarder. Turbine. New 261
Current. Alternating and direct. Iden-
tifving. Mossman, Gorilla 38,
Dolphin. Rates 162, Seese *881
Current indicator. Simplest. Sawford 570
Curtis marine turbines *877
Curtis turbine in Germany — Mollier
diagram, losses, comparative per-

etc. *19, 64, 595, 748

Curtis turbine oiling system *10

Curtl« turbine. Oxford furnace *366, *938

Curtis turbine. Worcester railway *828

Curtis 'nrbines. Amoskeag Mills *404

Curtis turbines, Baffles for *894

Curtis turbines. Hudson tunnels *98

Cutler-Hammer solenoid valve »547

Cutoff and compression. Change of 435

Cutoff change, Brown engine 132

Cutoff, Change of. Jones 467, Fitt 615

Cutoff. Corliss. Adjusting 505, Bowers 885

Cutoff. Finding point of *578

Cutoff, low-pres. cylinder 323
Cutoff. Low-pressure, on compound

engine. Effect of *482

Cutoff, Point of 468

Cutoff. Trip, kinks. Langman 608

Cutting bar steel, etc. 270

Cvclone blowoff valve *898
Cvlinder, Cracked, Reinforcing. Broec-

ker »163
Cvlinder. Cracked, repair. Cultra *427
Cvlinder. Engine. Wrecked. Greer '526
Cvllnderhead blowout. Hope Co.'s 703
Cvlinder lubricating system, Homemade *885
Cylinder lubricators. Automatic. Ly-
man 815
Cylinder. Pound in. Dixon *908
Cylinder. Pump. Bushing. Johnson *834
Cvlinder ratios. Compound-engine 202, 432
Cylinder scoring, etc. Diesel 119, 309, 494
Cylinder, Steam, first In America 8
Cylinder troubles — Plugging crack, re-

borlng stuffing box, etc. Walters *164
Cylinder wall. Influence of. Dwels-
hauvers Derv et al. »25, *71, 170. 172,
208, 357, 501, 907

Cylinder walls. Thickness of 323

Cylinder, Water in. Knowlton 414
Cylinder, Water wrecked. Sheehan

•123, Griswold 354

Cylinders. Compound and simple, Rel- •
atlve sizes of. C. E. R. 655,

Ninde 1006

Cylinders, One or two 358

PAGE

Damper, Holyoke boiler plant *255

Damper regulators. Everard 401

Daniel. Gas engineering in oil fields »4a
Darcv's formula, etc., Charts for •522,

•676, *870

Dashpot plunger, Rebounding 694
Dashpot troubles. Green 462, Cultra

614, Mason *»1«
Davenport, Low-pres. turbine in .iv;

Davidson. Governing steam engines 30J-

•448, *480
Davies. Locating grounded armature

coil *420, *682
De La Vergne gas engine plant, Lacka-
wanna Steel Co.'s *29, *11<
De Laval reduction gear o8i
De Laval turbine. N. C. Coll. *478
De Saussaure. Charging ice machine *698
Dean, Improvements, Desirable, in

boilers. *761, 900, 1008

Dedrick. 30-vear old boiler explosion *221
"Delaware." Explosion on 401, 542, 544

Dennison Mfg. Co.'s plant , *752
Department-store elec. equipment, Gim-

bel. Meade *35

Deplorable plant conditions. Castner *315
Dery, Dwelshauvers. Influence of

cylinder wall : compression *25. *71,
♦170. 172, 208, 357, 501, 907
Design, Faulty. Allison 48
Detroit three-way valve *703
Diagram. See also "Charts," "Indi-
cator," "Mollier," etc.
Diagram, Condenser. Treeby *647
Diagrams, Carle's — Riveted pipe *377
Diamond Rubber Co.'s turbine *131
Diamond tube blower *362
Dickinson. Turbines and generators 49
Diesel engines, Marine 170. Milton 921
Diesel engine, New small *77
Diesel engine, Operator's view. Kim-
ball 119, Pollister 300. Koppel 494
Diesel engine, Reversing marine. Sau-

berlich *809
Diesel engines. Various. 160, 843, 891, 957

Distilling apparatus. Vacuum *417

Dixon, A. E. Busy day at plant 749

Dixon, A. J. Pound in cylinder »908

Dixon. E. Writing for tech. paper 566

Dold Packing Co.'s grates *413
Double entasis of chimney *7, 166, 318
Draft and percentage of C02, Chart

showing. Rogers *876
Draft, Forced, turbine set for torpedo-
boat destroyers *600
Draft gage. The 322
Draft regulation. Harris 847
Drain cocks. Opening of 968
Drawing', Machine, "Anthony" 1901
Draining manifold. Holly system for.

Bopp 610. Hawkins 779

"Drawing. Mechanical. Notes." Fry 1901

Dredge-pipe wear. Kirlin 923

Dreyfus. Gas-power features *196
— Gas-engine waste heat to turbine *552. 579

Drier. Steam. Garratt's "H. & B" *624

Drilling engine crank. Corm *350

Drip arrangement. Stevens *573

Drip piping mismanaged. Collins *411

Drip problem. Fales *062
Drips. High-pres.. Connecting to heat-
ing mains. Bonn 316. 817, Enigne 574

Drips. Steam-pipe. McGahey *534
Driving boilers, economical rates.

Adler *835

Drop. Why allow any? 893
Duchesne. Compression in steam

engine *71
Duffy inquires. Hogan 536, Wants

a "picture" 875. Training him 990
Dunlop's rolling-mill turbine *795
Duplication in power plant S22
"Durahla" gage glass *896
Durand radial planimeter *660
Dusty engine room. Rose 688, 8S7, 1007
Dutch point station. Hartford. Calla-
way *330
Dwelshauvers -Dery. Influence of cylin-
der wall ; compression *25, *71, »170.
172, 208, 357, 501, 907
Dynamite In coal. Dixon 352
Dynamo. See also "Electricity." etc.
"Dynamo Building for Amateurs."

Weed . +175

Dynamo, Interpole. New, Westlnghouse *916
Dynamometer, Fan. Tracy, for testing

stationary engines *33

Eagle "Perolin" boiler compound 789
F.nstman Kodak plant. Maujer *105, 175

Eccentric rod repair. KIrlln *220
Eccentrics. Inquiries regarding 173. 244.

540, 968
Economic engineering. Allison 126,

Weaver 243. Rayburn 355
Economical rates. Driving boilers at.

Adler *835
Economical steam generation. Kavanagh 80]

Economizer explosion. Fatal. Leese 833
Economizer, Fuel. Cornell 130, 319, 391

PAGE

Economizer installation. Mason *183
Economizer tubes, Corroding. Smith
573, (solution to coat) Brincker-

hoff 887

Economizers — Gas producers. Poole *42.i

Economizers, Industrial-plant *152
Economv, Boiler-room. Holder

Edge, W. C. Boiler corrosion 910

Edge Moor boilers, Worcester »828

Education, Engineer's. Noble 281

Education, Scientific management in 433

Education, Technical 653
Eel in water pipe. Blake

Efficiencv, Apparent 58°

Efficiencv, Plant or unit 246. Edwards 431
Efficiency, Scientific, Limitations of.

Bradlee 67a

Efliciency, Square deal and 821

"Efficiency." Use of term. Wilson 375

Elbow bursts, La Porte 475

ELECTRICITY

See also "Brush." "Commutator."
"Collector," "Switchboard," "Trans-
former," "Hydroelectric," etc.
— Accidents due to carelessness. Knowl-
ton 37
— Alternating and direct current. Iden-
tifying 3S, 162. *881
— Alt. -cur. frequency 931
— Alt.-cur. generator and motor speeds 968
— Alt-cur. phase relations 578
— Alternator, Cutting out compound-
ing of. Reynolds *530
— Alternator, Exiting, from arc dy-
namo. Miller 422
— Alternator, New engine-type, West-

inghouse *640

— Alternators driven by waterwheels.

Parallel operation of. Dean 998

— Alternators for waterwheel drive.

G. E. *807

— Alternators In parallel, Exciting 420

— Alternators, 2- and 3 phase. Paral-
leling. Grove *570, Henry "845
— Armature "stretcher." McFadden *422
— Barring machine, Am. Ship Wind-
lass Co.'s *35
— Batteries, Storage, a. c. stations 457
— Batteries. Storage, Care and opera-
tion of. Meade *730
— Belt vs. elec. transmission. Jack-
son 260, 691, Van Winkle 167, 966
— Catechism — Single-phase motors *120, »]93
— Choke coils, Air-cooled, Westing-
house *996
— Compound-wound machine with open

shunt field circuit 694

— Compounding and overcompounding 746
— Conduit-wiring data. Arland 919

— Converter. Rotary, Effect of field ad-
justment on. Reynolds 642
— Converter trouble. Greer's. *104. *421
— Converters, Rotary, Regulation. Cultra 845
— Crane troubles. Price 570
— Current and polarity indicator.

Simplest. Sawford 570

— Dynamo-belt behavior. Hull. 270. 530

— "Dynamo Building for Amateurs" + 175
— Dynamo burned out due to mis-
placed steam drains. Althouse 422
— Dynamo, New compound-wound.

Connecting. Reynolds *569

— Dynamo, New interpole, Westing-
house *916
— Elec. engineering exhibition. London '559
— "Elec. Power Plant Engineering."

Weingreen +826

— Electricity and the engineer 654

— Equipment of Gimbel department
store — Motor balancer, synchro-
nous-regulator converters, «te. *35
— Exciter-starting attachment. Lynn. *769
— Fan motor in winter 161
— Geared dvnamos and turbines. Mal-
colm et al. 270. 491. 529
— Generators. A. c, Types and connec-
tions. Meade *878
— Generators. Changing, from com-
pound to shunt-wound. Mason *S44
— Generators — Moisture caused trouble 123
— Generators, Steam turbines and —

Testing. Dickinson, Robinson 49

— Grounded armature coil. Locating

•420. *6S2
— Hydroelectric plant, Italy *440

— Hydroelectric power. Wassau "138

— Lamps. Series Incandescent. Trouble

with. Sprague 80S

— Light that failed : Filing connector
thin to make fuse. Bliss *19,".
Miles • 492

— Lighting of industrial plant *154

— Lighting property improvements.

Blood 681

— Low charge of elec. energy — Pasa-
dena municipal plant 689
— Magnet drag. Excessive. Clemens 161
— Magnetized by rolling, Sheet steel 90S
— Measuring 3-phase power with single-
phase meter *931
—Motor at Los Angeles — Through fire

and water *101

January I to June 30. 1911

POWER

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POWER

January 1 to June 30, 1911

Engineer— Point of view. Kimball
Engineer — Room for improvement
Engineer's education. Noble
Engineer's view of graft. Ske;

Ed. S8, 395, Smith
Engineer's views — -Improvements. Em-

279,

PAGE

778

854
2S1

463

brey

Engineers,
Engineers.
Engineers,
— Gas-power

A. I. E. — Papers
Am. Order Steam
A S. M. — CO» discussion
section 33, *29.

286,

—Oil fuel— S. F. branch 286, 686,

— Oil fuel — Boston branch ,64o

— Accidents, Industrial. Prevention 248,
—Cost of power 363, 469, 471, 506,

650,

88S

49, 860

*979

170
*117
1001
1008

361
612.

838

-New president^Col. Meier

•401, 437,
935, 981

— Boston — Governing
— Spring meeting

508
936,
•975

•707
S3 2
854

991

waterwheels

659, 749, 935.
*938,
— Napier's formula with superheat
— Patents for inventions. Haywood
- — Boiler horsepower
— Schedule of flanged fittings
— Energv drop in steam turbines
— Pres.-temp. relations of saturated

steam 'iaiS

— Colors for piping 10l»

Engineers and boiler inspectors. Eaton

652, Cultra gol

Engineers. Machine-made 748

Engineers. N. A. S.— Annual banquet *21l
— Cooperation with University of Illinois 892
Engineers — Improving the personnel
Engineers, Operating. Inst, of 95.
326, 437, 475, Sir. 618. 664, 703,
74S, 790. 927. McGahey
— Op. engineer's opportunities. Ennis
Engineers, Making. Faulkner
Engineers — Specialists. Scotch 465,

Owen 739, Blake
Engineers. Steam and other, for gas
engines. Hamilton 644, 773, Utz
Engineers — Tech. graduates and pub-
lic service
Engineers, Writers among 205, 465.

566. 651, 850, 926,
Engineers' license agitation, R. I.

Francis
Engineers' license law, Milwaukee
Engineers' license laws, etc.. Federal.
Blanchard 86, Clegg. 276, Werner
354. Ed. 322. 350. Wise 389. (All
in the spirit i
Engineers' license laws. Need of. Tay-
lor
Engineers' license legislation
Engineers' wages. Morton 124. Henry
390, Gotstein 429. Hall 501, Wal-
lace 539. Harris 577, Burley 613,
Hall 852. Fleming
Engineering conditions. Improved.

Westerfield
"Engineering Directory"
Engineering, Economic. Allison 126,

Weaver 243. Rayburn
Engineering graduates
Engineering societies library
England, Exhaust steam turbines. Sea-

ger
Ennis. Op. engineer's opportunities
— "Applied Thermodynamics."
Equalizing pipe on separator. Squires
Equipment. Inefficient
Elhics. Fngine-room. Eldredge
European turbine tests — Table
Evans. C. Supporting stack-
Evans. Oliver, steam engine
Evaporation. Equivalent
Evaporation, Factor of
Evaporation from and at 21 2 deg.
Exciter engine. Overloaded. Moore
Exciter-starting attachment. Lynn
Exciting alternator from arc dynamo.

Miller
Exciting parallel alternators. Miles
Exhaust. See also "Steam," "Heating,"

•Turbine."
Exhaust head too small. Walters
Exhaust pipe. Scale in. Smith
Exhaust-pipe size. Turbine *324, 502,

739,
Exhaust port. Auxiliary, Stumpf
Expander, Tube. Using. Morgan
Expanding, Re, condenser tubes. Bunker
Expansion ratio by volume
Expansion ratios, fins-engine
Expansion Steam, problem. French,

Mitchell
Expansion tank. Capacity of
Expansion tank. Utility of
Expansion valve, Nash's. Middleton

85, II ens ley

TCxpansions, compound engines. Low

Expansions, Number of

Explosion. See "Boiler,' ' "Piping."

"Wheel," "Pulley," "Economizer."

"Blowoff," "Elbow." "Flange."

"Tank," "Gas." "Cylinder-head."

"Ammonia still." "Air receiver,"

etc.

Eye, Removing oil from,. Dixon 270

504

1007
485

124

S50
842
822
966

756

939

854

966

350

927

737
t663

355
1010

981

*263

485

t902

*923

1010

288

♦792

• 286

435

505

323

609

•769

422

420

461

1005
*040
*352
•633
282
•458

•203

820
282

429

*185

132

PAGE

Factory, Boiler plant as. Bancel *911

Factory plant, Central sta. vs. Jack-
son 260, 650, 691, 838, Van Winkle

467, 966
Failures. Steam-engine. Knowlton 414, 577
Fairview. Specific heat of calcium-
chloride brine 697
Fan-blower horsepower. Guy *904
Fan, Increasing speed of 245
Fan motor in winter 161
Faulkner. Old boilers doomed *374
Faultv design and economic engineering

243,' 355
Federal laws. Blanchard 86, Clegg
276, Ed. 322, 359, Werner 354,
Wise 389

Feed. See "Piping." "Boiler," "Pump,"
"Water." Heater." "Regulator,"
etc.
Feeder, Compound. Chambers *496

Fenkhausen. Hand controllers for

multi-speed induction motors *230

— Repairing induction motors *344, *380

— Auto, starters for indue, motors *602

Fenno. Exhaust steam in l.p. turbines

188, 353, 500
Fessenden's power project 146

Fifth Ave. bldg., N. Y., coal handling *700
Filing clippings. McKelway 884

Filing Power and other articles. Levy
23S. Parks 386, Ed. 696, Andrews
10o2. (Binding Power) 79. 464,

467, *611, 780
Filter tank. Small 740

Finance school, Absurdities of 782

Fire and water, Through *161

Fire danger from steam pipes 837

Fire discussion. Water Wks. Asso. 1017

Fire, Minneapolis power house 134, *150

Fire. Oil. Weehawken *445

Fires. Ranking. Parson 240. 393

Fires. Electrical. Knowlton 37

Fires. Thin. Hurd 1003

Firemen who wasted coal *186, *370, 464

Fireroom, Bonus system. Williams

535, Ed. 579

Fireroom, Poetry of the 695

Firing a boiler. Crusland 53 i

Firing boiler furnaces 7-17

First Natl. Rank bldg.. Chi. *974

Fischer. Design of power plants 156, 218
Fitchburg condensing water cooling *337

Fittings. Flanged. Schedule of 988

Flange bursts with fatal results. Amos-

keag mills 548, *582, 763. 027, 1008

Flanges. Welded, Defects. Law. Mer-

rett, Digbv *005

Flanged fittings, Schedule of 988

Flanging. Pipe, method, Patterson-
Allen *133
Float control of pump. Unusual *523
Flow meters, G. E. *1015
Flue doors, Opening, to check draft

240. 393
Flue gas. See "Gas." "Carbon dioxide."
Flue welding in repairs. Jefferv *115

Flues. Boiler, Beading. *202, 354

Flume racks, Steam heated 270

Flywheel. See "Wheel."

Foam, Boilers. Stewart 814. Turner 1006
Force and work. Uncle Fegleg *22

Foster superheater *!<>

Foundation. Making engine lift itself

to. Hays *734

Foundations, etc.. Boiler, .leter *2.
Cole *277, Zeuerlund *690, Dean
•761, 900, Terman 1008

Foundations, Engine. Knowlton 415,

Nagle 577

Foundations, Plant. Fischer 1->7

France. 120,000-h.p. plant. Grandjean *178
Francis. License agitation, It. I. 750

Franklin boiler: Foster superheater *16

Friction clutches. Jahnke *560, *669

Friction-load diagrams. Smallwood *96l

Friendly suggestion to inquirers 090

Frikart valve gear *60

Frosting. < 'ase of 7S7

Fry. "Notes on Mech. Drawing" tool

Fryant. Steam engine indicator uses 525

Fuel value, Determining. Ellis 914

Furnace. See also "Boiler," "(Irate,"

•Coal." "Fire," "Blast." etc.
Furnace for bituminous coal. DeMotte

•461, Smith *615, Prew, Klein *649

Furnace, Oil-fuel. Peabody 286

Furnace questions. Dixon 024

Furnace — Steam for preventing clink-
ers 240, 393, 405
Furnace wall. Heat flow through. Ray

and Kreisinger 798

Furnace wall. Hollow. Effect of 853

Furnaces, Boiler, Firing 747

Fusibility of ash 696

Fusing temperatures of ash 242

Gage. See also "Water," "Draft,"
"Condenser."

Gage cocks, Experiments with. Wake-
man 500

PAGE

Gage, Compound 92
Gage glass, "Durabla" *896
Gage glasses, Putting in. Little *962
Gage pipe, Clogged 616
Gage pipe, Condenser, Clogged. Mitchell 1003
Gage pipe froze. Kenney 351
Gage, Pressure and vacuum. Azbe *238
Gages, Recording, Holyoke plant *258
Gages, Recording, Industrial, Im-
proved pressure tubes for *896
Garbage destructor, Milwaukee 283
Garbage utilization 432
Gary gas power plant notes 493
Gas and oil power. Klumpp 959
Gas-cleansing and power plant, Lacka-
wanna Steel Wks. *29, *117
Gas engine. See generally "Engine,

Internal-Combustion."

Gas engineering in oil fields. Daniel 843

das explosions in boiler flues. Ingham 639
Gas, Flue. See also "Carbon dioxide."

Gas, Flue, analysis. Rogers, Walters 82

das. Flue, analysis. Value of. Hays 867

Gas, Flue, Nitrogen in. Smallwood 90
(las. Flue, temperature and C02 rec-
ords, Am. Writing Paper Co.'s

plant *254
Gas generator from coal combined

with engine, A. M. Low's *4-_r>

Gas-generator linings. McGahey *23.>.

494. 045

Gas meter, Elec, Thomas *70l

<;as, Peat, power, Germany. .Tunge 882

Oas poisoning, Narrow escape 160

das poisoning 240. Benefiel 348
Gas-power and central-sta. figures.

Comparison. Rushmore 812. 965

90S, 10UO

Gas-power boat, "Holzapfel I" 643

Gas power. Pertinent features of —
Gases, composition, heat value :
operating expenses; auxiliary
heating. Dreyfus *196

Gas-power plant erectors and opera-
tors. Nelson -)32
Gas-power plant, Gary. Notes to:;
Gas-power progress, past decade. Bib-
bins 33
Gas-power pumping plant. Municipal,
at Haddonfield : Otto engines and
producers. Butterfleld *683
Gas-power pumping plant. Toledo *306
Gas-Power Sec. A. S. M. E. *29, 33, *117
< ins producer ou1 put 820
Gas-producer, Elementary lectures.
Poole - Fuel-bed temperature *70.
economizer and vaporizer *423
Gas, Producer, Essential factors in

making. Bureau of Mines 774

Gas, Producer, from crude oil. Jones

686, Xix 1001

(ias producer peephole *774, 960

Gas-producer plant. Composite pressure
and suction, in New Eng., built
by Flinn & Dreffein *531

Gas, Producer, power plant, Bitumi-
nous. Bowser & Co.'s Ilolbeck *043
Gas producer using coke

(las sampling with aspirator. Parmely *920
Gas speeds. Boiler, High. Nicolson

2 245
Gas velocity. High, in boilers 412

Gasket, Fitting, on ammonia com-
pressor. *Keil *699

Gasket, das-engine, Booth's. Eckley

*273

►315
►351

428

Gasket, Lead. Mutilated. Castner

Gasket, Lead fuse. Hawley

Gaskets, Manhole. Morris

Cafe vaive. See "Valve."

(lathering them in 930

Gaynor, Mayor's attitude 433

See also "Central station."
Gear, Clutch, at Haddonfield gas-
power pumping plant *685
Gear, Melville Maealpine. Malcolm .
270. 492. 529. Drevfus 491, Gib-
son 520
Gear, Reduction, De Laval, for d. c.

generator *591

Gears for steam turbines. Parsons 070

Gearing, Long and short-stroke engine *27l
General Elec. See also "Curtis."
General Elec. alternators for water-
wheel drive *S07
-Cent, air compressors, Oxford Fur-
nace 324. *367, *938
—Ft. Wayne Wks. merger 981
—Flow meters. Improved *1015
Generator. See also "Electricity," etc.
Generator, das. linings. McGahey

*235, Benefiel 494, 645

Generators, A. c, Types and connec-
tions. Meade *878
Generators, (hanging, from compound-
wound to shunt-wound. Mason *S44
Geological Survey tests 798, 853
Georgetown, S. C., boiler explosion *543
Georgia, Hydroelec. power. Turner 400
German markets for lubricants 679
Germany, Boiler explosions. Rathman 242
Germany. Peat-gas power. .Tunge 882
Germany, Steam turbine in. .Tunge.

Heinrich *19. *64, *224. *590, *984

.(letting the full benefit 696

January I to June 30. 191 I

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POWER

January 1 to June 30, 1911

Jackson. Belt vs. elec. transmission

691,
Jacquin. Westinghouse-Leblanc refrig-
erating machine
Jahnke. Friction clutches *560,

Jamieson Best h.p. pump
Jeffery. Riveting boiler plates
— Flue welding in repairing boilers
Jenkins. Industrial-power cost analysis

•930,
Jeter. Setting horizontal-tubular boil

ers
Johnson, C.

2, *2

Air in ice-water system

*934,

Johnson, F. L. Pittsfield boiler explo-
sion *89, 87, 280,
— Symonds — Emergency Engineer
— Wave motors and compression
Joint. See "Piping." "Boiler."
Jones stokers. Amoskeag Mills
Jones : trouble killer *26S,
Jones, E. C. Producer gas from crude

oil 686,

Jones, H. W. Gas-engine equipment
Junge. Steam turbine in Germany *19,
*224, *590, 748,
— Peat-gas power, Germany
Junk shuts down pumping engine

PAGE

467,
966

•932
•669
•509
*67
•115

969

•690

1014

363
•834
•907

•408
*454

1001
235
*64,

•984
S82

•154

PAGE

866
•107

632
•384

Kane & Christie
cutting tool

"Katapult"

Kavanagh.
steam

— Progress

throw stoker
Economical generation

119,

1012

•545

•772

317

•344

•399

309

•247

111, 320

•220

G07, 883

548

•641

►189,

•940

959

•793

•210

belt-lace and leather

•623
•148
of

801
n ret. -tub. boilers *913

Keeler boilers for Panama 167, 204, 360

Keers baffle-brick tools
Kehoe. Double-pipe vs. atmospheric

condensers
Kennicott water weigher
Kerosene, Running gasolene engine with.

Pullen
Keys, Driving. Stewart 43, Haught
Keys, Removing. Fenkhausen
Kilgour boiler setting
Kimball. The Diesel engine
Kinckiner & Scott screwdriver
King. Flywheel explosion, Lowell
Kirlin. Weighing small parts
— Construction-work experiences
— Make-and break ignition troubles
— Boiler explosion, Augusta, Ga.
— Reddy causes catastrophe
Klein et al. Straight-flow engine

•285, "526,
Klumpp. Gas and oil power
Knickerbocker Hotel flywheel explosion
Knight mills wheel explosion
Knock-off block. Putting shims under.

Lee 164

Knocking, Cause of <4o

Knocking slide valves. Rayburn 126

Knowlton. Electrical accidents due to

cslf^Icssiigss " '

— Recent steam-engine failures 414, 577

Kodak Park plant. Maujer "105, 175

Korting engines. Lacka. Steel Co. *29, *11<
Krapidlowski. Impvd. heating system *973
Kratsch. Gas-engine troubles 34

Kroeschell boilers, Wieboldt Bldg. *216

Kunze. Setting for w.t. boilers *338

Laborer worthy of his hire 822
Lackawanna Steel Wks. gas-power

plant. Coleman *29, *117

Lamp, Acetylene-gas. Heiny *164

Lamp filaments, Effect of service 893

Lamp, Incandescent, candle power 694

Lamp — Light that failed *195

Lamps, Flickering, Gorilla's. Gulick 223
Lamps, Series incandescent, Trouble

with. Sprague 808

Language, Slovenly, and salary 782

Lap of steam valve 173
Lap. See "Boiler."
Latch blocks. Slipping. Greer 350.

Mason 498. Wampler 537, Perkins 612
Lauchhammer power station 59
Leach throw stoker *147
Lead and compression. Reduced, saves
coal. Smith 646, Dickson 780,
Dixon 926
Lead, Exhaust and inside
Lead joints in pipes 92
Leak — Moisture caused trouble 123
Leakage, Locomotive-tube. Speller *602
Leakage past various valves. Cannell *335
Leakage. Piston-valve. Shoemaker 46,
McGahev 127, Clarke *239, Hyde
463, Cannell 537
Leakage, Valve. Werner 651
Leakage. Valve — Clearance loss ; test,
etc. Kirlin *646, Williams *779,
Ludeman 967
Leaving things right for the man com-
ing on. Levy 646
Leese. Safety valves and their appli-
cation •."."9
— Fatal economizer explosion 833
Leland. "Steam turbine" t663
Lending a hand. Allison 464

Lentz engine on Pacific Coast

Letters. Some testimonial

Leunam. B.t.u. in coal

Levin. Poppet-valve rocker arms

License. See "Engineers'."

Light that failed. Bliss *195, Miles

Lighting. Elec. property improve-
ments. Blood

Lightning protection. Report on

Lignite, Burning. Bergman 388, Lar-
sen

Lignite deposits, TJ. S.

Lincoln. Hvdroelectric developments,
Ohio

Lining up. New engine required. Little

Link pin. Bound — Flywheel explosion

Liquid cooler, Hopkins

Liquid discharging device. Seibert
85, Knight 128, Johnson 316,
Pagett

Little. Coal sampling

Livemool. Smoke abatement 479, 526

Load relation to power-station equip-
ment. Newbury *917

Locomotive-boiler inspection, Federal

license laws, etc. 86, 276, 322, 354,

359, 389

Locomotive-boiler explosion 363, Greer *483

Locomotive, Oldest, in America 217

Locomotive-tube treatment. Speller *802

492

681
918

576
954

•859

'793

•585

353

805

Locomotives using Stumpf pat.
"Logarithms for Beginners."

worth
London. Turbine pipe sizes

•190,
Pick-

t901
•324, 502,
739, 1005
Percy »271
363
•161

Long and short-stroke engines.

Long Beach plant. So. Calif. Edison

Los Angeles fire remains

Losses, Power-plant, Preventing 542,

Durand 741

Low, A. M., gas engine *425

Low, F. E. Rule of thumb for h.p. 28

— Hudson Manhattan power sta. *98

— Automatic throw stokers *147

— Expansions in compound engines *185

Low water causes leaks. Pinkert 313

Low water — What to do 92

Lowdon's smoke tintometer *662, *926

Lowell, Flywheel explosion. King *247
Lubricant. See also "Oil," "Graphite,"

"Bearings," etc.

Lubricants, etc., for hot bearings 616, 639,

849, 888, 931, 1007

Lubricants, German markets for 679

Lubricating bell crank. Taylor "737

Lubricating piston packing. Stilwell 128

Lubricating system, Homemade. Strong *885

Lubrication. Air-compressor. Panama 884

Lubrication. Splash. Beattie 348

Lubricator connections. Beach *49-6
Lubricator, Force-feed, Attaching to

pump. Little *165
Lubricator. Piping, to reservoir. Pierce

314, Weaver *499, Handley *537,

Piper *778

Lubricator. Rochester "Model B" »624

Lubricator, Stilwell "Graphoil" *174

Lubricators, Automatic. Lyman 815

Lude relay governor *480

Luminator Water Co.'s process 397

Lynn, Exciter-starting attachment *769

McCiave grate *99

McDermid. Bearing-metal investigation *68
McGahey. Generator linings *235, 494, 645
Mackenzie. Engines in British rolling

mills 638

Magnet drag. Excessive. Clemens 161
Magnetized by rolling. Sheet steel.

Coffman 99S

Malcolm. Melville-Macalpine gear 270,

491, 529

Manchester Corp. statistics 162

Manhole gaskets. Morris 428

Manholes in boilers. Hanna 42

Manning boile"rs, Amoskeag Mills *404

Manning. Capt. Chas. H. *760
Marginal principle. The. 503, 612
Marier. How Mat made good and then

lost 873

Marine work. Small turbine In *600
Marks. Pressure-temperature relations

of saturated steam 936, 992
Mason. H. R. Efficient boiler installa-
tion «183
— Difficult case, parallel operation *680
— Changing generators from compound

to shunt-wound *S44

Mason mechanical laboratory *228

Mason. W. B.. Death of *289
Mass. Inst, of Tech. 397. 653. 663. 673.

675, 681, *724, 734

Master Mechanics' Asso. 955
Mat. How he made good and then lost.

Marier 873

Mathematics and the engineer 891

•Mathematics for Prac. Man." Howe 1511
Matthews. Estimating refrigerating

surface 199

— Absorption-machine capacity 287

— ran and plate ice systems *416

— Problem in refrigerating 698

— Capacity of ammonia compressors *784

— Charging refrigerating system 856

PAGE

Maujer. Eastman Kodak plant "lOo, 175
— Wave motor float type *112

— Empire blast-furnace plant *366, *938

— Automatic shaking grates *413

Meade. Elec. equip., Gimbel store *35

— Care and operation of storage bat-
teries *730
— Tvpes and connections of a.c. gen-
erators »878
Mean effective pressure 505
"Mechanical Engineering." Sames +290
Mechanical Engineers. See "Engineers."
Meier, Col. E. D. *401, 437, 935, 981
Melling. Repairing broken engine frame *384
Melville-McAlpine gear. Malcolm 270,

492, 529, Dreyfus 491, Gibson 529

Men, Handling. Burley 128, McGahey
166. Powell 168, Miller 169, Bene-
flel 320. Grove 354. Henry 391

Merchants' Loan & Tr. Co. Bldg. *4">3

Merit and bonus system combined 579

Merrick conveyer weightometer *249, *257
Metals. Antifriction. Taylor 777, Kir-
lin 963. Green 1007
Metal, Bearing, Homemade. Van Ant-
werp 276
Metals. Bearing, Investigation. Mc-
Dermid *68
Meter, Electric gas, Thomas *701
Meter. Water, in feed-pipe line 746
Meters. Flow. G. E. *1015
Michigan steam-pipe casings *398
Miles. Exciting alternators In parallel 420
Mill, Old, New London »758
Mill, Tide, Slade's. at Revere *993
Miller, E. F. Cooling circulating water *724
Miller. W. H. Industrial-plant boiler

house
Miller automatic water controller
Mills. "Thermodynamics"
Milton. Oil engines for ships
Milwaukee garbage destructor
Milwaukee's license law
Mines. Bureau of — Producer gas
Minneapolis power liouse burns
Missouri Bapt. Sanitarium plant
Mitchell. Water-power

Moisture caused trouble.
Mollier diagrams

•151

•788

t289

921

283

939

774

134, «150

736

conservation

619, 617, 656
Ransom 123

•21, *64, *667

Monnett. Raike Bldg. plant *58

— Diamond Rubber Co.'s l.p. turbine *131

— Wieboldt Bldg. boilers, etc. *216

— Chi. & N. W. terminal plant •"14

— Cleveland Plain Dealer plant *292

— Gas-power pumping plant. Toledo *306

Moore's mem#randum booklet t826

Moorfield Wks., Explosion at *933

Morewood Ice Co. explosion 87. *89. 280.

363. 530

Morgan. C. H., Death of "175

Morrison. D. B. Vacuum for engines *104

Morrison fine collapsing pressure 540

Motive powers. Combined 893
Motor. See also "Electricity," "En-
gine." "Water," "Wave," etc.
Motor-generators, Large, Starting.

Fuetterer 998

Mouat. Vapor heating systems 874

Mound No. 4 packing irons *362

Mount Wash.. Ky.. explosion 626

Mud-drum nipples. Replacing 435

Muffling box. Concrete. TTtz *349

Municipal plant. Successful. Adcock 885
Municipal pumping and power plant.

Orange. Rogers *716. 826

Muskingum river development *859

Napier's formula with superheat *797

Natl. Asso. Cotton Mfrs. 663, 675

Natl. A. S. Engineers. See "Engineers."
Natl. Dist. Heating Asso. 971

Natl. Elec. Lt. Asso. 213, 229. 251. 437,

617, 619, 656
— Convention »917. 929. 930. *953, 959. 996
Natl. Gas & Gaso. Eng. Tr. Asso. 34, 750

Natl. Isolated Plant Asso. 175. 284,

289. 639
Natl. Phvsical Lab. aeroplane-engine

test *840

Navy. Power for. Cone 52

Neglecting opportunities 434, Burley 575

Nelson. Gas-power plant erectors and

operators 532

New Era metallic packing *586

New London. Old mill at *758

New York Cent, shop boiler test 447.

652. 852
New York Cv. Central-station service

in public buildings 322. 433, 511

New York Edison Co.'s adv. 1009

New York inspection law needed. Wal-
ters 608
New York, N. H. & H.'s feed-water

transportation *757

New York Steam Co. practice 206

New York water powers 171

Newbury. Load relation to power-sta-
tion equipment *917
Newspaper bldg. plant. Monnett *292
Niagara power utilization 845
Nicolson. High gas speeds in boilers

222, 245

January I to June 30. 1911

POtti

Nile audi!

gen In : allwood

•la

rhotn[.»
•wanna

A H
Blake
• formula with
heat

Park*
|-ark^

o K- "•«

-
arid k*~

■

>:■•*

• am ent
an

•

■ ...

•

Haj

•

•.i«.- la

e In. I>anl*l
at

ll<

llammel

M I

with.

I'll

k 1

•

l*i, ,

i :gn

'•if

llllan

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•

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1

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1
1

i'ip*.

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tea •

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ngbo«M

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rilln.

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'lllf

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n

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•

POWER

January 1 to June 30, 1911

TAGE

Holly 818,

924
*752

Power-plant cleanliness 504,
Stirling

Power plant, Dennison Mfg. Co.

Power-plant design and operating
engineer : consulting engineer as-
sisting. Roberts 43, Bascom 44.
Bailey 204. Weaver 243. Bayburu 355

Power plant. Duplication in 822

Power plant. Hartford. Callaway *330

Power-plant losses. Preventing 542.

Durand 741

Power plant. Municipal, Orange.

Rogers *716, 826

Power plant. Newspaper. Monnett
Power plant. Thriving, developed by

protecting low ground from floods.

Willey
Power plant. N. C. College
Power plant, Raike Bldg.
Power-plant records. Keeping. Rogers
Power Plant Specialty Co.'s "Vater"

water-purifying system
Power plants, Steam, Design

Fischer

156,

Power sta.. Hudson Manhattan

Power tests and costs — Electrifying
textile mills

Power and Steam

Power articles, etc.. Filing. Parks
386, Ed. 696, McKelway 884, An-
drews

Power — Back numbers. Levy

Powers, Binding TO, 464, 467, *611,

"Practical Engineer" Elec. Pocketbook

Practice and theory

Precision governor

Pressure and suction producer plant.
Composite

Pressure and vacuum gage. Azbe

P. C.

►292

•528

*478
*58

*140

•584

218
*98

955

171

of satu-
936,

918,

*74,

Pressure in condensing engine

E. 132. Bennett
Pressure on projected area
Pressure-temperature relations

rated steam. Marks
Prime movers. Orrok
Prime movers, Report on
Primer of electricity. Poole
Printing presses. Static electricity

around. Fish 162. Jackson, Hil-

bert. Potter, Harvey, Watson,

Williams
Problem in refrigeration. Matthews
Proctor throw stoker
Producer. Gas. See "Gas."
Proell governors
Profit sharing. Brooklyn Edison
Progress or something new
Proof of the pudding
Public service. Tech. graduates and
Pullen. Running gasolene engine with

kerosene
Pulley coverings, Effect of
Pulley explosion. Can-
Pulleys. T'nsafe. Fryant
Pulverized-coal firing. Worth

PUMP

more from .maces. A

matt •i.ooo .

i for the gas-cngir.c pla re-

mainder being burned in the hoi-blaat
M and under the boilers.
All of th atcher- -ovided

with a suspended partition or baJBe wall
of firebrick cutting off passage

of gas from inlet to o • ar-

ing to pass under this »all and up to
the oui

PiriNC
The general arrangement and main
dimensions of the piping for washed gas
are shown in . group of

eight blowing tag.

washed gas through a 60-inch mrtrhttd
main of riveted steel plate -mg gas

to a main header of 96 inches diameter
alongside the wall of the engine house
near th c eight 1000-

cngincs at power hou*
arc gas from '

m or C

gas engines operated with blast- furnace
gas. the greater- n for blowing the

furnaces. There a en blowing en-

gines, each rated a- idicated horse-

r. and eight electric power u
each consisting of a gas engine rated
at l<«»> indicated I

ncctcd to a 5><iO-kilovkatt generator I r
of the latter units generate
rent at r four

generate three pha alternating

currents at olta. All of the en-

gines are of the •

tquij linden and cranks

•paced 00 degrees apa

The general arrangement is shown in

■

•

as follows: The gas leaving the furnace
top passes through large do* r

itchcr. »hcrc the
hea s depo

under the action of gl

gas DAM
•
hot

gines. Thj 0 used

ginc and pa-

, pes
and chamber* g«

after «
mg through ci

fom the

gat t

and

ounce* of pre sou re (abort atmosch
to the r

•ugh a JO- inch ur

connected *ith the
south end of

>f a 4

UN* 4 I

J 6 through

<rtJ*d With
The g<
piping dese ttlct— , as will

be shown

are installed or
The length of the JO inch mits
-e po«er house to about
The <M-lnch main supplying

-t long.

00 bach ttot. It was

POWER

January 3, 1911.

at the south end of the engine house is
a 60-inch venturi meter. The blowing-
engine house header lies along the east
side of the building. It is supported on
the concrete work of the exhaust tunnel
and is about 400 feet long. The 8-foot
section is 255 feet long and is of riveted
^-inch plate. The plates of the 6-foot
portion are 5/16 inch thick. A 24-inch
connection is taken off for each engine
on the side nearest the building. Water
is drained from the header by means of
an inverted siphon. The total length of
piping from the washers to the engine
houses is about 3800 feet.

Nos. 1 and 2 Gas Washers

There is a gas-cleaning plant at each
pair of furnaces consisting of cham-
bers equipped with water sprays for
cooling the gas and washing out a por-
tion of the dirt, centrifugal fans also pro-
vided with water sprays, separators for
removing the entrained water, and the
necessary valves and piping. Schematic
diagrams, Figs. 1 and 3, show the gen-
eral arrangement of the washing plants,
the former illustrating the washery first
installed at furnaces 1 and 2, and Fig.
3 the arrangement of apparatus at fur-
naces 3 and 4. The general arrangement
of washers at furnaces 5 and 6 is similar
to that at furnaces 3 and 4. In the plant
represented in Fig. 1 the gas is taken
from the dust catchers through horizontal
pipes where it is given an initial cooling
and washing by means of water sprays.
The cool gas then passes to four fan
washers located between the two fur-
naces. These fans are normally operated
in pairs, each pair forming a unit con-
sisting of the two fans operating in
series with each other; the first fan
draws cool gas from the main supply
and discharges it to a first-washed main,
and the second fan takes its gas from
this main and discharges it to the second-
washed main, from which the gas ,:asses
to the 30-inch gas line and to the power
house.

The pipe leading from the dust catcher
to the fans is 70 inches in diameter. At
a point about midway between the fans
and the dust catcher a water-seal valve
is located, consisting of a horizontal steel
tank 8 feet in diameter, through which
the gas passes on its way to the fans.
By filling with water it acts as a shut-off
valve and by partly filling with water the
gas flow may be reduced to any desired
extent, these functions being useful when
a furnace is working badly and giving a
poor quality of gas. The 8-foot tank
also serves as a receptacle to which the
water is drained from the cooling sprays.

The 70-inch pipe connecting the dust
catchers to the fans is about 236 feet
long, the total travel of the gas from
dust catcher to fan being about 123 feet.
Located in this piping are 99 water sprays
for cooling the gas on its way to the fan
washers. These spray nozzles are lo-

»IS

.z -

£ *

> o

S a

« »

CO tfl

2£

O 0

Saw

Steam
Blowing

1 1

'5
B
K

1 1

L8.J

r'fn

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o

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LS-J

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cated at the axis of the pipe, about 3
feet 6 inches apart, and discharge a
cone-shaped spray into and against the
stream of gas. The sprays are supplied
from a 3-inch header through 1-inch pipe
connections and each spray consumes
about 8 gallons of water per minute. The
water drains first into the 8-foot tanks
and from thence through a seal into tank
cars beneath, where the dirt is deposited
and the water passes off from an over-
flow into the general drainage system.

The connections to the fans are taken
from 'the bottom of the 70-inch main,
the connection being 48 inches in diam-
eter, enlarging to 70 inches diameter.
Each connection can be shut off from the
gas pipe by means of a disk valve op-
erated by a chain drum and hartdwheel
located on top of the gas pipe, and each
connection is provided with a hopper bot-
tom, valve and drain, forming a pocket
for the mud and water brought down
with the gas. The drain pipe extends
downward into a well, forming a seal.

The fans are very similar in general
features to ordinary centrifugal ventilat-
ing fans. The wheels are 6 feet 1 1
inches in diameter. There are 8 blades,
each 15^ inches wide at the inner end
and 13 inches wide at the tip, carried
on tee-iron arms set in a cast-iron hub.
The cast-iron suction connections are
rectangular. The main is 20J4*52 inches.
A branch 21x48 inches leads to each
side of the fan, the opening to the fan
casing being 36 inches in diameter. These
connections are provided with cleaning
holes to facilitate removal of mud. Water
connections are provided for four noz-
zles on each side carried through the
casing and discharging through the cir-
cular inlet to the fan. Waste water from
the furnace tuyeres and bosh plates flows
from the furnace troughs into a stand
pipe equipped with an overflow located
at the proper level, and a portion of
the water in the stand pipe passes
through pipes to the fans.

Each fan is driven by a 75-horsepower
electric motor direct connected to the
fan by means of a flexible coupling, and
each one discharges horizontally at the
bottom through a 21^x45-inch connec-
tion into a water separator. The sep-
arator is a steel box 4 feet square by 9
feet high, containing a set of baffles con-
sisting of three rows of 3-inch steel
channels, the flanges of the channel bars
facing the stream. The openings be-
tween channels are about 1 inch wide,
and the spacing is alternate or staggered,
such that the streams of gas are broken
and turned. The separated water and
mud drop to the bottom of the separator
and pass out through a seal. The gas
leaves the separator at the top through
a 24-inch pipe connection.

First-washed gas which has passed
through one fan passes back into one
of the 70-inch vertical connections on the
cool gas main, and is isolated from it by

January 3, 1911.

PO«

means of the disk valve at the top,
previously mentioned. The gas then flows
through the second-wash fan to the sec-
end-washed gas main; and thence
through the 30-inch line to the power
house. The piping and valves are so ar-
ranged that any fan may be used for
either first or second washing. The valves
in the fan connections are 24-inch gates,
with scats and disks of cast iron.

Nos. 3 and 4 <

In the washing plant shown in
the gas passes from the dry-dust catcher
ugh a 96-inch connection leading to
a set of four cooling towers 12 feet in
diameter and 72 feet high. The cooling
water i into these towers

through numerous nozzles set in the
sides. The first-washed gas passes from
the fans through a water separator into a
ich header called the first-wash main,
from which it is passed back to the suc-
tion side of the fans working on se.
• ashing, these being shut off from the
cooled-gas main. From these fans the
gas passes through the separators and
into the second-washed main of t30 inches
diameter. The 60-inch main suppl>ing
the enj; connected to the middle

point of this header.

The four cooling towers arc carried on
-ructural platform which is located
feet above yard Ictcl to provide
clearance for mud cars which receive
the drainage from the bottom connec-
tions. The connections between the to.
arc 8 feet in diameter and the travel of
the gas is up and down in alternate
towers. Each tower is r with a

bottom and pipe seal having con-
nection with a common drain pipe which

the inlet opening, w'hen i\

:th water to the required hight

the water and baffle serve as a ••

shut off communication between the

Ifld the : catcher, a scaled

flow maintaining the proper water

level when

The Brat I about

the second ha and the

third and fourth about 21) M 'ays

each. The sprays are placed in I

cula- • apart vertically; the

r row is abo from base

of tower. The nozzles arc of brass
throughout, and made as shown in
4. The shell has a 2 -inch external
thread which screws into a flange
rive- he shell of the tower. The

helical passage rling cone-

shaped of about 00 degrees

maximum diam-
eter. The 1 -inch plug . access
to the spindle for cleaning. Thcsc

about 7 gallons per minute at the
average pressure c

>m the the gas passes

through a 7-foot pipe to the fans. This

main by means of bell valves operated

j winch and hanj
top of the horizontal main. These valves
scat in a The opening is

of 45 inches diameter. At the midpoint
of the cooled-gas main connect

located a shut -off
misting
:h may be r
satcr to regulate the amount of gas
coming from i

There are eight fan »a»her» housed

in i .- and *:• ritta

r shaft cer.- ches above

sary f( - jge. The wheels are of

nch stet

cicr, .laving M*gn
^ide at

The OMtraJ "pen-

ing of whe • ) I

The casing is of cast iron and of the

Jou' inch of the

opening into the fan through a
ich diameter inlet. The bottom
charge connection

wheel shaf- connected througn

a flexible coupling to a IOO-horsep<
motor running at 4> utions per

minute. Six of these motors utilize
tcrnating current I
The two types are used to -
there be an accidc-
motors on the rcrr.

tinuc to operate and keep a pan of the
engines running until the nccess-
ms can be ma
Water is thrown into in through

of the
char trml inlet openings,

four on each »ide; the -
charge Into the fan through the u,
half

■nnected to
ending

charge of all '
e tank cars beneath I A and

cmcrg<
seal drain* at a higher lev

•ealt are normal: hut

aid the bottom drain become
• he *l|| then drain through

*eal
1 »ith a «teel plate baffle

of i

the

CIMlIf J CJt 'V J If! at t * '

e hopfr

at the nd and

may be n th« cooled -ga*

he building, over the
•nnectioo Is

•h coohnt
ikh ewrtesis from a
pipe, a portion under rise
going to the fans
Prom the '

POWER

January 3, 1911.

in Fig. 5. The gas passes first through a
set of baffles consisting of four rows of
4-inch channels set vertically, the open-
ings between the channels being V/2
inches wide, with staggered spacing so
that the streams of gas are broken and
turned. The separated water falls down
the vertical channels, carrying with it the
dirt, and passes out at the bottom through
a seal to the drainage system. After pass-
ing through the channel baffle, the gas
rises through annular disk baffles and
passes from the separator through a
36-inch top connection.

Each separator is equipped at the top
with a cast-iron tee providing outlets

shown in Fig. 6. The gas circulates
through zigzag passages formed by nar-
row plates assembled as shown. The
projecting edges of plates are formed
to catch the water and lead it to the
bottom of the chamber, where it passes
out through a seal. There are two sets
of baffles through which the gas passes
in succession, one at the bottom and one
at the top.

General

The delivery mains from the three gas-
cleaning plants are interconnected by two
pressure-equalizing pipes. These mains
for hot gas, cooled gas and washed gas

Nos. 1 and 2 along the west wall of
blowing house No. 2, to form a junction
at the southwest corner of that building
with the 60-inch delivery main from
washers Nos. 3 and 4. Also the 36-inch
equalizing main should deliver gas into
the 60-inch delivery main from washers
Nos. 5 and 6, instead of into the north
end of the 96-inch header at blowing
house No. 3. Power house No. 1 and
blowing house No. 2 would then receive
the average of gas from four furnaces,
whereas at present blowing house No. 2
receives gas only from furnaces 3 and 4,
and at power house No. 1, the four
north engines may receive gas from fur-

Half Section
on B-.B

3 x 3 x % L

2H"loug

6MJR"

Fig. 5. Water Separator at Gas Washers of
Furnaces 3 and 4

\_Lt3

Fig. 6. Water Separator at Gas Washers of
Furnaces 5 and 6

through 36-inch gate valves to the first-
washed and second-washed mains. Fans
working on first washing discharge their
gas into the first-washed main. This gas
is then taken by the fans working on
second washing and by them discharged
into the second-washed main. The diam-
eters of the first- and second-washed
mains are 78 inches and 60 inches. The
first-washed main extends the full length
of the fan house, and is connected to
the vertical suction connection of each
fan through a 42-inch gate valve. The
valves and piping are so arranged that
any fan may be operated on either first
or second washing.

The gas-washing plant at furnaces 5
and 6 is substantially the same as that
described for furnaces 3 and 4, but the
water separators have a different style
of baffling. One of these separators is

are locally interconnected in parallel re-
lation at each pair of furnaces. It is
therefore possible to control the amount
of gas taken from each furnace and
the gases from the two furnaces are
thoroughly mixed by discharging into a
common washed-gas delivery main. In
order to promote in the best manner uni-
formity in the composition of the gas,
the joint delivery from the several wash-
eries should then discharge into a com-
mon distributing main or holder. The
locations of the three delivery mains,
however, and the relative locations of the
two equalizing pipes are such that it Is
impossible for such mixing to occur
even locally or approximately, as refer-
ence to Fig.l will make clear.

A partial solution constituting a great
improvement would consist in relocating
the 30-inch delivery pipe from washers

naces 1 and 2, and the four south en-
gines from furnaces 3 and 4. Under
these conditions of piping, the gas sup-
ply at any point is but an average of
that from two furnaces, and at times the
irregularity is considerable, the heat
value occasionally varying between the
limits of 105 and 80 B.t.u. per cubic
foot, within a period of a few seconds.

Both the gas-cleaning apparatus and
the gas engines were installed at an early
stage in the history of the art and are
necessarily imperfect when compared
with modern examples to which have
been applied those refinements that can
be gained only through experience. The
average dust content of the gas delivered
to the second-washed main amounts to
about 0.022 to 0.035 grain per cubic foot,
which would rightly be considered bad
practice in modern gas-cleaning plants.

January 3, 191 1.

POU f K

The cleaning of the gas at washers
Nos. 1 and 2 is less complete than that
at washer* Nos. 3 to 6. At the
former the dust content in second-washed
gas as delivered averages abo;.
grain per cubic foot

3 and 4 the a< cragc dust content is
about 0 ubic foot of cooled

gas. rain in :

grain per cubic foot in sccond-wa-

gav

The gas supplied through the 30-inch
main to power h<> I. thercr

contains more din and moisture than
that delivered from washers N to 6,

in consequence of which there is more
trouble with dirt at the po*c> h
than at the blowing-engine hoi

^as headers at the
blowing-engine houses are of probable
value in taking moisture out of the |

In the d. Mr Colcma

pap-. !> Conlcc paid tribute

the pair <»ith which

the - ~cd in the paper had been

made and brought out some interesting
4 some ims

wn in an .i the

■r.
Ln the

•^ne Machine Company, said
that the troubles that had been

. ith these cngir. due partly

n n in design but largely to J

gat- The dust in the gas now runs from

1 milligrams pc and

four vcars ago it "en as high as

ic limit
at 2 In the carl too,

there wi-
den •

•■> the furnace*, and these ;

cess ir and can

gas a i .-ars

re reqi:
The high g.i
h t u p<- -r •

houn of the Lackawanna engm
I)oc!Img cxpla

the excess the

ga» and til the loss of gas

rig the final half of the sen

xl. In later ei

uch small'

and th the

maximum pun;

iter en-
gines regulate much more elotc
due to the control of the a gat

taken in h\ ihi
Ing thr
close l

1 that

n that the) ar<
maces and a I lies-

■^cing a'

60 feet from the power h

'hat coke and 'om the

furnaces a

■
;ic rooms a e all over the

hat the
lid run at all under eh

I I ) namomt I

ing Stationary 1

The fan d\nan by

ph Tra.

n. for g small gasolene en-

been ■

.as and
• nodcra' The ace

pan line as

made for this purpov
with a pulley of a diameter which is a

of the en-
c fan arm an J
are ma can be ad-

ia ft
to the
amount of po to be abs<
arm be.i lie for ca:h fan vane, and

the dial of tl

■

absor'

il.

diar nmorn-

' be

rinl Tr I <.*••••<- ■ 2 H c

' '■

ma>

( ■

l\ I e*

the beginning of tl

conaadc
gress in the field of gas power In -

- or w 10

dou' g tin J to

1 horacpo* a and op-

lean

-• from a

he proplcm of

along tow j

the
•ge end
small the sc

■

on of this

-tdeed achieved

success The gtt . xs rr.adc r°*

'ie motor b
automobile and the aerop! . e aero

plat

the T ^c

noisette

horsepower and the
e motor weighs

The t mother

scrvio

are r

■

fine-

4 rtsyoirta

amp re —I— hi thr
.

••on of He high eAcieocy the

ha» Nee " taopteaj ' e

' ape— I.

<m end long distance
» i -n TV

e»»rat>W la
vice Mi * rr prtXec

POWER

January 3, 1911.

Gas-engine Details

The development of the heavy-duty
double-acting gas engine has been ac-
companied by certain interesting fea-
tures. The side-crank type has been gen-
erally preferred to the foreign center-
crank construction. Dry metallic-rod
packing has been substituted for the
elaborately water-cooled kind. Valve
mechanism has been simplified by using
a single cam to open both the inlet and
the exhaust valves. Mixing is now done
only at the inlet valves, minimizing the
results of a back-fire and contributing to
uniform mixture quality at all valves by
eliminating fluid-inertia effects.

The electromagnetic igniter has found
much favor by reason of its simplicity
and the feasibility of using several
igniters in each combustion chamber
without entailing complex mechanism.

The series system of water circulation
has reduced water consumption and also
the troubles from the sweating of rods
working in high-sulphur gas. The foreign
practice of cambering piston rods is not
followed here. With light pistons the
rod flexure is not greater than is de-
sirable to keep the sectional packing free.

Desired Features

A serious handicap in industrial work
is the inability of the gas engine to sup-
ply enough exhaust heat to warm a fac-
tory. Some progress has been made
with the exhaust heater but the 5000
or 6000 B.t.u. per brake horsepower-
hour available from an engine is not suf-
ficient to do the work. Some system in-
cluding an auxiliary gas-burning heater
must be worked out.

More convenient and practical methods
of measuring the volume and heat value
of gases should be provided. Some large
plants have adopted the venturi meter,
but even this simple apparatus is sensi-
tive to deposits in the throat. A con-
tinuously recording calorimeter is greatly
needed, and some progress is being made
in this direction.

There is a disposition to discount the
demand for large engine and producer
units. With steam-turbine units increas-
ing rapidly in size the gas-power in-
dustry must respond in kind or have the
gas engine remain an auxiliary for spe-
cial conditions.

Education of the operator, the sales-
man and the manufacturer is essential.
The great mistake is made in partial
education — an incomplete understanding
of the conditions, a make-shift equip-
ment and a jealous guarding of knowl-
edge of defects. The results are loss of
confidence, dissatisfaction and failure.

Power from Crude Oil

Development of the oil engine has
made great progress abroad since the
expiration of the basic Diesel patents.
Two of the principal builders have turned
out 250,000 horsepower in engines, some

of which rated as high as 1000 horse-
power per cylinder. The smaller engines
mostly work on the four-stroke cycle, but
above 1000 horsepower the two-stroke
cycle prevails.

In the various experiments with oil-
gas producers the small progress has
been discouraging. Two systems have
been used, the retort and the partial
combustion. In the former, difficulties
with carbon deposition in the retorts are
encountered; in the latter, excessive pro-
duction of lamp black. Both are hope-
lessly low in efficiency as compared with
the oil-burning steam plant. A large oil-
gas plant in California, operating gas en-
gines as water-power auxiliaries, en-
deavors to apply to power purposes mixed
gas, consisting of part retort and part
carbureted water gas, utilizing the car-
bon deposits of the former as briquets in
the latter process. In this mixed gas, the
hydrogen content is kept down to about
30 per cent., but in the oil gas it is very
much higher, 40 to 60 per cent. For
straight power purposes the combustion
producer seems more promising both in
simplicity and efficiency.

Peat

We have looked to Canada for im-
portant developments in the use of peat,
but private experiments have failed so
signally that the Government has started
a peat-manufacturing and power plant to
demonstrate the process on a commercial
scale and reestablish confidence in this
industry. Director Haanel, of the Bureau
of Mines, thus summarizes his investiga-
tions: Artifical drying processes have
failed commercially and a machine pro-
cess must be substituted for the manual
labor. The department is, therefore, pro-
ceeding along European lines of estab-
lished success. He states that Russia
alone produced 4,000,000 tons of peat
fuel in one year — 1900. Peat containing
not over 25 to 30 per cent, of water has
been found an ideal fuel for gas-pro-
ducer work, requiring no additional steam
and being quite free from high tempera-
ture and clinker. The long series of fuel
tests at Montreal have served to confirm
the results of our Government tests on
lignites in demonstrating the great pos-
sibilities of these lignite deposits, espe-
cially in the Canadian northwest.

Gas Engine Troubles

A remarkable array of facts on gas-
engine troubles was presented by Charles
Kratsch in a paper before the National
Gas and Gasoline Engine Trades As-
sociation during its recent meeting at
Racine. The information was collected
from the trouble calls arising from one
hundred engines ranging from one horse-
power to 125 horsepower multiple-cylin-
der verticals for generating electric cur-
rent; the makes included nearly all types
from the old slide-valve Otto of thirty

years ago up to the modern types which
are on the market today.

Seven per cent, of the failures came
under the classification of causes due to
installation. Among these causes were
"engines installed by the purchaser to
save first cost; gas bag too far from the
engine; no coil in the ignition circuit;
cooling water reduced'so that the engine
overheated, and cam-shaft gears not in
mesh properly."

Thirteen per cent, of the failures were
classed as causes due to fuel. The princi-
pal one of these was the location of the
supply tank too far from the engine to
feed sufficient fuel at all times; faulty
fuel supply due to carbureters or mixing
valves; fuel-supply pumps, or clogged
piping was another.

Ten per cent, of the failures were due
to lack of proper instructions for op-
eration, some of the results of which
were too much or too little gas; no cyl-
inder oil; too much or too little cooling
water; weak or dead batteries; defective
or improperly adjusted vibrator on spark
coil; parts put together wrong after the
Saturday night tinkering.

Five per cent, were classed as due to
faulty construction, under which head
came defective parts blamable to design,
such as crank shafts of too small di-
mensions; insufficient valve area; valves
opening late or for too short a time; not
enough lift to valves for perfect mix-
ture or clear exhaust; bad gasket faces,
causing water leaks.

Seventeen per cent, came under the
head of causes due to natural wear and
accident, of which the following were
cited: worn cylinders; shafts cut, sprung
or crystallized; valves needing regrind-
ing; governor fingers worn out; lost mo-
tion in bearing brasses; loose flywheel;
gaskets blown out; crystallization of con-
necting-rod studs; general overhauling;
engine totally wrecked.

Nineteen per cent, were classified as
causes due to ignition troubles, as fol-
lows: parts inside the engine damaged by
wear and neglect; movable electrodes
worn out; igniter plugs requiring new
bushings, new points, springs, etc.

Twenty-nine per cent, of the failures
were due to equipment and accessories
and nearly one-half of these were
troubles that could have been anticipated
and shutdowns eliminated if an extra
igniter had been furnished. Eleven of
the 29 per cent, in the "accessories"
class were ignition troubles caused by
poor wire, defective switches, bad in-
stallation of wiring, poorly connected ter-
minals, wires short-circuited through poor
insulation, burned-out coils, poor mag-
netos and cheap batteries. The remainder
of this division were troubles due to
igniter points being burned off by exces-
sive ignition current, the current being
supplied by small generators driven at
too high speeds or from lighting cir-
cuits presumably of too high voltage.

January 3, 1911.

POU

Electrical Department

Electrical Barring Machine

The accompanying engraving shows a
simple and compact motor-driven appli-
ance devised by the American Ship

Electric Barring Mao

Jlsss Company. Providence. R. I. to
do away »ith the difficulty attending the
turning over of a large engine at the
arorks of the Stanley Company, Bridgc-
vatcr. Mass. The illustration shows the

conducted to href
interest and service to
the men in cha/V

of the electrical
equipment

■ ng machine | o the flywheel

of a 32- a- nch engine,

nominally rated at 2000 horv and

running a* . olutions per minute.

The machine consists merely of an
electric motor worm-geared to the "bar-
ring which carries on its outboard
end a spur pinion meshing with an in-
ternal gear bolted to the inner rim of the
2t»- f'x.t T-ton flywheel. U'hcn the ma-
chine is not in tht pinion is drawn
out of mchs with the gear by means of
a hand lever which slides the complete
machine along I The
motor is an ll-horscp' »us<
machine, which runs at 700 revolutions

minute on a 220 current

It turns the fl > rough one

>n in about a minute. It is espe-
cial.

ing con-
troller having ward and five re-
alarm bell is so com
the outfit that it rings during the c

that the pinion
the gear on t of the flywheel,

thereby reminding the op > throw

the pinion and gear out of mesh before
starting the engine.

'I he 1 lc< trit a) I q lipmenl
a I D paitmenl

By No* ade

The Gimbel building, located at the
intersection of Broad* «\ anJ
nue between T

third the largest

one in the cour oted to

Ho3

-^ _UJ J_JJ JJJJdJJJ-hH LLL

lllllll!!

1 1 — ' c

irpo»e« The electric*
package convsyers. natllaHi teas.

Bl an av

Tht

•ppsratu* •

of elcctn.

Je plant of the Near Ysft
FdtMHi Cocnpsny.
Owing lo the sits sad nature of the

Isatsll • recular — bsmiaa la the twild
Ing to rvcelre carrrnt direct I

POWER

January 3, 191 1.

tions to the Gimbel building, carrying
three-phase currents at 6600 volts and 25
cycles frequency. The equipment of the
substation consists of six 1000-kilowatt
Westinghouse six-phase rotary converters
of the synchronous-regulator type, and

two motor-driven blowers, one of which
is held in reserve. The heated air leaving
the transformer dampers is removed from
the room by a motor-driven exhaust fan
and discharged outside the building.
The high-tension switches are inclosed

separate busbars for the rotary converters
and the feeders. This board is connected
to the house board controlling the build-
ing load and is also provided with a con-
nection to the low-tension direct-current
street mains of the Edison system.

Selector Switches

>9? poo 9 99

Emergency
Bus Bars

Remote Control Switches

""h=

Feeder
Bus Bars

66 6
9 9?

Motor Operated
Remore Control
Oil Switch

Motor
Operated

Remote

Control W
Switches I —

To Rotary
Converter No, 2

6600 Volt

3- Phase

,?5_ Cycle Feeder

u_Q

+
+
+

'"'Auxiliary

Field Winding

Rotary

Converter'-

Fig. 2. Diagram of High-tension Alternating-current Wiring

one 1000-kilowatt General Electric six-
phase rotary converter, controlled by an
induction regulator. All of the converters
deliver direct current at 250 volts. The
high-tension alternating current is step-
ped down by twenty-one 400-kilowatt air-
blast transformers, three to each con-
verter, connected in delta at the pri-
mary terminals, and double delta at the
secondary terminals to obtain six phases.
In rotary converters of large capacity
higher efficiency and more economical
distribution of copper are obtained with

in masonry and are all of the remote
control type, operated from the control
switch board, as indicated in Fig. 1.
The feeder and rotary converter switches

Direct-
Current
Side of
Rotary
Converter

Fig. 4. Connections of Motor Balancer

Fig. 2 shows the elementary connec-
tions of the high-tension alternating-cur-
rent wiring. The alternating-current
switchboard is provided with two sets
of busbars; the feeder busbars are divid-
ed into four sections but the emergency
busbars extend the whole length of the
board. Each feeder normally supplies two
rotary converters. The seventh converter
may be used in place of any of the other
six, or may be used to assist other Edison
substations by means of a tie-in feeder.

Each main feeder is connected to the
alternating-current switchboard by a re-
mote-control motor-operated high-tension
oil switch, and in turn may be connected
to the emergency or the feeder busbars
by means of remote-control selector

Rheostat

- Bus Bars + -
Ist Auxiliary -
2ndAu*i\iary ■

J • $■- i CX'

Direct- Current leads

Switches

from Rotary Converter

Fig. 3. Schematic Diagram of Direct-
current Busbar Connections

Direct Current Supply

Rotary

Converter .- p

Armature' ! I

Alternating

Current
— ' Leads

Fig. 5. Diagram of Synchronous Regulator Type of Rotary Converter

the six-phase winding than with the three-
phase winding.

The transformers are set in a single
row across the room, over a large conduit
or air duct. The air blast is furnished by

are motor operated and the selector
switches are operated by solenoids.

The direct-current terminals of the ro-
tary converters are connected to a di-
rect-current switchboard provided with

switches. Each converter is connected
by means of a motor-operated remote-
control switch and may be supplied with
current from the emergency or the feeder
busbars by closing the proper selector

January 3. 1911.

POU

tch. This arrangement of connections
is very flexible and makes it possible
that in case of emergency one rotary
convener can be substituted for another
almost instantly. All of the convert
are from the urrent

in a manner similar to the starting of a
direct-current motor and when the
chronizing lamps indicate synchronism
the high-tension convener s»itch and the
•.lector switch are cl<>
schematic diagram of the main din
current switchboard is shown r It

is provided with a main p ind two

auxiliar and one main

and tuo auxiliary negi
• ill be seen from the diagram, which
shows the direct-current >m one

-all voltage. an elementary

diagram of the arrangement. T:
mutator of only one convene
but the others are all connected in par-
allel with the one and do not af-

the operation of the balancing
The capable of taking care of

Its of unbalance
One of the most it
of this substation is the s\nchror..

;!ator type of rotary convener. \»hich
differs considerably from tl: nary

of cor. nchron'

ulator type of machine -. in ad-

dition to the usual component pans, with
an alternating-current or built in-

ral with it and having the same num-
nain field magnet

»f the t!

the

in the

n the main armature winding

trfc

at the

the thr» r arm a'

dclurr the

of all

of the alternator or auxiliary arma

>scs that of
armature and the rest. nat-

ing
spo-

*£c and

changir., 40je

»hich

nple

The- motor .

i the The

polarity of the at
cha

rammat

■oni the
boa

l-.lri tru .tl .V . identJ I
I

IDS. K

i the i
of hard kr

lesson than that ■

:altics and

nch
■ted re' c«c

matt.

>n no less than th.
human

% and

■
vet of a number o<

in moat caar

.1 lots, v

In the

I
motor connected t.. the main* hen

I fof the r ,

cirent f>.f< .hut 1„n initrN • ■•

n the

it the

mkm on a
c occumr

POWER

January 3, 1911.

the commutator and oil, dirt and sweep-
ings, which had been allowed to collect,
became ignited. In a third instance, a
defective rheostat was in service in a
basement, and when the operator of the
nlant started the motor-driven machin-
ery serious overloading of the motor oc-
curred; the protective equipment did not
operate quickly enough to prevent a burn-
out, and the machine was badly injured.
While the fire in none of these cases
spread to cause any serious damage in
the vicinity of the electrical equipment,
it was due only to the prompt discovery
of the situation through the smell of
burning insulation and rapid accumula-
tion of smoke that the fire loss was
small.

Careless handling of wires during the
installating of electrical apparatus is re-
sponsible for much trouble. A slight fire
in a basement hallway was caused by
linemen working outside on overhead
wires, who permitted the circuits to sag
sufficiently to make contact with a trol-
ley wire and street lamp post at the
same time, permitting current to pass
from the wire to the post and thence by
means, of a gas main to the adjacent
building, where a water pipe was in con-
tact with a gas pipe running to a gas
bracket on a side wall. Holes were
melted in the gas pipe, the gas became
ignited, and a small fire occurred. This
occurrence illustrates the ease with
which the improper handling of electric
work may lead to troubles at some dis-
tance from the immediate locality where
the negligence happens. In the same
class of accidents are those where der-
rick guy wires and chains are uninten-
tionally brought in contact with either the
feed or trolley wires of an ordinary di-
rect-current railway service, one side of
which is grounded. The failure to screw
the plugs of fuse cutouts tightly home
is another efficient cause of trouble. The
poor contact causes heating, which be-
comes intense through arcing or lowered
conductivity, and if the fuse does not
blow enough energy may be released in
a small area to produce a disastrous
blaze. One fire last year was caused
by a porter leaving a coat and pair of
overalls hanging over a cutout of the
cartridge type. As a result of loose con-
nections at the fuse clips, probably
caused when the clothing was hung up,
arcing and heating of the contact re-
sulted, and the garments were set afire.

A small fire in a garage started on a
table where several 6-volt ignition bat-
teries were being charged. The batteries
were left alone during the night and
some had boiled over. Current leakage
occurred between two of the jars, the
liquid on the surface of the table having
acted as a conductor. Here again the
presence of heavy smoke warned the oc-
cupants of the building that something
was amiss.

Two other representative fires were

due to unrelated causes. One occurred
through the burning out of the armature
of a % -horsepower motor, which was
due to the bearings becoming dry through
inattention; the second was an out-of-
door flare-up produced by the end of a
wet rope coming in contact with one side
of a series arc-lighting circuit. The
rope had been used by the lineman of a
signaling company to temporarily fasten
a new cable in position, and the current
was grounded on a rainy night.

Personal Injuries

In spite of the frequency with which
workmen in power plants and on the
structures of elevated railways are warned
against making short circuits, severe
personal acidents of this kind occur re-
peatedly each year, and almost always
through carelessness in the use of tools.
Where one side of the circuit is grounded
the trouble generally reaches a more
acute stage in point of arcing than where
the circuit is metallic throughout. Among
the accidents of this kind which occurred
last year in the community in mind was
one where two men, both regular em-
ployees of the company, received severe
burns about the face, and arms while at
work in a power plant of the 600-volt
railway type. Their injuries were due
to a short-circuit through a wrench which
they were using in the removal of an
iron pipe coming in contact with the live
metal of a fuse board at the time when
one end touched the pipe.

In another case a lineman was solder-
ing a very heavy cable used for railway
service, when the metal ladle which he
was using came in simultaneous contact
with the joint of the live conductor upon
which he was working and a grounded
pipe carrying compressed air.

In a third case the workman acci-
dentally brought a wrench in contact with
a live third rail while engaged in loosen-
ing nuts on one of the running rails of
the track. Heavy burns about the face,
hands and arms resulted. Two other ac-
cidents arose from the careless use of
tools in the vicinity of a third rail and
feeder installation. The first was caused
by a carpenter's saw engaged in cutting
off the end of a tie coming in contact
with the third rail and grounded ele-
vated structure; the second by a hammer
which was being used in a cable box
coming into simultaneous contact with a
bare live connection and a bolt which
was in contact with the structure.

Bad facial burns were received by two
wiremen as a result of a short-circuit
due to their own carelessness. They
were to remove an unused and dead wire
from a conduit, it being necessary to
cut the wire before its withdrawal;
by mistake they attempted to cut the
wrong wire, which was alive and a
short-circuit was caused by the cutters
making simultaneous contact with the
live wire and the pipe. A similar acci-

dent occurred in a power station where
a workman was inserting a copper filler
between the plates of a busbar structure,
simultaneous contact being made be-
tween the busbar and the grounded
framework supporting it.

Low potential systems are capable of
causing personal accidents no less than
high voltage installations. Severe burns
occurred on the hands of an experienced
installer as a result of a short-circuit
caused by a monkey wrench on the
shunt connections of a low potential
motor-generator set. The use of a jack-
knife in making temporary connections
at a junction box also led to a short-cir-
cuit, which caused painful burns. Care
is equally necessary to avoid trouble in
the installation of insulating materials in
the neighborhood of busbars. In one re-
cent instance severe burns resulted from
a heavy short-circuit which occurred
when a workman was attempting to put
a bolt through a piece of alberene stone
and angle iron for the purpose of fast-
ening the stone to the angle iron. The
bolt end came in contact with a live
storage-battery busbar, and the current
grounded through the bolt and angle-iron
hanger.

LETTERS

Identifying Alternating and
Direct Current

Referring to H. Priestley's inquiry in
the December 6 number for a method of
finding out whether the current in a lamp
socket is alternating or direct, I would
suggest that this can be ascertained by
holding one pole of a permanent magnet
against one side of the globe of an in-
candescent lamp while the lamp is lighted.
If the lamp is supplied with direct cur-
rent the magnet will attract the filament
to one side. If it is alternating current
the lamp filament will vibrate, due to
the alternations.

R. L. Mossman.

Tampa, Fla.

[Exactly the same suggestion has been
received from E. F. Potter, Urbana, 111.,
and Roy Stolp, of Chicago. — Editor.]

I believe that the liquid method is as
simple and reliable as any. Take a glass
of water and put a pinch of salt in it.
Insert the two ends of the wires in the
glass, which should be in series with
the lamp on the circuit to be tested. With
direct current the negative wire will give
gas off freely in the form of bubbles,
while with alternating current both wires
will give off gas to some extent, but in
equal amounts.

Louis J. Gorilla.

Ironwood, Mich.

January 3, 1911.

PO\X

New Engine Required Lining

A new 12x 16-inch engine was installed
in a sawmill and, naturally, the manage-
ment expected things would run smooth-
ly. But for some time that engine did
some queer stunts. It ran under, and the
under guide ran hot. The engine seemed
to labor hard and did not develop its
rated power.

I was called upon to see what could
be done and I found that not only the
bottom guide of the engine ran hot but
that the engine heated in other places also,
although there seemed to be enough loose
play. The crank box could be shaken
at some parts of the stroke, but at other
pans would be tight.

I put a line through the cylinder and
got a surprise. The engine had a self-
contained base, the outboard bearing and
frame in one piece, and I could hardly
think that the shaft would be out of line
on this new engine, but in getting my
line true with the cylinder base, I was
surprised to find that the line was up
above the shaft center, and that the cyl-
inder was out of line with the guides.
Then, ignoring the cylinder. I tried to
line up the shaft with the guides, and
found that they were larger at the cyl-
inder end than at the crank end. and were
also smaller at the center than at cither
end.

There was no boring bar within miles
of the plant, but. on looking around. I
ran across a shaft that was of the same
diameter as the stuffing box of the piston
rod.

A box was found to fit this shaft and
is clamped to the crank disk. The
shaft was then run through the stuffing
box and the box on the J

I next made some clamps of hen
flat iron to hnld the tool, and then
threaded a bolt long enough to feed the
bar through the \

Iron was placed across the cylinder end
and was ae< > of the stud holts.

This end bar had a threaded hole in the
Center for the feed *cr

A handle was clamped on the crank
end of the boring bar and two men *
•el at work turning tb
collar on the bar to feed agaln»t. I bored
out the mj made a r iod

|ob ig the tool* I had to

work with.

•he cylinder was removed from
the frame h what n

It hang down out of line, a- Mat

the frat-r '^ad been faced off out

Practical

information from r

m.tn on the job A let

good eDOUdh to print

here will he paid forr

Ideas, not mere worth

wanted

I did not care to try to face it up with
the boring bar I had improvised, nor did
I like the idea of putting any kind of soft
packing in such a place. Then I thought
I would try a plastic cement, and some
was put in the opening left between the
frame and the cylinder, and after lining
it up I had a first-class job.

Ft was necessary to rebabbitt the main
bearing to get the main shaft in line, but
after this was done the engine ran like
a new machine should.

James W. Little.

Fruitland. Wash.

Bit Brat Wrench

The following method of using a com-
mon bitbrace, tightened firmly on the
valve stem of an ammonia drum, as
shown in the illustration, may be of some

Opcninc -

value. I have i of

ncss and sure
control in opening the
nothing to equal th<

PhOFPII
III.

I > hi'

r had an

•ion a while ag mlncnt po»

plant engi- ' to a rather

unique hMatflttltl »blch ha« r<vr-' .
been completed for a tare

c plant

of ' unit* of 500

kit' conder- s

'our cooling to- iividual

motor-: ual cor

t of au % of boiler-feed pumps,

ulating and service pump* and a pun p
for the heating v. stem.

Originally it was
condensed steam from the main units for
heating the mill. betas] no other

use for which it could be
heating the boiler- feed water, w
plan was presented to the owner he
claimed that the "time factor" as rer
heating had not been considered
that the time he wanted the heating done
was between 2 and 9 or 10 am., the
greater pan of which mid

not be runni-

As a r *as decided not to • •<-

the exhaust steam for g. Ins-

let condensers were cd for the

main units, the be 1 suction being

taken from the return lin-.
towers. TI red-

water heater and i cd from about

90 degrees to 200 or 2 the

cxh.i

The turbines operate at about 28 inches
.uum.

The mill heating system Ibj hot-

water. ' ater

the
mats which
the r by

pas*
thro

ped before going to the
steam he a

eat
tpectior

on side
>f proJ
in a ;
is n
from the coal. T> >n-

trd by the

eodeaeera and funhennere,

Icm in

gree*. whe

-ould reach the
W9^tW99 wiin foe
Irea th

throwing | a»a>

POWER

January 3, 191 1.

tion has only been operating a compara-
tively short time, accurate figures are not
yet available. The point brought out here
may, however, be food for thought for
both designing and operating engineers.

H. M. Wilcox.
Boston, Mass.

A Handy Oil Pump

When I took charge of a shift in a
certain plant, I noticed that a compressor
was fitted with a neat looking homemade
waste-oil pump.

This compressor ran day and night

Valve -

~-Valve

Details of Oil Pump

and, as it was of the vertical type, the
waste oil drained into a receptacle in
the base of the machine. Unfortunately
the builders had neglected to provide
means to remove the waste oil. There-
fore, a hole was drilled through the side
of the compressor wall and a pipe led
through to the oil trays inside the base.
The pump was then permanently attached
to the machine, and the discharge pipe
led to the oil filter. The cylinder of the
pump was made of polished brass pipe
and the other 1-inch fittings were given
a coat of black japan.

The tops of the nipples A and D (see
illustration), were filed flat and made
excellent seats for the valves. Ordinary
hard-rubber bibs were used as valves.
A long nail extended through each valve
and nipple and was riveted to a spider
at C. This allowed the valve the proper
• amount of lift.

William Watt.
Lambton Mills, Canada.

Relieving an Aqua Ammonia
Pump

Aqua-ammonia pumps are heir to the
common ailment of becoming gas-bound,
and when this happens, the engineer has
no positive means of relieving the gas.
Putting cold water on the pump and
forcing the absorber pressure up does
no good, as the pump will repeatedly be-
come gas-bound when the pressure re-
turns to normal. Sometimes it will take
hours to get everything regulated so that
the pump will work steadily, and during
this time the temperature is rising.

The accompanying sketch shows a
scheme that I applied to a pump with
success. I drilled and tapped each end
of the pump at the counterbore for a
]/, -inch connection and screwed in the
valves A B. From these I ran two lines
to the tee C and a line from C to the
absorber.

When the pump plunger moves to the
end of the cylinder, as shown, it com-
presses the gas and by opening the valve
A a large portion of the gas will be
driven into the absorber. When the
plunger moves to the other end of the
cylinder there is so little gas on the side
of the plunger just relieved that the
pressure will fall rapidly until it is be-
low the pressure in the absorber. Then
the liquor will be forced in from the ab-
sorber and the pump is immediately re-

is removed from the pump. Packing can
then be carried on without being obliged
to run from the ammonia fumes, but it
will be necessary to close the valves E
and F before starting to pack.

J. J. Nash.
New Haven, Cortn.

Why Did the Feed Pipes
Clog?

In a power plant in Nevada where I
was employed for eighteen months prior
to dismantling the plant about a year
ago, we had seven water-tube boilers of
various sizes.

The water was very good and the con-
densed steam from the jet condenser
passed over a cooling tower and back to
the boilers.

A 4-inch header extended across the
boilers and a 2-inch pipe ran from the
header to each boiler; there were five
turns in the 2-inch pipe and the entire
piping was of wrought iron with some
cast-iron fitting.

There was no scale in the 4-inch header
to speak of and very little in the boilers;
surface well water was used at a tem-
perature of from 160 to 190 degrees Fah-
renheit.

These boilers were kept practically
free from scale; in a few months a 2-
inch feed pipe would fill up with scale

Discharge
Valve -..

*»

Blank

V. JP Flange

0*eH

Absorber

Relief Pipes and Connections

lieved without interfering with the equi-
librium of operation and without a loss
of temperature.

The bypass from the discharge to the
suction is very convenient when packing
the pump. By closing the valve D and
opening the valve E, after drawing a vac-
uum on the absorber, all of the ammonia

so that a T/>-inch rod could not go through
the pipe.

Will some reader explain why the feed
pipes would clog up and yet no scale
form in the boiler? A compound was
used in the feed water.

William E. Piper.

Farmington. Utah.

January 3. 191 1.

PO\X

t ( ««l(i Storage Rooms

In laying out cold-storage rooms the
engineer has several methods of cooling
from which to select.

The best method for any* particular
case depends entirely on the kind of
work. If it is r to eliminate

moisture from the room, the plant should
be laid out with a small room connecting

the m< tmmonia is

doing no work until it : >ed through

the therefore, the heat

is a -oom to be

cooled; in the tern the

absorbed in the cooler .ooling the

brine, v then pumped through the

coils in the cold room.

Comparing these methods, the

—

•

7=>

Main Room

InWt,

±_b

Ark

with the main room. This room should
be practically filled with brine or am-
monia c< *h the e -nail
space at each end which should be
utilized for the cold-air flue. The E
should reach the cr the
room, and extend from the floor to the
•ik thus making it nocooi the
fan to Jrau the air from the main room
iRh thi
A fan should be placed at one enj
the room, and from this the cold-air flue
sho nould b

nail

en feet.

■: return flue should start at the

other side I mall room and ru;

the ain room. The

n the il

enable one to fa
nam room free from moisture, but it
rrq.i. .ting cap.i

manner ;ing

room It is a can

the frost from the coils allv. as

in i . »o thick as |

I .....

The. qu

snou ihc

a ho*

iter

>f the room »■
Ing the
■mi:

If ■ little iamage

an bl-
and ro<

In the
Imo latter met

- to the
lent for four reasor

n of the ammonia
-t take place cither in the cook
in the room direct If thi
takes place in the room, il . the

rerature of the room down; if in the
•ig the tempcratur
the "he bnr

to a 1 perarun

:ll do ai • on the room,

ult to sec that the rru>m can be
much qu.
pansion. thus making thi

i also

Third. 1' c loses considers

in I
the

K It

tain ihc
the am

>od
•

in be s

ooan

A- m-

larg<

orn the

In some pla- the

both brine and ammonia

ration the room is brought

10 a
pan*

room held at this tempera-
a cons

room.

I-.ti. • the Engine R

nc root-

the

into

cess or failure The man »ho can

for:- urc to succcc

though he be a plod.: i man

The man whose hav

ie cons-
ll and mental er-
st may

man rises ah
a man makes the mistake of not ■
an eye on tl lighcr

and
• hen the I

The f and the harness are

read\. the men ai iled

alarm If il

uld be
i man •ill be r

fell<

nai i to

e country
rood pot at or* »ork to.

the to;

i not what oof mi»ht do. hov<

tiet

that n
■pecaaa or failu- for

rott.

POWER

January 3, 1911.

will have bettered his condition, even
though his aims are not fully realized.

Many complaints are heard with refer-
ence to certain men having a "pull," as
though they needed only to have a
"friend" or in some way to "stand in"
with the "boss." This is a matter that
usually adjusts itself; for, though a
"pull" may get a job, it will not help to
"make good."

A wise man is continually learning. He
looks after his employer's interests with
the same painstaking care that he would
expect should he be employing men in
a business of his own. Some may say,
"The boss does not appreciate my ef-
forts and I am not going to exert myself
to look after his interest." If the "boss"
does not appreciate your efforts, someone
else will. The man who fools the "boss"
fools himself more. It is better for a
man to outgrow his job than to let the
job do all the growing.

There are certain relations that should
exist between employer and employee.
Not only should the employee come to
his work with the right spirit, but the
employer should greet his employee as a
man and a coworker, show him that his
efforts are appreciated and give him
enough insight into the business so that
he can see his own relation to the busi-
ness and to his fellow employees. In
doing this a man's efficiency will be great-
ly increased because he realizes the im-
portance of his own particular part in
the business and is filled with a desire to
make the best possible showing. The
employer who does this and who gives
his employees fair treatment in all mat-
ters is building up a business that will
be both pleasant and profitable for all
concerned.

What is true in a general way in the
industrial world is also true in the power
plant and the engine room. This same
spirit, if maintained, will make the tasks
easier to perform.

The man who does not develop man-
hood along with his work is missing the
best part of life. The practice of keep-
ing the engine room neat, clean and
orderly; the practice of economy in the
use of materials and supplies; the read-
ing of magazines and books pertaining
to the engineering profession, the post-
ing of suitable mottoes in conspicuous
places, all help to make him a better
man.

Some time in life every man bumps
into his "stone wall." The real man
lands on the other side — Think it over.
Be not overcome by difficulties, but over-
come difficulties with an effort born of
determination to win.

I have seen men go home from their
work in the power plant wearing dirty,
greasy overclothes and with hands and
face unwashed. I have gone into the
plant where these same men worked and
found the appearance of things there un-
tidy also. Unfortunately — for these men

and for the profession — engineering
magazines, with their helpful suggestions,
valuable information and inspiring in-
fluence, do not often find their way into
such engine rooms. If they did, condi-
tions would soon be changed. A neat
appearance will go far toward making
a man think better of himself and of his
work.

C. D. Eldredge.
Fairport Harbor, O.

Piston Rod Clamp

The piston rod of some types of pump
is often ruined by using a pipe wrench
to hold the rod when removing the jam
nuts in the water cylinder when about
to pack the plunger. After the piston
rod becomes badly marked it is next to
impossible to keep the stuffing boxes
tight.

A device that will save the piston rod
a great deal is shown in the illustration.

The piece A is made of soft steel, 16
inches long, 1 inch wide and Vi inch
thick. B is a piece of soft steel of y2

Set Screw

Power

Piston-rod- Clamp

inch diameter and about 2 feet 4 inches
long, bent so as to fit around the body
piece D of the pump. C is the piston rod.
The ends of B hook over the ends of A,
which is slotted. To prevent the piston
rod from turning, it is only necessary to
tighten the set screw.

Alfred Woolcock.

Evelette, Minn.

Manholes in Boilers

Although boilers have been manufac-
tured and used for years, there are many
still made and installed where little atten-
tion is given to the very important fea-
ture of accessibility, and this applies both
to the setting and the boiler proper.

It is safe to say that a number of
disastrous boiler explosions can be partly
or wholly traceable to the fact that the
design of the boiler and setting pre-
vented proper cleaning and inspection.

But a few years ago it was the custom
of some manufacturers to put handholes
in the bottom of the front and rear heads
of horizontal return-tubular boilers, and
these have undoubtedly been the indirect
cause of many a bag, blister, fracture
and burned blowoff pipe.

The handhole in the back head is
usually a constant source of trouble. Of
late years the majority of boilermakers
are putting a manhole in the bottom of

the front head and no hole at all in the
bottom of the rear head. This is an im-
provement over the handholes, as it per-
mits of proper cleaning and inspecting.
Usually the manhole in the bottom of the
front head is 10x14 inches and, while
it is possible for a good-sized man to get
through a hole of this size, it would be
much easier if it were 11x15 inches, and
in most boilers the larger size could be
put in with no additional cost and with-
out weakening the boiler head. Boilers
made by a certain firm have crow-feet
braces, so arranged that it is necessary
for a person to make a quarter turn of
the body, after getting through the man-
hole, so that he can drop down between
the braces to the top of the tubes.

In nearly all uptodate water-tube boil-
ers, the openings are ample, but in one
type the rear drum is so obstructed by
a large mud pan that it is almost impos-
sible to get into it, or to do any clean-
ing.

The openings in the settings of water-
tube and horizontal tubular boilers are of
all shapes and sizes, but in most of
the former type they are ample for the
purpose. One manufacturer, however,
furnishes castings with 14-inch round
holes, which are about the worst thing
that could be installed. The brick is laid
in the wall to conform with the casting
and the result is an opening that is very
difficult to get through, or to hoe out
ashes and dirt. Square holes about 14x18
inches would insure better care and in-
spection of this type of boiler.

Every prospective buyer of a boiler
should insist that the manholes be made
11x15 inches, that the through and crow-
foot braces be arranged to permit easy
access, that the openings to the combus-
tion chamber be at least 15 inches wide
by 24 inches high, or larger, and so
placed that ashes can be readily removed.
Thomas J. Hanna. .

Cincinnati, O.

Making a Low Pressure Trap

The engineers in a certain plant were
kept busy running around blowing the
bypass on the high-pressure traps in
order to keep the pipes drained.

This trouble was due to the traps
being worked at too high a pressure,
causing the pot in each to hang up to its
seat. Some of these traps were remedied
by putting in pressure-reducing valves
where the high pressure was not needed.
The remaining traps were made suitable
for high pressure by plugging the seats
and drilling a hole through the plug one-
half the diameter of the original open-
ing, thus reducing the area of the seat
against which the valve was held by the
steam pressure. An automatic air valve
was put on the cover of the traps and
the engineers then forgot all about them.

W. T. Meinzer.

Brooklyn, N. Y.

January 3, 1911.

PO\l E K

Driving K

th reference :o Mr. Taylor's letter on
the above subject, which appeared in the
issue of November 22, 1 believe that a
few friendly criticisms will be beneficial.

Where is the necessity of marking or
measuring the key at all, preparatory to
driving it? The object to be attained is
to take up whatever lost motion there
happens to be between the pin and the
brasses regardless of how far the key
t be driven. He says that in driving
■ key the first time, in order to deter-
mine the proper degree of tightness, the
connections should be moved sidewise or,
if this is impossible, to drive the key solid
and then back out the required amount.
1 correct and the only safe method

of performing that operation at any time;
therefore, marking the key is of no bene-
fit whatever unless when backing out
• fter being driven solid. I fail to under-
stand how anyone can determine accu-
rately, as he says, just how far a key
should be driven each time, as that is
equivalent to knowing the exact amount
of wear that has taken place, which is
out of the question.

Again, he says that the wear is contin-
ually making the connecting rod shorter
and putting in liners carries it back.
From what he states about inserting lin-
M bott of the pin he would

have us be: the insertion of 1:

on the key side »c could I the

length of the roj A liner tbl
with the key remaining the sarin
have the same effect as driving the ■
thus making matters vol If the key

Is on t! of the crank pin nc^

the cylinder the wear and consequent
► rig up will h the clearance in

the head end of the cylinder. The same

roduced with referent
the cmsshcaJ pin if it be keyed on the
aide nearest the connecting rod.

In order to equalize the clearance, liners

•id the brasses on

the i opposite the I

sll msy be put behind either one of them.

assuming the piston rod to be

d in the crosshead If it be sere

In. the liners are unnecessary unless the

clear

When the cr.t
connecting rod mo\
remain* stationary and in driving
cross h c > tbl connecting rod remains

Stationary anJ the pin moves.

I connr J may be assumed to

be a long box If %c flr»t kr. t-
pin brasses to take up the lost motion.

Comment,

aaddebotc upon various

article*. letter^ Ofx/ edit-
ori./Is wIjk h h.iw .tp

pea red in previous
issue |

the connecting rod moves toward the head
carrying everything with it except the
crank pin and its inner brass. Then if
the crosshead key is driven the pin will
move still further toward the head end,
forcing the piston along with it.
An engine with the crank-pin key or ad-
•n the i le of the

pin from the connecting rod, and the
-head key next to the rod. has a tend-
to keep the clearance equal as the
wear on one pin and set of brasses will
offset that on the other. A great many-
engines are so built but the wear is
rarely the same on both.

JostPi:
Hamilton. O.

HoiKt Tul I ilurcs

In tru of November 29 there

is an editorial, hcadc er Tub

referring to - made

Char Wake, of the ! am

•>n and Insurance Corn-
pan. ;bc failures in re

s and
•
on page amc is^

It is hardly neccas my

comment o
the thicknesses used toda

'
at the pressure is n<>» BO «" 100

tain any gai

ing

iron

liave hot- and rawn %r

-Jtitf Rage, arc nc.v

■i undc
so that under the ssme cor
•ise of |

be ob-
fair-
In ' fallur
that

rr«ron*iK ' r •• r trouble TV «;vr »
reported m being of
gage, which had beer
• car f an Ir

initial rupture. Besides being nearly
B as strong for the same thick noes.
as well as more du teel wears bet-

ter ar.j

as charcoal iron. Referring to !
of this kind tl states. There

is something wrong * < of

a tube which f

coal iron J for boiler tubes

ch are to b under modern con-

aid it not be only reasons
in order to mainta actor of

safety as was provided for under former
conditions, to increase the thickness pro-
portionate!

Pittsburg. Penn.

W itli c lonsultinj

.Wistii

in the November 29
operating engineers frequent-
ay 'the tng ■ . . - i . best
qualified to pass on confer

he I depends largely on

the man * >r not.

rating engineer should keep bin
so well posted on the best modern r

hand the r
part of it. at

est do '
.: the a-
fror
sa P

tl in 1

ing ' v studying the

use c time

comes to r

c man who thou Id have
V spkodid sol

to say

been sored from
d bare received In-

n of much benefit to myself and

• thout firs!
-i formation to aid to rr*

of great talee; btst the man that

POWER

January 3, 1911.

operate the plant, perhaps 365 days in
the year, should have the matter entirely
in his hands from beginning to end, and
his word should be final.

E. H. Roberts.

Norwalk, Conn.

What Causes the Engine to
Run?

Referring to Mr. Teer's letter in the
November 1 issue under the above cap-
tion, the following may answer his ques-
tion:

Indirect, balance slide-valve engines
take steam at the center of the valve
instead of at the ends as in the direct,
balance slide-valve types. When the
bleeder valve on Mr. Teer's engine is
opened, the steam passes through the
bleeder pipe and enters the cylinder at
both ends through the cylinder cocks.
Ordinarily, the same pressure acts at
both ends of the cylinder. But, if the
engine is in the starting position, the
steam that enters the head end through
the cylinder cock cannot escape because
the exhaust port is closed. Therefore,
there is enough greater pressure in the
head end to start the engine to turning
over while the steam that enters the
crank end through the cylinder cock es-
capes through the exhaust port until the
engine has turned far enough to close
this port for compression. Then, the
momentum of the flywheel will carry the
piston past the crank-end center when
the exhaust port on the head end opens
and lets the pressure drop. The crank-
end exhaust port now being closed the
steam cannot escape; therefore, there
is enough pressure in this end to keep
the engine turning over, and the momen-
tum of the flywheel carries the engine
over the center each time. Thus, the
engine will continue to run as long as it
gets steam in this manner.

Robert H. Dunlap.

Syracuse, N. Y.

In the issue of November 1, E. R.
Teer has a letter under the above title.

Referring to Mr. Teer's sketch it will
be seen that with valve A open the steam
is admitted to both ends of the cylin-
der through the drain cocks at either end
of the cylinder as well as to the exhaust
pipe. The reason that the engine will
run is as follows:

The steam enters at both sides of the
piston, but the pressure of the steam is
not the same on both sides, as will be
seen by a study of the accompanying
figure.

The steam which passes up into the
cylinder at the head end cannot get out
but simply fills the steam chest, while at
the crank end the steam passes up into
the cylinder as before, but as the valve
has moved almost to the end of its stroke

to the right, thus opening the port to
the exhaust cavity, the steam escapes
through the exhaust pipe.

It is well known that there can be no
flow unless there is a drop in pressure.
Thus, there is a drop in pressure as the
steam escapes through the exhaust port
and through to the exhaust cavity at the
crank end, while at the head end there is
no flow and consequently no decrease in
pressure. In this way a greater pressure
is brought to bear on the head end, and
if it is sufficient it will run the engine.

Section through Cylinder and Valve
Chest

If, however, there is too much friction,
there will not be sufficient pressure to
run the engine.

E. S. LlBBY.

Chicago, 111.

Power Plant Design and the
Operating Engineer

In the November 29 issue I read Mr.
Weaver's contribution under the above
heading and, while the consulting engi-
neer is appreciated if he is a good one,
we must take Mr. Weaver's attack on the
operating engineer as rather unwarranted.
He said, in part, that every day one sees
mistakes in the layout of power plants,
owing to the designer being thick headed.
The natural question is, who sees these
mistakes? The answer is the operating
engineer. Why? Because if he is an
engineer of practical experience and tech-
nical knowledge, as every operating engi-
neer should be, he has operated other
plants and knows how he would have de-
signed this particular plant to obviate the
mistakes. Mr. Weaver further says that
he believes that in the majority of cases
blunders in power-plant design are due
more to self inflation than to any other
cause. I am glad that I can concur with
him in this statement. As a rule this self-
inflation is found in the inexperienced
rather than in the mature and experi-
enced engineers.

Mr. Weaver tells us that the consulting
engineer laughs up his sleeve over mis-
takes made by the operating engineer due
solely to ignorance of the laws of philo-
sophy, simple laws which everyone
should know. Perhaps Mr. Weaver has
in mind starters-and-stoppers or oilers.

The operating engineer can buy and read
any engineering work published, provid-
ing he has the price. The engineering
magazines keep him up to date. He may
not be as good a draftsman or as convers-
ant with the higher mathematics as the
graduate of the school, of technology, but
he certainly has every means and method
of obtaining engineering data that any-
one has. And it is owing to this knowl-
edge combined with practical experience
that makes the operating engineer able to
bring some semblance of order out of the
chaos left him by some designing engi-
neers.

Again, how can the engineer in charge
secure uninterrupted and satisfactory
service while watching the hundred and
one things around a power plant, continu-
ally looking for places where improve-
ments can be made and at the same time
be a designing engineer? To begin with,
if the engineer in charge could have the
designing of his plant, he would not have
a hundred and one places about his plant
where improvements are needed and a
smaller per cent, of his time would be
needed to secure uninterrupted and satis-
factory service. If he has had charge of
a plant for some time and does not know
where the improvements are needed he is
a very ignorant or lazy man and should
be replaced at once by an engineer. Will
Mr. Weaver tell us how a man can prop-
erly design a steam plant who has not had
a wide operating experience? Would he
take swimming lessons of a man who had
never been in the water above his knees?
Would he employ a doctor of medicine
who was just graduated and had no
hospital or other experience? I think
not. And no man should call himself a
consulting engineer, no matter what his
educational advantages may be, until he
has had at least ten years experience
operating steam plants. This is the kind
of consulting engineer that is needed;
men who are not blinded by preconceived
ideas. Talk about the mistakes of the
operating engineer, an issue of Power
could be filled several times with details
cf the mistakes made by designing engi-
neers. The operating engineer does not
laugh up his sleeve or in any other
way; he has to get busy and reconstruct
and correct as far as possible their mis-
takes.

Mr. Weaver, like many other writers,
uses the term operating engineer or chief
operating engineer. In Webster's diction-
ary we find that an operative is a la-
boring man, a laborer, artisan or work-
man in a manufactory. The engineering
papers and the men in charge of steam
plants have been trying to make steam
engineering a profession. No wonder
Mr. Weaver thinks that we are on too low
a social plane to associate with the self-
styled consulting engineer of brains and
achievements. In the Massachussetts en-
gineer's and fireman's License laws, sec-
tion 80, we find that the words, "have

January 3, 191 1.

charge" or "in charge" sha nate

the person under whose supervision a
steam plant is operated. The person oper-
ating shall be understood to mean any
and all persons who are actually en-
gaged in general: n in a
boiler. Perhaps Mr. NX'ca\t-r u as think-
ing of the fireman when he wrote the
tide ur -ion. for no man who
could not layout and install a steam plant
would be a competent man to "have
charge" of it after it was install

I)<'c-v tiu- Crosslicatl Stop?

We do not know that the editor of
Power who answered the abo -tion

on page I7i»t) of the issue of October 4

cannot refrain
trom arguing the question with H
int. whose letter appeared on page
H of thi ember 22

In Fig. I. which is a copy of

point out that at the
mt that the crosshead reaches the
dead point H. the circle of motion of the
crank-pin center is tangent to the circle
described about // as a center. There-
fore, at the instant of dead center the
crank-pin center ng along the

out*.- M inner circle,

g. then, the argument ol'taincJ from
lanical Ca- hat.

icad center could stand
only if the crank pin moved arou
the center hat the

id center docs stand still at one
int. A similar argument shows
c true also for the point //

submit, further, the folio*
ch may be more -

nt the absolute veloc-
>f the crank-pin center at any in-
stant, being J- >int si
for the sal
ing this vein

ir to and parallel
■
resent the . parallr

of the cro»v

i\x n

at any kn«t .< I

equal* 4*0 degree*. At the instant that

* cqtu

Theref. he mo-

tion of the ere

analogous art
for cither point H or :

'n i proof

Icr equally good
that conne. be

the infinitesimal distance traveled in a

time dt The:

that

i s may be traveled along
the path d r perpendicular to the
the connecting rod. and then along

parallel to the rod. The quanti-

and re, then, t!

a t

ponents of the velocity

the angle between the axis of the con-
rod and the line of motion of the

id-pin center. The angle bet*

■

the geometry of the I

equ.i en « be

at the ;

■
ter has no motion parallel to
of the connc

and

.•an hav
lei motion.

not d

f ont ■
I beginning ,,f
no bearing on the
•o«*hf*j or o

dulutn motion of a clock. The clock

of time, and as such ia mcc
to me. :iv ■

The pendulum

these t

Julum mas
is a

nust the
thai the pendulum etc;

•howr rrnaahtad

does stop,
doc - no matter bo -

not
chai oppmg A

mt of stor e point

•he ant
3 become oppo •
an component

If the-
that the crosshead st. ;
to f ruin

does no-

►The I

\I ••

MM" tr«

not tO

reduced by between f
fbouaand gallons

rv.u. <-m(

bt oiber

■

I men o-bo 4 tba coal to

and oth
abundantr .are

time. I got them I ion.

bat tbi rie4

■— umprior educed by

This reduction bi

bad . J to d* tbe nftmj

more tban enough to eat up tbe as

i km tb*

POWER

January 3, 1911.

During eight years the only extra cost
charged to this particular item has been
$30 for repairs to the ash sifter.

James E. Noble.

Toronto, Ont.

Leakage through a Piston
Valve

I was extremely interested in the pub-
lication in a recent number of results of
tests made by George Mitchell, in the
testing laboratory of the University of
Pennsylvania, on the leakage of piston
valves under actual operative conditions.
I have made a great many visual tests
myself on various forms of valves to
determine the presence of leakage, but
not to determine the actual amount. In
these tests the method of showing this
leakage was to set the valve in the cen-
ter of travel, where it covered both ports;
the exhaust valve under the engine in
the exhaust line and cylinder drips were
closed, the indicator plugs at both crank
and head end of the engine were re-
moved, and the throttle valve opened. In
not one of over fifty of these tests for
leakage of piston valves and flat pres-
sure-plate valves was it practicable to
open the throttle full for the reason that
the leakage as shown by the steam es-
caping from the openings caused by the
removal of the indicator plugs was so ex-
cessive that the room was immediately
filled with steam.

Such a test naturally had to be made
while the engine was in a state of rest.

The argument was often made that
these tests were not fair ones, so far as
the engine was concerned, inasmuch as
a film of water between the valve and
the bushing in a piston valve, and be-
tween the valve and the pressure plate
in the pressure-plate valve, effectually
eliminated the major portion of the leak-
age that was shown by these tests when
the engine was not in operation.

The test, therefore, by Mr. Mitchell
conclusively proves that the argument
of water filling these spaces is a fallacy,
as in his test the engine was operated
under normal conditions.

The argument will probably be made
that inasmuch as this valve was • not
equipped with packing rings, the leak-
age was greater than it would have been
on a valve so equipped, but from the
tests I have made I cannot notice any
difference in the amount of steam es-
caping through valves equipped or not
equipped with rings.

We have all heard the argument that
the rings in a piston do not show exces-
sive leakage, therefore why should the
rings in a piston valve show any more
leakage? The answer to this argument
is simple:

If an engineer discovers a flaw or blow
hole in the barrel of his cylinder, he
would condemn the cylinder, for the rea-

son that the piston rings traveling across
this flaw would soon be cut and cause
leakage. The rings in a piston do not
travel across any ports, but merely up
to the counterbore, whereas the rings in
a piston valve must travel across the
ports, and the ports are usually designed
with bridges to prevent the rings from
falling into them. The spaces between
these bridges accomplish the same re-
sult, only to a much greater extent, as
the small flaw in the cylinder would, for
the reason that the bridges do not have as
much bearing surface as the full bore
of the valve seat and consequently wear
faster. This greater wear at this point
causes the rings to move in and out of
the valve when crossing the ports, caus-
ing excessive wear on the rings, both
on their circumference and on the side
fit in the grooves.

I believe a test was made at Cornell
University several years ago on a piston
valve equipped with rings which could
be tightened by hand, and I understand
from one of those present that it was
found that in three and a half hours after
starting, the leakage was so great that
the engine had to be shut down and the
rings reexpanded by hand.

I note a letter published in Power for
November 8, by A. L. Ide & Sons, in
which they give the results of several
interesting tests to determine the increase
in steam consumption with piston valves
made 0.01 inch smaller than what they
term "commercial fit." With 150 pounds
steam pressure they got a consumption
ranging from 26 to 27 pounds with valves
with commercial fit. They then tested
two valves that were made 0.01 inch
under size and found that the steam con-
sumption was increased in one case to
32.7 pounds. Taking an average of the
results obtained with valves of com-
mercial fit at 2dl/2 pounds, it will be seen
from these tests that a valve 0.01 inch
smaller increased the steam consump-
tion 22.3 per cent., which confirms Mr.
Mitchell's findings of 22 per cent.

I think that any engineer will find on
measurement that a piston valve, if it has
been operating at least a year, will be
even more than 0.01 inch smaller than
the bore; in fact, I recently made a test
of a piston-valve engine, the steam con-
sumption of which was 54 pounds per
brake horsepower per hour. I measured
the valve and found it to be over 0.03
inch, or to be exact, 0.033 inch smaller
in diameter than the bore.

Taking the calculations given by A. L.
Ide & Sons, that each 0.01 -inch wear
increased the steam consumption 22.3
per cent., and assuming that the steam
consumption of the engine I tested was
30 pounds per horsepower per hour when
new, '.he leakage through the valve on
this engine would be at least 3.3 times
22.3 per cent., causing an increase in
steam consumption of 73.6 per cent.
Therefore, if this engine with a tight

valve would develop a horsepower-hour
on 30 pounds of steam, 73.6 per cent,
increase would result in a total steam
consumption of 52 pounds, which is a
trifle less than that indicated by the care-
ful test which I made on the piston-
valve engine.

I do not agree with the statement of
A. L. Ide & Sons that a valve 0.002 to
0.003 of an inch under size is plainly a
poor fit. The sliding fit for a hub on a
shaft is from 0.002 to 0.003 inch for
ordinary diameters, when the parts are
cold, and I maintain that any piston valve
must be at least 0.002 to 0.003 of an
inch smaller than the bore to be free
to slide.

From the visual tests I have made, the
leakage on all flat-valve engines equipped
with a pressure plate has been greater
than on the piston valve. I say greater,
for the reason that a greater amount of
steam is always seen escaping through
the openings left by the removal of the
indicator plugs.

I have surprised a great many engi-
neers by making this statement and the
result has been that quite a number of
these tests have been made, all of which
confirmed my claims. Other confirma-
tion may be had from the tests made by
Messrs. Dean & Wood, the results of
which were presented in a paper to the
American Society of Mechanical Engi-
neers at the meeting in Detroit, in 1908,
an abstract of which, I believe, was pub-
lished in Power. These tests also showed
the flat pressure-plate valve to be a very
leaky device.

I happen to know of a very fair test
that was made on a pressure-plate valve
engine in New York City recently, the
results showing a steam consumption as
high as 59 pounds per indicated horse-
power per hour. All of which helps to
prove the point that I am trying to make,
viz., that a balanced pressure-plate valve
shows greater leakage after a certain
period of operation than the piston valve.
This is probably due to the fact that the
pressure-plate valve when absolutely new
leaves the builder's factory with 0.003
to 0.004 of an inch clearance between
seat and pressure plate. This clearance
has been found necessary in order to
provide freedom of action under all con-
ditions, and this clearance becomes
greater with use. Mr. Mitchell's test was
made on a valve that was new, and had
not been running for any considerable
length of time, and I know from experi-
ence that this leakage would be much
greater after the valve had been in op-
eration for several weeks. According to
the Dean & Wood report, valves can,
and are, being made that are self-ex-
panding to compensate for wear, and
thereby eliminate leakage.

I wish Mr. Mitchell would make
another leakage test on this valve after
it had been run for four weeks' time, and
also make a leakage test on a flat pres-

January 3, 1911.

POM

sure-plate valve, when new and also
after it has been in operation for a short
time. These are just the tests that the
engineering fraternity has been wanting
for years, and Mr. Mitchell is to be com-
plimented on his manner of making these
-, which method disposes effectually
of any arguments that have been brought
forth that both types of valves a^
mentioned do not leak steam under op-
erative conditions.

tOE.MAKER.

Buffalo, ft Y.

w tit >n and I F P icking

Engineers have but few subjects to
consider that arc capable of greater
versify of opinion than that of the re-
sults obtained from the various piston-
rod packings now in general use. How-
ever good or however worthless they may
be when cons separately, the re-

sults that arc obtained are so conflicting
that what is considered satisfactory by
one is as honestly condemned by another.
The great variety of conditions under
which packings are used is, and are
will be, understood as unavoidable. How
to meet these different requirements
could be answer i hundred en-

gineers, in a hundred different ways, ac-
cording, ot course, to the various
periences of each one, those experiences
being due. of course, to the different con-
:h in each case, such as
speed ol urc. material.

There arc, however, faults attributable
In many cases not only to the cngim
but also to the manufacturers and in-
ventors of these articles of everyday

It would be an injustice to at
that every engineer d" use intelli-

gence in the matter of using an article.
Yet it is often found that a well made
article is condemned and thrown a
g to a want of knowledge as t<
er use or to carelessness in applica-
At the present time there is an
abundance of . .of packing, each

one. of course, claiming a certain super
cr the r true

that in mam case- has been sac-

rifice ig the

that manuf.i ny an>

of the

c that such an
true when one can bu
the : time 1 cm* an ar

ar in appearance to what forrr
mes as much - I think
This reduction in qual ' -en don<

an expert manner, ho -
none hut experts in fibers can detc

itward appearance, and thus in
MUTir i*c« the poor result* are at-

frint irelcsaness

in uv rig

Thi* condition of affair
famed led hv the men who u«.
Inf. and who «hould In Ing

an article of high qualii

rwn particular ca cost

may be. The compensation will be ob-
tained in the saving of wear and
fuel, power and in repairs. Packings
having a flat surface against the rod al-
low the mo- -ig and pr< :
the least friction as the pressure is more
unifom ack-
ings which pi a hard or -

'ing beyond what is necessary to ,
vent leaking, which shot
for by natural expansion. (■
assume that the rod is perfectly It
and in line; trying to hold a roJ
4 up the packing harj
ut of line usualh
urc. If met
are used the conditions must be
mor to insur n is

genera! i fibrous pack

However metallic packings are now be-
ing rhh good when ap-

J intelligently and, when they are
proof from the efforts of the mor-

ich engineer, are givin. lent

faction. I have ol
where met was in icre

when the ' -tic moistu'

around the rod. due to its not being
actly in line, or to a poor adjustment of
the id. the engineer

on the nuts of the stuffing box until fire
appeared. Men of tf s will ruin

toy kind of packing, but it is a pleasure
•hat they arc very much in the
minority. I do not presume to enumer-
ate either the ordinary or the desirable
makes of these goods, believing that
these fi in-

t in the packing problem and the-
be it e to engineers in gen

>nn.

I I' >trl P( .\\ cr (.

In the issue of Ptri
ldcr the head 'H
I saw the f

chief engineer of tf
hole

as to t!
re and after installing an isolated
plar uld nc \er\ g! i ar from

other engir.

along thl» tame line uld

COM
of an inttal

conom
i small plant, a -

g a generator
-c the exhaust n a

[ntrodu< ■

■

December 0 issue on ubleci

quite a num' engineer* who.

like myself, have lo©» Through

the ad ages of Povea for a

thorout: - compound I

>ert
'tnemadc a

th more or less succcoa. Some
ago t so far as to

large manu g concern whose busi-

ness waa »"»<«t£ other \: ■ , -
making of . :r.g

If tl lid not b could

ig on the market that
the on the lines of a

for*. (Uld be

tached to the boi pump. Soma

compounds may have a sedin
up. or cont.i night at

il of the pump or . of

the ng an

so, I would be glad
to knou ere ar

rop up in crmncctJoo

"g-
akage at i d be r

sigr Vng box is csk

or vessel from

should be ia\e a

nS. Th-
pun >uld be An

apparatus of || > command

a ready sale. The amount of compound
introduv -ion

to the quantity of feed nto

the is a desirable condi-

tion | have an a; rk-

v manner and

t h I panly made from I The

homemade pro.: usually

more cost!

o much of thia
bomem.i und. so many

which,
'ie Ion»:

-hing of tht
ougl cooaiJ

ation before adoption.

H w | : iwa.

I I

*i o •** r • —

r al#A

•

Rarjj
►: and at be gave ne

r stnoke problem

a* * meat of the firemen

no device mod tory m

sioo of smoke. Thia to ne
i
•imply lac owlodce oo tht •

mar c method of otilii.ru

the device to do > th the ear

special arches, ■fecial grate*

and ling hi order to ehanto)
fireman can gr« i »

POWER

January 3, 1911.

nace, unless it is being forced to the
limit, with almost any of the coal sold in
New England. If, however, an inexpert
fireman takes the shovel, the results are
radically different, and no matter how
good the furnace is, smoke will be given
off in large quantities.

The majority of manufacturers look
on the fireman as merely a device for
feeding coal under the boilers. Brute
strength is the main consideration, and
brains receive but scant acknowledg-
ment. This seems rather extraordinary
when one considers that one of the heav-
iest expenses in the power plant is the
coal pile. A manufacturer will employ
a first-rate engineer and pay him a good
salary, for the express purpose of keep-
ing his engine and shafting in good con-
dition. He will purchase and install a
high-grade engine and condensing outfit,
if possible, in' order to economize in
steam consumption, but when it comes
to the man who is largely responsible
for the amount of coal burned on the
grate, he is always looking for the strong-
est man at the lowest price. At this very
point there is a tremendous opportunity
for saving. A good fireman is worth
money, and he will more than save the
difference in his wages through the use
of his brains. Less coal will be re-
quired and less smoke will be made.
Less coal will be required, because he
will see that the amount of air admitted
to the furnace is graded to the amount
of coal he puts on the fire, so far as the
construction of the furnace will allow,
and, therefore, he will burn up the vol-
atile matter in the coal to a very large
extent, which under the firing of a poor
man, goes up the stack in smoke.

There is, of course, vast room for im-
provement in the construction of the fur-
nace at present used for bituminous coal.
In the first place, the hight of the boiler
above the grate is far too small. There
is not a sufficient opportunity for vary-
ing the amount of air which enters above
the grate. The ashpit door is not large
enough to give a thoroughly good admis-
sion of air under the grates, and the
greater part of the air goes up through
the grates at the back of the furnace,
instead of at the front. All engineers
know the material abatement in the
smoke nuisance that can be secured
through the use of the dutch oven
and the very long fire box. This
is due mainly to the thorough mixing
of the air and volatile gases and the op-
portunity offered for them to ignite be-
fore they go over the bridgewall. In
order to burn these gases, it is necessary
that they be mixed with a proper amount
of air and brought to a sufficient tempera-
ture to be ignited when they pass over
the rear part of the fire. If they are
not ignited before they go over the bridge-
wall, there is little or no prospect for
their being ignited at all. Special arches
in many cases will improve the combus-

tion to the suppression of smoke, and in-
crease the efficiency of the combustion.

My solution of the smoke problem is,
then, pay the fireman enough to make it
worth while his staying on the job, and
then train him. Adjust the furnace so
that air can be admitted both above and
below the grate and thoroughly mixed
with the combustible gases before these
gases go over the hottest part of the fire.
Train the fireman to coke the coal at the
front of the fire, so as to drive off the
volatile matter from the front end of the
furnace. Push this coal back as
the fire burns out at the rear, and shovel
again in the front. It might be said that
the automatic stokers do away to a consid-
erable extent with the skill required by
fireman. This, however, is by no means
true. The automatic stoker requires ad-
justment of the air just as much as does
hand firing; and a poor fireman cannot
do as well with an automatic stoker as a
good one.

Boston, Mass. Henry D. Jackson.

Air Bleeder for Boilers

In the December 13 number, Mr.
Mistele has a letter on the subject of
water hammer, in which he speaks of the
trouble he experienced with air in the
boilers when raising steam and the rem-
edy he applied.

I regard it as a wise plan to have all
boilers tapped at their highest point with
a 1-inch bleeder connection. In raising
steam this should always be left open
until the gage shows some pressure. It
should be given a good, strong blow be-
fore opening the stop valve to the line;
particularly is this the case where con-
densing engines are being run, as a boiler
which contains very much air will fre-
quently cause a condenser to go down
unless it is thoroughly drained of air be-
fore being cut in.

Another desirable feature of such a
bleeder is that it allows a much more
rapid cooling of the boiler when a hurry-
up job of washing out is in order, as is
so frequently the case in small plants
where but a few hours can be had in
which to cool down and wash a boiler.
O. B. Critchlow.

Woodlawn, Penn.

Faulty Design

Under the above caption, Mr. Rayburn,
in the November 22 issue of Power, de-
scribes a condition of engineering which
is not engineering; an exception is taken
to his ruling of the term "engineer."
The manifold errors cited in the installa-
tion of this particular steam plant tend
to prove that an engineer, a real engi-
neer, was not in evidence — degradation
should not be cast upon the engineering
profession at large to style those who
were engaged as "engineers." As in
all walks of life, in the engineering busi-
ness today there are engineers, and there

are engineers — there is a wide distinc-
tion. The "catalog" engineer, the inex-
perienced engineer, the inefficient engi-
neer, the engineer who could not fill a
drafting position, who follows the call-
ing haphazard, and subsists on the earn-
ings derived from the enterprise pro-
moter not familiar with such design, who
accepts a fee from his client and an ad-
ditional fee from some particular man-
ufacturer whose product he specifies and
insists upon, these are not engineers, nor
are their efforts engineering — it cannot
be classed in that category.

The real engineer, the man who knows
his business, does not necessarily have
"to smoke black cigars and carry a slide
rule," knowledge is not contained in
these two elements, and I am under the
impression that some engineers use
neither. The real engineer is not given
to words or boasting; as a rule, he is
open to reasonable argument, and his
actions and methods show results.

The selection of a consulting engineer
for a certain work shouid be made only
after investigation as to ability and past
performances; the real engineer is alive
to the best interests of his client, he ex-
pects future business from him, he ex-
pects his recommendation to others. The
competent engineer always proves to be
the cheapest in the long run.

L. R. W. Allison.
Los Angeles, Cal.

Water Gage Connections

In the December 13 issue of Power,
Mr. McGahey has a letter relating to the
placing of valves in water-column con
nections. The pros and cons of this mat-
ter have been discussed in the columns of
the mechanical papers and outside of
them many times, but I do -not remember
ever having seen stated what I regard
as strong justification for their use;
namely, their great value when the water
connection becomes clogged. With a
valve in the steam connection which can
be closed, full boiler pressure can then
be brought to bear to blow out any ob-
struction in the pipe, whereas, with no
valve in the steam pipe, the opening of
the blowoff valve on the column but im-
perfectly cleans the water connection be-
tween the column and the boiler, due to
the fact that the pressure in the column
is, to a great extent, balanced. The
same principle applies here as in the
case when we close the lower valve first
when a gage glass breaks, allowing the
steam valve to blow and thus hold back
the hot water. I was once saved from
the necessity of a shutdown at a critical
time by having these valves to use, and
later when a Hartford inspector recom-
mended their removal, I was able to con-
vince him that it was better to leave
them in.

O. B. Critchlow.

Woodlawn, Penn.

January 3. 191 1.

P O U ! k

Steam Turbines and Generators

In manufacturing steam turbines a
great amount of testing is nc to

determine the effect of changes in de-
sign or to verify theories which cannot
be established by calculation; much of
this is of a laboratory nature. T:
is also a large amount of testing done
to establish the over-all economy of the
complete unit, which is all that is of
commercial value to those operating
steam turbir

The one r method o: j a

turbo-generator is to measure the steam
that goes in through the throttle, and
the electrical cne- at the

terminals of the generator. The

of determining hou much steam en-
the turbine is to collect and wi
sll the steam after it has been condensed.

of a surface
cond In making such a t

things are essential: first, that all the
steam used on the turbine be condei
and met >nd. that no steam or

water not used in the turbine be allowed
to enter the condenser The conde^
should have the leakage checked, before
and after each * i accomplished

-hutting a!! steam off the turbine and
running the condenser for some time with
full vacuum, the discharge from the hot-
well pump being accurately m<.
Splr

whic fticult to locate as they open

only when the condc- heated

-team.
w*hen the conde- am cannot be

measured, as is the case *hcn the tur-
bine -.iting noncondr r when

am
consumr found ng the

water fed to the boilers In making such
tests, the liabi! - cat.

and c taken in

order that the able

-tain degre<
The steam piping conn*
and lurl
all other and all <>;

must be blanked
be rclt All b an J J

hum have their out
and al'

pump* and the

and have no branches 1 the

boiler Itself lifl all

water or stein

I up ll

and
- each • the Ihi

the turh anting the

pipes at the turbine i
mca«unng the amount

full stcan
■fid piping The feed

I mean.
h have come
•

•id onr

By 1 . D. I Hckinson

ami L. T, Robinson

p>l'

J '

ill J

HI lilt

llll

■ \ '

■

case showed a leakage of over 20
cent.

The comparison of efl of dif-

ferent machines is the n:

.: their rcla1
c the available one

pou- to know

the : 'ich.

the and tl the

entering steam; also the f at the

tu^

uum a full- let- . >uld

he used If •

lion
ng th<
hea-
be given. In testing turb

the
differcr:

•ii the .
When be

strumc cction ie gen-

-h board ha

ould not b

to i ;

the ig pan of the airm

largely a copr

able room tern-

some

mcr

c meat

rs should be ■ .lag

the use

who

ance material ha\ing ;

1 board •

able instruments the influence of

.1 be ta- ob-

'hermo*
the mil ose of

. . ••-
consider the

rm-

it Is
doa as
J load the
sair

In lo»

i constats In the iaatm-

gen^

• the

ould he empi

enorrrioi. . ' *•• cc ■■ :' < i \ iMr fff| lion

If possible, a test should be made on
noninductive load, in which case, if all
the test arrangements have been satis-
factorily attended to, the apparent power
as shown by the volts and amperes
should agree within 1 per cent, with the
wattmeter indications and the watts in-
dicated should be taken as the true out-
put. If the test cannot be made at unity
power factor, the voltmeters and am-
meters should be included so that the
general conditions of distribution of load,
etc., may be known throughout the test.
For this purpose the station instruments
would be satisfactory.

Watt-hour meters should never be
used unless checked in place at the fre-
quency, voltage, etc., which are to be
used in testing. If it is not possible to
run a complete test at a fairly steady
load it is usually possible to make a few
runs on the watt-hour meter under load
conditions and to use this check as a
basis for determining the output by
means of the meters during the test run
on an unsteady load. It is still advis-
able to read the indicating instruments
at short intervals so that their indica-
tions may be made use of in computing
the final result.

Single-phase indicating instruments for
polyphase service are to be preferred for
precision work to polyphase instruments,
for the reason that indications of a poly-
phase instrument are made up by the
two elements in such a way that it is not
possible to apply corrections to either
element to get the true total result unless
the division of load is known by single-
phase instruments; and if the single-
phase instruments are required for this
purpose they may as well be of the pre-
cision class and used for the actual de-
terminations, and the polyphase instru-
ment omitted.

Discussion

After the presentation of the paper the
discussion was opened and consisted, in
part, as follows:

Mr. Dunn: The paper deals princi-
pally with over-all efficiency tests, but be-
fore these tests become necessary there
must be an enormous amount of detail
and special testing both of the generator
and the turbine. One of the important
things to know in regard to both these
pieces of apparatus is the proportion of
losses chargeable to each.

It is found, for instance, when retarda-
tion tests are made on turbo-generators,
that vibration, windage, etc., occupy a
different proportion of the total losses
than on the ordinary classes of ap-
paratus; and the proportion of these
losses is not determined by prior con-
clusions. Empirical methods, only, will
bring these out. Consider the mechanical
balance of turbo-generators. It is well
known that below the first critical speed,
if the generator is run in flexible bear-
ings and the chalk held against that part
of the revolving surface which seems to

POWER

be highest, it will hit the heavy part of
the revolving member. But when the
speed has increased to the point where
the apparatus gyrates around its center
of gravity then the chalk mark will be
moved theoretically 180 degrees from its
first position. It may appear easy to
calculate these critical speeds but even
when the best knowledge on the subjects
of vibrations, inertias and gyrations are
applied, the result will not agree with
that found in practice.

Again, regarding ordinary efficiencies,
where the company builds both the gen-
erator and the turbine, its responsibility
is founded on the amount of steam con-
sumed and the electrical energy de-
veloped; but where they are made by
separate companies the individual per-
formances are more important.

Mr. Emmet: Individual study of the
generator and the turbine is very desir-
able, but is extremely difficult. This is
because the generator is a high-speed
piece of apparatus requiring a large
amount of power and cannot well be run
by anything but the turbine itself. How-
ever, there is one method of investigating
the generator alone which has consider-
able value; this is the "deceleration"
method. It consists in bringing the gen-
erator up to a speed, by motor or other-
wise, in excess of that at which it is to
be operated and then allowing it to de-
celerate, noting the rates of deceleration
and from these rates, with a carefully
calculated moment of inertia, determine
the amount of power exerted in decelera-
tion at any particular instant.

A matter of much interest but one
which is only slightly alluded to in this
paper is that of the steam meter. We
have been using steam meters in all of
our turbine tests for a long time and at
the same time have been weighing the
water. The results have checked within
2 per cent, in practically every case.

January 3, 1911.

Mr. Dreyfus: An important character-
istic of the steam turbine is that the in-
let pressure varies almost directly with
the load, provided the same steam pres-
sure, superheat and vacuum are main-
tained. This affords a means for graph-
ically checking Jhe performance of a tur-
bine.

Clearance in Ammonia Com-
pressors

At the recent meeting of the American
Society of Refrigerating Engineers,
Thomas Shipley, of the York Manufactur-
ing Company, presented a paper dealing
with the effects of clearance in vertical
single-acting compressors of the false-
head type and horizontal double-acting
compressors of the spherical-head type.

The compressors were -^e

diameter and stroke and were driven by
the same engine, that is, wi^r. one com-
pressor was in operation the other was
disconnected. The runs were made at
suction pressures of 5, 15.67 and 25
pounds gage, and the condensing pres-
sure was 185 pounds gage. The speed
was 70 revolutions per minute and dur-
ing the runs all conditions were kept as
nearly constant as possible.

In the single-acting compressor the
clearance was controlled by screwing the
piston rod into the crosshead and in the
double-acting compressor by placing
metal rings between the cylinder flanges
and the heads.

Table 1 shows the relative effect of
clearance on the horsepower per ton, and
Table 2 shows the effect on the capa-
cities. It will be noted that the losses
due to clearance in the double-acting
compressor are much larger than those
in the single-acting compressor, and that
the losses increase inversely with the
suction pressure.

TABLE 1. COMPRESSOR INDICATED HORSEPOWER PER TON.

Clearance Volume

in Per Cent, of

5 Pounds Suction

15.67 Pounds Suction

25 Pounds Suction

Linear

Displacement.

Pressure.

Clear-

ance,

Single-

Double-

Single-

Double-

Single-

Double-

Single-

Double-

Inch.

Aeting.

Act ing.

Acting.

0.24

1.75

1.30

1.09

6.42

2.18

1.60

1.26

6.76

0.85

1.77

2 34

1.32

1.62

1.10

1.28

X
4

1.46

1 . 55

1.81

2.45

1.34

1.64

1.11

1.30

2.85

2.93

1.82

2.56

1.36

1.72

1.12

1.35

5.63

5.71

1.83

2.89

1.39

2.01

1.13

1.44

TABLE 2. TONNAGE PER 24 HOURS.

Clearance Volume

in Per Cent, of

5 Pounds Suction

15.67 Pounds Suction

25 Pounds Suction

Linear

Displacement.

Pressure.

Clear-

ance,

Single-

Double-

Single-

Double-

Single-

Double-

Single-

Double-

Inch,

Act ing.

Acting.

Act ing.

Acting.

0.24

2.27

38.0

50.4

0.42

19.2

33 0

47.4

0.76

0.85

22 6

17.3

37.4

32.1

50.1

45.1

1.46

1.55

21.0

16.0

35.6

30.0

49.1

44.8

2.85

2.93

19.7

14.3

34.4

28.9

47.0

42.3

5.63

5.71

15.5

10.6

29.7

22.9

42.6

36.5

January 3, 1911.

POWER

Issued Weekly b;<

Hill Publishing Company

, l"T*«. u4 Tnam. tUtt

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•ice. to any port office

-ula. So
lo any other fi>r.-urn country.

Pay no money to m.u. m>r» or aernts
unk->» thaj can -«h(.\» irtw-r» of aatbortaav-

tkrti

rope

hetrwb
to the London Office. Price ..

•ered aa »erond ruv« matter. April

: ork.
•j<1- the Act of Congress of

Cable address. " Powrt , N V.

\ ;

from

Content!

i II. 7

fbc I <M-d In

A fli I* ■

•rati 10

n Hiram Stn..-r li -T • I '

'Bcle |v •

-■■>
| II rw|Hi»r[ . 28

tut at thr Lackav

man I. BJ

n 'In*- Mtatl.mary

•Cress during tbr I'aat

parts*

Am*; ititu- a'

Lining I

\
IU- I) •
Ammonia Punt;

igr

hr-t

llenr- In Hn>»

" '

. -.

( >ndemn the I I Boiler

It is not often that the public
erciscs much concern as to the conJ
of steam boilers used in power plants,
unless one of them explodes and kills
somebody. Then censure is handed out
right and left, and the less that is kr.
about boiler practice the more harsh the
criticism.

In the instance of a municipally
crated electric-light plant those in charge
decided that the lap-joint boilers ■
not fit for further service and new butt-
joint boilers were accordingly installed
in their place.

Before the old boilers mere discarded,
however, the taxpayers rose up in their
might and loudly denounced the u
fulness of the town fathers for throwing
out good public

money in purchasing new ones. In jt
fication of their stand against this need-

>te. a neighboring manufactt;
plant was cited, where several boilers
ven in operation every working day of
the year, and none of these boilers had
been ir, less than twenty years.

ron a layman's standpoint these
town folk were right in their and

they were somewhat I in taking

the stand that if a set of boilers
twenty years old were good enough to
serve a prosperous manufacturing com-
pany, their boilers. w( 'c no older,
were good enough to operate in the town
lighting plant.

These town people iot aware

of the fact that from the |

a boiler is insta :n« to

rate, and that there comes a time
n it is no longer taf< rate at

the pressure original allowed
when this time ar- s a matter of

judgment on the part ose

cart

N mding the opposit:

boil'
new b«
•

Ming on the pan
•

Tu<> \r4rs pa**cJ and Of»e d
a mig'
men were killed and the boiler hou»
'nanufactu'

people had held ti: and sound

ng In a hn
and one
boot a-

today who

that the toan offu of

or that not use

the best of judgr en the

out the old boilers.

There arc • reasons why an old

s allowed to remain in service:

AM firm owning it does not care to

necessary money for a new

one. or the old boiler ts made to do

g installed,
and it son the old

boiler explodes in the meantime.

This matter of J -g old boilers

will doubtless be allowed to r
judgment and con*. of the o%

in the future as in the pa ilea

and ptcd. i.

rnes so great as to frighten owner*
- old b
ones and. perhaps, convince na

Mature that every lap-team boiler

•
mine, liable to explode sooner or
and toll of dead

to the annual

trengtfa W heel Kir

Twt ' urteen yea

imin pre—Bled papers on the
■n Wheels'
fore the A:- Society of Mechanical

ause he brought out corn*
idence on the

■
attcnti. cine bu 2

■me ma -era too

>ngc between the
d they •
•he
of •
sand poor.

flange loint is one hundred per cent The

tated In his paper that oat

would not think of putting a lotnt hi the

not fbesc

at they

to • -..t iinjff*tarj "-ar • ^ pe«

a lotot la the middle of a
which i» >a"^ -c a transverse

e»r Mm
is loaded i tanner

c rim of a pulley be"
being loaded like a .

the taage ben
in It. and the belt
streag •• «be flange the aaktaecy of the
ild be one bemdred r

In this discussion, we will confine our-
selves to pulley wheels, by which we
mean wheels with thin rims used to
transmit or receive power by belting or
ropes. Regular flywheels, having rims of
heavy rectangular cross-section, give little
opportunity for bending between the arms
and, besides, in such wheels the rim is
sufficiently deep to permit the use of
links for fastening the sections together.

The assumption that the rim of a pul-
ley wheel is in tension only, due to the
centrifugal force, is wrong, unless the
rim is not attached to the spokes — is free
to expand under the influence of the
centrifugal force and assume a truly cir-
cular form. There are a few such wheels,
in which the arms fit into a socket in
the rim, and as the wheel revolves the
rim can increase in diameter. Such a
wheel is said to have a "free" rim, and
such a rim is in tension only. It is clear
that if in such a rim is put a flange hav-
ing no weight, the section of which is
designed to withstand the tension due to
centrifugal force, such a flange can have
an efficiency of one hundred per cent.
But the flange must have weight; and so,
even with a wheel with a "free" rim, the
efficiency must be less than one hundred
per cent.

If, now, we assume a pulley wheel in
which the rim is attached to arms which
are absolutely rigid and will not stretch,
the rim, when rotating, will tend to bow
out between the arms and will act like
a girder loaded with a uniformly dis-
tributed load.

So, we have two theoretical cases: one
in which the rim is free to expand and
take a truly circular form, in which case
the rim is in pure tension and is not sub-
jected to bending. In the other case, the
rim is attached to rigid arms that will
not stretch, in which case the strain is
due wholly to the bending moment.

In practice, however, the pulley wheel
is between these two extremes. The rim
expands some and pulls out the arms,
and though the arms stretch some, yet
they pull in the rim, so it is not correct
to consider the rim in tension only, or
as a girder carrying a uniformly dis-
tributed load only, and, to complicate the
matter further, we have a strain induced
by the flange itself.

To determine the strength of an actual
wheel, recourse must be had to the re-
sults of experiments, and for these we
are indebted to Professor Benjamin.
These experiments show that a wheel
with a well designed flanged joint, which
is placed between the arms, will rupture
at about one-half the speed of a similar
wheel with a solid rim. As the strain
varies as the square of the speed, this
means that the flange joint is only one-
quarter as strong as the solid rim, or
that its efficiency is only about twenty-
five per cent.

The wheels upon which the experi-
ments were made were only twenty-four

POWER

inches in diameter, and some may say
that these results would not apply to a
wheel, say, sixteen feet in diameter; but
there is no reason for such an opinion,
because the efficiency is a ratio and not
an absolute quantity, while the flanges
were carefully made to scale from a
larger flange in a larger wheel in actual
use. If there is any difference, it would
be in favor of the small wheel, on an-
count of the thinner sections, and, there-
fore, the better casting.

Do not confuse the measurement of
the efficiency of such a flange joint with
the measurement of the efficiency of the
joint in. say, a boiler shell. If we say,
in referring to the latter, that the effi-
ciency of a certain joint is seventy per
cent., the rivet strength being high, we
mean that thirty per cent, of the metal
has been cut away and that only seventy
per cent, remains, and it follows that the
greater the pitch of the rivets (making
up their area by increasing the number
of their rows) the greater will be the
efficiency. There are joints in boilers that
have an efficiency as high as ninety-eight
per cent., but a similar procedure can-
not be followed with flange joints in a
pulley wheel, where, as the joint is
strengthened by the addition of metal, the
centrifugal force of that same metal in-
creases in the same ratio the strain it is
called upon to bear. So, when we refer
to the efficiency of a rim joint as twenty-
five per cent., we do not mean that it
contains only one-fourth the amount of
metal in the rim, or that if put in a test-
ing machine and pulled it would break at
one-quarter of the load on the solid rim,
but, rather, that the strain in it is four
times as much as the strain in the rim.
Take a wheel sixteen feet in diameter,
running at one hundred revolutions per
minute, which is equivalent to a rim
speed of five thousand twenty-six feet
per minute. If the rim is "free" and has
no joint, the tension in the rim due to
centrifugal force is seven hundred pounds
per square inch. If, however, the rim
is fastened to the arms, and there is a
flange joint between the arms, whose ef-
ficiency is only twenty-five per cent., then
the strain in the rim is twenty-eight hun-
dred pounds per square inch, and that
the factor of safety is low in such wheels
is shown time and again by the short
interval of time which elapses between
the derangement of the governing mech-
anism and the moment the wheel goes to
pieces. Wheels of reputable make have
been known to stand only a few seconds
of racing.

Talk to an engine builder who persists
in the use of the interarm joint about the
efficiency of the flanges in the pulley
wheel which he builds and he will at
once begin to talk about the importance
of good design, good workmanship and
careful foundry work. We have no de-
sire to appear to slight these very im-
portant matters, but the point that we

January 3, 1911.

wish to make is that of two similar
wheels, one with a solid rim fastened to
the arms, and the other with the rim
joined by flanges placed between the
arms, the latter wheel may be but one-
quarter as strong as the former.

Generating Power for the

Navy

A recently issued report of H. I. Cone,
engineer-in-chief of the United States
Navy, says that designs have been pre-
pared for battleships with water-tube
boilers, fitted for the use of oil fuel and
coal, the oil fuel to be used in con-
junction with coal or independently, and
designs for destroyers for water-tube
boilers with oil fuel only.

A high-speed marine steam turbine
with reduction gear is being installed in
the collier "Neptune," now building at
the works of the Maryland Steel Com-
pany, Sparrows Point, Md. She is to be
a twin-screw vessel, displacing 19,360
tons with a speed of fourteen knots.
Steam at a pressure of two hundred
pounds will be supplied by three double-
ended Scotch boilers to a Westinghouse-
Parsons turbine on each shaft, each tur-
bine developing about four thousand shaft
horsepower at one thousand five hundred
revolutions at full power. Between each
turbine and its propeller shaft is to be
interposed a Melville-McAlpine gear, re-
ducing the propeller speed to 136 revo-
lutions per minute.

Tests have been completed during the
year at the Norfolk navy yard of nineteen
representative types of internal-combus-
tion engines for launches. Of this num-
ber nin° proved to be fit for naval ser-
vice.

Considerable progress has been made
on shore in the development of bitumi-
nous producer-gas power plants. Owinj
to a lack of funds the Bureau has been
unable to do its part in the development
of the internal-combustion engine for
large naval vessels. As stated in the
Bureau's last annual report, we cannot
afford to delay this development and the
recommendation is renewed for authority
to expend as much as $250,000 for the
purchase and installation of an internal-
combustion engine plant and an able
collier or other suitable hull in the
event that it is thought wise to experi-
ment along this line.

The generally accepted belief in the
safety of water-tube boilers seems to have
received a severe jolt by the recent ex-
plosion in Brooklyn. The authors of text-
books upon boilers will have to get out
revised editions.

The tendency is in the direction of get-
ting more service out of a given amount
of boiler-heating surface than has been
thought practicable. Shall it be by put-
ting in more grate surface or by burning
more coal per square foot of grate?

January 3, 191 1.

P O U F R

/ ' I / ' / ;

the first duty of an cngir
jn taking charge of a new plant ?

I).
He should learn the condition and
rsngement of the plant, what it will do
ind what is required of it.

Pressure Due to Unit

>m a tank on the roof two pipes lead
to the cellar. One is quarter-inch and
the other two inches in diameter. Will a
-ure gage read the same on the bot-
tom end of each ;

H.
Yes, the pressure per unit of area
for the same hight of water will be the
Mm: I of the diameter of the

pipe.

/ olume and " ' w-

/>/

How far *il! the piston move in com-
ing air to a pressure of
in the cylinder with no rise in tempcra-
■

\ C.
As the volume of a in

the c\ Under will be in\

. the volume of the comprcs
Se

utiic and the
■ clearai akagc and

the heating of the air. mo
I

•i compressing air to
pounds gaee pressure.

/
II
haust lead and inside lead and how much
MM lea J should a valve have

Inside IcaJ is the opening which the
■ u*t port has when the
the middle

the opening \»hich the exhaust port has
n the r ii the the

•;t to a

Stroke so that ess

• lead t-
Ihc «tearr |<

/ /

an I know that cac' in

a boiler •« full loa '

ng «ure ibal are loose when

Nut that all are equal

Ql/c-.s r ions .vntv
not ./:mwtcJ unli
tt c ^mp.micJ by t/ic
iKimv and . w <)/ flic

inquirer This page fS

/or \x)u when >rr/i k

usi- it

ly or nearly equally tight, as may be
pro-, th a hammer.

fltS
How mav I find the required lift for
a 2 rich gas-compressor va
a rule to find how man. feet a

compr-. ches. with

he atmosphere
in the

poi: II deliver at one

stro'»

A. * *

A lift urth the diameter of

the valve will g rea equal

the va! t has been

found that -.nt of

it sufficient om-

' -termir
mula

urn*

and the on and

seqi.

turc

The actual amount

- r..K i V-'

• lu-

.' / 1

In making a small
I pr

thai

K rod.

■ I
J one *

at an air pressure I

-tops on the center on

. 'i-press.
air pres

.
the -
the ;

We thoufht g a pre**

to the - - and set it at 2D pounds.

the

keeping th-

that tht .id not drop

below the regular am* uld

•he engine in i

The governor should be so set that -
not stop

•cod

in the I hould t

tain a ;

ginc of?
the center

If the

is 100

i the boiler

\ I

ran the

Of
pend on th-

a column I

~T^ m v R ■

■ Jiators
boiler the um>

POWER

January 3, 1911.

The Allen Safety Set Screw

A safety set screw made from a solid
bar of steel and guaranteed not to mush-
room or upset in the hole has been re-
cently placed on the market by the Allen
Manufacturing Company, Hartford, Conn.
These screws are made in a number of

Group of Allen Set Screws

different sizes ranging from *A to 1 inch
long and with a variety of points such as
cup, conical, oval, dog and flat which
are shown in the figure. A hexagonal hole
formed in the other end serves as a hold
for the wrench which can be made by
bending a piece of hexagonal steel of the
proper size at right angles, as illustrated
in the above drawing.

Scissors for Belting, Packing
etc.

The cut shows a pair of scissors for
cutting leather, rubber, packing, linoleum,
etc., which are being put on the market by
Schuchardt & Schiitte, 90 West street,

What the in-
ventor and the manu-
facturer are doing to save
time and money in the en-
gine room and power*
house. Engine room
news

when cutting the materials mentioned is
that the goods being cut is apt to be
pushed along the blades instead of being
cut. This is overcome in these scissors
by having the edge of the lower blade
serrated so that it prevents the material
from slipping while the upper blade does
the cutting.

These shears, known as "cogged scis-

The Stilwell Combination
Water Heating and Soft-
ening System

In the illustration, Fig. 1, is shown a
combination feed-water heater, filter and
purifier built by the Piatt Iron Works
Company, Dayton, O.

This apparatus consists, as shown in
Fig. 2, of a cast-iron heating chamber
containing a system of pans over which
the water and chemicals must pass, there-
by thoroughly mixing the two and bring-
ing them in direct contact with the ex-
haust steam. This heating chamber, which
is fitted with an efficient oil separator,
may be used either on the thoroughfare
or induction principle. It is located on
top of a large purifying and filtering
chamber built of heavily ribbed cast-iron

HOT WATER OUTLET "

Scissors for Belting and Packing

Fig. 1. Exterior View of Stilwell Heater

New York. The upper blade is a regular
shear blade but with a longer handle than
usual to give greater leverage.

The trouble with the ordinary scissors

sors," are made in two sizes, 8l/> and 11
inches respectively, and they will cut
single-ply leather belting as easily as the
ordinary scissors will cut cardboard.

sections, with ground joints and perma-
nent gaskets, and is designed to withstand
ten pounds back pressure.

The system consists in using the heat

January 3, 1911.

>f the steam for removing the temporary
lardness, such as carbonates, chemicals
>eing used to remove permanent harm-
less caused by sulphates, chlorides, etc.
In operation it is designed that the rc-
igent will be fed continuously in pro-
>ortion to the cold water, both entering
be heating chamber at the same point,
he reagents being handled by an auxil-
ary plunger on the feed pump.

After the water has passed through
he heating chamber it reaches a settling
rhamber below, in which the greater por-
ion of the impurities will settle to the
Jottom, from which they can be blown
>ff. The water then passes upward
through a blanket Alter into the purir
water chamber from which the pump
luction takes its supply.

A device recently designed and made
part of this system consists of a watcr-

POU ! H

forcing chemicals in proper proportion
to the feed water, make up the system,
which is automatic when one

The "Change Blade" -\-

driver

A new sc- - being put on

market by Kinckir • Jrth

Twelfth street. Philadelp: n.

The handle is of red brass in skeleton
form, with a covering of mahogany. The
blades are of tool steel uith a temp

n. which enga ^ a slot in

the brass handle and takes the strain of
the work. The end of the blade, which
enters the handle, is threaded to fit the
cap nut which retains it in position in the
handle. The blades are made in 3
and 8-inch lengths and arc easily Inter*
chanu.

A change-blade screwdriver is made

Ch*-n if a

1 I , wAMHtU » --» * » »

JL*-" l| /

Pic 2. Vibi H

scaled supplement. i ass which in-

% the d hot treated water

r-fced pump* in case the
Biter blanket, if neglected. »hould I
dogged up. The bypass automatically
operates *hcn the uatcr rises
proper level in the heating and pui

al feature, being
water sealed any scum or ft

i from passing
. ater cham'
A skimfiM ' Seating

Chamber -imming the surface

the water. V nmcr also

Ing a« a I of mrrftow into

the trap l~argc hinged doors a:
eideJ. permitting moj ace— ' >rts

any internal part can he
cd through the»<- d
ng tanks and an

In it
He tad

Srittl MSB1

ri engages the

i i i in

can i

.■■ •

n held an
iem

vide %
and me> emotional c

I recent second congress
rd shall he 1

•

the con

the ecicr"

who >cnt the r

«ts of more than fon> fo- un-

ington. PI -mingham.

lis and Chicago are amont ices

an Ht
of Clevelar authorised to appoint

of Ave fO DPCDalFiT ft ttWadaWlC

of the neccoaa

ting the congress, to decide upon the

for holding
a general scheme of
tert.i

to report the results of their labors to
the ne\t regular ant ..a s, of the

It was the general opinion
of those present that the corr.:
witt I culty secure a soaVicnt fund

ur Go\ ernmer.'
'ivitation to f<

ate in the congress I appoint-

ment of oBcia ates. M one

ment for the Psris con-
gress of 1908 and the Vienna congrean
of • ir.

■

Bl kl) M I II '111

i iiii.il Dinner

The Broo.
annual dinner .mber 15. 191

the Hamilton I fact

that there was such a large ti

led the cor iter

accommodations than t!
banquet room afl

reasdenf
of I

during the >ear

Tl itroduc

siter \x
the American ' ning Kngi-

neers.

ir.J »a» r«a»ed on
the information he obtained during the

iJ other men
of I

Kenaee
cd that

irned o the school of

r Engineefftag snd Contract-
oke Or

the i »

Im «

president. John M. Stetansett: eacee*

I rectors

There ahont 160 members and

POWER

January 3, 1911.

Steam Pipe Bursts in Lowell

It is reported in the daily press that
on December 24 a steam pipe burst in
the Perry street power plant of the Lowell
(Mass.) Electric Light Company. Six
men were injured and fragments of the
pipe damaged the brickwork of the build-
ing to some extent. The plant was shut
down for an hour.

OBITUARY

Rudolph Wolf, founder of the Great
Engineering Works at Magdeburg-Bug-
kau, inventor of the Wolf compound en-
gine and identified with the early use of
superheated steam, died on the twentieth
of November in his seventy-ninth year.

Matthew Kennedy, treasurer of the
Kennedy Valve Manufacturing Company,
Elmira, N. Y., died on November 26 at
his home in Coxsackie. He was born
in Ireland in 1840, and with his brother
Daniel established the business with
which he was so long identified.

BOOKS RECEIVED

Dynamo Electric Machinery. By Samuel
Sheldon. D. Van Nostrand Company,
New York. Cloth; 328 pages, 5x7^
inches; 210 illustrations; indexed.
Price, S2.50.

Electricity Experimentally and Prac-
tically Applied. By S. W. Ashe. D.
Van Nostrand Company, New York.
Cloth; 344 pages, 5x7 K inches; 422
illustrations; indexed. Price, $2.

Brookes Automobile Handbook. By
L. Elliott Brookes. Frederick J.
Drake & Co., Chicago, III. Leather
limp; 701 pages, 4x6';. inches; 320
illustrations; tables; indexed. Price,
S2.

The Construction and Working of In-
ternal Combustion Engines. By
R. E. Mathot. D. Van Nostrand
Company, New York. Cloth; 554
pages; 5;/x9J4 inches; fully illus-
trated; indexed. Price, $6.

Design of Marine Multitubular Boil-
ers. By James D. McKnight and Al-
fred W. Brown. The Technical Pub-
lishing Company, Ltd., and D. Van
Nostrand Company, New York.
Cloth; 48 pages, 6x10 inches; illus-
trated; indexed. Price, $1.50.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents arc furnished by
the Patent Office al •><•. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, 1>. ('.

PRIME HOVERS

WATER WHEEL. Arnold Pfau, Mil-
waukee. Wis., assignor to Allis-Chalmers Com-
pany, Milwaukee. Wis., a Corporation of New
Jersey. 978,335.

KOTAKY ENGINE. John W. I.arimore.
Benton, 111. 078.602.

WAVE MOTOR. Thomas Nixon, Santa
Barbara, Cal. 978,628.

ROTARY ENGINE. Samuel Haudenshield,
.Carnegie. Penn. 978.743.

BOILERS, FURNACES AND GAS
PRODUCERS

STEAM GENERATOR. .Tames J. Bush,
New York. N. N. 978,135.

SMOKE CONSUMER. William McArdle,
Montreal. Quebec, Canada, assignor to the
Perfect Simplex Combustion Company, Mon-
treal. Canada. 978,407.

SHAKING AND DTJPMING GRATE. Chas.
I". Hutchinson, Kingsville. Md.. assignor to
Hutchinson Bros., Kingsville, Md.. a Corpor-
ation. 978,589-.

GENERATOR AND SUPERHEATER.

John G. Massie, East St. Louis, III., assignor
to the Massie Generator and Radiator Com-
pany. East St. Louis. 111., a Corporation of
Illinois. '978,769.

OIL BURNER. John It. Pring. Shawnee,
Okla. 978,780.

CRUDE-OIL BURNER. Emory A. Wales,
Oklahoma. Okla. 978.797.

POWER PLANT AUXILIARIES AXD
APPLIANCES

GAGE COCK. Charles Wright. Young-
wood, Penn., assignor to the Wright Spe-
cialty Manufacturing Company. 978,256.

ENGINE-STARTING DEVICE. Peter P.
An Buchnon, French Village, Mo. 978,264.

VALVE. John William Ilarkoin, Melbourne,
Quebec, Canada. 978,288.

AUTOMATIC CUTOFF VALVE. Francis
Hodgkinson, Edgewood Park, Penn., assignor
to the Westingbouse Machine Company, a
Corporation of Pennsylvania. 978.294.

BOILER-TUBE CLEANER. William I..
Miggett, Ann Arbor, Mich.. assignor to
Raphael Herman. Detroit, Mich. 978,326.

KOTAKY PUMP. James Baguley, Evans-
ton. Wyo. 978,350.

CONDENSER. Royal I). Tomlinson, Mil-
waukee. Wis., assignor to Allis-Chalmers
Company, Milwaukee. Wis., a Corporal ion of
New Jersey. 978,411.

VALVE AND VALVE-OPERATING MECH-
ANISM. Fred Loedige. Chicago. 111. 978.463.

OIL CUP. Verner J. Wahlstrom, New
York, X. Y. 978,521.

PISTON-ROD STUFFING I'.OX AXD
LUBRICATOR. Walter McLain. Spiritwood,
X. D. 978,611.

HOSE COUPLING. Bernard Morgan, New-
port, K. 1. 978.619.

PUMP. Cail Nicholls, McFall, Mo. 978,-

PUMP. Edwin E. Slick. Pittsburg, Penn.
978,668.

CONDENSER. Evi W. Christie, Sewaren,
and Tom Roberts, Moselle Park. X. J., as-
signors to Wheeler Condenser and Engineer-
ing Company, Carteret. X. J., a Corporation
of New Jersey. 978.697.

STEAM TRAP. Vernon Bradley Convis,
Toronto. Ontario, Canada. 978.701.

VALVE. James E. Davidson, Butte, Mont.

978.79(>.

KOTAKY PI'MP. Michael E. Durman. De-
troit. Mich. 978,715.

GRAVITY VALVE CAGE AXD VALVE
FOR PI'MPS. Jesse B. Oarber. Salem. Ohio,
assignor to the Deming Company. Salem, Ohio,
a Corporation of Ohio. 978,729.

VALVE GEAR; Hiram P. Craves, Elmira
Heights. X. Y. 97S.7:S7.

VALVE. Joseph Iluehsch. Milwaukee, Wis.
978,752.

CENTRIFUGAL PUMP. Joseph Hurst,
Louisville. Ky. 978,753.

CHECK VALVE. Jonathan Johnson, Low-
ell. Mass. 978,757.

DEFLECTOR FOR SMOKE-BOX SUPER-
HEATERS OK FEED-WATER HEATERS.
Samuel M. Vauclain. Philadelphia. Penn., as-
signor, by mesne assignments, to Baldwin
Locomotive Works, Philadelphia. Penn., a
Corporation of Pennsylvania. 978,795.

LUBRICATOR. Carl Roberts Briggs, Ra-
venna, Ohio. 978,819.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS AXD
APPLICATIONS

APPARATUS FOR ELECTRIC SMELT-
ING. Frank Creeiman. Xew York. N. Y., as-
signor to the Wilson Carbide Works Com-
pany of St. Catharines, Ltd.. St. Catharines.
Canada, a Corporation. 978.137.

ELECTRIC MOTOR-CONTROLLING AP-
1'AKATUS. Harry Ward Leonard, Bronx-
ville, X. V. 978,173.

COMBINED SWITCH SOCKET AXD
PLUG. William Pinkney McXeel. San An-
tonio, Tex. 978,322.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECIIAXICAL
ENGINEERS

Pros., Col. E. D. Meier: sec, Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., Xew York. Monthly meetings
in Xew York City.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pies., Dugald C. Jackson; sec, Ralph W.
Pope. :!:: \\, Thirty-ninth St., Xew York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION

I'res.. Frank W. Frueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS

Pies., Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
I'. S. X.: sec and treas.. Lieutenant Henry C.
Dinger. U. s. X.. Bureau of Steam Engineer-
ing, Navy Department, Washington. I). C.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS'
ASSOCIATION

Pres.. E. D. Meier, 11 Broadway, Xew
York; sec. J. D. Faraxey. cor. 37th SI. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, o. Xext meeting
to he held September, 1911, in Boston, Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS

Pres.. J. \V. Alvord: sec. J. II. Warder,
17."»."i Monadnock Block, Chicago. 111.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., E. K. Morse: sec. E. K Ililes. Oliver
building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings 1st and
3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AXD
VENTILATING ENGINEERS.

Pres.. Prof. J. I). Hoffman: see., William M.
Mackay. P. 0. Box 1818, Xew York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION' OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres.. Carl s. Pearse, Denver. Colo.: sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street. Chicago,
111. Xext convention, Cincinnati. Ohio.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS

Supr. Chief Engr., Frederick Markoe. Phila-
delphia. Pa.: Supr. Cor. Engr.. William S.
Wetzler, 753 X. Forty-fourth St.. Philadel-
phia. Pa. Xext meeting at Philadelphia,

June. 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres.. William F. Yates. Xew York. X. Y. ;
sec. George A. Grubb, 1040 Dak in street. Chi-
cago, 111. Xext meeting, St. Louis. Mo., Jan-
uary 16-21, 1911.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pies., Arthur J. Frith: sec. Charles
Kratsch. 416 W. Indiana St.. Chicago. Meet-
ings i he second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls. Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF

ENGINEERS
Grand Wortbv chief, John Cope; sec. J. U.
P.unce. Hotel Statler. Buffalo, N. Y. Xext
annual meeting in Philadelphia, Penn., week
commencing Monday. August 7,' 1011.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECIIAXICAL ELEC-
TRICAI, AXD STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres.. (). F. Rabbe : acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University. Columbus.
Ohio. Xext meeting. Youngstown. Ohio. May
18 and 19. 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTEK BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION

Pres., A. X. Lucas: sec. Harry D. Vaught,

95 Liberty street, Xew York. Next meeting
at Omaha. Neb., May. 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGIXEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford : sec. J. G. Ilanna-
han, Chicago. III. Xext meeting at St. Paul,
Minn.. September. 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOC I ATI OX
Pres., G. W. Wright. Baltimore. Md. ; sec.
and treas.. D. L. Gaskill, Greenville, O.

\i:\\ \i>\<\\. j \m \in m. 1911

Till-] i omparison «»i our pro. r throu
life- t(» tin- scaling erf a ladder is a much
better one- than we sometimes realL

Often the comparison is lM>rm- out in ways

that we d<> to noli, \ > : install

take the man whom fortune lias favored with

. earl) education. When 1
into tin- world of business the steam engi
neerin,^ field, perhaps he has a \ dvant-

inother man who has been '■ rt«
nate. He easily puts below him tin- fu-t few
rungs of the ladd< I

T! of the less fortunate man is slow and

laborious; he mil ik- his way up, ah:

blindly, wa much time and

often losing hard gained grout
in testing false rungs. At length
In- reach* point w here t h<

in tin- laddi-i OfM 01

two of tin- run lissin

of his lark of larlv a<l
V8Jl1

Th t man, looking down

m his hi ind mon

ble to see i 1< arly
just what tin- latta 'a diffi< ull

I the man higher up i hy

name ii he la d

W of 45 -ga] u

— Ik: will reach down his :

'In- man l
"lii't * that he to badly need

11I3 i
In will
k tin- othci mm in tin

and si;

t<» di him.

11
needed a "h aid."
nted by i
l>\ the un<
the aid v.

How many lifts" h ! liow

many withheld r An . i.<

appeals foi th«»s«

The time is lik

i hut:

him

unless

'i i*t

no i ii. i

POWER

January 10, 1911.

Power Plant of the Raike Building

In the Louis Raike building on Jackson
boulevard, Chicago, is to be found a
model little steam plant of 160 kilowatts
capacity which furnishes power through
a system of electric drive to the various
manufacturing establishments occupying
the building. In a plant of this capacity,
although reliability must be attained, to-
gether with a certain degree of economy,
it is not justifiable to burden it with an
excessive first cost for complicated and
elaborate auxiliary equipment, which, al-
though saving labor and money in a
larger plant, would not justify the ex-
penditure in one of this size where an
operating force of only two is required.
In the present case these features have
been worked out in a satisfactory man-
ner.

Boilers

Steam is supplied by two Brownell
horizontal return-tubular boilers 66
inches in diameter by 18 feet long, hav-
ing quadruple-riveted butt joints. A pres-
sure of 139 pounds is allowed by the
city-boiler inspector, but 110 pounds is
the pressure usually carried. A view of
the boiler room is shown in Fig. 1. Un-
doubtedly, the most interesting feature
of the boiler setting is the arrangement of
the combustion arches at the bridgewall.
In the end and side elevations, Fig. 2, the
arrangement of these arches is indicated.
They are built of the best grade of fire
tile, the two central piers, together with
the side walls, permitting a triple arch at
this point, the top of which closely fits
the boiler shell, compelling the products
of combustion to pass through the arches
and breaking up the current of gases.
In this type of setting the heat radiating
directly from the fire is taken advantage

By Osborn Monnett

A plant of 160 kilowatts capacity
furnishing poiccr by means of
electric drive to a number of man-
ufacturing establishments located
in the building. An interesting
feature of the equipment is the
arrangement of the combustion
arches in the boilers.

accused of violating the smoke ordinance.
Another interesting feature of the fur-
nace construction is the fact that the
dead plates immediately in front of the

coal-storage bin or onto the passage-
way between the boiler room and
coal-storage bin, so that in the future, if
desired, a coal conveyer may be installed
which will deliver the coal to a point in
front of the boilers.

Piping ■

The steam piping is laid out on an ex-
tremely simple though efficient system.
Resting directly on the rear of the boiler
settings is a short 12-inch header into
which 5-inch steam connections from the
two boilers enter through angle valves.
These steam connections are provided at
the boiler nozzles with angle stop valves
and nonreturn valves, all valves and pip-
ing being extra heavy with screwed

"^ ^\\^\\\vV^\\ww^v\.

Fig. 2. Boiler and Setting, Showing Arched Bridgewall

fire doors can be lifted, making an open-
ing direct to the ashpit through which
ashes and clinker may be raked when
the fires are being cleaned, thereby keep-
ing all the dirt and dust in the ashpit
during this operation and not on the
boiler-room floor, as is ordinarily the case
with hand-fired stationary grates, such as
are here employed.

flanges. From the header, long-radius
bends lead to the engines, with steam
separators directly above the throttles.
The 10-inch main exhaust rests in a
concrete trough in the engine-room floor,
covered with iron plates. This leads to
a Webster open feed-water heater, first
passing through an oil separator and hav-
ing a connection to the exhaust-heating

i^fc ' f^

ipv ig^pt

i w

^fjlK'-l

I X si? i' 1

* 4* M|j

11 frHI - —

~-^M L~

"T%~ti

- ■ •■ r .

Fig. 1. Boilers and Feed Pumps

Fig. 3. Feed-water Heater, Surge Tank and
Exhaust Connections

of for making steam. It is interesting Provision has been made for a coal- system. An atmospheric relief valve is

to note that, although this plant has been storage capacity of twenty-five tons and also located at this point. Fig. 3 shows

in operation for about twelve months, coal is discharged from an alley in the this part of the equipment, and also the

using Pocahontas coal, it has never been rear of the building either direct to the surge tank through which water for all

January 10, 1911.

PO«'ER

purposes enters the plant. Dearborn
feed-water feeders are installed on the
feed-pump suction line between the
heater and the pumps. Two 6 and 4
6-inch Dean-of-Holyoke pumps arc n
for boiler- feed purposes, one always be-
ing held in resent-, and another pump

generating
been ii ^ine

room. The of the n.c* k .

nk cor -ut ha\

l-s of the single, bala

:i of lul the

accepta: :iade at the shops of

Open Cmdmt

••••!

.juipmcnt hi of Thomgw
.io male
nisbed on i ta.

both rang*
carbon t lamp*

.onnectcd -' mt the

■

mcn» ■voiding tbe nccea* g a

balancer st

and one

»ng >tor» r^

This p

and on each floor

are loc

»nd on<. g.

•

To 5-

I 4. PlPINC Lw'H T 01 '■

of the same size is used for house ser-

All of these pumps are cross-

conncctcd ( sec rig- 1 > and may be used

either for feeding the boilers or for

Force- feed lubricators are

illcd on all pumps and also on the

main cngir,'

The hou-.e service consists of a hot-
and a cold-water supply, the latter com-
ing direct by gravity from a tank on
roof, while the former i> supplied
from an auxiliary he a ng exhaust

steam, but having .i mcctlon

for use when ncccssa

The steam heating is done on t
hop & Babcock air-line vacuum sysi
and contains 8000 square feet of J
In this system there i* a
gle Met connc each radi-

ator, and the air is removed through an
automatic air valve into a vacuum main-
d by a hydraulically operated pump.
The op of the vacuum pump will

be apparent on referc The

suction line of th arith

the main air line through a coil placed
in an <>■, tank to which the

the »atcr cylinder "f the
pump w p:prj ir. such a manner that
the amour.' ' as

shown at S The orerfloa from the tsnk
goes to the »e»er The tank
densing anv »team that migr • i«n

the air leaks*:

Improper setting before entering
pumr A diaphragm valve is place '
the water

the pump auction and can I
to maintain anv degree of vacut

att and one 100-kilo

-s. they delivered a brake
lightly ian 29

pour cam per hour.

of the engine room.
The decoration of the room consists of
a green-painted wainscoting with cream-
colored walls and ceiling. The engines
are finished in green enamel with
trimmings and harmor ih their

>undings. The engine-room f

A rccorj

han

The
diff Messrs. Latichhanr

from s !,ng

that thi i hammer ■

itcd on

»! power plant to
the var r same

time, a centra!

at Grtba i ur districts of

iom of

led at the La uch hammer
plant. 7 imos of 5000 k

ich arc being > J. and two

a cement-floor fl:
I smooth, n

»m.

and c^r-. i rj

ISWfofBM

POWER

January 10, 1911.

A Slowly Moving Positive Valve Gear

E. Frikart, of the Alsatian Machine
Building Company, at Mulhouse, Ger-
many, has designed a novel valve
gear for steam engines, in connection
with which the admission and out-
let piston valves are arranged sep-
arately at each end of the cylinder,
tangential to the latter and at right
angles to its axis, being actuated
through an eccentric from a side shaft
which moves only at half the speed of
the crank shaft of the engine, so that the
opening and closing of the steam chan-
nels, with two strokes of the working
piston, occur during one stroke of
the valve. The steam admission is con-
trolled immediately by a governor act-
ing on the admission piston valve of the
high-pressure cylinder.

It is well known that the increasing
speeds used in connection with modern
steam engines entail a positive motion,

By Dr. Alfred Gradenwitz

Separate steam and exhaust
valves of the piston type ar-
ranged tangentially to the
cylinder and operated by
eccentrics on a lay shaft
which revolves at one-half
the speed of the main shaft.

gear and the waste spaces are reduced
to a minimum, both in regard to their
surface and volume. For (.lie same rea-
son an entirely positive valve gear can
be used, in connection with which any
spring for actuating the slide valves is
dispensed with.

same side of the cylinder, is operated
b> the same eccentric mounted on a side-
shaft, parallel to the cylinder axis, which
is actuated from the crank shaft through
a pair of gears at a ratio of 1 to 2. Thus
the eccentric turns through only 180 de-
grees during each full revolution of the
crank, so that the admission valve operated
by it moves from right to left only. The
eccentric then moves an equal distance
during the ensuing revolution of the
crank, thus performing a full revolution
of 360 degrees, and causing the slide
valve to return to its initial position from
the left to the right.

Each full revolution of the eccentric
thus corresponds to two full revolutions
of the crank, or to put it in other terms,
while the piston in the cylinder changes
its direction of motion twice, the slide
valve makes only a single change in di-
rection. The channels in the valve box

Fig. 1. Cross-sections through Valves of High- and Low-pressure Cylinders

while the high steam pressures and high
temperatures require the arrangement of
balanced slide valves, so as to insure a
smooth working of the engine. Such
valves are, for instance, piston valves
with self-tightening obturating rings
which slide in turned boxes arranged
tangentially at the ends of the cylinder.
These piston valves will grind them-
selves of their own accord into their
boxes, so as to require no special grind-
ing. The steam distribution, owing to
the large lap, is entirely insensitive in re-
gard to end play in the outside valve

This advantage is utilized in a most
ingenious manner in connection with the
positive valve gear described herein,
which works at only half the speed of
the steam engine. Fig. 1 shows a cross-
section through the slide valves of the
high- and low-pressure cylinders of the
1000-horsepower tandem-compound en-
gine represented in Fig. 2. Figs. 3 and 4
show the corresponding diagrams of the
valve gears.

Each system of two slide valves, the
upper one of which admits the steam
while the lower one exhausts it from the

are opened and closed by the slide valve
in the following manner:

Supposing the admission slide valve in
opening the channels to move from
the right to the left, until the eccentric
has completed its motion (correspond-
ing to a full revolution of the crank),
during the same time these chan-
nels should be opened by the slide valve,
and closed again after the steam has
been allowed to enter the cylinder. The
opening, as represented in Fig. 3, is ef-
fected by the valve edge e and the clos-
ing by the edge /. The slide valve thus

January 10. 1911.

POU

passes by the valve port in a con-

tion both in opening and closing the
channels.. The latter will be opened en-
. when the apertures of equal

magnitude are sit. •!>■ bet*

the edges of the valve port. From this
moment they again begin to close.

buring the next full revolution of the
ctank, the steam admission in regard to
the cylinder will be the same. How-

intermediary between the opening
ng poi:

!e path of the is con-

rably longer than of the

n these i as ot

I for actuating gears working

at norn.

The relation between t: boring

edges of a i of

• rt in the valve

the rear Y ij> mj b«_»th

onnectc by an

angle lever, the mocior

•cm rt to one anc

ince r

gly the decree
of admission.

rom the

arc ac- rough a guide

Fir. T*M>:

ever, the eccentric now move* through

and tin \alvc. without any

•Iteration in its direction of motion, re-
turn* to it* initial p ' "• 'he left to

'luring this motion of the valve,
the cJkc-< f .m! i ungc their rc^,

t ins. the r effecting the

ing and the latter th< The

valve thus actuallv ui half

the nut: hanges in n as the

r ton itself.

nt of the manner in uhich
the

the Mrokc of the the nv '

.in be Iran-

• the ilidc valve, thu* di*pc^
with any spring i

ment a« oi with a mcw to

reducing the lap. A« th
both In opening and d
their »en*c of direction una
effective opening path it dr-
the circumference on the cc< i

box la on the cf* -oke

.i given dui
and exhaust. Any alteration in thia du
■

;cn these ncighb

pressure ad
hjl\ I, thi

>n be coo*

■

and

t it

In or'
e regulated bj the governor, each
half • connect.

Is hoi*

being tra»cr»*J I rod of

and a

I notion of

- "

pinon stroke. Only when the guide, bv

round.

recti the , e angle erfll

Tgit

•ting rouoJ
The lifting of this vrrtlcnl W

edge*, end sccocdlngrr ••*> doretien of
•n ndrnisoioe. loworlug •

ration Thin entnlls • -»•

otha

ac of

Any slwr-

edges would w '•-' ••«" ••« •*•'>" the

POWER

January 10, 1911.

duration of steam admission, but the ad- with the higher position of the governor, This half-speed valve gear is specially
mission lead as well, an increase cor- no throttling is noticed in the entering adapted for high-speed engines to which
responding to a considerable admission, steam. As the piston valve is balanced an entirely smooth running and in-
and a decrease to a small one. In order while its frictional resistance, like those creased efficiency are insured by the pos-
to prevent this the governor shaft by
the action of the vertical lever raises

the guide of the eccentric into a given ■ ^

position, corresponding to a constant ad-
vance in regard to the eccentric curve.
In spite of any alteration in the distance
of the edges, as adjusted by the gov-
ernor to the duration of steam admis-
sion, the port opening thus commences

'Outlet.

' Valve Travel

Fig. 3. Diagram of Valve Gear for
High-pressure Cylinder

Fig. 4. Diagram of Valve Gear for Low-pressure Cylinder

always at a given point of the eccentric of valve rods moving in metal stuffing itive motion. As the slide valves are

curve. boxes, is quite immaterial, the reaction arranged tangential to the cylinder, no

The passage opening between the two on the governor is extremely slight, and attention need be paid to the valve gear,

valve edges corresponds, with any owing to the absence of any spring actu- all the parts of which are visible and ac-

change, to a given ratio between the ating the slide valves, practically con- cessible during the mounting and un-

steam and piston speeds, so that even stant. mounting of the piston.

Water Hammer and Boiler Explosions

In a previous issue a correspondent
asked, "If water hammer is possible when
a master valve is opened, even with
haste, why is it not present with all of
its alleged destructive effects every time
that the safety valve blows?"

It is generally accepted that these two
cases are not analogous. It must be
borne in mind that the following ex-
planations are theories, for it is prac-
tically impossible to obtain definite proof
of the actual phenomena which occur
when water hammer is set up or when a
boiler or a steam pipe bursts. These
theories, however, are the ones most
easily reconcilable to the facts of the
occurrences.

By A. Vincent Clark

Theories of cause of boiler
explosions in which water
hammer and the sudden lib-
eration of large quantities of
steam resulting from quick
opening of a valve explain
violence of some explosions.

It is with explosions similar to that
which recently occurred at Canton, where
an apparently sound boiler exploded from
a cause which could not definitely be as-

certained, that these theories help toward
a solution; it must be admitted that an
engineer faces one of the most difficult
tasks in his profession when he is called
upon to give the cause of such an ex-
plosion, and there is not a subject upon
which greater diversity of opinions is
held by experts.

Water hammer in steam pipes is not an
uncommon occurrence; it more often oc-
curs when turning on steam to a line of
piping, and its presence can be guar-
anteed if the steam is turned on too
quickly; but it will also occasionally oc-
cur in pipes which have been conveying
steam for some time; however, it is held
by many engineers that this latter case

January 10. 1911.

POU

is completely overcome if the steam-pipe
line is arranged so that it has a con-
tinuous fall from the boiler live
to the engine, with no sharp bends, and
with all branches provided with a stop
valve close to the pipe, or the branches
cntly drained.
In the only case with which the writer
has had experience this opinion was
found to be justified, for a most unman-
Me water hammer, which occasional-
ly occur B the main engine
running with a 'oad, was com-
pletely cured b Jing efficient traps
for all of the branches of the steam
line.

all cases of water hammer the p
are subjected t shocks, and when

. inlcnt. such as is call
rapidly turning on steam, a broken stop
valve or a bur lit

There arc ft Sanations of the

phenomena which occur in this case
which rt

that water lying in the pipe is caught up
by the incoming steam and is blown like
a shot until it is brought up by the end
of the pipe or by the stop valve; the
other is, that steam coming into contact
with the cold water lying in the

thus p- g a

vacuum into which this steam and water
arc pn * itb- exj force.

It will be seen that these two thco-
can account for all of the a. due

to water hammer, and it can be rca

important it is that the vel<
the steam first entering the. ; <>uld

•he attainment of

■<Uld

be opened very si

also another reason why the
sudden opening of the boiler-stop valve
is dan*: »r the stc.i

is well known that a safety rah

is much water as steam. The
action of opening p valve quickly

is c • -the

saft
able that, cning the

from thi
the steam pipe at a high
shot along the pipe until it
By the end of the pipe, tl
water hammer,
cars ag<> l» K and

advanced a
ling the violen

the bc»t thai
e and
qualified, acceptar

Thev held that in violent the

King up of the boiler
n with great \
the shall bs the steam

of the wati the

It It admitted that lb

arc some
ch cannot be satisl

Taking cases of boiler explosions due
to the corrosion of the nay be

assumed that in the case of I
plates sudden!-.
thus ir:

duction of pre

the \cr> rapid production of a lar.
ume of steam, whereas in the caat
the lc<s violent explosions the
fracture of the plate might be small and
simp an eft fflJlar to

that of the opening of the sa-
and <>n of the fracture be ;

curing the escape of the steam
and

This explanat as

0 that the intensity of any
lent upon the I
however, is only applicable to cases
where the boil, to the

-s of their plates, and these are
not a lai 'ion of the violent

p lo-
ons have been attribi.
to t: team generate e pun.

of *. nto a boiler when

: due to the water
i cases, ur
the flues ar J by the overheat-

ing ulgcd.

conceive how a boiler can e

n the mass of metal and the spe
heats of I are

taken into account, it m.t
said that the red-hot fl not

generate more steam than the sal
off.
Tl ilt of tv

lid only be leaky seams an.!
is is assumed, the strength of the
't affected, and that

unless

the ca be

sought elscwhc

Another l
of b is and i

sblc cause has been a I

ibsorbcd s
of

>uld be

» to

bxi

r • • '
water at a'
-

»nd.

theory are attained for

»» the
theory has been

* a Aim or

and the plates an.

unisaioa >

be iac
u latton

educing the prea*.
opening the sa

■ .

Mar
■

the one preceding them. I
case r above the steaaa

that is rapidly generated by the o
heated flue.

It i> well knovr
dangerous to sudJ a boiler

**ure I the boiler

tin. an: held by n

ingcroof to
a boiler to a steam n

the same in both

casv

Unless certain cond nt.

this

:. , .

same pressure should be a safe proceed*

c same present ".cult te

see that anything other tl quails-

would oca

e other b

i . be ai
•n of water a bo*
be oper.
theoric* of '

■ that

18 pro.:

pleasea »hm the step ratee hi *uddr
opened. The steam from the hoik-
oncc comes into coat star

ooodcaaro

•

c te
rring ooe of the

1 the ;

the pre ..urc la the ho
- which
>p l ould N

viol J aUglh'

daced the saaktac
boil ahnoet • scirace. and whea

thorough!* b\ the portion then ho«l*r

'i sloes will ha Ires oaaasaaa;
aaaiaatiea of the record* ef

-« efsra
the - Eftserctiea. ar the

(sr iwss rarleau ef the
■

oeearraag ea i

POWER

January 10, 1911.

The Steam Turbine in Germany

Rateau Wheels

The distribution of the whole drop of
energy over the single stages is per-
formed in various ways. Of importance
is the consideration of the critical-pres-
sure ratio (1.83 for superheated and 1.73
for saturated steam), a limit which one
does not like to surpass as long as guid-
ing apparatus with parallel walls are em-
ployed, though, today, the necessity of
competing with other makes forces the
designer, by decreasing the number of
stages, to reduce the floor space of tur-
bines, thereby lowering also the cost per
horsepower. Thus it often becomes nec-
essary to go beyond the above-named
limit of critical-pressure ratio, especially
in the last stages of turbines. Often a
lower drop of energy is employed in the
first stage in order to diminish the wind-
age and friction work of the first wheel
and to get as low pressures as possible
upon the stuffing box.

Generally speaking, it is customary to
divide the total drop of energy in such a
way as to attain as far as possible equal
outputs for each stage; that is to say, the
effective velocities of issue from tne gufd-
ing apparatus of each stage are then the
same. In the case before us we have
attempted to attain this condition for the
sake of simplicity. In view of the fact
that the sum of the respective energy
drops of each stage becomes somewhat
greater than the total theoretical drop
of energy on account of the reheating of
the steam — by the influence or rather in-
flux of the heat caused by the losses^
and further, in view of the other fact
that to the energy drop of the second
and third stages is added the exit energy

— from the preceding stage, we have

determined the energy drop in the single
stages by way of experimentation.

Fig. 17 shows the Mollier diagram con-
taining all the values of the steam in
the various stages. Thus for the first
stage the heat drop is found to be 52.2
B.t.u. Fig. 18 shows the velocity dia-
gram.

The theoretical velocity of the steam
leaving the first stage is

Co = 223.8 ]/ 52.2 = 1618 feet per second

The effective velocity of issue
c, = 1618 X 0.95 = 1537 feet per second.
The circumferential velocity, as deter-
mined above, is N = 515 feet per second.
By completing the entrance triangle we
get w,, while coefficient f, from Fig. 12,
for a blade angle of 24 equals 0.82. Hence,
W2 = 0.82 Wi, and by completing the exit
triangle, c« = 442 feet per second.

Thus we get from equation 9 (January
3)

By F. E. Junge and

E. Heinrich

For high economy at compet-
itive prices a Curtis wheel in
the high-pressure part, util-
izing about one-third of the
available energy, and Rat-
eau wheels in the low-press-
ure part is the construction
adopted as standard by the
great majority of German
builders of impulse tur-
bines.

M=z 0.6

442-

29 X778

2.3 B.t.u.

The energy drop of the following stages
we take as 49.9 B.t.u. and get as the en-
ergy of the steam issuing again 49.9 +
2.3 = 52.2 B.t.u. The same result is at-
tained in the third stage. As was said,
this accordance of the velocities of issue
and therefore of the outputs of the vari-
ous stages cannot be quite exactly fig-
ured out beforehand, but must be found
out by trial, more or less.

The indicated efficiency is found from
the diagram to be

_ 2.515(1485 + 273) _

* I6l8* ~ °-69

hence,

R = (1 —0.69) 52.2 = 16.2.

The windages are determined with the
assumption of a mean admission diam-
eter of D = 3.28 feet, and a mean blade
length of V2 inch = 0.0416 foot. The
specific volumes v and thereby the

specific weights 7 = - are found from

the Mollier diagram.

The losses through leakage on the
wheel hubs were determined from equa-
tion 7 under the assumption d0 = 190
mm. = 0.624 feet, s = 0.3 mm. = 0.000985

Stage.
1.) R

« 5

3.) Vihol"

4.) M

L = l + 2 + 3 — 4
Converted energy. .
Utilized energy. . . .

16.2

4.4

2.8

1.9

2.3

18.3

18.6

52.2

49.9

33.9

31.3

16.2
1.7

1.1

2.3
16.7
49.9
33.2

feet (see Fig. 11), which corresponds to
conditions as they obtain in actual prac-
tice. The results of the calculation of
losses have been assembled in the accom-
panying table, the sum of losses being
composed according to equation 11. The
energy utilized in each stage is obtained
as the difference of the converted energy
and of the losses. (All amounts of loss
in the accompanying table are expressed
in B.t.u.)

From this table the total amount of
utilized energy is obtained as

He = 33.9 + 31.2 + 33.2 = 98.3

Therefore the internal efficiency of the
Rateau stages:

983
17 = — 7 = 67 .4 per cent.
146

With the assumptions upon which we
have based this calculation the thermal
efficiency of the Curtis wheel is 64.4
per cent, and that of the Rateau wheels
67.4 per cent. As far as heat economy
is concerned the Rateau wheels for the
size of turbine in question appear there-
fore superior.

Additional Losses

To the above losses as determined by
calculation is to be added a comparatively
small amount of such losses, the heat of
which does not reenter the steam but is
carried off through conduction and radia-
tion one way or another. These losses are:
(a) the external mechanical losses
through friction of bearings and stuffing
boxes, as well as by the work which is
consumed for operating governor and oil
pumps; (b) the steam losses through the
high-pressure stuffing box and other leak-
ages; (c) the losses through radiation of
the casing.

We note that the sum of these addition-
al losses amounts for the size of turbines
considered to some 10 per cent, of the
total losses, which is about 3 per cent,
of the total capacity of the turbine. Con-
cerning loss a, both systems are on a
par. As to the losses b and c, the Cur-
tis system is somewhat superior, because
it employs lower pressures and tempera-
tures in the casing. Thus in considera-
tion of these losses the comparison comes
out somewhat more favorable for the
Curtis wheel, more favorable at least
than the above numeric result would im-
ply. Yet, in view of the comparatively
small amount of additional losses, the
Rateau wheel after all appears un-
doubtedly superior.

Influence of Size of Turbine

So far we have only dealt with the
high-pressure part of a turbine of 1000
kilowatts capacity. Considering equation
1 1 for the losses

January 10, 1911.

}'<>U

we find the amount

/ =
9

which occurs only with Rateau wheels,

grows smaller with increasing steam

weight g and therefore with increasing

iction to the pure Cunis principle a
certain amount of heat is at the same

ling ap-
para-

One c from this conversion in

the second guiding apparatus a b<.

ng than
it transformation of en-
in that apparatus. This mode of
Ne con- rhrough

of issue from the guide wheel, so that
velocity from the last wheel of the

"' LLIER I' ' OP TH A

*l cost g, vtrile as an

I a good ccooor

careful de* Jmg %; .

and

-
augmc first coot against

oth
have the same number of stage*

mming up jf our

resent state
of the art of steam -tu ft ding it

ars unreasonable to point on*

•y*' It one boot

and conditions. There
are questions of -.rst co

eco- d oper ich should

■
erally speaking, one ma the

the «r
s of stationar. cs, as regards

heat economy and first cost
for the lar Katcau

cenainly in the low-pressure par

- in heat econom .
the larger size* the somewhat cheaper
on, lower weight and
smaller floor space ■

•n in fa. In the

case which we have considered ar-
high-pressure pan of a turbine of
kilowatts capacity, the Rateau

more advantagoou - a%

heat ccono

irrangement: Cunts
el in the h • sure part, utiliting

about one-:

output of the turbine, provided that all
the win the same and only

the cross-section of steam I en-

larged. That is to say. with increasing
output the efficiency of the Rateau w!
increases and therefore the tu|
of the Rateau over the Curtis tvpe.
the other hand, with decreasing cap.*
of rut the inline: the leakage

losses i au wheel* will be more

: and the Cunis wheel appears
advantage

Cov

who apply the C
stm Rateau and Zoelly

according • 14. have ■ the

c a* far as the Hou
stea cJ They u*e the fo!

Ing mode of d' !■ orJcr and

down to l'i - - immediately with

a vie* to keeping the windage of the
wheel and the losses through the I
pressure stuffing hot as lorn a* po«^

'.c In the first stage a high
steam velov ising conicall\

ing nor/les In this case the
Issue from the fir king wheel is

still considerable and muv 1 in

the following guiding apparatus (>■ the
richest possible extent Hut in OOP

■ the u

gr«'

•• of en<

■ I

stem a"
1 pres« '-ow-

images It posoeaoe* the coostm

the low pre**urr ;
utiliting about two-third* of the a«a
able cr

POWER

January 10, 1911.

Device for Preventing Smoke

Much has been written and many de-
vices used in the hope- of finding some
practical method of burning bituminous
coal in steam boilers without producing
an undue amount of smoke, but, because
of the numerous failures, the problem
is looked upon by many mill and factory
owners as a joke. There are many ar-
rangements of furnaces on the market
at present that accomplish the desired
result if properly handled, but the great
drawback is their excessive first cost and
lack of durability. However, there is a
method by which at small first cost any
mechanic can equip a horizontal tubular
boiler having a flush front in such a man-
ner that with proper care the results
will equal if not surpass the expensive
outfits installed in many large plants.

The immediate cause that led to the
construction of this device was the fact
that some years ago a large manufactur-
ing company had been induced to buy a
cargo of 500 tons of Nova Scotia coal,
and if there is anything that can beat it
as a smoke producer, I have yet to learn
what it is. I was called upon to devise
a means for overcoming the difficulty and
accordingly installed practically the same
device as here shown, except that there
was no coil in the breeching to super-
heat the steam, and cold air was taken
in from the fire-room floor and fed in
through the jets, whereas in the system
herein described the air is drawn in from
the breeching at a temperature which

_ OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
'OOOOOOOOOOOOOO OO

--.jl&»g3a^<a\&fe:-.V;&>-.'^^

■^//^yy^PVy^^^^yyyyy/yy^y^yy^y^

By W. H. Odell

Some of the excess air in the flue
gases is drawn from the breech-
ing by means of a jet of super-
heated steam and directed into
the combustion chamber. This
hot blast aids in the combustion
of the particles which would other-
wise escape up the stack
un urned.

Some years ago an inventor made the
claim, and apparently proved that there
were two currents of air in a smokestack,
the heated air or gases ascending the cen-
ter of the stack while a thin film of
cooler aid descended at the outer edge
of the stack, and my experience with
the ashpit doors closed seemed to con-
firm this theory.

I have never tried this device for
economy with bituminous coal, but have
tried it with anthracite coal and found
a gain of about 6 per cent, when sup-
plying the furnace with the heated air.
The steam consumed by the device is
about 1 per cent, of the total steam
generated by the boiler.

As shown by Fig. 1, three small cast-
iron boxes open at two sides are placed
in the bottom of the uptake and are con-
nected to the superheating coil in such a
way that the jets of heated air and steam

■^Superheating
Coil

vww//y////////////////y'///////y/f///////y///////////rf

■ Fig. 1. Coil in Place

averages about 600 degrees Fahrenheit
and there is always enough oxygen in
the uptake to support combustion. This
has been proved repeatedly in some of
my later installations by closing the ash-
pit doors, and opening only the fire doors
when feeding the furnace.

can readily be directed at any desired
angle, although the best pra-Uice seems
to be to direct them at an angle to meet
the junction of the grate bars with the
bridgewall. An enlarged view of the
steam jet is shown in Fig. 2 in order that
its construction may be more readily un-

derstood. These jets are of cast brass
about four inches long with a J^-inch
pipe thread cut on the outside, well down
co that adjustments can be made if de-
sired and then fixed by means of a
locknut. The connection to the steam
jet is made with a Yz-'mch tee in one
end of which is a plug; this is to permit
the insertion of a wire for removing any
obstruction that might get into the jet.
This device was patented during 1880
but as the life of the patent ran out many
years ago there is nothing to prevent any-
one from using it. I did not make any
serious effort to put this device on the
market because of the fact that about
the time it was perfected I became en-
gaged in other work which was more
pressing; but as an object lesson to Gome

Fig. 2. Section through Jet

young engineers it may be of interest to
relate some of my experiences with it,
as they show what many inventors have
to contend with.

At the plant for which this device was
gotten up there were six horizontal-tubular
boilers, and as the service required only
five of the boilers, it was arranged that
I should have the spare boiler upon
which to experiment. I took the precau-
tion to insert a piece of 2-inch pipe
through the back wall of the boiler set-
ting about 6 inches below the bottom of
the shell and as the outer end of this pipe
was covered with glass we had a con-
venient peep hole without admitting any
air.

When all was ready the five boilers
were fired with anthracite coal, leaving
the spare boiler to be fired with bitumi-
nous coal. Previous to cutting in with
the hot blast at every firing a volume
of dense black smoke would issue from
the top of the stack and would continue
for several minutes.

When one of the partners of the firm
reached the factory about 9 o'clock, he
immediately came to the fire room and
began to upbraid me, saying he had been
watching the top of the stack all morn-
ing and there was as much smoke as
when all the boilers were fired with soft
coal. I replied that my device had not
been tried as yet and that I wanted him
present when it was turned on for the
first time. Then I asked him to take his
station at the peep hole; a heavy charge
of coal was put on the grates, the fire
door was closed and nothing could be
seen through the peep hole except an
occasional tongue of flame showing
dimly through the smoke. However, the

January 10. 191 1.

P O W E K

mt the hot bla turned on the

effect was as if a gas jet had been
lighted in a dark room.

In about a minute the blast was shut
off and the smoke appeared again at
the top of the stack, apparently as dense
as ever. We made this change from

e smoke to no smoke at all. four

s before this first charge of coal was
of no further use to us.

aving the device for a few days that
It might be tried out to the fu
faction of the factory owners as well as
any of their interested emplo
finally called on them for tin Mich

had been promised if the re a

success, also to learn when it would be
convenient to have their other five boil-

httcd in a similar manner; but this
lime I met with the other partner, who. in

i as als< -chasing ag

and who assured me that the
had told them he could fit naining

boilers up for about
mittcd that this was approximately the

of the material used and as -
would :
the

be done at the figure •
minded him of our a. He re-

J that h t care a

mer.-

:ig my at that

d do nothing but order my
ke the >ut.

■
tion nting a man-

ufacturer at th

lant net a couple of young

ncd a small cotton mill at

ey had beard of

and two

soot and smol

■
them out I m
1 and

1 them*

J send me
mm bear from them u

a a
hot fire th.i J burn

thto
•rk-

man cat

of ' produced* and

■

Notes on Riveting Boiler Plates

The first consideration in driving ri
is the pitch for a g /e of rivet and

a given thickness of plat',
ahould be spaced close enough to permit
of good calking of the scam; at the same
lime. they, should be spaced far enough
apar- un-

able for a given thickness of plate. In
a triple J butt joint,

the outer row of rivets has a tch.

and in order to In •' nt caK

the outside bui J be hi

enough vic calking without

springing t-

st boiler ru! ulatc that the

s of the butt straps shall not be
less than f: the thict

the shell r
ahell p

ter pra. to make the butt straps

imc thickness as the she: The

tfa the light bill
to that it will spring between the r

'he necessary calking, forming
•mall water cham' n the >l

and the burl and tending to loosen

the

B) 11. S. Icftcry

« /.

./>?</ tin hoi*

jill the li

nt.

tct1

1 some
ng onh nch

■

th han.
■
anc<. n the id the

■ and tl
thicknesses of r' '■'
be >
the hoK
the sc.i
greater

The ma

I to fill

the st il blows from

knock -
ibe same moato
as i.

y more
than » ag, and the be*,

bio.

set should
be rmarioo of

iouId also be held erect, ho!

cerr

It is a!:Tu»*f u • make

the

ic ador

■ when and

hn«

and tl

the r»T"v

tire lengtl ng the

■at f the i

hamnv

too

j the

tnmcient n

ling the »*

ring or races* *"**

aroond the J tbto ihwolo*

Tbe name

POWER

January 10, 1911.

riveting also govern pneumatic riveting
to a great extent. With hydraulic rivet-
ing, it is possible to upset the rivet from
both ends, this being accomplished by
converting a cone-headed rivet into a
button-headed rivet. With hand, snap
and pneumatic riveting, the newly formed
rivet head is usually on the outside of
the boiler, while with hydraulic riveting it
is usually on the inside of the boiler. In
the former cases the rivet hole is filled
in the outer sheet, and in the latter it
is filled in the inner sheet. But, by con-

verting the rivet head as mentioned, theat all times be well up against the sheet

rivet hole is usually filled in both the
inner and outer sheets.

Regardless of the manner of riveting,
the sheets should be metal to metal, for,
if apart, the rivet will upset and form a
ridge between the sheets, which will keep
them apart and also require the rivets
to be longer than would be necessary
if the plates were metal to metal.

The manner of holding the rivet when
driving is equally as important as the
manner of driving. The rivet head should

at all points. The holding-on bar should
bear against the rivet so as to not shape
the rivet head as shown in Fig. 1. With
snap riveting there is a tendency for the
rivet heads to crack, and to overcome
this the usual practice is to cup the hold-
ing-on bar to suit the rivet head, but the
depth of the cup is made from % to 3/32
inch less than the depth of the head so
that the holding-on-bar will not come in
contact with the plate; this is indicated in
Fig. 2.

An Investigation of Bearing Metals

The choosing of his materials of con-
struction, in the face of modern competi-
tion, often becomes a serious problem
to the manufacturer of machinery, and is
worthy of serious study.

The use of some 400 tons of babbitt
metals per annum, by a company en-
gaged' in the manufacture of heavy
power-plant prime movers, was deemed
to be a sufficient reason to justify a
thorough investigation of the physical
properties of those metals. In conse-
quence, a series of friction tests were
carried on, of sufficient length to quite
completely determine the running char-
acteristics of a number of different mix-
tures.

The object of the work done was
largely to determine whether or not the
cost of making bearings could be reduced
without lowering the factor of safety to
a dangerous point.

The cost of materials for the different
mixtures varied from about 7 to 33 cents
per pound. In view of this fact, some of
the results obtained were decidedly in-
teresting. There are many places in
modern machine construction where the
designs can be made such as will permit
of low unit pressures on bearing surfaces,
so that a cheaper bearing metal can be
safely introduced.

Cheaper Construction
In many instances, pressures now used
will permit of less costly construction,

By H. B. McDermid

Actual conditions under
which tests were made of
seven different bearing met-
al mixtures of tin-lead-an-
timony and copper-tin-an-
timony alloys.

direction, as in many forms of motor
bearings, generators, steam turbines, etc.
An example of this is a 6500-kilowatt
dynamo running in two bearings 14x48
inches each, where the unit pressure due
to dead load is but 70 pounds per square
inch, and where, being direct connected
to an hydraulic turbine, the pressure is
always steady and in one direction. This
machine was furnished with a supposedly
high-grade babbitt at a cost of some 25
cents per pound, when test results proved
an 8-cent mixture to be superior in every
case under those conditions, and showed
it to be fully capable of carrying the
load at all times, even when the magnetic
pull due to an unbalanced air gap was
taken into consideration.

Conditions of Tests

The tests were run, for the most part,
upon a homemade machine, so arranged

Fio. 1. The Testing Machine for Bearings

especially as, in some instances, the
higher-priced metals do not show as high-
grade performance as some mixtures
whose costs do not exceed 40 per cent,
of their more costly competitors. This
is markedly true of bearings running
under good lubricating conditions, with
the pressure constant and always in one

that any desirable load could be placed
upon the test piece, which was made in
the form of an upper half box, covering
a full half of a 7-inch journal. The
journal was carried in side bearings of
ample area to insure their safely carrying
all loads imposed upon them. The sur-
face speed at the test piece was 480

feet per minute and at the side bearings
220 feet per minute.

No appliance was provided for the di-
rect measurement of the friction de-
veloped, so that the rise in temperature
was taken as the only indication of the
friction of the rubbing surfaces, and
with cool running side bearings so that
no outside error could creep in to any
extent. This method was found to be
amply accurate and satisfactory for the
comparative tests desired.

The Test Machine and Bearings
The general arrangement of the ma-
chine is shown in Fig. 1, where C is an
adjustable counterweight used to balance
the system of levers shown, and W is a

/i5

! i i

Oil

"^5

Fig. 2. The Test Bearing

weight pan used for loading the test
piece T. The ratio of the force exerted
at W to that at T was 1 to 70. It was
thus comparatively easy to get relatively
high unit pressures on the test piece,
which measured 7 inches in diameter and
2 inches long.

A side elevation and plan, and a de-
veloped plan of the test bearings is shown
in Fig. 2. Here A indicates a thermome-
ter well, drilled diagonally down through
the stop piece S which is on each side.
During actual work, this stop piece rests
against the frame of the machine in such

January 10, 1911.

p o \x

a manner as to prevent rotation about the
shaft. To render the sketch clearer, this
portion of the frame is not shown in
1. The thermometer well was drilled so
the bulb of the instrument would rest at
s point . inch above the bearing surface
of the babbitt and in the middle of the
test piece, as measured along the axis of
-haft. H is the place for introducing
ubricating oil, which was fed from a
drop-feed oil cup during the final te-

In the developed plan, a system of air
and oil grooves is shown. These were
the same for each specimen, and were cut
so as to finish 3 16 inch half round in
section. The air groove was found nec-
essary in order to earn off air that
drawn in by the rapidly rotating shaft,
which otherwise was forced out at H in
quantities great enough to render uncer-
tain if not absolutely d he lubricat-
ing of the piece. In order to have it in
per vmrkinK condition the edges of
groove must tightly fit the journal at

J«0
■I
J<
ISO

1*0

lJj

100

10
X>

and yet run vudcly different

To this end, then, the babbitt vas c*
fully melted, in clean ladles, so no dross
nor undue burning or overheating might
fcrm gritty or abr.i >r surf

that might cause friction and heating; the
1 was carefully anchored in the shells
so that it might a:

uniform backing to transmit the
heavy pressures of the of loading

a ith no springing, breaking, or
pinching; it war. closely bored to fit the
journal, and machined to exact dimen-
sions; and the journal was ground

o that for each
: the C' ucrc made as

nearly uniform as good mechanical skill
could make them.

The test pica -ed to the machine

placing it upon the journal and fitting

the Mup* ss until both bore equally

upon their on the frame of the

machine within the limit of 1 IUOO of an

lllcd

lad

■*"■—

/•'

^""

•ja

ftjfi

nl.

All

Bb ».>

I ■ ■ SJO ; • >■ H »00

Tint* from tWinnm* of Run in Minute*.

■

1ST OP T HI f "i K H

the inside edge I) and be loose and free
at the outer edge //. The mixture of air
and oil that adheres to th •• is then

off by edge l> and def the

-. of the piece, th' ring un-

rbed luhru ' the rubbing parts.

:mirc thorough spreading of the en-
tering oil. the oil channels arc well re-
ed at the side*

P*eca' Taken

prrcai **iblc wa« taken

to insure uniform working
Mdl that the tent might be

accurate, at lea*'
parative result* It was 4*..crtaincd that
after minute and careful
lest piece* might appear
might be of the time material, have
parentis identical smoothness of glared
■urfacc, be treated as closely alike

inch, thus eliminating the posst1
any son of side twist being introdi
The at / uas *n v

load per

J and thu« iatc all pressure*

not in a vertical plane passing through
the ccr-

h of th' irnal.

these mean*
■

beer
|

P«i nit Bf

The bearing potted

upon

the

and air groo\< sad

finished H

oil bath ar.J run T'c

hearing was placed un '
at first and ill

:
the be .i

and would run at a cool
loads,
i nis latter pc>

-•» may a;

' and g la/ c . a i | vea

gh of the same material, one
coo: i up under s load that would

the otl

n the clotett iaapao*

not a running test

* I

I n

from ten
to the material tested snd to the

with which the prcliv

quent fitting had been done During this

cr allowed tn rise above 220 ds great

-
•i the n.

inJ mi ; . iniurr

The run was k

tTftff^

•era 600 t'

run fairlv cool The

n silo

• ! J I I • ■ i . " •

• v

sa
gkl

■ a?
ccmoo
crhcr

.: occii
b the
"t of the rubbi;
rnsl or test r

Tuts

•aely
K the Hi

J letting tys—
e tetnr the

• rd high grsda
Bkiestf swr
hand to permit of the whale aerit
tests he

iard ae*r oil
snd the J apoa the bearing

4 mg to Nr taa*l

are af 200
•quart hsch K

minutes, until the temperature of the
bearing became constant within two de-
grees Fahrenheit for three-quarters of
an hour. The load then to be increased
to 300 pounds per square inch with tem-
perature readings taken as before. The
load then to be increased to 400 pounds,
and so on until failure occurred by fu-
sion of the mixture under test.

5. All tests must be judged by the
same thermometers. The thermometer well
must be filled with oil at starting so the
heat from the bearing will be readily and
accurately transmitted to the bulb of the
instrument.

6. Care must be taken to have all
parts of the machine in proper adjust-
ment and kept so. All other condi-
tions must be kept as nearly standard as
possible, so the working will be thor-
oughly reliable as a comparative test.

Duplicate Tests

After the test had been run to the
finish by "failure," a process that neces-
sarily had to be completed without in-
terruption of any kind, and which lasted
from 3 to 15 hours with varying grades
of metals, the machine was dismantled,
and the journal taken out and reground
until it was again perfectly true, straight
and cylindrical. A second bearing was
then put through its preliminary prepar-
ation and its final test run under the
same conditions as the first had been, as
nearly as care and skill could reproduce
them.

Each mixture, as it was physically
tested, was also chemically analyzed so
that the effect of the various ingredients
could be noted and recorded. Its price
was also taken into account, so that a
comparison of worth per dollar of cost
could be mac^e. In every case several
duplicate tests were run in order that
checks on each of the earlier tests could
be had, with each mixture and in every
case, and the average of several tests is
used in compiling the accompanying data:
Four mixtures containing high per-
centages of lead were used, and three
containing high tin percentages. Table
1 gives the chemical analysis of all the
mixtures used. The capitals L and T in-
dicate the major portion of each alloy, as
being either lead or tin.

Details of Tests

The chart, Fig. 3, of the final test per-
formance is plotted with time as ab-
scissas and differences between room and
bearing temperatures as ordinates. The
first section represents the record under
200 pounds load, the second that of 300
pounds load, etc.; the point where the
load was changed being indicated by a
short vertical line. The sudden verf«cal
break in the last section indicates the
point where lubrication failed and the
oil grooves smeared over, resulting in the
complete and rapid destruction of the

POWER

piece under test. To avoid confusion and
undue crowding only the four most rep-
resentative records are plotted.

Table 2 summarizes the increases in
temperature for each load, the duration
of run under each load and gives an ap-
proximate price per pound of each mix-
ture.

The behavior of these bearings under
the preliminary tests as well as in the
final tests was very interesting. For in-
stance, the high-lead mixtures, which, of
course, would not stand peening into the
shell, gave considerable trouble at first
in obtaining a good support or backing
for the bearing metal to the shell. This
was because of their high shrinkage co-
efficient. The high tin alloys which do
not shrink so much, in case of the
anchors not being sufficient, could be
peened solidly into the shell, and so
eliminate troubles of this sort.

The high-lead bearings being the soft-
er, were brought to a good running fit
easier, but they would not recover when
neglected or abused, with anywhere
near the facility of the high tin mixtures.

The Mixture to Choose

Those mixtures showing a high con-
tent of antimony, as L3, were naturally
hard and took a considerable length of
time to come to their running fit. They
were, therefore, somewhat less desirable
than the softer materials, since any of
the mixtures, well lubricated, will wear
well enough for ordinary machine work,
and the important quality of a babbitt
mixture is its ability to adapt itself
quickly to a deformed or roughened
journal without undue heating or cut-
ting.

The tenacity of the tin and copper in
mixture Ti, combined with the ductility,
render it easily the best of the group,
but the high-lead mixture L4 seems the
best of the combinations here listed, for
ordinary work.

The high cost of mixture 7\ puts it
entirely out of the question, except where
special service requiring high quality to
stand rough hard usage is demanded, or
where the type of service makes unin-
terrupted running so important as to over-
shadow the item of first cost. In all
other cases, of ordinary service, the tests
show such an alloy as LA to be very
satisfactory, especially where, under rea-
sonable conditions, a bearing may be
expected to have good ordinary care, and
a steady load in one direction, without
violent and sudden reversals of pres-
sures.

Even under such conditions, some prac-
tical master mechanics of long and va-
ried experience in heavy rolling-mill
work, have assured me that they would
just as soon have a mixture like L4
placed in the bearings of a number of
3000-kilowatt gas-engine units, then un-
der discussion, as to use the mixture sim-

January 10, 1911.

£rt|. .

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January 10. 1911.

POW

Har to T2. which was furnished. They
assured me they had cured obstinate
•s of hot bearings, where sevcra
ies of tin mixtures had failed, by re-
placing them with a high-lead mixture.
This ran very cooly from its first start
and thereafter gave no further trouble.

Summaky

It is not my purpose to ct.ter into
any long or intricate -ion of the

problems of bearing design, but in these

when forced and ample. e*en
cessivc, lubrication is daily becoming
more popular, it would seem as if the
conditions such as were used in the
could be closely approximat. nost

cases and thus the cheaper bearing be
safelv introduc

lf the of master mechanics

Heel plants is
such as to find the high-lead bearing ac-

- the rough usage of h-.
rolling-mill and the \.
practice kr.

thy of a fair trial.
It is my own that a mixture

simil-r to T2 has stood t* ars

of gem at from 60 to 90

pounds dead-load unit ;
possibility of a magnetic pull, due to an
unbalanced air gap. doubling that pi

en-
gine main icrc the press
with-'

and in crank-pin b here

the momer.* at the point of

to the cylinder reach

a maximum of 1400 pound*

If arc of so poor a teat record

■vc. has so good a record
ual service under
>n«. should not a
of a highly su;

por -J by .

4 seem so,
and I arfll thai

e esse
under
.trios sow g.

nt.

Compression in Steam Engines

It has been demonstrated by the labora-
tory of applied mechanics of the Uni-

that the law of compr
sion of steam in the engine is not the
same as that of expansion, and it is not
necessary, it appears Id -carch fur-

ther for the loss of economy, due to the
compression of the steam in the clearance
spaces, discovered experimentally
lessor I)wclshau\ ■

There has been a collection of fa
h have been brought to light at the
laboratory of Liege, where I have the
honor to labor under the orders of the
learned professor, and in collaboration
with my lamented brother. < I

Jo not permit of any
doubt upon this subject.

The genius of Hirn had led him
foresee a thing which we find it

simple at natural. He im-

• d that the temperature of the metal
Of the cylinder •. ecn III

much more na ian th- I the

rcraturc of the working and

the conclusion which he imrm
duced was that the vapor was dry at the
•he cxhaus' the hot metal

had had the time to r<. ite the Him

of water which had been
This pr

was not general! hen

Georges D - a striking demon-

stra- the fact that it could not be

©the - 'hat only those

remain ignorant of these
proof* of the laws of pi
■ acquievre in them

'icsne had aire ter-

mined the temperature of the metal dur-
ing the ixhSttSl el dM HeesH and the
comprehension of the phenomena
pended onlv upon a knowledge of the

of
water What would happen to Mi

t*r

By Armand I hichesne

77;. in the

//.;/ the to ti

and th* \m. In U

tlm.;> |

;tn ad\

theconiainit

(l A:

; / tin: the

, \li.nt

.' <;>/«/ »;
n nu

I ■
a ut hot. k
I

at the ten.;
und<
an i

>d Geo-
A rtncsHee of this

have been oc.

in obtaining it The problem which

set for our

if the - am

and of the metal for the >ket of

the piston forming a comp

method has been discuss

jodified ind

rrmom

n heat test

be no lag. and we chose a

a pla:

a r
btrg

all • i to tee

one of e other

cesses,

>f r Vc »!c ati

ng the

HlllMt during

a deterr- roe. on* i second

h sa th'

Tees

costinne for the reesired
* speed
ninutf to one-rarer-

• r '•rtcenglr

POWER

January 10, 1911.

fore, only to bring about the fall of this
weight at the commencement of each one-
twentieth of a revolution to arrive at the
average temperature during the succes-
sive twentieth.

In order to realize this we have divided
the two strokes of the piston into sub-
divisions, which correspond to the
twentieth of a revolution (Fig. 1), and
an electric contact could be broken by
the crosshead itself at each of the sub-
divisions, in such a manner that the
weight during the entire time of its fall
will send the current furnished by the
pyrometer into the galvanometer during
the twentieth of a revolution, correspond-
ing to that division and giving, therefore,
the average temperature during this
twentieth. It will be seen, therefore, that
we' could obtain points on the curves of
the temperature of the steam and of the
metal for an entire revolution of the
crank, and it was necessary only to make
these diagrams correspond to the corre-
sponding two strokes of the piston in
taking account of the obliquity of the
connecting rod.

It goes without saying that if the speed
is other than 30 revolutions per min-
ute, one can calculate what must be
the hight of the fall of the weight, in

to.

\n 8

l6" 12 13 U 15 10

Stroke of the Piston

Fig. 1.

18 19 20
Power

order that it shall continue through one-
twentieth of the revolution of the engine.
If the speed is only 15 revolutions per
minute, the hight of fall of the weight
should be calculated for a value of two-
tenths of a second in order that it should
correspond to one-twentieth of a revolu-
tion. Before undertaking specially the
study of compression, we will describe
an example of a test made without steam
jackets, and which was made under the
following conditions:

Expansion, commencement, 0.1; end,
0.95.

Compression, commencement, 0.9; end,
1.

It will be seen that the admission con-
tinued for one-tenth of a stroke of the
piston, and that the compression was also
one-tenth of the stroke.

The diagrams of the temperature are
traced in Fig. 2, and we have added to
these experimental curves those repre-
senting at each instant the temperature
of saturation corresponding with the
pressure shown by the indicator and the
tables of saturated steam. It is seen at
once that, excepting during the admission,
the metal is always considerably warmer
than the working fluid. The points of
temperature of saturation are marked by
small circles, and the diagram which
unites them is traced in a dotted line. It
is easy to prove that the steam is super-

heated well before the end of the exhaust
stroke, with the result that at the com-
mencement of the compression the de-
gree of superheat attains 45 degrees.

During the expansion the two curves
of the temperature of the steam experi-
mentally determined and that of satura-
tion taken from the tables correspond
absolutely, and this suffices already to
show us clearly that the fluid which is
compressed is very different from that
which operates during expansion. But
we will show in that which follows the

condenser during the same time as if
we had a compression of only three-
tenths. This was necessary in order to
be able to draw the conclusions which
we were after, the assumption being
made that during this long compression
we should have thus about the same
weight of steam Mc, as if the compres-
sion had been shorter.

In Figs. 3 and 4 is given only that
which concerns the compression. First,
in Fig. 3, the experimental temperatures
of the steam and the cylinder wall, as

5 4 3 2 1

14 15 16

Stroke of the Piston.

19 20

Power

Fig. 2.

loss which is occasioned by compressing
the vapor in the clearance space, when
one exceeds a certain degree of com-
pression.

To this end we have arranged our en-
gine to realize a high degree of compres-
sion— nine-tenths of the stroke. In order,
however, to more nearly comply with or-
dinary conditions, this long compression
diminishing the time of exhaust, we have
so adjusted the engine that the cylinder
would remain in communication with the

a function of the path followed by the
crank pin, and in Fig. 4 these tempera-
tures refer to the path of the piston.
There is given also in a dotted line the
curve of the temperatures of saturation.
And now there exists no doubt that a
perfect gas is being compressed, the tem-
perature of the steam going up to 450
degrees, while the maximum temperature
of saturation is i bove 140 degrees, and
this demonstrates that the theorem of
Zeuner cannot be applied to the case

January 10, 1911.

PO\x I k

of the steam engines. We can, there-
fore, conclude at once that under the
conditions in which we compress this
Steam it will require exterior work, con-
siderably greater than that which it can
luce, especially during the expansion,
since at that time it operates under the
form of saturated steam.

Let us try now to examine the loss of
•.•ncy due to the compression in the
case under consideration. We will sup-
pose that the operation is adiabatic.** Let
us take as the average specific heat of
the superheated steam the figure 0

This would be nothing if the equiva
heat of this work could be retained in
the fluid to be utilized in the folio -

e. But what ha;
the point A at the temperature of

the fluid falls |y, the metal com-

mences to cool the steam because the
fcrence of temperature is enormous and
the piston is moving very slowly; an.
under these condition n port

of the metal remain cooler than the tem-
perature of saturation, the cool

uce condensation, and cond
means an exchange of hear iely

1 ■

-*'

- 1,

* .

(

• ■

3T>

ISO

140

ih.

JleU

J by Tf!i

ITS

■

__j

u u

One Half lUvolutlos of the Crank.

* */

/ T

I • •

•

•MkatfdM

which we will suppose constant to the intenM It ■ 111 bt

t; thai > the point of the heat wl
saturation. Leaving to n
of the | Jen fall I

In the »m and d

h will be explained later, we notice al
at A A that tt ha* raided II be con«

Ihc aturc ' ian that a >tb the

compression has produced work of

■

tag ram

-•

of ■

lose to us a gr<
We ha

area
■
tain the at
the aid of the plani- ■ find

the mean hight of
sior.

spring
gram per squa-
f°ri ssion a mean

grama per sq.
meter, the

pression being The

rfc of co- the

point A A ogram-

mcters, vtak csponds to

I sufficiently near to that

nd above to a- of the
exactift: ir mca-
If *c calculate the •*
mca he area of

gram. find 7I&206 Kilogram-

mctcrs. which correspond tc 1.678

calot oachsdt

that the loss of ti e caar>

hav an imponant fraction,

and that the 0.78-4 found

above, has a marked i *uence for this

arm

•

legrcc* I Ipotn the as*i Mich

ration ha-
quired an external -ual to

" K§m

hau

as cor* I 678

cal( . jc-

>pcd upon one "le

have
rcsalon • tenths of a

■ r

h more ma
can wc from itjld

I
ma- k

for a

cor

T
be '

•at
con ' - ! mnain asjpc

and instead of prodwetag a k>>
iir to tlhnlaash the taatt

•emtomt up

n tSc

i abaeli

.f the

us H

mci

so dc mir fffrttsj

POWER

January 10, 1911.

Primer of Electricity

By Cecil P. Poole

The Compound-wound Dynamo
In the lesson of November 8 it was
explained that the electromotive force at
the brushes of a shunt-wound dynamo re-
mains almost constant between no load
and full load, but that the drop in the
wires between the dynamo and the load
makes it necessary to increase the volt-
age of the machine, when the load in-
creases, in order to keep the voltage right
at the load.

The series-wound dynamo, on the other

Fig. 82. Circuits of a Compound-wound
Dynamo

hand, increases its voltage when the
armature current increases, because the
armature current passes through the field
winding. This feature of the series-
wound machine supplies just what the
shunt-wound machine lacks for constant-
potential work, but a simple series-wound
dynamo cannot be used for this kind
of work because its voltage varies too
much with load changes.

Therefore, a field winding has been
developed which is a combination of the
shunt and series windings — in fact, there
are two separate and distinct windings,
one a shunt winding and the other a
series winding, as indicated in Fig. 82,

excitation necessary to generate the
extra electromotive force required to
make up the drop in the dynamo and,
if required, that in the wires of the ex-
ternal or load circuits.

For example, suppose the internal re-
sistance of an 80-kilowatt dynamo were
1/35 of an ohm, the rated e.m.f. 230
volts and the full-load current 350
amperes. Then, at full load, the drop
within the dynamo itself would be

35o X & = 10
volts, and if it were not compound wound
the voltage at the terminals would be
only 220 volts at full load, unless the
field excitation were strengthened.

In order to make the series winding
strengthen the field excitation enough to
make up the 10 volts lost in the wind-
ings, it would be proportioned so that
with 350 amperes flowing through it, the
ampere-turns would produce enough ad-
ditional magnetic flux to enable the arma-
ture to generate 10 volts more than it
would with the shunt winding alone.
That is, the magnetism produced by the
shunt winding would cause the armature
to generate 230 volts and that produced
by the two windings together would make
it generate 240 volts.

In other words, if the machine required
8000 ampere-turns per pole to generate
230 volts and 8700 to generate 240 volts,
the shunt winding would have to give
8000 and the series winding (at full
load) 700 ampere-turns per pole.

50 100 150 200 250

Fig. 83. Curves Showing Voltage at Different Loads

300 350

Power,

which is only an elementary diagram of A machine built in the way described —

the main circuits »f a compound-wound
dynamo, with regulating devices omitted.
The shunt winding supplies the excita-
tion necessary to generate the rated volt-
age and the series winding adds the

flat, as shown by the lower curve in Fig.
83.

Most compound-wound dynamos, how-
ever, are "overcompounded"; that is,
when full-load current flows through the
series winding the field strength is in-
creased more than enough to enable the
armature to generate the extra voltage
required to make up for the drop in the
windings of the machine itself. This is
done to make up partly or completely
for the drop in the circuit between the
dynamo and the lamps.

For example, suppose the drop in the
external circuit supplied by the 80-kilo-
watt dynamo were also 10 volts at full
load and the machine had to be over-

to give the same voltage at full load
as at no load — is called "flat com-
pounded," because a curve showing the
relation between the load and the voltage
at the dynamo terminals is practically

250

200

S 100

<1>

■—

0123456789 10
Thousands of Ampere-turns per Pole.

Power

Fig. 84. Excitation Curve

compounded to cover that drop. Then,
at full load, the armature would have to
generate 250 volts in all, 10 of which
would be used up in the windings and 10
in the line, leaving 230 volts available
at the lamps. If the machine required
10,000 ampere-turns per pole to generate
this 250 volts, the series field winding
would have to supply 1650 ampere-turns
at full load because the shunt winding,
which supplied 8000 ampere-turns when
the e.m.f. at its terminals was 230 volts,
would supply 8350 ampere-turns when
subjected to 240 volts, which would be
the terminal pressure when overcom-
pounded 10 volts.

As Fig. 83 clearly indicates, the com-
pound winding does not do accurately
what is intended, that is, maintain con-
stant terminal voltage* with flat com-

•Terminal roltage is that at the terminals
or circuit connections on the dynamo : A and
li, in Fig. 82.

January 10. 1911.

pounding or a rise in exact proportion to

the load with overcompounding. In the

of the flat-compounded machine

the e.m.f. at the terminals, in-
J of being constant at all loaJ
up to 231 . volts when the load reac
200 amperes, and gradually falls, as the
load increases, to 230 at full load. In
c of 10 volts overcompounding
the terminal volts inc- *ith

the load up to about half load and then
increase slo the loa :

shown by the upper curxc in
marked '"Actual overcompounding." V*.

I a regular increase in volt-
age, as indicate. e broken line.
The reason for this departure from
:tagc in the one case and a
regular increase in the other is that the
magnetism produced by the field
tion onal to the excitation.

was explained in a pr
son, and is illustrated Men

ition curve of the 80-kilowatt
machine now bcir. red. Refer-

ring :t will be evident that

the generated volts, which vary exactly
with the field mag: increase exact-

ly with the ampere-turns up to ab
i ampere-turns; thus, 1000 a:nr
turns prodi. .luce

71.1 I \ ducc ! •

160 vo the additional

■
ampere-turns .m less th.i in-

stead of continuing at the rate ol
per l<XX> an

; r part of
: to a larger scaK
more d the relation between the

ampere-turns and the generated volt
the SO. kilo c. within the work-

ing ra; *x> am-

pere-turns of enabled the

rati 230 • im-

am-
■
I
and

I' that pan of tl

.tight line
of i -n the

to far as the
mil . but. as c\plj

IMMO, the machine would
be unstable, that

at anv part: >ltage but i 'her

increase to an infinite voltage and

no voltage at
all and remain "dead "
reason

Impossr >:et a straii

charact i

cur. *n in are

unusiialls bad and elected because

of that fac the

irture from a Mralght Hnr nan

curve* taken from a well r »nod

armature
pcrctur-

run ' '<

mac

■
::no.
The field magnet of a
dynamo would be "wor

■

The

shur/

poun~

fanhcr down

<>ng that

id of

ijim %.m» • sew %.m» »J»» \*.m»

m per Pot*.

iation is quite remarkable,
ample, if the full-load J he ma-

chir. ind it

pou at the terminals

that is. the terminal at no load

to b and at hill

following '

If the tcrmin.i it full loa.'

the internal
c total gcncr.i at full

*» ilia- are

nee '
gem

>ntain 75<J*i .i

■

'•00 an

at full load ll

m win J

amr i going far-

the
voltage of the i
fourth, onr

LNr-l

H ■ • r.al

■ comp.<

II I I I I

rmers bum oat

•; the

lart; tba same

be Mr
' construction to the eepc-

omc thinking and

plat to do with the

atural
me * so mar. 'ormcrs

■

askt : -o many

trail mi lately As

the 'ormers

set up last and u

thot. ather that

uld not ur
J not a"
transform* a hung on the poles.

ntinuu .
to the f-
■ .

•el barrel or drun- iced

on a h< ch enoi.

on the

:ll or r uld

id he often
had a hur- ner I

too'. ind poi

• !

top!

. ■

! ■
• urned out -itlorm-

and the trouble

■

• rr ~\ the lcct-„ ' ' r

"-c lante

upon r

>ut of thooc lecture* sad lb* «B»
. learo to MX nulIlrWd b* 'he

cannot k now MM much about tat <
he mi> be called upon M «*•
eo aolnn and ■ chaaea m boor i
man srtll brlag «u»

POWER

January 10, 1911.

Elementary Lectures on the
Gas Producer

By Cecil P. Poole

Fuel Bed Temperature

It is probably not clear to the student
why the fuel bed in a gas generator does
not become red hot all the way through,
instead of being divided into "zones" as
indicated roughly in Fig. 12. There are
three reasons, each rather mixed up
with the other; in the first place, the fuel
bed is very deep — seldom less than three
feet and usually from four to seven feet,
according to the size of the generator;
largely because of this, the principal rea-
son exists, which is that not enough air
goes through the fuel bed and into intimate
contact with the particles of coal to burn
it completely to carbon dioxide; the third
reason is that the air is mixed with
steam, as described in the first lecture
last June, and this steam absorbs a lot
of heat from the burning fuel in the com-
bustion zone which would otherwise be
transferred to the coal immediately above
and raise the temperature of that zone.

This will be better understood, per-
haps, if you will think over what hap-
pens when you pour water on a fire. If
a little water be thrown on the fire it
will be evaporated into steam and this
will take heat away from the fire, dim-
ming it considerably. If enough water
be thrown on the fire all the heat will be
absorbed and the fire will go out. The
heat effect of putting steam through a
bed of red-hot coal is the same, though
the physical results are different. The
steam is decomposed into hydrogen and
oxygen and this process takes an amount
of heat away from the burning coal
equal to the heat that would be liberated
by burning hydrogen to form the same
amount of steam. This amounts to 62,-
000 heat units for each pound of hydro-
gen, or 6890 heat units for each pound
of steam.

For example, each pound of carbon
burned to CO, unites with 22/z pounds
of oxygen, which is taken from \\y2
pounds of air. The heat liberated by this
combustion is 14,600 B.t.u. Now if, say,
9/10 of a pound of steam be admitted
with the 1 1 T/ pounds of air, that will
be decomposed into 1/10 pound of hydro-
gen and 8/10 pound of oxygen and the
decomposition will absorb 6200 heat units
of the 14,600 set free by combustion;
this will leave only 8400 B.t.u., instead

Everything"
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will be treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

of 14,600, available for raising the tem-
perature.

The coal in the second zone has to
be heated by the heat from the fire in
the first zone, and if the temperature
there (in the second zone) is kept at
1900 degrees, each pound of coa1 will ab-

Fig. 12. Approximate Character of the

Zones of a Fuel Bed When Steam

Is Admitted with the Air

sorb about 400 B.t.u. in "sensible heat"
(see the December 6 lecture). There-
fore, if there were 81/ pounds of coal
in the second zone for each pound of
carbon burned in the fire zone, about
3400 B.t.u. would be absorbed in heating

it up to 1900 degrees, so that instead of
8400 B.t.u. there would be only about
5000 available for heating the gases.

But in addition to the processes de-
scribed there are two others which af-
fect the generator temperature. The Con-
formed in the fire zone "picks up" car-
bon in the second zone and is converted
into CO; and the oxygen from the de-
composed steam also combines with car-
bon to form CO. The first process ab-
sorbs heat and the second one gives out
heat. For each pound of carbon united
with CO, to form CO, there are absorbed
5700 B.t.u. and for each pound of car-
bon burned to CO with oxygen 4450 B.t.u.
are given up.

Now, if we assume that all of the
CO, formed in the fire zone is converted
to CO in the second zone, that 9/10
pound of steam is admitted with the WVi
pounds of air, that all of the oxygen
from this steam unites with carbon to
form CO, and that 3 pounds of coal
are heated to 1900 degrees in the sec-
ond zone for each pound of carbon
burned in the first one, the burning of
that pound would produce the following
results:

1 pound carbon burned to 3J

pounds CO, gives out 14,600 B.t.u.

3 pounds coal heated to 1900 de-
grees absorb 1,200

Leaving 13,400 "

3j| pounds COa united with 1 pound
carbon to form 4| pounds CO
absorb 5,700

Leaving 7,700 B.t.u.

is pound steam decomposed to im-
pound H and $, pound O absorbs 6,200

Leaving 1,500 B.t.u.

i\j pound carbon burned to 1.4
pounds CO with rs5 pound of oxy-
gen gives out 2,670

Net heat remaining 4. 170 B.t.u.

The final products of these p. messes
are 6.067 pounds of CO, 8.84 pounds
of nitrogen and 1/10 pound of hydrogen,
and the specific heat of this mixture is
0.267 B.t.u. per pound or 4 B.t.u. for
the whole 15 pounds. Therefore these
gases will be at a temperature theo-
retically - — — = 1042+ degrees above

4
that of the atmosphere when they pass

from the decomposition zone to the upper
part of the fuel bed. The green coal
there will absorb considerable heat from
the gases so that when they finally leave
the generator their temperature may be
as low as 600 or 800 degrees, Fahrenheit.
Of the 3 pounds of coal heated in the
second zone, about \M\ pounds have been
used to make CO and the remaining 1 %
pounds pass to the fire zone to keep up
combustion.

Januar> 10. 1911.

>WER

Many conditions other than those men-
tioned a fleet the temperature, such as
the heat absorbed by the ash and that
radiated through the generator walls. The
calculations just given are intended only
to indicate the way in which the fuel
thickness and steam supply affect the
temperatures of the fuel and products of
combustion and gasification. In pi
tice it is' impossible to convert all of the
I to CO, and a considerable amount

tlwayt contained in the gases finally
delivered by the . jr.

K»

rc_

i«o ^-xi ■■' -■. 60C toe DM >c<: -*v

'
Pk f CO

As the object of :ig a producer

> make gases that will burn in an

engine, and not to develop heat as a

boiler furnace does, the less carbon

it delivers, the better. Tt

•tiplctcly burn

!c and to con-
as much as | c of this back
into CO. as dc-

mak n the heat

rcqi a fuc! mot

hot by burning all of the
bon Nr kept

•l of
n. Thi
•

in the

• that much

II go through th one

be V 'he

greatest amount a

j good deal Ol
be made in the I

and arc those that uill I

lal in v
the
at v

the
;hc fire
ion- p it hot i more

•i be
admitted vuth thi 'ling

the bed too mti

d that at 1112 degr

14 »i

r, ...

that the percentage of carbon mon-
roar recti I. v

- up to 1475 degree*, beyond *
I much less ra;
chart lat the be

pcrature range for the second or decom-

ion zo- rom 18-

already expla
of the second zone -pth

ie fuel bed and the proportion of

the depth of bed will i he qua-

>al through which th-. -om the

■
to a higher tempera-
and if the I will in-

rc unt;

t that. If that
lone, the quantity of gas maJ
of C

On the other hand, if the fuel be.:

remely deep the coal above the sc.

zone may abso: uch heat from the

■I the temperature in the

ran will fall lo* .;h to allow

e of th convened ha^

a either by the Ion
up" in thi
zone nation i

am which has r-
for:

In ordinar. cannot

MM high

iin any such depth of fuel.

It is M«ei hat

in tl ibber and gas pas*

the
d the ga> pipe, but
the writer

•

'
'car that tl
of a j i that *

.! gaaes

■

\ \< ■■> I Me i

i
■

and

•<n i

eet the
n#^>.K »ni«'l HMBirial etant* and

ducttoa of » eight

»clc»» the

.
bedplati

amour
bra»

• of the old staffer

effictenev hot
gre.. m the ub

•ion

•vided -

• tion
plate is omitted iat the

for ma-
ts less than that of the land engine

Th d of the small eng

normally t> n> per

<<elcM. The

;

Ictn o

from iht '•

•Oft'

been tf -oodora

automobile r'».' ce '*dtf hood

'* ^Mk^H

POWER

January 10, 1911.

body, being packed by means of conical
seat surfaces, metal to metal. Thus it
has been possible to bring the larger
piping, such as suction, exhaust and
water pipes, to the cylinder instead of
the cylinder head, and, consequently, the
cylinder head is made very light and can
be removed or replaced in a few min-
utes without dismounting clumsy piping
or valve gearing. The arrangement of
the valve-actuating levers on the cylinder
head corresponds in general to that of
the large types of Diesel motor; the
cam shaft is, however, located directly
above the crank shaft in an extension
housing, as shown in Fig. 1, relieving
-the cylinder head still further of heavy
parts. Fig. 2 shows a single-cylinder 5-
horsepower Diesel small motor coupled
-to a direct-current dynamo.

For stationary service, in which con-
stant speed is desired, the motor, as al-

of those obtained in gasolene-motor prac-
tice, and in marine service there is also
the saving of fuel weight carried, which
on the average is cut down to half
of that required for the old motors. The
radius of action of boats equipped with
small Diesel motors, therefore, as af-
fected by the fuel weight, is doubled.

As in the large engines, the fuels
used are heavy oils of relatively "slow"
inflammability; even with the most slug-
gishly inflammable oils, however, com-
bustion is said to be so rapid that the
indicator diagrams are indistinguishable
from those of the large Diesel engine.
The diagram shown in Fig. 3 was taken
at reduced speed in order to avoid the
distortions that would be caused by in-
ertia of the indicator piston.

The inlet and oil-jet air is forced into
steel tanks by the air pump, which, in its
smallest type, is cast in one piece with

Fig. 2. Small High-speed Diesel Engine

ready stated, is provided with a gov-
ernor, which is inclosed in the extension
housing of the cam shaft and controls
the length of stroke of the suction valve
of the fuel pump. The marine engine is
regulated by hand adjustment of the
fuel pump.

Fuel-consumption tests at normal con-
tinuous loads have shown the exceed-
ingly favorable result that the consump-
tion differs only a little from that of
the large engines. There have been ob-
tained figures of 238 grams [8.4 ounces]
consumption per brake horsepower-hour,
so that 250 grams [8.8 ounces] may be
taken as a guarantee figure.

According to data thus far obtained,
the fuel costs for the Diesel small
motor9 are only one-fifth to one-fourth

the cylinder and is surrounded by the
common water jacket. These steel tanks
resemble the carbonic-acid flasks which
for years have proved reliable. The ends
of these tanks are shown projecting from
the bed casting in Fig. 2.

The engine parts subjected to exces-
sive stress, such as the crank shaft,
crank pin, connecting rod and crosshead
pin, are made of the best chrome-nickel
steel; all bearings are ball bearings.

An improvement valuable in small ser-
vice of all kinds is the automatic regu-
lation of the air pump, which renders
unnecessary any supervision of the air
pressure in the various reservoirs. Since,
also, the lubrication of the engine does
not need special attention, this new small
motor is a completely automatic machine.

These little machines are built by the
Societe Anonyme St. Georges, of Zurich,
Switzerland. They are designated "orig-
inal Diesel" small motors because they
have been so named by Herr Diesel him-
self and their construction is carried out
under his advice.

The Future of the Gas Engine

Dugald Clerk, the well known English
authority, recently delivered a lecture at
Manchester University on "The Phenom-
ena of Explosions in Gas and Other In-
ternal Combustion Engines." Mr. Clerk,
in conclusion, expressed the opinion
that so long as expansions remain as at
present, no great further increase in the
thermal efficiency of the internal-com-
bustion engine can be expected. Increas-
ing expansions mean increasing engine
weight very largely to gain a small in-
crease in efficiency. It is quite possible
to design and construct an engine work-
ing with coal gas which would give an
indicated thermal efficiency of about 50
per cent.; but such an engine would
probably have a lower mechanical effi-
ciency— probably about 80 per cent. —
so that the brake efficiency would be
only about 40 per cent. It is not likely,
he said, that such an engine would be
commercially successful, because the in-
creased first cost would not be justified
by the greater economy. Unless some
other method can be adopted of increas-
ing power by utilizing the exhaust heat,
coal-gas engines are likely to remain
at their present standard. The principle
of compounding, it is true, might be
applied to the gas engine, and longer
ranges of expansion obtained; but such
complication would be justified only in
comparatively large engines.

So far as the small gas engine is con-
cerned, a close approach has been made
to a standard type. Practically all diffi-
culties have been overcome, both from
the engineering and the commercial stand-
points. Small gas engines are now even
more reliable than small steam engines,
as may be proved by comparison of re-
sults given by various insurance com-
panies. Scientific work is more vitally
required in the case of the large gas en-
gine, where the conditions as to tempera-
ture, pressure and unequal expansion due
to heat are of the severest kind. Study
of the various problems of volumetric
heat, heat flow, radiation, incomplete
combustion, dissociation, etc., are all re-
quired to produce better conditions of
operation while maintaining or increasing
thermal efficiency. Inventors of this gen-
eration may not succeed in producing
sufficiently favorable conditions for com-
mercial success in very large gas en-
gines; but their work and that of the
scientific investigator of the present will
undoubtedly provide the engineer of the
future with means of solving problems
so far unsolved by the engineer of today.

January 10, 1911.

Readers with Something to Say

I rouble with a I [eating Plant

While putting in :n-heating job

of about 30,000 square feet of radia-
tion, nearly all in. I ran across a
problem that gave mc some trouble to
rer. and the solution may inu

M read

The building contained mi gs

and ells and a- rai parts of it

built at diffcrcn- ere are

many changes of floor so that the

steam main, all of which was run in the
basement, had to rise, fall and
again according to the ons

of the basement ceiling. Altogether there
arc IHitf) linca I main steam ;

in the job. running from 10 inches at the
Incbat in diameter at the
extreme ends.

The boilers arc located in the center
of a court around which the building
was built, and the main steam pipe
ran in < : the b

plant, feeding the north and south [
of the building.

The water line in the boilers was some
4<> feet above the water line under the

- radiators, so it w.i
resort to the use of automatic
pumps and 'urn

the war

information from i

mun or> die job A Jvr

••/ enough to print

lure will be p. ml forT*
idoWt nor r/jt-re word.%

come back to the automatic imp

pump would ri;
for a few minutes, filling the boilers to
the top of the glass gage bt

i ed down, and then run •.
for a while. The troub'
at the poin- I A steam gage and

a water glass gaj.
The gate ■bowed th.r -ne rca

■
the : ho much r. it vary-

•hat the pressure in the
itors X which was constant,

r lying in the return risers
and in the main return pipe over the
seal it A.
This made an artificial water line in
the hi*:

which the system is fore

allu

run

*> ■

T *i :i ti

-O-

these pun ; top of iht

Of them being kept a» ■ t
Accompan I diagramn

I il irrai ,

of the pin which gaw nd hi

It •-

Soon after «tarting •

Inn It * f that the

■

■
•nor and ■ I

which came from an

■
wis made as sbovn in FU

he old

g piece P

e ordi-

mr • cor.de f i" w • cn-

the n

TCJ

•! t »i .»!- I .

j V

fpQ

- :

ilea ugh thr

iocs the
/ ind the n

the regular Bow -o pa**.

the i the

a»%u- original

Horn of water

The e rahrea

and tt* op-

■

I have ncrtt beer

m rntrt «fi.

!■ one

POWER

January 10, 1911.

volume that can be easily handled, and
a stronger and better job can be made
than by making the volume of larger size.

To bind Power proceed as follows:
First arrange the various copies accord-
ing to their dates, and pile in three sec-
tions containing one month each. Then
remove the covers and lift the ends of
the binding wires and take off the ad-
vertising pages, after which turn down
the ends of the wires again.

Next take the first and second issue
of the first month and glue them together;
then glue on the third issue and so on
until the whole of the first month's is-
sues are securely glued together. Pro-
ceed with the second and third month's
issues in the same way, taking care to
make as neat a job as possible.

Next take the first month's issues,
which form one part of the volume and
glue it to the second part, and to this
glue the third part, which will complete
the volume in the rough.

Then take a piece of strong cloth and
cut it a size equal to the depth of the
book and wide enough to stretch across
the back, and lap one-half inch over on
the front page and the same on the last
page. Cover the cloth well with glue
and stretch it across the back of the
volume as tight as possible, as it is the
cloth that gives strength to the volume
and keeps the parts firmly held together.

Take a clean cover of Power and glue
it in place, and the volume is finished.
It is best to place the finished volume
under a heavy weight for a few hours
to allow the glue to set. The finished
volume will look like an ordinary copy
of Power, only it will be about one inch
thick.

George E. Lambowin.

McKeesport, Penn.

Two Methods of Lacing Belts

Belts may be joined by lacing, rivet-
ing, sewing or cementing. A method of
lacing a belt that may be relied upon is
shown in Fig. 1.

First cut the ends of the belt square,
using a sharp knife and try square. Then
punch a row of holes exactly opposite
each other in each end of the belt, using
three holes for a 4-inch belt and five
holes for a 5- and 6-inch belt. The num-
ber of holes in the row should always
be uneven for the style of lacing shown.

A represents the outside of the belt
and B the pulley side. The laces should
be stretched as much as possible before
using, and should be drawn half way
through one of the middle holes, from
the under side, as at C, and before pro-
ceeding see that the belt is not twisted,
or, in the case of a crossed belt, that it
has not been given a wrong twist. Then
pass the end of the lace on the upper
side of the belt through the hole D, under
the belt and up through E, back again to
D and E, through F and up through C.

Then an incision is made in one side of
the lacing which forms a barb that will
prevent the end from pulling through.
Then lace the other side of the belt in
the same manner. This method may be
used for belts up to 6 inches wide, but
soft wire should be used instead of laces
on belts smaller than 3 inches in width.
If a lace is used on a small belt it makes

Fig. 1. A Reliable Method

the joint clumsy looking and the belt
will travel unevenly over the pulley.

For belts wider than 6 inches the lac-
ing shown in Fig. 2 is good. Two rows
of holes should be punched. The num-
ber of holes in the row nearest the joint
should exceed by one the number of
holes in the second row. For 6-inch up
to 7-inch belts I have always used four
and three holes respectively. For larger
belts make the total number of hules in

O K

Fig. 2. Lacing for Large Belts

each end either one less, or one for each
inch of belt width. I never care, with
large belts, whether the number of holes
near the end of the joint is odd or even.
In a 10-inch belt, for example, nine and
eight holes are used respectively. The
outside holes of the first row should not
be nearer the edge of the belt than Y±
inch, nor should the first row be nearer
the joint than 1 inch. The second row
should be at least 2 inches from the end
of the belt. In Fig. 2, H is the outside
and / the pulley side of the belt. Begin

at one of the center holes, always in
the outside row, as at K, and continue
through L, m, n, O, P, R, P, R, n, O, L,
m, etc.

The lacing may also be started on one
side instead of at the middle, and it
should not be crossed on the pulley side
of the belt.

William L. Keil.

Philadelphia, Penn.

Hot Water Reheater

Some time ago I had difficulty with
the hot-water circulation in one of the
buildings, due to the circulating pipe be-
ing placed about 6 feet below the low-
est hot-water fixture, which is 12 feet
below the main circulating pipe. This
formed a trap and prevented the cir-
culation of the water. There was also

Hot Water Reheater

danger that the line would freeze up in
cold weather as the lower section was
exposed to severe draft of cold air.

Therefore, I made a reheater on the
riser pipe to the main, as shown in the
accompanying sketch.

The steam is taken from a heating
riser A, which is close by. The packing
boxes of the pipe B are made of bush-
ings which were filed out to fit the brass
pipe C.

A swing check valve is placed below
the reheater and at the lowest point on
the brass pipe. This simple device re-
heats the water in the pipe C and es-
tablishes a satisfactory circulation.

George Peters.

New York City.

January 10. 1911.

?C>

Patching a Second-hand Boiler

Some years ago the company I worked
for traded their old boiler for a lar.
second-hand boiler. After it was in place
and all the pipe connections made. I filled
rh water and built a fire, but before
the boiler .irm. I noticed water

dropping on the grates Drawing the
fire I found that the boiler was leaking
at the first girth seam over the I
This boiler was built, as shown in the il-
lustration, and consisted of three si
with single-riveted lap-joint seams. Se-
curing a calking tool and hammer I fi
to stop the leak, but was not >ful.

After emptying the boiler I cut out a
I and. holding a candle in the -
hole, found that the under sh.
cracked in the rivet hole. Cutting out

it necessary, in orJ -o roll tl

9 much at the
thin per ar-

to help fill up the holes which had ;

been cnla- job

had been completed, there was no trou
for about •"> mont:

One morning, when g a fir.

noticed a wet spot on in but

not being a

I fired up. but did not neglect to •
my c\e on this part of the boiler

Durir: that there

a thir am and water

coming from the seam near where I had
noticed the ricks, and at once let

the steam ; -op. I found that

the • ect was cracked through nine

-tion was cut out and

hMJ I . I

8 . H^

: • ■ : • 1

n-1 —

]

r T

a met on eact of the first one. I

found that the crack still extended
yond the remaining r ring

this a job beyond DM i a boiler-

maker to come and look over the boiler
•inued cutting out rivets until he
got past the crack, which extended through
twelve rivet tlO

M'e then cut out a p plate hack

I next girth seam, as illustrated, and
put in a patch

led
the hotter again a'

and that the tub- leaking at

the hack e; mean* of a tube

pander and a trip into the back end a'
I managed to keep tl
going for a while, but I »oon reached
it adta the expander a» the
ere rolled »o thin that im-

furthcr
panding I alto dl J that the hack

! was in i and that there

was a team a1 the

When the vati
drnf that seam. I had trouble

•'i the tube* leaking

ame neceaa e«p

the plant running at all c a

lot more fuel than thould h*\
MONtary, Then the bo»» agi
a i mho and I

Old and put in the new one

a patch put on as I IfMM

the owner so much »nd

boilers that he purchased a nc»

DM.

I lie \\ a\ tO DO It

iWfl at the big plant wher
p about 4

*cr i)f hoiler
crates and natural draft, tin

agent, who said that the

the cor -.ce of

abou

■

found
r and fire-
what s those

4 upon the occasior
. c some obse nations with rtr
jf an c
ing to hr
and ho i of » hich he

old country, r.-
good coal a

d the grimy engu

■
handing the har to the fireman sstd.

figuring
the morning t -team »ith

that stuff H

wor the

safe- :ose the and

•-Ml
the crosshead - i • r -

at being led into a '

mon engineer, answer

would hav

the wa\ »c used to burr the

old count p.

onton.

Brine I amed

w*bon p.. . - c '• • our tanl trouble

had v -ung Tbe

foam was i -eeembled soap

. s. and whe • owed into tbe

a spoiled for ice r

■
too many can-
Ties

*ed the brine to the

in at the open
all of the 11

ing* irwea

i he

. • ■ i

POWER

January 10, 1911.

Steam Boiler Economy

I have noticed several articles in re-
cent issues of Power on the subject of
flue-gas analysis and CO^ recorders. The
main object of these seems to be that
of inducing engineers to write of their
experiences with COj recorders and of
what success or failure they have had
with such instruments.

In view of the fact that flue-gas anal-
ysis is almost essential to high furnace
efficiency, and that the largest part of
the expense of operating a plant is con
centrated in the boiler room, very few en-
gineers are making any progress in the
study of saving fuel and building up
furnace efficiency.

I have tried to learn from several en-
gineers who do not use CO- recorders
or flue-gas analyzers, just why they have
never given this subject more considera-
tion and have most of their reasons em-
bodied in the following answers:

One engineer says that not having suf-
ficient knowledge of the chemical com-
position of flue gases caused him to lose
interest in the economical combustion of
fuels. He took an interest in steam-en-
gine indicators because his plant was
equipped with them, and likewise was
familiar with all other instruments at his
disposal.

Another says that lack of training in
chemistry prevents the average engineer
from understanding chemical analysis
and he does not like to believe anything
beyond his knowledge.

Another states that apparently his fur-
naces are giving full efficiency and all
the available heat is utilized and to pur-
chase the necessary apparatus would be
a waste of money.

Still another says that the required in-
formation on the fundamental principles
of flue-gas analysis has not been ob-
tainable in the columns of Power or in
textbooks so that the average engineer
could educate himself to the point where
he would be adequately qualified to
handle this work. The results of sev-
eral tests have been published but noth-
ing which would aid the man unfamiliar
with this work to take the necessary ele-
mentary steps toward possessing himself
with the ability to economically burn the
fuels and consequently reduce the coal
bills by virtue of the proper use of in-
struments. Progress in this direction
has not been as rapid as we would
expect for a problem of so great
importance. Good results are, however,
beinjT obtained from some of the later
models and coal is being saved in ap-

Comment^
criticism* suggestions
and debate upon various
articles, letters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

preciable quantities and if engineers
would write their experiences or ask for
information, thereby benefiting all in-
terested, the chance would be lessened
for readers of Power to return answers
similar to the above when approached
on the subject of COj recorders and the
economical burning of coal in their
boilers.

Charles M. Rogers.

Detroit, Mich.

The editorial in the November 22 is-
sue on CO- records should have the
effect of awakening engineers to a sense
of what their duty is in this age of ad-
vancement. The day is past when an
engineer was judged by his ability to
shovel coal and employers are beginning
to realize that the engineer is one of the
most important men in their establish-
ment. The other branches of mechanics
(with the improvements of machinery of
this age) are gradually falling away and
the mechanic of the past is now just
a link of a great machine. With the
engineer it is different, for with the im-
provement of machinery and with the
substitution of machines for manual labor
his duties are increased by the responsi-
bility for and care and management of
these machines which come under his
direct charge.

It is, then, up to the engineer to meet
his duties and to educate himself so that
when the demand is made he will have
the ability to fill the position which calls
for the assumption of increased re-
sponsibilities.

The engineers of Ontario, Canada, are
probably up against a harder proposition
than the engineers situated in any other
part of America. The transmission of
electricity by the government through-
out the province of Ontario brings elec-
trical energy from Niagara into direct
competition with the steam plants. It is
up to the steam engineer to demonstrate
his ability and compete with this new
form of power. In many establishments
where heat is required and where the

exhaust steam can be utilized foi heating
purposes, if the engineer can put up any
kind of a showing with the steam plant,
Niagara power will never get a foothold.
Many large companies, after going into
the matter thoroughly and taking into
consideration the fact that the climate
makes it necessary to heat the buildings
during about seven months of the year,
have installed steam plants and are gen-
erating their own current and using the
exhaust steam for heating purposes, and
have demonstrated to their own satis-
faction that, after taking into considera-
tion the heating of their establishment,
the ledger comes out right by a large
margin in favor of the steam plant.

Now a word along the line of the
editorial. It is true that the great sav-
ings in the future are to be made in the
boiler room. But, as the average engi-
neer is not very proficient as a chemist,
it will require considerable agitation to
get him started along that line. I have
been thinking of the subject for some
time and on reading the editorial I com-
menced to look through the advertise-
ments, but I am unable to see what I
wanted there. Power would certainly
be conferring a favor on the engineers
who are interested along this line, and
would draw into interest those who are
not, if it would enlarge on this sub-
ject and give us a lesson along this line
every week, and also intimate to the man-
ufacturers of recording instruments that
a little printer's ink used judiciously would
have a tendency to increase their busi-
ness. If the engineers can be awakened
to take an interest in this subject and
also along the line of keeping complete
records in every line in the steam plant, it
will certainly increase their interest in
the profession, and will benefit them
financially and cut down the operating
expenses to such a degree that we need
not be afraid to enter into competition
with any new development that may enter
the field of industrial progress.

W. G. Walters.

Stratford, Ont.

Boiler Room Emergencies

One of the most common and least
dangerous emergencies in boiler-room
practice is the breaking of gage glasses.
With the steam rapidly escaping into the
boiler room, it is only necessary that the
inexperienced fireman keep his wits
about him. The lower gage valve should
be closed first, thus stopping the flow

January 10. 1911.

•f water, after which it is an easy mat-
ter to close the upper valve, from which
steam only is emerging. Until time can
be found to renew the glass, the water
level can be determined by means of the
The upper cock should show
dr. Meant, the low l '. and the mid-

dle one steam and water. Spare glasses
should be. and usually are. kept on hand
•

Another emergency to be met is that of
finding the water cither too high or too
low. i he boiler is in no danger from
Her. but a wrecked engine
le to be the penalty for such carcl
nets. The for high water is to

blow the boiler

is not r. the engine ha-

t \ng water, and it is known

that no sudden load will be thrown on.
Under >uch a condition it is only net

P the feed pump until the
wan wn to normal.

ddenly discover that the glass
contain* no water is an emergency which
r quick action on the pan of the
attendant. definitely known that

the glass contaim f only a

short time and that no sudden

demand cam has been made on

the boiler, which could y have

lowered the water sufficient!
an-, of the heating surface, and that the
boiler has sprung no leak- -tendant

may feel reasonably safe in opening up
the fct

: to normal. H< if thcr

«ny dm. r not t(

has reached a dat..

J be lost. The fire should be

n coal. The

damper and ashpr uld also be

.ind the furnace doors opened If

the n a battery, the pressure

lowered as much as

:hout interrupting the

after which the boiler should be cut out.

cooled off at

plates If no are

d. it ma\ be fired up and place

Ai merge: ich ca

that the steam pressure

higher than it

liable to occur in a well kept piarv

when the boilers are in a ba1- 'icrc

eac' safctv

•
limits (he :
»u-
i

be abnormally
high the flrwt thing s to

deaden the fire, thi ig a gr<

-aw •
Ing the Arc* l« not
a* it • rra«e the furr >

iturc The better method it to «rr,'
• •
connected with '

to normal.

to
be met in the |

f the bo
•

and
ig the genera1
cat at rlow

things most essential to be
done, until the pressure

iglcr. Wash. •

I <>ul>lc w ith W ater ( mn

I ' "ha goc of interest the

rt aniclc on "Trouble with Water Col-
umn" in tl -mber 29 number. I
lately had a similar that

■
the trouble
nation of steam in
the f the column which

-.sure to fall at that r
and hence the ; t in the bo

ing on the water in the column at the
bottom t to th ass.

nmend the fol-
lowing Make i b< ?hcr
t iron ood and fasten or
hang it in some \»
and thu- >lumn '
ing on! ien. fill
the

the glass

both at the upper and lower end dill
the *hcn the boiler is ha:

s again

i the a- r that '

mat

not

main I

an i

In ooe instance, the
an mi
In I i or. pace IMJ

•
a w

water and the hca-

the ough the

is v

cd to -

. . • ...
;■••••* or 90

lar cor

gb effic

W .iter < *

in the

that I am • en I ».

nor <j
pla.

cleas boiler

attend.!

again Jtn

ght do .i i hundred other

f I

•nments oat

would stop «oc« he

not •
to •

the

and all »* '

that the steam » al»* OO the
Id hove to remain OOOO tOSkfl'

' SOS" '
The m w sec«

POWER

January 10. 1911.

Installing Globe Valves

For a number of weeks past there has
been a discussion on in the columns of
Power as to the proper method of in-
stalling a globe or an angle valve.

For several reasons, the chief of which
is that I believe it to be the only safe
method. I am strongly in favor of having
th: pressure come under the disk, tend-
ing to open the valve and throwing the
stress of the steam pressure on the
threads of the stem, when the valve is
closed.

About ten years ago I witnessed an
incident which came near being an acci-
dent, and which convinced me of the
danger of having the pressure come over
the disk.

In the plant of which I am now in
charge we had at that time six horizontal
return-tubular boilers, all 66 inches in
diameter. Nos. 1 and 2 were lap-joint
iron boilers 15 feet long; the other four
were lap-joint steel boilers 18 feet long.
All of these boilers were fitted with 5-
inch lever safety valves on the front noz-
zles, and 5-inch angle stop valves on
risers from the rear nozzles. The stop
valves were placed with the stems hori-
zontal and the boiler pressure came
above the disk, tending to hold it to its
seat.

On No. 1 boiler the safety-valve lever
was turned toward No. 2 boiler and
reached nearly half way over the setting.
There was a 1 J4 -inch steam pipe which
came down between the front of boilers
Nos. 1 and 2 and passed horizontally
close to the end of the No. 1 safety-valve
lever. This pipe was used for tube blow-
ing and the steam blowers under the
grates.

Now, we have great difficulty, out in
the country here, in getting good men
for night watching and boiler tending.
Nobody wants the job at any price; we
have almost to beg men to take the job.
Importing men from the neighboring city
is a dead failure; about three days is
the average city man's stop on the job.
Nothing doing, you know; and they come
and tell you, "It's too lonesome here,"
and can they get their pay? So, gen-
erally, our night help on the boilers is
pretty poor. At the particular time to
which I am referring, our night men
were particularly thick in the head.

One morning in January, 1900, the
man on the fires in some way or other
got the 1*4 -inch blower pipe moved or
sprung over the end of the No. 1 safety-
valve lever, thus holding the valve tightly
to its seat. The Nos. 1 and 2 boilers
had been banked during the night and
the stop valves closed. When the watch-
man had raised the pressure in these
boilers to equal that in the line, he opened
the stop valves, or supposed that he did,
and ss it was cold he started to build up
some pretty big fires.

These two boilers were 20 years old
and insured for 90 pounds pressure.

They had had considerable repair work
done on them at one time and another and
were not considered to be very safe for
pressures over 100 pounds. It was lucky
indeed that the master mechanic, who
had charge of the boilers at that time,
got down earlier than usual that morning.
When he got into the boiler house, the
watchman told him that the No. 1 pres-
sure gage was out of order; the pointer
was loose, he thought. It was a 150-
pound gage and when the master me-
chanic looked at it the pointer was where
the 155-pound mark would have been if
the scale had ext-nded that high. He
got a ladder to get at the gage, and then
noticed that the pointer was vibrating
stiffly and was evidently tight on the
spindle. Just then his eye caught si^ht
of the pipe over the safety-valve lever
and he jumped up and tried the stop
valve. From the feel of the valve he con-
cluded that the disk was off the stem and
that the boiler pressure was holding the
valve closed. Then, he got excited and
jumped for the safety valve, sat on the
lever and sprung the steam pipe free
and then got off and let her blow. She
did; considerable. No, there was no water
hammer, and the boiler did not go through
the roof. It stayed right where it was
and blew down to the regular pressure
in a commonplace but noisy manner.

The fire was drawn, the pressure re-
duced and the valve bonnet removed. The
disk had pulled off the stem, the stem
collar pulling through the nut.

Now, if this valve had been put on
the "other end to" with the boiler pres-
sure under the disk, there would have
been no dangerous trouble at all. It
would not have been necessary to shut
down the boiler to fix the valve at that
time; it could have been left for a more
convenient time. Of course, the stop
valve was not responsible for the block-
ing of the safety valve; it was merely a
coincidence that the safety valve was
useless when badly needed. That steam
pipe was moved before noon that day.
All the stop valves on the other five
boilers lost their disks in the same way a
number of times after this, but as the
safety valves worked, nothing exciting or
dangerous happened.

As soon as I was given charge, I had
all of these valves turned so as to bring
the boiler pressure under the disks; and
I never had any trouble with them. The
No. 1 boiler was apparently not hurt by
its experience of high pressure, for we
ran it hard for four and a half years after
the occurrence until the insurance com-
pany lowered the pressure to 50 pounds.
Boilers Nos. 1 and 2 were replaced in
November, 1904, with two 72-inch by 17-
foot butt-joint steel boilers of the same
make. The old boilers were 25 years old
when replaced, and were cut up right
away. We never sold an old boiler, as a
boiler; it was always cut up for junk; if
it was not safe for us, it certainly was
not safe for anybody else.

Now, a globe or an angle valve with
the pressure under the disk may fail in
two ways. The threads on the stem or
in the bonnet may strip, or the disk may
split in two. In either case the valve
would be open for the passage of steam
and if the disk is whole and only the
threads stripped, the valve may be closed
by means of a lever over the top of the
stem; the steam pressure will open it
again when the lever is released.

When the pressure is over the disk,
the valve may fail by stripping the stem
or bonnet threads, by the stem pulling
in two or by the disk coming off the
stem, caused either by the stem collar
pulling through the retaining nut or by
the threads of this nut stripping or the
nut backing out. In all of these cases
of failure the valve would be closed to
the passage of steam, and it would be
impossible to open it under pressure ex-
cept in the one case of the stem or
bonnet threads stripping, in which case
the valve may be opened by means of a
lever under a collar or lathe dog on the
valve stem. However, when the pressure
comes over the disk, 75 per cent, of the
failures are caused by the disk in some
way coming loose from the stem.

In the December 13 number of Power,
J. W. Parker speaks of two throttle
valves in which water hammer had upset
the stems, and says that he advised re-
versing the valves. I do not think that
this advice was good, for if the water
hammer was severe enough to upset the
valve stems when acting from under the
disk it would quickly drive the disk off
the stems if it acted on the top of the
disks, and then the valve could not be
opened at all and he would be in a
worse fix than the upset stems put him.

The inspection department of the Fac-
tory Mutual Fire Insurance Company
would quickly make him change the fire-
pump throttle so as to bring the pressure
under the disk. They will not accept a
gate valve on a fire-pump steam line; it
must be a globe or an angle valve with
the boiler pressure under the disk.

As to feed valves, they should be
placed so that the feed-pump pressure
comes under the disk, and an extra valve
should be placed between the check valve
and the boiler so that the check valve
can be reground or the feed valve re-
packed while steam is on the boiler.

Never place a valve on the feed line
in such a way that if the disk comes
loose the pump pressure will close the
valve and obstruct the feed line.

Angle blow-down valves may be the
one exception that goes to prove the gen-
eral rule, but in all other cases I want
the pressure to come under the disk of
a globe or an angle valve. Blow-down
valves are constructed so as to protect
the seating surfaces of the valve body
and disk, and the position the valve is
placed in depends a great deal on the
method used to protect the seats from
the cutting action of boiler scale. I

January 10. 1911.

■\X M<

heard of a case in one plant where they
had lots of trouble getting the water out
of a boiler, owing to the blow-down valve
plug or disk coming off the stem.
B.
Broad Brook. Conn.

Liquid Discharging Devi*

Mr. Pagett's description of his inven-
tion for discharging liquids from barrels
looks very much like a device that I
made some years ago. to empty oil from
barrels to the shop tank, only he has
not given a very- necessary dimension,
that is. the size of the air inlet.

In making my device I figured on
using 80 pounds air pressure, but as
I did not think a barrel would stand that
pressure I reduced the inlet for the air
•03 of an inch in diameter, figuring
that the oil would run out of the I -inch
exhaust pipe fast enough to keep down
the pressure, which it did. and the thing
worked fim cd it in the shop for

ral months, until one day the helper
whose duty it was to look after the oil
used it in a barrel of lard oil that was
chilled. He pit in the device and turned
on the air and in just a minute the lard
oil was all over the floor and the helper
looked as though he was suffering from
shock ; I know that I was.

I have never seen my device from that
day. It may have gone West. I would
advise anyone who wants to use
Pagett's invention to sec that the inlet
hole is something I an 0.03 of an

inch in diameter for HI) pounds pressure
and that there is a safety valve on the
job.

J. J. Seib:

Washington, D. C.

The Expansion Valve

In looking over the October 2^ num-
ber of Powm. I came across an article
by Mr Reynoldi in criticism of an arti-
cle, in the August M) number
Nash, regarding the expansion rail

In reading the two in uld

conclude cither that one of the gentle-
men is not posted or that expansion
\al\cs differ great

I will not attempt to tell anything a*
•i valve nor
•ie operate-!
but mill tell you about one which I
have in connection with an absorption
machine which I am operating at present
The best way of which I fa
be the action of ammonia In the
brine cooler is to compare It to the well
known action of water in a Mean
under operating njii
a mere verba of a brine

'•t and steam boiler it would be
difficult to distinguish one from tti

f comparison I will «av that
a NNn Indrica'

tubes or pipes extending from end to
and so is a brine cooler, though the r
in the brine cooler are for

The boiler is partly filled with liv;
and the remaining sr
with Ra- | or steat:

The brine cooler is partly filled •
liquid ammonia and the rcma pace

ammonia gas. In t
part of the heat in the flue gasc
traverse the tubes is absorbed by the
r. a pan of which passes into steam.

In the cooler part of the heat

in the warm hich traverses the

tubes is absorbed by the am-

monia, a part of which passes into am-
monia gas.

In the boiler the temperature of the
flue gases is lowered and the wat-.
soon cease to boil or gh
more heat was not plenish-

ing the •

In the brine cooler the temperature
of the brine is lowered and the ammonia
would soon cease to boil or give off gas
if more heat was not supplied in the
form of more warm brine.

Water is a great absorber of heat. In
facf. it comes prett) near holding the
rccr :!uc as a heat absorb*

due to its latent heat, that is. the amount
of heat necessary to change it from the
liquid to the gaseous state

Ammonia nu iluc as a heat ab-

is a refrigerating mediun
atcnt heat, which is the amount of
heat necessary to change it from a liquid
to a gaseous state.

A boiler filled with steam would ab-
sorb very little heat compared to what
it would absorb if partly filled with
water, and a brine cooler filled with am-
monia gas would absorb only a small
per cent, of the heat which it wou
partly rilled with liquid anhydrous am-
monia.

If Mr. \< will fill a test flask

about half full of liquid anh) am-

monia and expose it to the air. he
notice that the flask I om the

Ml up to the liquid !c ch goes

rove that the liquid ab* ■•' cat

the gas absorbed the hea-
'rom the
the •

N- turn to im

.immor passes through

D the form of a coarse and

I ha\r hud I

■onnectlon with ar.
ng machine

haf

a matter of fact I I

-nam.

whatc-
pension. That It tea*

e temperature

of t th« — »fi»lng of the

ntrolled wlthi:

jture of the tire and not

titled with gages
y a nicety lust
ho*

shut d
thrt
amrr.ona ar.j g up or

coldg. and

absorber and r

noticed g in

the the

so a >pencd

There has been con*

about the "flooded
> me that a 1

the important part of an il
•-.-m.

Fbank MiooLrro

■'.o.

I nderground I I

devise some means a! 'ing an

steam
■
ember 13. The p

r and carried steam at 90
pou ssure. Tv "soul

200 ' my

n had been a bo*

mad ' : inks and (
other material that would form a suit-
able insulation. Trouble had been

ad to be taken
up '

At times ach would nearly Sll

ondensation la
take place so -
water hammer »ult. espec

Ti-, »as shut off, or when
first turned

After looking t ation tner I

red some old IVinch wrought

P«

about 20 pounds pre wore, srbJcb

ch plat taaide the 6- inch
and the hot formerly used.

nch Inst vide faugh to
commodate the bo Sen made A

spa, »ut 8 Inch eft

IM end of the a inch pipe

rod loosrtv s* 7>l« pronaat

the

»Vp r -
I ■ r\rr beOrd frtMU It

POWER

January 10, 1911.

pipe work the trench is dug with a pitch
toward one or both ends, for the pur-
pose of draining the water into a catch
basin, which is arranged with a float
to automatically control a siphon or
steam pump to remove the water. In
some cases the float is connected to a
signal which serves to call the attention
of the person who has been assigned to
the duty of controlling the water in the
basin.

H. S. Brown.

New York City.

I noticed on the page of "Inquiries of
General Interest," in the December 13
issue, a question by W. P. C. in regard
to insulation for underground steam pipe.

It is the general practice among steam-
distributing companies to insulate the
pipe with a 4-inch thick wood covering,
the inside diameter of which is 2 inches
larger than that of the pipe.

The inside of the covering is lined
with tin, and the outside is given a coat
of asphaltum and tar paper to make it
waterproof. This is laid on about 6
inches of broken stone in a perfectly
drained trench, which is back filled with
cinders.

If W. P. C. follows the above sugges-
tions he will have a very satisfactory
and efficient job. He will also realize
a saving in fuel, for the loss by con-
densation will be less than with his pres-
ent arrangement.

Fred. Glass.

Chicago, 111.

Federal Laws

In the December 6 issue of Power,
F. E. Albrecht cites his experience with
license laws and adds that "he wishes
he had let license laws alone and not
bothered his head about them."

I would like to draw Mr. Albrecht's
attention to the first-page editorials of
Power for November 22 and December
13; they might help some. Also, I wish
to point out the fact that engineers in
other license districts and towns have
had much the same experiences before
getting satisfactory results with the
license laws.

Apparently, if Mr. Albrecht and his as-
sociates had turned their efforts and
money to use in getting a Federal license
law started or passed, they might have
secured some benefit for themselves and
their Eastern brothers at the same time.

A good Federal law would do away
with all conditions such as those of
which Mr. Albrecht complains and, in
addition, would place all engineers on an
equal footing, both East and West.

There is a law providing for Federal
inspection of locomotive boilers, up for
consideration by Congress now. What
were the various engineers' associations

doing when that law was being drafted?
Why did they not get busy and have that
law extended to cover all stationary boil-
ers within the United States and colonies?

Practically the same men could take
care of the inspection work, and I am
sure that there is greater need of Federal
inspection of stationary boilers than there
is of locomotive boilers. The latter are
all overhauled and practically rebuilt
every year, in the railroad shops, while
stationary boilers are kept on operation
just as long as they will hold steam and
water, and are often operated for months
at a time without ever being opened.
Yet, there, are thousands of lives in dan-
ger from explosions in stationary plants
for every one in danger from locomotive-
boiler explosions, to say nothing of the
vast amount of property.

I am not decrying the bill; we need
it, but it is only half a bill, only a waste
of valuable time and money unless it is
extended to include stationary boilers
and made a partner to a measure pro-
viding for the proper examining and
licensing of stationary operating engi-
neers.

Why is it that we do not see or hear
more about Federal license laws?

I have been talking and advocating
them for five years, trying to get engi-
neers and other men interested in push-
ing a Federal license law. But, while
everyone agrees that it is what we should
have, none seem to want to start it go-
ing or to help start it. Who started the
locomotive boiler-inspection law? Loco-
motives have been operating in this
country almost as long as stationary en-
gines with no law to control them except
the railroad rules, while the stationary
engine has always been more or less con-
trolled for years.

Wake up, brothers, and get to work;
look a little further ahead than your own
nose. When you think of a license law
do not stop with the boundary line of
your State, but reach out; try to help
the man out West and down South. In
other words, work for the good of all the
engineers in this country, not for the
few located just in your own town or
State.

If every engineer in this country will
do his share in this, we can have a
Federal law so close on the heels of that
locomotive boiler-inspection law that it
will scare it. Think it over and act.
A. A. Blanchard.

Oak Harbor, O.

Boiler and Tube Failures

In reference to the numerous articles
on boiler explosions and with especial
reference to those on a boiler-tube fail-
ure, pages 2128 and 2131, in the issue of
November 29, it may be pertinent to in-
quire whether the reduced thickness from

No. 10 gage to nearly 1/32 of an inch
at the point of rupture was due to an
initial defect in construction, or to in-
ternal or external corrosion. If to one
or both of the last two, which was the
greater inducer, and why? It has been
for many years my belief that if we
could unite copper with iron and steel
after the manner in which gold-plated
ware is made on a commercial basis,
which I think may be done, the product
might be good for boiler shells, tubes,
steam and other pipes, etc.

Possibly this might be done to some
extent in the manufacture of seamless
tubes, and tend to increase the efficiency
in economy in steam plants. While the
days of the all-copper fire box, staybolts,
etc., are doubtlessly past, maybe that
copper-plated ones may supersede the
ones at present in use. Though much
has been said and written by professors
and theorists on the forms, construction
operation and explosions of boilers and
the relative effects of punched, drilled
and reamed rivet holes; lap and butt
joints, single- double- and triple-riveted,
as compared with the initial sheet before
being bent and formed, but little has
been said of the effects of the strains
set up by the forming process. If any-
thing has been said in condemnation of
the location of the seams joining the up-
per to the lower half of the sheets of
horizontal boilers, I have yet to learn
of it. Why is this seam universally re-
garded as being the weakest part of the
boiler shell situated at a line naturally
subjected to the greatest amount of fric-
tional effects by reason of the active ele-
vation of the surface of the water and
also the point most susceptible to the
effects of corrosion?

Would not these considerations then
lead us to the logical conclusion that, if
but a single line of joint be used, it
should be placed in a position least sub-
ject to these effects — at the very bottom
of the boiler — even though it would there
be subject to strains due to the weight
of the water in addition to the pressure
to which the upper half of the circum-
ference is subject?

If a diagrammatic chart were constructed
of a boiler made practically perfect in
all its parts as now constructed and op-
erated; depicting its changes at numerous
equidistant points circumferentially and
longitudinally; from the first application
of heat and at regular points in the in-
crease of the rate of heat absorbed, up
to the working pressure desired, when
at rest and operating the motor, I think
the chart would be curious and, pos-
sibly, instructive. If applied also to in-
dividual tubes and heads in like man-
ner, probably even still more curious
effects would be shown, many parts are
fatigued, like overworked men, while
others have comparatively easy times.

John W. Payler.

Detroit, Mich.

January 10. 1911.

bauad w.-rkiy by lb*

Hill Publishin mpany

Job* I. Hill, Pr». u I Tr«*. He i

I"*. K. C
DM«r*kUt4

IOO.
loany othrr fHVUrn •

unW^* tin-y eaa -U'tw [mm t,r autborlaa-

■

I <■'. 1"': ' '' ► .-'..-

I of

haataam T ••!••«:. i

I li

1 1 tents

i »

it i

In.t.ll

«• Il.i'r- an<t Tiik*

I Overpressure <>n an ( )kl

li(»iK-r

In tht the

of a b
which was cntircK un
of t

hould not be difficult to place the
calami-
In all of the p
the on laws of tl

into effect, tin-

I
e had little to do with them
the examination of r "led at the

State

In th ncc tfu

amir .

\ man a
amincd ial wa-

-ion to operate boilers and
on the supr that he was du!

This safe
of the qualified man ar the

-nuffini:

It is not known caused

calamit ; ossiblc

able
that far in excess of that I

nay have been
ure air
able that the
the aafe I
undi ik on the pan of the man of

the paramount important
thai Ml

Pi ■ ■ • Sharing Plan «>f I
Brooklyn I i

ann<

If! i prruii

> ecp the

the kui»c In

■
be

*poa« of the r
In the em-
ployee* recafftf Hon

an.l wkW\ rfit %< f \ u c inj fhc

to be e i

a bonu-

J to retain

doing

I
tinualK

Tl at tho«< »••.. hi

the compa

.■ -
for

■tock of
the iring tl o*e

■

the •

me;

and

A-
the

n of

the flflttfltflfl wfl^^^^l

reed o\
id. be »o«ld receiwe

rata of
Med ,r»

•li.

man* labor be contid
vidlng be roc*1 <

■netfeaed

J pr»-

'e root pan ^

POWER

January 10, 1911.

Flywheel Rims

It may not be too late to suggest that
there is still room for improvement in
the design and construction of the rims
of large flywheels. That there has been
progress in the past ten years is gen-
erally admitted, but there still seems to
be a lack of knowledge on the part of
some builders, of the essential weak-
ness of the old-fashioned joint for
wheel rims.

That this weakness is not confined
to flange joints is evidenced by the sam-
ple of a large wheel on the engine of
a plate mill which was examined some
years ago and found to have a safety
factor of only two. That is, an increase
in speed of about 40 per cent, would
have wrecked the wheel. This engine
and its flywheel were built by a firm of
national reputation and were in other
respects of a high standard of workman-
ship, but the keyed joints of the wheel
rim had only a small fraction of the
strength of the rim itself.

In order to clear up any misunder-
standing on this important feature of
engine design, it may be well to state a
few facts which have been determined
partly by calculation but largely by di-
rect experiment on smaller wheels.

A thin, comparatively wide, cast-iron
rim such as is used on belt wheels, is
subjected when in motion to tension along
its circumference caused by the centrifu-
gal force, just as a boiler shell is sub-
jected to tension due to the internal
pressure.

If the rim is unrestrained by the arms,
as is the case in some wheels having
the arms free to slip in the rim sockets,
this tension in pounds per square inch
of rim section will be expressed very
nearly by the fraction, v1 -=- 10, for cast
iron, where v is the rim velocity in feet
per second.

Assuming the tensile strength of soft,
gray iron to be 16.000 pounds per square
inch, v1 -~ 10 would equal 16,000, and v
would equal 400 feet per second, the
bursting velocity.

Numerous experiments have verified
this conclusion and have further shown
that in wheels with whole rims, as or-
dinarily designed, the influence of the
arms is negligible. The effect of arms
which rigidly connect hub and rim is to
restrain the rim from expanding, cause
it to assume a wavy outline and to in-
duce contrary bending moments at the
arms and at points midway between the
arms. This action causes stresses of
tension, compression and shear which
combine with the tension already existing
to produce complicated resultant stresses.
These are further complicated by the
stretch of the arms themselves and by
the initial stresses due to cooling strains.
An ordinary cast-iron pulley having six
or more arms will, however, burst at
about the speed above indicated.

The introduction of rim joints changes
all this, especially if the joints are be-
tween the arms. The addition of flanges
or bosses and the introduction of heavy
bolts or links for fastenings very much
increase the local centrifugal force and
therefore increase the bending moment
at that point.

It is as if we had a plate girder, span-
ning a gap between two abutments and
designed to carry a certain uniform load,
and should proceed to cut it in two at
the center, fasten it together by bolts
located near the top flange and then put
a large concentrated load at the point of
weakness. We would naturally expect
failure.

To illustrate the enormous force some-
times exerted by concentrated weights,
we may consider a wheel twenty feet in
diameter running at two hundred revolu-
tions per minute or about one-half its
bursting speed. The centrifugal force
of a one-pound bolt in the rim at this
speed would be about one hundred and
forty pounds. A cast-iron double flange
on such a wheel might weigh two or three
hundred pounds and would exert a pres-
sure of fifteen or twenty tons tending to
rupture the joint.

For the same reason, balance weights
inside the rims of high-speed pulleys
are always a source of danger.

Experiments have shown that wheels
having flange joints between the arms
sometimes burst at less than half the
speed attained by whole-rim wheels.

Now, whatever factor of safety is
adopted in determining the safe speed
of such wheels, this fact must be re-
membered:

A flywheel requires a certain interval
of time to attain a dangerous speed and
the larger this interval, the better for
all parties concerned.

The racing of a flywheel is usually due
to temporary disarrangement of the gov-
ernor and depends upon the difference
between the full energy of the steam and
the load which the engine happens to be
carrying at the time. If. the flywheel is
so designed that the bursting speed is
three times the normal, there will ordi-
narily be ample time to close the throt-
tle and prevent an accident.

Furthermore, it is known that air re-
sistance and friction are considerable at
high speeds and exert a marked retard-
ing effect. If a wheel has radial ribs
upon the faces of arms or rim the air
resistances may be sufficient to prevent
the attainment of dangerous speed.

Granted that any wheel will burst at
some speed, it must be admitted that
the wider the margin between the normal
and the bursting speeds, the less the
danger of accident.

It requires less courage to close the
throttle when the engineer knows there
is a respectable factor of safety in his
flywheel.

Graft

The frank expression of such opinions
as that of Amos Skeg in our issue of
December 20, to the effect that "sales
people and not the engineer or the em-
ployer are the ones to benefit by a too
critical view of what constitutes a bribe,"
is not calculated to accelerate the move-
ment for the abolition of graft. The
picture of an employer conspiring with
his engineer to get more out of the seller
of supplies than the face of the bill calls
for is not flattering to the employer and
is degrading to the employee, who, to
put it in its most charitable light, has
received his master's permission to ac-
cept tips like any menial.

Where are the high ideals of the pro-
fessional engineer?

No Boiler Explosions in
Montana

Although last year was one of the most
disastrous in the matter of boiler ex-
plosions, Montana's record shines out
bright and clear, for during the entire
twelve months not a single boiler explo-
sion occurred. J. H. Bailey, State boiler
inspector, is proud of this record. During
the year three inspectors traveled 23,306
miles to examine internally and external-
ly 2021 boilers.

In those inspections 2382 defects were
noted, 1819 of which were considered
dangerous, and suitable repairs were
ordered made. Eleven boilers and seven
mud drums were condemned as unfit for
further service and pressure was reduced
on 43 boilers.

The man who mistakes a mark on the
gage glass for the water line, can be
classed with the man who knocked the
milk pitcher off the table, mistaking it
for the cat, or tried to hang his coat on a
nail only to find that it was a housefly.

The average man refuses to buy a
clay pipe with a piece broken off the
stem, but breaks off the stem to suit him-
self. This seems to be the case with
the engineer who buys nicely finished
brass unions and mars them all up with
a stilson wrench.

Do not be hasty in prophesying fail-
ure, as things are sometimes practical
that do not look so. It is often easier to
make a thing work than to try to con-
vince your boss to the contrary.

The engineer gets into trouble with
two kinds of appMances: one is imper-
fect, and sticks; ihe other is too per-
fect, and sticks.

Reliability of both men and machines
consists in their working when your back
is turned.

January 1U, 1911.

POU

Boiler Explosion in Pittsfield, Mass.

The Morcwood Ice Compam 's plant at

it of a
on
the morniru

men were instantly killed and 20 or more
inju: of whom atcr. The

boiler was of the locomotive
mounted b> a .ch slid. en-

which was scatty > of

the boiler in all J

The barrel of the boiler vtas .fci in*,
in diameter, built in I
inch charcoal-iron plates, and
between the heads, in which there were
nch tut- h the l<

nal and round-about scams
double The I

and crown

inch thick. The croun she-.
port-. and the

support

Durinj the

portion h.i to a

r*e of

.-el plate going around
three

As near as can be the boiler

was Id and had

in intcrt-

I . I .. John-

1 1

thi

than

iltl

and ■ "".^

hun

,/;. . -

■

in fonr
immediate! the failure

ported that the boiler

■ ■

ra and fixed th re at

I ''asc of

p at a bargain four a nc n gage anJ

near when

ago .v
ha.! ig dut

•mall sawmill and had carried a

•

• » and

year. There -

ok pla
men. not one of whom \* a

- • i-

■

ig to the nil

of all I
ashes fron and arooad the Bre

-on on the At

and the %.

was

bat '.<>• a and rep

aced on the N

gsg ksurc of 40 pound*

V 'to

.ind th.i

N>ut the b<

the -d toint

at the MM ' of the

■

d engine -
» torn from the

against

■

•on and

m torn from the tf»

«»p

! : n

bet. the

ooed on Its errors cwtw
' end nf th*
the cennaiiinc rod and rt
from ohfch the r»»»n rod hod '

POWER

January 10, 1911.

course was torn from the head and fell
in several pieces quite near, while the
front head went fully 100 feet directly
forward.

The safety valve, which was found
about 50 feet away, was taken by the
chief of police to one of the plants of the
Pittsfield Electric Company, where it was

a water pressure of 225 pounds after
which it popped repeatedly at pressures
ranging from 210 to 220 pounds.

While the failure was almost in-
stantaneous in all parts of the boiler, it
is probable that the initial rupture started
in one of the water-leg sheets where the
feed-water pipe entered, as near this

Fig. 3. Middle Course Thrown 500 Feet

Fig. 4. Part of Middle Course with Part of Water Leg

subjected to a pressure of 154 pounds
per square inch, which failed to open it.
No additional pressure was put on the
valve at this time. Later it was taken to
the laboratory of the Stanley works, where
it was subjected to a dead-weight test of
161 pounds without opening. It was
finally forced open by the application of

point the metal was eaten away to about
one-third of its original thickness. There
was no evidence of low water and the
fusible plug taken from the crown sheet
is in good condition. It was a case of over-
pressure caused by an incorrect steam
gage which led to the screwing down on
the spring of the safety valve.

Proportion of Nitrogen in
Flue Gas

By Julian C. Smallwood

In view of the occasional publication
of improbable, if not impossible, results
from flue-gas analyses as made from ap-
paratus such as the Orsat, it seems worth
while to call attention to the significance
of the proportion of nitrogen. The amount
of this constituent of flue gas, in the case
of coal combustion, is always nearly 80
per cent, if the accompanying results
are valid. The reasons for this are as
follows:

The proportion, by volume, of the
oxygen to the nitrogen in the atmosphere
is approximately 21 to 79. If pure car-
bon were used in the furnace, no matter
how much air were admitted, these same
proportions of oxygen to nitrogen would
be found in the flue gas. For example:
if just enough air for complete combus-
tion were used and if, under these cir-
cumstances, the combustion were com-
plete, the reaction would be
79 N, -f 21 O, + 21 C = 21 CO, + 79 N„
the right-hand member representing the
flue gas, in which there are twenty-one
molecules (that is, volumes) of oxygen,
in the CO-, as in the air.

The effect of the nitrogen, oxygen and
hydrogen in the coal actually burned is
to alter the proportion of oxygen to nitro-
gen originally existent in the air. But
the amounts of these elements in the
coal are small; therefore, the proportion
of 21 to 79 is approximately realized in
actual flue gas. If anthracite coal is

Fig. 5. Part of Crank Shaft in Tree
Crotch

used, the effect of its constituents in
altering the proportion is slight; but with
bituminous or semi-bituminous coals it
is more marked, on account of the com-
paratively large amounts of hydrogen
and oxygen. Part of the hydrogen may
be considered to combine with the oxygen
of the coal to form water, which does
not appear in the flue-gas analysis. What
is left of the hydrogen combines with
oxygen from the air, and this tends to
reduce the proportion of oxygen apparent
in the flue gas. The nitrogen in the coal
also has this effect, since it increases

January 10. 1911

the total nitrogen, but not so much as
would superficially appear. Coal con-
taining 2 per cent, by weight of nitr< .
would add to the flue gas a very much

ier percent ume. nitr<

being a hea. Furthermore, the flue

>rmed by the combination of -
eral pounds of air with each pound of
coal; the proportions of the coal's in-

nen in the flue gas arc
than when in the coal.

HOC the ratio of oxygen to nitrogen
remains the same and gen

appearing in CO occupies the same vol-
ume as free oxygen, it follows that the
of nitrogen a- the

anal II be ar. the same

B air; name
the percentage of nitrogen will be rc-

•m: cause this gas occupk
the volume of the free enter-

ing n. But as the

• nly a fraction of 1 per cent..
if present at all. its effect t<> the

percentage of nitrogen narked.

Fret other hand

measured as nitrogen and U in-

crea apparent \olume. but it.

nt in very small quan-
tity

Tli Ke demon-

calculating the re for

>f a coal high in
•nparat:
low in mow the resulting

percentage of nitrogen in an extreme
case Such a led bj the

following anals I
■

i
e flue-gas ana ich

thcoreticalK would result from such a
coal The calculations for the react

neglect the SO from the sulphur, and -e results »ho . »u!d be

complete combustion of cr the

ed:

the p

i ID Mm it ■'**

ouch the <

Of tO!

urn- .ofupletc com-

ic tanc imo
When ■

.
• not

c of bituminous coal*, and
•gurc rendci the
■ . - .. ■ .

' "y

•

;

)

POWER

January 10, 1911.

^OCS T"

Compound Gage

What is a compound gage, and for
what purpose is it used ?

A. C. G.

In a compound gage the dial is gradu-
ated to indicate pressures both above and
below that of the atmosphere. From
the zero mark the numbers read on one
side the pressure in pounds above the at-
mosphere and on the other inches of
mercury or pounds pressure below the
atmosphere or vacuum. It is used wher-
ever the pressure is liable to be either
above or below that of the atmosphere, as
is the case of the pressure in the re-
ceivers of compound engines.

Most Economical Vacuum

With a compound-condensing engine,
how can I tell whether a 25- or a 27-inch
vacuum is the more economical?

V. M. E.

By noting the hight at which the gov-
ernor revolves. Other things being equal,
the engine is using the least steam when
the governor is highest.

Low Water

What should be done in a case of low
water in a boiler carrying 100 pounds
pressure?

C. L. W.

Smother the fire immediately with
green coal. Close the ashpit doors.
Open the damper, allowing cool air
to draw through the furnace and
tubes. Leave the engine running until
pressure is reduced to the lowest possible
point. If the feed pump is running let
it run as long as it will. When the pres-
sure will no longer run the engine or
pump, it may be still further reduced by
opening the gage cocks and the water-
column drain valve. When the pressure
has been reduced to near the atmosphere,
water may be let in to the usual hight, and
a search made for leaks or signs of over-
heating. If none appear, the fire may be
started and the boiler put into service.

Incrustation and Corrosion

What is the difference between the cor-
rosion and incrustation of steam boilers?

C. A. I.

Corrosion is the rusting or eating away
of the iron or steel of the boiler, either
internally or externally. It may be caused
by air, water, acid, sulphur, etc. Incrusta-
tion is the covering of the surface with

Questions are>

not answered unless

accompanied by the;

name and address of the

inquirer. This page Is

for you when stuck-

use it

the solid matter left behind when the
water passes away as steam and occurs
only on the inside of the boiler.

Initial Condensation

What is initial condensation?

I. E. C.

When steam enters the cylinder at the
beginning of the stroke it comes in con-
tact with the piston, cylinder head and
wall, which are cooler than the entering
steam and as steam cannot exist in con-
tact with anything cooler than itself, a
part of it is condensed. Initial means
at the beginning and as the steam is con-
densed at the beginning of the stroke, it
is called initial condensation.

Rotary Engine

What is a rotary engine?

R. E.

A rotary engine is one having no re-
ciprocating parts, the force of the steam
being expended directly in producing
rotation without the intervention of pis-
ton, connecting rod or crank.

Vacuum Breaker

What is a vacuum breaker, and for
what purpose is it used?

C. V. D.

A vacuum breaker is an appliance at-
tached to a jet condenser which auto-
matically admits air to the exhaust pipe
•or condensing chamber of a condensing
engine when water rises above a prede-
terminated hight in the system, destroying
the vacuum and preventing water from
entering the cylinder.

Complete Combustion

What conditions will cause practically
complete combustion in a boiler furnace?

C. F. C.

There must be a high-furnace tempera-
ture, sufficient air intimately mixed with

the fuel and distilled gases and room
enough for the gases to burn without the
flame coming in contact with the heating
surfaces.

Loop in Steam Gage Pipe

Why is there always a loop in the pipe
connecting a steam gage to its boiler?

L. S. G.

It is placed there to form a trap for
water so that steam may not come in
contact with the spring and by its heat
affect 'its temper.

Lead I&ints in Water Pipe

How are the lead joints in cast-iron
water pipe made?

J. W. P.

The lengths of pipe are laid in position
with the small or spigot end of one length
accurately centered in the large or bell
end of the next and held central by blocks
of wood underneath and at the sides.

The annular space between the bell and
spigot is then filled with tarred rope yarn
which is calked in until the bell end is
filled to within a half inch of the end.

A dam is made around the joint, usual-
ly a strip of tuck packing held by a
clamp and melted lead poured into the
space between the dam and the packing.
Afterward, the lead is solidly calked. The
packing makes a water-tight joint and
the lead holds the packing in place as
would a gland.

Compound Engine Cylinder Patio

How can the proper cylinder ratio in
a compound engine be found when the
steam pressure, vacuum and load are
known?

C. E. R.

The proper cylinder ratio in compound
engines is a debatable question. A ratio
which will give an equal number of ex-
pansions in each cylinder is found by as-
suming the probable initial pressure in
the high-pressure cylinder and the termi-
nal pressure in the low; then divide the
initial pressure by the terminal and the
square root of the quotient will be the
proper cylinder ratio.

The life of the rubber hose of the flue
blower can often be doubled by arrang-
ing the steam pipes so as to avoid short
bends of the hose, also by remembering
to turn on the steam before uncoiling
the hose, as it is stiff and brittle when
cold.

January 10, 1911.

P O Vt F. R

New power House Equipment

I mbination Air and \\ ater
Trap

This trap J to handle both

water and air from steam pipes, radia:
separators, etc. The trap does away with
air cocks and air . and the escape

of air is automatically taken care of. The
accompanying illustration shows the in-
terior construction of the trap, which con-
of a casing, two rv. lives, a

float and lever connection.

The trap operates as follows: The trap
being attached and the connection
opened, the float is at the bottom of the
chamber with the air escape open and
the water escape closed. The r
will then rise in the trap, and should the
tern be air bound the air will escape
through the air valve. The steam will
follow, and with it the water, which will

jmulatc in the bottom of the float
chamber, raise the float and gradually
e the air cscar -!hcr raising of

the float after the air escape is closed
will open the »atcr escape and water
will be dischan

•ipcl the operation of the trap at
the neutral point when both valve* arc
closed the bottom valve and its scat are
not ground to a tight fit. thus permitting

igh water to escape to insure
tinuout action of the trap when b
little Mcar- mg condensed in the

ther apparatus ich the

trap it attached The capa
la large, and it will i
ptM quantities of dirt and «calc. du

onstmction of the water \
Is without »irg« or gu ' m • ' he seat,
which hat but tmall bearing surface and
I* removab

irap it madr 'ie Atl

Brother* Comp i rngfleld. Mats.

Wbmt the m-

i entor jnd the numu -
t.uturer are doin^ :■
tniK' .//;</ money m the en-
gine room <itul ;)c>»fT
//oj/.sc filial nc room
OCWJ

R lin Vdjustablc [nterchmn]
able ( rT ' I i.i r

This grate is so designed that four dif-
:t air »pa. be obtain-

end a.'
faces are made

■
bar to a greater or less J
to the spacing of the proicctJoa*.

found desirable to

change the I coal and to iecreaaa

use the width or the

to ars from the groove*

they are resting in. and turn

bars ur. are on top.

irs are replace

: for barley or

the same set or >f three

•ic of \*
shown

air 'or pea or *to\

nut co.i ich am

:i for all i f bituminous

four sets of projections, each set being
diffi On these r

bars, the surface barv

....

POSIT*

POWER

January 10, 1911.

will require renewal, as the bearing bars
should last the life of the boiler. This
grate is made by the Standard Grate

had erected at Buckau, and from the be-
ginning constructed his locomobiles (port-
able steam engines), whose fundamental

Fig. 4. Surface Bars as Spaced by the Bearing Bars

Company, 1213 Filbert street, Phila-
delphia, Penn.

OBITUARY

With Geheimen Kommerzienrat Dr.
Ing. h.c. Rudolf Ernst Wolf, of Madge-
burg, passed away on November 20, 1910,
one of the most important and sympa-
thetic personalities in German industry.

He was born July 26, 1831, the son of
Wilhelm Wolf, professor in the Madge-
burg Gymnasium. His father intended to
give him a university education, but this
did not suit the boy's inclinations, and
his proficiency in ancient languages left
so much to be desired that his father
came to doubt whether he was able to
study at all. "I don't want to," the lad
replied, "I wish to become a machinist."
Such a desire was then unheard of in
educated circles, since the "black trade"
was not considered respectable. But after
he had delivered his mind, the parental
opposition was soon overcome, and Wolf
entered, April 12, 1847, the Maschinen-
fabrik Buckau as a simple apprentice.
After two and a half years of practical
instruction in this old-time shop which
has given their rudinentary knowledge
to so many able engineers, he attended,
from October, 1850, to October, 1852, the
provincial trade school at Halberstadt.
After that he found a place in the W6h-
Iertschen Maschinenfabrik, of Berlin,
where, under the leadership of H. Gru-
son, the then director of the firm and
later founder of the celebrated Gruson-
werk in Madgeburg, he was occupied es-
pecially in building locomotives. In 1855
he entered the factory of G. Kuhn in
Stuttgart-Berg,, where at the youthful age
Of 24 years he filled the office of chief
engineer. Here for six years he was en-
gaged in various kinds of work, till he
decided to start a factory for himself,
since he felt that he had sufficient force
and experience to stand on his own feet.
On June 15, 1862, he began work in
the machine and boiler shop which he
principles of construction were original

with him. They contained removable
tubular boilers with cylindrical fire boxes;
the working cylinders were live-steam
jacketed and connected with the steam
dome itself. Thus he was the founder
of modern German locomobile construc-
tion and developed the engine to its pres-
ent important position. Among the radical
improvements which he introduced were

Rudolf Ernst Wolf

the method of compounding and the use
of highly superheated steam.

R. Wolf had early recognized the im-
portance of specialization in machine con-
struction, and had therefore made his
shop a special one for locomobiles and
locomobile boilers. The greatest pos-
sible simplicity of organization and work-
ing methods, with concentration of all
mental, manual and machine forces upon
a single object, enabled him soon to turn
out engines of high economic and con-
structive perfection. Already at the loco-
mobile competitions at Madgeburg in
1880 and at Berlin in 1883, those of Wolf
surpassed others, including the English
ones. Today Wolf locomobiles show as

good economy as eight pounds of coal
per effective horsepower-hour.

Among the various products that, dur-
ing its long existence, have been turned
out by the Wolf shop, are rotary pumps
and screw propellers, known as Buckau
screws and intended for river steamers.
The line of threshing-machine locomo-
biles has been supplemented by threshers
themselves.

With Wolf appliances there have been
drilled the deepest bore holes in the
earth, those of Schladebach in the Saxon
province, and of Paruschowitz in upper
Silesia, which are 1748.4 and 2002 meters
deep. Wolf has also been building sta-
tionary boilers and engines and machin-
ery for a variety of industrial purposes.

In 1862, Wolf began with six workmen,
and three officials, and built an 8-horse-
power locomobile of six atmospheres
working pressure, which did forty years'
good service and now stands in the tech-
nical museum at Munich. Today the Wolf
Works employ 3300 officials and workmen,
turning out a large number of locomo-
biles, various in form and size, up to
more than 800 effective horsepower and
as high as 15 atmospheres working pres-
sure. Beside the old works in Buckau, a
new plant has been erected at Madge-
burg-Salbke.

Wolf was not only a fine engineer, but
a good salesman and a competent or-
ganizer. He understood the work of the
shop from his own experience and could
direct its details with great sagacity. He
was popular with his men and solicitous
for their welfare. In respect to pensions
and various other means of social bene-
fit among them, he far exceeded the re-
quirements of the paternal German laws
and long anticipated them. He was a
man of public spirit and activity, and
received official honors.

Edwin Ford, engineer of the Harlem
hospital in Brooklyn, recently passed
away. Mr. Ford was past financial secre-
tary of Robert Fulton Association No.
57, National Association of Stationary
Engineers, also member of the Municipal
Engineers Local No. 319, International
Union of Steam Engineers, and past
senior warden of Washington Lodge No.
1 , Free and Accepted Masons. He was
a hard worker for the engineer and
seemed to take great pleasure in doing
anything within his power to aid the
cause.

PERSONAL

John I. Rogers announces that having
resigned one year ago from the Midvale
Steel Company, of Philadelphia, to take
up professional practice, he has since that
time engaged in consultation and design,
and has now opened a New York office
at 165 Broadway. He will make a spe-

January 10, 1911.

POU !R

cialty of the design and operation of the
most modern plants, furnaces and ma-
chinery for steam hammer, hydraulic
I and drop forging; tire, wheel and
other special rolling; hot- and cold-metal
working; machine shops and power
plants, iron and steel manufacture.

As a result of a I _e rule re-

cently inaugurated in Kansas City. K. H.
Lane was appointed a member of the
board of examining engine

NhW PUBLICATIONS

Ne\t best to knowing a thing one's self

a here to find it

being able to retain in one's memory all

the data and information which come

ic's attention is to put it where it can

be found. Many engineers keep card in*

ich data, and Kdward 1
has conceived the idea of compiling such
information as is likely to be of value

lginccrs and issuing it upon !•
the standard 3i printed upon one

only, for filing in a standard index
card Ml Me has associated with him a

• rs expert in different III
and issues tfu Monthly in a little

it under the name <>f Data The pub-
lication office is at '»J l.a Salle street.
Chicai*

\\ ill I [old v Convention Soon

The Institute of ng Knginc

: a renewed interest in its work
le issuing of the prospectus contain-
ing the proposed plan at
»ork >cvcral branches are now in ;

of formation throughout the countr\
and the work has already been adopted in
the extension courses at Teacher I
lege. Columbia l \ working

agreement has been entered into bet\»
the Institute and the Williamson !
Trade School, wherebv the graduates of
the latter will r the

ie\man grade in the Institute

-s are I
getting inte- . the institute to such

an extent that rable p

jve been offered
linent educators who arc interi
■ n r il education are taking great

f the I
eers and are lending tl
mscl if
! that the
be anr | m the ar futui

An industrial
rate the fiftieth annlv
dom of Italy will be opened at T

'■
■

an area nf a mil-
;are met which -

meter* will be
ing it nnr -trge«t

held

M W I\\ I \ I IONS I S

rni mi HOVKMI

• . \ ~

>i \

i a hi

\\ i
III

■i AIM

ll:i\n

H"l I I It •» I I II \ \ I I » \ \ Il .. * V

I'IMilll l | Rf|

r<<\\ I II I - 1 X N I \ I \ I I I \ M I I - \ Mi

\ in I ixt'Ko

i:\i

1 1 v l ■

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• » \\

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•tail

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1 ' 1 1 "*Hi|

• M

n.«»'l IMjta.

AMI

i I

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POWER

January 10, 1911.

omen

A department

When you were a small
boy did you ever go swim-
ming with the other "kids"
in some fresh -water pond
and, when emerging, find a
big, black, ugly looking
leech fastened onto you?

" Blood-suckers " we
used to call them and we
remember that they were about as repulsive
a worm as ever made a small boy shiver.

Compared with them a mosquito is a
respectable sort of parasite. He, at least,
comes at you in a business way. You know
which is head and which is tail, and that is
more than can be said of your leech.

There are leeches in the business world
and, after their fashion, they are quite as ugly
and quite as repulsive and, when allowed to
get busy, quite as destructive as the old
original ' ' blood-sucker. ' '

Their first business in life is to remain
unnoticed. Nature seems to have provided
th m with the instinct that makes them
efface themselves as much as possible.

Their next business is to find some big
and conspicuous concern manufacturing some
conspicuously good article and to fasten onto
them for reputation.

Their third business is to find the "easy
marks " who will provide their nourishment.

These leeches of the business world are
better known to you and us as " substi tutors."

Do you know that there are large manu-
facturing concerns in this country whose whole
business is to turn out substitutes for well
known, trade-marked brands of goods?

Imagine it — big, wide-open counterfeiting
factories !

Can you think of anything more crooked
and despicable than that?

Yet these industries are made possible
because there are enough dishonest dealers
in the country to take their goods and enough
indiscriminating buyers to accept the counter-
feits.

Take it right in your own business, for
instance — say some-engine room supply such
as grease, oil or packing.

-for subscribers

edited by tbe ad -

vertising service

department of

Powejr

The fake manufacturer's
agent says to the dealer,
" Here, Mr. Man, you are
selling so many pounds of
Smith's Packing (mention-
ing a well known, old estab-
lished, thoroughly advertised
brand) , and you are getting
about 20 per cent, profit on
it. Now, look at this stuff. Same trade-
mark, nearly, isn't it? Same kind of a box;
same stuff to all intents and purposes, what?
Well, I'll sell you this so that you can clean up
35 per cent, on it and nobody will be the wiser."

The dealer can't resist the temptation
or doesn't want to. Next time you send for
Smith's Packing you get the substitute, and
because you don't investigate the name and
trade-mark closely enough you accept it as
the real thing.

You use it and the next thing you know
you find the stuffing box leaking badly. Out
comes the offending packing and from that day
on Smith's Packing is on your black list.

Unless he hears of your particular case
Smith has no come-back — no chance to
"show" you — no square deal.

Unconsciously , you are a party to the fraud .

Moreover, in the long run, you are the
victim. You put up your good money or
recommend that your concern put it up,
and you get an inferior article, one which
doesn't give the results you expected or
one which actually works harm.

These business leeches have no reputa-
tion to live up to. They create nothing,
they build up nothing. They are destroyers.
Their whole function in life is to sustain
themselves on a big manufacturer's reputa-
tion and a buyer's credulity, through a
dealer's avariciousness.

The manufacturer who is everlastingly
printing his claims — advertising — must live up
to them, deliver the goods, or fail.

Your safeguard in buying is the trade-
marked, advertised article.

But, when you buy, get what you ask for.

In your hands lies the remedy for the
whole rotten practice.

Exercise your prerogative every time.

M.U YORK, J Wl UN 17. 191 I

I»n \<»u recoiled the first time someone

>k you to i cii Yon then,

bul the memo] the event will always
be bright.

5 ■" :.- I .rill- ill lift difficult I

and some are remembered with the k<

\ truth known the wide world o

that the man who helps anothei

I of tin • than the one helped 11

i nothing t< with that sati

11, under the belt that

■ : man when he has helped anotl
omething worth while, and tin

giving .i helping hand to anothei h ten

n ult 'l in tin formation of a life V id

ship.

(1 the otinr i« llou well, Ik i in t do
much oi much, but lu does i whole

think ith him II

Th< • tion it

n it man wh

running the lit 1 1 * it

I l
thousan

man) hold

i hi^h uj>

• to Hi. litf
him ll

ben they wi g&nu

didn't know whether tl

k or blind man - Mm
felt a^ it" both gam
didn't know whether tl
justing in.lt on ti
loosened tl •: tin

id nist then Bill S»m<
• the pu;

placed hi^ dinn<
that

minute had shown tl
I the

the a

th.it bother tl
the old tin*

POWER

January 17, 191 1.

Hudson Manhattan Power Station

The station at Jersey City which fur-
nishes power for the operation of the
trains in the McAdoo tunnels under the
Hudson river is called upon to supply a
load fluctuating momentarily from 8000
to 16,000 kilowatts and swinging from
1500 kilowatts in the early morning
hours to 13,000 on the morning and
evening peaks. Current is supplied by
two 6000- and two 3000-kilowatt gen-
erators, driven by Curtis turbines to sup-
ply steam for which eight Babcock &
Wilcox boilers of 900 rated horsepower
each have been installed. Some of the
dimensions and proportions pertinent to
this article are as follows:

Water-heating surface per boiler, sq.ft. 0,1 28

Grate surface per boiler, sq.ft 190

Water-heating surface per square foot

grate surface, sq.ft 48.05

Total rated boiler horsepower 7,200

Total rated capacity of generators, kw. . 18,000
Maximum sustained capacity of gen-
erators, kw 28,0(10

Boiler horsepower per kilowatt, rated. . 0.40
Boiler horsepower per kilowatt, max-
imum 0.2<i

Water-heating surface per kilowatt.

rated, sq.ft 4.06

Water-heating surface per kilowatt,

maximum, sq.ft 2.fil

Grate surface per kilowatt, rated, sq.ft. O.U84
Grate surface per kilowatt, maximum,

sq.ft 0.034

By F. R. Low

Boiler-room practice in a
plant which produces cur-
rent at less than 0.42 of a
cent per kilowatt-hour and
makes a thousand pounds
of steam with 12.5 cents
worth of coal. It is en-
abled to do this by the use
of No. 3 buckwheat. The
article describes the furnace
and methods by which this
is successfully done, not-
withstanding the varying
load.

While this is a generous amount of
boiler and especially of grate surface for
the present demands upon the station,

the character of the service is such that
no interruption is admissible and no
chances could be taken of being found
short of steam-generating capacity. Fur-
thermore, it was believed by John Van
Vleck, its designer, that a station thus of
necessity liberally supplied with grate
surface could be run upon No. 3 buck-
wheat, although none of the large power
stations in this vicinity are being so run
today and it is doubtful if it is being
done elsewhere by a plant carrying a
load of this magnitude and with this de-
gree of variation.

Some difficulty was at first experienced
in doing this, but a proposition was sub-
mitted by the McClave-Brooks Company,
of Scranton, Penn., in which they agreed
to burn No. 3 buckwheat, without the
formation of clinker,"to keep the boilers
running at the required capacity, with a
lew per cent, of carbon in the ash,
and to burn 35 pounds of this coal per
hour per square foot of grate surface
with not over 2.5 inches water pressure
of air in the ashpit.

In accordance with this agreement the

Fig. 1. Turbine Room of Hudson-Manhattan Plant

January 17. 1911.

PONXf K

furnaces were reconstructed, as shown in
Fig. 6. Each furnace has three arches,
so spaced that the area between them is
sufficient to allow the products of com-
bustion to pass through under slight
con.; ., and placed sufficiently high

above the fire to allow the complete
cumbustion of the gases before they
are discharged through the openings be-
tween the arches upon the cold tuw

The grate used is what is known as
the McCIa 4. It is arranged in

front and rear sections, both of which
dump toward the middle, so that the
ashes, clinkers, etc.. fall naturally into
the center of the hopper, into which
the ashpit is extended; see
This crate has been especially d

•he burning of small grades of anthra-
cite, allowing the ncccss ; 'ing un-
derrate draft to thout <i
ranging the fuel and throwing it about in
et and mounds all mcr the surface of
bed. To ■ J it has a uni-
if an inch not on:
'ace of each bar but also
of the bars adiaccnt to I
of the longitudinal carrying bars which
span the space from the edge of the
dead plate to the bridgcwall.

The grate bars arc made with sectional
removable tops or caps, having '.-inch
air space arranged as in I Into the

shanks of these caps are cast soft
lugs uhich arc bent under the bottom of
the carrying bar, thus preventing any
change in the location of the cap and
iring a uniform mesh all over the
grate surface The fc rtion of the

ban. --s below the top !•

of the caps and is. therefore, not HI
to v burn out from the fire on

the grate. The bar* overlap at

*n in ! in

. .L — *

cm openir

'nm to
tating the use of the cent. . .en brought M arrest o1 the

100

POWER

January 17, 1911.

POWER

101

102

the right point to secure whatever space
is desired.

The dead plate is protected with fire-
brick. The ledge on which the front edge
of the grate rests is dropped several
inches below the general level so that
there may be always a considerable depth
of, fire at the front edge of the grate to
resist the too liberal admission of air

POWER

in the clear and having three sections
of grates and three fire doors, as shown
in Fig. 4.

When the fire is to be cleaned, the un-
consumed fuel is pushed back onto the
back half of the grate and the front half
is dumped, after which the live coal is
pulled forward onto the clean part and
the rear section dumped. All of the un-

January 17, 1911.

top part live coal. The cleaning is done
between the peaks. The air pressure
used is from H to ^ inch of water in
the ashpit with a light load, and with %
inch suction in the furnace. After the
fire gets to be 4 or 5 inches thick it is
blown with about 2 inches of pressure
in the ashpit, which gives a balanced con-
dition in the furnace. "When the fire is

Power

Fig. 6. Vertical Section through Boiler Setting

at this point without allowing the fuel
to pile back into the doorways.

The grate is 10 feet in depth from the
dead plate to the face of the bridgewall,
made up as shown in Fig. 6 of five rows
of bars dumping backward, the center
tie and four rows of bars dumping for-
ward. Each boiler is served by two
furnaces separated by a division wall
supporting the arches; each furnace be-
ing 10 feet deep by 9 feet 6 inches wide

consumed fuel is then distributed over
the entire grate and fresh fuel added,
all of which may be accomplished in less
than two minutes. This is done sepa-
rately for each furnace. Starting with
this, perhaps 2 inches of live coal,
the fires are allowed to build up un-
til in the course of six to seven hours
they will have attained a thickness
of some 12 or 14 inches, two-thirds
of which will be ash and only the

at its thickest a blast of 2V2 inches is
used. The average rate of combustion
is 25 pounds per square foot of grate and
the maximum 36 pounds. At this aver-
age rate of combustion they are able
to carry the load with five boilers in
active operation with one banked in re-
serve for emergency.

In the report of the Committee on
Power Generation presented at the recent
meeting of the American Interurban Rail-

January 17, 1911.

P O VT E K

103

way Engineering Association, C. E. Roehl
mentioned the fact that practice is tend-
ing toward the reduction of the number
of square feet of grate surface se-
by one fireman, and in turn increasing
the rate of combustion which is ex-
pected of this fireman. In order to main-
tain a reasonable economy in the oper-
ation of a plant in which the hourly
peak load is approximately two and a
half times the average day load,
absolutely necessary that the number of
boilers in operation be kept down, so
that the normal rating of the boilers will
be approached during the light load of

middle day and night. Experience
in this station shows that it is possible,
roughly speaking, to obtain 1200 kilowatts
from a fireman for a period not exceeding

and a half hours, and that the aver-
age fireman is as able to do this when
shoveling this coal upon, sa feet

of grate surface *s when shoveling the
same amount of coal upon 100 square
feet. It would, therefore, seem quite
feasible to operate a boiler containing
2<*> square feet of gral *ith

one man during the period of light I

ig which that man will develop.
say. 700 kilowatts, and continue the same
boiler in operation through the peak
loads I *wo firemen. During

the peak load each of these men would
havt rk harder than the one alone

during the light loads, as more than twice
thi light load output uould be obtained
■>ic two men. kilowai

cnt, this practice is approached as
nearly as operating conditions will pcr-

and has pn>\cd quite effective.
those of the surplus hands that it is ncc-

t - .

o J

0 I

~T~n

Warn

•

!«

••:■«

i »

** ™ • ■

!«.

I ; <

■ "

H%l" ' • K *

tl.1

| |

*««-«Ml J,.

II I

104

POWER

January 17, 1911.

essary to keep on during the periods of
light load being used in cleaning fires
and doing the odd jobs that can best be
done at that time. In this way the ser-
vices of the firemen are used at their
utmost efficiency and, as the load in-
creases, an extra fireman can be put on
who will simply work the hours of peak
loads, receiving extra compensation in
return for his split watch. This will
probably give a lower operating cost
for the boiler room than having the ex-
tra fireman stay during the entire watch
at his normal rate of wage, as he can
waste more coal in the hours when his
services are not needed than the extra
compensation given him for his split
watch.

The pressure carried is from 180 to
185 pounds with 125 degrees of super-

heat. Each boiler has a separate Green
economizer which heats the feed water
to 240 or 250 degrees. The water is
passed first through closed heaters, sup-
plied with steam from the auxiliaries,
and there is also an open heater at
work in the construction plant for which
the station also supplies power from
which a considerable quantity of hot
water is returned.

In addition to the railroad load there
are nine air compressors taking steam
equivalent to about 1000 kilowatts. The
turbines require 13.5 pounds of steam per
kilowatt-hour of themselves, and 17.5
including the auxiliaries.

The cost of operation has .been run-
ning down steadily since the plant was
started, as shown by the chart in Fig. 7,
and has reached the remarkably low fig-

ure of less than 0.42 of a cent per kilo-
watt-hour for current at the switchboard,
including the cost of water, supplies,
wages and coal. The No. 3 buckwheat
costs about 43 per cent, less at the con-
veyer siding of the station than No. 1
buckwheat coal. One of the units is fitted
with a Venturi meter, Richardson coal
scales, Westover C02 recorder, etc., and
produced upon test the results in the ac-
companying table, the test being made
with No. 3 buckwheat and with the al-
ternate method of starting and stopping,
as recommended by the Boiler Testing
Code Committee of the American Society
of Mechanical Engineers.

For the data and information contained
in this article we are indebted to E. T.
Munger, general manager of the Hudson
& Manhattan Railroad Company.

Vacuum for Reciprocating Engines

In a paper read before the Northeast
Coast Institution of Engineers and Ship-
builders on November 25, D. B. Morison,
whose words upon the subject of con-
densers have come to have more than or-
dinary importance, attributed the usual
practice of carrying a low vacuum with
triple- and quadruple-expansion marine
engines to the fact that it produced a
high temperature of air-pump discharge
water. This practice is associated with
the assumption that any vacuum above
25 inches in the condenser is a source of
waste, while a few inches less works no
difference as the feed water becomes
just so much hotter.

In support of the contention that the
power increases and the steam consump-
tion per brake horsepower decreases with
approximate uniformity up to the highest
vacuum that can be reasonably carried
on a steamship, Mr. Morison quoted the
result of some investigations by Mr. Wil-
tons which showed that with a central-
valve compound engine, the consumption
per brake horsepower decreased with an
increase of vacuum, at the rate of 1 per
cent, per inch up to 27 inches vacuum.
Referring to land practice, tests by
Messrs. Belliss and Morcom showed that
in a triple-expansion high-speed engine,
the increase in steam consumption per
brake horsepower was at the rate of 1.77
per cent, per inch of decrease in vacuum,
from 28 inches down to 21.5 inches.

It was pointed out that the first es-
sential in any condenser is a disposition
of the surfaces such as will result in the
greatest over-all efficiency; but the mere
fact that a condenser has a large sur-
face per horsepower is no criterion of its
condensing capacity, because much of
this may be ineffective. It is the treat-
ment of the air in a condenser which is
so vital to its efficiency, and from this
point of view that condenser is the best

In a recent paper upon the
economical working of re-
ciprocating marine engines,
Mr. Morison contends that
it is advantageous to run at
as high a vacuum as possi-
ble. Mr. Weir takes issue
with this assertion and
places the maximum eco-
nomical vacuum at 25 inch-
es with triple- and quad-
ruple-expansion marine en-
gines.

which provides the air pump with air at
maximum density.

Air-pump efficiency is a governing fac-
tor in any condensing plant, and in ordi-
nary reciprocating engines the quantity
of air leaking into the system is con-
siderable. Tropical sea water also has
a highly prejudicial effect on air-pump
capacity by reason of the smaller dif-
fernce in temperature of the water flow-
ing through the tubes and that of the
aerated vapor outside the tubes in the
lower part of the condenser. This fact
is largely responsible for the great fall
in vacuum that invariably takes place in
the tropics. Marine engineers accept
its evil consequences as inevitable; but
they are by no means inevitable, and
can be overcome in an extremely simple
manner. Many steamships trading in the
tropics cannot carry more than 20 to 22
inches vacuum; but if the condensers
were designed to carry 27 inches vacuum

in the tropics and the engines were prop-
erly proportioned, together with adequate
arrangements for feed-water heating, the
saving would amount to about 10 per
cent.

The air-withdrawing capacity of any
reciprocating air pump depends upon the
difference between the vacuum that can
be produced in the pump barrel on its
suction st-cke and the vacuum in the

Devaporisina
Chamber --'

Water Charged
Receiver

Air Pump
Suction

Temperature
Regulator

Section of Condenser, Showing Water
Receiver and Diaphragm

condenser. It would obviously boil as
soon as the pump buckets commenced the
suction stroke, and the resultant vapor
would impair the inflow of air from the
condenser. Therefore, an air pump can
be rendered flexible in air-withdrawing
capacity by regulating the temperature.

There are several devices on the mar-
ket for accomplishing this. The con-
denser herein illustrated contains a
divided receiver in its base, which is al-

January 17, 1911.

POU

106

ways completely filled with water of con-
densation. At a distance above this water
receiver is a diaphragm which catches
the water of condensation formed in the
condensing chamber above it. Thcr
a pipe connecting the top of the water-
collecting diaphragm and water receiver,
and in the pipe there is inserted a two-
way cock; one way leads to the air-pump
suction pipe and the other to the water
receiver. If there is a clear way between
the water-collecting diaphragm and the
water receiver, all the water of condensa-
tion passes through the receiver ar.
reduced in temperature before it passes
into the air pump. If. on the other hand,
there is a clear way between the collect-
ing diaphragm and the pump, all the
water of condensation passes at a maxi-
mum temperature into the pump. The
temperature of the pump and. therefore,
its air-withdrawing capacity, is under
complete control by the partial or full
use of the temperature regulator. An
extended experience has demonstrated
that this simple apparatus will raise the
vacuum in the tropics from 1 , to 3
inches, and often more, depending upon
the amount of air prevailing; at the same
time the air-pump discharge water is
kept at the highest temperature consistent
with the maintenance of the highest avail-
able vacuum in the condenser.

The air pump will withdraw air in

maximum quai.lty only when the con-
denser delivers that air to it as free
possible from water vapor; therefore the
totet e of an air pump and con-

den- The action of the one

so influences the action of the other that
both must be cor: resigned if the

available results must be ratlin

Feed water in any steamship can be
heated to the pumping lirt
able auxiliary «m. so that to

ignore the economical possib >{ a

high vacuum in the main engine and to
work at a low vacuum in the
with the sole object of obtaining a high
temperature of air-pump discharge water,
and then to throw away heat
libcratcly discharging exhaust steam
the condenser because the feed -
already too hot to absorb it. is a system
that involves considerable loss to the ship
owner throughout the life of a ship.

I PLY

In the December 9 number of Engi-
ing, W. weir takes issue with
Morison, stating that after a careful
perusal of the results oj Mr. u'illans'
investigation he was unable to find any
evidence that in a marine engine the
n consumption per brake horsepower
decreases at the rate of I per cent, per
inch of vacuum ov<. chat Further-

more. Messrs. Belliss and Morcoms' fig-

> show that from 21.5 to 25 inches
•otal economy m |J pounds, or
cent, pc
mchea. the total economy I pound.

Ma also
an important omission in consider. ng these

'hat the
la left to assume i figures given

at the acti.
omy, wheress they must be corrected

the cost of obtaining th
high degree of vacuum.

As regards the power required for
sir pur be oir

be r the same for x :

uum as for

conditio as much emulating

ust be pumped the former.

iotcd to sho* "it «am

of high-speed engine for

'ing : aj rrc the

■ cr consumptk
ium» < nchee a

cent, as a maximum. This, hoi
is more than counterbalar..

cr required fot to-

gether with the thermal loss due to the
low hotwell temperatu- era-

perature o' -green sssocisted with

a vacuum of 25 inches ess
the absorption by the feed water of all
the steam from the ■ apparatus

in the pla

Features of Plant at Kodak Park Works

The large steam-power plant which
serves the great manufactory. Kodak Park
Works, of the Eastman Kodak Company,
located at Rochester. N. Y.. where
photographic film, paper and dry plates
are manufactured, possesses some fea-
tures of more than passing inter

I NBY

rhaps the most conspicuous object
about any steam-power plant is the chim-
in this instance the chimnc
especially conspicuous due to its great
hight and fine design. It is 306 feet
high, the tallest chimney in N

The object in making the chim-
ney so high was. not so much to secure
a strong draft as to carry off the acid
fume* from the plate-coating departments
and discharge them into the atmosphere
at such a hight that the
diffused before they can sink back to the
ground level. The chimr built of

radial brick and contains an acid-proof
«. lining throughout lt« entire hight.
The inside diameter of the chimnc
• feet The present bo:
approximate Owing

to an enlargement of the works an ad-
dition of i -mil horsepow'
be made to the holler c .
take care of this additional boiler capa-
another chlmnev of the ight

By A. R. Maujcr

■

but having an insiJ
feet has just '
creases the c.i

•
Alp'

MfS

Another Interesting ' '*•

electrically

ps are of the Den

- ear Is 9
Inct - and the an

*pecd j ey run

'• m Z

ie larger pump

• ^- horsepower Three

Company mot

KV-horsep
Comr
arc designed with s double gear- sad
b tends to make the
nlform and
can p« to run amoothh

emdent - held

troi

ie pun pf-

\ jcj . • • ' > i t es ea the eatnhavp

g outlet to the floor Vhc |

am relk'
J thus Indicate
Me somewhere in i

of water onto the heller-ro<

i fitted with automatic areas* -
!«teJ asaofrft aaagfeJIaei **> that tSc

tha mot
ing

one fur two During these

has gone out of service I

I tV •••f»

106

POWER

January 17, 1911.

by the pumps is 210 degrees Fahrenheit;
the boiler pressure against which they
pump is 140 pounds. After passing
through the pumps, the feed water goes

tains six self-measuring oil tanks manu-
factured by S. F. Bowser & Co. A view
of the interior of the vault is given in
Fig. 1. The vault is kept locked and

doubtedly be far above what it reason-
ably should be.

Each month a report is made out on a
card of the form shown herewith. Thus

through economizers and thence to the oil may be obtained only by presenting a the consumption of each department for

Fig. 1. Oil-storage Vault

boilers. The larger of these pumps was
illustrated in the September 27, 1910, is-
sue of Power.

Oil-storage System

Opening into the engine room is a
brick and tile-lined vault which con-

written order from the head of a depart-
ment. Some such arrangement is highly
desirable in a plant of this size and type
where there are numerous departments
in which various oils are used. If a
rather close check were not maintained,
the yearly expense for oil would un-

Fig. 3. The Original Equipment

each montn is placed on record in a
convenient manner.

The arrangement of the tanks in the
storage vault is convenient for filling the
tanks and drawing the supplies. A bar-
rel is rolled onto the cradle which is
hinged to the barrel track. A tackle sus-
pended from the ceiling is attached to
the ring in the cradle, the end of the
cradle is hoisted up and the barrel rolled
off onto the track and around to the
proper tank into which it is emptied
through the manhole.

Oil is drawn from the tank by a
plunger hand pump. One full stroke of
the plunger discharges one gallon from
the spout. A rod alongside of the plunger
rod carries a number of adjustable stops.
By turning this rod so that when the
plunger is lifted, a projection on the

Fig. 2. View of Generating Room, Showing Present Equipment

January 17, 1911.

POW E H

107

plunger-rod comes in contact with a given
stop, the stroke of the plunger is limited
and only a given fraction of a gallon is
discharged. A registering device at the
side of the pumping mechanism records
the number of gallons successfully drawn.

A marked metal gage rod is pro\:
in each tank so that the amount of oil
still remaining in the tank can easily be
ascertained at any time. Each tank has
a capacity of 280 gallons. Two tanks
contain cylinder oil. two contain engine
oil, one contains kerosene and one, oil
for the ice machines.

Original and Present Eqlip.v

A genera: -f the engine room is

shown in Fig. 2. The present equipment
consists of two SMI-kilowatt Crocker-

^'heck-r generators d J to

jent C<j: gen-

erator of the same make but of 300 k

Pal-
mers Reliance engine and two Ingcrsoll-
Rand dupl-. ^tagc air compressor*,

one having a capacity of 530 cu
of free air per minute, the other. 710
cubic ft

cause of the increase in the amount
of poucr • of the

present equipment will be ir
the installation of a 1000-kilowatt .
erating unit, built by the Crocker- Wheeler
Company. This unit will be driven by a
31 and It - nch horizontal cross-

compound nonconJ
built by the Robert Wcthcril

In a separat -ig there arc two

York compression and ft
abaorpt machine * of a combined

The
. .

of one
»ion r- ed by the

York Man. g Compar

e of the email begJantnta from

ha» grown

gine room la tf»

fthar Brat »■ .gine ufted

e mam

»ho-

and ran a- tions per min-

ute T -ck-

until two or three
•s ago.

Some Testimonial Letters

More or less importance is credited to
testimonial Ice - according to the
knowledge the reader has of how they

procured. Usually the party d<-
ing a letter of this sort makes the re-
quest from several users of the device in
question, and naturally selects the best
for publication.

•ne of these letters are indeed humor-
when the literal meaning is taken.
For instance, a certain water-purifying
company recently sent out carbon C0|
of letters from satisfied users of their
filter

Fig. I. Loose Sga; in rnr

if Pipe

One engineer writes in part as follows:

J has been put in the

boilers since water from the filter

turned on. The boiler* were blown off

c a day as n and we could

hear the scale rattling out the

It certainly looks as if (he Nulcr had
betf' ;cned and clear lere

nough free scale the

engineer"* attention i> ugh

the the

scale ■ thcr mt

Another engineer ng the fll-

*tatct that "The b*
In nine and a quarter again-
minute* K '
Ming up •teat-
is going some, but generating UN
nine and a quarter mlnu'
and ccrtainlv *pc ..

///. m. Don't jump a

( In I Ih III. I.li > .

station i > //<• ml
rd.

i about the boiler scams and tube
bead.

n the same engineer s.i
"The purifier has accomplished
thing claimed b> them It unrks auto-

d requires no attention. We
arc now u iter for drinking and

washing purposes in our office and pl-i

It ult to deter

meant I

pur ' rhc manufacturer that ma

the cIj: .ot quite clear The l<

■ayi

of f

The tl ough in o.

come the um of m<

- ^ ~; ,

I
and cause them to wond it liquid

I not generally known t

Bj : than
r. U? ryone to hi» own

•c.

icr ent ds* fol-

ng wonderful statement as to the re-
sults obtained from using flit

r before had ! e rubes of

my I md shell as clean. Ju»t nine

and a quarter minute-
lire this bo I

Ian.'

e tcstr are moat rer

If anything under the snn

cemed to .

I And e »odd

get able gr
ontinual bugbear of Hat

all * »uid is tf

and in I

-hoi of
• tin awaai of

- be co

* dried, dlsso-
aad . pcaaafd "'■■< fcfiamm tu.tsMc for
con.utrr- n »tcam holler* .« rafc! i

•boi rounj.

od that

« pi nil 111

txnf oa a caaa-
■•It
■m I itiie d»WM
mt — ad-Maaat '

aoaao
Mtik
mile* of sssdd • f«

asset laaaaad of aa

108

POWER

January 17, 1911.

Engine and Compressor Power Charts

One of the most frequent calculations
made by mechanical engineers is the
horsepower of engines and compressors.
When rough estimates of the power de-
livered by an engine of certain dimen-
sions are hurriedly made, errors often
occur from the improper use of the for-
mulas or quantities under consideration.

By T. M. Chance

A graphic method of quickly de-
termining the required dimensions
for a given power, or "vice versa,
of a steam engine, gas engine or
air compressor.

For example, it often happens that the
number of revolutions is used as the
value of the quantity N in the formula
PLAN
33,000
instead of the number of strokes per min-
ute, and in a double-acting engine this
gives a result only one-half as large as

Brake Horsepower- Double-Acting.

25201510 5

January 17, 1911.

povn-: r

log

that which should be obtained. Similar fectivc pressure and revolutions per min- Where,

errors, as well as arithmetical inac- ute, it would be n |ly convenient \<ean effective

curacies not due to ignorance, are of and USeful to engineer*.

In the accompanying diagrams the
horsepower rating is based upon the
formula

common occurrence and may lead to
large discrepancies in the subsequent re-
sult. It occurred to the writer that if a
curve, or a series of curves, could be
devised which would show at a glance the
indicated brake and electrical output of
an engine of any size, stroke, mean ef-

= /■

pounds per square inch;
- • • •
A = Area of the piston in

N — Number of strokes per

I ice the number of retolu-

■

—

110

POWER

January 17, 1911.

and,

I.h.p. X rn = Brake horsepower;
B.h.p. X e — Kilowatt rating;
where,

m = Mechanical efficiency of the en-
gine,
e = Total efficiency of the generator.
In the diagrams the stroke of the en-
gine is laid off in inches instead of feet,
and the diameter is similarly measured,

the inch being the most convenient unit
for this purpose. It should be noted that
the horsepower varies directly with the
area of the cylinder, that is, as the square
of the diameter; hence, the diameters
must be spaced proportionately to their
squares, since they graphically represent
the areas of the cylinders.

For the sake of accuracy in the smaller
powers, the diagram has been prepared

on three scales; Fig. 1 is to be used for
engines up to 12*4 inches cylinder diam-
eter and 30-inch stroke; Fig. 2 includes
engines up to 25 inches cylinder diameter
and 60-inch stroke, and Fig. 3 deals with
engines up to 50 inches cylinder diameter.
Referring to Fig. 1, suppose it is re-
quired to compute the horsepower of a
12xl8-inch engine working under 40
pounds mean effective pressure and run-

3600

3000 2400 1800

Brake Horsepower -

1200 600

Double-Acting

January 17, 1911.

nine at 200 revolutions per minute, the
dotted line indicates the steps taken in

solution of the problem. Reading up
the scale of "Stroke in Inches" to 18
inches, follow horizontally across to the
intersection of this line with the diagonal
line marked 200 on the scale of '"Revolu-
tions per Minute"; from this intersection
drop vertically downward until the diag-
onal line marked 40 on the scale of "Mean
Effective Pressure >cd ; follow

horizontally across from this point to the
line marked 12 inches on the "Diameter
in Inches" scale and. running vertically
upward from this intersection to the scale
of "Indicated Horsepower. Double
ing." the result is found to bi - indi-
cated horsipoucr. if it It desired to
find the horsepower of the engine run-
ning single acting, it will be found to read
41 .25 indicated horsepower on the l>
scale of "Indicated Horsepower. Single
Acting

If the brake horsepower and kilo,
capacity of the engine is desired, assum-
ing 85 per cent, mechanical efficiency and

per cent, generator efficiency, read
\ertically upward along th ldicatcd

horsepower line t >n with

the diagonal line ma
on the scale of "Mechanical Kfficicn,
the horizontal line pa irough this

poir- - the brake horsepower to be

>n the scale marked "Brake Horsc-
;blc Acting." To determine
the electrical output, folio, illy up-

ward from the intersection of this hori-
zontal line with the line passing through
| er cent, on the scale of "Electrical
and re.i louatts on the

scale marked "Kilowatts. Double Acting ."
The same use may be made of the single-
acting scales for the brake horsepower
and kilowatts output as m done in the
case of 0 ated horsepower.

ere refinement in the calculate
is di -case in poucr

the reduction in effective area of the

n on account of the ; rod and

tail rod. if the latter is used, must be
computed. This is easily done with in
diagrams b. rig the piston rod

and tail rod as I glc-acting engh

having i fiamctcr equal to that

of the rdtis and working in oppos
to the cnglr- I en the piston rod and

tail rod arc of the same diameter ll
may be con*idercd as one engine, running
double a Therefore, if t ase

in power caused bv the pi*ton rod of a

engine amounted

brake • the actual brake

uld

The diagrams are also u
culating ' TTicnsiot

ample, a

the
' the compress- the

mean eft

diameter of the olinJ find

the number 'ilution*

POT

line in Fig. 2 indicat. -4kcn

in the solution of this problem.
with 6>fc) on the scale ol

downward to the diagonal line m.
on the sea

Inches." From this intersection fol
horizontally across to igonal

mar- n the scale of "Mean 1

and from this point n
cally upward to the ini the

horizontal line passing through 3<
on the scale ol

diagonal line passing through this inter-
on and the common center of all
the diagonal I: the number of

revolutions, on the scale i

i in this c.i
The diagram may also b
rectly calculate the dimensions and power
of gas or oil engines, if of thi -oke

as the hor r of engines of

the same formula
as that used in steam-engine calculati
hen.

i double-acting engines

. engines

In the case of f< the

ill obtai- -he use of the diagram

must D4 as the four-

stroke engine r but half as many-

impulses as thi rokc machine, dur-

ing the same number of ri that

■

l.ht>.-=. for s.:

Ictermining the dimensions of a
four ild be -

• f a
four engine and i!

are
; hence. reaJ the p<

of the machine under on

the horscp and

I
■ ■
of ll

Wcighi I' "t*

many
-irrd to

■

thine or I

ri m

111

ings and subjected to the rough r
n to th
npossiblc to weigh anytr
than ft . ; »

method by »hich small p*
g from a fraction of a pound up
to s pounds ma

*i almoot .
sea:

■ ght on the teak i*>«—
baci ore ttu Tom

0 the same manr

I the t
cd on the
from .

•un. or
on V
•he am: : on

re mow, the
*mall p end of the be

and weigh 'arm in

.il man-
he the :ght of the
' the or

M the

mds or

m larger scales ma • • to

I or greater

small

the

from the end of the ♦.

on the end of

the

found t

» • Jc

of ll

O and oNj

•' to
c beea

ght of the small

" C "" C I \

•

•ad see

T'tl'* J»

tad the ratio of th* scalea
id not know whet -

' the
T*r pemmi
* ea the ead of rhe

• rr4u or JOO

i - ' no to haksaa*

•se h for

la machine

112

POWER

January 17, 1911.

New Wave Motor of the Float Type

The United States Wave Power Com-
pany is demonstrating on Young's "Mil-
lion-dollar" pier, Atlantic City, N. J., the
latest thing in wave motors. The ideas
underlying this motor are most ingenious.
By means of a system of levers and
ratchet wheels advantage is taken of
every motion of the water in sidewise and
slantwise directions as well as in the
vertical.

Fig. 1 is a general view of the upper
part of the motor. Fig. 2 is a view under
the pier, showing three of the floats which
operate the machine. The motion and en-
ergy of the waves are imparted to the
shaft A, Fig. 3, by means of mechanism
which is the same for all floats; hence, a
motor is divided into a given number of
unit sections each composed of a float and
the apparatus for converting the assorted
motions of the waves into a rotary mo-
tion of the driving shaft.

By A. R. Maujer
and Franklin Van Winkle

With this motor, by means of an
ingeniously devised system of le-
vers, power can be derived from
every motion of the waves. Motor
is governed by varying amount
of submergence of floats, this
being accomplished by compressed
air which serves to force water
out of a float to any extent desired.

the wheel in a counterclockwise direc-
tion. When the float rises, the weight F
makes the ratchet wheel rotate in the op-
posite direction; the ratchet then simply
slides over the teeth.

The chain attached to the lower lug
passes down through the shaft, over the

Fig. 1. View of the Entire Superstructure of the Wave Motor

The action of the machine may readily
be understood by referring to Fig. 3.
The float is free to slide up and down
on the hollow rod C which has an open
slot in one side. A lug at the top and
one at the bottom of the float project
through this slot into the core of the rod.
To these lugs two chains are attached.
The chain which is fastened to the upper
lug passes up through the rod and over
the ratchet wheel D and terminates with
the weight F. When the float slides down
on the rod, the chain causes the ratchet
wheel to engage teeth on the shaft B,
which is thereby caused to rotate with

pulley, then up again and over the ratchet
wheel E, terminating with the weight H.
When the float rises the chain causes the
ratchet wheel E to turn the shaft counter-
clockwise, and when the float falls the
wheel slides free. Thus, a vertical mo-
tion of the float either up or down tends
to cause the rotation of the shaft B.

The upper end / of the rod C forms a
ball and socket joint with the yoke /.
The flanged disk piece K is integral with
the ball / and the base ring L of the
frame M rests on this disk. When a wave
gives a sidewise motion to the float the
disk K is thrown out of level and the

frame M rides up on the high side of
the disk. The lever N, which has its
fulcrum at O, is fastened to the frame M
at P by a compound hinge joint. As the
end P of the lever is pushed upward the
opposite end Q swings downward and the
chain fastened thereto causes the ratchet
wheel R to rotate the shaft B. Due to
the large ratio between the lengths of
the arms of the lever N, even a slight
lateral movement of the float produces
a considerable movement of the end Q.
The counterweight R performs the same
function as do weights F and H; namely,
of keeping the chain taut on the ratchet
wheel and causing the wheel to rotate in
the reverse direction when the pull due
to a wave is finished.

The power which the shaft B receives
is transmitted through gear wheels of
suitable ratio to the shaft A, which car-
ries as many flywheels of proper size
as are needed to steady the rotation; the
number required depends, of course, on
the size of the motor, that is to say, on
the number of float units employed.

Method of Governing

The speed and the amount of power
which the motor develops are regulated
by means of compressed air. The floats,
which are made of steel, are hollow and
air tight except for four holes in the
bottom, which are sealed by the water.
Each float is connected by means of a
flexible hose to a compressed-air tank
which is located on the pier and in which
a pressure of about 15 pounds is main-
tained. Thus, by admitting air the float
can be entirely emptied or by releasing
the air the float can be completely filled
with water.

However little work there is upon the
motor, it cannot run away, for, if the
wheels upon which the pawls work were
to run faster than the floats actuate the
pawls they would receive no accelera-
tion while such conditions existed. As
there is always some resistance to the
movement of the shaft its speed never
gets beyond that at which a ratchet can
exert a pull on its ratchet wheel fastened
on the shaft. The energy taken up from
the succeeding pulls of the ratchets is
absorbed and distributed by flywheels on
the main shaft which are of sufficient
weight to do this efficiently.

Size and Capacity

The size and capacity of a motor are
determined by the number and size of
the floats. The demonstration motor at
Atlantic City is composed of six floats
and the necessary transforming mechan-
ism. The floats are 4 feet in diameter,
4 feet long and have a displacement of
about 50 cubic feet. It is said by the
officers of the company that the machine

January 17, 1911.

POWF.R

113

is capable of developing between 100 and
|2S horsepower, although no records of
any authenticated test are available. A
commercial plant would have not less
than 32 floats.

Theoretical Estimate of Capacity

An estimate of the power derivable
from the wave motions of a body of
water by the employment of mechanism
should be based upon a rational assump-
tion of the forces and motions that are
incident to water when agitated in the
form of waves. U'hen the crest of a
wave is observed sweeping over the sur-
face of an expanse of water, the eye
naturally follows the moving crest and
an impression is received that the same
surface panicles of the water remain
on the crest of the wave, partakin;
the same horizontal movement as the
crest. As a matter of fact, visible wave
motions consist, for the most part, of
only a change of the form of the sur-
face which rises up and down over the
aamc place, much the same as a carpet
on a floor would be disturbed by moving
a rod sidewisc over the floor under the
carpet. The surface motions of waves

Fie. 3. Diagrammatic Arbanoembnt or t»

are clc.i bended when

feet of wa\ <*T

of water th irregular *iae4

floating boJ J. *• a field of

broken ice. The floating masses

from the action of the »a*cv to ha*t

:ng and falling
nea - M spot. comhlr

an tftJ

an n back* a-

ie motion of the • l"hto

lateral motion

held to the bottom

from the paaoac
single van ****

bod Vo ihf e s»

—owaoinn rack

taortowa

•' r

'••

m of the

■ •

be tor

»nj other
the h.ghi ap««o
>f oce*

«Me (hi* » i»»ufiif>;- It' i'

i «rvj htittaattat
nfd tocetto*

ca^^B^a^B^afl

rrwaosrr*. ss4

i bsswftl •'

»" ■»» ■»•»

114

POWER

January 17, 1911.

which the motor is capable of developing

is decidedly less than 100 horsepower.

Each of the six floats, 4 feet in diam-

ner exerting a lifting action during its
upward travel, tending to decrease the
weight of the float in the water, then

portion of ballast is carried or how the
parts are counterpoised, the total effect
for a rise and fall of a wave can be only
the displacement (3125 pounds) raised
the hight of the wave, minus the half
hight of the float. Assuming the effective
rise to be 2 feet and the frequency of
the waves once in 5]/2 seconds, the total
power exerted by the waves in raising
six floats would be,

6o
3125 X 2 X — X 6

409,090 faot pounds

per minute = 12.4 horsepower.

Conceding that the average lineal
sweep of each float is six feet forward
and six feet backward, occurring once
every wave interval of 5J/2 seconds, then
the total lateral motion per minute made
by each float may be assumed to be

60
6X-X2= 130.9 feet

per minute

Fig. 4. View of One Section of the Superstructure

According to the experiments of Poncelet,
the highest efficiency in the conversion
of the energy of the water is attained by
a float in an unconfined channel, when
the velocity of the float is one-half the
velocity of the current. Therefore, to
estimate on a basis of current velocity
which would yield the highest efficiency
for a float velocity of 130.9 feet per
minute, calculation would have to be
made on assumption of a current velocity
of

130.9 X 2 = 261.8 feet per minute,

assumed as an average velocity of water
creating lateral pressure on the float.
Each float being 4 feet in diameter and

eter and 4 feet high, has a displacement
of about 50 cubic feet, and as a cubic
foot of water weighs approximately 62.5
pounds, each float, therefore, weighs

50 x 62.5 = 3125 pounds
less when in the water than when out.
No matter what may be the form or
material of a body, when it is submerged it
is at all times buoyed up by a force equal
to the weight of the water which it dis-
places. Assuming that a float of the wave
motor is at the lowest point of its vertical
travel, that it displaces 50 cubic feet of
water and that the float itself has a
total weight, out of water, of 3125 pounds,
then the rise of a wave would lift the
float, but the buoyancy of the water would
lift nothing additional to the weight of
the float. Under that condition, no work
could be gotten out of the upward mo-
tion of the float. On the downward mo-
tion, work could be obtained to the full
effect of the weight of the water which
had been displaced during the upward
motion, and through the distance raised,
provided the mechanism for absorbing
the work of the downward motion is of
such a character that the wave in drop-
ping falls so much more rapidly than
the float as to exert no buoyancy to re- an effect equal to such a lifting effect 4 feet high, a projected area of 16 square
tard the gravity of the float. If the float will act against the downward motion feet would be the greatest cross-sectional
is lightened or counterpoised in any man- of the float. It is immaterial what pro- area of current acting on a float.

Fig. 5. The Countershaft, Generator and Air Compressor Driven by the

Wave Motor

January 17. 1911.

ied current velocity of 261.8
feet equivalent to I

cond. Each float
would, consequently, ha\ t i to

it du nd of time

equal |

ft' 60 pour. .

of water r 'nc*. at a velocity of

)t the water, in foot-pou
sec -ual formula,

K M

\ -ituting

■ . • ih«

TV,

^"» "*

■ pet lecond and g
A • X

•nd rr'»^L'n,«-"d V) S|X lotii *ould make.

Poncclct determined that the hig:

•rom an
Moat
boards normal to tl

was 4' of the kin

the o^ nt In the

■
■

ied as offt
ilf as muc
• »f an unconHr

ormal to the i of

of currenr
■

ore

iot-p<junds

minute, from I becor

can impan to tl
tior.

pevtr

■

■
all n

tinuan*.

■

its into em
I in the form of the
•
he spc

into a. Mar-

for

more than en-

s of the float*
in useful

n the * the

motor. effl-

■

liich arc

Tl'

not made up of fuel and labor alone.
T:.c vjr-.J.r.g w.' irt;c) rriaic up el m-
«t and d
rat • co-
poeeiblc to put to much money

Of a and tbc jod op-

ng co* •

-motor situation Cab such

IB-
•f PO* :

• - I

nough to Mo» a
■'■c geoerator could
^c run he.
and something was the n

motioned, the
•<ave gf"
horsepower out of the motor.
rig change*
>na of etc.. is

pou '\*99

'a com ibc *

• ;
The .
• and si

a comr i«ton or

I soon

to too correctnoon

i'.i Nc

» , 1

Flue Welding in Repairing Boilers

one of
many - of b

■ shall intil ai;

•
l

r has '
to a

•he tub' cak

ing i

1 a

torn than tl

general ml

the tube i

II. S. J

•her

«• end o ' **•'

;be old J con-

•tro-
th*,
Also, as • rule, the nc» »<■ n when
tmlo mointaino o hot-

ibO.

The

i groat r.i '

r anao?

oat en accoojoji

id rrplaco tbo*- >

ound 10 r-$

ugh tba It
be testr • bring

J In tba b>
not show nntll iba hoik

The manor '< *^i

iba robr oortant ••

» in i * ' I » * *

t«» i v - •« • root tn* tMn cage

116

POWER

January 17, 1911.

of the tube is liable to burn off, and un-
less the operator is experienced some
parts of the flue when welded are liable
to be welded thinner than the balance
of the flue. Another method is to scarf
the safe-end, opening up the flue to over-
lap the safe-end as shown in Fig. 2;
while others reverse this process, scarf-
ing and opening up the tube to overlap
the safe-end. Many, however, have
abandoned the practice of scarfing either
the flue or the safe-end, depending upon
the disk or cutter, used for cutting the
flue and safe-end, to bevel the edges for
the purpose of welding. Flues welded
in this way are called "short lap-welded,"
the short bevel or scarf making a solid
weld as it affords sufficient metal through
the weld to be worked down to size. When
welding the safe-end to the tube, the
latter should be upset against a cross-bar
at the back end of the welding furnace.
It is also important to see that the welded
portion is not oversize or undersize; a
flue which is oversize at the weld will
be hard to insert into the boiler, and if
undersize the chances are that the walls
at the weld are thinner than the balance
of the flue. It is the practice in many
shops to weld and swedge the flue in
the same heat, but this requires that
the whole safe-end be heated unless it
is exceptionally long. This practice has
in many instances injured the weld, the
swedging operation being attempted when
the safe-end was too cold. In other shops

POVVE.R.

Fig. 1. Both Tube and Safe-end
Scarfed

Fig. 2. Only Safe-end Scarfed

the flues are welded, allowed to become
cold and the weld tested, after which the
ends of the flues are heated, swedged
and annealed.

In some shops the welds of the flues
are tested under pressure in a machine
made especially for that purpose, al-
though in the majority of cases a wooden
plug is driven into one end of the tube;
the tube is then filled with water under
pressure, and the weld is hammered light-
ly with the peen of a chipping hammer.
Still others test the welds after the flues
have been installed in the boiler but this
is poor practice. The flues when swedged
should be turned several times, making

the ends round and the swedged portion
central with the balance of the flue. After
the foregoing operations the flue ends
while heated to a cherry red should be
placed in a bath of lime, thus annealing
the flue so that it can be expanded to
the flue holes and beaded to the sheet
without danger of splitting the flue.

Although a boiler may be opened and
washed out periodically all the scale and
mud will not be removed, and though the
flues may not leak, it may be necessary
to remove them so as to thoroughly clean
the boiler. In such cases it is not usual
to remove all the tubes, the practice with
many being to remove the lower tubes
as indicated in Fig. 3, which is called a
V. This practice is more general with
the locomotive type of boilers than with
tubular boilers. The majority of the
latter type of boilers are now being con-
structed with a manhole under the flues,
which permits the scale and mud to be

oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
ooooo

oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo

\t~sf

V V

Fig. 3. Dotted Lines Represent Tubes
Removed

removed from both the boiler shell and
the flues without removing the flues.

It is important that the tubes be as
straight as practicable. Those removed
from the lower rows are liable to be bow-
bent, especially if they are long and
considerable scale has adhered to them.
If installed in the boiler when bow-bent,
some of the tubes may touch, or nearly
touch, one another, creating unequal water
spaces between the tubes and preventing
proper circulation, also affording spots
where sediment will lodge. The tubes
which are cleaned in a revolving ma-
chine, called a "rattler," should be
cleaned by rubbing against one another,
the rattler revolving at a very slow rate
of speed. Small pieces of iron and steel
may be used in the rattler to aid in clean-
ing the tubes, but large pieces should
not be used as they will cause dents
in the tubes.

Frequently one or more flues will leak
to the extent of practically putting out
the fires. The leak may be the result
of the joint between the flue and the hole
becoming broken, or a hole being eaten in
the flue or the weld in the tube parting.
It is not always possible to cut the boiler

out of service, in which case the flue is
plugged by driving a cast-iron tapering
plug into the flue.

Sometimes the joint between the flue
and the hole will become broken and
the bead of the tube partly broken off; in
such cases, but only in an emergency, the
flue may be repaired by cutting the bead
off flush with the flue sheet and placing
a section of tube inside of the tube as
shown in Fig. 4. The old flue is first

PovycR,

Fig. 4. Tube Held in Place by Small
Section at End

expanded hard against the sheet, after
which the section is inserted within the
old tube, expanded hard against it and
beaded to the tube sheet in the same
manner as the original tube. The section
being only indirectly cooled by the water
within the boiler is liable to become over-
heated, and especially if fine particles of
coal, etc., are allowed to lodge around
and within it. The only object in using
the section in preference to plugging
the flue is that the latter practically cuts
out the flue and reduces the heating sur-
face, while the former permits the flames
and hot gases to pass through the tube
as before, thus maintaining the heating
surface.

The International Electrical Company,
Limited, with offices in Nelson, B. C,
and Portland, Ore., has filed plans for
the development of a large electric power
plant from the falls on the Pend d'Oreille
river. The river runs from Canada to the
United States, some 50 miles southwest
of Creston, B. C, and for nine miles
before reaching the boundary it is a series
of rapids. At a point some six miles
above, on the Canadian side, a site ad-
mirably adapted for the necessary de-
velopment works has been staked, and it
is expected that a city will be located in
the vicinity, to be known as Falls City.
W. E. Moore, hydraulic engineer, of
Spokane, has made an investigation and
report on the power sites of the river, in
which it is stated that the upper site is
capable of a total development of 65,000
horsepower and that the cost will be
about $60 per horsepower. The Sheep
creek and Ymir mining districts are only
fifteen miles away, and the power sites
are within 100 miles of Spokane. — Elec-
trical World.

January 17, 191 1.

Gas power Department

\ • d the t Operation

the 1 k . \ anna Steel
Works Engines*

By E. P. Coleman

The Korti- i at the Lack-

nna Steel Company's plant at Buf-
falo did not show satisfactor ration
ig the first tbl rs of their
but the author b.
icntially all of the trouble can b.

al major caus :.ng to pro-

mature combustion, and a num-
ber of minor details not well app-
al that time.
Th

and attendant failure
of pans s iigh

-.urcs and temperatures were In

•on rings, neither pp>
nor p-
able oil . the motor cylinders; and

•cnt in the ga»
ea of premature combustion
■:g portions o*

•nulations of flue dirt
>mbina:

the parts; the pre
ing pon and

'■'.inor
caui -.
I gaa which fouled th
; accompanying (I

gas w' ilvcs of the

•

packing, wt ad atm

,;h incr
at

through t'

the
(ing
ige throui:

bonaceon . r< stJuc ••( any considerable

Mj»h p

il pre*

c An not enter ?*ic fur'

I thc«c .

E\ n v thh

n c»rr/i while in ti
< nffint a ■■'(/ ; >■ odui c
industry will be to

In 1 1 id .i way rh.tr i
■Sc Oaf ti.s>- (^ />:.,
il rnt-n

i were all sup-

Thc
lem has since been rr
that the water passes through

jacket-
in the order nam-. nail

on of the water only is used by the
mil ft

ite the
temperatures of the water leaving the ;
ton anj The ja

ng each i

•j .<

ne h< ..

>f eylin
and he j cd about once

, isiooa are inspected

Trvcr

J recorded at the

sarr. A test for tigbtneaa conatata

ik on .J poiat

and

ugs
t rem opposite bead

• rough the

of fr

C ** 1

'. * CJUK

-r

\J-Cl-

J±

foa P

pipe 01

W'hcn a

•K in i u

c Nr

i ottened

o Juc to tnc waaae

ie the

bole tbroegb the

■

■ ....

c>: njcr Tv • »• »!

Th- a moto

la ab

if U r

■ Tbrr * •"■>

M being etillted at

batveea

•t lata*. Toe tail red

••* aasaoa ettaet by aaeajaa

118

POWER

January 17, 1911.

of the special device shown in Fig. 1 or
by means of screw jacks and rams.
When using the former, the concentric
pipes are first cooled with water and the
nut at the end of the tail rod is set up;
steam is then admitted between the pipes
at atmospheric pressure to lengthen the
pipes by heating them. This cycle is re-
peated until the rod is free from the
piston. When it becomes necessary to
remove the piston rod, the piston is
broken away either with dynamite or
under the drop hammer. The wear of
piston rods occurs principally at the end
of the strdke and amounts to about a
quarter of an inch on the diameter in
three years. It is then turned and will
suffice for two or three years more.

The average life of the motor cylinder
heads is not well established, but it may
be set at three years or more. A few
of the original heads at the blowing en-
gines are still in service. Failures of
these occur principally at the junction of
the jacket wall and the main flange on
each side of the inlet valve chamber,
but this trouble has been substantially
eliminated by employing proper fillets.
Some heads have developed cracks
through the inner wall; two or three
have had the inner walls blown entirely
away, but this was found due to faulty
castings.

Gas-pump cylinders and heads require
cleaning every six to eight months on
account of dirt getting into the clearance
near the bottom. By feeding a little
kerosene through the pump valves clean-
ing is avoided.

Cylinder heads are packed principally
with TV-inch woven-wire insertion as-
bestos sheet. Piston joints are made up
either with gV-inch wetted asbestos
paper, or with a paste of litharge and
glvcerin, or with another form of pack-
ing known under the trade name of
"900." All give satisfactory results.
The life of the lTVinch snap piston
rings is about two years.

The piston rods are packed with four
cast-iron rings of the Walker type in a
casing exterior to the head. Packings
are overhauled about every six months
to renew broken springs and rings. Cas-
ings are trued up at the time of over-
hauling the piston once in two or three
years.

The swinging connections for the pis-
ton water supply require to be packed
about twice a year.

Valves, Cams, Shafts, Etc.

The inlet valves last about three years
before turning and about the same time
after they are turned down. They do not
require grinding-in except when new.
Stems are broken occasionally near the
top yoke. Little cleaning of the inlet
valve or the ports is necessary.

The inlet valves are operated through
heavy push rods driven by cams and roll-

ers. High inertia stresses are thus de-
veloped at the higher engine speeds.
With present inlet-valve springs, which
operate under a compression of 2500 to
3500 pounds at the blowing engines, the
roller leaves contact with the cam a:
about 65 to 70 revolutions per minute.
Many of the original push rods have
been broken by the iresulting 'inertia
stresses and new and stronger rods have
been made.

The life of the inlet cams is about
six years. Wear of the steel gears of
the layshaft occurs on four teeth at the
end of four or five years; the gears are
then shifted on the shaft so that un-
worn teeth are in action during the inlet-
valve opening.

The shaft of the 2000-horsepower en-
gine, which is of the built-up .type, has
caused no trouble whatever. There have
been, however, several shaft breakages at
the 1000-horsepower engines, which have
shafts forged in one piece and operate at
100 revolutions per minute. The author
has made no investigation relative to the
stresses in these shafts, but believes that

action of the spring executes a rapid re-
turn motion or oscillation. During this
return motion the igniter terminals are
mechanically separated and an arc
formed, the motion of the armature being
transmitted to the plugs through cranks
and reach rods for this purpose. The
magnetos are now being discarded in
favor of a direct-current system of igni-
tion of simple form.

The detailed construction of the igniter
plugs is indicated in Fig. 2. The bronze
bushing forming the spherical seat for
the movable steel electrode is a driving fit
in the cast-iron body of. the plug. The
cylindrical head of the stationary elec-
trode seats on an asbestos gasket or
washer carried by the porcelain insulat-
ing plug, which is formed as a conical
frustum seated in a cavity in the cast-
iron plug on a bedding of litharge and
glycerin. Litharge also assists in main-
taining tightness between the cast-iron
plug and the bronze bushing. This con-
struction is very satisfactory in every
way.

Using magneto or similar low-voltage

tC-H:

jL /'-*-£'-+ /•

|^\\www\\\\\\\\\\Y> ggg^SK&'

-/A

J-

^\^\\^\\\\\W^

4~#'-i

Fig. 2. Igniter Shell and Bushings

their life would have been longer had
they been of the built-up type and of
present diameters.

At the 1000-horsepower engines there
has also been trouble with certain brack-
ets and fastenings due to inertia stresses
set up by the inlet gear. The governor
being driven from the layshaft, consider-
able wear is imposed on the mechanism
due to reversal of the torque at the lay-
shaft as the point of each cam passes
under the roller. Some trouble from
premature ignitions by the 1000-horse-
power engines was experienced, due to
the indicator holes through the flanges of
the cylinder heads, and water-cooled in-
dicator connections were substituted.

Ignition

Ignition is effected by means of make-
and-break igniters, of which there are
tv/o in each cylinder head. Until re-
cently the ignition current was furnished
by magnetos, one for each plug. The
current is generated by this form of mag-
neto in the following manner: The arma-
ture is first slowly rotated in opposition
to the force of a spring through an angle
of about 30 degrees from its initial posi-
tion; it is then released and under the

current, there is little burning of the
points, and the life of both electrodes is
about one year. The bronze bushing
lasts about six months, this material be-
ing the most satisfactory thus far used.
The upkeep of the magnetos is relatively
expensive, and a ten-volt direct-current
system is being substituted.

Dirty plugs are caused by slipping
furnaces and wet gas containing dirt
which fouls and bakes at the terminals.
The plugs require cleaning on an aver-
age of once or twice per month. The
spherical seat requires regrinding once
it; two months, and the plug must be re-
tubed once in six months.

With the type of ignition gear de-
scribed there is an interval between the
release of the magneto lever and the
opening of the igniter terminals. There
is also an appreciable time required to
complete combustion. This time element
being approximately constant, correct ig-
nition requires that the timing of the re-
lease shall vary to some extent with the
speed of rotation. The ignition gear may
then be linked to the speed-adjusting de-
vice in such manner as automatically to
maintain proper timing of the ignition at
all speeds.

January 17, 1911.

119

An < >;« ■:' ' >i ' - View of the
Diesel 1 gine

i. H. Kv.BALL

In an aniclc in tl 31 issue, some

Me statements were mad.
regard to the Diesel engine; these and
others made in the catalogs convey the
impression that the engine has no disad-
vantages whatever. If this were true,
on wh\ should

not install them.

It may be of interest to engineers and
possibly to some ow: plants, to

hear of some experiences in plants where
these engines are in operation. As with
all internal-combustion engines, there are
many drawbacks which do not appear in
a good steam plant, and where a steam
ne will run under adverse conditions
a Diesel will not operate at all.

Those of the three-cylinder and -
cylinder inch cylinders,

n to be the most successful. In one
plant a nJcr unit was installed

which gave excellent service for the I
year, with no repairs other than a new
rnor gear. It wi

spend about ten h<> > eck

H and taking up connections

and various other parts. One thing that

made this - il in

that plant was that the- team

and water power r- so that it was

roi necessary to hire any more help, as

ib firemen ou!J be used when the steam

and when there was

*atcr power available ample

ughly c

hau: II engine and get jt read

good service when • More-

cn steam was depended on alone
.tuxiliar

p a boiler in m tree

months, in case ol
star' M was »a

ne. In t hi* class of plant

tagc
and with great ccono

In a plant ole load tl

be carried ' >ic»el e-

wc ha\c a far In

plant v
and th

MOSfjil 1 all

' the

early all of

in ad|u«ting ••■ ! crank-

lar

c. at tri

h high

■ray of

«o H

on both th-.

The fV
after being overhauled ga\c great

•i the clearance, as

a lead .'.'nh

of an inch, as rcquin.
found that the piston head bulged up •

all the pa- - hot it t the

id.
The cam-shaft gears of this unit were
also baj n, making new

essary. O- ier of this and one of

to be worn
fron f an inch large in

plac after a year's run be-

came so badly car i as to require

new ones to be su

of the !.-r new

boxes or shims on the wedges necessary'
in a short tl

>ny of the publish*. - of

been t lcre

the load fa. The

eng' I run \

a load, because the heating and wear of
the parts are not comparable to the heat-
ir that occur with a !
nt. Tt
tor was the the last mi

? ; the management *
full load all the time, and soi i an

-load, and it w. find

that the

forc such a

in a »; 'be

neccssarj M reborc I 'S.

In the af
it tu at after a '

the tool marks were r

i has seen hard

oil has (Baa; ;

..—• . before

r COinprc importir.t

of ha 1 .

ring a ad m

» • tion <

a great dea
are some designs that

conotr. v high and la

steam la not needed for
an power the
grej * in fu the m

lab*
a »•

cr »agcs to D n |0

of h

B first cost
a p 'c unit

that a »tea

i quest
have to be ' » of

rcgoing not my

ncee with the

article, and I have said nothing based
rtearsa\

type of engine
some '
and • eoccoafnl

and Ci| us scrvk

rull lot
| Wc do

engine ebovld

u ' I rn

rmovc a .

from d

>..--■ ha heeh u- «

ring lorpedoea »ht

■ • |

bottotr

'pedooa
marir

•» t «r

ough • *• ••»

<H been sbowr

I considered

no! surprising !• Bad met

•snail
•ioed

orntne The

I *' *■ IT*. 1

t W l'

he temp' •

120

POWER

January 17, 1911.

Catechism of Electricity

Single-phase Commutator Motors

1124. Are commutators ever used on
alternating-current motors ?

Yes; commutators are used on some

single-phase motors. Fig. 363 illustrates
one kind of commutator motor.

1125. For what kind of work is this
motor particularly intended?

For driving machines which must run
at variable speeds and those requiring
considerable starting torque.

1126. Explain the construction of the
motor referred to.

Fig. 364 shows the principal parts of
the motor, and Fig. 365 is a diagram of
its connections and windings. The field-
magnet core A is fitted with a single-
phase winding N of concentric coils, each
coil being separately taped and insulated.
For operation on 220-volt circuits these
four nests of field coils are connected in
series; for 110-volt circuits they are con-
nected in parallel.

The armature is provided with a wind-
ing of the "two-circuit" drum type, con-
nected to an ordinary commutator upon
which press two sets of brushes E and C,
Fig. 365. The pair E, called the "energy"
brushes, is permanently short-circuited
and displaced at an angle to the lines of
field or primary magnetization. The sec-

a controller arranged to insert resistance
or reactance in series with the energy
and compensating circuits of the rotor,
the speed can be reduced to any desired
rate between full normal speed and half
that speed. For example, if the normal
speed is 600 revolutions per minute, any
speed between that and 300 revolutions
per minute can be obtained with the con-
troller.

Fig. 364. Disassembled View of the Motor Shown in Fig. 363.

ond set C, called the "compensating"
brushes, is connected to a relatively small
field winding which serves to induce in
the armature an electromotive force
which tends both to raise the power fac-
tor and to maintain approximately con-
stant speed at all loads. By the use of

1 127. Will the speed be constant when
reduced by the insertion of resistance?

No. The motor behaves like a shunt-
wound direct-current motor with resist-
ance inserted in the armature circuit;
when the load increases the speed de-
creases considerably, and vice versa.

Fig. 363. General Electric Single- phase Com-
pensated Repulsion Motor

Fig. 366. Wagner Constant-speed Single-phase

Motor

January 17, 1911.

112H. What kind of motor is the one

just

It is a compensated repulsion mo:
name is given to it because the mo-
of the rotor is due to magr.

n the current in the short-
Clrcuited pan of the winding and the
stator field, and the undesirable reactions

TED

in the rotor winding are neutralized or
com; J by tru I up

nding connected to
■

II. rms of

•nmuta:

machine which

as a repulsion motor while starting

and is automatically changed to a simple

n motor when it reaches normal

I \M). Ill
■

■
Wagner motor of t •.. and I

iho ommutator end of the

armature. A di*k-shar

: and the bl ally

t, as may be I n close.

k or

and the ^bes

arc The v,ru%hcs ar

arc
eo spaced with ret

i strong n .
effect in the armature or ml
causes the I • •tart and whe

nearly reached 'he rrgulir speed the

•
»nd the vimmutat arc all a)

gee the armature

tor.
Then the machine runs as an or
motor.

1 1
the . ommutatoi >

are loc. thin th.
rotor

means of Users and links the »;

■
commut sa a

short-cr ring an

of ' mutat' ng all

II the governor rr:

ism

A barrel alidea along the shaft ut
the Influence ol and

the i

he commu'
end of the

in the ollar to

which the bn; are b'

ar a b

proj<

. • I

i to
■>uth for the c
the go\

e bar
aga | in the brush- ho. .

\ »»>.-

on the

rom tbc

the ease
used oi

11.13. Hou- \tJtor ■

•

hat of i single -

phase induction mot<

ire of the stator and rotor of the

that the »'

counted in a ame or

T>w m«.-h.fw hcrr-

r/olci on the inner

122

POWER

January 17, 1911.

■fe.

Combination Piston Rod
Packing

The following tells of a trouble I had
with a badly scored piston rod on a lo-
comotive.

Being a long way from the shop on a
logging road, I had to pack the piston
every night and then could not see for the
steam that leaked out of the stuffing box. I
had some graphite which I mixed into a
stiff paste and then put in a round of
ring packing in the stuffing box and filled
the stuffing box full of graphite, put in
another round of ring packing and
screwed the gland up tight. The gland
was then removed and more graphite
put in, followed by another ring of pack-
ing. I had no more trouble for thirteen
months and the packing was still in the
box when I left the job.

J. A. McQueen.

Cheboygan, Mich.

Economic Boiler Feeding

An open heater is at its best when so
designed and operated that all of the con-
densate from the heating system is re-
turned to the boilers, and the amount of
make-up water is reduced to the mini-
mum. These conditions give the water
the highest temperature possible with an
open heater, unless live steam is used.
And these conditions can best be ob-
tained when a variable-speed pump is
used with a variable delivery to feed the
boilers, the speed or delivery of the pump
to be controlled by a float in the heater
connected to the pump governor or de-
livery-control valve, and not by connect-
ing a float in the heater to the inlet or
make-up water va!ve and regulating the
speed of the pump by hand.

While the amount of condensate re-
turned to the heater in an hour cannot
equal the amount of water evaporated
in the boilers in an hour, the maximum
flow will raise the water level in the
heater until it runs over the overflow
and is lost if the speed of the pump is
controlled by hand or by a feed-water
regulator connected to a float in the boiler.
While the periods of maximum flow are
not long enough to raise the water level
in the boilers perceptibly, owing to the
larger area affected when the pump is
controlled by a float in the heater,
they are long enough to run a large
quantity of water to waste via the over-
flow when the pump or water taken from
the heater is not controlled by a float in
the heater, owing to the comparatively
small storage capacity of the ordinary

open heater. Where the float in the
heater is connected to the inlet valve, the
make-up water is shut off altogether dur-
ing maximum flow, and is admitted in
so large a quantity during minimum flow
that it has no time to be heated in the
steam or trap space above the hot water
but falls to the bottom, cooling the hot
condensate in the heater. When the
float valve in the heater is connected to
the pump governor, the make-up water
may be admitted continuously or nearly
so. The fireman, having a mark on the
inlet-valve wheel and only changing the
amount, admitted slightly to keep the

used, we have a very undesirable and
wasteful combination, unless the amount
of water taken from the heater can be
regulated by a float in the heater. There
may be such an accessory on the market
but I have not as yet seen one or an
advertisement of one in any mechanical
paper. A boiler-feed regulator might be
attached directly to the heater and its
motion reversed, so that as the water
level in the heater rises, the main dis-
charge from a centrifugal pump would
open, and as the water level in the
heater fell, the discharge from the pump
would be throttled down. This would
be a departure from any equipment I
ever observed and, I think, from general
practice.

C. E. Bascom.
Worcester, Mass.

Radiator Failed to Heat

I would like to know what other en-
gineers think of a radiator trouble in a
heating system I recently installed.

Cold Radiator

Hot to
J this Point

Z^FIoor

Piping slants

Piping of Radiators

water level nearly constant in the boilers.
In this way the make-up water has the
longest possible time to remain in the
trays and mingle with the sfteam in
the upper part of the heater. The spas-
modic flow of condensate from the heat-
ing system to the open heater is ac-

counted for by the fact that nearly all W^^fel^
heating systems contain pockets and p°""*
water seals and in hotels, guests are On the first and second floors, all of
opening and closing radiator valves at the radiators heat up nicely, but the three
all times, traps are dumping and any radiators on the third floor, which were
slight change in pressure will change put in later, did not heat satisfactorily.
the flow from minimum to maximum. When putting in the pipe to these rad-
If the valve in the engine-exhaust pipe iators I tapped the feed pipe for a 2l/2~
to the heater is nearly closed, as it often inch riser and also a 2H-inch pipe to
should remain, the condensation in the return pipe and carried them through
the heater caused by admitting cold to the third floor, and then branched off
make-up water irregularly will cause to each radiator with a lJ4-inch pipe, as
a variation of pressure in the heater and a feeder, and a l^-inch pipe to each
at times quite a vacuum is formed, thus radiator for the return piping. On get-
inducing an increased flow of condensate, ting up steam two of the radiators heated
From the above it will be seen up nicely but one failed to heat at all.
that a belt-driven plunger pump should The. feed pipe to the radiator that did not
never be used with an open heater, heat was hot up to the valve, but the
and if any constant-speed pump is radiator remained cold.

January 17. 1911.

I would appreciate the advice of en-
gineers who have had experience along
lar line

L Mom

Salem, Va.

B tier Blow oft P

The illustration shows the design of
the blowoff pipe of my boiler, which 1
consider far ahead of anything I know

of.

A close nipp: ured in the boiler

toff Pipe

thect and a ! ed onto

ell
la v The

val\ : as shown to the main

Willits. Cal.

Moisture ( I >ublc

ar* ago I look charge of a
d at a coal n

a dome and a
n from the too of

a t)

in the em
I that l

Mff

had
con:
let in the ht turning I

clow the floor
e door,
to I inch and

<htly «
to keep t! )f watt

This . 'he

boik : the first em

made connection to the header a ■•

cold, and the room hi

there ua> i of m>

i in the engine room from thia
leak. I u anted to tak>. n at

once, but the

J morn-
ing when the e was more in
dencc than usual. I remarked to the fire-
man that the -ning d
that cvenir
job; and don

blanked, thus stopping the steam
lea

In a short time 1 noticed that my gen-
erators wc 'ouble than
formerly a- I

until t Tnal

opcrat

••:ca
had be and as

the.

appeared until Snail) all was -iore

in Rood shape, tml I airs to one

armatur the

work of that steam leak cost SflC*
thcr. I nev< r
water in l

In this same plant the
about t

year when I '■ the i<

son

ir.

R»S"

r Pump ( ! tin- I.

There are four

abl'

•o

fllk
I

• >- tng a
I' e com*

-nca a J
m do»n sb<>i
I
been rTOtlbtl

tht
J disconnected th#

on on f'f*» 9*> • p mmmmi ••»
orencd anj |n« ' r f»< minute* iVf

as required.
mod*
tight before the neat inspection.

MB.

■

One r

an 1H- i

:ompounJ C,or:.»» MfMt, rur.r.-r :& aj a

i vatch at the
said that there tut very Uj
the raf uh, and

reached JO r I and

ink -end
i the

m catch
blocks, w en-

the flange. The cyhnd: alao

At fir M thou.

cumula- tea

the c in good

and th net

for an >n of -

was reasor .ng to :

on one aide, and a 26-

■cr. and tb
con%:

the
■

•

kn«x

I*.

•iwagM

124

POWER

January 17, 1911,

Emergency Pump Packing

A short time ago the packing in the
water end of our boiler-feed pump be-
came so badly worn that it would no
longer supply the boilers. As I had no
packing of the proper size on hand, and
the pump was the only means of supply-
ing the boilers with feed water, I decided
upon the following plan:

After carefully removing the old pack-
ing, I took some new tin and made a
sleeve to fit nicely around the water
piston.

After slightly softening the old pack-
ing, by putting it in hot water, I replaced
it and found that the tin sleeve made it
fit nicely. The pump was put into ser-
vice and it ran two weeks until new
packing arrived.

John C. Pitts.

Cherokee, Okla.

He Got an Increase in Pay

Several years ago. I went to work for
a wood-working company in northern
Michigan. Before I took charge of the
steam plant, which consisted of one 54-
inch by 14-foot shell boiler and a 10x16-
inch slide-valve engine, they had one
man firing and another cleaning the shop,
bring refuse into the fire room and act-
ing as a helper. These two men were
paid $1.25 per day, and another man was
paid $2 a day to look after the engine,
which was located about 50 feet from the
boiler. This made $4.50 for wages and
they were burning eight cords of 4-foot
wood costing $1.50 per cord, or $12, a
total daily expense of $16.50.

I did the work of three men, except
cleaning the shop. I started in for $1.50
a day and a promise of a raise, and I
never got such a roasting in my life as I
got the first day, firing with 4- foot wood.
I knew something was wrong with the
engine, but I did not want to stop to in-
vestigate until night; but at 4 o'clock I
was ail in and stopped the engine, took
off the steam-chest cover and found the
lock nuts on the valve stem loose and
the valve sliding -)4 of an inch on the
stem.

I got the valve centered, but on turn-
ing the crank to the center, I found the
valve had no lead until about one-third
stroke. I got busy with the eccentric, and
moved it around until I had 1/32-inch
lead with the crank on the center.
When the engine was started the men
all ran out of the shop for, instead of
165 it was making 247 revolutions per
minute. I soon got the governors set
for 220, the speed wanted. I next began
burning coal that the former engineer
said could not be burned without shak-
ing grates, and it required 2700 pounds
for 10 hours. Coal cost $3 per ton, or
$4.05 for the day, and my $1.50 made
$5.55 against $16.50 they were paying
before I came. Furthermore, I was giv-
ing all the power wanted for 10 hours

a day, while before there was not enough
power any of the time, and the engine
had to be shut down several times a day
to get up steam, which made a differ-
ence of at least $100 per day in the out-
put of the factory.

After my ten days' trial, I got my in-
crease in pay and my experience since
has proved it to be a typical engineers'
raise. I saved the company $10.95, in-
creased the output $100 a day and I got
a raise of 25 cents a day.

J. R. Morton.

Detroit, Mich.

Device for Turning a Crank
Pin

The accompanying sketch illustrates a
device that I made to true a crank pin.
On taking charge of my present plant, I
found the crank pin on the ammonia com-
pressor in very bad shape. It had been
allowed to get hot and was badly cut
and scored, and it was almost impos-
sible to keep the bearing cool.

On calipering the pin I found that it
was not only badly cut, but that it was
out of round 3/32 of an inch. The diam-
eter of the pin was 4% inches, with a
bearing 5 inches long. I took a piece of
i|i}-inch shaft, 9 inches long, and got

Turning Device

one end turned down and threaded to
screw into the end of the crank pin, 1
inch, as shown in the accompanying
sketch. A fine thread (24 to the inch)
was cut on the remaining part of the
9-inch pin. A sleeve was made to fit
over the shaft, and a copper set screw
passed through the sleeve to tighten on
the thread.

A piece of -)4-inch square steel was
attached to the sleeve with two set
screws, and a slot was provided near the
end to hold the cutting tool that was
secured by a small set screw. A small
solid balance wheel fitted with a handle
was bored out to fit on the sleeve, which
completed my apparatus.

Having all my toggles together, all
was ready to go to work on $unday morn-
ing, and with one assistant I turned up
the pin and made a splendid job of it in
about three hours.

The only mistake that I made in
constructing my machine was that the

feeding thread was a little too coarse.

After removing the machine from the
pin I took two pieces of hard wood of
the proper width and about 18 inches
long, bolted them together and then bored
a hole through them. Then emery cloth
was tacked in the bore, the device was
put in place and the pin smoothed up.

The boxes were rebabbitted and
scraped, which completed the job.

William G. Walters.

Stratford, Can.

Making Engineers

In almost every issue of Power one
reads about engineers' hours, engineers'
wages and engineers' associations, but I
cannot recall seeing any article on mak-
ing engineers.

When I took charge of my present
plant, I had fourteen men under me and
not one of them subscribed for an engi-
neering magazine or devoted any time
to studying engineering subjects. It took
me but a short time to find out that they
were ignorant of the most elementary
parts of steam engineering.

I suggested to my assistant engineers
and firemen that they subscribe for
Power and other magazines, which they
cheerfully did. I also suggested that
they procure "Power Catechism," and
showed them my own well worn copy
and allowed each man to take it home
for one evening's perusal, with the re-
sult that I placed five orders for the
book. When any of my men asked me
about any new appliance he saw ad-
vertised, I gave him stationery and the
use of my desk at noon to write for a
catalog and particulars.

At the end of one year eight men have
procured engineer's licenses of various
grades, two have left my employ and are
running a plant of their own, three are
studying hard for fireman's license and
three are still in the same old rut, only
wishing for 6 o'clock and the largest
schooner of beer in the nearest saloon.

Where do I benefit and what recom-
pense do I get for spending my evenings
with my men? First, I have a thoroughly
reliable crew of eleven men, and, with
everyone trying his best to improve con-
ditions in the plant it is kept up in bet-
ter shape for less money, although the
men have been given an increase of
25 cents per day. Second, I am a more
uptodate engineer, as I continually have
my memory refreshed, for when my men
ask me a question I cannot answer I re-
ply, I do not know but I will find out.

Now, some of you chief engineers get
down off your "high horse," go down to
the fire room and explain to your fire-
men that brains in the boiler room, as
elsewhere, are worth more than muscles,
and I will venture to predict that you can
operate your plant for less money and
with more satisfaction.

William T. A. Faulkner.

Seattle, Wash.

January 17, 1911.

Pumping Problem

In the ~ue of Pou

Mr. Ellcthorn coniributcs a pumping
problem for which I offer the following
n :
Briefly, his problem jIIows:

2-inch duplex pump, driven by a 12-
horsepowcr engine, pum; Ions

of water per minute, through a 4-inch
hargc line, which runs horizontally
t from the pump, then vertically
• and disch to a tank. The

water is drawn from four open wells, lo-
1H). 120 and M from

the pump. The water level in tl
S
.low the ground. The n;

in dia: md the

-H from the wells, all of which ter-
minate in the main suction line, are of
mch pipe. In the absence of any
data to the contrarv. I assume that the
pump and suction line are at ground
level.

The discharge, which en as 2

gal: - mintiM ual to

The problem is to find how much of
• :n each well,
nbcring tl 14, in

the hich they arc mentioned

ied that all of the

r comet from which

the water level is I the

ind or datum. This water is lifted

against, not only a static head of 10

but a friction head, which is gr

lion:

-
cin

iter in pipe in feet

Acceleration due to gra\it>

d - DlatT
/ Icngt

coefficient

and diame'

also upon the condition n'

A clean Iron ptoa it assumed
In
The area of the

■

;

nt,

and d tifjo:

tided.
oHati v. J, i, h /,

peat ed in pn

J>si;< s
The . the p

clean
r and a

-ining gives a value for ( of

head

o
t

is
it

' head due frictir
per foot of length;

em now is to divide Q or
nd bet

10 A,

nam iu.

.•/i i

\r /

>y- ^

— =

Veloc

oblen ntcs— swss «ai«c tkt

rwthod

'•x ' ■ ■■-.'•

>. m ^— - j«

■

Tl frfcrtasj head for ft

•umptlor r-tam-J

' bend Im etts* per roof ml bwc

I •* ' ' tV • 1 I r •' I T •• .

126

POWER

January 17, 1911.

No. 1 is that of cubic feet per second
platted to velocity. All values are for
2: j -inch pipe.

Assuming for the present that the fric-
tion loss in the 10 feet of 5-inch main
suction pipe between wells Nos. 1 and 2
is negligible, the equation of equilibrium
becomes,

io + io hFt = 12 + 12 h.F„

Assume that Qi = 0.400 and Q2 =
0.123.

Referring to the diagram, pass hori-
zontally across the line Q = 0.400 until
it intersects the straight line, thus ob-
taining the velocity. Dropping vertically
down this velocity line until it intersects
curve 2, then horizontally to the scale
at the left, we find,

ftp, = 0.245 ar)d 1if„ = 0.025

Substituting in the equation of equilib-
rium,

10 + 10 X 0.245 = 12 + 12 X 0.025
12.45 = 12.30,
which indicates that the assumed value
of Qi is too large.

Trying again with Qx = 0.390 and Q2
= 0.133, from the diagram we find,

ftj?, = 0.233 and Iif2 = 0.029

and our equation of equilibrium becomes,

10 + 10 X 0.233 = 12 + 12 X 0.029

12.33 = 12.35.

This being sufficiently close for our
work, we will say that 0.390 cubic foot
per second comes from well No. 1 and
0.133 cubic foot per second from well
No. 2.

Now, knowing the value of Q?, we must
figure the friction loss in the 10 feet of
5-inch main suction pipe between wells
Nos. 2 and 1 and see if our assumption
that it is negligible, is sustained.

The area of the 5-inch pipe equals
0.136 square foot and the velocity in
the 5-inch pipe is

0.133

= 0.974 l0°t Per second

0.136

For this velocity and a 5-inch pipe. Fan-
ning gives / = 0.007. Substituting in
the formula,

Friction head = 4 X 0.007 X 10 X (0.974) 2

X 2 X 32-2
= 0.00949 joot

which is negligible.

The pump or delivered horsepower is
equal to the weight of water pumped
per minute multiplied by the total head
pumped against and divided by 33,000.

The total head is made up of four
items, as follows:

(1) Discharge head = 200 feet.

(2) Friction head in 400 feet of 4-
inch discharge pipe.

(3) Friction head in 100 feet of 5-
inch main suction pipe.

(4) Static and friction heads (up to
the main suction pipe) = 12.35 feet.

The manner of finding items (2) and

(3) is exactly the same as that pre-
viously used, employing the formula,

Friction head = — ■

a 2 g

using the proper values of /, as deter-
mined by the velocities and sizes of
pipes. Item (2) comes out equal to 16.23
feet while item (3) proves to be equal
to 1.41 feet.

Hence, the total head is,

200 + 16.23 + 1.41 -f 12.35 = 230
feet.

The weight of the water pumped per
minute is,

235 X 8.34 = 1960 pounds,

8.34 pounds being the weight of one
gallon.

The pump horsepower is,
i960 X 230

33,000

Ithaca, N. Y.

13.66 horsepower
T. B. Hyde.

Economic Engineering

With so many past records to uphold
Power in its editorial in the September
27 issue, it seems superfluous to make
additional comment on this subject. The
argument offered by R. L. Rayburn in
criticism, in the November 22 issue, how-
ever, makes further annotation neces-
sary. Organization heads with manifol:'
duties of office cannot take the part of
the economic engineer; past perform-
ances have indicated this, and the partic-
ular type of the former which he depicts
is considerably in the minority. The ef-
ficiency engineer called in on certain
work possesses knowledge of many
plants; the local superintendent has def-
inite data on one — his own; the informa-
tion that Mr. Rayburn mentions as being
in the power of the superintendent be-
comes the property of the efficiency en-
gineer; this is what he is placed in his
position for — to investigate and learn
actual existing conditions; he does not
go blindfolded to his work. To afford
efficient production his initial expendi-
tures for new equipment may be large;
he may change the system of the entire
piant for future betterment — the results
are manifested over a period of time, in-
clusive of interest on investment and de-
preciation; his arguments are based over
a wide territory and, as Power states,
he is not prejudiced. Is it not reasonable
then to suppose that the economic en-
gineer is in a far better position to offer
suggestions for efficiency than the "man
on the job"? The present Santa Fe
Railroad system stands as a notable ex-
ample of what an efficiency engineer can
accomplish. The average superintendent,
as found, is greatly in accord with keep-
ing all expenses down — this is his prov-
ince; in many instances (taken from ac-
tual experience) a superintendent has
refused an installation which later the
efficiency engineer has recommended.

I am under the impression that the
superintendent is usually considered as
an employer, and Mr. Rayburn contra-
dicts his statements in noting, "I have
found a great deal more unwillingness
on the part of employers to furnish new
equipment with which to improve the
methods of operation, than unwillingness
on the part of operators to break away
from old established customs."

Efficiency work in its various branches
is and has been for some time past a
paramount issue with leading technical
publications; the great results achieved,
made known through this channel, leave
no doubt in the mind that "the economic
engineer is in a much better position to
produce an effective solution of the prob-
lem" than any member of an organiza-
tion, and that he is here to stay.

L. R. W. Allison.

Los Angeles, Cal.

Knocking Slide Valves

In the November 1 issue of Power W.
H. Keller gives an account of trouble
with a valve rattling or knocking.

I have had the same trouble with sev-
eral engines. In one of these engines the
pressure plate was held in place with two
coil springs which rested over pins, and
there appeared to be no cause for the
trouble other than that the spring had
become slightly weakened by the heat
of the steam. Washers were put on and
the rattle stopped.

In another case the trouble was with
an engine which always ran well in warm
weather, but when it was cold the valve
rattled very badly. Owing to a very
large heating system it was necessary to
carry about 8 or 10 pounds back pressure
on the heating system in order to heat
the buildings. This high back pressure
made the compression run up to about
10 or 15 pounds above boiler pressure.
This trouble was also stopped by putting
washers behind the spring.

Many automatic shaft-governed en-
gines give trouble when running with a
light load on account of the high com-
pression, which occurs with a very early
cutoff. This high compression not only
makes the valve and pressure plate rattle,
but often causes the engine to knock in
the bearings. If the exhaust lap be trim-
med off to remedy this, the compression
will not be high enough when the engine
is running under a heavy load. This dif-
ficulty may be overcome by running a
pipe containing a check valve from the
cylinder drain across to the steam-chest
drain, or to any opening in the steam
chest. The compression then cannot run
above boiler pressure because the check
valve will relieve it and let any excess
steam return to the steam chest, but will
prevent any steam being admitted except
through the valve.

R. L. Rayburn.

Kansas City, Mo.

Janu 1911.

| Past a Piston \ alvc

It i> true that the le.. ■ solid

plug or piston valve is a hard man
determine but that there is leakag.
well known. The amount J on

many things; probab! the

qualif. of the material of which the en-
gine lilt, thi the
accu: ; th which the engir built
and third, the c which the en.
is hand

■ claim tight piston
these on the e\;
il. so th.r

to comr If With

some rectangu!

as use a much m«' *n

adjustable ; re plate

r the purpose of taking up
wear or preventing leakag. the

val\

as building. 1 knot that when thcr

and u:

are
nnd leal the ma-

of cngr ng the

icir machu the

and
pier
tighter va!

will

ing an i

tight \al\c. hut instead. m«' 'iem

nil bill to run a-
self The thir- . for the

■
for leaks tad

that leakagt the

min the

than man
to as I 'hat tin

■

are no-

hov l let

dov

dol n be sa

onMl i - >*e of i

■
in e: >f the several nu

ut one
posse"
that is. th-.

-:!h and

. :ne iha*
be running the smootl

lunii ng and

will:

found that UM
more th inch p.

The
of so

onecanima.. ii the loss amounti

equeni J be ma

-adl\ nci

I nderground Steam Piping

I note the a n to a

to underground
had a I
C that line an.'
f the i lid ap| all

uld think

thai. I
a h

thc pipe a

the first t.
■
ipponed is

! if.

n in nr.
no trouble

■
the r

In this case

about 3

and sand ponior

;e in good
■hap ofinc paper form-

-toufth to allow
the pipe a
plar

shop acrosa the com

mor MM In

•
the cclli e house. The

: cottdc-

ung hi the

thrv

and

•abic

i too ar

hoi

the mair

■

the port In ir«nn( ihe^e engine* I
J man

: had N

•

kcfi hi nr* ' •* *

rr«»r<i

128

POWER

January 17, 1911.

I have seen 10-inch mains taken up
in a district heating system that were
practically destroyed after three or four
years' use. If pipe has to be placed in
the ground, make the covering as near
moisture proof as possible. Even then
there will probably come leaks in the
joints that will keep the insulation wet
and cause its destruction if the pressure
is high.

J. O. Elder.

Anderson, Ind.

Handling Men

Much has been said in the columns of
Power in regard to the treatment of men
employed in the power house.

To know just how to treat each and
every man in a power plant is no easy
task, for if you try to act fair with all,
there is bound to be some who will not
appreciate kind treatment.

The men of a certain class do not
seem to know when they are well off;
they kick and complain about their sur-
roundings, their hours of labor, etc., and
they are always complaining about not
getting a chance. Yet, when their con-
ditions are bettered they abuse them, and
whenever a chance for a better job
turns up they are not prepared to accept
it. The question is, what is the best
thing to do with these men.

Men who are ambitious and ever ready
to acquire a better working knowledge of
their business as engineers, firemen or
oilers, do not as a rule find much dif-
ficulty in commanding respect from the
superintendent or chief engineer, espe-
cially if they can show that they are
awake on their job. It is only the men
who have to be told to do every little
thing around the plant, or the men who
try to see how much time they can kill
without being discovered who find it
hard to get along with the operating en-
gineer. A majority of subordinates do
not fully understand the position that the
engineer in charge is placed in; they do
not or will not reason the matter out to
see that the owner or manager holds the
engineer responsible for everything per-
taining to the engine room, and yet when
the engineer thinks up ways and means
for saving fuel, oil or supplies and di-
vulges his little schemes to his helpers,
nine out of every ten of these men criti-
cize him as soon as his back is turned,
for catering too much to the boss.

To my mind the positon of engineer
in charge of any plant is no sinecure,
and I can positively state that you must
treat the men that you are responsible
for in a manner best suited to them,
based on personal observation of them.

If, as Mr. Levy says in Power for
December 20, a man finds fault simply
because he wants it understood that he is
it, he certainly shows his lack of sense
and cannot expect the men who work
for him to have any confidence in his
judgment.

Referring to the article submitted by
Mr. Carr in the same issue, in which he
says that he treats his men as he would
like to be treated himself, I must say that
I agree with him in this respect, provid-
ing he is dealing with the class of men
who have brains enough to know that
they are being treated right. Mr. Carr
further states that we all make mistakes,
which is all too true, but here, as in all
other things, a lot of judgment is needed
to decide whether or not the mistake is
pardonable.

Certain men when given an inch will
take a foot; that, to my mind, is a very
true saying and if this class of man
is not kept in his place there is no tell-
ing what else he may take.

Regarding his statement as to a man
who is frank enough to say he is not fa-
miliar with this, that or the other thing,
I would like to say that as a rule this
kind of a man usually makes the one on
whom you can rely most, owing to the
fact that what he has learned has to a
large extent been gained from the knowl-
edge which has been imparted by you;
the right kind of man will show his ap-
preciation of this fact by faithful service
as long as he is in your employ.

H. H. Burley.

Brooklyn, N. Y.

Introducing Solvents into
Boilers

Under the above heading, Charles h.
Taylor had an article in the December 6
issue of Power in which he described
his method of introducing solvents. I
believe that it is better to feed the sol-
vents in with the feed water, so that all
the feed water will carry along with it
into the boiler the required amount of
compound necessary to precipitate the
scale-forming matter contained in it.

One method of accomplishing the de-
sired result is to have a small pipe con-
nected into the suction pipe of the pump
and extending up a little higher than
the level of the water in the heater. The
pipe should end in a funnel. Above
should be mounted a tank large enough
to hold at least a day's supply of the
solvent used, dissolved in water. The out-
let pipe from this tank should end in a
petcock just above the funnel, so thai
the attendant can see and regulate the
amount of the solution he is feeding.
Of course, the above method will not ap-
ply where the feed water is supplied to
the pump under city pressure, but as
I never had that problem to solve I will
leave suggestions along that line to those
who have.

Where compounds are used that will
act on the feed water below the boiling
temperature and where an open heater
is used, I introduce the compound into
the inlet pipe to the heater, so that the
compound can act on the water as it
passes through the heater. The heater

thus becomes a sort of a feed-water puri-
fier. Under some conditions large quan-
tities of scale-forming matter can be re-
moved by the heater and if a heater is
used that is easily cleaned there is a de-
cided gain over the method of treating
water after it leaves the heater.

On waters that soda ash has produced
little or no effect outside of the boiler,
trisodium phosphate has been found to
act efficaciously even while the water is
quite cold, so that by introducing this lat-
ter compound into the feed water before
it enters the heater a large part of the
scale-forming matter is precipitated and
removed from the water before it enters
the boilers.

G. E. Miles.

Salida. Coin.

Liquid Discharging Device

An article by Earl Pagett, on page
2196 of the December 13 issue of Power,
interested me a good deal, as I have
had some experience with a somewhat
similar device for emptying barrels.

Several years ago I conceived the idea
of making a similar arrangement, but to
start with I applied the air at a separate
opening. My arrangement worked beau-
tifully on several barrels. One day 1
got hold of a barrel with a very short
chime and when the air pressure came
on, the head came out of the barrel.
Forthwith I lost all interest in that means
of emptying barrels.

A. G. Knicht.

Omaha, Neb.

Lubricating Piston Packing

An article in the November 22 edition
relating to a ring or sleeve between sundry
rings of fibrcus packing, with a hole in the
said ring or sleeve through which oil is
run by gravity onto the piston rod while
it is in reciprocating motion, reminds the
younger generation of engineers of their
daddy's lectures that, say, a 40-horse-
power stationary engine must have a cyl-
inder diameter of, say, 14 inches and a
stroke, say, 36 inches long — the longer
the better and more effective — no cutoff
and a speed of 50 revolutions per minute.

We wish to learn, and concede that we
know very little, why it would not be well
to utilize graphite instead, fed through a
modern lubricator. Perhaps one reason
has been the likelihood that graphite, mixed
in oil for the purpose, would stop up or
clog up the openings, which experience
has proved to be so. Our idea is, how-
ever, to use graphite in connection with
the lubricator in which the drops of oil
pass over a bed of fine graphite, to
the cylinder, lubricating the inside of the
cylinder, the valves and, particularly, the
piston rod, dispensing with the ring or
sleeve for lubricating the rod and the
packing.

C. C. Stilwell & Co.

Philadelphia, Per.n.

January 17, 1911.

POTER

I--',.-.] u . .

Hill Publishing tnpany

Jomm X. Hi

■■

• *■-»<

'HI.

■Hi

\ !••.•■ ■ '

■

itCllts

Ill

117

'I'll ( iMimcr P the Hill

Not n (go the anthrac

companies of Pen: ! a could m.i

only their largi
i large:
The sma! pet,

buckwheat ind bar

dumped in gre.r ogethcr »ith bone,

slate and other r<. om the mil

These imtTH rew :n •

ber. an unc instances to al-

mounta-.no- hut no

ie to • the

fuc: the noncumbi. nat-

ter.

Just when the burning of the smaller
ra of anthracite coal was begur
not definitely known, but many large
power plants are nou ieat

coal c\u as a fuel

Naturallv. thi :cmand for the

smaller sizes of anthr not

n from a desire on the pan of the
power-plant iranager I
pile or to add profit to the coal prodi.
but that th-. cam

plant miehi

he has
much attcn- ng and the

n hand-
ling a I.

It did not require much urging on the
■<) awtl :oal

r to the fact that ther

liars to be had almos-
thc picking up. and as a r
were built, old hreaki ••
the reclaiming al from |B<

c a n-

I
than the pea and

product, a
bout

th*

of the*

*i mon-
the
To on- company naing rice and

of ab<

a Je

•a! to I
cost mutt be n

It is not at all probable I

creases in the
not much
of coal
.

It .»t of r

a: coal .an be «ashed and load-
ed in a r tome*

of the cost price

one time thi ;si now .

because the c

"iat cos' ' calls noth

' because there is no

I in. H I

I conducted bt John K
at ' * Arr

( ,,-vpj- | j H >f Vi jr°" botl

bolhrs. in which

orations of o*

■■-< ma»-

that hf

To ei

Sc 4 ' u P »

. that c»

•Me rr*<

tha- tM No •'*» foor

rsth *

130

POWER

January 17, 1911.

it is seen that such a performance would
call for a coal of over eighteen thousand
British thermal units per pound of com-
bustible, even allowing nothing for radia-
tion; and no such coal has ever been
mined.

At the time that this impossible per-
formance is claimed to have been ef-
fected the boilers were fitted with a de-
vice known as the Cornell fuel econo-
mizer. This consists of a number of
metallic retorts behind the bridgewall,
into which steam is admitted, and
it is claimed that the steam in pass-
ing through them is decomposed into its
constituent gases, oxygen and hydrogen,
and that it is the combustion of the
hydrogen which supplies the extra heat
necessary to obtain the high evaporation
reported.

This claim has been exploded over and
over again in Power. Even if the steam
is so decomposed it takes as much heat
to decompose it as the gases produced
will generate in combustion. When hydro-
gen is burned, two atoms of hydrogen
unite with one of oxygen to form H^O
or water vapcr — steam. The decomposi-
tion of steam into hydrogen and oxygen
is a reversal of the process, and takes
just as much energy in the form of heat
as was produced, or will be produced
again, by the reunion of the gases in com-
bustion.

If those in authoritative control of the
Cornell Economizer Company do not
know this, they had better inform them-
selves as to the elementary principles of
combustion before entering the market
as practitioners in this line.

Natural Sources of Power

Man has often been called a tool-
using animal, this seeming to be the
only characteristic difference between
him and other animals. But more than
a tool user he is a power user and as
civilization advances the per capita de-
mand for power increases in geometrical
ratio.

Scarcely a century ago the modest de-
mands of each community were met by
the utilization of the energy of small,
rapid streams by the means of crude
waterwheels built in place by the local
millwright. In some instances the ebb
and flow of the tide furnished the power
needed by small industries and, where
both waterfall and ocean tide were lack-
ing, great canvas-covered wind wheels
turned the stones that ground the grain
for man and beast.

With the parallel development of the
steam engine, electric transmission and
the factory methods of production came
increased demands for power for manu-
facture and transportation.

Steam has been almost universally used
as the medium of transmission. But the
steady increase in the price of coal has
turned the attention of men toward the

natural forces of wind and wave and
their utilization in power production.
"The wind that bloweth where it listeth"
and the sea which is never still could if
intelligently harnessed be made to fur-
nish power at a rate far beyond the
dreams of the wildest enthusiast.

But at what price per unit?

Some of the oldest mills in the coun-
try were and perhaps are today driven
by wave power. Built before the steam
engine became the common prime mover
and costing little for upkeep they have,
where equal to the demand, been con-
tinued in operation. An investment once
made, the interest cost of the capital
goes on forever, and it will doubtless be
found on investigation that the interest
on the investment in any of the old-time
water or wind powers at prevailing rates
would operate a steam plant of equal
capacity and leave a margin of profit.

With the ever-increasing demand for
power for every conceivable purpose it
is not to be wondered at that every move
tending toward the development of un-
used forces of nature should attract
attention, but it "passeth understanding"
that palpably inefficient and expensive
methods of utilizing the rise and fall of
the tides, the heat of the sun and the
current of rivers beyond the reach of a
possible market should find such ready
support from even a guillible public.

No investor would buy land without
having the title examined by competent
authority on such matters. But the first
successes of a Keely or a Carroll show
that the professional promoter of any
kind of a scheme to beat the law which
affirms that action and reaction are equal
and opposite, finds ready buyers for his
wares.

No one should consider the investment
of money in any enterprise to control
and direct natural forces until he has
paid a competent engineer to make an
exhaustive examination of the proposed
program.

A Pioneer

For his work in advancing condensing
and compound-engine practice in this
country, William Coutie, who died re-
cently at Troy, N. Y., deserves attention
from the engineering fraternity. Mr.
Coutie was in his ninety-second year. He
came to the United States from Scotland
before he was thirty, and in 1849 he was
working as a machinist at the Starbuck
shops in Troy, then located close by the
river. Near the shop was a coffee and
spice mill doing a large business for
those days and * driven by an ordinary
high-pressure noncondensing engine. He
arranged to take the exhaust from this
engine, placing a valve in the pipe which
guaranteed that there should be no back
pressure, and with this steam he drove a
condensing engine which supplied him
with power for a machine shop which he

started in 1850. This was his sole source
of power for ten years or more and it
was an incontrovertible example of the
economy of condensing.

He made a specialty of simple and
compound steam engines, always con-
densing, and built quite a number for
Troy and the immediate vicinity. The en-
gines never proved to be what would be
considered high-class machines, but they
saved fuel and cost little for repairs. He
was one of the first builders of "Troy
laundry machinery" and did a general
and repair trade, but never anything big,
and discontinued business in 1899.

Mr. Coutie was spoken of as a scientist
and had affiliations with some of the so-
cieties. He wrote a number of papers of
a pseudo-scientific character which
could scarcely be considered seriously.
They ail had the somewhat unusual merit
of being short. His hobby for fifty years
was the commutation of metals, and he
is said to have died in the belief that
this he had actually accomplished.

In utilizing exhaust steam that had
previously been wasted, Mr. Coutie al-
lowed his Scotch thrift to come to the
front. In effect his engine was merely a
low-pressure cylinder added to the engine
in the spice mill, but for so early a
period in steam-engine history, his work
was ingenious to say the least, and he
should be given due credit.

The following is a squib which ap-
peared in one of the Pittsfield, Mass.,
papers on the day following the disas-
trous boiler explosion, described in the
January 10 issue of Power:

"When asked by the reporters for a
statement concerning the exact cause of
the explosion, Inspector McNeil spoke
in full as follows:

If an engineer takes a lively interest
in all matters pertaining to his vocation
he will be a successful engineer.

Some idea of the importance of ap-
parently small things may be had when
it is realized that in a 30,000-kilowatt
plant one inch in vacuum represents a
total of 814,000 in the operating expenses
for one year.

With the water-power developments
and the adaptation of the internal-com-
bustion motor to all classes of power
service, how long will it be before steam
engines will be unfashionable?

San Francisco started the new year
with an earthquake. That's nothing.
Pennsylvania and Massachusetts had
three boiler explosions just before New
Years, and killed twenty men.

Jam; 1911.

Low Pressure Steam Turbine

.ition t".

of the l< .am

turbine than does that of t ond

r^cr Company at Akron, O. The
er plan- taincd a 1 ;

ss-compound. I en-

direct co:

>r. the Ml running condensing
In addition tl

tandem-compound noncondensing er.
iu\iliar
!<i-*-p: a hich -

J the heat
••-•m.
In the process of manufacture-.
Js a large amount of hea<
and at these unr fur-

en at a'
; -

• that used in the
•-•r plant itself; or.

til amount of the cxhai ;i avail-

■ • the vu'..

ized. « hile •
•
and the

;mg all the
am in a large r which

re 111 'o a

encrator.
mgl

0 i \1< tnnett

10 ob-

■

Tl. lat has attenJ ar-

rangement
that even u

- been able I
the cm il load, thus alio*

the I

ire of f
n of tl
■ •

car-

the cor

.ondenaed steam a

on the the k>»-prtaaiif»

and cooaeqi. Joe* »ork

ueh the complete ran,

nsing i -m the

lock of an o

anufacturine r!ant» Tfu»

I he I inmpj

•oon becomes virm.

132

POWER

January 17, 191 1.

A. %eJLJL

■"=%. -#--

|l JLj!

JBL

Compound Engine Balance

When a compound engine is said to be
balanced, does it mean that the load is
balanced between the cylinders or that
the cranks are balanced so that the en-
gine will run quietly?

C. E. B.

In a compound engine the load is bal-
anced when it is equally divided between
the cylinders. The engine itself is bal-
anced when the inertia effect of the re-
ciprocating parts is neutralized by weights
on the cranks.

Number of Expansions

What is the rule for finding the num-
ber of expansions in any size of cylin-
der?

N. O. E.

The diameter of the cylinder has noth-
ing whatever to do with the number of
expansions. This is determined by the
point of cutoff. The number of ex-
pansions is the reciprocal of the cutoff;
that is, 1 divided by the fraction of the
stroke completed at cutoff. If the cut-
off is at % stroke, the number of ex-
pansions will be 4, because 1 divided
by l/\ equals 4. If the cutoff is at Vz
of the stroke, there will be 3 expansions,
and so on.

Size of Steam Chest

What is a simple rule for proportion-
ing the size of the steam chest of a
slide-valve engine?

S. S. C.

Make it no larger than is necessary to
accommodate the valve and give room
for the passage of what steam will be
used.

Double Acting Pump

What is a double-acting reciprocating
pump?

H. A. T.

One in which the piston acts in both
directions, alternately for suction and dis-
charge, drawing in the water at one end
of the cylinder while discharging at the
other.

Direct Acting Pump

What is a direct-acting pump?

P. D. A.

One in which there is no rotary or
walking-beam motion. The piston move-
ment is reversed by an impulse con-

Questions aro/

not answered unless

accompanied by the;

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

trolled by itself. The steam and water
cylinders are in a direct line and the
movement of the water piston is identical
with that of the steam piston.

Steam Furnished by Compression

If an indicator diagram shows 85
pounds initial pressure and the compres-
sion runs up to 42 pounds, what propor-
tion of the steam which fills the clear-
ance space to initial pressure is furnished
by compression?

S. F. C.

One cubic foot of steam at 85 pounds
gage pressure weighs 0.2296 pound.
The same volume at 42 pounds pressure
weighs 0.1355 pound. Then

— = cq per cent.
0.2296 oy 1

of the steam in the clearance space
furnished by compression.

Compound-Engine Valve Setting

How should the valves of a compound-
condensing engine be set?

C. E. S.

The valves of condensing engines hav-
ing the same duties to perform as those
of noncondensing engines should be
set the same. A slight improvement
may be made in some cases by giving
the low-pressure exhaust valves more
lead than is common for a noncondensing
engine.

Pressure in Condensing Engine

If the steam pressure in the boiler is
75 pounds and a condenser is attached
to the engine, how much will it increase
che pressure in the engine cylinder?

P. C. E.

The pressure in the cylinder will be
the same as before the condenser was
attached, but the difference of pressure
on the opposite sides of the piston will
be increased, because the condenser re-
moves a part of the atmospheric pres-
sure from the advancing side of the pis-
ton. This is equivalent to increasing the

pressure on the other side and amounts
in average practice to 10 or 12 pounds
per square inch of piston area.

Pacing in Compound Engine

When the load is thrown off of my
compound-condensing engine it races.
What is the cause?

R. C. E.

Incorrect valve setting or maladjust-
ment of the governor. The connections
between the governor and the valves
should be so adjusted that when the gov-
ernor is in its highest position the ad-
mission valves on neither cylinder will
be opened.

Change of Cutojf

How can I change the point of cutoff
on a Brown engine?

C. O. C.

By changing the load or the steam
pressure. The point of cutoff is con-
trolled by the governor and takes place
at that point which will keep the engine
at the right speed.

Condensing above Sea Level

At a flight of a mile, is the vacuum
in an engine cylinder as effective as at
the sea level?

C. S. L.

It is.

Legal Ownership of Patent

If, while working for another, I in-
vent, make and patent a machine or
tool, using his time, tools and materials,
does the patent belong to him or to me?

L. O. P.

If a man working at a machine con-
ceived a better way of producing the
piece that he was making and got up an
attachment to the machine for doing so
on his own initiative it would be unrea-
sonable for his employer to claim the
rights to the patent because it was de-
veloped while the man was in his pay and
perhaps used a pound or two of brass
and steel.

If, on the other hand, an employer
wanting a machine or process worked
out, hires a man to develop it, he pays
for brains and ingenuity and is entitled
to whatever is evolved in that connection.
Between the two cases there are many
gradations, the equities of which are
often difficult to settle.

The legal ownership of a patent is
vested in the one to whom it is issued.

January 17, 1911.

New power House Equipment

N -\ Method ft Flanging
Pipe

This method of flanging p ; the

cold hydraulic process J for the

purpose of cutting down e .ind eli-

minating the r -illed labor,

the latter beini -cntial to man

the methods now in dm V rectangular
groove is first cut around the inside of the
flange, which is then placed in position

I :

' fE IN PlA'

over the pipe as shown in Fig I The
die. cor i numb

ha\ the

groove in the flange, is then cxpandc

Iraulical andrcl.

e flanging
ticallv. in a single operation A hydraulic
*hich is shown in ! and

• ■
plao the flange and takes up any

il strains proJuced by the mandrel
h machi 1 an adjustable

'iment I
the flanv
ing

and at the same time permitting extreme

:her

•he bor
flange; and. when so the flange

may be put on at an angle with the

Wbmt tin-
itor jnd the OHOIf*

/.,< nu i .

tiliK- .an! nn n-

gmc roor/i and .". -•» I ■/■-

bouse Engine room

oewj

of the pipe. By fitting a collar over the
flange a flexible joint mi lad the

■
Reccntlv one of i
d to 3

under superheat at a temp

flange I
inch an hoi.

ron.

e Pa

ron
!cd

• .. :

»rcarr.
urJcr

• JU.d

. and twice each day a stream of

wau 1 agair V

amir • at the ' the

aled r. ikneaa.

J that one man and ■

W alder K

mlt
■mg w

In the a on t«

ap*c

the outer i

e mem'

■ .

in annular cor cat* or

I ' • ' r i

!h<:r

Mp-^ —

to rfo>

.-•.." rsr?»ccn th< r

,u,

I \

■•

tat tfcjc -qij^H

la* r

' tmm
• - |

134

POWER

January 17, 1911.

age, which might otherwise occur be-
tween the sleeves and the shoulder on A,
a suitable packing is used.

It is evident that with this construction
the member B and its attached pipe
are permitted to have free turning move-
ment relative to the member A, as shown,
the sleeve F and the packing parts, and
that the opposite thrusts of the shoulders
against the sets of balls may be adjusted
to a nicety to prevent longitudinal play
between such parts.

This joint is the invention of August
Haider, Archibald, O.

Improved Pipe Hanger

This hanger, illustrated herewith, is
constructed so as to be put up either be-
fore or after the piping is hung. It is
adjustable, so as to maintain the aline-
ment of the pipe and also to allow for
expansion and contraction.

The drawings show an elevation of the
hanger, partly broken away to illustrate
the construction, and also a side view. The
hanger consists of a threaded shank that
passes through a sliding block A and
sliding cap B, both of which are provided
with a central opening for the shank
piece to pass through. The block is pro-
vided with side recesses, as shown in
C, being opposite to each other, and a top
recess D is also provided.

The pipe is supported by a spring loop,
the upper turned-in ends of which lie
in the side recesses in the block A.

Two Views of Pipe Hanger

When the two nuts are screwed down
tight, the ends of the spring loop is held
in place between the block and cap. The
whole swings on the. head of a shank
piece, which is suspended by the holder
shown at E. This allows for expansion;
the adjustible nuts permit of raising or
lowering the pipe. The device is the
invention of Elmer A. Roberts, Norwalk,
Conn.

•i

If the wood handle has been broken
from a monkey wrench, a serviceable
substitute can be made by slipping a
piece of hose over the wrench, then filling
the hose with babbitt.

Minneapolis in Darkness

On January 6, the power plant of the
General Electric Company, furnishing
current to the city, was visited by fire.
Crossed wires in the engine room started
the trouble. Electrical machinery of
6000 kilowatts capacity was reported to
be totally destroyed. The city was dark
on Friday night, but on Saturday normal
conditions were restored with the load on
the St. Croix station. Full particulars
will be given in an early issue.

OBITUARY

At the age of 54, Patrick Mullen died
on Tuesday, January 3, at the New York
home for the aged, where he had held
the position of chief engineer for the past
twenty-eight years. Mr. Mullen was an
earnest and active member of the Ec-
centric Association of Engineers No. 1, of
New York City, and was always an en-
ergetic worker for the betterment of the
condition of the engineer. His ambition
was to see the engineers of Greater New
York united in one body. Mr. Mullen
had a host of friends and his loss will
be keenlv felt.

goods, including packings, in which field
Mr. Sanders has already made a reputa-
tion.

The Germantown council, American
Order of Steam Engineers, announce
rhe demise of Past Chief William
M. Leitch. Mr. Leitch took an active
interest in the affairs of the American
Order, both subordinate and supreme.
The American Order of Steam Engi-
neers Exchange, of which he was chair-
man, was a direct result of his activities
in securing employment for engineers.
Practically, during the time he was a
member of Germantown council, he took
special interest in this important work,
and during the time prior to organization
of the exchange, he had through his own
efforts secured more than 150 positions.
His reputation in this respect became cir-
culated throughout the engineering fra-
ternity of Philadelphia.

At the Baltimore convention, 1908, Mr.
Leitch was nominated for supreme chief
engineer, and, although unsuccessful at
that time, he did not allow this defeat to
affect his attitude or efforts toward the
welfare of the members of the American
Order. He was conscientious in every-
thing that he did, and was considered
one of the most capable engineers in
Philadelphia. For a number of years
he had been employed by the William H.
Hoskins Company, Philadelphia, as chief
engineer, and was still connected with
that company at the time of his death.

PERSONAL

C. O. E. Sanders has associated him-
self with the Thermoid Rubber Company,
of Trenton, N. J., which will put upon
the market a line of mechanical rubber

On January 4, W. H. Whiteside re-
signed the presidency of the Allis-Chal-
mers Company, which position he has
held for about six years. Mr. Whiteside's
first industrial connection was with the
Hercules Powder Company in 1881. Four
years later he went over to the Cleveland
Electric Manufacturing Company, where
he remained 12 years. He then became
manager of engine sales for the Gates
Iron Works, of Chicago. Two years later
he was placed in charge of the Wilming-
ton office of the Westinghouse Electric
and Manufacturing Company. D. W.
Call, formerly assistant to the presi-
dent of the American Steel Foundry
Company, has been chosen as successor
to Mr. Whiteside.

BOOKS RECEIVED

Physical Significance of Entropy. By
J. F. Klein. D. Van Nostrand Com-
pany, New York. Cloth; 98 pages,
6x9 inches. Price, SI. 50.

Qualitative Chemical Analysis. By
J. I. D. Hinds. The Chemical Pub-
lishing Company, Easton, Penn.
Cloth; 264 pages, 5}/. x9 inches; in-
dexed. Price, S2.

International Municipal
Congress

Hon. John MacVicar has been selected
for the position of commissioner-general
of the International Municipal Congress
and Exposition, to be held in Chicago,
September 18 to 30, 1911. John Mac-
Vicar is a well known authority in this
country on all that pertains to municipal
government and the administrative affairs
of cities. He has been in active service
in municipal work for more than twenty
years. He was named to the office of
president of the League of American
Municipalities upon its organization, fif-
teen years ago, and has ever since been
actively connected with that organization,
for the past ten years as secretary. Mr.
AlacVicar is at present a member of the
commission, and superintendent of streets
and public improvements, at Des Moines,
la., which city has recently attracted
some attention because of its advanced
form of government.

This congress and exposition will cover
in a practical as well as theoretical man-
ner matters of interest to all branches of
municipal service. Upon each day of the
congress, papers will be read and dis-
cussed by prominent municipal officials,
and prominent municipalities of this
country and foreign countries will have
attractive exhibits of municipal undertak-
ings in which they excel.

January IT. 1911.

NEW INVEN I IONS

nil mi movbri

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136

POWER

January 17, 1911.

BUSINESS ITEMS

The Kobb Engineering Company, Ltd., lias
purchased the Robb-Mumford Boiler Works, at
South Framingham, Mass. The management
and manufacturing organization will be con-
tinued as at present.

FranUlm Williams, manufacturer of engin-
eering specialties. 39 Cortlandl street. New
York, is issuing a rather unusual calendar,
which is so compact as to include the whole
year within very small compass. It might
be called a thumb-nail calendar, and should
prove useful to busy people.

The Nelson Valve Company. Philadelphia,

IVnn., is sending to engineers on application
a set of danger signs to hang on valve
wheels, etc., to show that the wheel is to he
left alone until the sign has been removed
by the proper authority. Send and get a
set, they are handy and useful.

The Murphy Iron Works, manufacturer of
the Murphy automatic furnace, lias arranged
for an office in Atlanta, the same to he in
charge of Roland 15. Hall. Jr., who will handle
its business in connection with that of Hie
Harrisburg Foundry and Machine Works, whom
be has represented in the southern territory
for some time. Mr. Hall's offices are located
in the Empire building, and he will be very
glad to furnish any information regarding
the Murphy automatic smokeless furnace that
may be desired.

Bulletin No. 130 has been issued by the
Rristol Company, Waterbury. Conn. It is a
56-page illustrated catalog of the Win. II.
Bristol electric pyrometers and includes de-
scription and lists of both indicating and re-
cording forms of these pyrometers with ex-
planation of the special patented features, as
for instance basic patents on means of com-
pensating readings of thermo-electric pyrom-
eters for changes in cold-end temperature.
On pages 48 to 55 of this catalog partial list
of more than 700 users of the Bristol pyrom-
eters is given.

The Royersford Foundry and Machine Com-
pany, of Royersford, l'enn., manufacturer of
the Sells roller bearings, found, it so dif-
ficult to obtain a satisfactory lubricant for
its roller bearings that it has brought out a
lubricant of its own. which is especially
adapted to meet the requirement of bearing
lubrication. "Rollerine" is the name it has
adopted for this special bearing lubricant.
Anyone writing to the Royersford Foundry
and Machine Company, at its Philadelphia
office, 52 North Fifth street, can obtain full
information on both Rollerine and Sells roller
bearings.

NEW EQUIPMENT

Gleichen, Alberta, will install a new water-
works system.

New Carlisle, Ohio, will construct water-
works system.

The citizens of Rush, Tex., voted to issue
bonds for waterworks.

Chilliwack, 15. C, will spend $40,000 ex-
tending waterworks system.

C. I''. Melinde, Hudson. N. H.. is building an
addition to bis engine room.

Wbittemore, Iowa, has voted to issue .$7000
bonds for municipal waterworks.

Swift & Co., of Chicago, will erect a cold-
storage plant at Muskogee. Okla.

Falls City. Ore., will issue $30,000 bonds
for the construction of waterworks,

Leavenworth, Wash.. will construct a
water-supply system to cost $40,000.

Hopkins, Mo., is considering the construc-
tion of a municipal waterworks system.

The Lynn (Mass.) Storage Company will
erect a warehouse and cold-storage plant.

The city of Alturas, Cal., has voted .$:5:;,

bonds for improvements to its waterworks.

The Farmers Union, Chico, Cal., will erect
a warehouse and install refrigerating plant.

The Calexico (Cal.) Creamery Association
wijl build a creamery and cold-storage plant.

The Canadian General Electric Company
will erect a $100,000 power house at Auburn,
Ont.

S. S. & T. B. Davis, Rock Island, 111., will
erect and equip a large power house on Rock
river.

The town of Woodbury, N. Y., is consider-
ing Hie construction of a municipal water
plant.

'l'he city of Fairburn, Ga., will vote on
issuance of $10,000 bonds for electric-light
plant.

The citizens of Lyndhurst, N. J., voted to
issue $25,000 bonds for extending its water-
works.

The Standard Furniture Company, Port-
land. Me., is in (he market for an air com-
pressor.

Sniithlield. Ya., will vote on issuance of
$55,000 bonds for electric-light and sewerage
systems.

Martinsville, Va.. voted to issue $35,000
for improving its electric-light plant and
waterworks.

The Libby (Mont.) Water Works, Electric
Light and Power Company will install a light-
ing system.

Strathcona, Alberta, will considerably in-
crease electrical equipment in (he municipal
power plant.

The Trnckee River General Electric Com-
pany, Reno, New. will build a power plant on
the Trnckee river.

Improvements will be made to the power
and light plant at the Boys Industrial School,
Lancaster, Ohio.

It is reported the Jacksonville (Fla.) Elec-
tric Company will erect a power house on
Riverside avenue.

The citizens of Sierre Madre, Cal., voted
to issue .$40. (>()(» bonds for waterworks. P. C.
Carter, city clerk.

The Duquesne Light Company, Pittsburg,
Penn., will erect a new power house on
Shakespeare street.

The citizens of Boone. Iowa, voted to issue
$180,000 bonds for extending waterworks.
Otto Hile, city clerk.

The Siloam Springs (Ark.) Ice and Cold
Storage Company's plant was destroyed by
fire. Loss. . $150,000.

E. B. Hillman, of Peoria, 111., has been
granted franchise to erect an electric-light
plant at Hamburg, lowa.

The Olympia Railroad and Power Com-
pany, Lima. Wash., is planning for extensive
power-plant enlargement.

The Pacific Mill. Lawrence, Mass., will in-
stall a steam turbine and electric generator
of 3250 kilowatts capacity.

Tlie Wilkes Barre (Penn.) Railway will
erect a three-story addition to its power
house on South Main street.

A five-story packing plant will be erected
for the Hamniond-Standish Company, 20 Ca-
dillac square, Detroit. Mich.

The Morrison Electrical Company. Boston,
Mass., is in the market for a 15-kilowatt di-
rect-connected generating set.

The Eastern Oregon Light and Power Com-
pany, canyon city. Ore., will build a hydro-
electric plant at Lagoon lake.

The Steelton (Penn.) Light, Heat and
Power Company is reported to be planning
the erection of an electric plant.

The city of Polytechnic, Tex., is consider-
ing the construction of a municipal water-
works plant to cost about $32,000.

The Oklahoma City (Okla.) Railway Com-
pany will spend .SI 2."). ()0(i in making additions
to its power station at Belle Isle.

The People's Power Company, Rock Island.
111., is planning extension and improvements
at its gas and electric-light plant.

The Atlantic Ice and Coal Corporation, Al-
bany, (In., has awarded contract for the erec-
tion of a new engine and power house.

The Norfolk & Western Railway will en-
large its power house at Bluefleld, W. Ya.
Two additional boilers will be installed.

The city of Georgetown, Tex., will spend
about $30,000 improving its waterworks and
electric-light plant. R. K. Ward, mayor.

Vancouver, 15. c., will buy one 1500-kilo-
watt steam turbine generating unit and one
500-kllowatt, direct-current generating unit.

J. A. Haberer, town clerk, Rippey, Iowa.
will receive bids until February 0, for fur-
nishing material and constructing water-
works.

The Northwestern Development Company,
Spokane, Wash., will build a 30,000-horse-
power hydroelectric plant to cost about
$1,800,000.

The town of Roberta, Ga., will receive bids
through W. J. Marshall, Lizell, Ga., for (he
((instruction of an electric power and pump
ing plant.

The board of water and light commissions.
of Bayfield, Wis., has completed plans for a
new boiler house for the municipal water and
light plant.

The Eastern Michigan Edison Company, of
Pontiac, Mich., is said to be planning the
erection of a ."iooo-horsepower steam-electric
plant, near Amy.

The Woodlawn (Ala.) Ice Company has
been incorporated with .$40,000 capital to
manufacture ice. W. J. Wortbington, presi-
dent and treasurer.

The Union Power Company. Hagerstown,

Md., has had plans completed for a new power
house. O. (!. Keilholtz, Continental building,
Baltimore, is engineer.

The Twin City Light and Traction Com-
pany will erect a new generating plant at
Chehalis, Wash. Headquarters are in the
Trenton building, Portland, Ore.

The Leader Publishing Company, owners
of the Cleveland Leader, is planning to erect
a 14-story building with an estimated cost
of $1,000,000 to $1,500,000. An electric
power plant for operating the presses will be
installed.

Bids will be received until January 10 by
R. G. Arthur, secretary, board of water com-
missioners, Douglas. Ariz., for furnishing ma-
terial and making improvements to water-
works, including pumping plant, pump house,
etc. About $85,000 will be expended.

E. M. Statler, of Buffalo, N. Y., will erect
a hotel building in Cleveland, at the corner
of Euclid avenue and East Twelfth street,
and has commissioned George B. Post & Sons.
architects, Cleveland, to prepare the pians
for the structure. The estimated cost of this
work is $2,500,000.

HELP WANTED

Advertisements under this head are in-
serted for 25 cents per line. A bout six words
make a line.

WANTED — Thoroughly competent steam
specialty salesman : one that can sell high-
grade goods. Address "M. M. Co.." Power.

\l \V VORK, I \M \m 24, L911

7HV all tlii— squealing, hissing, pound
ing, knocking and groanii Why all
tl l<m<l- of steam, sh<

>il and hoi br stion

niched metal and burnt insulation? Why
all the apparent confusion i^ this 1 blast
furnai

\«> this i- not t blast furnace, this

Vou m c t Ik « n$ im « i hei
1 1« has n<» time t<» put i frills h<
. timl man, 1>» it N<

a non about app< iii m< r him.

1 1- k» i ping tin win ■» I turn:

to monkey with such details.

What ii ■ ;nt <>i i • sprung oi

Ain't In deli\ erinf the

What ii tin \;i! i >m plain ;i bit and I
nn boot time it p

n't In k« eping thi mil

What ii tli< stuffinj

squeak m-t .i litth n i hi

all the j*'\\< r n. < <l< d '

'\ v ■!!« hen

And, 1>\ tin l«"

h< I -»t tin in

it
nut
:• OUght, I it with

\\ I . I I . * I « ; •

din < . method

This nigim ei i " woi Id t

It Ii it. I ll<

hi \\
« i'd u i keo | the marhiiici

he ii- unnin

I • • V

A machine
ord( the

machine must have so much It

• •

up on tlu I little h

into the h
in u " tin

d isn t In
sides the boilei
let h« •

1 1

lh. m tin

! it would

which i- full) •

— and Wlli;

* * ♦

.i 1

nish powi

\%il

138

POWER

January 24, 1911.

Hydroelectric Power at Wausau, Wis.

Slightly north of the geographical cen-
ter of the State of Wisconsin, is situated,
on the banks of the Wisconsin river, the
town of Wausau, the county seat of
Marathon county. The town has been
built up largely on the lumber industry,
and is still noted for the sawmills, tan-
neries and paper mills in its vicinity,
which depend upon the forest products
for a large share of their raw materials.

A portion of the power developed for
these various industries is obtained from
hydraulic plants situated on the Wiscon-
sin river which, here, is capable of pro-
ducing a head of about 25 feet, and is
absorbed within the city limits by three
installations.

The first of these, as shown on the
map in Fig. 1, is McEachron's flour
mill, situated on the west or main chan-

--M^Each

<'s Mill and Diverting Dam.
Sawmill of the.

Stewart Lumber Co.
.. jnd Old and New Power
Houses of Wausau Street

Railway Plant,
w Governement

Experimental Plant
Headgates for Lower
Installations
$ = Tannery(U.S.LeatherCo)
G = Big Bull Rapids, and
suggested Site for
a New Power
House

Fig. 1. Wisconsin River Near Wausau

nel of the river. The mill is driven by
single vertical turbines aggregating some
250 horsepower when operating under a
7-foot head, which is the maximum ob-
tainable under the conditions prevailing
at that point. The dam here is of the
rock-filled timber-crib type and, while
serving to maintain the head for this in-
stallation, also serves as a diverting dam
for the other two, which are situated on

By D. B. Hanson

A brief description of three
small plants drawing their
power from the waters of
the Wisconsin river and
the possibilities of further
development .

the east fork of the river. At this point
the river flows through several channels
among a number of islands. The dam
also serves for a spillway for the entire
river in times of flood, there, being no
space provided at the dams of either of
the other two- developments for this pur-
pose; to control the head in the eastern
channels, a second dam has been built
across their upper ends, thus converting
these portions of the river into mere
head and tail races, whose supply is de-
termined by the regulation of the head
gates in the second dam shown at the
reference E in Fig. 1 ; the western chan-
nel is thereby made the main course of
the river, only enough water being ad-
mitted to the east branches to supply
the demands of the lower power houses
which are situated about 1000 feet be-
low the two dams above mentioned.

Plant No. 2, that of the Stewart Lumber
Company, is the smaller of the lower in-
stallations and is equipped with three
horizontal shaft turbines of 275 to 300
horsepower aggregate capacity when op-
erating on a 14-foot head. It drives a
portion of the lumber mill of this com-
pany, its head race being used also to
float down the logs to the conveyers of
the main mill. It is decidedly a surprise
to the ordinary man, who, though well
informed, is not familiar with the large
scale upon which the sawmills of this
district were wont to operate in their
earlier days, to see the immense storage
yards and thousands of feet of elevated

platforms carrying the extensive system
of tramways used by this company in
transporting its finished products from
its sawmill and planing mill, which, for
many years, averaged a cut of 30 million
feet per season.

The third installation, that of the
Wausau Street Railway Company,
equipped with two independent turbine
units and an auxiliary steam plant, is
the largest of the three and operates
under the highest head. It consists of
two sections known as the old plant and
the new. The old plant is a fair example
of what one might expect to find in a
plant which started in a very small way
and was gradually enlarged to meet the
increased demand for the electrical ser-
vice which the plant supplies. This plant
consists of a quadruplex horizontal tur-

H^^^E jr ^ ~

1 -r"^^^T^K ^^^k.

Fig. 4. Old and New Wausau Plants

bine of Leffel make, which is direct con-
nected to a line shaft driving two main
generators, each of 350 kilowatts capa-
city, one generating current at 2200 volts,
the other, being installed later, generating
at 2300 volts. Both machines were origi-
nally two-phase, 60-cycle units operating
at 150 revolutions per minute, but were
later rewound to generate three-phase
current. This new arrangement naturally
resulted in a decreased output and a
high overload upon the exciters, of which
there are two 30-kilowatt machines, each
belted to the main shaft of a generator.
The two generators are operated in
parallel, and considerable trouble has
been experienced. These units will shortly

,tm»nimmn

- ■ .

;

■*&_-.

^\»««if *•■ "s;,'.r»y;«-

*^jj^-

^ »

l^/**

Fig. 2. McEachron's Mill Dam

Fig. 3. Headrace of Stewart Lumber Company

January 24, 1911.

I R

u»

Old ^

Oto P:

be changed back to generate two-phase
current, and their output will be trans-
formed to three-phase before being sent
out on the tran The elcc-

1 load of this station consists of
factory motors, incandescent and arc-
lighting and strcct-railuav load, the lat-
ter bcir. uctuations.

nally handled by means of t\»

rent Westinghouse gen-
erators, belt driven from a line shaft.

became inade-
quate, a tl motor-generator

the motor taking tl
phase current at 2.VX) \olts from the
main generators. A numf

0 the o
and a i noncoadenaing »hde-

■ : x-

the main >ugh a

waset of low water or

a , - v
' 1

1 : 1 1

rarssi

On account of the small number of cars

rating, it is comparatively
have nearly the whole
Marring all at the sarm thus ma-

the change from no load to the hca\

crating load occur in a very short
space of time, often not more than ten
seconds. 1 ar load wa

i led in a pa

mill some five mile* awa further

ate the fluctu.r

ting boxes, and '
rrent. when they are cut in
serosa H
hea-.

oard apparat

the

c became

g dema «

a—

" to

140

POWER

January 24, 1911.

present load, with a generous margin. It
is built of cement block and is approxi-
mately 35x40 feet. The machinery in-
stalled consists of a quadruplex hori-
zontal-shaft turbine, with 45-inch run-
ners arranged in pairs and discharging
into a common concrete draft tube. This
unit is rated at 1700 horsepower at 150
revolutions per minute when operating
under a 20-foot head. It is direct con-
nected to a 900-kilowatt alternator, gen-
erating three-phase 60-cycle current at
2300 volts. A twin-turbine-driven exciter
unit furnishes current for excitation. Both
units are controlled by oil-pressure gov-
ernors which are so connected to the
wicket gates of the turbines as to elimi-
nate the possibility of any lost motion
occurring, the resultant regulation ob-
tained being exceptionally good.

The present plan is to operate the new
station at all times, holding the old plant
in reserve for emergencies, and the steam
plant for times of low water when the
head races are fouled by large amounts
of sawmill refuse and driftwood. Due to
the close proximity of the several mills,
this is very troublesome, as no means of
ridding the forebays of this trash, except
unwatering them and cleaning them by
ordinary hand labor, are provided.

Taken collectively, the installations at
Wausau show a chance for considerable

improvement in the engineering details;
the dam at McEachron's mill leaks badly,
thus wasting power which in a dry sea-
son cannot be well spared. Further, its
low head of 7 feet allows but a small
amount of the natural power easily ob-
tainable to be absorbed. At the sawmill
of the Stewart Lumber Company, the
head is still much too low, as a proper
location of the installation could easily
double the head used, while at the
Wausau Street Railway Company's plant
the normal head of 22 feet still falls at
least 25 per cent, short of the possibilities
of the situation.

Referring to the map, Big Bull Rapids,
indicated at G, is an ideal location for a
hydroelectric plant. The river here flows
between banks at least 50 feet high and
600 feet apart over a solid rock bottom
composed of a tough, brown granite, and
at normal flow for nine months in the
year at least 1000 kilowatts yet remains
to be developed. This location would
give ample room for proper forebays, and
would also provide a chance for spill-
ways that would readily take care of the
large quantities of driftwood that now
form such a disturbing and annoying fac-
tor in the operation of the present plants.
It would provide the finest of founda-
tions for a dam, and, last but not least,
would increase the head from 30 to 400

per cent, of that used by the existing
plants. It would also permit of the whole
flow of the river being utilized, while now
but a small part can be used in times
of high water. In fact, the advantages
are so many and so obvious that one
can scarcely discern a reason for the
neglect of the opportunity, and with the
growth of the demand for power at this
point it would seem that a plant must
eventually be erected on this site.

In view of the agitation now prevail-
ing over the question of conservation of
our forest and other natural products, and
the growing scarcity of pulp woods which
are largely utilized by a large number
of paper mills in this section of Wiscon-
sin, it would seem but fitting to mention
in this connection the experiment station
now being erected by the United States
Government at D in Fig. 1. This plant
is being installed with the idea of con-
ducting an exhaustive series of tests to
discover methods which will permit of
new varieties of timber being used in
pulp making and will thereby, it is hoped,
open up new fields of raw material to
supplement those now being rapidly ex-
hausted by present operations. This plant
will absorb in its motors some 500 horse-
power, which will be largely furnished
by the street-railway company, and will
load the plant to its fullest capacity.

Keeping Power Plant Records

The one way of knowing what a power
plant is doing is to keep a suitable set
of records, so that it can be known at
any time just what the cost of operation
is or has been, not only as to the cost
of fuel, upkeep and wages, but of other

RECORD FOR 19

Kind of Coal

Quality,. _

COAL-Day run lbs Fireman.

Night run „...lbs

Total lbs.

ASHES— Day run lbs. 1

Night run lbs.

Total lbs. j

Water evaporated 24 hours .„

Pounds water to one pound coal

Current generated K. W.

} % Ash...

Remarks i

Fig. 1.

charges that should be credited to the
cost of plant operation. It is not a sim-
ple matter to get up a set of report
sheets that will exactly fit individual con-
ditions, the tendency being to border on

By Warren O. Rogers

A most complete system of
daily and monthly reports
which show at a glance the
cost of fuel, wages and any
charge that should be cred-
ited to the cost of operation.

the incomplete, rather than overdoing
matters in recording power-plant data.

Keeping records does require consider-
able time on the part of the engineer
and, for this reason, many fail to take a
right view of the matter, contending
that it is the business of the office to,
keep track of the power-plant costs.

There are engineers, however, who be-
lieve that it is their business to keep the
records of the plant, not only so that a
monthly report can be submitted to the
manager, but for their own satisfaction
and protection. Among the latter is Asa
P. Hyde, chief engineer in the building
of the Security Mutual Life Insurance
Company, Binghamton, N. Y. A set of
report sheets, gotten up and kept by Mr.
Hyde, consist of daily, weekly and month-
ly reports.

The daily reports are used as a check
on everything that occurs in the plant,
and have much to do with the results ob-
tained. A second factor is good help,
all working together for the one pur-
pose of seeing how much and how cheap-
ly the work can be done.

The coal man takes quite an interest in
the daily-record sheet shown in Fig. 1.
This report and the chart from the re-

Ash

Ticket.

CANS

FiLLRn

FlRBMAl*.

CANS

TACBH.

CAB THAN.

Fig. 2.

cording steam gage are filed daily in
a glass case in the boiler room
for the inspection of the men. As
the plant operates day and night, the re-
port of both the day and night firemen
are put on the same card. Each fireman,
one for each watch, records the number
of pounds of coal burned during the
time he is on duty, also the weight of
ashes made during his run. The per-
centage of ash obtained is what interests
the coal dealer, and the knowledge that
an ash record is kept, as well as a record
of the amount of water evaporated per

Januar MI.

pound of coal, tends to keep the quality
of coal up to the standard. No. 1 buck-
wheat coal is burned and must not con-
tain more than cent, of ash. Other
fuels and sizes have been carefully

DAILY —

COAL TICKET.

REIwT

6 A.M. to 6 P.M.

« A M

■

Kind of <

Coal Uaad

i M»dc_

Xbi

d.b*.

? A»h«

«d

«1

r Lb«_ I.

.Lt.

ml.

I«l. - L. *

.!>

DYNAMO REPORT SHEET.

W* N«*<

i I

from any other cfully banc

as is done in this plant.
The a
jly worth bothering about, bur

>c from
the building
of power-plant
the firemen Ret f.
and the canmen r

the cost of rcmo.

▼ate: er .read:

Itat kind

and coal burned anJ i ob-

flrcman from 6 i m. to 6

also the amount

Kiiion* and pounds.

and the amount o' porated |

h boiler-water te«

•o-
oris of the
>c coa:

-.l*>

M'lMI

- •

LttM*7 J ,r c-.rr,

»JD

1 ■ : ■

II <■> '

ttm »

' w

1 '» 1 1 •

1 ■>

* '■>

4«D

t 10

| M

»»

l *

ans « I up

aga plant, win

avc
M the

the

cms that might »h*d lt*b« oo

cordc J 00

irj similar to

cocror to the rariewe

HETER READD

1*3

QaHomw

tested, but it has bee it more

curr -1 be ; »

Dense ,il than

K. V

142

POWER

January 24, 1911.

The daily dynamo-report sheet is
shown in Fig. 7, the number of amperes
carried being recorded each half hour,
this being done to check the peaks and
for charts if wanted later.

All renewals, repairs and new work
about the building are performed by the
engine-room force, but their time is

Fig. 10 shows the engine and pump re-
port which indicates when the various
units were started, how long they were
in operation and when shut down, also
all work done on them and the materials
used. This is all of the daily-report
cards and from them the weekly report
is compiled.

Workman Ordered hv

No.
19

Bate

LABOR.

MATERIAL.

Hoars.

Bate.

Amount

ITEMS. Quantity

Kit*

Amount.

TOTAL. .

Total .

REMARKS:

Materials..-

Total...

sheet is shown in Fig. 13. It designates
the expenses for the month and what they
were for; it is made up of five depart-
ments, as shown in the margin. The items
having a check mark are charged to the

WORK SLIP No.

Security Mutual Building.

Office No . Mr

«...

1»

Changing — Adding — Renewals —

Work: hours (ai per hour.

Materials Usf.d: . %

....

Fig. 8.

The above work has been performed at the request of the undersigned,
and the material and articles above described are the property of Security
Mutual Life Insurance Co., and will be returned to said Company in good
condition at the termiaation of lease or removal from said office. Any
materials or articles not returned to be charged to and paid by the
undersigned.

Fie. 9.

credited to the plant. For instance, if a
tenant of an office desires changes made
in the arrangement of lights, or anything
else, the man put to work making the
alterations files the report shown in Fig.
8. It includes by whom the work was
ordered, also the labor and material
used, the cost of each being recorded.
From this report sheet the work slip,
Fig. 9, is filled out and the signature of
the tenant is affixed thereto, as all ma-
terial and supplies remain the property
of the Security Mutual building. In case
the tenant moves he must leave all fix-
tures, charged up to him over his signa-
ture.

/fo.- 190 — .

ENGINE AND

PUMP

REPORT

DAY

! 4

5 2

0 1 a

! !

—' I O) — ' of

o I __ Ik i b
> j = j tt i ffl

6
5

&
I

- i s.

■ if

r
s.

6:30am.

7:00 "
7:30 ■■

8:00 ••

8:30 ••

o-oo ••

9S0 ■•

10:00 "

10:30 "

11:00 "

11:30 "

12:00 _.
12:30PM.

1 1*1 "
1:30 "
2»00 •■

.2:30 '•

3:00 "

3:30 "

4:00 "

6:00 '■
5:30 "
6:00 "

r» =— =

[

REMARKS:

For instance, Fig. 1 1 shows the weekly
report of the amount of coal burned,
ashes made, water used, kilowatts gen-
erated and the total number of elevator
trips made during the week.

Expenses for the month for the plant,
block and elevators are tabulated on the
sheet shown in Fig. 12. The data found
on the expense sheet for the month of
October were taken from the workman's
daily-report sheet shown in Fig. 8. The
monthly expense report shows at a
glance when the work was done and what
material was used and to what depart-
ment of the building it has been charged.

A more complete power-plant expense

NIGHT.

i\i

_ -

■71

-
5

6:30p.M

1) O0 -"

7:30 "

8:00 ■■

8:30 "

9:00 "

9:30 "

10:00 "

10:80 •'

11-00

11:30 "
12:00m N

12:30a. u

100 ••

1 30 -

200 "
2:30 '•
3:00 "

3:30 ••
400 ■'
4 30 -

6:00 '•
5.30 "
6:00 "

REMARKS:

Fig. 10.

operating expenses of the plant, but they
should not be as they are of foreign
character and are carried by the plant as
a matter of convenience.

Data relating to the machinery of the
plant are kept on a report sheet ruled as

Total for Week Ending-

190

AMPERES

{Low_
High_

COA_-Day.

Sun...

Mon

Tues .

Wed

Thur

Fri

6at

'A J

Sun

Mon .

Tues

Wed

Thur..

Fri

Sat

f/«

tfr

COAI Night.

Sun .
Mon .
Tues
Wed
Thur
Fri .
Sat ...

WATER.

Last Reading

Previous Reading .

Total K. '

Last Reading

Previous Reading .

Power K.

Last Reading
Previous Reading

ELEVATOR TRIPS.

No. I. No 2-

Sun
Mon ..
Tues..
Wed
Thur.

Fri

Sat

Totai

Fig. 11.

shown in Fig. 14. Here the daily record
is tabulated and the items not filled in
with daily readings are entered monthly.
A fuel-evaporation report sheet for
October, November and December, 1910,
is shown in Fig. 15, the month of October
only being tabulated. These reports also

January 24, 191 1.

PONX

contain the monthly switchboard reading.
The readings of all items are the totals
of the weekly rep<

A comparison of the correspond
three months for three years
on the carJ i in table form. The

totals are given for each month for coal,
loads in kilowatt-hours and elevator

Referring to the bottom of the record
sheet. Fig. 13 •iai $64

has been charged up against v..

.ome of
d output, mak-
nth. a large
fit for a

I4J

• •

'rkHakli «

■ k^ - i ., „ ,

can

1908

».!''

»ry tak n« ami

i. In the margin is r
crease in coal used one year over an-
other, and per cent, the increase in out-
put.

At the bottom of t! .t rcmai

are entered which may have any bearing
■ any increase or decrease in coal
umption during the year.

- been in
has never been run at a loss.

hctails relating to the plant and the
method :i be pu

in another ar: || - through the

cou- 'lief engineer. Asa P.

hat the data and accompar.
■

ent on the f vv.cf

It of I'

• '

The probler
'rom tbeac source*
a fom -

ed complete w>tut ion.
coc irniM* hare been succc

iepeading a
docs on the

ot be •

connected to the

jld be dead

still in a caln . amca

^ fc rendrnor could

be placed on any forecast of the qi.

of power to h
■

It ha*

a pump to raise
fror:
feet ab

of Bo*, an ;
to

a sebeme to *

144

POWER

January 24, 1911.

Nn /O POWER PLANT EXPENSE SHEET <25^r \9/0

BOILERS

H. P. STEAM

AND

EXHAUST

LINES.

ENGINES

AND

GENERATORS.

HOUSE PUMPS

AND

ilNES.

ELEVATORS

AND ALL
APPARATUS.

GENERAL
ACCOUNTS.

rv*>l 2-0&3G4 The % 7 7 J per Ton

2 > * ? 0

Carting Ashes /F Loads . 3 J Per Load. ' Csmn^ls*

i, 6 J'

Boiler Compound /// Lbs. / /2^t/£& per Lb. YL\u&. l0CQ*a*6rrm u-*-mj -U-fdiv-y / 3 <3 2-

Citv Water "Plant only." ^, Ci / ^

Ofi<C&>^~ r.^e.s mZP^ t™,, /T7J2^—

Repairs Boilers. (Y\<C££*^' Arches. (77 22^ Lines. <T^e2^— "

Water Glasses, rDO^ Gaskets. m&£-~

Feed Water Heater. (Y\<Y^-

Boiler Feed Pumps. f(lJ>JwM, . t/i?

2LZ.

Extras, -^v/" ^ (pCOfOSy^Tlr^ J-Chc&s, ^OV^CVr?^ iKL**6> - jL^ZLs. / ?_ O

t_2- O

// ., /2/.A O^iaff 077atrX^tf 7 ff

* £.£.

/7Zr>dJ*™o^ . /Ziajebi' x*™c/ -.Mctf^MoAluS" Z.oo

2- o o

3 6 & y

- ff-ff ^^^y

Repairs Engines. (YYP^i- Repairs Generators. OT^i —

Packing used. (Yl(Q££— Lamps Plant. /W

/-%-£.

Oils and Greases. ^ (»/ Switch Boarb, ^yj <rv*-A

Z-li-i-

Cotton Waste. / 0~0 Extras, sr)0^ii-—

/CO

Repair Traps. , ^^J^-"-

Extras. ^dJy^v-T. /a^rtct /cuek -*£~ c£> n**/ A£ <3 ae>t*>-r)cs~, jZiA^-JLr-iiV "^dJii»/~6*/

t-Z-Z-

c / J rl / /

t_/ r 9

lahor -7 MenS 2- %S~ Less S ~& Hours Elevators S Orjl? O Plan,

2.? / £_o

Packing Steam, ^vn/ . Z3 Water, ,/K^L .7 &&Ut ./6

2-3_

vaivea. / rr><ni£—

3*3

Repairs Pumps. /7?^2i^ —

Motor. (7*^

Tanks and Lines iDCT*^.

Extras, (Y>Cr£i.

Motors and Belts, rfl°2^~~ Cars, rO <?Zi£~

Controlls and Lines. (Y1<?£~- " Fibres. m <n&^ —

Extras. (¥)<?*£ — ' " Cables, CD £2^ —

Waste, Oils, Grease, Etc , HoST*

2. o £_

Triplex Pumps, 00&L^i-~ Plunger Packings, ^'r' J / STO

/_£LO

" Packings, /VS 2— f& Leather Valves, / ?V

2-1, £_

•■ Valves. /YlO^id — Tank Compound, /S^=- <Z- fO

Z- f o

" Extras. tY) <r*Z^ Extras, OiM^lc/i^J Vy£ «/ jl^a-SU- ^ZO

2\_ CJ

- ^A'ct-nnSr* ,J? / . ,SV)

J- o

Compound Pump. fY103^ — ' '

Packing. ft)?}??- Air Compressor. /Jl£3^-

Valves, rASY*^

Extras, /viA^lAS, ^f^£4- r&Sc{ . 02*4*/ <zA*^<) <-c Cf/X^kc^T' . J.J,"

z. <r

f-£LL

7 / / f /

' v r ■

Work Total. S'4' Hours . ///) per Hour • J I? O

& & O

Soaps Hand. . 2+1 Soap Common, , (?&

JZ^f

Tile Cleaner. • OL7 Laundry, c? O

u s

Mops, . 2*5 Polishes, Etc., ?<J ~~

/ O O

Paints and Brushes, CP^^—-— Printing, sy-) e~r*-4

General Supplies. £-efc - ^Z? r<r-rr*4-3 *Sc*-mj4Zc* YJ" l/

•£ <J-

shop Tools. /^y ^Lzx- / .*><!'

I. J'

Motors Plant, "all" lYlB***-

Fans " " {T>Z2id—

Extras^ ZzLtJi ^Cur4~ lJm-^C ' -&i-C~4 *A^vf( . od "

_a<j-

— yLU^KpfcruM ^ivot--> /fj^.^1^^1 ^>c^j^p JaS /oa££4 -sua-^ srfa^eS. 2.9<j" t/

2- £&_

&h" JmspJ ST^^pS^ Yo <¥&£*. .o£ <?&° $*,<&<&/,} /ZuA, e*~4- ,/T± scut

3 & O

Gface/J^Mtt fi^^jd'tlic+JJr/g^u!, '"//C €>0<nz^L^' ■ -J"C/

2. 2. a

/ ' £_ o

f S / '

Outside Wo
Work yf

rk ...£v? Hours ..<.##.. per Hour - $_ 2-</-2-.° Maintenance

t> f O. <J~3

All Other C

Elevator Supplies — ?<f/.

I4*ij& jr.*?' ..

harges Foreign to Plan t^^'^M^' - - ^G^.m^Mk^

Current Gcr

ii
•»

Elevators' M

Foreign Charges - $ «-?XL^/....,

lerated 33L30 K W/) for (Jftcr^tr Cost /^ per K. W^Tnd Maintain Entire Apparatus *tM.W&

Less Foreign Charges ( <?£<?/.... ) ./..&*? per K. W.A""- ~

" and $ Jffi~ Cr for heatin8 Hlock. Bath. Houivater, Barber, Steam Pumps, Etc/^^Tf

@ .04 per K. W Selling i'rice $ /,.&.%& 2..P Total Expenses % .(f.#&&3...JZ™jg2 % fffiX. ty
ade ZI/LSt Trips and Cost ^jy^f per Trip for Current.

er K. W-

St***, :

Fie. 13.

January 24, 1911.

POW

«-.

"S.

•

■

rwjwy ¥^T 9 y

•

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■ ..^a w-^« «.ii

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■ ■ » I l| *

. . .

Haa t

■ — w

•

w w, ^ '; *| c^p

•

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1 ;j

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146

POWER

January 24, 1911.

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January 24, 1911.

Automatic Stokers Which Throw ( :< >al

In many European plants I found in
use mechanical stoker* which threw the
coal more or less continuously over the
surface of the fire. These were especial-
ly used upon furnace-tube and other in-
ternally fired bo: ;th cor
furnaces to which they are more adapt-
able than the traveling grate or the ur
feed. They are a >fully with
all kinds of hard and brown coals, a:
some extent with small brown-coal
briquets. Lignite is used by mixing with
other combustibles of larger lump. They
are exceptionally well adapted to the

I. LfA

of gas <:« on account of the

thin fires which they carry and the rather
free ad .iir. In order to pre-

vent too great an ingress of air through
the hopper it is recommended when
stoking with briqu rith

a smaller coal to fill the inter •

The wide range of variation in rate
Of feeding and the uniform distnhi
of the coal upon the grate, whatever the
rate at which it is p adapt the

Ing demands, anj several
necrs whom I said that I

haJ *h burning out

the exposed parts If the
fleeting plate* are eroded
the coal trw v and chea|

newed I JiJ not with ar

where what » all large rates

*crc being us this

riant advantage of the type
is th.it tt ma\ r^c
a flat grate, and hence with a

' net used, whatever that ma> he
The ordma- and

salblc »o that the fire mav he
with the orJinar\ tool* and In t'

1 R. I i

nar. r may be hand-sto- ugh

the door In case of interruption to the
ation of th iar-

rou

they are particularly ada; arc

uch narrow furnaces)

or in batteries for the wider furnaces of

Tl although I found them

in use ' 'lent, arc baaed

and n.iturall>

Je then e in

which the fuel is bri; .ted

into the fui >ntinuou*ly. as in the

Leach, and the other

where the action i* iat intermittent

a* in

d at a rr<

%prv »!"" > not I' I < Mr.,,-,.

cctioaa of the

g, I show* the Leach stoke -

kias Ncen ::.ade b> " *■*• I Machine

hetnait.
the

het move- :
' • • hou » I : .

ning at a speed of

a hinged bafle

4 con-
st ri bat-
ing the The
iet wbe< i ej roll
has a sliding co\

- a greater or lea* ran

control the rase of feat
about

coae oaller* oa the

■<■•>»< to

m coals af from

re-aaan acfc

The asc af brta> .cot

* smalfcr* haaoa. btat

although rba*

artabk f u
,ch aaad. aha*. cm

Jcr the care • atoa Saaaai

i' •

aevfce. ai» it-

Hf P

am tire

I the

Off

• 'i * • • ■ i*f j t>»

148

POWER

January 24, 1911.

hand. This furnace is quite popular in
Austria.

Fig. 2 shows another modification of
the Leach. It is made by F. L. Oschatz,
of Merane, Germany, who replaces the
rotary feed roll C, Fig. 1, with the re-

which they have an advantage over the
type already described.

Illustrative of the Proctor type is the
stoker built by Munckner & Co., of
Bantzen, Germany, and shown in Fig. 3.
The coal falls into the funnel in which
there is a ring pusher, driven by the
vertical shaft, which gives it a turn-
ing movement back and forth, pushing
the coal forward in the direction of the
boiler.

At each stroke of the pusher a de-
terminate quantity of coal falls over
the overflow nose N on the throw plate P
in front of the shovel S, the guide L
assisting in landing it within range of
the stroke. The overflow nose N keeps
the coal from dropping on the wrong
side of the shovel.

In the stoker of C. H. Week, Dolau
near Greiz, shown in Fig. 4, the coal is
sent down to the shovel by a hinged
pusher A. Passage is afforded for lumps
of four or five and a half inches in size;
the quantity fed may be adjusted by
means of a handwheel during operation.

In the "Katapult" stoker, made by J. A.
Topf & Sons, of Erfurt, and shown in

with handling large sizes within reason
as from the tendency of the finer stuff
to pack, especially if it is wet. In the
"M. A. N." stoker, Fig. 6, made by the
Augsburg-Niirnberg Machine Company,
an agitator A is provided just above the

Fie. 4. Stoker Made by C. H. Weck

ciprocating-piston arrangement C, Fig. 2.
This is said to permit a larger size of
coal to be handled, run-of-mine, lump
and brown-coal briquets up to 2% inches
being available. The baffle moves con-
tinually and the feed is regulated by the
simple turning of a screw controlling the
movement of the piston C from nothing
to the maximum.

In the Proctor type the coal is peri-
odically flung upon the grate by a pivoted
plate, usually spring actuated. This
plate, because it performs at least the
projecting part of the work of that tool, is
called the shovel. On one end of the
shovel shaft is a toe engaging a cam
wheel which has a number of protuber-
ances, usually three or more, and is
turned from the driving shaft. A lever
on the other end of the shovel shaft is
connected with one or two strong helical
springs. When one of the protuberances
of the cam comes in contact with the toe
the shovel is thrust back away from the
fire and the spring stretched. When the
cam lets go. the spring throws the shovel
toward the grate, hurling the coal, which
has fallen before it, onto the fire. In
consequence of the different hights of
the protuberances upon the cam the
shovel is drawn backward and the spring
stretched to different degrees, throwing
the coal successively onto different parts
of the furnace and preserving a uniform
fire bed. The rises upon the cams may
be adjustable so that the stoker can be
adapted to different grades of fuel,
greater spring tension being needed for
the larger sizes. They can throw sorted
coal and run-of-mine up to 3% inches, in

Fig. 5. "Kalapult" Stoker

Fig. 5, a relation is established between
the movement of the feeding pusher and
the shovel-operating cam whereby the
amount of coal fed varies with the throw,
being greatest for the longest throw and
least for the shortest. This takes ac-
count of the fact that the combustion
is most intense at the back part of the
grate and also of the obvious certainty
that some of the coal always falls short
of its destination. The fuel is dropped
in front of the shovel for its entire width
instead of being allowed to fall in a
heap.

The deflecting plate L is made adjust-
able. Coal up to fist size, as well as
briquets, can be used.

The trouble seems to be not so much

PO«E^

Fig. 6. "M. A. N." Stoker

throat of the hopper and a poke hole B
in the front of the funnel. A gate C,
adjustable for fuel of different sizes, is
placed where it will restrain the falling
coal and place it more directly under
the control of the pusher.

Fig. 7. Stoker Made by Ruf & Co.

The Seyboth stoker, made at the
Zwickauer foundry of Emil Selbmann,
Zwickau, embodies a feed roll with many
cavities whose dividing walls have edges
which break up the large lumps. By this
means irregular mixtures of coal or
briquets can be used. It is pointed out

Januar Ml

that one advantage of equalizing the

arises from the fact that large lu
are thrown farther than smaller •
and require a more forcible impc
mode of varying the throw of the

■ mewhat different from that cmpl<
in the machines alrea In-

J of having a -

I, the cam is an eccentric ach

ution of which c to one

throw of the shovel. By a gradually
changing lever movement the MUM
brought into contact with the tension toe
on the shovel shaft earlier or later, thus
putting the springs through a long
of variation n and a. ling

the distance to which the coal is thr

grate by a series of small
gradati< stoker of il

built by the Esslingen Machine Vi
Esslingen; and th. I lop." mad<.
Mehlis & Bchrcns at the Cyclop Ma-

Chir x\i0 ,}lc

rota

thr.

of ,
Tl

om the other*

in having the the

shovel ma J >nt one
of i nged a

var

.tion of the coal. It may bt
adji. iilc the furnace is In op

ial cam and toe at
of a form J

almost
relii .-ssure I

the
can be ha-

There ma\ be mentioned at

■>•■■.-. • . ..,.-•

but beneath if
the »fi

.ted in *
stoker, maj

»b arc not include

«n country this type

xl rr.aic
appeared on

P*K

.ar.

our ;»»uc of Jura-

• • _•

Control of Indirect I Icatinu System

The cubical content of a certain build-
was about 800.000 cubi. and
the capacity of the fan was about I
cubic feet per minute; this gave a chai
of air every twenty minutes. The .1
age outside temperature vai
and the temperature maintained in

The accom;
as the plan of the plenum
chamber, the mixing chamber and the fan
inlet; also the temperatures a'
catcd a- after it vtl

that thi n was not fulfilling the

The plenum chamber was about IK

:h four brick valla and

a concrete floor. The n hambcr

was 30 in^ rrounding three

1 of the plenum chamber and ha
an outer door at A through which to en-
ter the mixing chamber, and an inner
door at H to enter the plenum chat-
As the latter door was founJ to leak
badly, it was taken out and the ape-
was 1 up and the MA
stalled at < the leal
affect the tempen

icr the
plenum chamh

(1 the mixing chamK

J that the ' the plcnui-

ber at // had not been eom|
the edge of the reheat and

ther it three

Ic and nine fc

c one cau%c for the t be-

ing too high in thr .: chain'

the pla

Bad that th
leaked at .1

of air coming from a
being »trong enough t" '1 a

lighted match, and t? in the

>um cl'
The temperature

B) H. K. R.

. //. I

mi \
din:

nea as I

and tru Jo ten*

:cgrecv It was

ture in some of

those that had 1 2- foot T»*tP Tnc tem-
per.* d reae"

• tmi

-tant and %

t the plenum
d the
of t

the

tfca lack
rol could not be

Il "

red by haaghn a thee>
momcter J reot!> m front of the

150

POWER

January 24, 1911.

ing coils, when it was found that the tem-
peratures ran as high as 58 degrees, with
an outside temperature of 40 degrees.
The air would go through the fan and
either under or through the reheating
coils, and the reheated air that did not go
through the hole in the floor at this point
went into the plenum chamber. Enough
air, however, passed through the hole to
raise the temperature in the mixing cham-

Before this door was hung and kept
closed, the pressure in the plenum cham-
ber and the suction of the fan would
cause all the air that came through the
leaks to be reheated and recirculated.

The hole in the floor was stopped up in
a permanent manner and ports were made
into the plenum and mixing chambers,
as shown at S and T, and thermometers
were placed there. It was then found

Fig. 1. One of the Corliss Engine Units

ber to 70 degrees, even after the steam
was shut off from the tempering coils. .

With the air coming in at 70 degrees,
the heat from the occupants and from
the lamps raised the temperature to 80
degrees at times, about 12 degrees too
high to be comfortable.

To remedy the matter a door was placed
at Y and kept closed, after which there
was no perceptible leak through / and K.

that 120 degrees could be maintained in
the plenum chamber and 55 degrees in
the mixing chamber when the outside
temperature was 45 degrees, and there
was no trouble in controlling the tem-
peratures in the rooms where there had
previously been difficulty.

If those who are experiencing trouble
in maintaining temperatures would hang
thermometers in various places, they

Fig. 2. Remains of the Building

might learn a great deal. I consider it
just as essential to have a thermometer
in the plenum and the mixing chambers
as it is to have a pressure gage on a
boiler, for without these it is impossible
to be sure of just what is going on, es-
pecially when some ventilation is re-
quired and very little heat is needed.

It is bad practice to build plenum cham-
bers with 4-inch walls unless they are
plastered on both sides with a coat of
cement, as the difficulties mentioned are
apt to occur, and without the thermo-
meters no one would be the wiser.

Minneapolis Power House
Burns

About 6:45 a.m., Friday, January 6,
fire broke out in the engine room of the
Main street station of the Minneapolis
General Electric Company and rapidly
reduced the generating side of the sta-
tion to a mass of scrap. The fire, as near
as can be ascertained, originated in the
northeast corner of the building near the
incoming feeders from the other stations
which operated in parallel with this plant,
and was the probable result of a short-
circuit of some of the electric wires at
this point.

In escaping from the fire two men were
injured, one of them seriously but not
fatally. The floor and roof of the build-
ing furnished most of the inflammable
material and this, falling on the machin-
ery, had the effect of concentrating the
heat. Massive engine frames were in
many cases cracked like glass, and it is
estimated that the machinery is prac-
tically a total loss.

The plant contained one 1000-kilowatt
direct-connected unit, two 1200-ho-rse-
power and one 700-horsepower belted
Corliss machines, and a 1500-kilowatt
Curtis turbo-generator. It operated also
two waterwheels of approximately 2000
horsepower capacity, and contained one
1000-kilowatt motor-generator, which
formed a connecting link between this
station and the others in the system.

Notwithstanding the complete destruc-
tion of the engine-room side of the house,
the boiler plant, containing ten 350-horse-
power Stirling boilers, was not injured.
A substantial fire wall separated the two
parts of the building and it was due to
this fact that the boiler room escaped.

Some extremely good work was done
by the Minneapolis General Electric Com-
pany in making temporary connections
whereby normal conditions in the light-
ing service were resumed. The city was
without lights on the night of Friday, but,
the following night, lights were burning
as usual except in the case of about 1000
open arcs which had been supplied from
the Main street station, using old-type
Brush dynamos. These will be out of
service until they can be replaced by
magnetite arcs.

January 24, 1911.

An Industrial Plant Boiler House

While this boiler house was pnm.i

^ned for the sole purpose of making
and distributing steam, it has many
tures of interest and value to those en-
gaged in the design of combined boiler

for industrial pi
About larger manufacturing cstab
ments. comprising big acreage and many
buildings, the conditions a- Jerably

different from those of tlu

-es, ul limited

and 'he ash aiu-

in gondola cars. For the latter type of
plant some son of conveyer for coal, and

ator for ash are the standard del
but for an industrial-plant boiler hoi
both can be replaced by simpler and
cheaper devices. Probably the most eco-
nomical way in which to serve coal to
the boilers is to haul it in the cars up a

!c of ■ r cent and

dump it into a bin which perm 'low

out in front of the boilers by natural

. which, for buckwheat, is 33 de-

By Warren II. Miller

■

beading 4

At
ta o

The Boor of

smooth finished and pitched

unning along the boiler
the
•

-id m i trench

adopted after mucU argument e of

uniforr icr trestles about the

works, but the: that

a O . hcapcr

more durable. It has often been

ence in bents in coal bins

that the
in the coal un!
at It

ts about $10 a running foot and the

icr oi inc

■Me floor, except for

r rrw-k.

! dlapoac of

which rr. nto the

coal, and » to be dag up

inf' -oof and 9- inch plain

■nil interior forms

anj poOffag DOaCrctc bct»cefl thcrr. a~d

The
roof wa forms

<id the
ging the «alls

- - the
'V -nan
Ton ham ft Magor; each

id COM

about >mo t spacing link.

>cb hot 1 •

roof of the * an*

ha\ »f hot

grccs similarly, the ei

'he ash is to coll.
in an ash trench in front of the I
md haul the string once a J.i
mg the ash on l<

about the u • nch can be

mad ih man-

holes at each dump

cars can be Rotten
■

■
a cro««

I . * ' accomm* >

n in the back
alky because of the rear

- trcttlo it a sir- ron •"

with 24 Inch I-beam stringer »a«

X per I

'ists a

on the

the

cttle

K no column
drwtf ft in

•or bar

and the I oo

aad
const itutet hath ash hta aad com
and cheaper than cHhcr for 16

g as man> boilers, caat oarp

>'•,,. f "g mj cur;r( pt |fai »oft'« c'*C-
locomotiw Tht ap •
proachra to tf

grain fraai rh* arras* level.
« other carved oa a
^oui 61' a saco-

mot haal fJhe cart ap aac

rn too caa take 6 l«

■

the door

r amount f*f the

i '

The

It hec©< id whenever a car it

fjajajaad *' descending coal pr«vduc«-- j

halgaaj

taint < ' aeaan at the

f "

152

POWER

January 24, 1911.

with the best water-softening equipment
that could be devised, because the water
was one of the "impossible" variety, such
that by the time enough lime and soda
have been put in to make all the im-
purities soluble, there is so much in that
the boilers foam to a degree beyond all
safety for the engines. While evapora-
tion, capacity and economy of upkeep are,
in the long run, about equal with fire-
and water-tube boilers of first-class make,
the cleaning account of the former is
undoubtedly much smaller, being only a
three days' job for three men in a 250-
horsepower boiler, whereas the water-
tube of the same size takes five men a
little more than a week. It is the writer's
1 belief that the water boiled is the most
important consideration of all. About 90
per cent, of all the accidents and repairs
about boiler plants are primarily due to
the water and its quality, and yet it is
often the last thing considered. The boil-
ers cost about $26,000 for sixteen, against
$41,000 for an equal number and grade
of water-tube. They are 84 inches in
diameter and 20 feet long; the shell is
7/16 inch thick; the joints are triple-
riveted butt-strap. The main steam out-
let is 8 inches in diameter; the feed, 2
inches; the surface blow, 2 inches; the
bottom blow, 3 inches, and the equalizer
2 inches. Each boiler has two 4-inch pop
safety valves. The boilers are set in bat-
teries of four so as to have one 5x3-foot
cross-connection flue to each pair of
boilers. Since, if one boiler were let
down and opened, the draft of the other
boiler would be broken, dampers were put
in by running a dividing plate from the
front wall a short distance down the flue,
thus parting it in halves; in the passages
thus formed the dampers were swung.

Flues and Economizers

The main flue is 5x6 feet in section
throughout. It was possible to keep to
this size by placing the chimneys in the
center of each side of the boiler house,
with the economizers on each side of the
chimneys. The arrangement of the boiler
house is eight boilers on a side, with
foundations for four futures. The flue
is built for the entire twelve with a dead
damper beyond the eighth boiler which
can be closed while the future boilers are
being connected in. As two boilers are
directly opposite the economizer entrance,
no section of the main flue is used by
more than four boilers at once, whether
direct into the chimney or indirectly
through the economizer.

The economizers are for six boilers
each, but, at present, four feed through
one economizer and four down the flue
into the other. The location of the four
economizers on opposite sides of the
chimneys and entirely outside of the
boiler house is an arrangement often used
by the writer because of the numerous
advantages it affords. It costs little if
any more than the arrangement of lo-

cating the economizer above the main
flue, or of backing it up against the back
wall of the boiler house, and it gives not
only free access to the economizer on all
sides, but also plenty of light and air in
the alley behind the boilers.

It would seem that few outside of the
firemen on the job really appreciate how
valuable light and ventilation actually
are. Here are located all of the blowoff
valves and cocks, surface blowoffs, equal-
izers, back-cleanout doors and flue-clean-
out doors, and, if the boilers are water-
tube, here also are all of the thousands
of tube caps, which must be cleaned, re-
placed and tested. If this alley is a dark
tunnel and a sweatbox, as is the case if
the rear wall is left blank and the econo-
mizers backed up against it, these things
will be looked after and repaired by the
light of a few lanterns or kerosene
torches, and will be one of the "meanest"
jobs about the boiler house. But, with
the economizers outside, there are light
and air in the tunnel; there is room
about the economizer itself to take out a
cracked header or a defective tube, and
there are air and light overhead to handle
the scraping mechanism and to clean the
blessed thing whenever it needs it, which

the chimney enters the brick neck, joining
the chimney with the economizer houses
on each side of the chimney. Competitive
bids were received on reinforced-concrete
and radial-brick chimneys. The latter
type was chosen in spite of the lower cost
of the former. The appearance of the
concrete stack is hardly in its favor, as
it is impossible to avoid the effect of
separate rings caused by each successive
batch of concrete, and these rings spoil
the unity and column-like appearance
which is the chief beauty of a chimney.
The durability of the concrete chimney
is also probably less than that of the
radial-brick, but this remains yet to be
proved, as the oldest concrete chimney
in America, to the writer's best knowledge,
is not over ten years, and is lined from
top to bottom with firebrick, making it
more expensive than a radial-brick chim-
ney. While a number of poorly built con-
crete chimneys have had to be taken
down, there should be no hesitation in
using them at the present time, if price
is the first consideration. The radial-
brick chimneys for this plant cost about
$2700 each. The economizers cost $13,-
000, erected, for four containing 440
nine-foot pipes each. Their capacity is

Combined Manhole
/ » nnrl Tent

Earth Fill
?i Corr. Bar

8 Vent-kLQ

:j8>i:

loga 3 Mesh Exp. Metal

Fig. 2. Details of Reinforced-concrete Blowoff Sump

is about every six months at least, and
the job takes about two weeks of steady
work. As to difference in cost, wide and
massive foundations for boiler-house wall,
requiring special concrete forms, are
avoided; the solid brick wall of the boiler
house, which would have to be faced with
firebrick, is replaced with window frames
and a 12-inch panel wall which is cheaper,
and, in addition, one side of the econo-
mizer may be covered with the sectional
coverings which come with the econo-
mizer, so the difference in cost will not
be very great — far less than the real ad-
vantages that it gives in the work of mak-
ing steam.

Chimneys

The chimneys, 9 feet in diameter and
125 feet high, are built of radial brick;
have common-brick bases which extend
up as far as the economizer tops, and are
lined with firebrick for 30 feet from the
bottom. The flues enter each side, and
the direct bypass from the main flue to

1250 horsepower with feed water at 180

degrees and flue gases at 410 degrees.

The foundations, setting and houses,

made by carrying up the walls above
the economizer tops and putting on a

roof, cost under $5000 for the four, in-
cluding the electric drive.

Grates

The coal burned is buckwheat anthra-
cite, containing much slate, costing about
$1.10 a ton and containing 20 per cent,
ash. To burn it a pinhole grate and fan
blast are required. Two three-quarter-
housing, bottom-discharge, Sturetvant 8x
12-foot fans supply the blast through
reinforced-concrete air ducts, with open-
ings in the bridgewall into the ashpit,
controlled by cast-iron swing blast doors.
One of the fans is driven by a Sturtevant
10xl2-inch heavy-duty fan engine, run-
ning at 150 revolutions per minute and
the other by a 40-horsepower induction
motor. Either fan will furnish the blast
for all of the boilers, so as both steam

January 24, 191 1.

and electric drive are available, it is al-
most impossible for the fan equipment
to be shut down.

Alxiliar :

The fans, engine, motor and three large
15 and 10 by 18-inch, duplex, boiler-
feed pumps are all located in one h
under the care of a water tender, who al-
so looks after the water-softening plant
adjacent. The arrangement is very sim-
ple and compact, and is made possible by
simply putting in a relief valve from the
boiler-feed discharge main into the suc-
tion main. Each fireman tends water for
his own boiler by his stop checks, and
the feed pumps are run just a little
above the intake of all the boilers that
may be on. They use about 300 gallons
ninute. Any excess that they do not
use is discharged back into the suction
through the relief val-

n-tOPTBNiNG Plant
The water-softening plant, like many

above the bottom. nto one of

the filters into -> by

a pocket in the side, and overflows at the
top. The water then passes down through
alternate 12-inch layers of sand and

to a hole plate a foot above the
bottom of the ; iccp

by in diameter. From here the

boiler- feed pump - ic filtered and

softened water for steaming pur;

^erc are two tanks and two lb
the water in one is always being u
while that in the otru atcd

and settled. Seven tankfuls per a 24-hour
day is the total available output,
the simp r-softcning ap-

paratus. An e foot tank was

added later to pro ra settling and

storage capacity. This tank is also used
as a n for preliminary heating

the feed water to 100 J
it. through the gas-engine water ja.
in the power h The water itself is

<>f villainous quality, containir . iins

United gallon, and

op B<v

f this - character-

: re-
duce ning to its sir: rms,

J treat-
ing, agitating and settlement, two filters

and a ; the water In

plant, treating .^*> call.. ater

utc coniirn;

D diameter
•h a I

;

lank imp fills them allcrna

taking 20 mir it. add* the

g compound with a sinv

agitate- >-'king from

the top of the VtM ring

Into the bolt ' one hour The tank

thet rs and

\ feet

requiring t'

of soda and TO pot:
tank. Only treated - iscd

in the k- >ater fa

wise t!

the str

the usual "ring." Cfoea
■>e at ea

heaN

«
the p

compressor ' r. • » froa »h*

zontally and plain 8-inch angle valves
coming into the

side a good flexible arrangement, and
one that is s

but wet. foaming steam. In the pise
gal: .:*o nin the d-incl

r;rU connections from feed

sttd rough

I the power sectio-
i connection for the n
house a plant and the o-inch con-

lion for the rr. al shops. The

-h connection to the a
in a comer of the ring between a biff
department section and the po»

valve, so t» isc of trouble with tbe

be carried by tbe

departmental

Bioworr S

-Kb

surface Mo»orT and a

•-T. togc
inch bottom blow. The latter are of the
Har ry com*

Jable feature of a protruding pilot
on r pilot fits inside

the scat ring so closely as to push beck
an. ; ale or hard act

coming just as th is clos-

The steam of the blowoff c

pilot and scour the seat
clean before t?

a long- felt want, as more blowr "
seats are <mail r

scale g

idi •
■

ahe.i

•pened and

then the

f\ I Iiv . * "v *

and

flange
can thus be

The !*••

a alley
so as to »■ rd in case

ng «p a |r

ll •'•

ovesT
cb b« tee end

connection under the ccotsomncr to a

OOMMH Mee I • P PJM ukJ t>» ft|

- mudd

tbird ■
flashes Into steam so *

ii
Tbe volume

■ •

is »« a

' •

154

POWER

January 24, 1911.

it into the tile drain system of the works,
down a sewer, up a downspout or any
other place where it is sure to do harm.
The heat of this blowoff water is also
so great as to crack drain tile for 60 to
100 feet of its length, and this in time
would cave in because of the weight of
the earth above and clog up.- There-
fore, if there is a number of boilers to
blow down, and there is no empty swamp
or ditch to blow into, a large sump is a
necessity. It should be. always half full
of cold water so as to cool down the in-
coming blow by mixture, and it should
have a vent for the escape of the blowoff
steam and a trap to prevent any of the
steam from getting into the tile drain
system of the works. Such a sump, of
reinforced concrete, costing from $200 to
S300, is shown in Fig. 2. It is absolutely
effectual in performing the functions out-
lined above and has been used a great
deal in various boiler-plant installations
by the writer. The steam vent should
not be less than 8 inches for 250-horse-
power boilers, blown one at a time, as,
at that, the pressure developed in the
sump is three or four pounds per square
inch. If the sump is buried near the
economizers, the best lead for the vent
is up into the neck between the econo-
mizers and the chimney, so that the waste
steam goes up the chimney.

Structural Features

The roof truss, of the Warren girder
type, is rather light for hanging heavy
piping subject to waterhammer shocks,
heavy pipe galleries, etc. The writer
would have preferred the Pratt-Howe
truss, with diagonals in tension all the
way across, and reversed at the gusset
taking the pipe hangers, but accepted the
truss shown in deference to the fetish for
"standardization" which possessed the
works management. The roof construc-
tion is also standard for this works, con-
sisting of I-beam purlins spaced about
5 feet, so that notched 2x4-inch hem-
lock joists could be laid in between the
purlins and give support for a flat board
centering. The reinforcement of K'-inch
rods is laid both ways across the upper
flanges of the I-beam purlins. Then the
concrete roof is poured 4 inches deep and
finished with an asphalt and gravel roof-
ing. In two weeks the centering can be
struck by simply knocking the joists out
from the lower flanges of the I-beam. All
of it can be used over again.

The hight of the bottom of the roof
I-beams of the coal-bin monitor should
be 22 feet above the top of track rails
on the coal trestle. This hight is needed,
especially in smaller plants, for the way
train in collecting empties often backs a
box car up the trestle. As the runway
of this car will be 13 feet 6 inches, all
of 7 feet is needed above for clearance.
The total hight will thus be 35 feet from
the floor. As the roof trusses over the
boilers need not be over 22 feet from

floor to bottom of truss chords, and the
trusses will be about 5 feet 6 inches deep,
there will be 7 feet of monitor window
space available, lighting both bin and
firing alleys, and also obviating the ne-
cessity of skylights. These latter are al-
ways more or less of a nuisance, but the
broad band of vertical sashes along the
monitor will give ample light and need
never leak down on the firemen below.
If every third sash is replaced with a
louver, as was done in this house, good
ventilation is obtained for locomotive
smoke, ash, dust, etc. The walls are of
red brick, laid up with red mortar, with
24xl6-inch pilasters and panels of 12-
inch red brick. The window sills, lintels,
water table and copings are of reinforced
concrete, smooth finished, and the econo-
mizer* houses and fan house were worked
up in the same architectural construc-
tion.

Electrical Lighting
The lighting takes 60 amperes with

when cleaning out and scaling boilers.
Along the pipe gallery runs a third cir-
cuit with a lamp at each water column,
lighting water gage, steam gage and try
cocks. All of these lamps were origi-
nally tungsten filament, taking a total of
30 amperes, but they all perished in a
short time, in spite of their stable posi-
tion, and were replaced by the more dur-
able metallic filaments.

Junk Shuts Down Large

Pumping Engine

By R. C. Turner

The half bushel of iron borings, rods,
nails and other junk shown in the ac-
companying photograph were found rid-
ing on top of the piston in the low-
pressure cylinder of the large triple-com-
pound vertical pumping engine installed
in the water works at Atlanta, Ga.
The cylinders are 36, 64 and 90 inches
in diameter, and when running con-

P^tH

MP -

. »TM

vLfM*

m i

A 44

>r\\,

fXjkk

'#w

/<;

Fifty-nine Pounds of Junk Taken from Low-pressure Cylinder

metallic-filament lamps. There is a row
of Harter slag-glass four-light clusters
with enameled-steel shades, Y2 -inch
conduit stems, 3-inch black iron canopies
and sheet-iron outlet boxes with canopy
covers. The clusters harrg in the center
of the firing alleys from the bottom chord '
of each roof truss. They are connected
by Y\ -inch galvaduct conduit, run-
ning along on forged hook clamps on the
bottom flanges of the purlins just above,
and a ^-inch condulet tee gives outlet at
each truss. Each alley has two circuits
each way from the center, alternate
clusters being in each circuit.. The whole
is controlled by a two-wire, eight-circuit
ironclad switch and cut-out box. There is
also a separate circuit of four lamps
in each rear alley, so that this subway
will not be in Stygian darkness all night,
and also to give connections for portables

*See Power. July 27, 1909.

densing the pump has a capacity of 20,-
000,000 gallons in 24 hours.

The machine has been in commission
about six months but has been in opera-
tion only about half of the time. On
December 1, the head on the intermediate
cylinder cracked in three places and had
to be replaced by the manufacturers.
After this repair was made, the pump
operated for about ten days when valve
trouble developed on the low-pressure
cylinder. The steam valves are of the
poppet type and are located in the heads.
After opening up this cylinder one of
the valves was found to be stuck and
the stem badly bent.

It is supposed that the ports in the
head of the intermediate cylinder had
not been blown out properly when the
casting was made, and that most of the
junk came from this source. It is in-
deed surprising that the pump continued
to operate, as long as it did.

January 24, 1911.

POU

Increasing the Capacity of Boilers

Among the many factors to be con-
in the design of a central station
:e provision for as large a capacity
as possibk of ground

area. This is particularly important when
the station is to be located in a large
city where ground and taxes are

high.

In the engine room great economy has
been effected by the development of the
steam turbine. Although the point n
often advocated in its fa tt econ-

omy of steam consumption as comp
to the reciprocating engine, the turtv
superior nuch more marked in the

matter of space saving. Unfortuna*
•s yet there has been no parallel
velopmcnt for the boiler house, ar '
economy of space is to be attained in

part of the power plant, it n
be accomplished with the t boiler

equipment. To this end a great many
plants have be. I with the boil-

irranged in two and even three t
but it is impossible to go any further
In • n.

In view of these facts, it lent

that the logical way in which to increase
a station's capacity is by fon.
boilers to handle much greater overli
than ha Seen attempted. In some

cases as high as J

l>ecn d. :h water-tube r-

ers operated by mechanical stokers and
m-ith forced draft, but with • •vent

' a rating cannot be atta
in everyday operation.

In looking over the field of b<»
pment with this purpose ii
natural-draft outfits of all d
and also hand-fired boilers are at once
eliminated. The pota

cent, ol
with natural draft hand firing is

remote. The amount of coal burned per
square grate for. sa\. 300

' rating amount

hour, a-

handle nnv such amount as thl n if

ild be sho

c ncci .or*

liSg Ins

-ough the Intro

re. In orJcr • n a

rate a* rapid a« ■

• nece* carry a

fire, and no chimnr- iffl-

ue un-
less the flue
In which a

•

In order to mainta
of com* reed draft and %-

g arc
Mat.
As already mentinne 1 i a* 200

By II. R. ( all

the

out i

% the

•

i thick

cent, o;

In certain •
which • ire was reached a 650-

ller was

undcrfi *ith

ler was

the

baffling an.' chamber

load, a

only

a small dr all cf! A

set of t thci

sho it a much

rate could ha\c been attained if the t.

imber had aff
space in whic' npletelv burr.

I
that the .ild ha\

! at a much higher rat

but
the bo:

that

an
greati

PMC

•

of a total '

might I

*•.

hroufh
• sootc

and coal burned, and ass.

■fldOK] rcrT.a.r.cJ nearl> ,.<..r.»t.ir« ;r.c
I gases mould be abovt
- Kcon:

at the entrance to tJ

isses would of necessity be
riding to prodt.
£"?.> i% tcction

laciwM
of the gase«

an increase. 'i rough

the 4tC9

would be cooled at a high and

- pondir .

probably drop to
near s«mC rat iat obu

at the increased rate of
anal to the

effeci niddle and

*s do a

if the
than is the case at present It

that be

■

at one-

an .

»uld ir.

all v

note r

■

» . .....

be •

MaM

tke

»ub< 1% cou

»uch a

.1" 1 '• . t^X ' rr

to JnuM thai OOO

J be asoaattaJaod

156

POWER

January 24, 1911.

In Professor Nicolson's researches on
heat transfer with increased velocity of
the gases, he advocates draft-gage pres-
sures of 20 inches of water, but these
would be utterly impracticable as it
would be impossible to keep the coal on
the grates with such a heavy pressure.
In the tests mentioned it was found that
while the temperature of the combustion
chamber varied very little under different
load conditions, the temperature at the
middle of the first pass varied, roughly,
200 degrees between normal rating and
100 per cent, overload. As this rise in
temperature at the middle of the first
pass was proportional to the rise in load
throughout the test, it is reasonable, to
assume that the same law would hold up
to 300 per cent, of rating. In this case,
the temperature at the middle of the first
pass would be 400 degrees higher than
when the boiler was operated at 650
horsepower. This added temperature
would make it necesary for the upper
part of the first pass to do considerably
more work, and it is scarcely probable

that the temperature in the second pass
would be much higher than under normal
conditions.

It seems, on the whole, quite feasible
to so arrange a boiler that it will absorb
economically the heat evolved from coal
burned at such a high rate. Then the
problem would be to burn the coal with
a good enough economy to make this ex-
cessive overload worth while. The im-
possibility of doing this with hand firing
is obvious, and the stoker which will ac-
complish the desired result must not only
furnish the coal at this tremendous rate
but must also coke it thoroughly before
it becomes ignited, in order that the
hydrocarbons and other volatiles may be
distilled off and pass through the zone of
maximum heat in order to be completely
consumed. Otherwise, smoke will result
and with it a loss of efficiency.

The necessarily intermittent operation
of hand cleaning with its checking of the
fire could not be permitted, so the stoker,
to meet these conditions, must be of the
self-cleaning type and the ashes must

be removed without the admission of cold
air. As the whole object of the scheme
herein outlined is rapid and continuous
operation, the importance of automatic
cleaning of the stoker grates is evi-
dent.

The phase of this problem, which is
not only the most difficult but also the
most important aside from the stoker de-
sign itself, is that of securing the proper
proportions of air and coal. As the
amount of coal fired per hour is in-
creased, the amount of air should be
automatically controlled in such a way as
to increase proportionately; that is, if
the allowable amount of excess air has
been determined upon for the coal used,
it should be possible to so arrange the
mechanism of the stoker that this ratio
of excess air is maintained constant re-
gardless of the load conditions. This is a
problem the solution of which has not
heretofore been reached for these ex-
treme conditions because such overloads
as those considered have not been
tried.

Design of Steam Power Plants

Location of Plant

After the available capital has been de-
termined, one of the first questions to be
decided is the location of the plant; this
depends upon several factors. In order
to avoid danger from floods, the plant
should be located at a suitable elevation
above high-water level. The ground
should be nearly level with ample room for
future extension, coal storage, outbuild-
ings, etc.; and as all extra blasting, piling
and concrete-foundation work involve a
considerable expense a site is desirable
where excavations can be made readily
at minimum cost. Where firm hard-pan,
clay, gravel or rock is found within a
few feet of the surface and where only
slight grading is required, the cost of
foundation work may be kept within a
reasonable figure. Piling on soft or
marshy ground is necessarily expensive,
and causes more or less anxiety as to
the security of the structure.

There should be an abundant and never
failing water supply for boiler feed and
condensing purposes, and this water, es-
pecially that for boiler feeding, should
be pure and, if possible, free of cost, ex-
cept for pumping. A water-side location
is preferable, with a pumping head not
over 18 to 20 feet.

The fuel supply must be absolutely re-
liable and should be delivered to the
premises, at the lowest rates attainable
by rail or boat, in order to prevent the
additional expense of carting. In cer-
tain sections of the country it is not well
to depend altogether upon river trans-
portation, as there may be seasons when
the river is either too low or too swollen,
making navigation difficult or impossible.

By William F. Fischer

Factors to be considered
when designing a power
plant, including the selec-
tion of a site, the construc-
tion of foundations and
building and utility of gen-
eral layout.

It is well to make arrangements, if pos-
sible, with the nearest railroad to run
a spur to the plant or, better still, the
plant may be located near both a railroad
and a waterway.

Sufficient storage capacity is essential
so that a full supply of fuel may be
procured during the season of lowest
prices. By this practice much money may
be saved. As an extra precaution this
storage capacity should be sufficient for
the winter load or to carry over a period
of any long strike that may occur at the
coal mines or on the transportation lines.

The cost of removing ashes from the
plant, whether by rail, water or cart, is
another factor to be considered.

An important factor governing the lo-
cation of the plant is the ease with which
power may be transmitted from the gen-
erating source to the point of demand. In
the case of electric-light and street-rail-
way plants, the most desirable location
is, undoubtedly, the electrical center of
the entire district to which power and
light is supplied, providing the location
is convenient in the other respects hereto-
fore mentioned.

Another point to be considered is the
fire risk. In this connection the surround-
ings should be investigated with a view
to ascertaining the liability of fire from
adjacent buildings.

Type of Plant

If there is a probability of the plant
being enlarged in the future, the best ar-
rangement is to place the engines and
boilers back to back in parallel rows with
a division wall between, separating the
engine and boiler rooms. With this ar-
rangement the steam piping is direct and
the main steam header may be made com-
paratively small and be divided into units
by placing valves at proper intervals.
Then part of the header can be shut off
whenever necessary without interfering
with the successful operation of the sta-
tion. Where the engine and boiler rooms
are placed end to end the steam main
may be inadequate if additional engines
are added at one end and additional boil-
ers at the other. Also, to accommodate
the additional units the plant must le ex-
tended in both directions, thus greatly
increasing the cost.

As a rule, the boiler-room floor is on
a level with the outside ground, and the
engine-room floor, especially where large
engines are used, is usually from 6 to 10
feet above the boiler-room floor, with a
basement beneath it. Where the engine-
room floor is on a level with the outside
ground, it is necessary, where no base-
ment is provided, to build a pit for the
condenser and construct pipe trenches for
the exhaust steam and circulating-water
pipes. Where large engines are em-
ployed it may be necessary to construct

Januar 111.

«TR

a pit for each flywheel. Such pits, how-
ever, ought to be avoided wherever pos-
sible, as the vibrations of the engines
tend to cause the concrete lining to crack
and allow water to enter the pit. Pipe
trenches should also be avoided, for the
pipes are not as accessible as when
pended from o i beams in the en-

gine-room basement.

In large plants a basement is usually
provided under the boiler room for the
accommodation of pumps, blowers, air
ducts, etc. The boilers in .ises arc

illy equipped with ash spouts, lead-
ing to the basement where the ashes are
emptied directly into ash cars or con-

M'here land is chear little a

sideration is given to compact arra
ments, but where land :t is

sometimes necessary to place the boilers
on two or more floors, one above the
other. An example of this kind ma.
seen at the Metropolitan strect-rai'
power station at Ninety-sixth street and
East river. New York City, where the
boilers are placed on three floors, one
above the other.

THt BtlLt.

The building should preferably be of
. roof construction, the walls v
mcrete or stone, and the int
faces finished smooth or painted. The
finished wall may be painted or calci-
mine J with cold-water paint, although
in some large stations glazed tile is u

I wooden ceiling or sheathing should
be permitted in power-plant c 'ion.

However, bl till pith steel trusses

supporting a wooden roof ( i tar

and gravel, or with some I

•;ie practice in many of the smaller
tal roofings should
•'icy entail a COK linting and

maintenance not incurred with a slate,
tile or concrete roof; but in all canes a
tile roof laid in cement or concn
be preferr-

In the smaller stations the roof trusses
and tracks for traveling cranes arc fre-
quently car- the brick walla
of the building, but in the larger at at
these are always ■
limns r< • n foun •

.tails carrying only their own
• retc floors with a granolithic fii

iiMially laid around the engine

una ar. n a

bed Jurab'.' Icr-

room floor* on to which hot cinder* are

I the a
In all east fersblc *

the engine and boiler room* b\ a '
fire wall. Doors In this wall
of the self-closing. "unJ
" hung :ng tra

placed
each door opening
and hr
b|| links, which melt e at a

tin temperature. All windows t ;

to fire from without should be protc
by suitable fireproof shutters.
hydrants should t able

points, both outside a.
ing, with adequate lengths of hos
acCc at each

Jrant ready for ir: c.

Tl hould t to con-

form to the equipment and in no case
it the mechanical 1j

.lit the building unless ab-

solutely neccs> nary

consideration in power-plant design and
architectural fcatu-

signing a power plant care m. iken

to ; one or more doors of suffl-

cier.- t the large

machinery, or the largest part of a ma-
chine; othcru igy be impossible
to get the machinery in and out of the

seantlsl around all en-
gines, pumps and similar machinery so
tons may be rcm<> »out

moving the machi founda-

tions. A clear

to remove the tuK .iry in front

ach boiler, where it is absolutely
nee to economize in space in fi

nay be
n the wall front of each

to permit the
removal of the tubes. A

1c should be allowed between the
bao the boilers and the nc.i

wall

t at the tan-

out do<

If economizers are to be installed, suffi-
cient space mu >r their

-ation. cleaning, r ;
time r. separate h' are

provided for cconn

.ins
and sp >uld not be c<

plcted until all \h of

the mechanical layout art
and apr

mom

•h but a ' i all s<

s»cd under the wcigt
a bi

ing

As m.i ' as sand, gra

min<

cava rtc bui '

mum pr

loam, i
or f ' rm an*

firm

■

e commissioner of

rock is

nfined or
ing. will support safely a con*
load, aa shown by an eiperimc
aorr.

r aand which vat tamped in a m
and m spreading supports

When proportioning the foundation-

'he alk »ure on

ot of a on

ess for •

lar xn for

former

f Scaring po .

danger the staw

the lattr- | ,ujj

All n tit should be

dent of the
walls of tlv • where two or

more found idual units are

m a short distan.

the. • c bonded tog ilea

case the combined mass and increased

arc. i -ender them more capable of

g greater -ose

and all so! ab-

should be dressed off
and b«
treads so that cssure wfl] be

ck ma. n almost any load

.arc
be taken in . i

foot ol <s aot

ghth of the

Where thr

:c must be used to support
the cad foundations of

•
in r
arc

i •

ground co:

.
found in a | sound condition a

nrartts. A

pea. or

modern ct>n»tmctloo. the ground

> depth of one or mo- %mi the

* bad of

the cor

' - ■

•ioa la the

i > r ajase ' - <■ '

be ilk

158

POWER

January 24, 1911.

The New Ajax Engine

The new Ajax gas engine, illustrated
herewith, represents a combination of
progressive ideas in design and construc-
tion derived from long experience in this
class of work. The entire Ajax line* has
been redesigned and the scope extended
to include tandem construction, as indi-
cated in Fig. 1:

The longitudinal and cross-sections,
Figs. 2 and 3, show the constructional
details of the frame, cylinders and valves
fairly well. The front cylinder is fitted
to the frame with a liberal flange and
neck and is supported on a pedestal which
is free to slide on the sole plate. As the
front piston serves as a crosshead, it is
made longer than the rear piston and the
cylinder is also extended forward to pro-
vide a correspondingly long bearjng sur-
face. The rear cylinder is exactly like
the front one except for this forward ex-
tension, and the valve cages of the two
cylinders are therefore interchangeable.
Consequently, in case of any accident
which might disable one of the rear
valves, the corresponding valve and cage
on the front cylinder could be trans-
ferred to the rear one and the engine op-

Everything
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will be treated
here in a way that can
be of use to practi-
cal men

one valve and cage will fit either cylinder.
The damaging of a valve cage is a very
remote possibility, but the feature of in-
terchangeability is much like the Texan's
gun during the period of regeneration —
useless most of the time but more pre-
cious than a diamond mine when the
occasion did arise.

The rear cylinder is mounted on a
pedestal exactly like the front one. The
distance barrel between the two cylinders
is made with openings large enough to
allow the stuffing box in the front cylin-
der head to be removed without disturb-
ing the general structure. The distance
barrel is split lengthwise and attached to
the cylinders by bolts (instead of studs
and nuts; consequently, it can be taken
out entirely, giving access to the rear pis-

The piston-rod stuffing box is split
lengthwise into two equal parts and held
together, independently of the pocket in
the cylinder head, by transverse fillister-
head screws. Fig. 4 illustrates this con-
struction. The half box at the left is

Fig. 2. Cross-section of Ajax Engine

shown with the rings in position. These
are of rather unusual construction. Each
main ring is made with a circular recess
around one edge and a small ring of
square cross-section fits into this recess,

Fig. 1. Tandem Single-acting Ajax Engine; New Type

erated with the front cylinder cut out.
Or, if spare parts are carried in stock,

♦Built
Pfnn.

by the Ajax Tron Works, Corry,

ton and cylinder and allowing the head
of the front cylinder to be removed, with-
out disturbing any of the pipe connec-
tions or cam-shaft mountings.

the two forming a compound ring. Both
the inner and outer members are cut
into three equal pieces after being turned
to size, and the inner ring is doweled in

Jar.uan -

150

.cess in such a position that the three

in it do not come in line with those

in the outer ring. A coil spring around

the outside of the outer ring clamps

the pans around the piston rod.

The construction of the piston and rod
is shown in Fig. S. The ends of the rod

lieves the scr. ids of all

due to the working pres^ >nly

• the threads have i< to pull

the rear forward idly during the

-—the
take the thrusts of explosion and com-
pression.

meat of cams, roller*, path rod and
rocker arm*. The tshatM age is

watt . thoroughly, as Kigs.

Fie. 3. Long; ction op A;k\ T*m

arc turned down to form long necks. The connecting-rod construction is to 2 and 3 show, at

which arc threaded at the ind the clearly shown in Fig. 3 that description form thickness at all points, rig 6

shoulder where the diameters change is is unnecessary. A practical feature of tbf '>au»t i

beveled • ^cvel fits a the crank-pin h< at the two pans plete . %. The mis-

45-degree seat at the mouth of the hole are exactly alike and therefore inter- ing chamber

in the front piston and in a flange which changeable. The balancing

is bolted to the rear piston; this flange, the crank a- ned to the ends of the

s of the front and i
rs. as may be seen in Fig 1- and

WW*— i

■JJJ

±j

i i .

■

PtSTOM K ;>

hown separately at P. The crank checks by n

rod and flange are held together by a and the nuts arc housed in a

. nut which is held in place by a set in th
screw, and the • Tf;

scat a by a similar nut. •

truction. be nor

III lUHVI

dncal ' J is o«ci Hated by the

•be port opening*
iemond :ug

cock in thf >nce to the mixing

■
propef proportion of gas to

adUkcarioo
•sided ••*
tsstmen* by aaeaa>
•peed can be change-' •

on th*

' r nth
rent

♦ the

160

POWER

January 24, 1911.

type, is provided with an oil groove all
around the bottom edge to catch waste
oil from the various bearings; the water
jacket of the exhaust-valve cage is so
constructed that the cooling water enters
near the bottom on one side and must

[

k -•'

Fig. 7. The Governor

pass upward to the top of the valve be-
fore it can get out; all wearing parts
of the governor run in an oil bath; the
mixing and throttling valve is mounted on
ball bearings and copious lubrication
is provided between the periphery of the
valve and the wall of its cage; the cam
shaft is divided into sections, coupled to-
gether at points corresponding to divisions
in the main structure; all of the moving
parts are on one side of the engine and all
of the piping is on the other side; all

POWER.

Fig. 8. An Average Diagram. Scale 275
Pounds as Printed

cams, rollers and pins are hardened; every
pair of rubbing surfaces is lubricated,
including pivot pins and rocker hubs;
the proper settings of the ignition timer
and the gas cock for starting and run-
ning are marked plainly on those parts;
an auxiliary safety attachment on the
governor will cut out the ignition current
if the speed should go beyond the maxi-

mum advisable rate; either cylinder can
be cut out of action while the engine is
running, leaving the other cylinder to do
all the work. This last-named feature
is of more value than it might appear
upon first thought. In places where an
engine has to carry less than half load
for a considerable part of the day, cut-
ting out one cylinder during that part of
the run effects a very important saving
of fuel.

The indicator diagrams, Figs. 8 and 9,
are representative of the performance
of the engine; they were selected by the
writer from a large number of diagrams
in preference to some which were more
symmetrical but which did not truly rep-
resent average performance, as these do.

The engines are built in single-cylinder
form for small outputs, single tandem
form for medium sizes and twin tandem
for the larger outputs.

A Narrow Escape from Gas
Poisoning

According to a New York daily news-
paper, the night engineer of the Newton
(N. J.) Gas and Electric Power Com-
pany recently had a narrow escape from
death by gas poisoning. The story is
to the effect that the engineer, who was
alone in the power house, was taking
a reading of the gas pressure in the main
when he felt the sudden dizziness and
weakness in the knees and back which
indicate dangerous poisoning by carbon-
monoxide gas. Realizing what these
symptoms meant, he managed to crawl
to the telephone, call up the day engi-
neer and gasp "Help" in the telephone,
before he lost his senses.

The day engineer, fortunately, recog-
nized the voice and after getting into as
few clothes as he could venture out of
doors in he rushed over to the station.
He found the night engineer unconscious

POWE1K.

Fig. 9. An Average Stop Diagram. Scale
13.6 Pounds as Printed

near the telephone, dragged him out into
the fresh air and summoned a physician
to attend him. Then he had the gas shut
off the main that supplies the power
house.

After two hours of hard work, the
doctor succeeded in reviving the night
engineer, and he has entirely recovered
from the effects of the poisoning.

LETTERS

Sounds in Gas Engines

A knock in a gas or gasolene engine is
often extremely hard to locate, as the
same sound can be generated in several
ways. A loose flywheel is sometimes
responsible; yet it may be that the igni-
tion is advanced too far, or there is pre-
ignition from incandescent carbon, short-
circuits or an overheated engine due to
derangement of the cooling system. Lack
of lubrication or using the wrong oil
will cause a knock, but it is not such a
distinctive sound as something loose or
broken. Too rich a mixture or water in
the combustion chamber will often cause
uneven running which produces a sound
that slightly resembles a knock.

Worn bearings will frequently cause
an engine to pound in a most alarming
way. Care should be taken not to set
up a badly worn bearing too much; there
is danger of throwing the whole shaft
out of line and ruining the remaining
bearings.

Sometimes when the compression is
not uniform in all the cylinders of a
multicylinder engine it appears to have a
slight knock while in reality it has not;
the cylinders with the better compression
give stronger power strokes than the
weaker ones, and this causes irregular
running which is usually attributed to
loose parts.

Hissing sounds are mostly due to loose
igniters, loose or broken spark plugs, a
cracked exhaust pipe, looseness in the
exhaust manifold, open compression-re-
lief cocks or worn gaskets.

The correct amount of good oil in the
cylinders and bearings and plenty of
hard grease or graphite paste in the gears
and on other rubbing parts will prevent
wear and the resultant noises.

A. L. Brennan, Jr.

New York.

The largest installation of Diesel en-
gines yet ordered is that which is being
built by Franco Tosi, of Legnano, Italy,
engineer, and he has entirely recovered,
for the city of Rome. The order com-
prises two Diesel engines of 1000 horse-
power each, and three of 2000 horse-
power each, to operate on the two-stroke
cycle. The engines will run at 136 revolu-
tions per minute and be direct connected
to three-phase generators of 8200 volts.
The contract includes the operation of
the engines for ten years by the manufac-
turers. The plant will furnish electricity
for the city, pending the development of
the water power of the River Aniene,
which will not be completed for a couple
of years, and probably used as a standby
after the completion of the hydraulic
works.

January 24, 1911.

Through Fire and Water

Electrical appara- generally con-

sidered to be le cd than some other

classes of machinery, but the accompany-
ing illustrations indicate that it can pass
through severe ordeals without irrepar-

Sixr

IPOWr'H D
IT I

able damage. The pictures arc tho>e of
two bullock motors taken from the ruins
of t! building. After

the explosion and Arc which recently
destroyed the building these mot<
removed from the basement where they
ucrc King in five feet of water. The
printing presses to which they -
tached were completely dc^- and

had no value except as scrap iron. The
motors, ho *crc not badly dam-

aged and were practically the only arti-

of value "om the rum* In

the adjuttmtfit the

cent, of the total ln«uran

the I r *vlng being bated al-

t entirely on the talui
The Insula! the machines vn

stroyed, but the commutator bars and
cores, brush holders, bearings and frames
were in goo ' on.

The motors attracted considerable at-
tention and excited much comment be-
cause of the fact that they were the only

.s of machinery saved from the ni
The larger motor is a tiO-horsepow
volt machine, and the smaller one is a
10-hors machine. Thcv arc now

heir. and in the shops of the manu-

facturer and will be used to

ses in the new g which is soon

to be el

'I be I in M«'t«>r in Winter

I: is the popular opinion that the range
of usefulness of the fan motor

is limited to the summer months and

on as a
means i rature of a

room or an office. This Is not true, how-
it »urclv the r
nning to understand that the li-
nes* of the fan motor is by no means
ned to the Mot days of summer, tad
that. paraJ

hot or
ltally «
. the fu

c more important 'ions of

fan mo-
The efflct'

nay be grr
ing a fan motor in t'

»iers to all
use. C>

ugh ih
rooms ■ ng beconv

a fan motor placed in th<

'\e 'n 'r •" ihe out% Jc t" 1

4: r ;<•

of ihe room, with-

. •

'he
• out or more room* • *

• »n« art JifiVuV to heat

This difficulty can be off come hy ;
lag a fan motor in front of the bo-
or o%
is loci-

ptove more efficient If the rajjeaar Bad
fan motor arc covered by a boa or hood
of som.
to ^
from the room.

Anoth W which the fan mo-

tor may be applied to ad
' ■ ,: -
- on the show windows of
om the fan motor
glass of the window vfJI

n frost This ap-
of the motor is a boon to mer-
*ho ha

r window d-»r

Rrritw.

We have at our pr >»•

oh Thorn*-
to

a* a

fine, rui

-alanong field
14 other field coils,
When the dyaamo
•ailed we had a
• - - r «t some n
a of

! get
large

The enc

compounded to 270 as the lood » a
•<> 700 amptros. After

began to foam seat

e terminal* to

•cunrd the genera-
knocked out th« clrcmH breaker TV en
regulated »
i recleaed the
W soIh

'he field

tlor laod Thoa we beg >

■ c saaa

162

POWER

January 24, 1911.

armature leads; in fact, everything but
the right one. The magneto showed no
grounds of any kind, or short-circuits.
Finally, we tested the polarity of the
entire twenty-eight field-magnet coils,
not once but several times; but nothing
was wrong with the polarity. For two
days we kept this up, trying first one
thing and then another. We called up
the manufacturers, for they had a repre-
sentative there to see the test, but their
suggestions did not remedy the trouble.
On the following Sunday morning I
got into communication with an old friend
who had been on the road for years and,
fortunately for us, he had had a similar
experience. He advised us to take the
machine apart and examine the dowel pin
which holds the field coils in position.
This pin is situated right at the bottom
of the yoke ring and in order to get at it
we had to remove the armature; sure
enough we found the pin bent almost to
a right angle. The heavy armature cur-
rent due to the short-circuit when chang-
ing the terminals at the water rheostat
had reacted on the field magnet with
sufficient force to bend the pin and shift
the position of the whole ring of coils.
We replaced the bent pin with two of
larger size, at the same time wedging
each coil by placing a liner behind it.
When the machine was put together again
and driven at normal speed, the voltage
went up to 250, and when the various
loads were put on, the machine com-
pounded perfectly.

CORRESPONDENCE

"Be Sure You're Right," etc.

The incident related in a recent issue
of Power about the sweeper advising the
engineer to pull the generator switch in-
stead of using a brake on the engine fly-
wheel reminds me of a somewhat simi-
lar scrape the other fellow got into once.
In this plant, which is combined hydrau-
lic and steam, we have a little trouble
in pulling our peak load with water power
alone, and in conjunction have a cross-
compound condensing engine driving a
500-kilowatt generator and exciter to tide
us over the rush. The main-drive pulley
on the line shaft runs on a quill; so does
the generator, both being connected by
clutches to the main shaft. The exciter
is belted direct to the main shaft.

One evening as the peak-load period
was approaching, the engineer started the
engine and coupled it to the main shaft,
and this started the exciter. Overlooking
the generator clutch, he went to the
switchboard and put the exciter in paral-
lel with the one already in service. Then
he closed the generator-field switch, but
with all the resistance cut out of the
rheostat the voltmeter would not budge.
Supposing that the fuses on the trans-
former were out of business, he proceeded
to test them out, but found them all

right. He pounded on the voltmeter with,
his fist until the glass cracked, but the
hand still refused to move. By this time
the load on the waterwheel had increased
until the speed had dropped off so the
lights began to get dim, but pulling his
hair produced no useful results. The
superintendent fortunately arrived on the
scene about then and advised him to
throw in the generator clutch.

Abe Fout.
Iowa City, la.

Identifying Alternating and
Direct Current

Referring to H. Priestley's query on this
subject, in the December 6 issue, I sug-
gest that by attaching to the socket a
plain carbon-filament bulb, turning the
current on and holding one pole of a
magnet close to the bulb, he can tell what
kind of current is flowing in the circuit.
The lamp filament will be attracted or
repelled (according to which pole of
the magnet is used) and will remain
in the attracted or repelled position until
the magnet is withdrawn, if the current
be direct current; the filament loop
will vibrate toward and away from the
magnet if the current be alternating.

Another simple test, if no magnet is
available, can be quickly made by screw-
ing an attachment plug in the socket in-
stead of a lamp' and submerging the two
terminals of the plug cord in salted
water. If the current be direct, one of
the terminals (the negative) will gas
freely. A lamp should be connected in
series with one conductor of the plug
cord to prevent accidental short-circuit-
ing.

There are in the market several inex-
pensive testing contrivances, but when
these are not on hand just as positive
results can be obtained by the methods
described.

Alex. Dolphin.

Jamaica, N. Y.

There are several ways to determine
whether the current in a lamp socket is
direct or alternating. One way is to hold
the poles of a horseshoe magnet close to
the lamp bulb. If the current is direct,
the filament will be drawn toward one
of the magnet poles; with alternating
current, the filament will vibrate between
the two magnet poles. Another way is to
wet a spot on a white pine board and
stick the ends of two wires in the wet
place about two inches apart, the wires
being connected to a plug inserted in
the lamp socket. If the board turns
green around one of the wires, the cur-
rent is direct and the wire producing
the discoloration is positive in polarity.
If there is no discoloration, the current
is alternating.

If there are any arc lamps on the
circuit it is easy to tell which kind of
current is passing. Direct current will

produce a blue tinge at the upper part
of the arc and a pure white light below it.
But this, of course, is not identifying the
current at the lamp socket, as Mr. Priest-
ley wishes to do.

An ordinary pocket compass also will
indicate the character of the current. It
is only necessary to place the compass
on a wooden table or box, away from
any large pieces of iron or steel, and
hold a wire horizontally above the com-
pass, parallel to the normal position of
the needle. Direct current in the wire
will deflect the needle to one side; al-
ternating current will either cause it
to quiver or have no visible effect on it —
probably the latter. The wire can be one
of two leads from the circuit to an in-
candescent lamp.

J. E. Bates.

Spokane, Wash.

[The foregoing letters were received
before the January 3 issue went to press.
but not quite early enough to be printed
with the other letters on this subject that
were published in that issue. — Editor.]

Static Electricity around
Printing Presses

Will some readers kindly suggest
through this department of Power the
most practical way to overcome the static
electricity that causes so much bother
around printing presses?

A. W. Fish.

Argos, Ind.

Some figures are given in the annual
report of the electricity department of the
Manchester Corporation which show the
progress made in recent years toward
cheapening the engines, boilers and other
machinery and plant used in the genera-
tion of electricity. For example, the costs
per kilowatt erected at Dickinson street,
Bloom street and Stuart street stations
are respectively $98, $84.50 and $85.50.
Most of the machinery at Dickinson street
is not that originally erected in 1894. On
the basis of the old machinery the cost
would have been much higher. A rea-
son for the exceptionally low cost at
Stuart street may be found in the two
large turbines there, which are consider-
ably cheaper than reciprocating generat-
ing sets. Stuart street has also the ad-
vantage of large units, which means
economy both of capital outlay and fuel
and operating costs. Thus the fuel cost
per unit generated is 0.288 cent at Stuart
street and 0.394 cent at the other two
stations. The total operating costs, in-
cluding repairs, but not capital charges,
are respectively 0.428 and 0.690 cent.
Distribution, management and capital
costs must, of course, be added, the total
cost per unit averaging 2.28 cents, and
the revenue 2.52 cents. Excluding capital
charges, the total cost amounts to 1.22
cents. — The Engineer.

January 24, 1911.

163

Readers with Something t

Welded Steel Producti

The tank shown in the accompanying
illustration was made in Germany, and
is used for the transportation of com-
pressed Pintsch gas, used for lighting
railroad coaches, the pressure car
ranging from 18 to 20 atmosplu

ed tank cannot be used for this
work, as the constant racking and strain-
ing cause leaks which would be very
serious in handling an inflammable gas.
The tank is made of heavy plates with
welded joints and the cost of manufac-
ture is approximately the same as with
cd work, while the resulting product
is infinitely superior. Welded work of
this character is not a new product, but
has been turned out in ! for the

last ten years, extremely complicated
shapes being produced, while in the
United States there is to my knowledge

1 /

i 1

■Tit

?'. J

no concern able to produce work of this

In plate welding has advai

>c stage where nothinK is too
flcult and it i- for the produ

of seamless cylinders and tai any

practicable size The water I vh>II-

, roduccd; sulr

plate have been maJ
amctcr The

bodies ol he ch.i

at flo.i

ate-
-cess, which Is also used
producing comix.* •» and

flue* with the Galli
n place un headers and the

■

I are »cam!c»» tank
the trsnspc
kiln-. nent m

In • Jlng of

has heen gi

iking con,

Pr.n t u .y/

information from i

rn.in on the

■i/ enough h > finnt

here mil be p. tul f%
IiU'us. nor r/nrr words
tinted

uses this method of manufacture. The
process has been do | and

the concern has been blindly asleep to
the fact that an extension of the process
was feu other par*

and with the proper plant would cost
them less than their present riveted work.

Ek no real secret about

the process they use.

Over ten years old, and nothing doing
>ct, in America.

M Denison.

Cleveland. O.

Reinforcing .1 Cracked Si
v ylinder

\ rather novel repair of a trsnsvcrsc
k in t( :i of s stcsm-

jackctcd. r of a

deal, tr en-

gine ng under I K* > am

e, and
sure in the |l as carried out as

•

In this case the heads

■

the cylindei

n bars of the M

so that

the

uas .i h<> ut an inch \c\' than I' '• -

TtMOt

•

■

«>ng a* the I

•.aJr of the %ame siso

nd of ■
the ends came Bush with the hexagonal
iron pieces ole Sfl set

snd the hexagonal iron piex
ont'

I \r

lag them fro* the

sobm effect OS) tho gostx

■

• a - i Ilk* O

ha* not . . ■ art tfOOMl • ■■.<•

to the

164

POWER

January 24, 1911.

Acetylene Gas Lamp

The accompanying sketch represents
a cross-section of a carbide-gas lamp that
is very handy around the engine room.
It was made from a piece of 1 54-inch
brass tubing. The top and bottom caps
and water stem were taken from the top
of two old glass oil cups, the hole in the
bottom cap being plugged. The burner

—MM

c— '; ; ; : ::.'::: ,\'v; : ,v ; ,'Ti7 1 TiViS' .'.wv /.Vnssw

Water

\\vw\v.\\v,v .,.'.' ■>:•&■:.:< w:,'.w:. -x-rx

POWER.

Section through Lamp

is a small piece of brass pipe taken
from an old lubricator, and the hook is
a piece of copper wire. The lamp will
burn about two hours with one filling of
carbide.

E. A. Heiny.
Springfield, 111.

An Experience in Boiler
Cleaning

On taking charge of an electric-light-
ing plant, in which were three 72-inch
by 18-foot horizontal return-tubular boil-
ers, I found them in bad condition. The
best of the three boilers was badly scaled,
but was capable of carrying the load
alone, except on Saturday night. Either
of the other two could carry the load
Sunday night and until the lighting load
came on Monday night.

The feed water was so bad that a
boiler had to be washed after each week's
run. Because of these conditions it was
the custom to run the best boiler, No. 3,
during the week, fire up one of the others
to help on the Saturday-night load and
carry the Sunday load on it while No. 3
was being washed and fired up again in
time for the Monday-night load.

This process required the filling and
firing up of two boilers each week, one

of which was run but two days, so that
its setting was cold each time it was
fired. No boiler compound had been
used and very little effort had been made
to prevent further formation of scale, or
to remove the old scale.

I immediately began using a boiler
compound and set to work to remove the
old scale from the boilers. A careful
internal examination of the boilers was
made and the assistant engineer was set
to work getting off the scale from one of
them. He spent an entire day at it and
got off scale enough to show he had been
at work, but it was hard work and a flue
cleaner was purchased and by its aid
about 500 pounds of scale was removed
from each boiler.

After I had had charge of the plant
about a month, boilers Nos. 1 and 2
would carry the load as easily as No. 3
had formerly, but as No. 3 received the
same attention it was still the better
boiler.

From this time on, the practice of firing
up two cold boilers a week was discon-
tinued and the fresh boiler that was cut
in for the Saturday-night load carried it
alone until the next Saturday night. This
gave six days' time in which to cool,
clean and repair No. 3 after each run,
and as it was the most economical
boiler it was used every other week, and
a saving was made in several ways.

G. E. Miles.

Salida, Colo.

Cylinder Troubles

At one time a cracked cylinder was re-
paired in the engine room without re-
moving it from the engine frame.

An electric drill was used to drill holes
through the crack, which holes were
tapped and a copper plug dipped in iron
cement screwed into each hole, as shown
in the illustration. Then the job was
gone over with a hammer and filed
smooth both sides.

Plugged Cylinder

An accident revealed a defect in an
engine that had escaped detection for
some years. The connecting rod was of
the marine type, and one morning, when
under light load, the heads flew off of
the bolts, allowing the connecting rod to
drop. It went through the floor, strik-
ing a joist on the outward stroke, and
buckled the piston rod; on the return
stroke the cylinder-head stuffing-box
glands were also broken.

The stuffing box shown had not been

bor*ed out true with the cylinder, and one
shoulder was nearly all on the bottom.
There was a brass collar in the stuffing
box that had been worn, there was no
shoulder, and it had worked nearly into
the cylinder.

We rigged up a device through the
cylinder with a rod centered at the end
of the cylinder and centered with the
crank shaft at the other end, and se-
cured a tool to the rod; then a crank was
placed on the projecting end of the rod
at the cylinder end and the stuffing box
was rebored.

After finishing the repairs I noticed an
occasional and peculiar knock in the en-
gine which puzzled me for some months.
I examined the stuffing box and found
that the new throat collar that we had
placed in it was a pretty loose fit, and
when the piston was on the outward
stroke the end packing contracted and
the steam forced the collar against the
packing. When the piston started on the
return stroke the collar came back with
a knock.

William G. Walters.

Stratford, Canada.

Valve Stem Broke

In the electric-light and power plant
where I am employed as engineer, a
boiler-feed pump failed to pump.

After going over the pump and testing
the steam valves, I tried the gate valve
on the discharge pipe and found it quite
loose. Taking off the bonnet, I found
the stem broken and the disks stuck on
their seats. After removing the disks
and replacing the bonnet the pump
worked all right. It is these little things
that, when found, help to simplify power-
plant difficulties.

J. E. Dawson.

Cumberland, Md.

Put Shims under Knock-off
Block

I have charge of an 18x36-inch Corliss
engine, making 80 revolutions per minute,
and the load varies from no load to 200
horsepower.

When the load was all thrown off, the
governor would throw the knock-off cams
so far back that the cam levers would
strike the bolts that hold the springs on
the steam hooks and that would cause
the governor to jump and the engine to
race.

To overcome this trouble I removed
the knock-off blocks and cut out liners
the size of the block from 1/16-inch
sheet iron and drilled a hole in them for
the screw and secured them under the
blocks. I then readjusted the governor
rods, and have had no trouble since. The
governor works nicely, and the engine
runs just the same with no load as with
a full load.

George H. Lee.

St. Louis, Mo.

January 24, 191 1.

POWIR

168

Truing ;i Crank Pin

The subject of flat and badly so
crank pins is of interest to most engi-
neers. A crank pin cannot well be taken
out and trued up in a lathe, and it,
therefore, falls to the lot of the operating
engineer to devise some means of rem-
iK the trouble, and the file is usually
called into service.

The first thing to know is what size
the finished pin is to be. The calipers

Tw<

arc put on the flat pin to find its smallest
diameter, which will be the la am-

cter of the trucd-up pin of the

wear is found on one side of the pin
and consequently if the pin is filed true
in the manner sui the center of

the pin will be changed. thu» ling

the piston stroke a little. However, this
lid not be very noticeable, and in a
ch out the difference in the
be taken care of. If
the pin hied all around and the

same center retained, the pin would be
•mailer than it would be if filed, u
the new center; sec illustration

A ; hould be filed to prc-

the same length as the fin
diameter of the pin. The crank-rod b
should be rebabbitted ar.
the wire at a gage. The

eft at t> the la»>

any scrapi: -lc-half of the box

at a templet while filing
the pin. A tharp battard file will

ommencing at the
hcavictt part of the cut One-half of
the pin thould be roughed down and
practically finished be' -ting on the

oth< often u»mg the half box

at a templet and filing down the high
placet until a good bearing it nbta

alto be filed at square

■ crank at pn»»iMc Red lead

thmild be u*ed in the templet to mark

the high tpntt when filing and

I quite sparingly at too mi:

will not thow a true bearing The leatl

the finger
mark the high rU h*

enough

After both «idc« cen

ight down to a fairly good finith and

as round as possible, the pin should be
polished with emery cloth i a

clamp, such as at shafting.

This clamp is made of two pieces el
inch stock with a section bored out abort
the size of the pin. and a ;
tacked on for a nil

The b' >uld then be scraped, oil

grooves cut, put together and not k
up too tight a ie pin has

J itself to the box a
up until a proper adjustment has t
obtain-.

Charles H. Ta>lor.
jgepon. Conn.

Attaching a Force Peed I riib-
ricator t«» ;i Pump

A question was put to me recently in
reference to attaching a posil
lubricator to a pump of which the only

>sed moving pan is the piston
the distance between the stuffing b
being such as to leave no pan of the
n rod not passing through the stuff-
ing boxes to which connection can be
made to obtain motion for operating the
oil pump.

One method would be to put a gl
roll on the top side of the rod, and I

Cement ( 1'ipe

an intake from i

p house Me form of

ion. and a pic. ng cracked

about • ound a anction

* tic

washed with - 4 dried. Then

ron cemeai was applied aad alio wad

•and four hours. Although the Haw

has a 12 i acuum, it has since given

no trouk

Mo.

Measuri I

I >

ate method of measuring

the area of s, when a

plar | shown in

the i out at follow

J the c i AC, and

. ! on of
trough
J of tb stcn a

per to ho! J -d of a

thread.

other end K
that ttx of the areas D aad

I as nr to thai

e areas / and
Af
to th >f the eye. another pin

is r
aroi.

formed at ' H it e ,

area of I
In ram hi

cu formu

the I *•

The accompa

•

•»

166

POWER

January 24, 1911.

Two Hundred Horsepower
Horizontal Boilers

I notice in the issue of December 13
an inquirer wants to know if horizontal
tubular boilers are made in sizes of 200
horsepower. ' I know of two plants
equipped with boilers of this size, 78
inches in diameter by 20 feet long, and
containing 2000 square feet of heating
surface.

I have had charge of four units of
the above dimensions since their installa-
tion six years ago. The shells are built
of 17/32-inch sheets in three courses:
have quadruple-riveted double-strap
joints and are designed for 150 pounds
pressure.

The repair bills on the four amounted
to $18 in that time. This cost was for
having the fire seams calked on the in-
side as they showed a slight disposition
to leak at this point.

The only other defects that have shown
up are three or four fire cracks at the
fire seam. These have not been serious
enough to need more than calking.

As regards economy, we are not fixed
for making accurate evaporation tests
but believe they will hold their own with
the water-tube type.

Our only objection to them is the
curvilinear seam over the fire. At this
point we have 1 TV inches of metal
between the fire and water which is too
much even if the boiler is kept free from
scale. There has never been the slight-
est tube leakage. We were told that 4-
inch tubes 20 feet long would give us
no end of trouble by sagging, but noth-
ing of the kind has occurred. So far
as repairs are concerned we feel that
no type of boiler could show a much
better record. They have had the best
of care and the feed water has passed
through a purifying process before en-
tering the boilers.

From my point of view it is a most
short-sighted policy for steam users to
supply their boilers with water contain-
ing scale-making impurities when there
are at least a dozen concerns making
purifying apparatus that will remedy the
trouble. Bad water in a boiler makes
for poor economy in the use of fuel and
high repair bills.

Some things that boilermakers do are
hard for me to understand. One thing is,
for instance, they put 6-inch steam out-
let nozzles on a 200-horsepower boiler
and the same size on a 150-horsepower.
I suppose I am about the only engineer
who ever put a steam-engine indicator

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articles, letters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

on a steam drum or header. I was try-
ing to find out if the pressure in the
drum pulsated with the engine. Also,
I had a slight suspicion that the pres-
sure was greater in the boiler than in
the drum.

J. O. Benefiel.
Anderson, Ind.

Treatment of Subordinates

Several of the articles recently pub-
lished in Power bearing on the treat-
ment of help in the power plant were
very fine. I have always found that a
man, perhaps by good fortune, promoted
to a place of authority, who takes ad-
vantage of his position by being tyran-
nous with those under him, very soon
gets up against trouble. An assistant
can ward off lots of annoyances
for the chief engineer and he will if
treated right. When a man treats his
subordinates considerately they take an
interest in their work, if they are the
right kind of men, and will be on the
alert to keep things about the plant in
the pink of condition. If they do not
show a desire to do this with fair treat-
ment, they should be discharged. One
does not have to put on a "big air" or
look over the tops of the men's heads
in order to hold a place as "boss." Often,
this seems to be necessary to those who
occupy places which they are not fitted
to fill. Sometimes a man has a subordi-
nate who could fill his place just as well
or better than he does. In such cases
the man "higher up" is usually extremely
jealous. I remember a remark that was
made to me one time some years since
by a man of this type. He said, "You
should not tell those young fellows all
you know, for they will soon know as
much as you do." I did not tell him
that that would not be much. I reasoned
that while the young fellows were learn-
ing, I could be doing likewise. I think
that one should always show as much
consideration as possible to those who
are seeking information, so long as they
are men of the right character.

I believe in good men — they are just
a bit scarce — a good set of men means
a good organization which not only
means success for the chief but success
for the plant. I tell you, boys, your
subordinates can do a lot toward your
holding your job; the fact cannot be
disputed. The man who wants to learn
should always be shown as he may make
a mark some day which will reflect no
discredit to the one who started him off.

It is often remarked that some men
cannot stand good treatment. This is
true and when such a one is discovered
it would be well to let him find another
occupation; the engine room is no place
for him- — what I want is a man that I can
reason with, and treat in the right way.
A man that has to be driven is not the
kind that goes to make up a good organi-
zation. I want, help from the coal bunker
to the switchboard that will take in-
terest each in his particular part of the
work.

C. R. McGahey.

Baltimore, Md.

The Double Entasis

In Power for January 3, my attention
was specially attracted to the chimney
of the Queen Lane filter plant, that is,
to the "pot-bellied" appearance of the
shaft. There is nothing in mechanics,
mathematics or beauty that justifies that
shape, and it seems to me that the man
who can make a thing that is dead wrong
look better than one that is right, or
nearer right, should have his taste culti-
vated. Mathematicians tell me that in-
creasing the area to meet increased load
would result in a concave, rather than a
convex outline; anyway, the convex can-
not be right. It is plain that the reason
why chimneys are built larger at the bot-
tom than the top is because there is more
weight to be carried at the bottom than
at the top, and the wind pressure must
be withstood. It needs no figures to
show that increasing the size above the
bottom adds nothing but weight and
wind-pressure area, neither of which is
wanted.

I do not know but that the "swelled"
columns are so common that people nfay
have learned to believe that they look
best. With a plain taper one, like the
one mentioned, and one concaved like
some of the Constantinople shafts, I am
sure few, if any, would select the con-
vex one as being the best looking.

John E. Sweet.

Syracuse, N. Y.

January 24. 1911.

Chimnej Problem

Referring to L. G. W.. nimney

problem in the December 27 :^ue, most
of the hot gases will pass up the larger
opening, and the chimney with the smaller
opening will not be of much sen

The best thing to do is to the

smoke box in half, which would make
a separate stack for each boiler.

Another way would be to cut out stack
No. 2 and build an addition to stack.
I and use this stack only, which is cap-
able of producing enough draft for both

III.

I ). tet tin- c roshead Stoj

I have been much interested in read-
ing the on of the question. "I
the Cl u'd like to
ask a question. If the
not stop for its return trip, what fa
r, in other

If a person is running a race and has
turn over the same ground, he n
for the fraction of a second as he

turns to retrace his su

" I

Boiler Effit \cncy i

per Cent

There is an error in the report of the
boiler test in the I

in which an eft cnt.

.is was i bonus

was after the cot: ;

of the official »n the basis of

each per cent, fl
the

then the < icnt

ars more than

was Juc. It n that it

a water-tut-

ary fur 'iich

vibes ar and

i: and wfl

higher figure

indicates that an i is made either

in t1 the

ra that ma r in

the test are the followin.

I. in the calorime'

n of the heat value of the fuel.

tealing an.

.thing t!
water.

>f water from th<
nt in
the quantity and if the

grate a- ning and end

-
tc«t that any of these

mac: c of the I

f what
erally with Pocahontas coal.

t in the figure u
to be more than I per cent. T
also a po> of I r

the weight of water f<.

hot
<the of* . the t

turc as and mi;

some weight i from

the surface of the thl
and as it f! rom an upper tar>

a lr. These arc onh

but they mav possir^ unt for

*) of the borv c great n

I in the computation ar.
amr r less than 6.5 pe-

bonus.
Ac the : the water

under actual
>al as fired was
The weight of water

167

greater than this, show
crrc-

6.5

as compared with 6H error ia

po rat ion from and at
degree*.
The capa

a.
and the • from aoj

is reported.
In all case* where a _h cftV

boi: he ftg-

g an

ot sufficient data I
■
be made frorr

foot of he. r

Alr :

1 iiieas

■

pounds an.:
was

.ish and
reft;
coal, making >tr.-

at 98

diff<

aa
ire as ?

Thi baaed oa -

i a boiler ■

The figure

.rood cor :

efficiency abotc 65 per C

not c a, aad

' aaear
ou'j tbe «

c belle

chadlag tbe

i ngri» av

she

• ncc <

rebt bo4W- is erdhaerr

I f s I $

t la

boiler ■ iibeal ibe boaeo • »• h*»
- ' > narr ae a- • >

ef tbe

168

POWER

January 24, 1911.

of an error in computation of the re-
sults of the test, and nearly $11,000 on
account of an error of judgment in draw-
ing the specifications and contract.

William Kent.
New York City.

Automatic Nonreturn Valves

I noticed an inquiry from Louis J. Co-
rilla in the December 20 issue in regard
to "Automatic Nonreturn Valves."

For the past three years I have had
charge of forty 10-inch and ten 4-inch
valves of this type and have never no-
ticed a failure to close. Several times
in this time one has failed to open, but
the trouble is always due to a gummy
deposit on the plunger of the valve,
which can easily be cleaned off by simply
removing the valve bonnet and using
cool oil and fine sand paper. They do
not chatter, neither do they wire draw
the steam. As for their value, I simply
state that there should be a law making
their use compulsory in plants of any
size. "We have had several tubes blow
out, but we did not know anything about
it in the engine room until it was all
over. In one plant of four water-tube
boilers I was shut down once by a feed
pipe breaking off at the drum where we
had no nonreturn valve. I also know
of a 5000-kilowatt plant being com-
pletely shut down two times for the want
of these valves. The only thing to guard
against is this gum on the plungers, and
two hours per year per valve will take
care of this.

E. H. Lane.

Kansas City, Mo.

Accumulators for Furnace
and Boiler Capacity

In the editorial, "Accumulators for
Furnace and Boiler Capacity," in the
November 29 issue, we read the follow-
ing:

"It has been one of the first precepts of
a boiler room to keep the pressure con-
stant, but it is a question if the. boiler
pressure cannot be allowed to vary
through a considerable range with less
damage to the over-all efficiency than
would result from the constant manipula-
tion of the damper and the slice bar nec-
essary to hold it constant. At the pres-
sure ordinarily carried, a considerable
pressure drop will produce a compara-
tively insignificant change in the initial
temperature, and it is the temperature
range which affects the efficiency!"

For one, I am sorry that the writer of
the paragraph just quoted did not go a
little more into detail relative to constant
boiler pressure and its attending ad-
vantages or disadvantages as the case
may be; therefore, I am in hopes that
this writing may bring out some more
points along this line.

In the first place, just what are we to
understand by "the over-all efficiency"?
Second, what would be the allowable
variation in boiler pressure? Third, if a
considerable variation is permissible, it
seems to me the allowable range would
be governed somewhat by the nature
of the steam in use; that is, saturated
or superheated.

The temperature of saturated steam at
130 pounds gage, 145 pounds absolute, is
355 degrees and the total heat in the
steam above 32 degrees is 1190 heat
units. With a gage pressure of 115
pounds, 130 pounds absolute, the tem-
perature is 347 degrees, and the total heat
in the steam above 32 degrees is 1187
heat units. We note by these figures
that with a drop of 15 pounds pressure
there is a drop of only 8 degrees in the
temperature of the steam and a loss of
only 3 heat units. Now, if in these two
cases the steam is flowing through a
superheater and is getting 100 degrees
of superheat in the first instance, it seems
to me that in the second case the cooler
steam — even though a large number of
pounds may be passing in a given time —
will take up sufficient additional heat
units, not only because the temperature
of the steam is lower but also because
the temperature of the hot gases cir-
culating is increased, due to the stronger
draft made necessary by the increased
demand for steam, to make the final tem-
perature of the steam the same in both
cases. If these statements are correct,
it would seem that a variation of at least
15 pounds in the steam pressure would
not affect the final results when super-
heated steam is used.

It would seem, too, that with saturated
steam and a variation of only 8 degrees,
the economy would be affected but little,
if any; yet, my experience is not in ac-
cord with the theory stated, as the follow-
ing will show:

In a certain power plant, running 16
hours per day, two firemen were em-
ployed, working eight hours each; one
would carry the steam pressure at or
near 110 pounds throughout the entire
eight hours, with but little need for the
use of the slice bar, the damper being
handled by a regulator. The other man,
working his shift under precisely the
same operating conditions as to load,
length of time, etc., would have the
steam pressure anywhere from 90 to 110
pounds, would use the slice bar much
more than the other man did and burned
500 pounds of coal more; and it made no
difference which shift this man worked,
the results were the same.'

Now, while looking into the matter a
little further and from another viewpoint,
we will grant the statement, as probably
correct, that the "over-all efficiency is
not affected by a considerable variation
in the range of boiler pressure!" How-
ever, it seems to me that there are other
conditions, aside from the effect on the

efficiency, produced by permitting a con-
siderable variation in the range of the
boiler pressure, which are not favorable
to continuity of service and which should
make it desirable to carry the pressure
as nearly uniform as possible. Of course,
the intervals of these variations will
determine somewhat the deleterious ef-
fects produced.

It is well known that with every change
in steam pressure there is a correspond-
ing change in the contour of the boiler,
the effect being more marked in the lap-
seam boiler than in the butt-joint type,
with detrimental results in the latter case
as well as the former. Then, too, with
the fluctuation in the steam pressure,
there must be a variade furnace tem-
perature, with more rapid deterioration
of furnace walls and boiler, due to ex-
cessive contraction and expansion, than
would be otherwise if the temperature
were more uniform.

I am well aware that it would be a
hard matter to determine the effects pro-
duced by some of the conditions men-
tioned above; however, I am desirous
of bringing out the ideas of others along
this line, for I believe it will be bene-
ficial to those of us who, as yet, have a
great deal to learn.

A. K. Vradenburgh.

Albany, N. Y.

Handling Men

I was interested in J. M. Row's letter
on the above subject which appeared in
a recent issue. It contains some sound
general advice, and, if followed, no doubt
it would result in financial benefit to both
employer and employee. I wish to say
here a few words about the different
systems of handling help, and, as fairly
as I can, compare the results obtained.
The three plants discussed are each of
about 5000 kilowatts capacity.

The first is a plant, one of a chain,
supplying power for street-railway ser-
vice. It is in charge of a chief engineer
who has under him three assistants, three
oilers, five firemen, four cleaners and
coal passers and one repairman and his
helper. The salary of the chief is fair,
but that of the rest is low. The main
duty of the assistant is to watch the
switchboard, keeping the voltage steady,
throwing in the circuit breakers when
they come out, and reading the wattmeter
and to note the temperature of the feed
water hourly. He does no repair work and
must not be absent from the switchboard
even to start an extra engine, which is
done by the oiler. In fact, his work is
simply that of a switchboard tender, a
job which could be very satisfactorily
filled by a bright fireman. Yet the as-
sistant engineer must hold a first-class
engineer's license. The repair work is
looked after by a repairman of steam-
fitting experience only, under the direct

January 24, 1911.

P O VI

supervision of the chief. His hours cor-
• ond to those of the chief -ept

that he is subject to calls at all hours of
the night. As these, however, ar
time for him, naturally he is called to
attend to those things only which arc ab-
solutely necessary to keep the plant run-
ning.

The condition of the plant as to order-
liness and cleanliness is above reproach,
and the casual visitor would readily be-

e that this is a model plant. The
steam pipes from the boilers to the en-
gines and their auxiliaries, however, pass
through a basement tunnel, which cannot
be seen from the engine-room floor, and.
indeed, its dimensions are barely
ccrnible even when fronting it in the
basement; but its presence is posi-
ly made known by the large number of
steam leaks. It stands to reason that one
ill-paid repairman and a helper, plus the
chief engineer, who. of course, cannot be
expected to do more than supervise the
work done, cannot possibly maintain a
station of this size in sound condition.
Consequently, the whole equipment from
the governors of the engines to the blow-
off valves suffers. Yet no man can point
to anything that is very much out of re-
pair. It is. no doubt, needless to say
that it is not one single piece of apparatus
in a large plant that is the cause of low
economy, but the combined total of a lot
of little things, each of which may be only
a little bit out. And here arc the figures
to prove this in the case of this station:
cragc number of pounds of coal

umed per kilowatt per hour,
labor per kilowatt per hour. 0. II cent;
cost of fuel and labor per kilowatt per
hou nt.

I this station has all the help nec-
essary to maintain it in fir i condi-
tion, if the system of managing the help
was changed only slightly, as is pr
by the next case.

This plant is another street-railway

cr station, of about like equipment
and capacity. It is operated bv a chief
engineer and two assistants, fout

? firemen and five coal passe

gang, ordinarily, there are avail-
able for repairs and cleaning up, about
five men. The chief engineer's »ar
fair; that of the rest of the men is »•
When the assistant engineer corner
his watch he f Men on a she

paper a list of the repair *ork ncce*
to be done that das All the spare

rt to him. and
the work among them according to •
abi! thai all do their

. and that each u*c» the i

• to the best advantage and without
■ig the an.
rep.' • that can be done in a

hours by the men. -

other power house ! send '

•ide help to do. ought very

Heel » all ehe

necessary too! i as drill, b

shar i. The

result is highly efficient appara-

good-looking plar
latter is meant that t! find

paint K - nuts and I

rounding m .- and tl

chunk of asbestos

the steam lines. But h. find no

leaks, either steam or water, nor will he
clattering apparatus, which has
to hustle to make good. The log-book
figures for this are as folk

Pounds of coal per kilowatt per h
labor per kilowatt per hoi.
cent if coal and labor per kilowatt

hour, trnt. The coal costs

20 c r ton more at this station than

at the other.

Taking all of the fig ch as cost

of rcpa this station delivers the

same amount of work as that in the
e, at a saving ol sk.

The next case is that of an c
light station which in older

than the two samples considered above.
but outstrips both in cconom cra-

tion. It is presided o\er by a chief en-
gineer who. after giving much intelligent
thought to the handling of his help, de-
veloped a system which, in my estima-
tion, is nearly perfect It is m . •
sential for him to ask. "Who did this, or
who did tha- And none can c.

ging that oft re-
peated I he other fellow don't

He has all of the men in C
petition with one another, and he has a
method of rewarding those who try to do
thcr without i to

T« ^c the system fully in this

letter would take too long, and to at-
tern;

it justice Suffice

method is somr milar to that used

in tl but. in adJ
man has a certain task for which hi

sistant eng the

general good beha

■hat the boxes are prop

all lost m
gears taken u;

though he must look after and •
clean all running a; responsible

for the bright

I understo

ining ■ •

and ehai
other

and

•»d lab* *Uo-

* Row i

II lv

Tt be a feeling of

resentment on ■

who Is
Mi
ring my short
-
one ~t io

I
of those men vho do not have than
to listen to

u!ar boik*

one

volt rise arc

I found the fiu of

after a e flren

able to get the Sue cleaner.

-. I figged up a dex -lowing

the flu' iad then blown

noor When the

that I was »

^egan to impr< n . y'*- as our

: of the jncemed.

The chief neter found fault with me
at any time I be had I would have

alwa o lister to learn

all that I can. ha bight of my

ambition to be a chief
tain that position. I will spare no effort
to be - f the trust placed hi ass.

In the issue of Powtte for Decembef

HassJI*

•

ment b a »r> one Is dee to the

ch the blowof pleas
protected from the beet, end to test only.

i hat
a pins in no ■
•he re* the coaaeetasn Is

panied hi* letter, that • into the

. *

voold be thae doe is

the am*
• ..u!j ho off eea r •»..'. • same

is fail

ried into the better

• ■

• •

It ( • ■ •

170

POWER

January 24, 1911.

A Method for Getting High

co2

Orosco C. Woolson sends in the follow-
ing belated discussion of the paper upon
"Combustion and Boiler Efficiency," pre-
sented to the recent meeting of the
American Society of Mechanical Engi-
neers, by Edward A. Uehling.

To secure practical benefit from any
CO- recorder it is necessary not only to
have the apparatus properly installed, but
to have its readings correctly interpreted,
taking into account potent conditions
which might exist, abnormal or otherwise,
and which would prove a puzzle to many,
and even to an expert should he be lack-
ing in a keen appreciation of such condi-
tions.

To get at the business end of the ques-
tion so that results shall show on the
right side of the ledger is, in my estima-
tion, a difficult thing to accomplish, and
unless some other explanation can be
offered for so many CO? recorders being
out of business in different power houses,
I am forced to the conclusion that we are
attempting to establish a too refined ap-
paratus for determining what is required
to obtain the greatest value from our
boiler plants except for expert testing.

I have an invention of my own which
I have tried for some years to put into
everyday practice. I have secured no
patent on it, yet I will magnanimously
permit any member in good standing in
the society to appropriate it, to wit:

Say to your chief engineer, "Bill! the
longer I live the more I find, by gracious,
out and I find, by gracious, that it's time
to raise your salary and I am only as-
tonished that I did not find this out be-
fore, but don't think, Bill, this is philan-
throphy on my part. I am going to make
a CO- recorder out of you at about $300
per year, but I want you to save me $600
a year in fuel by devoting more of your
time to the boiler room. Your assistants
are quite capable of watching those auto-
matic cutoff and turbine engines with
their fine adjustments go around, but you
know as well as I do that the fire room
is lacking that careful and intelligent
adjustment which it should have to se-
cure the highest degree of 'actinism'
possible, and, Bill, if you don't get on to
that word, actinism, just look it up, for
it's part of my CO- invention, and I want
you to study up and produce for me the
greatest actinic value that bituminous
coal can accomplish. And, by the way, let
me say this to you, don't let me catch
you in the fire room with your coat off
doing the work I am paying others to
do, but you just use your brains that I
pay for and notice whether the firemen,
or, more properly speaking, the furnace
tenders, keep their fire doors closed con-
tinuously or whether they are up to the
same old trick of their youth of jerking
the fire door open every time they walk
up to the boiler. You have noticed, Bill,

that that fire door is provided with a
large peep hole that will admit of survey-
ing the interior of the furnace all right,
and, inasmuch as I paid for that hole, I
want you to get the money's worth out of
it; otherwise my CO? invention will record
a minus mark against you. Now, Bill,
you get busy and do as I suggest and
the extra salary is yours at the end of
the year and I shall be saving money my-
self. One thing more, Bill, if you find
after careful investigation you think it
would be better, all around, to build a
trestle alongside of our boiler house suffi-
ciently high to admit of spouting the coal
direct into the magazines of those fur-
naces instead of dropping the coal clear
down to the fire-room floor, for the sake
of lifting it up again to feed the fur-
naces, just let me know, and we will see
if we can't accomplish still further good
results; but, as I remarked before, you
get busy on the boiler room and you will
find that what Mr. Uehling says is be-
ginning to be recognized as essential for
good results, is true."

Compression in the Steam
Engine

The Sibley Journal for December con-
tains a contribution by Prof. R. C. Car-
penter upon the subject of "Compression
in the Steam Engine." The article is
in the nature of a review of what has
been done to settle this controversial ques-
tion and contains the results of a test
conducted by the author several years

E20

'19

\^<

N^t

■^

SUVTf.

i+ion

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

Ratio of Compression Pressure to

Initial Pressure. ?0""1

Theoretical and Actual Steam Con-
sumption

ago upon the high-pressure cylinder of
a triple-expansion Corliss engine at the
Sibley College experimental laboratories.
Three sets of runs were made at a vac-
uum of about six inches with constant
pressure at the throttle, constant cutoff
and varying compression, the degrees of
compression being 42.8, 66.3 and 87.2
per cent, of the admission pressure. The
steam consumptions on these runs were
respectively 31.03, 31.3 and 31.7 pounds
per indicated horsepower-hour. The in-

crease in the water rate with increased
consumption is here so slight as to have
very little effect upon the economy of
the engine, but, nevertheless, it is opposite
to what a theoretical treatment of the
subject would indicate.

The accompanying chart shows the
actual steam consumption as plotted from
the tests and the theoretical steam con-
sumption of the engine working without
cylinder condensation. The slopes of
these curves are opposite, although the
theoretical curve shows a very slight im-
provement in economy after the ratio
of compression to initial pressures passes
60 per cent. The discrepancy is un-
doubtedly due to losses the exact nature
of which is not well understood and, as
Professor Carpenter remarks, "It is evi-
dent that further investigation is neces-
sary to find out what is the matter with
our theory."

It is proposed to make further investi-
gations along this line in the laboratories
of Sibley College with a view to throw-
ing light upon the discrepancy between
the predicted and the actual results,
which information should go far toward
settling the controversy which is now be-
ing waged between the adherents and the
foes of compression.

In the annual report of Lloyd's Register,
recently issued, reference is made to the
use of internal-combustion engines for
marine purposes. With this type of en-
gine there is considerable difficulty in
effecting the reversal of the direction of
rotation of the engine, and when these
engines are used for marine purposes
the astern motion of the screw has usual-
ly been obtained by the use of toothed-
wheel gearing. Comparatively recently
there has been a development in the
Diesel oil engine for marine work. A
two-stroke cycle has been successfully
adopted, and the reversal is effected in
the engine itself, the crank shaft being
directly coupled to the screw shaft. The
Diesel oil engine is now being fitted to
three fairly large vessels being built on
the Continent under the supervision of
the surveyors of Lloyd's Register. One
set is being constructed on the older prin-
ciple of the four-stroke cycle with single-
acting cylinders, and will be of about
450 indicated horsepower. Another set
is being made on the two-stroke cycle,
also single acting, and is intended for a
twin-screw vessel, the power being about
900 indicated horsepower on each shaft.
The third set is being made on the two-
stroke cycle double-acting system, each
cylinder providing two impulses per revo-
lution; this also will be fitted in a twin-
screw vessel, the total power being about
1800 indicated horsepower. In each of
these cases the engines will be directly
coupled to the screw shafts. A set of
internal-combustion engines is being con-
structed under the society's survey in
this country for a vessel of about 260 tons.

January 24, 1911.

P O A !.k

Luued Weekly by the

Hill Publishin

iomm x. Hill, hn «»4 T r- *■. Me ■

It »«■». B.C

Ccur ikt l-it> :

tiv

«<>rT»-*poii.l.-ri'.- M.j-ai.lf f<.r thr rol-
UnUl and pa. ■

end eddrrm <

ii — not nrrfinJy for jnib-

ioa.

•

prj—wloni of II •

Caned*. 96

■m or »»•

of »ulrx»nx»-

..tiw* ir.
Iteir »ul>-

•••red b.- ■erond cevei met-

t oflur et New "S

-.ignm at

■

Oebleed

I mum I,-

^ onteott

• t WlUMU, \\ 1

1 i'<
, •.m the - It .

, •.,«» II Li

I
111 III! I

ami W I

■

rig e
• I'ump

niel

■
I

III*

Inar ISM t> •

V >ti<

The pub; f ihe piper ca

im have wrinc: mg ag.i

the statement on the first page of

- that Po» ta was made up of a lot
of papc uding one ca

and asking us to place the matter i
before our read left we are glad to

do here and now.

I bougf • . al. nan tm,

a long time ago and carried the name as
part of its own title for more than eight

The new paper calling itself Steam took
that tit ad a legal right

to do but this cannt'- M us from

truthfully making tnc

Certainly we can hard!
to apologize because our esteemed con-
tcmr ri J a second-hand name that

had dr

<. i >iwr\ .if i. -ii of N \ rk

State W iter Powers

The rccci • sal of Govcrr

to abolish the -tatc U

>n and the rem
on the part of the N
Board of ! "ic flooding of

a portion of the Mate forest p
again brim . front the important

question of

official rc-
^cr no*

'« . ! the

national sircar
and

thai the;

i son
r half
■

ram flows; ma

I waate
million* of eellon* i the sea every

t ummr
located on such strca
auxiliary stcan

In
«a« Create

lion of
storage ' ho lo-

on tht Gone« Sa-
Jaga. !

or.c»
rca-v.

arc*

e of

enroir

floods and affording a const
power purpose* It
the »suc bonds to the extent of

ion do - the con»-

and that the*
should be

use of the water being leased for
terms of ! consumer*

inal charges which would be suft-
►duce a revenue to the Statt
II to tl troduced la the

slaturc but po nfluenc

rtcd to bring about its d
power users «

efficient to meet, in Aft
the interest and >

the bo | they insisted upon the

t to use the out charge

and ate had

been r

Late. induced the

paaa a

an amendment of the

orernor

Hughe* vetoed step la this

an amendr he con-

rided for the

and

Jed so -nue to

- amend- <-■ •

<mprchen%i»e development C

' powers »o*jld. undouN-
om to the menufa

ihe people at large
be en;

»f the

» ensouuttsig se
hood fad thousand horerpow*"

*v*.. • sachet ha ao

•sagwat aii-aaaeaea s*
aic ceearul •• th»
the » the dss««aeJ i

172

POWER

January 24, 1911.

ing to pay for it, and thus guard against
monopolistic control, provided the proper
form of contract and impartial adminis-
tration are applied.

While it is conceded that the best in-
terests of the State demand the adoption
of a policy as herein outlined, the extent
to which actual construction should be
carried on at present demands careful
consideration. Certain groups of in-
dividuals are advocating its immediate
application to all the undeveloped water
powers of the State; this would include
the clearing and flooding of several hun-
dred thousand acres of State forest lands.
Yet there is no guarantee that a large
part of the power thus made available
would be used in the near future, and the
people of the State would be carrying
the burden of expense until such time
as the utilization of all the power would
make the investment self-supporting.
This phase of the subject is important in
view of the fact that New York City
would bear nearly three-fourths of the
expense and would be only remotely
benefited by the results. Therefore, it is
expedient that for the present, storage
reservoirs be built only where there are
prospects for the immediate sale of the
power produced.

The Proof of the Pudding

Suppose you were the owner or man-
ager of a mill and upon the recommenda-
tion of your master mechanic had put a
device upon your boilers which produced
a large saving in coal. If tests made
and reported by the master mechanic
were criticized as nonsensical and im-
possible, if engineers and physicists
proved by figures that no such results
were attainable and scientists demon-
strated scientifically the fallacy of the
principle upon which it were based — but
if your coal bills were less week after
week and month after month, what would
you say?

You would be apt to say that "The
proof of the pudding is in the eating"
and to give the inventor or the vendor
of the device an enthusiastic letter of
recommendation.

And it is by such a process as this
that the enthusiastic and sincere indorse-
ments which inventors and vendors of
devices which contravene all the laws of
physics and the principles of mechanics
are obtained.

In a big New England mill, some of
the boilers were equipped with a device
which was supposed to decompose steam
by the heat of the furnace and to add
its hydrogen to the available fuel. The
master mechanic tested it and reported
an evaporation of over sixteen pounds
of water with a pound of combustible.
Engineers denied the possibility of any
such a performance. Those who knew
demonstrated that it cost more than it
was worth to produce the hydrogen, but
the treasurer said, "Here are the only

figures that interest me," produced his
diminished coal bills and ordered more
of the devices.

What are the facts?

Here was a battery of fifteen 175-
horsepower boilers, aggregating 2625
horsepower, connected to a six-foot chim-
ney one hundred and seventy-five feet
high, good, by any formula ordinarily
used, for only about half that capacity.
These boilers are mulling along with an
insufficient air supply, doing only sixty-
odd per cent, of their rated capacity, with
the furnaces piled full of coal and pro-
ducing gas to be sent off unburned up
the chimney. This device with its steam
jets is put on, the master mechanic, after
"lots of trouble," gets his firemen trained
to fire as directed, and behold — the di-
minished coal bills.

Of course, the boilers are not evaporat-
ing anything like 16.69 pounds of water
per pound of coal. The master mechanic
is evidently not a trained testing engineer
and has fooled himself. Of course, the
decomposed steam, if it really is decom-
posed, is of no net value as fuel.

The diminished coal bills do not es-
tablish a contravention of well known
natural laws nor prove the value of a
device based upon an evident fallacy.
They simply do prove that the efficiency
of the boiler plant has been improved and
that could have been done by any change
which secured an adequate draft and the
same amount of drilling of the firemen,
and at a cost considerably less than ten
dollars per horsepower.

Smoke and C02 Recorders

If the smoke which comes out of a
smokestack were only as heavy as it is
black, and would fall down in chunks
on the head of the fireman who made it,
firemen would lose no time in inventing
some kind of device to warn them when
such an eruption was about to occur.

We have steam gages on our boilers so
we may not get the pressure too high and
do us an injury. We have water glasses
to warn us not to get the water too low,
and now we want some simple apparatus
to determine the percentage of CO- in
the products of combustion and to deter-
mine their temperature so that we may
be warned against the production of black
smoke. Of course, we have the CO-
meter and the pyrometer at the present
time, but the cost, the delicacy and the
unfamiliarity of the ordinary operator
with either the instrument or the deduc-
tion of applicable knowledge from its
indications have hindered the wide use of
such apparatus, especially in small plants.
Still, the day may come when the fire-
man will look to his C02 gage and his
pyrometer as confidently and intelligently
as he does now to his water glass and
steam gage.

In a recent test of great importance,
because it was to determine the suit-
ability of a certain boiler for use in bat-

tleships of the United States Navy, Lieu-
tenant Commander Dinger, one of the
board of naval officers in charge of the
test, in referring to the use of the C02
meter, said:

"The fireman soon became very much
interested in the results of the gas analy-
sis, and realized the value of so firing
as to maintain as high a percentage of
C02 as possible. This interest mani-
fested itself very early in the tests, in
the decreased density of the smoke es-
caping from the stack."

The foregoing remark in regard to the
decreased density of smoke is of par-
ticular interest at the present time while
cities all over the country are laboring
to prevent smoke by the use of ordi-
nances.

Compression as a corrective of clear-
ance losses is gradually losing its hold.
Prof. R. C. Carpenter in an article on
"Compression" in The Sibley Journal
says: "I have reached the conclusion
that the loss of work caused by com-
pression may in practice offset the gains
which would otherwise be produced. The
reason why the practical engine shows
no improvement in economy with in-
crease of compression is not clearly
known. There is need for investigation
and research of a high order before gen-
eral laws or conclusions can be stated."

He quotes Professor Jacobus who, in
a paper presented to the American So-
ciety of Mechanical Engineers, said : "The
experiments prove that for either equal
amounts of work produced or for equal
points of cutoff the cushion steam in an
engine should not in general be com-
pressed as high as the initial pressure
in order to obtain the best economy, but
to some lower pressure, thus verifying
conclusions arrived at by theory."

According to the official estimates of
the Department of the Interior, the avail-
able water power in Canada is capable
of developing more than twenty-five mil-
lion horsepower annually; which, if pro-
duced from coal, would represent a con-
sumption of approximately five hundred
and fifty million tons per annum. This is
excellent data for those individuals who
are looking forward with so much appre-
hension to the time when the coal supply
shall have been exhausted.

The pioneers of the air are sacrificing
their lives freely in the cause of future
navigation in the ocean of space, says the
daily press. That is no reason, how-
ever, why an engineer should screw down
the safety valves on his boiler to keep it
from blowing off steam.

It is better that an engineer should
know all about a safety valve than enough
about hyperbolic logarithms to get by
the examiner.

January 24, 1911.

Inquiries of General Interest

/ ( rack

Wh.i ap crack in a boi

It :s a crack in that pan of the sheet
that la; r the other and extends

•ions near the line

l in I i fl

Has the Heine boiler any braces and, if
so, whi-
rl. H. B.
There are br.< ending across the

ing from the drum into the water
and the flat surfaces of the water
.pportcd

Mud Drum .Vy/-

If the nipples between the headers
and the mud drum of a water-tube boiler
are renewed and leak after repeated roll-
it can be done to stop tb-.- leak-
Get a mechanic who knows how to do
tube expanding intelligently.

Aihiiti; ■ Butt and Stn/f>

If ted lap scam has

r cent, and a doublc-
stra; :tt joint has the same strength,

the advantage of the butt joint
over the otf

In the boiler with a lap seam the shell
and as the
round the sheet bends near
the lap. and the repeated ber iich

takes place at i f prcs^

finalls

hell

J at the start an '

char re will alter ape

and stan a crack It that no

hoi! g a d tint

/' I

age between the steam and l

not answered unit

Booctrnpaniccf by the

HatflM <m<J. vv (>/ the

inquirer. This page is

for\v>u when fffWl k
usv it

Fat tor ', >md fi

If. with a factor of safety of 5. a b<
has a working pressure of I
how much cold-water pressure will it
star

W P.
th a factor of safctv of 5. me cal-
culated i be
and the effect of internal
uld be the same v
duct iter II
bydroal mid be car-

Hunt '

;nt-
ing" by a Corliss engine govern'

ing
oo hea-

• making H

» — = — — =

/' /

s* cn-

■

will be their relative positions on the
abaft

■ ■

■

!«p and lead •

I 00

/' •

*P*cd load on. ii runs

T - >j:t:c thlaf •jirpc'-:* in »»:-•?. r

own off. That

the P'JunJ -

•cd by loo high
prcssion M
preasui

pre*- reea the

-otn the * and il

position
a bang. When the

during comprraalon and the

toJ«

and what

Lap is the d the

■

Lap
the purpose of cutting -
the no* ram to the cvlir.J

fore the strok c platoo to com-

ing steam a pan of the

/*■

wa-
ma

t 00 fed high to fu I
I be the

va»jff one foot higt

imn of wat

•tandpi; « praaaajia

glffr oar a pressure

race o'
ramMpt>tng Whtt

he rcdpro>

J ohta

which he uk.'

■oav

Piaaji

-
ia>

in the .hortcn.

Ing

i up to

is «boncr aaM ' -c i*

174

POWER

January 24, 1911.

Bristol's Compensated Gas
Filled Recording Thermo-
meters

During the last fifteen years, Bristol
recording thermometers have been con-
structed in various different forms, de-
pending for their operation on the ex-
pansion of a liquid, the expansion of the
vapor of a liquid or the expansion of a
gas. These thermometers have been
used for ranges of temperature up to 800
degrees Fahrenheit, but the model
equipped with flexible connecting tube
between the sensitive bulb and recording
instrument and depending for its op-
eration on the expansion of a vapor or a

New Bristol Recording Thermometer

gas has not until recently been adapted
for recording the lower ranges of tem-
perature.

A new compensated gas-filled record-
ing thermometer has recently been de-
veloped for recording the lower ranges of
temperature, such as atmospheric tem-
perature, temperatures of water, tempera-
tures of brine in refrigeration systems,
etc., and found satisfactory in numerous
tests. These thermometers are equipped
with a patented compensating device
which automatically corrects for changes
of temperature at the recording instru-
ment.

What the in-
ventor and the manu-
facturer are doing to save
time and money in the en-
gine room and power
house. Engine room
news

The thermometers are equipped with a
sensitive bulb and flexible capillary con-
necting tube and a patented pressure
tube, the sensitive bulb and flexible con-
necting tube and spiral pressure tube
all being filled with an inert gas under
pressure. Changes of temperature at
the sensitive bulb cause corresponding
changes in the pressure of the confined
gas and these changes in pressure are
measured and recorded by the recording
instrument. The sensitive bulb is usually
about 10 inches long and 34 inch in diam-
eter and the volume of gas contained in
this sensitive bulb is very large in pro-
portion to the volume of gas contained
in the fine capillary connecting tube be-
tween the sensitive bulb and the record-
ing instrument, thus making the error due
to changes of temperature along the con-
necting tube negligible.

The important new feature of this ther-
mometer is the patented compensating
attachment for the spiral pressure tube,
since a thermometer equipped with this
compensator gives the same readings or
record when the temperature at the re-
cording instrument changes as it would
if the temperature at the recording in-
strument remained constant. The need
for such a compensator can be illustrated
by the application of a recording thermo-
meter for recording temperature of brine
in a refrigeration system. The tempera-
ture of the atmosphere at the point where
the recording instrument was installed
might change, although the temperature
of the brine at the point where the sen-
sitive bulb was installed remained con-
stant, and a recording thermometer for
brine temperature should, of course, be
so constructed that it would be affected
only by changes of temperature at the
sensitive bulb.

This instrument is manufactured by
the Bristol Company, Waterbury, Conn.

If the wood handle has been broken
from a monkey wrench, a serviceable
substitute can be made by slipping a
piece of hose over the wrench, then filling
the hose with babbitt.

Graphoil Lubricator

The illustration shows the manner in
which this lubricator is attached to a
hydrostatic lubricator. The index con-
nection A of the lubricator is made in
various ways, so as to fit the connections
of the different makes and sizes of oil
lubricators.

The shutoff valve of the hydrostatic

Power

Graphoil Lubricator

lubricator is dispensed with and the
vertical and horizontal vapor pipes are
changed slightly in length.

When used in connection with me-
chanical or simple systems of lubrica-
tion, the oil pipes are connected to the
inlet connection A of the graphoil
lubricator. This device is made by
C. C. Stilwell & Co., 1215 Filbert street,
Philadelphia, Penn.

A curious accident interrupted the op-
eration of the Hudson & Manhattan power
station a short time ago. The fine soot
and dust from the back connections had
been discharged and allowed to accumu-
late in the fan room beneath the boil-
ers, and had been drawn by the fans into
the air ducts and deposited as a coating
of carbon upon their inside surfaces. In
some unexplained manner this carbon
took fire, and urged by the blast of the
fans developed such a heat that the ducts
were twisted all out of place, and the
entire draft-producing mechanism of the
station put out of business.

January 24. 191 1.

Feature* <>f Plant at Kodak
P irk \\ orki

From the description of the oil-storage
_-m used at the Kodak Park works
embodied in the article under the above
caption in the January 17 issue, the form
of oil report shown herewith was in-
advertently omittt

POWE R

ng, to be held
same rooms on Janua'
tion will be acted upon and permanent
officers i

NEW PUBLICATIONS

The second edition o-
of the Canadian I>cpartmcnt

The title of this work is in-

K I'

■ part menu.

.. 1

i righto

C'brtinnl |*Unl

Motor O.

Total

i :.£-.,•■

I ilated I'lant Movement P
mam-nth Organized

A fair start in the movement
uing the isolated plant from the in-
on of the central station was made
at a meeting held Monday evening. Janu-
ary 16, at the United Knginccring
buildir.

The attendance was large and
represented the interests of the manu-
irere and supply men, the ting

engineers and the operating engineer
was make the orga

lanent and a committee was a;
to draw up a cor- . and by-laws.

of the organization I
and data through mutua'
•i and thus maVc possible a con-
centrated el advance the interests
of the isolated plant.

on of the Peat Bogs and Peat
Indi made during the Season

•
Jr.. pea | for the Canadian govern-

ment.

Reports ar on var at bog»

located in the on of the

n, including the bog at AM
o»ncJ bv the government A com;
dcs.. • plant at the bog.

;h numerous illu^

plat'. g the Alfred bog and the

It W.l

a thai fh

■ ' '

classes, members and
aaaociates. the former to be made up of
those who would receive the grea
pecuniary benefit from the camp.i
euch as manufi

glnccr*. and the latter to include the
ating engineers and propetl
uld have cqua
sentation in tl
ailed ur
a* the forrr

•he fact that ■

0 a nu
organlra- and making the dues In

one light t a larger

ng engine*-

Arthur J

man V. Hcnlc
pai

pav:cv L >T iru I cs . <>» .•■ r <>n%.

■<.■■■

ret of •

small c an be made

on a email for;

T> should prove b»-

- machine*
onnection •
a • a small

OBI I I \m

Morgan, prominent as a
sod menu?,
bit borne in V.

Morgan was bor
II, of '

chanic and from him the
that love of machinery

,: neering which hate been one of his
moat remarkab riatka.

Hit first invention of note mi
tern of latignln *»<i construe-

s for loon :808 he

genera! o &

Moen Manufacturing Company, and foe

en years »as one of the comps-
directors. During his scrvk this

company he improved the coottaooos red*
rolling mill, designed and originally con-
stn: .corge Bedsor .'an-

g-
M years after the con»tructM>o of

the

daon mills, a third

and continuo;

studies, was known aa the

rd improvemeot •

■
ompleted and

iw ia
the

tion v Morgan

of
the ▼ashhora ft Moeo
i reatgoed
il eoocrlotendeot tn |t*r

devoted Me eof

oyaBeot.
I aortoge a*-

»r*

176

POWER

January 24, 1911.

of the business was enlarged into a gen-
eral wire-mill business.

Four years later, in 1891, the Morgan
Construction Company was incorporated
to manufacture rolling-mill equipment
and wire-drawing machinery. The work
of Mr. Morgan and his associates in this
company has been most successful and
their designs of machinery have been
widely adopted.

Besides his executive work, Mr. Morgan
found time to become interested in the
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, with
which he has been connected in an official
capacity for many years. He was, up to
the time of his death, a trustee of the
corporation, as well as being one of the
active workers on the shop committee of
the Institute.

He became a member of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers in 1881,
the year following the society's establish-
ment. He served as manager from 1884
to 1887, and was honored by an election
as president of that society for the term
1899-1900. He was also a member of the
American Institute of Mining Engineers.

While an engineer of exceptional abil-
ity and wide-spread influence, he has al-
ways been unassuming and never made
the least effort to obtain recognition. He
had a large circle of friends in Europe,
where he spent much time in travel. In
1900 Mr. Morgan was elected to honorary
membership in the Societe des Ingenieurs
Civil de France, and he was for years a
member of the British Iron and Steel
Institute.

His principal monument is the large
number of young men he has helped. He
was never too busy to see a young man
and none ever left his presence without
being richer and stronger in ambition and
courage.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
the Patent Office at 5c. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C.

PRIME MOVERS

GAS ENGINE. Henry K. Holsman, Chi-
cago, III. 980.263.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Henry
L. F. Trebert, Rochester, N. Y. 980,366.

ROTARY ENGINE. William Birrell and
•lames Birrell, Carbonado, Wash. 980,402.

GAS ENGINE. Otto J. Kirchen, Hancock,
Mich. 980,423.

HYDRAULIC ENGINE. August Sundh,
Yonkers, N. Y. 980,449.

ROTARY CYLINDER EXPLOSION EN-
GINE. Clyde J. Coleman. New York. N. Y.,
assignor to Rockaway Automobile Company,
Rockaway, N. J., a Corporation of New Jer-
sey. 980,491.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Jo-
seph S. Cortelyou. Brooklyn. X. Y. 980,494.

STEAM TURBINE. Kills P. Edgar, Wood-
bridge, N. J. 980, r,04.

ROTARY INTERNAL COMBUSTION EN-
GINE. Eric Harald Ewertz, Wollaston, Mass.
980,506.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Olof
Ohlsson. S5dertelje,. Sweden. 980,552.

TURBINE. Joseph Knight, Holyhead, Angle-
sey. England. 980,044.

WATER WHEEL. Frederick Overfield,
Cornwall, N. Y. 980,666.

WATER WHEEL. William C. Turner,
Casey, III. 980,708.

ROTARY ENGINE. Paul Glamzo, New
York, N. Y., assignor of one-half to Anton

Razutocitch, Brooklyn, N. Y., and one-fourth
in Baltrus S. Yankaus, New York, N. Y.
980,771.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Otto
Kraus, New York. N. Y., assignor to Kraus
Engine Company, a Corporation of New York.
980,801.

BOILERS, FIRNACES AND GAS

PRODICERS

FIRE GRATE. Ebenezer Hall-Brown, Kel-
vinside, Glasgow, Scotland. 980,247.

GRATE. James Walp, Allentf .n, Penn.,
assignor to Clara C. Walp, Allentown, Penn.
980,370.

GAS PRODUCER. Charles F. Miller, Pitts-
burg, Penn., assignor to the Westinghouse
Machine Company, a Corporation of Penn-
sylvania. 980,060.

POWER PLANT AUXILIARIES AND
APPLIANCES

LUBRICATING SYSTEM. Leon Alleman,
Rochester, Penn. 980,178.

PUMP VALVE. John J. Ballard and
Frank W. Parsons, Newark Valley, N. Y.
9S0.184.

WATER-LEVEL REGULATOR. Joseph E.
De Bisschop, New Britain, Conn. 980,214.

SELF-CENTERING SHAFT PACKING. Ed-
mund H. Farquhar, Schenectady, N. Y., as-
signor to General Electric Company, a Cor-
poration of New York. 980,231.

PIPE COUPLING. John N. Goodall, Torts-
mouth, N. 11., assignor, by mesne assignments,
to Goodall Manufacturing Company, a Cor-
poration of Maine. 980,245.

TURBINE BUCKET. Ernst Kallberg, Ber-
lin, Germany, assignors to General Electric
Company, a Corporation of New York. 980,-
283.

DRAFT REGULATOR. Theodore G. Meas,
Lansing. Mich. 980,317.

OIL-CAN INDICATOR. Charles Scurlock,
Pasadena, Cal. 980,348.

HOSE CONNECTION. Ira H. Spencer,
Hartford, Conn., assignor to the Spencer Tur-
bine Cleaner Company. Hartford. Conn., a
Corporation of Connecticut. 980,355.

BLOWOFF VALVE. Anthony Nicholas
Anderson, Albany. Ga., and Frederick W.
Frank. Wilkes-Barre, Penn. 980,392.

GOVERNING MECHANISM FOR ELASTIC
FLUID TURBINES. John G. Oallan. Nahant.
Mass.. assignor to General Electric Company,
a Corporation of New York. 980,487.

JOURNAL-BOX LUBRICANT DEVICE.
Charles B. Coon, Evanston, 111. 980,492.

DEFLECTOR FOR OIL BURNERS. Fred-
eric A. Curtis. Toledo, Ohio, assignor, by
mesne assignments, to the Steel Mantle Light
Company, Toledo, Ohio, a Corporation of
Ohio. 980,497.

TURBINE BUCKET. Edwin W. Rice, Jr..
Schenectady, N. Y., assignor to General Elec-
tric Company, a Corporation of New l'ork.
oso..-)!;:}.

VALVE. Walter E. Barnes, Maiden. Mass.
980.585.

METALLIC PACKING. Charles O. Bul-
ock, Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to the H. W.
Johns-Manville Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a
Corporation of New York. 980, 594.

MEANS FOR LUBRICATION OF WRIST
PINS. John K. Campbell. Hartford. Conn.
980,597.

ROD PACKING. Parmer Dorsev, Hutch-
inson. Kan. 980,017.

WATER-LEVEL CONTROLLER. Forest A.
Ray. Boston, Mass. 980,675.

STEAM TRAP. Charles E. Squires, Cleve-
land, Ohio. 980,694.

MOUNTING FOR FURNACE DOORS.
George H. Gushing, Westfleld, Mass.. assignor
to the H. B. Smith Company, Westfleld. Mass.,
a Corporation. 980,764.

BOILER FURNACE. Gustav De Grahl,
Wilmersdorf. near Berlin, Germany. 980,772.

FIRE DOOR FOR BOILER FURNACES.
Gustav De Grahl. Zehlendorf, near Berlin,
Germany. 980,773.

ELECTRICAL, INVENTIONS
APPLICATIONS

AND

SYNCHRONOUS DYNAMO ELECTRIC
MACHINE. Jens Bache-Wiig. Edgewood
Park. Penn.. assignor to Westinghouse Elec-
tric and Manufacturing Company, a Corpora-
tion of Pennsylvania. 980,183.

ELECTRIC SWITCH. Arthur C. Eastwood.
Cleveland. Ohio, assignor to the Electric Con-
troller and Manufacturing Company. Cleve-
land. Ohio, a Cornoration of Ohio. 980.221.

ELECTRIC SIGNALING APPARATUS.
Roy A. Wilhite. Indianapolis. Ind. 980,380.

MOTOR-CONTROLLED SWITCH. Alfred
James Barlow, Tottenham. England, assignor
of two-thirds to Electromotor Equipment Com-
pany. Ltd., London, England. 980.475.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres., Col. E. D. Meier; sec, Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Dugald C. Jackson; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION

Pres., Frank W. Frueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS
Pres., Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
U. S. N. ; sec. and treas., Lieutenant Henry C.
Dinger, U. S. N., Bureau of Steam Engineer-
ing, Navy Department, Washington, D. C.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS-
ASSOCIATION

Pres., E. D. Meier, 11 Broadway, New
York : sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston, Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS

Pres., J. W. Alvord ; sec, J. H. Warder,
1735 Monadnock Block, Chicago, 111.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., E. K. Morse : sec, E. K. Hiles, Oliver
building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings 1st and
3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS

Pres.. Prof. J. D. Hoffman : sec, William M.
Mackay, P. O. Box 1818, New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY EXG INFERS

Pres., Carl S. I'earse, Denver, Colo. ; sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street, Chicago,
111. Next convention, Cincinnati, Ohio.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr.. Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia, Pa. : Supr. Cor. Engr., William S.
Wetzler, 753 N. Forty-fourth St., Philadel-
phia, Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres.. William F. Yates. New York. N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago, 111.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS-
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith; sec. Charles
Kratsch, 410 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls. Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF

ENGINEERS
Grand Worthy Chief. John Cope ; sec. J. U.
Bunce. Hotel Statler. Buffalo. N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia. Penn., week
commencing Monday, August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres., O. F. Rabbe : acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus.
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstown, Ohio, May
18 and 19. 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION

Pres., A. N. Lucas: sec. Harry D. Vaught,
95 Liberty street. New YTork. Next meeting
at Omaha, Neb., May, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford ; sec, J. G. Hanna-
han. Chicago. Til. Next meeting at St. Paul,
Minn., September, 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION
Pres., G. W. Wright. Baltimore. Md. ; sec.
and treas.. D. L. Gaskill, Greenville. O.

'. ^>kk, jwi AR\ •:.

THERE i- Jit and a wrong v.

doing in' rything. In fact, then

often an ing

iven thing.

i ually, the discovery and use of the
<<;/. ii. hi only come aft iderable

study, experience and ]

\\ ' mast • -i -kill is n< •

t ssfull} n liner <»t j» •

haps twenty-thousand t<»ns displacemei
Yet . tlu- real is i omplished i in

th« ithoul anyone making irticu]

about The >n that the

operation is su< ten i ih.it the

nun intrusted with tlu- ta^k know the

i v in which t<» d<> it as thi :lt of

•

In th« r plant tli< i thousand

and i both simple and difl

i the perforn 4 which

th' :

m
into plant and set
him to \\"ik tighten
ing up hall inch

■
It tl: happened

bit in ' l

be could not turn it i
ilv with hi

K natural t

that he would t .» k« tl

in tl
pi than

put u

the tin
■

turn it 1

The bai
pushing tin:
than by the uat

The equipment under t'. of so-

' lit- time i the same

kind and ment under n

but
r full of wastefulni

'11
of the formei class um- int<

They see t « » it thai lu

and
Further, they i
thoi

:u\ tl.

1 it

il t!

•

178

POWER

January 31, 1911.

A 120,000 Horsepower Plant in France

One of the largest and most important
power plants in France is the St. Denis
station of the Electrical Society of Paris.
This is situated on the banks of the Seine
between the towns of St. Ouen and St.
Denis, and, in addition to supplying light
and power to the greater part of Paris,
also delivers about 20,000 horsepower
to the Metropolitan railway of that city.
At present the total output is 100,000
horsepower, but after the additions,
which are now in the course of construc-
tion, have been completed, the station
will have a capacity of 120,000 horse-
power.

From Figs. 1 and 4 it will be seen that
the general layout of the plant is some-
what different from that ordinarily met
with. Owing to the large area available
it is spread out considerably, the build-
ing covering approximately 160,000
square feet, and by having the coal bunk-
ers in separate buildings, the hight of
the boiler house is made much less than
is the usual practice.

By A. Grandjean

The St. Denis station sup-
plies light and power to the
city of Paris under several
different phase and voltage
conditions , as well as fur-
nishing direct current for
the railways. To meet
these requirements several
novel arrangements are
made in the electrical equip-
ment. The coal handling
apparatus also embodies
some notable features.

coal from the scows and deliver it into
automatic weighing hoppers, one attached
to each crane. And from each hopper
it is discharged onto a conveyer, run-
ning parallel to and over the crane track.
At the end of this conveyer the coal
passes through a transfer hopper
and is elevated to a second con-
veyer, running at right angles to the
first and passing between the boiler
houses and the coal bins of each group.
This second conveyer consists of a roller
chain carrying pivoted steel buckets,

Fig. 1. Exterior View of Plant

Coal-handling Apparatus

One of the most interesting features
of the installation is the means for hand-
ling coal. This is brought by scows di-

Fig. 3. Method of Unloading Barges

which are hung so as to always remain
in an upright position, regardless of the
direction in which the chain is traveling.
Each bucket is provided with a cam by
means of which it may be tipped at any
point in its travel. Passing over and under
the aisles between each two rows of
boilers and extending over and under the
coal bins is a third conveyer, by which
rect from the collieries to a concrete coal may be transferred from the second
wharf, in front of the power house. Two conveyer to the bin or to the hoppers over
electrically operated traveling cranes, see the boilers, or can be delivered directly
Fig. 3, with clam-shell buckets pick the from the bins to the hoppers. This ar-

Fig. 2. Conveyer System from Coal Bins to Boilers

Jai.uary 31. 1911.

FONX '[ k

17V

rangement is shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a
i of the conveyer over the boilers.
This conveyer in passing under the boil-
ers used to carry away the a-

as shou t the a

tion- ire cor- the

nun • . rrascd to 58. Chain-

grate stokers arc io each

■

The turbtr.
thu» t'

and discharge them into dump cars. The boiler, and. in -\ to the draft fur-

•

cm hat a capacity for handlim
of coal per hour and. when unload-
only three men arc required to each
scow, one man operating the crane and
men to guide the b rom

a! has been dcli\
no further handling by hand

high-pre*»ure •teftm and rireted tin

onden* cd from the coe>-

. orking oti
>f the

ice condenser* art oca ted

vie total le:
at the plant ai-

'ie H
ringed ll

M '

f or

180

POWER

January 31, 191 1.

Main Units

Some complication arose from the fact
that three-phase alternating currents at
about 10,000 volts and 25 cycles were
required for traction purposes; two-phase

volts for certain other traction purposes.
To meet these various classes of service
the following units were installed:

Four three-phase turbo-generators of
5000 to 6000 kilowatts capacity.

• -.-• '--' ■ •■a.'-V* '?:;<'*■•"■■>:■

mfmw^w^m^^f^mm

Fie. 7. Section through Half of Boiler Room

42-cycle currents at 12,300 volts for light- Four two-phase turbo-generators of

ing; three-phase currents at 6000 volts 5000 to 6000 kilowatts capacity,

and 42 cycles for distributions to the Two turbines, each connected to two

suburbs; direct current at 230 volts for alternators, one of which is a two-phase,

plant service, and direct current at 550 42-cycle, 12,300-volt machine and the

other a two-phase, 25-cycle, 10,150-volt
machine of 5000 to 6000 kilowatts capa-
city.

One two-phase, 25-cycle, 10,150-volt
turbo-generator of 10,000 to 14,000 kilo-
watts capacity.

Two two-phase motor-generator sets,
each of 750 kilowatts capacity, taking
alternating currents at 12,300 volts and
delivering direct current at 220 volts.

Two motor-generator sets of 750 kilo-
watts capacity, taking three-phase current
at 10,150 volts and delivering direct cur-
rent at 220 volts.

Two motor-generator sets of 375 kilo-
watts capacity, taking three-phase cur-
rents at 10,150 volts and delivering di-
rect current at 220 volts.

One 375-kilowatt, 230-volt direct-cur-
rent turbo-generator.

One storage battery of 1300 ampere-
hours capacity and another of 3000 am-
pere-hours capacity.

Fig. 8. Switch Compartments

Two motor-generator sets for charging
the storage batteries.

Two 6050- to 12,300-volt static trans-
formers, each of 1000 kilowatts capacity.

The speed of the three-phase machines
is 750 revolutions per minute and that
of the two-phase machines is 835. Each
turbine is provided with a Parsons speed
regulator which maintains a practically
constant speed in spite of the varying
load, especially on those machines sup-
plying the electric railways. The admis-
sion of steam is automatically cut off as
soon as the speed of the turbine reaches
15 per cent, above normal.

In addition to the foregoing there is a
special reversible motor-generator set
consisting of two synchronous motors
coupled together, one being fed with
three-phase current at 10,150 volts and
25 cycles and the other with two-phase
current at 12,500 volts and 4\2/3 cycles.
The three-phase motor has six poles and
the two-phase motor, ten poles. As

January 31, 1911.

POW1 i<

= it will be noted that both

4> '

motors run at the same that of

500 revolutions per minute. Therefore,
possible, by using cither of the ma-
chines as a motor or a generator to
transfer available power from the ttal
phase machines to the two-phase

j, up to the limit of the capa-
city of the machine, which is 154X) |
watt :ew of the main turbine r

is shown in Fig. 9, at the right of which
may be seen a large lathe >r turn-

ing down the commutator

The high-tension switching appara
is housed in a reinforccd-concrctc struc-
ture which adjoins the main turbine r<
All the switch barriers and slabs are of
concrete a: .caution has been

taken to insure agair

I LLEBY <

which automatical • a fct

.p or machine in t1 a short-

I m^i JTA

pltl'jl

.pi'

connected

ment p section being isolated

Along c room

ous in*

ment* A pedestal located in front of the
>ard and oppc« •

lb the »
ammeters and cmcr-

•boon :n

Tb< consists of three

addition to
an engineer

<>f the oil switches, showing the
track that has been ; i for <

g them. In the u;
pan

appara-
these are sho*

n the right arc fi
in J the small ones on the left
the turbine room, ar

to sepa-

%c and the other for three-phase
currer

r\ ..Ma

On the desks arc mounted signal lamps

. •
the

- cing si:: a warning

(ire I 'ln«

le operat'
bar* ar

■
of frcJrr hu«bar«

circuit. The several *

■ r and the feeder bu»bar* ma\

Conv

182

POWER

January 31, 1911.

Vacuum for Reciprocating Engines

Several years ago the firm by which I
was employed built an ice plant in the
Southern fruit belt, most of the output
being used in refrigerating cars. As coal
was expensive in that locality, the plant
was designed to operate as economically
as possible. The ice machine consisted
of two single-acting compressors, driven
by an 18 and 36 by 48-inch cross-com-
pound Corliss engine, the flywheel of
which was used as a main driving pulley
for running, through a jack shaft, the
plant auxiliaries. These consisted of a
boiler-feed pump, a circulating pump, an
electric generator for light and power, the
air compressor and a rotary blower for
circulating the freezing water.

About two years after the plant had
been turned over to the owners we were
requested to send a man to the plant to
report upon some changes that their engi-
neer had proposed. Upon reaching the
plant, I found that there had been a
change of engineers, the new man being
a young fellow who had been an oiler
in a large central station employing tur-
bine units. He had previously taken a
correspondence course in refrigeration
and then sought a job of greater re-
sponsibility, finally landing his present
position.

He began his argument for the pro-
posed changes by stating that, although
the steam consumption per horsepower-
hour of this plant was as good as the
turbine plant, the vacuum on the ma-
chine did not average more than 24
inches, while the turbine plant averaged
28}4 inches. He had looked up the
theory of the loss due to incomplete ex-
pansion and had found that if the steam
in the ice plant could be expanded down
to 28j/> inches, the consumption would
be decreased at least two pounds per
horsepower-hour. According to his fig-
ures this saving in steam would be equiv-
alent to 18 per cent, of the coal used. The
owner of the plant was interested when
he saw these figures and signified his
willingness to take a chance, providing
the machine builders would say that it
was feasible. The engineer was not sure
as to the cheapest way of increasing the
vacuum but had thought of getting a
larger air pump, a larger circulating
pump and a cooling tower so that the
barometric condenser could be forced to
its limit. There were a number of other
suggestions, such as moving the con-
denser nearer the low-pressure cylin-
der, etc. After he had said all he could
think of, I started in to have my say,
which was somewhat as follows:

"There are many who do not under-
stand why a high vacuum is not as good
for reciprocating engines as it is for tur-
bines, but most of us have read or been
told that with the former it does not

By John H. Ryan

The experience of a refrig-
erating man with a young
engineer who thought he
could better the economy of
his engine by increasing
the vacuum to 28 inches.

pay to run the vacuum any higher than
26 inches, with the barometer at 30
inches.

"The expansion and compression of
gases follow the same laws whether the
range of pressures be high or low. For
example, consider the compression in an
ammonia cylinder when carrying 15
pounds back pressure and it is desired
to find what the pressure in the cylinder
will be at half of the compression stroke.
Add the atmospheric pressure to the gage
pressure and multiply the 30 by two, be-
cause the volume is halved at half stroke.
This gives 60 pounds as the absolute
pressure in the cylinder at half stroke.
When the 15 pounds atmospheric pres-
sure is subtracted from the 60, it will give
45 as the gage pressure at half stroke,
that is, when the volume is halved.

"The same law holds true for the ex-
pansion of gases. In a compound engine
with 15 pounds receiver pressure and
cutting off at half stroke in the low-pres-
sure cylinder, when this 30 pounds abso-
lute steam pressure has expanded down
to a full cylinder volume, the pressure
will be halved. This is because the vol-
ume has been doubled and there will be
just atmospheric pressure in the cylinder
when the exhaust valve opens at the end
of the stroke.

"A pound of steam at atmospheric pres-
sure occupies about 26 cubic feet of
space and that is about the capacity of
the 36x48-inch low-pressure cylinder.
This same pound of steam at 15 inches
of vacuum occupies 53 cubic feet of
space. To hold this steam the low-pres-
sure cylinder would have to be 4 feet in
diameter. At 26 inches of vacuum the
volume of a pound of steam is approxi-
mately 175 cubic feet and the required
cylinder diameter would be 7T< feet, and
at 28 inches of vacuum the volume would
be 340 cubic feet, necessitating a cylinder
diameter of \0V2 feet. Or, further, a
29-inch vacuum would require a \4y2-
foot cylinder. To attain the benefit of
the extra inch of vacuum between 28 and
29 inches, the area of the cylinder must
be doubled."

The engineer replied that he would be
satisfied with the 28 inches; but I told
him that his low-pressure cylinder was

about right for 21 inches of vacuum and
to expand to 28 inches would necessitate
a low-pressure cylinder of 60 inches in
diameter. To compensate for the attend-
ing cylinder condensation, the steam
would have to be superheated 500 de-
grees above that corresponding to the
throttle pressure. This would mean a
temperature of 865 degrees Fahrenheit
and it would be hard to find oil and pack-
ing to withstand this.

He accused me of not knowing what
I was talking about and said that the
engines of the new cotton mill in town
often ran 28 inches of vacuum. I ad-
mitted that anyone could get 28 or more
inches of vacuum if he had water enough
and offered to wager that if they took
diagrams from the mill engine when it
was carrying 28 inches of vacuum that
the diagrams would show the exhaust
valves opening early in the stroke with
the pressure in the cylinder correspond-
ing to 28 inches of vacuum when the
piston reached the end of the stroke.
There would probably be more than 6
pounds absolute pressure in the low-
pressure cylinder when the exhaust valve
opened and all this heat would be re-
jected into the condenser.

He admitted that I might be right, but
could not see what difference that made
as the 28 inches of vacuum in the ex-
haust pipe would represent a removal of
most of the atmospheric pressure, and
he claimed that a pound of pressure re-
moved from the front of a piston was
just as good as an extra pound behind
the piston. I replied that there was a
big difference between the actual and
theoretical mean effective pressure when
an engine is run condensing. As a rule
there is 5 pounds less mean effective
pressure with 28 inches of vacuum than
calculations would indicate.

His next question was, "What did I
think of lowering the exhaust pressure
by means of a larger air pump?" This is
another way of wasting power. To lower
the vacuum from 26 to 28 inches would
require a condenser temperature 23 de-
grees lower and the pump would have to
take out about 60 cubic feet more vapor
for every pound of steam the engine used.

Our friend then got out his notebook
and made these few entries: "Turbines
show a gain, due to complete expansion to
a high vacuum because the temperatures
remain the same at each point in the
turbine. They have no condensation loss.
Reciprocating engines running with com-
plete expansion to a high vacuum do not
show as good results, because the loss
from the cylinder condensation is high.
Look up the question of B.t.u. per horse-
power and see how much of the avail-
able heat in the steam I am getting.
Charge the heat required to run the
auxiliaries, to gain by condensing."

January 31, 191 1.

PO\X

An Efficient Boiler Installation

An efficient steam-generating equip-
ment is the first essential to a satis-
factory power plant, and this feature
pends as much upon the design and ar-
rangement of the boiler-room apparatus
as upon the skill of the attendants after
the plant is completed. The present ar-
ticle deals with the arrangement of boil-
economizers and stacks of a certain
large plant which was recently completed.

The original plant consisted of three
Heine boilers of 420 horsepower each,
in connection with a single econom
the boilers arranged so that each could
be connected directly to one of three
500-kilowatt units. The load increased
rapidly and plans were adopted for an
•sion of the plant by the addition of
2000-kilowatt Parsons turbines, each
four 480-horsepowcr Heine
boilers with individual economizers, con-
stituting distinct units which could be
operated independent^ from the boiler-
feed pump to the conden- 'argc

The boilers were of the standard Heine
and special attention was given to
the baffling, exhau^ I hcing made

to determine the most advantageous ar-
rangement of baffles. It was found that

By II. R. \1 -»n

baffle in the following manner: The low-
er baffle was extend*. 'ront
tube header to a point approximate
feet 10 inches from the rear tube hc.i
securing an area of about are feet
for the gases to leave the cor-
chamber and enter the tub' -idcr
favorable conditions it was found that the
combustion-chamber temperature ap-
proached 3000 to Kahrcn-
heit. and that there was an i ngly
rapid transfer of heat to the first tubes
which the gases came in contact i
As the gases, in cooling, contract in vol-
ume in proportion to their absolute tern-

! I

in hm!cr» of tt:

baffle*, the Rases
followed near
the cJkc of tr., !.

baffle, leaving a
lari; f the '

and resulting tack

i'urc* at f'
cniir ight about a *enou» rcJi;

In both em

»n Inter

•he necr- u area* 4

: on

a p<w ■

.: I

'h* pMM|r

would *

agh friction losses if the

velocity The top bafle »as then

:ed from tr a point

3 feet from the rear header, thus

arrangement The
is and
-id the sadr
that the breeching » .
aboi >e remaining areas of

ng no strong
of gases about them prot.

I amounted to

100 square ' 4 being hi

the coolest portion of t> of the

gases, it vu con» eat to sacrifice

small percentage of the I
face in order to ga

cent, uhich mas lost through the usual
form of baffle

The columns supporting the front por-
tion of the bo -end about
above the boiler-room floor, and carry
rich box gir .h the boil-
ers are hung passing under
the front end of each drum, as shown In

I boiler
supports awa\ from the heat of the '
nace. and l accommoda-

of mechanical stoV

' the be

con, ined with

instead throughout.

Tbe R

side i

ual custom

about

■

• hare
endency t<
tmiah. ranch le»
thro

font

•
far i* ; ••

The gases from each hnOai
n eeunouatrcr of

unpenned

column* and lackcted « nh a aerwa of

tnchea
anheaean Manned named

k« ,

igh to tl

is eclrtefod to t
a-J r«***'

184

POWER

January 31, 1911.

second group, through return bends at the
top of the economizer, and is finally dis-
charged from the section nearest to the
bciler, where the gases have the maxi-
mum temperature.

The steel stacks are 78 inches in di-
ameter and extend 150 feet above the
economizer; for the first 75 feet the
metr.l is Y+ inch thick and 3/16 inch for
the remaining distance.

•Before the erection of the first set of
boilers it was argued that the draft
might prove insufficient, as the path of
the gases seemed unduly long and tor-
tuous, and much of it was in a horizontal
plane. In practice, however, it was found
that there was little more to be desired.
The draft gage and pyrometer showed
readings averaging substantially as fol-
lows :

Base of stack

Breeching between boiler
and economizer

End of intermediate baffle

Combustion chamber (esti-
mated)

Furnace (estimated)

Tempera-
ture Flue
Gases,
Degrees
Fahrenheit

Draft,
Inches.

1.25

0.75
0.50

0.37
0.25

averages showed an evaporation of ap-
proximately 6 pounds of water per
pound of screenings burned, or an ef-
ficiency of nearly 60 per cent. As 70 per
cent, is considered very fair on test per-
formances, this result was quite excep-
tional. The feed water entering the
economizer averaged about 150 degrees
Fahrenheit and the economizer delivered
it to the boilers at temperatures vary-
ing from 240 to 300 degrees.

Following is the report of a test on
one of these boilers:

RESULTS OF BOILER TEST.

Breese, Trenton Coal, Fresh Screenings,
1-inch Size.

Grate surface, 71.75 square feet.

Water heating surface, 4,820 square feet.

Total Quantities.

Duration of test, hours 9

Weight of coal as fired, pounds. . . . 21,988
Percentage of moisture in coal ... 6.58

Total weight of dry coal burned,

pounds 20,541

Total weight of ash and refuse,

pounds 3,546

Pecentage of ash and refuse to coal

as fired 16.16

Percentage of combustible in ash. Not determined.
Total weight of water fed to boiler,

pounds 161,360

Quality of steam, per cent 98. 8878

Water actually evaporated, pounds 159,569.7
Factor of evaporation:

Boiler. 1.071

Boiler and economizer 1 . 1928

Equivalent water evaporated from

-•^^s S7\m £i

ooooooooooooooooo

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

ooooooooooooooooo

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OOO OOOOOOOOOOOOO
OCO OOOOOOOOOOOO

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO OOOOOOOOO

OOOOOO OOOOOOOOOO
O OOOOO OOOOOOOOO

OOOO OOOOOOOOO OO o

m di

Power

Fig. 2. Front View of Boilers

This draft proved sufficient to consume
over 30 pounds of screenings per square
foot of grate surface, and as the grate
of each boiler is 10x7 feet, this produced
ample heat with the low grade of bitum-
inous coal to run the boilers far above
their rating. The coal had a heating
value of about 10,000 B.t.u., and monthly

and at 212 degrees Fahrenheit,
pounds:

Boiler 173,930

Boiler and economizer 192,470

Hourly Quantities.

Coal consumed per hour as fired,

pounds 2,443 . 1

Dry coal consumed per hour, pounds 2,282 . 4

Coal per hour per square foot grate

surface, pounds 34. 1

Dry coal per hour per square foot

grate surface, pounds 31.8

Apparent water evaporated per

hour, pounds 17,928.9

WTater per hour corrected for qual-
ity of steam, pounds 17,729.0

Equivalent evaporation dry steam
per hour from and at 212 de-
grees, pounds:

Boiler 19,110.0

Boiler and economizer 21,147.2

Equivalent evaporation per hour
per square foot heating surface,
pounds:

Boiler 3 . 961

Space Tamped w.ifh LoosB
Magnesia after Section, i's Bolted
, in place

_J.

1! 2 Angles

Spacers

Puiver

Fig. 3. Economizer Jackets

Boiler and economizer 4.38

Average Pressures, Temperatures, Etc
Steam pressure, gage.

Temperature of feed water, degrees

Fahrenheit:

Boiler

Boiler and economizer

Temperature of escaping gases:

Boiler

Boiler and economizer

Draft over fire, inches of water. . . .
Draft in breeching, inches of water.

Moisture in steam, per cent

C02 in flue gas, average per cent.. .
Calorific value of coal in B.t.u

Horsepower.

160

194
74.2

480
326
0.189
0.484
1.1122
11.35
10 168.0

Boiler

and
Econo-
mizer.

619.8

7.34

7.82

8.65

3.41
74.2

9.22

Boiler.

Horsepower developed 560 . 2

Builder's rated horsepower

(boiler only) 482 . 0

Per cent, of rated horsepower

developed " 118.2 128.5

Economic Results.

Apparent evaporation per
pound of coal as fired

Equivalent evaporation per
pound coa as fired

Equivalent evaporation per
pound dry coal

Efficiency of boiler, per cent..

Efficiency or bouer and econ-
omizer, per cent SO . 9

This is one of a large number of tests
on these boilers, most of which showed
about the same general results. In these
tests cold water was used, with the re-
sult that the economizer tubes sweated
and gathered a coating of soot, which
detracted somewhat from the efficiency
of the economizer. Tests with a much
better grade of coal gave results as high
as 950 horsepower per boiler unit for
occasional periods, with nearly the same
efficiency. The test shown above was
taken under conditions which "rere sub-

January 31, 1911.

POU

stantially the same as those under which
the boilers were normally operated, and
the object was to determine the most
satisfactory operating conditio

The first cost of ths plant averaged
very close to (10,000 per complete boiler
unit, including one boiler, settir .
ports, economizer and one-half the cost

of one stack and its supports. The ad-
n of the inter beffle increased

the capacity of thc b. a great

tent, and thc furtru .f the econ-

omizer brought the working capacity of
the unit up to nearly 650 hor

<>*t per b
to something ■

cannot be termed execs* - of

the high cflcicnc-

smal! percentage of saving la the annual
coal bill of a mode arge plant

ina-
ne t hods of construction provided
Is subscqi.
•uch manr

Expansions in Compound Engine

A volume of steam is taken into the
high. pressure cylinder. This volume
equals the capacity of the high-prcsburc
c>lindcr up to the point of cutoff and
including clearance. It la cventualh
panded to the full volume of thc low-
; Under, including its cleara

The final volume divided by the initial
volume equals the insion,"

or the number of times the steam is
panded.

It is not necessary to work with actua'
volumes. Suppose in the accompanying
diagram the stroke or displacement of
iigh-pr 1 ;

then the clearance volume will be Ji-
prcscntcd by the clearance
^cd in hundredths of tl icc-

ment, the volume displaced up to cut-
off by thc fraction of thc stroke com-
pleted at that point, and thc total vol-
ume up to cutoff by thc sum of thc two
If. for instance, thc engine cuts off at
quarter stroke and thc clearance is 5
umc inclosed behind
the high-pressure piston will be

of the displacement of thc high-pressure

n. or that displacement is

taken as unity, oill be r aim.

The areas of thc cylinders are to each

other as the squares of their diameters

; osc thc low-pressure cylinder has a

' thc high; Its area

be four times as great II thc

same stroke ually thc case)

accment will be four times as

g.rat, and thc san ear-

anci • four •

' that, supposing the -ince

of tl pet

ie final volun. ! be

Then the number the

lio of c ild be

This can be r the simple

.'• I r'ui the

■

■ i

' the J low di-

rided fty th? dijr\.t<-r of tlu huh
(

I . R. I,

In > the

!h, i

and it

■

wh'

R Ratio >n;

of thc high-pressure

/) Dismeter of low-prcssu-

inJ
cz= Clearance of thc hi. ^ure

ince of thc 1 ^ure

•rokc completed at
cutoff.

appear in the f pan of

dcr »hen t loose. Tbe

real CSS

ch- pressure
r and then a ponton of •

'* lOW. W*hc

• is desired or a high de-

of co:

■ tbe U

:ceeod upon tbe

ssure as veil as the point of

closure of the e

s no free expansion or

B a point, there is do escape
of si

•oportion of

passed rrsaurr

would be tbe pro-
on of thc completed at

•
hau loess »hcn tbe stroke is

lbs cor he volume

laced » • fifths of tbe die-

placement of the hi»
and - ^placement Is

i
or <>H Since thc
rider is

i the lot
* portion of the
-n high

■

.».,

Tbe numb

m thc | 0

tbe product of tbe roe, or

< 1 1 tutlng t»-<
asaumrv.'
• ouU ghre

-am in-

a OSSSSM

186

POWER

January 31, 191 1.

Confessions of an

By R. O. Warren

Over a week passed before Manager
Wood again came into the engine room,
although I had seen him several times out
in the boiler room, not that he interfered
with the firemen, but he seemed to be
noting how the men did their work.

If I had had enough sense, I would
have known that Wood was getting in-
terested in the combustion conditions of
the plant, but for eight months I had seen
that the firemen kept up steam and that
seemed, to me, to signify that my fire-
room force was well organized.

I had read about and discussed boiler-
room conditions, time and time again, and
had pointed out the mismanagement of
other steam plants, but somehow or other
it never seemed necessary for me to look
into the working condition of my own.

The local association members had
been discussing the combustion of coal
for years, and had taken up the subject
of CO-, showing how the economy of a
steam plant could be increased if a high
CO; could be maintained. I had been
greatly interested in the subject, but as
soon as I found out that an instrument
cost up in the hundreds of dollars, I came
to the conclusion that the matter was
not of enough importance for me to
bother with, as the chances were, I as-
sumed, that the firm would turn it down
if I should ask them to purchase a CO^
recorder costing so much money.

Now, I knew that air leaking into a
furnace through a boiler setting reduced
the furnace efficiency to a considerable
extent, and I had, therefore, sealed all
cracks, so that the boiler setting was in
good shape.

For this reason I did not bother much
about Wood looking around, but I did
make up my mind that if he interfered
with the men there would be an under-
standing as to who was chief engineer.

Wood, however, was a sensible man,
and gave me no opportunity of demon-
strating which of us was "boss." If I
had known him better, and cut out some
of my own self-importance, I would have
been better off in many ways.

The second visit of Wood was made
one forenoon while everything was work-
ing to perfection. The firemen had the
boiler pressure at the blowing-off point
and were sitting down, contented that
there was sufficient steam and a little
more.

"Good morning, Warren," said he.
"How are things going?"

"Fine as a fiddle," I answered, noting
with satisfaction that the boiler pressure
was up above the normal working point,
and that the engine was cutting off
shorter than usual.

"Got some pretty good firemen?" was
his next question.

"Can't be beat," I answered. "They are

The chief gives the firemen
their own way and jails to
realize how much coal is
being wasted. The mana-
ger makes some suggestions
which result in a large sav-
ing.

the best boys in the town, willing to
work and will do just what they are told.
The only trouble is that they will take
advantage of me if I am not strict. They
are like most people for that matter. If
you give them an inch, they will take a
foot. I don't have much to do with them,
because they are apt to get familiar,
which won't do." I said this with con-
siderable pride, as I felt that such a
stand added to the dignity of my posi-
tion.

Engineer

I acknowledged that he was right, sup-
posing that Wood was speaking on gen-
eralities.

"You said a little while ago that the
firemen would take a foot if you gave
them an inch. I should judge they had
taken something like a yard this morn-
ing."

"How so?" said I, and I was never
more surprised in my life.

"Well," said Wood, "they have allowed
the safety valves on the boilers to blow
for over ten minutes since I've been in
here, and I have heard them blowing off
several times before this morning. They
surely have different instructions than
that."

"Of course," I replied. But to tell
the truth I had never told the firemen
anything about blowing safety valves. I
assumed that they would look after the
matter without instructions from me.

I made up my mind I would give them
a "jacking up" as soon as Wood went
away. I never did, however, for, after

The Manager Had Me Guessing

Wood said nothing, but coughed slight-
ly. After a pause he said, "Good firemen
are scarce, and men who would make
good firemen are not properly trained.
The losses a fireman causes in a steam
plant are next to the furnace losses,
which are the largest. In my opinion a
good fireman has greater responsibility,
as far as fuel is concerned, than the en-
gineer. The engineer's business is to
see that instructions are carried out, and
if he fails to do so and the fireman shirks
his duties, the plant is in a bad way, from
an economical standpoint at least."

our little seance was over, I came to
the conclusion that no one was to blame
but myself.

Continuing, Wood said: "The blowing
of a safety valve means that coal has
been burned in heating water and chang-
ing it into steam that will never do any
work in the engine cylinder. So far as
the company is concerned, the coal might
just as well be thrown into the streets.
You can see the point, can't you?"

Yes, I could see the point, and I felt
like kicking myself when I thought that
it was necessary for the new manager

January 31. 1911.

■ U \ H

to call my attention»to»the fact that l#was
allowing my firemen to waste coal by let-
ting the safety valves blow off for long
periods. I tried to justify myself by say-
ing. "The firemen should know better
than to get up such a head of steam."

"You can't blame the firemen for |
ting through the day lly as -

can. If th<. getting three or four

dollars a day it would be a different pro-
position. It is up to the chief engineer to
see that only such methods are pract
as produce econon

\ man don't like to keep jawing his
men all the time." 1 grumbled, trying
to justify my shortcomings.

"It isn't necosar\ ." replied Wood
chief engineer should be obliged to issue
an order but once and the men should be
made to know that when an ord
sued, there is but one way out of it. and
that is to obey it."

"I kucsn you would have a good time
getting the men in most boiler rooms
obeying every order." I answered. '
was becoming nettled by the way Wood
was getting at me.

There uould be no trouble at all. The

first disobedience of orders might be

looked, but the man should be

The second occurrence would

ably end in the discharge of the man

unless a good •orthcoming.

If an engineer cannot enforce hi-

he does not know how to handle men.
then he is most likely to be a failure-
There must be someone about the steam
plant who is in charts

As Wood said this he looked through
me. so it seemed, a ho\* I felt that

he meant me. and that I was getting
what I deserved.

• I Jnn't have that kind of trouble with

ct along all

J that there
little friction, but perhaps you do not

• ur autl en trill

on with their chief so long as th<
their own u long as he is an '

mar*

hope not." rcj I '>od. and after

a pause sa<

arc chief cngi » plant. I am

manage

the mill, a
get the steam plant running on as
nomical a ba*i» a» the

and th.t
wh<

he men don't thro* a * .« . coal. I
have Matched the r that

thing." I r< and m

more than one
ing swi

seen It don ce since I came

her

J like ' I Chi

although I wa« beginning tn tee that

Wood had me corr ut just at -

point I did not know.

the man-
ager through
the boiler room, one of the men had a
door open, but before throwing in a
charge of fresh fuel, he stopped to fill
a pipe, light it and crack a
one of the other men. All of this time
cold air was being drawn into the -

re, and coal was thrown a
in heating that cold air. Tt- be

no doubt about that, can the

rather faintly, for he
had me " as the sa ere

was nothing else to say. I knew he was
right. I knew that a loss was occasioned

ry time a furnace door was
but here again I had failed to put my
kno- I had

the thing that was lackir . not

Been J not think

that such a small matter made much
difference one way or another. I had not
taken the trouble to figure out that a
loss here and a little loss somewhere
else, added together, made a big item in
the to) it. H< n it was

a case of dozing in the engine room
while the firemen allowed wastes to <
that I should have prevented I the

worst of it was. the new manager had
noticed the loose w >ilcr

cing mana.

!y one instance." I man-
aged to sa i could probably c
into the boiler room a hundred times and
never see a man do such a Ih

I vent a little further a
returned and • set that he

■

' see a
But I knew he would
if a fireman would do an- ular

thin;

• at that." »..
■
I rcfe-

I the fires
nacc. The hat the the

furnace and the b< »cd to

and good coal is thrown

! retorted.
though It.

ng of the eon ted Wood

■ to coal d

the rate of combustion in e boiler '
once depends upon the redo of heating

to gra and

the condition or -J the char-

the Co*

-dy know* tba

%«id he. "what is the I
I consumption per sejnnro
foot of gra
and »hat kind of coal would yon u*

guess, and poor
coal and boiler sett
\aguc recollections of such figures came
mental vision.

TOOdS," I

to he
and the best of fun-.

"I about

replied Wood. "That would mesn about

hor per ho

pounds of cool

ire foo-
If the amount of coal is less, i

lount 0

If r

of the furna.

.. around that and

I a

*o. then b*-

:h I •

h tl

that th« - thing

Jing a '

■ heat going

and m i". mar 1c f«gg*Otioo

then 'ie presaur The reoul rrtse le mm When

closet •huttinc off the draft in the up tH< • re • » '<- v>VJ to cwt out - <■

ore

mioo of the

Clo«

arr

Jon

ut ■soft thar. 1 had IM
! "■ not Sr<

and tht

rrtan of the

that a fcaa^a^a^ao

am not run-

wot: getting alo

y*»f tunc *a% not '

■gat art. N,t
to ect open)

188

POWER

January 31, 1911.

boiler, as they were at the end of the
day's run, considerable grumbling was
indulged in, which showed me that the
manager was correct when he said that
men could get on with their chief so long
as they had their own way.

But the boiler was cut out, and the
plant was run with one less boiler than
it had been for the remainder of my stay.
The difference was that the men had to
fire oftener; the damper seldom closed
and the coal consumption was greatly re-
duced; just how much, I do not recollect
at this late day.

■ a

Low Pressure Refrigerating

System

By R. C. Turner

The illustration shows an interesting
little refrigerating system which is in-
stalled at the Commerce Hall building in
Atlanta. The machine is of the single-
acting type, of 1 ton capacity, and is
driven by a 2-horsepower motor. The re-
frigerant used is Picteau fluid, and only a
very small charge (22 pounds) is re-
quired for the system.

It will produce a ton of ice upon the
cost of 12 kilowatt-hours and 60 min-
utes labor charge, -the machine being in
charge of the elevator operator. The
cost of power being 36 cents and that of
labor 25 cents, shows that a ton of ice

tern is ready. The best results are ob-
tained with a condenser pressure of 60
pounds, a suction equal to 2 inches of
vacuum, and the machine running at
about 65 revolutions per minute.

The machine, having an inclosed crank
case, requires no attention; one gallon
of oil put into the crank case being
enough for a six months' run. The best
oil for the purpose is a fine grade of
transformer oil, on account of its free-
dom from moisture.

Exhaust Steam in Low

Pressure Turbines

By George F. Fenno

There are enough good things that can
be said about exhaust-steam turbines,
without giving false impressions; and
engineers should realize just how much
power an exhaust-steam turbine can get
out of the exhaust from reciprocating en-
gines. The statement is usually made
that, theoretically, there is very nearly
as much power to be gained from the
expansion of steam from atmospheric
pressure to a 28-inch vacuum, referred
to a 30-inch barometer, as is possible
from steam at 150 pounds gage expand-
ing down to atmosphere. This is very
nearly true; but in a recently issued cata-
log of a turbine builder the statement is
made that if a pound of dry saturated

Refrigerating Outfit

is produced for 56 cents, not including
any depreciation charges, which at the
most would be only a cent or two.

The method of operation is as follows:
First, the expansion valves are closed
tightly, then the motor is started and the
freezing coils are pumped down to 2
inches of vacuum; next, the expansion
valves are cracked slightly and the sys-

steam is expanded from 150 pounds
gage to atmospheric pressure, 176 B.t.u.
are available for conversion into work,
when the expansion is adiabatic; that is,
without receiving heat from or imparting
heat to any outside body. It is then
stated that a pound of dry saturated
steam expanding from atmospheric pres-
sure to a 28-inch vacuum renders 169

B.t.u. available for turning into work. A
comparison of these figures shows that
the expansion of steam in the lower
range renders available for useful work
only 7 B.t.u. less than that given up by
the expansion of steam in the upper
range. While these statements are true,
the comparison is not fair, for if starting
with a pound of dry saturated steam at
150 pounds, this same pound of steam is
not saturated after expanding down to
atmosphere. Therefore, the statement
of the turbine builder assumes that the
steam at atmospheric pressure has a
much higher heat content than is usually
the case. For instance, using the Marks
and Davis entropy diagram, it will be
found that when the original pound of
dry and saturated steam expands from
150 pounds gage to atmospheric pres-
sure it does give up about 176 B.t.u.
which a perfect engine could convert in-
to work, but that at the end of this ex-
pansion which, it must be remembered, is
done at the expense of the internal en-
ergy of the steam, the steam has a quality
of approximately 85.7 per cent. This is
on theoretical grounds alone.' In actual
practice the quality of the steam will not
be as high as this, due to cylinder con-
densation and radiation. However, to
give the turbine the benefit of all doubt,
assume that the quality is as high as
85.7 per cent. Now, in order to make a
fair comparison, it must be remembered
that the exhaust turbine must take the
steam at this point and expand it down
to the vacuum. Of course, in practice the
turbine does not receive wet steam, as
separators are inserted in the line; but
this does not alter the argument, for this
means that for every 100 pounds of dry
steam used by the reciprocating engine,
the exhaust-steam turbine receives only
85.7 pounds of dry steam at atmospheric
pressure.

Starting at this point, with the steam at
atmospheric pressure and with a quality
of 85.7 per cent., and expanding it down
to a 28-inch vacuum, referred to a 30-
inch barometer, the heat content will drop
from 1018 B.t.u. to about 869.7 B.t.u.
That is, in the lower range of expansion
there are really only 148.3 B.t.u. avail-
able for converting into useful work dur-
ing adiabatic expansion, instead of 169
B.t.u. as claimed in the pamphlet referred
to. So that, whereas this pamphlet claims
that 96 per cent, as much energy is avail-
able in the lower range of expansion as in
the upper; in fact, when correctly figured
out, this proportion is only 84.3 per cent.

However, this 84 per cent, is well
worth conserving, and turbine builders
should be satisfied with it. Nevertheless,
manufacturers should be careful about
the statements they make in their litera-
ture, especially as engineers nowadays
freely consult the catalogs of manufac-
turing concerns, realizing that they often
contain the latest information in regard
to the advance of engineering science.

January 31, 1911.

PO\X

ISO

The Straight Flow Steam

Engine

In a paper read before the Berlin I'
trict meeting of the Vercir. -her

Ingenicure. Prof. J. Stumpf. of the Char-
lottenburg Engineering College. Ger-
many, inventor of the straight-flow steam
engine, of which the principle o:
tion has been described in a pi
sue of this paper. ther-

mal principles and published the
details of construction and some operat-
ing performances, which should be of
great interest to all readers familiar with
steam-engine operation.

General Prp-

In treating the thermal principles, he
compares his one-cylinder creation
throughout with the triple- and even the
quadruple-expansion engine, becauv.
ratio of steam expansion is about equal
to that in these running from 1 to

i I to 30 or even higher, at
to the load and initial steam pi
Sec I

That these high e ^ns can be ob-

tained economically in a nder

is due to the straight flow of the steam
through the cylinder similar to the

MPLE D

and exhaust flow of the dot;

e gas engine of
CB the elongated piston acts as an
haust valve :ng slots in t

die of the - shell l

at the beginning of the t

\«. I the

■team, which prefcrat* highly

superheated, enter* the engine through
the
and is i I into |l

c and afu r
.irge
in the

ire op-
t as a huge
advanu. this at

n b«
! | thermal

Tl El

The main thermal advantagr
that the rte lur

n a ry • *

By Kulot Klein

at I,
It

, h. Id.

in G< rm

:r here. The loss of heat necessary

e as follows:

The steam entering the c
heated by tl.e c -ion charge

high t- ring

the cxpan-

h an extent that at the end of the
Ice the steam Jcat

of n :h the e

of t .n near c steart

ider head which
heat m that

■cam fo

■
faces and therefore contain^

iturc and absorb* tome

n it lati mpression

•lginc e ;

•ieat

ppcJ ■ modern re! nt».

nsuasa-

■

same figure brings out iiic i:

mov the combined diagram to

at a

- ' > *

points not only a portion

so the
ing amount of beat oa account of the

■ •

rpUcatioa to the k

■■ gainc team enter

• maim
and cool that on acceaat of the t

absorb heat

and rcra.n wmt leat ent

■

•
eat to the coolest mcam of

enndcrv.- ;• -vure to r-avc it Jr.xcn M
through

the

bef trappeJ the

Besides the above fca-..-c». Rg. 3 to

f 2

on baioeea m* md

lam
MJ aSMMl e# r

A r «

r • *•

Mama has asm1

190

POWER

January 31, 191 1.

same power as a compound engine, al-
though its efficient area is only four-
fifths of the area of the low-pressure
piston of the latter.

is to the entire stroke. At lower vacua
or atmospheric exhaust, modifications
have been made in the described simple
construction, in order to prevent the corn-

Combined Diagram of Triple Expansion Engine —

Dia. High Pressure Cylinder 13.8

Dia. Intermediate Pressure Cylinder— 21.6

Dia. Low Pressure Cylinder 34.6

Common Stroke — 19.7

Diagram of Straight Flow Engine

Dia. of Cylinder — 33

Stroke— 19.7"

Atmosphere
Line

— Zero Line

Fic. 3. A Comparison of Diagrams

The compression stroke for the straight-
flow engine has also its advantages above
that cf an ordinary triple-expansion en-
gine as the steam comes in contact with
ho. :r surfaces the more it is compressed,
while in the ordinary engine the surfaces
of the compression chamber are im-
mediately before swept by the cool ex-
haust steam. The compression in the
new engine, which is carried higher than
that in an ordinary engine, equals about
the combined compression of the triple-
expansion engine with which this engine
should be compared. That the tempera-
ture of the steam at the end of the com-
pression stroke is well above that of the
inlet steam and greatly superheated, is
shown by the following figures. Dry
saturated steam at 28 '/ inches vacuum,
compressed adiabatically to 177 pounds
absolute, or 162 pounds gage pressure,
will have a temperature of 1730 degrees
Fahrenheit. The temperature of steam
at 177 pounds gage pressure and 250
degrees superheat is only 628 degrees
Fahrenheit.

High compression from high vacua to
steam-inlet pressures seems more or less
a necessary evil of this type of engine
as the time of closing of the exhaust
port is fixed at such a fraction of the
stroke as the length of the exhaus* slots

pression from running above the admis-
sion line.

To meet these requirements three dis-
tinct modifications have been made. For

heads outside of the actual steam chest.
With a valve in the head, this addition
of the clearance can be closed off. For
noncondensing operations a clearance of
16 per cent, has been found necessary,
quite a good deal larger than the \y2
per cent, of clearance necessary with a
vacuum of 28H inches, or the 3 per cent.
of our Corliss engines.

For locomotive engines running like-
wise noncondensing, the clearance is en-
larged artificially to \iy2 per cent, by
concave construction of the piston ends.
See Fig. 4. This design, in principle the
same as the previous, has proved very
efficient in tests made by the Prussian
State Railway. Three locomotives were
built especially to compare the merits
of the straight-flow, the piston-valve and
the Lentz valve engines. The compari-
son of coal consumption for these dif-
ferent types was respectively in the
ratios 1, 1.19 and 1.285, giving the
straight-flow engine an advantage of 19
per cent, over the piston-valve engine and
of 28r_. per cent, above the engine
equipped with Lentz valves.

The poor showing of the Lentz valves
was partly due to the design of the cyl-
inder, of which both inlet and exhaust
valves were located in one long steam
port. This feature is in direct opposition
to the straight-flow principle, as the steam
passage is effectively cooled by the ex-
haust just before the admission of the
live steam.

The latest design of noncondensing
straight-flow steam engine, which bears
witness of the resourcefulness of the in-
ventor, is shown in Fig. 5. A piston valve
is placed inside the piston directly below
the rod. It is operated by a little rocker
arm, which is attached to the crosshead
end of the connecting rod, and rocks

fiU

(J Power

Fig. 4. Locomotive Cylinder, Showing Piston of Concave Construction

the stationary engine with atmospheric
exhaust the clearance has been artificially
enlarged by means of an extra compres-
sion chamber in each of the cylinder

about the crosshead pin as center. The
valve alternately opens one side of the
piston or the other to the respective cyl-
inder ends, procuring passage for the ex-

January 31, 191 1.

PO¥ !

101

haust steam from these ends through its
seat and the holes in the side of the :
ton to the exhaust slots. These va
close a trifle after the exhaust slots are
closed by the second set of piston r
passing them. It is clear that the pi

Noncon-
. Stkaicht-fl

that portion of the Meant which a
heat from the cylinder heads during the
latter part of the expansion st-
rapped for repression.

As Professor Stumpf says, in tt
nary engine a thermal washing takes
plat faces are heated and cooled

constantly, wh: gine both

la are hot and stay the com-

mon exhau
cylinder is cool and stays cool.

Ith all the thermal
his engine, the inventor calls for
higher superheat than is alrc.t
luropcan power house*. He claims
engine is in better condition to ut
i: than any other, on account of its large
ratio of expansion cam

it the end of the sr-
if the highest degree of present super-
heating is app!

Con mbs

As to the const- advantages of

engine, we - the

absence of exhaust gear anJ the

only visible m< rhc rod.

'H on top of the cylindc-
the va!-- means of roller and cam

similar to the ar of the bio-

of the Southward
chine Company, ol

As is sho. '■. the slot contain-

ing the rollers is at the same time H

•
so that oil cannot be
nor dust enter. Tl

if a labyrinth packing.
in, elongated to the length of
• c minus that of the exhaust port.
offers a large bearing

all, wh: .it the r

sure on the crank pin is approxtm»- ,
constant over the entire stroke, moat of

steam pressure being
sorted by the iner* -ocarJag

be imparled later to the
en the steam pressure tut

I'immii roa x(.

CONMKSJMC

atmosp'
ren thn at

fl ■ M AAAMfl xtlffl T« in | ,- f\ \A |l*am fnaf Mi

- efficiency. »> slmo

J In thr

rrviPf>K"iii"f fi"

' '

.1 tine f J ol i*

a the Itnt pi * diagram.

• mam i»oe be*

•r ■ '

and bt i

192

POWER

January 31, 191 1.

necessary, and also a very solid founda-
tion, for the inertia, which tends to cause
vibration, is many times greater with this
engine than with an ordinary steam en-
gine of the same power, especially with
cross-compound or triple-expansion en-
gines where the different sets of recipro-

It is to be compared with the low-
pressure part of a triple-expansion en-
gine able to stand the live-steam pres-
sure, necessitating a heavy construction
tnroughout and to develop the energy of
all three cylinders combined requiring
enormous bearings. To add to this fea-

Fig. 9. Diagram from Quadruple-
expansion Engine

eating parts balance each other more or
less.

On account of the absence of valves
below the cylinder of this engine, room
is left for immediate connection to the
condenser. A surface condenser attached
is shown in Fig. 8. The design of the
condenser proper is interesting. It offers
a large tube area to the inrushing ex-
haust steam, and is provided with simple
trays, which convey the condensate to

TABLE 1. TEST ON THE STRAIGHT FLOW

ENGINE OF THE ELSASSISCHEN

MASCHINEN FABRIK.

Steam Engine.

Average gage pressure at throttle, lb.

per sq.in 179

Average gage pressure at inlet of cyl-
inder, lb. per sq.in 169

Average steam temperature at throttle,

deg. F 628

Average steam temperature at inlet,

deg. F 581

Vacuum in cylinder, in. of mercury, abs. 4.35
Vacuum at oil separator, in. of mer-
cury, abs 3 . 63

Vacuum in condenser, in. of mercury,

abs 2 . 25

Revolutions per minute 121

Indicated horsepower 503. 1

Brake horsepower 465 . 7

Mechanical efficiency, per cent 92.5

Steam consumption, lb. per I.H.P.-hr.. 10. 1

Temperature of cooling water entering

condenser, deg. F 54

Temperature of cooling water and con-
densate leaving condenser, deg. F. . . 88
Pounds of cooling water per pound of

steam 30

Generator.

Arnoeres 1277

V-.lt-> 250

Kilowatts generated . . . . 319.4

Efficiency, per cent 93

Net kilowatts 307

Steam consumption, lb. per kw.-hr. . . 16 ">

the outlet, preventing the detrimental
flooding of the tubes.

Where an invention has so many ad-
vantages as just described, it is hardly
possible lhat not a few drawbacks are at-
tached to it. To the great inertia forces
of the reciprocating parts and the large
clearance necessary for the noncondens-
ing engines of this type, may be added its
enormous maximum piston pressure per
horsepower, which necessitates the de-
sign of extremely heavy parts.

Eowtr*

Fig. 10. Diagram from Straight-flow
Engine

tiire the piston and correspondingly the
cylinder are abnormally long, which is a
feature of all center-exhaust engines.

The cost per unit of power of this en-
gine, calling for a lean diagram for the
most economical operation, will there-
fore be somewhat higher than that of
the ordinary single-cylinder engine, al-
though the absence of exhaust-valve
gears rectifies this feature to a certain
degree. Compared with a compound- or
triple-expansion engine, however, with
which it so successfully competes in
economy, this engine is a good deal
cheaper, the reason why it has met with
great success in Europe, where its manu-
facture is taken up by almost all leading
engine builders. To date, over half a

unfortunately throttled the connection to
the high vacuum in the condenser, the
engine consumed 10.1 pounds of steam
per indicated horsepower-hour and 16.5
pounds per net kilowatt-hour, including
power for the operation of the condenser.
That these records have been lowered to
8.5 and 14.4 respectively by a 300-horse-
power engine, is shown in Table 2, where
the performance of such a small single-
cylinder engine is compared with the
hitherto most economical triple-expansion
engines. In this table are also shown
performances of still smaller engines.

Besides the merit of high economy, the
straight-flow engine has also a flat effi-
ciency curve, which means that at frac-
tional load or overload it consumes only
little more steam per unit of power than
at normal load.

The 33 moving parts compared with
the 228 on the other engines show its
simple construction, which is reason of
its low oil consumption and of its being
called the "engine with nothing to it."

This feature is especially important
with marine engines, where vibrations
have to be reduced to a minimum..

Professor Stumpf admits that for
smaller capacities, when three or more
cylinders are not necessary, his engine
stands behind the ordinary type, but
claims its superiority with capacities
where the application of a great many
cylinders is justified, giving for compari-
son the diagrams of a quadruple-expan-
sion and the new engine, Figs. 9 and 10.

In these diagrams the shaded parts
represent losses which are 45 to 40 per
cent, in Fig. 9 and only 20 per cent, in
Fig. 10. This proves also that the cyl-
inder diameter of the four-unit straight-

TABLE 2. COMPARISON OF OPERATING PERFORMANCES OF TRIPLE-EXPANSION
STEAM ENGINES AND STRAIGHT-FLOW STEAM ENGINES.

Indi-
cated
Horse-
power.

Diameter of Cylin-
ders in Inches.

Stroke

in
Inhces.

Rev.
per
Min.

Number

of
Moving
Parts.

Steam.

Steam Con-
sumption per

Manufacturers.

High.

Low.

U |
DQ

i q5

Q. —

I.H.P.

per
Hour.

Kw.

per
Hour.

Sulzer, Switzerland. . . .

Gorlitz, (iermany

Nurnberg, Germany . . .

Sulzer, Switzerland. . . .
Same engine

Best
6000
6000
6000

300

Perf
40
40
41

ORMAN

60
60
60

S
23.5
23.5
12.6
17.8

CE OF

2x73
2x73
2x73

TRAIG

Statio
67
67
67

ht Flo
31.5
31.5
19.8
23.5

NARY

w Ste

155

200

180

Triple

228

AM ENG

33
33

Exp

170
170
170

INES.

130
130

149
138

ANSIO

572
572
572

617

0
662
662

n Eng
8.5
8.5

8.5

10.6

9.7

9.5

INES.

13.7
13.7
13.7

13.7

Gebr. Stock, Holland . .
Burmeister, Denmark. .

million horsepower are built or in course
of manufacture.

Operative Features

After the completion of a couple of
small experimental engines in 1908, the
first 500-horsepower engine was tested
in February, 1909. A log of this test is
given in Table 1. It shows that with a
gage pressure of 179 pounds, 628 de-
grees steam temperature and a vacuum
of 26.4 inches at an oil separator, which

flow engine can be made smaller than
that of the low-pressure cylinder of a
quadruple-expansion engine of the same,
power.

After being given the speed of a Cor-
liss engine, diameter of shaft, diameter
of governor pulley and desired speed of
engine, an applicant for a first-class en-
gineer's license said he would raise the
steam pressure to increase the speed of
the engine.

January 31, 1911.

103

Electrical Department

c itechism «>f Electricitj

duction Motor

1 1 3-4. M7jy
built with comma- ind brushi

'i ?

In order to make them start auto-
matically and with a strong torque when
the connections with the supply circuit
are closed. An ordinary single-phase in-
duction motor will not start when cur-
rent is passed through the stator winding.

1135. Wkjf ."> the ordinary induction
motor unable t

Because the magnetic Meld set up by the
winding ind merely induces

currents in the rotor conductors exactly
as the primary winding of a transformer
induces current in the secondary winding.
The currents in the r -. do

hot react on the Held in such a way as
to cause the rotor to turn, and it n
therefore, be started up by some .
means. Tbc commutator motors start au-
tomatically, and with a fairly good power
factor.

I! >m-

mut

■t automatic ■

ulc-phasc motor can be made
'art without using a commutator, and
many self-starting motors are built with-
out the commutator arrangement.

I M7 H ha!
the

An an ^tator winding which p

duces a magr
phase with the field produced by the main

*s a motor of this
kind.

1 1
mot
The stator is of the same general con-

Fic. 371

fflM

it of t!

sut the
hng is .:

! a starting

all induction motors.
I IJh

t of »

In or the **»;

effect Tt Jmg. being of

•ma at a much higher resist-

ancc than t

numbc- tba

their reactances arc
. of it

dines tad this
causes the currcr cm to be out

each other. The msfoftr
'oduced by the t«o wind

H and combine to
form a resultant r

>e that of j
uing f i the rotor

1141 ■ ■ i srisJ

but the

cmor » i tvfeel

the -hen the speed Is

almost ie regi.

e motor requires onl
1 lead a
can be supplied from a

rhase or

is • • r • I

•tar- e addltisosl advantage

that

•orf*m*r

i .- .- •

SLL

■

^■QEEDKS

■• •

. . -

e motor The t
iced in I not » Th

\ding motor

he rot
e simple equ
load or a

me soc

irrese Is eve ■

MM |i

194

POWER

January 31, 1911.

1143. How are single-phase motors
connected to two-phase circuits?

If the circuit is of the proper voltage
for the motor, it is connected directly to
either of the two "legs" or phases of the
circuit, but if the circuit is a high-voltage
primary line, a transformer must be used
between the line and the motor; in that
case the transformer may be connected
to either leg of the supply circuit. Fig.
372 is a diagram showing these methods.
The motor A is connected directly to a
110-volt lighting circuit which is sup-
plied through a transformer from one
leg of a two-phase primary circuit. The
motor B is supplied through a trans-
former from the other leg of the same
primary line, and the motor C is con-
nected to one leg of a secondary 220-
volt circuit which delivers current also to
a two-phase motor D.

1144. How are single-phase motors
connected to a three-phase circuit?

Each motor is connected to two wires
of the circuit, either directly or through a
single transformer. Fig. 373 shows con-
nections in which each motor is connected
in the same way, relatively, as the motor
bearing the same letter in Fig. 372.

1145. Are there any disadvantages in
the operation of single-phase motors on
two-phase and three-phase circuits?

Yes. Both two-phase and three-phase
circuits should be balanced as to the
division of load between the different
phases, and a single-phase motor op-
erated on one phase or leg will unbal-
ance the system. It is important, there-
fore, to have the same total motor load
connected to both legs of a two-phase or
all three legs of a three-phase system,
and it is almost impossible to get such a
division of load with a large number of
single-phase motors on either of the sys-
tems, especially a three-phase system.

currents at the brush faces will in time
injure the contact surface and visible
sparking will result. An examination of
the motors of numerous industrial plants
shows that the majority of motors are run-
ning with their bruhes not set at the
neutral lines.

The writer has devised and used suc-
cessfully a method of setting brushes
which does not require expensive instru-
ments or special apparatus. All that is
required is a short piece of No. 12 in-
sulated copper wire from which the in-
sulation has been removed for a couple
of inches from one end; this end is

.No. I? Wire

A New Method of Setting
Brushes Accurately

By C. A. Boddie

A great deal of the sparking and com-
mutator trouble in direct-current machin-
ery is due to incorrect brush setting.
In most industrial plants the voltmeter
method of finding the neutral is either
unknown or inconvenient.

Those in charge of direct-current ma-
chinery usually determine the best brush
position by shifting the yoke back and
forth until a position of minimum spark-
ing is found. If the brushes are in good
condition, they may be shifted through a
considerable range before sparking de-
velops. The usual intention is to fix the
brushes in a mean position between the
forward and backward limits set by
sparking. This method is too rough. As
long as the brushes are in good condi-
tion the machine may run sparklessly
even though they are not on the neutral
lines; but invisible sparking due to local

Fig. 1. Testing Wire

flattened and tapered to a point, as shown
in Fig. 1. It will be found convenient
to bend the end backward as indicated.
When the machine is running and carry-
ing its regular load, the wire should be
brought into contact with the commutator
and carefully moved toward the brush
until it touches it. Usually the toe of the
brush is the edge which sparks, and this
edge should be tested first. If the brush
spits and glows when touched with the
wire, the brushes are not on the neutral
line corresponding to the load on the ma-
chine.

Both the toe and the heel of the brush
should be tested and the yoke shifted
until the glowing stops. The brushes on
each arm of the machine should be tested.
If some spark while others do not, this is
an indication that the spacing is not right.
If a position cannot be found where the
glowing stops, it shows there is something

Fig. 2. Method of Testing

wrong in the adjustment or in the design
of the machine. Small 500-volt machines
and machines having high commutator
speed will always spark more or less
under this test, but the sparking is very
slight if the machine is in good condi-
tion, even when carrying full load.

This test is based on the fact that a
copper wire simultaneously in contact
with the commutator and brush provides
a low-resistance path between the two.
The carrying capacity at the point of con-
tact on the brush is low, so that if the
potential is greater than it should be,
enough current flows to heat this point to
incandescence.

LETTERS

Mr. Greer's Rotary Con-
verter Trouble

Mr. Greer's description, in the Novem-
ber 15 issue, of the peculiar behavior
of his rotary converters interested me
very much. For several years I have
been operating rotary converters in paral-
lel on both the alternating-current and
direct-current sides without intervening
transformers on the alternating-current
side, and have had abundant opportunity
to observe the conditions which arise
from this method of operation.

When rotary converters are connected
together on both the alternating-current
and direct-current sides, a complete local
circuit is formed by two converters and
the alternating-current and direct-current
busbars and a difference in the conditions
of operation in the two machines — a
slight difference in the relative positions
of the direct-current brushes of the two
machines, for example — will cause large
cross currents to flow in this local cir-
cuit and produce many other peculiar
conditions, one of which Mr. Greer de-
scribed. J

When two converters are running in
parallel under the conditions stated, if
one direct-current terminal of one ma-
chine is disconnected from the busbar,
current will flow in the other lead, pro-
vided the direct-current voltages of the
two machines are not exactly equal. The
direction the current will take through
this lead depends on whether the direct-
current voltage of that machine is higher
or lower than that of the other machine.
With the machines I am operating, if the
positive and equalizer switches are
opened on machine No. 1 (the equalizer
is on the positive side), and the field
strengthened until a leading current of
94 per cent, power factor is obtained,
equal currents will flow in the negative
leads of both Nos. 1 and 2. Weakening
the field of No. 1 will decrease the cur-
rent in its negative lead until at 100 per
cent, power factor the current is zero and
further weakening of the field causes cur-
rent to flow in the opposite direction —
that is, in a positive direction in the nega-
tive lead — and at 94 per cent, leading
power factor the current reaches the same
value as before, but the machine is run-
ning inverted.

Mr. Greer's diagram of circuits does
not show the direct-current ammeter con-
nections, but the proper connections for
them would be in the negative leads and
I have assumed that they are so con-
nected. He says that when an attempt
was made to run the large machine, No.
1, in parallel with the smaller machines,
No. 1 took all the load, indicating that at
the busbar connections No. 1's voltage
was slightly higher than that of the
smaller machines, and this condition
would cause all the current from the rail

January 31, 1911.

to pass through N negat:.

and armature, and that coming from the
g through • -mg-

current leads and busbars to the smaller
machines. If Mr. Greer had ins<
ammeters in the r of Nos.

2 and 3, he would have found that
rent was flowing in them to the
feeder and when the direct-current -
of 2 and 3 wei J from the

•ars that current was intcrrur

:h accounts for N

- load and the potential falling to that
of the distant west-er ation.

reason the ammeter i
and 3 went against the stops was bec>
an equalizing cross current was flu.
in the local circuit mentioned at-
tween the two smaller machines and
No. 1.

In the accompanying diagram the pa
and directions of the currents from the
smaller machine to the feeder and rail
through the armature of No. 1 and the
alternating-current busbars ar

means of an o- would be •

intc

Ha O.

In the Im

ng the

■

A m* •
and nation would I

in I nt th.v

due rating i from a

common set of alternating-current bus*
bars, but the rem.; (na-

tion ;>ie des«.

tion of the behavi<

will sec that it was not simply in
change of current beta
others, but that No. 1 i
ing the load on bot -s. although the

ictually separated at the
:hboard because, a- Harwell

point the mach

'ong arr n the

c lead of No. I
that not or.
the net-
ting through It. 1

of the nt in the

IOC Si C l

The rcMiliarr

' and alternant
i the .i
I was :
act*
let* nuch .!

■

| the grc j

;gh the armatures anJ
ads urv

. I 11 k IlKv

e ef

in the i

J substation I

ige of the

■

t. which
ao tmtll as u at

a ditat

operator, vbich ao i .
osi or.
not. unpo%- •

coced mac poaitioo in thn*

lied
lab- on the

is man

■i». and

am co

secured «ho found

and the load was so light
(ha* • reentry to run both i

together until one

ted the

and take the first one off the line,
of the connections had sf

nchronixir.c lamps should
machines >

■
bed on the lamp.
• heo the
lamp darkened jrpnsc :

find that the la lid not glow

and af- mhioo

: and si

some trouble In
;uit ar.

hi load on the

first one until time for shutting - •■•- A

i of the lamp

ould he

ironiring lamp

■
•rrnt to the
-i filed itn In paw

•i the metal had contracted

COld r'

the llad plnot
dent tr hi sen

• ould *
the

' • gimratori
pooothle o«t l
srhen the light *tst mat. ih« now op
c mat' old

c the t » k ' > 'o gnnd

i i t P««s
>c destruction of both ges>

. •. vrU

196

POWER

January 31, 1911.

Some Simple Handy Tools

By James E. Noble

A friend has several tools which cost
only a few cents for material; the work
of shaping them he did himself.

Fig. 1 is a tapered wedge made of
steel, which is useful for separating
flanges, prying off cylinder heads, scrap-
ing off old packing from flanges, etc.

Fig. 1. Steel Wedge

Fig. 2 is a cleaner for gasolene and oil
pipes. A piece of steel rope 8 feet long and
J4 inch in diameter is bound tightly near
one end with fine wire, leaving about 2
inches of the wire ends to be spread out
and act as a brush. A wooden or other
handle with a thumb set screw is slipped
over the rope and can be set at any point
along the length of rope. In using this
device, the spread end of the rope is in-
serted in the gasolene or other pipe and

?v,^N\\w>ns^

T* —
" Y

Fig. 2. Oil-pipe Cleaner

the handle is set an inch or so from the
end of the pipe and the rope end forced
into it; then the handle is moved another
inch or two away and the rope forced
farther in, and so on. A small pipe is
easily cleared of any ordinary obstruc-
tion.

Fig. 3 shows a piece of stout wire with
a hook formed at one end. It is
handy for lifting out springs, picking up
anything which may fall in a place diffi-
cult to reach with the hand, and so on.

Fig. 4 shows a steel wire with a straight
bend at one end, and that end sharpened

®=

-io'

©=

Figs. 3 and 4. Packing Hooks

to a point; it can be used to pull out fine
packing from packing boxes, etc.

Fig. 5 is a special bit, squared at one
end so that it can be used in an ordi-
nary brace or breast drill. The other end

Everything'
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will be treated
here in a way that can
be of use to practi-
cal men

is widened out and sharpened as shown;
it is especially useful for grinding in
small valves and valve seats on gas en-
gines, and for other kinds of work re-
quiring a wide screwdriver blade and
extra power.

Fig. 6 is a bolt-hole marker. It con-
sists of a piece of round lead rod with an
ordinary iron-pipe cap on one end. In
cutting out paper washers as gaskets for
gas-engine cylinder heads, some engi-
neers use a hammer to mark the bolt
holes, and this sometimes breaks av/ay

Fig. 5. Screwdriver Bit

Pipe Cap.

Fig. 6. Bolt-hole Cutter

the sharp edge of the iron around the
holes. With this tool you simply lay the
paper on the flange, place the lead end
over the hole and strike the iron cap with
a hammer; the bolt hole will be cut in
the paper washer n^.at and clean. With
bolt holes larger than the lead end, it
can be used at the opposite side of the
flange to mark the holes on the paper
far better than an ordinary lead pencil, as
the edges are square or sharp at A and
reach right against the bolt hole.

According to reports received by the
United States Geological Survey, the pro-
duction of coal in the United States dur-
ing 1910 was between 475,000,000 and
485,000,000 short tons, a considerable in-
crease from the output of 459,715,704
short tons in 1909 and approximately
equal to the maximum previous record of
480,363,424 tons, produced in 1907.

Of the total production in 1910 the an-
thracite mines of Pennsylvania contributed
nearly 83,000,000 short tons and the
bituminous mines between 390,000,000
and 400,000,000 tons.

Pertinent Features Relating to
Gas Power*

By Edwin D. Dreyfus

During the fifteen years of commercial
use of the gas engine in this country,
abundant experience has been furnished
from which may be deduced two fea-
tures of importance:

1. The distinct fields of usefulness of
gas engines may be determined definitely
under any conditions, and, in general, are
very well defined. Contrary to the fre-
quent implication that gas is a direct
competitor of steam power or other
source of energy supply, there are unmis-
takable regions where a gas plant is un-
qualifiedly superior; and, on the other
hand, there are places where it would be
a positive economic disadvantage. Evi-
dently there exists a line of division or
equality but occasionally encountered,
where the decision rests upon probable
changes in industrial or operating condi-
tions.

2. Gas-power machinery is less re-
sponsive to the ingenious fancy of the
designer than the other well known types
of station equipment, because the requi-
site characteristics of satisfactory opera-
tion and continuity of service may be sat-
isfied only by a simple and effective de-
sign, from which but small deviation is
feasible.

The disregard of these factors more
than any other cause has been harmful
to the gas-engine art. Notwithstanding
this, the industry has materially pros-
pered, and, owing to the inherent high
efficiency in the conversion of latent ther-
mal energy into useful mechanical power,
it will increasingly continue to hold the
attention of the engineering profession
and commercial world as well.

The available fuels for engine opera-
tion are enumerated below and their ap-
proximate composition and calorific
values are given in Fig. 1.

1. Natural Gas, existing principally in
western Pennsylvania, western New York,
West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Kansas
and Louisiana districts. It is a gas of
ideal quality, possessing high heat value,
being free from suspended impurities and
containing only a small percentage of
highly inflammable constituents (hydro-
gen chiefly).

2. By-product Gas, obtained mainly
from blast furnaces and coke ovens; also
from oil refineries as distillate. These
gases are, in their crude form, accom-

* Extracts from a paper read before the
Pittsburg Railway Club. .

January 31, 1911.

parried by objectionable impurities— en-
trained ore dust in tbfl and oily
vapors, lampblack and sulphurous com-
pounds in the distillate gas which must
be removed to a reasonable degree by
-ring and scrubbing apparatus before
delivery to the engine.

3. Artificial > al different

fuels and processes are employed in the

*
£

Fig. I. Ompositk b of

manufacture of combustible gases, there
are several kinds available, such as:

Illuminating J from

coal in benches or retorts by destru.

available in p
tically all large cities; it is of high heat
value and is a fairly clean gas. It con-
percentage of h

mparat:
*sion prcsv

The rial for

Illuminating purposes and the ad :
pense ■ on make the cost of

gas to th< trily so

that its use • purposes is

J cases,
thcr made from the
partial

>sscsees the *amc

is illu: m so far as

the gas eo| - iter

gas of somewhat lower heat value and

also less satisfactory a:

than the fan gas.

anthracite I
cnt the logical solution for the

>r natural gas at

as proJ r pur-

poses have not a suffL

degree t to marram

the
BrcdominaliriL' fuel %upp!v some instal'a
lion* have been made ucccss.

T f i >

• hi r a#*f g»rl mi ic f%t f h

the

-js engine, barring

oc-
cur in the -

As ar.

per
kilowatt-hour of outpL 4ng-

and a

based on the total heat of the ga
gas ring a high h

con-.

Name plane It
nt that as the larger c.i
are approa
gas and steam u
cither plant at best cons..
mat. j of co.:

hou- th a decrease

of the plant, there is a gap

between the I

Thus the gas plant will continue
velop a kilowatt-hour on • Is of

coal, while the steam station may use
eight

The impression that gas pou
l a low

IMS
I ja N

| JOJDOO

c»JW

b .« m

«: K.OW.

1 TJtrT.

v . "' 1

i*.x<\ •

ana

r sjoM

■

coal
OOmpoo M BOM ' I •

J COSB-

' '

"■ the neighborhood of S00

detent sac can there
■Ml r tthf mi'cr.j! : r ' • c-
Labor in •»*•

turi^

a I andicap on the gas cng.rc

■i high po« plated, con-

C another reason for the bar
►:e gas c - ,
■ • ■ .

4 coat i
get? e ache:

labor and supr ci irm |
hingt

bt> an obvioos

rk againat

the use of cvpen- m

das em-

harr.i»o:7>cn' 0)1 IOV>lDOjd 'i^'^r c<.nJit:or.%
of a turbine

ope | of the loa

at the

cost of

about on ■ 'hoac of high-

grade steam-turbine si

it the c >»t of

•ncnl of bc>
tubes above the negligible upkeep of

at*

ace Baed

reive be-

ttoctioa has

198

POWER

January 31, 1911.

operating efficiency of a 550-brake horse-
power producer-gas plant, including all
items of expense:

TABLE l.
Data on 550 Brake Horsepower Gas Plant.
Monthly Record of Operating Costs, Dec-
ember 1909. Unit Load Factor 89.3 per
Cent.; Station Load Factor, 67 Per Cent.

Cents per Kilo-
watt-hour.

Items.

Producer
Room.

Engine
Room.

Fuel

0.202
0.120
0.008
0.000
0.030

0 . 050

0.127

Opera'ting labor

Re^irsffieriai:.:::::::

Water

Oil and waste

0.036
0 . 050
0.002
0.024
0.010

Auxiliary power

Fixed expense at 15% on
investment

0 . 254

Total

0 . 537
0.

0.376
J13

Auxiliary Heating

Power generation has mainly been
reckoned with as applying to central dis-
tribution, but in the machine shop, fac-
tory and related industries, the power
house is subjected to the extra demand
of heat supply, especially above latitude
37 degrees. The heating requirement is
often improperly allowed to discount the
intrinsic value of the gas plant for the
reason that the waste-heat energy is not
concentrated in the same convenient
vehicle for transmission to the point of
consumption as is the case with the non-
condensing engine or turbine.

More recently gas-engine exhaust heat-
ers have been devised which render avail-
able in the form of steam 70 per cent.
of the heat of the exhaust. While this
quantity represents only two pounds of
steam per brake horsepower developed, it
will evidently prove sufficient where the
ratio of power to steam demand is low.
Where the ratio of the pounds of heating
steam required per brake horsepower is
known, a choice of prime mover may be
made as indicated by Table 2.

TABLE 2. POUNDS OF STEAM PER
BRAKE HORSE-POWER.

Simple automatic engine 40

Small steam turbine 30

Single cylinder corliss engine 28

Corliss non-condensing compound engine.. . . 22

Automatic bleeder turbine 20

Complete expansion turbine (bleeding 25' ,

from receiver) 6

Gas engine (waste jacket and exhaust heat

used in hot water system) 5

Gas engine only, exhaust applied to steaming 2

A late report from railroad circles is
that the engines on the Pennsylvania lines
east and west are to be equipped with
automatic underfeed stokers. Orders have
been issued to the master mechanics of
all the shops to install the stokers as soon
as possible. The reason given is that the
company wants to live up to the law re-
quiring the abatement of the smoke
nuisance. No confirmation of this report
has been heard. It is said that 6000 en-
gines will be so equipped. — Exchange.

Some Ignition Pointers
By Paul C. Percy

The sudden stopping of a gas engine
which has been running normally is al-
most always due to a breakdown some-
where in the ignition system. With a
jump-spark system this may be a broken
connection in either the primary or the
high-tension circuit; "frozen" contact
points on the vibrator of the spark coil,
or a short-circuit in some part — any part
— of the system. It could also be due to
a slipping or broken timer or to slipping
of the belt or pulley of the generator if
one is used, but these are not so likely
to happen as the first three defects.

If the make-and-break system is used
there is no vibrator to "freeze," of course,
but the other troubles mentioned can
occur. The failure to "fire" can also be
caused by the contact points of the igniter
having been burned out; this will either
prevent them from closing the circuit
at all or make the electrical resistance
at the contact points so high that the
current will be too weak to produce a
good spark when the contacts are sep-
arated.

If the igniter is of the electromagnet
type, failure to "fire" may be caused by
trouble at the timer, such as burned con-

A Good Diagram

tacts, loose connections, or a weak spring.
It may also be that the rocking contact
of the igniter is jammed so that the
magnet cannot move it.

Trouble in the ignition system will al-
so prevent an engine from starting up, of
course, but failure to start can also be
due to many other causes, whereas a
sudden stop is rarely caused by anything
else.

Too much current in the primary cir-
cuit of a jump-spark system is as bad as
too little. It overheats the coil and eats
away the contacts of the timer and the
vibrator very rapidly and very unevenly.
This uneven burning of the points is what
causes them to stick together or "freeze."
The surfaces are so rough and irregular
that they finally touch each other only
at a small high spot on each piece of
platinum, and the heavy arc produced
between the sharp points fuses them to-
gether.

To guard against "freezing," as well as
other contact troubles, the platinum points
of all timer, vibrator and igniter contacts
should be cleaned and trued up once a
week. This can be done in a very few
moments with a sharp, medium-cut file,
a very fine file and a piece of emery

cloth, using these in the order named.
In finishing with the emery cloth it should
be backed up by a thin strip of steel,
such as a machinist's rule, to avoid
rounding the edges. The faces of the
platinum points should be left dead flat
and true with each other.

If the timing of the igniter be retarded
beyond the dead-center position of the
crank, the cylinder will almost certainly
overheat because the combustion of the
mixture is greatly prolonged; also, the
power of the engine will be reduced. If
the timing be advanced too far, the en-
gine will usually knock, but this cannot
be considered a reliable guide because
some engines do not begin to knock until
the timing has been advanced so far as
to be really dangerous.

It is advisable to put stops on the
timer mechanism which will prevent re-
tarding the timing beyond the dead-center
position and advancing it too far. It is
necessary to take diagrams, with the best
mixture that will ever be used, to find the
point to which the timing should be ad-
vanced at full load; the point of maxi-
mum advance should be that which gives
the nearest approach to a well rounded
diagram, such as the one here shown.
Sharp corners at the peak and the igni-
tion point on the diagram are not desir-
able, but with a rich mixture containing
much hydrogen it is not easy to avoid
them; that can best be done by adding
more air to the mixture and advancing
the ignition point a little more.

A New Aeroplane Engine

The Yorkshire Observer, in an account
of a lecture delivered before the Leeds
University Engineering Society, by R. J.
Isaacson, gives his claims as inventor of
an improved aeroplane engine, as follows:

He stated that his new engine was
based on the same general principles as
the Gnome, but embodied many of his
own devices, notably one which enabled
the engine to be started slowly and run
at almost any speed up to its maximum
that the aviator wished. This was a vast
improvement, because with all machines
in use at present it was only possible to
work at one speed, and that the highest.
Therefore, when an aviator, having at-
tained a considerable hight, wished to
descend, he must shut his engine off al-
together. But if the propeller once stopped
revolving it was impossible to restart the
engine without help, and therein lay the
reason for the awe-inspiring volplanes,
by which aviators descended from great
hights. It was necessary to descend at
a great speed, so that the force of the
air against the propeller might keep it
in motion in order that when the aviator
neared the ground he might restart his
engine, and thus control his movements.
Mr. Isaacson claimed that the use of his
engine would obviate all necessity for vol-
planing.— Daily Consular and Trade Re-
ports.

January 31, 1911.

POU

:*>

\\ atcr c i >nrr<>l Valve on 1 [cater

Much worry and trouble arc causeJ
the automatic valve which regulates the
flow of feed water into an open heater. I
know of no valve of which so muc;
expected. It must work so freely as to
be handled by an ordinary float, it must
move from a closed position to wide open
during the movement of the float, and it
must shut perfectly tight.

Fie. 1.

I have tried several valves, one of
which was made as shown in Fig. 1. The
>ot head under which it worked
*<>uld, however, hold it shut until the
float was held almost clear of the water.
Then, when the valve did operate, it
opened wide with a jump and almost
deluged the heater with water; in clos-
ing it would shut with a vicious bang as
soon as the valve got near enough to its

seat to be caught in the current of water.
Sometimes it would pound on the sea
seating.
The second valve I as of the

huttcrfly type, shown in It had

one fault; it would leak in
all that could be done, and if no water
drawn for an hour the heater would
be floo.:

Another valve I tried was sn or
globe valve rigged up at shown Ifl
The fault of that, a

I worked fr _-n (sou

•ffH gt>

\ 3—1

Pr.n t n .//
m^n an (he job A lc

dft toprmi

here will he p.tii.1 /.
hh\is nor tn<

wanted

during the travel of the Boat, a:
often small panicles in the watc-
wedge in between the disk and seat and

cnt the valve from closing tight,
.live was made from an o-
brass stop cock with a handle at-
tached, as shown in Fig. 4. but 1 found
that, while it had all the good features

hutting off tight, not clogging, and
opening quickly and fully with a small

travel, it was too stiff to be oper

the float, si a* loosened up so that

of the r
i marine cock. This put an end
the tr
plug. In order to bold the ping H

riggeJ * pointed spring

cater plan

on - .: and is so arranged that the

uld be

ient» u h vol Tuts on*

pens and closes x small

movement and is not affected by the

controlling,
k

It is oftc -enient to know dm

amount
cellars and I

Without kno* f all of the ele-

mer ting the cold losses

cold-storage compartment, only

•: the gen<-
fall wide of th -iy

sC.

The logical way of competing nipt
areas is first to m tne amount of

hea*

■

;«aussnpt|

•uld
leak at th< small

Fir. *

■

tstd.

f hour* of operation of rbe

.i . ' then a sir* . ~

The estimate of the pipe
on tne amount of
tbrovgh tht aif

I tsnmirsrars of
srine or aamnoom on taw
m rbe outside
Obviously tne im«uni of

met
■
▼bra tbeee rectors am no-

Tben •

i lousro foot •'

200

POWER

January 31, 1911.

running foot of pipe will provide re-
frigeration for a given number of cubic
feet of space. A fermenting room, for
example, maintained at a temperature of
from 36 to 40 degrees would be piped, ac-
cording to the practice of one large
builder of refrigerating machines, on a
ratio of 1 to 14; that is, 1 run-
ning foot of 2-inch direct-expansion pipe
for every 14 cubic feet of space.

For piping the different cellars in a
brewery, the following ratios will offer
at least a rough guide, it being under-
stood that they may not fit particular
cases and that it is desirable, when it is
possible to determine the areas, differ-
ences in temperature and nature of the
insulation of each wall, floor and ceil-
ing, to compute the cold losses through
the walls. Then, after determining the
ammonia back pressure and temperature,
the required number of square feet and
finally the number of lineal feet of heat-
absorbing pipes may be ascertained.

The accompanying table will serve as a
guide in laying out the piping for brewery
cellars of from 10,000 to 40,000 cubic
feet in size.

F. E. Matthews.

New York City.

Repairing a Pump Valve Deck

Upon taking charge of a steam plant
at one time, I found a broken pump, and
nobody knew what ailed it.

Upon removing the cap of the valve
chamber it was found that someone, in
removing the water-valve plate, had
cracked it, as shown in the sketch. This
crack was caused by driving a cold chisel
under the plate at one end.

Crack in Valve Deck

The plate was repaired by getting two
iron clamps from the stop and putting
the two broken pieces in place, as shown.
A small strand of asbestos wicking was
put between the two broken pieces, and
the clamps were then tightened.

Next, the top of the valve chamber was
put in place and the nuts tightened on

the stud. The clamps were then taken
off, the pump started, and kept in
operation for six months. In the mean-
time a new plate had been ordered.

In removing a valve plate, use two thin
chisels, driving them in slowly, and use
a thin knife blade to work the gasket
loose before the plate is removed.

Charles L. Neff.

Little Rock, Ark.

Topics for Discussion

After reading mechanical papers and
books, I have been able to find but lit-
tle on the design of breechings for boil-
ers. One thing especially was noticed,
the lack of discussion of draft losses.

There are a few subjects I would like
to see discussed, and I believe they would
be of great benefit to many engineers.
They are as follows:

The proper area of a breeching for
boilers to be operated at the builder's
rated capacity; and for boilers to be op-
erated at high overloads, say 175 per
cent, or more of their rated capacity.

Draft losses to be expected in a breech-
ing of excellent design.

Draft losses through the sharp angle
turns or sudden changes in shape of the
breeching.

Losses in draft, due to radiation, in
long runs of bare steel breechings.

Losses in draft due to the cooling of
gases by the infiltration of cold air in
brick breechings.

One case is that of a plant of three
boilers and a brick-lined steel stack, 56
inches in diameter and 135 feet high. The
stack was of sufficient size and hight to
furnish draft for the plant, yet there was
insufficient draft. Eventually an induced-
draft outfit was installed with the fan
arranged to "pull" on the stack. The
draft at the base of the stack was then
1.85 inches; on the stack side of the
damper, 0.40 inch; and over the fires, 0.17
inch. Later the breeching was altered
and some other changes made, all on the
stack side of the boiler. Now it is pos-
sible to get a natural draft at the base of
the stack of 0.83 inch; stack side of the
damper, 0.65 inch; over the fires, 0.23
inch. Better conditions can be had by a
little more effort.

It will be noted that after the changes
there was more draft available over the
fire than before. The alterations were
made between 9 p.m. Saturday and 4 a.m.
Monday, for four consecutive weeks and
cost about S800. The motor on the in-
duced fan took 90 amperes at 220 volts,
working 24 hours a day, six and a half
days a week.

In another case sixteen 400-horsepower
boilers delivered their flue gases to a
brick breeching. The temperature at the
damper was 550 degrees Fahrenheit and
at the stack 380 degrees Fahrenheit. Quite
a decrease.

Another case was that of three water-

tube boilers. The draft in the breeching
near the stack was 0.95 inch; on the
stack side of the damper, 0.40 inch.

S. H. Viall.
Chicago, 111.

Heater and Piping Arrange-
ment

A scheme of arranging two feed-water
heaters so that the feed pump can auto-
matically draw water from either heater
is shown in the illustration. This ar-
rangement also remedied a trouble ex-
perienced from air leaking into the drip
receiver of a Paul heating system.

Referring to the cut, A and B are two
open feed-water heaters, and A is set 17

I Receiving

Water Seal
-To

Sewer

11 Tank Irom i ! BJ»Mj^
jPeatingCoili| ^01U/-

^ "Water Level

Power

Arrangement of Heaters

inches higher than B, and receives all of
the returns from the heating coils, the
valve D being open and E closed. When
there is a sufficient supply of return
water the greater head of water in the
heater A keeps the check valve F closed,
the water level in B being kept constant
by a float in the heater B, but as soon
as the returns are not sufficient to supply
the boilers and the water level in A
falls to a point where the head of water
in B becomes greater, this heater will
furnish the boilers with feed water;
heater B receives its supply of water
from the service mains.

As soon as the returns have again
brought the water in A to such a level
that the head will overcome that in B,
the check valve F is closed and the pump
again takes its supply from the heater A.

This scheme is entirely automatic and
has been in service for over five years,
and has given excellent satisfaction.

Trouble had been experienced by air
leaking into the receiver in which the
condensation from the heating coils ac-
cumulate. When air leaks into the re-
ceiver, through the joint of the cover, a
pressure was established and the water
in the receiver would back up into the
heating coils, rendering part of the coils
useless. The cover of the receiver was
tapped out to receive a T4-inch pipe and
a pipe and a thermostatic valve were

January 31, 1911.

POU

connected to it. A connection was also
made from the valve to the regular pipe
line leading to the exhauster of the
cm.

V. T. Kropidlos
\X'inona. Minn.

1 [omemad l ip

Following is a description of a steam
trap that was made with material found
lying around the shop. The not

new, as I installed such a trap nearly 20
ra ago, still I thought, in I its

extreme simplicity, that it might inu
somcon v reliable and

•

The illustration is so clear that a fur-
ther hardly necessary, fur-

which is almost as much a strain on the
thread* as holding a when

the pressu:

Cir O.

\ i i 1 v VI

I tor ». it a

plant wher con-

manufacturcd was in the so ca

i tquu out

Tig.

out th the manac

that it was necessary for u>

cvcral of the department -
the form of small cubes abo .hcs

are. There are machines on the mar-

cured ; 'name. od top

and slot* cut ir.
to come op through.

the top m place the ams

>t point

ibt tl ' J.' ' : Ifgc vl a »»* 'T:*Jc :*'fT

enough to allow the cubes to drop through

*h<.

inches to the

of the sir > to be osed as a

gage when

i» the block of toe

or. end and pushed acroaa the
sma
bloc mo

turned half round and (he run

across the block at right angles to the
e ice than appeared
•oaethJna : fat •• i Aoaeft

cubes from tl

ised to

•■

Details of Trap

thcr than to say that the threads on the
valve stem are removed to allow free
movement through the stuffing box as the
brass tube expands. As the brass tube
fills up with water it contracts and dl
away from the valve scat, thereby al-
ng the water to escape. When the
water has drained out of the I
fills with steam, which causes the pipe
to expand and close the vah

Passaic. V J

\ Jve i Steam Pip

N mding the

sion that has been carried on in technical

papers concerning placing in

steam pipes, as good an authority at

am Kent, in of

hin.ca

page 852. seems to be
under the impression that if a . alve

onnected with the pressure on
of tl it cannot be I J under

As a ma-
good manufac

a packing feature on the stem and
in the hub. or on tl ich cna'

the cng'- pack the valve when

and under pi
feature consist d Mir faces.

one ■ and

on the yoke, which make a |oint >»
the valve is open' it there

can be no leakage up through the Muffing

I r fHiw «a hat

Mr Kent fall'
against taking the :

and that is that in opening the l
It Is nccc*
- c steam press

tor doing this work, but the company
ng to ro to the expense
of r J to

make one.

•er some planning it was decided to
: a saw bench an.'
ilar saws to do the work. A c.

from II

- more than rt had i

of a plant where much of the steam is
used for he

The vacuum »a» n
douv

o a soi

roof, and connected to the ho-
the bottom.

It artsf disc
water came from the discharge, »h»ch I
v .-> .. I pd k •

aid Dot tndc

a atou- a convenient posl-

■

Inches
id sect
in a small

*. f

the ■aasnaji

connected th<

Inn system - ipe Wad-

nagntr » acuum tntpKH

•< Its a

■

202

POWER

January 31, 1911.

Beading Boiler Flues

In reply to the inquiry in the Decem-
ber 13 number in reference to beading
boiler flues, I will say that there is much
more skill needed in doing this work
properly than is generally considered. As
to beading the body of the head down
solid, there is no reason why this should
not be done. Care must be used, how-
ever, not to overhead. When the head
is once solid upon the flue sheet any
more hammering or beading will stretch
the head and tend to loosen it from the
plate. The turning of the head should
be carefully done from the start. Many
workmen start a bead too hurriedly or
use too heavy blows. With the ball end
of an ordinary hand hammer used as
shown in the accompanying figure the
bead can be turned nicely. The hammer
strokes should not be too heavy, but
moderate, until the bead has been started
or slightly turned. Flues are too fre-
quently cracked by hammering too much
at one point. It is the peening-action of

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articlesjetters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

practice in order to get this little tool
just as it should be. Many repairers get
the tool shaped as shown at N; such a
tool makes a poor job, as the surface is
too square to do good beading.

Heads are often found that are no*
properly done; they appear as shown at
M. A small ridge is thrown up on the
inside. In such a case it would be well
to use the flue roller.

At F is shown a nice form of bead
which can be made with a tool like that
shown at P. Many beads are shaped as
shown at E, having a rather square cor-

tm-ttfl;;^

""■■■■ '"tf

POVYEH

Beading Tools and Types of Bead

the hammer that stretches the end of the
flue; therefore the "licks" must be dis-
tributed entirely around the circumfer-
ence of the flue in order to stretch it
evenly. When this has been done (it is
fully understood, of course, that the flue
has been previously rolled tight in the
sheet) the turned edge of the flue will
appear as shown at X in the illustration.
When this has been done the tube is
ready for an application of the beading
tool. This tool should be properly
shaped in order to do the right character
of work; for instance, the surface that
comes against the end of the flue should
be slightly rounded as shown at W. With
this shape the tool has a stretching ef-
fect on the metal. Another view of the
tool is given at P. It requires a little

ner. With such a bead the edge of the
flue does not fit against the edge of the
sheet as will a bead shaped as shown
at F.

To do a beading job properly the sham
edge of the tube hole in the sheet should
be taken off with a flue-hole reamer or
a half-round file.

I can see no reason for throwing the
edge G down tight against the head and
not beading solid. The beading tool
should not reduce the thickness of t.ie
metal across the point of turning. One
should not attempt to turn a flue that
reaches through the sheet too far; usual-
ly a distance equal to twice the thickness
of the metal is about right, although in
some cases three thicknesses is better.
If the tube is allowed to stick through

too far a bad piece of work will result,
as a bead will be formed which will be
too full; consequently it is very likely to
crack or split in turning down.

Putting in a set of flues and doing the
work right is a nice piece of work.

C. R. McGahey.

Baltimore, Md.

Compound Engine Propor-
tions

A. Hoffmann, in an article under the
above caption in a recent issue, makes
certain statements which are not quite
clear to my mind, and with the expecta-
tion of receiving more light, I wish to
open a discussion on this interesting sub-
ject.

In one paragraph he states, "Where
both reheater and steam jackets are used,
10 per cent, should be added to the mean
effective pressures." Directly below this
he writes, "Where an engine operates
against a back pressure, the mean ef-
fective pressures should be increased
about 0.85 pound for each pound of back
pressure." The use of reheater and steam
jackets is known to be beneficial to the
performance of an engine, but is it to be
implied from the latter quotation that
back pressure is also good?

Further on, he says, "Attention is
called to the fact that this terminal
pressure is not dependent upon the cyl-
inder ratio nor the cutoff, but is deter-
mined solely by the steam pressure and
ratio of expansion * *." Is not the latter
entirely dependent upon the other? As-
suming a compound engine having a cyl-
inder ratio of 4 to 1, with a point of cut-
off at 0.25 of the stroke, is it possible
to raise or lower the terminal pressure in
the low-pressure cylinder under the con-
ditions, assuming normal conditions and
neglecting cylinder condensation? In a
worked-out example for a highly eco-
nomical compound engine Mr. Hoffmann
states that the cylinder ratio should be
5 to 1, and that the cutoff (presumably
in the high-pressure cylinder) should be
27.5 per cent, of the stroke, and that the
number of expansions should be 19.
Under these conditions, will not most of
the expansions take place in the low-
pressure cylinder (or in the receiver)
and, in consequence, will not the con-
densation there bt abnormal? F. R. Low,
in his treatise on the compound engine,
teaches us that it is not the total amount
of condensation in both cylinders that
must be reckoned with, but the greater

January 31, 191 1.

amount in either, which becomes the fac-
tor in the economy of a compound en-
gine.

ppose a compound engine with e
inders 20 and 40 inches in diameter to
be working under conditions that c.i
a cutoff in the high-pressure cylinder
at about 0.2 of the stroke, is it to be un-
derstood from Mr. Hoffmann's remarks
that if a higher cylinder ratio were u
by making the high-pressure cylinde*
inches in diameter, that the engine would
operate under more economical condi-
tion- -eems to me that his method
of proportioning compound engines by
arbitrarily fixing the mean effective p-
sure as referred to the low-pressure cyl-
inder is not commendable, for. as he
states, "no definite rule can be laid down
giving the proper mean effective p'
sure upon which to figure
compound engines buy this type with
economy of operation in view, and as
pounds of steam per horsepower delivered
e true measure of engine economy,
why not start designing with this one
factor alone giver ; ppose a com-
pound engine of a given indicated horse-
power were to be designed that should
use a predetermined or given amount of
steam per horsepower, the total amount
of steam could be calculated, and from
this the size of the steam pipe, steam
chest and valve posts to accommodate
that quantity of steam without wire-draw-
ing could be figured. Also, the size of
the high-pressure piston and the
tance from the heads at which it shall
stand at the point of cutoff could el
be determined. Proportioning the
of the engine would then depend on the
the purchase d to pay. The
■ >uld determine the length of the
stroke and th< Jcr rati

The designer is in a position to give the
buyer what he wants, and by having a
high-pressure piston which is mon
less of a standard, he will soon be able
both in theory and prn ^tatc c>

ly what the engine If capable of doing
when installed, an and

the degree of economy that Ik
guarantee with the vai ndcr

ratios. To design a und cr.

baaed on a given mean cfT
sure refer* the low-pressure

inder or the rr

get that 0 rating engineer

apt to change the number

inaions. and to forget that pistons.
rah ik.

The r m engine

made while the engine is brand l
aftc- Itaa high-

lealgned fi •
some consideration of future n
may be employed In tl

'mder

Camii

South Framingham. "

Problem in !

the prenatal n techr

i are so fit and

often of so revoli:

or an enr

of the age to read
a large number of technical p. rom

the force ol stances he read

\L_

•

/ * \

FlC. I. ThMPERAT iKW

rapidly, and he feels, consequently, that
he has a right to demand that these arti-
bc written with especial care; that
they be so worded as t no shadow

of a doubt as to their meaning. It is not
fair for the author to expect his reader
to puzzle out from indefinite an

rtant technical fact. Yet not all
itific articles are so written, and in
consequence- both of the hasty reading
and the poorly stated facts many wrong
con Ira am, and a bod-

fau :• - allowed to spring up.

amples of such a- arc nu

but thi ler was in ;

with this need for guarded and accurate
rcssion most recently in connection

r<m A

uch rr'

»oar
kine. or nonconducting moat

on th<
The

cote J by the ■

to tnjl
the Hi
gine I

ram and i- the noccoahy

of beating ■ the boiler

to the upper tern-

h goes on to show that an
' Mi problem
to I umc of steam at the end

^team-engine cylinder- car. he four.J »
"assuming" adiaba'

■ '
oaaraaooadtai potutne Tbia .» pc .• .
.one undc-

ooaaMei
not otherwise, and V
not make

The solution of problems stir,
those just cited depends, tb
what assumptions arc to be made. The
Camot ainable although

several pumping engines have used

that caVicr
and wr continue to use metallic

annot hope to get a
conducting engine, but we can
radiation and conduction g r
small temperature Hn

• ro« n cxa

J barrels. anJ
other methods of ! ■

Ran. o ftguf OCU

ust be under
•tood as hem. ml apneas**

ct an*,
the or.' 'cam engine, o Under

condensation and subsequent tec

I be »hawr

that oonM be dona
oousiondncrtng engine, by the
n admitted ta tha cylinder

an an the una

m .

amount <

than «ith the ideal

204

POWER

January 31, 1911.

The actual cycle is affected by a num-
ber of factors each varying the work
attainable, and the volume at the end of
expansion. These are, in part — the tem-
perature range, the per cent, cutoff (the
ratio of expansions), the ratio of diam-
eter to stroke, the speed, the clearance
and the quality of the steam. The tem-
perature range has the greatest effect on
the cylinder condensation, but this is
modified by high speed, by small ratio of
diameter to stroke or by superheat.

What has just been said shows the
impossibility of foretelling how the steam
in the cylinder will behave unless some
assumptions are permitted as represent-
ing typical results, and so we return to
the assumption that the real steam-engine
cycle is approximated closest by the
Rankine cycle. The work done in such
a cycle is Hi — H-, where Hi is the total
heat of the entering steam, and Hi is
the total heat of the exhaust.

Other problems involving total heats
are the throttling-calorimeter problems,
flow of steam, expansion valves and
others involving adiabatic expansion.
These problems are greatly simplified by
the use of the Mollier total-heat diagram,
such as is very admirably given in Marks
and Davis' "Steam Tables and Diagrams,"
a recent publication based on the very
latest experimental data. With these dia-
grams, problems like the above, and also
those involving ratios of expansion, are
simplified extremely, and made capable
of quick solution.

H. J. Mitchell.

Cambridge, Mass.

Power Plant Design and the
Operating Engineer

The controversy regarding the operat-
ing engineer and the consulting engineer
has been waged in the columns of Power
for some time. It seems to me that this
question as to which is better qualified
to design a power plant is entirely un-
called for for the following reasons:

In the small-sized plant where the
chief engineer has only one or two help-
ers, he generally does not get a very
large amount of money for his services.
As a consequence, a man broad
enough to design a new plant, under the
best conditions, would not be working at
the small salary which that plant war-
rants. As a consequence, the consulting
engineer is called in.

In the large plant, where the chief en-
gineer is something more than the name
sometimes implies, there is generally a
good mechanical engineer employed
steadily by the management, or the head
engineer is himself a mechanical engi-
neer. In the latter case, as both are one,
there is no cause for argument. In the
second case, if the management is good,
with no friction between the employees,
the chances are that the two would work

together and no outside man would be
called in.

Any mechanical or consulting engineer
would welcome the advice of a capable
man who is to have charge of the plant.
On the other hand, the chief engineer
should certainly welcome the advice of
the technical man who, of necessity,
makes himself acquainted with the gen-
eral trend of progress in his line. With
two good men working harmoniously to-
gether the results should certainly be
better than with one alone.

The consulting engineer who knows it
all and will not listen to suggestions is
not worth having. The running engineer
who is afraid to have his ideas criticized
by others is certainly not sure that his
design is the best under the circum-
stances. The employer who employs
one or both of the above men and brings
in an outsider for this work shows a
lack of confidence in his own men. If
the lack of confidence is unwarranted the
best thing the employees can do is to go
elsewhere. If it is warranted, the men
should realize it and make the best of it.

John Bailey.

Milwaukee, Wis.

Introducing Solvents into
Boilers

In the issue of December 6, Charles
H. Taylor's letter under the above title
is interesting. I agree with Mr. Taylor
that solvents should be introduced in
small quantities, but it is poor practice
to feed them through the suction of the
pump. This practice is liable to result

Main Feed Line I""ctr

Arrangement for Feeding Solvents

in a scored lining of the water end,
scored rods and cut packing.

A much better way is to feed the
solvent through the discharge. The ac-
companying figure shows the manner in
which this can be done. Close valves C
and B, open valve D and put in a charge
of the compound. Close valve D and
open valves B and C and close valve A
for a few strokes of the pump.

M. W. Utz.

Minster, O.

Boiler Efficiency

The efficiency of the Keeler water-tube
boiler as reported in the issue of Novem-
ber 29 is exceptionally good; however,
it is to be regretted that having so nearly
attained maximum efficiency the plant
was not arranged to insure getting it.

The temperature of the escaping gases
was 473.62 degrees Fahrenheit. This
temperature could not be appreciably re-
duced by enlarging the heating surface
of either the boiler or the superheater,
the temperature corresponding to the
pressure of 188 pounds being 383 de-
grees; the difference in temperature be-
tween the fire-swept and water-swept
surfaces of the tubes is 90 degrees. It
would be possible, however, to reduce the
temperature of the gases by installing an
economizer and it should be quite pos-
sible with a normal size of chimney to re-
duce this temperature by 100 to 120 de-
grees, without impairing the draft. If
this were done, then, the gases would
impart an amount of heat to the feed
water which would depend upon the size
of the economizer.

From my calculations it should be quite
possible, from the figures given in the
test, to so arrange an economizer that
an overall efficiency of 80 to 89 per cent,
could be obtained from the boiler, super-
heater and economizer.

It appears that the feed water is at
present heated by live steam to 183 de-
grees Fahrenheit, if this is correct, then
the installation of an economizer would
save the large amount of steam that must
be necessary for this purpose besides ef-
fecting the above mentioned saving of
6 to 7 per cent.

It is seen that the makers guaranteed
a boiler efficiency of 65 per cent.; from
the figures given in the test, it is found
that the actual boiler efficiency was near-
ly 75 per cent., the efficiency of the
boiler and superheater together being
82.36 per cent. It is to be hoped, how-
ever, that a munificent government paid
the bonus upon the latter figure, for the
attainment of an efficiency of 75 per
cent, with a water-tube boiler is a note-
worthy performance.

The attainment of this high efficiency
is, no doubt, partly due to the efficient
way in which the boiler was incased. The
makers' guarantee of a 65 per cent,
efficiency, however, is about 5 per cent,
lower than is usually obtained.

This test is very instructive and valu-
able for power-plant engineers as it
shows the actual saving in fuel that can
be accomplished by a superheater in con-
junction with the boiler, and, as is well
known, this is not the only saving that is
accomplished, for, by superheating, the
steam condensation in the steam pipe is
prevented, and a great saving in the steam
used by the engine is effected if it works
with. superheated steam.

James Cannell.

Stanford le Hope, Eng.

January 31. ion.

Ji5

Docs the Crcmhead Stop?

Although considerable space has al-
ready been devoted to the subject. '•Does
the Crosshead 5to| it would be trans-
gressing the requirements of accuracy
to let the most unmathematical contri-
bution of .'•■ Stover and Pullen. in
the January 3 issue, pass unchallenged.
It is merely a problem in the elements
of trigonometry to show that the crocs-
head does actually stop, that is, tha
velocity for an infinitesimal momer
zero, but your contributors have gone
out of the way to give three different
proofs, not one of which is valid.

By reference to Fig. I, reproduced
from the January 3 issue, we arc told
that the crosshead stops because at the
point of dead center the crank-pin center
is moving along an arc of a circle de-
scribed with point H. as its center. 1
of course, assumes that //, will remain

fixed while the crank-pin center is mov-
ing along this arc. But. if vt do not
know whether the en ssbead I ; >s or not,
how can we assume that H -hilc

the crank pin is moving ? I
ng in a circle.
In proof-. 2 and 3 your contribir
have ac led to show that the cross-
hca.' - has no motion parallel to

its axis at the dead center, because the
crank-pin center has then no motion
parallel to the same axis. That th:
not a valid proof may be easily shou •

have l
sliding along, »o that ties

always touch t cnJIcular i

all ' i lie I

■
always

conoroc-
•hat the
I at any time cqua

constant) multiplied by the perpends
- from ink-shaft cent,

the connecting rod. A >\n\ of dead

center thi-

which makes the velocity of the cross-
head cent

0:0.

This is the only way that I can see of
attacking this problem, because this so-
lution deals with the velocity of the cross-
head centei ,vie only point l
con n, as we know tha1 ank-
pin center ng at a constant
jcity.

Louis GaotsmA
New YorV

\\\\\ Engineer^ Do Not
Write

The question often raised in regard to
why engineers, as a class, do not v
may be an- us ways, each

truthfully. I believe that chief among
the reasons is the fact that the average
practical operating engineer who is not
a technical graduate fears that his u
may sound uncouth or that his statements
may b<. from an angle fi

which t capable of Item

;at if fa
municat i later copy of

the paper will contain an

m terms u
arc Latin a ck to him. will inform

him that hi rough n - a "hill

billy" and that what he thinks he kr
is a delusion and tha* e and I

book learning can prove that black is a
sha • name and tfc

afraid that some of h
both articles and tease him al If

he con. his

fell-

<dea
ng to an attack ol if shat

> has : .rewed up

10 app-f
effort usually causes dream* at i
of said pa'r ng horns ai

bac» "h sarca*m Those

craft who arc in i1

fung and v
ic water's fin

■I man
the ability ( .! langi.

•
i from
• • i
roof o'

>e does
vtbooks
g wrong » \''

Me M

4 read tbt

turc for equipment would be iustiflc

economy in o;

gardlesa of conditions and

ation. Would h? M also,

instance. And good author
as eflk
between 3500 and
moat of them under 5000.

big engines be knows of may be run-
ning the flywheel rim at a speed of a mils
a n -cad

minority stated
that \\J» ; speed

was comm becoming ■

popular in America and bad exhibited the

great*

all of
transmission he has at band be may not
find one case where the author

based on a
• bat
of the stance rx -

centers, or whether an idler is used or

overloaded
belt in unning unj iler

and breaking ;

page or any noticeable

ent of the
ng him a satisfactory so-
n two dozen readers.
Tl not imaginar. 1 had a

chance once to help a fcllo* •• -

ight about tha-
the

same quantity of po«cr ii thought that
the r

In the sst — these

all that I am compc
I know tha- old N

c out c ' « n

diftV

read.

W. R. fi
n. III.

v r

<■ camber 27 Issue. I d*

opening would Jra» cold air down the
casoo that the
combined on the

should be at leasf
c good results for saw

»ou:j DSftaiar) ■ bsdi aij n*c u tNc
t p

•tssssk b would
bet 'beeasc<

•epsrst' for esrb boiler . aud fc

ind openno slightly Isrgte
than tb the stac<

■Id bi
more addr ■' ' t I '■ I >t

less tha

206

POWER

January 31, 1911.

Burning No. 3 Buckwheat
Coal

In the issue of December 27, 1910,
Warren O. Rogers, as a result of a visit
to the New York Steam Company's plants
in New York City, furnishes a descrip-
tion of his visit with some very positive
conclusions.

It is with considerable regret that I
note Mr. Rogers' visit was entirely con-
fined to the plants above stated, because
by no means are his conclusions either
accurate or confined to facts.

Wherein does Mr. Rogers err in his
conclusions? He errs in the fact that he
visits a plant to see something with which
he is unacquainted and as a result of his
observations in that one plant sets out a
set of rules as being the only possible
means of burning No. 3 buckwheat coal.
If Mr. Rogers had visited the Brooklyn
Bridge power house, located in Brooklyn,
he would have found that they have been
burning at that plant No. 3 buckwheat
coal for several years back in place of
lump coal which they were previously
using, and he would have formed some
radically different conclusions from those
reached after his inspection.

In addition to the Brooklyn Bridge
power house a list of over 100 plants in
the city of New York could be furnished,
all of which would give him some dif-
ferent ideas in regard to the conclusions
which he would put forward as the only
means of burning No. 3 buckwheat coal.
The rules that he supplies are:

1. "Fire light and often."

2. "Keep a forced draft of from 0.5
to 0.6 inch."

3. "Keep the damper 5/16 open."

4. "Never use a slicing bar."

5. "Level the fires about every two
hours or when necessary."

6. "Never throw green fuel on other
than incandescent fuel."

7. "When cleaning fires, keep 1 inch
of ash on the grates."

8. "Always use a shaking grate."

9. "Never handle the fire as other
fuels are handled."

The conclusion is that "A small steam
plant with one or two boilers would have
trouble in running on this grade of fuel,
because it would be difficult to force the
fires in case a sudden demand was made
for steam."

Commenting upon the foregoing:

No. 1. This rule is imperative.

No. 2. A forced draft must be used
but it may be anywhere from 0.5 to 1^
inches, according to the fuel burned per
square foot of grate surface, which may
be anywhere from 12 pounds (as cited
in Mr. Rogers' article as the amount
burned at the New York Steam Com-
pany's plant) up to 28 or 30 pounds,
which is the practice maintained in some
of the plants which would be on the list
I have previously referred to as being
able to furnish. This rule, therefore,

should be changed to read: "Use forced
draft with such pressure as may be re-
quired to burn the amount of fuel nec-
essary."

No. 3. The opening of the damper
would be governed entirely by natural-
draft conditions of the plant; if natural
draft was poor the damper might be en-
tirely open; if the draft was excellent
then the damper should be choked down
to a point so that no excess of air may
be drawn in above the fire.

No. 4. It is good policy not to use a
slicing bar on any grade of fuel, but if
a clinker formation is prevalent it may
be necessary to use a slicing bar to raise
the fuel from the grate in order that
the air may work through it, but a slicing
bar should not be used to break through
the fire and elevate the ash on top of the
live fuel.

No. 5. The leveling of the fires should
be done as often as required and is not
governed by any specific time. There are
fuels which can be leveled successfully
at least twice between each time of firing;
this would apply to fuel which is very
hard in its character and slow burning.

No. 6. This rule can stand as given.

No. 7. If shaking grates are used, the
1 inch of ash might be of benefit to pre-
vent loss of fuel through the grate bars,
but there is no reason to keep ash on
the grate for any other purpose than to
prevent the coal falling through the grate
openings; and if this is the condition, then
the grate in use is not a proper one for
the burning of No. 3 buckwheat coal as
the openings in any grate used for this
class of fuel should be small enough to
practically prevent the fuel from falling
through it. A much hotter fire will be
established if the 1 inch of ash is cleaned
out and the fresh fuel brought over on
the grate.

No. 8. A shaking grate is not neces-
sary; in fact, it is a positive detriment
unless arrangements are made for dis-
posal of the ash without opening the ash-
pit doors, and the larger percentage of
power plants have no means of cleaning
the ashpits except by hand tools. There
is no positive rule as to whether a shak-
ing or stationary grate shall be used to
burn No. 3 buckwheat coal. The only
feature about the grate is that it should
have small openings in it which can re-
tain the coal without the coal working
through it in any perceptible percentage.

As to whether a shaking or stationary
grate should be used, it depends entirely
on the method of disposing of the ash; if
a tunnel exists by which the ash can be
withdrawn from the ashpit through a
hopper bottom, a shaking grate is pref-
erable, but if the ashpits must be
cleaned by shoveling out (as the vast
majority are cleaned), then a shaking
grate is of no advantage as the cleaning
can be done more readily from a station-
ary grate, through the firing doors. Par-
ticularly is this true as forced draft must

be used in burning No. 3 buckwheat coal
and the disturbing of ashpit doors for
cleaning simply destroys the use of the
forced draft as long as the cleaning is
in process.

No. 9. This rule is not at all neces-
sary as it will be found that No. 2 or
No. 1 buckwheat or even pea coal will
give better results in firing if the fuel
is placed uniformly over the grate and
not piled in any considerable quantity
at any one point. It is furthermore un-
necessary to put green fuel on the spots
of fire where the fuel has not already
become ignited.

Regarding the conclusions, No. 3
buckwheat coal is in successful use in a
very large number of plants in New
York City as well as other places where
they have but one or two boilers. If a
proper forced draft is in use, it is an easy
matter to overrate the boiler to cover any
extra demands for steam, provided the
boiler is properly cared for. In a plant
with one boiler where they are using
No. 3 buckwheat coal if a proper forced
draft is in use a fire can be run from
six to eight hours, using a fair grade of
No. 3 buckwheat coal, prior to cleaning,
and with a little head work a time of
cleaning can be established where clean-
ing can be accomplished without detri-
mental loss of steam, especially so if the
furnace and its equipment have been prop-
erly designed together with the forced-
draft equipment so that cleaning can be
accomplished quickly and thoroughly.

Other features of the use of No. 3
buckwheat coal with which the ordinary
engineer will come in contact are that
there are fuels of this size placed on the
market which are so hard that they do
not burn freely enough to be a satis-
factory steam coal, in which event a
small percentage of soft coal added to
them will be found beneficial. On the
other hand, there are fuels of this size
sold which burn out too quickly to be a
satisfactory fuel, as their excessive
amount of ash will prove a hardship as
to disposal.

It will be well, therefore, for anyone
contemplating using No. 3 buckwheat
coal because of its attractiveness in
price, to carefully study the supply of coal
offered, and, before jumping at conclu-
sions, investigate the subject broadly so
that when he purchases equipment he
will be in possession of something of a
permanent value and properly studied
to give him the best service.

Charles H. Parson.

New York City.

A few small bolts were handed to the
writer, with the request that they be
charged with electricity to prevent the
nuts from coming off. Further question-
ing proved that my predecessor had sim-
ply immersed them in the sal-ammoniac
solution of the battery, which caused
them to rust fast.

January 31, 1911.

1 . v. • •

Hill Publishing Company

Job* x. II

• ■*». M J

Cnur a<» Liu

• H .-■■■■

■HSU

Itoo (n

■

1* &* ^

nit.'.urua-

rr.l M

!ijf ri- - ~ <j'.

Mar |

Bufttnea* Trlrcn;

CoDtC

. •. ._

• la
■ in

■ . . li»

■ n 1

188

> ' « >ii i ■ II ■'■ I'-'N ... 1 • •

■

it-

■

I ilin. Il^: I ■ • < ••rii|>-. -in. 1

fll »i..J

I i

Prccautioi i I I

Burst I

time about

■
tub. a, and recommendations arc

made that t ; and rx

material be use hat manufactu

be compelled to stamp each tul
- name, so that

recommendations arc necessary and good,
but in the meantime I »c

can to protect the personnel in the b-
room and. until a ind.

let us fit all furnaces with in-

all the doors in a
•iK of t it one door

opening out .iding into the

smokestack, through »h .im and

hot water ai i of

the rupture of a tube. In such a fur-
nace, when a tube lets go. all the doors
in i

arc i of the stean

if closed tt

-its any scalding of the at-
tend (he boiler room, and the steam
and hot water arc passed ha-
thc sm< the
but this contingc ting
against the use of the
all that need
make the *

furna.

ntal
• arc sfi
nav
to all '

<
dooi

be-

■
grc » reeult

•team r

Ihc Ottk r-<

'■

in a hot '

■

to get on! v
Jir.Ccr < f

a time when the dangers

tlned to the b
aetonally a flywl plodcd.

■ a ruk
■

icn en^ rger. more

Jesjgncd to run at higher
room took on an added
clement of

»f the Syr heel »as ao

far -he safe speed las I la

case a I the gov*

crnor. the engineer had a chance to shut

n the engine before an accident oc-

moos arc vastly d
ost flyvhec ru

speed
■

c hre speed up to
■

i use of a frywrbeel
''•covered, but ■au-
to determine.
f the cngincc
-. :-

ar.J Mull} t.nri%:»t% of failure M rfof

t on ir
or ,

• atopic neglect to r :

s ■ ( •

■

no» r !o r>c • r

•rvic ir. -igineer might

»r<L! ii » r-C rr e\tt\ Jn ?■■• *•» •"•J

• -

ittd to be dec*
< n« m placed as to b*

been spaa* w

■•

' flMtl f* • »

208

POWER

January 31, 1911.

the last hasty look, and in all prob-
ability would disclose hundreds of engi-
neers who seldom test their engine safety
cams in order to determine positively
that they will prevent the steam valves
from opening in case the governor drops
to its lowest position. If governor in-
spection is a part of the work you have
been neglecting, see to it; do not wait
until tomorrow, but test it out today and
see if the safety cams will work. Then
complete the work by giving the flywheel
a thorough inspection.

Two Diagrams

Two indicator diagrams alleged to
have been taken from the same engine
within the space of a few hours show a
marked difference in outline and area.
One is the conventional Corliss engine
type of diagram with a compression line
rising to about two-thirds of the initial
pressure and there meeting a vertical
■ induction line showing a lead of the
steam valve which gives full initial pres-
sure on the piston at the very beginning
of the stroke. The cutoff, expansion line
and exhaust opening appear to be in ac-
cord with good practice. On the other
diagram the compression does not rise
higher than the terminal pressure. The
admission line slants inward so much
that it is clear that full pressure is not
realized until the piston is well started
on its way; the point of cutoff and the
expansion are the same as in the other,
but the exhaust does not open until the
piston has reached the end of the stroke.
All of the valve events except cutoff are
late, as though the eccentric had been
turned backward several degrees.

There is a noticeable difference in the
areas of the diagrams, the one with low
compression and late admission being
appreciably smaller than the other. It is
said, however, by the engineer who took
the diagrams that the load in both in-
stances was identical and he is asking
why, with an apparent maladjustment of
the valves, the engine requires less steam
and consequently less fuel for a given
load than when the valves are properly
set.

There is no reason to doubt the sin-
cerity of the man who furnished the dia-
grams, and there is no attempt on his
part to deceive anyone. But has he de-
ceived himself? Can an engine showing
a certain indicated horsepower in the
cylinder deliver a greater brake horse-
power than when showing a greater in-
dicated output? Does it or can it ever
happen as this engineer says it does
with him? Is compression to any de-
gree economical or otherwise? The clear-
ance space must be filled with steam at
or near initial pressure before the pis-
ton starts and this steam must give up
some of its heat to the cylinder and pis-
ton before it can do other work.

What is the source of supply from
which this steam can be most cheaply

obtained? It is heat and pressure that
are wanted. Can these be furnished at
a lower cost by the engine or by the
boiler? Is it cheaper to fill the clear-
ance directly from the boiler than it is
to use the engine part of the time as a
compressor taking energy from the fly-
wheel in one stroke and putting it back
in the next?

These questions can be answered from
the mechanical laboratories of half a
hundred colleges and schools in this
country. They have been answered by
Professor Dwelshauvers-Dery, from the
school at Liege, Belgium. But the cor-
rectness of the answers has been ques-
tioned. Experiments made thus far do
not prove conclusively the truth or un-
truth of the contention. Academic dis-
cussion which starts nowhere, applying
laws which do not apply, assuming con-
ditions which do not exist and drawing
conclusions from false premises ends no-
where and is not conclusive or even en-
lightening. What is the real answer, and
why does not some college laboratory
find and announce it?

Engineer or Laborer

In the "Want Columns" of a daily
paper there recently appeared the fol-
lowing advertisement:

"Applications will be received from 0
to 12 o'clock, noon, Tuesday. December
27, 1010, for the position of nigbt en-
gineer for municipal electric-light plant.
Duties to commence January 2, 1011.
Engineer will be required to do his own
tiring, salary $<>() to .$<>."> per month. Ap-
plicants to have necessary qualifications ;
state age, if married or single, and en-
close copies of testimonials."

This advertisement modestly announces
an opportunity for a man to act as night
engineer and fireman, seven nights a
week, for $60 a month; $720 a year, or
$1.97 a night of twelve hours' run. It
also implies that there will be more than
one reply and that the engineer possess-
ing the best qualifications will secure the
place — and, worst of all, there will be
several applications for the vacancy.

Anyone with sufficient intelligence to
shovel the coal necessary to keep up
the steam pressure would earn all that
it is proposed to pay a man for not only
firing the boiler, but attending to the en-
gine and generator as well.

The necessary qualifications are, of
course, that the night engineer shall
have a knowledge of the steam boiler,
how to fire and care for it, know some-
thing about a boiler-feed pump and in-
jector, steam gage, safety valve, piping
and the danger to be avoided in operat-
ing a steam boiler.

The successful applicant for this re-
munerative position must also know
about engines and generators, switch-
boards and a hundred and one other
things that are necessary to know be-
fore a man can safely operate even a
small electric-light plant.

A town treasurer when assuming of-
fice is obliged to give bonds, and nobody

would think of permitting him to handle
the funds of the town without such a
safeguard against loss, and yet probably
not one word of objection will be raised
against placing the machinery in this
electric-light plant, costing thousands of
dollars, in the care of a man who is
capable of demanding a wage of but
$1.97 per day.

In all probability those having the au-
thority to hire a night engineer have
not given much thought to his com-
petency, and perhaps do not know that
the man who obtains the night job can
more than save the amount that is offered
per month — if he knows how; but a $1.97
a day man will not cut much of a swath
in that direction.

Another thing that apparently has not
been considered is that in one night the
$1.97 man is liable to do more damage
to the machinery in the plant than can
be repaired with the entire amount paid
him for a year's wage.

It does not take much of a mistake to
cause several hundred dollars damage;
it has been done by merely carrying the
water too high in the boiler to allow a
longer time to sit down before attending
to the feed apparatus, with the result
that a cylinder head has been blown out,
causing a shutdown and a lot of dissatis-
fied customers. Doubtless the $60 a
month man will be able to make the
wheels go around, but that is not eco-
nomical engineering. A real engineer is
needed and cannot be hired at a rate of
$1.97 per night.

The same old story, only the number
is ever increasing — Three boilers and a
steam header exploded during the first
half of January. On January 4 the new
power house of the Lorain Coal and Dock
Company, near Blaine, O., was badly
wrecked by the explosion of a steam
header. Rushville, Mo., was the scene
of another boiler explosion on January
14, which killed two men. Two days
later a boiler exploded at the Cleary stone
quarry. Marietta, O., and as a varia-
tion from the usual a boiler on the tow-
boat "T. N. Davis" blew up on the same
date, when the boat was six miles north
of Cairo, 111., on the Ohio river. This
disaster resulted in one death.

The master mechanic of a Massa-
chusetts mill is publishing — and evident-
ly believes — the report of a test in which
he claims to have gotten an evaporation
of over sixteen pounds of water from and
at 212 per pound of combustible.

Ignorance on the part of the buyer
of the good points of high-class ma-
chinery compared with the cheap and in-
efficient, is what keeps the cheap factory
running.

Be prepared to make repairs before
the breakdown occurs; after it has hap-
pened may be too late.

January 31, 1911.

])> Sheet

NX'hat part of a boiler is the dry sht.

It is the extension in front of the tube
sheet of a horizontal tubular which
forms what is often called the smoke
box.

NX'hat is the sat > on a boiler

stay, and how is the stress calculate

The Massac! Board of Boiler

Rules specifies a maximum working
stress of from 6000 to 9000 pou
square inch of minimum cross-sectional
area, depending on material, construction
and size. The stress on a the

number of square in- ! by

the stay multiplied by the pressure per
square inch, less the minimum cross-
sectional area of the If.

How shall I set the valves of a
inch Corliss engine to get a diagram such
ucprint calls corr
I
•h the wristplatc in the middle o!

the steam va I inch

lap and the exhaust valves I 32-inch
lead; that is. instead of having lap
the valve will be open I ^2 inch. ¥
the engine on the ccrv cam

' lead.

V > I

at is meant by the term ■ .im

a steam engine

en steam is aJ Jcr

for I -i of the stroke and thefl

off. The steam in the r after

off still has pressure and expands, fur-
ng the ene'. mplctc the

// /

of an enc

■
•unutc with a mean

The horsepou in cng

pressed by the formula

in which

QucsttotM at

nor fl / unit

j<. *. oempaoied by the

name antt, h oi fl

inquirer. This page is

fbrwu when stm k

u.sc if

A — Area of the piston in square
inct

ton travel in
r minir
The mean effective prcssu
per square inch. The area of the
ton --half the area of the

I square inches. Th-.

.t per mint. ting

c values in the equation. -

Hoi ia the strength of a boiler seam
fou:

The strength of a boiler scam is the
•'.gth of | art. This may

be cither in the sheet or in the rivets.
•h of the sheet
il to the length of the seam
the diameter of the in the

outer row. T'

' r to »hea:

from the pitch and dividing the rcmai-
h. Th<

plate at ll

hearing
gth of or.
nun

gth of the »i ' these I l

.im

/' Hot h

II a pump not lift h«

a pump
»ure
of i on the

i
■

(tat n

■ n ' i n ■

when the
rrssurr

the

cannot remove fast enough to.rrduc* the

>u!d the tbi an engine

be wholly or -pen when

run'

Th open*. -ut

not "jamm

steam from the boiler to the engine and
a partially opened throttle is an obstruc-
tion

■r H

▼hat woi. -e the \

slowly in a gage glass imn*

it had been blown o

A part rped pipe or j

What be the pressure on

crank ; i lrtxJO-inch engine •

i steam press.

Tf of a

nrsaure on

-. .;■

«n

•

■

an the portion

c P'*'

i. h the edge of

ution V civJ

■ th< lacaalaa
J caaawd fee '

1 i< the par

T he r • f n * *■■* h»

oern heater, hart the cl*wd heater

210

POWER

January 31, 191 1.

Two Peculiar Flywheel Explosions

Two flywheel accidents occurred re-
cently, the first on Monday morning,
January 9, at the B. C. and R. Knight
textile mills No. 3, Manchaug, Mass. The
flywheel was entirely demolished and the
engine badly wrenched. This accident
was due indirectly to a fire, as water used
in putting it out soaked a belt, which
later parted and allowed two waterwheels
to run away with the engine.

The power plant consisted of two Cor-
liss engines and two waterwheels. Both
waterwheels were set in a basement room
under the mill and back of the engine
room. One of the engines was run on
high-pressure steam and was set at one
side of the engine room, with the flywheel
next to the mill. The other engine was
located on the opposite side of the en-
gine room, with the flywheel set away
from the mill; this second engine was
run as the low-pressure side of the other
engine, but was placed some 25 feet dis-
tant. Each engine was controlled by a
separate governor and the only connec-
tion between them was the 8-inch steam
pipe extending from the high- to the low-
pressure cylinder. Fig. 1 gives an idea
of the general layout of the power plant.

It seems that neither of the water-

One of these flywheels was
wrecked by two waterwheels
running away with an en-
gine connected to the same
shaft The other flywheel
was crushed in by a driving
belt which was cut by the
bursting of an 1 1 foot line-
shaft pulley, the belt wedg-
ing between the engine fly-
wheel and the cement floor.

had been put out, the water-soaked belt
parted, relieving the two waterwheels and
the low-pressure engine of all load, and,
there being no governing apparatus on
the waterwheels, they ran away with the
engine, the speed becoming so great that
the 26-foot flywheel, having a 36-inch

II High Pressure
]— ig" Engine

Low Pressure Engine

.,.,,.,,..,,,,,., , , -

face and weighing about 25 tons, burst
into dozens of pieces.

Some of the parts passed up through
the engine-room roof, some through the
rear wall and others into the wheel pit
and back into the mill basement through
a thick stone wall, wrecking piping, pul-
leys and shafting which were connected to
the waterwheels.

As the engineer noted the increase of
speed, an attempt was made to shut down
the high-pressure engine and thus cut off
the steam supply to the low-pressure en-
gine, but before this could be done, the
crash came. Fortunately, no one was
killed, or seriously injured. Beside wreck-
ing the flywheel, the main pillow block
was broken at the jaws and the outer
pillow block wrenched out of place. The
engine will require extensive repair be-
fore it will be fit to run again.

No photographs were obtainable as
the wreckage had been cleared away be-
fore a Power representative could get
on the field.

The second accident occurred at 1 :30
p.m. on Wednesday, January 11, when a
flywheel was wrecked at the works of the
American Axe and Tool Company, East
Douglas, Mass., which is but a few miles
distant from Manchaug.

A line shaft on which was mounted an
11-foot pulley was belted to a 310-horse-
power compound single-acting Westing-
house engine by a 19-inch belt. The
flywheel on the engine was 7 feet in
diameter and had a 21-inch face. The
belt was given a large arc of contact
on both of these pulleys, by means of two
idlers which were placed as shown in
Fig. 2. The 11-foot pulley was made
with a cast-iron hub and spokes and a
steel rim made in two sections and riveted
to the spokes. The idler next to the line

Fig. 1. General Layout of Engine Room

wheels was equipped with a governor,
and the low-pressure engine was not
equipped with a speed-limit safety stop.
Although the high-pressure engine was
protected by such a device, it had no con-
trol over the low-pressure engine.

About 8 o'clock on Monday morning, a
fire occurred in the mule room of the
factory, but was quickly extinguished by
water from the company's fire hose.
Water, however, saturated a belt that ran
from a pulley on a shaft that was con-
nected to the waterwheels. This shaft
also supported a driven pulley on which
the main driving belt from the engine
ran. About half an hour after the fire

Powtft

Fig. 2. Arrangement of Belt and Pulleys

January 31, 1911.

POU

211

shaft was attached to the wall forming
a partition between the engine and forge
rooms. The other idler was supp'
by a stand placed back of the engine fly-
wheel, and the top side of the belt was

minute, did any material damage I
self. In fact, the shaft was not even

:ng, although the concrete floor
rcctly under the fl
about 1 _• inches, and the anchor bolts

V.
\1. 11,11

The fifth annua j of the

medal for important diacowrtaa in

took place on Januar>
20 I hcmi»- jffc.

vbc of Chemical ladu

•ii* me .
for his achievements in the production of
.m at low cost. The me-

Prior

*W per

Fic. 3. Two Views op the Steel R m

made to travel between the two idlers, a
incc of one foot from the bottom, or
tight side, of the belt.

This accident was doubtless due to a
weakness in the 1 1-foot driven pulley.
The initial rupture started at one of the
joints of the rim where it was rivet-.
the spoke. As the rupture of this wheel
was not instantaneous, warning was c
to the men employed in the ■•
got to a safe place before the rim pa
• cs.

as of the rim l
lion and portions of the hub and
One-half of the rim was bent double at
a point near the center, the face of the
rim being on the inside. The other half
of the rim was bent into an ogee shar
en thi t, the I

ng be!1 <rn in two and

ic large contact on the face of the
icel. insto >ming off the ;

■ % wound around the rim -
ran :cnt floor of the engine

room, and so great was the ;
the belt on the rim of the enn
wheel at th *cen the floor and

the wheel that a section of the rim be-
•i the long, was

d in toward the huh. leaving the
break as shown in

On tbc of the rim It a crack

ling par- 'trough the metal that

was made a* the ft ; the

rim reed In i The wheel was

made with a solid rim an.!
Owing to the prompt act
glnccr. steam wa« *hut of* >»c boil-

Sefore the engine, which tM •
ning at • speed of 151 i n* per

were drawn up into the foundation
inch.

The damage was small, as it will only
be necessary to replace a new pullc.
the line shaft, a M icel on the en-

•

about by Csstr cese of

aluminum t use of sodii

he was bttf msistrd m

finding an an*

for alumina and then eiectr
alumina out of olhc solarJoa. He

cd for a : .886, the same

g granted in 188M
later passed upon by Jud>
Howard Taft. M -idem of the

two sets f

the work was fin up by the

iction Comper

Pic 4

gine and a ne - ' > one wa* hurt

ht of.

are

Photog raphe and -ere

le through the courtesy ef Super •

iniendent W. J. <

low the

212

POWER

January 31, 1911 =

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January 31, 191 1.

W I.K

.St. Louie Convention

Marine Engines

The National Marine Engineers' Bene-
ficial Association made a departure from
•m by holding its thirty-

ary 10, and continued in session through-
out •

Th for national oflkt

■
pt the seconj

the prominent
Cine tnd »icir

itkmS,

I convention chose lb

president;

0 be held
■I Dc

.Lor I ION

I annual convention at St. Louis in-
stead of at Wa i, where its it
een held for eighteen oi;
thin one hundred dele-
gates were in attendant' ring
associations from Seattle. Wash., to Port-

-
.rubb, - . and Albc

The social features of the on

- )( li n NOTES

onbtaed Aaae*.

.rough of Brook-
s held ■ Brook-

in for

c combtaed

sociations. The .ditonum %ith

jthenng of
eng. ■

T!
tion has \otcd to hold the I

mg the
2» to June
ess session* The meetings
be held in the
ing it 29 West

and from tht onslstr

..infers >nal rvM*^ an

dent Willia

•e>J fee
ui'ir •« bat a botri •• c bos been

214

POWER

January 31, 1911.

man, which this year will undertake to
make definite reservations. The manu-
facturing members of the association, in
view of the fact that there is another
electrical show in New York in October,
have voted to dispense this year with
the collective exhibit.

BOOKS RECEIVED

The Scientific American Cyclopedia
of Formulas. By Albert A. Hopkins.
Munn & Co., New York. Cloth; 1077
pages, 5^4x8 J< inches; 200 illustra-
tions. Price, $5.

Hydraulic Turbines. By V. Gelpke and
A. H. Van Cleve. McGraw-Hill Book
Company, New York. Cloth; 293
pages, 6^x9 inches; 200 illustra-
tions; plates; tables; indexed. Price,
$4.

Electricians' Operating and Testing
Manual. By Henry C. Horstmann
and Victor H. Toulsey. F. J. Drake
& Co., Chicago, 111. Leather; 359
pages, 4^x6^ inches; 211 illustra-
tions; indexed. Price, $1.50.

Water Power in New
Zealand

It is reported that the New Zealand
government has already passed an ap-
propriation of $1,250,000, which is to be
followed by more grants later on, to de-
velop several of its water-power pos-
sibilities.

The government has absolute control
of all the water power. Altogether there
is estimated to be 3,000,000 horsepower
undeveloped and available in the islands,
which are only 1000 miles long and 150
miles wide at the widest part. Owing to
the land being so suitable for agriculture
and to the European market being so dis-
tant, very little attention has been given
to manufacturing and so heretofore the
water power has not been utilized. New
factories are springing up and with cheap
electric power a great impetus will be
given the growing industries. American
manufacturers will surely do well to pay
attention to this promising field.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
the Patent Office at 5c. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

PRIME MOVERS

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Thad-
deus W. Heermans. Chicago. 111. 980,946.

WIND MOTOR. Alexander Norman. Dos
Palos. Cal. 980,995.

TURBINE. William E. Snow. Dedham.
Mass., assignor to B. F. Sfurtevant Company.
Boston, Mass., a Corporation of Massa-
chusetts. 081,021.

TURBINE. Julian II. Rivers. Niotaze.
Kan., assignor to Kaessmann-Rivers Develop-
ment Comnanv. St. Louis, Mo., a Corporation
of Missouri. 981,311.

ENGINE. Joseph Z. Savoie, Providence,
R. I. 981.310.

TWO-CYCLE INTERNAL COMBUSTION
ENGINE. Donn Irving Twitchell, New York,

N. Y., assignor to George II. Benjamin, New
York, N. Y. 981,331.

BOILERS, FIRNACES AND GAS
PRODICERS

GAS PRODUCER. George T. Davis, De-
troit, Mich. 980,923.

STEAM BOILER. John E. Fernstrum, Me-
nominee, Mich. 081,078.

STEAM GENERATING APPARATUS. Wil-
berforce B. Hammond, Brookline, Mass., as-
signor to General Fire Extinguisher Com-
pany, New York, N. Y., a Corporation of New
York. 981,081.

OIL BURNER. Ilenrv J. Ilennings, San
Gabriel, Cal. 981,083.

APPARATUS FOR GENERATING STEAM
OR OTHER VAPORS. Edward C. Newcomb,
Boston, Mass., assignor to the Newcomb
Motor Company, a Corporation of New York.
981,216.

DOWNDRAFT FCRNAOE. William H.
James, Cincinnati, Ohio. 981,275.

WATER-TUBE BOILER, .lames L. Butler,
Akron, and Norman Slee, BarliMton, Ohio, as-
signors to the Babcock & Wilcox Company,
New York, N. Y., a Corporation of New Jer-
sey. 981,377.

GRATE STRUCTURE. John R. Fortune
and Harold S. Wells, Detroit, Mich., assignors
to Murphy Iron Works, Detroit, Mich., a Cor-
poration of Michigan. 981,408.

LIQUID FUEL BURNER. William A. Wal-
lace and Albert Crume, Brush, Colo. 981,504.

POWER PLANT AUXILIARIES AND
APPLIANCES

COUPLING PIPE. Joseph H. Glauber,
Cleveland, Ohio. 980,939.

ROTARY VALVE. Brinay Smartt, Nash-
ville, Tenu., assignor to Thomas Maddin
Steger, Nashville, Tenn. 981,019.

PUMP. Frank L. Antisell, New York,
N. Y., and David W. Blair, Perth Amboy,
N. J. 981-.518.

AUTOMATIC TIME VALVE. Frederick S.
Ilutchins, San Francisco, Cal., assignor of
one-half to Irvin Silverberg. San Francisco,
Cal. 981,271.

AUTOMATIC SAFETY VALVE FOR
WATER GAGES. William II. Bray, Man-
chester, N. II., assignor of one-half to Hattie
L. Healev (now by marriage Hattie L. Felcli),
Manchester, N. II. 981,370.

LUBRICATOR VALVE FOR STEAM
CHESTS. Crank W. Edwards, Logansport,
Ind., assignor to the Chicago Lubricator Com-
panv, Chicago, 111., a Corporation of Illinois.
98L544.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS AND
APPLICATIONS

ALTERNATING - CURRENT ELECTRIC
MOTOR. Hans Sigismund Meyer, Bremen,
Germany, assignor to General Electric Com-
pany, a Corporation of New York. 980,986.

RENEWABLE FUSE FOR ELECTRIC
CIRCUITS. Joseph A. Yolk, Jr., South Nor-
walk, Conn. 981,038.

ROTARY CONVERTER. Joseph L. Burn-
ham. Schenectady, N. Y.. assignor to General
Electric Company, a Corporation of New
York. 981,059.

AUTOMATIC ARC LAMP. Ernst Sai'er,
Rochester, N. Y.. assignor by mesne assign-
ments, to Bausch & Lomb Optical Company.
Rochester, N. Y., a Corporation of New York.
081,121.

ROTARY CONVERTER. Charles P. Stein-
metz. Schenectady, N. Y., assignor to General
Electric Company, a Corporation of New
York. 081,134.

ELECTRIC SWITCH. Philip Thos. Mc-
Nally, Mandan, N. D. 981,452.

ELECTRIC HEATER. Milton H. Shoen-
berg, San Francisco, Cal., assignor to Presto
Electrical Manufacturing Company. San Fran-
cisco, Cal., a Corporation of California. 981,-
481.

APPARATUS FOR MEASURING ARF\S
BY MEANS OF ELECTRIC RESISTANCE
COILS. Julius Josef Gotz. Offenbaeh-on-the-
Main. Germany. 981,552.

RHEOSTAT. Charles D. Kestner. New
}ork. N. "}., assignor to the Mevrowitz Manu-
facturing Company, a Corporation of New
Jersey. 981,572.

POWER PLANT TOOLS

SCREW DRIVER. Willev B. Lane. Phila-
delphia. Penn.. assignor of one-half to J. C.
McCa* & Co., a Corporation of New York.

^WRENCH. James F. Wright, Canton, Ohio.

WRENCH. Rudolph J. Bomblatus and
Frank Caviola, Forbes Road, Penn. 981.523.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres., Col. E. D. Meier ; sec, Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City.

AMERICAN INSTITCTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Tope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION

Pres., Frank W. Frueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 3.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS-
ASSOCIATION

Pres., E. D. Meier, 11 Broadway, New
York; sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS

Pres., J. W. Alvord ; sec. J. H. Warder,
1735 Monadnock Block, Chicago, 111.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., E. K. Morse ; sec, E. K. Hiles, Oliver
building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings 1st and
3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS.
Pres.. Prof. J. D. Hoffman ; sec, William M.
Mackay. P. O. Box 1818, New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres., Carl S. Tearse, Denver. Colo. : sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street, Chicago,
111. Next convention, Cincinnati, Ohio.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr., Frederick Markoe. Phila-
delphia. Pa. ; Supr. Cor. Engr., William S.
Wetzler, 753 N. Forty-fourth St.. Philadel-
phia. I'a. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS

Pres.. William F. Yates. New York. N. Y. :
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago. 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January, 1912.

INTERN U. COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur .1. Frith : sec. Charles
Kratsch. 416 W. Indiana St.. Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls. Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF

ENGINEERS
Grand Worthy Chief, John Cope ; sec, J. U.
Bunce, Hotel Statler. Buffalo. N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia. Penn.. week
commencing Monday. August 7. 1011.

OHTO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres.. O. F. Rabbe : acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus.
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstown. Ohio, May
18 and 10, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION
Pres., A. N. Lucas: sec. Harry D. Vaught,
95 Liberty street. New York. Next meeting
at Omaha. Neb.. May, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford : sec, J. G. Hanna-
han, Chicago. 111. Next meeting at St. Paul.
Minn., September, 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION
Pres.. G. W. Wright, Baltimore. Md. : sec.

\l \\ ^< >kk. \ I Bkl \kN

A WELL KNOWN engim ently made

the statement thai li< I 1 1 i — I

position as chief because he had formed
the habit <>i' doing his work right.

Hi had been an en ting man for an
engine company, and was one <>i hall a dozen
men sent t<> make a nev ine run
toril) <»i" them simpl) <<l tli

opinion ti . the c lus the trouble .m<l
went Tlii^ engines 1 common

took «»tT his iinl fixed the engine 1»\

making prop justment

He <li<l n«>t know that an impression
had been made with the head <»i th< m

plant, fun two rs latei when he had

ten the incident , h< <l the i •

tion ol i hii le plant

where h«- had been sent t<» ii\ the en

The biblical maxim .il><«tit casting br<

UJMMI 111* 11(1 It

da) 5 woi : <>m in tlii It usuall) d< n

and tin- in. in s

when i piece "i work is to I

to •!«» it tin me know s li"\\

Mir i 1

1 .! whole 1' misfit

•
pritlr themselves <>m
the ap| 'i

th in plant

I tak much

I I tin \ w

t ll l :;
•Ml l.i

have n« \< t

• 1<> tiling ii. hi

mi \ t im

unriei theii «l

<1<- n \Sltl: it

IlM.IK'IM«

■

armed

■
<lk- with mmer. It

[inagiiu
■

me hat
hammer in the otto I mau

tli until the 1

the ivliinl.
ich pi

nil lii» teeth and |
such metho

I k>inj; work in thi
« 1 i r « n wh)

m the opportunit
l than tin

IIJH

Until!

investment must l«

; the
.m intelligent m

Mil tl

■
A

216

POWER

February 7, 191 1.

Boilers and Piping of Wieboldt BPdg

A new plant which has lately been in-
stalled for W. A. Wieboldt & Co., of
Chicago, contains some features deserv-
ing of attention. The boiler room con-
tains four Kroeschell 72-inch by 18-foot
horizontal, return-tubular boilers, ar-
ranged in two batteries, as shown in Fig.
1, and fitted with' Green chain-grate
stokers. Owing to the fact that the
sewer level at this point is close to the
surface, severe restrictions as to the
amount of headro'om were imposed. The
ordinary setting, which requires consid-
erable excavation, was not desirable, not
only because of its first expense, but
also because of the continued expense
for pumping into the sewer. Therefore

By Osborn Monnett

The main points of inter-
est in this small plant of a
Chicago department store
are the boiler setting, which
was specially designed for
restricted head room, and
the piping layout.

valves are open. A portion of the main
piping is shown in Fig. 3.

The nonreturn valves connect with

Fig. 1. Fronts of Boilers

long-radius bends which terminate in a
manifold located between the two bat-
teries of boilers. At this manifold are
located the boiler stop valves, all of which
can be manipulated from this point by
the operator, standing on a platform pro-
vided for the purpose. From the mani-
fold a 6-inch straight header extends di-
rectly to the engine room, where branches
are provided to distribute the live steam
to the engines.

In the engine room there are three
direct-connected Ball & Wood units, one
of 50, one of 150 and one of 200 kilo-
watts capacity. Directly over each
throttle is located a Cochrane receiver-
separator of unusually large capacity
for the size of engine. In the case of
the 200-kilowatt unit a steam connection
8 inches in diameter is provided at the
throttle, although the main steam line
to this unit is only 4 inches in diameter.
The steam line to the 150-kilowatt unit
is 3 inches in diameter, the separator 30
inches in diameter and the throttle-valve
connection as provided on the engine is
7 inches. Fig. 4 is a striking illustration
of the comparative sizes of piping and
separators. Another important feature is
the use of an angle throttle valve, which
affords a more direct passage for the
steam.

The advantages claimed for this sys-
tem of piping are lower first cost, greater
safety, less maintenance cost for bolts
and gaskets, reduced radiation, less sur-
face exposed to the steam and conse-
quent minimum condensation, avoidance
of dangerous pulsations in the header
over the boilers, as is sometimes found
in ordinary layouts, and lower maximum
velocity of the steam than in standard
practice. It is claimed that a steady, con-
stant flow of steam from the boilers to
the separators is realized, which takes up
any unevenness in the demand for steam

the stokers were equipped with ash drags,
as shown in Fig. 2, by which the ashes
are pushed from the rear of the ashpit
to a shallow pit at the front. The drag
is composed of angle-iron sections at-
tached to a chain operating over two
sprockets which are driven from the
stoker lineshaft through a ratchet ar-
rangement keyed to the front drag shaft.
The system of piping is unique, and
has been found very satisfactory. It
conforms to the standard practice of W.
L Fergus & Co., the consulting engineers
who laid out the new installation, and
consists chiefly of a number of small
headers and large receiver-separators,
the latter located at the engine throttles
and designed to furnish a reserve steam
capacity to draw upon when the steam

^yVw/.jw^wv:^/™

Fig. 2. Section through Furnace

February 7, 1911.

P O U E R

to the engines. No drain is used on the
header system, as it is contended that
condensation will cause the least trouble
a: the separator, where the steam is com-
paratively at rest, and the water

where the railroad monument now stands.
The "John Bull" was in .

from 1HJ] to 1885. during »
time it was altered and added to. It was
exhibited at th< i in

JO inches; the driving
'i incbe*
locust spot

of trough! iron shrunk on; the ^"fr*.
nehes deep ; d2 flu

3. Layout op Main Steam Ph

naturally gravitate to the bottom, where
removed.
- shows an indicator diagram
taken on one of the engines running
under full load, and serves as an li
cation of how well tli m is work-

ing out.

Tin- ( Hilrst Complete I x <>-

motive m Aincrii .i

At the National * ishing-

ton. :hc locomotive "John

f the Camden & An
is run!'

tlc-
on-Tvnc in <1 and shirred fi

•

"Allegh hia On

men ' ■ '.

with Uaac hripp* acting as rngil
■nd a train wit' I thl» locom

made the flmt movement b\ In

4t Hordcnrown.

< and at the exhibition of railway ap-
pliances in Chicago in It was
placed in the I rates National

J there
unt: *hcn on April IT I was

run under steam fron. the

lone
feet
•team

■

. Art

- of ibe

■art

. <•■

*ccmb*f. 1 99

<inni <

•* boll' f«cf

lonr

■

n»tng »hc« • of riM

Om of (St »M

In • V

' s u 1st torn • f t S< >

218

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Design of Steam Power Plants

In aiming for economy of fuel the
whole equipment of boilers, engines, con-
densers, pumps, heaters, piping, etc.,
must be considered individually and col-
lectively. An inefficient boiler will coun-
teract the virtues of a good engine, and
likewise an engine extravagant in steam
may render useless the economy obtained
with a good boiler.

Selection of the Boilers

Before the plans for the boiler house
are completed, the type of boiler to be
used should first be decided upon and
its exact dimensions and setting obtained
from the manufacturer.

As the efficiency of a steam-power
plant, both thermally and commercially,
depends primarily upon the boiler in-
stallation, it is evident that the selection
of proper boilers is of utmost importance.
A well selected boiler may give fairly
economical results even when poorly in-
stalled, but a type of boiler entirely
unfitted for the duty imposed upon it may
have the best setting and still not give
good results. The first cost, though im-
portant, should not be the first considera-
tion in selecting any piece of apparatus
for a power plant; selecting steam boil-
ers wholly on account of their low first
cost frequently means a sacrifice in effi-
ciency and with it the profits on the in-
vestment. If, on the other hand, boilers
are selected with reference only to their
thermal efficiency, the cost of the installa-
tion may be prohibitive, and for this rea-
son may forbid a decision wholly upon
that basis.

Evaporation

The principal item affecting the cost of
operation of a boiler is its evaporative
efficiency, which should be a maximum
at normal load in a well designed boiler.
When forcing to a great extent, although
the rate of evaporation is increased, the
efficiency is lowered owing to a large
proportion of the heat being wasted.
Therefore, a boiler plant should be of
ample capacity to carry the greatest
steady loads without forcing. It is al-
ways well to install one or more spare
boilers, for use when any of the others
are out of service for repairs or for
cleaning.

With most boilers the best efficiency
under ordinary working conditions is ob-
tained when evaporating about three
pounds of water per hour, per square
foot of heating surface, from and at 212
degrees. This is equivalent to allowing
nearly twelve square feet of heating sur-
face per boiler horsepower.

As the efficiency of the heating surface
will be more or less impaired by the ac-
cumulation of scale and soot, it is well
to provide ample heating surface for the
work to be done. This results in a saving

"Rxr William F FkrVier cheaper of the two, would do so only at
Dy VV lllldlll I . I IbUllCl an increased fuel consumption.

In a previous article tinder
the above caption are taken
up the location and type of
plant, the building and the
foundations. The present
article deals with the selec-
tion of boilers.

of fuel at ordinary rates of evaporation,
and also makes it possible to run the
boiler considerably above its rating and
still maintain a fair efficiency.

Most of the various types and grades
of boilers on the market are capable of
producing practically the same evapora-
tion per pound of fuel fired, provided
they are designed with the same ratio
of heating to grate surface and are op-
erated under exactly similar conditions.
They differ, however, with respect to
space occupied, weight, capacity, first
cost and adaptability to particular condi-
tions of operation.

Boiler Horsepower

Strictly speaking, there is no such
thing as the horsepower of a steam
boiler, for the power from the steam is
developed in the engine, the boiler itself
doing no work. This phrase was original-
ly intended to mean that a boiler hav-
ing a certain stated horsepower would
furnish all the steam required to de-
velop that amount of power in a given
engine. According to the American So-
ciety of Mechanical Engineers' standard,
a boiler to develop one horsepower must
evaporate 30 pounds of water from a
temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit
into steam at 70 pounds gage. This is
equivalent to evaporating 34j/> pounds
of water from a temperature of 212 de-
grees Fahrenheit into steam at atmos-
pheric pressure, or "from and at 212 de-
grees," as it is called, which corresponds
to 33,305 B.t.u. per hour.

This measure of capacity is merely
conventional, as one boiler horsepower
will furnish sufficient steam to develop
about three actual horsepower in the best
compound-condensing engine, but only
about one-half horsepower in a small
noncondensing engine.

The term "horsepower" should not be
used when purchasing a boiler unless
the amount of heating surface is also
specified, as one bidder might offer a
boiler with five square feet of heating
surface per horsepower, and another with
ten square feet. Both boilers would be
capable of the required evaporation, but
the boiler having the smaller heating
surface, although probably much the

Water-tube versus Fire-tube Boilers

Engineers differ as to the design of
boiler best suited to certain conditions.
As experience has shown that boilers of
the water-tube and the fire-tube types
give equally good economy if well de-
signed and operated under the same con-
ditions, it is impossible to give any gen-
eral rule as to which type should be
given the preference. The principal con-
siderations with which an engineer has
to deal when selecting a type of boiler
for a given plant are: The character of
the fuel, the character of the feed water;
the kind of service and safety, the avail-
able floor space, the steam pressure to
be carried, the expense of operation and
maintenance, and the influence of the lo-
cality.

Water-tube boilers are usually em-
ployed in medium- and large-sized cen-
tral stations in high-pressure units of
from 300 to 650 horsepower. Where the
service is such that large quantities of
steam are often wanted with but very
little warning, water-tube boilers should
always be given the preference. This is
because they contain relatively less water
than the shell, or fire-tube, type; conse-
quently steam can be raised in them
within a shorter time. On account of
the larger passage for the gases and the
better circulation of water in contact with
the heating surfaces, more water can be
evaporated per square foot of heating
surface in a water-tube boiler than in
one having fire tubes, although, as before
mentioned, the efficiency of the two types
is about the same. On account of their
lower first cost, return-tubular boilers are
still used to a considerable extent in cen-
tral-station work in preference to the
water-tube type, but as the practice of
such initial economy frequently proves
to be the most expensive in the end, the
consideration of low first cost should not
be given too much weight. By this, how-
ever, is not meant that the boiler of
highest first cost is always the most eco-
nomical one. Regarding repairs, the
water-tube boiler is the more expensive
if it is to be kept in first-class condition.

Waters that abound in scale-forming
matter warrant a decision in favor of
the use of a boiler of the plain cylindrical
or horizontal return-tubular types, be-
cause of the comparative ease with which
they can be cleaned at a minimum cost.
Because of their ability to stand almost
continual service with a minimum amount
of overhauling, horizontal return-tubular
boilers should be given the preference
where the time allowable for repairing,
cleaning and overhauling is limited.

As to safety, water-tube boilers are
generally accepted to be superior to those

Februar '11.

POW

of the fire-tube type. Therefore, in
selecting the boilers for a building where
a number of people are employed, or are
likely to be gathered, the water-tube I

uld undoubtedly be given the prefer-
ence, regardless of its additional
cost and cost of operation and main-
tenance.

Another important consideration in
the selection of a steam boiler
the amount of space available. For
shallow basements and out of the way
corners, probably no boiler is as suit-
able as the horizontal return-tubular, but
where space is plentiful, other considera-
tions rna\ cause a different type of boiler
to be selected. As return-tubular b
ers arc seldom made in sizes o\

cpowcr. they should not be con-
sidered for large unit

\i Bon

uhcrc ground space is expensive and
overhead room permits, vertical tubular
boilers may be con -uch

boilers arc rapid steamers and are com-
paratively low in • They have
the disadvantages. ho., f being in-
accessible for thorough inspection and
cleaning, have a considerably small steam
apace, resulting In ning at
heavy loads, and are poor in economy
it light loads, as the products of
combustion escape at a high temperature
on account of the shortness of the rul
Another disadvantage of the vertical
tubular boiler is its small water capa-
ilch usual' in rapidly
fluctuating steam pressures with varying
demands for steam.

il fire-tube are usual',

una: seldom being

r. An und

in the Manning vertical fire-tube boiler,
which is construct up to

hor^

sures ol

above .*ki sally

arrangeJ uith a brick furnace and may
be t ! with mechanical

far as safety and efl

the Manning boiler rar I the

Other lrat«cfau

• re also made in the wate'

In efflcicnc\ compare favorab
tal water-tube boiler

Anotl which

•ho

ass and an
'ate and take care
.em A plant in which t!
one attend., ever be

cqti the

Jam trill BOt
care f<>r the

The maximum cvaporat

• »t

•mount of coal which car-

on the cratr* With draft •

good boiler can develop a horscp<
upo: naif v.

m of gr
is » importance, and should

conform to the demands imposed upon it
-ular gt c used.

Some g less heating po -

ind than otl burned

at as high a rate of con

t of their peculiar
fore, the grate

upon the character of a! and the

of draft, w'ith good coal lou

ills ma.
obta ;h a large grai ace and

light draft as with a small gr
and strong draft, the total amount of coal
bur- hour b in both

case -h good bituminous coal, low

in ash. the rith

a strong draft and a high rate of corn-
on. provided the grate surfaces are
that the total coal bur
hour is not too great for I
the heating surface to a ihe heat

h coals high in ash, es-
illy if the a

to choke the grates, large grate -
face and a low rate of i are

- means, such as shaking
-eking grates, are ; J to ge'

of the ash as fast as The

amount of grate cd per

under nay

:j the accompan
table, which is tat
chanica!

■
boile

■

-i- Not Im then or
foot of grat

he boat of boiler hariaag

n cfldeocy of " h to

good

lish about II to 12
of hea
rube and h<

boil i

to fourteen kji r stationery lo-

con re, and about eigbt *^

Scotcb marine
boilers. A- » not

da and contracts for bo

dst amount of

llcr I

J J rector for

- *oee ottce
m mended in Me
mcs-agc M tbc cgisiaturt to be r »*c a
tcad of being nrtm.

a n<
Iati<

— fit

'''• L

■

f a mor ch he bet

Wher nded to x

n end
pooofblc «• '■ ng bei

it §' ■ coal oAcc on* bflta.

portior

ding tr an 6000 boilers to loafed w the

due to tb
combustion c fleet are used to sssrh

the nun' » decreeweg •:

■ ch a.

The dmleywet of ibe

ref leciag
m eah/ boilere la r«*

com butt. or. for •«

220

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Experiences on Construction Work

Engineers of stationary plants some-
times think they have their share of
trouble in keeping their plants in good
operating condition, and they undoubtedly
do have plenty of it at times; but, when
it comes to having all kinds of trouble,
and usually that of an unexpected char-
acter, the engineers and mechanics of
outside contracting plants, such as canal
construction, mine development and other
plants of this kind, often have diffi-
culties which make the ordinary troubles
of the stationary engineer appear com-
paratively small.

On works of this kind, good build-

Cement

Fig. 1. Section through Repaired
Portion

ings or foundations are not attempted, as
the work is usually of a temporary char-
acter and the machinery must be moved
about frequently; consequently, the ma-
chinery is operated under conditions
which make accidents and breakdown
much more liable to occur than in a plant
which is installed to be operated perma-
nently. On account of the nature of the
work, it is often necessary for the boil-
ers, engines and pumps to be placed in
the bed of a stream and protected by a
cofferdam, the water being pumped out
continuously night and day, to prevent
the works from being flooded. This makes
quick action on the part of the men in
charge necessary in case of a breakdown,
especially if it happens to the pumping
machinery. They must be resourceful,
and quick to find a remedy for any emer-
gency which may arise.

While visiting plants of this kind in
various parts of the country, the writer's
attention frequently has been called to
repairs that had been made to the ma-
chinery, many of which would have done
credit to the best equipped machine shop.
In most cases the work had been done
with whatever tools were available, and
in the shortest possible time in order to
get the machinery in service again. One
example of a quick and effective repair
was that made on a large centrifugal
pump on a hydraulic dredge. It began to
leak on one side of the rim, and upon
examination it was found that the rim

By S. Kirlin

A ttention is called to the fact that
on construction work the condi-
tions are often such that when a
breakdown occurs repairs must be
made immediately. With the lim-
ited facilities at hand the repairs
often tax the ingenuity of the en-
gineering force. A few of such
instances are cited.

was cracked and almost worn through
for a distance of several feet. As there
were no facilities at hand for patching
it, the master mechanic decided to try
repairing it with cement. Fig. 1, showing
a cross-section of the pump, and Fig.
2, which shows an elevation of the
finished repair, give an idea of how the
job was accomplished. A number of
pieces of strap iron were cut to the proper
length with holes drilled in the ends to
fit over the studs which held the sides
of the casing. These were bent over
the rim and were allowed to stand out
about 3 inches to form a reinforcement
for the cement. A form was then made,
and, after being placed over the rim of

Fig. 2. Elevation of Repaired Portion

the pump, was poured full of cement. As
soon as this had set, the form was re-
moved and the pump placed in service.
Another interesting repair was that
made on a broken eccentric rod of a high-
speed engine which drove an air corn-

two men to work filing grooves on each
side of the break, as shown in Fig. 3. A
piece of pipe 10 inches long and about
]/2 inch larger in diameter than the
rod was then slipped over it, the ends
of the broken rod being butted together.
The rod was then centered in the pipe,
the ends of which were stopped with clay,
and the pipe was poured full of babbitt.
As the rod had not been changed from
its original length, it was not necessary
to reset the valve or to disturb any of
the connections. The engine was run-
ning again in less than an hour after the
break had occurred.

The master mechanic of a large con-
tracting firm who had a reputation for
making quick repairs in case of a break-
down, was asked how it was that he was
always ready with a remedy for all ac-
cidents that occurred. He answered that
he made it a point to study the construc-
tion of every machine at the works, to
ascertain just about what was most likely
to break down, and to decide upon the
method he would use to repair it in case
it did let go. In this way he was pre-
pared with the necessary material for
making the repairs on breakdowns which
were most likely to occur, and did not
lose any time studying out a way to go
at it. His system of being prepared for
trouble before it occurred might be
adopted by a great many others to good
advantage.

There is probably no place where it
pays better for the companies to furnish
their mechanics with plenty of good tools
than on work of this kind. It is usually
a long distance from any machine shop
where repairs can be made, and delay
in making repairs is often a serious mat-
ter, as a small accident will frequently
stop all work and possibly cause heavy
damage by flooding work under way.

The chief engineer of a construction
company which was notoriously lax when
it came to furnishing tools, remarked,
that they had a sledge, a monkey-wrench
and a screwdriver, and were supposed to
repair everything from the Ingersoll air
compressor down to the master me-
chanic's watch of the same make.

Pipe

j^- Babbitt

Fig. 3. Section through Rod and Babbitt

pressor. The compressor furnished air
for operating a large number of drills,
and as all work was stopped while the
air pressure was off, it was up to the
engineer to make a quick repair and get
things running again. He at once put

Hen Simpkins packed th' piston rod uv
his ingin tother day an' sez he'll bet thet
he don't hev ter pack it agin fer a year.
Sed his darter hed jist graddiated frum
th' cookin' school an' he used sum uv
her doughnuts, 'stid uv ring packin'.

February 7. 1911.

Boiler Thirty Years Old Explodes

On the evening of January 14, while
a committee of engineers in St. Joseph,
Mo., were busily engaged in drafting a
proposed law relative to the licensing of
engineers and firemen and the
tion of steam boilers throughout the
State, the boiler of a small electric-light
plant in the neighboring town of Rush-
ploded. The fireman and his son.
who had just dropped in to see his father,
were instantly killed, and the entire plant
was demolished. Fortunately the cngi-
io was also the owner, had left
the plant a few minutes before. If the
n had occurred three-quarters of
an hour lat. probable that a dozen

or n ea would have been lost, as it

was customary for a number of the men
and boys of the town to congregate
around the plant every evening.

The boiler was built in 1881 for a
Kansas grist mill, and after twenty-four
years of ac .as sold to a mill in

Albert I . Dcdrick

.1 :

in <m hi p.

strength of 17,000 pound* per k
lack, providing the actual steam r
-ecd 106 pound*.
Some idea of the extent of the explo-
sion may be gained from the

' bead*

he Sues intnet were blown a
tancc of r ■ through the kitchen

wal narrowly aaioo-

ing three email children who »
in an adjoining room. The

•

several »hec

the to»r
fror another Urge piece

took a cht angloa to that

■ .

pi. v I • c c-c BOM aj I Mad "a- AON

1 ho!r
fire ' •

FiC I. Head a : ed throi

Ru«h\i!!c. The purchasers, after making
a careful examination of the boiler, de-
cided that it was not worth the expense
of installing and therefore let it remain
ard. After being exposed to the
weather am it was installed in

re it had been
In v ears when the

>sion o>

It »a< of the horizontal return-tubular

vrhes in diamr- II feet

6 incite* long, and ted lap

finally had
been j inch thick. »n badly pittc :

ie and rutted away on the out-

until in many place* it measured

Its* tha gular working

• re inch
■

■
the plate must ha d at a

' '*

222

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Fig. 4. Section of Shell Thrown 350 Feet

Fig. 5. Remains of Dynamo

directions in which the various parts of
the boiler were hurled it is evident that
the initial rupture occurred at the bot-

tom of the shell, and in the absence of this hole, although the tremendous force
other indications it would seem more exerted by the explosion would suggest a
than likely that it took place at or near rupture above the water line.

Use of High Gas Speeds in Boilers

At a recent meeting of the Institution
of Engineers and Shipbuilders of Scot-
land, Prof. J. T. Nicolson delivered a
paper on "Boiler Economics and the
Use of High Gas Speeds," based upon
the tests of an experimental boiler of the
Cornish type, this boiler being arranged
as shown in Fig. 2. Within the last 10

100.000

In this experimental boiler
a gas speed of over 200 feet
per second was attained, re-
sulting in the transmission
of 48,000 B.t.u. per square
foot of boiler-heating sur-
face and 2785 B.t.u. per
square foot of economizer
surface per hour. This re-
sulted in a high rate of
evaporation without de-
creasing the thermal effi-
ciency.

Fig.

100 200 300 400 500

Speed of Hot Gas, Feet per Second. Power

1. Effect of Velocity of Gases
Upon Heat Transmission

feet of boiler flue was placed a brick
plug of such a diameter as to leave an
annular space 1 J/2 inches around it for
the passage of the hot gases. These,
after leaving the boiler, passed over the
tubes of an evaporator and then through
an economizer. The tubes of both the
evaporator and the economizer had

square iron rods inserted within them so
as to cause the feed water to travel at
a rapid rate, yet bring as much water-
heating surface into use as possible. It
was arranged that the feed upon leav-
ing the economizer should go either di-
rectly into the boiler, or go there after
mixing with the circulating water drawn
by a rotary pump from the boiler and
forced through the tubes of the evap-
orator so as to accelerate the circulation.
The results of the tests with this ar-
rangement were as follows:

Coal fired per hour, pounds 840

Coal fired per square foot of grate sur-
face per hour, pounds 44 . 2

Temperature of gases in combustion

chamber, degrees Fahrenheit 3000

Temperature of gases leaving brick

plug, degrees Fahrenheit 1200

Temperature of gases /eaving evapora-
tor, degrees Fahrenheit 620

Temperature of gases leaving econo-
mizer, degrees Fahrenheit 140

Temperature of feed entering econo-
mizer, degrees Fahrenheit 70

Temperature of feed leaving economizer,

degrees Fahrenheit 270 to 340

Temperature corresponding to boiler

pressure, degrees Fahrenheit 340

Draft at fan suction, inches 23£

Draft at bottom of economizer, inches. . 23

Draft at top of economizer, inches 7

Draft at back of water drum, inches. . . 6£

It will be observed that the tempera-
ture of the waste gases fell to within 70
degrees of that of the entering feed.
Compared with a boiler plant in which
the waste gases reach the chimney at 540
degrees, this corresponds to an increased
evaporation of about V/2 pounds per
pound of coal. The transmission through
the heating surface surrounding the plug
was,

840 X 15 X 0.25 X (3000 — 1200) =
5,670,000 B.t.u.

per hour, or 48,000 B.t.u. per hour per
square foot of heating surface. In a
similar manner it was found that the rate
of heat transmission in the economizer
was 2785 B.t.u. per square foot of tube
surface per hour.

The effect of gas speed in promoting
rapidity of heat transference was defi-
nitely established, as plotted in Fig. 1,
and there seemed to be a possibility by
its use of greatly reducing the ratio of
heating to grate surface without causing
a diminution in efficiency which hereto-
fore has always been associated with
forced rates of combustion and evapora-
tion.

It was accordingly decided to keep the
boiler in operation for several months,
making regular temperature observations
and weighing the coal and feed water.
Some little difficulty was experienced at
first with the fan, but slight alterations
enabled it to successfully hold up under
the severe service. The principal object
in making this continuous test was to
ascertain whether the narrow gas pas-

February 7. 1911.

sages would become choked with soot,
and to observe what would become of the
sediment and gases contained in the feed
water when set free in the narrow water
channels of the economizer and evapo-
rator.

As feared, the passages around the
economizer tubes did become choked
with soot, and in order to burn the re-

ratur. accompanying

tab

In conclusion it may be said that

I. That the rate >ration

pou square foot of total hea

surface per hour increase
the ga*

!• not necc*»*r.l) is.
voire h t of baraing on :r -

6. That the drop in trap*

depend upon ibe mere msgaltada of the

roo the ratio of the
to the croM

tional i

• of £T»t«- twr hour
ml of dry coal

■

i
1

•

....

.00

Irtnti v
The

into a
ing

r »c

l ! ><> Jc M

ft" |

l«

quired quantity of co?l it was found
neccssar>- to remove about one-third the
number of economizer tubes (which were

inch in diameter and pitch
inches center to center I and repitch them,
this change the temperature of the
c gases no longer remained at
degrees, but rose to 24 :h a

thin layer of soot upon them.

As regards the water spaces of the
economizer (that remaining after a
inch square rod had been inserted in a
posit was found upon
either the rods or the pipe and there was
practically no corrosion. Below the water

can be att.i .• in

or thermal eft
The scouring action of the high-
speed gas is sufficient to prevent choking
by the accumulation of soot to such an
i affect materially the rate of
heat transmission.

:h continuous running, and a

oes of this commodity
e ago to Boston.

disposed of its products in the

on. snd consequent!) plot
oil on these ma- chea

aaap
a great eon
c (hitch
•earn to

o ■occaed in the
e •uuatton

I I j*

» 2 r r t c J

4 a

I, however, the cvapnritor tubes had
become partially

was accounted the

fact thai ^ the night the »atcr

culating pump was al»
owing

the onl-. .h the c

• as that due to gi
Tr iftcr fi'

•teaming withoi. auling

cept for the removal of tome of the
ment below the water level of ipo-

■ ; . • • r i

p space when

price

stall

oil •» in the

while the -

224

POWER

February 7, 1911.

The Steam Turbine in Germany

Before entering into the details of the
discussion it is necessary to agree upon
a common measure of comparison.
Formerly the thermodynamic efficiency
wa-j used exclusively, this being the ratio
of the energy actually utilized to the
energy theoretically available, in other
words, the ratio of the theoretical steam
consumption of an ideal engine to the
actual steam consumption. Those Ger-
man firms which build only the steam
end of the unit, generally base their
steam-consumption figures upon the ac-
tual work transmitted, measured at the
coupling between the turbine and gen-
erator shafts. In most other cases, how-
ever, the thermodynamic efficiency in-
cludes the electrical output of the gen-
erator.

Let

H0 = Theoretical heat drop,
that is, the amount of
heat which is available
in an ideal engine per
pound, or kilogram, of.
steam introduced into
the cycle (adiabatic ex-
pansion) ;

Available heat per pound
of steam, corresponding
respectively to the work
delivered to the gen-
erator coupling, and the
electrical output;

steam con-
sumption per horse-
power-hour and per
kilowatt-hour, respect-
ively;

De and Del = Actual steam consump-
tion per horsepower-
hour and per kilowatt-
hour, respectively;

7}e and yel = Thermodynamic efficiency
referred to the output
delivered by the turbine
and by the generator,
respectively.

In accordance with the foregoing the
following ratios may be expressed:

HezndHel

D0 and DQ = Theoretical

D„

% H~De
"at D'o

D„

(14)

(15)

and if yg represents the efficiency of the
generator, then

When making an efficiency test of a

steam turbine, the values De and D(
are found by the test, the amount H0
being taken either from the Mollier or
the Stodola steam tables. In this con-
nection it should be noted that one
metric horsepower-hour = 75 meter-
kilograms per hour = 632 French units

By F. E. Junge

and E. Heinrich

The thermodynamic effi-
ciency as a measure of
comparison of steam tur-
bine economies and an out-
line of the development of
the Allgemeine Elektricitdts
Gesellschaft turbine.

= 2510 B.t.u. per hour, and one kilo-
watt-hour = 632 -*- 0.736 = 860 French
units per hour = 3410 B.t.u.

In one kilogram of steam only H0 heat
units are available; therefore,

6^2

DQ = —■ kilograms
o

of steam are theoretically required in
order to produce one horsepower-hour.
Similarly,

D0 = —=-=- kilograms
"o

is the theoretical steam consumption per
kilowatt-hour. Furthermore, expressed
in French units,

Vr =

632

DeH0
860

vel — n u
uelno

or in English units,

_ 2510

Vel

34IO

DelH0

(16)

(i7)

(1 6a)

(17a)

The comparison of two steam turbines
on the foregoing basis alone is not free
from objections and needs supplementary
data. For the economic efficiency of
steam turbines the ratio of the circum-
ferential velocity of the blades to the jet
velocity is essential. For a single stage
the most favorable value of this ratio
is, theoretically, 0.5, but on account of
the losses which occur, this is reduced
in practice to 0.4 or 0.45. Considering
two turbines of the same type and hav-
ing the same number of stages, one
working with high superheat and high
vacuum, and the other with a lesser de-
gree of superheat and vacuum, this ratio
will be considerably smaller with the
former than with the latter, because
the jet velocity is higher in the first
case; therefore, the thermodynamic effi-
ciency of the former will be inferior to
that of the latter, although the steam con-
sumption of the former is superior on
account of the additional energy avail-
able. Besides the influence of this ratio

upon the thermodynamic efficiency, con-
structive features are apt to affect the
efficiency with a high heat drop. With a
high vacuum the specific volume of steam
grows to such an extent that the cross-
sectional areas through the last stages
and the length of blades cannot be en-
larged so as to utilize the heat drop
with the best possible efficiency; hence
it is useless to go below a certain vac-
uum. Furthermore, the high-pressure part
of turbines built upon the reaction princi-
ple is not capable of safely withstand-
ing high working temperatures. If such
turbines are destined to work with high
temperatures the clearances between the
fixed and the rotating parts must be con-
siderably larger than when the working
temperature of the turbine is low; hence
the leakage losses increase and the
thermodynamic efficiency decreases. Sum-
ming up, it may be said that the thermo-
dynamic efficiency alone does not give
conclusive evidence of the all-round
economy of a turbine, but that the rate
of energy drop which is utilized in the
turbine must be taken into account.

The A. E. G. Steam Turbine

The steam-turbine factory of the All-
gemeine Elektricitats Gesellschaft, in
Berlin, is the largest concern of its kind
in Germany, employing more than 3000
workmen who are exclusively engaged
in this specialty. On October 1, 1910,
the total number of Allgemeine Elek-
tricitats Gesellschaft turbines built
and ordered was 1339, representing
a total capacity of 1,514,418 horsepower,
and prior to 1902 the company had not
taken up the manufacture of steam tur-
bines. There were at that time two sys-
tems on the market which had given fair
results and had proved their usefulness
for general power work even in large
units; these were the Parsons and the
Curtis types. The De Laval turbine, which
was to be found in nearly all markets
on the continent, could not be used as a
model for the manufacture of large steam
turbines, on account of its limitations in
capacity, it being incapable of produc-
ing, economically, greater outputs than
300 horsepower. Therefore the Allgemeine
Elektricitats Gesellschaft adopted an en-
tirely novel system, known unJer the
name of the Riedler-Stumpf turbine. The
basic idea was to build a turbine wheel
which could utilize the whole energy of
the steam in a single stage, at speeds
which were to remain within the limits of
direct generator drive. Tangential im-
pinging of the steam upon the blades,
which were milled with a cutter from the
solid wheel-disk, was a special con-
structive feature of this type; and for
low speeds and heavy loads, velocity stag-
ing and, when necessary, pressure stag-

February 7. 1911.

ing were provided. Although this -
tern is no longer on the market, it pos-
sesses historical value renting the
attempt to utilize the single-stage pr
pie for high capacities without ha
recourse to tr.i ion gearing. The
highest possible number of revolutions
for turbines driving electric generators —
at 50 cycles, such as is used in Germany
— is 3000 rcvoluti' - minute, for a
generator having two poles. In order to
obtain an economic ratio of circum-
ferential velocity to steam velocity, which

to impinge upon it again, are shown
in i ie of t! J000

J single stage
at the Moabit centra of

the v
and was v : to a 'in

>earch Vorfc, Heft
dcutscher Ing

In • > show the essential working

conditions of the R ipf tur

the following figures arc sc rom

the

•"

FlC. II' » KEL

to be 91
The thee-

•

-
mete
ond The actual velocity, luumicc •

f loss

ond T e ratio of

to cfmis velos.

M figures show at once the »cak-
nc* *4oc

•* moot f.
vali:

.cth for:
whi eter so as to a'

The number of rcvolutior

thc drop ' eat

on account of the

bad a higher drop would

•'
Mcarn conMin>r"<>rt »crc t<r.cr The
looses in the noulcs and blade pocklg

rbioe.
It rill Nr rotMSBootod from the pro-
ng artk

is essential for steam cconom
large wheel diameters had to be adop

*:. 19 shows a whec in

diameter, built for
minute, corresponding to a circumfer-

il velocity of 314 meters per sec-

vtCE

ond ' ■ !

high speed* had never N
been used ce and. th

Ctasitat careful con- of

the wheel as »cll a« the t icnt

of first-class material. A high stress

atcrial was allowed '
with the best material (nickel in
factor of f thrr nr was

deemed sufficient. The guide blade-
large capacities and low speed*. •<"

•nJuct the steam back to the »heel

< I'm.**

. » \ .

-• N

-'•'

Ihcr

*--..j-<

the corro-
I figure i including all addition*!

Hon snd radiation i to only 54 nor

1TTP

Pic 21. K

i n

226

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Therefore, the underlying idea of single- gards the Curtis turbine, the German construction affords better accessibility

stage action for high capacities could not manufacturers preferred an independent to all parts and a better survey over the

be realized in practice, so that the All- course of construction, adopting the hori- whole plant, especially easier control of

gemeine Elektricitats Gesellschaft was zontal instead of the vertical type, the bearing, governor, safety devices, etc.

forced to adopt another system. How- main reasons being that for the sake of It also permits the machine to be dis-

ss 2:

3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0

1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 900010000 12000
Output in K. V. A. rower

Fig. 22. Limits of Output of Three-
phase 50-cycle Generators

ever, the attempt proved that circum-
ferential velocities of from 300 to 400
meters per second can be safely used.
Also, it might be mentioned that Ameri-
can designers of small turbines have re-
adopted the characteristic blade form of
the Riedler-Stumpf turbine.

o 4500

5 4ouo

~ 3500
t 3000

a 2500

S 2000
•2 1500
2 1000

> 500

100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000
Output iu Kilowatts Poivtr

Fig. 23. Variation of Speed with Load
in Direct-current Generators

As early as October, 1903, the All-
gemeine Elektricitats Gesellschaft had
come to an agreement with the owners
of the Curtis patent in America, espe-
cially with the General Electric Com-
pany, and by this agreement a sort of
community of interests, scientific tech-
nical exchange, mutual exploitation of

LIT

T-

—

Fig. 24. A. E. G. Turbine for Speeds

of 3000 Revolutions Per Minute

and Loads Up To 1000 Kilowatts

patents and a division of the markets,
preventing the products of one firm from
competing with those of the other in cer-
tain territories, was established. As re-

Fic. 25. A. E. G. Turbine of 3000 Revolutions Per Minute and Outputs

Greater than 1000 Kilowatts

steam economy in the larger types, the
Rateau stages were adopted for the low-
pressure portion, and as this necessitated
a greater number of stages and therefore
a greater total axial length of turbine, the
vertical construction was rendered diffi-
cult.

Another problem to be considered was
that of attendance. The same arguments

mantled and the interior exposed for in-
spection with much less trouble than with
the vertical type. In view of the neces-
sity of ease in dismantling, the pipe fit-
tings, governing mechanism, etc., should
be connected preferably to the lower part
of the casing. The step bearing of the
vertical type of turbine, which now seems
to give satisfactory service, was regarded

Fig. 26. A. E. G. Turbine of 1500 Revolutions Per Minute

which make the horizontal construction
in steam engines, except in a few special
cases, superior to the vertical type, hold
true also for the turbine. The horizontal

in the early days as a sensitive organism
which was likely to give trouble. So it
was deemed wiser in this respect by the
builders to profit by the tests of Lasche

February 7, 1911.

and by the good results attained with c if the sr <nt for >tcam

horizontal bearings in the high-speed c |n one

electric-railway trials. of the ; o*n

As to bulk of plant, the floor space jar. beginning

quired is approximately the same for i so-

both types, if the condensing plant is Cur- Rateau

.XM J

' . . —

Sectional Ei

\ BtM

n principle it superior wbeoo
high economy though

coir and Katraa turMne

»ecm» the m

of about 300 ho-
power, the <
ing

for

othc chant*

ecl* having t... to vbrc
ing three r
One of the problema which the H

to »< dicatc

■d proportion*
of the*
tain >ch the

The number of • us. or the

imum apecd

as a rule, not So*

The rotor of the
gcr om plica ted

*m a-

rotating
of the turbine. The forme -

lho

in unh(>'

taken into account (which ha imc

>ns in both case** I ring

a rut ntainlog several ui

the center* between t*«> units bee
somewhat gi aritti Ihe ven

hence, the length of the plant tier.

c the width of the room u ill he-
smaller with vertical turbines than with

/ontal one^ I of

•

cal than ntal «t;

hen, assume that the

of the building cal un:- atcr

than for horizontal u:

and other tJc

It a the Allgemein'.

Gei ■

.in entire! and

na! form ol -ual tur

ice agr
•> of tut iree

mait • rclia*

^owcr

n and

so far
ill clearan des

ill at posa

clear

It US that turbine* c an I

■n are appro\im.v f the m

a p. i ir as c

there being only a slight

ing mater

■

co B0.

the Rat n the low- oeasitating : repeated frsfstr-

nallcr out- mc anJ car

puts. Ritesu -

A common feature of all All

v i2*

turl

the

■eetsa

rnt ■-■• r

228

POWER

February 7, 1911.

ute type lies at 8800, and that of the
1000-revolutions per minute type at
12,000 kilovolt-amperes. The capacities
at high speeds increase year by year.
In 1905 it was considered a risk to build
a generator of 1000 kilowatts capacity
running at speeds of 3000 revolutions per
minute; today they are built up to 3000
kilowatts for the same speed. Consider-
ing that the specifications and guarantees
are becoming more stringent year by
year, whereby larger and larger wheel
diameters are made necessary, and that
higher vacuums are being employed,
whereby the blades of the last wheels
are subjected to heavy stresses, it goes
without saying that designers are forced
to approach very close to the limit of
safe load.

In the Riedler-Stumpf turbine a wheel
of 2000 millimeters, or approximately 79
inches diameter, running at 3000 revolu-

tions per minute, was possible only by
avoiding the employment of separate
blades set in the rim, using instead,
pockets milled in the rim. But in the case
under consideration we have to deal with
inserted blades of considerable length,
exercising great additional centrifugal
force on the circumference of the wheel.
Direct-current generators afford great-
er elasticity of speed but have a very
sensitive makeup, the collector and the
brushes militating against building di-
rect-current generators beyond outputs
of 1000 kilowatts. Fig. 23 shows how
the normal speeds of direct-current gen-
erators vary with the change of load. It
is seen that driving direct-current gen-
erators requires a greater variety of tur-
bine types than driving three-phase gen-
erators. Comparatively small outputs,
such as 600 kilowatts, are to be attained
at 1200 revolutions per minute. Figs.

24 to 26 show the normal construction
of the Allgemeine Elektricitats Gesell-
schaft turbine in its various character-
istic forms. Fig. 24 is the 3000-revolutions
per minute type for outputs below and
up to 1000 kilowatts, having the Curtis
principle with two pressure stages to
one velocity stage each. For higher out-
puts than 1000 kilowatts at 3000 revolu-
tions per minute the action wheel in the
low-pressure part is replaced by four
or five Rateau wheels; see Fig. 25. The
same holds true for the 1500-revolutions
per minute type with the difference, how-
ever, that from nine to twelve Rateau
wheels are employed in the low-pressure
part, as shown in Fig. 26. Figs. 27 and
28 show the first named type of turbine,
3000 revolutions per minute up to 1000
kilowatts, in sectional elevation and plan
with details of design to be discussed
later.

The Mason Mechanical Laboratory

The accompanying illustrations show
the new mechanical-engineering labora-
tory which is now being built for the
Sheffield Scientific School, Yale Univer-
sity, New Haven, Conn. The funds for
this laboratory were given to the Sheffield
trustees by two graduates of the school,
George Grant Mason, of New York City,
and his brother, William Smith Mason, of
Evanston, 111., both of the class of 1888.

Work on the building is now in pro-
gress and the contract calls for its com-
pletion in the early summer of 1911. The
frontage is about 85 feet and its length
200 feet. The architect, Charles C.
Haight, of New York City, has worked
out a very pleasing design, as Fig. 1 will
testify. The long windows at the right
are at the end of the testing floor, above
which is a clear head room of 35 feet; at
the left the smaller windows indicate the
location of the main gallery and the mez-
zanine floors — which are possible on
this side of the building throughout a
greater part of its length. The building
will have three stories above the base-
ment. The front rectangle will be of
Indiana limestone, and the extension will
be of brick, with suitable stone trim-
mings. The entrance from Temple street
will be sufficiently large for the admis-
sion of a team so that heavy pieces of
machinery may be delivered directly
under the traveling electric crane which
win extend the entire length of the build-
ing with a span of about 40 feet.

An examination of the floor plans will
indicate, in a general way, what is to be
the distribution of the equipment and
the arrangement of the rooms for offices,
lectures, computation, research and gen-
eral experimental work. No provision
for recitation or drawing rooms has been
made in the building — the entire space
being devoted to instruction in experi-
mental work for undergraduates and for

A three story building, 85
by 200 feet, donated to the
Sheffield Scientific School
of Yale University. The
entire space will be devoted
to laboratory work; no reci-
tation or drawing rooms.

research work in engineering science for
graduate students, research fellows and
special investigators.

The main floor of the laboratory will
contain the larger part of the equipment
— especially the heavy pieces of machin-

Mason Laboratory of Mechanical
Engineering

ery — such as machines for testing the
strength of materials, steam engines and
gas engines of various types, steam tur-
bines, steam and centrifugal pumps, air
compressors and refrigerating machin-
ery, together with the auxiliary equip-
ment of condensers, fans, electric motors,
scales, tanks and smaller appliances for
testing. This equipment will be erected
under the crane. The units will, for the
most part, be small and self-contained. A
large part of the floor under the crane

will consist of heavy concrete, suitably
arranged with parallel grooves for bolt-
ing the equipment at any point. The
steam, water, gas and other pipes will
be run in the basement below, provision
being made for their extension to the
testing floors through a series of auxiliary
tunnels which occur at frequent intervals.
All testing-floor areas are suitably drained
so that an abundance of water may be
used whenever it is necessary or desir-
able.

In the front basement will be located
the toilet and locker rooms. There are
several shower baths. The boiler-room
extension provides for the heating and
power bailers. An auxiliary power plant,
both steam and gas-electric, will be lo-
cated near the boiler room. Tanks of
concrete will provide water storage and
a large sump below the level of the
street drains will receive all drainage
not otherwise provided for. The sump
will be automatically emptied by an elec-
tric centrifugal pump. Coal-storage bins
and ash-elevating machinery will be lo-
cated at the Temple street end of the
building. Access to the basement is pro-
vided for heavy machinery through a
large trap door suitably located under
the crane, as well as by the electric
elevator which connects all floors.

No attempt has been made to provide
mechanical ventilation for any of the
rooms except the lecture room and the
computing room directly above it. For
these rooms the fresh-air supply will be
furnished through the ducts as shown.
A gravity circulation will frequently be
sufficient to provide the ventilation re-
quired, but a motor-driven fan will be
installed to augment the natural circula-
tion at such times as it may be necessary.

The gallery floor contains considerable
space available for lighter machinery,
several small offices and the general

Pebruary 7, 1911.

lecture room, with a seating capacity for
There are tuo landing platforms on
floor so that the traveling crane may
deliver heavy pieces under a trolley rail
extending through the lecture room or
across the open floor space at the t
end of the laboratory.

The distribution and use of the space

\\ iter P \ -

the Janua
ecutivc commit

Light Association, a set of
tions uerc a J g that a

commission of Congress be apr ■ "cd at

session to
tion pertaining to •
Un:-

iportar e whole people in that

■ to immediate ate til tndewruc
resource that would be
otherwise lost or idle and cor >«!.

gas and other

-'a

±ME

on the third floor are sufficiently evident
an inspection of the plan of that
floor. The room devoted to mechanical
technology will be used as a labor.'.

ruction in machine design, mi-
on and mechanism.
plant have, not a museum, but an

>n of modern machines of
and complex design. Power ■rill be
r the operation of such ma-
chines as may be placed ben
In many instances the machines ma.
on < n for only a short time and

a representative of the company fun-

:nachinc may be asked to demon-
strate its working.

velopmcnt of water powers. The aaso.
tion rep- about tuo billions of in-

ticnt in centra is for

and power a apparatus :

•
clud 'anks 90 per cent, of

the investment and caps.

ere are al-
ready nearly 1000 central stations in this
cour ■ -cr powers, but u-

the present that h.<

such pment

in be undertaken, and the
- that for la
uch uatcr
of coal and other fuel goes on at a

rate.
•

all the
ta of the m.r it a

■

Assoc :. i- rated in

■
pmeni i id

"w much of "ereoce of

upon the subject of water po -

of "frjttwtt a
^prehension of all ft

mposed of members of the
use of ftcnnoaieHna of

e financial and otb

' M, be appointed
to colic
oee to hold fell aed

hcar-.nr.* in Ji*Cfcnt »-

• •

• »

be cr

'I '-

The completion of this lahorat< •

ficfncld lOOl

many needed facilitiea available for all
nginecring departments, and

nechanical engineering what the
mond laborat
' mining cngir
It will be remembered that tl
labors'
line and its equipment, and f

-neral cor- on.

C are f

clopment of unus
be enabled •
natural -

financing and

■

tr r Ac r c * * t i

230

POWER

February 7, 191 lT

Hand Controllers for Multi-
Speed Induction Motors
By R. H. Fenkhausen

The present article is devoted to a
practical consideration of the principal
types of apparatus now available for con-
trolling the speed of induction motors.
The motors themselves have already been
explained in a previous article (June 9,
1908); the present article, therefore, is
restricted to the controllers alone.

The controlling apparatus for any in-
duction motor of the wound-rotor type
provided with external resistance must
consist of two separate and distinct de-
vices; namely, a line switch, by which

Fig. 1. Simple Oil-break Starting

Switch

the current supply to the stator windings
may be cut off or on and, in the case of
a reversing motor, reversed; and a drum
controller by which the resistance in the
rotor circuit may be varied to obtain dif-
ferent speeds in the motor.

When the secondary resistance is for
starting duty only, a controller of the
type shown in Fig. 1 will often fill all re-
quirements. A knife switch, preferably
of the oil-break type, is used to close and
open the leads from the supply circuit
to the stator or primary, and when re-
versal of the motor is desired, the switch
may be double-throw.

Owing to the short duration of the
starting period the resistance does not
need to be of large capacity and is there-
fore inclosed within the same case with
the drum controller, making a very com-
pact outfit and one that requires the least
possible labor to install, as all the con-
nections between the controller and the

Especially^

conducted tobe of

interest and service to

the men in charge^

of the electrical

\quiptnent

resistance are permanent. For large
motors an independent short-circuiting
switch should be installed near the motor
in order that the resistance of the col-
lector rings, controller contacts and wir-
ing will not cause too large a full-load
slip in the rotor.

When the secondary resistance con-
ductor is used for speed regulation, the
resistance is in circuit at all times, and
in order to obtain sufficient ventilation to
keep the temperature rise within a safe

limit, the resistance is usually mounted
separate from the controller. Fig. 2 shows
a set of resistance grids suitable for this
service. Flexible cables are attached to
the various taps, which connect to simi-
larly numbered cables from the controller.

Fig. 2. Resistor Grids in Frame

Fig. 3. Stator and Rotor Control on
One Spindle

in a previous article attention was
called to the fact that wound-rotor motors
equipped with independent primary and
secondary switches were liable to damage
by the line switch being closed by a care-
less operator when the secondary resist-
ance was cut out. While separate switches
are permissible for starting service only,
for varying-speed service it is essential
that the primary and secondary switches
be mechanically interlocked. This is es-
pecially necessary where the motor is to

February 7, 1911.

POT

be frequently reversed. This mechanical fo earn- htgh\

interlocking may be accomplished in

eral ways. The simplest method is to voltage motor*

mount the primary and secondary con- th an externa:

trolling drums on a common shaft, as
shown in Fig. 3, and arrange the connec-
tions so that the stator circuit cannot be
con: -o the linv I when all

the rotor resistance is in circuit.

The principal objection to this method
is the unnecessary uear of the primary
switch. After it is closed on the
notch, no further movement is necessary
during the various speed changes until
the motor is again stopped, but, as the
primary and secondary' switch drums are
mounted on a common shaft, a corre-
sponding movement of the primary switch

I ; (

oi-

it made for a reed change maJc

with thi !ary drum. T! «nlv

result* in unnecessary wear of the
mary contact*, but increases the effort
necessary to move the controller. <>»ing

e extra number of fin
the drum. In large controller* this en-
tail* considerable additional exertion on
rator In order to get

<>f these objectionable T the

" n u arranged that
a cam on the operating shaft of the

r closr

of rotation when the

first notch and doc»
again move It until tl
d to tt

r is ill : and a

till rslng mechanism is shown

ntacta n
merged In an oil tank to %uppre«« •

th«

through

e motor

>n both lb

n at normal speed.

a motors
"■ut the if i

>f the controllc cooaidc

in Fig. o. Tl..

I 4

notch by a cam on the controller
shaft similar to that shown in
This arrangement makes it possible to
'he secondary Angers and drum

ck from
ch.
Controllers arc made for both revers-
ing and nonrt the only
difference being that on the nonrevcraing
controller the "off" and full roal-
i are at oppo» la of the iravel
of the handle and tl

tea and breaks the main-line
connection- reaa on the rt

controller the "off" position is in the

he travel of the har.
the ; irrange.:

one phase ll *hcn

the

Con
C« ices arc cua-

turi the n;

that

n must
' to th. Ing

the

I >ge. horse-

iac of

voltage or ratio of p

marv to sccon '

( ..... ..

-rnt of the motor
*ie leads from the

■ ■ • . Ha I

intermittent sc •

As e rotors

of
eration at reduced speeds are madr

r <

232

POWER

February 7, 1911.

is small; motors designed to run mostly
at full speed and only occasionally at re-
duced speed are equipped with low-re-
sistance rotors, and the secondary cur-
rent is relatively large. The resistance
grids for the latter type of motor are
necessarily quite large and for conven-
ience are usually mounted in two or more
frames; one such frame is shown in
Fig. 7. The grids designed for the higher
resistance motor are smaller and may be
mounted all in one frame, as in Fig. 2.
In cases where a regular multi-speed
controller is used for starting duty only,
the resistance grids carry current only
for a short time and may be made pro-
portionately smaller.

Fig. 7. Heavy-duty Resistor Grids

There are two methods of varying the
resistance in the rotor circuit. In the first
method, the connections of which are
shown in Fig. 9, resistance is cut out of
each phase of the rotor in turn. This
method is employed in the controller
shown in Fig. 3, and, although it results
in the rotor currents being out of bal-
ance on "two speeds out of each three,
this disadvantage, is more than offset by
the reduction in the number of controller
contacts required for a given number of
speeds, and the resultant saving in wir-
ing and controller maintenance. In the
second method resistance is cut out of
all three phases of the rotor circuit

simultaneously. This method is used on
the controllers shown in Figs. 4 and 10.
The connections for this method are il-
lustrated in Fig. 8 and, although the rotor
phases are kept in perfect balance, it is
apparent from the drawing that the num-

Rotor

tarding influence of a dashpot, and by
adjustment of the dashpot the rate of
movement of the secondary drum, and
consequently the acceleration of the
motor, may be regulated independently
of the will of the operator.

Winding'

Off
i

>F5|

-JF4,

-#F3

-•F2

-•Flj

-•Dli

>D2
>D3

Forward
2 3 4 5 _6

Reverse

e> 5 4 3 E

i Off

E5<
E4i
E3<
E2<
EM
D4<
D5<

¥ ■-¥¥
■ ■ ■ ■

lis

•i-

•4-

• Po»

Half of Drum Development

Fig. 8. Controller for Cutting Out All Three Resistors Simultaneously

ber of drum contacts is considerably
greater than is required when the method
shown in Fig. 9 is employed.

For elevator service a controller similar
to the one shown in Fig. 10 is used. The
primary switch is operated by the elevator
rope and the secondary switch is operated
by a spring which is compressed by the
movement of the primary switch. This
spring turns the drum against the re-

TABLE 1. DATA CONCERNING INDUCTION MOTORS OF THE WOUND-ROTOR TYPE
FOR VARYING SPEED SERVICE; WITH ROTORS WOUND 3-PHASE FOR 60 CYCLES.

Horsepower.

Speed.

Full- load Amperes per Phase (Stator).

Rotor

Inter-
mittent
Rating.

Synchro-
nous.

Full Load.

2-phase,
220 Volts.

3-phase,

220 Volts.

2-phase,
440 Volts.

3-phase,
440 Volts.

Contin-
uous
Rating.

All Phases

and
Voltages.

7i
11
15

1200
1200
1200

1080
1080
1100

11.45
17.20
22 . 65

13.25
19.85
26.20

5 . 75

8.60

11.35

6.65

9.95

13.10

20
25

22
30
37

1200
1200
1200

1120
1105
1115

33.20
43.75
54.80

38.40
50.75
63.40

16.60
21.85
27.45

19.20
25.35
31.70

93
155
154

50
75

112

900
900
720

830
840
690

80.20
107.15
164.00

92.90
123.60
189.50

40.15
53.50
82.00

46.45
61.80
94.70

175
190
225

75
100
110

112
150
165

514
720

450

495
675
130

164.00
21 1,05
235.10

189.50
247 . 20
271.30

82.00
107 . 00
117:50

94.70
123.00
135.10

ISO
225
250

150
150
200

225
225
300

600
450
600

575
135
580

326 . 50
326 50
127.00

377 . 75
377 . 75
193.00

163.25
163.25
213.00

188.00

188.00
225 . 00

286
250
287

"Cascade" Connection

The greatest disadvantages of the
wound-rotor type of induction motor are
its inability to maintain constant speed
when the load varies, except at full speed,
and its poor efficiency when running at
reduced speeds. These difficulties can-
not be overcome by any commercial con-
trol method when one motor is used, but
where two motors are connected to the
same load, two or more constant and effi-
cient running speeds may be obtained by
the use of the so called '"cascade" connec-
tion. Fig. 1 1 shows the simplest form of
this connection. The rotor circuits of the
two motors are connected and the stator of
one motor is short-circuited. If the stator
of the other motor be connected to the
line, both motors will run at a speed cor-
responding to that of one motor having
as many magnetic poles as both of the
two motors. The motors shown have
equal numbers of poles, so the resultant
speed will be one-half that of either one
operating alone. This speed will be main-
tained practically constant under widely
varying loads, and the efficiency will be
quite high. This control method is simi-
lar in principle to the series-parallel meth-
od of direct-current control, and, in com-
mon with it, requires that both motors

February 7. 101 1.

be rigidly connected to the load, either
by direct coupling or gearing. If this is
neglected, one of the motors may run

For the control of high-rc
rel-cage motor* in which the speed is
regulated by \ar>ing the primary volt-

connccied. This obviates the
■acaaakj of •. iagf :.>iC Baiaf »..\.ic
paaaiag from one segment to a not.'

IJ III!

9. CONTk THE R sSIVELY

up to full speed and the other one stop
the first time the division of load bet ■
the motor>

This method of control may be
tended by the use of two motors having a

age, a controller of the type shown in
I in connection with an au-
totraasformer, Theft are twice as many
contact segments as there are auiotrans-
former taps, and «. that segme:

Mv*

^^ q

*fr^

~ *

■■■— »

^ft

| : ,

different number of polcv in which case
>nstant running speeds are ob-
tained Pol example, if an H-polc and a
; ole motor are installed, the following
speeds are obtainable on a 2
cuit :

•o a resistance in such a
that 'i passing from

one autotransformer

» segments
con; i different laps at the »ame

t M

In ntial cascade the motors are

conneeteJ for oppoallc direction-
tation and the resultant spec | jual

fo that of one motor having a numb<
poles equal to the I Nrtwcen the

numbers of ; n the two mot

The "cascade" method of control Is
quite r . install, as a double

mot. tmenl is req> *inc to

the fact that cither one motor alone I
use or else the two motors a • ing

at k reatly reduced car

Line Distui in

I . • Moi

In s recent number. Lou i j GoHUa

motor nu

that ma> help :

I am operating a I50-horscpo»

motor

rcs;star.ce mounicj on tBC tOtOf I »a»

a brash eating into the

K. and upon taking the

boll ou' <rc

i the rot o a

loo- spool. The

spool a ,lor,

snd the has been running

ooblc.
Tu sL

iha drill

and sharpening r : act help

torn FW

time, but *

meni snd one resistsno

a %

snee

The tm: ■ ' • »'

<trm

of the drill.

234

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Reducing Motion for Gas

Engine Indicators

By Robert G. Brown

The attempt to apply to a gas engine
of the inclosed type an indicator reducing
motion usually develops several diffi-
culties. To convert the rotary motion of
the flywheel and shaft into a reciprocat-
ing motion corresponding to the move-
ment of the piston and of a length that
will give a good indicator diagram, gen-
erally requires a crank and connecting
rod of a small scale but of the same
ratio as those of the main engine. Such
an apparatus has several joints which are
subject to wear and lost motion; and if
the engine is a large one a special ar-
rangement will probably have to be at-
tached to the outside of the flywheel to

Fie. 1. Eccentric and Oscillating Bar

carry this gear. The custom of using a pin
in the end of the shaft to which is at-
tached the indicator cord is inaccurate
mechanically and is not easy to connect
to when running at 300 revolutions or
over.

In the effort to overcome the diffi-
culties mentioned, the cam reducing mo-
tion here illustrated was designed. The
cam is most simple to make — only re-
quiring a simple turning operation in a

Everything'
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

lathe. It is attached with two or three
cap screws to the end of the shaft or the
hub of the flywheel. In some cases it

ter is midway of its travel. The lead
can be hooked and unhooked in any
convenient way, to suit the ideas of the
operator. The coil spring attached to the
end of the bar serves to make the bar
follow the cam, thereby relieving the in-
dicator drum spring of this work; on en-
gines which run at less than 200 revolu-
tions per minute, this spring will not be
necessary.

A suitable length of diagram can be
had by attaching to different places on
the bar. The cam itself gives a per-

Fig. 2. Looking Down on Engine Equipped with Reducing Motion

may be necessary to bore it large and slip
it over the shaft.

Fig. 1 shows a reducing motion of this
kind applied to a Fairbanks-Morse Type
L producer-gas engine. The flywheel is
six feet in diameter. The cam plate bolted
to the hub of the flywheel, and a cherry-
wood bar, hinged to a floor bolt, con-
stitute all the parts. The cam has a V-
shaped groove around its edge and a
roller on the wooden bar runs in this
groove. Unfortunately the indicator could
not be shown from the viewpoint of Fig.
1. Fig. 2 is a view looking down on
the engine and this shows the location of
the indicator at the engine cylinder. The
guide pulley for the lead is supported
by a tripod of light metal bars.

The indicator lead should be of wire
for such a length, and sharp turns should
be avoided. The wire should not be car-
ried around the small pulley and drum
of the indicator, because it will soon
break; a short piece of cord is attached
to the end of the wire for this purpose.
The wire must run in a direction at right
angles to the wooden bar when the lat-

fectly accurate motion, but the use of the
oscillating bar introduces a slight theo-
retical error. However, by making it as
long and light as possible, the error can-
not be detected.

Fig. 3. Graphical Proof

The correctness of the cam motion can
be proved mathematically, but the graph-
ical one given in Fig. 3 is sufficient. The
lines R and L represent to scale the

February 7, 1911.

lengths and positions of the crank and
connecting rod of the engine; L also rcp-

us, to a different scale, the
of the cam circle. The center of the
shaft is at O and C is the center of the
cam disk, O C being the amount the cam

_t eccentric. 5 nter

of the cam circle. C // C B and

0 A. Therefore, when the cam and
the crank have moved through any angle,
such as HUH, the roller has traveled the

mce A H, which is evidently propor-
tional to the motion of the engine piston.
The cur s the path foil the

point B during the travel from B to

In laying out the cam for a reducing
motion of this kind for a given engine, all
that is ncccss.i i find the ratio of

crank to connecting-rod length for that
engine. For example, if this is 1 •
the cam may be made 5 inches radium and
its center set 1 inch off the center of the
shaft in line with the crank then

it will give the correct motion and the
length of the indicator card may be
chosen as explained abo\

( . 1 Equipment

Br H

As my whole interest in the gas-engine
Indt: to improve the standing and

applicability of the engine. I feel frv

iss the ar* hout being

•
I wish to not alone on the

s of my own i ^ut on that

about t
the difference between tf ind the

value of the auxiliary equipment of gas
engines and. further. I it it

really should mean when a gas or gaso-
lene engine I rom
>ok. which gives the cost of
of gas engines. I find that
an engine of 2<) horsepower can be sold
at a fa and
the same engine can also be soIJ
plct
the same . the difTi •

It all depends on what "comp
means. With some builders the selling

■■ includes a
cans, also a fu founda-

tion belts and special washers, an igni-
tion b«' il and I

these extras and
auxiliaries may be 12 nay be

$22.50. and th, itflt may be the

cheaper TV.e h in the igni-

i or
SI.80 each; i wl nl ell*

can cos- }< ■ spark coil for

a make-and-break system can cos*
cent if i lump-

spark system can

$2 ' ■ almost any intermediate

flgu' ne lump-sr •

<-nslvc »• '■ ire cheap at

PO\X

When a man buys a gas engine he -
dom co or knows anything about

He may be a mas-
char >p grade j
not

changes V. •!<>»

across the Although be

knows • : that c aiu-

abk 1 not pay cash fo

bodied in g cessoricv but

■
J up by damning the gas tag
wholesale. I have seen a i
shutdo*

that : a loss of $300. a

of the e all of the nu :

.is power when
'Me was due entirely to his effor

The difference between cost uc

■ ; rta
more promptly ma J in the

ment of a gas than in any other

thing I km

slc. but do not

on
ha\ thai engine that

■
operation, and. furthc- i that c

hment c of

the best quality that
not let an\one

■
lose.

for 1 B ilcr

lis

!aid do-
up the flue expander and asked K
the cnt f he h.i

of the Pittsflc

so bus
of tl plosions that he

■

ting iK

• had got a b

torted I ' ' '

and laid the blame on boilermak
thai

igin the J men-

gunbos-

' r ■

■-am b>
e "old

that

ttting in a gas en-
gine, as be could Be nances M

gincers loo.

Jo you blame him. the i
things are go:r.g -

K Ml<

A good d ouMe may be caoaed

npropcrty installed generator Us-

lag

i* ■ like

trouble because •« no

jnsion ;h

>f a abon time
when the t . begin to

m
of going up through

>f the whole teulnmoUI.

net the uV
i be made t

♦ ct

the lining

t | c | ' . k • Sc r i f . t -i U) | • *■ .
< •»«• oe magneoia The
portion ahoukj be well taoaooi m be-
the brkk

cunhioo for tb<

brick Hume A lining out In «fch a r i
inC « monr moon

longer than on* out hi ufchnut n ami

236

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Eel in Water Pipe

One summer evening, about a half
hour before it was time to start up and
put on the lights, the telephone in the
engine room rang. I answered the call
and was informed that there was no hot
or cold water in the kitchen. This was
in an industrial school for boys, and I
was -the only engineer on duty, as the
chief was off and my alternate was home.
A relief took my place in the engine room
until I could locate the trouble and, if
possible, remedy it. I tried all the faucets

rp>\

c ,

32tfe

Eel in Water Pipe

about the kitchen, and the valves in the
cellar, but there was no water. It was
evident that there was an obstruction in
the pipe somewhere and to locate it was
the difficult part of the task.

The main 6-inch pipe, which was under
the cellar floor, was tapped for a 2-inch
pipe to supply the part of the building
in which the kitchen was located, and this
pipe was fastened to the stringers in the
cellar. As this pipe was about 80 feet
long, it would be a big job to take it all
down to look for the stoppage.

Finally a scheme presented itself to
locate the cause of the trouble without
taking down the pipe. I got a breast drill,
a T/6-inch drill, some wire nails of a size
to fit snugly in the y6-inch hole, that was
drilled at A in the illustration, but there
was no water. One of the nails was
driven in the hole about one-half inch
and cut off with the pliers. This opera-
tion was repeated several times, until
the stop valve at D was reached. It
was then plain that the trouble was be-
tween the stop valve and the main.

As the chief had arrived, he suggested
drilling a hole at C; this was done, and
when the drill went through the pipe, I
felt something soft and springy and said,
"It's an eel." The main 6-inch valve that

Practical

information from the

man on the Job. A letter

dood enough to print

here will he paid forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

controlled that section of the building
was closed and the 2-inch pipe cut at B
and unscrewed at the ell E. The eel's
tail stuck out of pipe C several inches
and, putting a wire through the tail of the
eel, it was pulled out.

A union was put in at B and the line
connected again. A 3-foot eel was
brought to the engine room alive in a
pail, and when skinned and cleaned made
a good breakfast for three men.

James W. Blake.

New York City.

Repairing a Pump Seat

This work consisted in reseating the
brass delivery deck of a four-valve air
pump, of which the cast-iron valve seat
had been partially eaten away by the ac-
tion of salt water.

It was decided to make repairs with
lead as the old seat formed a part of the
main housing.

First, the delivery-valve deck was put
in a lathe and faced up, both on the valve

Powei^

How Valve Seat was Faced

and under side, leaving a % -inch V-
shaped ridge on the bearing surface on
each side of the stud holes, as shown in
the accompanying sketch. The idea was
to embed the ridges in the lead seat, this
method being considered better calculated
to give a proper joint, and also to dis-
pense with the use of a gasket. The lead
surfacing was about H inch thick.

Joseph Hamilton.
Boston, Mass.

Indicator Cord Adjusting
Device

Among the many tedious tasks con-
nected with rigging up an indicator none
is as bothersome, takes as much time and
tries the engineer's patience as much as
the adjustment of the length of the indi-
cator cord.

In all cases where the stroke of the
piston is longer than the motion of the
indicator drum some device is needed to
produce a motion within the limits of the
indicator drum which is parallel to and

9 9

M«i,mw

C:.,;.\ ~

-„//,s,..,i.w?/./;u/»,/,. ...,„„....:

wiiwttw>;.;ssrf>

. S.'|mT|i„\

Loop for Hook.

"urrr^TM.~r..;;\.'...t .'.> — : — : — ~*

Fig. 1. Sheet Brass Plate

in proportion to the travel of the cross-
head at all points of the stroke. To ac-
complish this numerous devices are used
and each has its advocates.

The most common are the pantograph
and the reducing wheel, which is con-
sidered a part of the indicator outfit. But
no matter what device is used the first
requirement in taking a card is to see
that the drum shall not knock at either
end of its stroke. This latter require-
ment depends entirely upon the length of
the indicator cord and demands that it
shall be in full tension at all points of the
stroke. A cord at its crosshead end is
generally fastened to a hook and this
hook is simply knotted, a slip knot or
bowline being the most satisfactory. In
nine cases out of ten when the first ad-
justment is tried the drum will knock at
one end of its motion. Then the knot
must be untied and retied a number of
times before and during the time of tak-
ing a set of cards. All this demands
valuable time and in reality is quite un-
necessary if the device described here-
with is used.

Take a piece of sheet brass not less
than 3/64 inch in thickness and cut it to
the size shown at X, Fig. 1. File off the
corners and drill the holes on the center
line as indicated. These holes should be
just large enough to allow the cord to

F.- binary 7, 1911.

PO\X

pass through freely. Be sure to file all
around so that no sharp corners or ed
are left to cut or scratch the hands. Be
sure also to have the holes smooth so
that the cord passing through them will
not be cut when the string is in tension.
This is best done with a
of emery cloth. Pass the indicator cord
through the holes as shown by Y, u
a plain knot at the end to prevent it from
coming out.

When the cord is disengaged it is an
easy matter to slide the plate back and
forth by pulling the cord slightly at .-1
in the direction d -icn toe

loop and cord are in tension it will not

fIBE H

move. If it is d<. >ut the end

of thr loop on which the cord is attache J
tancc <> rich, slacken the cord

and move the plate inch to\*

the hook. If the hook is to be brought
further back, slide the plate back ra
the rcqu *ancc in the same manner.

In this way it is an easy matter to make
a fine adjustment in a feu ith-

out touching a knot. The si/c of the
plate shown is right for a reducing-* v
cord, but for regular indicator cord in-
crease all dime' cnt.

Plates like these arc supplied a
some indicator outfits and are usually
nickel plated, but englneei '

have them can readily make them b
very short time.

In cases where a reducing whec'
used and the end of the
dir a rod (about . inch in diam-

eter and not more than H inches lo
screwed into the crosshcad. and where

>kc is rn •

speed not more than '

minute, a vcrv good hool at the

of the cord is sho.
made out of brass
Bro- igc and i« arts

the loop of the cord a'

T<> bod oi bold the hook so that it
will be shout 2 ■ back of the rod

when it is «t the cylinder end of the
md in line with the trsvel of the
rod; then gradual! irJ the

rod tint a position •

*IH md fhet

bctu anj rest in /). thus

carr alone

•tand ■ hack of the hook

%hc- ■•,...

stroke and. facing the crank r
the hand ncarr»t the pUton rod around
movlm • not touching It

n gradually 'ic hand tou

crar , a,

each stroke. Then close the hand ar<
the cord in back of the hook, but do not
grip the cord, a ^er* of

other h.i kly pull the hook off

rod in on away from the cross-

head in a line parallel to the rod. Be
sure to do this when the crosshead Is
car the cylinder I possible to

determine. J\. second ha

the hook off the rod and the first
hand wilt prevent it from flying back and
alio-* - to come back

^en km-
hooking in it is a simple matter
to hold the hook up to tti
of the travel of the rod and then up to
the crank end aritboul en. • to see

if the length of the o ad-

justed so that t urn will not

knock at either end motion.

To one who has never tried this meth-
od :• icn the
nc is starting up or stopping, when
runnir making
en the engine is running
at full four trials are
quite enough to get the knack of hooking
in and out.

H H !
<

I ) m'r nit Pipe I itti

One time when pumping out a m
the manager d to use a horizontal

it was on hand. The
of water to be pun is large

and if the pump - n for a

few minute

fast, which made the hi
P rather ln<

1
1

(

■ ahiUi

I •
[form had to be set up oo the
I lag, Once when the pump
connections on ft

as shown In the
companyinc llustratloo. A« pipe

and tt* not

tlnu >ne end of the

! up and the pipe
ung toi-

dst pump scat
moot* were made to ; kg coapHaj

chance to make connections in COM the
not conic together when the
ip was moved to i
Tt
when thifting this pump, and oo one oc-

in a new pice:
into the mir

As tools were not at hand to

the
surface to be turned around, and by the
time the connection was made the pump

One of several larr
had behaved

good <

so far as those interested Then.

all at oi cine began pound tog
broom

that at

baatf.

mode to turn lb
Iston tr

. *>ere tin

the pittoo got

■ nece* 'he piston

froi

.: showed, the cause o'
car

The occompor . •►•<■• 1 aba
• '••ttcd enj t ' t^r packing '*

'tis (
■■* bre« an

■ad the cont.'-u*: tioutncrt of the ajajgfl
pssce of metal, coaload la the * •

shaped l-f.a

■m
bat the pittor mwd

large** ortlnde- and

.tng M la the aasaflef araa whore

238

POWER

February 7, 191 1.

Combination Pressure and
Vacuum Gage

Following is a description of a com-
bination pressure and vacuum gage:
It consists of a brass cylinder A, piston
B, two piston rods C, two spring of dif-
ferent tensions D and two cylinder heads
E. Each cylinder head has four holes
for the screws F of a very fine thread
to prevent leakage which, when screwed
in or out, moves the two plates G and
thus adjusts the tension of the springs.
The piston rods are connected by two
short rods H to a flat, brass gear rack
I, and the gear engages with the gear
wheel / to which the pointer is connected.
The two drums K are to prevent the oil
from flowing away.

This gage shows the absolute pressure
when connecting the pipe N to the live-
steam main and the pipe L to the exhaust
steam. Closing the valve L and opening
the valve M to the atmosphere the gage
will register the live-steam pressure, and
by closing the valve N and opening the
valve O it will register the exhaust-steam
pressure. With condensing engines it
is only necessary to connect the pipe L
to the condenser and the gage will show
the mean effective pressure, live-steam

Indicator Diagram Defects

The indicator diagram shown herewith
was taken from the low-pressure cylinder
of a Porter-Allen engine, and diagrams
taken from three other engines of the
same type show the same lines. These
engines are all run compounded in the
summer season only. The low-pressure
cylinders are disconnected and the en-
gines are run simple for the sake of ex-
haust-steam heating during cold weather.

The irregularity of the diagram at the

is maintained. Why do not the same
defects show on both ends of the dia-
grams?

Edward T. Binns.
Philadelphia, Penn.

Disposing of Back Numbers

This seems to be an opportune time
to say a few words in regard to disposing
of the technical magazines of 1910. Some
engineers allow them to accumulate until
they are in the way, and then destroy

Why Are Not Both Diagrams the Same?

P^s»

Power,

Details of Combination Gage

pressure and vacuum. If used as a vac-
uum gage alone, connect the pipe N to
the vacuum and open the valve M to the
atmosphere. The pointer will then show
the vacuum in inches and pounds pres-
sure above a vacuum.

Victor Azbe.
St. Louis, Mo.

point of admission has puzzled the en-
gineer in charge, particularly as several
different indicators have been used on
these engines.

The speed of each is 157 revolutions
per minute and the initial steam pressure
in the 24x30-inch low-pressure cylinder
is 30 pounds. A vacuum of 21 1/2 inches

them. Others clip such portions as are
of special interest, and destroy the re-
mainder.

These methods are a more or less
shameful waste of valuable literature.
I have had Power for 1909 bound in two
volumes, by a local bindery, and I am
going to have the numbers for 1910 bound
in the same way.

To prepare the paper for the bindery, I
remove the advertising matter, retaining
the editorial page in the front and the
page entitled "Moments with the Ad
Editor," at the back of the paper, also
the pins.

Several engineers with whom I have
discussed the subject, and who formerly
destroyed their papers, are having them
bound. To some this may seem expensive
but I think it pays, for in these papers
we have accounts of interesting experi-
ments and tests, letters from practical
men who give us the benefit of their
experience in getting out of difficulty
and relate all kinds of stunts and kinks,
some one of which may just fit an in-
dividual case.

Inquiries of general interest, with an-
swers, are always instructive, also many
illustrations of new things for the power
plant, and valuable information relating
to their construction and operation. This
subject as a whole comprises a reference
library which can be obtained in no other
way, and which, if properly bound, makes
a pleasing addition to any engineer's
bookcase.

J. A. Levy.

Greenfield, Mass.

February 7, 191 1.

through i Piston
\ ilve

In the issue of November 2<», Mr.
Icn's criticism of Mr. Mitchell's ar
dealing with the matter of leakage
through a piston valve is interesting.

r some time it was quite the fashion
to discredit this type of valve. But now.
thanks to the experiments of
Callendar and Nicolson, and to the I
cnt efforts of designers and mal
of this valve, it has quite rcha
cmarkablc that the

z^l

my on two different
obtain.
rah

r. Allen's remarks on the advanl
of the ; \alve arc quite in aft

ment with the c\;

and. and. as indicated a iere

ar<: some who ari to go fur

thcr than he on the mar
if V. live be u

iat many schemes
have been the

amount leakage, but

rude a %ons

the cannot tx as ac-

curate; he then mention* the it- I

portant defc. • M

•tr.i •• his acl

Had he read the literature on I

Callander and N
its and

tatcment is, and tl
• might h.i
attempting
•

a great
the leakage of i »
wher ig and when running

c first

r to »•
leakage «n that of the

•ts were taken »ith •
•landing

upon variom

bajett

( gfaU Whii li }i,t\ I

/h ;n previa

The fit of the va
was slated to be perfect; if this were so,
then a great opporti iking a

valuable

iat was this fi-
ance • in ten s or in
thousandths of an -ram
turned on and found not to leak past the

The fit of tb as not v

had been an ordina- c«
fit then mould not

have leaked p.
leak when

a good the

■
lenter
a good fit, so posslb a of a

fit was
rdinary amount of leakage
plain
It
to have a special for the*

u'd have been im

arra'

' i • i • r

Is arrangement ob

probable that

plugging u; '«» «*»•

tinsucccs-

d »»c«m to

tins crank cad

g. 2 shove the ongma

Ofig

snd »ithou

to the cylinder or teas
the Ur. ",« bead

Ut dlMBIf

u 1 be

the
**• to the coadcasce

and so all

cou cd frort

in the head end of the cylinder to another

con. and so

It lis arrangcmcf

• sstblc to take very a.

•ton If
arately ar I

n°r nc vho

iea or an ha*
-d repeat the

■Id

•umpnon i

Is* tic in.

the '

'* m aaj * -■■•

■

1 ng awn, an ine caevnapaaaoai *

9 th« SC ';

- >
'ar the caadatfaas <
so math; hsennac .t am**.'
right In aat csao doss ant lasare w to he

SO I'

-■tb cold «> .rser
i snsasraiag

do. on sceotir

r sad

M#b H rrr»fnf |» , '

240

POWER

Tebruary 7, 1911.

Setting Us Straight
Method of Banking Fires

Regarding the question under the above
caption in the December 20 issue,
M. B. F. makes no explanation as to how
thick the grates are covered with fuel or
the method employed regarding the. fuel
on the grates.

Closing all doors and dampers is, of
course, right, but in addition the fires
should not be left on the grate bars or
given an ordinary covering of coal. The
proper method of banking fires is to push
back the fuel from the front of the grate
and then cover the live fuel on the rear
of the grate with fresh coal to a depth
of not less than 3 inches. Closing all
drafts will result in finding the fuel ready
for work the following morning, when it
can be set into active combustion by
simply opening the drafts, pulling the fire
over the whole grate and adding a lit-
tle fresh coal.

I would strongly oppose the suggestion
of opening the flue doors to overcome any
air leak that may be in the damper, be-
cause opening the flue doors means that
a current of cold air is being continually
drawn through the tubes, causing a chill-
ing of the boiler, which is opposed to
engineering practice. Furthermore, flue
doors are seldom any too secure or tight
and if they are opened at night the
chances are that they will leak in the day
time. Any plant operating with natural-
draft conditions will be subjected to an
intake of air at any leaky flue door, great-
ly to the detriment of the economy of
steam production and also to the welfare
of the boiler. M. B. F. will do well to
leave his flue doors closed both day and
night and to see that there are no leaks
at that point. On the other hand, he
should study the matter of leaving a part
of the grate surface exposed, covering
the fire a little heavier on the rear end
as suggested above.

Steam for Preventing Clinkers

In the December 13 issue the following
inquiry and answer are given:

"I have been told that a jet of steam
under the grates will prevent the forma-
tion of clinkers. Is this true, and is it an
economical practice?

"S. P. C.

"Clinkers are caused by the melting
and running together of the incombustible
in the coal by the heat of the fire. If
steam enough is passed through the fire
to keep the temperature below the melt-
ing point of the ash, clinkers will not
form. It is certain that there is no econ-
omy in using steam to reduce the tem-
perature of the fire under the boiler which
makes the steam."

It is very evident that the answer given
was hastily and thoughtlessly furnished,
as it is entirely misleading and a very
incorrect opinion might be formed by

anyone reading it who is not thoroughly
conversant with the subject.

What are the facts? Strictly speaking,
ash does not melt at all. Clinkers are
caused by the fusing of certain elements
in the fuel; these elements may be sand,
silicate, sulphur, etc.

In coal, the formation of clinker shows
different characteristics; in some cases
the clinker is very easily broken up and
is not in any sense of the word a detri-
ment; in others, it fuses and becomes a
part of any firebrick with which it comes
in contact and cannot be broken off ex-
cept at the expense of the firebrick to
which it adheres; in still other instances,
clinker is so serious a trouble as to com-
pel a cessation of the use of the fuel
which produces it.

The detriments of clinker are well
known. If the clinker only causes extra
labor in the manipulation of the fires, just
that excess is a cost. On the other hand,
its presence may result in loss of brick-
work or loss of active grate surface in
the fire.

How, then, is clinker to be prevented?
The only successful means of prevent-
ing clinker is the use of a steam jet
under the grates. In doing this, careful
study should be given so that the steam
will be uniform uhder the entire grate
surface and yet not of sufficient volume
to reduce the temperature of the fire. It
is quite unnecessary that the tempera-
ture of the fire be materially reduced in
order to prevent clinker; in fact, if the
temperature were materially reduced by
the use of steam jets there would be
loss of economy, as the actual steam used
and the excess fuel burned would more
than offset any cost due to clinker.

How, then, should the steam jet be
applied? Its most common and only suc-
cessful application has been in the form
of steam-jet blowers, and it has been
the constant aim of the manufacturers
of steam-jet blowers to reduce the
amount of steam that they use for mo-
tive power and reliable manufacturers
are now placing on the market blowers
which are guaranteed on this particular
point.

The use of a steam-jet blower can be
for the purpose of increasing the
draft or it can be for the purpose
of eliminating clinker, or both. I remem-
ber very well a certain plant to which
my attention was called by an urgent
telephone message to the effect that it
was impossible to hold steam. On in-
vestigating, I found the plant running
under natural-draft conditions, although
the furnace was equipped with the Par-
son steam blower. By inserting a slice
bar the fuel was shown to be fused to-
gether to an extent that rendered the
whole one sticky mass, as might be evi-
denced in a pan of taffy. With the means
of a slice bar and a common two-prong
hook, I had the fire torn apart and then
the steam blower was set in operation.

Using the same fuel and with the steam
blower in operation, inside of a half hour
I had a thoroughly satisfactory fire and
the boiler was developing its full re-
quirements of steam and this without ob-
jectionable clinker from the fuel.

Such an experience as this, together
with hundreds of others of similar con-
ditions which I have personally investi-
gated, would absolutely disprove the
statement made in the answer under dis-
cussion, that the temperature of the fire»
must be reduced in order to prevent the
formation of clinkers.

By the use of a pyrometer I have found
that the amount by which the temperature
is reduced when using a proper steam-jet
blower is almost negligible, whereas the
formation of clinker is eliminated or
certainly reduced to a point where it is
not objectionable, using fuel which
clinkered badly with fan or natural draft.

Again referring to the item under dis-
cussion, the statement therein made that
"It is certain that there is no economy
in using steam to reduce the temperature
of the fire under the boiler which makes
the steam" is one that would suggest
the conclusion that there is no economy
in using steam jets or steam blowers.

I can cite hundreds of cases where the
use of a steam jet has not materially
reduced the temperature of the fire, al-
though it successfully eliminated objec-
tionable clinker; therefore, it is quite
unnecessary to say that "There is no
economy in using steam to reduce the
temperature," because steam is not used
in sufficient volume to reduce the tem-
perature nor does it materially reduce
the temperature of the fire; in many cases
it positively improves it.

Using jets made of ordinary pipe has
been common practice, but I would sug-
gest that the steam jet used be supplied
by means of a proper form of blower as
being the most economical and best meth-
od of accomplishing two purposes.

Horsepower and Boilers

Another inquiry in the December 13
issue requested the rating of horizontal
tubular boilers with respect to the amount
of heating surface. The reply given was
to the effect that horizontal tubular boil-
ers were rated on a basis of 10 square
feet of heating surface per horsepower.

While it is quite true that makers of
horizontal tubular boilers at the present
time base their rating on 10 square feet
of heating surface per horsepower,
claiming this type to be fully as efficient
as the water-tube type, it' is not true that
this is a common rule, and for years back
manufacturers of horizontal tubular boil-
ers have established rating on a basis of
one to fifteen; then, later, they established
a basis of one to twelve.

While it is true that horizontal tubular
boilers are capable of high overrate, the
inquiry was directed by an engineer who
had a boiler already produced and not a

February 7. 1911.

I K

boiler which was being made at the pi
ent time; I therefore suggest the develop-
ment of this subject so that the engineer
:ig the information may be in full
possession of the subject rather than be-
ing given an ansucr which he would find
flatly contradicatcd by a very large per-
centage of operating or professional en-
gineers The real difference between the
efficiency of a water-tube boiler and that
of a horizontal tubular boiler lies in the
difference in the settir

Charles H. \'
New York CH

W iter ( Sag

In the December 13 number of Power
Mr. McGahey favors valves in the water-
column connections. I think he is right
on that point, but his sketch sho*
poor way of connecting the column. Also
the column is in a bad position in re-

>■

,. , .../

! -

- 1

Aih P,t

\ ■■ >r Wat

o I'iriNc

ment, as it probabl> mould (
conceptions of the fourth
have aluijj been under the impression
that a gage glass should show the higbt
of the »ii Me tuK not

■'. Ar inf I consider to be

poor engine the use of gate

on columns, where impurities arc liable

!og the ;

H
-iRcport. Conn.

Trouble \\ ith II • g Plant

In regard to | prob-

lem, as cad-

in the Januar .umber, in my

:on the equalii e on top of the

receiver tank, if properly connc.

mainly to facilitate the work of the
pump and guard the tank against a
uum; hence, this equalizing pipe has no
effect on the distant grou^. of radiators
ncc he has a seal at A, the water line
in the returns must be about where the

ted line is; but what cause* the
saw is the steam pipe at A running from
the main to the seal trap

, -. ..

i .:d have the steady drop in c
e necessary to

Alu Dot

i r I

the acc—nto of be:
plosion * His statement. "The boiler

■■-* idle
me" or. "The boiler bad so*

many boiler explosions h*
by getting the boilers under pressure too

id been idle for a
longer or shor- td.

en a boiler has been standi
for some - e steam gage

'o become stv in at other

c may not throw the

'he account of the

e statement thai the
Steam gage showed or

probab
! pounds or more on the shell
botlnr.

\-& — ca

Asrj

int or I'

: to the water level I submit the
accompanying sketch as showing an im-

red layout. The sketch is Mil
planatory. With the blowofT piping ar-
ranged as shown, the column can be
b!o* th even greater conveni-

ence than in the case where - umn

b arranged as
Sketch.

If thcrr Is anything worse than no
water column on a «team N
tainly i« one arranged as shown by

ember 13 issue
No doubt a good mar

lay
out a front view of his column arrange-

against the regular 11 rom

the rn until the :inc

A H i» high enuugh and the pre*
the

stan a cam and water

I as
an i:

sure do not

• • that the gage is at tl

• air- Its

gradually Increase at
' ' ecomes fu

Once. - c running a

I noticr the
♦0

. , ' ' ' ■»

I p m iv proper | »«k

■ ^ere is net

fu-

242

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Boiler Explosions in Germany

The editorial under the heading "Boiler
Explosions in Germany," in Power for
December 20, should make one sit up and
think. Why have we so many explosions
in this country? There must be something
radically wrong. Perhaps there may be
a few reasons.

Germany has no coroner handy with
the whitewash. The officials whose busi-
ness it is to investigate such accidents
are installed and shielded by the govern-
ment and all stand on their honor, which
is worth more to them than mere dollars
and cents. They never bow to the dollar
sign. They do their duty no matter whom
their action hits. They are sticklers in
upholding the law; try to bribe one and
see how quick the briber goes to jail.
When a boiler explodes, killing one or
more persons, the district attorney with
a circuit judge goes to the scene.

The attorney and the judge conduct
the inquest. Experts are summoned, only
such men as hold master certificates
and are well qualified, also the inspector
who last examined the boiler being
eligible.

These men sift the evidence and no one
dares to block their efforts. They need
fear no political wrath, for all hold their
jobs for life, unless promoted, and pro-
motion comes according to ability in en-
forcing the law. If, in their investigation,
they find someone negligent, the blame is
placed; it makes no difference who the
party is or whether he is of high or low
rank. And the blame is often found to
be with someone "higher up" that is liv-
ing (not a dead man or a dying engi-
neer; remember Brockton, Mass.).

The man responsible is then placed
under arrest immediately. At the trial
he is charged with such a crime as the
inquest seems to indicate. He must clear
himself if he can; nine times out of ten
he cannot. Sentence is pronounced if
he is found guilty; the penalty usually
is not a fine because this only hurts the
pocketbook; generally it is a jail sentence.

If we had some of this in our great
and glorious United States, what a bless-
ing it would be! Look through the list
of explosions and one cannot help but
shudder. How many dead men there are
with blame resting on them of which they
are innocent! But, dead men tell no
tales.

A. Rathman.

Chicago, 111.

Metallic Packing

In answer to the question by W. D.
Marquest in the December 13 number
concerning metallic packing, I would say
that if he will indicate his engine he will
probably find there is back pressure at
the end of the crank-end stroke which is
so high as to produce a pressure on the

packing greater than that due to the boiler
pressure.

If there were back pressure at the
other end of the stroke it would not have
any effect on the packing or rod, as the
piston would be between the pressure and
the packing. I still have the first rod
that was used in my engine; it is worn
tapered at the crosshead end.

The tension of the springs causes but
very slight wear.

W. H. Phelps.

Ellwood City, Penn.

Does the Crosshead Stop?

I have been reading the arguments on
Mr. Fryant's question, "Does the Cross-
head Stop?" My opinion was that it
did. I wanted to know for sure so I made
a wooden cylinder and mounted it be-

Fig. 1. Diagram of Crosshead Travel

side the engine with its axle parallel
with the crosshead. I kept it in motion by
a string running around the shaft of the
engine, around two spools and then
around the cylinder. Then, by placing
a piece of paper on the cylinder, fasten-
ing a pencil to the crosshead so that the

Wooden Cylinder

..String

\~-Spools I J

Fig. 2. Arrangement for Drawing
Diagram

point just touched the paper, I was ready
to take a diagram. I turned the engine
over once by hand and secured the dia-
gram shown in Fig. 1. This diagram
proved beyond a doubt that the crosshead
does not stop for, if it did, there would
be a straight line at A and B, Fig. 1. As
the ends of the diagram are curves, the
crosshead did not stop. I took this dia-
gram from a high-speed automatic engine
with a 14-inch stroke.

The curve at the head end. of the dia-
gram is somewhat sharper than that at
the crank end on account of the cross-
head having a quicker motion during the
head-end half of the stroke.

William T. Kingsley.

Boise, Idaho.

Fusing Temperature of Ash

The discussion by J. V. Hunter in the
issue of December 27 of the article on
"Fusing Temperature of Ash," which ap-
peared in an earlier issue, is very in-
teresting, and bears out conclusively the
contention that the clinkering property of
coal bears no relation whatever to the
percentage of sulphur in the coal.

All other usual determinations, such
as the percentage of iron in the ash, per-
centage of lime, etc., apparently fail in
Indicating this characteristic, and the only
test which we have found to be consistent
is that of determining the fusing tem-
perature of the ash.

Mr. Hunter says that few people are
in a position to obtain these data and it is
reasonable to suppose that sole reliance
must be based upon actual tests con-
ducted in the plant. This is true to a
certain extent, for even the proximate
analysis of the coal, the B.t.u. determina-
tion, the percentage of C02 in the flue
gas, etc., are only of value when proper-
ly interpreted in connection with actual
operating conditions. The purpose and
value of such tests, however, are that they
serve as definite and reliable indications
of the suitability of various fuels or con-
ditions for securing the best results in
practice.

In the past, the only method of deter-
mining the clinkering property of coal
has been to burn it, and while it is true
that the "proof of the pudding is in the
eating thereof," yet it is often very de-
sirable to learn before the pudding is
eaten, or the coal burned, whether or not
the act is going to result disastrously in
either case.

In many of the larger power plants to-
day, capacity is of primary importance.
The greatest enemy of capacity, as well
as efficiency, is the formation of clinker,
and it is certainly very desirable in every
possible case to prevent the disastrous
procedure of trying out in practice all
of the various kinds of coal which may
be shipped upon a contract, by providing
limitations of the fusing temperature of
the ash in the specifications with suitable
penalties and premiums, just as are im-
posed upon variations in the B.t.u., per-
centage of ash, etc., in many cases today.
In other words, the fusing temperature
of ash is a short cut to determining be-
fore a coal is placed in the furnace, or
even before it is delivered to the plant,
whether or not it will be suitable, without
having to wait until the plant is shut
down for lack of steam, due to lack of
air with which to burn the coal.

We hear a great deal today about the
heat value of coal, and the percentage of
CO, in the flue gas, but neither can the
maximum B.t.u. be developed, nor the
best percentage of CG\. be obtained if the
ash forms a clinker which slags over
the grate and prevents the flow of air
through the fuel bed.

February 7, 1911.

POTKR

It is true that there is a great varia-
tion in the amount of clinker formed in
different furnaces, due to the method of
handling the fire, and every engineer
and fireman should remember that any
ash should be kept as cold as possible,
thereby preventing undue risk from h
ing it up to, or far beyond, its fusing
temperature. However, under similar
conJ whether they are good or bad,

the fusing temperature holds a relation
which indicates the comparative values
of different coals, and it is comparative
quantities that are of value in engineer-
ing practice mor; than absolute or theo-

al figur
Mr Hunter referred to the practice of
mixing coals, and its effect upon the
formation of clinker. His conclusions on

are in general correct; in some cases
it may be helpful to the more troublesome
coal, while, on the other hand, the n
ing may cause serious trouble, while
either coal burned separately might .
satisfact : Its.

Mr. Hunter also mentioned the pos-
sibility of adding ingredients, such as
lime and silica to the ash. in order to
eliminate this trouble. This point has al-
ready been taken up v Ving in
the November uc of Powek and

.issed b> I. Dixon in the December
27 number. In the case under

Mr U ing spoke of u-
shells to remove clinkers from a boiler
furnace, and there is no question but
that he might have ome benefit

from the use of lime in this form, but as
to the action of lime. I differ with Mr.

•n in this connection and do not

e that the lime added k the

ig temperature of the ash by Hu-
nt that it increased the fusing tem-
perature of the ash. U <>m-

tion of ash, lime added, up to a
tain percentage, may act as a flux, but
as lime itself cannot be fused much be-

the temperature of the t

J certainly In the fu

temperature of any ash if used in sufn-

l quantity, and this is probably -
Mr Wing did. I have kno\»n of other
cases when - shells have been u

In Ics*cning the trouble ft
have also learned that from -
coal with a higher percentage of ash due
to the admixtur rtain k clay

and %late which mere high in alumma

; erature of the
ash anJ lessen- kcr.

and th- • a poas 'hat in the

future coal rru

prevent clinker as fe«d w«- now

nl scaK
in on! adding

aterlal. the OOt

'ie nature of a»h »
is alreadv inherent in the coal, and *
It mav be fe»

h has a I
where a high percentage of ash exists
in the coal a great

age of the added material would probably
offset any advantage gained then.

Boston

W hj tb I I

In regard to
Januar. Why

res CI my

opinion that the troub c to in

the uatcr.

I have had the same trouble. If
Piper will have the water analyzed, he
will probafc that it contains iron.

This forms a reddish sea

ter Elmtm.

Crookston. Minn.

Fault) 1 1 and !•.«. onomic

I ngineering

In Prjl m for " 'ay-

burn speaks of the engineers in charge
of plants, knowing the plant as n
is a reason for not securing the
s of a competent consulting engineer.
As the general run of chief cngir
are usuall-. 'gaged in making

ncct -.-pairs and change are

left but little time to spend in convincing
the management of the necessity of mak-
ing needed changi :icnt in
equipment; while the consulting engineer
has little else to do. Mor veil
known that a man's personal appear.)
and standing or reputation has much to
do with the cor

that the management not Vkt

have the engineer e the advisory

board. In such cases the consulting en-
an and d> -fu!

part, as the engineer can ans

>ut through the consulting engi-
ne

A chief engineer in charge of a plant
cannot reach the management for an
audience until he has risen

cqucntU in the ranks of
men, through
achicvcmcr

■
ncers and consulting engineers, tho»
good r- nan

nmmend the p'
a man a
plat nan had made

a failure in sonv

rn wondering -
rcaalons an »t « «•• '

"i a cor

To hecome • OWCr*' ' Mi ' ' •' "C'-

*«• to such

process
flrsi be

he should
consider himsc

the con»u • P

Th types of cons.

ing en*

along some
line of

l( to And men tertr

I engineers" who
> design or
lay out a p

known college gradua- -tablish of-

Boca in n itmnoiilm i con-

out of col:
to be capable o! out a po»c

good bmlneaa
man to employ su

I M) that the consulting engin
play a mori ant pa-

tion of light, heat and po.

is a man of
high standing and be

necessary to make the final determina-
tions ar -play sufftc
senting a r ropoood
to the manager

Perhaps a great many of the changes,
etc ie engine*

charge, but the changes often r-

J be madi nted to

the manageme -ngineer This

is an ac esman*

mom
quentlv posses* to ar

Ir I assen t'

plants can:

slaught of • -a! stations unU

too. ar- a concrete body as

the central stations ar

unless
standard of aoJeOn

■nay be
conxinccJ •'■*• • »"i,'J Nc efa01|MI Hi

I plant This
high era J r saleamamhlp must bo one of

-
Then s mietaa

bach nape

Ac too una

shoulder, then H rtmum
get out of Ike

tend
clotti e'
about 60 or

•raioJoc
and
til lnharrt or -
the adr ** srtre

244

POWER

February 7, 1911.

To Make Pipe Covering Stick

How can asbestos be made to stick to
steam pipes and cylinder heads?

P. C. S.

Give the surface a coat of silicate of
soda, sometimes called liquid glass, and
before it has time to dry apply dry as-
bestos as thick as possible by handfuls.
The silicate will. stick to the surface and
hold enough asbestos to serve as an
anchor for the following coats to be ap-
plied in the usual manner.

Reasons for Compression

What reasons are there for giving com-
pression when setting engine valves?

R. F. C.

Compression reverses the direction of
pressure on the pins and main bearing
of an engine gradually, takes up the lost
motion without shock and allows the
crank to pass the centers quietly. It
also fills the clearance space with ex-
haust steam instead of with steam from
the boiler.

r =

Safety Valve and Steam Gage

If with a safety valve set to blow at
80 pounds the steam gage should show
a pressure of 120 pounds, whaf should
be done?

S. S. G.

The pressure should be reduced, the
boiler cooled and both gage and valve
tested by a competent man.

Reducing Size of Re centric

If % inch is turned off the outside of
an eccentric, how will it affect the valves
and the speed of the engine?

R. S. E.

In no way whatever.

Capacity of Duplex Pump

How many gallons of water will be de-
livered by a duplex pump making 30
strokes per minute with 4x6-inch water
cylinders?

C. D. P.

The area of the 4-inch piston is 12.56
square inches and 75.36 cubic inches of
water will be delivered per stroke. Both
pistons will, together, mak* 3600 single
strokes in one hour and the quantity of
water pumped will be

75-36 X 3600 _
231

1174.44 gallons

Cutoff with hapless Valve

If a slide valve has neither lap nor

Questions are>

not answered unless

accompanied by the;

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

lead, at what point in the stroke will the
cutoff, take place?

C. L. V.
At the end.

Badly Scaled Boiler

In case a boiler is found to be badly
scaled, what should be done?

R. S. B.

It should be thoroughly cleaned at
once.

Thickness of Strap Plates
Why are the cover plates or straps of
a butt and strap joint made thicker than
the shell plates, and why can they not be
made thinner?

T. S. P.
They are never made thicker than the
shell, but on the contrary are frequently
thinner. They should never be less than
five-eighths of the thickness of the shell
plate.

Center of Shaft

Does the center of a shaft revolve?

c. o. s.

It does not.

Diameter of Steam Pipe

What diameter of pipe 1000 feet long
will be required to deliver 200 pounds
of steam per minute at a velocity of flow
of 100 feet per second with a drop in
pressure of only 5 pounds; from 100 to
95?

D. S. P.
No diameter of pipe will fit all the con-
ditions. A 6-inch pipe will deliver 200
pounds per minute with a drop in pres-
sure of only 4j/> pounds, but the veloc-
ity flow will be only 4000 feet per min-
ute. A 5-inch pipe will give a velocity
of flow of 6000 feet per minute for 200
pounds delivery, but the pressure drop
will be 1 1 pounds per square inch.

Increasing Speed of Fan

I have a 7- foot fan running 187 revolu-
tions per minute and I wish to increase
the speed to 400 revolutions per miaute.

The fan is driven by an 8x8-inch engine
running 153 revolutions per minute with
a steam pressure of 100 pounds. How
can I make the change?

I. S. F.
You cannot do it. The power required
to drive a fan is approximately as the
cube of the speed. A 7-foot fan at 187
revolutions per minute takes about 20
horsepower, which is about the limit of
your engine at its present rate of speed
at 60 pounds mean effective pressure in
the cylinder. To drive the fan at 400
revolutions will take over 90 horsepower,
which means an increase in piston speed
or mean effective pressure beyond what
is possible. The safe speed for the fan
will fall below 275 revolutions per min-
ute. These and other reasons, any one
of which is sufficient without the others,
will show why it cannot be done.

Weight of Boilers

What is the weight of a 60-inch and a
72-inch return-tubular boiler?

W. O. B.

The weight of a 60-inch return-tubular
boiler without front or fittings varies ac-
cording to length, etc., from 10,000 to
13,000 pounds; complete from 17,000 to
18,500 pounds. The weight of a 72-inch
boiler will range from 14,500 to 26,000
pounds, depending on length and equip-
ment.

Horsepower of Boiler
What is the horsepower of a horizontal
return-tubular boiler, 6x18 feet, contain-
ing sixty 4-inch tubes, allowing 12 square
feet of heating surface per horsepower?

H. O. B.
The heating surface of a horizontal
tubular boiler is the total area of one-
half the shell, the inside area of all the
tubes and the area of one head less twice
the cross-sectional area of all the tubes.
One-half the area of the shell equals,

3X 3.14 X 18 = 169.56 square feet

The inside tube area is equivalent to

11.72 X 18 X 60 0 . .
= 1054.8 square feet

The heating surface in the head would be

12.56 X 2 X 6o\ .

— )= 17.42 sq.ft.

The total heating surface in the shell;
tubes and heads would tb°n be

169.56 + 1054.8 + 17.42 =. 1241.78
square feet which would give a horse-
power rating of

1241.78

.,-(:

= 103.48

February 7, 1911.

wi.k

Hill Publishing Company

IK M -: .

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St lit

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nose of engine* and
boilers, arc so flexible th.r
mat- ' a* to the re-

sults that are obtar No wor

then, »c arc Martlcd now and thet
the pur- ich phenomena

as a boiler
cent, and the like. Not infrequent

is above the
ent the
ret arc
When men uhosc
question .inJ who have ah-

thc
•>rmanc itus

can indi -uc of their

faith in thv

« small
Jer that a manufacturer or h

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that

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on the r

on the
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and Intclligci
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that |Im

as c arpj- '

high I

4 be r

t i • ,i ' •
and

una'

if the
I
•Ct of earK idc indicated

the more

cd percentage of carbon

notice- rtc rub-

baf gas bag auached to the back lac
of the ab*

an bao
and lo.
asaing I
from the bn » much

pressur-. -id *orr<

the c» trough the

at front leg of
the : Med up through tr<.

in t'
bag. When the or

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enough to

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that more carbon

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era* Indication for

from this

■c man
re making
«d» employed

!'• fessor V

rerwnents erfch
high ga% apend' eccoar

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the tube*, and afltf that bad

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^ ^ r r '

'AG

POWER

February 7, 1911.

boiler did not show any extraordinary
efficiency, such as might be expected
from the high rate of heat transmission.
True, an efficiency of seventy-nine per
cent, was attained on one run, but when
the steam required to operate the fan
at its high rate of speed, was deducted,
the net efficiency fell to sixty-nine per
cent.; which is considerably below the
results obtained with the best boiler
practice.

When it is considered that the goal
aimed at in the design of all boilers is
to deliver to the water the greatest pos-
sible percentage of the heat in the coal,
it would seem that the further solution
of the problem lies within the furnace.

Gas Poisoning

The narrow escape of an engineer, a
few weeks ago, from death by carbon
monoxide gas in a producer-gas power
plant and the more recent death of a
young man and woman in Maryland due
to the same gas from a defective stove,
bring the subject of gas poisoning strong-
ly to the front. In every producer-gas
power plant there is constant danger of
fatal "gassing," as our British cousins
call it, unless proper precautions have
been taken to prevent the escape of
carbon monoxide into the building.

The simple suction producer plant is
less likely to give trouble in this respect
than any other, because the entire system
is below atmospheric pressure right up
to the engine. But the simple suction
plant develops bad operating features
as soon as two or more producers are
operated in a battery, especially if two
or more engines are supplied simultane-
ously. The induced-draft type of plant
comes next in point of freedom from
leakage possibilities. The generators,
scrubbers and all of the many connec-
tions between the generators and the fans
are under suction, only the piping be-
tween the fans and the engines being
under pressure. Moreover, the pressure
in this part of the equipment is only a
few ounces per square inch and all joints
are or should be in plain sight and easily
accessible. In such a plant there is much
less excuse for gas leakage than there
would be for steam leakage throughout
the piping of a steam plant.

Even where straight pressure producers
are used because of their well known
meritorious features, there should not
be any great difficulty in preventing the
leakage of gas into the building. Of
course, there are more points to be pro-
tected, but that is merely a routine part
of the designing engineer's work.

No matter what the system or the op-
erating conditions, it is just as incumbent
upon the builders and erectors to prevent
gas leakage as it is upon boilermakers
to eschew low-grade steel and lap
seams.

Plant or Unit Efficiency

There is a tendency among engineers
to judge the economical operation of
their plants by the performance of the
main engines and boilers-. At one plant
where the boilers show an efficiency of
seventy-two per cent, and the engines a
water rate of fourteen and a half pounds
per horsepower-hour, it is believed that
power is being produced about as cheap-
ly as possible for the size and type of
installation; whereas a neighboring plant
of similar equipment, in which the boil-
ers show an efficiency of only seventy per
cent, and the engines a watsr rate of
fifteen and a half pounds, may, in reality,
be producing power much cheaper than
the first plant.

Although a determination of the in-
dividual efficiencies of the boilers and en-
gines is useful for comparison with other
engines and boilers they cannot be taken
as a criterion upon which to base the
economy of the whole plant. One engine
may attain a lower water rate as a re-
sult of a half inch higher vacuum, yet
the extra power required to produce this
additional half inch may more than off-
set the economy due to the lower water
rate. Similarly the other auxiliaries have
a direct bearing upon the cost of gen-
erating power as do also the labor and
fixed charges, and these must be in-
cluded in the plant efficiency.

The prominence given to the main units
is no doubt due largely to the fact that
competition among the builders has kept
their performances continually in the
limelight, and also, in a lesser degree, to
the fact that tests of individual units
are more common than plant tests.

Concealing the Facts

Accidents are frequently the results of
mistakes the careful and intelligent ana-
lysis of which will usually bring much to
light that will be of great value in show-
ing how the repetition of the mistakes
may be avoided.

Refusing to give information and de-
nying access to such information to those
whose business it is to search for and
find the cause, if possible, is to deliber-
ately seal a source of knowledge to which
the public has an unquestionable right,
even down to the smallest detail; every
factor in an accident which has en-
dangered or destroyed life or property is
vitally important to those interested in
related lines of work, and they have a
moral right to such information. That
which is a menace in one situation is also
a menace in another, if the conditions are
similar, and an error in construction or
operation of machinery in one case may
be repeated over and over in other lo-
calities if detailed information be re-
fused in the first case. Full publicity in
every case of accident, therefore, will
do much to reduce the number that oc-
cur.

Dissatisfaction and even resentment
are often if not always shown by all who
are in any way connected with an acci-
dent if the investigation indicates that
it was caused by ignorance or careless-
ness. This attitude, while perfectly ex-
plained on the ground of selfishness and
absence of consideration for the safety
of others, is wholly inexcusable. That
the public has a right to protect itself
from polluted water, adulterated food or
contagious disease is unquestioned.
Power-plant owners and operators do not
seem to realize that it has the same right
to protect itself from the danger of an
accident that ignorance or carelessness
may cause.

There is another side of the question
that seems to have escaped due atten-
tion also. That is the fact that the re-
fusal to give out information concern-
ing an accident will always arouse a
natural suspicion that there is a founda-
tion for the uncharitable criticism and
gossip which are so general concerning
matters of the kind under discussion.
It is a good deal better to tell the full
truth about an accident than to encour-
age sinister suspicions and possibly the
publication of a garbled story based on
partial information and guesswork by a
reporter, against which the editor of a
periodical is almost always defenseless.

We are hearing so much of late re-
garding the conservation of our national
resources. What about the conservation
of time? The average man would be
surprised if he realized the amount of
time he wastes annually through lack of
a systematic way of doing things. Sys-
tem is one of the greatest of time savers.

Balzac said that "Cruelty and fear
shake hands together." In steam engi-
neering, ignorance and death walk hand
in hand.

A California man who tickled a lion
under thechin is now minus three fingers.

A Massachusetts engineer who screwed
down a safety valve burst a boiler, killed
himseif and nineteen others. One act
was just as foolhardy as the other.

A certain type of engine runner is
disappearing. He is in a class with
the old tiddle-de-winks and ping-pong
outfits — out of date.

While a man was thawing out a frozen
oil pipe, gas, which had accumulated in a
receiving tank, was exploded by the torch
that was used. The man was blown 150
feet and killed. It pays to be careful.

The man who rigs up an appliance from
material on the scrap heap, and makes it
work, is a genius compared to the man
who makes a nice working drawing of
an appliance that will not work.

The majority of explosions occur, not
while the boiler is in regular service but
while it is being started up. The Pitts-
field catastrophe is a case in point.

February 7. 1911.

PC'

Flywheel Explosion at Lowell, Mass.

Shortly after 7 o'clock Thursday morn-
ing, Januar .ot flywheel of
the twin Inch condensing, engine at
the No. 7 Boott mill. Low<.
with d;- to the engine, ma-
chinery and building, but without -
ously injuring any of the 150 op
The wheel, which weighed approxirn

ms, was eight Jc anJ

three belts.

As no examination of the engine can
be made until the tons of wreckage u
which it is buried can be remo\
not possible to give the initial cause of
the accident. That the rupture of the
wheel was due to e

known, as for some minutes before the
final crash the looms on the floors av
automatically stopped when the
increased, and pulleys ill : ins

of the mill burst from the effects of the
high speed.

In the light of the little that is known
thought that perhaps one of the large
belts broke and piled itself up on the
floor back of the wheel, either breaking
the governor belt or forcing it off the
polk

The governor, not being furnish,
safer : the cnRinc to take

steam nearly full stroke, which
drove it to a speed so far above the
normal that the uhcel cxploJ

l>; I ph K

through the second Boor
'o the edge of the
-obebly
ing i
accident, a great deal of street talk at

eior r<xn the tunc the loer

•pec noticed to the rm«: c r *»i>.

minutes clapeed, and that the
might have been etopped. m the op-
had pleat me to
from darker.

quite within : possible

that a broken belt following t

•tation of the »hecl on

the floor and pile up w the engine

frames and ri
crat:

The engine ran at M utiona ;

minute. tout 1

of the sa

modern dc-

Thc fragments o! -.rough

four floors and the wall of i
making an

h hung
the ends of machines and shafting i

Pirce or w*»- n Root

THKOICH TH 't

ncd that
the enj -nan. vat seeking

the ma
to »•

ll .-nage »

«he only slightly by

The three belt* r«
quite near the wall and e •

- . - • 4

■

A« II

I I

eld oa Jar

mrtf

The follow lug pjp<- -r r reeeojtsd *

■T Or

mUariaa." hy Pro'

Chi-
-irilartaa of the Cap**

Tlacaapeoa.
addition to three paper* a report
submitted br the fiiajliwi or

r and fTkad Velocatte* on

turvT.nrJ 0) <V cam— tn»> oo "TV
•C Rj t.rg IV- 'r

n "Pipe Uaa

rough . :, ajfaj

lop of the

248

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Value of Good Ventilation

Professor Burrage indicated in his
paper on the above topic that the value
of good ventilation was found in the good
health and high efficiency of the people
occupying well ventilated buildings. One
of the most important predisposing fact-
ors in the spread of tuberculosis and
pneumonia is bad air. Not only is health
greatly improved and the power of re-
sistance of the body against disease
greatly increased by breathing pure air.
but much more efficient work can be
done by those who study and work in
well ventilated rooms.

Standards of Ventilation
Doctor Evans showed that the standard
of ventilation must be complex because
it must depend on many factors such as
the different qualities of air and the dif-
ferent methods of handling air. If a
building is so located that it gets lots
of sunshine in its interior the standard of
ventilation may, possibly, be lowered 20
per cent, while that for a basement or
cellar where sunshine seldom enters
must be raised 20 per cent. In a hospital
the standard must be high because the
general degree of health is low. Thus,
the standard is influenced by the physical
character of the building, the use to
which it is put, the class of people oc-
cupying it, etc.

After all such factors have been taken
into account, the standard of ventilation
must provide restrictions as to the dust
content in the air, the humidity, the tem-
perature, the carbon dioxide content,
odors, the frequency of air change, air
current and bacterial conditions.

Ventilation of the Capitol, Wash-
ington, D. C.

The paper on this topic consisted main-
ly of a description of the methods em-
ployed and the results obtained during
tests to ascertain the quantities of the
various constituents, chiefly carbon diox-
ide, of the air in the Capitol building.

The system of ventilation used in the
Senate chamber and that of the House
of Representatives is of the up-draft
type. Air is admitted by numerous floor
openings, and is drawn out through ducts
in the ceiling by exhaust fans. The con-
clusion drawn from the tests is that while
the quantities of air circulated are suffi-
cient for excellent ventilation, the dis-
tribution of the air is poor and that the
system employed is, consequently, un-
suitable.

Effect of Air Leakage and Wind Ve-
locities on Heating Guarantees

The report of the committee on the
above consisted of a few specific ex-
amples in the form of test results ob-
tained at the Harvard Medical College
buildings and at the gymnasium buildings
at Michigan University.

Due to the dirth of data available to
the committee it was impossible to draw

any definite conclusions. The committee
urged that a future, larger committee be
created to acquire more data on these im-
portant factors in heating requirements.

Rating of Heating Boilers
The committee on the above recom-
mended that a square foot of direct heat-
ing surface be used as the unit of rat-
ing, based upon the assumption that a
square foot of direct steam heating sur-
face gives off 250 B.t.u. per hour, and
that a square foot of direct water heating
surface gives off 150 B.t.u. per hour. It
v/as recommended that the rating of heat-
ing boilers be based on the number of
square feet of steam radiation or water
radiation surface having heat radiating
values as before stated and that the
statement of rating be accompanied by
a statement of the rate of combustion
and the efficiency of the boiler.

The following were elected to office
for 1911: R. P. Bolton, President; J.
R. Allen, first vice-president; A. B.
Franklin, second vice-president; W. W.
Macon, secretary and W. G. Scollay,
treasurer, reelected.

Industrial Accidents

Industrial accidents in the United
States take an annual toll of life and
limb far exceeding the killed and wounded
of several great military campaigns. The
statistics given by the Bulletin of the
Bureau of Labor for 1908, which must
be regarded as incomplete because of the
failure to report fully these accidents,
show a yearly mortality of between 30,-
000 and 35,000 adult wage earners alone,
and the nonfatal injuries inflicted will
roll up the total by at least an additional
2,000,000. These and other arresting
statements are made by John Calder,
manager of the Remington Typewriter
Works, Illion, N. Y., who will, at the New
York monthly meeting of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers, 29 West
Thirty-ninth street, New York, Tuesday
evening, February 14, present a brief for
the mechanical engineer and the pre-
vention of accidents. Much, Mr. Calder
believes, can be accomplished by a move-
ment on the part of the profession which
has to deal so largely with the planning
and working of industrial machinery. Pre-
vention, not cure, is the theme of the
paper, which analyzes the causes of those
accidents regarded as preventable and
describes various devices for guarding
equipment and processes, drawn chiefly
from the writer's experience in plant
management. Mr. Calder considers that
one-third of the present rate of mortality
can and should be eliminated by such
devices. The National Civic Federation
and the Industrial Safety Association,
which have already done much to arouse
public sentiment along this same line,
will be represented at the meeting and
engage in the open discussion which will
follow the presentation of the paper. Both

before and after the meeting the Ameri-
can Museum of Safety, also located in
the Engineering Societies building, will
open its exhibit to the public.

Under the head of safeguarding, the
author has many interesting views of
equipment and machinery, showing the
use of such devices on gears, steam tur-
bines, lathes, cotton carders, rolling-mill
engines, transmission tubes, belts, etc. He
also takes up in detail especially dan-
gerous machines and processes which
present difficult safeguarding problems
for the engineer.

Advance copies of the paper may be
secured for review upon application to
the secretary, Calvin W. Rice.

Watei

Power in
Columbia

British

According to Consul Frank C. Deni-
son, in the Daily Consular and Trade Re-
ports, a plant for the generation of elec-
trical power by water has been success-
fully inaugurated by a company of Ameri-
cans at the Bull river falls, 13 miles due
west of Fernie. At this point a fall of
273 feet has been obtained by the con-
struction of a flume 9000 feet long, which
takes water from the river above the falls
and returns it below. A head of 273 feet
with a flow of 462 cubic feet of water per
second has been obtained. The flume,
constructed of wood and built upon a
rock foundation, is 30 feet wide by IVi
feet deep at the intake. The width is re-
duced to 16 feet within the first thousand
feet, this width being kept to the end of
the flume. The estimated horsepower
that can be utilized is 12,600.

The company is now preparing to in-
stall the penstock, which is to be of steel.
9 feet in diameter, and will rest upon bed
rock the whole length, at an angle of 30
degrees. The foot of the stock will rest
upon a natural bed rock, and a tee-shaped
cross pipe will be placed at the end of
the stock in which the wheels will be
placed; three wheels of 4200 horsepower
each will be utilized as the demand for
power develops.

Within a radius of 30 miles there are
now in operation steam plants with an
aggregate of 23,650 horsepower. Some
of this power is used by sawmills, which
will continue to employ steam on account
of the cheapness of the mill waste used
as fuel, but it is expected that many min-
ing and smelting plants within reach of
this new plant will discard steam for
electrical power.

Within this radius there is available
undeveloped water power to the extent of
30,000 horsepower, the greatest single
power being at Elko, on the Elk river, 20
miles south of Fernie. This estimate
does not include the possible power to
be developed by damming the different
mountain streams in their courses, but
is confined to the power available at the
various natural falls on larger streams.

February 7, 1911.

POl E k

New power Rouse Equipment

The Merrick Conveyer
\\ eightometer

This device is for the purpose of
cording the weight of coal tra
on a belt or bucket comc\

It consists of a pair of weighing lei
/ fig. 1, a steelyard or beam H. similar
in principle to those of the uMial plat-
form scale, but of special design so that
a short section or portion of the con-

tr can be suspended from the »•.
ing levers.

The weight of the load on th
pended portion of the MM
lew of its distribution, is at am
automatically counterbalance the

if a cylindrical iron float
n near the long end <>f the
*:hing beam and partially imnu
in a bath of mercury. Am increase or
decrease of load on the lei \ cither

1 < > u c r the float in the mercury
until the loss or gain in I
; tea for the variation in loa

w the vk eightometer is p:
r a belt cor
The function urc

the beam I
n, or position when the

the
material at any instant on the
su -pended p<>rt:<>n °' ibe conveyer

! of tlu

beam is connected a totalizing mechanical

• ther f.L
the travel of the com ans

of suitable gearing from a band pulley
on the return bell or a sprocket wheel
i a hucker cr.

This integrator continu*
the product quantities, one .

I ght of material
pended and the other to the travc
material The result therefore re;
the total weight of matcrfal and is plainly

•cr in units and tenths .-
of units of cither a short ton. long ton or
metr

r cases where the material handled

and n

alu
that are

-lounied rollers

llf> f

fl fi.t r r !n- :n

tvsitorj/ij themmm

jrer a to sa vr

tuiK- and money in th<

Q'mc room ./rjJ pOH

bouse Engine ra

oewj ^ nular ro:

•ties
n the frame. Tme

adheres to the c r in i van ing frame i» m

amount, an attachment is added that au- end ao
lomatically counterbalances the vanab:.

i I Viper or u

i • t * '

cdlsk. Oa

an arm the

WsMttJ r^ a -k

-v

250

POWER

February 7, 191 1.

to the long end of the beam. Thus any
movement of the beam, caused by an in-
crease of the load on the belt, tilts the
frame through an angle whose sine is pro-
portional to the vertical movement of the
float, and again proportional to the load
on the suspended portion of the con-
veyer.

As the rollers cannot slide on the disk
they will rotate it around its axis. Con-
sequently the speed of rotation of the
disk is proportional to the deflection of
the beam, the movement of the float or
the load on the conveyer. The amount
of its motion is thus a measure of the
weight of material carried by the con-

Fig. 3. Details of the Integrator

ets is correctly balanced so that the net
weight of the material is recorded. Should
the dial remain stationary or move back
and forth between two constant limits of
travel the adjustment is correct. Should
the dial make a plus or minus gain the
proper balancing is done by means of
a weight on the steelyard. This weight
is carried on a screw and is similar to
that on the ordinary platform scale, as
turning the screw moves the balance
weight.

A magnetic counter is furnished, if de-
sired, that will duplicate the reading of
the scale register in the engineer's office
or at any other point distant from the
scale itself and present the record right
at hand. This is accomplished by a pin
on the recording dial closing a circuit,
thereby causing an electrical current to
pass through a set of coil magnets, the
armature of which is attached to a link
connecting to the counting device which
is located in the engineer's office.

All of the shafts within the casing and
integrator turn either in ball bearings
or special self-lubricating bushings, but
no matter how much looseness there
may be in the latter due to wear, the ac-
curacy is not impaired as the travel of
the small belt is not reduced. The speed
of the integrator belt is only about 30
feet per minute and therefore the pulleys
and rollers on the disk rotate slowly, re-
sulting in but very slight wear after long
service. Because of the large diameter
of the disk, the wear of the rollers on
their pins causes only an almost inap-
preciable error.

As all parts are inclosed in a remov-
able sheet-iron casing, Fig. 4, unauthor-

Four pulleys guide a small endless belt
around the disk and touching the rollers
thereon at two points diametrically op-
posite and on the axis of the frame.

Pressure rollers behind the belt keep
the belt and disk rollers fn contact. A
weighted take-up pulley assures an even
tension in the belt and takes care of any
stretch. The two upper pulleys are geared
together and are driven by means of
miter gears from a band pulley under
the return belt as shown in Fig. 2. The
integrator belt thus travels at a speed
proportional to that of the conveyer.

So long as the plane of rotation of the
roller on the recording disk is parallel
to the direction of the integrator belt, the
motion of the latter will only affect it to
the extent of revolving the roller on its
own axis. This condition corresponds
with the zero position of the beam or
when there is no load on the conveyer.
If, however, the beam is deflected by the
loading of the belt, the frame and re-
cording disk will be correspondingly
tilted. This will incline the axes of the
roller with respect to the integrator belt.
Then, besides rotating them, the belt will
push the rollers sideways across its face
at a rate proportional to their inclination.

Fig. 4. Weightometer with Casing in Place

veyer during the period of observation.
Thus the revolution counter mounted on
the disk shaft will record and totalize
the weight carried in any units for which
the mechanism is designed.

A glance at the dial when the con-
veyer is running empty will determine
whether the dead weight of the idlers,
etc., plus the weight of the belt or buck-

ized persons are prevented from having
free access to the apparatus, and the dust
and dirt always present around con-
veyers, which would quickly impair the
efficiency of any exposed mechanism, is
thus kept away from the working parts
of the device.

This weightometer is manufactured by
Herbert L. Merrick, Passaic, N. J.

February 7. 1911.

c orrec tiop Note

In the issue of December 20, mention
was made of the flow past the seat of
the Nelson blowoff valve. One of the
special features of this valve is that it
has no seat, as may be readily seen from
the cut which accompanied the d
tion. In the same article an older form
of the Powell blowoff was shown. The
t or "cyclone" self-cleaning valve
.h-scribed in the near future.

Mechanical Engineen ( rive
Reception to Captain

I itu"

An informal committee of the 1910
transatlantic party of the American

hanical Engineers entertained
Capt. A Hambelton. of the "Cc:

at luncheon on January 17 at the Engi-
neers' Club York (

The "Celtic" was the ship upon which
the mechanical engineers went I

last summer at the time of their
joint meeting with the Institute of
chanical Engineers at Manctn

The luncheon to Captain Hambclton
was given as a token of the high esteem
in which he is held by the members of
the par

I'mf \ K Hutton. as director of 00
monies, extended the felicitations of the
ibcrs to the captain in the shape of
sh that he may continue to meet uith
.ess he so well dc* -
Those who attended arc P. R. Hutton.
Cap Hambelton. Jess*

•>ard w'alJo. ! .ilbrcth.

John Piatt I. Moore.

Marburg. Augu

H Corbctt anJ H B

B iler Rue Bl<>\\ b < tut

Another boiler accident
emphasizes the necessity of rigid boiler-

•atc. Il
\lbcrt i n Janu-

ary . . ral flues in an olJ in a

- mill ai

'icer had a narr •> death,

having only a feu minute

tht rear <>f the akc

some n pairs. One flue u

ugh th o*1 and la-

ral hundred feet away. \
J have it. no
amination showed that tht
and the flu< that

rcp'a*. »go

Pabrt Brew I ompan) \^ ms
Boi le r E x | < 1 1 1

In the ►: Corn-

pan * the Hart!

>nd Ins Compai

tikee r-
Sanborn, of the »c%tr

consin. the jury broug'
of the plaintiff for $t'-
fror 1900. The case was

ars

■

BOOKS Kl ( 1 I\ 1 I)

Puk J Dra.

Leather eo

tratcd plat

Tmi I

Emmott & Co.. Ltd.. Manche-
Eng (..loth; 2iiH page-
68 illustrations; tabU

luable Referent e to Ten \\-

iiii.il l'rcvs

The International Institute of Technical
ography is publishing a monthly
'!d"» technical pr
. hnical periodicals, new books
and the I learned s

The umc h.i

tcr. da

lal branch in London
lane, whence the ^ and Ar-

can i are »«. The ••

the :

nting an a;

Jham Hul- of

the i 'ent offi\

in tl

•ak of fonur
■
■
of the tcraturc of [

J an a
the corre»pon,:

.irs ago •'

i/,

handed over k
an International <
bur- Ja\ »c ha

■ similar i

turn be

gan

i . . . ( • i T be ft f »' ' ; ■ i • r •

a mot

ao appeared race-

MCboaal m.!c*c» vr M&m .'» a> tsCv
are termed oaeolidated

i ne nrar or tract* a-
for

volumes. The dattiAcetion of the

n German. English and

lingua;

a follows clowel) or. the
old line*. e»cer

I ciaa*
pais of the clasttAca-
■
of the edition

guarantee.'

tsioa*]
societies and mam. g firms of «

mat • the fa

must be regarj
the n these countr

MX \\ \\ SOT]

The ninth a'

vombined asaociations of the
»l As* ariottery Engi-

neers i j>urg vaa held on

Thu a00

'he members and guests, including

qua

C.omr ■

a most e-

:JlteJ

»k>i» une inn » a
dir

■

DO - c-Ncr, •• ' Sr fV, fJ f . the

-■>J thai the aasjohof
■■■■it
itoa hi Jwar -« aaaoeha ar*

tube

aeaaJWr central Matvo-*
i the r

«hl im that tr

u» r-' »af ingtr

i raraaah th* foal I

252

POWER

February 7, 1911.

Cleveland No. 5 Honors Past
President William Powell

It has been the practice of the National
Association of Stationary Engineers in re-
cent years to present the retiring national
past president with a past officer's jewel.
At the last convention it was voted to
present such badges to the living past
presidents of the association who had
not thus been honored.

On Saturday evening, January 28,
Cleveland Association No. 5, of whicn
Past National President William Powell
is an old and honored member, held a
special meeting for the formal presenta-
tion of this jewel.

There were present Past National
Presidents John W. Lane and Robert E.
Ingleson, many State and subordinate
officers and State examiner of engineers
Haswell. There were large delegations
from the two other Cleveland associa-
tions, as well as a big representation
from the other Ohio associations, justi-
fying the claim of Chairman J. E. Radi-
gan that this was the largest and most
important gathering of Ohio engineers
that has been held outside of a State
convention.

After the adjournment of the regular
meeting, the company proceeded to the
dining hall, where Mr. Powell was seated
at the head of the table and presented
with the jewel of past president of local
association No. 5, and then with the
national emblem. Mr. Powell was visibly
affected by this expression of apprecia-
tion of his past services, and in his
speech of acceptance reviewed in an in-
teresting way the conditions of the engi-
neer before the organization of the Na-
tional Association of Stationary Engi-
neers, and some of the earlier activities
of the association.

Brief remarks from many others in
attendance enlivened the proceedings and
extended the program well into the night.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
the Patent Office at 5c. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

BOILERS, FURNACES AND GAS
PRODUCE KS

FURNACE FOR WATER-TUBE BOILERS.
Alfred Smallwood, London, Eng. 981,099.

WATER-GAS PRODUCER. Bernbard

Spitzer. Frankfort-on-the-Main. Germany, as-
signor to the Corporation of Dellwik-Fleiscber
Wassergas-Gesellscbaft, m.b.h., Frankfort-on
the-Main, Germany. HS1, 70S.

WATER-TUBE BOILER. Darwin Alray,
Providence, R. I. 982,198.

STEAM GENERATOR.. Jean Van Ooster-
wyck. Liege, Belgium. 981,722.

POWER PLANT AUXILIARIES AND
APPLIANCES

COMBINED FEED WATER HEATER
AND GRATE. Gustav Beyer, Fort Sill, Okla.
981,609.

BOILER-CLEANING DEVICE. Laurence
Smith and George D. Mullihan, Webb City,
Mo. 981,701.

CRUDE-OIL BURNER. John A. Scott,
Joseph F. Grubbs. and John E. Goss, Okla-
homa. Okla. 981,801.

HOSE COUPLING. Samuel R. Lockhart,

Buna. Tex., assignor of one-half to Stephen
E. Milsted, Buna, Tex. 981,800.

FEED-WATER HEATER. Edward T.
Turner, Dayton, Ohio. 981,901.

METALLIC PACKING. William M. Brooks,
New York, N. Y., assignor, by mesne assign-
ments, to Premier Engineering and Manu-
facturing Company, New York, N. Y., a Cor-
poration of Delaware. 9,xi ,91 2.

PIPE UNION. Josiah Boone Austin, San
Diego, Cal. 982,028.

GATE VALVE. Adoniram J. Collar, Yreka,
Cal. ,982,036.

VALVE. George Wilkinson, Philadelphia,
Penn. 982,108.

VALVE. Henry It. Adams, Bridgeport,
Conn. 982,109.

OIL CAN. Madel T. Axelton and William
C. Axelton. Graettinger, Iowa. 982,114.

PRESSURE REGULATOR. Tom William
Brown. London, England, assignor of one-
half to Frederick Charb s Tillev, London, Eng-
land. 9*2.123.

OIL BURNER. Henry N. Kellar. Kiefer,
Okla. 982,141.

OIL BI'RNER. Charles W. Wright, Ilobart,
Okla. 982,167.

ROD PACKING. Thomas A. Johnston,
Chadron, Neb., assignor of one-fourth to
Thomas L. Finley. Long Pine, Neb. 982,182.

PRIME MOVERS

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. EI-
dridge W. Stevens, Baltimore. Md. 981,811.

ROTARY ENGINE. Robert Ford Court-
enay Keats, Portsmouth, Eng. 981.802.

OSCILLATING WATER MOTOR. Robert
C. Smith, Oak Park, 111. 981,889.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Clark
Sintz. New Orleans, La., assignor of fifty-one
one-hundredths to William A. Gordon. ' New
Orleans, La. • 9Sl,9.-)2.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION MOTOR. Clyde
J. Coleman, New York, N. Y.. assignor to
Rockaway Automobile Company, Rockawav.
N. J., a Corporation of New Jersey. 981,978.

MOTOR. Charles E. Godlove and James L.
Van Nort, St. Louis, Mo.: said Van Nort as-
signor, by mesne assignments, to said Charles
E. Godlove, St. Louis, Mo. 981,995.

ROTARY ENGINE. Clarence E. Clapp,
Buffalo, N. Y. 982,035.

ROTARY ENGINE. Edward Hager, Buf-
falo, N. Y. 982,054.

WATERWHEEL MECHANISM. Thomas
A. Macdonald, Clifton, N. J., assignor, by
direct and mesne assignments, to Macdonald
Hydraulic Power Company, a Corporation of
New Jersey. 982,079.

CURRENT MOTOR. James II. Martin,
Springfield, Mo. 982,154.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS
APPLICATIONS

AND

ELECTRIC SWITCH. Howard R. Sar-
gent, Schenectady, N. Y., assignor to General
Electric Company, a Corporation of New York.
981,692.

ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE. Wm. Sehaake.
Pittsburg, Penn., assignor, by mesne assign-
ments, to Westinghouse Electric and Manu-
facturing Company, East Pittsburg, Penn., a
Corporation of Pennsylvania. 981,799.

ELECTRIC CONTROLLER. Arthur C.
Eastwood. Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to the
Electric Controller and Manufacturing Com-
pany. Cleveland, Ohio, a Corporation of Ohio.
981,847.

ALTERNATING - CURRENT POTENTIAL
SWITCH. David Larson, Yonkers. N. Y.. as-
signor to Otis Elevator Company, Jersev City,
N, J., a Corporation of New Jersey. 981,930.

MOTOR CONTROL. William N. Dickinson,
Jr., New York. N. Y., assignor to Otis Ele-
vator Company. Jersev City, N. J., a Corpora-
tion of New Jersey. 982,041.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM FOR THE SUPER-
VISION OF WATCHMEN. Albert Goldstein,
New York. N. Y\, assignor to International
Electric Protection Company, a Corporation
of New York. 982,052.

ALTERNATING-CURRENT MOTOR CON-
TROL. John D. Ihlder, New York. N. Y.. as-
signor to Otis Elevator Company, Jersev City,
N. J., a Corporation of New Jersey. 982.007.

SOLENOID-OPERATED SWITCH. Henry
L. Smith, Schenectady, N. Y., assignor to
General Electric Oompanv, a Corporation of
New Y'ork. 982.100.

POWER PLANT TOOLS

WRENCH. Harry Ilorsman, Jamestown,
Cal. 982.004.

RATCHET WRENCH. Walter Gartze,
Solingen-Mangenberg, Germany. 980,020.

WRENCH. Charles Andrew Hartvigsen,
Salinas. Cal. 980,032.

WRENCH. Joseph T. Humphries, Oakville,
Tex. 980. 78G.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres.. Col. E. D. Meier; sec, Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION
Pres.. Frank W. Frueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin. 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 3.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
U. S. N. ; sec. and treas., Lieutenant Henry C.
Dinger, U. S. N.. Bureau of Steam Engineer-
ing, Navy Department, Washington, D. C.

AMERICAN

BOILER MANUFACTURERS-
ASSOCIATION

Pres., E. D. Meier, 11 Broadway, New
York : sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston, Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS
Pres., J. W. Alvord ; sec, J. H. Warder,
1735 Monadnock Block, Chicago, 111.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., E. K. Morse; sec, E. K. Hiles, Oliver
building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings 1st and
3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS.
Pies., Prof. J. D. Hoffman; sec, William M.
Mackay, P. O. Box 1818, New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres.. Carl S. Pearse, Denver, Colo. ; sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street. Chicago,
111. Next convention, Cincinnati, Ohio.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr.. Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia, Pa. : Supr. Cor. Engr., William S.
Wetzler, 753 N. Fortv-fourth St., Philadel-
phia. Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres.. William F. Yates, New York, N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago, 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January, 1912.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith; sec. Charles
Kratsch. 416 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF

ENGINEERS
Grand Worthv Chief, John Cope ; sec, J. U.
Bunce. Hotel Statler. Buffalo, N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia, Fenn., week
commencing Monday, August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres.. O. F. Rabbe ; acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus.
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstown, Ohio, May
18 and 19. 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS- ASSOCIATION
Pres.. A. N. Lucas; sec. Harry D. Vaught.
95 Liberty street. New York. Next meeting
at Omaha, Neb., May, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford : sec. J. G. Hanna-
ban, Chicago, III. Next meeting at St. Paxil,
Minn., September, 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION
Pres., G. W. Wright. Baltimore. Md. ; sec.
and treas., D. L. Gaskill; Greenville. O.

\| W V IKK. I I UKl AKY 14. :

F'lv i this ] has I- •

the ] It

to bear a i the man \\h<'

doing things or, trying to do them.

de t" make the lanj
human
moral or illustrate a truth in
lated u> be emphat \\< U

\\ < 1 1 1 1 J >1 *

ilicited testimonj thai oui efforts h.i\« n
wit li .i 1 1] n < »\ al. As soi
apparent 1 1 1 i — editorial !< ud< i will I
to I land dead

ih« which will

!<• something moi !<• t 1

: . is not tin i hi n d<

Although tin editoi might It ti

t «Mlt 1.1 M !

this weekl) whirl

t tin i;

turned down theii thum

1 1 w I

ti:

vli<|.

lirll i

in tin wholesale i

he can*

he had i

minx ■

1<1
tai hour

emplc

■ •
ill

■

i that

■

i l<
tin

•

254

POWER

February 14, 1911.

Modern Boiler Plant, Holyoke, Mass.

Present tendencies are to centralize
the boilers and engines of manufactur-
ing plants and use electric drive, es-
pecially where the buildings are scattered
over a large area.

To secure the economies available
through consolidation, the American Writ-
ing Paper Company, Holyoke, Mass., de-
cided to erect a central steam-generating
plant, of sufficient capacity to supply all
the steam necessary to operate three sep-
arate paper mills, which were equipped
with separate steam plants of from 600
to 1200 horsepower capacity.

This work was designed and installed
by the company's engineering depart-
ment under the direction of Edward P.
Butts, chief engineer of the company.
As a result, although aiming to keep
the first cost down to a minimum, the
plant stands a model for simplicity of
design and ease of operation.

By means of this new plant the cost
of operation, including labor, fuel and
supplies, has been reduced $75 per day,
or from $20,000 to $25,000 per year.

The boiler plant consists of six 400-

By Warren O. Rogers

A central station, replacing
three smaller boiler plants,
reduced the operating ex-
penses $75 a day. In the
new plant the engineer can
read the temperature of the
flue gases, of return water
from the mills and of the
feed water, also the percent-
age of CO 2 in the fine gases
without stepping from his
office. The coal consumed
is automatically weighed as
it is conveyed to coal bunk-
ers, and the weight is regis-
tered in engineer's office.

horsepower Babcock & Wilcox boilers,
based on 10 square feet of heating sur-
face per horsepower. These boilers do

the work formerly done by nineteen small
boilers in the old plants. The boilers
are operated constantly at 25 per cent,
above their rating in order to obtain the
best efficiency from them.

Murphy stokers are used, the grate
area being 80 square feet, with a ratio of
fifty to one. There has been no trouble
in burning 30 pounds of coal per hour
per square foot of grate surface and the
plant operates practically with no smoke.

These boilers are set in three bat-
teries, of two each, as shown in Fig. 1.
A permanent iron stairway and rail has
been placed at one end of the boilers and,
as a platform extends the length of the
boiler settings, the firemen can easily get
at the coal chutes or fixtures on the front
of the boilers.

In order to eliminate air leakage into
the furnaces through the brick settings,
the side walls of each battery have been
lined with a magnesia covering. The
tube blow-hole plates are fitted with a
sheet-iron cover which prevents air leak-
age at these points. These features are
shown in Fig. 2.

Fig. 1. New Boiler Room of the American Writing Paper Company

February 14, I

smoke flue, between the

C » hci

Each boiler smoke flue is fitted with a free

damper, but the draft is controlled by dan;

a main damper placed in the main the smcke flue, a clearance of 1

stack and at the top and bottom has bee

c alley back

of the am<

and bio

Fie. 2 - c on B

warn r*f rr*-:- laai °B

-h boiler, doc
Nov aaed. As iron »r

The«c boiler* ger ited aaraaa

at 150 pounds

'Ugh designed for 300 fwwmdt vHh
PltvU at some

future time. «hou deemed a:

able. Considerable thoug
■

. . ..
any. to be m tuperheatir

•team in -he rada

uid be n

her

toes to the

The n% % mad*

a at

• reman to hoe the a%hes out

tut-

• to

the junction of the individual smoke
flues

ir. but effective. I >f having a

bearing on ' of the smoke flue,

Jamper is .cans of an

ic flue, an

i and a cnRth of chain. The

ails are shown in !
The d.
regulator by means of a rod. a»

pending tr- • nf • Vn IrM M r

and chain has the advantage of allowing '
•n on a
iminating I

PlO.

to the side

rr<sut>"n» r

256

POWER

February 14, 1911.

is maintained by a fan direct coupled
to a Curtis steam turbine.

As the 6-inch inlet ash pipe is placed
under an iron section of flooring outside

per minute, and it will handle anything
that will go through a 6-inch pipe.

Figs. 2 and 5 give a good idea of the
piping layout over the boilers. The flanges

Fig. 5. Layout of Piping Over the Boilers

of the furnace fronts, it is necessary for
the men to hoe the ash from the ashpit
into the cement opening over the ash pipe.
This pipe could have been placed under
the ashpit, but it would have added to
the cost of installing the system and also

are screwed onto the pipe; the ends of
the pipe are then peened over and faced.
A walkway at the rear of the boiler ex-
tends the length of the boiler settings,
and there are steps leading to the top of
the steam drums.

Fig. 6. Auxiliary Units

loss of draft when the system was in op-
eration, and with no additional saving in
labor. This system was put in on a
guarantee to handle 300 pounds of ash

Water may be fed to the boilers by
means of either one of the two Deane
12 and 7 by 12-inch duplex pumps. Each
is fitted with an air chamber to pre-

vent pulsation in the Venturi meters.
There is also a Worthington four-stage
centrifugal pump, direct coupled to a
Terry steam turbine, which runs at a
speed of 2000 revolutions per minute.
The turbine-driven pump is used 24 hours
a day with an occasional shutdown while
the duplex pumps are being tried out to
be sure they are in running condition;
they are kept as emergency units. A
Westinghouse engine furnishes power to
operate the coal-conveying system. These
auxiliary units are shown in Fig. 6.

There are six concrete-lined steel coal
bins over the boilers, each having a capa-
city of 20 tons. The construction of the
lining of these bins is rather interesting.
Owing to the deteriorating action of mois-
ture and sulphur on steel, these bins are
lined with cement. Channel irons are
placed on the inside of the steel casing
and held in place by bolts and nuts, as
shown in Fig. 7. On the outside of the
channel iron is placed a layer of wire
lathing which is held in place by nuts.
Over this iron lathing, and filling up the
space between it and the outside steel
casing of the bin, is a thick coating of
concrete made of a one to three mixture
of cement and sand, worked hard in order
to get a smooth surface.

Fig. 7. Construction of Coal Bunker

Coal is delivered to these bins from
either coal cars or from the reserve sup-
ply in the yard by means of a Rob-
ins belt conveyer. Fig. 8 illustrates the
method of handling the coal. This belt
conveyer is 250 feet long and is driven
by means of a shaft which is belted to
the 60-horsepower Westinghouse engine
located in the pump room. The shaft is
placed underground and also supplies
power for the coal-crushing rolls. Fig. 8
also shows a coal car in position over the
chute and hopper leading to the crushing
rolls. After the coal is crushed it is
elevated to the top of the conveyer tower
and is either carried to the coal bins
over the boilers or is discharged onto the
reserve pile in the yard, where about
2000 to 3000 tons are kept on hand for
emergency. The coal flowing from the
bins to the stokers through iron chutes
regulates itself, as the supply banks up
in the spouts as soon as sufficient coal
has run down.

When it is desirable to discharge the
coal into the yard, the A frame controlled
from the yard level and shown in Fig.
8, is placed above the point where
it is desired to dump the coal, and the
unloading device on the conveyer set so
that the coal will be discharged on both

February 14. 1911.

sides of the belt. Under the com .
shed is ? line of hoppers leading to an
underground conveyer so that the
ply in the yard can be elevated and
carried to the boiler room. >X'hen the coal
in the immediate vicinity of the opening
has been used the outlying coal must be
shoveled into the underground hopper
or moved in some otru

To reduce this labor to a minimum a
portable conveyer, made something at
shown in 1 It coi

a long framework set on a r rnn

wheels. A 3-horscpo\»cr motor
pended and boxed in under the frame.
The belt convescr and supporting rolls
are placed on top of the framework, the
belt running over rollers placed at each
end of the frame. One roll shaft
with a sprocket wheel which is belted to a
similar wheel on the motor shaft. A
stationary hopper is fixed at one end of
the frame into which the coal is shoveled.

U'hcn in use. the hopper end is placed
farthest from the underground >.
and the portable con\ ■ in a I

zontal position. Six men can
into the hopper and th<. II take care

of the coal without trouble. This dt
saves considerable labor in case coal
from the outer edge of the coal pile must

armatur -1c fjr%t

of the

tns^ iced one r.

unt-
ing The ic>. om-

bination scale and rcco*
when it

>f I Per found in weighing

Kh side are the feed-
e rage tad »acuum gage on
the a»r -stem. At the

shown • combination -team and recof .

c boar
*ho g gage The

arrangement at the bottom of the

thirteen millior

i v e r a g<
trricij coal, containing
B.t

rcr ulphur. arc burned per \car.

ilcr it looking the

iting engine
'c are r iru-

^ue in r

purpo* .»;ng a

I on the return
hot nea, up

fOW

The n Compart

sigr conaiatB of

ng Instro-
ment

K gage » One f cadi

onnected to a line lead*
the other

the <f the switch

iter

' the ek

rait

annr

led

be Uftcd The bell ru

about 200 gl->

The coal i» \»eigl »m e

or wcightomct' the mi

Mt rccor
englr

>c an
made bv a pin on i
di«k on the Ml »lng a

causing an
through a mac an

■o tt;

need
-wo coophj*

i ■ te»

• irmrmiurr of the return

mm the

the NN'r .

■

Md
I moon*

da-

.-. hailr

md of

mm
' ■

258

POWER

February 14, 1911.

all seasons of the year, but simple ad- plant is recorded by a Venturi water metered without interfering with the total

justments for season change reduce the meter that is located in the office. The
variations in the readings to 5 degrees, chart scale is graduated into thousands

amount of water passing through the
meter in the main feed line. For in-
stance, suppose all of the water being
used by the boilers is being passed
through the meter on feed line No. 1.
If a test is to be made on a single boiler,
the valve on feed line No. 1 between the
meter and the boiler to be tested is

NO. I

3=tia

Fig. 10. Partial View of Engineer's Office

Fig. 11. Arrangement of Meters and
Feed Pipes in Pump Room

The water consumption for the six of pounds per hour, and the total amount closed and the regulating valve on feed

boilers runs as high as 100,000 pounds is measured by a planimeter on daily pipe No. 2 opened. The valves A, B, C

per hour, this volume fluctuating with charts. Each feed line is equipped with a and D are open and valves E, F and G

the stage of water supplied to the water- Venturi meter and a third meter is con- closed. The flow of water to the boiler

t< Banked Fire-->

1
1

-iPrepari

I fire

ig^

-to

IS-H
it
fc<ul
6 Si

u r

Test ----

— B

a nkec

ire-

— H

i
i

i-.^

'S '

£ 1

1 1

s%.

Jl PS

.*k ^A-

J±J> I

\ c -C '

h '

ft ^'

Jt^Trf

ffi-4

,te5 ^

*«v „

< tt

ftf^Ljrt

--tt -

wt -

1 V .

fWM\?

tT^x r\

ttt

- tt

X '

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j\ i

iWlitl

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-tttt-V

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tut i

ntt-

4rrrt*,nr

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II :

--fflt-

J/m

r T-rrtY

YTrA

Sin M J

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t -

ntt

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-tt—

--ffit-

-ittt

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f tt

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Trr i hr

ItTrT "

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tt—

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tt-

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-tttt

...I

tt......

n .jl..

...IE

VI "Vffl K X XI XD I I I'F- V VI1TIIK XHMiI HIHIVV povvw,

Fig. 12. Comparative Records of CO- Content in Flue Gases

wheels, with which the three mills are nected to a bypass feed line, as shown in being tested would be through the main

equipped. Pig< 1 1. This allows running any one boiler feed line No. 1, the meter M and valves

The amount of water consumed in the on a test, and the amount of water used is A and B, meter N and valves C and D

February 14. 1911.

■NX ! H

BOILER TEST.
AMERICAN NWRITING PAPER COMPANY,

HOLVOK EM-
°^ Jum U, 1810

E.L. 83*11 1 J. R. for'.-a.

Ze^'.rLL Boiler Plant 'A'

8 - B 4 ». 19« - 4 I lb .2'<U* *

Efficiency Of k_rpiy r-r^*ce.

■■pixa situaa&oje ca«:

.:...., .:,:•:.

10
2CJ3Q

18804

L*tt

13c*,3
1 rw^ma

aiaus

■

1B80

21.6 ox 89.68
31814.5
.l** 8.45

; t— | — n *> i«m I )t I

0.3
400

ic^>;

rAPOAATlOM

to the and in-

<•: cr

BOILER ROOM DAILY

1 M rvcfvU
• c'.ct uvcJ

ate teat

A Vettovcr CO, reeoc i la

the p<*' •

Of »ho»

performance vontay of notice, aad rep

M that »«» rur. to

>.c the ntmt of the 9m

Kaoeo. The ceotioooaa Uaco deaofe the

• i 'fom ibe i :

cordcr and the line or fh«

from a hand Oraai

of eaa vi

K 'Jcr

■

cord of the a'<
aho- d that of the

hand Oraat 12.10 per cent.

«
coo.

tbe te»t
A ri

»'<)» n belov. Tbcoe abotts
arc hoi. colored

' e«-
n copy to be
the or

It i* *oru
reader

>'C J t<>

• 4 '

ia nccev - tbe

II. aad III

coal oo hi tbe enj of

•a tbe car aad

and column III .» a ret < oaal

i tbe baakx-

260

POWER

February 14, 1911.

American Writing Paper Co

RON FR RDDM WFFKI V RFPORT CENTRAL STATION A" ivrr* rnimNr. m

BOILERS. ETC. sc*vici houks

CLEANING REPAIRS

SUPPLIES USED

r-. ., 1

REMARKS

BaOef No I ■'

3 .

8 \

7 *■

'•

•

\ I

Total for WWfc

Pump NO i

r 1

1 3 j

Oomvym F-,r...- j

M "■■-■ 1

1 1

1 1 il

*m»ito Pir<em«

FxCtOr ol Evaporation

i >i r,r. HanJ (r..m pr^i-ir-i- ».i-rk

- '■ "* H

WsUI F.»aporar*i) T"*al " " I'-.ui.d-

'I mnin) pretrat «e*k

E*igi«,.*nt Evaporation 1- 4 A l*l_"

■ on hand in YarJ Sunrj(*

■• '• '• prt lb f-.jl aa firiij

Coal Burned firearm iv„,

! 1

adding the amount of coal taken from the
cars and that taken from the yard the
total amount consumed during the day is
determined, and deducting the amount of
coal taken from the yard, the total amount
in the yard as indicated from the previous
report is ascertained, which is carried on
for each day's report to the next and
shows the total amount of coal in storage.

Therefore, there is no guess work as to
the amount of coal in the yard at the end
of any day's run.

The weekly report is a condensation of
the daily report, and is made on 8'jxl9-
inch sheets. In case any particular item
is in question, it is easily checked by re-
ferring to the daily report sheets of the
same dates given on the weekly report

sheets. These report sheets are perfo-
rated at one end, making it easy to tear
out of the book. They are also punched
for placing in a binder so that the sheets
may be readily filed.

The foregoing information and illustra-
tions were obtained through the courtesy
of Edward P. Butts, chief engineer of
the company.

Central Station vs. Factory Plant

For the past few years, central-station
men have been making a considerable
stir regarding the possibilities of econ-
omy in the operation of factory plants
through purchased power, the argument
being that the central station — owing to
the character of its load, type of ma-
chinery and the location of its plant —
could produce and deliver power to the
manufacturing plant at a lower price
than a manufacturing plant could gen-
erate it.

The central-station men take the stand
that the use of exhaust steam for heat-
ing, or for any other purpose, has no
material bearing upon the cost of power.
They usually contend that the back pres-
sure necessitated by the heating system
is so great that the increased steam con-
sumption by the engine more than neu-
tralizes the gain which might be obtained
through the use of this steam for heating
purposes; in other words, they claim
that it is fully as cheap, and in some
cases cheaper, to heat by steam direct
from the boiler than by exhaust steam
from the engine. Although this may be
true under certain conditions, it is by no
means true in many cases, particularly
in those plants requiring the use of steam
in any considerable quantity for heating
and other purposes, where low-pressure
steam can do the work.

A properly arranged heating system

By Henry D. Jackson

Two instances in which the con-
ditions were such that although
the tentative figures submitted by
the central-station management
were in their favor, the actual re-
sults proved that a greater saving
would have been effected by the
installation of individual plants.

will not put back pressure on the en-
gine, and where a plant is operating con-
densing, it is sometimes possible to op-
erate a vacuum system of heating, utiliz-
ing the exhaust steam from the engine
and reducing the vacuum of the con-
denser to a point which will allow suffi-
cient steam to flow through the heating
system. This, however, is available in
comparatively few plants, as the gain
thereby is not sufficient to warrant it.

An example of central-station engineer-
ing recently came to the writer's atten-
tion in a plant requiring considerable
power for operating its machinery and
cor lighting. The central station made
the claim and apparently substantiated
it with figures of its own making, to
prove that it would be more economical
to operate with electric drive — the power

to be furnished by the lighting company
— than with the original belt drive. The
owners were convinced of the advisability
of the change and installed the electrical
equipment, apparently under the engi-
neering advice of the central station. To
the great astonishment of the owners,
after the installation was complete, the
cost of operating the factory, instead of
decreasing, increased to a very marked
extent. It was at first supposed that
increased production was the cause of the
increased cost, but a comparison of the
output soon showed this to be untrue;
the production was less but the cost
greater.

Numerous attempts were made to lo-
cate the trouble but without success until
a few carefully made tests throughout
the factory and a thorough examination
of the conditions existing about the in-
stallation, showed that while a large
amount of heavy shafting and counter-
shafting had been removed with its at-
tendant friction, the actual friction power
was still far in excess of what it should
have been in a properly laid out electric
drive. The rooms were low studded and
the shafting was quite close to the ceil-
ing, so that the permissible diameters of
the pulleys were restricted. The motors
were of the highest speed obtainable,
in most cases, to reduce first cost. The
ratio of pulley diameters was far too

February 14. 1911.

PO\*

great for the economical transmission of
power, and the exceedingly small motor
pulleys and short centers required a
heavy belt tension which deflected the
shafting itself; this deflection naturally
caused a heavy friction loss throughout
the entire line shafting.

It was further found that much of
the machinery, which was intermittent in
operation, would not operate Mitel
torilv, owing to the slip on the

small motor pulleys uhen the machines
were put into In other cases

where the shafting was run along the
floor, motors were hung on the ceiling
underneath, the belts running through the
floor to the shaftir., ratio of pulley

diameters was about 5 to I, the motor
pulleys being approximate^ 3 incfu ■-
diameter and the distanc en cen-

about 3 feet. The friction loss on
particular itaftfl I 96

per cent, of the total power required to
operate when the machinery was in

In many cases throughout the fac-

•o drive
motors and shafting was o\ per

cent, of the |C power required. A

careful II f all the conditions sh<

that the power rcquir -ate the

shafting and motors alone w.i

he total pov»cr
; crate the factors under
full-load condil

that had
J to fu-
for one-half of its regular charge, the
tota '. operating the plant

ing heat, would have been practically the
same as that ••» I

also, that a change in the
methods o- -i a

mar* «.»; and

•a steam was

post the plant

J gene er for ap-

one-half tl ght-

, .
r the

;
•

'able *.i
•stallation The Mkut'
•II of t1

.
A • crc

1. among tl

change in the i

It VM

that certain

d all d

•he cha

■

«n that it wa
°' l| llgh

other instance to the

m was in a compa
large cstat- t, to which p< n

offered for appro

power-year of 3080 hours, and an at-
show that po.
ng the oi '.ore

than this figure. A l ' this r

showed, to -hat power «a<

ng them far less than Mo a horse-
powcr-\ear. 1 iers

and also lh< g company. The I

ain cnoug'
the first place, at k

of steam * J for various pur-

poses throughout the plant that was re-
quired for power proJ
pcratur-.

im or low ^tcarn -

fective. so that the er. not

need to be bom and

were not a : the

' round. Furthermor Tia-

thc plant * : be

sold fu uhing I. to a

large e

fact, for n. . s out of the

or no coal was uv at the I

naJL The cos-
■
was small compa r
plant, a
bill per h<
ably under thai be off

In th*.

the stand that
approximate

■ ■
the •
and tha-

Tl '»t glar:

rota,

■ i
plant has
were ha

the o-

tttea

ceeJ

•g a eo" r ' • •

rowel

<iOf h«m 10

a-j

supplying a!! the

■ comparison in a thoroughly

one shoald be no

n making tbeso comr

no the cost be ftg^

fco-

r to

A-

i '

anj iim«n»*»n« Its*

.... . ,

CMr

• ng foor

' v ■ ■ •

262

POWER

February 14, 1911.

Piping Layout of Closed Heaters

In Fig. 1 are shown two closed heaters
located in a shop where considerable
steam is used for heating water for man-
ufacturing purposes, in addition to the
boiler supply. It is necessary to use more
or less live steam for this purpose, but
inasmuch as it takes only about one-sixth
of the exhaust steam from an engine to
heat the feed water, there is a large sur-
plus which can be used for other pur-
poses. No special advantage is gained
by the use of two heaters, as the same
results may be secured with one if large
enough to do the work. However, it
should be fitted with two independent
coils so that it will be impossible for
employees of the shop to use water which
the engineer needs for the boilers.

Where two heaters are in service it is
often because of the fact that only one
was formerly used, and that the demands
for hot water had increased until this was
no longer sufficient for the purpose, re-
sulting in its being taken out and a larger
one substituted and the old one connected
up afterward in order to use all of the
exhaust steam. In the present case, ex-
haust steam passes through the larger
heater, and what is left is prevented from
going directly to the atmosphere by the
back-pressure valve. Therefore, it passes
to the right, through a pipe which pro-
jects through a brick wall, beyond which
there is a tee connecting with a smaller
heater; this has no outlet on the bottom
except a drip for removing water of con-
densation. Steam passes readily into a
heater piped in this way, because water
passing through the coil condenses some
of the steam and creates a partial vac-

By W. H. Wakeman

The exhaust steam for heat-
ing the feed water is ted
into the main heater and
the surplus steam then car-
ried over to an auxiliary
heater supplying water for
manufacturing purposes.

uum; more steam rushes in to fill this
space and the supply is maintained as
long as there is any steam passing

(—..YlvllEl — ^sL Back Pressure
acyT-2rTJ Valve

through the horizontal pipe. If any is
left it passes on to be used for other
purposes.

There are at least two ways for con-
necting the water pipes of such a system,
the better of which is here shown. Water
from the pump passes to the bottom of
the large heater and coming out at the
top is conducted through the upper pipe
to the boilers. This insures hot water
for the boilers as long as the engine
sends enough exhaust steam through the
first heater. Entering near the bottom
of the smaller heater, the water for man-
ufacturing purposes passes upward and
out near the top, then enters the
right-hand side of the larger heater. A
separate coil is provided for this water
and the outlet is on the same side near
the top, whence it passes to the shop as
indicated.

..■Air Valve

Main and Secondary Heaters

Fig. 2. A Common Arrangement of Piping Heater to Engine

The engineer of the plant laid out this
arrangement of piping, and insisted upon
its adoption, although it was not favored
by the superintendent; the latter wished
to have water for the shop service go
into the larger heater before it went into
the smaller one. The reason for this dif-
ference of opinion is evident. The en-
gineer's plan insures hot water for the
boilers, and if there is not sufficient ex-
haust steam to supply everything, the
shop service fails to obtain the required
heat. The superintendent's plan would
insure hot water for the shop service, and
lack of exhaust steam to fill all demands
would result in sending comparatively
cold water into the boilers. As a rule, it
is better to introduce the cold water into
a heater near the point at which the ex-
haust steam escapes, but this is ignored
where it would necessitate the use of
extra piping and fittings.

Fig. 2 illustrates a neat arrangement
for a heater which is used for the boiler-

February 14, 1011.

2t*i

water only. Tl
carried under the floor a . but it
contains a tee the outlet of which pro-
jects upward, the pipe from it entering

the heater.

air valve is p-

whk n the 1

engine is star- pro.

viJcd to let out ihc water of

Exhaust Steam Turbines in I

An interesting development in the use
of exhaust steam is to be found at the
iron works of B. Samuclson & I
of Middlesborough, England,
the exhaust steam from the blast-furnace
ermines is collected and after bein^
perheatcd is utilized in low-;
turbo-generators which supply power to
consumers as far north as the Tync. The
turbines are of the double-flow Parsons

th water-sealed glands a
for operating with steam in the event of
the water sjpply failing, and also for

By James A. Seager

England

tlu

tit it:

On rrgi ad •< the

the barometer

■ eep ■ COni !■■■■■
!cim consumption of the

into a §p<

turned to be u»cd o\cr ag.*
The generators are

i 121
400.

i of the
ir wi

- a voltage

need steam coo-

r ounda per

-ure su;

nto a vacuum of
cd to i i hero-

These figure* •
cd on i

atcd to be
• i mum low

po-

■

ig. A of the turb

and generators is shown in Pig, I. The

-t through a worm y
shaft from the turbine spind:

ich aJ
the turbines T*.. methods are j

the turbines :n case
speed shoti case ar

:r cent, over normal: one closes the
fovc the other opens •

large air connection to the
thus z the vacuum

h the turbine cant
onden*
y beneath the tur' ow-

Ing one cnJ I
the other a

it that there tllng »r

In the whole installation, the
pumps being of the l.eblan and

trifuKat arran4

made I p the cornier

pump* free from muJ

I) may be depov n the

<nnf uj' • •

Ptc

264

POWER

February 14, 1911.

Firing Boilers with Pulverized Coal

About a year ago, a 300-horsepower
boiler at the Henry Phipps power plant,
Pittsburg, Penn., was fitted with a device
for burning pulverized coal. This has
been in operation about 200 days and has
proved very satisfactory. Several tests
and the records of the plant show that
it has a high efficiency and that there is
a considerable saving of fuel as com-
pared with the other boilers of the same
type fitted with mechanical stokers. The
system is the invention of J. E. Blake,
of New York, who spent 14 years in its
development.

Principle of Operation

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the coal is
crushed by an ordinary commercial
crusher into small lumps about the size
of cherries, and placed in the feed hop-
per of the pulverizer and blower, from
which it is fed into the machine by an
endless screw. The pulverizer is of the
rotary type driven by a 12-horsepower
motor. From Fig. 2 it will be seen that
the coal, upon entering the chamber, is
struck by the revolving paddles which
break up the lumps into smaller frag-
ments. The centrifugal force produced
by the rotary motion given to the larger-
sized lumps causes them to revolve near

By W. S. Worth

A 2,00-horsepower boiler at
the Henry Phipps plant in
Pittsburg has been fitted
with the Blake system of
pulverizing coal, and during
a period of two hundred
days' operation has shown a
high degree of economy.
With this system the proper
mixture of air and fuel is
attained in the pulverizer,
hence complete combustion
takes place in the furnace.
By using a set of nozzles
the flame does not come in
direct contact with the tubes.

cessive chambers, receiving in each
a whirling motion before passing to
the next. The smaller and lighter
particles of coal in the first chamber are
caught in the whirl of air and carried
to the second chamber where the pul-

and is discharged in an intimate mixture
into two pipes conducting the mixture
to the furnace. The air entering through
openings A, B and C prevents the escape
of coal dust.

Each pipe branches into a distributer,
from which cylindrical nozzles discharge
the mixture into the furnace, where it
burns with a long flame closely re-
sembling that of natural gas, except for
the luminous particles heated to incan-
descence. The flame, which is directed
downward at an angle of about 20 de-
grees to the vertical, impinges upon the
bottom of the furnace, forming eddy
currents, and the minute particles of coa]
dust burn completely while in suspen-
sion, the gases then passing over the
heating surfaces of the boiler.

As the refractory lining of the furnace
is heated to a high temperature, it as-
sists in producing complete combustion.
The furnace is of the reverberatory type,
its action being the reverse of the ordi-
nary industrial type.

Crusher

The crusher is of the ordinary vertical
"coffee-mill" type and is belted to a one-
horsepower motor. Low-grade slack coal
is fed into the crusher by hand and is

Supply Pipes,

Pulverizer
and Blower

Air

Mixture of Pulverized
Coal and Air

Products of Combustion

Refuse
Collector

POWE*

Fig. 1. System Applied to Boiler

the surface of the cylinder and the baffles
prevent them from passing to the second
chamber. The air is drawn into the first
chamber with the coal through passage A
and also through the opening B around
the shaft. After being given a whirling
motion by the rotor, it passes to the sec-
ond chamber and thence through the suc-

verization becomes finer, and so on
throughout the successive stages until in
the fourth chamber it is reduced to a
fine powder suitable for burning. After
entering the fan chamber, the mixture
of coal dust and air receives an addi-
tional supply of air which is drawn into
the fan chamber through the opening C

crushed into small lumps suitable for
feeding into the pulverizer. The crushed
coal is transported and charged into the
pulverizer by hand. As the capacity of
the crusher is greater than that of the
pulverizer, it is not run continuously, the
supply being crushed at suitable inter-
vals.

February 14, 1911.

The pulverizer and blower are dn
at a speed of 12'*i revolutions per min-
ute by a 12-horsepower motor con-
nected to the rotor of the pu
small simple engine is belted to the h
ing >( the pulverizer. Th>
of the present pulverizer and K
made of boiler plate, but it is intended in
the future to make this of cast iron
horizontally on the center line as
* n. The rotor ci nf a •
shaft. carried in ring-lubricated bear

hich are keyed the fort
To the arms of tn. ted the

paddles, which cor
steel pi. i

The fineness to which the coal i> pul-
ed depends upon the character of
the coal and the required length of flame
e powder usually being from 81
mesh fine the

of the air passing through with
the coal: if the high, the

I k

•
combustion

cal nozzles leading from c
all.

The furna

k and has a refuse c in the

bacV jbout 5

feet lor el high (from the bottom

to tl The

can hi -ough r

n the fi n a door at

the - - about

adn: trough

in front and another in r
The ugh the

- and has an i through which

the reft in into a car on the floor

below.

Automat

The amount of coal I kiu-

■ by tr of the engine

the rod

-
ght on

2ri^
opening of the

Hem.

Hon attached to

to o»crcoBic
The I the

lam- am an amount correaeoodiag

■lea

and rac-

The
the
amount ng from the boiler

thr'1 •»

ing
•Dee J con-

- , cmut* lc»c

Co*/

| ■ ■ — <*m

from »«!cf»oiJ / the

laaceada aa4 hi -

Tiki* & ►* ■

to *o» mm

• • •'■>• 'Of

i *c. and the fee J

II of the opening-* It anJ C can he tl

I planned a- ih.

!
ul the

■

n »ill aUo be

t I.'
kc« into a '

•I paa*

olertoW / t«d armtf

■

•

Plft

The

266

POWER

February 14, 1911.

arm T may be clamped to the rod by set
screw F'.

The operation of the regulator is very
satisfactory and there is no difficulty in
regulating the pressure to give a varia-
tion of lesG than five pounds. Although it
is used here to regulate only one boiler,
it can be used for several.

TEST WITH PULVERIZED COAL AT THE
HENRY PHIPPS POWER PLANT.

Duration of test, hours 6

Total weight of coal, fired, pounds 5,160

Total weight of water, pounds. . . 56,160

Average temperature feed water,
degrees Fahrenheit 186

Average steam pressure, pounds

per square inch 162 . 3

Factor of evaporation 1 .084

Water evaporated per pound of

coal (actual, pounds) 10.88

Water evaporated per pound from

and at 212 degrees, pounds. . . . 11.725

Boiler efficiency (coal containing

14,350 B.t.u.), per cent 78.93

Horseoower of boiler 294.6

Builder's rating 300

Temperature of escaping gases, de-
grees Fahrenheit 386

Cost of coal, 2.58 tons @ §1.315

per ton $3,392

Cost of coal per pound 0.0006575

Pounds of coal per boiler horse-
power per hour 2 .92

Cost of coal per boiler horsepower,

cents 0.19199

Economy

The foregoing table shows the re-
sults of a test made by the superintend-
ing engineer of the plant. This test agrees
very closely with other tests which have
been made, none of which show a boiler
efficiency less than 77 per cent. In mak-
ing these tests, the evaporation was de-
termined by measuring the amount of
water fed to the boiler.

It should be noted that the temperature
of the escaping gases is very low. Under
the usual working conditions it does not
exceed 400 degrees Fahrenheit, and after
uniform conditions have been attained it
does not vary over 25 degrees. The
power-house records show that this boiler
is much more economical in coal con-
sumption than the other boilers and it is
claimed that the saving in fuel exceeds
1 1 per cent. In addition to the saving
in the quantity of fuel, a considerable
saving in the cost of operation is effected
because of the following factors: Cheaper
coal is used — the coal for the boiler
using pulverized coal costs 4 cents per
bushel, whereas the coal for the other
boilers costs 5 cents; fewer repairs are
required; and, in addition to these, may
be added for future plants, less cost for
attendance and less wear and tear on the
boiler, due to the uniform temperature.

Operation and Performance

To get up steam, a wood fire is first
built in the furnace and the pulverizer is
started supplying air and fuel, moderate-
ly at first and finally working up to the
normal rate of combustion. There is no
difficulty in starting as the mixture ignites
readily and burns with a steady flame.
The combustion is more perfect, however,
when the flame is not cooled by impinging
upon the cold surfaces of the furnace.
It requires about three hours to heat the

furnace to its normal running heat, after
which the high temperature of the fur-
nace assists in producing complete com-
bustion. The time required to raise steam
depends upon the rate of combustion. Or-
dinarily steam is raised in about an hour,
but this time could be reduced to half an
hour if desired.

When normal running conditions have
been established, the combustion is com-
pleted before the gases pass to the tubes.
All parts of the furnace are clearly visible
as there is no smoke and the flame is
unusually transparent. Moreover, there

is used a large percentage of the refuse
passes through the boiler and passes up
the stack. With this system, however, ap-
parently none of the refuse passes out
through the stack as no traces of it have
been found on the roof of the power
house nor on those of adjacent buildings.
As previously mentioned, the refuse from
the furnace is deposited in a collector.
There is a comparatively small quantity
of refuse and ordinarily the collector is
emptied every three or four days. After
eight days of operation, when using 750
pounds of low-grade Pittsburg slack per

Fig. 3. Automatic Regulator

is practically no noise from the furnace.

The refuse is a fine light powder, re-
sembling fine sand, and containing no
unconsumed carbon. It is neither cor-
rosive nor adhesive and can be easily
handled with compressed air. This dust
collects on the tops of the horizontal
tubes but does not adhere to the re-
mainder of the tube surfaces. When the
apex of the pile of dust on a tube reaches
a certain hight, the powder begins to
slide off, and, when once started, nearly
all runs off. In view of this it is not
considered worth while to clean the tops
of the tubes; hence tube cleaning is
eliminated from the routine.

In many cases where pulverized fuel

hour, only about three-quarters of a ton
of refuse was removed from the col-
lector.

The tubes immediately above the fur-
nace become coated with a sulphurous
deposit which does not appear on the
other tubes. This deposit does not ex-
ceed J,,s inch thick and it soon cracks
and falls off. The refuse cakes on the
firebrick lining of the furnace to a thick-
ness of less than an inch; but this can
be easily scraped off. In fact, it is an
advantage in that it protects the firebrick
and prolongs the life of the furnace.

No difficulties have been experienced
by the tubes becoming burned, which is
\ ndoubtedly due to the fact that the

February 14. 1911.

flame does not impinge on the tubes, and
also that combustion is completed before
the | 'me in contact with the nil

perience has demonstrated that c
a large percentage of moisture in the
coal has no appreciable effect on the pul-

/ation and burning. The moist
dried out by the mechanical action of the
air during pul. o that the

and d do not ad-

here. Only two kinds of lou joal

J, but there is little d
that high-grade coals can be used
ly.
The fineness of pulverization J
upon the quality of the coal, a coal which
burns with a long flame being pu
finer than one h. i short flame.

Hence, the length of flame can V

J by adjusting the pulverizer The
of combustion can be regulated
through a wide range and can iced

until the heat ' ?nt to •

the furnace hot. The proportion of air
».ept constant for all rates of
the quantity of mixture be-
ing regular

apparatus, one man
quired to md the

tcr, and on the boiler Moor another
attends several boilers. With the ap-
paratus as fuel
will be ha machi
and the regulation will be automatic, thus

educing tt
The cost . for r ri less than

and
that the padd!
•t least a year with aln
i

that

the po\icr require J f

-cpoue-

thermal gain in the use of
l be high degree
the
•
h to obtain ;

The
ombinat the air and coal,

ho« roduces a high t

cultic* that have been en

K of tl and thi | of

the * g i sl.t.

the for

carborundum du*t. ha
easeful:

dispose* entire!. .«• 1
i high

ha* '

regulating the Int
and in contcquen
the furna

Analyses lue gate* from boil-

ers u«lng : -ed coal show ei

fJOfiallv good result*, there u Hng

not more than 10 to 15 p

°f a i»es the

Pt;
to auto:

ly - .so that •

mar

auton so that

& coal

be
maintar . ardles*-

■

coal

prop .ilar fuel h

in u
tica:
was m.i the auton

-
be made for the a n of

the air and coal togettu iat the

be mainta

>al can '.ed

■
wit! matter

to be be-
-

Iocs
not inr the p ng and

burning, and in t! air that

is present during th< and

•
\cn* n adht

■

* of
the
same thermal

Hanj

coal ha-. ord

.:n and ope ' number

ition of

a ri - and c<

.; •
it no dlSct:

r*Ot

;

have not been succesaf

! coal has the

vantages. On account <
on a <x be possible

vent the escape of the m

doubt'

F< d ma-

i gene advantages

imum po«er can be
long at jaJ can be

are no fire* u

anj t.ic HfS > Mi •nt^.c war. r>c rcJuvd
< no ir is --"-i the pul

idling ma-

uU not be necessary

c grate

orrosion and the Arc-room bilges

also applies to the h.
On ace©

uld be !c
and the b The Are rooms

and could
>de coals could be
u*<

annot I ig boilers %

.oil has been an un<
■BJOCeaa In fact -ar. a!! arte— .pt* ha >

icral ••;

that, air'

>r firing boiler'
1 1 nor commt'

J to aoase c *

i com me re
• tests -

■

the sue.
ig b

n a lathe
someti- rllcult to get the esact

made and - .inch pip*

tic toe MM

shoulder, then it remains

for the »ork" i" ■ ret atf ,f • '.»- '.rr . •

|M»j| ««

th int

home srith the

oa foot ta rase the p
an the Platan

<lex»r S»

' •

•tries of
- haraepsaer •

268

POWER

February 14, 1911.

[ones; Trouble Killer
First Talk about Power Factor

"Well, well," exclaimed Harvey, "if
that ain't Jones cuttin' corners through
the back lot I'll eat hay till hell free — "

"You'd oughter eat it, anyhow," broke
in the engineer; "I would, if I'd made
such a jackass o' myself as you did last
time Jones. was here."

Further compliments were prevented
by the unceremonious entrance, through
the spur-track door, of a rotund person
wearing a Fedora hat tilted on the left
side of his head, a wide opening in his
face just below his nose and a nonde-
script suit of clothes. Nobody ever knew
or cared what kind of clothes Jones
wore; his hat and his grin caught your
attention first and your eyes never got
below the grin.

or so of dope on that subject the next
time I got around. How about it, Jim?"

"You sure did," said the engineer, "and
the primary class is ready and willin'
to take his medicine."

"Well," said Jones, shedding his vest,
collar and necktie and turning up his
sleeves, "let's see where we'd better
begin."

"Hadn't I better run over to the house

-•r>
f

i ft? H <~ SS^JlJ!
' jrnmrmi I ,

: • -

■ .; !

•'

"A hundred and fifteen multiplied by
thirty is thirty-four hundred and fifty —
thirty-four hun — oh, you're stringin'
us."

"No he ain't," exclaimed the engineer
excitedly, "you've forgot that when the
voltmeter reads a hundred and fifteen
the voltage in the primary line where
the ammeter is connected is twenty-three
hundred. Here — " and he hastily
scrawled Fig. 1. "The voltmeter takes
current through a transformer and
shows the secondary voltage but the am-
meter shows the primary current."

"Right you are," said Jones,, beaming
like a polished tomato. "The primary
class is making headway. Finish the
job."

A Rotund Person Wearing a Fedora Hat and a Large Opening Under His

Nose

Fig. 1. The Engineer's Sketch

"Hello, boys," sang out Jones cheerily;
"what do you know about this for winter
weather?"

"Nothin' the matter with the weather,"
replied the engineer, "except its power
factor 's a little low."

"Joke," said Harvey. "No wonder
Jones is in a sweat. Say, old man, if you
don't hurry and wipe your face, you'll
drown."

"Surest thing you know," agreed Jones,
taking off his coat and mopping his
face and neck with a two- foot bandanna.
''But. talking about power factor reminds
me that I promised to reel out a yard

and get you a suit o' pajamas?" asked
Harvey, with mock courtesy.

"S'pose," began Jones, paying no at-
tention to Harvey's effort at bantering,
"s'pose your voltmeter showed 115 and
your ammeter 30 and your indicating
wattmeter 120 kilowatts. You know what
the power factor would be, don't you?"

"Yes: because you told me how to fig-
ure it," said the engineer, "but I don't
understand why."

"Never mind that for the present,"
said Jones. "Just to get a good start
at the beginning, figure that power fac-
tor."

"When the voltmeter voltage is a
hundred and fifteen the line voltage is
twenty-three hundred because the trans-
former ratio is twenty. "Let's see — " and
he began figuring as follows:

2300 Y&t6

(of CTv)l2CCrt-c[

February 14, 1911.

PO\X

"Thirty times twenty-three hundred is
sixty-nine thousand at -nine thou-

sand goes into a hundred and twenty
thousand — hold on; that would make the
power factor nearly two," he exclaimed.

"Come to -.-d Jones, relaxing his

grin a couple of points. "You know bet-
ter than that."

"Thirty times tuenty-thr

"Cut it out." said Jo Your arith-

metic's all right; no use to keep on re-
peating that like the man who went a
saying 'twice two is four, twice thrt
.our horse sense that's i
not your figure

The engineer scratched his head and
Harvey stared at the figures with a be-
Jcrcd expression.

"Oh. stuff!" ejaculated Jones. "You
ain't thinking; you're just rattled. Where
• ur ammeter connected in regular

"In the A phase of the line." replied
the engineer.

"Where is your wattmeter connected

"In both pha— oh. damn! The am-
meter measures the current in one phase
and the wattmeter measures the power
in both phases, of cour>

"Quite so." agreed Jones; "procw
Harvey softly whistled little

movement has a meaning all its own,"
and the engineer chased him into the
producer room.

"Hut you didn't say anything about the
current in the other phase the

engineer, returning to his seat on a trans-
former cas

Jn't use your brains, so
fell for it." rejoined Jones, increas-
ing his grin to 3|} inchc- -tart
all over again and do it rig

r quit." amended Harvey, from a
safe distance.

ctter paste that editorial in the mid-
dle o' your lookin' gla the
engineer, taking a dif at only
ikncss personal van:-
•>Xcll." he resoi!
balanced, each one'll carry half the
>o that if the total ; * a
hundred and tv

in each phate'll * ry kilowatts or

thousand van
"Right

the apparent uatts in each

phase .1 -ie thou»and and the

■I watts are the

and he made the

follomlng d

D5 v

«• • ' V

* 4.1

:v/i
34 "

nt c'gk ally

point eigrr

*11 right • What docs

point cigl.- mean

- that *
poucr fact.
"Oh; eight
■
•hree hundred * -line

thousand, but nine

thousand what

apparent wa-

ough. but the-
a better name for

The engineer shook h
arch n.

s multiplied by amperes make
wha-

said that before; try somett
else. Wits gone wool-gathering agaii
as the en| it staring at him.

•
h. come now; wake up. Volts multi-
! by amperes mes amperes—

«.. ampi •

t-ampe- said the engineer

meekly; "please kick a

•I'll leave that to your conscicn,
said Jones. "You see. apparent war
a good enough name beca-.. is multi-

itts if t
weren't an to bother i

But volt-ampe more

because it is common custom in engi-
neering to hitch t»o things together
a hyphen when you are talking a*
their projuct and f .ime for

vinds —

hour and so

im-
Y-ampe- alternat

current
rent

"I Ml

Jom

■

alternating

Mi ma c«.

.ou figure the p*> .

• •

ou figure «>»ji the
•n hU fad » . hlle.

?»y do you

•*
and ec

-tie engine*

iow ho

pee

•

ake sure of thai much." ad-

n I
you to
go back

d >ou lust
said tha

P*r *k po» >r gave

thousaod volt-amperes and
tor eighty per cent., what
would the real po« -

neer. after a moment of hasty i rrifitllhag

N
pouer factor i* %imr • by

which the apparent power is multiplied to
get at the real po . -

ten. With fifty
thousar amperes and eighty per

you m

per cer-

'h. I s..
I undc-

and if the r

■ coming

sted so much
on tkoe to as

vou the balan*

»h sink loot w

I)o4der doubled Use ail*

» loo sr

a college aivj
the lob. Mr fiamrod all ©>

ossoar

nerd a I

the lM>t>< r ••• e ' ■> ■ -, -
the oU

d aeoi for Jkr

horsey

li»« e aoaoasM

red to nso rk* foa

\J A*

270

The Melville-Macalpine Gear
for Direct-current Tur-
bine Generators
By Geo. W. Malcolm

In a paper read some time ago before
the Engineers' Society of Pennsylvania,
J. A. MacMurchie advocated the use of
the now widely known Melville-Macal-
pine turbine gear to drive direct-current
generators, instead of coupling them di-
rectly to the turbine. Mr. MacMurchie
cited, as warranting this practice, the fact
that it would permit the use of a gen-
erator running at its most economical
speed instead of one driven at such a
high rate as to entail excessive losses by
windage and friction.

A chart was presented with the paper
which indicated the following compari-
sons, based on steam at 150 pounds pres-
sure and a condenser vacuum of 28
inches:

POWER

that the Macalpine gear has 97 per cent,
efficiency:

Size of unit

Direct-driven, direct-current

generator

Direct-driven alternator and

rotary converter

Gear-driven direct -current

generator

Pounds of Steam
per Kilowatt-
Hour.

1000 kw.
20.6
20
19.3

2000 kw.
20.2
19.5
19

Corresponding Generator
Efficiency.

Turbine
Efficiency.

Direct
driven
Generator.

Gear and
Generator.

Geared
Generator.

54%,
50' ,
58%
60%

90.4

87.2
84.2
81.4

96.7
93.2
90.0
87.0

99.7
96.1
92.8

89.7

Obviously, the combination indicated
in the first line is impossible because
the generator could not have 99.7 per
cent, efficiency. The most plausible com-
bination would seem to be the one in the
second line, although 96 per cent, is a
little high for the geared generator and
87.2 is unnecessarily low for the direct-
driven generator.

It is difficult to imagine such an in-
crease in generator efficiency as the 9
per cent, shown practically throughout
the range here considered, due merely
to the difference between the speeds of
the coupled and geared generators. The
windage, iron losses and friction would
be increased by the higher speed, but
this would be neutralized to a very great
extent by the decrease in purely electrical
losses. Moreover, the increased fixed
charges on the cost of the geared outfit
would require a very healthy decrease in
fuel consumption to offset it.

The combination of turbine-driven al-
ternator and rotary converter was in-
cluded in the comparison in order to
cover all practical methods of obtaining
direct-current distribution from a turbine-
driven generating plant. It is exemplified
by railway practice throughout this coun-
try, rotary converter substations being
used to change the high-tension alternat-
ing current sent out from the generat-
ing station into direct current of the
proper voltage for the railway. Such a
system, however, can scarcely be com-
pared with the turbine-driven direct-cur-
rent dynamo because the conditions to
which the two are rationally applicable
are widely dissimilar.

The logical comparison is between the
direct-driven and the gear-driven direct-
current generators.

According to Mr. MacMurchie's chart,
the gear-drive outfit would require 19,300
pounds of steam per hour and the direct-
coupled outfit 20,600 pounds, in the 1000-
kilowatt size. The heat energy theo-
retically available by expanding a pound
of steam under the conditions stated is
339 B.t.u., if the steam be superheated
100 degrees initially. On this basis the
overall heat efficiency of the direct-
coupled unit would be 48.8 per cent, and
that of the geared unit 52.2 per cent. The
following tabulation gives a comparison
of the two generators for four values of
turbine efficiency and on the assumption

Steam Heated Flume Racks
for Hydraulic Plants

Operators of power plants in which
the generators are driven by waterwheels
do not need to be told anything about
the difficulties in keeping head-gate racks
clear of frazil ice in latitudes where ice
forms. An interesting method of eliminat-
ing such ice troubles was proposed re-
cently by John Murphy. In a paper read
before the Ottawa branch of the Canadian
Society of Civil Engineers. Mr. Murphy's
plan is to equip the head-gate racks
with pipe manifolds and to pass steam
through the manifolds. The warm pipes,
it is stated, prevent the accumulation of
frazil ice at the racks by melting the
ice, which is formed in very small
particles. Mr. Murphy said that a ton of
coal per day of twenty-four hours would
make sufficient steam to keep the gates
of a 3000-horsepower station free from
ice. This, obviously, would be much
cheaper than allowing the gate racks to
freeze up and driving the generators by
auxiliary steam equipment.

When cutting bar steel or rails by the
usual method of nicking with a cold
chisel, if the nicked part of the ma-
terial is cooled by laying on a piece of
ice, it will be rendered temporarily brittle
and fracture easily when struck a blow
with a sledge.

February 14, 1911.

LETTERS

Erratic Belt Behavior

A 12-inch belt driving a dynamo per-
sistently runs over one or the other edge
of the dynamo pulley when shutting
down and starting up, but when pulling
the load it runs true with the center line
of the pulley. The dynamo pulley is 23
inches in diameter and 16 inches wide;
the engine pulley is 7 feet in diameter
and 16 inches wide, and the pulleys are
30 feet apart, center to center. Can any
reader of Power explain why the belt
will not stay in place when starting up
and shutting down?

W. S. Hull.

Sheldon, 111.

A Cranky Induction Motor

Some time ago I was called upon to
repair an induction motor that would not
carry the load. It was a 220-volt, two-
phase machine with a squirrel-cage rotor,
rated at 15 horsepower. It had been
running a rock crusher about two years
and had probably averaged four months'
continuous running for each year. It had
been out of use about a month when I
saw it.

Examination showed that the airgap
was not uniform all the way around. The
insulation of the stator winding appeared
to be in perfect condition and everything
else seemed to be all right except the air-
gap. I equalized this by shimming under
the bearings with paper, tested each
phase with two 110-volt lamps in series
at the motor terminals and also tested
them with a magneto; tested for grounds,
and finally rewired the autotransformer,
thinking perhaps the trouble might be in
that, but it is still undiscovered.

The motor will not start until the
lever on the autotransformer is in the
running notch, but immediately starts on
full-line voltage, if started in one direc-
tion; if the direction of rotation is re-
versed, it starts nicely on the second
starting point. It apparently takes an
excessive current while starting and run-
ning in either direction, as it visibly dims
the two 110-volt lamps in series on the
line.

The motor is supplied from two trans-
formers which do not supply anything
else, and each one is of ample capa-
city to carry one-half the full load. The
owner said it had carried the load con-
tinuously on a certain Friday and on the
following morning had started all right
but refused to take any load.

Any suggestions as to what might be
the matter with it will be greatly ap-
preciated by me.

H. Blue.

Kirksville, Mo.

February 14. 1911.

POU

Gas f

r Department

Long Stroke and Short Stroke-
By Paul C. Pero

It is a matter of common observation
in engineering circles that the daily
papers usually make themsc licu-

lous when they d technical mat-

This is natural, though amusing.
When a profc*- nRinecring journal

makes foolish statements, however, it is
neither excusable nor an:

The immediate provocation for these
remarks is an article on the long-stroke
gasolene engine, which appeared in a
ic of a gas-power licail.

The following arc th
of misinformation contained in the arti-
cle:

E\ cr \ thin
(* <>rth while in f/)t- c
engin< and produi cr

industry will be rr<
In iv in ./ iv.u rli.ir
be o/ j; N ri

< tl men

The exhaust gases of the long-
ke engine arc much cooler than those
of the short-stroke engine because of the
greater expansion.

All of the foregoing statements are
absolutely untrue. The >ke en-

gine is more desirable than the short-

ke engine in the foi:
on!

Crank im;

-
•'*.'

->S

fatio
ol

1. Gearing of hoke i

- 4

I. The long-stroke engini

than t: 'okc

one for the same reason that a

man walks at I .in hour

an ea *hilc a

ill man ha^ wrlf trc-

mendou keep up with the otf:

In a long-stroke motor the question
of leverage

can tur ink shaft with law effort

than th- ke cng e of

the longer crank • iter

'•ad

c ga»c« in a >kc me

Ming at a higher initial ;

the increased comr-
th the longc are

n to a mu«. r final r -

the
^pher

.ise* in a lone

* greater nur
clearance volume* than in a
•ic. and th

h greater eompf

nginc it more eco-
nomical.

The shot' lake a

greater number or iin-

utc than the lone run
at the »ami

crank pin and crank

:
Tt n speed of the lone

engine can be made higher thai

. . * .

lKr f , i '

n be ma
this
mail

; i •

mor

ton pressure and piston speed, or with

>e qoo prion of

.fU

b»

. 1

|*:a!i*l •;»•

•m

ample* died la the
: ■■ • «nond

■

0 rimes a minute
> the load sha'

on the

consoqoer

lotions per rr.mutc Putting

oaH
utioo t

m fonr

ngine rmm at MD

sad ■ *>t

■

.... r 4 1

•Teed to onfv 1

• too rite m

272

POWER

February 14, 1911.

makes one revolution the crank makes and the engine pulley is therefore
only 3.2 revolutions. The crank being 3]/3 X 12 = - 40

iy2 inches long, the crank circle is 5 inches in diameter,

pressure of 2400 pounds to push the load
12.5667 inches than for the pressure of
2000 pounds to push it 15.08 inches in

inches in diameter and the crank pin
travels

3.1416 X 5 = 15.708

inches per revolution. In making 3.2
revolutions, therefore (while the load
shaft makes one), the pin will travel

15.708 X 3.2 = 50.266
inches, or exactly the same distance the
2-inch crank pin travels during one revo-
lution of the load shaft. Where is the
increased leverage over the load?

"But," probably says the author of the
criticized article, "I meant the case where
the piston speed is increased."

All right; let's see how that pans
out, using the figures for engines D and
E, in the second table. Figs. 3 and 4
illustrate the comparison. Suppose the
load shaft L must run at 750 revolutions
per minute, no matter what the speed of
the engine may be. That is a practical
condition where the machinery driven by
the engine runs at constant speed. Also
suppose, in order to keep the belt veloc-
ity the same, that the pulley p is 12
inches in diameter in both cases and that
the diameter of the gas-engine pulley is
chosen so as to get the desired speed at
the load shaft L.

In Fig. 3 the short-stroke engine D
(see data in Table 2) is represented as
driving the load. As its speed is 250
revolutions per minute, its pulley must
be 36 inches in diameter because the
speed ratio is

250 •>

and the pulley ratio must be the same.
The orbit of the crank pin is 12 inches
in diameter, so that the pin travels

3.1416 X 12 = 37.7

Driving Pulley 36 "
Rev.perMin.250

The crank-pin circle is 16 inches in the same length of time, because

diameter; therefore, in one revolution
the crank pin travels

3.1416 X 16 = 50.266
inches, and for each revolution of the
load shaft it travels

50.266 -f- 3y3 = 15.08

P0**ER.

2400 X 12.5667 = 30,160
and

2000 X 15.08 = 30,160.
Look at it in another way. As the load
pulley p is of the same diameter in both
cases, the belt velocity is the same and
inches, as compared with 12.57 inches the belt pull the same in both cases,
for the 6-inch crank. Suppose the belt pull to be 800 pounds

2000 lbs. Crank
Pressure ■

2400lbs.Crank
Pressure

Power

^800 lbs.
Belt Pull,

Belt Pull
Figs. 5 and 6. Balance between Crank Pressure and Belt Pull

"Aha," says the other man, "didn't and the engine to be frictionless. Then
I say the long-stroke engine had more 2400 pounds pressure at the pin of the

leverage over the load?"

You did, you did; but hold up a
moment. What good is the extra lever-
age if the force applied to it is less?
Refer to the data in Table 2 and you
will see that the total piston pressure of
the engine D is 6283.2 pounds, whereas
the engine E can exert only 5236 pounds.
Of course, these are not the average pres-
sures on the crank pins, but the propor-

Driving Pulley 40
Rev. per Min. 225

Driven Pulley 12
Rev.perMin750

Driven Pulley 12
Rev.perMin.750

Figs. 3 and 4. Comparison with Different Piston Speeds

inches when the crank shaft makes one tionate pressures are in the same ratio
revolution. During this time the load
shaft L makes three revolutions; conse-
quently, the crank pin travels

313 — 12.5667

That is, if the average pressure on the
crank pin, throughout one revolution,
were 2400 pounds for the short-stroke
engine D, it would be only 2000 pounds could notice it. The case of the long

6-inch crank will balance the 800 pounds
belt pull at the rim of the engine pulley,
because the radius of the pulley is three
times the length of the crank; see Fig. 5.

Now, consider the long-stroke engine
E. The crank-pin pressure is 2000 pounds;
crank length, 8 inches; pulley radius, 20
inches, and belt pull, 800 pounds, as
represented in Fig. 6. The pressure of
2000 pounds at 8 inches distance from
the center will exactly balance the pull
of 800 pounds 20 inches from the center,
because

2000 X 8 = 800 X 20.

Since the forward pressure on the
crank pin is equal to the backward pull
of the load X the leverage, in both
cases, where does the long crank get any
advantage in "leverage"?

Suppose a big man could lift exactly
300 pounds and no more, and a little man
could lift exactly 100 pounds and no
more. Could the big man lift his 300
pounds any easier than the little man
could lift his 100 pounds? Not so you

stroke and short-stroke engines is pre-
cisely the same, so far as "leverage" and
pulling the load "easier" are concerned.

for the long-stroke engine E, both de-
inches for each revolution of the load veloPinS the same horsepower,
shaft. Now, the previous calculations showed
Now refer to Fig. 4, where the long- that the pin of the 6-inch crank travels
stroke engine E is represented as driving 12.5667 inches in the same length of time
the same load. On account of the lower that the pin of the 8-inch crank travels higher compression could be obtained
speed of the engine its pulley must be 15.08 inches. Suppose the average pres- with a long-stroke engine and that there-
larger; the speed ratio is sure on the short crank is 2400 pounds fore the initial pressure will be higher,
75o and that on the long crank 2000 pounds; the expansion greater and the exhaust
225 evidently, it is not any harder for the gases cooler.

Compression and Expansion
The statements were made that

February 14, 1911.

Of course, if the clearance volume is
the same in a 4x5-inch engine as in a
4\4-inch engine the compression would
be higher, but no one who had the most
elementary knowledge of gas en^
would make the clearances the same. The
compression pressure is limited by pre-
ignition or safe maximum pressure on
the moving parts, according to which limit
ichcd first. In gasolene engines pre-
ignition always limits the com;

n producer-gas engines the
maximum pressures usually set the limit
for compression.

When the builder decides what com-
mon pressure to use. he makes the
clearance space of the right volume to
get it, no matter what the relation of
stroke to bore may be. If a 4x4 en-
gine will not stand more than a certain
compression pressure without danger of
prc-ignition, neither will a 4x5 engine.
On the other hand, if it is safe to make
the compression pressure of a 4x5 en-
gine higher than that of a 4x4 engine,
then the latter is too low and should be
increased by reducing the clearance vol-
ume.

To get a numerical comparison of the
various points brought up in paragraphs
3. 4 and 5. let us suppose that a small
gasolene engine, say of 4 inches bore,
cannot be operated reliably with more
than 82 pounds compression pressure

olutci. The explosion pressure of
such an engine will be about three times
the compression pressure and the r'
sure when the exhaust valve opens
be a trifle over one-sixth of the explo-
sion pressure or one-half the comp-
pressure These proportions .
the figures in Tabic

dently there is no difference here
In anything relating to cylinder prrs
sure* except the piston displacement and
Clearance volume. Now. supposing
the sake of argument, that the same
Clearance volume could be used in both
i ies. what would be the compariv
The figures in Table 4 gi\c it do
Where i* the cxpan* lo»cr

haust pressure and the corresponding
lower exhaust temperature'"' The truth is
that statement 2 i« The fact

the initial re Is

•r does not necessarily make the
-ressure lower The expansion

•h a hi
compression ratio, and this tends to In-

><d efflcicr

Rut there is no ground for assuming
itnpres* *an be

higher in a ' engine

In a •♦ ^f the same

horsepower and using the san
T* - ' rC the comparison in Ta'
the correct one

are true features of comparison
•cr of the article ui
discussion did not consider

PO«

example, the shon •)»$ less

wai: e in the neat

loss can therefore be made less than in

\ < ■■

Hbmb area

1 1-'. ' »fl i\ - 't' j •

( ORR1 8PI >N1 <l \( 1

M id

Mi (

-t

of December 6. Frank
Booth recommends the use of graphite on

Li J

ncj rv

a long-stroke engine of equal power. On
the other hand, combustion of the fuel
at constant volume can be more nearly
realized in the long-stroke engine be-
cause the piston is practically station-

most Maghssers because tbe gasket - >u id
be more apt to blow out In my

engines I I :4 a

isbestos cloth in making

that did not put anything on

g the bead I used s cuss

• the gu

ReferrinR I - x- ton article OO

the same page. I cannot see bow

Iff) at the end of the stroke for a slightly
longer t:

ing the flow of tbr

;aed the look. Or
aM mc
y before reeebmg

and
and cox

art ■• *-<-• . r ::••■»: mm

ed a m
w#ka snd un<W rst *

- bo

stand a'

•

,;mte mining snd tbe maaml

>f graving

ord ing to the British coo •

•ui the csssmst l sen ass m

being dae te me fact mat

cted for tbe a*
snd rstent

rag eegaaixsHoas faff

as mt
led far

274

POWER

February 14, 1911.

•

^fL^tew'.J

will

% 1 1

i %.

Making Pipe Covering

When tearing out or changing old pipe
work, it is difficult to preserve the pipe
covering, especially the cheaper grades,
as it cracks and drops to pieces.

Many engineers throw away this old
covering, and, in some instances, it is
replaced with a new covering at a con-
siderable expense.

The accompanying illustrations show
how this old covering may be used to
good advantage, and save the expense
of purchasing new covering. A is a piece

£C

I I
Id

l^----—

D-.

Fig. 1.

of wood about ^4 mcn thick, cut in
a circular form, the inner diameter being
equal to the diameter of the pipe to be
covered, and D being equal to the desired
thickness of the covering.

One of these pieces is used at each
end of the form, and a piece o; sheet
iron, bent to fit the outside of the pipe, is
put on the inside of the circular pieces of
wood.

Another piece of sheet iron is then
bent to fit the outside of the blocks, and
both are fastened by small bolts, run-
ning through the blocks, as shown at C.

The old pipe covering is then crushed
or broken up, and mixed with enough
water to make it work well. The form is
laid in a horizontal position, and the
plaster poured into the space between the
two pieces of sheet iron B and C.

Fie. 2.

Care should be taken to push the
plaster down well into the form, so that
there will be no holes in the bottom.

If a little portland cement is mixed
with the covering before the water is
added, it will dry quicker and be more
substantial. After it has dried for a few
hours, it may be taken out of the form
and put on the pipe.

Fig. 2 shows another form which
is more convenient for small pipe and
may be made for larger pipe, if desired.

Instead of using blocks, the two sides
are made as shown and are hinged on one

Practical

information from the

man on the job. A letter

dood enough to print

here will he paid forr*

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

side. A piece of pipe the size to be
covered is used for the inside of the
form.

A ring E is cut, as shown, and one
piece is soldered to the lower end of
each side to hold the pipe in the center
of the form. The covering is then poured
in from the top. When it is dry, the
form may be opened and the covering
taken out.

The projections F, on the sides of the
form, cause the covering to be cast in two
pieces.

The covering will come out easier if
the inside of the form is greased a lit-
tle before putting in the plaster. This
will prevent the covering from sticking
to the form.

R. L. Rayburn.

Kansas City, Mo.

Don't Neglect the Safety
Stop

Our engine has a 12-foot flywheel and
runs at a speed of 80 revolutions per
minute. A 70-kilowatt generator is belt
driven from a jack shaft. The generator
was fitted with a 16-inch cast-iron pul-
ley and ran at a speed of 600 revolutions
per minute.

One evening this pulley burst, break-
ing the belt which flew under the rope
drive, knocking the ropes from the fly-
wheel and knocked off the governor belt.
This would have resulted in a serious
wreck if the safety cams had not been
properly adjusted, because I was left in
absolute darkness until I could get to
the switchboard and throw the house-
lighting switch on the other engine, which
was in service at the time.

I am always very cautious about re-
moving the pin or lever from the gov-
ernor, and always instruct my assistants
to be likewise.

A governor with the pin left in is as
useless and dangerous as if it were not
a safety-stop governor.

Walter Carr.

Harrisburg, 111.

An Oil Trap

A couple of years ago I was running a
500-horsepower tandem-compound engine
on which 50 gallons of oil was used
per month.

Of course, this was out of all reason,
but it was some time before I took a
tumble to the fact that the oil was splash-
ing back from the crosshead and guides
into the stuffing-box drip and through
a pipe into the sewer. Then I devised a
separator, which may not be new to the
"old heads," but I have never seen one
like it, and it may help someone.

I took a can 24 inches deep and 5
inches in diameter, and soldered in a
]4 -inch cock, Z% inches from the top,
for an oil drip.

' Water.

rrr-^p-trrr ■, -_

Power

Details of Oil Trap and Piping

Then I soldered a piece of lead pipe,
20 inches long, to another ^-inch cock
and soldered in this cock at a point 4
inches from the top of the can, allowing
the pipe to extend nearly to the bottom of
the can. Next, I ran a >^-inch pipe from
the engine cesspool, allowing it to dip
some 6 inches into the can and ending
in a return bend.

The can would fill with water and oil,
the oil staying on top of the water of
course, and the excess water passing out
through the pipe. When four or five inches
of oil accumulated, it would rise to the
level of the oil drip and flow to the filter,
while the water would flow to the sewer
from the other cock.

February 14. 1911.

After installing this device the oil bill
dropped from 512 to >2 per month.

P. B. Miller.
I)cfiance, O.

Horn to I m a Pipe Wrench

■ cry engineer knows that a pipe can
be easily jammed by a pipe wrench, but
if my instructions are carried out, one
can be used on even thin pi; tout

jamming them.

Place the wrench on the pipe and
it to bite; then slack off on the nut until
the frame A comes in contact with the

handle B, at D (we illoetratioi pre-

venting the jaws from closing; the wrench
then ha . r to turn, but not to jam

the r

H. A I

' ISS.

1 (haust 1 lead l Small

On taking charge of my present p
tion. I found that an exhaust head had
been installed on the cxha I the

main engine. The exhaust pipe ran from
nain engine to the feed- water heater,
and from the heater to the atmosphere,
and a drip pipe ran from the exhaust
head to the heater. With a light load
on the engine the exhaust head

th a h
ufficicry I handle

exhaust steam, and the moaning of
■•team through the hc.i

The
head was removed and enntendent

not mis nearly a week. \»

nginc room to
know why I had l

I told him I like the sound of

the tunc

another
the fecd-uater heater that it »as i
and proper p on the job while

the

H< ere

first and told the manager I •

when I took chark im plant

that I was use my idg-

ment and hand
ly a
.

«-as a!
<at the mat
intendent. hut on

his plant, and I
an,! in"; and he J

all In a good
mat

show, and bio..-

think he is shoeing too much ab
fear that he may get on the
the management.

Who should be i neof what

are and
management of t! n-planr

ment. and »ho is the h -t of i

nan or assist a
engineer *ho has I
and made a specia of the

•
Can.

I operatioa

•nd il i* not con» ement to cat out the

rx.
not too close to a fitting.

I and a coup'.e of

(i"\crn<>r Ann Broke

a year ago I was employed in
a lighting plant that ran nights only. A

•t alternate- • conm

to an automatic em i as usually

cd up in the
about II o'clock, when it »as shut down
and the load ( on a smaller unit

until morn:

One night after the load had been put
he smaller unit and the big cr.
was being
vbei

fT close up io the c I was

called, but after looking

J nothing could be done
until n when the ned

and tools could be obtained that I
>iavc at the plant.
>ck all hat
take off the flywheel and governor bar
and try to put an Iron i it and

' together until
a new one rn the fact

- >od bolted tog
a. A. or a heavy she
be n iceenpa

ing

Chakles H. Tmoa.
port. Cc

II' I CI cr

Je-

nent. a » the engi-

Z drawing shows h
blou finings.

Aft oon and not eve- ee, the

end cor

. • ■
unless sot »ol la

•il the

• ■

g arm of the | 1 r*r*

» **ara>
. i «.'.<» to acattf

J a man ch ceaa into the

d regu and *

acted of the engine • nca r<r

new governor to the side outlet of tm* NO •".

rrwj on Ike d<
on an *fs

and ffo c

•i tnally fount fcaadle la tee

276

POWER

February 14, 1911.

Getting the Position "Higher
Up"

Much has been published in regard to
becoming a more efficient engineer in
order to assume greater responsibilities.
Very little hcs been published, however,
about how to secure the job higher up.
It is more of a task to secure the job
after one is fitted for it than some seem
to think.

To illustrate, a certain uptodate engi-
neer I know is young and progressive
and has never let a chance slip where-
by he could better himself. He holds a
diploma from a correspondence school,
is well versed in electricity, combustion
and the multitude of things that a first-
class engineer should know, and with-
out a doubt is an A No. 1 engineer in
every way. His present employer has told
me that he is the best engineer he ever
employed (and he has employed a good
many). Now, in view of the • fact that
we read good men are always in de-
mand, this man has been trying to get a
better position for over two years with-
out success.

Probably one reason why an engineer
does not "get next" to better jobs is be-
cause he is tied down so close and does
not have the opportunity to hear of the
openings and is greatly handicapped in
that way.

I would suggest that the boys give us
their ideas on the following: If an en-
gineer is desirious of securing a larger
position, how should he proceed to get
it? It is assumed that he is capable of
holding it in every way.

Oscar J. Richmond.

Bridgeport, Conn.

Federal Laws

In reading Mr. Blanchard's letter, pub-
lished in the January 10 issue of Power,
I noticed that he mentions a bill that is
to be considered by Congress, relating to
the Federal inspection of all locomotive
boilers in the United States. I saw a
copy, or rather, it was supposed to be
a copy of this bill some time ago, and, if
I remember right, the Boilermakers'
Union is "fathering" it. I noticed one
paragraph in particular which reads about
as follows: "No applicant will be ex-
amined for the position of boiler in-
spector unless he has had at least five
years' practical experience as a journey-
man boilermaker." It seems to me that
by inserting this clause in the bill the
Boilermakers' Union is trying to form a
sort of monopoly of all the inspectors'
jobs that will be created if the bill be-
comes a law. We have quite a few good
boiler inspectors in the State of Massa-
chusetts and I venture to say that a large
percentage of them have not had five
years' practical experience as journey-
men boilermakers.

I fully agree with Mr. Blanchard in

regard to a Federal boiler-inspection and
stationary engineers' license law. This
would most assuredly be a step in the
right direction. In my opinion it is up
to the National Association of Stationary
Engineers to start the ball rolling.

Francis Clegg.
Taunton, Mass.

Removing Oil from the Eye

Oil in the eye causes a burning, itchy
feeling, but relief can be obtained by
filling a wash basin with luke-warm
water, in which a teaspoonful of table
salt has been dissolved. Then put the
eye in the salt water and open and close
it slowly a few times.

Next fill the basin with cold water
and, after opening and closing the eyes
under water, dry them on a clean towel,
but do not rub them.

Salt water cuts the oil, and the cold,
clear water rinses the eyes and invigor-
ates them.

William E. Dixon.

Maiden, Mass.

Fitting Piston Rings

Two rings of the snap type were turned
y$ inch larger than the cylinder and had
to be cut slantwise before it would fit
the cylinder. About 24 inch had to be
cut of? and when a ring so treated is
sprung together and forced into a cyl-
inder, the sharp points will keep a con-
siderable part of the ring from bearing
against the cylinder walls. I therefore
filed these points down and rubbed the
rings in a bore provided for the purpose
and spotted them to an all-round bearing.

Some engineers might expect the rings
to wear to a fit. Suppose they will do
so without scoring the cylinder, there
would be a waste of steam during the
wearing process and the result would be
an unnecessarily large opening at the
joint.

I fitted the rings to the grooves just
tight enough to hold the joints together
but so they could easily be moved by tap-
ping them with a hammer handle. I have
been told that this is much too tight, as
the rings should be loose enough to slide
in the grooves, or otherwise they would
not expand against the cylinder walls.

If piston rings are fitted so that the
spring is just compensated by the fric-
tion in the grooves, they will expand as
soon as the piston begins its reciprocat-
ing movement.

If the rings are loose enough to slide
they certainly have a side movement,
which will increase, and cause them to
rattle in a short time. I do not advocate
the indiscriminate use of a coarse file, nor
do I believe in jamming rings into the
grooves, but in carefully fitting them both
ways.

H. Wiegand.

Chicago, 111.

Water in the Turbine

One morning I dropped into the power
house of our electric-light company and
the operating engineer was running a
high-pressure turbine of 1500 kilowatts
capacity. All at once the lights began to
grow dim, as the machine began to slow
down. The turbine did not sound as
though overloaded.

Engineer and switchboard operators
were looking for a short-circuit and, be-
ing satisfied there was none, the engi-
neer ran to the turbine and was about to
make adjustments to speed it up, at the
same time giving orders to the oiler to get
an exciter and engine ready to cut in,
when the lights came on and it seemed
that everything was all right; but in about
30 seconds down went the lights again.

Finally the trouble was located in the
boiler room; one of the firemen had let
his boiler fill up with water and, of
course, the machine did not make a very
good water and steam turbine. The water
did not cause any damage, as when it was
lowered everything went along as usual.

Steam was carried at 140 pounds and,
the water being high, slugs of it passed
over into the turbine.

By being present at that time I got a
little education in the variation of sound
between a short-circuit or overload and
water going into a turbine.

L. O. Husted.

Curtis, Colo.

Homemade Babbitt and Belt
Dressing

If mining machinery in the mountains,
or the drilling outfit of the prospector,
miles from civilization, suddenly breaks
down, it taxes the resources of the at-
tendant to make repairs and keep things
moving.

I recall an experience in the "Rockies"
where it was absolutely necessary to have
a quantity of good bearing metal at once,
and the outfit was 160 miles from the
base of supplies. The problem was
solved by making a sacrifice of a copper
wash boiler from the cook house, and by
melting the solder from a collection of
tin cans. These, combined at the ratio
of one pound copper to ten of the solder,
gave us splendid results. Subsequent
experiments have shown that an alloy of
twenty parts zinc, one of copper and three
of tin give an all-round metal very hard
to improve upon.

An excellent emergency belt dressing
can be made as follows: Take 25 parts
of linseed oil and 12 parts of turpentine;
heat in a water bath and add 12 parts of
pulverized rosin. Stir the mixture
thoroughly and allow it to cool. Should
the oil, turpentine and rosin not be avail-
able, castor oil with 10 per cent, of tal-
low added makes a very good dressing.
Edward Van Antwerp.

Brownsville, Tex.

February 14, 1911.

POWI K

utv^

stions Before the House

string Horizontal Tubular
B >ilen

I read with considerable interest S. F.
Jeter's excellent and instructive article on
Ring Horizontal Tubular Boilers" in
Power for January 3. Supplementary to
article I would say that it is the aim
of an engineer to so design the brickwork
of a horizontal return-tubular boiler set-
ting that it will be as free from cracks
due to expansion as possible.

Figs. 2 and 5 of Mr. Jeter's article
show the sections of settings as commonly
designed and built, in which the inside
and outside walls are bonded together at

1 fit.

*irticlv*.lcttcr> MXfedH
or;.//s vv/i/< It h.t\<.- .ip-
peered in prcviou l

ting which I designed ars ago

with this point * design is

used as a standard for boiler setting in
the office of Char
Boston. Mass.. and a number of bo

' or doc, but I do not
*<« • harm ar

may do some good, sod the pipe ess be

SfeCgod • Ik .cwr.! if-c- :r* t>r..a».,fi

B-Cot*.

\ juicer

In the December 27 :»»l
•cs about trouble with bis refngc
ing a>»ten Callers doe* not stale

what kind of a machine be to

X- „ - r *

■win I t

• *:o* or Iksid

the top of the air above the nor1< ■

•er line of the *

boiler i« in operation the walla of to be *

a setting arc necessarily much hotter than
the outside walls and the < n of object

the Inside walls - irsc be the

greater T «u»e

I consider that 0 alls sh

be free to mo\e from thl« cau*r !
pondently so far as poeslr-

The accompanying figure shows a act-

The

According to bit <r

■ ■

the*

e boitoff to balh •

s not original tad to *
not a boitot ' haa. '*»t i«x

278

POWER

February 14, 1911.

example. This machine has a horizontal
compressor. A small pump, driven from
the engine shaft by a belt is used to sup-
ply with oil the sleeve through which
the piston rod works. The oil in the
sleeve serves to keep the piston rod from
getting hot. Sometimes oil is taken with
the piston rod into the compressor. There
is also a connection on the suction of
the machine to supply the cylinder and
valves with oil (ammonia liquid base)
now and then.

The stuffing box of Mr. Walters' ma-
chine must be in a bad condition, pos-
sibly too much clearance exists between
the piston rod and the back of the stuffing
box. This will permit, after the packing
gets worn some, too much oil to get into
the compressor, and finally the packing
goes the same way. I cannot understand,
however, how Mr. Walters could find bits
of packing,, etc., in pockets in the high-
pressure side of the system unless the
system was flooded with such matter.

The machine discharges the ammonia
and some oil into the discharge tank; the
oil falls to the bottom of the tank, while
the ammonia gas passes into the con-
denser to be liquefied and from there as
a liquid into the liquid or pressure tank.
The discharge tank is provided with a
glass gage to indicate the hight of the
oil in the tank. Of course, when the
passages of the gage cocks are clogged, it
is impossible to see the oil. The liquid
or pressure tank has also a gage so
that one can tell by opening the cock how
much liquid is in the tank. In case some
oil does get into this tank it will not
do any harm; but, if so desired, it may be
removed. From the discharge ports of
the machine to the liquid tank, including
the condenser and storage tank, is the
"high-pressure side" of the system. The
ammonia liquid is forced through the
regulating valves (or expansion valves,
as they are often called) to the expansion
coils. If the ammonia is free from oil or
other substances and not turned on too
full, it freezes the coils connected to the
suction of the machine. The part of the
system from the regulating valves to
the compressor is called the "low-pres-
sure side" of the system.

If Mr. Walters will put a metal ring at
the bottom of his stuffing box, use a good
grade of packing, clean out the discharge
tank and, if necessary, the liquid tank,
he will find a great difference in the op-
eration of the system. Should he still
find the regulating valve to be operating
badly, if he will replace it with a new
one the trouble will stop. He should
shut off the main liquid cock or valve
first. All of the regulating valves in the
different rooms ought to be marked so
that they may be set at the same point
again after the new regulating valve is
in place. Sometimes one or more of
these valves leak; this causes consider-
able trouble when pumping out one room
separately, therefore, he should open

them all. Pump the system down to
zero, stop the machine and after a while
start up again and pump down to zero
once more or even a little lower. Not
until the low-pressure gage hand remains
where it was when the machine was
stopped the last time is the system empty.
Rap the gage slightly as the hand may
hang a little. The suction and discharge
valves on the machine may be closed if
they are suspected of leaking. If the hand
on the low-pressure gage remains at zero,
it is safe to break a flange on the valve
to be taken out and let the oil, if any,
mixed with some ammonia out. Per-
haps in Mr. Walters' case the main liquid
valve was leaking, or perhaps he did not
pump out properly.

In the case of a leaking main liquid
valve, the effect will be noticed on the
low-pressure gage, the hand will still rise
after the system has been pumped back
several times in succession.

To replace a valve, get all tools ready
that may be needed. Have all of the nuts
working easily. Start the machine, pump
down to zero or a little below and keep
the machine turning just fast enough to
keep the pressure below zero. Then, have
a good helper ready with a stopper; take
out the old valve and have him close up
the pipe. After everything is ready, re-
move the stopper and put in the new
valve. If each one knows what to do, it
will not be long before the new valve is
in place; the quicker this is done the
better. Whatever little air that is pulled
into the system Should not do any harm.

William L. Keil.

Philadelphia, Penn.

Hotel Power Costs

O. L. Sherman asks in the January 3
issue for data on hotel and office-building
power plants. My letter in the December
20 issue will give him some figures as
to power costs.

The statement for the month of Octo-
ber, 1910, in the above mentioned letter
did not contain the total output of the
generators for that month, which was 51,-
750 kilowatt-hours, which makes the cost
per kilowatt-hour 2.36 cents. This was
brought about by the large sale of cur-
rent for that month.

As to the cost of the installation per
kilowatt, this would depend upon the
size of the units, the larger the units the
lower the cost per kilowatt.

I take it that Mr. Sherman is in charge
of a hotel plant where current is bought
from the central station, and the re-
mainder of the power is generated at the
hotel. High-pressure steam for the
laundry and kitchens is required, also
for the pumping equipment and perhaps
for the refrigerating machine, and, un-
less he has electric elevators, these also
require high-pressure steam.

He probably has a boiler plant and

equipment capable of carrying 100
pounds pressure. As it takes but very
little more steam-generating capacity for
a generating plant when the exhaust
steam is used for heating purposes than
when live steam is used to heat the build-
ing, he probably would not have to add
to his boiler equipment in order to operate
electric generators.

The size of the units will depend on
the size of the hotel, that is, on the num-
ber of rooms used for guests.

Considering all from the above stand-
point, and assuming that he has a "250-
room house," he would get a night light-
ing load of about 100 kilowatts, taking in
the outside lights and the roof sign, if
he were using carbon lamps throughout.
If he were using tungsten lamps, it would
bring the load down considerably. If he
has electric elevators, these would ne-
cessitate large units.

Under the requirements for lighting he
would require one 100-kilowatt unit for
the night load and one 50-kilowatt unit
for the day load. This would leave him
no spare unit for the night load in an
emergency. He might have a "break-
down" connection with the central sta-
tion; otherwise he would require one
extra 100-kilowatt unit.

As to the cost of installation, if he did
not have to enlarge the boiler plant, but
just installed the steam and exhaust pip-
ing and the generating set, the cost would
be approximately $45 per kilowatt, com-
plete, including foundations, erecting,
piping and pipe covering.

If an extra boiler had to be installed,
it would cost from $10 to $15 per horse-
power, depending on the size of the
boiler. This would cover the cost of a
complete boiler installed.

As to which would be the more eco-
nomical, turbines or reciprocating en-
gines, I could not say; but it seems to
me that for small units, reciprocating en-
gines would be better. One thing is cer-
tain, whatever type of machine is de-
cided upon, it must be a quiet running
one, as vibration or a singing noise would
not, or cannot, be tolerated in a first-
class hotel.

Mr. Sherman will do well to have all
foundations built heavy and substantial,
and, if possible, have all steam mains
supported from the floor instead of hung
from the iron work of the building.

Another point that might be of use to
Mr. Sherman is that if he is considering
the installing of a generating plant, and
if his building is located in a business
section where there are office buildings
and stores near by, he could derive (by
installing larger units) a good income
from his plant by selling current outside
for light and power purposes, and sur-
plus exhaust for heating, also hot water
for domestic use.

He could charge for the current at just
a little under the rate of the central sta-

February 14. 1911.

POWI-.K

tion and get plenty of customers. The
un he could charge for at the rate of
from 40 to 60 cents per 1000 pounds,
depending on the cost of coal; or. if he
did not want to install a water weigher,
he could charge a flat rate of fro:

: w 1000 cubic feet of > be

heated.

f rom my plant I take in from >250 to

5 per month for light, heat and ice.

depending on the season of the year. I

have a very good customer, a theater, to

which I furnish both heat and light.

o.
Rocht 'i .

Placing the Responsibilitj

If the authorities to whom is intru
the duty of in* ng and placing the

responsibility for boiler ex| >uld

conduct them more after the mannt
common police-court li tions, there

,-ason to believe that a marked de-
sc in the number of failures would
:!t.

boiler-explosion investigation
that I have ever heard o;
has apparently been conducted with the
>f placing before the pub-
lic a report that contained far more ma-
terial for t: tific mind
than to place before the criminal pr
cutor evidence that would f there
had been a probable guilt of criminal
M.

at has been the result- So far as
I can ascertain no one in t' :ntry

has ever been criminally prosecuted in
connection with any of the thousands of
that '
e steam boilers became at once •
ice and a nc to the public

■ ire.
If it »ere not for the appallin;
mony of death and destruction intern;
with thi .f these investigat

the reading :ic of them woul !

amusing

In the early days a report \*

that "the engineer ad .old

r into .i
• ; i vu ll the cn-

er had dlaappi
as was often the ' irm

of r nc un-

' if the engine
somen;: md po

tha-

hat alwayi been a good

.
:

>J that

of a

beat material and the tv

the ma mi f. i and «tcel

for thr particular use ll (a intended

The boilermaker should be i
follow mor ,uid

showed that a boiler had beer
or >.

TlH J accounts -

for having in his possession a b«

could in any manner b in unncces-

a!s<. ,r the >■

of the operatives to whom is intrusted

the care of the

Th -hould be held re-

sponsible for the manage-

ment of the boiler and the condition of
rtain to the M
ration.
Th rs and boiler-insurance

compar. uld be held ir more

untinc than can tx

the unfalt
'ormancc of • the

* that compar. i- few

>dc up to .i icn.

' that age be made the
for the term ol

In neat when a

imstancc will be
;ght out that itc that dollars

)uman life and the
dollars ! the ■

K
Boston. Mass.

Air Pressure for Lifting

The answer gi\cn to I of

•i the January J issue

The air pressure ncces*
an

and the
line, and would N

lift or JOt i ugh

the

i the lift. Tt

T>
an air lift
an i

The

« column of •

>uld be
olid colurr

•'

and on the

«ed lo gra

it on the groand that the pun»|
not number of

irioa on the
coast for a numb*

Lo* Anpr

honor

mi w appeared iy

tbc December JO is»uc. entitled "An

ll to CO' «ad

Oia« reaeed have

-stood. : - leaver to

forth

« editorial

stood it comp. -ut fo »

*o that ■undatetood la
an an; this pot*i(

engineers i uc«tion recent -

umna.

The the opinion

tion o«

-tended

cepiing of the usual

■

I •

• nc the meanu

ensc of the

lee than the

depend* «
polr Considered from an

e aaeoreace
apt to p
-pect than tie
an -if on the e •

ig on the dlaaaal fen*
a order teea rbe

• I!

been cetaatdc-

n«" in get mere eaat of tbe
•ell i the face of rbe

hr awplettr aer-

of the
co«nml»»ion tf « teethed

280

POWER

February 14, 1911.

tions you can call a man most anything
without injury to his feelings.

I cannot answer the conundrum,
"Where are the high ideals of the pro-
fessional engineer?" as I do not be-
lieve he has any, my conception of the
term "professional engineer" being — One
who can receive as fees and commissions
what to the ordinary work-a-day engi-
neer would be considered just plain
"graft."

As I particularly desire to be con-
sidered among the "immunes," will my
criticizer kindly answer the following:
Does the acceptance of the premiums of-
fered for the securing of subscribers to
Power, or the premiums offered by ad-
vertizers for the purchase of their goods,
or the acceptance of a consideration for
writing this article, consign me to the
"black list"?

Amos Skeg.

Saugus, Mass.

Experience of an Indicator
Man

We are all big children, and like chil-
dren, like to have the last word.

I would like to reply to Mr. Wheat's
comment in the January 10 number on
my letter in the December 6 issue. My
remarks referred to an article in the is-
sue of November 15, which described a
case where an engine could not carry
the load, and, upon applying the indi-
cator, it was found that there was 68
pounds mean effective pressure in one
end, and only 15 pounds in the other.
Now, I think that anyone will agree with
me that no such state of affairs could
exist, unless the cutoff was so badly out
of adjustment that one might say that it
was not adjusted at all, and the engine
was very little better than a single-act-
ing engine having one power stroke per
revolution. I, therefore, maintain that it
should be apparent to the novice.

It is customary for erecting men to
block up the regulator on Corliss engines
about V2 inch and then, while the engine
is running slowly, to set the cam rods so
that both cams will just unhook the
valves. They know all about the effect
of the connecting rod on the piston travel,
but they leave that refinement to be cor-
rected by means of the indicator. There
is no trouble in getting the engine to de-
liver its full power and with economy.
The same might be said about setting the
rods from the wristplate to the valve
cranks, and locating the eccentric on the
shaft. These adjustments are all made
by marks on the ends of the valves and
the ends of the valve ports, when the
cylinder is cold. Heating up the" cylinder
distorts these adjustments to seme extent
Also, the shop men are sometimes care-
less in marking the valves and cylinder,
and to get these adjustments right, the
indicator must be used; but, speaking in
a general way, setting the valves and cut-

off in this manner is correct, and adjust-
ments by the indicator afterward are in
the nature of refinements.

W. E. Hopkins.
Torrington, Conn.

I think that Mr. Wheat is too severe
with Mr.' Hopkins in his letter in the
January 10 issue under the above title.
I do not believe that Mr. Hopkins meant
that an absolutely even cutoff could be
obtained by adjusting the dashpots by
the eye, and it would seem as though the
difference in the rise would have been
noticeable and if adjusted so that the rise
looked about even, or even if the rise
were equalized by the use of a rule, the
engine under discussion would have had
a much nearer equal cutoff than when
found by the indicator man. Of course,
this could be improved by giving the
crank end more rise; according to one's
general experience or knowledge of that
particular engine. I know of one in which
the difference in rise necessary to equalize
the work is l/\ inch.

With engines on which the cutoff can
be adjusted while running and which are
direct connected to electric generators, the
indicatorless man can even up the work
done in each end of the cylinder by
watching the vibration of the voltmeter
pointer and noticing which stroke allows
the finger to drop back, giving that end
a longer or the other end a shorter cutoff
until the finger is steady. Diagrams
taken from each end after this adjust-
ment alone might not be of the same
shape, but if care were taken in setting
the valves, knowing that there was no
indicator available with which to check
the operation, and then, if after the load
on the cutoff was adjusted by the volt-
meter, it would seem as though a fair
job of valve setting would result.

A. N. Bocart.

New York City.

Effects of Cold Air

In answer to H. C. Fiske, relative to
cold air admitted over the fire, I will say
that as engineer engaged by the smoke
department of one of the Middle West
cities I frequently resorted to this prac-
tice for one or two reasons. First, the
coals in use at that place are very high
in volatile contents and there is a great
volume of gas distilled during the first
three to five minutes after each firing.
These gases require a vast amount of air
to supply the required amount of oxygen
necessary for complete combustion. This
air cannot be supplied through the grates
as the green fuel just added has tem-
porarily cut off this source of supply.
The second reason is that when the rate
of combustion is high, the temperature
in the furnace is so great as to distil the
above mentioned gases in such volume as
to be beyond the control of the furnace
operator, but, by admitting cold air

through the furnace doors, the tempera-
ture can be controlled and much better
results realized.

I have experienced a good deal of
trouble from practical and experienced
engineers and firemen who object to this
practice for fear of the resultant effect
on the boiler; but, after extended experi-
ence, I feel confident that no ill effects
are caused by a judicious supply of air
over the grates in horizontal return-
tubular and water-tube boilers, although
judgment should be used when this prac-
tice is applied to locomotive, Scotch or
economic boilers.

H. M. PURNELL.
Erie, Penn.

Pittsfield Boiler Explosion

From information about the Pittsfield
boiler explosion gathered from the daily
press, as brought out by the coroner's
inquest, it would appear that the boiler
was fired up previous to the morning of
the explosion, and that the safety valve
blew freely when the gage registered
only about 20 pounds. It was supposed
that the gage was out of order and it
was removed and brought to the city to
be tested. The test seemed to indicate
that the gage was correct and it was put
in place again. When the boiler was
again fired up the safety valve blew at
the same pressure. Thinking that the
steam gage was correct, it was natural to
suppose that the safety valve was out
of order, and to alter the tension spring.

It is possible that the engineer first gave
the adjusting nut one full turn and waited
to see how high the pressure would rise.
Probably the valve blew again when the
gage showed only a slight increase in
pressure. The conditions at the ice plant
on this morning possibly were something
like this: fine ice-harvesting weather; 100
or more men under pay waiting for the
engineer to start up; the owners fussing
around, and the engineer a little rattled.
What would be more natural than for the
engineer to think to himself, if one turn
on the nut only increased the pressure
two or three pounds, I'll turn the thing
down far enough at once and run accord-
ing to the steam gage, which he pro-
ceeded to do.

The expert from the valve makers, the
man who set the valve in the shop, says
that the nut was screwed down twelve
threads lower than when the valve left
the factory. In my opinion it was down
so far that the spring became prac-
tically a solid bushing, and I do not think
the valve would have blown off at any
pressure.

The results of this accident are de-
plorable, and the friends of the victims
deserve much sympathy; it seems too
bad that a little more gray matter was
not used in the operation of this plant.

Gerald Griffin.

Hartford, Conn. 4

February 14. 1911.

POWER

Can • Boiler Explosioni Somethii i I

The numerous recent boiler ins

tend to confirm the theory- which I have
long entertained. Investigate n to

show that the length of time that a boiler
has been in service has a strong in-
flucnce on its safety. This is due to the
change ill the texture of the metal more
than to th<. ig away of any par-

ticular part of the boiler shell. A new

c of boiler steel can be bent double
without showing any fracture; but. a

e cut from a boiler which has been
long in service will not stand t
Thi- pecially true of tht thicker

plates. The farther the water is rem'
from the fire, due to the thickness of the
plate, the more rapidly does crystalliza-
tion of the shell seem to take pl.t

The editorial in a recent issue of Pom
in which it is urged that the life of lap-
scam boilers be limite nincntly to
the point. There should be an age limit
.ill boilers of lap-seam construction.
The date of construction should be
stamped in a c >us place on each
boiler so that the length of time it has
e may e -lined.
Another point is that should
be more numerous and more care-
fully and thoroughly ma: If it
coats more to make such ons
raise the price of the insurance. Often,
.ctors do not havi " cnt time to
make good examinations. There seems
to have been too many points that ■

ally
h have led to disa

< R ' '
Baltim.

different m

In the
tome express the opinion that ll
ing of a M too qttickl) might

cause a boiler lance

the th at a sudden n

- an upheave! of the «
against the »hell with i
maintain that

'» migl • the mere

k; of the *a'

I !

the American
1 J an average

at opening

ling a stop
many time and a

inglv grcatr-

n «uck« up
be much n

•uddenlv. n cause dr

water hammer in I

'■

ron reading the a J
the Januar J of

an :ce I had with a sample of

- aa go
I • try a sample, so I

packed both plungers of a

rings in t
plunger This pump wa*
and kept ir

pao iter

and the pump took its suppl> from a
large tank urn

and pumped through a closed heater to
the boil

n the third morning after the pump
been packed the night fireman
ported that the pump would not tf
any water I at once opened the »ater
and the troub:
[8 that I had put in. all were gone but

•uld n
looked like
bunches of cotton was-

I repacked the plunger with the pa
ing that I had always used and thought
that the trouble was over. But it had
only commenc. noon we had to

take the caps off the check valves on the
water ; oilers and take

e of that packing from under the
clappers That night we had to clean out
the t alve on the two

days later we had to *hut down the
I boiler on account of the lower corv
the water column being clot,
days Ir had to tak.

the blowofT cock of tl
that iot blow down I In

• »und enough of th..
ing to fill a quart mr some of

in shreds and tome was in small
lumr
ho*

It certain «.t as gooj

.d that
Hal of that
■ good'

-.d a good amount of

I am now waiting for anothc

a good

good** go«

I ■ !

ii ■

be baa

■

n moving
.

r between the »of •
contact

, . j • - .

ng •
one

T '

faces re i

on ed* anda o

rment that a packing

produces the leaf the

- more

tbc theory of friction

» -"-f^^C to l

e Jam. i»*ue about cherr

engineer* I fir. :
many cases engine < tacrincing i

chances of securing a flrst-cla*

fill up during c
h..t. ,n c be nilniry. and

the theory of h

and a dozen other thing*
se arc all good to know, but
x good working kn
of ma
and

re f- n and the hundred* of other

things essential in a modern
•team plant
to become J ox en J

•tie
: ibei
cnKtr.ccrs * • •nte for I' » I ■ tr* ••
a rc*A . r

n all of the aul
I ha

ream engi-

asoiatatxc to me But I
il education fi-
I «ou!d to

•earn plants aa
poaafblr -hen a

not under* too jucwtion*

>ugge*t to fit an

of the Cbif

"C " I ■ t ' ' ' • '

emi*tr> and t hat

aac ha the

rooms a aaaat

neglect one brant

no engine* ■ to the to.

-»n anal*
When I sot tba tap I
•cam plant, tba
en<ia«

knowledge of a doeen different
and Pfoff •« in get This is the -•

*«• p»

nan la

pert la •«*

on build ng rru* -
amount of force to

282

POWER

February 14, 1911.

•

. ..,-._

-a "BfQ - - I -W"

BaSl |

-jaa.

Governor Pulley a?id Engine
Speed

If an engine having an 8-inch shaft
runs 200 revolutions per minute, what
diameter of pulley will be required on
the governor to drive it 256 revolutions
per minute?

T. E. H.

The circumference of a circle is 3.1416
times its diameter.

The 8-inch shaft at 200 revolutions will
pass

8 X 3.1416 X 200 ft. of belt per min.
The pulley will at 256 revolutions pass
Diam. X 3.1416 X 256 ft. of belt per min.
and these, of course, must be equal to
each other for the same length of belt
passes over both pulleys in the same unit
of time. Then,

Diam. X 3.1416 X 256 = 8 X 3.1416
X 200
8 X 3-1416 X 200

Diam . =

= 6.25 in.

3.1416 X 250
Since the rim speed of the pulley is in-
versely proportional to the diameter and
directly proportional to the rotative speed,
the 3.1416 need not be considered and
the case may be stated as one of inverse
proportion.

Sp.of Sp.of Dia.of Dia. of
Gov. Evg. Shaft. Pulley.

!S6

200

6.25

Size of Pump for Given Boiler

How is the diameter of the water cyl-
inder of a pump suitable for feeding a
boiler calculated?

J. F. M.

First find the number of gallons of
water that will be evaporated per min-
ute, then decide the number of strokes
to be made per minute by the pump.
Multiply the number of gallons by 231;
divide this by the piston stroke in inches;
divide this by the number of strokes per
minute; divide this by 0.7854. The square
root of the result will be the diameter
of the water piston required. It is good
practice to operate a feed pump slowly,
and running at its normal speed it should
be capable of supplying double the aver-
age requirements.

Clearcifice and Mean Effective

Pressure
What effect has clearance on the mean
effective pressure?

C. M. P.
For a cutoff at any fraction of the
stroke, the greater the clearance the
higher the mean effective pressure will
be.

Questions are;

not answered unless

accompanied by they

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

Heat Required to Convert Ice
into Steam

A block of ice weighs 10 pounds, and
has a temperature of 18 degres Fah-
renheit. Compute the amount of heat re-
quired to convert it into steam having
an absolute pressure of 30 pounds.

s. c. s.

To raise the temperature of one pound
of ice from 18 to 32 degrees requires 7
heat units; to convert it from ice at 32
degrees into water at 32 degrees requires
142 heat units and to convert it into
steam at a pressure of 30 pounds abso-
lute requires 1158 heat units. Adding

7 _|_ 142 4- 1158 = 1307 heat units.
Ten pounds will require 10 times this.

Utility of Expansion Tank

Of what use is an expansion tank in
a hot-water heating system?

U. E. T.

Like all other substances, water varies
in volume with changes of temperature
and the expansion tank placed at the
highest point in the system furnishes
room for the increase of volume of water
in the boiler, piping and radiators as it is
heated.

Size of Steam Pipe

How can I determine the proper size
of steam pipe to supply a given size
of cylinder?

S. S. P.

Multiply the cross-sectional area of the
cylinder by the speed of piston travel in
feet per minute and divide the product
by 6000.

Piston area X piston speed _ .

6000

e area

Ratio of Expansion by Vohwie

In a 12xl8-inch engine the clearance
is 5 per cent. Cutoff takes place when
the piston is 6 inches from the end of
the stroke. What is the real outoff and
what is the ratio of expansion by vol-
ume ?

s. s. c.

The distance swept through by the pis-

ton is 18 inches, 5 per cent, of which is
0.9 inch; this makes a total cylinder
length of 18.9 inches. If the cutoff takes
place at 12 inches of the piston stroke

the real cutoff will be ^-§^ of tne cy1_

18.9

inder volume, and as the ratio of ex-
pansion by volume is the final volume
divided by the volume at cutoff. The
volume at cutoff in this case is propor-
tional to 12.9 and the final volume to 18.9.
Hence the ratio of expansion is
18.9 -4- 12.9 = 1.46.

Power Required to Drive Vessel

If 4000 horsepower will drive a vessel
at a speed of 14 knots, how fast will
2000 horsepower drive the same vessel?

P. R. D.

The power required to drive a vessel
is proportional to the cube of the speed,
and inversely the speed will be propor-
tional to the cube root of the power ex-
pended; hence,

f 4000 : i3 2000 :: 14 : S

f/ 4000 = 15.8 . f/ 2000 = 12.6
then

15.8: 12.6:: 14: S.
S = (12.6 x 14) -=- 15.8 = 11.
If 4000 horsepower will drive the ves-
sel 14 knots, 2000 horsepower will drive
the same vessel 11 knots.

Diameter of Pipe for Given Plow
What will be the diameter of a pipe
150 feet long which will deliver 600
pounds of steam per hour with a pres-
sure drop of 5 pounds, the boiler pres-
sure being 75 pounds?

P. G. F.
A much used formula for the flow of
steam in pipes is.

W= S6.68

w (/>, — p2) <r

in which

W = Weight of steam flowing per

minute;
w = Weight of 1 cubic foot of
steam at higher pressure;
Pi — p2 = Drop in pressure;

d= Diameter of pipe in inches;
L — Length of pipe in feet.
Substituting the known values,

10 = 56.68

0.2044 X 5 X d5

100

d5 =

150
3220 V 0.2044 X 5 X d*

150
lOO X 150

= 4-55

3220 X 0.2044 x 5
d = 1.35 inches
As there is no pipe made in this size, \Vi-
inch pipe will be required.

February 14. 1911.

Hill Publishing Company

ifi'l p»» :
■ an. I 4.MT.-V, of i

—not nerwanh

:>tlon pr

I irop*

i » » mi 1 1

H ■:■:• • I '!•■ • m < •■!•-.

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( ntents

I'lanl. li

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rlM*i

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■ ne

_•»«;

I r ami ti

M i hine

Through many channels ih of

the operating engineer is being invaded
and with a

n the alertness of the particular cn-

- as a possible source of revenue
The lubi

■
are all Ic
and the isolated p'* e land of

~cek to
■at ha^ cnt

in machin :aCe or

render the human

hand and brain that wh<
disa: : and a- and

have been reduced to the r.i
>mmon lab iders of mach

In the rm

machine idea n

all the •.kill (

■

monest
labor, which coats so n u than

•kill

s d g the fee*

the ;

In tin cer the ma-

chine idea •

i large percent.,
fuel

the
■ieer a* a
useless

foothold at . tod

mar

menace

•fl and

to d *i a mo-

e en

and it depends upon '

the Acid to

' to

the

wage at a:

the
absajbj

paaaMi
■M*' aipped be

gineerfog tanja

*pe. ning and

along several
con -n spec cation. The

■

though it mav be.
•r special study of bit
as tha- .an la the

d and he must use them to the Hash
of h

'inns »•

• n or mechanical, and i
the work less worker* of

■

Vfilwauk ' IV-f

Ibc .¥■«-

' >c «or%

«n foe

froc

■Heeling If

.' i • -.

«rge being

the ; Vben the

» see baw the cast
The specifications called '<"
to lac bade sash/ tba •

uJ* tbe

Mat. t>c

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self

1'ii.f ''ff

be aasse foe •
af

Tbe

284

POWER

February 14, 1911.

tor in the cost of operation and the test
figures were obtained when using forty-
one per cent, of this constituent. At
the present time the everyday cost of op-
eration is somewhat higher than the fig-
ures given in the test, by reason of the
fact that the condition of the garbage and
refuse as delivered to the plant varies
with the season of the year, and from
fifty-five to sixty per cent, of garbage is
now being incinerated. Also the pay of
a fireman has increased from two dol-
lars to two dollars and fifty cents per
eight-hour day.

In the Journal of Associated Engineer-
ing Societies, for December, S. A. Gree-
ley, superintendent of the plant, gives
the cost figures for the first five months
of its operation, the cost ranging from
eighty-two cents to one dollar and seven
cents per ton. According to these fig-
ures the average amount of material dis-
posed of per day was one hundred and
ninety-four tons; the average percentage
of garbage was sixty-six; the percentage
of ash was twenty; of rubbish, eleven,
and manure, three; while the average cost
of disposal during this period is given as
ninety-five cents per ton. For the month
of November, 1910, the cost was seventy-
eight cents per ton.

There is one interesting feature of this
installation which has not been touched
on and which will throw considerable
light on the management of municipally
operated institutions. Some months ago,
in the effort to economize in op' 'ion,
the labor expense for the pla
duced to such an extent as t' .. the ex-
pense for disposal of refuse per ton from
eighty-eight cents to seventy-eight cents.
This was unsatisfactory to the labor or-
ganizations and the city administration
ruled that the men should be reinstated.
Whenever a municipally operated pro-
ject is proposed the cry goes up that on
account of the high wages and short
hours commonly associated with such in-
stitutions the project cannot compete
with a privately operated plant. Here we
have an example of a municipally op-
erated property run by a Socialist ad-
ministration which is extremely friendly
to union labor and where the difference
in labor cost between satisfied and dissat-
isfied union workers represents roughly
only twelve per cent, of the total cost of
operation.

Smoke and Health

At a meeting of the Engineers' Club
of Philadelphia, a short time ago, at
which the subject of smoke prevention
was discussed, an eminent physician
made the following statement:

"Is it any wonder that respiratory
diseases and diseases of the mucous
membranes are so common and habitual
in our big cities, where railway
and factories daily pour forth vol-
umes of black smoke? Sore eyes

and catarrh of the nose, throat and
bronchial passages may be produced di-
rectly by the mechanical irritation of
smoke particles. Smoke does not pro-
duce tuberculosis. The infective agent
of this disease is carried in dust. How-
ever, the smoke evil, if not a direct pro-
ducer, is indirectly an important and seri-
ous predisposer to the disease. This
happens in two ways: First, by a local
irritation of the membrane of the air
passages it sets up a catarrhal suscep-
tibility to infection; secondly, by the
habitual catarrhs and insufficient quan-
tity of fresh air so contaminated by
smoke the general systematic resistance
to disease is diminished, and when the
recuperative and reparative powers of the
body are thus debilitated and weakened,
the bacillus soon finds favorable soil
and lodgment, and ready access to the
vulnerable tissues."

So much for the injurious effect of
smoke, but how about the sulphurous
gases with which the air of large cities
is contaminated due to the burning of
coals high in volatile sulphur?

President Taft's Water Power
Policy

On February 1, President Taft ap-
proved a plan for the leasing by the
Government of water-power sites on pub-
lic lands. The essential features are that
the Federal Government shall continue
to own and control the water powers on
the public domain. Legislative authority
must be sought for issuing term leases
for periods not to exceed fifty years.
Those leasing from the Government must
pay for what they get and must promptly
and fully develop the powers so that
there shall be no unnecessary limitation
of output. Rates to consumers declared
exorbitant by the Supreme Court shall
be ground for the cancelation of the
lease. At the expiration of the lease, it is
proposed to give the lessee a preference
right to renewal unless the Government
desires to use the property for public pur-
poses; and, provided the lessee fails to
secure a renewal either because the Gov-
ernment desires the land or because an-
other applicant offers better terms, the
previous lessee shall receive compensa-
tion for the actual value of improvements
on the ground or be allowed to remove
such equipment.

As president of the National Conserva-
tion Association, Gifford Pinchot highly
commends President Taft's water-power
policy. It is in full accord with the
principles for which the association
stands, and the policy as outlined has
been enforced by the United States Forest
Service so far as the existing law would
permit.

The rigid enforcement of this policy
will mean a great deal to the country.
It will prevent a monopoly in water
power, tend to keep the rates for power

at a reasonable figure, and above all
keep the water powers in the hands of
the people. It should be enacted by
legislators, rigidly enforced by employees
of the Government and supported by the
people.

The Isolated Plant Association

The motto "In union there is strength,"
seems to be the keynote of the present
movement to resist the encroachment of
the central station on the field of the
isolated plant. It is not alone the engi-
neer who feels the ground slipping from
under him; the manufacturer, the sales-
man and everyone even remotely con-
cerned with them, feel the pinch that is
to come when but one public-service
corporation shall furnish all the power
required in a community. Accordingly
these various interests have united in an
organization known as the National Iso-
lated Plant Association.

As is the case with all such organiza-
tions its success or failure will depend
largely upon its policy at the start. It
must gain the confidence and cooperation
of all parties concerned, and in order to
do this it must be manifest, both in words
and action, that the common interest alone
is to be served.

Little will be gained by adopting a
hostile attitude toward the central station,
but much progress can be made by pro-
ceeding along competitive lines, based
upon actual knowledge of the facts. It
must be conceded that there are a few
classes of service wherein the central
station can legitimately furnish power
cheaper than the isolated plant, and it
should be the policy of this organization
to show the consumer just where the
line should be drawn. In short, its duty
will be to seek the truth, even though
the shoe may pinch in certain instances.

In his annual report, Pres. Henry M.
Whitney, of the Rhode Island Coal Com-
pany, made the following statement:
"The coal is of excellent quality, and
the so called 'treatment' has been found
to be unnecessary, since the coal burns
as well without as with it." Over a year
ago Power gave some little attention to
Rhode Island coal and we are glad to
see that Mr. Whitney's present opinion
concerning the value of the treatment
verifies our prediction.

According to reports of the United
States Geological Survey, California con-
tains approximately one-tenth of the total
oil-producing territory in the United
States. Yet it is estimated that she fur-
nishes one-half the probable minimum
and one-third the probable maximum oil
production of this country.

Some engineers imagine that because
they have kept a small power plant run-
ning, they can handle a large central
station.

February 14, 1911.

Palling Stack Kill- Engineer

During a high wind that swept over
New Jersey, Saturday, January- 25, a
90. foot brick stack at the Caledonian
mill of the United Box Board Company,

Whippany, N. J , *js blown down, in-

the roof and it »as thi* m ^cr that

partly | i the super *bo

Til erected about t

years ago. It was recently rt but

according to the consensu* of opinion the
stack ■ table at the corner

to the mill, where the brick had weakened
with aj;-

tect D F St

the article Klein

ttraithi-Sov cosine, which appeared is
the Jam.

of noncotidenaing straight. Sow
A cross *cction of a

J---A

■ ■

Fic. 1. Tilted Iron Stack

stantly killing the engineer, George Lock-
wood, and severely injuring Superintend-
ent William Purcell.

The stack stood at one end of the boiler
house and served one of three return-
tubular boilers. The other two bo
were each sen a separate 60- foot

iron stack. When the brick stack col-
lapsed, it parted the guy wires of one
of the iron stacks, causing it to tilt over
aa shown In Flfl I.

In falling, the brick stack crashed
diagonally through the cnginc-rooir.

sufficient to cause the disa* rom

the appearance of the br the

base of the stack collapsed, allowing the
pan to settle, and. then losing
urn. to topple over onto the roof
of the building.

Men ucre set to mork cleaning away
the wreckage and a good deal of the
stack had been removed before a Posea
representative could get to the scene of
the accident.

A report that scerrs to be borne out

by the evidence is to the effect that the

chimney had been considered unsafe for

e time, and tha: im-

. ncd for connection to a
advener.

the a..

design of
straight-flow steam en.

ess of the res- icss of the

ventor. i in Pig. 5. A piston valve

side the pistor . below

the rod. It is operated by a little rocker
arm. the

end of the connecting
about the crossbea Tha

pen» one aide of tha
piston or the other to the rcapectire

a VmOOI W •

and that of the *tock room of the main

linn ! >m that

Locktood was killed the

bled condition of the haw •>( the

and the v

dne

k rooms, partial! the

ne and oth

I Dan ese rooms after mock

e de>ri« had been removed

rkwood was found pinned under an

h timber uhich had

ing anxious about
looked up the »uperintcndent. and
both n M the the

r room »hen the

«sr . it «f tV

lor

Mlers for m

- c

be Otu«

a tnnr inn ne
closed fry tne second art ef

tie

... . . ,

286

POWER

February 14, 1911.

Oldest High Pressure Steam Engine

A steam engine, which bears the date
of 1801, and probably antedates any
other of its kind built on this side of the
Atlantic, is to be found at the mechanical-
engineering laboratories of the University
of Pennsylvania. It is complete in every
respect with the exception of the flywheel
and could be put into running order with
very little trouble.

The engine, as shown in Fig. 1, is of
the vertical-beam type, sometimes called
the "grasshopper" type, and has a 12-inch
cylinder and a 20-inch stroke. The slide
valve is driven from an eccentric on the
main shaft, through a rocker arm and
shaft and vertical side rods attached to a
yoke which, in turn, is connected to a

By B. M. Baxter

This engine, which was without
doubt the first of the high-pressure
early cutoff type, was built by
Oliver Evans at Philadelphia in
1801. It is still in good condi-
tion and at present is the prop-
erty of the University of Penn-
sylvania.

There are two brass plates attached to
the beam, which bear the following in-
scription:

Fig. 1. General View of Engine

vertical valve stem. In Fig. 2 this valve
gear is clearly shown.

The crank is of the overhung type, and
all the rod ends are strap ended with gib
and key adjustment, similar to that used
on many engines of modern design. The
vertical rod attached to the beam, to the
left of the cylinder, operates a plunger
pump, which was probably used for the
boiler feed. The discharge pipe from
the pump projects vertically upward near
the end of the frame.

OLIVER EVANS
1801
The inscription on a third plate, ap-
parently of great age, is not legible, and
another one of more recent date reads:
PRESENTED BY THE WILLIAM
CRAMP & SONS SHIP AND EN-
GINE BUILDING COMPANY
TO THE UNIVERSITY OF
PENNSYLVANIA.
This engine is of the high-pressure,
cutoff type, in contrast to the Newcomen

or Watt engines which used steam merely
as a means of producing a vacuum, the
atmospheric pressure doing the work.

Oliver Evans has a good claim to be-
ing the inventor of the cutoff engine, the
principles of which are outlined in his
book entitled, "The Abortion of the Young
Steam Engineers' Guide," which was
published in Philadelphia in 1805. Quot-
ing from this work, regarding this type of
engine, he says, "Although the inventor
had obtained a patent in the State of
Maryland, he was so engaged with the
introduction of his mill improvements that
he could not prosecute his inventions on
steam engines, further than filing draw-
ings and specifications of the principles
in the patent office in 1792, and trying
some experiments which confirmed him
in the principles. In the year 1801 he
commenced the execution of an engine
and in the winter of 1802 had it in full
operation." This extract relates to the
use of high-pressure steam with early
cutoff, pressures of 120 pounds per
square inch being mentioned elsewhere
in the book.

The Use of Crude Petroleum
as Fuel

At a recent meeting of the San Fran-
cisco branch of the American Society of
Mechanical Engineers, a number of
papers were presented upon the subject
of oil fuel. In a paper entitled the "Rela-
tive Heat Value of Light Oil as Com-
pared with Heavy Oil," Professor Le
Conte stated that crude petroleum con-
sists principally of hydrogen and carbon
together with small amounts of nitrogen,
oxygen and sulphur. The nitrogen and
oxygen and any incombustible residue
or ash may be classed as inert impurities,
while the sulphur, although a com-
bustible, has a low heat value and is
otherwise injurious.

The oils rich in hydrogen are of light
specific gravity as compared with those
rich in carbon; also, the former con-
tain more heat units per pound than the
latter. Water in emulsion in crude oil
acts as an inert impurity and as it must
be converted into steam it reduces the
heat value. From the tests of a number
of samples of the heavier fuel oils, it
was shown that the heat value increases
inversely as the specific gravity, but does
not increase so rapidly as the weight per
unit of volume decreases. Therefore,
the heat value per barrel of the heavier
oils is greater than that of the lighter
ones.

Mr. Weymouth, in a papier upon "The
Arrangement of Furnace for Using Oil
Fuel," described the Peabody furnace.
In this the bridgewall is set back from
the boiler front 8 to 10 feet, with the

February 14, 1911.

POW

burner of the back-shot type, inserted
from the boiler front under the furnace
floor and turning up at the bridgewall,
without there being any direct impinge-
ment of flame. With this design of fur-
nace a boiler efficiency of 83 per cent,
has been attained. The paper further
stated that when admitting a let ccm

of air and an average amount of oil. the
lame length is a minimum and the tem-
perature of incandescence is reached at
the surface of the envelope separating
the vaporized oil and air. This bright
flame is sought by the untrained fire-
man, but it results in a loss of heat, as
the subsequent mixture of the products
of combustion with the excess of air,
not in contact with the flame, means a
lower mean furnace temperature. With
economical firing the flame lengthens be-
fore coming in contact with sufficient air
for complete combustion, and with the
highest furnace efficiency this tempera-
ture varies from 25*10 to 2800 de^
Fahrenheit.

Due to the high furnace temperature
uith oil fuel the location of the heat-ab-
sorbing surfaces becomes of utmost im-
portance; consequently the first pass
should be located directly over the fur-
nace, thus providing for the most direct
transmission of heat, both by convection
and the absorption of radiant heat.

A paper on "The Size of Stacks with
Oil Fuel." by Mr. Dunn, canca attention

ic fact tnat in burning coal a large
pan of the total draft i from .; per

ccnt.i is required to overcome the
tion through the fuel bed. This is done
away with in burning oil fuel, conse-
quently a shorter stack may be used, a

.. of ho to 100 feet in hight usually
being sufficient.

An interesting paper upon t1
zation of Oil Mr

• This was in pan as folio,

ncral pract to

I V ' #- Kit r 1 * >P lint., r m _ I

me ourncr u

•lor: r as

the atomizing medium. The
the fur- J be c:

>pcnsion in the
»ir: uncon-

eumcJ oil fall to the bottom of the fur-
nace accumulate. If rru

into a cold furnace
dote walls which become r

'y hcatc be in the form of a

fine »rra>. alia art

healed, the radiation from trn
greatly in \

and the larger parr turned

■
Most of the oil* used for fuel arr
a heavy and riecoai character ai I

reduceJ K\ a rttc in temp
e that
aled before being
burner* The forn -nil

nance compar furnace

> been done toward atom-

izing the < >ui the use of air or

;n. The oil, having been r

into the fur ^h a needle nc

having a small or The ponion of

the

P«n of • -)as a screw thread cut

on • h impans a rotar. n to

the oil. The sudden release of pressure
and the rotary m. ated

oil to issue in the form of a spray suffl-
cicr to burn su.

I rom a number of tests, using steam
as an atomizing agent, the amount of

(

The of an absorption, like that

of a compression. Ice n can be

eerimated by two different mirtmda.

crmining the •mnam of

anh> drone ammonia made in a given

or by finding the

joling

nee the so called "anhydrous" am-

Pi.

' ' ' I ' T * '. 4 f ' * ' f ■ * ■ ** ' fcfl *• 7 * ' * '

' - ■ - • ■-••-.

er of an

•

t-'>n m»kf- aa ;• ofi«n

•x latter mcth

ed as to

e c» «r

• rough eatbne

' a m>chlne a coaii

ceed cruel opera tioc

Wot H

condhiooa ma

c* tSe use of
compressed i ~« afeett

io
■ »a

■ar. or whet to eeanetJmee loooa aa

qadred to eaol hrtoi. •*

2S8

POWER

February 14, 1911.

of the substance as well as on the amount
chilled in a given time and the range of
temperature chilled through, it is obvious
that careful determinations of the specific
heat of the brine should be made where
accurate results are expected.

Specific heats taken from tables of
properties of the kind of brine being
used and corresponding to the density
of the brine in use as determined by a
hydrometer — due correction being made
Tor temperatures — should give fairly ac-
curate results.

If an absorption machine is operating
on zero brine, calcium would ordinarily
be used. In order to just escape freez-
ing at this temperature, its density would
have to be 22 degrees Baume, correspond-
ing to a specific gravity of 1.179. The
specific heat of brine of this strength is
0.834. As a matter of fact, for safety
against freezing, a somewhat stronger
brine should be used, common practice
tieing to use about 24 degrees Baume, the
specific heat of which is 0.817.

For every pound of brine of this qual-
ity cooled, one degree 0.817 B.t.u. of
cooling effect is required.

To determine the refrigerating effect
being produced, determine the amount
of brine, in pounds, being chilled in a
given length of time; determine also the
range in temperature chilled through.
Multiply the number of pounds by the
range in temperature giving "pound de-
grees" and then by the specific heat
giving B.t.u.

A ton of refrigeration is the equivalent
of the heat absorbed in the melting of
2000 pounds of ice having a latent heat
of fusion of 144 B.t.u.; that is, 288,000
B.t.u. The expenditure of cooling ef-
fect equivalent to the above per 24 hours
is a ton of capacity.

Since there are 24 hours in a day, a
ton capacity is also equal to the absorp-
tion of 1200 B.t.u. per hour; and since
there are 1440 minutes in a day, it is also
equal to the absorption of 200 B.t.u. per
minute.

To arrive at the tonnage capacity of
the machine under test, divide the num-
ber of B.t.u. of cooling effect produced
on the brine per minute by 200, or the

brine determined at the same tempera-
ture.

If the brine has a strength of 24 de-
grees Baume, for example, equivalent to
a specific gravity of 1.2, the weight per
gallon will be

1.2 X 8.336 = 10 pounds.
With brine of these characteristics, the
cooling of five gallons through five de-
grees, making 25 heat gallons per min-

TABLE OF PROPERTIES OF SALT (NaCl) AND CALCIUM (CaCl) BRINES.

Sodium

Chloride (Salt)

Brine.

Calcium Chloride

Brine.

Specific

Degrees

Degrees Baume.

Gravity.

Specific Heat.

Baume.

Specific Gravity.

Specific Heat.

1.007

0.992

1.027

0.980

1.015

0.984

1.041

0.964

1.019

0.980

1 . 058

0.936

3.5

1.023

0.976

1.076

0.911

1.026

0.972

1.085

0.896

4.5

1.030

0.968

1.103

0.884

5.5

1.037

0.960

1.121

0.868

6.5

1.045

0 . 946

1.159

0.844

7.6

1.053

0.932

1.179

0.834

8.7

1.061

0.919

1.199

0.817

9.7

1.068

0.905

1.219

0.799

10.7

1.076

0.892

1.240

0.778

12.6

1.091

0.874

1.305

15.7

1.115

0.855

20.4

1 . 155

0.829

1.187

0.795

1. 196

0.783

25.8

1 . 204

0.771

number per hour by 1200, or the number
per day by 288,000.

The quantity of brine cooled can be
arrived at roughly by the use of a meter,
still more roughly from the size and
number of strokes of the brine pump;
but actual weighing is to be recommended
where great accuracy is required.

One cubic foot of water at 62 degrees
Fahrenheit weighs 62.355 pounds, and
one gallon 8.336 pounds. To get the
weight of brine of any density per cubic
foot or per gallon, multiply these
weights by the specific gravity of the

ute, would represent a cooling effect of
xoX5X5Xo.8i7=ij02I

200

tons per 24 hours.

Steam Turbine Economy
in Europe

Interesting results of recent turbine
practice in Europe are given in the ac-
companying table, reproduced from the
Zeitschrift des Vereines Deutscher In-
genieur, of December 10. The values
have been converted into English units.

EUROPEAN TURBINE TESTS.

February 14. 1911.

The National Isolated Plant

A m n lation

At a meeting of the National IsoL
Plant Association, held at the Engir
ing Societies' building on Monda
ing. January' 30, a constitution was
adopted and the permanent oft.
elected. Tl re as folio

President: C. G. Armstrong, consult-
ing engineer for the ( rk.

chief t:
ncer of the w 'cct buildi:

v-rctary: E !> Heu\, of the Wing
Manufacturing Company.

Treasurer: W. B. Elliott, of the Gar-
wood Electric Company.

Council: Mr. Buxton, operating engi-
"r. Kimball, consulting engir.
Mr. on. manufacturer; Mr. Kat-

ten. salesman; Mr. Elliman. plant owner.
The president and treasurer a-
members of the council.

Committee on admission of member-
made up of the following members Mr.
Dalbcc, operating engineer of the Patten
estate; Mr Ming, of the Gotham Manu-
facturing Company; Mr. Torrcncc. of the
Carbondalc Machine Company; Mr
Spooncr. of the Ridgway Dynamo and
Engine Company; Mr. Edgcrton, con-
structing engineer; Mr. Bierck, of Borne
Scr. ompany. and Mr. I -. of

the Crocker-Wheeler Company.

■ In the case of the operating
nccrs actually engaged in the direc-
tion or operation of isolated plants, the
Initiation fee for members and the

annual due No initiation |

charged the operating engineer and
due* are *2 per \car. Candid,
membership must be propo-
member*, mho shall submit to the com-
n admissions full particulars re-
garding the eta and quali?
of the candidate.

At yet a complete program of r

has not been di it it

•
numerous isolated p'ants nou ir
tion »ith a -ling cost data

the enlightenment of the owner
against the encroachment of the central-
station BO I

PERSON \L

f the Alliance Engi-
neering and Sale
waukee. has sailed for |
Mediterranean pons and a ••
the greatci pa- i beha''

various manufacturing

'e and

I Jeter has rrsigncJ as mcchan
engineer for the

Ne» Have- . accer : oal-

supemsmg inspector ?
tnsprv '
lurancc Company. With the exception

of a shon penod

in the cmpl > company from I8M

as
•pe^ t He »ill be rccogniicd as

author of nu con-

to our reading column-

to tf yjn.Mht- icrung for

» on the Pacific station
Reluming to Boston, he entered the

c" T I < fc»*c. \ V >cs a- 1 I c-c

ctcd r mention, a governing

OHIllAKY ■
I n- K. Alberger

Louis R Albert Mdcnt of the

AIK r Cot:

on Januar He was

born in Buffa:

ing high school, entered Yale, but later
left to enter *ho

was engaged in tl .um process of

prod -alt In IH87 he went -

Henry L. Wonhington. where he remained
unti form the Albergcr

Lcm - R Ai r

Company and the Alberger

became

Buffalo on lebruar

lliam B M

>r Con

died at his home -Chester

morning.

•n i

rime, the '

nflned I
M borr

an t

ha Warmed
the '© How

ton ung man. ha »oricd on

and a* an
I harV

regulator Soon after this be

'is or the loconvoi

ed the corr -
'or the

csice*

• »„•
'fStd OC
nduct of tv.t Niti-
CO>
■aailur ol the

and also of the '

and aM dauc'"'' "•' • • ! i Vs '-• '

\l \\ I'l M K \ I I

6%9 inches

101'

ef roatsasr

lions Of t '

a | .. .

290

POWER

February 14, 1911.

ject of thermodynamics. It is felt that
many of the definitions of the funda-
mental terms could have been expressed
less vaguely, and the addition of more
tablt* would have added greatly to the
usefulness of the book.

Mechan.cal Engineering. By Charles
M. Sames. Published by the author,
at Jersey City, N. J. Flexible leather;
218 pages, 4x6>4 inches; illustrated.
Price, $2.
This is the fourth annual edition of
Mr. Sames' handy little pocketbook and,
although its thickness does not appear to
have been increased appreciably, it con-
tains no small quantity of new material.
This achievement, however, has its draw-
backs. The contents are so condensed
that it is not always easy to grasp the
sense of a statement and the typo-
graphcial congestion is confusing to the
eye.

The reviewer has not looked for errors,
but noticed accidentally an incorrect
statement at the bottom of page 59 and
several at the top of page 61.

SOCIETY NOTES

A meeting of the Boston section of
the American Institute of Electrical En-
gineers, with the cooperation of the
American Society of Mechanical Engi-
neers and the Boston Society of Civil
Engineers, will be held on Friday even-
ing, February 17, in that city. R. A.
Philip, of the Stone & Webster Engineer-
ing Corporation, an associate member of
the American Institute of Electrical En-
gineers, will present a paper on certain
phases of the general subject of economic
limitations to aggregation of power sys-
tems.

The Mississippi Electric Association,
which represents the central-station in-
dustry of the State, had a meeting at
Meridian, Miss., on January 19, when,
after thoroughly canvassing the wishes of
the members and receiving a unanimous
indorsement, it was voted to affiliate with
the National Electric Light Association.
The president, A. B. Patterson, and A. H.
Jones, secretary and treasurer, were in-
structed to make t£e necessary arrange-
ments with the national body for putting
this affiliation into effect. The national
society has already a number of members
in the State and this new union will be
particularly beneficial to the smaller com-
panies that hitherto have belonged to the
local organization only.

On Saturday evening, January 28, 191 1,
Colonel Goethals Branch No. 1 of Dis-
trict 9 of the Institute of Operating En-
gineers was formed at Yazoo City, Miss.,
with a charter membership of 13. The
election results are as follows: F. C.

Holly, branch chairman and representa-
tive to district council; L. B. Smith,
secretary and treasurer; F. C. Holly,
W. W. Brannon, W. G. Richardson,
councilmen for three years; Davis Chis-
holm, W. R. Vernon, Albert Walker,
councilmen for two years; Ray Madden,
Parks and Wince Hoover, councilmen for
one year. W. G. Richardson, lecturer on
apprenticeship training and plant opera-
tion and chairman of committee on ap-
prenticeship training; W. W. Brannon,
lecturer on educational subjects and
chairman of committee on educational
subjects. The chairman appointed Messrs.
Vernon and Walker as assistant lecturers
on apprenticeship training and plant op-
eration, and Walker and Chisholm were
appointed as assistant lecturers on educa-
tional subjects. The meetings of this
branch are to be held the second and
fourth Saturday nights of each month.
The address of the secretary and treas-
urer is, P. O. Box 297, Yazoo City, Miss.

The annual banquet of the Atlantic
City Council of the American Order of
Steam Engineers has for some time as-
sumed a more than local color. The
fourteenth banquet, held on February 4
at the Hotel Windsor, drew a number of
visitors from New York, New Jersey and
Pennsylvania, including representatives
of the State legislatures of New Jersey
and Pennsylvania.

The large banquet hall of the hotel
was filled with the members and their
guests. After the inner man had been
satisfied, an address of welcome was
made by John Best, who also introduced
the toastmaster, Mayor Franklin P. Stoy,
of Atlantic City. The speakers included
Senator Walter E. Edge, Postmaster
Harry Bacharach, and Assemblyman
Isaac Bacharach, who was responsible
for Atlantic City getting the State legis-
lature to grant it permission to pass the
engineers' license law. Mr. Bacharach
spoke of the great advantage to the city
of having licensed men in charge of the
power plants of the hotels, thus insuring
to their guests that the boilers, etc., were
in competent hands.

Over two hundred -licenses have so far
been granted.

Boiler Tube Bursts

It is reported in the daily press that
on January 26 two firemen were serious-
ly burned by the bursting of a boiler tube
in the plant of the Alkali Rubber Com-
pany, Akron, O.

Boiler Explosion in Kentucky

On February 2, a boiler in a grist mill
at Bruin, Elliott county, exploded, kill-
ing two men and injuring others. At the
present writing further particulars are not
available.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres., Col. E. D. Meier ; sec, Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OP ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION
Pres.. Frank W. Frueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 3.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
U. S. N. ; sec. and treas., Lieutenant Com-
mander D. T. Holmes, I'. S. N., Bureau of
Steam Engineering, Navy Department, Wash-
ington, I). C.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS'
ASSOCIATION

Pres., E. I>. Meier, 1 1 Broadway, New
York ; sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston, Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS
Pres., O. P. Chamberlain ; sec, J. H.
Warder, 1735 Monadnock Block, Chicago, 111.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., E. K. Morse ; sec, E. K. Hiles, Oliver
building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings 1st and
3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS
Pres., R. P. Bolton ; sec, W. W. Macon. 2'.*
West Thirty-ninth street, New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres., Carl S. Pearse, Denver. Colo. ; sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street, Chicago,
111. Next convention, Cincinnati, Ohio.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr.. Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia, Pa. ; Supr. Cor. Engr., William S.
Wetzler, 7.")3 N. B'orty-fourth St., Philadel-
phia. Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June. 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS

Pres.. William F. Yates, New York, N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street. Chi-
cago. 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January, 1912.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith; sec. Charles
Kratsch. 416 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF
ENGINEERS

Grand Worthy Chief. John Cope: sec, J. U.
Bunce, Hotel Slatler. Buffalo, N. Y\ Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia, Penn., week
commencing Monday, August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres., O. F. Rabbe : acting sec, Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus,
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstown, Ohio. May
IS and 19, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION

Pres., A. N. Lucas : sec. Harry D. Vaught,
95 Liberty street. New York. Next meeting
at Omaha, Neb., Mav, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford : sec, J. G. Hanna-
han. Chicago, 111. Next meeting at St. rani,
Minn.. September, 1911.

. NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION
Pres., G. W. Wright. Baltimore. Md. : sec.
and treas., D. L. (Vaskill, Greenville, O.

\| \\ M>kk. I I HKl \kY 21,

RECENTLY prominent
marked thai most people know

.ii><»ut tluir own business than i- known

l)\ scum- outsider.

While 1 1 1 i — . may be putting it rather
too broadly, the remark, nevertheU on-
tail in of truth

'11. instantly

on the spot, should know 1 1 i — plant I than

anyone i

This not iinpl\ mere!) a pi

knowled tin- plant equipment, such

knowled] the function of • vah

but . in addition, all pha tion,

and tlun SOm<

\'. t man) » ngii

in their dail) routine \sork th.it the) lost
the high points, onl) t. to

the sudden realization that some out

the opportunit) and i making

1 out of it

This accounts i"i tin- in<

onsultinj the lubri

perl and tin i < onomit

Although the pi t is oft<

d onl> when \

ndoubti dly, t!

ise th<
plants In
ilable data at thru comm i I
• ticulai training m tk<
in. till Hut in the tn

ompetent

t tin \sork ju t a \\< II

This appli<
nstruction and
innovations m o;

i>oi:

tin: no n

the plant.

ts furnished I

not 1m ah

d appeal

This, on I

ownei tlu

• : "ii the oth.
only i; ilncss.

l»ut would his |

^acniutd livtlu- inti utsidN

I i. ! ■
an

must k

find

292

POWER

February 21, 1911.

Power Plant of a Newspaper Building

About two years ago the entire print-
ing establishment of the Cleveland Plain
Dealer was destroyed by fire and in its
place has been erected one of the most
complete and uptodate newspaper-pub-
lishing establishments in the Middle West.

The power plant is in a well lighted
corner of the basement with a 100-ton
coal-storage bin conveniently located
under the sidewalk. Coal is wheeled
from the bin in a one-ton car, and is
weighed on a Hunt scale before reaching
the boilers. Two 150-horsepower Stirl-
ing boilers, equipped with Detroit stok-
ers, furnish steam to three American-
Ball engines direct connected to gen-
erators of 50, 75 and 125 kilowatts re-
spective capacities.

The water-supply system is especially
complete for a plant of this size and is
arranged to operate with high-pressure
lines to the upper floors and low-pres-
sure to the first floor and basement, the
water flowing by gravity from a storage
tank supplied from the city mains. A
plan of the system is shown in Fig. 2
and the operation is as follows: Water
flows from the city mains directly to the
storage tank, in which the level is main-
tained by a float valve. From this tank
it flows to the house pumps and is pumped
into tanks in which a pressure of about
40 pounds is automatically maintained
by the action of the pressure regulators
on the line. There is, however, a

By Osborn Monnett

The interesting features
of tli is installation are the
water supply system, the
arrangement of pumps and
the hydraulic elevator pip-
ing. In connection with
the latter, advantage was
taken of the fact that in this
service the load is always on
the down trips, and the
energy thus developed is
utilized to raise the empty
elevator.

floors would be supplied directly from
the city mains. When the city pressure
decreases below that maintained in the
tanks, the pumps begin to operate; the
discharge is prevented from returning to
the city main by the check valve in the
bypass. This arrangement automatically
takes advantage of periods of high pres-
sure in the city mains and thereby saves
steam, which would otherwise be used in

as shown in Fig. 4. By this method a
large pumping capacity is installed with
the minimum of floor space and the
pumps are easily accessible for inspec-
tion.

Ho2_

.Hot

Water

( =— -~ XTop Heater

Fig. 2. Water System for House Service

The piping layout for a hydraulic ele-
vator used in the printing establishment
is rather unusual. This elevator is em-
ployed in bringing rolls of paper from
the store room to the press room and con-
ditions are such that the load is always

Elevator

Elevator
Control
Valve

Power

Fig. 1. Switchboard and Engine

Fig. 3. Hydraulic Elevator System

fluctuation of 20 pounds or more in the
city-water supply, and should this pres-
sure at any time exceed that maintained
in the tanks, the water would flow di-
rectly to the tanks through the bypass
and check valve K, in which case all

the house pumps during these periods.

Another notable feature of this plant
is the pumping equipment. Vertical
Cameron pumps are used and are
mounted on the engine-room wall, each
one on a handsome polished brass panel,

carried on the down trips, and the ele-
vator goes up empty. Advantage has
been taken of this circumstance to raise
the elevator through the energy developed
by the load in coming down; the way
in which this is accomplished is shown

February 21. 1911.

POU

in Fig. 3. During its downward travel
the elevator discharges into a pressure
tank partly filled with water, and this ac-
cumulated pressure is utilized to raise
empty elevator. A three-way control
valve is placed so that, if desired, the
elevator can be worked directly from the
water mains in the ordinary manner,
the water discharging to the sewer in
this case.

The electrical distribution is on the
volt, three-wire system, with bal-
ancer sets supplying lighting current at
115 volts. The switchboard, which is
shown in Fig. I. contains no switches.
except for the instruments, their place
being taken by circuit-break..

•-•ry machine in the establishment is
direct-driven by motors, ranging in
from one-quarter to tiO horsepower, and
the load on the plant for lighting and
Off is continuous, a 24-hour service
being maintained. H. J. Graham is the
chief engineer in charge of the plant.

1 I \' <•••• '■' i

Piping for Central Station Heating*

In the design of a central-station In
ing plant two things must he definitely
determined: the location of the central
station and the amount and location of
the business to be sen

A method which the writer h.i
for wmc time with satisfactor\ n
is as folio- r«t. prepare a map of

the city drawn to scale, and of a
convenient to carry in the field; some-
times it i* necessar Je the map in-
to two or more par- nap
all and alleys, and the relai

ution of each street irr
also the pa\eJ i and the kind of

pavement. Show also each building and
mark the kind of building, whether for

ness. church, residence, bank, hotel or
other pi. together with the number

of feet of raJiation that mill be required
to heat it. After this information has been

.red. make a and a careful

study of the difTere- the

noting on the map the bcM scctiono
for the central healing plant to »<

"g into ration at all the

future ,

pan of the deign that
needed, and many times & -cer

will find that he ha* made a poor gueee.
The word gueaa ia uacd h< any

ca*e* central heating planta '
nd the

In a good rraidcr

ca are oat >f moderate

wealth.

■ess wii: be connected within fl\r
Any %acan* auch a section

be conaidered aa r-

Ing to compare fa -h the aur-

Uinga.

i;. I. Gifford

. /.;/ remark i tlu
maun* i hu h

abU <jll>n:

I M
it pip, i

i •

i'Iuj ■■ >ilng

In a bu»inca» section 60
of the available buainc»a will be con-

.
depends n the kind of heat to be

sold, s ateam or water, and

whether the ga are already

J for heating with atcam 01
Aa a rule, stea
in r

una ajratf -

COM Of street and ■ stniction;

to ll

found that uction. othe

g cqua .can.

more for the iar- lo the dtfaV

other V natruc-

<h boa to bo

taken up a
In most

ged to bring ihc>
to i and to the

rtb item of

•uld not be overlooked, for in

a vide acrvice

■
donee accti. o%n la FU

i an

gewvj fC%»

■Mam, or

growth in •

-teas possible and the cent

on the deta • •
atar

oa
< reach the

greai

"v methods.
de-
panda apoa two things

laaaaaaa ' r • • • s * • • ■ * .

too
nd boat • » the seeae

mm aoose a

in the •'•>• B f« ' i .' i

the <*'•

" by aba

had.

it bmtt ft»

294

POWER

February 21, 1911.

to throw most of the line friction into
the trunk line and to have the friction
loss in the laterals very small, and to
make the friction loss in the laterals in
proportion to the circulating pressure
(difference in pressure) at the point at
which the lateral begins. As an example,
assume that at the point the lateral for

1500

900

500700

'■j;ont

78P

,?5C

900

u">

_©te

ii i

St.

Sf.

Plant
*5h

St.

1 I I

St.

3 inches in the initial layout; this wjll al- designed along the same general plan as

ways allow for some future extensions.

In figuring a branch line off of a lateral,
consider the circulating pressure at the
point the branch leaves the lateral, as
the originating pressure and one pound

5.0

a hot-water heating system, with 25
pounds as the maximum pressure on the
pipe line. The curves in Fig. 3 show the
steam-pipe capacities.

Assuming the same territory, viz.,

4.5

4.0

c c

a.—

1^3.0

+■

u- «

6 2J0
2 m

«■"?

<U i:

S-

c
o

V
o

1.5
1.0
0.5

lO
73

D-o
O C

V-

2 1

-t-
o

'i_
Ll.

— .c

Qj/

.«y.

„

?^y

..CV

<VJ
j

tv>

jiEi

£-

■ .c

5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000 35000
Square Feet of Radiation.

1 (

i'
/

■ ' i

/ 1

0e>

£l

,"PiEV^

rt^i

, 0

.D;

^i*:

" r

>J>

.p.

IbJJJ^-

'////

—

0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 250,000

Square Feet of Radiation Connected.

300,000

■50,000

Pcmc*t

Fig. 1. Plan of Area to be Heated Fig. 2. Diagrams of Pressure Drop Due to Friction in Hot-water Heatinc Mains

blocks Nos. 1 and 2 tap off the circulat-
ing pressure is five pounds. Now, there
must be at least one pound of circulating
pressure at the end of the lateral; there-
fore, four pounds can be lost in friction
between the ends of the lateral, or one
pound per 200 feet, which is five-tenths
of a pound per 100 feet. Following are
the conditions:

First 200 feet of line must handle 22,000

square feet of radiation.
Second 200 feet of line must handle 16,500

square feet of radiation.
Third 200 feet of line must handle 11,000

square feet of radiation.
Fourth 2HO feet of line must handle 5500

square feet of radiation.

From the curves in Fig. 2 it will be seen

as the circulating pressure at the end of
the branch.

The writer advocates the use of pipe
bends instead of elbows or fittings in the
lateral lines.

It has been the practice of some engi-
neers to run a larger return line than
flow line; for instance, a 3-inch flow and a
4-inch return line. This method, it is
claimed, gives a more equal circulating
pressure all over the system. The writer
has found that by limiting the heavy
friction loss to the main trunk lines, this
objection is equally well overcome and
the investment is slightly reduced.

blocks Nos. 1 and 2, the following cal-
culations would determine the steam-heat-
ing pipe sizes. In this case it will also
be assumed that the original pressure
where the line begins is three pounds.
There will be required at least one pound
pressure at the end of the line; therefore,
two pounds can be lost in friction. This
allows 0.25 of a pound per 100 feet of
pipe. Following are the conditions for
a steam-heating system:

First 200 feet of line must handle 13,200

square feet of radiation.
Second 200 feet of line must handle 9900

square feet of radiation.
Third 200 feet of line must handle 660u

square feet of radiation.
Fourth 200 feet of line must handle 3300

square foot of radiation.

<+- •
o c

<£■- 0.1

Su"
T <°

1-8

tio.

1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 9000
Square Feet of Radiation Connected.

Fig. 3. Diagrams of Pressure Drop Due to Friction in Steam-heating Mains

£/«

>%Ia7o7 c

.50

' A

*<?'N

■ ^'\

I hi

ii
i£i

pig

£***

I I'J /

jo.

(

)

25,0

-50.C

75,C

00
Sqi

100,
jar

300
eF<

>et

150,
Ra

000
die

itk

n C

200

'on

000
lee

ted

250

000

300

, WEI

000

that a 6-inch pipe will handle 22,000
square feet with this friction loss, and a
5-inch will handle 16,500 square feet,
a 4^4-inch will handle 11,000 square feet
with a lA -pound loss, and a 3T/-inch pipe
will handle 5500 square feet of radiation
with this friction loss.

A rule which the writer has followed is
never to run a smaller water main than

Pipe-line Design for Steam Heating

In designing a central-station steam-
pipe line the same general plan is used.
In this case, however, the friction loss
is dependent upon the maximum back
pressure allowed on the engines if con-
nected as a byproduct system. A live-
steam central heating plant should be

From the curves in Fig. 3 the pipe
sizes may be ascertained in the same
manner as in the previous example on
hot-water heating.

As in the case of the hot-water heat-
ing system, there should be a minimum
size of pipe to install as a main and in
steam heating the writer has fixed upon
4 inches as the minimum.

February 21. l'Jll.

POU

Efficiency of Live Steam Feed 1 1 eater

In view of the ty of opinion

among engineers as to whether the ad-
dition of a live-steam feed heater to a
steam boiler may in any case lead to
increased efficiency of working, the
author recently decided to carry out a
series of trials to test the effect of such
a heater on the steam boiler forming
pan of the laboratory equipment of
Un College. Dundee, Scotland.

This boiler is specially equipped for
ng; all measurements of fuel burnt,
of water evaporated and of tempera-
tures can be made with great accuracy.
The steam produced was used for driving
a brake-loaded experimental engine
whose load could be maintained constant
or varied as required from test to M

The boiler was of the locomotive type
with an internal diameter of 3 fl-
inches; and contains 47 tubes. 3 inches in

-•»«-• ^k s

I I. Locomotive Type op Boihr

diameter and 6 feet 10 inches long It has
an effective grate area of 7.5 square feet,
with a heating surface of 315 square
feet, and its general arrangement is
shown in Fig. I.

The feed water is supplied b\ a force

pump worked from the crosshcad of the

main engine. When supplied to the boiler

cold it enters through an opening in the

of the boiler, as shown at A in Fig. I.

When the live-steam feed heater is in
use the cold feed enters at the top of
the boiler, at B, I ig. I. and pastes
through the heater before final! . escaping
into the water space of the boiler The

B\ Prof. \. 1 1. ( ribson

i /<» /

<tJ inlet.

rflows into the second. A central
overdo* pipe maintains a constat
of about . inch in this dish, and •
flow takes place through this pipe into the
bottom dish, from which it overflows and
drops into the water space of the boiler.
The heater was supported in the steam
space of the boiler on two convenient
longitudinal sta>s. It was made as large
as could be conveniently got into the
constricted space available, but could
with advantage have been made larger.
the feed water not remaining in contact
with the steam for a sufficiently long
interval of time to enable it to attain full
boiler temperature before mixing with
the water in circulation.

The temperature immediately before
overflow m measur -cans of a

mercury thermometer in a pocket situ-
ated U

The h i operated under natural

chimney draft regulated by a dar-
at the outlet from the »mokc box. and
in order to insure a thorough mixing
of the hot gases before taking their tem-
perature, t M measi: means
of a platinum crmocouple. at
the center of the outlet flue a

Four test- out, those on

Wednesday and Thursday. Decerned
and H. iving the heater in or

it loads or
and those on 1

•

s ss
s as

« IS

f u

■

■SJMi MOl BM r Jr ' ' ■*- MM ru*"" ~g
for a i' tatt to be ob-

ttgured tha gala m

efffc ss bestr est

A3 per
Some of lbs more
import.! 'rofn the tests

!e.

iSONS PO« !

to thr ome light

on the mm - --•■ a method of
feed besting sboald Iced to
nomicsl working, a scries of

ned oat on sn
-»el about 8 hsehes in
eter and contsining about 3 inches of
wat- as heated up by means of

s ring of gas mg a

mean temperatur 2000

Fahrenheit The temperature of
water side of the .
means of a platinur

the plate. ■ shallow de-
cameter, being made in the piste to
•-• of the couple The
tempersture of the water aken by

means of a n thermometer, and

the results of the experiments arc
•

•ur» erf wfSar,

MNffSS .

W l<OI«

•» -•» ;:. no i\: J
'.« .. * •

i ring the whole :

-Hf

■• r • •.- • ■

• *■ p r ^" ^

en the

up to Si,' nr rw*n t'a"

•f

the tests, and con

low tin-plate J rpossd and I

connect sch other stance run*

The feed »a- th thst of the

feed the upper dish l m* com- • rssadt of

face

rM piste m

_ . _ ^ ^ 8JW ^^^s^m ^^kAO * #« 4

assiortty of cs**« tW •emperstv

• • rearS a* i--wVJ b* r*ra»«if«sj MM8mI

296

POWER

February 21, 1911.

would appear reasonable to assume that
over the tubes, in the neighborhood of
the feed inlet to a boiler, the tempera-
ture of the water side of the plate, and,
therefore, of the fire side of the plate for
a given rate of heat transmission, would
be appreciably lower — possibly as much
as 40 degrees Fahrenheit lower, and
probably at least 20 degrees Fahrenheit
lower — with the heater in operation than
without it. At first sight it would ap-
pear that such a small difference is
totally inadequate to account for any ap-
preciable difference in heat transmission
and hence in the efficiency, for since the
temperature of the gases has a mean
value of probably 1200 degrees Fahren-
heit, the mean difference between the
temperature of the gases and that of the
tube surface will be about 850 degrees
Fahrenheit, and a difference of 20 de-
grees Fahrenheit in this, assuming heat
transmission to vary as difference of tem-
perature, would only affect heat transmis-
sion by a little over 2 per cent. Assum-
ing the heat transmission from gas to
plate to vary as the square of the tem-
perature difference, this would increase
the effect to, roughly, 5 per cent.

Even though the great proportion of
the heat is transmitted by conduction
from gas to metal, it appears, however,
that a cooling of the metal surface is
likely to be much more effective than a
corresponding increase in the tempera-
ture of the hot gases. As is well known,
transmission of heat by conduction from
stratum to stratum of a hot gas is a mass
phenomenon, and depends on the velocity
(therefore greatest near the center of a
tube where velocities are greatest), on
the difference of temperature, and in-
creases directly as the density. Owing to
the rapidity of the motion, heat is readily
transmitted from the central filaments in
such a tube to those nearer the walls,
but with considerable less ease in the im-
mediate neighborhood of the walls where
the motion is comparatively sluggish.
In the neighborhood of the walls, how-
ever, the gas is cooled down to a tem-
perature approximating much more near-
ly to that of the cool surface; its density
is considerably greater than in the center
of the tube, and is greater as the tube
surface is cooler, so that any cooling of
this surface has a double effect in in-
creasing the rate of transmission.

On the whole it would appear that
these differences in the rates of heat
transmission, though severally small,
when acting cumulatively offer a possible
explanation of the gain in efficiency un-
doubtedly obtained in the present series
of tests by the use of the live-steam feed
heater.

The reason for the greater gains in
efficiency, in the case of the more heavily
worked boiler, is probably due to a
greater portion of the heating surface be-
ing occupied in heating up feed water
rather than in the process of evaporation,

in such a boiler, than in one more lightly
worked. With feed water at 40 degrees
Fahrenheit over 25 per cent, of its total
heat is given to the water during this
process of heating up, and the propor-
tion of the whole heating surface affected
by this must be roughly proportional to
the weight of cold feed per minute. From

boiler in which the heating surfaces are
somewhat incrusted.

Could Not Damage the
Turbine

When a 1500-kilowatt Westinghouse
steam turbine was loaded on a flat car at

Fig. 1. Showing Where the Turbine
Landed

this and other considerations it may be
expected that such a heater will be found
to be most effective:

1. In a given boiler when this is most
heavily worked.

2. Where no economizer is fitted to

Fig. 2. Broken Platform and Lagging

the company's works, ready for ship-
ment to the Cia Minera Las Dos Estrallas
mines at Tultenango Est de Mexico,
there was every reason to believe that
the shipment would reach its destination
in good shape.

Fig. 3. Turbine Set Up and Put in Operation before Any Repairs Were

Made

take advantage of the heat rejected in
the flue gases.

3. Where the boiler is fed with cold
feed water.

4. Other things being equal, in a

Matters went well until the train
reached a 20-foot embankment in which
a stone bridge had been built. Just as
the car on which the turbine was loaded
reached this bridge the car collapsed and

February 21, 1911.

POU

the turbine took a drop of 20 feet, making
one complete revolution in its descent
and landing in the river bed, as shown in
. 1 and 2.

For three weeks th: turbine lay where
it fell, while a spur track was being
built to it, as no tackle was available for
hoisting the turbine onto a car on the
main track. The turbine finally reached
its destination, was set up and had
been in operation for some time be-
fore the manufacturers were aware of
the accident.

After a month's delay a man was sent
from the factory, who took the turbine
down and examined every part. No in-
jury to the machine was found, with the
exception of the breaking of the polished
steel lagging and the upper platform, as
shown in Fig. 2

Fig. 3 shows a vie* of the turbine after
it had been set up and before the lagging
had been replaced.

There may be a prevailing idea among
engineers that the general run of steam
plant*, in Mexico arc of ancient design
There arc. however, many modern steam
installations, and the plant in which this
particular turbine is installed is uptodate
in every particular. The turbine is rated
at 1500 kilowatts and is run condensing.
Steam pressure at 150 pounds gage is
carried and the boiler-room equipment
is every bit as modern as that in the en-
gine room.

i- ip.icitv o! Refrigerati]
Plant

How much reft n will he re-

quired to cool a
me- high, to a temperature

m») pound
butter through
The cooler nulls eon

more L.

I ;
third i tthmg

iin» • -ig ami-

■ing at
hour i ;

■

■w much cond>
The heat tran»mi»»ion through '^illa-
tion of the ah >n ha« '
n. in a *c values of JifTcrcnt
ulation published I \rm-
< ".ompany. a*
«quare foot per degr
temperature Inside and

The superficial %urface of a cooler
■he above dimensions is 484 square
the maximum difference In tetn-
iturc l«

<m v

from which the total heat li
is found to be

637 ro-
per 24 hoi.

The cooling of 1000 pounds of butter
through . recs Fahrcnhc re*

1000 X 20 10.000 b

- 24 hours, making a
total du nds. or ton.

A :h single-cylinder single-. i

ing compressor operating at <lu-

tions per minute when producing tem-
peratures around 3ti degrees, should
velop a capacity of 0.64 »on per 24 hours
and would consume approximately
horsepower

To operate only six hours per day the
con; would have to be increased

in proportion to the reduced operating
time. The required cooling effect, as
determined ab> -on per

hours. If the work is to be done in tw-.
hours, the caps the machine matt

be twice as great, or 0.706 ton. and if
in six hours, four times as great, or I 4
tons. Since the capacity of the compressor
operating at 70 revolutions per minute
was found to be on!. • ton pe-

hours, the f the compressor will

have to be increased in the ratio,

0.64: I S

which gives for S. the reqi:

revolul r minute. The horse-

power will have been increased in pro-
portion to the »pc

HP., the required horse-
cr to perform the cooling wor.
Mours. |
If possible to do so, it would be mi.
better to q ompres^ .ueo-

tior

about 7
a ii .boot

It wou!J not
a thrcc-ho- otor for c;

■ b le i n i 1 1 a I » ■
ing Mat required I

machine under the \ons of nor-

mal opr

to bull' 'iadi

g one*, ar

•ken
on onr

reed l«

rain foe the

and Inclo <*• •* «•••

■ BCMBU,

inclosed crank-

in all proba

tory for the limited reqt
ing against ammonia pressure in this
made on the rotating
instead of on a reciprocating
piston rod as in other t> r I much

easier to keep the former packing tight.
e machine to not to be
-ated cor
li be good practice to nor i

compressor with the suction rahre located
in the piston head, as • fleet of lac
at t- r end of the stroke causes the

prompt closing of the ereby pre*

due opportunity for gss
that has e- icr. to rscana

-ig compressed. StaiiU
a tends to open

'd stroke, thereby .

ing full opportunity to fill the cylinder

during the whole of the d I strokn.

If the rr.A i to be operated onl>

hours per d* I pounds back

* % XX re dMt whJ4f h t n#?

running feet o'

ng should be used. If the
is to be operated twice as long, the
can be reduced, bat not in the
rati 4000 nanr

■
mling water at the usual
tut

be of the do
the cooling water passes

nd the
the i^out JO

running I good ratio, or

for the above mac'
hoi

ut 30
«mple s- j*I

I he stv' the ttmes

« oid JaUothaeasr

•
•■ » of locomotive bt>
ation 4»»» The student can** treH

I ii t-ikM -w fat •*■<■»< 'fr."V p*<T'"t.

ta naara to the boiler sfcon and
xd Mr

losir

298

POWER

February 21, 1911.

Low Pressure Turbine in Davenport

About two years ago the Bettendorf
Axle Company, of Davenport, la., was
considering an addition to its electrical
equipment, due to the growth of the
plant, and made a thorough investigation
of the various prime movers suitable for
the purpose. Taking into consideration
the heating of the shops in winter and
the fact that the old power plant was run-
ning noncondensing, all factors pointed
to the low-pressure or exhaust turbine as
the most suitable power unit to install,
from the standpoint of reliability, sim-
plicity, economy and maintenance.

The power equipment at that time con-
sisted of two 100-kilowatt direct-con-
nected high-speed tandem-compound en-
gine-driven units, a number of hydraulic
pumps and an air compressor exhausting
into one header, making an ideal arrange-

By P. Bendixen

A ^oo-kilowatt unit takes
exhaust steam from en-
gines, pumps and air com-
pressor and develops about
three-fourths of the energy
delivered to the primary
units.

being used mostly for the operation of
cranes, the lighting of shops, and for
lifting magnets. When machinery now
under construction is completed and in-
stalled, the load will be increased to about
double. The main steam supply is de-
rived from the exhaust of the hydraulic

quired amount of steam to keep the tur-
bine in operation is secured. This ar-
rangement works very satisfactorily, as
the valve operates within a range of one-
half pound drop in pressure. The aver-
age back pressure is about three pounds,
and to take care of an excessive back
pressure the exhaust header is provided
with a 12-inch relief valve set to operate
at five pounds pressure. All steam to the
turbine passes through an 18-inch two-
stage separator, which separates all oil
and moisture from the steam. A Worth-
ington condenser with 3150 square feet
of surface is installed, the condensed
steam being returned to the boiler feed-
water heater.

While no figures ape available to sub-
stantiate a statement as to the exact per-
formance of the turbine, it is thought

Low-pressure Turbine Installation in Plant of the Bettendorf Axle Company

ment for connection to an exhaust tur-
bine. The company decided to install a
500-kilowatt horizontal Curtis turbine.
This turbine was put in operation in
September, 1909, and has been in service
for about 14 hours per day since. It
supplies all electrical power required
by the plant, which at present amounts to
250 kilowatts average load, this power

pumps, but, owing to the fact that these
pumps are subject to interrupted ser-
vice, due to breakdowns on the system,
other means of supplying steam had to
be provided and a connection was there-
fore made from the exhaust header to
the high-pressure steam pipe through a
4x8-inch Foster pressure-reducing valve.
Bv means of this connection the re-

possible, when running with 28-inch vac-
uum, to recover 75 per cent, of the en-
ergy delivered to the pumps, compressors
and reciprocating engines. In cool weather
it has been possible to run for weeks
with a vacuum of from 29 to 29^ inches,
this, of course, making quite a difference
in the steam consumption. In order to
maintain a good vacuum, it has been

February 21. 1911.

found necessary to pipe the steam seal
in which the carbon-packing rings are
located with high-pressure steam to in-
sure against any leakage of air around
the shaft. The amount of steam reqi.
for this purpose can best be founj

riment, and when once adju-
quires very little attention.
Before putting the turbine in

ts run for a few days under various
loads, the generator being loaded on a
water box. It was found that sufficient
exhaust steam was available to furnish

kilowatts continuously, and as much
as 575 kilowatts for short period

boilers of ab<

were in xr -hat tin uha

of the test \»<

cred to
engines and a

th a load flu. of at*

amperes, the sanation in po-
nd or thrc ant-
ing load c clo»cd-arc, fla
arc. n . apor and descent
lamps.

ilts arc obtain

of a re generator between the

units and the turbine during

e makes up for ar the

c h might be da*
stated re' • -i. rt-t supparc of o~.c of
the rngjnet or pump* -
■est • sufficient aapply of tfcam i*

The long c »i c ontm uoos run oo far made

■ ■*,
aw
s:r.
t:0

MM »W :-: • •' -ur.c of

h the rarbtac. hare oecarrad
raiac vaa irai pat la

a lav-
-Sere a
»ly of cthaaaa aiaaa

■ operation

Verdict in Pabst Explosion Case

The case of the Pabst Brewing Corn-
pans l the Hartford Steam Boiler
Inspection and Insurance Company, gr
ing out of the boiler explosion which
occurred at the Pabst plant on the morn-
ing of October 25. 1909. has just been
heard in Milwaukee before A. L. Sanborn,
United States district judge for the *
ern district of Wisconsin.

The Pabst Brewing Company sued
on two counts, the first being that
the Hartford company "represented and
held itself out to the public as skilled and
rt in the examination and inspection
of steam boilers and that its faaapad
would make the skilled and careful ex-
aminations necessary to determine the
safety and condition of the exploded boil-
ers and that the results of all inspections
would be promptly and truly reported to
the Pabst company so that the latter
would be kept continuously and accurate-
formed as to the true condition and
safety of said boiU

The plaintiff alleged "on information
and belief that on and irth

day of September. 1909, aald bo
were not free from dangerous de'
and were not in good condition, but that
each of said boilers contained, among

rs. the divers and dangerous de'
following: racks a'

along, and in con: - I, the r

p or plate of the drum of each

broken n each

ng plate and elsewhere in each of
the drums of said I lan-

gcrous defects wh plaintiff is un-

ablr own ki

formation and belief to panicu:>

aintiff further alleged "that
boil' rt in an unsafe and dangeroaa

n and • 'ccts w

a nature a« to be obvious to ai
ing any knowledge

in the e steam boilers and

that the defendant ought, in I
of ordinary care i

•kill, to have di*<
defects and a ed the

explosion I in

1909,
this i- hit"

led in

"if'<nr. Hd

ilk 11

at I >, , , wl'» 1 I I-/

was imm* </.' ' /« '/.

plaintiff thrreof. prior to the cxplo-

Also it was alleged "that the defendant
was careless, reckless and negligent in
mak »ns; failed to observe and

•x dangerous dc' and

■(fairy and negligent: i to in-

form the plaintiff as to the tru

son of aald
•igful and negligent on the

boilers wcr I iued in operation and

on the '*&.

and that ason thereof t

was pre "'ual-

naaa an 'he amount

tiff all 'hat ill

• '
age 'font the

" no*

I house

eed the

m of

it • > <• « .-

the po
g a property laaa c

It «iil be at'

ai groaad of

!« r the COr

the wording of ia wh

was a limiting clause corartag damage
due to any one exploaiaa. The pottty
affected ra 8BB Pabst !

Compa-

mediate Iota, or daaia. ept by '

to the property specified ia the polio ar
ilring from loaa al

(used by the exploaiaa. col-
lapse, or rupture, of any or all Meant

rs covered by the po:
ther covenanted "that h\ the terra

!ap*e or rupture I be

ood a sudden aaaattr
aaander of the boi » portion t'

of or the sudd ling or forcing la.

war r flues Ia a

on the policy, b
further liability

of the co from loaa or

from any one cxptooioa
ceed the sum of
more than one t

the compa
•he Mim insured h% "r p-

the Pabat compa

1 -

'
erf re Ita

» - x. aai r»p •"'sion
r-ca£fd a oagaaataM
of < J

aalaaaaa, I

•a of the exploded
port their opinion aa so the afabaaat
cause of the disaster In the amriaaeay
•
braaajat aat All foav of

along rat center Hat of
■aal to tfr

■ '■* regv

fyajaj

to har<

300

POWER

February 21, 1911.

leaking had been noticed along this rein-
forcing seam and that many rivets had
become loose and been replaced in the
effort to stop this leaking. Also the out-
side edge of the plate had been repeated-
ly calked with the same object in view.
The examining committee had investigated
the condition of Nos. 5 and 6 boilers,
which did not explode, and testified to
finding cracks easily visible between the
row of rivets holding the reinforcing strip
to the shell of these boilers, these cracks
being attributed to the breathing action
resulting from holding a portion of the
boiler shell rigid under the reinforcing
strip, allowing the remainder of the shell
to expand and contract with the steam
pressure, and also to the unequal ex-
pansion and contraction due to the dif-
ferent thickness of the two pieces of
metal. It was contended by the plaintiff
that, inasmuch as Nos. 5 and 6 boilers
were found to be in this condition, it was
reasonable to suppose the exploded boil-
ers, being of the same age and having
the same general treatment throughout
their lives, were in the same weakened
condition, making them dangerous for the
v/orking pressure carried in the plant.

In answering the charges, the defendant
alleged "that in the event of an explo-
sion of all, or any, of the boilers the
total liability for all loss or damage re-
sulting from any one action, or explo-
sion, however caused, should not exceed
the sum of $50,000. That said boilers
and property mentioned were destroyed
and injured by one accident or explosion
within the meaning of the policy, and
that by reason thereof the liability did
not exceed the sum of $50,000; and that
the explosion was caused by the neglect
and carelessness of the plaintiff. That, in
case of more than one accident occurring
during the three-year period covered by
the terms of the policy, the entire liability
of the defendant should not exceed the
sum of $150,000."

In opposition to the claim based upon
negligence the defense, while denying
any lack of diligence in this respect,
maintain that, although the policy gave
the defendant permission to make boiler
inspections, still it was not bound to do
so, and that what inspections were made
were simply and solely for the informa-
tion of the defendant itself, and that it
was not obligatory that these reports
should be given to the owner of the in-
sured boilers. In all cases, however, it
was contended that such information had
been given after each inspection.

Answering the technical features of the
case, B. J. Morrison, of St. Mary's, O.,
testified for the defense, that in his opin-
ion the initial rupture came in the main
steam line of the plant or some of its
principal connections and that the water,
flashing into steam, caused an over-
production of pressure which exploded
the boilers. He also believed that the
leaking around the reinforcing ream came

from where the tubes were expanded in-
to the drums. In his opinion the cracks
between the rivet holes were caused by
rolling the plates in process of manufac-
ture and after the row of rivet holes had
been punched.

These cracks, he believed, were entire-
ly covered by the reinforcing strip in
such position as to be impossible of
detection when making boiler inspections.
He admitted that it would be only a
question of time until the drum would
fail under these conditions, as there
would be a breathing action along this
low of rivets. In regard to the effect of
differential expansion he believed that
this could be set down as negligible,' the
movement, if any, being so absolutely
small as not to warrant serious considera-
tion. Mr. Morrison was of the opinion
that none of the cracks between the rows
of rivets in the reinforcing seam could
have been visible before the explosion
and believed that if six or more cracks
had existed entirely throughout the sheet,
between the rivet holes in the reinforc-
ing seam, it would have been impossible
to keep water in the boiler or maintain

could stand. He criticized severely the
design of the boilers, testifying that he
believed the drums were prevented from
assuming a true circle, owing to the pres-
ence of the heavy reinforcing plate hav-
ing a tendency to make this part of the
drum rigid and flatter than the other
points. This, he believed, contributed
largely to the failure of the boilers, as
during the entire life of the boilers there
would have been a breathing action, set-
ting up stresses along the length of the
drums. He also criticized the boiler with
respect to circulation, although he did not
think that any of these points had a di-
rect bearing on the cause of the explo-
sion, and the fact that all the drums let
go along the reinforcing strip showed
merely that this was the weakest part of
the boiler and that the failure would
naturally occur at this point after being
set off by the breakage of the steam line.
Regarding the cracks found in Nos. 5
and 6, he testified that in his opinion
they were developed by the concussion
when the other boilers exploded and that
these cracks could not have been in the
boilers before; otherwise it would have

-g Boiler
Shell

me of Failure

4 Tubes,

6"C.toC.

Drum of Munoz Boiler, Showing Line of Fracture

'nforcinq
Plate | thick

steam pressure. In answer to the con-
tention that Nos. 5 and 6 boilers were
found to have dangerous cracks in the
shell along this reinforcing seam, he
testified that in his opinion these cracks
were not there before the explosion but
were caused by the violent concussion
of the explosion. Nos. 4 and 5 boilers,
it developed, were connected to the line
at the time the explosion occurred, while
No. 6 was disconnected, and not under
steam. He believed that the reason Nos.
4 and 5 did not explode was because
Nos. 1, 2 and 3 happened to be the
weaker, owing to the breathing action
along the reinforcing seam, and that they
were unable to stand the concussion
brought about by failure in the steam
line.

Prof. L. P. Breckenridge, of New
Haven, Conn., also testified in the de-
fense. It was his belief, according to
the testimony, that the primary cause of
the explosion had been a failure in the
steam line or some of its principal con-
nections and that the sudden release of
pressure had created an instantaneous
steam pressure higher than the drums

been impossible to keep water in them or
maintain the steam pressure. He also
believed that differential expansion be-
tween the boiler shell and the reinforc-
ing plate was of very little consequence,
owing to the fact that this part of the
boiler was not subjected to the direct heat
of the fire and was considerably removed
from the zone of high temperature.

The judge held that whether or not there
v/ere negligence on the part of the de-
fendant, the Hartford Steam Boiler In-
spection and Insurance Company could
be held only for the amount and kind of
damages specified in the contract, so that
had the jury decided that there had been
but a single explosion the damage would
have been limited to the $50,000 admitted
by the defendant. He did, however,
allow the jury to determine what the in-
direct damages would be, in case of re-
versal on appeal, and they placed them
at $810. The jury found also that
there was more than one explosion within
the meaning of the contract and awarded
the S97,400 agreed upon as direct dam-
ages. The case was immediately ap-
pealed.

February 21, 1911.

PO\* \ H

Methods of Governing Steam Engines

In nearly all cases where a steam en-
gine is used, it is of primary importance
to maintain the speed constant, or nearly
The two principal conditions affect-
ing the speed are the steam pressure and
the resistance which the engine has to
overcome. Therefore the governor must
be able to regulate the quantity or the
pressure of the steam, so that the power
developed by the engine is just sufficient
to overcome all the resistance when run-
ning at its normal

The degree of accuracy required de-
pends generally upon the kind of ma-
chinery to be driven. For many pur-
poses a governor which is capable
merely of preventing the engine from
rvnning at an excessive speed is suffi-
cient, whereas for other purposes it is
necessary that the governor should
maintain the speed under all conditions
of load and steam pressure within very
closely defined limits, which in special
cases are within I M Bf cent, of

the normal speed. Also, the load re-
quired of the engine may vary rap
and in this case it is necessary that a
sensitive governor be used ; or, on the
other hand, the variation in load may
take place gradually, in which case a
slow-moving governor will serve the pur-
pose.

The governor of a steam engine can
control only the mean speed of rotation,
as the steam is admitted periodically to
the cylinder. Between each admission of
steam, a variation in the angular vcl
of the rotating parts takes place, and this
can be minimized only by adding flywheel
power, hor many purposes it is nc
tary that this angular variation should be
kept within fine limits, in addition to the
mean speed of rotation, and under these
conditions heavy flywheels are generally
■■ed. Betides maintaining a unil
speed of rotation during each revolution,
the flywheel greatly issists the governor
in ca*e« where a variation in lo.i
place vcrv rapidly, as Is the case where
the engines are used for rolling mills
and for | electric general

plying pou

There are to ipal methods of

governing engine throttling the

steam and by altering the point of
off. that is, varying the degree
panslon In the first case the qua
of steam admitted to the eng :on-

slant under all lo.« -Ing

nit con : in the second

case the amount -n admitted to

the en»: varied

the pre«*ure remaining constant,
tically «o Sometime* the two methods
of governing arc combined, and when
thi« arrangement is used the engine to
usually controlled bf the throttle gov-
ernor entirely at light load*

By John Davidson

is oi

■

:ni throttle govt <

Throttle governors are used mostly for
small c in nearly all cases for

high -.-ngincs of all powers ar..:

cases where the to

and the gotten required .ally

as a safer. | for pumping en-

gines, etc. As is generally understood,
with throttle-governed i the most

economical load is the maximum load the
engine .clop with an. cut-

off. Therefore, it follows that where a
variation in load takes place the
throttle governor docs no* e high-

t ■. ,.. »>

TUI

*e noted. I

-. that » oad

is a on-

omy b*

throttle governors Is r
gible quant

IN loads n< >ed

bv \ i
car ' engine pes*

grcr . anaion wr « geed

econo-T". rvcr j >rg| IMgg "' ' '"- SO"
maV I to sb«

und ame conditions of load when

ansion and by

if
inpose that the engine red In

•urr > the I

sqesre inch to stmt

then the steam consumption w
throttling governor trill be ss shown by

bet wee- pounds mc

aed by

-
governed engine is the norc eco-

To n
thr. *„.

pound nsioo type. when

•clop o.

often able high ;

steam to be aJ
ond cylinder, thus converting the triple*
msion engine for the time being into
>mpour ar..! a

into s simp nc. This arranger

to s .ind enables an engine

ivy overloads in cases of
emerge tice to

not to be recommend^ ** dtstribsj-

tion of *een the cylinders of

the engine wr b overloads

to very un s* the moving

■

*e unequal
• lbs
Speed regu

mtage :n one method of f<
over the o- controlling m

rposes it to of'

'he speed of the eo-

" 'ant ur. I ons of

vemor. ia
controlling force to doe to

i ImpoaefMllrr to

necessary that the
of • err is

position of the go* armor

ar.J DSSaSSSJMOt m' * | n ?V a- !

or pressor r tbs

govern* cs up its position by

ht speed ef tbs engine.

To ma I agios aowfaatf

ipecd t * ntce»*ar> to Va.r a 'rguat

Ing devies which sossmsltoslry speeds

governor OS SOOO a

•he load bo* taken

femes* of

> devise for i
gin* from resaaang at an easoosfos speed

* goooivaoT H i

302

POWER

February 21, 1911.

should be fitted to shut off steam en-
tirely in case the ropes or belt should
break. Many serious accidents have
occurred through engines not being fitted
with an arrangement of this kind.

Engines running at a high rotative
speed usually have the governor at-
tached directly to the crank shaft, thus
dispensing with all gearing and making a
very compact and safe arrangement.
The throttle valve is usually connected
directly to the governor, and the latter
is fitted with a speeder device, the
spring of which acts in such a manner as
to close the throttle valve in case the
governor itself should break down. The

more powerful type of governor gear is
necessary, and a governor controlling a
relay motor is by far the most satisfac-
tory.

Medium-speed engines are sometimes
fitted with governors of the crank-shaft
type. In this case the governor has to
drive the valve in addition to modifying
the position of the gear to change the
point of cutoff; hence they are usually of
massive construction. This type of gov-
ernor at one time was extensively
used for engines of a high rotative speed
but it has now been almost entirely aban-
doned by English engineers, the throttle
type taking its place. A few designs of

Fig. 2. Pickering Governor

high speed of rotation makes it possible
to adopt this arrangement; but, of course,
with slow-speed engines it is absolutely
necessary to provide intermediate gear-
ing if a powerful high-speed governor
is required.

Slow-speed engines are usually fitted
with steam-distributing valves actuated
through trip gears; consequently the
governor acts upon the tripping device
to modify the point of cutoff. Very little
power is required to operate the governor
in proportion to the size of engine, as
the gears are easily tripped. In the
case of engines fitted with rotary cut-
off valves, similar to the Ryder gear, a

this type of governor are made, and will
be described later.

Owing to the demand for economical
high-speed engines, especially for large
powers, variable-expansion governing
has again been adopted, but in combina-
tion with throttle governing. Governors
of the flywheel type are not used, and the
piston valve is driven in the usual way
from an eccentric having a constant
travel, the cutoff being varied by slightly
rotating the valve which is provided with
angular ports, with the liner having an-
gular ports to correspond. Even in this
type of governor, as considerable power
is required to rotate the valve on its

spindle, relay motors are generally
adopted in place of putting this additional
work on the governor. The governor
then simply controls the main throttle
valve, and alters the position of a small
piston valve in connection with the re-
lay motor.

As a full consideration of the theory
and workings of governor gears would
be out of place in this article, only the

Fig. 3. Pickering Governor with
Equilibrium Valve Attached

principal designs of governors in gen-
eral use will now be illustrated and de-
scribed.

Throttle Governors

The most common form of combined
governor and throttle valve is the Pick-
ering, the general design of which is
shown in Fig. 2. In this governor all
arms and joints are replaced by flat
springs, dispensing with all pin joints
and the consequent wear and friction. A
neat form of speeder gear is generally
fitted, consisting of a torsional spring
which tends to close the throttle valve by
means of a lever, the pressure being ad-
justed through the small worm and wheel.
The throttle valve being of the double-
seated type is balanced, and the edges
are vandyked so as to give a gradual
opening.

A very effective type of knockoff gear
is manufactured by Pollock, McNak &
Highgate, of Glasgow, under "Smith's"
patent, for this type of governor. The
ordinary knockoff gear for governors
driven through a belt or ropes consists
of a loose arm carrying a jockey pulley,
the pulley running on the driving belt or
ropes, and dropping in case they should
break. This arrangement is not alto-

February 21. 1911.

303

gcthcr satisfactory for the following
reasons: It places the whole stress of
the governor on the tension spring, which
has to carry the weight of the valve

knockoff gear acts or m the belt

breaks, the action of the arm then
leasing the spring and causing the valve
to close. It Joes not act when the belt

fMltlaa ■

Fie. 4. Attac;

spindle; and any downward pull of the
leaf springs, when the governor is being
expanded by an excess of speed, makes
the governor less sensitive and intcr-

slides, or the pulley slips on the shaft,
nor when a pin or kev comes out, but
only when the belt gives »

With VTwth's patent automatic knock-

feres with its exact working. The off gear fitted to the g

1 ' » t I i » ' 1 1

dWM

objections arc obviated, and if from any
* the go\crror stop* or slo»
rings the bottom i

an equ
ut» off the
Steam fron r.c Thc»c val\c«

shown in 1 -the action of

the governor nor its regulation of »peed

▼hen the
engine is j' ves arc

clo> j small

I used to epen them. This

action may

be »od b> ice to Fii

The

«n of the governor a'
engine has bet nfe>

mcr •

Is not at of order, sod

has the advantage of
power of tr ■ ;■

m engine ire com-

Govmsoa
htaed as sho% iich rrprw-

all purpose*, and koo - thi

Anothc of combined

c is
the

mingham The go

iouid stop from i
•u<h as hr< the

prevent the engine front
dillhrhsm

with JouMc •team vstw.

the
4 most be held of he
0 II as shewn in

304

POWER

February 21, 1911.

speed the balls will have lifted and the
supports fallen out of the way, leaving
the balls free to drop to their lowest
position, closing the valve and preventing
the engine from running away in case the

Pomex

Fig. 7. Precision Governor

governor should cease to run from any
cause whatsoever.

In Fig. 7 is shown the Precision spring
governor, made by Schaeffer & Buden-
berg, of London and New York. This
governor, although of simple design, is
very sensitive, the aim being to reduce
friction to a minimum and at the same
time to make all parts easily accessible.
The governor gear is mounted on a ver-
tical spindle which runs in ball bearings.
The tension of the springs increases with
the outward swing of the pendulums, the
two forces (the tension of the springs
and the centrifugal force of the weights)
practically balancing each other. The
increase in the tension of the springs is
practically constant for every equal
movement of the weights; consequently
the governor is almost astatic. A special
type of knockoff gear is fitted which
comes into action in case the governor
should stop rotating.

The bracket A, carrying the governor
head and the horizontal spindle with the
pulley and bevel wheels, is arranged to
slide on and turn round the hollow pillar
on the bridge B. The bracket A is held
in the upper position by the collar on
the pivot, X resting on the rollers Y and
W. In this position the governor acts
like any ordinary governor; that is, when
the weights are in their "in" position the
ports of the valves are full open. If the
strap is placed on the pulley, the knock-
off motion is put into action by turning

the pivot X so tnat the notched portion
is opposite the roller Y ; the bracket A is
then held in the upper position by the
pull of the belt pressing the collar on
the pivot X against the roller W. If the
strap breaks, the pivot immediately slides
off roller W, and bracket A with the
governor, etc., drops, thus shutting off the
valve until the weights fall into their
"in" position. By turning the handle H
on the pivot, the knockoff motion can be
adjusted to act for a belt pulley from
the opposite direction. The roller W is
notched and provided with a small lever
O by which the knockoff motion can be
actuated by hand, if necessary, from a
distance. If rope or wire connected to
the lever O is passed under the main
belt of the engine, the knockoff motion
will be actuated if the belt should slip
off the pulley, thus immediately shutting
down the engine.

In Figs. 8 and 9 are illustrated a gov-
ernor, also made by Messrs. Schaeffer &

fugal force must pass through the virtual
center, which in this case is the axis of
support of the pendulum. That is, in
Fig. 9 let F G represent the resultant of
the weights passing through the center of
gravity of the pendulum, and F K the di-
rection of the resultant centrifugal force,
then F O represents the direction of the
resultant of these forces, and completing
the parallelogram FGHKF, FK repre-
sents the magnitude of the centrifugal
force. In the middle position this acts
upon the weight B alone, and therefore
the speed may be computed as before. In
the other positions, the effect of the cen-
trifugal force must be proportionately
distributed over the weights B and W in
order to determine the speed. Between
the two extreme positions, the governor
shows a variation of only 2 per cent.,
and it could easily be made more sensi-
tive if desired.

/ If a governor is made extremely sen-
sitive throughout its lift, it is liable to
overrun or hunt. This may be checked
— at the same time retaining the highest
degree of sensitiveness — by making the
governor extremely sensitive about its
middle position, but less sensitive upon
approaching the highest and lowest posi-
tions. This is one of the objects aimed
at in the construction of the four-pend-
ulum governor shown in Fig. 10. In this
there are four pendulums A which
are suspended in such a manner that
under the influence of their own weight
alone they would fly apart until they
had nearly reached their extreme outer
position, corresponding to the highest
position of the governor. They are,
however, held in the inner position by
the weight of the muff W which is applied
through the pivots B of the pendulums.
The latter are supported by short links C
from the spindle D, and the sliding
weight, which is made in one piece with

Fig. 8. Buss Governor

Budenberg, and known as the "Buss"
type. In this governor a compound
pendulum is employed, consisting of a
bell crank A, one end of which carries a
ball B, and the other a cylindrical weight
W. There is one pendulum of this de-
scription supported on each side of the
rotating axis in such a manner that the
arm carrying the cylindrical weight W
extends across the axis. Each pendulum
is fitted with a stud C, which engages
with and imparts movement to the muff.
By a suitable choice of weights the sys-
tem can be made absolutely isochronous
within an angle of oscillation of about
twenty degrees; beyond this angle the
pendulum is in unstable equilibrium. The
condition of equilibrium is such that the
resultant of the weights and the centri-

Fig. 9. Force Diagram of Buss Governor

the muff, incloses the whole governor.
A light spring E is inserted to add to
the stability and for adjusting the speed.
The small view on the left of the pulley
represents an arrangement for varying
the speed of the governor while in

February 21. 1911.

P O U E K

.VJ5

operation. For this purpose the spindle
ongated and the muff is loaded by
means of a spring S, which is held down
l nut P. By turning the milled wheel
C the nut is moved on the spindle, and
the tension on the spring is varied,

10. FOUR-PENDLLLM G<

which in turn changes the effect of
the weight of the muff. By the use of
this arrangement the «-pccd of the gov-
ernor may be varied Dy about 90 H
lutions per minute. This governor is to
>ned that it is a! ochron-

out about its middle p<> but a

•difference of 3 per cent, is re-
quired to move it from the lowest to the
highest position.

A governor constructed in such a
manner that the hight of the cone of
lution is constant in all positions
of the balls could be in equilibrium only
at the one particular speed which cor-
responds to this hight. and the governor
would therefore be absolutely isochron-
ous r the balls
ire . to ii i be I parabola,
and ted in i direction normal to
the parabola it c nt. One pos-
■■ method of obtiining t! sists
in hinging the bills from i I leif
spring wound upon i bas< the
x parabola. There ar
Tlcultiea in the wiy of cirrying
a. but i feisible na-
tion to these the
Wa"

o that within the rang
I ■
des, c ball*

ma- lh in tl -abola hiv-

ing « of rr n of

the |Oi

A* ' the f>

high speed engines arc usually attached
'he crankshaft in '
il the lime speed is

gine. These governors ire generally of
very simple construction, as illustrated
in Fig. 1 1.

The weights W W arc pivoted on pins
P P and by means of extended irms
A A the motion of the wcigf I ins-

mitted to the sleeve H. One end of the
bell crank C engiges this sleeve ind the
other end is attached to i throttle-valve
spindle. The weights consist of plain
steel castings, and adjustment is msde
by idding weights on either I

It is now general practice in the cise
of high inclosed, forced-lubrica-

tion steim engines, to lubricate the main
fulcrum pins by oil under pressure. To
accomplish this a hole is drilled through

II!'

the center of the shaft at the cnJ .
nee '> the groove in the no

bearing, and from this hole i
* ire n mi of smill r

to the fulcrum pins.

en that
l speeder gear
the casing
constats of
between ■

•lg, and it
on the

thf >een* of a

han I Jised or

■ I ind the compression on the
ig mo J
of the engif

he se< should the

rovrrnor break ! * - or become ' »con

sected from th. . the spring

D will imr >se the

shut down -

I throt; on

this diss of engines ire gc
of the double-beat bilinced type aa
shoun in I cram e:

top ind pa>

the two faces >::< - ness of

the metal r : liner

•s nearly uniform aa possible ind b

al in form the ape

»hcn
itions in pressure and temp

n to a
minimum, and it the I
ing the po«. of an engine attendant

interfering with th

be possible if an a of

glind packing srere fitted, a plain hash
of considerable leng'
method of pre leakage ol

his pro and • bush

will remain tight I pro-

■ii ry 1 1.
and is it to feed the

oil into the pipe next to the thr
valve, the spindle ca~ :iple

lubricat

Throttle valves of the piston jvc

been largclv used, as they can be made
perfectly balanced and are easy to
uite; but owing to the fict that il
cult to adjust them «hen takes

place, thev hive been abandoned by tnsst
builders of high-speed engines. With i
throttle valve of the double-seitcd
the weir is sutomit
the govern I for when

its seals, ar I
-
r«t toss It

Of' k r ■ ; . » ' , . r 'rof • | N

306

POWER

February 21, 1911.

«^5—

A Unique Gas Power Pump-
ing Plant

By Osborn Monnett

The city of Toledo, though rated as an
important lake port, is situated so far
back on the Maumee river that it is im-
practicable to take advantage of the lake
as a means of water supply, and it has
therefore gone through all the various
processes of evolution common to inland
cities which have to depend on river sup-
ply, such as Cincinnati, Louisville, St.
Louis and others in the Middle West. ■

The original high-duty pumping sta-
tion took water from the Maumee river
at a point about one mile south of the

tion with the filter plant a low-service
gas-power pumping station has been in-
stalled for raising the water up to the
point where it is purified. This pumping
station was originally intended to be lo-
cated at the water's edge, but upon in-
vestigation it was found that the diffi-

and brick structure 65 feet wide and 180
feet long. Fig. 2 gives an idea of the
layout as at present installed, with future
producer and pumping units indicated in
dotted lines. Fig. 3 shows the coaling
arrangement. Coal is delivered at the
pumping station on a siding elevated
some 6 feet above the general ground
level. From the cars the coal is either
dumped or shoveled into a concrete un-
derground coal bin having a capacity of
approximately 250 tons. Underneath this
bin is a pit which permits the coal to be
drawn from the bin, crushed and de-
livered to a bucket elevator by which it is
deposited in an elevated coal bunker over
the stokers, from which point it is spouted
by gravity to the charging hoppers. This

Producer Level

Eugiuc Room
/Level

Pump Pit

Pumping
Level\

,-<sW<,w*v;*{uM'W«>w*.l^WiwwJttiVAW.\vn>M'j».»/A

TRirmp

Grouud Line

Fig. 1. Sectional Elevation of Pump Pit and Profile of Pipe Route

center of the city. The equipment at this
point consists of two 5,000,000-gallon
Worthington compound duplex horizontal
pumping engines; one 7,000,000-gallon
Knowles pump of similar type and two
vertical compound duplex Worthington
pumping engines of 15,000,000 gallons ca-
pacity each, making a total pumping capa-
city of 47,000,000 gallons in 24 hours.
Under ordinary conditions the water at
this point in the river is moderately turbid
except when it is disturbed by high wind
or when the clear water has been dis-
placed by highly turbid water from upper
portions of the river. The quality of the
water on the whole was not satisfactory
and a plan was finally worked out of
operating the original pumping station in
connection with a filtration plant, using
the original station, which had ample
capacity, for distributing the purified
water, and holding the old intake in re-
serve.

The filtration plant, as finally built, is
located at a point 2V2 miles up the river
from the original station. The water is
supplied to the pumps at this station
through a 6- foot concrete tunnel by
gravity from the filter beds. In connec-

culties of obtaining a satisfactory founda-
tion and the danger from high water
and ice gorges were such as to make it
advisable to adopt' another location. It
was therefore decided to build the pump-
ing station at a point about 500 feet
nearer the filter plant at a considerable
distance from the river, as shown in the
profile, Fig. 1.

In order to deliver the water to the
pumps in the new location, an intake
pier or submerged crib was located ap-
proximately 800 feet from the shore to-
ward the channel of the river. From this
intake the water flows through a 48-inch
cast-iron submerged intake pipe to a con-
crete shore well 10 feet in diameter; the
bottom of this well is 27 feet below mean
water level. At a level about 18 feet
above mean water level is the pump
floor, above which is built a concrete gate
house, circular in plan. From the shore
well the water flows through a 5- foot
brick tunnel, as indicated, 500 feet long,
to the suction well in the engine room
of the pumping station.

The New Pumping Station
The pumping station proper is a steel

overhead bin has a capacity of about 70
tons.

Two gas-producer units are in opera-
tion but the producer room is planned
for a total capacity three times that of
the present equipment. Each of the pro-
ducers now in service is capable of gasi-
fying 300 to 400 pounds of bituminous
coal per hour, which will permit each unit
to furnish gas for 300 to 350 engine
horsepower or to carry a maximum load
for two or three hours of 500 horse-
power. The generators are of the Wocd
water-sealed type, 8 feet in internal
diameter, with a fire-zone cross-section
of 50 square feet. In connection with
them are installed two vertical wet scrub-
bers of the ordinary type and two motor-
driven rotary scrubbers which serve also
as tar extractors and blowers. The gen-
erators are partly shown in Fig. 4 and
one of the tar extractors is shown in
Fig. 5.

The coal used is Hocking Valley bitumi-
nous washed pea, which costs $2.30 per
ton delivered at the plant. Up to the
present time there has been no attempt to
utilize the extracted tar for fuel pur-
poses and considerable thought has been

February 21, 1911.

POW

307

blem of dispo

•charged from

the tied

sump and pump it from V.

e bui
tank be ooi

no tan.

the lump u
of special de* -
a an.

sale for the t..
foil-
ing material.

into a main head- am-

cter is out jfflp

■MpOMOl The
if the tar from

rom

belr | --.iw-tion of

mine Ol

ancd from

CtJ

toeapitl MM ca»;c . : * 're- <->f the

ov the
mom floor an.'

On iN

rd 10

lot

floor of the machinery roo

(at engine* direct cor

ese ur »h electric or

•he ptewr . ; » •
the SHertag alaat, tachsdiejg tW or

• i i

308

POWER

February 21, 1911.

agent mixers, etc., in the other part of to receive the exhaust gases, which pass

the works, and an electric elevator in
the pit.

Waste-gas Heating System

One of the interesting details of this
plant is the arrangement for heating it
with the exhaust gases of the engine. It

up through the tubes and out at the top.
This muffles the exhaust very effectively
and furnishes water at a temperature of
210 degrees Fahrenheit. This water
passes through an ordinary system of
pipes and radiators heating the different
buildings and returns to be again passed

justed so that if the temperature of the
water entering the jacket should rise
above the predetermined temperature, the
thermostat valve will open a connection
to the mains, where the pressure is about
60 pounds, and admit sufficient water to
reduce the temperature of the water en-
tering the jackets to this predetermined

Fig. 4. Upper Part of Gas Generators

Fig. 5. Motor-driven Tar Extractor

was originally intended to install in the
pumping station two 80-horsepower hori-
zontal return-tubular boilers to furnish
heat for the buildings and steam for op-
erating some of the auxiliaries. On in-
vestigation, however, it was found that
the waste heat from the gas engines
would be more than sufficient to accom-

through the jackets of the cylinders,
heater, etc.

To provide for a proper circulation of
the jacket water there have been in-
stalled two electrically driven turbine
pumps. The water returns to the low-
service pumping station from the heating
system at a low pressure, which is in-

temperature. When the heating system
is not in use in the summer, water from
the mains passes through the jackets and
heaters and is wasted.

Pumping Equipment

The main pumping engines, shown in
Figs. 7 and 9, are located at the bot-

|! t?J )V

'ilftRH

■;.AJ

'Mini

. • M. Mr.

' 1 \

■j

i i

Jmnw

JB H"*-"*"""*"

^VJH IvJlPIrl

*^ m ---'mi |»**- '

wMNQW*"-

7 / ' -' :.

Fig. 6. The Electrical Units

Fig. 7. A Pumping Unit

plish the heating. The method whereby
this was accomplished is as follows:

The jacket water from the cylinders of
each engine goes to a vertical heater
through which the exhaust from the en-
gine is passed. The heaters, one of which
is installed for each of the four units,
consist of ordinary tubular construction
similar to a vertical boiler, with the bot-
tom corresponding to the fire box inclosed

creased to about 40 pounds by the cir-
culating pumps; this is enough to force
it through the jackets, heaters and
radiating system and return it to the cir-
culating pumps. The flow is controlled
by a hand-operated valve between the
circulating pumps and each engine. A
thermostat and valve operated by it are
located near where the water passes into
each jacket and the thermostat is ad-

tom of the pump pit and take their suc-
tion from the 12-foot well, as indicated
in Fig. 2. These units consist of
Rathbun three-cylinder vertical engines,
with 20x20-inch cylinders, direct con-
nected to two-stage Wood centrifugal
pumps, which have a rated capacity of
15,000,000 gallons of water in 24 hours.
There is at this point a maximum varia-
tion of about 25 feet in the water level

of the river and the intake tunnel is pro-
vided with a throttle valve, operated by
hand, for preventing the suction well
from overflowing. The water from the
two pumping unit* 'iarged through

a check and hydraulically operated stop
valve into a 54-inch main riser, from
which it is taken to the nitration plant.

The engines of these units, as well as
c of the electrical units, are of the
standard co ilarly n

the builders, but they embody a new
valve gear which has not been described
in Pom kr. A lay shaft is located in the
crank case and on this shaft are mounted
for each cylinder, or-
ate the inlet valve and one the
haust valve These eccentri 'ate.

through bor

rod* which actuate the va!
the latter i« all on top of th<
and in plain *ight of the opcrr ike-

and-break rent

- which
are charged fr

In addition to the pumping unr
it an ai fugal

pun k a car gal-

■
I from the gencr.i
above, enabling th
the pumping encrr se of nccc*-

The output of (he rumps |g measured
if a venturi me1
'large line and the coal It
wcigheJ as
Through lh I) H

prevnt the running
for
iod

The i'ojI

nda and the total

' ■ •

I Ja> •■

brake horsepower-hour The

it the total fuel used for
all purposes, including standby losses.
The proximate analysis of the coal
as foll<> ~ .arbon. per

cent; volatile combustible matter

<. and ash.
t. The heat value
B t.u. per pound of coal a

In interpreting the results of this run
tood that the volume
.ing pump iot pro

full load on both of the pumping units;
one of them had to be run on a load [

tj rating, which would
naturally lower the efficiency of opcra-

Thc Diesel Kngine in Service

The article r- H Kimball in the

January IT engine op-

a few peninent remarks

from other operators. The article men-

idvantages and
drav arc not generally found

m catalogs Hi • Jo not judge a
el engine too ha- All engine

ma: some installat

that omc recent

steam-turbine plants have required a
couple of vcars of manufacturers' l
ing • ptance.

to figi. o« mu

I mint'

Take gooj
good *tuf! The -

probab ■ elding

stamp of m

in German ours a

•>en %l iwn

for five hot. for

>n anJ
finally lose citm. H

old steam r

the

take the pistor ng»

if n jnd spend some more n

tenance m«

the ban-

age operation of ■ .;me should

leave enough •

ill the

thern Illinois, con-
ng of a single l op-

iunng the I months

hour u-

on of regular

' a total maintena- pent* of

0 and a
per kilowat-

Tl thiflg about the

■
ccntage of 200-horsep engines

jt combuaiion. • to a
'mm the b

at'

r,rnn

• tcefHoci I

310

POWER

February 21, 1911.

Eg
i.

--^

.*&.

'%teJ

, .

H. M sS

ijf&

m I

■Si- ^i, '->»

Primer of Electricity

By Cecil P. Poole

Connections of Compound Field
Windings

There are two ways to connect up the
field windings of a compound-wound
dynamo. Fig. 86 shows the method
which is generally used; it is called the
"short-shunt" connection. Fig. 87 shows
the other one, which is called "long-

Rheostat

Fig. 86. Short-shunt Connection

shunt" connection. The reason for these
names is that the shunt field winding is
connected across the armature terminals
only in one case and across the entire
armature circuit in the other. In other
words, the "short-shunt" connection
shunts only the armature but the "long-
shunt" connection shunts both the arma-
ture and the series field winding.

There is practically no preference be-
tween the two methods. A dynamo will
work just as well with one as with the
other if the windings are designed for
the method of connection that is used.

If a dynamo built with the "short-
shunt" connection (Fig. 86) is changed
to the "long-shunt" connection (Fig. 87),
it will not compound as it was intended
to. If it is flat compounded, the voltage
will be slightly less at full load than at
no load, instead of being the same. If it
is overcompounded, the voltage will not
rise as far at full load as it was intended
to rise.

The reason for this is that the volt-
age across the brushes is higher than it is
across the brushes and series winding,
because of the drop in the series winding.
Therefore, with the short-shunt connec-
tion the full-load voltage at the terminals
of the shunt winding is higher than it is
with the long-shunt connection.

Especially^

conducted to be of

interest and service to

the men in charge^

of the electrical

equipment

For example, suppose the no-load volt-
age at the brushes is 220, the resistance
of the series winding is yV of an ohm,
the full-load current 350 amperes and
the full-load voltage at the terminals of
the dynamo is 240 volts.

At full load the drop in the series field
winding will be

tl X 350 = 5

volts, and the voltage at the brushes will
be

240 + 5 = 245

volts. Therefore, if the shunt winding is
connected to the brushes, it will get 245
volts, but if connected to the outside ter-
minals of the dynamo, it will get only
240.

For the reason just explained, if a
dynamo originally built for long-shunt
connection should be changed to the

Rheostat

fowtft

Fig. 87. Long-shunt Connection

short-shunt connection it will give a
higher full-load voltage than it was in-
tended to give.

Worse still, if the drop in the series
winding is unusually high, changing a
compound-wound dynamo from long-
shunt to short-shunt may cause the shunt
field winding to overheat because of the
higher full-load voltage. As a general
thing, however, the drop in the series
winding is so small that neither the dif-

ference in full-load voltage nor that in
the heating is of much importance.

Since the full-load voltage at the ter-
minals of the shunt field winding is higher
with the short-shunt than with the long-
shunt connection, the series field winding
does not need to supply as large a pro-
portion of the total field excitation when
the short-shunt connection is used.

For example, take the machine de-
scribed in the last lesson. The no-load
voltage was 220; full-load terminal volt-
age, 232; full-load current, 350 amperes:
drop in the armature, 5 volts; drop in the
series field winding, 3 volts; no-load am-
pere-turns per field-magnet pole, 7500;

Fig. 88. Effect of Coil Connections

full-load ampere-turns, 8700. These fig-
ures supply the following comparison:

No-load volts at shunt-winding

terminals

No-load ampere-turns

Full-load volts at shunt-winding

terminals

Full-load ampere-turns in shunt -

winding

Total ampere-turns needed

Ampere-turns to be supplied by

series winding '.

Short-
shunt

220
7500

235

8011
8700

689

Long-
shunt.

220
7500

232

7909
8700

791

This comparison is not strictly accurate
because the resistance of the series field
winding would be slightly less in the first
case than in the second, but it illustrates
the principle well enough.

Adjusting the Compounding

In the comparison just given, the series
field winding was expected to give at
full load 689 ampere-turns in one case
and 791 in the other. Now, these figures
were taken from a machine that delivered
350 amperes at full load, so that in order
to get exactly 689 ampere-turns from a
series coil it would have to be made with

**? = i.9686
350

turns, which, of course, is absurd. If
two turns could be put in the coil, it
would have 700 ampere-turns at full load
instead of 689. This would be slightly
too much, but in practice it would be
considered close enough. However, it is
impracticable to get a whole number of

February 21. 1911.

311

turns in one coil of a field winding when
there are two or more coils in a row, all
connected together. You can get
turr turns, and so on. but

not I, 2, 3 or 4 turns per coil, ur.
an inconvenient method of connectif-
used. and not always even that

The reason that each coil will usually

Fie. 89. " nc Eqi

have half a turn extra will be made clear
by looking at Fig. H8 closely. This si:
the arrangement of one-turn coils on
two magnet cores, A and H, and their
connections. It is evident that the cur-
rent in the connection C neutralizes the
current in that half of the A coil nc
it. Also, that the current in the cor.
tion D similarly neutralizes the current
in the half of the H coil beneath it. The
it is exactly the same as though the
poles were wound each with a half-turn.
10. This neutralizing of half
a turn of the winding by the connecting
lead almost al- can uhen the coil

has a whole number of turns in it. There-
fore, the effective number of turns M
turn less than the whole number.

Now to return to the problem in hand.
Wit' :rns per coil 350 amperes will

give

2 875

ampere-turns, which is far too much
citation for cither case The remedy is to
reduce the current In the binding

and this is done by means of a "shunt"
strip connected across the terminals of
the series binding, as shown in
where the shunt strip is rep-
tile zigzag line at S

•h the machine connected up short-
shunt fashion, the %c n to

880 ampere-turns per pole 1
2 turns per pole, therefore, the
rent in the winding must be

amperes To do this, the shunt
must ca- 1.4 amp

w the relative resistant
parallel imc

a* the re la ugh

them, though the larger

ugh the smallc the

ratio of currents in this case

the ratio of resistance* must be the sa

thu

and as the re* ding Is

0.0086 of an ohm. the ret -ancc of the

13185
of an ohm.

up. M
0.0086 of an ohm rcsw n the s<.

ling and 275 i> amperes going through
it. the drop at the termini be

• -
volts. And with 0.03185 of an ohm In
the shunt strip rminals

will ca

amperes to flow through it, which is the
required proportion of the total current;
amperes in the strip ar 0 in

the winding make

<50

amp

i :«IP G>--

The case of the long-shunt connection
would be figured in the same u

' that the current through the series
winding and its shun- *ill be the

full loa us the current

in the shunt field winding I get

n a
the current must be

amp ; nsc the shunt field wind-

ing takes 9 am; ien the total arma-

ture current will be 350 amperes, of
go through the series
aving 4 ko through the

ratio of curr*

and the ratio of rc»i»-
sam-

0 0630
i ohm resistan.
(loving through this rssisfincs the drop

0 0630 :
«Oks. and this voltag

amperes. »

ast esse is not presented »

!
that Jmg wosJd

be 3 volts, the ition show*

pere-turns >e grca

the
series coil.

Ir. to ma-

numer a good

many mori es have been

J than arc necessary tn practice With

the actual machine the shu- for
short-shunt connc. : be figured
about th.

Ampere-turn* 1. about 700; am-

• • - ing 70

amperes to go through the -res*

about 280
ncc. about i • - M of an

ohm. A strip having about 0.05 of an
ohm would be selected and the set
length of it would be reduced
ing one lead to a r nfth

of the sti *tead of at the

91 illustrates one wa
done. One end of the shunt strip
bolted to one terminal block of the u
field winding, commonly referred to as
the "solid terminal." anJ strip b

clamped to the other terminal of the
series winding at a p icpends

on how much resistance is dc»

If more current is needed in the series

Jing. the clamp is loosened and the

end of the strip pushed inward so ss ID

iiiiiiicffl

.- -

Pic 01. Aas-

mp*d" »S Si

■I

of the series »lndlnr •»# fm hoik i\o*t %\mit iW J««f-

I *! I -f ' !

312

POWER

February 21, 1911

LETTERS

Static Electricity around
Printing Presses

I notice in your January 24 issue an
inquiry by A. W. Fish regarding static
electricity around printing presses; and
I have to offer the following suggestion,
which has, in at least two cases, solved
the difficulty:

Static electricity is generated usually
by friction on the paper and about the
press and its parts, and usually during
dry, cold weather or cool weather. It is
not found to any great extent during
damp weather, and this should offer a
key to the solution. Most printing es-
tablishments are heated either by water
or steam, and no arrangement is made
for keeping the air moist. My suggestion
is to place pans on the steam or hot-water
radiators, filled with water, these pans
being rather long and deep rather than
broad and shallow, so as to hold a con-
siderable amount of water. If the room
is a large one, with radiators or coils
around the sides, it may be necessary to
use artificial means such as small fans
for distributing the moisture from the
pans around the room. It may require
some simple experiment to determine the
proper amount of surface to be given to
the pans in order to completely eliminate
the trouble. The theory of this is that the
moisture in the air will allow the dissipa-
tion of the frictional or static electricity
as fast as it is formed, the moisture act-
ing as a carrier.

I would suggest that it be made the
duty of one man to see that these pans
are constantly supplied with water, and
that the pans are located over coils that
are constantly kept in service. If the
building is heated by means of hot air
from an ordinary furnace, hot-water pans
should be installed in the air ducts so
that the heated air will pass over them
and pick up sufficient moisture to produce
the same results.

This expedient has been tried and
proved successful in a number of in-
stances. I should be pleased, however,
if Mr. Fish would let us know through
the columns of Power what results he
obtains if he should try it.

Henry D. Jackson.
Boston, Mass.

Referring to A. W. Fish's question on
how to overcome static electricity around
printing presses, I would suggest a meth-
od that I found to be of great help to me.
Tie one end of a piece of wire to a metal
part of the press and attach the other
end to any pipe that is grounded, such as
a gas or water pipe, preferably the lat-
ter. This will enable the electricity to
pass off to the ground, just as the ground
connection of a lightning arrester takes
static discharges off an outdoor line.
Eugene M. Hilbert.

East Rutherford, N. J.

A simple and efficient method of over-
coming static electricity in belts or other
moving devices that cannot be easily
grounded is to suspend a strip of metal,
one edge of which has been cut to form
a number of points somewhat like the
teeth of a coarse comb, a short distance
above and crosswise of the belt; the
comb is hung on wires which are
grounded to any convenient object, such

Taking Static Electricity Out of a
Belt

as a water pipe. I should think this
would work also with the paper on a
printing press.

Earl F. Potter.
Urbana, 111.

A homemade "neutralizer" which I
have used with success consisted of an
automobile induction coil with one sec-
ondary terminal grounded and the other
terminal connected to a homemade
"comb" mounted with its teeth close to
the paper passing from the press; the
coil was supplied with primary current
from a low-voltage "Mazda" transformer
connected to. the 110-volt alternating-cur-
rent lighting mains. I short-circuited the
vibrator of the induction coil because
with alternating current it was not needed
and the coil worked better without it.
The grounded secondary terminal of the
coil was connected to the water pipe and
the frame of the press was similarly
grounded. High-tension cable 'of the
kind used on automobiles was used to
connect the other secondary terminal to
the comb.

The comb consisted of a piece of y2-
inch brass pipe to which were soldered
brass pin points in a single straight line,
spacing them about y2 inch apart along
the pipe. The comb was mounted on
brackets attached to the press frame in
such a way that the comb extended at
right angles across the sheet of paper,

the pin points projecting to within %.
inch of its surface. Heavy fiber sleeves
and washers were used to insulate the
comb from its supports. If the discharge
from the points is visible, it is liable to
set fire to the paper, and the voltage ap-
plied to the primary of the coil should
be reduced until no sparks can be

seen.

S. H. Harvey.

Hamilton, O.

Static electricity in printing presses
may be partially removed by grounding
the frame of the press and stretching
copper wires along the side of the fly-
sticks upon which the paper travels after
leaving the cylinder. If the press has
automatic jogger boards they may be
lined with metal and grounded. This
practice proved more successful in my
experience than the electric neutralizer,
which is expensive and hard to maintain.
The draw sheet may be frequently wiped
with a rag wet with glycerin, although
some pressmen prefer a "dope" made of
glycerin two parts and nitric acid one
part, which is rubbed over the draw sheet
after the mixture has cooled.

It is claimed that this mixture does not
swell the packing as much as pure
glycerin. In any method so far in use,
the electricity is removed only on the
press, the sheets again being charged
when fed into the folders, where we have
no means of removing the electricity
Thomas H. Watson-

Chicago, 111.

Tinsel cord so placed that each sheet
of paper is brushed by it as it passes
into the press and another piece of cord
where the paper comes out will carry off
the static charge. This cord must be con-
nected to the metal frame of the press
or to some other good ground. When
the static manifestations are particularly
troublesome it may be necessary to dis-
charge both sides of the sheet of paper
in this manner.

This method of getting rid of the
static charge is an old one. It op-
erates upon the same principle as the
copper comb so often used in drawing
the static charge from moving belts, and
if desired a comb may be made for use
on the printing press. The easiest way
to do this is to take a piece of heavy
copper wire sufficiently long to reach
across the press and fasten to the frame;
strip the insulation from a piece of old
lamp cord and cut it into lengths of about
four inches or less, as required; solder
these to the heavy wire and spread the
free ends to form "combs," arranging
them so that the sheet of paper passes
under them.

A. D. Williams.
Cleveland, O.

February 21, 1911.

: R

313

Gate Valvei <>t the [node

v\\ .Spindle 'I';.

One evening when shutting an 8-inch
injection valve connected to a jet, 1 found
that the valve spindle turned without
coming to a stop.

This valve was of the straightway in-
side-screw spindle type and was located
so that the spindle stood upright.

I removed the valve cap and found
the threads on the spindle and in the plug
so worn that the plug would slide over
the threads on the spindle.

As the valve had to be in condition
to use the next morning in order to regu-
late the supply of water to the pur
made a temporary repair about as shown
in the accompanying illustration.

h a hack saw I cut a slot A. In-
sert n in the open-
ing and then hjv -i through the
hub again until the cut was of the
Jth.

In a box of odds and ends a collar II
with a set sere* u i 'Ma

half-round flic I tapered the hole in the
Collar to fit the hub on t! .ate.

snd alto filed a flat place D, Of) the
for the ki i. seat again

After slipping the spindle into the
plug. I tightened the *cf I
the Iml -J it around the

spindle, and to prevent the set M

turning after being adfutted the
check nut F. »i« u*cd

When assembled, some pulverized glass
•nd oil m put on the spindle and the
plug was screwed back and fonh a few
time* to fit the thread. This was then
cleaned off and the spindle coated with
graphite and cvllnder nil Tl
then put together anJ uvd until a new
plug came from the manufacturers.

Practical

information from the

rn.m or) the job A tetter

dooc/ enough to print
here will ho paid />
Ideas, nor mere word.*
wanted

perience has taught me that a valve
of the out- and yoke typ-.

.Table in such places, because the
thread on the spindle can be readily
cleaned and oiled.

Another instance where I had trouble
with a 3-inch straightway

valve was where the collar on the spindle
roughed up and it was impossible to open
'iut the \alve. This valve was in a
direct steam line, so that there was
no chance for lubrication.

I took the valve apart, put the spindle
in the lathe and smoothed up the collar
and coated it with cylinder oil and graph-
ite before putting it together; but fear-
ing a recurrence of the trouble. I re-
placed it with one of the outside-scrcw
and yoke type at the first opportun

J. W Par-.

Clinton. Mass.

I .. .". \\ it'-r (, I ks

I had the day shift in a small steam
plant at a mine a little over
and the

the night engineer In

the irgc

■un the mine machinery, being
■ cf and ft

- and an air com-
•he same h
c night I went up to the c
and found - ng in thi .'

and the engineer wa* at the h the

throttle ting from the

aha' *aid he coald keep up Mean

iter in the gage glass.
A few da\* later »c had to shttl
to expand all of the tube* in the three
. and one week after I counted

I left soon after a« I would rather run
chances with men using dynamite
care than with a baJ boiler and a man

Ving in ignorance and with c>
ncsa.

ra»s Va .1

t Air v :. imbcr

Can some of the readers of Po»
me any information on the corr.par.
effects of long or short air chambers on
argc line of a pump?
The accompa:
argc of a
located in a pit. The di*chargc-r
runs to a r r on top of a hill 2O0

feet high and the pump.

lado

shows the
amp.

—J

of a |

the
T.'ic -tarted and

Stopped a number ■
hours, and often p<> i- The

air

is stopped.
Tl >••

J some .isetnen

say the air • short; others

s too long, and one thinks a-
luJred to force
of the chamb

Does good practice Is any definite

>f the dls-
>f the

r between the
length of chamber lha preaania la

i long 3
an, -ort oaa?

a* aeaaltr

314

POWER

February 21, 1911.

Steam Plant Repairs

Some years ago I was called upon to
repair an old whale-back Corliss en-
gine that had a very bad pound, appar-
ently in the crank. The valves had been
reset a short time before in an attempt to
stop it, but to no purpose. A new cyl-
inder had been put on a year before, so
I looked for trouble there. Upon lining
up, it was found that the cylinder was
Yx inch too thick from the center line to
the side where the bed bolted on, and al-
though the crosshead and crank were in

POWH?

Fig. 1.

line the cylinder was out. This was one
of the get out of it cheap cases, so V\
inch was taken off the front side of the
crank-pin box in a lathe and a like
amount pinned on the back.

To bring the crosshead in line was
more work, but was done by taking the
babbitt out of the shoes, and putting the
parts all in place, then pouring the new
shoes with the crosshead in position. This
made the babbitt thicker on the back
than on the front, but put the engine per-
fectly in line.

A boiler feed pump in a central sta-
tion was repaired as follows. This was a
broken rocker-arm stand, and in looking

Fig. 2.

over the stock room a clamp was found
with which a very good repair job was
made and permitted the pump to be kept
in service for some time. The two bot-
tom set screws of the clamp, Fig. 1, were
set into the casting solid before the top
set screw was tightened. These three
set screws held the broken part in place
until a new part was secured.

In one case a large duplex pump
gave a good deal of trouble with leaky
packing. The rods of the water end were
of steel and badly pitted on the surface.
To save the expense of brass rods, I had
the steel rods turned down to a forced fit

for 2-inch brass tubing, Fig. 2, which

was pushed on over white lead that had

been smeared on the steel rods. This

made a rod as good as if made of solid

biass.

W. E. Holt.

Medford, Mass.

Economy in the Boiler Room

A problem which every electrical-
power station engineer has before him
is to deliver a kilow2tt-hour of electrical
energy to the busbars with the least pos-
sible consumption of fuel. This may
sound easy, but many times it is a prob-
lem difficult to solve.

Before an engineer is in a position to
deliver- electrical energy to the switch-
board at a low cost, it is absolutely nec-
essary that the installation in its entirety
shall be in its best possible condition,
and every precaution taken against losses
which are always occurring.

In order to know just what is being
done, a record should be kept as to the
output of each unit and also of the coal
and water used. With this in hand the
engineer is in a position to seek out the
losses that are taking place and deter-
mine whether they are due to low boiler
efficiency, steam losses or wasteful en-
gines, etc.

There are many electric-light and
power plants operating at small profits,
and there is a great field for improve-
ment in their economical operation. A
mistake made by engineers is that of
letting what they think is "well enough"
alone, instead of making tests and deter-
mining whether a certain performance
cannot be bettered.

It is a fact that the greatest loss in all
steam-generating plants is found in the
boiler room; therefore, that is the place
to begin an investigation as to the cause
for losses.

One matter which should first engage
the attention is the analysis of the fuel
and also fuel gases, and a general super-
vision as to the condition of auxiliary
apparatus, radiation, feed-water appara-
tus, method of firing, superheating of
steam, if any, and the load factor.

A fireman, to get the best results, must
know his fuel. The best results cannot
be obtained, however, if frequent chang-
ing of the quality of the coal is made,
and the engineer should insist that the
coal from one mirfe should be delivered
and not accept a cargo of coal from sev-
eral mines. This applies, of course, where
coal is bought in carload lots. It is not
a bad idea to ascertain the quality of
the coal by repeated tests of these car-
load lots. When the character of the coal
has been determined in a satisfactory
manner, the engineer's next duty is to
make a complete analysis of the gas
from the boiler, keeping a record of the
temperature, draft and chemical con-
stituents.

With this information at hand, the
chimney losses may be reduced to a mini-
mum; and a greater loss occurs right
here than might be imagined. If the maxi-
mum efficiency is to be obtained, the
quantity of excess air must be as small
as possible, and this can only be deter-
mined by frequent tests, and generally
depends upon the quality of the fuel and
on the available draft. Enough oxygen
should be combined with the carbon to
produce CCs which in everyday prac-
tice with reasonable attention will be
about 12 per cent, with a stack tempera-
ture of 600 degrees Fahrenheit or less.
In order that this may be known, a re-
cording apparatus should be installed for
ascertaining the percentage of CO?. With-
out such an apparatus it is impossible to
detect air leakage, while with the device
the result will be such as to more than
repay for the cost. Even with a supposed-
ly tight boiler setting, there will be air
leakages which are not detected, and
which may become excessive unless con-
stantly attended to.

Any steam boiler should be kept free
from scale. The scale question has been
discussed so often and so thoroughly that
there is little call for any extended re-
marks upon the subject.

After the engineer has been over his
boiler plant and checked all the leakages
in the brickwork, has a record of the C02
and has secured a good grade of coal at
the lowest possible cost, it is then up to
the fireman to produce better results and
it is a case where the engineer must
give his personal attention to the matter
and see that the fireman follows out his
instructions.

A desirable saving can be made if
the load-factor conditions are studied. If
it is such as to require banked fires, the
load factor should be improved, because
the effect is more pronounced in the
boiler room than in the engine room, as
a banked fire wastes coal. A saving can
be made by reducing the number of boil-
ers under steam and increasing the draft
by some method to help out at peak
loads.

All radiation should be reduced by
covering all heat-radiating surfaces with
some good nonconductor. In larger plants
this will be found to be already accom-
plished, but in small power stations there
is room for considerable improvement.

L. Holder.
Ouimet, Can.

Piping a Lubricator to a
Reservoir

I would be pleased to see a discussion
and illustration of the best method of
piping up a lubricator to an oil reservoir
published in Power.

L. J. Pierce.

Ottens, N. J.

February 21, 1911.

Deplorable- Steam Plant
nditioos

About one year ago I took charge of
the mechanical department of a mill en-
gaged in the manufacture of tin plate.
The condition of the machinery of this
plant had become such that the con-
tinuous operation of it was utterly im-
possible. Shutdowns in various depart-
ments were of hourly occurrence, due. not
to the incapacity of the machinery, but
to the man in charge.

The accompanying illustration sh
two <>f a lead gasket that had been

placed in an 8-inch steam line directly
over the throttle of a 30x60-inch engine.
The steam line at this point made a
quarter bend, and had been made too
short on the end, not meeting the throttle
valve by several inch

To overcome this, the entire line had
been sprung down, and the bend strct
out to mc l ng the flanges on the

c and valve when touching on one
to stand open -h on the other,

td gasket had been made to till
irregular opening. The has

not been cut out. but a narrow snt cut
th the idea, perhaps, that the
•team would cause it to bend away and
leave a free opening, which it did only
in pan, and the cutting of the steam, as
• as wire drawn through it. is shown.
Ful: could not be obtained "

this engine, and the cause was not J
intil leakage required the I
ni gasket. A steel filler fac

on ca. U a proper angle made t!

di • it.

On this same engine the valve gear

>ape, and after the

valves had been set and the valve rods

adiustcj to length, the ecccnt- re

ind to he ke>cd to the shaft lhavir

nc was
ar : was so late that

th pen until the piston

ha v The cxhau

va late in opening, the ;

having tra\c
-cd
AT engine is another of

f the same dimen-
sion* wMch »

cam consul ; • <>n and

the cau%c and the

iaft
' ■
re atems and bonnets »ho* I
*car. all

|
icy »crc rour
•«ccl r length and

All lines leaked lr

■ drum* to the c- .
»cc« tl
c« of gatkrt bl
•inges wen

POW

through. Upon inquiry. I asc- that

it had been th m to sling a c

block from the steam line* to
engine 1(j on aI

>ns to -
rod.

'« »■* in | . to make the boi

develop enough steam to run the eng
the management ■
quota;
boilers ucr. natural ga

of the
They had been for rh coal,

but it had been abandoned, as under the
it was impossible to keep up
steam.

Gas was burned with a pressure of

and at tin j as

high as 45 ounces. The batten, con-

J of two water-tube boik J at

300 horsepower and one boiler rated at

All of the boi were crack

frames and castings loose, the

")- horsepower engine

the b
BO degre

Irw-tii ir- 4 in • ►.

• as g abOL of the

a stan-

c stem had worn the

>wn and almost half
through tl
sion of th - gases during almost

one-founh of •
bod > gas cam was c.

with the be\cl gear for or
mor. the I

saed into this Probably on
of a ar. at som

had been replaced b) a nc* or
cam was kt
cam. havm.

on a M loca

8** open on the comr

on
stac

■

ss, and
the
con' cam dn

iftlc

vail was filled up I

Jllsf art J Ishrs so' J f f , 0}r fi»p rnifc fit

I and r
a ruir

all h»
•

baffle

' tube*

I all

l| cine

so that

hscb

• ■ •

These arc
among

•mditions

-t<- bccoaawi
and the* fw>JI the

316

POWER

February 21, 1911.

if II l.H

uai^

Connecting High Pressure
Drips to Heating Mains

In the issue of December 27 appears
a letter from W. T. Meinzer, describing
how "one of our boys" hit on a plan that
worked successfully and eliminated the
trouble of digging up the lawn and drive-
ways, also the cost of 500 feet of pipe
that would have been necessary to re-
turn to the boiler room the condensed
water from about 15 high-pressure traps
in the adjoining buildings.

I think that if he had made the high-
pressure traps perform their function,
there would not have been very much
heating done in the sewers, no more than
there would be now to help the low-
pressure heating system.

Mr. Meinzer gave us a sketch showing
how the pipe connections were made to
accomplish the saving of the vapor from
the drips. He says "This line was con-
nected to a water seal about 4 feet deep,
from the top of the seal in the inlet side.
A 2-inch vapor or equalizing pipe was
run to the low-pressure heating main to
prevent any steam or pressure blowing
the seal out into the return to cause
water hammer."

I wonder why he did not think of put-
ting in a back-pressure valve. This would
undoubtedly have been more effective in
preventing back pressure from blowing
the seal back into the drip return. Also,
it would have been more simple.

As it is now, according to his sketch,
both sides of the seal are of the same
hight; the slightest amount of back pres-
sure will force the seal back into the re-
turn, it being lower than the low-pres-
sure heating main, to which it is con-
nected by the "vapor or equalizing pipe."

This same "vapor or equalizing pipe"
will also cause a lot of heat to be wasted
through condensation, or, if there be suffi-
cient pressure in the low-pressure main,
live steam will blow right through into
the returns, not doing any work at all.

Mr. Meinzer fails to sta'e for wnat
purpose they wanted to return the "waste
from the drips to the boiler room. By
returning the water, two purposes might
be served. First, the price of the water
so returned is saved; second, if the re-
turned water is used for feeding the
boiler, and the feed water be heated with
live steam, a saving will be made due to
the difference between the temperature of
the returned water and that taken from
the city main, river or well, as the case
may be. In any event, I do not think that
the saving in this case would justify the

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articlesjetters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

expenses incurred by laying a 500-foot
return line and tearing up the lawn and
driveways.

I think that if the high-pressure traps
had been put in good working order, there
would not have been any loss to speak
of on account of letting the drips run into
the sewer.

New York City. Victor Borm.

Barrel Emptying Device

In a recent issue of Power there was
described a device for emptying liquids
from a barrel.

The idea is not a new one, similar
schemes have been described before.
About four years ago I tried a device
like the one described on a barrel of

Arrangement for Draining Barrel

heavy crank-case oil, with unfavorable
results. The discharge pipe was 1 inch
and the air pipe was % inch. The barrel
was placed in an alleyway beside the oil
tank, about 30 feet from the front of
one of the boilers.

The air was turned on and I stepped to
the tank to see if the oil was flowing.
Suddenly, I heard a loud crack and a
sort of slopping sound. Turning around, I
quickly discovered what had happened.
The air had fed into the barrel faster
than the heavy, thick oil could flow out
and the result was that one of the barrel
heads broke. The barrel head hit the

front of the boiler. Between the point
where it hit and the barrel was distributed
the greater part of the oil, slopped all
over everything.

After that, I devised the scheme shown
in the figure herewith. I had two grab
hooks made with a clevis in each one.
Then I ran a piece of J/l-inch steel cable
through them and fastened the ends. I
threaded a piece of tapered pipe to fit the
bunghole of the barrel. To this I fitted
a l'/j-inch elbow and on that a valve.

After this piping arrangement "was
screwed into the barrel, the barrel would
be hoisted up with the chain blocks, and
a piece of pipe of the right length screwed
into the valve. After being hung up, the
barrel required no more attention until
drained out. While I do not in any way
condemn the air-lift device, I think that
it should be used with good judgment.
The air must be admitted to the barrel
very slowly, especially at the start, or the
gain in pressure will burst the barrel as
in the instance I described.

Glenfield, Penn. L. M. Johnson.

Trouble with a Heating
Plant

That was interesting reading, the ac-
count of his troubles by T. H. De Saus-
sure in the issue of January 10. I know
that it must be wearing on the brain and
a menace to health to have a problem
like his bothering a person.

There is a question I would like to ask
him, how did this water that at times
filled the boilers up to the top of the
water glasses get into the system? If a
contractor did a job of piping for me like
the one shown, I would have the law
on him.

Judged as a heating system that will
not work successfully, that shown in his
Fig. 1 is a success. Why in the name of
"Mike" did he want to have the water
pocket in the return from the coils or
radiators marked X? If he would like
to know what change is necessary at the
point he writes about to make the system
work O. K., I can tell him. All that is
necessary is to remove the pipe from the
main to the return at the point A and take
out the ppcket in the return, leaving it
straight.

The secret of all of his trouble is that
the steam pipe has access to the return
pipe above the water level in the re-
ceiver; the pocket or water seal, as he
calls it, only aggravates the trouble.

Gerald Griffin.

Hartford, Conn.

February- 21, 1911.

317

Belt Lacing

I read in the January 10 issue Wil-
liam L. Kiel's article, "Two Methods of
Lacing Belts," and, while I admit that
the lacings shown have a neat, finished
appearance, and are fairly satisfactory
when the work the belt has to do is only-
moderate in proportion to the size of the
belt, they are anything but reliable when
there is a heavy load on the belt, or
where belts have to be run extremely
tight, and I have found from my own
rience that a much more reliable
method is the hinge type of lacing.

R. R. Ford.

Nemours. W. Va.

t Blowen

I have recently read in Power the arti-
cles by W. O. Rogers on soot blowers
and suckers and I believe that a little
ussion on this subject may be of in-
t. Mr. Rogers makes a statement
that "the simplest form of soot blower is
a piece of l4- or I -inch pipe attache
a hose, and that while such a device will
partly clean a tube, ar amount

of air is drawn into the tube and that
toot is blown about the room."

U'hilc the objection to having soot

blown about the room is well founded,

rding to my understanding of the

principles of soot blowers the air is not

li Covpi

BuSh

■ade Soot Bio

objectionable as the end in - to

•ccurc the grea am and

■ ' through the tube. Therefore, there
can be no cxcessi\c air; in fact, some
of the blowers are to designed a
draw all the air possible into the tube
and thus increase the cr> of the

Mover

A fallacy (M it seems to BM

-igns is the ap-
parent effort to make the steam travel
■long the tub* *ith a greater

than it doe* in the ccnti
!c; in fact, the
real!

ferring to th< 'he

blo»cr ahown in ! page

the issue ' n the last

paragraph. lM air and

•team current Me invr

cone at the front end of the cleaner
against the inner wall of the tube for its
'e length " I believe that this cleaner
would * ->vcd If the cone ■

moved as the steam and air would then
ha»e a free passage to the tube

. thu« in«urtng the greatest poaaJbbl
A blo%er »hmild ha*e a •team

nozzle so designed as to convert pi
sure into velocity and be efficient in
drawing air into the tube.

I recall an experience I had with a
flue blower when I inning a small

plant (my manager sal

the engineer of a larger plant to rig up a
blower for me. He made one as shown
in the sketch. I • and not b^

h the results I removed the
bushing and coupling and got better rc-
; the tubes were 2 inches in diam-
eter.

The statemen- Rogers that the

tubes are only partially cleaned
true, for the b! :i only remove the

loose matter in the tubes and should be
used as an aid to the tube scraper,
not as the only means of cleaning them.

I do not agree with his statement in the
ilmcnt for December 20 that blow-
J in the wall are as efficient as
the hand blowers, bco h the hand

blower the steam jet is in the most favor-
able position to produce a strong blast
through the tube, while with the t
blower the ch\ >mparat eak.

g to the distance from the tubes or to
the large area of steam opening ne.
sary to take in a number of tubes.

Earl Jlbbe.

Cedar Rapids. la.

Climbing the I adder

There have been many salary-raising
and encouraging articles in Power None
has been much superior to the leading
editorial in the January 10 |ss

This feeble effort of mine is inter,
to help some brother engineer or fireman
who is discouraged so that he will take
a fresh hold of things and keer ri

Climb the ladder." the rungs of which
might r in the folio -

•r. coal passer, fireman,
head fireman, oiler, fourth-, thir !
ond-. first-assistant engine ef engi-

neer -ting engin' lent.

general manager and. h c»ident.

who is on the top ru:

( a few men I I from the

The jr in the folio*

uhich M who k:

What chief engineer mho has come up
•i the rank i along

the runes and feel that

'iltn a b
chief engineer and a Who

car

e some problem

in engineering or lifted other me
positions by sa\ing to an

"
Pasadena I

id I
I v nteresied in the com-

munication on -

Packing" in the Januar >uc of

Pom

I am what is consider old rime

When I was an u.

hemp for packing and with a liberal am)
nd bee-

these days of I
superheated steam,
kind of packing mould not last long At
tent I am using a m racking and

find it to be qu

there will • • all

engineers, for there are as ma
kinds of engine 'here sr

J. A Y.H-
Thomasville. <

I )• : I .

•cmart. in the January 3 num-
ber, in trying to v.

the I of driving keys has made

the matter worse thar

I believe thar method of

;ng a V
idea of the effect tha- ng~ has

on the connecting rr : less

he - e of rod u

am not familiar.

The accompanying figure shorn » one

' ^J "

i
of rod • mads

>n the rod.
ndatssd

to t'

•od.

placed • -od. ths-

BM end of the
rod. wc.

ing > Incorrect

Dam and
■

I muM ha* r

mind a "»edgr" instead ssjt

or
«ting vedge on the oppoasst ssa* of
the pin from tha conns ctlat rod. and
crosshesd fecv ncit to the rod. has a
den ef the clearance aosjai. for a

wedge has an effect opposite to thai of a

T \

318

POWER

February 21, 1911.

What Causes the Engine to
Run?

Since Mr. Teer's puzzle appeared in
the November 1 issue, I have been wait-
ing for someone to solve it successfully.

Both Mr. Dunlap and Mr. Libby, in the
January 3 issue, seem to have over-
looked the fact that the bleeder is con-
nected directly to the exhaust pipe. It
does not look reasonable to me that the
steam would turn three 90-degree angles
and create a greater pressure in the end
of the cylinder which is closed than it
does in the exhaust unless the velocity
which it attains in expanding into the
exhaust pipe causes a partial vacuum,
thereby creating an unbalanced condition
of the piston having a partial vacuum on
one side and a slight pressure from the
cylinder drain on the other. In this case
the vacuum created in the exhaust would
have to be greater than the drain pipe
which is connected to the end of the cyl-
inder, which is open to the exhaust, would
supply.

S. Scarth.

Newark, N. Y.

two thousand years we are not able to
produce designs so entirely to our credit
as their designs were to their credit. In
the use of the double entasis the Greeks
were right, as usual. In the^ case of a
column supporting a superimposed load
it is right and, of course, it looks right.
But is not the building of a chimney
a problem of another kind? A chimney,
exposed to the wind, must act as a can-
tilever beam uniformly loaded, and such
a beam, weaker at the point of support
than at other points, is at once recognized
as being faulty in design. In the trunk
of a tree nature shows the proper form
of structure to resist the wind; it spreads
out at the base and is firmly secured to
the earth upon which it stands.

R. E. Nelitnac.
Pittsburg, Penn.

*»• The Double Entasis

Referring to the article entitled "A
Handsome Chimney," which was illus-
trated in the January 3 number, it is,
perhaps, to be regretted that most in-
dustrial plants evidence so little of the
"esthetic" or the beautiful in their con-
struction, and, therefore, it may be that
no word other than praise should be
spoken of this present effort in the right
direction. Still, it may be questioned
whether or not a chimney top is just the
place for a display of elaborate orna-
mentation. Do not too many frills around
the mouth of a smoke vent jar upon
one's sense of the eternal fitness of
things, much as do the Ionic and Corinth-
ian columns of some old-time engines
and machines?

The top of a chimney seems to require
some relief from straight-line severity,
but the more simply its lines can be
given a graceful termination the more
correct will be the design. The base of
such a structure being removed from the
vicinity of the smoke offers a more fitting
place for ornamentation than the top.
Formerly, the smokestacks of most river
steamboats were surmounted by a crown
of pointed iron plates shaped like slender
leaves of a plant; but latterly these
"ornaments" are being relegated to the
limbo of things that used to be, and the
so called astragals which afford ad-
ditional surface for the wind to blow
against at the top of many steel smoke-
stacks might well be made to follow them.
Whatever is right, looks right; there-
fore, anything in the nature of a sail
on a chimney top must look wrong.

Wonderful people, those Greeks! And
it does seem strange that after more than

Piston Rod Clamp

In Power for January 3 I saw a sug-
gestion for keeping a pump rod from
turning while tightening or loosening the
jamb nuts. I think that the set screw
would have a tendency to mar the rod
if not bend it.

The accompanying figure illustrates a
method which I learned in California 30
years ago. The pipe or rod to be held or

POWE.I?

Arrangement for Gripping Pipe

turned is represented at A; B is a rope
and C is a lever. The rope has a loop
at one end. The end with the loop is
lapped around the pipe two or three times,
or more, if need be, in the direction that
the strain of the lever will be made and
the end of the lever is passed through the
loop as shown. The rope will grip the
pipe without injuring it in any way. The
fewer turns of rope there are the easier
it will be to slack off to get a fresh bite
with the lever. A piece of iron pipe or
a hammer handle does for a lever. For
polished brass or nickel-plated pipe, use
webbing such as suspenders are made of
or strong cloth instead of rope and a
piece of cloth wrapped around the pipe
where the lever touches.

Daniel Ashworth.
Wappingers Falls, N. Y.

Causes of Boiler Explosions

A writer in a recent number of Power
does not believe that a sudden reduction
of pressure in a boiler will cause a lift-
ing of the water with dire possibilities.
He endeavors to substantiate his opinion
by saying that boilers do not explode
from a reduction of pressure due to the
opening of the safety valve. I take ex-
ception to this statement. Anyone who
will stop to think, will see that the open-
ing of a safety valve does not reduce the
pressure, except the amount of its pop,
but prevents it from rising any higher.
The safety valve allows the steam to
escape only as fast as it is made, while
a quickly opened stop valve lets it out
faster than it is being made with a drop
in pressure in the boiler if there is
enough difference between the pressures
of the boiler and the main. The greater
the variation, the greater the danger.

I believe that the water-lifting action
in a boiler under the above conditions
has not reached the limit of study. I
think it very possible that sheets and
joints have been ruptured immediately
upon the opening of a large valve, but I
consider that more damage has been
caused by a surging similar to that so
often found in water pipes.

To understand what I mean, consider
a possible case. Assume that we cut
in a boiler whose pressure is 20 pounds
above that of the main. The drop in pres-
sure causes a lifting of the water. This
in itself is serious. If the boiler holds,
the pressure is soon equalized and the
water is thrown down with greater force
as it has the assistance of gravity. In
this way there are produced a number of
hard blows which may rupture sheets,
joints or pipe connections or loosen the
setting. A broken pipe connection of any
considerable size would without doubt
be the proverbial last straw, as it would
produce a drop in pressure that could not
be equalized with safety. A boiler might
be "punished" by a water hammer of this
nature many times before it let go or it
might go the first time, depending on
the severity of the "punishment" and
the condition of the boiler.

H. K. Wilson.
New Bedford, Mass.

Trouble With Steam Radiator

The reason why E. L. Morris is hav-
ing trouble with the heating system de-
scribed in the January 17 number is prob-
ably because the feed pipe under the
floor should be falling from the riser tee
to the second radiator. At this point a
tee should be used instead of an "el-
bow, and a bleeder or drip connected into
it. The drip could be run directly to
the cellar and there connected into the
boiler return, or it could be run back and
connected into the return riser below the

February 21, 1911.

310

ceiling. I assume that the system is for
low-pressure steam.

Another mistake in the work is that
only one valve is used at each radiator.
In all two-pipe systems two valves should
be used at each radiator. An air cock
should also be placed on each radiator.

'■
Toronto. Ont.

If E. L. : put an air-vent

valve on the outlet end of the cold
radiator, the steam will circulate. The
cause of the trouble is that the steam
drives the air to the furthest end where

flow acting tu cut down further the al-

horizontal r

To make a serviceable job of this pan
of the system, both the supply and
turn horizontals should be run J
from the crs to the middle radiator,

and th<. inch to the left-hand

tl com
ing branches to each radiator. Liken
the 'ram tl -. to the right-

hand radiator should be changed to
inch size, with to con-

with the radi.i

Chicago. 111.

it is held by the supply and return p'
sure.

As a ruic, all outlet sections of radi-
ators are tapped for a .-inch air vent.

Philadelphia. Penn.

I DOI letter in the

January 17 issue concerning a cold
radiator. In his diagram, whici
produced herewith, it will be noticed that
the tec at the top of the put on

'"bull headed." as stcamfiv

>uld be put on in the vertical

•ion. that is, as shown in Fig. 2 here-
with. I made such an alteration in a

cm of which I had charge and over

'. ff

To •*■

1
came there' ilar to that

beating
M il)u%tratcJ in the Jam.
issue. i« that the I the

the third floor are
large enough.

cntral radiator e

greater of the »tcam

ugh the short 1

•jl length leading thereto, while

lining qua- ntlnuing along

ugh the long lead to the left-hand

radiator, condenaea on the way and i«

practically all reduced to an the

time the v» -cached, the returning

*. of Mr. W

( irnell I tie! Economizer

I noticcJ the il in the January

17 issue regarding "Impos*.
I'crforman. -cd to have been

brought ab ncll

lln fuel i ; and. a» I fa

had some c\pc? appar.t

:icfit of
anv engineer who ma-

I took charge of a la'

turn-tuhular b*i had

'i the Cornell apparatus
I took chai
c apparatii
•umc the »moi

All that
to uhitcn the nmoke a III \ing

K and
•hut off an :

• re.

the flow 'irough

•■ |i •■ ■,

aga: i

Ing tot help much.

<-d ihcm alt«i
ona holler We uead each hollr-
nate weeks The one h

cd, and we had i
pparatus
the other
carri : loa<

on 200 pounds

I 200 pounds
m to
the cost

h waa con*

was vi

than :-.c

so I
■

I. the same

less coal r

that the apparatus

of coal . to

ope- he sides

r rts.

I iver Prefloi

I see a i
about rt 'ound it

■

\e gov-
cm-* Then, to reduce

the pressure so that

la highest position.
This rule -tc

who ha of a ataaa sine

indicat

J J
Penn.

\\ iter 1 lammcr and Botl<

1 g pi

I read »ith interest " ck

iter Hammer and fk
•
I once had v
hammer at a n
stallation of four 60-ir.
return-tuhular boih

Tl -s >»crc connected hv a

inch header, out of the ccntc
a 4 .-inch , J to the engine

bottocn of the
header, dropped a'
ran

*i bleed i on-

»sure »

The first mo he bk

i commotion that the
and one x»n% la

tht r»c«

and Move

eta.

me on <ae heavy Hammer

ould » bear aa th*

pipe above the throttle aeeva hack and

- turner
*ad ssv

i might c»

pteefoa, to say aothlai of

320

POWER

February 21, 1911.

Handling Men

We have been invited to give our views
on handling men. There is nothing to it
except giving them a square deal, a smile
instead of a frown, when possible, main-
taining discipline and firing shirks and
grouches. I think that this covers the
field or subject, though I could fill pages
in elaboration of the above and still re-
serve the privilege of saying more.

J. O. Benefiel.

Anderson, Ind.

mechanical device has not been provided,
the valve cannot be opened.

In the case of another device, shown in
Fig. 7 (also reproduced herewith), he
reverses the ideas worked out in Fig. 3.
He says that piston D is in equilibrium,
but the figure indicates that there is full
pressure in E and that the stem terminates
in the disk B, on the right side of which

Safety Stops for Steam Engines

Under the above heading some time
ago, Mr. Wakeman made some statements
that according to his drawings were in-
correct. For instance, he had the follow-
ing to say concerning one of the nu-
merous designs of valve described:

"Pressure acting on B, Fig. 3 (which
is reproduced herewith), holds the valve
open because the full area on the outer
face is exposed to pressure, while the
rod occupies a portion of the inner face,
thus reducing the effective area. Etc."

This would be the case if the stem of

Reproduction of Fic. 7.

there is no pressure at all. This arrange-
ment gives a greater effective area at
the left of D, than at the right. Suppose
that the disk B is closed, pressure acts on
it and D alike. But, as the area of B is
greater than that of D, it (B) will follow
the stem A to the right should the hand-
wheel be turned from right to left. When
the trip releases the pressure in E, the

Reproduction of Fig. 3 of Mr. Wakeman's Article

the valve extended through the bonnet
to the left, but the drawing shows it
inclosed and therefore the end of the
stem is subjected to the steam pressure.
This would give equal pressure on both
sides of the piston B, and as the main
valve is balanced it would remain in any
position so long as pressure was main-
tained in C. Should the electrical device
act and release the pressure in C, the
valve wculd close, but if there is no way
of creating a greater pressure in C than
there is in the steam main, or if some

piston D is supposed to move to the left
and close B.

But, as B is unbalanced and has to
close against pressure, the piston D
would have to be of greater area, while
the figure shows that the opposite is
the case and, therefore, the valve will
not close. In the case of these two valves
it would be interesting to hear from Mr.
Wakeman as to whether the drawings
or his explanation are at fault.

Joseph Stewart.

Hamilton, Ohio.

Weighing Small Parts
Accurately

Mr. Kirlin, in the issue of January
17, describes a way of accurately weigh-
ing small parts without the use of a
delicate balance. It certainly is simple
and yet a method which one would be
unlikely to originate himself in an emer-
gency.

There are one or two places where I
believe his method will stand simplifica-
tion. In regard to the scale ratio, which
is 100 to 1, I would like to ask Mr. Kir-
lin if he generally has his revolver handy
to test the scales with. I hope not, for
the sake of the poor man who might
happen to dispute his weights. Also, does
he generally carry a pound of tobacco
around with him ? Even had he the pound,
or any other known weight of it with
him, how many times would he find it
unsampled, when he wanted to test his
scales with it? I think I am safe in
saying that all scale weights are marked
with both their actual weight and the
weight which they will balance on the
scales. This, of course, gives the ratio
and should be sufficient even if a man is
"from Missouri." As an example, a 200-
pound balance weight, with the above
ratio, would have the numeral 2 under
the 200 mark upon it.

With regard to weighing, assume that
the ratio is 100 to 1. Suppose the arti-
cle weighed approximately one pound.
By Mr. Kirlin's method this would mean
that we would have to hunt around for
some thing or things which would weigh
about 100 pounds to just balance the arti-
cle. Quite a little work. And then we
would still have the junk to get rid of
when finished.

My method would be as follows: I
would first step on the scales and find
my own weight accurately, say it was
175 pounds. I would then place the arti-
cle on the tray and repeat, finding my
weight then to be, say, 90 pounds. Now,
175 minus 90 equals 85 pounds, which is
the weight balancing my article. Then,
85 divided by the scale ratio gives me
85/100 pound as the weight of the arti-
cle. Of course, if the article had been
more than 1^4 pounds, my own weight
would not have been enough and I would
have had to have a helper or two on the
platform with me.

The points I bring out are that it is
not necessary to have an exact weight to
balance the article, the balancing being
done by the sliding weight on the arm,
and that it is better to have a self-pro-
pelled balancing weight in these times of
flying machines and automobiles.

John Bailey.

Milwaukee, Wis.

Cracking noises in steam pipes indi-
cate that they contain water and that an
explosion may occur at any moment. Such
cases should be carefully inquired into.

February 21. 1911.

P O W E R

Iaaued Week:

Hill Publishing Company

Mi Jl- Mill, f-i • : I - .. fc » r M • .

in MirfcK.ta Anaav, CWwo

• a»»»»rli mr*.«, Us.it.. t CL

Plir 4«b Ll4<« It— ItorUk, K. W. I.

-reapoadence for the

. — not neceananJ)

: ion

to il

Pay no mo:

of authorua-

T<r<-s»ln Vn

ropt

UluO.

' I.* ■rron<! rlaaa ma'

at the ; •• at

Cable addreaa. " Pi>wri

ri.M«« Trlrcrsph Code.

Of I'M. .• .

'•'t'ly. n: i. turn* from

'■■i' L mm

i ntents

ant of ■ Kaarapaper Building... 202
Plftag I il Htntlou lli-aii

<
Capa

1 irlilnr In I'

. . 200
-nine Kti-an.
A I Big*

•nt
i'.rnanmy In

Uw i i>lnc a

lTr..

I. .r-

•Hag

l't|. -.l..n. tf.i'.lr aliti Mtram

rtilag

ilammrr sad II
ll«n<lllo« \|.s>

The Pabst Boiler Explosion
I ) v ision

In the suit of the Pabst Brewing Com-
pany \ e Hanford Steam Boiler
ection and Insurance Company, there
are two important points a-

DoM a company which undertakes in-
ince of apparatus, like boilers, fly-
wheels, elevators, etc.. incur liability in
of that assumed in the controlling
policy or contract, for damage from a
defective condition which, it is after-
claimed, should ha red by
thc insurance compan rv

When several boiler- ic at sen-

sibly the same time, is it one expl<>
.il cxp!
The brewing company claimed that, re-
lying upon the rions of the inst-
ance company, it had continued to run
which were defective until they
exploded, and sought to collect from the
ompany, not only the dam.'
rcctly from such c\p
but such indirect damages as loss of v
nets, incrc.i ' manufacture, etc.
Again- I contention the insurance
pans urged that they had contr.i
: ay to the insured damage

p to a certain amount.

of one or
more of the boilers

They had made no contract t" I the

were ti . t them.

I them, it was onlv
■'icir own risk, and thev »crc
rt the results of such
nor In
' the terms urn-

age rcsulti- ire to make

inspection* .i
The court hc!J that the liab -he

• iter «i« limit I of

the contract, or r and ruled

claim ba»< the alleged ncg-

alter of

An
cons c companies of

all kinda that maintain inspection i
' a company making
•ratua -ingt br

upon the establishment of neglige

damagr
failure oi he deaf

gg, one might with •

• «trong ur ng corr

any patrons of the bo • >uranct

compar upervision of their

boilers by the n inspectors more

than, or at mu 'he guaran-

munity from financial loos. The conten-
tion of tin

need not mat ons unless

-ants to. and is n- ■ . report

them to the insured, need cause no un-
easiness in this

■
But the on' -Mat a hoiU

company can afford to take a risk is by
diminishing ion the probat

of < n. and

sure to know the t >f such inspec-

tion ally if anythir.

which is not just
Thc other vju.
plosion" has not been so •
determined. The Par--
bar

I for three vest-
ho* ecn attached to the poli.

or agreement, supplcme-
thc main form thg total

liability of the company for loss or J
age resulting from am nn
shall not exceed the surr. and

in case of more than one explosion, the
entire I 'he compan \ shall not

•he sun-

Pabst
J at sensi' same instant.

meaning '

c polk

to be. the mesning which i
to

•n who accepted this policy
for the Pabat
stand at that tin of

ular b< • i ,

arat -hsianding g num-

•i ahould fall simultaneously
and from a eommo

business men who hold policies con-
ing thi« agroeoM go

vlng more than one bo

• titute* •• ^rr t»an onc <»r!<»»><>n
the mciriif; ..f the pol.. .

J better h.

for the

T> nrnt |

ment. to the po'

gsVffMt*

■

322

POWER

February 21, 1911.

the premium. The underwriter can take
the risk for considerably less money when
his liability for any one accident is limited
to one-third the face of the policy. The
probability of three destructive explo-
sions within three years in the same plant
is so remote that it is difficult to under-
stand the attitude of a man who pays for
such a chance, even at a reduced rate. If
he is satisfied that 350,000 will cover
any single loss, he would apparently be
better off to take a straight policy for
550,000, and renew it, in the remote prob-
ability of his collecting it up, than to pay
even a reduced premium on a 3150,000
policy, upon which he can realize the face
value only if he has, within the three-
year period of the policy, say three to
thirty explosions or tube ruptures in his
battery of boilers, each causing direct
damage of 35000 to 350,000 or more to
persons or property. It was perhaps
inability on the part of the jury to
understand why a man should pay for
such a policy, unless he understood the
failure of each individual boiler to be a
separate explosion, that led them to find
for the plaintiff on this count. Notwith-
standing their verdict, we think that the
average disinterested engineer would re-
gard the occurrence at the Pabst brewery
as "a bGiler explosion," that the under-
writer has in mind in attaching the rider
quoted, that he is limiting his liability
for any one occurrence to the sum stipu-
lated, and that the average business man
in accepting this modified policy, at a
materially reduced rate, recognizes that
the stipulated sum fixes the limit of the
loss which he can collect at any one time,
or for any one occurrence.

Central Station Service in Pub-
lic Buildings of New York
City

The attitude of Power in the strife be-
tween the central station and the isolated
pjant embraces neither antagonism nor
sentiment; it accepts the facts purely
upon an engineering basis, and as such
lecognizes that there is a field in which
central-station service possesses advan-
tages over the isolated plant. Neverthe-
less, when the agents of the former over-
step the boundaries of this field and at-
tempt to extend their business through
misrepresentation of facts and juggling
of figures, we feel it our duty to protest.
The recent invasion of the central station
upon the public buildings and plants of
the city of New York calls for a careful
investigation of the facts.

A consulting engineer, employed at a
salary of seventy-five hundred dollars per
year, to give the city expert advice, made
a report — based presumably upon care-
ful tests — relative to the cost of operat-
ing the isolated plant at the Harlem hos-
pital. This report showed the plant to be
operating uneconomically, and was ac-
companied by the recommendation that

it be shut down and central-station ser-
vice substituted. Fortunately, the report
fell into the hands o^ those able to
analyze power-plant costs and it was dis-
covered that the consulting engineer, in
his efforts to present an accurate state-
ment of facts, had included the cost of
two hundred and eighty thousand cubic
feet of feed water, which, however, if
based upon the amount of coal used,
would have shown an evaporation of over
fifty-five pounds of water per pound of
coal, a rather startling figure. On the
other hand, his coal consumption was es-
timated upon the abnormal basis of
twelve and a half pounds of coal per
kilowatt-hour. Needless to say, this par-
ticular recommendation was not heeded;
but the fact remains that a number
of other city plants have since been
shut down upon the advice of this same
engineer. That the city officials are be-
ginning to awaken to this condition of
affairs is shown by the resolution passed
by the Beard of Estimate on February 2;
this was as follows:

"Resolved: That hereafter no con-
tracts involving electric light or power
equipment of any kind in the city of New
York shall be advertised for or let by any
branch of the city government unless the
approval, in writing, of the Department
of Water Supply, Gas and Electricity, of
the plans and specifications for the work
shall have been first obtained, and no al-
terations to the work as contracted for
shall be ordered or approved without the
written approval of said department.

"This resolution shall not, however, be
deemed to authorize the commissioner of
the Department of Water Supply, Gas
and Electricity to prohibit or prevent the
installation of generating or other elec-
trical apparatus, provided the specifica-
tions therefor conform to the established
requirements of the said department, nor
shall this resolution confer upon the
water commissioner any other right or
power not specifiedly vested in him by
the charter of the city of New York with
respect to the use of electricity in any
of the public buildings of the city of
New York."

The Draft Gage

An instrument whose possibilities seem
to have been greatly overlooked is the
draft gage. Operating engineers and
others who have to do with power-plant
design and management will usually en-
courage the purchase of practically all
kinds of instruments except those which
will serve to make the fireman's work
less a matter of guess work and judg-
ment. And yet, beyond all other opera-
tions in the plant, the management of
the boiler furnace depends on the per-
sonal element.

With a draft gage connected into the
breeching at the base of the °*ack or be-
yond the damper and another connected

with the furnace or first pass, and en-
couraged to watch the variations in the
draft, the fireman should soon learn the
importance of keeping the fires clean and
the damper suitably adjusted.

Federal Inspection for Loco-
motive Boilers

The locomotive boiler-inspection bill,
mentioned some time ago in these col-
umns, has now passed both houses and
will soon become a law.

The effect of the bill will be to put
the inspection of locomotive boilers under
the charge of the Interstate Commerce
Commission. A chief inspector at 34000
a year, with two assistants at S3000 a
year each, will have actual charge of
the inspection service. Fifty inspectors
will do the work of inspecting boilers in
the field. Every locomotive boiler will
be minutely and carefully examined at
least once a year and also at such other
times as is deemed advisable. The limit
of cost of the service is fixed at 3300,000
a year.

Another mysterious boiler explosion
was avoided when the fireman of the
boiler at the Empire laundry at Pough-
keepsie, N. Y., discovered a dynamite
bomb in a shovelful of coal which he was
about to toss into the furnace. It con-
sisted of a stick of dynamite wrapped in
black paper with a percussion cap and
fuse. If this was a gentle joke, the perpe-
trator ought to be dealt with under the
impelling force of a conception of the
possible results to the thirty-odd em-
ployees of the laundry, to say nothing of
the neighbors and passers by.

There appears to be a change of policy
with respect to the large gas engine. The
Tennessee Coal and Iron Company, with
a large amount of coke-oven gas avail-
able at its Ensley plant, has decided to
burn the gas under boilers and use steam
turbines rather than to use the gas in
large gas engines; and the Cambria
Steel Works is installing a 15,000-kiIo-
watt turbine, the steam for which will
be made in boilers fired with blast-fur-
nace gas.

A few of us manage to carve our
names on the tablet of fame, but some
of us never carve them on anything more
important than the plank siding of the
coal bin. .

Every small boy delights to blow a
whistle, but that is no excuse for the en-
gineer to play a rag-time tune every time
he starts up or shuts down his engine.

"Whenever you see a head, hit it" is
a good practice to follow in regard to
the little leaks and irregularities in steam-
plant operation.

21, 1911.

Inquiries of General Interest

/ i

How can I calculate the safe
for a flywhi-

B C

The safe limit of rim speed of a well
designed cast-iron wheel is 100 feet per
second. The maximum diameter for a
Riven number of revolutions is deter-
mined by the formula

in which

D = Diameter in feet;
R Revolutions per minute.
Converse!

High- and I P imps

What is the difference between a high-
pressure and a low-pressure pun :

H. L. P.

A high-pressure pump is one that
used to pump against a pressure as high
or higher than that of the boiler which
furnish. ^team. A I

ligr • timp, | some.

called, is one designed for pumping
aga: re* below that in it

and the water cylinder is of a greater
diameter than the steam cylind

/ hicknei ■ I 'ylbutrr Walls

Please give me a formula \ i I

can calculate the proper thickness of
•cam-engine cylinder.

I
For a good quality of cast iron
Th> OuOOM Oiamuitt ■

ch.
Th .h is aJ g.

// / ift

In a well the water lc\
below the surface. Will a I
Inch duplex pump operate satitfacr

charge vat
above the pun;;

\ : B
■h the r good working order

there U no reason »h> the pump
not work well. ;on and thr

be tight, at flight leaks
- with •
valve «houIJ he place !
of •' mg

Question* <tres

not wnaweted isnk
m <. oapansed By the

name <ind . n o/ rf,c

inquirer. Ihispagc fa
for \x>u when attn
use if

the same md both connectt

the same line of shafting be run as a
cross-compound engir

The cylinder diameters will, h'
r. have a great influence on the prac-
f the scheme.

/ ' v/r
In a ngine with a

separat ,or for eacl

a varying load the I r pressure rises

with a light load and falls with a hi

What is the cause of this and what
the rcr:

I R. P.
The rangi -off on the lou ;

o long. The cutoff is

n light loads and may be too

long for heaw ones The cutoff on the

the
same a^ :i the high. Then the

nstant and the
foad even

/ > ■

meant by the
m and at

■ a
urc of icgrees an J

orat' MB at

ha* a temr
and ih

n and at 2

°f h it beet) adopted a*

Can two »lmplc engines, each ba-
the same length :lng at

/ /'

If
•urr

oat, of isc la a

e rrcci

»nt sheet of a boi:
fire a small bag about 2 inches deep baa
formed. Janger<

B B

It is not oeceaaa
she,

kept free from scale or deposits of mud
iowever. th - shoald

to an iced be

•or.

/ '

•>e best
regulate the amount -upplic

the furnace: by the damr f open-

ing and closing th

The draft should be ret:
damr

/
I ' old returr

in a cellar as a ri

air at 100 pounds shoald

uld the be diM

■
Pr of

rupture. vhJd J at

the side
fee*

II V

-<*■

ammer in the
hat

of ■ bod t some

if the containing
ves» poaaible to c

tahwaf

ranaioa i* fovnd by
lurne r
volamc at cutoff. Wn the durance to

"■ted by tSc
*h th*
vohunc t ptosoo dtoplace— ■

■M Una! l III—

324

Sizes of Turbine Steam and
Exhaust Pipes

The accompanying curves were pre-
pared by W. J. A. London, chief engi-

POWER

difference in moisture, but the percentage
difference in ordinary work in expanding
from 200 pounds to 1 pound absolute, and
from 100 pounds to 1 pound absolute, is
so small that the curves will be found

100

200

600

300 400 500

Brake Horsepower or Kilowatts

Fig. 1. Size of Steam Pipe to Turbine

700

800

POWtl^

neer, of the Terry Steam Turbine Com-
pany, Hartford, Conn., to save the neces-
sity of working out the size of steam and
exhaust piping for each individual cal-
culation.

Having given the power, water rate
and steam pressure, the size of the steam
pipe is obtained as shown in the example
relating to Fig. 1. Thus: Assume 300
horsepower at 30 pounds water rate, with
175 pounds initial pressure. Follow up
the 300 line to the 30 pounds water rate,
and from the intersection run to the right
to the initial-pressure line, and in the
example this is between 3- and 3j/>-inch
pipe, and will therefore take the larger
size.

For determining the exhaust outlet
when given the power, water rate and
back pressure or vacuum, use Fig. 2 and
in exactly the same way.

The steam-pipe sizes are based on the
standard steam velocity of 100 feet per
second or 6000 feet per minute, using
dry saturated steam. The exhaust curves
are based on a velocity of steam of 400
feet per second or 24,000 feet per minute
for all vacuum curves; 100 feet per sec-
ond, 6000 feet per minute, for the at-
mospheric-exhaust curve is allowed.

In all these curves steam has been
taken as expanding from 150 pounds
gage, and from Peabody's steam tables,
which have been used throughout the
calculation; this gives an entropy of 1.56.
In cases where the initial pressure is
different from that stated, a small correc-
tion should theoretically be made for the

sufficiently close for all practical pur-
poses.

All pipe diameters given are based on

February 21, 1911.

General Electric Centrifugal
Air Compressors

A score of men connected with blast-
furnace operation were the guests of the
General Electric Company at the River
Works, Lynn, Mass., on February 4, to
inspect the design and construction of the
three new turbine-driven, constant-vol-
ume centrifugal air compressors which
are to be delivered to the Iroquois Iron
Company at South Chicago, 111.

One of these compressors is completed
and erected on the testing floor; an actual
demonstration of its operation was made.

These machines will constitute the
third installation in the United States of
this type of compressor. The first ma-
chine to be installed was that at the
Oxford Furnace of the Empire Steel and
Iron Company, Oxford Furnace, N. J.

The Cambridge Scientific Instrument
Company showed several novel instru-
ments at the recent exhibition held by
the Physical Society of London. The
first of these was the bi-meter carbon-
dioxide recorder, which contains no glass
nor liquid, the COi. being absorbed by
lime and being recorded by the aid of a
differential gearing between two cylin-
ders, through which the flue gas is drawn.
The second, the recalescence curve tracer
of H. Brearley, of the Firth Laboratory,
of Sheffield, gives recalescence curves on
a very open scale of rectangular co-
ordinates, connecting time and tempera-
ture with the aid of a thermo-couple and

300 400 500

Brake Horsepower or Kilowa+ts

Fig. 2. Size of Exhaust Pipe

net internal areas. As the net areas of
extra-heavy pipe and double extra-heavy
pipe are very often considerably less
than the normal diameter of pipe, corre-
sponding allowances should be made.

a galvanometer. One clock drives the
whole mechanism. The observer has to
turn a handwheel in such a way as to
keep the pointer coincident with the light
spot of the galvanometer mirror. — Ex.

February 21, 1911.

POW! \<

325

New power House Equipment

I ")s for Placing Baffle Brii k

This set of two tools has been de-
signed for the purpose of removing and
replacing baffle walls of Babcock &
cox boilers.

Ordinarily when removing baffle bricks
necessary to break them before they
can be taken from between the tubes.
When replacing new baffle walls, using
old methods, it is necessary to chip the
edges on two sides of each brick before
it enn be put in place between the tnl

h the new method the brick arc put in
place whole and set up snug against the
tubes.

fi'hat the m-
i entor and tfic munu -
f.nfurrr arc doino to >.,\r
tniK' .//;</ money in (he en-
gine room ,md power-

bouse Engine room

bear against the stationary portion of the
head arc sprung away from the tub*
and D which bear against the movable
pan of the head. With the tubes sprung
in this manner, it is a simple operation

•VV

Fig. i. Tool Used for Sprincinc tup. Tubes

In Fig. 1 is shown the tool used for
King the tubes. It is made with an
adjustable spreader head. The movable
pan is operated by a threaded stem that
•crews into a nut on the inside of the
handle, and is operated by the rod on the
end. The i shows the tool in

to remove an old baffle wall and replace
it with new baffle bricks.

ate* the tool used for

placing the baffle brick in position. The

upr | placed

in the tool; the I the

by the ;awt of the tool.

I 2 Tool po» I*

a contracted position; the loi i ««

Men the tubes are «prung

* will be seen
that four tubc« are •prung at the he.>

ee A and Ich

rping member «ted b\

•u«h a
on the inside of the hi
end of tbc I » ! r i* turned, which tight-
ens of loosens tri

the

«.. The stationary —iififtfT
made that it fits the end o'

With the brick gripped in the
tool is insc : !■ cr

and when in r I movable j

drawn b J the tool removed.

■•g these instruments the
«- can seed whole and thus

their cmc. ■ not im;

These tools are made r-\ J •

Albec Ci I >il Burn

Thi as been designed for use

in the furnace of steam boilers, forges
or wherever crude oil can be utilixed as
a fuel.

It consists of a main bod
an air and oil inlet and a discharge out-
let. Oil is discharged into the
through the plug B, in which wad

6 } 6'

» -q

■\

) *

326

POWER

February 21, 1911.

ply pipe to the inlet of the burner and
out through the small discharge hole in
the nozzle C. Air, under a three-pound
pressure, is admitted to the body of the
burner through the top opening and

Air

First Monthly Meeting of
the Institute

On Tuesday evening, February 9, the
first of the series of regular monthly

-^ v\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\^

•" ••" " '"

7?/////,////*

Fig. 1. Sectional View of the Albee Crude-oil Burner

travels along two paths before it is ex-
pelled at the discharge end. That is, a
portion of the air supply passes to the
interior of the plug B through a series
of holes as shown at F F. This air mingles
with the incoming oil from the nozzle C

educational meetings inaugurated by the
executive committeee of the Institute of
Operating Engineers was held at the
Engineering Societies' building, 29 West
Thirty-ninth street, New York City.

Hubert E. Collins acted as chairman

pointing out the weak spots in the pres-
ent system of education for the engineer-
ing profession and outlining the institute's
plans to provide him a balanced and com-
petent system of professional education.

Professor Lorentzen, of New York Uni-
versity, in a few well chosen words em-
phasized what had been said by the pre-
ceding speakers.

He was followed briefly by F. L. John-
son, Timothy Healy and H. M. Elder,
all of whom spoke of the significance to
the operating engineer of industrial edu-
cation as proposed by the institute.

San Francisco Exposition

San Francisco is to have the exposition
to be held in 1915 in commemoration of
the completion of the Panama canal. A
joint resolution to this effect has already
passed the House and is sure to pass
Congress. California has promised $17,-

Fig. 2. Burner in Place Ready to
Supply Oil as a Fuel

Fig. 3. Burner Pulled Out Ready to
Burn Coal in the Furnace

and passes through the wire screen D
in a partially atomized state, the current
of air and oil passing diagonally from
one side of the burner to the other from
all points of the discharge cap E.

As this current of air, indicated by the
arrows G G, strikes the oil and air being
discharged through the cap E, the mix-
ture is blown through the expanding tube
and is discharged at the end H in a vapor,
and is then ignited in the furnace of the
boiler.

An oil connection is made to the sup-
ply pipe by means of a flexible hose, in
order that the burner can easily be disen-
gaged from the air line and withdrawn
from the furnace. This is accomplished
by a sliding coupling on the air connec-
tion. Fig. 3 shows the burner connected
to and withdrawn from the supply pipe.

This arrangement permits of changing
from coal to oil fuel, or vice versa, which
makes it possible to burn oil during the
day and coal during the night when
the fires are banked.

This burner is manufactured by H. L.
Albee, East Douglas, Mass.

and after briefly outlining the objects of
the institute and giving the reasons for
holding the meetings, he introduced Prof.
F. H. Sykes, director of Teachers College,
Columbia University, who gave a half-
hour talk on the necessity for industrial
education as is exemplified by the scarcity
of trained workers in all cases of mod-
ern industry.

Professor Sykes has made a careful
study of the systems of industrial educa-
tion in vogue in all the countries of
Europe in which the industrial arts are
most highly developed, and his address
on this occasion was greatly enforced
by statements of the changes in certain
industries which in many cases have been
wrought in a few years by the influence
of the industrial schools, in some in-
stances the school saving the industry
from complete decline and the people
who engaged in it from financial and in-
dustrial ruin.

He was followed by C. H. A. Bjerre-
gaard, librarian of the Astor library, who
dwelt on the ethical phases of the subject.

Mr. Jurgensen then presented a paper

500,000 for the proposed exposition and
no pecuniary aid has been asked of the
national Government. New Orleans has
put up a hard fight for the honor, but the
location chosen will have the advantage
of giving many of the visitors an op-
portunity to view the canal.

PERSONAL

Dr. F. R. Hutton, late of Columbia
University and honorary secretary of the
American Society of Mechanical Engi-
neers, has been appointed consulting en-
gineer of the Department of Water Sup-
ply, Gas and Electricity of New York City,
vice George W. Birdsall, deceased.

On the evening of January 25, Melville
W. Mix, president of the Dodge Manu-
facturing Company, celebrated the
twenty-fifth anniversary of his connec-
tion with the company by giving a splen-
did nine-course dinner to stockholders
and directors. At the close of the din-
ner, Mr. Mix was presented with a sil-
ver gold-lined loving cup by First Vice-

February 21, 1911.

:dent W. B. Hosford as a token of the
company's esteem and confidence.

Mr. Mix began as office man and at one
was wrapper of Power and Tr
mission, the company's official organ. He
became shipping clerk and also went to
New Orleans, where he the

Dodge exhibit at the exposition. In 1800

•ent to Chicago, where he became
Chicago manager of the company. In
1894 he was returned to Mishawaka and
became general manager and in 1895 he
elected president and general man-
ager, and has occupied tha- >n since
that time.

HOOKS RI ( EIVED

Th; ik C. Hinckley

and William W. Ramsay. Engineer-
ing Text Book Company. Boston.
Mass. Leather; 104 page-
inches. Price

I r>

Jaaai

I-..W ||( l-l \ \ | \l VI I I Mill » V Mi

V III I V M I ••

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:\ i

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I. Hi

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ApPLitt) Thermo nci-

1 :ii«m D. E*
h Van Nostrand Company. New

k. Cloth
toe !6 illustrations; indt

0 Ot»< '. JIL-

*ard C. Hiller
Taylor. Garnctt. Kvans & Co I
Mi. -ig.; 60 par

-rated; plat
one shillir

The Technical 1
• ing Company. London. !
th diar

i ted ;
tables; index- ling

and sixpci

\I W IW I \ I IONS

l-an.l. B

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■era,

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■

328

POWER

February 21, 1911.

There was once a young
Shepherd Boy who tended his
sheep at the foot of a mountain
near a dark forest. It was rather
lonely for him all day, so he
thought upon a plan by which he
could get a little company and
some excitement. He rushed
down toward the village, calling
out, "Wolf, Wolf!" and the vil-
lagers came out to meet him.

This pleased the Boy so much that a few days after-
ward he tried the same trick, and again the villagers
came to his help. But shortly after this a wolf actu-
ally did come out from the forest, and began to worry
the sheep, and the Boy of course cried out, "Wolf,
Wolf!" But this time the villagers, who had been
fooled twice before, thought the Boy was again deceiv-
ing them, and nobody went to his aid. The wolf
made a good meal off the Boy's flock and when the
Boy complained, the wise man of the village said:
"A liar will not be believed, even when he speaks the
truth."

While reading this one of Aesop's Fables, written
some twenty-five centuries ago, we couldn't help
wondering whether there was not advertising in some
crude form even in those days.

The moral so exactly illustrates the reason why
an advertiser who advertises regularly in reputable
papers must back up his claims with bona fide goods!

And why an advertiser whose goods do not meet
the claims made for them will not appear on the pages
of reputable papers for any length of time.

We recently met a man who had been selling
patent medicines. He told how in the last five years
he had advertised and sold six different brands.

That is to say, different in name. The mixture
was exactly the same each time, being advertised only
as long as the new name
and new claims would fool
people into buying.

However, patent medi-
cines and other articles
which are put out to fool
the public are now practi-
cally eliminated from the
better grade weeklies and
monthlies, and even the
dailies are closing the door
on them.

This change of atti-
tude on the part of pub-
lishers is due to the ever
increasing recognition of
Advertising Ethics. That
advertisers have come to

A department

-for subscribers

edited by the ad -

vertising service

department of

a realization of their responsi-
bility is shown by this report from
one of our solicitors.

Powejr

He says: 'This concern is
manufacturing a new design of
gas engine. They are not yet in a
position to advertise it because it
has not been tested long enough to
know whether it will 'stand up'
or not. In fact, they refuse to

make any sales until they are absolutely certain that

it will be right in every particular."

In the same mail we get a letter from a sub-
scriber, who, in renewing his subscription, says: 'You
may be interested to know that after reading the
advertisements of the Indi-
cator, I bought one and found it to be all they claim
for it."

This is the beginning and the ending of the story
of modern advertising.

It begins with the advertiser who knows it will
not pay him to advertise any but tested and proved
machinery —

And ends with the buyer who finds the goods
"all that is claimed for them."

Back of it is a conscientious publisher who will
not insert the advertisement of the man trying to
pull off something in the nature of a fake deal.

The publisher may be doing it from a sense of
honesty, who knows? Give him credit for it, anyway.

In any event he knows it's poor business in the
long run to do anything else.

The up-to-date buyer comes pretty close to know-
ing who's who and what's what.

And if he happens to be a power-plant man, he

knows what supplies,
equipment, money- or time-
saving appliances he wants.

He knows because he
reads the advertising pages
of his technical paper and
sees what goods are adver-
tised regularly for which
certain claims are made,
backed up by convincing
"reason why" copy.

The maker of a good
article can advertise regu-
larly and comincingly.

The maker of an in-
ferior one can only raise
the cry of " Wolf !" < until
the people get used to it and
no longer answer the call.

\l.\\ > ( )RK. 11 HRi \KY 28, l'dl

AN ancient al deals with tin

-ix blind men who went once to viea
an elephant, After the manner of the
blind, thrir "viewing1 was done thro-
the sense of touch.

It so happened thai each came in contact
with .i different part of the pachyderm; one

touched it- trunk, one took hold of ,i tusk.

one fell an i i nother touched

another felt its side and the sixth caught hold

the elephant s tail.

When •• « bis views «.*K-

phants, the first man intimated that an ele
pliant was long and round in form and coiled
up toward the end, i imilartoahugesnali

The second man went on record to the
• that elephants were much like s]

The tliird thought that an elephant a

much like a Ian in physical rli. n 1:

i interview with tlu- fourth man brought
out tlu- im information th.it an

pliant was not unlike .i tree trunk,
thick and uid planted firmly on the

• und.

Tin- fifth man was jxiMtiw in hi- belief that

an elephant resembled nothing more than the
i barn, behi

tlat and broad.

While the sixth

man did not wil h I

•itiadii t an) thin
which his compan-

! -aid. hi till

in main-
taining that an eli
phant was merely

thin and Inn-, ju

like a p »tdi-

nar\ rop

Thus it was that tlu- term "nature fal
ranu- int<» vogue, although none of these !»'
men really a ne, for tl n faker implies

delibei ' eption while these nun a

entirely sincere in their misstatement

* * *

The fable, a synopsis of which has just
n. was designed t<> sh< >\n h« »\\ <
opinion ma\ u formed if limii
obs< • • used

All <>f us form am pinion >metim<

form them t<*» hastily. I all

<>f tin ts are in; si tmetime '■ • the

question is too lai r us I lote

it it once and, like tin blind men,
led tray l>\ qui limited ob

The giant says that tl I is easy to seal

and J'1 it li\ .rl I : in

Tin- dwarf COmpl i:is that :t i

dees not even attempt to climb it.

Whether i menta

depends a l<»t upon ourselvt

How '., witli! until

we are posil tin- •

tl
sid< How iur

stand
ii'

ill

thin
up al

I-

330

POWER

February 28, 1911.

Additions to Hartford Power Plant

The Dutch Point station of the Hart-
ford Electric Light Company, at Hart-
ford, Conn., has been a gradual growth
from a small auxiliary to the water-power
installations of this company to its pres-
ent status as the main generating station
of the Hartford system. When the com-
pany first began business its current out-
put was the product of two small hydro-
electric developments having a total out-
put of not more than 2400 kilowatts. As
the load became greater it became neces-
sary to build a small steam station to
serve as an auxiliary in the time of
low water, and a location on what is
known as Dutch point, on the Connecticut
river, was chosen as the site. A small
creek runs into the river at this spot, and
the station is located on the point of land
between the creek and the river, thus
making it a handy site for the delivery of
coal and other supplies.

As the load on the company's system
increased, the development has been
along the line of additional steam power,
so that now the water powers furnish
a rather insignificant proportion of the

By H. R. Callaway

The Dutch Point station,
which carries the greater
part of the lighting and
power load for Hartford
and the surrounding dis-
tricts, has recently been
equipped with two addi-
tional 1250-horsepower
Bigelow- Horn shy boilers.
These are served by the
largest automatic stokers
ever built.

wise of the building and separating the
boiler room from the turbine room. On
the side of the building opposite the
boiler house is an extra bay slightly lower
than the rest of the building which houses
the switchboard and the gallery contain-

Fig. 1. Stoker Assembled in Shop

total electricity. So rapidly has the sale
of electricity increased that the Dutch
Point station has been added to several
times, and the company has just recently
completed the latest of these additions to
the equipment.

The power-house building, including
the recent additions, is about 250 feet
long by 135 feet wide. It is of steel
frame and brick construction throughout,
with a brick dividing wall running length-

ing the electrical equipment and the cir-
culating pumps for the condensers.

The original boiler-house equipment
consisted of six 550-horsepower Ault-
man-Taylor boilers. These are arranged
in a single row with the horizontal firing
aisle next to the building wall. Later it
was decided to add 2500 boiler horse-
power, and two 1250-horsepower Bige-
low-Hornsby boilers were installed, these
being set beyond the Aultman-Taylor

boilers and transversely with the boiler
house. The latest addition to the boiler
equipment has been two more 1250-
horsepower Bigelow-Hornsby boilers
placed in an addition built onto the end
of the boiler house next to that part oc-
cupied by the transverse boilers. The
unusual size of the four latest additions
to the boiler room is one of the notable
features of this station, and not only are
the boilers themselves of unprecedented
size, but they are equipped with the larg-
est automatic stokers ever built. These
are fourteen retort Taylor gravity under-
feed stokers, shown in Fig. 1. The first
installation of these mammoth stokers
was on the two latest of the Bigelow-
Hornsby boilers. Afterward it was de-
cided to change over the two original
1250-horsepower boilers from hand firing
to automatic stoker firing, and these are
now being equipped with Taylor stokers.
The main reasons for using such large
boiler units at this station were concen-
tration of power, economy of floor space
and increased economy in operation due
to a smaller amount of radiation.

The Bigelow-Hornsby boilers which
are shown in Fig. 2 measure 27
feet 6 inches across the front and stand
21 feet 6]/j inches from the floor line to
the center of the steam drum. The lat-
ter is 4 feet in diameter and extends the
entire width of the top of the setting.
This drum connects with forty sections
of 3J4-inch wrater tubes, 21 tubes to a
section, or in all 840 tubes, each section
of water tubes terminating at either end
in a cylindrical header. The front sec-
tions are inclined at a steep angle, while
the rear sections are vertical. In this
type of boiler the depth of the furnace
is necessarily somewhat limited; there-
fore the extreme'width of grate and a high
rate of combustion are depended upon to
develop the rated horsepower. All the
boilers in the station are equipped with
Foster superheaters. Three 10-foot steel
stacks serve the various batteries, two
of these discharging the gases from the
Aultman-Taylor boilers and the two old-
est Bigelow-Hornsby boilers., and the
third, a new 50-foot stack, serving the
two latest units. The stokers operate on
about 4 inches draft, but as yet there is
no information available as to the per-
formance of these huge units. Tests,
however, will be made before long, the
results of which are awaited with in-
terest, owing to their unusual size.

One of the principal reasons for the in-
stallation of automatic stokers in this
station was economy in labor, 2500 horse-
power of boilers being operated by three
men per day of 24 hours. When this
same battery of boilers was operated
with hand firing it took 12 men> per day
for the same capacity.

Februa: 1011.

. •

FlC. 2. ^T<>KIR

There arc in all six main units: one
dOOO-kilowait. one lowatt and two

■en-

rs and two 4000-kilowatt General

! trie horizontal turbo-gent, the

latter being tl The

nachines all operate in parallel and

generate two-phas. currcr.-

The turbines receive steam at I
poui re and !<«'

heat from a single 12-inch main running

le the boiler- room wall and
hind the batteries. The leads taken off

ich,
h and the

small ui

rhc new
1 : and a 10- inch

lo it

0 the ba aw

arc tl
I
■
hati ! in

parallel, each tare

le arrange -
mcr,- this n rate

singly on cith
Although il

larger that irrangc-

ment cnaK l make

of an

g It ar
one

vail ma

nit* arc

■ II ;

bclnc
ugh a long vertical «hafl bv an In-
tied In a gallcrv along-
side • hhoarJ h

i with a separate intake from the
I all arc jo
into one Ine which ends at a point

•n the inta-

rouble has

ibly

to the fact that there It the

water of tl. cad

of the pitting

the
n trouble 1> e the «

at the ends of the

and c
cooling of the cor. :

troir cnous avr

coming
loose at

Inside the condenser

a short length of sma ng.

I inside
ends and then I on This method

'ig down the area some-
what, which, h

-a«e be
crs arc a!' the

•

>f the two nc*
>-altcr:

•re rat! ;uc and exceed

pact. 1

unc
shaft.

-am tu: ie*c are *'

■
uum main'

inch*. J on a

As alreaJ

up
the I at the

ion.
In .

Pic X Conot

332

POWER

February 28, 1911.

coal and other supplies by water, a spur
track runs alongside the station on the
boiler-room side. This is utilized for
obtaining coal by rail during the winter
months when the river is frozen and a
sufficient supply has not been stored in
the fall, although the 18,000-ton capacity
of the storage bins usually proves ade-
quate for this period. The approximate
yearly coal consumption is 40,000 long
tons.

The system of handling the coal is un-
usual. In addition to the spur track, al-
ready mentioned, which runs on the boiler-
room side of the station, another spur runs
on the river side along the unloading piers.
Two derricks mounted on railroad trucks
are used for unloading and loading
the coal cars on these tracks. One der-
rick hoists coal from the barges and de-
posits it into the coal cars which are
then shunted around onto the other track,
and there unloaded into bins from which
the coal falls by gravity to the boiler-
room floor. In the case of the new stoker-
fired boilers the coal goes from the bins
into the hopper over the firing aisle, from
which it is fed through chutes into the
retorts of the stokers. Where the coal is
brought by rail the cars are simply run
in on the spur next to the storage bins
and unloaded by means of the derrick
hoists. It is said that 3 cents' per long
ton covers all unloading charges for coal.
The hand-fired boilers burn a mixture
of 75 per cent. No. 3 buckwheat and 25
per cent, bituminous coal. This mixture
is the result of a large number of ex-
periments on the most efficient and
economical coal for use under the hand-
fired boilers, and marks the point where
the pounds of steam per unit cost is a
maximum.

The Taylor stokers are supplied en-
tirely with soft coal averaging about
14,600 B.t.u. per pound. The buckwheat
averages 11,400 B.t.u. per pound. Al-
though the mixture has proved to be the
most economical fuel for average condi-
tions on the hand-fired boilers, it has
been found that under peak loads it is im-
possible to get sufficient capacity out of
the boilers. Accordingly at the time of
heaviest loads it is customary to burn
straight soft coal on the hand-fired
boilers as well as on the stokers. In
the case of the former, this practice gives
rise to considerable smoke and poor effi-
ciency, which was another reason for the
installation of the mechanical stokers
under the new boilers.

The present system is to carry the
steady load of the station on the stoker-
fired boilers and handle the peak loads
with the hand-fired boilers.

The ashes are dumped from hoppers
under the boilers into ash cars in the
basement. These discharge into a bucket
hoist at one end of the boiler house,
which dumps the ashes into carts. The
ashes are then carted away by con-
tractors who take all the ashes from the

station without charge, so that the ash-
disposal problem is very simple.

The station contains no fire pumps
whatever; the construction being prac-
tically fireproof throughout and the coal-
storage bins being outside the station

walls, the chances of fire are exceedingly
small. Located as it is on an isolated
point between two bodies of water it
would be impossible for a fire in the sta-
tion to do harm outside the premises.
Buckwheat No. 3, delivered by water,

Fig. 4. Sectional Elevation and Plan of Bigelow-Hornsby Boiler

PQwEg,

WWWW^

February 28, 191 1.

costs ?2.05 per ton; by rail, S2 72 The
bituminous coal costs S3. 35 and S3. 65
respectively.

The electrical distribution is divided
up into two separate systems. For the
city proper the current is not transformed
but is transmitted at the generator volt-
age of 2400 to two substations, where it
is stepped down to 220 volts and changed
to direct current by means of rotary con-
vert-

The lighting distribution from these
two substations is on the Edison three-
wire system, 220 volts outside and IK)
volts between the outside and the
grounded neutral. In the case of large
power consumers, such as mills and fac-

POU

tories, separate feeders go direct from
the power house to transformer* lo-
cated on poles at the mill end of the
feeder*; this current is alternating.

There is a second system of distribu-
tion in use for the outlying districts;
transformers located in the basement of
the station step up the voltage from .
volts two-phase to I olts tr

phase. In this system there are no con-
verters, alternating current being
tributed an: ans.

forn

The winter load on the system aver-
ages 140.000 kilowatt-hours per day and
the load factor is unusually high for a
lighting installation, approximating 65

333

Because of the large number
of induction motors operating during the
day in the various factories, the p
factor during the da

\s soon iot or load _

off in • mg the aai

-tood. r
that rotary condenser* are to be installed
in counterba -he lagging

effect of tl : action motor* and to

bring up the load factor during
to somewhat near unit) It »ou!d not be
necessary to operate them duringt'

The designing engineer* of this pb
who also had charge of tr
are Wcstinghouse. O
of New rod

Making,

Use and Care

w'ith the bark and the hides at hand
the process of tanning to produce leather
for belting may be taken up.

The hides are first soaked in pure
spring water until all the din is thorough-
ly washed out of them. They are then
placed in a vat of weak lime water, which
is gradually strengthened until the sixth
day. when the hair has been loosened
flciently to allow the skin to be laid on
a beam and the hair scraped off with a
blunt knife.

The bare hides arc then placed in an
alkaline solution called the "bate." for
the purpose of removing the lime which
may ha\c remained from the prc\
bath; this liming and "bating." done in a
building knoun as the "beam boa
or "lime ho
in the making of good, solid belt leather.

Cleansed from hair, flesh and lime, the
■ are taken from the "bate" to the
"handlers." where the. e their I

bath of weak tanning liqi.

This liquor is prcparcJ from oak bark.

ground in
something like an overgrown coffee mill,
but our tannery ha* I for

ft* c rati w ith an ir :sh-

big machine which doc ker

■ad more c" md at the

bark leaves thit machine
Means of s rotary fsn through larg
to the leach t
roc arc 12 feci in diameter, eight
feet deep, and hold fully eight
d hark
To thi» ground bark. water i» aJ
•scant r.f rotai «nd

^^■fng through the matt, takes up and
the tann
There it a falte bottom in each leaching
lib. and the liquor ' encath

ll and pumped awav to the ttoring and

4nks for ute when needed t
from these tsnks that the iwn

Ihe handler vaM m which the hide*
rut after the "liming" and "bating "

By (has. A. Schicrcn, Jr.

/ in tanning of kid*
belt leatki Ike old, long
time, oak-bark pt nui

tlh operation* in mak
belts.

both b \nd

f«lt mi- thai I.

long •

mum i Mat

Tanning

The hides arc placed in the han.:
across tticks tide bj
as close and a- icrc

about 10 or I lurfaag l 'iich

the ng the

K both in - J flrmnoas.

these
the bcl!ie» anj headt arc •
off and tanned tcpar.v
OOSe

on top of the "mjui s hundred in

k>sc bx

■

ig tsnr

"cd 10 ■ tannin »

of Belting

days for the attainment of the best re-
su!'

Dai

THE B

When the hides have thus been tl
gbly tsnned the aken from the

I, washed, so as to remove (
panicle of tan bark. anJ iiled on

the grain side, hung up to dry in a dark-
ened loft, whe: • at an :
temperatur heat, and gala
a beautiful clear russet color
as such, is now completed, and each bide

ut into
snd weight

The bellies, shoulder* and all Sabby or
ans are thrown out for shoe
purposes, and I on or hesn

of the hide is res

Th
on the Jc in huge ma

crating somewhat on Kiple

milling ma. en scoured by

■ct of ibis

cepiion of
the ttuffinK
tallo

•r the
r

cvoted to this

done lends to ( one < ott

when use
slurnrc cd Ihe leaf he

aasaotaod *nj stratcaai' n nasi ;^c frxrt

•m
g now remains to bo door at the
o«t the leather

the belt fact

•f
owned
is 100

Tne

Ming
feel long

334

POWER

February 28, 1911.

nery, after the leather is taken out of
the vats, and before the currying pro-
cess, the shoulders are removed from all
of the hides, and each hide is measured
four feet from the butt end of the tail
to the shoulder, and the shoulder cut
straight across so that no piece of
shoulder or flanky leather is left on the
hide.

After the severe stretching which these
pieces undergo during the currying pro-
cess and in the stretching frames the
pieces elongate from four inches to six
inches, making each piece four feet to
four feet six inches in length, and all of
the pieces solid leather.

Operations in Making a Leather Belt

The first process at the belting fac-
tory is to select the centers and sides for
thickness and weight, and cut them up
into various widths for which the stock
is most suitable; this is one of the most
important processes in the making of
leather belting.

After the leather has been cut to width
it is tr?.nsfered to the matching tables,
where the pieces are matched in pairs
and marked for the scarfing machine;
this machine scarfs the laps to a length
already indicated by the matcher.

Fron. the scarfer the stock is taken to
the feathering-machine operator, who
feathers the edges of the laps prior to
then going to the pressman to be ce-
mented The cement used is either our
improved _elt cement for regular belts to
run under dry conditions, or our water-
proof cement for waterproof belting. Per-
fect joints can be and are made with no
other fastening than cement, and in most
cases riveting or sewing the laps is su-
perfluous; joints that are cemented only
have the advant?.gs o: running smoother
and with less vibration than belts fast-
ened in any other way.

The belt next goes to the finishing de-
partment, where it is inspected ?nd where
the edges are finished either round or
square as the case may ce. During the
finishing of the edges the bed passes
through a stretching device which elimi-
nates all of the stretch or surp'us elastic-
ity that may be necessary for good run-
ning.

The belt is next turned over to the final
finishing table, where the edges are bur-
nished and the roll made up ready for
shipment and sent to the shipping depart-
ment.

Every center-made belt six inches in
width and over takes the central portion
of one steer hide for every four feet of
length single ply, and two steer hides for
every four feet of length double ply. A
large main-drive belt made by us was
243 feet long and 72 inches wide, three
ply thick. It took the best or central
i portion of the hides of a herd of 549
steers to make this belt. The average
area of a steer hide when it reaches our
tannery is 40 square feet. The head,

shoulders and bellies are trimmed off and
tanned separately for shoe purposes, and
only 14 square feet, or the central back
portion of each hide, is used for first-
class belting. This indicates one reason
why good belting is expensive.

Belt Specifications

It is hard to suggest a belt specifica-
tion which would be acceptable to every
buyer and every seller, and there is a
great divergence of opinion regarding
such specifications. From my standpoint
the following is reasonable in all re-
spects:

1. The belting shall be short lap, cut
from centers of the best oak-bark tanned
belting butts, tanned with oak bark by the
old slow and long-time process.

2. No piece of leather in the belt shall
be more than 54 inches in length, includ-
ing laps. The leather shall be cut length-
wise from the extreme end of the butt,
eliminating shoulder, and offal of every
description. No piece of leather in the
belt shall be cut from a portion of the
hide further away than 18 inches from
the side of the backbone of the animal
which shows through the center of the
butt.

3. The weights shall be as follows:
Single belts, 1 to 2 inches in width, 14
ounces to the square foot. Two and one-
fourth to b]/2 inches in width, 15 ounces
to the square foot. Six inches and over
in width, 16 ounces to the square foot.
Double belts, 1 to 2 inches in width, 28
ounces to the square foot. Two and one-
fourth to 5T/> inches in width, 30 ounces
to the square foot. Six inches and over
in width, 32 ounces to the square foot.

The above weights are for the very best
brands of heavy oak-bark tanned leather
belting. Of course, belts lighter than
these weights can be made and are lower
in price. The quality of the leather is
just as good but the substance of the belt
is thinner. A second weight would be one
ounce p?r square foot under the weights
ai^ove enumerated, and for a very light-
weight solid-stock belt the weights would
be two ounces less per square foot than
the weights above enumerated.

4. Laps. In single leather belts six
inches wide or less, no laps shall exceed
seven inches in length, or be les~ than
3>2 inches in length. On all wider size5?
of single belts no laps shall exceed nine
inches in length or be less than five
inches in length. In double leather belts,
no lap shall exceed six inches in length,
nor be less than 31/. inches in length.

5. Cement. All laps of leather belting
shall hold securely in every part, and
when pulled apart the surfaces then ex-
posed shall show no resinous, vitreous,
oily, or watery condition.

6. Tests. Belts must show an elonga-
tion of not more than 15 per cent, for
single belts, and not more than 13 per
cent, for double belts when subjected to
a stress of 1500 pounds per square inch;

the elongation to be measured under
stress. The breaking strain should be
about 3200 to 3500 pounds per square
inch of unstressed cross-section, both
single and double ply.

Belting Factors

Regarding belting factors there are
many rules and regulations that are pub-
lished and talked about. In Europe they
use single belts for everything, whereas
in America most of our belts above five
or six inches in width are double ply.
They carry the single-belt theory to an
extreme and use single belts a meter
wide. Their idea is that a single belt
runs better and will transmit much more
power than the same amount of leather
put into a double belt; this, however, is
not true because the transverse strain
on a wide single belt weakens it, and a
double belt over eight inches is a good
investment for any service and is really
necessary as a reserve power. In gen-
eral they figure too close on the power-
transmission proposition in Europe and
the belt gets the worst of it. Some of
these -ideas are coming more and more
into vogue here. My opinion is that the
old rules that have been used for the past
40 or 50 years are the best.

Regarding the length of belts, it is
generally safe to figure that the mini-
mum distance between centers should be
three and one-half times the diameter of
the largest or driving pulley.

A good transmission rule, and one that
leaves sufficient reserve power in the
belt, is to divide the number of feet that
the belt travels per minute by 800; the
result is the number of horsepower that
a 1-inch single belt will transmit; in other
words, if a belt travels 2400 feet per
minute, according to this rule a 1-inch
single belt under this condition would
transmit three horsepower, a iO-inch belt
30 horsepower, and so on.

A good rule for double belts is to di-
vide the number of feet that the belt runs
per minute by 500; the result is the num-
ber of horsepower that a 1-inch double belt
will transmit; in other words, a double
belt 1-inch wide running 2500 feet per
minute will transmit 5 horsepower, and
wider belts in direct proportion.

These are both old rules but they are
safe.

It is impossible to give a hard and fast
rule in regard to shortening a new belt
before it is placed on its pulleys, and in
regard to taking up belts that are in use.
The factors for such shortening would
vary with the different tannages of the
belt leather. The old long-time process
of tanning gives a long-fibered leather
with more elasticity, more life and more
staying power than th.^ shorter-tanned
leather. A shorter-fibered leather does not
stretch as much as the longer fiber, and
while it may have a greater tensile
strength in the beginning it lacks the

February 28, 1911.

POU

durability of the old-style long-fibcred
oak-bark tannai

Thus, while it is impossible to lay down
an exact rule regarding how much shorter
belts should be cut than the actual tape-
line measurement around the pu

afe to say that the average leather
belt in the market today should be cut
two inches short for each 10 feet of t

'cment; thus a belt that is to
be 30 feet long when in place on its pul-
leys should be cut ' iborl and this
6 inches stretched out of the belt when
put in place.
follouing this method a belt prop-
selected for the work it is to do
should not have to be taken up at fre-
quent intervals.

In regard to a factor for shortening
belts in use the same conditions confront
n regards the different tannages of
er as have been mcntioneJ
that is. the short-fibered leather Urate
less and has less e and a shorter

life. Tun per cent, of the length should
be the maximum that a belt will stretch un-
it jn severely incd. Anv belt
that stretches o it. of its length
trained, and is liable to break if
stretched to a much greater

Care op B Soma

Regarding the

ich arc :ic beat

or dryness need a good belt dressing ap-

i perhaps onci months

some cases oftcner than this, but i
onths will harm no belt
done, and this treatment has
to preserve tht. g qual-

f the I
Foi leather link belts

are made for d -rt ccn-

and are the oi iar-

run quarter turn; their useful-
ness, therefore, is limi*

The most efficient belt can perhaps be
ed as the one that . c the max-

imum number of horsepower- hours of
dollar of b -.stment.

that they
h to put in md that

do no- • the belt to li

three months or oi
as the case may bt 'he other fa

wc can point to belts that have been run-
ning day after day for - 3 01
rs and the arc still in good ser\

able co' x larger

rstment ia justified in it
case than in tf

-ided on th

•hip* a short i 'chaser

he ma

is that the ma

...

•> to de

If a belt is figured a the or-

dinar ious section of

amount of

another 10 or 1 .eat,

for s long Tbc more re»

cap. belt has. the lot

and the better island sud-

However, all of a question of

good judgment and common sense on the
part of the engineer or mechanic who is
ng in the

hat the first cost of -
const dc r a i
it b

nsidcrations must '
anc

Leakage Past Various Types of Valve

lr. ! ays of strcnuo

n engine of maximum i •'
la most unfortunate that than 1 be

a sea- f reliable information

rega-
use at the present time may be cl

four groups the the

the Corliss valve and the
drop There arc many

each of the gr

iot affect the- irds

cam leakag
It at only tl

'cam leakage in a
manner that can be a. ible

Callcndar and
t in i • »n a l«'

ich engine at

! in the
• the I
I

the leakage with the
valve .i ikage after

the i id been car and

refilled As .i

ear thai - • age Is

mcrch a question
enc< • ■ •
•crj; n made at

•he rate

>m tests with I
■
*M «lonal

laakagr c found rfcal

aft wa ■ ! and

James ( anne

.1 p ibU

■

Utit th

■

that the

where

A Kate of

• ; ' :

^ upon

■ .
■

•

The on

•tic* r*fi>krr up

In a

'ias km
re made

%e are pre-

a manner that
the test-

■if if*
occ

■
>nd the .
Vcct

•

constant under the u
n»t BOflt • i' that i

nS lo |bc fort
mch a

cor .'

oulj be <»»

f J i" the r •

336

POWER

February 28, 1911.

From this it is seen that this test shows
the coefficient C to be practically the
same for piston and slide valves.

The following tests illustrate the prac-
tical use to which this knowledge of
valve leakage can be applied. They were
made on a 330-kilowatt high-speed en-
gine fitted with piston valves and the
experiments were carried out in order to
improve the economy of the engines of
this type.

They were first made at various loads
with a standard engine which had valves
without rings, and which had run for
some days to give its bearings, piston
rings, etc., time to get to a proper work-
ing fit. The engine was governed by
the throttle. The curves, here shown,
representing the total steam per hour, fol-
low Willan's law.

The curves show that the gain in
economy with the ring valves is about 3
per cent, at full load, but at light loads
there is practically no gain. This gain at
full load was greater than was expected
and the gain diminishing with the load is
probably explained by the fact that the
pressure is reduced with the load.

It was then decided to lengthen the
travel of the low-pressure valve by fit-
ting a new low-pressure eccentric; this
permitted a greater length of valve face,
and, as Messrs. Callendar and Nicolson
found that the leakage of a slide valve
was directly proportional to the length
of the face, it was hoped that an ap-
preciable saving would be effected in the
economy of the engine. The travel of
the valve was altered from 4j:> to Ql/2
inches and at the same time it was ar-
ranged to cut off at 45 per cent, of the
stroke instead of 60 per cent. This en-
abled a still greater length of valve face
to be obtained. Altering the cutoff in
the low-pressure cylinder does not af-
fect the power of the engine but it slight-
ly alters the distribution of the load
between the cylinders. These alterations
increased the length of the valve face
from \l/i to 6 inches at the top end and
from 4'i to 5^4 inches at the bottom,
giving a total difference of 34 per cent.
The results of tests at various loads
with the longer travel low-pressure valve
are shown by the bottom curve. Com-
paring these with the previous tests in
which ring valves were used, it is seen
that there is a gain by giving a longer
travel to the low-pressure valve and hav-
ing an earlier low-pressure cutoff of
about 4.5 per cent, at full load and about
7 per cent, at half load. Also, the curves
show that 350 pounds of steam per hour
has been saved at full load but the sav-
ing gradually decreases as the load de-
creases.

It might be considered that altering the
low-pressure cutoff improves the econ-
omy of the engine; however, it has been
proved that this does not affect the econ-
omy in the slightest degree, both on

piston-valve engines and on slide-valve
engines.

As far as can be ascertained there
are no published tests of the steam leak-
age of Corliss valves. It would seem
probable that the leakage would follow a
law somewhat similar to that of slide-
valve leakage. However, it is shown by
Messrs. Callendar and Nicolson that this
should not be so in actual practice as
with this type of valve both the live and
exhaust steam do not pass through the
same valve. They stated that the leakage
probably occurred mainly in the form of
water which was condensed on the valve
faces, and then reevaporated. As the
result of their tests, they stated that this
leakage might be greatly reduced by
jacketing or otherwise heating the valve
seat and thus minimizing the condensa-
tion; furthermore, that an engine with

8000

"50 100 150 200 250 300 350,
K i I o w a 1 1 5 ""'*•

Leakage at Various Loads

separate steam and exhaust valves would
possess advantages as regards steam
leakage over a slide-valve engine, owing
to the smaller condensation on the steam-
valve face.

In the discussion on a paper read be-
fore the Institution of Mechanical Engi-
neers in July, 1904, Mr. Longridge stated
that superheating played an important
part in reducing valve leakage. With
fluids of small viscosity, such as steam
and water at high pressure, the velocity
of flow through a small orifice such as
might be supposed to exist between a
valve and its seat would depend almost
entirely upon the difference of the pres-
sure and would be practically equal under
a given pressure whether the leaking
fluid were steam or water. As the density
of water is so much greater than that
of steam, it is easily seen that the weight
of water leakage would be very much
greater than that of steam, and the effect
of condensation is evident.

With drop valves the seats are either
flat or conical. Experience has shown
that flat seats are preferable provided
the dashpot is of an efficient type; or. if
a positive gear is used, it might be con-
sidered that the leakage through these
valves would be practically nil, for when

steam is not being admitted the valves
are on their seats and there is no clear-
ance between the valve and its seat. This,
however, is not true in practice, for even
with the valves made to fit as perfectly
as possible there is a slight leakage of
steam, and if they be of large diam-
eter this leakage becomes sufficient to
run the engine if a high vacuum is main-
tained in the exhaust pipe and there is
no load.

Tests showing the leakage of these
valves have not been published, but in
Volume CLXXIII of the Proceedings of
the Institution of Civil Engineers, Mr.
Preece shows that the leakage is less
than with valves which have rubbing sur-
faces where a certain amount of clear-
ance is necessary.

In actual practice with piston- or slide-
valve engines the gain due to superheat
is much greater than the gain with the
same amount of superheat in drop-valve
engines. This larger gain is maintained
up to a certain degree of superheat, after
which the gain due to increased tempera-
ture is practically the same for both
types of engines, and this is correct
whether the engines be expansion or
throttle governed. This can be explained
only by the fact that the condensation on
the valve face of the slide or piston valve
is decreased by the increasing tempera-
ture until the point has been reached at
which the leakage of these types of
valves becomes equal to that of the drop
valve, the cylinder condensation and all
other things affected by the superheat
being the same with each type.

Warnings

The Manchester Steam Users' Associa-
tion issues the following:

Don't overload the safety valves or
tamper with them.

Don't let the water level sink out of
sight.

Don't allow the cocks and valves to
set fast.

Don't open the steam stop valves hur-
riedly.

Don't empty the boiler while steam is
up.

Don't open manholes before- easing
safety valves.

Don't raise steam hurriedly.

Don't use unknown scale- solvent or
compositions.

Don't slake ashes against boiler fronts.

Old Hal Mossback, th' ingineer et th'
ladies' rat factery, went t' sneeze tother
day and his false teeth drapped out an'
rolled inter th' flywheel. Hal wanted t'
shet down an' get 'em out but th' boss
told 'im the th' wimmin hed th' rat
bizness rushed so dumd hard thet they
didn't hev time t' stop. Hal sed he gessed
thet et wuz up t' 'im ter live on soup th'
rest uv th' week.

February 28, 1911.

PO\X

337

Cooling System for Condensing Water

A homemade cooling tower, costing but

for labor and material, is installed

at the power plant of the Fitchburg Sc

Leominster Street Railway Company,

Fitchburg. Mass.

There is a made pond, having a natural
bottom and concrete side walls, that con-
tains the water used for condensing pur-
poses. City water is used exclusively
for boiler feed, which, when condv

iargcd into this pond, the supply be-
ing more than sufficient to make up for
the loss by evaporation. The pond is
TnxTo feet, with a depth of 7 feet. Pond
water is not used for boiler feeding, be-
cause it is contaminated to a consider-
able extent with din and oil.

The design of the cooling tower is

shown in the accompanying illustrations.

- a structure ISO feet long and 10

feet wide, equipped with three cooling

platforms, as shown in Fig. 1.

The platforms, all of which have a
drop of I foot in 50. are made of 2-inch
spruce planking and arc supported by
6x6-inch timber*, each H feet long. The
top cooling floor has baffle ured

to the upper surface in the form of a V,
which ruffles the water and causes some
of it to fall over the edges of the plat-
form, as shown in 1 There are
four rows of side deflecting pieces, also
shown in Fig. 2, the three top defle^
slanting toward the outside edge and

the lower one slants to
the bottom floor. This arrangement causes
the water to drop from one dcfl
the next one below, the bottom deflector
catching the water and diverting it to
the lower cooling platform.

The condensing water is dischan

a jet condenser through a 14-inch

which is capable of taking care of

the largest engines in the plant.

The second discharge pipe is 10 inches

By R. O. Warren

. \ how, maa\ ting

hul >.; il ii)ul

labor lowei

oJuri ill the

idatn
densii > u

in diameter and is connected to a second

jet condenser. Both of these pipes arc

J with a Y connection, so that by

opening a . the bottom r

conden r can be discharged d

to the pond through the 1
shown in ! .i sting

the platforms of the cooling t

en the mii high

: in the po- ,:ns. for

I then cool enough for condensing

purpose charge from the k

platform is onto a float, as shown la

to flow into
the pond in a thin film from the four
' the float.
The temperature of V. u la ting

water, after passing he cooling

platforms is I«. -) degrees Far:-

hcit. The t<>»cr will civ., handle the

338

POWER

February 28, 1911.

condensing water for 1500 horsepower
of engines and 2000 horsepower if nec-
essary, although there would be less drop
in temperature with the greater quantity.

The pond is connected to the suction pipe leading to the pond. The slides

well by a 24-inch pipe. In case it is for the gates are made of railroad rails

necessary to clean the well, a gate is and the gate is raised by means of a

lowered over the end of the 24-inch handle passed through an extension rod.

Special Setting for Water Tube Boilers

Viewed from the standpoint of smoke
formation, one of the worst conditions
where soft coal is used, is that of hav-
ing the grate directly under the tubes in
the first pass. In many plants, thus
equipped, there is not enough space in
front of the boilers to permit adding an
extension furnace, and it is to meet this
condition, particularly, that the setting
here illustrated was designed. Before
examining in detail the constructive fea-
tures of this setting it might be well to
consider the fundamental principles
which underlie its use.

Among the agents that prevent the
proper mixing of air and gas are the so
called "neutrals" consisting mainly of
carbon dioxide, nitrogen and water vapor.
If enough neutral is added, combustion
may be entirely prevented. For instance,
if one part of carbon dioxide is mixed
with seven parts of a combustible mix-
ture of gas and air, ignition and combus-
tion will not take place. Likewise, if
one part of nitrogen is mixed with six
parts of the combustible mixture, the
power of combustion is nullified. There-
fore, it is important that the neutrals be
removed from the combustible matter as
soon as they are formed. If the water
vapor, formed by combustion, is allowed
to mix with the heated gases, it may also
become dissociated, taking up heat from
the surrounding gases and cooling them.

The quantity of steam in a boiler pro-
duced does not depend upon the intensity
of the fire, but upon the amount of heat
absorbed by the water from the burnt
gases which are the conveyer of the heat.
According to Perry's theory, the rate of
impartation to a boiler tube is for ordinary
gases proportional to:

1. Temperature difference of the
gases and the metallic surface.

2. Density of the gases.

3. Velocity of the gases parallel to
the metallic surfaces.

4. Specific heat of the gases at con-
stant pressure.

To these I should add:

5. Character of the metal surface.

6. Heat-conducting property of the
metal.

Usually the first factor alone is con-
sidered. The second assumes that an
increase in density causes the contact be-
tween the molecules of gas and the part
to be heated, to be more intense. From
the kinetic theory of gases the individual
molecules of gas give up their heat by
vibrating against the metal; the greater
the number of molecular impacts per
second against a unit area of the metal,

By Edward J. Kunze

An outline of the funda-
mental principles of com-
bustion and heat transmis-
sion, application of which
is made in a special form
of setting intended to elimi-
nate smoke when using soft
coal.

•From a paper delivered at the annual
meeting of the Michigan Engineering Society,
January 11, 1911.

the greater the amount of heat imparted
to the metal. But the number of impacts
is directly proportional to the density,
which, in turn, at a constant pressure, is
inversely proportional to the tempera-
ture. On this account there is a direct
neutralization of gain when striving for
high temperature; for, as the tempera-
ture is raised, the number of molecules
in action against any portion of the heat-
ing surface is reduced.

Regarding the third factor, consider
the molecules of the metal in a state of
rapid vibration with spaces between them
much larger than the molecules. En-
tangled among the outer molecules of
the metal there would be comparatively
stationary molecules of gas held close
together in a dense film next to the metal.
Farther out, normal gas is reached, where
the molecules are widely scattered. These
gaseous molecules would be in a state
of rapid vibration, but those close to the
metal would be more or less bound by
the attraction of the metal, and serve as
a poor conductor of heat. Hence, the
hope of transmitting more heat lies in
the dislodging of the slowly vibrating
molecules and replacing them with rapid-
ly vibrating or hot ones. The .dislodging
molecules fly back and forth perpen-
dicularly to the surface, and this scrub-
bing effect on the layer adhering to the
metal is proportional to the velocity of
the gas parallel to the heating surface.
This velocity, therefore, has an important
influence upon the heat transmission.

The products of combustion at a high
temperature take the shortest course and
will not spread over the entire heating
surface unless external means such as
baffling are resorted to. In order to pre-
vent the thinning out of the heat current

or short-circuiting the flow, A. Bement
advises increasing the number of passes.
He gives, as a result of changing from
the single to the double pass, an increase
of 10 per cent, in efficiency and about 4
per cent, more horsepower than the regu-
lar design of boiler. The result of triple
passing as compared with the single pass
gave an increase in efficiency of about
20 per cent, and an increase in capacity
of approximately 4 per cent. In other
words, the increased capacity of this
triple pass is the same as with the double
pass, although the gain in efficiency is
twice as great. ' With the double pass the
draft at the fire was unaffected. With
the triple pass, however, the resistance
offered by the passages reduced the draft
at the fire, so that less coal was burned
than with the same boiler having a sin-
gle pass; but this is not a serious ob-
jection, because more horsepower was
produced. Since baffling of this character
brings into use twice as much or more
boiler surface than was formerly utilized,
it justifies the realization of a much
larger capacity and the use of higher
draft.

In considering factor four, it is evident
that since a given volume of any gas at
any temperature and pressure contains
the same number of molecules as the
same volume of any other gas under the
same conditions, and since various gases
upon cooling give up various amounts
of heat per degree of temperature drop,
a given number of molecular impacts of
different gases will give up more or less
energy according as the specific heats
of the gases are respectively higher or
lower.

Regarding factor five, the nature of
the metal surface, this affects the heat
transference by its ability to more or less
entangle the molecules of the gas.

The reversed setting here shown has
been criticized because it requires a
greater hight, of about 4^4 feet, in both
setting and boiler house, with a corres-
pondingly larger investment and main-
tenance cost; also that the mud drum is
over the ignition arch. It is claimed fur-
ther that this arrangement is not as effec-
tive in producing complete combustion as
one which pitches downward toward the
back. The writer believes, however, that
these objections are not well taken.

The advantages of a larger combustion
chamber more than counterbalance
the expense attendant upon a higher set-
ting, and while it is admitted that the
extra hight increases the cost of the
building, it is more essential to decrease

February 28, 1911.

3JQ

floor space which is more valuabl
cially in plants already const
Flo«. costs more than h

large cities; a; more necessary to

, the floor space in the boiler room
iced to a minimum than is the case
with the engine room, so that corrcsp
ing ur. : ecially in steam-turbine

plants, may be as close as possible to
each other. Regarding the mud drum,
this is protected by hollo- ck, and

it would not be heated to as high a
temperature as is the case where unpro-
tected in the rear of the boiler, a
true of many settings now in operation.

The last objection may be answt ■■
by saying that in the design here shown

The advantages of the setting, as M
mittt be summarized as fol-

lou

I. Increased combu amber vol-

umr without increased floor spa.

of the cases
as they enter the combustion cham-
nee there is a gradual in-
e in cross-sectional area.
permits better mixture between
combustible gases and the air,
to avoid the formation of air shoots or
impinging streams of cooler air with the
accompanying I an un-

equal heating I un-

n of parts. The better
mixture permits a reduction in the per-

d on s thin are is r
promptly from tr

ien the space above the
f*tc it h tendency for

con. rbon monoxide

. in

con! incandescent bed of fuel

h the baflk e gases

are brought close together becaute of the
restrictc ting to the

tubi rnd-

■

The large combustion chamber af-
fords a la'

•■

Section A- B

the ga*e* arc divert and

pas* through a n less restricted

area b« ing to the tubes.

Another o that has been ral

rsed sec that the ra

and unaccounted
ncreased The that in the ma-

ttes these losses nroooi
about I per cent of the total heat at

and most ol >** occurs i

and around th the

necessity of opening the ed-

Ing. slicing, poldnf In the ca»

»cll pointed brick- und

necessary to heat the boiler roon-
sotr not enough heat being

•

hence

and 'ic time

v* from
e boiler

If
pa»«ace« are <

■

htJaghot'

id tlm-
•rimenul • action of preoeoemt

permits the
>n of flrehficfc hemts. •
ing the area of

i colleci under
roof Thai body ooold not more
a* • the Un

■

*>e Iroa
-lace roof due to a ronton than la
he do% *»f

"he holler rohr- • iimHy

moved or cleaned from the fror-

■ •

340

POWER

February 28, 1911.

Indicator Diagrams and Calculations

The taking of indicator diagrams from
the cylinders of an engine and the sub-
sequent examination, together with the
time-worn formula,

HP. = PL A (2N) -f- 33,000,
using the mean effective pressure esti-
mated from the diagram to ascertain the
indicated horsepower, form a part of
every engineer's stock in trade.

The indicator diagram is, in reality, a
graphic portrayal of the performance of
the working medium (steam, gas, etc.), in
whatever type of machine it may be nec-
essary to inspect.

With favorable conditions and an
equipment in proper shape, diagrams may
be obtained which can be accepted as an
infallible guide. Every precaution should
be taken so' that the sample of the work-
ing medium tested by the indicator will
have the same physical and chemical

^z:

Full Load

No Load

Fig. 1. Steam-chest Diagram at Full
and No Load

qualities as those of the mass from which
it is drawn. Care should be exercised
so that the temperature, the degree of
saturation or dryness fraction and the
degree of superheat, if there be any, be
unaltered. In other words, make the con-
ditions in the indicator conform as closely
as possible with those in the part under
examination.

Valve-chest Diac*ams
Diagrams taken from the steam chest

G ,. . Boiler

Pressure

Power

Fig. 2. Combined Steam-chest and Cyl-
inder Diagrams

of an engine are always advisable as they
show the fluctuation of pressure that takes
place there and are thus a very good
indication of the adequacy or the in-
adequacy of the carrying capacity of the
steam-supply pipe which for many rea-
sons may not supply the engine with the
necessary number of B.t.u. An insuffi-
cient supply may be due to too small a
supply pipe, a very crooked pipe offer-
ing an excess of friction or to an ex-
ceptionally long pipe improperly in-

By Frank S. Bunker

The steam-chest and the friction
diagrams and what they show.
The valve-rod diagram and how
it is obtained. Method of plot-
ting the combined diagram and
the diagram of useful work. How
to estimate the quality of the steam
and the cylinder clearance from
the diagram.

sulated, thereby causing excessive con-
densation.

Fig. 1 shows diagrams taken from the
steam chest of a high-speed engine under
full load and under no load. The speed
was 325 revolutions per minute and the
cutoff, 2A of the stroke. As the valve
opened at points A and C, the pressure
dropped, thus showing the draining in-
fluence of the engine on the steam supply.
When cutoff occurred at B and D the
pressure rose to boiler pressure.

Fig. 2 shows combined steam-chest and
cylinder diagrams from a twin-cylinder
high-pressure launch engine with atmos-
pheric exhaust. One steam chest sup-
plied both cylinders with steam through
two D-valves. The valve opened to steam
at £ and caused a drop in pressure until
cutoff at F, after which the pressure rose
to G, at which point the companion cylin-
der began to take steam and cause the
drop in pressure to H. After cutoff the
pressure again rose to boiler pressure
until the end of stroke, when the opposite
end of the first cylinder again took steam,
causing a drop along the line //, and
thus the cycle was continued on back
to the original point E.

Friction Diagrams

Another diagram of vast importance is
the friction diagram. With its aid it is
possible to estimate the amount of power
necessary to overcome the friction of the
engine. Such diagrams are taken in the
usual manner with the engine running at
full speed but with absolutely no out-
side load.

Fig. 3 shows a set of friction diagrams
taken on a cross-compound automatic
engine of 1200 horsepower capacity. The
boiler pressure was only 37.5 pounds.
The high-pressure diagram was taken with
a 15-pound spring and the low-pressure
with a 10-pound spring. The high-pres-
sure diagram indicated 81.7 horsepower
and the low-pressure indicated — 5.2
horsepower. This nets a total of,

81.7 — 5.2 = 76.5
indicated horsepower. It therefore re-
quired 76.5 horsepower to overcome the
internal friction of this 1200-horsepower
engine.

Friction diagrams are valuable for they

give information which will oftentimes in-
dicate trouble due to increased friction
and consequently increased waste of
power.

The Valve-rod Diagram
Although the valve-rod diagram is
unique, very valuable information may be
obtained from it. The indicator is placed
on the cylinder of an engine having an
inertia governor and consequently having
a variable valve travel. The paper drum
receives its motion from the travel of
tho valve stem. The length of the diagram
should be as near as possible some even
fraction of the valve travel as ¥$, y2 or
V3, as this will greatly facilitate later
computations. Having determined this
fraction it will be necessary to open the
valve chest and obtain the following data
for use with the diagrams: width of steam
port, steam lap and exhaust lap when
the valve is in mid-position.

With these data as a guide, a valve
model is constructed, as shown below the
diagram in Fig. 4. The line C L being the
mid-position, lay off from it equidistant
on each side the distances K and L equal
to the exhaust lap and the distance
K -f M and L -\- N equal to the steam lap.
The distances P and Q are equal to the
width of the steam ports and the total
distance overall is the total valve travel.
The diagram shown in Fig. 4 is a fac-
simile of a diagram obtained in the man-
ner described, by giving the paper drum
its motion from the valve travel.

After dividing the total length of the

Atmospheric
Line

Power

Absolute
Vacuum

Fig. 3. Friction Diagrams from a 1200-
horsepower Compound Engine

diagram into two equal parts and mark-
ing the center as the mid-position, then
by placing the valve model mid-position
in line with this position and extending
the various lines in it upward until they
cut the diagram the perfect cycle of
events is shown much more clearly than
with diagrams of the ordinary kind. At
a, exhaust has Just closed and compres-
sion begins and when the valve has
traveled the distance equivalent to K the
valve is in mid-position. Compression

February 28, 1911.

P O U E K

341

continues until the distance L — N his
been traveled, when the valve opens to
lead and the pencil rises along the steam-
inlet line and continues on along the

steam valve closes, cutoff is completed
and expansion begins. During the
pansion of the steam in the cylinder the
valve must travel through the distance

Fig. 4. Valve-rod Dia

in purging tl. The pr

continues thus until the exhaust clou

>n no othc ,f diagram can the

point* of absolute cutoff and release be
aacenained a» accurately as on (A
and load changes and itx

-creases or diminish**, the same
ti may be di»-
the travel becomes so short aa not to al-
io* the - | uncover the steam pom.

A lcak> piston may be ir
diagrar: any other, and in

the case of | »ho» the

exact point in the iich

the leak occur*.

The diagram nay be taken from *
erginc having a p.»ton or slide va
.iluable with engir
ing incnia governors a i-curate

information in regard to the action of the
governor during operation wh | not

possible to get data in any other raj

Thi» Civb:\h) D

H * riften necessary* i° reconstruct the
diagrams obtained from an engine the
better to ponrav the performance of
machine 1 'rue of

pound-, triple- and otV
sion engines for which 0 ims are

so reconstructed as to appear as if the
steam had acted all the time upon the
ston onJv. In reconstruct
ing diagrams of •

plotted upon the same %-olame baae. brat
with the respective pressures represented
by ordmatcs whose lengths are i ■

""*""***■■■■*— ^^^w

'. , rcnuic (

n from I

I H I."* • v

LLU

•team line to the end

ng «ll|thtl\ higher a* I
Ing increases and slanting do«n
opening diminishes in
point b is reached At :

[Jm steam lap and thrr

■

ea af

Fig 3 ahoan indicator diagrams from
mmnt i

■

342

POWER

February 28, 1911.

spring used for the high-pressure dia-
gram was calibrated for 100 pounds;
that for the low-pressure, 40 pounds. The
cylinders were 20 and 30 inches in diam-
eter, respectively.

In Fig. 6, RS is the atmospheric line
and the vertical line R T U is the line of
zero volume. The low-pressure diagram
is here plotted with the clearance volume
shown as R V. The horizontal line WX
is the pressure line of the low-pressure
diagram.

Returning now to the high-pressure
diagram in Fig. 5, it is necessary to divide
the diagram into a number of ordinates
for future plotting. As the high-pres-
sure spring was 100, and the low-pres-
sure spring 40. in plotting the high-pres-
sure diagram in the proper proportion
it will be necessary to multiply each or-
dinate in Fig. 5 by JTno°- or 2.50 before
transferring to Fig. 6. Furthermore, the

Fig. 7. Illustrating Method of Esti-
mating Clearance

diagrams must be on the same volume
base; and as the cylinders were 20 and 30
inches in diameter, the volumes swept
through by the pistons vary as

20= : 30-' or 4 : 9 = 2.25.
Therefore, the horizontal length of the
high-pressure diagram must be reduced
by dividing its total length by 2.25. The
reconstructed high-pressure cylinder ap-
pears in pig. 6 in the upper half. In
this diagram the work done in the high-
pressure cylinder is represented on the
same scale as is that done in the low-
pressure cylinder.

The length V S represents the volume
swept through by the piston and R V the
clearance volume. At the .pressure R W
the actual volume of steam expanding in
the cylinder is represented by W X. Of
this total volume the amount W Y was
trapped by the valve at the commencing
of compression. Therefore, the volume
represented by YX is the steam which
entered as new steam while the steam
port was open and which will pass out
during exhaust.

In the high-pressure part of the re-
constructed diagram it will be seen that
if the compression of the imprisoned
steam had continued up to the initial
pressure, the compression curve would be
as efg and the clearance volume would

be quite full of steam at that pressure
at the beginning of the stroke. All steam
which then entered the cylinder would
perform useful work while the com-
pressed steam would act merely as a
buffer and would exert as much work on
the piston as was expended on it by the
piston during compression. It therefore
would neither contribute nor detract from
the net useful work performed. When
the cushion of steam is not compressed
to boiler pressure, the incoming steam
performs that function. The clearance
volume represented by U h is filled with
steam at the beginning of the stroke and
the volume of the cushion steam at the
same pressure is represented by g h. The
difference or U g is, therefore, the volume
of steam necessary to complete compres-
sion and the area fgh represents the
amount of work lost thereby. This is
replotted as hjf and this indicates the
reduction of the area of useful work.

By referring now to a diagram of a
rectangular hyperbola and placing the.
line of zero volume on the vertical axis
R U and the line of zero pressure on
the atmospheric line R S, the curve which
most nearly corresponds to the expan-
sion curve of the two diagrams may be
plotted as m n p.

The area between the two diagrams
represents the loss due to the poor con-
struction of the engine and the faulty
proportions of the design. The area be-
tween the hyperbolic curve and the dia-
gram areas represents the losses due
partially to this cause and partially
to throttling, wiredrawing, radiation and
condensation, and if an adiabatic curve
is drawn in place of the hyperbola, the
loss will show as due to condensation in
the cylinders over and above what would
have occurred with adiabatic expansion
in cylinders which were nonconductive.

Steam Quality

The quality of the steam as it passes
through an engine may be determined
from the combined diagram. During the
test determine the steam consumption and
from this calculate the weight of steam
used per stroke. Draw a horizontal line
as T e n r so as to cut the expansion and
compression curves. The line T e repre-
sents the cushion steam and e n the actual
volume of steam passing through the en-
gine per stroke. The line tru is a satura-
tion curve. Then n r must represent the
volume of steam which has condensed
and exists as moisture at that pressure.

If n r represents the moisture and T n
the dry saturated steam in the cylinder

T ft
and clearance space, then =— will rep-
resent the fraction of the whole which
is dry saturated steam.

This is called the dryness fraction. To
determine the location of the saturation
curve on the diagram it is necessary to
find the point r. The distance er is
laid off to represent the volume of steam

used per stroke of the engine as spoken
of previously.

As the same total weight of the steam
and water mixture will exist throughout
the stroke, it is only necessary (by refer-
ence to steam-saturation tables) to obtain
the volume of that weight of dry-sat-
urated steam at various pressures and to
plot them at the right of the compres-
sion curve which, if too short, may be
continued by reference to the rectangular
hyperbola, as in the dotted line f g.

The same process is followed for the
low-pressure cylinder and is necessary
on account of the difference in the clear-
ance space of each cylinder. The line y z
is the saturation curve of the low-pres-
sure diagram.

Estimating the Clearance

The clearance space of an engine is
generally calculated from the working

Fig. 8. Resultant-pressure Diagram

drawings of the engine. It may also be
found by filling the cylinder and clear-
ance space with water and in this way
calculating the required volume. Fig. 7
serves to show the way to approximate
the clearance volume from an engine dia-
gram. Draw any line A B C D cutting the
expansion line and lay off from B a dis-
tance B A which is equal to C D. Through
A erect the perpendicular A E to the at-
mospheric line E D. Another method is
to construct a rectangle as FGH IF
parallel to the atmospheric line and with
opposite corners on the expansion line
F H. Then, the opposite diagonal is drawn
and extended until it intersects the atmos-
cheric line as at E. The same method
may be followed with the compression

bruary 28. 1911.

cur\e and a general average taken of all
the results as the dotted line K L which is
then drawn. Its distance from the diagram
area ^ I' represents the approximate
>lume of the particular cylin-
der under consideration.

l-work Diagram

It is often useful to reconstruct a

of diagrams to obtain the resultant of the

and r pressures acting

on the piaton. This is a graphic

portrayal of the useful work done b> the

working medium. Such a diagram is

shown in F:. 9 At any point j in the

■e of an engine the pressure exerted

for useful work on the

diagram b\ a li. and the p on the

.• of th-

Tl. intcfft

the differences between these two or

In plotting the resultant-pressure

forward pressures are

all ; i central line and ef-

tc direction

are plotted below the line. Let 1)1 <>K

ral line. At P plot h T

Vhcn tl i reaches q the

forwarJ preoaoi but the back

r lo comp on the

of the piston is also

the reaaure and

the int pressure line therefore

me at '

th the piston at S and still moving

In the Mil tion as the arrow the

the back
the dif-
/<• S and is in the back
•i and then

As the motion continues
-

on the

team
and • i the lit

sent* the ■
lng

and
line
he are.!

•

also

area of tl

nccc

by tl

Heated

POU

nal horaep
tin

•

Th greater at he

loads than at light loads although not
much greater. The probable

ular
ne at full c cal load would be

abo nt.

Attractive I'ipi: . I >b

The accompaming i! hows a

ink and
pump is used for
pump for ;
ducing the vacuum on the
and the small pump I

.-ontal ;

.; in a hole
The top end of ea, i fitted -

capped
frame work bold* l of the

floor ar a float governor gear

f being damaged
n are so conne ^er

one car 'rom the .. or

from tl

■

The trap I c return tank hanJ

the pump • .ire of the heat-

ing system in

The main feature is the neatness •
g has I
0 leaning | The

>e hori-

■ ■••

o all ■»'

I the
mak i '

Th
Ing the

flK It Is

Th. mrortcJ tnto Hu.

torn of cool and na

ponding b*
U

•

i p | t - i

344

POWER

February 28, 1911.

Repairing Induction Motors

By R. H. Fenkhausen

Many articles describing the winding
of induction motors have appeared from
time to time in various technical journals,
but most of these articles have been
written by men connected with the large
electrical manufacturing companies, and
consequently have dealt with motor re-
pairs from the manufacturing rather than
from the operating point of view.

Fig. 1. Drawing a Key

It might appear at first thought that
the winding of a motor at the factory and
its rewinding in the field are identical
operations, but besides the superior
facilities available at the factory there
are other advantages enjoyed by the fac-
tory winder which the field man must
get along without. Take, for instance, the
so called "basket" form of winding once
so popular with all the motor builders,
who claimed superior operating char-
acteristics due to its use. This type of
winding is largely used at the present
time in partially closed slots, the coil
being inserted in the slot opening one
turn at a time, and the taping applied
after the entire coil is in place.

No particular difficulty is encountered
by the factory worker in placing these
coils. He knows the exact shape required
and the proper sequence of operations.
The insulating materials are new and
flexible and it is easy to bend the coils
to make room for the operation of tap-
ing, and after the winding is complete
the coils are easily shaped without dan-
ger of cracking the insulation.

The repair man in the field, on the
other hand, is confronted with entirely
different conditions. He handles all
kinds of windings and does not become

Especially

conducted to be of

interest and service to

the men in charges

of the electrical

equipment

skilled in one kind like his factory
brother. He must rely on his judgment
as to the best way to proceed with an
unfamiliar winding and, if he errs, valu-
able time is lost. The principal difficulty,
however, is due to the brittleness of the
insulation on the coils, which often de-
fies all attempts at bending without dam-
age. Several coats of varnish are baked
on at the factory, and after being in
service for a time the insulation of the
coils becomes like glass and. cracks as
soon as any attempt to move the coil is
made. The repairing of one coil damages
adjacent coils, which must be also re-
paired, thus damaging still more. This
often progresses until a large part of the
winding is involved.

The foregoing remarks, though not
covering all points of difference, will
show that the viewpoint of the manu-
facturer is not that of the operator, and
as evidence of this the type of winding
referred to is being gradually abandoned
by all motor manufacturers, except for
the smallest sizes of machines, because
of the difficulty experienced by operating
men in making repairs.

In preparing the present article and
those which are to follow, the writer has
been careful to deal with his subject
from the operating engineer's standpoint,
and to describe only such processes as
may be readily carried out with the tools
and appliances available in any motor-
driven plant. Many of the "kinks" de-
scribed may appear simple, but it should
not be forgotten that the simplest ex-
pedients are often most unfamiliar, and
are only evolved from actual experience
with far more intricate processes, which
are gradually simplified.

Location of Trouble

The first indication of trouble with a
motor is usually the appearance of a-
husky helper, who reports: "The motor
in such a shop is burned up." This
report need not cause alarm, as any
motor trouble, from a blown fuse to a
forgotten open switch, is usually diag-
nosed as a burned-out motor. Upon ar-

riving at the scene of trouble the ex-
act nature of the manifestation of trouble
should be ascertained. If the motor was
reported as smoking, it is, of course, due
to overload or a short-circuit in the
winding. If failure to start was the
trouble, overload, blown fuses or bad
contacts in the starting device should be
looked for. The starter should be placed
on the starting position and each phase
tested for voltage by means of a test
lamp.

If no trouble is found in the starter,
the load should be removed from the
motor by taking off the belt or pinion,
and another attempt to start made. An
open circuit in one phase will overload
the remaining phase or phases and prob-
ably cause the motor to smoke. When
the open circuit is corrected the motor
should run all right. When a motor
smokes from overload, it does not neces-
sarily mean that the insulation is charred,
because some insulations smoke at a com-
paratively low temperature and give a
valuable danger signal vhich will save
the motor from damage if heeded prompt-
ly. After the load has been removed, the
motor should be allowed to run until

POWt*.

Fig. 2. Pulling a Tight Key

cooled down, as the fans on the rotor will
draw cool air into the windings and cool
it rapidly. As soon as it is cool the
taping of one of the coils should be
slit open with a sharp knife and the
cotton covering of the wire inspected.
If the cotton shows white or is only
slightly discolored by the heat, the tap-
ing should be replaced and a patch
pasted over the cut with shellac.

The earlier forms of induction motor
were designed with lots of iron in the
magnetic circuit and heating of the iron
seldom occurred except as a result of
overheated copper. An overload on one
of these motors often charred the cotton
covering of the wire until short-circuits
resulted between turns, without any ex-
ternal appearance of trouble. The later

February 28, 1911.

forms of motors, however, use higher-
grade steel and are run at high magnetic
densities, so that abnormal conditions
usually manifest themselves in e>
iron losses which heat the iron and char
the outside insulation of the coils with-
out even discoloring the cotton covering
on the wire, so that the coils may be un-
harmed if the overload is of short dura-
tion.

If no overload e ind the motor

is receiving current in all phases, trouble
must be sought in the winding-
for grounds, open circuits and crossed

"Driftin<

phases with a magneto. In a tt
phase motor the terminals of the three
Jings must be disconnected from each
other before open or crossed phases can
be d

Where to Make Repairs
cry electrical installation should
have a clean, well lighted place set aside
for the electrical-repair force. A
small place will do, but it should be
easily accessible so that motors can be
taken there without execssiyc labor.

Motor winding is clean work and can-
not be properly done in a dark and Jirtv
place, so that the time spent in moving
the motor to the shop will be more than
saved during the winding operation. If
d to make c- repairs to a

motor in place, the repairman will usually
do a poor job. and neither the appearance
nor the insulation of magnet wire is im-
contact with the grease and
din existing in some places where m<
arc necessarily locate

KM Hi

A half-ton chain tackle hung under a
convenient beam will answer most hand-
ling equipments, as m> I ighing

Is seldom give trouble, and
when thev do, it must usually be re-
paid

A th a coup'. ■»es,

and several pairs of horst ; !etc the

really necessary large equipment A
lamp bank. I

han '. 'eating, and a good tvpe was

Another hn ;c of apparatus when

ru*l ne Is an •>

An < which can

be adiuMcd to maintain any one of three
temperature* may he ! for about

The tool* rrquircJ arr for the most
part tho*c u*i. ally owned by elcctr

workers, but what fe- al tools are

can be easily made, and will be
described in connection with the work
requiring them.

The necessary supplies may be kept

in the general store room and issued

upon r. n signed by the proper

on. The following list will cover most

rk:

Double cotton-covered magnet wire of

various

g to fit ma?pct wire; I
coh >■

White musl:n tape ! and v4 inch w
for taping coiN

Lcatheroid or fish papci nch

thick for coil cells;

Fiber 3 32 inch thick foi slot wedg

linen 5 mils thick for cells
i called varnished oambr
"Empire" linen tape, i4 inch wide, cut

:itc ad1 ape, wire solder and

soldering pa

-ct copper about 1 64 inch thick for
stub en .:

No. 22 annealed *irc for bind-

ing joint

Orange shellac (with denatured, not
wood, alcohol) ;

Oil- and moisture-repelling varnish, air-
drying or baking. Jerending on whether
an oven is available or not.

These supplies represent very little in-
ncnt, as only enough need be kept
on hand to keep the repair force going
until more car aincd.

In case the plant is near a supply

.-v

to ; beading it downward

can often be removed by
means of a vise from the bench, used to
grip

:«es arc between the vise sad

the ; is shown ir

If the k.c> has no bca:
s poss j thori the

i to

can be driven

further on the shaft, it be

unable to f( ion

remain station-
ary until the r far
enough to allow the key to be gripped
with the jaws of V.

In case tf oom back of the r

ley or pinion, a • iay be

sencd in the bad and

the key backed out as

If none of the foregoing suggestions
will stan the key. it n
but a gib-head key she be used

to replace n the motor is reas-

scmr

•oving the key l
and taking off the journal brackets the
r should be removed from the stator.
Great care mu^- n removing the

'Its are allowed to
>c stator coils. th<
liable to be damaged. The safest plan
to follow with a rotor too h be

lifted by hand ock ur

the bottom of the statot bore and i
the rotor out onto the blo>. •
heavy rotors should be ha- >wn

in !

house, there is no ncccs* ring

a stock on hand, i n large plant*

where the ntal u> .

an order through the purchasing depart-
ment woul.! en if a
■

i* necessary for
■

UpM arrival at the re;

utt be dismantled In m<
the ; t>t removed

an be tat If

HnV

•c moved
cssi wedgr- fmm

of • g Sttf

A to work

ing - .oroughly. Ire*

h!<>- • th an air blast an..'

a rag »oa-

*t gasolene
c coils, but the oil
and grease

roof ln«
toe motor Is replace-'

iinlmrrf: •

The alrgsp sdnction meter ta

346

POWER

February 28, 1911.

suits. It is, therefore, essential that the
shaft and bearings be kept in good con-
dition, and while the motor is in the shop
advantage should be taken of the op-
portunity to inspect and overhaul them
if necessary.

The shaft should be examined closely,
and if scored or grooved it should be
turned down to the next smaller thirty-
second of an inch in diameter and a
record kept of the size, as standard bear-
ing sleeves can no longer be used to re-
place worn ones. In a large plant it

Fig. 5. Solid Journal Sleeve

often pays to renew the shaft rather than
depart from the standard size. After
some years it is sometimes necessary to
reduce all shafts, but, of course, a new
standard could then be adopted and each
motor that comes in for repairs can be
changed to the new standard shaft size.
If the shaft appears to be all right, its
truth should be verified by a test on cen-
ters if possible.

The journal boxes should be removed
from the heads and the sleeves tried on
the shaft, all oil having previously been
wiped off so that it will not form a
cushion and prevent the detection of
slight looseness between the shaft and
the sleeve. This method is preferable to
calipering, because it gives a closer in-
dication than the average person can ob-
tain with calipers, unless thoroughly ex-
perienced in their use. If the sleeve has
more than a very slight amount of play

Fig. 6. Split Journal Boxes

it must be renewed, as it will grow rapid-
ly worse because of the unbalanced mag-
netic pull in the airgap.

Motors of 5 horsepower and smaller
usually have solid bronze journal sleeves
which must be renewed completely, al-
though in some cases it is possible to
reduce them with a bronze bushing kept
from turning by a dowel pin. In motors
of more than 5 horsepower, cast-iron
bearing shells lined with babbitt are com-

monly used. These are of two types,
shown in Figs. 5 and 6.

The plain sleeve type shown in Fig. 5
can be bought complete, with all oil
grooves cut and ready to install, for less
than the babbitt can be poured by a re-
pairman. For example, the sleeve for a
10-horsepower motor costs but $1.65,
while to babbitt the old shell, bore and
cut oil grooves in the lining would cost
S4 or $5 in most shops, besides the
loss of time. Another advantage of buy-
ing standard bearings is the interchange-
ability secured. Many makers bore their
bearings several thousandths small and
size them by forcing a hardened-steel
mandrel through them in a hydraulic
press. When the journal on the shaft
has been reduced, however, it is impos-
sible to use standard bearings, and the
old shells must be relined. Sleeves of
the split type, as illustrated in Fig. 6,
are many times as expensive as the
solid sleeve type and it therefore always
pays to reline old shells of this type.

Babbitting Shells

The proper grade of metal must always
be used for relining bearings. The man-
ufacturers of the motor will usually sup-
ply metal suited to its bearings, as it
is to their interest to have their motors
stand up well in service. The old metal
must first be melted or chipped out, and
remelted with a little new metal added.
It is essential, however, that the two lots
of metal shall be of the same composi-
tion. If any doubt exists on this point,
the old metal should be discarded and
all new metal used, because it frequently
happens that two metals, each satisfac-
tory for a given service, will run hot
when mixed and ruin a shaft.

Fig. 7 shows how to set up for babbitt-
ing a solid sleeve of the type shown in
Fig. 5. A mandrel is obtained, of a
diameter from % to l4 inch smaller than
the required bore of the sleeve. This
should be tapered if possible to make re-
moval easy, but if freely coated with
white lead it should give no trouble. The
mandrel should be set up in a vertical
position in a hole bored in a board and
the sleeve slipped over it. Four wooden
blocks should be spaced around the lower
end of the mandrel to hold the sleeve
concentric with the mandrel. Clay may
be filled around blocks to keep babbitt
out of the counterbore and the oil-ring
grooves filled with thin wood or as-
bestos, cut out to fit half way around
the shaft, as indicated in Fig. 7. This
is not essential, but it saves cutting out
the grooves in the finished lining and is
well worth the trouble. The entire rig
should next be heated with a gasolene
torch until too hot to touch, in order to
avoid chilling the metal before it reaches
all parts of the shell, and also to expel
any moisture. A very small amount of
moisture will generate steam enough to

cause a violent explosion when the hot
babbitt is poured in.

While the shell is being prepared, a
helper should be melting the babbitt in
a ladle over a wood fire or a gasolene
furnace. When the metal is hot enough
to char a pine stick, a few pinches of sal
ammoniac should be thrown in. This will
cause all the dirt to rise to the top, where
it can be skimmed off with a small ladle.
Great care must be used to make sure

.-- Clay

J--B

Section
A-B.

■Fill with Clay
to this Level

Fig. 7. Preparation for Babbitting

that the metal is not overheated, as its
anti-friction properties are liable to be
seriously impaired.

The metal should be slowly poured in-
to the shell to avoid entrained air and
consequent "blow holes" in the casting,
and a close watch kept for leaks, which
should be promptly plugged with soft
fire clay. As it is obviously impossible
to peen the metal in a solid sleeve, the
worker must take pains in pouring to in-
sure a tight joint with the iron. It is a
good idea to tamp the metal into place
with a stick while it is still in a plastic

Power.

Fig. 8. Babbitting Mandrel

state, in order to prevent porosity and
looseness of fit in the shell.

Split shells, such as shown in Fig. 6,
are babbitted one-half at a time in the
horizontal position. They are quite diffi-
cult to pour, owing to the number of
grooves and shoulders that must be cast,
but by means of a special mandrel like
Fig. 8, which forms all grooves and
shoulders without setting up, split bear-
ings are very easy to reline. If the

February 28, 1911.

mandrel is made a good fit at the points
it may be used to babbitt the sleeve
to exact size, because the bor<.
Fig. 6, art supposed to be concentric with
the shaft, and to serve as guides for the
accurate location of the mandrel. The
shoulder H serves to locate the mandrel
longitudinally and govern the end play
of the motor shaft. The oil-groove col-
lars embrace only one-half of the
cumferencc of the mandrel; therefore,
the lower half of the bearing is cast with
the collar side of the mandrel on top. If
a lathe is available, it is better to make
the mandn rich smaller than the

shaft and after the metal has set, it may
be peened until all pores in the metal are
closed up.

The surplus babbitt must then be
chipped off the seam face of the shell.
care being used to chip toward the iron
in order that the metal may not be
loosened from the shell. The edges of
the babbitt lining should be filed down
with the iron; the two half shells
may then be put together and bored out
in a lathe.

As it is rather difficult to true up a

sices c of • e, owing to the short

length of turned surface exposed when
the sleeve is clamped in the lathe chuck,
better to bolt the in place in

the journal bracket of the motor and
racket in the lathe. The face
• et may be bolted against the
plate and trued up with the com
bore. If no lathe large enough to swing
the bracket is available I save li

c the accuracy of the *

n from the scrap
heap be b<> fit the

tbe sleeve and the latter held in it by a
set *hi!c being r- . s

Straight as all gro

Md both fa. c man-

On Gao»

D much attention cannot be give
tbe cutting of tl

of the oil and conscquc
the running temperature <■( the shaft
rearing* i
groove* If the original pattern U

^tble. due to mcltcJ ba uld

be followed, a skel t being made

I' ' •cm has been obliterated.

Il should be remembered that <

Joes not natural! to Bow

up hill, and the grooving should be
signed accordingly. Grooves cut as shown
<n 1 are useless; but many "me-

dia: I cut grooves in th The

grooves sh rt at the ring slot, on

the top of the shaft, and C :own

OlL-CRO

toward the horizontal center line of the
bearing. They should not extend to the
end of the sleeve but stop about : t inch
from the end. to prevent the oil from
flowing out at the end of the sic.
A narrow, round-nose chisel, bent to the

10. Omuld be used. Oil gro<
not be cut in the lower half of a sIccnc.
as it reduces the bearing surface too
much; the gr< n the upper half

should not be cut any wider than neces-
sary, for the same reason.

A good pattern for the oil grooves
motor bear

-hown II. Il will

be noticed that the gr«>

s cross each other; therefore, e
tic ring rk. the re-

maining ring can supp the cr

rooeca, the hear

a half-
urs formed
c groo\

II I

ould b<
sec the bearings

ix x\

M rings
narp edge*
s soon as the

M ranch aa might
ang
he bea
•s out fror: ^y

safer off the sharr e*c

a Ale i
low the to dn; the

. as sh the dotted lines, (The

drop

Vhcr. journal bracket*

on the motor, turn them upside down
before slipping the bearings over the
aha- II alio* gs to drop

dear of the bore a
of lifting then * ;th a *•

rting tt
shaft has pj>sCd the
may K

■nto position on the atstor frame.

The nuts should be unif«
all around t!
brad | If one aid gbtened

ahead • tbe bra

will bind and cannot Nr dra»n into posi-

hand until the brji

In coaaterbore all the

then be itened rem fat

a tin

bracket Tbe

re .i

hand and all n Anal ti-

the wr«

Af place, the

rotor should k not

tbeald ba

llOMWld

uble to daa cither to
Poor

the

'fit seldom occur

re used oa BMSf bearing

f end r ■ cariecsnd he

•ttnent I* pro-
▼here no adlastsneat to paaaMe.
Tins* he faced

of tbe bear

! the K

lng« ha

be Ann on tbe shaft;

348

POWER

February 28, 1911.

Splash Lubrication

By James H. Beattie

A great deal of difficulty is experienced
by operators of small vertical gas engines
depending on splash lubrication, due to
heating of the crank shafts and wrist-
pin bearings. The trouble in nearly all
cases is due to the lack of sufficient care
in renewing the crank-case oil from time
to time. It is not sufficient merely to add
to the oil in the crank case as it is used
up; the old oil must be removed and the
crank case cleaned thoroughly and re-
filled with new oil. The frequency with
which this should be done varies with
conditions, but in no case should it be
allowed to go more than a few weeks
without attention. Any engine depending
on splash lubrication is subject to this
trouble, but the smaller sizes, ranging
from about 2 to 10 or 12 horsepower, suf-
fer particularly, as these sizes are com-
monly used by farmers and contractors
under conditions where the amount of at-
tention given is very small.

It has always seemed to the writer
that splash lubrication is wrong in prin-
ciple. The oil is used over and over
again, gradually becoming mixed with
particles of metal from the bearings and
other forms of grit. It has been my ex-
perience that bearings lubricated in this
manner wear much faster than bearings
supplied by sight-feed lubricators feed-
ing pure oil.

One of the most alluring points
claimed for splash lubrication is that it
is absolutely automatic and requires very
little attention. On the contrary, it is
rather uncertain and requires very care-
ful and systematic attention in. order to
prevent serious trouble, as just pointed
out. The following experience is a typical
one: In cleaning the crank case of a
pplash-lubricated engine, a small piece of
waste was accidentally left in the oil
reservoir. The oil hook on the connect-
ing rod picked it up and soon stirred up
so much grit by sweeping the bottom of
the reservoir at each revolution of the
crank that a hot bearing resulted.

What is even worse than the excessive
wear on the bearings is the excessive
wear imposed on the cylinder and pis-
ton through lubrication with grit-laden
oil. Another and a very serious objec-
tion to splash lubrication is the fact that
it is almost impossible to keep the oil in
the crank case from working out through
the bearings, spreading over the frame
and flywheels and making a mess of the
whole engine. The writer has never yet

Everything"
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

had the pleasure of seeing an engine de-
pending on splash lubrication which was
entirely free from this fault.

It seems evident that it would be vastly
better to equip the cylinder and bearings
with sight-feed oilers than to depend on
splash feed. The advantages are so ob-
vious that it is not necessary to mention
them all, but the chief one is that the oil
after passing once through the bearings
is filtered before being used in them
again, or else used for other and less im-
portant purposes.

What Caused the Freak

Diagrams?

By S. W. Rushmore

The three indicator diagrams repro-
duced here were taken a few minutes
apart from my 140-horsepower single-

750 Amperes
127 Volts
160 R.p.M.
210 lb. Scale

Power,

Fig. 1. Normal Diagram

800-Amperes
125 Volts
160 R.p.M.
270 lb. Scale

Power.

Fig. 2. First Freak

cylinder producer-gas engine. Immedi-
ately after taking the normal card, at
the full rated load of the engine, the
engine began to behave badly, and, while
maintaining the full dynamo load of

about 750 amperes, we got the two freak
diagrams shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

Although the engine was carrying prac-
tically full load at the instant diagram
No. 3 was taken, it is evident that the
power was supplied chiefly by the fly-
wheel. Perhaps some of the readers

750 Amperes
125 Volts
160 R.p.M.
270 lb. Scale

PowcR.

Fig. 3. Second Freak

of Power can explain the freak diagrams,
in the taking of which the indicator was
handled in exactly the same manner as
when taking the normal diagram of Fig. 1.

Gas Poisoning
By J. O. Benefiel

In the issue of January 24 there was
an interesting account of an engineer's
experience with carbon-monoxide poison-
ing. I have had some experience along
that line, being in charge of a scrubbed-
gas plant of 4000 horsepower capacity.

We have had quite a number of the
men overcome with the gas, but none
fatally; they usually have a severe head-
ache the rest of the day, but otherwise
there do not seem to be any ill ef-
fects. Of course, the results would be
fatal if the man were exposed to the
gas long enough.

The gas does not seem to act gradual-
ly; apparently, one may get loaded with
it before it begins to act, then the loss
of consciousness seems to take place al-
most instantaneously. A man seldom gets
a heavy charge of it the second time;
in fact, we have had no one get a
stronger dose the second time than he
could walk away with.

The symptoms are a slightly increased
rate of breathing and heart action, which
will pass unnoticed by the inexperienced.
Stepping into the cold air will cause it to
take effect instantly.

One does not realize that one is losing
consciousness, and this makes it very
dangerous, especially when the workman
is overhead. I had one man lose con-

February 28, 1911.

POWF.R

sciousness just as he was starting down
a 25-foot ladder. Fortunately, two men
■ working together and the man on
the platform dragged the poisoned man
back just in time to prevent him from
having a bad fall. In another case a man
was working on a ladder when his senses
left him, but there was a man just be-
low him who carried him down.

The gas does not seem so effective be-
fore being cleaned. The generator men
art exposed to it all day long on the
charging floor and they suffer from
nausea only; it is often so bad as to
cause vomiting, but not dizziness or loss
of t: It does not seem to af-

fect the general health; some of the men
have been doing this kind of work
years and are in good health.

Vt'hcn a workman is overcome by pro-
ducer gas he should be carried to a
place where the air is pure and warm;
re to cold is to be avoided. There
should be an oxygen outfit at hand and
..en should be adn. J at the

earliest possible moment. The efforts
of a physician arc feeble as comp
with tin en treatment. An

outfit is not expensive, we keep two tanks
on hand to avoid the liability to run short
in case more than one man should be af-
d at the same time. A stiff drink
of whisky is beneficial after the patient
has regained con and he

should not be allowed to go out of doors
stan home alone until he has fully
reco a doctor to

attend ■ man who has been ga ned,

ecause the man might have a bad
bean » I need the attention of

a physician. Incidentally, it ■ :car

management of any charge of neglect
In case of *

; iration should
be rcsortcJ to if the patient's breathing
* to be weak.

In the two years we have been u*
producer gas we have had only
men get knocked out. though wc have had
the men get a light dose often

icaJ on a
plank runway one night and both of them
got so weak and ild not

fet J lie on the runway

I tl- here being no one

about

I I I I IKS
I I

the following

I »hall appreciate exp
Ion fi
•jBoation

Is a | «peed nf

too high for a venical engine
nche* bore and 12 Inchc*
with i connecting rod .V) inche* long*3
engine i« single acting but is '

• heaJ ln»tcad of the usual

trunk piston an It is lul

cated by splash from the crank case.

O. J. Babk
Cameron, W.

A Homemade Muffling B

The accompanying sketch shows the
construction of a muffling pit which wc
have found \cr> u

rural gas of about 050
ubic foot.
Tl put in over

ago and has g borough m

engine ,- ro-

th mufflers of the same const:
tion. Of course "gincs

exhaust into the same

•*

€■■!

-6

just ou' the engine-room wall and

and 4 feet tquare. The
walls ar ebea thick, and

the

- tube* •

aaaa
away from th<

diameter; a 1-Inch collar is shruni
the pipe at A .

the

pouring

the cover « - In

and o and

the cement bad

This has muffled «h m that

-epon is nnt as \a\ ' a non-

■ n c Mown engine

be
heard when standing near the pipe.
The englr

one hero i
,:ht site for

•'
O.

hi
of

in sc
air rapid ad-

ll M

prodaetfaa '*♦• \nr In Ocr-

■MMlii c ' • ' •<•<" mi I Hon

fheaa countries rvna m thai
ng the supply of the

sible to ana daet wbscb would o«h«rwts«
7>c pop*:

»■

350

POWER

February 28, 1911.

Practical

Repairing a Wrecked Engine f informatlon from the,

man on thzjob. A letter
good enough topnnt

A short time ago I had a repair job on
a 20 and 36 by 48-inch cross-compound
engine. The low-pressure cylinder took
water on the head end and forced the
front of the pillow block off, as shown
in Fig. 1, also breaking the cap, and be-
fore the engine could be stopped the
shaft had been thrown out of alinement
so that the 50-inch belt ran off the pul-
ley so far that it got up against the
foundations and ripped one edge open
about 3 inches, for its entire length. The
belt was taken off and repaired, and in

tere

nh<

pai

d forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

thick. Fig. 2 shows the method of drill-
ing the crank. A 12-inch face driving pul-
ley was used, and as the lathe head was
moved nearer the driving engine, the belt

^i^S^^^^^W^:

7ZW'

■w//jty///////////////////////////////////^^^

PowEH,

Fig. 1. How the Pillow Block Was Repaired

the meantime four \% -inch holes were
drilled and tapped in the broken pillow
block, and clearance holes drilled in the
broken piece, which was fastened to the
main casting by means of bolts, as shown.
An 8x8 timber was placed from the wall
to the pillow block and in place of the
cap two 2;4xl-inch wrought-iron straps
were used to further strengthen the block.
Then the low-pressure side was discon-
nected and the engine ran a part of the
plant until a new pillow block arrived.

The shock received by the crank sheared
the key about 1/16 inch on the shaft so
that it had an offset, making it advisable
to take off the crank and put in another.
When the new crank arrived, the engine
builders sent a man to assist in taking
off the old crank and to put the new one
on. He intended to work all night, with a
ratchet, drilling holes in the crank to
break it off. I suggested taking a head-
stock from one of the lathes in the ma-
chine shop and blocking it up level with
the center of the crank shaft, and with a
drill chuck in place and a jack screw
between the wall and the headstock for a
feed, using a small 6-horsepower engine
to drive the same. It took 90 minutes to
remove the crank, which. was 7 inches

was put up on the next cone so that the
belt had to be taken up but twice during
the operation. After the holes were drilled
in the crank disk, tapered pins were
driven in them which split the crank

lathe headstock ready during the day
while the plant was running, so that no
time was lost in getting to work after
shutting down.

L. R. Corm.
Boston, Mass.

Slipping Latch Blocks

In a certain power station, consider-
able trouble and annoyance were experi-
enced with the latch block slipping or
failing to open the valve. This caused
the engine to take steam on but one end,
causing surges and cross currents be-
tween the alternators, which affected the
most distant substation. Sometimes the
slipping would be so bad that the en-
gine would have to be cut. out of service
until the latch block could be changed.

As a remedy it was decided to make
some latch plates of Novo steel, a very
fine, hard grade of tool steel. The first
effort was a failure, owing to the fact
that the plates were not hardened suffi-
ciently in tempering.

A second trial, however, produced
plates that have been in continuous ser-
vice for five months without being dis-
turbed and still show no sign of wear,
and have not once failed to open the
valve. This steel must be annealed be-
fore working, which is done as follows:
Cut it into pieces of approximately the
size of the plates. The pieces should
be buried in lime in a length of iron
pipe, of sufficient size to hold them, and

Fig. 2. Method Used in Drilling Crank

disk along the row of holes, when the
new crank was put in place. The new
pillow block was then made secure, and
after adjustment the job was completed.
All preparations were made, such as
getting the drilling apparatus, engine and

the ends capped. A hole should be
drilled in one cap to let out moisture, etc.
The whole is then placed in a slow fire
and gradually heated until the pipe be-
gins to take on a welding heat. The
fire should then be covered with coal and

February 28, 1911.

left undisturbed until the steel has cooled,
after which it may be worked into the
desired shape for the plates. After fin-
ishing, the plates must be tempered Dy
heating to a bright red and plunged into
oil. This steel is expensive, costing about
one dollar per pound, but considering the
wear secured the cost is trifling.

buying the steel in bars of the
proper width and thickness it is a com-
paratively easy matter to make any ordi-
nary latch plate. The steel may be
bought annealed but it may still be too
hard to work well.

C. L. Greer.
Handley. Tex.

I><>\\\ i .. .(1 & ale 1 [older

A device for protecting a boxwood scale
lustrated in the sketch shown here-
with. It also serves as a holder for the
scale, and prevents its being soiled.

1 — T"

-t — u

A Cj

j~^'

Holder on Scale

The holder is made of I 32-inch spring-
sheet brass and fits snugly to the scale.

C. T. Sen
Mo.

( . e Pipe I

The night brccf-s uit!
a temperature of 20 degrees Fahre:
and tu r. thing was lovely, so to speak.
No. 3 wis working conncctcJ with Nos.
I and 2 boilers, all being I2S hnr
and of the horizontal return-tubular -

igc re» a pres-

sure of 138 pounds, but Nos. 1 a-
gages remained normal at 90 pounds per
square inch.

I began investigating, and the safety
valv 1 me that tic gage, an.!

the boiler was at fault. I soon found
that the eh line to the gage had

n. due to some person neglecting
lose a window nearby, and the
pansion of : th the noncom-

aused an increase
; man on the gage our
that carricJ on the boiler.

Thi* incident demonstrated three Im-
»nt fact*; firm, the incon ; llty

of mater; »econd. the expansive '

*nd thr .ure crcatr

Irg water will release itself along the
line* nf |ei
I am none ll

although the flr»t dlwcn-.
a*ed gage pressure p
I momr

New York

POU! R

Removing a Pntoa R

The accompanying illustration sh.
a dc cd to force the piston rod out

of the piston of an old blowing engine.

One of the valves in the top cylir
head of the air tub broke and a piece
fell into the clearance space. The re-
sult was that the piston rod was jammed

\ *<xy * | *<v*i

tr~

r~3

Va* Uito

ugh the piston. The question
then *« he rod. It

suggested that lee be

and a weight '

A : ng weight

were made from • A-lr
long was mounted en a planer

n by splitting
the mlJ i ■ cutting oft1 tool The

roper alieeaeat by
doo; en flat

she

This rig was hoisted into piece end
leebed in position. The piston

: up on four blocks set so a
bring the stress of the
legs of the A •

connected and the crosshead moved
down. as noi-

and or. the wot

J. J. (
Buffal.

: I I

I have had a | of trouble

keeping sheet packing between the suc-

-• of an old tank pump. When • soft
sheet packing itj used Id blow

out, anJ ing

cing blown out. the w

Caoo\

and air would be forced between the
gasket and casting.

of she*1 J a gro

made as sho*

»ould make a groove with abotr
inch raJ

was grooved as shown. Thee

I got *

•s* ga»- olderinc all ends, and

• as a success.

h ca d 1

of an

me for some t.me

he rod i on the rrosaniad

r i ■

the »e

enough to al< the end

* to remedy the tteehhi by meeee

era. c ensue

I "■ oe side of the bra»»

thm eoi J dreesed it down

wtth e lit eetfl It made ee eesy ft h*

352

POWER

February 28, 1911.

Wrecked Steam Pump

During a recent visit to the steam plant
of a friend, he showed me one of the
large duplex tandem-compound pumps
which had clamps and rods applied to
hold the steam and water ends together,
as shown in the figure. The low-pressure
piston had two piston rods which ran
along the high-pressure cylinder, one
on each side diametrically opposite, and

on the stayrods and through another set
of clamps across the low-pressure cyl-
inder head, as shown at C. Nuts
were then run on and all drawn up even
until the fractures closed tight. The
bolts on the side of the greatest strain
were made of heavier rods. The strain
on the bolt in the clamp on the upper
left stayrod is greater than on the
bolt in the other end of the same
clamp. The same applies vice versa on

i==a§

Fracture

Details of Pump Repair

were fastened to a crosshead on the high-
pressure piston rod which was also the
plunger rod for the water end, as the
steam piston rod and the plunger rod
were one piece, carrying on one end the
steam pistons and on the other end the
plunger, with a crosshead in the center of
the rod between the steam and water
ends. One of the piston rods in the
low-pressure cylinder became disengaged
on the forward stroke, but the other re-
mained fast. This tipped the piston in
such a manner that when the pump
started on the back stroke the low-pres-
sure piston moved in jerks. Several of
these jerks were enough to tear the steam
end from the stayrods between the water
and steam ends, the fracture occurring
in the sockets on the high-pressure cyl-
inder, into which the ends of the stay-
rods were keyed, as shown in the upper
view. The piston rods, bell crank on the
vacuum pumps, and the valve rod were
twisted, bent or broken when the steam
end started to back off from its founda-
tion. The water ends only are anchored
to their foundations as the steam ends
ride on iron plates laid on foundations
to allow for a slight movement of the
steam end to adjust itself to the strain
on the rods between the steam and water
ends.

The engineer had two clamps made
as shown at A and two as shown at
B. The first set were clamped to
the stayrods between the steam and
water ends, snug up against the parts
of the sockets which remained on the
rods with the keys left in place. Long
bolts with a head on one end and a long
thread and heavy nuts on the other end
were inserted through the set of clamps

the lower clamp in the same figure. The
pump handles just as much water now
as it did before the breakdown, but its
appearance is spoiled.

This breakdown was caused by an en-
gineer with a "pull" and illustrates how
such an engineer can be an expensive
man. There certainly must have been a
warning sound before the breakdown oc-
curred, which an engineer of real merit
would have heeded and have stopped the
pump in time to prevent the accident.
At the time the pump was running about
twenty strokes per minute.

Louis T. Watry.

Pueblo, Colo.

Dynamite in the Coal

I am in charge of a battery of seven
water-tube boilers equipped with me-
chanical stokers. A few days ago one of
the firemen brought me a piece of dyna-
mite about 4 inches long that the coal
wheeler had found in the coal. Instruc-
tions were given to be very particular and
examine every shovelful of coal, and it
was not long before he found two more
pieces of dynamite, one about 3 inches
and another about 1 % inches long. The
dynamite was frozen when found, but if
it had got into the fire, there would have
been an explosion, and a good many
people would naturally have said the
boilers were dry, or this, that and the
other thing.

I have had charge of boilers for about
twelve years and have always been very
careful to avoid accidents, but that would
not have amounted to anything if the
dynamite had got into the furnace. I

have wondered a good many times since
if any of the boiler explosions that oc-
cur from no apparent reason have been
caused by dynamite. I have found caps
in the coal several times, but I have
never found dynamite before.

John R. Dixon.
Peace Dale, R. I.

Using a Tube Expander

Recently, while putting new tubes in
an upright submerged-flue boiler, I had
to devise some means of rolling the out-
side tubes on the top end, as the pitch
of the cone was such as to make it im-
possible to put the roller in that end.

The accompanying illustration shows

■f.

''Extension
Handle

<uoo o <

o o o ooo ►

'///////////////ft

Expander in Tube

the roller slipped in from the bottom end
after that part of the roller which rests
against the outside of sheet had been
removed. This did the job very nicely
and very little difficulty was experienced
in keeping the roller in place and turn-
ing the extension rod from below.

William I. Morgan.
Augusta, Mont.

February 28, 1911.

POVIT.R

353

haust Steam in Lot* Pres-
nif€ 1 urbint

In the January 31 issue. Mr. Fenno,
while attempting to prove that the state-
ments in a certain turbine catalog are
misleading, neglected to take into account
an important factor in the steam-engine
cycle— that of reevaporation— and by so
doing rendered his analysis more mis-
leading than the original which he was
trying 'o dispr

The original statement was to the cf4
that a pound of panding

adiabatically from 154) pounds gage to
atmospheric pressure, gives up, in work
done, approximately the same number of
heat units as a pound of dry steam
panding from atmosphcr
28 inches of vacuum, the inference from
being that an cxh am turbine

•ing between the lower press
would do as much work as a reciprocat-
ing engine working between the u;

ft. Mr FemiO showed that
steam expanding adiabatically from
pounds ga.

would have a final qual:
cent, which in actual pra mid be

further -isa-

tion and radiation; hence, the l<>
•urc turbine would not am.

but am or. r cent

at the most. If a separator ■

ween the engine and the turk
I ild mean that the latter unulJ

onl\ team for c

pound used by the former.

this is true, but prac-
tical: Coodet -ation will take
place in the ca- but

md release
the iturc corresponding to the

fall below that
of the

-et in This, although

ir the end
*ut the instant the cxhai;
I there is a
■***s- jn

and if

an cn-
I

ig the rc<

urc tut md the origin*

li arc not %a misleading after a

A m G*

tns
and/debate upon various

nrtic/csJcn txfed

oriaU vv/i/c/) }) p-

pea red in previous

issta i

Changing the I hrottk

ng about the best position of
the throttle a| change it if

the position in which the erecting engi-
neer left it docs not con-
tinue from year to year to leave it in
front of the cylinder, fly* rnor
or valve gear, when yon know that on
the otht. ■ he floor
would be better ral times you have

■
• l% and It

I .i led of a t

flncer of a plant in a large dcr

licnt and B i i •■

daattca

Ing

ould be done was le fa%irn
c floor near the head

belt across i

made the ■ywfWMnt of
that a decision was ma
throttle instanter. The

ing s>mn..

easy that the engineer

had not mi

throttle wheel, as indicated

; ■. IM0M be-

ed so

idered why he

memory also c him back through

the lorn. wrt

throttles and other
unha : not to

Bashes of unsa • K fc!l«n

haJ na> gs together so

»nd so iad never occurred to him

as operating engineer to make any
changes.

ranton. Pcnn.

I iquid Dint hat I I

the Jam.

ade

sign of
J also that the
a dangerous one I
In

crt ma

I r M
Tt h the do

ot pate

mmmi

»ncd a>
of •
heads are clamp :

It -^.

Pound* ng a reducing »ahre to

i oo other
common glob.

c sad tist

nch hi

j»ed ajhjhi sal

■J r anna si • i- rrcasari sad ■

area

laaaad

that sach Msalds rsrearhaag the

atast af solids sad tt>
to knock In th« head
aar a soddh) m a sonde

354

POWER

February 28, 1911.

Mr. Seibert's experience proves that
the device was not at fault, but the op-
erator.

Earl Pagett.

Coffeyville, Kan.

Beading Boiler Flues

In reply to L. Earle Brown's inquiry
in the December 13 issue about beading
flues, the following is submitted from
experience gained in practical work as
a boilermaker in marine, locomotive and
stationary work:

The beading should be put down close
to the head until the sheet is nearly
nicked by the beading tool. The flues
will hold better and last longer because
there is less metal exposed to the hot
gases and, being tight against the head,
there will be less difference in tempera-
ture between the sheet and the head and
in consequence less difference in ex-
pansion and contraction. It is this dif-
ference in expansion that causes the flues
to leak.

I would like to add a few words here
about renewing and repairing flues that
are leaking, especially about the use of
expanders. It would surprise anyone
who had not had years of experience
to learn how little expanding is needed
to make a tight job and a lasting one.

The majority of engineers always in-
struct the repair men to expand the flues
well, and if he is a boilermaker from a
contract shop he will follow instructions
with the result that the flues are rolled
so thin that the next thing in order is a
new set of flues and the contract shop
has another order on hand.

When the flues leak, the beading tool
only should be used, as it will do all the
expanding necessary and not split the
bead. If the flue is loose in the head, of
course the expander will have to be used.

William Beaton.

Gold Roads, Ariz.

Treatment of Subordinates

A great deal has been said recently in
the columns of Power concerning the
manner of treating subordinates and I
desire to give my views on the matter.

I can heartily indorse Mr. McGahey's
letter in the January 24 issue, for I know
him personally and have worked for him
and his brothers for six or seven years.
He practises what he preaches.

I have been a chief engineer for the
last four years. I find that by giving
fair treatment I can get better results
from my assistants than otherwise.

Rightly educated and treated, an as-
sistant can and will save his superior
much trouble and annoyance.

I find that the man who must be con-
tinually hammered at and driven is prac-
tically worthless. The sooner such a
man is weeded out, the better for all
concerned.

David M. Grove.

Covington, Ky.

Water Wrecked Cylinder

In the January 17 issue, Mr. Sheehan
tells of the wreck of an 18 and 36 by 36-
inch compound-condensing Corliss en-
gine.

The cause given is that the valve failed
to open on account of the hook blocks
being worn, the valve remaining closed
long enough for the steam chest to fill
with water. When the valve was made to
open, this water passed into the cylinder
and caused the wreck.

If this statement is correct, it behooves
all engineers in charge of vertical Corliss

__ ' -— -

ment. The robe of the license examiner
is too precious a garment to hand out to
any political machine or system. What
we need and want is efficiency from the
men who secure license. And we must
have it or else we decay. The examiners
themselves should be examined as to their
ability in order that when they get a
violation they may not always be outgen-
eraled or defeated to the carelessly con-
cealed mirth of the violators.

Orrin C. Werner.
Kent, O.

Piston Rod Clamp

In the Jan. 3 issue, Alfred Woolcock
described a piston-rod clamp. I have
used the one shown herewith for a num-
ber of years; I think it is superior and
easier to make.

Powen

Change in Location of steam and
Exhaust Openings

engines to take notice, for they all might
meet with the same trouble.

Why, if there is danger of wrecking
an engine in the manner stated by Mr.
Sheehan, do not builders design the steam
and exhaust connections as shown in
the accompanying figure?

A. W. Griswold.

Adams, Mass.

Federal Laws

In the issue of January 10 is an arti-
cle on Federal license laws by A. A.
Blanchard. I believe this article to be
a good one and indorse Mr. Blanchard
in trying to expand a good thing by
which every engineer in the United States
would be benefited. I am with him in
this great movement and will do all that
I can and use my influence with others
to help in this great cause; the protection
and conservation of life and property.

But stop — and think! Are we getting
good results with the present license law
in Ohio?

Do you know it to be a fact that politics
plays a great part with this law and its
enforcement?

Study your law! Watch its enforce-

Hardwood Clamp for Piston Rod

Take two pieces of hard wood 2 inches
square by 12 to 16 inches long and bolt
them together as shown, using either
washers or a plate under the heads and
nuts. Then drill a hole the size of the
rod, or a trifle smaller, through the wood.
Should the hole be too large, so as not to
clamp tightly, a thickness of paper may
be wrapped around rod.

I have never yet had this clamp slip
or mar the rod.

G. A. Rand.

Freeport, 111.

Arrangement of Boiler Feed
Pipes

A great deal of useful information has
appeared in Power as to the proper point
at which to enter the feed water to the
boiler. Aly experience leads me to be-
lieve that the layout of the plant should
be taken into consideration, also the
nature of the feed water.

Water that contains sulphates of lime
and magnesia will form a hard scale, and
if not put through a process of purifica-
tion before entering the boiler, will form
scale in the boiler when the steam pres-
sure is above 50 pounds. With this
kind of water little or no trouble would
be met with. in circulating it through
pipes in the boiler before discharging.
But with water that contained carbonates
of lime and magnesia considerable trouble
would be experienced in keeping the feed
pipes clear, as the carbonates precipitate
at a temperature of from 190 to 212
degrees. With water containing car-
bonates, my idea is to get the water into
the boiler as soon as possible after leav-
ing the feed pump.

W. G. Walters.

Stratford, Ont.

February 28. 1911.

PO\X'f K

156

Economic Engineeru

I noted with inter Allison's

criticism in the January 17 issue of my
views in regard to the economic engi-
neer and the superintendent or chief en-
gineer.

I offered no criticism whatever of the
economic engineer, neither did I exr
the opinion that he had not "come to
stay." On the contrary. I think that
the inefficiency of a good many superin-
tendents and chief engineers has made
the economic engineer a necessity, and
I do not doubt for a minute that he
has come to stay. But. this does not
necessarily prove the inefficiency of
everybody else.

Mr. Allison does not mention the chief
engineer in his criticism, but deals en-
tirely with the superintendent and re-
gards him as the head of a business or-
ganization. Looking at the matter from
that point of view, I agree heartily with
Mr. Allison's views on the subject, but
by referring to the editorial in the
•ember 27 issue and also to my "argu-
ment" in the November 22 issue, it will
be seen that both the superintendent and
the chief engineer arc considered. I
understood the term "superintendent" to
refer to the man who superintends the
operation of the power plant, and not to
the head of a business organization;
sometimes he is called the superintendent
and sometimes the chief engineer, and
sometimes, in the case of a large r
both arc in evidence. If I understand
rightly, the manager is considered the
bead of the organization.

Looking at the matter in this light. I
still contend that the man who is "onto
his job," I mean by this the man who
knows his job as he ought to kno
not say "the man on the jo'
should be just as efficient as the economic
engineer.

Mr. Allison, because he considers the
Mscrintcndcnt as an employer, accuses
me of contradicting my statements by
saying that I had found a great deal more

uncss on the pan of emplo.
to furnish new equipment with which to
Improve the methods of operation, than
•mwillingncss on the pan of the
crators to break away from old SSI
Hsbed customs.

To be sure, the superintendent is usual-
ly considered as an employer, so is the
section twee on a railroad, but it docs
not nccesaarily follow that cither has the
power lo purchase new equipment. This
la f«ncrally up to the manager, who is
also an employer

A mar'* title does not necessarily mskc
him m*re emcient than another man
meet cBVIent man i« the one who docs
the |ob right, regardless of b

R I. R*'
Kansa- Mo.

Introducii.. - ■-■.: info

I read with interest Mr. Taylor's letter
in the December 6 issue on the above
subject. In the plant where 1 am
ployed there is an arrangement for i
ing so:. nto the boilers which is

similar to thai -^d by him. but I

pt just before wash-
ing out. There is a ',-inch iich
connects the feed-pump suction line to
a barrel on the roof. The solvent is or-
dinarily placed in this barrel and
through the small pipe at a rate which is
regulated so that three-quarters of a bar-
rclful is fed in during the day's run.

The device shown in Fig. I did not
prove to be very satisfactory because the
soh
it t. and 611c

SftSStftSSee. a* J ,j.c pSSd rc>u r» T>.c
the piping

:eton. w*ls.

\:i I CCT « cm

In the Januan 3 nu: Jrcdfr

s about engine-room ethics,
man can succeed unless he r

L-^l

'' -.

::-

os or iNtaooi .to Boats

Just befnre running up the vsi • whole soul into Ms weft.

the boilers at I .

solvent romped Into i

trci' .iter ut

■MBS Is to

in. Te«

N J K

to do so but thcr a

T to
deter- SSI | M •in.

to one position, bet

•

In • H Williams, in the

January ' %%w

.mpounds. I enbr

he
"om mj 'rum the •

The engineer who iSBClim
• ho devotes Ma whole thae and
to the Imefssss of Ms

356

POWER

February 28, 1911.

We all have our ups and downs and
the only way to come out on top is to
keep up the spirit and determination to
win.

George O. Griffith.

Fort Flagler, Wash.

Does the Crosshead Stop

The above title has for many a weary
week adorned the pages of Power. The
discussions upon the subject have been
largely controversial; partaking of the
nature of "Katy did" and "Katy didn't."
Occasionally, there has been no refer-
ence to the subject and then I have put
down my Power thinking happily, "At
last that crosshead has stopped." But
no! next week it crops up again as lively
as ever with elaborate diagrams to show
that it stops — or doesn't.

So, in self defense, I humble myself
to write upon the subject. And I do
hope that mine will be the last word. So
here goes:

If the crosshead does not stop, it must
be moving. If it moves, it has a velocity.
If it has a velocity, it must have a di-
rection. If it has a direction, please let
someone who votes that the crosshead
does not stop say in just what direction
the crosshead is moving at the end of
the stroke. Let him put an arrow on a
diagram to show in which direction it
moves. If he can prove the direction, I
will yield him the palm. But, if it is
impossible to find a direction, clearly
there is no motion, and no further argu-
ment is needed that the crosshead does
stop.

Julian C. Smallwood.

Syracuse, N. Y.

Engineer or Laborer

The advertisement copied in the edi-
torial under the above title in Power for
January 31 is enough to make every engi-
neer in the country sit up and take
notice. There are cases where a young
fellow who is trying to get experience
could work for such pay and be ex-
cused, but for a man who is duly qualified
to take such a position is shameful. I
regret that the article does not state
whether or not this position was in
Massachusetts; it is no more attractive
than some I have seen in the daily papers
in this State. Engineers in other States,
who are struggling for a license law, will
tell us it has a tendency to raise wages.
Ccme and see. Here are a few speci-
mens:

In a large office building requiring
continuous service, where the engineers
work seven 8-hour shifts each, the en-
gineer does his own firing, burns screen-
ings, operates two boilers in summer and
three in winter, keeps everything in good
condition and tends to the engines, gen-

erators and switchboard, all for $14 per
week. This job requires a second-class
license.

A first-class engineer recently made
vacant a position for which he was re-
ceiving $35 per week, and another engi-
neer with a first-class license took it for
$18.

Another engineer with a first-class
license took a job for $16 per week while
he was looking for something bigger to
turn up. Before he had been there two
weeks, another engineer came along and
took his position for $14.

Well, who is to blame ? Why, the en-
gineers, of course. To do each other out
of a job seems to be a malady that is
fast growing among engineers.

The average operating engineer is the
poorest paid mechanic in the country.
Other mechanics are getting good pay
and they cannot do each other out of a
job, because they are organized, and
in organization there is strength.

There is no mistaking the fact that
the engineers of this country must or-
ganize. Not only engineers but every
man engaged in the generation and trans-
mission of power should be a member
of one organization. Give us a national
organization of all power workers,
coupled with Federal license and inspec-
tion laws, and I will venture to say that
within ten years we will have the wages
of the average power worker increased
wonderfully, and the engineer's profes-
sion raised to such a position as to com-
mand the respect of employers.

J. A. Levy.

Greenfield, Mass.

Runaway Engines

It is surprising to note that hardly any-
thing is being done toward reducing the
number of flywheel explosions. Due to
the results of such accidents not being
so disastrous, perhaps, the general pub-
lic and, indeed, those who are more in-
timately concerned with engines, are sur-
prisingly complacent toward this type of
accident. The lack of publicity as to the
direct cause of flywheel explosions, due
to the vigilant care of owners to baffle
and prevent worthy investigation, is in
a large measure responsible for foster-
ing this indifference. A boiler explo-
sion will occupy a very prominent space
in the daily newspapers while often the
reader must search minutely for men-
tion of a flywheel explosion, and when
he finds it, 99 ;imes out of 100, the direct
cause of the accident is not reported.

Why? Is it because the cause would
incriminate the owner, or his servant, the
engineer? That runaway engines are of
frequent occurrence, though in the
majority of cases stopped before damage
is done, can be attested to by a large
number of engineers.

When an engineer has once faced a
runaway, by being obliged to stand in
front of 12 tons or so of madly revolving
iron, which at any moment may burst
into a hundred pieces and hurl him to
eternity, he generally afterward becomes
most solicitous about all of the details
which have to do with the safety of the
flywheel. The chief cause of runaways
is the governor belt, that often oil soaked,
pieced, and badly spliced bit of hide to
which one-half of engine builders are
willing to commit the safety of valu-
able engines and their more or less valu-
able attendants.

My first experience was with a large
central condenser pump with Corliss
valve gear. Due to the breaking of the
governor belt one afternoon it started to
enliven matters by attempting to find
out how fast it could go. As I descended
the steps leading to the pit, I was met
first by the crank-pin oil cup, and next
by the oil pipe leading to it. The engine
was stopped, however, without doing any
further damage. My next experience was
with an air pump, equipped with a throt-
tling governor. To stop this runaway,
also caused by the breaking of the gov-
ernor belt, I was forced to stand on a
step ladder and bend over one of the
flying balance wheels to close the throt-
tle. When stopped, the crank and wrist-
pins were found to be smoking hot, and
all of the foundation bolts loose. These
two experiences inculcated the habit of
extreme caution on my part, and taught
me to seek answers to such questions
as, what would I do if this, that or the
other thing should happen. It is sur-
prising-how many things an engineer can
do in an emergency — after full considera-
tion under calm thought — and it will do
no harm here, to impress on young en-
gineers the importance of considering the
answers to these pertinent questions be-
fore an emergency arises, and not after
the smoke clears.

A case to illustrate this happened some
time ago. I was employed in a small
textile mill erecting a line of shafting.
It was my custom to spend my noon hour
with the engineer, and during our con-
versations on engineering topics, I asked
him what he would do if the engine ran
away. The machine was a small slide-
valve affair, equipped with a throttling
governor that had no provision for stop-
ping the engine in the event of the gov-
ernor belt breaking, which, by the way,
seemed to me from its condition to be
imminent. His only resort at the time
was to shut the stop valve on top of the
boiler.

It was only a few days later that he
was called upon to face the emergency.
As I noticed the mill machinery speeding
up, I called to the operatives to keep
their looms running, and start up every
loom that was idle, giving the example
myself, for I had noticed that with a
large percentage of the looms in opera-

February 28, 1911.

I'CHi ' ••

tion, the speed often slackened, proving
that the engine was hardly big enough to
handle the mill load. But, much sooner
than I expected, the racing looms sl<
down. As I proceeded to the boiler room
to congratulate the engineer on the re-
markable agility he had shown in :
ink a ladder, climbing to the top of the
boiler and closing the stop valve, 1 pe
into the engine room and beheld a most
melodramatic tableau. Clinging to the
r of the 2-inch back-pressure valve
that stood 10 feet above the floor and
uith one foot slowly but surely shu-
the throttle was the engineer, while steam
from several leaky gaskets was filling
the place.

On being asked what had made htm
think of the back-pressure valve, he said
that my inquiry as to what he would do
when called upon to face this emergency
had set him to thinking and had pron.:
him to try the expediency which had
proved so efficacio

Not long ago I had to deal with a i
mysterious case of o\ :ing on the

part of a cross-compound < engine,

direct connected to a 1500-kilosretl al-
ternator. I was about to stop this engine
and. with a precaution that many would
n unnecessary, I had the oiler shut
the throttle valve before pulling out the
main switch. When this was done, we
waited for the speed to slacken before
releasing the steam and exhaust clutch on
the high side. These clutches had been
done away with on the low side as being
unnecessary. To my astonishment and
alarm, instead of slowing down, the en-
gine began gradually but surely to in-
crease its speed. Hastily I released the
clutches and, anticipating something
wrong with the throttle. I picked up the
starting bar and with it tightened the
vaivc. Noting that the dashpot rods on
the low side kept moving. I looked at the
governor, but found it had assume.:

plane, the spindle sleeve being
tightly pressed against the Mar.

« that in some manner steam

was being furnished to t'

der, I tncJ the low-pressure thr
and while standing there 1 J
heard the hissing of steam, though the
valve was closed tightly. Jumping
lo the governor reach rod, I ta; *ith

the starting bar, •hus

shortening it, which brought the kr.
off cams into action and rrevented the
vah I hooking. Then, as

as po»ttiblc. the inlcction \.i!*c of the
condenser was closed and the pump

-tigating. I
that the low-pressure b\p«,s *••

pack tl"
Mem. the oiler had opened it to takr
vantage of the packing seat, and I
gotten to ,-|o«e It It had no extension
handle passing through the floor as the
other valves had.

William P<>*

Ashland. Mass.

I'l (

The answer to a question in the Janu-
ary 17 issue ur caption, Pressure
in C ng En*;

ment that running an engine nrntttfttlTH
creasing the pres-
sidc of the ; -' n to the

as or ;

rj^c

nt of 10 or 12 pounds

prac

I think that the statement is mislead-
ing, as son t, that 10 im-
pounds increase ir. >uld

the same result, whe-
10 or 12 r ■•■ M Increase In the mean
effective pressi.

"
Chicago, III.

\ I '• ict ( omprivsjun I

■ion or no compression'

a subject that has frequently been
cussed in and out of the technical jour-
nals for the past

kno - The matter is not yet set-

tled, although I -nc of the arti-

sterna in Pnwta during the
■r that some of the higher au-
thor n engineering are coming
:nd to the side of no com;
at least, very much reduced com-
ssion.

In the In

the Januar
ask -he real a and

docs not some college labora-
And and annou the em.

come from "some college lahorator
Can it not be found in steam plants

an opp
ment and r It Ktrni to me

that it can has

been in one mstafl ast.

The plant, a
contained

The •

hoftepoen i * j- - ■ c • c ,• • ■ •• .>..j ..?
800

I of

•ion in both high- *n*l

■
*i pounds and • rccr

• load both in the morr

most diflk cep

a half hour, and '
preset, id drop to

and sometimes even to
pounds.

A'
cidc educing the compression

e same
time Increasing the receiver pressure A

!hc entire »u*crcJ r.o

!he o!r>cr

a -

oper

could then be

r loss resulted.
One by one. the engines «

It progressed noticed tiu

the
pounds boiler pressi.
sll • c finished, the peak

the boiler room*

rvimons had not

changed, as no other chang - la

progres -id as not oaly oaa

• a number of

. seems fair to assume that the

the roducttoa ka

r to both. I think that
contiibu' share of the decide!

I am not going to attempt any
. nor do

out mm eat. but

I do . |hc

changes less steer onssimed s» do

the same amount of tmc

Period cry one of the en-

ao
ropping of steam preestr
>equent long cutoffs and the dis-
agrt possibility of having

son i load onto same of the r

>• • •

map and

a* to tu»-

• hours'
•Ime or c station men «ho

c on del

•mpreeessa aad la
asing the receiver pra saute ia so

would have manifested l'

■ •

Set some of the boys to trying ttw

thin* MM M* «h*rr-.w- ><■• »rj rrr^fi ts*

Report the esoct eaev

Mttaoe MtoMMMJ MMl te»»» »o !*-at t*><
ic truth m i

Hammk,

erticlt t>
issue

thr SMI

la the Jestei

•

>n the

358

POWER

February 28, 1911.

One or Two Cylinders

We are now running an 18x36-inch
engine which is supposed to develop 249
horsepower at one-third cutoff. The load
has increased to 328 horsepower, and the
engine takes steam seven-eighths of the
stroke. If another side is put in the same
as this, setting the crank pins on the
quarter, would it take more steam to de-
velop the same amount of power with
the two engines than it does with this
single one with the overload?

E. W. O.

A fair load for an 18-inch engine under
average conditions of steam pressure is
175 horsepower. Two 18-inch cylinders
will develop 328 horsepower on much less
steam than one. The displacement up to
cutoff will be about in the ratio of 8 for
one cylinder and 5 for two.

Color of Ashes

What gives the fine ashes in the com-
bustion chamber of an ordinary return-
tubular boiler their reddish color?

C. O. A.

The color is due to the presence of
sesquioxide of iron.

Peak Load
What is meant by "peak load"?

E. E. P.
The term refers to the heaviest load of
the run. Where the load curve is plotted
on a chart, the highest point reached is
called the peak.

Brake Horsepower

What is the brake horsepower of an
engine?

E. P. E.

Brake horsepower is the term applied
to the power delivered from the flywheel
or engine shaft. It is that determined by
brake measurement, hence the term. It
is the net horsepower as distinguished
from the indicated horsepower, which is
the power developed in the cylinder.

Effect of Safety Valve Opening

If the quick opening of a valve or the
breaking of a pipe or fitting reduces the
pressure in a boiler and causes a water
hammer, why is there not a water ham-
mer every time the safety valve blows?

E. S. O.

When a safety valve blows there is
no sudden reduction of the pressure in
the boiler. The opening of the valve
prevents any further rise and if there is
any appreciable reduction due to exces-
sive "blow back," this reduction is ac-

Questions are/

not answered unless

accompanied by thes

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

complished slowly instead of rapidly as
is the case with a broken pipe.

Cotnpound Engine Cranks

In a cross-compound engine which will
give the better results, to have the crank
pins 90 or 180 degrees apart?

C. E. C.

It will make no difference in steam
economy. But there will be a more uni-
form turning effect on the shaft with
the cranks at 90 degrees.

Granulated Babbitt Metal

How can I make a granulated babbitt
metal?

G. B. M.

Melt the metal in a ladle, remove the
ladle from the fire and allow the metal
to cool. When it begins to "set," stir
briskly with a stick until it has all cooled
into a granular mass. If any particular
size of grain is desired, the metal may
be sifted, using two screens, one
of the desired size mesh to re-
move the large grains and one slightly
smaller to allow the escape of the fine
or too small grains.

Disabled Valve Gear

If the connection on one of the ex-
haust valves of the high-pressure cylin-
der of a triple-expansion Corliss en-
gine should get broken, what should be
done in order to keep on running?

O. W. L.

Block the exhaust valve open, then
shorten the dashpot rod of the corre-
sponding steam valve until the hook will
not engage. This will leave the steam
port closed and the high-pressure cyl-
inder will run single acting.

Cutting Boiler in with Others

How should a boiler, in which steam
has been raised, be cut in with others?

C. B. O.

As the steam pressure approaches that
in the others, the draft should be checked
and the pressure allowed to increase
slowly until it is within a pound or two
of the other pressure, when the connect-
ing valve should be slowly opened.

Area of Steam Port

How is the size of the steam ports of
an engine cylinder found?

A. S. P.

The velocity of the steam entering the
cylinder should not exceed 100 feet per
second. To find the area of a steam
port for this velocity, multiply the piston
area in square inches by its travel in
feet per second. This product divided
by 100 will give the required area of
the port in square inches. Dividing the
area of the port by its length will give
the width.

Tubes, Flues and Pipes

What is the difference between tubes,
flues and pipes?

T. F. P.

It is in the terms of the diameter. Tubes
and flues are measured by the external
diameter. Boiler-tube sizes run to A]/2
inches. Above this they are called flues.
Iron and steel pipe is measured by the
internal diameter up to 12 inches and by
the outside above this. Cast-iron pipe
of all diameters is measured on the in-
side.

Corrosion a?id Remedy

What is corrosion in a boiler and how
can it be prevented?

C. A. R.

It is the gradual rusting or dissolving of
the metal by the water or oxygen or acid
present in it. It may be prevented by
analyzing the water and introducing such
elements as will neutralize the corroding
agents.

Total Pressure in Boiler

What is the aggregate pressure tend-
ing to burst a boiler 6x18 feet, carrying
120 pounds pressure per square inch?

T. P. B.

The total pressure on the shell is

3 X 3.14 X 18 X 144 X 120 =

2,879,996.8 pounds.

The pressure on the heads if supported

by the tubes and stays has no bursting

tendency.

Comparative Value of Wood and
Coal

How does wood compare with coal in
fuel value?

C. V. c.

Dry wood has a heat value per pound
of about 0.4 that of carbon. There Is
little difference in the fuel value of the
different kinds of wood, pound for pound.

February 28, 1911.

Hill Publishing my

lhki*t Ut. ku :i —

*, *. » t.

[he rol-
H..1 p»i>:

■ »n«l »-!!:<-« of correspondents
imwt be aven — Dot Beet— nl>

;>tlon price * In

■oany post ©flier

to any 01

■ no mor .r» or »*
unlewtfo ofauth<

» il.- r;U-r« m <irr»: ! ■• • • ! -.,[»•

n»d m wrood cimm n

at the : e at

N V.

OS.

t I!

■
■

n tents

PA'iB

Repairing ■»'

v 11 ■■■■■ill Mutnif>,

Hrpalrlns a W

ml'

1
.•line It

gtn-

■

• m In !■<•* I
•ainc II

■

1«T«I I . I'

I v m! Mine < Operator1

•tit

In the Januar> 17 issue of Fovea an
>ri«l entitled "The Consumer Pays
the Bill" uas pu* Our con-

porary, Th'

■iinc of the statements made, and
the coal < n that -

arc not ,gh money for the

-s of anihr.L al.

According to -.ond's os-n

statement, cnt. of the an-

thracite coal now mined is sold
mestic use, and the remaining th
cigl ' ich is broken up into

the small s. aming ;

poses, so that there is pra no

e of actual comb ong

ago these smaller sizes were thrown a -
and th

ar 1909 there
9JJ tons of cat. 1.336.460

ieat and rice and
1. 172. Ml ton* of No 3 buckwheat coal
taken from ll as against

of No 2 an : and

■ coal taken

Coal is being mined almost as chci
tod.t ars ago.

msurm
higher than it has

•ids that the mor.'

c the fine coal

argument mig>

^educed
t her. the ope ecan selling the

fine sizes.

■me from *
■ ' • ■ •

r» be BOW

all

tnln about 1

nln • >n. and less than

t ■

The

instead of rcccu *'

r toa ol

1 and five cents par

igb the a

uch ss the st
of coa ^rr.al! sites <

If that la not ft'

Vad
•nsuroc

B iler I: i anil I : .in-

ecr>' 1 i< ci <• I

It is interesting to note
•latent agi- an of the

inte nginccrs for the

cense h eginmng to be ere

no lass

•he leg - of tb of

Nc. md Kansas concise1 and cans*

proposition* foi vamina-

of aaj And there has Inst

pssaed both house ongrrs* a bill

■nual inspection of lo>

■ J rc.'on

UKC M>

steps la the

en sll

and

Consistent boilcr-insae

bt installation and us*
of boiir e conatraciloa sad

compelling • r.giJ i-nmation of all

add 10

e ntascat » igtiatx
proha'

I the

woakJ have

as hat'
>• a a*
tag to the to •

It earless to the an-

360

POWER

February 28, 1911.

fGrd Ice Company that the boiler was
safe for a much higher pressure than
that allowed by the State inspector. The
boiler was taken to New Hampshire and
installed for use during the ice harvest.
It exploded on the first day of its use,
killing the man who said it was safe.

Last summer at Laconia, a boiler in
the Lakeport steam laundry exploded
with fatal results. Had laws similar to
those of Massachusetts been in force in
New Hampshire, neither of these boilers
would have failed, and the State would
not be characterized as the dumping
ground for worn-out Massachusetts
boilers.

Sign Your Full Name

From Detroit, Mich., there comes a
question about the method used to deter-
mine the efficiency of riveted seams. The
question is a reasonable one and is in-
telligently stated. But after the ques-
tion comes this plea: "Now, do not turn
this dov/n and say that you have shown
this more than a hundred times during
the last twenty years, but kindly and
considerately remember that there are
many young men just beginning to read
Power while the older readers are pass-
ing away. Editors sometimes forget that
new men are coming up as the old ones
go, by the thousand, and refuse to reply
to a question a second time. Please do
not treat this one that way."

Four times within two years this ques-
tion has been answered in the columns
of the paper and more than fifty times
by personal letter, just as it would have
been in the present instance if the writer
had signed his name to the letter he so
painstakingly wrote.

Sometimes a correspondent will sign
a letter with his initials only and hun-
dreds of letters have been answered
where the only clues to the addresses
were the post mark on the envelop and
the initials which fitted a name oh the
subscription list.

Hundreds of letters are received, read,
answered and filed at this office every
working day of the year and it is not
strange that a few mistakes occur. But
it is strange that the most, in fact nearly
all, of the unsigned letters received at
this office are written by engineers.
Anonymous letters are annoying, whether
the omission of the signature is inten-
tional or otherwise; but are doubly so
when concealment makes it impossible to
perform a service so manifestly ex-
pected, as in the instance mentioned.

Engineers are not as a rule careless;
their work and training, and the re-
sponsibilities of the positions they occupy
preclude this. But some do slip, and
when they do, how often will they ac-
cept the suggestion that possibly or very
probably the miscarriage of a project was
due to negligence on their part?

This was not written wholly for the

subscriber in Detroit, whose question
will, in the near future, be answered in
the reading columns, but for all who
feel that they have not been given
courteous attention. This journal is for
its readers, and the whole office force
from the office boy to the president is at
their service and they have only to ask
to receive and that quickly, if they ask
aright by plainly signed letters.

Stress in Boiler Sheets

It is a well understood fact that in a
cylinder under pressure the stress upon
the metal per unit of section is twice
as much when the section is taken paral-
lel with the axis as when it is taken at
right angles thereto; that in a cylindrical
boiier, for example, this stress is twice
as great upon the longitudinal as upon
the roundabout joint.

This stress upon the longitudinal sec-
tion has been considered by designers as
the maximum stress per unit of section
to which the sheet is subjected by rea-
son of the pressure; but on page 1935 of
Power for November 1, 1910, Mr. Adler
advances the idea that these two stresses
acting at right angles have a component
acting diagonally through the sheet
greater than either of them.

This proposition seems open to argu-
ment, and we should like to have ex-
pressions of the ideas of our readers
concerning it.

Suppose a sheet of boiler steel to be
stressed lengthwise, as in a testing ma-
chine, up to its breaking point. Would it
break under any less stress and would
the direction of the line of fracture be
any different if at the same time it were
subjected to a crosswise stress one-half
of that which was being applied length-
wise?

If a square piece of perfectly homoge-
neous boiler steel were submitted to
tensile stresses, uniformly applied to all
four sides and normal to those sides,
would it break into four squares or four
triangles, that is, would it break on the
diameters or on the diagonals?

High Boiler Efficiency

Some time ago we published the report
of a test upon the boilers of the Govern-
ment plant at Panama, showing an effi-
cieny of over eighty-two per cent. Under
the terms of the contract a bonus of
over seventeen thousand dollars was
earned by the builders upon the strength
of this test. The report was furnished us
by the makers of the boilers and was
signed by the testing engineer for the
Government.

Since publishing the report, we have
received several communications ques-
tioning the correctness of the figures, and
upon taking the matter up with the
makers, they admit that they are at a
loss to account for some of the figures.
Computed rationally, the efficiency should
have been about seventy-five per cent.

Hanging On to Water Power

Another instance of the keeping of the
hands of the people upon their power
supply is the refusal of the House of
Representatives to cede perpetual control
of the water power of the St. Lawrence
river to the Aluminum Company of
America. The Government should either
itself develop or encourage the develop-
ment of water powers as fast as there is
a demand for them, but under such cir-
cumstances that the people can retain
their rights therein and be guarded
against excessive charges.

Louisville, Ky., is also out for an in-
ternational exposition in 1915. The ex-
cuse is that that year marks the fiftieth
anniversary of the end of the Civil war.
It is to be known as the Lincoln-Davis
exposition and held at Louisville as both
Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis
were natives of Kentucky. The real 1915
exposition will be held in San Francisco
and will commemorate the completion of
the Panama canal. We are big enough,
however, to run two international exposi-
tions at once, if it has to be done.

Have you had or do you know of any
trouble with boiler tubes recently? If
so, what kind of a tube was it; iron or
steel, lap or butt welded or seamless,
standard thickness or under or over
gage? How did it fail; in the seam or
elsewhere, by thinning down or break-
ing a piece squarely out? What were
the conditions of the tube as to cleanli-
ness, and how much water was it evap-
orating per square foot of heating sur-
face?

Camille Flammarion, who in a recent
issue of the New York American takes i
Look One Thousand Years Ahead, says
that "Electricity will, of course, have
taken the place of steam." Where are
they going to get the electricity? At
present, "juice" is not a substitute for but
a product of steam power.

Pittsburg will entertain the Mechanical
Engineers in May. This will be the
second time in the history of the society
that it has met at Pittsburg, the first be-
ing in 1884.

When are they going to try John Car-
roll? They are waiting for him in Phila-
delphia after the Boston authorities get
through with him.

It is rumored that the committee on
power tests of the American Society of
Mechanical Engineers has turned over
in its sleep.

The crosshead does stop at the end of
the stroke. — Punktum.

February 28, 1911.

961

Prevention of Industrial Accidents

At a recent meeting of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers John
Caldcr presented a paper upon "The
lanical Engineer and the Prevention
of Accidents." which was. in part, as
folic

Accident clauses ha a included

in the labor laws of the var
for some years, but the provision for
administering these la\»s effect has

aiways been inadcqu.<

In study and legislation upon the
si-bicct. this counm is far behind Great
Britain. Germany and 1 which

countries more than Hi »go bc-

to enforce th ng la*s with

M and excellent- technical |«
ment. The reports of the Bureau
Labor show that the yearly mortl

trial a^ among adult

earners alone, in the Unite.:
is between

mated that the nonfatal injuries reach
near nually.

cntific study and a solution b\ the
mechanical engineer of li
lems of safeguarding, eupei »nd

instruction of emp ,nc> '

;aily routine work, will do more than
ell other existing agencies to bring about
satisfac >ch matters the

attitude and action of tin are

ail important. However, all industrial
-, arc not t<> he pre-

Furthermore, of those that may be
• some do not fall strictK uithin
the ' the engineer, but arc di-

rt the control of the injured
thtmsclvea.

An analysis of many thousand in-
•rial ac l,,vc

|] due principal!) to the foil,
causes: ignorance, carelessness, ui
able clothr ■n<1

'k plai «n mi-

and absence
due to the culpable a« ^ ell as

ginecrs. mill*

and mstri:

these i \

apt to take foolish and unr

.nd the

campaign throughout th«

J In the art
g to some

thr «:fd ll

pill

.cp
c in operation; nor
is it in the intcreat of the cmpl<
to use imp apparatus wh

•'<e pos- irnings. On the

other hand. no means infrequent

to find workmen who have their ch
of the best material and apparar
who possess the intelligence to ar
thes. wing a striking

gard for their

ally true in tempor
h as scaffolds, frayed rope
The a J«n

not the most prol:- -c of a.

in plat

s closelv cor fic me-

chanical engineer »ho hold* the pos-

l '

c\cr. in DM

has

n found that thee*

the op
themsches All safegua

i as not to interfere »tth the
ease ating the ma-

chi-

a nun

safe

most pan r% Kc

•hat the
and gra l°*

small :

-
tel raiimi

•>ian thr

■ i

■ ■
and. even i • hor

; •

: * of
devices and commented upc

she nnen design and

though prectk

of such design as to Impede the apeed
the operator or make their cost pre»

■ feasor Hunon laid pa
so upon the subtect of signs, point-
log c rr.iiof if) of aig'

f |% o

to the number off ' ,

and are n<

In this connection, r

to the p

n>I of a
d crossbo- rath

deed

The

•ie

of the question, showing that out-

I hums considerations It

actually paid the manufacturer to install

aafei «*•*

oeerf) all - ec-

nt occurs fro ice Of me-

■ guard
:• accepted ^ v -u *

the ma tfcO acd-

pened and the

40.000 -
a «. » ■ this o«i

'■ cducled ed decisions

to the
oda adopted

c numNtr of
bcoidea

.... '

spectif make* t»tn 'remanent

ct «

aa go back to

on.

I them
•pon the

for e

.>., t

T 1 » .

I *

>f the paper • as i

mM he given »« •r,,%
lalpitetlao of me

clothing, c i l —**"* «*•« • **■»■
egtaeers he afpilanl w

derdstc their i

362

POWER

February 28, 1911.

iw power

Diamond Tube Blower

A new soot blower, known as the Dia-
mond, has been designed for use with
water-tube boilers, and is illustrated here-
with. By its use soot can be cleaned
from the tubes without waiting for the
boiler to cool down, and as often as the
operator may desire.

Fig. 1 gives a good idea of the con-
struction and mechanical parts of the de-
vice. Fig. 2 shows three blowers in-
stalled on one boiler having two vertical
baffles, and under such circumstances

Fig. I. Details of Blower

three blowers are required, one each side
of the baffles. If the boiler had only one
baffle, but two blowers would be neces-
sary.

This blower is also applicable to boil-
ers having horizontal baffles, in which
case the number of blowers required is
regulated by the length of the boiler, but
any ordinary length can usually be
covered by two blowers.

The blower is intended for use on boil-
ers in which tubes are laid in even hori-
zontal or nearly horizontal rows, when
there is a clear passage between each row
of tubes from one side of the boiler to
the other, so that a jet of steam may pass
through this space unobstructed for the
full width of the boiler.

This blower is very simple in design,
having no complicated parts to be de-

fVhat the in-
ventor and the manu-
facturer are doing to save
time and money in the en-
gine room and power
house. Engine room
news

stroyed by the effect of heat, soot or dirt.

There are three main parts to the
blower: the door frame, the door and the
standpipe resting on its slide. The sli^e
operates in a groove in the top and bot-
tom plates of the frame, and is moved
in and out of the operating position by
means of a vertical hand lever, as shown
in Fig. 1, this lever being in a vertical
position when the device is out of use,
and in a horizontal position when the
blower is thrown into the operating posi-
tion.

When the blower is not in use it is pro-
tected by the 'door which closes behind
the standpipe. This protects the working
parts of the blower from the heat of the
boiler, no parts being exposed when the
blower is not in use. The door itself is

rotated through an arc of 180 degrees,
or 90 degrees to the right and 90 degrees
to the left, by the geared handle on the
pinion shaft, as shown in Fig. 1.

The standpipe is provided with small
jets so placed that one will come between
each row of boiler tubes, and as the op-
erator turns the handle, a jet of steam is
thrown between each row of tubes from
one side of the boiler to the other, and
within the limits intended to be covered
by one machine.

This blower is manufactured by the
"Diamond" Power Specialty Company,
80-82 First street, Detroit, Mich.

Mound No. 4 Packing Irons

These tools are for the purpose of re-
placing packing in the stuffing box of
an engine, pump, etc.

They are forged from tool steel, and,

No. 4 Packing Irons

Fig. 2. Application of
protected by a filling of asbestos and
cement about l/2 inch thick.

When the blower is thrown into an
operating position, by pressing down the
lever, the standpipe is moved toward the
inner side of the boiler wall so that it
projects slightly beyond the inner face of
the boiler setting.

In cleaning the tubes the standpipe is

Blower to a Boiler

having no sharp edges, are not liable to
cut the pistop rod during the process of
packing.

There are four tools in each set, each
7, 9, 11 and 14 inches long, and they are
nickel plated. The set is known as No.
4, and is made by the Mound Tool and
Scraper Company, 7 Hickory street, St.
Louis, Mo.

bruary 28, 1911.

Court Rulingi on Pittsfield

I i ion

By John L. Robbins

In filing the report of the inquest on
the recent boiler explosion at i'
by which seventeen I :ost. the

court found that there was violation of
law in substituting a new safety .
of larg. and increased pressure for

the one allowed by the State li
and in afterward tampering with the
safety valve and thereby greatly increas-
thc pressure at which it was set. But
it was held that no one living was re-
nsible for it.

w'ith a view to preventing further acci-
dents from a like cause, it was recom-
mended that the law be so amended as
to require that all connections between
the steam gage and the boiler shall be
of brass or other metal that does not
rust, and that all safety valves on boil-
ers which require a licensed engineer to
run them, shall be locked and a key
kept in possession only of the State in-
spector of that district in which the boiler
Is loca*

Long Be u U Plant »»t the
xithern California
Edison Companj

To insure continuity of service, the
Southern California Kdison Company has
already invested about 52.000,000 in
steam auxiliary generating plfl
plcmcnt in case of necessity their hydro-
clef dopments on the Kern r
the Santa Ana canon and other water
ses that derive their flow from the
•ras.

At Long Beach a steam plant is r.
under construction which will have a
total ultimate capacity of
power when entirely completed. This
amount of energy will be necessary for
earning the peak loads of Los Angeles
the tr> • southern California.

The final cost of this plant will be a*
$6,000,000.

The new station, which will be lo-
cated on a site adjacent to the inner
harbor, will comprise two buildings hav-
ing a combined floor space of nearly an

The generator anJ
will have a floor area of 90,000 »quare
feet and will be 60 feet high, while the
transformer
square feet and will be '

urea are to b
Inforced concrete with artificial-stone
base, ornamental cornice and mission
The ge room will ha^

- of Imported Welsh quar-
a glarcd-tilc wain
sidcred. this will be the moil ha- !
and best equipped steam plant weal of
Chicago.

The main unit will consist of a ttr
•

POV

For s.

horaep
mg bo!..r> Crude
for fuel. Iar|
being located on
Pror s oil u

tank cars or may be pumped through a
main which n> the compa

prop
condensing purport-

hough
ar tl

I of am; ^,».

cs with their boilers and aux
property on which the plan-

allow for future growth,
-argent, of Chicago, has r
retained as consulting mechanical cngi-
Thc Edbofl company*! c:
department K the con-

.tion work and has made all of
and plan- pt the pu-

ural details which were desi^
arkinson & Bcrgstrom who have been
retained as consulting arc

t ' huliistri.il Power

O- ".arch 10. the

American chanical 1

necrs, coopers- ; ln.

:'c of I i| Engineer hold

a meeting on the .. ldustrial p.

in the !

•.tree
Papers will be presented on power coats
members of both m All n

having intimate knowledge of
of producing r Q cither central or

ited ar. : rial plants are in.

to take part in the discussion. That there
may be a proper ! for com;

I necessary that the cost figures
' and th (hod of ana'

each is deter:
with primary data from which deter-
mined, be given in detail l( is hoped
that re: m as to pi

- in and itmg costs

be present* be pos«.

differentiate between lesi
and actual ope-

• non arc • , • :
to r Meetings com-

• an ear

I N • il I > > 1 1 r

■ a f I *' i

I men of the

navj

Wat' aatma-

M Thompson were or 'Offnm

concluded the sp— fc<t -
few on iba) na»v of list

r ' ■ * i " f * ' ' *

v.?

• Rh

I I

ode Island coeJ may burn sans'
I some caac*. rom

d;cate
ably co

bnll

and

,ue*tcd by the
board of a

- at the lowes-

chance arge o-

furnaces for a >e engineer

to burn ■ ea,

aa other coa

cedved

poor.

< >il Burnii \

Haven R

it mm t^xat

ning tr
oil-burning locom n a more

tensive sea

any other railroad

and the .rs of the roaj coo-

r at if

of - g twenty-two

The road has been quie-
locomo

ape Cod The

me:

ss grea-

: - , e - .' - c s

lrr ' in Phila-

On Fcbn. tploded la

basement of
»< ' 'hilade'; The en-

d coo-
oom l«

locomof.v, .-lotion

r rttd In the J* > rfrs. to havt oc-

cJ and

age of MDjPi

PI ONAI

Korttrr. priHaonty with the
ifOttsh Ra,
Cornea Vane h

the Aanrrk i

364

POWER

February 28, 1911.

is author of "Steam Electric Power
Plants" and "Hydroelectric Developments
and Engineering."

Arthur Ritter has succeeded Clayton
W. Old as manager in charge of the New
York sales office of the American Blower
Company. Mr. Ritter has been con-
nected with this company for a number
of years and is well and favorably known
among its clientele in the New York sec-
tion.

SOCIETY NOTES

The next meeting of the Engineering
Society of Wisconsin will be held in
Madison on March 8, 9 and 10.

The spring meeting of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers will be
held in Pittsburg, Penn., May 30 to
June 2.

The national convention of the Build-
ing Owners and Managers Association
will be held at Cleveland, O., on July
10, 11 and 12.

The Southern Supply and Machinery
Dealers' Association, the National Sup-
ply and Machinery Dealers' Association
and the American Supply and Machinery
Manufacturers' Association will hold a
triple joint convention in Louisville, Ky.,
on April 3, 4 and 5, 1911.

On the evening of March 9, 1911, the
Institute of Operating Engineers will hold
its second monthly meeting in its rooms
in the Engineering Societies building, 29
West Thirty-ninth street, New York. Wil-
liam D. Ennis, professor of mechanical
engineering in the Polytechnic Institute
of Brooklyn, will deliver a paper on
"Commercial Aspects of the Work of the
Operating Engineer." Two other promi-
nent engineers will be called upon to
enter into the discussion of the paper.
As this subject is one of great importance
to the operating engineer, a large attend-
ance is expected.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
Ihe I'atent Office at '«-. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

PRIME MOVERS

[NTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Wil-
liam J. Perkins, Grand Rapids, Mich. 983,307.

COMBUSTION ENGINE. Jakob Sulzer,
Winterthur, Switzerland. 083.322.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Leon-
ard Archibald Vallillee, Buckingham, Quebec,
Canada. 983,328.

TWO-CYCLE GASOLENE ENGINE. Fred
Howes, Burlington, Vt. 983,369.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Thos.
Turnbull, Jr., Pittsburg, Penn. 983,583.

TURBINE. Byron Stevens. Oakland, Cal.
983,653.

ROTARY ENGINE. Franklin Priestley
Nichols, Houston, Tex. 083.754.

ROILERS, FURNACES AND GAS
PRODUCERS

STEAM GENERATOR. John N. Leach,
Melrose, Mass., assignor, by mesne assign-

ments, to Judson L. Thomson Manufacturing
Company. Waltham, Mass., a Corporation of
Maine. ' 983,296.

MECHANICAL STOKER. Edgar D. New-
kirk. Canastota, N. Y., assignor to the West-
inghouse Machine Company, a Corporation of
Pennsylvania. 083.305.

WATER-TUBE BOILER. Amasa Worth-
ington. New York, N. Y. 083,339.

OIL BURNER. William S. Dowell, El Reno,
Ok la. 083,484.

SMOKE CONSUMER. Charles D. Leonard,
Rochester, N. Y. 083,503.

SMOKE-CONSUMING FURNACE. John W.
McNeal. Chicago, 111. 083,510.

GRATE. Robert Hilprecht, Lansing, Mich.

083,71 0.

POWER

PLANT Al X1LIARIES AND
APPLIANCES

FEED-WATER HEATER. Francis Hodg-
kinson, Edgewood Park, Penn., assignor to
the Westinghouse Machine Company, a Cor-
poration of Pennsylvania. 983,282.

STARTING DEVICE FOR EXPLOSIVE
ENGINES. Frederic N. noward, Harris, R. I..
983,282.

OIL SAVER. Clark F. Rigbv. Butler, Penn.

083,314.

FEED- WATER CONTROLLER. George

Fleming, Chicago, 111. 083.356.

PUMP. Byron W. Haskell, Oakland, Cal.
963,365!

STEAM TRAP. Jarad W. Lytton, Franklin.
Va., assignor to Lytton Manufacturing Cor-
poration, Franklin, Va., a Corporation of Vir-
ginia. 083,384.

LINING FOR ENGINE CYLINDERS. Einar
N. Sorensen, Athens. Penn. 983,409.

CARBURETER. William T. Dawson,
Helena, Ark. 983,541.

ROTARY GAS-ENGINE VALVE. William
E. Ewart, Seattle. Wash. 083,540.

VALVE GEAR FOR ENGINES. Charles D.
Parker, Worcester, Mass. 983,564.

COMPRESSOR. Henry W. N. Cole, Brook-
lyn. N. Y. 983,605.

COAL-HANDLING APPARATUS. George E.
Titcomb, Philadelphia, Penn., assignor to the
J. M. Dodge Company. Naugafuck. Conn., a
Corporation of Pennsylvania. 983,659.

HOSE COUPLING. John E. W. Boesch,
Columbia. New 983,671.

LOCK COCK. Joseph Schneible. Wee-
hawken. N. J., assignor to Schneible Com-
pany. Buffalo, N. Y.. a Corporation of New
Jersey. 983,842.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS
APPLICATIONS

AND

ELECTRIC HEATER. Milton M. Kohn,
New York. N. Y. 983,291.

ELECTRIC FURNACE. Hans Nathusius,
Friedenshutte, near Morgenroth, Germain*.

! i8:;. 303.

ELECTRICAL SIGNALING DEVICE. Jey
Glenn Schafer. Brighton. Iowa. 983.403.

MOTOR-CONTROL SYSTEM. Emmett W.
Stull, Milwaukee. Wis., assignor to Allis-
Chalmers Company. Milwaukee, Wis., a Cor-
poration of New Jersey. 083.510.

ELECTRIC SWITCH. Charles S. Van
Nuis, Philadelphia, Penn. 983,680.

ALTERNATING-CURRENT SYSTEM OF
DISTRIBUTION, REGULATION AND CON-
TROL. Joseph Bijur, New York. N. Y., as-
signor, by mesne assignments, to the Electric
Storage Battery Company. Philadelphia. Penn.,
a Corporation of New Jersey. 983,670.

ELECTRICAL WRITING APPARATUS.
Dinshah Pestanii Framji Ghadiall. Surat,
India. 083.703.

INSULATOR FOR ELECTRIC INSTALLA-
TION CANOPIES. George W. Gardiner, Chi-
cago, 111. 083.701.

POWER PLANT TOOLS

RIPE WRENCH. Frank F. Corbin, East-
hampton. Mass. 083.267.

PIPE WRENCH. Ernst Enderes, Little-
port. Iowa. 083,271.

WRENCH. William N. .Tav, Moscow. Idaho.
083.447.

WRENCH. Andrew J. Curtis. East Wil-
liamson. N Y., assignor of one-half to Daniel
Wagemaker. East Williamson, N. Y. 083.483.

PIPE-FLANGE WRENCH. Michael Mur-
ray, Chicago. III. 083,562.

WRENCH. Robert D. Lindsav, Monaea,
Tenn. 083.028.

, WRENCH. Edward Kukuruda, Saginaw,
Mich. 083,728.

WRENCH. Ellnathan Allen, Chicago, 111.
983, 1 90.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres., Col. E. D. Meier ; sec. Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City. Spring meeting in Pitts-
burg, May 30 to June 2.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION
Pres.. Frank W. Frueauff; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin. 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 3.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS
Pres., Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
U. S. N. : sec. and treas., Lieutenant Com-
mander U. T. Holmes. U. S. N., Bureau of
Steam Engineering, Navy Department, Wash-
ington, D. C. *

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS-
ASSOCIATION

Pres., E. D. Meier, 11 Broadway, New
York ; sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad. Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston, Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS
Pres.. o. P. Chamberlain; sec, J.
'35 Monaduock Block. Chicago,

Warder

111.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., Walter Riddle: sec, E. K. Hiles,
Oliver building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings
1st and 3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS
Pres.. R. I'. Bolton: sec, W. W. Macon, 29
West Thirty-ninth street, New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres., Carl S. Pearse, Denver, Colo. : sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street, Chicago,
111. Next convention. Cincinnati, Ohio.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr.. Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia. Pa.; Supr. Cor. Engr.. William S.
Wetzler. 753 N. Forty-fourth St., Philadel-
phia. Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June, 1011.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS

Pres.. William F. Yates. New York, N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago. 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January, 1012.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
•ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith; sec. Charles
Kratsch. 410 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF

ENGINEERS
Grand Worthy Chief, John Cope: sec, J. U.
Bunce. Hotel Statler. Buffalo, N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia. Penn., week
commencing Monday. August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres., O. F. Rabbe : acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus,
Ohio. Next meeting. Youngstowh. Ohio, May
18 and 10. 1011.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION
Pres.. A. N. Lucas: sec. Harry D. Vaught,
05 Liberty street. New Y'ork. Next meeting
at Omaha, Neb.. May. 1011.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford : sec. J. G. Hanna-
han. Chicago. 111. Next meeting at St. Paul,
Minn., September. 1011.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION
Pres.. G. W. Wright. Baltimore. Md. : sec
and treas.. D. L. G'askill, Greenville, O.

NEW M »RK, MARCH .

When the hotel owner with i
return* his establishment after his I

trip tl :i the land in ti

marked t « » tl: rd th it any< with

0 half an » OuW U

many things in tin- said establishment v
'.'. t<» the bad," 01 that >

Things were not by far as uptodate
they should l The steward had evidently
it the -\\ itch."

thing, why had not the rd

I nj> the suitabilit)
new Marks I in tlu-

lurant kitchens? 11 the

had di 1 that th<

i than the old !'<

Mo^t nnph.it:. thin. llld h

fully in tlu- futun
there would ! ! on the •

troubh tuck I

iii.il busim

.hi ill round Imk su<
1 1« bot h< i
II) with '•
ay del

lould h i

...

suit al

■

t whi
he

suits th ould

II rl tin

in which t<» 1'

mplaint.

and

When an

Unqi

• on
similar to hi>
ould ■

■

cull

366

POWER

March 7, 1911.

A Modern Blast Furnace Equipment

The Empire Steel and Iron Company
has recently made some extensive changes
in the equipment of its blast furnace at
Oxford Furnace, N. J. Chief among the
several interesting pieces of new ap-
paratus is the steam turbine-driven cen-
trifugal air compressor, built by the Gen-
eral Electric Company, which is used to
furnish the air blast for the furnace.
Next, is the highly efficient barometric
condenser. And third, is the radial-brick
chimney which is successfully withstand-
ing continuous high temperature.

A general view of the plant is offered
in Fig. 1. The large, square brick build-
ing in the foreground is the old blowing-
engine house. The brick extension upon
the left contains the new compressor.
The boilers which furnish steam for the
compressor and auxiliary apparatus are
just back of this building. The boiler
equipment consists of three 300-horse-
pcwer Babcock & Wilcox boilers and two
200-horsepower Wheeler vertical boilers.
The former are served by the big' brick
chimney and the latter by the two short
steel stacks, shown in Fig. 1, extending
a little above the roof line. Steam is
generated at 140 pounds gage pressure.
Blast-furnace gas is the fuel used under
the boilers.

By A. R. Maujer

The most interesting feat-
ures are a constant-volume
turbin e - driven centrijuga I
air compressor, a barometric
injector condenser which
produces a vacuum of over
28 inches and a single-wall
radial-brick chimney which
is withstanding tempera-
tures up to 1400 degrees.
The suction line for the
condensing water is made
with welded and Van Stone
joints.

The brick chimney also serves the four
20x80- foot two-pass stoves, which stand
back of it. Beyond the stoves is the
blast furnace itself, 80 feet high, 17 feet
6 inches in diameter at the bosh and 11

feet at the hearth. Its average production
is 200 tons of pig iron in 24 hours.

Centrifugal Compressor

Until the centrifugal air compressor,
shown in Fig. 2, was installed and put
into service at Oxford Furnace, the air
blast for all of the blast furnaces in this
country was furnished by reciprocating
compressors, or blowing engines, either
steam or gas driven.

The two engines at Oxford Furnace
which formerly furnished the air blast
are typical of the majority of the steam-
driven blowing engines at present in use.
They are of the single-cylinder long-
crosshead steeple type. The steam cyl-
inder, which is below the air cylinder, is
54 inches in diameter; the air cylinder
is 72 inches in diameter with a stroke
of 72 inches. There are two large fly-
wheels, one on either side of the engine.
The connecting rod for each wheel is on
the outside; hence, the crosshead ex-
tends from one side of the frame clear
to the other. Normally the engines ran
at 26 revolutions and each furnished 8000
cubic feet of air per minute. The maxi-
mum combined capacity of the two en-
gines is 20,000 cubic feet.

The centrifugal compressor has a rated

Fig. 1. General View of Oxford Furnace Plant of Empire Steel and Iron Company

March 7, 1911.

POU

capacity of 22,500 cubic feet of air per
minute, but at present it is handling only
about I7j000 cubic feet. The normal
speed of the machine is 1050 revolutions
per minute and the normal discharge
pressure is 15 pounds per square inch.
The pr.-ssure varies, however, with the
operation of the furnace, the compressor
being regulated to deliver a fixed quan-
tity of air at ■ The
compressor has six stages, each of which
contains a disk on which are mounted
I blades or vanes. Thi arc
separated by water-cooled diaphrai;

iragms bet stages, is mater

the co. tkc

ire above the casing, as shovn in

Mght of
the op

Tf the unit consists

of a Curtis horizontal four---
turbine. The impi v» of the cotn-

Mor are so designed that there is no

■ - •

means used in the turbine

for locating the - and

ig the ;
ficicnt for the entire apparat

from the bea rings and cylinder to a tank

fore
caution a,
roUatftM

to blow

M 5 pounds

is cooled in the

bearing* at the point whe

generated I jib,

air per minute aga:r.M * pmMirc of 15

pounds

at a speed

f a Air C

Air is drawn in at the turbine cnJ of the
compressor and passes thr -age

successively, the prc»»urc being »;:

i that which lh-
the furnace may req». argc

at the far
shown in
wood-covered lagging The ;

<• the old Mowing-engine and

hrough the wall j<

a« «hown i- hen

'in and connr »der

n turn connect* mith the »toiree.

The comprcttor «hell. a* well a« the

There are three -ne at

head end

the turbine and the compreeeor and one
at t d of the compre**

As in all

cJ automa'

The oil
•»e bearing
I 25 pound* The

automatic

airat

' pounds per borseoo% <

Ha seav

l hors* noose Je » e

and the c

• -«ooi

TW manr .Me* the m

:tatr«J to dtHI^^_

368

POWER

March 7, 1911.

ressure within the limits of the capacity
F the machine is illustrated in Fig. 3. A
)unterweighted-steel disk is sustained by
le current of inflowing air in the conical
llargement of the intake pipe. The rod
i which the disk is attached passes

either gas- or steam-driven, are, briefly:
better over-all economy, economy in
space occupied and more uniform op-
eration. A rough idea of the saving in
space occupied and the consequent sav-
ing in the cost of building effected by

Powt^

Fig. 3. Showing Method of Regulating Compressor

irough a stuffing box in the elbow of
le intake and is connected to the weight
i&m A and to a system of levers which
serates the pilot valve of the hydraulic
alve gear, mounted over the head end
F the turbine.

The notches on the beam are marked
i correspond with various quantities of
it delivered per minute. When the
eight B is set at a given notch to de-
ver a certain quantity of air, the disk
ands normally at a certain level in the
'take cone. When the pressure against
bich the compressor is working in-
xases for any reason the amount of
ir delivered begins to fall off. This re-
aces the velocity of the air being drawn
irough the intake cone and unbalances
le disk, which consequently sinks to a
wer level. The movement of the disk,
:ting through the system of levers, the
ilot valve and the hydraulic valve gear,
iuses more steam to be admitted to the
irbine. The turbine then speeds up and
establishes the proper rate of flow
gainst the increased pressure.

This may be continued until the speed
mit, 1975 revolutions per minute, is
cached when a centrifugal governor
jmes into action and prevents any in-
case in the rate of steam admission,
he dashpot C, Fig. 3, coupled to the
eight beam, prevents undue fluctuation
i speed and any tendency to race.

The turbine is fitted with an emergency
3vernor which shuts down the machine
hen the speed for any reason exceeds
V 10 per cent, the limit for which the
)eed governor is set.

The advantages of this type of com-
'essor over the reciprocating types,

the use of a centrifugal compressor may
be gained by observing the difference be-
tween the size of the old and that of the
new engine house as shown in Fig. 1.
The more uniform operation of the com-
pressor results in an increase in the ca-
pacity of the furnace and an improve-
ment in the quality of the product.

Condenser

The condenser is of the twin-barometric
injector type and was designed by F. E.
Johnson, of the M. W. Kellogg Company,
New York. The location of the condenser
is shown in Fig. 1 and its general ar-
rangement in Fig. 4. The details of trie
heads are shown in Fig. 5.

The exhaust from the turbine passes
out of the building below the turbine
floor and enters the 35-inch cast-iron
riser, Fig. 4. At the top of the riser
the exhaust divides, one-half going to
each condensing unit. The water belts
of these units are connected by a 4-inch
equalizing pipe, which eliminates all pos-
sibility of the units bucking each other
on account of an unequal distribution of
the exhaust steam or of the injection
water.

The cast-iron elbow which connects

6rade_
Line

Zb H

Basement FloorLine

Overflow
to Pond

Fig. 4. General Arrangement of Condenser

March 7. I

! K

v,i

»ith the exhaust outlet of the turbir

orted on heavy car spring this

simple arrangement the use of an expan-
sion joint between the elbow and the
exhaust outlet was avoided, and expan-
joints are not the m -factory

of things that have been J. The

base of the riser rests on a roller bear-
ing so that provision is made for lateral
as well as vertical expansion.

The con-* kl sold under a

guarantee that it would maintain a vac-
uum of 28 inches of mcrcu-
to a 30-inch barometer, when condcr
30,000 pounds of steam per hour with
injection water at 7<> degrees and pro-
duce a hotwcll temperature within 10
per cent, of that theoretically obtainable.

The i- iter leaves tin

ito the 30-lnch ind-

m the

'^clt. In
the 21-incli

im the »«tcr lib.
••

:gh the 00 1
in an almost a
air a* i« ming'

|« pr handle I

onden

n
T?

pump an:
•he pump I The

<>n line amctcr and

made up of standi gths of

: into 40- foot section*

40
length cor
tandard
joints are used between the sc

unique

air tic

Th. handled by a

gal pump, located as shown in
dirt. n by a

•ic running at I
minute. The pump has a
tOO gallons per minute
against a normal Jischari:

•r a total normal static head

The cond. -charge water is re-

um-n in

4. from which it flows back to the pond

The hotwclls are at a net

it of 15 feet above the pond. A

natnr.il-Jr.ift wooden cooling tower has

J and will be put into scr
for the summer months. It stands at a
level between that of the hotwclls and

• of the pond; hence, no pump
be required for the return of the
cha: when the tower

use.

|m i 4 1't'iip in th#* 4^ofiua*ftait^B* Ptin%p flfl

^ conn
on : -aft. I

■

and the
■
tola

The amount of »atcr

a temperature

of I

Jed H»

■

T>.«» Kr , '•••■.. % hich serves

c Bab-
ttM

•

licb nc below 800

ce» and sometime as higl

imnev above
fou: nternal

-•»»

•

•. -, •

ML I i*
1 ■ i ' i

370

POWER

March 7, 1911.

inches thick; the ten sections above are
sach 16 feet 6 inches high, but vary in
thickness from 24 inches, the thickness
of the lowest one, to iy2 inches for
the top one. The head of the chimney
is finished with a sectional cast-iron cap
which locks the top course of brick
solidly in place and protects it from the
action of the elements.

The chimney proper is built of perfo-
"ated, corrugated radial brick laid in ce-

ment mortar. The lining is 90 feet high.
The lower 30 feet is built of 4-inch fire-
brick laid in fire-clay mortar. The upper
60 feet is built in 15-foot sections of
4^4-inch hard-burned refractory radial
brick. Each section is carried on a fire-
brick corbel and separated from the
chimney wall by a 2-inch air space. The
chimney wall is reinforced at 8- foot in-
tervals by 2Y2xyi-\nch steel bands. The
M. W. Kellogg Company, New York,

which erected the chimney, guarantees it
to withstand a temperature of 1500 de-
grees Fahrenheit.

We acknowledge with appreciation the
courtesy of R. H. Rice, of the General
Electric Company, in supplying informa-
tion concerning the centrifugal-air com-
pressor and H. B. Cox, of the Empire
Steel and Iron Company, in supplying
the other information contained in this
article.

The Confessions of an Engineer

Manager Wood was about as progres-
sive a man as one would meet in a long
:ime. If I could have absorbed some
j{ his push and hustle I might have oc-
:upied a pretty "hefty position" today,
and incidentally been better off in dol-
lars and cents.

One day Wood strolled into the boiler
room where I was at the time, and, after
riis usual greeting, said. "What do you
[.now in favor of CO, recorders?"

"They are a mighty good thing," said I.
'Every boiler plant of any size should
iave one. A CO, recorder shows just
ivhat is going on in the boiler furnace,
and tells just what percentage of CO,
^as passes up the stack. Are you think-
ng of getting a recorder?"

"Not just yet. I. never go into a thing
Defore I have a pretty good idea of its
/alue, what it does, how it works and of
«'hat use it can be to me. I'll confess
I'm a little lame on the finer points of
"urnace combustion.

"I do know," went on Wood, "that the
leat produced in a furnace depends on
he completeness of combustion and on
•othing else, and that the quantity of heat
xansferred to a boiler is determined by
he state of the escaping gas."

"Yes, that's right," I replied, "and the
escaping gas can be burned either to CO
?r to CO:, according to the amount of air
idmitted to the furnace. The difference
between the heat values of these two
;ases would surprise most engineers."

"What is the difference?" asked Wood.

"Well, burn a pound of carbon to CO,,
>r carbon-dioxide, and it will yield 14,540
British thermal units. If the same car-
;on were burned to CO, or carbon-mon-
>xide, it would yield but 4350 British
hernial units — a difference of 10,190
ieat units."

"Well, what makes the difference? A
;ood deal must be in the method of firing,
lon't you think?"

"Sure, that has a whole lot to do with
t," I replied, answering the last ques-
ion first. "The reason that CO is formed
s because not enough air has been ad-
nitted to the furnace. Of course, a fur-
face has got to be in decent shape, or
he best firemen that ever lived can't fire
nd get good results."

By R. O. Warren

In this story the C02 re-
corder is up for discussion,
and once more the manager
finds that the engineer has
failed to apply his know-
ledge and has missed an
opportunity of making good
by neglecting to suggest the
purchase of a C02 recorder.

"Most engineers don't really under-
stand what burning flue gases to CO,
means, but good combustion is simply
burning coal to get the best results with
the least possible air supply."

You see I was right at home on the
CO, question, because I had read a good
deal on the subject, knew all about the
various apparatus on the market; and
had a pretty good idea as to just the ad-
vantage of a CO, recorder. I knew that
in the complete combustion of pure car-
bon there would be 20.7 per cent, by
volume of CO,, which fact I told the man-
ager.

"But," said he, "you don't mean that
you can get that amount of CO, from the
fuel burned in a furnace, do you?"

"I should say not," I answered. "The
best that can be got with the regular
furnace is about 15 per cent, of CO, and
that only for short periods. An average
of 12 per cent, would be considered good
fcr most plants."

"What saving would that make over,
say 3 per cent, of CO,?" was the next
question.

"Well," I replied, feeling considerably
gratified that we were considering a mat-
ter with which I was tolerably well fa-
miliar. "With 3 per cent. CO, the loss in
coal is about 60 per cent., while with 12
per cent. CO, obtained, the loss in fuel
is but 15 per cent."

"Whew— quite a difference. That's
worth looking into."

"You bet," said I. "Every engineer
should know about such things, for he

don't know when he will have a chance
to use the information."

Wood looked at me in rather an
amused-surprised manner, and I, not
knowing what was passing in his mind,
went on with my explanation.

"The only way that a high percentage
of CO, can be obtained is by firing at
frequent intervals, by maintaining the
proper thickness of fuel bed, and by sup-
plying the correct amount of air for the
fuel used. This can't be done if a fur-
nace setting is full of cracks through
which air can leak. If air leaks into the
firnace it simply means that the furnace
gases have to heat the excess air before
it escapes to the stack, and much of the
heat absorbed by the useless excess air
i^ lost."

"There is usually excess air entering
irto a furnace, I take it."

"Yes, probably about 40 per cent, above
the amount theoretically required," I re-
plied. "This excess air dilutes the gases
ai.d reduces the percentage of C02 in the
total volume of gases going up the stack.
Under such a condition about 14 per
cent, of CO, will be shown upon analysis,
and the more air admitted to the furnace
the lower the percentage of C02 and the
greater the loss of fuel."

"And you say that this excess air is
generally due to imperfect firing, and
leaky settings?"'

"Sure," I replied. "About nine out of
every ten cases are due to these two
causes, and it will be found that the flue
gases contain only about 5 to 7 per cent.
or CO2, when they should contain at least
10 or 12 per cent.; and this means a loss
cf about 25 per cent, in coal."

"Then this 25 per cent, loss is a pre-
ventable loss, isn't it?" asked Wood.

"That's about the size of it," I replied.
"The fact of the whole matter is that the
furnace don't want too much or too little
air, but just the right amount, for the
varying condition of the fire."

"The idea," said I, "is that if the fur-
nace conditions are so bad that the gases
and air don't thoroughly mix, or if the
temperature of the furnace is so low that
the gases won't ignite, or if the boiler
plates are cold enough to cool the gases
and flame before complete combustion
takes place, then CO is present in large

March 7, 1911.

quantities and the C0; percentage is low.
■About the air," I went on. "If t:
<o much, then the fire is obliged to
heat it before it goes up the stack, and
i.o engineer tries to see how high he can
lis chimney gases, or how low he can
p the temperature of a boiler furr.
whole proposition hinges on the
.-man handles his I -ling, of

course, that the furnace and gra
arc in good condition."

"I suppose then, so long as air plays
i an important part, that the draft in
the stack must be reckoned with?" said
■d, in a thoughtful tone.
"It certainly must," I replied,
strong draft eats up coal, and no more
ould be allowed drawing on a
boiler furnace than is absolutely net
sary to produce a fire of such intei

to supply the necessary steam to carry
the load on the boiler. But the only
to know when the proper draft has b
obtained is by knowing what percent
of CO. is being obtained

\nd that is by means of a C0: re-
corder of some make," said Wood, in a
c tone. "Why don't more cn-
crs have these rcc

to what you have told me, more
steam can be raised with the same amount
■>al if a ( od than

vithout the recorder. Or, in other

same amount of steam we are now
ng can be made with a less
of coal if a recorder were used. If that
;ld not tak- :ong

for a recording instrument to pa\ for it-
guess that is about right," I rep
cimly gathering an idea as to the point
Wood was leading up

v good CO u Id act in

three capacities at once." went on Wood.
"It would be a simple guiJc for the fire-
man and an effective check for the en-
gine

no doubt about that." I
ans

Wood mused for a moment and then
said. "It seems strange that so many c
panies will spend thousands of dollars
in building a modern mciiu plant, pay
particular attentio-

'he steam pipes from atm<<
ill the v
and engine, and. in fact, take pr.i

-. known precaution ag.< cam

Josses, and then pay no alter the

loss dur

a little strange • a

r ran up a
! began hat in not getting

this matter of flue ga»e« I had allowed a
••
' the new manager had taken it
"7 -sonal element In the N

• cases. ■•

r unimportant or not existing I
think that Is what
a«ked Wood.

"We have a good

rhey ar
I came to a halt, for it flashed
that but a fc

: -ccn a :

.on-

c and i

"Of they arc men, but •

compart ier firemen they are

above the average." 1 ed.

re men. and for that rea-
ncans of guid.i

I to

: that guidance is tha

they are to get

v ou kt

ch apr -*ut >ou

•old be

■

never reause they

cost so ! »ould h

ropoecd »u.

u know you %ou
: Wood. "While moat bnnineea
men don't ( >pend money foolish h .

not apeod
it hunj
rcasonj f getting the i-<trmm

a rceaonar

another thing .c

I Had '

•he pr< ,
draft must be maintained and the firing
•jicJ A fireman .ill do
knows it is being
that M
I had to i l ML

en Wood got right do.n to busl-
i and •> po-

but don't make go

all hough I i
ill c

all
about the loooi

I been t
"ng I

von
n the boiler

■

argument of the salesman. I the
be • monc> save'

H chance gone for

I along
>, recorder and
I one .otilj mal
' mine. I hod eaode no

• no. :f Jgc. hut had .a.ted for

the new manag
Inmnuneni. and, of

J me enough about ■

Jc .ould he to Wo

«f r J bft this
the
•ioa then, fee I

372

POWER

March 7, 1911.

Aid to Plotting Compression Curves

Indicator diagrams taken from air cyl-
inders always show the compression
curve as starting below the atmospheric
line, when the compressor is drawing
free air. This starting point of com-
pression may range from 34 pound, in the
high-class machine, to \y2 pounds or
more, below the atmospheric pressure, in
machines having more or less restricted
inlet passages.

Tables 1 and 2, provide data for quick-
ly laying out in tenths of a pound the
theoretical isothermal and adiabatic
curves on indicator diagrams which start
their compression anywhere between 14.7
and 10 pounds absolute. To prepare the
indicator diagram for applying the tables,
(see sketch) draw horizontal pressure
lines at 10-pound intervals, to the scale
of the indicator spring, using the portion
A P of the diagram as a base line. Next,
increase the length of the diagram by an
amount equivalent to the percentage of
the volumetric clearance in the cylinder
at the end of the stroke, and erect the
perpendicular line B C. Consider the
length A B as one and divide it into 10
equal divisions. The tables give the
horizontal measurements in percentages
of one measured from the line B C ; these
locating the points of the compression
curves on the various pressure lines.

By H. V. Conrad

Tables providing data for
conveniently laying out the
theoretical isothermal and
adiabatic curves on an indi-
cator diagram taken from
an air-compressor cylinder.

As an example, the sketch shows a nor-
mal indicator diagram from an air cylinder
compressing to 100 pounds, the volumetric
end clearance being \]/2 per cent., with
compression starting at 1 pound below
atmosphere at sea level; that is, at 13.7
pounds absolute. The diagram having
been ruled with pressure lines and the
subdivisions in length marked off, refer to
isothermal values in Table 1 for 13.7
pounds absolute initial pressure. In the
pressure columns will be found the hori-
zontal measurements to be made on A B}

100

A /

■<w

¥/

4f\

-l^"

1.0

/14.7 Lb.
Absolute
J^13.7 Lb.
0.1 o Absolute

Power

Isothermal and Adiabatic Curves Plotted on Indicator Diagram

70 3
60 S3

40 O
30

0.9

0.8

0.7

0.6

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

TABLE 1. ISOTHERMAL COMPRESSION LINE TABLE.

Absolute

Gage Pressures

in Pounds.

Initial

Pressure,

Pounds.

2.5

100

110

130

150

14.7

0 . 855

0.746

0.595

0.424

0.329

0.269

0.227

0.197

0.174

0.155

0.140

0.128

0.118

0.1016

0 . 0894

14.6

0.854

0.745

0 . 593 +

0.422

0.327

0.2675

0.226

0.196

0.1728

0.1542

0.1393

0.1273

0.1172

0.101

0 . 0888

14.5

0 . 852 +

0 . 743 +

0.592 +

0.420

0.326

0.266

0.225

0.195

0.1716

0.1535

0.1386

0.1265

0.1165

0.1002

0 . 0882

14.4

0.852

0.743

0.591

0.418

0.3245

0 . 2648

0.224

0.1937

0.1706

0.1525

0.1380

0.1258

0.1157

0.0996

0.0876

14.3

0 . 852 —

0.742

0.589

0.417

0.323

0.2635

0 . 2225

0.1925

0.1696

0.1516

0.1372

0.1250

0.1150

0.0991

0.0870

14.2

0.851

0.741

0.587

0.416

0.3215

0.2622'

0.221

0.1915

0.1686

0.1508

0.1364

0.1242

0.1143

0 . 0986

0 . 0864

14.1

0.850

0.740

0 . 585

0.414

0.320

0.261

0.220

0.1905

0.1676

0.1500

0.1356

0.1235

0.1137

0.0979

0.0859

14.0

0.849

0.738

0.583

0.412

0.3185

0.2595

0.219

0.1895

0.1666

0.1491

0.1347

0.1228

0.1130

0.0972

0.0853

13.9

0.848

0 . 736

0 . 582

0.411

0.3165

0 . 2578

0.2175

0.1884

0.1657

0.1482

0.1338

0.1220

0.1123

0.0966

0 . 0848

13.8

0.847

0 . 734

0 . 580

0.409

0.3150

0.2563

0.2165

0.1873

0.1648

0.1472

0.1330

0.1212

0.1116

0.0960

0 . 0842

13.7

0.846

0.733

0.578

0.407

0.3135

0 . 2550

0.2152

0.1862

0.1638

0.1462

0.1322

0.1205

0.1109

0.0953

0 . 0837

13.6

0 . 845

0 . 732

0.577

0.405

0.3120

0.2537

0.2140

0 . 1850

0.1627

0.1453

0.1313

0.1197.

0.1101

0 . 0947

0.0831

13.5

0.844

0 . 730

0 . 575

0 . 403

0.3105

0 . 2522

0.2125

0.1838

0.1616

0.1444

0.1305

0.1189

0.1093

0.0940

0.0825

13.4

0 . 843

0.728

0 . 573

0.402

0.309

0.2510

0.2112

0.1826

0.1606

0.1435

0.1296

0.1181

0 . 1085

0 . 0934

0 . 0820

13 . 3

0.842

0.726

0 . 57 1

0.400

0 . 307

0.2495

0.2100

0.1814

0.1596

0.1426

0.1286

0.1173

0.1078

0.0928

0.0814

13.2

0.841

0 . 725

0.569

0.398

0.305

0.248

0 . 2090

0 . 1803

0.1586

0.1418

0.1278

0.1166

0.1071

0.0922

0 . 0809

13.1

0.840

0.72 1

0 . 568

0.396

0.304

0.2465

0.2076

0.1792

0.1575

0.1408

0.1270

0.1158

0.1063

0.0916

0 . 0804

13.0

0.839

0.723

0.566

0.394

0 . 302

0.2452

0 . 2062

0.1780

0.1565

0.1398

0.1263

0.1151

0.1057

0.0910

0.0798

12.9

0 . 838

0.721

0 . 564

0 . 3923

0.301

0 . 2437

0.205

0.1770

0.1556

0.1389

0.1254

0.1142

0.1050

0.0903

0.0792

12.8

0 . 837

0.719

0 562

0.3908

0.2992

0.2424

0.2035

0.1758

0.1546

0.1379

0.1245

0.1136

0.1043

0 . 0896

0.0786

12.7

0 836

0.7175

0 560

0.3892

0.2975

0.2410

0 . 2023

0.1747

0.1536

0.1370

0.1238

0.1128

0.1036

0 . 0890

0.0781

12 6

o 835

0.716

0 . 558

0.3875

0 . 2960

0 . 2395

0.2012

0.1735

0.1526

0.1361

0.1229

0.1119

0.1028

0.0884

0.0775

12.5

o . 83 1

0.714

0 . 556

0 . 3S.-.0

0.2942

0.2380

0 . 2000

0.1725

0.1516

0.1352

0.1220

0.1111

0.1021

0 . 0877

0.0769

12.4

0 . 832

0.713

0 . 554

0 . 3827

0.2925

0.2368

0.1987

0.1712

0.1505

0.1341

0.121

0.1102

0.1012

0.0871

0.0764

12.3

0.831

0.712

0 . 552

0.381

0.291

0.2355

0.1974

0.1701

0.1495

0.1331

0.120

0.1094

0.1005

0 . 0865

0 . 0758

12.2

0 . 830

0.71 —

0 550

0.379

0.289

0 . 2338

0.196r

0.169

0.1485

0.1322

0.1192

0.1086

0.0998

0 . 0858

0.0752

12.1

0 . 829

0 . 709

0 5 IS

0.377

0.2872

0.2321

0.1948

0.1679

0.1474

0.1314

0.1185

0.1078

0.0992

0.0852

0 . 0747

12.0

0 . 828

0 . 707

0 . 546

0.3755

0 . 2857

0 2306

0.1936

0.1667

0.1463

0.1306

0.1177

0.1070

0.0985

0.0847

0.0741

11.9

i) , 827

0 . 705

0.544

0 . 3735

0 . 2842

0.2292

0.1925

0.1656

0.1452

0.1295

0.1168

0.1063

0.0977

0 . 0840

0.0736

11.8

0.826

0.703

0 . 542

0.3715

0.2821

0.2278

0.1910

0.1644

0.1441

0.1285

0.1159

0.1055

0.0970

0 . 0833

0 . 0730

11.7

0 . 8245

0.701

0 . 540

0 . 3692

0.2805

0 . 2262

0.1895

0.1632

0.1431

0.1276

0.115

0 . 0048

0 . 0963

0.0826

0.0725

11.6

0 . 823

0.699

0 . 538

0 307

0.279

0 . 225

0.1884

0.162

0.142

0.1266

0.1142

0.104

0.0956

0.082

0.0719

11.5

0.8215

0.697

0 . 536

0 . 365

0.277

0 . 2235

0.1872

0.1609

0.141

0.1258

0.1133

0.1032

0 . 0947

0.0813

0.0713

11.4

0.820

0.695

0 . 532

0 . 363

0.2755

0 222

0.186

0.1598

0.140

0.1249

0.1124

0.1024

0 . 0939

0 . 0807

0.0707

11.3

0.8185

0.693

0 530 +

0.361

0.2738

0 . 2205

0.1845

0.1585

0.139

0.1239

0.1116

0.1015

0.0932

0.080

0.0701

11.2

0.817

0.6915

0 . 529 —

0 359

0.272

0.219

0.183

0 1 574

0.138

0.1229

0.1108

0.1007

0.0925

0.0794

0.0695

11 .1

0.8157

0.690

0 . 527

0 357

0.2704

0.2175

0.1818

0 1 564

0.137

0.1219

0.1099

0.0999

0.0917

0.0787

0 . 0689

11.0

0.81 13

0.688

0 52 15

0.355

0 . 2685

0.216

0.1805

0.155

0.136

0.121

0.1090

0.0992

0.091

0.0781

0 . 0684

10.9

0.8136

0.686

0 522

0 . 353

0.2665

0.2142

0.179

0.1539

0.1348

0.120

0.1080

0.0984

0 . 0902

0.0774

0.0678

10.8

0.813

0.684

0 . 520

0.351

0 . 2645

0.213

0.1775

0 1525

0.1335

0.119

0.107

0.0976

0.0895

0.0768

0.0672

10.7

0.812

0.682

0.518

0 3 19

0 . 26:5

0.211

0.176

0.1513

0.1325

0.118

0.1061

0.0968

0 . 0887

0.0761

0 . 0666

10.6

0.810 +

0.680

0.515

o 346 +

0.261

0.209

0.175 —

0.150

0.1315

0.117

0.1053

0.096

0.088

0.0755

0.0661

10.5

0 . 808 +

0.678

0.512

0 .3 1 1

0 . 259

0 208

0.1735

0.149

0.1305

0.116

0.1044

0.0951

0 . 0872

0.0748

0 . 0655

10.4

0.807

0.676

0.510

0.342

0 . 257 +

0 2065

0.172

0.148

0.1295

0.115

0.1035

0.0943

0 . 0S64

0.0741

0 . 0649

10.3

0 . 805

0.674

0 508

0 3 10

0 . 256 —

0 . 205

0.1705

0.1465

0.1283

0.114

0.1026

0.0935

0 . 0857

0 . 0735

0 . 0643

10.2

0 . 804

0.672

0 . 506

0 . 338 —

0.254

o 203

0 1695

0.145 +

0.1272

0.113

0.1017

0.0926

0.0849

0.0728

0 . 0638

10.1

0.802

0 . 669

0.503

0 335

0.252

0 202

0.168 +

0.144

0.1261

0.112

0.1008

0.0918

0.0841

0.0721

0 . 0632

10.0

0.80

0 666

0.50

(i 333

(1 25

0 20

0.1666

0.143

0.125

0.111

0.10

0.091

0.0834

0.0715

0.0625

March 7, 1911.

I-

11
it
it
it
it
it
it

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11

II H

II
II
II
II
II
II
II
II

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o
o

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771

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I'Ju Z'm ■

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374

POWER

March 7, 1911.

for the points in the compression curve —
on the 20-pound line this is 0.407, on
the 40-pound line 0.255, etc. The adiabatic
values in Table 2 for 13.7 pounds abso-
lute initial pressure give, on the 30-
pound line 0.439, on the 50-pound line
0.336, etc. Thus a sufficient number of
points are located to readily and ac-
curately construct the curves.

The tables being worked down to 10

pounds absolute pressure, may be used
up to 10,000 feet altitude, provided the
inlet pressure does not start below 10
pounds.

The tables also show the approximate
position (somewhere between the isother-
mal and adiabatic curves) of the pis-
ton, in percentage of its stroke, for any
of the given pressures, and from the
isothermal table may be seen the rela-

tive volume of air delivered at the given
pressures as compared with tne original
volume, considered as 1, at initial pres-
sure.

Table 3 shows the number of compres-
sions that the initial absolute pressures
undergo to reach the given gage pres-
sures, and also represents the number
of atmospheres (initial pressure at-
mospheric) in the given gage pressure.

Old Boilers Doomed by Modern Laws

And it came to pass in the second year
of the reign of President Harrison that
various artisans, workers in iron and
steel, gathered together in the land of
the Michiganites and said: "Let us get
some earth and turn it with fire and make
iron so our craft may be known through-
out the land, even from shore to shore."
So they made iron and tested it and found
it good and were well pleased. And be-
hold, there came a captain of the crafts-
men who were skilled workers in wood,
and he said: "I am sore distressed be-
cause I cannot get sufficient horses to do
my work."

Then called he unto the captain of the
workers in iron and steel and said unto
him : "Make me a machine the same as
James of the Wattites invented, and let
it be equal to the strength of two hundred
horses. And build me three vessels of
iron in which water can be turned into
steam."

So the captain of the workers in wood
delivered unto the captain of the workers
in iron and steel several bags of gold
and said "Take this and deliver it to
all your craftsmen who work diligently
and when I return on the morrow I will
pay thee in full." And there was great
rejoicing in the land of the Michiganites.
Then the captain of the workers in iron
and steel sent for a scribe to draw a
design for the three large vessels of
iron, and he made a design for a vessel
192 inches in length, 60 inches in diam-
eter and Y% of an inch in thickness,
and he ordered that the sheets should
be lapped and held together by two rows
of rivets 13/16 of an inch in thickness,
spaced 2J4 inches apart. The artisans
then built three iron vessels according
to the word of the scribe and they tested
them with water and ordered that they
should carry a working pressure of 100
pounds on every square inch.

Then came the captain of the workers
in wood and looked upon the machine
and the vessels of iron and he was well
pleased.

Then came a great dearth of wood in
the land of the Michiganites, so they sent
messengers east and west and com-
manded them to find wood. And a mes-
senger came from afar and he cried aloud
and said, "Rejoice with me for I have

By William Faulkner

These old vessels which had
been moved from the land
of the Michiganites to that
of the Seattleites were con-
demned by the wise men of
the latter place and a calam-
ity thereby averted.

found great amounts of wood in the land
of the Seattleites."

And it came to pass that they journeyed
to a far western country and dwelt
among strange tribes that they might
obtain wood with which to carry on their
craft. So the captain of the workers in
wood took with him all his machines and

Crack in Boiler Sheet

the three large vessels of iron and set
them up in the land of the Seattleites, and
they are there even unto this day.

In the second year of the reign of
President Taft a number of wise men
gathered together in the land of the
Seattleites and said, "Behold, there are
iron vessels in the country round about
us which have been there since the days
of our forefathers, and some have gone
hence and the noise they made was like
unto thunder and the people were much
afraid."

So they appointed a number of skilled
craftsmen to examine every vessel of iron
and every vessel of steel and commanded
them to test the vessels with water and
with hammer and place their seal on all
that were safe, and all that were unsafe
they should condemn forever. And it
came to pass that one appointed as ex-
aminer went to where the captain of the

workers in wood had his iron vessels
which he had brought from the land of
the Michiganites in the year of President
Harrison. And the examiner found a
crack in one of the vessels of iron and
he called unto him skilled workers and
commanded them to cut out a piece of
the iron vessel around about the crack,
and when he measured the piece of iron
it was found to be but y» of an inch
in thickness, so he condemned that vessel
forever.

But the captain of the workers in wood
was exceedingly wroth and he called the
examiner before him and said unto him,
"Would that I had the jaw bone of an
ass that I might smite thee." And the
examiner answered, "Knowest thou not
that thou hast or thou wouldst not carry
100 pounds on each square inch of these
old vessels and thereby endanger the lives
of your craftsmen."

Then the captain of the workers in
wood was much afraid and he shook'
with fear and said, "I must drink some
wine; I pray thee come with me." And
the wine softened his heart and he
harkened to the words of the examiner
and sent for laborers who rent the old
vessels to pieces and modern vessels
were placed in their stead. .

Some weeks ago, just after starting up
the 13xl8-inch engine in the planing
mill of the Central Mill and Lumber
Company, of Colville, Wash., the 16-inch
belt was thrown, catching in the auto-
matic governor and completely demolish-
ing it, also breaking the eccentric and
bending the connecting bar. A two weeks'
shutdown was the result. The cause of
the accident was an open drip from the
exhaust. The night watchman was used
to "cracking" the throttle early so as
to warm up the engine, and on this par-
ticular morning neglected to close the
drip on which there was an ell pointing
toward the belt. Not much steam went
out of this ell, but what did condensed
and fell on the belt and froze there, where
it remained unnoticed in the darkness
of the morning until the load from the
mill was thrown on. At this moment the
belt slipped and did the damage pre-
viously mentioned.

March 7, 1911.

Proper Use of the Term "Efficiency

Generally speaking, the efficiency of a
machine is the ratio between the en<.
supplied and t: hi I work done, the

difference I these two quant'

being a measure of the waste or the loss
of work in the machine. If It ll the
number of foot-pounds of work per min-
ute required to drive a hoist and ■
the number of foot-pounds of work done
during the same time in lifting a weight,
the efficiency of the fa

u It

and the work wasted is

It - m.

The amount It' — w does not disappear
but : .nded in overcoming friction

and. being converted into heat, is con-
sequently not useful work as regards
the purpose for mhich the hoist is in-
tended. There arc two ways of mea
ing efficiency; W and w may be measured
directly or cither one of them and W — w
may be measured. Circumstar..— -ual-
I) decide which method is the more
convenient. In the majority of cas<.
is not easy to measure the waste work
tly as this appears in the form of
heat at the different bearings and the
ency must be determined by meas-
uring W and sv.

It might appear from the foregoing
that the efficiency of an engine or other
machine is an absolute quantity and re-
quires no further -ion. but. as a
matter of fact, the term is used with
reference to any ratio which is a measure
of the economical performance in some
sense or another and vithoul further
qualification cm ulc or no informa-
The eft. iys a ratio
between the actual performance of a ma-
chine and an ideal performance, and to
use the term without so qualifying it as
* hat ra- xant is
.iding or useless. Many trade
and catalogs are full of
• f a va. f the term
eflcicm in usage a number

i relati the pcrformano

steam c-

are described .; a qua

ing term. such i« the thermal aBdc
of a boiler, or the mechanical cffki<
of a steam engine; and

the ra'
hut where ther

ing it it nccessan to state what -
meant, if the figure* are l any-

meaning at all

In a steam boiler the cfflci-

J is the ratio between
the heat imparled to the %ater anJ
heat in the coal put onto the gt
Thi< ratio it usual ml

■d app' c a tufftcir

simple and •traigrr I thing •

mine There are. he -

A. ( . Wilson

A 10 illy,

■

for imt The

heat impart the number

of per

pound of coal : the in-

crease in the total heat per pound from
that contained in the feed water pun .
into the boiler to that of the steam leav-
ing it. If the stea: the
r quantit\ can be as "rom
steam tables if the boiler ,
known, but if the steam is wet. the

■

n calorimeter and if the steam is

r he a ted emperature must be

known. The total heat imparted to a

pound of u m at a Kucn pressure

is less than that in a r am

at that pressure by an amount equal

to the latent heat of that fra hlch

rm of water; that -cam

k J ; • *et and the

absolute pressure is 100 r 'he total

hea1

1168.5.

mea

i in the

ital he.i greater

than the total heat of satur am

at the same prcsst. Meat

difft • iture r the

and that of saturated

latt steam tables.

tal heat in the cos
a laborator

•
aftc-

reg.v

as u the lah

■ales the alue

ll an addi-
lo be made
as i

>und o'

the

amour- the coal

iand of dry cos

thn»cd that 7 f'UnJ* ' •i«<-r mrtr

con- of

the boi'

of i pound of coal or

of u r pounJ \ not her

method would be to

•...'- the heat
ie per pound of coal as fired as to

al and the
bjbobjm "? •• sture; thai to, tappaai — e
he a- iuiu

CSS

of the coal as Bred is 1

heat value per pound of coal as Bred to

Th to loc

that %hcn the hea' . oal ap-

pears in the heat ba a .
per pound coal must be used hi

calculating the hea

and * hen the hc.v r pound of

coal as fired is used the evaporattor
pound of coal as Bred must be fifi
The a heat \alue of coa

■odnt which
a boi ot actv

as much as the he
a laborator

-ogen in the coal combines with

form steam and in a la bora -

condensed to

val en up.

Wht

the steam thus forme.: >

of combustion and
at a ten peraturc
condensation. cut hea

and it is ui

■ •

to 400

n the total

. • •

the "Ion

' cour«c. makes

eSkiency higher than aauht

adapted.

In considering %tcam engine saViaacw

Mich m> be the caV

cflWiencv to be ,- •■ ■

c d cad the use

»«.u!d appear to be I

done per pound

the iota i one poue*

' I : e d hot n rx - £ f %

supplied to an r "gin* at

»»f ... ff

376

POWER

March 7, 1911.

found from the tables to be 1186 B.t.u.
and the work done per pound of steam
used is

33,000 x 60 , j 99,000

— = 99,000 foot-pounds =

= 127 B.t.u.
and the efficiency by this method is
127 x 100

1186

10.7 per cent.

This ratio, however, is not what is gen-
erally meant by the efficiency of a steam
engine, as even in the case of a thermo-
dynamically perfect engine the ratio
would be less than unity. It is more
useful, therefore, to compare the per-
formance of an engine with that of the
ideal engine working on some assumed
conditions, the two most important of
which are those known as the "Carnot"
cycle and the "Rankine" or "Clausius"
cycle. When the term thermodynamic
efficiency or simply efficiency is used, the
standard of comparison is the "Carnot"
cycle, but if an ideal engine working on
the "Rankine" cycle is the standard, the
term "efficiency ratio" is used. The lat-
ter cycle is now generally accepted as
the standard cycle for comparison and
the "efficiency ratio" alone appears in
the Institution of Civil Engineers' (Eng-
land) standard method of tabulating
steam-engine trials where the full for-
mula for calculating this ratio is given.

Another important ratio relating to
steam and gas engines but of a totally
different nature is the "mechanical effi-
ciency," which is the ratio, between the
work done on the piston and the useful
work given off at the flywheel or the ratio
between brake horsepower and indicated
horsepower. The difference between these
horsepowers represents work absorbed
in friction in turning the engine, and the
mechanical efficiency is a measure of
the loss in obtaining power from the
piston to the point where it is actually
available for use and has no reference
to thermodynamic considerations. To give
an idea of the efficiency likely to be ob-
tained in actual engines it may be said
that, although the mechanical efficiency
of a good engine may be from 85 to 95
per cent., the efficiency ratio lies usually
between 0.5 and 0.6.

To turn to other machines it will be
found that there is just as great a ne-
cessity to define what efficiency is meant
when talking about their performance as
is the case with engines or boilers. One
sometimes sees tests of air compressors
quoted where the efficiency without any
qualification is given but where the vol-
umetric efficiency is what is actually re-
ferred to. This is the ratio between the
volume of air drawn through the inlet
valves and the volume swept through by
the piston of the air cylinder, and re-
lates to the quickness in opening and
closing of the valves or the lost motion
in the machine and not the lost work.

The lost work is measured by the me-
chanical efficiency and is of a precisely
similar nature to the mechanical effi-
ciency of an engine. In a steam-driven
compressor the mechanical efficiency is
the ratio of tte indicated horsepower in
the air cylinders to the indicated horse-
power in the steam cylinders; and for a
motor-driven compressor it is the ratio of
the indicated horsepower in the air cyl-
inder to the brake horsepower of the
motor.

In considering the performance of an
air compressor, however, there are other
ratios which give useful information and
enable different machines to be com-
pared with an ideal standard, and as
the term efficiency is often used in con-
nection with these ratios it requires quali-
fication. For instance, the power required
to compress one pound of air from one
pressure to another pressure when the
temperature is maintained constant, that

Effect of Heavy Loads on
Boiler Tubes

By Leroy W. Allison

Plotted from records of the past year's
operation of a 15,000-kilowatt plant,
carrying for the most part a railway load,
the accompanying chart indicates the ef-
fect of peaks upon boiler tubes. The
curves are deduced for 18-hour periods
and are self-explanatory. The plant con-
tains eighteen Babcock & Wilcox boil-
ers, each rated at 550 horsepower and
comprised of twenty-one sections of four-
teen 4-inch tubes 18 feet long; the drums
are 42 inches in diameter. To supply the
three 5000-kilowatt units, the boilers
are operated under a working pressure
of 175 pounds, in groups of six; five
are used for normal load, the sixth being
held in reserve. Each boiler is fitted with
a Peabody oil-burning furnace equipped

■0
0

S-
D
O

■c

^-v

+■

+•

s-/

■0

S-

—

a>
>
<

00 £

, 0
Dec. Pow«

Effect of Load on Tubes

is, isothermal compression, can be cal-
culated readily and is a convenient stand-
ard of comparison with the power actual-
ly found to be necessary in a compressor
working between the same limits of pres-
sure. The ratio of the work required
for isothermal compression to the work
actually taken is sometimes called the
efficiency, but more correctly it is the
efficiency compared with isothermal com-
pression. For other purposes the power
required to compress adiabatically , that
is, without allowing any heat to be ab-
stracted from or added to the air, is
taken as the standard for comparison
and the ratio obtained should be defined
as the efficiency compared with adiabatic
compression.

One could easily multiply instances of
the various different ratios which are
all called efficiency, but enough has been
said to emphasize the point that it is a
word which cannot properly be used with-
out qualification.

with three burners. These burners fire
forward from the bridgewall and steam
is used as the atomizing agent. The
boilers are provided with Babcock & Wil-
cox superheaters, designed for 100 de-
grees superheat, and California crude
oil is used as fuel. This ranges in density
from 13 to 15 degrees Baume, and has a
value, as fired, of approximately 18,000
B.t.u.

The ingineer at the sawmill wus clean-
in' the biler and puttin' a kag of stable
manure in the manhed when Parson
Goodman kim along and stopped to talk
a bit. He watched the manure go in the
biler and all of a sudden exklaimed: "I
never new before now what was meant
by horsepower. I recken if you had a
stable of 100 horses you would have a
heap more power." An' the ingineer
scratched his hed for a while an lowed
he would.

March 7. 1911.

Dimensions of Riveted Steel Pipe

Riveted steel pipe is generally used to
carry water from the of supply

to the point where it is to be uti:
which point the dischan

than the inlet pr. due to

the difference in elevation; or it may be
used if water under be

conveyed between two points. The
strength of the pi; * be incre.:

B head increases, and. unless a 1..
factor of sa- 1, unusual l

must be taken in protecting the M
plates and rivets from n

e formula for the strength of
steel p

P-

■

/' Safe working : M in pounds

per square inch;
T Tei rength in pou

uarc inch;
/ = Thickness of in

incf
ez of joint in tit.;

I) hamctcr of steel pipe in inc
/: of saf.

The accompanying charts show graph-
ically the flricknei
•us diameters of r

•actors of Mfei Rth

of the steel plate and c flick

pe up t< in

A«> pounds per square rDCfl vitb
afcty !

el plat

nch
of the
■

arc the
same "art in Fig. I.

; rength
square and at

I be tv
K a fa
lint ctcr an

Using the chai art

he* dia
up to l

square Inch |tk and

across | cnt. ef*

and down - nch th

WkU r-cssurt will a
Inch p

with a factor
platr has a tens

»nd a joint effl-
ci-

V \. ( irlc

irting with a ;-inch thickness of
• tic chart ir.
read up to BO per cent, efficiency of
joint, then across

square Inch to ■

■r of s.i tend a line

•ontally across until it intersects the
late marki - of

I
at the int n will be found to

■ squar.

• in
length and 60 inches in diameter has a

en-
tire lenf '*

plat, nch

the
s to have a factor o!
of not less than 5 and a

and what *ill be the 'mg

steel plate
at at

of the pipe

ml of the pos-

■
n. ,.« . 0t lot nfl t*icn scr<**% fo ^5

the
©4

i iolnt effkien.

cngtb •

inch thtcknevs of

>»» to SSjOOO
inch tensile at

BJHJ

arked OU inches dlan

• -
b steel
■

I AeJenc

: cr cent, at

ngth o' rtm

B to thi

ining - cknets of

ate re.i cfl

000
nsile St
and up to a f
hor:

the •*) inch

of p , ie for the

-ssure

- squat tbr

vteel

■
idor of
'essurr is rrdowfl

i of
'be end of

■
no ate

ness may be fout

', »•>

hal

Is** '••*-

i trot

s o.fvl Of

-4>-

•

r crl
Nisi

uns

thlm seated
miss

378

POWER

March 7, 1911.

1 1 H

379

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380

POWER

March 7, 1911.

Repairing Induction Motors

By R. H. Fenkhausen
Rotor Repairs

After the shaft and bearings have been
put in first-class condition, the rotor
should be carefully examined to see if
the "winding" is damaged. The paper in
the slots inclosing the rotor bars should
be tried with a knife point, and if so
badly charred that it chips off when

Fig. 14. Bar Connection

touched, it should be renewed. The mere
fact that the paper was charred would
indicate only a slight decrease in the
starting torque, which would not be of
any practical harm to the motor. Charred
paper, however, is usually the effect of
local heating at the joints between the
bars and the end rings, caused by loose
bolts, and as the repair of this trouble
requires the removal of the bars in order
that the contact surfaces may be cleaned,
the renewal of the paper insulation on
the bars entails oniy a very small amount
of additional work and makes a proper
job of the repair, instead of a makeshift.
The heating caused by poor contact

Fie. 15. Rotor with Skewed Slots

between the rotor bars and short-circuit-
ing rings is liable to lead to serious
damage to the entire motor if not cor-
rected. The ends of the stator coils out-
side the slots lie very close to the rotor
and are liable to be so badly charred as
to necessitate a complete rewinding of
the stator.

Squirrel-cage Rotors with Bolted Bars
The bolts should all be removed and

Especially-
conducted tobe of
interest and service to
the men in charge*
of the electrical
equipment

the bars taken out of the slots. The
short-circuiting rings should then be
thoroughly cleaned with sandpaper and
the outside circumferences "tinned." The
solder should be applied to the ring while
the latter is hot, and, after the entire
surface has been coated, the "tinning"
should be wiped with a piece of cloth
before the solder has set. This will in-
sure a coating of uniform thickness all
around the ring.

The bars should be cleaned and all
charred paper scraped off them and also

bars of approximately the same size as
those used in the smaller motors, but a
much larger number of them, and, owing
to the large diameter of the end rings,
the amount of curvature under a single
bar is practically negligible.

If the contact is found to be bad, due
to this cause, a steel swedge should be
made having a face curved to correspond
to the curvature of the ring, and all the
bars should be given a blow with this
before "tinning," as indicated at b in Fig.
14, care being used that the swedge is
held level so that the bar will be uniform-
ly indented. For rotors having skewed
slots, as shown in Fig. 15, a jig should be
made before swedging in order that all
bars may be held at the same angle that
they will have with reference to the
short-circuiting rings when the rotor is
reassembled.

Methods of Bolting Bars
There are several methods of bolting

(a) (b) (c) (d> fe>

Fig. 16. Forms of Rotor-bar Ends for Bolting

from the walls of the slots in the core.
The under surfaces of the bars should
then be "tinned" at each end for a dis-
tance equal to the width of the short-
circuiting ring, and wiped smooth, like
the rings. The object of "tinning" the
contact surfaces between the bars and
rings is to prevent oxidation in case of
any subsequent slight heating due to
temporary overloads. The "tinned" sur-
faces tend to unite when heated and form
a soldered joint.

Before "tinning" the bars the contact
surfaces should be tried on the ring to
determine whether the bar is concaved to
fit the ring, or flat. Fig. 14 shows at a
an exaggerated view of the scanty con-
tact found in rotors when the makers do
not take the trouble to give the bars the
proper shape. Small motors having rotors
of small diameter with comparatively
few bars are most liable to trouble from
this source. Large motors usually have

the rotor bars to the short-circuiting
rings, each of which has its advantages.
The four methods in most common use
are illustrated in Fig. 16. The method
shown at a was formerly used on almost
all motors. A large bolt with a nut and
spring washer inside the ring gave ample
clamping power without danger of strip-
ping the threads on the bolt. Later de-
signs of rotors are usually fitted up as
shown at b, c or d. On account of the
smaller bars now commonly used, there
is no room for a large bolt, and a small
10/32 machine screw is usually em-
ployed.

It will be noted that the three joints
shown at a, b and c are made with the
nuts inside the ring and the bolt heads
outside. This construction is the most
accessible, except on large motors, but is
open to the very serious objection that a
loose, broken or burned-off screw or bolt
will naturally be thrown outward by cen-

March 7, 1911.

181

trifugal force and will catch on the stator
coils ar I damage them. Cases

are on record where a complete set of
new stator coils h.; necessary as a

result of a broken screw. Tt ruc-

tion shown at d ed to elim:-

this objection and is used on a large
proportion of the motors now manufac-
tured; two bolts at each end of each bar
are used on the large of mo-

The disadvantage of the lattc

Drill Bit

tion lies in the fact that the thread for
the screw is tapped into the bar itself,
and as there is no room for a lock nut.
reliance must be placed on a spring
washer to prevent the bolts from becom-
ing loose.

there is much vibration, trouble
rienced from loose 1- hich

has led one manufacturer to upset the
I of the bolts. This effectually locks
the bolt but when it becomes necessary
to repair the rotor it illy im-

possible to remove the bolts without
»trippirg the threads out of the bars. The
screws cannot be drilk the

I holding a drill central on a
screw; it will run off into the
softer copper. The limit - of

the bars makes it impossible to rctap
them for a larger i when

Two methods of repairing the rotor

arc available. The to counterborc

the bars, as shown at I ind use

flllistcr-hcaded screws with nuts and

ig washers inside th-.

drill for counterhorine

can be easily turn n a

lath' »ol stec

method of • catlc->-

open to th

d. that ■ loose bolt can damage the
•tatnr winding. A be
luttratrd aj are

•awed or milled out tomewhat at thovn

at c i of th head being

i placed inside and a special

into the notch

bar; a spring washer under the head

>crew i •> a lock. As the

ot carry curr :iay be

:nay be prop

: ping the
thre.'.

Pa»

The new paper insulation should be of

or bond pa > 8 mils

liould be cut long enough to

inclose the bar to i of

each cr

|
lap on one > allow pasting. The

from the roll in
) to make the length
of the .il bar the

aid of a atraig and tv

the til a priotogr.r

print trim: ch as that shown in

creased

and

ft as ah

into
■ of the

•ont
of tt
Th

•
dou* iper should be on

•i becot-
il force and fl

g noU< an-

■

After the bar* are all
end rings should be

■ ■ ■
rinf

betaree' «gs

'tt aboi

trouble
» sourv'
mutt bi %cd to at to bring

on top of the

uld then be d gbl

meat of the bar* inserted at

points around the ring,

consist of small

clamped under the *hich bold the

bar. as shown in Fig, 2 be

nocked that the k

Fi' \ Foot Joijct

at the* >elr lo-

cation, the I

Oaring

bars and end nr., 'torn loose

seldom cn.:o in this

form of rot . r: as the resul

erne overload- as Ov

plan wood-wor'»

In ca are necessary* »o this

of Tr-
eated with a gasolene torch
until the l

Kars sbonld

describe ■ : evasion of bolted

•he slot*. The
>roughly cleaned and
.

nsab
en tbe ring i»
heated .v.J Jcr from B

j good con'

'hay
on tbe bars.

In rma of a*

r : p *? * * h c oPf rc* ? ■ • r ? *% c ** j f * »r re

rite edge of
metal t

•

1 «oo© J<

be dipped into the solder. Th

tctt "MBjajajjaj anaa om - • »*■•'•

iron lined »>ih . loo soadae ase**

melted bv mesne of several torchct ami

?ped tots the tibaa aside
tbe rendered depth, oa th

ad Hoes bare the

382

POWER

March 7, 1911.

only partly punched from the openings
and bent back to form lips and spacers
between the rings, as indicated in Fig.
23. These lips give a comparatively large
contact surface for soldering, and the
rings may be soldered with an iron, pro-
vided, of course, that one ring be placed
at a time, in order to give access to all
sides of the bars.

Riveted Squirrel-cage Rotors

In case it becomes necessary to remove
the rivets from a rotor of this type, they
should not be chipped out, because ham-
mering a steel rivet in a soft copper bar
will enlarge the hole and prevent proper
contact with the rivet when the rotor is

Copper Strip to
protectShafr

Power.

Fig. 22. Soldering Rotor Connections

reassembled. The rivets should be re-
moved by filing off the heads, or by drill-
ing out the countersunk heads if these
be used. After "tinning" and reinstat-
ing the bars, as previously described,
they should be attached to the end rings
by bolting, one of the methods shown
in Fig. 16 being employed.

Wound Rotors

Although grounds on a squirrel-cage
lotor are of little consequence, two or
more grounds on a wound rotor may lead
to serious trouble. Rotors of this type
are almost invariably equipped with three-
phase windings, usually "star" con-
nected. The effect of grounds on a rotor
of this type can best be illustrated by
an extreme case. Suppose that three
grounds should occur simultaneously, at
the points A, B and C, Fig. 24; the en-
tire winding would be short-circuited up-
on itself and run as a squirrel-cage rotor.
It is evident that a change in the external
resistors /?,, /?■■ and R, will have no effect
on the speed of the motor, which will
run at full-load speed irrespective of
the position of the controller handle.

Though this is an extreme case, the
effect of two or more grounds, wherever
located in the rotor winding, is to take
the speed control of the motor out of the

Fig. 23. Bolted Rotor Bars

operator's hands to a greater or less
degree, depending on the amount of the
v/inding short-circuited by the grounds.
Whenever a motor runs above its normal
speed for a given load and controller
position it may be taken as evidence of
grounds. As the slip rings and brush
rigging are more liable to become
grounded than the rotor winding, the
leads from the winding to the slip rings
should be disconnected before testing for
grounds.

A short-circuit will produce an effect
similar to that of two grounds; but it is
a very difficult fault to locate, owing to
the extremely low resistance of the wind-

Wound-rotor Connections

ing. It is most liable to occur between
the two bars in one of the slots, where
they happen to belong to different phases,
and seldom results in a ground.

Open circuits are of rare occurrence,

owing to the heavy conductors used, and
even should one occur it could easily
be located. When a short-circuit is sus-
pected the common junction at D, Fig. 24,
should be opened to allow testing for
crossed phases. By measuring the re-
sistance of each phase with a sensitive
Wheatstone bridge, short-circuits can be
detected.

Wound rotors for service requiring
high torque or where the controlling ap-
paratus is located some distance from
the motor are wound with coils similar
to those used on the stator, the only
difference being that the rotor coils are

-=*

Fig. 25. End Connectors, Winding
Terminals and Rotor Bars

placed in slots on the outside circumfer-
ence of the core, while the stator coils
are placed in slots on the inside circum-
ference of the core. Coils of this type
are of high resistance and many turns
and the rotor voltage is often as great
as that impressed on the stator winding.
Owing to the similarity between a stator
winding and a rotor winding of this char-
acter, the repair of such rotor windings
will not be treated in this article; the
full instructions which will be given in
the article on the repair of stator wind-
ings will apply equally well to high-re-
sistance rotors.

March 7. 1911.

POVX

Bar Windings fur Rot< |

Most of the wound rotors for multi-
speed service now in use arc wound with
heavy bars or strips similar to those used

oil"

in a squirrel-cage rotor, but two bars
are usually put in each slot. These bare
are connected at the ends into regular

s" by means of pieces of
sir.ip. known as end conncc I This
material is usually only half as thick as
the bars which it connect
fore, made twice as wide in order to get
the necessary' cross-section I
shows long and short bars and end con-

nre and also the terminal leads for
the windinr 'he method

of grouping two bare and a corn-
form a one-turn coil. It will be n

that the finish I rcscmbli

• lute form of st.v l ho

The end connector* are n

Slots cut in the cnj» of ih<

and the thr terminal* of the »

In* are As the

f a bar
seldom ca! c rene - >lng

•XCr;- n«ulati<>ri on the har»

ton it
thing* and reconnecting in the
, in jl manrv

. i ring a rotor it sh<

for balance; the leu sym

character of the winding ma* ore

liable than the too . c to be

reassembled out of balance. The moat

. method i>

are set up r
true at ;.: ut posts and the

up and placed on the -
a large ring sen end

of the shaft *v. T.'icsc nngs per-

mit far more accurate balancing to be
done, as they allow the rotor to revolve
much more easily than it would if the

lly on the parallel
rai:

Th : until the hea.

is at tt m. A | ' clay

lid I • the ll

Rht

changed until the

to rotate, no

J. Then

the 'f metal

i a tap
il and bolt
thcr n al tha*

•

due to A

a round the bolts

% f r ■ k .- f i j r i~ law •

and lock sroobers placed

jrc u<

■A in

reM -minals

If one of these

J be forced to tn
through the hinge pin. »hich »

nub
n maintaining cor

of motor usually have cor juic

mo: -.crease its con-

be fitted to the
slip rings
manner as those on a

l of the

a con J

■

t the long

■

fiu-h bold the rta|

the bolts and looot

■> them
BO Insti

hotikj

■ at

.....

W ' r •

■

log betes to Mil the obi'

.384

POWER

March 7, 1911.

Repairing a Broken Engine
Frame

By H. T. Melling

The breakdown and repair of a 50-
horsepower gas engine came under the
writer's observation some time ago. The
engine was a single-cylinder single-acting
one, working with a similar engine of 100
horsepower, both engines being connected
to the same shaft by rope drives off the
flywheels.

The engines had been at work about
two years, giving entire satisfaction, when
the accident occurred. The connecting-
rod bolts on the big end of the 50-horse-
power engine broke and, the piston being
blown partly out of the cylinder, when
the crank next came around it lifted the
connecting rod so far that it broke through
the top of the piston barrel and broke
the cylinder liner and the front of the
main frame. See Fig. 1.

It was first thought that the breakage
of the main frame would necessitate a
jiew casting because the front of it
fcrmed a water-tight expansion joint with
the cylinder liner. However, it was de-
cided to order from the makers only a
new cylinder liner and piston.

The two broken pieces of the main

Everything
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

the surface over the broken part, six 34-
inch machine bolts on each side clamping
it down to the main frame. Before the
patch was put on, the new cylinder liner

Fig. 2. The Frame Patch

was put in place, with a rubber- ring on
the end of the liner, which packed the
expansion joint. The broken pieces of
the main frame were then put in position,
a thin coating of red-lead putty was
smeared over the entire surface and the
patch was drawn down to its place by the
bolts.

Fig. 1. The Engine Immediately After the Accident

frame were placed in position and a
pattern made for a patch to cover the en-
tire surface of the front end of the frame,
as illustrated by Fig. 2; the casting was
made of brass in order that it might be
more elastic. This was bedded down to

The oil inlet to the piston was placed
four inches further back than it had
originally been and a force-feed pump
put on in place of the old lubricator.

The connecting rod was straightened
and the bolt holes of the large end

reamed out larger. It was evident from
inspection of the old connecting-rod bolts
that they had been weakened by the con-
stant knocking of the big end, causing
them to stretch to their elastic limit and
then broken, after crystallization, at the
finish of the thread. The new bolts were
made of the best hammered iron and in-
stead of being made of uniform diam-
eter were turned down as shown in Fig.
3 to the diameter of the bottom of the
thread, to make them more elastic.

The practice of having both engines
drive the one shaft was abandoned and
each was given a separate load.

Fig. 3. Connecting-rod Bolt

After the engine had warmed up, the
bolts on the patch were thoroughly tight-
ened up and it was found to be a most
satisfactory repair.

Rocker Arms for Poppet

Valves

By A. M. Levin

Some time ago, upon examining the
inlet valve of an 18x24 gas engine in
order to ascertain, if possible, the cause
for its general bad action and persistent
leaking, it was discovered that the bore
of the valve-stem guide had become bad-
ly worn out of round. Since the valve
guides of engines of this class as ordi-
narily arranged do not usually wear
perceptibly, and since everything pertain-
ing to this valve gear appeared to be ar-
ranged according to common practice and
to be in proper working order, it proved
somewhat of a puzzle, at first, to think
of a good cause for the abnormal wear.
It was promptly observed that the little
roller on the end of the rocker arm, which
engages with the end of the valve stem in
pushing the valve open, had become
stalled on its pin; but, as these rollers
frequently are and ordinarily can be
stalled without bad effects, there was no
suspicion at first that this circumstance
had any bearing on the case.

Finally, however, after closer observa-
tion, it became clear that there might
be a right and a wrong way of laying out
the valve-rocker motion, or, perhaps more

March 7. 1911.

POV ■:>

cautiously stated, two right of

which one is more liable to go wrong than
the other, and that that little roller might
have a material influence on the -
of the valve guide. The facts of the
matter are mple and evident, but

as it often is the simple and evident
things that are overlooked and ar
cause trouble, it may not be waste of
time to dwell upon this little kink.

Figs. 1 and 2 indicate two ways for
laying out the valve-rocker motion, both
of which are apparently good. Fig. I

.sents the way in which the rocker
motion was arranged in the case

L Observe how beautifully close to
the center line of the valve stem is the
force acting from the roller, in all r
tions of the valve. In Fig. 2. fa
which represents the more common
of laying out the rocker motion, the force
applied on the end of the valve stem
shifts between the point E. correspond-
ing to the closed position of the valve,
and the point H, corresponding to its

■ion when fully open. To all appear-
ances the layout in Fig. 1 would be fully

roller a arrangement of

be a for.
laterally at the end <
and. of curse, the g-
to i

** the stem and

the

nouid
the roller got *• \

ayout
roller does not re

simply rolls on the -em.

>ive or
slide to the extent of compensating for

of the m^c A
probably not more than I 64 of an
each side of the center line of th
•ton; but as that small amount is not
much more than the side motion which
the freedom of the :cm in the

II • -'cm, the
prac- be no motion between the

roller and h

The difference ir. .en the

arrangemcr i 1 r | ii-

lustrated in 1 The

the past to

Qg fit eng •

1 my

BSS

now running c

snd

st 110 hor*cp<

i of the gas plant the works

•natic cutoff *tcan

e umc rating as the gas en-

Our load

king against 100 pounds pressure sad

rSSKBOS

nds snd cut on again at 00 pounds
!t goes on snd off 200 to 300

I >en the steam engine
was the *o

.hboard »ou!d drop
time the co

the ligf >or that »e had to Install

another engine to J name. With

gas engine, the voltage does not

=M*

• a

as suitable as that illustrated in
but there Is a rub due to the
betwe.-n the roller snd its ri\->t pin; be-
cause if it does not slide at all on the
gad of the valve stem the rolk
with the first layout, rotate through the
angle

In estimating the pressure on the I
Icr pm *e find that a 6-inch vahfl
Ing a spring M

pou- nch of

area, calls for a maximum f

To overcome the Iner e at

ier an

area. or. In total,

thuv in all. a pressure of 325 pounds on
the roller pin. which not be

bad 'he fact that the angle

through which the roller rotates I*
bc«t. hardly | -iough i a

The effect <>f ihr

top po*ition reso
lateral I 'K moment

moment 7

ion bacomr
tbs nor

^scores 80
pomdf ind furnlag moment T T *;

1 > r

two

regardless of tbs other load.

I this

uencd op only oact la
the oaths sad the craak-ala

I f*f* c -•

condition' <e« m$ that

such I' * ricarlon. the second

-r of the to ante*

■

i plaat dee

SSMIt

•

Is rx

1 r hai

ssap

the ■

• *<J iNf i

•ctti haad. goad, est

eaaaat aad
sa fsr ds»*wd

386

POWER

March 7, 1911.

-i-

Pumpless Condenser In-
stallation

In Greenwood, Miss., can be seen a
condensing outfit requiring no circulat-
ing or vacuum pumps.

It is supplied with water from an
artesian well which gives a pressure at
the top of the ground of 30 pounds. This
water is carried to the supply pipe and is
controlled by a valve just above the
ground. All that is necessary to start
the condenser is to open the valve and
start the engines. A vacuum of 23 inches
is maintained without any trouble.

^) ,^f Relief Valve

i .HIM

Piping of Condenser

I would like to know if anyone else
has had any experience with this kind
of a condenser arrangement.

H. T. Fryant.

Jackson, Miss.

Filing Power Articles

Various schemes for binding or filing
the vast amount of data and information
contained in Power have appeared in its-
pages, but none that I have noticed
seem to fill the bill for my use. Binding
the different volumes together is open
to the objection that the data or informa-
tion on any subject is difficult to locate.
I have devised a system of filing the in-

P radical

information from the

man on the job. A letter

dood enough to print

here will he paid forr>

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

formation contained in Power which is
very satisfactory, as any particular arti-
cle, or series of articles, is easily found.
Each magazine, after being read, is
taken apart by removing the binding
wires and all information or articles of
interest are laid aside, and the remainder
of the journal is thrown away. At the
office outfitters' I procured an oak letter
file about 14 inches square and 24 inches
long, provided with drawer, folders to
hold the letters and alphabetically lettered
division cards, similar to an ordinary card
catalog. All information or articles re-
lating to any one subject, as, for in-
stance, "direct currents," would be filed

Equalizing Pipe

other on heating and ventilating, and
still another on refrigeration all on the
same page, which could not be separated.
These pages would all be fastened to-
gether and filed, say, under "Fuels" in
"F." On the first page at the top margin
would be written the title of the article
en heating and ventilating and also of
the one on refrigeration; then in the card
catalog under "Heating and Ventilating"
would appear the title of the particular
article with reference to the folder on
fuels, and likewise with the article on
refrigeration.

The letter file referred to may be ob-
tained at almost any office outfitters' for
from S3. 50 up, depending upon the finish
of the case. The folders are 9x1 V/2
inches, necessitating trimming the pages
of Power on two sides.

B. A. Parks.

Grand Rapids, Mich.

Defective Return System

I was recently called on to remedy
a defect in the return system of a large

Vapor Pipe

Piping of Return System

Power

in a folder marked "Direct Current" and
filed under "E," for electricity. Should
two or more articles on different subjects
appear on the same pages, the titles are
written or printed on the first page and
all held together by a wire fastener; then
the group is filed under the subject of
any of the articles.

I also keep a card catalog in which
appears the complete title and author of
every article on file. The different titles
are separated under the several subjects
as in the main file. The card catalog is
necessary on account of numerous arti-
cles which do not appear in their proper
folders, as explained. For example —
there might be an article on fuels, an-

imating installation, the trouble being that
the condensation returned intermittently
and at times filled the tank and flooded
back into the heating returns. The
plant is equipped with a receiving tank
to which all condensation from the heat-
ing system and the various manufactur-
ing processes is returned, and the three
feed pumps force the water from the tank
to the boilers.

Each pump has a receiver containing
a float which controls a steam valve by
which the speed of the pump is governed
and as long as the condensation is re-
turned uniformly one pump would do the
work. However, at times the returns
came back in large quantities and if the

March 7, 1911.

attendant was not near to start another
pump an overflow occurred. A la-
tank would have solved the difficulty, but
this was out of the question for want of
room, and the connection shown in the
illustration was resorted to.

The valve on each pump governor was
left open and those between them closed
so that as long as the water returned at
a normal rate only the first pump wa
operation, but when it was taxed beyond
capacity the water would rise in the
tank and pass over to the second pump
and, if it continued to rise, would pass
on to the third one, each starting auto-
matically in its turn.

By closing the valve to the first pump
governor and opening the one I n the

first and second governors, the last two
pumps can be run in tandem, or the
valves can be changed to operate any one
alone. The piping, as shown, should be
as large as the suction pipe out of the
tank, but the "equalizer" only scrv
prevent an air lock and may be very
small.

V'iH.ird. N V

Platform Attached to Pipe

Valves of various kind* ire found
rather hard it in steel mines when

neccssa

(

The accompa
how a platform can be attached to a ;

f a clamp, upon which a man
can stand while a:

I for D lanon

water hammer due t<> r!
of water lying along I
lowest part of a

due to a conf *ecn the cold air

and the inruthing hot »tcam which causes
the violent hammering

cs air in ; act a- in the

chamber of a hlg'
equilibrium of temperature Is est v
cen it and fhr «tea
I* steam formed under or a*-'
surface of the wa-
llow, and by what means. Is a v

d production of a large volume of
•n produced after a violent and

W. Pay.

l'l^tMH Kl!

on an angle are not
generally found in a new engine, but
rings made at a local repair shop are

ally cut Most engir

g.
B. to see

that after this ring wears any
amount the joint I more

at the and t

i
arrow I lap. m.

1 at X m the oppo

f thl» kind of a ioint i

ot so •
a*

a false ring IneMf

or a short cover with a carved Mf

ned. ao as to bear against
the underside of the
■n tight, as shown
a whole inside ring a of

piece would
The leakage of the aag
be remedied in ar . < show*

1 open. Some

e covered ring

ig-

I in i i

ll. it

I so accustomed to hi
tain : ciuKt that.

for a reason or thcor
begun.

In cor rem of forced

draft with which our boilers are equipped,
'oot piece of ■;
on each end. the cap* being

wall of the boiler
room in a \ position, tad steam at

boiler r top art:

ratet to
ite the bl<
In

and sediment from the pipe
met ■ .-.ted a v. inch

n at d being annoyed

hot

bote c and turned on

war to coodeoac the taper

• and create a vacu
• team w
cratr

hose, and steam con
tinued to come with much force and noise

All o'
•team from the dome and Come d
at

through thr of the nr

to • of the

ice to r

■ufiion <

th< nre

prof

noon hour, aod vh«

is opeeed at I o'clock.
odea sat too which had
'ed above the i

■ hot pipe. aad. taabiag into

'>Ut«IJe tirt b" N

and boiler bj •

rtaaiai ear -

la the boOer

388

POWER

March 7, 1911.

tained soda ash, glucose and extract of
logwood. These were all boiled in a bar-
rel of water and when the density got
beyond a certain point, the concoction
would not stop boiling even with the
steam shut off, but would go all over
the floor.

One day, when firing hard, the com-
pound and mud suddenly got busy inside
the boiler, and water and mud choking
the engine caused the whole shop to
tremble. Then the safety-valve lever
flew up, and the valve did not stop blow-
ing until half the contents of the boiler
were on the roof, the sight of which
convinced everybody that a surface blow-
off was needed.

Charles Haeusser.

Albany, N. Y.

Repaired Corliss Exhaust
Valve

The accompanying sketch shows a sec-
tional view of a double-ported exhaust

Band

getting into the clearance next to the
ports caused a shifting of these sec-
tions, which produced a sharp clicking
noise, just as the crank passed over the
centers, or at the point of steam admis-
sion.

Frank W. Bellinger.
St. Paul, Minn.

Burning Lignite

I have two horizontal return-tubular
boilers set in common brick setting. The
boilers are hand fired and the coal used
is North Dakota lignite which contains:
ashes, 2.47 per cent.; clinkers, 4.23 per
cent.; moisture, 39.76 per cent., and 6029
B.t.u. per pound. The factor of evapora-
tion is 1.06, and upon running an evap-
oration test I found the evaporation to
be four pounds of water to one pound of
coal and the efficiency 68 per cent.

I would like to hear from Power read-
ers as to what they think of the economy

in the accompanying illustration. The
system is now operating noiselessly, as
the steam comes only in contact with
the surface of the water, heating it but
slightly, and the discharge is constant.

W. T. Meinzer.
Brooklyn, N. Y.

Repaired Centrifugal Pump
Shaft

A great deal of trouble is experienced
with worn and grooved shafts which run
in packing boxes, as in rotary, cen-
trifugal pumps, etc., and this is especially
true of shafts running at high speed, or
when running under such high pressure
that the packing has to be kept very tight.

CA)

(B)

Tanned down for Band

s/% Copper Pin/

Sectional View of Valve

Showing Stages of Pump-shaft
Repair

valve of a 26x48-inch Corliss engine and
how it was repaired. The valve cracked
all the way through and nearly across,
as shown. This was due to either an ex-
cessive flooding of water or the valve
being allowed to run with an insufficient
amount of oil.

The valve was quickly repaired in the
following manner: The exhaust- valve
bracket was taken down and the steam
head measured, leaving enough play on
either side of the valve to allow it to be
turned down for a >^x3-inch band,
which was shrunk on. The valve was
bored, countersunk and tapped for cop-
per pins, and turned off to conform with
the curvature of the valve.

J. W. Dickson.

Memphis, Tenn.

Piston Ring Gave Trouble

Some time ago a 26 1/2 and 50 by 33
vertical cross-compound engine was in-
stalled and considerable annoyance was
experienced, due to the low-pressure pis-
ton ring clicking.

The ring originally sent with the engine
was made up of six sections and rein-
forced or held into position by twelve
spiral springs, equally spaced.

After many close examinations a new
solid ring was sent for, which proved a
success.

The sectional ring had J4-inch clear-
ance between each section, and steam

of this boiler plant and if it could be
improved in any way.

O. N. Bergman.
Dickinson, N. D.

Preventing Water Hammer
at Trap Discharge

Recently a heating system was re-
modeled and the traps raised about 3
feet from the floor, and an equalizer
pipe was connected from the joint where
the return pipe entered the trap up to
the steam main and the discharge changed
from the sewer to the return line run-

After a shaft has run for some time
in a tight stuffing box in which hard
packing ie used, the shaft generally be-
comes badly worn and the expense of
taking it out and replacing with a new
one may be saved.

In one instance the shaft became badly
worn, as shown at A in the accompanying
illustration. It was taken out and filed
down, as shown at B. A tube was then
procured of the right size to be slipped
over the shaft, as shown at- C. A hole
was bored in the tube, and babbitt poured
in, thus filling the recess in the shaft, as
shown at D.

Return
toTank

Old Arrangement

ning to the power house, thus saving the
water.

As soon as the new layout was put in
operation, however, there was a com-
plaint about the fattle made by the water
every time the trap discharged, due to
the cool water from the wet return meet-
ing and condensing the steam in the
equalizer pipe.

After trying several schemes, the
trouble was solved in the manner shown

WetReturn
fromSysfem

New Arrangement

The tube casing was then removed, and
the babbitt finished smooth with emery
cloth; the shaft was then ready for use.

If the shaft to be repaired operates
under a very high pressure, it is well to
sweat it with solder before pouring the
babbitt, so that there will be no pos-
sibility of a leak starting between the
shaft and the babbitt.

R. L. Rayburn.

Kansas City, Mo.

March 7, 1911.

•v.

Licenai I iws

The mere passing of a license law i
accomplish nothing for. as ha-
lt, in the
aluc of such a la*
be entirely ed and. in fact

of danger ma\ he crcar im-

: ration. ntly. be

the of the law in the

locality brccht. the

plant owners were prt

some care in the: I the

men thov placed in charge of the.-
plants; but ten these I

naturally taken the path of
ancc and have act further

n the license* isi
amines I hus has

•
meet it fairly then tl be

good; but if the cxaminat:

ulting will bt
than those which

•nt of the go« -hat

e been obtained uithin ll
■ ■
Blanchard in the Januar.

Jeral law bringing all ro-
under its lur 1 be
I solution of the j
that if a federal
all engineers »rrc placed it
might be all that

h a lav *bc

al.
It hat the

tea i» a Co-

tral au

intcreM* *cre identical, retaining all

ent are
and tl ugh tf

•

isscd b ierc

doe*

law ar

alncerv and that proposed '
engineer i* secured througl
in the

ong
the »e\er» and

rnse laws, whether FcJ- i
or municipal, will not in Iter
'rom %

I :/irixr,t,

id debate i//xvj winou*

pearod m previous

■ i

e the source of

■
T> ' the engir.

.is beer
that of th- of the

' in the safe a'

the
kno - that ar

tht po- a safe investt-

and a

r and th< I I
tii

small plants

i
h i r n t « • t* '

• • i

rm than

*n oceu An

pead me and

of the
•KMioacd in the .
M made some

engine : -
and he baa ope

-s or
This man is midd

mt posttto

own home

.ough ' ob

the job mouth foi htm There

* to be r hem to climb

nee* el
and I I thousands

ope occasions on-

from n
of »

na and bene-

•>uld r

wpolaofl l if no »j. oppose J to ??>e*Ti
e looks upon then hi the

the head*
and a
the norice.
I »ug, 4 con

•a: end

of mill

■

• -

•oem ha

an e

■•

and t*ot the Arc*

toe *o it thai hefh

•d ea.

II -.gr

" sasnt rntpmm. he neael haee

lers aad aesaaw

390

POWER

March 7, 1911.

Flywheel Explosions

I have just read the editorial in the
January 31 number under the above cap-
tion. With reference to the matter of
flywheel inspection, I want to say that
while an engineer and a piece of waste
properly applied to the flywheel of an
engine may not be an ideal combination,
so far as apparently dignifying the
engineer's position is concerned, it is
otherwise an excellent one. I have con-
tracts that do not mention work, only
supervision, but I very often go over the
flywheels and with a piece of waste in
my hand make a close inspection of them.
In this way faults may be discovered
that would not be in any other way. There
are too many men engaged in engineer-
ing work who are afraid of losing their
"dignity" for the good of the profession,
or humanity. I do not mean by this
that the number is relatively great, but
that even a very few are just so many
too much.

There is nothing so assuring as to know
that you have seen with your own eyes
that everything is all right. If you de-
pend upon others there are a good many
ways in which you may be ill at ease.
The other man may be deficient in
knowledge, he might have been careless
or negligent and, after all, you feel that
you do not really know. If you look
after such things yourself, you can feel
that you do know, and that affords more
satisfaction than the maintenance of any
imaginary dignity.

Referring to governor troubles and in-
spection, I think the editorial "hit the
spot" exactly. I recently went into a
plant where an ammonia compressor was
driven by a Corliss engine. This engine
raced badly, and had been behaving er-
ratically for a year or more. Within that
year there had been a change of engi-
neers. I started the engine and, true to
its reputation, it started off like an im-
patient race horse. Had I opened the
throttle wide, I do not know what would
have happened. Although I opened the
valve very slowly, the governor got hold
of the engine even more slowly. I was
suspicious at once from the sluggishness
of the governor's action that the trouble
lay there, and having had experiences
of the same kind before, I went to the
governor gag, or dashpot, and found it
full of a mixture having a consistency
between that of heavy cylinder oil and
"taffy." With the bypass wide open it
was almost impossible to move the
plunger in the pot or cylinder. The only
thing to do was to remove the heavy
fluid from the dashpot and fill it with a
light engine oil. After doing this the
action was still too slow, and a part
of the engine oil was removed and re-
placed with kerosene. After this, one
could hardly cause racing had he wished
so to do, the governor controlled the en-
gine so well.

There can be no question as to the
value of many automatic devices, but I
can never get rid of the belief that a
man with a watchful pair of eyes and an
active mind behind them is one of the
best safety devices ever invented.

The tendency of some men to over-
look small things that give trouble, while
looking for something great, deep and
mysterious, is hard to understand. There
are engineers who can talk engineering
Latin and Greek so fluently as to make
one feel real small, and yet when you
get a chance to pry into their work, you
often find such conditions as I have de-
scribed. On the other hand, you will
find some engineers who have so little to
say that you are led to wonder how they
happened to escape the "cows" so long,
and yet when you get an opportunity
to go over their work you find ample
evidence that they have been more busy
with their brains and hands than with
their tongues.

William Westerfield.

Concordia, Kan.

The Engineer's Wage
Problem

I was glad to see that Mr. Morton got
his raise in pay (see the issue of Janu-
ary 17). If he had not, I would have
half suspected that he was not worth
what he was getting to begin with.

Seriously, too many of us compare our-
selves with the wrong man. Values are
all comparative. Mr. Morton's predeces-
sor was evidently worth a number of
dollars a day less than nothing. If he
had been worth what he was getting, Mr.
Morton would not have been able to get
the job. Having gotten the job, it was up
to him to give his employer his money's
worth of service. To have saved $2
a day would not have entitled him to any-
thing but discharge.

The engine and boiler were adequate
in size — Mr. Morton admits it. His em-
ployer evidently knew it and would have
fired one engineer as quick as another
until he found a man who could pro-
duce results. If he could have found
a man who was able and willing to get
results and who was willing to work for
25 cents per day less than Mr. Morton,
he would have been glad to do so. Evi-
dently, this particular employer had his
mind made up to save about $11 per day
by paying $1.75 for the service. If Mr.
Morton had saved $15 a day, very likely
his employer would have thought twice
before he gave him a raise as small as
25 cents.

Here we come to another question. How
much did Mr. Morton ask for? Eleven
chances out of ten he did not go to the
boss and lay out the proposition on paper
and prove to him how much he de-
served. Probably, it took him a week to
screw up his courage to ask if he could
have more money. The boss saw that

he was afraid to call his soul his own
and raised him a "quarter" because it
salved his conscience and did not cost
much.

It must be conceded that an operating
engineer drawing less than $3 a day and
with no money in the bank is in little
better than a state of slavery, particularly
if he has a family dependent upon him.
Statistics show that in New England the
average family is only two weeks from
starvation. A man who asks for more
pay cannot usually prove that there is
no one more competent who will take
the place for the same money. The em-
ployer is apt to assume that there is
such a man available at least until the
present incumbent packs up his kit to go.
By that time, if both sides are bluffing,
they both are so mad that they have no
further use for each other.

They both suffer. The engineer, by
loafing until he hits another job at a few
cents a day less than he was receiving
before and a promise of a raise of 10
cents a day if he saves $10. The em-
ployer, by losing $100 a day from his
product at a loss to himself of the
profit on that amount. The difference
is that the employer is usually better
able to stand the loss than the worker.
Consequently, he has the upper hand.

I wonder if it has ever occurred to
other readers that this country's pros-
perity is absolutely at the mercy of wage
earners.

There is, somewhere, about " $36 in
actual money in circulation for every
man, woman and child in the land. As-
suming that one person in ten is a wage
earner, which is on the safe side, this
would be $360 for each wage earner, or
approximately 30 weeks' wages for each
one. If every wage earner should sud-
denly decide not to spend any money for
30 weeks and to put it all in the old tea-
pot or hoard it away anywhere, immedi-
ately a money stringency would begin
and in less than two months these wage
earners would have the whole country al
their mercy. Of course, the fact that the
average family is only two weeks ahead
of the game precludes the possibility
of this thing being done. Also, men who
are in any way thrifty do not hoard away
money. They deposit it in banks and the
banks put it in circulation again.

The moral of all this is that a bank
account large enough to live on for two
or three months is worth all the sacrifice
it costs. It is all very well to own a
house, but it has the drawback of not
being edible. The "long green" can be
relied on for sustenance at any time or
place short of a desert island. The man
with a very modest bale of it in cold
storage can go to the boss and treat him
like an equal when he says, "I am earn-
ing more money than I am getting. You
cannot get a man to fill my place that
will really fill it as I do. I have not
bothered to look up another job, because
I know you cannot afford to lose me."

March 7, 1911.

That puts the thing on a business basis
where it is up to the boss to show ca
why the aforesaid service that has been
rendered is not worth the money de-
man.;

After all, why should not the man with
something to sell put a price or.
few years ago the purchase o' a pair of
boots was a matter of artistic haggling
or bargaining. Today, we fight shy of a
shoe store where the prices are not
marked in plain figures. I am incl
to believe the working people are prac-
tically being sold at auction all the time
and only for the lack of a suppl
money to carry them over a few days
of idleness. If a shoe dealer has to
raise money he does not sell bit
at auction, except as a last resort. In
the first place, he does not buy shoes
up to his last dollar. He saves a little
money to do bus: th. If tfal

exhausted he borrows, but he does not
cut the price of the shoes to raise money.
You mav think he does by reading
vertiscments, but you can safely bet that
he marked them up the day befo-

Now, a wage earner ought to take
ample from this. Having set I.
he ought to stick to it. In fact, he has
no right to come to me and ask n
a day and then go over to Jones across
the street and go to work for be-

cause Jones scares him in; !c ought

to treat us all alike.

n.
ter, Mass.

I [andling Men

The discussion in several of the late
cs of Power relative to the chief
engineer havir., H the plant

has been read with mt

ng my experience I have failed to
find a chief who was not accused of hav-
ing ; specially if he has a number
of men under him.

The crew of men never existed that
not have some members
ambitious and studious th.i
men the a-, chief u in any

way he can; consequent
more friendly and intimat

r members of the same (
take as much mt- - link

are too well pot' insult with

the ntually they will '

••heads" and think the
tng partial:

Regarding the equal dc irk

among the men. I think that nine timet
out of ten the so cslh lling to

do more than hi* share The
not uphold any tale bearing; on the con-
trar the

•cr\ h men

B lull ProbJei

Sot ar as l

and tha the

bssebai: ember 20 and

■
and of opaqueness

sts.
The high Professor Reeves,

Doctor an cause a

ark — mole. per-

form when touched up r teat

voa ns of a Socrates.

He has DOS a "manless some-

thir. -op watch on the

-
But let's to the game and the problem.

rms he u»
lent th.i mot k<. I trying

is s baseball expert,
eg who -to tell the truth and shame
the d has more sense than legs, can

hardly be J to play ball, so »c

make him urn;
The pitcher tak<. >n the

equator with the H I and

faces e .: Earth, ill snd

else are ach

one-fifth second, but no energy is going
into the ball. The pitcher now goes down
in his "jeans" or hi* anatomy or some
other place ol almcnt about

on and digs up 18 foot-pounds of
energy. In one-fifth of a second,
ss he whir.- 'he manless someth

he the IH footpounds to the

hall. Beh e ball now has

nan it had
beiore. Where did the 900 foot-pounds
. from - They tell us that it is due
th; earth «■> feet in

that one-fifth of a second. Well, has not
the earth been going 300 feet :ach one-
fifth second c een

talking? It m

:o that -much

less Qo bug bi

the
thing to this.

another ball a

■g 300

ball. Down into the again snd

>e bat! i second goes the

reed of the ball now,
MM fig-
ure • he ball
ha- lotl K2 foot pound* •' energ>
• scicr

becnum anh

am to
Same o!J .moo. If the eertb »a«

■
ihr"- I nren vesiM do

\ M

with t: * ell

•

sod scccpt

have boot M - ic snd declared

Micas by s modem prodigy

• ho
has convinced wtnt erstwhile cor.sc-. j
business men and mcchsnks that be
has Invei led and perfected an apparatus

d to a N
P«t

asd.

a* not been

K >it maJ - to

■cm show s commercial

r pound of combustible on

Mar and on

pounds before
-m.
The same b

• ».». an

1900. 18.00 pounds, on March

191

the efficiencv of the tytttm
g of from ent.

- the original equipnu

ame boiler

the same flresai

' a comrr oration of

pound of
The r kindly informed

reason for n re to obta

"orstio: | followed

commend* -mean

• one wno could not obtain the same
rest; >« a* his cor

tned me that

tioi

if bes;
DSSmBlffCStl HI b] mWmWjmtmJ • ■•"
and bu ribs resulting t

aims to do m,

cone a* be could not

rein the ag. be would be**

hi* etswUriai HBJSMv- an »c th* I s.

He
new
pussjssd

c rssulm of
pubttsbsd

mioed by cfcsssk

392

POWER

March 7, 191 1.

From the foregoing it will be seen that
to obtain the results claimed it would be
necessary to create heat from steam,
available for the evaporation of water, to
an amount equal to 56 per cent, of the
total amount of the heat contained in the
ccal used.

George P. Gilmore.

Fall River, Mass.

Automatic Nonreturn Valves

The remarks by E. H. Lane in the
January 24 issue regarding nonreturn
valves are worthy of note for at least
two very good reasons.

In the first place, equipment of this
kind in the boiler room makes for the
greater safety of the employees; and,
secondly, it often obviates the necessity
of shutting down the whole boiler plant
should one or more tubes blow out in a
boiler. The instances which he cites are
not the only ones in which valves of this
kind have amply justified their installa-
tion, for I have heard of a number of
others and know personally of one case
where a tube was blown out and the
nonreturn valve operated instantly, thus
cutting out that particular boiler.

A nonreturn valve operates, however,
only when there is a break or sudden
drop in pressure on only one side of it.
While it is perhaps more common to have
a tube blown out than to have a break
in the header or on the other side of the
valve, such things have been known to
occur. In a case of this kind a simple
nonreturn valve would, of course, be
useless.

I recommend, therefore, that a step
further be taken in the adoption of a
triple-duty valve. With a valve of this
kind it would make no difference on
which side a break occurred as it would
close immediately and thereby cut out
the boiler. The reader is, no doubt, fa-
miliar with this type of valve; it will op-
erate no matter on which side the break
and consequent pressure drop occur,
and, in addition, it can be closed by means
of a handwheel and stem just like an
ordinary stop valve. That is why it is
called a triple-duty valve.

In addition to such a valve, it is a
good plan to have an ordinary stop valve
— perhaps preferably a gate valve — lo-
cated between the former and the header
with a drip cock in the pipe between the
two valves so that anyone going into
the boiler will be absolutely safe from
scalding, due to a leaky valve.

This would be appreciated very much
by the boiler inspector. The drip cock,
of course, is only intended to prevent
any building up of steam pressure be-
tween the two valves, should the stop
valve leak.

In conclusion, I wish to say that I am
heartily in accord with Mr. Lane in wish-
ing to see such installations made com-

pulsory, for the safety of the workmen
should be of paramount importance in
every boiler plant.

Everard Brown.
Pittsburg, Penn.

Boiler Inspection Laws

The Pittsfield explosion awoke some
to the realization that the lap-seam dan-
ger is not the only one that confronts us
here in Massachusetts. On the other
hand, there were those who were not
in the least surprised. They may not
have been "telling you so"; but they
have been expecting it. And, if a few
more explosions should happen tomor-
row, it would not cause them much
wonder. Massachusetts has been getting
too smugly complacent. Because it has
the best laws of any State in the country,
its people have been strutting around
with pride, when they should have been
treading with circumspection. We have
been looking at the disasters abroad and
have overlooked the dangers at home.
Because we have the best laws is no rea-
son why they cannot be improved; and
laws are not sufficient — there must be
rigid enforcement. There are too many
dangers that yet threaten.

"Agricultural" boilers are outside the
law, though one finds no reason for this
exemption. An old lap-joint boiler con-
demned for factory work, may be sold
to a florist and set up in a greenhouse
within ten feet of a busy highway, and
any pressure to suit the ignoramus of a
greenhouse man may be put upon it. A
road-roller boiler must be inspected and
must be under the care of a licensed en-
gineer; but a threshing-machine boiler
need have neither. Bring the farmer into
line. He needs safety as much as the
shop worker.

Not long ago I entered the engine room
of a factory and about the first thing
that I noticed was that the engine was
slowing down. The speed came down
almost to a stop, then speeded up again.
Upon investigation I learned that the
governor was out of commission and
that the engine was running with the
throttle "set" for the ordinary load. It
would have cost possibly $5 to repair the
governor and the increased production
of the machinery would shortly have
paid the bill; but the boss would not see
it. The owner holds a license to "cover"
the plant and hires a fireman to do the
work. One does not enjoy picturing
what might happen to that flywheel if
several big machines should let go at
once when the fireman happened to be
out. The treatment that the boiler gets
may be imagined from the fact that one
day when the waterwheel gave trouble
they got up steam from cold water in
45 minutes.

Another "engineer" in another town
boasted to the writer of having done
the trick in 35 minutes.

In another case, a power plant had
been shut down during the winter and
was about to be started -again. A slow
fire was put under the boilers, but as
no pressure showed on the gages it was
in due time increased and later urged
to a good, hot fire. Then, suddenly, the
safety valves opened. The gage pointers
were still anchored. The engineer claimed
that an enemy of his had loosened the
gage hands and put them back of the
pin. Perhaps that was so, but no real
engineer will ever be caught in that way.
What if this "enemy" had also seen
fil to screw down on the safety valves?

In another plant the engineer fre-
quently leaves his boiler and engine run-
ning and goes uptown on a shopping trip
or over home for a lunch. I was once
requested by my employer to go on an
errand to a neighboring factory. This
would have left the engine and boiler
without an attendant. At another time
a request came down to "help clean up
the cellar." Of course, I did not do
either, but the incidents are cited to show
how ignorant some factory owners are
of the engineer's duties. There are many
engineers who are doing such things
nearly every day. Happily, the inspection
department is waking up to this danger
and is taking steps to abate it. Let us
hope they keep at it. The employers
need enlightenment and the engineers
need starch.

In another case a crack was found in
a cast-iron flange of a 12-inch steam
header. The chief engineer proposed to
cover the thing up again and let it go.
He had an assistant, however, who would
not stand for such tactics, and the flange
had to be replaced. When men will take
such chances to save a few cents and
make a record, why wonder that acci-
dents happen?

A few days ago in a plant not far
from Boston, the safety valve stuck and
the pressure ran up far beyond the
blowing point. The engineer was in a
distant part of .the factory. The fireman
ran. The superintendent, one of the
know-it-all-butt-in type, mounted the
boiler and lifted the valve. Luck was
on his side; there was no explosion. It
was just one more of those many nar-
row escapes that we all know about. It
might be urged that those engineers who
know of these things should report them
to the State inspectors, and it may be
said that they sometimes do. But, too
often there are leaks in the office. The
"strictly confidential" report is so treated
that the guilty party learns the name of
the person who made it. Corporations
car cause a man considerable incon-
venience and expense if they wish, and a
man often hesitates to report things
against them for fear his name will be
turned over to them. This is not right.
A man should be able to report dangers
without running personal risk.

Here are a few hints of lines along

March 7. 191 1.

**»

which progr -iblc. Let us quit

boasting and do something to boast about.
u> "look forward, not ba

Malder.

Setting I i straight

C. H. Parson, in the issue of Fcbn.
7, says that the use of a steam jet under

-linker, hi;
that r crimen-

ovc the statement • • • that the tcm-
•ure of the fire must be i in

order to prevent the formation of dim

reason, however, why the
steam p- clinker, or in what other

it can act. if it does not the

temperature. If steam does pre.
clinker, tbei ' be a reason.

As a matter of fact, steam J
ducc the temperature of the fire to some
it. even if the steam i> not decom-
posed. A formula for the the

: craturc of the An en on page

of the eighth edition of m>
lanical Kngir. as

folio

.ill
- //

•ature of fire a1-
reraturc of the a1
//. 0 and H
of carbon, hsdro^cn. oxygon

in the fue
gases of combustion ;
When steam i«- d th the air

r the grate bar-
equivalent to moisture in the coal as far
•i the • the

crned As
con*

( // an J -mula |

raturc
I ahrenh.

iture e

the he.i
about !<»» B
im. the

' dJegrct

\ |n • ■ ng takes place

■
grate

Ken and h
the illu
a heat value of

nhuwtihlr

ill pound, the

wh-

a great
has for the

impose the steam and form water ga*.

forming

as the gan ar.d H become

enough o\>gen from the air. and
ng again i n that was ab-

n If

cquencr
of t then thi

be a cooling of the

of the steam immediate: the

grate bars, and a higher

up in the fuel bed or abo\

out mar.-.
year* i Dr. K W. Raymond

the 7V. the American In-

' •

■'

and tt-
*>e tested - «n-

the *ber on he

steam docs not mater
•he ten ,

about this matter, r 'hat

ence indicates « Ml DOmv x,cir »d

.
It would scent that Mr Partoo should
at least ha

sins, en ird one

c irat •

■

someone ha- iten

something about cing a

el.
In -he

above -on makes a

number itc

ments that

Mi iat

: <>r» be the

tul ular
•
that doing

ch the turn
knows the

tal retu- ar boiler and a cross-

•hat

at t

•COOn

•ment ol

not-

for a hors

rev.

surf horser

'd use i '< makers of

water-tube d from 12 to

the standard
Hut
that the

» ' - r

f he<
horwep'

aire

•ie.

eosoo »

'•< wasM
^ttlh during

hat

I ,,r

the

■too
Toe

adopted a ba« ■ ol 10 »quare fee* ••'
'ace pet horaepo**

noilcrw afcnal

ihc I 1 • • UaStSMM '*•' •»«'*r

jr/r<wn»cd w

■aassssofi •

xr.c fim<

rtoo

■

a rr

•<•'-•

rot

■tnciji •

nh the «c •

lu.r

f.)f i

394

POWER

March 7, 1911.

A Catch Question

A boiler has been made using tool-
steel rivets with extra large heads so
that they will not pull through and it
is not possible for them to shear. The
plate must fail by crushing in front of
the rivets. If, after this boiler had been
tested it was found that the metal in
front of two of the rivets had disap-
peared, what became of it?

T. T. P.

Boiler rivets are made of soft steel
or iron and never, even for a test, of tool
steel, and the question is one to discover
how much is known of the character of
the materials used in boiler construction.
The reference to the supposed disap-
pearance of a part of the sheet is inserted
to draw the attention from the main ques-
tion, which, put in plain English, would
be: Of what material are boiler rivets
made?

Stress o?i Boiler Stays
Figure the stress between the stays
and give proper pitch of 1-inch stays,
54,000 tensile strength for a working
piessure of 155 pounds. .

S. B. S.
Staybolts \% inches diameter or less
are allowed 6500 pounds per "net sec-
tion." The area of a 1-inch staybolt hav-
ing V threads 12 to the inch is 0.575 inch

6500 X 0.575 = 3738 pounds

allowable stress on one bolt. For 155
pcunds pressure

3738 + 155 = 24.24 inches

of surface to be supported by the bolt.
To find the pitch extract the square root
which gives 4.923 inches pitch. In this
the area of one staybolt hole has not
been deducted.

In close calculations the area of the
hole may be deducted, but Massachusetts
rules do not require this. In practice the
pitch woud be either 4% or 4 }i\
inches. As the stress on the plate would
be supported by the stays, it would not
enter into the calculation.

The plate for 155 pounds pressure and
above pitch should not be less than Y%
inch thick, whether flat or circular fur-
nace.

Weight of Castings

How can I estimate the weight of iron
and brass castings?

I. B. C.

An approximation may be made by
weighing the patterns and multiplying
the weight by 19 for brass and by 17
for iron if the patterns are made of pine.

Questions are/

not answered unless

accompanied by thes

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

Equalizing Piston Clearance

How is the piston clearance in an en-
gine cylinder equalized?

E. P. C.

By disconnecting the connecting rod
and pushing the piston to one end of the
cylinder until it strikes the head; make
a mark on the guide at one end of the
crosshead and then move the piston to
the other end of the cylinder and mark
the guide as before. Lengthen or shorten
the distance between the connecting-rod
brasses until the crosshead travels equal-
ly between the marks on the guide.

When the piston rod screws into the
crosshead, the total clearance may be
found, and with the crank on the back
center the piston rod may be screwed in
or out until it is equal at both ends.

Inspection of Boiler Plates

Suppose the owner of a power plant
came to an engineer and said in regard
to a new boiler that had been ordered,
"I have been talking to the boilermaker
about that boiler and he says he has
some plates that are all right. I have
told him that if you said the plates were
all right he could build me the boiler."
Now, what would the engineer look for?
The plates are all right in regard to ten-
sile strength and chemical tests and are
rolled nice and smooth and free from
blisters and so forth.

B. P. F.

If in Massachusetts, the engineer
would look for nothing at all, as the
boiler to be installed must comply with
the requirements of the Board of Boiler
Rules and any observation or investiga-
tion on the part of the engineer would
be supererogatory. In any other State
he should measure each plate with a
micrometer at various points on the four
edges to ascertain the exact thickness
and reject all plates of less than the
proper thickness; require mill-test affidavit
of chemical and physical tests and check
the heat number of each sheet.

Safety Valve Calculations

Please give in plain English without
algebra or formulas the rules for cal-
culating the pressure, length of lever,
weight of ball, distance from fulcrum,
etc., of lever safety valves.

L. S. V.

To find the pressure per square inch
which will balance a valve with a given
weight at a given distance from the ful-
crum, the effective weight of the valve,
valve stem and lever being known.

Rule: Multiply the weight by its dis-
tance from the fulcrum. Multiply the
weight of the valve and the effective
weight of the lever by the distance of the
stem from the fulcrum, and add this to
the former product. Divide the sum of
the two products by the product of the
area of the valve multiplied by its dis-
tance from the fulcrum, and the result
will be the pressure in pounds.

To find the distance from the fulcrum
at which the weight must be placed to
balance a given pressure per square
ii'ch.

Rule : Multiply the area of the valve by
the pressure, and from the product sub-
tract the effective weight of the valve
and lever. Multiply the remainder by
the distance of stem from fulcrum, and
divide by the weight of the ball. The
quotient will be the required distance.

To find the effective weight of the lever,
valve and valve stem.

Rule: Multiply the actual weight of
the lever by the distance between
its center of gravity and the fulcrum,
?nd divide by the distance between
the fulcrum and the stem. To the quotient
add the actual weight of the valve and
the stem.

Pngme Punning Under

What are the advantages, if any, of
running an engine "under"?

R. U. E.

When an engine runs "over," the lower
guide bears the weight of the crosshead,
part of the weight of the connecting rod
and one-half the weight of the piston
rod in addition to the pressure due to
the diagonal thrust of the connecting
rod. When the engine runs "under," the
diagonal thrust of the rod forces the
crosshead against the upper guide with
a pressure which is reduced by the weight
of the crosshead and rods, which re-
duces the friction load of the engine.

March 7. 1911.

POU

Hill Publishing Com]

Jon X

mn* ind pakl I

-not nr-rf— rtty for put»-

Mm II shil-

•nd < l*.« n...

at the i a »!

Cable s/Mn-w. "FOOT!

( : i tt- ii t ^

in Kiiun. -
Repairing l>

■
llMfn

IBS I .Sill'-
.tlirr •'

pall gal l*arn:

«H Kl|

rsaasej

lb"

Iji»

\ >

•

.:•;•.

The practice of accepting considers -
>m Mlesmcn <
- influc- asc of t

ng and corrupting to the
man who d

c communication
irs in Poi
I a good engineer and an
Cht man. not believe that

hi would bu. or recommend the pur-
chase of any mac

mission to
that, ha.
rrcommended a thing because he thought
it «as the beat at pest, ht

demean himsc:-

h he had rendered no
Th ag has

ar. excuse for the i
in supposedly special personal a
and extra - - has no

n if
ng to put hi- nto the

lip-r ft class.

cnt
*ill ore

aid and comfort ahich those
*ill der n Amos

It may he true that tf ft 1 up.

n to find -i

a man
■
i coal .

I that

that the

•hoes, than ■ m con-

an oft:
f a 00

c money is no

and cornifiltalona of a pro-

has he

a com*

mission <>r ; jcc ->f the cost So

>e agreed OHIhod of

I no

• er of

ralell

ana a i ht la last

(■CM

If he lead* himself to think that

an the ma
that the commission mould i

c salesman" if he
did

When we mentioned the high Meals
ngtneer. hove
we g. not the

■a. Society oi
harp upon the manifold attainments, the
cd knowledge, the -

responsible charge

modern steam pla tho pro-

and go behind the boiler

i M aj

dollar t

Two good tests to app *!ia-

action arc to •

it would happe idy did

io arc tips from roar

an. wr

o» much

so sbs ■ ha

rves these not a hi'

to him or the -j
oh he .

■

MlOOOMO wdrrs'ard !Ka? •' c Bfdrr-*

aould come just aa promptly and Inat
ar r got the tip ar

*» loo*
up* fetbta salaried

cd of gratuities from supf

aboart

ence concern tag sot;

Hi unadmitt

liums offered far

• ■

I -Sc

Jlion f

, ' : 1

The aremiam for .

- hoe la >c far •

396

POWER

March 7, 1911.

On the B.t.u. Basis

An old gentleman in a Western city
had invested his savings in a power build-
ing and for years had lived comfortably
upon the rents, given his girl a good
education and sent his boy to the State
university. Upon graduating, the boy set
out to administer the property in accord-
ance with the latest developments of the
art. One of his first moves was to sum-
mon the coal man.

The latter knew what was coming, and
had come prepared. "Now, look here,"
he said, "I know we sell you a lot of
coal but we sell it to you right. Your
father was one of our first customers
and we've always looked out for him
like a friend of the family. He gets the
best there is and at a price that won't
stand talking about out loud. Now, you
just let the thing run along and don't
gc to stirring things up or you'll break
up a deal that it will be hard to get back
into."

'"That's all right," returned the young
fellow, "but we are going to run this thing
on a business basis. We want to know
what we're getting. What per cent, of
moisture is there in this coal that you're
giving us?"

"What's that — ?"

"How much moisture does it contain?
How much water is there in it?"

"Water! There ain't no water. It's
good, dry coal — dry as a "cracker."

"What per cent, of ash has it got?"

"Ashes? There ain't no ashes in it.
It's good, clean coal I tell you; the
jrettiest there is mined."

"How many B.t.u.'s are there in it?"

"Not a d d B.t.u."

Publicity of Operating Costs

In everyday life there is little which,
if viewed abstractly, conveys much mean-
ing, but when compared with some fa-
miliar object or incident its value and
significance assume definite proportions.
This is particularly true of engineering
practice.

To one unfamiliar with the perform-
ance of steam engines the mere statement
that a certain engine has a water rate of
fourteen pounds conveys little informa-
tion, although the definition of the term
"water rate" may be thoroughly under-
stood; but when it is known that this
figure very closely approaches the best
performance of engines of this type and
size, its significance is at once apparent.

Similarly a person having access to
no test data would fail to differentiate
between a boiler efficiency of seventy-
six per cent, and a generator efficiency
of ninety-six per cent.; and, taking the
higher figure as a standard, would class
the performance of the boiler as poor,
whereas it would be exceptionally good.

In engineering, theory and mathematics
are useful, but they serve principally as

a guide or check to empirical rules. The
real foundations of engineering practice
are based upon experience.

Developments along engineering lines
are so rapid that the standards of prac-
tice are constantly changing; but, in
order that widespread benefit may re-
sult, it is essential that everybody con-
cerned shall contribute his own experi-
ences, whether success or failure, to the
common cause.

The managers of plants making excep-
tionally good records often refuse to give
out any figures for fear that the public
will think they are making too great a
profit. On the other hand, many plants
that are making a poor showing will not
disclose any facts concerning their op-
erations for fear of being criticized. Both
are assuming an attitude tending to im-
pede progress; the former by refusing
to aid its neighbor, and the latter by
practically refusing to accept aid.

Speak Up

Human nature is composed of a pe-
culiar mixture. Many people have such
ar ingrained fear of being criticized or
ridiculed by their fellows and associates
that they are deterred from expressing
their opinions no matter how sure they
feel of being correct. To every question
there are two or more sides, and in the
words of Wendell Phillips, "He does not
really believe his opinion who dares not
give free scope to his opponent." Once,
during a "dinner-pail" talk, a certain op-
erating engineer's veracity was seriously
questioned because he stated that the
shaft of the De Laval turbine rotates at
thirty thousand revolutions per minute.
The expressions of disbelief were even
more forcible when he stated that this
was a moderate speed when compared
with that used in grinding small holes.

The recanting of Galileo at the com-
mand of the Inquisitators did not stop
the rotation of the earth upon its axis,
but the fear of the derision of his fel-
lows has deterred many a man from that
development and progress which was
within his grasp. It is an extremely
fortunate thing that the great minds which
now stand symbolized by certain human
names did not bow their necks to the
storm of derision expressed by their
contemporaries.

As it is in the large and grand arena
of a world entire, so it is within the
circumscribed limits of the workshop.
Success comes, not at the beck and call
of one's fellows and associates, but at
the demand of the mind of the individual
who has the will to be responsible for
himself. The man with a message to his
fellows is, fortunately for the world, in
most cases the one who is determined
to deliver it. It is to be regretted, how-
ever, for their own sake as well as the
world's, that many fail.

"Be sure you are right, then go
ahead" — and let them howl!

American Institute of Boiler
Inspectors

Among the many organizations born
during recent years there are few which
will be watched with keener interest by
those engaged in the generation and
transmission of power than the Institute
of Boiler Inspectors.

When the responsibilities resting on
the boiler inspector are considered, the
value and the possibilities for the ac-
complishment of good by a society of
this nature become apparent. On him
devolves the duty of deciding the ability
of a boiler to withstand the effects of the
pressure of the confined steam which
with the stored energy in the highly
heated water is productive of such de-
struction when an explosion occurs. This
demands on the part of the inspector a
thorough knowledge in detail of all types
of boilers, besides the technical train-
ing that is absolutely necessary to enable
him to decide constantly arising questions
of strength of materials, of methods of
construction and operation.

With education along lines leading to-
ward increasing and spreading the social
and technical advantages resulting from
cooperation as its keynote, the society
is bound to succeed in placing itself in
(he front rank of beneficial organizations.

It would seem to be a simple matter
to weigh the coal fed to a battery of
boilers, and the water which they evap-
orate, and determine how much water
is evaporated per pound of coal. There
are a lot of ways that one can fool
himself, however, in this apparently
simple operation. Try it under similar
conditions and see how careful you must
be in order to get consistent results.

Officials of several boiler-insurance
companies have told us recently that their
losses from "safety" water-tube boilers
exceed those from all other classes, even
taking the number insured into account.
The failures seldom attain to the import-
ance of an explosion, and usually escape
notice in the press, but the aggregation
of losses from tube rupture is becoming
serious.

Have you had any trouble with boiler
tubes? If so, how do they fail? Do
they open in the weld, thin out and burst,
or do pieces drop out of them?

If all of the little things about a
plant are given "first aid" when needed,
there will be no large one to add to
life's burden.

Usually a man's reputation is good
until he gets into trouble. Bluff does not
count for much when an emergency
arises.

Congratulations to San Francisco. Now
show them what a real exposition is like.

March 7. 1911.

A N'c •'. Boiler Feed \\ iter
Treatment

Several months ago armour

in the Australian technical press that a
revolutionary method of treating feed
water had been discovered in that coun-

The treatment consisted simp.
allowing the water to flo .-
aluminum plates in the presence of
light. Under these conditions the mole-
cular or intermodular conditions of the
scale-forming elements arc so cha-
that instead of forming a har : line

scale on the boiler tubes, the deposit is a
powdery amorphous mass which can
cither be washed out of the tub-,
blown out of the mud drum when blow-
ing down the boi!

Tut A \PPARV

As used at the broken Hills Proprie-
tary Company, the apparatus consisted
of two aluminum

in size, fixed in a frame at an angle
0 degrees and facing the sun The
water to be used in the boilers was then
flowed over these pl.i rfo-

J pipe along their As the

•-•ss was onlv mppoaad
during the daytime ■• was p

f the water to be used at night

In all
treated and used in a specially cleaned
boiler, the test lasting M da

I boiler was then opened, and in-
! of the hard adherent -
is normally observed after a run of

ih there was cither simply ■
j a brittle loose scale, while

■rtion of the boiler had no
in it

The tffl 'caning

•

■ cral somcwh.r -istallat:

en made ir In

these installati<

plate, or i >f aluminum chat.

been
It tried i portani

trial organ:.

anJ < •. plaal I •
Compans. and an insiallai the

ng use:
the :

definite the

•it char
these In "hat the

••cr mi)

It may be notcJ In ll
•

it on the '

be a natir
nsUtlng mj
tna and
boiler in

I K

of t !t seems to be the gen-

eral as- that aluminum h.

sponsible for the ob-

tained, as suggested under the idea of

Thomas K hug-
gan, of Lor pro-

cess before tin

ng son -nii-

iion already made public. The form of
the apparat.- riwvi was th.r

aluminum plates, but the
itions are apparently mor- ^urc

thorough distribution of the water than
for any other r There is a ho;

at the top. fror- a number of >mall

nozzles, one to each trough, feed the
water to the plate. The hopper is further-

:h a screen to •
larg« r din and | -i chok-

ing the i

, en to the

.»ve
some a. * night, ap. c to

the small amount of ultratiolct r

i at that I The plai the

northern h uth;

in the southern hi
essentia! that the r lorage I inks

J after the treated shoulJ

as far a ma-

il, and the water *ho.
soor r treatment, and

as a
ilso essential that the
plates n a rest occasion-

all) hard -

It that the plates become

and tl

iat the

and

! rcsca

■

>ut

C a

uous and

a Chen

no action f

-id the Hmc

JP7

• * ■
pha* rbonatc With saline waters

or the w*ate r

J wale often
and nto the mod drum during the

fir*

The proct ntioo o'

- _■

he I aminator Water Com

1 oflkc

I ':.

-bnolog

. tston • «nd 1 1

of th<
granting o'

chnolog> In Itne
ore papers
e congraaa

record the

- %titution I

•

As th

t is becoming

congraaa

Mwemd " •' • ->'c tna rf^-

.re ':

\bn\

under the (

innge in the arch mace

he 4

c onasl
■poo ft

nained

>en oaadttl

and

•

• - the of hi high

drappod • aw* • ■■ -J the

398

POWER

March 7, 1911.

Samson Transmission Rope

This rope is composed of a special
crucible cast-steel wire rope coated with
a rubber compound over which is braided,
under heavy tension, a cotton cover com-
prising about four-fifths the area of the
rope. The compound in the rope is vul-
canized, which causes it to expand and
harden into the interstices of both the
cotton and wire ropes, firmly binding
them together, also waterproofing and
lubricating that portion of the rope most
subject to deterioration. A final opera-
tion is to treat the cotton with a penetrat-
ing finish, binding its fibers together and

What the in-
ventor and the manu-
facturer are doing to save
time and money in the en-
gine room and power1
house. Engine room
news

the wires is filled with solder. It is
claimed that a 34-inch coupling will re-
sist a ton strain.- The coupling and wire
center, which carry the strain, never come

Fig. 1. Details of Construction

increasing its resistance to wear. Fig. 1
shows the construction of the rope.

The method of splicing this make of
rope is such that every wrap can be
fitted with a coupling to exact length, by
any mechanic at any convenient bench,
and then coupled or uncoupled in work-
ing position on sheaves. This makes it
possible to cut spare ropes at the exact
length required and fit them with the
coupling ready to be attached. Unlike
rope that requires splicing, it is not nec-
essary to make each rope endless in
working position while the drive is idle,

in contact with the sheaves, as the cot-
ton cover protects them.

This transmission rope and coupling
is made by the Samson Cordage Works,
88 Broad street, Boston, Mass.

Clipper Belt Lacing

This lacing constitutes a simple and
effective means of fastening belts, and is
easily and quickly applied. The lacing
is done with a series of hooks of a size
corresponding to the amount of power
to be transmitted, these hooks hinging

Fig. 2. Coupling Joint

nor is it necessary to shorten it up after
installation.

The rope coupling is composed of two
thimbles and a connecting sleeve, as
shown in Fig. 2. Each end of the rope
is cleaned bright, then passed through
a thimble and expanded by driving a
rivet, and turning the wire ends into the
socket, after which all space between

on twisted rawhide pinions. The lacer
itself consists of a solid steel base and
anvil, with lacer part of bronze metal,
and a solid lignum vitae mallet. The ad-
vantages claimed for this lacing are that
both sides of the belt are perfectly
smooth, it uses hooks having a long and
short side, thus equalizing the strain, the
joint is flexible, with no chance of

crystallization of the hooks if they are
properly driven into the belt flush with
the surface, and no short ends of belts
are wasted in making the lacing. Any
width or thickness of belt may be laced
v ith the same tool and as it is portable
it is easily taken to the point where the
work is to be done, making it unneces-

Clipper Belt Lacing

sary to take the belt off the shaft or
pulleys.

The Clipper belt lacer is manufactured
by J. B. Stone Company, Grand Rapids,
Mich.

Improved Steam Pipe Casings

An efficient nonconducting covering Is
made by the Michigan Pipe Company, of
Bay City, Mich. The casings are made
of staves, which it is claimed have

Steam-pipe Casing

proved successful in every respect. The
stave casings, which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings, are made in sec-
tions up to 12 feet in length, of Michi-
gan pine and tamarack. The inner and

March 7, l'Jll.

outer surfaces of the staves arc curved
to conform respectively with the ir.
and outside circles of the pipe and the

> are fitted with a double tongue and
groovt, running the full length of the
The staves arc thoroughly in-
spected, and assembled in a cylindrical
fcrm, after which the sections are spiral-

■ )und with galvanized wire from
to end, under heavy tension, with a
double wrap at each end. thus mak-

them of uniform strength and as

! as the solid log. A mor 'hen

put in one end and a tenon on the other.

r which the outer surface is bea
with an imperishable cement.
Smaller sizes of casings are made of
solid logs which are bored and then
finished the same as the stave casings.

The Kilgour Boiler Setting

Barristers hall in Boston is so situated
that its smokestack is one of the promi-
nent features of the view from the smoke
inspector's window. As a consequence
L-ht Kilgour. the mechanical engineer
in cnarge. made nun involuntary

excursions to the court where violations
of the smoke ordinance are tried, each
entailing considerable unpleasantness,
not to mention the expense incurred in
the shape of lawyer's fees and time.
Convinced that the only way to stop the
ts was to stop the smoke, he di-
J his a to the production of

a smokeless furnace.

If one sits in a room with a lamp 1

ing a chimney like that shown in !

1. he will soon be sensible that the lamp

is there. If the chimnc !cd into

the usual converging nozzle, the com-

on will be complete and the flame

t and steady. Mr. Ki' <>m-

1 his smoky furnace with the smoky

"~\

lamp and cor.

chimney k not the tall t

stack t. 0f

the products <>! combustion, but the fire-
brick inclosurc in wh;
should be the gases

•,'

op Chilling nit Flame

reach the cool b< rubes.

He therefore threw up • k cur-

tain M behind the bridgewall and led
the converging firebrick tube or arch out
of it as shown in the views of Fir
The bridgewall was made hollow, and

rams of highly

> ca-ci a .- • • - f;»x> i) ifcty urtim

One obacr x had sir

changed the ordinary brio -on-, the

fumac combustion cham:

so.

inucc arch tr
upon the firtbc- ucf

it a res the throwing off of the

itiles which a come off

than they
be '

of the bridge- the product-

the furnace, including the *o:
to pass throuK hot

enough, if •

fattfcr | com bust io

After the furnace has been
ass of
comes incandescent. The gates coming
m the furnace and with no
chance of losing heat except to the shell

■ costly be
kept ft* int of ignition while

posoing through the postages of red-hot

may be sec admissio-

-- the bridgewa!.'. a- J M this

-T-

—r

ft,

Trmr . i

400

POWER

March 7, 1911.

in a highly heated condition its introduc-
tion does not cool the gases below the
temperature at which they will unite.
The diffusion of the air in numerous jets
tends to an intimate mixture, which ten-
dency is enhanced by turning the sheet
of gases which is flowing over the bridge-
wall in a sheet the width of the fur-
nace, so that they pass out through a
passage which is quite some higher than
it is wide. This change from a hori-
zontal to a vertical plane produces a
swirl in the current which is very pro-
nounced as their combustion in the ex-
tension tube is watched from the rear.
There is no impingement of the flame
upon the shell, and yet no loss of effi-
ciency in the heating surface, for the

tarily. The slicing filled the whole back
connection with a roaring mass of flame,
which, however, cleared up instantly.
The stack showed a very thin gray smoke
at intervals, evidently when the fires were
disturbed.

They have burned as high as 25
to 30 pounds of coal per square
foot of grate, and after three years
of use the arches are in good condition
with no rebuilding or repairs. The
perforations in the iron retorts require
drilling out from time to time. The
brickwork becomes covered with a black
vitreous crust to which clusters of slag
attach themselves, which may, however,
be picked off with the fingers. The fur-
nace has been patented and adapted to

John Mahr acted as toastmaster and
introduced each speaker and singer in turn
with words both pointed and pertinent.

Edward H. Kearney, national vice-
president, was the first speaker. He
dwelt on the history, aims and triumphs
of the National Association, ascribing a
good measure of the success attained to
the cooperation of the wives, sisters and
sweethearts of the members. So elo-
quently did he portray the effect of this
influence that few, if any, of his audience
realized that his experience in feminine
cooperation had been conducted entirely
on the absent-treatment plan.

Charles A. Wilhoft, president of the
Supplymen's Association of Manhattan,
read letters of regret and of felicitation

Annual Banquet of the Combined National Association of Stationary Engineers Associations of Manhattan

and the Bronx, New York City

shell above the arch receives radiant
heat from it as it would from an equally
hot mass of glowing coal.

C. E. Cotting is the trustee of numer-
ous estates owning large buildings^ and
Mr. Kilgour is his mechanical engineer.
He has therefore had an exceptional op-
portunity to try out his ideas under
various conditions. I saw them at
the Exchange building carrying fires
of soft coal piled nearly to the
top of the fire doors. I watched at the
back connection while they put on fresh
fuel and sliced the fires. Each shovel-
ful of coal as it was fired produced a
rush of flame in the arch as though a
jet of gas had been turned on momen-

water-tube as well as to shelly boilers.
Henry W. Buhler, 251 Causeway street,
Boston, is licensee of the Kilgour pat-
ents and controls the manufacture and
erection of the setting.

New York Engineers Hold
Annual Dinner

Saturday night, February 25, at the
Broadway Central hotel, a gay scene was
presented when about two hundred ladies
and gentlemen sat down to the second
annual dinner given by the general com-
mittee of the combined associations of
the National Association of Stationary
Engineers of Manhattan and the Bronx.

from prominent members of the national
association from various parts of the
country, and made a few brief remarks
as to the history, aims and scope of the
supplymen's organization.

Past National Presidents Carney and
Reynolds added gems of mixed wit and
wisdom to the occasion and very con-
siderately cut their parts short in order
to give all the time possible to Billy
Murry and Jack Armour.

Promptly at 12 o'clock dancing began
and was continued far beyond the usual
"wee sma' hour."

It was the consensus of opinion that
the event was both pleasant and profit-
able and the best ever.

March 7. 1911.

The Ncwl) Elected President

,,t \. 5. M. E. t<>r L911

On Mi

who is now president and chief engineer
of the Heine Safer. H
born in St. Lou

at Washington Universit) in St 1
and fou at the Royal Polytechnic

College in Hano\ re him a -

foundation on which to build fa
fleering car nuch a.

•ervicc in the Civil M

of t »nc

■

in t

. ...

- Cott. aod

then »ith the

- •

ment ir. - of the

tub<. that name, and hat '

rrt and d

-cspon* the

intr of th'. into the

(

401

of the J also of

on *td has been t»

'Ytnc hi» first

tO I v(P

■nc of 1
I \ \\

the I I

It i» rep ^

J
nini

the .cordin* Mod*

>urt of ms

• ho » • r

the

.it the J

•ikb th<
spoasib • ' - ■ •« •' ■ "•: ih« rstci *t

a r

•he boikr roor

rom

Kan

lent and then i
cnt of ma

r of the

'•• . ..

age

ing n« Ma«t furma.. and ff

B I

ing a J

the stesr

around tth
gani/ed a SO

■

>oy.

i • i t a

Thofn win

The •

not
•B those hi the

• ■ •

♦ , •

aaojcteei seef I f -i **
>ta»r sod

. i

402

POWER

March 7, 1911.

and Canada, but the charter list is open
to actual boiler inspectors only.

The object of the institute is to pro-
mote the educational and social interests
of its members, and, to this end, meet-
ings for presentation and discussion of
papers will be held at regular intervals.

This is the second society of this
nature formed in this country, but owing
to the success of the Boston organiza-
tion, steps are being taken to make the
institute one which shall include in its
membership all of the reputable boiler
inspectors in North America.

The address of the secretary is 1 Madi-
son square, New York, N. Y.

SOCIETY NOTES

The Oregon Society of Engineers has
been organized with a charter member-
ship of 160. All branches of the engi-
neering profession are included in the
membership. The territory has not been
limited to the State of Oregon, but in-
cludes all the Greater Northwest. D. C.
Henny. 605 Spaulding building, Port-
land, Ore. (consulting engineer for the
United States Reclamation Service), has
been elected president, and G. L. Bliven,
407 Buchanan building, secretary. The
present headquarters of the society will
be located at 407 Buchanan building,
Portland.

NEW INVENTIONS Engineering Societies

The ninetieth meeting of the National
Association of Cotton Manufacturers will
be held at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Boston, Mass., April 12 and
13, 1911. These dates have been selected
because they immediately follow the Con-
gress of Technology which will be held
on the preceding days, in celebration of
the fiftieth anniversary of the charter of
that institution, and it is expected that
many of those present will remain to
attend the meeting.

President Maclaurin, of the Massa-
chusetts Institute of Technology, will
speak at the opening session and during
the meeting papers are expected on the
following subjects: "Arbitration on Can-
celation of Orders," "Byproducts in Cot-
ton Manufacture," "Doffing Machines
and their Relation to Child Labor," "Elec-
tric Power Transmission to Cotton Mills,"
"Executive Management of the Textile
Plant and its Relation to the Market,"
"Gas Producers and Gas Engines for
Cotton Mills," "Illumination," "Law of
Moisture in Cotton and Wool," "Methods
cf Cost Finding in Cotton Mills," "Mois-
fre in Cotton," "Renaissance of the
Waterfall," "Rewinding Weft Yarn,"
"Sandwich Island Cotton," "Textile Edu-
cation from a Manufacturing Standpoint,"
"Weaving Shed Roof Construction."

Also reports on standard specifications
and other subjects by special committees.

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
the Patent Office at 5c each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

PRIME MOVERS

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Geo.
F. Murphy, Jersey City, N. J., assignor to
Fuel Oil Engine Company, Providence, R. I.,
a Corporation of Rhode Island. 984,695.

ROTARY ENGINE. Ambrose Everts

Greene, Pueblo. Colo. 984,901.

ROTARY ENGINE. James Henry Watson,
Riverton. Wyo. 984,983.

ROTARY ENGINE. Karl Wittig and Einil
Wittig. Zell. Wiesenthal, Germany. 985,091.

BOILERS, FURNACES AND
PRODUCERS

GAS

WATER-TUBE BOILER. John E. Bell,
New York. N. Y.. assignor to the Babcock &
Wilcox Company, New York, N. Y., a Cor-
poration of New Jersey. 984,880.

FURNACE. Joseph Harrington, Riverside,
III. 984,910.

SMOKE-CONSUMING FURNACE. William
E. Ludlow, Washington, and Henrv J. White,
An-rusta, Ga. 984.979.

POWER PLANT AUXILIARIES
APPLIANCES

AND

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres., Col. E. D. Meier ; sec. Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building. 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City. Spring meeting in Pitts-
burg, May 30 to June 2.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS
Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

BOILER-TUBE CLEANER. Thomas S.
Waller and John V. Carr, Detroit. Mich., as-
signors to Raphael Herman. Detroit. Mich.
984,622.

LUBRICATOR CUP. Robert M. Steven-
son. Olean. N. Y. 984.713.

FINE FUEL-FEEDING APPARATUS. Geo.
I.. Swift. Chicago, 111. 984.71.",.

VALVE. William Gavin Tavlor, Water-
bury. Conn. 984,718.

ENGINE INDICATOR. Max Arnot, Aix-
Ia-Chapelle, Germany. 984.732.

VALVE MECHANISM. John W. Ledoux,
Swarthmore, Penn. 984.820.

LUBRICATOR. Oscar H. Neiman. Free-
port.. 111. 984,839.

PISTOX-PACKINC FNPANDER. George
Christenson. Nevada. Mo., assignor to H. W.
Johns-Manville Companv, a Corporation of
New York. 984,888.

NOISE MUFFLER FOR EXHAUST PIPES.
Daniel W. Dudderar. Mount Airv. Md. 984.-
S90.

BOILER FLUE-CLEANER SYSTEM. De
IjOS E. Hibner. Dubois. Penn.. assignor to the
Vulcan Soot Cleaner Company of Pittsburg.
Penn., Dubois, Penn.. a Corporation of New
Jersey. 984,919.

SAFETY DEVICE FOR STEAM ENGINES.

Walter B. Kollar, Lansing, Mich. !is4.'.':u,

SEPARATING GRATE. Nicholas Colgen.
St. Charles, Minn. 985,007.

BOILER FEEDER. George C. Miller.
Htchburg. Mass.. assignor to the Leominster
Machine Supply Companv, Leominster. Mass.
985,050.

PISTON HEAD. Frank Pienie Roesch.
Douglas. Ariz. 985.065.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS

ELECTRIC HAMMER. Hilary F. Whal-
ton, Key West, Fla. 984,984.

ALTERNATING-CURRENT MOTOR. Bur-
ton McCollum, Lawrence. Kan. 984,582.

ELECTRIC WELDING MACHINE. Lafav-
ette M. Pryor and Jesse L. Trapp, Frankfort,
Ind. 9S4.003.

VAPOR ELECTRIC APPARATUS. Max Von
Recklinghausen. New Y'ork. N. Y".. assignor to
Cooper Hewitt Electric Companv, a Corpora-
tion of New York.

ELECTROMAGNETIC APPARATUS. John
P. Coleman. New York, N. Y.. assignor to
the Union Switch and Signal Companv, Swiss-
vale, Penn., a Corporation of Fennsvlvania.

"s4.748.

VARIABLE SELF-INDUCTION COIL.

Allyne Clark Hovey. Pittsburg. Penn.. as-
signor of thirty-one-hundredths to Walter
Rosenbaum and thirty-one-hundredths to Her-
man S. Ileymann. Pittsburg, Penn. 985,009.

POWER PLANT TOOLS

WRENCH. Hiram Mendenhall and Bertel
R. V\ 'msrnns, Audubon. Iowa : said Wonsmos
984f&ir t0 J°hn Wei»Mon- Audubon. Iowa.

WRENCH. Eugene Green, San Marcos,
Tex. OS.,. 028.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION
Pres., Frank W. Frueauff; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 2.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
U. S. N. ; sec. and treas., Lieutenant Com-
mander U. T. Holmes. U. S. N., Bureau of
Steam Engineering. Navy Department, Wash-
ington, D. C.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS-
ASSOCIATION
Pros., E. D. Meier, 11 Broadway, New
York ; sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston, Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS
Pres., O. P. Chamberlain ; sec, J. H.
Warder, 1735 Monadnock Block, Chicago, 111.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., Walter Riddle; sec, E. K. Hiles,
Oliver building. Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings
1st and 3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS
Pres.. R. P. Bolton ; sec, W. W. Macon, 2'.»
West Thirty-ninth street, New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres., Carl S. Pearse, Denver, Colo. ; sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street, Chicago,
111. Next convention, Cincinnati, Ohio.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr.. Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia, Pa. : Supr. Cor. Engr., William S.
Wetzler, 753 N. Forty-fourth St., Philadel-
phia. Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June 5-10, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres.. William F. Yates. New York. N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago. 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January, 1912.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith ; sec. Charles
Kratsch, 416 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF
ENGINEERS

Grand Worthv Chief, John Cope ; sec, J. U.
Bunce. Hotel Statler. Buffalo. N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia. Penn., week
commencing Mondav. August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres., O. F. Rabbe : acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State L'niversity. Columbus.
Ohio. Next meeting. Youngstowh. Ohio. Mav
18 and 19, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOTLER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION
Pres.. A. N. Lucas : sec. Harry D. Vaught,
95 Libertv street. New York. Next meeting
at Omaha. Neb., May, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford : sec, J. G. Hanna-
han. Chicago, 111. Next meeting at St. Paul,
Minn., September, 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION

Pres., G. V> . Wright. Baltimore. Md. ; sec.
and treas., D. L. Gaskill, Greenville, O.

u 'lokk, M \krn 14, 1

S< >ME month
on tlii— mowing thai while tin

in (l<»/r r his work tin cent!

station solicitoi was l>n>\ and si led in

getting publi< servici win into the buildi

1.. thos4 whi picture it was ji

lent that the heating « ompj <\ also

got othoki, .m«l : ra supply pipe

•
win

But the pit ture told mone than thi

It tnl<l h«»w the wires from tin tral

ion and the pij* from the steam h<
compan) found >pening through which

tin- l»nil«! ould be ent( It •

i himself while ash dut) .

1 1. walla .1 about in his ^1« - : tt< ndi
the routine wink of tin plant and nothii

i and mental indolen t » i —

l »t on that tin ii his field

noticed until if w

vent out mi « » tl il<l t< tin-

the unemplo) >\*

tit ion help t<> foi ill lowei '

of v md hv ; thai •

kmen who mum i ould i»<- tin-

highest paid i<» an) \M»ikt t s in tl

But he slep II 'l",;

oril) performed whilt tl im

]m. it. nit i ition ■•■

lit knew ht.\% t«. ihovi I •
tlu- nnn.it t •

it. -1 But hi did not ki irhctfo
I o ninth

lit knt p when h< ' : i

how mm h

moment. Hnt be < 1 1« I n<

that t in •

Hi knew bon
through which tlu
pump. Hut be did not km

nd pistons in puw

im wei ' •

th.it went t.. tlu '•« v

11 tend with

int. ill in tl.

u pl.mt But when t
him tl

ill«l .t-k< it! Hint tl

with tin- present i quipnv

I it 1

\%ln!t th.
I In \ k

mount <•! tl

tin | it It «

all

I) totigtli

• .lit! |N

■

.iii.l idd

mi|

■

'•■•

404

POWER

March 14, 1911.

New Power Plant of Amoskeag Mills

The Amoskeag Manufacturing Com-
pany, Manchester, N. H., employs 15,000
men and women, and uses 50,000,000
pounds of cotton and 15,300,000 pounds
of wool per year. This requires 65,700
nominal boiler horsepower and 42,300 en-
gine horsepower, of which 17,500 horse-
power is developed by steam turbines.
The steam necessary to operate these en-
gines in addition to that used in the
process of manufacture demands an an-
nual consumption of 130,000 tons of coal.

When present plans are completed, the
power necessary to drive the machinery
in these mills, and the steam used for
other purposes, will be generated in three
central power plants, dividing the mills
into three sections, each section having
its own central station. Two of these
power plants have been running for sev-
eral years, but the third is just being put
into use.

The initial idea, when the new plant
was proposed, was to furnish power for

By Warren O. Rogers

This plant contains sixty-
four 7,00-horsepower Man-
ning boilers set in a single
row in a boiler room 500
feet long. The boilers con-
sume 130,000 tons of coal
per year and supply steam-
to 42 ,300 horsepower of en-
gine equipment and for
manufacturing purposes.

the new Coolidge mill, built on the op-
posite side of the river. This mill re-
quires about 4000 horsepower; the ma-

chinery is motor driven and the electrical
current is carried across the river by
means of wires supported by towers
placed on an island in the center of the
river and on the two banks. The wires
start from the wire tower above the
switchboard.

Steam Turbines

This new power plant contains two of
the first horizontal type of Curtis tur-
bines made, each of 3500 kilowatts capa-
city. They are set side by side at one
end of the turbine room, as shown in
Fig. 3, on a concrete foundation that is
built on a solid ledge base. There is
room enough between the turbines and
the end wall of the building for the
switchboard gallery, and enough floor
100m has been provided for several more
turbines, should they be required. The
trrbines under a steam pressure of 175
pounds per square inch run at a speed
0* 1200 revolutions per minute.

Fig. 1. Cleaning Side of the Manning Boilers. The Hand Lever in Front of Each Boiler Controls the Air Supply

in the Air Duct

March 14. 1911.

, ■

Although rated at 3500 kilowatts, each condensing i arranged as abovn ming pipe of the

will be made to develop 60UU kilo- ■ pump is used .using '**

watts continuously, or nearly double the >ers ar g from the priming pipe to the

rated capacity of the machne. Each gcr condensing * I and a diechart bend

erator is kept cool by means of a fan vacuum of frorr. cbee is main- enough vacuum to

blower attached directly to the turbir.. wafer. »h»ch. vbea

rhaft Air ia taken from tl
and di^charg. the room a.

ugh the top of the generator casing.

onve> » the coodenaing
under

r T>*

Each
of cond

the I
room, and the drop of the
pipe permlta »

three

• ting or »■ a

406

POWER

March 14, 1911.

through economizers. The condensers
are set outside of the turbine room and
discharge into a hotwell from which the
water runs to the river.

There is fitted, at the top of each con-
denser, an atmospheric exhaust pipe.
When first installed these condensers
gave trouble at starting, because of water
backing up in the cone chamber and flood-
ing back into the turbine exhaust pipe.
The cones were removed and bored out
from %Y> to iy> inches in diameter, which
increased the opening in them 40 per
cent. A piece of 48-inch pipe, the size
of the exhaust pipe leading from the tur-

Piping
The steam pipe leading to each tur-
bine is 12 inches in diameter, and branches
from a 20-inch main leading from the
boiler room. All steam pipes are placed
in the basement under the turbine room,
the 20-inch main rising to a level with
the top of the boilers after it has passed
to a point under the pump-room floor.
Owing to the large exposed surface of
the exhaust pipe of each turbine, con-
siderable condensation takes place at
light loads of 1500 kilowatts or under,
and in order to keep these exhaust pipes
free of water a Strong vacuum trap is

which supplies current at 250 volts to
the motors operating the coal-hoisting and
conveying machinery.

The switchboard is of slate and con-
tains the necessary apparatus to control
the electrically operated oil switches,
which are placed on the turbine floor di-
rectly beneath the switchboard. The
feeder cables drop from the switches to
iron-pipe conduits, suspended from the
ceiling of the basement, and are car-
ried to the various points of distribu-
tion through iron-pipe conduits set in
concrete piers. These iron conduits,
after they leave the cement piers, are

Fig. 3. View of the Two 3500-kilowatt Horizontal Curtis Turbines.

Not Yet Been Laid

bines, 6 feet 6 inches long, was inserted
between the top head of the condenser
and the main riser pipe. A similar length
of pipe was also inserted in each of the
pipes leading from the head to the noz-
zles. These changes eliminated the
trouble as the water must now lift 11
feet before it can overflow into the ex-
haust pipe. Fig. 4 shows the former and
present arrangement of the condensers.
The cooling water is controlled by three
valves in the supply pipes which are
located in the turbine room.

used on one and a receiving tank and
duplex steam pump on the other. Fig. 6
is a cross-sectional view of the turbine
room and also shows the arrangement of
the condensers.

Exciters

On the switchboard platform there are
two motor-driven exciter sets of General
Electric make and on the ground floor
is a turbine-driven set which is used as
an emergency unit. There is also a
motor-driven direct-current generator

The Permanent Floor Has

encased in concrete work, which extends
from the power plant to the nearest fac-
tory building.

Boiler Room

The boiler room is worth going some
distance to see, for it is not often that
one can view 64 boilers set in a single
row in a boiler room 500 feet long. These
Manning boilers are each of 300 horse-
power capacity, or a total of 19,200 horse-
power. They are set in four batteries
of 16 boilers and each battery is con-

March 14, 1911.

¥n

nectcd to a separate smoke flue. -0j|.

and 2 show the cleaning and ttol and at a night it the

of the boik

Beginning at either end of the b^
room, the brick-lined smoke flue

K* n.i4. ■

of the

rrom eat

•!>en

1 I

•Tr.it the Sue from each mid-

n the lower half of ■

double smoke toe. vh>. the

and

t- The pwrfif flue

from each b- prided with a

; t opes that

and each hart

through

fie Mo* vh

air ngmg dan .

■

rod and conven

to operate.

T ■ engine

is flti c to

control the snood ■

' rv»ufc

I the stean

nee. >»

408

POWER

March 14, 1911.

}f draft regulation, the variation in steam
pressure is between three and four
sounds.

Stokers
The apparatus controlling the steam

valves that admit steam to the cylinders
of the Jones stokers for each battery of
boilers, is driven from a cam shaft by
means of sprocket wheels and a chain
belt. As the speed of the fan decreases
the speed of the stoker apparatus is de-

-•'- '. 1-.-"'-.-'- --''--."---^r A-,'- -"'--^"j k-Vfe-.-^^U.'LriV -"-"'-','./, ". ."'

"'■!-;.";',T'"". ■' — ' — ;

o ^ r ;

Fig. 6. Sectional Elevation of the Turbine Room

creased; when the pressure drops the
speed of fan and stoker increase. With
the blower engine running at full speed
the stokers feed once per minute, but
with a slow-speed and high-steam pres-
sure the stokers feed but once in four
minutes. Usually the stokers do not feed
at all during the period that the blower
engine is running at reduced speed.

A Jones stoker is fitted to one side of
each boiler furnace; the other side of
the furnace is fitted with a cleaning door
through which the fires are cleaned and
kept in proper shape. One man handles
six stokers, the work being that of keep-
ing the hoppers filled with coal. One
man cares for four fires on the cleaning
side and one man wheels coal for eight
boilers. When the entire boiler room is
in operation, one man will be required
per boiler, which includes the hopper
man, the day and night boiler-room at-
tendants and coal passers. A passage
way has been left between each set of
eight boilers, making it convenient for the
men to pass from one side to the other
without walking the length of sixteen
boilers to do so. The boiler room has a
concrete floor sloping toward the side
wall so that after cleaning fires the fine
ash and dirt can be washed to a trench
next to the wall and out through a drain
pipe into the river. Fig. 7 shows a plan
and elevation of the boiler room. Fig. 5

onomizer 6?,'lO"l6nq i; V "i

1 " A ' ■ -r 'r '* r,

jV} 3 6 pamper,

represents a cross-sectional view of the
boiler and blower rooms.

Economizers
Each battery of boilers is equipped
with a Sturtevant economizer. There

Fig. 7. Plan View and Elevation of Left Half of Boiler Room.

March 14. 1911.

\»

are four in all and the scrapers are
driven by one motor from a shaft at-
tached to the side wall of the boiler room.
These economizers can be cut out from

Pf MP Ro»
In the pump room, which it loo
between the boiler and turbine room*,
and illu ire tmo

team, to that the hone«
ceives the heat from the hottcu

! -fcC

Fie. 8. Partiai

the main smoke flue by means of suit-
able dampers, and the water pa-
through the tubes can be v
to the fcx entering them at the tem-

perature obtained in passing through the
feed-water heater; this is about \M) dc-

r~i — i i i i i i j

THE P OM

ington 14. 20 and nch du;

I a

;ual to T*c'

also one 12 ail nch du|

•i but few boil-
ers arc under steam.

i
I overhead
boiler and the pump
pended from » mean

iod hook r shown is Fig.

In some innar us-

pcr. Jcj from mo »j c ••j.>c' bi (i' >
of an c Mention pit *o»n Ir

This method o(

as the hook b«
so that a pipe ma\ ha\c am desired
pitel :•

ment o' re when under expansion

or contraction »trc*»<» The t»o man
■Warn pipes expand I foot in V

Both are anchored about
30 ' end next to the

bine ; ansion is all to*

• o» erenow on*
due »tre»« 'mm

the N steam pipes.

•n all of the boiler
connection- eption of the

first nine boilers nc the pipe

anc' onsist of a

slee ng a T bl »«*e of the

connection at one end and a smaller
flange at the i

>nj this it fol-
ire pocbiog
seed bet plit

gland and the r:r.g

!•

grec patting the w.v

•cmperai
greea.

• pu

■ 'r»ugh an open be*
uch the 1
the tt>*

410

POWER

March 14, 1911.

of bolts, while the two-piece gland and
washer is secured to the upper gland.
This allows the pipe and sleeve to turn
in either direction. The first set of
thirty-two boilers is connected to one
steam main and the second set is con-
nected to the other steam main. In order
to permit steam to be used in either main
in case of accident, the first eight of
the second set of thirty-two boilers are
connected to both steam mains, the up-
right pipes of each boiler being fitted
with two of these expansion joints. This
allows the top pipes to turn in one direc-
tion in case the main is cold, and the
lower pipes to turn in the other direction
when the other main is hot.

The feed pipes are divided into four
sections, one for each battery of boil-
ers, and are placed on brackets on the
rear side of the boilers; the live steam
and exhaust pipes from the stokers are
also suspended from these same brackets.
The live and exhaust steam pipes from
the blower engines are suspended from
brackets running along the outside wall
of the boiler room. At a convenient
point on the stoking side of the boilers,
an iron walkway is provided for the
water tender. Hand regulation of the
feed water is maintained.

Handling the Coal

One idea in having the boiler room
of such length was to make it con-
venient for handling the coal from the
storage bins to the boilers. These stor-
age bins have a capacity of 16,000 tons.
The coal is brought to the plant by rail
and is unloaded to the bins by means of
a clam-shell bucket, which is operated
from a traveling coal conveyer. This runs
on a track, one rail of which is supported
by concrete piers and the other rail by
the brick piers, forming a part of the
boiler-room wall. This bucket is capable
of handling one ton of coal each lift
and besides being used for the unloading
from the cars to the coal pile it is also
used to convey coal from the outside
edge of the pile close to the boiler-room
doors in case the coal supply becomes
low. All the coal consumed in this plant
is wheeled in coal cars, each having a
capacity of 500 pounds. The ash is
also handled in the same manner.

Stack

Midway of the building and on the
outside, is a 200-foot brick stack which
has a 12-foot flue. Owing to the forced
draft, considerable fine coke and ash is

carried to the base of the stack through
the smoke flues, it being too heavy to go
out at the top. It is necessary to remove
this about three times a week, the total
amount of accumulation being about 15
cubic yards per week. A rather unique
idea has been worked out for removing
this ash. An 8-inch pipe is built inlo
the base of the chimney, extending level
with the concave bottom. In this pipe a
small ^4-inch air pipe is inserted with a
U-bend on the inner end. When it is
necessary to remove the accumulation of
fine coke and ash, air is turned on this
small pipe at a pressure of 100 pounds
per square inch. The air passes to the
U-bend, where its direction of travel is
reversed, and as the air escapes from the
end of the pipe, a partial vacuum is
formed, which draws the accumulation to
the base of the stack and discharges it
through the outlet of the large pipe into
the river. This eliminates the necessity
of handling the fine ash deposits by
means of manual labor.

This power plant was designed by and
erected under the supervision of Capt.
Charles H. Manning, mechanical engineer
of the Amoskeag company, from which
the foregoing data and accompanying
illustrations were obtained.

Engine Room Mismanagement

In a certain hospital in New York City
the operating conditions were very bad. In-
vestigation showed that all high-pressure
drips led through leaky traps into the
sewer. About half these traps were not
working at all and the steam was by-
passed direct into the sewer. The cyl-
inder and steam-chest drips on each of
the engines were connected together and
led to a leaky trap. One of these en-
gines was operated continuously and the
other two were operated during the winter
from four to six hours each evening. The
engineer in charge operated the engines
with these drips wide open all the time.
The steam from the steam chest leaked
into the cylinder drips and alternately
from end to end of the cylinder. The
engineer claimed that it was necessary
to operate with the drips open, as water
sometimes came over from the boilers.
It was true that the boilers were dirty
and foamed at times, but he ran more
chance of wrecking his engine by leav-
ing all the drips open while running, con-
nected as they were, than by closing
them. Upon examination the boilers were
found to be coated with scale from ,',
to Y* inch thick.

The exhausts from two feed pumps and
one large house pump, in continuous op-
eration, were piped to the atmosphere,
and the hot-water supply was heated by
live steam. The low-pressure drips were
trapped and led with the returns from the
house-heating system into an open heater,

By Hubert E. Collins

Several instances in which
outside help had to be called
in to solve difficulties which
could have been overcome
by the exercise of common
sense on the part of the en-
gineer.

from which the water was drawn to
feed the boilers. The fact that the hos-
pital was free from water tax gave the
engineer the impression that it did not
matter how much water was used. But
all water in the building was taken from
the large house tanks on the roof, to which
it was first pumped by the house pump.
The low-pressure drips which entered
the open heater with the heating returns
were found to be bypassed by the traps
and created enough, pressure in the
heater to cause all the water to siphon
out into the sewer; consequently the
cold water from the mains poured into
the heater almost continuously, to sup-
ply the makeup to the boilers. This ne-
cessitated burning more coal in order to
get up steam; but the worst feature of
the arrangement was that the house pump
had to be' in continuous operation to
keep the tanks full, and at times this

pump could not supply all the water
needed.

The passenger elevator was in bad con-
dition, having poor contacts in the con-
trolling box and on the magnets; the
counterweight cables were too long and
seme contact springs were broken. Al-
so, the freight elevator was shut down
because many of the push buttons were
out of order.

The fire service, which is so important
in a hospital, was not in operation at
ail. The standpipes had no water in
them, as the valves connecting them to
the house tanks were closed. The hose
had never been tested, the porters had
never been drilled for fire service, and
when the fire gongs were tried the wiring
was so defective that they would not
ring.

The engineer had been in charge of
the plant for four years, having taken
charge when it was new, and had not in-
quired into a single feature of opera-
tion tending toward its betterment. When
anything broke down he was accustomed
to send for outside help, and had al-
lowed the plant to become a menace to
the safety of the occupants of the build-
ing.

The board of directors finally called in
outside aid, and when these defects were
pointed out to the engineer he declared
they could not be helped, and that he
was operating as well as anyone could
under the circumstances.

rch 14. 1911.

411

The first changes that were maJ.
op all leaks past traps and to con-
nect all pump -o the heating
coils in the hot-water tanks. This M
the use of am for heating
and. by saving all of the drip retti
from the heati' tem, it cut off en-
tirely the use of cold water for boiler

: while at the same time, the h'
pump was not required to operate more
than one-third the time.

All these changes to effect econ<
and give unintcrrupu on the

ator and lighting M
about tun months, but in the I nth

the coal bill was cut Aran -500

on the same output, and during the
ond month so much saving in steam con-
sumption had been effected that only
one boiler was r
had formerly been in constant

boiler steamed so easily after hav-

. erhauled that a l< . of

coal was used, with the result that the

second month's bill u iich

re it kept during all the winter months.

An instance •• lie man in ch.r

not use ordinary ludgment in local -

•nplc ca iown in
the following

.i certain summer resort a
on piling out over the bay. The lighting

all isolated plant
located in a separate building, and the
pment

all tin- : engine and a dynamo.

The engine has combined re He I .ir.J
*ith a star uhcel
I
the wheel, th< kneu that the

, I *crc open, and when the <*heel
waa loose on the Mem he could tell that

The dt irough

alves and in l

•gethcr into | n in

rom the ice thi

Jischan the

The »»(•

I »atcr f«>r the boiler iken

one tank

Th le that I

<at the cxhau

furth< that

the ihat it

as the

• i

MB li all lay

•pen ^

- took the job and

i the d

■

to I

the | in a steady roar

• - x not only » ou id
not . j mac*

u!d Of

in hour
at a time c had been abaft

H .fjrtrJ tv-h«tr-d til ihii fh*-

ch I

Tf to i

t nc

The ■

• » the

•

itra

Here wa
of all the li

about running an
engine to know that steam should not
come in a
from V

Miming the engine one

roc.
iroach on

end all th
should not seat •

•
the id turn

-mall cr .oke op to

Ml Bl

•■•e seen in Fig
Thi

and ate

• otlld ha

e en

nuble and th' ngincc » *

rxtent Th.

■u»' -r fe»« -• .tt

412

POWER

March 14, 1911.

had become loose in the yoke and slipped
up through the bushing until it was flush
with the end of the valve stem, so that
whoever took it out thought the small
end was broken off, not noting the gap
on the stem between the bushing and
disk.

At any rate, the bushing on the stem
had slipped down to the end of the old
stem and a hole had been drilled and
tapped into this, with a stud screwed into
it, making the whole stem length longer
by as much as the bushing had slipped
down, in this instance % inch. This is
shown by Fig. 4, where A is the gap
between the bushing and disk on the
stem. The amount added to the length is
apparent. The stem had been put back
with this added length which did not
allow the valve to seat.

A striking feature of it all was that
the valve stem was of steel and the
bushing of brass; so that it attracted the
expert's attention to the trouble at once.
Neither the machinist nor the engineer
had noted this, but had deliberately gone
ahead and added to the length of stem
and thus caused the trouble.

Pump Cylinders Out of Line

In a department store there is a large
three-cylinder compound steam pump, the
valves of which had been reset after a
complete overhauling by an outside firm.
The pump would have been accepted if
the diagrams had not shown that with
120 pounds initial pressure in the high-
pressure cylinder there was from 36 to
41 pounds back pressure in the high- and
only 29 pounds initial pressure in the
two low-pressure cylinders. This showed
too much back pressure in the high-pres-
sure cylinder and too great a loss in the
receiver. The cutoff in the high-pressure
cylinder was about 60 per cent, of the
stroke, and this was changed to about
45 per cent, of the stroke, with the re-
sult that the receiver pressure was
brought down to 30 or 31 pounds and
the initial pressure in the two low-pres- .
suie cylinders remained at 29 pounds.
This economized in the use of steam and
by reducing the back pressure in the
high-pressure cylinder, the same amount
of mean effective pressure was obtained
with less steam and the two low-presusre
cylinders received enough steam to do
their work. It proved that before the
change was made there was too great a
voiume of steam admitted to the receiver
for the low-pressure cylinders to take
care of. After this slight change in
valve setting, the work was accepted.

This pump has three steam and water
cylinders, side by side, and the center
line of the steam cylinder and guides is
also the center line of the pump cylinder.

When the pump was first stripped for
repairs, the repairmen were told to run
lines through the cylinders and report
if they were out of line. They reported

to the chief engineer that the water ends

were from ^ t0 ^ inch low and would
need raising. This would have neces-
sitated the breaking of eight large joints
on the water end, the use of tackle and
jacks to raise the water cylinders and
the resetting of the frames on the founda-
tions, which meant an indefinite shut-
down and the expenditure of several hun-
dred dollars. They were ready to pro-
ceed with the work when the chief called
on the outside man to go over the lines
and verify the supposed conditions. This
is what was found: In the first place, the
lines of twisted cord, about 3/16 inch in
diameter, had been put through the cyl-
inders. These lines were too heavy for
such work and one end was fastened out-
side the open end of the steam cylinder
and, passing through the stuffing box,
guides and water cylinder, was fastened
outside the latter in such a manner that
the line could not be stretched very taut.

£ZE^>

/SF=S

__M

PowE,^

Figs. 3 and 4. Valve Spindle Before
and After Being Altered

Even with the most rigid attachment,
this line could not have been stretched
erough to prevent a serious sag. This at-
tracted the attention of the investigator at
once and, after observing the conditions,
he took the calipers and proceeded to
find the truth of the setting. He found
the line set true in the steam-cylinder
counterbore and in the stuffing box of the
same cylinder, but along the guides and
in the water cylinder the line was high,
or the guide and water cylinder were
low, getting worse toward the end of the
latter. Each of the three water cylinders
were low, according to the setting of
these lines, but the investigator con-
tended that there was a sag in the lines
so that in order to set the line true at
the steam-cylinder end the opposite end
would have to be raised, and the water
cylinders were low in varying degrees,
according to the tautness of the individual
lines.

He had these lines taken down
and new, fine lines of woven sea grass
substituted. Then they were stretched
taut and set true at the steam end, after
which it was found that all three of the
guides and two water cylinders were

in line with the steam cylinders,
and one water cylinder was 1/16 inch
low. This cylinder was lined up by
shimming. The job took only two days,
as against the weeks of work that it
would have taken to make the other
cylinders so much out of line that the
pump could not have run, in the first
place, and the work would have had to
be gone over again before it was right

High Gas Velocity in Boilers

Of late much attention has been di-
rected to the increased heat-transmitting
power of boiler plates by making the hot
gases travel at a high velocity. C. E.
Stromeyer, chief engineer of the Man-
chester Steam Users' Association, has the
following to say on the subject: High
velocity means that the resistance in nar-
row and restricted passages is so much
increased that it exceeds the resistance in
the bed of fuel, and has to be seriously
taken into account, and the question
arises whether the extra cost for produc-
ing this necessarily powerful draft is
balanced by the advantage of being able
to use a small boiler. The question is
perhaps deserving of attention by marine
engineers, but with them the tendency is
at present toward water-tube boilers,
which, as is well known, offer very little
resistance to the flow of gases. In any
case trouble is almost certain to arise if
the principle is carried to excess, for the
effects associated with what may reason-
ably be called a blowpipe flame acting
on a very small surface is that this sur-
face tends to warp itself on account of
very great differences of temperature on
either side. If the water is sedimentary
all the scale will be deposited locally and
result in overheating, and in addition
there will be difficulty in providing locally
the necessary supply of water, without
which, of course, no evaporation takes
place, and overheating and bulging re-
sult. The locomotive boiler, the Lan-
cashire multitubular and, in fact, most
smoke-tube boilers, do cause the gases to
move quickly, but further reductions of
the tube section can only be made if arti-
ficial draft is resorted to, and artificial
draft, although it is likely to be efficient
in ordinary cases, where the natural draft
is inefficient, does sometimes aggravate
the evils which it is called in to remedy.
The Admiralty had no end of trouble with
leakages of the tube plates of its Scotch
boilers because of the intense heat trans-
mission at these parts.

Artificial draft has to be paid for in
steam consumption, and when certain
limits are reached no further gain is pos-
sible. In a recent case it was found that
in spite of using 25 per cent, of the steam
generated for jets, they added less than
20 per cent, to the steaming power of the
boiler, which was therefore being more
heavily worked than before, and yet sup-
plying less steam.

March 14, 1911.

Automatic S h a k i n e G r a t e s

th hand-fired furnaces and shak
grates a very common trouble is that the

then a
famine of shaking, so to speak, i
though the fireman has had plcnt .
pcricnce, he will neglect to shake the
grates as long as he dares, in order to
avoid as much work as bta and be-

cause :• r. probabl;.

operate the fires. As a consequence, the
get dirty, the draft poor and the
combustion becomes proportionately bad.
When the grates finally are shaken, the

\. R. Maujer

•

-J an
toiler hou- d.

Th *l amount of bead roam

ousc »a* on!

of the old fire -tube N na and

casing the floor »pace occupied
cure a .

The flr*i change he

la
of foi. ibbooa ba<

>f ico 140

the -

grate* for burning r

coal which come* from the

the nc -

ition for a few month*. Mr. Schi

Jed that condition

d be improved if came mean* wart
found to obvia'
the sha ->d pro-

and con»
ab!c cement

»ho • accomr far

automa-

uncdoa.

boi: Jed to op

era?

aha'
mar

in f'

tha

Fig. I. V M FOR AlTOMA

Of 2

fires arc to broken up and the fuel bed
so thinned that the temperature Jrop*
abnormally when green fuc| it add'

riablc clement In
the • •! of the fir

•>g engineer for tl
Packing Company, at Buffalo hat

Buffalo
plar - "ak-

Ing mechan -•■■ u*lng the tamr
that -h the h

At happen* in th
Ilea' 4l conv

•ie came when ' a*

•-nginc* and other appara- ra ao

he*

nacnaaary. T'

bol!

«. each rated at
•m wa*
■
Boor area * a* availab'

li or v

414

POWER

March 14, 1911.

lay shaft drives the chain which runs
over the large wheel keyed to the ec-
centric shaft. In this manner the speed
of the eccentric shaft is reduced to about
two revolutions per minute.

The system has the greatest flexibility.
Fig. 2 serves to illustrate the manner in
which this flexibility is secured. The tap-

pets A and B can be adjusted so as to
give the grate either slight or consider-
able motion as may be desired; or, the
eccentric rod may be completely discon-
nected when it is desired to shake the
grates by hand or so allow them to remain
entirely undisturbed for a period of time.
This automatic shaking arrangement

has given complete satisfaction. It makes
the firemen's work easier; the fires are
maintained in a more even condition, and
an appreciable gain in economy has been
effected. The fires are carried at a uni-
form thickness of about 6 inches. The
quantity of smoke emitted from the stack
has been greatly reduced.

Recent Steam Engine Failures

The following is an account of a num-
ber of recent accidents to steam en-
gines, the facts being drawn from the
investigations and reports of a large
accident-insurance company:

The first case noted was that of a
horizontal noncondensing engine fitted
with a single slide valve driven by an
eccentric keyed upon the crank shaft.
The engine operated wood-working ma-
chinery, and was left without attention,
as a rule, from the time the plant started
in the morning until it was shut down
ar night. While the engine was in ser-
vice it stopped suddenly, and it was
found that the wooden wedge between
the front end of the crank pedestal and
the lug on the bedplate had come out of
place and left the pedestal free except
for the restraint of the holding-down
bolts. The holes for the latter were
long enough to allow considerable move-
ment and the pedestal was forced for-
ward sufficiently to bring one of the
nuts which secured the slide valve upon
its spindle into collision with the front
end of the valve chest. The shock broke
the eccentric strap, and at the same time
the connection between the eccentric rod
and the crank shaft thus leaving the slide
valve stationary.

Another accident was caused by a
stray bolt and nut. The trouble occurred
in connection with a vertical, single-act-
ing air pump, driven by links from the
low-pressure piston-rod crosshead. The
bucket was hollow, flat on top and con-
ical on the under side, being divided
internally by six radial ribs into com-
partments to which access was obtained
by holes in the upper surface of the
bucket; these had been filled by screwed
plugs after the cores had been removed.
The bottom of the pump was also conical,
with a central hole 16 inches in diam-
eter to facilitate boring. This hole was
closed by a flanged and spigoted cover
'/$, inch thick, whose upper surface was
turned to form the apex of the conical
surface of the air-pump bottom. The
cover was secured by fourteen 34-inch
studs.

While in regular operation one morn-
ing, the cover was broken and driven off.
Upon examination a crushed and bat-
tered T-head bolt was found below the
pump, and on drawing the bucket the
nut belonging to the same bolt was
found jammed tightly into a hole in one

By H. S. Knowlton

The description of a num-
ber of accidents taken from
the reports of an insurance
company, and the deduc-
tions arrived at by their
investigators .

of the compartments. It appeared that
the bolt, possibly with the nut screwed
upon it, had become lodged in the bucket
after the cores had been removed, and
had been left there when the core holes
were plugged. Here it had rolled about
till the nut had come off, and the bolt or
nut, or both, had worn a hole in the bot-
tom of the bucket. The bolt, having a
head smaller than the nut, had dropped
through the hole, rolled to the bottom of
the pump, and been driven through the
cover by the next downward stroke of
the bucket.

The next case was that of a 42x60-inch
vertical condensing engine, running com-
pounded with a 19x60-inch horizontal
noncondensing engine, the two being
coupled to the same shaft. The speed
was 42 revolutions per minute and a
boiler pressure of 110 pounds per square
inch was carried. Each cylinder had a
short slide valve, the valve chest of the
horizontal engine being on the top of
the cylinder and that of the other en-
gine being on the side facing the crank
shaft. The valves of the latter were
driven by an eccentric keyed to the
crank shaft through a light eccentric
rod, rocker shaft and links below the
engine-room floor. The cylinder was a
plain tube, with a port at each end, to
which the valve chest was bolted. Its
cover and bottom were spigoted, so that
the vertical distance between them meas-
ured on the inside was less than the
distance between the extreme edges of
the ports; therefore, water could not
lie on the bottom of the cylinder without
running into the port. The valve chest
was a large rectangular casting with
flanged openings half way up the right
and left sides, to which the steam pipe
frcm the horizontal cylinder and the ex-
haust pipe to the condenser were bolted.

These openings were about 16 feet above
the water surface of the pond from
which the condenser was supplied. The
air pump, driven in the usual manner,
was 25 inches in diameter by 30 inches
stroke. The condensing water was sup-
plied through about 40 feet of 5-inch
pipe, and there were two injection cocks,
one 3 inches in diameter and the other
4 inches.

During the temporary absence of the
ergineer the fireman noted a change in
the speed of the engines. He found the
engine room full of steam, but was able
to reach and close the stop valve of the
horizontal engine. He then found the
piston rod of the vertical engine discon-
nected from the crosshead, and the cylin-
der fractured nearly all around, close
to the bottom flange. Further examina-
tion showed that the piston-rod cotter,
which was d>l/2\Y^ inches, had been
sheared through, the crank forced about
1 ! _■ inches around the shaft, the rocker
shaft which worked the valves being
twisted and the cylinder bottom and pis-
ton broken. As no mark could be found
on the piston or cylinder cover it was
evident that the damage to the piston-rod
cotter and the cylinder and the shearing
of the keyway on the crank shaft had
been caused by water in the top end of
the cylinder, and that it had happened
just before the crank reached the bottom
center and the piston the end of its up
stroke. It was also clear that the cylin-
der bottom had been fractured by the
impact of the piston, driven down upon
it by the steam pressure, when liberated
from the crosshead. At first it was not
evident where the water had come from,
why there was no dangerous accumula-
tion in the bottom of the cylinder, or
how the twisting of the rocker shaft was
reiated to the other damage. The fol-
lowing conclusions were arrived at by
the insurance company's engineer:

First, a comparison of the volume of
water supplied to the condenser per
stroke, calculated from the temperatures
of the injection and discharge, with the
displacement of the air-pump bucket,
proved that the water could not have
ccme from the condenser. At the normal
speed the displacement of the bucket
was five and three-tenths times the vol-
ume of the water and condensed steam
entering the condenser; consequently, the
air pump would clear the condenser as

March 14. 1911.

PONX

_d of the engines excec

or 7.9 revolutions per minute. The

eman who stopped the engir

n that t: not as low as

s. Therefore, the water came from
her the pipe connecting the two cyl-
or from the boilers. The pipe
is bolted to a nozzle on the left
the valve chest of the high-r
linder, and carried horizontally for a
igth of 10 feet toward the vertical en-
fie, and then upward for 4 feet, cnter-
g the right side of the vsh it of

e latter. It appeared that the water
me from the boiler. The fireman had
n the water nearly up to a full column,
eparatory to shutting down for the
ght. and the boiler had begun to prime.
M water cam- . r had passed

rough the high-pressure cylinder with-
it accumulating enough to cause dam-
;e. and had been carried on to the valve
lest of the other engine, where the
ne and scum carried over inter r
ith the lubrication, causing th<
• and the rocker shaft I
fte effect of this was to lower rJx
vout inch, and to put ncarlv this

nount of lap on the exhaus- • the

p valve, while giving the cxhai
f the bottom valve about the same
nount of lead The port at the bottom
id of the cylinder then rcmair
>t exhaust almost to the end of the
M*n ktroke. but that at the top was
oscd uhile the piston - some 9

the top of the cylinder,
hus. small quantities of water entering
•i bottom of the cylinder could run back
no th aid be blown into the con-

during the do*n stroke, but en-
ring the top could
» the port being closed before the
»n reached it* level The *atcr enr

therefore, remained upon
simulated until its
Dlumc became greater than the clear

then the break o
lc low-prcssi. was opened

was found that the valves and face*
■

that there had be and

it rocker shaft had also I
nee before and at about the same time
f day. appar< <m the

f valve on thi •
I the if the vertical engine

Another b' I by

ater the lot* •

•
-Inch vertical engine T

AM valve che»l of the
in a
hen turnr
hen ran ' and An-

' iwnward to the l
lcn»cr. a conical rrccptj II ca-

Tbe higher of the t*
cngth« of the exhaust t% about

r above the »urf i
rom which the 'in supplv »i«

drawn. The air pump was of the h

>ed the

the

pletc. It appeared probable that the

t had been caused bv the air pump
failing to discharge the

on the
might have occurred in ts

being

.mp
might have been running at a spc

• to keep the ear

while the normal supply of water was
pas* »ugh tf cock, but

■he larg
enter the condc
when the vacuum improved owing to the
utting down the stcan
n the machinery was being
rod, the engineer may have slo -

the air pump before
ng the vacuum in th
The condenser wa^ red with a float

i:ncd to operate a small atm<

vent of the water rising
the normal level, but as the cngi-
- had never seen the

• Jcr;
• the valve, the air enter-
ing was unable to d- ium
before the water reached th<

jompar. ncer called

I to the fact that *atcr entering

a condenser under a vacuum of 12

had a theoretical velocity of about

r second, and an actual veloc-

per second, which

" cnt to carr Mderable quan-

»ater into the condense

afte

the long The best

pra.' he engine I hut-

ting
condensing pin

A jkagc oc-

run-
nin.

on one rod.

rod

H the l«o pttto

IfM and i

■

tssheod McH the rod

larger thar

• .

'he rod tad
bottom tf i probabi

cofTfcru"- fot n bj ' •"* In the rffecitvc
bs connecting rod br the wesr-

•lead socket at the cotter bole. The
jectcd hock iB.

g some
is connecting the from cod of the

rod

• appci

n a new g piece act

■
use of the
fracture could not be determined, but

-■
oa s small

load upon the pistor

as 0700

gleet ol * in er

ing gines upon an old she led to

^ of a bed;

lonzontal -
den '"ur.datioos

for the original engine*
of good ashlar .nng many

stooas bacsme

satu >ftencd

tling took place, esp <bc

baa-
rla*'

•ioa tbc

■

•n-

t of a 'ime

id tbc new
eng cd upon the ol-'

d»i

e obsenred.

■

tad

neither !hc en
-isde
- tearing eat
ic stoaes sad rbe
t »on % ; the totals
cement sad the
redi Nil tbc

t. neltt
bold lag do«a
US la

»upp©ncd
•he bcdptsst tracked
'. i do«n bah aest to the

' Nr ar-ng Th

Oil

tea aa

on rod C

d oa tb

416

POWER

March 14, 1911.

are usually leveled up on small iron
wedges and grouted with cement or fine
concrete. The bearing surfaces' on the
under sides are often not more than 3l/>
or 4 inches wide, and even when kept
dry are insufficient to hold a heavy en-
gine absolutely steady for any length of
time. As soon as motion begins, the ce-
ment is ground away and the wedges be-
come loose. To stop the motion the foun-
dation bolts are tightened, and so the pro-
cess goes on till the bedplate breaks.
When oil reaches the grouting, destruc-
tion is far more rapid. It is good prac-
tice, if wedges are to be used, to have
them machined and of substantial thick-
ness and large area, bedded to machined
surfaces on the under side of the bed-
plate at each foundation bolt. The lower
wedges should be set at the right level in
cement, and the upper lightly driven be-
tween them and the bedplate, when the

latter is in position, on temporary sup-
ports. At the crank end, projections may
be cast on the under side of the bed-
plate to engage in recesses in the con-
crete, to prevent end motion. If wedges
are not relied upon, the bearing surfaces
on the under side of the bedplate must
be broad, so that if the oil softens the
edges of the grouting there may still be
sufficient hard cement between. Footings
at least 8 or 9 inches wide are desirable
with large engines. The foundation bolts
should also be increased in number to
make the bedplate grip the grouting at
as many points as possible. The most
substantial plan, however, is to cover the
concrete where the engine is to rest up-
on it with strong cast-iron plates with
raised facings to receive the planed feet
of the engine bed and raised edges to
.return oil and water.

Corrosion and the accumulation of

scaly deposit in a 100-kilowatt steam tur-
bine caused serious damage to the ma-
chine only five months after a complete
overhauling. The turbine had fifty-four
rows of blades, increasing in diameter
from 6l/2 to \2)/2 inches, and its speed
was 3000 revolutions per minute with a
boiler pressure of 160 pounds per square
inch. All the blades of the first thirteen
rows at the high-pressure end and the
corresponding blades in the casing were
broken off at the roots and crushed into
one mass, which stopped the turbine. In
acidition half the blades in the next eleven
rows were found to have been in con-
tact with the casing, but it was not pos-
sible to determine whether this had hap-
pened before or after the first thirteen
rows had been stripped. The blades of
the high-pressure end were of copper,
brass being used at the low-pressure
end.

Can and Plate Systems of Making Ice

Next in importance to the direct utiliza-
tion of refrigeration, such as for the cool-
ing of perishable products, etc., is that of
artifical ice making. While there are a
number of systems which may in the
future modify present methods, practical-
ly all the ice produced today is made by
either the can or the plate system.

The Can System

In general, the process of manufactur-
ing can ice consists of immersing cans
of water in brine tanks not unlike those
employed for cooling brine for brine-cir-
culating systems. First, the specific heat,
then the latent heat of the water is given
up to the brine which, in turn, passes it
on to the liquid refrigerant, most com-
monly ammonia.

Distilling Apparatus

Since any impurities in solution or sus-
pension in the water fed to the cans are
eventually frozen into the ice, it becomes
necessary to use water as nearly pure as
possible. The purity of ice, however, is
somewhat erroneously judged by its
transparency. Impure ice may be almost
entirely transparent while, on the other
I;and, pure ice, except for the presence of
air which produces whiteness, may be
unsalable because of its opaque appear-
ance. To remove air as well as both
organic and inorganic impurities from the
water, distilling systems are usually em-
ployed in can ice-making plants. As
large quantities of water must be evap-
orated to make the steam necessary for
driving the ammonia compressors and
other machinery of an ice-making plant,
it follows that the boilers and engine
should constitute a part of the water-dis-
tilling system.

Fig. 1 illustrates diagrammatically the
simple or high-pressure system common-

By F. E. Matthews

II h at is meant by "can
ice" and by "plate ice "and
a description of the pro-
cesses involved in their
manufacture. The eco-
nomic phase of ice making
is also touched upon.

ly employed in making can ice. As a
steam boiler is virtually a thermal filter
which separates out, in the form of in-
crustation and sludge, most of the im-
purities brought to it in the feed water,
the water supply for an ice plant should
be selected with particular care, especial-
ly as it often becomes necessary to sup-
ply raw "make-up" water to the storage
tank when the supply of distilled water
luns short.

As shown in the illustration, the ex-
haust steam from the engine driving the
compressor passes first to the grease
separator in which it is freed of a large
part of the entrained lubricating oil by
impinging upon baffle plates. From the
grease separator it passes to the steam
condenser from whence, after being con-
densed, it flows to the reboiler, skimmer
and hot-water storage tank. From the
latter the hot distilled water is allowed
to flow as required into the water
cooler; entering at the bottom and
passing up through a series of pipes it is
here cooled by water flowing down over
the outside of the pipes. From the water
cooler it passes to a charcoal filter or
deodorizer and on through a hose to the
can filler. When frozen the ice is re-
moved from the cans by spraying with

hot water and then gravitates down an
incline into the ice-storage room.

In traversing that part of the system
between the steam condenser and the ice
cans the distilled water, after having been
fieed from air and other gases in the re-
boiler, is not again allowed to come in
contact with the air; the reason for this
is twofold: First, any air entering into
solution in the distilled water will sep-
arate out in the form of minute bubbles
during the freezing process and give the
ice an opaque appearance; second, dis-
tilled water in the presence of air is very
corrosive to iron and should they be al-
lowed to come in contact with any part
of the system not thoroughly protected
by galvanizing, a sufficient amount of iron
would be dissolved to discolor the ice.

Freezing Time Required for Can Ice

With brine at 14 degrees the average
time of freezing different-sized blocks of
can ice is as shown in the following
table:

TIME REQUIRED FOR FREEZING CAN ICE.

eight of

Freezing Time,

Size of Can, Inches.

Ice

Pounds.

Hours.

6x12x26

15 — 25

8x16x32

100

30—50

8x16x42

150

30—50

11x22x32

200

50—72

11x22x44

300

50—72

11x22x57

400

50—72

While no exact rule can be formulated
for expressing the freezing time in terms
of difference in temperature between the
brine and the freezing water in the can,
because of the fact that the heat-trans-
rritting surface of the freezing water is
decreasing and the insulating effect of
the ice forming is increasing; it, never-
theless, has been claimed by some that
the time required for freezing can ice

March 14. 1911.

v ith brine at the usual temperature ral
directly as the square of the thickness
of the cake of . On this basis the
telative time of freezing ti-inch and 11-
inch blocks would to 121. or
allowing 50 hours for the latter, the
former should freeze in 14.9 hoi.

The Plate I<

Vt'here pure water is available the can

em with i: :ing apparatus is

often replaced bj the pla

The important requisite of an ak-

ing system from a commercial standpoint

•> ability to produce marketable
which, unfortunately, ofte. iore

the appearance than upon the
purity of the product. In the can sys-
tem practically all solid impurities are
left behind in the process of distillation,
air and foreign gases being expelled by
violent boiling in the reboilcr. In the
platt :i the keeping of the product

from both solid and gase"

is almost wholh Jcpendcnt upon
the agitation of the freezing water. Snow
may be pure but it is white because of
the presence of a large number of minute
air spa. n the crystals of

Cases, in general, arc soluble in liqu
the degree of solubility var Jcly

with the temperature and pressure; the
higher the pressure and the lower the
perarure, the greater the amount of
gas a liquid will a' In the

zing water, however, the air la driven
"f solution and collects in the I
of little bubbles on the freezing surr
These bubbles will finally be frozen into
the ice if not f

In the manufacture of plate ice the
norganic impurit be

guarded against are the M
which give a r and

.arbonatcs and sulphates of lime and
magnesia which produce a slight cl(
Dees. Unless large quantities of mag-

donate or carbonate
pre present the effects of d
aa well as that

by increased agitation. In the cas.
• cither magnesia
ascd air agitation may tend to in-
sc the d: 'ion through the

■iting of the former and the oxidizing
fie latter. Tl
\omc, however
mechanical for air ag:-
Mechai a plate plant is so .

that the rau uv '.
to be frozen i
rlafcs of sheet metal b thcr

" . main-

tain* mg about the ncccsaa

iffl the water at
Thc«c plate*, which are n
tbar are

•
ng agent, whether brine <>r am-
monia. i« alio gh the

■o 14 inches or The

or ammonia is the off

and ho' immonia i-

ugh the
Iron : and Bos-

watcr. Chains are then fished around the
cake ar. 'rom the tank I

B crane ar ting

deposited to
nto
cakes of 0

of ti ir saw-

lengl and the other crosswise of the

tab:. e of r n from

\ atcr at threnheit with

which it is always the actual

temperature of plate not as low

ss thst of perature of

he temperature

In can kc n .g plants of over tea
id emplo>ing
ginc* of the
pi * ...

am condensers to supply
1 1 txsrs tt i
- n economy where the usual

plo stance, a sou mi ag s luo-

ton ice plant reqi

ton and ■
engine using 30 pound* of
horsepower per hour, the
for the engine would he about
The ■

Tt"

i !

account

.an be
than cai

ii the a,
■

orption of

■

teas heat ■• absorbed
; i
located in the center of the

ice
igh need never be ".

of the

■mm!

happ

ihich micM fT*Ji!»

•f •«ram »
tboataaad poatado
would be woe-
gins employes! o' «be

The nja>

am consort ,-
par horwepower-hoor. tbs
t lbs comprrsaor
»

» c n on t he r
car -ouM •

would coot

.A tSr

418

POWER

March 14, 1911

to employ engines of lower steam con-
sumption results in developing an ice-
making capacity in excess of the amount
of sweet water available. This excess
capacity over that required to freeze the
available distilled water, may be em-
ployed to freeze ice in a plate tank, or
the deficit in sweet water necessary to
supply the can plant may be made up
by means of evaporators.

A combination can and plate plant, de-
signed to satisfy the first of these condi-
tions is illustrated diagrammatically in
Fig. 2. Leaving the ammonia compressor
the gas is first discharged into the two
pressure tanks where any entrained oil
is deposited. From there it passes
through pipe B to the condensers and
after liquefying it flows through pipe D
to the liquid receiver. The line from the
bottom of the liquid receiver branches off,
line F supplying the can plant and ice-
storage room and E supplying the plate
plant. The water forecooler is fed in
series with the plate plant, after passing
through which, the ammonia gas returns
to the compressor.

The circuit traversed by the sweet
water is as follows: The exhaust from
the engine, encountering the back-pres-
sure valve on the main exhaust pipe from
the engine, is diverted through a grease
separator into a steam condenser. The
condensed water then passes through the

the ice cans as required. The water for
the plate plant passes first through the
v, ater filter in the engine room, through
the water forecooler and into the plate

the available sweet water is insufficient.
For simplicity only the distilling part of
the ice-making plant is shown in this il-
lustration.

l^r^'7-

Fig. 3. Vacuum Distilling System

tank. Similarly the air used for agitation
in the plate-ice tank is discharged by
the air compressor through an air-stor-
age tank in the engine room, through

, Exhaust

■ ] ■ ' — ■*

'"'Air P<

E/haust Steam

< Two Pressure Tanks '?■

—■ Separating Tanh\

; ' Two Ammonia Compressors
Air Compressor

The exhaust steam, as before, passes
first through a grease separator, but in
this case it also passes into an evaporator
where the steam must stop, the heat
being carried over by the vapor
to the steam condenser. Assuming
that the engine is running under
18 inches of vacuum, the exhaust from
the low-pressure cylinder will enter the
evaporator at about 168 degrees Fahren-
heit. The steam enters the dead-ended
copper tubes T which extend upward at
a slight angle through the tube sheet into
compartment S. Here it is condensed
by cooling water circulated from the bot-
tom of the evaporator, through the cen-

".'.y^".',r.-y,' ■'■■< — ^ — • 'Jy.yvv /,
■■nln ' ' , ■ <//

■■'■■ ■'?•" ''"•••

-' Drain

"■ ■' " ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ — i T? 7

IIP

Fig. 2. Combined Can and Plate-ice Plant

vacuum reboiler and enters the suction
of pump P which discharges it into the
hot-water storage tank; from here it flows
through a regulating valve through the
water cooler and into the cold-water stor-
age tank from whence it is drawn to fill

the water forecooler and into the plate-ice
tank.

Fig. 3 represents a vacuum-distilling
system, having an evaporator which pro-
vides the second means of maintaining
the full capacity of the ice plant when

trifugal pump, distributing pipe L and
discharge line M. On the condenser side
of the tube sheet a vacuum of from 24
to 26 inches is maintained by the con-
denser and this higher vacuum enables
the heat liberated by the condensation

March 14, 1911.

of every 1.15 pounds of exhaust Mcam

.aporate about one pound of cooling
water. The cooling-wat. »rs are

liquified in the steam condenser. Here

are joined by the condensed
haust steam from the evaporator which
is drawn through pip. the higher

vacuum in the condenser, and also by a
small amount of vapor drawn thr
the vent pipe from the top of the vacuum
reboiler; condensed water from both the

orator and steam condenser being
drawn into the reboiler by the vacuum
maintained in the steam cond The

water from the steam condensed in the
ceils of the reboiler drains into a trap

ided with a float, which as soon as
the water has collected to a certain level,
admits it into the suction line leading
to the I atcr pump Q. This pump

discharges the nto a hot-

v atcr storage tank, from whence it E
through the condensed-water cooler,
odorizcr and condi iter forecooler

to the ice cans. In the reboiler a float
valve controls the operation of the con-
di nscd- water pump, allowing it to draw
water from the reboiler only when it has
accumulated to a predetermined hight.
In the trap from which the water i
in the coils of the reboiU-
drawn, there is a similar float valve or
ing only when there is a certain amount

atcr present. A float valve in the
hot-watt. .:c tank controls the p

Of another valve through which water
from the ammonia condenser pan !'
into a regulating dc\ which op-

erates a butterfly valve in the
water supply line leading to the ice l
and prevents the drawing of water from
the storage tank below a certain k
These precautionary measures arc all

n to prevent the air

Hng th< rilling sys-

tem.

The dcod' no which the su

water is introduced through a strain-

re uniform distribution through the
filter bed. con lin

t'rical shell filled with charcoal

a secot h prcw

of the material from floating and eater
the dischan it the I

of a tin ; .i»» th< he

cut out of the ig. and

iter fed
.inv In sonic
ence of iron salt! in the water mafci

-able to supplement the Jcod>>-
with a sponge filf<

forecoolt -i in tt

consists of an inculalc

stalled over the JistilleJ watci I iter

' from the pao beneath t'
and pa«*c coil

tree*: it then gra\ the

water coil and absorbs heat from

V* the circulating liquid
Is water, it i« impossible

eae be c
ing point the conj j|m>

be coo!-,
the •

ing tanks. The re boiling of the . iter

at a - of

frof

the amount of steam
the r n but also the amount of cool-

emperature
hat of the freezing tank.

'or ih..
»s designed finished nut* and on
men who. it is hoped will a;
advantage*. fini»hed •orkmrn."-

I he Rati hctlc \\ ranch

The h f this wrench I

was en. llcnt

and Boh Compel ngham.

. and ■ . . J the manu-

facture of finished nuts before thr case-
hardene : ^uc. On these

the spanners ithc »rd for the

American wrench » would mar them un-
leee a mechanical I J to the

As at
time I had commenced for

• red in thr
on page I I

"In the -iner

on finished nuts either -he other of

'■as to be c If the

• fit it ;■ bought

• angle .r the ntr

i be entered on. and then the

on alt
If the spanner is a loose fit all the strain
rn on the corn- "ie nut and

•
only aj. .

•
a bearing on three slope
ther a *agon nut and

when brougrr
ingle within ten degree* •■'. tfel .ingle
at which the n \ though

the jaws .. k and strong, a nut

• ftfli

com pass Thla

■rird oat la oil

ne shnr

cil

tntt to us from a
lead It contair.

mine n wh. at pro

- Men

erhatim. o

the machinery of
mills 6 a sed the mills to

wn and men •
con mto the night

in i c the ma,

t occurred 10 p m

yes? ossheed is a short

4 sort of a hinge hclsosjB

the piston of the engine and the shaft

the wheel M hen the c roes head

■ so far toward the

nder on its backward journey th

becomes caught and cannot make its nest

»rd mover

caused yester
r getti lin-

;uum -
the r rose heed to move so far back
that !ged too tight

9 acctdeat of

steam had not been turned off •

nder might

ha\i

is o and 7 bad to

suspend operatior. tfca rest of the

achinists had to work oa

> the aight The aec-

- • , "K CI

laj depennuat sf the Uatvarstr) of
ameag the moist t

* r • * c ggfl

-•* lav

•
and sometimes show 9*t

iu»h as «

of the leaner stread-

«»f local rV.-

420

POWER

March 14, 1911.

Locating a Grounded Arm-
ature Coil
By Francis H. Davies

The location of a grounded coil in the
armature of a direct-current dynamo or
motor may be very simply done by the
following method : The connections should
be made as per the diagram, from which
it will be evident that the field circuit is
entirely disconnected from the armature
and its terminals are connected to a
galvanometer; this should be of a fairly
sensitive type — the ordinary lineman's
instrument will do very well. After mak-
ing this connection the brushes should
be shifted to the position shown. One
of them should be raised clear of the
commutator and the other connected
through a switch to three or four storage-
battery cells; the other terminal of the
battery is grounded on the frame of the

Ground

Connections for Testing

machine. When the switch is closed, cur-
rent will flow through the armature wind-
ing to the core at the grounded point and
the magnetic field generated in the arma-
ture core will give rise to a momentary
induced current in the field winding,
which will produce a kick by the gal-
vanometer. The armature should be ro-
tated step by step and the operation re-
peated as each commutator segment
comes under the brush; when the seg-
ment connected to the grounded coil is
reached, the galvanometer will show no
indication upon closing the switch, or,
at the most, a very slight one. The
reason is, of course, that the current from
the cells then flows through little or none
of the winding, and therefore produces
little or no inductive effect upon the field
winding.

It is important that the brushes should
be rocked into such a position that the
coil connected to the commutator bar
under the brush will be situated right in
the center of the field-magnet pole face,
in order to enhance the inductive effect.
It must, however, be borne in mind that

Especially^

conducted to be of

interest and service to

the men in charge^

of the electrical

equipment

the brush position is not necessarily that
shown in the diagram, which only applies
to the type of armature represented. Gen-
erally speaking, it will be so, but some
machines are built with the commutator
displaced at an angle of about 90 degrees
ahead of the winding in order to make
the brushes easier of access, and in such
cases the correct position will be between
the poles and not opposite the pole-face
center.

A ground will sometimes make itself
apparent upon the surface of the arma-
ture by signs of burning; but if this is
not the case it may be possible to locate
it by applying a current of the full volt-
age of the machine between the com-
mutator and the frame. If the fault is a
bad one, arcing will be either seen or
heard.

The Excitation of Alternators
Working in Parallel

By G. E. Miles

While much has been written on the
subject of the parallel operation of al-
ternators the feature of the adjustment
of excitation does not seem to have re-
ceived much attention. This may be be-
cause the subject is considered so sim-
ple that it deserves little comment. How-
ever that may be, both practical and
theoretical men have fallen down on this
point.

I do not wish to be understood as pos-
ing as an authority on the subject but
think perhaps some of my experiences
and observations along this line may be
of help to others.

A certain company operated two
hydraulic plants situated about two miles
apart, either of which was capable, dur-
ing the season of high water, of carry-
ing the load alone during the morning
"shift." At station No. 1 the voltage was
regulated by hand, but at No. 2, where I
was located, the voltage was controlled
by an automatic regulator. By visiting
back and forth I soon observed that when
the plants were operating in parallel, with

the voltage controlled by the regulator
at No. 2, the voltage at No. 1 was higher
than I had been instructed to carry it by
the man on the opposite shift at that
plant. I also observed that the power
factor was better at station No. 1.

After a few more weeks the water
fell off so that both plants had to be
run in order to carry the load, so an-
other man was put on at No. 1. No. 2
was run with a waterwheel governor and
automatic voltage regulator and took
care of all changes in load and voltage,
while No. 1 was run with a constant
load and with constant excitation. The
new man at No. 1 adjusted the excita-
tion as instructed by the man on the
opposite shift but I found the power
factor very low at No. 2. By comparing
notes over the telephone, the power fac-
tor at No. 1 was found to be high, so I
asked that the excitation there be ad-
justed until the power factors were the
same at both stations.

After a few weeks more I was trans-
ferred to station No. 1, when a discussion
at once arose between the man on the
opposite shift and myself, the other man
insisting that I was using more excita-
tion than was necessary when the plant
had the entire load.

To make sure of my position, I sub-
mitted the question to an authority in
whom I had the greatest confidence, and
was advised that when two machines are
operated in parallel and one of them
takes care of the changes in load and
voltage, the excitation of the other ma-
chine should be such as to make its
current the minimum, which would be
true when the machine took no wattless
current from the system and delivered
none to it. A trial was unnecessary to
convince me that these instructions were
wrong; nevertheless, I resolved on a
trial. As I expected, the power factor
on my machine rose to about 100 while
that at the other plant went below 50.

A short time after making this trial
an occasion arose for carrying the entire
load on station No. 1 for a few hours.
This gave an opportunity for observing
the exciting current required when the
load was all on one machine (the load
was low enough part of the time for
one machine to carry it all) and also the
effect of varying the excitation when it
was necessary to run two machines. I
promptly found that in order to carry the
same load at the same voltage and power
factor it made no difference, as to the
exciting current required, whether a ma-
chine was running alone or in parallel
with another.

March 14. 1911.

From thi- riencc 1

lown as a safe rule that when a!'
tators are running in parallel the ratio
if amperes to kilowatts should be the
ame on both machines, which, of coir

- both machines the same power fac-
or.

U I I E RS
\Ir. Greer* i R< A u ■. ( i invert

I note that Mr. Greer in the January 31
ssue takes exception to my analysis of
.onverter trouble, cjaiming that It

.
passes out or mating

leads ■ -o the point of nega

J potcn-

cor rati.

ided

■

»uld
therefore pass through the armature of
con along the attentat

current , ground poter

to the all ugh

the armatu- 'he generators or the

Jings of the transformers supplying
the -''i rough the

alternating-current leads nearest to the

—~ : — » ■

r— — •

Y A

• ■

• •

oth It ctd'

'■

the
loca

oad of

TV. c loca:

due id a *cr\ am ence of poten-

n the n . crushes of

I and those
fore, rrprcscr-
of ; although the

was probably of a ue.

I l Mr Hint) tha

form of the current in the
current
and

should very m to see an oscillo-

gram taken under these cor. J
Rt

hardly
agree with his statement that "all necev
sar

.
I a- oroe siic and we

sho

•ns as sh<
diagram, reproduced here
as I Assum l has beta

ted so that trouble wtfh

largely in error; also that he takes the

sann

that No. I converter actually "hoggi

the load from Nos. 2 an.:

Mr Creeff further stati Mcr

that "it VM -up I v an exchange

com 1 and the otfJ

II) was car c load

»f both •

to tl' the am-

•

back against the
The fact that the*e ammeters revel
is not proof tha

The diagram Hen

Jam: | I h< •

quite clearly the path *

. as stated by Mr Hat

feed- I thi ugh the

and armatu- and in

•
2 and 3. At stated in n
le and
had nnccted in

have shown thr

pteetafl through the p©«
of Now 2 a*

the an-

>*e familiar with the r

* : rx

f • * the casaMoed *•*

Machine* awd carried f>
he we. !•«

Sr Siifti* BM •• i('-t''

422

POWER

March 14, 1911.

connections that all the positive current
must pass through the armature of No.
2. This is certainly not an ideal condition
for parallel operation.

If Mr. Greer still believes that No. 1
took all the load perhaps he will kindly
explain how the positive current gets
from No. 1 to the west feeder.

If it were possible to operate these ma-
chines in parallel with only the negative
terminal of No. 1 connected on the direct-
current side, using the alternating-current
leads to carry the positive current, why
would it not be well to go a step further
and leave off the negative lead, using the
alternating-current leads for both positive
and negative current?

Lester Mckenney.

Wappingers Falls, N. Y.

[Mr. McKenney's analysis of the oc-
currence is the only plausible one unless
there were other conditions which es-
caped Mr. Greer's notice and were there-
fore not stated. Rotary converters can-
not be paralleled in the accepted sense
through their armature windings, because
of the opposing electromotive forces gen-
erated therein. — Editor.]

Dynamo Burned Out Due to
Misplaced Steam Drains

Several years ago I took charge of a
small central station which ran only dur-
ing the night and furnished light for an
enterprising little borough. The equip-
ment of the plant consisted of a com-
pound-wound single-phase generator, belt
driven by a waterwheel. The flume, a
40-inch steel tube, passed through part
of the plant to the turbine, which had a
draft tube extending down to the tail
race. An auxiliary steam engine and
boiler were housed in a building along-
side of the main power plant; this equip-
ment was used only in cases of emer-
gency, and these would usually happen
in the dead of winter.

I had been warned that I could expect
trouble from this auxiliary equipment
but never had occasion to use it until
one day, a few days before Christmas,
when something went amiss with the tur-
bine. The engineer, a man on the job
about three years previous, started the
fire and got everything in good shape. The
boiler was connected to the engine by an
overhead 5-inch pipe passing through
the partition between the boiler house
and the dynamo room; this pipe had
never been protected by a covering and
naturally there was much condensation.
The cylinder, valve-chamber, exhaust-pipe
and water-separator drains were arranged
to discharge into a terra-cotta pipe laid
underground and emptying into the draft-
tube pit of the waterwheel.

Toward evening the engineer got ready
for the night's run, and, as it was a bitter
cold day, he started to "warm up" the
engine. During this process the steam
escaping through the drains into the

draft-tube pit was forced back into the
engine room by an up draft from the tail
race, and this cold air condensed the
steam, which settled on the dynamo and
turbine; drops of moisture settled even
upon the commutator, field winding and
armature. The generator was wiped as dry
as possible and the engine was started
slowly. As we were obliged to leave the
exhaust-pipe drain open on account of
the condensation caused by its passing
under ground into the boiler house to the
feed-water heater, steam was drawn from
the draft-tube pit up to the generator
and kept it pretty damp. The engine was
very gradually brought up to speed, but
we had to cut down the exciting voltage
on account of excessive sparking at the
rectifying commutator, due to the con-
densation on it. We finally had every-
thing working in good order, apparently,
and brought the generator up to its full
voltage slowly; while looking after the
brushes, however, the armature suddenly
became ablaze. We shut down as quickly
as possible, but found that the whole
armature was damaged; where it was not
burned it was punctured.

All this was caused by placing the
drain pipe wrong, principally to save in
the cost of installation.

The trouble was subsequently abolished
by changing the position of the drain
outlet.

A. J. Althouse.

Birdsboro, Penn.

Exciting an Alternator from
an Arc Dynamo

An electric-lighting and pumping sta-
tion where I was employed a few years
ago was equipped with a 250-horsepower
Corliss engine, a 2000-volt direct-cur-
ient arc-light machine and a 100-kilowatt
1100-volt alternator, both dynamos belt
driven from a line shaft. A shutdown
would cause the city to be thrown com-
pletely in darkness and stop several small
motor-driven factories, which were en-
tirely dependent on the plant for power.

Early one morning the lights in the
plant went out, and the trouble was
finally located in the exciter which sup-
plied current to the field winding of the
alternator. There was a broken wire in
the armature winding and it was so far
in the coil that I cou.d not splice it;
bridging across the commutator bars was
not feasible because the winding was
grounded on the core.

As a last resort, I tried the following
expedient, which worked very well tem-
porarily: After rocking the brushes on
the arc machine as far forward as pos-
sible and blocking them in that position,
I ran two wires from the direct-current
switchboard panel to the exciter ter-
minals on the alternating-current panel,
after disconnecting the exciter leads, and
excited the alternator from the arc-light
machine. The object in blocking the arc
dynamo brushes forward was to prevent

excessive voltage at the terminals of the
alternator field winding.

M. V. Miller.
Fort Snelling, Minn.

Mounting Trolley Wire
Hangers in Mines

I have had a good deal of trouble with
trolley-wire hangers in mines. Expansion
bolts set in the ordinary way will not
"stay put" because the rock soon be-
comes soft and the hanger is then easily
pulled down. Finally I set the bolts in
a mixture of cement and sand, half and
half, enlarging the bolt hole and nearly
filling it with the mixture, then pushing
the bolt up in the hole, tightening the
wedge and cementing it around the bot-
tom. The result is a neat, inexpensive
and permanent job; the hanger bolts do
not pull out any more.

John Cullom.

Collinsville, 111.

Another Armature "Stretcher"

Some time ago I saw a description in
Power of a frame made up of pipe fit-
tings and used for carrying armatures.
I had tried such an arrangement but
had to give it up because I could not use
it to advantage on account of narrow
doorways and short turns and short
flights of steps in the office building
where our plant is.

I then made a pair of stretcher beams
like the accompanying sketch, which I
find to be more convenient. They are
easily and cheaply made, do not take
up much room and can be juggled around

Clamping
Strap-

p2 Strap

A "Stretcher" Bar

short turns. I made my pair out of the
pine cross arm of a telegraph pole, which
I sawed into two lengths, making each
beam 28x5x2".s inches.

I shaved each end down to make a
good hand hold, cut a circular "notch"
across the center of the top edge and
reinforced the bottom edge with a piece
of ^sx2-inch strap iron. The two ->^-inch
bolts which pass through the beam serve
to hold the armature shaft in the cir-
cular opening, a clamping strap being
forced down on the shaft by the thumb
nuts on the through bolts.

I have six armatures, all of the same
size, weighing nearly 400 pounds each,
and with two men and one of the beams
ahead and the same behind we can carry
an armature very comfortably.

T. F McFadden.

Columbus. O.

March 14, 1911.

Gas power Department

Elementary Lecture* on tl

G*i Producer

By Chc:i P. Pa

Usefui •

In one of (he early lectu: m

lined in a general way thai the air

which is admitted to the fuel bed

passed through an 'economizer." which

heats it. The stud;, i c heat has

.•fc yll

Vai

since put the student in position to un-

and more dcfinifel> the advant.i
gained by it

When the gas !< 'he

fuel bed it a rather high tempera-

ture somewhere around
greet ordinarily. This U too high

in a gas engine for 'hat

will be discussed at some future time;

ent it is enough I that

the gas supplied to an engine should he

as cool as possible

If the gas should be cooled entir
•*ie water sprav of the r, a

large part of \\ Me heat in the gas

would be simplv carried off h I
her water and thrown aw
doing this, some of t!
transfer atO-

ind carried hack into
the generator, ther ding the taking

of |u«t that much hear ' he fire

rone to heat d

The saving e" ng the

air with the outgoing gases will be made
clear by considering the details of a
practical case ; »sc a genr

feet 3 Inches In dlamc
Nd» gasifies
coal an hour; also •upp*"**- thai i

/ VCk v (In:
h t>rr/i while in r/n- g

i ntiinc A/x/prtH/ci< er

industry wittbt tn.\i(cd

here ii) .t way (Ii.tr

6c Oaf UB€ topr.u ti

tl nun

contains 78 per cent, of fixed carbon.

Jrogcn and :cnt. of

the remaind g noncom-

■

Furthi sc that carbon monov

th «i6 of the of

on and carbo: le with the re-

maining 12 per cent . that one-fourth of
thi o\\Kcn required f<»r operation is ob-
tained from steam and the remaining
three- fourths from air. The operations
out as foil"* - *

IS'.

The air conta

poi. -utrogen and argon, air being

cent tl
and I sin*

■
■ >m the g. the gas ch.<

s are as folio*

•i

- ;

i *. f <

•» V

B*M

'tough i

res. T'
amount to

300 . IJh 4I.SS0

•iour. bt . ... - 402

red per boar and

the specific heat the

heat : tire

■ •

, ■

the footn.
As the the ga

to the c .

at the he .»
BCOnomiicr 1 41.5541 B.t.u.j ■MMsfJ H
at* ut 4 f that use:

tde-
niar^ tbc air -

■he outgoing gasc* I

be entirely he.t gen-

erator and the heat in the gas would be
thr ■ the s-

The 4 out of

gas by the air

r 4«* the

arc
heat ur

red to raise the temperature
I pound* one degree and

— .f,-

HIT

■

bed «
temperature of ar-

•»l'f> OS l»KI(.'l

■

man.

•r

n the r> .
d « the

am Is mode mi the ajrav

iaa iw — ..

I* w

The generator •»• t
poand* hoi

to -

' -re

424

POWER

March 14, 1911.

of, say, 62 degrees temperature, 37.240
B.t.u. must be supplied per hour, because
it takes 1120 B.t.u. to heat one pound of
water from 62 to 212 degrees and evap-
orate it into steam at atmospheric pres-
sure.

If these 37,240 heat units were not
supplied from the sensible heat of the
gas, they would have to be supplied from
some other source; if they were so sup-
plied, it would cost something to supply
them, whereas they are there in the gas,
ready for use, and would be thrown away
if carried into the scrubber.

Adding this saving of 37,240 heat units

Hopper

WT •

Fig. 3. Vaporizer Built in Top of
Generator

by making steam to the 41,550 units of
sensible heat utilized in heating the air
makes 78,790 heat units per hour
"rescued" from the gas on its way to the
scrubber. This is the equivalent of
78,790

>545

horsepower, theoretically, or nearly 8
actual brake horsepower at the engine.

The Scrubber's Share
When the gas finally reaches the scrub-
bei its temperature will be much below
485 degrees, because of the use of sen-
sible heat in making steam. As just
shown, the total sensible heat used in
heating the air and making the steam
amounts (in ihe assumed example) to
78,790 B.t.u. an hour. The temperature
of the gas will be reduced, therefore, by

degrees, instead of 300 degrees, and if
we consider the effect of radiation it will
be safe to assume a reduction of 570
degrees by the time the gas enters the
scrubber. Its temperature then will be
215 degrees.

Suppose it is desired to cool the gas to
85 degrees in the scrubber. That is a
temperature reduction of

215 — 85 = 130
degrees and it means that the scrubber
water must take 18,005 heat units out of
the gas per hour, because the sensible
heat of the gas per degree* is 138 </S B.t.u.
and the temperature change is 130 de-
grees ;

138^ X 130 = 18,005.
As the gas is to be cooled to 85 de-
grees, the temperature of the water can-
not rise above that point; say it rises
to 82 degrees and is at 62 when it en-
ters. With this rise each pound of water
will absorb 20 heat units and as there
are 18,000 heat units to be absorbed per
hour, there must be

18,000 -r- 20 = 900

pounds of water passed through the
scrubber per hour. In practice, a good
deal more than this would be needed be-
cause it is impossible to make each drop
of the water come into contact with its
share of the gas.

Now, 900 pounds of water is not such
a tremendous lot; at 62 degrees tempera-
ture it is 108 gallons. But suppose for
a moment that the gas had not been
cooled in the economizer and the vaporizer
before reaching the scrubber. Instead
of taking out 18,000 heat units an hour
the scrubber would have to take out that
much plus 78,790, or 96,790 heat units
an hour. This would require about 580
gallons of scrubber water per hour in-
stead of 108 gallons.

It would also be necessary to use a
large scrubber, because efficient contact
could not be obtained between the gas
and five times the normal quantity of
water in the same sized scrubber.

However, this final consideration is of
minor importance, not only because it is
indefinite but because the saving of heat
makes it advisable to preheat the air and
make the required steam with the waste
heat that is in the gas when it leaves
the fuel bed.

Vaporizing in the Ashpit

The figures just given show very
clearly that the practice of making steam
in the ashpit, which is necessary with
some forms of generator, is rather un-
economical. A gas-producer attendant
once told me, with the air of having dis-
covered an important labor-saving fea-
ture in producer operation, that he had
found the vaporizer unnecessary; all he

•Sensible heat per degree is the number of
heal units that must be added to a Riven
quantity of gas to raise its temperature one
degree, or taken from it to lower its tem-
perature one degree.

had to do was to throw a couple of pail-
fuls of water in the ashpit the first thing
in the morning and another one just be-
fore the factory started up after the noon
hour. The heat radiated downward from
the fire zone vaporized the water as the
generator needed steam and he did not
have to bother with regulating a flow of
water to the vaporizer.

This plan of working has only one
merit — it is a little easier to dump bucket-
fuls of water in the ashpit than to ad-
just the small drip in the water supply
to the vaporizer. It entails two serious
disadvantages: waste of heat and irregu-
larity of gas quality.

It might seem that there is no waste of
heat because the "heat is already in the
ashpit," as my operator friend expressed
it. The answer to that is that it is largely
untrue. There is some heat in the ashpit,
of course; it is warmer there than in the
outside atmosphere, but the heat normal-
ly there is not enough to make the steam
required by the generator.

In order to allow enough heat to pass
down from the fire zone to water on the

Water Supply]

Fuel

Reservoir

Ashpit

Fig. 4. Built-in Vaporizer and Exter-
nal Economizer

floor of the ashpit and vaporize as much
as the generator needs, the bed of ashes
beneath the incandescent coal must be
kept thinner than it would otherwise be;
this will permit more heat to escape from
the fire than would get out under proper
conditions. Moreover, with water in the
ashpit the temperature there will be lower
and, consequently, the flow of heat from
the fire into the pit will be greater than
if no water were there. Every heat unit
taken from the fire unnecessarily is
wasted, no matter what you do with it.

The quality of the gas is made irregu-
lar by this practice because more heat
will flow from the fire to the ashpit im-
mediately after ashes are shaken or
poked out of the generator into the pit
than immediately before; consequently,
more hydrogen will be put into the de-
livered gas. As the ash bed beneath the
fire zone increases in thickness, due to-

March 14, 1911.

the combustion of coal, the heat pa and at other ; dotted

trom the tire to the water each minute line*. The tube* pat* alto through a
or hour will gradually decrease, causing on box /?, where the the ga»e» paaa to the li

a dt in the water evaporated and

a result t in the proportion of

hydrogen in the delivered «,.•■

In short, when the fuel bed is poked
down or the grate shaken, the proportion
of hydrogen in the delivered gas
denly increases; then it gradualh

>cs until the next poking or shaking
: >ne. And an increase in ror-

of hydrogen usually means an in-
crease in the proportion of carbon die

a corresponding d in carbon

mo:

The reason for this is that Increai
the proportion of hydrogen can be done
only by increasing the proportion of steam
passed through the fire; this r the

temperatures of both the I
composition zones, and the reduction of
temperature almost alwa the

percentage of carbon monoxide and in-
creases that of carbon d
plained in the last lecture (January 10.
1 ».

An I ngin< th.it ( reneratefl It^

( )w n ( i.is from C'o.il

Anoth le toward ultimate li

plicity has been madv an

has devised an en.
which generates from coal the ga-
which it is driven. The ■ccompan

e heat of aust ga*e» «

Jcr.
The coal t crushed coa

• : ' ':

_ t

• . > t ■

and this i- -he tubes

»hen it reaches those parts
he tubes inclosed in the distill. i
the heat of the exhaust gases
out the lightc m the coal

and these <

small bran and carried to

the ga^ Vhcn the heavier con-

The n-

CS 00044*1*

.i nunv archimedean acr.

ere

■

and the '
I a single

om mom part of ih< engine
%m and the

■ load

The

F^J

«lctche» illuttrate the n tant

constructional ' a »mal!

mental engine that ha« been
•
1 ig I it i

■ ■
■
' ■
'igh the combustin
•

v at ll
lead ft
ga« bo

engine has abtt* f!

srmptlpn c povad of coa! pef

Iho high »r«»

an b«
{■•• I •'■ i' 3 i K^ntc'

rafted to taw*

le and

I to I

• rmlnc *i» Jr. irr

artttiioJ m "■( ptrt >

426

POWER

March 14, 1911.

® J

¥ ill

Pumping Water by Air

A State institution has a well that is
135 feet to the water, and it is 57 feet
to the top of a tank into which the water
is to be delivered. They wished to do
the work by means of air, and had a 15-
horsepower gasolene engine and an 8 and
4 by 8-inch two-stage air compressor set
up, the latter to run 265 feet piston
travel per minute. The engine had a
34-inch pulley and the air compressor
had a 42-inch pulley.

The air line extended down 285 feet
below the water level.

As the engine would not do the work, I
decided, after a night's sleep, to make it
do it. The intake was bushed from 3
to 2 inches and a close nipple and a
globe valve were screwed in the 2-inch
opening. The valve was partly closed and
the trick was done. By opening the
valve, all the air that the engine could
pull could be admitted and all the water
that the 15-horsepower engine could sup-
ply air for was obtained. I think that
if the pulley on the engine were reduced
to 24 inches in diameter, so the intake
could be opened to its full size, better re-
sults might be obtained. Would this be
the means of producing any more water,
the engine running at the same speed?
I would like to hear from those who
have had a similar experience.

H. T. Fryant.

Mobile, Ala.

Distant Control Valves and Oil
Indicating Scheme

During a recent visit to a large pump-
ing station I was much interested in the
arrangement made use of for operating
the service gates and heavy valves in
the neighborhood of the station. Many
of them were of several tons weight and
all were operated by hydraulic pressure
from the engine room.

The water used in the operation of
the gates was pumped to an ordinary
pressure tank where a pressure of 160
pounds per square inch was maintained.
It was admitted to the cylinder at the
top or bottom as desired, by a four-way
valve, which also serves the double pur-
pose of admitting pressure upon the side
of the piston necessary to operate the
gate, and that of opening a means of
escape for the water already contained
in the cylinder to the return tank.

The operator can control the gates with
perfect ease by means of a small hand
lever upon the control board. The op-

P radical

information from the

man on the Job. A letter

cSood enough to print

here will he paid forT'

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

pcsite end of this lever is extended be-
yond the valve stem a few inches and
serves as a pointer indicating upon a

Oil Gage Board

also been worked out. A tail rod is at-
tached to the valve disks in the conduits,
which plays up and down with them.

This rod operates a piston in a small
cylinder of the same length as the large
ones.

This cylinder is filled with oil, also
the pipes which run to the control and
gageboard. There is a gage glass for
each valve where its position is plainly
indicated by the hight of the oil.

When a gate is open, the correspond-
ing oil gage glass will be nearly full.
The tail rod forces the oil up out of the

160 -lb. Pressure Tank

Return Tank

Heavy Service
Gate

Showing Piping of Indicating Device

quadrant which way the four-way valve
is open.

An interesting oil-indicator scheme has

small piston and when it is closed the
conditions are reversed.

A little difficulty was encountered when

March 14. 1911.

the system >t installed, due to air

bubbles in the oil, which would give an
incorrect reading, and some experiment-
ing also had to be done before the proper
oi: displacement could be gotten at to
keep the range of altitude right for the

>es. The first difficulty gradually ad-
f after the ping

uas opened at the highest point. The
second trouble was overcome h> tht
tablishment of a common re for

all the lines at the top of the gageb.

.rves as a sort of an overflow tank
and replcnishcr. The accompan
sketch gives an idea of the scheme. One
pump, pressure tank, return tank,
arc used in common for handling all
heavy gates about the station. Only the
four-way valve and piping for one arc

i n.

■
Philadelphia, Pens.

Redu< ed I )i» harge Pipe In-
creased Motor I < ad

In the plant where I am emp: ere

is an h and 'cam pump and

a 5'..x8 triple-plunger power pump,
driven by a 10-horscpoucr motor,
outfit furnishes the town with water, but
the former pump is used only in case of

Upon taking ch plant I

found the suction at

n diameter. Th argc

im the power pump had I
duci putting a bushing

in the pump flange and one in the main
•h a nipple between.
The old pipe md a new

was put in its place, a;
was found that the motor load vai
duci r hour.

This was partly M
that the

T K 1
Benson, Minn

I rai \ Pipe Repair

A 2-inch c to an o.

tank was alio- freeze and •

iha*

hes. The lanl
at the top of a sir r some 7«) feet

in high!

charge pipe and two I am-

hcating | -in up the Dental ol ihc

a von 'cak

about M ' m the k

•
other pipe* oaaihle to use

the ; emed that

alternative wa» to rone
ing and pull down a long run

on the pipe until the -
r A plec'

36 long. was procured and cut

length

ichalf
sheet rubb.

leak and drawn firmly up
meu j abou-

•pan
Tl

I I
Lamb-

\ v ondenser At i idem

I in a p< for about

The high- and lo
•n rods cans of

on the end of
a rocker beam that - I in the

The \.t . and of-

the pump to hang up whcn<.
thi valve stuc

uum. kc^uevts hjd been made to have
a valve rod connc im. but

tout success.

rider head had been blown out

ked
under a low steam preas de-

cided t<

m over
Bands t
ide of sock a
Iciu und the cylinder orar

the oltcd tic

as shown in |l

vice.

The condc run thi - for

nonth* when t»o new high-

and steam cheat, the valve
ng a rod connc
rraJ -ju.

lar and po>

i crack
is not kno* . lick

• en out. the
■ f pod found broken

and a ;

f tke ring

•rn thin. The thin

of the broken ring extending over

•t had become « edged

of the

of t soon a

a Pc on because a

wall had been disco*
a hole to i

t the n< .
■ on and the n

« be a

hoodoc- :■> ihc ['»•• •••.ng ;■• t% j<-»c~

>c*ed en one side
«J to he aaade and

428

POWER

March 14, 1911.

Manhole Gaskets

Perhaps my method of putting man-
hole gaskets on manhole plates will be
of interest. I take any good make of
?s-inch round gaskets for the manhole,
but, before using, the plate is cleaned
with a sharp tool, and a mixture of either
red or white lead and boiled linseed oil
with a consistency of a thick paint is
applied to cleaned surface. The gasket
is cut to the proper length and the lead
tube inserted in both ends and the joint
taped.

Then a coating of graphite and cyl-
inder oil is applied on the exposed side
of the gasket and the plate is then placed
in position in the manhole.

Before removing the plate again, I
take a sharp tool and mark it so as to
always replace it in the same position.

When removing the plate the gasket
will stick to it, and it is only necessary
to trim off the overhanging parts of the
gaskets and apply a coating of graphite
and cylinder oil before replacing it.

I have used this method for many years
with success and have used the same
gasket twenty times or more, without
leakage, before replacing with a new
gasket.

E. L. Morris.

Salem, Va.

Boiler Setting

Perhaps a job of repair work which
was recently done on the brick settings
of some horizontal tubular boilers may
be of interest. There were four 5x18-
foot horizontal return-tubular boilers, set
in batteries of two, each boiler supported
by lugs resting on wall plates in the
usual way.

For some reason the walls were never
properly built, the furnaces having been
made with thirteen courses of firebricks
on the side walls before any headers were
reached, and the bridgewalls had been
faced with bricks laid flatwise to the
grate surface. The side walls of the
combustion chambers were laid up with
common red brick, the joints being from
Yi to V\ inch thick, and considerable lime
had been used in the mortar. Further,
from twelve to fourteen courses of bricks
had been laid up before any headers were
tied into the wall. As a result the mortar
worked out of the walls and the heat
caused the walls to bulge in about 6
or 7 inches, and one side wall fell into
the combustion chamber before the boiler
could be laid off for repairs.

The furnaces were first repaired by
taking down the wall and rebuilding the
lining, cutting in a course of headers at
the sixth course above the grates and
using a good grade of firebrick, and fire
clay so thin that it could be put on very
thin, which allowed the bricks to come
practically brick to brick, only clay

enough being used to fill in the uneven-
ness of the bricks.

The rear wall was quite another propo-
sition, as it was not advisable to tear
down the whole of the wall if it could be
avoided, although that was what I recom-
mended be done and an entire firebrick
wall be built in its place.

The combustion chamber of these boil-
ers had been carried down to within about
eight inches of the ashpit level as there
were many reasons for not entirely re-
building the wall. As much of the face
of the wall as was deemed safe was
removed, after the boiler had been blocked
up to prevent accident, and at the bottom
of the combustion chamber the wall
was brought out 14 inches and then built
up to a hight nearly to the lugs and
under a course of headers, above which
the wall was sound. This wall was
stepped in about one-quarter inch
for each course and was all of fire-
brick, laid close together and headers
every fifth course. The old red bricks
were used as backing to the firebricks.
These walls were carried from the bridge-
wall back to the rear wall on all four
boilers.

in most cases for soft coal. From my
observation a 72-inch boiler should be
set at least 40 inches if not 48 inches
above the grate bars, and plenty of room
left for the combustion of the gases.

One experience I had some few years
ago. on some large boilers which were
set high, has convinced me that any en-
gineer having the matter of setting new
boilers in hand can do no better than
by setting them high above the grates for
soft coal, with good, thick walls and
headers every fifth or sixth course, thin
joints on the outside walls, all firebrick
surfaces practically rubbed together, a
low bridgewall and plenty of room be-
tween the rear wall and the rear head
of the boiler. The first cost may be a lit-
tle more, but it will be found a first-
class investment.

William S. Trofatter.

Boston, Mass.

Starting a Plunger

An old, rusty steamboat doctor had
been idle for over a year, and the plun-
gers were stuck tight.

Every available suggestion was tried

*m$^

••&

mwj

Condition of the Old Furnace

The bridgewalls were taken down far
enough to allow firebricks to be set in
edgewise and was lowered 4 inches, so
that it is now 13 inches from the boiler
shell, whereas, before it was but 9 inches.
The changes can perhaps be better un-
derstood by referring to the right-hand
view, which shows the side walls as they
are at present.

These boilers steam much easier than
before and lowering the bridgewall has
increased the draft considerably. As the
center wall has a batter on both sides,
built entirely of firebrick, it is expected
that these repairs to the combustion-
chamber walls are good for the life of
the boilers, and so far the results have
been better than was expected.

Return-tubular boilers are set too low

How the New Furnace was Bricked

but it would not "break loose" even with
a heavy leverage upon the flywheel, and
even coal oil had not touched every part
of the surfaces in contact, though a large
quantity had disappeared.

Someone tucked some oily waste around
the top of the plunger and then set fire
to it, which was followed by an ex-
plosion. No damage was done and the
plunger was loosened.

The same scheme was carried out on
the other plunger, but less oil was used
and the waste was put in and set on fire
before much oil had time to soak down.

This method of loosening a pump
plunger is not to be recommended, and
is more or less dangerous.

Lloyd V. Beets.

Nashville, Tenn.

March 14, 1911.

43*

E rp insion Vafo

Of late several letters have appeared
in Poutk under the above head. Some
of the writers seem to be under the im-
pression that engineers apply the -
pansion to the feed i

through ignorance of the principles of
aeration, but that is not the case,
^ct the term from the builders of am-
monia valves and • and the use of
no more incorrect than the use of
terms pansion coil" or
"flooded system."

R
I

Blnuntf Piping

In the December 2
Hamilton d J the blowoff ai

I for his boiler. O. B. Critchlo-
thc January 24 issue crit claim-

thai it is in no wa\ satisfa
him. He thinks that all of the circulation
Id be due to the condensation in the
•trail riser, which would be of no prac
lical value. I think that he is in c
m my ncc thi

names
r inspector*.

i
Mr....'. . 1

The B ncfil of Oi . inization

I btvt ncen fo:

on engineer*' wages as

ir wages will nc
unless «c all join and form ■
miiiic kind, ai
if an r
pay. no matter hot* good a man he

r will an't

c wage
can get someone that
a lit-

g to be
of handling n

a\e been h I
pany for the la
been engln-

hnrsep

I havr alt

cr that I am won <mm

'»e men
nlng one machine
.t. thrn wbm
snoot blame

I .'anient.

■

/ debate upot

or/.//s \sfiu h }
J in prt

e engineers' fault said

before. r and form

an in demand

en
(ARLES Go:
Air

l round Pij Pi to tion

g seen several art
on und

ut the accomp
the ■ h good

to the pr< ;

the bos and a
leak occtt thr icoonaciad

at both ends and thrr

me end ao .

m ca*i!> r
again aee the
and searching (or the

time lost in rep!*, r r •

coet of

*nd the
be din can he

1. %

xbort
1 fin-

1 cnginei

pr«

and re*

sfir J

t»\ himself

naaai I" Urn

>perat<

O L

of thr

c one I to

■ui J be and learn the caaae of the

■

co not

turn »pj r at ttir «iJc» mav he nllrj . • The TouMc MOefAod |

. good " * (** haho* k* ,hl

ie pip em i«ppart«d mm a

•on ae

>ehe ceaaeetlaa

- eeo the tv+ k c i ' »he

•Ion ot

■

the •© Of i maWKUWK^KMMMMWKM

fthookl ten ml la the ai

<•
pe eae of Fee*

430

POWER

March 14, 1911.

relating to the Orsat apparatus, as we
had the same trouble recently in an-
alyzing producer gas. In all previous tests
we had obtained only a trace of oxygen,
generally none. All at once we began to
get anywhere from 4 to 1 1 per cent. The
action described in the editorial was all
there. We thought that the new reagent
was at fault and emptied it out of the
oxygen pipette at which time we found
that one of the little glass tubes had
slipped down into the neck of the pipette.
We got all of the tubes up into the body
of the pipette, put the reagent back, made
ar analysis and the percentages ran about
as they should.

J. O. Benefiel.

Anderson, Ind.

Capacity of Refrigerating
Plant

The article under the above in the
February 21 issue contains errors.
The total heat transmission,

3.43 X 484 X 55 = 91,307 B.t.u.,
not 91,770.

After having ascertained the number
of B.t.u. to be abstracted it is useless,
and not customary, to convert this quan-
tity into "pounds" (ice-melting effect),
because in dividing B.t.u. by 288,000 the
capacity of the compressor in tons re-
frigeration per 24 hours is obtained di-
rectly. For 12 hours' run simply use
144,000 as the divisor.

The temperature of ammonia evap-
orating under a back pressure of 27
pounds gage is 14 degrees Fahrenheit. As
the room temperature is to be 35 degrees,
the difference will average 21 degrees. A
lineal foot of 1^-inch direct-expansion
pipe will abstract between 9.6 and 13.7,
say on the average 12, B.t.u. per 12 hours
for each degree difference; hence, in our
case 252 B.t.u. For 12 hours' run we,
therefore, require only
91,770 -f- 252 = 364 lineal feet of pipe,

not 3500 or 4000 feet as was given. With
3500 feet of piping properly distributed
there would be absolutely no storage
space left in the size of refrigerator
under consideration.

To operate for only 6 hours continuous-
ly is bad practice, because of the in-
cidental fluctuating temperatures which
are injurious to the goods stored, their
temperature having to be reduced to be-
low 35 degrees in order to counteract
excessive temperature rise during the 18-
hour period of shutdown. The proper
way then is to use brine-storage tanks
which continue to refrigerate after the
machine is stopped. When, however, ex-
pansion pipes only are employed, the ma-
chine should be run mornings and even-
ings. With but 6 hours' continuous op-
eration, provided the goods can be cooled
down in so short a time, we require not
only twice the amount of piping needed

with 12 hours' run but rather more, say
800 feet (as against 6400 feet) because
toward the end the temperature differ-
ence will be small'. Rather than crowd
in the 800 feet of pipe, the machine
should be proportioned to do its work
with ammonia gas at some temperature
lower than 14 degrees.

One receives the impression from the
article that for 6 hours' run less than
double the amount of piping needed for
12 hours is sufficient, while, as shown
above, more than the double amount is
required, at the same back pressure.

Charles H. Herter.

New York City.

Homemade Trap

I saw in the January 31 issue of Power
a description of a homemade steam trap,
by George J. Little. I have had a good
deal of experience with traps of the
same general type, and find that they
give excellent service. They can be so
constructed that there is practically no
loss of steam. The outlets from all of
our traps of this kind are exposed; in
operation there is a flow of water, then a
barely perceptible puff of steam which
instantly stops. Good satisfaction may be
secured by making the brass pipe from
18 to 24 inches long. This allows a suffi-

■-.-<~v— . i , ^ *r V *-"

-V-a-V . i i.'.i h i ri i ii

POWCR.

A Homemade Trap

cient movement for satisfactory opera-
tion.

The construction of the traps which
we make is shown in the accompanying
figure. The pipe A is of brass, the size
depending on the amount of water to be
handled. This pipe is threaded on both
ends. One end screws into the half B of
a ground brass union, the other into the
reducing coupling /. Enough thread is
cut on. this end to allow for a connection
to the system to be drained. The coupling,
in turn, goes onto the piece of iron pipe
H which is large enough to contain the
two parts of the union. On the other end
of the iron pipe is a tee G, with its side
outlet connected to the discharge for the
water. Screwed into this tee is a re-
ducing bushing F, through which passes
the solid rod D, with a squared outer end,
connected to the other half C of the
union. This rod affords a very easy
method of adjusting the relative posi-
tions of the two parts of the union.

The advantages of this trap are its
uniform reliability, ease of adjustment
to prevent loss of steam, and the sim-
plicity of its construction.

J. F. Mo WAT.

Joliet, 111.

Vacuum for Reciprocating
Engines

I cannot but feel a little sorry for the
young engineer who learned some facts
about steam distribution in engines and
then lost confidence in his knowledge
when confronted with the arguments of
John H. Ryan, as presented in Power
for January 31. It seems hardly pos-
sible that the young man was consider-
ing the change of the low-pressure cyl-
inder to permit of expansion clear down
to 28 inches vacuum — producing a sharp
point on the indicator diagram. The 36-
inch low-pressure cylinder of the engine
(an 18 and 36 by 48) would probably
be operated with a terminal pressure of
from seven to ten pounds absolute, ac-
cording to load. An improvement in the
vacuum would not imply an increase in
cylinder dimensions, but only a little
greater drop at the end of the diagram.

I am ready to credit the young man's
next statement, that a well designed new
engine in the same town was being op-
erated with 28 inches of vacuum. His
instructor's bet — that indicator diagrams
from that engine would show the ex-
haust valves opening early in the stroke,
with the cylinder pressure falling to the
exhaust back pressure (28 inches of vac-
uum) by the end of the stroke — was
safe. What well designed engine would
be operated otherwise than with the ex-
haust valves opening early enough so
that the forward-pressure line would fall
to the back-pressure line at the end of
the stroke, or very shortly after? A
later opening of the exhaust valves would
cause what every engineer knows as a
"toe" on the end of the diagram.

The fact is, the young student was
right in principle, but perhaps failed to
make sufficient drawback allowances
when estimating the saving to be realized
by the proposed condenser improvements.
He was right in believing that a pound
pressure removed from the front of the
piston is equal to a pound applied to the
back. He was also right in suggesting
a larger air pump for a higher vacuum
as a means of increasing the economy of
the plant. The larger pump would have
to handle tv/ice the quantity of entrained
air and noncondensable gases, not twice
the volume of vapor or steam, when the
vacuum increases from 26 to 28 inches,
and the volume of the air would, of
course, be much less than the total vol-
ume of the vapor exhausted from the
engine into the condenser, therefore,
much less than 60 additional cubic feet
volume per pound of steam, upon in-
creasing the vacuum from 26 to 28 inches.
Air-pump operation costs the same,
whether the steam comes from cylinders
or turbines; why use 28 inches vacuum
on a turbine, if the cost to produce the
higher vacuum is as much as the gain?

In regard to cylinder cooling and the
consequent initial condensation, the ter-

March 14, 1911.

W i R

minal pressure due to the expansion of
the- steam in the cylinder has more ef-
fect than has any subsequent terminal
"arop" or free expansion of the exhaust
into the condenser. If the compound en-
gine of this argument were operating with
a mean effective pressure, referred to
the low-pressure cylinder, of 40 pounds,
the removal of 2 pounds back pressure,
by increasing the vacuum from 24 to 28
inches, would make it necessary to cut
off enough earlier to reduce the average
forward pressure by 2 pounds in i
to keep the same area in the indicator
diagram. This indicates, roughly, a sav-
ing of 2 40 or 1 20 of the steam, against
which there would be some increased
losses, so that the full 5 per cent, saving
would not be realized; but as large com-
pound engines often operate on lower
mean effective pressure than 40 pou
I am not convinced that the ambitious
young engineer was all wrong in cxpect-
inj- to save enough coal to justify a bet-
ter vacuum than 24 inches.

S. H. Bunnell
New York City.

It looks to me. after reading J. H.
Ryan's article in the Januar
that he tried hard to throw dust in the
young refrigerating engineer's eyes con-
cerning this low-vacuum theory for re-
ciprocating engines. I believe that the
young fellow knew better but had not the
argumentative tact necessary to pin Mr
in.
Of course l do not believe rhat 28
inches of vacuum makes for cconon

size of engine, but neither do I be-
it would prove economical were the
cylinder twice as large What has the
of the low-pressure cylinder to do
with the degree of vacuum attainable
or maintainable by the condct I al-

I thought that MM deration of the
power required to Jnsc the air pump and
amount of heat to be supplied to the
feed water by the pnmar\ heater deter-
mined the economical degree of vacuum,
! there »i>> sufficient cooling
water to be had. During my experience
with a number of compound engine* of
cMffcren: clinder r was

able to take a diagram where the low-
am cxpan.l e tempera-
ture of the vacuum, before the exhaust
valve opened There? I Mr R

all that
talk about the expansion law* of gases,
ard think the young fellow aval-

lowed such statement* that r

re a flO-inch and

Inches of \acti I d all those

engineer* who operate a co
gine. having a low-pre**t

riches think on reading the • •
MM that 21 inches of \acuum i» ill
should carry if thr J run their en-

gine to the bc«t ad\antak;

In one paragraph n allows

something sen- cn he »■

mit that anyone could gel 28 or more

uum if he had water

That is iu*t what the young

engineer was after, the very thing that

c ques-
tion of obtaining more and cooler water,
•ems to me that he 1 procct

truci how the intcre-
the initia! i dollars

and .r gain resuln

an increase of th Instead of

'hat. ho mc wan- ^er that the

exhaus- of the cotton-mill engine

n for release before the piston rea.
the end of the stroki • course, the

ig engine^ not take him up.

Further on hi *ou!d

probably be more than six pounds ab-
solute ; in the low-pressure
inder when the exhau- opened and

rJ»S nig-
enough k to keep

Beside"* the man who docs not know.

a "boo: ' mc most

dangerous that can be employed in a

I remember s esse whe-

> -speed engine pal out of

miss ton on sccour night engineer

who would "bo

■r all bands, getting those
gines into ■ man bad

been in the ha
then depending upon an assist .<

through. Because he
stsistam the mar.

room at hit post and away went the en-
giru -be manageme

a higher-priced and more reliable mam.

C R Met.

Baltim.

all this heat uould rx to the it Of I nit I

con J when

was car i the cotton-mill engine.

Now. would there be any less heat re-
jected if 21 inches was the rate of vac-
uum cat it common sense to
assume that the higher the vacuum the
higher the terminal pressure'-' To-
tlu end of the article he state*. "Rc-

inning with com-
plete expansion to a high vacuum do not
show as good be-

>c the loss from t( Jcr conden-

sation is high." meaning tht rom

what can incd from preceding

par.; that most <

takes place in the low-preasu
if a fair vacuum is maintair J

cxampS pound*

\cr pressure. I »ould like to a*k in

ndensa-
in the following case The high.
astumi- . ommon absolute pressure

of ' ; rc»»ur

30 ;

an
It

' ■

>vctweea
the

Presuming he cor-

•i. when considering the question.

Or . the nc

that someone is producing a kilo*
hour on some- pounds of

coat. I! pleasure

that I read the editorial under the above

cb to .
the coal consumption
is to pounds of coal

h moor
the qu.: current used by the c

are SOOO tons

rounds per mm of coal In the

bunker* at the first of I

are received during the
and if 40f> cnd

of the vident that IftjOOO

tons (gn.000 pounds, of cosl I

tors Is 9.000.000 kilo.
nil

, •

JM<-» % .. . '

that of

ar.

in t Issue Is one of has

of « n a* the quoted sd

r ..ponsrKc f«S mSCl »a»te and MMMH

>tt sin*
one I rsdc men were

d thr coa

I tether jp ■

- • • - --t machine*
our on 15 pounj<
stoum. that another uses Id pounds and

'40- bile i
units use 17 poundw V

Of v »l

432

POWER

March 14, 1911.

use nearly twice as much circulating
water as the reciprocating engine and,
hence, considerably more power for con-
densing purposes. Also, as it is essential
that a high vacuum be maintained for the
turbine, the condenser temperature is
usually as close as possible to 70 de-
grees. On the other hand, with the re-
ciprocating unit no undue alarm is caused
if the condenser temperature is as high
as 95 degrees. Roughly, this means 25
B.t.u. per pound to the good when it
comes to making a pound of steam from
the condensate.

Although I have transposed a few of the
sizes in the foregoing, the averages and
rates are the same as. those obtained in
a plant with which I was connected. It
may be interesting to learn how closely
the monthly overall plant results compare
with individual test results.

Suppose that two 5000-kilowatt ma-
chines put out 4,500,000 kilowatt-hours
per month at the rate of 15 pounds of
steam per kilowatt-hour. This, based
on seven pounds evaporation per pound
of coal, would seem to require 4815 tons
of coal.

Let the 5000-kilowatt machine with a
16-pound rate put out 2,700,000 kilowatt-
hours. This would indicate the consump-
tion of 3037 tons of coal. Then, con-
sider that the four units with a 17-pound
rate have a total monthly output of
4,000,000 kilowatt-hours. These would
apparently require, then, 4840 tons of
coal and the total for all of the ma-
chines would appear to be 12,692 tons.
As a matter of fact, in a plant containing
machines of these sizes the coal con-
sumed per month would amount to very
nearly 20,000 tons.

If the current used by the auxiliaries
equaled 200,000 kilowatt-hours, the actual
coal consumed would amount to 3.63
pounds per kilowatt-hour delivered to
the line.

One naturally asks what causes such
a large discrepancy. Besides the steam-
driven auxiliaries there are the peak
loads, and peak loads are not money
makers by a long shot.

In a plant of the size under discussion
there would be needed about 40 boilers
of 600 horsepower capacity each. The
maximum load would have to be carried
on about 38 boilers, two necessarily be-
ing down for cleaning. The peak would
probably amount to about 33,000 kilo-
watts. The smallest load would prob-
ably be 4000 kilowatts and the morning
load would run about 8000 kilowatts less
than the evening load. The load during
the middle of the day would probably
average about 17,000 kilowatts. At the
usual rating of 700 kilowatts per boiler,
there would be required 33 or 34 boilers
in the morning and about 24 during the
day. Thus, some of the boilers are banked
twice each 24 hours and this necessarily
entails quite a loss.

To sum up, the editorial states that

unit tests are more common than plant
tests. This is true to a certain extent,
but if every engineer keeps a monthly
report, as he should do, he has virtually
a plant test each month and it is the only
true test, for the fact remains that the
only true way to figure plant economy
is to find out what it will do month after
month and not during few hours of
frenzied effort to lower the world's rec-
ord for steam consumption. A plant is
not run under those conditions day after
day. If the right sort of a record is
kept, one can tell at the end of each
month wherein the efficiency has dropped,
whether it be waste, oil, machine supplies,
low feed temperature or any other item
used day after day.

L. H. Edwards.
Kittanning, Penn.

Compound Engine Pro-
portions

Referring to Mr. Cassidy's criticism
in the January 31 issue of my article on
"Compound Engine Proportions," which
appeared in the issue of November 29
last, the first point of misunderstanding
is due to a typographical error. Where
an engine operates against back pres-
sure, the mean effective pressure, of
course, will be reduced and not increased.

Relative to the next point, which per-
tains to terminal pressure, this may be
made somewhat clearer as follows:

Assuming that an engine is cutting off
at one-quarter stroke in the high-pres-
sure cylinder with a 4-to-l ratio, the
number of expansions will then be 16,
neglecting cylinder clearance. Now, the
terminal pressure obtained in the low-
pressure cylinder is dependent upon this
ratio of expansion and the initial pres-
sure in the high-pressure cylinder; that
is, with 16 expansions and a known
steam pressure a certain terminal pres-
sure will result; thus it is a compara-
tively easy matter to calculate, at least
approximately. If, now, with this same
engine the size of the high-pressure cyl-
inder is reduced, the cylinder ratio is
increased. If the number of expansions
or the steam pressure is not changed,
there will be no change in the terminal
pressure. By changing the high-pressure
cylinder only the cylinder ratio and the
point of cutoff in the high-pressure cyl-
inder are changed.

In connection with the example worked
cut in the article of an engine having a
5-to-l ratio and a cutoff of 0.275, it is
true that in the case of an engine pro-
portioned with a high cylinder ratio there
is some drop in pressure at the end of
expansion in the high-pressure cylinder,
or, in other words, there is expansion
through the receiver as Mr. Cassidy
points out. But, tests show without ques-
tion that up to a certain point, high-cyl-
inder ratio is conducive to economy; that
is, the benefit obtained by additional ex-

pansion secured by increased cylinder
ratio more than offsets any loss due to
expansion through the receiver. Some
may say that the drop at the end of ex-
pansion in the high-pressure cylinder can
be reduced by shortening the low-pres-
sure cutoff, but when this is done the
condensation in the low-pressure cylin-
der is increased and matters are not
helped. It is, therefore, found in the
crse of an engine designed with a high
cylinder ratio that it is best to divide the
load about equally between the two cyl-
inders; when this is done some drop will
be obtained at the end of expansion in
the high-pressure cylinder.

Relative to the next point: With an
engine with cylinders 20 and 40 inches
in diameter, cutting off at 0.2 of the
stroke in the high-pressure cylinder, I
would say that in the case of the aver-
age engine working, say, with 150
pounds steam pressure, condensing, it
would improve the economy slightly to
reduce the high-pressure cylinder to 18
inches in diameter. Theoretically, of
course, there should be no change in
economy since no change has been made
in the steam pressure or the number of
expansions, but when the engine is cut-
ting off at only 0.2 of the stroke there
is excessive cylinder condensation be-
cause this cutoff is somewhat earlier than
is best for producing the most economical
results. Therefore, the condensation
iosses would be reduced by reducing the
diameter of the high-pressure cylinder.

I would like to add that in the article
under discussion it was not my intention
to give the student of engineering a com-
plete treatise on compound engines and
the rules for proportioning them, but
lo bring out certain points which it has
been found are not always understood
by engineers. The article and the dia-
grams were rather intended for those
who have had some experience in de-
signing engines — the diagrams having
been found useful in making determina-
tions of cutoffs, cylinder ratios and mean
effective pressures rapidly without any
calculations whatsoever. The results
given in the diagrams have been checked
up with a large number of indicator dia-
grams taken from a variety of engines
and found to be very close to the re-
sults actually secured.

Alwin Hofmann.

New York City.

Consul Albert Halstead, of Birming-
ham, learns that there are now 80 plants
in the United Kingdom for the conver-
sion of garbage of cities into electric
power, and that they are increasing at
the rate of 20 a year. An English me-
chanical engineer calculates that there is
a long ton of refuse for every 1000 in-
habitants, equal to about 300 pounds of
steam per hour for nine hours per day,
if destroyed in the properly designed
destructor.

March 14. 1911.

Hill Publishmj ipany

U» Ml 1 .«»
r 4** l-i. t* u :i — to. rlit, » » '. t.

ncoMMrtljr f

Hi i Km* r4 tt* r« In I * r _l j. 1 If ri t a 1 n I ~ i • vmiim

'.CB.

Cable adtfiaaa. • JT.

Burin** Telnn.

Mayor ( »a\ nor's Attitin

i li:> i I \ i

laity, r

Mid to be the oldest
leers' i ad-

-cd a set of resolutions to M.
tor calling for an investigation into

and thi >n of cent *ion

Although nine months h
elapsed, there have been r
of a *i the matter emanating from

the city hall, nor has the commu-
been ackno
the mayor has wilful

utions but rather are of the opinion
that, in the - I official

importance has been overlooked; or ;
haps they have been relegated to the care
•lir.au- who lacks both the
-— ______________--=============== interest and the authority to take action

the Huseau of

c lontenl

to investigating and remedying the ah
1 and mismanageme- ifTaira. has

.ind
is about to make a report upon its find-
It would vcm to be good form.

ng carried on
1 , and at he has an inter

• so important I 'arc

i =========

lentifu M mcnl in

! n

in an

Just 4r interest a-

ni mag..

n and

• c man.

crson.

i *Afikp a nit nltk i

i:«|>an>l n \ i llli.v.ff I'lplii

' ••iopon»«1 •" n t I « <• I"' t*"f

l ' ■ i|i

fulness ■ not a

.il panacea and
all con.1

i| ,

A ett hi

•he rer<

ontekk «r •' ■ ' i" educator ■%•

rfMi the

■taadf I >fa business n

Cooke
app'

«c wort which cannot come under
the ordinar >f business, much lesa

f modern men.
ment.

It a bold

ment to ness standards to the

<>« psychological r
the college ta Some still

bolder spirit i amt

star • of an episcopal

diocese or a presr
Cons;

Cooke has done |

most pan. he has i -.self to the

mat

the put >f sup;

.
rooms .t

fe grou-

When he
fie!.' nstroction and of

cJuj!'!"!1 *••{■••. he tread* ra"-cr
J occasion*

student hour it net oi
inal with I as been need

mar omparisoo

is r
elenev Let appose

' suppose that lb
itencie* of the time require en ir

men h
thirty Accordr | I ' u si news stand*

ning <m
more r* ' •;-..'■ -'c »a~-vc

more cftV c' I ri>rr- an rju.^om:
The employment of tonctkmnl

the rr
■be collect Is desirable NM

adnata
hinC or tne control I

ck"
enV

»f a *•'

ien or t

' Ian re mine •' I

434

POWER

March 14, 1911.

to have a decided influence in the ad-
ministration of colleges and universities.
He should be met and welcomed in the
same spirit in which he writes. Such
sarcastic and ill-tempered comment as
comes from some educators is childish
and out of place.

As long as educational institutions look
to the taxpayers and to private benevo-
lence for support, they are open to the
inspection and criticism of the layman.
The methods employed in educating the
youth of the land are of interest to all,
outside as well as in, and are no more
exempt from investigation than other
public utilities. Publicity is wholesome
for colleges as for municipalities or cor-
porations, and the surest way to meet and
to disarm unfavorable criticism is to
throw all debatable subjects open to
frank and free discussion.

Our educational institutions, like our
religious ones, cannot afford to take an
attitude of superiority to the rest of man-
kind but must be prepared to defend
themselves against any accusations of
neglect or inefficiency.

Neglecting Opportunities

A certain class of engineers are seem-
ingly imbued with the idea that if a piece
of apparatus will operate something
after the manner intended, there is no
necessity of giving it further attention.

Getting after a repair job "as soon as
there is time" is what some engineers
say that they are going to do, but they
directly proceed to waste more time than
would have been necessary to put the
defective apparatus into proper condition.

"I am going to fix it next Sunday when
the plant is shut down" is what another
says. "Then I can take all the time nec-
essary and do a good job." But he does
nothing of the kind.

"It is working, so what is the use of
meddling with it and perhaps make mat-
ters worse," says another.

But the makers of such statements
know that they are offered merely as ex-
cuses for failing to do duties that should
be performed.

Any piece of apparatus that requires
repairs should be attended to at once.
Never mind whether it is convenient and
agreeable or not. The main thing is to
eliminate the defect so that the device
will operate as it was intended to, when
built.

How "penny wise and pound foolish"
for an engineer to allow two or more
tubes to leak in the rear head of a
boiler, when they could be made tight in
a short time with the boiler cold and
the water run out.

How wasteful for an engineer to allow
the valves of an engine to continue to
operate when improperly adjusted, just
because he thinks he does not have time
to attend to them. Many times one is
led to believe that failure to adjust valves

properly is due to a lack of knowledge
of how to do the work, rather than be-
cause of lack of time.

Putting sundry repair jobs off until
Sunday is bad practice, not only because
a man gets into the habit of putting off
things, but because it makes him spend
a day doing the same kind of work
seven days a week when he should spend
one of these days in an altogether dif-
ferent manner. A day of leisure, devoid
of the nerve-racking occurrences of the
daily grind prepares a man for better
service on Monday morning, and more
efficient work throughout the week.

Nothing can be good enough unless
it is the best. Engineers make a great
mistake when they neglect to improve
the operating condition of their plants.
Because so many have taken the ground
that conditions are good enough, the cen-
tral station has expanded. Its solicitors
have been able to show the isolated-
plant owner that his operating conditions
are not as good as they should be. A
contract is signed by the owner and the
central station has supplanted a man
and his job just because he did not cut
down expenses and put the plant on a
sound operating basis.

Conditions Have Changed

In this age of progress nothing stands
still. Men are constantly gaining experi-
ence and the march of progress is aston-
ishing because of the rapidity and master-
ful manner in which the problems to be
solved have been met.

Steam-power plants have received their
quota of attention from the inventor and
mechanical engineer and the improve-
ment in power-plant equipment has been
so great that the engineer has been ob-
liged to advance in both mental and
mechanical training.

When stepping into a modern power
plant it is hard to realize that only a few
years ago the direct-coupled unit was
the exception. It would be difficult to
imagine a belt-driven generator of the
capacity found direct connected and in
general use today.

Power-plant centralization has been
largely furthered by the improvement in
power-plant machinery, and engineers
operating the small plant have spent un-
comfortable hours wondering what will
be the ultimate end. Small steam plants
are facing a serious proposition and the
men operating them must fight every
moment of the day for their very exist-
ence.

But this fight is beneficial to the en-
gineer. He knows now that it is possible
to succeed only by applying his energies
to solving problems that formerly were
not considered of importance or neces-
sary for him to know in order to make a
success of his work.

What is the result? Just this, the men
who have improved their opportunities
and fitted themselves for assuming more

responsible positions than they formerly
held are today operating the large power
plants.

What has been done will be done again
and the engineer running in the small
plant today may be the man selected to
operate the large plant of tomorrow. The
demand for engineers in large power
plants is steadily increasing and the op-
portunities for rising to better positions
will be as frequent in the future as they
have been in the past.

Wise engineers will make ready for
stepping into the larger plants. There
may not be much glory or financial gain
at first, during the preparatory stage, but
higher wages will come to the man who
has improved his opportunity and is stand-
ing at the line ready to lead when the
starting gun is fired.

Congress recently passed a bill ap-
propriating thirty-six thousand dollars for
the installation of a refrigerating system
in the Capitol. It is to be used for fur-
nishing cool air to the House of Repre-
sentatives and the various committee
rooms. Judging from the debates that
have been going on recently between the
members of that body, the installation of
a refrigerating system is timely.

How much water are you evaporating
per square foot of surface per hour? How
much over their rated capacity are you
running your boilers? What draft do you
use? What are the conditions of im-
pingement of flame on spots of the tube
surface, and what are the conditions of
cleanliness of the tubes? We should
like to have the subject discussed in the
light of actual experience.

Is not the recent increase in boiler-tube
troubles due more to increased work than
to increased pressure, or poorer ma-
terial ? A tube is more than twice as
liable to suffer when it is evaporating
six pounds of water per square foot as
when evaporating three.

The verdict of the coroner's }ury which
inquired into the cause of the recent
dynamite explosion in Jersey City, to the
effect that it had been caused by a lighted
match or cigarette dropped by some care-
less individual, is in the same class as
some boiler-explosion verdicts.

We believe there was an international
exposition once which was substantially
ready at the date of opening, and it was
a success — San Francisco papers please
copy.

And now Rhode Island is after a law
providing for the licensing of engineers
and the inspection of boilers. There is,
as usual, a bill before the New Jersey
legislature, several in fact.

Lap-seam boilers are unsuitable for
some classes of work; likewise lap-seam
engineers. Neither should ever be em-
ployed where the real thing is needed.

March 14. 1911.

PCVi [R

Inquiries of General Interest

R placing Mu<f Drum Nipples

If it were necessary to change nipples
on a Babcock & Wilcox boiler, how should
to work to replace them; the ones
to be taken out are a foot away from
the handholes in the mud drum, and what
tools wculd be

C. N T.

Use a bent diamond chisel to open the
nipple, working through the handhol.
the header. Then, with a blunt tool, di
in the side of the nipple between the
header and mud drum, letting it drop
into the drum. Hold the new nipple in
place with wire and a Flare

urr<-T end slightly then expand it. being

ful to see that each end projeer-
inch beyond the tube hole. Change
pander and expand lower end. After
pending the lower end. drop the expander
to clear tube hole and expand slightly
to flare the lower end. Use a Babcock
k Wilcn\ special expander

/'■ . • /' v. ted . trea

If the cylinder of an engine is 50 inc
in diameter with 110 pounds pi
and 45 pounds rccci\cr pressure, a-
the crank pin is 12 inches in diameter
and 14 inches long, what will the load
be on the projected area of the pin -

P 0 r
The total pressure on the piston is the
iuct of the piston area multir
the difference in the pressure M

• tidei This diviJed by the I
d area of the pin is the pressure
square inch. In tl jnee it

• no— ^

<mJ Vacuum II

& ■

What are the essential ;
fcrcruc n a gravity and a vacuum

heating system

1 1

In a gra\ 'cm the

is returned to thi > a

ving tank by gravit\ In a
m the flou
meant of a pump or c mnccted to

the radiator Mich a panial \acuum

maintained in the i

(

nay cutoff and compression be
changed in a simple •>

Increase of outside tar

Questions *trcs
not Wng\ / unit

m <• onpanicd by tfic

name mndaddnm of tin-

inquirer. Ilir ■ is

tor wu when §tm k
use it

cutoff. Increase of inside lap increase*
the compression and side

and outside lap lengthens the cutoff and
decreases the co-

// fi "

iat should be the width of a double
leather belt to tra- *J hors.

running on a 22-foot fl. making

- minuu

J
The rim speed of the -
feet square feet

of belt surface ; each hr-

ire feet of belt will
have to pass over the pulley each min-
ute to tran* r. and the

R .: i

What between the

actual and apparent clearance in ar
comprcsso-

The apparent eld •> the space not

•ual
clcaran

the a,

anded to the I

idicator
the p<
e me«t"

/' /

■gbt

c same in bo« »et

the same quantity of »

immi under

■

suppoae 3 nofor rated M

h«»r%cr' - .i- IJOQ rc»n!ution»

%ou be «ble to ilrtnniMl tt

thru* .'x ir •■* ;• c - . •. • . • .u« d
1 wostl: sorn

K
If

-ises the grc , • • the

•beets of a r bular boHer. beat

Hi sea unequ*

par.M..n

/ .
If one pound of coal

ds of - m and degrees,

horn many pounds -om

■i etear
100 pounds prcssu

iter »'
heat unit* abo eea and steam

at the same

fore rr '704 beet units to rhoeaw.

ten poi:
•team at the tame terapc

heat unite
•• pound* |

405 are* mmit$

n pounds of water at •*) de-

poi;

peaadi > . .,•-• *• a-.j -■ :r»:-cc»

■i ■ .

pound* gar

of tea

•
patching • boiler. ebeeM the
be i iaaiee or eufeaee ef t

• -

"toekJ be pat ea the fcaeJda
> pechet for the

Va* srlea c

' *naey tr

The eepec

the sqoarc roel o'

.- !■■» N

436

POWER

March 14, 1911.

Boiler Explosion at Verona,

Penn.

By Edward T. Binns

At about 4 p.m. on Monday, February
26, a vertical boiler, 36 inches in diam-
eter by 6 feet high, exploded at the
Ideal steam laundry in the town of
Verona, Penn. A number of fatalities
were narrowly averted. Two men were
badly hurt; one of them, the engineer, in
all probability will not recover. The
boiler, which weighed about 1600 pounds,
was shot vertically into the air about 300
feet, turning over several times and
landing on top of a three-story building
about two blocks away. It crashed
through the roof, the third and second
floors, and came to rest in the middle of
a clothing store on the ground floor. As
near as can be learned, the engineer,
who was a new man and who came to the
plant from the police force, had been
doing some work in the main building
and had just gone to the engine room to
prepare for shutting down. On his way
to the hospital he stated briefly that he
had barely commenced these preparations
when the explosion took place.

An examination of the ruptured plates
plainly indicated that they had been red
hot, the edges of the torn sections being
curled and quite blue.

The firebox was 36 inches high and
30 inches in diameter, with a 9-inch flue
leading to the smokestack. The feed
water was delivered into the water leg.
The city water pressure in Verona is
about 150 pounds to the square inch, so
that no pump or injector was needed to
force water into the boiler, and in this
case no heater was used.

Fig. 3. Interior of Firebox After Explosion

Fig. 1. The Boiler in the Clothing Store

Fig. 2. Damage to Engine Room

March 14, 1911.

P O W E K

4J7

The boiler was only about three years
old. About seven months ago it was in-
spected by the county boiler inspector
who gave it a thorough hammer test. Al-
so, at the owner's request, he gave it a
hydrostatic test of 150 pounds. One hun-
dred pounds steam pressure was allowed
but the safety valve was set to blow at
80 pounds.

Some repairs to the steam gage, water
column and safety valve had been ord.
and made before the explosion.

The firebox, which was of 3 Hi-inch
plate, was badly torn. The rupture com-
menced at one. edge of the firing door
and followed an irregular course for
three-quarters of the way around. The
tear was practically along the zone of
the fire. The plate pnTfed loose from
twenty-nine '-,-inch. solid staybolts which
were screwed into it, and doubled up
against the crown sheet.

There is as yet no State engineers'
license law in Pennsylvania, though a
bill is now pending in the legislature.

The Industrial Safety Ass<

i i.iticii

On Friday evening, March I. I). T.
Williams entertained at dinner at the En-
gineers Club, New York, a number of
editors of technical and industrial papers
for the purpose of acquainting them with
the objects and activities of the In
Safety Association. After the host had
effectually dis his introdu.

declaration that he could not make a
speech by setting forth most inapt

ic obligation of those in charge of
industrial operations and others of the
more fortunate class who arc in a r
lion so to do to minimize the bat
dangers and chances for injury which
surround the worker, he introduced I>r.
Mutton, president of the new or-
ganization.

Doctor Mutton quickly demonstrated
to his hearers that the association had a
much wider field and loftit 'han

the ition of mechanical

•he guarding of life and limb, and
impressed them with the economic im-
l ' maintaining the efficiency of

the working force of the commir I

ing ( IS conduct c to

health, torn fort and •< bodily

harm. Mi* remarki were illustrate!
a series of lantern s! ;ng dc-

and methods cmplo\ <rd that

The company then visited the American
Mmcum of Mich Is maintained

in the Engineering Societies building. 20
M "v-nlnth street, where manv

arc
■Son exhibition, where stal are

available and methods cxempllflr
museum is free to the public hrtwssSJ
the hour* of 0 and 5 every Jay r.cept
Sundays and holidays.

Institute "f Opei jn.

1 I ;.-<- BimiM I

On Frida March I - 30

there aril] be a meeting in the lecture
room of the Modern
South Elliot place, Brooklyn, for the pur-
pose of organizing a branch of the In-
stitute of < ,; Engineers. Members
and all interested a : to be
cnt.

On Saturday evening, March 18. at
eight o'clock, there will be a meeting
in the rooms of the Institute of all mem-
ose interested, ir. ^ ork

and the Bronx. This meeting is ca
for the purpose of organizing a branch
of thr Institute in New York <

meeting the officers of the branch
will be elected, which will include the
branch chairman, branch rcpresent.i
to the • n plant

operation and chairman of the committee
on apprent trainir . irer on

cduc.itiona and chairman of

committee on educational l a

secrctar irer and three councilmen.

each for one, two and three yea

The naming of the branch
also be coi I at this meeting and

other matters of importar

Aa this association mill be looked upon
as the leader and as all the meetings
under the name of the ic which are

held in New York. Sffll have to be under

of the- utmost imr
ancc for all interested to attend this
meeting.

( Irgantzation \ . I . I . \.

i don il Pittsburg

A banquet to the • cs of the

All-. . Company was

rs at the Motel
g. at 6

•

formed, to I

and a| of the

■ i

N Mul-

Allcghr

as t^ * M !>"•

general | agent of aflat

company, acted as tempo'

and James M M temporary tress-

M H rman of the mem?

'■ itional He

org »

hesicr.

.ott
told of

the Phils*

The H Company -

orga n |8B4.

Due to a ?> pog raphical error on page 401

of the March 7

is* rssv im*

I V. rs

The speaker for the regular weekly

;rc on fccbrujr* 28 at the Mo:
Brook h George

•k, of the N .son Com r

elopment of the varies*
s of engines from the time of the

est - at cr wheels dowr. to

It was shown that James Van

of the principles
that ur

locating one uch of i

in economy has been the result of the
improvement in the machine tools upon
which the manufacture of the

To illi. -og

made, M
of the original

a di. 4l.000.000 foot-pounds,

today a di. jnoj»R).000

foo' . unplishcd

The lecture v*a attended by a rcr
sentat.xc gat' of members and

age 36, wss
ured ••
road's Roi •
•

'rom the end of the '
shaft arounJ

and thrown against the »all of the build-

landing tr

con»oou»r.c»» anj »^ut SOTTS tr~e

B Kills I :ir

n» In.
kbure.
Csmbltl d< » •

eossty. exploded

Tse

On March J a pensss of

TV" t<

lurxd

a* fj
A 4c

438

POWER

March 14, 1911.

Not long ago a great depart-
ment store in New York City-
advertised a special sale of men's
bath robes.

It was the intention to adver-
tise them at a price of $5.00 each,
but through some mistake in the
copy the bath robes were adver-
tised in all the morning papers
for 50 cents apiece.

With the result that buyers were lined up before
the counter three rows deep.

It was too late to do anything except to stand
by the advertising. The clerks behind the bath-robe
counter were instructed to politely explain the mistake,
but to refuse no one a bath robe for 50 cents who
insisted on having it at that price.

The result was interesting. The majority ac-
cepted the explanation and went away with no hard
feelings. Some saw the value that lay in the bath
robes at the intended price of $5.00, and purchased
them at that figure. A few others, perhaps half a
dozen, held their ground and refused to pay more
than the advertised price —

And got them.

Back of this incident lies the great truth thct
nowadays reliable concerns stand back of their adver-
tising at all costs.

And going into this a little deeper it is easy to see
that when a reliable advertiser makes a statement in
an ad. it is safe to assume that this concern has care-
fully sifted over what it has said in order that no mis-
statements may creep into the copy.

The concerns who advertise in Power are reliable
concerns.

They stand back
of their advertising.

They claim cer-
tain things, secure in
the knowledge that
they can "make
good."

What readers of
advertised products
need to cultivate more
is a belief in the truth
of what they read.

A department
-for subscribers
edited by the ad-
vertising

service

department of

Powejr

The power-plant man who thrusts
aside the honest statement of a
reliable concern with an "I don't
believe it," isn't doing fair jus-
tice to the concern who makes the
claim. Neither is he doing jus-
tice to himself.

'"• -^aff^^r-*5*".'

The fact that an advertiser
makes a statement which appears
to you too big for him to fill does not affect the truth
of that statement one way or the other.

Advertisers in Power are not making claims that
they cannot live up to.

They cannot afford it.

Thus, when the manufacturer of a lubricant,
for example, tells you what his product will do, con-
sider his word as his honest belief in the efficiency of
what he is trying to sell. When the manufacturer
of some new power-plant device claims certain advan-
tages, consider his statement seriously and be willing
to meet him half-way.

Naturally, the success of many advertised articles
often depends upon conditions as they exist in your
plant and advertised goods should be carefully studied
with due regard to fitting them into existing conditions—

Which signifies that careful comparison and
investigation are as necessary as a belief in the word
of the advertiser.

The advertisers in Power are in earnest. Every
time they talk to you, through their ads., they put
their reputation at stake.

Could they afford to say anything they knew they
were unable to back?

Do more than merely read the ads. —

Read them with
the knowledge that
every statement made
is an actual fact.

•

For, truly, the
Selling Section is the
very last place of all
where an advertiser
can afford to say any-
thing except what is
absolutely true.

M W M>Rk, MARCH 21, 1

HERE i- .in experiment thai all i
Si led ti light joint in the -i<l< •
<.i flooi and ti ,1k in .i straight

line, using the joint

( »! the speed you make ;m<l the

• 1. ..i suco ou have in following the

lin. Then rn t<> the -t.irtm^ jxiiiit. pick

cult some distant "I » m< i wit h tin

fixed <m that "I"'

in.

Youi speed in tli« ecoi will Ik-

limited <>nl\ h) youi abilit) Mai

thorn ad, i>t"\ ided you nd in
unrin.il health, youi coursi will

in line bet ween tb< ind fin
ishing point

v ■ mstdei the tight i"i>< he d<

not in himsell parti* ularl) with tlu-

k»jk- immediatel) undei his hi

1 i»n tin- end <»i tin
tin. s tend to *ho* that hi

u iltu-s i men 'ii. tl •

:.. i I1U

merou i than ami
rial 1>< • • l»m bo)

The l« sson to ;

l from ti
then

• >u km m
tin nd l»i t pp

in.nl. u hi n 1 1
I c fi n i I
int in vien Tin h
haz .- —-•

through li

lit limited t.» hut
is in .i<l\ C '

-
:i\ blind tr.iiN upon w

It your line is steam i

lit. "
I hi • plent ) end

haps more than in an) othei lin
this j^ the mechani
uid othei bi

nto tl
There ih such •

■

that

■

I worl

Win t In

will

440

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Hydroelectric Plant in Italy

The Cervara hydroelectric plant, now
in operation in the north of Italy, sup-
plies electrical energy to the city of
Terni, and to the electrochemical factories
of the Societa Industriale Ellettrica della
Valneria at Narni.

The water, which is supplied by the
falls of the Marmore, passes into an
open channel nearly 1300 feet long, 40
feet wide and 6 feet 5 inches deep with
a fall of one foot in every hundred, and
terminating in a clearing pond of about
25,000 square feet. Two parallel flumes,
each 1640 feet in length and 13 feet in
diameter, lead to an open reservoir from
which intake pipes lead to 12 sluices.
The original intention was to install 12
units of 1000 horsepower each, but
this was later changed to six 2200-horse-
power units. In order to utilize the exist-
ing sluices, each three intakes leading
from the reservoir were combined jointly
to feed two penstocks leading to the tur-
bines. Nine intakes were thus combined
with the six penstocks feeding the 2200-
horsepower units; two more connections
were used for two 1000-horsepower tur-
bines which had been transferred from
an old power house to the new generating

By J. B. Van Brussel

A low-head plant of 1 1 ,ooo-
horsepower capacity sup-
plying two transmission
lines, one at 3750 volts and
the other at 27,000 volts.
The three-phase four-wire
system of transmission is
used on the line of lower
voltage and the three-wire
system on the one of higher
voltage.

air chamber, intended to compensate for
fluctuations in pressure, are fitted to each
penstock. The main locking gates of the
turbines are hydraulically balanced and
are controlled from the generator floor.
The turbines are of the double-rim reac-
tion type, and, according as the head
varies between 65 and 79 feet, each

The general character of the electrical
equipment was determined by the fact
that two different kinds of service were
required; current at 3750 volts for light
and power at Terni, and at 27,000 volts
for transmission to the electrochemical
work's at Narni. This necessitated two
separate sets of busbars. At present there
are installed five three-phase generators,
each of 1900 kilovolt-amperes capacity
coupled direct to a 2200-horsepower tur-
bine, and space is provided for a sixth
unit. Two generators of 865 kilovolt-
amperes each, have been transferred from
an old power house and are coupled to
the 1000-horsepower turbines. Each of
the larger generators can be connected
to either of the busbar systems. When
working on the 27,000-volt system, each
of the generators is connected directly
and only to a transformer of the same
capacity, the high-tension side of the
transformer being connected to the 27,-
000-volt busbars. When supplying the
3750-volt system, however, the generators
are connected directly to the busbars.
The two smaller generators serve the
3750-volt system exclusively. The Narni
electrochemical works are fed by a dupli-

Fig 1. General View of Plant, Showing Penstocks and Reservoir

plant, and the twelfth intake was ar-
ranged to feed two exciter turbines. In
Fig. 1 only five of these penstocks are
shown.

An expansion sleeve and a vertical

utilizes from 2300 to 2700 gallons of
water per second. Fig. 2 represents a
cross-section through the turbine room
and Fig. 3 is a view of the same room,
showing the switch gallery at one end.

cate three-wire transmission line and the
Terni transmission line is of the three-
phase four-wire type.

The basement of the switch house,
which forms one end of the building, is

March 21, 1911.

d by the generator switches and bars, on (in trans-

Id rheostats. The transformers former, u -:omg line, can

occupic

the field rheosta- The transformers
are on the first floor, the transformer
switches and busbars on the second floor
and the line switches and lightning
.rs on the third floor.
The large machines generate three-
phase currents at 42 cycles and a normal
voltage of 3750, although this can be
increased to 4150 volts. Two direct -cur-

Fig. 2. Si' through T

•M

rent turbine-driven generators of 75 kilo-

tf each arc used for excitation. A
a motor-genera-

horsepower three-phase motor fed from
the 'It busbars and coupled to a

direct-current shunt-wound generator of
volts, is ; J for addi-

tional excitation.

The generator panels are separated

I partitions and each contains a

four-pole oil switch with a maximum and

current relay, and the knife

. for connecting the generator to

cither the 3750-volt busbars or to

ending transformer The
arc operated through hand
the main suitchbo.i

In the compartment tch

structure arc located the
for the fields of the three-phase Rcncr.r
and the shunt regular
n has been r,
pha-
■

although only five are installed at ;
cnt Thc\ arc mounted on »'
them to be rcadi!\ rci
ills. An air duct running ui
of the stalls is
fan*, cither of which is capable of fur-
.ng enough air to keep the trans-
forr* >ol.

>m the transform-
lead to trans.'

with maximurt are

Iocs- the hot*

rches. which can b ugh

hand ropes from the art

ened »ith the terminals at the

and all Itx illng mechanism at

•
pas ugh three

the maximum •
lav. to a Ml ontainlng '

and vction •»
There are tw-

former, as well a» kjoing line, can

be connectt 'her se:

and voltage trans f ~cd in con-

ammeters and
meters, arc

a hand rope from the
form. Horn gap

-•stance and four-
pole »cd to handle

etna - - in do-kik i

tions of the large transformers and thou rmer. re the re

of the out. connected to the

and t!

rmit an n of the hi The 27.0(>

bars to be cut out in cav akdowr

iro m auto

the n

J ■

m V V.

t I ■

ifam v u ( 1 1 r- c tJ,e J»aKcd arr«ra,u* ou'

The

•

> «•

4 ?•

tne tfMft

442

POWER

March 21, 1911.

The main switchboard is shown in Fig.
8. The instruments and operating levers
for the generator sets are located on
switch pedestals, while the switchboard
is equipped for controlling the outgoing
lines. Each of the pedestals for the
1900 kilovolt-ampere generators carries a
hand lever for operating the generator
oil switch, a hand lever for the trans-
former oil switch, and handwheels for
the series rheostat in the exciter circuit
and the carbon switchout of the exciter.
The exciter switches are mechanically
interlocked with the main switches of the
generator, so that the latter can be closed
only after excitation has taken place; on
the pther hand, the exciter switch can
be opened only when the main switch is
open.

The motor-generator set is also
controlled from a pedestal, as are the
two small turbine-driven exciters. One-
half of the switchboard, shown in Fig. 8,
is set apart for controlling the Narni
line, and the other for controlling the
Terni line.

Pierre and His CQ2 Recorder

Old Pierre, the French fireman, said
that if he had that new CO. recorder
he would fire it to the bottom of the
lake where nobody would ever find it.
He soon became thoroughly acquainted
with the new recorder and was told that
he could have it to take home when he
raised the marks to 20 per cent. After
receiving instructions on the theory of
combustion and the principles of the CO?

machine he was able at times to obtain
about 15 per cent., which was much
nearer 20 than the highest records he was
able to get when the recorder was first

night Pierre rushed in — his face beamed
with delight, and exclaimed, "Me finds
zie troub', zie coal pass' go 'sleep in zie
car, an' no coal in zie chute, zie cold

Fig. 8. Main Switchboard

installed. Still something strange would
happen nearly every night which worried
Pierre. The CO. would take an abrupt
drop too great to be caused by any change
in firing. This he could not account for.
Every surmise was investigated, but the

air go down over zie fire an' zie machine
mark a' no good."

Sure enough Pierre had located the
trouble, which was soon overcome.

He decided not to throw the machine
in the lake, even if he could get 20 per

cause was not found, until finally one cent. CO...

Fie. 6. Main-line Switches

Fig. 7. Passageway between Transformer Stalls and
Switch Structure

March 21, 1911.

Jet versus Surface Condensers

There is a constantly increasing m.
ber of cases in connection with
densing plants for either high- or low-
pre-- -am turbines. whe not

■ jus which is the best type of
denser to employ, and where, in fact, the

;g condenser is not infrequently
selected. Little appears to have t

•en which is of use to power

s in coming to a decision a
what type of condenser to adopt. In a

it issue of The Emgimtcr, of London,
an interesting article on "Jet
face Condensers" was published. The
following are t ptfl from this ar

with the exception that the Fngl
figures have been given their Amcr
equivalent, using (S as the value of the
pound.

In order to ascertain which plant I
to employ in any nonobvious case,

I necessary to compare the capital
outlay costs with the running The

former have a relatively great-r import-
ance compared with the latter if the plant
has a low load factor, wher -ha

high load factor the latter arc of flat

c 500

= 500

..-"-

0 2000 4000 6000 8000

! Pressure i sine

T*o Rous

great moment compared with the
In the preset I

denying plant for .. *>inc
ha* been considered, an.' an-
nua! eh arc . the
taj out'j. and ■• pendent of
load f ire taken at

the capital outlay in the case of

the »urface DMO> eluding

• . ■ ,•
; hng a coo! ere

en taken in the can
■ice plant, and II p<
•it.
annual rut ning co

BfOfSflflion a ' tn fhr In i

in .i it rega-

• absorbed

per

•

the air-pur n rod or crank shaft

ig. in the first place, a O
re a cooling ti and

a turbine-terminal ,

per square the cost of

densing plant is estimated at
a natural-
draft cooli: >f rcdi.
the temperature of tht iting water

Fahrenheit A barom
jet conden - of n

taining the same terminal pressure

-latcd to cost
at the latter figure the pressure in the
jet condenser hat been assumed to be
I pound BtJ less than at

the I end of the turbine to allow

for

pipe and different. • ecn the

.ind the tur

the
! annual cost on the si. •
densing plant;

an-
nual cost

Th<
annual cost, distances below the xcro line

condenser and

•sts arc

the difference
plants I

annual

for the

•i S2H©5 and
■
let Jependr

•*tt it' mp

and

. • .
conJcn*:- t ; i • • i • • • "ncd to be " •

Ikaeienowrr j- : '« .cms r*r beau ins

■ ' » r c f f'«iii f

nothing up t <

of cou-
ich the

t The dotted line

sum of the or:

innual coot of the too systems
• orking hours per
-ecn that the
denser has tl image up to

boors per «
•

I hours are tees than

denser, but. where the full post*
ried for more i

omoM S «. * '

•- -r

fKl

2000

1500

;

d m+L~

BOG

)

•eeonmii by the
' hen c on st i t u tew a grea
the povee of mo mane onto
then Is tb< tail lood. For mo

rurr«'M-% .>• i»c aeoeeni .r »*••.£•«►<>*> me

• »r foe

boo

aod m*
n ii let i - of boor,
obi out the seme aire em-

< '<iU lend, ea boor

eae

h letter •«

444

POWER

March 21, 1911.

ways running at half load, the costs for
jet and surface plants, instead of being
the same at 4989 hours, would be the
same at 6652 hours per annum.

Fig. 1 shows that, under the conditions
assumed, namely, a terminal pressure at
the turbine of two pounds per square
inch, and the employment of a cooling
tower, there are fields of considerable ex-
tent both, for the barometric jet and for
the surface condenser.

For terminal pressures greater than

(<--Field for Jet Condenser--:H<-v>
500

C
C

< 0
s_

<D
0_

E 500

o
a

— -

R_.

1
i °

R+

' '

^ _ - —

—

•-

IlL.

0 2000 4000 6000 8000

pcwe* Working Hours per Annum

Fig. 3. Terminal Pressure at Turbine

1.5 Pounds. Circulating Water 60

Degrees Fahrenheit

two pounds per square inch, the field for
the jet condenser is enlarged, and that
for the surface condenser is reduced;
but terminal pressures much above two
pounds are seldom desirable for steam
turbines.

For terminal pressures much lower
than two pounds per square inch, the jet
condenser has a very limited field. Fig.
2 corresponds to Fig. 1, but with plant
designed for a terminal pressure of 1.50
pounds per square inch, a cooling 'tower
being employed as before. The cost of
the surface condensing plant is, in this
case, estimated to amount to $21,600, and
the jet plant is reckoned to cost $20,750.
Fifteen per cent, on the former sum
amounts to $3240, and 13j/> per cent, on
$20,750 amounts to $2800; the difference
in the fixed annual costs is, therefore,
in this case $440, and this is represented
by the line F in Fig. 2. The working
costs are higher in this case than in the
last case, especially as regards the jet
plant, which suffers not only from the
greater specific volume of the air due to
the lower pressure, but also from the
greater weight of air admitted to the
condenser due to the greater amount of
condensing water required. The air pump
of the jet plant is in this case estimated
to require 26.8 horsepower, and, there-
fore, to cost 32.2 cents per hour at full
load, while the surface condenser air
pump is reckoned to require 10.09 horse-
power, and therefore to cost 12.2 cents
per hour at full load, the difference in
running costs being therefore 20 cents
per hour. The line R in Fig. 2 shows the
difference in the running costs per an-
num for any number of working hours
per annum; and the dotted line marked
r j^ p represents the difference in total
annual cost. It will be seen that the

jet plant has the advantage only if the
plant is worked per annum an amount
equivalent to less than 2112 hours at full
load.

Cases will now be considered where
no cooling tower is employed, and where
condensing water can be obtained at a
temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
The lesser amount of condensing water
required in such cases enlarges the field ,
for the jet condenser, so that for a ter-
minal pressure of 1.5 pounds per square
inch the jet condenser has the advantage
over the surface condenser for practically
any number of working hours per year.
This is shown in the diagram, Fig. 3,
which is of a similar nature to the pre-
vious two diagrams. The surface plant
is in this case estimated to cost $8100
and the jet plant $6900. These two sums
at 13 per cent, and 11 percent, respective-
ly represent fixed annual charges of
$1055 and $760 respectively, the differ-
ence in fixed costs in favor of the jet
plant being thus $295. The air pump of the
jet plant is estimated to require 15.7 horse-
power, and therefore to cost 19.8 cents
per hour at full load, while the corre-
sponding figures for the surface plant

c
c
<

500

<-Field-->(<--
forJet |
Condenser|

Field

for Surface
Condenser

->\

y i

000

•

500

«y

i y

s
r

r*.

. _i

500

• i

Power

0 2000 4000 6000 8000

Working Hours per Annum

Fig. 4. Terminal Pressure at Turbine

One Pound Absolute. Circulating

Water 60 Degrees Fahrenheit

are 10 horsepower and 12 cents. The
surface plant is, however, in this case
estimated to cost 3.4 cents per hour more
than the jet plant for water-pumping
power, so that the difference between the
running costs of the two plants amounts
to

18.8 — (12 + 3.4) = 3.4 cents

per hour at full load in favor of the
surface plant.

Higher terminal pressures than 1.5
pounds with no cooling tower and with
water at 60 degrees Fahrenheit need not
be considered, as obviously the jet plant
will have the whole field to itself. Ter-
minal pressures lower than 1.5 pounds
per square inch are, however, often de-
sired, and Fig. 4 shows the fields for

the two condensing systems when the
terminal pressure is one pound per
square inch. In this case the surface
plant is estimated to cost $10,425, and
the jet plant to cost $9000. Taking 13
per cent, of the former and 11 per cent,
of the latter sum, the difference in the
fixed annual cost is found to be $365. As
regards running costs the air pump of
the jet plant is estimated to require 28.4
horsepower, and therefore to cost 34
cents per hour at full load, while the
corresponding figures for the surface
plant are 11.4 horsepower and 13.6 cents.
Allowing for a difference in cost of water-
pumping power of 4.8 cents per hour in
favor of the jet plant, the difference in
running -costs is 15.6 cents per hour in
favor of the surface plant. The jet plant
has in this case, compared with the pre-
vious case, a very limited field — only up
to 2246 hours per annum — and for lower
terminal pressures than one pound per
square inch its field would be still fur-
ther restricted.

An Inspector's Dream

By A. C. Terlene

It fell in my line of duty to go to a
Central Western city to make the first
inspection of six horizontal tubular boil-
ers which had just been offered my com-
pany for insurance. This was a Sun-
day-morning inspection. The plant was a
cereal factory which was in operation 24
hours per day, shutting down at midnight
Saturday and starting up at midnight
Sunday.

On arriving at the plant about 8 a.m.,
I was pleased to find that my coming had
been prepared for, ashes and clinkers
had all been nicely cleaned out from
under the boilers, top and bottom man-
heads removed, boilers thoroughly
washed, the furnace doors and flue caps
closed and the damper opened so as to
lower the temperature rapidly and remove
all vapor from the interior. The tops
of the boilers were all swept off nicely,
smoke boxes cleared of soot and every-
body was smiling and in good humor.

The chief engineer was on hand to
greet me, took me into his engine room,
which was nice and clean, and gave me a
nice, clean locker in which to hang my
clothes. The boilers were fairly hot, as
might be expected, having been shut
down so short a time, but by leaving the
furnace doors and flue caps closed while
inspecting above the flues it was quite
bearable; then, when it came to going in
under the flues I found that they kept a
"buggy" for the purpose, this being a
piece of 12-inch board 3 feet long with
rollers under it. There was no scrambling
along in an inch or so of dirty water in
order to explore all the lower parts.

When the inspection was finished I
could only report a few minor defects;
the engineer, being a wide-awake man,
had kept the plant in apple-pie order.
I found that I had been provided with

March 21. 1911.

plenty of good hot water to wash up in
and on leaving the plant I did so uith a
feeling that if all plants were like that
an inspector's life would be much
pleasanter than it really

But did I rind the above? Emphatically
no! That was only my dream, superin-
duced, no doubt, by the fact that when
this inspection was finished 1 would go
home for the first time in six long, dirty
weeks. Here is what I found. On enter-
ing the plant at 8 a.m. I saw three or
four firemen and helpers sitting around
smoking and was pleased to hear one
call out to the others. Here's that feller;
is hoping he wouldn't show up."
e man went to the 'phone and called
up the chief engineer and reported my
arrival, asking for instructor re-

ported that the chief said he would be
down after a while and instructed them
to "tear up" as little as possible.

On reconnoitering the plant 1 found
that most of the ashes and clinkers ■
still under the boilers, no manheads had
been removed and on: f the boil-

Of course. I
could sec breakers ahead but wcr

• to get the men to prepare the boil-
ers for on. The head fireman said
that they never removed the upper man-
heads as packing cost so much and the
joints were so hard to make tight; be-
sides it took so long to do it that he could
not get his Sunday afternoon off. I in-
sisted that all manheads unuld ha\
come out and he went back to the 'phone
and held another seance with the chief,
who apparently a. -hat the U|
manheads might be removed this time
but that th J not make a pra.
a pro

m one ,
>om. ha .;ood

on nails against a din
wall, v g all the while if they

Id be in such >n that I u

be allowed in' the hotel when I K"i back
to that pla.

I found their statement as to not rc-
■ ng the back manheads borm
the fact that it %as ncccssa- . s« a

short piece of railroad steel to butt them
in and to make a run for it u
so as

had the b< n that I

managed to get inside and the

passages N • . . • • ••..'■ ■. ■ - . ,;.. •
crai i scale. th<

•h nearl> an
hard ». n the tul

ternal c > •

all disconnected at the point
to the
■

IT with sediment ar '
rom a cou| brace-

defect* *f re fnunj m the boiler* above
Ihr fluet.

the flue* ! found that th

of the boilers %
ian the ba.

or four inches of mud
and water made inspection an> thing
pleasant as

ent. found tha: U of

the bo on the front

sheets above the i.

an J lc.
- at the rear sere nearly all burned
off and a number of thes • ing

badly. All bi. >f the soft plugs

had been i

solid plugs. I found only one sa'
valve that looked I r blown

and the attend : that none of

the othi - opened, one safe*

doing all tv nch

Three of the »ater
column- > too low and gage

coc» ab-

sence from the plant. The feed-water
heater, of the closed *as out of

order, and the .iter wa

around it. so that the boilers VS1
plied with cold »ater. Tf not

show up at all during the day and we
finished the inspc about

Conditions were such that I deeme
advisable to stay and

r-ur; ; - rSfaaSalsd ar-.J SSCfe

MM " *Jc lbs* four borers

ried more losd than cia had forssstfy

been si >. Worst of a jng

mar ' the much berated "technical

c ed * pound of
an J c could ha

•int. but he knew ho»
I ought »ne sad he «ri

fled with nothing short of Thing*

done SB

"iot go -
inspectors

'rence i

at they should
do or else -bcmselvce to get

at man.

\:, 1 (ample I I 'tuple
( ombusti

It req-

n to set
amount of comb
partly con^ totograph

taken at a fire that destroyed a

>o doing house of U

had an opt -

> be a new firm

■inumerable steam leak*
noted and I

The o

446

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Burning Small Anthracite Coal

The inducements for plants to burn
very small sizes of anthracite coal form
a temptation to change from the larger
sizes to No. 2 or No. 1 buckwheat, and
this, in many instances, has resulted in
loss rather than gain through lack of
sufficient knowledge concerning the value
of the various grades of anthracite. The
lower prices of the small sizes are the
chief factors in influencing owners of
steam plants to adopt buckwheat coal,
but frequently coal dealers in their eager-
ness to make sales will advise wrongly
as to the results.

In order not to drift into an error that
will cause trouble later, it should be un-
derstood that broken, egg, stove and even
chestnut coal can be handled with great
ease in furnaces without any great
amount of chimney draft. They will gen-
erate steam in the most economical way,
and as there is relatively little ash in
these coals the operation of .cleaning the
furnaces is reduced to a minimum. Al-
so, if the grates have wide openings be-
tween the bars the furnaces can be op-
erated for long periods without cleaning.
These factors make the larger sizes of
anthracite popular among power-plant
owners, and especially among firemen
and engineers; but the smaller sizes can
be purchased so much cheaper that there
is a constant temptation to change to
them. It is quite possible in many plants
to make this change and save money, but
the actual difficulties and drawbacks
should be realized in advance; otherwise
a money-saving proposition may be
changed into a loss.

The first move should be to Ascertain
what changes must be made in the grates
and chimney. If the latter is compara-
tively short, barely sufficient to furnish
the draft required for burning the larger
coal, it will not answer for the buckwheat
sizes. This fact is so often disregarded
in making a change of fuel that it should
be particularly emphasized. However,
with steam plants .as ordinarily built, it
is a simple matter to increase the draft
without any material alteration.

If the chimney capacity is sufficient
there still remains the problem of grates.
The ordinary wide spaces between the
grate bars, such as are suitable for large
anthracite coal, would not be satisfactory
for the small buckwheat sizes. A bar of
the herringbone type with air spaces one-
quarter of an inch wide probably gives
the best results for all-round purposes
. where buckwheat coal is burned. This
type of grate is superior to. the pin-hole
grates or bars of three-eighths of an inch
in diameter for the reason that the latter
have a very low percentage of air space.
Frequently this is not more than 10 per
cent., and they are suitable for buck-
*vheat only when forced draft is used.

By A. S. Atkinson

The lower cost of buckwheat
coal has induced many
plant owners to change over
from the larger sizes, re-
gardless of whether the
equipment is suitable1 for
burning the smaller coal;
hence an apparent gain is
often turned into a loss. A
number of practical sugges-
tions for burning buckwheat
coal are given.

The herringbone type, on the other hand,
averages 25 to 35 per cent, of air space,
which makes it suitable for either natural
or forced draft. Some plants use grate
bars with an air space aggregating 45 to
50 per cent., but this is entirely unneces-
sary; an average of 30 per cent, answers
all purposes better and works for econ-
omy, as there will then be no leakage of
coal to the ashpit. Everything depends
upon getting the right grate bars, the
right proportion of air space, and chim-
neys of sufficient capacity. With these
as a start the rest of the work can be
accomplished with good stokers and fire-
men who understand how to burn small
coal economically.

In using buckwheat coal for steaming
purposes there is no substitute for skilled
operation. It is essential to ascertain how
much buckwheat coal is required to pro-
duce the same amount of steam as is
generated by a certain amount of the
larger coal. There is a difference in the
efficiency and heat values of the two
coals, and this must be ascertained and
kept in mind. To ascertain how much
more small coal is required, it is neces-
sary to find the difference between the
amount of ash in the two coals. When
this is found bv actual test it is a simple
matter to calculate how much more of
the small size is needed for generating
a given amount of steam.

Ordinarily, buckwheat coal contains
about twice as much ash as egg, but this
will differ considerably in various grades.
Consequently each separate lot must be
tested, and the ,ash determined before
intelligent burning can be carried on.
It is true that very few companies go
into all of these details, but it is also
true that many are burning the small
sizes at a considerable loss in economy.

A number of tests have been made
with small and large sizes of coals to
ascertain the relative amounts of the two
fuels required to produce a given amount

of steam. Without going into the details
of these experiments it may be stated
roughly that for the ordinary furnace it
will require nearly 10 per cent, more of
buckwheat than egg coal to give the same
steaming results. These calculations are
based upon dry coal, and when the coal
is bought in a wet condition allowances
should be made for the moisture. This
difference is quite important. In large-
sized coal the moisture is not as great a
factor, but in buckwheat it is very im-
portant, often representing a difference
of as much as 10 per cent.; that is, 10
per cent, of the weight of the coal
when saturated may be water, and the
plant owner is paying for this moisture
for every ton he buys. Dry pea or
buckwheat coal alone should be pur-
chased, and if delivered wet an allowance
of 8 to 10 per cent, should be de-
ducted from the gross tonnage. Dealers
prefer to deliver coal in a moist condi-
tion, but keen buyers refuse to take it
by the ton weight in this condition. Like-
wise, when stored the coal should be kept
as free from moisture as possible.

When the necessary amount of buck-
wheat coal has been determined, the
problem of obtaining the highest effi-
ciency from it should next come up for
solution. Here the fireman will deter-
mine the economy or loss resulting from
the use of the new fuel. More skill is
required for firing with buckwheat than
many imagine. In the first place, it must
be spread lightly and uniformly over
the fire, and fired at frequent intervals.
Any attempt to fill the furnace with suffi-
cient coal to last as long as the egg size
means a loss; yet this is the temptation
to which many yield as it is the easiest
way to fire the boiler. The grate will
also need more frequent and thorough
cleaning with the small sizes. This means
more time and labor on the part of the
fireman, and unless a good man is em-
ployed, it will be neglected. A com-
petent and conscientious workman will,
however, obtain as good efficiency from
buckwheat coal as from egg if the con-
ditions of the grate and chimney are
satisfactory to start with.

The small particles of buckwheat coal
form a much denser and more compact
bed of fuel than egg coal, and in order
to make this burn satisfactorily the draft
must be stronger. There must be a
greater suction or pressure to get the
necessary air through the bed to insure
perfect combustion, and here the prob-
lem of natural or forced draft is involved.
If the chimney is of ample capacity, and
the grate bars are wide enough to admit
plenty of air, natural draft will suffice,
but if there is not sufficient draft it will
then be necessary to resort to artificial
draft to secure the economical results
aimed at. A little previous study and

March 21, 1911.

measurement of the chimney capa

the draft at the boiler damp

viate any trouble that may arise late

A table based upon the results of a
long scries of experiments gr. fol-

lowing draft in inches of water at the
boiler damper required for the c
tion of pea coal under the
tior.

-■I at kia

- hour

'.o»ir

The engineer can increase the draf'
increase the grate surface, or botl
tain the desired results, but the
be careful study of the conditions before
conclusions are dra*wn. Buckwheat coal
can be used with Ic furn.i

and also with those that arc quite J

particularly suited for grate
twelve feet in depth, which ma>

economical fuel for certain work.
The coal can he spread evenly over this
large grate surface, and if uni-

formly it docs not have to be worked
and manipulated in CM
even throughout. In th .t the buck-

wheat has an advantage
the larger sizes which must be raked
and poked about at intervals to secure
uniform heat. In ordinary shaking grates
the small sizes cause more or less trouble
and extra labor. In smal! shaking

and poking may

cleaning the fires, but this trill hardly
answer in grates exceeding eight feet in
tb, in which case dumping must be
resortcJ to If the grate is proviJcJ
a good shaking and g arrange-

ment, a Are can b< can and bright

riods. and then, when net
the grate can be dumped without ma-
terially cooling th for any great
length of time

isll anthra hurncd most -

ceaafullv in plants with chimn-
feet or more in night vut'
draft, but in chirm M than

some system of t ially

ttSCCSOSry It is ever
able in some CSM Irafl

where the chimneys at

■ ■
cases 'he I not ui

ithcr make*
i natural drafi hat diftl-

n»<

met"

suit* and the cftu

tained Where tt

. • I

qua ill ant)

•me trades

hum v und

n a
ob-

shorn
»ut many of the m<

and anothc »how poor

r>e burning
quality of the coal i
freai ob-

■ good grade of coal at all times.
The >tf sometimes more

than count

\ Remarkable ( l rl«».nl
B • i

The power plant for thi <ps

I at
West Alba: ~cen
nearly doubled in capac:t\ The ori*

illation, consisting of four
500-horscp - atcr-tubc boil-

ers

-menteJ
the addition of three 600-hbrsepower

ibe boilers also
cqu or stokers T»o 500-

kilowatt Western alternating-

current gener i

ill h Wood h<

I I led
at the same aerating
uni*

era:
erai

A'ood engirt

In order to mc icmand

in the i n necc*

to overload the b-

■mic
hought
■ the nc* unit* to a
apa-
ng a long
mm M ■! >d one

: at the
-r room an

■

4. hour'

■
-

■

•he borsef
ma

Tb CM

ailon

luct« ho me-

on October

the coal used

• '

' »r this installation by

The principal dimensions sad propor-
tion* of the and aft I
low «

ping plates, 70 »q I ; num-

ber

isce to the bndge-

of I

T v i connection w tth this

bollc I the M e; that

n cool feeding chutev

psir of

plur

rl bed and becomes

governed aoto-
•ic stoker, there

-nt load
The print >ned data on this lent

foil.

•

Mr i^.inr.

IV I rfil #W £•'

ss a

448

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Methods of Governing Steam Engines

Combined Throttle and Variable-ex-
pansion Governing

Most modern high-speed engines are
now controlled by means of a combina-
tion of both throttling and variable ex-
pansion. The governor is fixed to the
crank shaft, and actuates a throttle valve
in the usual way, but in addition to this,
it also controls the cutoff by slightly ro-
tating the piston valve in such a way as
to' alter the lead. The piston valve for
engines governed in this way is neces-
sarily of special design, and is provided
with ports of angular shape arranged to
engage with corresponding ports in the
liner.

Fig. 13 is an elevation of a high-speed
engine showing the governing gear, and
Fig. 14 is a detailed view of the spring
box employed for the purpose of allowing,
the throttle valve to act quickly and in-

By John Davidson

Serial with article under
the above caption in the
February 21 issue. In this
instalment are discussed
combined throttle and vari-
able expansion governors
and expansion governors
for actuating trip gears.

cutoff. The lever E is provided with a
spring attachment / at its outer end for
the purpose of regulating the action of
the governor. The end of the lever F

Fig. 13. Governing Gear for Small High-speed Engines

dependently of the cutoff mechanism.
Fig. 15 shows the developments of the
valve and liner surfaces. Referring to
Fig. 13, governor A is fixed to the en-
gine crank shaft and is inclosed by a
casing C. The rocking shaft D of the
governor carries two operating arms E
and F, the former controlling the throttle
valve through rod G, and the latter the

works in a box K (see detail, Fig. 14), in-
side of which there is a spring M, in
compression between the end of the box
and a cap on the end of the lever. When
the lever F is moved from right to left
by the action of the governor, the spring
M is compressed and through lever O
causes the vertical shaft N to rotate. As
this shaft rotates through a small angle,

it actuates the system of levers, shown in
the small plan view, which is similar to a
Stanhope lever. This lever is connected
to a shaft passing through the end of the
valve chamber, which, in turn, is fixed to
a spider S mounted on an extension on
the slide valve T. Thus the movement
of the governor balls causes the angular
adjustment of the piston valve T, and this
effects the acceleration or retardation of
the cutoff in the following manner:

Bower;

Fig. 14. Spring Box

The valve T is arranged to slide in the
liners U, located at the top and bottom
of the valve casing, these liners being
provided with triangular ports V, while
the valve itself has inclined cutting-off
edges W. The triangular port is in the

Fig. 15. Valve and Liner Surfaces

form of right triangle with the hypote-
nuse, which forms the steam edge of the
port, inclined at 45 degrees. The cut-
ting-off edges of the valve are also in-
clined at 45 degrees, so that an axial
motion of the piston valve moves the
cutting-off edges of the valve parallel
with the inclined edges of the ports. The
relative positions of these cutting-off

March 21, 1911.

POW

edges and pons arc shown in PIf
which the left-hand the

relative positions when the valve is set
to give the earliest cutoff, and tl
hand view the relative positions -
the rah >et for the latest cutoff,

these positions being taken at the same
point in the travel of the valve. In i
to cut off steam, the valve is required
to move through a greater distance axial-
ly when in the latter position than uhen
in the former. Also in the left-hand
position the lead will be smaller than in
the right-hand position, and the lap will
be correspondingly greater. It has v
found that with high-speed engines this
reduction in the lead is no disadvan*
but has the effect of making the engine
run more smooth:
The operation of the gear is as fol-

point of earliest cutoff, the throt-
tle .
loaJ

n load to open tint

not app- change g to the

tion of | but the thr

•uc to open uni ases

to t ringement

c> iir.Jcr

*sume first that the loid I
denly been taken off tin
Consequent incrca- I cause

the . ills to fly nut

the *icj '. the tf"

In V

rotation of the \ be it

alou ic intc-

The val\c •
tated through a considerable
that ied at the

•peed i* normal Vhcn lb of

ear! icd. the engir

rr govrrncJ

* ittumc that th

»U e

■ ■

M low lonis

k. and at t

ing -hn

MlMt '

ate the

'Oiig h a relay
relieving the gov-

nainc a *p-

16 b

the *pr.nr .» rrp.aced r-> a

the

and the Stanhope fever by a
T°< I mnriimani of the

• ard morion «

tension on the can
g place, the thro-
i the t
The motion of tl
at !::>! produces r. e rami

iuse the cam is in the form o'
vol
as been
to such an eitent that further

' a upon the control of the en-
gine, a raised portion J? on the cam
es opposite a folio* held in

> spring. The fo!
ed by means of a lever T to the

apir «hkh coo-

imleasoa of team to the rt

.na-

I connected So tfx
e engine, or. If the

mason tyne. as the
< that the
-ned and caniroh) the cost"
described in the prrcrdmg csw

•fetch an fot>

io» end of ap sails L

M the hi ie

moved Omohl

tioo under thv action of nV

\ S> *V

marl an of the slant versa In the ease* (

Inaamea* of the angina nld
rendered asnadhta. •»

450

POWER

March 21, 1911.

throttling and at heavy loads it is gov-
erned by the cutoff.

Variable-expansion Governors for
Actuating Trip Gears

The governor most commonly used for
this purpose is the original Porter gov-
ernor, illustrated in Fig. 17, but many
firms have adopted a modified form of

1 Power

Fig. 18. Modified Proell Governor

Proell governor as illustrated in Fig. 18.
The latter is very sensitive but does not
possess much controlling power.

The Proell governor itself, which is
illustrated in Fig. 19 is much more
powerful, and at the same time is very
sensitive. The governor flange D, which
is secured to the top of the stand, has a

this peculiar suspension of the governor
balls, they are guided in a straight line,
and, when revolved, describe a plane, not
an arc or spherical surface, as is the
case with all other governors. The straps
H, and H, are continued at their upper
ends as bell cranks, and these carry the
cross bridge R, at K, and K„ on hardened
knife edges. Into the center of the cross
bridge and into the bottom of the spindle
A are fitted two spring holders 7", and T-
which hold between them a strong spiral
spring in tension; this counteracts the cen-
trifugal force of'the governor balls. Many
governors have been constructed on the
principle of balancing centrifugal force
against spring power, but as the balls
open in an arc, an equal angular open-
ing does not vary the centrifugal force
in the same ratio as the compression of
the spring. In the Proell governor the^
increase or decrease of centrifugal force
is proportionate to the increase or de-
crease of spring power, to whatever angle
the governor may be opened. This con-
struction, therefore, secures the most
sensitive regulation obtainable, while the
strength of the spring and the heavy
weight of the balls exert great power.
With the exception of the support D, the
whole governor is revolved by the bevel
gear W.

A governor, which is very quick in re-
sponding to changes of load and pres-
sure, and at the same time maintains the
speed of the engine constant, is the White-
head governor llustrated in Figs. 20, 21,
22 and 23. The balls and bell cranks are
mounted on and driven by a yoke or cross
bar by means of the spindle, which, in
turn, is actuated by gearing or belting.
The top of the spindle is a cylinder, in

valve and by the set screw at the top
of the piston rod, there being a small
spring at the lower end of the spindle
which tends to lift the valve off its seat
when the set screw is released. This
combination acts as a dashpot.

The essential feature of this governor
is the employment of two springs, one
compnessed between the sliding collar

/W'cr

Fig. 19. Regular Proell Governor

and the plate, and the other between the
piston and the cover of the cylinder. As
both springs exert a pressure in opposite
directions upon the plate, which is free

Figs. 20-23. Whitehead Governor in Various Positions

cylindrical sleeve, into which is fitted the
hollow spindle A. This spindle has lugs
at E and F, from which are suspended
two hanging straps H, and Ha, carrying
at E' and F' two pendulums P, and P2
which, at their lower ends B and C, are
pivoted to the movable sleeve S. By

which a piston works, the hollow piston
rod passing through the cylinder cover.
The cylinder is filled with oil, which is
allowed to flow from one side of the
piston to the other through passages pro-
vided for that purpose. The rate of flow
is controlled by the spindle acting as a

to move under their influence, it is ob-
vious that the two springs must have
the same degree of compression, pro-
vided the oil in the cylinder permits a
movement of the piston to take place;
which will, of course, occur so long as
any passage exists for the flow of the

•March 21. 1911.

oil from one side to the other of the
piston.

All ordinary governors, whether high
-ensitivc or slu^-
be designed to give a certain
of speed variation n no load

full load; that .peed at which the

f.i" u *.'... im L'

m~- f-""--

M. Ha*

engine will work without hunti: .
always be higher with light than
heavy load ith light loads the en

ginc must run faster than its normal
B order to maintain the halls in a
positior net the IHnni - .

>thcr hand, the engine will »s<>
below the normal speed when an c-
heavy load so that in reality

it maintains a normal speed at one
and steam prelim- oof] tad ap-

imatch all other

•
The VX'hitche.i -fiat

the outer spring or
have a var
the and of the

■ n
sought hetween the t*

' vanat liminaled. and

the governor is ahsolufcU isocl I
In 01

ig if the cngi

' ro tighten it if rcsji.
fast'
era- rhe W\

•he
balls and the sliding collar in the bol-
■n giving steam to ihc
g the . run at

;
running at -nal »r '

balance the centrifugal I

■
trier e ball*

or rr

•peed Presuming that the load
den!

rises an I btHi *:

'tic*' '
rt| collar until

to keep ihc
run 6 pc

.
sion of the m.i

sure through the ; ,IOn

»m-

enini . 0f

a a at. . --«

piuuuiin§ ■ slower ape

! out that t

' 'C»l
B of the balls in all p

sinn

he J

and the speed of the

lit on again the Jrop

position

*» becfl compressed Of ctparvScd

■ > prose

(he inside

7 ^U hoeresef, rnusi
be modified r

«sed ihc

comr

the
m io the ifpfinh

C out* -ig has come |

and a!

Hi .am

c of governor . used on

laming

lough >

hollo*
in a plane pcrper , „t

ide these
Tiprrssion springs The
arc bet l «h

er enj

H the sprtftg*

IBM

of t cal f • pposcd

•> thai no

■

to Cif

rhng until rcJu.

• • .• ■ ■

going on In " ' -4BB Ifc*

iction a* cl* i

it taesMed la • cBecsjla* «bmbb«

spring h<c«ns to mmi after the oetsiJr ii s n*»»

452

POWER

March 21, 1911.

time, prevents dirt and dust from getting move with the sleeve in a straight line.

into the interior.

Another governor with weights ar-
ranged in a similar manner is "Temples

Fig. 27. Toldes Governor for Variable
Speeds

patent," illustrated in Fig. 25. A change
in speed is effected by means of a spring
F coiled around the shaft of the gov-
ernor; the lower end of this spring be-

KV.y

Fig. 28. Hartnell Governor for
Single-speed Engines

ing secured by the cup T and the hand-
wheel H, by means of which it may be
more or less tightened.

The gear lever is secured by means
of rod L, and the sliding ring can only

It is worthy of note that by this arrange-
ment, the higher the number of revolu-
tions, the lower the pressure of the
spring, and vice versa. The wear of the
sliding surfaces of the ring and the
sleeve M is thus reduced to a minimum.
In most other systems the loading of the
sleeve has quite a different effect, for
the greatest pressure corresponds to the
greatest number of revolutions, which

The governor consists of two weights
D D suspended from a central pivot B
by two bent arms C. The centrifugal
force of the weights is balanced by the
coiled steel spring D which acts through
the knife edges E, the tension on the
spring being adjusted by the nuts F. In
the central casing G there is a smaller
spring which acts on the central sleeve.
If this spring is tightened the speed and
energy of the governor are increased

Fig. 29. Hartnell Governor for Variable Speeds

causes both heating of the sliding ring
and quick wear.

Another type in which a large variation
in speed is possible, is the Toldes patent
governor, shown in Fig. 26, and made by
Theodor Wiede's Maschinenfabrik, Sax-
ony. The principal claim for this gov-
ernor is that any change of the load on
the spindle, tending to alter the speed
within predetermined limits, does not af-
fect the character of the governor in any
way; that is, the degree of variation re-
mains the same for every newly adjusted
speed.

without in any way altering the degree of
speed variation. If, on the other hand,
the adjustment of the horizontal spring D
is changed, the degree of variation is
increased or decreased.

The governor illustrated in Fig. 26 is
adapted for engines running at one speed
only. When a considerable range in
speed is desired, the central spring is
replaced by two, as shown in Fig. 27, the
two being adjustable simultaneously by
means of the handwheel A actuating the
gears C C through the central gear
wheel D.

March 21, 1911.

In Fig. 28 is illustrated a Hartncll |
ernor. This is of the spring type a:

largely used. At H arc ; : the

weights A. formed in one piece with the
arms C, to the end of which arc I
rollers engaging a D ; the latter

slides on the vertical spindle B. The main
governor spring is of the comp

fitted between the sleeve and
the car / . to which are cast the
carrying the fulcrum pin H. Governors
of this design are powerful and at the
same time can be mad c, in

many instances the actu.< iria-

tion does not exceed 1 per cent.

For ordinary purposes, uhcre an en-
gine- is only required to run at on.

arrangement of tr ade-

quate. But where it is J
the specJ of the governor within mod-
erate limits a spring is attached, as
shown at A. Fig. 2*». w'hen the governor

is used for actuating an c jo gear

c on
r, a dashpot it necetaj
•o. gmc»

ot be very' Ml and arc

•ts.
In ca~ .nly the speed of

the

the necessary to %

the point of attachment of the spring.
This is effected as shown at A
the spe. J to a -

Mock fixed to the ar

means of the small
har :

In a few difficult cases, such as mi
the flywheel of an engine is small, or
where there is a compound engine
a throttle valve in large intern

ate spa. th. and a me

time the mean spc M must

pot -«t. the

far.ee J IO
jiion o' per OHM. from the

mean weed, la addition tr
connected to the dashpot. as
B. and ca:.

•m the mean apticd

first controlled by the
outer and Inner spring and a cmtmz

n of load ace. ban

■si the outside spring

and the engine retnma to
i

only. .aae the datbpiH sine has

a regula

All governors of the
• •
and where sensitive g<
considc

throughout »ith ball r

Modern CoalandAshHandlinirS\ stem

the boiler room of the Mcrcha
loan and Trust Compar ling, of

••lcrc has recently been in-
stalled l n of coal and ash handling
ch, although in a cramped sr

The coal J to the building

•eel cars traveling in a branch of the
<>i» tunnel I below the street

I; these cars discharging into a i

tal is taken
argc bucket elevator
and cor. This machine is equipi

uitl red buckets s

feet uith malleab!' utachn

■

ic bucV en in operation, h-

r minuic. Referrina,

iat the
when traveling I illy.

h the material along in a
ar.d. when traveling
mat

a bucket clc\ .r
The machine first lif*
ic tunnel level, a-

el awa\ »!>•
hfti m and

■
r running at right ar,
in fron- The latter

aced a'.
nicr* a

'ic chain a-
ct apar I the l»

The
coal Is dischai .:h an ope

in il «pouted to the

•esent r , mcnl necc-

and the *amr
adapt)

kandlin t takii

til HI

mem. The short flight coi be

I and the gra»

run up Crver the b"
and discharge into

Jo J.

r anual labor in handling coal and
the present time the ashe
g through

i special 16-m. iron

turn, coot
■
delivered into

a sliding atecl trough at
M run out

The g^
• cyer and the flight ear
en through t*o gear trams by an

• the boiler- i ntied *

BM ashes and can- I <sn to elnusnata tan a*

a can* Tua aw earn aau#eaar >naMa af

ate »h< >n Tbe band I ' tana ol caul per bnur and

then he if ■■» t ' - >

'»

(he m«.»- , * r • • i • ■ I

454

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Jones; Trouble Killer

Second Talk on Power Factor

"Now this matter of power factor is
simple enough," said Jones, when he and
the engineer got back from dinner, "when
you once get the hang of it, but I'll ad-
mit that it isn't easy to get the hang of
it."

Fig. 2.
He fished out his loose-leaf book and
turned over to a page of diagrams. Point-
ing out one that looked like Fig. 2, he
said :

"You know what that is, of course."
"Sine curve," said the engineer, with
conscious pride.

"A — a — it's a wave of — a — wa — "

"A wave of electromotive force, eh?"
suggested Jones with good-natured sar-
casm. "It naturally wouldn't be a wave
of sea water, now would it?"

The engineer rubbed his nose and dug
hard into his mental recesses but they
refused to deliver any inspiration. He
shook his head slowly.

"I know," he said, "but I don't know
how to say it."

"I know you know," said Jones, "a'nd
you know how to say it, too, but you're
rattled a little, that's all. Tell me this:
How many times does the e.m.f. repre-

- ^ - -

"Negative Power is Power Delivered to the Generator from the Circuit.."

"Right. What does it represent?" sented by that curve rise to its maxi-

"An e.m.f. wave," said the engineer, mum value?"

swelling still more. "Twice; once positive and once nega-

"What's an e.m.f. wave?" demanded tive."

Jones, regarding the engineer with a live- "All right. Now, what is it that is

ly twinkle in his eyes. made up of a rise to positive maximum,

a drop to zero, a rise to negative maxi-
mum and another drop to zero? What
does that constitute?"

"One cycle."

"Of course. Then this sine curve rep-
resenting an e.m.f. wave is a curve show-
ing what?"

"The changes of pressure during one
cycle," hastily replied the engineer.

"Now you're on the job," said Jones,
with an approving extension of his grin.
"You know that if a recording voltmeter
could follow the changes of pressure ex-
actly as they occur, it would draw a
diagram like that for every cycle, don't
you?"

The engineer nodded. "Just like a
steam-engine indicator draws a diagram
of steam-pressure changes that happen
in the cylinder," he suggested.

"Correct," said Jones. "Of course, no
voltmeter is sensitive enough to follow
the changes of e.m.f. through a cycle,
because of the inertia of its parts, and
it couldn't be made to follow 'em ac-
curately anyhow, the way voltmeters are
made, even if it had no inertia. But that
curve corresponds exactly to the steam-
pressure curve drawn by an indicator."

"But what's that got to do with the
power factor?" asked the engineer.

"Keep your shirt on; I'm coming to
that as fast as you'll let me," responded
Jones.

"If a recording voltmeter could be
made to draw the e.m.f. curve showing
the changes during each cycle," he re-
sumed, "a recording ammeter made just
like it would draw the same sort of a
curve to represent the rise and fall of
current in the circuit, wouldn't it?"

Fig. 3. Jones' Sketch

"Of course," agreed the engineer.

"And if you could arrange 'em to
draw the two curves on the same sheet of
paper at the same time, the diagram
would look something like this, wouldn't
it?" asked Jones, drawing Fig. 3.

"I dunno, but I sh'd think so," said
the engineer dubiously.

"Well, it would," Jones assured him,
"provided— now mind what I'm saying —

March 21, 1911.

;

provided the e.m.f. and the current -
in phase or in 'step' with each ot:

The engineer nod.:

'But suppose the current lagged be-
hind the e.m.f. in its rising and fa

Jn't reach its highest point until
after the electromotive force had passed
point and was falling. What
kind of a diagram would your voltr:
and ammeter Jra-

The engineer brightened up He had
been rereading the old Electrical Cate-
chism printed in 1' ears
ago and his memory was clearing.
•Nout like this," he suggc jw-

ing "if the difference in phase

wasn't vet.

iood boy," Jones ejaculate I u're

getting close to the throne." Thumbing
over the leaves of his book he pulled
oui another diagram, which is rcproj
in 1

"Here's a diagram of lagging current
all scaled up for convenience in figuring
the effects of the lag. Before going
into that, though. J<> you understand
why I've got the e.m.f. cycle scaled in
three hundred and

ito three hundred
kstroflofnicst

U though it

gfMfl I

B about

g to fc be

was

off the
trad

The cngit *cldom

he cam 'ling bordering

on bad judgment and he t

has bee -no three hundred and

scientif
may a- to that arrange-

ment in talking about ttn al pan

of the game. A ha
wha

"One hundred and eighty degr.
replied the engineer promr

look at my diagram and
tell me how much the current is sup-
posed to lag behind the c.r: that
diagram

■
iat pan of a (
Tf cer scribbled on his scratch

pad a* folio*

•

twelfth," he announc
"K
max
volts. *

cat aad r-

Ibc urned the :

gram then .-- »ho»mg on the
* abeet the following

Ikt

•
■

•

">e

The engineer turned Ibc
and back several times, comparing
•am.

.
tain

■

: - i "*

300
200

M
40*

• ■ ■

M (0 so on

-•

! <k Po*

"tree hi.

ike a c:-

r npp.>«l

I ell. that'* not r
anawer. A isn't any Icgrcca, and

looks

an a hund i thouaand '

•thcr number It
hundred a? grcc« Jon<

iathem.1 iiom mc

* makes ea«y flcuring tn consider |u

TOO bt

work > ou a Hwle

■4aO

hundred '■'

rnthua<

a I an

rtarf,

1 to

irrvot at thai

hf vortHUHd ~ik*

456

POWER

March 21, 1911.

table but it don't tell me much about
power factor."

"It will if you look at this diagram at
the same time," said Jones, producing
Fig. 6. "That curve is what you'd get
if you plotted the momentary power
values given in the fourth column of the
table."

"What do the little loops below the
zero line mean?" asked the engineer.

"Negative power;" replied Jones, "tnat
is, power that is delivered to the gen-
erator from the circuit."

The engineer stared at him, dum-
founded.

"Look at the other diagram," said
Jones. "During the first thirty degrees
of the cycle the current curve is below
'the zero line, isn't it?"

"Yes."

"And the voltage curve is above, isn't
it?"

"Yes."

"Well, what do those locations mean —
what polarities?"

"Positive above and negative below,"
promptly.

"Right. Now, if you multiply a positive
quantity by a negative quantity the pro-
duel is negative, isn't it?"

"Yes, but "

"Never mind butting. Positive volts
multiplied by negative amperes make
negative watts. Negative watts mean
power transferred from the line to the
generator. Now look at the table and
tell me what the maximum watts are
during the first thirty degrees."

"Thirty-five hundred and seventeen,"
replied the engineer.

"That's negative power," said Jones,
"that's why it's fenced off from the rest
of the figures with the line across the
table. You'll find another period of
negative power during the first thirty de-
grees of the second half of the cycle;
that's ruled off, too."

The engineer scanned the table and
compared the diagrams with it.

"Then from the beginnin' of the cycle
to the thirty-degree point the power's
negative," he ventured inquiringly; "from
there to the one hundred and eighty-de-
gree point it's positive; from one hun-
dred and eighty to two hundred and ten
degrees it's negative again, and positive
the rest of the cycle?"

Jones dealt him an approving thump on
the back and nearly cut his own head
off with his expanding grin.

"You're commencing to show signs
of human intelligence again," he said.
"Now tell me what's the biggest value
of positive watts in the table."

"Forty-eight thousand nine hundred and
eighty-three," replied the engineer, "and
it happens at one hundred and five 'n'
two hundred and eighty-five degrees."

"Right you are. Now what's the aver-
age positive watts?" he demanded, re-
gardless of grammar.

"D'you mean the effective value?"
asked the engineer.

Jones nodded.

"Forty-eight thousand nine hundred and
eighty-three multiplied by point seven
nought seven," began the engineer

"Hold on; the effective watts aren't
figured that way," said Jones.

The engineer scratched his head and
studied Jones' countenance for enlight-
enment, without success.

"Ain't the effective voltage seven-tenths
of the maximum voltage?" he asked.

"It sure is," agreed Jones.

"Then ain't the effective power seven-
tenths of the maximum power?"

"It sure is not," said Jones.

"Give it up then," said the engineer in
disgust. "I thought I did know that."

"You won't give it up, either," said
Jones. "Suppose, for a moment, that the
current and e.m.f. were in phase. The
maximum watts would be figured how?"

"Maximum volts multiplied by maxi-
mum amperes."

"All right. Now reduce 'em to effective
values."

"Effective watts are effective volts
times effective amperes."

"Go on; what are effective volts and
effective amperes?"

The engineer searched his partly con-
fused brain. Then he got his pad and
scribbled as follows:

and submitted it to Jones.

"Correct," said that cheerful person.
"Now multiply your two numbers to-
gether to make one factor of 'em."

So the engineer proceeded as follows:

0.-707 *• 0.707 =0-5*

"Well I'll be "

"You probably will, sooner or later,"
interrupted Jones. "Now, get a move on
you and follow out the power-factor busi-
ness. Effective watts are equal to ?"

"Half of the maximum watts."

"Then in the two diagrams and the
table the effective positive power is
what?"

"Half of forty-eight thousand nine hun-
dred and eighty-three " scribbling

on his pad "Twenty-four thousand

four hundred and ninety-one and a half
watts."

"Put it down on a clean spot. What's
the effective negative power?"

*:Half of thirty-five hundred and seven-
teen — " more scribbling "Seven-
teen hundred and fifty-eight and a half
watts."

"Put it down under the other figure —
that twenty-four thousand and some-
thing. Now don't you see that if the

generator delivers power to the circuit
part of the time and the circuit delivers
power to the generator part of the time,
the watts that get to the lamps and do
work in the motors are the difference
between the two?"

"It looks that way," admitted the en-
gineer, thoughtfully gazing at the table
and the diagrams. "But I don't get that
power-factor thing yet."

"You're 'most there now," said Jones
encouragingly. "Subtract the effective
negative watts from the effective positive
watts."

The engineer made the subtraction and
showed the following to Jones:

24;4<J I w

11733

"All right. Remember that's the real
power — the true watts actually delivered
to the circuit and requiring mechanical
power to drive the generator. Now, the
maximum voltage is one hundred and
fifty and the maximum current is three
hundred and fifty amperes; what is the
apparent power in the circuit — the ef-
fective volt-amperes?"

The engineer made the following cal-
culation:

(So "ttv_fcX. *Wr&«l

IJ foo

"Twenty-six thousand two hundred and
fifty volt-amperes; good. That, you un-
derstand, is what you mean when you
talk about apparent power in a circuit."

The engineer nodded. "And the power
factor's the real power divided by this,"
he said.

"You're on," said Jones, "figure it out."

The engineer divided 22,733 by 26,250.

"Eight hundred and sixty-six thou-
sandths," he announced.

"Express that as a percentage and
it's your power factor," said Jones.

The engineer fidgeted uncomfortably.

"What's the matter?" asked Jones.

"How do you express thousandths as
a percentage?" asked the engineer.

"What does per cent, mean, baby?"
demanded Jones somewhat impatiently.

"Per hundred," answered the engineer.

"Well, if you have eight hundred and
sixty-six parts out of a thousand, how
many is that per hundred?"

"One-tenth as much."

"Well?"

"Eighty-six and six-tenths?"

"Of course. Write it down in frac-
tional form and you'll see it plain as the
nose on your face."

So the engineer wrote:

o- ?fo =

PtC.

loco
1000 lOO'O

/oo '

March 21, 1911.

iid Jones, "look at the tar^
tell me what the currer • rien the

voltage is at its highest poi:

t ninety degr the c:

neer, following down the columns of the
with his finger, "the voltage is one
hundred and fifty and the currc:
three hundred and three and . -hun-

dredth!

"And your highest current is
"Three hundred and fifty ampcr
"All right. I nrcc hundred and

three and eleven-hundredths by three
hundred and fifty and tell me the an-
swer."

The engineer performed the division,
rated, glanced at Jones and then -
over the division again to make sure he
was right.

"w'cll." he s i the same as the

power factor, but I don't sec why."

"Just think what it mean- %cd

Jones. "When you the momentary

current th;r hen the voltag-

maximum by the maximum current.
got the same result as when

rue vans by the volt-amp Jn't

you

The engineer agreed that he
.en it follous that th,

im current
I hen th,
maximum.

The engineer saw.

' he M I coming through

slow. If the voltage and current ■
in step lil ndicating I

"they'd reach the top at the same time,
and you'd get all the power there was

'ul." cautioned
all the po*cr there is anyhou. but the
; r used in the t hen

the voltage and current arc in step. w'hcn

arc not. the ; ss beet

the product of momentary vo am-

i at any point in th.
than it would be if they ucrc in M

"I can see that." said the en.

at the thin • in

taking up I
current's zero here at
If th

thing, invhnu I Junno how mtx
•
nc hundred ar.

engineer took a
wine from
nd the

be horn*waggl<
neer. "that's th

gram, too How many more thing* (le-
nt that wa
-* grin*
>u knew that '
' <rgotten mo«t i

s:ne C I
noi.

and »-

or machine is the cosine of
number

lags behind the | the

c of lag. for mat

"But you i actor

was the proportion of maximum

«har the voltage is n

.Med th eer.

tion of it; this cosir the

mathematical defi-

the this rule Th,

■

■
The engine

"That's an awful mixup of words to
•

■ nc*.
bland indifferent
remember 'cm »hcre

can get at 'cm when - sort

of like a formula, so

the angle of lag; also
im amp
that momentan

"NX the ent: ng the

rule on the fly leaf of his copy of !

that
angle of lag I

^ome •

'rom
•
data

a minute I the cr,

. at the small loop*

• that r
■

■

long or

in his book, "and I've got to r<

osc of It. One of thr

jnk

unloading the

i . - •

r "
• on the
Trie ■ this r

The ^v-at: ban *. front the >crt v-
ginnint commercial eat

- baa been a direct -current

•become useful ctry

nations
mportant but rather un-
usual Acid
used as a protection aga

real used to

Jom go * rong. the In.
•usness of an interruption in sen ice
mal

turned to insure continuous or
modem conditions o'

rruption of lighting or p
current ma> pro:
that a

I provide against the poaair
of even a 'down

In the lar,

groups of coal compartment*, boilers,

n and •witch-
board panel* have become characteristic
Conaidr
n made curing y »«*—

thought that the addition of one or two

i | . u'i be

c wbc?
n would be M

station the

motion continuously la

at regular

With a storage

• busbars, the

• ■

it «

so that ftM

to tht r
at draf sa

loaJ the vohat* can ejuJ

brought up to normal by ad|i

'< I!* Of

I ruator acM fbtan

•its for uk in tsi
'■*" of esthtt tan

ftaaat • Tha

aa>

1 ftafaT IbbbM aaauml

(Hint sa

choanal

ata*

458

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Compression and Expansion

Ratios

By Cecil P. Poole

"What is the compression ratio of a
gas engine? What is the expansion ratio?
Nearly every man operating one prob-
ably thinks he knows the answer until
he "gets down to brass tacks" and starts
to give it. The compression ratio is
not the clearance percentage, nor the
ratio of compression to admission pres-
sures; nor is it anything else except a
simple ratio of volumes. The expansion
ratio is also a ratio of volumes.

Compression Ratio

If you measure the cubic inches of
space in front of a piston when it is
ready to begin the compression stroke,
then measure the cubic inches of space

Everything"
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

For example, suppose the volume under
the piston shown in Fig. 1 to be 12
cubic feet and that the piston is forced
downward until the volume under it is
reduced to 2 cubic feet, as indicated in
Fig. 2. Dividing the volume before com-
pression by the volume after compression
gives

which is the compression ratio.

Fig. 1. Maximum Volume

between the piston and the cylinder head
when the compression stroke is com-
pleted, then divide the larger volume
by the smaller, the result will be the
compression ratio. That is all there is to
it. It is not affected by valve setting,
mixture, variation or any other adjust-
ment unless the adjustment changes the
length of piston stroke or the volume of
the clearance space.

Fig. 2. Compressed Volume

If the pressure in the cylinder is 14
pounds absolute (0.7 of a pound below
atmospheric) before compression it will
be increased to about 150 pounds at the
end of the compression stroke, if no more
heat escapes through the wall than is
usual with gas engines. The tempera-
ture will also increase, butnot so greatly
as the pressure; if the absolute tempera-
ture is 500 degrees absolute before com-

pression it will be about 900 degrees ab-
solute after compression. But the pres-
sure and temperature changes do not af-
fect the compression ratio; they are
results of it.

In the case just assumed, the com-
pression ratio is 6, the pressure ratio
due to compression is about 10.7 and the
temperature ratio about \Y\. Under cer-
tain operating conditions, however, the
pressure ratio could easily be 9j/> or 10
and the corresponding temperature ratio
1.59 or 1.67, although the compression
ratio would remain 6.

Expansion Ratio

If the exhaust valve opened at the end
of the piston stroke instead of a little in
advance of the end, the expansion ratio
would be exactly the same as the com-
pression ratio because the cylinder vol-
umes at the ends of the stroke are the
same in both cases. In other words, the
volume of gases would increase exactly
as much during expansion as it decreased
during compression. If four cubic feet
were compressed to one, then the one
cubic foot would expand to four during
the outstroke.

For example, if the cylinder in Fig. 2
contained a mixture of gas and air and
the mixture were lighted with the pis-
ton in the position shown and the crank
on the dead center, the pressure and
temperature would rise rapidly — almost
instantaneously. As soon as the crank
passed the dead center the gases would
push the piston outward, and if the ex-
haust valve opened wide when the piston
reached the position in Fig. 1, at which
compression began, the expansion ratio
would be

= 6

exactly equal to the compression ratio.

The exhaust valve does not open at the
extreme end of the expansion stroke,
however, and the expansion ratio there-
fore is less than the compression ratio
in all modern engines working on the
four-stroke cycle.

Fig. 3 illustrates this difference. At A
the piston is shown at the beginning of
the compression stroke; at B it is at the
other end of the stroke, the crank then
being on the opposite dead center; at C,
just before the piston reaches the end
of the outward stroke, which is indicated
by the dotted line, the exhaust valve is
supposed to -open.

The volume in the cylinder at A
(represented by the symbol Vn) is as-
sumed to be 0.45 of a cubic foot; at B

March 21. mi

PO\X

4'*

it has been reduced by compression to
0.1 of a cubic foot, making the comr
sion ratio

or one-half <
sior ratio u

^oot. and the COmpreS-
iscJ to

o I

ien the piston moves outward from
the B position to that at C, where the
exhaust valve opens, the volume I
of a cubic foot) increased t<> hich

measure* '».41 of a cubic foot. Tru
pansion ratio, therefore, is mechanically

o I

Effectively, it is a little greater because
the exhaust valve does not open •
all at once and even when it is wide open
the port is not large enough to allow

HE-

uraaati

the gases to fall instantaneously to at-

•
vals cment may a*

The important fa.

•hat tru and

ttlos ar
and fa»t. in the ordinary four-*imk<.

Refcrrinc. ' again, sur;

the stroke of that engine were i-
onc-*evcnth A*
the : iccmer

the clearance beim
max placem<

anc<

Ing anything eUe. the piston d ;
ment will be Increased from
of a cubic foot maximum volume

(displacement * clearance » *ill then

• | 0.1

If the exh. opens -

•n has traveled the mom
of its stroke as in the first ca
umt fool

and the mecha pansion ratio will

as compared with 4 1 in the first c.

In other .insion ratio in

the first case was

of the compression
ratio; in the m ise. the expansion

ratio

■ f the com-

Th ri the rela*

the compression and expansion

.in be changed appreciate

altering Ibc of the exhaust-valve

:n»; If the exhi pens in

all cases when t! n has traveled

the same ; pansion

en the
~*ton ratio* n
main practical! tant no matter what

>*ion ratio ma I in a

tenth* the

—ion ratio

i be

■

smaller \»ith i
cren

*o that

iing thr

. •

the son

•mpraaeJon an J

■ i: naion of gases unlet* the

done, the ten,

e nion' i ' release

cure* Instead of l

I incbe* with a

rrr«... • of \ one 4»n tnche* •

the same ratio and one 4s6 inches with
a ratio of -poooe that

icr the following

^^Ba&*-

normal cycle in th
J work

FU.rr

pMoa

Ion

it prraaur

Mssaaa i>t*~—

The comparison between A and 0
shows some of the results of increas-
ing the coos.
cvpinwor oof

gcJ and.

osion pressure »s
also unchanged e taoso

The comparison H and

shows that

bort iing the same

creases the ileal ra aloo

^e* thr to go

•ion docs not produce a lover release
<)n the cor

ade greater than the
e cocnr
shone

rnprnctical me-
chai ural d< the

• • holding the

e cosn-

•

camp'

the

pan*ion mutt be
■■nfsjn.
g on the four

« ass

» <

■ • r»«

460

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Water Hammer Burst Valve

A serious case of water hammer,
caused by carelessness, occurred in the
boiler room of a Government building
in Washington, D. C, some time ago,
which burst a 6-inch angle-stop valve
on one of the boilers, seriously injuring
a coal passer.

Orders had been given to an extra man
on duty to slowly fire up No. 1 boiler,
which had been out of service several
weeks for repairs, and at the time he
went off duty 20 pounds pressure showed
on the gage. The 9-inch header passes
over the front of the boilers, each of
which is connected by a 6-inch long bend
with a gate valve, without a bypass at
the header, and a 6-inch angle valve at
the boiler, both of which were shut when
the fire was started.

The gate valve is Ay2 inches lower than
the globe valve, and such is the arrange-
ment on all the boilers, and it is sup-
posed that the section of pipe between
the two valves was partly full of water.

Soon after the extra fireman went off
duty, orders were given to the coal passer,
who, by the way, was an ignorant colored
man and had only been employed in
the boiler room a short time, to go up and
open one of these valves. Instead of
opening the angle valve as he should
have done, he opened the gate valve
about two turns when a violent water ham-
mer was heard by the fireman, who told
him to shut the valve, but for some rea-
son he opened it wider and the second or
third hammer burst the angle valve, as
shown at A and B, the unshaded portion
being the shape of the piece that was
broken out of either side. The coal
passer was knocked off the boilers and
badly bruised and burned.

All of the boilers were connected to
the header in the same manner, as shown
in the figure, and without a bypass or
bleeder between the valves.

In cutting out a boiler it has been
customary in this plant to close both
valves on the branch and to open the
angle valve when the fire is first started
to raise steam, but in this case it was
overlooked by the fireman and the boiler
was cut into the line by means of the
gate valve. Even with the angle valve
open the pipe will not drain, because it
is 4x/2 inches lower at the header than
at the angle valve. This leaves a pipe
full, or nearly so, of water, the result

Practical

information from the.

man on the Job. A letter

dood enough to print

here will he paid forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

being that the water goes into the steam
line when the gate valve is opened and
there is danger of breaking the 9x9x6-
inch tee. The gate valve should never
be closed except in case of emergency or

Connecting Ammonia Com-
pressors

I am engineer in a refrigerating plant
and a consulting engineer advised me to
connect a 50-ton and a 35-ton machine
to one condenser.

The large machine compresses through
a 2-inch, three-way valve into a 2-inch
header; the coils are also of 2-inch pipe.
The small machine has the same size dis-
charge pipe expanded into a 5-inch
header at the condenser and does better
work than the large machine.

Will these machines do good work if
they are connected to the same con-

Arrangement of Piping and Valves

repairs to the angle valve and the boiler denser through the 2-inch, three-way

should be cut in by means of the angle valve? The condenser has a capacity of

valve only. 54 cubic feet.

J. Case. H. S. Free.

Hyattsville, Md. Harrisburg, Penn.

March 21, 1911.

I. CrcMshead Sh<

The c: oe of a large steam

engine worked loose one night while the
engine was carrying the peak load. As
this * .is the main engine it was net
sary to repair it at or.

I disconnected the shoe from the crose-
head and drilled Inch holes

through the babbitt and shoe body, and
countersunk the holes in the bab^
a drill ground for the job. >me

copper made with uhich to

t the babbitt to the shoe, as shou

1! I

To make sure of the job.

d to the shoe, each
over babbitt about . inch.

This repair job ; Tcctual

and is still doing as good lei M when

rep a I months a.

R. K. Coot
veland. O.

I tamper Regulators

I would be glad to hear from
enced engineers .1 *hat has fa

found the best pra :mg the

of dam;

In some cases, c
■

like
to know what
such an In n.

■

lcrc
arc certain kinds 1 -ion an :

itors *
mental rather tha' ting as

an instance a boiler plant 1
to I im at a

at irreRul.i
J that a regulator h a

■
Then, again, there are plants ihfl

■
surr :crc

1 nccc*- -he saf<

ing

I ace I

are
a rv

a plan*
' has varying loads ar uses

a maximum ar

! bC

Boilei

I would of

■

burn anil oal

with any degn.
mine coal is used and the analysis show*

a to Anthra

pea coa
or dout^

a ton of th anthracite pea

coa: > much heat a of

•

Tl' ro make a

as the plant or ales

about three month* tl as the

puts up a food prodi;
like to burn anthr a! so as to do

awa the smoke, soot a • of

1 1.
I it to see suggestions

clean. I use a tube r iocs

good work as far as cleaning the flues

boilers w'hen th .orkmg op

la cap* - 1 ► ..•• from 10 n :2 mm

ec open
thj

usual bafle plate -
flow o. entrance

charged oephcrc through a 6-

Soft scale collected the

hca' -horoughl) cleaned

out once an An overflow pipe

connected at the bottom and
abo In case of a

I beater t: uld

blow out of this pipe as soon as tha
scale began to form in the *»pe* Hgff

If a »ud
load was thrown on. th.

>uM*

is concerneJ soot and Ana overt) rani*

M
I •
posslbl> a good

ugh r 'taast

■me the trouble *a*d oot ot

. "
ind the mi •" 1 flarr sad

«t on locomotUcs. d at

■ha uptake he o»aV haast h.

• ,• • •

r*x> *•*

re spaaing at >

ra- hok fror top

I boose

tic I do not have at cr •

462

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Reducing Valve Trouble

I once had occasion to overhaul sev-
eral reducing valves which had been in
use a long time. The valves were taken
apart and cleaned and valves and seats
reground. After reassembling them they
were tested and all v/orked nicely with
the exception of two which would not
reduce the pressure in the least. These
two were taken apart again and seemed
to be all right, but upon a second trial
they still refused to work.

With steam on the valve a wrench
was put on the bonnet A, which was un-
screwed a little, when the valve started

Sectional Vlew of Reducing Valve

to work as it should, but steam escaped
from the joint B.

After a little thinking I took the valves
apart again and found that repeated
grinding of the auxiliary valve C had
worn down the seat D so that the nut E
projected to far above the shoulder F
and when the bonnet A was screwed
down tight the diaphragm G would force
the auxiliary open and hold it open, thus
preventing the reduction of pressure.

The top of the nut E was filed enough
to make up for the metal removed at
D and the valves then worked satisfac-
torily.

Myron D. Place.

Foxboro, Mass.

Loose Stud Caused Click

A Corliss engine in a factory had an
unaccountable click in the cylinder for
a long time. Various conjectures were
offered from time to time as to the prob-
able cause.

It was not until a breakdown occurred,
however, that the real cause was found.

A stud had broken off in the piston at
the end of the threads, tearing about two
inches of its length loose in the hole.

Apparently a little bur was all that
held the loose stud from dropping out of
the piston into the cylinder as the engine
passed over the head-end center. It would
come partly out during the travel of the
piston toward the crank center; then, up-
on the reversal of the piston travel, it
would slip back to place, making the
mysterious click.

The crisis came at last when the sup-
posed bur wore away and the stud
dropped into the cylinder. The cylinder
head was not knocked out, although the
engine was considerably damaged. The
loose stud lodged in the exhaust port
where the lower edge of the piston struck
it and bent the stem. The piston rod was
also too badly bent to be packed steam
tight.

Edward T. Binns.

Philadelphia, Penn.

Preserving Bolt Heads

A good substitute for expensive brass
heads for bolts, where chemical action
prevents the use of iron, has been found
in babbitt.

A mold is made and a rack to hold
the bolts in a vertical position. The
babbitt is then poured around the iron
head and allowed to cool.

F. H. Stacey.

Montreal, Can.

Dash Pot Troubles

I have frequently seen the question
asking why a Corliss engine will gov-
ern perfectly with a normal load, but
will race more or less when the load is
light. The answer usually given is that
the governor is not properly adjusted.

This trouble occurs more frequently
with engines equipped with multi-ported
valves, and the trouble is due to the ac-
tion of the dashpots and not to that of
the governor. A Corliss dashpot must
lift quite a distance in order to produce
sufficient vacuum to close the valve
quickly. In the single-ported type, the
valves usually have much more lap than
the multi-ported valve, and in order to
open the valves the dashpot plunger must
be lifted about 9/16 inch with a 30x48-
inch engine. In a multi-ported engine of
the same size the lap will frequently be
not more than % inch.

A dashpot plunger must ordinarily lift
at least l/2 inch in order to produce a
prompt cutoff. If the plunger does not
drop its full stroke the valve will re-
main slightly open until the hook returns
to pick up for the next stroke, when the
valve will be closed by the hook pushing
down on the dashpot rod. Of course, so
long as the steam port is open, steam
will follow the piston and the engine will
race.

Multi-ported valves are more prone to
leak than single-ported valves, on account
of the smaller amount of lap. It is quite
evident that the more lap a valve has
the less will be the leakage.

I have sometimes thought that where
an engine runs under a very variable
load and a condenser is available that
it would be a good plan to connect the
vacuum chamber of the dashpots to the
condenser, having check valves in the
connections so that the dashpots would
operate when the condenser was shut

down. This would give a pretty constant
pull on the dashpots; regardless of the
lift. This scheme could only be applied
where the dashpot has a cushion chamber
separated from the vacuum cylinder.

C. A. Green.
Cleveland, O.

Regrinding Valves

A short time ago it became necessary
to reface the valve seats in a boiler-feed
pump, as they were badly pitted. As
the reseating machine could not be used

Fig. 1. Regrinding a Valve Seat

on the valve decks without some kind
of special rig to hold it, the method de-
scribed herewith was tried.

A second-cut-file was qnnealed and a
piece cut off a little longer than the diam-
eter of the valve seats. A hole, the size
of the valve stud, was drilled and tapped
in the center to hold the spindle which
went into the stud hole. Then I hardened
the file cutter. The spindle fitted in the

Fig. 2. Worn Valve in Holder

hole in the cutter and was held in a bit
stock at the other end. The cutter was
turned, thus facing off the seat.

I then thought that truing up the valve
would help, so a holder was made, as
shown in Fig. 2, which is a box fitted
with a set screw to prevent the valve
from turning. The box is held in a vise
while the valves are being faced.

D. F. Crowther.

Boston, Mass.

March 21, I'M 1

*«.<

luestions Before the House

I eakagc through Piston
\ ilvc

I read with interest the anic:

the report published in the
October 1 1 number of the piston-

leakage te*- ' 'chell. I a

wit! -chocmaker in the Januar

ic that the ; c-platc valve leaks

as much as. if not more than, t!
vah

In the January II number
Ca'i examples ol

leakage. I think tha- >emaker

and Mr. M. ' t of the

fact that the amount of leakage through
a valve when it is in a state ■■•
much less than when it is in operation,
and such a I

etlCC 'eakage. d< ndicate

the amount ur.

Those int in this matter n

- to The

n a repon of the Bra
ginc Rcscach Committee It is there
stated that the leakage through a
valve is but

•sonal to the difference in
lei and that in
• cases witf tly balanced vah

the lea^ n greater that

cent, of the steam entering t>

-:hamtor

I r and Mac hine

I J:fti •

in the i

inccr and the Ma I -

id the

•

the

uhen if

to lh<

■

; il plar.'

plant aloi not

offer

him •

Tv>.

»ho comes
and ad\i«c« the boas that the c
should I
needed at all is the

that the plant will soon be
on the higl.

»ur *ill aooncr or later ln«c

|ob an.

■

1 ?>(.

. sugg ■ >/lS
<Muf ( tifHvi various

aodcdh
oriaU v%/y/< /; hoi e .</>
pe biprwio
isstH i

There arc honest supervisors do

■
off the opi
and to help hi bring the plant up
in efl If the -or and the

that
can help each other and the boss
better r ! than -

W here I I >

lent in a r
m to i >
ilcnt. p.
found in the n f all of

ipcrs of the da
■

vie man

It
char *n.

rped in
and said tl

th gooJ
he has subs i

<> good reaeor
so doing

..I | K At

seen somr out

» ■ . '

and

tbc
ng money among the engineers

•misting the salesman. I vent A

*.c » • c •

cotton

that I ■ and M

■iat be
good beating

irak.
Im »»

the habit of accepting present* in coo-

IK a good

char

If >c grocery

and pound

■
-he wo

and that would be her
the should get a pound for
e cup and saucer
- pound o'.
in exchange for

pro' >uld be ks who

•her any more.

n.ill Ri '

■ •

■

ir.! M

I meaot

t ma-
cs depend for their operation upon
hemodynamic
ceanpe

Uab>
acbines being in general

Tbc «rrJ to aaeke east to

<>r»e power for 14 beejra, th«s

IMS)
for <-»» than ' in ' InWMnnucf <■ *

■M . >nchade ether that cue
^senfy ci
loo J mee *•

rudsjeed

Juced br rbt me»-

rgajn."

the borsepootr developed br cbe t
. need so be "

464

POWER

inarch 21, 1911.

tne machine the benefit of the more
favorable figure, we may conclude that
the 2-horsepower motor was working, at
least, something under its full rating.

Mr. Turner gives 12 kilowatt-hours as
costing 36 cents, an evident rate of 3
cents per kilowatt-hour. As a 2-horse-
power motor will hardly have an effi-
ciency better than 80 per cent, at full
load, we may calculate a probable elec-
trical input of

2 -4- 0.80 = 21 2 electrical horsepower,
equal to 1 ~/$ kilowatts. Electricity at the
rate of \~$ kilowatts for 24 hours would
cost, at 3 cents per kilowatt-hour, $1.35,
which is the power cost of the ton of
refrigeration, not of a ton of ice, which
would cost about

iy3 X $1.35 = $2.23.

Adding the labor cost of 25 cents and
a depreciation and interest charge of only
10 per cent, on a probable first cost of
$600, equal to 62A cents per day, we find
the total cost of one ton of refrigeration
to be $1.66 nearly, and of a ton of ice,
$2.75.

Even at that, the machine furnishes
refrigeration equal in cost to ice pur-
chased at 8'.» cents per hundred pounds
($1.70 per ton) — which ought to satisfy
any reasonable man content with me-
chanical possibilities.

$. H. Bunnell.

New York City.

Binding "Power"

I have just finished binding my 1910
copies of Power according to the method
described by Mr. Lambowin in the issue
of January 10, except that, finding that
his method did not produce volumes that
would probably stand the service to which
I expected to subject them, I reinforced
them by putting two wire staples clear
through each.

As it was difficult to punch the holes
and put the staples through a whole vol-
ume at once I made a gage out of sheet
iron by taking a strip as long as a copy
of Power and about Y^ inch wide and
bending ]/$ inch over at one side and
one end. I then punched holes through
it so as to locate the staples about l/±
inch from the edge and about 1 l/2 inches
from the top and the bottom. With this
gage I punched holes for the staples in
each copy separately. The staples I made
of No. 20 gage wire. I then strung the
papers on the staples one at a time as
I glued them together, beginning with
the first copy of the first month and go-
ing right through to the last copy of the
last month of the volume. I chose to
put only two months' issues in a vol-
ume. After all were glued together I
clinched the staples and put on the backs
and covers as described by Mr. Lam-
bowin.

After I had the binding completed I
printed labels on the typewriter to put

on the backs. These labels show the
months and the pages in each volume and
the volume containing the index is indi-
cated.

G. E. Miles.
$alida, Colo.

Boiler Operation

I read in Power for January 31 the
"Confessions of an Engineer," by R. O.
Warren. He states that fuel can be saved
by cutting out one boiler and running
the remaining ones with open drafts and
dampers. I have had fifteen years' ex-
perience in firing and I wish to say that
with more boiler room, and when steam
can be kept with dampers closed, much
more fuel is saved than when the boilers
are strained to their full limit and when
in order to keep the steam pressure the
dampers have to be open all the time.
F. Van Valkenburg.

Chichester, N. Y.

Water Gages

I think that H. F. Heyrodt is too severe
with C. R. McGahey in his letter in the
February 7 issue under the above title.
I do not think that Mr. McGahey meant
that the water column should be set as
shown in the sketch. His letter explains
that the lowest water line should not be
less than 3 inches above the top row of
tubes. I may not understand Mr. Mc-
Gahey's letter correctly, but I cannot find
anything wrong with it.

Mr. Heyrodt considers the use of gate
valves on water columns poor engineer-
ing; I consider the use of globe valves
on water columns poor engineering, and
no valves at all a great deal worse.

William $vcope.

Tiffin, O.

Homemade Belt Dressing

In the February 14 issue, Mr. Van
Antwerp gives a recipe for making belt
dressing.

I have had some experience with rosin
as a belt dressing. It is efficient in
making a belt stick to the pulley while it
lasts. But, an application of rosin to a
slipping belt will last only a short time.
It has been my experience that where a
leather belt is dressed with rosin it soon
becomes hard and rotten and cracks
and the holes where the belt is laced
soon pull out. With canvas and rubber
belting I never noticed any depreciating
effects.

If anyone has a large, expensive leather
belt that is giving him trouble, I would
advise the use of some good oil, such
as castor or neatsfoot. This makes the
belt soft and pliable so that it conforms
to the shape of the pulley and adds to
the life of the belt.

Edgar Altmann.

Cincinnati, O.

On Lending a Hand

The first-page editorials in Power for
January 17 and January 24 bear close
analogy, they go hand in hand and are
distinctly applicable to the element, found
in all walks of life, that "isn't telling all
it knows." Dealing with the power busi-
ness, the engineer that gets "results"
buch as depicted in the later issue, the
extremely "practical" man, who has little
use for any literature regarding his pro-
fession, who scoffs at technical papers
and sneers at the advertisements con-
tained in them, is usually the one who
"won't help the other fellow," and who
is keeping all he knotfs to himself — as a
rule, this is very little. This is the class
that "knows it all." From the engineer
of this type we learn much of "past per-
formances," of what he has done and
what he has been through and in full
completion there is often a missing link,
"how." But this is the secret, it fails
to appear either because it is as much
of a conundrum to himself as to the
other fellow or because the other fellow
might accidentally glean a kink. When
anything goes wrong he is the one who
is the quickest to blame it on another
operator. I am acquainted with a very
"practical" man who has adorned the en-
gine room with a patent safe, a bread-
box fitted with a padlock; into this is
placed his "records and private data";
the desk, supplied by the company, is
too public and the engineer on the fol-
lowing watch might see something. To
have a motto, "Let the other fellow learn
the way I did," isn't showing full ap-
preciation of the fact that possibly you
icarned considerable from someone your-
self; it must be excessively hard to go
through life in this frame of mind.

To a man of character and business
sense, there is nothing like extending a
helping hand; because one man's experi-
ence is not on a par with another's, is no
disgrace; none of us can ever know too
much, and when we begin to realize that
we can learn something, that we do not
"know it all," it is the first signs of
judiciousness. The young engineer, the
man trying to make progress in his
chosen profession, should be assisted and
ercouraged, not discouraged; when mis-
takes occur, he should be shown where
hf has erred, not taunted; he should be
helped on, not held back. Nothing will
have such a demoralizing effect upon the
fellow trying to learn, as the man with
the big head and infused with self-con-
ceit; it downs him in his purpose and
ambition, and makes him impressed with
"What's the use"?

There is an old saying, "Chickens come
home to roost," and its full significance
should be understood. Power points out
that there is a feeling of great satisfac-
tion to the man who knows he has helped
another and there is certainly no compari-
son between this and that other sensa-

March 21. 1911.

don, "he didn't get any information :
me

L. R *
Los Angeles, Cal.

C( iali.sts

I sometimes wonder, from the latj
occasionally printed in these column
there arc any t I often read

letters from some dinky little cne-horsc
engineer like myself telling how he had
to put the brickl.i nht with their

mortar, etc.. although probably the men
had been doing boiler brick uork for
years. Then, the machine
changed their plans when shown where
they were wrong. Next, the men put-
ting up the shafting were shown a point
or two. and so on. Not one of these ex-
pens was right at least, so our engi-
neer will inform us at three "ph;
or so per column. Any right-minded man
should know that such contrir

rom some gassy engine
No man is perfect, hut the ei and

• hy manufacturers seldom
make many mistakes at this date.

To say that any man. even a chief
in a first-class plant, is an c all

branches of steam cnginccrinK is wrong.

C. I Scott, of the American Institute
of Electric* icers. said (hi

that if all the at were included that

had been suggested as essential or de-
sirable in the training of an engineering
Student, the college period would -
to b< in length. Tt

so I guess it uould mean 40 year-

illwcll. in the san
said that men e/hl highest in the

engineering pr< generally speak-

ing, are the men location

ttlc trouble in

n and competent calculat
the demand for "all-round men" al*

! he meaat
men with several college degrees and

any-
one would know as much without being
told Hut. if employers s .:0od

all-round men. that is. men with good
pra«.' e and

line ■'
Powtu I \crmirc 10 P'

hundred* of a- i:ood

men. slwa

i« adequate for a good n
■

•h that who has spent ; i!f a

•take himself a« r
;

'nt

Steam f<T I ' *

Referring to the
which Charles H Parson makes com-
ment* in regard to tb

asking if «tcam let* u I crates

t the formation of clinker*
if their use is cconomi
the answer which <>r gave to the

is os near as could be

arson's statement that ash d
melt at a -g. and

he contr

are COti sing of

elements in t?

may be sulphur If

ire not ash, what are
the.

It is generally b< that as steam

passes through a fuel bed, the steam is

mposed ir- ogen a gen

and absorbs heat from that pan of the

fuel bed where the decomposition t..

The ^cn formed from the

on of steam in the fuel bed
la probebhj burned. .i--".c the bed a
hence, the furnace temperature as usual-
easurcd may be \ nfTerent

than that obtained when the steam
n use.

G. Bai:

' ISO.

met*

Henry I) Ja.kson. in a recent is-
fcrcd his solution of the problem of
smoke prrven- ,:ood

suggestions were give: uggests the

old coking method of firing for the |

But. how man\ men
arc there who are . fire

uch a manner; also, how many plants
are there it such a ph '. be

followed without losing the stcs
sun * can results be

tained than by tht Ihtg method of

firemen
use the altcrn.v -rue

that the
■
that grc an be Men

K light:
do so r coking

•

I cenainly a; tg a t

all tha
am

ngenders f'^vftfrn

■
v serves as a temporary stir

of the toe

I'ulvei (

I was much interested

e test that seemed oecu
on of •

y too ahort for a
lipiodeoce is to be

pla.rj M 'he rc«ult*

tremely low when
sideration that the tern

rht p rewsure
about 371 d

ing a J '

of the

Ik I I ■ I 1 *<

eo of ooly IS degret
aturv r flue gaaoo

•
cconomiicr An explanation of this

should prove highly
to those of us who arc ntertstcd ir.
boiler economy, even Jo hove to

W ■ crs

As has been stated, the •
or a m<'

than a the hands of

ocers. To buckle down and compos* a
. ■ • • I - - : ii
be rewritten I
for. cooosdered waaclewtl

I to the rcies of the editor.

and > around in a cold sweat for

or
a\ a is more than a

Some men write for the pie poor

c moocy to be
* r acceptable to a

I find (hat there om 30 to JO

issue of Pxs rs whicr-
from one-half to ooe and one-half col-
umr igth cj

to I 'ho men "on the lob.*

1 also find that fha circulation •■

•
■

■■» wh

Has had to dc*

ttlc over J» ■

29 or
JO sD
r of be osr

ojM
a roueing old sat sf

I ie

sad tbe

isoo detail oo eeano of too
■
a pile of
id drop at MfJ
would hove to
force osu

>gM o »»a

466

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Indicator Diagram Defects

A suggestion in reply to Mr. Binns in
the February 7 issue: Perhaps the piston
is traveling past the indicator hole. I
have had trouble of my own in this
respect.

Also, was a spring of the right scale
used?

J. L. Kezer.

Bradford, Penn.

Referring to the indicator diagram sub-
mitted by Edward T. Binns and published
in the February 7 issue, when admission
occurs at the head end, the pressure
causes the indicator piston to rise abnor-
mally high, due to excessive lead. As the
piston is well balanced, that is, it moves
with perfect freedom, the vibrations due
to inertia are set up.

The reason why vibrations are not pres-
ent in the crank end is because there is
not so much lead.

J. P. Colton.

Ohio City, O.

The Position "Higher Up"

The question asked by Mr. Richmond
in the February 14 issue is answered in
the various editorials in Power and in
the little squibs tucked away in the cor-
ners of the pages.

I stepped out of the fire room into my
first job as chief. How I did it may be
interesting but I have always accepted it
as a matter of course. I had been firing
a pair of boilers for over three years
and had got the trick down so fine that
the boiler manufacturer noticed it and
used to borrow me once in a while to
fire boilers for him when they were under
test. I always got as high an evapora-
tion as the coal and boiler would stand
and the boiler man always got his money.

While going out on these jobs, I noticed
the men who were conducting the tests
taking indicator diagrams. This interested
me and, although I was working seven
days a week and twelve hours a day for
$40 per month, I managed to save enough
money to buy a cheap indicator and to
find time in which to indicate engines
wherever I had acquaintances.

One day the mechanical engineer who
built the plant dropped in as I was tak-
ing some diagrams from our engines. He
looked at the diagrams and asked me if
I knew what I had when I got one. I
told him that I did and showed him some
diagrams from about twenty other en-
gines on which I had laid out the point of
cutoff and the theoretical expansion curve.
He seemed to be impressed and, after a
while, told me that he had a pair of
Corliss engines in another plant that
were not doing very good work and that
if I would set the valves and bring him
diagrams, taken before and after setting
the valves, all figured up, he would give
me S20. I took a day off, indicated the

engines, set the valves and spent the
night figuring up the diagrams. The next
day, I got an hour off and took the dia-
grams to him, got my $20 and went back
to work at my firing job.

But that experience taught me some-
thing. There was a vast difference be-
tween $20 for a day's work and $20 for
two weeks' work. So I got busy, saving
money to buy books and more instru-
ments and nearly had nervous prostra-
tion from studying and experimenting.
I think the only time I ever lost from
work, when I wanted to work, was at this
time, when I had to go to a hospital to
have my eyes treated and later on when
I went to a hospital to get some burns
treated which I received while trying to
conduct a fire test of a sample of oil
with a homemade flash pot and a gaso-
lene torch.

Some time after indicating those two
engines my mechanical-engineer friend
came around and said that in a plant some-
what similar to the one in which I was
firing the chief engineer was due to walk
the plank. He asked me if I thought that
I could handle the job. The wages were to
be $21 per week, only five and a half
working days per week. Although the
offer nearly took the breath out of me, I
told him that if he was willing to try me
I was willing tc take a chance and that
if I failed it would not be because I
had not tried.

The long and short of it is that he
gave me the position, and I have held
that and similar positions almost without
interruption ever since.

One of the principal requirements of a
chief engineer is executive ability and
this is hard to acquire. Another quali-
fication is fair bookkeeping ability. I
studied probably all of the technical
journals for ten years and could figure
out any of the problems relating to a
stationary engineer's work. Then I saw
a new light. Today, I do not believe that
I could figure out the horsepower of a
boiler or engine or do any of the lever
safety-valve problems without consulting
a book. But, I can figure out the cost
per kilowatt-hour of every item entering
into the daily operation of the plant, lay
out the load curve, figure the load factor
and the boiler performance, show the
difference between the last twenty-four
hours' operation and that of the preced-
ing day and account for that difference.
Any or ail of the foregoing information
I can put on the manager's desk by ten
o'clock in the forenoon. Such things are
what really count and are what the com-
pany wants.

I am not a paragon of virtues and meet
engineers every day to whom I take off
my hat. In fact, I have had them working
under me and have in several instances
managed to turn over my job to them
when I got ready to quit. I never noticed
an engine-room clock except to see that
it was correct and still running, for I

always considered that I was paid for
twenty-four hours per day. I have always
respected my employer if I did not re-
spect the man. I have never asked for
a raise in salary in my life and my em-
ployer has always paid me all of the
salary I received.

I work hard and long and expect the
men and machines under me to operate
at as near full capacity as possible. In
return for the cooperation of the men, I
see to it that they get all the money that
the company will stand for and I do
not work them on twelve-hour shifts. It
may sound strange, but I have found that
a sure way in which to bring down the
cost per kilowatt-hour, and that is all
that I think and dream about, is to see
that the men get all the money within
reach and work short shifts.

Edward Adams.

Reading, Penn.

Under the above head in the issue of
February 14, Oscar J. Richmond wishes
suggestions on the matter of obtaining
better positions.

It is generally admitted that the first
move is self-education, which results in
increased personal efficiency. A difficulty
mentioned, and it is a real one, is the
fact that a power-plant engineer is tied
down for the greater part of every day
with a minimum chance for meeting in-
fluential men and thus furthering his
ends. He has, however, the same use of
the United States mails as his employer.
All "improved" engineers are conscien-
tious readers. In reading they are con-
tinually noting the affairs of others and
news with regard to new undertakings.
If in search of an opening, many ideas
should be gleaned in this way. New power
plants in the course of construction will
soon need engineers. Improvements in
old plants will need better talent. New
companies forming will need expert
talent. A card index or other means of
tabulating should be instituted and busi-
ness methods applied to the subject in
hand — that of getting a better job.

Letters should be written by the dozen
and the replies graded as to prospect. It
must be remembered that letters are
proxies and as such should truly repre-
sent the writer. A slovenly letter may
not always indicate a slovenly man, but
in the absence of other evidence the ef-
fect is the same. The rent of a type-
writer would amount to a few dollars a
month, and a little practice makes one
fairly proficient. And if -the end is worth
having at all, the typewriter is a part of
the job-getting business. Another way
would be to turn the letters over to a
friend who is a stenographer, or still an-
other, have them copied by a public
stenographer. In the quest of a posi-
tion, do not send a letter written in
long hand to a stranger; in most cases it
is suicidal.

Blind advertising is all right in the
search for men, but as a means of ob

March 21, 1911.

taining a position it is practically use-
less. The head of a plant has too many
opportunities to reach people dir
and the blind advertisement carr.
n atmosphere of distrust.
Engineering soc iqd clubs do

much to raise the standing of men
take active pan. There arc tl
fortunes were made by this method,
so: called "self-adver-

all things, if >ou really want a
<> after it in a whole-hc.t
manner. You cannot lea me un-

turned and do justice : -elf.

L. P. U
Chicago. III.

Binding Powers"

In the Februar> 7 issue. Mr .lis

he takes care of h

I have been a regular subscriber to

1' for a number < ■• and I have

. opy that - ent to me.

I have a case in the engine room for

them; in it I place each copy after I have

I can get am number I want

without the slightest trouble. I keep the

titles of such articles as I need in a

I think I have a better method

than any I have seen dew

I O. I
nccr. La.

\ iCUUm for Ret iprtX .itm^

I ngines

I take | non to the opinion

in the article under the a'
in the issue for January M The old-

and impractical idea of
inches of vacuum being the limit
nomical cngim rmancc

irdcd with the innumerable other
cngin
J the author, a
with ei
■

on the steam 10 the

; If the steam I

'•lurnc with the higher
than it provided in this cyllnd
change the in the high-pi

r and adjust th<

sure vk ill allow of a shorter COtOl
the same power output
the condensing apparatus int
ahape and i g the I

possible, th

| ■ • |
and 20 it

inch<

l fti i rir

I ,- !

Del con'

U caaes acted t
Under the I

•

Parallel «
practice in ma
Steam r ght lot

PC-

the noon hour. The reason for this _
erally is on account < oor reg

•h the short

be
found that a bcr of the

n and ■■

Let us forget obsolete pra.

( I Cutofi

In a recent issue a correspond

change the cutoff

The engine ta

If the engine ■ land ■
little more lead toll : be ob-

inJ an
earlier cutoff -m( the lead.

I have an idea that the ent
- oaded and that I .toft

H. JOM

V- \!a.

( rural Station Vt, Fact)

Plant

The instance*- tier cost of

: from central-station current than
I r proj pendent

factory pla-
in the issue are but

the
agent ■
gotten further than a lo< iad the

- iMc and
-c of having a disinterested cuir

J of
the "if power, or

• ire*

and trans g of sp.

neat a' J tr

«eeeeed

the

can be turned to good ic
manu' ♦

amount to less than and.

that '

r-cf tnce of ic »t rt| ■r-in\

. hi mar

In the average factory, shafting, pul-
leys and bcltiet i moat rnnswlcnoaa

and to the

mpress^c of the

that they absorb most of the

ablls

Is no wonder that owe

ifrumMUt af

. ted) I

the cor. ren • • '
• ttchboerd UN*

In a cake ■ •npeeed to

from belt transmission to eic
st of po»

ful

a*S-

ajjeason j'J h i» <»f ,..a aVaeaetaaoi ks

f motor and line
encie*. The loss or saving resulting

can the

•?»e cenv
*cotcd snd
-*hs Het

of I

o con-

'opheiors of a

plant rotated to lad

thai .ur-

rrn* nounted to

ner cost of pr
generated ' • 'ory plant.

rigs had been looked for.
fisd been replaced

main belt di ' andoocd. a good <

engine po» the en-

ire mar
earn neces

and for
warming the build ,

■area

mi-

age took place on ac*

fbtcwr
the coat of the

tmplaitd far -•

The only trans-

rsn»mittcJ

• »

' ' 1 1 " 3

the coat of

N-

r'ant

468

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Horsepower of Gas Engine

Is there a formula for estimating the
horsepower developed by a gas engine?

E. D. R.

For a four-stroke cycle engine using

illuminating gas or gasolene the output

that will probably be obtained is given

by the formula:

d2 sn .

= horsepower

12,500

in which

d = Diameter of piston in inches;
s = Length of stroke in inches;
n = Number of revolutions per min-
ute
For a two-stroke cycle engine use 8000
instead of 12,500 for the divisor.

Pressure Required to Compress
Air

What pressure per square inch will
be required to compress air to 2/s and
also to y2 its original volume?

P. C. A.

The volume of a gas varies inversely
as its pressure and the product of pres-
sure into volume is constant, provided the
temperature remains constant. To com-
press a given volume of air to 2/i of the
original volume will require § of the
original pressure and to l/2 the original
volume will require twice the original
pressure. If the air to be compressed
is at atmospheric pressure the pressures
will be

3/2 X 14.7 = 22.05 pounds absolute

and

2 X 14.7 = 29.4 pounds absolute

respectively.

At any pressure other than that of the
atmosphere the method will be the same.

Efficiency of Boiler and Furnace

How is the efficiency of a boiler and
furnace determined?

E. O. B.

By dividing the heat transmitted to
the water by the heat in the fuel.

Brass a?jd Babbitt Bearings
Which is better for engine-shaft bear-
ings, brass or babbitt metal?

B. E. B.
Under all ordinary conditions babbitt
metal is preferable.

Questions are/

not answered unless

accompanied by thes

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

by weights acting directly on the valve
without the interposition of a lever.

Cause of Reversed Rotation

What would cause an engine to run
backward?

R. C. R.

A sufficient change in the position of
the eccentric.

Point of Cutoff

Dead Weight Safety Valve

What is a dead-weight safety valve?

D. W. S.
It is one in which the valve is loaded

At what point in the stroke will cutoff
take place in an engine of 20 inches
stroke, valve travel 5 inches and outside
lap \y% inches?

P. O. C.
The point of cutoff will vary slightly
with the lead. With 5/16-inch lead the
period of admission will continue through
62 per cent, of the stroke.

20 X 0.62 = 12.4 inches
With no lead, cutoff will occur at 66.6
per cent, of the stroke.

. 20 X 0.666 = 13.32 inches

A valve having the lap and travel as
stated would give a port opening of \l/g
inches.

Pohle Air-lift Pump

Will you please explain the construc-
tion and operation of the air-lift pump?

P. A. L.

The air-lift pump consists of a vertical
water pipe the lower end of which is
submerged in the water of a deep well,
and a smaller pipe delivering air into
the lower end of the water pipe. The
air rises in bubbles, and the column of
air and water inside the pipe being lighter
than the solid water outside, it is forced
upward by the unbalanced pressure.

Vacuum Gage on Suction Line

Kindly explain the theory and use of
a vacuum gage on the suction line of a
cold-water pump. Is it proper to locate
the gage on the suction gas chamber?
Will its showing be the same there as
on the main suction line? Explain the
gage reading; what it should read on,

say, a 20-foot suction lift, and what in-
formation does the engineer get from
the reading that is of practical use to
him in operating the pump?

G. S. L.
A vacuum gage on the suction ' pipe
from a pump may give much or little in-
formation to the pump operator, depend-
ing entirely on the conditions under which
the pump is working. Attached near the
pump it tells the vacuum required to
draw water to the pump at all times. With
clean water and steady service this may
not be much, but with the suction pipe
drawing water from a source filled with
seaweed, dead leaves or grass, the
strainer may become clogged and the
vacuum gage tells that the supply is be-
ing restricted long enough before the
pump fails to allow for cleaning. It is
proper to attach the gage to the suction
chamber, and it will- read the same as
though attached to the main pipe near
the pump; but the farther from the pump
it is attached, the lower the reading will
be. With a large suction pipe and a
slow running pump, the gage should read
18 inches for a 20-foot lift, but with a
long pipe with numerous ells and with
the pump running at a high rate of speed,
it may read as high as 28 inches.

Factor of Safety of Old Boilers

What rule is followed by boiler in-
spectors in reducing the working pres-
sure on horizontal tubular boilers with
lap seams on account of age?

T. M. D.

Boiler inspectors follow no general or
regular rule in reducing the allowable
working pressure on a boiler due to its
age. They rely upon their judgment and
experience. The Board of Boiler Rules
of the State of Massachusetts prescribes
that the lowest factor of safety used for
boilers, the shells or drums of which are
exposed to the products of combustion
and the longitudinal joints of which are
lap-riveted construction, shall be

5 for boilers not over 10 years old;

bl/> for boilers over 10 and not over 15

years old;
53^ for boilers over 15 years old and not

20 years old;

6 for boilers over 20 years old.

These factors are considered by many
engineers to be altogether too small, and
that 6 should be the lowest factor of
safety allowed on a new lap-seam boiler
and that the factor should be increased
each year to such an extent that it will
put the boiler out of use at the end of
10 years.

March 21, 1911.

POU

Issued Weekly b >

Hill Publishing npany

Jumw x. Hill, l*~. -j

I--* HlrhU.n l»Mr,fWn(»
IMnr:- i t.. fc. C

able for the col-
and pa i
Name and addrea* of correapoO'
. — oot purr— rtl>
•■km.
Subscription price I

to >' foreign country.

I*i y no money to m

. -i show let ten of auth<
txx. '

SaakawOaaaw In Gimi Britain Et

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An ln»i«-. loi » I • » '

An I

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N ••'<•« on lh<- PWI .f Industrial l'o*»r 171

R >liu ed ( ir.i: • ! ^ht

ncra ih a

rsigncd furnace the highest

It is ge
proper

grate effick ien burning

the maximum amount of coal per square
foor -.tent *ith complete con.'

tior >sed to this, ho»i the

daVicncv of the boiler itsc ha

J heating surf.,
tion is accomr ■ higher stack

temperature and this means increased
heat losses. There is a mean between
the boiler and the furnace efficiencies and
in good design it shou sent

the rated capacity. Boilers are often
forced considerably beyond their ratings.
with only a slight loss in economy, but
this is explain t of

other factors, such as increased velocity
of the gases, i

On the other hand, through lack of
judgment or to meet certain co*
boilers arc often installed having a r
capacity far in excess of the load to be
carried. In such cav <domary

to reduce the draft to suit the load; this
Its in more or less incot- om-

•ion and tend* to lovkcr the cfficic
of the unit. Mere it would be much
ter to reduce the grate area and maintain
a high rate Instances are

on record has I the

fuel MMOI as much as '

cent.

I he Co* I P

To or md

impress the re-

cent iolnt meeting of the American In-

the
American So*. ngi-

ncer bo runs an enj:

generator when he can bi; 'rom

a central station »<m:d a; '»cr-

g that a meeting, all

of the pap'

on men and most

arranged •'

ed out to .

as i creo of

ements of

\m eric an engineering lain

•ceedings" of a great national profes-

rence book for
him who seeks to justif> high rate*

w hose Inn f era i
not those of the esssttl

possible ID cone*]

meat store, hotel or office building, having
to have vcam plant i beating

and other purposes, can put
engine run it as a reducing

-nd his

current he needs more chea m a

central

to him at a profit In are

has been done again, ther

something i .cptional about a case

where an -ial establishment or

ding of rth considering ft"^T*

•tin on less money, when heatir
as much of a factor as
in a

'wn elc -aye

Tr oe upon the 'oot. There

are pc> |

iso: h list cen-

tra:

and generators and po*
pla-
ha»r

to them that their

ould 01 Tgi-

nee r the

usurpation of the atloo. high-

engineers of the pr>

">d koo« %
run them Suppose that some

ted a meeting held vaster the auspice*

sent their tidt of
Could the

Ha ring | aid there be aey lied

of > -noaopolUsd Use meet

Ing tetnents of the

mo*t unreasoning of their adherents,
b snd gs««i ha hand, eased aver any-
body *ho approached the suttee* frra
the other side ail their am.

monition had been spent, mam of the
audience had left aad all were reed* as

the eaaesaaaeea ope
a minute a head, aad then asjhOahed the
perteeeaaa* « -proceed!**,

nal eeUeaiaV laaeswl

aathhaf wharh uswld he
Imerest.ng aad prasaatti thee •

The

470

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Cost of Industrial Power," backed by
statements of initial cost and of actual
accomplishment. There is plenty of in-
formation of this kind to be had. There
are plenty of men who are qualified to
discuss it intelligently, even the account-
ants' side of it. It ought to be discussed
without prejudice and with no more
warmth than the interest warrants, from
a purely engineering point of view; and
when one class of men claim that they
can make a kilowatt-hour for a cent and
another class claim that it is really cost-
ing them fifteen but that they do not
know it, there ought to be enough brains
in a free-for-all meeting to find out
whether the difference is one of fact or
of bookkeeping.

We should like to see such a meeting
arranged, in the interest of the truth; not
organized for and by those whose aim
is to boost the popular conception (and
especially the Public Service Commission
conception) of the cost of power nor
of him whose interest lies in reducing
that conception, but for the manufacturer,
the engineer, the power user who wants
to get at the facts in the matter.

Pending such a meeting the columns of
Power are open to any who have real
information upon the subject.

Interest and Sinking Fund

If the life of an installation of power
plant is assumed to be twenty years, then
it would appear at the first glance as
though there must be charged against
operation one-twentieth, or five per cent.,
of its cost each year, as it uses up that
amount of plant each year on the aver-
age, as well as coal and other supplies.
But if five per cent, of a sum be set
aside each year and be put at com-
pound interest at six per cent, it will
amount to 184 per cent, of the original
sum at the end of the twenty years. It is
necessary to set aside only 2.7 per cent,
in order that the full sum may accumu-
late and accrue and be ready to replace
the plant at the end of its assumed life-
time.

At the recent New York meeting of the
American Institute of Electrical Engi-
neers, held to discuss power costs, one
of the central-station solicitors main-
tained that it was not right to so reduce
the sinking-fund charge because inquiry
upon his part had revealed the fact that
nobody invested the money thus charged
annually to the plant at compound in-
terest.

Well, what do they do with it? They
don't put it in a safety-deposit vault,
or soak it away in a stocking. They
keep- turning it over in their business
and make it earn twenty or thirty per
cent. If the steam plant were credited
with that rate of interest its sinking-
fund charge would be low indeed. But
that would not be fair, for the owner
could borrow at six per cent, for his
commercial or manufacturing operations.

And in the face of this refusal to credit
the plant with ordinary interest upon
money which they insist it shall earn
and set aside for its own replacement, the
central-station men want the man who is
considering the installation of an isolated
plant as against buying current to virtual-
ly charge the plant with interest at the
rate of profit in his most profitable de-
partment, upon the plea that he had bet-
ter use the money there than to put it
into power plant if the plant cannot beat
the most profitable department as a
money maker; which would be true if
the department were capable of such ex-
tension as to absorb all the capital and
the owner were "broke."

Inertia

Inertia is defined as the inability of
matter to set itself in motion, or of a
moving body to change the rate or direc-
tion of its motion. A broader application
of this definition covers those peculiar
attributes of the human mind which in-
duce many to bury themselves in a rut
or a ditch so deep that their horizon is
limited by the blank wall in front of
them. When study for improvement is
suggested, it is often met with the ab-
ject confession, "I didn't have much
schooling an' those things are beyond
me." No man's education ceases at the
school door unless he wilfully shuts his
eyes and his ears when he tosses his
school books aside. In fact, the largest
part of anyone's education comes outside
of books. Some of the most ignorant
men have had all of the advantages af-
forded by schools and colleges and have
failed to profit thereby, while some of
the best educated men in the world have
been entirely self-taught. A man's edu-
cation commences the instant he begins
to see and only stops when he ceases to
see. In this he is governed by his own
inertia or his lack of it — the inertia that
prevents a man from advancing himself,
the initiative which prompts a man to
seek out the explanation of those phe-
nomena which daily life presents.

At the close of his paper on the "Art
of Cutting Metals," presented by F. W.
Taylor, when retiring from the presidency
of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers, are found the following words:

"And let me point out that the most
important lessons taught by these experi-
ments, particularly to the younger men,
are that several men when heartily co-
operating, evert if of only everyday
caliber, can accomplish what would be
next to impossible for any one man even
of exceptional ability.

"Expensive experiments can be suc-
cessfully carried on by men without
money, and the most difficult mathematical
problems can be solved by very ordinary
mathematicians; provided only they are
willing to pay the price in time, patience
and hard work. The old adage is again

made good that 'All things come to him
who waits,' if he only works hard enough
in the mean time."

The same amount of time and energy
that the average man devotes to memoriz-
ing the standing of the different baseball
clubs and the players would, devoted to
a subject connected with his occupation,
render him an authority on that line.

The corrosion of condenser tubes is
one of the serious items of expense and
trouble about a power station. In one
of the large New York stations the sur-
face condensers have to be entirely re-
tubed after a service of not more than
three years. It is pleasing to learn, there-
fore, that the Institute of Metals, of
Great Britain, has appointed a committee
to investigate the subject of corrosion,
and that the first subject which they will
take up is that of condenser tubes. Sir
Gerard Muntz, the president of the In-
stitute, is naturally much interested in
the subject, and G. D. Bengough, of
the metallurgical department of Liver-
pool University, is in charge of the
scientific work.

That a chain is no stronger than its
weakest link is an old and familiar
maxim. The same reasoning applies to
many other things besides chains. One
weak spot in the insulation of an arma-
ture, for example, can cause the destruc-
tion of an otherwise sound generator. A
set screw of insufficient size or "bite"
can wreck the finest steam engine ever
built, by allowing the key to back out of
the connecting-rod strap. A cheap, un-
reliable ignition system will "kill" a
$100,000 gas engine just as effectually
as the use of rotten material in the crank
shaft, though equal mechanical damage
would not be caused.

Having awakened to the advantages of
electric ignition ten years late, our British
cousins are about to make the parallel
discovery that the hit-and-miss method
does not embody all of the cardinal
virtues of regulation for gas engines of
moderate output.

But those same English cousins have
keenness of vision when it comes to dis-
cerning the buttered side of a slice of
bread. They don't figure crank pins
and such with a margin of 2T\ per cent.

The National Assembly of Panama has
recently voted $100,000 in aid of the pro-
posed world's fair to be held in Panama
City in 1915. The more, the merrier,
providing it does not interfere with Louis-
ville or San Francisco.

If everybody had the moral courage
to tell the whole truth always, we'd all
know "where we're at" and everybody
would be really more contented.

jh 21. 1911.

Notes on the Cost of Industrial Power

On Fridu March 1U. the

rican S chanical Engi-

neers and the American Institute of I

I Engineer I a joint meeting at

which were presented several p.i;
upon the cost of producing power.

John C. Parker, of the Rochester Rail-
way and Lighting Company, delivered a
paper entitl-.-d "Comments on I
in Industrial Power Pla:
with the initial investment he : out

the nc <>f including I M of

real building, equipment and all

labor involved in connection with the
erection of a plant, depreciation b
charged against the labor and
items as well as the equipment itself.
It was shown that boilers de:
more rapidly than engines which, in turn,
eciatc faster than building* and so
on; hence, a separate rate shoul.:
plied to each, the basis for calculation
being that the life of any plant is the
length of time for which it can be run
lomically.
Regarding insurance, if the installation
of a plant increases the Arc hazard on
the property as a whole, the net increase

isurancc should be charged ai:
the plant which occasioned the inert.
Furthermore, to the ordinary fire ir
anc-. be added accident and liat

This -tent

whether such insurance is actually car-

or not. as a sum equal to the Ifl
ancc premiums must be laid asidr to :

for such contingencies for \» hich the
irancc is carm
An "obsolescence" charge, meaning the
supi n of the apparatus initial!

stalled by a more efl ap-

paratus which may be I fore

the initial apparatus has reached the
scrapping stage, was not cor

igh the supersession
take place under

Foi ■
taken unless the neu apparatu

enough t< . in

h case the saving must take care of
that much of the neu imeni a-

ilrcad) iking '

irkcr laid eonolderabW
on what he termed the "rnsrr
r
•

4l or Investment

part
of the I

be taken as the amount ma-

il or investment would have earned
if a; 'he m<

of the business which
To Illustrate I

c.i • of ■ depi

•

ment. .i

made. ■ each

the clothing department >ield« a

-
■

• it tin

tit.

not lew and
on

•

Henc< the

marginal pr sted in

china actually showed a loss
annum which should be charged ag.i
the china department If. then, an enter-
e is making a net profit of

i n

•

-I I « • -

I I lull*

« Mi

nan

i lv# i

■ i

Il<- • .• • . .. • . rf.|. |

/^dSnr

1+4 H'f

« !•»

taps

«-

ii mm

»'
fcourt.

••

WOJBBI IBM *
gallw

i WW a* : • t-t

472

POWER

March 21, 1911.

is at least a 10 per cent, loss per an-
num on the investment of money in a
power plant, if the money earns only the
fixed items of taxes, insurance, in-
terest, depreciation and supervision, and
the amount lost is just what could have
been gained by the investment of such a
sum in the most profitable part of the
business.

As an illustration of the methods laid
down, Mr. Parker appended figures in-
tended to show the cost of supplying a
large mercantile establishment with power
from an isolated plant as compared with
central-station service. The plant selected
was of 150 kilowatts capacity and the
fixed charges were assumed at the rates
given in Table 1 .

The second paper of the evening was
by Aldis E. Hibner, of the Toronto Elec-
tric Light Company, and was in part as
follows :

There are in general three factors in-
volved in every industrial-power problem:
the investment charges, operating charges
and the cost of heating or the use of low-
pressure steam. The investment charges
are understood to cover the interest,
amortization, insurance, taxes and profit
on the capital invested in the plant. The
operating charges include coal, labor, re-
pairs and supplies. The cost of heating
is the investment and operating charges
of the boiler plant necessary for heating
the building and supplying steam for
manufacturing processes.

TABLE 2.

Heating Plant Investment.
Boiler, piping and auxili-
aries (A) $1,500.00

Building and stack (B). . . 2,500.00

Total investment $4,000.00

Fixed Cost.

Interest 6 per cent, on

$4000 $240.00

Insurance and taxes, 2 per

cent, on $4000 80.00

Amortization on A, 4fc per

cent., 15 year life 67.50

Amortization on B, i per

cent., 50 vear life 12.50

$400.00

Operating Cost.
Coal, 475 tons @ $3.00. . . $1425.00
Fireman (a $15.00 per

week 780.00

Supplies and repairs 100.00

2305.00

Total cost $2705 . 00

Assume as a typical example of the
conditions ordinarily found, the Blank
Shoe Company, which has outgrown its
present quarters and has decided to build
a new factory having a floor area of
60,000 square feet and a cubical con-
tent of 750,000 cubic feet.

One of the first things which must be
determined before starting construction
is whether power shall be purchased or
supplied from a private plant. The first
step in the solution of this problem is to
determine the cost of heating the build-
ing. A heating plant is necessary in any
case, as the conditions of manufacture
are such that the temperature of the
building must be kept above fifty degrees
during the winter months.

The coal consumption is based on an

evaporation of seven pounds of water per
pound of coal, one change of air per hour
in the factory and the supplying of radia-
tion losses. During zero weather 90
boiler horsepower will be required. Hav-
ing determined the size of boiler plant
necessary the next step is to take up the
cost of heating. Table 2 gives the in-
vestment necessary, together with the
fixed and operating costs of the plant.

Replacement of the plant has been
provided for by a sinking fund drawing 5
per cent, interest compounded semi-an-
nually, based on a life of the various
parts of the plant as given in the table.
The time of the fireman has been figured
for the entire year, as steam at high pres-
sure is required the entire year for in-
dustrial purposes. It is of interest to
note that the cost of coal represents only
a little over 50 per cent, of the total
cost of heating, and that a variation of
25 per cent, in the amount of coal burned
causes only 13 per cent, variation in the
total cost.

Having determined the expense which
is absolutely necessary in connection with
the power requirements, the question
asked is whether it is advisable to go a
step further and make the additional in-
vestment necessary for generating power,
or whether it shall be purchased from a
power company. The answer, obviously,
depends upon the additional cost of pro-
ducing this power and the rate at which
power can be purchased. Having deter-
mined the former, the rate at which
power can be purchased to advantage is
fixed.

The concern under consideration has a
maximum demand for 100 kilowatts of
power. The average load is 80 kilowatts,
giving an 80 per cent, ten-hour load fac-
tor. The engine is of the Corliss non-
condensing type, requiring 30 pounds of
steam per indicated horsepower-hour.
The boiler evaporation is taken at seven
pounds of water per pound of coal, giv-
ing a coal consumption of 4.3 pounds per
indicated horsepower-hour. The efficiency
from steam cylinder to switchboard is
78 per cent., giving a coal consumption
of 7.39 pounds per kilowatt-hour or 5.51
pounds per horsepower-hour at the
switchboard. The factory runs 300 days
per year.

Table 3 gives the investment cost, fixed
cost and operating cost of the plant, al-
lowance being made for the cost of heat-
ing, as calculated.

Among the items of fixed cost will be
found one covering a profit on the addi-
tional investment required for a power
plant. It is clear that a concern is not
justified in investing in a power plant
unless the capital so invested returns
the same profit as if invested in the most
profitable part of the husiness still cap-
able of extension. When the added risk
is taken into consideration, this could
safely be raised to 10 or 15 per cent.
It is evident from these results that if

power can be purchased for 2.3 cents
per kilowatt-hour there is no advantage
in installing a steam-power plant.

TABLE 3.

Complete Power Plant Investment.

Capacity, 100 kilowatts.
Engine, generator.

switchboard. wiring(A) $5,500.00
Boilers, steam piping.

auxiliaries (B) 5,000.00

Building, foundations,

stack (C) 5,000.00

— $15,500.00

Steam-heating plant.. . 4,000.00

Additional for power. . $11,500.00

Fixed Cost of Power Plant.

Interest, 6 per cent, on

$15,500 $930.00

Profit. 5 per cent, on

$11,500 575.00

Insurance and taxes, 2

per cent, on $15,500. . 310.00

Amortization on (A), 3

per cent. (20-year life) 165.00

Amortization on (B), 4J

per cent. (15-year life) 225.00

Amortization on (O, i

per cent. (50- vear life) 25.00

$2,230.00

Fixed cost on heating

plant 400.00

Additional for power. . $1,830.00

Operating Cost of Power Plant.
240.000 kilowatt-hours.

Coal @ 7.39 pounds, 887

tons @ $3.00 $2,661 . 00

Banking, 181 tons ("

$3.00 543.00

Night heating, 202 tons

<§ $3.00 606.00

Engineer (a $18.00 per

week 936.00

Fireman @ $15.00 per

week 780.00

Water 100.00

Oil, waste, supplies 150.00

Repairs 200 . 00

$5,976.00

Operating cost of heat-
ing plant 2,305 . 00

Additional for power. . $3,671.00

Total additional for

power 5,501 .00

Cost per kilowatt-hour 0.0229
Cost per horsepower

year 5 1 . 40

At the present time, however, an engi-
neer would scarcely make any decision
without investigating the cost of produc-
ing power by means of a gas-producer
plant. The most active competitor of the
steam engine for power production is the
gas-producer plant. This type of plant,
which has developed since 1900, has
shown remarkable economy of coal con-
sumption when handled by experienced
operators. The United States Geological
Survey report on gas-producer plant
shows that for an average of a great
many tests the noncondensing steam
plant requires 2.7 times as much coal per
unit as the producer plant. Their re-
sults give a thermal efficiency at the
switchboard of 4.86 per cent, for the
steam plant and 13.5 per cent, for the
producer plant. The maximum attainable
efficiency is probably 10.3 per cent, for
the steam plant and 21.5 per cent, for
the gas producer under present condi-
tions. In view of this known economy
a great many producer plants have been
installed in the last few years.

For the factory under consideration the
conditions will require the installation of
a 175-horsepower engine and producer,
and in addition a heating plant for heat-
ing the building. As this heating plant
is required in any event, the cost of heat-
ing is eliminated as a comparative fac-

March 21, lyn.

tor in the problem. The investment, fixed
and operating costs of this plant
arc given in Table 4. The cost of the
plant is somewhat higher than the corre-
sponding steam plant. The life of the
plant is also shorter. This gives a higher
cost than for the steam plant.

ill I I

■
l\\ I •

\ 111.900

wtrht«.a-
It

■

• 1

>tnl i*

> •

» M» 50

eaada i"

i •
,. .

(Ml

IMJ
..
I . ""

tal -3 40

*lt-

The operating costs of the prodi.
plant are only about one-half that of the
•team plant. This, ho* ever, is counter-
balanced by the cost of heating The
final result gives a slightly higher

producer plant. The l
the f M to operating cost in the

case- -cr. pr '

effect where the lo.i poor The

items affc. the output of the

plant arc coal and water These re;
sent only tboat 27 | if the total

at against BO per ith the

•team plant, the result being a very much
for the gas producer at
The poor fuel economy on
light loads would further
effc

Mr. M

pical of the central-station t

that it cxaRgcratcs each item
c cost and the result is a k^
aggc He »a\s thai the in-

n of a plant costing OO to

litul I |
ement I
that
installed a nun n this

i\\c cas*-
the taxes have been increase! I
more. I Jn

the taxes have •: to

a plant having beer

the Mi
■Mows a chart 'H In the

modern flrepro !mg the insurant*

on the contents is about one-quarter of

one ;

the and at.

about 3 I labor,

and of the lab-
rooms about one-half is chargeable t«
heating. In a pla OO. the

labor will be about S50f
hence, this charge

year, which is about thrcc-quar
of one .vestment

C< -.g the cost of the cqi

in the typical isolated plant sclc

Parker, the cost of a I00-kilo»att
engine and a 50-kilowart engine is given

purchased two
100-kilowatt engines foi

to controvert the
statements of the previous speaker in so
far as they refer to cor in this

The insurance on hazardous labor
has now risen in this State unt
amounts to nearly 6 per cent. Mr. Parker
has amortized his ation at a rate

of compound interest wh arc not

able to get in this city, namely. 6 per
cent. Reft- the table showing the

rate of amortization. I sou! • hat.

capitalized at 3 per t the

rate obtainable in most savings banks,
the average would be nv it
cent, on the total; hence the figure k
Mr. Parker's table should be increased
• bout 2 it.

The use of exhaust steam as a bypro-
duct depends upon climatic con I
the nearer the pla? 'h Pole,

the more efficient the use auat

«nd the nearer to the Kquator. the
lOOO efficient its use becomes The fol-
io* howing the percentage
of live steam used based upon the total
ataafl s .; ; : re -.iter, from the ree
ords of a large steam company in this

■
Januar.

respond.- c fig
for a large office
a ft
as ' Oct

these f I sh<>u!d be glad to

kno.

Hibner. they

■ rcr the

1 not Sa00. As to coal, for
ing alone the coat appears

-d tons, for an awefaj

would cost ,sor.

a ft' for a •

been chare ummg thai oac would

be oaf ibtc to

heatirv

y coat of
uld be about $2000

charges at 18 per cent., and. making this
allow ar, final result becomes

cents per ki!o»atthour molt oil of 2-29

ccr-

R« to gas-producer plants, they

are hardly mc •

>nger h itMal an

automobile engine Therefore. I »ould
change the ratio of depreciation on the
total investment to 20 per ex

•
the annua tation. bat I do not

know- of ar. nual deprr

tion is actually put aside d upon

which interest is accumulated from

car Therefore. I would change the
genera:

causes f< ciation have been

however, tt

moment that a cor crsict

ava ' a coat not exceeding the

of ■ g the r

btOMM
md so long as its opataif—
is continue

ucd at a loss to the

Some ,:o .Mr - i

a p he gave the

number of pounds of coal coneunnd per

n a numbr I

eve there ■ I apartment

house*, free laMOtl ar.J ?*>frc . u>s.

cscnting in these throa classes the

on In j I

them confirmed in mar

as hifh •» |S pounds of coal per altav

■

I pounds, and t*<

: ounds of coal pe*

eortaaesea oa
n 6 to 7 pounds of e»<

(.-m, la Sir Haha*

I J-> -ex !*•.-» •• • -•'ufa^tw
rmo buslaoaa oa the basis
< an*

r*' ■

•

|M he

be obtah

474

POWER

March 21, 1911.

called up a half dozen manufacturers in
Brooklyn and asked them what turnover
they would consider it necessary to have
on 515,000. The lowest man of the six
gave a turnover of 15 per cent., on the
basis of 5 per cent, for the use of the
money, thus giving a net profit of 10
per cent., twice the amount given in the
paper. The highest man of the lot gave
a turnover of 30 per cent., stating that
they turned over their money on an aver-
age of ten times a year, with a profit of
3 per cent, each time. Between these
two extremes it would be safe to take
15 per cent, as a fair profit.

As to the amount of coal, my experi-
ence in plants of this size has shown
that about ten pounds of coal per kilo-
watt-hcur is a conservative figure. If
that is taken into consideration, together
with the increased profit, it will bring the
cost per kilowatt-hour to 2.84 cents. If
allowance is made for part of the man-
ager's time, this, together with either of
the other items, will bring the cost of
power, based on Mr. Hibner's figures, to
over three cents per kilowatt-hour. Any
large public-service corporation would be
very glad to supply power to such a plant
for three cents per kilowatt-hour on a
term contract.

Mr. Ripley: I would like to have it go
on record that the Commonwealth Edi-
son Company, of Chicago, to my own cer-
tain knowledge, owns and operates three
isolated plants in the basements of build-
ings. If these industrial-plant owners
need any further encouragement, as far
as depending upon these certain engines
is concerned, I will say that the Com-
monwealth Edison Company depends up-
on the Ideal engine and upon the Corliss
engine, as well as high-speed engines,
and I cannot see but that the owners of
industrial plants can likewise depend on
similar apparatus designed by the same
people.

Mr. Fowler: When I received the
notice of this meeting tonight it struck
me that we were coming here to discuss
a problem that was about as easily solved
as it would be to discuss the size of a
piece of chalk the length of a piece
of string. It is a very easy thing to sit
down and tell what a plant should do,
but it is almost impossible to sit down
in advance and tell what it actually will
do. It is not difficult to go into a plant
and make an analysis of what they are
doing and get the figures, but to sit down
in cold blood in an office and figure out
what it is doing, with all the variables
that must be taken into account, is al-
most an absolute impossibility.

Mr. Parker: I want to clear the ground
ethically. Mr. Moses refers to the paper
I offered as being characterized by cen-
tral-station animus. I tried to keep it
from that as much as possible. It is
manifest that a central-station man would
be decidedly idiotic if he attempted to
exaggerate the claims at all in favor of

himself. I answer that statement by the
obvious statement that the only thing a
central-station man can offer to do is to
make his claims as reasonable as pos-
sible. Mr. Moses misunderstood the
statement of the insurance charge. Insur-
ance is not claimed to be 3 per cent. —
taxes and insurance are said to be 3
per cent., and that would cover casualty
insurance on both patrons and employees.

The rental value of the space is, I
believe, absolutely right. The proprietor
of the store acknowledged the figures
used in the table as being right. The
basement of a department store handles
five-, ten-, twenty-five and thirty-cent
articles, which sell with a tremendous
margin of profit, and in tremendous vol-
ume. That is good rental space in a de-
partment store. The figures are given
as representative of what obtained in the
specific plant in question. I do not mean
that the rental value for power-plant sites
given in this table would apply to every
type of building necessarily. The actual
cost figures given are unquestionably
large, but these prices were actually paid
by responsible manufacturers for the
plant delivered in place ready to operate.
The figures for the engines cover the
holding-down bolts, putting the engine
together, limbering up and getting ready
to turn over, and as to the latitude of
the figures elsewhere, the point is made
that synthetic plant costs are different
from form quotations, which a man will
make good on. Form quotations are 50
to 75 per cent, higher than the synthetical
plant cost.

I cannot too heartily indorse what has
been said in regard to the pernicious
practice of retaining engineering service
in connection with industrial-power work.
Having a man work on salary for a pub-
lic-service enterprise, or having him work
on commission, is rather objectionable,
because I know, personally, that with
the best motives in the world a man finds
it very hard not to be biased by his own
personal interest. I believe that the salva-
tion of such a situation will come in this
way — that the industrial engineer em-
ployed by a public-utility company will
recognize that the best interests of his
company consist not in taking all the
business there is in sight, but in taking
only that business which he, as an in-
dependent consulting engineer, would
recommend a client to take. The central-
station engineer doing that will get away
from the prejudicial results of his per-
sonal bias. The man in private prac-
tice should not work on commission; he
should work for a retainer or for a fixed
sum, and that sum should be amply large.
I think that most of the industrial-en-
gineering work today is being done for
utterly miserable fees, and the result is
that the pressure is very great on a
man to sacrifice his highest ethical stand-
ard or to allow his judgment to be gov-
erned by his personal interest in the way

of trying to bolster up his com-
missions.

The written discussion, which was not
given at the meeting, will follow in a
later issue.

Blowoff Tank Accident

The bottom of a cast-steel blowoff
tank was blown out, on February 21, at
the Pittsfield Y. M. C. A. building and
the engineer was badly scalded. The
plant consists of two 54-inch boilers, two
turbines and auxiliaries and apparatus
for filtering the swimming-pool water and
lighting and heating the building. One
boiler was being blown down under 125
pounds pressure. The 2-inch blowoff
pipes from the boilers united in the 2l/2-
inch line which led to a 36x36-inch
tank. The 2^ -inch sewer outlet was
sealed with water and there was a 2-
inch vent to atmosphere as usual. The
flat bottom of the tank apparently dropped
out under pressure and the tank lifted,
bending a steel I-beam above it and
breaking several 3-inch water pipes. It
is supposed that the bottom of the tank
was filled with scale and so prevented
the sewer outlet from working.

Coal Land Frauds

It is reported in the daily press that
the Government investigation into al-
leged Alaskan coal-land frauds involving
approximately 48,000 acres of land,
valued at more than $50,000,000, has
resulted in the issuance on March 6 of
an indictment by the Federal grand jury
at Detroit, charging seven individuals
with conspiracy against the United States.

The contention of the Government is
that the defendants conspired to induce
between 200 and 300 individuals to be-
come stockholders in the Michigan-
Alaska Company by making fraudulent
and fictitious locations of certain Alaska
coal lands," thereby violating the land-
entry laws of 1910, which made it illegal
for more than four persons to form a
company for locating Alaska coal lands
and taking out patents on more than 640
acres. It is alleged that several stock-
holders or coal-land claimants were led
to believe that they were locating the
lands for their exclusive use, "but in
truth and in fact for the use and benefit
of the seven defendants and the Michi-
gan-Alaska Development Company."

The Michigan-Alaska Development
Company was organized under the laws
of Arizona. W. W. McAlpine is the
president. The coal lands involved are
situated at Juneau, Alaska, and several
contiguous tracts in the vicinity of
Homer, upon the westerly end of Kenai
peninsula, bordering upon Cook inlet.
The claims are said to have been located
by about two hundred Detroit and Michi-
gan residents and a hundred other
claimants from New York, Chicago, San
Francisco, Seattle and other points.

March 21. 1911.

Donkej Engine B<»il<-r Ex-
plode! anil Kill 5 en

On March 4. the boiler of a donkey en-
gine in the logging yard at &. nill
of the Portland Railway. Light and P<>
Company near Kstacada. '
and caused the instant death of five men.
the injury and subsequent death of
others and the injury of still an-
Thc boiler in the
air and fell to the ground a quarter of
a mile away. F< al da>
said, the safety valve on the boiler had
not been working satisfactorily and
periments had been carried on with a
number of imp ■*. On the
morning of the explosion one of
the con- I irtcd for Portland
with tru -<s intention of providing
a new valve, hut he had only gone a
miles when re;
^ed him to retrace his

Wisconsin Engine Company
Maki I ctensive Addition!

The Wisconsin Engine Compai
Cor! I which is about tw

milt kcc. h.i made a

able addition to icnt

and working capital. Hitherto the com-
pany has been control:
burg in- but on account of

n it became JcMrablc to bring
Milwaukee capital into the company, and

of the new din. arc pr

ncm >s men of the I

Adams has the

compar

H< the ; ess of

OJ Company has r
the manuf I

engines It is th <>f the new

up
the

the and new

equipment is chic' he purpo*

enabling

f mam;
!l be the A
•

1 that the compa al-

'or up*

and nc»

being
the rapid and e

nal lin inu-

1 I \ | i the new pre«idcn'

JMO bc> the

mu <f hea

mat luting I

Mit i

he wa* connc

ln»ta" i moil of the imp<>-

g in%tallar

*U a ploOOl
Ihc boovy ga« engine huoiooof in the

company and la-
manager and ebJel >t the .

and t of th

ruers Compan | probable that

irgc gat

the Allis-Chalmcrw cr. I the plant

of th-. -poration at

S ond Monthl) Meeti
1 ngineen' Institul

The s egular month: -:ng

of Operating

.. nee ring

of the temporary organization a
present.

f U thi Brooklyn

Pol . t paper

• of the
Work of the Op An

togcth an

abstract of ch was

ofti • I Lowronc

( • ln>n Elbow Burst!

the bio of a

n the plar
La Pone
lc the boiler » A

■
at the l
the

•
after ill

th the

s not m
that

on I.

I >r

ind
an.)

! urg-

Ik power of

^ lopSMflt ' " '"

,,P >...,. . - • ■ (■ f,»r Ihf fnftM

thon/cJ 'Tment to to K

»pocrJor

cd.

TI-KSONAL

sent.

for the past Bf

EC ar

Jitor of

ing at
the

chf Mr Bf e Engl BOO t

Georg

M been r of the

Alru ompan% and the

AIK

her. Comp M

'ump COOS*

■

official organ

den

He ge number of

•bode I

»p<-v t .ii'

\| W IM I, I |( \l [( \

■

Losor* -ing

J an
Tbcm
( & Co. *

•om the nAcv
comp* Froactoco. Loo

onload ar.

c Mip

ho »up

nboataoa, for aoy

■ : I J

ant foVtoOCY. tko practs

la
ttkc moiotroooor coot of batter oootooaoot.

i rrorr uniform rr-.anr

-iMoJtoi at tor
ht oat

it •■• oaoO lo coo

476

POWER

March 21, 1911.

Qualitative Chemical Analysis. By
J. I. D. Hinds. Published by the
Chemical Publishing Company,
Easton, Penn., 1910. Cloth; 285
pages, 5^x9 inches. Price, $2.
A textbook treating the subject of
qualitative analysis from the standpoint
of ions, solubilities and mass action. By
this method it is hoped that the student
will be better prepared to take up the
study of physical chemistry. The classi-
fication of the kations is similar to that
used in other textbooks, but a systematic
method of separating and identifying the
anions is given, which should prove help-
ful to the beginner. There is a complete
list of the reagents and the solutions,
together with the methods of preparing
them to a given concentration. Among
the useful tables is one giving the solu-
bility in water of most of the substances
ordinarily met with as precipitates in the
course of analysis.

BOOKS RECEIVED

Steam Turbines. By Rankin Kennedy.
The Macmillan Company, New York.
Cloth; 101 pages, 5^x8K> inches;
62 illustrations. Indexed.

Motion Study. By Frank B. Gilbreth.
D. Van Nostrand Company, New
York. Cloth; 116 pages, 5x73,4
inches; 44 illustrations; indexed.
Price, $2.

Industrial Plants. By Charles Day.
The Engineering Magazine, New
York. Cloth; 294 pages, 5x7 T^
inches; 48 illustrations; indexed.
Price, $3.

Water Turbine Plant. By Jens Orten-
Boving. Raithby, Lawrence & Co.,
Ltd., London, W. C, England. Cloth;
197 pages, 8^x1034 inches; 216 il-
lustrations.

Mathematics for the Practical Man.
By George Howe. D. Van Nostrand
Company, New York. Cloth; 143
pages, 4y2xlV> inches; 42 illustra-
tions; tables; indexed. Price, $1.25.

Elements of Graphic Statics. By
William L. Cathcart and J. Irvin
Chaffee. D. Van Nostrand Company,
New York. Cloth; 304 pages, 5y2x9
inches; 159 illustrations; indexed.
Price, $2.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
the Patent Office at .">c. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

PRIME MOVERS

INTERNAL COMBUSTION MOTOR. Karl
Fabel, Hamburg, Germany. 985,793.

ROTARY ENGINE. William M. Hoffman,
Buffalo. N. Y., assignor to the Hoffman Pat-
ents, Ltd., a Corporation of Canada. 985,804.

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE. Charles G.
Curtis, New York, N. Y.. assignor, by mesne
assignments, to General Electric Company, a
Corporation of New York. 985,885.

ROTARY INTERNAL COMBUSTION EN-
GINE. Orsemus L. R. Jones, Detroit, Mich.
985,907.

EXPLOSIVE ENGINE. Mathew B. Mor-
gan, Lansing, Mich., assignor of one-half to
Oscar M. Springer, Detroit, Mich. 985,920.

ROTARY ENGINE. Hubert I. Call, Spo-
kane, Wash., assignor to the Hercules Ro-
tary Engine Company, Ltd.. Wetaskiwin, Can-
ada, a Corporation. 985,974.

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE. Charles G.
Curtis, New York, N. Y., assignor, by mesne
assignments, to General Electric Company, a
Corporation of New York. 985,982.

STEAM ENGINE. Christopher F. Laufer,
Richmond, Cal. 980,010.

ROTARY ENGINE. Frank Wyle, St. Louis,
Mo. 980,110.

TURBINE. Henry F. Schmidt. Pittsburg,
renn., assignor to the Westinghouse Machine
Company, a Corpoiation of Pennsylvania.
980,317.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. An-
drew Betts Brown and William Albert Hick-
man, London, England ; said Brown assignor
to said Hickman. 980,353.

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE. Charles G.
Curtis, New York, N. Y., assignor, by mesne
assignments, to General Electric Company, a
Corporation of New York. 986,368.

BOILERS, FURNACES AND GAS
PRODUCERS

FURNACE. Roy E. Ashley, Muskegon,
Mich. 985,878.

OIL BURNER. Adolf Klein, Vienna, Aus-
tria-Hungary. 980,0(17.

WATER-TUBE BOILER. Minott W. Sewall,
Roselle, N. J., assignor to the Babcock &
Wilcox Company, Bayonne, N. J., a Corpora-
tion of New Jersey. 980. 089.

STEAM BOILER. Minott W. Sewall. Ro-
selle. N. J., assignor to the Babcock & Wilcox
Company. Bayonne, N. J., a Corporation of
New Jersey. 980,090.

POWER PLANT AUXILIARIES AMD
APPLIANCES

FEED-WATER HEATER. Charles Caille,
Le Perreux, France. 985,778.

FEED-WATER HEATER FOR PREVENT-
ING PITTING. John C. Parker, Philadel-
phia, Penn. 985,834.

BALANCED VALVE. Baxter M. Aslakson,
Salem, Ohio. 985,879.

GOVERNOR. Ernest L. Nance. St. Louis.
Mo. 985,022.

REDUCING VALVE. John Graham and
Archibald Graham, Jr., Glasgow, and David
Auld Graham, Rutherglen, Scotland. 986,165.

WATER-GLASS GUARD. George Moser,
Minneapolis, Minn. 980,199.

ASH DISCHARGER. Frederick P. Palen.
Newport News, and William Burlingham,
Hampton, Va. 98<S,20S.

ROTARY VALVE. Charles II. Harking,

Derby, Kan. 980,284.

CONDENSER FEED LUBRICATOR. Chas.
cheers Wakefield, London, England. 986,330.

WATER TRAP. Joseph Joy, Donora, Penn.
986,394.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS
APPLICATIONS

AND

ELECTRICAL TERMINAL CONNECTOR.
Ray II. Manson, Elyria. Ohio, assignor to
the Dean Electric Company, Elyria, Ohio, a
Corporation of Ohio. 985,821.'

INDUCTION COIL. Richard Varley, Engle-

wood, N. J., assignor to the Aulocoil Com-
pany, a Corporation of New Jersey. 986,033.

ELECTRIC BATTERY. Carl Jaeger, Se-
attle, Wash. 980,004.

SYSTEM OF MOTOR CONTROL. William
Siebenmorgen and Samuel II. Keefer. Plain-
Held. N. J., assignors to Niles-Bement-Pond
Company, Jersey City. N. J., a Corporation
of New Jersey. 986,091.

INSULATING CAP. James C. Phelps,
Springfield, Mass. 986,213.

ELECTROPLATING MACHINE. Constan-
tine G. Miller. Chicago. 111., assignor to the
Meaker Company, a Corporation of Illinois.
986.303.

THERMAL CIRCUIT CLOSER. Fredrick
C. Gnptill, Elgin. 111., assignor of one-half
to William F. Lynch, Elgin, III. 986,382.

POWER PLANT TOOLS

CHAIN PIPE WRENCH. George Amborn,
New York. N. Y.. assignor to J. II. Williams
& Co., Brooklyn, N. Y.. a Corporation of New
York. 985,766.

WIRE-TIGHTENING DEVICE. Henry F.
Heitmeyer, Friendship, Ind. 980,058.

WRENCH. John C. McLean, Cleveland,
Ohio. 980,192.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres., Col. E. D. Meier; sec. Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building. 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City. Spring meeting in Pitts-
burg, May 30 to June 2.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS
Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION
Pres.. Frank W. Fiueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 2.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
U. S. N. : sec. and treas., Lieutenant Com-
mander U. T. Holmes. U. S. N., Bureau of
Steam Engineering, Navy Department, Wash-
ington, D. c.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS-
ASSOCIATION
Pres.. E. I). Meier, 11 Broadway, New
York : sec. J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th "St. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston. Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS
Pres., o. p. Chamberlain; sec. J. II.

Warder. 1735 Monadnock Block, Chicago, 111.
Meeting first Wednesday of each month.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres.. Walter Riddle: sec, E. K. Hiles,
Oliver building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings
1st and 3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
YENTI LATING ENGINEERS

Pres.. R. P. Bolton: sec, W. W. Macon. 2'.i
West Thirty-ninth street. New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres.. Carl S. Pearse. Denver, Colo. : Bee,
F. W. Raven. 325 Dearborn street, Chicago,
III. Next convention. Cincinnati, Ohio, Sep-
tember 12-15. 1911.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr.. Frederick Markoe. Phila-
delphia, Pa.; Supr. Cor. Engr.. William S.
Wetzler, 753 N. Forty-fourth St.. Philadel-
phia. Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June 5-10, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres.. William F. Yates. New York. N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago, III. Next meeting at Detroit. Mich.,
January 15-19, 1912.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith; sec. Charles
Kratsch, 41 0 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings I be second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF
ENGINEERS

Grand Worthy Chief, John Cope: sec. J. T".
Bunce. Hotel Statler. Buffalo, N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia, Penn.. week
commencing Monday, August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pies., O. F. Rabbe : acting sec, Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University. Columbus,
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstowh. Ohio, Mav
18 and 19, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION
Ties., A. N. Lucas; sec, Harry D. Vaught,
95 Liberty street, New York. Next meeting
at Omaha, Neb., May 23-20, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Tres., Matt. Comerford ; sec, J. G. Hanna-
han, Chicago, III. Next meeting at St. Paul,
Minn., September, 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION

Pres., G. W. Wright, Baltimore. Md. ; sec.
and treas., D. L. Gaskill, Greenville, O.

\| \\ M )RK. \l \Kl II

u' | ^HERE ain't no chance these <l

! for a iVll<»u t' 1^ the senti

ment often expi with tin

rammatk • <|u<>i» I \-

th( All man who talk^ tl usually

tin i. Bui . truth to tell, t!

wonderful times, and t:

tunities than <

lack of nun to iid ni.ik' ' him.

If you cannot readily believe thi

half mi thai you an oi 'i«»

sing tip quoted in the openi n

I": • lu in.it | mimi

Win' i tin- en opportunil

I'nit ill.

'.! education v. lly la<

l.ill. tin '1

ing, and. I il! then

i Inn he h

tin- inclination Hi- I dull,

•rk-ss mnn<

. limit

1 I'll' •

tu da) in m

rithin tl.

■

• ■• , ■

1>\ tin in.in w h«» til

must .itt «h\ health

•Mill

: had the • •'':
rurishmenl i<

It
m. Pr<

quit

■ ■
Tin- 1«

ml it

men f<

i.ill\

»bl<

tli

it •

473

POWER

March 28, 1911.

Power Plant at North Carolina College

The various buildings of the North
Carolina College of Agriculture and Me-
chanic Arts are supplied with heat,
light and power from a central service
station situated on the campus. The
plant, although having a capacity of only
200 kilowatts, contains many interesting
features for one of its size.

Steam is furnished by two 200-horse-
power Atlas boilers and two 75-horse-
power Babcock & Wilcox boilers (see
Fig. 1), working under a normal pres-
sure of about 125 pounds, the pressure
being controlled by a damper regulator.
Natural draft of about 0.5 is furnished
by a 100-foot radial brick stack. A spur
track from the Seaboard Air Line rail-

By Francis J. Thompson

A small central plant con-
taining a De Laval turbine
unit and an engine-driven
unit, supplying light and
power to the various build-
ings and heating them with
the exhaust steam.

single-stage DeLaval turbine running at
12,000 revolutions per minute and geared
through 10 to 1 reduction gears, to two

Fig. 1. Boilers

three-phase 60-cycle generators. Owing
to the high rotative speed of a single-
stage turbine the shaft must be made
small in diameter, and when transmitting
horsepowers of from 50 to 300 it is the
practice to supply two generators for the
purpose of balancing the side thrust on
the turbine shaft. Mounted on the shaft
of one of these generators is an exciter.
Two other exciter units are provided:
one a motor-generator set, and the other
a direct-current generator driven by a
5x5-inch vertical engine. Either of these
two exciters may be used to supply ex-
citation to the fields of either of the main
generators.

A diagram of the switchboard connec-
tions is given in Fig. 3. From this it will
be seen that common practice has been
departed from by supplying an ammeter
for each phase. A water rheostat is also
furnished for supplying the maximum
load when making experimental tests in
connection with the courses of instruc-
tion. The normal load comprises the
motors in the machine shop, forge shop,
laboratories and textile mill in addition
to about 500 incandescent lamps.

The exhaust steam from the main units
and auxiliaries is used to heat the vari-
ous buildings on the campus through the
Warren Webster system, operating at
about 5 inches vacuum. This supplies
approximately 40,000 square feet of radia-
tion and the condensation is handled by
two vacuum pumps delivering into a
receiving tank from which the hot water
flows by gravity to a Cochrane feed-water
heater. Provision is made for supplying
live steam to some of the buildings when
the supply of exhaust steam is inade-
quate.

road runs in front of the boiler room and
coal is dumped from the cars into con-
crete pockets having a capacity of 300
tons. These are in front of the boilers
and may be shut off from the boiler room
by corrugated-iron drop curtains.

Next to the boiler room, and separated
from it by a brick fire wall, is the pump
room. This is several feet lower than
the engine room and, on one side, is open
to the latter, as may be seen from Fig. 2.
A 10-inch main leads from the boilers
to a header running the length of the
pump room and from this header long-
radius bends branch off to the steam re-
ceivers placed above the throttles of the
engines. Van Stone joints are used on
all high-pressure lines and a notable fea-
ture of the station piping is its acces-
sibility.

There are two main generating units:
one consisting of a 13x1 2-inch Skinner
engine direct connected to a three-phase
60-cycle generator of 75 kilovolt-amperes
capacity; the other a 150-horsepower

Fig. 2. Main Generating and Piping

March 28. 1911.

Smoke Abatement in Glas-
gow and Liverpool

There arc man> who believe that the
wisest and most hopeful method of ar-
tacking the black-smoke problcr:
the education of tho- pro-

duced it. and that the further education
of manufacturers and fact l, of

boiler engineers .1 :nen a-

but not kast, of the ordinan houseb
is required before any real and permanent
progress can be made in supr the

black-smoke evil.

Those of our readers who ace*.
:i be pleased to learn th.;
and Liverpool have this winter fol-

«:our*c"> each of

smoke
the

Tho

1 . ' ■ -

ins portion* of the
ing t
authorme* have granted

the

that \M I

inJ are
c> In the maj<

and ha'
ular

The *> >e gene

rniag keerti the

school rflC or.

tended primarily for
working engineers and Iremcfl bat
iMMMtad ■ •■ c gnaral tabfeo •# SBaka

abatement i'c ted to attend, and. a*

nontax
larged for the eo«i-

wn. of the 'A
Doctor Hi
Jical ofnee* of the healrh

the
N Lancaah >ratory. w

amofcr

I 1 ■ OU ft

(he course. »hich

lo*cd the lead »cl h> London thr
ago. and havi

ncral r
r engineer* and firemen 1

abatement

At fjlaftgo* 4d ha» hcen tal Ml

the oca local '

ment I

that lh<

•1 Ho*

really antful snd stti

■ ■
for » and l

men. and if

now

r. .tar lectnr*

I <eda and
<ctien r '

•)%*" ■ at

480

POWER

March 28, 1911.

Methods of Governing Steam Engines

Governors Controlled through Relay
Motors
Where the governor of a steam en-
gine is required to actuate a heavy valve
gear, it is difficult to obtain sufficient
power, combined with sensitiveness in
the governor itself, ?.nless it be made
of massive proportions; even then the
friction and wear of the governor
Tenders it an unsatisfactory piece of
mechanism. Such valve gears as the
Meyer and Ryder are included in this
class. The gears themselves are posi-
tive, and are suitable for engines run-
ning at all speeds, but considerable force
is required to move the gear to suit the
variation in load.

By John Davidson

Operation of governors con-
trolled through relay motors,
regulators or supplemen-
tary governors, safety trip
gears, and crank shaft gov-
ernors, representing stand-
ard English makes.

governor proper consists in controlling
the piston valve of a miniature steam en-
gine, the piston rod of which is con-
nected to the expansion gear to be
actuated. By the use of an ingenious
combination of levers the motion of the
piston and its connections is made to

Section X_Y.

Section P-Q

Section T-U .

Exhaust

Fig. 30. Lude Relay Gear

Among the many appliances used in
connection with governors as a relay
gear, that invented by Lude many years
ago and illustrated in Fig. 30, is perhaps
the simplest in general use. With this
arrangement, the only work done by the

correspond with that of the governor, and,
even with a very slight variation in load,
the piston moves over a corresponding
distance under the full steam pressure.
Referring to Fig. 30, the motion of the
governor sleeve A is transmitted by means

of the double lever B, to the lever C
which is pivoted at D to the main lever
L. The short arm of the lever C is con-
nected by means of the rod F to a small
lever G which actuates a small piston
valve arranged in the casing H at one
side of the steam cylinder. This valve
controls the steam admission and ex-
haust ports of both ends of the cylinder.
The arrangement is such that both sides
of the piston are connected with the
exhaust pipe when the valve occupies its
central position, while a small movement
of the valve in either direction will admit
steam at one end of the cylinder. The
resulting motion of the main piston rod
and lever L, with its connections, causes
the piston valve to return to its central
position so as to again open both sides
of the piston to the exhaust pipe, when
the lever L has been turned through an
angle corresponding to the movement of
the governor sleeve. Normally, the cen-
ter of the joint K corresponds with the
turning axis M of the lever L. When the
governor sleeve is moved the lever C
is caused to turn about the center D,

Fig. 31. Higginson Regulator

thereby raising or lowering the center K.
The resulting movement of the lever L
causes the lever C to turn about the
center O and the center K is consequently
returned into line with the axis M of
the main lever L. As the steam flows at
a high velocity the movement of the
lever L is practically simultaneous with
the movement of the governor sleeve.

Regulators or Supplementary
Governors

With the ordinary type of governor it
is impossible to keep the speed of the
engine constant if the load or the steam
pressure varies, because the governor
cannot effect any change in the valve

March 28, 1911.

v*:

jcar or pressure of the steam admitted to
he engine until a change in
ictually taken place. To obviate l
feet, supplemental -nors or rcgu-

are u-
There are many
n general use. more particularly in con-
icction with engines drivir .

Ahcrc it is neccwr) to maintain a
.ed. One of the oldot and
perhaps BUM

he Higginson regulator. Illu in

f 31, which automatically balances the

rnor in whatever position it a-
to correspond to a variation in the load

cam pressure. This is effected
altering the level of mercury contained
in the two cylinders at the ends of the
irms which form the regulator, these
twing originally attached to the governor
rocking ring. The mer.
rtcctcd by a pipe, and the weight of n
at each end of the regulator
pends upon its angular position, the cyl-
inders being accurate ncd to
the governor. This regulator i

. cdingly well for mills where the

Ar
Metallic Packh In

'•

rod. or
ihc «re

joined together b> i

or rod £ib-

C to th
turned, art- the

i. to give more or Ices steam
cd The gov-
ernor-rod i J by means of
a gear . through
the the
il man: pendent of

1 meshe* •
another w\ counted on an

upright >n the top of the

latter ■

faced

has a portion cut away to at to
a num"

and over the shield plal .iced a ;

carrier actuated from torm mov-

ing pan of the enj
on the
bracket a thr

•Me am
tcr Jed • i mc»h

Tbc IBWfDOr ' ' ■ •' • ' i'* ""'

mal <nd one bo- I the

i Arm corf

ma othc

tic mow*
and uncover* one or mora

th mm

methr* • ('• i •<!•— att » . •»■•»*

nlned aoottioo

A spec of the

■ ft— b can be

or any other wbeete put on m u to ob*
ipoad of ruflait— *u»t-
able for the engine to wb iaad.

-as

Fie M T»t»* I

to all

h rough intcrrr
aa a belt or rope*,
the belt or ropes >r should they

oa account of some
portion of the cog.

: f

"ie apced exceed any pre-
A • ..>■.-'

r* controlling trip gears of

fine*

trite

on before

■

D be

shap

0 oo
BaTHfe

>o ihc trip rod
»trd to a* to

nch of movement of the go«traoc at
i bottom The • rr

-igagmg vtth a collar on

the c'J ' ■' c r»J I p*r»

- before »hwt
c aaadtae-

' am iho

p rod to

»t< r ♦ nad the r M < t

■ ■

JNtaad of

engine ifi'*i i(i »r\J thr go*cf-

to the

■ » Ofl

482

POWER

March 28, 1911.

tentionally prevented from doing so by
the attendant propping the trip rod by
means of the quadrant as described.

Another well known safety trip gear is
the "Tates Electric Stop Motion," shown
in Fig. 34. In this trip gear the main
stop valve of the engine is closed by a
powerful spring should the speed of the
engine exceed any predetermined amount.
In addition to this, if the engine is con-
densing, the vacuum is broken. Also,
by means of suitable electrical connec-
tions the engine stop valve can be in-
stantly closed from any part of the build-
ing by simply pressing a push button.

A small governor shown at C is driven
by means of a belt from the engine shaft.
If the engine runs at an excessive speed
the tumbler at the top of the governor
makes contact and the stop valve of the
engine is immediately closed. If, how-
ever, the small belt driving this governor
should break while the engine is run-
ning, the engine is instantly shut down.

Crank-shaft Governors
Governors of the crank shaft or drum

Fig. 35. Tangye governor

type which control the speed of the en-
gine by altering the travel and angle of
the eccentric driving the valve, are not
largely used in England. In the early
days of high-speed engines, they were
largely used and are still used by a few
firms, but most makers of this class of
engine have abandoned this type of gov-
ernor and use the throttle type universal-
ly. For small engines, crank-shaft gov-
ernors are very suitable, and a design
of governor used by Messrs. Tangyes, of
Birmingham, is illustrated in Fig. 35.

This governor consists of an inertia
arm B, with which is cast the eccentric C,
pivoted on the steel pin H, and free to
swing within the limits provided by the
stops N N. The weight box D, carried
upon the pivot 7, is connected to the gov-
ernor arm by link K. and the spring E

tends to pull the arm B against the stop
N. When the direction of rotation is in a
clockwise direction, the action of the
governor is as follows: The weight D
flies out radially when the wheel is ro-
tated, and moves the governor arm by
means of the link K. The inertia arm B
lags behind, and assists the weight D

Fig. 3d. Wilson-Hartnell Governor

either at an increase or a decrease of
speed. This has the effect of either in-
creasing or decreasing the travel of the
eccentric and the cutoff of the equilibrium
piston valve is adjusted to the required
work. The eccentric in the position shown
is at the maximum travel, such as when
the engine is starting up. Upon the re-
,A B

in the spring E, which can be moved by
the box spanners G. The position of this
plug is secured by locknuts O.

A very powerful and at the same time
sensitive type of crank-shaft governor
is shown in Fig. 36, which is made by
Messrs. Wilson, Hartnell & Co.

The two centrifugal weights A A
pivoted at B B are restrained by the
springs C C. The eccentric is pivoted at
D and has a counterbalance weight fitted
at E. The movement of the centrifugal
weights is transmitted to the eccentric by
the links F and the counterbalance for
the eccentric at E makes the governor
act partly as an inertia governor. A
dashpot is fitted at G and is coupled to
the centrifugal weight by the rod H. This
is found necessary' in order to resist the
thrust of the eccentric.

Effect of Low Pressure Cut-
off on Compound Engine

A perplexed subscriber cannot under-
stand how shortening the cutoff on the
low-pressure cylinder makes that cylin-
der do more work.

In the diagram herewith, let the line
A B represent the volume of steam in
the high-pressure cylinder of a compound
engine at the point of cutoff and the line
A O represent its absolute pressure.

When the piston moves forward so
that the volume is doubled, the pressure
(if it follows the law that the product
of the volume and pressure is constant,
as steam does very nearly in an ordi-
nary cylinder) will be one-half, or 60
pounds. When the volume is trebled the
pressure will be one-third, or 40 pounds.
When the volume becomes four times the
original, the pressure will become one-
fourth, or 30 pounds.

Suppose the total volume of the high-
pressure cylinder to be four times the
volume up to cutoff; then the steam would
be expanded in that cylinder to four times
its original volume, and its pressure
would be 30 pounds. Remember that
the pressures are absolute and this would

6 7 8 9
Volumes

Pressure-volume Diagram

quired speed being attained, the center
of the eccentric moves toward the center
of the shaft, and the travel of the valve is
reduced. The weight box D contains loose
weights secured by a cover plate and
bolt; by removing one of the weights the
speed of the engine is increased about
five revolutions, and the entire number
of weights gives a variation of about fifty
revolutions. The required spring strength
for best working is obtained by a plug

be the receiver pressure, about 15 pounds
by the gage.

This steam is now discharged into the
low-pressure cylinder, and if the volume
of the low-pressure cylinder up to cutoff
is just as much as the total volume of
the high-pressure cylinder, this steam,
neglecting resistances, will be simply
transferred from one place to the other
without change of volume or pressure
The line a b will be the back pressure for

March 28. 1911.

the high-pressure and the steam line
of the low-: am.

now the steam to be again
expanded four times in the low-pressure
cylinder. The ; re would run J

the curved expansion line shown, and at
the end of the stroke the steam »ould
ha\ Rinal volume It

was expanded four times in the :
Jer and then this air
expanded stcar inded four tinx

the low-pressure c\Imdcr. so that the
total volume of the low ; Un-

der must be Iti times that of the high
up to cutoff. The terminal pressure
then be

10 :

diagram be

and the high-prcaai •

son: -sure above the absolute

the condc:
not material to the present argu

:it.

>se that the low-pre**i.
indt

take six of th< :mct out of

the I of

four :• rearare c>lindc

r of tru ;mea. ao

that Ibei be a fall of ;

the •

The f ..,» be

The ■••■c io» pte»Minr

*» by reducing it* lr. •

rk npnaawed by the

be beck pre** the
Jded the vort the

that done ►

pans»on to
•try b

Locomotive Boiler Explosion

An awful example of the
c of an exploding stean*.
recently had in the cxpl<>
souri. Kansas I - locomotive boiler

in the little town of lie. on the

Colored

hebn. ri cngi-

brought from the shop after being thor-
oughly overhauled ^ -teaming up
prerar.r a run to another I
the boiler let go in one of the
disa It The
a as so complete that not
be ascertained at |ust * li.tt point the
rupture

box end of the engine own to

ind the cah to splinters A

( . I Greer

r<>n, on is

iti 7

of the ro*.-
hurled e dial

m the

in : <nc U

through the r»x>f of a bv
several blocks a* a

torn

g. I si genera of the

osion atooo ingleee

tance of about

p!o. poir

484

POWER

March 28, 1911.

Fig. 4. This Engine Dropped into Pit Below Track

the pit badly injured. Four bodies were
taken from under this engine. Parts of
human bodies were blown 600 feet away,
rising high into the air.

It is the general opinion that the cause
of the explosion was a defective steam
gage. The man on the engine was set-
ting the pop valve and it is thought the
gage stuck when the pressure reached
155 pounds, as the gage stood at that
point when found.

It is thought that the man screwed the
pop valve down too tight and the gage
failed to register the rising pressure. It
is common report that when the pop
safety valve was found it was screwed
almost entirely down and when tested it
took a pressure of 600 pounds to make
it pop.

Parties who were near stated that be-
fore the explosion steam was issuing
from under the jacket and apparently
came from the seams, which were strained
to the leaking point.

their axle, as shown in Fig. 2, and were
dragged along by the connecting rods
while the axle was bent to the arc of a
circle. These wheels were pressed on
their axle under a pressure of 90 tons.
The two engines shown in Figs. 3 and 4,
which stood on each side, were badly
damaged, the cabs being almost entirely
blown away. The engine shown in Fig.
4 was shoved off the track and dropped
into the pit below while the rail on the
far side was broken by the driving-wheel
flange.

Fig. 5 shows how the braces and stay-
bolts were broken and torn from the
sheets. In Fig. 2 may be seen some of
the sheared rivets still in the holes.

Nine men lost their lives and twelve
were injured. Two men in the cab and one
on top of the boiler were blown to atoms,
being identified only by hands, feet and
bits of clothing. A man working in the
front end of the engine shown in Fig. 3
was unhurt, while one standing on the
pilot of the same engine was found in

Fig. 5. An Illustration of What Explosion Did to Stays and Braces

Fig. 2. Front Part of Wrecked Engine

Fig. 3. Damage to Engine Nearby

March 28, 1911.

Operating Engineer's Opportunities

The wise manager endeavors ro M
the big Icat lit the high sp.

What arc the "high spots" in po -
plant engineering? It will probably be
.d that there are four fundamental
derations to be taken into account
in any effort to produce cheap

c are: first cost of the plant; the load
factor; cost of the fuel, and the heat
value of the fuel.

No sensible man would install sto>
and economizers in a plant to be used as
a water-power auxiliary for only a few
hours in the year; the fixed charges on
such equipment would offset any ;
siblc fuel saving. One would not
pect to see the so called automatic I
of engine in a pumping station running
tantly at full load, because the high
load factor there justifies making c
reasonable effort to secure steam econ-
omy. The argument for a gas engine be-
comes weakened when good coal can be
purchased for a dollar a ton. becu
the saving in fuel will not be sufficient
in terms of dollars to offset the hif
fixed and maintenance charges of the
gas-engine plant. Power costs in western
Washington arc not greatly different from
those m '• rk for the reason that, al-

though coal there is poor in qua! •
cheap.

an engineers will sea- ;ild

a large en;; tbooi jackets, because

inter M them costs less, and fuel

more than In

It is said that the mo >mical rate

of evaporation for a steam boiler if from
3 to unjs per hour, and perhaps

it it. from a purely thermal standpoint;
but if the plant has a one-hoi >aJ

of 100 per cent nay

pay better occasional: up the

evaporation rat 0 pounds than

stall m-

Thc operating engine*'
■less manager, and he n
a manager of that c
became ted a generation ago He

must not work withou-

make allowances. are

able an ike a!

ancr -hat m.i

cheap steam. What we ncc I
as well at thermodynamic

You can judge an engineer

nk that •

a handicap

good thing, not a bad thing

ten a good man bv "keep"*: I I
on him The n
better he ill

It fe to «a\ that all

power In the «>rld
heat, and the «fock of heat
•

cam

plat' -he brat ..( |l

w. I). E

nms

I! 1

I ti

III

•

>»//<«

•

rrtnc

pounds of that coal The rett we t.

awa not know how long our

coal will Liplc of

M a thousand yea-

but the fuel is . ng It ma

' that in the nature of things a
•c the greater pan of the coal. and.

unfortunately, that t at

least, true Hut I

Tl
haps the fuel What able

I s may be u

that are no. availab

There tl J. fuel oil. natural .

tain placet var
product fu

A »ood
ment n

nec< making of all

im that the plant can use. Or

and aha
lab"

In •©

indi

1
c% from a

1 Wood la »onh

t<><> ■■._:w' that j »tl ,.• aj>a f-jr in*

tuch applu : i a oil ha*

tor* cottt
more than • much per heat ur

>al. an. impossible to

la
-

both wood and c« e aacac price,

becautc 0 an be flred with laaa

labor and gi .onom.

dM oil-
I much U

bacaaat

are high in coat and the
coals arc mostly of poor qua
Afl :ral gas. the problem is sim-

long ago there »

the of a .

cd a gas wall

lar and the tur
rt It ■

iturat .

J that
it natural gat became more eipaav

una
urn engine
■raa found lb could not

hope atural . a less coat.

at tha-
000 old

be mad

son • hot) Id
-pttoa.

Dal man
K ••• f man

steam engin* tbc

some of them

orrh«p% m**t»m >r* runnin* TV at

■nocb hi

oa about I

pax

out tbc >'

COfl

Mtl

aea » ■"

small adraa*

it imaaf he'' ttal - 1 ■ • r

486

POWER

March 28, 1911.

could be attained by an ideal engine; in
the best engines of today this figure
has been brought up to about 70 per cent.
Working along present lines, we have
made about all the gain that can be made.
Not until 16 ounces ^ease to make a
pound or until there are 101 cents in a
dollar can more work be obtained from
heat than that amount which corresponds
with its drop in temperature.

Yet, the progress of the last two de-
cades has not been negligible. There
has been progress in overall efficiency
rather than in engine economy, and this
promises decided betterment in fuel con-
sumption per delivered horsepower. Ideas
as to plant arrangement have completely
changed. Take the single matter of pip-
ing. Engineers have been closely study-
ing power-station piping for about thirteen
years. In 1898, we were using extra-
heavy cast-iron fittings, screwed-flange
joints, duplicate systems, ring mains, etc.
The flared-over flange was brand new;
cast steel was unheard of: the first spe-
cial casting I ever saw used in pipe work
was a gun-iron header installed in the
Concord, Mass., electric-lighting plant
in '99. We were just beginning to use
pipe bends; there were only three (or,
usually, two) places in the country where
we could get them. All that has changed.
The steamfitter of that day would be a
cat in a strange garret if turned loose
along the valve gallery of the modern
station.

Thirteen years ago we were talking
about magnetic clutches to connect en-
gines and generators and the direct-
driven unit was a novelty. The econo-
mizer was a matter of much interest but
scarcely of immediate concern to the
average man. Mechanical draft was a
dangerously new invention. There were
no stokers. We had just begun to talk
about coal per kilowatt-hour and we did
not have anything very creditable to our-
selves to say. Today, we are rapidly
improving some hitherto neglected de-
tails. We have been forced into the man-
ufacture of better condensing apparatus
ana we are by no means through with
that matter yet. We are faced with the
question of superheat. We know that it
pays — it increases gross earnings, so to
speak — but we do not in all cases clearly
know what it means finally in the year's
business. Too much superheat has been
installed with improper piping, valves,
fittings and regulating devices. We are
learning the mechanical requirements
now.

It is a curious fact that the general
type of apparatus adopted for some of
the largest power plants has been deter-
mined by the insignificant (?) factor,
cylinder oil. There is no way of thor-
oughly removing oil from exhaust steam
under vacuum. If turbines are used, the
exhaust steam is free from oil and many
plants are using turbines partly on that
account. If the older type of engine is

used, with surface condensers, it is usual-
ly considered conservative engineering to
throw away the condensed steam (al-
though in a few plants they are filtering
out the oil). Since in New York the cir-
culating water is necessarily salt water,
we must waste almost every unit of heat
leaving the main-engine cylinders. With
jet condensers we obtain the same re-
sult. Fresh city water might be used for
condenser supply in connection with cool-
ing towers; but it is problematical
whether the very slight resulting heat
economy would represent any commercial
gain, and the cooling tower itself is
scarcely to be regarded as standardized.
And in any case, we are face to face
with the question of type of prime mover.
The turbine has already shown a better
everyday economy than its predecessor,
although it has probably not quite equaled
the latter's best record. This is from the
technical, heat-unit standpoint. Com-
mercially, the turbine plant costs less
and will eventually cost very much less,
so that it often has a distinct advantage.
Along with this, the gas engine is loom-
ing up large, promising an efficiency well
along toward double that of the best
steam engines, but it is thus far handi-
capped by greater cost, lack of overload
capacity, relatively poor efficiency at light
loads and unproved reliability. Which of
the three, reciprocating engine, turbine
or gas engine, is to survive no one can
yet say; final types have not been de-
veloped and final data are lacking as to
thermal and commercial efficiency; but
we may hazard the following surmises:

For direct connection to generators and
other revolving machines where con-
densing water is available, the turbine
should displace the reciprocating engine.
Should its cost per pound be reduced to
anything like that of the older motor,
and if it can be made fairly efficient when
running noncondensing, it may displace
the latter in all applications where direct
connection is possible. As to the gas en-
gine: assuming the present rapid rate
of development to continue, this form of
prime mover should replace the steam
plant in nearly all cases where, steam
coal is high in price; the load factor is
reasonably good, and there is no steam
required for heating purposes. The gas
engine will make more rapid progress as
its underload efficiency and overload ca-
pacity are increased and its first cost is
reduced.

The operating engineer's work is not
confined to the engine room. Those who
have to do with mill plants well know
that large savings are to be made in the
economical utilization of exhaust steam
for heating and process work. This field
is not being exploited as it should be.
There are dollars to be found in the vac-
uum pan or steam kettle as well as in
the cylinder and it is usual experience
that they are somewhat easier to find
in those places. You may have heard

of the use of receiver steam from com-
pound engines for process supply where
steam at atmospheric pressure would not
answer. You may not have heard of the
proposal to run an engine at 20 pounds
back pressure in order to supply a triple-
effect evaporator. I see no objection and
a certain gain. In the great majority of
cases, ordinary exhaust steam is all that
is necessary. Many a mill owner is
superstitious about it; he thinks that ex-
haust steam is not hot, does not realize
that with good circulation exhaust steam
will warm his kettles up to 200 degrees
just as quickly and reliably as live steam
will. When a somewhat higher tempera-
ture is necessary, it may be better to
pass the exhaust steam through a small
separately fired superheater than to sup-
plement it with a final live-steam boiling
through special coils.

These are side issues, if important, to
the main work of the engineer which is
now more than ever centralized in the
boiler room. As always, he must first
of all keep things running. In the vast
majority of plants this is the all-important
consideration compared with which every-
thing else is secondary. He must comply
with local laws and ordinances and as
far as possible avoid becoming a con-
tributor to the smoke nuisance. A suffi-
ciently difficult task this, with all the
fuels of various grades, and it cannot
be said that we have yet developed any
generally applicable system of smoke
prevention. Smokeless combustion is
itself a matter of management, based
on the coal, the equipment, the men
and the load, and there is no infallible
prescription for securing it. We can say,
generally, that soft coal needs more air
than hard coal; that the air and fuel
must be thoroughly mixed to produce
ignition, and that the flames must not be
chilled until after combustion has been
completed, that is to say,, that about 10
or 12 feet of distance should be traveled
by the products of combustion from the
grate before they strike the boiler. These
simple principles underlie the design of
every "smokeless" furnace, dutch oven
and soft-coal stoker in existence. We
have recently developed another form of
power-plant nuisance no less objection-
able than smoke, namely, the discharge
of fine cinders from plants burning low-
grade buckwheat coal at high drafts and
rates of combustion. In New York City
there have been several criminal pro-
ceedings against plant operators who
have offended in this way.

When we have mastered these things,
in a reasonable degree, we have before
us the whole field of plant economy.
Here, if anywhere, a campaign of edu-
cation will pay. It costs perhaps one cent
in wages to shovel ten cents' worth of
coal onto the grates, and I am afraid
that we get good measure, that is, the
willing fireman often makes it ten cents'
worth of coal when it might be seven

March 28, 1911.

cents' worth. We should remember that
in no place are brains more needed than
in tl.- - ought

to pay enough for fire-room labor to ob-
tain the proper d if intelligc:
The firing of coal should be made more
a matter of brain than of brawn.

How is this to be brought about ? One
of the popular magazir :i has been

publishing a great deal a
factory management suggest* tha*
adopt a sort of pie
the fireman so much per ton of coal t
I should rather work it the other •
paying him so much for even ton he
not I ic nowadays is inl

in the new -cms of

are claimed to have noth-
ing in common with piece work, hut tl
resemble piece work at lecst in that the
more a man docs the more he ea
There is no reason *
cannot be introduced in »m.

but. of course, what a ma- '* there

is not the amount of coal he i but

the amount of steam he gets for each
pound of coal.

It is a fortunate engineer who has a
poor plant particularly in a process
mill. He has the best opportunity
make great records in cconorm . if he can
only stand the strain of kc ant

running. Of course, there is aUa\s an
clement of luck that cann

; but in the long run. as Napoleon
said, the luck is on the side of the
gcncri: P ant management must

rything
else from ad\ church g<

n our failures and
To save is our I
The plant » hie! 1 in

matter of cost* is the plant th.<
stan on the do-* n gi
a fight all the '

A word i a fine

thing for an et
of fuel

hour the rr.

ing a ling and »

rods a
points arc ncccs«ar\ and ca
I am afraiJ that some
ncer

than bookkeeping, interesting
important This happet a man

gets that hi* J
ample, should

and ln\cntnr\ month by month If
do r • ' the

arc -
concert the N

are wrong, the »:ht

If we hi
versal medidM n the r
in bu«incs« c thc«r

further th.v

get along »ithotr

-ould be l
good thing cm-

porarih m< plant for about

■ sec some
garded

plant an.

and
n he v own b-

room hi a more

I once lo to a

a small closed

-on
the It was so ovcrloa

tough thcr.

>uid not be made
- When
installed later
on, a large
the . ndenscr. and

■cr afti
small a heatet ut through

the new lar it seems incrcd

that among a ncd

that steam
at a

that .. that -

I saw it. and

hca:

It is unfortu
as ;• r all n

«s a
-hed p«

and

mat oss

punishr

and

ga abo» - not s<

leatlooe
of -

BS8MM '' ' ""•' ut "U< p ? r \ c r. tah'c » »

| | r t > i ■ | >. t • ■ • '

damper Bet»

nc« may »—• '* i***1

coal need* ate

I onr thing and

ptished

lall be
gcot as the engineer I oacc met
Wcat wbo knew no aucb thing
pound of steam other than the

J oa the stead
bare plants close

Ml bstrrcstcd '..c pi voi »'c»n

or i
concerns yon and demands the beat that

c nei hod for the

.
rend and ana to art aha-
Too m. m hujmn,

coal, take i v aaaa who

contracts to methir.

to sta- and now much

get sc
cms to
about coal thaa those who ha«
sell. And

ore or leas

cm of power cost.
a! should be sold oa the has
beat <nd anaUsas and a poand paid

16 ounces Perhaps
need a Natter

The value of coa cpeods

tsed on the supposed tjual-

• >f some sample or standi the

icscer «nh

ncd by

lb the coa!
room of

n the '
more accurate and laaa
• coaalnar

i
to give the same

en due to lav

1at:fn of ?hc TT.u % of

c. net rrasa "too much
thcorv ' but from loo Jattf* rbisn
We shooM not be callai ee

■ 2

' raws up la
ana Mara am

coal aaaa asW<

• ' '* ■ fflaTl' tt

»,.f r or

i a rvas*

ee aau

488

POWER

March 28, 1911.

ter of sizes, I have met men who did not
know that No. 1 buckwheat meant a cer-
tain range of size. If we buy No. 1 and
pay for No. 1, why do we not see that
we get No. 1 ?

And then, there is the commercial
problem of delivery. Those of us who
operated plants in New York in the winter
of 1903-04 know what happened to costs
per kilowatt-hour during that time. Why?
Because nearly every dealer defaulted on
his contracts. We would not tolerate such
a thing on the part of anyone else; why
should we tolerate it when perpetrated by
the coal men?

To city engineers with office-building
plants, the prospect of coal shortage is
serious enough, but to the mill engineer

Institute of Operating Engineers is going
to help us solve them. I believe the
institute will succeed because it recog-
nizes in its foundation two broad princi-
ples which accompany all great work and
which are always associated with suc-
cess: the principle of education and the
principle of helping the other man — es-
pecially the younger man. We all need
education, all we can get of it, and we
need it before anything else. Our troubles
come from too little, not from too much
education. Therefore, it was wisdom to
make education one of the institute's
first aims. Just what kind of education
operating engineers need and what shall
be the program of getting it, will be
gradually determined as time goes on.

Our work does not begin with the throt-
tle and end with the flywheel; it does
not even begin with the coal pile and
end with a salary check; it is a part
of the great work of efficient men all
over the world making two blades of
grass grow where one grew before.

Flywheel Explosion at
Greensburg Ind.

Failure of the governor to shut down
the engine after the breaking of the
governor belt, was responsible for the
wrecking of a flywheel at the works of
the Bromwell Brush and Wire Company,
Greensburg, Ind., at 7 :30 a.m. on March 2.

Fig. 2. Part of Rim of the Broken Flywheel Mid
Rural Surroundings

&<&*&/,

~— "»^^5|^»

Y-

■

*"' -~

•'.1

Fig. 1. Engine Room after the Accident

Fig. 3. Another Piece of the Rim

out in the suburbs it involves some addi-
tional troublesome problems. He must
store coal at the beginning of the winter
if he wishes to keep running in spite of
strikes or railroad delays. Storage of
coal is one of the most serious items of
cost. We say nothing about the money
tied up in the coal pile; the expense of'
handling and rehandling is alone rather
staggering in a plant of any size. And
then, there is shrinkage, in quality as well
as in quantity. The hazard of fire is ex-
tremely serious, at least with soft coal,
and fires in a coal pile are hard to put
out.

These are some of the commercial
aspects of a few of the problems en-
trusted to the operating engineer. This

Let us merely aim high and then let mat-
ters shape themselves. It was most
wisely said by the editor of Power that
the worth of your certificate of member-
ship will be determined by the first one
hundred holders of it. Be sure of your
first hundred and you will be bound to
grow in the right direction.

We sometimes forget what the word
engineer means. In its derivation, it has
no reference to engines. The engineer
means the man who is ingenious, inven-
tive, of wide-awake and active mind and
who can meet and master situations with
science and skill. If we remember that
derivation, we will all agree that the word
describes the highest and best type of en-
gineer, the type we ourselves aim to be.

The engine was of the old slide-valve
throttling type, with a 14x24-inch cyl-
inder and a 10-foot cast-iron flywheel
made in two pieces. The rim was 10
inches wide and 2j/> inches thick and was
held together at the circumference by
lugs, each containing two 1/s-inch steel
bolts. The normal speed of the engine
was 110 revolutions per minute.

The engineer had left the engine room
a few minutes before the accident to
get a piece of 2-inch pipe from the
storeroom. On his way back he noticed
that the machinery was speeding up and
hastening to the engine-room door he
found the engine running at a dangerous
rate of speed. As the throttle valve was
directly in line with the flywheel and wide

March 28. 1911.

P('

open, he saw tnat it would be

.rew the valve to its seat before an
explosion would occur, so turned and ran
from the room. He had gone but a
feet when the wheel let go, a number of
pieces tearing through the roof and
of the building, as shown in the ace
panying photon ie main

shaft from its journals and breaking the
frame of the engine.
wheel weighing from one to two hur. d
pounds were s.
borhood. one of them landing in a

I. Past or Bandvheei * m Pieces

op Flyw»

: several hundred feet away, anothci

crashing up through the floor of the main

.: and coming t n the atttc.

as injured, ovuni: illy

the fact that when th of the

mat n the factory began to in-

ise, all the operatives left tl

> and made for the

J from the power plant.
The flybal! governor was i ith

a safe; : to shut J

by ooal > ou • the boat

M helJ r engine so

saaab.

==^=========== Mime more lal

-«ne could be fi
' ' l< iod ran until the ar*

n th
.ink th

• • • • • • ...

• • • .
■

The ah ,n of ba. -a gmh&:

the sounds that came out through the position that it

prig*

».n-

open * - if i r

room.

safe. I ) in ».'

had occurr.

There I found a small i
gine and a i about

as much expression as a half dco
pot.r

The cngir

The

cured in place, formed a gutdc for the
•em an. cr-^cj na

of the red
and aerc »nf to resist

soon had the engine up to sfnatl
Jutt the: •bom

bnaa. or

J to Bod ov

be *' J

::-.->•..£ "i bH° r.» t<- i>

CO*

plasm and
aaam. The coal>afeiaaag m

the nt

the engine in aoch in err

con*

the be!1

K loo»'
on
that

■
After the

edce himmc '

c gutdt oal

The real
a J come frer oaThrtoe to t

• i to u- J

In tha same s*ci

- hkh » dnam. and taa

■stand.

I #rct

^P< h

490

POWER

March 28, 1911.

Hydroelectric Developments
in Georgia

By R. C. Turner

On February 8, the 24,000-horsepower
plant of the Central Georgia Power Com-
pany, located on the Ocmulgee river at
Jackson, Ga., was put into commission.
The first line connecting out will be the
line for Macon, supplying current for
operating the street-car system and elec-
tric lighting. At present only 6000 horse-
power is being used, but as soon as the
connections are completed to several
large manufacturing concerns near the
city the load on this line will be increased
to 16,000 horsepower. The lines into
Macon will operate at 50,000 volts and
are about 25 miles long. The lines lead-
ing to Atlanta, 75 miles long, will be op-
erated at 100,000 volts. Branch lines
from this feeder will extend to Griffin,
Forsyth and Monticello. The current is
generated at 6000 volts and stepped up
for transmission.

The plant at Jackson is the first of
the three which will be developed by the
company; when the other two are com-
pleted the three will be capable of de-
livering 100,000 horsepower. The water
rights for the other two plants have
been secured and will be developed as
speedily as possible.

The Georgia Power Company, which
controls the rights for 200,000 horse-
power in the State, is rushing the work
on the development at Tallulah Falls,
which will be largest single develop-
ment south of Niagara Falls. The water
from the head level will be conducted
through flumes to the power house a mile
away, and will have 600 feet fall. It is
estimated by the engineers in charge of
the development that this plant alone
will be able to deliver 100,000 horse-
power. Two three-phase lines will be
operated at 100,000 volts pressure and
will terminate at Atlanta, 90 miles south
of the falls.

The 15.000-horsepower development of
this company at Gainesville, on the Chat-
tahoochee river, known as the Dean
plant, has been completed and is sup-
plying current to Gainesville, Buford and
Norcross. A 50,000-volt line also is op-
erated from this plant to Atlanta, 55 miles
south of Gainesville. At the city limits
the current is stepped down to 11,000
volts and delivered at this pressure to
manufacturing establishments on the
edges of the city. At Morgan's falls, 18
miles north of Atlanta, the company has

in operation another plant, which has a
capacity of 17,000 horsepower. Two
three-phase lines terminating at Atlanta
are operated at 22,000 volts pressure. The
entire output of this plant is sold to the
Georgia Railway and Electric Company,
which operates 200 miles of street rail-

dollars and will supply to Atlanta and
vicinity 200,000 horsepower of electrical
energy.

Water lank Signal System

Most tank-signal alarms are equipped
with an electric bell that rings until a
switcn is thrown, the signal being only
for high water; but, in some instances, it
is just as important to have a low-water
alarm.

An alarm system for both high and low
water in a tank is shown in the accom-
panying illustration. Two bells, a switch

r*-,

Alarm System for Water Tank

way and a 20-mile interurban line to
Marietta and also supplies current for
electric lighting in Atlanta.

All the plants of the Georgia Power
Company will be tied together so that a
breakdown at one plant will not cause
a dead shutdown. The properties of the
company when fully developed will repre-
sent an expenditure of ten millions of

and two primary cells are used. The
tank is square and has a cross piece
reaching from one side to the other. This
piece supports a wooden upright acting as
a guide to the float rod, which slides
through eye screws turned into the riser.
A contact spring is attached to the float
rod and comes in contact with the terminal
blocks of the wires A and B. A third wire

March 28. 1911.

( - connected to the float rod at one
end and to the batteries at the other end

The operation is as follows: U'hcn
the water is low the contact sprir.n /;
ennanc;- with the terminal A. This closes
the circuit through the bell £ and the bat-
tery when the lever of the switch /
thrown to the right contact head.

When the uater is high the contact
spring D engages with the terminal block
B, closes the circuit through the be
and the battery when th
thrown to the left-hand contact head.

This arrangement permits the contact
g D to be engaged with either A
for any length of time, as the switch F
can be thrown on the central contact head,
arrangement is desirable in cases
where the water level remains practicallv
stationary for several days at a time, the
switch allowing the engineer to test for
the hight of the water at intervals.

liru^li Setting for Interpolc

Motors
By R. W Wilbraham

I; is a well known fact that the good
>rmance of an interpolc motor is
dependent upon exactness of bn;
ting far more than the common shunt-

>mpound-wound rt
trouble late 'untcred with a num-

• >f small Ini this

out remarkably well. The motors ..
all of the sair it I h«>-

. ariablc sp>.
• und macl
direct cunt to the headstockl

wood-turning lathes. Th 1 range

was from P per

minute, the irt of the range being

armature resistance and
the latter par* I u

The n; re started up irt-

ing box vfaldi left them running at 800
ilutions per m As the

up. some of them upon reaching
I til» ninute would

and at apr

the same speed in the othe-

lo the same thing •*

It was then 'hat the

>rs that re at the N**' i

lid not reverse u
■
speeded up \er\ *lowl> These particular

1 had i
the bearings I ,
could be r.i;

iere. like all t'

cr making a num'
onclusion tit ranched that the brush
position wa« wrong 'oved to be

the case and ^rushes

backward (oppo*
one bar the trouble waa cr-
The Internal magnetic Bi
place II terrsting and ar.

follows:

In - :icn the brashes I

ahead of tr ral point, as the

at firsi on the

the armature rea are less I

normal and. conse

magnetic field is stronger thar. The

at at icceaaivc point

in the irmatur

e and more be'

• •

t pmponiona:

armatur

ig armature field, the strength of

- than tl
irmaturc current
the case described, the
spee>S being obtai^cJ r. f:c!J control
at the 1 • the fie *o the f

magnet ak and the

armature field very strong. The co-
quence vu that the magnet poles ■

magnet
with opposite pola- ng the n.

to r g, as would be

•mpanicd by sparking
at t! othe ini

■ >r the reversed rotate

CORRESPONDENCE

\lr. liitu-'s Induction Motor
I rouble

I have had the same exper
indu
in the I rebn

■
g all the i ior-

:* of the bars
eta-
Ming tl
making

■ as po- The cr

ild be bolt

ight be »ell also

mantla pap*

the

and in the

line voltage Indlci

■
should be looked f<
-notor »'

•>e tl

• on i

nlm

• .• - .i

\<-,.imJ MHfOlkfl poir.t

right hti

•cm on both

to »reej for one p^.avr *o ice;

when the : to the

ning position One phase being taat and
inn woold tonwuH for
■ ng to e load

ad becfl open
jld he^

ccr. thort circuited
. ould have bio*.
In some instances the rotor r-
come loosened from their ronoanlng.

the motor oil

■\ a contributing u

whok

• 'iea not account for the
in starting; moreoi
able u»

illdav. C

\l illc M u alpine I
I Hra t Cui

Tt colm. in the

14 issue, pertaining to
ussion of large t
cour -urbo-g

acts, is unfortunate!) no* winded

bam

f the •

to be

con deductions hi the

'
II ilm I

cni been

»"ij!J *> » » c "* a J ••
i« 100 per

cfKicncy. say 70 P*r •<-••. »h»ch i%

I ■ > » • htd

ncrator. whik

!■■■>

■

' ■

r ' . ■

MKperhent and '

esaa J

according!* aWacttt thi
aocood table Poftharannro.
•on whb • rorbo-ahernsio

„-.-•»■-§•- has. m the

■

lo this

492

POWER

March 28, 1911.

refuted by the fact that such combina-
tions have been installed for the express
purpose of obtaining direct current im-
mediately at the point of generation, be-
fore the large gear had been completely
developed and which system was given
preference over the large direct-coupled
continuous-current turbo-generating unit.
To my knowledge four such plants have
been installed.

In looking at the first cost of the
geared set disparagingly, Mr. Malcolm
loses sight of the facts that standard tur-
bines and generators may be used while
for direct coupling the designs must be
special.

Mr. MacMurchie's presentation of the
comparison, in my mind, is entirely equit-
able, and is in conformity with the actual
performance of the different elements.
Edwin D. Dreyfus.

East Pittsburg, Penn.

generator efficiency is the starting point.

Mr. Dreyfus seems surprised that I

should construe Mr. MacMurchie's paper

to mean that the use of the gear would

Mr. Dreyfus' comment on my article
relating to Mr. MacMurchie's paper is in
error in at least one point: I did not as-
sume any turbine efficiency in preparing
the table accompanying my article; I sim-
ply .ook Mr. MacMurchie's figures for
steam economy and worked back from
them to see what would be the probable
distribution of the overall efficiency be-
tween the turbine and the generator on
the basis of 97 per cent, efficiency for
the gear.

My assumption of 100 degrees of
superheat for the turbine was based on
the fact that this is commonly assumed
in discussing turbine plants. If Mr.
Dreyfus prefers a comparison based on
saturated steam at the turbine throttle he
will find it in the accompanying tables.
The theoretically available energy in a
pound of steam expanded adiabatically
from 150 pounds pressure to the con-
denser pressure corresponding to 28
inches of vacuum is 319}/ heat units.
According to Mr. MacMurchie's figures
the direct-connected unit would require
20!6 pounds and the gear-driven unit
19.3 pounds of steam per kilowatt-hour,
showing overall heat efficiencies of 51.85
and 55.34 per cent, respectively. If the
Melville-Macalpine gear has 97 per cent,
efficiency, the geared turbine and gen-
erator must have a combined efficiency
of

55 34
0.97

= 57 05

per cent., as compared with 51.85 per
cent, for 'the direct-connected turbine
and generator.

Not knowing what Mr. MacMurchie al-
lowed for turbine and generator effi-
ciencies separately under the two sets of
conditions I have simply presented in
Table 1 a list of possible turbine effi-
ciencies and given opposite each the gen-
erator efficiencies necessary to fit the
stated overall efficiencies; in Table 2, the

TABLE 1.

Corresponding Generator

Efficiencies.

Turbine

Efficiency.

Direct Driven.

Gear Driven.*

96.02

92.59

89.40

98.37

86.42

95.09

6*2

95.02

89.15

permit the use of electric generators of
higher efficiency. As Mr. MacMurchie's
paper contained that specific statement
I do not see how I could "construe" it
otherwise. However, assuming that facility
of commutation is the only generator
advantage and that the turbine gets all
of the increase in efficiency, Table 2 gives
the direct comparison.

TABLE 2.

Corresponding Turbine

Efficiencies.

Generator

Efficiency.

Direct Drive.

Gear Drive.*

60.3

64.4

58.9

62.9

57.6

61.5

56.4

60.2

55.2

58.9

54.0

57.7

* Assuming 97 per cent, efficiency for the gear.

It is conceivable that a large turbine
running at a favorable speed will show
an increase of 3l/2 to 4 per cent, in
efficiency, as indicated by the table, when
compared with its performance at a lower
speed. But it is also quite reasonable
to suppose that the generator efficiency
would suffer somewhat by a reduction in
speed. I cannot imagine a turbine (other
than the De Laval) of 1500 horsepower
that would require such a high rate of
speed for maximum efficiency as to carry
the generator beyond its maximum-effi-
ciency rate of speed.

However, that phase of the question Is
scarcely worth haggling over; it is with-
in the reach of imagination that in rela-
tively small units the use of the gear
might effect some improvement in over-
all efficiency and an appreciable reduction
in the cost of the turbine, but I believe
the cost of the gear would more than
eat up the gains.

The bald truth is that increased facility
of commutation is the only real excuse
for using anything except a direct coup-
ling between a turbine and a direct-cur-
rent generator. Whether or not that justi-
fies the expense I am not sure; only a
practical demonstration would convince
me.

Geo. W. Malcolm.

Brooklyn, N. Y.

Would It Have Been Serious?

Under the title "The Light That Failed,"
in Power for January 31, Howard H.
Bliss tells of a retiring operator who,
through spite, filed a brass connection
thin, with the idea that it would melt
as a fuse when the synchronizing lamps
were at full candlepower and thus ex-
tinguish them and cause the new op-
erator to close the switch and throw two
machines together when they were far-
thest out of phase.

I believe, however, that the probabilities
of success for the scheme are very re-
mote. In the first place it would have
required very fine calculation to have
enabled the man to file the brass so it
would melt just when the lamps were at
fuli candlepower. The chances are that
it would either have melted too soon
or not at all. In the second place it is
not likely that anyone would have thrown
the machines together the first time that
the lamps went dark, and the fact -that
they stayed dark would or should have
aroused suspicion and led to investi-
gation. In the third place, had the brass
melted just when the lamps were at full
candlepower, they would have gone out
suddenly and not gradually, as is the
case when machines are near enough the
same speed to be thrown together. This
would or should have caused the op-
erator to hesitate. He would have ex-
pected the lamps to light up again just
as suddenly and would not have risked
closing the switch. Their failing to light
again would have started him looking
for trouble.

I do not mean to say that it could not
have happened as planned, but I hope
that if ever anyone tries to make
synchronizing trouble for me he will
choose as uncertain a way as the one
described; I believe that in the majority
of cases, cold snap or no cold snap, that
plan will result in nothing more serious
than the trouble of running down an
open circuit.
Salida, Colo. G. E. Miles.

John T. Nicholson, of high-speed boiler
fame, in a letter to The Engineer, of Lon-
don, upon the comparative merits of the
cut-and-try method and mathematical in-
vestigation, says: "Mechanical engineer-
ing is not only an art or a craft, but it
largely consists also in the application of
mathematical and physical principles.
Men who do not possess a good knowl-
edge of these principles are incapable
of foreseeing in what way a new appara-
tus will behave. They can in fact only
repeat with slight and timid modifications
what other engineers have done before,
and as Professor Perry has said, 'By
dint of expensive trial and failure they
sometimes arrive at results which they
might have arrived at very inexpensively
if they had been better educated.' '

March 28. 1911.

G^s power Department

Notes from the Gai Pow cr
Plant .it Gar)

me of the engines in the mammoth
• the Indiana Si om-

pany at Gary. Ind., have no* been in
ation over three years and it is in-
g to note Itu en-

countered. During th months

there were slight difficulties, due mainly
to the i: ice of the operators. One

ao cylinders were cracked t but are
still in operation ■ and some troubl
back firing and preig: It

did not take long, ho 'or the

ng engineers to become familiar with
the engines and n< rything

unning as smoothly as could be
-cd. The alternating-current .
erators have a nominal rating <
kilowatts each cr fac-

tor but regularly carrv fr<
kilowatts. Units are cut in or out so as
to maintain this high unit load as nearly
constant as possible.

A» th< . used in the

rolling mills the load is sub fre-

quent variations and it may happen that
an engine will be started and ed a

n times during the day. This is :
with much facility now uUty

minute from the time an engine
is ordered Into until it is on the

line in parallel with the other mach:
The sh<
dor

The engines operate on the waste g.i
from the blast furnaces and as the'
available more power thai i at

the plant elcctr regular

for lighting the

the water works and (
In add:' this, some po>*cr

the plant of the Um\.
cment Company at Buffin;
■

Tt
parallel with I *cr bol the

lllir. any at South Chicago,

where gas engines, steam engir

itinn The
the lines is at Hufflng-
arrangement cna'
plant t'

MM oth car the

ent plant

T»
gradually going <
which Is heme bought fr

Light Cnmpa-
ho*

/ v c/ v thti

>rrh while in tfh
en (/ prodtii i

industry \mI1Ik' rrv.ir^d
hti ( m ./ way thai i an
he ci (7.s< to prat ri

cal

nun

LETTERS

Mr. Rushmoi 1 i A

I ): i jr. mis

In thi
mori

grams taken from a i
ducer-gas engine If the diagra

'■

trated l ik" had been prop

taken, the »ork .:
ha vi

a card
•crnal conncc-
good

'j.

■

nnot uijff

compression did not begin

i nonnj the

on cur
i I And they coincide almost

• • ,• --,.„.

UM that imc

JAM numtv
heat ui

and Hi Kushm

* grama supenmpo-
hovr nc
Jotted
taken from Fig I. his normal diagram
I second It

Pica.

•Hon mxm»tt4 i
potr ted the

s aothiac bat a caaa of

it i«n from the

- • ■

par- one mm at

494

POWER

March 28, 1911.

the diagram labeled "first freak" with
that of the normal diagram. It is con-
siderably shorter, indicating that a knot
or joint in the indicator cord slipped near
the head end of the stroke. The diagram
is not complete; the compression line is
not indicated until near the end of the
compression stroke and at this point the
indicator cock was thrown open.

The second freak was caused by pre-
ignition due to overload. The high peak
is a sign of full or overload in using
a throttling governor. Ignition took place
slightly before the piston reached the
middle of the compression stroke and
the momentum of the flywheel carried
the piston against the explosive pres-
sure, as indicated by the rising compres-
sion line. The expansion line falls be-
low the compression line because of the
loss of heat through the cylinder walls.
Harold Doolittle.

Birmingham, Ala.

The Diesel Engine and
Engineers

I read in the February 21 issue the
article by Edward B. Pollister on "The
Diesel Engine in Service," and I share
Mr. Pollister's good opinion of the Diesel
engine.

About five years ago I took charge of
a large power plant in central Europe
containing a 1000-horsepower horizontal
cross-compound steam engine and a four-
cylinder Mirrlees-Diesel engine of 225
brake horsepower direct-coupled to a 150-
kilowatt generator. The Diesel engine
was five years old, but it carried its
load successfully with great economy,
running only at night for lighting ser-
vice. During my two years of service
the biggest repair was a new piston for
the air compressor, but I spent about ten
hours every two weeks in inspecting and
taking up connections and various other
parts, and had the men blow out all pip-
ing and wash out all other parts with
kerosene. I did not take the pistons out
every time, but turned the crank over
and cleaned out deposits in the cylin-
ders with sponges and kerosene, working
through the suction and exhaust-valve
ports. The engine ran satisfactorily and
never scored the cylinders.

I presume that Mr. Pollister under-
stands that the Diesel engine is success-
ful only when operated by skilled engi-
neers who have had proper training; an
internal-combustion engine, whether
using gasolene, gas or crude oil, will not
run with the exhaust valves opening
4 inches late or with the eccentric set
5?/ inches of the stroke late, as will
some Corliss engines.

I do not say that there are not skilled
men in plenty; there are well trained,
capable men in the United States and
Canada, but plant owners cannot expect
to get a well educated and skilled engi-
neer for $70 to $75 a month to work 66
and more hours a week and be ready to

respond cheerfully whenever the night
engineer calls him out of bed to clear up
trouble in the water or steam line, or to
fix up a balky ignition system or a cranky
mixing valve. Under such conditions
there need be no wonder that 90 per cent,
of the capable men are working at manu-
facturing trades instead of running power
plants.

In the hands of the right sort of engi-
neers, the Diesel engine is the most eco-
nomical prime mover known.

J. G. Koppel.

Montreal, Can.

Generator Linings

The method of lining a gas gen-
erator described by C. R. McGahey in
the February 7 issue is interesting, but
I think it would be unnecessarily expen-
sive. We set the firebrick in 8 inches
from the shell and fill in behind the lin-
ing with sand. As we have no trouble, we
believe the method is all right. I think,
also, that this is the way it is generally
done in this part of the country.

J. O. Benefiel.

Anderson, Ind.

Mr. Barker's Engine Speed

In the issue of February 28, Mr. Barker
asks if a speed of 300 revolutions per
minute is practical for a vertical gas
engine of 9l/> inches bore and 12 inches
stroke with a connecting rod 30 inches
long.

In my opinion this speed is practical.
I have one llxl2-inch gas engine run-
ning at 300 revolutions per minute with
connecting rods 36 inches long; also, a
12xl2-inch engine running at 275 revolu-
tions per minute with connecting rods
36 inches long. Both engines are three-
cylinder verticals with long trunk pistons
lubricated by splash from the crank case,
and both run 12 hours per day, under
about the same conditions. The crank-
pin and piston-pin brasses of the 12x12-
inch engine need adjusting every two
days but the brasses of the llxl2-inch
engine need adjusting only about once
a month. The pistons and cylinders
show very little wear and have been in
service over eighteen months.

M. W. Utz.

Minster, O.

The piston speed of a 9^xi2-inch en-
gine at 300 revolutions per minute is not
too high, but the flywheels should not be
more than four feet in diameter because
at 300 revolutions per minute the rim
speed of a 4-foot flywheel would be 3600
feet per minute. The safe working speed
being about a mile a minute, this would
leave enough margin for safety in case
the engine should run away.

It is very seldom that the flywheel of
a gas engine breaks from excessive
speed; more often the connecting rod
breaks, due to the piston being heavy

and being cushioned only at one end
of the stroke every other revolution.

N. E. Wooljman.
Danbury, Iowa.

An Inconsistent Engine

A small four-cylinder vertical gaso-
lene engine which seems to be in first-
class condition runs faster when the pet
cock on cylinder No. 3 is open than when
it is closed. Can anyone explain why?

Fred Haul.

Dexter, Mo.

Cracked Piston Faces

I have taken several pistons from gaso-
lene engines that were cracked through
the top, as shown in the sketch. I should
like to have expressions of opinion from

Piston with Crack in Face

other readers as to what makes them
crack in the top and the best method of
repairing them. Can they be brazed or
closed up with Smooth-on cement or
patched with soft patches?

Jno. G. Kohnsberg.
Hathaway, Tenn.

Petroleum in Turkey

According to Consul George Horton,
the importation of Russian petroleum in-
to the Saloniki district is increasing de-
spite Hungarian competition, which is
handicapped by higher freights. As
nearly as can be ascertained the imports
of petroleum into this district in 1909
were as follows, in cases: Russian, 370,-
000; Hungarian, 50,000. The figures for
1910 will show a decided increase.

American petroleum is imported in
small quantities, but on account of the
higher price the demand is not important,
despite its acknowledged better qualities,
viz., less odor and clearer light. Before
the opening of the Batum wells petroleum
was exclusively imported from the United
States, and the market was lost through
the inactivity of the American producers;
but it can be regained, and steps to this
end have been taken by the purchase by
an American company of a site here for
tanks and a factory. This real-estate
transaction has caused considerable in-
terest here as the company was forced to
pay an exorbitant price for the land. A
Hungarian company had already pur-
chased a site, but it is now rumored that
it is ready to sell it and retire from the
contest.

March 28, 1911.

( lonstant K i ;' er Pre ure

Recently I visited a power station in
which there 48-

inch and one 2ti a: rots-

compound condensing engine. Tnc large
engine was running with a re.
sure of 12 pounds; in a shor they

•.hut down this engine and startcJ the
small one and carried a receiver pressure
of but 6T . pounJ

I asked the engineer wh> he car'
12 pounds receiver pressure on one en-
and but »> pounds on the other,
replied that the engine with the
receiver pressure had jus: h>c<. M n ; urcd
and that it did not require any n
that the engine carrying 12 .
;\cr pressure \*as old and rcqu
repairs, so he had to carry a higher
:rc to make
Th said that the engines had

ncc he had been
there, some nine and that he

ssed the engine cylinders balance
I told him that he ought - ate

engines, adjust the valves, cqua
the cutoffs and then work out his ca
to sec which cylinder ■ ig the

most work. and. if the t< tire

was not doing the same amoun'
the high-prcsu- -ten

the cutoff on tl and

raise the receiver pressure nttJ both
- • re doing the same amoun'

I have also that the n

ure of many cross .

as much a» 2ti p<
some engines the pressure . ien

the load goes off. »ith others it g
up when the load come* 0
that if an cngin<

*a!\' rrly set and the Im

anced between the I

maintain the same at

no load that It d

K that the gover

n the
at on the !cr

If the governor -he hig

nly. thi
the l( >as a ti

en a la- a

• Me load and the I

» a
pressure at full load

most
until the recr
With a constant rec^
nstant rl
rre«su rr
•har

Pi ../

into i
mun on the • \
■
c will L

Uea nor mere north
tnnt

the pressure to be built up in the rc-

>ff.

s stcar : the

lo»

torter at th tant • ping

a constant r pressure The

en the load
are
e same instant the h
!cr tak.

W. R B

if- 1 1 4 I i« »ilc-r Stampeded
tin I iremen

In a plant containing 12

turn-tubular bo

the ! in fl'l

a s .

almost «,. ttt|

ndulgc In

the b.

^m." The ot
m«' ing bts

and »

■ng. and

the leader
'•>tn« a "ma-
coal trestle and down thr r

<xn the
r to a atop behind pile*
and other obiccts
and e»et th

■

flremar that mom*

peek hole wee enough
of the moat r

scoop The first fire ahe< anging

»nd VI
all o\cr »'• fireman »

for -,» the

•

• ould duck hi

about Half ar
cm up and I e beam

one of the firemen

t long ag' J found the aaaa*

The ntght

that had caoeeal Mat ware
' * *
b* mechanka! coal hi the he, m erst* »•

he fee* n the ether* aatd am keee>

*< 1 th* ' The'

teat to sj«

■

These boilr

">d •
<ughf he

49o

POWER

March 28, 1911.

pairs consisted of a new sheet and a
full set of tubes.

The firemen and coal and ash wheelers
came back, but the fireman who caused
the stampede did not even return for his
hat and coat.

A. R. Hilbert.
- East Rutherford, N. J.

What Is Wrong with the
Valve ?

The automatic cutoff engine, from
which the diagrams shown in Fig. 1 were
taken, was apparently running satisfac-

Fig. 1

torily at a speed of 215 revolutions per
minute. The governor was keyed to the
shaft and there was no way to shorten
the valve rod except to heat it. After
taking the diagram shown in Fig. 1, I

Fig. 2

shortened the rod % inch and took those
shown in Fig. 2.

Upon removing the valve-chest cover
all that could be seen was a square piece
of cast iron. I came to the conclusion

18" -

■— 23 -

i " 7& > "

K 34 ■> >•<<?? >i

>L...J

KZZ:

■ 9"

Fig. 3

that the man who invented the proposi-
tion never intended to run it. Fig. 3
shows the face of the valve. Who ever
saw one like it?

Allen J. Stocks.
Seattle, Wash.

Lubricator Connections

Some time ago I took charge of a
water, light and power plant in which
there were ten sight-feed lubricators. The
oilers always filled them to overflowing,
which caused a waste of oil at each fill-
ing, amounting to about y2 pint per
day. Then there were the time and waste
necessary to use in cleaning up the lubri-
cator and floor.

This loss and annoyance were overcome
by using a piece of 4-inch gas pipe, 10
feet long and capped at each end to form
an oil chamber. A ^J-inch hole was
tapped in the lower cap for a drain pipe
and a 'j-inch hole drilled in the center
of the upper cap. A K'-inch pipe, 9 feet

«fc=3

^aQU

jfh]

To Pun-p

Oil Reservoir and Lubricator
Connections

10 inches long, was screwed inside of
the 4-inch pipe, through the upper cap.
A valve was put on the upper end of
the J^-inch pipe just outside of the 4-
inch cap. Then 3 feet of 2-inch pipe
was placed above the ^-inch valve to
serve as a condensing chamber and was
connected at the top to a steam header.

I also connected a J^-inch pipe in the
4-inch cap and extended it to the in-
dividual lubricators. A gage glass was
placed near the top and bottom of the oil
chamber to indicate the hight of oil. The
main feed line is attached to each in-
dividual lubricator just above the con-

denser bulb by means of a tee and valve
as shown.

C. J. Beach.
Iola, Kan.

A Makeshift Gin Pole

I was recently sent to erect a boiler
and engine on a rice farm. Work went
along smoothly until I was ready for
the 40-foot gin pole, but none was to be
found. Two 20-foot sections of 3-inch
gas pipe were finally obtained and
coupled together. A piece of wood was
driven into one end of the pipe, to which
a short crossarm was nailed to support
the guy lines and hoisting ropes. As
there was a derrick over a well the rais-
ing of the gin pole and stack was an
easy matter.

Ernest Beck.

Marianna, Ark.

Compound Feeder

In the accompanying sketch is shown
a convenient method of feeding boiler
compound, where the pump receives
water under pressure, as from an over-
head tank.

A cylinder, which may be made from

PowCH.

% "7

Compound Feeder

a piece of 12-inch pipe, capped on each
end, is shown at A. A Y^-'mch pipe B
and valve runs from the discharge of the
pump to the bottom of the cylinder. C
is a J<4 -inch pipe leading from the top
of the cylinder to the suction pipe S.

A J < -inch drain pipe D leads from a
point near the bottom of the cylinder. E
is a VA -inch pipe and gate valve through
which the cylinder is supplied with boiler
compound.

To refill the cylinder with compound,
close the valves B and C and open the
valves D and E. The cylinder will drain
through the valve D, which is then closed

March 28, 1911.

V.r.

and the cylinder fills through the valve
E, which is then closed and the va
B and C opened, when the apparatu
at work.

This is a particularly good arrangement
for feeding soda ash as there is no :
sible chance for the p : become

clogged and the force of the entering
water is a great aid in dissolving the
soda ash.

J I). Chamh:

Tacoma, Wash.

Engine Needed Indicating

The accompanying diagrams are from
a I8x42-inch (orliss engine running at
100 revolutions per minute. The diagrams

shown in Fig. I were taken from the
M as I found it. and
: left it.

I would like to have some of the in-
•or men figure the saving made. 1

had two boilers ii the

change anJ could run *

minutes to make the
adjustment

Ii. T. .
mphis. Tenn.

Pressure <>n Pump Plunger

If. In i icting t-

with the crank* Ml at an angle
degrees, and th< slow

plunger be connected with a suitable

water, can the crank shaft

around one

the rrcmitr "» «he water being ra

and indicate! b] I |Sfji »" ' ,r*c

pipe

a constant tola • ng all pant of the

Tl cm came to n

n on
a ir

ing only when the plungers were
seer J* of the plunger

all con

: on.
> connc
Hi had become stopped

he que I the plun*

vcessive
•-• on top of the plunger when the
pump was in operatic:

B. U. Pot.
H

A. Goi ernor Problem

RcccntK a governor problem cu
up, a discussion of which may be of
tcrcst. It is as folio*

V diagramm -ch of an inc

shaf own herewith

the engine shaft. B the
cent- pension of the

.;ht arm. D one of the two weights
attached to one end of a weight arm. the
weight having a pocket so that shot may
be i c other weight, which

is made up of removable plates, ar

ght connected to the weight
arm. The hollow pan of the weight I)
was fli: ill of the plate*

'rom the weigh-
of lead were added to the weight
.ts shown at (/. Why were tl
changes made, and what efft
have on tf .: of the cngini

carefully analyzing tl

that the aim in making the
change was to change the center of

of the weight arm so as to
crease the ccntrifuga and at the

same time keep the inertia i

•'i« same Bj removing tin | tl

the center of gra\ ^ht arm

is ahifii :nce the

Igbttff and the weight
•

!her
:n>eque " of

the weight smi : r cased md the

tone the
we:. atcd and

•

icd the
t arm i
•cd an

•■» the weight /■'
-
i senai*
at torn, bvi

i tm r . . Plt* • I t ... i $ , i

hi ar he governor

the speed el

s on Goveanoa A

cJ because the governor
will respond at a lower speed.

T. W. Hollos

Pcnn.

< > D iler

An old boiler, to • >eld of

*ed to steam and pump Ml

about two hours in four wee I

mar c tine, but a

small flame from a ga» p* the
water fror

orning the boi flred up to
•team a tar I

ing I 'be steam gage

bead sprung s e handhote

plat' the boiler

•ion or.:

seeing i

»nd.
r the b J cooled dour

on aho. ftnj front head)

-ound the handbok
that two be 4 the hood)

J be

M head* of the

•inlng the bead to the sheet hod

The front hand

but np lo

4 -1-

the flrr- type and
does not come

tod leeer eoKe
ponnds pre**
old and h>

pntcfeed) up

again and put

493

POWER

March 28, 1911.

Indicator Cord Hook

A hook for connecting the cord from a
reducing wheel to the rod on an engine
crosshead was described in the February
7 issue. I have used this form of hook
and, although it serves the purpose ad-
mirably, have found that the one shown
in Fig. 1 is more convenient to connect.
The distance between points A and B is
a trifle larger than the diameter of the
rod on the crosshead. The hook is held
at the head end of the engine stroke and
tilted as shown so that the rod will pass
between A and B, whereupon it will
readily connect.

This hook cannot be used satisfac-

POWE.R.

Fig. 1. Convenient Connector for
Engines of Moderate Speeds

torily- with high-speed engines when the
reducing motion is obtained by link work.
For this purpose I have used the con-
nector shown in Fig. 2, which is made
of moderately stiff wire, a little longer
than the stroke of the pin prepared for
cord attachment, that is, about 3 or 4
inches. To use this connector, the indi-
cator drum is drawn to the end of its
stroke by pulling on the cord C. The
wire is then slipped over the end of the
reciprocating pin so as to take the posi-
tion shown in Fig. 2 — the dotted circles
representing the end-stroke positions of
the pin. Now, by allowing the indicator-
drum spring to draw the wire to the right

Pin on Reducing

Motion

To Indicator

Power

Fig. 2. Connector for High-speed
Engines

until the pin strikes it at the end of its
stroke to the left, the "hooking up" is
very easily accomplished. The end of
the cord C should then be attached to
some convenient point so that it will not
swing around the link motion. When
disengaging the indicator, this cord C
is used, the wire connector being pulled
with it until free of the pin.

If it is found at all difficult to slip the

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articles Jetters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

wire in place on account of its ends
being drawn together, the form shown in
Fig. 3 may be used. In this case the
wire is bent so that its legs have a
slight spring outward which is taken up
as soon as the indicator cord becomes

Fig. 3. Another form of Connector
for High-speed Engines

taut. The right hand is used only to
slip the wire- over the pin; after this is
done, the hooking up is as before.

Julian C. Smallwood.
Syracuse, N. Y.

See Your Plant as Others
See It

Referring to the first-page editorial in
the March 7 issue, it is a good plan for
a chief engineer to get away from his
plant occasionally and do some visiting
around among the other plants. It tends
to broaden him and gives him a better
knowledge of engineering matters in gen-
eral. It also enables him to get many
valuable ideas which he can apply in his
own plant to his own and his firm's ad-
vantage. Ideas gained in this way make
a lasting impression and cannot be ob-
tained in any other manner.

Most engineers are confined so much
to their own plants that they are more
than likely to get into a rut and over-
look many things about it which might
easily be changed in a way to give bet-
ter economy. As long as they do not
have an opportunity to see how the en-
gineers of other similar plants are hand-
ling them and overcoming their troubles,
they are likely to continue in the same
old rut to the detriment of both them-
selves and their employers.

When an engineer visits other plants
he frequently notices things which he

knows could be changed in a way to pro-
duce better results and when he re-
turns to his own plant he is likely to
find that he has the same set of conditions
or a worse set. The reason why he had
net noticed it before was that he had
became so accustomed to it that it es-
caped his attention until he had traveled
around visiting the other plants and got
jarred out of his rut.

I believe that the best investment that
a firm can make is to give its chief en-
gineer a couple of weeks off each year
with full pay and expenses and have
him spend the time visiting other plants
in order that he may keep uptodate.

If the engineers who are unable to
get away from their plants would make
it a point to ask questions of all of
the traveling men who call on them, they
would probably be surprised by the
amount of information that they can gain
in this way. A great many of the travel-
ing men today are well posted on engi-
neering practice, many of them having
had years of practical experience in the
engine room and, as they are constantly
visiting plants of various kinds, they are
always able to give an engineer much
valuable information. In addition to get-
ting all of the information possible by
discussions with others an engineer
should read as many journals and books
on the subject as possible.

S. KlRLIN.

New York City.

Slipping Latch Blocks

In the February 28 issue, I read C. L.
Greer's reference to slipping latch
blocks of Corliss engines. Of course,
the steel plates should not be allowed
to become so worn that slipping off is
liable to occur. It is to prevent this that
daily inspection of the plates is a regular
rule in some power plants, particularly
in large power and lighting stations.
Whenever the edges begin to get
"rounded," as they call it, the plate is to
be turned so that a new and square edge
is presented for wear. Sometimes,
though, an engineer thinks that a cer-
tain plate will last through just one more
run and he allows it to remain. After
running for, perhaps, three-quarters of
the watch, slipping begins, much to the
annoyance and disgust of those con-
cerned. • It is not desirable to shut down
to effect a repair, especially as the watch
is almost up, and so various things are
tried to keep the engine going until it is
cut out of service at the proper time.

March 28. 1911.

I: > better to prevent the possibility of
such slipping off, but if caught during a
run, try the following: Squin kerosene
oil on the plates, and the slipping will
or the slips will not be so frequent.
Turpentine is better still anJ
have the same effect as roughening
the surfaces with a smooth Blc
another expedient that I have tried

H all the oil or grease and chalk
the »f the contact pla

Cmaki . - J V.
Scranton, Penn.

The Pabst Verdict

In regard to the damage suit growing
out of the recent boil. sion at the

Pabst brewery. I am unable tfl *ith

the opinion of B. J Morrison, as re-
ported in the Fcbruar. ue, that the
initial rupture came in the ma-
line and that, as a result, the water in
the boiler flashed into steam, causing an
over re and the resultant explosion.
I should expect a sudden escape of
steam to produce a reduction of r
sure in the boiler.

ProfeetOf Brcckcnridge's belief that the
reinforcing plates prevented the dr
from conforming to a true circle seems
far fetched, as his belief must be equally
applicable to the reinforcing strip at the
butt joint.

The lack of information regarding the
general layout of the plant and the r
tion of the points of supposed initial
rupture in relation to surrounding oh;
i udes any reasonable judgment being
formed regarding the primary cause of
the disaster. The appearance and loca-
tion of the several parts iUent to
the ex| >n tell very little of value in
founding just judgment regarding the
cause or sour.

eh.

I have just read the report in the
I of the • in the

Pah • . damage suit I

was at the scene of ttx sion on

the morning after it occurred and
•mined the wrecked boilers a>-
d
If the boiler tubes had been connc
the dnims instca :
into ih< he disaster might not

have occurred The i m and

of the straight tubes caused the

i and the
• etung of the plates.
The theory that the steam line let go

An accident occurred to a tug >ilcr

here recentlv and I had a chano
serve the effect* A bridge twung around
and main stop val\

lode, although it
rather badly distorted, and ih olts

illed a - m the sher

• aukee i

( I >ir La3 out

In ru-

2i :s>ue. I
on a "central--

I in a hotel: A 30-gallon
tant .red and set up as shown

in t re. Th<

is self-explanat

engineers might prefer a simple
of a complete lubri-
cate but I prefer using tl
cator as then the our
double. If for any reason the "central
>ut of commission, the lu

the

r ^

Jff '

T .'V

ID be t

nal-
ly intended unt c as the

is ii again. I VOVld

ills

I have foui that

valvt

Bu 1

I haml

In ■
wants to know about I
a po it all of

ram I •

■

' should be

\y ao
a« t k back

on the lo»er end of the suction I
Wbt ume o! a tuctioa

a pump is or n motion it

ally when J
ing ^h speeds, to »•

lrposc

action aide of tbe
■
elirt

>lo.

carding
chamtx -
- a rul

' the

- cham-
for
'cngth.
V.! nmcring of check valve*

opera'

The si/e of the air chamber
c hammering
per.' the amount of i the

bsorbs and the means at hand to

Tne proper

tbe pump.
pipe la
■!k Bo%

impan>mg Kg
gement tbe air chamber

1st aim b I
Hots ing

eaoare oa the line tbe

be one half

urths

d OCCtt0y only on* eight

■

sort* the
To r

»• • tk

500

the suction valve and open a valve be-
tween this valve and the pump and place
a hose in the short section of pipe, as
shown in the figure. As nearly all pumps
have two suction connections, one on
either side, the one not in use can be
used. By the means just described air
will collect in the air chamber because
the water, being heavier, will force the
air to the top. The air chamber can
thus be refilled whenever the check
valves give the slightest indication of
hammering.

C. A. Davies.
Cincinnati, O.

Advice on Giving Advice

In answer to E. L. Morris' appeal for
aid in solving his radiator trouble there
were several suggestions printed in the
February 21 issue, each of which is
adjudged by its author to remedy the dif-
ficulty and warm the cold radiator. What
surprises me is to see that no two corre-
spondents come to the same conclusion.
If I were in Mr. Morris' position I be-
lieve I would be in as much of a quan-
dary to decide which bit of advice to fol-
low as to solve the heating problem itself.

This multiplicity of advice (often con-
flicting) I believe to be one reason why
so few interesting problems of this kind
are sent in for the consideration of the
practical readers of Power; and it has
been the reason, in past instances which
can be pointed out, why some smart ( ?)
writers have sent in perplexing and often
ridiculous conundrums, the correct an-
swers to which were immaterial to them,
and beneficial to neither art, craft nor
science. I do not wish it to be under-
stood that the editors should restrict the
number of published answers to the two
or three which may agree — for, often,
replies bearing little on the subject under
consideration contain some instructive
matter applicable to other cases — but
that the editors should review the replies
sent in, and at the end of a discussion
issue their own advice or give some one
correspondent's answer such a conspic-
uous position in the paper as to denote
that they favor it.

If Mr. Morris should write directly to
the Power editors, I do not doubt that he
would receive a satisfactory solution or,
at least, some kindly suggestion that
would aid him to reach a conclusion
which would lead to the elimination of
the trouble. Now, why cannot Power
make public such answers? Do the
editors suppose that their own opinions
would be uninteresting to the readers or
do they fear criticism of their answers?
Possibly they refrain because they were
not asked for their own advice. Surely
that is a poor extenuation, but it is more
charitable to surmise this than that they
forbear because of the humor derived
from the diversity of opinions which are
sent in.

It may be considered somewhat im-

POWER

perious of me in giving advice as to the
lines along which answers should be
given to such an inquiry as the one under
consideration, but it may benefit some
writers who are willing to state their
opinions, to learn how their advice could
be made more valuable. Also, the in-
quirer may benefit by my endeavor to
show how to glean and adopt what is
valuable in the replies given. I do not
proffer an opinion of my own but merely
point out the facts already given by my
fellow correspondents.

It is essential that the adviser place
himself in the position of the inquirer
and remember that the trouble must be
eliminated at as little expense and with
as little inconvenience to the tenants as
possible; therefore, it is unreasonable to
expect expensive changes to be made un-
less it is certain that such changes will
improve matters materially. It is, then,
the recipient's first duty to discover
whether any of the remedies suggested
are applicable to his case. Applying this
principle to the case under consideration,
one may infer from Mr. Noble's com-
munication that the trouble is due to the
water of condensation in the supply pipe.
To test the correctness of this assump-
tion Mr. Morris should "break" the union
between the valve and the radiator and
let out all of the water until steam is-
sues freely. If now the coil heats up
after reclamping the union, he would at
least have found the cause but the remedy
suggested — supplying an extra line of
piping — may be inconvenient.

If the water of condensation flows out
slowly when the union is apart, a lack of
pressure may be inferred and Mr. Dixon's
theory that all of the steam condenses
before reaching the radiator is correct.
The remedy would be either to lessen the
percentage of friction by supplying larger
sizes of piping, as he suggests, or to
carry a higher boiler pressure. It would
be well, however, first to make sure that
there is no obstruction in the pipe it-
self. This can be ascertained by closing
the valves on the other two radiators
and maintaining a good head of steam
on the line.

Mr. Plowman's suggestion that air-
vent valves be placed on the outlet end
of the radiators is good advice, but this
is so well understood by the veriest
novices that it is here taken for granted
that Mr. Morris' radiators are equipped
with them.

From Mr. McCoffin's letter it might be
inferred that the water of condensation
chokes the riser tee when steam emanates
horizontally from two outlets. If this is
the case, closing the valve of the right-
hand radiator should cause the left-hand
radiator to heat up. If this fails, Mr.
Morris could try Mr. McCoffin's idea on
the return tee of the middle radiator as
shown in the accompanying figure. The
condensate from the middle radiator will
now have a tendency to siphon the air

March 28, 1911.

in any pocket that might exist in the
left-hand return pipe. In any case, the
arrangement is an effectual check to the
backing up of the water of condensation
and should be beneficial if its advantages
are not offset by a too great reduction
of the general angle or dip of the return
pipe. To test this suggestion Mr. Morris
should close the valve on the middle

.<3

Floor Line ^

//////.'////.:"/'■■' •

From Cold Radiator

'■'W///////7////////

Power

Rearrangement of Tee

Yadiator, when, the cause of the choking
at the return tee having been eliminated,
the entrained water should flow freely
from the cold radiator.

These are but a few suggestions where-
by Mr. Morris can aid himself to detect
the trouble without tearing things apart.
If it be possible, answers to inquiries
should contain a statement of some meth-
od whereby the suggestions which they
contain may be tested without undue
expense.

Owen R. Owen.

Roxbury, Mass.

Low Pressure Turbines

I read with interest Mr. Fenno's letter
published in the January 30 issue in
which he took exception to the statements
made in the catalog published by one of
the turbine manufacturers. I also noted
in the February 28 issue, Mr. DeGroot's
attempt to disprove Mr. Fenno's analysis.

While all of the statements that Mr.
DeGroot made are true and really do oc-
cur in practice, I believe that they have
no application in the present instance,
as the original assumptions were all made
on theoretical grounds alone, that is,
the comparison of the number of B.t.u.
rendered available by a pound of steam
expanding adiabatically from 150 pounds
gage pressure to atmosphere, and the
same pound expanding adiabatically from
atmospheric pressure to a 28-inch vac-
uum, was made on theoretical grounds
alone. If it was made on theoretical
grounds, Mr. DeGroot's criticism is not
warranted. If it was not made on theo-
retical grounds, the original figures, giv-
ing the amount of energy available in
the two ranges of expansion, are not
correct.

March 28. 1911.

501

If a pound of steam expands adi-
abatically from 150 pounds gage to at-
mospheric pressure, it must of n<
have a quality at the end of expansion of
about 8tj per cent., as pointed out by Mr.
Fenno. If it docs not ha.
the pamphlet referred to had no right to
assume that u. were renJ

available for useful work. Furthermore.
I Jo not believe that Mr. DeGroot has
any right to introduce the subject of re-
evaporation, because if this is present
then the expansion is not adiabatic. which
would be contrary to the original as-
sumption.

I tlso believe that Mr. bcGroot t
in introducing the subject of a drop in
at release, which would evap-
orate the wetness fraction in the steam.
The original assumption being that the
reciprocating engine expanded the steam
adiabatically down to atmosphere, and
that the turbine started with steam at
atmospheric pressure, of course pre-
cludes the supposition of any drop in
prcssur

As mentioned above. I believe that all
■'.r. I>cCroot's statements are cor-
but the original assumptions do not al-
low the application of his argument to
the case in hand. I. therefore, believe that
as we are arguing solely on theoretical
groi. '•'. r. Fenno's criticism is pcr-

just and warranted.

Sol. Siecel.

( Irganization

The first-page editorial in i' for

Februar hould cause engineers to

up and take not . >mmcnt is

made on the fact that economic cngim
lubricating experts and specialists of
othi •• arc um rs of steam

plar II frequently than ever be'

The opinion is given that the operating
engineer, who is constantly about the
plant, should, and general!) docs. V
more about the plant than any expert that
can be called in

The writer of the editorial st

>n why a chief operating engineer

should not be able to install a new plant.

tiled upon to Jo to; and further, ad

•> all cngir. break i«iv from

routine once :n a while and mc-* the

plant as an outsider through a binocular

and on paper look
fine and tend the

of t an c»-

senr

engine- ultcd at

the la»i morm

In the fl' the enj: 0 a

one-man plant d a* a

■

him and a* I
peared In the pro' cm-

that he
•

that C3n be sold for a pro-
the case, t

rfc out of him as pc
as urn both in money and

»nsent to .. The

f a one-man plant has to
ingcnuit> oi . more scl:

ing over a than doc*

-s man over the problems
with which he n the r

wor

Th .r of the one-man plant

mar class n rom all the old

junk that has been co!
of time. When th. .Its do not ma-

terialize the engineer is immedu
dubbed no good He is asked to buy and

>nd-hand pump -ig. pul

ham engines and boi!

•n fact, he runs up against the second-
hand proposition so often that when he
begins to think of d>ing he more than
half -o go to a second-hand

hereafter If the second-hand goods do
not look as well and give as good re-
as first-cla^ 'he engine

unccrcmon: • .Id that he has done a

poor job and the "main guy" auJ
wonders why he cannot have things look-
ing as well and giving as good scr
as in some places where onl ass

machin. irehascd. and he comr

the sage conclusion that
enginct I >d.

Th iuch doubt that the a\

age engine- J install a new plant

and iblc to replace an old

one without the aid of a *p
pert But hi

seldom given the same latitude that the
so called e

the ergincer m\» to the bos* iu»t

have a separator on the steam In
the rcr
•n along < ut one and

The boss the cm-

argumc- rx)red alter- hi»

data and docs no more about the ma
until at dong and c

half the reason aire a.'
the cm >nd the bou

the scparai

The rngir i plant of und-

horsepower ca;
all o

< .

•

carr
hcltmat

to on If he

cannot or atll MM "lese

b e

•oo much and. because

doe* »«

. ho cornea to look at Men

or*

al run
The v *ad other

i factory do » hat they
d no note; and i
arc not :o more. Vn>

organization back of
ours of labor,
labor and the
and the emplo
:oc* not car

• n. rccogni. n unprofit-

able ar.
no org a of him. the

All the r need for

more and I

to acquire a -

tion" know n more, learn

iChty fine mono, bat when

mechanics who master their trade

in three or fot. - ng a shorter

and higher »agc than the end*
nee >t hope to ever master

the-

something that the engir not.

They have learned that collect
gaining for hours and wag <ks the

Spots" out of ial bargaining and.

having leame a\c put their

kno.

It sc me that the engineer

should take a night course in some good
school that teaches organization sad
when he has learn • igether

with his fc: his kn

edge ->f org >n one qua- »ell

■a fa f mecha" .

will :

\ !'• • v omprc*M l

I ha-.

«on under the
■ isoue

r *hcr

• .> H ist the

Kinc e compression" la

both high and low-pressure olinj
and Jer a boiU

pounds and a rrcci*

Inansil
"C both cor

not the engineer
the compression f Then there

VWld ha\c beer a :r*' liui 1 »boulJ

pound* opcr

eer saaah
aad k'

niprorerneat la the

not ah* oaaectioa %

•rr vssja* 1

r '

502

POWER

March 28, 1911.

then there was an unnatural condition,
under which any amateur ought to be
able to effect an improvement. This mat-
ter of compression is one on which engi-
neers are in better agreement than they
really know themselves to be. I do not
know of any engineer worth mentioning
by that name who defends compression
as a brake on the engine.

Mr. Mason states that positively, the
changes having been made — that is, the
receiver pressure raised and the compres-
sion reduced — the engines used less
steam with the same load. This may be
readily conceded without even admitting
that it was the result of reducing com-
pression, although I am willing to con-
cede that it probably helped. But how
could we expect that a heavily loaded en-
gine, with properly proportioned steam
cylinders, high- and low-pressure, 150
pounds boiler pressure and only 15
pounds receiver pressure, would give sat-
isfactory performance? How could we
expect compound results from so nearly
simple conditions? I think that the vast
majority of engineers will agree that the
increase in receiver pressure from 15 to
25 pounds caused most of the improve-
ment.

It is quite clear that if the cylinders
were properly proportioned, the high-
pressure cylinders were doing most of
the work during the moderate- to heavy-
load periods. Naturally, one would not
expect economical operation under such
conditions.

To claim that this test demonstrates
that the compression was or was not eco-
nomical is hardly warranted. Had the
receiver pressure been left as it was,
that is, at 15 pounds, and the changes of
valve setting made, and the test made
under this condition, then we would have
had something that could really be called
a compression test.

William Westerfield.

Concordia, Kan.

Sizes of Turbine Steam and
Exhaust Pipes

With reference to W. J. A. London's
charts for selecting the size of steam-tur-
bine steam and exhaust pipes, which ap-
peared in Power for February 21, I agree
that the curves are convenient and will
save much calculation; but they are not,
I consider, based on correct principles.
I will confine my remarks to the size
of exhaust pipes.

Mr. London has fixed on a constant
velocity for all vacua down to 24 inches.
This is not, I think, scientific, neither will
it work well in practice. The lower the
pressure of the exhaust steam, the
greater is the velocity which can be em-
ployed with a given loss of head; and,
moreover, the cost of reducing the veloc-
ity by increasing the section of the pipe
is, with low exhaust pressures, and con-
sequently large volumes, much greater

than with higher pressures. It therefore
follows that with high vacua a greater
velocity should be allowed than with low
vacua, other conditions being the same.
Mr. London has, to a certain extent, ac-
knowledged this by allowing a velocity
of only 100 feet per second for steam
exhausting at atmospheric pressure, while
for vacua above 24 inches he allows 400
feet per second.

Another point should, in my opinion,
be considered. The friction in a small
pipe is greater than in a large pipe for
the same fluid at the same pressure and
the same velocity. The curves should,
therefore, I believe, be based on the al-
lowing of higher velocities with large
pipes than with small ones.

I would be pleased to have Mr. Lon-
don consider and criticize the following
formula for the area of exhaust pipes
and ducts:

] J/0.8 yo.5 JO. 4

A= T

where .

A = Area of exhaust-steam pipe or

duct in square feet;
W — Pounds of steam per hour pass-
ing through the pipe or duct;
V — Volume in cubic feet of one

pound of this steam;
f= Periphery in feet of a figure of
the shape of the cross-section
of the exhaust pipe or duct
and of an area of one square
foot, and
C is a constant which for condensers
for land turbines may be taken
at 16,000. Where weight is
of greater import or back
pressure of less consequence,
C may be given a higher value.
The formula was given in my paper on
"The Design of Surface Condensers,"
which was read before the Institution of
Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland
in February of last year. It will be seen
that it applies whatever be the sec-
tion of the exhaust ducts. The ducts
sometimes have a rectangular section. It
does not matter whether W represents
the weight of steam only or the combined
weight of steam and water of condensa-
tion, so long as the corresponding value
is taken for V.

R. M. Neilson.
Glasgow, Scotland.

Homemade Tube Cleaner

In the February 14 issue, E. H. Marzolf
describes his homemade tube cleaner.
He does not state what size of tubes
he can clean with it. If he uses it for
3- or 4-inch tubes, 16 to 18 feet long, he
will learn that the greater portion of
the soot will accumulate near the back
end of the tubes. The perforated cap at
the end does scatter the steam in a
number of currents and impedes the
velocity, which should be as great as
possible. Volume and high velocity of

steam are essential to a good tube cleaner
and I fail to see why he uses the
perforated cap.

J. W. Dickson.
Memphis, Tenn.

Emergency Pipe Repairs

I was much interested in Mr. Taylor's
description of two kinds of pipe clamp
in the February 14 issue.

On two occasions I stopped a leak in
a pipe where it was not convenient to
apply a clamp.

Fig. 1 illustrates the arrangement used
in the first case. The leak was in a
2-inch feed-water pipe.- Some lJ4-inch
fittings and nipples were put together as
shown. A 2x2-inch piece of No. 10 gage
iron and some packing were placed over
the leak. Then, a 1-inch nipple was
placed between the valve disk and the
sheet iron and the disk screwed down

Power.

Fig. 1 Fig. 2

Two Methods of Stopping a Leak
Temporarily

hard. The job lasted until a more work-
manlike repair could be made.

In the second case, a leaking 2-inch
feed pipe was repaired as shown in Fig.
2. I bored a hole clear through the pipe
and inserted a bolt with washers and
packing under the head and nut as shown.
This makeshift did the trick until the
pipe could be replaced.

Harry E. McArthur.

Port Blakeley, Wash.

An engineer who is envious of his
neighbor's lot, because the latter has a
more uptodate plant, is assuming an at-
titude which will hinder him in reaching
the top of the ladder. As a matter of
fact, in opportunity to gain experience
and show his worth, he possesses a dis-
tinct advantage over his neighbor. Good
equipment and ideal operating conditions
never contributed toward the making of
a good engineer; it is the experience
gained in making the best of a poor
equipment and devising means to over-
come operating troubles that increases
an engineer's worth.

March 28, 1911.

POWtR

503

i . . v. • ■ ■.(»;. the

Hill Publishing Company

ion* a. an.

•,*.*.!.

col-

.'iven — not necea*-
;'t)«>n price -

ix). | adfc. $»>

urn count r

■Mi

I n*»-ri*.!

ii'i'I i . j - - '■ a*'- '. 1 '• -

>i Mar

Cable addrw.. " Powrt ■ ' M. Y.
Budnewrt TcWra

n< ••nf
artr* • ;. .J i .

ntents

h:.

Plant at
1

•
I

ll \

M - • • ' '

\ •

Qvwrnlof \"

■M

II an I ' itcd Plant P

>n and amon
iad apportiomnant

of char. I all the other inr

with modern cnt of

rubers up ihc
CM, the plain business man may be
: for not knowing how much
output costs per horsepower- hour or
kilowatt > car The central-station s<
whose salary or commission
pends upon landing contracts,
naturally try to convince him that
iK him a great deal, and

il equipment with
He will want
it t< -it and pan of the manai-

sala

make it put aside from one-tenth to onc-
twentieth of its cost each year for re-
newal and go on charging interest on the
full cnt. ar

enhance thi 'it cost.

IK ■ .s is what hi

paid for, and he may call attention to
some items that might se be <

looV

Hut • -a manager to look

at the q this It in not a mat-

e charge between
mentv He doae DOt care ■

the main product and the he <
the byproduct or » Mother

hnuld say to him
if these are the i Here 1 ha*.

im plant which I must have anyhow

.(her m engines

and generators on to II he hi

rent nal room for tht

make n '■ he

charged

wise

present heir more, tbe investment should

isc not.

cfltcic

hick be
to bestow upor the

management should K

it There ahoutd be

amour

be uscJ up J

■
thousand dollars and •

< at
sand dollars •

must chart; vestment wi

to cred
-. teres! on

sted at the assumed i

Mider the chance

so out of . something so

more emeu

assumed '-• that he could BOt a?

ford to rur he must slso take Into
ace proflt by i

creased eft

'l machinery now pro-

chinery so much t

visablc p the o He

charge insurance and f be

i , otbcrwlac
not M interest at tbe

rate at

not at »hat he could o
amount of rr.< •
of the busine*- <k ma

• money at the same mse
for ll dm purposes And if with i

•omises ■ profit

I * hat tbe cost from the

^e. snd the perms

Hi tint ft wattants tying

nosey lawolred for tbe

oatl-

Med in magleaj vaataatr

I Mai H

annum on sll tbe
owld r i

>oeb

uh would
■ r ban tblrty per cent.

fee "ma

•be eerr
ce tbe r
maat^ >«•;

on more far cu rreo t than

erstor so get n
aaas that-

store %h'>u'J

r-u

Id of

504

POWER

March 28, 1911

building if he can rent at any percentage
of the cost of building less than the
percentage of profit made by his most
profitable department. If the most profit-
able department is capable of extension
and he cannot get money at less than
the profit which his electrical plant is
.paying, then by selling it he can make
the difference between the profit made by
the electrical plant and that made by
his most profitable department. But a
man so circumstanced can usually com-
mand capital at a less rate than that of
the profit which the electrical generat-
ing machinery pays when tacked onto
a steam plant which he must have any-
way and operated in connection therewith.

Improve the Personnel

Myriads of articles have been written
and orations delivered at great length
on almost every phase of power-plant op-
eration. Automatic devices without num-
ber and with more or less worth have
been invented, patented and put on the
market, with the intention of eliminating
in so far as possible the reliance that
would ordinarily have to be reposed in
the human element. This literature has
accumulated and automatics good and
bad have been scrapped, while but frag-
mentary articles appear and desultory
attempts are made to improve the effi-
ciency of the plant through the medium
of the personnel.

A code of rules, drawn up with the in-
tention of making them fit all conditions
and adaptable to all classes of humans,
would be worthless and impossible to ap-
ply. Different conditions call for dif-
ferent treatment, and man is too com-
plex, with moods too varied, to bring
within the application of any such meth-
od; but a set of rules intended for
the maintenance of discipline — and with
proper discipline minor troubles will right
themselves — is not only possible to en-
force but absolutely necessary to the
harmonious operation of the power plant.

A ship without a rudder can be man-
aged and brought into port with a jury
rudder, but a plant without discipline is
a derelict.

When it is considered that no machine
is so intricate as to call for the same
delicacy of handling demanded by human
beings and that subordinates very often
kindle a feeling of resentment toward the
"old man," traceable in a large number
of cases to ignorance and its handmaid
stubborness, it is difficult to blame the
chief engineer for any continuity of a
disagreeable condition. Still there are
very few instances where matters coujd
not be remedied by the application of
that valuable reagent common sense re-
inforced with the higher degree of in-
telligence accredited to the chief engi-
neer, but which is sometimes sadly lack-
ing.

Consideration of the feelings and work-

ing conditions of the help should not
be overlooked by the man in charge. At-
tention and care must be given to any
machine if it is to work at its highest
efficiency; this is applicable with double
force to the human machine. It is un-
wise, and a dead loss to the plant, for
f* chief engineer to belittle the ideas of
tnose working under him. Many a suc-
cessful man owes a major portion of his
success to the proper discrimination and
application of such suggestions. Some
engineers when they graduate from the
overall class assume such an air of
superiority that they consider a sugges-
tion from a subordinate with scorn. It is
such men as these that constantly prate
and seem to lament the fact that they
are placed in any other category than that
of a profession. If those that are so
particular about the cognomen of their
calling would devote more time to edu-
cation through the medium of engineer-
ing journals and societies, and live up
to the same stahdard of ethics demanded
of other professions, they would soon
find that, according to their standard of
worth, the public would put them in the
class to which they rightfully belong.

It would be unjust to the chief engi-
neer to infer that all trouble with em-
ployees could be avoided. There are men
who in their mental arrangement or de-
rangement are so constituted that no one
could work amicably with them. They
will malign a chief from pure cussed-
ness, and they cannot accept a considera-
tion of any kind from the boss with the
same grace that the courtesy was ex-
tended. If any chief is so unfortunate as
to secure one of this breed he will soon
find that tact and diplomacy will event-
ually have to give way to harsher means.
The man must go. Sometimes it will be
noticed that two otherwise good work-
men cannot work together in harmony.
If the chief cannot reconcile one to the
other, the wider he makes their paths of
duty the more efficiency will he secure
from the individual unit.

There is a class of men, and these are
generally found among the ranks of as-
sistant engineers, who resent any show
of authority toward them, but who are
constantly on the alert for some order
from the chief that will give them the
appearance of superiority. Such men as
these provoke trouble in any plant, as
they work on the theory of Milton's devil
who preferred to rule in hell than serve
in heaven.

A congenial feeling must exist between
a chief and his crew if the best work is
to be derived from all. This feeling on
the part of the chief should not be car-
ried to the extent of making any par-
ticular man a favorite or pet, but should
be applied impartially; nor should it be
interpreted by the help as meaning that
they can take privileges that would not
otherwise be accorded them. A medium

founded on respect, courtesy and con-
sideration can be found that will work
to the advantage of the station.

Cleanliness in Power Plants

It is said that a man may be judged
by his appearance, meaning by this not
necessarily fine clothes but neatness.
This rule applies not alone to the human
element but to the machine as well.
Visible cleanliness about a plant is gen-
erally an indication that the internal parts
of the machines are also well cared for.
This is due not only to the fact, that an
engineer or fireman who keeps his en-
gine room or boiler room spick-and-span
is very apt to pay due attention to the
invisible parts, but also if there is no ac-
cumulation of dust, oily waste, oil leaks,
etc., there is less chance of grit getting
into bearings, oil getting into generator
windings, or dirty commutators. Atten-
tion to such matters requires very little
additional time and has a marked effect
upon the life of a machine, not to men-
tion the saving in repair bills and in-
creased plant efficiency.

"Never use electricity to do anything
that can be done equally well some other
wp" " This was one of the maxims of
the late Lord Kelvin, and it illustrates
the "horse sense" that made him one
of the foremost engineers of the world
in addition to being one of the foremost
scientists. But the "equally well"
mustn't be overlooked.

Misleading or over enthusiastic state-
ments are not restricted to American
manufacturers. An English builder of
suction gas producers advertises "20
horsepower-hours for 1 penny" of fuel
cost, using coke; in other words, one-
tenth of a cent per horsepower-hour for
fuel. The claim is a trifle over 100 per
cent, above the fact.

A jack operated by compressed air and
capable of a ten-ton thrust was recently
used by the police of New York City to
break into a gambling house, forcing
open a steel door. And yet it is said
there is nothing new under the sun.

The business manager of a certain cen-
tral station always rammed both hands
deep into his trousers' pockets when he
went into the generating room of the
power house. He wanted to guard against
unconscious contact with the teeth of a
2300-volt circuit.

A woman's club out in Nebraska has
discovered that bald-headed men are
"trusting and confiding by nature." Now
it is plain why some engineers are
buncoed with imitation goods.

Rowdyism is none the less obnoxious
when it is practised by a gang of well
dressed ruffians from a technical school.

March 2*. 1911.

P O VT F. R

M<</// Rffei .' /'

U'hat is meant by the term mean ef-
. and h>

T. L R.
an effective pressure is the average
unbalanced .re urging the p.

foru ird There is always some back
Jing to hold it back and the
effective p: is the difference be-

en the forward and the back pressure.
It can be determined accurately only
from an indicator diagram, but when the
cutoff is known, it may be approximately
estimate >f the formula

/
in which

in effective pressure;

.- lute initial pressure;

Absolute back | re;

K insion.

/ / tporation

te factor of evaporation, and
how is it four

F. O
It is the number by which the evapora-
tion at any given pressure from feed water
at the temperature it enters the boiler
• be nu educe it

to evaporation equivalent to that from
and at 212 degree- It if found
trading the number of heat units in a
pound of feed water from the number
of heat units in a pound of steam at the
urc. and dividing the re-
map

/. Out B n

Under what ; is it b

all the wat'.

B H
It is best to allow the boiler and set-
ting to cool off entirely and alio* the
water to run out In this way all of the
loose sediment settles in the form of
mud and may b cam

r from a hose; while if the boiler
!own out while the bl hot

the mud i« dricJ and sometimes b

■ hard n "icult to

•

/ ' ■■ . ( i I <

When the- N one reach rod fr

the . *!i«» cnRim

Mow are the k-

The r<>d

c flr»t \a\\r \g made right f
then thr rod connecting the I
the second !iu«ted.

Questions arc/
not ant 1 un/<

j<. ootapatucd />v the

name and . >/ rf,c

irujuircr: This page is

for \x>u when stin A

use it

M "

The shaft of an engine It .hcs in

diameter and the throu of the shea,
inches; then if I move the c
of an inch, how much will that move the
valve, providing tl: on?

me autl c the term "throw of

Fig. 1

the eccentr he total nv

ment, that is, the diameter of the circle

r of the eccenti
others, the cnt of the

ntral r
the ra
ccntricity <-r tl rclc dc-

scribed

MtMMd " •»' »h«l i» meant h\ the

ippote i

crank pin A would move ; es at

far as a point li on the surface of

moved

■ uM

< I =

I:
in a line squir
the

far aa
the ; soon as the a the

crank and val from a

I angle the nv
It en that for a c

ment of the crank pin the n

ould be less in the position C
than in th ncn the

crank pin gets around on th r so

that the center line of tl
line with the i

good deal of movement of the pin to
make ai iblc movement of the

val'.

If the diameter of the crank
sed until it en;v

n that it is also true of an
•ic eccentric being
<>undin»; •

If
turr.
at *

may the leak be stopped temp

T T

A >oftwood plug about sit inches

longer than th Ag may

tube until the middle

• iter

II and the leak

point of .i loaded aa

I r\ It be
doru

•< springe
of at intended to op

riatioa of meet thar
m the calculated load.

/' // •

<m list
tdhok plate be reelected frem
the f

tot and nr i

506

POWER

March 28, 1911.

Notes on the Cost of Industrial Power

Mr. Peck (Rochester Railway and
Lighting Company): Referring to Mr.
Parker's paper, other methods of provid-
ing for amortization might be mentioned,
as, for instance:

1. A yearly sum, equal to the invest-
ment divided by the number of years
of expected life, should be set aside
annually, allowing the variable earnings
of this fund to be added to the other
earnings of the company.

2. A variable yearly sum, equal to a
fixed percentage of the decreasing value
of the plant, may be set aside; for ex-
ample, 10 per cent, of the full value at
the end of the first year, 10 per cent,
of the remaining value at the end of the
second year, and so on. This method
would never completely amortize the
plant, but would more nearly represent
its actual depreciation in value, and leave
a relatively small amount to be charged
off in one sum at the end of its natural
life.

"Inadequacy" should properly be men-
tioned with obsolescence, as, in general,
the same considerations hold good for
both conditions. Similarly, "business risk"
is an element of fair profit, although
not always so associated in one's mind.

The depreciation rate, as fixed by Mr.
Parker, on certain details, considered by
themselves, is not correct when they are
considered as part of a plant; for ex-
ample, a building which might be in ex-
cellent condition after fifty years, prob-
ably would not be useful that length of
time, nor for a period any longer than
the life of the equipment in it.

I emphatically disagree with Mr.
Parker's statement that obsolescence has
essentially no existence in private power
plants, even under stress of competition.
If I purchase a plant 'to furnish power
to operate a factory, finance it on a
20-year basis, and in five years' time im-
proved equipment can be purchased with
double the efficiency of the original ap-
paratus, a new competitor would be able
to undersell me by an annual amount
equal to one-half the power cost. It
would then be necessary to choose be-
tween the loss of one-half the power
cost annually, or the unamortized part of
the plant, less its sale value.

Considering the subject "fair profit,"
it should be noted that items of necessity
do not have to carry their own burden of
profit; for example, an ordinary busi-
ness cannot be carried on without arti-
ficial heat in the winter. The total cost
of heating must be carried by the profit-
making parts of the business, assuming
that heat cannot be purchased from a
heating company. Thus the various ele-
ments making up the cost of heating
must be deducted from the corresponding
elements making up ihe cost of com-

Abstract of written discus-
sions upon the papers of
Messrs. Parker and Hib-
ner delivered at a joint
meeting of the A. S. M. E.
and A. I. E. E.

bined heat and power before figuring the
actual cost of the power alone.

I have observed that if 100 tons of coal
per month are required for heating a
building, and if 100 tons are required
for power alone, it is often assumed that
110 tons will be sufficient for both heat
and power. Where the requirements so
nearly balance, this is manifestly not the
case, for the heating requirements are
distributed throughout the twenty-four
hours of the day with a marked peak
early in the morning before the power
part of the plant begins operation. The
power requirements, however, are limited
to from eight to ten hours a day, with
the peak occurring usually during the
warmer parts of the day, or during the
late afternoon, when it is permissible to
allow the temperature to drop slightly.
This means that the coal for combined
heat and power may easily amount to
from 150 to 175 per cent, of the coal re-
quired for either purpose alone.

Mr. Tillman (Consolidated Gas, Elec-
tric Light and Power Company, Balti-
more) : Licensed isolated-plant engi-
neers who are responsible for the entire
care and improvements of the power por-
tion of an industrial plant; consulting
engineers who are to decide, plan and
recommend the type and class of equip-
ment for any given problem of their
client; and the central-station industrial
engineers who recommend and plan the
best and most efficient layout of equip-
ment for their customers or prospective
customers, should all work together for
one great and important purpose: that of
giving to the man who is spending the
capital a plant which will produce the
greatest return upon the necessary in-
vestment.

The return on the investment cannot
be estimated offhand, because it includes
numerous items which must be taken
under careful consideration in each and
every proposition. The engineering pro-
fession demands an honest decision on
all points connected therewith.

The advancement of engineering has
been so rapid within the past few years
that it is difficult for any one man to be
thoroughly posted in all lines of engi-
neering practice which come in the in-
dustrial-power work. It, therefore, be-
comes necessary to weigh all conditions

from different viewpoints rather than to
recommend past practices. Each and
every problem has a right solution, but
it requires more than guesswork to solve
them and obtain efficient results.

Mr. Norris (National Meter Company) :
The following figures of gas-engine in-
stallation costs are presented to show
the economy that can be obtained even
down to small sizes when using the gas
engine for power purposes. I have
selected a few typical plants running on
various fuels:

Plant No. 1 contains a 50-horsepower

three-cylinder gas engine direct connected

to a generator and running on natural

gas. An 11 -hour service of 300 days per

year is furnished at an average load of

15 kilowatts.

Cost of plant installed $3500

Interest and depredation at 10

per cent 350

Repairs and supplies 175

Labor per year 900

Operating cost, exclusive of fuel.. $1,425
Gas bill for year $315. 5G

Total yearly charge $1,740.56

Total kilowatt-hour for year. ... 49,500
Cost per kilowatt-hour 3Vj cents

Plant No. 2 contains a 25-horsepower
engine belted to a 15-kilowatt generator
and one 20-horsepower engine belted to
a 12-kilowatt generator, both running on
natural gas and furnishing liglrt and
power at approximately full load for 365
days per year at 16 hours per day.

Cost of plant installed $4200

Interest and depreciation at 10

per cent 420

Repairs and supplies 210

Labor per year 700

Operating cost, exclusive of fuel. $1,330
Gas bill for year $1,270.18

Total yearly charge $2,600.18

Total kilowatt-hours for year. . .128,480
Cost per kilowatt-hour 2.02 cents

Plant No. 3 consists of one 65- and one
30-horsepower gas engine furnishing
power for a manufacturing establishment
and running on illuminating gas at 80
cents per thousand cubic feet.

Cost installed '. $4375

Interest and depreciation at 10

per cent 437.50

Repairs and supplies 220

Labor per year 3G0

Operating cost, exclusive of fuel $1,017.50
Gas bill for year 3.270

Total yearly charge $4,200.50

Total horsepower-hours for year. . 228,000

Cost per horsepower-hour 1.89 cents

Plant No. 4 consists of one 300-horse-
power anthracite producer of the suction
type, furnishing gas for two vertical gas
engines connected to 100-kilowatt gen-
erators; 24-hour service.

Cost installed $22,000

Interest and depreciation $2200

Supplies and repairs 1100

Labor per year 2100

$57iiii

Cost of fuel per kilowatt-hour 0.3 cent

Operating charges 0.4 cent

Total per kilowatt-hour 0.7 cent

Plant No. 5 consists of a 300-horse-
power anthracite suction producer sup-
plying a four-cylinder vertical gas en-
gine connected to a 200-kilowatt gen-

March 28, 1911.

erator. Fuel used: No. 1 buckwheat at
S4 per ton.

- : -

I .a *

kilowatt

I have a record of a three weeks' run
on this plant, in which the following
ires may be of inters

■

•* I) II lilt*. J

n
t ill

In this run no attempt was made to
meet test conditions; it represented sim-
ply the readings of the instruments and
the actual amount of coal supplied to the
producer during the time specified.

Plant No. 6 consists of three 200-
*er producers, supplying one
600-horscpower double-acting tandem gas
engine driving a 400-kilowatt generator.
The fuel used was Texas lignite, contain-
ing 8000 B.t.u. per pound and costing
• >n delivered; 24-hour service.

- ■
Labi

»att bout

kilowatt hour

Tirnmis < consulting engineer) : The
equipment of a certain power plant con-
of three 250-hor*cpowcr water-tube
boilers, two 150-kilowatt genera
driven by compound engines, one I
kilowatt generator direct connected to a
compound engine, and one 50-kilo
generator direct connected to a simple
engine. Also, two 7 '.-kilowatt balancer

The cost of this outfit was as fol-
low -

Of a^tlloga I '

■

t all

■
This plant has been in operation for
three yean. It was installed to ac-
commodate a much larger load than it
has been called B| rh a

capa lowatta, the average

load, considering a period of nn
has been 127 kilowatts

The following table gives the actual
cost of running the plant for a period of
one vear h January I. 1910. to Janu-
II •

l
i

•il «!.(.

•tin* In

P O \X' F. R

During the year there were 722 hours

•sich
amount*.

in the total amount under wi.
Tl

of ng, the value of

which

..:<■

I".

»11

SI
l»lai <Ung all chant'

Italain-t' In

Tomrkins, of the Brooklyn & Coney
Island Railroad, submitted figures show-
ing that, at the

pan rch-

board for kilowatt-hour.

However, as d ot include inti

upon the investment, depreciation, ta
insurance nor . penses of any

of the officials of the compa- s of

little value in the present discuss

The clement of depreciation is unqi
tionably subnet to variant but the

f many en-
gineers would indicate that depreciation
arc generally too In* I refer partic-
ularly to tru changes in the method
or process which chara in indu-
thus making ■ power plant obsolete so
far inctions arc con-
To illustrate this Tu
ago the ileal, long crosshcad
of blowing engine was installed at
■up of four blast furnaces. About
eight vears after, half the gr en-
gines was replaced by larger mach:

large stca
crate them as disconnect i upound
In fifteen years* time from the
stan thi rersedcJ

forms of compound enginea. About

engines were assisted
engines using
blast-furnace k

g all steam *

he specter of the
>lnt I »
'hat fundamental changes
in the Iron an,! business imp.

Ganges and not tb.
leacence' of the

plat had a short

name, be cu ance or

cross c
-s to ir

■ ■

some case* a on of

has bt

ha:

c last
hav. ng par- , to

the cost of
in r

'•> coat* in one case that may be con-
n rega:

il output The
plant is of 460 kilowatts gencr >- • jpa-

i aaaoa

.V.

>a*lne*« nUhlnr c would re*u

• ng

have exhibited simitar crlse

•nent of groin1 og

i of a better

The c

motors dn fans a

uum-cleani rr cent.

ie heating and hot-wa- The

pump-
machinc. sewage
and the rcma ' the I and

hot -war from other than

clcctn sourer

The cost of fuel ipea coali.

ton The J u*ion of th and

labor accoi i based upon a sr

n over
the ar

I n

estimated at about three cents per .
watt -hour In this local

'
let alone production and distribution

c*! of
smooth running r

store J who (M

•

MM d of a f - ootmal or

i a countcrvrtcht

-it and

i ngemcnf of the maeh! ■

•i He a r
piece* of a lew or morr
on your (•'»-•

above are trae illustration* of Hit do*

ami

flSfVptosj at noesool sauced, or vhett

spec Jr I i •••<-* po |. . _ ■/ s H I

508

POWER

March 28, 1911.

Governing Waterwheels

The importance of refinement in water-
wheel regulation has appeared only in
recent years, since electrical accomplish-
ments have made commercially practic-
able the development of powers previous-
ly unregarded and have imposed new and
more exacting service upon those which
are in use.

For years cotton mills have been driven
by water powers with crude governing
apparatus, often with none at all; and a
cotton mill is regarded as requiring a
high degree of uniformity in speed. But
a cotton-mill load is also one of the most
constant. If the load does not change,
a wheel under constant head and gate
opening will run at a uniform speed any
way, and the small fluctuations made by
throwing individual machines on and off
are readily taken care of by comparative-
ly simple apparatus.

When, however, a waterwheel is set to
driving an electric generator, subject to
abrupt and excessive load variations, the
degree of regulation required by the most
exacting service upon the line can be ef-
fected only by a study of conditions to
which little attention has previously been
paid, and by the use of refined apparatus
adapted to control those conditions. A
very important factor is the mass of the
water already in the penstock; and when,
as in many of the large Western in-
stallations, this penstock is miles in
length and contains tons and tons of
water in motion, a partial closing of the
gate results in a conversion of velocity
into pressure, a pressure .generated by
the momentum of the column the flow
of which it is attempted to restrict, which
interferes seriously with the effort of the
governor to control the speed. All that
the governor can do is to regulate the
amount of water flowing to the wheel;
but, if its movement to restrain the flow
results in a virtual increase in head, its
effect is minimized and a complication
introduced which may set up all sorts of
hunting and racing. The last meeting of
the American Society of Mechanical En-
gineers at Boston was devoted to the
presentation by William F. Uhl of his
paper upon "Speed Regulation in Hydro-
electric Plants," and its discussion. Al-
though the subject is an abstruse one and
the paper (which, by the way, had been
previously presented at the general meet-
ing of the society and is to be found in
the February number of The Journal) is
forbiddingly mathematical, the hall of the
Edison company's building was filled and
all of the time available occupied by
pertinent and interesting discussion.

The governor is very materially aided
by the flywheel effect of the turbine, gen-
erator and attached masses and it is often
desirable to put on additional weight in
flywheel form. The water will drive the
shaft only at a certain maximum speed
even if its flow is unrestrained. Above
that speed the wheel would be running

away from the water, so that a flywheel
designed with an ample factor of safety
for this "runaway speed" is safe from
centrifugal force and not subject to prac-
tically unlimited acceleration as is the
wheel of a steam engine.

Mr. Uhl explains the derivation of the
simple formula for the regulation due to
any given flywheel effect, and modifies it
for the effect of the friction load, change
of efficiency, pressure variations, etc.
The time factor is of extreme importance.
It takes a certain amount of energy to
move a gate a given amount. If this is
done in half the time, it takes twice the
power. The "mechanical" governor,
usually belt driven, has only a limited
amount of power to expend and must
therefore exert that power for a longer
time to exert the energy required; and
unless the governor is made inordinately
massive this time is too long for close
regulation with considerable gate move-
ment. With the hydraulic governor of
the type in which Mr. Uhl is interested,
gates are moved by pistons actuated by
fluid pressure under the control of the
governor through a pilot valve, and the
regulating time for all gate openings, ac-
cording to the author, is nearly constant.

It is a well known fact that if penstock
conditions are disturbed by moving a
gate anywhere in the line, a .wave will
be produced which will proceed along the
flume with a certain velocity. In closed
penstocks these waves take the form of
pressure variations. Vibrations in water
travel with the velocity of sound, 4650
feet per second. The penstock walls are
flexible, however, and under the influence
of pressure variations expand and con-
tract in a rather remarkable degree, pro-
ducing what is called the "breathing"
of penstocks. This has a dampening ef-
fect upon the vibrations, and 4650 feet
per second may be regarded as the maxi-
mum velocity with which any vibrations
of pressure in the contents of the pen-
stock will proceed. The time required
for a vibration to pass from the gate
through the penstock and back to the gate
is twice the length of the penstock divided
by the rate of travel of the vibration. It
is better then not to reduce the time re-
quired to operate the gate below this
amount, so that the effect of the waves
produced may be minimized by the
countereffect of the returning waves
which will then have time to get back.

A change of velocity of one foot per
second will have a very considerable ef-
fect upon pressure variation; hence large
penstocks and slow normal velocities,
which will require small velocity changes
for change of load are desirable. They
also avoid loss from friction.

Efforts have been made to avoid the
difficulties introduced by this impact of
the moving body of water when partially
arrested, by the use of pressure regu-
lators, in which the pressure is made a
factor in controlling the position of the
gate. If the gates are closed suddenly

and a sufficient amount to disturb the
regulation on account of pressure rise,
the regulator will be opened by the gov-
ernor and allow water to be bypassed
around the turbine sufficiently to keep the
pressure rise within limits.

The pressure drop when the gates are
suddenly opened is always less than the
pressure rise when they are closed. It
may be corrected by the use of stand-
pipes or equalizing reservoirs, the effect
of which is to reduce the effective length
of the penstock. The minimum hight of
such a standpipe must be such that in
no case will the water level in it drop to
such a point as will admit air into the
penstock. Formulas are given for their
design. In a plant with long penstocks
where it is impossible to install a stand-
pipe, out of the question to increase
the size of the penstocks and impractic-
able to provide sufficient flywheel effect,
recourse must be had to a synchronous
bypass which discharges that part of the
full-load flow of the water which is not
necessary to run the turbine with the
given load. The full flow is maintained
in the penstock, but that not needed by
the turbine is switched to the tail race.
The same effect is produced in impulse
turbines with deflecting nozzles. With
a reduced load the flow of water con-
tinues uninterruptedly but one or more
of the nozzles is deflected so that its jet
is discharged into the casing without hit-
ting the wheel.

In discussing the paper, Mr. Warren,
of the Lombard Governor Company, said
that they found in the tests to which they
had subjected it that the formula upon
which the paper was based gave results
which were too high for load changes of
less than 50 per cent. He called atten-
tion to the danger of whirlpools with
wheels not sufficiently submerged.

The author was asked about the pos-
sibilities of electric generators, operating
upon changes of voltage rather than of
speed, and replied that they had been
tried but never with any degree of suc-
cess. In one case at least the failure
was due to the use of liquid contacts and
the production of depressions and ele-
vations in the level by quickly repeated
movements.

The author had referred to trouble in
the draft tube produced by the persist-
ence in its downward movement of the
column after the gates had been closed,
producing a vacuum behind it into which
it returned when its momentum had been
spent with a blow which was often pro-
ductive of disastrous results. One of the
auditors told of trouble experienced in
the West where the water coming down
from the mountain snows often had 1.5
per cent, of entrained air which, under
the reduced pressure of the draft tube, as-
sumed a greatly increased volume, and
went out in gulps with closings up of
the water column, which produced seri-
ous shocks. Draft tubes frequently have
to be shortened on this account.

March 28, 1911.

POVI-.R

Anderson Automatic Regulat-
ing \'.iKc

This valve, illustrated herewith in -
tion, is shown in a closed position. When
the spring B is adjusted by the nut .-1
to the required pressure, the valve J

Wh&t the in

i cntorjnd the munii -
f./i (urer <ir<- dUoi
tuiK' .itnl /7j. / (In- en-

gine-room .irtd power*
boilSC linymc room
OCWJ

below the piston /) and the air beneath
the piston J prevent any water hammer
and cushion the valve in opening and
closing.

The solenoid P. which controls the
auxiiiar J to a switch at

the pumping station or any other con-

auoliar to close sod

sure from I ••ton

J returns through the a

ng through the por Tbe

. being released from under tbe

re*

tion withoi: cci

the reducing fcan.

Th by the Golden-

And
ton I Penn.

B I II l'rcvsiirc Pump

This high-pressure double-acting dur
n pump is shown in Fig. I I

s mint

Sectional View op the A

MAI

H and / ar n. The high pi \cnicnt point and. in caac son k Co . w

aure aide, or inlet, is at The out- iwttck to tbl h ren

let is at /• When t! arc on the to open the an

J the pr Y. allowing the high pressure n than d

sure at which the ring. H from the inlet aide of the mair r ^

is set. the pre is psss up -

■ »n J i the \ An t

// and p ng bslsi

the valve* // i

In order I the va

and at the sai: close »

the small ;

y h

xz> r.~>,

[ .

~" 1

there i* ptsotd a bsll In the l

torn of the da*1

In the upper rim of the dtsb|
mutation of aii

The uatcr abme and

' and / to open
aure l» n-

!•, soJ <cto

• rtaseots, it »«r

and rrp-rj TW cyl

»tcc I f^QajHL

510

POWER

Mareh 28, 1911.

made extra heavy, to act also as a sup-
port to the valve-motion stand. This
forms a rigid construction, and yet makes
it possible to replace any cylinder if
such a necessity should arise.

The arrangement of the steam valves
is shown in Fig. 2. The valve plate is
machined to receive a valve-siem block,

guiding the valve. The wings are turned
off to allow the valve sufficient play to
allow a free passage of any foreign mat-
ter without breaking the valve. This ar-
rangement for guiding the flat valve with
the valve seat allows it to adjust itself
perfectly to all wear and makes trouble-
some grinding unnecessary. Each valve

Fig. 1. Belt-driven Water Circulator

which is finished to allow no play or lost
motion. The stem instead of being run
through the valve plate and held by a
nut is grooved at the end and held in the
block by two set screws, the groove mak-
ing slipping impossible. This arrange-
ment permits the taking out of a valve
with the least possible delay. All ad-
justment is effected outside at the valve
yoke by means of set screws held firmly
by jam nuts. The motion levers and
rocker shafts are situated between the
valve stems, thus placing all moving
parts out of the way of the operator as
well as making it more compact and neat
in appearance.

The distribution of the steam, owing
to the proper location of the steam ports
and to the valve motion, causes the pump
to cushion at the end of each stroke
regardless of the speed, steam pressure
or pressure against which the pump is
working. No cushion valve is used, and
the pump has a uniform stroke regardless
of the pressure.

All water valves are of the self-ad-
justing, hardened-bronze type, and seat
on an absolutely flat hardened-bronze
seat. The valve is guided and held in
position by a stem situated on the top
of the disk. This stem is bored out to
receive the spring and operates in a guide
cast in the valve cover and projecting
down over it. This arrangement com-
pletely incloses the spring and makes it
impossible for a broken spring to get
free and cause trouble. In addition to
this, four lugs or wings project down
from the bottom of the disk to assist in

has a separate cover, making it easy to
get at each valve independently.

The plungers, four in number, are of
the outside-end packed type. They are
cast in one piece, with extra-heavy flange
on the back ends to receive the steel
trombone rods which operate the rear

loss in fuel by leakage. Plungers may
be made brass covered, if desired.

This pump is built to withstand a
pressure of from 800 to 1000 pounds.

The Castle Automatic Water
Regulator

Recently, hot-water heating systems
have been improved by means of a cir-
culating device known as the Castle au-
tomatic circulator. It is built in two
types, belt driven and with the motor
direct coupled to the shaft of the cir-
culator, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

This device consists of a small pro-
peller set in the branch pipe that is by-
passed from the main return to the boiler
and operated by a small electric motor.
When ordinary gravity circulation suf-
fices, the circulator is not operated, and
it is only necessary to switch off the
motor to cut out the circulator. As soon
as the propeller ceases revolving an au-
tomatic valve cuts off the branch pipe
and the water, in returning to the boiler,
travels along the main return pipe exact-
ly as though the circulator were not at-
tached to the system. As soon as it be-
comes necessary to hasten the circulation
the motor is switched on, the propeller
revolves and the automatic valve takes
up a new position, cutting off the main
return pipe so that all the returns must
necessarily go through the branch pipe
and past the propeller.

There are no valves to be set and no
attendance is necessary beyond the mere
starting and stopping of the motor. In

Fig. 2. Motor-driven Water Circulator

plungers. The rods are supported by
rollers to secure a perfectly straight and
rigid pull and thrust. The power pistons
are screwed directly into flanges on the
power end so that that end of the
pump may be operated independently of
the rear end. The plungers are turned
and ground perfectly smooth, insuring
long life to the packing and preventing

many installations the motor switch is
placed at some distance from the cir-
culator. Under ordinary conditions of hot-
water heating the circulation depends
upon the difference in temperature be-
tween the supply and the return lines,
and opposed to the difference in head
between the two sides of the system is
the friction in long lines of pipes, fit-

March 28, 1911.

POM

tings and valves. By circulating the water
rapidly, the returns are but a feu de-
grees lower in temperature than the sup-
ply lines; consequently, less coal is used
to heat them again and the rapid circula-
tion insures the greatest possible effi-
ciency of the radiating surfaces. This
rapid circulation is produced by the
1 'le circulator. It is small in size and
k,n and requires but little power to
operate it. It need be run but a short
time per day and as soon as it is stopped,
expenses cease. Sudden temperature
drops are met by the circulator and it. is
not necessary to maintain an extra hot
fire.

There arc many actual examples of
coal saving by means of this system.

Unsatisfactory results from heating
tema installed with piping of insuffi-
cient size or with many sharp angle
turns can be prevented. This circulator
is made in three sizes and is manufac-
J by the American Auxiliary Heating
Company, boston, Mass.

\ \r\\ Plant (hair.'
I I ill

Among the improvements to be made
by the Sea View Railroad Company,
which has recently been purchased by

German, of the Providence &
Danielson Railroad, will be the enlarge-
ment o' *cr plant. A new 500-
rcr Babcock & Wilcox boiler has
been ordered, and a new 125- foot brick

! be erect- upplant the

•.t-iron stacks now in use. When
the new bo - nstallcd the plant will
have a capacity of I -MX) horsepower. The
Sea rnpany operates a trolley line

from East Greenwich to Wickford,
Saundrr Narragansctt Pier and

WaV. • R I The main offk

R I.

Institute ( )• ^am/r I

Iiraiu h

The members of the Institute of <

nctn • and

ih the i i of the Long

(•land members, met at the national

headquarter* on Saturday evening March

•id org.i branch

will be known as
Brar :c I 0

Th fleer* r-

ch chairman and branch
■

he Inte-
Tran%n Company; »•
i • 1 in't

an of commit'

chairman of
ret on

II. chief engineer In
«ny
lis*
Thim fHe membr inch*

present at the meeting and mi;
thu«ia«m waa shown by the sr

The organization stans out with about
80 members all told, and will in the
future conduct the
ings for the station of papc

\ ■■■■■ <, iu-iniNts' Buiklii
The ( Jing. »hich -

inaugurated on March 17 at 50 to 54 I

red to be the first of i in the

world. It combines the features of a
class club, including restaurant and
members' bedroon finely equi;

laboratories for analytical and consulting
chemists and for gators in pure

applied tc not to speak of a

carefully planr ntific lecture room,

a large library and v museum.

The building occupies 56x100 feet and
upward of half a million dollars.
It h no. a stock company, whote

shares have been taken by prominent
chemists and b Jual manufacturers

and compu usiness largely

depends upon chemical process, and who
have realized that industrial progress
pends upon sc research. While it

Sc more
than self-supporting, the sharcho:
limit thcm*c!vt nds.

all surplus to be devoted to the better-
ment of the v |o the
mate benefit of the science. The chief
tenant is the Chemists' Club, which oc-
cs the lower half of the building.

1 Dgineerii S 1'rotcst
Publi ( ion

A committee representing five ei
nee: the International

one I
Associa- the

Marine ni Associa-

tion, thi N

and th< ■ ncering

Soci' I letter to the

Mon ar

alleged
Mating r
Yori 1 aimed

that ncarlv one half < I
rent sold in the Boroi.
and
charged at a .100 per cent.

the ' sposed of at a

rate

arc carr consumer paying

ing rro tat »as a

lundrcd and '

'ion

M w PI hi K \i [ON

«atics roa

we. P

•strand Compa jrk.

vtratior
beginning dementalt of

algebra, elemental georr lain

nometr>. ana geometry and

The book
•nits ©'

1° - ccts. only such

portion* being covert : tscntial

to the needs of nor

mplimr poo the simple

adequa -nent of the subjects.

ch should enafc
intelligence and having a fair knowledge
of arithmct ..ing kr

e of them. Having made such a good
star o be regretted that the author

not go a step farther and mclu
number of engineering problems
the apr of the intl

to the il case-

mar ncreax

to the practical engin-

SOCIETY NO IKS

On Thursday evening. Ap- the

regular monthly meeting of i

societies build
West Thirty- ninth
commencing a*

' a papr Eco-

nomical Aspects ol
erating

nannouoc
ing of the offi
room I

•
quartc-

red to visit
being
■
their mail and f<

»ponJrr c r' . hUl n trie i •

The problem of making the
an

■ j- be

.
of the America

of a
ing

or."

tk*> I IS' Ffl.« — ,H ka ni.i.nl. 1 l'«kt

■

• • ■ ,• i . « ; ( *■ a f ie • r I u . •

professor of macfcnolcti engineering of
Columr teJk en

•ora

bat wsr «

■ «n heM In

512

POWER

March 28, 1911.

The Cleveland branch of the Ameri-
can Chemical Society at its March
meeting was addressed by W. R. Hul-
bert, manager of sales, Goldschmidt
Thermit Company, on the thermit-weld-
ing process. In addition to a general
description of the process and its vari-
ous applications, with lantern slides, Mr.
Hulbert gave a demonstration of thermit
welding, comprising a number of experi-
ments to show how the process is used
commercially for repairing wrought-iron
and steel sections, and for welding pipes
up to 4 inches in diameter. Much interest
was shown in the demonstration, which
was witnessed not only by the local mem-
bers of the American Chemical Society,
but by members of the American Society
of Mechanical Engineers and others who
came from cities as far out as Akron and
Lorain and towns in the vicinity of Cleve-
land.

PERSONAL

The Crocker-Wheeler Company an-
nounces the appointment of Clarence E-
Delafield, vice R. N. C. Barnes, resigned,
as district manager with headquarters at
the company's offices in the Boston Safe
Deposit and Trust building, 201 Devon-
shire street, Boston, Mass.

H. H. Laughlin has been placed in
charge of the branch office recently
opened in Pittsburg, Keystone building,
324 Fourth avenue, by the Richardson-
Phenix Company, of Milwaukee, Wis.
Mr. Laughlin has been with the Richard-
son-Phenix Company for several years
and is familiar with the methods of lubri-
cation of all kinds of machinery.

At a recent meeting of the board of di-
rectors of the Pawling & Harnischfeger
Company, Milwaukee, Wis., S. H. Squier,
who has been with the company for a
number of years, was elected secretary
and a director of the organization. W. H.
Hassenplug, sales manager, was elected
a director and second vice-president, and
F. P. Breck, also associated with the com-
pany for many years, was elected a di-
rector.

FLUID- OPERATED TURBINE. Eric

Brown, Baden, Switzerland. 986,902.

CURRENT MOTOR. Lincoln Gnynn, Seat-
tle, Wash. 980,919.

ROTARY STEAM ENGINE. Robert I.
Miller, Sandusky, Ohio, assignor of sixteen
and one-third one-hundredths to William F.
Thomas and sixteen and one-third one-
hundredths to William J. Duffy. McMechen,
W. Va., and sixteen and one-third one-
hundredths to Martin J. Malooley, Wheeling,
W. Va. 986,932.

TURBINE. Charles Algernon Parsons,
Newcastlempon-Tyne, England. 980,942.

STEAM ENGINE. Nathaniel Greene Her-
reshoff, Bristol, R. I. 980,982.

BOILERS, FURNACES AND
PRODICERS

GAS

STEAM-GENERATING PLANT. Minott

W. Sewall, Roselle, N. J., assignor to the
Bahcock & Wilcox Company, Bayonne, N. J.,
a Corporation of New Jersey. 986,648.

STEAM-GENERATING PLANT. Minott W.
Sewall. New York, N. Y., assignor to the
Bahcock & Wilcox Company, Bayonne, N. J.,
a Corporation of New Jersey. 980,049.

ARTIFICIAL-GAS BURNER. Jacob Weintz,
Cleveland, Ohio, assignor to the Strong, Car-
lisle & Hammond Company, Cleveland, Ohio,
a Corporation of Ohio. 980.003.

HYDROCARBON BURNER. Virgil H. Mills
and John II. T. Mills, Hubbard, Tex. 980.-
739.

STEAM BOILER. Charles William Todd,
Manchester, N. II., assignor of one-third to
Lewis W. Crockett, Manchester. N. II., and
one-third to I). Arthur Burt,. Boston, Mass.
980,876.

MECHANICAL STOKER. Levi F. Torrey,
Buffalo. N. Y., assignor to Margaret E. Tor-
rey. Buffalo, N. Y. 980,877.

FURNACE. Carl Wegener, Berlin, Ger-
many. 986,881.

FURNACE. Harry Moor. Philadelphia,
Penn. 986,934.

HYDROCARBON BURNER. Rudolph Hoff-
man, Battle Creek, Mich., assignor to Amer-
ican Stove Company. St. Louis. Mo., a Cor-
poration of New Jersey. 987.907.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
the Patent Office at 5c. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

PRIME MOVERS

TURBINE. Gustaf de Laval and Ernst
Elis Fridolf Fagerstrom, Stockholm. Sweden.
986,472.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Nel-
son Edward Da vies. San Francisco, Cal.
986,-952.

ROTARY ENGINE. Thomas H. Lindley,
Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Herman Scbraier,
Sheboygan, Wis. 980,030.

ROTARY ENGINE. William L. Morrill,
Portland, Me. 980,041.

WAVE POWER GENERATOR. Robert Max
Morius, San Diego. Cal. 980,740.

WAVE AND CURRENT MOTOR. Joseph
T. Cross, San Francisco, Cal.. assignor to
Frank H. Howard, San Francisco, Cal.
985.802.

POWER

PLANT AUXILIARIES ASD
APPLIANCES

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pros., Col. E. I). Meier : sec. Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City. Spring meeting in Pitts-
burg. May 30 to June 2.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.

Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION

Ties.. Frank W. Frueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St.. New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 2.

VALVE MECHANISM. William K. Rankin,
Philadelphia, Penn., assignor to John E. Rey-
burn, Philadelphia, Penn. 980,592.

AUTOMATIC I) A M P E R REGULATOR.
William J. Turner, Providence, U. I., assignor
to Putnam Foundry and Machine Company.
Providence, R. 1., a Corporation of Connecti-
cut. 986,658.

THERMOSTATIC VALVE. Frederick W.
Robertshaw, Pittsburg, Penn. 980,700.

ENGINE GOVERNOR. John W. Sargent,
Providence, R. I. 986,762.

VALVE. Conrad C. Schoeneck and Ivar
F. Warme, Syracuse, N. Y. 986,765.

STEAM. AIR AND WATER-TRAP VALVE.
John E. Boegen, Berwyn, 111., assignor to
Charles P. Monash, Chicago, 111. 980,797.

CENTRIFUGAL PUMP. Franklin H.

Jackson. West Berkeley, Cal.. assignor to
Byron Jackson Iron Works, West Berkejey,
Cal., a Corporation of California. 986,827.

LUBRICATING DEVICE. John Chris-
topher Nichol, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
986,849.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS AND
APPLICATIONS

ELECTRIC SWITCH. Horace Hull, Den-
ver, Colo. . 986,714.

DYNAMO ELECTRIC MACHINE. Carl M.
Page, Chicago, 111., assignor of one-half to
Horace D. Reynolds, Chicago, 111. 986,748.

ELECTROPLATING MACHINE. John W.
Heaphy, Philadelphia, Penn. 986,823.

ELECTRIC SWITCH. Columbus Woods
and Whitman II. Sayles, Peoria, 111. 986,958.

SAFETY COUPLING FOR ELECTRIC
CONDUCTORS. Angel Belgorder, Mexico,
Mexico. 987,036.

DYNAMO ELECTRIC MACHINE. James
Burke, Erie, Penn., assignor to Burke Elec-
tric Company, a Corporation of Pennsyl-
vania. 987,044.

POWER PLANT TOOLS

WRENCH. Peder Roisum, Edmore, N. D.
986,593.

LIFTING JACK. .Totham B. Taylor. Au-
burn, N. Y. 986.781.

JACK. Ralph F. Schofield, Olathe, Kan.
986,868.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
ENGINEERS
Pres., Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
U. S. N. ; sec. and treas.. Lieutenant Com-
mander U. T. Holmes, U. S. N.. Bureau of
Steam Engineering, Navy Department, Wash-
ington, D. C.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS'
ASSOCIATION

Pres., E. D. Meier, 1 1 Broadway, New
York ; sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad. Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston, Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF EXG INFERS

Pres., O. I*. Chamberlain : sec. J. H.
Warder. 1735 Monadnock Block. Chicago. 111.
Meeting first Wednesday of each month.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres., Walter Riddle: sec, E. K. Hiles,
Oliver building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings
1st and 3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS
Pres.. R. P. Bolton : sec, W. W. Macon. 29
West Thirty-ninth street. New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres.. Carl S. I'earse. Denver. Colo. : sec,
F. W. Raven. 325 Dearborn street. Chicago,
111. Next convention. Cincinnati, Ohio, Sep-
tember 12-15, 1911.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr., Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia, Pa. : Supr. Cor. Engr.. William S.
Wetzler, 753 N. Forty-fourth St.. Philadel-
phia. Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June 5-10, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENG INFERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres.. William F. Yates, New York, N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb. 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago. 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January 15-19, 1912.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'

ASSOCIATION.
Pres., Arthur J. Frith; sec. Charles
Kratsch, 410 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity , Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF

ENGINEERS

Grand Worthy Chief, John Cope ; sec, J. U.

Bunce, Hotel Statler. Buffalo, N. Y. Next

annual meeting in Philadelphia, Penn., week
commencing Monday, August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres., O. F. Rabbe ; acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus,
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstown, Ohio, May
18 and 19, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION

Pres
95 I"
at (

A. N. Lucas ; sec. Harry D. Vaught,
" street, New York. Next meeting
-a Neb., May 23-26, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres., Matt. Comerford ; sec, J. G. Hanna-
han, Chicago, 111. Next meeting at St. Paul,
Minn., September, 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION

Fres., G. W. ^ right, Baltimore. Md. ; sec.
and treas., D. L. Gaskill. Greenville, O.

SEW YORI

THE watch en making hi^ tour of dut)

l».i\ ilttr«la\. month altrr month, In li.i.
tin- roim

and everythii und in oh"I w<

let Uttle whisperings it times urged the watch
kip things here and there which,
Tonight the w his]
nc stoj 11 ri-ht It wintt

and tin- ]K-ak I -uld be oo D \ til'"

.m<l thru man) little tin <l" t'

it \\'hv ii"t lit tin ii. .1 I 'l«l

wouldn't no not undei tl

Hut tli< i engii tbdural

l.\rr\ little thing must be don rhen mould i* no

iil

I In throttU

I In itOp ped all right, I »ti t t

i tomething en* oul it I

md
l a vibration "t th<

•ml (In Til-

th- turn C >n 1 1

.it nut Urn :. \\.u\ it t it

t n .:. I
ii

\n--th-

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■ n

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\t ti

that tir a<l tut

1 am! tin- r.i '. the w

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pull thi
ud

A month lata t! hod

run 11:
While tin

! he
with
m<l link nnt

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but •*» imi In I

.N.l

had n

thr

i -

II
\n-'

514

POWER

April 4, 1911.

Power Plant of C. &N.W.Ry. Terminal

By Osborn Monnett

One of the most important real-estate
improvements made in Chicago in late
years is that of the new terminal sta-
tion of the Chicago & Northwestern Ra:l-
way, with passenger entrance fronting
on West Madison street, from Canal to
Clinton street. The property extends north
to the junction of Clinton and Milwaukee
avenue, the elevated tracks admitting
street traffic underneath the structure and
also permitting entrance to the Washing-
ton street tunnel, which has lately been
reconstructed. The power house to light,
heat, ventilate and is other ways serve
the public at this station, occupies a tri-
angular shape of land between Lake
street, Clinton street and Milwaukee
avenue, and is an ingenious utilization of
an area which would ordinarily be use-
less. The plant has been laid out with

First new plant which has
installed low-pressure tur-
bine in connection with en-
gine units. Special arrange-
ment of boiler settings for
heavy overloads. Piping
connections of heating sys-
tem of unusual interest.

necessary room for the desired purposes.
Pressed brick on the inside walls, set
off with a green Rockwood tile wainscot-

attention to detail which is characteristic
of the entire .work.

In the boiler room are six 500-horse-
power Babcock & Wilcox boilers, the type
of setting being similar to that lately used
in one other of the large plants around
Chicago, and specially designed to permit
forcing the boiler to heavy overloads.
They are, as will be noted in the draw-
ings, of the vertical-header type, with
three gas passes through the tubes and
are set in the reverse position to that
ordinarily followed, with the chain-grate
stokers under the mud drum. This gives
large combustion space wherein the pro-
ducts of combustion may mix, and the
setting has been unusually successful
from the standpoint of eliminating smoke.
Directly over the stoker arches, which
are protected by water-tight sheet-iron

Fig. 1. General View of Main Engine Units

special reference to the unusual ground- ing around the visitors' gallery and the pans, three blowoff connections are

plan conditions, with the stack occupying engine room and in the engineer's of- brought off to the side of the stoker, as

the apex of the triangle and the arrange- fice, adds greatly to the appearance of shown in the photograph of the boiler

ment has been such as to secure all the station and gives the impression of room. These are easily manipulated by

.,-

Ill

T-"-

516

POWER

April 4, 1911.

Compressor
Suction

Dry Vacuum Air Pump

Fig. 4. Sectional Elevations through Engine and Machinery Rooms

7 Boiler Room Floor Line

the fireman, who is not required to go
behind the boilers for any purpose, the
feed valve also being conveniently lo-

cated at this point. Every detail in the
boiler setting has been worked out for
the greatest efficiency. Vulcan soot blow-

Crusher provided
with Bypass

Fig. 5. Transverse Section through Boiler Room

ers are installed for keeping the heating
surfaces clean, and if desired it is pos-
sible to run the boilers at 75 to 100 per
cent, above rating, or approximately 800
to 1000 horsepower per boiler.

Coal- and ash-handling apparatus has
been so designed as to handle coal in
carload lots from the track elevation.
The unloading hopper has a capacity of
300 to 400 tons and a length which will
permit two cars being unloaded at one
time. From the bunker underneath the
tracks the coal passes on to a horizontal
conveyer, through a crusher into a Peck,
continuous, pivoted, bucket conveyer,
which elevates it to concrete bunkers over
the boilers, the latter having a capacity
of 750 tons without trimming or 1000
tons if trimmed.

Ashes are discharged from the grates
into hoppers below the boiler-room floor
line and carried by the same conveyer
which transports the coal, to an inclined
pan conveyer discharging into an ash
bunker located above the coaling track
and capable of holding 100 tons of ashes.
The unloading arrangement has a rated
capacity of 40 tons per hour.

Although the type of boiler setting
chosen necessitates extremely high head-
room, still there is plenty of space pro-
vided for convenient operation and the
boiler plant is unusually light and roomy.
Auxiliary storage capacity of approxi-
mately 300 tons of coal is provided under
the sidewalk on the Canal street side,
immediately in front of the boilers. This
storage space is liberally supplied with
sidewalk lights,, while the boiler-room
floor itself between the boiler settings is

April 4, 1911.

-
the Max

tcfnal -

I ■

op Norm vis

roo«

■

One of the unusual I

the ecu: I the

■Iti liKhtirm up the ihc bti

a*h tunnel. A

»f mrc

n the hoi! This ind ^catoa and the rm

J on saddles a c P0**1 **r

518

POWER

April 4, 1911.

conveniently reached from the engineer's
headquarters in the shortest possible

ent installed three vertical cross-com-
pound noncondensing Allis-Chalmers

forms are all interconnecting and ar-
ranged for maximum convenience of the

Fig. 9. Elevator Pumps under Madison Street End of Station

time. This central division of the power
house continues to the roof so that both
engine and boiler rooms can be entered
at any level by means of stairways con-

Corliss engines, with 25 and 44 by 42-
inch cylinders, each rated at 1150 indi-
cated horsepower, at 100 revolutions per
minute, with steam pressure at 155

Fig. 10. Absorption Refrigerating System

veniently located. A gage board is lo-
cated here with all the usual Instruments
for checking operation.

In the engine room there are at pres-

pounds and 60 degrees, Fahrenheit,
superheat. Space has been left for an
additional engine and dynamo unit of the
same 9ize as above. The engine plat-

operators. One Curtis low-pressure steam
turbine and generator unit of 500 kilo-
watts capacity is installed in the machine
room. It is the intention to run noncon-
densing during seasons when steam for
heating will be necessary and use the
low-pressure turbine only at such times
as exhaust steam would ordinarily be
allowed to waste to the atmosphere. When
not running on the heating system the
light loads will be taken care of by one
of the Corliss engines and as the load
increases beyond the capacity of one en-
gine unit it will be thrown on to the low-
pressure turbine up to a point where the
combined units are fully loaded, when
another engine outfit will be cut in an1
so on. The engine sets are guaranteed
to run on 18. 6 pounds of steam per indi-
cated horsepower at full load, against 16.5
pounds absolute back pressure. This will
mean 21,400 pounds of steam exhausted
to the low-pressure turbine. The latter
has been installed under a guarantee to
deliver a kilowatt-hour on 43.5 pounds
of exhaust steam, or a horsepower-hour
on 32.7 pounds. Using the 21,400 pounds
of steam exhausted from the engine unit,
the low-pressure machine will develop an
additional 786 horsepower, making a total
of 1936 horsepower for the combined
outfit, on 21,400 pounds of steam, or a
horsepower-hour on 1 1 .8 pounds of steam.
Under present conditions it is possible
to operate the turbine for eight months
in the year and if plans under consider-
ation go through, the turbine will be used
the vear round.

April 4, 1911.

PO\X'l H

tar as the writer is aware, th>
th= first time an exhaust-steam turbine.

tiled in connection with engine w
has been included in the original layout.

at Pom

This, of course, is largely due to the
newness of th >f machine in

country. The reduction in steam con-
sumption t hour dc\i

...

sidcrable. and besides it would be diffi-

cult can. system for

/ing to . antagc

of e tm.

shoun in 1 hows sectional

through the engine and
machinery rou

n that it is po-
the lo . re turbine t>

m fron as

c main en.
There n the mi-

chiru

the . j in
the plant, to ddOO-volt three-phase 60-

e currents for lighting sc <mg
the Nonhwestcrn lin

limits. This current will be B the

cnt:* ^ht-

thc Chicago terminal, si.

en running condi
from the turbine . I into a

•uar-
■o hold :m within 3 in.

absolute when cor : -
P—lldl of Mean ;cr hour. .

mg
conn-
cool,
roof

amount

Fahrcnf

sf the

■

All |a

c4 on

1 • •

••

•
1

• j

•

* • ■

• •

520

POWER

April 4, 1911.

from the air compressors, main engine
journals, aftercoolers, etc., is collected
in a tank from which a small centrifugal
pump furnishes the make-up water for
the cooling tower. In this way water
which is supplied from the city mains
is economized.

In the south end of the engine room on
the balcony are located the switchboard
and benchboard for controlling the elec-
trical units. The operator stands facing
the machines and makes all connections
by means of remote-control switches. A
busbar tunnel runs under the engine-
room floor, with circuit breakers on the
generator leads. The generator rheostats
are controlled by push-botton switches
on the benchboard. The main buses in
the busbar tunnel run to the distributing
switchboard which is furnished with
switches connected to circuits leading to
the main building, outgoing lines, etc.

Unusual precautions have been taken to
guard against breakdown in the piping
system. From the steam nozzles the
steam passes through 6-inch stop and
check valves into the main header lying
in front of the boilers at a level with
the drums. This header, starting at 8
inches in diameter, increases to 10 inches
and finally in the engine room to 12
inches, extends under the balcony and en-
tirely around the engine room, where it
meets a 10-inch auxiliary header and
forms a loop so that steam can be sup-
plied in either direction from the boilers.
The auxiliary connection from the boil-
ers starts at the boiler nozzles in a 4-
inch connection, the auxiliary header be-
hind the boilers being 6, 8 and 10 inches
in diameter as shown on the piping lay-
out. Superheated steam is used in all
of the main and auxiliary piping. It is

ger of turning superheated steam sud- low-pressure piping, other than the auxil-

denly into a length of cold piping. Ex- iary header, for repair,

tending along one side of the engine To act as an auxiliary on the heating

room, as shown in the plan, is the 30- and elevator load in the station building

Proposed Scheme to
Prevent Bucklingin
l4"Heoting Mains.

4 Return from j j
Terminal JU£&
Building-''

5 H.p.Sfea~m\——\ '<■
to Terminal
Building \; ;

Support for 14 Heating Mains
in Pipe Runway.

Pipe Runway.
(Looking South)

1 f

JL ZMi

Detail of Scheme for Carrying
Heating Mains across Lake Street.
|C

" '

~r? ^ D Section C-D.

Vertical Support at South"End of Runway.

Typical Connections
to Heater.

Fig. 16. Supports for Heating Mains and Typical Connections to Heater

inch main exhaust header with an at- should a breakdown occur in the transmis-

mospheric relief run to a point above the sion piping from the main power house,

roof. From this header a 16-inch con- a steam plant has been installed in the

nection leads to the low-pressure turbine, passenger-terminal building at Madison

There is also a connection from the auxil- street. This consists of two 150-horse-

• i

Fig. 14. Air Compressor

Fig. 15. Low-pressure Turbine Unit

the intention to maintain the entire sys-
tem of live-steam headers under steam at
all times, so that in case of a break in
any portion of the system, manipulating
one or two valves will shut off the sec-
tion of header affected without delaying
operations in the plant and without dan-

iary header to the throttle of the low-
pressure machine, enabling it to be sup-
plied with live steam independent of the
exhaust from the engine units. This
makes it possible to generate 500 kilo-
watts of electricity and still shut down
the entire system of main headers and

power single-drum Babcock & Wilcox
boilers fitted with Water-Arch hand-fired
furnaces. All of the elevator-pumping
equipment is installed in this end of the
plant. There are in all thirteen hydraulic
elevators in the passenger-terminal sta-
tion, four for passengers and nine for

April 4, 1911.

baggage. They are all operated with
wat "JO pounds per square inch,

compound, crank-and-
flywh^el elevator pumps, and two tan-
dem-compound pot-valve pumps take care
of'this service. In addition to this there
are ten electric elevators for baggage,
express and mail, and three dumb wa
with push-button control.

complete Carbondale absorption rc-
rating installation of 50 tons capacity
is also located in the basement of the
station for cooling drinking water and
furnishing refrigeration for the var
ice boxes in the restaurants and lunch
:is located throughout the build:

Of special ir I the heating and

lating arrangement in the passenger
>n. This is done by the indirect
blast system, except a small amount of
direct radiation installed to take care of
building losses. One of the largest air-
heating pla: installed in one cham-
.ocated in the basement, having
«>0 square feet of Vcnto heaters, con-
•tg of cast-iron elements' taking steam
: the I' All main
ply ducts ar i 'unnels car-
bencath the floor line and the blast
is supplied by electrically driven Sirrocco
fans. Starting at the plenum or ten
ing chamber, galvanizcd-iron du
tribute t'ic heated air to the different por-
tions of the building. The plenum cham-
bers are centrally located and provided
with automatically controlled dampers
which temper the air delivered to the
ducts. A complete system of exhaust
ducts parallel the irough-
nut the building, with the exhaust fans
located in the attic regulated by ren
control switches placed in the basement
on the same operating board from which
the .nding supply-fan unit is con-
trol

As the main and auxiliary plants are
separated by no less than I Joo fc

' arc
hy of r There 14-inch

•ning from the

iral plant; i am line

ch train-heating steam

nc 7

'cck eal
to automatically «hut off the «tcam in
case of accident No expansion joints
»cri :n the 14-inch

panvion being taken up ent -ing

it cither end as in the

drawings The«c lines arc anchored at

ing
■\ brae
»l of an •') of

g the

•iadc up in
*ect cngth*

•ra-hcavv i ng« and at

! of r flange

r re t*tw««n

flanges cor a pipe unit and the

flange ur

lengths apart permit a fie* that

would not otli be possible, as too

many riant . d tend to stiffen the

aks. U
d to t: ; and

on top and the the

I uniform l
peraturc, a ation has b

drawn out. The line then settles t

on the bracr ock

or jar. In the of the bra

was arranged to bring the weight on the
foot anJ it any stress on the

walls. It was calculated that there would
be an expansion of 14 inches in the
length of 1300 feet and in practice a
movement of 14', inches has been ob-
'-•d.
One of the special problems worked
out in connection with the station was the
method of ke- ontal r

draining the roof
of the trair from freezing in cold

weather. The ordinary method of so!

problem is to let live steam blow into

i not only proves un-

tly and wasteful, but also tend-

condensing in the pipe, to increase the

trouble from freezing. In this instal-

vtCflB Of

i hot ■

cm at
to fla*.'
ecomes us
hear ^c4

purpo**. .stem

te plant •» de-

consulting engi
nee:

neer of power st.>
& Nonhwc-v
charge of . ; of th

Unusual FT • v lotro] of Pui

In this insta- steam pipe sup

s Sited i quick

stem of which
nstead of a hand
•I. as shown in

To the top of the tank i»
seci i rod which is be-

right angles and serves as a guide to the
rod attached to the float. The float rod

ate I.

tide it" '•"<■ 1

ughout th.

the do»n •pm; 'reel

in ill

the entire cath th >hed

a steam eecar

lion Pivoted as th*
nd e

ranged, down to the alea

Thr other r -vj f thi« r<\3

through ike »i ke laejt rod

•r

These hea nes n ~tch the operation frill ke app >

522

POWER

April 4, 1911.

Flow of Water in Clean Iron Pipes

The chart herein given is based upon
the work of Darcy, the well known
hydraulic engineer who was assigned, by
the French government the task of es-
tablishing a water system at Dijon in
Burgundy. He found that the formulas
in use at that time for determining the
flow of water, the frictional loss Df head
and consequently the proper diameters of
pipes, were very unsatisfactory; there-
fore, in order to bring about effective
results with a minimum cost, he found
it necessary to undertake new experi-
ments from which, it was hoped, reliable
data would be derived.

The experiments, numbering about one
hundred and ninety-eight, were conducted
on pipes made of various materials and
sizes, these including pipes of drawn
wrought iron, of lead, of iron coated in-
side with tar, of glass, of cast iron both
new and clean, and also coated with de-
posits. The wrought-iron and cast-iron
pipes were over 330 feet long; those of
lead over 170 feet, and those of glass
146 feet. They were all well calibrated
and the diameters were determined with
extreme care. The lead pipes were about
tV, t§ ar,d 15H inches in diameter,
and the wrought-iron and cast-iron pipes
varied from V2 to 19)4 inches in diam-
eter.

The quantity of water was measured
in each case by means of calibrated tanks,
and velocities as high as 1.9' \ feet per
second were used. The slopes of the
pipes were carefully regulated so as to
avoid all possible perturbations from
elbows, abrupt changes of direction, or
from air chambers sometimes formed
through lack of care in assembling. The
pressures at various points of the con-
duits were measured by means of piezom-
eter tubes.

The thoroughness of the undertaking
brought about splendid results, and these
enabled Darcy to establish extensive
tables which have proved very useful to
engineers. The main points ascertained
by Darcy were:

1. The friction of liquids is independ-
ent of the pressure.

2. The friction is proportional to the
area of the surfaces in contact with the
flowing liquid.

3. The condition of the surfaces of
contact has a great influence on the fric-
tion.

Regarding the last point, he found that
through the tar-coated and glass pipes,
one-third more water was discharged than
was indicated by the formula theretofore
in use, and that deposits, even when
forming but a very thin coating, caused
an appreciable reduction in the amount
discharged when no coating was present.

From the tables established, Darcy

By Albert E. Guy

Darcv'y form ula for 'the flow
of water in pi pes converted
into United States units
and applied to a convenient
chart, whereby having given
any two of the three quanti-
ties, gallons per minute,
diameter of pipe and fric-
tional head, the third can
be- read directly from the
scale.

The transformation of the formula
from the metric to United States meas-
ures is very easy. First,

hR = (a + ?)u* (i)

which may be rearranged so that

R i h

(-0

I a R + p

But if q is the volume in cubic meters
discharged per second,

q = vR'u (3)

From (2) and (3),

ir l\-

whence.

_R i h_

i <,r + p

irk 1 h

derived the following formula, which is
known by his name:

(4)

(5)

kK = (a + |)**

in which,

R = Radius of pipe, in meters;
h = Frictional loss of head in frac-
tion of a meter per meter of
pipe length ;
u = Velocity in meters per second;

a — 0.000507 1 . ._ e _ ,

„ I > constants tor clean

p z= 0.00000647 I

wrought-iron and cast-iron

pipes;

a =0.00 IO I4~| r |. , .,

a * constants for slight lv

0.0000 1 ,i 1
coated wrought-iron and cast-

iron pipes.

I » R + P

With the United States measures, q
should be expressed in gallons per minute
instead of cubic meters per second; the
radius of the pipe in meters should be
replaced by the diameter in inches; the
frictional head h should be expressed in
feet per 1000 feet of pipe length.

One cubic meter = 264.13 United
States gallons.

One cubic meter per second = 15,848
gallons per minute.

One meter = 39.37 inches, and R (in
meters) =

D {diameter in inches)

2 x 39.37

Equation (5) then becomes

Gallons per minute =.
D" X 1 ~h X 15,848 X *

OX 39-37) ! X

(0.000507 x 2 x 39-37 x />) 4- 000000647 x (2 x 39.37V

(2 X 39-37)"

It is usual to employ the values of the
constants a and ji given for clear pipes.
They have been found very reliable under
a great variety of conditions. It would
be practically impossible to establish,
even through careful experiments, a
series of values for such constants, that
would cover the various conditions of
coated inside surfaces of pipes likely to
be encountered in actual practice. Hence,
it seems proper to use as a first ap-
proximation a formula established for
clean pipes, and then, according to one's
experience, to so modify the results ob-
tained in the calculations as to finally
be on the safe side. The formula has
been used successfully for many years
by the writer, and is recommended in
the convenient form, shown hereafter.
Transposed to English units this formula
becomes,

1.27 V h

V n+ 1

This reduces to

Gallons per minute =

40.152 X DJ X 1 h
1 D~+~i

But h is here expressed in meters per
meter length of pipe; to express it in
feet per 1000 feet of length, it must be
written :

Gallons per minute =

40.152 X D:i X 1

V (D + 1) X 1000
_ 1.27 X D3 X V~h
I D+ 1
Another convenient form is

(6)

Gallons per minute

D-

1 0.62 (Dr 1)

X 1 h

(7)

Chart No. 1 is intended for capacities
between 50 and 150,000 gallons per min-
ute, for pipes of 2 to 48 inches diam-
eter, and for frictional losses of head
varying from 0.1 foot to 300 feet per

April 4.

■

/. ' '

/' >4

* *—

fc '

*•<«,

•

,f of the ihrce factors repr

■ire kno*n, ihc third may be
found b> passing a straight line through •

:ile«. This line
± scale at the nu
■ ■

Of)

A/ *

/■:

<*/.

"&, -

S —2

524

POWER

April 4, 1911.

thousand feet of length of pipe. The
chart consists of three parallel scales,
the first of which represents the gallons
per minute; the second, the diameter of
pipe in inches, and the third, the fac-
tional head in feet. These scales are
logarithmic and are so arranged that a
straight line intersecting the three scales
will show the result at a glance; for in-
stance, 1600 gallons passing through an
8-inch pipe per minute will entail a loss
of head of 54^ feet, for each 1000 feet
of length of pipe. For a lesser or greater
length, the loss will be proportional.

The lengths of the scales depend on
how close the readings are desired. Some-
times it is found very convenient to make
two or more charts to cover a certain
range of values. The distance between
the first and the last scales must be such
that a diagonal line joining the extreme

millimeters between the readings repre-
senting respectively the numbers Q, and
Q., Di and D», /z, and h,. With m,, m. and
m., respectively, the modulus of the Q, D
and h scales.

a= (log. Q-2 — log. (.M m, |
o = (log. D2 — log. J\) m , V
c = (log. h2 -- log. h^ m3)

Fig. 1. Showing Method of Construct-
ing Chart No. 1.

values of these scales would lie at an
angle not much less than 45 degrees;
if the angle were 20- degrees, for in-
stance, it would be difficult to estimate
correctly the readings.

The problem in making the chart is
first to determine the relative positions
of the scales and the "modulus" proper
to each. By modulus is meant the length
in inches, or more usually in millimeters,
of a logarithmic scale ranging from 1
to 10. Neglecting, for the present, the
denominator in equation (7) , that is, con-
sidering it as a constant to be introduced
later on, there remains:

. Gallons per minute = Dl ] h (8)
Let the gallons per minute be repre-
sented by Q (for quantity) and Fig. 1
the chart to be established. The straight
lines Q, h„ Q~ ft, and Q, ft, are drawn
through the three scales, Q, ft, and Q. ft,
intersecting exactly at point ft, on the
third scale. Similarly Q, ft, andQ, ft-, in-
tersect exactly at point Q . This can be
read as follows: For a quantity Q, pass-
ing through a pipe of diameter D,, the
frictional loss of head ft, is precisely the
same as for a quantity Q, traversing a
pipe of diameter D3. Also, a quantity Q,
traversing a pipe of diameter D. will en-
tail a loss of head equal to ft,, while in
passing through a pipe of diameter D,
the loss will be ft, feet.

Let a, b and c be the distance in

(9)

The similar triangles, in Fig. 1, show
c d -\- e

d + e

whence,

•

do)

Assuming the following values:

Qx = 1,000 gallons per minute [log. == 3],

Q2 — 10,000 gallons per minute [log. = 4],

D2 = 30 inches [log. = 1.477 12 13],

by equation (8)

ht = 0.13717 I/0/7. — 1. 1372722]

fe2= 13.717 [log. = 1.1372722]

Dj — 13.925 [log. = 1. 1437879]

Replacing a and c in equation (12) by
their values,

(log. (J., log. (Ji) «i

(log. h., — log. h^) m ■

(4 — 3) '" 1 . . _ J^i_ __ d

(1. 1372722 — 1. 1372722) m ., 2 m ., e
The quotient of the extreme values on
scale Q and scale ft, being the same, that
is,

= 3000

[30,000 300

50 ~~ O.I

it follows that, other things considered,
these scales can be made of equal length,
and the same modulus can be adopted
for the two. Then m.i = m2> and e = 2d.
From equation (9) and (10)
b d (log. P, — log- £M vi ,

or.

+ «' {log.

- log. h , )

m ,

1. 477 1 2 13 -

- 1.

H37879 ^

m ■

o.3333 m

2 m:<

1 m.,

(1 in

2d, and

d + e~ d

-t-

2 // t,

1 m

■1

6 m

of numbers measures 250 millimeters
and that of the cubes 83^ millimeters.
If this length is adopted as a modulus,
the first and third scales will be

3.477 X 83 J^ = 289.7 millimeters,

or about 1 1.4 inches long. This, of course,
is somewhat reduced in chart No. 1 for
reproduction, but the proportions remain
the same.
Finally,

m, = 83 '/3 millimeters

m-j: = \dd2A millimeters

m- = 83V? millimeters.

Resorting now to the constant

but e

then

and

mj = 2 m.i
The proportion between all the ele-
ments of the three scales are now es-
tablished and there remains only to select
the moduli most convenient for laying
out the scales. Since,
1 so, 000 wo

_£!— ! = li — = -50OO

50 O.I

log. 150,000 — log. 50 = log. 300 -- log.

0.1 = 3.4771213,
and the length of the first and of the third
scales will be 3.477 X the modulus se-
lected. On the 10-inch slide rule the scale

I 0.62 (D+ 1)

each diameter marked on the second scale
must be so located as to take this con-
stant into account. .The plan followed in
this instance is as follows: The diam-
eters selected ranged from 2 to 48 inches,
and the expression of the constant was
transformed thus:

D» / n \3

{{/ 0.62 {D+ 1))

l 0.62 (D-r 1)

For each diameter, the corresponding
D

value

was calculated and

V 0.62 (£>+ 1)
inserted on the scale instead of the diam-
eter itself. Instead of plotting, for in-
stance, 8, 12, 20, 36 and 48 inches, there
were inserted 6.007, 8.475, 13.04, 21,357
and 27.111 inches.

This case is somewhat out of the or-
dinary, and if it had been necessary to
have the scale of diameters continuous,
the process would have been extremely
tedious.

To locate the beginning of the second
scale it is necessary to calculate exactly
the corresponding value of the frictional
head for one given diameter and a given
value of gallons per minute. The posi-
tion of the number representing the diam-
eter is given by the intersection of the
straight line joining gallons per minute
and the friction head with the line on
which the diameter scale is established.

The treatment of boiler water with lump
and with hydrated lime has been tested
by C. E. Thomas, general foreman of
waterworks, Illinois Central Railway,
whose findings regarding the comparative
merits of the two materials are embodied
in a paper before the Illinois Water
Supply Association. A test was made on
24 tanks, each containing 65,000 gal-
lons of water; 12 tanks were treated with
hydrated and 12 with lump lime, 3432
pcunds of hydrated lime and 2808 pounds
of lump lime being used. Although about
22 per cent, more of hydrated lime than
lump Jime was used, the lower cost of
the hydrated lime showed a saving of
about 3 cents per tank over the lump
lime. A more uniform treatment was
maintained by the use of the hydrated
product and the uncertain and deteriorat-
ing effects of storage upon lump lime
were eliminated.

Apn

lrses of the Steam Engine Indicator

B) II. I.I ryant ,ht

Many engineers own indicators but
itively feu make a
with a view to what can be accompli-
by their the indicator sr

how nearly correct the valves are

>nd. whether the valves or p.
rings are leaking; third, tl n steam

en the boiler and the en-
gine; fourth, whether the compression is
for the and u eight of the

moving pans of the engine; fifth, the
back pressure; sixth, if th. nor rods

(when the engine is of the Corli-
are properly adjusted to obtain the same
cutoff at both cnJ nth. if the en-

gine will run away when the governor
is at its highest position, and eighth, the
horsepower of the engine Screrml other
things can be learned from an indicator
ram. but these are the principal uses.
nportant thing to do when
attaching an indicator to an engine is
to have the drum move in unison with the
otherwise the diagram will be
leading. To assume

that the engine has a 3tf-incl and

the indica: <>ng.

In this case, one-ninth of the length of

• ■
ngine and a loss or gain of "
inch in tl M travel of the drum would
throw some of the events out m
inches. T' -he absolute n<.

having a c mg motion.

The indicator ugh at

hut. at the sari | !v thing

*hich shows what in the

r. and if r attach-. II be

in I per cent. A fc» years

n »a» the onlv man who

llcator work; the engineer bad

take a back seat and >scd

k now a

g the uses of the ii
as enumerated, th

x claim to be ab! I the VI

• ell as
aid of an indicator It is a fa

l an
nets of the

set the valves on a

take off all the
rtain vhkh v.i ad

■
• ng

im than nece»^
Regarding

Manv
manager* i

it a diagra g 'hat II

I
"i« mnr

y «tcam prc%<-

I
il. till n

./»/«/ tin

tit*

111 engiiu

Jif

the ind mponant. If this is

found to b it ma\ 1 in

some cases by taking out some of the

ich ob-
struct the f The greater the
drop In pressure, the longer the cutoff
will be for a given load; the terminal
ses and so does the coal bill.
It is a well known fact that greater
con .; required for a crank I

ngine than for one of th
and that it requires more on the head
end than on th The greater

the speed t \tf the amount

ut an
about the on! which

how much «. Jon the cngim

ning uith.

The diagr i show whether the

back prcssi: .:hcr than it should

and if • found to be the cas'

may often I traightcning

the
A^

tell th
hau l may I

! has th'
fT If the ».uti>ff o- %o late

that und* terminal r

and the other is so -
■

a bad running engine, but
im that

If the ct am wl

will

beginning of the stro*

ctireuc-i

and as
- the he

the

end fjram. The ne\t portion of

the lint

the »!•

will be. If a square conn

ad of the curs J «hov

that the nstantaneoi

•me* tl
■
the nasM line from

«in-

cod
are too

full benefit

kes a si

turn, forming

turn d<

■

.hes or

to
eccentric ahead.

■

and *

at stmoapfceric

US)
lOUld b «•«

•hoald be eear the

too p«

« In If ab<

sea
'ong •

Indk

«std end tsea

wMr It) »'

526

POWER

April 4, 1911.

A Wrecked Engine Cylinder
By C. L. Greer

The accompanying photograph shows
an unusual mishap to a 1000-horse-
power compound engine which necessi-
tated the buying of a new cylinder and
which might have occasioned loss of life
which it fortunately did not.

While operating, the side wall of the

Wreck of High-pressure Cylinder

steam chest of the high-pressure cylin-
der let go on the valve-gear side with
the result shown. As may be seen, the
whole side was blown out. The flying
fragments left only the hub of the throt-
tle handwheel on the stem, broke both
steam cranks smooth off, took away the
top of both steam and exhaust wrist-
plates (made in wheel form) and broke
one of the reach rods on the low-pressure
side.

The plant being overloaded a temporary
steam line was run to the low-pressure
cylinder, the high-pressure crank was
disconnected and the engine delivered
half power from the low-pressure side.

The cause of the break is not known.

Smoke Abatement

Professor Watkinson, Liverpool Uni-
versity, delivered the fourth of the
lectures for stokers and others interested
in furnace management in the lecture
theater of the Walker engineering labora-
tories at Liverpool on Friday evening,
February 17, taking as his subject, "The
Setting and Construction of Boilers and
Furnaces, and the Methods of Producing
Natural, Forced and Induced Draft."

After a few opening remarks dealing
with the general aim and purpose of the
lectures, and with the importance of ac-
curate measurements of draft, tempera-
ture, steam pressure and of the composi-
tion of the exit gases as an aid to good
work in boiler management, the lecturer
dealt with the three conditions requisite
to obtai- good combustion of solid bitumi-
nous fuels and showed experimentally
how essential these were to smokeless
combustion. The details of construction

of a Lancashire boiler were then illus-
trated by aid of lantern slides in order
to prove the difficulty of obtaining smoke-
less combustion in this type of boiler, a
difficulty due to the small furnace and
the arch of water-cooled plates over the
furnace grate. The purpose of the bridge
was then discussed, and the lecturer
stated that, it produced eddies in the
gases as they passed over it into the flue
beyond, and therefore tended to promote
mixture of the hot air and hydrocar-
bon gases given off from the burning
fuel. A high bridge was therefore bet-
ter than a low one, if sufficient draft could
be obtained to work the boiler fires with
it. In the absence of good draft the use
of steam jets was often resorted to in
order to increase the air supply and to
promote the better mixture of the air and
furnace gases. In the Belleville type
of marine boiler, air at 30 pounds pres-
sure was employed in place of steam,
and the Howden system of forced and
preheated draft was now generally em-
ployed for marine work; but this system
in spite of its many advantages had not
been adopted for boiler installations on
land. Natural draft produced by a chim-
ney rarely exceeded } /> to Y\ inch, meas-
ured by a water gage. This low draft
limited the thickness of the fires and
rendered it exceedingly difficult to keep
the fuel lying on the furnace bars free
from holes. For good combustion with
thick fires, on the other hand, forced or
induced draft was essential, and this was
now generally recognized and adopted.
The different methods of obtaining arti-
ficial draft were then discussed, and the
comparative advantages of steam jets,
air jets and fans were dealt with by
the lecturer. As compared with steam
jets, fans were more costly to install, but
saved largely in running cost, a good fan
requiring only 5 per cent, of the steam
produced, in place of the 10 to 12 per
cent, used by steam jets. The statements
made by the makers and other interested
parties that steam jets only consumed 3
per cent, of the steam were absolutely
inaccurate.

The different methods of furnace con-
struction and the use of firebrick arches
for conserving heat and promoting good
combustion were then dealt with. It was
pointed out that a firebrick arch by in-
creasing the temperature of a furnace
may actually increase smoke production,
owing to the greater rapidity with which
the hydrocarbon gases will be evolved
from the freshly charged fuel, unless
precautions are taken to greatly increase
the air supply at the same moment. The
dutch-oven type of furnace construction
for Lancashire boilers was condemned
by Professor Watkinson for the reason
that from 40 to 60 per cent, of the heat
transfer in this type of boiler is by radia-
tion from the glowing solid carbon lying
on the bars of the grate to the plates
above, and this radiation can only occur

to the full extent when the furnace is
inside the boiler. Luminous flames radiate
heat also, but not to the same extent as
glowing solids. Although steam boilers
can be worked efficiently with the gaseous
fuel, they require to be specially con-
structed for this duty, and no ordinary
type of Lancashire boiler will give high
efficiency with external furnace or with
producer gas. The use of economizers
was finally discussed, and the two chief
types were described.

The lecture was illustrated by numer-
ous experiments and lantern slides, and
was followed by an exhibition of ap-
paratus for making draft, temperature
and the other measurements incidental
to good boiler management.

The Stumpf Unidirectional
Flow Steam Engine

In previous issues of Power, and par-
ticularly the January 31, 1911, number,
the design and method of working of
this type of engine have been given con-
siderable attention. Since the date men-

Fic. 1. Second Marine Engine Built
of Straight-flow Principle

tioned above, some illustrations of a
marine engine and locomotives employ-
ing the straight-flow principle have come
to hand and are presented herewith.

Fig. 1 is a photo-engraving of the sec-
ond marine unidirectional-flow steam en-
gine of this system. It was built by the
Stettiner Maschinenbau Aktien Gesell-
schaft at Stettin-Bredow.

Fig. 2 illustrates an express locomo-
tive, and Fig. 3 is a view of a locomotive

April 4, 1911.

2 An Exrai ss Lex

Mtcd at the Brussc n. Both

of these locon. have been in suc-

cessful operation for several -nonths. and
•cs of the type exhibited have
nth been put ir/ ful op-

erat

tional view of the

idcr of a locomotive which has five

and weighs approximate^

of these locom- have

Kasan Rail-

and U | t arc in the course of

■ nj; on the unidircctional-
rlc are apparently making
II headway in l.urope. and it is only
natural that thc\ should for the

of a sir. ally

equal to the t

id and triple-expansion cng

On a 300-h .r engine with a

cylinde- diameter, a steam

consumption ol

power-hour uas obtained B the

merit of high economy the straight-flow

IM has a flat-,
means a steam consumption on f'...
al load or overload of but
than at normal load.

523

POWER

April 4, 1911.

A Thriving Power Plant De

veloped by Protecting Low

Ground from Floods

By D. A. Willey

The extent and variety of operations
that may be actuated from a small water
power are well illustrated by a canal in
the Salt river district of Arizona. The

miles long and operating a series of elec-
tric pumps to irrigate 50,000 acres of
land. During the construction of the
Roosevelt dam the plant furnished power
for actuating aerial cableways for con-
veying stone blocks, cement and other
material for dam construction, and driv-
ing the motors in a cement mill produc-
ing 1000 barrels daily.

The current is stepped down to the
proper voltage for service and distributed
from the transformer station by a steel-
tower transmission line carrying six
wires of stranded hard-drawn copper. For
the irrigating pumps the wires are car-
ried on tripartite poles of varying hight,
depending on location and the length of
the line and topography of the country
through which it passes. At a point
about a mile east of the town of Mesa,
a switching station is installed from
which a line leads south into the pump-
ing territory where 1000 horsepower is
used for pumping. The wells have been
drilled and many of the lateral canals
built into which the water is pumped and
otherwise diverted from the Salt river
during floods. In all. thirty pumps are
operated.

Seven miles south of Mesa the line
enters another pumping territory and here
ultimately from 20.000 to 40,000 acres
will be served when the necessary ma-
chinery is installed. The pumping units
are vertical-shaft centrifugal pumps di-
rect-connected to 50-horsepower induction

Fig. 1. Dam and Power House at End
of Canal

locality which it serves has no available
coal or wood for generating steam and
depends entirely upon the electric current
generated by the water flowing from the
Salt river through this canal. To obtain
the necessary hydraulic head the head
gates of the canal were located on the
Salt river 20 miles above the power sta-
tion. The width of the canal is 15 feet
at the top and 10 feet at the bottom; the
minimum depth is 10 feet. The water is
delivered from the canal through steel
pipes to turbines direct-connected to al-
ternating-current generators. Three of
these units are rated at 900 kilowatts
each, working under a head of 226 feet.
The other three units comprise two of
900 and one of 1500 kilowatts, getting
water under heads which range from
about 70 to 220 feet.

A maximum of 4400 electrical horse-
power is generated and is utilized for
the following purposes: Lighting two
communities, operating a tram road six

Fig. 2. Part of 20-mile Canal from Salt River to Power Station

April 4, 1911.

POW

motors supplied with current at about
volts and 25 cycles.

The main transmission line carries cur-
rent at 45.IXXJ volts and the main
tributing lines operate at 10,000 volts.
The line mentioned as running south to
the Indian ition is a volt

line. There is a substation eight miles
south of Mesa in which the transformers
change this voltage from 45,000 to 10,000.
The main transmission line continues
through Mesa and terminates at the pres-
ent time in Phanix. 78 miles from the
power source, where power is furnished
to light the cr

The cement mill was constructed to
furnish concrete for the Roosevelt dam
and dismantled after the dam was com-
pleted. Its equipment, consisting of the
separators, material conveyers, grinding
and pulverizing apparatus, was operated
by a number of motors through shafting
and belting. The operation of this cement
mill was one of the principal objects for
which the power plant was established
but the other industries which it serves
have given it permanent usefulness.

LE I I ERS

( Seared I )\ ii. unos and Tur-

The article by George W. Malcolm on
iuction Gears for Turbine-driver
current Generators," in the issue of
J. comparing the efficiency of
turbine-driven direct-current generating
th and without gears, fails to in-
clude several important elements.
Malcolm attempts to show that in order
to attain an overall eft- am

•chboarJ as

churned by advocates of the geared
fit. it is necessary to assume cither an
'ligh generator effk r an

impossibly high turbine cf*

r one think Malcolm's assump-

(i of 97 per cent, as the efficiency of
a gear of this character is too low, if
applied to accurately cut gears; 9H . per
cent would be nearer the • figure

The efficicr, ch gear* is not a mat-

>f doubt or guess can

letermined
ccntagc of error With a gear effici-
of W per cent the figi. turbine

efficiency and geared generator effici'
would be as folic

A turbine efficiency rn flO per

cent hi well within the limits of pos-

owan -
pcciallv if advantage be taken of the gear
ate the »r 'he turbine. a»

well a* ;ce the spc OS gen

ng the at)— d of the
' reduce the number of *tage«
of a vr' igr turbine to

those of a pres age turbine to one-

fourth, resulting not only in increased
ut possibly also saving more
than enough on t: of the turbine

to pay for the cost of the gear.

ng to the above table,
the generator effic; <uld need to be

onl. •. although there

should be no difficulty in reaching
cent, if the speed of the geared gen-
erator be only one-fifth that of the
rcct-couplcd generator.

Further. Mr Malcolm entirely ign
the many practical advantages of the
standard current generator

as compared with the high-speed gen-
erator for direct connection to turbines.
Among the man> of the

high-speed urrent machine may

'cntioncd the folln -'roper com-

mutation involves carefully designed in-
terpole construction; as the diameter of
the commutator is I in the allow-

able peripheral sp :sually ncc-

essa- length commutator

in order tin the requisite area and

>wn the current dcr thin

the number of com-
mutator bars and distance required be-
tween bi is the number of poles
which n !. with Bg com-
mutators, or with two commuu
tandem. thei uni-
form d: ;rrcnt between the
different bi >n each brush arm;
careful shop quired; the
increased length of shaft necc- ac-
modatc tn nutator increases
trouble ' ich in turn in-
terferes scr >mmutat

•
while it is : " -ical

d of a -nt armatu'

•ant that that »r nnt

approached, also that the commutator
and armature be in perfect balance; due

g out or other change in the
sulation after the »tor and a

cen assembled, there ma
a displacement of the center of gra
h will .

nd the ftkill <>f the attendan-
remedy, making it necessary that the
armatur • to the manii

turcr for r e necessir

c armature
space available
and for armature windings, so that
doubtful if fh< I t|

losses and

■
losses, as c due

to the gh »pcc J » at which the

armatur eceasity of

a large amount of
in Ol
tend<

from the
and • >at under high

ittume* a
oact fofin which

lard speed clecirtcal cencrator

- to the ordinary op.

crating man, who can n . small

be re. the

repair of tl -peed gene ran •

4 both bis km and his

The n

be of the op .n.ts of

1000 ki rc8d

ecn found most -
able also for much smaller machines,
n down to M .:

reed
general t*e reduced to JOO

and the usual speed for -

me the
can be doubled to
3000 re

of a
pier structure. Ics* trouble

jo a lot
turbine running at a slower speed. In
addition to the saving by the

the turl || be some

the generator, so
that there will be no diffici.
the .i st of the gear

.I830H.

temp

rtomy figures are impos
!ue to a

hat

Ie appears

certainly h.>

that

a list of pos

would •

-npclled
to read into

'c advtwab
'gumer-

the
connecting

other than the l»c .ould not

a higher dvnamo efficiency and
not be of enough
•age

CSl-

and grindstones

an c "

■

teresting If

■

■!a.n the d

go nf

i« more •«

ittd <x

1 »ub|ect kr

•r Gibson-

530

POWER

April 4, 1911.

graph might have been justified. As it is,
he has merely indulged in the superficial
pastime of demolishing a Frankenstein
of his own construction.

Geo. W. Malcolm.
Brooklyn, N. Y.

Cutting Out the Compound-
ing of an Alternator

I was once called to correct trouble
on a single-phase compound-wound al-
ternator which was reported as failing to
hold the voltage up when running at full
load. Fig. 1 shows the connections of
the alternator as they were found. To
simplify the sketch only two commutator
segments are shown, but in reality there
is always the same number of segments
as of field-magnet poles.

Those familiar with this type of al-
ternator know that the main armature
current is rectified by the commutator A
and passes through the series field wind-
ing. In this way the extra field excita-
tion is obtained that is necessary to over-
come armature reaction and to hold the
voltage normal at full load.

After testing for faults in the machine,
I found that the commutator was short-
circuited, cutting out the current that
should have gone to the series field wind-
ing. The repair of this commutator would
have been a somewhat difficult job with-
out having factory facilities, so I decided
to do away with the compensating fea-
ture and connect the machine as shown
in Fig. 2, also reinforcing the short-cir-

tK Series
Field
.Winding

Jo Exciter

-..Shunt
Field
Winding

Jo Line

load on the exciter, but it was large
enough to stand it. We had no difficulty
in holding the voltage at full load and
the operator was so pleased that the com-

Series •
Field
Winding

Fic. 1. Original Connections

cuit of the rectifying commutator A; a
piece of wire was wound around the
commutator for this purpose. The series
field winding was connected in series with
the main field winding, the coils of which
were connected in parallel-series, as
shown, and the combination was con-
nected to the exciter. This increased the

Jo Exciter

Fig. 2. Changed Connections

mutator and brushes had been cut out
that we decided to leave the machine
connected that way permanently.

G. J. Reynolds.
Anniston, Ala.

Mr. Hull's Erratic Belt

From reading Mr. Hull's letter in
Power of February 14 it is evident that
the two pulleys do not line up or the
two shafts are not parallel, that is, one
of them is not level — perhaps both.

The reason the belt runs true with the
center of the pulleys when loaded and
shifts from one side to other in stop-
ping and starting is that the crown on
the pulley guides the belt true with the
center when it is pulling a load and tight,
but when starting or stopping the belt
is slack enough to run to the edge in
response to the unsymmetrical influence
of the pulleys.

If it is an endless belt it may have
been glued together crooked, that is, with
one edge longer than the other.

N. E. Woolman.

Danbury, Iowa.

was crooked, which accounts for its not
staying on the center of the pulley when
starting and stopping.

I opened the seams on the stretched
side and tried taking up on them, but this
did not help much as the belt was still
stretched between the seams. I then tried
to stretch the short side to match the
other side by moistening it while it was
running, also putting more tension on it,
but with no better results.

By experimenting with the belt-adjust-
ing wheel on the generator I learned that
by reducing the tension on the belt before
shutting down and increasing it before
starting, the belt would run true with
the center of the pulley. The amount of
tension in each case must be determined
by experiment.

This remedy, however, is not absolute,
for, although an engineer may be able
to operate the belt in this manner by
careful attention, the load may suddenly
change on the generator when he is not
near to attend to the belt, or someone
else may start the engine and cause a
wreck that would be far more costly than
having the belt put in proper condition.
It should be sent to a belt manufacturer
to be cleaned and straightened and the
seams made over. In the mean time, I
advise Mr. Hull to make sure that the
pulley is in line with the driving wheel
and the foundation bolts are tight; also,
not to allow the generator to swing when
the load is on it and to see that no water
is allowed to drip on the belt from the
roof or piping.

J. W. Blake.
New York.

The erratic belt behavior described by
W. S. Hull in the February 14 issue of
Power appears to be a duplicate of an
experience I had with a similar outfit.
In my case the trouble was due to the
fact that oil worked out onto the flywheel
from the engine bearing and moistened
the inside half of the belt when running,
causing that half to stretch. This forced
the outside half to carry most of the
load and that half, under the extra strain,
stretched also; this enabled the belt to
adjust itself true to the center of the
pulley when the load was on it. As the
outside half was dry, however, it con-
tracted back to its original length when
the load was taken off and then the belt

If Mr. Hull, who had a letter in Power
for February 14 regarding a dynamo belt,
will test the face of the pulley with a
straight-edge he will probably find that
it has worn slightly hollowing in the
center. This can be corrected by build-
ing up the center of the pulley by wind-
ing strips of thick paper around it. The
paper can be fastened on with either glue
or shellac; shellac will resist both oil
and water, but Mr. Hull probably does
not let either get on his dynamo pul-
leys. By using strips of paper of dif-
ferent widths the pulley can be built up
so that it will have any desired crown.
I have had a similar experience which
was corrected in the manner described.

G. E. Miles.

Salida, Colo.

German interest is greatly aroused in
the proposal to utilize the power of the
Tinfos, which is estimated at 15,000
horsepower, to supply the energy for
electrifying the whole of the Tinfos iron
works. By the summer of 1911 it is esti-
mated that one-third of the power will be
in use for the electric furnaces, and that
twelve months later the head of water
will be fully utilized.

April 4. 1911.

531

Gas power £)ePartment

A Composite Prasure and
Suction Producer Plant

The accompanying engravings illustrate
an equipment of pressure gas producers
in a New Kngland manufacturing plant,
together with some details of the pro-
ducer construction 1 ig*. 1 and 2 show
the plant of three generators and the
charging floor, respective:
sectional elevation of one of the gen-
erators. The inside diameter is M feet
and the generator is rated at 400 pounds
al per hour on a 24-hour I lrn-

ing approximately 12 pou oal per

hour per square foot of grate surface.
The generator is a heavy steel cylindrical
shell, firebrick lined and set in a con-
crete pan; the shell is supported by four
ictural steel, one of which is
Coal is charged through
calcd hoppers which rest on
watt and poke h<>

located at convenient the holes

arc closed I ed plugs and the con-

stru. 'hat the poking bars

cannot injure the finished surface and
wear the h* il of true. A simple

n the feeding '
per*, held to its th a counter-

. hi. as indicated in the illustra-
A notable feature of the general i
the annular

on. which -am

throughout the I fuel with an un-

usual approach to un The an-

/ v ( / v thing

north while in the vV}<;

cni>in r and J )/oc/t ; c cr

industry will he trv.itcd

here m ./ may th.tr *• an
he oi ust- topnt ti

at the of the purge and scrub*

aled
off > the i

through the botton.

ca/

mt'ti

is supplied with air and steam by two

Mo- the Kortir located at

of the diameter of the

tu\cre; thifl irse. tends to uniform

bution.

The gas from the generator passes

through an econon I two

i -tcel
plate, the gas passing through the inner
shell and the .< the generator pass-

ing through the outer one in I

"
heat th.i- 'he gas when it leaves the

generator is t.i-
•he air pa*
the result that the j on-

nd the
pcraturc of (he steam 'he bio*

Itcd

in the bottom of the gencrat

Two scrubber* of the
are In trn n pan of the

r the ga ">Icd and etc..

iy of water and a bed
oke and the Med

*»

the
'ton and pressure to

■

^ - m 7

^^^^^^^™

■
of ash. a« the 1st- Jescend

both around lh< ugh the

Inside opening of the annulu*

•uctior la used in. i<
irn M«*«ra. at
bj ->• . viw>ct

532

POWER

April 4, 1911.

in order to maintain an actually constant
pressure in the main, and these, of course,
subject the generators to suction. The
inlet and outlet of each blower are con-
nected by a bypass in which is a regulat-
ing valve that allows some of the gas

sss^b aKST

^fo»VfRr '

Fig. 4. Water-sealed Valve

merely to circulate in the pump when
the pressure in the main is normal. The
pumps or blowers and their connections
are illustrated by Fig. 5. To reduce the
liability to shutdowns, one of the blowers
is driven by an electric motor supplied
with current from the central station of
the town and the other one, which is nor-

1 i

m i

1 - -

,Ji —

^fi^^^

i, V^g»

done*;

Fig. 5. The Gas Pumps

mally used, is driven by a small vertical
engine supplied from the boiler which
makes steam for the gas generators.

The coaling arrangements are so clear-
ly shown in Fig. 2 that a verbal descrip-
tion is not necessary. A simple but ex-
cellent feature of the building is that

the charging floor is open on the side
toward the auxiliaries on the floor below,
so that the operation of the pumps can
be observed from the charging platform.
The equipment was designed and built
by the Flinn & Dreffein Company, of
Chicago.

Gas Power Plant Erectors
and Operators

By W. E. Nelson

Do gas engines and producers need
engineers, and do gas-engine and pro-
ducer manufacturers need information or
advice from the erecting men? Many
manufacturers depend upon their engi-
neering talent in the office and drafting
room to work out the details and turn
out a machine that will give reliable ser-
vice, depending upon an indicator card,
a brake test of two hours and one or two
observations of the engine's performance
while running nicely under a moderate
load.

Two plants practically alike were in-
stalled under different conditions; one of
them was accepted and the other re-
jected. The one that was rejected was
installed by an engineer from the office
and the other one by an erector from
the test floor. Before the office engineer
had gained enough practical experience
to get his plant to operating successfully
it was too late for a practical man to do
any good.

On the other hand, many gas-engine
installations that were installed by prac-
tical men have been rejected through the
fault of the manufacturers in not send-
ing men that were adapted to the par-
ticular line of work to be done. An ex-
perience with a small municipal electric-
light plant will serve to illustrate one way
in which the manufacturers are to blame
for poor installations and unsatisfactory
operation. The plant equipment con-
sisted of a 55-horsepower engine and
suction producer which was sold by a
gasolene-engine agent, who, in an en-
deavor to save as much as possible, sent
his regular gasolene-engine erector to in-
stall it. The erector was of the type that
can use his hands to a good advantage
but not his head. In the first place he
hired a hobo who was looking for a
day's work to put in the firebrick; the
result was a leaky lining. He next piped
the jacket water from the engine into the
scrubber; the result was that the engine
got warm gas laden with tarry vapors
and small particles of dust that were
carried over in the vapor. The next mis-
take and most serious was neglecting to
open a drain which relieves the vaporizer
of the water that does not vaporize, which
resulted in filling it up to the air intake
and shutting off the supply; this caused
the engine to back-fire, slow down and
finally stop. The manufacturers left a
2-inch pipe flange on the engine intake
after testing it on natural gas; the erector

connected about four feet of 2-inch pipe
to the intake and connected that to the
5-inch gas main with a reducing coupling.

I am not criticizing the man; my ob-
ject is to emphasize the advisability of
employing men trained to do this par-
ticular kind of work intelligently; they
cannot be hired for $60 a month.

The erector left the plant in the condi-
tion described and the town hired a local
man to run it; he burned out a dynamo
bearing the first week. They tried two
or three other men and finally shut the
plant down and notified the agent to take
it out. He, as a last possible resort,
wired the factory for a man, informing
them that he must be a diplomat as well
as an expert in every sense. The man
who was sent was neither a diplomat nor
an expert in the usual sense of that title,
but he was instrumental in putting the
plant in good condition and getting it ac-
cepted. In order to get a settlement the
agent had to sacrifice the profit and con-
siderable more, which would have made
up the extra cost of a good man for sev-
eral years.

In another plant, poor repair work on
a generator lining was done by the op-
erating engineer. The firebrick being
badly burned out in the lower half of the
generator, he decided to replace all of
the badly burned brick; in finishing up
the lower half of new brick he found
that it did not connect with the upper
half, of old brick, by nearly half an inch,
so he filled the crack with fire clay. It
held until it dried out; then the engines
would slow down and would not carry
full load, the producer would get a mix-
ture of air and gas in the top and ignite
it and blow dust and fine coal out at
every joint. The greatest inconvenience
would occur when cleaning the fire with
the cleaning door open. It was not long
before the engineer telephoned the fac-
tory for a trouble man; he had blown
the fire several hours and could not get
good gas at the engine. Upon inspection
it was found that a trowel could be in-
serted all the way around the lining, in
the crack between the old and the new
parts of the lining.

A good rule to follow in replacing
burned-out brick is never to replace them
higher than half way to the extreme fire
line, and then the greatest care should
be taken to fit them perfectly; in case it
becomes necessary to replace any more
it is best to remove all the brick to make
sure of getting a good tight lining. It
may cost a little more at the time but
will be a great saving in the long run.

Up to the present time there has been
very limited publication of the experi-
ences of gas-engine and producer men.
Talking with several of them has given
me the impression that they are labor-
ing under the delusion that their experi-
ences are too valuable to give away; the
other fellow can find them out the same
way they did. This is about as unprogres-
sive and senseless as anything can be.

April 4, 1911.

POU

533

The Oil Disappeared

[Hiring the summer months it was the
»m to stop the engine, and not close
the stop valve on the boiler, but as cold
•her set in it was closed, and after
draining the pipes, the throttle was also
closed to prevent any leakage running
into the drains and freezing.

.cc that time I have been wonder-
ing why the engine took so much oi!
the oil pump had not been tampered with,
morning the engine had been run-
ning about an hour when the cylinder
began to groan.

I looked into the oil-pump reservoir,
which had been filled the day before, and
found it empty In thinking it over I
came to the conclusion that, closing the
ind throttle created a vacuum
in the pipe and Jrew all the oil out of
the pump in the effort to supply the ;
with air. A cure was effected bv open-
ing the bleeder on the oil pump, thus
ng the ; ,vi air.

Gartv
gan. U

( iraphite as a Under Com-
pound

The value of graphite as a boiler com-
pound is not generally knowr rat
ing engineers, and a recent experience
in using graphite in

•fectly * Proa scale
be of inter
There were t -
the she n the plant came

sion. and a chemical
lay, was
need ' scale ng The

are in constant use, and cvap-
cd on an avi rage of .VMM) cuhic feet
of water in The c

nccrs claimed the I free fl

scale, and all internal surfaces appeared
i : i
is a scale ; accour'

upposcd affln • nctals. When

grap a boiler, the circula-

• -he water earn- ons

and the graphite forms a thin coating on
the metal \» nil the scale from

injj The Km; ro a

powder, as ordlnar ' as a In

eating graphite

r the first two weeks one ;
graphite was n *ith one gallon of

water and f 0 of the pumps

• c*n the iter an.1 :

each das At the end of

Pr.U tJc .//
mfion a from tin

m^n on the job A lei

sj> •<''■'' ' fin i it

lure wj/J be p.tul /.
A/f./s nor mtrt
mant

■ cleaning and
about 1 i as rem

n the b. the boilers; this sit.

contained c ale. about

inch tb . ich appeared to be old

scale from the back head The boilers
had been blown dnvin twice a day. and
the amount of sludge r is about

e that recn ig the com-

id. The amount of graphite was then
to a ; and

at the end of another t the

were again opened and cons
able white coating appeared on the
fact i red to be new-

scale, but on close examination was

i scale with the
face dissolved. In some places the old
scale came off in Ian
that tht had been h a

scale so hard that it had been mistaken
for the metal

At the M . > • \*ccks one of

boilers ;t a few pat.

seal ler was nearest the pump

and appear most of the

graphite r to hi as good

a condition now. and both appear to be
free fr<>r:; tea]

When the used the fr

water line had to be removed
months, and fl but

C using gr.' a\e

■i taker
necessary to do so; the pumps a
clean and are not coaled with a gi
tancc as foi

MM loose from
the aurl

grap that it will wort

n the vrale and ll
metal, causing to loo— a and

fall off I am ur

plain the apr tion of

■

scale .thing mposl

I am a*

< >n sscaosM o
being used la bleach

olor o'
i command the be-
at r

poir

pre ts of a-

Air Chaml I i Pres-

ide W • I

In
the wa-

■ 'ie eng:r
to a tank located about 800

el of the r s to

the various offices

head, was so great tha- i faucet

in one of the lo»cr floors was turned
on and off a sew oc-

msmitted <

run a new and scpa- ocn the

connect the

.i * • ■

the ng sin;

It cooaletod of a piece
Incr

i .

aofi rubber

and ab

thin mnnain

•

>NMlt ha

ind the

■ turned an or off
In » the rubber

absorbed all of the shock and relieved

en h waa eeeuonkrt, a h
ond pipe was r ««• thai the

l be °'d auM w a • u ♦< J t ■ Bail rse< *

534

POWER

April 4, 1911.

needed, but its success demonstrated that,
in a case of high-pressure heads in water
lines, a rubber cushion is superior to an
air chamber on the pump to absorb shocks
from water hammer.

H. B. Lange.
New York City.

Feed Pipe Scaled

The difficulties began with the packing
in the boiler feed pump giving out more
frequently than a good packing should.
It was decided that the packing was at
fault and a new brand was tried. This
played out in even less time than the
previous lot, so the old kind was again
used, but for each renewal of packing
the pump worked harder than ever.

Pump valves and check valves were
carefully examined, but nothing was
found amiss, except the remains of the
packing. At length the trouble became
more serious and it became difficult to
keep enough water in the boiler.

Finally the problem was solved. The
feed pipe entering the boiler was carried
5 feet inside the shell before discharg-
ing. Just outside the boiler head, an
angle valve was placed to facilitate clean-
ing this pipe. When the bonnet was re-
moved the 1^-inch pipe was found so
badly scaled as to be reduced to % incn
in size.

After reaming out this feed pipe, first
with a yi -inch, then a ^-inch and final-
ly with a 1-inch pipe with teeth filed in
the end, the pump was started up
and worked as smoothly as could be de-
sired.

After this experience a special point
was made at boiler-cleaning time to in-
vestigate such feed pipes and also the
connections to the gage glasses.

F. H. Stacey.

Montreal, Can.

Water Coils Burn Out

What causes my 2-inch hot-water coils
to burn out, and how can I remedy the
trouble?

Boiler tubes, ten in number, connected
with long return cast-iron ells, extend
from the rear of the setting to the bridge-
wall, which is on a level with two courses
of brick, which rest on bars, placed 32
inches from the boiler shell. The grating
and bridgewall measure 5j4 feet over
all by 6 feet wide. The distance between
the boiler shell and coil is 4K> feet.

In about four months, these coils turn
up at the furnace end of the combustion
chamber, the bend extending back about
3 feet.

I am not bothered with scale. I burn
oil and the burners are set 2 inches above
the brick, or 30 inches from the boiler
shell.

The flame takes a straight line to the

end of the bridgewall, and then leads up
slightly to the boiler.

Water enters these coils from the boiler-
feed pump at about 120 degrees Fahren-
heit, thence to the boiler. Do these coils
increase the efficiency or capacity of
boiler, or both? I would like to hear
from those who have had experience with
coils placed beneath their boilers, in the
furnace, and what advantage they have, if
any, over other ways of heating the feed
water.

R. A. Booth.

Riverside, Cal.

Steam Pipe Drips

Drips for steam mains are often neg-
lected, and the direct drain, as shown in
the accompanying sketch, is as good and
safe as any plan that can be adopted. This
type of drain will carry the water di-
rectly into the steam pipes leading to the

Draining Steam Line to Engine
Cylinder

cylinder and consequently will drain off
the condensed water above the throttle
before the engine is started. This elim-
inates the danger of an accident to the
engine. Connecting all leads to a main
drip line to which many drains are led,
is bad practice, as in some cases a trap
is depended on to carry the extra con-
densation away and if it fails to operate
will allow a charge of water to come
over into the engine cylinder and wreck
it.

When drains are carried away from
the steam line leading to the engine it is
best to have individual traps to carry
away the surplus water rather than one
trap to care for a whole line.

C. R. McGahey.

Baltimore, Md.

Firing a Boiler

Most boiler attendants recognize in a
general way that the economical working
of a boiler furnace depends largely on
the way in which the air supply is dis-
tributed and regulated and endeavor to
do the best they can to comply with
proper combustion conditions, but few of
them can give an intelligent reason for
the procedure they adopt. But a small
proportion of engineers secure the best
attainable furnace results and in a great
many cases the matter is so imperfectly
understood that there is a serious waste
of fuel.

The total amount of air required for
the proper combustion of fuel in a boiler
furnace depends on the nature of the
fuel used. With ordinary coal the theo-
retical minimum quantity required for
combustion is about 1 1 pounds of air per
pound of coal, but because the film of
gases escaping from a burning surface
interferes with the access of the fresh-air
supply, it is impossible to burn a pound
of coal with anything approaching so
small an amount; consequently 19 to
22 pounds of air represents more ap-
proximately the quantity used under or-
dinary conditions, or between 8 and 11
pounds more than theoretically required.
As this large quantity of air is finally
expelled into the atmosphere at the chim-
ney temperature it is desirable to keep
the air supplied as low as is consistent
with the efficiency of combustion. With
badly designed or inefficiently worked
furnaces as much as 25 pounds to 30
pounds of air is not infrequently passed
through the furnace for every pound of
coal burned, a fact which serves to il-
lustrate the possibilities of economy or
extravagance in connection with air dis-
tribution and regulation.

The great bulk of the air supply is
drawn through the grates and the rate
of flew is determined by the thickness of
the fire and the draft, which is generally
controlled by a damper. Under ordinary
conditions the thickness of the fire does
not vary very much and the air supply,
if the dampers are not moved, is rea-
sonably constant.

When the furnace receives a fresh
charge of bituminous coal, the volatile
gases are at first driven off very rapidly
and, therefore, require a corresponding
increase in the air supply just as the
air flow through the grates is diminished,
due to the thicker bed formed by the
fresh fuel. In order to supply the nec-
essary air the furnace doors are gen-
erally fitted with openings which the fire-
man can open or close at will, and in
many cases the bridgewall is also ar-
ranged to admit a supplementary air sup-
ply by means of a damper operated from
the furnace front.

In the hands of a skilled man the
manipulation of these appliances can be
made to materially contribute to the effi-
ciency and economy of the boiler. Very

April 4. 1911.

POU

often, however, the appliances are

in cither an imperfect manner or are so

neglected as to be almost unworkable.

Frequently the bridgcwall-damper con-
nection is so disabled that the air orifices
are either permanently stuck open or
closed. Air admitted through the fire
door M > better advantage than

when admitted through the bridgewall
because it passes the length of the fur-
nace before mingling with the gases
ated from the fuel. Some designs
of furnace door are fitted with a box
from whence the air emerges into the
furnace as a spray through a perforated
baffle plate. Frequently these plates are
removed, or burnt away with the «
that the air supply is not well distributed.
After the fires have been charged the
ventilating grids should be opened
and allowed to remain so for a minute
or t length of time depending on

the character of the coal and determined
•he fireman from his observations of
the fire and the chimney, or better
from the readings of the CO recorder.

Manchester. Fng. J. F. Gr

5) stem in the I Ircroom

Tl. (1 ■ the human machine

a greater effect upon the >f a

.r plant than is thought to be the
case by many engineers and. in many
cases, a grcan | may be made by

increasing the if the men em-

ployed in a plant than could be act

icd by increasing the efficiency of the
machine

This poirr ell illu an

experience I had in the plant of which
I am chief engineer. burned as

a fuel and .an firemen attend

he boilers Let me say right here
that a careless fireman can waste
lars might when burning

fuci ardest proposition wi

the firemen to J.i tli rly.

as their on '•

the anJ tl)

the
bom '• each man

• 5 ; ' the fuel J

Mvt amount.

c men are
.ill the time and I fl
have t<> call their attention to tl
heater or boi'
n of the ach man I

the

fourth monffl 'un-

half Btta

and from all

i fireman •
month in the '

month* each nun

unt w.i

Mich wai
■toney had '

10 accomplish the saving I

arc continual). g to me and. in

their broken Eng .. g some

new idea for saving fuel. When their
suggestions arc at all reasonable they are
carried out at once and their int
kept til

After thi- c | firmly belli

that this is the only way to •handle"
firemen. It ply a case ^ing

'her the money is to be given to the
fuel dealer, or m the fire

men and the compa

If a man • arely enough to keep

bod\ oul together, he will do

as little work ■ w and hold his job.

If he is getting a good living wage and
on top of that is receiving a share in
the saving he makes, the chief engineer
will soon be sa fire-

men that I eve

T. P. Wi:

Automatic Pump Control

The accompanying sketch illustrates an
automatic pump control I built about one
year ago. The m pump sup-

Melti

The main genera n a small

ant consisted of a high-
ind ger
a speed of 300 re minute.

The plant was operated or
the night. Med up

in the afternoon t

for lig'

up. filled the , on the

argc of the
:o a
job ng

Returning to the plant abo.. me

the shi -ic engineer found

the room I

gine was pounding so badly that it could
be ' block awi

•ink
pin. which had run h melted

babbitt had been thrown out of the

The crank was oiled by a wipinf device
ate onl.
ginc oil in the

io had ma:
taka in filling the oil . -%tor

oil. Ir. >ur the engine had to be

for the night's rur

r to ma- • job of

babbitting the brasses. They could

not be babh piece of

is found that was about the same

■

I found th.. nadc a

on a f< spots oi

so the engineer decided to

■

aftc-

and

the cm ilea

icd ur

t to ran a

ughf up to fined and tl"

soot isses began to tnv

pood *

pourad oo the

IO COOl found

« tbt

to t <d —ooth beartag •* the

suing out the oil groove •

•i t too. the ea)«

crtonccd with hpetlojg * load

the engine** > good .

536

POWER

April 4, 1911.

Size of Air Chamber

In the February 21 issue, Mr. Dew
describes some trouble he has had with
a pump which pounds when he starts it
up.

I have had some experience with
pumps pounding. Every time that a
troublesome pump was started the noise
would be something frightful, and it was
a great relief when the pump picked up
the water.

One engineer told me that the air
chamber was not large enough. Another
told me to set the steam valves. Every
man that came along had a different
remedy. But none was of any value.
Finally, I repacked the water plungers
with fresh packing well saturated with
cylinder oil and graphite. I also packed
the rods at the same time. I left the
packing on the water plungers quite
loose. When I turned steam on, I never
saw a pump work nicer, and I was sur-
prised to see how quickly it picked up
the water.

Pumps have three places in which to
look for trouble: the steam valves, the
water valves and the packing. Air leaks
are usually pipe troubles.

O. L. Sherman.

Duluth, Minn.

In regard to Mr. Dew's air-chamter
problem as described in the February 21
issue, it is my opinion that there may be
a small leak at the threads in the cap
which allows the air to escape and the
chamber to fill with water. A threaded
cap should not be used on an air chamber
as it is difficult to make a tight job. A
screwed flange should be put on the end
of the air-chamber pipe and the latter
well peened. Then, a plate should be
bolted to the flange with a rubber gasket
between.

A long air chamber has no advantage
over a short one; it is capacity that de-
termines adaptability.

James Johnson.

Hackett, Penn.

In reply to F. A. Dew's question in
the February 21 issue regarding air
chambers for pumps, I will say that the
proper size of the air chamber depends
upon the size of the water cylinder and
not upon the discharge line, if the pump
is properly installed.

For ordinary double-acting pumps
working against moderate pressures, and
at ordinary speeds, the cubical contents
of the air chamber should be not less

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articles Jetters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

than three times the piston displacement.
For pressures of 100 pounds per square
inch or more and for high piston speeds,
the capacity of the air chamber should
be at least six times the volume of the
piston displacement. The effect of a
small inlet in the chamber would be to
prevent a rapid loss of air.

Under the increased pressure in the
air chamber, the air is absorbed by the
water and gradually passes off with it.
In this way all the air will finally pass off
and the chamber will be made useless if
no means are provided for renewing the

Arrangement for Replenishing Air
Chamber

supply. A simple device for maintaining
the supply of air in the air chambers of
large pumps is shown in the accompany-
ing illustration. The piece C of 2i/-inch
pipe, about 25 inches long, is connected
to the end of the pump cylinder A in a
vertical position by means of a gate
valve or cock B. The 2}/ -inch tee D is
placed on the upper end of the pipe C.
The lJ4-inch check valve E is placed on
a nipple on the side away from the air
chamber. This check valve opens in-
ward. The l;4-inch check valve at F
opens outward.

This arrangement operates as follows:
When the pump is working, the valve B
is opened. This allows the pipe C to fill
with water. Then, B is partially closed
until the check valves E and F begin to

click. Thus, when the valve B is opened
the pipe C will fill with water during the
discharge stroke of the pump. As B
is partially closed when C is full, the
pump, during the suction stroke, will
draw part of the water from C and air
will flow in through E and take its place.
During the next discharge stroke more
water is forced into C, driving the air out
through F and G into H.

If the valve B is open wide all the
water will be drawn out of C during the
suction stroke and cause a slapping noise
in the pump cylinder, but by properly
regulating the valve B, a column of water
is kept in C which acts as a piston to
pump air into the air chamber H.

A. H. Stanfield.

Clarksville, O.

Mr. Duffy Inquires

"I am told," said Duffy, "they have
made a book about that Pittsfield biler
explosion. Daly says 'tis a fine book,
made by the county judge."

"It is," said Doolin, "I've read it. I
was over to the sugar house puttin' in
tubes in the No. 18 biler an' the insurance
inspector was there. He had the book
in his grip an' I took it to relieve his
mind from the strain of goin' through
the evidence in the case. The judge is
a fine man, Duffy, an' a good, plain
writer. In the end ye find the pipe to
the steam gage was choked wid scale an'
the poor man didn't know it. With that
he goes for the safety valve an' screws
it down till the spring was solid an' even
the huddle chamber was closed. He keeps
on firin' an' chasin' B.t.u.s through the
flues, worryin' all the time that he
couldn't get steam enough to start. Every-
body was wild to go to work an' finally
some men started out to be at the ice
when the engine would turn. At this in-
stant, Duffy, the biler exploded, an' there
ye are."

"Do the judge believe it was overpres-
sure?" asked Duffy.

"There's no other cause," says Doolin,
"beyond the poor man losin' his head in
guessin' whether 't was the steam gage
or the safety valve that wasn't right an'
he has paid for that. They found the
valve loaded for 225 pounds or so."

"An' I am told," remarked Duffy,
"they have the best biler rules in the
country up in Massachusetts. Daly says
there's no doubt about it; that they have
got everybody else's rules in the second
division, even the U. S. G."

"Daly is right," says Doolin. "There

April 4, 1911.

isn't a bilermaker but knows the Massa-
chusetts rules is the best. An' wha-
ye expect else from the land of the
sacred codfish an' the home of the Ply-
mouth Rock! Sure, they know beans up
there an' bilers too, for that."

"Even so," said Duffy, "the bilcr blew
up."

"True enough," said Doolin, "but why
quarrel over the r. '-lind you, those

rules are new, merely a beginnin' an' a
grand one, at that. Here's a terrible
explosion, due to an unlooked for c.i
one that had not been counted on. In a
short time they will slip in a rule to
cover this detail."

■n' how?" asked Duffy.

-Well, now. look at Philadelphia."
the reply. Th the only place in the
country where they require two safety
valves on each bilcr. Would you be-
lieve, Duffy, if the Pittsfield man had
two safety valves on his bilcr, that he
would have took the word of the lyin'
steam gage against the two va iere

c solution of the matter. Tis a
to one bet I am right, as ye see.
further, when the late George Babcock
went into the bilcr business, he had in
mind that this might occur an' so he
placed two pop valves on each of his
bilers. The other water-tube men. of
course, did the same an' this accounts
in some measure for the safety of the
water-tube bilers.. The nc\t step, then,
Duffy, is to pass a rule providin* for two
valves set two pounds apart."

"Why not." said Duffy, "have two
steam gage ch biler. one to check

the other"' True, in most plants ye can
check the bilcr gage by the engine-room
gage, but in the small plants, they use
but the one gage "

"Tis a grand thought." s.i :in.

"If we can come back in about one hun
dred >cars an* sec tin our gran'-

sons arc runnin'.
Duffy, that, as Bill says, arc fl I
r<y mortal man. An* the
rule*. Duffy, arc doin* a great work in
hastenin' the day when bilcr
»ill be confined emir

ness.
cnt ns. every crank that takes a

whack at lap-seam bilers an' lap-wcldcd
water tubes, everv dreamer of a nor
plosive biler. i» each mother'* son a
booster for better co; in* better

*. An' mind yc. Duffy, that Masai*
ctts is he pace f->r the ..thcr

». Th ig in* the

ferment i* *prc»Jin' The cr . are

thinkin' an' the bilermaker* M

n Iowa wants Massachusetts
standard biler* When. get

" >m the alfalfa
with the lad* In the I in' then

have the varum* M
*team ent-

•c ji vc , imc p** '

of »ho vfll csldcnt '

«n' get together for laws on r

constru. pcctioi j-.J pcratior.

»''" *er- naichin'

In the c
bilermaker. the cr . the owner and

*oci. be b. financial!)

the rigid enforcement of such It

An' the lime

take a visitor from a foreign land to a
museum an* shot him a lap-seam '
stuck up by a u ' apolcon,

Jawn L. an' other

\n' when." asked Duff all this

be
"l liana :■

the readers .,■

Punxsutau nn.

Lubricator Piping Layout

In the Febni

for a method of piping a lubricator
to a ret The accompanying figure

v% a good method.
The rt _rc

so Pire Co*

thai for filling so long a*

rcung
must be b< M that

no 4pped

•team ; the bottor-

the

can be g.i ' >rming a loop as

•ho-

j. •caenratc. open valve*

Mate the ml feed

H and D and open »alvc

When filling the reservoir close -.aires

the pet cock oa the bottom of
When the vc the pet

cock and All the rev

fur p.

• burgh

itions on this subject
from James

Wis., and John A. w estown. O.

The c aajnr

ation and the one pub-
lished in la

Slij I ,.-.

■.

In the Fcbrua

icnce •
latch bl< . •

I have had consi
»ith latch Mi 4 and

Instead of b

pound for
the common sof: and

cm This method

ha*

ich plates on a 30 and JO
- -ch engine running a- ilu-

tions per minir tours r

f plates hat. on for

eighteen months and - ley

•■1

J N lunti.
union, 1

I kajpe t .11

The
pur %t October arc * . ..

pened up a l

:reatesi import
:iginc builders and bu

•ruth a

the

maids oooforn M thf htu of 'xakage
hed by those c»pen.

iggeutiaea in the letter on thts

«• ! ■

should, without doubt, be
cep'

sot
poiatad out. ho»c that the »al»e

ran nut u* laailag ati

I •Stunt 10 leak past when
the end af a*

1 obiacttoa oouM be aeatcoaBt he

'.■ ■

tc S «r-~ts*r <*

tad Nicelsou's saaataaeaf that

538

POWER

April 4, 1911.

minute differences of fit of a valve do not
appear to affect the amount of steam
leakage past the valve to any appreciable
extent, and are also a confirmation of
tests taken by myself to determine the
advantage of ring valves over solid valves.
The results of the tests which are given
by Mr. Allen in Power for November
29 show that the leakage of a piston
valve does not appear to increase much
even after several years' running, thus
showing that the slight wear which is
bound to occur is not sufficient to make
any appreciable difference in the amount
of the leakage. Mr. Allen champions the
piston valve and gives a category of its
virtues; however, the results of the tests
that he gives are slightly worse than
those obtained with slide-valve and
rider-valve engines in this country.

Mr. Shoemaker's letter in the January
3 issue calls for much comment. His
explanations of the objections to a stand-
ing test for leakage, and of the cause
of the greater leakage with valves than
with pistons are certainly novel and his
assertions are surprising.

To test a valve he placed it in its mid-
position and turned steam on. Of course,
the valve leaked badly as it had very
little cover and, hence, the steam had
practically no distance to leak through in
order to get into the cylinder. Thus, it
is not surprising that in not one of more
than fifty tests was it possible to open
the stop valve fully.

Let him put the valve so that it is
neither over the port nor partly out of
its liner, then he will obtain a very dif-
ferent result and one which more nearly
conforms to the working conditions of
the valve.

The arguments that the spectators ad-
vanced against the reliability of the tests
that they were shown is just the one that
is advanced, and is accepted by all engi-
neers who consider the subject, to show
why the valve does not leak to any ex-
tent when standing, although it leaks con-
siderably when running. As he pointed
out, Mr. Mitchell's tests prove that the
spectators had got the wrong idea. It is
stated that there was no noticeable dif-
ference between the leakage with solid
valves and that with ring valves; of course
there was not, because the steam in all
probability had no ring to get past in the
latter valves and, therefore, the leak-
age should be identical. Mr. Shoemaker
states, "We have all heard the argument
that the rings in a piston do not show ex-
cessive leakage; therefore, why should
the rings in a piston valve show any more
leakage? The answer to this argument
is simple." It is, and surely he does not
think that the answer he gives is be-
lieved by anybody beside himself. From
his letter I should judge that he has seen
several valves, but has he not come
across any that have been working for
several years in the same liners?

The information on the reputed test
at Cornell University, where the piston-

valve rings had to be reexpanded after
three and a half hours' run because the
leakage became so great, leaves us won-
dering how the leakage was discovered
and what the mechanical efficiency of the
engine was while it was grinding the
valve away so rapidly. The statement
that the wear on a piston valve after a
year's run will be ten thousandths of an
inch or more is decidedly inaccurate if
the valve has been properly designed, for
there are solid valves that have been run-
ning several years that have not as much
clearance as this. In this country the
restrained ring type of valve is largely
used, and from personal observation I
can say that the wear of the rings is
only about four to six thousandths of
an inch in a year; in fact, some rings
have run a year without wearing down
to the diameter of the valve body.

Mr. Shoemaker's observations on the
leakage in the slide-valve engine fitted
with a pressure plate is in accordance
with the results obtained by Messrs. Cal-
lender and Nicolson, and it was to be
expected that it would be greater than
with the piston valve as there is a greater
surface over which leakage could occur.
I would commend to the attention of
Mr. Shoemaker the carefully conducted
tests of these experimenters for considera-
tion before he makes such emphatic
statements regarding the much greater
leakage of the valve after a few weeks'
run; apparently he has been anxious to
obtain such tests to disprove arguments
that have been brought forth that both of
the types of valve above mentioned do
not leak steam under operating condi-
tions, but whoever brought forward any
such arguments plainly showed that he
had no knowledge of the subject.

Engineers will agree with Mr. McGahey
in his opening remarks upon this sub-
ject given in Power for January 17. Ma-
terial, workmanship, and care in opera-
tion are three most essential considera-
tions in the life and efficiency of a valve,
as they are in all engineering work. En-
gine builders do not, as he suggests,
make their piston valves on the expansion
principle because they have no faith in
their claims that such valves are steam
tight, that is, comparatively speaking, but
they make them in such a manner be-
cause it is realized that some wear must
occur and means for taking up this wear
should be provided. In the balanced
slide-valve engines the wear of the valve
has been minimized by the addition of
a pressure plate. This plate relieves the
working face of the valve from the pres-
sure that would be exerted on it by the
steam pressure on the back of the valve
and, therefore, the wear is diminished;
but this gives more surface for steam
leakage, so the attempt to reduce the
wear on the valve is not conducive to the
attainment of a tighter valve. With a
pressure-plate valve it is most essential
to the economy of the engine that the
wear which occurs should not be allowed

to become excessive; because of the
greater surface for steam leakage the
wear will have a more harmful effect
with this valve than with a piston valve.

Mr. McGahey states that he has never
been able to see but one advantage that
the piston valve possesses; that is, that it
runs light and is light on the governor.
He overlooks the advantage of not hav-
ing the piston-rod glands exposed to high-
pressure steam and if he had had much
experience with superheated steam he
would realize the great advantage of
using the piston valve instead of the slide
valve for high temperatures. He recom-
mends testing the valves for leakage in
the same manner as that adopted by Mr.
Shoemaker, but I would again point out
that this is not representative of the
actual conditions of operation and that
a fairer test would be to test one end of
the valve at a time with its face com-
pletely covered by the liner. Mr. Mitchell's
tests were conducted on these lines, as
also were those of Messrs. Callender and
Nicolson.

This discussion has plainly shown the
great need of further experiments. The
attention which it has attracted shows
the interest taken in this important mat-
ter. If one oi two engineering colleges
could carry out a series of tests on dif-
ferent valves it is possible that we should
then have definite information regarding
the comparative leakage of the valves and
this would be of great value to engineers.

James Cannell.

Stanford le Hope, England.

Water Hammer and Other

Phenomena

Of the "Topics for Discussion" in the
March 7 issue by John W. Payler the
first one, relating to water hammer and
its possible causes, has been discussed
times innumerable. Two of the theories
which receive almost universal accept-
ance are: Water lying in the steam pipe
is picked up by the inrushing steam and
hurled violently against the end of the
pipe, a bend in the pipe or a stop valve.
Second, the steam on coming in contact
with the cold water in the pipe con-
denses, forming a vacuum into which
the steam and water are projected with
violent force. I accept the former as
the correct one. It is beyond dispute
that water will condense in a pipe and
stay there unless there be an efficient
draining system or the steam line be
slanted toward the engine to carry it off.
If the water is not drained off the steam
will throw it against the first obstruction,
causing water hammer.

The correctness of this assertion seems
to be borne out by various observations.
Take the injector, for instance: a jet of
steam will pick up a stream of water and
force it into a boiler against much higher
pressure. If the feed valve be closed
suddenly while the injector is in operation
or if it be left shut before starting the

April 4. 1911.

POU

SJW

injector, a water hammer will occur, es-
pecially if the feed pipe be a large-sized
one or the injector be located at a dis-
tance from the boiler.

The vacuum theory- does not appeal to
me because even if it were possible to
create vacuum in a pipe which is pre-
sumably full of air, the only result would
be an increase in the effective boiler
pressure; otherwise the conditions would
be the same.

As to whether water hammer is due
to the contact of cold air with the inrush-
ing steam, I will relate an experience
which I had which bears on this point.
I was running an air-compressor plant
and dynamo for a constructing company.
Wt ran from 2 a.m. to 6 p.m.. excepting
Sundays. One Monday morning I arr
at the plant, as usual, in time to warm
up the engines, etc. The fireman
supposed to get there about four hours
ahead of me to raise steam. On the
previous day I had one of the boilers
cut out for cleaning, the other one being
banked. There was only one steam gage; it
was connected to the steam line and there
was no way of ascertaining the pressure
on the boiler in which steam was being
raised. The method which I usually em-
ployed was to "crack" the stop valve and
give time for the pressure to equalize.
On this particular morning, there I
about 75 pounds pressure on the one
boiler and a very good fire under the
other one. The fireman assured me that
he had the fire going for at least four
hours. I "cracked" the valve and later on
opened it full without its giving a
that everything was not in order. Then. I
started the dynamo In less than a min-
ute a great rumbling sound issued from
the boiler room. The sound was much
like thunder and unlike what wc call
water hammer. Water hammer, judging
from personal observation, has a distinct
direction of motion. In this case there
was no such thing discernible. As I
rushed into the boiler room it occu:
to me that there must be air confined in
the boiler that I had just cut in and. al-
though the boiler did not give a sign while
the steam was at rest, it began t<. grumble
•a toon as the dynamo engine began to
draw steam and the cold air to mix with
the steam. I mounted the ladder to shut
the slop valve, while the boiler was buck-
ing like an unbroken As soon
as the valve was closed the commn'
ceased. Meanwhile, the prcssi;

1 pounds. The fireman corroborated

nt that he had got there only

half an hour ahead of me and had just

started the fire; consequently the boiler

ha.! <irm

After straightening things out. I began
to philosophize upon what I had just
gone through. Vh> did not the air assert
Itself when I connected the boiler on
which there was no pressure I one

In which there wa»
I tricJ m ndsf> thl the

theory that air being a very bad conductor
objected to being heated. On second
thought, t: not seem satisfactory

as, after all. heating anything, no mat-
ter how bad a conductor, rneri ans-
ferring and r. nding cnerg> ; the
commotion that went on in the boiler re-
quired a whole lot of energy I came to
the final conclusion that heat transfc
gradual not cause any rumbling
or knocking but when attempt,
denly. it will. For instance, a piece of

hot iron when immersed in i m
of water will cause rumbling and the
water to shoot in all directions, al-
though, if the number of heat i.
quired to heat tht of iron be ap-

J to the same amount of water grad-
ually, no disturbance would occur.

.ond question, "Does air
in pipes act as in the air chamber of a
high-pressure pump, until equilibrium of
temperature >icd between it and

the ;Id reply that it A

I have on several cam

in boilers without letting the air escape,
to try the conductivity of the air. I let
the boiler warm up until the gage showed
about 15 pounds pressure, kept the pres-
sure there for about 6 hours, then I
closed the water valve on the water col-
umn and opened the blow-down valve.
Air would rush out perfectly cool until
the pressure dropped to about one pound
and steam began to escape. This sho
conclusively that cold air will not
with steam while at rest and that it will
not be heated by conduction; at least, not
quick: if circulation

-tablishcd. it would receive heat quite
rapidly.

The third question was: "la steam
formed under or above the surface of the
water " I cannot COOCCivc of steam form-
ing "abo\c" the surface What i-
comc of the space between the surfa*.
the water and "aho\' The water near-

est the heating surface receives heat
In rt .• the heat nds

and rushes to the surface, c

Mtmucd a» long as
heat is appl I anything c

is subject to the laws of gravit) The
hottest water, being the lightest, llwi
rushes to the surface where. I should I
steam i> I This seems to be true

with tin es where

*hen steam is
formed at tl k surface T>

■i is man ' - a

•it motion in the

gage glass.

The fourth question was: "Ho-

>at mea production

of a large vofttflM <*duccd

after a ■■ md Jc«

I a b«
pressure and containing one
sudden rsdnctton of pi
sure fakra r oening

of a stop ...*,..

•m-

perature will result, liberating, per pound

of watt ijsj boi

B.t

to turn %c

sudden formation of .•

e w ater surround-
ing it against the shel: .- ng a Hosting
p losion.

•>nd ha*. J many copies

of tfh the

I have seen it make man> good c
nccrs b> a carefu

-s ofc ,Uftt

differ with Mr. G<
issue.

Organization will not secure more
salary; the engim rent

from an> other calling or trade

ited tot that h. rth.

value ed not from the

amount of laboru rk he does, but

from the money he saves in the ph
ration.

.d of the i often

the maker or breaker of the firms fina-
standing; often either bankrur
moncv. dcr

his name and cate or sir

a coal passer and a stop:

starter.

ten any man gets the idea in bis
head, as evinced in Mr. Got*-
that he is worth more money than Ms

. ■
s competent and muse
form th and has the a'

to keep up a better c-
are other places Men of abilities
always wanted, a:
■D the a'
I know of a man that b-

than his firm paid him; he
sought another position; he

ar todas
I know of man\ w h<
salaries I atvt seen men to organ

take the cnJn

taught me ■ .-. help

it one can and one •

rending on
He best helps himself who

Vallacs.

•I did tou do with the steam
• ed the snparletiadsnt of the

Ton met' ■' >' ' »r eie dock "- I

540

POWER

April 4, 1911.

1 i^l

Split Condenser Tube

If a tube in a surface condenser should
split, how could it be temporarily repaired
so as to keep on running?

S. C. T.

A surface condenser tube may be cut
out of service by stopping the ends with
soft-wood plugs. The splitting of a single
tube would not have any appreciable ef-
fect on the operation of the condenser
or on the vacuum.

Bare Tube Sheet

Why can the upper tube sheet of a
vertical boiler be left bare without the
danger of burning?

B. T. S.

Because the hot gases in passing
through the lower part of the tubes give
up so much heat that they cannot over-
heat the upper portion of the tubes and
the head to the danger point.

Saturated and Superheated Steam

What is the difference between satu-
rated steam and superheated steam?

D. W. S.

Saturated steam of a given pressure
has the temperature at which water will
boil under that pressure. It may be moist,
may carry unevaporated water along with
it as mist in which case its quality is
designated by the percentage of the mix-
ture which is steam. Thus steam con-
taining 2 per cent, moisture and having
the temperature at which water boils
under its pressure is "saturated" steam
having the quality 0.98. When the last
trace of moisture is dried out the steam
is "dry saturated." Further application
of heat will raise the temperature of the
steam above that due to its pressure
when it is said to be "superheated." If
moisture is introduced into superheated
steam, the superheat (that is to say, the
heat above that necessary to make it dry
saturated) will be taken up by the water,
so that normally superheated steam will
be dry.

Temperature and Pressure

Are there other means than the steam
gage and safety valve for determining
the pressure in a boiler?

F. F. P.

Yes, a thermometer may be used.

Effect of Rocker on Eccentric

What effect has a rocker on the setting
of the eccentric?

E. R. E.
It changes the position of the eccentric

Questions are>

not answered unless

accompanied by thes

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

with regard to the crank. Without a
rocker the eccentric leads the crank; with
one it follows it.

Ejfect of Broken Spring

If the spring in a centrifugal governor
should break, what effect would it have
on the speed of the engine?

E. B. S.

The centrifugal effort of the weight is
opposed by the tension of the spring. If
this tension is removed by breakage or
otherwise the weight will move outward
and reduce the speed of the engine.

Location of Lap Crack

Where should search be made for a
lap crack in a horizontal tubular boiler?

P. L. C.

A lap crack usually occurs in the outer
or overlapping sheet near the row of rivet
heads. It is covered by the inside lap
and cannot be seen until it extends
through the plate. Search will not reveal
it as it can be found only by unmaking
the joint.

Morrison Flue Collapsing
Pressure

What is a Morrison furnace flue? Give
the rule for determining the allowable
pressure, and the rule for determining
allowable pressure on riveted boiler flues.

M. A. D.

A Morrison furnace flue is one with
consecutive annular corrugations through-
out its length.

For corrugations \l/2 inches deep the
pressure of collapse is found by the
formula

t2 X I2QO

Dx yT~~
in which

* = Thickness of tube in thirty-sec-
onds of an inch;
D = Greatest external diameter in

inches;
L= Length of tube in inches;
p = Pressure in pounds per square
inch.
For the strength of butt-strapped flue

joints the English Board of Trade pre-
scribes the formula

90,000 t2

(L+ i)d
and for lap-riveted joints

= P

60,000 t2

(L+i)d

= P

in which
P —

Collapsing pressure in pounds
per square inch;
L = Length in feet;
d = Diameter in inches;
t = Thickness of plate in inches.

Latent Heat

What is latent heat?

L. H. S.

It is heat that is absorbed by a sub-
stance when changing from one form to
another without any increase in tempera-
ture, as when ice changes to water or
water to steam.

Boiling Point of Watar

Is it possible to heat water above 212
degrees at atmospheric pressure?

B. P. W.
If water is entirely freed from all dis-
solved air it may be heated to about 260
degrees before ebullition takes place. It
then flashes into steam with an explosive
effect, which fact has been used in some
instances in attempts to account for cer-
tain boiler explosions.

Piston and Cylinder Clearance

What is meant by piston clearance in
a steam engine?

C. C. P.
Clearance in a steam-engine cylinder

means all of the space not swept through
by the piston. With the piston at the
end of the stroke, the space between the
cylinder head and the face of the piston
and the volume of the ports constitutes
the clearance. It is reckoned in terms of
percentage of the piston displacement.
The term piston clearance is sometimes
used in reference to the distance between
the piston and cylinder head when the en-
gine is on the center.

Full-weight standard pipe should be
used for pressures up to 125 pounds, and
full-weight extra-heavy pipe for pres-
sures above 125 pounds. Cast-iron stand-
ard fittings should be used only for pres-
sures below 100 pounds, medium extra
heavy for pressures from 100 pounds to
150 pounds, and extra heavy over 150
pounds. — Ex.

April 4, 191 1.

|M>\J

541

Hill Publishin

J ..■■ a. Hill, !>»•. »i..| Ik». Bbi

IV* HWMiu A**»v, QtOfft

r»Uf 0-B UB4.B T.-H./U-. X. V. 1.

ible for th* col-

■• and addrna of rarmpon .
.civen — doi n#c*aaariJ>

to any oi
Pay do mo:

IT:..

lino

1 a* iwcorwl rlaiai ma-
il the pout of (T at

Qabll add

Trlr»rapti rode.

CIR

nf ■

niorfy. I
I mumh-

( n tents

.al naai

i|-

Stmm KnglRr 1
A W KiiKlnf •

Mmokr

.••i

I ••urr a'

'■:•>

,r~|
a I
oa a II .

I
r«».ni

■

•a
■

I ^ »ntrol of the Coal
ipply

The ; ant owner will sit up

nights to figure (:■•* he can save tcr.
cent, in the cost of p..ucr production. He
will invent monc) in

search for boilers of the maximum
c will buy indicators and I
recorders and strive to save the last re-
deemable fraction of a pound of coal
lorsepowcr or kilowatt-hour.

And then he .finely by and

a group of men grab all the coal in
it, and watch it- go up to "what

the traffic will be.r

B will not presume to assert that
the ben -ig of the energy radi-

ated to and a c earth in

.ncd for the benefit of
all n ll arc think that the fa

lent that the many would
have profited at tt 'he feu

if the four. the Republic had had

h a pre .

ance of the coal de|

have kept their
ownership and control in the hand* of
:

iat has been done It done, and the
en the right
id the rights of man n
drag out it
Km are ca-

and sai r \B of the

! and mineral wealth has not

igh the
national a rnmer •

IfSJOSf Ing

met call a ha

people in '

attached at: than a ;

.: bnainoM ma-

thc po»

In t

A gene •

'<« continued giving ■

the people

at r 'king r >eir

MO-
iing the process of puMic depict
and

esse J || of the efforts

o arc working for new and
leals at
encourage * ho ar . of

:c and effon and money for
general good, and

are rca^ for

ie offkials who
are inclined to 'iem to ge*

PI • insibilit)

In the matter of boiler

ursc i»
-ucd from that in vogue here. Then-
la tit accident oci
iccount
responsible until an investigation by the
com of the Board of Ti aces

•
mcr the

osen t'
the '

son: i Vbom the

blame can be r

'ollowcd by a " of

possibl isldcrc

an J the inctdcr

LdaH nit: - ,i t'cr-a! o!' race tarA in

head flange neo and doing

■

ommissioe
vaewacd a '

• sill tn«
fine ' hundred sad Bftr

to Ob
hundred and '

againat •

»nd »>oc S.'J'r ! »- 1 Iff) MaVI •* «lna»

fig e«' ••*# toss

*tceoV

crtmlna >'

542

POWER

April 4, 1911.

would have a salutory effect and perhaps
tend to reduce the rate at which explo-
sions occur. In 1909 there were five
hundred and fifty. The complete reports
for 1910 are not yet available but it is
thought that the figures for that year
will closely approach those of the one
before. For the first eighteen days of
1911 there were twenty-four, which rate,
if kept up for the rest of the year, will
fetch the total to five hundred and forty-
seven, a number far beyond the really
unavoidable. If the English method had
been applied to some of the recent
American explosions the beneficial ef-
fect would have been felt all over
the land, for not a boilermaker, owner,
operator or inspector cares to go down
in his pocket for funds to pay for the
privilege of taking a gambler's chance on
the safety of a manifestly unsafe boiler.

Preventing Power Plant Losses

The problem of keeping down the cost
of operation confronts every steam-plant
owner, and the methods employed in
solving this problem are many.

Purchasing cheap supplies is doubtless
the means most commonly used. For
some reason or other, many operators
seem to believe they can get as good an
article cheap as they can by paying a
higher price. As a result, the repair bills
run up to a much higher figure than the
sum saved by purchasing cheap supplies.

In other matters men use good busi-
ness sense. Not one of the purchasers of
cheap supplies would think of purchas-
ing a suit of clothes for fifteen dollars
and imagine that they would wear as
well as a fifty-dollar suit.

Cheap oil is used and journals heat and
burn out. Poor coal is put into the fur-
nace and the fireman is blamed because
he burns more coal per horsepower de-
veloped than the man across the way.

A good engineer working for a low
wage can make a good fight to keep
things going, but there are conditions
that will get the better of him, and one
way to bring them about is to supply
him with inferior equipment and main-
tenance supplies.

Is it cheaper to put a packing in the
stuffing box of an engine that will last a
few weeks or to use a packing costing
twice as much that will last years?

Which is the more profitable way of
running an establishment: to pay out
hundreds of dollars in unnecessary re-
pairs, or to use better and more costly
supplies, and avoid frequent repair bills?

How it makes the careful manager
squirm to see good coal in the ash pile,
yet he has no compunction against run-
ning the engine year after year with
leaky piston rings and steam valves. He
has no idea how much steam is leaking
i"to the exhaust pipe without doing work.
The loss is there, although it cannot be
seen. And that is the point: the losses

that cannot be seen are given scant at-
tention. It is a case of "don't know,
don't care." These unseen leaks cost-
money, however, and these invisible
losses eat up profits. The visible losses
generally force the management to re-
move the cause.

In many instances gross neglect can
be seen in the management of the power
plant. In one instance a steam plant fur-
nishes steam and power for a manufac-
turing concern, but of all the numerous
steam pipes that emit steam hardly one
discharges into a trap, although such an
arrangement is feasible.

Out in the yard a new Corliss engine
has lain all winter exposed to the ele-
ments with no pretense of protection and
there is seemingly no anxiety on the part
of the owners as to its condition or to
the extra expense that will doubtless be
entailed in getting the engine in proper
condition to run when it is finally put on
its foundation in the engine room.

On the other hand, a member of this
same company reported one of the en-
gine-room attendants because he had
been seen eating a portion of his lunch
before lunch time — a horrible waste of
time and a financial loss to the company.

Why not be consistent regarding these
things? If a watch is kept to guard
against the company's losses, why not
make it thorough and not stop with the
man eating a little lunch before time,
while out in the yard an engine costing
several thousands of dollars is being
injured by exposure to the elements? It
is better to look after the source of real
losses rather than to waste time reporting
petty trifles which in a year's time would
not save the renowned "thirty cents."

Explosion on the "Delaware"

Elsewhere in this issue appears a sum-
mary of the findings of the board which
inquired into the cause of the boiler ex-
plosion on the battleship "Delaware."
There appears to be no question as to the
direct cause of the explosion, as all
evidence points to a condition of low
water. In this type of boiler, the burn-
ing of the lower part of the rear headers
would indicate that there was no water
whatever in the drum; furthermore, as
stated in connection with the report, that
water which did flow into the boiler
probably passed directly into the inboard
headers and tubes. Considering the slow
rate at which the boiler was steaming,
it would have taken at least half an
hour for the drum to have been emptied
completely and the question immediately
arises: What was the water tender doing
all this time?

It is possible that the connections to
the gage glass may have been obstructed,
although an examination after the acci-
dent failed to reveal any obstructions.
Even if such were the case, the gage
cocks would have shown that the water
was leaving the drum. We are told that

the water tender was an experienced man
and, as such, much confidence was placed
in him; nevertheless, the boiler exploded
and the water tender should have known
that there was practically no water in it.
Just why he was not aware of it will
probably never be known, but the fact
remains: Had less dependence been
placed upon the human element and a
low-water alarm and fusible plugs been
used, it is probable that the low water
would have been detected before any
damage was done.

The effect of vacuum upon the steam
consumption of a turbine is strikingly
shown by the reports of a recent test on
a one thousand-kilowatt machine in which
the consumption increased forty per cent,
with a decrease in vacuum from twenty-
nine to twenty-one inches.

It is conceded that specialization to the
exclusion of general knowledge is a bad
thing; nevertheless it is always well to
know a little more than the other fellow
about ' some particular subject. This
knowledge carries with it a certain
amount of independence.

The easiest way to find out whether
you are right or wrong is to get down to
basic principles and work up from them
to the question at issue without thinking
about preferences, hobbies or personal
interests.

The man who uses his fingers to test
the possibilities of a dangling piece of
insulated wire belongs in the same ward
with the idiots who rock boats and point
unloaded guns at people.

Gas-engine lubrication by "splash"
from the crank case is in the same class
with hot tube ignition, the old tallow cup
on steam engines and the high-wheel
bicycle.

* "

Have you thought of the engineer as
a mechanic who must know more, work
longer hours, carry more responsibility,
and have much more expected of him
than of any other ordinary mechanic, and
still get a smaller sum on pay day?

The fireman's temper is one of the best
indications of the quality of the coal and
the condition of the fire.

Oil is purchased by your company to
lubricate bearings of various kinds, net
to pour on the floor.

It's rash to wish all the fools were
dead. Some of our best friends would be
missing and lots of us who remained
would have to move down several notches
in the scale of merit.

An engineer with a chew of tobacco
in his mouth and wearing a full-dress
suit doesn't synchronize.

April 4, 1911.

Boik-r Explosion in G
tow ii. S. C ■

On March 4. 191 1, boiler No. 3 in plant
No. 1 of the Atlantic Coast Lun^

:ion at
killing thn. ns and injuring four

others. The boiler plant C
horizontal tubular boi: in one bat-

uht of the boilers being in the
boiler house proper and the other two
boilers immediately adjoining the boiler
bouse. As a result of th-. ;on, the

center sheet of No. 3 boiler was torn
bodily from the boiler

rt displaced and damaged to a
greater or lent. The roof of the

boiler house, which up of

structural-iron trusses covered with

; a total ruin.
. 3. 4. 5 and 0 wei

The siJ. walls of the

boiler I ihich was a building ap-

fect. were ruined to a

ne of the wall

l bodily, and much of

* all that rem.i tnding must be

taken down and rebuilt. A number of

pumps, hc.r Nrlt-

lcr with a

of opci

c ■ . : a . juvc of the

dence of i m :iim

2. D 3 \ND

cam gage »htcb

f ho •-
■

rned sheets or of lov

i at or near one of the longi-
seams. the

f rac ■

rough rivet bo through

the solid : s, hosrc

one section about c» long, torn

thn cs. It i» possible

that

at t be the

e acci-
I been iree

■
■
the to;

544

POWER

April 4, 1911.

spector to discover a hidden crack in the
seam from the inside of the boiler and
it was equally impossible to discover the
crack from the outside on account of the
wall being close to the longitudinal seam.

All of the boilers at the plant had been
internally inspected during the Christmas
holidays of 1910 and inspections were
carefully and conscientiously made, ac-
cording to sworn statements of the chief
engineer and foreman boilermaker at the
plant, both of whom were with the in-
spector during the time the inspections
were made.

The boilers were insured with the
Ocean Accident and Guarantee Corpora-
tion, of 59 John street, New York City,
who promptly paid $25,000 in settlement
of the loss to property caused by the ex-
plosion.

Court Findings in Boiler
Accident on "Delaware"

Through the courtesy of the Babcock &
Wilcox Company, we are enabled to pub-
lish the accompanying summary of the
finding of the court of inquiry which in-
vestigated the accident to one of the
boihrs of the U. S. S. "Delaware."

From the short note previously pub-
lished in Power, it may be remembered
that the accident occurred about 9:15
a.m. on January 17, while \he "Dela-
ware" was bound for Norfolk, Va. The
ship was proceeding under easy steam,
but on account of poor draft the fire
rooms were closed and working under an
air pressure of x4 inch. This, under the
circumstances, was not more than good
natural draft, so that the rate of combus-
tion was about 18 pounds of coal per
square foot of grate. The boiler is one
of the well known Babcock & Wilcox
marine type, with 4425 square feet of
heating surface and 103 square feet of
grate surface, there being 14 boilers in
all. On trial, the "Delaware" developed
nearly 30,000 horsepower, so that this
boiler when worked under forced draft
has a capacity of over 2000 horsepower.
The damage was confined to boiler "O"
and the extent and nature thereof are
set down in the findings in considerable
detail. It is also to be noted that the
structure of the vessel was not injured
at all, thus emphasizing again the fact
that an accident to a water-tube boiler
involves the minimum of damage. The
boiler was repaired while at Norfolk with
some headers and new tubes, most of the
work being done by the engineering de-
partment of the ship.

There is one point in the finding which
needs just a word of explanation to make
it perfectly clear. The court finds that
only the outboard half of the boiler was
damaged. It might seem at first glance
as though it would be impossible for one-
half of the boiler to be injured and the
other escape. The explanation, however,

is very simple. The feed water enters
the boiler in the steam and water drum,
which is above the front headers and
connected to them by nipples, and is dis-
charged through an internal feed pipe
perforated with holes on its lower side.
This pipe extends from the check valve
at the inboard end of the drum to a short
distance past the center of its length. As
long as the water in the drum was above
the tops of the nipples mentioned, it
would not, of course, make any difference
where the feed water was introduced, as
it would naturally find its level. In case
of low water, however, due to inadequate
feed, there might be under moderate
combustion, just enough water to save
the inboard half of the boiler, where the
water would go directly down the nipples,
while only a few headers and associated
tubes on the other side would get any.
This appears to be the explanation of the
salvation of the inboard side of the boil-
er.

With this general statement of the sur-
rounding conditions, the finding of the
court should be entirely clear, and it
would seem that the court is to be con-
gratulated on the very careful analysis
which it has made of all the circum-
stances of the case, so that the reasons
for its conclusion that the accident was
due to low water are perfectly evident
and convincing.

Finding of Court

"In compliance with the request con-
tained in your letter of February 24, and
with the approval of the department, the
bureau submits for your information the
following general statement of the find-
ing and opinion of the court of inquiry
appointed to inquire into the accident to
boiler 'O' of the 'Delaware':

"(a) An explosion occurred in boiler
'O' January 17, 1911, by which three
rear headers Nos. 8, 9 and 10 were
blown bodily out of the boiler.

"(b) These headers were found se-
verely bowed, their tube faces were
bulged, and the metal showed signs of
overheating. All the back headers of the
outboard half of the boiler, 13 in number,
were more or less bowed, the degree of
distortion diminishing toward the out-
board side of the boiler.

"(c) The inboard half of the boiler
was uninjured, and consequent comment
refers only to the outboard half.

"(d) The 4-inch tubes next the fire
were all more or less bowed near the back
ends, and showed signs of having been
burned; and the majority of the 2-inch
tubes were more or less distorted, while
a number showed signs of having been
white hot.

"(e) The front headers were in good
condition.

"(f) The superheater tubes and man-
ifolds showed a red color, and the 4-inch
tubes through the first and second passes

showed the blue color characteristic of
overheating.

"(g) On two of the headers blown
out were found scores and dents made by
the headers striking obstructions. The
character of the scores and dents, and the
blue color of the metal in the scores, in-
dicated that the metal of the blown-out
headers was in a softened condition, due
to heat, when they struck.

"(h) The three headers showed un-
mistakable signs of having been very hot.
They showed the characteristic blue color
following overheating, and the tube face
of each had been bulged out by internal
pressure, possible only when the metal
is heated to a condition approaching red-
ness.

"(/) The greatest heat appeared to
have existed at about the width of the
hight of the header, but the effects of
overheating were manifest in all the back
headers of the outboard half of the boil-
er, diminishing either way from the zone
of greatest intensity of heat, which ap-
peared to exist opposite the headers that
were blown out.

"(/) A number of 2-inch tubes of the
blown-out headers gave evidence of hav-
ing been white hot. The surface of these
tubes, near the back ends, appeared
burned, and was covered with a coating
of black oxide of iron. Signs of over-
heating were also in the outboard half
of the drum, from which much of the
soot had been burned off.

"(k) From a consideration of the pre-
ceding facts, the court concluded that the
explosion was due to the lack of a suffi-
cient quantity of water in the boiler, and
that the water tender on watch at the time
was responsible for this condition. This
opinion was strengthened by the fact that
it was possible to enter the fire room with
safety a very short time after the explo-
sion occurred, which would not have been
possible had the boiler contained the nor-
mal quantity of water.

"(/) All testimony showed that the
boiler was in good condition prior to the
accident, and that the regulations regard-
ing the care and preservation of boilers
had been carried out; that other boilers
which had been subjected to the same
use were in good condition; and that the
overheating noted in the injured boiler
would have produced the results ob-
served by the court after the accident, no
matter how perfect the boiler.

"(m) From some testimony before
the court, the conclusion was reached
that the reading of the water gages was
misleading, although the gage glass fit-
tings are recognized as simple and relia--
ble; other testimony, however, led to the
opinion that the opening of the feed
check valve had been increased shortly
before the accident occurred.

Very respectfully,
R. S. Griffin,
Acting Chief of Bureau."

April 4. 191 L

iWER

New power House Equipment

The Kcnnicott Water
Weigher

A dc\ice for automatically. "K

the weight of water fed to boilers and
correctly ascertaining the evaporation, is
the Kcnnicott wa- ^hcr. which is

manufactured by the Kcnnicott Company.
Chicago Heights. 111.

As shown in Fig. I, the Kern iter

What the in

rentor jnd the munu -

t.,i Carer art doino to MVC

trrne .ind money in the en

0iic room ./ rid power

/wu.M' Engine r\H>m

OCWJ

•mlata of a i

;

I mea«ur1ru ghinf ennr komf

mcnt« V

purpose a suffer -.an-

of mifcr • tiptMMM **:

■ ■
»e other. JY .

abo. »in« compartment*, and ia

Water enters and pa>> » to

the * small ponton of

lo\» *rtv

•
tained in tl
partment. thus
and starting ll

passes to the opp site *

!':c lorn-

e opposite COST

each double unit
« cannot be inmpind

%tmm m r**oT

»i«!\ r • vnl

The

1 -

546

POWER

April 4, 1911.

pumps take the water from the storage
tank. This arrangement is shown in Fig. 2.
This weigher is also furnished com-
plete with storage tank and balanced
pressure inlet valve, as shown in Fig. 3.
The balanced pressure valve is controlled
by a ball float in the storage tank which
automatically regulates the supply to
meet the varying demands of the plant,

seat and face has been eliminated, and circuit, as will be seen by glancing at

there is no chance of the valve sticking
and refusing to operate. Fig. 3 shows
the automatic spring-switch trip arrange-
ment, and Fig. 4 is a wiring diagram.

Fig. 3. Weigher and Attached Storage
Tank

and insures that the storage tank is al-
ways full of water.

Each weigher receives an individual
test and calibration. The unit charges
are accurately weighed on platform scales,
and a certificate of accuracy and capacity
is sent with each shipment. The weigher
is guaranteed to record the correct weight
of water to within one-half of one per
cent, of absolute accuracy.

Besides weighing boiler feed water,
■this weigher will accurately weigh or
measure any free-flowing liquid, hot or
cold.

Automatic Engine Stop

This mechanism has been designed to
prevent flywheel accidents due to the en-
gine racing or running away, and also
enables the possessor to stop the engine
from any c sired point in the shop.

It consists of a valve of the Corliss
type which is so balanced as to be prac-
tically frictionless. Fig. 1 shows a front
head of the valve on which is mounted
a solenoid, a valve lock or disengaging
arm and a valve lever. Fig. 2 shows an
interior view of the valve when it is in its
open position. The face of the valve is
turned on one center and the stem on
which it rotates is offset so that the valve
does not touch the face of the seat ex-
cept when it is closed. By means of this
eccentric motion of the valve, in relation
to its seat, friction between the valve

the wiring diagram in Fig. 4.

When the circuit is closed, either by
the increased speed of the engine or by
throwing in one of the shop switches,

Fig. 1. End and Side View of the Detaching
Device

Fig. 2. Sectional

View of Valve

and Seat

Either batteries or regular line current
can be used if desired.

The operation of this mechanism is as
follows: P, Fig. 4, is the solenoid
mounted on the front head of the valve;
R is the automatic spring switch and
S S S are shop switches for emergency
use.

Referring to Fig. 3, B is a bracket
fastened to the engine shaft A and sup-
ports the weight arm C, which turns on
the pin D. The centrifugal force exerted
by the shaft turning in the direction indi-
cated by the arrow will throw the arm C
out and away from the shaft. The dis-
tance this force will cause the arm to
move out is regulated by the resistance
of the spring E. At normal speed the
spring is set to hold the arm C tight
against the shaft A, but any increase of
speed will cause the centrifugal force
to overcome the spring resistance and al-

the solenoid K is energized, which causes
it to draw the plunger down, hitting the
disengaging arm a hammer blow, causing
it to turn on the pin L and disengaging
the roller, shown in Fig. 1, from con-

S S S

Fig. 4. Diagram of Wiring

tact with the nose of the lever M. This
disengaging arm is afterward brought
back to its normal position by the counter-
weight N. The valve lever M is attached
to the valve stem O and when one of
the switches is closed the valve and

Adjustable Spring in
Compression, acting in
Resistance to Centrifugal
Force of Weiaht, Shaft turning
in Direction indicated by Arrow

Switch Box

— n

Adjustment
J Pin

'Filled with Lead,
Weight4lbs.

Floor Stand of
Wrought Iron,
or polished Brass
Tube '"•

Fig. 3. Details of Tripping Device

low the arm to move out so that the lever will drop, shutting off the steam

point F will describe a larger circle until and stopping the engine.

it comes in contact with the pin G, fore- This apparatus is made by the Auto-

ing it down and thus releasing the spring matic Engine Stop Company, Sheboygan,

knife switch /. This closes the electric Wis.

April A. 1911.

A \ acuum Ventilator

downdrafi rusted thai the

onV .ough to alio* free egress of

the nan: the hear and free and easy ac-

upon which this ventilator operates is ccss 0f tnc wjnj t0 tnc ou.

due to a vacuum formed in the hollow

ball of the ventilator. This ball is pla

on the top of a tl outlet and

he purpose of drawing out the

foul air, ga Torn the roor

which it is attached.

In operation, the wind strikes the ball,

which has an opening as shown in I

I and 2. As the uind passes o.

opening it sucks out the air which is in

the ball and causes a partial vacuum. The

air in the building or room belou

under normal pressure of the atmo

is forced up to take the place of that
h has left the ball, the process be-
coming continuous, and results in a

strong, steady updraft as long as there

is any movement in the outside atn

phc

g, 1 *h< accomr

The wind \ is rcpr the

against the bait
and th< l the tube

land and the ball
the upwarJ current of tt
I re; is ■ mo.! been made

| against the ball
dra-. or

Ming that is of a light

the
opening in the ventilator 1:
a acct
■

and

It and a

the barrel or neck.
ne% the
of ! • c: .i.

she: jut-

lets ar. _'
cha; ifta or movement to get out of

lator Comp

S >lenoid «

Tb<

in the functk unloader thai

the new u>

j ring ( has

found emplo\ -rangement

consists of s bypass autom..
crated I per-

■ » be rt
com r '

Soi

mat

It will b* to the

e eon-

immer

run v i si

•m
Th, locations, acco

i ••

the r

MM J

n he

ahre

iafiaa or

... r < .

• ;

: •

id »

a aenu: . osea

548

POWER

April 4, 1911.

tem, etc. When arranged with a thermostat
in a heating system they can be made
to automatically control the flow of steam
as desired. In signal systems where
air-operated whistles are used these
valves save piping and enable the ready
control from a central location.

Four standard sizes of valves are
built: >s, Vzy H and 1 inch, threaded
for standard iron pipe and having an
area of opening approximately equal to
that of pipe of the same rated size. The
solenoid coils used are wound for volt-
ages of 115, 230 and 500, being the
standard Nos. 3, 5 and 6 Varley coils.

Boiler Explosion at Au-
gusta, Ga.

By S. Kirlin

A 40-horsepower upright boiler used
for pumping out a cofferdam and op-
erating a pile driver on the work being
done on the Southern Railway bridge at
Augusta, Ga., exploded at about 4:30
a.m. on March 23, instantly killing two
negroes and fatally injuring two white
men.

The body of one of the negroes was
blown to atoms and no part of it has
been found. The other one was almost
completely blown to pieces, but was
found later in the cofferdam. W. A.
Vowell, the superintendent of the work,
from Columbia, S. C, was badly crushed
and scalded and is thought to be fatally
injured. D. C. White, night foreman,
was scalded all over the body and it is
not thought that he can recover. He
was standing on the platform on which
the boiler was set and was blown over
into the cofferdam, from which he was
removed shortly after the explosion oc-
curred.

All of the men were working around
the boiler at the time and it is said
that they were trying to get the injector
started. It is supposed that the water
was low in the boiler and that the ex-
plosion occurred when they succeeded
in getting the injector to working. Not a
trace of the boiler or engine can be
found, so that it is impossible to form
any correct idea as to the exact cause
of the explosion. It is said that a part
of the boiler was blown several hundred
feet into the air, passing over the top
of the bridge and falling into the river
below.

The accident seems to have been very
similar to the one with the same type
of boiler which exploded in the Ideal
laundry at Verona, Penn., a description
of which was given in the issue of
March 14.

A fire in the plant of the Cohannet
Silver Company, Taunton, Mass., on
March 22 caused considerable damage in
the boiler room. The fire started in an-
other part of the building and caused a
total loss of about S45,000.

Peat Society Meeting

The New York section of the American
Peat Society held its regular quarterly-
meeting on Tuesday evening, March 21,
at the rooms of the Chemists' Club in
West Fifty-fifth street, New York City.
Dr. Charles F. McKenna, chairman of
the section, introduced Prof. Charles A.
Davis, peat expert for the United States
Bureau of Mines, who gave one paper en-
titled, "Late Developments in the Peat
Industry" and another, entitled, "Drain-
age of Peat Deposits."

By way of introduction, Professor
Davis spoke briefly of the work of the
Bureau of Mines in connection with the
development of the peat industry. Up
to the present time the work has been
largely educational. This has been the
result of the lack of facility for accom-
plishing material progress in* experi-
mental work.

In his first paper, the Professor de-
scribed in outline the various processes
of digging and preparing peat that so
far have been employed.

In his second paper, he told of the
ways in which peat bogs are drained, of
the difficulties to be contended with and
of the difference in drainage requirements
of bogs yielding peat for fuel and those
yielding peat for filler and other pur-
poses.

National secretary Julius Bordollo an-
nounced that the annual convention of
the society would be held in Kalamazoo,
Mich., late in September. An interesting
program is being prepared.

Steam Pipe Explodes in
Amoskeag Mills

On March 27 the blowing out of the
"dead end" of a 12-inch steam pipe in
the new power plant of the Amoskeag
Manufacturing Company, of Manchester.
N. H., killed two men and seriously in-
jured seven more, according to reports
published in the daily press. Full par-
ticulars will be given in an early issue.

PERSONAL

David Moffat Myers, consulting engi-
neer, New York City, has moved to
larger offices in the New Whitehall build-
ing,- 17 Battery place.

Wis., has now opened consulting-engi-
neering offices at Racine, Wis.

George Alfred Goodenough, for many
years associate professor of mechanical
engineering of the University of Illinois,
has been promoted to be professor of
thermodynamics.

Bernard L. Walsh, chief engineer for
the Woonsocket, R. I., Electric Machine
and Power Company, has tendered his
resignation. He will be succeeded by
Everett Read, of East Bridgewater. Mass.

John B. Perkins, president of the John
B. Perkins Company, of Boston, and
F. P. Sheldon, M. E., of Providence, left
on Saturday, March 25, for a visit to
Cuba, Jamaica, Porto Rico and the Ber-
mudas.

Prof. W. F. Schaphorst, of the me-
chanical-engineering department of the
New Mexico College of Mechanic Arts,
has resigned his position there to become
a technical writer on the staff of A.
Eugene Michel, advertising engineer,
New York City.

Charles Russ Richards, dean of the
college of engineering of the University
of Nebraska, has been appointed pro-
fessor of mechanical engineering in
charge of the department at the Uni-
versity of Illinois, effective September 1,
1911. Professor Richards has been identi-
fied with the University of Nebraska in
various capacities for the past 20 years
and has been largely instrumental in or-
ganizing and equipping this university
for mechanical-engineering study.

George A. Orrok, of the New York
Edison Company, visited the University
of Wisconsin on March 16 and addressed
the student section of the American So-
ciety of Mechanical Engineers on the
subject of "The Utilization of Blast Fur-
nace Gases, with Especial Reference to
Gas Engines." Mr. Orrok dealt with the
problem of the blast furnace involving
the utilization of its waste gases, and
showed the historical development of dif-
ferent means of utilizing these gases.
The latter part of the lecture included
a brief description of the latest types of
blast-furnace gas engines, and was very
copiously illustrated by lantern slides.

SOCIETY NOTES

The American Institute of Steam
Boiler Inspectors annual meeting and
election of officers will be held at the
Parker house, Boston, Tuesday, April
25, at 8 p.m.

Cornelius T. Myers, formerly assistant
secretary and assistant treasurer of the
Wisconsin Engine Company, of Corliss,

Under the auspices of the power-trans-
mission section of the National Electric
Light Association, a public conference
will be held in the United Engineering
Societies building. New York City, on
Saturday, April 8, to consider the im-
portant subject of the relation of the
National and State governments to the
conservation and utilization of water
powers. This subject is one, not only
of vital concern to the central-station
industry, but affects in many ways the
conditions of engineering, the employ-
ment of labor and capital, and the wel-
fare of the public. Two sessions will be
held, afternoon and evening, and papers
and addresses will be delivered by sev-
eral well known men.

On March 16, the New York Electrical

April 4. 1011.

Society celebrated its three hundredth
meeting. f 0. Blackwcll lectured on
•Hydroelectric Development in '•'
In opening the k Blacki

E an interesting sketch of the anna
which have led up to the present condi-
tions in Mexico, giving to the enlight-

J and progr. policy of President

Diaz, the credit for the wonderful
velopments in hydroclecr -illation

effected in recent \ The socictv had

a short business meeting, at vbicl
ports of committee J. The

treasurer reported that the heavy load of
debt which the society had incu-
during the last few years, in H tvor

to develop its uork and incrca»c the
advantages of its membership, has been
paid off, and the finances arc now in a
prosperous condition. Twenty-eight mem-
and thirty-two life members were
elected. The society now has over eight
hundred memb

NEW PUBLH A I IONS

MA OP

Compiled ar. J by

Albert A. Hopl hed by

Tort l

Cloth. I»*xt p.ii;i

net.

This is the latest and prob.i far

the most complete work of this kin.:
sued. It was compiled by the query

tains some 15.(XX) rmulas and

processes *ck- m a collection of

nearly 150,000 There arc chapters treat-
ing upon solJ

painting and p1
an, leather ai

.•las* making and metal »
ing, beverages, alloya and amalgams, be-
some hund any
of :hc-

■
•uca! pr
pared r ssional librarians makes

it an easy matter to And n
•ir.

I he StrcnK'

has
n issued as Bui
engineer . of the

.
the of an extensive u

•nay

iln »tc
of the flame «>f an

■

the -

■

talnrd grati. ur

the engineering
mer

()l;ll UAR\

president of

Hunt G alcn

and former president of

: e a

He >ga col

and
. and subacquc

and

higher mathematics under a private tutor.

the time of the war between the

meet a.

cm ma into hun-
' cations extend to con

•lechaakal Kngmc
■*. ha

lat time chairman of
Cor

an' 'ier soc.c

10 Inst Mining I

■

> i«k

' r

•

■ ' •

C 1

Use

, atlsxf la that off*

mechanic* »hcn be
wort partook

«•• Sf<

550

POWER

April 4, 1911.

and had not worked since that time. Mr.
Woodward gained his first experience in
electrical work with the General Elec-
tric Company, and later with the Stand-
ard Electric Company, of Boston. He
had entire charge of the electrical-engi-
neering department of the Narragansett
company, and it was he who adapted the
high-voltage system now in use in Prov-
idence. He was born in Roxbury, Mass.,
about 50 years ago. A son will be
graduated from the Naval Academy at
Annapolis this year.

The power equipment of the M. S.
Novelty Company's factory in Providence,
R. I., was destroyed by fire on March 22.
The fire started in some chemicals near
the engine room, and Engineer B. T.
Edwards barely had time to open the
injector and fire doors of the boiler and
shut off the gage cocks and get out of
the building. The equipment included a
35-horsepower Nagle engine and an up-
right 35-horsepower boiler.

The boiler room of the Woonsocket,
R. I., Dye and Bleaching Company's mill
was damaged to the extent of about $500
by a fire on Thursday night, March 9.

NEW INVENTIONS

Printed copies of patents are furnished by
the Patent Office at 5c. each. Address the
Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

PRIME MOVERS

POWER GENERATOR. William J. Neil-
son, Elmhurst, N. Y., assignor to himself, and
Leland H. Kimball, Salt Lake City, Utah.
987,158.

CONSTANT-PRESSURE INTERNAL COM-
BUSTION APPARATUS. Edward P. Noyes.
Winchester, Mass. 275,801.

ENGINE. Daniel R. Scholes, Chicago, 111.,
assignor to Aermotor Company', Chicago. 111.,
a Corporation of Illinois. !)87,177.

OIL ENGINE. Hermann Bowyer Leech,
Halifax, England. 987,240.

COMPOUND ROTARY ENGINE. Lucas K.
Sivertson, Carrington, N. D. 987,204.

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE. Berthold

Wolff, Berlin, Germany. 987,336.

ROTARY EXPLOSIVE ENGINE. .Tames
C. Peterson and Robert T. Peterson, Gleichen,
Alberta, Canada. 087,486.

WINDMILL. John O'Toole, Colegrove, Cal.
987,045.

WINDMILL. William P. Bennett, Wood-
stock, Ohio. 985,131.

LOWER WHEEL. Waller II. Fierce, At-
lantic City, X. J. 985,152.

ROTARY ENGINE. Stephen E. McGann,
Cleveland, Ohio. 985,192.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. AI-

den E. Osborn, New York. N. Y. 985,198.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. An-
drew Letts Brown. London, England, assignor
to William Albert Hickman. I'ictou, Canada.
985,507.

ROTARY ENGINE. Reece Williams. Al-
bany, Western Australia, Australia. 985,502.

ROTARY ENGINE. David N. Green, Sun-
bury. Ohio. 985,584.

ROTARY ENGINE. David Newton Green,
Sunbury, Ohio. 985,009.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION E N G I N E .
Henry Joseph Podlesak, Chicago, 111. 985.703.

BOILERS, FURNACES AND GAS
PRODUCERS

MECHANICAL STOKER. Wilfred Roth-
ery Wood. London. England, assignor to the
American Stoker Comnanv. Erie. Penn.. a Cor-
poration of New York. 987,001.

BLACK-OIL BURNER. James Warren
Elder, Visalia, Cal. 98 (,617.

BOILER. George Peterson, Duluth, Minn.
985,281.

LIQUID-FUEL BURNER. Henry W. Schoff,
River Forest, 111. 985,291.

FURNACE. Henry E. Wallis, Terre Haute,
Ind. 985,480.

LIQUID-FUEL BURNER. John Jay Val-
ier, Oakland, Cal. 985,644.

POWER PLANT Al XILIARIES AND
APPLIANCES

FLUE I'LL*;. Silas Adams, Cleveland.
Ohio. 987,099.

COMBINED WATER, VACUUM AND
PRESSURE GAGE, AUTOMATIC RKOI
LATOR AND SAFETY DEVICE. William T.
Fowden, Chester, Penn. 987,125.

VALVE MECHANISM FOR INTERNAL
COMBUSTION ENGINES. Alden E. Osborn.
New York, N. Y. 987,104.

STUFFING BOX. John Hahn, Los An-
geles, Cal. 987,296.

VALVE. William J. Theis, Chicago, 111.,
assignor to Manufacturers Equipment Com-
pany, a Corporation of Illinois. 987.334.

STAY BOLT FOR STEAM BOILERS. Pat-
rick J. Connors, Greenville, Penn., assignor
of one-half to Frank Disler, Greenville, Penn.
987,431.

BOILER-FLUE CLEANER. William Eich-
elberger and De Los E. Ilibner, Dubois, Penn.,
assignors to the Vulcan Soot Cleaner Com-
pany, of Pittsburg. Penn., Dubois, Penn.. a
Corporation of New Jersey. 987,450.

VALVE. Edward Dwyer, Clymer. Penn.
987,447.

VALVE. Robert Charles Green, Winchester.
England. 987.571.

PRESSURE AND DAMPER REGULATOR.
John B. Bischoff, Mount Clemens. Mich.
987,610.

AIR-LIFT DISPLACEMENT PUMP.

Frank S. Miller, Indianapolis. Ind. 987.079.

VALVE. Vincent F. Bernesser and Joseph
J. Crotty. New York, N. Y. 985,134.

VALVE. Axel Yaldemar Clorius, Copen-
hagen. Denmark. 985,140.

SAFETY VALVE. Nelson Goodyear. New
York, N. Y., assignor to Maine Development
Corporation, a Corporation of Maine. 985,-
100.

VALVE. Willard A. Speakman. Wilming-
ton, Del. 985.220.

STEAM TRAP. Joseph B. McKeown.
Union Hill, X. J. 985,362.

VALVE. Franklin M. Patterson. Philadel-
phia. Tenn., assignor, by direct and mesne
assignments, to Patterson-Allen Engineering
Company, a Corporation of New York. 9S5.-
444.

VALVE. George W. Hammond. Philadel-
phia, Penn.. assignor of one-half to John II.
Michener. Jr., New York, N. Y. 985,520.

PACKING FOR VALVES. Caspar W.
Miller. Wallingford, Penn. 985, 61S.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS AND
APPLICATIONS

ALTERNATING - CURRENT ELECTRO-
MAGNET. David L. Lindquist, Yonkers,
N. Y., assignors to Otis Elevator Company.
Jersey City. N. J., a Corporation of New
Jersey. 987,146.

ELECTRIC IGNITION SYSTEM FOR EX-
PLOSION ENGINES. Oliver B. Thompson
and Carl R. Moeller, Buffalo, N. Y. 987,188.

ELECTRIC SWITCH. Oliver B. Whipple.
Saginaw, Mich. 987,200.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM OF DISTRIBU-
TION. Albert S. Hubbard, Belleville. N. J.,
assignor to Gould Storage Batterv Company,
a Corporation of New Y'ork. 987,301.

ELECTRIC INDUCTION FURNACE. Wil-

lielm Rodenhauser, Volklingen-on-Saar, Ger-
many, assignor to the Grondal Kiellin Com-
pany, Ltd., London, England. 987,404.

ELECTRIC WATER HEATER. Herbert
N. Riche and William Ruth Rav. San Fran-
cisco Cal., assignors to Thomas 'B. Grav. San
Francisco, Cal. 987,493.

SNAP SWITCH. Samuel Korf. Chicago.
111., assignor to the Wi-Ko Electric Compnnv.
Chicago, 111., a Corporation of Illinois. 987.-
D o 1 .

.ELECTROLYTIC CELL. Victor E. Good-
win Schenectady, N. Y.. assignor to General
Elertric Comnany, a Corporation of New
^ ork. 987,022.

PRIMARY BATTERY. Charles B. Schoen-
mehl, Uaterbury. Conn. 987,047.

t TX£rTSTEN INCANDESCENT LAMP. John
J. O Brien, Sbamokin, Penn. 987,483.

ELECTRIC HEATER AND STERILIZER.
Johann G. Wallmann. Oakland, Cal. 987.658.

Engineering Societies

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Col. E. I). Meier: sec. Calvin
W. Rice, Engineering Societies building, 29
West 39th St., New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City. Spring meeting in Pitts-
burg, May 30 to June 2.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS

Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Tope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT
ASSOCIATION

Pres.. Frank W. Frueauff; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin, 31 West Thirty-ninth St., New York.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to

June 2.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL
EN (.INFERS
Tres.. Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone.
UT. S. N. : se<-. and treas., Lieutenant Com-
mander U. T. Holmes, I". S. N.. Bureau of
Steam Engineering, Navy Department, Wash-
ington, D. C.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS-
ASSOCIATION

Pres., E. D. Meier, 1 1 Broadway, New
York : sec. J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and
Erie Railroad, Cleveland, O. Next meeting
to be held September, 1911, in Boston. Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS

Pres., O. P. Chamberlain; sec, J. H.
Warder. 1735 Monadnock Block. Chicago. 111.
Meeting first Wednesday of each month.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Pres.. Walter Riddle; sec, E. K. Hiles.
Oliver building. Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings
1st and 3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS
Pres.. R. P. Bolton ; sec, W. W. Macon, 29
West Thirty-ninth street. New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres.. Carl S. Pearse. Denver. Colo. ; sec,
F. W. Raven. 325 Dearborn street. Chicago.
111. Xext convention. Cincinnati, Ohio, Sep-
tember 12-15, 1911.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr., Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia. Pa. : Supr. Cor. Engr., William S.
Wetzler. 753 N. Forty-fourth St.. Philadel-
phia. Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June 5-10, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres.. William F. Yates, New York, N. Y. :
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago. 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January 15-19. 1912.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith ; sec. Charles
Kratsch. 416 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings (he second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF
ENGINEERS

Grand Worthy Chief, John Cope ; sec, J. U.
Bunce, Hotel Statler. Buffalo, N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia, Tenn., week
commencing Monday, August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres.. O. F. Rabbe ; acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus.
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstown, Ohio, May
18 and 19, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION

Pres., A. N. Lucas; sec. Harry D. Vaught,
95 Liberty street, New York. Next meeting
at Omaha, Neb.. May 23-26, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford : sec, J. G. Hanna-
han, Chicago, 111. Next meeting at St. Paul,
Minn., September. 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION

Pres., G. W. Wright, Baltimore. Md. : sec.
and treas., D. L. Gaskill. Greenville. O.

NEW ^ < >kk RIL 11, l'dl

THERE .in- many lands of jx-ssimist

which is tl. rlor substitute i<»r

sucfa terms unity
bowlei wen,"

there is tin ir. Hi is

Idom hopeless it" b rly in the

The i >r in is usual]

languid \v- me other tern] physi

cal failin When a ; is troubled in

this way, even a slight run of hard hick ma)
to put him in the dumps of despair.'
But t a liver pill or a spring tonic soon n tab
lishes his mental equilibrium and he
• '.-. ov( i his distemp

Then, tl the • »nal - the chronic

kicker. You can depend upon him to

out .111 nipl.iint time

and t«» make tl. :l>lr u it wh<

To express it mildly, the habitual
bowk i nui and sometin

positive dai

The amateur pessimist usualh think- tl
th< -ith himself; tli.

ii.it if ith tli Id.

»ld

in mind fic-

tion you hope t«. |
dii hard work h< will

th. 1 thinj ill

how im]
• dri dl thi

tptimi Met Pei

■
:

I » 1 1 r i 1 1 - the late lamental
one of tin- olish '
th- thing, hist .it the time wh<

all of us were di <»ur

round with tin- fear i ;k nun

in rinkk • out

with a full j» h hit «»tT " the

•n of the busin< • .rid ii. the qui •
The picture sho^n •
moling about l<*>k.
lar doughnut . t<> 1" -u.

ne meml »tund and '.. wa.v

the oth<

and DOt to mind about tin- bok I
wholi'simu- adviir, th.it. and well worth ; •

It doesn't
think SO hard it the hole in his

\<.t on]
Im but

th< »h whom h<

it though you
al!
■ ■

his iti tit

this in i

552

POWER

April 11, 1911.

Gas Engine Waste Heat to Turbine

Composite power plants containing in-
dependent sections of steam turbine and
gas-engine generating equipment have
heretofore been shown to establish a
very economical arrangement for the pro-
duction of electrical energy from stores
of latent heat. As observed, this plan
would prove of advantage for swinging
loads and low load factors — the gas-
power division to be operated constantly
near normal capacity and the fluctuation
and peaks absorbed by the steam in-
stallation.

It is patent that gas engines rapidly de-
cline in efficiency on loads less than 50
per cent, of their rating and, moreover,
their greater first cost generally demands
a large output to reap commensurate re-
turns on the investment.

The high thermal efficiency of the gas
engine is well known, but the large steam
turbine has also developed remarkable
economies so that the internal-combus-
tion motor only excels in the moderate
and small units.

When the combining of turbines and
gas engines in a single station was first
proposed, it was with the intention of
using high-pressure steam, requiring the
installation of bcilers, stokers and addi-
tional coal-handling machinery, which
entails greater labor expense and standby
losses. It was suggested at that time,
however, that the gas-engine waste heat
be applied to the feed water of the steam
section.

Since the advent of the low-pressure
turbine, it has become feasible to econo-
mize the waste heat of the gas engine in
exhaust heaters and utilize the energy
directly in the turbine without the intro-
duction of high-pressure boilers and coal-
burning furnaces in the plant. Further-
more, the heat so conserved may be
stored in large tanks, analogous to the
system outlined by A. M. Hunt in the
April, 1910, Proceedings of the American
Institute of Electrical Engineers, for
high-pressure operation in emergency
stations, and used in bulk for peak de-
mands.

Based upon the actual performance of
the component elements of such an amal-
gamated plant, the following results may
be readily achieved:

For Continuous Operation

(a) Employing the exhaust heat
only, 6 to 8 per cent, heat saving over
the existing economy of the gas engine.

(b) Abstracting heat from both the
engine exhaust and jackets, 10 to 14
per cent.

For Peak Load Operation
(a) Storing heat from the exhaust
over periods several times the dura-
tion of the peak, enables heavy over-
loads to be sustained, resulting in ap-
preciable reduction in investment for

By Edwin D. Dreyfus*

The economies to be effected
by running low-pressure
steam turbines in connec-
tion with gas engines are
considered, as influenced by
investment as well as by
heat recovered. The tur-
bine may be designed to use
steam of two pressures, a
primary supply at from one
to three atmospheres gene-
rated by the heat of the gases
and a secondary lower press-
ure supply derived from the
jacket water and introduced
at later stages.

♦Commercial engineer of the Westinghouse
Machine Company.

the maximum demand, 15 to 30 per
cent, normally, in addition to the fuel
saving.

(b) Operating with intermittent
storage, the variable swings may be
loaded on the turbine and the engine
and producers operated under the most
favorable conditions. Ultimate improve-
ment about 15 per cent, in heat con-
sumption and a reduction of 12 per
cent, in investment. Moreover, the
auxiliary low-pressure turbine would
act as a reserve unit to relieve, partial-
ly or fully, any temporary embarras-
ment of the engine.

Heat Storage

If a widely changing load should be
experienced, providing a low loading fac-
tor, the installation of the auxiliary plant
for continuous operation may likely prove
inadvisable, as the fuel expense may bear
only a small relation to the total cost.
But by accumulating the primary waste
heat in a storage system and utilizing it
in a simple and comparatively inexpensive
low-pressure turbine auxiliary, this ar-
rangement will lend itself to reducing
the burdensome capital charges.

The conditions where the auxiliary low-
pressure turbine may be profitably in-
stalled, may be divided mainly into two
classes:

Case I. Low-pressure turbines op-
erating continuously with uniform load
on the plant, as exists in most industrial
works.

Case II. Widely varying load on the
plant, with the low-pressure turbine in

conjunction with a heat-storage system,
serving only the peak swings of the load,
(a) Fixed peaks, as in central lighting
stations; (b) irregular peaks, such as
occur on an interurban railway with in-
frequent service.

Uniform Plant Load

The value of a waste-heat power in-
■stallation for steady service may be
readily appreciated; and the accompany-
ing general layout, Fig. 1, shows the
principal elements of the plant.

From a practical standpoint, it would
not be warrantable to employ for con-
tinuous operation a smaller low-pressure
turbine auxiliary system than 150 kilo-
watts, which would serve a 1400-kilowatt
normally rated engine plant.

The low-pressure turbine system will
cost $45 to S60 per kilowatt installed, the
smaller size naturally being the larger in
unit cost. A four-unit gas plant would
represent an investment of S130 to $140
per kilowatt with units 300 to 500 kilo-
watts in size. The entire plant unit cost
will be reduced about 6)4 per cent., which
will, in itself, not greatly affect the cost
of a kilowatt-hour generated.

Where the price of fuel is a serious
factor in a plant, such an installation as
that outlined may commend itself.

Peak-load Operation

Gas engines have very limited over-
load capacity in addition to suffering
greatly in economy on the light loads.
Their initial costs also produce high fixed
charges on low load factors. This
auxiliary system, using heat storage,
should prove decidedly beneficial if not a
complete panacea for these ills. A tank is
provided as indicated by dotted lines in
the lower left-hand corner of Fig. 1 and
as no use would ordinarily be made of the
jacket heat in this case the low-pressure
boiler D of the first case would be elimi-
nated. Obviously, the size of the low-
pressure turbine unit would be affected
by the extent and duration of the station
peak.

On the basis of employing the exhaust
heat only, and figuring storage efficiency
at 85 per cent., the loss being due to
radiation, the percentage of overload that
may be obtained above the normal rating
of the plant, is plotted in Fig. 3 a. For
example, if a three-fourths hour peak is
to follow six hours full-load operation,
the overload capacity the plant would be
capable of sustaining would be 60 per
cent.

As it is unusual in commercial opera-
tion for full load to obtain for a period
of six hours preceding the time of maxi-
mum demand on the plant, Fig. 3 b
has been included so the approxi-
mate entire overload capacity for varying
average fractional-load operation may be

April 11, 1911.

1
1

P^c

• •

. 4 I

> — 1

=*U—

•

"•m nan

n I n»»

554

POWER

April 11, 1911.

readily derived graphically from Fig. peak to be determined in each case rep- case should be treated specially to

3 a. For illustration, if the plant had been
running at three-quarters load for six
hours and was to sustain a three-fourths
hour peak, it will be found from Fig.

resents the average of the period over definitely prove its merits,

which the low-pressure turbine operates. The actual gain in fuel economy in

The maximum will therefore undoubtedly this system will depend upon the true

exceed the values given, especially if the nature of the load curve. Where a peak

-■Elevated Low-
Temperature Boiler

to [^^^^^^^^^-Tr^P^^^,

■Jt-fuS H ' I ™ I i H iinflrrTiTrHTTPTM-^-

*j fli i La
----- 1 — if" i

:--rv

Power |

Fig. 2. Sectional Elevation through Plant

3 a that 60 per cent, overload could be
sustained by the turbine. Taking, then,
the 60 per cent, vertical ordinate and
extending it horizontally to the 75 per
cent, load diagonal, Fig. 3 b, 55 per cent.

maximum swing occurs during the first
half of the time so that the tank tem-
peratures will not be too low to operate
the turbine on overloads. For peak-load
conditions, plants as small as 500 kilo-

of steep character and of very short
duration occurs frequently and at in-
definite times, the improvement in opera-
tion may be 15 to 25 per cent., as the en-
gines will not have to be run underloaded

Peri od

.5 2

Peak Load

2.5
Hours

20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Per Cent Overload on Plant

90 100

POWt*

Fig. 3a. Percentage of Main Unit Capacity Available
from Low-pressure Turbine Operating on Gas-engine
Waste-heat Storage System. For Full-load Opera-
tion Preceding Peak

Fig. 3b. Chart for Obtaining the Percentage
Overload Capacity of Gas Plant and Low-
pressure Turbine from Fig. 3a for Frac-
tional-load Operation Preceding Peak

is obtained — this value including the 10
per cent, overload capacity of the gas
engines. For other conditions, manifestly
the same course is to be pursued. It is
to be observed that the percentage of

watts in engine capacity, may well in-
clude the byproduct power system.

These charts, therefore, facilitate the
predicting of possibilities for any com-
bination of conditions, but each individual

normally so as to sustain the heaviest
swing. With a widely changing load, as
in some interurban railway systems, suf-
ficient time may not elapse for adequate
heat storage between peaks.

April 11, 1911.

P O VT K R

The influence on costs works out in an
interesting way. A four-unit gas plant,
aggregating 1200 kilowatts, or more, will
ire an investment of approximately
$135 per kilowatt, including buildings and
plat. An installation of a 1' mre

turbine system with condenser, tanks and
piping, would approximate er kilo-

watt. Therefore, if the station is to carry
• 50 per cent, peak, of which

^—

?S0

i . .... ^^ •

::::

• * — — — — —

0 » 2D SO 40 50 fcO 1
>J Capo

Fic. Cost rat Klowatt,

Due to Installation op Low-p-

Is taken by the low-pressure turbine and
10 per cent, by the engines, the average
• beconv

i i<»

ii"

rage Js to a on

nt.
c, a number of va'
other ratios ha\ and are

If the low-pressure turbin* be

ik loads only, but
must be in operation continue ab-

any sudden load in

the

jacket heat the no *es.

■ ell as pump ai n»cr auxiliary

of a turt

full l< the

•he jacket he*'
I

n of a secondary system *
natcrla
r \n%%
In thi% mar

m would be analogous to a storage
batten floating (M tbfl , !ant

•rrangemer1
combine the fcatii' ! II.

'-mon«t-

bination of gas engines and low-pressure
turt- idies of specific cases are in-

cluded. For one example, a typical cen-
tral lighting station load has been con-
ntral-station develop-
ment is pro- 1, the chara
of the load curve should be more or leas
similar for the avcrag and a form
of load cur-. .en in 1 as been
cho* own. at lea

cent, of the gas-engine output may
be obtained in the low-pressure turbine.
To cover all comings. -cnt.

has been used for this particular
ample.

Integrating the entire load chart and
determining a peak-load area cnt.

of the area -enting the gas-engine

output) the portion of the load that the
turbine may carry is indicated by the

-.-hatched area. This shows that three
500-kili is engines and one 500-

kilowatt low-pressure turbine may be

tiled in place of four straight gas-
engine cquipm The gas plant, in-
cluding building and real estate, would
cost, at kilowatt XX). A
low ; re turbine and auxiliaries, in-
cluding low-tcmpcraturc boiler, may be
added without increasing the building or
land cost and may be set up at about

per kilowatt, or. with the three gas
engines, the entire plant would represent
onl\ 500 investment, a difference
<X). At II per cent

ay be safely estimat

from tr ■ n of a . part of

the losses. Thu tal fan-

it suck ■ load cv.

as that shown in ■

for - and

for the summer months 30 pc The

average should be over ere

the dominate. Ir

fore, the 2UOU-kilo»a at 40

cent, load factor would g?nc:

sT.

war mum. The approximate coal

re for a four me

units would be placed in tad taken out

of | to correspond as closely as

ad var
eluding auxiliary-power losses, to given
in r .. \t 40 pi

average coal consumption r
hour becomes about 1M pounds. This
represents

/ - «_-" oo • I

tins per annum, i

delivered, amount!

the fuel conssj

9.a«i
50 per

rcr cent
ng woi: n3879.

crease in annua

pluv or S8354. regardless of labor.

Capitalized at 1 1

rcase in investment i
900. which is ■
of the turh cnt. Or it might

HOC

::.

HOC

1600

£ 1400

*ia>o

lOOC

t
r m

and

J be

Hc conserved from the exhaust

M be
4 per cer
obtrlooaly be

rr<>JiKcr<> MOi ' ' ; ' >• »d an J

would r '
waneai and

ire turbme

f of ! *'C fnUflh L '

in thrrr ire by dba
tr and above me to*

toj . M ♦ a four"i

a.tua'

i treat a

•

• i

556

POWER

April 11, 1911.

station log. Engines would be improved

10 per cent, in economy, 9 per cent,
would be saved by using the exhaust
and jacket heat, and probably Zy2 per
cent, in the producer, totaling 22K> per
cent. By carrying a 35 per cent, over-
load, the investment cost would also be
lowered about 12 per cent. A curve of
temperatures is plotted in this figure,
showing the variation in the storage tank
with load throughout the day.

It is understood that in Germany, par-
ticular activity has been displayed in this
direction, and the possible gains which
have been herein portrayed, have there
become a matter of fact in actual in-
stallations.

Operating Conditions
In the preceding calculation, ample
supply of condensing water at an aver-
age temperature of 70 degrees is as-
sumed. With lower water temperatures,
the results would obviously improve. On
the other hand, if either the natural water
supply is warmer or cooling towers are
demanded, the attractiveness of this type
of plant rapidly diminishes, which is em-
phasized by the theoretical water-rate
curves, Fig. 8, for varying vacuum. This
is essentially true for Case I, while Case

11 may show warrant for existence even
under this condition.

All estimates are purposely made con-
servative in order that the advantages
assumed may be realized in practice. Im-
provements in the detail apparatus may
follow and refinements be introduced
which will produce greater benefits than
have been indicated.

The application of an amalgamated
generating equipment of this nature will,
it is believed, be confined to stations of
10,000 kilowatts aggregate capacity and
less, due to the low fuel, labor and in-
vestment costs of the large turbine plant.

To facilitate a working understanding
of the details involved in developing a
combined gas-engine and low-pressure
turbine equipment, the fundamental fac-
tors have been discussed at length below.

Power Developed in the Low-pressure

Turbine

For all practical purposes, the heat dis-
tribution in the internal-combustion en-
gine may be considered evenly divided
between mechanical conversion (and
radiation), the exhaust and the jackets.
With an engine consuming about 10,000
B.t.u. per brake horsepower-hour at full
load, the exhaust heat (33^ per cent, of
the total) applied in a low-pressure
boiler, with 70 per cent, efficiency, will
produce, roughly, two pounds of at-
mospheric-pressure steam.

To facilitate a ready understanding of
the accompanying deductions, the ideal
water rates of steam motors, based on
the Rankine cycle for different initial
temperatures and vacua, are given in
Fig. 8.

Expanding from atmospheric pressure

to a 28-inch vacuum, the theoretical
steam consumption is 15.2 pounds per
horsepower-hour. A small steam tur-
bine may be designed with a conversion
efficiency of 65 per cent., hence would
actually require 23.4 pounds per brake
horsepower-hour at its normal rating.
Consequently, the two pounds of steam
generated from the engine exhaust may

be applied in the turbine to develop

F 23.4

or 8.54 per cent, of the power produced

0) ~
Q- <-

N*»,

§Sfc£W/

C7^i£S5^

L"- :-

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
PovvER Load Factor, Per Cent

Fig. 6. Effect of Load Factor on Coal
Consumption of Four-unit Gas-
engine Plant

in the main engine. This percentage
would be practically correct where a tur-
bine of 500 kilowatts capacity may be
used, and obviously smaller and greater,
respectively, for corresponding sizes of
turbines.

There is an equal amount of heat avail-

1500

corresponding to final jacket-water tem-
peratures. The water, in passing through
the low-temperature boiler, will be partly
evaporated until the whole body is chilled
to the low temperature. There would
even be a tendency for this action to take
place violently in the boiler. This can
be obviated by a proper design in which
the water passing through is divided into
sheets, or sprays, so that steam may be
released with the minimum amount of
resistance.

In ordinary practice, the jacket- and
piston-water temperature averages about
150 degrees. Allowing a working range
of 20 degrees for the jacket water, sec-
ondary steam may be supplied to the
final turbine stages or rows, at 130 de-
grees. Between 130 degrees (4]/2 pounds
absolute) and 102 degrees (28 inches
vacuum), the ideal water rate is approxi-
mately 50 pounds, and with a Rankine
cycle efficiency of practically 65 per cent,
in the lower last row of blades, the
actual water rate becomes 77 pounds per
brake horsepower-hour. With 33 per cent,
of the heat being absorbed by the jackets,
3300 B.t.u. become available when the
engine is at full load; 1018.7 B.t.u. are
required to evaporate one pound of steam
from and at 130 degrees and hence

■ " ' • = 3.24 pounds of steam available
1018.7

per engine brake horsepower-hour at 4]/3

pounds absolute pressure. This is then

equivalent to producing

324

= 4.21 per

1200

900

•D
O
O

600

c
o

o
to

300

Jane

ary P

eat

■y

'/ \

J/7-

,__

_..

/■■

'mA

1 Load

//->

, >

?<?r

275
250
225

.200

o +-

L o

E
<u

I Z 4 6 8

4 6 8 10 12

pOWER

10 \Z Z
--^ ->|«-— -

Fig. 7. Load Curve of Interurban Railway System. Jacket and Exhaust

Heat Utilized

able in the jacket at a lower tempera-
ture head, and with consequently less
potential energy above the condenser
pressure.

The problem of utilizing this low-ten-
sion steam and obtaining it conveniently
from the jacket water is not a difficult
one. It is entirely feasible to extract
the heat from the jacket water in the form
of steam by circulating the discharge
through a vessel in which a pressure is
maintained lower than the steam tension

cent.* of the gas-engine output, which,
added to the power from the exhaust
heat, amounts to 12.75 per cent. In the
smaller plants, this may not be greater
than 11.75 per cent. Evidently these
quantities represent the gross gain by

♦TemDeratures of 150 degrees Fahrenheit
have been considered for the jacket and pis-
ton water. Should the temperature be raised
to 200 degrees Fahrenheit as found in some
foreign p'ants, the power that may be de-
veloped from the iacket heat would be
doubled. The advantage will probably in-
spire this practice.

! II, 1911.

the op.ration of a low-pressure turbine;
and to determine the net t- iat may

be obtained, the r. -onsumption of

the auxiliary condenser and pump* must
be deducted. As a close approximation,
it may be assumed to be 1 per cent, for
every 6 pounds of steam consumption
of the main unit; in other

80; — ,

a «

«•- -

s45

^25

w ooiiosooomo eo so no so eo sa ao

.«rotvrt c-

cent, for 15 pounds steam consumr

brake horsepower-hour, 5 per cent.
for 30 pounds. 12!. per cent, for
pour

Furthermore, a small allowanc

: for radiation and friction. My
nt The follow ir..
fair estimate of the true improveme-

4.21 0.1283) »1»n

The smaller plant would, in pr<<;
be about 10.5 per cent. The coal
sumption of the plant would be low

; -.illa-

tion of the 1< are turbine u

both exhaust and jacket water. If
crating on! laust heat, the redttC-

uld be ' nt.

purpose Of designation, the
steam obtained from thccxhai.

available crv
may be

steam, and that obtain the

i". While the ;
'»cd ab<

an extent, to fractional loads, it being

n< "cj that t'

at somewhat greater rate than I

and ai and thu* a fa

■
a wide rani

In aJJition to the saving .it
the sensible h

producer n ! In an ccooo-

and
md thr

m ha

"eacnt- but a amall r

it which may be cor-

agr

vaporizer has been considered, th

Sot lata on turbines and

haust boilers may be a for

rmancc of the
K.i- enfinc - txerv.plificd ir. the Norton
'>-' form a pan of volume

29 of th

J on brake
■put. t !
folio

UWM

Results ' • on-

• rying vacuum, conducted two
ra ago on one of the first double-'
reaction, low-prcs- ire pre-

Vhilc it is to be un
J that they arc no- of the im-

-.-conom -h later

• mplcte and arc to
be found instructive in t:

Th. tamed then was

cm. or. brake horsepower tur-

bine. A like efl -bable in a

turbine such as that -cd in this

In so:- rk undertaker

The ichine Compan

on of •
Be* the assumption made sr the

larr ■> %,txs. ,cgt

recent knowledge of the re-

hot

that , of r*

of :

t that '
** ( redoes

ring

the heating a

that t bccorr.es dc*

I ahown
in Figs I and

a less exper

hi pipe.
The primar. Mesjn mains pas* through
the cxhau-^ sccurt

sma:

Lo»

Recovering heat from th
in the form of steam is almost idr
sccomp
merely of an

i.h.,«

Ml ax m

■

'bine design*.' ' ~* the Arum

I pound absolute b* • pfr»»urc pro- teenper .»•>■• *' •hkh n I

Th*
irknce i gained from i aaalntalned in the chea

corrcasoodina is the MHSflMMIO si

and as a produ in an int.

■Sag

•

558

POWER

April 11, 1911.

allow proper disengagement of the steam.
The boiler is elevated to avoid operating
the jackets and water lines under vacuum
and to prevent the formation of steam
pockets which otherwise would be liable
to be injurious to the cylinders. Regard-
less of the fact that all the heat is trans-
ferred from the jacket to the steam, the
boiler cannot be considered 100 per cent,
efficient. To effect the interchange, the
temperature must be lowered, which re-
duces the available energy in the steam.
Thus its efficiency may be only from 60
to 80 per cent.

Storage Tanks and Insulation

Guide or baffle plates may be used in
the tank to facilitate circulation, which
will manifestly depend upon the rate at
which the energy may be withdrawn from
the tank.

Owing to the large tanks that are es-

lows that the curves of constant period
of engine operation preceding the peaks
are also lines of constant tank volume.
Thus for a period of four hours engine
operation at full load previous to the
peak, 2.5 cubic feet per kilowatt of gas-
engine capacity are necessary; for 6
hours, 3.75 cubic feet; 8 hours, 5 cubic
feet, etc. For a 2000-kilowatt plant, this
corresponds to a tank volume of 5000
cubic feet. If the peak is to last three-
quarters of an hour after four hours
storage, 840 kilowatts or 42 per cent, of
2000 kilowatts, are available from the
low-pressure turbine. Proportioning the
tank allows considerable latitude. The
area of the surface of the water, or dis-
engagement of the steam, may be deter-
mined by employing a disengaging veloc-
ity of the steam varying from 1 1/2 to 5
feet per second. Thus the dimensions
of the tank may be accommodated in a

\ no

5000 £"100

If)

n o
S x 90

t<*

[<?

[<*

- 4000 Jj ° 80

fc.

^r-

<<!

I t £70

N. ■'

o-3000«(° 60

+- u+- 50

0 <u 0
20001: i_ 40

ioo JS

zl£f>Ci,

0.75 3

~°Y*hau

3SS

o g. 30

0.50 5

1000 o 20

0.25 i

* 10

0 0

-ei

■!

D5<

3lU

)

Fig. 10. Results from Test of 20- horsepower Low-pressure Steam Turbine

sential, it is advisable to maintain the
working temperature and pressure above
atmosphere. This obviates the expense
of providing tanks to resist the collapsing
tendency under a vacuum and prevents
air leakage. On the other hand, while
it is desirable to have as high a tempera-
ture elevation as practical to confine the
heat storage to a small body of water,
there are obviously natural limitations
in the exhaust heater. Present calcula-
tions show that from 45 pounds absolute
(274 degrees) to 15 pounds absolute
(a range of about 64 degrees Fahren-
heit) best suits the conditions. The
amount of water necessary to absorb
the heat available from the gas engine
is a definite quantity, depending upon the
temperature range worked through and
the time during which the heat is sup-
plied; in other words, the hours of en-
gine operation preceding the peak load.

The curves, Fig. 3, have all been plotted
on the basis of 64 degrees Fahrenheit
temperature drop, and it therefore fol-

large measure to the plant layout. The
tank should be equipped with burners or
grates and fire tubes, at relatively low
cost, such that a byproduct plant could
be made self-contained in an emergency.

Losses from radiation and conduction
may be made very small items. Low
temperatures are used, and consequently
the rate of transfer, depending upon the
temperature difference, will be corre-
spondingly low.

Radiation loss from the heat-storage
system is an extremely low percentage of
the low-pressure power available. Au-
thorities on the subject of "Conduction
and Transmission of Heat" differ some-
what in opinion as to the rate of heat
dissipation from cast-iron and sheet-steel
surfaces; 2.5 B.t.u. per hour per degree
difference in temperature per square foot
of bare surface is about the accepted
average.* With 85 per cent, covering effi-
ciency, the actual loss per square foot

is 0.375, or fg of a B.t.u. With ap-
proximately 180 degrees average tem-
perature difference, the hourly loss per
square foot would be 67.5 B.t.u. As
37,500 B.t.u. are, roughly, required to
develop a kilowatt-hour in a low-pressure
turbine,

37^500 -r- 67.5 = 556
square feet of exposed surface would

100

580
o

^.60

-40
o

•£30
I-
20

Worn

f¥°^to„

J-ffc

dl°l-'On Losses

• ■

declaimed by Jackets \..

Reclai

med bv

MeaterLh

/ /

20£'.y c
30 ^

Per Cent

Heat to

tJtot Water

System

Per Cent
Heatinto
Steam
Generation

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Per Cent Rating

Power.

Fig. 11. Heat Balance from Test of

200-horsepower gas engine and

Heater with 134 Square Feet

of Heating Surface

represent a loss of one kilowatt in an
hour. In case of the 2000-kilowatt plant
results, a tank 15 feet in hight and 28
feet in length, would be required, provid-
ing 20 per cent, steam space. Together
with the connecting pipe, the radiating
area would be in the neighborhood of
2500 square feet and the loss per hour
would be

2500 -4- 556 = 4.5
kilowatts. For four hours operation pre-
ceding the one-half hour peak of 840
kilowatt,

4.5 X 4 = 18

kilowatts would be lost. This amounts

18
to only - — , 2.15 per cent, of the power

required. These radiation losses have

* Steam-heating engineers use a lower
value.

heat
Available
for Hot
'■Water
System

Heat
Available
for6enerating
Steam

6 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 Po,VER
Brake Horsepower

Fig. 12. Results of Exhaust Heater
Test

been more than conservatively covered
in the accompanying results.

Addendum on Heating Systems
The utilization of gas-engine waste
heat was attempted very soon after the
gas engine assumed commercial import-
ance, over twenty-five years ago, effort

April 11, 1911.

P O \X E R

being applied to divert as much of this
heat for steaming and industrial purposes
as possible.

The amount of heat to be obtained in
the form of steam or hot water is given
in Figs. 11 and 12. Two facts have op-
erated against a more general adoption
of gas-engine waste-heat systems. F
the steel boilers that were employed at
the out- ously corr

by the sulphurous-acid gas and the n
ture present at the low temperatures. The

introduction of cast-iron heaters should

ic use of waste gases. Or
per cent, of the jacket water* may be
evaporated by the exhaust heat, and the
of the jacket water in a hot-water
tern involve ral disadvanta.

and more complicated and costly installa-
tion. Seco- iere the ratio of t
ing requirements to the p

. s or buildings is large,

'•ral

• t »«lrr

the noncondensing steam motor is ob-

a southern
I contump-
:n the I

ing to be done. sufficient beat may be

obtained from the gas eng:

• T*
The authoi c Wetting-

house Machine Company for permission
to use these data, and to A. T. Kaslcy for
fruitful suggestions in the
of detail* of ■ illation.

Safety Valves and Their Application

All steam boilers should be fitted with
two safety valves, one of these valves to
blow off for high steam pressure, and
the other for both high steam pressure
and low water. The former is generally
of the dead-weight or direct spring-
loaded type. Where springs and weighted

rs are used, the lever and the weight
should be such that the valve will open
at blowing-off pressure when the weight
is at the extreme end of the lever. This
prevents overloading, due to slipping of
the weight, although unscrupulous at-
tendants may adopt the dangerous and
often criminal practice of hanging more
weights on the lever. There are other
•'! be noted in connection with the
choice of a lever-tspc safety valve; for
instance, if guide forks are fitted to the

r, they must be open at the top so
that the lever cannot become wedged; al-
to, iron to iron contact should not be per-
mitted for the lever pins on account of

If the valve is of the do*
the "iron to iron" remark applies also
to the valve spindle passing through the

r. Dead-weight valves arc not per-
missible on m.i >rtablc or locomo-
to thi on and
swaying, but the direct spring-loa.:
is not affected in this way.

The second safety valve is often con-

-d to a float in such a way that it
; Bfl when the water sinks to a
tain level; i • nown as the "'■

refcrab >uld

r high steam pressure as well.

B many portable boilers, especially

c that have been in s« >r many

■g balances, are n
made Impo-

ing up the thumb nut on the balance, as
an unskilled attendant may ignor.i
cause disastrous results. The t
on the spring-balance scale shot:
cate "poun |
ablr he valve arra and

length of the lever to the prc*«i.
■ntloftt has lr
man ng to the attendant

being ignoran'

^ M of deadweight Ml

valves !• prohibit! arr«,*r« <o be

'(■••on u

By John S. Leete

The limita: and •

.'//. »!:;;>'' ut tyf

and I
. i ontpuiah

tni£ > H <niii

.lid not be used. They are much
arable to the 1 ng-balance

lives should never have a
diameter less than two inches, the rela-
tion of diameter to lif- i much dc-
J point. In the nion neither
me, that is. high lift and small diam-
small lift and large diameter, is
rahlc. but rather a mean might be
reached between t

In many case .ilvc is so for

■

that the rr of the steam I

■ig gear arranged so that th<
cs may be op hand from

<ini,
jntageoi ases

•

II
/ - Pitts oca from fulcrum pin to

Center »f \«Sc ;

•istance from '

'XT Of J.

n to
;cr of weight;
A = Area of safe square

incf
Pas Steam pressure at which va
will blow off, in pounds
square inch.
Then,

PXAXL. H <L,+ W,XU

w, X u

PwmW, X

Lx +

•

'=.

+ ».

The miter

of a

safety

e should

not

nch.

trical I i j;k
hibiti

The third triennial exhibition of e
trical engineering and machir. i be

held at Olympia. London. • 'rom

ember . be

international in ch >
facturc: bWoa, promoted

large < manufacturers of I

land, through their assoc

■■
tinn A ting firms

pate 'rom the

although

ental. which to ad-
»s of tho*

n the coro
cc

t andc "

Mir
BtMtt |

r iBrtbtuoa. »i to I m •
tfcty make limulry ta
MMsS* • large perrentagr
floor and •

r."f •

560

POWER

April 11, 1911.

Friction Clutches and Their Use

In most manufacturing plants changes
and improvements are constantly being
made in the machinery for the sake of
effecting greater economy. But, strangely
enough, in many plants, although they
are equipped with modern machin-
ery, there exist inefficient means of stop-
ping and starting line and countershaft-
ing. Aside from the independent, elec-
tric-motor drive, there is nothing better
for this purpose than the friction clutch.
The use of clutches permits the shafting
to be so divided that it is only necessary
to run the machinery, countershaft and
line shaft which are actually in use. Thus
a machine, countershaft, line shaft or
whole department may be shut down
without interfering in any way with other
departments or equipment. This results
in a saving of power and time and should
be appreciated by every engineer and

Main Line Shaft

-20-

To Planers

""0

-16-

Power

Fig. 1. Use of Friction Clutch to
Economize Space

power-plant owner who perhaps has seen
a whole plant shut down, the men stand-
ing idle and production stopped, all due
to the breaking of a belt, rope or pulley.
Where friction clutches are in use this
trouble can be overcome. Of course, to
equip a whole power-transmission system
with friction clutches is quite expensive,
but it should prove to be cheaper and
more efficient, in the long run, than the
use of tight and loose pulleys. With

By H. A. Jahnke

Reasons why the use of
clutch pulleys and cutoff
couplings makes for econ-
omy. Suggestions in re-
gard to the selection of suit-
able clutches. General
description of some clutches
of well known make.

friction clutches, the loads may be picked
up slowly while the driving shaft is run-
ning at full speed. .Further, clutches act
as safety devices and eliminate strains
upon machinery and belting. The slip-
page in starting and stopping is taken up
by the clutch instead of the belt.

If it is desired to place friction clutches
in line of shafting so as to make parts
of the shaft independent units, this can
easily be done .by removing shaft soup-
lings at convenient points and in their
place putting friction-clutch cutoff coup-
lings. By the use of a split type of fric-
tion-clutch cutoff coupling such a change
can be made without much expense or
trouble.

A large percentage of the unnecessary
cost of running line shafts and counter-
shafts can be saved by arranging the
shafting and machinery so that parts can
be stopped by means of friction clutches
when not in use.

Fig. 2. Johnson Clutch, Engaged

Often, slight changes in transmission
conditions save a great loss of time. Take,
for example, the following case of a ma-
chine which is driven direct from the line
shaft by means of a 4-inch belt. In order
to start or stop this machine the belt has
to be shifted from tight to loose pul-
ley or vice versa. Should the belt tear

or need tightening during the time when
the machine is in operation, the line shaft
has to be stopped before adjustment can
be made. Often, this results in shut-
ting down other departments. This would
not be the case if there was a friction
clutch on the line shaft; all that would
be necessary would be to disengage the
clutch and any repairs could be made
without interfering with other parts of
the transmission equipment. Friction
clutches save wear and tear on the belts.
With a tight- and loose-pulley arrange-
ment, when the belt is shifted from one
to the other, the stress in the edge of
the belt is considerable. This results
in the burning of the belt and the open-
ing of the laps at the edges.

In a certain plant, a line shaft, used
for driving planers, had been driven for
many years by a 10-inch double leather

Fig, 3. Johnson Clutch Disengaged

belt from the main line shaft. The planer
line shaft was arranged with a tight and
loose pulley to permit the stopping of this
shaft during the noon hour and at night
when machinery in other parts of the
factory was worked overtime. A few
years ago it became necessary to install
a larger belt to drive the planer line shaft,
due to the installation of more machin-
ery. A 16-inch belt was necessary.
Had it been necessary to use the tight-
and loose-pulley system with the larger
belt, considerable work would have been
required, for the new pulleys would have
required 32 inches and this would have
necessitated the shifting of the bearings.
By the use of a clutch, however, this was
obviated, as shown in Fig. 1.

For economy of space and convenience
in subdividing transmission systems into
separate parts, any of which may be
taken out of service without disturbing
the others, friction clutches find extensive
use. It may be well, therefore, to con-
sider the design and operation of some
clutches in general use.

Clutches may be divided into two gen-
eral types, the ring type and the disk
type. In the former, the friction sur-
faces bear on a ring which is concentric
with the shaft. In the latter, the sur-
faces bear on a disk which is normal to
the shaft.

In most clutches one contact surface

April 11, 1911.

oaiposed of wood while the other is
made of cast iron. The advantages con*
sequent to the use of these materials are:
High coefficient of friction; uniform con-
tact due to the wearing of the wood
shoes; Ioa of r-> wood

shoes; negligible amount of wear of
iron in contact with the wooden sur-

Fic terior View of John

Clutch

faces; the fact that wood can be n
without lubrication, and freedom
danger of the surfaces seizing.

In purchasing a friction clutch gj

care should be taken to select the right

clutch to transmit a given h.

Of and duv Jeration should be

n to the character of the Mich

is to b this

so if ihe clutch is to I nec-

tion with an electric mot ere the

motor is capable l laps SO

iJ that clutch
should be sck hich has a

r rating at cr cent

■ the mo'

A clutch which is fre.; thrown

in and more

wear and tear than a clutch «
crated infrequent!) \ clutch will carry
a uniform load han a I

able lo : be

sea a clutch : tta a

cap. i

of ll >adcd i arc the source

of n that users of

In placing a a line

shaf*

a b- i possible, because -

the clut
strain on t!

star- | ■ full

•II friction

n a
clutch.

Ti .son C;

in-
•on -ch h»^

•nd

the es a v A in *

iade a pan of
the

• g and thus br
mK al con-

h the
-too the hub of which is ma^J

I so
- that ight

-ate the clutch.
Tt J in m.i

plants in place of a countershaft

n the line
shaft, as shown in I

ut bang

an\ thing.

on a coun- pul-

irrying an open belt and the
other a crossed belt, the mac n be

run either in the I • or in the

ttoa. f rn of clutch is

- running ma-

chir rsc motion.

To utch. all that is r.

e»*a gle screw a frac-

of a turn i neccssar.

i apace
beiweer iT bods _»tch

not nece*

Th panic . Me for

con- ate ir-

on LV < rcH

the right or left 1 can be

rca. i« hole in the

•
the Ca i 0fT).

pany, Man. n.

7 and 8 sh' ard ch:

In this clutch all logg
have

r-ir"

T n»M

in t< ills %h

starting ma the

can be tur -p.

»g the *

When the clutch net J
can be r. a M .hick

■llOW Jg COll. I Hjl,

the gca

•flmc number of teeth t< ,;ht the

un up the same
all side

from tv»its nun a-si '
in in "'

I are ' pocia

xx- cning* aad

urncJ h> ihe oMoon Co*»pa*y. Ehr

i : .

* * t

■

562

POWER

April 11, 1911.

clutch, which is of the disk type. The holes through them in which are lodged clutch is shown in Figs. 11 and 12. In
construction of the Akron clutch is ex- three hardened tool-steel rollers. When this clutch the positive release feature
tremely simple, as a little study of the the levers L are perpendicular to the is new, and eliminates the use of springs

sectional view in Fig. 9 will show. The

Fig. 8. Outline of Hilliard Clutch

drum A carries a hub or sleeve to which
a pulley, gear or sprocket wheel may be
keyed. The head T of the drum is sep-
arate. Within the drum are arranged two
cast-iron friction plates C which the keys
H, sunk into the fixed, or driving, mem-
ber B, force to rotate with the shaft. The
disks C are free to move laterally on the
keys H. The clutch depends for its power-
transmitting capacity upon the friction
between the disks C and the correspond-
ing friction surfaces of the drum A and

Fig. 9. Sectional View of the Akron
Clutch Coupling

the cover T. The clutch is engaged by
forcing apart the friction disks C into
contact with the drum heads by means of
the toggle mechanism, the latter being
connected by steel links U to the sliding
sleeve E. Regular shifter forks attached

shaft, the center line of the three rollers
is perpendicular to the faces of the fric-
tion disks, and the latter are pressed
apart into contact with the friction sur-
faces. The design of the improved shifter
ring S is such that the oil is retained
while dust and dirt are excluded. The
ring is made of cast iron and lined with
babbitt.

formerly used for disengaging the fric-

Fig. 11. Section of One-half of Hill
"Smith Type" Clutch

The Akron clutch requires no atten-
tion other than the occasional renewal of
oil in the case through the oil hole N.
The cover T serves to retain the oil.

The clutch is adjusted by means of
the head T which is screwed into the
drum A and provided with notches in

Fig. 10. Exterior of Akron Clutch
Coupling

Fig. 12. Hill "Smith Type" Clutch

which the point of the locking screw P
engages. The pitch of the screw and
number of the notches are so propor-
tioned that one adjustment of one notch
corresponds to a lateral movement of
1/200 of an inch between the friction

«H

■; ■
Hi'! |

Fig. 13. The Weller Compound Clutch

tion jaws. As an examination of Fig. 11
will serve to show, the continuous toggle
connection from the cone to the jaws posi-
tively releases the ring when the clutch

HE 1 1 ",**'w

^■^^Ek

I -

^T*W ^ HI ' ^0i

Fig. 14. Side View of Weller Compound
Clutch

is thrown out. This new clutch is dis-
tinguished by improvements in the de-
sign which allow any working part to be
removed parallel to the shaft from the

surfaces. The Akron clutch is made by Fig. 15. Details of the Weller Clutch

the Williams Foundry and Machine Com-

to the yoke S are used to disengage and pany at Akron, O. mechanism side without removing the

engage the clutch. The roller toggle is main spider casting. On account of the

a novel feature of this clutch; it con- lHE HlLL Smith Type Clutch rigidity of the construction, the clutch is

sists of two forked liners L with chilled The new Hill "Smith type" friction self-protective; if the clutch is loaded be-

April 11, 1911.

yond the limit set by the jaw adjustment,
slippage ensues instead of breaka.

This clutch is manufactured by the Hill
Clutch Company, Cleveland. O.

a cutoff coupling .on-

struction o' -.hoes and iron

I or grip* which engage the

latter ht the shaft in line. The

Cald ch Attached ley

Tut ^Teller Compound <

14 and 16 sh<>* the teller
compound clutch, designed for high

ring or plate to which the wooden shoes

into the drum
of the clutch and acts as a universal

>re out of sllnc-

Tm Cau

Tr sbowa la Figs.

16 a ached to a pt

or u»cd at a fr.cti. coop

ion str

. tion band
blocks and when tr

t$AL (■ -1CTIOK

rt Co

is obtained
on all pans of the

( contact

. sal
This clutch is manu'

Tm ksal C

Giant clutch. Thi» c of compact

and
rca : .-signed so that

J protects the
n duet an J
sur fa arge

•
wood bloc>
• so as
fact

-to or oa

-»d*s

■sade

564

POWER

April 11, 1911.

Underground Pipe Covering

By Charles H. Herter

The modern tendency to distribute heat
from central points makes it necessary
to lay steam pipes underground more fre-
quently than ever; consequently, informa-
tion on this subject should be appreciated
by those who are expected to do under-
ground pipe work in an uptodate man-
ner and at moderate cost.

The essential features of a successful
underground conduit conveying steam,
hot water, cold brine, ammonia, etc., are
now recognized to be perfect insulation
and protection. These can only be obtained
when the outside of the pipe is always
dry. The importance of dryness is only
realized fully when it is remembered that
the transmission of heat from a steam
pipe to surrounding quiet air is from 2.1
to 2.8 B.t.u. per degree Fahrenheit tem-
perature difference per square foot of
pipe surface per hour and that propor-
tionately greater losses result when the
best possible conditions are not main-
tained.

Any type of wooden inclosure is sub-
ject to decay, sooner or later, and should,
therefore, be avoided, for there is avail-
able now material which is proof against
water, fire, acid and time. A conduit
which has been used in many important'
installations within the past fifteen years
is one which is specially prepared for
underground service. It is made from
stoneware and fireclay, passed through
hydraulic presses, vitrified and glazed in-
side and out. This pipe in form is simi-
lar to ordinary bell and spigot sewer
pipe, except that, after burning in the kiln,
it is split into duplicate numbered halves,
for which purpose two downward diago-
nal grooves are cut along the interior
wall, leaving at least one-half of the
thickness rough for cementing. Care is
taken to cement the same halves together
on the job as when mending a broken
plate. The conduit comes in 3-foot
lengths and in diameters ranging from 6
to 30 inches. There should always be a
distance of not less than 3 inches be-
tween the wall of the conduit and the
nearest steam pipe. One or more and
different sized pipes can be inclosed in
the same conduit.

About every 15 feet a special support-
ing tee with the branch set downward and
inclosing pipe supports concreted in this
base is provided. These supports are
piovided with rollers, permitting the pipes
to expand and contract freely without im-
posing the least strain upon the conduit.
Clamps with anchor bolts embedded in
concrete in a blind pit or a manhole are
used for anchoring the steam pipes at
suitable points, especially where the di-
rection or elevation of the line changes.
Expansion is provided for by expansion
joints, arranged in water-tight manholes
at proper intervals. Where the line en-

ters a building or a manhole, or inside
building walls, a shutter is built of 4
inches of concrete on lattice work spread
over the opening of the conduit to pre-
vent the passage of vermin from one
building to another, and to seal the con-
duit. Sleeves of suitable pipe covering
about a foot long and wired with a water-
pioof jacket or of the next larger size
pipe, are put on each pipe to act as a
stuffing box allowing pipes to slide with-
out injury.

For brine and ammonia pipes the con-
duit can be packed with fine, regranulated
cork, say 8 pounds for each cubic foot of
space filled. For steam, hot-water pipes,
etc., H. W. Johns-Manville Asbesto-
Sponge filling has proved to be very effi-

This type of conduit has been tested in
the field by George H. Barrus and others,
and found in the case of steam pipes to
reduce the loss of heat to the extent of
from 89 to over 94 per cent, of that suf-
fered with bare dry pipe. Very few pipe
coverings approach and retain this high
insulating quality. The cost is little more
than for wooden covering and much less
than for a pipe tunnel.

Test of Zoelly Turbines

The accompanying table, taken from
a recent issue of the Zeitschrift fiir das
Gesamte Turbinenwesen, shows the re-
sults of a series of tests at different loads
on four turbines of the Zoelly type, built

TEST OF NEW ZOELLY TURBINE.

Kilowatts
Developed.

Admission- Steam.

- Vacuum,
Inches.

Steam Consumption,
Pounds per Hour per

Gage
Pressure.

Tempera-
ture, De-
grees Fah-
renheit.

Effective

Thermo-

Rating of
Turbine.

Kilowatt .

Horsepower.

dynamic
Efficiency,
Per Cent.

4000 kw.

4189
3092
2199

1138

165
169
162
167

556
557
518
520

28 . 75
28.85
29.20

29 . 35

13.3
13.82

1 1.55
16.15

9.25

9.50

9.71

10.00

68.7
66.2
63.2
59.9

2000 kw.

2052

1514

1026

510

180
182
178
172

586

563
566
544

28.4
28.6
28.75
29.00

13.05
13.75
14.55
17.40

9.10

9.40

9.67

10.58

70.5
67.2
65.2
58.8

1700 kw.

1641

1366

851

457

206
203
206
209

669
672
842
642

28.00
28.20
28 . 60
2S.40

13.10
13.80
15.55

18.95

8.8

9.10

9.70

10.52

69.7
66.5
61
57.1

1200 kw.

1235
949
606

163
165
167

450
460
424

28.40

28.6

29.00

15.40
16.05
17.15

10.62
10.95
11.35

62.8

cient, iy2 pounds being required per
cubic foot. Its insulating value is excep-
tionally high and the material does not
deteriorate under the heat and moisture
met with in practice.

The approved method of laying this
conduit is to dig a trench about 20 inches
wider than the conduit and of proper
depth and grade. As in any first-class
work, it is essential to first of all lay an
underdrain of sewer pipe in a narrow
subtrench, the joints being laid open and
not cemented. This underdrain, which is
surrounded with broken stone, serves to
lead away any water which might other-
wise remain in contact with the conduit,
absorbing heat much faster than dry ma-
terial would. Connection to this under-
drain can be made with the manhole pits,
draining them of any drippings from
valves or expansion joints. A clean gravel
should ultimately extend up above the
side joint of the conduit. Next, the lower
halves of the various tile sections, unions
and supporting tees, are assembled and
cemented, and roll frames to carry the
pipes concreted into bases of supporting
tees. An opportunity is now presented
to thoroughly test the whole pipe line for
leaks, after which the upper halves of all
conduit sections are cemented exactly in
place, one by one, and packed with in-
sulating material. Then the hub joints of
the top halves are cemented up.

by the firm of Escher, Wyss & Co., of
Zurich. These turbines are extremely
short and show especially good results.

Central Station Will Have to
Show ' Em

No. 2, of Missouri, National Associa-
tion of Stationary Engineers, St. Louis,
is sending out to its members a very com-
plete power-plant report blank. This is
being done to encourage the engineers to
keep a system of records.

The report is a four-page leaflet. On
the first page, blank forms are to be
filled which call for power-plant invest-
ment, total output, capacity of plant, cost
per kilowatt-hour, total costs and credits
for each month of the year, and other
data of a leading character.

The second and third pages are de-
voted to daily, weekly and monthly costs,
including fixed charges, wages, materials,
repairs, service of plant, service outside
of plant, lamps furnished and credit and
bills under control. The fourth page
ie the daily log.

The report is one of the most com-
pleted of its kind that has come under
our inspection, and if given the attention
it deserves, the members will be better
engineers and in addition they will have
data that should forestall any encroach-
ment of the central station.

April 11, 1911.

Methods of Testing Boiler Steel

The formula for calculating the safe
working pressure of a steam boiler

( H )•( )

re this formula can be used, h
ever, it ry to know what value

to assign as the ultimate U 4th

of the plate.

It is almost universal practice foi
users of steel plate to inspect and
all material bought, in order to make
sure that it conforms to the ca-

tions; also, this information, in con-

with the r -he ma-

in actual scr of great value

in determining the requisites that are

Mii al to good service so that tl
qualities may be i and

in future orders. Furthermore >m-

mon practice for the manufacturers of
plate to mat. f samples of

their entire output so as to know at all
* the qua! tct

The machine generally
work is shown in J The

men to hi
A, one

in t' icad li. while the

nd is similarly gripped in the
r movable head C. The loa.:

inward
ement of the head C, at the rate of
about one inch per minute, trains of
gears being uscJ to the scr

which draw the he.' ward. The load

to which the n is subi-

lined by the head n turn.

trar ;h the columns L) 0

Wise

. l

tin i

■

lugs on the

on •

.n poiv.
The ;

J the

: c« of the

ts to be teste.: i

)

■ '

•

In machine U star

en opt rate* the poise as

pi toat
to maintain thto conjition
e load 00) tb<

•hon time the '••»J *■•<■■

a point ich the heava

,:her epeee?.
hewn mir.ti.nfj In the tearing

566

POWER

April 11, 1911.

After passing the elastic limit the load
increases steadily but slowly, even with
an increase of speed, until the maximum
load that the specimen can sustain is
reached, when the beam drops and re-
mains down. The load indicated on the
beam at this point is recorded as the
ultimate tensile strength. Also, the test
piece is seen to be growing thinner at
the place where rupture later occurs.
From now on until the specimen breaks
it is necessary to run the poise of the
weighing beam backward if it is desired
to keep the beam floating; this is prac-
tically never done as load readings be-
yond the maximum are not desired.

„ ,. , Parallel Section

Radius, a< — not less than 9 >t

/ too-< ! i

<-Punch Marks, 8
About 18---

k«ftar*J

Fig. 3. Standard Size of Test Piece

Immediately after rupture has taken
place the machine is stopped and the
specimen is removed. The shape of the
fracture and the character of the steel
are carefully examined and noted. The
pieces are fitted together in their original
position and the distance between the
punch marks is measured. This dimen-
sion shows how much the specimen has
been stretched.

Assume, for instance, the data taken
during the test to be as follows: Final
size, 1.48x0.52 inches; final area, 0.77
square inch; elastic limit, 25,680 pounds;
ultimate strength, 46,820 pounds; elon-
gation in 8 inches, 2.32 inches.

In order to be able to compare the
results derived from the tensile tests of

Elongation, Inches.

Fig. 4. Characteristic Curve

specimens of different thicknesses and
widths, the data must be reduced in each
case to the same basis. The necessary
calculations are made so as to show the
elastic limit in pounds per square inch
of original area, the ultimate strength in
pounds per square inch of original area
and the percentage of elongation in 8
inches. Therefore, the final results of the
test are recorded as: Elastic limit,
33,350 pounds per square inch; ultimate
strength, 60,805 pounds per square inch;
elongation, 29 per cent.

During the test, as described, no atten-
tion is paid to the elongation of the speci-
men other than to measure the distance
between the punch marks after rupture.
If, however, a number of readings of the
elongation are taken and these results
are plotted in connection with the loads
which produced them, a characteristic

curve similar to that shown in Fig. 4
will result. This diagram shows plainly
the rapid increase in load for the small
elongation which takes place up to the
time the elastic limit at M is reached;
here the load is seen to remain station-
ary for a time and then increase slowly
while the specimen is stretching rapidly.
This condition continues until the point
N, representing the ultimate tensile
strength, is reached, after which the load
decreases, the specimen now stretching
rapidly until rupture occurs at O.

The ultimate tensile strength of boiler
steel varies from 55,000 to 65,000 pounds
per square inch so that in the calcula-
tion for the safe working pressure of a
boiler the average value of 60,000 pounds
per square inch is generally used.

Writing for the Technical

Paper

By E. Dixon

Havin' ben afflict'd with "writer's itch,"
almost since berth, sum pain, plesure an'
profit hav' kum mi way from usin' a
pencil. Mi furst experience, wuz with
mi mother, after I'd dek'erat'd a newly
paper'd wall with a few chaste records
of mi thoughts. She chas'd me an caught
me an I need'd a cushin real bad for
the next few days. Gee, but she stung
me proper. When I went to the skool,
the teacher an' I got in wrong with each
other an I us'd the blackboard to express
my opinion. The illustrations were rather
raw but I had a fair opinion of the
writin' until the teacher convinced me
that it was impolite.

When I got into the shop, I com-
menced to fin' out where a lot of the
"dope" I'd side stepped wuz useful. Well,
there were induc'ments. I saw the fore-
man knew more nor I did an' wuz not a
hull lot delited to supply informashun.
It didn't seem squar' to me an' I kep'
mi eyes wide opun a lookin' fur things.
One day I caught on to the fac' that the
way Jim figgered out the change gears
fur a screw I wuz to cut had a sorter
familiar look, an' that nite to hum I
dug up mi rithmetic. I found a part
of it call'd "proportion" an' I set down
to study it out. I'd made a list of the
change gears fur the lathe an' the num-
ber of threads in the lead screw an' the
number of teeth on the spindle gear. I
dugged 'till I got the thing strait in mi
noddle an' the nex' time I had a thread
to cut I made bluff an' figgered out the
gears. Jim nearly scart me stiff after
figgering them for he changed the two
intermediates, but I didn't hold mi breth
none. I jus' counted their teeth an foun'
out I'd been right an' Jim 'd chang'd
them to keep me frum gettin' wise. I'd
foun' out I wasn't the only one an that
week I foun' a copy of the American Ma-
chinist at the library. It looked good to
me, an' I saw a notiz that they pade fur
things sent in wich they used. I knew

sum of the other boys didn't know how
to figger out the gears an' to get it fast
in mi nut I made a try tu put it down on
paper so I could understan' it. When I
got it in shape I'd near swet blood, an',
thinkin' of the others who didn't know, I
puts 'er in an envelop an' mails 'er.
Well, I got a notiz sayin' my contribushun
had been receipted an' I waited, an' I
waited. Then one day I saw mi piece,
at least they had mi name to it. I wuz
sore. After all the time I tuk to get
that thing done good the editur hadn't
left much to it but mi name. I wuz mad,
but aftur I'd cooled down a bit I read
'er again, an tuk mi time to it. The
editur'd done sum things which made me
take notiz. Sum of the things had ben
a bit muddy when I wrote them out but
now they'd ben made clear. I got tu
thinkin' to miself that they'd never think
mi stuff woth payin' for, they way they'd
treat'd it, an' when I got the check frum
the papur it seem'd like sumthin' fur
nothin'. I need'd the mun' an tuk the
check tu the cashier.

Say, I must 'a spent that "V" 'steen
times, ther' wer' so many things I
want'd, but Old John, the engineer, waz
a teachin' me tu run the engine an' I
sent fur a "Tulley." I'd had longin's fur
that book but I'd never had the coin tu
get it. The rest uv the "fortune" tuk
me an' mi steady tu the "Lake" an' we
had a boat ride an' sum ice-creme soda.
Mebbe I didn't feel that "brain money"
burn mi pockit. When Old John quit
they gave me the engine an' after I'd
run 'er awhile I'd got a better job to
the power house. By this time I'd seen
mi name in print several times an' I kep'
right on a writin' an' a sendin' it in. The
more I writ, the easier it becum an'
the goods seem'd to stick to me. I
studied to write an' I writ'd what I
studied. Then I got a raise, not the toe
kind.

Onc't I learn'd sumthin' not in the
books or the plant. I'd been a visitin' an
I told about a place I saw. The man
that run it was heftier nor me by 50
pounds an' sum kin' fren' show'd him
what I'd said. He came over tu see me
an' after he'd gone I bo't sum beef steak.
Then I'd foun' sum of mi frens'd argue
'bout what I'd said an' get real personal.
An' I fin'lly conclud'd that I'd use a
nomme due plum like sum of the big
ones. The editur didn't object an' gradu'-
ly cut out writin' in my own name, an'
it "sav'd a heap of argument. Sum of
the boys as't me 'bout it an' I 'splained
the writin' took too much time an' they
want'd to know who the guy wuz who
seemed to kno' so much about the lokul
doin's. I didn't tell but I kep' right on a
writin' an w'ile I'll never get rich quick
at the game, there's a big lot more in it
than the checks I get. I'm helpin' the
other feller an' am a charter member
of the league of self-risers, no dues, no
admission fees, the only qualifications
bein' a bit of grit an' stic'-to-it-iv'ness.

April 11. 1911.

POTF.R

501

Some Peatnret <>f Induction
Motor Operation

B> a \ Hill

When the U'illys-Ovcrland Company
took over the plant of the Pope Motor
Car Company, of Toledo. O., to manufac-
ture automobiles, the factory machinery
»••* group-driven by direct-current motors
ranging from 1 to 50 horsepower, the
total connected load being about 650
*cr. In most cases the motors
Wtn mounted on the floor in the cor-

of the rooms; in some in-
hou ic motor was used to drive

three floors. Upon extending and rear-
ranging the plant it was four iient
to char. r to alternating current,
the increased load being large enough to
the central station in putting a
transformer -he fac-
| '

Three-phase curr ind

.s arc transmitted from the cen-
tral station, about three ml
through one-half mile of underground
and 2 ' . m

tg of thre 0000 soliJ

and a neutral of
which is grounded at the power
The high-* ught

on poles to a trans-
fort located at the center of
moo. and lher< i to
purposes and 115
irate trans-
former* ar- rsc. for the
•ing and powet - I

nding the separation of the
second. i >ic fact that

the lighting tr

•rent from ihc sar

• rm-
ias caused some difficulty in main-

la occasion ill and I the

arv voltage when .tre thr.

on and off the l«

n a la:
of motor* i» M it one i "» at

and evening
ao table that

ling the toltagc
n

lamp

■ ■
nal«

per ccrv

/: specially^

conducted to be of

itltorcM .ind service to

tiie men in charges

ot tin- electrical

equipment

primary terminal nearest the 5 per cent,
tap is carried to the other pole of the
:h. The blades of the
three switches are conr. >gcther.

forming the neutral for the star connec-
tion Th:* arrangement li ilh Jia-
* 11 V in Fig. I,
Normally, when the motors are in
eration the pi voltage is pulled
down to approximately 3800 \ hich

that prima: would give

full primary voltj

After tht topped

the voltage comes back to normal and

lighting transformer connected

aa described *n excessive \oltagc would

be impressed o

the automatic arrangement shown in
the diagrat: The o;

of the apparat - folio*

When the motors Br-
ing down tl
blaJ the right

tieans of the rope with a hand.
//. connecting the neutral point I

-ead of the main
minals. The weight

latch F and th h D

■hrough
-clay R
ao ad that when the seconds

R*T»

■

>r*e condhk

■

tad

I -he

cs are act

and Bo'

age cult

thn i solenoid

oot the weight E to

the

tenting the \t \ ■ •'. . ' '■ i| ;< ' •• rr

• i , t" t:-£'- \t the uflc time 'he

he votaac'
oaaatqucath/ <»>c » -J • c* •! '** mctc»

i"'*0a%

inntctMH

snnnc* ch

•vi!!<sj hock aad fact*

T'<

bet tmWwt

568

POWER

April 11, 1911.

and, therefore, the switch contacts are
not subjected to any extra shock when
the weight falls.

Owing to the character of manufacture
and plant arrangement, group drive was
retained except in a very few cases. The
direct-current motors which have been
displaced were set on the floor and belted
to the line shafts at about 45 degrees.
Owing to the amount of space required
for the motor and belt, which necessarily

1 3 4 V

HIM

rUH

H I " .^^5 S/£09k~HSP

» w

"sr^ »^

I r

12'

'.^k. fin 11

'« 1 1 ' 1

Jfer

mm Z,

povJcP ~

Fig. 2, A Platform Equipment

had to be boxed in so as to eliminate the
possibility of employees coming in con-
tact with it, it was found advisable to
either suspend the new motors from the
ceiling 'or mount them on platforms. Most
of the motors are of 20 to 50 horse-
power, and motors of such sizes are not
so accessible when suspended from the
ceiling; moreover, the ordinary ceiling
will not stand such an arrangement with-
out reinforcement; consequently, the
platform installation was adopted. Fig. 2
illustrates one of these. The ceilings
average about 16 feet from the floor, and
the motor platform clears the floor 8 feet.
In some instances the platform is
placed in the corners of rooms, as in Fig.
3, and in others it is located in a con-
venient space and suspended by 1-inch
round-steel rods in 2-inch pipe spacers.
The platform frame is of 6x6-inch pine
timbers and floored with a double layer
of 2-inch planking. The platform is
large enough to allow the removal of the
rotor without lowering any parts to the
floor below. Where the platform is lo-
cated in a corner the walls carry a por-
tion of the weight of the frame through
a projection of the frame timbers
mortised into the brickwork. The frame
is further tied to the wall by means of
lagged straps which pass through the
brickwork. Those platforms located
away from side walls are suspended by
four bolts and steadied by -^-inch tie

rods and turnbuckles which extend from
each corner to the ceiling at an angle of
45 degrees to the edges and surface of
the platform. Beneath every platform
is a cluster of four incandescent lamps,
the function of which is not merely to
give light at this particular location but
also to indicate whether the power is off
or on.

In starting an induction motor one of
the running fuses may blow and leave
the motor running single-phase; if left
in this condition very long, the active
winding may be burned out. To detect
burnedout fuses, an arrangement is used
which consists of a fuse-block with a 2-
ampere fuse connected to about six feet
of lamp cord equipped with terminals
similar to those on a portable voltmeter.
Upon connecting this to the terminals of
a fuse to be tested, if the fuse has blown
the fact will be indicated by the blowing
of the 2-ampere test fuse. This is a
cheap device and can be used while the
motor is running.

Some difficulty was experienced due to
the static electricity generated by the
slipping of the belt on the iron line-shaft
pulley. Various brush devices were tried
to take the static charge from the belt,
but these soon become deranged and
rendered useless from various causes. All
motor frames are now grounded through
resistors of about 200,000 ohms resist-
ance, made up of two ,r4x 12-inch round
graphite rods; this effectively removes
the static charge.

The motors are blown out with com-
pressed air once a week. Compressed
air is piped to most departments to op-

Fig. 3. A Side-wall Platform

erate portable tools or to keep machine
tables free from chips. Taps are taken
from this general distribution system and
a -^-inch pipe is carried close to each
motor, terminating in a valve and the
male portion of a hose coupling to re-
ceive a hose for blowing out the motor
(note the air tap at the left of the motor
in Fig. 2).

The oil is changed in the bearings and
the bearings washed out with gasolene
at least every six months; those located
in dirty places are cleaned more fre-
quently. Current readings are taken

from the motors at frequent intervals, or
whenever a motor appears to be over-
loaded, a portable ammeter being pro-
vided especially for that purpose. As
nearly as possible the motors are given
full load; by changing motors to suit the
load, the power factor and load factor
are maintained reasonably high. At pres-
ent the load factor is 75 per cent, and the
power factor 82 per cent.

Telephones in the Power
Plant

By W. H. Radcliffe

Amongst the minor devices that have
contributed largely toward facilitating the
supervision and executive control of
power plants is the telephone. In the
average power plant, telephones can be
advantageously used for communication
between the boiler room, the engine or
dynamo room, the switchboard gallery,
the storage-battery room, the repair shop,
the stock room and the offices of the vari-
ous officials of the company.

Ordinarily, the telephone requirements
of a power plant come well within the
range of capacity for which intercom-
municating telephones are manufactured;
the maximum capacity is about thirty sta-
tions or telephones. On the front of each
telephone set is a button or key for each
of the stations in the system. If there
are ten stations in the plant there are
ten buttons on each telephone; if, in ad-
dition, there is one trunk line to a cen-
tral exchange, there are eleven buttons
on each telephone. The buttons are
labeled "Boiler Room," "Dynamo Room,"
"Switchboard Gallery," "Battery Room,"
etc., and pressing a button automatically
connects the caller with the telephone
corresponding to the button pressed, and
signals the called station by ringing the
bell there.

One of the principal advantages of
the intercommunicating telephone system
for a power plant is its low operating
cost as compared with other telephone
systems. It is entirely automatic in ac-
tion; that is, no telephone operator is
required to complete the connections,
this being done by pressing the proper
button, as just explained. There is there-
fore no operating expense except the re-
newal of a few dry cells once or twice a
year.

Another advantage of the intercom-
municating telephone system for power
plants is the fact that the service is avail-
able at all hours of every day and night.
Furthermore, no separate switchboard is
needed, the buttons and keys on the tele-
phone sets serving in place of this ex-
pensive and rather complicated piece of
apparatus.

If more than thirty telephones or there-
abouts are required, and if connections
with outside parties through a central
exchange are of frequent occurrence, the

April 11, 1911.

private exchange system is necessary1,
parate switchboard is required in the
private exchange system, as well as an
operator to attend it, connections I
stations within the plant being made
the switchboard operator instead of by
the party who uses the telephone.

Whichever system is used, the bcn<.
derived from the prompt giving and re-
rs and the trar.- n of

information without leaving one
the quick adjustment of mattcr> in
emergencies and the cooperation anion?
the employees result in a saving of
and an efficiency of operation that arc
out of all proportion to the expense of
the telephone system.

Connecting a Nem Compound
Wound I >j namo

By G os

iile employed as construction f
man for a large factory. 1 was sent out

i i

to wire up and tun a Ml rail-

nachinc
irallcl with t- that

were already in m

generator, the
• •

'ator» v

!■ »
-

A 8

bar* mere ea«

t feed'
Assuming thai al-

•

■nd •lartc '. I Rcnr •

ingnctUm.

Ill of the I

raised from the commutator a ain

:h thrown in; instantly, the

I on the old machines went out.
n that rca
seen by observing the arrows showing
the n of the current. A short-

thrown on the machines A
and H thr> Jing

machine If all the connec-
tions had been normal, the shunt field
iing of the generator C >avc

current from the v

fl M

A B

I COHK

bars without interfering with the opera-
tion of A l

In o locate the ti

we found that A and H weri

dualize on the nci When

making chn- |iul-

of t1 B in

the machi- uld not run in

parallel ntisfact en conm

manm the reason that

as tl 'hat

a n

polarity, a portab

if" .1 J J :! : HI .1 I ll ' '■<.'■ '.'.'. r !c p r ■ >«"> f * i

iter
the nc.

par..

II ITERS

P Min

hru»he» «

load, a'

hours per <*a> Tin

ajtstaasn '" ,,rjra'f'
and

rnort *

did no good

. ... %f .,,

horsepower motor and tx
them in paraAn. T

ther motor, which

is D<

'■
Kan*a

tecma to I

^stance of tho

-
difli

I of
a copper brush paraffin also It.

ch.i to* )

An I nusual I m-

mutaioi l ■ 'ul>k-

trou

alternator. The com

rapidly an. ting

that it had to

to mak. re-

^tnoothi

and

....

turr the commutator of the nc»

armature. On taking out the armature

Cot

cd a lot of rust
shaft

hole

A- nd I I

aod b

Ihfl tool hnrd up true

it'c • r ■ • ur 'he

1 to

■Car roajod ho ^

the original ooo.

fitted to the «c

n put in

570

POWER

April 11, 1911.

had no trouble, although we have run
it ten months, during four of which the
machine has run 24 hours a day.

Geo. H. Handley.
Newburgh, N. Y.

Effect of Impaired Rotor In-
sulation and Contacts

In a recent number of Power I noticed
a letter relative to an induction motor
that refused to carry its rated load. This
calls to mind an experience I had some
time ago with a 50-horsepower two-phase
motor that I rewound after a primary
burn-out. The insulating material around
the bars of the rotor was carbonized and
the bars had been hot enough to oxidize
them. As the bolts which held the bars
to the end rings were battered over the
nuts it was almost impossible to remove
the nuts with the tools at hand, so I
let the rotor go as it was.

After rewinding the stator and putting
the motor in place it ran up to speed
when tested with no load. It is direct-
connected to a centrifugal pump and as
water was not needed at the time I heard
nothing of it for some time after. When
they began to pump, however, I was
notified that the pump was not lifting its
usual amount of water. Investigation
showed that the motor ran 100 revolu-
tions per minute slower with the load
than when it was free. I could attribute
this to nothing but extra resistance in
the rotor circuit. We made suitable
socket wrenches and took out the rotor
bars, cleaned the contact surfaces to
bright metal with emery cloth, cleaned
out the slots and put in new cells of
paraffined paper and reassembled the
rotor. This remedied the trouble. I think
Mr. Blue will find his trouble to be like
mine.

F. W. Cerny.

Mesa, Ariz.

The Simplest Current and
Polarity Indicator

During the past few weeks this depart-
ment has contained letters from various
correspondents describing different meth-
ods of testing electric circuits in order
to determine whether the current was al-
ternating or direct; and also in some
cases of detecting the polarity of direct-
current circuits. All of the methods de-
scribed were very interesting, and of
various degrees of utility and conven-
ience.

I have used for many years a method
which might prove interesting to those of
your readers who have need for it, and
one which I believe has not been men-
tioned by any other correspondent. Sim-
ply tear a small piece off a blueprint, wet
it and place the two ends of a pair of
wires connected to the circuit to be tested
in contact with the blue side of the print.
The wire ends should be placed from a

half inch to two inches apart, depending
on the voltage. If the current is alternat-
ing, practically no effect will be produced,
but if the current is direct, a white spot
will appear under the negative wire. Any
piece of blueprint paper will do provided
it has been exposed.

I. Sawford.
Sydney, Nova Scotia.

Can These Alternators Be
Operated in Parallel?

In our plant are two alternators which
we wish to operate in parallel through
transformers if possible. One is a three-
phase 150-kilowatt revolving-field gen-
erator and the other is a 120-kilowatt
two-phase revolving-armature machine
equipped with a rectifier and a compen-
sating winding. Both generate 1100 volts
and 60 cycles.

Will some of the other readers express
their opinions as to whether the two-
phase machine, delivering through a two-

Side Stepping Crane Troubles

It is not always the highly educated
man but rather the practical man threat-
ened with intelligence and natural re-
sourceful ideas who gets results without
looking up his card system — which, how-
ever, is of great value.

A short time ago the hoist armature of
a 50-ton electric crane became badly
grounded, with a load of 60 tons hang-
ing about ten feet in the air and in the
middle of a large machine shop. The
electrical expert was called up on the
jump and decided the armature must be
changed; as the load hung in the middle
of the shop too low to be bridged to one
end and the two other cranes tied up one
side, the delay meant dollars and cents
to the firm. The idea occurred to the re-
pairman to place heavy paper on the rails
of the bridge, rack the trolley onto the
paper, thereby insulating the trolley from
ground, and lower the load to the wood
floor. This was done, the block hoisted

Three-Phase Revolving

Field Alternator .

I"-''

Two - Phase
Revolving
Armature
Alternator

1100 Volt,
Three-Phase
Mains

Two- Phase to
Three Phase-
Transformers

-/KftffiMJ0CftijGC0S'

1100 Volt, Three-Phase
Mams

1 100 Volt, Two- Phase
Leads

Can These Alternators be Paralleled?

phase three-phase transformer, as indi-
cated in the sketch, can be worked in
parallel with the three-phase machine?
Furthermore, if the two machines can be
operated in parallel, would the compen-
sating winding of the two-phase machine
have to be discarded altogether and new
field-magnet coils installed in order that
the field magnet may be energized en-
tirely by the exciter, or could the wind-
ing be left as it is and the machine con-
nected as shown in the sketch?

As the load supplied by these alter-
nators is made up principally of incan-
descent lamps, the power factor may be
considered relatively high. There are a
few motors, all of them small, and only
ten arc lamps; the rest of the load is in
incandescent lamps.

D. M. Grove.

Covington, Va.

up and the crane run to one end of the
shop for repairs, with about fifteen min-
utes' delay all told.

In another instance a hoist controller
was burned out with an important job
hanging on. The wires to the hoist motor
were tapped onto the bridge controller,
the job handled, the wires transferred
back again and the crane run to one end
of the shop for repairs without serious
delay to the work.

In another instance one field-magnet
coil of a hoist motor burned out with the
load on; the coil was cut out and the
motor run without it until the job was
finished. The repair was made at a more
convenient time. A little ingenuity will
often save a whole lot of time and trouble
in cases of this kind.

William Price.

Philadelphia, Penn.

April II, 1911.

Readers with Something to Say

Murine and Piping; Chang

tandem compound high-speed engine
gave trouble from the time it »as in-
stalled about ten years ago. In spite of
all that could be done by the engineer in
charge, local mach r even the man

sent by the makers, tin ne still

pounded and made so much n
that it could be heard for blocks
at times. Finally, the crosshead shoe
came off, the crosshead droppeJ down,
ling the piston rod. and that broke off
the stuffing box uhich was - in-

to the cylinder head.

\ or scn • viis engine ran

about 15 hours a da s a

■. for nine months in tlu but

Pr.n t u .//
inform. if ion from t
rn.tn on the /. ■/> A ■'< '

rfoocf enough toprtni

here will be p. ml /.
Ideas. nor nn-rc wot

run. I removed ti rare c;

- the
Jow-pressur and se| I the

high-prcssi:- -i the !•

icad by drilling a at
of holes around at t: the

I I \ I

■
tun abmn 1

• became necessary
I there wa» a gcr
the fireman.

conncctcJ to -
the ha, •
•urr

the

I full load and

• Mean e i an claimed

that it made little diff the

■

nglnc »••• rut
with inttmction* I ce«»arv

' In a con.! ■

fact •
was

At the 1

-•

•through

the

■

of pipe

•

•Urrtxit

uch a * Inch

ugh

a right

angle to a turned -up

at t i rough a short nipple

and anoi ih abou-

running paralk the header, on the

rned di

>wn

formed a large pot uld

collect, bot
n and
the engine wai I or a sudden load

came on, more uatcr come

than the separator I had

taken
iking steam from the bottom
of the header and leaving no poir

-ation ! a» came r-

the scparat
The chanc > *ho»:

1 taui

ran
ao nmo

one could not fear • • not or \ ■ ••

• I full load, when handling
a II

"ecn a cha- e load.

and immrdiatelv onder the cylinder there

to the
heating t\ »»r^' »**cn |

Into a tret

than turned tan and
want to the h*

■ the talk'

572

POWER

April 11, 1911.

At the ell where the pipe turned up out
of the trench there was placed a 24-inch
bleeder valve. With the engine shut down
and the valve under the cylinder closed,
all of the pipe, including the drop from
the engine, the horizontal pipe in the
trench and the riser, about 30 feet in all,
would fill with water and before starting
up it was necessary to drain this pipe by
opening the bleeder. All would go well
until the water got down to the level with
the top of the horizontal pipe, when a
water hammer would start. In order to
remedy this I removed the valve from
under the cylinder and placed it in the
vertical pipe at a convenient hight with
a bleeder tapped in just above the valve

Iff:

Fig. 3. Valve and Bleeder in Vertical
Exhaust Pipe

to drain what water might collect above
this point. This is shown in Fig. 3. Since
then I have had absolutely no water ham-
mer. Before this change it was necessary
to go over the engine every day, and a
straight run of 34 hours was the longest
the engine had ever been known to run
without a stop for adjustment. Since
then I have made runs of 60 hours and
there was no reason why it could not have
continued in service as there was nothing
to be done before starting again.

S. E. Shaff.
Iowa City, la.

Steam Plant Installation Costs

Published articles that would be of
permanent value to engineers would be
those dealing with the details of methods
and materials used in installing engines,
boilers and other power-plant apparatus.
Also data regarding the prices paid per
hour to erectors and other workmen, the
time required and the material used for
each separate piece of work.

One engineer could give reliable data
about an installation of water-tube or
fire-tube boilers and another about in-
stalling an engine, when they might not
be in a position to give reliable cost data
on an entire plant.

Descriptions of power plants can be
found in almost every issue of technical
journals, but very little itemized install-
ing-cost data can be found in any of
them.

The small amount of reliable informa-
tion along this line makes it very diffi-
cult for an engineer inexperienced in
this class of work to give his employer
satisfactory information as to the cost of
installing apparatus of various kinds.
The novices will generally underestimate
the cost and the difficulties of doing good
work.

Of course, cost of material and labor
vary in different sections of the country,
but this matter could be adjusted to suit
the conditions existing by the interested
investigators.

Supply costs should be complete to
the smallest detail to be of real value.

J. E. Noble.

Toronto, Can.

Throttling Governor Failure

A rather queer failure of a throttling
governor came to my notice lately, which
may be of interest.

The 4-inch governor was of the com-
mon type without a safety attachment of
any kind. One night it was necessary to
screw the stem up several turns more
than was usual to make the engine carry
the load and as shutting-down time ar-
rived steam was cut off completely.

When the governor was taken apart,
the pin through the nut was found sheared
off, the nut had unthreaded and the plug
had dropped down. A new pin was put
in place and everything went all right for
two or. three nights more when it was
again necessary to screw the valve stem
clear up. Of course, it was expected
that the nut had again worked loose, but
to the surprise of all hands everything
was all right, and when the governor
was put together the load was carried
with the stem in the usual position for a
while, but it soon had to be put up again.
When in this position the engine sud-
denly began to race and only the sprint-
ing ability of the engineer on watch kept
the flywheel in one piece. Next day the
pipe line was examined for anything that
might obstruct the passage of steam, but
nothing could be found.

The engine and governor had always
been cold when looked into. One more
try was made but something still held the
steam back. As the engine stopped, I
took hold of the governor flyballs and
tried to spread them, but with a very
slight movement the plug at the end of
the stem struck hard against the pin
which limits the downward travel.

Here was the trouble sure enough, but
as nothing could have made the stem
longer the parts in the valve body must
have shifted. Another look when every-
thing was hot showed that the brass lin-
ing was up about y2 inch above its

proper place. The valve body was of
cast iron and the brass bushing had been
pressed into it but no provision had been
made to hold it in place. The difference
in expansion between iron and brass al-
lowed the bushing to drop down into its
proper place as soon as it cooled off and
as no one had never looked at it immedi-
ately after stopping, the bushing had
never been noticed out of place. A good
strong pin now holds it where it belongs.
My theory is that when first warming
up the engine a slug of water or perhaps
the steam would force it up before the
expansion had tightened it.

Verne L. Ballou.

Shirley, Mass.

The Human Element in the
Power Plant

Perhaps one could find a greater variety
of opinions upon the subject of the
human element in the power plant than
any other; it may also be quite true that
no two men can be handled in the same
way, in consequence of which no set of
rules can be applied in the handling and
treatment of subordinates, whereby the
most efficient results may be secured.

It is quite true that experience is the
best teacher; however, one may have a
variety of experiences, covering a great
number of years, and yet be utterly in-
capable of securing results from his as-
sistants, just because the subject never
received logical nor analytical considera-
tion.

Recently, a very successful chief engi-
neer of a large paper mill laughed when
I mentioned this subject of handling men
to him and said that it was something
one could learn only by everyday experi-
ence. Furthermore, he wanted to know
if anybody expected to find out anything
through a discussion in Power upon such
a subject. I replied that the space would
not be given up to a worthless subject.

His argument was that what might be
a good line of procedure for one man
would be ruinous for some other fellow
to carry out. Furthermore, he was of the
opinion that good judgment coupled with
hard work and a good physique, together
with plenty of push on the part of the
subordinate, would go farther toward se-
curing the best results than all the
"dope" that could be devised or dug up
in a century.

Continuing, he said, "I would rather
have one good man than three of the
general run of men found in this 'neck-
of-the-woods'; really good men are hard
to find, that is, men who will take a real,
iive interest in the plant and work to the
end that the very best service may be
secured at the least possible cost. In
return one should make it worth their
while in a material way to do good work
and not make it just a 'thank you' propo-
sition. If a man can achieve results

April 11, 1911.

where the other man did not, and :
haps could not, then he should receive
a percentage of the saving ma

We both were of the opinion that if
a man is energetic, possesses some initi-
ative, is loyal to the chief and not afraid
he may insubordinate himself too much,
he is pretty sure to be a valuable man to
his employer. On the other hand, if he
is continually finding fault with the
equipment and the management, and
works along from day to day in a half-
hearted manner, the concern and the
chief would be much better off without
him. Moreover, any man who rcqv.
careful handling and becomes incensed
upon the siiglr II not help

to form a strong organization, but may
be the means of disrupting it

If a strong organization .
and success depe ally upon the

organization, there should be a son of
family feeling among the men. ar
man should be a coworker with the chief,
so that the plant may be run at the
highest degree of efficiency and economy.
If there is a backbiter among the men,
the sooner he is eliminated the better
for all concert

One point which I have invariably
•hat the wage is not alu
the sole attraction in securing and re-
taining valuable men. The candidate
for a position asks such qu as,

* many hours * ill I be J to

put in per day. and will I be ah:

r two off out of each month'-'
Would I be at ell certain of m>
might I an' on the

slig: evocation- What kind of a

man is the chief, is he a grouch
one of those fellows that has no feeling
for anybody but himself- If him

what is in me. vill he appreciate it and
mc advance me when per-

mit

I have t that tin sp-

ate little things in a really grc
degree than th tie big thr

fter a hard da. > and it

r three hours until quitting time.
and nothing \er\ urgent remains to be
done, telling them to «ash up an.:
home is M f the mat

whet il and valu-

able men are not only retained but en-
hanced as »cll

•it. If the highe
•ing aid the use o' :ght.

the men shoulJ be infor-

the particular ar' which they

handle V uld knos how

much the ootl * much

I '; test-
be made and I

that lh<
what ineffl cnt ar

le%sne« *hy

the Mould r » he

will ic mtv

respect to ccot
Ing upon them that their iBCCtw a*

upon following out his
methods and instruct!'*-

Waldo W
O.

Prevented W iter I lammer

unt of how I beat
a case of water hammer at a very small
•-• :
I had only been in the plant a I
i when I uas startled to hear a lou'J
bang in the cellar and. although I looked
'ling carefully. I could not
place the

On coming back to the engine room
the boys gave mc the laugh and said that
is the atmospheric valve pounding on
the seat and that it often did that.

I emped out in front of the vacuum
gage and after an hour wait it let go
again, but it did not affect the vacuum.

I)uring the wait I had figured up how

much it would take to lift that 24-inch

ches of vacuum and

had J that the trouble was elsc-

whi

The accompa lustration shows

Ar "t Dk

the exhaust piping from the turbine and
that the under pan of th'

far-
ther than the nail

bac> I in the line to the

I a war.
on ll

■
■ •
iu»t lim
ban

I | J galv.i

»o that
pen and the other

♦ing the top \.<

trap

the flr»t opr I opened

I Ju-
hoar and k >f tood

baa
had
tube

■

iter b

through the econ-
omic

to 200
degrees Fahrenheit ar. i at a tem-

perature of fro c» Fah-

rcr.h

It is opened up once a year and a tube
scraper run through the tubes and the

a soft scale
more than found and

looks like •
the scale in the boiler tube, but forma

■
barnacl- ibea

are wasting a»a> and some of them are
norc than half of their original tl
nany ar
The feed water is taken from

Joes not
contain more than a -

' forma
a slight scale that

and some kerosene arc >no-

mizer has been ir

nad the same
ulty a- J a remedy, I «ould

like to know what it l

ith Framingham. Mass.

I rouble w ith I
m

Th one source of tr l a

refrigerating system u
never seen any comments la a stem
where brir

medium and rawed

■
oomi I he-

- nch

eased and its strength

..orscqu ■ • . • '... J Thr •- ,. • '.

It *ould like

■

tank
■ I the

When I boiled

oammaaradai taal Md * •' •'<■ Beam

c brine

ig iinmareturr I
have to renew the co4
months and ttsc tank Itself '

■a.

574

POWER

April 11, 1911.

ni i c *

Connecting High Pressure
Drips to Heating Mains

I think that Victor Borm, in the Febru-
ary 21 issue, in trying to criticize W. T.
Meinzer on the subject of connecting
high-pressure drips to the heating mains,
does not realize that condensed steam
under a high pressure contains more
heat units than under a lower pressure.
Mr. Borm says that if the high-pressure
traps were made to perform their func-
tion there would not have been very
much heating done in the sewer. With
Mr. Meinzer's arrangement the drips from
the high-pressure traps are discharged
to a lower pressure, part of the drips re-
evaporates and goes to the heating main
and does work; the remainder goes to the
return pipe. I think that this one point
of economy is enough to justify the
change made.

If there is not economy in saving the
drips, why do engine builders do so?
For instance, take the arrangement of
steam jacketing and receiver reheating
pipes on a triple-expansion pumping en-
gine. Various arrangements are used
but the following is simple and typical:
Steam from the main steam pipe near
the engine .passes to the high-pressure
jacket at boiler pressure, then to coils
in first receiver, then through a reducing
valve to the intermediate jacket and out
to coils in the second receiver, then to
a trap and from the discharge of this
trap to the low-pressure jacket. The
condensation from the exhaust side of
the high-pressure cylinder, first receiver
and inlet side of the intermediate cylin-
der goes to the low-pressure jacket, a
valve being placed in the pipe so as to
maintain the required jacket pressure.
The outlet from the low-pressure jacket
goes to a water seal in the basement of
the building. The condensation from the
working steam of the exhaust side of the
intermediate cylinder, second receiver and
inlet side of the low-pressure cylinder
also goes to a water seal in the base-
ment.

An illustration of the saving made pos-
sible by suitably employing high-pressure
drips is that of a cross-compound con-
densing engine which once came to my
notice. When the engine was installed, a
testing engineer was sent by the builders
to prepare and conduct the acceptance
test. After getting ready he made sev-
eral preliminary tests. He experienced
some difficulty in getting the engine to
perform the duty required. Among the
several changes which he made one af-

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articles Jetters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

fected a high-pressure steam trap that
removed the condensation from the coils
in the receiver to the hotwell. Its dis-
charge was connected into a pipe that
drained the condensation of the working
steam in the receiver to a trap. Part
of the drips from the high-pressure trap
reevaporated and did work in the low-
pressure cylinder. The tester claimed
that this change caused a good gain in
the duty of the engine.

Mr. Borm states that he wonders why
Mr. Meinzer did not think of putting in
a back-pressure valve. This would un-
doubtedly have been more effective in
preventing the back pressure from blow-
ing the seal into the drip return; also, it
would have been more simple.

R. E. Enigne.

Kansas City, Mo.

Special High Pressure Valve

I read with great interest the articles
in recent issues of Power dealing with
the danger to boilers and piping when
opening a stop valve suddenly. As to
the side from which steam should enter

" POWE*!

Valve with Internal Bypass

a valve, I fully agree that the steam
should act on the bottom side of the
valve; that is, the valve should close
against the pressure. But with large
valves and high pressures the opposite
may sometimes be adopted with advan-
tage.

A bypass arrangement should be fit-

ted to all high-pressure valves over 4
inches in diameter to help when opening
or closing the valve. Most engineers
know that it is next to impossible to open
a large parallel slide-type valve without
using the bypass arrangement.

A few years ago I worked with
Richard Pohle, Limited, of Riga, in Rus-
sia, when they were constructing the new
electric-power station at Windau. All
large valves, according to specification,
were to have an arrangement for slow
opening and be fitted with bypasses.

We made a valve after the design
shown in the accompanying figure. In
this valve the pressure comes on the top
of the disk. This arrangement was prefer-
able as we had experienced considerable
difficulty in keeping large valves, closing
against the pressure, from leaking when
shut.

What the total pressure against a valve
disk really is, only few engineers know.
In the case of a 10-inch valve under
150 pounds pressure per square inch the
total pressure would be upward of five
tons. To keep the valve from leaking, the
spindle must force the disk downward
with at least six tons' pressure. For the
Windau power station we therefore pre-
ferred to let the steam help to keep the
valve tight.

Referring to the figure, the spindle E
has a collar B which acts as a bypass
valve in the topmost part of the disk A.
The lower part of the spindle passes
through a guide D, cast as a part of
disk A, and is fitted with a nut C which
allows the spindle to be lifted 2 inches
before acting on disk A. The slightest
turn of the spindle will admit steam
through the bypass B.

A. Wind.

Penn, England.

Action in Emergency

The description of the engine wreck at
the Boott mill, Lowell, Mass., reminds me
of two experiences along the same line
which I have had.

The first took place in a five-story mill
with a 2000-horsepower engine. Owing to
the distance of sections of the mill from
the engine room, the manager decided to
have the mill wired and to have push
buttons located in every room. Then, in
the event of an accident, an overseer
could ring the emergency bell in the en-
gine room as a signal to shut down.

As first arranged, the push buttons
were fastened to the walls without cover
or notice relative to their use. One fore-
noon, about a month after the system

April 11, 1911.

was installed, the bell rang and before I
had the throttle valve half closed the
bell rang again. When the machinery
began to slow down, the superintendent,
the master mechanic and some of the
overseers came to inquire where the
trouble was. Not having an indicator on
the line wire I could not say from which
room the alarm came.

After the officials had investigated and
found no cause for the alarm bring rung
in, the order was given to go ahead. In
about half an hour the superintendent
came back and said, "Who author
you to stop the engine when that bell
rings?" I r. plied that no one. in ju-
many words, but that I had been con-
sulted in regard to its location, had
helped to install the system and I took it
as generally understood that I was to
shut down when signaled. ••Well." he
growled, "hereafter when that bell r
don't stop the engine until you gel i
from me or the master mechan

I had thought him a lightweight and
that superficial remark confirmed my
opinion the ftl vi an order!

There were three large mills and

lent and master mechanic
liable to be an about

often difficult in find.
itely for me at least, the man-
had an automatic engine stop and
J limit installed to be operated
through the system of wires already in
use.

In another plant I
different type of supcrintcnd.nt The cn-
was a compound,
•ch Corliss and ran at olu-

^ per minute. This engine was not
th safety cams to prevent the
gagement of the steam-valve late

ior is at the k> "int.

On account of its hight the starting va
had to be operated while g on a

«. kept there for

• mg at |h: bench,
the engint up. at

rnor had *'
mc to that I
of a nt; f thing* in a very I

•

but • leratinr

ing t that ' ceee

bt altogether too i •<> I

At that instant that

the corner "antly 11

at an
in t)

■

•hem in that
engine ha

p ladder an J thai

in and with the help of a rr...
an [ cd out

tangle and had the engine going after a
minutes. This supc rnt, in-

stead of trying to browbeat me for
slight shutdown throughout the mill, com-
plimented me on my quick action in pre-
venting what might h en a very
-.t.
Ch its. J. W. Park

Piston Rii

In the March 7 issue is a contribution
on piston rinv

igonall. stofl

ring* ar The ci

n. An impro\cmcnt which I have
found to be satisfactory is shown in the

accomp.i c taken

with thin rim: >c tap screw* of

prop- : ortion.

GeoRce H. Hai
Ncwburgl- •

Nfeglet; ting < tpportunitii

Ti sue

entii
lately is \*

and as fo. on the

part of a : the men who arc

Tli men a-

tent run in

atr.

a rule, I t it in pro;

<>n unl
In

i o*
put

i% a
• one
it them; the C

I kno •
go ahc •
A grt
becauM
and

i long ■

allow a nur '

he would only

l gene-

■
Iocs would be done ■
central station would have lea* to do.

Brook

On .V i i

>t that those men
ence and general

remark. i

tudgc

ie» who afford
to a boiler Inspe.

n» are of
•pet

- and operation of the mi-

I good n.i

BOOT Vm I *P I *"■

The same c« i seem to ob*

imc era. 1 movement be

star

BNM
istly o^
lesson 1 and perhaps rr

• ved before opr

i to allow a betterment of

I am a b<
as I do in a hcl.'
form of regula*
I an broui:

gnorancc and inj
thai

VlCC K C I

BOM

blooded my

• hi •

c ef

: ■

and • a

rition. for I a rmed

- 1 pounds and U.
npt so

gth would bt

- - •

m boilr-

■ '

•

576

POWER

April 11, 1911.

fices intended to deceive. I will say
that this practice is most common . on
the boilers used for logging purposes and
where few engineers as we understand
the term are found. It is a matter of
real pleasure to find one of the three
gage cocks on these rigs in working
order, while for all of them to be in
order should make the engineer almost
deserving of honorable mention.

There is one thing, however, to be
brought to the attention of a great many
engineers, men who are really skilled
good men, men who are making real suc-
cesses at their vocation, and that is the
conditions under which an inspector is
required to work. In many of the plants
the boilers are not or for some reason
cannot be sufficiently cooled and the heat
is terrific. More than a passing glance
at the various portions is beyond human
endurance. Even at that, there is little
that the inspector misses but a little less
onerous conditions would add to his effi-
ciency.

Then, there is that matter of cleaning
the parts sufficiently. How much less
effective must an inspection be and how
much it adds to the disagreeable part
of the work, to dig out the buried blow-
off pipes, to crawl around in a foot or
two of soot and ashes to look over with
minute care several thousand feet of
tubes and a number of drums and head-
ers. It is little wonder that cases of
incipient failure and the progress of cor-
rosion and attendant evils escape the
notice of one working under such handi-
caps.

The more frequent use of the hydro-
static test has been suggested as one
means of reducing the number of dis-
astrous failures. Yet, there is a ques-
tion as to whether the strain so set up
at the time of such a test, commonly 50
per cent, in excess of the working pres-
sure, might not cause incipient failure
not discernible at the time, especially in
the case of buried and covered drums and
the seams of horizontal tubular boilers.
Little uneasiness need be felt regarding
those boilers which are free of access
and whose parts can be well examined,
even if subjected to the visual test only.

Perhaps the best and safest plan to
pursue is to adopt some such rule as that
in force in the State of Massachusetts,
fixing a factor applicable to the age of
the boiler, for the fact that the material
undergoes a change is very apparent from
the manner in which the metal of an
old boiler works when attempts to use
it for other purposes are made, and one
is often led to wonder that it lasted as
long as it did when the crumbly, brittle
and nonfibrous nature is noted.

Unfortunately, instead of thus reduc-
ing the burden upon a boiler whose age
should be respected, even if not respect-
able, the common practice is to add more
pressure as the business grows, then to
place in the battery boilers of newer,

later type and let the old well tried
servant continue to carry the limit. How
many plants are found with such units
in them, where the pressure is limited
only by the original design of the oldest
boiler in the plant. No comment is nec-
essary on this practice, yet owners and,
in many cases, operators, would have to
be shown signs of actual distress before
discarding them.

At most, upon finding undesirable con-
ditions, the inspector can only recom-
mend the cancelation of the insurance.
At that, -his influence often ends. This
fact is frequently taken advantage of by
both owners and operators. To overcome
the handicap imposed by these conditions,
the inspector is required to be more or
less of a diplomat. He must accom-
plish by other means than the absolute
authority of Federal and State officials,
the safeguarding of the lives and prop-
erty of those most concerned and at the
same time maintain pleasant business re-
lations between his employers and their
clients. Considerable judgment and de-
cision are necessary to require immediate
action in place of promises and to refuse
to accept faulty arrangement even if im-
miment danger cannot be pointed out.

Certainly a little thought along the
foregoing lines will make it easily ap-
parent to any engineer in what manner
he may for his own part help to make
the work of an inspector a still greater
medium of safety. With the proper co-
operation and influence of the engineer,
the present appalling list of disasters
can be reduced to the minimum.

Horace Hanks.

Portland, Ore.

Burning Lignite

Referring to Mr. Bergman's letter
under the above in the March 7 issue, I
wish to say that I have been burning
North Dakota lignite for about eight
years and have obtained higher efficiency
from boilers and grates with lignite than
with any other soft coal. This is due
no doubt to its cleanness; it forms no
soot on the tubes during an 8- or 10-
hour test and such a test can be run
without making a general fire cleaning.
This may not be true, however, of all the
Dakota lignites. The Wilton coal is con-
sidered to be of the best grade. It has
a heat value of about 7000 B.t.u. per
pound, contains from 5 to 6 per cent,
ash and from 35 to 40 per cent, moisture.

Mr. Bergman states that he evaporated
four pounds of water per pound of coal,
which contained 6029 B.t.u., and se-
cured an efficiency of 68 per cent., which
I consider to be a very good showing.

Lignite burns much like wood and does
not require much air. As a general
thing too much air is admitted and the
heat is carried through the boiler and
lost up the slack. It has been truly said

that in order to generate steam there
are only two steps required: First, pro-
duce the heat, and, second, transfer the
heat to the water in the boiler. I have
made many tests with lignite and under
favorable conditions have evaporated 4.86
pounds of water per pound of fuel, con-
taining 35 per cent, of moisture, 5.92 per
cent, of ash and 6591 B.t.u. This is
equal to evaporating 8.80 pounds of
water into steam from and at 212 degrees
Fahrenheit per pound of combustible,
and shows an efficiency of 76.98 per cent.

Engineers employed by the Govern-
ment have made tests with North Dakota
lignite and from the reports of such
tests that I have seen no such efficiency
was obtained. No doubt the poor re-
sults were due to the fact that those who
were in charge had not learned how to
burn North Dakota lignite. Many have
turned down lignite for the same reason,
but some day the large fields of lignite
will be of great value to the people of
the United States. I regret to see the
Government use coal from Pennsylvania
and Ohio for its buildings in this State.

C. P. Larsen.

Bismarck, N. D.

Smoke Abatement

In the March 21 issue, I notice that
Waldo Weaver makes some criticism of
my letter in the January 3 number on
the smoke problem.

It may be true, as he says, that it re-
quires a good man to use the coking
method of firing; but so far as my ex-
perience goes, it requires a man with no
more physical capacity than the other
methods and gives far better results as
regards economy and smoke. As far as
keeping steam is concerned, none of the
plants where this method is used, to my
knowledge, has had any difficulty in pro-
ducing all the steam it required. In fact,
these plants have been keeping up the
pressure with one less boiler than was
formerly used, mainly due to the in-
creased economy resulting from this
method of firing, since through this meth-
od all of the volatile matter which
formerly went up the stack in smoke is
now consumed, resulting in a consider-
able increase in evaporation per pound
of coal or, for the same steaming capa-
city, a considerable reduction in the
amount of coal fired. When it comes to
forcing a boiler beyond its normal capa-
city, no method of firing can be used
which will result in smokeless combus-
tion. If one fires frequently with a thin
layer of fresh coal all over the fire, a
very considerable amount of volatile mat-
ter is driven off in smoke and is uncon-
sumed. This is never economical, nor is
it preventing smoke.

The question of which method to in-
dorse is a question of which is the most
satisfactory from the smoke-prevention
standpoint and economy. The fact that

April 11, 1911.

the spreading method is used far more
frequently than the coking method is due
to its being easier, not necessarily more
economical.

I quite agree with Mr. Weaver that the
bonus system of payment is well worth
considering.

nry D. Jackson.

Boston, Mass.

The Benefit ( H guuzatioo

hits the nail on the head in
the February 28 i hen he sa>

ietter under, "Engineer or Labor
"There is no mistaking the fact that the
engineers of this country must organize,
only engineers but every man en-
gaged in the generation and transmission
of power should be a member of one
organization." The engineers and firemen
of this city have just formed an organiza-
tion such as he mentions, called the
Brotherhood of Power Workers, com-
f engineers, firemen, oilers and
Other power-plant workers. The con-
solidation of all power workers into one
organization h;> J i good move and

the engineers, firemen and others can
readily see tha- to their advarr

to pull together.

According to a circular being
tributcd. there is nothing in the rules or
iws of this organization that the
most timid and const- : need object

to. I quote a fc from the

cular:

"This organization does not demand a
uniform wage for its members as condi-
fTcr in plant. It docs not

demand recognition of the brotherhood
or the signing of agreement thcr

does it ask that none but members of the
crhood be employed in any par-
ticular plant. It has eliminated
thing that tusc needless friction

members and their cmplos
herhood has a labor bureau for
the benefit of unc i members, al-

to a system of education on trade I
that mill raise the efficiency of the n

•ion and en-
resent law will be fol-
lent
bcn< and at the death

of a member his bencflcia-
II for eac' m good <»tanJ

ulta due a higher
efficiency ai

cnt tha*
For 1

g that
pooaible cat

such at the demand ' -
c org. i
any labor union (tri

fine

takes the r*"

t to be

brotherhood h.t 'rom

many of the surrounding cities at
asking for information. It is said that
-oon be taken to organize this
section of the

Ukais.
ngfield. Mats.

I' implr v mini

I read *ith inter ant's ani-

cle in the March 7 number concerning
a pumpless condenser Here in the
per countr. .: such con-

densers. In the plant uhcrc I am engi-
neer there arc two; only one of I

. at one time. The
of three cngim ed by the con-

er a part of the time.

about 75 feet ab<
the engine-room floor and there is about
>f horizontal e - before

the rise to the conder Water

comes to the ^er under a r

of about 40 po The reason

why the condensers are so high a?
the - because thi irgc

watt. tor cooling the jackets of

a blast furnace which is considerably
taller than the power hoi:

F. W. Bv
h.

( limiting Bedplift

I ttki that pan of '

Knoulton's article >sue

which J :h the d grout-

ing of ei

that win the

'ate cannot be pla
•

and sc at I

:t put t.
plat ire of I

and mo Iplatc

ther akc as

a hold on a machined surface a*

If
make ■

: up an en,

■

i : i • i :

>f aboi

v»c |ob and

that jndations are

n mode
mate ilmost

upper
smooth, it should be rough c

or | and th >ugh!>

of all f ragmen •
the bedplates and
n to and leveling •

f the foundations
should be thoroui;
ti'

ould pockets or spaces between ribs
pro

a U-shapc

or I be that ha core

holes cast in them The pip-" si iu d r^c

stood in a so that the

upp be at :

the . of the f'

built of boards or other n can

then bt it a

mcc of from tk Igc of

be mad
tica:

sand ai;:.r--: r::c >i:tsidc <,r nt can
now be I in a box made for *

.'.d be
■

ild be add. the m - of

the It

pour

a hight of at ■ above

the bottom of 1

6t) boars
grout will b iugh to

* hem

'plus n
ing the bt

The purpo»c

■ •
grout -

rom flowing u

rro-
ibe •tcs{

oftd the eJgc
nrocd

job

t ■

' r •• 1

t 'hr c nrmr !■»

Msw oaser

■i has
cd se that the great
e good bosyd to the f*1
need n

Pen*.

578

POWER

April 11, 1911.

IllvJ

inning

i\ 8 1

* wra

3s C?

^1 I

Loss of Steam Through Nozzle

What would be the loss in horsepower
per hour through a nozzle if the circular
opening at the end is 11/64 inch in
diameter, blowing into the atmosphere
with 110 pounds boiler pressure?

R. A. H.
• The opening at the end of a short,
smooth converging nozzle may in this
case be regarded as an orifice from which
the steam will issue at a velocity closely
approximating 900 feet per second. The
area of a circular orifice 11/64 inch in
diameter is 0.0232 square inch, and at a
velocity of 900 feet per second there will
be discharged

0.0232 X 900 ,. , .

— — =0.145 cubic feet

144

One cubic foot of steam at 110 pounds
gage pressure weighs 0.2791 pound and
the discharge per hour will be

0.145 X 0.2791 X 3600 = 145.65
pounds per hour

Calling a boiler horsepower the evapora-
tion of 30 pounds of water per hour,
the horsepower required to supply the
steam blowing through an 11/64-inch
nozzle at 110 pounds pressure will be

145-65

4.855 horsepower

Using Napier's formula

W —

for the flow of steam from an orifice, in
which

W = Pounds of steam discharged

per second,
A = Area of orifice, square inches,
P = Absolute pressure, pounds per
square inch,
the flow would amount to
0.0232 X 125

= 0.041 pound

and

0.041 X 3600 = 147.6 pounds per hour
i47.6_

4.92 horsepower

Waterproof Belt Tires sing and
Cement

Please give me formulas for water-
proof belt dressing and waterproof belt
cement.

W. N. K.

Gutta percha dissolved in enough bi-
sulphide of carbon to make a liquid of
the consistency of molasses makes a
reliable waterproof belt cement.

Questions are/

not answered unless

accompanied by the;

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

Neatsfoot oil containing 10 per cent,
of dissolved beeswax makes a dressing
which preserves the leather and makes
it somewhat repellent of moisture. A
repellent quality can be imparted to the
leather during the tanning process by the
use of bichromate of potash.

Single Valve Engine

What is meant by the term single-
valve engine?

S. E.

A single-valve engine is one in which
one valve controls the admission, dis-
tribution and exhaust of steam for both
ends of the cylinder.

Point of Cutoff

If the travel and lap of a plain slide
valve are given, how can the point of cut-
off be found ?

V. C. P.

On the line A B draw a semicircle with
a radius equal to one-half the valve

Finding Point of Cutoff

travel. From the same center draw an-
other with a radius equal to lap of the
valve and at the intersection of the valve-
travel semicircle and the line A B a cir-
cle with a radius equal to the lead of
the valve. Then where the tangent line
C D cuts the outer semicircle will be the
point in the path of the crank pin where
the cutoff will take place.

Protection for Cotton Hose

What preparation can I use on the out-
side of cotton fire hose to prevent de-
cay?

H. C. P.

None at all. Keep it perfectly dry and
free from dust that may collect and
hold moisture.

Motor Operation on Circuit of
Higher Voltage

Can a 110-volt motor be operated on a
220-volt circuit without injuring it? If
so, how?

L. S.

Yes; by connecting it in series with a
resistance the number of ohms of which
is equal to 110 -r- motor current. It must
be operated at constant load; if the load
is reduced the motor speed will increase,
and vice versa.

Alternating-current Phase
Relations

Is the working or power component of
an alternating current in phase with the
wattless current or with the impressed
e.m.f. ?

F. W. G.

It is in phase with the impressed e.m.f.
Two different components of anything
cannot coincide; if they did there would
not be two of them.

Steam Consumption and Power

Factor

If the power factor of the load on an
alternator is 80 per cent., will the engine
driving the alternator take more steam
or less than it would with 100 per cent,
power factor, the true power being the
same in both cases?

C. W. N.

Slightly more steam, due to the fact
that the armature losses are greater with
the lower power factor. For the same
true power and terminal e.m.f., the arma-
ture current will be 25 per cent, greater
at 80 per cent, power factor than at 100
per cent. The difference in total driving
power required, however, is very small,
because the increase is 25 per cent, of
a small percentage of the net output.

Gas Engine Power and Cylifi-
der Temperature

Does the power of a gas engine in-
crease with an increase in the cylinder
temperature?

F. E. W.

Not necessarily. When it does, the in-
crease is not great enough to justify
running the engine over-hot.

April 11, 1911.

I . . \\ • ■ .■. bj the

Hill Publishing (

■r. Ckl.*f^

U»*.»

roj-

-» of r.
—Dot Dtvri-..

to ar

- 1 a* < law ma

' /

u tents

■tt

Merit a ;. ;n

( 'inliiuil

In a special message to Co: .
it Taf:
nth annual report of the (

The report shows that the
•
tem. becau* „on-

imcntal af-
fali

ation look-
ing ' in the scr

• f sal.i

with ient

>n.

the m>.
to the advant.i

and th< -hem. and also

ie bcn>.

neers and I

It wmilJ Mat a combination

in the

in that the man who did good a

■

•han th
mat ie.

an as*

■

■rfc. and a
hecauvc
have n an opporr.

mai

r Job* and

>oveled

t a bun to

savv -ire-

mar al. or an engineer

o*» of becaaac of

IcaV the do

Har. | men -

'bey
earn it. an.: fight f

them that i

be maJ

I'urhincs with

t >

In a ,

J the

at which » lertc

a%<-» :

»C*d «n

rr iuf*»

•

' fue
are

»>e no J

c men

fbrni ln«» >' i- tSr men

' ■

■

cou'J »•«-

Met

!•

580

POWER

April 11, 1911.

trouble from carrying impurities into the
turbine.

The possibilities of the subject are dis-
cussed in an article by Edwin D. Drey-
fus in this issue, and it is suggested that
by a system of thermal storage the heat
voided by gas engines when running
upon light and normal loads may be ac-
cumulated and used in a turbine to help
over the peak.

The Scrap Habit

A noted English engineer on being
asked what single feature of American
shops most impressed him, replied: "The
scrap heap." It is undoubtedly one char-
acteristic of American practice to discard
machinery as soon as it becomes out of
date or inefficient, without much regard
to its physical condition. The English-
man is economical of material and less
so of labor. Here it is the labor that
counts and, until recently, material has
received scant courtesy.

It is not, however, of this phase that
we wish to speak, but of individual econ-
omies, of private scrap heaps.

The corporation may scrap valuable
machinery and the superintendent in his
official capacity may approve of it, but
the individual in his private life still re-
tains traits of frugality and economy
which have come down to him from his
Puritan ancestry. When a man is living
in a log cabin in the wilderness, he
naturally saves every scrap of leather,
every bit of iron, for he does not know
when or where he may get others; and in
the old-fashioned country villages with
every man his own tinker, similar customs
prevailed.

A recent issue of one of the standard
magazines contains an article in which a
well-to-do business man is represented as
jumping from his carriage to pick up a
new brick by the wayside and as saying
that he gets enough bricks in this way to
save a large part of the expense of re-
pairs about his premises. He. further-
more intimates that even if he has no use
for the brick, he hates to see good ma-
terial wasted. None but a rich man, whose
time has ceased to have a market value,
can afford to get his brick in this way.
No, this is not economy, it is just the old
Puritan habit of collecting and saving
everything in one's path, whether useful
or useless, a miser's instinct. The man
just mentioned might, with as good rea-
sons, have extended his drive to the rail-
road yards and picked up fragments of
coal, thereby reducing the heating bill
at his residence.

One who is constantly picking up
scraps of leather, brass and iron, old
hinges, bolts, nuts or pieces of pipe,
usually has his labor for his pains. The
stuff is never used and gradually ac-
cumulates in the attic or cellar, on the
bench or under it until the would-be
owner gets desperate and throws it all
away. The argument used to be: "Save

it, for you never know when you may
want to use it." The argument should
be: "If you never know when you may
want to use it, don't save it."

There is a reasonable excuse at the
house for saving twine and wrapping
paper, for experience has taught that
there is always use for them. In the
engine room, nuts and bolts, pipe fittings
and pieces of brass or leather may have
future value. If saved, each should have
its pigeon-hole or compartment, where it
can be found when wanted.

A miscellaneous collection of junk,
such as is found in some engine rooms,
is wasteful rather than economical and
should be disposed of to Tony or Isaac
for what he will give.

Experience is a good teacher in this
matter; in each particular vocation — the
man-at-home, the superintendent or the
engineer, has learned by experience that
certain things are in demand and always
find use; such things can well be saved.

Shall I keep this stove bolt and nut?
Yes, I do use one occasionally and it may
save a trip to the store.

Shall I keep this cast-iron bracket? I
never did have a use for one and I do not
know that I ever shall. No, better throw
it away than to litter up your bench or
floor "on suspicion."

The writer speaks feelingly on this
subject for he has had the habit in its
worst form. Repeated cleanings of attics
and sheds and boxes and barrels have
finally convinced him that much scrap
means weariness and vexation of spirit
and he has reformed. He does not pick
up pins or bent nails or bricks; he passes
by on the other side and leaves them to
the Good Samaritan who has a carriage
with which to haul them home.

The rusty hinge and the old bolt have
no further attractions. He does not even
save a piece of string unless he sees in
the immediate future a use for that par-
ticular kind of string. He has more time
available, he enjoys walks abroad and
has no longer the terrifying prospect of
an attic or a cellar crowded and dis-
figured with miscellaneous junk.

Apparent Efficiency

Just now we are hearing a lot about
efficiency; the salesmen have taken it up
as their slogan and even the daily news-
papers have begun preaching it, since
the recent claim of a certain Bostonian
to the effect that he could save the rail-
roads of this country a million dollars a
day by introducing more efficient meth-
ods. Ostensibly, efficiency is the goal to
be aimed at in all fields of activity,
whether railroading, power generation or
purely commercial enterprises, but in
every case the meaning of the term "effi-
ciency" in its broadest sense — the rela-
tion of useful result to effort — should be
kept in mind. Too often only one phase
of the problem is considered and "ap-
parent" efficiency is attained at a sacri-

fice in economy. This is illustrated more
particularly in the generation of power
where the installation of a certain piece
of apparatus may effect a saving of three
or four per cent, in energy between the
grates and the switchboard; yet its first
cost and the cost of maintenance may
more than offset the saving in energy.

It has been estimated that, excluding
special cases, the cost of power in a
manufacturing establishment amounts to
from two to four per cent, of the cost of
producing the manufactured article.
Hence a piece of apparatus effecting a
saving of three per cent, in the produc-
tion of power would save only twelve-
hundredths of one per cent, on the cost
of manufacture, which slight gain might
not warrant the extra investment. It is
always well in such cases to carefully
consider economy as well as efficiency
before passing snap judgment.

It is a good thing to know that a steam
line is thoroughly drained. Water has a
habit of smashing things if, while travel-
ing at high velocity, it is brought to a
sudden stop.

Some engineers can tell you all about
the horses and sporting events generally
but when it comes to intelligently explain-
ing the why of the simplest things in
the engine room, they are all at sea.

A nonreturn valve in a steam main
may never pay for the cost of the paint
on the outside, but if a pipe or fitting
should burst, there are great possibilities
that it will pay for itself a hundred times
over in preventing loss of life and dam-
age to property.

Have you ever noticed how reckless
the man in charge sometimes is when it
is necessary for him to personally work
with his hands? He should be the man
to set an example to others of being
careful.

According to their talk, some men can
do anything, but when put to the test they
cannot do even a third-class job without
help.

Have you noticed how some engineers,
repairmen and others leave everything
to the last minute and have to stay on
and finish after shutdown when the re-
pairs could have been made just as well
during the day?

You know that there are always some
men who can run your plant far better
than you are doing it.

A small trouble neglected will often
cause a big shutdown.

Not much use throwing coal into a fur-
nace while the safety valve is blowing.

An engineer cannot get experience for
nothing; it must be paid for.

April 11. 1911

Reduction Gear for D.G Generator

Heretofore, the steam turbine in large
sizes has found application only in driv-
ing alternators and in the propu

ry little progress having been
made in adapting it for driving dc
current or other machinery of moderate
speed. High speeds applied to dir
current generators involve serious com-
mutator troubles and Mructural diftku
and it is conceded b
that the speed of 1000-kilomatt mach
should not exceed 600 revolutions per
minute and this speed has, in fact, been
found most suitable for smaller machines
n down to 500 kilowa*

This speed, hou - entirely too

. 1 m.( , in

Rtftg .// tl

hu,

■

Hon

horizontally so that the top half ma
lifted off to give access to it
and stationary members of the fur
The ca- n a let

low for the ordinan. turbine. The *r
of a turbine ma

^ the diameter
of the rotor, and.

the number Tn accommodate

irrcnt gen-
eral
a diameter as to s.

thcr hand, this «.;
J reqi. h a large number of

stages as to m.i -nachir

long and tl
and losses. The alternative the

ccn the

The l>c Laval Steam Turbine Company
a nun ir% ha

Mnglc and

on all- and largt

Mage mad the lat

■

al gea-
the multi-Mage tur

■

a V

•Incle gear
•haft beinj:

ihe rcr
iking tl
I
tin casing, which
i! In «h i

ate. one on <.-

at one end.

at the same end. the results of
sion are la

rttne first
•'Kfi a »i afth

a c«

aasing

pon the blade*
of the first-stage -

'St sea*
-icceeding stages. The
are of

section against f

should
bre. surrou i

hca.

The governing mechanism, vbicn
also sh<

Tioun tc -■
of a vertical shaft a-

turbine It

■

that usi
The lot

the bearings the

e end « : -• i'i

and
■

at once released from
» of -

imn and cor-

<h*

582

POWER

April 11, 1911.

The pinion and gear are shown in Fig.
3. The gear is of the double-helical or
herring-bone type, differing from the
standard gears supplied with De Laval
turbines only in size and the fact that a
single gear is used for large capacities.
The pinion is cut from a solid bar of
steel and is carried in plain babbitted
bearings supported in a rigid cast-iron
frame, which also supports the gear bear-
ings. The pinion bearings are lubricated
by sight-feed oilers from the pump sys-
tem, the excess oil overflowing to the
wells of the gear bearings, which are
ring oiled. The gear consists of a solid
cast-iron center upon which are shrunk
two thick steel rings, and the hub is
mounted on a stiff shaft, which carries
at one end half of the flexible coupling
for connection to the driven machine.
The lubrication of the gear and pinion
teeth is accomplished by jets of oil di-
rected at the line of contact on the en-
tering side. This oil after use is passed
through an oil strainer located in the base
of the turbine, then through a cooling
and settling chamber and finally to the
oil well, from which it is again pumped
through the circuit. Temperature meas-
urements taken after the machine had
been running for several hours showed
a difference of four degrees between the
oil entering the gear case and that leav-
ing the case.

The operation of the turbo-generator
is remarkably free from vibration and
noise and as it stands in the test room,
supported upon small screw jacks with-
out other means of support, it is hard to
te!! at a distance of a few yards whether

or not the turbine is running without
noting the moving parts.

It might be mentioned in passing that
the determination of the efficiency of
such gears within reasonable limits of
accuracy is a comparatively simple mat-
ter and does not require the use of
cumbersome and expensive hydraulic
brakes or similar mechanisms. That is,
since all energy lost in friction in the
gear must be converted into heat, the
measurement of the heat emanating
from the gear case will give an accurate

measure of the loss of energy in the
gears. Such measurement of the heat is
not difficult. The radiation from the cas-
ing can be determined accurately for any
given temperature by observing either
the rate of cooling under fixed conditions
or by keeping the casing warm by means
of hot water or steam. The amount of
heat removed from the gears by the lubri-
cating oil is even more easily determined
by measuring the inlet and outlet tem-
peratures and the weight of oil used per
minute or per hour.

Fig. 3. Pinion and Gear

Blank Flange Bursts with Fatal Results

As a result of water hammer, a cast-
iron blank flange on a tee in a 20-inch
live-steam pipe at the new power plant
of the Amoskeag Manufacturing Com-
pany, Manchester, N. H., fractured early
Monday morning, March 27,, causing the
death of three men.

This 20-inch pipe runs the entire length
of the 500-foot boiler room to the pump
room, where it drops down to the base-
ment under the turbine room. There are
two 20-inch pipes, one supplying steam
to two turbines, the other delivering
steam to what is known as the Langdon
mill.

Just inside of the basement wall under
the turbine room the pipe running to the
Langdon mill has a steel-riveted tee con-
nection, put in so that the side outlet
faces lengthwise of the basement, as
shown in the illustration. This tee is
constructed of ^-inch steel and has
a K'-inch thick flange. The blank flange
was made of 1-inch cast iron, ribbed on
the outside. It was this flange that
fractured, a V-shaped piece being blown
from the solid section, as shown.

The fracture by water ham-
mer of a blank cast-iron
flange on the side outlet of
a 20-inch tee in a live-steam
line in the Amoskeag Mills,
causes the death of three
men. The pipe had a pitch
of 20 inches in 500 feet
and was drained by a trap.
The damage to the plant
was confined to the blank
flange.

This particular tee was put in place
when the pipe line was constructed to
provide an outlet connection for another
pipe line when desired.

The accident occurred just at the time
the engineer of the Langdon mill was get-
ting his reciprocating engine up to speed
for the day's run. Two shocks of water

hammer were felt by men employed at
the far end of the boiler rooms; these
were followed by a third and more severe
shock, which was immediately followed
by a roar, as the steam in the 20-inch
main, fed by 16 boilers, rushed through
the opening in the fractured flange.

Engineer Pettigrew and Electrician
Webster escaped without serious injury.
As soon as Pettigrew heard the roar and
saw the steam coming up through the
cracks in the temporary plank flooring, he
made his way through the steam to the
door leading into the pump room and on
into the boiler room where the steam was
shut off. Webster, on his way past the
one turbine that was in operation at the
time, pulled the automatic which shut
the unit down and probably prevented
serious damage to the electrical end from
running with a load while moist vapor
filled the room.

A steam pressure of 170 pounds per
square inch was carried on the pipe, and
before the flow had been gotten under
control, one man was dead, two so severe-
ly burned that they have since died and

April II. 1911

several others were burned, but not dan-
gerously so.

Horace Crawford, an electrician,
so badly scalded that he died in a
hour had been at work all night

and at the time of the accident had some

in his hand. Later a window
found broken and the ain was on the
outside, bu' ntly Crawford became

confused and attempted to find another
means of exit. When found he was on
the floor near the double door at the
end of the turbine room.

James Cassidy, a piper's helper, was
found dead on the floor near where he
had been last seen ci the room.

He was enveloped in steam which came
up through the loose flooring. It
posed that he inhaled steam, and immedi-
ately succumbed.

Frank I)\er 18 years old, the last to
die. was the son of Engineer Dyer, also

£Z

-J'

uie

seriously burm was just about to

begin work during bll school va-

>n in order to gair cn-

Hc had gone the

basement to enter the wash room that
was located on the oppoMU .!• ' the
basement from the li and

• the fa-
open the wash-room door nhc key was
later found in the lock*, when ll
dent occurred. With rare prc«K:nc
mind. Ihcr ran around the enj of the
i room an ' ng a * that

faced a dry ra

of 20 feet, ran across th
climbed up a -a a

canal, d

The md the shock of the

canal water was
could ^MhMa-

Th> lamage to the plant ■

rur" 'he blank flang-

flange showed no n of a flaw or

aknes*.
flan: to a ra

of the diameter of the { "een

of the
pis. .'►. flarn

Ju
OCCl.

hnginct had

gone dc rap that

had been pin in place fore

left
the bascn the flange

pitch toward t

■o the accounts publishcJ
ipers. .. ng the

•he officials of the company
rega is but just to

that such reports were false. A
Power it: most

courteous treatment while investigating
the accident and every question was free-

W atcr Right ( liforni.i

important n regar iter

rights for power ti . ation purposes

in Californ n handed dow :

Judge Hutton. of the

es. It d - between the

rights of r »nd the

rights of riparian owners, the case at

ic involving the right of the use of a

.am known as Garden Gulch

k. both pa- ^ on claims to

appror
On this i Judge Hutton ru:

"It is a great mistake to assume that the
waters of a stream under these
lions are the of appropria-

te only waters that may be a; ucd

irrnmcnt
land and this before the right
upon ti -on of l

-•ment becom< ors.

have a.

In
full eft

that th< I all

other classc* <»f has a

the full flood am. un-

Vcted in

>o much of

gallon purpose* as he can ; eeo-

•
that the right* of ih<
the !anJ r
lhat will Ini

■ ■

■ .'

nmoltsted The

urr

r f f'nrtl

1 belongs in the watershed

to rerr
par m th<

Jo ibis

ions nay be f

Preaurt I lcr

O ie prewar for

system at the old Press
Com* .:
able damage was done to the prop
and thu -lously

The tank ■ and

cet lor. made up of three

ich shef
scams wen

I
inct on a J-in*

■ad

Th ea-

•« pressure

top '•* boiler praaaara

I 00 pounds, and a duplet
o to one
uatd io pump up the pre«>
tank Some dea

aloaloa nej N i-j aad f* n ttm mtn •*•«
one -Iowa oat aad

print »

■

i "MS- Nc s c f a ' ■ > t

• tilaaa
• n baiM

a rasas, snorts

584

POWER

April 11, 1911.

Vater System of Water
Purification

This can be briefly described as a hot-
process water-purifying system which
takes advantage of the well known fact
that chemical reactions are much more
rapid and complete when they take place
at high than at low temperatures. The
system depends essentially on three
fundamental propositions. First, the use
of solutions of uniform strength; sec-
ond, feeding in proportion to the load,
and, third, plenty of time for the reac-
tions to take place.

A mixing tank with paddles and crank
for hand operation is provided, as shown
in the part-sectional illustration. Here
the reagents are mixed in the proportion
indicated by the character of the water.
After the mixing has been done and the

What the in-
ventor and the manu-
facturer are doing to save,
time and money in the en-
gine room and power1
house. Engine room
news

with a variable stroke which can be ad-
justed while' the pump is in operation
and provision is made to withstand the
action of the reagents on its working
parts. By providing a mixing tank and
solution tank as shown, continuous runs
can be made, the effect of the two tanks
being the same as if this piece of ap-
paratus were provided in duplicate.

The purifier proper consists, first, of a
heating section, which is an induction

Vent

Exhaust
Steam
Inlet

%j^\Water Inlet and
W-' Regulating Valve

allows the condensed steam to form part
of the treated water.

A float valve control is arranged in the
heater, maintaining the water level at the
desired point, and two valved connections
are arranged for the water to descend
into the precipitating section. As the
solution pump is connected to the feed
pump, just the amount necessary for
softening the water being used is intro-
duced into the heater, where it is raised
to exhaust-steam temperature and inti-
mately mixed with the water before en-
tering the precipitating tank.

The latter has been designed to give
ample time for the reactions to take place.
It is found that 90 per cent, of the im-
purities are precipitated at this point in
the form of a sludge which can be blown
out from the cone-shaped bottom of the
tank. The light, flocculent material passes
through the inverted cone-shaped intake,
over into the filters where it is easily
removed, the filtration being downward
through quartz. These filters are fur-
nished in duplicate and either one is of
sufficient capacity to take care of the total
volume of water while the other one is
being cleaned. Simply reversing the flow
in the filter and opening to the sewer
will clean the filter bed in a few minutes'
time. Where desired the heating section
can also be installed in duplicate so that
there will be no interruption whatever
in the action of the device.

In operation a simple titrating set is
used to indicate the extent of purification.
After the character of the water has
once been determined, the amount of

Mi King Tank

To Sewer

^x^e^s^yft^y^^i^

Warm Water

Vv.^v.^m^mi-M*.'

Drain

To Sewer Treated and Filtered Water to Feed Pump '''Solution

Showing Arrangement of the Vater System of Water Purification

PoyilK

solution has settled and clarified it is
siphoned into the holding tank below,
from which point it is taken by a special
solution pump attached to the crosshead
of the boiler-feed pump and delivered to
the purifier proper. The solution pump
is specially designed for this purpose,

open heater, in which is arranged a
system of pans designed to break up the
water into small particles and facilitate
the transmission of heat, and, second, a
precipitating tank. An oil separator is-
connected to the heater, which removes
any oil that may be in the steam and

color given to a test sample when titrated
is a correct indication of the condition of
the purified water. The operator is given
a small bottle of water properly colored
and he uses this as a guide when making
up his solution. If he finds on titrating
a sample that he has mixed a solution

April II, 1911.

POWER

which is too strong, or, in other words,
if the result of his test shows too much
color in the sample, he simply reduces
the stroke of the solution pump so as
to feed the solution in less quant.
Similarly, if he finds the solution weak
he can increase the stroke of the pump
tc compensate for this weakness.

It is claimed that the apparatus will
reduce the incrusting solids to as low as
I grains per gallon, with an excess of
solution no* grain per gal-

lon. Any combination of reagents can be
used without making alterations in the
equipment and the water is delivered to
the boilers at a high temperature, thus
doing away with the necessity for a f
water heater where a softener is in-
stalled.

The Vater water-softening system is
tuilt by the Power Plant Specialty Com-
pany. Monadnock block, Chicago, III.

\ P inona I urbine Casing

When the turbine casing is made in
halves, with the ends cast on, the end
or head cannot project inside of the
rotor drum, as it would not allow the
latter to be lifted out; nor indeed to be
inserted. A British patent ha
issued to the Hon. Char: Parsons

for a casing of which the form illustrated
herewith in an example.

The cut shows the casing, parted longi-
tudinally at the center as usual, but with
the heads cast in the four separate pieces
HK gad AI .V. The rotor d. including
the driving pistons, extends well over the
bead, but the latter can be unbolted and
removed in si the under ha

1 iquid C <><>lcr W through

-h the liquid is returned to the point
The accompanying illustration reprc- it came from as hot liquid to again do
sents a .ooler that has been -> mission as a cooling agent.

signed for the purpose of cooling The extension J at the bottom of the

such as condenser water from ammonia casing A' Jror» below the liquid line

maintained by the top of the pipe H, thia

coils.

-JM

The cooler c< of a blower and a

bank of double cooling tubes inclose
a sheet-iron casing. The liquid to be
cooled flows through a header (not
shown) an J r the pan A

ic shon :hcn

takes a : course through he

bank of tub and

I only an exten-
sion of the tub- iging the topof the
tubes far enough above the tube sheet F
to prevent the liq
the top into the center of the tub
thus producing a hollow column ol

The Ifl is of the tubes D arc •

par. nough to pass snugly

-t seal pose of

I and tc
g the suction r

around

The air
the conr.

the outer tube*- *een the upper

and ibe sheets /' and F and finally

is discharged out of the cooler through
the conncc1

The water carried over with

the blast of air through the coolc

< drain back through -
at T ■ quid it

i'l final: to the tank

r .

re of <

being turned around the abaft and I
out like the lower boxes of a bear

kieada cast Integral with the

rest of the caving the bearing and thrust

k would extend at lea lied

'ion. great:, Increasing gth and

weight of the turbine, and the !i Acuities

which go with s long rotating men

through th<

a njfola' » so

n be controlled, as the

«age of the liquid

" araatrri;

e liqui
en level

■■■■it veathc
The clean.- Jtmawt Of

* cost<
c^urt if d < inwaoaaVOOl if the tub r.g

586

POWER

April 11, 1911.

The adjustment of the flow of the
liquid is accomplished by a lever (not
shown) which, by a movement either
up or down, increases or diminishes the
flow of the liquid through the inner
tubes D.

The only additional water used is the
water with which the air is sprayed — this
makes it possible to reach a low tem-
perature during the hot and sultry days
of summer. This spray is at the top, over
the pan A, and is not lost as it unites with
the water being circulated through the
cooler.

This device is made by F. P. Hopkins,
1361 Bonnie View avenue, Lakewood, O.

New Era Self Lubricating
Metallic Packing

The packing shown herewith is an im-
proved product, which, consisting of a
nonelastic, compound mass of metallic
lubricants, requires no lubrication what-
ever except that contained within its
cwn substance. It is claimed by the man-
ufacturer that it never becomes charred
or otherwise unfit for service and that
it will not lock or score the rods, plung-
ers, or shafts on which it is used. Fig.
1 is a sectional view of the packing in
place, as manufactured by the New Era
Manufacturing Company, Kalamazoo,
Mich. A represents the piston rod; B the
body or stuffing box; C the stuffing-box
•gland; D the main body of packing con-
tainer; E the supplementary gland; FF
the bearing rings; // the self-lubricating
metallic packing, and J the metallic rings
which surround the rod in three sections,
as illustrated in Fig. 2.

The bearing rings FF admit lateral
motion to the main body of the pack-
ing container D, and supplementary gland
E, to compensate for any movement of

A Self Oiling Hanger Coup- cones are forced in by tne threaded rings

1' R with a spanner.

° The split rings S are used to take up

In the accompanying drawing is shown the lateral play of the shaft.

a self-oiling hanger coupling, the object In making the oiler for the coupling,

of which is to connect two sections of a a hole is drilled through its entire length

Combination Hanger and Coupling

line shaft at a hanger, thus providing
more space on the shaft for pulleys. It
is made with a reservoir for holding
lubricating oil that is fed to the bearing
through the oil holes O, which are fitted
with felt to prevent the oil from flowing
too rapidly.

and the ends are closed by the cast-iron
plugs P. To fill the reservoir the passage
H is drilled from the outside, and the
outer end plugged by a tight-fitting screw.
This hanger is the invention of H. C.
Williamson, 309 London street, Ports-
mouth, Va.

J i

Fig. I. Sectional View of Packing
Container

the piston rod when out of alinement.

As shown in Fig. 2, there are three
metallic packing rings surrounding the
icd, the space between their ends being
occupied by the plastic packing /. This
hitter may be renewed whenever neces-
sary and serves to take up wear on the
packing as it occurs. It can be placed
on an engine without dismantling and
when occasion requires.

Fig. 2. Transverse Section

This style of coupling supports the
shaft at its weakest point. The coupling
can be used on any standard hanger and
can be made with or without the oiling
device.

It consists of a steel forging C, which
is turned in the center to form the jour-
nal, and has the cone cups on each end
to receive the ends of the two sections
of shafting to be coupled together. The

Coal Land Frauds

It was reported on March 28 that
Charles F. Munday, a lawyer of Seattle,
Wash., was placed on trial in the Federal
court on a charge of having conspired
to defraud the Government of $100,000,-
000 coal lands near Katalla, Alaska. He
and Earl E. Stacey, private secretary to
the late M. J. Heney, builder of the White
Pass & Copper River and Northwestern
railroads, the latter the property of
the Morgan-Guggenheim syndicate, and
Archie W. Shields were indicted by a
Federal grand jury sitting at Tacoma
last October.

Generally, the indictments charge Mun-
day and his associates with having sev-
eral years ago induced dummy locators
to file on the claims best known as the
English group for the Alaska Develop-
ment Company and the Pacific Coal Com-
pany. These claims comprise 6087 acres
of what is declared by experts to be
among the richest coal lands in Alaska.

April I!, 1911.

GS1

Paul Kirk, who formerly repr.
PomER as a subscription solicitor in
York C > longer in the employ of

I ■ Plant I l bj

t. entraJ Station

It : in th<.

the Walworth Manufacturing Company-
signed at the
»on Ekv

ton, for all the light and p<>
vice in its big manufacturing plant in
•on. The contrac- for

ce to replace am plu

ating a total of 1100 hor- ca-

pacity. The b of thi orth

company has increased to the point where
the management was confronted with the
necessity for i implctc

ncwal of :• rn-pou. the

installation of an electric light and p<
plant of ■ n or the adoption of the

cc of the company, and the

central station won out.

I itr.il Station Welfare Work

The public-policy committee of the N
tional Klcc- it Association, which,

during the past winter, has been dcv<.

:dcrablc attention to the as-

-ork as related to the
central-station industry, held a final n
ing at t rfc headquarters in the

/inccring building on March
28, when the r iich has been pre

J through a scries of long confer
s was una; ted. and

nmendatio:
put in definite shape for ; ttion to

the member compa' number ni

a thousand, at the annual convention in
rk nc\-

il of the companies all ivc

in force some of the scheme* propn

assumed that >mpany

h to adopt • 'if rclat

•hip outlined in • The plan

'ancc.

and investment funds, and life insurai
althoug1 ■ it

then e their en ;

nformation in
•h tafi
and do not an of •

I coming repon i

made ur
una-
been J-

' as the recoK- f an *

>ntlnuou«
and the omr
that member corr-
•uch an- nale tri :

- age c

_on-

and » jrd of

'Ofit

- r * '». -. r»

ployee bas

reac

par.

: be p.s the

mar ith other sco

holders. Details are also

i to M lent

' ; '
l and. where
fi profit
'ound thai the
■
Tl be ii

terest by- al!

onomists in general.

PERSON VL

John H V-ungblood. forrt ate

has

\aminer

at Columbus. O.

Thomas Katon has been j J to fill

ancy left in the Cleveland

On A; of

Fulton Assoc* •

tional Association of

nccrs. in the rooms of the association in

IfO H

in- I

an <

^ some

natural ;

OBI I U Utt

orn a'

i connected

the en. .: dep- of

one of '

Pric nnection ■ <iOV

nee

w*ash m

tew c^

j .

hlcb began

■nnccted »
sign and cons:'-.- ' the '

of I :. -•

n of the P
burg & Li

construction of the

ation of
.J Company's

A the larg<

long N. a-

mechanic ccmca!

■

of the

rs and the Ann

ilso a member of

of Lawrence,
Mass. .hildrcn

and

latter being a resident of Los Angeles.
Cal

SO( II IV NOTES

ors of the Am
g snd

'■
r merr '

iard of
can He;

: a t
quarters of the socU

T»!

the usua! rncmbc- Il

the procecJ ** and 1010 The

pWfjQ—1 10 bold Iba wmmif rrret .r.g on

a tf p on ;

28 3

•hip to

■
■ ■

<nt of :

i the lourncv; pror
c and
served

considerable numb u laaportaaa

C plocr rerhape

an hour's soloara in each case art pea-

\l W IWIAIIi >\s

•

588

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE. Carl Rich-
ard Waller, Trenton, N. J., assignor to De
Laval Steam Turbine Company, New _\ork.
N Y. a Corporation of New Jersey. 98 1, 842.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Jamie
Hunter Batchelor and Herbert H. Smith,
Dothan, Ala. 987,848.

(i\S ENGINE. John T. Cowie, New West-
minster, British Columbia, Canada, assignor
of one-half to Henry Schaake, New West-
minster, Canada. 987, 8G0.

ROTARY GAS ENGINE Franklin D-
Thomas, Saginaw, Mich. 98 1, 929.

AUTOMATIC WAVE APPARATUS. Rob-
ert Max Mobius, San Diego, Cal. 988,012.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. Terry
Okey, Columbus, Ohio, assignor of one-halt to
Sarah Louise Okey, Columbus, Ohio. 988,021.

TURBO DISPLACEMENT ENGINE Lewis
Hallock Nash, South Norwalk, Conn., as-
signor to Nash Engineering Company, a Cor-
poration of New iork. J»»,lo.i.

BALANCED WATER MOTOR Philander
T Dodson, Creston, Iowa. 9S8.-oO.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Geo.
W Brown, Salamonie township, Huntington
county, Ind. 987,860.

BOILERS, FURNACES AND GAS
PRODUCERS

MECHANICAL STOKER. Arthur R. Sel-
den, Rochester, N. Y. 98 .,834.

FTfRNACE Herman A. Poppenhusc n

Evanston and Joseph Harrington, Riverside.
111. 987,911.

FURNACE Herman A. Poppenhusen,

Evanston, 111. 988,027.

Oil BURNER. Ernest L. Kendall, Rig-
gold, Tex. 988,111.

ft-RN\CE William McClave, Scranton,
Ppnn assignor to McClave-Brooks Company,
Scranton Penn., a Corporation of Pennsyl-
vania. 988,123.

INJECTOR BURNER. Nicholas S. Sibert,
Neodesha, Kan. 988, 21G.

FEED-WATER HEATER. .Tared S Sweeny
aiKi William W. Grindle, Decatur, 111.

POWDERED-COAL BURNER. Alva D. Lee
t> HI , Mn« assignor to Lee Furnace and
iut-ner' Com^W ^Corporation of New York.
988,271.

POWER P^N^AU^LIARIES AND

hundredths to Richard H. Malcomson, Chi-
cago, 111. 987,710.

POTARV PUMP Adolbert Fournier,

Splaiut Wash .assignor to James F. O'Brien.
Seattle, Wash. 987,711.

t LBRIOATOR. George H. Menzies, 1 ltts-
burg, Penn. 987,735.

VALVE. John W. Smith and_Elmer II.
Smith, Minneapolis, Minn. 987,7.x.

INJECTOR. William Henry Stirling. St.
Tolm N B Canada, assignor of one-half to
James E.Hogan, St. John, N. B., Canada.
987,709. m „

ENGINE CROSSHEAD. Robert W Bryan
Aberdeen. Wash, assignor of one-half to
George B. Reid, Aberdeen, Wash. 987, 8o3.

PUMP. Charles Williams, Brooklyn, N. Y.
987.934. '

TURBINE PUMP. Walter L. Forward,
West Berkeley, Cal.. assignor to Byron Jack-
son Iron Works, Berkeley. Cal., a Corpora-
tion of California. 987,976.

BEADING TOOL FOR BOILER TUBES.
Eugene Wiet, San Francisco, Cal. 988,054.

OILING DEVICE. George W. Cook. Jr.,
Bainbridge N. Y.. assignor to American Sep-
arator Company. Bainbridge. N. Y., a Corpor-
ation of New York. 988,080.

SEPARATOR FOR BOILERS. Joseph E.
Harrison, Harvey, N. D. 988,264.

APPARATUS FOR PREPARING GRO-
METS OR PACKINGS FOR STUFFING
BOXES William Heron, Birkenhead, Eng-
land. 988,267.

MECHANICAL MOVEMENT FOR AUTO-
MATIC STOKERS. William McClave. Scran-
ton Penn. assignor to McClave-Brooks Com-
pany Scranton. Penn., a Corporation of Penn-
sylvania. 988,275.

ELECTRICAL INVENTIONS AND
APPLICATIONS

ELECTRIC HIGIT-WATER ALARM. Ed-
win E. Brackett, Central Falls, R. I. 987,-
694.

ALTERNATTNG-CURRENT MOTOR AND
CONTROLLING DEVICE THEREFOR. Vance
I. Orav. Toledo. Ohio, assignor to the F. Bis-
<=oH Comnnriv. Toledo, Ohio, a Corporation of
Ohio. 987.979.

POWER

April 11, 1911.

Engineering Societies BUSINESS ITEMS

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL

ENGINEERS
Pres., Col. E. D. Meier; sec. Calvin
W Rice Engineering Societies building, 2J
West 39th St.. New York. Monthly meetings
in New York City. Spring meeting in Pitts-
burg, May 30 to June 2.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS
Pres., Dugald C. Jackson ; sec, Ralph W.
Pope, 33 W. Thirty-ninth St., New lork.
Meetings monthly.

NATIONAL ELECTRIC LIGHT

ASSOCIATION
Pres., Frank W. Frueauff ; sec, T. C. Mar-
tin 31 West Thirtv-ninth St., New \ork.
Next meeting in New York City, May 29 to
June 2.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NAVAL

ENGINEERS
Pres. Engineer-in-Chief Hutch I. Cone,
TT S N • sec. and treas., Lieutenant Com-
mander U. T. Holmes, US. N Bureau of
Steam Engineering, Navy Department, Wash-
ington, D. C.

AMERICAN BOILER MANUFACTURERS'

ASSOCIATION

Pres E D. Meier, 11 Broadway, New

York • sec, J. D. Farasey, cor. 37th St. and

Erie Railroad, Cleveland. O. Next meeting

to be held September, 1911, in Boston. Mass.

WESTERN SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS
Fres., O. P. Chamberlain : sec, J. H.
Warder, 1735 Monadnock Block. Chicago, 111.
Meeting lirst Wednesday of each month.

ENGINEERS' SOCIETY OF WESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA

Tres., Walter Riddle; sec, E. K. Ililes,
Oliver building, Pittsburg, Penn. Meetings
1st and 3d Tuesdays.

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING AND
VENTILATING ENGINEERS
Ties., R. P. Bolton ; sec, W. W. Macon. 29
West Thirty-ninth street, New York City.

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATION-
ARY ENGINEERS

Pres., Carl S. Pearse. Denver, Colo. ; sec,
F. W. Raven, 325 Dearborn street, Chicago,
111 Next convention, Cincinnati, Ohio, Sep-
tember 12-15, 1911.

AMERICAN ORDER OF STEAM ENGINEERS
Supr. Chief Engr., Frederick Markoe, Phila-
delphia, Pa.; Supr. Cor. Engr., William S.
Wetzler, 753 N. Forty-fourth St., Philadel-
phia, Pa. Next meeting at Philadelphia,
June 5-10, 1911.

NATIONAL MARINE ENGINEERS BENE-
FICIAL ASSOCIATIONS
Pres., William F. Yates, New York, N. Y. ;
sec, George A. Grubb, 1040 Dakin street, Chi-
cago, 111. Next meeting at Detroit, Mich.,
January 15-19, 1912.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINEERS'
ASSOCIATION.

Pres., Arthur J. Frith ; sec. Charles
Kratsch, 416 W. Indiana St., Chicago. Meet-
ings the second Friday in each month at
Fraternity Halls, Chicago.

UNIVERSAL CRAFTSMEN COUNCIL OF
ENGINEERS

Grand Worthy Chief, John Cope ; sec, J. U.
Bunce, Hotel Statler. Buffalo, N. Y. Next
annual meeting in Philadelphia, Penn., week
commencing Monday, August 7, 1911.

OHIO SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ELEC-
TRICAL AND STEAM ENGINEERS

Pres., O. F. Rabbe ; acting sec. Charles
P. Crowe. Ohio State University, Columbus,
Ohio. Next meeting, Youngstown, Ohio, May
18 and 19, 1911.

INTERNATIONAL MASTER BOILER
MAKERS' ASSOCIATION
Pres., A. N. Lucas ; sec. Harry D. Vaught,
95 Liberty street. New York. Next meeting
at Omaha, Neb., May 23-26. 1911.

INTERNATIONAL UNION OF STEAM
ENGINEERS

Pres.. Matt. Comerford ; sec, J. G. Hanna-
han, Chicago. Til. Next meeting at St. Paul,
Minn., September, 1911.

NATIONAL DISTRICT HEATING AS-
SOCIATION
Pres., G. W. Wright. Baltimore. Md. ; sec.
and treas., D. L. Gaskill, Greenville, O.

'Boiler Room Tactics" is the title of a
booklet, which has been issued to give some
general rules for the care and management
of the Heine boilers. The booklet contains a
good deal of very useful information for those
having this type of boiler in charge and will
be sent on application to the Heine Safety
Boiler Company, 2449 East Marcus avenue,
St. Louis, Mo.

A 30-inch Swartwout horizontal oil sep-
arator was sold last month to the Holly Sugar
Company, Huntington Beach, Cal., by the
Ohio Blower Company, of Cleveland, Ohio.
Other oil separators were sold to the Mich-
igan Paper Company, Plainwell, Mich. ; D. C.
Armbrust, Los Angeles, Cal. ; Ellwanger Barry
Realty Company. Rochester, N. Y ; M. D.
Olds, Cheboygan, Mich., and Bachelor Timber
Company, West Branch, Mich.

F. L. W. Saunderson has been appointed
the Canadian manager of the Magnolia Metal
Company, with factory and offices located in
Montreal. Mr. Saunderson graduated at Mc-
Gill University in class of 1891, taking a
course in electrical engineering and afterward
took a special practical electrical course with
the Thomson-Houston Electric Company, and
for the past fifteen years has been identified
with the mill-supply business in Canada.

Persons having a liking for mechanical de-
vices will be interested in an ingenious
model, now being distributed by the Harrison
Safety Boiler Works, Seventeenth and Clear-
field streets, Philadelphia, Penn., to illustrate
the valve-timing gear in the new Cochrane
steam stack and cut-out valve feed-water
heater and receiver. The model, which is
constructed of stiff celluloid, illustrates
neatly the fact that when the heater is cut
off from the exhaust steam supply, the sep-
arator attached to and forming a part of the
heater continues to furnish exhaust steam
purified of oil to the heating or drying sys-
tem, while the trap is cut off from communi-
cation with the heater, but still continues to
drain the separator. Upon the reverse of the
model it is stated that full particulars re-
garding the application of these heaters in
connection with all kinds of exhaust steam-
heating systems are fully explained in the
"Exhaust Steam Heating Encyclopedia," pub-
lished by the manufacturer, which, with the
model, is sent gratis to persons who are in-
terested in the design, installation or opera-
tion of exhaust-steam heating systems.

NEW EQUIPMENT

Brockton, Mass., is contemplating the in-
stallation of a municipal electric-lighting
plant.

Ernest Marshall, Oakes, N. D., has been
granted franchise to install an electric-light
plant.

The Standard Ice Company, Seattle, Wash.,
is planning to erect a new boiler-house ad-
dition.

Troy Laundry, Ilagerstown, Md., is in the
market for a 125-horsepower return-tubular
boiler.

The Ottawa (Ont.) Electric Railway Com-
pany will build an addition to its power
house.

The Lowes Laundry, South Norwalk, Conn.,
is contemplating installing a 60-horsepower
boiler.

The Preston Fertilizer Company, Laurel
Hill, R. L, will install boiler, engine and
pumps.

Power plant of the Milwaukee Electric
Railway Company, at Racine, Wis., was
burned.

The cities of Marshfield and North Bend,
Ore., are planning a joint municipal water
system.

\ W Y< >RK

t i

T A 1. 1 • ads <>n boa

that ! it

time and Again. It is brimful of truth, too.

••■

:..:<.-

Id " Point a m

m atmosplu •
he tlr round tin

for the small 1k>\ 1
little Willie has been t<> t:

It ri'lin. with ai

vrhen up, 1

Willie's jxiint

:t. h<>w differently the man «h<>ui Willi*.* S4.

tnir< ^ at the m.r m his point

by a 1 He

aees tl uncoi

inds, tlu- hai

■

il<l hut become imbued with A »1

Ills

h«.%v much d

a tin.
peri
likely t<» n

t tli.it would stamp
hitn as an ak

r thai-

I ■ I

< :.. - fill in

stlt

roach u.

n and w !

and

himself I
■
take the m

\\ • ailed I

■
Whet t he

■

util:

In plain

■
through i:

.va* the
t he

it ot He saw the

MM*

v*e m

ap-
•

he had a<

«nd he

■

wmHer he n

590

POWER

April 18. 1911

The Steam Turbine in Germany

All types of A. E. G. turbines have the
following features in common:

1. One rigid frame for the whole unit,
as shown in Fig. 29.

2. Three bearings, there being only
one bearing between steam turbine and
electric generator, while a rigid flange
coupling is provided on the side of the
turbine.

3. A rigid shaft, the critical speed of
which is above the normal speed.

Frame: Those firms who build both
the turbine and the electrical equipment
have the advantage that they can cast
the two frames in one piece, allowing
both parts to be erected and tested to-
gether. If turbine and generator are
built by different firms, of course, sep-
arate frames and separate bearings must

By F. E. Junge

and E. Heinrich

This instalment of the se-
ries on A. E. G. turbines
deals with features of design ,
taking up the frame, casing,
bearings, lubrication, stuff-
ing boxes, disks and blades,
nozzles and regulation.

production in the shops of one and the
same firm. The frame plates of the
A. E. G. turbine possess considerable
hight and their walls have considerable

frame to the foundation. If the con-
densing plant is located below the tur-
bine, as obtains in most cases, the tur-
bine resting on I-beams, a rigid con-
nection by bolts in the manner shown in
Fig. 30 commends itself for the sake of
stability. From this figure it is seen also
that in order to facilitate attendance and
avoid stairs, galleries, etc., the frame
is set below the engine floor.

Casing: The casing of multiple-stage
turbines consists of three parts, the front
cover and the upper and lower halves
of the casing, the latter divided hori-
zontally and containing the low-pressure
portion. The front cover and the first
wall of the inner partition form a cham-
ber or receptacle in which the Curtis
wheel, equipped with two or three rows

Fig. 29. A. E. G. Turbine Direct Connected to 6000-kilowatt Three-phase Generator in Course of Erection

be provided and a flexible coupling be-
tween the two units arranged. In the
latter case the aggregate unit cannot be
tested until after erection in the power
house, the reliability of operation de-
pending very largely on the ability and
thoroughness of the erecting engineers.
Here is an element of technical import-
ance which speaks for concentration of

thickness so that great rigidity of con-
struction is assured. This is important,
because light frame plates are apt to
bend during erection, changing the rela-
tive position of the surfaces which are
to fit. The mass or weight of frame is
increased by filling its cavities with brick-
work or cement, so that no special hold-
ing-down bolts are required to fasten the

of blades, revolves. While to this wheel
steam is fed to only a portion of the cir-
cumference through nozzles, the follow-
ing wheels, having each only one row of
blades, are impinged by means of guide
blades with parallel walls, admitting
steam over the whole circumference. The
guide blades are of polished nickel steel,
very accurately cast between an external

April 18, 1911

I I K

89 1

and an internal cast-iron ring. T

:ing rings are fastened in the two
halves of the casing and remain there
if the shaft, the wheels, and the
arating walls are dismounted. The
arating walls rest on the hubs of two
consecutive low-pressure wheels. When
the turbine is being mounted the key
projecting from the inner circumference
of the guiding rings engages tl
cut in the circumference of the separ.i
walls. This construction is lately being
another, which emplo

xo pans, similar to those
used in other mak. ilu made of one

piece possess several disadvantages. If,
for instance, tt -ig on the hub .

overheated, in order to obtain a.
the source of trouble it is ncccssar
dismount the whole turbine and to with-
draw the wheels from the shaft, which
is a very difficult or. at least, complicated
e of work. This may occur when
•urbinc is connected with the exh.
viat higher temperatures occur -
denly in the cas

i ME

The front .is a rule, a tt

ng. while the ot) of the

K are made of | 29

nhowt ■ nil ' high

kilowatts), of lower half of

the casing with the and

front o -h the no/.- ;ent

are already mounted. The upper half
c casing lie* on the floor. The two
r turbine* in the picture also show
the composition of par*

The conitruv- f the nig!

In which * arc

somewhat different

i beini
The 7. and the I

rontal |

'tow th
dlamnuntrj i ir%«. the I
removed, then fo! 'unning

wheel, afterward I
Ing wheel, and Anally the aecor
nlng wheel If >cca«i<> i

spect the inner C part*

peciallv tri

it is not necessary to dismount the ma-
chine. A<> fof tbc first stage. inspc>
can be ng one of t

zle che- . on the low-pressure part

openings u rs are pr< pcr-

from the casing by encoding the

yond the front side of the turbine.
gi. In the de»ign of aor»

g general con*
c pre*

a comr ihe sec- p

■

r R ■= | ./ m j the

re in journal pet m pw, ttm

let to !■ (irt-

thc castings. In • \

:h the governor
and

* ' r a ' r • f> •* ,- ' ' \ ■ < ■ " " ' ' * » • *

»t*k C B

' fl

'mm ob

M ftWr t

! %■*■ '<v >\ ■- ' • ' <•

592

POWER

April 18, 1911

low, especially when employing flexible
shafts, the dimensions of bearings being
laid out amply large. The value p v sel-
dom surpassed 40 meter-kilograms, or, in
English units, 1830 foot-pounds. Today
all firms follow the example set by the
Allgemeine Elektricitats Gesellschaft.
They shorten their turbine bearings, per-
mitting a value pv = 130 to 150 in
metric, or 6000 to 7000 in English units.
The construction of bearings embraces
two parts: floor stands, or pedestals, and
boxes. The former rest upon and are
rigidly fastened to the base plate. The
bushings are lined with white metal and
are fitted by hand into the boxes, thus
guaranteeing an oil-tight fit all along the
surface; see Fig. 32. Lubrication is ef-
fected by means of oil pumps driven
from the turbine. The oil piping is con-

■Air Hole

Water
Inlet-.

Fig. 33. Oil Cooler

nected to the pedestal and extends in its
interior up to the bottom end of the bush-
ing. The oil enters through a vertical
channel into a broad groove, being driven
by the revolving shaft toward the center
line of the bearing, where the highest
pressure occurs, and emerging on both
sides into the cavities of the pedestal.
The front bearing is constructed similarly
to the rear one, with the difference that
it contains the thrust journal. The main
purpose of the latter is not to receive and
absorb heavy shocks or stresses, but to
maintain the relative axial position of
rotating and stationary parts and to pre-
serve and control the interstices and play
which are provided during erection. As
the pivot journal is subjected to wear the
collars are not made in one piece with
the shaft, but are attached to the latter,
together with the worm gear for driving
the governor, so that they may be easily
exchanged.

Lubrication: The convection of the from the turbine, is collected, and the
friction heat is effected partly in the bear- impurities contained therein are allowed
ing itself and partly by means of special to settle to the bottom and can be re-
oil coolers, similar to those used in other moved from time to time. On its way
turbine systems. In one construction downward the oil passes through a fine

Thrust
Journal

Oil Pump-

Safety Valve ■

Throttle Valve

Z>/SSSfS////

Fig. 34. Outline of Turbine Oiling
System

the brasses are made hollow so that the
cooling water may pass through them, be-
fore it enters the oil cooler. In other
constructions the lubricating oil, coming
from the oil cooler under pressure, is it-

brass sieve which retains the solid par-
ticles, such, for instance, as come from
the inner surfaces of the pedestals, oil
pipes, etc. After being filtered the oil
enters a cooling coil, yielding its heat
to the cooling water. Thence it is drawn
through the oil pump and started again,
circulating through the system. It is ob-
vious that the loss o-f oil in this system is
quite small, yet there are losses caused
partly by evaporation, partly by the fact
that the lubricating value of oil decreases
after some time, so that the oil must oc-
casionally be renewed. The oil in the
tank serves also as a reserve supply,
guaranteeing the circulation in case,
owing to some defect, the lubricant should
leak out during operation. The oil pump
which is driven from the governor con-
sists of two spur pinions meshing in

To Back
Stuffing Box

To front
Stuffing Box

Fig. 35. Sectional View of Turbine, Showing Labyrinth Packing

self used to cool the bushing from with- the ordinary manner. The absence of

out before entering the wearing surface valves, pistons, springs, etc., favors re-

within. The cooling of the oil is effected liability of operation. When starting, the

in a special apparatus, shown in Fig. 33. speed of the governor and oil pump is

In the upper part the hot oil, returning too low to secure the delivery of suffi-

April 18, 1911

cient oil under pressure. For this pur-
pose a small emergency hand pump is
provided, and for larger urn: -cial

steam-driven auxiliary oil pump is pro-
vided, which supplies the lubricant until
the main turbine is up to
circulation and pressure can be controlled

the low-pressure stage of the turbine
draws steam through t:
of t ■•sure stuffing box, but at

J raws steam from
■d 'hrough
stuffing box, so tl
steam used for packing

— r. _ -~ . "■■■■» ••» ...*..«•».>..-

through several gages, being switched in

:h Fac

at different pla means of

The temperature of the oi
and observed both in the tank and on
the bearings, for which purpose ther-
mometers are i- ifl the upp^
ricme of oil
lustra!

The packing of the
turh ift on the

is a compar pie mat- iuse

•he first chamber the |
comparatively low. In the mu 'age

A. E. G. turbir -Terence

is about three am ta. In the

cssurc at full

load and can even become negative at
lower loads. In this case the r
of the atmospher
than the internal steam pressure, the cf-

B the 1>
the high circuml
spec cam turbir-.

of c :o empl« ame

are used in stcar:
ginc pracr *• ither soft mate-

J the shaft nor metal
.an be
latter t! uld hardly be kc;

is ap' the

lensate for b<
A I

h the steam
•a a packing medium, being 1 to

flow through a rig grooves and

being gradual! ac-

quired vcl<> k absorbed m

spaces loca* the grooves. The

• team tr i

the

•.. the I'
sure box being arranged he ru-
nning box ; m
km ian-

neN connect through -

•fc

the lac three parts. The outer

channel receive* the steam > has

been throttled in a reducing valve to a

ntr channel
connects through j annular

chamber of the Ion pre«»ure Muffing '
Through thi« connection the vacuum in

low x0 contains

:ssion

not en<'
trough the
Mort
hamber p: the

leakage of steam so :
grit tra.

istment of the
adrr :g stea-

s-\

i»ion and contraction as
result from the beating and cooling of

rm of packing which
-

rings made of carbon, which i
togc meana of springs, the rest

high speeds the I*

.
gkeneus it baa tbe gr

'• t>on
cation, tbr

. . . -
amount 1 c lab

makes possible one ,
the stc.i

'rom gr rbe inr.

between t»o eons
also of

the sha- g no colisrs but running

Tbe amount of play p

ring
accepted as an ur. c Ions.

-e made
being assur-

- ■-

1
I

resoarg sid< 'earn is

•ml' nigh a short ren

ordc

he coda Nsft

arr ma c meshing ce

labvnnt' •■ t^all N Is ample • r r-

30 gixes a

mfhM

■sen

■toe of

btsde* ha» csd rtr kh the

The heevfty buflt
disk hohs *eeed noon the theft

by menm ef eneJeel cone In seder to

594

POWER

April 18, 1911

secure accurate fit and ease of dismount-
ing. The blades are made either of a
special bronze alloy or of nickel steel.
They are cut from solid profile bars, be-
ing set into the rim at an enlarged por-
tion of the groove. The space between
two consecutive blades is filled in with
a special piece which projects as high as
the foot of the blade and fits accurately
into the profiled part of the blade. It
thus insures the accurate spacing of the
blades as well as their uniform inclina-
tion. After the whole circumference of
the disk wheel has been filled with blades
the distance pieces are staked so as to
give an absolutely firm hold. Then the
blade heads are connected by a steel
band, which fulfils the double purpose of
stiffening the blades radially and creat-
ing in the rotating wheel a closed chan-
nel for the working steam. The blades
of the reversing wheels are built in the
same way as the others. After being
equipped with blades the wheels are
carefully balanced statically, a dynamic
adjustment being in most cases unneces-
sary on account of the symmetric form
of the wheels.

Nozzles: The impingement of the steam
upon the blades is effected either through
guiding channels with parallel walls' or
through conically diverging nozzles. A
longitudinal section through the nozzles
of a two-stage turbine is shown in Fig.
27, which also shows how the nozzles
are superimposed and with their rect-
angular mouths give a continuous outlet.
As material for nozzles, bronze or nickel
steel has given satisfaction. For the
form of apparatus which is built for high
superheat, a special grade of cast iron
is employed. If corroded, these parts
can be easily replaced without excessive
cost. The ease of exchange is a desirable
feature, particularly in cases when the
operating conditions of the plant change
materially, as when turbines are con-
nected to a new boiler plant with dif-
ferent pressure, or when superheaters
are installed.

Regulation: The requirements of elec-
tric drive necessitate the accurate main-
tenance of the normal speed at all loads
as well as a small and short deviation
from the normal number of revolutions
at sudden variations of load. These re-
quirements are more easily met with
steam turbines than with reciprocating
engines, because the degree of irregu-
larity— using an expression from steam-
engine practice — is almost zero, the mass
of revolving parts acting like a flywheel
toward the balancing of small irregu-
larities. The governing device of A. E. G.
turbines is shown in Fig. 37. The vertical
governor is driven through a worm gear
from the turbine shaft and moves a small
balanced piston valve, which opens the
ports to the cylinder, the piston of which
controls the main steam valve at the
slightest deviation from the center posi-
tion. When the sleeve of the governor

ascends the pilot valve descends, there-
by opening one channel for the admis-
sion and another for the outlet of oil
under pressure. The regulating valve
proper, a double-seated balanced poppet

Power

Fig. 38. Arrangement of Nozzles

valve, is rigidly connected to the piston
of the controlling cylinder. When the
speed of the turbine increases the gov-
ernor throttles the admission of steam,
the downward movement of the piston
ceasing when the pilot valve is pushed
back into the central position. As the
lever has no fixed fulcrum the slide link

of this mode of governing is, of course,
that it exercises no harmful back pres-
sure on the governor, the sensitiveness
of the latter being therefore quite high.
For sudden load variations up to ± 25
per cent, the change in the number of
revolutions does not amount to more than
+ 1.5 per cent. At sudden drops from
full load to no load a momentary increase
of 5 per cent, takes place. In the condi-
tion of permanence the difference of
speed between no load and full load is
4 per cent. Every turbine possesses a
device for changing the normal speed by
+ 5 per cent, during operation, which is
essential for running alternating-current
generators in parallel, the device being
actuated either by hand at the turbine or
from the switchboard.

In the above described system of regu-
lation the governor changes the position
of the throttle valve and thereby at the
same time the quantity and pressure of
the steam supplied from the boiler. This
reduction of pressure, however, causes a
certain loss of energy, which finds ex-
pression in an increased steam consump-
tion per horsepower. The method of
partial or graduated admission as em-
ployed in A. E. G. turbines makes it pos-
sible to transfer regulation of the quan-
tity of steam admitted directly to the noz-
zles, so that at partial loads the throttle
valve may be in a more elevated position
whereby losses through reduction of
pressure are diminished. The more per-
fect and differentiated the change of ad-
mission the more noticeable is the im-
provement of throttle governing.

8
75

6.5
m
E

2 6

*5.5

4.5

Steam

Consumption ,

-per Kilowatt*

Hour

Open

Valves Nozzles

'9^'ationln Stage I

Vacuum Constant 95 Per Cent
I m Exhaust Pipe

-IE Atmospheres, 3/5 Degrees C
in Front of Throttle Valve

Power

'0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000

Kilowatts

Fig. 39. Influence of Throttle Regulation on Steam Consumption

must be considered as fulcrum. Thus
to every definite position of the governor
corresponds a certain definite position of
the throttle valve. The oil for the pres-
sure cylinder is supplied from the same
pump which delivers the lubricant to the
bearings under pressure. The advantage

In the A. E. G. system of automatic
nozzle regulation the pressure piston
actuates a curved gear by means of which
the single nozzles or groups of such are
opened and closed through a series of
valves. In this case of pure quantity
regulation the throttle valve is eliminated

April 18. 1911

entirely. Between complete cutoff and
maximum overload the governor attends
automatically to the most favorable grade
of admission. This mode of regulation is
commended wherever rapid load varia-
tions in irregular and short intervals are

cted to occur, as in iron and ti
works, rolling mills, mine hoisting pis
etc. In plants where wide load fluctua-
tions do not occur irregularly, but at

the second stage «hen the condense

The maximum load which
unde stances can be car-

the fir rent s 80

to 1 • of the normal full load.

In this case the major part of the
haust steam passes from the first cham-
ber through an au

into the atmosphere. For irgc

units no arrangement of the son

•.\!i\i:i>..\ ..i mi wi. .

■ "

V i

• rml Kin

-<IO

•
01

■

• |U«rv

certain intervals and gradually, as in l
tral stations and in most factor*!
sufficient to cut off one or more group
nozzles by hand, according to the mo-
mentary requirement, regulation being
effected automatically by throttling from
the governor. The attendant notes from
the gage pressure before and behind the
throttle valve when a change of ad.

necessary, no order from the
.hhoard being required If the r
sure difference between the steam «.
ing from the boiler and the steam a-

behind the throttle valve
a certain measure, it I that there

o much loss by throttling and that
at hand to cut off one g-
In turbines of 3(X>) r
ninute. of the lota m of

nozzles of the first wheel, ordinarily two
groups are arranged to be cut off. one
hem being r for overload.

while the other mi; osed when the

turbine is working on half load. In the
larger t>pcs 'he nozzk

four groups ■ sec
of these always remaining open
gra: <9, shows the favorable effect

'. regulation on steam
■
The upper limit of load is fixed by
the heating of the «l part, the tur-

bine uself being capab sanding

rtoeds far hc\ond thi» limit. anJ
anv length of tlm< cam

required is aJ ning .i

The latter are used alto
»hcn operating condition* lea*

rable than IM a*»ui
sign, especial! n the condensing

pla; mc reasot 'becomes

defective and the mutt exhaust

Into the atmosphere »hlle the loa I
ing maintained ! igc turbines

'h atmoeph- the

first stage (at full '
*<■ no further df

d because it is assumed that the con-
quantities of additional steam
required ft . t exhaust cannot be

supplied by the boiler plant, and bec.i
in most cases there is always a
unit available to take the place of the
one wh' but

for smaller plants the ■ irrv

heavy loads with xhaust means

j*e of preventing
* rart he otbc

■
to adiustc the Immadlaia

ng of the

•>c normal

conclusio- an latinilan,

parison of teats made on a 4000-k

rnmcleburg
id on no to

lion our

->rks oi amtc efficiency In

the last an

that the 40U
bine, though ha m a fft

heat drop than the IQjOOO-kflovart
era: uperior

thcrmodynj ' han th

If the heat drop in both

the comparison «ould come out
more favorable for ihe German turbine.
How great the influence of heal drop
actualh m teats 3 and

4. made on the -urbine.

ie efficient
66.2 per

-cd lO 61.2 pr

fa\ora'
in of tl

tically equal steam consu-
lt att-hour at half and at full lo.

A plant for
the air for use as fen

in course of co-
Fa I at ion »
8 C* >00 horscp .
sure of 6000 volt* If the first m»t.

/•

S K

for speed re

•ecu r if.

ne« are

I ' fSSION '■

vision of lion prove »

mer- . ^ added to i!

i tin bring the capaoiv up »c
•n and the dostcos for r • • • No details r
'Deration under lean toot, to -

596

POWER

April 18, 1911

Some Experiments with Gage Cocks

The first boiler of which I had charge
was of the locomotive type and had three
gage cocks tapped directly into the outer
head as shown in Fig. 1. There was also a
water gage on the same head. This is a very
natural arrangement, because each cock
is independent of the other; hence if one
is disabled it does not interfere with the
other two. If the water level, as indi-
cated by the gage glass, agrees with the
gage cocks, it is double evidence that
the true level of the water in the boiler
is known.

Another boiler which I operated was
fitted with a water column, as shown by
the full lines in Fig. 2. No valves were

By W. H. Wakeman

Some of the methods of
attaching gage cocks and
glasses to steam boilers, with
comments upon the advan-
tages and disadvantages of
each arrangement.

damper was wide open. Exactly the same
result has been secured wherever I have
tried a similar experiment; therefore, I
consider the arrangement an unmitigated
nuisance.

In three other places tubular boilers
were fitted with gage cocks connected in-
to the front head but, owing to the com-
bustion chamber or smoke box being lo-
cated at this point, it was necessary to
provide a pipe about 20 inches long for
each cock, also for each connection to
the gage glass. These are illustrated in
Fig. 3 but in the sketch the water gage

J Power

Fig. 1

inserted between the boiler and the gage
cocks; hence the water column could not
be shut off from the boiler. There was
no drip valve connected to it, and this
resulted in sediment collecting in the con-
nections and causing trouble.

In another plant the boiler was fitted
with a water column as already illus-
trated in Fig. 2, except that a -^-inch drip
pipe was provided as shown by the dot-
ted lines. This permitted some of the sedi-
ment to be blown out, but the pipe was
not large enough to cause a rapid flow of
water and steam through the connec-
tions, especially as it was not possible to
shut off one while creating circulation
through the other. When the drip yalve
was opened the water discharged di-
rectly onto the boiler-room floor, and this
being far from pleasant, I bored a hole
through the side of the building and ex-
tended the pipe through the wall. This
disposed of the water as far as I was
concerned, but there was danger of scald-
ing people who passed the boiler house;
hence the pipe was taken out and con-
nected into the ashpit. Having cleaned
the boiler front I proceeded to blow down
the water column and in a few seconds
practically the entire front of the boiler
was covered with ashes, although the

stance, it effectually prevented proper
use of the gage cock. It was my custom
to lift the weighted end of a gage cock
and run a long wire into the pipe. This
opened a passage temporarily, but some-
times it would fill and cease to discharge
water before the cock was closed, thus
proving very unsatisfactory. Such action
always smeared the boiler front with mud.
At another plant the boilers were fitted
originally with water columns having con-
nections as shown for the water gage in

Power

Fig. 2

is extended farther than it actually was
in practice, in order to avoid interfering
with the cocks. Some of these pipes were
exposed to the direct action of the flames
and hot gases while others were pro-
tected by sleeves consisting of pieces of
larger pipes.

All of these connections slowly filled
v/ith sediment because the opening pro-
vided was not large enough to permit
rapid circulation through the connecting
pipe when a gage cock was opened. Spe-
cial attention was given to cleaning these
pipes when the boilers were cleaned, and
sometimes it was necessary to remove
the gage cocks in order to force sedi-
ment out with an iron rod. All of it did
not bake hard in the pipes but when one
of them was filled with a paste-lik*e sub-

Fig. 3

Fig. 3. Valves were not provided in
the connections; hence when anything
happened to the water gage, or the three
gage cocks attached to the column, it was
necessary to remove all pressure from
the boiler in order to make repairs. I
accordingly altered this arrangement by
placing a valve in each connection to the
gage ; therefore, when a glass broke, steam
and water could be shut off while a new
one was being put in. In order to pre-
vent trouble from breakage of glasses

Fig. 4

during the night, the fireman made it a
practice to shut these valves before he
went home. Of course, this prevented
the glass from showing a true water level
in the morning, but he was intelligent
enough to open them and ascertain how
much water was in the boilers before
starting the fires, as they were rebuilt
every morning. A steam gage was at-
tached to the top of each column, by a
very short connection, in which there

April 18. 1911

POWI H

507

no siphon to hold water. Examina-
tion of this piping when the boilers 1
empty, showed that a straight pipe
tended down into the column below the
water line, protecting the end of this ;
from steam except when the column was
blown down to remove the sediment.

Upon taking charge of the boilers in
another plant, I found the water coli.
attached as shown in 'he connec-

tions consisting of I ,-inch brass ;
The drip pipes in this case were car-
ried to the sewer uithout reduction in

which proved very effective. T
columns were also fitted with high- and
low-water alarms. As a rule. I closed
the valves in these connections, and
opened the drip vi ien leaving for

night; hut one night I was auak

man *ho informed me that

som n the b<

root thai I go down
and attend to

at the boiler room ! found one

of the alarm rig. as the

ad not been left a

are

.
. r alarms, that have no val
which to shut tl •' at night? Do 1

make a th the local ;

man to at: ab-

siblc to alma,
the water ! . nough to keep one

float and high enough to support

the md thus always prevent the

•

hap; ic Boat* at nig' o. ho*

are

onnectcd into tbeac col-
r become chc th audi-

- : 1"
1 opened, and

OOl m dor i
of filling with mud. nor of be

•n above and another

Mi Ml cvceot
essness continue:
lorn ich superior 10

i independt
collect
reaJ burncJ

Flow of Steam and Desiern of Nozzles

In order to thoroughly understand the
action of steam in flowing from a hi.
to a lo t necessary

avc a clear conception of the funda-
mental pn: of work and enr
Consider a fr . nded bod
is M being acted upon by a constant
•ontal force F. If all friction be ncg-

Ittce an ac-
celeration of the mass Af equal ti
md per second; that

at the end of the
?cct per J. at

the end of the ncv

feet cond. at the end of the third

feet per second, and so on.
Now let the mass
case it will require a I
ducc an accelcrati will

an accelcrat

il mass M be .1
n by a • the accelcra-

•hat the
red nui as the

of the matt and the acceleration, thai
M .1

Nt r a freely falling bod

mast M ac: \-

thc end of II have

attained a

at the end of the ncv .d a

•
r second, and »o on; that
constant ac
second per second

il to 1I1 • H of a man* M and.

•rmula (I), thi* m«

which the miu of a bodv M scan
eight divided by the J
tlon due to gra

\. D. Blake

Af-

tnm M a< and

it hi
tit

./ /
iipplu

at the
of / seconds the I be

and the avc Juring tl

iod will be

Tl J patted K /

I equal the average

«f a boo

V .'/; I

Her

and the veloc I

-e con-
rand

saure »

•
unr

to be ■

Fall one pound of •team at the

pre tho beat io the

tame pound of ateam

ma:

uncc f>r* Hrinh
M pound of

In a no// k the tapanoisu of the ssoaua

tion against the » • « . - -

Tass
n uhkh la ar-
ia not loot hut 1 • given haca as the an>
lau id ralasu ha auuflnr:

- ahouT
aaaaui tabors fur adlshade

598

POWER

April 18, 1911

This heat, however, does detract from
that which is convertible into kinetic en-
ergy. In view of this, it is necessary to
slightly modify formula (7). Assuming
the loss due to friction to be 10 per cent.,
this expression would be

V2 = 64.32 X 778 X 0.90 {Hx — H2)
or,

V— V 64.32 x778x0.90c//! — H2) (8)

With this as a basis the following
problem may be solved:

What are the proportions of an ex-
panding nozzle having a throat 3/16 inch
in diameter, receiving dry saturated steam
at 80 pounds gage and expanding to at-
mosphere? Also, what weight of sbeam
will flow per second and what will be the
velocity of the steam at exit?

That portion of a nozzle constituting
the throat, for all practical purposes, may
be considered as an orifice and the flow
calculated accordingly. It has been proved
experimentally that when steam expands
through an orifice the pressure in the
orifice cannot fall below .0.58 of the
initial pressure. Furthermore, with the
exit pressure bearing approximately this
relation to the initial pressure, the flow
through the orifice has been found to
conform to the expression

(9)

Where,

W = Weight of steam flowing per

second in pounds;
Pi = Initial absolute pressure; in

this case 94.7
Ai = Area of orifice in square inches;
in this case 0.02761 , corre-
sponding to a diameter of
3/16 inch.
Substituting these values in formula
(9),

ir__94-7 * 0-02761
70

W = 0.03740 pound per second

Now considering the nozzle as a whole,
to determine the velocity of the steam at
exit apply formula (8). From the steam
tables or a temperature-entropy chart the
total heat in one pound of dry saturated
steam at 94.7 pounds absolute is found
to be 1185 B.t.u., and after adiabatic ex-
pansion to atmospheric pressure it con-
tains 1047 B.t.u. Hence,

V — 1/ 64.32 X 778 X 0.90 (1 185 — 1047)
= 2490 feet per second

If allowed to expand adiabatically
from 94.7 pounds to atmospheric pres-
sure the quality at exit would have been
89.5 per cent., but taking into considera-
tion the heat of friction returned to the
steam the quality at exit would be found
as follows. The latent heat of vaporiza-
tion at atmospheric pressure is 970.4 and
the heat of friction returned to the steam
was

0.10 (//, — H,) c= 0.10 (1185 — 1047)
= 13.8 B.t.u.

Then the increase in quality would be

13.8 X 100

— — = 1.42 percent.

970.4

and the final quality would be

89.5 + 1.42 = 90.92 per cent.

Denoting the cross-sectional area of
the exit of the nozzle by A2, the weight
of steam flowing by W and the density
(cubic feet per pound) at atmospheric
pressure and 90.92 per cent, quality by
v,,

lv=Alv

144 v2

The volume of one pound of dry steam
at atmospheric pressure is found from
the steam tables to be 26.79 cubic feet.
Therefore, at 90.92 per cent, quality a
pound of steam at this pressure would
occupy

0.9092 X 26.79 = v2 = 24.3 cubic feet
The value of W was previously found
to be 0.0374 pound and V to be 2490
feet. Substituting these values,
A, x 2490

0.0374 =

144 X 24.3

or,

.0.0374 X 144 X 24.3 i

2490
0.0526 square inch

This corresponds to a diameter of 17/64
inch.

The ratio of length to diameter (at
the throat) of nozzles differs widely
among different manufacturers, but a
ratio of 12 to 1 is considered by many
to be good practice. Therefore, the di-
mensions of the nozzle under considera-
tion would be as shown in the illustra-
tion.

A New Process of Water
Softening

The "zeolites" are distributed pretty
freely among the older rocks of the
earth's surface, though not entering into
the constitution of the rocks themselves.
They are found in a crystalline form in
amygdaloidal fissures or cavities of trap
or plutonic rocks, where they have ap-
parently been deposited from water which
has percolated into the cavities, thus
probably being products of decomposing
nepheline, or felspar, or hydrated fel-
spars themselves. They are composed
generally of varying quantities of silica,
alumina, lime, soda, potash and water,
the silica always largely predominating in
all forms, though the other constituents
are not necessarily found in all "zeo-
lites." As an example of one form take
analcime, which is composed of 54.5 per
cent, of silica, 23.3 per cent, of alumina,
14.1 per cent, of soda, and 8.2 per cent,
of water. These zeolites have, in con-
tradistinction to other silicates occurring
in nature, the property of being soluble,
and they also decompose in dilute acids.
They have also the very important prop-

erty of being able to exchange their bases
for others.

It has been found that when hard wa-
ter is allowed to filter slowly through lay-
ers of these hydrated silicates of alkalies
the lime in the water changes place with
the soda in the filtering medium, and the
water passes out softened; and this fact
has been the means in Germany of in-
stigating a series of experiments during
the last two years, which have proved of
great value, and which have shown that
these zeolites can be produced artificially,
with the result that the substance is now
made much more regular in its com-
position and freer from impurities than
that found in a state of nature. To these
artificial zeolites has been given the name
of "permutit," which in a moist condition
is of a granular flaky form, and has a
luster like that of mother-of-pearl. It
has a high porosity, and in the dry state
readily absorbs about 50 per cent, of wa-
ter. It is obtained by fusing together
felspar, kaolin, clay and soda in definite
proportions, the resultant material being
lixiviated with hot water, when permutit
is left as a residue. The granular mate-
rial- is freed as much as possible from
the final alkaline lye by washing and cen-
trifugal action.

In Engineering the use of this ma-
terial for softening water is briefly de-
scribed as follows: The total hardness
of water may consist of temporary hard-
ness or of permanent hardness, or of the
two combined, the former being caused
by calcium and magnesium carbonates,
and the latter by other salts of lime and
magnesia. Boiling at atmospheric pres-
sure precipitates the carbonates and the
magnesia, but not the salts forming per-
manent hardness. In commercial pro-
cesses at the present time, sodium car-
bonate is added to water as a means of
precipitating the hardening constitutents
of the water, there being an exchange of
bases between the lime and manganese
and the sodium carbonate. In like man-
ner, if hard water be allowed to filter
slowly (the slower the better) through
layers of permutit, there is likewise an ex-
change of bases, the lime in the water
taking the place of the soda in the per-
mutit, one molecule of calcium bicarbon-
ate being converted (in the case of tem-
porary hardness) into two molecules of
sodium bicarbonate, which latter remains
in the water, being very soluble. The
permutit in the filter will only retain this
power so long as any soda remains to
exchange with the lime in the water. Per-
mutit suffers practically no loss during
use, but when a certain amount of wa-
ter has been passed through it, its soften-
ing powers disappear, but they can easily
be restored, and the material can be used
over and over again practically indefi-
nitely.

The power of regeneration appears to
be the chief novelty of the process; but
before it is carried out a few essential

April 18, 1911

points must be attended to. In the first
place, the filter must be cleaned,
perience shows that filtration is most ef-
fective from the top to the bottom, and
that, therefore, cleaning should take place
in the reverse direction — namely, from
the bottom to the top — so as to loosen
the mass and remove any air that has
collected in the material, soft water, if
possible, being used for the purpose.
After washing, the permutit is regener-
ated by a solution of common salt, the
solution generally being of 10 per cent,
strength. Previous to regeneration all
water is removed from the filter down to
the layer of permutit. after which the salt
solution is introduced and allowed to flow
slowly through the filter for from four to
In addition to this, the brine
is allowed to stand for a further four or
just covering the layer of
permutit, after which the filter is filled
with water from the top. and an outlet
cock at the bottom is opened for 20 or
30 minutes, or until the water no longer
shows any hard th ammonium oxa-

late or with soap solution.

The chemical reaction that takes place
during regeneration consists in an inter-
change between the soda in the sodium
chloride and the lime in the permutit

J from the water which it has
coed), calcium chloride remaining in so-
lution in the regeneration water It may
be stated that in practice the most suit-
able rate for the water that rcqi
softening to pass through the layers of
utit has been found to be from 13

.7 feet per hour. The pcrmut
nly active at the surface, but also in
the interior, in conscqucncr of it* por<

>m information supplied from (.
many it appears that filters lese

aniflcal zeolites have been in practical
use during the last two years, treating
water for a variety of purr eluding

use in boilers and for washing fine tr
goods, and a plant has recently been in-
stalled in England for the latter pur-
pose wit • ■ ■

In one case where a permutit filter was
! to a steam laundry In H

re than Is in ago. it is stated that

in about nine mom' i.800 gallons of

mater passed through the filter, which
volume was completcK softened without
any apparent loss utit The

charge utit was about half a ton.

and about '.'< o gallon* of water passed

' each pound if the material. In
case about

week were u*cd and regcr^ I I
carried out ■ - r bj |

•alt being us regeneration, al

though it It stated that It nr<
been done quite so often The CO*'
regeneration naturally depend* on the

' salt, and on the degrees of fe
MM in the water It is stated that wa
»cr having U degree* of hardness has
been reduced to .1 7 degrees

Th n is now being introduced

into England by Waier-Softeners, L

jpthall avenue. Throgmonon
mdon.

A Ho i >rd 1 irbine

The followin. »n-

due: n a bout-kilowatt turbine at

the DunMnr. r -ation of the N

castle-upon-Tync Electrical Supply Com-
pany a- from Enginettmg,

of March 10. The turbine is of
the Parsons type, having separate hi
and low-pressure casings. It was de-
signed to have its maximum economy

XX) brake horsepower, with steam at
IPX) pounds gage and at 190

rheat. In the test the superheat
not i ahrenhcit. but

the vacuum wa the absolute r

sure in the condenser being 0.90 inch of
mercury. This I B.t.u. per kilou

hour with 90 per cent, generator
ciencv corrected for condenser leak
whiv .r cent, efficiency refc-

to the Rankin*. the best of

uhich we have learned. The test
conducted ' " rz and "

Ian. consulting engineers to the Ncwci

The official steam-consumption trials
of this plant were run on December
16. 1910. The contractors to the company
for the complete unit were '■'
Brown. Bo. Ltd.. London.

Details of the plant arc in the

accompanying Tab!

• "

<»i

■aaaas ;-

Mst i

*(• a"

xtar

It*

I -t**ri|*

• ■•1*1

pimp phir^"

!-♦

on Decemr icaa

and at rarioas luperheats, to determine

be apphed to actual

figures in order to enable the actual

•

results of the ofscu

• A I

lfr-sa.

m—mQmmi

' •*!

. ■

• •

■

1 »

ISS

MSsS

•

■

r.-.rtm--. Wx

» *

ghmm Cmmnmp

Tot&l * *

SO I

m-i.

CO?-

•or.

of Ihc Ruman ;
Raj |9|0 i* no» ststcd by the
'.€ /room*
300 tor increase of over

55,000 ton* the

1900 figure. The tot oaa

of more ranx . i
The Strsns Romans fell off
800 tons, but « • ie ii*t • <th an

•n output of Jff~
and sn laeraaM af ovor 3BJ00O ton* ;
then the Rstaaaa Americano with t
Jfll tons t Increase 2«J*X> tons) The
•
th on the list
»«nrv» teas: end ts«
•Itoaa fhsr
• »J •»r t R*«r*- M *ffl MM

600

POWER

April 18, 1911

The Small Turbine in Marine Work I

On shipboard the space occupied by
and the weight of the mechanical equip-
ment are two extremely important fac-
tors, more important, oftentimes, than
the first cost and economy in operation.
Perhaps most important of all, however,
is reliability of service. The development
of the small turbine has made possible
wonderful progress in economy of space
and weight besides producing simplicity
and dependability in operation. To show
the extent to which this type of prime
mover is being applied in marine prac-
tice, some of the uses to which it is put
are specified below.

The Hudson River Day Line boats are
each equipped with a turbine-driven cen-
trifugal pump for use in trimming ship.
When a boat is making a landing the
passengers crowd to one side, causing it
to list. This oftentimes seriously inter-
feres with the steering and manipulation
of the boat. To keep the boat on a
level keel on such occasions two large
tanks were built in amidships so that one

Fig. 1. Forced-draft Set for Torpedo-
boat Destroyers

or the other may be filled with river
water whenever it is desirable.

The pump is 8 inches in size and is
driven by a 15-horsepower single-stage
Terry turbine at a speed of 1800 revolu-
tions per minute. These ballasting sets
are guaranteed to develop their full capa-
city of 1000 gallons per minute within
20 seconds from the time of opening the
throttle. The outfit is set down in the
hold but it is operated from the engi-
neer's platform so that the engineer may
start the filling of a tank the instant that
he sees the telltale arrow shift.

The small turbine is being
used extensively for such
service as pumping, light-
ing, ventilating and forced
draft, particularly in the
United States navy where
reliability is equal in im-
portance to economy of
space and weight. For
forced-draft work the tur-
bine has been especially
successful.

A use to which the turbine is now com-
monly being put is the driving of dynamos

to furnish current for lighting, ventilating
and other purposes. The United States
Navy is particularly progressive in this
respect. The flagship "Connecticut" has
four 100-kilowatt turbo-generator sets
and twelve revenue cutters are equipped
with turbo-generators of capacities rang-
ing from five to seven kilowatts.

At Boston the municipal fireboat,
"George A. Hibbard" is fitted with a
multistage centrifugal fire pump driven
by a 100-horsepower turbine.

The most important application of the
small turbine in marine work has been
its adoption for forced draft. The use
of turbines for forced draft has been
extensive in the Navy where a continuous
and sufficient air supply is always of
first consideration. Fig. 1 shows a forced-
draft set which is used on the new
torpedo-boat destroyers "Roe," "Terry,"

Emergency
Valve

Steam Inlet

15"

Power

/ Pump

Fig. 2. General Design of Forced-draft Set for Torpedo-boat Destroyers

April 18, 1911

"Paulding" and "Drayton." The five
royers, "Monoghan inning,"

"Jouett" and "Jenkins" which are now
being built will also have sets of the
same design. A set consists of a Terry
single-stage vertical turbine and a Sirocco
fan which has a 30-inch runner,
jets are placed in each of the two stoke
holds and each set delivers from 23.000
JSOOO cubic feet of free air per min-
ute at a pressure of from 3' . to 5 inches
of water; the speed is about 1400 revolu-
tions per minute.

Fig. 2 shows the general design of the
set illustrated in Fig. 1. One fea-
ture of this design is that the entire unit,
completely assembled, can be dropped
through the ventilator which is 40 inches
in diameter. The whole apparatus is so
arranged that it can be mounted on I-
beams suspended from the deck or bulk-
heads. The fan uhcel itself is on a line
with the deck immediately at the foot of
the ventilator. The main casing of the
turhinc is divided vertically along the
center line and the cover is fitted with a
hinge so that the casing can be opened
without the use of a crane or the removal
of any of the pot

The weight of the whole runner is car-
ried by a ball bearing which is a!-«
kept flooded with fresh oil. The
bearing is in the lower bearing housing;
below it is fitted an emergen. rnor

of the unstable type which, when the
weights fly out, releases a trigger which
in turn allows the automatic stop valve
lose, the valve being primarily kept
open against a powerful spring.

At the extreme lower end of the shaft
is fitted a small geared oil pump This
pump consists of t - .-.ear

wheels, and is M cd that it will

a sufficicn- of oil to all of the

bearings at an mbincd re-

lief anJ bypass valve is placed between
the suction and the discharge and set at a
n pressure; thus, at low spccJs the
pump will deliver oil to the bearings at
the same ; I at high

All of the oil is drained back from the
bearings to a common the

•ion of • slightly above

that of the oil |
the d

and

>sed of the same

make nf turbine anJ a specia ant

fan are used The "Pttiei and

"Ammen." i ding. »

The fans I are

of the atandar

that the MaJ'

in ord poe-

c efficiency at thr
It i< .1 -hat all

de«r ch have bee

with th itu«

have gone through their accer' ->al«

the slighter trou»
of «ufficient air <>r interruption of ser-
» n the t

Steam Lin ( nduit of Low

By H I ,. Pope

In conncctior illation of

cam power-plant equipment, it was

» arran. am line to con-

• the boiler house »ith the pump

house shov l The conncv

to be a try one, to be replaced

ultimate a permanent and a larger

head were

because of the radiation losses invo
and because ol

a supporting be

ig enough to be reasonably safe
against breakd<

veral J conduit construc-

tion were but the o-

ted in 1 is finally i be-

cause of its lou retalia-

tion. It ap: to bt sufficient

stantial to give good m for the few

at it uould be in use. The t
duit ructcd from rough

pine planks held together with common
Joints between all plank
^roken and a piece of wal
fed bii as tacked

each joint in the roof. All of the pl.t
forming one of the sides of the cor

than those forming the other.
so that the roof plank would h*vc a
Mer cmMc it to shed water
that percolated through the
ing the conduit, the three lower planks,
A, H and I *erc a* J in

nto the
ch and the
thcr r Vf-cr the r

had been ' \cr plank

nailed on and the trench refillc
earth.

•*•

801

r sides on the bottom plank
of the cor.:

,: it ar

ng on its end. k
To ;

inn

planks around

Although ot she-

the ; and co

amp bo
so that all n would f

am that ma>

Ot a »t the

Jb }

o| 0| |

ZC •

of the cor

tails o'. which %ai

both ends.

the

ids of the con-
duit The H
an anchor. lo ■ ccn the

are n constructing the

ire hole »
iose o' otmg .

otmg ma
tamr

use-' A form was then bail

column of i
J concr

■

or Ptr r

■ I other *

and k>»
rs used at each point

• «r»en «ur r a fe

rt T»obricl- Mg. strap*

602

POWER

April 18, 1911

Automatic Starters for In-
duction Motors
By R. H. Fenkhausen

Automatic starters for induction motors
are much more expensive than hand-op-
erated starters, of course, but there are
many installations where the saving
in attendance or in other installation and
maintenance costs will justify the extra
first cost of automatic starters. For the
control of a motor-driven pump deliver-

sistance. This applies particularly to
wound-rotor induction motors with ex-
ternal starting resistors, because, in ad-
dition to the line wires, these motors re-
quire three leads of large capacity from
the controller to the collector rings and
if the distance from the motor to the
controller is very great, the loss due

Fig. 1. Three-phase Starter for Squir-
rel-cage Motors

ing water into a tank in which the water
level must be kept within certain limits,
or for the control of a motor-driven
compressor the receiver pressure of
which must be maintained fairly con-
stant, the automatic starter is almost
indispensable.

Where motor attendants are unskilled
or careless, automatic starters make it
possible to limit the starting current
and acceleration of each motor, because

once the operator has closed the small
switch in the control circuit, the starter
automatically performs the several op-
erations of starting the motor with a pre-
determined interval of time between each
operation and the operator is powerless
to shorten the starting period.

There are many cases where it is not
practicable to install a motor near the

Fig. 2. Three-phase Starter for
Wound-rotor Motors

place where it must be controlled and it
often happens that the extra expense
of an automatic starter is offset by the
saving in wiring. When the automatic
starter is used, it may be located close
to the motor and the actual control ac-
complished by a small snap switch in
the solenoid circuit of the starter. As
two very small wires only are needed
to connect the snap switch with the
starter, there is a considerable saving in
installation time and material over that
required to carry the main wires from
the motor to the control point.

If the distance from the motor to the
point of control is very great, there is
also a saving of energy due to the fact
that there is less wire in the power
circuit and therefore less loss due to re-

Fig. 3. Automatic Starter for Gradual
Acceleration

to the drop in the secondary wiring will
be excessive. The use of the automatic
starter in such a case not only results
in a marked reduction in installation
costs but also improves the efficiency and
speed regulation of the motor.

General Functions

Figs. 1, 2 and 3 show automatic start-
ers which may be controlled in several
ways. For remote hand control a snap

April 18. 1911

P o vr E R

803

switch is placed at the desired control
point and connected in the main solenoid
circuit of the starter.

Where automatic acceleration alone
required, the main solenoid circuit may
be permanently closed and the motor
started and stopped by a suitch con-
nected in the main motor circuit at any
point between the motor and the en-
trance of the service wires, or the main
circuit may be left closed and a pilot
switch used as for remote control. The
latter method is preferable unless the
line switch is of the oil-break type but
choice between the two methods will
naturally be ri ng lay-

out. If the point of control is close to
the run of the motor circuit one method
>s good as the other, but if the con-
trol point is not located near any point
on the supply circuit, the saving in *ir-
ing will make the use of the pilot switch
advisable.

ien automatic starters arc controlled
by float switches or pressure governors.

L BY PRLv

in the
main solenoid . iuse tht

all and thcrcf

>n in i1
hea .nt* must be controll

MS of a standard
sure-gage mechanism
• ict rings •

e clamped at anv [

e gagr
arc
The o small M

nain solcr 'icr.

to a relay is interpose I

Wbtfl
the

iter mi

ner ring and thcrt
ing if the re!'

at the right.

brinpr * ' '

nali ar-
clo«c« the «olr
malic »tari

•ntr

ring When the ;

vi the »liding block on tl

ring and short the relay maj

-h dror .ore and open* the

at the 1<
-•hutting down the motor.
The gage eoatl cr break a

rent, because the u

shor- :»ct m.i the

pointer \*tth the Nock on the inr.c
consequent,
moves the pointer away from the inner

io Roe

>«ed at the
- minuet to run
i

a mm •vitcn oeaigned to
be clamped on the edge •

to operate the »» ucn
at t tght of

• c that

in < -id motor shall

Wbc not poaaibk to !».. loot

cow

aeration, a Boat

op-
ratted >

•e to the float.

I an am..- for

n motor ilea

or c

rot Oria*::-:>N by

• •

" tra1 of

•
the c

•

oil

•

» J. • l«| |

■

.r.flucr.^r of a Jat

When the pi

contactors 1 t

■

•

fA'fifk fi io i

the control
» opetc

1 another
c • the naocn<

a of
the l
» .. •>»cj
the coo*

604

POWER

April 18, 1911

Resistance Coils
in Series with "Run
ning " Contactors
are omitted to
simplify Diagram

PowEf^

Fig. 7. Diagram for Starter in Fig. 1 and Float Switch

ply, leaving the starter ready to start up
again in the usual manner as soon as
the current supply is resumed. The
motor is stopped by opening the main
control circuit.

The automatic starter shown in Fig. 2
is for use with induction motors of the
wound-rotor type. Its construction is
similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1, but
two starting points are provided by varia-
tion of the resistance in the rotor circuit.
The operation of this starter is as fol-
lows (see Fig. 8): When the control
circuit is closed, the shunt coil of the
compound-wound relay A lifts its plunger,
which closes the magnet circuit of the
contactors 1, 2 and 3; these connect the
stator winding of the motor to the line,
leaving all of the resistor in the rotor
circuit. The contactor 1, in closing, also
opens the shunt-coil circuit of the relay
A, leaving its plunger held by the series
coil. This series winding is proportioned
so that as soon as the starting current of
the motor falls below a certain value
the coil will drop the plunger and close
the operating circuit of the contactors 4
and 5; these cut out part of the rotor
resistor and the contactor 4 also opens
the shunt winding of the compound-
wound relay B, leaving its plunger held
by the series coil alone. When the start-
ing current has fallen below the value
for which the relay B is designed, this
relay drops its plunger and closes the op-
erating circuit of the contactors 6 and 7
which cut out the remainder of the rotor
resistor and short-circuit the collector
rings of the motor; the contactor 6 in
closing also opens the operating circuit
of the contactors 4 and 5, which therefore
open their contacts. Overload during the
starting period is prevented by the set-
ting of the relays A and B and no-voltage
protection is provided by the contactors
1, 2 and 3, which drop out and restore the
starting conditions upon failure of the
current supply.

The automatic starter shown in Fig.

3 is for use in service requiring a more
even acceleration than is afforded by two

C« V»WMWV*

starting points. A solenoid-operated
ratchet switch of the dial form auto-
matically cuts out the resistor in the
rotor circuit little by little and the large
number of contacts provided on the dial
gives a very uniform rate of accelera-
tion.

For small squirrel-cage motors, of less
than 20 horsepower, the starter shown
in Fig. 1 is often too costly and small
self-contained starters of the types illus-
trated by Figs. 9 and 10 are applicable.
The one shown in Fig. 9 is designed for
operation by means of a rope connecting
with a large float in a tank supplied by a
motor-driven pump. The sheave around
which the rope passes is loose on the
starter shaft and its periphery is slotted
through a large arc to permit a consider-
able movement of the sheave (due to
change in water level) before moving the
weight arm, which passes through this
slot. When the water level falls, the
rope attached to the float rotates the
sheave in the clockwise direction until

Full Lines denote
Main Wiring

Dotted Lines denote
Control Wiring

Resistance Grids

^WWAAAAA^

~U/VWWVvaJ~

Resistance Grids

Uwwwv

^wwswv Rotor

Collector
Rings

Stator
Winding

Power .

Fig. 8. Diagram for Starter in Fig. 2 and Pressure Relay in Fig. 4

April 18, 1911

the end of the slot engages the weight
arm, which is flexibly connected to the
drum switch within the case; continued
drop in the water level allows the float
to pull the sheave around farther and

FiG. 9. Small Starter Ac: by

Float and Rope

carry the weight arm over the top cen-
ter, from which position it falls by
gravity, retarded by a da md op-

erates the starting switch, accelerating
the motor at a rate determined by the
dashpot adjustment. As the water level
I, the float is lifted, of course, and
rotates the sheave in the opposite d

until the weight arm is carried over
the top center, from which position it
falls quickly, making a quick break at
the main switch contacts and shutting
down the motor.

JL 0 . ^^L

*
•

The »tart

control of a pre*

the tank prc«»urr falls I

which the govern*

ndcr of the
starter; the

and operates the starter drum within the
case, at the same >stng a

lg in the
rate of acceleration of the m
troll m adji. Jashpot in

left-hand

tion to the piston in the .
dcr. U'hcn the tank prcssi.
that for »hich th. the

->urc Ul - rc-

.ind the starter
to the 'ofT" position by tl the

Jcft-hat the movement in

4 unre-
J by the d.t

ich of - (tarter* consists of a

standard three-point autotransformer and
Jru the addition of the

control : I he connections

are shown in Fig. II. It will be noted
that •* of fuses are employed, one

for starting and one for running, but
there is n. on against failure of

the current If no- voltage protcc-

I IN

'weaker »ith a
n In
led for the
tanning

BOL

A! -scribe.!

constat

■ ■ ±

• thai ll

mean*

<• of
are

the co-

■

pic of autor

M No-

tion with fh wheel rr.

In order that the fly -

part of its stored energy to the

peak load I

that the motor shall

■

"ied by the action of a re
for a g: kj soon

as the current reaches I

•x
I a series of conta
n resi*'

o give • of

«atcr aa soon

>«aot

hoitotn of the
the lor
he file,
r gage* sod •

1 N-M>
■'•«■ *"

the boiler.

m 9'

the hot
cJ • ft • ••?—
'■" trtat

606

POWER

April 18, 1911

wr^

%W31

a i in t»

Fitting Trunk Pistons for

Gas Engines

By Olaf Olafsen

The methods of fitting pistons to iheir
cylinder bores, the allowances used, the
methods of securing these allowances
and the reasoning involved may be of
value to some engineers who have oc-
casion to do this kind of work or to check
up the work of a repair shop. With

'/////////////////////////////////;

y//w////////?//////////////////////ZZ<

Power

Fig. 1. Reference Diagram for Cylin-
der Taper

TABLE 1. CYLINDER TAPER.

Bore, Inches.

Minimum.

Maximum.

3J to 10i
10i to 14*
14J to 19f
20 to 26£

0.001
0.0015
0.002
0 002

0.002
0 003
0.003

0 . 004

Referring to Fig. 1, measure the cylinder
at the points a, 1% inches from the crank
end ; b, midway of the length ; d, 1 % inches
from the head end : <■, midway between h and
d. The taper is the difference between a
and d.

single-acting trunk pistons there are four
sources of possible leakage of compres-
sion or of expanding gases: First, due
to slight looseness of fit of the piston in a
horizontal cylinder during the part of the
compression stroke when the connecting-
rod thrust is upward, the piston may be
canted or cocked in the cylinder bore
in such a manner as to disturb the proper
bearing of the rings both on their edges
and on their faces. Second, if there be
a gap between the ends of each ring and
if the lands between the rings be reduced
too much in diameter, there is an easy
passage for the escape of gases under
pressure. Third, due to improper propor-
tioning, machining or fitting, the rings
may not bear properly over their entire
peripheries. Fourth, due to improper ma-
chining or fitting they may not have a
good bearing on their edges and may al-
low the gases under pressure to blow
under them and out. As a rule, the en-
gineer need consider only the first cause,
as the others are due entirely to bad
workmanship.

Everything'

worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

First, consider the expansion of the
various parts under working conditions,
without attempting to theorize upon the
actual temperatures that may occur or
the differences of temperature between
the piston and the cylinder. It will
readily be understood that the piston will
be somewhat hotter than the cylinder
inder full-load conditions; therefore, a
greater allowance for the running fit
must be made than would be necessary
were the piston and cylinder always at
the same temperature. It is also evident
that the head end of the piston will be
much hotter than the other end and will
therefore have to be turned somewhat

< a ->

Y _

* b

Fig. 2. Reference Diagram for Table 2

here to that practice. It is a mistake to
relieve the lands too much as it only
adds to the tendency to leakage through
the gaps at the ring joints.

There are two practices in turning the
lands; some manufacturers turn them of
different successive diameters, according
to a schedule, and others, starting at the
head and there reducing the diameter a
specified amount less than the barrel
diameter, taper the diameter for a speci-
fied distance toward the open end of the
piston.

Obviously the breech end of the cyl-
inder, where all the work is done, will
be considerably hotter than the crank
end if no special precautions are taken
to prevent it. It is now common practice
to introduce the jacket water under the
seat of the exhaust valve or very close
to it and discharge the water near the
top of the cylinder head, whether the en-
gine be vertical or horizontal; this allows
the water to travel with considerable
velocity around the hottest parts of the
cylinder and to gravitate slowly toward
the cooler ones. In some engines the
water is first passed through under the
exhaust valve, then through the cylinder-
head jacket and finally to the cylinder-
barrel jacket, thus supplying the latter
with warm water and keeping the open
end of the cylinder more nearly at the
temperature of the breech end. Besides

TABLE 2. PISTON TURNING AND FILING SCHEDULE.

Piston

Lands between Rings.

Dimen-

Bore,

Dimen-

Inches.

Barrel, C.

Head, 0.

sion a .

sion b.

3.75
4.50
5.00
5.50
6.00

0.0010
0.0010
0.0010
0.0010
0.0010

2.25
2.25
2.25
3.00
3.00

0.001
0.001
0.001
0.001
0.001

7.00

0 0020

0 . 0025

4.75

0 .001
0.001

7.75

0 . 0020

0 . 0025

4.75

8.50

0 . 0020

0 . 0030

0.0025

4.75

0.001

9.00

0.0020

0 . 0030

0.0025

4.75

0 .001

9.50

0.0020

0 . 0040

0 . 0030

0 . 0025

4.75

0.001

10 . 25

0.0020

0.0040

0.0030

0.0025

6.00

0.001

11.00

0.0025

0 . 0060

0.0040

0.0030

6.00

0.001

12 . 50

0.0030

0 . 0080

0 . 0050

0.0040

6.00

0.001

13.75

o.ooio

0 . 0080

0 . 0060

0 . 0050

6.00

0.0025

14 50

0 0050

0.0100

0 . 0070

0.0060

6.00

0.0025

0.0050

0.0100

0 . 0080

0.0065

0 . 0060

6 . 75

0.0025

16 . 50

0.0050

0.0120

0 . 0080

0.0065

0 . 0060

6. 75

0.0025

17 . 25

0 0050

0 . 0200

0.0140

0 . 0095

0 . 0060

6 . 75

0 . 0025

18.50
19.00

0.0060

0 . 0060

.0.0200
0 . 0300

0.0140
0.0175

0 . 0095
0.0120

0.0070
0 . 00S5

0.0070

6.7o
7.75

0 . 0025
0 . 0025

19.75

0 . 0060

0 . 0300

0 0175

0.0120

0 . 0090

0.0070

7.75

0.0025

Turn pistons to dimension C minus allowances as per schedule. , . ..

Pistons to be relieved on sides by throwing them out of center on a special turning or grinding
fixture

In estimating "play" of pistons in bore do not fail to consider cylinder taper.

smaller than the barrel. Most manufac-
turers now do not allow the lands be-
tween the rings to bear on the cylinder
wall when the piston is at working tem-
perature, although some few still ad-

this, it is always the practice in boring
cylinders, when reamers are not used,
to start the finishing cut at the crank
end; the wear of the tool, slight as it
may be, almost always causes from o

April 18, 1911

801

half to one and a half or two thousandths
of an inch taper in the bore, depending
on the size and the length of the cylin-
der. This will be found to be no
serious fault; on the contrary,
is usually cor. advantageous be-

cause the bore will be more nearly
parallel when the engine is at work-
ing temperature. One manufacturer
even goes so far as to scrape the crank
ends of all cylinders with a long-har.
scraper for a distance inward equal to
about three-quarters of the length of the

n, increasing the diameter at the
open end by about one-thousandth of an
inch. Another builder heats the br
while reaming the bore, thereby making
a tapered bore when the cylindc
cold and an approximately parallel one
when the cylinder is hot.

y the commonest practice in
ting pistons to cylinJ to turn or

grind the ; > certain schedule al-

lowance less than the cylinder bore and

cving" them slightly by filing on both
sides about the piston pin to insure a
bottom bearing of the piston when i'

.s the thrust of the connecting
lets rapid but, it seems to me, tx
method is to turn the piston one to three
thousandths (according t> under)

larger than desired for a running fit and
to put the engine on the test block and
run it with the maximum load that
capable of carrying and at the regular
working temperature, with copious lul

n. After a very short run the :
ton will be he "bump." as

called, and no mechanic will ever mistake

sound for any other than a tight

n knock if he has once heard it. The
■lcn rcmo\cJ and the high
la filed off. Tl itcd

a number of times until the piston runs
free, all "bump" having disappeared even
when a full rush of cold water is turned
on suddenly after the engine has op-
erated for some time with a cylinder al-
most too ; he hand to bear.

cat care and • skill arc

required to do ;'ntf kt- ting but if

1onc a fine job is the re-
sult. There is really no ov iny-
one /c" i piston in f
way if he is careful and if tl
turr Nrforehand.

»ton mutt br
■lightly on the sides about the pitto:

fitting a piston in the manner

ne should be run on
the fuel with

*cr\ cnt fucl». pr

ing diffcre: temperatur

create different expansion
the r »'on of a natural-gat engine needs
greater allowance than that of a ;
ducrrga* engine and the pitton of a
Iimlrnr engine '"ay need a greater ai-
mer than that of a city-gat
Fnginct tr be run with gr>
of the cooling water thould be ctpet

free-running when hot, becai. arc

liab ••, hot for long periods

where tanks are small, as .ally the

case.

It is often the prac- mechar

to allow from a :h to a jrth

of an inch of clearance between the ends
of piston rings when fitting them to the

tnd only
- to the leakage. The rings will
vclop end clearance soon enough a:
have found that there has never been
the en rings are f

so that they enter without any clear.,
at the joir-

•Mc 1 gives ■ !i>t of c
and dir for taking measuren

for the piston diameter as pract
one European bull rates

the instructions and Tab the

schedule of allowances to be made in

j-j-j".

Fig.

-VlrK-h

row*.

., • | . • , • ■ . . ,

lin-

«!<» t».t

turning the ; - the tr'

diagran

cnt iht of a well kr

American builJer who anno
t; but neve-

Tab

be r>c»t • ! the allowance

umn It b% one

ere
• ouid be better
% tome

long and i

aac. ■ piston which hat not

■
• at ur.

pt should be made in a

.
amount than that which it ac cider
due 'unnc too

special tools are r .0rk

and in mott caacs good ret be

'i taper. Oik

boring with a

ounted on tr uld

i an

Those n..i ■ follow the practice

of film;'

of horizontal sir*.

This .i
as automobi

o short
that the no al-

io*

Make in B I

.IN

Trouble is frequc rerienc

gas engines having tl -eak

•m of be co-

poir or worn down

a degree that missing fir
lueni enough t< rend

or even a

gine. When mist he con-

tact pr m down or cor-

roded it can I
foll<

small enougr

and - or

J of

• • • ■

•:ond
ron instrument will be lcrkcd
to the iron

turned

Otcd If •

_' 1 •

ing to come together, doe to

e bnrtr
•ugh them,

the cor'i.'
■

niter b

■

the CO* and noting

•re
on poir

the

the engine, h sfcawra tfcnt
i ■ slots are attctinc
• c to

608

POWER

April 18, 1911

— Trip Cutoff Kinks

The prevailing practice on engines
handling the releasing-gear type of en-
gine is to set the governor rods so that
when starting up, both valves will be
released at about the same time.

This method is incorrect, although I
have seen engineers change the cutoff
after the mean effective pressure had
been equalized on both sides of the pis-
ton by means of the indicator.

The correct method of setting the cutoff
en this type of engine when no indi-
cator is available is as follows: Prop
the governor up to where it stands at
normal load and turn the engine over
slowly until the crank-end trip lets go.
Then measure the distance the crosshead
has traveled on the backward stroke and
turn the engine in the direction of rota-
tion until the crosshead has traveled an
equal distance on the forward stroke.
Adjust the headend trip to let go when
in this position.

Cutoff will take place at the same part
of the stroke, and, although it may not
exactly divide the load, it is about the
best we can do for cutoff without using
an indicator.

A. H. Lancman.

Aurora, Can.

Trouble with Steam Radiator

In reference to E. L. Morris' trouble
with a heater as described in Power
for January 17, I will say that in
my opinion there are several causes for
this heater not heating up properly. First,
the pressure may be too low for the dis-
tance this heater is from the boiler;
second, the heater may have become air
bound; third, the pressure may be un-
equal and, by closing the valves down on
the other two heaters to just a small
opening, the trouble may be partially
overcome.

I would suggest that a pet cock be
placed on the end of the heater opposite
to the inlet valve. This would release
the air and help the situation, providing
all connections are tight and the valve
of the heater is open sufficiently wide.

There is but one thing needful to get
the heater to warm up and that is circula-
tion. I have had troubles of this sort and
I have found most of them to be due to
proper circulation failing to take place
either from the fact that the heater was
air bound or that it did not have suffi-
cient steam pressure.

E. F. Strippy.
Washington, D. C.

Practical

information from the

man on the job. A letter

cSood enough to print

here will be paid forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

Bronze Piston Rings

Several years ago, I was employed in
a large mill power plant in which there
was a large simple steam engine. After
the plant had been in operation for some
time, the management decided to com-
pound the engine and run condensing,
therefore, a new cylinder was ordered
from a different firm than had built the
engine.

The cylinder and piston dimensions
were as shown in the illustration. It will
be noted that the cylinder is )4 inch
larger in diameter than the piston. When
this cylinder was installed the piston was
packed with a well-known type of sec-

,.-' Where Piece of Bronze

would wedge itself

Design of Piston and Piston Ring

tional piston packing, and held out
against the cylinder walls by springs.

After this packing had been in service
for about a year, the engine began to give
trouble. To overcome the difficulty the
powers that be decided that cast iron
was not the thing with which to pack a
piston, and that there was but one in-
telligent method. They decided that a
bronze ring of the snap type, cut ec-
centric, as shown at A was the proper
ring. Having arrived at this conclusion,
the bronze ring was ordered and in due
time arrived and was at once put in
place.

After very short service the cylinder
began to have the time of its life, giving
three cheers and a tiger at each revolu-
tion.

When the cylinder was opened up, a
piece of the thin end of the bronze ring
was found wedged between the piston

and the cylinder wall. It will be seen
that when the piston was centered in the
cylinder but 34 inch of the bronze ring was
in the slot in the piston and, as bronze
wears away very rapidly when in contact
with cast iron, this >^-inch leverage was
very short lived. Consequently, the ring
broke about 8 inches from the end and
wedged itself as stated.

The "High Grand Mogul" decided "to
fight it out along this line if it took all
summer," so another bronze ring was put
in which shortly proceeded to give a
practical demonstration that bronze was
bronze and again wedged the thin part
of the ring between the cylinder wall and
the piston. As there was no idea of giv-
ing up our military resolutions, another
round of bronze was shot into that cylin-
der on five occasions, after which the
cylinder was again fitted with cast-iron
sectional rings.

Amos S. Back.

Waterbury, Conn.

Boiler Inspection Law

Can any reader give a good reason
why the legislature of the State of New
York has failed to pass a good steam-
boiler inspection law or an engineers'
license law? True, there is a law in
New York State that compels the in-
spection of locomotive boilers, and the
enforcing of this law by the Public Ser-
vice Commission has compelled the rail-
road corporations to keep their boilers
in good condition.

A similar law should be passed that
would make it compulsory to have all
boilers used for power purposes ex-
amined semi-annually, once internally
and once externally, and the boilers to
be in charge of competent engineers.

The factory-inspection department
sometimes calls for a report on steam
boilers, but if it is compulsory to furnish
them with a report, the law as enforced
is a farce. The owner of a steam boiler
can employ any person to make an in-
spection and send him a report of such
inspection to be forwarded to the fac-
tory-inspection department, and it is ac-
cepted.

• I know of many cases where men
have made inspections of steam boilers,
the reports have been accepted and boil-
ers continued in use, but the men who
made the examinations could not figure
out the strength of a seam, strength of
the braces or stays in the boilers and, in
fact, if given all dimensions, they could
not figure the steam pressure to be al-
lowed. Certainly such a man could not

April 18. 1911

PO\X

be held responsible for any accident oc-
curring after his inspection.

The factory-inspection department ac-
cepts the report of an examination made
by a steam-boiler insurance company's
inspector, but there are hundreds of boil-
in the State of New York that are
not insured. There are boilers in
that are from 20 to 30 years old, carrying
the same steam pressure that was car-
ried when they were first install-.
of these boilers arc of the horizontal
return-tubular type, lap-seam construc-
tion and carp, from 80 to 110 pounds
steam pressure; they should be in the
scrap heap. Some of these boilers are
in charge of men who do not know the
they are taking in earning such

In one of the congested business d

one of the large cities of the
State o- York there is in daily use

a battery of two boilers carrying a work-
re of 90 pounds that were
tically condemned by an inspector
irs ago. The boilers are about
60 inches in diameter by 14 feet long,
shell plates were original :nch

• . the longitudinal scams arc lap con-
.tion. double riveted, and the seam
not figure more than 65 per cent, of
•ngth of the solid plate. The open-
n the shell under the dome is almost
the full size of the dome and is not re-
inforced; the boilers arc at least
years old. Figure what steam pressure
e boilers would safely earn, when
new, and then imagine what is going to
happen at this plant some day. The
ncr's jury will, if the usual custom is
followed, put the blame on the engineer
or fireman, both of whom will doubt
have been killed. There arc many plants
•g operated in worse condition.
There were more than 530 boiler
plosions in the United and

280 persons were killed at the time of
the explosion; there were also many |

ildcd and othi - «ho

later died from the effect of their in-
juries There were over 550 boiler c\
plosions in 1909 and about 230 fatal
The lap-scam boilers carried off the

and. no doubt, the lap- team
flnecrv referred to in a recent issue,
had charge of the majority of these
plar
There should be a law. rigidl

ng the in*tallation of lap-seam

boilers and c»r ■ ade up

of two sheet* with the longitudinal kirii

running from head to head No extra

J in having in

th butt joints. A triple riveted

'ran
•rength of a
and a quadrut *cam '

10 04 per cent There Is no record a*
far as known, of a b< type

of MOOi ' ng

R J Ta
Rochester N >

1 ] under \\ tcr

I I saw a 10-inch wroughi-iron

pipe laid l atcr in a \ :.plc

manner. The .as to be used as

an intake for a pump and extended into
a shallow lake son

The method adopted was to com
the pipe lengths together, on skids, on
the lake shore. A blind flange was put
on one end and a foot valve on the other,
the foot va n a closed

Then th was

rolled into the water, three men mounted
it and with poles punted it into posi-
tion. Then the foot valve was opened,
allowing the whole to sink gradually
onto the piers that had been made for
it to rest upon.

•ntreal. Can.

\\ I tie!

I have two 4U0-horsepower water-tube

boilers under which a mixture of pine

and juniper wood is burned, w'hat is the

method of burning such wood as a

fuel to obtain the best result-

J R BtAKE.
k'ollon.

An I mergenc] It \ live

A centrifugal pump persistenth re-
fused to pick up its suction water. After
all the usual methods of priming, includ-
ing a siphon, had ' | was seen that
a foot valve would be necessary in order
that the pump and suctior »u!d be
filled with water before starting.

I Foot

Ar
wa« made into a >wn

in the *'• • •

ottom and is made from a

■
larger thar -he holr

■

a • • r

4 ftfl till* ifn

a* r '

bottom of

l the
In the soui an of Indiana a po -

Pl»f IMjS.

fact

in keeping an

The plant was of about 150

■
Mitt had bec rims

compound
steam engines. O

war

per minute, and t:

h speeds are rathe

Bo: rs ga\e trouble .ontinually

and one or the other of them wmffd 10
be down for | all the The

-att unit was naturally used moot,
c the exciting load alonr ibOUt

35 kilowatts and the ent ng lood

of about 20 kilowatts « 'rom

the husbars also. The

set was ki
kilowat- >ke do-

For this reason duplicate pans for the
larger unit were kept on hand so
the smaller unit need not be
longer than was absolu-
However, c mat

rnsndom a
load when It was o| I soon began to

tell on the t 'our

scar* tl c also bscsmc

but no

O-
and rattle a
shu- <mplctel> wrcckeJ

^ mashed to bits, the

as then atancd Some of the
repair part* had to r^e n-.aJ

oottcd »
•i as thouc uld be trouble

c works tbe d
following the ootM oticed a bend

wheel of some sort protruding from s

of cement and •
the '
ifcM
had heer ukJ Ih • t BS MM "S of tbe

' hope In tht sets-
lion of tbe pressing c setter problem and

>u!J h

> keep ilk

going m

I • •• • • thsi mess engine*

pounj* pressure so that
perhaps the fell boiler pressure

could be
demands! sue* M gresseu
the pre**v aid

610

POWER

April 18, 1911

Timbers were placed in position near
the small exciter and the Atlas engine
mounted on them in such a way that,
should the exciter engine break down, a
short shaft could be bolted to the gen-
erator shaft by means of a flange
coupling and the generator driven by a
belt. This arrangement was completed
none to soon, for the overloaded exciter
engine showed signs of failure a day or
two later and had to be stopped.

The shafting was speedily put in place,
the belt tightener screwed down and the
Atlas engine started on what proved to be
a long run. It pounded a great deal
and ran hot, and after a half hour's run
ordinary lubrication was insufficient so
water pipes were arranged to keep
streams of water playing on all the bear-
ings. The belt used was of sewed can-
vas, 8 inches wide.

This outfit ran six weeks, during which
time two sets of main bearing parts, three
sets of ccnnecting-rod brasses and two
belts were used up; crank and wristpins
were badly scarred, as were also the main
journals. Otherwise the engine as a whole
was little harmed. Nothing broke and
apparently the cylinder and valve were
not touched. The cylinder was lubricated
perfectly. The generator was unharmed
except that the commutator was slightly
burned.

A long shutdown was avoided, con-
tracts were met, and now an exciting set
of large size carries the load so easily
that one can scarcely realize the supreme
effort required by the small 9xl4-inch
engine to do about 80 horsepower of
work.

C. R. Moore.

Lafayette, Ind.

Boiler Insurance

A matter connected with boiler insur-
ance recently came to my notice, that is
of more than passing interest.

The superintendent of a power plant,
after reading a recent discussion relative
to boiler insurance, looked up his own
policy to see how it was worded. He
discovered that his policy allowed him to
carry 110 pounds steam pressure on his
boilers, but they were carrying 120
pounds. In case of an explosion the
policy would probably have been worth-
less.

On investigation he found that a former
superintendent had increased the pres-
sure 10 pounds without consulting the
insurance people and, as a consequence,
the policy had never been changed.

This condition had existed fully a year
and the insurance-company inspectors
had inspected the boilers several times
since the change had been made, and
presumably had noted the pressure car-
ried. They had not, however, reported
the matter to the officials of the power-
plant company.

Is it possible that the inspectors had

passed in their report without the in-
creased pressure being mentioned, had
the increased pressure not been detected
or had the insurance company wilfully
failed to notify the company, knowing
that they could not be held in case of
an explosion? It would also be of in-
terest to know if under the above cir-
cumstances any insurance could have
been collected. The boilers were in first-
class condition, designed for 150 pounds
steam pressure per square inch, and the
insurance people readily changed the
policy when their attention was called to
the increased pressure carried.

B. Jamson.
Chicago, 111.

Ring Shaft Cleaner

My little kink, while old, may be of
use to some engineer who is obliged to
keep his line shafting clean and free
from dust and oil.

Make several large rings out of belt-
ing, leatherboard or some such sub-

TO?/ ^— x \ V

Ring Cleaner on Shaft

stance, having a hole about twice the
diameter of the shaft, and the outside
diameter about 2 inches larger than the
inside diameter.

The ring is cut diagonal on one side,
put on the shaft, after which the ends
are sewed together with fine wire. The
ring will travel from one hanger to the
other so long as the shaft revolves.

Thus, the shaft will be kept free of dirt
and it will eventually take on a bright
polish.

H. A. Greene.

Boston, Mass.

Flushing Pump Valves

Trouble is often experienced with
foreign matter getting under the valves
of feed pumps.

It is a simple matter to place a barrel
at some elevated place, connect it with
the suction pipe of the pump and pro-
vide a pipe and valve to the discharge
line for filling purposes.

When the pump valves hang up, close
the valve ia the suction line and open
the valve in the pipe leading from the
barrel which is kept filled with water.
This flushes the pump and saves a lot
of trouble, time and temper.

Frank Gartmann.

Sheboygan, Wis.

Unsafe Pulleys

Some days ago, I visited a small saw-
mill and, while looking over the plant, the
manager pointed to a pile of cast iron
that had once been a pulley 7 feet in
diameter. He said it had burst a few
days before and killed the sawyer. I did
a little figuring and found that the rim
speed of the pulley had been 9560 feet
per minute.

To my surprise the new pulley was a
duplicate of the one that had exploded
and was running at the same speed.

I told him that the high rim speed at
which the new pulley was running was
liable to burst it, but he said the salesman
who sold it said that the old pulley had
burst on account of a flaw and that he
supposed the one he was now running
was perfectly safe. I do not know whether
he has killed another sawyer yet or not.

H. T. Fryant.

Jackson, Miss.

Adjustment of Crank Pin
Brasses

While talking with the superintendent
of the company where I am employed a
few days ago, our conversation turned to
bearings, and I remarked that the crank
was running cool, although the brasses
were only 0.004 of an inch slack.

"How do you know that?" he inquired.

"Well," I answered, "the wedge tapers
Y% inch to each inch in length, and the
adjusting bolt has eight threads to the
inch; therefore, each turn of the bolt
will move the brasses 1/64 inch or prac-
tically 0.016 inch, so that 1/16 turn of
the adjusting bolt will equal a movement
of 0.001 inch of the brasses. As the
wedge was drawn up so that the brasses
were snug against the pin and then
slacked back J4 turn on the bolt, there is
not far from 0.004 inch clearance between
the pin and the brasses."

Roy W. Lyman.

Ware, Mass.

Return System

I would be glad to get some informa-
tion on the following: The drips from
the steam main, separators, reheating
coils and four engines are collected in a
manifold located in the basement. This
manifold is 20 feet below the water line
in the boiler. The steam pressure in the
boiler is 160 pounds. The difference in
pressure between the boiler and the
manifold is 10.5 pounds.

Is it possible and practicable to return
the condensation to the boiler by means
of the Holly system? If so, to what
hight will it be necessary to carry the
return riser? Also, what should the size
of the riser be?

At present I am using steam traps, but
they do not give satisfaction.

William Bopp.

Washington, D. C.

April 18, 1911

P0W1R

611

\\ .iter I I.miiiKT ami ( )thcT

Phenomena

In reply to J. W. P. - in

the March ie under the heading.

"Topics for ! »n" the following

are my opinions on the topics which he
pit

There appears to be a marked diP

ence between water hammer and the con-

don and expansion of a steam line

cam is turned on. Vhcn steam is

tu.ncd into a line of piping slowly, the

s.tam coming in contact with the cold

J. The condensation

collects on the bottom of the pipe. The

incoming steam eventually heats the pipe

to a temperature practically the same as

'*n, but during the first part of the

process the water lying along the bottom

unequal e n to

take place, the condensed water acting

as a heat insulator.

I would account for the origin of
water hammer in the following ■

I, there must be a collection of water
in a pocket or at some point in the
■dcr normal conditions the steam
pas*- iter. But. when

denly a demand for more steam ar
the steam picks up the water in pa*.-
The water then attains the same velocity
as the steam and when the water
a turn or other point where chang

necessary, the s water

hamm

am entering a p what-

air the contain along until

the air -he san

aurc as that of the entering «.tca:
little or no interchange of heat takes
place between the Mcam and air. This

•rated when air be
In a ra ie air is rem-

id almost in-

The mater nc ate* or tube*

in a boiler i«> turr

The r than the water

rusr :c surface It

of the hat causes the a

of the * Sc seen, there'

that steam

■e how a large b<>d\
■

I
' *ing exam;

•he Ufa
I0O pounds aafc to contain ^irt rtHft

to the pre««ur

water in th

( \ itnmcnt,
aodekbote upon various

'J(/cc//7-

oriaU whii h have an

/>c:ircd in previous

isstn -

"1.000 B.t.u. above The

latent heat of steam at atmosphc:

,i Then the sudden
ictiofl in pressure resulting from the
rupture of the boiler would cause the
antaneous evaporation of about

= 3280 pounds of voter

H PH
il. Que'

Iii iitii r

In the March 7 issue there is an a
clc on filing data after they have been
cut from the magazine J of

ng data is theoretically
hut for practical purposes it seems to me
that it could be upon. It cm-

f alphabetical in-
clf. and al-
so the problem of * hat to %»\

In a mag.i of Pom

the matter of the index is in the hands

are made about V» inch from
the back of the ma,
boles at of one

voh:

i a sailors' needle. For
several
ing

the back and covered r

paper or cloth covering. By the u»
mucilage between the several leave! 'root
and tbc effect of a

is «••. The 01 f cloth

or paper h

•st of the
1 only a few r and

a fi n money. The only

the outside covering- Bv
treating the maga uy 1

hanJ not only of •

mt to use. but
also a vast amount of ma vou

it until the occasion sudd;

J ■

I have - ideas for

k numbers or
articles. I think, that it is a poor policy
to a

matter of h
— a particular be

the regular !ca of :

of a »r <*ems ■

aw. 1 each la

attested to nc come r ng he

at tod
%ion of the hull * to rend may be •(

mount «mont>-

■iot ma<
•>e and mi' "; Ime*. Nrt I not*

•pi to he of rehse till
ies
• ■ ! and 1 r *

"malt*
»ublrct covered man

612

POWER

April 18, 1911

most of the engineering books published.
The cost of binding is usually from $1.50
per volume, up.

Taylor, Penn.

C. W. Bell.

Stress in Boiler Sheets

Regarding the editorial under the above
heading in the February 28 issue, it
seems to me that a confusion has been
made about the line of least resistance.
However, the question brought up will
make a large number of readers do some
thinking, and for that reason it will be
valuable.

Power

Diagram for Specific Solution

In the first place, the fact should be
noted that when testing cylinderical shells
by bursting them, the rupture invariably
takes place lengthwise of the cylinder.
The reason for the split being lengthwise
and not either circumferentially or slant-
wise is because the least resistance is
along this line, least resistance because
there is the least material to withstand
the stress. Thus, the stress per unit

length on the line A of Fig. 1 is —

Diagram for General Solution

and the material to withstand this stress
is T. At right angles to the stress on
the line A of Fig 1. the stress tending
to tear the plate along the line B of Fig.

Pit D2

2 is , and the material to with-

4
stand it is t D T. As, based on the thick-
ness alone, the stress in Fig. 2 is

PttD2 n PD

4 4

being half as much as in Fig. 1 ; on the
other basis, there is twice as much ma-
terial to withstand the stress in Fig. 2 as
there is in Fig. 1 ; hence, the section in
Fig. 2 is stronger and less liable to split.
It follows then, that at any other loca-
tions, C and E, Fig. 3, between these two
lines A and B of minimum and maximum
strength, the strength will be less than at
B and greater than at A.

It can be shown by an elaborate mathe-
matical demonstration how that two
stresses, one half the other, acting at
right angles, will give a resultant diagonal
H, Fig. 4; and, further, how some of
this stress K is lengthwise of H and some
L at right angles to it. The action of K
is to shear the plate into two triangles
M and N, while that of L is to tear them
apart. This mathematical treatise will
give any engineer good mental exercise.
It will lead him, though, providing he
does not get lost in the thicket of fig-
ures and symbols, to the same station

Fiq. I

Fig. 2

<^z

V N

J^"

Fig. 3

Fig.4

k 0

u f

> V

w J,

POWER.

F,q5

F,g 6

that the experimental facts have long
since located. Rupture does not take place
along the helical seam S, Fig. 5, nor does
the plate separate into four rectangles
O, U, V, W, Fig. 6.

F. Webster.
Scranton, Penn.

Blowoff Pipe Protection

I noticed in the issue of March 21 an
account of the bursting of a cast-iron
elbow in the blowoff of a 135-horsepower
boiler. No cause was given for the
failure of the elbow.

I was once called to take charge of a
steam plant in which the blowoff pipe
of the boiler was screwed into the front
head of the boiler alongside of the hand-
hole and a hole was drilled in the boiler
front, through which the pipe passed just

far enough to screw on a valve, short
nipple and an elbow. The blowoff then
passed through the wall of the boiler
house and connected with a blowoff tank
in the yard. The boiler-house wall was
used for the side wall of the boiler set-
ting. Where the blowoff went through
the wall it was bricked in solid. I con-
sider this very unsafe as I contend that
all blowoff pipes should be left free so
as not to be affected by expansion or by
any settling that may take place.

Edward Hamilton.
Ridgefield Park, N. J.

Slipping Latch Blocks

In Power for February 28 and March
28 are letters on the subject of "Slipping
Latch Blocks," giving useful instructions
as to what to do to prevent or overcome
trouble from this source.

The design of the valve gear has a
great deal to do with the amount of this
trouble and in selecting an engine care
should be taken to select a design of
gear that will give the least trouble.

We had an engine that gave us a great
deal of trouble in this respect, the latch
blocks having to be turned once in two
or three weeks. After running for sev-
eral years the gear became so badly
worn that it was replaced with a gear of
different design. Since that time we have
had to change the blocks only about once
a year. The difference is not in the
blocks, for we tried several different
steels with the old gear and made the
blocks as hard as it was possible to
make them, but even the hardest would
slip in a short time.

W. O. Perkins.

Bristol, Conn.

Central Station versus Isolated
Plant

The editorials in the issue of March
28 entitled, "Will an Isolated Plant Pay"
and "The Marginal Principle," strike the
nail squarely on the head and put the
matter in the plainest possible way. I
wish they could be read by every power
user. The fanciful and exaggerated
charges saddled upon the steam plant
when the central-station man is swelling
his list to show the awful waste only go
to show his desperation in working for
business that he sees slipping from him.
Could this be any better illustrated than
in Mr. Parker's paper on "The Cost
of Industrial Power," reported in Power
for March 21 ? Conceive, if you can, a
plant of 150 kilowatts capacity with a
$12,000 manager, devoting one-twelfth
of his entire time to the power equip-
ment! And, this not being enough, the
cost is still further padded to the extent
of $150 per year for one hour daily
clerical work. This generosity is not
shown in the purchased-power table,
where the wear and tear on the manager

April \H. I

anJ clerks, due to the heating plant, is
ar, surely low enough
in comparison.

Again, in th - the •cm:-. .

s»er\ per year. This

is based on four days' shutdown per
month, b one know of a £■

plant, working under ordinar.
that is shut down on an average of four
working days per month - If so, will the
engineer please stand up and. if it is not
a worn-out, obsolete plant, tell us how
long hi o hold h: A

charge for emergency ser. of

course, proper if.

the power . to retain the .

tral-station connections for such use, but
there is a lack of fairness in placir .
at an extravagant cost, merely to make
the ripht kind of a showing If

were co- mergency current

would be a highly profitable part of the
central station's business, inasmuch |
is at a rate nearly three times the amount
per kilowatt-hour of the regularly fur-
nished current in the other table, which
figures out 2.47 cents It would be equit-
able to credit back the coal that is not
used during the 41 per year that

the plant is >cd to be out of r-

ncss. but no such credit appca-

It appears that in the isolated plant
300 horsepower - ailed for a demand

toad of I4<> kilowatts, ful per ccntt

more than nccc the

estimate item of supplies and rep
higher, and all g< swell the total

It is to be regretted that comr-.i
of this t ired oni tral-st.r

icprcscntativcs. can only be made with a

. of obtaining patronage, for it w
certainly seem that they arc not made
with a desire tn arrive at true and I
rhere i plent) ol I ■.-
he central in public light

railways, etc.. as well as in man> isolated
plants where cxha im has littK

;
the labor item is a very large per
of the whole But. no amount of ar
ment can prove that purchased p
cheaper than that fur- he iso-

lated plant in the n ere

use can be made of all or a considerable
he cxh.i
* vslual

■ .
hi not the Mam< an-

agcr and hi* clerks ui | alto -

mate, on tbi hand, how

monthly quarrel with the centra:
Tent bills »hortc-
will we include a charge '
amount of moncv tha cost of thr
plant might have earned if he pla
• and tl right w

oflt
tatc

In tar Buftal

of the muc'
Steam plants arc m u<

•\X ! R

and nc- soing in const*

careful in

r m t
plant And. in this connection.
b« genera; ■ that at lei

ling
im plants in whole or in pan. and
'■king m the saving maj

the cost of purchased power. I kno-

:hat have been pi.
to- I ■ and all are making good

One p|in, ,nar :

for itself inside or I n an

billing to take

l on tr can ha

Jcr that the centra compa

work up the kind of papers that arc read

before engineering s< ised as

e papers tl avor of purchased

N ^

I' •- 1 r i < ► 1 1 <>r ,st<.p \ a\\

The March 14

n of the m -.r plant of the

Amoskcag mills, an institution. I believe.
known among eng n all pans

of the country for its uptodate man-
agement and power-plant equipment

■

I may ha n asleep while some

ngs in steam piping were being

K been

that the proper r ■» %top

•al pipr

of a

and o»e

•n shot.
■

re meat be some tod

* positions. I would

I i

the .c and

not
•n fom

•.or. be formed

J along
to be a
owners of plants in an

We have at rJ num-

ber of en*
ha- of doing thir.

I venture to »av th,
better and m< :0«-

under one name and for or

and that purpose to be the g of

the men who are running the

of the great ii

all said and done. »' d an omce

building, factory, mill, ho-

ment house be without a con ,

The time -ie mer.

most impona- »f mdt.

to look around them and wake up tr
fact that some'
them. gi
that will make it necessary for |
>rs do some
hard work be'
aalar

Br ^

Redui Grate V -I

I tUlls

f a rrcent
'
Two > '

sougb- .% to

found a SO-

'rorr. popp

<ca%iona! opening of me frlne, doer.
I

cnes on encn ».j

%v»" rfo*
to th

a* « a

• *

614

POWER

April 18, 1911

Interest and Sinking Fund

In the issue of March 21 in an edi-
torial under the above caption a line of
reasoning is followed from which I ven-
ture to dissent.

Referring to the discussion of the sub-
ject, "The Cost of Industrial Power,"
which took place at the recent joint
meeting of the American Institute of
Electrical Engineers and the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers, the
editorial contains the statement that "one
of the central-station solicitors main-
tained that it was not right to reduce the
sinking-fund charges because inquiry
upon his part had revealed the fact that
nobody invested the money thus charged
annually to the plant at compound in-
terest," and the writer of the editorial
then proceeded to show why, in his opin-
ion, a sinking-fund charge based upon
compound interest is justifiable.

The accumulation of a sinking fund
with the assistance of the accretions due
to compound interest appears attractive
upon its face, but it is not in accord-
ance with established methods of finance.
The fiscal considerations which are in-
volved in present-day commercial activi-
ties are confined — so far as the profit
and loss account is concerned — to the
limits of a single year or, in some cases,
to a period of even shorter duration. If
this were not so, or if the compound-
interest theory were applied — as it
logically could be — to all expenditures,
a decidedly involved condition of af-
fairs would result. For example, sup-
pose that a man should view his personal
expenditures from the compound-interest
point of view and. instead of striking a
yearly or monthly balance between his
income and his expenses, he should look
upon the expenditure required for a cigar
or for a drink, not as the sum directly
involved, but as the amount which the
expenditure would amount to at com-
pound interest at the end of a certain
number of years. A few calculations of
this nature would doubtless cure many
of the smoking habit, and would tend to
make the "water wagon" more attractive
to many than it is at present.

There is another point of view from
which, in the writer's opinion, the com-
pound-interest theory is untenable. If we
consider that the natural function of
money — or capital — is to bring a yearly
return to its owner, and that when it is
not so doing a direct loss results to its
possessor, equal in amount to the interest
which could have been obtained (not
necessarily the highest vz .e of return
which could have been obtained, but a
fair average rate), it is evident that the
accretions to a sinking fund in the form
of interest are as much of a burden upon
the person who is accumulating the fund
as contributions of equal amount paid
directly into the fund. In the one case
a direct payment of, say, a comparatively

small amount is made yearly to the fund
and the interest for the preceding year
upon the accumulated portion of the fund
is added. This interest, therefore, can-
not be withdrawn (inasmuch as "one
cannot eat his cake and have it too")
and. in this sense, it is lost to the owner
of the fund, thereby making the final
result no different than if the owner had
withdrawn his yearly interest (a normal
condition, the reverse of which only
signifies a loss) and then paid an equal
amount directly into the fund. On the
other hand, under straight-line deprecia-
tion, with equal and larger amounts paid
yearly into the sinking fund, the owner
may withdraw his yearly interest and the
equal yearly amounts paid into the fund
become his only burden. In either case,
the final result is the same: at the ter-
mination of the estimated life of the
equipment the owner will have paid (in
one case partly in the form of lost in-
terest) an amount equal to the original
value of the equipment.

E. F. Tweedy.
New York City.

Feed Water Treatment

In regard to Mr. Utz's letter in the
January 31 issue and Charles H. Taylor's
well grounded letter in Power for Decem-
ber 6, 1910, relative to feeding solvents
to steam boilers, the opinions contained
therein certainly make an interesting con-
trast. Each of them, from the stand-
point of a practical critic, if it be pos-
sile to assume such a role, deviates
considerably from the straight and nar-
row path which practical experimenting
has blazoned through the dense forest
of obstacles confronting users of "sol-
vents." or "boiler solvents." In a great
many cases the latter term is not a mis-
nomer, for certainly the most significant
point in Mr. Utz's argument is that he
has been using a "boiler solvent" instead
of a treatment to neutralize the trouble-
some elements carried in his boiler-feed
water. Most certainly if the solvent he
is using scores the pump lining and
rods and destroys the packing, it will
continue its havoc through the entire
feed-water system and, consequently, in
the boiler where pitting and corrosion
must naturally result; and this, if con-
tinued, is not only a financial loss, but
tends to intensify the dangers naturally
prevalent in steam-generating sets.

It has been my experience that in order
to use a treatment for boiler-feed water,
it is necessary first to ascertain the min-
eral contents of the water used. Not
having the apparatus for this purpose, we
have always sent a representative sam-
ple of the water to a well known Chicago
firm which makes this matter a specialty.
It then selects from one of its numerous
formulas (if necessary, it will specially
prepare one) a compound that will
neutralize the salts, etc., carried in the

water. I have used one of its formulas
for a number of years, introducing the
compound into the boilers by placing a
solution of it in a tank placed above the
discharge section of the hotwell and al-
lowing it to drop continuously into a
1 i -inch pipe leading down and looking
into the feed-pump suction. In this way
the compound is thoroughly mixed with
the water and passes through the pump.
We have never experienced the least ill
effect from the use of this compound,
which has always been fed through the
feed pumps.

A Lee.
Honolulu, T. H.

Dashpot Troubles

Referring to Mr. Green's article under
the above caption in the March 21 issue,
I have found that the greatest trouble, as
Mr. Green has mentioned, is given by
Corliss valves of the multiported type
equipped with the combination vacuum
cushion dashpots. After they become
slightly worn the trouble begins and is
manifested mostly by the engine racing
when suddenly it loses the load. The
indicator diagrams show a constant
reaching of the governor or a hunting for
the point of equilibrium and the average
engineer looks for a slipping governor
t^ek and a poorly working gagpot as the
cause, without suspecting the real trouble.
Most of these double-ported valves have
very little or no lap and require careful
adjustment else they will admit steam at
the back edge when they are supposed
to be closed.

There are many kinds of dashpots, and
each has advantages and disadvantages
peculiar to its type and the engines upon
which it is used. The vacuum-cushion
dashpot used on some types of engine
consists of a central vacuum chamber
surrounding the piston or plunger, in
which are the valves of the cushion cham-
ber. The cylinder of the vacuum cham-
ber is in the center of the cushion pis-
ton and is. therefore, hard to keep lubri-
cated. The outlet-air valve of the vac-
uum chamber is on the upper end of the
cylinder above the cushion piston.

The following is a case from my ex-
perience. For some reason the dashpot
would bounce and continue to bounce
as the engine increased in speed. After
placing my foot on the dashpot and forc-
ing it shut with my weight, I removed the
cover and put engine oil on the air valve
of the vacuum chamber. There was a
sharp hiss as the air passed through
this valve, and the dashpot operated nor-
mally for about two hours. Then the
treatment had to be repeated. At the
end of the day's run I removed the
gummed oil and dirt from the small holes
in this valve seat and found that the
seat and valve disk were worn enough to
admit air to the vacuum chamber which
was so dry that it also drew air in from

April 18, 1911

■ K

the cushion chamber past the piston, thus
forming a cushion in the vacuum cham-
ber. As a result of the 1. 16-inch holes
being almost entirely stopped up. tl

not enough opening through which
this larger volume of air could escape.
Adding this cushion to that of the cushion
chamber it required but little to make
the piston bounce. Placing some quartz
under the disk on the seat and pu-
t-brace screwdriver into a breast
drill, I ground the valve in and smoothed
the roughness off with pumice stone
until the valve was air tight. I then
cleaned out the four 1 16-inch holes, and
jring the vacuum piunger with oil,
J the dashpot. and it gave no
further trouble when the vacuum

plunger ceased to get the oil at the bot-
tom to keep it air tight.

■ Green spoke of connecting the
\acuum chamber to the condenser. This
'c a more perfect Vacuum and
positive cutoff, but on heavy loads when
the dashpots lifted to the full hight it
uould be apt to cause much pounding
on 'he cushion valves which, if made of
«ould soon give out. Then, too,
the greater the vacuum the hardt
.id be to open the steam . -hus

^ing more load on the «.
*ould be apt to heat.

R I I

Proper U« f Tools

In a recent issue 1 came across an
article by H. A. Greene showing hr<

rhout crushing the
ild have added lots more
■•
It •» certainly intc 'o hear a

stcamfittcr tell how an engineer

1" for using a monkc *i as

a hammer, while he 01
helper on the
inch pipe arc yanking and jerking a new

ward and foru - about one-half the

the
r at each jerk and then
cr the remainder of the
' the pipe that is r
Afn

in this manner, the engineer fir-.J-
nc»
ihar for further use.

While on the »u'
that I voald

handles Why are th
lorn ring the wi

the ma I ien u»c a

Kcmi to me tha- high da I

manufacturer* t" change the lengths of
pipe-wrench hand

i wrench might ha\(
handle nehev anJ

be changed in a like manner T
tair in enormous amou-

tinv would be unnccc*

and length to g< nch

hanj

Just a few days ago I taw a I
inch pipe ■
.

He got tan g on a

ng on i of

the urench. P ches in

TlLHt.

I for Bituminom (

Referring to "

>sue. I wr. him

to install a smok. iter similar to

the one n the January 10 r.

ber. I have one in use and can say
that it accomr csults

factori.
O: e good results the

r^e properly 3- In the

installation which I
the boiler to the superheating
inch in size. The outlets from the
to the nozzles are of .-inch The

• ngs for the nozzles are -4
ze each way an J open on t\»
as shown in the figure. One side of

ad tapped for a
piece of a

• hat the rjcceoaary quantity

regulate the inlet

the

the 3- inch bushin,

•o produce a grc
gc pipe A pump
-uction aad

both the

and the discharge head so that

a n problem

v f Cut

H Jcr the above

heading in the "
that he

nanging .toff

on a Bro-
il -< chanfjed by

• " •"-"

long enoug

*e this

I 10

I llnJ *hea

• opened or
i of I

rg goov2

enable " " <rt»e

changir. rreeeerr. the back

I load oa t he e ngt iw Tbo

bat ■ ten tl I ma» r<

e meet ate of the nuri
rod
%t .on looks to OK

Im
controls the amour

Flscbbu * i

616

POWER

April 18, 1911

Clogged Gage Pipe

Two recording-pressure gages are con-
nected to the same water main, but they
do not record the same pressure. I have
been told that the pipe of one is clogged
which prevents it from giving the true
pressure. How can I find out if this is
a fact?

P. C. G.

One of the gages is incorrect and per-
haps both are. They should be tested by
comparison with a gage known to be cor-
rect. No amount of clogging in the gage
pipe unless it stopped it entirely would
affect the reading unless there is flow
through the stricture. The gages must,
of course, be at the same hight so that
the effect of the columns of water in
the pipes leading to them will be equal.

Weakest Pa?~t of Boiler

Where is the weakest part of a vertical
fire-tube boiler, and why?

W. P. B.

The weakest part of any tubular boiler
is the longitudinal seam. It is not pos-
sible to make a joint as strong as the
sheet and the stress tending to pull the
metal apart along its length is only one-
half that which is exerted to separate it
circumferentially.

Cooling Hot Bearings

I have an engine bearing that fre-
quently goes hot at short notice and with-
out any apparent cause, and I have to
stop until the bearing is cool.' Is there
any preparation that will cool a hot
bearing while running?

H. C. B.

Before the days of graphite a mixture
of lard oil and flour of sulphur was the
standard remedy for hot boxes. Graphite
and good lubricating oil in proportions of
ten parts of oil to one of graphite will
usually reduce the friction of a trouble-
some bearing until it will run cool.

Pitch of Steam Pipe

Should the steam pipe incline toward
the engine or toward the boiler, and why?

P. S. P.

It is better to have the pipe incline
toward the engine. Then any water
which condenses in it goes along with
the steam and is passed off a little at
a time. If the inclination is in the other
direction, the flowing water is opposed by
the current of steam and may accumulate
into a large volume which will go over
all at once.

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articlesjetters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

Low Speed in a Motor

A shunt-wound variable-speed motor
rated at 1350 revolutions per minute,
maximum, will not run faster than 1000
revolutions per minute. What is the prob-
able cause, and can the speed be in-
creased by adding to the resistance in
the starting box?

E. C.

The voltage may be low or the field
section of the speed regulator may be
partly short-circuited. The speed can
be increased by increasing the resistance
in the field section of the controller, not
in the starting section, which is in the
armature circuit.

Net Diameter of Bolts

How much greater is the diameter at
the root of the United States standard
thread than in the case of a V or sharp
thread of the same pitch?

R. E.

In the standard thread the diameter
of the bolt at the bottom of the thread
i? lA the hight of the thread greater
than in the case of the V or sharp thread.

The diameter of a bolt at the bottom of
the standard thread, in inches, is

Dia. of bolt — -r^ : — . -t — ; — r

Numbcr o] threads per inch

For the sharp thread the diameter is

1-733

Dia. of bolt

X timber of threads per inch

Indicator Springs for Given
Boiler Pressure

What number of spring should be used
in an indicator for 100 pounds boiler
pressure?

E. A. S.

For ordinary conditions a spring which
will make a diagram l-)4 inches high
will be found satisfactory. With 100
pounds boiler pressure a 50 spring will
give approximately the desired hight, as
the pressure in the cylinder never equals
that in the boiler.

High Temperatures in Gas
Engine Cylinders

Will it injure a gas-engine cylinder
to run it very hot, provided the maxi-
mum temperature is not high enough to
decompose the lubricating oil?

F. E. W.

Probably not, but the advantages due
to high temperatures are not worth the
risk of experimenting in that direction.
The temperature of the cooling water at
the jacket outlet should not be more than
100 degrees (Fahrenheit) higher than
the temperature of the entering water.

Rotor Current of an Induction
Motor

a. What is the usual ratio between
the stator and rotor currents of an in-
duction motor?

/'. What would be the probable rotor
current of a 75-horsepower 240-volt
three-phase motor?

L. J. G.

a. There is no definite relation be-
tween the stator and rotor currents. The
rotor current depends only on the rotor
slip, the field strength and the resistance
of the rotor circuit.

b. About 180 amperes, regardless of
primary voltage and phases.

Air Compressor Capacity

What is the free air capacity of a
compressor?

R. E. M.

The cubic feet of free air it can handle
per minute, hour or other unit of time.
That is equal to the piston displacement
in cubic feet multiplied by the number of
piston strokes per minute or hour or
other period. "Free" air is air at at-
mospheric pressure and temperature.

Three-phase Power Measurement

Can the power in a three-phase circuit
be figured from the switchboard instru-
ments without a wattmeter?

R. E. M.

Yes; if you have a power-factor indi-
cator and the circuit is balanced. Multiply
the voltage by the amperes per phase;
multiply the product by the power factor
and that product by 1.732; the final re-
sult will be the watts in the circuit. Ex-
ample: Volts, 2300; amperes per phase,
50; power factor, 80 per cent. Watts
= 2300 X 50 X 0.8 X 1.732 = 159,344.
If the circuit is not balanced, add the
currents in the three legs and divide the
sum by 3; take the result as the current
per phase. This is approximately correct.

April 18, I'M I

PO\X

611

Hill Publishing mps

MMIim ■ -«t. fWr«r»

• Both

[IV

jbie for (be col-
and pai<:
orraapotvi
i — not necHM*m>

.fli. »".

• ofautl

■ I!

II'

■

H I . . .-• .

< /' W

t ontenti

■

n in. i i

■

i »lth

Ijij

'•til

■ i

I r||H. I

•a

( ! cm mental ( 'ontrol
\\ itci Power

The conservation movement a* app
to water p ,o» re-

so much attention, may be
: up is •

:gh-tension trai

sion has made possible the utilization

of water p -ig to their

remote location fa- my market for

iavc hcrct en unavailable.

The promoters, knowing that mori

•:cnt
of -tain

the

•ier hand, the people.

having en the victims

ontrol. have called a

halt until • neir wav clear

rant the use of these water

;uitablc '
e fact is agreed i: all par'

erncd. (hat th

g the point .r ade-

quate, being for the most part cumber-
some and invi ion of au-

the

authority and
the laws, at the same
ing them flexible enough to fit ea

The main point of J '
and t'
.
seer

•her th rnment shall '

■

does not ha

as
n upon

selling ;

•

• ate the

loped.
As ret
the po*

to finance a p g a lir

tenure, at-. j enure alto ne-

cs an ad
charge It .on-

tention pro-

»de for safeg

J '

held under the au*;

he had

h the rigf

.on-

•he har

granting

-d a - nder-

of •

uld hare

standing
althoug

Rccoi • . I •• •

In g and in o*

old

*» not so - - aad
ta not ■ »

•

Iroa

a meth rroperttona

i
board on the "*

icll occur rr J vHB
treating frequeno. the operator aoulJ
rhotne his loca aad boo* for

oodHtoo of the
goooaed ai. toe ooerator wooaf oa

a loom it

J ■ ,

618

POWER

April 18, 1911

Competition grew keen. The more
progressive iron makers began to study
their business in a thorough and scientific
manner. Chemists were employed to in-
vestigate the chemical phases of the prob-
lem of refining iron cheaply and with
control over the quality. The influences
of the temperature and the air supply
in the furnace were determined with ex-
actness.

With the acquisition of exact knowl-
edge came the necessity of and, conse-
quently, the demand for means of ac-
curately measuring the variable factors
in furnace operation, such as the blast
pressure and temperature, the top-gas
temperature and the quantity of the air
supply.

It has been alleged that "Necessity is
the mother of invention." It proved so
to be in the present instance, for closely
following the demand came the supply
of suitable recording pyrometers, record-
ing pressure gages and engine-speed
recorders. By the aid of such equip-
ment, the furnace man can tell at what
temperature, in what quantities and under
what pressure the air supply is going
into the furnace. Further, he can com-
pare today's conditions with those of
yesterday or a year ago, for he has the
records.

In the power plant education and com-
petition are fast creating conditions sim-
ilar to these in the iron-refining business.
Success demands that accurate and com-
plete knowledge be acquired of what is
going on in the boiler and the engine
room.

Although this is truest of the opera-
tions in the boiler room, progress there
has been slowest.

How idiotic it would seem to attempt to
operate a boiler today not equipped with
a steam-pressure gage and a water col-
umn. Yet, there was a time when such
was "all the fashion"— in the days of
"haystack" boilers. A platform encircled
the boiler at a convenient hight and when
the fireman wanted to gratify a curiosity
as to where the water level stood he
would mount said platform and give the
boiler sundry kicks amidships which, by
the process of elimination, eventually es-
tablished the point in question. When
the steam pressure rose too much the
safety valve rectified conditions — when it
fell too far, the engine served notice and
the fireman did the rest.

It is not improbable that the time will
come when it will seem similarly foolish
to operate a boiler plant without such
things as feed-water meters, automatic
fuel weighers, recording draft gages and
thermometers, CO, records, etc.

In many quarters a demand already
exists for accurate recording devices.
When the manufacturer places on the
market instruments that are reasonably
low in first cost and upkeep, simple and
substantial in construction and accurate

and reliable in operation, he will lend a
great aid to the right kind of progress in
steam engineering. Great possibilities
lie in this field.

Not A Rival

From the public utterances of a num-
ber of prominent members of the Na-
tional Association of Stationary Engi-
neers, it would seem that the Institute of
Operating Engineers is regarded as a
rival organization, the growth of which is
to be discouraged. This is a misconcep-
tion. The Institute is a school for the
systematic education of engineers and
machinery operators and is no more a
rival of the National Association than any
other educational movement. It proposes
to do in a thorough and orderly way
that which fraternal organizations can
only handle in an incomplete and desul-
tory manner.

The fireman and his helper, the oiler,
and all other power-plant employees,
however ambitious and able, are denied
membership in the fraternal organizations
of the aristocrats of the vocation, while
the doors of the Institute are open to all,
and the future standing of any member
will depend entirely upon his mental and
manual attainments. Instead of being a
rival, the Institute will become a source
of membership of the highest quality to
the fraternal bodies.

Indexing Engineering
Literature

The literature committee of the In-
stitute of Operating Engineers is sending
to the members of that society digests of
articles in the leading engineering papers.
The digests are classified by subjects,
three of the articles upon boilers being
abstracted as follows:

BOILERS

Boilers and Piping of Wieboldt Building. Osborn Monnett
Giving some very good ideas on piping layout as to size, showing
clearly that a much smaller pipe can be used for the run by placing a
good-sized receiver at throttle on engine
i'A PP- 5 ills Power, Feb. 7. 1911

Modern Boiler Plant of Holyoke, Mass. Warren O. Rogers
Illustrating how a great saving was made by building a central station
to do the work formerly done by several plants. Method of coal con-
veying and handling, damper regulation, feed water measuring result*
of boiler tests, etc. s

b'A pp. 15 ills. Po,wer. Feb. 14. 1911

Firing Boiler with Pulverized Coal. W S. Worth. Giving the
performance of a 300 h. p. boiler fitted with the Blake system ol
pulverizing for period of 200 days, with full details of how a proper
mixture of air is attained. V'"V"

5 pp. 3 ills. Power, Feb. 14. 1911

The above is a reduction, the original
size being such that it may be pasted
upon a regular 3x5-inch index card and
these cards filed either alphabetically or
by subjects as the user may prefer. The
persistent following of this system would
result in a card index which would point
to where the latest information upon
power-plant subjects could be obtained,
and if the articles are filed or the papers
containing them saved and the index
card is made to point to their location,
a veritable encyclopedia of the business
would in time result.

A Record Breaking Turbine
Test

The reported performance of a Brown,
Boveri turbine at Newcastle-upon-Tyne,
particulars of which will be found upon
page 599, beats the record so far as we
know of published actual accomplish-
ment in British thermal units per kilo-
watt-hour referred to the total work done
by the turbine with an overall efficiency
of ninety per cent. There are turbines
which have made records under other
conditions of pressure, superheat and
vacuum which, could they be reduced to
these better conditions, would better this
performance, but for actual accomplish-
ment this is the best so far reported.

The United States Supreme Court has
sustained the commodity clause in the
Hepburn rate bill, forbidding coal-carry-
ing railroads from owning coal mines.
Just notice how much difference this will
make in the price of coal.

There are some engineers who are
"old fashioned" enough to believe that
the more simple a power plant is in de-
sign the more economical it is in opera-
tion. They have no use for frills and at
that some of them are getting results.

Have you seen helpers who could not,
or would not, learn the lesson of obedi-
ence? They consider it degrading to
a free-born white man to take and obey
orders.

An engineer cannot expect to accom-
plish much unless he has self-confidence.

Some managers employ cheap help and
use cheap material, and are surprised
that they get poor results.

Have you noticed that some engineers
keep an open tin filled with cylinder oil
in a warm spot so that dust from the
coal, ashes and sweepings can readily
settle into it?

When a power-plant owner is losing
money and does not know it, it does not
worry him.

It isn't so much what you do as the
way you do it that counts toward success.

Do it now; tomorrow may be too late —
too late even to be sorry.

Have you ever taken the trouble to
personally examine the inside and outside
of the boilers in the plant where you
are chief?

Activity is contagious. Therefore, a
lazy chief engineer cannot blame his as-
sistants if they follow his example.

An honest man is respected by all; a
grafter by none.

April 18, 1911

POV

• *

GovernmentControl of Water Powers

The confereru rield at the Un

Engineering Societies building in
York City on April 8. Walter L. Fisher,
Secretary of the Interior, and a large
number of prominent engineers and
water-power men from various pans of
the country were present. Chairman H. L
Doherty opened the meeting with the fol-
lowing rcma-

The National Electric Light Association
is an organization of corporations and
individuals engaged in the electric-light
and power bus * hich now .

7000 members and repre vcr 80

per cent, of the money invested in the
electric-light and power business in this
country. It was or J to encour

the development of electric service from
central-station plants along broad and
comprer. which will bring

benefit to the members of the organiza-
tion and to the public.

According to the last census there
•lO.OOU horsepower available in the
United States in water power which can
be developed at a cost comparing fa
ably with that of steam. Of this amount
about 1.600,000 boi Bf has elrc

been developed electrically and appr
mati ■ OjOOO horsepower has been

developed for industrial purposes through
means other than electrical, leaving ap-

:matcl\ '**> horsepower

available en the smaller

amount of power named would require

It is interesting to note that the ur.
ped water r

tel amount
erated by all known means li
the bulk of ttM J in

mountainous regions, while the great bulk
of all the power now genera; ong

the populous sea coast and pla

is and often far aw.. n these

VSM rs. The qtl

trat

. and rtlial -ugh

mon the equipment

insmit power front
, Ne\» snrk - greater

loos of enei ire «n minv

Mtlc tr .
already being SOOCei '
over Jisur

At ;

on turned mm.
might be »a\cJ t

In the move^'
ird thr

all that
the • B which i» greatc 'ger

ing to note that under ll
•o ca' n*crva'

the il. and to a large

•nmcnl«. have a««umed tf

. 1 Ktr.n |

f>lil>ii

ittl-

tudt

I I 7/7-

l utuiit til,

titude which has almost complete

>pment of a
and ay an unneccs-

and flagrant waste of the fuel
The development of our water; 'cp-

an enormous source of a
able wealth to the community as a whole,
but it i I promise the reward to

the promoters and backers of these en-
lerpl univalent to that whicr

J in almo- line

of bu

Tl- rnment car i a

water-p c that ant the

MOO miner's hut
taki linng millions of dol

.ch a l the

... ...

can be
on of a governmental ai-

The

f to a po! : tenure of

n of

all of the advanced thinkers in the «chool

Jap< is

It ha- on-

an un-

• een uncottsckn

ool.
lands

the
.on.

- and more

not end

accord with the
Jecede*

p %ho

T».f

this cone hoe
of pnmc national
nee. The Go*

and* under the guidance and
atesmen of

for a :■ n of *

benefit

-t and prosperity of the

■
opportu unproductive for many

irs.

Tl uppon of ell the

great statesmen of a

be that the men
nulated ex

Jom of our
late: ' lesmen.

but - itdotn *

ie pub-

ands and opportunities of Oregon,

hington and Colo* ited to

develop these ■ are

the public lands of these and other

in I

ment and used It
that

public lands a the policies of

>ol.

( ition i t W itn I '

I iu-ir Dcvclopmcnl

tiir Pllbl l '

method*

■

and

quantities I

•not be replace J
I hern r»timatcd that
•vsw be

iheo four
lion lone

* e

Ut si*

*th

J wood lo osoot

-t deeaedoi

i . , f. • i •■ • • r ' .<■ aaaee ' * v • mi

620

POWER

April 18, 1911

sumption of coal, wood and other fuels
can be minimized and in many cases
wholly obviated, and in that way the
natural resources, which are limited in
quantity and which are now being so
rapidly exhausted, will be conserved.

The distinction between water powers
operated for private purposes and those
operated for public purposes seems to
me so logical and so important that it
must be recognized in future legislation.
Too much emphasis cannot be laid upon
the radical difference between the pulp
mill or factory type of water power used
entirely in a private business and the
water power used for the generation and
distribution of light, heat and power. The
latter is the servant of a widely scattered
public, serving, without distinction, all
the people, including manufacturers,
domestic consumers, traction lines and
municipalities. In the truest sense of
the word it a public-service business,
and as such there can be no doubt of the
power of the Government to exercise
over its service and charges the most
minute and continuous supervision and
control. The only restriction upon this
power is that there must not be con-
fiscation of the property in which capital
has been invested.

There has been a great deal of dis-
cussion as to the relative legal rights
of the Federal and State governments as
bearing on water powers. These I will
not attempt to discuss. So far as I have
been able to ascertain, the majority of
investors have no particular preference
in the matter; but are vitally interested
in having their public-service invest-
ments regulated by only one authority.
And it seems to me that the possibility
of having one government passing laws
that the officers of a corporation shall
conduct a business in a certain way and
in no other, and another equally potent
government passing laws requiring these
same officers to conduct the public-ser-
vice company's business in a different
way, and in no other, needs only to be
stated to show that such conflict of laws
would be fatal.

Contrary to the general belief the
charges which the Government, State or
Federal, may make for the privilege of
using the water powers is not a matter
of material importance to the power com-
panies, so long as such charges are not
so great as to make it impracticable for
the power company to compete with
steam- or gas-producer plants, or with
other water-power companies exempt
from such special tax. It may seem de-
sirable to the Government that an an-
nual charge be made. To my mind this
is merely one of the methods of provid-
ing State or Federal revenues at the ex-
pense of the particular community
served. I believe that so long as the
charges are not so high as to prevent the
substitution of water power for fuel-con-
suming power, the matter is entirely one

of equitable taxation, in which the only
interested parties are the Government
and the local community paying the tax..
For, if made, such charge must be taken
into account in the regulation of rates,
and will proportionately raise the limit
below which prices to the consumer can-
not constitutionally be reduced.

It is important also to bear in mind
some of the undesirable complications
which may grow out of this method of
taxation where the power developer is
forced to construct and donate to the
Government expensive locks at the rapids
of so called navigable streams. This
large initial investment is in effect a lump
sum tax upon the particular community
served. It must necessarily be paid at
the outset by way of construction costs.
Without being unduly burdensome, how-
ever, it cannot be shifted upon the con-
sumer in a short period. To minimize
the sinking fund or amortization charges
necessitated by this unusual and to my
mind unwise expense, it is necessary to
spread it over a long series of years.
And to the extent that the spreading out
of the charge is made impossible by
the short tenures imposed by Congress
in authorizing the building of the dams,
to the same extent will these amortiza-
tions bear harshly upon the consumers
of power and often prevent the sub-
stitution of water power for fuel-con-
suming power apparatus. In many cases
this lump-sum method of tax is un-
doubtedly too much for a new industry
to bear, and thus defeats the desire that
all these water powers should be built.

Many of the largest and best unused
water powers today are upon the so
called navigable streams. An investor
is asked by the local people to join in
providing capital to develop such powers.
He is at once confronted by the necessity
of securing an act of Congress authoriz-
ing the construction of a dam across
the rapids of the so called navigable
stream, rapids over which in many cases
no boat has ever passed, nor probably
ever will pass until locks are constructed.
In demanding that the power developer
shall construct and present to the Gov-
ernment an elaborate system of locks as
part of the construction of the dam, the
Government overlooks the fact, not only
that such construction must ultimately
be paid for by the community served by
the power company, but also that the
very building of the dam across such
rapids will relieve the Government of the
great expense of creating the necessary
pond over the rapids. If it should there-
after desire to make the rapids navigable
it need pay only the then much smaller
cost of building locks sufficient merely
to put the boats into the pond created at
the expense of the power builders. As
a rule, water powers of this character
involve the handling of large quantities
of water at low head. This of itself
makes development expensive and in

many cases more or less unreliable, un-
less supplemented for short periods by
steam, owing to the fact that extreme
high and low water affects such develop-
ment more seriously than high-head de-
velopments. These great burdens to the
investor are increased many fold in most
cases by arbitrary legislation, restrictions
and limitations. These restrictions and
harsh requirements, from a navigation
Gtandpoint wholly unnecessary, are today
holding back the development of hun-
dreds of thousands of horsepower, the
operation of which would save millions
of dollars' worth of fuel which is being
consumed each year.

In some of the Eastern, Southern and
Middle Western districts where coal is
cheap, it is frequently difficult for engi-
neers to decide whether it is more eco-
nomical to develop water power or use
the ever-improving steam and gas-pro-
ducer power apparatus. Waterwheel con-
struction has so advanced that it is not
possible to materially increase the water
efficiency. On the other hand, the effi-
ciency of steam and gas-producer ap-
paratus has been wonderfully improved
in the past two decades, and will un-
doubtedly be further improved from year
to year.

Where there is this close competition
between the relative economies of water-
power and fuel-consuming apparatus,
and where the adoption of steam, oil or
gas means a large unnecessary consump-
tion of nonreplaceable fuels, is it not
a pity that every possible power at the
command of the Government. Federal,
State and local, is not exerted to the ut-
most to secure the adoption of the water-
power system and thus save the fuels?
Very frequently the omission of all Gov-
ernmental restraints (other than the
power of regulation and those neces-
sary to protect navigation) or a small
difference of cost amounting to not more
than the value of one or two years' fuel
consumption by the equivalent steam or
gas-producer plant, will turn the balance
in favor of the water power.

The investor of today knows that his
property on Government lands is inade-
quately protected. He demands perma-
nent, tangible and specific rights; the
mere shifting and changing permits now
in effect scare off all but the most
speculative class. At present the rights
of the hydroelectric companies in the
Forest Reserves, for instance, are subor-
dinated to operators under the mining
laws. If I am correctly informed, it is
possible for a mining company to start
placer or other mining operations, at the
very dam or canal intake of the hydro-
electric company, and to so interfere
with the company's structures as to
render the operating plant inoperative
and, therefore, useless.

Moreover, under the present law, there
is a question whether the Federal of-
ficials have power to grant or sell to the

April I*. 1H11

I H

hydroelectric companies any rights as
nsi subsequent homesteaders, scrip
locators or 'tr>men, who may ob-

tain title at any later time when the
lands invo a open to

tlcment. If there ii no such autho-
thcr. 'uture scrip locaters. home-

ltrymcn on such la
take possession th
of .1 a plant and p of the

mpany had never
And in . h do not g

electric companies the right of eminent
domain, the J be no icct

such investments againsi the a-

n or unreasonable dcm.i the

sequent scrip

•her cntrymen. who would th.
the absolute p

clec- -loper from the premises

thereby render : 'ant

and investment.

Limited tenur he well enough in

the case of the development jtcr

•\ with
ness which the Government has no right
-gulatc; but advanced thinkers on
suhiccf. I believe, all agree that.
• cable permits, limited ter
are the most fallacious and harmful of
all the | ular notions, when

10 a water p< •her

development made for the pul

A , Jevelopcr may have thrct

four times as large an investment in

:buting system icntireK off •
ernment domain > as in the gencr..

>n on the Government domain. The
system would ni
•an: ade inoperative and

the faih; renewal of the

nal limited tet the genera

■■

ical
■
a! terms on such an on-
ite the
as a whole. There
hat these
renewed on some terms, but what tl
•

so call'

I hat
• the entire generating and

: ng new

rneni must be
and

ant an '

- '

» plant and

leu fie g (he people from

ytu goes or

Why ocal com-

munitics be ta th high rates from

month to month in order t irgc

amortization fund to p
to the Federal l ? at the cr.

irs or oil .«csl

I : the

-ent g<.

-ate
n fund, so that thi

generations

If an am urge at d

o mans • .watt-hour and

so :- !lars per horaepow

re plan-
the

■ tenure, then
rate be on e
doll. i ! during

year luring the thirtieth or fortieth

year? And how it is possible for the
i high enough rati
nth and flf-

;rn the

J all
in during these last
and d the

ss the
and *
■ ■

ihc end of the tenure,
the c.i
and plant
of t

In the water-power bus

' an am*

■ l
plant i

•eturn on ■ and

frot-

\ote al

and

audi v:

■ ;

rr,^r

■

>nc> pul

r\A nt mt mi

tne contunic •

- rid
gsied.

an adc

land a- | supplied from -

a csnsls. but f
ss mar d on

oamen

i sad | .

>uld be of no

g these

i sourer
being a-

or Urn-
1 there not
g periods
tenures to agnation of

all proo

to the

To m\

i-.d cor-
ll a fuel cor n prob

or oiht
poor taat

■

e legi* so mi

The

people

clud

•id discus aiea
of .)

c ' c r ' .

ot lac had* ~

attention la a

' *cen ti- *laa la tats

■

caaaact. lusrlflaaar cs»-
<m should

»iui»«»n t» raecaad

i '«• «:•<•'•> n ■ r* flfo the

• '

I We*»
'.d laad vakb

■•

622

POWER

April 18, 1911

existing status until a policy can be de-
veloped.

To my mind, the most essential thing
in this whole matter is that we do get
together, that we do try to understand
each other, and then that we act. The
time has come when discussion is useful
as a basis only for forward action, and
I welcome this meeting as one of the first
steps in that direction.

J. G. White: It seems to me, from the
ordinary business point of view, that con-
servation properly means "saving what
is otherwise going to waste," and that
would necessarily mean utilizing the
water powers instead of throwing hin-
drances which either prevent or divert
such utilization. Every hour that any
particular stream on which water power
could be developed is allowed to go with-
out such development, a certain amount
of energy is being wasted, and being
wasted beyond recovery. On the other
hand, the coal which may be used from
time to time to develop the energy, in
place of the water power, might rest in
the ground for a decade, or a century, or
any time, with little or no deterioration.
If the Government officials could all, as
most of them do really, think of it as a
fundamental proposition, from a prac-
tical and businesslike point of view, and
then see how they could help to enlighten
members of Congress on the subject,
seeking to arouse their interest in a study
of the subject, and others who perhaps
for the sake of curr'ing favor with the
political elements, or whatever their ob-
ject may be, could be gotten to take a
businesslike point of view on this pro-
position, and then all work together to
the end of arousing the interest of the
Government officers in charge to look at
it from a business point of view, I have
no doubt that most of these problems
could be settled along sane lines.

While the so called water-power privi-
leges might be given in the shape of Gov-
ernment permits, with the right to revoke
such permits, I do not believe, unless
there should be a wholesale change in
the tenor of affairs, that that authority
would be used to the detriment of the
people who had invested their money in
good faith; but in spite of that, it is my
thought that there should be a clear and
businesslike appreciation of this general
problem, and it would seem to me that
some resolutions, either advocating the
appointment of committees to give spe-
cial consideration to the problem, and
to make a report to Congress, or having
a report from the Government engineers
to Congress, for the consideration of
Congress, looking toward legislation
which would be along business lines,
should be advocated by this body.

John H. Finney: A policy that makes
for continued nonuse does not fit the true
definition of conservation, which is wise
use, and for much of this the power
companies are themselves to blame, just

as the railways have been to blame for
radical legislation directed against them-
selves. The time for the "public be
damned" attitude, for frenzied finance,
for secrecy of operation, for extravagant
profits, for unrestricted perpetual rights
and franchises, is past. The time is
here and now for the exact analysis of
all these things; the sooner it is recog-
nized by capital and exploiters, the sooner
will we get that better understanding
that will make wise use and fair dealing
possible. I am no prophet, but it seems
to me that it is clearly possible that
fair dealing and wise use may in time
rest not on the Government control of
navigation, which is now wrongly con-
sidered by the Government as the para-
mount use of water, but on the broader
public-welfare clause of the constitution,
which will consider the larger and more
important and valuable water power,
made possible by a well considered and
coordinated plan of river development, as
the important thing concerning which the
people require education — I do not know
anything upon which Congress would re-
quire more expert knowledge than in
dealing with these matters, and the func-
tion of this body should be wisely di-
rected toward the education of Congress
to the importance of water power now,
and the supreme importance of water
power in the future.

Charles F. Scott: The relations of the
public to water powers, the rights of
the public in water powers, it seems to
me is something that changes from time
to time. It has been pointed out that the
rights in early days, when there was no
use of water except along the banks of
a stream, were such that the rights were
granted entirely to those who occupied
the borders of the stream; and later,
when water began to be useful for irri-
gation at a distance of a mile or so from
the banks of the stream, then the people
occupying the adjacent country were found
to have rights in the stream because they
were found to have a use for the stream
which never existed before. Likewise, when
people fifty miles away have use for the
power which the stream can develop,
then rights, generally moral rights, and
later legal rights, are created which did
not before exist; and it is to meet new
conditions of that kind, for which our
laws are obviously inadequate — not that
there has been a fault in the past, for
it would be as impossible for the legal
machinery of our Government to have
anticipated these conditions twenty years
ago, and provide for them, as it would
have been for the electrical engineers
of that day to have laid out the power
plants of the present day — it is a matter
of normal evolution, brought about
through these new scientific and engi-
neering developments.

If we were in a few words to state
what is the real problem, the general
problem now before us, it seems to me

it would be this: To formulate a con-
structive policy by which water powers
may be made available to the public at
fair and equitable rates. I think when
we consider for a moment the various
phases of the questions that have come
up, that all of them resolve themselves
finally down to that simple proposition — ■
how can this power be made available in
the most efficient way to the public at
fair and equitable rates? The great pub-
lic cry, I believe, is against "interests"
getting hold of water powers in such way
that they may extract an undue profit.
If, therefore, we can insure by Govern-
mental control that that power shall be
made available to the public at fair rates,
we have accomplished the purpose which
we want to accomplish.

D. B. Rushmore: My feeling toward
the Government is that it is not an oppos-
ing force — it is fighting for us, it repre-
sents us, it is ourselves, and we want
the Government to help us, the people,
to carry out these enterprises. A sud-
den brake has been put on, partly be-
cause people do not understand, and they
wanted to stop it until they got the thing
right.

Very few individuals now question the
right or desirability of public supervision
and public regulation, but they want it in
a fair-minded way, and engineers ask
that it be done in an understandable
way. Now, when a supervising body
states that on a certain system the cur-
rent and the voltage must be kept at a
constant value, twenty-four hours in the
day, it appears absolutely ridiculous, and
we know at once that the men, with the
best of intentions, making these rules,
do not know what they are talking about.
The result of conferences like this, and
future conferences for interchange of
opinion, will be that the people who will
have the control and supervision of these
enterprises, will be able to exercise this
control and supervision in an understand-
ing way.

Resolution Adopted

At the close of the meeting the follow-
ing resolution was read and adopted by
the society:

Resolved, That it is the sense of this
meeting convened at the instance of the
power-transmission section of the na-
tional body, that the National Electric
Light Association should offer its coop-
eration with the legislative and executive
branches of the National and State gov-
ernments for the formulation of a definite
constructive policy which will encourage
the prompt and fullest development of our
water powers in the public interest; and

Be It Further Resolved, That to this
end it is recommended that the officers
of the National Electric Light Associa-
tion appoint a committee or committees,
with power to act in the premises, and
to invite the cooperation of such engi-
neering, commercial and other bodies as
they may deem expedient.

April 18. 1911

POV! R

New power House Equipment

Indicator Spring Tester

This apparatus, which is made by the

Schaeffer & Budcnbcrg Manufacturing

Company. Kent and l)c Kalb aver

Brookh . consists essentially of a

closed vessel made of cast iron, capable

of resisting internal steam pressures up

_*tX) pounds per square inch. The

steam pressure in the vessel is measured

I gage of special construction con-

ng of a piston. -luare inch area.

which is free to move in a cylinder.

The lower portion of the piston
pointed and rests in a yoke wbicl

ended on the knife-edge of a pair
of scales mounted on top of the closed
vessel. If the scales arc previously bal-
anced, before admitting steam into the
vessel, dent that the reading of

H hat the in-
f-CJitorjrn/ the manu
/.uturrr arc do'mo r«> v<vc
tiritc >itnj money m the en-
gine room end tn>\ser
hon.se linymc room
OCWJ

place and paper put on the indicator
drum, on which paper ,-rtical lines

are ruled as shown at the lines A H and
t I) - \ || J

The indicator pencil cd aga

the drum and a horizontal line iwn

at the point thus markcJ The pmsc of
the scale is set a- and

steam is admitted to the vessel, gradually

the sea

on each clcn-.cnt of the vessel equal

in area to that

are gn s of a p<

c I

lum

It a-

• on* an '

have accumula'
•hut off *

ind so <

. ■

Mr petiell ha% r
ic«« pesilt

is aiio»cj to tan grs.
of similar lines. I tad

' the

i nee be i

the loss due to the friction i ndi-

Tl g appj to serves for

gages .an be con-

nected •

■

licit I Leather <

>nc end of the

r rare can few aft

S
NC 1%

an a ! •' .C £*£

acing of vartou

The opposite end of the i
»haps of s fca
pomtcJ a- the otncr coj
the purpo*< ibowt

sited h <

& wide hclti

for

fr«'
*a<-

■sji » Mb *^*

i ■

■

624

POWER

April 18, 1911

made until the desired size of hole is ob-
tained.

The reamer or knife can be used by
reversing the detachable handle, which is

the arm to the right or left as desired.
This causes more or less lost motion
between the cam on the lever and the
ratchet gear; therefore the teeth of the

Belt Lace and Leather-cutting Tool

held in place by a thumb screw. This
device is manufactured by the Kane &
Christie Manufacturing Company, 118
Greene street, New York City.

ratchet wheels are engaged for a greater
or less portion of the stroke.

Another adjustment is accomplished by
a screw in the top of the plunger, shown

and substituting one that is not filled
with cog gears a "Type A" lubricator
can be had, the difference between the
two types being that the plunger of the
latter makes one stroke for each revolu-
tion of the ratchet gear. In other respects
the "Model A" is identically the same
as that of the "Model B" lubricator.

These lubricators are manufactured
by Greene, Tweed & Co., 109 Duane
street, New York City.

The H. and B. Steam Drier

The H. and B. steam drier, manufac-
tured by Edward C. Garratt & Co., 25
South Clinton street, Chicago, 111., is de-
signed to separate excessive moisture
from steam before it leaves the boiler,
and the water, thus separated, remains
in the boiler and permits the steam to

"Model B" Rochester Lub-
ricator

This force-feed lubricator is built sub-
stantially the same as the standard
Rochester lubricator, the difference being
in the arrangement of the driving gear.
The stock size of the "Model B" lubri-
cator holds three pints but other sizes
having capacities of from r/> pint to 2
gallons can be furnished. It is designed
for high-speed engines running from 200
up to 400 revolutions per minute.

The oil reservoir is fitted with a gage
glass to indicate the hight of the oil,
which is drawn from the main reservoir
and forced to the steam pipe leading to
the engine by means of a small plunger
pump that is actuated by an arm at-
tached to a vertical shaft. This shaft re-
ceives its motion from a cam that is
driven by means of two hardened-steel
ratchet wheels, which are cammed to-
gether and cammed apart by the action
of the actuating arm. These ratchet
wheels operate a series of cog wheels
which in turn operate the main shaft of
the lubricator.

By means of these cog wheels the out-
side ratchet gear revolves 10 times to
one revolution of the cam driving the
pump plunger. This feature makes the
lubricator capable of doing good work
on high-speed engines. A special ad-
vantage is that the reduction of wear
and tear in the lubricator is greatly re-
duced over what it would be with the
standard arrangement, operating at high
speed.

The driving mechanism is inclosed in
a dust-proof steel cover. The motion to
the ratchet gears is obtained from the
lever which is connected to a reciprocat-
ing part of the engine.

There are three methods of adjusting
the amount of oil fed to the engine. One
is by changing the position of the adjust-
ing arm, which is made by loosening the
bolt in the actuating arm and moving

View of "Model B" Rochester Lubricator

in the accompanying illustration, and a
third adjustment is made by changing
the position of the rod connection on
the actuating arm, for which purpose
holes are provided.

By changing the inner ratchet wheel

pass into the steam piping in a dry state.
The accompanying diagram, Fig. 1, is
a partial sectional view of this steam
drier, as installed in the dome of a boiler;
it is placed directly under the main stop-
valve connection, where the steam must

April \H. 1911

[ through it when leaving the boiler.
Steam passes through the drier as fol-
low;,: Entering at the top, it tra

I. Si View ot I>-

J nward through the passage A
shown bv the arrow, traveling at the same
velocity as it rises, thus separating some
ot the excessive water that ha* been

jv — i ;uj_

drawn in b 'earn and ' K it

urder the baffle r'»'r

turn to the *a''- through the Jralns

.am passes through a sin
process at I) .mJ Caffc ;

ture that might ^scd

rough rhe sma n //

The mini v»nc>

:mg to the .- of b<

■•■

>^cs the - connc

to the piping. < and

all of the steam used from the b<>
either to the main engine or au>
cs through the drier.

i drier I In l drum

ta a common re
boilers and takes care of the moist
the -team pass igh the two su;

I and H from the boiler

er.

•

1>^.

h the
power plan

a large ajj-.t
hoi.

the | uacd for the

planned
to a • an additi.

scherr
frot ne». one condemlng and

the other noncondcnsing. using the
haust steam from the noncondensing
unit for heating and D

poati

The c«
ing the plant and using turbir
save m< J labor, oc.

and also *a

At present the mills are being op-
crated from I r houses, one
ng a >rsepo«er Corliss
und engine »ith a .'J foot
gea- Inawnd of
belt !>oJI-

J00 boms power en<.
ond there a

■ land -amperes caps

In • art

to be assembled IDci * 1500-kilovoH*

oooooooooocy

, ooooooooooq ;

e long*
e boOc-

get the rr

%M »(>«•!

620

POWER

April 18, 1911

Boiler Explosion at Mt. Wash-
ington, Kentucky

One person was instantly killed and
four others were hurt, two probably
fatally, when a boiler of a traction engine
operating the sawmill of Brumley &
Jones exploded on Thursday, April 6,
at 10:15 a.m.

The accident occurred in the woods,
on the farm of John Cornell, on Drake
branch a mile below Whitfield in Bullitt
county. The explosion was heard for
miles around and caused much excite-
ment. The injured members of the party
summoned assistance from the nearest
farm houses and physicians hastened to
the scene. The young man who was
killed was standing beside the engine, of
which his brother, who was the engineer,
had charge, when the boiler let go. His
body was literally torn to pieces.

The engineer was scalded about the
face and internally injured. It is feared
that his eyesight will be permanently ef-
fected.

A laborer employed in carrying lumber
from the mill was frightfully scalded and
it is thought that his injuries will prove
fatal.

The boiler let go without the slightest
warning and caught the crew entirely
unaware of the impending danger. Pieces
of the wreck were picked up hundreds
of yards from where the accident oc-
curred. It is said that the engine was
comparatively new and the cause of the
explosion remains unexplained.

Joint Meeting of Machinery
Dealers and Manufacturers

With an attendance of nearly 000 the
annual triple convention of the Southern
and National Supply and Machinery
Dealers' Associations and the American
Supply and Machinery Manufacturers'
Association was held at the Seelbach
hotel, Louisville, Ky., April 3, 4 and 5.

Opening addresses were made by Gov.
Augustus E. Willson, William Heyburn
and Pendleton C. Beckley upon behalf
of Kentucky and Louisville, while Edward
C. Hinmam W. M. Patterson and S. P.
Browning responded for the associations.

Executive sessions occupied most of
the daylight hours, during which were
discussed important matters connected
with the business end of the various man-
ufacturing establishments represented.

Entertainment of the most hospitable
kind was not lacking and all the visitors
will be heartily in favor of Louisville as
the scene of another annual convention
in the not far distant future.

On Thursday the convention left in a
body for a visit to Mammoth Cave, this
trip constituting one of the most enjoy-
able social features of the meeting.

Officers were elected as follows: For
the American Supply and Manufacturers'
Association, Willard Parker, president,
Spring City, Penn.; N. A. Gladding, first

vice-president, Indianapolis, Ind.; D. K.
Swartwout, second vice-president, Cleve-
land, O.; C. H. Jenkins, third vice-presi-
dent, Louisville, Ky.

Officers for the Southern Supply and
Machinery Dealers' Association: W. P.
Simpson, president, New Orleans; S. M.
Price, first vice-president, Norfolk, Va. ;
I. F. Young, second vice-president, Bir-
mingham, Ala.; Alvin M. Smith, secretary
and treasurer, Richmond, Va., reelected.

For the National Supply and Machinery
Dealers' Association: W. L. Rogers, first
\ ice-president, New York City; J. O.
Herron, second vice-president, San Fran-
cisco; Thomas A. Fernly, secretary and
treasurer, Philadelphia, Penn.

Representatives of Norfolk, Va. ; Ashe-
ville, N. C; Dallas, Tex., and other cities
presented invitations for the joint triple
convention to meet with them next year.
Complimentary references were made to
all of these cities. The selection of a
meeting place, however, will not come up
until later. Asheville seems to have a
shade the better of the argument, judg-
ing by the expression of the delegates.

PERSONAL

Frank T. Clarke, M. E., who has been
located at Los Angeles, Cal., has opened
an office as consulting engineer at Hono-
lulu.

C. M. French has been transferred
from the Deane Steam Pump Company, at
Holyoke, Mass., to the Cleveland office
of the International Steam Pump Com-
pany.

C. H. Pearson, formerly with the Noera
Manufacturing Company, of Waterbury,
Conn., has accepted a position in the
hoist department of the Yale & Towne
Manufacturing Company. Mr. Pearson's
field of operation will be in the West.

On Monday evening, April 4, twenty-
five of the officers and members of
Colorado No. 1, National Association of
Stationary Engineers, tendered James
Merrick a surprise and farewell banquet
in the Albany hotel in Denver. Mr.
Merrick has filled practically every of-
fice in the association during the last
five years with credit to himself and
honor to the fraternity. He was this year
filling the office of vice-president of No.
1, which he has resigned, as well as his
position as chief engineer of the Denver
Gas and Electric building, to accept a
position on the sales force of the Dear-
born Drug and Chemical Company, tak-
ing charge of the Salt Lake City office.

OBITUARY

James C. Bradford, who built the
boiler for the "Monitor" during the Civil
War, and who has been engaged in other
lines of the business since that time,
died at his home in West Medford, Mass.,
on April 10. He was 82 years old. Mr.

Bradford was in charge of the Rhode
Island Locomotive Company's plant for
several years and was master mechanic
of the Providence-Springfield Railroad
Company during the period of its build-
ing.

He was a direct descendant of Gov-
ernor Bradford, who came over m the
"Mayflower" and headed the Plymouth
colony. He was born in Taunton, where
he received his education. He learned
the machinists' trade in Boston in the
Old Colony Railroad shops. He left
this company to take charge of the build-
ing and development of the Fairhaven-
Boston Railroad.

Just prior to the Civil War he started
a boiler business in New Bedford, Mass.,
and continued in it for nearly 15 years.
While there he built the boiler that was
used in the "cheesebox on a raft" — the
"Monitor" — and did much other Govern-
ment work during the war. From New
Bedford he went to Providence, R. I., to
take charge of the Rhode Island Loco-
motive Company's plant, and remained
there until he took a position as master
mechanic of the Providence-Springfield
railroad, which was absorbed by the New
York, New Haven & Hartford Company.

SOCIETY NOTES

The eighteenth annual convention of
the Oil Mill Superintendents Association
will convene in Galveston, Tex., May 25,
26 and 27.

At Philadelphia on April 22 a meeting
of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers will be held at the Engineers'
Club. The subject for discussion will
be "The Recent Work of the United
States Fuel Testing Plant."

On April 21 the Boston sections of the
American Society of Mechanical Engi-
neers and the American Institute of Elec-
trical Engineers and the Boston Society
of Civil Engineers will hold a joint meet-
ing at which a paper will be presented
by B. R. T. Collins, with the Stone &
Webster Corporation, Boston, on "Oil
Fuel for Steam Boilers." The paper
deals with the possible use of oil fuel
for steam-generating purposes in the
Atlantic coast States, its safety and
permanency of supply, as well as condi-
tions under which it may have special
advantages over coal.

BOOKS RECEIVED

Principles of Machine Work. By
Robert H. Smith. Industrial Educa-
tion Book Company, Boston, Mass.
Cloth; 388 pages, AVAxS inches; 434
illustrations; indexed. Price, S3.

Elements of Machine Work. By Robert
H. Smith. Industrial Education Book
Company, Boston, Mass. Cloth;
192 pages, 4^x8 inches; 204 illus-
trations; tables; indexed. Price, $2.

MU ^ >kk, AI'KII

THLKRE is probably more attention, in
telligenl and other? en

t<» the boiler room of the modern |
plant tod ly than to any other one department

In the production of powei the cos! ol the
fuel is in most the lai Je item

in th( oiint . and anv j>< ■:

inction in this means more than an equfc
alent saving made in any othei •

Powa plants in o] I i"i the profit

there is in the bustne nd any plan

oil th.ii i i ms t.» j»<»ini
possibility of iii' in profits will t> en

more or l< onsideration f>\ the man
men mo it direct l\ int 1

It, hi i li hat n ho

nv. I business judgment in

d< partment of theii busii indifferent

to thi • Its obtained in the bui

In chemical indu tin n

rom i hk to ninth,

M« 1 quant i ties of d I -ul »-t m< •

with known
in« hei mat

I»nt; enhancing th<

kind lb ill

1 i : . .
tllr sill.; il in

it da ■ etnpk •

moi

in. m

ot many in il

lint i'

The luirni:

ther fuel in oiler fur*

'innn-rvi.il It lus

trial chemj 1 1

;1h»h and hydro

and tin- |»: up the thin

th< I that tin- produ<

that tin- i

m- in investment >cn t

impoi

a this w

• ■! tin- abilit

■ much ait

strs th-
tli

m bust ion, and t'*» thin
hoi nd will juss i«m> mu

Wht*
I but

•

• •

•

628

POWER

April 25, 1911

The Coal Problem Analyzed

Under this title an attempt will be
made to discuss certain features of coal
and its utilization, and it is believed that
the following may be of assistance toward
a better understanding of a difficult and
complicated problem.

Attention will be first directed to the
matter of definition of words and terms,
as there is no agreement in the use of
them, neither is there a sufficient ac-
cepted vocabulary to enable one to give
clear and definite expression to his mean-
ings. This leads to various people using
the same word or term in a variety of
ways and for the purpose of indicating
things of different character. Therefore,
in the following, attention is directed to
certain terms which have special signif-
icance.

Terms of Special Significance

Coal: There is no definite agreement
as to what is implied by the use of this
word, whether it refers to the coal itself
or to the fuel mixture. According to the
best defined meaning, coal is a solid fuel
and it is something which enters combus-
tion and produces heat. Therefore, none
of its components can be ash or moisture,
because neither of these take part in the
combustion process nor do they develop
heat. It therefore follows that coal is
that part of the fuel minus ash and
moisture, sometimes known as ash- and
moisture-free coal, for which the term
pure coal has been devised. Thus the
first equation of Table 1 illustrates the

TABLE 1. ULTIMATE COMPOSITION
OF COAL.

Carbon Water of

Pure coal = Hydrogen + Combination.
Sulphur Nitrogen.

Dry Coal = Pure Coal + Ash.

Moist Coal = Dry Coal + Moisture.

composition of coal proper, in other
words, pure coal, and the second and
third portions show the dry and moist
fuel mixtures. It is, of course, true that
only carbon, hydrogen and sulphur take
part in the combustion process develop-
ing heat, so it might appear that water
of combination and nitrogen are not con-
stituents of the coal. But there should
be no conception of coal, strictly speak-
ing, other than in its chemical aggregate,
thus nitrogen and water of combination
cannot be considered independent from
the coal without implying a destruction
of its chemical aggregate. The view that
coal fuel is composed of an aggregate
of coal, ash and moisture is a definite
one, having undisputed application in
practice, for it is known that the moisture
is immediately evaporated from the mix-
ture because this fact is observed in the
laboratory. It is also a fact that the ash
is found on the fire grate or in the ash-
pit after the coal has been burned.
Therefore, it is desirable to consider that

By A. Bement

In which attention is
given to the proper usage of
significant coal terms, the
analysis of coal, its size,
the ash content, and feat-
ures over which the pro-
ducer has control. A num-
ber of illustrations of troub-
le frequently met with in
the burning of coal are also
given.

coal, according to a strict definition, is
that portion of the fuel which is neither
moisture nor ash. Thus, it is well, in
making use of the word coal to avoid
misapplication. In certain instances it
must necessarily be used to a great ex-
tent as a general term, but when a specific
statement is involved it is desirable to
adopt a more exact definition. The mat-
ter is further illustrated by Table 2.

TABLE 2. PROXIMATE COMPOSITION
OF COAL.

Pure Coal = Combustible Elements + Noncom-
bustible Elements.

Dry Coal = Pure Coal + Mineral Matter.

Moist Coal = Dry Coal + Water.

Pure Coal: This is a convenient term
which has been quite extensively used
to denote that portion of the fuel mixture
which is coal, as discussed above. It
means the same thing as ash- and mois-
ture-free, but is a more convenient ex-
pression.

Fuel Mixture: By this is meant the
aggregation of coal, ash and moisture.
The acceptance of such a definition is
desirable because it tends to avoid con-
fusion and misunderstanding. For illus-
tration, assume that two different lots of
fuel are derived from a single coal seam,
from the same coal mine, if you will.
One is carefully prepared, low in ash;
it may be referred to as good coal. An-
other lot, high in ash and dirty, will be
referred to as bad coal, when, as a mat-
ter of fact, the coal in each case is ab-
solutely the same. The trouble is en-
tirely apart from the coal and one which
concerns the fuel mixture. Yet, the im-
pression conveyed is that the coal itself
is of poor quality, not realizing that the
trouble is with the larger amount of ash
which makes an unsatisfactory fuel mix-
ture. The equations of Table 3 serve to
illustrate this feature.

Clean Coal: Properly prepared lump
coal, for example, consisting of fuel in
which there is no visible ash, or, in

other words, consisting of clean, black
pieces, accompanied by no slate or other
dirt, is very often referred to as pure
coal, the inference being that there are
no visible impurities with it. This, how-
ever, is not a good definition, because
ash, although not visible, is one of the
components of the lumps. Therefore, the
coal is not pure. It contains ash com-
bined in the structure, notwithstanding
the fact that it may not be accompanied
by pieces of rock or slate. Thus, the
expression, clean coal, is a more definite
and exact one.

Dirty Coal: An expression often used
to denote a fuel mixture containing a
large amount of fine fuel, as "slack" or
"duff." But is not accurate because these
very small pieces of coal are coal to just
the same extent as the larger pieces. This
term should only be used as applying to
a fuel mixture containing foreign matter
such as rock, slate, fire clay, etc.

Size: Is, with some fuel, a feature
which requires more recognition than it
receives, because the size of the pieces
have an important influence on the value
of fuel coal, as will later appear.

Kind of Coal: This expression is often
used with no definite application. The
following examples will serve to suggest
appropriate application: Anthracite, semi-
anthracite, bituminous, semi-bituminous,
subbituminous, lignite, coking coal, gas
coal, blacksmith's coal, gas-producer coal,
pure coal, unit coal, dry coal and moist
coal.

Grade of Coal: Thus, it appears from
the foregoing that anthracite or bitumi-
nous, for example, are not grades, but
kinds. The application of the term grade
is shown by the following examples:
Mine-run, lump, egg, range, nut, buck-

TABLE 3. COMPOSITION OF THE FUEL
MIXTURE.

Fixed Carbon Water of

Coal (Pure) = Volatile Combustible + Combin't'n.
Sulphur Nitrogen.

Dry Fuel Mixture = Coal + Ash.

Moist Fuel Mixture = Dry Fuel Mixtures- Water.

wheat, raw screenings, slack, washed
coal, washed screenings, washed slack
and washed nut.

Interpretation of the Analysis

This is a feature of the coal problem
in which there is confusion, not only of
understanding but of expression. In the
usual laboratory treatment, coal is con-
sidered as an unknown substance to be
analyzed, and the results reported in the
terms of the entire weight of the sample,
in other words, in terms of the moist-fuel
mixture. Thus, for example, a chemist
may report the percentage of volatile
matter as being less in one sample than
in another, the inference being that the
two samples, as far as the coal itself
(the pure coal), is concerned, differ,

April 25, 1911

'-♦

when in fact the coal in each sample may

Jentical, the difference on the n:
coal basis being due to a greater or
percentage of ash or moisture in the fuel
mixture. Thus for the quantitative an-
ia of the constituents of the pure
coal, or. in other words, the real coal,
to be comparable one with another, they
should be stated on a pure-coal ba

I IB

■

isoning applies to the ash con-
stituent of the fuel mixti.

cssed on a moist- fuel basis, it will
ar as a variable depending on the
amount of moisture present. 1

<>n the amount of the dry. not the
. •
Thu- Jer the

required It is true. Ol Course, that
the proper mo if heating value of

coal, as bought and sold in comnn

J on a oa! basis, be-

the moist-coal fuel mixture
that it bought and sold. No mine ;
due ' pure coal. Ash and

as moisture, .i

:hcr
the
gre.i less than another, th'

and
•

fuel n

-. of the
>al.

In th

an a«»

natter I

c%% In thU

T«'

the -.incombustible

ments. In Tat - a quant

>n of .

| rocess and

■
In'appKing anal>tical data to prob-

plify the matter as much as posv
Thus in the foregoing, it appears that the

I not tro-

ally all alt
which bi up to tv

ent But, according to our

the matter
e chem
other element, and the assumption that
bination is with hydrogen, is the
it reasonab Therefore, all of

of the coa
hydrogi • vie combus-

tior. - a- M < ) anJ lca\ the

san reason, in cal-

culating a heat balar ot only

undesirable to c ftter as sep-

arate elcmt rogen a i:en.

•<o \e*si I the

rials of

0 0« 020 CJO 040 O30 040 0* Oft)

'0^« Oio«n«t«r of COo

!>ecaui* air

■
•OM

coal ha
ron th

' compoolt' 'teee

•ifTiina

poorest i»
art

il earn < trior

' so sn .

edttccd,
> might be the

rtm

9 tocl.nnr» •

»%! .:.r..

sho-

plaiaty

that the featur

ation for the
fon* the

■
a point is reached at about «»2H inch
whe- .• small

.
a sing r
age of »ma neot of

the vacant spaces in t'

■
until at about
age

harnti
As the averse

• ■> that at sin

In ot

inch

'tie be*' i •

* n nc» Uveal

■•oy

be dexUed by

the ese of • '■'

. . . , < K , , ,.

■

» -u >tee.

» <«xj»j teete ■' «"•

*tteo hi •' ^»e ew

630

POWER

April 25, 1911

chanical stokers is a matter which in it-
self has an important influence, and
values such as these shown by the
curve would be more or less modified
by adjustment of the fire-bed thick-
ness, or, should hand firing prevail,
the result may be influenced through a
wide range, by skilful hand manipulation.
Thus, fine dust, which would not make
a useful fire with a stoker, could be
placed in a hand-operated fire, either by
sprinkling it lightly over the surface or
by allowing it to become coked and then
broken up. The tests from which the
curve is plotted were all made with one
thickness of fire, and uniformity of con-
ditions, except that of the fuel itself.
Thus the foregoing shows that the fea-
ture of size is of greatest significance
as affecting value, especially so, if auxil-
iary influences, such as hand manipula-
tion, are not employed.

Consideration of the Ash

According to the conception that coal
fuel is composed of an aggregate of coal
proper (pure coal), ash and moisture,
it is found that the coal may differ in
quality, due to a greater or less amount
of water of combination, sulphur or nitro-

♦-•100

u 80

c 60

2 40

0 5 10 f5 20 25 30 35 40
Per Cent of Ash in Dry Coal Pt~"

Fig. 2. Value of Coal as Effected by
Ash Content

gen. These influence its heat value and
in slight measure the loss of heat in the
chimney gases, but do not affect or in-
terfere with the combustion process.
Neither does the presence of the moisture
affect combustion except to cause a lower
initial temperature and to increase loss
in the escaping gases. Thus the water
of combination and the moisture pass
freely to the chimney and in no way ob-
struct action of the fire. With the ash,
however, the case is quite different, as
it remains as a solid residue, which does
obstruct combustion to a very serious
extent, as shown by Fig. 2, which, ac-
cording to best present knowledge, illus-
trates the effect of ash content for any
kind or grade of fuel. From this curve
it is possible to devise a set of factors
which will compensate for various ash
content. Thus, if ash percentage is 20,
multiplying the heat value by 0.79 deter-
mines the actual value.

A definite and clear conception of the

ash with its relation to the fuel mixture
is useful. To this end Table 8 gives
ash content in three groups.

Referring to the first group, it is known
that when a lump of clean black coal,
having no visible evidence of ash as-
sociated with it, is burned, a residue al-

TABLE 8. ASH GROUPS IN COAL FUEL.

1. Ash in the coal itself.

2. Ash in the coal seam distinct from that in the

clean coal.

3. Ash associated with the fuel which becomes

mixed with it during mining, but not de-
rived from the seam.

ways remains. This is the ash in the
clean coal. In all coal seams distinct
stratas of rock, slate, pyrites, etc., pre-
vail to a greater or less extent, as well
as impurities, in other than stratified
form. These impurities of the seam are
distinct from the impurities actually as-
sociated with the coal itself. In addi-
tion to the impurities of the second
division, there are others which emanate
from a source entirely outside of and
distinct from the seam, such as from the
roof and floor of the mine, in the form
of fire clay, rock, etc., the matter being
further illustrated by the equations of
Table 9.

It will be observed in the foregoing
that ash is considered as being only the
residue remaining after combustion. It
is a fact that certain ingredients of the
ash mixture, such as fire clay, for ex-
ample, contain volatile components, as
water of combination. Thus, the true ash
is the residual quantity, plus the volatile
amount. This is true as far as it affects
the displacement of pure coal in the fuel
mixture. It, however, has no application
in practice because it is the residue only
which interferes with and affects the
combustion process.

Upon the basis of values as displayed
by Figs. 1 and 2, Table 10 has been pre-
pared showing values in 1^-inch coal
screenings for maximum ranges of size
and ash content. It is, however, not
implied that 1^4-inch screenings may be
as small as an average diameter of 0.06
inch, but the range has been carried thus
far for purposes of illustration.

Relation of the Producer and Coal
Users to the Problem

Within recent years it has become
customary to purchase coal under speci-
fication, with an agreement as to quality,
with bonus or penalty in case the fuel
delivered is superior or inferior to the
requirements. Many difficulties, however,
have been encountered owing to the com-
plications involved. Probably the matter
may be illustrated by quoting what some-
body is supposed to have said, "that it
is not so bad to be ignorant, as it is to
know so many things which are not true."
This very aptly illustrates the position
of the coal consumer. On the other
hand there exists an equal lack of posi-
tive knowledge on the part of the coal
producer and dealer. The relation of

producer and consumer to the problem
will be better understood when the man-
ner is explained by which the producer
may fail to furnish proper fuel. When
the matter has been analyzed, it appears
that the features over which the producer
has control as affecting the quality of
the fuel, are as follows:

Features over Which Coal Producer
Has Control

1. Locality and seam from which the
fuel is taken.

2. Size of the pieces of the fuel.

3. Amount of the ash content.

It may appear strange that the pro-
ducers' power is so limited when many
specifications give much prominence to
volatile matter, sulphur, fixed carbon,
heat value, etc. But when the matter is
duly considered, the facts become ap-
parent; for example, it is now well known
that a particular coal seam or definite
locality in a seam is of a constant and
uniform quality, as far as the coal itself
is concerned. Therefore, this being true,
it follows that fixed carbon, volatile mat-
ter, sulphur or other components are
constants and need only be determined
once. It also follows that the composi-
tion would be the same from any mine.

TABLE 9. DETAIL GROUPING OF
ASH CONTENT.

Group.

No. 1. = Ash in clean coal.
No. 2. =Ash of group No. 1 + the distinct im-
purities derived from the seam.
No. 3. = Ash of group No. 2 + dirt and rock.

Thus, if the coal is taken from the proper
locality or seam, the requirements are
automatically satisfied.

The size of the pieces in which the
fuel is produced is a matter of great im-
portance in certain coal districts. In
others where only mine-run coal, owing
to its friable nature, is produced, the
consideration of size is entirely elimi-
nated, as all of the fuel as hoisted out
of the mine is loaded directly into rail-
way cars. With the fuel, however, which
is graded into various sizes, a more or
less elaborate screening process is em-
ployed. Thus the producer has control
over the sizes furnished.

The amount of ash content in the fuel
is dependent largely upon the care ex-
ercised in mining, which consists in re-
moving dirt and pieces of rock from
the fuel mixture and in provision to pre-
vent dirt becoming mixed with the coal.
This is one of the important features of
the preparation of fuel.

Other features which are often con-
sidered by coal consumers as something
over which the producer has control, but
which he really is unable to exercise any
influence, are as follows:

Features over Which the Coal Pro-
ducer Has No Control

(1) Moisture content, (2) heat value,
(3) fixed carbon, (4) volatile matter.
(5) sulphur, (6) evaporative perform-

April 25, 1911

ancc secured in use of the fuel,
amount of smoke that may be produced,
suitability.

Referring to these features in detail,
the moisture content, for example,
constant of the coal seam and is th<.
suit of natural process • ending

ages, during the time the coal was
formed. The coal miner cannot afford
to dry the coal by artificial means before
shipment, neither would it be profitable
as a general practice to add water to it.
thus moisture is constant until cha
by weather conditions, or time in
The heat value, fixed carbon, volatile
matter and sulphur are likewise con-
stants of the coal which cannot be
changed. For illustration, it would be
impracticable for a coal producer to make
a change in the sulphur content. There
is no method by which it may be red
and it would not be profitable to add sul-
phur as an adulterant because it coats
very much more than coal.

If a purchaser or consumer should de-
mand coal from a r -d loc.i
specifying heat value of the fuel
lure, and the heat value of (he coa!
livcrcd did not meet the
it would either be caused by excel
ash content. ;ution from some other
locality, or that th ication of heat
value did not apply. It would not be
cause the producer did anything to alter
the heat value and the same is true of
any constituent of the pure coal.

The matter of the amount of water
which may be evaporated when coa
burned under boilers is a matter around

h more confusion, trouble and ur
tainty has centered than probably |
thing else. This is because there arc so
many factors having influence that
impossible usually to know whether the

lit was due to the fuel, the char.i
of manipulator

CJency of the steam-generating apparatus
in - t was emp

Under the heading of what is dc
natcd as auital

demands are made regarding the ;
formance of fuel which hav
sonahlc apr a in

the follow inc

h have actua
cases are quoted as illustrating ti
as if 'icn the cause* are

I understood

(

PO A I K

r « , ' • r* (

luccr haJ
ccm fully operated a d
fun - a nun

some new coal was received
• seemed impossir
the usual steam pressure*. When

-ivestigated. the e
stated that the coal "apr- be all

right but that there wa« no

cl which had been

emerge: was necessary to accept

anything obtainab. . :i happened to

be sotm

fact a vet to that

which had before been satisfactorily em-
ploy.

The trouble was that a sufficient
fuel bed *as not maintained. With the
-nings. f ■ small size, a com-

parr i was sufficient to

air su; the

lum; nan fol ous

practice as to thickneaa of fuel hi
a result that so much air flowed between
the pieces of the burning coal that the
heat ejei was almost entir

m heating this air and for
reason there was . e left to make

i the boilers, or. in other
nearly all of the heat went up the chim-

not being
real t the trouble was

due to some n laracteristic of

the coal.

Tt
Complaint in a certain instance was

made of a high oualit

ttl

called the < - hike 8

d alao connected

ch roads
minateo

used It jrr.-ars that shipment hj
frof- « orders

on th<
rtg ore
mint lump-coal

ould be shipr the

led the Western 1

Baa. cvs-

that il from mine I

r and not at all suited to
the purpose

in r

located
about t< an and operated in the

same coal sear

physical cond
cerned. the sesm at both place*
actly the same, and from this standpoint

the qua
e rea son for the
trou1 ammir

V Of V at

»bcd nut had be*

- 4 in t«Jft*>pl f *. f* hv*

■.

!'• .11

coa

The re; • that i

burn. The coal comi the

.
He rctt

: all rig
and accura*

ance himsc

me unknown rea

peculiar chem uld

not be ignited '
bed on the

K suet cess o'

not high enoui

red from mir

an apparent evidence to the

'yc stoker and failed lo produce
food a nrr as had the former
The

equipped •

• h round ope nil

Messed of being limited lo Hat

The

ge cool company had a caar

tamer The guest ton was one of qu

designates.' and H

4 upo* -nay ha

632

POWER

April 25, 1911

It was in fact this superiority that caused
the trouble. The coal was too large to
form a sufficiently compact fuel bed on
the stoker, with the result that an ex-
cessive quantity of air flowed through
it, producing unsatisfactory combustion.
The customer did not understand this
feature, however, and attributed the
trouble to some inherent quality of the
coal itself, and believed that it was a
fuel of an entirely different nature, some-
thing on the order of an anthracite rather
than bituminous coal.

At this stage of the matter the cus-
tomer was satisfied by screenings shipped
from another mine, which operated in
an entirely different coal seam, although
producing fuel through a 1 >4-inch shaker
screen with round perforations. Thus, it
appears an actual change in the quality
of the coal itself, although slight, when
accompanied by suitability in size, gave
satisfaction.

Exceptional Example of Benefit from
High Ash Content

A large coal user, in an experimental
way, invaded a new field for its fuel sup-
ply and a number of tests under boilers
were made. The screenings from a cer-
tain mine gave an unusually high effi-
ciency compared with those obtained
from other points in the same general
locality. This fuel, however, was extreme-
ly high in ash, but it was felt, at the
time, that the coal was especially suited
to requirements, although the high ash
content was considered an objection and
an investigation was made to ascertain
if "similar" coal containing a reasonable
ash content could be found. The investi-
gation showed that, while the fuel in
question contained a very large amount
of ash, it was not of a seriously fusible
character, therefore did not make trouble
by clinkering, and that the amount of
ash was sufficient to close the opening
at the back end of the furnace between
the bridgewall and end of the stoker
grates, thereby excluding a very large
excess of air which had found entrance
when other coal of much lower ash con-
tent had been burned. An investigation
at the mine showed that the roof was
of such nature that a large amount of
dirt became, at times, mixed with the
screenings, but that as far as the coal
itself was concerned, it was not different
from adjacent mines, but which, how-
ever, had a much stronger roof and for
this reason produced screenings which
had much less dirt mixed with them. This
is nn illustration of an exceptional in-
stance where high ash produced a de-
sirable result.

Bad Stoker Action

A steam-boiler plant served by a par-
ticularly faulty mechanical stoker, was
the cause of much trouble and indifferent
service. On one particular occasion, how-

ever, performance was unusually satis-
factory and the manager decided that it
was due to his having some special coal
which was superior to that usually
burned. He thereupon called up the coal
company and asked where the coal was
produced. He was given the town and
the mine from which it was shipped. He
therefore decided that it would be desir-
able to obtain coal in the future from
this mine. The dealer, however, was
unable to regularly supply it, but shipped
from an adjoining mine only a few miles
distant, operating in the same seam and
whose source of coal was exactly the
same as the other mine. The perform-
ance of the plant when it was burned,
however, was not satisfactory. This led
the manager to call up the coal dealer
and complain of the fuel. He was told
that it was from the same locality and
that it should in every way give the
same result as that from the mine which
he considered satisfactory. But in an
effort to please the customer, special
pains were taken to obtain additional
coal from the desired mine and a report
as to its performance asked for. The
statement of the operator of the plant
was that it was no better than the pre-
vious shipments. He was then told that
it was fuel from the mine which he
wanted and which he had stated had
given satisfaction before. Notwithstand-
ing the explanation, the manager could
not realize that the fuel was from the
same place as that which he had con-
sidered to be suited to his requirements
and felt that if the coal dealer would
deliver him "the right kind of coal" he
would have no trouble.

Example of Confusing Report from
Employees

Coal dealer No. 1 supplied a certain
size of washed coal by wagon to a cus-
tomer. When the time of expiration of
the contract approached, coal dealer No.
2, who was an important patron of the
customer, solicited the business for the
coming year for his company, with the
result that the contract was awarded to
him. Dealer No. 2 purchased coal, which
was of the same size, from the same
producer who had furnished it to dealer
No. 1. He sent his teams to the same
team track, loaded it out of cars of the
same railway, or, in other words, fur-
nished exactly the same product that
dealer No. 1 had supplied and it would
be reasonable to expect that the results
and service would be identical, but the
report received from the boiler room was
that the fuel supplied by the new dealer
was decidedly inferior in quality to that
which had been received from the pre-
vious dealer, that a much larger quantity
was required to do the same work and
that the cost of furnace repairs had been
increased owing to its use. The pur-
chaser, of course, who could understand

none of these things himself but who
must depend upon the statement of
others, laid the case before dealer No. 2
and explained to him that while he was
very anxious to reciprocate in a business
way, he expected to receive equally good
fuel as that which had been delivered
under the previous contract. Of course,
fuel furnished by the two dealers was of
precisely the same grade, quality and pre-
pared by the same washer, but how could
the customer be expected to believe it in
the face of statements of his own em-
ployees?

It is not the intention in the forego-
ing to intimate that the coal dealer or
producer always furnishes satisfactory
fuel, or that he delivers what he should,
but it is the purpose to show to what
extent and in what way it may be pos-
sible for him to fail to meet the con-
sumer's demands.

B.t.u.

Coal

By J. M. Leunam

Manufacturers have for many years
known that the value of coal depends
upon the heat units in a pound, or, as
we say, British thermal units per pound,
which is usually abbreviated to B.t.u. They
have been much handicapped in not hav-
ing a ready method of determining such
units, being unwilling to employ chemists
for this purpose, or to go to the expense
of a coal calorimeter and its operation.

A coal agent suggested to me a happy
rule for determining this. It is such a
valuable rule that all readers of Power
should be informed of it. It involves no
intricate analytics, trigonometry or cal-
culus, but simply the multiplication and
division of numbers. The rule is as fol-
lows:

Divide the pounds of coal in a car by
the railroad number of the car, and multi-
ply the quotient by the price per ton. The
final result is the heat units or B.t.u. per
pound.

In this connection, it may be interest-
ing to know that a green salesman for
coal approached an engineer of a large
company recently, with a view of securing
his year's business. The engineer asked
him how much sulphur the coal con-
tained. The salesman was ready with his
answer and said, "As low as 1 per cent."
The engineer next asked him how much
ash was in the coal. Again he was ready
with his reply and stated that it had 5
or 6 per cent. The engineer next asked
him how much fixed carbon was in the
coal. That was a new term to the sales-
man, but he was going to carry his bluff
and said, "From 15 to 20 per cent." The
engineer next asked him how many B.t.u.
were in the coal. The salesman was
again ready with his reply and said, "Do
you know we have tried time after time
to find those pesky B.t.u. but we have
never succeeded in locating one in our
coal."

April 25. 1911

PO\X

Reexpanding Condenser Tubes

In condenser tubes the most common
defect is to have the ends crushed in by
the packing. This not only causes a
duction in area of the tube, but also ne-
cessitates a large size of packing, uhich,
as a rule, tends still further to crush the
tuK-.

rig which is used on the Pacific c>
to roll the interior of the tube bat-

riginal size wn in Fig. 4. The

rig was made by placing two small sr
lathes tail to tail, with the deadstock
line. One lathe was bolted secure:
. Moor, and the other secured in ■
which allowed the lathe to be moved to
admit of longer or shorter tubes being
handled.

By Prank S. BunUr

I '■ m <//

old

and fit th

bolted to the table of a milling machine.
The top of || out t<>

. e the Cl

.,..L

>ck A. mounted on the

shear* of the lathe and m.

•c on a pr 'tral

This block is of tool steel.
lened, and is hinged so that
open and admit the tubes The bio.
i * nh a half rounJ .
and b' ien the

block is closed and :<>
form a pe- nd hole the c

out* c tube »hcn •

A boilermaker's tube i

n miniature and made to roll
the tub

one at each lathe, the
cration it i

>rr

:he tube* -cd In n

the original vondenser from ■-
were cngth of tube resji;

as, and ll

« an c>
ng them to the
made with a column A •*■

the end of »

a una:

nd the cad
I roller >c bottom half

p of th

into

ing ■> conti

sn the

tut | pushed against the :

To m.i sC tubes are r

4 shorn-

cconomici! testing
small par
•

at the % designed.

It C

bror signed to stand 1000

pou

Mil ii folds is mounted

st the end of i Mich as

a l< The other

-d so as to be j J
along the length of trn and

thus permit the ength*

be bolted mcut
the

the
tub* orm* a

.
leathers The front c-J M outh of the

iade be
the

is n and the one which

opposite end •! ante

Jotted lines

a tube

! mout'

1 1

Ftc

sawold ss

>• si

634

POWER

April 25, 1911

the bell-mouthed fitting in the manifold.
Pull back and shove the tube into this
fitting until it strikes the shoulder x x,
and when tubes are in all of the fit-
tings proceed with the test.

Owing to the tendency of the tubes to
buckle, it is necessary to put on a re-
straining clamp, as shown at C, Figs. 1
and 2. This consists of a piece of tim-
ber grooved to let the tubes rest in it,

and with another timber swiveling on
a central bolt to swing over and clamp
them down. For long tubes, two or more
clamps of this nature may be necessary.
There is no restriction as to the num-
ber of bell-mouthed fittings to put in the
manifold, as the more fittings the greater
economy. By making the parts A B, Fig.
3, in one size for -34-inch tubes, and
another set for ^-inch tubes, the same

manifolds will serve for the two sizes.
When the apparatus is in use, be sure
to leave valve H, Fig. 2, open until the
tubes and manifolds are filled with water
to the exclusion of all air; then close it.
An outfit of this kind is in use on the
Pacific coast and is doing excellent work,
saving a great deal of money. I hope
someone else may find use for it, as it
"delivers the goods."

The Patitz Steam Turbine

The energy required to get a weight W
into motion at a velocity of V feet per
WV2

second is

Taking g at 32.16 the energy in a pound
weight would be approximately
E = 0.015 V*

The energy is thus seen to vary directly
as the square of the velocity. A body
one pound in weight having a velocity of
1000 feet per second has stored in it
0.015 X 1000 X 1000 = 15,000
foot-pounds

of energy; but if it has a velocity of
2000 feet per second it has

0.015 X 2000 x 2000 = 60,000
foot-pounds

To increase the velocity of a body 1000
feet per second starting from rest, then,
takes some 15,000- foot-pounds; but to
increase its velocity another 1000 feet
starting from 1000 feet per second takes
some 45,000 foot-pounds.

A turbine blade running at a certain
speed will reduce the velocity of the jet
passing through it a certain amount. Sup-
pose this reduction to be 1000 feet per
second. Then, if the jet enters the wheel

// the velocity of a body is
doubled it will have four
times the energy stored in
it. Ij the velocity of a body
is halved three quarters of
its energy will be taken out.
The inventor of this tur-
bine, instead of getting up
a low velocity and abstract-
ing practically all of it in
each stage gets up a high
initial velocity, abstracts
about one half of it, restores
the initial high velocity by
further expansion for the
next stage, and gets out
three times as much energy
per stage as a turbine work-
ing on the lower half of the
velocity range.

Patitz Five Pressure Stages. One with Two Velocity Stages
rd-First Stage->j<— Second ' Stagt-T>f.-Third Stage-- >r<-Fourth Stag e->fC-- -Fifth Stage

Curtis Four Pressure Stages, Tjwo Velocity Stages each.
u< First Stage- -->)<—— Second Stage— ->)< (Third Stage fej« -Fourth Stage -

■*1

I 1 Energy Conve'r+edl , Foot IPoun'ds ' ?owt*

k/~:&--2-->k -J-->k-4-->!<-5-->l<- 6>k 7- -^

Rateau Sixteen Pressure Stages, One Velocity Stage each

Fig. 1. Energy-Velocity Diagrams for Three Types of Turbines

at 2000 feet per second and leaves at
1000, the wheel will take out 45,000 foot-
pounds of energy for each pound of
steam passing, but if the reduction be
from 1000 feet per second to rest, the

POWEH

Fig. 2. Diagrammatic Sketch of Patitz
Turbine

same wheel at the same speed would take
out only 15,000 foot-pounds.

Based upon this fact, J. F. M. Patitz,
of the Allis-Chalmers Company, has
taken out a patent for a steam turbine
in which the steam enters the first wheel
at a comparatively high velocity. This
velocity is only about one-half abstracted,
however, by the runner, and the residual
velocity is increased again to the maxi-
mum by further expansion before the
steam acts upon the second wheel.

Fig. 1 represents diagrammatically an
abstract case, the ordinates being veloc-
ities and the abscissas energy converted.
Suppose the total energy derivable from
a pound of steam flowing from the initial
to the condenser pressure to be 240,000
foot-pounds, represented by the length
of the line O A. Suppose that in a tur-
bine of the multiple pressure-stage, sin-
gle velocity-stage type, like the Rateau,.

April 2r. 1M11

the steam is expanded in the first stage
sufficiently to give it a velocity of 1
feet per second, represented by the line
Then a turbine wheel running at
500 fee -cond (this takes no ac-

count of angle of entr> . frictior.
would bring it to real again, and cor.
into work the 15.000 foot-pounds of en-
required to get up its velocity of
1000 feet per second. Its velocity would
then be raised to 1000 feet per second
again by expansion in the second set
of nozzles, as reprcsenn ie line

and the process repeated until the
>00 foot-pounds available had been
all absorbed. 1 .Id. as the diagram

shows, require 16 stages, absorbing 15,-
000 foot-pounds each, as

1 1 240,000

If, however, the steam be sufficient!)
expanded in the first set of nozzles to
it a veloc 9000 feet per sec-

ond, represented by the line () E, a tur
bine running at 500 feet per second would
to 1000 feet per sec-
ond and convert 41

the distance A F ) of the 60,000 foot
pounds required to get up its initial veloc
If now its velocity is
• • . further expansion, as repre-
sented b) PG, tnd the process is
pcated it will be seen by the triar .
• hose apexes arc .r //. / and J that

the process could be completed in five
stages. Not completed | for the

steam would leave the last wheel with a
of 1000 feet, as shown at K.
•nd it would be necessary to put in an
additional low-velocity stage to reduce
the from K to A and rescue the

last increment of cncru >r to double

ach. In addition - adc

*heel t

4 blade and the *ec-
runnim age. A

comparison of the three systems in this
resp. n in Fik

The course upon the diagram. Fig. 1,
would be : generation
feet per second . loc-

ihc fact that some reskJ

crT:pk.j>.io 6>C jjMfltflfjl '• t.'c r.ct

the

-tea:: ■ Mtd i! :..„;' .c •..'. kwtl - j:
gre. lion upon each

I a m of blade*

The arrangement of the Medea

I » Loh

• per sc. the

running bladi

'he stationary' blade and rcdu
from 100«) fCc»
the

ing - panstoo

d »tagct would

n of Mo* is rt

sbova

id a section of the turbine la
reproduced from the
dra

Wh> Smith) Didn't (irt
a |ob

An c cnginer- ajaj recc-

ipon to go to a steam plant la a

throt ace of the old ooc. but

could r • ■■j" • ■ ,: • ■<■ • ' s<" did

j y ; > >

blad M ail

lem. in »hich ca*c Oie second blade

<«nc »

steam at I

dirr .tatlonarv bla

movlnr
If 6m *v

line

' .htch a'

...
fo a cotaaarisoo

The erecting engineer cast I

bad received a d

The engine frame
rank re

led that the engine
of

la his
ine raroctk

knowing that the
Some time

aaer eraa putt

mm a 'arts*, e

•

*** eeaaea i

ne did tw ■**

>**

636

POWER

April 25, 1911

Uncle Pegleg on Force of Gravity

Fogchurn Hollow, Term., March 15, 1911.
Dear Uncle Pegleg:

I've bin readin' some of your talks
with the kid in Power (which hits the
trail into this here lumber-chuck about as
regular as the mail man) about ropes
and pulleys and things. I want to ask
you some questions about things in that
line I can't understand.

'Bout three weeks ago I made a trip
with anuther feller down the crick to
town, to see the sights. Most of what
we saw I don't remember very well, but
early in the day we went around to the
artifishul-ice plant to see how they made
ice by machin'ry. and there we saw a
sight I shan't forget so long's I live —
though's I kum so pretty near dyin' o'
laffin' right there I wuzn't so far from
forgittin' that too.

They got a sizable engineer down to
that plant, named Jim Taintor. My chum's
father knowed him, and thet's how we
kum to dare go round there and ask
questions. Jim's got more fat to him th'n
he has git-up-n-git. He don't ketch him-
self doin' 'n hour's labor thout he spends
about half a day figgerin' out which is
the easiest way to do it. Thet's how he
come to do the vodeville act that near
bust us up.

Ye see, they use a lot o' salt to thet
plant, to make the ice — though Jim
showed us as how they didn't use the
salt to make the ice cold, 's they do in
rnakin' ice cream, but only to make brine
what wouldn't freeze. (Funny, I thought,
to spend all thet money to make somp'n
what wouldn't freeze, when the whole
fact'ry was set up to make things freeze.)
Howsmdever, they do use a lot o' salt,
and it comes in big wagonloads o' sacks,
and its Jim's job to get the sacks up in-
to the storehouse loft above the "can
room," as they call it.

Well, so Jim told us after he got cooled
off some, them bags o' salt weigh about
180 pounds apiece. The only helper
Jim's got, besides his fireman, who can't
leave his fires, is a boy not big enough
to do much pullin' on the rope. Besides,
Jim needed him up in the loft, to untie
the bags v/hen they got up there. So he
had to pull 'm up there himself, 'n they
air heavy enough to most pull Jim off'n
the ground — he weighs only about 200—
at ev'ry heave.

So Jim got his thinker to work and
figgered cut 's how his legs were lots
stronger 'n his arms — just 's sailors, he
said, knows enough not to pull ropes
down with their arms, but to jump up on
it with their leg strength 'n then let their
weight swing the rope down. So he'd
first tie the rope to a sack o' salt on the
ground, 'n then climb upstairs to the loft,
ketch holt o' the rope out o' the door, 'n
swing himself out on the rope. All he
had to do was to hold on tight, 'n down

In which the old man tells,
in his simple way, all about
gravity and incidentally
why Jim and the salt bag
did not balance.

he'd kum, just as easy, while the sack
went up past him 'n stopped opp'sit the
door when Jim stopped on the ground.
Then the boy d' pull the sack in the
door, untie the rop 'n Jim 'd be ready for
another trip upstairs.

This went bully. But one day the salt
man got a carload o' salt from a new place,
'n without sayin' anythin' to Jim about
it he sent round a wagonload o' salt in
sacks 'at weighed only about 120 pounds
to the sack. Jim didn't notice no differ-
ence, 'n tied the first one on and dumb
upstairs an' swung hisself out on the
rope, expectin' ev'rything to work just
's it alius had. But it didn't work that
way. Stead o' slidin' down easy to the
ground he went away like a shot. The
sack got such a yank thet it bumped Jim
pretty hard on its way up, 'n bout time
he wuz gettin' straight in his mind what
had happened to him when the sack hit
him, he found the ground had kum up 'n
hit him hard from below — a good deal
harder 'n ennybody 'd ever hit Jim that
way sence he was a small boy; for it
had all happened so quick Jim hadn't had
time to get his feet down into shape fur
landin', 'n he came down sittin' down.

But he didn't have much time for bein'
dazed, cause when he landed he hit so
hard, what with the whack the sack had
given him on the way down, thet he let
go his holt on the rope. Well, o' course,
then the sack o' salt, which was up op-
posite the loft door, started back home
agin; 'n as the boy had already caught
holt of it, he a'most kum too. But he let
go in time.

The sack didn't come down very fast,
for it couldn't move along thout whippin'
the rope, coil after coil, out from under
Jim, 's he sat there wonderin' whether
he'd been a big enuff fool to deserve
treatment like that. The sack puiled
powerful hard 'n jerky, 'n Jim couldn't
help wonderin', he told me afterward,
what sort of a horizontal buzz-saw it
wuz he'd set down on, ennyhow.

Pretty soon he quit wonderin' 'n com-
menced to talk. I spose he'd made up
his mind as to the buzz-saw, 'n was
speakin' it freelike. Ennyhow, the lang-
widge was most enuff to make that sack
o' salt ashamed o' intrudin' on his sassiety
'n turn round 'n go back to the loft agin.
But it didn't do no sech thing. It kum

right along down. 'N just about the time
Jim had made up his mind that not even
strong langwidge could appeal to thet
buzz-saw, 'n he'd better stand up, the
sack o' salt kum along 'n countermanded
the order. It knocked Jim so flat there
wuzn't no room left for langwidge at all.

He lay there so long I really thought
he wuz hurt, though chum 'n me wuz
so bad off for laffin' we couldn't do enny-
thin' to help. But he kum to bout 's soon
ez we did — 'n then we had to quit laffin'
'n ask him if he wuz hurt, 'n where.

It wuzn't until I got back up the crick
on the job agin thet I've hed time to
think about this thing. I haven't been
able to figger out just how this thing
happened, 'n why it wuz he went so much
faster 'n usual. No, I don't mean thet.
I can see why he went faster, but I
can't figger out how ennyone wuz to know
how much faster he wuz to go, under
sech tryin' circumstances 's a 120-pound
sack o' salt. Please help me, Uncle
Pegleg.

Your lovin' nevvy,

Dave.

The problem which is puzzling Dave is
an important one, for it concerns all
cases where force sets matter into mo-
tion.

Our most familiar instance of such a
phenomenon is that of simple falling
bodies, where there is no rope and coun-
terweight attached to complicate the
problem. We are accumstomed to say:
"Oh, a body falls 16 feet the first second,
32 feet the next, and so on." But the
schools do not commonly teach the broad
significance of this fact.

We who live on the surface of the
earth, where all bodies, except for air
resistance, have this same rate of fall,
naturally take this particular rate for
granted, as an inherent property of mat-
ter. But, those who live elsewhere at
times — and every mind which studies
natural science must often wander above
and below the surface of this earth —
know that this is not so.

Every solid body presents to our
senses at least two qualities. One is its
mass. The other is its weight.

The mass of a body is the quantity of
matter within it. This naturally is the
same, wherever you may carry it. If
Dave, for instance, should heave a chunk
of coal at his chum, it would strike just as
hard a blow wherever the act was per-
formed, at sea level, on mountain top,
on the surface of the moon or of Mars
etc.

The weight of a body, on the other
hand, is not an attribute of that body,
but of its relationship with other, usu-
ally larger, bodies, such as the earth,
moon, Mars, etc. Consequently it varies
whenever you change either the other
body or the relationship with it. This

April 25, 1911

♦U7

same chunk of coal, for instance

. h quite differently at the earth's sur-
face according: at the sea
level, up in a balloon, down in a mine,
at the North Pole, at the equator.
It would also weigh quite differently at
the surface of the moon. Mars, etc., from
what it does anywhere on earth.

Now motion i< merely the result of
the effect of tl ing force weight,

acting upon this constant mass.
only a coincidence that at all the p
inhabited by man the for.
so nearly constant that u that the

rate of fall is constant. Horizontally

:iay have any force acting on a v
mass and any resultant rate of motion;
and, in mechanical engineering, these
l of horizontal motion are all-im-
portant.

It was Sir Isa.i ton who I

gave us the law of motion, or of a.
eration, to speak exactly. He said that

the acceleration, or the gain in
locity each second, is proportional to the
force and <bi told us what that :
tion

know, for instance, that when we
drop a piecr of iron which weighs one
pound, the velocity at the end of the
second is about 32.10 feet per second.
Therefore, I called an acceleration

I feet per second.

According to fact repre-

the broad law that

■

-cin g is the accelcra-
Or. for other rates of acceleration,

m t

In other words, the acceleration
ponional to as the ' the

^ht of the bod
These facts a- hard t

the earth'* surface

>ns arc tied do»n to the particular
■

of here, and all he-
are afflict*
due to the sa- the

in the he..
because there ■ I earthly

■ ■ '
not J

To help t lation out a fam

l
modeled quite alter Jim's u

K two

making
be a« '

used a*
feet . ht of the mm being studied

i)d be %

\t it tn »a\ In this mi
- being *c

of t

fairly near

arison -
•Tcrcnci no-

tuch slower than -

died
much more cor

the sum of Jim's »**gH
and ' the s*

pounds and in the second

the mans to be r
ab>
Tbt i^

ie first

= 8 ]«1 Svr M«»ad /trr mnmmi

In the first l and

:aoca of fall would range as foll<

uld reach the ground
in aboir

ing at the rate of rcr second,

or abou-

In the isc the correspond

••j.

si.. • ',. t mat am . xvl

i
■ M St

Conscqi- n would the

■

g at a
rs an h

At wood's ma i not relied upon

'ions ©•
of .\ i pon

flnel> con>

' the gencralit

i<.

rr;

J.*^

638

POWER

April 25, 1911

Engines in British Rolling Mills

Steam engines in use in the early days
of the malleable-iron trade were mostly
of the simple noncondensing type work-
ing with a late cutoff. As the puddling
and reheating furnaces were able to
supply enough steam for them, and as
there was then no other known method
of using the surplus heat, there was no
inducement to install more economical
types. With the advent of steel, how-
ever, this was changed; more power was
required for rolling and less waste heat
from the furnace was available for the
generation of steam. Then when it became
necessary to install new engines some at-
tempts were made to improve their steam
economy. The simplest of these was
the introduction of feed-water heaters
and by this means a saving of from 10 to
12 per cent', was obtained.

In the case of mills the rolls of which
run continuously in one direction, com-
pound-condensing engines of the most
modern type with automatic expansion
gear have been, and still are being, used
with excellent results. In the case of re-
versing rolls the case is different. Early
attempts at compounding such engines in
England ended in failure and prejudiced
those in charge against them; and it is
only since they have been introduced
successfully on the Continent that they
are again beginning to be taken up by
English steel makers.

The conditions which a reversing roll-
ing-mill engine must fulfil are briefly
these: It must be simple and free from
all unnecessary complications, in order
that it may be able to work day and night
with the minimum risk of breakdown; it
must be able to start with the cranks in
any position, and with the load on; and
it must be easily handled; the handles
requiring to be continuously used should
never be more than two, one for the
steam and one for the reversing gear.
The first of these conditions is met by
making all the motions as direct-acting
as possible and giving all parts ample
strength. The second condition means
that with two-crank engines the cutoff
cannot be earlier than 75 per cent., and
with the three-crank engines 55 per cent.
of the stroke. The third condition al-
most prohibits the use of expansion gears,
and leaves the control of the engine to
be effected by throttling the steam sup-
ply, which operation is as follows: The
engine is turning slowly round in the
proper direction when a hot ingot is
brought forward and caused to enter be-
tween the rolls; the driver at this instant
opens the throttle and the ingot is pulled
through, the throttle being closed just
as the steel is about to leave the rolls.
There is still steam in the connecting
pipes and valve chests, which, together
with the kinetic energy stored in the ro-
tating parts, causes the engine to race

By Thomas B. Mackenzie

Abstract from a paper re-
cently delivered at a meet-
ing of the Institution of En-
gineers and Shipbuilders
in Scotland. The relative
merits of simple and com-
pound engines for rolling-
mill work are considered
and also the application of
low-pressure turbines.

until the reversing gear has been brought
into use, when the engine begins to
rotate in the opposite direction. The
steel again enters the rolls and the op-
eration is repeated until it has been rolled
down to the required dimensions.

The early compound engines made in
England were constructed in the way
usual in land and marine practice, with
a throttle on the high-pressure cylin-
ders only; consequently, the racing was
very much accentuated. In addition to
the steam in the high-pressure pipes and
valve chests, there was the steam in the
connecting pipes, intermediate receiver
and low-pressure valve chests. Further-
more, when the engine had been reversed
the receiver pressure had fallen to Jhai:
in the exhaust pipes of the low-pressure
cylinders, and only the high-pressure
cylinders were available for starting the
mill. The drivers had, therefore, to use
their own expression, "to take a race at
it," that is, the engine was allowed to
get up to speed before the piece was en-
tered, causing severe shocks and often
leading to breakdowns; hence the com-
pound engine was condemned as unsuit-
able for rolling-mill purposes.

As is commonly the case, the cure is
almost ludicrous in its simplicity, con-
sisting as it does in merely placing a
valve between the intermediate receiver
and the low-pressure valve chests, con-
nected to, and acting along with, the
high-pressure throttle valve. Therefore,
when the driver closes the throttle valves,
he bottles up the steam in the receiver,
and the steam in high-pressure pipes and
valve chests, together with the kinetic
energy stored in the rotating parts, com-
presses this steam and raises the re-
ceiver pressure, at the same time bring-
ing the engine quickly to rest. On re-
versal the receiver supplies the low-pres-
sure cylinders, so that all are available
for starting under load, and the engine
starts easily.

The question: "How much steam does
a reversing rolling-mill engine use per
horsepower-hour?" is perplexing, and
one to which it is difficult to obtain a di-
rect answer. Last year a paper was read
at the London meeting of the Iron and
Steel Institute by Messrs. Sehmer and
Drawe on "Economy and Design of Mod-
ern Reversing Rolling Mill Engines," in
which it was stated that on a forty-five
hours' test of a compound rolling-mill en-
gine the average steam consumption was
350.77 pounds per ton of material rolled
to 9.222 times its original length. This
is equivalent to about 22 pounds per
horsepower-hour. 'The steam pressure
was 103 pounds gage, and the absolute
back pressure in the low-pressure cylin-
ders 3.25 pounds per square inch. It
was also stated that formerly, with a non-
condensing engine, under the same condi-
tions, the steam consumption was 880 to
1100 pounds. In the case of the com-
pound engines the steam consumption
named is said to have included that re-
quired for the condenser pumps and auxil-
iaries. There can be no question as to
this being an exceptionally good perform-
ance, and one which could not be main-
tained under ordinary working conditions.
For everyday practice 24.2 pounds per
horsepower-hour will be nearer the
figure.

Until within the last few years the
only use to which the heat in the exhaust
steam from noncondensing engines could
be applied was for heating feed water,
etc. Since the advent of the steam tur-
bine, however, it has become possible to
collect this steam in a closed system of
pipes and use it in exhaust-steam tur-
bines. Such an installation, when used
v/ith intermittent running engines, con-
sists of three essential parts: first, a
thermal storage tank, called by Professor
Rateau the heat accumulator; second,
the turbine proper, and, third, the con-
denser and its pumps. The pressure in
the thermal storage tank supplying these
turbines is usually 17 to \iy2 pounds
per square inch absolute. It is danger-
ous to let the pressure fall to that of
the atmosphere, and fatal to let itgetbelow
that point To prevent such an occurrence
it is customary either to fit a reducing
valve which will allow live steam to pass
at the lowest permissible pressure in
the storage tank, or, as in more recent
practice, to use a mixed-pressure tur-
bine. There can be no question as to the
latter being by far the better method, as
the live steam can then be used with
maximum efficiency.

In considering the adoption of an ex-
haust turbine, it must be kept in mind
that the result of its introduction will,
by raising the back pressure, increase the
steam consumption of the engines ex-
hausting into the thermal storage tanks.

April 25. 191 1

..-#

In the case of the noncondensing engine
cited, it would increase the steam con-
sumption about 2<) per .. The in-
crease of back pr oil not be
than three pounds per square inch. The
by co: on, leakage, etc., be-
n the reciprocating engines and the
turves a ill generally be about 15 per
cent. For every 100 pounds of steam
which a noncondensing engine uses when
exhausting freely into the air, it will,
when connected to thermal storage ta
use 120 pounds. Of t: pounds will
be available in the turbine. The author
recently had occasion to witness a care-
ful test of a mixed-pressure turbine, and
the result showed that with dry saturated
n at a pressure of 17 pounds per
square inch absolute and a vacuum <
inches of mercury the steam consumption
was 26.6 pounds per ho- r-hour.
the thermal efficiency of the turbine be-
ing From this performance
pounds of steam would he capable of de-
veloping 3.K3 horsepower. As a live-steam
a it h the same initial
sure and d :pcrheat as the
reciprocating engine. Mould use
pounds of steam to develop the same
er, the noncondensing engine should
be l i this amount, makim
equivalent net consumption

in the same time that it formerly used
100 pounds when exhausting freely to the
atmosphere.

A compound engine
•cam for everv li*> pounds used by a
noncondensing engine doing the same
work. Also, it has own

that a live-steam rurl II use

pounds of steam to develop the tame
amount *hich could be gotten

an exhaust turbint placed beyond
and in *ith th en

ginc i replaced, per

steam a* I. urn of

then

•
id of unds required rn the

none •

• prc-si
the thermal storage tanV .imc

amount an therefore h

im, an a,

real sav-

to so arrange matters thai
I
the Si

when tl * in

■

tanks a-

live stca

( ' us in Boil

■.g meets' AsstK
tion. of England, »'iiUam Ingham
cent

on the above subject. T r, of

London, abstracted th.

present the

irks. In the course of
Ingha Dts-

'on bo. rred

.mber IH. I909. when eight Lan-
cashire boi >imultaneoi.

four and

com; he other four,

boilers wcr gas

and beneath each gas burner at the front
of the boiler a small coal fire was •
constantly burning to ignite the gas flame
shoi. mguist

was a certain amount
ig the cxplos
and it was suggested thai, as there
'able fl n in the g.i

ition of the quality and

of the gas. if, after the flame

ied and the gas and air

scharged in c !cral ,uan-

s in the flues I

plosive mixture might accumulate, and

the of a larg ne of such

the flame from t' fire

or I >m an adji tier

it cause th • would

lift the boiler and cause it to explode

internal pressure in
again.
Careful

that the maximum
■
■ i
COCO inds per square inch

fined in a

pent

I and the ga» pre»»t
and

Ceria

boik rag

in ci

the boi
was that

flue •<,»,!

ccurrev:

In
one earn Ccn ccooo

and the upper
port c back end of the ccosmmt

be noticed that th<
plosions in boiler flue almost

of a mild ch. seldom do-

ing

■r>e brickwork forming
the fluet n plate* or

I ^

Meet H I ^urc«

irch meeting of It
Isolated Plant Association, held

members relat ences .

the centra:

most ini | of these %a» the story

of a large

"oiler horsepower and
has a f load factor, owing to

Complete records

• of all
ings I all labor ted to

the

ss than two cents
!ing all flted
char
•

a nee to
on terries.

and allowed to i
such Instrument readings aa be wished;
se data

a peed, hovr
and

,-on tbe

mother i

•C message Ik it or flsu

fori

reared so offer a r' t

plant and c
ktsn upon tbe

ihe da

kg gp t

t sa, • • Mr tnathj -trinion

•ion I "*» ISJSfl

• n c Mm to predawn a» «

-mBBSBSBSBBSBBBSBBBBBBBBBSBSBSSBBSBBBBBBBBBaBBBI

en or

*•

sTCUfTC ' fSl

< d been 'arm tads* i

640

POWER

April 25, 1911

fi»

;Vew Engine Type
Alternator

Especially^

The accompanying engravings illus-
trate the construction of a line of low-
speed alternators built by the Westing-

conducted tobe of
interest and service to
the men in charge^

of the electrical
equipment

to the hub of the field-magnet spider, as
shown in Fig. 2; the lugs are insulated,
of course, from the bolts and the sup-
porting ring. This construction obviously
leaves the collector rings entirely open
on the interior, permitting heat to be dis-

ing engine or waterwheel. The field mag-
net (Fig. 1) consists of a steel wheel,

exactly like a flywheel, the rim of which

forms the yoke of the magnet, with

laminated poles bolted to the face of the

rim and exciting coils surrounding the

cores. The magnet poles are of the

usual type, having extended poletips at

the faces, as indicated in Fig. 2. The

poles are held on the rim by simple

hrough bolts, no dovetails or other means

than the bolts being employed. The

magnet coils are composed of copper

ribbon or strap wound edgewise with

fireproof insulation between the convolu-
tions.

The collector rings are of cast iron

with radial lugs projecting inwardly.

pany for mounting the revolving field These lugs are bolted to a supporting the upper part of Fig. 5. The dovetail

magnet directly on the shaft of its driv- cast-iron ring which, in turn, is bolted projections stamped on the backs of the

Fir,. 1. Complete Field Magnet
house Electric and Manufacturing Com

Fig. 2. A Field-magnet Pole

sipated from the inner as well as the
cuter surfaces.

The armature core is built up of seg-
mental stampings of the form shown in

w- ^s^^^k

fa Hhi

tfo.

M^k\

j Jy

Fig. 3. Armature-housing Ring

Fig. 4. The Complete Armature

April 25, 1911

segmen: iugly in slots milled in

which extend axially across the face
of the housing ring, as shown in Fig. 3.
The joints between the ends of the seg-
•

so that each joint is flanked by so!..:
on each side of n plane. The

>ing or main frame is of cast
keleton cr on and ventilated

by large slots cored in the center of the
housing face or "rim." Fig. 3 gives a
clear view of the construction of
nich combines lightness,
strength and ability to ' of heat to

a remarkable degl The segmental

laminations are assembled in the housing
ring under pressure and held in place
by malleable-iron finger plates of the
shape shown at the center of Fi^
backed up by cast-iron end rings which
are keyed to the housing. The segment
shown at the bottom of Fl| a venti-

lating spacer. A ring of these
between the core laminations at intervals,
during the building up of the cor

fort: -»ting duct* in tht

n of I .
show mat the core teeth arc
ead near -

■
■
The armati:
nd and
being put in the the

Jard r

and high ■•
After each ind an.!

is J turn 4

with a mo

hen the »rapr
and finally the

'mm mechanical ln|ui
cag< 'o the '

ring, as .: 4 7 ige«

are built tip of r-

Segment* of • »'ccl r ■ • !••»•■-•

In si
rant

and They

phase i
pha-

Redd] v | tutrophe

in the 1 I I

Rcddy's official posr
house vas that of founh assistant to the
second cng

posed to make himself genera!:
in any department in

641
ss tbe>

■ ■•!■ I ■! ■ ■

■indry bits of adi

- g.cJ to uc-

M Rcdd> had to
other mca: liaacflt. The

esc Wk<

. * • ■ • ■ * % *

had bec

the csnsu

ricks
ration a-oald hat*
ution to have aha rein
plant »ould

Irst cape- - f—» *f

nced<

: a »h» ''thar

•• sf
e oiler*

. i

c to Had s hat ha

cad baa af aar

•nit he utu

longing to

verlrnt r'i.' "tit ><f thrtr ?«-«ch irj '

catlona' >• rJ fc

in* fniit 'rt^r lS(

*4rt

■ ♦ •••<•

642

POWER

April 25, 1911

This trick usually exhausted everybody's
patience and the men would catch him,
carry him out to the boiler room, hold
his feet up and pour coal dust down the
legs of his overalls. After he had ac-
cumulated all the dust that would stick
they would take him out in the yard to
the overflow tank in which the condensers
discharged and throw him in. Reddy
enjoyed the latter part of the treatment
as much as any of them, but did not
like the amount of work that was neces-
sary to get the coal dust out of his
pants.

He met his match one day when he
tried to play a joke on Hans, the station
repair man. Business had been poor in
Reddy's line all the morning and he was
looking for trouble. He had not been
able to find an opportunity to start any-
thing worth while until he happened to
spy Hans down on his knees scraping the
end of a belt which was to be spliced,
the glue pot being near at hand. When
he discovered Hans in this position the
possibilities for breaking the monotony
appealed to him at once and he began
to plan the most effective way to break it.
The belt driving one of the exciters was
close to where Hans was working and
was charged heavily with static elec-
tricity, and an overpowering curiosity in-
duced Reddy to find out if Hans' overalls
were thick enough to insulate the elec-
tricity. Going into the stock room he
found a piece of heavily insulated wire,
one end of which he laid on the floor,
bending it up so as to come near the
belt; the other end he wrapped around a
stick and touched it to the seat of Hans'
overalls.

Ordinarily Hans was very slow in both
speech and action and had never before
been known to make a sudden move, but
the effect of the shock was surprising.
"Gott in Himmel," he yelled, and making
a violent effort to straighten up, pitched
forward on the floor and upset the glue
pot. Scrambling to his feet he looked
around and, seeing Reddy, knew instant-
ly the cause of his trouble. Reddy had
been so surprised by Hans' sudden move
that he delayed making his exit, and as he
turned to run he tripped over the belt.
Before he could get on his feet, Hans
had him and was calling to the other men
to come and see what was going to hap-
pen to Reddy. The entire station force
turned out to see the show, many willing
hands helping to drag Reddy back to
where the glue had been spilled, and
while they held him, Hans wiped up the
glue, using Reddy's hair for a mop. After
getting it thoroughly saturated they car-
ried him out to the boiler room and
rubbed his head in the coal pile. Reddy
spent the next two hours in the overflow
tank trying to wash the coal and glue
out of his hair, but with poor success.
Coming into the engine room he tried to
complete the job with a bunch of waste
soaked in gasolene while the men stood

around and gave him all kinds of advice
about the danger of premature ignition
from getting the gasolene so near his
hair.

After this strenuous experience, Reddy
remained fairly quiet for a few days, but
such a condition could not last long and
everybody around the station was wonder-
ing where he would break out next.
His success in applying electrical treat-
ment to Hans prompted him to try it, a
few days later, on old Tom, the station
cat. He had often tried the experiment
of rubbing Tom's fur in the dark, and
knew that as a generator Tom was a
success; but he was curious to know if
the process were reversible and how Tom
would perform as a motor in case the
current should be applied to him from
an outside source. As a motor old Tom
proved to be a "howling" success.

Reddy found him curled up asleep on
the operator's desk, which stood just in
front of the switchboard panel contain-
ing the circuit-breaker and instruments
controlling one of the main units that
was in operation at the time. He made
the connection with Tom in somewhat the
same manner that he had with Hans,
but the result was rather different. Old
Tom let loose a blood-curling yowl and
went up in the air several feet. As he
came down "all spraddled out," his feet
landed on the handle of the main switch;
his struggles pushed the switch open and
there were fireworks all along the line.

Here was where Reddy's smile faded.
After the men had got things straight-
ened out and the service had been re-
stored, the superintendent came in and
investigated. Upon learning of Reddy's
experiment on the cat he took that youth-
ful genius "on the carpet" so effectively
that he didn't smile for the next hour and
a half. Then the superintendent went
out into the boiler room where he could
laugh without Reddy seeing him.

A Big Hydroelectric Develop-
ment in India

A hydroelectric undertaking has been
promoted by a Mr. Tata, of Bombay,
which will require a capital of about
twenty million rupees (more than six
million dollars). The site for the gen-
erating plant is at Lanowli, about 40
miles from Bombay, the chief commercial
city of India. The waterfall has a head
of about 1734 feet, which is one of the
highest in the world, being ten times as
great as that of Niagara and four times
as great as that of Kauveri. The average
rainfall in this locality is 175 inches.

The power is to be carried over a
transmission line only 43 miles long at
a pressure of 80.000 volts. The plant,
as at present laid out. will suffice to
supply Bombay in the season of least
tain fall with 30,000 electrical horse-
power, on a basis of 3600 working hours
a year, but provision is made for en-

larging the plant by developing another
valley, which will bring the total power
to 50,000 electrical horsepower. The com-
pany expects to be able to bring the cost
of the power down to 0.55 anna (about
1 cent) per kilowatt-hour. The develop-
ment is being financed entirely by local
(Indian) capital.

CORRESPONDENCE

Effect of Field Adjustment on
a Rotary Converter

I once installed some compound-wound
rotary converters for supplying current
to 550-volt direct-current power circuits.
One Sunday I received a hasty message
from the power house that the trans-
formers furnishing current to the rotaries
were burning up. I found the trans-
formers smoking hot but no permanent
injury had been done.

As the power load was very light on
Sunday, the operator had decided that
high voltage was unnecessary and there-
fore proceeded to weaken the field of the
converter in service, causing the current
to la^ and increase in value until the
transformers were seriously overloaded.
When the shunt field rheostat was set
back to the point marked for maximum
power factor the transformers soon
cooled down.

To those who have had no experience
with rotary converters a few words ex-
plaining their characteristics which bear
on this trouble may be of interest. The
direct-current voltage delivered by a
rotary converter bears a certain fixed
ratio to the alternating-current voltage
supplied to it. Hence, in order to change
the direct-current voltage the alternating-
current voltage must be varied; altering
the field strength merely alters the power
factor of the alternating current. There
is one field strength of a rotary con-
verter that is called "minimum-input"
field. At this point the alternating cur-
rent delivered to it is minimum because
the power factor is 100 per cent. To
decrease the field current below this
point will cause the current taken by the
rotary to lag; to increase it will cause
the current to lead. In either case the
current is increased because the power
factor is decreased. Therefore, when the
operator weakened the field strength of
the converter he caused the alternating
current to increase sufficiently to overheat
the transformer windings.
Anniston, Ala. G. J. Reynolds.

A feller frum over t' Jayville kum
inter my ingin room tother day an' after
he'd gawped at th' ingin fer awhile he ast
me what th' thing wuz thet wuz whirlin'
'round so fast. I told him it wuz th'
flywheel; he sed he didn't see how th'
gol darnd flies cud stick to it with it
goin' so fast.

April 25, 1911

PO«

■Ai

Gas power Department

The Gaa Power B
I [olzapfcl I

Tli ll launched recently from an

English shipbuilding yard a prodi.

er boat tor the Holzapfel Marine Gas
Ltd
gas-power sea-going vessel to be built,
and measures 120 feet in length bet •

rcndiculars. 22 feet in breadth and 1 1
feet 0 inches in molded depth. She
carry a little over tons on a draft

of : 11 be .'

with a set of high vlindcr vcr-

engincs. developing ISO brake h
power a- .volutions per minute. The

plant will he in duplicate, each
beit . 0 horsi :

are square in section and will stand

on the port side of the vessel,
their "fa the engine room.

The scrubbers, which will stand for
ol the generators, are about 13 feet high,
the lower portion being the 'Olcr

and the ur: tion the dry scrubber,

nerators and scrubrv I be

inclosed in a gas-tight compartment
aratcd I c engine room, and .

J uith adequate ventilating arrange -
mcr

Th • the engine will bi •

d to tt Her shaft by mear

the I omngcr transformer, wt
revolutions of the latter
I number, with un limits, while

the running at full It

can also M

whi running at fu

ahead. The loss of power cntaiK
n .^ per cent

e. and to the .
s of the nun

•he nir

■able
•

the
shaft In the vessel
launched the It

•

blocl

and the total length of t'

ant' m 2800

■ids Jj ■' • a» ag.<

jm ens
'• and

air ting

ca* enr ' the

|a« produc

E\ cq thii
h ^rth while in r/u- rfas
< ti^itu .inci piodiu ci
industry will be Trv.itcJ
fur i in .i i\<i\ r/i.ir
be <>/ u+<- tOBTBA ri
< il men

up will be crT.

plied from the

The

knots. Tht- ..' Rngir.

.- ,

.tion of f
of g

drar

from it to the co<. jn cor-

tion and ;

with a mar.

•

load

Th< ikh

\ Bitumimuis (

■

Pl.mt

There ha- been insi at

the

one

r~ VT

'«■

odm

fljMf flWCOV

Je ga» en * '** ««T

and power purposes, prevent »h< <■» ir< Peep holes

itaooci rkc

' -he

644

POWER

April 25, 1911

Ash is taken out through the lower
water seal, this operation being necessary
only once in 24 hours. Air and low-pres-
sure steam are delivered to the fuel bed
by the induction blower B, through the
central tuyere immediately above it. The
relation of grate area to the horsepower
developed is such that at no time is a
combustion rate greater than 16 pounds
of coal per square foot of grate surface
per hour required. No attempt is made
to work at the high temperatures some-
times attained in producers. It was
thought better by the designers to run
at a lower temperature and make no at-
tempt to fix the tar.

The cooler shell is a tall steel tank of

it is periodically drained into a tar-col-
lecting tank.

One of the vital parts of the system is
the rotary washer, which mechanically
separates the tar from' the gas. This is
of the Saaler type; its operation depends
upon centrifugal force and the fact that
the gas is lighter than the tar. The
gas is caught by the rapidly revolving
drum and whirled at high speed; the tar
bubbles, being of greater density than
the gas, are thrown outward by centrifu-
gal action into a film of water covering
the inner wall of the casing. Further-
more, the vanes on the revolving drum
of the washer are so placed that the
gas passing through the machine comes
intimately into contact with a water spray
projected in the opposite direction. The
combined centrifugal action and thorough
washing, it is claimed, reduce the im-
purities to not more than 0.015 grain per
cubic foot. There are also incorporated
in the washer impeller vanes which draw
the gas through the machine and deliver
it at a uniform pressure, obviating the
use of a gas holder. After leaving the
v/asher, the gas passes through a dry
scrubber of ordinary construction and
thence to the engines.

In ordinary operation it has been found
that the gas varies between 175 and 180
B.t.u. per cubic foot. The result of a
recent analysis, using steam at 20 pounds,
is given as follows:

Engineers for. Gas Engines
By Charles O. Hamilton

For years salesmen — and builders, too,
I am afraid — have preached the "no en-
gineer" gospel in regard to the opera-
tion of gas and gasolene engines and
there is no doubt that they and the mis-
guided user have, in consequence, been
reaping a big crop of trouble. What is
the real truth about the gas-engine en-
gineer question anyway? Why not
thresh it out and settle it, now and for
all time ?

The "no-engineer" fallacy originated,
I believe, in the early days when the
gasolene engine was being introduced.
The engines then offered to the public
were of small power and low compres-
sion and had hot-tube igniters. They
were sold largely to replace small steam
plants, and once started — -a mysterious
operation understood about as well by a
greenhorn as by a professional — they
would keep on running as long as the
fuel supply held out. If anything hap-
pened, the engine simply stopped. There
was very little danger in its operation as
compared with the known necessary care
of a steam boiler and engine.

Nobody seemed to know much about
the engines, not even the men who sold
them. Therefore, why not make the
claim that no engineer was needed? "No
ashes"; "no dirty fuel"; "no cost except

— \Charaina Floor

'Main
Gas Pipe

Generator

Basement Floor
1

Po~E^

Figs. 2 and 3. Elevation and Plan of the Producer as Actually Installed

simple riveted construction. In this tank
the gas meets a fine spray of water dis-
charged downward and filling the entire
shell. The hot raw gas enters at the
bottom and passes upward, being inti-
mately mixed with the spray, cooled and
partially purified. The tar which accom-
panies the gas in vaporous form is con-
densed and forms into tar bubbles, most
of which pass off with the gas to the
washer. A part of the tar, however, falls
to the water seal at the bottom of the
tower and sinks to the bottom, whence

co 20

H 18.9

CH, 5.6

0 0.2

CO, 8.4

The heat value was 184.4 B.t.u. per
cubic foot. This high value, it is claimed,
is largely due to the low temperature at
which the producer is run, which evap-
orates the tar and enriches the gas with
some of the higher volatiles of the coal
which are ordinarily burned to carbon
dioxide when higher temperatures are
maintained.

when running"; "no engineer." These
looked like reasonable claims for the
new power and were generally accepted
by intending buyers as facts.

Gradually great progress has been
made in gas power. Larger engines have
been developed; new fuels found and
used; higher compression, electric igni-
tion, more exacting service conditions,
all have followed. Now, the man familiar
with steam engineering knows that the
better-grade engine, with the accessories
necessary for high efficiency, calls for

April 25, 1911

POWI K

more ability in the operator. Th-
equally true with gas engines. The bet-
ter they are, the more efficient and re-
liable, the more attachments and appli-
ances are required and the more skill
needed to operate them.

The advancement in gas-engine prac-
tice was seemingly slow but it has. in
reality, been ver> rapid. Ten years have
produced a revolution in the way of s
types and fuels used. Yet many of the
old-school salesmen are still active and
cannot seem to get mcr using the argu-
ments "No engineer" and the others
which are so foolish in the light of pres-
ent-day conditions.

This "no-cnginccr" talk has made an
enemy of thousands of steam engine
Even if they knew the truth about the
silly claim, their antagonism was aroused
and they naturally fought back in self-
defense. Many have been so blinded
prejudice that they have not even recog-
nized the advantages that the new
prime movers possessed.

Many of us gas-engine men stopped
talking this "no-engineer" nonsense long
ago but we arc still reaping the crop of
trouble sown in former days and other
crops are still being sown to some ex-
tent, we are, right now, at a n-
ing period in the industr\ It is still
hard to do business and do it right For
example, if a conscientious builder -
a prospective buyer that an engines

ind another builder assures
him to the contrary, what show has the
r.ian who tells the truth- The r

bayM will naturally conclude (hat
the conscientious man's engine is too
complex ar. ill to run and it will

be extremely difficult, if not impossible,
to get him to consider it at all.

Anybody with experience with both
steam and gas power knows that a good
gas-power plant requires less time from
the operator than a corresponding steam
plant He also knows that it rcqi;
as good or even a better qualit> of man
to get cqua!U sat rom

the gat plant l>o not ovcrliK>k •■

r\% time, but as good or bet-
icn. are needed in ga-
it may interest the reader to km>* that
a careful canvass of over two hundred
plant* put in h\ <.nc .••mpan'. ranging
from 25 to 2<»> horsep">»er shows that
the average time required dail> in plants
running on natura

• ' hand
engineer to do hour*

Aboi | 40 minute* of the time

spem stopping and starting at morning,
noon and night, and the balance
casional trip* M engine room to look
- the engine, tfl rrhauling. tak

ing up bearing*, repairing l| and

other incidental work at convenient times.
Where a suction gat produce ted

e* about another hour for hj
ling the producer in the morning

Tl - ences in these plants show

cone that the better the operator,

the less time he takes to take care of his
engine. where the operator is a good
man. the engine is a good engine aU

The DC for an engineer in a g

power plant certain!) does c\;st and
»!»-» The sooner buyers rea

it. the better for all Does

:hc present steam engineer realize what
an important voice he can have in saying
who the gas engineer shall r-

LE I I IKS

M r. Benefiel I ntof
I ,inii

On page I
there is a misprint in my letter on gas-
generator linings. |r if read

: the firebrick in H inches from
the shell." it should read "3 inches from
the shell."

J. O. Bfnfp:'
n. Ind.

( - u Iced Piston I

In the - John C.

Kohnsbcrg about cracked

>n faces. I have handled a good

many p but

I have never seen one cracked in the

*n by ' .h.

If lH his crackeJ re from the

same make of engine, it would look at

though it was due to the design of the

ins An examination of the crack

might help one to form an opinion

I have seen a good many pistons from
engines with the val\c* in the
the clinder which have had a p
knocked right E of the valve

stem breaking, lately . some of them ha\e
beet- -rmane- ded

Jing torch I
am \erv dubious a'
ing. or soft patches.

I have been having a little of the
trouble that Mr Kohn*berg a*ks about
and I ' cpair a

x ong
the rluggin* wwn a*

ing the
parity into the plug iu*t inter

I car from

HI till toon •

charge of three h two**

ginei piston developed a

'ter ab-
ets has over k
one I first csike :

soon then used toft tier!

| tmalt wedgr*
.

months but the first litre

sod plu. i someone so*.

bene'

Mr. Hall I • at

I ,IIC

•II

wants to know wh\ op act

nder ol
the engine ru- me

that the rr ■ loo rk

•to

indcr. perhaps due to the piping to toe
intake I to feed

the Ma ure to all fou-

and when the pet M >pened the

third cylinder gets about the proper
amount of proper

should be
< need as showr accompanying

sketch.

H
Rural Rctr

I thir- amine has

engine he will rind that (at I pocket

in the in- <nn the

carbureter I

■ some
oration from tl too

uled r
IWfl in through
Another possible
the

in tuch a
going lo the oiher tbrc

ed the r to

J mode it too rick
'■

ikagc ol tpeninc

pet CO( •
I » on Id sugj:
the action o« the

e pototbkt

escape sod tbos maintain*
tome ompret* | I times unlet.*

opening the pet cock I
! and aJtuacrd *
bar

proved by r
lag a IBM piece of wood or iroo under
the mJ >•' »tem to a* to in-

I the trouble
•udtoent lift, ike
immr J *v ' . aajofd. up

•

dford.

646

POWER

April 25, 1911

Unnecessary Clearance Loss

Builders of reciprocating engines recog-
nize that clearance is a source of con-
siderable steam loss, and design their en-
gines so as to reduce this loss to the
lowest possible amount. The erecting en-
gineer, however, frequently makes mis-
takes in erecting the engine which off-
set much of the builder's effort toward
economy.

I recently saw an illustration of this in
a municipal electric-light plant, in which
one of the main generating units con-
sisted of a 350-horsepower four-valve
engine. Each end of the cylinder was
ecjltipped with a l'j-inch relief valve,
the openings for which were on the bot-

\ Case of Unnecessary Piping

torn of the cylinder. There was plenty of
room to have placed these valves in an
inverted position directly underneath
each end of the cylinder, by simply using
nipples long enough to reach through
the lagging. Instead of doing this, how-
ever, the erecting engineer had connected
them as shown in the illustration, putting
in a trifle over three feet of 1 K>-inch pipe
between the valves and the cylinder.

The total volume of this six feet of pipe
amounts to something over 125 cubic
inches and as this volume was added to
the total clearance of the cylinder it is
easily seen that it did not add anything
to the engine's economy; in fact, the en-
gine gave such poor results in this respect
that it was only used when the peak load
made it necessary.

S. Kirlin.
New York City.

Practical

information from the

man on the Job. A letter

<5ood enough to print

here will he paid forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

Leaving Tilings Right for the
Man Coming On

The duties of the men in the power
plant are made imperative by the demand
for satisfactory service and the assign-
ments by the chief. Nevertheless, a man
can make the duties of the man coming
on the next shift difficult, although ap-
paiently leaving everything in a satisfac-
tory condition. When leaving his shift
the operating engineer should make a
tour of the plant to determine the pres-
sure on the boilers, the water level in
the boilers, and to see if all engines and
pumps are in proper working condition.

If an engine is running condensing, the
degree of vacuum maintained should be
noted, making sure that all apparatus is
working satisfactorily and, if not, it
should be reported to the man coming on
duty so that an investigation can be
made and the trouble remedied without
delay.

The oiler should, as a final duty, take
a trip around the engines, feeling of all
bearings and running parts to see that
they are not running unusually warm. If
anything should be found not running
right, the oiler should report it to his
successor, so that he can keep a special
watch of it. In feeling for hot bearing
or pins, always use the back of the hand,
because it is more sensitive than the
front of the hand. The oiler should leave
all oil and grease cups, reservoirs and
lubricators full or nearly so and make
sure that they are feeding. He should
also leave all oil cans full and see that
all drip pans are empty and wiped out.
He should also pick up any waste that
may have accumulated during his shift
and leave everything as clean and orderly
as circumstances will permit.

One of the most important duties of
the fireman in this connection is to leave
good fires for the next man. Sometimes
in a plant where the fuel on each man's
shift is weighed and kept on record,
there is a temptation to leave light fires
for the next man to build up. Of course,

this low coal consumption looks good
to the "powers that be," so the mean
fireman gets the credit of being a more
economical fireman than the other.

If the man coming on duty is to clean
fires at the beginning of his shift, the
man relieved should leave them in the
right condition. He should have a heavy
bed of incandescent coke in one-half of
the furnace, and the other half burned
almost down to the ashes. He should al-
so have the water level as high as prac-
ticable. These conditions enable the man
coming on duty to clean the fires with
comparative ease and without the neces-
sity of feeding water to the boilers during
the period of cleaning.

The night fireman in a manufacturing
plant should leave the fires thoroughly
clean and as well coked as possible, be-
cause there is no demand for steam while
the fires are coming up in the morning;
the pressure quickly rises to that required
for the day's run before the fires and
furnaces have become thoroughly hot,
consequently the day man has to get a
morning's start under adverse circum-
stances. The morning's start is the hard-
est part of the day, assuming the boilers
are worked at or above their rated capa-
city.

The night man can also help mat-
ters by having the water well up in the
boilers, so that the day man will not have
to feed water to the boilers until every-
thing is in running condition. He should
also leave the ashpits clean and partly
filled with water, the floor swept and
the lubricator or the feed pump full of
oil.

J. A. Levy.

Greenfield, Mass.

Reduced Compression and
Lead Saves Coal

At one time I worked in a plant in
which there was a 24 and 48 by 48-inch
cross-compound Corliss engine, rated at
1500 horsepower.

The economy of the plant was not bad,
but the engine did not carry the peak
loads at all satisfactorily. I applied the
indicator and reduced the lead and com-
pression until the engine began to run
noisily. After adjusting for quiet running,
the engine was let alone.

Another engine that was rated at 800
horsepower was indicated and the valves
set about the same as in the first in-
stance. The load varied considerably
each day and at different times in the
day. The load the next two days after

April 25, 1911

547

(he engine had been adjusted happ-
to be heavy, but when I went into
fire room the firemen were taking it e
and remarked that the load was lighter
than it had been. The recording instru-
ments, however, showed that the load
being carried much more easily and the
voltage held up better than formerly,
but not least by any means, not as much
coal was being burned per kilowatt-hour
as former: an average of 3000

pounds less of coal per day out of a
total of from 70.000 to 80,000 poun:

e engine had double eccentrics and
the governor controlled the cutoff of both
The high- pre cylinder

was steam jacketed on the heads only
Saturated steam »as used which
calorimeter at the throttle l

under similar conditions, showed from

98 to

C. B. Sm

•h Framingham. Mass.

i uum Iiu reased b) Re-
ducing rum. 3 <-tl

In the power plant where I am cm-
ployed there is a condenser that

r by a rotary pump,
pump was run at a speed of 72 -

- per minute and a vacuum
inches maintair

Recently, a shortage in the

If redi:
minute, and parado>
•n the vacuum is now n

Fa (arbor. O.

tie I it< ■• ( >rd

Hook

The object of d

a means •

can be J to run parallel with the

rr line

'-'

flange nf the plug " «nd

plug '
the

eht in
would turn on the long a-

Pa^ • J

( ondenscr I » im *** » • 1 «»

The accompanying diagram gives extern: «;age

cur\ to approximate t The

t ■

zy>

■

: •

13.

I •

•

11 : • -•

' / T

:»

and Ibr
coodtoarr

648

POWER

April 25, 1911

dome is dispensed with, necessitating
provision of steam paths between the
tubes, suitable connections should be
made.

This has proved of considerable value
to me and doubtless will be to many
engaged in the design of condensing
plants.

W. Vincent Treeby.

Goodmayes, Eng.

Homemade Tube Blower

Following is a description of a tube
blower that I made from a few old fit-
tings. The accompanying diagram shows
the completed blower.

I took an old tee and screwed a short
piece of pipe into it and plugged the inner
end. Then a wooden handle was fitted
into the other end of the pipe, an old
shovel handle being used to furnish a
grip. The controlling valve was made
out of an old ^4-inch globe valve, with
the threads removed from the stem, so
it would work freely in the gland nut.

Tube Blower

The valve is set so the pressure will
come on top of the disk.

The blower head was made of No. 18
gage iron; the nozzle projecting about
one inch into the head, which is 6 inches
long. The end that enters the tube is
3T/4 inches, and the other end is 6 inches
in diameter. It is used on 4-inch tubes.

I can blow out seventy 4-inch tubes in
four minutes. A hand scraper is used
once a week, the blower being used the
i est of the time.

W. H. Matthews.

Tecumseh, Neb.

Head End Cinders for Fuel

This is a description of the apparatus
used and the results obtained in a steam-
power plant using head-end cinders under
the boilers. Head-end cinders are the
half-burned particles of coal which are
drawn out of the firebox, through the
flues, and lodge behind a screen in the
smoke chamber of a locomotive engine.
An analysis of these cinders shows them
to be a form of coke with most of the
volatile matter and moisture liberated,
but still very rich in fixed carbon.

The boiler under which a test was
made was an ordinary return-tubular
boiler of 100 horsepower capacity, set ex-
actly as it would be set for coal burning.

The grates were of the very fine sawdust
type and were placed 30 inches below the
boiler to provide space for the very thick
fire required. The grates had 10 per cent,
greater area than would have been re-
quired for coal burning.

All ashpit doors were entirely removed
and the openings bricked up, leaving four
4-inch tiles protruding through and ex-
tended to about the center of the firebox.
In the center of each of these tiles was
placed a J/>-inch pipe for a steam jet,
the four small pipes being fed by a \l/i-
inch pipe from the boiler. These steam
jets serve the double purpose of assisting
combustion in the furnace by the mixing
of steam with the gases, and also creat-
ing a forced draft by drawing air through
the tiles in the firebox. About 10 per
cent, of the steam capacity of the boiler
was required for the jets.

An extra door was placed in the side
of the ashpit for the removal of ashes
and it was found necessary to clean the
pit about once in two weeks.

To appreciate fully the results obtained
in this plant it is necessary to first con-
sider the cost and supply of cinders. This
plant is located at a railroad division point
where engines are cleaned out and where
cinders accumulate, more than enough to
supply this plant. Cinders are sold at $5
per car, regardless of the weight of the
car, but the average car probably con-
tains about five tons.

This plant has a 50-horsepower engine
and a 35-kilowatt generator running from
dusk to midnight and from 5 a.m. until
daylight, making a total run of about 12
hours per day at the time this test was
made. During the remaining 12 hours
per day there was just sufficient fire
under the boiler to heat the building in
which it was located. The daily consump-
tion of cinders was 3000 pounds, of which
2500 pounds were used on the lighting
load and the remaining 500 pounds to
keep the building warm.

The low fuel cost of this plant is ap-
parent. The total average load was 240
kilowatt-hours per 12-hour run, which
means 10.4 pounds of fuel per kilowatt-
hour, not a very low fuel consumption
when compared with some coal-burning
plants, but an extremely economical plant
when taking into consideration the low
cost of the fuel. The cost of fuel aver-
aged $0.0052 per kilowatt-hour, which
compares very favorably with the fuel
cost of internal-combustion engines in
plants of this size.

Aside from the economy of this fuel,
another great advantage was found in
that it was practically smokeless, due to
the fact that the volatile matter was en-
tirely removed while in the locomotive
firebox. Another advantage was the al-
most total absence of ash and the at-
tendant bother and expense of the re-
moval of same.

There are, however, some objections
to this fuel, some of which are rather

serious. Chief among them is the care
of the fire, as the cinders are very light
and quick burning and the fire requires
frequent replenishing to maintain the nec-
essary thickness; the fire must be
thoroughly cleaned at least once every
hour or the clinkers will get so large
that the fire will have to be practically
killed to take the clinkers out. Another
objection is the fact that 10 per cent,
of the steam output of the boiler is used
to blow up the fire and, consequently, the
full capacity of the boiler could not be
depended upon. The life of a boiler is
materially shortened by the use of this
fuel, just how much I am unable to say,
but I know of one boiler that was so
badly crystallized after ten years' use
that it had to be condemned, but this was
at least partly due to lack of care of the
boiler.

Taking all things into consideration
there is no good reason why these cinders
should not be used more in plants which
are located at points where they are ob-
tainable, provided the plant is not suffi-
ciently large to make the necessary in-
vestment to get the highest efficiency out
of a coal-burning plant a drawback.

P. E. Matteson.

Fort Dodge, la.

Catalog Misstatements

Manufacturers, for a reason best
known to themselves, put in at the back
of their catalogs a section entitled, "Use-
ful Information." While the body of the
catalog is written by their best engineers
and carefully revised and checked, this
information section is a haphazard mis-
cellaneous collection of supposed facts
which I hope were not compiled by any-
one higher up than the office boy.

I have often noticed rather serious
errors in this section of catalogs and
have now at hand three catalogs all con-
taining the same mistake. Evidently the
error was made in one of the catalogs
and copied by the other manufacturers.
This shows the necessity of avoiding any
misstatement of facts, for, if the men
getting up a catalog and who are on the
lookout for errors are led into copying
such a serious blunder from another cat-
alog, how much more likely are engi-
neers reading the catalog apt to use the
incorrect figures and be led into serious
mistakes.

Any one error in itself may not seem
of much consequence, but the principle
at stake is large, and the consequences
arising from the use of such misstate-
ments may be great. For most engi-
neers take the statements in the catalog
of a reputable concern as facts and un-
less they can be correctly presented, it
would be much better not to present
them at all.

W. L. DURAND.

Washington, D. C.

April 25, 1911

POU

Furnace f<>r Bituminous C 1

It was a pleasure to read F. B. l>c-
Motte's letter in the Marc'
HI thought for the welfare of the men
under him creditable, and I feel

sure that he will have their full sup-
port and cooperation.

In regard to changing from bituminous
to anthracite coal, it appears to me that
the price of the latter makes this im-
^uppose anthracite containing
M.ixxt B t.u. were procurable at the
price mentioned in his letter. The in-
crease in the cost of the coal would be
100 per cent, and the increase in the
available heat would be only lri.7 per
cent Then, the cost of installing a fan
to increase the draft and the cost of
furnace alterations, together with the
due to steam used to run the fan uould

) ) ) ) ) J

■

1 1 1 1

or Bruk.i »oe Ait.

Co.MBLSTION

4bl> eat up the gain due to the extra
heat available from the anthracite coal.
I "'gg— * 'he arrangement of a system
and baffles to secure
smi •

The accompan> ing figure shows a
Igcwafl design of »hich I have a

The hot gases leading the grate
c against the wedge-shaped b»
that arc placed vertically on the bridge-
wall; the gases are spread the

wedges This results in a much r>
mixing of the combustible gases and
■sore nearly complete combustion.

Care should be taken when installing
the bridgcwall to have the area o' the
openings at least equal to thai of the
s The reversed arch rising around
the boiler shell should be about
clear of the shell to alio* for c»par. ■
The soot found in the combustion cham-
ber will be of a gray color and more
Hke a fine ash. proving that combustion
is quite complete.

The onlv way I know In which to keep
the boiler house clean i« :

Coinnx-nt ,
( nln ism, suggcstioi

aoddbfarie upon various
arridbc k&en and < dit

orials which h.t\r.^p-

pezirvd m previous

issui i

A steam nozzle used in the chimney
while the tube blower is working would
certainly keep much of the din out of
the room.

H. P*
trcal. Que.

The question of r B IkrMottc in the
issue of March 21 in regard to the smoke
and dust nuisance in cr plant is

a creditable one. Wanting to improve
the plant and the of the fire-

man, he asks for r > of Pi

readers.

w H

If he does not have to crowd the r-
e using run <

. . t u .
a stear not neces secure

smokeless combustion A let should M
be used for continuous oe-f
apr temporary use

there a- ands on the I

ers during shon periods.

A- has ample bo.

nsiallarion
of a dutch iccom-

pai irrangement of '

nacc ha

such esses and is not she

room it occur generally not of

urgent reed as the cSSt

B front of the boilers
as clearance for the tubes. The dutch
about l fe* uld

leave I >r the firemen to work

which

The principle of operation of the fur-
nace is c.i icd. Under i
rar psssing
through the air duct Seated sad
comes hot under the grstes. In the
meantime it has cooled the fi: arch
forming the roof of the duct and in that
manner it lengthens the life of the *

The fire ' eated air will be

a good deal V an un seat

conditions and the flame will be abc

feet longer. | the smoke an op-

to burn thoroughly before

the preserr nns the flames s»

:oid b< before the smoke

red has an oppor*
maces as proposed have been \ '
Successful in preventing the snv--

san

' anthracite ••!.

;
and rr

'■•

v ■

Kc in the

0M site of the
p pipe of the -
discussion I • a

pump chased and I helped

to install i' res my

SS hr

*ssd charge of

the p's"' BM fu" p BSJBM loot ' ! • '..■
» »••% pr | |

} •»«.« | J O'tlf

VsMftsjvsj I n

650

POWER

April 25, 1911

Water Gages

Various writers have expressed their
ppinions as to the different kinds of
valves and their location on water-col-
umn connections.

Where the water is nearly free from
scale or sediment the globe valve should
give satisfaction, but if there is a great
amount of scale to contend with I prefer
the gate valve and would use a cross in
the water connection. Instead of connect-
ing the drain to the bottom of the cross
as Mr. McGahey showed in the December
13 issue, I would connect it directly op-
posite the boiler connection by using a
short nipple and plugged tee as an elbow
and carry the drain down according to
circumstances. With this arrangement
there would be much less danger of scale
lodging in the cross and the tee would
be handy as a means of cleaning out the
pipe in case of an emergency.

I see no reason for using a cross in
the steam connection as very little, if any,
solid matter would rise to that hight.
In exceptional cases where the boiler
foams a great deal a cross might come
in handy in the steam connection.

William E. Piper.

Farmington, Utah.

The Cost of Power

I was much interested in the editorial
in the March 21 issue on the cost of
power and with the writer thereof regret
that at the recent meeting of the Ameri-
can Society of Mechanical Engineers
there apparently was no determined ef-
fort made on the part of the isolated-
plant engineers to refute the arguments
of the central-station people.

It has been my experience that the
central-station salesman or sales engi-
neer has not been overburdened with
conscience when competing with the
isolated plant. He has invariably used
high figures for cost of installation, high
coal bills, discrediting the matter of the
use of exhaust steam, and has done
everything possible to make the figures
for the cost of power with the isolated
plant appear as high as possible, bring-
ing in many items which are rather
questionable in their actual application to
the situation.

There is no real reason why the gen-
erating outfit of an isolated plant should
not be quite as economical in its op-
eration as a fair-sized unit in the central
station, if bought for the express pur-
pose of low cost in power production.
Frequently, however, this point is not of
prime importance. The value of the ex-
haust steam as a means of heating water
or for serving some other purpose and
for heating the buildings, is of greater
importance than is good steam economy
of the engine. The mechanical efficiency,
however, is no lower for engines for this
service than any other, nor should the
efficiency of the generator be any dif-
ferent.

When a fair-sized central station can
produce a kilowatt-hour at the switch-
board with 4 to 5 pounds of coal and
often even less, there is no reason for
assuming that a fair-sized unit in an
industrial plant should not do the same.
This, however, does not seem to enter
into the calculations of the central-sta-
tion agent, as is seen in the article by
Mr. Parker, where he takes Q\A pounds
of coal per kilowatt-hour as the con-
sumption for a plant of 150 kilowatts
capacity. Further, I note that Mr. Parker
makes a charge of S936 against the in-
dustrial plant for emergency service,
whereas in the electrically driven plant
with power purchased, there is no such
allowance; is the practice of central-
station companies such that they can
guarantee continuous service? The rec-
ords of the past few years would hardly
warrant any such assumption. On the
other hand, the records of many in-
dividual plants are better than those of
the central station, so we could reason-
ably wipe out the emergency-service
charge or put a corresponding charge
against purchased power.

I also note that the manager's time
and the clerical expense are charged
against the isolated plant at $1150,
whereas the manager's time and clerical
expense under the head of purchased
power are but $25. It may be Mr. Parker's
experience that no attempt is made to
check the bills or to follow up the
meters or to pay any attention to the
cost of power as purchased. My experi-
ence, however, is different, and I believe
that the proportion of manager's time
and clerical expense chargeable against
power in a plant with purchased power
is very nearly as much, if not quite, as
in an isolated plant.

I further note that the fixed charges
against the isolated plant are pretty
heavy, so heavy as to cause some ques-
tion as to their actual fairness; I am
led to question whether the central-sta-
tion company makes any such charges
against its own plant when it is supply-
ing power at the low rate quoted. The
central-station business is, of course,
that of producing and selling power and
if it invests any money in apparatus
for the production and sale of power, it
does it with the expectation of getting
a fair return on the money, just the
same as does an industrial enterprise of
any character. If there is to be a charge
termed profit ratio against the money
invested in an industrial enterprise for
production of power, in order that it
may produce its goods, it would seem
equally true that there should be a
similar charge against the money in-
vested in the apparatus of the central
station. I decidedly question whether
this is done.

It seems to me that the amortization
figures would be somewhat larger for
the central station than for the average

industrial plant, owing to the fact that
the machines are harder worked and
scrapped earlier in their life to make
place for new and more efficient ap-
paratus. The taxes and interest might
be somewhat smaller. My figures, com-
paring the central plant with the in-
dustrial plant, are as follows:

Marginal interest 5 per cent.

Amortization, so called .3 per cent.

Taxes and insurance 2 per cent.

Fair profit ratio 11 per cent.

Making total fixed charges S.i percent.

Taking this as a basis of the fixed
charges, I examined into the report of
one or two of the big electric companies
as given in the State report, and have
taken their own figures as regards cost
of plant, electric lines, transformers,
meters, arc lamps, etc., and have taken
their operating expenses, including op-
eration of station, distribution of power
and management. I have also taken the
income as given in this report, which,
according to the report, includes income
from sale of current and other sources.
In addition, I have taken into account the
total kilowatt-hours generated and the
total kilowatt-hours sold, also in ac-
cordance with the report. Against the
total cost, I have made a charge of 23
per cent., leaving out, however, in this
particular case, one-half of the real-estate
cost, as the company owns consider-
able land which is not built upon and I
wish to give all a fair show. From
these figures I find that the average
remuneration for the total kilowatt-hours
generated is 4.7 cents per kilowatt-hour,
and for the total kilowatt-hours sold, 6.6
cents per kilowatt-hour. Its expenses
have been:

Operating, including distribution and
management, 2.5 cents; per kilowatt-
hour sold, 3.5 cents.

On the fixed charges, the cost per kilo-
watt-hour generated is 4.7 cents; per
kilowatt-hour sold, 6.5 cents, making a
total cost per kilowatt-hour generated of
7.3 cents, and for a kilowatt-hour sold,
10 cents.

These reports are average, but they
show conclusively that there is something
lacking in the method of charging if the
total cost of producing power is 3.3 cents
greater than the price for which it is
sold. This would show, then, that ac-
cording to Mr. Parker's figures and meth-
od of figuring that this company is op-
erating at a loss. The company, however,
is paying exceedingly good dividends and
the stock is selling at considerably over
par.

Apparently, then, the central station
does not figure its costs on the same
basis as it would have the individual
plant figured. The average purchaser of
power has not the remotest idea what his
power bill is going to be. He leans en-
tirely upon the sales agent of the central
station, and in many cases goes so far as
to allow the engineer of the central sta-

April 25, 1911

PONX \ H

tion to lay out his plant, in some cases
relying upon him to such an extent as
to wipe out his original plant, in the firm
belief that the figures given to him by
the central-station sales agent will be
realized. The only ' ay for the
purchaser of power to make a contract
with the central station is on the guar-
antee basis of the cost of power; and if
the central station will not give a con-
tract on the guarantee basis, the sales
agent is cither a fool or a knave and the
chances favor the latter, for the fact that
he will not make a guarann retty

good evidence that he tin that his

figures are not correct.

The purchaser has one recourse, that
put the matter into the hands of a
disinterested party for thorough im
gation, in order that he may have a care-
ful and concise estimate of the cost of
the power used throughout his plant,
what it will cost him to make the cha-
nces, ill the electric drive.
and an estimate of the cost of power as

Jtcd by elect: e with the in-

d charges due to the added

illation and the loss of the apparatus

.h may have to r-
item entering into th 'ion of the

plant should be gone into, for in the
northern latitude* especiall) the question
of heat is of much importance There
•he item of steam for in-

"ial pur; for heating water for

t and other purposes, all of which

ild enter the calculation. The value
of the elect rcgarJ can-

lines*, convenience, economy of space.

J and the possible
crease in p- n due to the constant

I also be consider'
The owner should be \cr\ eareful that
the man he emp examine

ictails goes into them so a
pletely as to preclude an

r. and that he. the o\»ncr. thoroughly
understands »hat the engineer has done
and what his figures mean The c
neer should explain the weaknesses and
dangr | iied

from the central Stat
claimed that central-station poarei
more reliable than th r generated

-olatcd pla
The engines in an isolated plant art

than are those
of the central M nor are the

There are no

- to take into ac
danger
no danger ' s in the

n lighting
and on-
to r that the isolated plan-
liabl* ' than the
station Tl plant ha* against
it the chars

tral Mail the added

Pense < isiness. B1»HW

and the m<
pense of rendering '* and keeping

track of the accounts and the very be

uting lines and the
losses 01 so that in isolated

plants of fair ought actual!.

H at the isolated plant for p>
than at the central station. It »ould
have to be a plant c small

that could not produce power as cheaply
the central station could J
plant, not taking into account the
value of st*am for heating purposes, but
figuring or

of prime mover. Then, however, taking
into account the value of steam for i

• of power might be
considc

tion in the I I the engine o*

to using a . e of cnt

and. second, taking into account the value
of the exh.i am which would I

to be supplied 3n . * |
H

Valve I ge

various times articles ha e ap-
peared in I' ubicct of leak-
age through slide ■ me of tl
have tended to show the advantage of
the singlc-valv the
four rig flat bala-

nence with a pair
of the la- - might be of

interest in th.i not agree with

some of the statements made in the l
referred to a'
I that these va re har

keep steam tight due to
and the large amount of clearance
quired between thi rs and r

plat.

In the cm hich I am

the clearance air I an

inch on the steam side at f an

inch on the cxha . ten

>r on \\
abot.

up I hout

ethod

hut the
a run and «hile all
near th
pcratur
a thickness gar

engine

■

on the

t tools stopped

troi;

■arg

and - ar a r f good

»nJ comrrrt»:r.r It »ell »nrth the I

con; n, and

small clearance* possible •

more than of

the extra p.i

P. L *

W ril

n asked why it

io not
en.

Those that d-

• for tl

and
mhen tl

ng and
calit

ssue. under the he

the rer that he

he evidently thinks that the some ,
of cnginee

I would like • ^cotch I

of pr.i Jo not

the: n from furnaces or

houses and that the
sent out by the mint are

human and as lb

en Bui. the:r n
as a rule, do not con
>n of the J

or new
and v

things are not going -
the fault of the n

not stop

to «.

•
that is »h.t jr.

In the

good point l;

e one*
most peer

nmoaplac*

OMMBOnr ir • ■ *■■ . other* rur to

. ■ "
The trouble
hc iraa

■

r a

lust as* cfoa

it o»n

and observe bow vo* or th*

-n And
mi! !t"<" M"1" a'"- tf kW| Ju»f '••ten

the qoesrtoas ©• m. the

u
a •• • • b>

hi vjrMIe yo« '

652

POWER

April 25, 1911

The shape in which you present your
material to the editor is not so very im-
portant if your subject is a good, strong
one, but there are a few conventions that
should be observed. The following are
the most important:

Write on one side of the paper only.
Do not try to crowd too much on a
sheet. Start a couple of inches from the
top of the sheet. Leave a fair margin at
the sides. Leave some room between
the lines. This will permit you to make
corrections without rewriting. It will al-
so permit the editor to make corrections
and will save time. Paper is the cheap-
est thing about an article, so it is not
worth while to economize in it. Do not
waste your time in rewriting; simply
make all the corrections in the first draft
in such a way that they can be read. If
you have to make a long insertion where
you have left out something, write it on
another sheet of paper and mark it and
the place where it is to be inserted.

Write your name and address at the
top of the first sheet: Number all sheets
in consecutive order. It is a good plan
to give your article a title and to place
that title with your name upon each
sheet of the article. Then if you happen
to dump the bunch of literature on the
floor you can sort it out and rearrange
it without much waste of time.

Remember the one-page article, one
page of your manuscript, may be more
useful to the editor than the forty-page
manuscript. It is easy to find a place
for the short article; for the long one, it
is sometimes a difficulty.

Finally, do not be afraid of your spell-
ing or the way in which you write a
thing down. Remember that the com-
positor, aye, even the editor, is not in-
fallible. If you have a message, get it
out of your system in some way or other,
and then forget it. The most important
thing is to get it out.

A. D. Williams.

Cleveland. O.

Overload Boiler Test

In looking through the issue of March
21 I noticed an article entitled, "A Re-
markable Overload Boiler Test." There
are several things in the report of these
tests that strike me as peculiar and I
question some of the results given. For
instance, the heat units given, upon which
all efficiencies are based, are not, ap-
parently, the result of a calorimetric
test. Also, it seems to me something
more than a coincidence that the grate
efficiency of 97.12 per cent, should be
identical to the last decimal place for
both tests. I think you will find on in-
vestigation that the ashes in these tests
were not analyzed and that the grate
efficiency given is the result of a theo-
retical correction applied to the weight
of the refuse based upon the coal an-

alysis. It would indeed be remarkable
if we could run a stoker of this type, or
in fact any other, at the ratings given,
with a grate efficiency of 97 per cent. It
very likely would be closer to 95 per
cent.

There is nothing very remarkable in
the capacities developed, as with this type
of stoker it should be entirely possible
to operate the present-day boilers at 200
per cent, of rating continuously and I
should think it would be well not to call
this overload capacity as it seems to me
that we are just learning how to burn
coal and get some results out of the heat-
ing surface of the boiler.

I have in mind several recent con-
tracts made for stokers of this type,
which call for as high as 240 per cent,
of builders' rating to be developed for
a period of several hours.

C. W. E. Clarke.

Boston, Mass.

Improvement Turned Down

All business men do not seem willing
to take advantage of a saving in dollars
and cents when it is put plainly before
them. According to R. O. Warren in a
recent issue they do. But, how about
this:

The coal bill of the plant in which I
am employed averages $82 per week.
After due investigation and consideration
I made the proposal to reduce the weekly
bill $17 by the outlay of $500. About
80 per cent, of our work is supplying
steam for drying rooms and for cylinders
over which goods pass to be dried. In
order to obtain proper drying it is nec-
essary to carry a pressure of 80 to 95
pounds. After a test I found that 60
pounds pressure was enough for the
power requirements but not enough for
the drying. On inquiry I found that a
separately fired superheater large enough
for our needs could be purchased for
S450 and $50 would pay for the neces-
sary piping and fittings. This arrange-
ment would give us 75 degrees of super-
heat with 60 pounds boiler pressure or
about 380 degrees in the coils of the dry-
ing rooms, which is about 50 degrees
higher than the temperature due to satu-
rated steam at 90 pounds pressure. The
expert from the superheater manufac-
turers went over the whole thing with
me and agreed that the saving could be
made. The saving would have been made
by burning a cheaper grade of coal with
which 60 pounds pressure could be main-
tained. In order to keep an average
pressure of 85 pounds, I must burn coal
costing 85 cents per ton more.

Perhaps it is not good engineering to
reduce the pressure and then superheat
to obtain the same results, but the sav-
ing in dollars and cents would be made
and that is the main point. My proposi-
tion was considered by the firm and
turned down. The reason why it was not

accepted was because first cost only was
considered.

Harold James.
New York City.

Pressure and Pump Plunger

It seems to me that the reason for the
breaking of the pump described by Mr.
Potter in the March 28 number is very
apparent if the cycle of operations be
considered.

Consider the pump to be ready for
operation with all of the cylinders empty
and with the proper connections made to
the well and to the discharge main. As
soon as the pump is started the cylinders
fill with water below the pistons on the
up stroke. Then, on the down stroke this
water is discharged and a partial vacuum
is created in the cylinders above the pis-
tons. These spaces are connected each
to the other and to the well. As the sup-
ply pipe to the upper chambers was not
of sufficient capacity to admit of filling
them at a single stroke, the pumping had
to continue a little before the upper
space was filled. This finally occurred,
however, and then there was a solid body
of water filling the entire volume in-
cluding the supply pipe back to the well.
This water was in a state of constant
vibration or oscillation due to the motion
of the piston and the total quantity re-
mained constant.

Suppose, now, that the supply pipe or,
in fact, any portion of the system were
suddenly restricted to a greater or less
extent. Pressure would instantly develop
which in Mr. Potter's case only found re-
lief in rupturing the pump.

The pump which Mr. Potter described
is apparently neither a single-acting
plunger pump nor a double-acting piston
machine but rather a hybrid affair.

T. D. Hayes.

Cambridge, Mass.

Engineers and Boiler In-
spectors

I have been taking a great deal of
interest in the editorials and articles on
boilers and boiler inspection which have
appeared in Power from time to time.

I think that engineers should have
nothing but the most kindly feeling to-
ward inspectors. Unfortunately, there
are engineers who seem to hate in-
spectors, who hide defects and in every
possible way make it difficult for the
inspectors to do their full duty.

When I am notified that an inspector
will call on me at a certain time, I try
to have things ready and convenient for
him and I am careful to have things so
that the inspector may see the boilers in
the same condition as that in which they
are operated — I do not touch a thing in-
side.

S. P. Eaton.

Great Bend, Kan.

April 25, 1911

POWF.R

b&3

Hill Publishing Company

Jnum A. MllL, rrv*. au-1 |t>M. *•• T M • . .
ftler J... Ut-i- A T.

II:
med

•upondence Mutable !■

UIIUM Of

n — not Deee>
-) prire ».' mi

i Canada $;,
to any other forrutn rouni I

Pay no mooey to f-
unl«"w they i an »h»w letters of j

!K.I.

'. Briiair
an<l

to the London Office. Prtce 21 >hii-

' a- areond 'Uw matter,
0, 1910. at the ; c at

\ork. under th»
of Marr-r.

Cable add

■
Tele* rat'

ClBt VLATIOS 81 i 7 / Ml \ 7

Of thli ifu I' J

•\r imi u/o'fy. m« rrfanM f

■mm ilea, m '«!■ t ii / Iffmrra

mrr '

(, onteuti

■atBKpandln* < ••ndenaer Tula- . 683

• ■
III) Mdn t i.'t a J<>

I ■ • • . .

'•■• Kxploahn- In H • • i
Iral Slat

■ Kn.! Mlrrnal<'f

i - a t'atai I

a Mg In India

ary
I
dtjt f\ wm Boat Ilolaapiel i

A lllturoln«"i« l'r.-ln

Kngln«-rr» f--r Oal BagaaaM

M I

Mr. Hall • I: nt i:n*lt..

Pra. M. a' I • •••

mre Latj
latBI Man

mliik «'• • mprraaloa

and I *■»•! * \ •

■

ndenarr I Mag-ram II -made

• ■aloo Lsttatl

PUflMSS for l •>..•■• Cwm\ II

• tnnns KacltMvt*

. «aur* and I'uaap
r»r I mli)"n and H

••

■ •

ii.. -nlna; <HI "•» llrtm >' •

rhnical Education

The Technology Congress recently !
in Boston to commemorate the fiftieth an-

ry of the founding of the Ma
chusctts Institute of Technology also
marks an epoch of engineering develop-
ment unequaled during any like pel
in 1 a development in which the

technically trained engineer has pit
a \cr> important pan.

ream engineering -
in its infancy; the steam engine in small
units had been applied to mill work, but
the ; ousc. as uc now understand

it. had not yet made its appearance.
Klectncin had not been applied to com-
mercial utilities, such as lighting and the
transmission of power, but instead was
still a product of the laboratory. The
telephone »as still in an experimental
siacc. tunnels were >et to be successfully
constructed under rivers, the railroads
were undeveloped and sanitary engineer-
ing, which has been such a large factor
in improving health in our large
then unknown

The engineer of that da his

training through ar apprenticeship course,
which, although usually thorough,
more or less narrow However, as the
ei Rinccring problem! were limited ir.
tent, this preparation answered the i
pose vei er, due to the

limited size and character of the

.ould usually be planned and
carried out I man. w"ith the

enor in the magnitude and

the : the character of engirt

luring recent the

met' g them have changed,

and the lul completion has been

made r< si I through orgar

ationi of the cngi-
- ha\c changed; hi* training along
engineering lines must be broader and
he n

Previous to 1*60. the colleges had of-

ire.
language*, pure acience and a few of

rofession*. such as n -
and la» About I
nutr 'ar sighted men. indlvldua

com possibilities of some

the rat* mechanical appliance*

then In and recognised tha

■M ralms of pure >..rncc

which could profitaMv be applied
tending the Industrial development of the
|r mhff word*, they did not

theory and practi

should be made to k
in hand To accomp' jof-

•lecesait . stetnattc study

and tra J science. Conse-

through the effons of these
of our large
schools mere founded almost
ous

There is a misla-
mar hat the techn jots

attempt to turn out finished engine

and no reputable
school will attempt to make such claims.
iey can do is to give the stu-
dents a thorough grounding ir -sda-
mentals of engineering and to tra

Methods of attacking engi-
•na. This, combir
the ncd in actual pract

goes to make up the successful eugincef
and ha- nstrumcntal in placing en-

an equal footing with
r ii fr Minna

■■ < — ■ ■ ' ■ ' —————— i ■ ■

( sint»kc

In a report of the work of the Depart-
ment of Smoke Inspection from the tune
rgant/ation in October. \9QT
■
imo. >r. calls attention to tat

fact that Chicago is csacnriall) a ma
firing and commercial rather tha
and that
to eliminate

' the raJtn

that a- r«t one

and ninctv three iqOaWI miles of the

and have made Chicago vhat

The power and healing for th

produced from
about f ' use

coal t-

-
The remaining
■a the loca I

dose of 1000 tr

• • •' r 'r r I'V" fr' iSn.!

654

POWER

April 25, 1911

stack, so there doubtless are in the city
limits about three thousand five hundred
smokestacks connected to high-pressure
boilers. Similarly there are about 1.16
low-pressure boilers to each stack, or
about ten thousand five hundred smoke-
stacks in Chicago connected to low-
pressure boilers, making a total number
of smokestacks for stationary purposes
of fourteen thousand.

During the last few months of the year
1910, the department made a careful in-
vestigation of the subject and, as a re-
sult, estimates that there are burned an-
nually in the city limits of Chicago, ten
million tons of bituminous coal, divided
as follows:

Annual Per

Class Consumer Consumption Cent.

1 Central district ... . 1,500,000 15.0

2 Miscellaneous power

plants 4, 500, 000 45 . 0

3 Flats 750,000 7 . 5

4 Domestic 650,000 6 . 5

5 Special furnaces ... . 600,000 6.0

6 Railroads 1,S50,000 IS. 5

7 Boats 150,000 1.5

10,000,000 100.0

To burn this enormous amount of fuel
fifteen to twenty thousand men are con-
stantly employed, and as long as the
smokelessness of the city depends upon
the carefulness of this great number of
individuals, the work of keeping them at
the highest degree of efficiency will be
stupendous.

As an ultimate solution of the smoke
question the department recommends the
centralization of plants. In every block
in the central district there are from two
to twenty steam plants and in the manu-
facturing districts each factory, no mat-
ter how large or small, has its own
power-generating outfit. If, in place of
this multitude of small plants, a relative-
ly few large power houses could be in-
stalled, the result, according to the. re-
port, would be most beneficial from a
smoke-prevention standpoint, as the large
plants would be equipped with automatic
stokers, would operate under fairly uni-
form load conditions and it would be
an easy matter to prevent smoke.

This recommendation is made, of
course, without regard to financial or
commercial considerations, which might,
when analyzed, prove the scheme im-
practicable. As a matter of fact it is
generally conceded that smoke from sta-
tionary power plants will give less and
less trouble as time goes on and proper
supervision by the city authorities is ex-
ercised. In the stationary plant there is
generally ample room to install furnaces
of proper design, with large combustion
areas and mixing chambers, so that it is
reasonable to hope for practical elimi-
nation of the smoke nuisance from this
class of plant. It is from the railroads
that the greatest trouble is encountered.
Railroads are credited by the department
with making forty-three per cent, of the
total smoke of Chicago and over fifty
per cent, of the total dirt, due to cinders,
ashes, etc. Electrification is advanced as

the only means whereby this may be ab-
solutely eliminated.

During the present smoke administra-
tion there has been a great improvement
in the atmospheric condition of Chicago.
In the "loop" district this is especially
marked. When it is considered that the
fourteen men whose duty it is to observe
the stacks of the city, have approximate-
ly twelve hundred stacks in each of their
territories, covering fourteen square
miles apiece, it is truly remarkable what
has been accomplished along this line.

If the amount of smoke that was be-
ing made in 1907 at the beginning of
the present administration be represented
by one hundred, it is stated that the
smoke now made, at the end of the ad-
ministration, may be represented by sixty-
six.

If all of the railroads coming into
Chicago should be electrified, with other
conditions remaining as they are, the
amount of smoke that would then be
made is estimated at thirty-eight.

With all the railroads electrified, all
boats in the river burning hard coal, all
flats heated by gas or coke and central-
station power and heating plants cover-
ing the city, the amount of smoke is
placed at five; while under the best theo-
retical conditions, with all power elec-
trical, and all heat electrical, or obtained
from gas or coke, the smoke conditions
are placed at zero.

It will be a great many years before
these ideal conditions are even approxi-
mated. In the meantime the smoke ad-
ministration just coming to a close, has
organized and placed on a solid engineer-
ing basis, a city department, the value of
which, to the citizens of Chicago, cannot
be overestimated.

Electricity and the Engineer

Although electricity has now found ap-
plication in most fields of industry it is
still regarded by the layman with a sense
of mystery. This is probably due to the
fact that scientists have thus far failed
to furnish a simple definition of elec-
tricity; they know how it is produced and
that it follows certain well defined laws;
but all attempts at telling exactly what
it is have resulted in elaborate theories
which only they themselves can compre-
hend.

Electricity, however, is not alone in
this position; there are numerous other
phenomena which are known only by
their effects, but which are of such com-
mon occurrence as to excite no curiosity.
Perhaps the most common of these is
gravitation. Everyone knows that a body
left entirely unsupported will fall toward
the earth with a certain force, depending
upon its mass. The measure of this force
is called weight, a term with which-every-
one is so familiar that it carries with it
a certain assurance of its identity; yet
if one were called upon to explain exactly
what £ravifatioh is, he would probably

find himself in a position similar to that
of a man trying to give a definition of
electricity.

Engineering, however, is not concerned
with what electricity is but rather with
what it will do, and this is now pretty
definitely known. It is not a source of
energy but is a medium for the trans-
mission of energy, in many ways fulfilling
the same uses as shafting, belts and
gears; it possesses, however, much
greater flexibility of application than any
mechanical means. If the operating en-
gineer would regard electricity in this
sense and then become familiar with the
established laws which it follows, he
would find little trouble in understand-
ing the operation of the electrical part
of the plant equipment. Such knowl-
edge is essential to the engineer of today
if he is to keep pace with the increased
responsibilities of his position.

Many engineers will go down without
a struggle before a formula which has
a logarithm, entropy, or a sine, cosine or
tangent in it. It is just as simple to
look up one of these quantities and to
substitute the value given in the table
for the letters of the formula as it is
to hunt up the steam temperature corre-
sponding to a given pressure or the area
corresponding to a given diameter, and
the same book which contains the tables
of the properties of steam and of cir-
cumferences and areas will usually have
the other things too.

The correspondents of The Engineer, of
London, are having an animated discus-
sion regarding the live-steam feed-water
heater. Will a boiler actually deliver
more steam per pound of fuel burned, if
a part of the steam which it makes is
used to heat the feed water to the boiling
point? And. if so, why?

Investigation will show that water
powers are not "gold mines" and that
it costs something for their development..
In fact, in many cases they cannot suc-
cessfully compete with steam or gas.

Have you ever talked things over with
the owner and found him a gentleman
and willing to help carry out your sug-
gestions?

There seems to be a great variety of
opinion regarding the proper control of
water powers. At present the Govern-
ment has no definite policy except to
maintain the existing status of confusion.

Have you noticed in small plants that
some men leave the door between the
engine and boiler rooms open when coal
is being delivered and ashes removed?

"It is not so bad to be ignorant as it
is to know so many things which are not
true."

April 25, 1911

Inquiries of General Interest

Pump /

H< ic proper area for t:

charge valves of a pump determir

J (. K
The area should be such that at a r
-;ccd of 100 feel ninute ihc

of the water through tlu
shall not exceed 2»*> feet per minute, that
•he efft large area of all

- should, at least, be equal to
half the area of the piston. Some
r», however, make the valve area
on.

A'. Pump t m

( finder

<uld be the rati' .en

*n- and air-pump volume for a simple
rig engim

r jn equal nui- in the

of a single-acting pump and jet con-
densrr the ratio indcr

-Id be from 5 to 1 to 10 to 1 lor a
double-acting pump the ratio may be
1 to 1. depending

on • on water, hot-

ucll trmperaturc. terminal ; in

the cylinder, el -on-

a double-acting air pump may
have a ; I the

•■team piston.

( "■,' , • : I (

l\. .':

irn-

• f a

.tid cnn ame

as a ftimple engine at the

»am<

R.
If the uork
•

the
•crminal pr the

• the la
the

/ ( I /' (

If all of the

CoaU heat va

eat ur

■

Bttd

Questions ./re/
not antwertd unh

ji i. OtBpatticd by the

D.imc .in J . H t>/ tfic

inquirer. This page is

for wu when 8tiM k

U.sc if

I )

n it I

a motor than
when r- n as a dynamo, the

terminal voltage being the same in both

f the armature
>n the net
balanced b\ the mot- inter c

and adds to tru
that the dynamo n
- I'pose the armature
ing and field strength to be such
that the armature trill gen
of a volt for each minute

and the the armature

• full-load Runninj:

a dynamo delivering II the arma-

; eed

r on a :

ounter

leu than tl

/ )

rough

HOI-

in toe r '

"•der bore, according to how yoair

• . ■ , ;

sion r.-c»»..'c should not r-

pou >on speed T.a

and n
•peed -

the

.m a
g the

■ m a ] IO-toII

~e made for rr
at ||

a anti*

arm .

of the
connected to the
h points as to

conJc

•h*

J hors<

i /

In a

MM*
the J the

■

gc the

i • ••• of rtxat r

coonec

c • to ihm the

the ■ rr

■fct %M

656

POWER

April 25, 1911

Government Control of Water Powers

J. R. McKee : The public domain of
the Government of the United States, in-
cluding all the cessions from the thirteen
States that made cessions and, including
Alaska, amount in all to about 1,800,000,-
000 acres. Of this there is left as purely
Government property, outside of Alaska,
something like 700,000,000 acres. Of
this the National Forest Reserves in the
United States proper embrace 144,000,000
acres; the rest is largely arid or moun-
tain country, offering some opportunity
for agriculture by dry farming and by
reclamation and containing metals as
well as coal, phosphates, oils and natural
gas. To the above 144,000,000 acres of
forest belonging to the Government
should be added 26,000,000 additional
acres withdrawn in two forests in Alaska.
Omitting Alaska, the 144,000,000 acres
of forestry land withdrawn is equivalent
to more than 27 States the size of Massa-
chusetts.

In giving the extraordinary figure as
to the amount of land in the forestry
bureau, I do not understand that these
figures include the 92,000,000 acres addi-
tional of land covered by document 10,-
860 — lands withdrawn from settlement
under provision of an act of June 25,
1910. Adding these 92,000,000 acres it
means an additional area equivalent to
an excess of 17 States the size of Massa-
chusetts; for the two combined an area
equivalent to an excess of 44 States the
size of Massachusetts.

Appropriations for the support of the
forestry bureau beginning with the year
1900, when they were 548,500, increased
until in the year 1911 the appropriations
for the support of that bureau are $5,-
051,000, making the total appropriations
for the support of the bureau to date
approximately $23,000,000. According to
Congressman Edward T. Taylor from
Colorado, who quoted the former head
of the forest service, this forest system
when it reaches its real development will
require the services of 118,000 to 120,-
000 men.

I have taken the list of appropriations
made by the last Congress and, including
all of the salaries from the secretary of
the forest service down to the office boy,
the average salary is in excess of $1200
per year each. Assuming these same fig-
ures it means when the forest service
comes to its own the salary list alone will
be $144,000,000 per year. The question
naturally arises in the minds of some
people as to whether this is not pretty
nearly a case of the Government owning
its own forests and buying them over
again from itself.

For the benefit of those who are not
familiar with the subject, I would state
that the forest reserves are established
not only for the cutting of timber but are

A continuation of the re-
port presented in last week V
number on the water- power
conference held by the
National Electric Light
Association.

let out for pasturing. For instance, dur-
ing the last year, there have been
pastured on the forest reserves nearly
1K> million cattle, in excess of 85,000
horses and over 7K> million of sheep and
for this the Government has received
over $986,000 which, however, was less
than they received the previous year from
this source. From the timber sold they
received just a little over $1,000,000. Tak-
ing last year's (1910) appropriations for
the support of the forest bureau, which
were $4,682,000, the total cost for that
year's upkeep amounted to a total of
$6,711,428. We all know what compound
interest means and if one will take these
appropriations as a start and compound
the interest on them and charge them
against the forest reserves and add to
that the additional appropriations as they
come along, it is hardly necessary to say
how startling the figures will become.

I have dwelt upon these figures and
this situation because I am wondering if
this has not a great deal to do with the
attitude of the Government officials. It
is only human that those who undertake
enterprises want to see them work out
successfully, whether they be individuals
in the Government employ or otherwise.

The 92,000,000 acres mentioned as
withdrawn under the special act included
those upon which it was thought there
might be found coal, oil, gas or sites
available for water power. Now, in re-
gard to the latter these lands as they
now stand are so tied up that it is im-
possible for anyone, no matter how sin-
cere or desirous they may be of locating
upon them, to get located. In other
words, there is no law under which the
Government can allow him to acquire
possession. Suppose you found a site
or parcel you would like to take up and
develop and you notified the department.
The President might give orders to re-
store this land to the public domain and
let you locate upon it. What right has
the President to give you preference? In
other words, would he not find himself
in a position similar to the one, for in-
stance, where the Indian or other reserva-
tions are thrown open to entry and
where a date is fixed and an order is
given and the proposed settlers line up
at the border and at the sound of a

gun make a rush and the first one to ar-
rive at the location gets it.

Mr. McKee then presented a situation
not only possible but not at all improb-
able, showing the difficulties that might
be expected in building on a navigable
stream and in erecting a pole line. A
brief abstract follows:

Suppose that you own by outright pur-
chase the shore lines along a stream
whereby the erection of a dam, a head
suitable for the development of power
can be secured. It happens that the
stream in question at some point below
the proposed dam, not necessarily near
it, is navigable, but at the particular point
where you wish to put your dam, it is
impassable. In other words, there is not
sufficient water for navigation and the
stream is not of sufficient size to be
navigated above there, although present-
ing the possibility that by the aid of the
Rivers and Harbors Committee in the way
of an appropriation, it might be made
so, but whether commercially is a ques-
tion. You, however, own this property
and want to develop it. You must go be-
fore Congress for the privilege because
it is called a navigable stream. You get
an act passed granting this right and
there is attached to it the stipulations
that you must at the time or thereafter,
if the Government so orders, construct
at your own expense and on your own
land, locks and operate them without
expense to the Government, giving prefer-
ence to whatever water there may be
available without regard to what effect
this may have on your power-generating
plant, which, by the way, may be a
serious situation during low-water per-
iods. You have now dealt with Congress
and your stipulation is that you must
thereafter deal with the Secretary of War
and also the Chief of Engineers.

For your transmission line it happens
that adjacent to your site is a farming
land where the homesteader has filed
and is living in process of acquiring
title. Of course, the homesteader has
not yet secured his title and therefore
cannot give you any right to cross his
land. The Government also cannot give
you any right because the land has been
filed upon by the homesteader and to
that extent it is beyond the privilege of
the Government. So if you go across
this land with your pole line it must be
illegally. Adjoining the homesteader's
land and also to be crossed by your
transmission line is land still in the pub-
lic domain. If you wish to cross this
you must deal with the Secretary of the
Interior, who will impose upon you such
restrictions as he deems essential, such
as police regulations, stipulations as to
charges and limit as to time. The next
land your pole line has to cross is a

April 25, 1911

forest reserve. You much r. up

your negotiations with the Secretary of
Agriculture who will suggest to you a
use agreement with time limits and stipu-
lations as to charges, etc., an-
charges have been suggested on a basis
as though your entire plant was on the
public domain. Finally you reach your
nation for delivery of power and it
is a city where you own the electric-
lighting company and you will probably
come under a public-service commission
who will also stipulate charges and other
regulations. You now have a property
to get together with which you hav; dealt
with Congress, the Secretary of 1
Chief of Engineers, a homesteader. Secre-
tary of the Interior, Secretary of Agri-
culture and a public-service commission.

What is to be the solution of such a
complex situation as this and is it not
absolutely imperative that there shall be
some solution before it is possible to per-
suade financial interests to undertake any
such enterprise

Personally I think that water-power
sites ought to be made readily available
and it should be possible for them to be
taken up and developed the same as a
railroad can locate on public lands, and
presuming they will be developed as a
public utility, which most of them cer-
tainly arc. I do not sec why it should not
be a sufficient safeguard if they be
brought under the regulations of the local
authorities, the same as other public
utilities. The true regulation of water
powers is that which will prevail and
pertain to the respective localities where
they may be located. Public-service com-

Mons are handling these qu
broadly and I think that their experience
demonstrates that this is the BMW
factory and the ultimate outcome of the
entire situation.

Ralph I) Vi-nhon: A discussion of
this important question resolves itself
into the following questions:

I. Shall the control of these hydraulic
development sites lie *ith the Federal
government, or with the respective State
government

If the present Federal control be
d to the respective Mate govern-
ments, shall such action be absolut-
•i restrictKi;

< Whether the control rcsn with the
Federal Government or with the
use State governments, shall absolute
in these sites be ultimately passed
to the '>rporation; or.

shall the ultimate title remain with the
;

i If the ultima- c passed from

the people, how shall it pa»» ere

location and
of comr purcha-

If the ultimate title i» not passed
n the people. ho\» shall MCI I
as is passe ngth

of tenure and the

•hermorc. what method shall be em-

ployed for determining who shall be the
recipient of such title as con.

in regard to questions I snd
2 are that the control should be vested
in the I Mate governments, but

that the >ntrol should b

with such ons as will result in

imifornity in these matters among the
Regarding questions J and 4. I
believe that in no case should absolute
to the water-po*-. which are

at present on the public domain, be
passed to individuals or corporations;
that the ultimate title to the* and

all rights in connection therewith should
remain with the people.

Item 5 cannot be so simply disposed
of as the p -ems as individual

cases will differ. It must be borne in
mind that these enterprises should be
airr.iv.mc to capital, and ample time
should be allowed in which to accumu-
late the necessary physical data, and in
which to make financial arrangements
under such conditions as will be mani-
festly fair toward those acting in good
faith, while endeavorir . ure ag.i

mere monopolistic or spccularivc con-
trol.

It is held by some that the idea of a
limited tenure is economically unsound
and financially impracticable. I do not
agree with cither of these statcnu
Certainly at the present time no one. for
either financial or economic reas
would refuse to invest in a public-utility
enterprise simplv because the contract
had a limit. d time ro run. If such a lim-
itation of tenure is unobicctionablc in the
case of a public utility, I can sec no rca-
*hy it should be objectionable in the
:raulic development
I believe it po*
and equitably handle these mstters ft
the point of view thst the rights conferred
dual or corporation mak-
ing the pmefttt arc in the nature
of a franchise, and arc neither absolurc
nor pcrpciual.

I und< "r I)ohc aim

-at a ! f watcr-p'

rights must ncccs- greater

cr and other* Is* to V

; that • un-

-omical and that the only course

; <-tual
tenure in one form or another The
ments of this argument are as follow
I That tenure will makr

and enrerprise a
-i a higher
of inre- in turn, must be

borne I

That und< ure. be.

he rcf 'bus

•iking '

- ill rcsj
x bonds; hence

• . •

»e end of the

cresainglv difficult
-ionc> '

sions or improvements, with the result
that cither rje less

or that the price of po*
be high

Tt sOing propositions are r.

•he assumptio- the

il propc end of the

p.e to the
On such assumption-
undoub' though the degree

pend upon the
length of tenure I be
that this a

true. So far as limited tenure is con-
cerned, objections

be done away i e bonds represent-

the MM • ng and

■■■g the prop
the assurance that at the end of their
term the principal will be paid or the
property will again be CM Mr bond

issue.

The only apparent reason why limited
tenure should. f. be productive of

objection I is that if the enterpr
UOSt unable to

amortize the bond, thev mould find thetn-
it the end of the bond series with
'icr principal nor pro;
to foreclose. B D contingent also

will be obviate : ause suggested

for meeting objections 2 and

It seems to me the condition *
will be fulfilled and there f. ob-

ons met bj the following

Th I and cxtcn: ant

under the Stale's supervision snd ope
it for a term of years under the
supc nc nance Let the

time be extend not

extended, let the 5 deem or g

antee the bond issue for the creation and
the extension of the propc

I believe the -he people

in d pposed

to passing absolute title to these water

ups of
s. It seems to me. thi
that these gentlemen ■ -vow OOP—

nig the ;

better bow to the
fully MMH in devising
for the

• Kerei» ,Kc r pre*
rely acne to tr t l

so doing.
that fOCld 0

ent
iMOlapMMl

■

posed to <

'roelectru properties] b) control, regn

r sny other
ircssn of MM
police p»
uphold the
the

all other

be nojoMd only for one or both of
»»t to restrict OT control

658

POWER

April 25, 1911

for the Government. It would be wrong
in both counts. If a tax is to be imposed
to produce revenue for the Government,
it will fail in its purpose. If the rate
be made so small as to have an in-
significant effect upon the power com-
pany's expenses, can it have other than
an insignificant effect upon the Govern-
ment's revenue? And if the rate be
made high enough to afford a substantial
revenue it must act to deter many de-
velopments, which under the most favor-
able conditions might be made, and thus
both keep the Government from getting
any revenue and the neighborhood from
any advantages which cheap power might
offer toward improving that section of the
country.

Public-service corporations of all kinds
are now in process of being regulated
?.nd controlled. No one can say where
the process will stop. Occasionally a
corporation official is found who says he
thinks this control will benefit his com-
pany. The very great majority, however,
feel- that such control will either limit
their earnings or increase their expenses,
or both, and thereby make their securities
less attractive to investors.

It is impossible to convince the pro-
moter who wants to invest other people's
money that a water power is not a
splendid investment, and it is useless to
argue with the man who knows all about
the subject but has not yet tried it. How-
ever, a list of hydraulic developments —
real ones, those that actually have been
and are now doing business — showing
the amount of money put in and the
amount taken out, would make interest-
ing reading. The small percentage of
earnings and the number of plants that
have gone to the bad financially might
astonish some of our able-bodied legis-
lators who are afraid that somebody may
make money while they are not looking.

Percy Thomas: The thing that is to be
avoided is monopolistic control which
will permit an original owner from reap-
ing a tremendous profit, say, after fifty
or one hundred years, when the property
may have become extremely valuable.

Suppose we are going to give a fifty-
year franchise for the development of a
water power. The public, in addition to
having fair service, etc., expects to get
some rental from that. Suppose the
Government is arbitrary and says — if you
develop 50,000 horsepower, that shall be
so much per horsepower, from the be-
ginning to the end, each year. That would
be very difficult for the capitalist. Sup-
pose, on the other hand, the public is
ready to take low rates at first, before
the public demand is quite up to the full
installation, and a higher rate toward the
end of the term, when the consumption
is fuller, and the load factor is satisfac-
tory? That makes very little difference
to the public. We will assume that the
public gets the same total amount out
of it. but it makes an enormous difference

to the investor — he knows that he will
not have to pay the taxes until he has
something to pay them with.

Take the point about amortization — we
have the same fifty-year term of the
franchise — the public can be assured,
nineteen chances out of twenty, that at
the end of the fifty-year term in some
form or other they will get back the
money invested in the plant. At the end
of the fifty years they will either agree,
as a matter of reason, to extend the
franchise, or make someone else pay the
value of it, or force the Government to
pay for it, if the Government will take
it over. There is every chance that the
Government will get something for it,
and they might as well agree that they
will take it over, as they have in the case
of the New York subway. It makes little
difference to the public whether or not it
is arranged for in the beginning, but it
makes an enormous difference to the
man who has to raise the monev.

If that point of view is taken by those
who have the final arrangements to make,
namely, that the rights of the public
should be secured in such way as to be
most favorable to the capitalist, and the
capitalist is willing to take his security
and profit in the way that will be of
greatest advantage to the public, I think
we will get along more satisfactorily
than if each side is arbitrary and thinks
its arrangement is best, and insists on
something which appears to be theo-
retically correct.

Regulation must be arranged in such
a way that the rivers which are inter-
state shall be protected. Take the case
where a river flows from one State to
another, and the development may have
been made in the State in which the
river flows somewhere near the border,
and a profitable business built up. Now,
the State which grants the franchise and
the water rights to this plant has no
control in the next State, and we will
say, later, in the next State another water
power is developed near the point at
which this river leaves the second State.
Now, in view of the fact that there may
be pondage in the upper plant, they may
store water by night for use in the day
time, but if the two plants happen to be
the right distance apart, the period dur-
ing which no water is passed at the upper
plant becomes the day period, when the
maximum flow of water is necessary at
the lower plant, and also the free flow
of water occurring during the day in the
upper plant will occur perhaps at night
when in the lower plant it is of little use.
Thus, if we are to have State regulation
and State control of water powers, they
must be secured in such a manner that
one State will respect the rights and
privileges already granted by another
State.

Francis E. Frothingham: The public-
service corporation, while it serves the
needs of a great many people, serves the

needs of a minority of the people, and
it is right and proper, it seems to me,
that many of the taxes borne should be
directly levied against the public service
and stood by those benefited from it,
but there are other kinds of taxes which
should not be so borne, such as the build-
ing of a lock in the Mississippi river de-
velopment, for instance, and the giving of
it to the Government, and a lot of things
of that same kind, and these taxes should
be distributed among all the beneficiaries.
If we create a reservoir on the head
waters of a stream, the beneficiaries
therefrom are every power user below,
and they should stand some of its cost.
Every other abutting property owner, and
every farmer who has land that is irri-
gated at high water, also benefits, as well
as the navigable interests in the river, by
such improvements. Therefore, these
taxes should be distributed among all
the beneficiaries. If the problem is gone
at fairly and reasonably, I think the Gov-
ernment will meet us at every point,
sooner or later, and all that we need is to
be the source of the latest technical in-
formation and advise the Government,
which, after all, wants to work to the
best interests of all the people.

James H. Cutler: What we all want
is the decision of this thing based on
intelligence rather than ignorance, based
on a spirit of fairness rather than that
of self-interest, and I believe that the day
is not far distant when that will be done.

It has been assumed, and I think cor-
rectly, that 3,000,000 horsepower are in
the mountains of western North Carolina,
and in that section, which, if the bill
which has now passed Congress and has
the President's signature, had not been
passed and become a law of the land, the
day would not be far distant when this
3,000,000 horsepower of water would be
gone — and when such a power is gone,
it is almost impossible to get it back
again, except, certainly, at very great
expense. They have been through that
in France and know what it is to re-
forest the mountains, to get the land in
condition so that the trees may grow.
Now, that 3,000,000 horsepower we have
saved. The difference of cost between
water and steam is at least S15 per
horsepower per year — 3,000,000 horse-
power at Si 5 per year means $45,000,000
per year, which would have been added
to the cost of manufacture of cotton
goods and other industries in the South.
That might mean the difference between
holding and losing a foreign market of
cotton goods. That is only one section
of the country. Without doubt, it is more
than 3,000,000 horsepower that was in
jeopardy in the West.

P. V. Stephens: There are in the
Southern States over 9,000,000 horse-
power which may be developed at a rea-
sonable cost. There is a possibility of
something like 25,000,000 horsepower
which may be developed, with suitable

April 25, 1911

reservoirs. Only one-tenth of this has
been developed at the present time. The
water powers of the Southerr. arc

their most valuable resource, and
the least developed resource, and I think
that this statement, so far as develop-
ment is concerned, applies also to the
Vest as well as to the Central States.
It means that for the salvation of our
resources, especially in the Southern
States, we need immediate and thorough
Nation which will put aside the bar-
riers to the water-power development.

I »nomv in Burning < >il <»n
Revenue Cutter VettcU

Capt. C. A. McAllister, enginecr-in-
chief of the United States revenue-cutter
service recently presented some inter
ing data in the iYss* York Herald on
using fuel oil as a motive power. It was
first tried out by Captain McAllister on
the revenue cutter "Golden Gate" at San
Francisco. So economical were the re-
sults obtained that it has now been de-
cided to gradually spread the system to
all the revenue-cutter vessels. The three
boarding vessels i: York harr-

the "Hudson." the "Calumet" and the
"Manhattan" — will soon be equipped with
oil-burning appara-

The revenue cutter "Golden Gate"'
a vessel of the ordinary harbor-tug I
and is engaged in boarding duty in
Francisco harbor. This is an intermittent
duty involving daily a number of short
around the harbor, a state of readi-
ness to go at a moment's notice, and
consequent lying at a wharf with steam
up for the greater portion of the time.
The tug is 110 feet long and up !<•
months ago was provided with a water-
tube boiler of the 1 re and a triple-
expansion engine capable of produ
515 maximum indicated
Last year a new Babe « water-
tube boiler was installed and fitted for
oil burning. Grates were put in place so
that coal could

eassry. A small cylindrical tank with a
capacity of approxim.i i of

oil i ailed in the fire room well up

under the deck beams to as not -
terferc uith the removal of the b
tubes when necessary The I arc

spaced about apart. 12

and
Slant slightly do»n*arJ to within a
tancc of about «1 -ate

The sttl

including the tank and its and

all incidental expenses necessary to make
the apparar cost $2

The oil supr B

or Ave days' steaming und

imstancc*. It is obtained from a
pipe line on the wharf Jen

and the tank can be
filled in ten minutes.

The li costs of coal and oil as

n the perform-

ances of M iber. 1009. and November,
ich arc

u»"l • ><swi

e tabula : would appear

that the cost of oil fuel undc- .ons

found on a revenue cutter is only slight-
ly in excess of one- fourth the cost of
coal. A further reduction in the cost of
operation of the machinery due to the
of oil fuel comes from the fact that
the ncl has been reduced from

four to three men by dispensing with the
services of one coal passer who cost the
Government 5674 for a year's s<

Ju the

rcti: '.ration of the oil

plant for the first quarter, tf be

an annual saving in fuel alone of 52160.
ith the reduction of 5674 for
labor, will make a total annual saving of
4 due almost entirely to the installa-
tion of apparatus, the Mich
was

The following notes from the report of
the engineer in charge of the steam

machinery ma\ in con-

of this plant.
With oil. the steam pressure can
kept stationar Me ma

unusual or varying dema
A g:
careful The I

•ic furnace act as accumulators of
heat and l
mail at about 100 p

steam may be

degrees used in

' turned
■1 as I and nsing

ina; amount

f the
eertam :

are laid fiat and lent

add<

»e manner

Jepending on the amount of

air rcq <oo mi

it sod <-.
The temr

trees rahrenhctt
M show
150 degrees 1 ahrenheit under a pressure
of 40 to flO pounds, depending upon the

i Richmond H
anal.

y of li-
on the rei the oil

If through an> cause the

not operated uniformly, no

of attention rhc

supr
pump
amount
bur

ing Meetii

Engii •■■

cparations arc y undc

I of the

be
helJ -burg, i unc

The headquarters during the meet-
ing will be a; and the
professional sessions at the Carnegie
close r

The first sessior cecntation

tons
on i

nee: Ccmc

low oppor-

t of the Universal
i Cement Company through in-

The spc

g members sn op-

' >n McJncsJj. ■• c i^ctr ».:. Jx a

session on

opmeut of
O e ssssson i

ned i be the

»f*a machin
ICO to Mo»mg
and

c cootc • • » •'

A set*'"*

...

•stout I

*urg and the
appliances, under tho auspice* of Has
held i

i aaoet the

S ' '.* i ■ i » t . ■ < • i

660

POWER

April 25, 1911

Durand Radial Planimeter

The illustration herewith shows a form
of radial planimeter developed to meet a
demand for a type of instrument which
will give a mean value of the ordinates
of a circular diagram or dial instrument
in measuring and recording engineering
quantities such as pressure, temperature,
electric voltage, current, electric power,
flow of water, etc., in the same manner as
does the ordinary planimeter for a dia-
gram in rectangular coordinates.

It contains the following geometrical
elements: (1) A base which is to be cen-
tered with the diagram or chart to be
averaged, and carrying a pair of parallel
guide slots. (2) A pair of rods working
in the slots of ( 1 ) and carrying at their
end a frame to which is attached a trac-
ing point and a pivoted carriage for the
integrating wheel. (3) The integrating
wheel for measuring the record.

The line joining the tracing point with
the center of the base determines the
radius vector at any one instant. The axis
of the integrating wheel is parallel with
this line. Under these conditions it is
easy to show mathematically that the
record counted on the integrating wheel
will be proportional to the product of the
average radius vector multiplied by the
angle through which the radius vector is
carried. Hence by dividing the reading
by the angle the mean radius vector is
obtained. The instrument is graduated
to give mean ordinate in linear inches,
so that by applying the appropriate scale
factor it may be used for all diagrams no

Randall Graphite Sheet
Lubricant

This graphite sheet lubricant is a me-
chanical device the purpose of which is
to eliminate friction in engine journals

3 !> ) 3 ) i : ) -)

i •••<•••#•*••♦•* •

» c m # • m # • # • # <t m « 9 -•

M«9999ttf 9I9IM

Fig. 1. Wire Screen Containing
Graphite Cones

or other babbitted boxes. The lubricat-
ing element is composed of graphite that
is held in bond in the form of tapered

metal is then poured as with the ordi-
nary bearing.

When a bearing has been finished
ready for use it has the appearance as
shown in Fig. 3, the black places indi-
cating the graphite cones.

The idea of this arrangement is to get
the graphite in the right place and keep
it there. This combination of graphite
and babbitt metal is suitable for long
or short bearings, and especially for high-

Fig. 2. Wire and Graphite Cones
Against Shaft Ready for Babbitt

speed machinery where the bearings
have a tendency to heat.

In order to show how simple it is to
babbitt a box with the graphite sheet
lubricant the following directions are
given: A strip of the lubricant is cut
wide enough to reach not quite half
around the journal so that it will not
reach quite to the top of the box, as
shown in Fig. 2. It is then shaped by
hand to a half circle a little smaller than
the journal to be babbitted and placed
on the journal so that the straight rows
of graphite cones will run lengthwise of
the box, and secured as already ex-
plained. The small ends of the cones

Durand Radial Planimeter

matter what may be the character of the
engineering quantity recorded. The limits
for the movement of the tracing point are
from a circle of 1.5 inches diameter as a
minimum to a circle of 10.5 inches diam-
eter as a maximum. This form of instru-
ment is made in Switzerland by Amsler,
Laffon & Co., and its American introduc-
tion is in the hands of W. L. Durand, 929
K street N. W., Washington, D. C.

cones which are attached by hydraulic
pressure to a fine copper-wire screen, as
shown in Fig. 1.

Anyone who is capable of pouring
babbitt into a box can install this lubri-
cant, as it is only necessary to use suffi-
cient soft-copper wire to bind the
sheet so that the surface of the
graphite cones will be held tight against
the shaft, as shown in Fig. 2. The babbitt

Fig. 3. Babbitted Bearing. Black Places
Indicate Graphite Cones

should always be placed next to the
journal so that the wire cloth will be
embedded in the babbitt near the bottom
of the box. This also produces a greater
lubricating surface to the journal as the
babbitt wears away.

The Randall Graphite sheet lubricant
is manufactured by the Strong, Carlisle
& Hammond Company, 326 to 339 Frank-
fort avenue, Cleveland, O.

April 2?. iyn

■>:

1 he Connersville Condenser nation, a* the lobes of the pump re-

Although a rotary pump has hitherto
received little consideration as a vacuum
pump, it offers particular advantages for
high-vacuum work.

The Connersville condenser, in
a modification of the well-known Con-
ville cycloidal M< d as a

pump, is shown in the accompanying en-

entrap portions of Jtcr

and

err. around to
and as the lobes
• of from 1
iuti' >n the

•he gas-.

i, as all t >f p©»»»ble

is t- rd along to the j

Tine bo
J do not have to be r *-
against I ra< am. V

•

'd . h«» furm»h<:

40,000 he
i recer

account. As sho%

chambc

uithout n to the service such

s teres and other bodies

brought

iandholc D hit
recess to ll thout bi

any of the The %ater fill-

ing - to the

ng con-.
' o large that it will not be
I

Rollirg Jn»n jhc InvJc it forr>
hollo* cone of »stcr. into the ItM
o' which the MM

rig nothing but wai
covered and wa

air and uncooden* 1*1 arc carried

for*

•

graving ng at the end

he seen that there is an u<
communlca' ing

chamber and ll the

air : That '

»n In the • '

i off above the di«cba

ing en- n In

plan and d
of the put- r ~>rcd p«»»agc«. on

h i« «hnmn In »<

and In i

the cow

rrodtaet

roughou- Although
g lobes do not cor

and dc

frrr •

ha iW

662

POWER

April 25, 1911

of the division wall cooled by the di-
rect contact of the entering water and
the contiguous exterior wall surfaces,

temperature of the water, the higher vac-
rum inside the pump cylinder causes re-
evaporation of the water in the cylinder,

RESULTS OBTAINED FROM TWO CONNERSVILLE PUMPS

Pimp No. 3.

Theoreti-

cal

Vacuum

Tempera-

Tempera-
ture of

Speed of

Vacuum

at Dis-
charge

Per Cent,
of Theo-

Inlet

Discharge

Load in

Vacuum

Barom-

Mercury

Referred

Tempera-

retical

Water.

Kilowatts.

Pump.

eter.

Gage.*

to 30 Bar.

ture.

Vacuum.

66$°
66$

93*°

1500

108

29.43

27 . 55

28.12

28.36

99.15

93J

1550

108

29.43

27 . 55

28.12

28.36

99.15

Pump No. 4.

66$°

96|°

1200

118

66$

1400

118

66$

1600

118

66$

1550

118

78.8

800

104

29.40
29.43
29.43
29.43
29.86

27.40
27.55
27.35
27.30
28.6

28.00
28.12
27.92

27.87
28.74

28.18

28.27
28.27
28.27
28.93

99.37
99.47
98.76
98.57
99.34

♦Vacuum gage attached to low pressure end of turbine.

cooled by conduction. This cooling of
the air is very desirable as it reduces its
volume and the work of compressing it
to and discharging it against the pressure
cf the atmosphere is measured by its
volume, and not by its weight.
1 The water and the air are thus handled
independently, allowing of this natural
separation and cooling, and yet by a sin-
gle pump having no valves, springs or
small working parts. The pump can
handle very hot water and maintain a
vacuum very close to that corresponding
to the temperature. Piston pumps are
handicapped in this respect, because the
pressure in the pump cylinder is neces-
sarily less than that outside the valves,
due to the resistance of the valves and
ports, and to the differential pressure
necessary to overcome the inertia of the
water and make it follow the increasing

filling the pump with steam and causing
it to race.

The accompanying table shows the re-
sults obtained with two of these pumps,

as a dry-vacuum pump, the cycloidal
rotary type can handle any amount of
water up to its full capacity without in-
jury. When used as water pumps, the
larger sizes have shown an efficiency of
84 per cent, of the indicated horsepower
of the engine driving the pump. These
condensing units are now available in
all sizes from 100 horsepower up.

An air-separating chamber is provided
on the discharge side of the pump, so
the air and water can be discharged sep-
arately if desired.

The air-cushion valves on each cylin-
der are used to admit atmospheric air,
so as to produce gradual rise to at-
mospheric pressure in the closed cham-
bers, and prevent the water volumes
meeting in a vacuum and producing a
water hammer.

Smoke Tintometer

This smoke tintometer consists of a
tube A, having at one end an eye piece D.
The opposite end of the tube has two

^-B

ro-ei

i>i

*.-r>;*.tnrm<jLMmk

/(?/*£,?

Smoke Tintometer

24x20 inches, having a displacement of
56 gallons per revolution, running in the
power station of the Memphis Con-
solidated Gas and Electric Company, at

Fig. 2. Pump Direct Connected to Vertical Engine

movement of the piston. When, there-
fore, in a piston pump the vacuum is
carried near to that corresponding to the

Memphis, Tenn. These readings were
taken on June 10 last and represent
regular running conditions. When used

object apertures and in front of one is
fixed a revolving diaphragm B, having
five circular openings of the same diam-
eter as one of the object apertures of
the instrument. Four of the apertures
are glazed with tinted glass correspond-
ing to, and graduated from the standard
tints of the Ringlemann smoke scale,
while the first aperture remains clear.

When examining the smoke from any
particular chimney, the observer turns
the instrument so that the aperture which
is fitted with the revolving diaphragm
looks toward the windward side of the
smoke so that through this aperture he
sees past the side of the smoke to the
clear light of the sky beyond; or the
same light which is illuminating the
smoke column. Through the other aper-
ture the observer sees at the same
moment a circular patch which appears
to be cut out of the column of smoke
that it issues from the chimney. All that
the observer has now to do is to revolve
the diaphragm until both apertures ap-
pear to have equal illumination and a
glance at the numbered scale on the in-
strument shows the number correspond-
ing to "light gray," "drak gray," "black,"
etc., of the Ringlemann chart.

The tintometer is manufactured by
John Lowdon, Reform street, Dundee,
Scotland.

April 25, 1911

,.,,

The Barton Exj □ Steam

Trap

The Barton trap consists of an inner
and an outer expansion tube, into the in-
ner tube of which the steam flows from
the intake end. The inner tube at the
outlet end supports the valve seat, which
butts against the valve disk. When filled
with live steam the inner tube is held by
n against this val and

-calcd. When condensation takes
place the tube contracts and draws .1
from the valve disk, allowing tbc
of the water, and closing again imn
atcly after the disch.t nadc.

The outer tube, also an expansion tube,
makes possible the use of the trap both
with a vacuum or a gra\ tern, as

follow*: With a vacuum system thcr
maintained between the inner and outer
tubes a vacuum which insulates the outer
from the inner tube, so that the outer
tube is always cooler than the inner, and
the inner tube takes cart of the condensa-
tion, as already described. When the
vacuum pump ceases to work, or where
a gravity s. 1 used, the outer I

is acted upon more directly by the steam

c invention oi the N iri«»iul
iadon ( otton
M m ifa< turei

Tf n of the

National Assoc itton Manufac-

ture- tioston on A

13 and was largely attcne number

of interesting papers were rea.:

le matters and one upon "Power
from Prod 1 of particular

interest. The honorary medal wasawa:

Main, o-
nition of h. as a mill engineer

and for his paper upon the e of

which was
it the fall meeting Franklir

-ted
nt of the associati

I chiml I

On Ar md II the alumni of the

Massac: •mite of Techno:

held a reunion at Boston to commcm«>-
the fiftieth anr f the founj

of their alma mate-

opened with an address by President
Maclaurin. of the Institute, which

Sectional View of 'THi Ba» *ap

flowing from the coil, and b-. pan-

he valve by drawing the *
away from the valve scat on
inner tube. The inner tube has a greater
coefficient of expansion than the outer.
so that when the water has escaped under

c inner tube will
pand sufficiently to reach the vn
and close the outlet.

Thin trap is placed In a horizontal 1
n at the loner end of the . be

drained so that the u ndenta-

Thc end of the
coll mu>' -he »mall «',

in the trap marked "ink-
Tt anufactur* >hn W.

Bar-
land

Id ! be

wa»hcd nut and d- un-

slaked lime I be placed in»idc anl

If
the hoi:

ate Id be r

which burr- ha* been a J '

»« the boil and

U kept warm, it

■ '"' n outilde and

corrode if filled with »atcr / 1

follow e J by the reading of a number

.
is, some U follow in a

later isv

The congress cnJcJ a banquet

number of
met rial and

cngince-

»'
1 a small be
and on

10 be

ginr !i one c

har.dful o'

an enrollment

tt and r roda

ate^ *■ nt cngl

% of th

I inn I

inflection

I held a-

i%< of pc '
• l<

n con-
nectii.n •» " ; • , ■ ««§, hiruilmc

arioos societies •

-s, and th.

grar e comp

M W PI BLH \II< >NS

This is trie eighteenth am ..a. pat
tior.
known as Domest

e book aims to be a c<
g. bes-
lighting. r
indi:

■

of jobbers anJ

mine an tools a

chincry anJ ng lists of

water works and gas con

plants, wholesale de.i

1 and
agents of railroads. bcsiJ issiflcd

■
ufacturers. The van.

•he book a

those
interested ir

Pu'
of '

tra*
The book wa> acttcal

man who. th iaps less

of the«
in t' hey

art

a, both of con-
and < . ,- i-

ha\ design

■

'• to
dra*

tc\ otrd to the
me and a discussion
ciple* upon « '

! • ■ 1 • r. of I1' '

lies* '

664

POWER

April 25, 1911

is now expanded into a treatise on graph-
ical thermodynamics, within the limits
set by the title. In this edition the
chapter on the ©-* diagram for the flow
of fluids has been expanded nearly four
pages by a discussion of the total heat
of dry saturated steam, based on Doctor
Da'vis' classic determinations. The chapter
en gas-engine cycles contains twenty ad-
ditional pages devoted to the effect of
different methods of speed regulation
upon the efficiency at underloads and an
analytical comparison of the several gas-
engine cycles; the one on the noncon-
ducting steam engine (Rankine cycle)
has been improved by elaborating the
tables of Rankine efficiency and specific
steam consumption and extending their
range downward to cover steam-turbine
conditions. The old chapter of 16 pages
on refrigeration and the Kelvin warm-
ing engine has been developed into two
chapters covering 36 pages, one on each
subject. An entirely new chapter on
entropy analysis in the boiler room has
been added and there are also short
tables of Napierian and common or
Briggsian logarithms at the end of the
book.

For the benefit of those who are not
familiar with previous editions it may be
well to say that the book is an ideal col-
lege text but not at all adapted to "home
study" or useful as a practical reference
book.

Solenoids, Electromagnets and Mag-
net Windings. By Charles R. Un-
derbill. Published by D. Van Nos-
trand Company, New York, 1910.
Cloth; 350 pages, 5x7/2 inches; 221
illustrations; many tables. Price, $2.
This is the first adequate exposition
of the principles and practice of electro-
magnet design and construction thus far
published, unless one has been brought
out by the Chinese, Turks or Russians.
It is a pity, therefore, that the author did
not either omit the purely academic phase
of the subject or submit his work to a
competent editor. Some of his funda-
mental definitions are obscure and some
statements based on them are absolutely
wrong. His style is neither lucid nor
fluent.

The practical formulas and data con-
tained in the book are priceless to any-
one who has much to do with making
electromagnets. Unfortunately, some of
the charts are so small and poorly repro-
duced as to be useless, notably those on
pages 314, 315 and 316.

Notwithstanding the weak points, the
book is highly praiseworthy in general.
It could be improved by condensation and
the omission of didactic material. A man
who needs a practical manual on this
subject has passed the strictly elementary
grade.

sor showed an improved form of W. R.
Cooper's patent speed indicator. A glass
tube, branched below like the traditional
anchor, is partly filled with mercury and
is turned together with its vertical spindle
within the cup, which holds it, by the
flexible drive. The liquid above the mer-
cury in the long, central tube falls when
the device is rotated; should the maxi-
mum speed that can be recorded be ex-
ceeded, no harm would be done; the
liquid would simply not descend more.
The motion is taken from a shaft through
a friction wheel. The new type of X-ray
tubes of A. C. Cossor is provided at
the anode with several radiating disks
of aluminum intended to cool the anode.
The bulb is further fitted with a branch
tube, which serves as a regulator. This
tube contains a length of a smaller glass
tube wrapped with asbestos, over which
aluminum wire is coiled; inside the tube
is a strip of aluminum, and wires from
this strip extend outside to near the ter-
minals of the bulb. The idea — first ap-
plied by Gundlach, we believe — is that
too strong currents will liberate an air
bubble from the asbestos lagging as soon
as a spark passes from a terminal to
the branch circuit; the liberated air
would enter the main bulb. — Engineering.

SOCIETY NOTES

The second annual meeting of the
American Association of Refrigeration
will be held in the "east room" of the La
Salle hotel, Chicago, 111., on May 9 and
10, 1911. The first session will be called
to order at 10:30 a.m., Tuesday, May 9.

On Thursday evening, April 13, J. C.
Jurgensen delivered a paper on the
"Economic Aspects of the Institute of
Operating Engineers," before the New
York branch No. 1 of district No. 2, in
the Engineering Societies building. The
meeting was attended by some 70 mem-
bers and friends.

On Saturday evening, March 25, the
members of the Institute living on Long
Island, met at the rooms of the Modern
Science Club and organized the Isher-
wood branch No. 2 of district No. 2. The
officers elected were: F. L. Johnson,
chairman, and Frank Martin, secretary-
treasurer. This branch starts out under
extremely favorable circumstances as it
is made up largely of the men interested
in the education at the Modern Science
Club during the past winter.

At the recent exhibition held by the
Physical Society, of London, A. C. Cos-

On Thursday evening, May 11, at eight
o'clock, the second monthly meeting of
the New York branch No. 1 of the In-
stitute will be held in the Engineering
building. F. L. Johnson, associate editor
of Power, will deliver a paper on the
"Necessity for Industrial Education."

PERSONAL

A. Bement, consulting engineer, has
moved from the Fisher building, Chicago,
to 206 South La Salle street.

Alex. Crawford has been appointed
purchasing agent for the Hyatt Roller
Bearing Company, of Newark, N. J.,
and assumed the duties of the office on
April 17.

Rodman Gilder, secretary of the
Crocker-Wheeler Company, of Ampere,
N. J., has resigned to become associated
with the brokerage house of Dick
Brothers & Co., 30 Broad street, New
York. His seven years' experience in a
high-class industrial concern should be
of value to him in the analysis of bonds
of industrial and other corporations.

BOOKS RECEIVED

Current Railway Problems. By Samuel
O. Dunn. Railway Age Gazette, New-
York. Paper; 85 pages, 5x6/ inches.

The Ignition Handbook. By H. R. Van
Deventer, Sumter, S. C. Paper; 73
pages, 4/x7/ inches; 40 illustra-
tions. Price, 50 cents.

The Principles of Scientific Manage-
ment. By Frederick W. Taylor.
Harper & Bros., New York. Cloth;
77 pages, 6x9 inches.

Engines and Boilers. By W. McQuade.
D. Van Nostrand Company, New
York. Cloth; 87 pages, 5/x8/
inches; 62 illustrations; indexed.
Price, SI. 50.

Three-Phase Transmission. By William
Brew. D. Van Nostrand Company,
New York. Cloth; 178 pages, 5/x
8/ inches; 82 illustrations; tables;
indexed. Price, $2.

Machine Shop Mechanics. By Fred H.
Colvin. McGraw-Hill Book Com-
pany, New York. Cloth; 172 pages,
4/x634 inches; 116 illustrations;
tables; indexed. Price, $1.

The Temperature-Entropy Diagram. By
Charles W. Berry. John Wiley &
Sons, New York. Cloth; 393 pages,
434x7/ inches; 125 illustrations;
tables; indexed. Price, S2.50.

High-Efficiency Electrical Illumi-
nants and Illumination. By Rollin
W. Hutchinson, Jr. John Wiley &
Sons, New York. Cloth; 278 pages.
5x8 inches; 147 illustrations; in
dexed. Price, $2.50.

M W ^ORk, \I U

HE baseball season i^ n<>u it band and
everybodj i^ aKvc i<» the relati

iii' >f tin m

I >j<l jrou « top to considi i what

i«. make up .1 successful lean Is it tndi

lual playing <>r tin- earni tion I

tw ill tin- tmiiil • h affording the

other acth e -up-

In answei to tin- question, it might be said
thai Inith .in desirable, although tin lattei i^
the more mi: it i — absolutely

\ 1 1 Election ol Indivi
u 1 1 si h playing his owi me without

i. . .:•! t<» tin oth< a itli«»ut an) defin

m >uld Ik- .it tin ii i well bal

anced team in which each memt>
supported the oth< i

In ihorl . tin- keynoti t< . »u< d U im

work.

This holds tin* not onl) in athletics but

in all bush 1" in

all mu • k t«»i i he common i

Applied to tin- power plant it i
■in tin- general mai <l<»wn t<

.n all in

ami moi nomical

I requentl) the mi l«

1 in an attempt t"
next waU l \ thii

they will omctinv nipt

i. ponsibilit) i"t it t" th<

ich practici i an to
and pett \ i< il"u ies hich

place in tin <>jh i it : \ pi

hci un|H,it nit
ition is thai

nd tin in the n

purchasing suppli<

The mott< A 'l<>n u

- not always hold ti
power j)Kn The purchasii
l«M»k to the pri

I t<- it ii m

DTOVI ii . • . tin- in

ta tin othej hand ii th< par
oi ral man nd tl

t hi ir head

•n both point

and that i»l' «lnial»liit \ and ad

tpt to effect

will pi
cheap

M it will be Found

quaint the en tin

npplh

tin small dail)

all) lu will

tlr
with tin

in tl

duo ili-

hill

\ « ii

It is tin

prn|H*l tfi in-

666

POWER

May 2, 1911

Comparing Steam Turbine Tests

Anyone who has endeavored to com-
pare the results of various steam-tur-
bine tests understands the difficulty in
making a fair comparison, especially
when the tests have been performed
under widely differing conditions. For
instance, suppose turbine A has been
tested at 200 pounds gage pressure, 150
degrees superheat and 28.9 inches vac-
uum, referred to a 30-inch barometer,
and showed a steam consumption of 11.1
pounds per electrical horsepower-hour.
Turbine B was tested under practically
the same load with steam at 150 pounds
gage pressure and 98 per cent, quality
and with a vacuum of 27.8 inches and
produced one electrical horsepower with
14.6 pounds of steam. A comparison of
the steam consumptions per electrical
horsepower-hour of these two turbines
would require certain corrections to be
made in the results of turbine A due to
the steam pressure, superheat and vac-
uum being higher than in the case of
turbine B. These corrections can be
found only from the results of a long
series of special tests under varying con-
ditions of steam pressure, superheat and
vacuum. Should such a series of tests
be run on turbine A, the results might
be misleading, for this turbine may have
been designed to operate at its maximum
efficiency under the conditions of the
, first test; hence, tests under other con-
ditions would be in error to the extent of
the variations in efficiency. As a rule,
the results of such a series of tests are
not at hand for every class of turbine
and engineers have not agreed upon any
standard corrections to be applied to any
one class of turbine.

In the case of the test of turbine B, a
correction must be made for the quality
of the steam. The correction for dry
steam would be as follows: The dry
steam per electrical horsepower-hour
equals

0.98 X 14.6 = 14.308

It is generally agreed that turbines do
not operate as efficiently with steam of
98 per cent, quality, as with steam at
100 per cent, quality, as the presence
of moisture increases the friction and
reheating effects, hence lowers the effi-
ciency. For the purpose of illustration
let it be supposed that turbine B is de-
signed for maximum efficiency with dry
steam at 150 pounds gage pressure and
28 inches vacuum, referred to a 30-inch
barometer.

From the foregoing it is evident that
the usual method of correcting the re-
sults of steam-consumption tests does
not provide a satisfactory means of
making comparisons which are fair to all
turbines. On the other hand, there is a
method of comparing the results of such
tests which can be applied readily to any

By A. G. Christie

When it is desired to com-
pare the performances of
two or more turbines oper-
ating under different condi-
tions of pressure, super-
heat and vacuum, it is first
necessary to reduce them to
a common basis. This in-
volves the determination of
the "efficiency ratio'' of
each machine. By this is
meant the ratio of the heat
converted into useful work,
per pound of steam, to the
heat available through adi-
abatic expansion from the
initial to the final pressures.

set of tests and is not liable to errors in
the correction factors. This method in-
volves the determination of the "efficiency
ratio" of each machine; and, although
not new in this country, it has not been
used to the extent that it has in Europe.

By "efficiency ratio" is meant the ratio
of the heat converted into useful work,
per pound of steam in the turbine, to
the heat available through adiabatic ex-
pansion of the steam from its initial con-
ditions of pressure, superheat and quality
to its final pressure in the condenser.
This may appear at first to be a com-
plicated determination but, as will be
shown later, it can be made very simple
by the use of the heat charts which are
now available.

A vapor is said to expand adiabatically
when it neither receives heat from, nor
gives up heat, except as work, to any
outside body during expansion. All heat
appearing as work must be supplied from
the total heat in the vapor at the begin-
ning of expansion. Hence, the heat,
available as work, can be measured as
the difference in the total heat in the
steam at the beginning and at the end
of expansion. In other words, with a
given initial quantity of heat, the
adiabatic expansion represents the maxi-
mum work that can be gotten out of a
pound of steam in expanding from one
condition to another. It represents the
condition of maximum efficiency in all
heat engines which depend for power up-
on the expansion of a vapor or gas, for
there are present neither radiation nor
internal losses. This forms a standard
of efficiency with which actual results
can be compared. The ideal turbine can

be considered as working by adiabatic
expansion of the steam and with neither
radiation nor internal losses.

In the preceding discussion work has
been referred to as a quantity of heat.
Ordinarily, work is reckoned in foot-
pounds of energy or in horsepower when
the rate of its accomplishment is in-
volved; but all these various units of
work or power can be resolved into foot-
pounds. It has been shown experiment-
ally that 778 foot-pounds equal one B.t.u.;
hence, work measured in foot-pounds, in
horsepower or in other units can be
readily transformed into equivalent B.t.u.

On a temperature-entropy diagram, an
adiabatic expansion is represented by a
line of constant entropy; for if the en-
tropy increases during expansion, heat
must have been added to the vapor or if
the entropy decreases, heat must have
been given up by the vapor. But, as
adiabatic expansion is possible only when
all the heat units given up during ex-
pansion are transformed into work, this
condition occurs only when the entropy
is kept constant. The term "isentropic"
means equal or constant entropy and may
be used instead of "adiabatic." There
are several forms of entropy diagrams,
the most convenienr of which employ
entropy and total heat per pound of steam
as coordinates; of this type the Mollier
diagram is the most widely known. This,
which is here reproduced within the
limits of the problem under discussion,
contains curves of constant absolute
pressure, constant quality and constant
superheat. Such diagrams upon larger
scales can be found in Stodola's Steam
Turbines, Marks & Davis' Steam Tables
and Thomas' Steam Turbines; Peabody's
Temperature-Entropy Tables also give the
values of such a diagram in tabular form.

To use the diagram for the determina-
tion of the heat available from adiabatic
expansion, follow along the curve of con-
stant absolute pressure to its intersec-
tion with the curve of constant quality
or constant superheat, representing the
initial conditions of the steam. The total
heat in one pound of steam at that con-
dition, can be read from the scale of co-
ordinates at the left of the diagram. Note
this amount of heat. Next, from this
initial condition follow down the vertical
ordinate of constant entropy until it in-
tersects the curve representing the abso-
lute terminal pressure of the expansion.
Note the total heat at this condition. The
difference in heat contents at the
initial and the final conditions of
the steam represents the heat available
as external work per pound of steam
due to the adiabatic expansion between
the given limits. The absolute pressures
are found in every case by adding the
pressure corresponding to the barometer
to the observed gage pressure.

May 2

668

POWER

May 2, 1911

In a steam turbine, the expansion is
not strictly adiabatic, owing to the in-
ternal losses and radiation. The radia-
tion loss is usually small, but the in-
ternal losses are the real measure of
the efficiency of a turbine and vary some-
what with different machines. These
losses are often designated by such terms
as blade friction, windage, eddying, etc.,
but all are manifestations of fluid fric-
tion. This may be due to the friction of
the steam against the walls of the steam
passages, to the friction between particles
of the steam, or to leakage past the
diaphragms and over the tips of the
blades.

When friction losses occur in a vapor,
a cycle of events occurs as follows:
With steam flowing at a given velocity
over a curved surface, such as a turbine
blade, friction is set up between the
steam and the blade and some of the
energy due to the velocity of the steam
is converted into heat. This heat increases
the temperature of the metal surface.
The next instant a cooler particle of
steam comes in contact with this surface
and absorbs this heat. Hence the heat
loss due to this friction is returned to
the steam itself, increasing the quality
in the case of saturated steam and
the temperature in the case of super-
heated steam. This increment of heat
does not increase the capacity of
the steam for doing work, as may
be demonstrated by throttling steam
from boiler pressure to atmospheric pres-
sure. The volume at atmospheric pres-
sure would then be many times greater
than that at boiler pressure and the steam
would probably be superheated. How-
ever, it would be useless to attempt to
use this steam in a noncondensing tur-
bine or engine for, although the heat in
the steam may exceed that of dry steam
at atmospheric pressure, no flow can
occur until a drop of pressure is pro-
vided; therefore, no work can be done.
Hence, internal friction of the steam in
a turbine is a loss unless this steam is
used for heating purposes. In most cases,
this reheating of the steam in a tur-
bine, through friction, has one beneficial
effect in that it reduces the friction loss
in later stages by supplying these stages
with drier steam. It is well known that
moisture in the steam materially increases
the losses due to friction. The loss due
to blade and diaphragm leakage is simi-
lar to that of throttling previously re-
ferred to.

When the heat available from adiabatic
expansion has been determined, all that
remains is to find the heat equivalent to
work per pound of steam.

The results of the tests on any turbine
will show the pounds of steam per elec-
trical horsepower-hour or per brake
horsepower-hour. If the turbines to be
compared are both connected to electric
generators, then it is necessary only to
compare them on the basis of electrical

horsepower, for as a rule, one contractor
supplies both the turbine and the gen-
erator and makes his guarantee on the
combined unit. If brake tests have been
made on both units, comparison on a
brake-horsepower basis is satisfactory.
If one set of tests have been made with
an electric generator furnishing the load
and the other set with a brake load, then
it will be necessary to reduce these to a
common basis, in which case the effi-
ciency of the electric generator must be
known.

Assume that the tests have been made
with electric generators as stated for tur-
bines A and B. One horsepower equals
33,000 foot-pounds per minute, or

33.000 x 60 = 1,980,000 foot-pounds

per hour

Also, one B.t.u. equals 778 foot-pounds.

It follows that

n , 1,980,000

One horsepower = — = 2545

77°

B.t.u. per hour

Test results show for turbine A that

11.1 pounds of steam were required to
produce one electrical horsepower of
work which is equivalent to 2545 B.t.u.
Hence, the heat per pound of steam
actually converted into work equals

2 545
hi

= 229 .2 B.t.u.

From the Mollier diagram it will be
found that there are 402 B.t.u. available
per pound of steam due to adiabatic ex-
pansion from 214.7 pounds absolute and
537.8 degrees Fahrenheit to 0.54 pound
absolute. This is found by first locating
the point C at the intersection of the
214.7-pound pressure curve with the
curve representing 150 degrees super-
heat; that is,
537.8 — 387.8 = 150 degrees superheat,

the 387.8 being the temperature of satu-
rated steam at 214.7 pounds. Next, lo-
cate point D vertically below C and on
the curve representing 0.54 pound. Refer-
ring to the scale on the left of the dia-
gram, point C will be found to lie on the
abscissa representing 1285 B.t.u. and D
on the line representing 883 B.t.u.; there-
fore, the heat drop is

1285 — 883 = 402 B.t.u.
This shows an efficiency ratio of

100 x 229 .2
402

57 per cent.

In the same way it can be shown for
turbine B that the heat equivalent to
work per pound of steam is 174.6 B.t.u.
and the heat available from adiabatic ex-
pansion from 164.7 pounds absolute and
98 per cent, quality to 1.08 pounds abso-
lute is 315 B.t.u.; hence, the efficiency
ratio is

100 X 174 .6

315

— 55 -4 Per cent-

Thus the efficiency ratio is a correct
measure of the absolute efficiency of each
turbine as it represents the ratio of the

heat equivalent of useful work to the
heat available, were the steam to expand
freely with absolutely no losses in an
ideal turbine.

Suppose, however, that one turbine has
been tested with an electric generator
and the other with a brake and it is de-
sired to compare results on the basis of
efficiency ratios. As stated before, the
generator efficiency must be known. This
can be obtained usually from the manu-
facturers and should include iron losses,
copper losses, windage and friction. As-
sume that the tests of two 500-kilowatt
turbines are to be compared. One is
connected to an electric generator whose
efficiency is 93 per cent, at full load; and
in the test with a load of 670 electrical
horsepower this unit required 9514
pounds of steam at 148 pounds gage pres-
sure, 99 per cent, quality and 27.4 inches
of vacuum, referred to a 30-inch barom-
eter. The equivalent brake horsepower
equals

670

o 93

= 721 b.h.p.

and the steam consumption is 13:19
pounds per brake horsepower-hour.

The heat available through adiabatic
expansion from 162.7 pounds absolute
and 99 per cent, quality to 1.275 pounds
absolute, is found from the chart to be
307 B.t.u. The heat utilized per pound
of steam is

2545

= 192 .9 B.t.u.

I3-I9

and the efficiency ratio is
100 x 192 .9

307

62 .83 per cent.

The second turbine was tested with
a brake. When running under steam
at 155 pounds gage pressure and 98
per cent, quality, with a 28.5-inch vac-
uum, referred to a 30-inch barometer,
the results showed a steam consump-
tion of 13.05 pounds per brake horse-
power-hour. The heat available from an
adiabatic expansion from 169.7 pounds
absolute and 98 per cent, quality to 0.737
pound absolute is found from the chart
to be 330.5 B.t.u. The heat utilized per
pound of steam was

? 545

195 B.t.u.

I3-05
and the efficiency ratio is

100 X 195 A .

— — = so per cent.

330.5
Hence, it would appear that the turbine
tested with the generator is the more
efficient unit.

By means of "efficiency ratios," a
standard, varying only within the limits
of the steam pressures used, can be deter-
mined; to this each turbine can be re-
ferred and an absolute efficiency ratio
determined. A comparison of these effi-
ciency ratios for several turbines will
determine which is the most efficient re-
gardless of the steam conditions under
which they have been tested.

May 2. 1911

Friction Clutches and Their I'se

Dooce Cli

Fii 23 show the Dodge

clutches. The Dodge clutches are of the
disk type and are made in both split and
solid patterns. The split clutch. ! .
has one disk plate and is filled with hard-
maple blocks the end-grain faces of
which are pressed against the driving
and clamping plates. The driving plate
is keyed to the shaft while the ou-
clamping plate, by means of the It-
shown, brings the wooden blocks in con-
tact with the driving plate. When the
clutch is in full, the wood-filled disk is

0> *"-

Fie 20. of Dodge Friction-

clutch Cutoff Court:

securely cla etween the plates. The

adjustments are made by tightening or
loosening the locknuts on the draw bolts.
A desirable feature of this Jut.
interchangcability. A pu: cave or

gear used in connection with it ma
of any thin the capacity of the

clutch. Where much p to be

transmitted by the Dodge clutch, it is
recommended that a sleeve be used uhich

ng enough to he rise

bearings. ..ne on either tide of the pul
This will prevent all bending stress In
the shaft due to the weight of the

These clutches are made by the Dodge
Manufacturing Company. Mlshawaka.

II. \. lahnkc

.1 ■ ••nt inn
< In:

ill th ii pan

PWI the Hunter clutch, which
ma> ed as ■ n-clutch cutoff

coupling, or in connection with a pu
A novel feature of the Hunter clutch is
that when not in use tl on hub

can be withdrawn; thus, should the shaft
out of line there would be no con-
tact between the friction surfaces, there-
by avoiding all unnecessary wear

! 22 Dooce C

■-

This clutch i» made r- .in-

ter M.i N Mh Adams.

The

All of the .nanism of

-i full view, and self-locking The
-h can be thr or out without

shock or jar. All of the Mcdart t
arc furnished »ith stop bolts to limit

the thr liar, making a

collar unnc, ■ - <■ ■ Ml clut

■ • ,-

haped friction shoe* •• sho»n

Mcdart Com pa

manufi

Tmi

d 28 show the

The Lemlev • l provided »

(%t MM| m<r*f ■ Of t OsM t fltt s^mYBtaVatt^flv^nW OA

The dutch hat a
universal adjustment which makes It nee-
esurv to more only one pan to adlosi

all toggles. In

is secured on all f net ion a

n ble< nade of hard

maple. Tl ted co the fnctioo

.-d on both aid flanges on

The LemU-
Jones Four.drv and Machine Company.

^ » show clutch

, «, - V \

or hub with a slec

or gear can - be mounted On

the bod tnged two

around the It operated by

compound

acre e wins

of hps through which are paaoad

assi. nt\ of

dropped The

•ample an • neat u

hatch la

670

POWER

May 2, 1911

The Reeves Clutch

The Reeves clutch is shown in Figs. 31
and 32. Extreme simplicity is one of the
claims made for this clutch.

The metal friction wheel is clamped
solidly to the shaft; the power is delivered
by means of the wooden friction shoes,

Fig. 25. Sectional View of the Medart
Clutch

which are connected to the belt wheel,
and which, when the clutch is thrown
in, bear upon the face of the friction
wheel.

The pulley is fitted with a babbitted
bushing and when the clutch is thrown
out all of the working parts and the

Fie. 26. Medart Clutch Attached to
Pulley

pulley stand still. The friction shoes are
operated by a toggle joint. The manu-
facturers of this clutch, the Reeves Pul-
ley Company, Columbus, Ind., claim that,
to the best of their knowledge, this is
the only clutch which combines a wood
split pulley with the clutch mechanism.

The Frisbie Clutch

The simple design of the Frisbie clutch
is shown by the sectional view in Fig. 33.
The pulley runs loose on the shaft; the

vices are made by the Eastern Machinery
Company, New Haven, Conn.

The Warner Clutch

Fig. 35 shows the design of the Warner
clutch. This clutch has two or more
crucible spring-steel rings or bands which

Fig. 27. Sectional'View of the Lemley
Clutch

hub of this pulley has a renewable bush-
ing which takes all of the wear. The
V-shaped friction ring is cast onto the
arms of small pulleys and bolted onto
those of the larger ones. The system of
levers in the clutch spider, which is keyed
solidly to the shaft, together with the
friction shoes inside of the ring, forms the

Fig. 28. Exterior View of Lemley
Clutch

operating mechanism. Movement of the
sliding sleeve operates the latches which
move the heavy dogs, and by means of
the shoe bolts draws the four friction
surfaces of the pulley and spider to-
gether in position and powerful contact.
The amount of pressure is regulated
by the clamp nuts on the shoe bolts,
which also take up lost motion caused
by wear. The shoes and spider are fitted

Fig. 29. Section of Davis Clutch

with thoroughly seasoned maple contact
blocks.

The Frisbie cutoff coupling is shown
in section in Fig. 34. Both of these de-

Fig. 30. Davis Clutch with Pulley
Attached

are forced into frictional contact with the
polished surface of a chilled-iron drum.
The clutch mechanism is inclosed in a
dust-proof case, and runs in an oil bath;
the steel rings are practically unbreak-
able. The wear, which is very slight,
occurs on the steel rings. The rings act
one after another, thus insuring smooth
engagement. When the clutch is used
in connection with a pulley or gear it is
fitted with a sleeve to which the pulley
or gear can be keyed.

Fig. 31. Part Sectional View of Reeves
Clutch with Pulley

When the clutch is used for a cutoff
coupling, it is furnished with a hub, the
driving shaft being keyed to the hub,
while the driven shaft is keyed to the
drum.

The Warner Clutch Company, Chicago,
111., makes this clutch.

M.. Ml

TH! ch

sectional view of the Plamondon

clutch is nivcn in Fig. 3<i. This clutch

is powerful a-

- of

8UC?

■

4lU

ahli

'» la*

P('

«. A
and --cJ ft|

•he compound t«ge4c ar-

•>ondon
ufacti;

the
and

th a

:h to |

■

lOOM

' r . ■

T> >n plan

> nif

mad

utch to

UJlJSj

}

Moose & V

-i wood

he wood
the

also be
stor

•

nion T

672

POWER

May 2, 1911

The Falls Clutch The clutch ring K, Fig. 40, is generally The Allis-Chalmers Clutch

Figs 39 and 40 show the Falls fric- made one-half the diameter of the pul- The Allis-Chalmers friction-clutch pul-

tion-clutch pulley, and Fig. 41 shows the ley onto the arms of which it is cast. ley is shown in Fig. 42 and the friction-
clutch coupling in Fig. 43. These clutches
are of the disk type. Although they are
designed to be capable of carrying very

Fig. 40. Sectional View of the Falls
Friction-clutch Pulley

friction-clutch cutoff coupling. These
clutches are made with four or six arms
according to the amount of power to be

Fie. 42. Allis-Chalmers Friction-
clutch Pulley

The inner jaw G of the clutch arms is
forced outward, and the outer jaw H
inward, by means of the toggle levers S

Fig. 43. Allis-Chalmers Friction-
clutch Coupling

and U which act upon the lever F. The
clutch jaws are adjusted by means of
the steel wedges in the lever F. Sea-

Fig. 41. The Falls Cutoff Coupling

transmitted. The pulleys are furnished
with babbitted split sleeves for bearings;
they are turned on the outside to fit the
/A

Fig. 46. The Springfield Clutch for
Gas Engines

heavy load, they are made in sizes
adapted for use in any place where power
is employed.

The adjustment of two set nuts com-
pensates for any wear of the friction
surfaces. The cast-iron driving disk is
clamped between two continuous wood
surfaces. The clutches are made with
either three or six arms, and, as the
pressure is distributed uniformly over

■ ■•••y- ■ -■'

'■■■■■ -i

Fig. 47. Section through Springfield
Clutch

Fig. 44. Section of A. & F. Brown
Friction-clutch Pulley

Fig. 45. A. & F. Brown Clutch with the entire friction surfaces, the clutches
Pulley Attached do not have to carry any one-sided strains.

There are no springs in the mechanism.
hub of the pulley and bored on the in- soned maple is used for the clutch shoes. The pressure is regulated according to
side to fit the shaft. The sleeves are The Falls Rivet and Machinery Com- the load the clutch has to carry, by means
held in position by two cap screws. pany, Cuyahoga, O., makes the clutch. of adjusting nuts on the eye bolts.

May 2, 1911

These clutches are made by ihe Allis-
Chalmers Company, Milwaukt

Tut A. A F. Hk * •» Clutch

The A. & F. Brown clutch is shown
in Figs. 44 and 45. Th:-> clutch is sim-
ple in construction and durable. The
shifter collar. Fin. 44. operates the
countcrweightcd lever A through the link
H. The pin C carries a worm which, when
the clutch is throun in, forces the frame
carrying the uood shoes against the I
lion hub. The object of the counter-
weight on the level
trifugal force from influencing the a.
of clutch.

Pl| osvs a three-arm clutch with

split pulley attach

The A Compan\

York City, manufactur ic clutel

CLUTCHts rat Oil

■ ■•

There are many points in favor of
placing a friction clutch on gas and gaso-
lene engines, especially where the load
One advantage is that the cn-
pinc m.i irtcd slow! -adually

.dcd up before any load is th'
the engine. Another desirable point
in having a friction clutch on the engine
iat in case of an accident it is not
necessary to stop the engine: the ma-
chine* can the

on clutch, the ie and

•ise.

.
to be attached to
eel of a gas or gasolene en*;

i on i hoi-

•

j recess or groove in * I
i frici

to the bearing
ins of v re D

Jmg bc-
if the friction ring. A face-
plati -tring oi

and s a journal for the -

The inner end of tv *ith

a ball-bearing thrust collar P. Mounted
loosely on the s hich

also part of the ball bear

To engage the clutch the handwheel //

ne wht
tun n on the

B apart the ends of the
arms D so that lugs enter the <
between the ha ring R

and nto contact with hub of

the bea:

is Engine Compa
manu' itch.

on-
iric upper par-

.
be bolted to the ' arms and the

lower pan sbo»» the clutch as H to ball
to r

Tr n blocks are made of hard

make a continuous friction tori

I m

. ..-. -
a»c. it

around the plate. To engage t
the handwheel

The •:.•..

made v"

Notes on Power Plant Betterment

The general tend
dation has led to :

and many of the smal' ccn

replaced by large central stations of n

rated by high ; nen

•i great refinement. There arc,
ho»c\cr. HUH) -if the smaller plants
which for good and

are still in l be

operated in the future In the face of the
ird tcndcnc\ of * • of ap

paratuft and materials and the down*
tendency of r
•nar
sen

uhere the q ly all along

the line, and particular!) in that -
Important f the pr the

lai

A casual taepeel ' these

small r

or less hclcrogcnc<Ml

paratus and mach
date back to ll

nee* lnat

each a plant i« u%uaiu opt
force of engineer* and (
ordinary intelligence anJ
naturally lead to the conclusion that.
n under most fa conditions,

high po»er cnu« jrr M he I

the other hand, a <
tailed examination by an «

!-;> II. II Hunt

atint; '

n to the personnel of the or"'^' c
, ct should be a
man of both op-

nust be capable of recnlvlaej
*her mean-
-
;

new her

ould be replaced aa soon

possible -oajadfed

ons to

i ■ *

a Imo* •

report mmnnieadiitona arhk rop-

- 1 result to ma-
il reductions la ct>

Twam of or

'"V »hii
ton able epp)

I to

it« requirements to

< tattoo to iht

cd by the
- ga of men

%a*nmetkoa) ef the

to earrrci such it fr<-
femed on

Starting »Jtth the tie

hauled aad

674

POWER

May 2, 1911

blowoff cocks and valves made tight,
gage glasses and dampers put in order,
air leaks in boiler settings stopped, fur-
nace linings, bridgewalls and grate bars
put in order, safety valves adjusted,
steam gages calibrated, etc. The work
should be continued, in like manner, to
the engines, paying particular attention
to valve setting, steam piping, pumps,
condensers, heaters, oiling systems and
electrical machinery.

In connection with this general over-
hauling of the machinery, all gages,
meters and measuring instruments should
be calibrated and tested, so as to give
accurate information regarding the oper-
ation of the plant. Attention should also
be given to the matter of tools, and it
should be seen that a suitable assortment
is provided, both for the engine room
and the fire room. Finally, the station
should be thoroughly cleaned.

All the firemen should be individually
instructed in handling the particular
kind of coal used, in the use of the prop-
er fire tools, the operation of the damp-
ers and control of the draft. A thorough
course of training along these lines will
usually be found necessary, and it will
be further necessary to instruct the chief
and watch engineers in every detail of
the proper handling of the fires in order
that they may be able to maintain in-
telligent supervision over the room.

Special attention should be given to
maintaining the necessary boiler pressure
and feed-water temperature, in order to
avoid the usual fluctuations which so
largely affect station economy. Record-
ing pressure gages and feed-water ther-
mometers and a bulletin board in the
boiler room, on which are posted the coal
consumption and pressure records of
each watch, will serve a useful purpose
in exciting rivalry among the men.

Presumably, the engineers understand
such matters as the starting and stop-
ping of their engines and generators;
nevertheless, the expert should give some
attention to the engine room. In this
connection a most careful study of the
load conditions should be made and
charts prepared which will show clearly
just what combinations of apparatus and
machinery should be used to meet the
various conditions of the load, the idea
being to so arrange the schedules that
each piece of apparatus, when in use,
will be operated as nearly as possible
at its point of maximum efficiency.

A carefully arranged station log should
also be provided which will contain the
daily operating data of the plant, record-
ed in a systematic manner. In such a
station log it is desirable that the main
factors, such as coal consumed per kilo-
watt-hour, water evaporated per pound of
coal, etc., be shown so clearly that the
manager of the company, by spending
a few minutes daily in perusing the sta-
tion log, may become fully acquainted

with the daily operation of the plant
and be in position to intelligently discuss
matters with his chief engineer.

The coal problem is one of the most
important, and at the same time one of
the most troublesome, which is encoun-
tered in power-plant operation. The
quality of coal depends, to a certain ex-
tent, upon the location of the power plant
as related to the sources of coal supply.
It will be found profitable to have a care-
ful investigation made of the possible
sources from which coal may be secured
at reasonable prices. Full data should
be gathered regarding the analysis of the
various coals available, and that coal se-
lected which will meet local conditions
with the best results. While not always
practicable, it is desirable to purchase
coal on the analysis basis under speci-
fications which provide for a penalty or
bonus according to whether the coal falls
short of or exceeds the requirements of
the contract. Under such a contract an
analysis of each shipment of coal is nec-
essary. Where the annual consumption
is comparatively small, however, it is not
practicable to purchase coal on the anal-
ysis basis, in that event the best that
can be done is to buy it of responsible
dealers who handle the best coal to be
had under the circumstances.

To account for the coal purchased,
while seemingly simple, proves in prac-
tice more or less troublesome. Coal is
frequently purchased and paid for ac-
cording to bill of lading weights. The
consumer is apt to suffer shortage under
this method of purchase and to start out
with substantially less coal in than is
called for by his books. It is obvious
that ultimately the cost of the coal con-
sumed must check with the cost of coal
purchased, and in order to bring about
this agreement, frequent checks between
station records, coal on hand and fuel ac-
counts are necessary. It will be found
desirable to arrange proper scales for
weighing in bulk the coal which is deliv-
ered to the yard; and if a contract can be
so arranged as to make payments on the
basis of the company's weights, one
question of coal shortage will be re-
moved. Bins should be provided which
will permit the coal supply to be accu-
rately measured at any time. Also the
coal passing into the fire room must be
carefully weighed and these weights re-
corded. With these precautions there
should be no excuse for coal short-
age.

Low cost of maintenance does not al-
ways indicate thorough or economical
maintenance, for while it may be possible
to run for months on abnormally low
maintenance costs, the time will come
when the accumulation of deferred main-
tenance will produce a condition of af-
fairs which will require excessive expen-
ditures, if not for new apparatus, certain-
ly for the overhaul and repair of the

old apparatus. Therefore, it is desirable
to prepare a proper maintenance schedule
which shall be carefully and conscien-
tiously followed by the operating force.
Such a schedule will set forth definite
dates for the inspection of all apparatus;
the schedule to be so arranged that each
and every part will receive periodical at-
tention as often as is necessary to keep
it in good operating condition.

As to what may be expected as a result
of this power-'plant betterment work, it
may be summed up as follows: first, ac-
curate knowledge of the maximum effi-
ciency of which the particular plant un-
der consideration is capable; second, the
securing of this efficiency through the ef-
forts of a well trained and efficient oper-
ating force; third, systematic and
economical maintenance producing maxi-
mum life of all apparatus and continuity
of service; fourth, in case of failure to
continue to produce the desired results,
it is possible to trace the cause.

Experience has shown that the saving
in power costs, resulting from power-
station betterment work, will cover the
cost of the necessary expert services in
a comparatively short time, depending
upon the amount of saving effected.

The continued operation of a power
plant under the conditions established by
successful betterment work, by which
maximum economy in operation and
maintenance are secured, calls for most
active and energetic work on the part of
the operating force. In fact, from the
manager of the company all along the
line down to the coal passers, every man
must work under high pressure. After
the novelty of the improved condition
wears off, the operation of the plant be-
comes not only monotonous but exceed-
ingly strenuous. It is so much easier to
slip back a little than to maintain the
required pace, that frequent checking of
the plant operation is necessary. The
manager must give his personal attention
to this matter, and he will doubtless be
surprised to note the effect of his failure
to carefully follow up the matter of daily
checking of the plant, if for any reason it
becomes necessary for him to temporarily
discontinue his critical study of the daily
station log.

In spite of all reasonable efforts, it is
quite likely that the economy of a plant
will gradually decrease because of a com-
bination of little things which creep into
the operation unnoticed by the engineers.
This has been noted in actual experience
and has led to the belief that a periodical
power-plant audit by a competent expert
is necessary just as it is found necessary
to periodically audit the accounting de-
partment. Such an audit will require
much less time than the original ex-
amination, especially if both examina-
tions and audits are made by the same
man, and should not, therefore, be very
expensive.

May 2, 1911

Limitations of Scientific Efficiency

During tt r much has b.

said and written ibot.- and.

in fact, quite recently the public was

:emcnt that th
railroads of this con-
million dollars a day- three blind!
sixty-five million dollars a > Mch

might In - through the adoption of

so called scientific methods of mar,

•u.

This whole qu<. has r.

jumped into prom. i group

of men. who h. 1 doing some

excellent ar .1 work. ha\

tempted into the realm of prophecy, and
havt y allowed their enthusiav

outstrip their judgment.

In view of tl *hich h

been made it ccnainh reasonable

whether there arc n< •
practical lit: <ch have prevented

a general adoption of these method -
the past and which may prevent the
wholesale overturning of

f technicalities the method of
the modern eft; ;»pl>'

analyze and
rk befor

.an be done with a
minimu- »n and

■nan so that he
do the work in the man:
as most efficient. Titer viing funda-

mental! The un-

dcrl cd tod<

a gr ni in all in

been used at all ti
in t!

The method a* cmpl<> he moJ

■

He
tent to plan «ork a!

a more
•

loss
at each at

the
un-
■
Change the

to the workman so that ll
may be avi
The form
rally ha* the same end

■

■ ■ ',
cial sc<

■
what
enc
need la

fut< •en enc

aged in ,ich the ti

Henrj ( -• Bradlec

i till

most efficient
These mi •

re-
i ncccs
that th

I ';

■

the fact t!
and

tfap

mannc

• be

■
rested

en imagine
an

cfficieno ooi. i a

second cnae for

and shops and boom ape-

ns that the best results I

Hi. at>

-le to eft-

an.
»t of
after j ctor oc

the lowest co-

- more inv

. -

cost so no

■

i cons*.'

■■•

not

- n pontic

•••■•.

rsc '

led

• J eOVkc

v. »c. \< r » r« ,r> hseent

detail of or

m another T*i.» tv.t

■

r methods

676

POWER

May 2, 1911

to establish an elaborate system of cost
accounting; a second step is to increase
the number of supervisors and special-
ists employed to oversee and direct the
work of the laborers. This increased cost
is deliberately and intentionally incurred
for the purpose of saving a greater
amount in other items of expense. If the
accounting department were considered
by itself without reference to the rest of
the business, or if the number of super-
visors and specialists were compared
with those employed by some other con-
cern doing a similar business, it might
appear that the efficiency engineer is
most extravagant and uneconomical.
However, to be fair and just to the en-
gineer, one must consider the results of
his work as a whole and not condemn
him because of increased expenses in
certain departments.

It has always been recognized that
there is an element of danger in fixing
one's attention too closely on detail econ-
omies, which is in line with the "man
who was penny wise and pound foolish."
The writer once knew the manager of an
electric lighting company who directed
his business with the greatest economy.
He frequently remarked that he would
much rather save a dollar in operating
expenses than secure a dollar of new
business because, when he had saved a
dollar in expense he had saved the whole
dollar, but, when he had obtained a dol-
lar from new business he had to spend
half of it in serving the customer. In due
course of time this manager resigned and
a new man was appointed in his place.
The new manager was not very econom-
ical, but he was a hustler for new busi-
ness and he kept in very close touch with

his customers. As a result the business
immediately began to grow and increased
very rapidly, and the public received
more and better service at slightly lower
rates. The dividends of the company in-
creased, but the cost of operation per
kilowatt-hour increased also. Measured
by operating costs only, the efficiency was
less than under the old manager, but the
efficiency of the business, as a whole,
was greatly increased.

The question will naturally be asked —
why not secure a manager who will push
the development of the business, keep
the public satisfied, maintain a high qual-
ity of service, and, at the same time, di-
rect his organization and business along
the lines of maximum economy? There
is no doubt that men of this kind would
be desirable but, unfortunately, they are
few and far between.

Flow of Water in Clean Iron Pipes

It is not possible for an investigator
to cover in experiments the complete
range of conditions with which the prac-
tical engineer has to deal at some time
or another; this is particularly true with
hydraulics. Prior to Darcy's investiga-
tions of the subject, many experiments
en the flow of water in pipes had been
conducted, but the results were not
coherent until Prony, of the Prony brake
fame, took up the problem, and finally
succeeded in establishing a complex for-
mula with constant coefficients, which
embodied approximately all the experi-
mental results at hand at that time.
Prony's achievement appeared to many
engineers more as the result of an acci-
dental compensation between all the
causes of divergence than as the revela-
tion of a positive law.* Darcy's experi-
ments confirmed the deductions of Prony
•and enabled him to simplify the latter's
formula.

More recent investigators, however,
have endeavored to establish a formula
still less complicated than Darcy's. This
complication, so far as concerns the pres-
ent treatment, lies in the fact that each
pipe diameter is expressed in the com-
plex form,

y 0.62 (D + 1)
It would be very desirable to have, in-
stead of this, one of a simpler form Dn-

Several engineers have boldly cut
across lots, and have each brought out a
formula which, expressed by a graphical
chart of the type described here, has
for the diameters a continuous scale
much easier to establish than that of
chart No. l.f Besides, the diameter func-
tion being continuous, it was possible to
show on the same chart an additional

By Albert E. Guy

The method of developing
and plotting a chart show-
ing the flow in gallons per
minute for any size of pipe
between 2 and 72 inches
with a velocity anywhere
between 0.5 and 25 feet per
second. An introductory
discussion and a similar
chart, applicable between
different limits, appeared
in the April 4 issue.

scale, very much needed, giving the
velocity per second corresponding to a
given quantity of water passing through
a pipe of certain diameter.

It is easy to so transform Darcy's for-
mula that D becomes a continuous func-

*E. Collignon, "Hydraulique."
tChart No. 1 appeared in the April 4 issue
of Power.

Fig. 2

tion; but in order to do this, an approxi-
mation must be introduced. Solv-
ing the expression ( , ) for
V 1/0.62 (D4- 1)/

a series of values of D ranging from 2
to 48 inches, and then considering each
of the values obtained thereby as repre-

senting the corresponding diameter raised
to a certain power, the expression may
be written,

= = Dn

I o.6j {D ■
or, using logarithms

Vl o.6j(D+i)/

log. D

For the range of diameters considered,
n appears to be almost constant; that is,
n increases from 0.851 for a diameter
of 2 inches, to 0.864 for one of 4 inches,
and then gradually decreases until it be-
comes 0.852 for a 48-inch pipe. The
average value is 0.8567, which permits
Darcy's formula to be written with a
very close approximation, as follows:

Gallons per minute— (d0-8567)3 i ~h (13)

or,

Gallons per minute = D ' ] h =

d¥i 1 (i4)

However, the writer preferred to make
chart No. 1 conform strictly to Darcy's
original formula and to construct chart
No. 2, showing the relation between the
volume and the velocity of water passing
through a given pipe.

Let

V = Velocity in feet per second;
D = Diameter of pipe, in inches.

The area of the pipe, in square feet, is:

w n*-

4 X 144

The velocity in feet per minute equals
V X 60.

One cubic foot equals 7.48 United
States gallons.

Substituting these values.

Gallons per minute =
7.48 =

4 X 144

D* V
0.4085

X 60 X V X
(15)

May 2, 1911

NX i H

•77

. 16OOO0

fOOOOO

. 90 000

. 70000
. 60000

Soo-

30000

2SOOO

I_ sooo
1_ 7000

€<

_ *'•

3o&0

~_f

'f'OO

300

. * I
: 2oo

l
■

Chart N.

,f an> 'fee factor* rcprcscn ,hc

scales arc knoun. the third may K
straight line through these quant.tics on t
scales. This line will intersect d | scale

number representing the 0r.

-SO

-48
_-/■_'

-36
-SO

B0
-*6

/./
to

-6

^
^

i^
C3

as— ,

I
as

4 __

■s

' ^

<fc

678

POWER

May 2, 1911

The chart is intended to cover a range
of volume from 50 to 150,000 gallons
per minute, for pipe diameters from 2
to 72 inches, the velocity ranging from
y2 foot to 25 feet per second.

Proceeding as with chart No. 1, let Fig.
2 represent the chart to be established.
On three parallel lines Q, D, V, it is pro-
posed to lay off scales such that on Q
will be read gallons per minute; on
D, the diameter of the pipe in inches, and
on V, the velocity in feet per second.
Now, any straight line such as Qi Vx
placed across the three scales is to indi-
cate that a quantity Qi in gallons per
minute, will pass through a pipe of diam-
eter £>,, with a velocity of Vx feet per
second.

Assume that the scale of numbers on
a slide rule measures exactly 10 inches.
Such a length may be understood to repre-
sent the value of the number 10. The
values of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 5, would be
represented, 'according to logarithmic
tables, respectively, by 3.0103, 4.7712,
6.0206 and 6.9897 inches. Adding the
lengths representing 3 and 4, the result is
4.7712 + 6.0206 = 10.7918 inches

2M_.

""— 2

6NJ

"FT""— -- - \

POWER

Fig. 3

This length represents the value of the
number 12.

In Fig. 3, the three parallel lines A B,
CD and EF represent scales of the
same kind as used on the slide rule, the
origin of each scale being at the inter-
section with the datum line A E. The
three scales being fixed, if the line A E
is made to pivot about point E and oc-
cupy successively the positions repre-
sented by the dotted lines M E and M, E,
ii will cut on CD the lengths C N, C N1}
respectively proportional to A M, A Mt;
and if the length A M represents the
logarithm of the number 2 and A M, that
of 6, the lengths C N and C N, will repre-
sent these numbers respectively on a
smaller scale.

The logarithm of 10 may be drawn on
A B with a modulus, or length in inches
or millimeters equal to mx; on C D with
a modulus equal to m2, and on £ F with a
modulus equal to m.-,. Let A M represent

the logarithm of 2, and A Mi the log-
arithm of 6; then,

log. 2 X m. - A M

log. 6Xm1 = AM,

log. 2Xffl= = CJV

log. 6 x m = C Nu

But,

A M / log. 2 X mx

CN e log. 2 X m2

A My / log. 6 X m ,

C N | e log. 6 X m2

Hence,

c r.i 2
When pivoting the straight line A E
about point E it was first stopped at M,

Fig. 4

determining on scale A B a length A M
equivalent to the logarithm of 2; at the
same time determining on scale C D a
length C N also equivalent to the log-
arithm of 2, but of length

C N = e X A M
If A M represents the logarithm of 2. and
A Mx represents the logarithm of 6, then
M Mi represents the length of the log-

Fig. 5

Pl)~ER

arithm of 3. Hence, just as with the
slide rule, when different lengths are
added on one scale, the total length rep-
resents the product of the numbers repre-
sented by these lengths.

Fig. 4 has the same and similarly
placed scales as Fig. 3. By pivoting the
straight line A E about point A and stop-
ping first at point N, the length EL is
determined on EF. It is evident, from
the foregoing, that E L represents, on a

large scale, the same logarithm that is

represented by CN; hence:

EL I _ log. 2 X m3

C X d log. 2 X wt2

whence,

TO 3 /

m2 d

The same reasoning holds true for
points TV, and L,.

Fig. 5 is a combination of Figs. 3 and
4. Here, the straight lines E M and A L,
starting respectively from the origin of
the scales E F and A B, and intersecting
at a common point TV on CD, determine
on the three scales the lengths A M, C N,
E L, which represent the logarithm of
the same number. Similarly, lines A Lt,
E Mi, intersecting at 7Vt on C D, deter-
mine the three lengths A Mi, C Nlt E L,,
each representing the logarithm of the
number 6. By joining M and L a length,

CNS= CN + NNi

is cut. But C N is the logarithm of 2,
and obviously N N-j is also the logarithm
of 2, for

EL _EL_l_
N.\,~CN~ d
therefore,

C /V, = log. 2 + log. 2 = log. 4.

Power

Fig. 6

By joining M, and Li the length
C N, = C Ni + Ni N3
is cut on C D. But,

C Ni = N.N-.,
and

C N, = log. 6 f log. 6 = log. 36.
However, the scales do not always run
in the same direction; they may run in
opposite directions. Generally speaking,
a three-line diagram is intended to solve
an equation of the form:

a = constant X b X c
where a, b and c are the variables. Pass-
ing to logarithms, and neglecting the con-
stant,

log. a = log. b -\- log. c
If b is on the first scale and c on the
third, b added to c must equal a (as read
on the middle scale). In this case, as
shown by Fig. 5, the three scales are
graduated in the same direction.

May 2, 1911

If a is on the ale, b on the sec-

ond, and c on the third, the problem
seems, at first, a little more comr
These scales are shown in Fig. 6. Line
on sea N on

scale A ; each of the- • -. as

measured on its own scale, represents
the same number, b >imilarly. length
o /.. determined on scale C by lb
esents the same number r» I
equal r, then line / M . passing through
ta on scale A the length 0 M

itcd be-
M PBf
nr the product I mce. the

A and H, arc graduated in the
same direction, while the otru - in-

•d. The position and direction of the
scales depend obviously upon the condi-
tions of the problem at hand which they
arc intended to so:

Reverting no- I and equation

I < M M i fo/ZOM r«'r minw
ptiMNl ftUCt
I)

. t the constant factor •
for the prv The formula then be-

.
!

•

To obtain I'

ar.g.

whe

crc remain 'he

mod> 'ken

■

that

I
adof

' on the diameter scale was
out for a .
n velocity, taking then the constant
factor into account, t ition of the

n of the scale »
mir.'. of the modulus equal

to 100 mil: was laid out I

•ig an ordinar scale of a

.a! to 1
The attention of thi called

to the fact that, although Ch.»

Jrawn .i g to the

alculat m seem

juircmc
: he trouble rn the D

apparent than real the

diameters the
II •
ceases when it is known that ill
numerical vain h of

ire Thus.
■
and 144. w
>n the chan agree

S SO

■rtant that 'aken up again

'art til ulas

U be

i I urbinei

Th.
. ,-nf the Koval In*'

■

cconon-

d in J
InMnlMlM J « • r'cr In marine

cr,«» a ma-

' I I

wording to Consul General Ho-
imburg. in tbc

ed from the reaiJ
mg paraftV

Mini

■

mar

J or solid, mo

the
rate of

•
of lubricar.- 1 from fats or

for tf
musi J. upo-

gaged in all bi uaineaa,

usual. ■. ha. i Hamburg

bra: Sfl at first hand,

and apparei
Tl:

•
>ssible. <.» 'tc*

and *niaht sell

^ the n

should ai

■ ; — *»•

on u
It the

< ■■ r -
■
s mant. I

■iould arnd a caea-

crman r

.
An

months r

■ team,

Tl-

up-

1 » • • l ■

•a import-
* fro aa4

same p<

the

-•pom

' the Oil*

680

POWER

May 2, 1911

A Difficult Case of Parallel
Operation

By H. R. Mason

The parallel operation of 60-cycle al-
ternating-current generators, especially of
the older types, often presents very in-
teresting problems to solve. The station
in which the following difficulties were
encountered is of about 12,500 kilowatts
capacity, about 3500 kilowatts being in
600-volt direct-current railway generators
and the others 60-cycle 2300-volt al-

considerable expense and undesirable
complication. The builders of the alter-
nators maintained that the machines were
designed to operate smoothly in parallel
and insisted that the engines or the fly-
wheels were unsuitable for the service,
while the engine builders produced fig-
ures and weights indicating that the en-

Knockoff Cam

and Blocks

POwCR.

Fig. 1. Original Arrangement of Valve Gear

ternators supplying rotary converters to
a capacity of about 4500 kilowatts and
an alternating-current lighting and power
system of about 4500 kilowatts.

There are two 1500-kilowatt alter-
nators, one driven by a 36 and 60 by 60-
inch cross-compound Corliss engine and
the other by a 36x60-inch twin Corliss
engine; also, two 3000-kilowatt turbine
units. It was found impossible to secure
satisfactory parallel operation of the en-
gine-driven units with each other or with
the turbines and it was accepted as an
impossibility for some years, as the load
was not so heavy that parallel operation
was absolutely necessary. There was
no difficulty in getting the two turbines
to operate in parallel with each other and,
as there are two sets of busbars, the
load could always be divided so that the
two turbines were on one set during the
peak while one engine unit on the other
set carried the city arc lamps and enough
rotary converters to take care of the re-
mainder of the load. This was often
troublesome and expensive, as it resulted
in an unsatisfactory engine load at times
and required close attention in balancing
the load between the two sets of busbars.

The load recently increased to such an
extent that it became imperative either
that the alternators be made to operate
in parallel, or that a third set of bus-
bars be installed so that the remaining
engine could be operated, which meant

gines were not to blame and claimed that
the generators were deficient in synchro-
nizing ability.

Upon trial, it was found that no matter
how carefully the generators were got
into synchronism they would set up
enormous cross currents within a revolu-
tion or two after being connected tc the
same busbars and it had happened a
number of times that rotary converters
were caused to flash over and interrupt
part of the service in the brief time re-
quired to change the switches in trans-

seems never to have been taken into con-
sideration in all of the endless argu-
ments for and against compression, and
that is its effect upon the angular veloc-
ity of the flywheel. In this case the
compression figured up to nearly 600
horsepower, which seemed an unreason-
able amount even for a 2000-horsepower
engine, and as this energy was neces-
sarily absorbed from the flywheel near
the end of the stroke, it was thought to
be at least partly responsible for the
trouble in operating the units; there-
fore, the eccentrics were moved so as to
give much less compression and the cut-
off was equalized as far as possible.

After taking additional indicator dia-
grams it was found that the governor
rods were connected to the knockoff cams
at unequal angles, the undesirable meth-
od of connection shown in Fig. 1 being
used. With this kind of connection, it
is impossible to adjust the cutoff of the
crank-end valve without disturbing the
adjustment of the head-end valve, and in
this case the unequal angles of the knock-
off cams caused the point of cutoff to
change at different rates on the two ends
of the cylinders, which also added to the
trouble in paralleling the generators.

Upon still closer examination of the
valve gear it was observed that the latch
plates were set at an improper angle, as
also represented in Fig. 1, frequently
causing the block to slip off the hook
before the tail of the hook struck the
knockoff cam; although this could
scarcely be observed by watching the en-
gine, it showed on the indicator diagrams
and resulted in unequal crank efforts.
Another effect of the latch plates being
set at an incorrect angle was that the
springs had to be kept at a very strong
tension, which resulted in a severe shock
being transmitted to the governor mech-

Knockoff Cam
• and Blocks

Power.

Fig. 2. Corrected Arrangement of Valve Gear

ferring the load from one alternator to
another.

Indicator diagrams were taken, which
disclosed some serious faults in the steam
distribution, due to unequal cutoff and
unequal and excessive compression. In
this connection, there is a point which

anism every time the hook encountered
the knockoff cam. These defects were
all corrected and the valve gear changed
to the arrangement shown in Fig. 2, which
gave reasonably good indicator diagrams.
After this was done, determined efforts
were made to operate the units in paral-

drives under all conditions. I be
that there are places, and a large number
of them, where the belt or rope dm
more economical than the electric dl
1 believe that there are places, and many
of them, wher - cheaper for the

factory' owner to purchase power than
to generate it. I believe, too. that there
are places, and many of them, where the
factory owner can generate his own
M and use it through electric motors
more cheaply than he can cither bu
or operate by belt drive Every plant
must stand on its own merits and no
factory owner can say because 'John
Jones operates his plant more cheaply
by belt drive than Tom Smith docs his by
electric drive, I can put in belt drive and
operate more cheaply than I can by elec-
tric dri\

HtSk> h

Boston. Mass.

The ( riddingi Engine Vilve

Allen J. Stocks illustrates an engine
re in the issue of March 28 and
if anyone ever saw anything like it. This
is the well known GiJJm^s valve and
was used very success f r many

years by several engine-building con-
cerns prominent in the manufacture of
high-speed engine*.

a section of the n
and valve face. It aril] be observed that
the valve takes the form of the Allen
valve with the dill ret, that

the steam enters the mldd f the valve
through the WWb this arra:

ment there would be a tendency to tl
the valve from its seat unless it ■

• cs

counterbalanced b> a pressure on
back of the ralvc

aeci;-

In
order to k
tain limits, there was a r

■

the
boiler pre*- rom

s!a; ;

c rem j
»a«

at cor

mg the

the §M i hauated aa

this port •*
with tr-

POVER

a pair of indicator i
grams from an engine with • t of

valve. The compression
when the edge of t:
the exhaust port and it continues to
until communication with the sur
mentary port is established, toe
the volume into which the steam
pressed nlarging the area of the

diagran tted

lint

The engir r at the I icn

this valve was used mere of compare-
ly long stroke, the sues ranging aa
foil.

hard to beat in the matter ol
The lar. J be run on 30

is of steam per in<

I 2. D

cr with a 100 pc

throttle, noncondensmg. Thc\ acre

al than the high-

at that time with the so

calk ,jm-

a plug in a bol
scandal- r the many forma of flat

N of
an c

Cine
■

arc

■•
- een trn

balance

adaalntd from

abo. c valve

-g aad stopping the engine.

irned oil from

■

a, 1911

on the thick the

uld be

gtoe to a Russell he
adjusting not
ic rod connec •* ecce

and thai cngth of the rod can be

change:

The diagram* *ho» its of -

•hough not ucb so.

Tt >ned had a

.
■
ting off

This ma\ be the trouble
*e aa a long rod mould make the
de and late on the of

•*es W. I

I lu- Position 1 1

In the isv »o

the above heading The
>e point
and contains some

I wish to call >p

about

in a
J advertisement for a po*

*. One came from P^ *
dclphia and one from Boston The one
ftom Boston asked rr< all around"

and sec a

J a good position, hot
'or me
to call ar.tund in Bos-
"
i A Jan
the stepped out of the fire room

the position "higher
units* om

thai

e head.
In th< , age editorial of I'

I \f .

i-^J »tuJ>

►hWJ »

• "f tr»

May 2, 1911

POWER

691

of fire on the outside and mud (sedi-
ment) on the inside of the plate. The
cover of the cleaning nozzle (the nozzle
is connected to the lower front part of
the boiler) can be taken off and the
sediment scraped and washed out. A
lamp can be brought into the boiler
through this opening and nearly the
whole of the bottom sheet and the bot-
tom part of the lower row of tubes can
be inspected. The boiler is set with an
inclination toward the front; the blowoff
valve is placed on the cleanout cover,
oftentimes the feed valve too.

John Zeuerlund.
Eskilstuna, Sweden.

Belt versus Electric Trans-
mission

In the March 21 issue, Franklin Van
Winkle takes exception to my article in
the February 14 issue on central-station
versus factory-plant service, making the
statement that the friction in many hun-
dreds of plants has been found nearer
10 than 20 per cent, of the total power
required.

This does not agree with the results of
tests of many of the plants that we have
investigated, nor the results that are re-
ported in many of the papers and which
are mentioned in connection with the
shafting losses in a number of hand-
books. In many factories the friction
loss amounts to considerably over 60 per
cent, of the total power generated at
the engine and these plants are pretty
fairly operated. There are, of course,
many textile mills and many mills in
which the shafting is laid out accurately
and carefully and in which recent addi-
tions have not been made to disturb the
operating conditions, where the shafting
losses are very small, but such condi-
tions do not hold for any considerable
length of time, nor are such conditions
possible except through excessive waste
of space in belt- or power-transmission
towers or wells.

It is interesting to study what the
actual losses are in a plant using belt
drive, starting with a pretty small loss
from shaft to shaft and from floor to
floor until the engine is reached. Sup-
pose, for instance, it is assumed that on
the top floor of a four-story factory 20
horsepower is required, divided between
four lines of shafting. On the next floor
assume the same conditions and require-
ments and so on down to the lowest
floor, where the main jack shaft is situ-
ated. This is an arrangement very fre-
quently found. If 5 per cent, loss from
shaft to shaft is allowed, the losses are
cumulative and the power required at
the engine is to a very considerable ex-
tent larger than would ordinarily be re-
quired if the shafts were driven direct
from the engine. The following table
shows to what extent this cumulative fric-
tion increases and it will be noted that

5 per cent, is used as the average loss
of power for each transmission belt; this
is by no means a figure accomplished
under average conditions.

Top floor, 20 horsepower; 4 shafts, 5 horsepower
each: 5 per cent, loss between shafts.

Horsepower.

Power required at the main shaft on

3d floor for top floor 22 . 06

Power required, 2d floor for 3d floor. . 45.22

Power required, 1st floor for 2d floor. . 69.54
Power required to operate 1st, 2d and

3d floors from engine 97 . 33

Total power required at shafting 80.00

Loss 17.33

or 21.7 per cent., which is quite different
from the loss that would exist with in-
dividual drives to each shaft. It should
be noted also that this loss is to a con-
siderable extent represented by slip, so
that the speed of the shafting is con-
tinually dropping from what would be
expected on pulley ratios, materially in-
fluencing the production factor of the
machinery. As vertical drives are of fre-
quent occurrence in a factory of this
character, figures of 5 per cent, loss on
an average between shafts is consider-
ably below that met with in practice, al-
though it is not below what could be ac-
complished by proper arrangement in
many cases.

In machine shops the conditions are
radically different and so are they in
many types of plant where the machinery
is not constantly in operation so that
the power lost in driving the shafting
may be, and frequently is, a very heavy
item of expense. Under such conditions
the power required to operate with belt
drive would be much larger than that
required to operate with electric drive.
Each plant has its individual character-
istics, and it is necessary to make a
careful study of each plant to determine
what is the proper type of drive. It not
infrequently happens that with a plant
already installed, a rearrangement of
belting is much cheaper than the installa-
tion of electric drive, and that a belt-
driven plant can be operated more cheap-
ly than electrically driven, either by
power purchased or power generated in
the plant itself.

When motor drives are installed, they
should be installed with a thorough
knowledge of the influencing conditions
so that the motors will be adapted to
the purpose in hand and every precau-
tion should be taken to reduce the fric-
tion losses to the minimum. The effi-
ciency of the motors is an important
consideration, also the efficiency of the
drives connecting the motors to the shaft-
ing. It frequently happens that unless
the engineer installing the drives is thor-
oughly conversant with the motors and
the machinery to be operated, very much
larger motors are installed than are nec-
essary. It also happens that in order
to save first cost, the owner and engi-
neer install motors which are of far too
high a speed to operate satisfactorily or
install the motors on too short centers
with too large ratio of driver to driven

pulley. All of these things militate strong-
ly against the success of the electric
drive. On the other hand, similar mis-
takes work against the belt drive; there
is just as much danger of a poor layout
in a belt-driven plant as there is in an
electrically driven plant and there are
quite as many belt drives throughout the
country which are failures, if their own-
ers and engineers but knew it, as there
are electric drives.

Mr. Van Winkle's statement that he
was called in to consider a case where
the proprietor of a plant was greatly dis-
appointed is exactly in line with condi-
tions which are frequently met. The
electric motors in this case were prob-
ably not installed properly and the cen-
tral-station salesman was probably thor-
oughly onto his job as a salesman and
very far from onto his job as an engi-
neer. The factory owner who bites at
the salesman's figures of operating cost
in his plant as driven by belts and at
the economies which are likely to accrue
from the installation of electric motors
and makes no further investigation,
usually gets stuck and there is every
reason why he should expect to get stuck.
This same factory owner would not al-
low the agent for some company supply-
ing him with materials to estimate what
it would cost him to get materials from
half a dozen of his competitors but he
would actually get competitive prices.
Why, then, should not this man take the
same precaution when it comes to the
matter of power? If he is not capable
of making up his own figures as to what
power costs him, why should he take the
figures of the central station and buy
material of which he knows nothing?

The electric drive has many advantages
over the belt drive. So, too, has it many
disadvantages unless properly installed.
Mr. Van Winkle leaves out one item in
his tabulation of advantages, which is of
very considerable importance, that is, uni-
formity of speed, resulting in a con-
siderable increase in production. This
production factor alone, if properly
looked into, is, in many cases, a sufficient
cause for the introduction of the electric
motor and, further, is very often a suffi-
cient explanation for a considerable in-
crease in the cost of power. In a number
of cotton mills in the South where elec-
tric drive is installed, under the first
year's operation the factory owners were
very much disappointed to find that the
total cost of power during the year was
considerably greater than the cost of
power during preceding years. Their en-
gineer, however, was far-sighted enough
to go a little bit into the figures for out-
put during those years, with the result
that he discovered that the total cost
per unit of goods manufactured was less
than in previous years.

While I am strongly in favor of the
electric drive where it is suited to con-
ditions, I am not a believer in electric

990

povn.k

1011

crating Cost I Small
Water Work

Having read (he editorial. "Publicit
Operating Costs" in the issue of March
7. I artll do the best I can to give the
readers of I the actual running

IS of the station of which I am in
charge.

This is a small town of about 6000
inhabitants. It has a direct-pressure
tern with a standpipe located at the
highest point in the village \k'c pump
from a receiving basin fed by gravity
from springs. The aver.i. -ion lift

>nd the discharge head I
ages 160 U

The pumping station contain
izontal return tubular bo:

e arc used alt
and arc in fairly good >n con-

sidering their age which ars.

<pcratcd for 13 years at their
full capaci' Juring that length of

time electric current was generated for
use in the town. The> are of the lap-
team design and since reading the recent

'es and edit ft I am i

that thev have seen their best days al-
though they i n a pretty good
standing and arc alio*

' the Icadir.
ancc companies.

Th - arc Worthington dirf

mg. nnc :v .i OOinpOV!

and the other
is a simple 16 and I
one is held in rest
There is one

.«tcr through a
Baragwanath hear a boilers at a

We operate, on an average. 16 h<
out of the 2i and. bcinr to a

Arc call at any time, h tin up •

bank

the service meters n
We use run nf mmc coal » <>st»

the

' Deluding

1 /ririicnf.

< ritii ism. s
and ( upon Winona

artkksJeft edit-

orials which hawe .*/>
pared m previous
ttti i

pounds of wor- .ds of coal.

The l4> the:

cents per IOOO gallons de

Tt - end of the pump shows an

eat and I think it

be of interest to some to hear ho» I

find . meter on the de-

Whcn the rcc
feet in J < me

The efficient ■» then found b
ing the vai

the amo , ,(.c »iA%ir

n out by lowering

the

plungers of np.

These figures are not given as models
of econom il runr .

es of a small old-fashioned pumping
plant and I should
them comr f a mo:

plant of about
running

♦

ago V reared

Jeter oi

the II

• hsetenutai

"■' ga' iter against an

average total head of 180 feet uslne The I

- .- of the e basin, taking them aga the boi.e

plant to be tlightl tenant

May 2, 1911

POWER

689

thority over their own force, and yet
they were paid a good salary and were
well thought of.

How is a man to make known his
ability, beyond the more or less suc-
cessful operation of his plant with what
the employer chooses to give him, unless
he is consulted and given an opportunity
to show what he can do? Some may
say, let him take his ability where he
can get full value for it, but that is much
easier said than done.

Regarding engineers preparing them-
selves for the demands made upon their
ability, I think that if employers would
give the engineers a chance to show
whether they are worthy of the name and
can operate more cheaply than the cen-
tral station can supply electricity, it would
be a simple matter to answer the question
when the time comes. It would seem to
be more of a question of cooperation be-
tween employer and engineer than one of
whether the engineer can beat the central
station. The engineer alone cannot beat
the central station, so let the employer
get busy as well as his engineer.

William N. Wing.

Brooklyn, N. Y.

Low Charge of Electrical
Energy

When the first bonds were to be voted
for the municipal plant at Pasadena, Cal.,
the Edison company, backed by $20,000,-
000 of capital and owning the electric-
light plants in thirty-five cities, would not
give out any information to the citizens
of Pasadena as to the cost of producing
electrical energy or what a profitable
selling price would be. As a result, the
city built its own plant which contains
the very best of machinery, has been en-
larged three times in four years and has
made good.

The plant now furnishes electrical en-
ergy to 3650 private consumers and takes
care of all the public and street lighting.
There is a sliding scale of from 5 cents
down to as low as 3 cents per kilowatt-
hour for larger quantities of energy used
for lighting purposes; for power the rate
runs from 4 to 5 cents per kilowatt-hour.
The plant with the distributing system
reaching into every part of the city cost
5450,000 in round numbers.

During the fiscal year ending June 30,
1910, the city plant paid out of its earn-
ings the principal and interest on the
bonded indebtedness incurred for its con-
struction, in addition to all operating ex-
penses, and had left for depreciation and
new construction an amount equal to ap-
proximately 5 per cent, of the cost of the
plant.

I am informed that it cost the Southern
California Edison Company $0.0216 per

kilowatt-hour to furnish electricity in the
city of Los Angeles during the year 1909.
During the same period the Pasadena
municipal lighting plant produced elec-
trical energy at an average cost of $0,020
per kilowatt-hour. The residents of
Pasadena remember when they paid at
the rate of 15 cents per kilowatt-hour
for lighting their houses, and now the city
plant furnishes them with light at a base
rate of 5 cents per kilowatt-hour.

From the standpoint of the city as a
whole, it may said that its people have,
and are now, effecting a saving of not
less than $100,000 per annum by reason
of the difference in rates charged before
the city built its plant and the rates which
are now in effect.

W. M. Glass.

Pasadena, Cal.

Worn Pump Worms

Readers of Power may be interested in
the long service that has been obtained
from a screw pump. Nine years ago two
screw pumps were installed in a 14-story
office building to pump the water for four
hydraulic elevators. The accompanying
illustration shows the screws or worms
which have been in continuous operation
in No. 2 pump for eight years, operating
ten hours a day, six days a week. In
that time the pump has been idle about
two months, due to motor repairs. The
illustration shows the shafts worn more
than half way through and one end en-
tirely worn off by the action of the water,
thrust washers and packing. The pump
was operated for six weeks after the
missing end of the shaft had broken off,
the screw guiding itself in the cylinder.

eter, and this was at the end of the end
where the loose screw with the broken
shaft revolved.

The screws were 7 inches in diameter;
the pump has an 8-inch suction and a
7-inch discharge pipe and is supposed to
pump about 700 gallons of water per min-
ute at 800 revolutions per minute.

L. M. Johnson.

Glenfield, Penn.

An Old Belt

Some time ago I read of a belt that
had been run for 25 years.

At the plant where I am engineer, there
is a 20-inch belt running 2827 feet per

PH^^^^^fcbh.

A (A >>

Showing Preserved Condition of Belt

o o o o o

Worn Pump Worms

The four horseshoe-shaped rings at the
left show all that is left of the illustration
of the thrust washers; the tap ring shows
how a new thrust washer looks.

After the screws were removed, the
cylinders were measured and showed but
1/64 inch more than their original diam-

minute that has been in service 10 hours
each working day for 45 years. It is a
double belt and is shown in the illustra-
tion. The engine is a Putnam and runs
at a speed of 90 revolutions per minute.
Charles E. Harriman.
Concord, N. H.

PO\x'i k

911

any one of the push buttons Af, the cir-
cuit is closed through the batteries S and
magnets 0, which pulls the armature A
and the trigger J down, thus releasing
the trip /, whereupon the lever C vi-
and, in so doing, throws the link A off
of the stud li. The lever C then str
the adjustable stop P, thereby forcing the
arm Q down to the rubber-cushioned stop
R and at the same time the arm (
to rest on the and assuming the

•ion indicated I This mi

the rods T in the direction shown by the
arrows, thereby throwing the valve cam
into such position that the knockoff
blocks come in contact with the hooks
and prevent the steam valves from open-
ing, thu ng the engine.

Passaic. N J

Cai ( .iiim'v \<. i identl

\ nk enf

pounded badly The engineer, who was a
new man trying to make good, had
connected the crank-pin end of the con-
ng rod in order to ease away the
brasses. He had then closed up the
crank case and started up. but the
engine began to pound and heat b.i

towed that there was an
accumulation of wood pulp, mixed with
the oil inside of the case, and the (
necting rod was also sprung, which
caused the heati: .

engineer then remembered that he
had used a r od to block up the

connecting rod while facing off

set and when connecting up again
this block of wood had fallen down to the
the crank case and he had
failed to remove it Just a little care-
In another case a botler-fced pu.
den: nough the

I conne
to the J the pump and

•.irting the i highi

was obtai: - gage than

lho* ..age on the boiler,

showing that tl

the discharge, notwithstanding the ;
Ml | up the ;

line it und that in one

ice thi it thr.

ill and a
had been left in pU
flcult in get at The nt -.g had

been connected at each end and. as the

scale,
when the pump *.i« started after the

rk had been nm»hed a »mall

the
ng in the old
ng the time a-
Fall t

on the da»hpot rod after making adi
menu allowed the nut >%c and

the rod to lem -suiting in a I

rod

In the ca*e nf a

tappet the o prop

tighten the worked loose

i the plate to drop, breaking
the tap;

These ac^ .- all th of

w and ave be

ven-

• - H T
nn.

I I ist) I- ngine R< •••in

Can any tell me how I can k

from ng on the walls and

ng of my engine room
drawn in b\ the driving belts of three
each bcl: and

I
I have a hardwood floor and ha
-k. but tl
i of the cm
Has any reader at to

offer as to ho* I can rig up a suction
cleaner to remove th- Tom

the walls and
does not make a gooj

- i . :•■■

f- n pincers' \\ ashing M t< nine

ms of steam g ma-

chir. -<hing overalls.

n made by the man i that

-i in the drawing hi
with uses steam wash a

■ > matter I
minutes. The garment is soaked in s<
water and. d in

the washer and the steam tur;

11 the garmer * a spec-

betv.

rient n

»es

nar

of galv.1

and long enour bottom

-nachiiK

and

the same by

hinges to the croaepic

*' <en placcC

the machir .^ ^

the garment follow* a path shown by

the arrows The -ci-
cular path the

i the open

whi (he

path of ^ jhij.

around ag.>

to construct the
machir. u.

Lo I

Pueblo i

The ccntr
plant ha

for the consideration who

> the la
urge J
performances of ■
that the\ ma

ised to
ite the tussive

made h\ the

This is a
to ask how the average
procure all these J

that an irge

and lighting plant ant
the

The eng
look
note of t!

■
cant
and

plant ai
arc made and noted and the cngr
pon ioi

-efit of
the ; J to

he goc-

all t

It ma r, and

out»ide mci'-i j:;-i- »ith ma-

•aki
-can hr

ng on

imr*o**iMr of I

iMihdeoee of the «•■

engineer* wh* rui •" ch

C DOt r

May 2, 1911

POWER

687

The Line Shafts Break

During the last two years there has
been considerable trouble with the break-
ing of shafts, as nearly every shaft of
any importance has broken during this
time. A 2}j-inch shaft has let go three
times, and three others of 2^s inches
have broken, all doing considerable dam-
age. They all break in the hub of the
driving sheave of the American system of
rope drives. The sheaves are keyed to the
shafts by a straight key with two set
screws on top to hold the key firmly in
place. The shafts are not out of line
and are not overloaded. The 2jf-inch
shaft drives but 50 horsepower, and the
other shafts about 20 horsepower each.

The danger of maiming or killing em-

Practical

information from the

man on the job. A letter

good enough to print

here will he paid forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

A Homemade Safety Stop

When I took charge of a certain steam
plant, I recommended the installation of
some kind of an automatic safety stop,
so that in case of necessity the engine
could be stopped by pressing a push

ployees is apparent. The expense of
maintenance is great, as the ropes usually
become tangled and the shaft comes
down, taking everything with it before the
power can be shut off. Good machinists
have been employed for the repair jobs
but the shafts keep on breaking. Can
any reader of Power suggest a probable
cause or remedy?

Chicago, 111. A. Rathman.

The accompanying illustrations will give
a very clear idea of the construction and
operation of the apparatus. The only
parts that had to be purchased were the
push button, batteries, wire and magnets.
Any type of electric-gong magnet will
answer the purpose; otherwise the rest
of the material costs nothing, and the
only expense is the machinist's time in
making it. The method of making this
safety stop is described herewith.

The brass knuckle on the end of the
governor link A, Fig. 1, is slotted so that
it can be disengaged from the stud B.
The lever C is mounted upon the bell-
crank bracket of the governor, and is se-
cured by three set screws to the collar D,
upon which it moves freely by means of

Fig. 3

Powen

Details of Homemade Safety Stop

button from various points in the factory
without waiting to signal or telephone
the engineer.

But as there was some delay in re-
gard to the matter and feeling somewhat
apprehensive that something might hap-
pen when none was near the engine to
shut it down quickly, I came to the con-
clusion that I could make a safety stop,
and it has proved reliable in every way.

the strap E. The link A passes between
the grooved rollers G. The magnetic re-
leasing mechanism is attached to the
front of the governor column in the po-
sition indicated at H so that the lever C
rests upon the trip /, Fig. 2. This trip is
held down by the trigger arm /, which is
secured to the top of the armature K,
mounted between the two pivots in the
top of the brass posts L. Upon pressing

represent the cost of operating the whole
system because, with the exception of
the building and contents, no charges are
made for ir :naintenancc, deprecia-

tion and sinking fund for the general
system. Office expenses, improverm
etc., are likewise not included, as these
charges would remain the same with
either gas or steam as the source of
power. The cost of constructing the gas-
power plant as compared with a steam
plant of similar size, however, has been
taken into consideration.

TABLE BHOWIN MPAH \l : ■

\i\ -II \M \M»
PRODI

lute of puinpine l» : oJIooj j»

PUnt

and
r»t*

it* tun. i

0 08

i prow

■

uaaptac i«

fig w*

•

«.. ...

Producer Ga* from Crude

o.l*

The production of gas from
petroleum or its prodi. urficicnt-

standardized to give figun -sary

to exa^ rminc I Cali-

fornia with Ira immense of

petroleum is the natural and logical
for the exploitation and industrial use of
oil producer gas. It is to be dep
that such an important subject *as first

men not conversant
the manufacture of oil gas, who. in cast-
ing about for apparatus to make proO
gas fr it-, oil. natural: -atcd to the

old familiar methods of retorting thc
any improvements that gr "lcsc

methods seem to have retained the

■ onablc features of the re

'caturc* const-
the naceaaary shutdown* for the purpose
of removing coke and frequer
burning cumulated soot and lamp-

black A typical analysis of gj
In tr • • is a* follr.

rat

► WEB

This gas has been applied to the ope
tion of small | «, up to

including 100 horsepower. Owing t<
abundance of petroleum .
has

manufacture of illuminating p

The first oil gas manu1 i on a

large scale in California I
ing ana

By improvements in apparatus and re-
finements of operation the hydrogen con-
tent of the gas has been
than 40 per cent.; the marsh gas has been
increased to 34 per cent.; the carbon
monoxide has been increased to 9 per
cent.; the Jnj

the heat value fro: per

C foot. The oil gas generators used
at present for manufacturing illuminating
gas are so elastic in their operation that
any of them can be immediately ada;
to the manufacture of producer gas from
oil, the i! composition of the gas

and its value >nly upon the

manipulation of the gcncr.i

The writer has carried on j of

•■•:
a la ning unit, and the o

char is the B om-

at from 35 to 4<) pounj

and to
:n the pan | the oil.

gas
made having a thermal value as

as high
■
atcly no rciJ. means rn at hand
measuring the qua gas made and

amount

gas is as follow

■

i »•

it »

TM *ias a of 100

g»«

ssry that it shall be trior

hall
be uniform

gen ' measurement of

d the air supplied
pa nisi combustion and the maintenance
of j 'it tempers' the

. j» mano-
I necee-

•he observation of
coir- check* and the •• i

rough sight cocks by the
gasma*

K producer gas from (he

•y gas general • •

be ma:
amount made

tbt nee J romlnioea

and withe u

tha mar
pro- in

proccs-
tiot not at

occur »

no eas

:c P«n- ioing x- -.* chei

•
sisting high tamp*
s much hiRhe-
in msking producer | en-

ire not scnou-

'he decom-
ion of

l complete disposition of
■
producer gss can be n
product of Any aocur

ic gen i.
cd by adjusting the tempt
intity of

Th od of making gas requ

a small ga* - momenta:

age. and the process s
stood c< be used ss s ractioa gas

■ '

contsining a small percentage of
assesses ad
luminating-oil \

■

>RR] SB >NDI Si \

Mr. li

r a sf oiu-

NM hig'

bore and 12 inches strok

pinion it that such a
speed i* too higf ' * * I ' ||g acting m

* caches '

of I aaeion stroke H has no cvshsaai

against the apt

. •
ton speed a •

p—n d at the assd of the
•

« pove
•4 and the inertia of tl
cms incraase the

Beoca

• Orleans.

May 2, 1911

POWER

685

Fig. 4. The Producer Equipment

Whenever clinkers are drawn out of the
fire, which is requisite only at intervals
of several hours, the suction fan is start-
ed and draws all dirt away and dis-
charges it outside the building. By this
means the producer room is kept perfect-
ly clean and no dust is ever carried over
to the engines and pumps.

The supply of lubricating oil is kept in
iron tanks with pipe connections lead-
ing outside to permit their being filled
readily and without making any mess in
the station.

As to the operation of the plant, the
pumping units and gas producers are in
complete duplicate; therefore, either set
can be operated independently of the
other or both may be operated at the
same time. When the engines are not
in operation, the fires in the generators
are usually banked. While in this state,
very little attention or coal is required
for days at a time, but the plant can be
placed in full operation on short notice.

a shutdown of several hours' duration.
The compressor, blower and pump are
all driven by the gasolene engine.

The suction pipes are laid beneath the
floor in concrete channels which are cov-
ered by steel floor plates and the piping
is so arranged and equipped with valves
that either engine may be operated from
either producer. A neat gage board, lo-
cated on the east wall of the machinery
pit, is in full view from both engines.
Upon this board are mounted two sets
of suction and discharge gages and a
recording gage which indicates high and
low water in the standpipe by means of
an electric alarm and registers upon a
paper disk the water pressure as it varies
from hour to hour.

The operating engineer of the plant
has installed an excellent system for re-
moving the dust arising during the oper-
ation of stoking the fire at the grate level.
As indicated in Fig. 3, a system of gal-
vanized pipe extends from a suction fan
to the fire doors of each generator, with
a hood or extension over each door.

Fie. 6. One of the Pumps and Its Clutch Gear

Fig. 5. One of the Engines

By actual experience it has been found
that after a shutdown of seventy-two
hours the engines could be started and
water pumped within fifteen minutes.
This is less time than would be required
to get up steam from banked fires in or-
dinary boilers.

The accompanying table shows the
cost of pumping 1000 gallons of water
by producer gas as compared with the
cost of pumping by steam. In making
the comparison, data from steam pump-
ing plants of similar size have been
utilized to determine the cost of opera-
tion. The actual prices bid for a steam
plant were used in determining the
charges for interest, depreciation, sink-
ing fund, etc. It should be understood,
however, that the figures given do not

POU! H

1911

pumping unit is composed of an 85-
horsepouer single-acting engine and a
ie triplex pump, r . hows a

view from the engine side of one of the
units and Fig. 6 shows a view from the
pump side. The enginrs are the standard
heavy-duty sing!e-c\ linder machines built

Pou The tota.

f the v
000 gallons per 24 hoi.

On th
the water

pun i the a ow-

ance of 25 pe for friction in the

renting a muaid-
»d and
a po*»

able tod rrte?ic:e*. is moi-

>f the pUct

The or

m the

■ •
'C Kcar '* comprenar

< null The pump« are

•in, h ha« rtmmr* for •

» quarter mil' rr«**d hi CMr

*f*

May 2, 1911

POWER

683

A M

A Municipal Gas Power

Pumping Plant

By Thomas E. Butterfield

A striking example of municipal pro-
gressiveness is embodied in the gas-
power service and fire-pumping station
installed within the past year by the town
of Haddonfield, N. J. The new water-
works system derives its water supply
from four artesian wells which extend
down about 220 feet. From each well a
6-inch branch leads to a 12-inch main
extending from the well field to an abso-
lutely water-tight concrete cistern 20 feet
in uiameter and 42 feet deep. The 12-
inch main extends about 30 feet down
into this cistern and as soon as the
pumps lower the water level in the cistern
more water is siphoned out of the wells.

The power house is built of hard
burnt brick and the foundation walls are
of concrete, reinforced according to re-

Fic. 1. Coaling Arrangement

quirements. Large double-width windows
located between each pair of pilasters
.provide ample light and ventilation for
the interior. The building is located at
the foot of a hill, as shown in Fig. 1,
and at the edge of a basin or depression
in which the artesian wells were driven.
The railroad spur track is on the crest
of the hill and coal cars are dumped into
the chute shown in the picture, the coal
passing by gravity down the chute to
the coal shed, whence it is wheeled by
barrow across the bridge to the producer
platform in the power house.

The interior of the building is divided
into two parts, the main producer floor
and the pump pit. The producer floor
is at the ground level and the floor of
the machinery pit is located eight feet
below and reached by iron stairways

Everything"

worth while in the gas

engine and producer

industry will be treated

here in a way that can

be of use topracti

cal men

from the producer floor and the front of
the building. An iron walkway along one
side of the building (see Fig. 2) connects
the front entrance with the producer
floor. This iron walk also forms an ex-
cellent gallery from which the machinery
on the floor below may be viewed.

As the floor of the machinery pit is

The gas generator is of the simple up-
draft type with a vaporizer built in the
top. The gas passes from the generator
to a wet scrubber of the usual tower
type. Fig. 3 shows the arrangement
of the equipment.

Fig. 4 is a picture of the producers in
which may be seen the charging platform,
which is on a level with the tops of the
generators and is reached from the pro-
ducer floor by means of an iron stair-
way. This platform is of steel and is
built entirely around the tops of both
generators, giving access to them from
all points. The platform extends to a
door in the side of the building which
opens on to the bridge leading to the coal
shed, 20 feet away and on the same
level. The capacity of the bin covered

Fig. 2. Interior of Haddonfield Pumping Station

five feet below the level of the ground
water, it is constantly subjected to an
upward pressure from beneath of over
300 pounds per square foot. To with-
stand this the floor was constructed of
concrete several feet thick.

The power equipment of this station
represents an innovation in small water-
works construction. Instead or the usual
steam boilers and uneconomical steam
pumps, there are installed two complete,
duplicate power units, each consisting of
a triplex pump driven by an Otto gas
engine and an Otto suction gas producer
designed for gasifying anthracite coal.

by this shed is 50 tons of coal. The
floor of the bin is of concrete and the
front and sides are of heavy timber. The
rear wall of the bin is formed by a
heavy reinforced-concrete retaining wall,
30 feet long by 7 feet 6 inches high, de-
signed chiefly for the purpose of holding
back the embankment, and beneath the
front wall of the bin is another heavy
concrete retaining wall.

The floor of the machinery pit was
put at a low level in order that the suc-
tion lift of the pumps would not be ex-
cessive, even with the water level in the
cistern drawn down by pumping. Each

682

watt-hour. In contrast to this, many
modern stations are running upon about
three pounds of coal per kilowatt-hour,
and in some Ca n less. Thi-

that only 30 per cent, as much coal as
was demanded .its ago is now

needed to produce a unit of e.
ener

In addition to the fact that the
velopment of alternating-current
paratus has enabled the electric-ltgl
companies to distribute
from the power station to the cor
at a much less cost, has also mad
possible to transmit power for d
which were not dreamed of in the early
days. Twenty years ago what little (
■v was used was distributed by di-

currcnt and the radius of act
was seldom more than half a mile, or a
mile at the most. Th the

rating stations being placed u|
expensive land near the heart of the -
and since the voltage on a direct-cur
system is limited, it meant a large loss
of power in trai on and required a

large investment in c Mo»i

the introduction of !:

Mon has made it pos
factories, mills and shops at convenient
places, instead as in the old days 11
near the source of power, and has also
greatly I J the cost of distribi:-

e facts alone have had a wor.
fully bene I • upon the entire

Industrial development of the OOUntl

HiKh-. *>sjon has fur:

pen what

toforc useless and alm<
siblc waterfall' I thout Ih lop-

:. Los i to

burn thousands of barrels ol .ach

J of the moui

. hundrcJ and

be abL
.

all hi
and other public uli

in»-
d in the lak
Canada, or in Buffalo

The
power .1
at l
con-

annua!

- and r
stud

cfTKI
11*. -J

f, thcrr the

of •

c of a
I* Kent tamps in the

carl numcd

r candk ontutnr

was soon i to three watts per

candle, w! for many

years and seemed tu baffle fur-
due- m of s.
perimentanun tbia wt

and now there is the
tungsten lamp which consunu one

further
provement J in a lamp which

> consume not over one-hslf a
per candl-pou

iilc all of the matters th
ed relar which I

n place in the physical apparatus of
the property, one must not I
due for the development of the

the re-
duction in the cost of light, heat and
power, to the sck :icnt of

lighting

a remarkable
and carried on with most

of the
fact that t

:o the pu
The

en due ful
to the trained i pcratcs the

o plans
it or w : J in

who in
man
for betterment and has suggested to the

ical sp|

>f men.
machin- has brought

about economics in the of

■

theil and h.i

so that the\ have become
in their lines.
Th

ght about a great r- the

the - n of

■ ■

the I* rs in

the

op-

*l and a
n and I

' has r. 1 the heoe-

■

duced cos4 of etc and p

ago el

I » [TER8

■

On page I

s a method of
of ground
armatur lft , food one

id I ba
npler i ippOcav

I
of trouble
the
has alw

of primary bar- cees

of all

can
Connect one

the batten and or
vanometer or

arm,

Coi

Thcr tfes two

r bar tad

.: ' .

ther one of the coils

rounded

HMS 1 ' .- I

the grounded
Una

that bar

■

■ )1r pr.-Mi" Ar A

>f l\

•

ind i

% r- *

" <

DuKiJur i

May 2, 1911

POWER

681

lei, with partial success; closer attention
was then given to the electrical part of
the unit. It was found that either en-
gine could be operated in parallel with
the turbines, provided the field current
of the engine-driven unit was greatly
decreased, causing the output of the en-
gine-driven unit to have almost unity
power factor while the turbine unit would
have a very low power factor, as it was
then required to furnish practically all
of the wattless component of the line
current in addition to its load, but the two
engine-driven units would operate in
parallel with each other but little better
than before. The supposition was that
the field magnets of the engine-driven
units were too close to the saturation
point at any power factor much below
unity, which would cause poor operation
in parallel, as the reaction of the
synchronizing current upon a field magnet
is much less effective when the magnet
is highly saturated. This impression was
strengthened by the fact that on rare
occasions the machines would run to-
gether for hours at a time at slightly
reduced voltage, while a slight increase
in field current would result in such
heavy surges of cross currents that the
machines would have to be separated
immediately.

It was suspected for some time that
the relative positions of the crank pins
at the instant of synchronizing made a
perceptible difference in the action of the
generators, and considerable ingenuity
was expended upon an electrical attach-
ment to the engine shafts to indicate,
through contact-making devices, when the
cranks were in certain relative positions,
but a large number of experiments in-
dicated, so far as could be determined,
that the relative positions of the crank
pins made no difference whatever. When
the power factor was favorable, 90 per
cent, or higher, the generators would op-
erate satisfactorily with the crank pins
in any relative position, and when the
power factor was much below 90 per
cent, there was no position of crank pins
with which they could be made to remain
in parallel.

This, which at first appeared to be al-
most impossible to remedy, proved to be
the simplest condition of all. It was rea-
soned that anything that would operate
to maintain the necessary voltage with-
out increasing the field current would
assist in maintaining synchronism, and
investigation developed that while the
engine-driven alternators were rated at
78.5 revolutions per minute, they were
running at about 77 revolutions per min-
ute, or about 2 per cent, below speed.
When the engine governors had been
weighted down until the generators ran
at 79 revolutions per minute, they op-
erated in parallel perfectly under all
changes in load and power factor. This
required about 25 per cent, less field
current and, incidentally, the increased

speed and consequent higher frequency
lesulted in a much improved power fac-
tor on the entire system, which, of course,
reduced the line losses and gave better
voltage at remote points in the system.

It will be evident that no one item in
the foregoing enumeration can be con-
sidered the reason that the alternators
would not operate in parallel; correction
of all of the deficiencies was necessary
to obtain the result desired.

Improvements in Electric

Lighting Properties*

By William H. Blood, Jr.

At the present time, when so much
is being said about "efficiency" and
"scientific management," it may be well
to consider what the application of
science to the electric-lighting industry
has accomplished and to what extent
the public has been benefited thereby.
In 1888, the writer tested the largest
dynamo that the Institute of Tech-
nology possessed, and found the highest
ratio of electrical output to mechanical
input to be about 70 per cent. Today,
machines of this size operate at about
85 per cent, efficiency, while larger units
give efficiencies of 95 or even as high as
97 per cent. Assuming this improve-
ment in efficiency to amount to an aver-
age of 25 per cent., it would mean that
this percentage of the fuel which would
have been burned, had there been no
improvement in electrical efficiency since
the year 1888, is now being saved.

If this figure is applied to the in-
dustry as a whole, basing the estimate
upon figures given in the census reports
on the cost of fuel used by the elec-
tric-light and railway plants in the
United States, it shows that electrical
engineers have brought about the con-
servation for future generations of ap-
proximately $12,000,000 worth of coal
per year, and this solely on account of
a single item— improvement in the effi-
ciency of electric generators.

This improvement has been accom-
plished partly through an increase in
the size of the units. The first com-
mercial electric-light plant in Boston,
built in 1886, contained six machines
having an aggregate capacity of about
230 horsepower, two of them being of
15 horsepower each and the remaining
four of 50 horsepower each. In 1888
the largest electric generators were of
100 horsepower, and they were regarded
as monsters. Today, 15,000-horsepower
machines are common and even units of
25,000 horsepower are about to be in-
stalled. The 25,000-horsepower gen-
erators, besides being more efficient, are
much more reliable and are little, if any,
more complicated than the older and
smaller machines.

*From a paper delivered before the Tech-
nology Congress, at Boston. April 11, 1911.

One of the early electric-power plants
with which the writer had some connec-
tion, contained twenty dynamos of 100
horsepower capacity each, giving a total
capacity of 2000 horsepower, and the-
floor space required for the entire plant,
including boilers and engines, was 9000
square feet, which is equivalent to 4.5
square feet per horsepower of capa-
city. This same company is today build-
ing a new station which is to have an
ultimate capacity of 140,000 horsepower
and which will require but slightly in
excess of one-half a square foot per
horsepower. The first plant represented
an investment of approximately $225
per horsepower, while the new installa-
tion will cost about $45 per horsepower.
Had there been no improvement made
along this line, and had the company-
been obliged to increase its capital ac-
count on the basis of $225 per horse-
power up to its present capacity, it would
have required an additional investment
of some $12,500,000, which would have
entailed additional annual interest
charges of $750,000.

A still further improvement in power-
plant design has been the adoption of
steam turbines. These, besides requir-
ing much less room, use higher steam
pressures and higher vacuums, and are,
consequently, more efficient.

There has also been a great develop-
ment in the boilers used in power sta-
tions. Instead of units of 100 to 125
horsepower, units of 600 horsepower are
now in general use and boilers up to
2000 horsepower have been built. In the
old tubular boilers 80 to 100 pounds was
the common pressure used; this was
later increased to 125 pounds, then to
150 pounds, and finally in the water-tube
boilers of today 200 is commonly used.
Improvements in superheaters, combus-
tion chambers, automatic stoking devices,
condensers, ash- and coal-handling ma-
chinery, apparatus for analyzing flue
gases and other miscellaneous devices
have all had their effect in cheapening
the process of converting the heat units
of coal into steam.

Turning again to the electrical equip-
ment, the modern switchboard, although
somewhat elaborate with its remote-con-
trol switches and automatic regulating
and protecting devices, is simple of
manipulation and arranged to give the
plant the greatest flexibility of operation.
With the increase in size of the units
and the development of the modern
switchboard, has come a decrease in the
number of operators needed, so that to-
day in the dynamo room of a 5000-
horsepower plant there would be required
only two or three men on a shift, where-
as two decades ago eight or ten men
would have been required.

In the early days of power-plant op-
eration it required, as a rule, ten or
more pounds of coal to produce one kilo-

Hi '11

This matter of securing the position
"higher up" is getting so important that
it has | all these articles and

if :i feUou cannot find a helping \
if he makes any effort to "get there
will certainly not be mlt of the

writer of those editorials on the
pa^

J. E. Poc:
i Orleans, La.

In a recent issue, Oscar J. Richmond
red that :i upon the

subject of how to proceed I ire a

better position, assuming that one
propcrl

training should prepare
him to speak and write intelligent!
the things he knows and to be at
ease among the cultured. When he en-
dca secure a higher position he

i be able to sfa
emplo>er just why it will be advantage

.cure fa
man must show the buyer w!

the particular
article that the salesman is oft
eral. coupk technical, educati(<:

and the more educa-
tion an engineer can obtain the I
r^c for him.
At all times one should take pain^
work up as wide a reputation a* po*-
of being a high-grade man so that when
a man I
in tl

the • ;ight or >uld

be a mixer both in the associations of

en and in a
social va) He should, as far as pos-
sible, cultivate the acquaintance of

and in this his personal appear-
ance will count grcatlv He should J-

aatl as th< et and

means will that he

may lose much more in opportur.
advancement by going poorly dresaad
than he saves in clothes. The com mi
accepted badges of his professi'
hands, overall-- Mould b<

whenever his duties will permit, while at
work he should be as neat personally as
possible. The better class of cmpl
takes t h things and

es that make a creditabh
ing. both on Jut-, and about the streets
and other public place

talking shop and
should jvmj appearing big-head I
on the other hand, should make u»

initic* Rf that he

H and
He all. but

he »houij Id lioni

at he a great deal,

he thoi
m and not be a'
thai the tdci*
help ar
self dc* •
of being a nlftl gi an among

•NX I H

fell :smcn.

be gr
ben. iking r

associa- the

rklng
and
-

It of) so isol.i

oc-

■K suggestions
arc the

following will more par-
In ma

>gcncics that make a
ssional
■
able and

best ft'

high-grade men a
heir

mad and » '

though
e too 1.1

I of

a good

call on
a man

a good
1 be good

• ■ h

and mil If a i be a*

stand : and a

Alt-. the

no one
and

■ q moat

mts
make t

g that the
l|

an H that

son^ id not i

^e an-

■ •

• g i*

he j

-ded and c.i

the
e pinion should be g

■ 5 The origins
should not he taat

also

be , an indorsement that has not

i of mora

■I*" nlidcacc m o

<rt shoe

ibe ones
cm.
ntion f
•r a pt

The Bra it
to ' ncdium I

: tacd to
<4 num -

cmolov a nunibf r of •>■

frid

rs be

na)

• and

journal. (• -al mediums

cula

receive carefi;

g shou

should sh

he I tie em -

I of'

fill
and
nea'

arc • occur

at j may occur soon »

.1 '' .(

% do Or UCh

if help
and uhen needing I >t look

an econom

aleomen ar
notrumental in placm

one shou ' * - * ■

cnt em»io>

»n go r
to climb up b> pulling another do*
la more honorable to ■

On the other hand, one can often beta)
•wiping another and aanao Ida
poahiou more sec* .••■•nng ot

tO ClmV

InMdn « »

694

POWER

May 2, 1911

Abbreviations and Volatile
Matter

In Power, December 27, 1910, under
the title of "Coal Characteristics," what
is meant by the letters after the name
of the coals, such as R. O. M., N. P. & S.;
also, volatile matter?

F. S. H.

The abbreviation R. O. M. signifies run-
of-mine; N. P. & S. means nut, pea and
slack. The volatile matter is the hydro-
carbon, etc., distilled from the coal at a
red heat as distinguished from the solid
carbon.

Steam Bound Pump

If a pump frequently became steam-
bound, how could it be remedied with-
out reducing the temperature of the
water?

A. R.

The head of water in the receiver is
not sufficient to lift the suction valves
and let the water run into the pump cyl-
inder. This may be because the valve
springs are too stiff or because the re-
ceiver is not high enough above the
pump.

The tension in the springs may be re-
duced or the vertical distance between
the water level in the receiver and the
pump increased.

Installing Oil Burner

Please give little information on in-
stalling oil burners as to how should
the furnace, combustion chamber, bridge-
wall and general brickwork be arranged
to get the best results.

E. W. E.

The grates and bridgewall should be
removed from the furnace and the bot-
tom, side and end walls lined with fire-
brick. The burners should discharge
about midway between the bottom of the
boiler and the floor of the furnace. No
more air should be admitted than is nec-
essary for the smokeless burning of the
oil.

Power of Falling Water

What will be the amount of water nec-
essary to run a 50-horsepower water tur-
bine set vertically under a head of 20
feet, and if set horizontally with the same
head?

J. O. D.

To develop 50 horsepower requires the
expenditure "of 50 X 33,000 = 1,650,000
foot-pounds of energy per minute. One
pound of water falling 20 feet will have
20 foot-pounds of energy and to develop

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articles, letters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

50 horsepower the water required per
minute will be

1,650,000

= 82,500 pounds

At an efficiency of waterwheel of 75
per cent, the actual water required per
minute would be
82,500

o-75

= 110,000 pounds

or approximately 18,000 cubic feet per
minute. It will make no difference
whether the wheel is set horizontally or
vertically if the head and efficiency are
the same.

Unloading Boilers

We are about to install new boilers, and
as I will have charge I would like to
have a little information in regards to
the unloading, from the cars. The track
is a short spur and it is so arranged
that we can drive up alongside of the
car. But my intentions are to jack up the
boiler high enough so that we can push
the car out from under it and then run
the wagon under the boiler and let it
down on the wagon. If you have a bet-
ter plan than this, I would like to hear
from you. The boilers are 72x18 inches
and no dome. As this is the first time I
ever had a job of this kind, I would like
to do it the best and safest way. What
should be the distance between the belly
of the boiler and the bridgewall?

F. A. B.

The usual method is to place the wagon
by the side of the car and roll the boiler
from the car to the wagon on skids. The
distance from the bottom of the boiler
to the top of the bridgewall should be
10 inches.

Rebounding Dashpot Plunger

What causes a dashpot plunger to re-
bound after it makes the drop?

W. F. E.

The plunger rebounds because the air
valve is open too little and allows more
air to be caught in the cushion chamber
than is necessary for the proper seating
of the plunger.

Efficiency of Injector

What is the efficiency of an injector as
a boiler feeder?

E. O. I.

Considered as a pump alone the effi-
ciency is low, but as pump and feed-
water heater the efficiency is nearly 100
per cent., as all of the heat not lost by
radiation is returned to the boiler.

Lap on Duplex Pump Valves

Why do not duplex pump valves have
lap?

L. D. P.

The pump must take steam full stroke,
which renders lap inadmissible, as with
lap cutoff would occur before the end of
the stroke.

Compound-wound Machine with
Open Shunt Field Circuit

What effect would the breaking of the
shunt field circuit have on a compound-
wound dynamo; what effect on a motor?

S. G. R.

The dynamo voltage would be con-
siderably reduced and would become un-
stable, increasing with an increase of load
and decreasing with a decrease of load.
The motor would probably tend to run
away; it would speed up until its torque
just balanced the "pull" of the load, un-
less it went to pieces before that speed
was reached and unless the torque of
the load exceeded the torque of the motor
with series field excitation alone; in the
latter case, which is an improbable one,
the speed would decrease until the motor
torque balanced the load torque.

Candle Power of an Incandescefit
La???p

Can the candlepower of an incandes-
cent lamp be calculated from the watts
it takes?

L. B. S.

Not unless you know the "character-
istic" of the lamp filament; that is, the
relation between watts per candlepower,
volts and amperes at different voltages,
which is a very uncertain one. A carbon
lamp taking 3.1 watts per candle at
rated voltage will take 4.7 watts per
candle and only 80 per cent, of the total
normal watts at 90 per cent, of the rated
voltage. The candlepower at this volt-
age, therefore, would be

3.1 X 0.8

■ =0.53

(53 per cent.) of the rated candlepower.

May 2. 1911

POU

Issued Weekly by the

Hill Publishing Com

Joma JL. Hill, I*

ILot. T M

';::.:.- of 'l . i •' ; ;'". : ;

-Mr.--, .
murt be drcQ — not necea

;>tk>n prkre I
tin— — tum <
toany..' ^nruunt'

ofauth.
Iton

I aa aeroad rbuM ma-
the po»t

Bualm — T<!-rrj;

r //

Of I

• lv \y. f.'. /. Imm '
i k num',

( intents

......

■■>>.'

Plant I

A IMffli-iill t»«r ..f I'nro

A M ■«ni. ■!•■ ng ri «ni

V lloese

atooea . .

■aii w

irni in ,,„

| SJ

Fit tin* tiriMiir . | aj

Baadlln* < ml i Rao*,

I f> P i i the Fircroom

In "Heat a Mode of Motior Jail

"P •» <>f the regeneration in

■ l; <>t the radiant energy of an

and of the failure of

| to cool it off to

grasp the real significance of the ho;

phenomenon.

g coal
:iat the ;rn-

of a by-gone age com-
rage ar:
c mineral form of coa
How mar ,e procesa

going on under their
charge the carbon separated fron

action of i
l'Rn( 1' ictnre of a

the
acquin

ether undc-
mutual attraction and ac,
as docs a bod

pcllcd by the for ,nd the

earth e n eacf

and feel and r as heat'-' That

•he the m

POM the heating
! from one to an

■

iot and

■

m.'

the man who has n

Mom a I

"om th.i

and thr

and
ig them to per'
n a boiler room riaea far
'■ be cornea full of
X and '

«.oni % Je

finished ma

ng and
d science, haa too long been

room A care lea* nrr
i the moot

>re chance for the application
• novled,
cMgn and setting
n and burntr,

. ■

man in the engine
room ha

hHV
and the >oponu

and managers and | commc

ing to r

le charge of boiler-room or
i not mere lab too

•he hun
of coal scd the

raining and opponur
a large

made for runr -cm

trained attt ,r.d the

flue-. rtnomer

feed ltures end

that be.i the continuous and ceo-

nom of the b-

a labc-

■••or. of the
CO it hand.

red fireman o'

J to a
ne« e cocnr

pla-

- off «hcn
to tv ad flremar arge N

some pumpki-

ssssiaaaa«BaaaaasaBBSBSSBBaBBSiasiasaaasiasssssBjBaaaaaB»s

Mr. I
I nil

e «i
n the stuffta

to ua.

- the

rsa stage t srMca N repi
notice tha

'1 anon the pcacekc teersjre

■

MM. lh«

696

POWER

May 2, 1911

end of the reaction turbine has always
been iess satisfactory than the lower-
pressure section. On account of the low
blade speeds the number of rows re-
quired had been large, which had added
to the length of the shaft, reducing its
stiffness and increasing the allowable
clearance. He did not, however, approve
of the use of two or more of these veloc-
ity compounded stages before passing the
steam to the reaction blading.

Advantages of Safety Ap-
pliances

Simplicity of design in powei-plant
equipment is undoubtedly wise engineer-
ing practice. Complicated machinery
will, of course, give more trouble than
that of simple design, and, likewise, the
more machines or devices put in a plant
the more chances there are for trouble
to arise.

Many engineers put in no more ap-
paratus than is absolutely necessary to
operate the plant in an economical man-
ner. In fact, some plants are so simple
in equipment that they are nothing more
than a small country isolated plant en-
larged. Ordinary boilers, hand-fired fur-
naces, water columns and gage glasses,
steam gages and safety valves, the nec-
essary appliances for safety, and Corliss
engines with the necessary pipes and fit-
tings comprise the outfit.

An engineer can look over such a plant
and congratulate himself on the design,
on the absence of a hundred and one so
called "frills" and especially so if he
can operate more efficiently than other
steam plants which contain more elabo-
rate equipment.

There are, however, various apparatus
that could well be installed, and, although
they might not be called upon to perform
their function for years, perhaps never,
their presence gives a sense of security
and if occasion does arise their worth in
preventing a serious accident will prove
a paying investment.

An engineer may debate as to the ad-
visability of equipping his engines with
a speed-limit safety device, and finally
decide that one is not necessary. But a
few months after the plant has been
started up the governor gear becomes
deranged, a flywheel goes to pieces and
beside doing a lot of damage to the
plant, kills the engineer on watch. Under
such a circumstance the safety stop
would have been a mighty good invest-
ment.

While this incident is cited as an ex-
ample of what might happen it is at the
same time a good illustration of what
has happened.

Another engineer designs a steam plant
along sound engineering lines. To him
the matter of a nonreturn valve in the
main steam line comes up. The matter
is thought over and the decision arrived
at is that the services of the valve would

not be required once during the life of
the plant. The decision is not a rash one;
hundreds of steam plants have operated
for years without such a valve, and were
none the worse off. Nothing ever gave
way, and the valve would have only been
an additional first cost.

But, on the other hand, suppose that
a nonreturn valve had been put in the
line, and a steam pipe had burst or a
valve or a blank flange fractured from
water hammer or some other cause, the
valve in the main steam line would stop
the flow of steam and it is evident that
the damage from escaping steam would
be insignificant as compared to what
would be done if the boilers emptied
themselves, or valuable minutes were
used in closing stop valves over the boil-
ers by hand.

Using precaution is a good thing, and
if one is to ere in the matter of safety
devices it is better to ere on the side of
safety.

A Friendly Suggestion

It would probably surprise most of
our readers to know how many letters
of inquiry concerning engineering mat-
ters we answer by mail each week. Noth-
ing gives us more pleasure than to help
a reader over a rough spot, however,
and we do not begrudge the huge volume
of correspondence involved; but we wish
to offer one suggestion to any and all
who may desire information: Before
asking us for it, see if you cannot find it
in some back number of the paper; if
you can, you will not need to ask us for
it. If you are unable to find in your
back numbers what you want to know,
write and we will gladly answer your
letter — this is not a kick, merely a sug-
gestion inspired by the fact that within
two weeks we have answered by mail
nine requests for information that had
been printed in Power within a year —
some of it within a month.

Getting the Full Benefit

It is the common experience of most
readers of engineering papers that upon
looking through an old number of a
paper one is likely to find an article that
is of much interest and value and that
the reader does not remember having
seen at the time when that number of
the paper was received. This experi-
ence proves conclusively that the man
who has it is not getting the full benefit
of the fund of material presented by
his periodicals.

The remedy is simple: A card index.
If every reader of Power, for example,
would preserve his copies and keep a
card index of all subjects discussed in
them — not merely those subjects which
interest him at the moment of publi-
cation— he would have a "ready-refer-
ence" library in a few years that would
be astonishing.

There is another method of making
published information readily available;
that is the scrap-book method. It en-
tails the disadvantages, however, of not
being able to classify an article under
more than one head and of having to
get an extra copy of almost every issue
of the paper in order to paste clippings
from both sides of a leaf. The card in-
dex is simpler, takes less time and is
more general in scope and flexible in ap-
plication.

The Fusibility of Ash

A great deal of emphasis has lately
been placed by E. G. Bailey, M. E., of
Boston, on the fusibility of ash. A coal
having but a small percentage of ash the
fusing point of which is below that ob-
taining in the lower strata of the fire
will be a very troublesome and uneco-
nomical fuel, for the ash will melt and
run together, forming a plaster clinker
which flows over the grates, shutting off
the air supply, requiring the constant
working of the fire, reducing the effi-
ciency of the furnace by lack of con-
tinuity of operation and by restricting
the supply of oxygen and involving a
large percentage of carbon in the ashpit
waste. On the other hand, a coal com-
paratively high in ash will work quite
satisfactorily and reach its limit much
less quickly if the nature of its ash is
such that it will not melt at the ordinary
furnace temperatures. Although the
weight of ash produced in a given time
is greater it remains in the form of
powder and can easily be gotten rid of
with a few passes of the fire tools or a
movement or two of the grate. Mr.
Bailey is able by determining the fusi-
bility of its ash to estimate the real fuel
value of a sample of coal and to pre-
dict its behavior much closer than by any
analysis or determination of heat con-
tent.

Have you noticed that some managers
will listen to a mud carrier? In the end
they generally find that the mud soon
turns to dust and blows away.

Conservation of water power means its
use. Every drop that flows to the sea
is just that much power lost forever.

Have you noticed that some men are
always so busy that it is a wonder they
can find time to sleep and eat?

Investors in water-power developments
want to know what the Government will
do with their property at the end of a
limited franchise.

A man may have knowledge, but lack-
ing energy will not amount to anything.

An engineer cannot get experience for
nothing; it must be paid for.

May 2. 1911

<*:

Refrigeration Department

odd it I
haie d -hat th. * of

now on thi>

second u -s on th

machinery

and wtll b« received the

intet

II vim 1 [eat of Calcium

Chloride Brine

B> H

The tr heat of brine is often

of great value in

formancc of refrigerating machincr> It
it a well known fact that the
heat of water tant bir

witn the tempcrar :id the use of

m tables, in which ll ition is

taken into account, for rinding the "heat
of the liquid" at any ten:;
familiar to all engineers. The steam
tables arc calculated for pure the

apt I which is urn:

If a salt, such as calcium chlnr I
added to the uatcr the
as brine, th
not only with the re but alto

•he soh
the less the heat. A d

solution is one containing a lai unt

ill. that a high

ian-
- makes th< a com-

plex bck:au^c ol number of

• densities that ar
far as the >ws thi -

adc
such a tab

tore

than a

■«kc a I

•cful search f i
•ing m -ban

the n tabh

e solution* at ' < 04

statement I

run Ml other .i
gave the specific heal at ■
tempc raturr . and mnrm\cr ttir u'ur* AM

* gOOd 41

the
test

I }: irn tptc 5

md opei at ion oi
making <mJ re

tr ti"£ plant

and nun hiric: \

The < at the

ieat was a
Parr coal cal<

tion- ttlsdafd

benzoic acid of known heating value as
the source of heat. At that ana

.- made to go into the work more
fully, tod I ir flask- J of

the cal Jer to reduce the

and

of the
flasks were purchased, but before the
work »iO

i Betwcc

and the

The v
was by an elect i

method, with all p©
and the

The t
tabular and gr>

ns And further to make
ihc res v to a II Do

1 1 form

I) Dm • . ii 20 Jcr-

gra cs Faf

c heat

■

an am"u- • • if ■■.; '■■..- ■■ ••■.?..
usual tint '

he specific
the

* compare the rest
n and s*N

= 0.7008

correc-
tion to char..

: aoaja

dH two results
is 0.001'

» * rC" jriable if
men when one considers th« prtflffol

eajaaj • c n
good '

tn Landolt and Borastt
x density of I

specific hes-
.

on.

•
•rer.t-.on
-hat the Bum

an Landolf
Bdmstcin's a

cs
The ■

jm chloride ac4»-
•:on%. but • cvreftBMtan taajaji — ■

other*
lo« irposc* the

be expected to giw

■»n beo

-
formula the following
20 drerres (.cnticraJc 'rtH Jcrrcc-

•* c. T he

mrpefi id*.

The importan minis*

■

ation of <J i the lean-

698

POWER

May 2, 1911

Problem in Refrigeration

By F. E. Matthews

How much refrigeration will be pro-
duced by the circulation of 50,000 cubic
feet of brine per month, the average tem-
perature going out being 28 degrees Fah-
renheit and that of the return 32 degrees?
The amount of cooling that a given
quantity of brine will do depends not
only upon the number of degrees rise in
temperature, but upon the density and
kind of brine. As the problem does not
state whether the brine used is calcium
or salt or what its density is, it may be
well to show how the problem is solved
in the general case and illustrate by tak-
ing a single example based on assumed
conditions.

The most important element in the
selection of the kind of brine to
use is the temperature to be produced,
which fixes the temperatures at which
the brine must be circulated. Saturated
salt brine, by which is meant brine so
strong that it will dissolve no more salt,
freezes at about 5 degrees Fahrenheit
below zero and would be safe for brine-
tank temperatures above zero. Salt
brine of lower densities freezes at corre-
spondingly higher temperatures, the limit
being reached when the amount of salt
is reduced to nothing in which case the
brine becomes water and freezes at 32
degrees Fahrenheit.

Saturated calcium brine freezes at
about 55 degrees Fahrenheit below zero
and according to its densities is adapted
to brine temperatures from 40 degrees
below zero up. The specific heat of either
salt or calcium brine upon which depend
their refrigerating capacities per pound
per degree rise in temperature, decreases
as the strength increases.

The refrigerating capacity of water per
pound per degree rise in temperature is
one British thermal unit. As salt or
calcium chloride is added to the water
this value decreases until its value at
saturation (maximum strength) is only
0.77 B.t.u. In the latter case, about 30
per cent, more brine must be circulated,
to accomplish a given amount of cooling
for a given rise in brine temperature,
than would be necessary were the de-
sired temperatures sufficiently high to
allow water to be employed as a medium
for conveying heat, instead of brine.
Tables showing the properties of salt
brine and calcium brine are published in
almost every handbook on mechanical
refrigeration as well as in many ice-ma-
chine catalogs.

The unit by which cooling effects are
measured is the ton of refrigeration. This
is equal to the amount of cooling pro-
duced by the melting of one ton (2000
pounds) of ice having a latent heat of
fusion of 144 B.t.u. per pound. Cooling
at the rate of one ton per day would
amount to the extraction at a uniform
rate of

2000 X H4 = 288,000 B.t.u.
per 24 hours;

288,000 -r- 24 = 120,000 B.t.u.
per hour or

288,000 -T- (24 X 60) =200 B.t.u.

per minute.

The amount of refrigeration, expressed
in tons T per 24 hours, produced by a
rise in temperature from tt to U of a cer-
tain number of pounds p of brine cir-
culated per minute and having a specific
heat 6', would be,

S (tl —t2) X p

T =

200

(I)

If p represents the number of pounds
of brine circulated per hour, or per 24
hours, the expression would be the same
except the constant 200 would be re-
placed by 12,000 and 288,000 respectively.

The circulation of 50,000 cubic feet of
brine per month is equivalent to

50,000 ,. ,

— = 1 . 1 S 7 cubic feet

30 X 24 X 60 J/ '

per minute. Assuming that it has the
specific gravity commonly employed of
1.2, its weight per cubic foot will be

62.5 X 1.2 = 75 pounds
or

75 x 1.157 = 86.775 pounds
will be the amount circulated per min-
ute under the given conditions. The rise
in temperature as given in the original
problem was from 28 to 32 degrees Fah-
renheit and the specific heat of brine
having a specific gravity of 1.2 is 0.7.
Substituting these values in formula (1)
0.7 (32 — 28) X 86.775 _

T =

200

242-9
200

- = 1. 2 148 tons

A rough rule for calculating the num-
ber of tons of cooling effect produced by
brine is to allow 25 heat gallons per min-
ute per ton. Apply this rule to the fore-
going case as follows: Since 1 cubic
foot equals 7.48 gallons, 1.157 cubic feet
equals 8.654 gallons and the rise in tem-
perature is 4 degrees Fahrenheit. Hence,

8.654 X 4 = 34.617 heat gallons
which is equivalent to

34-6i7

= 1.38 tons

an amount somewhat larger than that
given by the regular formula.

The percentage of saturation or the
specific gravity having been determined,
a table, giving the properties of the kind
of brine employed, may be referred to
and the specfic heat, corresponding to
that density, found. Also the weight of
the brine per gallon may be found and
from this may be calculated the weight
of brine circulated per minute. These
quantities should then be substituted in
formula (1) and the result will be the
required cooling effect expressed in tons
per 24 hours.

This approximate rule is intended to
apply roughly to brines of the higher
densities and, since it does not take into
consideration possible variations in the
value of the specific heat of the brine, it
cannot be expected to apply accurately
to brines of all densities. For example,
according to formula ( 1 ) the amount of
refrigeration produced by the circulation
of 200 pounds of water per minute with
a rise in temperature of one degree Fah-
renheit would be

1 X 200 X 1
200

1 ton

According to the rule, which ignores
the specific heat of water, which is unity,
the cooling effect would be, since 200
pounds of water is equivalent to 24 gal-
lons,

= 0.96 ton

For accurate determinations of the
cooling effect the density of the brine
should be determined by either a salonom-
eter or some other form of hydrometer
that will allow either the percentage of
saturation or the specific gravity of the
brine to be determined. In taking such
hydrometer readings care should be taken
to bring the temperature of the brine to
that at which the instrument is calibrated.
This method is less likely to lead to er-
ror than that of applying a correction
factor for reducing the readings taken at
other temperatures to what they would
be if taken at the standard temperature.

Device for Charging an Ab-
sorption Ice Machine
By T. H. Df. Saussaure

It is often difficult to make a pump
take suction from a drum of aqua am-
monia when it is desired to add to the
charge of an absorption ice machine while
it is in operation. This is particularly
true when the ammonia in the drum is
warm, as the gas given off destroys the
vacuum in the suction pipe, and the pump
will not lift the ammonia.

Having a machine which required con-
stant additions to the charge, I devised
the following arrangement, which makes
the operation a very simple and sure one.

I first built a substantial table large
enough and strong enough to sustain the
weight of a drum of ammonia, and placed
upon the top of- this table four friction
rollers, as shown in Fig. 1. The rollers
are each made of oak, 8 inches in diam-
eter, and have a piece of 1-inch round
iron through the center for the axle.
When mounted on these rollers the drum
is on a higher level than the pump, and
can be easily rolled over until the bung
is on the under side.

I then took apiece of 3K>-inch wrought-
iron shafting, 4 inches long, and turned
and threaded it so that it could be
screwed into the bung hole of the drum.
Through this plug I made an opening

May 2. 1911

for a suction pipe and another for an air
pipt 2L The air pipe is made of

rich wrought-iron pipe and is of such
length that it will reach to within I inch
of the side of the drum diametrically op-
posite the bung plug when the latter is
screwed to a joint in the bung. Both the
on-pipe connection and that of the
air pipe have valves on them, placed near
the pli:

When it is necessary to add to the
charge of ammonia in the machine the
fresh drum is placed on the table and
the new plug, with both air ar.d suction

valves shut, is used in place of the one
.illy sent. The then rut

•ion rollers until the but.
on the ' Conni i then made

between the

.. and that of the ammonia-circu!..
p. and be* on the

ning of
an ordinary ph. ^out

r prcsv.

•hen
the valve on ll on pip'.

and on imm-

J
. -

1*?

I have never had It f»
ll

• iat the
may take the place of the ammonia
•iped oi
Th might be raised that

air Into the machine after the a

the
the

U last

of liquid

an be
c device ha« thi« advantage l
one can get the la«t drop of imm

•he drum anj hMO 'he machhat
without any wa«te at all

LETT! RS

tting a G . • . m Com-
pressor

Gaskets for • J of the amm<

r of a
cause trou: ut on p-

Mow » out into the

cial ssurc of IdO to

In
j»cs the gasket k
• on tru

en a gasket is put on as
II hold if the

•lange I nooth. The

old ga- off on

bot» ind to remove the grease

use a clean cotton or linen rag
»■*: ed with coal oil. Then take

another clean rag anj ff the coal

oil.

The best rubber availaw uld be

If than

l/lt

•

and
the

i be

k'ht
. up on

Then one
be u»

•an a machine on which no
no ma

•'

pro ^e a MMC««* If •

.• •

he detc
a hot suction pipe and an unu-

Wbm

j 'j

be • i a chj

the trick, looter

»nd ta *hcui three or

the bead
cd off.

WtLUAM L K

■

1 ' . I !11-

ln answer to H in the March

Id ad*

combined capacity of hot

ng vha

m of all. h pipe for a die-

I too %r

ton mi,

cha- area of these

so ill the im the

h rough the
one

to attempt au uld

be .i >th

tber
pree* : mean* increaai

ICll

- and mai
■ paaa at a convenient place.
possible The
thrc

iw the

atac

• Of id

J to he
the method aacht be

ot poiaah hath for

ahouf 'j ' i * "J then

comp«>»c '. ' - '.!•.•• f

•he m* Ir

ac*d hath. again** foer

«*• eetfc*

*
ham ts* aaeaal »• •• r

the rw

700

POWER

May 2, 1911

Handling Coal in a Modern
Boiler Room

Probably no two boiler rooms in mod-
ern buildings present quite the same
problems for solution. Conditions of lo-
cation, space and requirements are such
widely varying factors that the engineer
is constantly called upon to devise new
methods of adapting modern devices to
suit his precise needs and yield the high-
est efficiency.

An ideal system would enable the coal
to be dropped into the bunkers direct
from the car or lighter, and fed to the
grates without rehandling. This is mani-
festly impossible in any modern city
building — or indeed in any but a few
boiler rooms enjoying an exceptionally
favorable situation.

An interesting solution of a-coal-hand-
ling problem is found in the new Fifth
Avenue building at the corner of Twenty-
third street and Broadway in New York
City.

There are 2000 horsepower of Heine
boilers, equipped with automatic stokers.
The transfer of the coal from the bunk-
ers to the hoppers of the stokers is ef-
fected in this instance in iron buckets

In operation, the buckets are lowered
to a point opposite the mouth of the
bunker chute to permit the coal to flow
into them by gravity from the bunkers.
A pull on the switch then starts the

Fig. 2. Hoist Picking Up Ash Can

Fig. 1. Yale & Towne Hoist and 600-pound Coal Bucket

The boiler room is located three stories
below the street level and the coal sup-
ply is carried in bunkers, which are as
favorably located in relation to the boiler
room as the general conditions will per-
mit.

holding about 600 pounds. These buckets
are hung from the hook of a Yale &
Towne electric hoist, which in its turn
is built into a trolley running on an
overhead track leading from the bunkers
to the hoppers of the various stokers.

electric hoist and the bucket is lifted high
enough to enable it to start on its journey
to the hoppers of the stokers.

This journey, accomplished by means
of a smaller motor (attached to the
trolley) which is geared to and drives
the trolley wheels, is made in a few
seconds, and the coal is then dumped
into the hoppers of the stokers.

A switch in the overhead track en-
ables the hoist to be run to a point where
it can pick up the ash cans.

The whole electrical installation is
under the control of the operator. The
hoist will raise or lower the bucket by
fractions of an inch, if necessary, and the
load is automatically held at all times.
The control of the trolley motor is also
quite as complete, and the load may be
advanced or withdrawn at will.

The hoisting problem in this case is not
in itself particularly difficult, but the
conditions under which the hoist operates
are severe. The temperature at the top
of the boiler room probably averages 135
degrees and a considerable amount of
dust and fine particles of coal is natural-
ly present. Up to the present writing
the hoist has continued to perform its
work satisfactorily, and no diminution
in efficiency has been apparent.

It is reported that the New York, New-
Haven & Hartford railroad is equipping
a number of its locomotives with oil
burners. Oil has been used successfully
and with considerable saving by a num-
ber of railroads in the Southwest, but the
relatively high cost of this kind of fuel
in the central Atlantic and New England
States has been largely responsible for
its limited use. Undoubtedly the loco-
motive, where, due to the excessive draft,
a large percentage of the coal goes up
the stack, furnishes an attractive field
for the application of oil fuel.

.May 2, 1911

New power fjouse Equipment

The Thomas 1 ' ( !

Meter

Some time since
now of Madison. VHs.. made, at Schc:

and later at College, some

riments upon tru Meat of

superheated steam, the r«

. given in a paper presented by him

W tin- in
}torj:iJ ttw OMBtf-
furrr ar-
riuK- .md money m the en-

hoi

H 1

heat it a given amount; tfi
taining the increase in temperature pro-
duce jnt of

< the measured currct icat

to the Ann

:icd in
umc XXIX of I he The

method -s steam. kno»n to be

:i an J to

amount of current r.

ature an oh imount.

The weight
mini Rc-

il ener.
alcnt in heat units, an.! the

. ht of steam heated and the nu:
of

.1 simple matt the

ami' heat n

•id one the

Later -or Thoma- the

the

in a pa

■
»hcn

•iim to
1000 ar

If the «pc«. '
a ga« the -

ugh thr
mcavurlnc

the me*

He held

' ' k.

i t Mi

Th^

length
the

•

e g

■

>" ctr ' '

. ■ :

heated

commercial form of the meler thu pro j- » m I t The ceawrWWt

c. itic'

>• «i m the left *

702

POWER

May 2, 1911

that the wattmeter may be made to read
in any units. A graphical wattmeter may
also be used to show the variation in
gas flow. The appearance of the board
carrying the regulating and recording
mechanism is shown in Fig. 6. It need
not necessarily be located near the meter

Direction of Flow of Gas

Fig. 5. Diagram of Electrical Connections of Thomas Meter

but may be in the manager's office or at
any convenient point.

When the physical condition of the
substance measured does not change by
reason of the heating, as by the drying
out of moisture, and when the specific
heat is known the meter would seem to
promise a solution of the difficult prob-
lem of measuring gas and air in large
quantities with considerable accuracy.
When the material contains moisture it
is suggested that a drier consisting of
a steam coil be used just before the
meter. With regard to measuring satu-
rated steam the uncertainty of complete
dryness and the serious effect of the
absorption of heat in evaporation, may
complicate its use as a steam meter, for
which indeed, we do not know that it is
intended. Superheated steam can, how-
ever, be successfully measured by a meter
of the kind described. For a stable sub-
stance like natural gas with a practically
constant specific heat it has been doing
excellent work for some time. For arti-
ficial gas and other products occasional
analyses will enable the specific heat to
be determined with sufficient accuracy
for commercial purposes.

of a fixed position according as the differ-
ence in resistance of the thermometers
is greater or less than that corresponding
to the desired temperature difference of
two degrees between the inlet and outlet
of the meter. The motor {]/% horse-
power) operates continuously, and by
means of a crank causes a bar to
move up and down, clamping the
needle at the top of the stroke. It also
drives, at a slow but constant speed, a
contact drum and two eccentrics which
give the rheostat pawls a reciprocat-
ing motion through a small arc along
the edge of a toothed wheel on the
rheostat shaft. On the drum are three
segments of different lengths corre-
sponding to one, two and three teeth on
the wheel. If the needle is clamped in po-
sition on the right of the zero position
the solenoid on the pawl which will turn
the rheostat in the direction to increase
ihe heater energy is energized and holds
the pawl up long enough to move the wheel
one step and it will continue to do this
until by successive strokes the rheostat
has been turned enough to restore the
desired temperature difference and
thus balance the system. A very slight
fall of temperature in the gas will
cause it to do this. When the temperature
difference is restored the needle returns
to zero, makes no contact when it is
:lamped and the rheostat remains station-
ary. If the temperature difference in-
creases above two degrees the needle
swings to the left of the zero mark and
the same process works to reduce the
current. The wattmeter in the upper
right-hand corner shows the energy which
has been used to heat the gas, which is
proportional to the amount flowing, so

Fie. 6. Switchboard and Recording Instruments for Thomas Meter

May 2. 1911

Detroit I hre W Valve

The accompanying illustration sh<
the Detroit quick-opening three-way
valve, which is used on water-cooled gas
and gasolene engines to turn the m .
sary amount of water into the water-
cooled muffler or exhaust, after it has
•-•d through the water jacket on the
cylinder, and has turned the rest of the
water t<>

This valve permits any quantity of
r to be diverted into the muffler by
a slight turn of the indexed valve handle.
All the rest of the water
without any further regulation.

The valve cor f a globular body

with three openings, one at the base
through which the water enters and

t Tub1

at the t angl:

ll so arranged that all
ning up through tbt
Ing in the ugh

r it can

the

id turn th igh the

The hanJIc

,. .

i mam

owing off of i
the
panv at Pawtuckct. H I

i of Ar

pa'nful!

.liar f< t the

that the Mean <1 al the

I ' I Blowout in

A fatal a. J at the wood-

mi of J

and

lU>C of

the . , a j

The b the locon

hav rich tu^ : for

hca- kiln, a

from
It has been in the Rowe plant for
n and was an in-

sta! is found

that four tubes in the bottom row and

in the second row from the bo-
»cr pine plugs which had

bee- 1 in with no rod running

through the tubes to hold them in p:
The stem on the handhole plate was
badly corroded and looked l had

not been taken nu1 rs. The

valve was of the ball and and

an effort to ra

I learned from an empl<
at the plant that the boiler had m
been clean-- nee be-

ing install..

It is the that tl

the
>m as • a from the

place where the uibe h

The ends of all the tubes in the I
torn Jed to that they

off with a ham.
mcr From all r er had

nc\ i

g up tl
the night when the
The

ihai he ihat

ie steam and hot
he fm a .igh a ■

.1 his (
•

on
the

I no

al-

■

pa» in a

;r»c
of the

■
<••"* raised

ic ro-

SO( 1 1 I i

|
i

the Pr

on.

•oct. is orga :i: n last

far c moat aar.

I compote.
i of good
moral c ad on

■ »ce
and re'

. cr» on

ing of th ,f Me.

cha-

■

ufa

the

nonopo!

P] Km >\ \I.

en em*

in the mcv
a r

Ten a consulting en-

: < x >KS Kl ( KIVKI)

■

■ ■•••.

» a'

r-ir

I
I

704

POWER

May 2, 1911

The other day the Chief Engi-
neer of an electric light and power
plant in Iova wrote to the editor
of Power for some information
on recording instruments.

'Would it pay," he asked, "to
install a recording thermometer
on the feed -water line, a recording
pressure gage, a recording flue-
temperature instrument, a C02 recorder, recording
switchboard instruments, recording pressure gage on
an exhaust-steam heating system, etc.? I am in favor
of such instruments, but only want such as will war-
rant the investment and must be able to prove same
to my company before they can be had.

' ' Would like to get opinions as to what instruments
we need and don't need, and why."

To which the editor replied: Whether the pur-
chase and installation of the various recording instru-
ments named in your letter will 'pay' depends
entirely upon how much you wish to know about the
conditions obtaining in your plant.

"Unless your plant is being operated under excep-
tionally good conditions, a C02 recorder will, if the
records are intelligently read and appreciated, save
its price in a very few weeks.

The charts from recording instruments of all
kinds make a daily history of the plant and are often
used to show whether one set of men is doing as well
as, or better, than another, and to excite a spirit
of emulation which will put every man on his mettle
to do as well as possible.

"In short, if you have any
desire to keep your plant at or
near the head of the list of up-
todate plants, recording instru-
ments are a necessity."

Here is the case of a man who
didn't realize the value of reading
and acting upon the ads in the
paper.

If he had read them he
wouldn't have needed to write
the letter — he would have
learned much more about re-
cording instruments from the

A. department
"for subscribers
edited by tbe ad-
vertising service
department of

Powex^

ads — and from the advertisers'
own printed matter than our edi-
tor could tell him in a letter.

And this is a good example of
just what we are trying to teach
in our own weekly talks on this
page.

There are many engineers who
want who really need information on some kind of
power-plant equipment or other, and it doesn't occur
to them that they have a veritable encyclopedia of just
that information coming to them every week in the
Selling Section of Power.

For ' of course the very best information possible
on everything for the power plant is printed in the
advertising pages.

The manufacturers rely on their ads to explain their
products and all their features, advantages, savings,
etc., to the readers — who are possible buyers.

What they cannot tell in the ads they put forth
in booklets, catalogs and letters, which are sent to
any reader on request.

Where else could you hope to get as complete de-
tails and information?

The engineer whose letter we have quoted is the
right sort — he wants to know about any device that
will help him get better results for his employers —
he is worth every cent of his salary, for he's not con-
tent to stand still.

But— he will find that the
grand parade of Progress doesn't
stop with the reading pages of
Power. The reviewing stand
is located in the advertising sec-
tion and he — and all of you —
want to book a seat in the front
row where you can see all that's
going on in the fast-moving
march of the aforesaid proces-
sion.

The advertising pages are the
heralds of Progress. Read them
and heed them.

M \\ V >kk. M \\

A MB] I I1 »\ i^, in all Ihc in

spring •! tl '"ii whiil:

ind nothing worth while
ithoul it

Tl l>;»r

titiK-Ns of lome in' uUu hi

of work. Ill** accomplishmei these

men i

•linscs. Hut upon •
inati-'ii it is found that tlui-
ni' •

•::■: ':; I

nothts ity

f«.r rfc.

In th'

ikI almost numberless illi

■bout tb r plant

null in N
th-
in.: man win ■ "•»! bom the yard

Thinking littl

■

.i mi

th-
in tin

l»

I i

nr. it I i!

a cool pa«ncr all niv Hf( I •

• a

f V

ith tl..
poal •

■

had ad
in

I
<ml\ are

■

the a<

the

■

i
with

t htm

a (ro« a a

■

716

POWER

May 9, 1911

Municipal Pumping and Power Plant

After several years of litigation, the
city of Orange, N. J., has installed its
own electric-lighting plant, which it is
now operating. In 1908 a new pumping
plant was built and enough boilers were
installed to operate a city lighting plant;
an engine room was also reserved be-
tween the boiler and pump rooms. The
Public Service Corporation of New Jer-
sey, however, was naturally opposed to
the installation of a municipal plant as
it would mean a loss of $28,500 per year
to them, so they zealously fought the
project.

They instituted proceedings against the
city which delayed matters until Febru-
ary 13 of this year, when the current was
cut off from the lines of the Public Ser-
vice Corporation. With this event the
price of $85 per lamp per year for 340
arc street lamps became a thing of the
past.

The red-brick building housing the ma-
chinery is located on Chestnut street and
as one turns the corner to enter the boil-
er room, the brick coal-storage house is
seen. This building is divided into six
compartments, each capable of holding 40

By Warren O. Rogers

In this plant at Orange,
N. J., alternating current
is generated to drive induc-
tion motors coupled to di-
rect-current arc machines.
Two 3 ,000,000-gallon water
works pumping engines
with no atmospheric ex-
haust are installed. Both
engines and pumps are run
condensing without the aid
of circulating pumps, the
water being bypassed
through the condensers from
the suction pipe.

tons, or a total of 240 tons of coal. All
fuel is carted to the storage house and is
then loaded into a one-ton car that runs

on an industrial railway. When run into
the boiler room each car of coal is
weighed on a Hunt platform scale.

Boilers

There are four Heine boilers, each of
225 horsepower capacity. They are set
in one battery and each furnace is pro-
vided with a grate area of 52 square feet.
Fig. 1 represents a view of the boilers
and a partial view of the piping above
them. Fig. 2 shows the piping arrange-
ment more in detail. There is but one
outlet from the steam drum of each boil-
er. To this outlet a tee connection is
secured and an Ashton pop-spring safety
valve is bolted to the top outlet. To the
side outlet a stop valve is attached and
to this valve a long-radius bend connects
with the header which runs over the rear
of the four boilers. At the central
point of this header is a tee to which
the main steam pipe, with a stop
valve in the line close to the boiler head-
er, connects. This line runs up over the
economizer and through the wall between
the boiler and engine rooms and dropping
down, connects to a header in the engine

Fig. 1. Boiler Room of the Orange, N.J. , Municipal Electric-light Plant

May 9, 1911

row:

From this header the main feed
s pass down through the engine-
room floor and are run under the floor to
the two large engi:

the opposite end of the header a
pipe is connected and runs across the
of the engine room with branches to the
two pumps in the pump room.

The boilers are hand fired, and No. 1
buckwheat is burned. The average water
evaporation for th<. onth was eight

pounds per pound of coal. A steam r
sure of 150 pour.ds ; are inch is

carried. Two boilers easily carry the
night load. One boiler, if run to its ca-
pacity, would supply steam for operating
the large M rump that is run con-

tinuously, but operating conditions make
it more economical to run two boil-
ers during the day than banking the
under one and breaking the fire
out for the night load. The irk-

ing boilers are. therefore, run light dur-
ing the day and are ready for th= night
load when required, without the loss of
fuel which the other method would en-
tail.

Econ<

Greene fuel economizer is located at
the rear of the bo. It cont.t

four-inch fe - • 'Ot tubes. The feed
water is passed through a feed-water
heater and is heated by the steam from
the exciter engine when it is running or

ie steam from the boiler- feed pump,
and the vacuo- the latter

ing when tl s arc running As the

ecor gned f lers

and as but two ar. J *atcr

is at present heated to but
Fahrcn!
A smoke flue md I icroaa the back

connected -

\ •

718

POWER

May 9, 1911

economizer. The other end is connected about 4 inches wide. Between the eight current Wood generator which is directly

directly with a 175-foot Keeler radial- arms of the two coupling flanges are coupled to a Flemming automatic engine,

brick chimney, the base of which is 9 feet placed four pieces of round rubber. They running at 350 revolutions per minute,

and the top 6 feet inside diameter, are prevented from working out at the The other unit consists of one 25-kilowatt,

Fig. 4. Another View of the Engine Room

Fig. 7. Relief Valve on Suction Pipe
of Pumps

125-volt direct-current Wood genera-
tor, directly coupled to a 40-horsepower
induction motor, running at 900 revolu-
tions per minute.

Switchboard

The switchboard is made up of seven
panels of blue Vermont marble. Three
are used for the plug switches of the arc-
light circuits, two for the generators, one
for the exciters and one is a spare panel

Natural draft is used, although a Greene
engine and fan-blowing set is installed in
the blower room adjoining the base of the
stack. Air-ducts running to the boiler
setting have also been constructed.

Engine Room

Passing into the engine room, a view
of which is shown in Figs. 3 and 4, one
is confronted by two Hewes & Phillips'
engines, 1 1 and 22x30-inch tandem-com-
pound Corliss engines. Each runs at a
speed of 150 revolutions; this high speed
is practical, due to the new Franklin
valve gear with which both engines
are equipped. Each engine is direct
coupled to a two-phase 250-kilovolt-am-
pere, 2200-volt Fort Wayne alternating-
current generator. Contrary to general
practice these machines do not deliver
electrical energy outside of the building,
but generate energy for three Fort Wayne
induction motors which drive five arc ma-
chines. Two of these motors are of 120
horsepower capacity and are each
coupled, by means of two flexible insu-
lated couplings, to two Brush 9000-volt
4-ampere arc generators, which run at a
speed of 700 revolutions per minute. The
third motor is of 60 horsepower capacity
and is coupled to one arc machine of the
same capacity as the others. The group-
ing of these machines is shown in Fig. 3.

The coupling between the motor and
generator shafts is shown in Fig. 5. It
consists of a flange mounted on each
shaft to be coupled together. Each flange
has four arms which are made with a rim

Fie. 5. Method of Coupling Motor and Generator Together

top of the arm by the overlap of the rim
face and from working out at the side
by flat plates which are secured to each
arm of the coupling, by means of screws.

Exciter Units

There are two exciter units. One con-
sists of a 15-kilowatt, 125-volt direct-

for an extra generator unit, for which
space is provided. The machine panels
have the usual recording and indicating
instruments, switches and other devices.

Pumps

Beyond the engine room is the pump
room, in which there are two Snow

May 9, 1911

POWER

pumping engines, each of 3,000,000 gal-
lons water capacity per 24 hours at 39
• lutions per minute. These pumps
deliver city water to a 6,000,000-gallon

water from the auction pipe about as fast
as it can M- lot to a 49- foot

fall from the source of supply, the pi
surr n».is built up u of 90 pounds

airari, .

•iai foe ■ :
A Wonhington

on a stand

storage reservoir against a 288-foot head, per square To elimina: Jan- < baacmcsi of

*=^

—^— — —

■'""* ■

MML* +

*l ] J*

'■xtfur.

But one pump operates at a time. Both gcrous cor mincer Berg the pump nam

pumps run condensing. In fact, they can put in a relic the used. Kut a \»

run in no other amy, as neither is fittcJ suction line. Accordingly a 7-inch Lon<

Ik an atmosplu aust p.; ^. bard relief valve »a* installed, as shown enters the COOdent

6 thou s of the pumps. in > operate at 25 rounds the tubes

At one time considerable trouble aril p«mnds DABM uarc inch on the cooling uatcr

— G

aust steam
at o*

The

wn from

Henced sure In the

■taction line of the pumps This p retail re

the
r nplng engine fa engage ooce of

- In succession, <>r »hrn car
•hutting down A* the pump takes the

nd so the danger front a rrr
ure greater than mated

oTM

r 4

Th
pumps ant op<

720

POWER

May 9, 1911

This novel method of supplying cooling
water eliminates the first cost of a cir-
culating pump and also the expense of its
operation. As one of the pumping en-
gines is always in operation, circulating
water for the condenser is always avail-
able.

A similar arrangement is also carried
out in working both of the large pumps.

the temperature of the city water, but as
the rise is but 4 degrees in the summer
time, it is not objectionable. The con-
densed water from the pump surface
condenser discharges the condensed wa-
ter by gravity to a hotwell from which
it is pumped to the boilers by one of the
two Knowles IV2 and 5x6-inch outside
packed feed pumps. They are both located

ing liquid weigher. It is so connected
that the water of condensation taken
from the engine condenser can be auto-
matically weighed and the steam con-
sumption determined without prepara-
tion.

At present there are 374 arc lamps
on the various circuits, as against 340
that were carried by the Public Service

Fig. 9. Sectional Elevation of the Plant

'Vacuum Pump'

Powek

The condenser, however, is located above
the water end of each pump, as shown in
Fig. 6. In the case of the pumps, how-
ever, the exhaust steam passes through
the condenser tubes. They are surround-
ed by the water and passing through
the condenser, the condensing waters en-
ter the discharge pipe of the pump and
mix with the water which is pumped for
domestic use. One would at first sup-
pose that this arrangement would affect

at the rear of the boiler setting, as shown
in Fig. 8, which is a plain view of the en-
tire plant. Fig. 9 shows a side elevation
of the power apparatus.

The condensation from the engine con-
denser is handled by a Burnham 8 and
12 by 12 vacuum pump, which is placed
in the basement pit at the rear end of the
pump room.

Another feature not found in most
power plants is the Worthington record-

Corporation. There are also 145 incan-
descent lamps placed in series.

Owing to the short time this plant has
been in operation no figures are available
for comparison as to the cost of operat-
ing the street lights under the two sys-
tems. Later on, when figures for com-
parison are available, it will be possible
to compare the costs under a municipally
operated electric-lighting plant and a pri-
vate central station.

High Boiler Efficiency with Oil Fuel

When the Redondo plant of the Pacific
Light and Power Company was built
a few years ago it attracted considerable
attention, owing to the fact that recipro-
cating engines were selected as prime
movers instead of turbines. The main
units are each of 5000 kilowatts capa-
city and are arranged on the panel sys-
tem. Each panel consists of six oil-
fired Babcock & Wilcox boilers supply-
ing steam at 175 pounds and 100 degrees
superheat to a double horizontal and
vertical Mcintosh & Seymour compound-
condensing engine running at 100 revolu-
tions per minute, the latter direct con-
nected to a three-phase, 50-cycle, 18,000-
volt generator.

In December, 1908, a paper was read
before the American Society of Me-
chanical Engineers, giving the figures
■of a test upon this plant which showed
an exceptionally high overall efficiency.
But, as the figures represented the per-
formance of the complete plant, it was
impossible to separate the individual ef-
ficiencies of the boilers, engines and
auxiliaries. However, the results of a
test upon one of the boilers have now
become available and, although this was
made some time after the complete plant
test referred to, it is reasonable to as-

By Frank T. Clarke

A series of tests upon one
of the boilers of the Redon-
do plant of the Pacific
Light and Power Company,
using crude oil as fuel and
showing an average effi-
ciency of 80.47 per cent.

sume that the boiler efficiency had not
changed appreciably. In view of this it
would appear that the boilers were large-
ly responsible for the very high plant
efficiency. — Editor.

The object of the tests, the results of
which are here shown, was to determine
the efficiency, under average operating
conditions, of the burners and furnaces.
The seven tests covered by this report
were all made with Hammel patent fur-
naces and burners, and it is believed that
the results would justify the statement
that these trials represent the highest
economies ever obtained under similar
conditions.

The boiler tested was of the Bab-
cock & Wilcox type, of which there

are eighteen in the plant, each con-
taining 6042 square feet of effective
heating surface and rated at 604 boiler
horsepower. It was designed to carry
steam at 200 pounds gage pressure, but
is ordinarily operated at 185 pounds.

The superheaters, which were designed
to give 100 degrees superheat at the
nozzle, are also of the Babcock & Wilcox
type, having two loops of tubes in two
decks and approximating 960 square
feet of superheating surface to each
boiler.

There are three passes in the boiler,
the products of combustion rising through
the first pass, which is baffled along the
lower row of tubes from the first flame
plate to the bridgewall by fire tile. The
gases then pass over and through the
superheater to the second pass, and from
there to the last pass, from which they
escape to the uptake.

The furnace was of the Hammel type,
having a separate tunnel for the air sup-
ply to each burner. The burners were
also of the Hammel patent inside-mixer
type, there being three to the furnace.
These were arranged under an arch in
the bridgewall, and the direction of the
flame was toward the furnace front. Fig.
1 shows the arrangement of furnace and

May 9, 1911

l'«.\X ! i,

burners; vbilc of the

burner.

The feed water was measured by
means of platform scales anJ and

precautions were taken to any

leakage.

The fuel oil was 1 from one of

the three auxiliar ige tanks, ad-

ja.ent to the boiler room, at a tempera-
ture of 80 degrees Fahrenheit, through a
3-inch quick-ae- nto a weighing

tank, from which it flowed throug
4-inch suction pipe to a second pump
located near the boiler under te^
pump discharged the oil directly into a
Goubcrt oil heater, where its temp
turc w.is increased by the exhaust steam
from the pump. From the heater it was
to the line leading to the
twecn the oil pump and the
heater there was a bypass which
charged to the reservoir tank. This gave
the ncccss. llation and allowed a

means of pressure regulation.

Samples of the oil w-.rc obtained from
a tap in the pump discharge between the

•.am for
aton i was taken from dl-

"dcr th alvc of the bo

-•qucnt the same

degree of superheat as was showr.
the thermometer at the

r obtaining flue-gas analysis a stand-
ard Orsat machine was used. The sam-
ples half hour from
the center of the last paM.

The flue temperature taken

a Hohmann & Maurer ther

I Fahrenheit, I
ing p!i n at

mg. Tem-
perature taken of the steam at
the boiler n< of the oil at I
charge from the her
water in the n tank, and of the
boiler room at a point about ten

- and at an clcv.r
above the floor

The draft pu .as me

means of d

.ist J at th

the Ot

one
and the other
Rue dampers. All draft
gag< the b<

to heat
The precaution ■* i to h<

out! -he dr. i i arranged at

right angle* to tin <>n of •

raking the high temperature* at
differcrv «iel

elect
grr «■• uv

All scale* ar nent* -

bratcd before and af- and

' «tantiallv
'»ofT valve* the bo

•connected
•he »ai r at all

•gc fro pump glands ■

cd to
•

| all the tests tr
was maintained { • at

» point rom the bottom of

the gage classes. To av
change of tcmr col-

umns a glasses

*crc r. at an

prior to or during
All readings ■

hour ihe water and oil levels a
brought to the *a .alcula-

tions made <jm-

pan ig engineer, ll 'our

men engaged in the tests: one fireman,
one temperature reader, one water
her and one oil weigher. In a
the com d >x '

loc e rooctoaioai

I Iocs
agreed .»eaft»

fifteen minute* and

none ol
heavier than a

the
cat, >t.

sampled

ing a sam;

see thi'

The sample from eacr

e Los Anr the

*nd the

Condition B<. i»«

'ha test found

necessary to rebt

•

93 I

•-. ,

-- :

- . i

4ft

IMI

gag

•JMt •«

•

722

POWER

May 9, 1911

between the boiler under test and the
one forming the other half of the bat-
tery. The boiler was cleaned about four
days prior to starting the first test, and
was in operation two days before the test
was begun. The tubes were dusted off
through the dusting doors, by means of
a steam jet, every morning before start-
ing a test. As the tests were to be, as
far as practicable, representative of op-
erating conditions it was considered that
this cleaning was sufficient to fulfil the
average conditions.

The setting was in extremely poor con-
dition, and it was found advisable to
stop up the worst cracks. During the
tests there was quite a number of small
air leaks in different parts of the set-
ting which did not receive any attention.

Prior to making the tests herein re-
corded, an inspection was made of the
tubes as a result of which four in the
first row were replaced. At the con-
clusion of the tests the tubes were again
inspected and they were all found to be
in good condition; also, the furnace

brickwork was given a careful inspection
and there was no apparent injury.

Starting and Stopping Trials

All tests were started and stopped by
a whistle signal. The boiler was op-

View with

Bottom

Remove'd

H..,cy

OeJT

6lch

A Orifice for Oil Supply Pipe F^ Steam Entrance

B Orifice for Steam Supply Pipe 6.H,I Steam Ducts

C ■ Mixing -or Atomizing Chamber J Set Screw Holding Plate

D Oil Inlet Duct K Removable Steel Plates

E Equalizing Steam Chamber X Bypass or Blowout Valve

Fig. 2. Hammel Burner

erated at the load under which it was
tested for a period of three to four hours
before actual starting, and as the fires
were maintained uniform the water level

was practically constant at the time of
starting and stopping. The water glasses
were provided with washers at fixed
points, and no trouble was experienced
in having the water at these fixed levels
at the start and finish. Therefore, it was
found unnecessary to make any correc-
tions for difference in levels.

The boiler was at "standby" about four
hours every night, but the four-hour per-
iod of service before the test was con-
sidered sufficient to heat the setting
thoroughly and to eliminate the possi-
bility of heat storage.

Results Of Tests

Fig. 3 shows graphically the efficiency
referred to the boiler horsepower de-
veloped, while Fig. 4 shows the efficiency
as plotted against the water evaporated
from and at 212 degrees Fahrenheit per
square foot of heating surface. In both
curves it will be noted that the points
at 33.6 and 64 per cent, above rating are
somewhat below the curve. This is ac-
counted for by the fact that at the point

80
^ |75

irifc7o

o_ uj
65

400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200
Boiler Horsepower po-ek

Fig. 3. Efficiencies at Various Horse-
powers

of maximum capacity it was found that
the % -inch pipe which the makers sup-
plied with the burners was entirely too
small for atomizing the oil at the higher
loads, and to make the maximum-capa-

o> 75

o _

O- u

POWELR^

Fig. 1. Boiler Showing Arrangement of Furnace

2 3 4 5 6 7

Water Evaporated per sq ft-, of Heating'
p<wek Surface from and at 212° Fahrenheit

Fig. 4. Efficiency Referred to Evapor-

tion per Square Foot of Heating

Surface

city test -K-inch pipe was substituted.
This is indicated by the drop in burner
efficiency at those points. In order to
get the maximum capacity it was also
found necessary to increase the width
of the tunnels and to provide a greater
number of air openings through the
grates.

It is regretted that the two tests men-
tioned were not repeated, but lack of
time prevented and it is reasonably cer-
tain that had additional tests been made
it would have shown these points very
close to the curve.

May 9, 191!

Fig. 5 shows the efficiencies referred
to the pounds of water evaporated per
pound of oil. corrected for moisture,
and in Fig. 6 is given a curve showing
the relation between the percentage of
carbon dioxide and the boiler horscpo

Fig. 7 shows the relation between the
boiler horsepower and the water evap-
orated per square foot of heating

foratio.n per square foot op
minc Surface Referred to
vporation per pound op
Oil

face, from and at 212 degrees Fahren-
heit.

Calculations

In calculating the factor of evapora-
tion the specific heat of superheated
steam was taken as O.ri for the gage r.
*>urc obtained.

The amount of steam uv. *hc

burners was obtained by placing the
burner in the water weighing tank,
the connecting piping and I the

same as were used during the tests. The
average steam pressure for the different
Mats was then maintained on the burner
line for a period of half an hour. The
amount of con.: ta then

■hed and this was ch< .:ur

ing the amount >iargc by tempera-

ture readings. For additional accuracy

ral different trials »crc nude at each

'. and these all *v.
small per cent. In the burncrcmci
calculations there is a small I

ecn the actual and the J u ions

due to the difference between d
sure of the oil and of the water I'nder

ating cond the

burner head is retarded in its lou b) the

m the
chamber. while the test* m.i the

tank m< sve a greater ttea

due to there being onl) a ght

water pressure
It Iftj als.

fire suffered much less than with the
light Ioj

(hat on the heavt toad* the J
• heal throughout I
much n

loads, which had a
centrate the heat in the front par-
boiler, due t» t

In order to dem-.r >ge

a long furnace a short

onc. * fur ailed having a

total length of

rtcr than the -
boiler company at i

• hat
far better •

the long furna. ng a length of

feet from i
'he the b<

-is at this point that the first sit test*

To obtain tr n capa

was found nccessar asc the

(h of the tunm . slower air

velocity through the grat : to in-

crease the number of opeaings through
the grate At that time the hndgewall
was also moved back another
which increased the cubical ti of

the firebox about 19 ci and

greatly assisted the combustion at high
loads It is also believed that the large
firer- tfca comv

tion at the lower evaporal In

all cases it was found that the best
suit- 'ront

dam; the

admission of air entircl c rear

damper. By this means the
the gases was kept at a minimum, which
seems to be essential for the Bat-

on.

In severa! instances during preliminary
trials the tcmperaturi in the

r tank tssd to

ihrenhcii. and it I id that

| the efl

% a

too in on Ho soo ado «so

sbsoluie: i : ing

■

rwariag

' he oil r " *

* ctencic-

ill pressure on the burners The

soft of

■ • M

iBiposslbto to keep &

en Set to fifteen

could be
cist i c

of tl

stesm c<'- ^r

cent, and the ones whose stesw con-

oMillW

'toast*

ire <j? | and

snail resistsnee to the pssasgc of
that these bur
: and can
at a ott

offset b> the c
used In the second esse the
must b. small and the

a net

steam briout. t»

fore, thai a burne-

mer

adj.

It is to be

sad from the ■naljssi of
the oil tasni

Of A

■

at ■

»ouldn*i

i srltt
I ou should ha» c urea

i up a long wooder

' courv
■rat th< etting the ana

■< tose. b«
It or nttf side sod bad et

■
• soiled, and -
over the c .

the %tt x" t ■ < rn .an gvt

a HCU!

s#? sad struct bass aa t

Oac '

724

POWER

May 9, 1911

The Cooling of Circulating Water

Whenever possible, large power plants
are located near a river or near tide wa-
ter, in order to obtain an abundant sup-
ply of condensing water; in many cases,
however, plants have to be located where
there is either no supply or but a limited
supply of water which can be used for
condensing purposes. In such cases if
the plant is to be run condensing, it be-
comes necessary to cool the condensing
water after it has passed through the
condensers so that it may be used over
and over again. Some of the various de-
vices for cooling the water are: Cooling
towers, spray nozzles, cooling ponds,
and spray nozzles combined with cooling
ponds. •

In every case, with the exception of
the "cooling ponds," the greater part of
the cooling is effected through the evap-
oration of a small part of the water cir-
culated, each pound of water evaporated
taking approximately one thousand heat
units from the water left. This method of
cooling by the rapid evaporation of a part
of the liquid was known and made use
of in India 2000 years ago.

According to Dalton's law, the weight
of steam required to fill a certain volume
at a given temperature is the same re-
gardless of whether any air is present.
The resulting pressure is the sum of the
pressure exerted by the air and that ex-
erted by the steam, considering that each
occupied the same volume separately.
The weight of moisture required to sat-
urate one cubic foot of dry air, or that
which will occupy one cubic foot, can be
calculated from any reliable tables giv-
ing the properties of saturated steam.

The curved line (Fig. 1) was com-
puted by taking from the steam tables
values representing the reciprocal of the
volumes of one pound of steam at the
different temperatures. From this it is
evident that at 66 degrees, 0.0010 pound
is required to saturate a cubic foot of
dry air and at 130 degrees, 0.0063 pound
is required. If air at 66 degrees were 70
per cent, saturated, or had a relative
humidity of 70, then the amount of mois-
ture in a cubic foot of such air would be

0.7 X 0.0O1 = 0.0007 pound
and if the air were saturated at 130 de-
grees'the additional amount taken up
would be

0.0063 — 0.0007 = 0.0056 pound

Cooling Towers

Probably cooling towers are used to a
greater extent for cooling water than
spray nozzles or cooling ponds, although
spray nozzles are coming into frequent
use now that engineers know more about
them.

The amount of water surface in a cool-
ing tower varies from 23 to 27 square
feet per indicated horsepower, more sur-

By Edward F. Miller

A method of calculating the
volume of air required to
cool a given amount of cir-
culating water passing
through a cooling tower, and
calculations showing that
under certain conditions it
is better to employ a mod-
erate vacuum than a high
one where a cooling tower
is used.

*From a paper presented at the Congress
of Technology, at Boston, April 11, 1911.

face being needed in a natural-draft
tower than in a fan tower. The amount
of air required depends to a large ex-
tent upon the humidity of the air entering
the tower and upon the temperature of
the water entering the tower. The air
leaving the tower is usually saturated.
It is not advisable to send an abnormal

S. 0.0070

£ L 0.0060

■£ J 0.0050

Jjo 0.0040

+-£

§£ 0.0030

1° 0.0010

<£ o

IU/V z>

1060 u
o

1050 c
_o

1040 o

_SJ

1030 o

1020 >
w-

1010 °
o

v<5>

„<

^c-

►1

,n*'

?°

ji^'

40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140

Temperature of Air Po*H

Fig. 1. Water Required to Saturate
Air and Heat of Vaporization

amount of air through a tower as the
cost of the increased power required to
run the fan and the greater shrinkage in
the bulk of water due to evaporation may
amount to more than the gain made by
the increased vacuum on the engine.

The materials used inside of cooling
towers for bringing as large a surface of
cooling water as possible into contact
with the air, without obstructing the free
flow of air, are tiers of tile paper, gal-
vanized-iron wire screens set nearly ver-
tical, galvanized-iron troughs set hori-
zontally and arranged so that the water
flows from trough to trough as it de-
scends, boards, brush or other material.

The amount of air to be supplied to
a tower and the shrinkage of water due
to evaporation, may be calculated with
sufficient accuracy from the following
equations:

W (Qh - Qr) = — %- X o.24 (TA - Tc)

0736 p

+ r

Specific volume
of steam at
the tempera-
ture of the
air at top

Specif] volume

of steam at
the tempera-
ture of the
air at bottom

relative
humidity

where,

W = Weight of cooling water enter-
ing the condenser per pound
of steam;

Vc = Cubic feet of cold air entering
the tower per pound of steam
condensed. This air may en-
ter by natural draft or be
forced in by a fan;

Vh = Absolute temperature of air
leaving the tower;
condensed and is equal to
VcTh
Tc '

Tc .= Absolute temperature of enter-
ing air;

Th = Absolute temperature of air
leaving the tower;

Pc = Absolute pressure of air enter-
ing the tower in inches of
mercury;

Qh = Heat contained in hot condens-
ing water;

Heat contained in cold condens-

ing water;
r = Heat of evaporation corres-
ponding to temperature at top
of tower.
The first factor,

X 0.24 (Th — Tc)

0.736

represents the heat given up directly to
the air and the second part of the equa-
tion

relative

[ Specific volume Specific volume ^ humidity
of steam at of steam at

the tempera- the tempera-

ture of the ture of the

air at top air at bottom

represents the heat given up by evapora-
tion of some of the water. This expres-
sion divided by r represents the weight
of water evaporated from the pond per
pound of steam condensed; represent this

by£-

Jf E is greater than one pound the
excess must be supplied by makeup wa-
ter. For a surface condenser E repre-
sents the makeup water.

If the excess pressure of the air en-
tering the tower is measured by the dif-
ference of water level in a U-tube, Pc
will equal the sum of the barometric

reading and 3 J times the difference
0.491

in water level.

In nearly every case Pc varies so little
from the reading of the barometer that
the barometric hight in inches of mercury
may be substituted for it.
Example :

A cooling tower receives water from a
surface condenser at 122 degrees Fahren-

May 9, 1911

heit ; the u tares the cooling tower

■ > degrees Fahrenheit ; temperature of

OUts

80 per cent.; temperature

i
inches; barum, ^ine

=00 hv nsumes

hour.
Find the amour.-
pound of steam cond . .id the

cent, loss of cooling water du
n.

J.
11

■

-PH

' >r

rfAtrptr

~<j-

KM -

0M5&.

;

1 Cond

ith

.ting, in the foregoing formula

+ z

whence

■

To illustrate more fully (he the

equation a e alto t In-

tra cost (at the fa high

ft a mod tcuum

cases will be conk.

I
inch

t to

the i j.uuffi

'
pound* of tf '.if water are figured a*

■nmtmum >

paund of th <-OM.

Calling the relative humidity W r
and g the '

(

whe:

■
The evaporation from the tower per
pound of steam condensed in the con-
nd and
I0>

the
bal.i is taken up

With 80 per cent, hu
feet of air would be needed and 0

■ ould be evapr - similar cal-

culations for 70 and « of hu-

feet
of air and und of water cvapor-

and 410 7 cubic feet of air ar
pound of uater evaporate.

•

•w the :

.urn.
■ ■
moisture in the am. The b ..'

963 tit u. d

nimum d of

m calculations similar to the p
ig it appears that the amour-

and the evaporations are as fol-
lows:

The amount of water evaporated per

• the
same in each case.

the first case the ation a.

aged '177 pound in 4 ? water

■ into \\
the ■ about 0.80 p

pour

The r arc

plot: Jent

that the amour it taken

ibWH
MM case

K< ' i a

d to be neede
k fan is 10 B
head of
at tt the

'
responds at 70 dagwe ■ to a

suppose I
u»c« 1 4 pounds of

lorser' - 'hcn lhc

rr, ... rm;r a 14 ••' »^d the cubi

The hor»epo»cr input to is. for

t»
fan efficier

O.I..

of the engine po*
To this should be added the power dot

pounds of coo lint

»•'<• ugh an a.

head of about 9 Thai

•

If the far-
Kino per horse*
'-•r-hour and the

re also ai -i, using 4o pound*

per horsepower-- ien tr-

cooling-tower
uld be

000840

and

oxm • cent. a..

A similar calculation for the

case with a 2> acuum and 80 per

cent, ht: in the engine using 15

cam per r

per minute

we power to fan

<» Ck*

vfopirsv

s.sft

•MO

—

culating pump

on the

I engine and the

eft »ic«r? drive*, tfter

• -

726

POWER

May 9, 1911

If the cooling surface used in the
tower offers much resistance to the free
discharge of air from the fan through the
tower, it may be necessary to run the fan
at a higher velocity and this increases the
work of driving.

Spray Nozzles

By spraying water into the air, cooling
may be effected through the evaporation
of a part of the water just as in the case
of the cooling tower. The total exposed
surface of the sprayed jet meets less
air per pound than in the cooling tower,
and on this account it is often advisable
to spray 30 to 50 per cent, of the water
a second time before sending it through
the condenser.

Generally speaking, spray nozzles of
the size known as 2 inches are the most
economical. This size screws onto a 2-
inch outlet, the opening in the nozzle tip
being about 0.8 inch. As many nozzles
should be provided as are needed to dis-
charge the entire weight of condensing
water under a pressure of not over 15
pounds gage at the nozzle.

The nozzles should be set from 8 to 10
feet apart if 2 inches; and a greater dis-
tance if over 2 inches. Where a number
of nozzles are used, it is customary to
have the water which is sprayed into the
air fall back into an artificial pond one
or two feet deep. Also, when a number
of nozzles are in uce the aspirator effect
produced by the jets causes a current of
air to flow along the surface of the pond
from the edge toward the center and this
current of air assists to some extent in
the cooling.

In some few instances spray nozzles
have been put along the edges of a nar-
row brook and the falling spray caught

on board fences inclined 30 degrees with
the ground and draining into the brook.

There are a few small plants where the
cooling nozzles discharge onto the roof
of the building. The extra head of wa-
ter on the circulating pump makes this
inadvisable, however.

Experiments on Schutte & Koerting noz-
zles of sizes known as 3, 2 and 1 inches
have been carried on at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology since 1908; and
at the present time two other types of
nozzle are being tested. The nozzle un-
der test is placed at the center of a flat
roof about 44x40 feet, sloping 1 foot in
10 feet, and the water caught on the roof
is drained into tanks and weighed. The
discharge through the nozzle is figured
from the pressure shown by a gage at-
tached to a piezometer just beneath the
nozzle, the coefficient for each nozzle
having been determined by exhaustive
tests made in the laboratory. From the
tests on the Schutte & Koerting nozzles
the following seem to hold true:

1. The temperature of the water after
spraying is more dependent upon the
temperature and humidity of the atmos-
phere and upon the fineness of the spray
than upon the initial temperature of the
water. Therefore, it is advisable to spray
the water as hot as possible without ex-
cessive steaming.

2. At high humidities, say 80 or 90 per
cent., the temperature of the water may
be lowered to within 12 or 13 degrees
Fahrenheit of the temperature of the air,
with a total drop in temperature of 35 to
40 degrees Fahrenheit.

3. At low humidities, of 20 to 30 per
cent., the temperature of the water after
spraying may be as much as 8 degrees
below the temperature of the air and the

total drop in temperature 40 to 45 de-
grees Fahrenheit.

4. The loss of water by evaporation is
approximately 0.15 pound per degree
lowering of temperature per 100 pounds
of water discharged, or a gross loss of
about 6 per cent, for 40 degrees Fah-
renheit lowering of temperature. In no
case was the loss found to exceed 7 per
cent.

The discharge from these nozzles was
found to be as shown in the following:

DISCHARGE FROM NOZZLES UNDER TEST

Cubic Feet

per Minute

Cubic Feet

for 1-lnch

per Minute

Pipe.

for 2-inch

for 3-inch

Head in

Diameter of

Pipe.

Feet at

Nozzle at Tip

Diameter of

Base of

= 0.406

Tip = 0.800

Tip = 1.181

Nozzle

Inch

Inches

1.782

6.736

14.83

1.952

7.379

16.24

2.109

7.971

17.54

2.254

8.521

18.75

2.391

9.036

19.89

2.520

9.526

20.97

2.643

9.991

21.99

2.761

10.44

22.97

2.873

10.86

23.91

Cooling Ponds and Spray Nozzles

When there is a natural pond of
moderate size adjacent to a power plant,
sufficient cooling may be obtained by
spraying all or a part of the condenser
discharge, the cooling from the surface
of the pond being of considerable as-
sistance.

Cooling Ponds

Unless the pond is of considerable area
the cooling from mere surface contact
with the air is not usually sufficient
to keep the temperature from rising, es-
pecially on hot damp days.

Bonom Steam Turbine

In the development of the steam tur-
bine which has been more rapid than
that of any other prime mover a great
diversity of types has been evolved. In
the axial flow in order to get the largest
possible number of expansions it has
been necessary to use designs involving
rotors of either comparatively great
length or of large diameter. In the
radial flow the diameters have been
large, and of comparatively low rotative
speed. The Bonom turbine is a radial-
flow machine of comparatively small
diameter and short length and conse-
quently capable of a high degree of rota-
tive speed or of containing within a small
space the number of stages necessary for
efficiency at low speeds.

If the long rotor and case of an axial-
flow turbine could be compressed ac-
cordion fashion into a series of rings of
uniform diameter with deep recesses be-
tween, and with buckets or blades on the
sides of the rings running between the

A brief description of a
new development of the ra-
dial-flow turbine, showing
the steps taken to secure a
maximum number of ex-
pansions in a machine of
comparatively small diam-
eter and short length.

redirecting buckets of the case it would
in a way illustrate the Bonom idea of
turbine construction.

The idea of the turbine is shown in the
longitudinal and cross-sections, Figs. 1
and 2, the latter consisting of eight par-
tial sections through the correspondingly
numbered planes of Fig. 1.

At the left of the casing is the inlet

chamber or steam chest extending en-
tirely around the case furnishing steam
to the ring of nozzles, which are opened
and closed by a perforated ring valve
under the control of the governor.

These nozzles are of the convergent-di-
vergent type designed for a considerable
initial fall of pressure with the production
of a high jet velocity. They are shown in
the section / — /of Fig. 2 which shows
also the three rows of blades, the middle
one stationary and the two others moving,
through which this velocity is abstracted.
The initial stage is thus of the double-ve-
locity or Curtis type, expanding the steam
to such a volume that even with full ad-
mission, that is, with steam admitted
through the full circumference, the first
blades may be of considerable size. This
reduces the proportion of clearance to
blade area, and the low pressure attained
by expansion in the symmetrical nozzles
reduces the tendency to leak by the blades
in the later stages.

May 9,

I'OU : K

* 0

6 7

rfy ■"

i i ■

Tif

! »■ OP Bonom >

After the fin»t stage the type beco:
that of Parsons with continuous expan-
sion through the constantly increa
pi stages of alternately rotating and :
of blades. The peripheral vclocr
the blade* would be different, according

as they »erc nearer to or farther from the
shaft; but if th favors th<

ing the mean veIoi> :hat

a change in speed »i!l improve the eO-
ciency of those to one side 'ine

c diminishing that of those upon the

other and thus permit a coaatdcraato
change in speed with small vanatfoa la
|M or eflk

arc

ided at the •

connect one I ^rm a coal

.ept for the necew-
sjry mc >nce closely it*

annular gro Sm oaaoaha aide of the

chambc-
path for the %team and pretren-

aa c

728

POWER

May 9, 1911

cape of steam around and over the ends.
This is clearly seen in Fig. 1, while Fig. 3
shows the form of the buckets and their
arrangement, both in the stationary and
moving parts.

Fig. 4 shows the disassembled stator

The drawings submitted do not show
any provision for balancing the end thrust
resulting from the differences of pres-
sure on opposite sides of the rotating
disks. This may be done by the use of a
dummy piston which may be small on ac-

The Value of the
Recorder

By H. S. Vassar

Fig. 4. Disassembled Stator Sections

rings, and Fig. 5 the rotor rings reas-
sembled on the shaft, giving a clear
presentation of the progressive increase
in the volume provided for the expan-
sion of the steam as it gives up its en-
eigy in passing through the successive
stages. In the stator ring at the right iff
Fig. 4 the first set of directing nozzles
is plainly shown. Around the outside
of this circle of nozzles there is another
ring with perforations corresponding to
the entrance openings of the nozzle which
under the control of the governor is ad-
vanced or retrograded as the load de-

count of the absence of high-pressure
steam in the bladed portion of the case;
by reversing the flow and making the
pressure act toward the nozzles in the
later stages, or by splitting the turbine
into a double-flow, a procedure favored

In a recent issue of Power there ap-
peared a letter headed, "Economy in the
Boiler Room," which called attention to
the need of boiler-room records, especial-
ly in the case of electric-power plants.
The article was a timely one, bringing out
many points which certainly require
watching if economies are sought.

I noticed, however, that more stress
was laid on flue-gas analysis than on
daily coal and water records. Personally,
I am inclined to the opinion that without
the latter, CO- records are of little use.
Now, I have no quarrel with those who
have so ingeniously devised automatic
devices for flue-gas analysis as I fully
believe that such instruments have a
proper place in many boiler rooms. There
are, though, other plants in which C02
apparatus has been installed with no
facilities for daily coal and water weigh-
ing.

Such a condition reminds me of a
hungry man who, neglecting the more
substantial viands on the table, attempts
to satisfy his appetite with pudding or
pie. CO- enthusiasts often assume that
a knowledge of the percentage of CO=
carries with it something definite con-
cerning the amount of air. While this is
true of excess air it is not true- of the
converse, that is, C02 records tell noth-
ing about an insufficient air supply, re-

POWEX

Fig. 6. Circumferential Valve

mands, throttling the steam for light
loads or giving a wide opening for heavy
ones.

Fig. 6 is a short section, showing the
construction and method of operating
this admission ring which may be called
the. circumferential valve. This valve is
moved circumferentially by the worm and
is also guided in a sidewise direction by
angle blocks which cause the openings
through the valve to approach and pass
over the entrance openings of the noz-
zle diagonally until full opening is ob-
tained when the valve reaches full travel.

Fig. 5. Rotor Showing Progressive Increase in Width of Blades

by the original acceptance of the initial-
velocity stage.

It is intended to build these machines in
convenient commercial sizes for all
classes of work.

The inventor is Alfred Bonom and the
turbine is handled by the Bonom Turbine
Company, Central bid?., Paterson, N. J.

suiting in the formation of CO. Un-
fortunately, high CO- is frequently ac-
companied by a greater or less percent-
age of CO, the loss due to which some-
times more than offsets the gain due to
the low excess-air volume indicated by
the high CO-. Therefore, while high
efficiencies cannot be expected with low

May 9, 1911

POU

72y

CO, it does not necessarily follow that
high CO, is accompanied by economical
combustion. In other words, the indica-
tions of the automatic CO. machines ap-
pear to me to be largely nes: I

After sc\crj
flue-gas analysis and boil I do

not believe thai i are at all

dependable as measures of furnace effi-
ciency. In support of this contention
1 and 2 arc submitted. These charts

bonuses to firemen, baaed on th-

e ami* nen

han_ by aid

ta something aa folio*
burna 2000 po
hour ur

of, say who fires the

adjoining boiler, may burn only half that
amount of coal with corrcsp<

'earn output, but his CO: record
may be 12 per cent. In other »•

0 .

•

••

oiO

•

c-8

o
u

• • •

• ,

• /

•
•

r °

. /

■y

a
5

Ptr Cent. * :.y

Fic. I. Comparison of CO: Percentage in Uptake G • op

Combustion

were made to establish, if
iclation between ihc percentage of I
in the gases of combustion and the com-
bined boiler and furnace tmeicne
show the results of two scries o!
tests on Bab lers

equipped with mechanical I of the

inc! 1 ' testa of the

series, indicated by the black poi: -
all made on the same boiler and with the
same fuel but unh various changes in
the grat

tests of the second act

different fuels were burned. All of the
coals used Pennsylvania M

>m contlnu
taken (hi it the

teat" I the sam;

the uptake while in *crc

*s Tl
i the samples

all

ng the I al cnV

•rom

data k manu-

* and are
the cftV of com*

M flue ft*
I ha\ 'eat

km ll tba Mar r • • rr.nc (ha value

Mm than in the case
A word a

the
glor I do not sav that

such methods arc followed, a tnts

re the

ich as to i of

the records ohtatae d. In the*

when » , ked of

on c ir » *ocnc are a

estionmg their varac. It
reminds me of a •

my boyhood. The story ran somewhat
aa foll<

Ta easing in appearance

and glib of tong_

ng.
that e sole

of a mos- .-^ric for royal

robes. Indeed o »on-

l rendered
••) all *.i eat of men.

San

at a fa | | robe of

the ma: i and days vca

worked at - ry noth-

ings from nothing. At

n the • -ear

before his people arra fie

ful robe which i

of admiration from his i

But. at la

clothes on at a

Once more I would not be ur
aa condemning all gas ana

Jamn with fa but from

and ob-

c that there are «

.onomica! opcr
in c room befo

corder. A- or of he f hand

apparatus ' an be ;

COM Of

S'3

•

■ .

•

■he Ind *

• ! •

Some of those «ho have stud.cd

c boiler room rather than m

-ecaeder aad

■sjajL
h j » < n<M *^u* '>' ' » eti ■*■'"'■

' '
those who tta>%
iloa cevM aeabtleae • > vaaaaaa aa

><**ethinf *

730

POWER

May 9, 1911

The Care and Operation of
Storage Batteries

By Norman G. Meade

An electric storage battery is a com-
bination of cells, each of which is a
unit. In the ordinary type a cell is made
up of three parts: the jar, the plates and
the electrolyte. The jar may be of any
good nonconducting and acid-proof ma-
terial of sufficient strength and rigidity
to support the plates and the electrolyte.
In the smaller stationary types the jar
is generally made of glass or hard rub-
ber. Large cells for central-station work
have containing tanks made of heavy
planks well joined and lined with sheet
lead.

The plates are of two kinds, termed
positive and negative, placed alternately,
and the number of negative plates is al-
ways one more than the number of posi-
tives. The group of plates contained in
one jar or tank is commonly known as an
"element." All of the positive plates
in one jar are connected together and
all of the negative plates are similarly
connected, but the positive plates are
separated from the negative plates by
insulating strips.

Storage batteries of the ordinary lead-
sulphuric acid type are divided into two
general types: the Plante and the Faure.
Both consist of lead elements in dilute
sulphuric acid but the plates are pre-
pared differently. The Plante type of
plate is constructed of solid sheet lead
so fashioned as to present a large sur-
face area to the action of the electrolyte;
the active material is formed on the
plates, either electrically, by charging and
discharging, commonly called forming, or
chemically.

In the Faure type the active material
is applied mechanically to lead conduct-
ing plates or grids; for this reason the
Faure battery is commonly called the
"pasted" type. The active material may
be in active condition when applied or it
may be in such condition that it must
be converted into active material by elec-
trical or chemical formation. The posi-
tive plate is made of lead upon which a
coating of peroxide of lead has been
formed or mechanically applied. The
negative plate is made of pure lead with
a very spongy or porous surface. The
peroxide and spongy lead are the por-
tions of the plates which are subjected
to chemical action and therefore con-
stitute the active material; the plain lead

body of each plate serves as a support
for the active material.

The chemical condition of the plates
and electrolyte changes when the cell is
charged and discharged. At full charge
the positive plates have a rich dark-brown
coating of peroxide of lead, and the nega-
tive plates are a dark slate color. In this
condition an electromotive force is set
up in the cell, and if the positive and
negative terminals be connected through
an external circuit, a current will flow
through that circuit from the positive to
the negative terminals of the cell. When
discharged, the positive plates are of a
reddish brown or chocolate color and the
negative plates a light slate color.

During discharge, the active materials
are partly converted to lead sulphate at
the expense of some of the acid of the
electrolyte, so that the latter becomes
weaker. The strength of the electrolyte
at any time, compared with its strength
when the cell is fully charged, is an ap-
proximate indication of the extent of the
discharge. The specific gravity should not
be more than 1.2 when fully charged nor
less than 1.13 when discharged. It de-
creases proportionately as the cell dis-
charges. The voltage of a cell on open
circuit, that is, with no current flowing,
is approximately 2.1 volts. This value
is reached very shortly after either charge
or discharge ceases, though it is some-
what influenced by the strength of the
acid, temperature and, to a minor extent,
by the state of charge. During discharge
the voltage drops, the rate of decrease
depending on the rate of discharge and
its duration. Toward the end of discharge,
the voltage falls off rapidly; when this
point is reached the cell should not be
further discharged. Conversely, during
the charging period the voltage rises. To-
ward the end of the charge the rise of
voltage is quite sharp and, the conversion
of the lead sulphate formed during the
previous discharge being fairly complete,
the water of the electrolyte begins to de-
compose into its elements, hydrogen and
oxygen. When the charge is complete,

practically the entire input of electrical
energy is used in effecting this decom-
position and vigorous "gassing" ensues;
then the strength of the electrolyte and
the voltage cease to increase.

All of the materials of the plates, the
lead, spongy lead, lead peroxide and lead
sulphate, are practically insoluble in the
sulphuric acid of the electrolyte, especial-
ly when there are no traces of other acids
present. For this reason the plates are
quite permanent. Great care is taken to
attain the maximum purity of all ma-
terials of the plates and electrolyte so
that the action described will not be un-
desirably varied or modified.

The lead sulphate formed during dis-
charge has a greater volume than either
the spongy lead or the lead peroxide;
consequently, there is expansion and con-
traction of the active materials. The
lead peroxide of the positive plate be-
ing somewhat noncohesive, it is gradual-
ly ground up and during the subsequent
gassing at the end of charge some of it
falls off, forming sediment. In the nor-
mal action of the cell the lead underlying
the lead peroxide is very slowly corroded,
forming new active material. With proper
operating conditions the amount of new
active material thus formed should bal-
ance the amount which falls off as sedi-
ment. The spongy lead of the negative
plates being quite cohesive, it does not
fall off if the cells are kept free from
short-circuits and foreign materials, but
it gradually becomes somewhat more
compact and through the diminution of
its porosity the capacity decreases. The
rate of this decrease is greatest at the
start and finally becomes very small.
The negative plates are given sufficient
initial capacity to provide for this shrink-
age. If, in time, these plates show less
than their rated capacity, they may be
reversed by separately charging, with the
proper precautions. This process causes
the material to again expand and the
initial capacity is restored.

In the action of the cell some water
is lost through decomposition toward the
end of each charge; this evaporation is
made up by adding pure water to the
electrolyte. It is usually necessary to
add acid only when cleaning and remov-
ing the sediment. As already intimated,
both the acid and the water used for
making the electrolyte and replenishing
it must be as near absolute purity as
possible. Foreign acids (organic im-
purities are usually converted to acids
in the action of the battery) must not be

May 9, 1911

allowed to get in; they lead to rapid
corrosion of the positive plates. Other
impurities lead to local actions with con-
sequent loss of charge and must there-
fore dc avoidc

If a lead-acid cell is allowed to stand
partly or wholly discharged for any length
of time, the normal action is also

F* I •

parted from, especially at the .

s. The active material is with diffi-
cultv converted back t and the

underlying lead may be rapidly corroded
under certain conditions. Char <>u!d

therefore follow a discharge as soon as
practical.

Cei

>rage-batter> cells for light and
r plants arc usualh * ith

cither glass jars, glass tanks or lead-:
wooden tanks. The smallc ire usu-

ally put in glass jars each of ■
set on a bed of sand contained in a glass
or wooden tray ; the sar

ur gla- i placed un-

der the as shown in I

of medium cap

tanks of pressed glass; no sar
are used, the glass tank -
on the glass insulator nail

l of cither lead or rubber inter-
pose the hard surfaces of the
glasses out of com
Is of the glasv .;lass tank I
arc the easiest to install tv the
plates arc . I at tin The
plates of each cell

H.bars and • the

negative pi. the

;o the other as »! -
lates and straps u

cad
terminal

id-lined

.!'.;• ■ I

cd at if

■

Ihc ncic.i

■ tank (
be r

■

•> of a.

heavy are ,

wooden to economize Boor

- *c cells a*

- oden ft!
fled br pon

the floo- • of glass It

lator

Ban -.stalled in rooms

B rooms

ned for r.
a mo~ ring

the bar

redi. nturc. The t

should also be located so tha'

not be s al heat during

K m

n 1

^^^

the summer and the t
it of th

;adc

■ •

shoulJ

and all

that

1
uld be

Jed

ling »ollrr
rani;

COOMB

■nnmriff should abo I
the too
b« asccrisinrd ll
should imi d M *

■

■ • .

: • . _: :

pOMObll Nc.ii.se its

ass bti

a tad to used la the

• to oootaia the

oka

in coot
n is the sperihe i

gra 4 it

ooccosary to reduce the rt
a standard temperature, erhich to

'he cor*

the ooi

an 70 degrees mod ooh*

A means for a

the specific t

ige. «hich consists of a gloss robe
about an inch nc cod of

;

ctcr fr»
other end is closed '

c at - 1

the i

.... - . . <

■n «'

732

POWER

May 9, 1911

outside of the cells must be practised with
caution. Soldering fluxes must not be al-
lowed to get into the cells even in the
minutest particles. In repairing, all joints
must be made by lead burning. In this
process a hydrogen flame is used which
frees the melted lead from any slag,
whereupon it welds readily. The hydrogen
generator and the balance of the outfit
can be obtained from dealers in storage
battery supplies but it must be employed
only after thorough instructions, as ac-
cidents may readily result through ignor-
ance of the precautions to be taken.

In making bench tests of a battery it is
advisable to know the relative condition
of the positive and negative plates of the
different cells. This may be done on the
discharge of the battery by reading the
voltage between either group of plates
and an auxiliary electrode, preferably of
cadmium, immersed in the electrolyte but
not allowed to touch the plates. Cadmium
can be obtained in sticks about a quarter
of an inch in diameter and 6 inches long.
One end of the stick should have a ter-
minal wire soldered to it and over the
other end should be drawn a piece of
perforated pure soft-rubber tubing long
enough to cover about three-quarters of
the length of the stick. It should always
be immersed in a glass of electrolyte for
several hours before using. Cadmium
sticks, properly m?de up, can be pro-
cured from storage-battery supply deal-
ers and manufacturers.

The Electrolyte

It is always preferable to purchase the
electrolyte already mixed and of guar-
anteed purity. If, however, concentrated
acid is used in preparing electrolyte, the
latter should be made by pouring one
volume of pure concentrated acid of 1.84
specific gravity into about five volumes
of distilled water. The vessel used for
mixing should be preferably a lead-
lined tank unless the quantity is small;
then a vessel of hard rubber, earthenware
or glass is suitable. In mixing the elec-
trolyte, always pour the acid into the
water very slowly and constantly stir the
mixture, as much heat is generated by
the mixing of acid with water. Never
pour the water into the acid, as the re-
sulting splashing is liable to cause pain-
ful and dangerous burns. The solution
must be left for several hours to cool.
Never add hot or even warm electrolyte
to a cell, as the plates are liable to be
very badly sulphated by so doing. The
strength of the electrolyte should always
be tested by a hydrometer reading, re-
duced to 70 degrees Fahrenheit. It is
always advisable to use distilled water
for the preparation and replenishing of
the electrolyte because ordinary city
water usually contains foreign substances
of an objectionable nature.

Charging
As soon as the electrolyte is poured in
the cells, charging should begin, because

it hurts the plates to stand in the liquid
without being charged. The first charge
should be carried on for a much longer
period than the subsequent or working
charges, as it virtually completes the
formation of the plates.

The positive terminal of the generator
must be always connected to the positive
terminal of the battery. The charging
process commences at about 2 volts per
cell and rises to approximately 2.6 volts
at full charge while taking current at the
normal rate specified by the maker. The
first charge should be continued for at
least ten consecutive hours, and twenty
or thirty would be preferable. The first
charge is usually about twice the capa-
city of a battery, and should be made at
the normal current rate.

The specific gravity of the electrolyte
will drop during the first few hours of
the first charge but will rise again as the
process continues; its maximum point is
reached at full charge.

As the charge nears completion, bub-
bles will rise from both plates and the
charging current should then be reduced,
as the active material is almost fully
formed and therefore cannot take up all
the gas set free from the decomposition
of the acid at the normal rate. As the
amount of the gas liberated is in propor-
tion to the current flowing, gassing will
decrease when the current is decreased.
It will take from twenty to thirty charges
to fit a new battery to give its full capa-
city, and it is well to charge for 25 per
cent, longer time at the normal current
rate for the first few months. In ordi-
nary work the battery will retain its nor-
mal condition with a charge of 10 per
cent, in excess of the discharge.

During ordinary charging the normal
rate or lower should be used, except in
case of emergency. Under normal con-
ditions 2.5 volts may be considered full
charge, although the battery can be
charged higher than that. After repeated
charges, the water in the electrolyte will
have evaporated to such an extent that
the reduction in volume will expose the
top of the plates unless water is added;
this should be done through a hose or
tube reaching to the bottom of the cell,
as water added otherwise will stay on
top, being lighter than acid.

Although it is not always the most
economical procedure, the highest effi-
ciency and longest life are obtained when
the battery is charged slowly, never ex-
ceeding the normal rate. Conditions of
plant operation will determine the most
economical practice for each installation.

Discharging and Care

When discharging at the normal rate
a battery should never be discharged be-
low 1.8 volts per cell. In discharging at
a higher rate than normal, however, 1.8
volts per cell will be reached before the
battery is discharged to the same condi-

tion as at normal discharge, owing to the
internal resistance producing a greater
drop of potential, in accordance with
Ohm's law.

The battery cells must be kept clean
and the terminals covered by a coating of
vaseline. Corroded copper, iron or any
other foreign materials must not be al-
lowed to get into the cells. If through
accident this occurs, all of the electrolyte
in such cells must be thrown away and
new electrolyte put in them. Matches or
exposed flames of any Rind must not be
allowed near a battery, especially when
it is being charged, because the gases
then given off are combustible and, if
sufficiently concentrated, explosive. Tem-
peratures higher than 100 degrees Fah-
renheit should be avoided because the
corrosion of the positive plates is accel-
erated by such temperatures.

Each cell should be tested with a volt-
meter and hydrometer once a week. Any
cell showing low voltage should be ex-
amined thoroughly for any foreign sub-
stance that may have short-circuited it.
This will be indicated by a low specific
gravity and deficiency or absence of gas-
sing, the voltage rising slowly at the end
of a charge when it should rise rapidly.

When inspecting and overhauling bat-
tery cells it is best to have them in a
suitable battery house, placing the cells
on a bench. Any sediment should be re-
moved and the deficiency of electrolyte
resulting from the sediment removal
should be made up by the addition of
fresh electrolyte.

Cells in poor condition can always be
recognized through certain characteris-
tics. The plates may be of poor color;
the color of a wet positive plate in good
condition varies from rich dark brown,
almost black, when the plate is fully
charged, to a reddish, chocolate brown
when discharged. A light grayish coat-
ing on the positive plate is not a bad
indication if by rubbing with a clean
stick or a piece of hard rubber the prop-
er color is evident under the surface.
The color of dried plates is much lighter.
Wet negative plates are of a light slate-
gray color when charged and somewhat
darker when discharged. When dry they
are considerably lighter and may be even
somewhat yellowish if allowed to heat
in drying. If the color of a plate is not
as described, it is probably sulphated. If
the voltage of a cell is conspicuously
lower during discharge or higher during
charge than it should be, sulphating (the
formation of lead sulphate on the active
material or between it and the lead sup-
porting grid) is indicated. If the strength
of the electrolyte is low, the cell should
be investigated for short-circuits or sul-
phated plates. Always be sure that the
sediment does not touch the plates; it
must be removed as soon as there is dan-
ger of contact occurring.

May 9, I 'J I!

Usual Causes of Trouble

Plates r.ia> get in poor condition from
any of the following cau-

Impur This may be

poor quality of acid being used at the
start or to the use of impure water or to
foreign sot - getting into the cell.

The remedy, if the plates are in

il condition, is to displace the old
electrolyte with new when the cell
the discharged condition and then to
the battery a thorough ch.i

tuts These arc not frequent
if the sediment is removed before it
reaches the plates. Vhcn they do occur,
the cell should be completely disrna;
the plates straightened and the cell as-
sembled again, the separators being com-
pletely replaced. The cell should then be
thoroughly charged.

High Tempetature At a temperature
above 100 decrees corrosion is rapid. If
it be possible to prevent it. the tempera-
ture should not J 90 degrees The
positive plates may be sulphated con-
Tom this cause and be con-
siderab! If they are thor-
oughly corroded, they must he displaced

cw ones; if not. they should be
charged, straightened and recharged. The
conditions should be changed so that the
battery will not again be subjectcJ i<>
high temperati.

riding l)i\ihjr^,-J The ;
plates are especially liable to be ba
sulphated from this cause The in.:

condition is a light color of
the positive plates, po-
of grayish color The rcmcJy in this case
is also a complete charge, though care
t be taken that loo much active ma
ferial is not thrown off during the ch.t
The active material under Ihi
sometimes becomes quite granular and
noncohc f it comes off easily the

cells must be altcrnatclv charged anJ
charged until the plates are ! to

normal condition.

In all cases of recharging a cell after
"tient. the char. n at the

ite of current and t at

this value unti is gassing bet'

rent then may be reduced to the
ite. at « e main-

tained until both the <
voltage have remained at constant

of the celK sld he

•he cell* Jl*char»-
charge being carrlcj nut a*
I beginning of
• I •
til t' are ai-

in good con ' loan

than the "finishing'
■

POl ! K
specially injurious to eel'
The excessive us. caning

' charg The plates may be

rins group

para ittk filled l

A good as foil

iat the
charged and r >. or

other container for immcr> .

plates. Remove an element from its tank
and take out the m taking sure

that the plates are f: par-

ticles liable to He

place the old or apr

the clement in the clean tank »
haa been pr
of the pro;

care should be taken that the plates are
out of the electrolyte as short a time
as possible because the air coming in
contact with the negative plates causes
them to heat and lose their charge. If

«••-••

713

LE i l 1Kb

«*sii t>e improve Juste.:

. ' lOBMOf) Onl> one bell

* no motion and tf

rooMoa

J grounding throat
Tf rod shown In the

torn bi
from the »•

ape

. ontact on

jch an oot

1MB D

Jama

The accompj

■

.A.

«am ra-

the and

It
n be the la

rising mounted I

rick i

me up are

nnected from l and treated spring coi

Of specif - gra

:r u» "£ »at WW . r»e r
• otden

con t sets, made oc

met

i'lii«rd to I

noon the

turn cifvi

. csomctas' to iv

ro«gh the

the '

V V

Jamaica L I

I The nsc sf east hall eoooocOK

not he
d In tf

i not loot mu.
negatives, ho* '-rtn MgfetseO »ws*n • <*

- or N of co*

' «
>

734

POWER

May 9, 1911

^-■U. <«^i> Afl&

Making an Engine Lift Itself
to the Foundation

By F. B. Hays

A short time ago I was called upon to
set on its foundation a horizontal gas
engine weighing about 1500 pounds.
There was no crane, hoist, derrick or
other lifting mechanism available, nor
any means of installing anything of the
sort if we had had any. The founda-
tion bolts were very much out of aline-
ment, due to a mistake on the part of
the masons who built the foundation, so
that the bolts would have to be sprung
into the holes in the engine frame as it
was let down into place. The space in

Hoisting Itself

which the engine was to be set was so
small that only two men could work on
the job at once, and there was no room
to use pinch bars or levers long enough
to be of any advantage. In short, the
job seemed almost hopeless until the
plan which we followed was devised.

Just above the engine there was a
heavy beam capable of supporting a
couple of tons of weight. Two single-
sheave pulley blocks were attached to
this and a rope was fastened around the
engine frame and run through the pul-
ley blocks to the engine shaft, around
which it was given several turns, as il-
lustrated in the accompanying sketch. By
revolving the flywheel of the engine, the
shaft acted as a windlass and the en-
gine could be raised or lowered with
facility.

One man was placed at the flywheel
to raise or lower the engine, while an-
other one sprung the foundation bolts

Everything"
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

into the holes of the engine bed. By this
means the engine was raised and lowered
>o its foundation with very little difficulty.

Development of the Gasolene

Engine*

By Joseph C. Rileyt

The development of the gasolene en-
gine has been more rapid than that of
any other form of motor, not even ex-
cepting the steam turbine. We all recol-
lect with what curiosity, not many years
ago, we regarded the new horseless
carriages and how we wondered whether
the noisy little engines which left a
smell of half-burned gasolene behind
them would ever become really desirable
motors. The first part of this period of
development saw radical changes in the
design of these motors, but the use of
light oil had come to stay. Although
dangerously inflammable and five times
as dear as the heavier grades of petroleum
burned in larger oil engines,- the cleanli-
ness of gasolene and the ease with which
it can be prepared for combustion are
alone sufficient to dictate its use.

The gasolene engine has profited enor-
mously by the rapid advance in all
branches of mechanical work. Its own
special improvements have been, for the
most part, such as would naturally come
from the thousands of ingenious design-
ers, skilful mechanics and experienced
motor-car drivers who have tested and
tried it under all possible conditions of
service. As a result, advancing by pro-
cess of trial and error, the engine has
reached a fair degree of perfection in
two points at least: It has been made
to develop greater power per unit of
weight than any other form of prime
mover and its reliability has been ad-
vanced to the stage which warrants its

•Abstract of a paper presented before the
Congress of Technology at the fiftieth anni-
versary of the granting of the charter of the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

tAssistant professor of mechanical engin-
eering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

use even for such exacting service as
propelling a lifeboat or driving a fire en-
gine.

Little of this development, however,
has been made possible by what may
properly be called scientific study of the
engine's performance. At first there was
scarcely time for such work. The de-
mand for engines was often greater than
could be supplied, so the engineers' ef-
forts were concentrated on increasing the
factory output as fast as possible, con-
sistent with a fair improvement in the
product. The time for refinement in de-
sign had not yet come. Thorough trials
of an engine with all its accessories were
usually carried out to make sure that
everything was assembled and adjusted
well before the product was sold, but
measured tests for anything except the
power output — under somewhat uncer-
tain conditions — were not considered nec-
essary.

Aside from differences in general ex-
cellence of mechanical construction
caused by variation in design, unques-
tionably there are inherent differences
in the power developed by different en-
gines and in their fuel economy. When
operated at the piston speed correspond-
ing to maximum power (a speed usually
between 1100 and 1500 feet per minute)
the best automobile engines give results
nearly 50 per cent, better than those
from the poor ones. But little of this
discrepancy can be charged to imperfec-
tion of the mechanism causing surface
friction, for even the cheaper motors are
well built in this respect. It is influenced
by the quality and quantity of explosive
mixture, the amount of compression, the
time and rapidity of ignition and the tim-
ing and size of the valves.

The interrelations of these many fac-
tors are very complex, but they may be
summarized by saying that the power
depends upon the pressure in the cylin-
der. The variation in the force behind
the piston as it moves in and out is what
does the work; the time at which pres-
sure is applied and the rate at which it
changes consequently determine the
amount of work realized. The more we
know about just how the pressure varies
the better able we are to devise means
for controlling its rise and fall and there-
by producing a greater net output. The
piston tvpe of indicator has been of ser-
vice in analyzing the performance of
internal-combustion engines of moderate
speed but for light-weight engines such
as are used for driving automobiles,
aeroplanes and small boats, the speed is

May 9, 191!

U \ k

much too high for any of the ordinary
commercial forms of indicator. The
natural cadence of vibration of the in-
dicator springs and moving part* is al-
together too slow for anything like such
high speeds; the waves introduced into
the diagram by violent explosion
be too long and might be misleading.

What is r. - a recording mechan-

ism with a period of vibration of high
frequency, more like that of the electrical
oscillograph, say between 500 and lOOO

second. Moreover, if incorrect de-
ductions arc to be a great care
must be taken to insure that the indi-
cator diagram starts from its dead points
exactly in phase with the engine piston.
Within the past three or four years
optical indicators capable of producing
satisfactory results at 1000 revolut
per minute and upward have been used
in research work in a few technical
schools and private testing laborato
Thcy cannot be handled successfully.
howeve: : • by skilled observers and
in general they cannot be used at all
with the engine in actual service. The
engine must be mounted on a n.
ing block and studied under artificial.
idea! conditions.

Little improvement in power can be
J from the best engines; thev
are already excellent. There are auto-
mobile and marine engines today, work-
ing on the four-stroke cycle, that .
mean effective ; s abo\

pour n driven at extremely

high speed. On the other hand, there
arc small two-stroke marine engines, the
mean effective pressures of which range
anywhere from 85 down to less tha-

ids, depending on how well or how
badly the fuel chargi
ptoded and rejected The energy wa
in getting the charge into a thl

nc, or in dragging it into the crank
case against the pre of a cl

e with too tight a spring, or blowing
it into the cylinder after - 'iigh

• ^sion. mati -cs the

horsepower output In

ncs the g charge is further

■ passai
the car'

throttle.; dcr

is that it gets in at ill isc dla-

set the

gncr* i ig

Between the better and the p«>.
signs of dm there i

margins in

nmowiHr that

-ages, d n and i

- anv other definite fault
the tcicnfif -o rrmedv a d<

any kind la to vcstlgating flrwf

lis mai and

the Instrument adapted to tuch a «•
In the OM f tbi gasolene englr
ndicatnr In •

within

yond those lin

running reciprocating ■
for arranging I
•o secure regularity of
effort and for balancing the moving pans

s appa-

'able for the class of engines

engines
auto::. Soats and aeroplanes

e of having been planned by
men trained in the principles of dynan
as well as in all other elements of
chanica .me builders, fa

have but ha >n methods of bal-

ancing. In fact, they seem to asso.
ition with the sudden rise in p
sure due to explosion within tl
as if the shaking of the frame were due
to the shock of explosion. That vibra

the motion of the masses and
that it would be practically the same even
if the c removed and

the shaft were revolved I

1 from some other so new to

them.

There are ma Hems which ar

in the design of machinery which cannot
be solved even approximately until after
the machine is built and tested. The
.nee ga of the I

few in; machines then fir

the information ri for mod if

and -ms. in

rs. and thus the machine
iout the ar;
cation of pur*.

CORR1 SIM >\i >} \( i
i Ino tent 1 ngine

If in

the " ' run faster

than norma
are open, t'

in t fie un It *

C a separate air In

S
enough The

ing

a as to
•n and
wears

pei ■ .

>m gas

good conditio
not

•ho *hc rim*

c and cloalnc and the

J compared with the
t% for 1

rcnJeslhle to ignore the PusslhWiy

of the nature of the charte or

ution being to blame If, how c
the > shaped or the

so located that No. J gets rnees
•per share of ga- us*

possible provided all the eomr

sion spaces ar volar

normal valve lifts and timing, the com-
may be too high, and
in con) unction w
>nd g. might cause the trouble.

All V iay sound rather

far-fetched to those who arc not
quainted b -rt the im-

mensity of the range of
gasolene cngir n occasion;

but as " Jau

to enable one I dim r r
as I have never observed a similar stunt
on the part of a gasolene engine, they
are put fo »r what they ma

or may not he much,
roblen
be interesting to learn the cause of the
trouble, ho d and ho-

remed:

'cheste-

I probably due to
fault ould tf

' not be fired, the
.: against the com-
sion in thai Opening the

pet cock on Under would, of

nprssslon snd
duce the amount

to do. th

VN'ui

1 cl -I

I am ant

In «

ranged so t mat ma was coaled

dcr

vo cormjf.'
the action

nee to be

I am now running w ithout the

I r'f'"C *

•rcaatht

if same

736

POWER

May 9, 1911

2&i ri'

Isolated Power Plant Makes
a Good Showing

The original mechanical equipment of
the Missouri Baptist Sanitarium, St.
Louis, Mo., consisted of two high-pres-
sure return-tubular boilers, furnishing
steam for heating and domestic purposes;
light and power, however, were pur-
chased from a central station. This ar-
rangement was in force for over ten
years.

During the year 1905, a small engine
and generator were installed which fur-
nished a portion of the light, and the re-
sults were so gratifying that a complete
plant was installed during 1908. The
new equipment consists of two return-
tubular boilers of 100 brake horsepower
each; two 60-horsepower, 10x1 1-inch pis-
ton-valve engines that drive two 35-
kilowatt, 125-250-volt direct-current gen-
erators. The lighting load consists of 540
sixteen-candlepower lamps distributed
throughout the institution, a motor load
of 47 horsepower for operating laundry,
elevators, ventilating apparatus, pumps,
etc., a total load of 68 kilowatts.

The buildings are heated by exhaust
steam, both direct and indirect methods
being employed. The total heating sur-
face is 11,282 square feet. The demands
upon a plant of this type are exacting
and require heat, light and power
throughout the year. The entire equip-
ment is in duplicate, and the service
has been uninterrupted since starting the
plant, nearly two and half years ago.

The cost of heat, light and power for
the fiscal year of 1904, which was the
year preceding the installation of the
small generating unit, was $5955.09, and
of the fiscal year of 1910, the second
year after a complete plant was installed,
the cost of operation, including cost of
fuel, labor, all supplies, maintenance, etc.,
as charged on the treasurer's books, in-
terest and depreciation on electrical
equipment, was $4958.86, a saving in
1910 over 1904 of $966.23. These fig-
ures do not take into consideration the
fact that the light, power and heat have
been materially increased since 1904. For
instance, the increase in the lighting load
over that of 1904 is 54 per cent.; in-
crease in connected power load over that
of 1904, 92 per cent., and the increase in
the heating system, 22 per cent.

The cost of heat, light and power for
1910, if electrical energy had been pur-
chased, as in 1904, would have been
$7444.86. The cost of this service from

Practical

information from the

man on the job. A letter

good enough to print

here will be paid forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

the isolated plant represents a saving of
$2486.

In this instance the engines, generators
and all additional equipment necessary
for the electrical plant cost a little less
than $6000. The saving in the fiscal year
ending with September 10, 1910, over
and above the cost of current and heat,
if current had been purchased as in 1904,
would show a net return on the invest-
ment, after allowing for interest and de-
preciation, of over 40 per cent.

The present service is more satisfac-
tory than the original arrangement, and
the splendid showing is due to high-
grade equipment and the intelligence with
which it is handled.

Victor Azbe.

St. Louis, Mo.

Crank Pin Repair

The accompanying illustration shows a
method used in putting a new crank pin
in the crank disk of an ammonia com-
pressor. The original pin became loose
in the disk and a new one had to be fitted
in as short a time as possible.

Stud Bolt

Square Iron Block Powir

Details of Repairs

The new pin was made at a local shop
and had a hole drilled and tapped in the
center for a !^-inch stud bolt. The hole
in the disk was reamed out 1/32 inch
larger than the original hole in order to
get it true; the pin was turned for a 20-
ton pressure fit.

The pin was started into the hole and
a washer put on the back side of the
crank disk, with two pieces of square
iron between them to act as distance
pieces.

The stud, having been screwed into
the pin, was slipped through a l->£-inch
hole drilled in the circular disk and a
nut screwed on. While one man with a
24-inch wrench took up on the nut, two
others, with a heavy block of wood, driv-
ing the other end, soon had the pin in
place. The next step was to rivet the
back end of the pin over on the disk.

Since this repair was made the com-
pressor has been running constantly for
about 12 months and the pin shows no
signs of working loose.

D. M. Grove.

Covington, Va.

Changing Shifts

There are a number of ways by which
men who are working 8-hour shifts can
change from one shift to another at regu-
lar intervals. Suppose that the hours
for relieving the watch are at 7 a.m., 3
p.m. and 11 p.m.,

Of the various ways of changing, the
following two methods are most common-
ly used. First, by the night crew work-
ing a double header of 16 hours, say
from 1 1 p.m. Saturday until 3 p.m. Sun-
day. The crew that has been working
the 7 to 3 shift lay off from 3 p.m. Satur-
day to 3 p.m. Sunday, and the crew work-
ing from 3 to 1 1 p.m. lay off from 1 1
p.m. Saturday until 11 p.m. Sunday.

The second plan is for the men going
off the 7 to 3 watch, to lay off for 32
hours, that is, from 3 p.m. Saturday
until 11 p.m. Sunday. The men coming
off the 3 to 11 watch have an eight-hour
lay off and come on duty at 7 a.m. Sun-
day. The night-watch men get through
work at 7 a.m. Sunday, and return to
work at 3 p.m. the same day.

There is another plan that I have seen
worked which I consider very much more
advantageous to the men, for the reason
that they get one day off duty. By this
plan the crew that quits work at 11 p.m.
Saturday lays off until 7 a.m. Monday.
They thus have all day Sunday free from
any thoughts of having to go to work,
which would not be the case with either
of the other plans. The men who have
been working from 7 to 3, lay off from
3 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. the same
night. The men coming off duty at 7
a.m. Sunday return to work again at 3
p.m. that afternoon. Where this plan
has been tried the men rarely wish to
give it up for any other.

H. X. Gskhe.

North Cambridge, Mass.

May 9, 1911

P O U F. R

Condensing Appar.it

Some time ago, while talking with the
chief engineer of a large power plant,
■re fell to di g condensing ap-

paratus and surface condensers in par-
ticular, bringing out some points that arc

illy taken for granted without
much thought as to the why and wt
■

One of tl hings conv

the location of the Jr>-air pump and
the advantage gained by placing it as
close to the condenser as possible. Upon
first thought it may seem that the loca-
tion of the dry-air pump in relation to
the condcr. mmaterial as long as

all the joints, etc.. in the dry-air line
are kept tight and free from leaks; but
suppose, for example, that the temp
turc of the room where the condcr
apparatus is situa* 'ic tcm-

;ure of the condensation; then if the
pump is placed at a
tance from the condenser the air has to
travel through a long line expose.:
higher temperature which, co:
quently. increases the volume of

ng more work on the pump and
ulting in a drop in vacuum.
Of course, the conditions may be i
that it would be impracticable to have the
air pump close to the condenser, in
which case the usual method cmpl

. omc the diffici: I cover the

air pump with a good thickness of
lagging.

The next point brought to my alien?
was the pr. m of pipe to bm and

if any advantage was to be had r-
a larger pipe than that for which the
pump was designed. For instance, if the
diameter of the intake port of the pump
»crc »J lad Id anything be ga

unning a 12-inch line from the .
dcr. ie pump instead of a 6-inch

line, as would naturally be the first in-
clination''

The main object of an air pump i-

get rid of whatever air collect* in the

condenser as quickly as possible and, as

something to be taken in-

onsideration. it would seem p!au

that the larger the pipe the less the

effect of friction, but as ther ly a

small quantity of air ; ugh

the pipe tt icg-

ligiblc; on the other hand, the larger the

the m
effects of the outside tempcralu

There i« in u*e in a c i plant

a c- •• and I

nal dc
steam driven and ha* separa"
ndensa*
vhaust* irr

*ecn the '
■
g to pats through
In a small valve char- I at the

bottom of the JHtcn n«

pomp used a normal amount of steam to

and was con- ■ throt-

tling governor, but after being in service
the pump developed a
g up and

Tt mation teemed

that the governor was ba need of

repairs, but after having been thoroughly
and r on the pump

the cor. .hanged in the

the governor - out

altogether and the pump run on
throttle. This pump is nom running
the throttle open a little less than one-
quarter of a turn and yet the vacuum
is as high, if not a little higher, than it
h. causes one to question
possible to
something for nothing. All other co
tions have remained the same, but there
is a reason and I hear an

opinion from some of the readers of
.-.c cause of d altar

condition.

kuk.

Roche!

I ibi - . the lk-11 Crank

.. an engim
was method of :

ing the car of a

shown in the ace-

This engineer had huntcc: cea

of an old brass sect .taken fi

an old pump, a*

to fit the o<

and > hole fat |

•»cc grease

T» "»ch he

the

in J |M

of bras* plate to om
spood. Tb

a p*

t to ;
grease from squeezing out around the

Ti htm to aajaeeae the

me.

noise and

4 not run through

Coos.

Improve I

ili:

ll ilDOttJQ Kc ^ cr« HHBHaTaM *at ' o %*ca%rn
rs to note the trend of things that

are questions -sdi-

tions becoming betier or worse; if be

*hat s.

ar. and for . condi-

arc questions.

hroed view of the
field ol

gaged. Tl bed oot a

wee-

nee- The mootb

two .

coo-
tamed mould not cor . i
i quar-

e cootrfbtj-

{our among

• ■»: ■■■•"•

-at engine r crosrtag

a more respectable and respected

e blind oho doe* not

in minv nstancc* and the tirade err Is

coot leaa thsn

half * hat

used in the operation of a power plant

■

■at »crt p^ - the increased »«■%! of

long »d «

cheap tmp 4 not lot

■

HusincM men begin to see i

•oposmon. iosseod of a mere
aeer bas become tbe a •

agerer pooittor. * fi

rsspectabh. Tberv <» asore abeod of Hat

BSfjl | ... | an at the leoref rur+t of *Se

id h«»

ftael

738

POWER

May 9, 1911

units govern the price, and the owners
of power plants are looking for the man
who can turn the last available heat unit
in the coal into effective work. They
know that the man who can do this is
not a cringing thing in greasy overalls,
but is a man with real gray matter under
his hat.

In the future it is going to be a
scramble and a case of the "survival of
the fittest." But with the means avail-
able for self-education, any man with a
reasonable amount of "horse sense" will
be able to get in line for the better things
in store for the engineering fraternity.

There is ample room for improvement,
but the manner in which engineers are
meeting the changing conditions promises
well for the future, both for the owners
of power plants and for themselves.

Ten or fifteen years ago an engineer
who could set the valves of a Corliss en-
gine so that it would run at all was con-
sidered a very good man. Now we find
them conducting hair-splitting discussions
as to the proper hight of the compres-
sion curve, whether it shall be allowed
to run to one-third or one-fourth the
hight of the diagram, or less. Lead must
be adjusted to a nicety that our fathers
never thought of, and operating engi-
neers are found laying off the lines for
isothermal and adiabatic expansion on the
indicator diagrams and checking the
actual by the theoretical.

These things indicate that engineers
are progressing, and will be, for several
reasons, two of the most important being
the increasing pressure of conditions, and
the increased ease of obtaining knowl-
edge »and applying it. What the engineers
of the past had to arrive at by long and
tedious calculation is now obtained at a
glance from handbook tables.

William WesterfieLd.

Concordia, Kan.

Novel Boiler Construction

While visiting a small boiler shop, I
was shown a boiler that had features
which were extremely novel. The boiler
was destined for a mountainous part of
the country where fuel was scarce and
dear, and where transportation of the
boiler from place to place would be diffi-
cult.

The accompanying illustration shows a
sectional view of the boiler, but is drawn
from memory and from such descrip-
tion as was detailed to me, and, there-
fore, is to be considered as simply
portraying the chief features and not as
accurately setting forth the constructional
details. The boiler can be divided into
two sections, at the joints A and B. The
lower half of the strap at A is riveted
and calked in the usual manner, but
the upper half is only bolted on and
is not calked. The joint is made tight
by means of a triangular-shaped cast-
iron ring, which fits accurately into the

V-slot machined at the intersection of
the two halves of the shell. The ring A
is cut slightly larger than the inside diam-
eter of the shell, like the packing ring of
a steam piston.

Before being snapped into position, a
narrow strip of a flexible alloy is placed
in the bottom of the groove. When in

Sectional View of the Boiler

place, the packing ring is evenly set out
by the bolts C, bearings for which are
furnished by the built-up wheel D. The
inner ring B is set by the bolts E, and
the band F is riveted on to complete the
joint at this juncture. The ends of the
setting-out bolts are upset and rounded
to fit into recesses in the packing ring
to allow flexibility in case of unequal

expansion of the inner and outer shells.
Details of the bolts, wheel and packing
rings are shown in the plan view. Some
of the braces of the upper half connect
below the joint to the shell of the lower
half. On some of these braces are turn-
buckles of a special make, which are used
to raise the upper half clear of the
other when dismantling the boiler. The
two halves of the shell are guided to a
correct position by two keys (not shown).
Access to the interior of the boiler is
obtained through a manhole, the position
of which is shown at G.

As this boiler had to be operated under
economical conditions it was necessary
to have a large heating surface propor-
tionate to the grate surface, which was
difficult to provide without making the
boiler too bulky. The designer, however,
hit upon the plan of using a one-tube
economizer for heating the feed water.
By this means the waste gases are
utilized to a certain extent, but the heat-
ing surface of the boiler is materially in-
creased by compelling the gases to return
along the outer shell before entering the
economizer. But the economizer so
covers the boiler tubes as to prevent ac-
cess for cleaning them. To offset this
the economizer was set on rollers, and a
long but narrow door H cut in it. By
disconnecting two unions, one on the
feed-water inlet and one on the outlet,
the economizer can be revolved entirely
around the boiler, thus bringing the door
opposite each row of tubes. The econo-
mizer is set on a framework of T and
angle iron, around which is a covering
of sheet iron.

The more one studies the design of
this boiler, the more he recognizes the
ease with which it can be thoroughly
cleaned and repaired.

While this boiler may be expected to
operate with a fair degree of economy,
considering its type, there are several
doubtful elements in the construction,
which the reader will doubtless perceive.

R. O. Richards.

Framingham, Mass.

Standpipe on Heating System

A certain heating plant will soon have
to be extended in order to heat an annex
to the main building. The job should be
done as cheaply as possible as the build-
ing will be vacated next year. The old
traps are overloaded, and a new trap is
not wanted. The system is made up of
1-inch pipe, and operates by gravity.
The pressure is from 5 to 8 pounds, and
discharges through traps into an open
tank and is then pumped into the boilers.

How about putting up a standpipe of
a convenient hight and letting the water
overflow into the open tank; would this
work and, if not, what else could be
done?

Alex Dolphin.

Jamaica, N. Y.

May 9, 1911

~.sj

Specialist

I was interested in James Scou
letter which appeared in the issue of
March 21, under the above title. 1 be-
E that he write* too harshly of the
"dinky little" engineer, who presumes
to dictate to specialists summoned for
especial work in his plant. Personally.
I bear the opinion that the thinking man.
be he engineer or coal passer, can. at
times, present highly intelligent hints to
any mastcr-of-trade; especially is this so
when the latter is one of that numerous
class of craftsmen who have achi.
proficiency in their vocation solch
imitation and who not onl. the

merits of their models, but. like-
commit their faults or. ignorantly. main-
tain a custom that has. since their ap-
prenticeship, become obsolete. I refer to
that large class of so called specia
who are adepts at doing th hich

have seen accomplished before but
who are easily confounded when at
for reasons why one thing is pcrfor

way and another the other wav. I
contend that these men arc but cogs in
the huge industrial wheel and. compared
with them, the little free-thinking cngi
nccr becomes "the man of broader

" that '•' tch re: 'as the

man who rises highest in the cngincc
profession" and, I may add, "sets
*hccl in motion."
We all find it ca* the

handiwork of these specia nail

the number
sugr is that met the fa

When trsl n of

J. »c arc enabled to do thi». anJ
rt finds the idea practical, have »c
not ason t"

And if the idea In . and rc-

what t
do than have it appear in

icrs ma
thcrt \s an innt.i

a specialist and a Ihmktng engineer I
mend the ' ng:

At the invitation of a friend »hose
plant v

Ing. I »aa present it. mm

when a stcamflttcr u

rs drawn »hn »
a method ' -ig an old Putnam

■teem pre*'

■hatanding a r
>und» A por
drawing
ing figure A* a pa*

rnmcrjl .
< ritu ism, sl
aoddkhstic upon wioui

.trficla. letters and edit

peered tnpnviouM
issues

ments introduced, the Holl> of

drainage had been install-
When the plans had been duly m-
the engineer desired to know
what objection- J against placing

the reducing valve on the engine side of
the separator He opined, if r
permissible, that a smallersi/e pir

in for most of the distance, a smaller

of separator and rcdi. live

would suffice and that frequent source

4 smmgt

;

i ■•..;-..

—

•lore, he argued
■rsi

g the .

*
'earn upon leaving the
MMI
' t Jing en the imeu'

ar*'n«t the fl~» ; m f the engine • "-'

ever notion would depend on the

0 and capacity of ap In

*me or

•ccomp ashed by a peir of ■

In answer to all the arguments
enumerated the specialist could invoke
but one. that rsi Is . stoma r>

to install the app* g*.

me- aractenstk reply of

M when confronted
reflections
Of cnurv. < xr from my desire

be understood to mean that there arc ao
is and. no doubt I shall
hear from some of these, wh rem

cumbent to swing the radge li for
their more unfortunate brothc

one horse en-
cere conviction
that any aicn engineer, who keens
abreast

ons found in the abundant lir

MS furnish

NO spec;j v- nted bi
ashamed to

Out s H

• ».

lurbii ;ict

rch

' rmula for the
are..
he does not r kh

not In
lenr re and the

•he turbine or the ratio of

steal rstio of

-
I

28 inches of vacuum

■ ■

MB I

ho,

740

POWER

May 9, 1911

For 1000 horsepower,

W = 12,000; W0.8= I;834

A = 1834 X 18.73 X 1.715 + 16,000 =
3.682 square feet

or 26 inches diameter.
For 20,000 horsepower,

W = 240,000; IT0 8= 20,140

A = 20,140 X 18.73 X 1.715 -r- 16,000 =
40.44 square feet

or 86 inches diameter. The velocity of

the steam in the first case is:

200 pounds per minute X 350.8 -4- 3.682

= 19.055 feet per minute = 318 feet

per second

In the second case it is:

4000 pounds per minute X 350.8 -^ 40.44

= 34,700 feet per minute = 578 feet

per second

The common formula for the flow of
steam in pipes (See "Mechanical Engi-
neers Pocketbook," page 845), is,

Loss of pressure in pounds per square inch =

\Y2L

in which W is in pounds per minute, and
D, the diameter, in inches; C is an ex-
perimental coefficient. Taking L at 100
feet and C at 63.4 for the first case and
64 in the second (figures derived from
Darcy's experiments on the flow of water)
gives in both cases
px — p2 = 0.029 pound per square inch,

or about 0.06 inch of mercury. As in
modern large turbine practice L may be
nearer 10 than 100 feet, this would re-
duce the drop in pressure to one-tenth of
these figures, or to 0.006 inch of mer-
cury, an exceedingly low figure.

It is possible that Mr. Neilson intended
his formula to cover not only the loss of
head (or pressure) due to friction of
the pipe, but also the pressure required
to cause the velocity, and also the
"entry head" or the pressure required to
overcome the resistance of the orifice.
As the latter may be made bell-mouthed,
its resistance may be neglected. If we
assume that the steam in the exhaust
side of the turbine has no velocity in
the direction of the pipe, the velocity head
may be calculated from the formula

h = Yl

in which V is in feet per second and H,
the hight, in feet of a column of steam
of the given density. For the calculated
velocities, 318 and 578 feet per second,
h is, respectively, 1570 and 5188 feet.
Reducing this to the equivalent pressure
of steam occupying a volume of 350.8
cubic feet per pound gives pressures
of 4.48 and 14.8 pounds per square foot,
or 0.031 and 0.128 pound per square
inch, respectively. These figures added
to the 0.029 pound already found as
the loss of pressure due to friction for
a pipe 100 feet in length, gives the total
loss of pressure as 0.06 and 0.157

pound, or, say, 0.12 and 0.31 inch of
mercury.

As the steam leaving the vanes of the
turbine must have considerable tangential
velocity, with reference to the earth, and
the exhaust pipe may be taken from the
casing in the tangential direction, it is
probable that there is no such loss of
head in creating velocity as the last
calculation indicates and, in that case, a
material decrease in the diameter of the
pipes (with consequent increase in veloc-
ity) from the diameters given by Mr.
Neilson's formula might be made without
any serious loss of vacuum between the
condenser and the turbine, especially if
the distance between them is short.

The exponent 0.4 of the factor / should
be explained. According to the common
formulas for flow of water, the area re-
quired for a given flow under a given
head varies inversely as the square root
of the mean hydraulic radius, which
would make the exponent of / 0.5 instead
of 0.4.

William Kent.

Montclair, N. J.

Mr. Stocks' Engine Valve

Regarding Allen J. Stocks' letter in the
March 28 issue, I would say that he
made the proper adjustments by shorten-
ing the valve rod, judging from a com-
parison of the diagrams in Figs. 1 and 2.

I cannot see anything wrong with the
design of this valve.

Referring to the accompanying figure,
which is a reproduction of part of Mr.
Stocks' Fig. 3 with the reference letters
added, the face A works on the face of

B POWE*

Mr. Stocks' Valve

the valve seat. The face B is subjected
to the steam-chest pressure, which pres-
sure tends to hold the valve hard against
the valve seat. The channels C are to
allow a certain amount of steam to re-
main between the valve and its seat,
tending to balance or resist the pressure
on the face B.

It seems plain that the inventor's aim
was to design a balanced slide valve
without a pressure plate and his aim was
in the right direction to reduce the fric-
tion and allow the automatic cutoff gov-
ernor to work effectively.

The diagrams showed that the gov-
ernor was handling the valve all right.

If Mr. Stocks had given a sketch of
the valve seat, I might have been able
to tell him more about this valve, as I
think the channels D are probably meant
to give the valve a double-ported ef-
fect which is common practice in the de-

sign of most automatic single slide-valve
engines. The valve is made double ported
to get a large port opening with a com-
paratively short valve travel.

Most designers know something.

W. H. Magee.

Brooklyn,, N. Y.

Record Breaking Turbine
Test

The test performance, cited in the April
18 issue, of the 6000-kilowatt turbine unit
designed by Brown, Boveri & Co., and
installed in the Dunston station at New-
castle-on-Tyne, shows the best steam
economy which I have seen reported, and
since it was accomplished with a high
degree of vacuum, the efficiency is re-
markable. There are, however, certain
important matters which must be con-
sidered in comparing this result with the
claims and accomplishments of other
large turbines of the Parsons or other
types.

The machine at Newcastle is designed
for a capacity of 6000 kilowatts, it op-
erates at 1200 revolutions per minute,
and in spite of this relatively low speed
in proportion to its rating, the low-pres-
sure end is arranged for double flow. The
Parsons construction can be made highly
efficient at the low-pressure end if space
could be afforded for moderate steam
velocities. The limitation of most Par-
sons designs lies in the fact that such
space cannot be afforded and it is only
in such extreme designs as the one under
consideration, that the steam at the low-
pressure end is not congested when op-
erating with a good vacuum. A ma-
chine of the Curtis type operating at 1200
revolutions per minute can be propor-
tioned with single flow for 11,000 kilo-
watts output without serious congestion
in the low-pressure end, while the ma-
chine at the Dunston station is designed
for only 6000 kilowatts and is provided
with two low-pressure elements in paral-
lel. The building of such an elaborate
and expensive machine for so small an
output is undoubtedly well justified by
the fine results accomplished and is
creditable both to the purchasers and to
the designers. The practice, however, is
very different from that which has been
followed by many designers of Parsons
turbines, particularly in this country
where it is common to find single-flow
machines rated at 5000 kilowatts operat-
ing at 1800 revolutions per minute, and
double-flow machines rated at from 10,-
000 to 15,000 kilowatts operating at 1800
revolutions per minute.

I do not know how the initial cost per
kilowatt of this machine would compare
on an equal basis with such Parsons
units as have been mentioned. It is ob-
vious that the cost is relatively much
greater and that these fine results can-
not be accomplished without such in-
crease of cost.

May 9, 1911

POU -\ \<

The machine at Dunston was built
with an unusual degree of care and ac-
curacy, it is operated continuously with-
out variation of load, and in startir
an unprecedented length of time li ex-
pended. Under tht favorable con-
ditions of operation it is probable that it
can run with nail clearances to
that the leakage losses are presumably
smaller than those which are ncccssa:
a Parsons machine run in the usual man-
ner.

Brown. Boveri & Co. have been
leaders both as to quality and quantity
in the production of Parsons turbines
as they have been in many other branches
of engineering, and this machine repre-
sents the latest product of their experi-
ence. If other designers of Parsons tur-
bines follow equally conservative and
correct lines, they also can undoubtedly
obtain equivalent results if the -
ported in this case is correct If. how-
ever, in the interest of economy they
follow radically different lines, it may be
presumed that tl 'ate principles

which govern quality in this an.

W. L. H. I

Schenectady, N

Preventing Power

I 4MKJ

Plant

The editorial in the April 4 issue of
Poyeh under the above heading is
worthy of careful attention by all pro-
gressive engineer* and covers a su>
that is of vital importance, not only in
engineering, but in all branches of
human acti\

Many arc the men that have gom
the wall because of their failure to look
after the little things, they take care of
the large items that thrust themsc
in the way but never vrc the small th
that have to be searched for. Just aa a
grain of dust will stop a watch or a bolt
wreck a turbine, so unseen losses will
k i business.

•h the 1 equipment and

administration hardly more than 10 per
cent, of the encro in coal can be
realized at the switchboard i
only this small amount of | r u an

asset and the man tried losses sa

a big .: • the engineer ins-
watching such losses and trying to keep
them ss small as possible, lets their
crease because he docs not see where
and in addition allows a lot
of unnccess i

The cause* that lead up to these un
necr SJSjSJ are but usu

come from a false sent
To spend a dollar tod<
two dollars tomorrow is unheard

supplier InlUfV The

that th" quality is as cheap as the cost
is forgotten.

Pay small wages' (heap mei

make tf :* go around just the same

ss good me :>bc true, but Brfcfl

i wages is lost many tin
in other w.i

ng costs mom ut.

II J<» *c ware how much each item
is long as *
that is the only way in which the in-
an be :
:ch reminds mc of a friend
who walked three miles to save

J after he had gone about a
mik d at a cigar store and spent

.cms on cigars to keep him OOsaV
pany th f the -

W. L. Dl
Washington. D

Procure en Pump Plunger

In regard to B I in

the issue of March 28, the following may
be of interest to him:

In Fig. 1, let A be the position of the

1. D:a(,kav oi Position of Crank

crank pin at top center and H the posi-

aftcr the crank has moved through

any angle «. Then. .: ,ua! the

The displace piston

cement of pistoo
plotted ss ore

• as
abscissas. Th., j ,n

and that of

This g u thorn

g the ordinates for t
■

-placer
stant a-

accment of or
The angu

.hange the volume slig
enough to aft'.

The easiest pro< |
sssume sny po the plungers and

solve for the l

taukee. w

\ii\ i< e oi Gii ■ g \,:\

I have read the iettcr b. <>«cr K
Owen in the March 2* number and I
uggestion that the cd

- a
good one.

I Imagine tl

•atcs that my stiuiistlns)
of adding a d: >f the feed

branch at the fanh< - might

be inconvenient what about his idea

e pips*
under ccna;r-. conditions a* brought up

ccd only be o' and

need not cost verv much In ess.1
Isbor.

If there is no ob
of any kir.J chances arc

to : no such obstruction > . the

tfes steam to
eulate in th

-en t h • -
should anted I

St »••; creations of.

and

ft D
R

The connection »s .^ «as shown by
off- Is «i

la teas ef cos)tasrtissBS "tol

N*%.
ibsohawly no trs.tsi

742

POWER

May 9, 1911

countered; but in every case ample pro-
vision was made to carry away the con-
densation from the branch feed connec-
tions at the radiator end by a drip when
these connections were over a few feet
long.

The risers shown in the sketch {2l/2
inches) should be of ample size to heat
any three radiators unless they are al-
together larger than any generally used,
and if the branch pipes are large enough
(\lzi inches will supply up to 96 square
feet under 5 pounds pressure with a two-
pipe system) and contain no pockets,
there will positively be no trouble in
heating all three radiators with a one-
pound steam pressure, gage, providing
drips are installed.

The change suggested by Mr. Owen is
all right, but it is not a sure cure; drips
or bleeders are, if falls are right and
all pipes are clear.

J. E. Noble.

Toronto, Can.

Stress in Boiler Sheets

Referring to the editorial in the Febru-
ary 28 issue, consider a rectangular plate
as in Fig. 1, with a tension of pi pounds
per square inch of sectional area applied
in one direction and p2 pounds per square
inch of sectional area applied at right
angles to the first. Let the thickness of
the plate be t.

Now conceive a right-angled triangle
cut from this plate as in Fig. 2. The side
whose length is A is subjected to a ten-
sion of pi pounds per square inch of sec-
tional area, and the side whose length is
B is subjected to a tension of p2 pounds
per square inch of sectional area. The
hypotenuse, whose length is C, is then
subjected to a tension whose direction is
perpendicular to C and whose intensity is
p pounds per square inch (as yet un-
known). There may also be a shearing
action along C; if there is, let its intens-
ity be S pounds per square inch.

Since t is the thickness of the plate in
inches, the sectional area along the edge
A is A X t square inches; hence the total
force acting upon A, and perpendiuclar to
it, is AxtXP* (Fig. 3). Similarly, the
total force acting on the edge B is
B XtX Pi- Acting perpendicularly to
the hypotenuse is the force C XtX P,
and if there is a shearing action along
this edge, its total value will be C X t X S.

There must be equilibrium among these
four forces. Resolving into components
perpendicular to the hypotenuse,

C X t X p= A X I X pi sin. a -f
By.ty.p2 cos. a

and resolving parallel to the hypotenuse,
C X t X S= A X tX pi cos. a —
B X t X p2 sin. a
Dividing by C X t in both cases,

A B

p= X sin. a X pi -\--t*X cos. a X i>2

S =

•p X cos. a x px —-~X sin. & X p2

t, A . , B ■

But -~ = stn- a' ancl r = cos' a

Hence

/> = px sin.2 a -f- p2 cos.2 a (i)

S = px sin. a X cos. a — p2 sin. a X cos. a
= (/>! — p2) sin. a X cos. a (2)

These equations give the values of p
and S under the most general circuiti-

es ^ a a 4. h C05.
2 2

= />! sin.2 a -(- p2 cos.2 a

which is the same as equation (1).
In the formula

p — fti + P2 1 P* — Pi

t t t I

-L_L

Rectangular Plate

X cos. 2 a

the greatest value that cos. 2 a can have
is +1; hence, the greatest value p can
have is

A — Pi + P2 J_ Pi ~ Pi — A

P — — ; 1 : — • — P2

POWEK

////////

Stress=p£ lb. per sq. in. of
Sectional Area

Fig. 1

stances. There is a shear S along the
hypotenuse except when a equals zero or
90 degrees, in which case sin. a and cos. a
are zero respectively; also in the special
case where the plate is pulled equally in
both directions, that is, pi = p2, there is
no shear. If p2 be equal to pu equation
( 1 ) becomes

p = px sin.2 a -f- px cos.2 a =
px {sin.2 a -\- cos.2 a) = p1

Hence, when the plate is subjected to a
stress of the same intensity sidewise and
endwise, the tension acting perpendicu-
larly across any diagonal is the same in
intensity.

Going back to the general case, in
which pi is not equal to p2, assume first
that p2 is greater than pu

Pi + P, , P2 — Pi

This happens only when cos. 2a = 1, or
a = 0. Similarly, the least value cos. 2 a
can have is — 1, which can only be when
2 a= 180 degrees, or cc = 90 degrees.
Then

p = Pi +P2-P2~Pi=p,
1 2 2 ri

From this it will be apparent that when
p2 and pi are unequal, p is always less
than p2 (the greater of the two), except
when a = 0, when it becomes equal to
p2. Similarly, p is always greater than px
except when ex = 90 degrees, when it be-
comes equal to pi.

Fig. 3

P =

X cot. 2 a (3) As for the shear Sj it may be expressed

This expression may be verified as fol-
lows: Substituting cos.2 a — sin.2 a for
cos. 2 a, equation (3) becomes

persq.in.

— >£

\ | \ I |

p^lb. per sq.in.

Fig. 2

= P1+P2+P2~P1 ,{c0S2a dn2a
2 2

P\ 1 P2 1 P2 9 Pi ■ 2

= i_» _i_ CI _L <_^ cosz a — — sin .-a —
222 a

^-cos.2 or + ^i sin.2 a
2 2

= ^i«w.2 a 4-^' (1 — cos.2
2 2

«)•+

This occurs when sin. 2 a

S = + {px — ps)2 X sin. a cos. a =

*x ~P* x sin. 2 a
2

The greatest value sin. 2 a can have is
-j-1. Hence the greatest value of S will

Pi — P*m
2

= 1, or 2 a = 90 degrees, that is, ct=z
45 degrees.

Some have been confused with the fact
that the diagonal extension of a rectangu-
lar plate is greater than the extension
parallel to the edges. The trouble here
is, that the stress in the plate is not pro-
portional to the absolute extension, but to
the ratio that the distortion bears to the
unstretched length. For example, con-
sider a rectangle acted upon by a force of
p pounds in each direction. Represent-
ing the modulus of elasticity by £1 and
referring to Fig. 4,

''- cos.2 a +— (1 — sin.2 a)

:— sin.2 a 4- —sin.2 a 4-
2 2

p (GF) . . _
E1 = (FA)al0n9AF

and

p _{BC)
Er-(AB)

along A B

May 9. 1911

The test is not that L G, but that

L.t pu be the diagonal stress. Then

And since,

RC
> — AB

it follows that

I
is when the rectangle »Md

equally in both din *Md

unequally the case is mor

Hartford. Conn

The following has special refcreno
an editorial in the February 28 issue of
under the || iption:

Pi v'M the shell of a

steam boiler arc there any cross-sections
on which the normal or tan-

gential, are greater than on a cross-scc-
■
A discuss m invo'

a thi • ntcrna: n aa

the

;ie pmv

hc* pe- ' other

produced by the prc»*urc on the
the othr c radial pi on the

•hell; a I ibes or

I, the intensity of the stress on a
plane parallel m the ati* i« twice lhai
a %* ir to dM

>ent ■ pon
boiler which It «uhl .in lnt<

then the stress on ar
rontal plan unit n'

and if

strr«» per square Inch Is
MM of the a|)

Tl ■> on any plane > > perpen-

dicular to the axis is rpr, and

where 2 r r is the circumference. This
also pr it the intensity of stress

on .V X is twice that on >' Y as prt
stated.

To determine the stresses on any plane
A-hich makes an angle 0 wh -
plar the small rectangular

pan of the shell abed, and. by changing
the ratio between the length of tl:
angle 0 may have any value bet
and

present the ur. - acting paral-

lel to > . and that parallc

It will simplify the solution and
not change th. the thick-

ness of the shell is assumed as ur
then the area of the sections u b and b c
may be rcpresentc.: The

tota!

Pi* —

~ -

the »e acting

■he angle of ol
I 0
The area ' tcrcatcr than tha-

and is equal to if the total

#iw. 0

be li :is arc*

the

lo • n
the

ress or

est mi

nrnil

1 0

•ft

%€ MJtti

% by this arcs the
ress on 1

• ah

line ol angle #

t to ac. Assume ok
x\ to \\

• the normal Him ;
I h the shearing tires*

ok = oh cot. 0 p cot. 0 cot. $

fm\

k h = oh N

For the combined unit stresses on
take the ale '

acts oppos.- the

normal stress

. -
i the shearing stress equals

Pi COS. 0 HI. 0 0

the normal an: I Mil

-ses on a section mak

with the u

In this solut nh

taken .1
p and r can be either tensile or conv

• -
»« she*
en one is tensile and •'<

e norr ssv

irnblesn nndvr csstsssVrsrto

• t tuf nf It

744

g1 — q2 = Q = y2 pi (sin. 0 cos. 0).
Compounding these will give the re-
sultant stress R equal to

\/ Pn2 + Q2

Next will be shown a graphical method
of handling the problem. In Fig. 2, let
px and p2 be the unit stresses on the faces
a b and b c. Represent these stresses by
o y, and o Xi. All angles which are equal
to 0 and employed in the solution are
marked.

On the normal o g, take oe equal to
the unit stress p2, and draw e f normal to
XX. Then of equals the unit stress on
ac parallel to XX, since of equals
o e sin. 0. Draw the normal / h from /
to o g; then o h will equal the normal
unit stress pn2 on ac due to p2, since

o h = o f sin. 0 = o e sin.2 0
hf equals q?, the shear on a c due to p2,
since

h f = o f cos. 0 = o e sin. 0 cos. 0

Similarly, take og equal to p, and
draw the normal gk to Y Y; then o fe will
equal the unit stress on oc parallel to
Y y due to pu since o A: equals og cos. 0.
Draw the normal k I from fc to o g; then
oZ equals the normal unit stress p»x on
ac due to pi, since

o I = o k cos. 0 = o g cos.2 0
and / k equals qt, the shear on a c due to
p,, since

Ik = ok sin. 0 — o g sin. 0 cos. 0
Combining these results

ol -f oh = om, and — h f + / k =
mr-f-rn = mn

The line o n represents the resultant ft
in direction and magnitude. The point n
falls on the line gk, for the same result
may be obtained by combining the unit
stresses on ac at once; ok equals the
stress parallel to Y Y and of equals kn
which, in turn, equals the unit stress
parallel to XX, and their resultant is o n.
The line yh nxy2 represents the path of
the point n when both px and p2 are ten-
sile stresses; the part below the XX axis
is the path when the same stresses are
considered on the conjugate diagonal
planes. If one stress is compressive,
the path will be the line y2 x? j&. The com-
plete path is an ellipse with the major
and minor axis respectively pi and p2.
This can be readily proved as follows:
The coordinates of the point n are

o k = y = p, cos. 0, k n = x =
p, sin. 0
p2y = pxp, cos. 0, p, x = p, pi sin. 0

POWER

is evident when two simple stresses
act on planes perpendicular to each
other (on these planes there is no
shear) that these are planes of maximum
principal stress, since R, the resultant,
cannot be greater than the major axis.
In fact, the absence of shear on the
planes shows that they are planes of
maximum principal stress, for any con-
dition of stress acting in the plane of
the paper can be reduced to two sec-

2 .2

2 2

p2y =zp1p2cos. <f>, pix =p1p2szn. <t>

2 .a

.2 2 ■ .2 2 t2.2/ . 2 , i 2 . * .Zaj

P\* +P-,y =pip2(sm. <j>+cos. 4>) = pip2

This is the well known form of the
equation of an ellipse: b* x2 + a2y2 =
a2b\

The analysis of the problem shows that
there are no planes of section on which
the stress is greater than on the plane
of section parallel to the axis; and it

■ >

Po*-

""A

Fig. 3

tions perpendicular to each otner and to
the plane of the paper on which there is
only simple stress, that is, no shear. If
the two stresses are of the same kind
they will be maximum and minimum
values; if of opposite kind, both will be
maximum.

As to whether the two forces acting
at right angles to each other tend to raise
or lower the yielding point of the ma-
terial in directions parallel and perpen-
dicular to the axis, the following extract
from Greene's "Structural Mechanics,"
page 203, may throw light on the subject:
"A plate is stronger to resist two pulls
at right angles than when subjected to
one only." Calculations are also made
for a boiler plate subjected to a
tension p± on a section parallel to the
axis, and TA pi on a section perpendicular
to the axis, and this conclusion is arrived
at: "Hence the true unit tension is less

May 9, 1911

It is difficult to see just how the unit
stress can be reduced, since the stress
in a body originally free from stress is
caused by an external force and the unit
stress is obtained by dividing this ex-
ternal force by the area; hence, to re-
duce the unit stress it would seem nec-
essary to decrease the external force or
else increase the area, and this is not
done.

In Fig. 3 the left-hand sketch shows
the change in shape of a rectangular
piece subjected to the pull of an ex-
ternal force pi; the full lines represent
the shape before the force pi is applied
and the dotted lines the shape after the
force has been applied. It may be seen
that when a single force pi acts on a bar
there is a lengthening parallel to the line
of action of the force, and a contraction
perpendicular thereto. The unit stress
on a right section is pi divided by the
area.

In the right-hand sketch the piece is
subjected to a lateral force p, the in-
tensity of which is such that no contrac-
tion takes place when the force pi is
applied. Here the elongation will be less
than in the first case. The unit stress
will be pi divided by the area as before.
In the left-hand sketch the length
after the force pt has been applied is
(/ -f A /), where I is the original length
and A/ is the increase per unit length.
In the right-hand sketch the length will
be (/ + A'/), where A'Hslessthan A/.
Where £ and £' represent the coefficients
of elasticity,

than the apparent tension by 12^ per
cent., and the boiler is stronger than it
would be if the longitudinal tension from
the steam pressure on the heads did not
exist."

Cotterill's "Applied Mechanics," page
412, states that the coefficient of elastic-
ity £ is increased in value, or, in other
words, if the metal is subjected to a
lateral pull, the piece will not elongate
as much from the direct pull as when
this lateral pull is not present.

_/>!

and E'=?f,

A/ A7

Hence E in the first case is less than £'
in the second case. The conclusion that
E is less than E' may be arrived at by
considering the unit stress on a cross-
section the same in both cases; and the
conclusion that the stress on a cross-
section is decreased may be arrived at
by considering that £', the coefficient of
elasticity, does not change.

From what has been written on the
subject it appears safe to assume that
the two stresses at right angles do not,
on any plane, subject the shell to a stress
greater than that on the longitudinal
plane, and it is possible that the ma-
terial may be able to resist a greater pull
when subjected to a lateral stress than
when not, due to the fact that it will
take a greater force to produce the same
elongation and not any decrease in the
unit stress.

This problem suggests a way in which
the weakness of the shell due to the
riveted joint may be overcome. Assume,
for example, a boiler with a triple-riveted
butt joint having an efficiency of 85
per cent. If this joint coincides with a
plane on which the resultant stress R
is less than 85 per cent, of the stress on
a plane parallel to the axis, the joint
will be stronger to resist the bursting
pressure than the shell itself. Proceed to

May 9, 1911

POU

locate this plane when p. equa
Noting that the resultant

A' I *

and that R equals 85 per cent, of

3 i 1

10 3 cos. o. i
From this it will be seen that if the scam
made an angle of aith the

the scam would be as strong as the

■

shell to resist the stresses acting, and
this on the assumption that r equals
uch. generally, in a steam boiler
>i true, due to the tubes and bracing.
Consider a horizontal tubular boiler
I diameter and with through
braces. If >sumed that the

carries the pressure on the heads which
fall within »} lad the shell, the

D be on the sa* This |

lie total stress on the shell when p
■ sure per square inch

r (38 - 30 \ p

ling I mferen,

as the stress per lineal inch on a tecl
ar to the axis The strcs-
lineal inch in the shell due to the r
Pf*Murr

the •

and

' • h46 and *

If the sheet I

will around the shell (see Flfl

It seem- that t. uld not be a

when

--J that a quadru;

of joint to aboil

con> ,,ng as the

shell.

I 1 - add an easy graphical method
eating the required plam

|tuU to o y on the

and or
equal to th int R. Draw arcs of

1 the*
ugh if -aw the ra

rom the
points where these jut the

locate the point- ind /. of the c!

as shown. A line drawn from o to the
point where the elli| c of

radi tant. and a line drawn

through this point parallel to the •

the large f radius p, at the

poir normal to the plane m n

on which R is the resultant stress: hence.
m n is the required location of the seam
n Jam

The editorial under the above caption
in t' - issue set mc to think-

ing, and I 1 out the following

La it a for. -am. as in 1

I. with two units of force acting in one

direction and one unit of force acting at

right angles to the first, the resultant

the hypotenuse and

'-07 unr

ric inch
is so nearly flat that it ma
as such, and if twice the stress be

i in on n a

direction at right angl'
the

•

change proponionj

(-presenting

lied
ft betted

tbr g

The -o a

sides reer

ban: - to a potr

shor

<W7 ur

ong a : -ight ar .

iction. that

■
An*

■

- OJB044.

■»

■
II-

Jth of r
the resultant fo-

The cosine of ang qua!»ow*.

and

•

If one ur

of the HMM B, I 9990 units

lengtt

reted ••,

1 the ten

■ •

746

POWER

May 9, 1911

A %J O

Small Filter Tank

I have a large wood tank which I
wish to convert into a filter for boiler-
feed water. Please tell me how to do it
correctly.

S. F. T.

Across one part of the tank, near the
bottom, a loose floor of slats should be
laid. On this floor put a layer of bur-
lap, excelsior or gravel, and cover with
coarse sand. Let the water in on top#
of the sand at one end and pump from
the bottom of the tank at the other.

Valve Setting on Armington &
Sims Engine

How can I set the valves on a cross
compound-condensing Armington & Sims
engine? Also, how can I prevent the en-
gine from running away when working
condensing and the load is suddenly re-
leased?

W. J. P.

The Armington & Sims engine belongs
to the class in which the valve setting is
by lead. All that the engineer can do
is to keep the valve stem of such a
length that the lead will be approxi-
mately equal at both ends. In this en-
gine the lead is constant for all points
of cutoff, and it is possible that with a
condenser steam enough may be admitted
through lead to run the engine above a
safe speed without load. If such is the
case a separate speed-limit or safety-
stop appliance is the only remedy.

Completely Embedded Armature
Wires

If the wires of an armature winding
were threaded through holes some dis-
tance from the edge of the core, as shown
in my sketch, would the armature gen-
erate any electromotive force when re-

Armature Wires Completely Embedded

volved between field-magnet poles, as in
an ordinary dynamo?

W. C. T.
Yes; but not quite as much as though
open slots were used, as in the usual
form of armature. Some of the magnetic

lines would pass from pole to pole
through the narrow strip of core metal
between the holes and the periphery
without affecting the armature conductors
at all, but a large proportion would have
to pass to the inner part of the core be-
cause the annular strip around the edge
would not carry all of them. Those that
pass to the inner core body would gen-
erate an electromotive force in the wires.

Cause of Knocking

At times my engine has a peculiar
knock. If I feed a lot of oil the sound
is reduced but not entirely removed. Can
you tell me the cause of the knock and
the remedy?

G. B. S.

It is doubtful if a lack of oil will
cause knocking. Insufficient lubrication
will cause harsh grinding noises, but
not knocks. It sometimes happens that
the piston ring has "play" in its groove,
which will result in a knocking that is
difficult to locate and a flood of oil will
reduce the sound by partially filling the
waste space and reducing the lost mo-
tion. The remedy in such a case is a
new ring properly fitted.

Water Meter in Feed Pipe Line

I am about to install a water meter
on my feed line to the heater. The sup-
ply pipe is two inches. I have been told
that a 1-inch meter will be of ample
size to deliver all my water; but I want
to know whether the pressure on the
discharge side of the meter will be re-
duced or whether an increased velocity
through the meter will hold the pressure.

W. J. M.

The reduction in pressure on the dis-
charge side of the meter in the feed line
wiil be only that required to overcome
the friction of the meter and is negligible.

If the demand for feed water requires
the use of a 2-inch pipe, a meter with
2-inch connections should be installed, as
one with 1-inch connections will require
a velocity of flow through the meter four

times as great as that for which it was
designed.'

Blow Back in Crane Safety Valve

Can the amount of blow back in the
Crane Company's pop safety valve be
changed by dismantling the valve and
changing the tension of the auxiliary
spring?

L. B. R.

The blow back in the Crane pop safety
valve depends on the tension of the
auxiliary spring, which is adjusted at
the factory. If there were no tension at
all on the spring, the disk which forms
the huddling chamber would slide up the
stem whenever the valve opened, and
there would be no blow back at all. If
the tension of this spring were made
equal to or greater in proportion to the
area of the huddling chamber than that
of the mainspring, the blow back would
depend on the area of the huddling-cham-
ber disk. Hence, at any tension between
zero and that of the mainspring, the
blow back will depend on the auxiliary
spring, and may be adjusted or altered
by increasing or diminishing its tension.

The Six-stroke Cycle

"What are the successive strokes in the
six-stroke gas-engine cycle?

L. A. B.

(1) Mixture intake; (2) compression;
(3) expansion; (4) expulsion or ex-
haust; (5) intake of air alone; (6)
scavenging, driving out the air just taken
in, together with a large part of the
burned gases from the previous combus-
tion.

Compounding and Overcom-
pounding

What is the difference between a com-
pound-wound and an overcompound-
wound dynamo?

E. R. K.

A "flat"-compounded dynamo gives ex-
actly the same voltage at its terminals
at full load that it does at no load. An
overcompounded dynamo gives a higher
voltage at its terminals at full load than
at no load. The difference is produced
either by proportioning the series field
winding differently or by the adjustment
of a resistance strip in parallel with the
series field winding, commonly called a
"shunt" strip. Read the "Primer of Elec-
tricity" in the January 10 and February
21 numbers.

May 9, 1911

Hill Publishing Company

•> a'

•

■

er lb

"im

Content

al Pumping and Power Plant 71<J
■ 'Icr V.P. ; Fuel

The Coolin.

im Turbine
The Value of i
The Care and .igc

Batteries .
Water Tank Signa:
Making an t Itself lo the

■jlopmcnt of the Gasolene !
An I

r PlaM s ■

Her I langinR

sing

No\e!
Stand;

■

lk-

Plant l.oaoao. ,

■

' he alneldi

The Philadelphia \orth A met
or so::
the Alaskan coalfields which sh
make the co- Up and

jording to this report it app.
that on Octob

the last election and several monr
the attempt to turn over the Alaskan
coalfields to th ^enheim in-

had been frustrated by p.

nt Taft himself gave
al control of the coalfields to
same - -c.

In the Ballin miion the fact

ought out that the claimants to
e coalf iich had been thrown

id signed an tgi
ment with t in-Cui

ch a half interest in the prop-
was t< i the latter Further-
more, all coal was to be sold at a f

al-
rcaJ -oad to th.

Cord< and any further sale

the
position
which cd agait^t turnir .

•

vian r.

of the *c!
ful. .an to look

■ to
the .idy un

There rer
to a natural ha-

and

an order withdra*

pen
rs that
••ot ma '

arced -

crests '

possible outlet from

■

-nor* or

a concern of such magm.

tion. an

of their the count -

res<

er I una a

as to the best

•ler
rot.

: kno*
losses arc due to poor •

ceaaive air ad , the * ■ and

are

and Ic

o a li-
es of loss.
in tl

firemen to tu

he most difficult ON
tha-

•u!d th -he

both

M one
■
"ccr. un;: i that the creates! tcoooaay

from in lo
ould not be tour

v c tag

l» !^C PCttl

medium fire

' >r «

' it bow h
eoacfoaiao

" t *■ vt

rba

• not! J N- 3r\ r 'iff

bt obtain**

• lo

748

POWER

May 9, 1911

the way the fires ought to be handled
and, although an exceedingly thick fire
is carried, the plant is said by those
who are in a position to know to be one
of the most economically operated plants
in the New England States.

Why should two steam plants, op-
erated under such radically different
lines, give the good results that are
claimed for them?

It would seem that there is more to
this firing problem than has been deter-
mined. It would also seem that it is not
a safe thing for an engineer to follow
one method of firing just because some-
one else has been obtaining good re-
sults. A better way would be to carry on
experiments with various methods of fir-
ing to find out just what method is the
most economical for any particular plant.
If a thin fire and frequent firing are best,
use this method; if heavy firing and a
thick fire give better results, use that
method. It is not the way coal is fired
that counts; it is the economical results
obtained from the burning fuel that are
of real importance.

Who Is Responsible

If the news items sometimes seen in
the daily press are a criterion of the
intelligence of the men who are often en-
trusted with the care of steam-power
machinery, the efforts of the advocates
for engineers' license laws should also
cover the field of watchmen and wipers.

It is recorded that "a watchman in
the employ of the Diamond Sand and
Gravel Company, of Bedford, O., was
severly scalded while attempting to make
some slight repairs to a safety valve."
How he discovered that repairs were
necessary or on whose authority he
started the work does not appear. There
was pressure on the boiler, so he drew
the fire, climbed to the top of the boiler
and with a large monkey wrench started
to unscrew the valve from the boiler.
While doing this the valve opened, the
discharge striking him fair in the face,
scalding him badly and probably destroy-
ing his sight.

It is a pitiful story. A young man
blinded and disfigured for life because
someone blundered. But who? Was it
the man himself or the one who made
him a watchman? Why should a watch-
man in a State full of licensed engi-
neers meddle with a safety valve whether
on or off a boiler?

Did he think that the steam pressure
would cease as soon as the fire was
drawn?

Every few days someone is killed or
injured because someone else did not
know that the gun was loaded. But
everybody knows that the steam boiler
is loaded. Yet accidents both painful and
fatal are of daily occurrence because
the simplest of natural laws are reck-
lessly violated.

In one State a boiler explodes because
the man in charge screws down on the
safety-valve spring and in another be-
cause the stop valve is opened too sud-
denly. Who is responsible for such
blunders, the man who knows no better
or his employer?

The paths of progress in all lines are
marked by martyrs " and perhaps the
human race will not be slower to learn
at the costly school of experience than
are the lower animals. It is to be hoped
not.

Machine-Made Engineers

There seems to be an impression per-
meating some quarters that the Institute
of Operating Engineers is to be used
for the purpose of turning out a supply
of "machine made" engineers to compete
with and displace the homemade variety
now operating most of the power plants.

Nothing could be further from the
truth. The primary idea of the Institute
is to direct intelligently the education
of the present engineer, and of the
power-plant worker who desires to be-
come one. Far from bearing the "ma-
chine made" earmarks of mediocrity,
each individual will be advanced in his
standing in the Institute as he demon-
strates his fitness for advancement.

The Institute has nothing to offer to
the contented worker but everything to
the one who, possessed by an intelligent
dissatisfaction with his present position
and attainments, is willing to earn prefer-
ment.

To the engineer who recognizes the
fact that he owes to himself as well as
to society the duty of making the most
of his opportunities for mental and
manual training the Institute will be an
ever welcome guide and help. But there
is no room on its membership roll for
the names of those who are satisfied to
continue as manual workers for wages
alone.

Comparative Steam Turbine
Performances

Upon page 595 of the April 18 issue
was given a comparison of results obtained
with Curtis turbines as built by the All-
gemeine Elektricitats Gesellschaft, of
Berlin, and the General Electric Com-
pany, of Schenectady. While the steam
actually used is less for the German
turbine, 11.9 and 11.97 pounds per kilo-
watt-hour against 12.9 and 13 for the
American, the German turbine was tested
with a much higher degree of superheat,
and in the later test with a better vacuum.
The pressure was about the same in all
four tests, from 188 to 195 pounds, but
the temperature in the German tests was
601 and 630 against 525 and 505 degrees,
giving the German turbine 256 and 285
degrees against 95 and 125.1 for the
American. Here is a difference of 160

degrees of superheat and the experience
of the General Electric Company has
been that the performance of its turbine
is improved one per cent, for about 12.5
degrees of superheat. The performance
of the German turbine in question with
the higher degree of superheat is only
about eight per cent, better than the
American with 160 degrees less which
ought to improve its performance about
13 per cent.; and the German turbine
had a somewhat better vacuum.

The American turbine was designed
for the conditions under which it ran
and converted 66.2 per cent, of the heat
available by the Rankine cycle, while the
German turbine converted only 63.6 of
the available heat under the conditions
of its test.

The use of high degrees of super-
heat is not common in America, and it
is hardly fair to compare water rates
obtained under conditions involving
greater possibilities with those obtained
here under less favorable conditions.

Investors in water-power development
want to know what the Government will
do with their property at the end of
a limited franchise.

Self-respect and a definite knowledge
of one's ability are requisite to complete
success in engineering or anything else.
But self-inflation and the unproved as-
sumption that you are just as capable
as any other man are fatal, especially in
power-plant work.

Because it is sold as "carbonless anti-
friction unchangeable cylinder lubricant,"
some men will unquestioningly torture
the cylinder of a gas engine with stuff
that is about as healthy for it as axle
grease would be for a watch.

An average boiler efficiency of 80.47
per cent., is unusually high. This was
obtained at the Redondo plant of the
Pacific Light and Power Company, using
crude oil as fuel.

Where a cooling tower is used a mod-
erate vacuum under some conditions is
preferable to a high vacuum.

In the power-plant field there are spe-
cialists in all branches of the trade —
even brake specialists. See page 723 of
this issue.

The season of refrigeration is now at
hand and our new department will be
right in line. Good practical articles on
the operation of refrigerating machinery
and special kinks installed in your plant
is the kind of material needed to make
this department a success. We are de-
pending on our readers to come to the
front. ^^

It is one thing to know how to play a
scientific game of pool and another to
run a power plant; the pool game will
not give many pointers.

May 9, 1911

Government Water Power
Developments

In the power field there is no question
of more pressing importance than <
ernment control and development of
water power. The recent discussion be-
fore the National Electric Light Associa-
tion brought out some interesting points
on the subject. It is high time for the

.•rnment to get b i cstar

some dcfinite«policy. On this same general
question an interesting editorial on u
powers was recently published in the
Engineering h rcproJ

in the following paragrap

The utilization of water power in
Sweden tat the present time has an
aspect uhi.-n deserves to be
carefully and the details put on re.

he benefit of those interested in the
rational development of our own v.
powers. N re has an area

only one-fourth that i Jen. bir

population is almo . as great. Al-

though capita

square mile of - greater

than those of i lorn.

and, although | ipply Com-

rade an anatysis of
water-power possibilities which points
the utmost clearness to the de-
sirability of developing these rcsou
under some system of State and

aid. nothing has been done alor
talk. As a result. I
in the arc being

veloped qu companies and.

if legislation is not m< -nan

the people of the State
shortly find that any rational ut
will be • trCflM to the

arc n< J so

cutty and un< .ate

partic». N' s of

the Water Supp!

the monograph on

:nent written O.

without being t

irol and Mate
in this work ally

anJ

t was done-
companies and there are mar hem

'iat count r-.

nooai • ■

that a large amount

being utili/cd by these OOOipi

•hclcaa be d
on a profitable baaoa Coa
In "^eden and do* at

bydrocl ant» has a wider range of

ic than is the i -• *here

baa
i 'he BOnatructinn of

ropoot* < a*

lu< mg est >
alMc. and in any case in such a

ect all charges. ,:overnment

works now ur on at

PCi

and Porjus falls ha.

.al pub
be ready for
fore long. Their manifest
ccsa ha to the | ment of a

it Alfkarleby falls on the
Dala ri\cr. wl

the approval of the
Some figur.

power , a probable con-

sumption of nea

. h will call for development of about
■00 hydraulic r. If the

- of eli :ll funher

tended the plant can be o a

capacity of 45.000 horscp The in-

itial installation will cost something like

but the total coat

• ic final installation c

poucr will be at the r. per

hor- 'C only ap-

for thi it hand

ipa-
;. althou
that there is a reserve and that the rai
of the station is that for contini;
on.
The technical details of these i
ment plants art

they arc subordinated riant

•
ction. T

rs to t to report

g done in the
ing n the

It i* highly desirable for our Govern-

nc of ■
rcpr

Mat that en'
don.

e sens.

A Bu I ' in

igs har
bun

m up a fir
I

ltd'

in <

a loose -i of

"
The b<

I
■

than n

belt

>J seen

- ■ !

». took
ten from alkali and tore easy
would

I so
ider

xh was rot-

■ • f I o ft n *i v

Dial
H

.f ' c't%

bed the ladder and |o«
the belt on. but be got ibe

"ie belt and ■

Pittsb .

ecbaaL
field of cement manu

• "
annual >e heU

•

Ir. n to pi

I
on tl
Turbine Tur.^o-Co

Mass.; and upon

and on misccI'aTcous topic*, mclu

corpora
Boston. Mass

(lardull' of

.g of th
Col leg i

.: school of
also be a tension on
>c announced

aflc:

and m ember I bead-

qua-

ccepttor
and e same

opportu
on Tueada

be the subtest of tb*

li M-MlOftl. J

"x heM in Carncgfe lantimte.
to the society's be

I to tbo

Coaapoji

ttabnrg to aOow those »ho
a plan-
-*4 Mar
and tbt
Company. The

Practice" will be pevaoaioii
for the iiaoint of too aaana

750

POWER

May 9, 1911

professional session of Thursday morn-
ing will deal with miscelfaneous topics
and will be as brief as possible, in order
to leave ample time for an excursion up
the Monongahela river, including a visit
to the National Tube Company's works
at McKeesport. A reception and in-
formal dance will take place in the even-
ing at the convention headquarters. The
concluding professional session, at which
"Steel Works Practice" will be the sub-
ject for consideration, will take place on
Friday morning. An inspection trip to
the Mesta Machine Company's works at
Homestead, Penn., is planned for the
afternoon of Friday, and the convention
will close that evening with a smoker
and entertainment given by the Engi-
neers' Society of Western Pennsylvania
at their rooms in the Oliver building. A
ladies' committee, Mrs. Chester B. Al-
bree, chairman, will care for the pleasure
of the guests of the society and will, as
is usual at these conventions, do much
to add to the social features of the oc-
casion.

N. A. S. E. State Conventions

The following is a list of the annual
conventions of the various State associa-
tions, giving the place of meeting and
the date for each State in alphabetical
order:
California. . .San Francisco. . .June 5-10

Colorado Pueblo June 9, 10

Connecticut Hartford. . . .June 23, 24

Illinois Ottawa May 19, 20

Indiana Terre Haute June 9, 10

Iowa Ottumwa May 25-27

Kentucky Louisville June 2, 3

Massachusetts.. .Worcester.. July 14, 15

Michigan Saginaw July 21, 22

Minnesota. . . .St. Paul. . . .August 23-26
Missouri. .. .Kansas City.... July 12-14

New Jersey Newark June 3-5

New York Albany June 9, 10

Ohio. . . .Cincinnati. . . .September 11, 12
Pennsylvania. . ..Johnstown. .. .June 2, 3

Texas San Antonio

West Virginia. . .Clarksburg

Wisconsin Milwaukee June 8-11

SOCIETY NOTES

At the second annual meeting of the
American Institute of Steam Boiler In-
spectors, held at the Parker house, Bos-
ton, the following officers were elected
for the ensuing year: President, J. F.
Molloy; vice-president, A. D. Evans;
treasurer, Adam Oldfield; secretary, T. G.
Ranton, 112 Water street, Boston; ex-
ecutive committee, E. R. Doherty, M. S.
King, E. J. Scanlan, H. Van Ormer and
R. L. Hemingway.

twenty-four papers in the program and Jacobs industrial laboratories; J. N. Wal-
nearly forty committee reports. In all ton, recently power engineer and storage-
there are some seventy items in the order battery expert of the Brooklyn Edison
of business and it will take the full time Company. The office is prepared to
of the convention to dispose of them. handle complete industrial equipments.

Detroit is planning for the convention
of the National Gas and Gasolene En-
gine Trades Association meeting of June
20 to 23, inclusive. President C. O.
Hamilton is planning a convention that
will consist of snappy sessions, compara-
tively short in length, with plenty of op-
portunities for discussions, seeing of the
exhibits, viewing the many civic and
commercial attractions of Detroit and
leaving time for much in the way of en-
tertainment. Exhibit space will be pro-
vided without charge for any light arti-
cles which can be shown without dam-
age to woodwork or floors of the Hotel
Pontchartrain, where the convention will
be held.

The third international congress of
refrigeration will be held in the United
States in 1913 under the auspices of the
American Association of Refrigeration.
The second international congress was
held at Vienna in October of 1910.
Theodore O. Vilter, of Milwaukee, who
represented the American association at
the Vienna congress, who was active in
obtaining the third congress for America
and who is now the president of the
American association, has isued an urgent
appeal for members and contributions
to an extent which will allow the Ameri-
can association to provide a reception
and entertainment which will compare
with that which was accorded to the con-
gress at Vienna.

PERSONAL

A. H. Foster, formerly with the Cle-
ment Restein Company, has recently
changed his position and is now con-
nected with the Henry Johnson Packing
Company, of Jersey City.

Henry R. Cobleigh has resigned as
mechanical editor of The Iron Age, which
position he has held for the last seven
years, to take charge of the advertising
and publicity of the International Steam
Pump Company, 115 Broadway, New
York City. He entered upon his new
duties May 1.

The tentative program of the coming
convention of the National Electric Light
Association, May 30 to June 2, provides
for two sessions daily for four days and
over sixteen sessions in all, there being
several parallel sessions. There are

Percival Robert Moses, consulting en-
gineer, 366 Fifth avenue, New York City,
announces that he has associated with
him the following engineers as permanent
additions to his staff: John Fallon, in-
dustrial engineer, recently mechanical
engineer of the Tennessee Copper Com-
pany, and Stanley G. Flagg & Co.;
Arthur V. Farr, textile engineer, formerly
Szepesi & Farr, 90 West street; Alphonse
Kaufman, formerly manager and chief
engineer of the Alaska Chemical Com-
pany, and associated with Charles B.

BUSINESS ITEMS

The Rateau turbine, which has been here-
tofore built in this country by the Bail &
Wood Company, is now manufactured by the
Southwark Foundry and Machine Company,
Philadelphia. The company already has
under construction some large turbine-driven
centrifugal blowers for steel-works service.

Beginning May 1 the Bundy steam trap,
which has always been manufactured by the
Nashua Machine Company, Nashua, N. H.,
and marketed through selling arrangements,
formerly with the A. A. Gritting Iron Com-
pany, and later through the American Rad-
ial in- Company, will be sold through the sell-
ing department of the Nashua Machine Com-
pany, located at 127 Federal street, Boston,
Mass. The sales manager will be John Sabin,
who was the first man to introduce a tilting
trap on the market over twenty years ago
and who has been closely associated with the
Bundy trap ever since.

A book which should prove very attractive
to engineers has just been issued by the
George M. Newhall Engineering Company, of
Philadelphia, manufacturer of the Vance
steam trap. The book is called the "Engin-
eers' Reference Book,"' and is more than half
composed of valuable information for the en-
gineer, gleaned mostly from Kent's "Mechanical
Engineers Pocket Book." There are between 50
and 100 subjects reprinted from Kent's alone,
embracing information which the engineer has
almost daily need for. It will be sent to
anyone requesting a copy, and is partly de-
voted to a discussion and comparison of the
different types of steam traps : a large portion
of which is regarding steam-trap capacities.
A very original and practical method is given
for determining what capacity of traps are
required under all different conditions. The
book also contains complete description of
the Vance steam trap. • Anyone desiring a
copy can obtain one without cost from George
M. Newhall Engineering Company, 136 South
Fourth street. Philadelphia, Penn.

HELP WANTED

Advertisements under this head are in-
serted for 25 cents per line. About six words
matte a line.

WANTED — Experienced foreman engineer
for sugar refinerv : credentials required. Ap-
ply P. O. Box 1600, Vancouver, B. C.

ENGINEERS WANTED to solicit for the
Rolin patent adjustable grate. Apply Stand-
ard Grate Co., Heed Bldg.. Philadelphia.

WANTETJ — Thoroughly competent steam
specialty salesman : one that can sell high-
grade goods. Address "M. M. Co.," Power.

AN ENGINEER in each town to sell the
best rocking grate for steam boilers. Write
Martin Grate Co., 281 Dearborn Street
Chicago.

AGENTS WANTED for first-class steam
specialty in use throughout United States
Address C. S. Wood, 410 S. 15th St., Phila-
delphia, Penn.

SALESMAN calling at power plants to
handle as a side line superior packing for
steam, different from the rest and better.
Nugget Packing Co.. 185 Summer St., Bos
ton. Mass.

WANTED — An engineer in each city as
agent for a high class water-back Scotch
boiler, the most economical steam generator
known to the trade. Kingsford Foundry &
Machine Works. Oswego. N. Y.

ENGINEERS' SUPPLIES — Wanted. two
first-class salesmen in this line for New York
city and nearby trade: only those with estab-
lished trade need apply: no commission work ;
good position open to right party. Box 458,
Power.

\i w inkk. \i \v 16, i

M.Wi PAC I i RING in ti.
dates back to the landing of the Pilgrim
Plymouth It

• hi by m< f the steam boiler and •

Iim.iu^ and spuming uli'

•h. <!■

ind daughti •

W! ;rniN tired with tin the

irheeJboy' tl i the spinning wheel aa

dttced ami tin output "I home spun fell beJ

Conditions have i h pin

and w mi mi

h< >nr mi tin- mills ■ nd than naild

pun in II the M-t tl.

But t | red and uutpul

me If

;d tin S|M

tli tuni pei minute, tl:

■

Ut|iMt

l|v »M I

i;i|h it hi. -

ultljil:
n\ tun.

■
mill

And t

:it tin

up to t!

It
plover tl,.

the In: • :n the

mi If In
Milt

I hotisund in i >nu

■

The
i tract

In i

752

POWER

May 16, 1911

New Power Plant of DennisonMfg. Co.

The Dennison Manufacturing Com-
pany, South Framingham, Mass., has just
completed a new, modern power plant.
The building, 110 feet long by 110 feet
wide, is constructed of brick and is large,
light and roomy.

Engine Room

In the engine room, Fig. 1, are two
Hewes & Phillips twin engines, each cyl-
inder being 14x33 inches and capable
of producing 225 horsepower or 450
horsepower for each engine. There is
also one single unit of 225 horsepower,
having a cylinder of the same size as the
twin engines. Each engine is direct
coupled to a Crocker-Wheeler direct-cur-
rent generator. Each twin engine drives
a 350-kilowatt generator, which delivers
a voltage of 240 to the line, at 150 revo-
lutions per minute. The single engine is
direct coupled to a 150-kilowatt gen-
erator, of the same voltage and speed as
the other two units. These three en-
gines are fitted with the new Franklin
valve gear.

By W. O. Rogers

This modern installation
takes the place of two old
plants. N oncondensing

Corliss engines, coupled to
direct-current generators,
are installed, and the ex-
haust steam is used for
manufacturing purposes.
Four Wickes boilers fitted
with Dutch-oven furnaces
and mechanical stokers
supply the steam.

Np pipes show in the engine room, as
the live- and exhaust-steam pipes are
attached to the cylinders underneath and
drop to the basement, where they connect
with the main steam and exhaust lines.
The live steam is controlled by means of

thus keeping the oil warm, without the
aid of heating coils in the filter.

An interesting device is shown in Fig.
2, midway between the two frames of the
twin engines. It consists of a floor stand
supporting an arm from which an ad-
justable hanger containing two rollers is
suspended. The cross rod extending
from the governor on one side of the en-
gine to the reach rods controlling the
valve gear on the other side passes this
hanger and is supported at the center by
the two rolls, the hight of which can be
adjusted by moving the bracket up or
down. This prevents vibration, supports
the rod and reduces friction.

A gageboard, on which is mounted a
clock, steam gages for live steam, steam
heating and vacuum, also the water pres-
sure on the city main, is mounted on
the wall between the engine and boiler
rooms. There is a Laidlaw-Dunn-Gordon
10 and 10 by 10-inch air compressor that
supplies air for shop work. The pres-
sure is maintained at 45 pounds per
square inch. There is also a 40-horse-

Fig. 1. View of the Engine Room of the New Power Plant of the Dennison Manufacturing Company

The foundations of the twin engines
have been so designed that one of the
high-pressure cylinders can be removed
and a low-pressure cylinder substituted
in case it ever becomes necessary to do
so. Provision has also been made for in-
stalling a receiver between the two cyl-
inders should the engines be compounded.

floor-stand operated valves located con-
veniently beside the engine cylinders.
The engine cylinders are lubricated by
force-feed lubricators. The engine oil
drains from the engine bearing into a
filter located in the basement and is
then elevated to an oil reservoir, placed
above the smoke flue in the boiler room,

power Terry turbine, direct coupled to a
Diehl direct-current generator of 25 kilo-
watts capacity, which runs at a speed of
2500 revolutions per minute. This- unit
is used for lighting- the engine and boiler
rooms, and several rooms in the factory
building when the main units are shut
down.

May 16, 1911

P O W E R

The switchboard shown in Fit;. 3
located between No. I unit and the end
wall of the building and J in

two sections, devoted to motor and light-
ing circuits, each section own
recording instruments and circuit-breaker
control.

The former plant operated upon 115
volts and in various departments were
•cd 125 motors ranging from I 10
•.power to tHK many of these being
special motors for variable-speed work
and direct connected to special machin-
ery. Provision was made when installing
the new plant to keep all motors in use
up to and including the 15-horsepowcr
sizes on 115 volts. All motors larger
than this size and all new motors were
installed for tits.

Both power and lighting circuits are
carried into the plant on a three-wire
system and two balancers are installed
with a capacity of 100 and 200 amperes
ctively. The balancers can be run
separately on power and lighting circuits
or can be operated in parallel.

ler Room

In the boiler room, Fig. 4. there are
four Wickes vertical water-tube boilers
set in two batteries. Each boiler
equipped with a Murphy stoker, with an

nded dutch oven giving ■ large com-
on chamber. A smoke flue conr
:i of each boiler and
lend I the main smoke Hue. which

ich bo: \ttcd with a

in : the main flue
is also fitted

tually be < : i damper rcgu-

) BOARD -ITS

runs the entire length of the boiler room
connects uith the ISO-faoi bi
k, located on the outside of the build-

lator and the draft of all the boilers
then be controlled
T). cs of these boilers hare beta

built in accord. i

754

POWER

May 16, 1911

demanded by the Massachusetts Board of
Boiler Rules. Each boiler is set on a
concrete base, which is made hollow, as
shown in Fig. 5, an end elevation
of the engine and boiler rooms. The
bottom head of the boiler extends down
into this hollow foundation so that
it is easily accessible for external inspec-
tion, a space having been especially pro-
vided opposite the riveted joint of the
head and barrel of the boiler, as shown
in Fig. 5. This permits of inspection of
every rivet of the bottom head joint at
any time and decreases the liability of
the failure of the joint or the wearing
away of the head at this point by ex-
ternal corrosion occurring without being
noticed.

Piping

The boiler blowoff pipe extends down
from the center of the bottom head and
passes out through the concrete founda-
tion, and is fitted with a tee connection,
the outer end of which is fitted with a
blank. From the side connection of the
tee, two valves connect with a Y-connec-
tion on the blowoff pipe, as shown by the
dotted lines in Fig. 6. The valve nearest
the boiler is of the asbestos-packed type;
the second is a straight-way valve. All
blowoff pipes run under the boiler-room
floor and the valve-stem extension rods
pass up to and almost through the boiler-
room floor; the valve stems are operated
by means of a detachable wrench. When
not in use the opening over each valve-
stem extension rod is covered by a
floor plate. This blowoff arrangement is
a very desirable feature, as a fireman is

boiler through a 6-inch extra-heavy pipe,
fitted with a long radius bend and is led
down to a 12-inch steam header, that is
supported on suitable concrete piers ar-
ranged back of the boilers. The header

room, from which the auxiliary units are
supplied and from which live steam is
taken to feed into the exhaust-steam
main in case there is insufficient exhaust
steam supplied to the factory.

Fig. 4. Boiler Room Containing Four Wickes Boiiers

is divided into two sections by a valve,
so that either section can be cut out of
service. From this steam header, 7-inch
steam pipes are run to the two twin en-

Another live-steam line is tapped to
both sides of the cutout valve in the main
12-inch steam header which extends to
the pump room located at the front end

—Hi

, ^jj£E4r--ji&

'in Pump Pit

6 Town
Water

ww/Av//^*>^^i>>^js^-J:

Fig. 5. Elevation of the Engine and Boiler Rooms

not obliged to go down under the boilers
when blowing them down, thus reducing
the element of danger in case a blowoff
pipe should burst.

Steam is taken from the top of each

gines and a 6-inch pipe is run to the sin-
gle engine. Two 8-inch pipes connect the
12-inch main steam header to an 8-inch
steam header, which extends from a point
under the second twin engine to the pump

of the building. The exhaust pipe from
the single unit is 7 inches in diameter;
it increases to 10 inches for the second
unit and to 15 inches at the third engine,
beyond which connection is made with a

May 16. 1911

■ W E k

17-inch exhaust main, which p - for

a future unit and which runs the length
of the engine room in the basement
toward the front and on to the factory'
through a tunnel that is 200 feet in
length. All u pes for li\c and

exhaust steam, water and a. car-

ried to the factory through this tunnel,
inch Hoppcs oil eliminator
placed in the exhaust line; connect^
also made through the wall between the
boiler and engine rooms, so that exhaust
steam can be passed through a Reilly
multicoil fced-»atcr heater. A vertical
galvanized, spiral pipe

.chi motor
a speed variation of three to one.
The

I of a field control
■
cans of a regular Thcr.

also one 12 and up-

1 for bo 'icn

not a\a ^.7

sho* layout of the piping in the

<>m.

iff ortted a

Kno I and I ich dur

pump »hich has a gal-

lons at minute This

in which these pumps arc

from the beat-
ing system direct and at the same dose
from the receding tank, the bight of

g cos-
ed by a pump governor
pone * from
turn ma the
water in the receiving a loot
ball, a \ cd in the governor
chamber ' > be
dra»n from the receiving tank through

has been obtained. »hen Ike

- r»

-J

* <m •

to ihc atrnonphere a
an Atwoo.:
pipe cmnc

'leader and the
heater The general arrangement of the
K i« v

w of the I l ant.

>• the space 'tree

•»m

In the pump

room then

nger
tip i«

nnectC"

' the po

ider it* <m Boor is tti

um bo4Wr
ptar

a BU*
■
n cither the vacuum
to pump from a *

cod between

cd I

rgua'rJ t«

756

POWER

May 16, 1911

feed pipe and connection made to a
sprocket wheel on the valve stem by
means of a chain. This enables the fire-
man to regulate the water from the front
of the boiler furnaces.

The 5-inch brass feed-water main ex-
tends along the front of the boilers, and
vertical pipes are run up and over to the
rear of the boiler, connecting near the
top; a tee joint is placed where the
vertical and horizontal branch pipes con-
nect and a vertical piece of pipe, capped
at the top end serves as an air chamber
to prevent water hammer in the feed
pipe.

Coal and Ash

Coal is delivered to the stokers by
means of a -)4-ton Sprague electric
traveling conveyer, which runs on a sus-
pended track reaching from one end of
the coal shed its entire length and, mak-

License Agitation in Rhode
Island

By William E. Francis

In Rhode Island, as in many other
States, boiler-inspection and engineers'-
license legislation is being urged by pro-
gressive engineers. That these efforts are
meeting with a great deal of opposition
from those who imagine that their inter-
ests are threatened, is evidenced by the
statements made by persons who were
called before the House Judiciary Com-
mittee on the afternoon of March 29,
where it was disclosed by evidence that
there are two steam boilers in use at the
Technical High School which are consid-
ered dangerous and which, though made
in Massachusetts, the manufacturers ad-

Continuing along these lines he further
said that the boilers consumed an extrav-
agant amount of coal and that it cost
more to heat the Technical school build-
ing than it did to heat all the buildings
of the new City Hospital.

One thing stands out quite prominent-
ly: The statement of the engineer in
charge that these boilers, bought and in-
stalled in the Technical High School
building, were known to' be at the time
of installation of such construction as
would not meet the requirements of the
Massachusetts boiler-inspection laws.
This would appear to be poor business
policy, but if the board having this matter
in charge was as intelligent as regards
engineering subjects as the alderman
quoted, it can be easily understood. It

FV--5 Exhaust through Roof

4" Air I

<5Exhauslfm

:.- Wi

n-^f!^nfVj'W'-V;^k':v

-^ffiffl^^

Fig. 7. Showing Piping in the Pump Room

ing a curve at the stack end of the plant,
extends back over the stokers of the
boilers. Before the bucket discharges its
load, the coal is weighed on a Fairbanks
scale which enables a tally to be kept on
the amount of coal delivered and the
amount burned each day. A spur track
extends the length of the coal room on
heavy beams and the coal is discharged
into the pit below the rails. The coal
shovel is of such proportions that it can
be dropped between the rails when pick-
ing up its load.

Under the boiler-room floor, and di-
rectly under the outlet of the ashpits,
which are made with slanting sides, is
an industrial car track, on which an ash
car runs. When ashes are to be removed,
they are dumped into this car, which de-
livers them to the ashpit, shown in Fig.
6. From the ashpit the traveling coal
bucket picks up the ashes and conveys
them to an ash hopper, shown in Fig. 6,
located at the extreme end of the coal
shed. This hopper has a capacity of 12
tons and is fitted with a gate on the out-
side of the building, so that the ashes
can be readily loaded into a wagon and
carted away.

The author is indebted to the engineer-
ing staff of the Dennison Manufacturing
Company for data and illustrations con-
cerning this installation.

mitted at the time of putting them in
do not comply with the Massachusetts
law and could not be used in that State.

Among others who appeared before the
committee was B. McCabe, of Boston,
Mass., who said he was opposed to the
bills and that he had come to the hearing
to intercede for the engineers and to
save the public of this State from the
troubles which had been experienced in
Massachusetts. The object of the bills,
he said, was to legislate certain men out
of positions. He told of the injustice
which he claimed the law had worked in
the neighboring State, in depriving good
men of positions they held in order that
someone else might get them.

After the hearing, one of the alder-
men said that he was unaware that any-
thing was wrong with the boilers but that
about a year ago his attention was called
to the fact that the building was being
heated with condensed steam and that
there was a big waste because the return
steam could not be used. This was due
to the poor circulation of the oil in the
boilers and a leakage in the tubes some-
times resulted. Large quantities of caus-
tic soda had to be used in order to pre-
vent this and a request was made for an
oil filter. This was obtained and since
that time he has heard no complaint as
to the condition of the heating apparatus.

is a little surprising to learn that a Bos-
ton man spoke against the bill on the
ground that it intended to legislate good
men out of positions, that others might
get them

License laws are usually intended to
keep out the poor men, not the good ones.
I once met a bright appearing young fel-
low who had served as an oiler in a
power house for three months and who
intended to take an examination for a
second-class engineer's license. He was
very positive that he knew all about
getting a license.

"This license business is all graft," he
said. "Take a pint of whisky with you
and you get your license." I guess he
forgot to take along the whisky, for he
didn't get so much as a fireman's license
and as a result is very bitter against the
license laws.

Is this the kind of good men who will
be kept out of positions by the license
law? The objection of a Boston man
who said that the grading of licenses by
classes is class legislation and unconsti-
tutional is absurd. The claim is often
made that a man who can handle a 50-
horsepower plant of a certain type can
handle a 500- or 1000-horsepower plant
of the same type. While this should hold
good in theory, it does not in practice,
hence classification is advisable.

May lo. 1911

Overcoming

this Mr. Wildin, mechan
intendent of tin N

& Hanford Railroad? Well, this is Mr
rson, chief engineer of the Cos Cob
central station. The Greenwich Water
Company has just notified me that it
will be obliged to shut off our water
supply in 15 minutes as their supply has
run dr.

While this was not the actual con-
ation that took place over the tele-
phone three days before Christmas of
1910. it presents the important point,
that o«ing to the exceedingly dry season
throughout Connecticut last fall, the
Greenwich Water Company's water sup-
ply failed, which necc off
the supply to the Cos Cob water plant

Shortage in Feed Water

J h,

hl*int

ht.

an oil
■
nt in n unit

up ply

e had been r.
the end of the boi

or. around to the I

end of This pip*

it boile

• on h.i

One •
run to a point oppos : of the

area allowed

trough pe into

g to the be

cub ade tfec

* . . • • • . : :

Fie. I. Locomotive Pumping Ai*

T I

of the New * Haven & Han-

' Railway, with hut 15 minul
This power plant surr r'cal

current 10 electric loco;? running

between MoM HftVM am-

: Conn., a dista about J

All passenger trains are drawn b

and shutting the power plant meant

a suspr enger traffic u

steam loco:;
ion.

it water
to keep the steam plant going a

Mmas but three da\» i«i\, when the
;

utmost, the power pla- "-hut

• lust had -
re WM no time »nd

COM the west

t. and quick work at thai
thing ! ii« '

the wrecking train with l
•ig and a locon tank

■n a platform mn

g at the power plant an.!
tank deposited on the ground n
concrete r< r. r shown m I ,• I V
■

■ * Haven, each

a tank full of water, and hv the

at the plant, a tcm-

plan; ocomodw

J at a point opposite the
ment water tank that held 000.000 .
Ions of wat
When

alf of this
supply ran ba. I nain of

the water

\ about
Ions of van used per hour

a nece»sitv to .
order to have ■

char ctor oo these

onnected to a line of

that ra ©n-

rc*e- id the »j

tank wa nto the cement reset-

at a rate of about 12.000 ,

< sources of ■ up*

•a be on the *afe tide.

758

POWER

May 16, 1911

20 tank cars were put into service draw-
ing water from Stamford, four miles dis-
tant. When these arrived in trains of six
cars each, one car was allowed to dis-
charge its contents into the pipe leading
to the hotwell. Two other tank cars dis-
charged their contents into the water tank,
from which it was pumped into the con-
crete reservoir by means of a steam pump
that had been loaned by a contractor.
This pump was supplied with steam from
the boiler room through a temporary pipe
line run on the ground. Two other cars
were placed opposite the reservoir and
the outlet connected to pipes leading to
the cement reservoir. The locomotives
were supplied with two air connections,
one on the front and one on the rear end
of the engine. Each of these air pipes
was connected to the top connection of a
tank car. The air pump on the engine

was started with the air valve so set
that a pressure of 30 pounds per square
inch was maintained. This air pressure
on the water in the tank car forced it
up into the reservoir, and as each car
held 8000 gallons, the reservoir was filled
by Saturday morning, less than 48 hours
after the water supply failed. As there
was no knowing how long the water
famine would last, it was decided to
utilize another method of supplying
water; therefore, an oil barge having a
capacity of 200,000 gallons was obtained.
A 3-inch pipe was run from the reser-
voir to the oil barge that was tied up to
the coal-delivery pier, shown in Fig. 2.
A steam pump on the barge, supplied
with steam from a tug accompanying it,
pumped the water into the reservoir
through this pipe. A 2V2- and a 2-inch
fire hose were also used. After the reser-

voir was once filled, all but the 3-inch
pipe was removed, the engine and tank
cars were put back to their legitimate
service and the barge of water kept up
the necessary supply, although but two
barges could be delivered per day owing
to a sand bar at the mouth of the river
which necessitated the barge coming in
at high tide.

Due to these methods, the plant was
kept in operation, the public was not
incommoded, and the operating officers
of the road were well pleased with the
able way in which a most difficult prob-
lem had been handled.

The writer is indebted to G. W. Wildin,
mechanical superintendent, for the fore-
going details, who not only directed the
work, but lived on the job until all dan-
ger of a possible shutdown had been
avoided.

The Old Mill at New London, Conn.

There are many historical points of
interest scattered through the New Eng-
land States. Some of them date back to
the settler days and their traditions are
interwoven with romance and legend.
The "Old Mill" now running at New
London, Conn., and illustrated in Fig.
1, takes a prominent place among the
many historical relics of days long past.
It was built in 1650, after a special
town meeting, held for the purpose of
considering the question of erecting a
mill to grind corn for the settlers. Gov.
John Winthrop was the leading spirit of
this new enterprise. Under his super-
vision the plans were perfected. The
erection of a dam and the mill on his
estate, then called Winthrop's Neck and
now East New London, was the outcome.

This old grist mill was
built tinder the direction of
Governor John Winthrop in
1650. For 261 years it
has been grinding corn into
meal. It is 19 feet in
diameter and is 6 feet 8
niches in width.

up to four years ago. when it was sup-
planted by a new one. The old frame-
work of the mill appears to be as solid
now as on the day it was put in place.
The management of the mill in the old
days savored somewhat of the trust meth-
ods of today, for with the building of this
mill it was agreed that:

"No person or persons should set up
any other Milne to grind corn for the
town of Pequott within the limits of the

Six men were appointed to build the
dam and mill and they were instructed to
make it "substantial and sufficient." They
did so, for the original wheel was in use

Fig. 1. The Old Mill at New London, Built in 1650

Fig. 2. Sluiceway Running from the
Dam to the Waterwheel

town, either for the present nor for the
future so long as John Winthrop or his
heirs do uphold a milne to grind the
town's corn."

The old mill is located beside a rocky
glen, and the flow of water is through
an iron pipe to a sluiceway that is sup-
ported by a trestle illustrated by
Figs. 2 and 3, and upon reaching the
overshot waterwheel, fills the buckets.

May Iti. 1M11

The water i> controlled by a gate valve
in the iron-pipe outlet and by a trap
gate in the sluice. This gate is hinged
on the end next to the waterwhccl and is
held up at the other end by means of a
rod and lever which reaches into the
mill. This allows the water to flow
through an opening in the bottom of the
sluiceway on the inverted buckets of
the wheel. When it is desired to run
the wheel the gate is dropped and the
water then flows to the end of the sluice
and into the buckets of the wheel. After
leaving the wheel the water flows through
a raceway into the bay fronting the city
of New London. All surplus water not

PO\X

mill has stood so many years or that it

lessed so ma: mg scene*.

»>i through tl :Jing of revolu-

tionan. blood. It has looked upon the

warships of England ar

through the thick undergrowth
of the forest. Today it looks out from
the t;Icn upon rms

g corn in the same
way tl

:lrr Room Bulletin

he chief engineer of the
Harvard power station of the Boston I
vatc. I ompany, Cambr.

used by the wheel passes over a l<

of the dam and after dashing
and around the ra led glen, fl

i the ba

The wheel has a
and utcr

rims which support the buckets arc se-
cured to wooden

a hi. unctcr The hight

■eh buckei • :dth

• •
wheel run* at a spec
■

a full head of water The cap <

* of
mca

-Kr H

■ dam
gra\
site i* now occupied

ha* been replaced bv a new one anJ the
line ha* been wr> red that

•naln* but the old timbers an '
side woodwork that made up ihr ft

thai this old

lletir-

k *

p home
the modem

I
the plant.

a boa
tl rows of li
been r
•ugh are i' n the i '

■
■
In

' all thi

lumn
•<> ofher bo
also

holes on the
and
•und that some
needs repair, the man In

number,
and "Tt M •'' 'f,e MOM of 'he par* Bead

I board

"■

und that the blowoff

opposite the t " when

' opcreilor

789

a - >lumn» for each boiler. On

tide a record

of the month that

>er taken off or put or

'hod
h the lgincer can n

the watch engine: r» at what watch da
the week of month a b

-it on f the line.

This is accomplished by plugging the pot.

.' is seen that
boili- opera-

tion but that the Mow off on

-J therefore is to be
cut out of '

first watch of
i and side

rcc •

«ct from a

• hole thing In a nut*
i a seal

does not . hence the
a tb<
good p ' -

ing srtia •

the oil

story that

760

POWER

May 16, 1911

Captain Charles H. Manning

One jf the most prominent mechanical
engineers in New England is Capt.
Charles H. Manning. His reputation,
however, is not local, for he has been
associated with such engineers as Has-
well, Isherwood, Kafer, Loring, Melville,
Thurston and others, some dead, some
living, and is known to hundreds of
steam engineers throughout the country.

Captain Manning is the son of Joseph
C. Manning and Rebecca Parkman Jarvis
(Livermore) Manning. He was born in
Baltimore, Md., June 9, 1844. His early
education was received in private schools
in Baltimore, in the high school of
Cambridge, Mass., and in 1860 he en-
tered the Lawrence Scientific School of
Harvard University to study civil engi-
neering

In the fall of 1861 he returned to Bal-
timore, due to business reverses brought
on by the war, and became an apprentice
in the marine-engine works of Charles
Reeder. While there he met many offi-
cers of the naval-engineer corps, and
as a result he was appointed third as-
sistant engineer of the Navy, February
19, 1863.

His vast knowledge of scientific mat-
ters brought him to the att2ntion of Chief
Engineer Isherwood, who assigned him
to the making of experiments on super-
heating steam on the "Adelaide" and
other vessels. As a consequence, Captain
Manning's active service "under fire" was
confined to some brief fighting in Hamp-
ton Roads. He served on the "Adelaide"
for two years, when he left her to join
the sloop-of-war "Dacotah," and later
served on other vessels of war. In 1870
Captain Manning was assigned to shore
duty as an instructor at the Naval Aca-
demy, where he remained five years.
While serving as instructor, Manning as-
sisted in organizing a course of instruc-
tions for cadet engineers at the academy,
which in his own estimation and that of
others is one of his most valuable
achievements.

Captain Manning served as a member
of the first Advisory Board, in 1881,
which body prescribed the first general
characteristics of the warships of what
was termed the new navy. Other mem-
bers of the board were Rear-Admiral
John Rogers and Chief Engineers Benja-
min F. Isherwood and Charles H. Loring.
Captain Manning has the distinction of
being the only engineer on the board
who had the courage to vote for steel
vessels.

Captain Manning was granted a year's
leave of absence in 1882, after 12 years
of continuous duty. He immediately ac-
cepted a position as mechanical engineer
of the Amoskeag Manufacturing Com-
pany, Manchester, N. H., the largest of
the cotton mills in the world. This posi-
tion he now occupies.

In 1884 Manning was placed on the

retired list of the Navy, to the regret of
his engineering associates. During the
Spanish-American war, when he was 54
years of age, he was again called into
active service and was stationed at the
naval station at Key "West, as chief engi-
neer of repairs of the machinery on war-
ships which gathered there.

The position now held by Captain
Manning is of importance and calls for
more than ordinary skill. Besides having
charge of all the power plants of the
company, he is in addition the architect
and builder of the new Coolidge mill re-
cently completed. Something of the ex-

The resourcefulness of Captain Man-
ning has never been questioned. In the
fall of 1891, a 30- foot flywheel burst and,
being dissatisfied with the metal put into
the rim of flywheels at that time, he de-
signed a new 30-foot flywheel, with a
face of 108)4 inches and a thickness of
12 inches. This rim was made up of 44
rings of ash. This was doubtless the
largest wooden-rim wheel in the world.
The wheel is still in operation after a
service of 20 years.

In addition to his position with the
Amoskeag company, Captain Manning is
consulting engineer for several other

Charles H. Manning, Mechanical Engineer of the Amoskeag Manufac-
turing Company

tent of his duties can be gathered from
the following:

To operate the 110 acres of mill area
there are 16,488 horsepower of water
turbines, 24,800 horsepower of steam en-
gines and 17,500 horsepower of steam
turbines. To supply the steam units,
and to produce steam for manufacturing
purposes, there are installed 65,700 nom-
inal horsepower of boilers. These are all
of Captain Manning's design.

Manning was the pioneer in designing
and installing in 1885 a 2000-horsepower
horizotal water turbine, the first large in-
stallation of its kind.

large mills. He is a past vice-president
of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers. He is also a member of the
Army and Navy Club of New York,
American Society of Naval Engineers.
United States Naval Institute, American
Society of Naval Architects and Marine
Engineers, American Association for the
Advancement of Science and the Ameri-
can Society of Cotton Manufacturers.

Captain Manning's career has been
brilliant. He is known as a man of ster-
ling qualtities, of a manly and generous
nature, one of the men whose friendship
is well worth cultivating.

1911

781

Desirable Improvements in Boilers

■s as near
joint as pi
now well undc

.-w years ago I
advocated before I
American Society of
chanical Engi-
neers the adoption

of a longitudinal
joint having all I

in double shear,
and getting all the
the center line of the
able. The lap joint

-*€ almost the
sole cause of boiler-shell explosions, and
any joint which gives or
ance to rupture is likely to cause explo-
s at some time. The form of butt
ioints commonly used in th
that is to say, those with narrow out

of that class.
A part of the joint is lapped and in that
part the rivets are overhung and in
•.hear. These rivets are poor tl
for resisting a pull, and the whole joint
may be deformed under strain. Thv

of this is that longitudinal cracks
may occur in the joint due to bendim
steam pressure, and changes in the bend-
ing by changes in the ; 'c. I think
that the ruptures of the joints at >X'oon-
sneket and Torrington uerc hastened, if
not cau- -his action. I rxpect to see
form of butt joint abandoncJ
In the paper refcrr-d to I advoc.r
a form of butt joint in which both straps
»crc of the same width and all r
double shear. The pitch of the ou*

was wide, but the
thick enough to render calking effeci
The efficiency of such a joint cannot
be o\cr K per cent . and in this

ardly satisfactory Fig I shows a
i;n of a Scotch boiler having joints

VV. Dean*

;/ />

»l/-

U M

■ -

■

•

>n of the same

■

J on t(

•'K.i

1 understand that this is the

■

■•i is a
ch borizo
boiler for 185 pounds of steam. *b

may be sting; the

: \ -

two

I agree

t
.#

' * "■.

.»

lc«lgn. ma.!
Mand «tatmn of the Mctmp.
and i|e Hoard

Hit) I bflVI i ! ;

fom "*<■<! >any <iuite

to of Hi

*•■» i

Of the

Boa* fof nidi vO^^^H

762

POWER

May 16, 1911

consists of some long slabs of firebrick
which cover the back connection and
slide back and forth over it as the boiler
expands and contracts. It is pushed back
by the boiler and pulled forward by the

Vertical Boilers

Many vertical fire-tube boilers have

been built having the diameter of the

outside shell reduced above the crown

sheet by a reversed flanged connection,

beading must make a very narrow margin
between safety and danger. The re-
versed flange can be replaced by a long
conical course which will not yield, and
which will give whatever advantage is

«m.

'" ytyijiy,

POWER,

Fig. 3. Illustrating Three-point Suspension and Special Back-arch Construction

angle on the underside of the outer end
of the steel plate above the slabs. The
steel plate protects the slabs from break-
age when walked upon. When boilers
are set with this feature the cracking of
the walls at the back end is prevented, as
there is nothing to push them as the boil-
er expands.

•;li^

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OQQOOOQOQO, OOOOOOOOOO-^

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"5000000 0000000

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■ii

Pov,

Fig. 5.

Tube Layout for 90-inch Hori-
zontal Tubular Boiler

It is my practice to suspend the boilers
from above, and I prefer Mr. Woolson's
three-point suspension. This and the set-
ting for the Diamond State Fiber Com-
pany are shown in Fig. 3.

often called an "ogee." Many of these
flanges have cracked circumferentially on
account of bellows action caused by
changes in pressure and by vertical vi-
bration caused by the opening and clos-
ing of. the inlet valves of steam engines.
An examination of such boilers will often
show a vibration coinciding with the rev-
olutions of the engine. It can be said, in
fact, that this is the only kind of boiler
that breaks in two. The defect has been
diminished by making the reversed flange
thicker and less flat, and thus reducing
the action that has been, by some,
thought important in vertical boilers for
permitting free expansion of the tubes.
The recent explosion of such a boiler
at the Amoskeag mills and the action of
the reversed flange in an experimental
boiler recently tested to destruction,
should serve to open people's eyes to the
unsuitability of such a design, especially
for high pressures. Such boilers are
unquestionably dangerous because they
elongate seriously under pressure, make
the upper tube plate convex downward,
the lower tube plate convex upward and
tend to pull the outer tubes out. This is
what occurred in the exploded boiler, and
although the tubes of that boiler were not
beaded, the additional safety caused by

accomplished by a reduction in diameter.
Many such boilers have been built and
one is shown in Fig. 4.

Quantity of Heating Surface

It is a custom of boilermakers to make
too little of the opportunity of getting a
great deal of heating surface in hori-
zontal return-tubular boilers. By so do-

Fig. 6. Preferred Design for Blank
Flange

ing they make a boiler plant unneces-
sarily large and expensive.

Boilers can have tubes as follows with
no resulting disadvantage and with im-
portant gains in horsepower and saving
of room:

72" boiler, 140-3" tubes, 2033 sq.ft. h.s.(18' tubes)
78" boiler, 166-3" tubes, 2376 sq.ft. h.s.(18' tubes)
84" boiler, 192-3" tubes, 3056 sq.ft. h.s.(20' tubes)
90" boiler, 260-3" tubes, 4016 sq.ft. h.s.OS' tubes*

May 16, 1911

POTF.R

In the last case < 90-inch boiler » ihe
tubes arc . inch span, and very high.
These boilers are rated each at 400 h
power and when run at nearly 800 horse-
power they send over dry steam and
cause no trouble. There is no reason for
being afraid of putting much more heat-
ing surface in boilers of tMfl than
is common.

There is like ir on the pan of

many persons of making large fire-tube
boilers. It has K.cn conclus: own

by several installations that rsc-

pover horizontal return-tubular, and 500-
horsepower vertical boilers are satisfac-
tory, and either can be run at double
or more their usual rating. There is no
limit to the 'hese r. : cept

shipping possibilities. In a large plant
there are great advant large unit-

as folio

allcr number of !>• -mailer

number of and i .iller

buildings; smaller number of men re
quir. nomy by reduction of

losses; less number of chances for

ions and troubles; redtu t of

pla:

These facts arc
and will be taken advantai:
and m< •

For the arrangement of tubes in a 90-
inch boiler sec I .

The factor of safety in boiler shell-

importance than i- generally
•upposcd. In he Massa

Board of Boiler Rules increased the fac-
■ f safety from In fl

this is a mistake, for boiler
•Jc because the shell is too thin
osions are dut
due to causes which do •
thinness, and it at incn

ing the Ihicl

•nc engine

n the c
.. and -
The value of the strcnRt
plate Ik no and the gla

t, and the difference between
■ and the ultimate slrei . I
so much lumber It i* common |
thai the els I steel plat'

hall be not lets than i
ultimate strength If
the fact th rcf'

fcTth If it can be
clastic limr i be to another, and

<rlv establishes 0

can b<
•h a high unit ••

•rcngth. act
all desirable prop.

Bill, cheap and more dur-
able boiler than that customarily used.
It »ill be more durable because
le** - in making or

If I »erc not prevented
legal rules 1 should »pc
to have a tic limit be-

1 an

Bat and nbbed th

had n .hen it ut

aide, and the ribs are

used. The coat

4 spherics trifling.

<»kr-t

«»

c problem of correct dimen-
sions for a proposed stao
cssary to a;

ised oa

the: ^ability of am

crease in - and f r, make

area

the horsepower capacity of the

plant has beer tned a

y remembered rule for pr

the Bomber of

*>c srea
of the stack in square inches Thi.
horscf .mi requires a chimney

an area of .**«> *

equal a circular stack of about

stacks aire

The hight of a chin

t of it ng to .

tags. T nay

ametars of a
cnla

sataMlohn the higbt of the
stack at 25 diameter*

soma sixes, bat srooM not

c larger chem-
neys moat be limited to keep dosra the

on. aad the high'
•ma nutt be somcieat to grve

draft enough to maintain the desired
• .

cd by ?

t chin
a* the

an outside
ha higbt

oaafble.
ah*

• -'
aaiMM be remeied tsea la

ttmmtm

Th< ; losioa of a langc lagnesia aad Mass. *• ag.

isbed by sohaMs
should team en*. :>ortatod

igee should addltloa ss eb* >•> redocao

hot madt caereeiasv Ficeoaea af eada ae bdJoV

•UK It I

764

POWER

May 16, 1911

Oil Fuel for Steam Boilers

In view of the present gradually increas-
ing cost of coal for steam-generating
purposes in the Atlantic coast States and
especially in New England, the question
of a satisfactory and economical sub-
stitute naturally arises. Among various
possible substitutes crude petroleum and
its residual product, commonly known
as fuel oil, have attracted more or less
attention since the discovery of the
Texas oilfields about ten years ago.

Fuel oil is more satisfactory for burn-
ing than crude petroleum because prac-
tically all of the light and easily ignited
products, such as naphtha, gasolene and
kerosene, together with any water which
the crude oil may contain, have been
removed by a process of partial distilla-
tion. Hence, while the crude oil is burned
in large quantities in the Gulf States
and along the Pacific coast with safety
under proper precautions, fuel oil, which
has a considerably higher flash point and
calorific value, can be used for fuel by
men of ordinary intelligence with prac-
tically the same safety as coal.

The cost of fuel oil in the New Eng-
land States has been decreasing recently
so that at the present time it can be
purchased there more cheaply than in
the western part of Texas. This is due
to the fact that the cost of transport-
ing oil in tank cars to western Texas
is greater per barrel than the cost of
transporting it to New England in barges
and tank steamers.

At present the major portion of the
supply of oil for fuel purposes for the
north Atlantic States comes from Texas,
Louisiana, Oklahoma and Kansas, this
group of States producing about 62,-
000,000 barrels in 1909, or over one-
third of the total production of petroleum
for the United States in that year, in
spite of the fact that California made an
increase of over 20 per cent, above her
production of petroleum for 1908. Dur-
ing the year 1910 there was an increase
to 72,000,000 barrels in the production
of crude oil in the States mentioned, as
well as a phenomenal increase of 50 per
cent, to 77,000,000 barrels in California,
thus making the total production for the
United States 216,500,000 barrels, or
about two-thirds of the total production
of crude petroleum for the world. The
increase in the production from 1898 to
1910 is shown in the chart.

The interest that fuel users along the
Atlantic coast have in California oil may
seem at first to be very small, but with
the opening of the Panama canal now
promised for 1915, a means will be pro-
vided for the easy and cheap transporta-
tion of California's surplus production
to Atlantic coast ports. Furthermore, the
strip of country between the mountain
ranges and the Paeific ocean in Mexico,

By B. R. T. Collins

The possibilities of oil
fuel along the A tla ntic coast;
its advantages and disad-
vantages and the principles
involved in the efficient
burning of fuel oil.

*Froni an address before the Boston sec-
tion of the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers, on April 21. Mr. Collins has been
engaged in the burning of oil fuel for the
past 17 years.

Ecuador, Peru and Chile is known to
be rich in petroleum, and with the com-
pletion of the canal all of this region as
far south as Valparaiso, Chile, will be
brought nearer to the Atlantic seaboard
than the port of Los Angeles, Cal.

It is understood, of course, that the
supply of fuel oil at the present time
would take care of only a small por-
tion of existing steam plants now using
coal, but judging from the fact that the
production of crude petroleum in this
country increased over threefold during
the last ten years, there should be suffi-
cient fuel oil to take care of a gradually
increasing class of plants which for vari-
ous reasons and conditions can use it

obtained. Oil fuel can give this added
boiler capacity without increasing the
stack capacity, as the stack area re-
quired for the same boiler capacity with
oil is only about 60 per cent, of that
required for coal.

5. Plants where it is necessary to
keep smoke below certain fixed limits at
all times, due to smoke ordinances.

Oil Analyses
The accompanying table shows com-
parisons between the calorific value and
other properties of crude oil, fuel oil
and coal.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Oil
Fuel

The advantages of oil fuel may be
summarized as follows:

1. Calorific value per pound 30 per
cent, higher than that of high-grade coal,
less weight of oil being required to give
the same heating effect.

2. Space required for storage of oil
is less than that for an equal weight of
coal.

3. Oil does not deteriorate by stor-
age, as coal does to a greater or less
degree.

4. Lower temperature in boiler room.

5. Area of stack 60 per cent, of that
required for coal for equal boiler capa-
city, thus enabling a plant having insuffi-
cient draft with coal to have an excess

COMPARISON OF

PROPERTIES OF CRUDE OIL

AND

FUEL OIL

Oil

Field

o a>

W 41

— —

Sjj ?

r 0

/, -

Fire,
Degree's F.

B.t.u.

Authority

Crude
(rude

Beaumont. Tex.

O . 9203

9 9179

O 9240
0 . 9200
0.9416

108

ISO
216

200
240

IS. 460

18.. ",00
19.000
19,481
18,513

Professor Scott, Univer-
sity of Texas

Crude
Fuel
Crude

Beaumont, Tex.. .
Beaumont, Tex.. .
Whittier, Cal.. .

S4.6

10.9
12.4

1 . 63
0.50

2 ^7
3.83

U. 8. Naval Liquid Fuel

Board
Professor Blasdale. Uni-

versity of California

economically. Included in this class
would be:

1. Plants where the cost of handling
coal by hand is higher than the average
because of local conditions, and where
the installation of suitable coal-handling
equipment would not be warranted by
the saving effected.

2. Plants in which the boilers are
fired by hand and more than one fireman
is required on each shift.

3. Plants where greater capacity is
required than can be obtained with the
coal available. With oil, 35 per cent,
cr more additional capacity can be ob-
tained than with high-grade coal.

4. Plants where the boiler capacity
is limited by the capacity of the exist-
ing stack or stacks and where it is not
desired to install more stack capacity,
although more boiler capacity must be

amount with oil, a change from coal to
oil making the installation of additional
stack capacity unnecessary.

6. Less heat lost up the stack, owing
to cleaner condition of tubes and to
smaller amount of air which has to pass
through furnace for a given calorific
capacity of fuel.

7. Higher efficiency due to more per-
fect combustion with less excess air.
more equal distribution of heat in com-
bustion chamber, as doors do not have
to be opened and very little soot is de-
posited on the tubes.

8. Increase in capacity over coal.

9. Heat is easier on the metal sur-
faces, being better diffused over the en-
tire heating surface of the boiler.

10. Ease with which fire can be regu-
lated from a low to a most intense heat
in a short time or entirely extinguished

May 16, 1911

instantly in case of emergency, such as
water dropping out of sight in gage
glass, and quickly relighted uhen the
emergency is over. In less than half an
hour a boiler can be brought up to
pounds steam pressure from cold water,
if necessar

11. Smoke can be entirely elimina*

12. No cleaning of fires.

13. Much lower cost for handling
oil than handling coal.

14. Absence of coal dust and asr
No firing tools used, consequent-
ly, no damage to furnace linings from
this source. No clinkers to be rem'
from grate bars or furnace side wa:

Saving in labor of all kin.:
The disadvantages of oil fuel ar

1. Low flash point. Fuel oil should
have a flash point not lower than

_es Fahrenheit, and with oil of this
quality, handled by men of ordinary' in-
telligence and commc .. thcr.
practically no more danger than with
coal.

2. The ordinary underwriters' or city
requirements specify that storage tanks

'uel oil be located underground and

at least 30 feet from the nearest build-

This can generally be complied

in the case of the power plant of

the average manufacturing concern, but

in the case of a plant in the congested

of • city it is likely to be pro-

u'ith both ng feed water of

considerable scale-making qualities, the
of repairs is likely to be increased
hanging to oil, owing to the inn
temperature J J in the furna

Oil

h -•- nc

The requirements for the m-

fucl arc as I
>n to a fine spray <>r (
atomization; bringing it into contact
the ; amount of air; mixtur

nd air burned in the furna,

room enough

con- heating

•
and the
lining general!.

ad ' Mi

As to vl
be used for a<

•c it take* about the same ait
team to open
a« it doc« to a- at the

rner and the additional
and comp:

Interrupted scr.
■voided.

Also a flat fan
• larger turfi

other shaped fla-

a minimum number of
burner-, per bo

Heating of the oil is an aid to eco-
nomical combustion, and should take
place as near the furnace as possible
and be is high as

but not so high as to cause the oil to
mpose n to be deposited

in the supply pipes. If inary ■"

ing o the temperature of the

flash point of the oil used there can
be no trouble from these causes.

One of the most important questions
in the combustion of liq is the

regulation of the air in such a

way as to obtain r -ion be-

fore the gases come in contact with the
hckting surfaces of the boiler. This
can be done with an automatic damper
regulator, although its adjustmen-
ratr ' ult. It is therefore usually

accomp and regulation of the

damper when considerable variations in
the load take place. This is supplemented

r>e bar

clashes included

Drool. „ Oil ootcs out onto the
or J

At m the on-

> steam or
"c burner sad the

•urc :s«

by the cape naloa
steam.

Ir.

ted by •
chanical means without the use of
g agents, such as steam or
*ed air.

hoo or Installation

Ir f the various principles in-

burner construction, the suc-
cess of an oil fuc n depends
n the t\pe of burner

eas

200

— —

•

c
o

;

■

m ■

M» ■ —

t A *!

'-1

PnooucrioN or O

dooi

, >u tend- operated after the Inntallatano

in the furr

To confom ie und

storage

<wld be p!s<r

tig con." sbeetld be se-

ed belo» th< 1 1 the '"» °

nj Yben -

tnd

Oil and itorr.ii. rC

■ '

766

POWER

May 16, 1911

water, suction pipes, return or overflow
pipes, steam pipes for filling the space
in the tanks above oil with steam in
case of fire, and suitable manholes for
cleaning-out purposes. A suitable strainer
should be installed on the suction line
between the storage tanks and the oil-
pressure pumps. The suction line should
slope so that it will drain all oil back
to the storage tanks when the pump is
stopped and a vent opened. Duplicate
oil-pressure pumps should be installed
with pump governors and all piping in
connection with these pumps should be
cross-connected in such a manner that a
change can be made from one to the
other and repairs made to either with-
out interrupting the service. A suitable
o.i heater should be installed, so that
the exhaust steam from the oil pumps
can be utilized to heat the oil before it
reaches the burners. A relief valve should
also be installed on the discharge line
between the pumps and the burners, and
provision should be made for removing
any condensation from the steam lines
to the burners. Automatic regulating de-
vices are desirable for varying the pres-
sure of both the oil and the steam to
the burners in accordance with the de-
mand for steam on the boilers.

In a series of tests* on a 604-horse-
power Babcock & Wilcox boiler equipped
v/ith Hammel burners and furnaces at the
Redondo plant of the Pacific Light and
Power Company, an efficiency as high
as 83.3 per cent, was obtained, and the
water evaporated per pound of oil from
and at 212 degrees Fahrenheit was 15.81
pounds. The average percentage of CO;
was 13.2, the excess air 21.2 per cent,
and the steam used by the burners 2.15
per cent. The average efficiency for all
seven tests, running from 72.7 per cent.
up to 195.5 per cent, of rating, was
80.47 per cent., and the average evapora-
tion from and at 212 degrees Fahrenheit
was 15.23 pounds.

In tests made at the Ravenswood plant
of the New Amsterdam Gas Company, on
a 595-horsepower Babcock & Wilcox
boiler, equipped with a Peabody furnace
and four No. 1 burners, a boiler efficiency
of 80.97 was attained, when evaporating
14.61 pounds of water from and at 212
degrees Fahrenheit per pound of oil.
The steam used by the burners was 1.54
per cent, of the total steam generated.

Although a fair idea may be obtained
of the comparative cost of the two fuels
by making certain assumptions in re-
gard to heat values, specific gravity, gain
in efficiency, etc., still this will not en-
able one to figure the saving which could
be made by changing from one fuel to
the other. The reason for this is that
the saving generally depends on other
things than the cost of the fuel. The
saving in firemen and coal passers, in-
crease in capacity, facilities for fuel stor-

*The results of these tests are given in
the Mav 0 issue of Power.

age, advantage of pumping oil over
methods of handling coal, elimination of
handling ashes, quantity of coal used for
banking fires, elimination of smoke and
other things, many of which cannot be
figured out in advance in dollars and
cents, would throw the ultimate cost de-
cidedly in favor of oil. The only way
to determine the exact saving is to op-
erate the plant with each fuel for a long
enough period to get accurate data on
all the items entering into the question.

Discussion

D. S. Jacobus: The efficiency results
secured in the tests on an oil-burning
boiler at Redondo, Cal., represent good
practice. Better results, however, than
these were secured in tests made on one
of the boilers at the same plant prepara-
tory to making a test of the plant. The
results of the plant tests, which have
already been reported to the society, in-
dicated that a kilowatt-hour was turned
out at the switchboard for every 25,000
B.t.u. contained in the fuel oil. In these
tests the standard form of Peabody fur-
nace was employed with burners of the
outside-mixer type. I intend to submit
the results of the tests of the single
boiler to the society in connection with
an article dealing with boiler and fur-
nace efficiencies.

M. H. Bronsdon: Every test of crude
or fuel oil made for me by Professor
O'Neill at the University of California
showed practically the same calorific
value, regardless of its specific gravity
or whether or not the gasolene had been
removed. The more fluid oils are much
less troublesome, requiring much lower
pressure to send them through the pip-
ing and where the gravity is 17 degrees
Baume or lighter at 60 degrees Fahren-
heit they require no warming during the
pumping process.

Where oil is used for fuel, perfect
combustion may be obtained under all
conditions of load with proper installation
excepting when the fires are first lighted
and the brickwork is comparatively cold.
The labor charge is much lower with oil
fuel than hand-fired coal, for with oil
fuel one fireman can readily care for
the fires under 5000 or more horsepower
of boilers, provided the boilers are on
the same floor level and equipped with
feed-water controllers.

Boiler settings and boiler tubes will
last much longer with oil than with coal,
provided the tubes are kept clean. The
flame from the burners should not under
any circumstances be allowed to impinge
upon the boiler tubes. Extra large com-
bustion chambers below the tubes are
especially desirable.

The impression should not be given
that by changing from coal to oil fuel
the capacity of any boiler plant can be
increased from 35 to 50 per cent. In
a boiler plant with sufficient draft to
burn large quantities of coal, or where

the evaporation can be made to exceed,
say, seven pounds of water per square
foot of heating surface, fuel oil will
not increase the capacity 35 to 50 per
cent.

Every item and condition of boiler-
plant operation favors the use of oil
fuel, the price of the oil being the only
factor regulating the economical results
to be obtained. Its use is clean, safe,
reliable and responsive, the only laborious
work being that of changing and clean-
ing the burners and piping. Proper clean-
ing vats should be provided in a suitable
place, as fuel oil is very sticky and odor-
ous.

Experience leads me to favor burn-
ers of the type known as "outside mix-
ers," that is, where the oil and steam
mix just beyond the tip of the burner.
Carbon seldom causes trouble with burn-
ers of this type, even where the oil is
quite hot before it reaches the burner.
There seems to be no practical difference
in the efficiency, however, in the use of
either "inside-" or "outside-mixer" burn-
ers.

When properly installed, there is no
danger from storing or using oil fuel.
One important requirement is that the
tank should be well ventilated to allow
the escape of any gas that forms and no
flame should be allowed to approach the
uncovered storage tank.

In a well designed and carefully op-
erated boiler plant using coal for fuel,
where the efficiency is approximately 75
per cent, or better, the use of fuel oil
will not change the efficiency materially.
In a plant which operates from 20 to 24
hours per day, the standby losses, of
course, will be lower with oil than with
coal for fuel, due to the fact that there
are no banked fires to be maintained
under spare boilers, some of which are
of use only during the peak-load condi-
tions. Any gain in efficiency is not due
simply to the use of oil fuel instead of
coal, but rather to better conditions which
are maintained with less effort on the
part of the operatives, such as the re-
moval of soot from the tubes, cleaner
back connections and the fact that the
fireman is not fatigued by his labors,
but can without any particular effort
see that perfect combustion is main-
tained. The CO* recorder becomes a
valuable instrument in a boiler room
using oil for fuel.

Professor Robinson: It would seem to
me that the place where the use of fuel
oil would have its greatest economic ad-
vantage, would be on steam vessels.
There the saving in weight, volume and
labor would have a much greater value
than on shore. This would make it pos-
sible for the steamships to pay a higher
price for oil than installations on land.
Such being the case, it would seem to
have small chance to compete with coal
in New England until such time as it
shall have been demonstrated that the

May 16, 1911

i«'ER

supply is sufficient to take care of the
and leave a surplus for the
land plants.

R. C. Monteaglt: The question was
asked whether there *erc an\ vessels
running in New England that vers burn-
il. I do not know of any at present,
larvard" and "Yale*
good exam- are now on the

Pacific coa came out

re fitted to burn coal and the
running time betweer and New

York was 15 or l»i hours, and they al-

invariahh look over tha' I
After running a year they changed over
to oil fuel, and thereafter had no trouble
ir. making the trip on running time. I

going to a uld

not get some more data about the amount

fuel oil. as I understand all

fuel oil contains a rage

In the case of one of
ve*;- 1 to, I hi to know that

due I, in one particular

: the flame to go
as the fireman did not go the rounds
e oil kept flowing into
and overfl
the I' re -room floor. When he fina
: that the flame was out ■
a torch into the furnace and tmn
ly there was a puff and fire If the
vessel had n<

been i total loss.

steam

pumps was shoot

made a

trmor • or

mor iad a * ..& of

•ic» the lame ia oae. the
flan e other .

Referring

:
at proof that onl e men should

room when o

Some [nerenious Enerine Room Kinks

er plants contain intt

•me of which would escape

ial glance because their simp

icts from their real merit. During

a recei to the power plants of

the \moskcag mills, Manchc H .

Bi K. ( ). W arren

lustration also shows an arrangement

ration. Before

had been put in place the

that leakage

} . . ,

formed

at the

cement are sh
in 1 saddles.

each Btl
. and i
nto the hollo*
j and :.
ans of •
are dra jrnbuo

i rod around the pip*

turnbv
en the '

sing an almost emp?
hod of *er
coal was •

of upright hea

jch up n fitted

thi * nter saw several iiich

' intere*'

>ne of the n rtant

a double-stem, doublc-whee
tie vah
' • the

valves is i

-nsin b< iblc

■
|

;rc the val an

■
I ugh ih< the

■

pass

'igh a stuffing

768

POWER

May 16, 1911

forming an air space leading to the main An interesting method of heating and jacent mill to these boilers, and surrounds

flue, which extends from the bottom to ventilating the Coolidge mill, the latest the tubes on the outside. The boilers

the top of the upright supports. addition to the Amoskeag mills, is shown are separated at the end next to the

When the storage bin is full of fuel, in Fig. 5. The heating apparatus con- air passage leading to the fans by brick

TIT

"_r

~_r

-_r

~_r

-_r

O Q D

OdO ID ID

Section A - B

i— B

.„..^~

To Motor

To Mottr Q

Power

Fig. 5. Arrangement of Heating Boilers and Air Fans

the gases and heat generated will escape
through the numerous air vents to the
top of the building. In this manner
spontaneous combustion is prevented to
a certain extent. There is one disad-

sists of seven old Manning boilers, each
5 feet in diameter and 16 feet 6 inches
long, and five larger boilers of the same
make, each 6 feet Q-/& inches in diam-
eter and 19 feet 5]/2 inches long. These

headers, so that the air cannot bypass
between the boilers.

Extending along the front end of the
bc.iler is an air duct which is 8 feet 10
inches high and 4 feet wide. At the
rear end of the boiler, connection is
made with an air duct which is 5 feet
high and 40 inches wide. This air duct
runs up to the Coolidge mill, in the base-
n.ent of which the hot room is located.
Another branch leads to a neighboring

Fig. 4. Showing Construction of Ventilating Chutes

vantage; if the coal should once get on
fire the ventilating vents would produce
an excellent draft and add to the diffi-
culty in subduing the fire.

boilers are all placed in a horizontal posi-
tion and rest on brick piers placed at
each end of each boiler. Exhaust steam
is carried through a tunnel from an ad-

Fig. 3. Details of Saddles and Stayrod
Arrangement

mill. Two 6-foot fans, placed outside of
the wall surrounding the boiler, supply
the air for heating and ventilating; each
is driven by a 60-horsepower motor.
These fans force the air into the air duct
at the front end of the boiler and the air
passes through the boiler tubes to the
other end, where it is allowed to surround
the outside shell of the boilers, thus
coming in contact with every part of the
heating surface of the boiler shell and
tubes. The air when thoroughly heated
passes to the various rooms in the mills.

By means of this system two large
mills are heated indirectly by exhaust
steam with very little piping and no radi-
ators. The help that would be necessary
to keep them in proper condition is
therefore eliminated.

These devices have been put in under
the direction of Charles H. Manning,
mechanical engineer of the company.

May 16. 1911

POM

Electrical Department

Automatic Starting Attach-
ment t' '■' 0 i u iter

An exciter unit thai is somewhat out
of the ordinary is in operation in the
; Bf plant of the Lynn Gas and Klcc-
lpany at Lyn: The unit

of a t General

dynamo of 75 kilowatts capacity dr
by a Curtis turbine at a

per minute; the steam r

juarc inch. The
al feature of the outfit is an
rangement for starting the unit auto-
matically when the runninr
their load limit.

Kcnera: unit is shown

!. The COi >nal details of

the automatic attachment ar n in

.' this is a stcan:

■ig chiefly of a or with

the and

ra removed, the only part
ing the valve body. The

-ertcd in t! line

Jc down and is fitted with a bypass

/: s/xc Lillys
( onclm. ted to be of

interest and wvkx to

the men in char\±
of t he elect rical

equipment

the control-valve body is an I

e of flat iron A
of wood is attached and tl tt an

agnet !
the exciter n the switchboard.

Attached to the member of the governor
which contains | iring through

.h the va! ■

in to which V.

.'. in
the
this pin passes through the valve stem.

A ; of the same tidth

as the magnet core and forming an arma-

for the magnet is attached to the

adjusted to that when the ma

it closed a small volume of *team ft

1 of
I
•
l

arrangement keep
end of the tu-
Immediate u»c H •<-j to the flanr

the
M the
normal prr**i

• hlch poettlon the

open-, the circuit ttm Btfc rhe

oofl aad ng

■*» of the » eight

:rng the 1

Bf the
staning the turbine Too rapid dewent

" -
«ing the cootrr

e it to he that
do*

tic matter
The one

not needed, the twitch

•

solenoid to MK r-

drop* and open* the i

■

holaine the *tetm »*>c c

tsrhtae

do* Jeocrft*

but iSr

middle one i ■ • of d

bt ether

ctooed

three contt The taaJ '

ettt the f*» tat*

lr to fltuhtt It a nfl h peat*

|r* i !

Whoa that 1

770

POWER

May 16, 1911

accomplished, the middle blade is pulled
out, leaving the resistor R in series with
the solenoid S, in which condition the
latter will just hold up its plunger at nor-
mal exciter voltage. The middle blade

125 Volts

Fig. 3. Master Circuit Diagram

of the switch V, therefore, serves merely
to reset the switch T from the switch-
board.

An East Indian Postgraduate
Technical School

Mr. Tata's Research Institute in Mysore
has at last been completed and will be-
gin work next July. Dr. Morris Travers,
director of the institute, has issued the
following statement:

"The annual guaranteed income of the
institute is about 270,000 rupees (about
S86,000) which sum should be able to
maintain six departments of work. The
work at the beginning, however, will be
limited to four departments, namely, gen-
eral, organic and applied chemistry, and
electrical technology, these being con-
sidered by the council to be of the great-
est importance to Indian arts and in-
dustries and not provided for in the other
post-graduate institutions in the country.
Graduates of a recognized university or a
similar institution will be admitted as
students. The institute does not charge
any fees for tuition, though it does not
offer any scholarships. The council has
decided that the other two departments
are to be devoted to pure and applied
science, in some branch, but is not in a
position to make a definite announcement
on this subject."

The institute owes its existence and its
magnitude to the princely donation of
Mr. Tata and the generosity of the
Mysore state. The work has taken about
ten years. It aims to provide an institu-
tion where technical and scientific re-
search work of a higher order can be
undertaken on a large scale in its labora-
tories and where the students can have
a practical insight into such work.

Small Station Switchboards

By Guion Thompson

It is almost universal practice in small
plants to display as much switchboard
as circumstances render possible. The
switchboards are bulky and by some are
considered unsightly; also more of a
plaything than a necessity. The wiring
and apparatus are usually crowded in a
mass on the back in order to avoid get-
ting the board too large from the point
of view of switchboard advocates. To
those who do not admire them, this mass
of wiring and apparatus appears incon-
sistent with the form of energy being
handled and seems a departure from the
usual rules of spacing and other pre-
cautionary methods practised in other
branches of the art. The appearance of a
generator room is better without a switch-
board, as has been demonstrated in the
large stations where the boards are
placed on galleries. The largest and
latest stations are working toward elimi-
nation altogether, which appears to be
much more in keeping with thorough
station efficiency.

The switchboard is only a development
of our old-fashioned admiration of mech-
anism to be manipulated and with which
to awe the uninitiated. The apparatus
mounted on a switchboard is refined down
to the last notch of size and delicacy, all
of which tends to detract from its effi-
ciency, as of all the parts of a station
equipment the control should be rugged
and reliable to the highest degree. A
remote-control board may appear com-
plicated, but it is based on simple princi-
ples the applications of which do not
need to be shaved down to the last degree
of delicate construction in order to re-
duce space and attain convenience. The
switch gear and main circuit connections
are rugged and of open construction,
easily accessible and yet removed from
accidental interference by reason of their
isolated situation.

The expense of remote-control equip-
ment is considered excessive in small
plants but there is no reason why it
should cost more than the ordinary
switchboard in any station that contains
more than a small generator circuit-
breaker, switch and voltmeter. For ex-
ample, in a small plant of two 500-kilo-
watt water-driven three-phase generators
with six outgoing feeders and requiring
one attendant on watch, the generator
room should contain only the generators,
exciters, wheel governors and attendant's
desk. The desk should be so placed that
while sitting thereat the attendant has
full view of the room. The required gen-
erator and feeder indicating instruments
should be mounted on a small panel
along the back of the desk about eight or
ten inches high and on the top of the
desk, with a clear space in the center,
should be the finger switches controlling
the main switch gear in the basement,

wire tower or other protected location,
as conditions may indicate.

Current for the control circuits may be
obtained from the exciter busbars and,
if it is thought necessary, a small stor-
age battery may also be provided for
such use, though there does not seem to
be any real need for it because it is quite
practical that all switch gear should be
inoperative and open when the plant is
shut down. All ammeters, voltmeters,
wattmeters, etc., should be connected to
their operating circuits through trans-
formers and absolutely no main wiring
should enter the desk. Wherever the
main wiring, switches, etc., are located,
they, of course, need not be ornamental
but of rugged construction, and wiring
connections should be of similar char-
acter and generously spaced for easy ac-
cess and handling.

Switch gear, lightning arresters, etc.,
should be regularly inspected and kept
in first-class condition but the station at-
tendant should not be the one to make
this inspection. The monotony of con-
tinual contact with his surroundings tends
to render him oblivious to increase of
wear and irregular operation of minor
parts; inspection should be made by the
superintendent. We know that very few
switchboards in small plants are ever in-
spected beyond a casual glance at the
mess at the back and a remark to the op-
erator that he had "better remove that
stick," or piece of waste or some other
stray object. The first real evidence of
anything out of order is usually a display
of pyrotechnics and the operator is cen-
sured because he is there all the time
and ought to know what is going on be-
hind the board as well as in front. With
the remote control he has no respon-
sibility for the maintenance of the switch-
board and the superintendent, who has, is
given an opportunity to perform his duty
and to have repairs made without dan-
ger of fireworks or shutting down the
plant.

In substituting remote control for the
old form of switchboard many changes
suggest themselves in the methods of
treating details. For instance, generator
ammeters, wattmeters and field resist-
ors are all local to their respective ma-
chines and in a small station it seems
consistent and feasible to mount each
set of instruments on a pedestal near
the machine to which they are connected.
The place for the resistor in the field
circuit of a machine is adjacent to that
machine, with either mechanical or elec-
trical control at the desk. Voltmeters
and feeder instruments should be at the
desk, with the exception of recording in-
struments, the proper location of which
is the switch room. With a diagram of
the main circuits under a glass in the
center of the desk the operator can al-
ways have a grasp of feeder conditions
as changes or additions occur from time

Ma> \ti. 1911

to rime. The advantage of having the
operator familiar with tl m out-
side the station can scarce! ag-
gerated.

LE I I ERS

Substitute I Double-throw

1 1*. li

■er installing a 5-horscpowcr
current motor for driving a crab winch
through a friction clutch, we found that
the weight of the line would not run the
winch backward after throwing out the
clutch, so we decided to make the a

x. Having on hand neither a
double-throw sunch nor the material
from which

to the arrangement in in the

companving sketch

To I

ToMotoA
f>u k I*. ■LB-THI

ountcd four -it-lamp

ptacles on a board and
them as shown. Then
the terminals of t\» attachment

plu*-
and into the differen*

acles I ^ to if of

rotation return

2 and 3 the motor run*, one *av and
them I and •

This arrangemcr ■ to satisfac-

at »e ha\'

• putting in a -

I (tension Brush I !«•!<

vail alternator
the und t>pe anj the

the g commu'

had

.; and arc

f*e bent
a* »l

r the bend »e «ion

ihem li
the co:- | tparl

and i'

flavhinc I lamp*

due • face I

l" I at mounted on

of a shon brush
in ■ pilar holder, and a working

m of regular length was clar
the diagonal slot. The compk

■

'■

• *tant
and rking

>f the
The

cd tamps aero

normal dr ; ttfea nrr

the
bcl; i motor tmpenaator

The motor bummed*

;o* veil
on l rque of an ir

the

the normal torque <>• so

the motor refuse

spected tr jm

the . -J found ll .'re

enough

«PP« and I

age Jo»n a ^ilc the

mot

-n at if K
the current VM »ur~ :

and obeemng the i

relar

uccd tht
about half the normal voltage

a mii 1 running the

al and - the

riataaot

out

i about normal and the meter

l motor

4.
Anni»t.

pli m». ill \l:

The customer

■

I SL It

I »

the

...

' not N

upon %« the ihea

"x cea-
•lowmc '« reed pipe epea

x feed

at it tr i

■

. ,.

772

POWER

May 16, 1911

Running a Gasolene Engine
with Kerosene

By M. W. Pullen

It is well known that for a hydrocar-
bon engine to run properly it is neces-
sary that the fuel be finely atomized
(preferably vaporized) and thoroughly
mixed with the intake air. With gasolene
engines and some forms of kerosene and

Fin. 1. Gasolene Feeder

crude-oil engines the problem of obtain-
ing the proper mixture has been solved
in a number of ways which are quite sat-
isfactory. With a kerosene engine, vap-
orization of the fuel is much more diffi-
cult than in the case of the gasolene en-
gine, because kerosene is not as volatile
as gasolene. If, then, an attempt be
made to use kerosene as fuel for an en-
gine normally adapted for gasolene,
trouble is likely to arise from failure to
vaporize the kerosene.

This trouble was very noticeable in
the case of a small engine which was

Everything'
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

supposed to be properly equipped to burn
kerosene. The engine was fitted with
an atomizing mixer very much like that
used by the manufacturer for gasolene.
Fig. 1 shows the atomizer used for gaso-
lene on the type of engine under dis-
cussion; the arrow points to the air-intake

Fig. 4. Kerosene Feeder

opening. Fig. 2 shows a vertical sec-
tion (not to exact scale) of the device
taken at right angles to the needle valve
and Fig. 3 a vertical section partly in the
plane of the needle-valve axis. It is
clear that as the intake air is drawn into

the cylinder it sucks a certain amount
of fuel through the small nozzle and the
two mingle in the short passageway to
the cylinder.

Fig. 4 shows the atomizer that is used
for kerosene. The similarity in appear-
ance of the two is quite marked, the
kerosene device differing only in having
the retort at the left. The intake open-
ing is located somewhat differently, how-
ever, as indicated by the arrow. The

Section A - B

Fig. 3
Sections of Gasolene Feeder

Fig. 5. Section of Kerosene Vaporizer

retort, which is the only essential dif-
ference between the two types of
•atomizer, is arranged to be heated with
a blow torch in case it is desired to
start the engine on kerosene. In this
case the large sight-feed oil cup shown
just above the needle valve is screwed
into an opening directly over the retort;
this opening is indicated in the sec-
tional view of Fig. 5. The function of
the sight-feed cup is explained later. The
portion of the kerosene atomizer which
is not shown in Fig. 5 is exactly like
the corresponding part of the atomizer
represented in Figs. 2 and 3. Vent holes
are provided for the escape of the hot
gases of the blow torch from the jacket
space / but they do not show in Fig. 5;
one may be seen near the top of the re-
tort in Fig. 4.

To start the engine with kerosene, the
sight-feed cup is filled with the fuel and
the retort is heated at the bottom. When
it is hot enough, the cup is opened and
the kerosene drops down into the retort,
where it is vaporized. The kerosene
vapor rises into the air passage and
mixes with the air drawn into the cyl-
inder by the suction stroke of the piston
and the ordinary cycle of operation

May 16, 1911

PO w

started. After the start the needle valve
is opened, the oil cup shut off and the
kerosene is thereafter fed to the engine
in exactly the same uay that gasolene is
fed in the gasolene atomizer. The
tort, of course, goes out of use until
another start is made.

If there is gasolene at hand the sight-
feed cup may be mounted in the posi-
tion shown in Fig. 4 and the engine
started by allowing gasolene to feed from
the cup into the air passage of the
atomizer, whence it is swept up by the
air and forms an inefficient mixture but
one good enough for U \ ftcr the

engine has run for a few minutes, the
gasolene is shut off and the needle valve
opened; regular operation on kerosene
follows. This latter method of starting
is much handier than the former, and
if it be used the retort is unnecessary, a
simple gasolene atomizer being sufficient
as far as running is concerned. No pro-

>n is made for vaporizing the !■
sene; it is simply aton the nozzle.

The engine with the kerosene i retort »
feeder gave trouble almost from the time

as put It used a great

deal more fuel than it should.

n the r.
give the le:i 'ucl th.r

enable the cm
The M

ie higl

and

the an
dra*
added bv the oil cur '' *■• ■uppOSed

.
oil

ings and getting on the fly
n the ?'
■

I the

■
became ncccs*
all off about a month a I
act up. and the oil wa« saved with the

idea of using it again. It was noticed
that it had a peculiar appearan.

thin, a not fe smooth

the fingers. A close examin*
showed that it was a mixture of c
dcr oil and kei • • -c- c

an this disc<< ' becan

that the kcrosc: not being

fully bumed and that some of the un-
burncd pan of it worked down into
crank case; perhaps a good share el
t out through the I port.

In Fig. 6 is shown the remedy adop'
A jacket of 3-inch pipe fittings was put
on the cxha is of I ' .-inch

standard iron pipe, and the intake air
was led through it. The air comes from
out-of-J small ver

A, enn . of the heater

The air then rises along the hot

hau and out at the I *ay

of the pipe C. which IcaJ to the

atomizer. The heated air serves to help

rizc the kerosene.
It is now necessary to add oil to the
supply in the crank case and. what is
more important, the kerosene tank does
to be • nearly as

often as befor the same engine

load. N H data as to the saving

can I -.. but it is estimated that with

the bested air only about three-quarters
aj much fu 1 as when the en-

gine •* i th cold air.

Steam 1 For Gas F

Plants

ByCi 0. I

"whom I : J out to take

cha- R plan- the

I generally bring up the matter of

•fi a
cr I am n say

; : to stan some-
thing.

lining the need for
ance and t'

•ural for I

team c
an-- » l» i most natural %ug-

i the | l

many cases has - at

the ga*

plo\ asona mat be m.>

IS DO«r

first

love and formed an a tt actor the

new po * hope to succeed.

t are that he has apposed

ider
ip t to operate tnc

a brood-

■ • • ■

would mat
as of the plant aeem ina-

ablc nong these objections Ie

usu. .nleee be has been

more progressive than the
peer li Dot r

ige of fix
having assume should t

be pon to or .ch a plant

am cngleet would
i and make good
acorn
J the need of his mak

steam- to gas-engine ope

A good steam engineer has a greet
mar

ioisc and
pans of an engr reas a man of

oth .ntil be

im: us
training has made him thoughtful end
watchful < *oee not forget

to do the as self

01 and presence of mind in an emer-
gency a most .set He knows
the plant. Vr .nd OB1»

■ ng. pr
renewed a good

x successful
steam engineer he n ">eeo of

good ba
thing of a
plat1

one ol
favor a* a r.i | c operator, bet
if

»\ been s be has

made BO >•
fay not suffice to make

Md ca* engines
both n laee

court*.
i flame

different bead*

all to t

must *<?
The e

.
ui

fen*

TVr

■ (

am man OOB*

774

POWER

May 16, 1911

eration of the gas engine. Starting up
looks so easy in the hands of the erect-
ing engineer that he assumes there is
nothing to it. He despises suggestions
of a routine, preparing to start and stop.

When anything goes wrong, he will
hark back to his old plant and when he
cannot figure it out he blames the gas
engine. He will make about as ridiculous
mistakes in his new work as an inexperi-
enced man would make with steam —
mistakes he would laugh at in a steam
engineer, yet he does not see the joke
when we laugh at his bungling with the
gas engine.

When we find an old steam engineer
who is wise enough to know that he does
not know about gas power and really
wishes to learn, there we find an ideal
candidate for a gas engineer.

The gas engineer in Europe must make
his engine perform well up to its pos-
sibilities or lose his standing as a me-
chanic. It is so in this country with
steam engineers, and eventually it will
be so with gas-engine operators.

There is another feature that steam
men do not always like. The medium-
sized gas plant, say, of 20 to 200 horse -
pewer, using natural gas, city gas or
gasolene, will not require over two hours'
time out of the eight, nine, ten or eleven
hours which the operator puts in. (In
this time estimate I am considering a
plant where the engine is belted to a
line shaft.) If a suction-gas producer is
used, another hour will be sufficient to
care for that. Consequently, the gas en-
gineer must occupy himself for the
greater part of the day with other work.

Here, again, we are apt to find the
steam man with his hair rubbed the
wrong way. Where there is any auxil-
iary machinery, such as dynamos, pumps,
compressors or a heating system, to take
up his time he is satisfied, but when the
spare time must be put in at some regu-
lar work, like running a lathe or other
production machine, he is apt to buck,
and rather naturally, because this usually
forces him to learn two trades, gas engi-
neering and machine-tool operation. Un-
der such circumstances, the steam engi-
neer is at a disadvantage compared with
a man taken from some machine in the
shop, who willingly masters the gas en-
gine as a side line to running his regular
machine. But there are hundreds of in-
dustrial establishments in which working
at a distinct trade in addition to running
the power plant is not necessary. Only
the ordinary kind of mechanical work,
such as the care of belts, shafting, hang-
ers, etc., is required. Here the steam
man ought to shine if he would take the
proper interest in gas power.

There is a growing demand for com-
petent men in this line of work. We
know it from the continual efforts made
by engine buyers to hire our field men
and experts away from us to take charge
of their power plants.

What I have written here is not in-
tended as an argument for or against
the steam engineer in the gas plant. It
is intended merely to tell some facts
which I know to exist, some facts that
are not always quite apparent to the
people who buy engines and those who
run them.

I do not know that the average steam
engineer wants to take hold of a gas
plant such as might be bought to re-
place his steam plant, but if he knew
the possibilities for more money — and
that is what most of us work for — I
should think he would be anxious to do
so. My experience indicates that the man
who can successfully operate a gas-power
plant and make himself of real service
in his spare time will easily earn at least
25 per cent, more money, with shorter
hours and cleaner work, than he could
get in the average steam plant of the
same horsepower. Perhaps he would not
get it at the start, but why should he ex-
pect it? He is learning a new trade then.

Essential Factors in Making
Producer Gas

Bulletin No. 7, just issued by the
Bureau of Mines, describes the results
of some interesting investigations, made
by J. K. Clement, L. H. Adams and C. N.
Haskins, of the processes that take place
in a gas producer. One of the chief
objects of the work was to determine the
effect of temperature upon the proportion
of carbon monoxide obtained. In ex-
periments made by Mr. Clement at the
Norfolk plant of the United States Geo-
logical Survey, it had been found that
the temperature in the generator varied
greatly in different parts of the fuel
bed. In order to ascertain the conditions
of temperature most favorable to effi-
cient operation it became necessary to
determine the temperature required for
the formation of carbon monoxide and
hydrogen.

The investigations described in the
bulletin demonstrated that a very high
temperature is necessary for the maxi-
mum production of carbon monoxide
from carbon dioxide and carbon. Other
conditions, however, are against operating
the decomposition zone of the fuel bed
at extremely high temperatures — much
above 1300 degrees Centigrade (about
2400 Fahrenheit). A very hot fuel
bed means that the gases will leave the
generator at a high temperature and
thereby lower the efficiency of the pro-
ducer unless the heat of the gases could
be used for generating steam or pre-
heating the air blast. High temperatures
also favor clinkering. In the application
of the results of these experiments to
commercial producers and furnaces it
will be necessary, of course, to con-
sider the other questions which are in-
volved.

The investigations also demonstrated
that the higher the velocity of the gas
through the fuel bed and the thinner the
bed, the smaller will be the percentage
of carbon monoxide formed; also, the
greater the supply of air to a given depth
of bed, the smaller will be the percent-
age of this gas formed.

The use of large amounts of steam is
inconsistent with the realization of high
temperature, and is, therefore, to be
avoided. Moreover, on account of the
large percentage of carbon dioxide that
is formed when a relatively large quan-
tity of steam is used, it is doubtful if a
real gain in efficiency is obtained.

CORRESPONDENCE

An Airtight Peephole

For a long time I followed the com-
mon practice in the operation of gas pro-
ducers of using the opened pokeholes
as peepholes for inspecting the condition
of the fuel bed, wishing all the time that
some other way could be devised. Finally
I hit upon the simple arrangement il-
lustrated by the accompanying sketch and
now I never need to open a pokehole to
the air except for actually poking the bed.
The arrangement shown consists of a
piece of 1-inch pipe 6 inches long, capped
at one end and slightly tapered at the
other, with two sheets of mica clamped

,..-• 1-Inch Pipe Cap

^t , __

•" •- "-• "'.-1^-

Inspection Plug for Pokehole

between the capped end of the pipe and
the inner face of the cap; a hole drilled
through the center of the cap permits
me to look through the mica at the fuel
bed and I can look as long as I like
without admitting air. I insert the tapered
end of the peep plug into the pokehole
and remove it, of course, when I bar the
fuel bed.

N. A. Lee.
Hawley, Minn.

A 63-ton shafting has recently been
placed in the engine room of the Sharp
Manufacturing Company's mills in New
Bedford, Mass. To move the huge piece
of metal from its bed on a flat car to its
position in the engine room required the
work of ten men and two large steam
road rollers for two days. A cylinder
weighing 29 tons had previously been
placed in position.

Just because you do not get a raise in
pay every few months is no sign that you
are not appreciated. Things might have
been worse. You might have got fired.

10, 1911

Inspirator Trouble

Some years ago I had trouble with an
rator. The conditions under which
it w orke

what the d< • work

under. It rt -Pply under

a head of about 45 pounds; the water
ric common supply for two
: umps, and the steam supply came
from a main tfal air pumps

and a du| .am pump.

As long a -team pressure w<

be kept up

square inch, t! rator would work

hut as soon as the pressure
as it would through the night,
trouble would be experienced. Il
ing the ins :t would only run a

few minutes and then break. The trouble
was with the wa- ply. The in-

wss made to lift water, and when
rka satisfactorily with widely
ng steam pressure.
:h the inspirator connected to a
water supply under pressure, the valve
on t c shou

until just the right amount of water
is admitted; otl- »r may

break. In starting up under such a (

should be turned on
then open up the wati ilvc

'x and dra the starting h

for, when lifting the water, it can ca
be determined if then 0 muct

loo little I a matter of rather

^tment. depending on the steam and
virc. but after a few trials
/an judge the right amount of open-
ing the suction valve nee I

I 1> w heel W •»! krtl I

c mora r I ha '

ch automa' my

attention was |

I en the governor

in" tit ling

ceased and the grat .
I found that '
•nt the eccentric oil g>.
i hx.se and
'

wheel back to pla ied the

set in the hub up

again

II all J

on the lhafi

information from (

m.m on the fob A k I

here will he />./;</ /.

Ideas, not mere words

w. t)

Of line with ti i. Pir

the wheel r wss a

cult matter, f": is a side-crank cn-

- and the fl> I armature -*

so close to the main and outboard bear-
that til ough room for

tal make
ring the day I n
sawing i bar in 3-inch

lengths I them for a

wn in the ace
panying illustration. I also made a clamp

ammoniac and water and

rif. The clamp

then removed, tbe engine

wss tunc J up and no trouble has been

The u immofl

to rust ■

J
.n. Cor

I1C P

COSl of

n a pla

••. ta rot best

winter months hi

refer to the r
cr Con
waul the powt >f which is

an 'h of a -

' -ailed to furnish r '-cr and hea
for several neigh'

icr of the business section of the c

C'-,-r

to fasten to

' '

■>■ i

area of

en the original Isolate -

plant •<< it to be

i
uated in tbe r-a»*mcni of

in r ! '

■at pw»i *

agai

rhecL I then

The oL*

loosened the Set vtn n the • be el hub a »ri

and

esent conn i

' move and in a few tnin- <

. some
und tl -he hub

novlng turn act screw ooj

•

in een-

•wa for c» cntualU r
r rnJ.ng J

776

POWER

May 16, 1911

watt-hours were sold to outside con-
sumers, the remainder being used through
the company's buildings. Based on the
kilowatt-hours sold, the total earnings
were SO. 097 per kilowatt-hour, divided
into $0,056, earned by the sale of elec-
trical power, and $0,026 credited to heat-
ing; the remaining amount represents
miscellaneous income. Against this earn-
ing the total expense charged, which in-
cludes depreciation and taxes, amounted
to $0,075, giving a net profit of $0,022 per
kilowatt-hour.

In order to furnish a real basis for
comparison with isolated plants and cen-
tral stations, it is more logical to take the
figures for kilowatt-hours generated
rather than the amount sold. On this
basis the figure for total earning per kilo-
watt-hour are $0,079 against a total ex-
pense of $0,062.

In considering these results allowance
must be made for the fact that, owing to
the location of the plant and the impos-
sibility of obtaining the large quantities
of water necessary for condensing with-
out undue expense, it is necessary to
operate this plant noncondensing in the
summer time as well as during the win-
ter when exhaust steam is used for heat-
ing. If it were possible to run con-
densing during the warm weather, the
total expense figures would undoubtedly
be materially lessened.

H. M. Wilcox.

Boston, Mass.

Smoke Preventers

I carried out several experiments some
years ago with a so called smoke pre-
venter, the principle of which was to ad-
mit steam and air over the fire while the
volatile gases were being distilled. The
fronts of our boilers were badly cracked.
The doors were each 24 inches wide
by 20 inches high, and considerable air
was admitted when firing and cleaning
the fires, causing a serious reduction in
steam pressure as the load carried was
very heavy.

Patterns were made and a new front
with three doors each 18x14 inches was
cast and put on one of the boilers. After
this was done it was noticed that the
stack of the boiler with the remodeled
front smoked for a longer period after
each firing than the boilers with the old-
style front, which was believed to be due
to the new front being tight and shutting
out the air over the fire.

It was then decided to put on a steam-
jet smoke consumer, which was done by
piping steam to the inside front wall.
A 34-inch supply pipe fed the x/2-
inch branch pipes, which were fitted
with nozzles made with a very thin,
wide opening, in order to spread the
steam over the entire fire. This device
was tried on one of the old-style fronts,
steam being turned on as soon as the
doors were closed after each firing. On

trial it was found that with the jet on
and doors closed the black smoke was
reduced to nearly one-half of what it
was without the jet, and still better stack
results were obtained with the fire door
slightly open; the coal consumption was
also increased and the feed valve was
opened about one turn more to make up
for the increased evaporation, due to a
hotter fire with better draft rather than
more complete combustion.

As this device depended upon the fire-
man for operation, it would either be
left on all the time or not turned on at all.

These results lead to a second experi-
ment on a larger scale with a more com-
plete and automatic device, which is shown
in the illustration and was applied to the
new front. It consisted of four draft
plates 7 inches in diameter, fastened to
the boiler front, through which holes were
drilled to correspond to the openings in
the plates. A hole equal to the area of
the opening in each plate was also made
through the front brickwork and pitched
slightly downward, so that the air and
steam would tend to strike the bridge-
wall about 2 feet over the fire. Super-
heated steam was admitted through the

make changes and cut out at cleaning
times.

This boiler was tested in comparison
with another boiler fired alone and on
another stack. Smoke was greatly de-
creased over that coming from the other
stack without the jot, and better results
were gained by having the fire doors
open about 2 inches for three minutes
after firing and also by firing alternately
one-half of the grate at a time, which
led to the conclusion that the plates
were too small.

I had no C02 recorder, so I do not
know whether the percentage of C02
was increased or not by the use of the
"consumer," but, in every case when the
device was turned on, the water tender
gave the feed valve an extra turn open,
and also several more barrow loads of
coal were used per day, which led me
to believe that the capacity of the boiler
was increased, and the clinker was more
brittle and easier to get out.

In order to observe the decrease in
smoke, the device was left closed until
the dense, black smoke was rolling out
of the top of the stack, and then put
on, the result being that the smoke in-

Control of Steam Jet As Attached to the Front of the Boiler Setting

^-inch nozzle placed through the center
of each plate, which also acted as a bear-
ing on which the plate could revolve.

The draft plates and the butterfly valve
in the steam line were operated by a
cylinder 4 inches in diameter by 8 inches
in length, and closed by a heavy spring
on one side of the piston in the cylinder.
Water under city pressure was admitted
to the cylinder through a three-way valve
which was opened as the chain was pulled
when opening the fire door; when the
door was closed, the three-way valve was
closed by a weight and the water gradual-
ly drained out of the cylinder through a
J4-inch pet cock.

Steam was superheated by means of
12 feet of -34 -inch pipe placed crosswise
of the boiler over the tubes. Both steam
and air were gradually shut off by the
action of the spring in the cylinder, and
could be regulated to close in from 1
to 10 minutes, the duration of the steam
blast being determined by trial, the idea
being to diminish the amount of steam
and air as the volume of volatile gas was
decreased. A globe valve was placed in
the steam and water lines in order to

stantly changed to light gray, and, if the
steam jet was shut off again, black smoke
would again issue from the stack.

These boilers were worked at full ca-
pacity and on a very poor draft. The
coal was bituminous run-of-mine, con-
taining about 13,500 B.t.u. and 15 per
cent, ash; therefore, it was necessary to
fire very light and often, or about every
5 minutes, using not over four small
scoops at each alternate firing. In this
plant is also another battery of water-
tube boilers with the same kind and size
of grate, but set in a dutch-oven furnace,
the arch being 8 feet long and about 4
feet high in the center. Firing the same
amount of coal in the same manner in
this type of furnace gave a much cleaner
stack than was possible with either the
steam jet alone or combination of air and
steam with the ordinary furnace.

I believe that the "smoke consumer"
shown herewith, properly designed and
set in a dutch-oven furnace, will not only
produce a clean stack, but will increase
the capacity of the boiler and give a
high per cent, of CO- and better com-
bustion.

May 16, 1911

■

The results obtained with the different
types of furnaces and methods of firing
are given herewith, and in each case the
boiler was run at full capacity and I
in the same manner and by the same
fireman.

-:ures correspond to the number*
used in the Rinuelmaaa smoke chart:

oJil f •'••

No. 4 boiler was equipped with the
new three-door front when the test was
made. It will be seen from the above
table that N cr. with the new front

with air and steam shut off over the
of the fire, also with the original
of front as shown in column f;\
showed a clean Hi

J C. Ha

Hvattsville. Md.

Regrinding .1 SafeQ \ . 1 1 \ c-

It was ncccssar>

re so I began to think up a con-
. nt method of turning the valve,
h was not made fast to tf
and was thrcaJ
the

I 'ie tool »li

■

n an ol J a ibor

A thread »at then cut on

nch bushing
•err - I ' r * »s then

-%cd fa •
A ! to tuf

dUk on if-
• . ■

m come in lu
an\ ng mas

•a.

Norwich. Conn

Babbitt] ings

st all of the so ( ion

ils arc composed of an alloy of
or more meta h aa copr

antimor ;iuth and lea

metal, however, has come to mean a
metal containing any pan of these
the base being chiefly lea
Twenty-four parts of antim. I 7<I

> of lead appear to be the proper

of the two n
is of an i to be th

mum amount that will unin cad

to form a t able

artng these al-
loys because the melting temperatures of
the component metals are so diffc-

st engineers arc aware that old
babbitt metal after having been used
rcmcltcd a number of times loses its
fluidity and becomes more and more pasty
the more it is used unt I not make

a sharp, smooth ca w to

the rapid vaporization of the more vola-
tile metals and the oxidation of other
metals of which the babbitt may be com-
post en bah- al has reached
this condition rthlcs*.
but it can be normal
fluiJ a certain extent, by the

n of a small amount of ' ccea

of old type metal would be more bene-
ficial than lead as. owing to its comr
tion, it MM :hc normal

fluidity, bu: the quality of

the bar-1

There arc nur; I of babbitting

a b<> irnal .

to U putting

small a >d under it in such a

:ion that they may be taken out after
the

ing small pocV under the

shaft get full of

and in case the journal begins to heat,
due to a ai

from these po^ up

ring a

out damar.
A good

til gtefl ommon

iaft and fasten
>e babr run

mor<

t than whan coming
aga

although I

chill rcmo\< ican. of a rch

■

to
not be ncccuarv to d>
as would be

(i not to allow
the twine to extend to the end

•m the end of the
•nn out »•

'•d <>f '■€■.»•■£ The cods of the

bearing

'rom running out
jurr.g This may be done

Then the hearing
may be poured and a good bearing ob-

vm.

igepon. O

Rep irii . 1'iimp

< ■ id

A 12 and 9 by 14-inch pomp of the

i' i
■

As a nc» gland could not be

procured within t- • a and as the

ad to be : >e line for

the peak load. I made the rep
folio

I got son 'i stock and made

a Ml around the outside of the

Mar, • ing up

on the I

own at

nch bole in each end ao
uld At over the tenia.

■ ■

i
ftbould the old r

lat the
c stomas '

the
pot under the phaoeer

orumnr

■renin nod i

• •-
n the

( , * * i c

778

POWER

May 16, 1911

A System of Lubrication

About three years ago I rigged up an
oiling system in the plant where I am em-
ployed similar to the one described by
Charles P. Weaver in the March 28 num-
ber of Power. I connected the system up
as described by Mr. Weaver with the ad-
dition of a check valve in the oil pipe
close to the reservoir, which prevents any
oil from returning to the reservoir when
pressure is off. I provided a funnel sim-
ilar to that shown in Mr. Weaver's sketch,
through which to fill the reservoir. My
reservoir contains enough oil to last six

57=04

///////////////////ss///;/////'.

AIr. Weaver's Oil Reservoir

weeks, at the end of which time I find
that I have quite a job refilling the reser-
voir.

As every engineer knows, cold cylinder
oil has cold molasses beaten to a frazzle
when it comes to slowness, and in hand-
ling any quantity of it he is quite likely
to get his hands and clothing soiled, be-
sides consuming a lot of time. To avoid
this annoyance I ran a lJ4-inch pipe
from the top of the reservoir to the oil
barrel, entering the barrel at the bung and
extending the pipe to about one inch
above the bottom of the barrel. I put a
union in this pipe 3 inches above the
barrel and a globe valve just over the
union, so that an empty barrel can be
easily removed and a full one substituted.
The oil barrel is set on skids about one
foot higher than the bottom of the oil
reservoir.

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articles, letters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

When the reservoir needs refilling I
simply close the steam or water inlet to
the reservoir, open the outlet to the sewer
and open the two valves in the pipe be-
tween the reservoir and the oil barrel.
The water runs out at the bottom of the
reservoir and pulls the oil out from the
barrel, filling the reservoir with oil as
fast as the water runs out. We do not
have to handle the oil at any time. The
pipe from the barrel to the reservoir
should be filled with water or oil to start
the outfit, which is simply a siphon. If
no air is allowed to get into this pipe it
always works; but to fill the tank quickly
when the plant is running, I have a Vz-
inch pipe running from the bottom of the
reservoir to my condenser, with a valve
close to the condenser. This pumps the
water from the reservoir and fills it with
oil in a very short time.

W. T. Piper.

No. Andover, Mass.

The Point of View

The front-page editorial of the April
18 issue of Power gives a good sug-
gestion to engineers as to how they might
make their work more interesting. A
man can do much better work when he
takes a genuine pleasure in what he is
doing than when only working to put in
time so as to be able to draw a salary.
However, the engineer is not always to
blame, for while there are men who
would not do the right thing no matter
how fairly they are treated, there are
some men who would be of use if they
were rightly handled.

Take, for example, the young man
commencing to learn the business and
suppose he gets into some plant where
the chief engineer is a man who thinks
that everybody is trying to get his job
and therefore is afraid to teach the young
man anything of real value. Then there
comes the time when the engineer is in
need of an assistant. The young man
does not get the job, for he has not
been trained properly for it. So he is

told that he does not know anything and
never will know anything. How does he
feel? How would any man, with a spark
of pride, feel? Would he not be pretty
much discouraged? A man treated like
this may never rise above an ordinary
helper. He has been spoiled at the out-
set. If any of the firm should inquire
about him, the chief will say he is no
good, so they fire the boy and hire some-
body else. If it had been the case of a
machine which had cost a hundred dol-
lars or so, there would have been an in-
vestigation to fix the blame.

In my opinion, the average man who
starts out to learn a trade has, if not the
right view, the right spirit, and it is up to
the man he is working for to develop
him so that he may be valuable to others
and himself. The beginner often be-
lieves that every man is an expert in his
line and that each one is doing his
best; but how rudely he is "brought to
earth" when he finds that 90 per cent,
of his fellow workers are just mediocre
workmen.

Some years ago, I read an editorial
in an engineering paper on the statement
of an engineer who refuted the fact that
an employer did not buy proper supplies
for his plant. At the time it had not
been my opportunity to see much of the
methods employed in steam plants, so I
thought this editorial unusual ; now I know
better. Anybody with experience knows
that firms that buy the best supplies on
the market are in the minority. I know
of a plant bejonging to one of the largest
corporations in New England which buys
a cheap grade of packing intended for
75 pounds pressure and uses it on super-
heated steam at 135 pounds. The chief
can get nothing better. This tends to
spoil his "point of view" somewhat.

As it is true that the engineer often
considers his work a dull, monotonous
drudgery, it is also very true that he is
not wholly to blame. The layman is
looking from a wrong "point of view"
which cannot take in all the things that
the engineer sees. If a fireman should
call himself an "industrial chemist" in
the hearing of some employers and some
chief engineers, no matter how good a
workman he may be, they will say that
he is crazy and will fire him out of the
plant. If he happens to be a young man,
it will alter his "point of view" some-
what.

I claim that many engineers would
take great pleasure in their work if they
were allowed to do so by their employers.
It will be found that those who are the

May 16, 1911

most successful are those who are ap-
preciated by their employers. Ti.
them added confidence and an oppor-
tunity to expand and develop in knowl-
edge.

G. H. Kimball.
East Dedham, Ml

Constant Receiver Pressure

NX. k. bear J. in the March g
•> it as his opinion that the cylii
of a compound engine should each do the
same amount of work, and that it is bet-
ter to maintain a constant receiver pres-
sure under all loads.

In my opinion the receiver prcssur.-
should be such that the governor will
revolve in its highest plane regarJ
of whether one cylinder docs more work
than the other or not. The engineer's
lem is to keep the wheels turning
with as little coal as possible, and it
- without saying that with the short-
est cutoff in the high-pressure cylinder
the steam consumption will be least.
iter, N H. I.

Unnecessary Clcarun* I

Under the above heading ir. of

April 2 rlin writes of the extrava-

gant steam consumption of a four-valve
engine equipped with relief valves and
connected as shown in the accompany-
ing illustration. I fail to sec how this
would affect the economy. The 3 feet

of P.-Ind within a fc» minutes

Id fill with »atcr; hence, the : it W
uld add nothing to the clearance
•pat ig the

after cxcc»»ivc pressure has opened the
-

I lake gggejpl 'r. Klrlin*» method

for two reason
engine it could nm
to the end

to t^r be ' ' • ' ' ' lHn| 'he

period of compression, w
led: v

by leakage at the connections, after be-
ing used a are.

1 would mu. j have re

into the cou:
bore, through the side of tb<

-cine
icre and givet

i in
an inverted position undcrncr cyl-

inder, he would find adjusting and
pairing a disagreeable job. unlesa the
cylinder wa ung and placed some

•.incc above the At.

I I R. Williams.
Findlay, O.

Will an Isolated Plant P

There has lately been much discussion
of the above query in the columns of

had some
with the encroachment of the central
station upon the field of the operating
engineer. I will add my quota to the gen-
eral debate. Personally I am of the
opinion that even diminutive isolated
plSiU 'icre they do not com-

pare fa -U purchase . r. I

believe the fault to lie in the ignorance
and -y of the attendant engine

Some years ag red to care for

a 25-kilowatt motor which the central
station had installs plant a

orsepowcr Atlas
The old engineer was afraid of cle

ind the superintendent of the mill
was bl lorent as to its sim-

plicity and im.i at he had to have

an -ntral-station man to

■
was an old Edison bipolar motor, whose
only apparent im; *a» a I

dency of trie cot- r and the ad-

nt bearing 'her*

>oon
became management and

ope

•nc morning the motor
stor; •: was wrong with the

transmission lines; and over r
phone came the cheering newi thai

M of
the

c hour's

'if po«

ir mana.
ment denouncement of the khicc
not now be nccc-
ound the above Intc
•

•m the motor to »
glne took soro • additions

had »d

<d to be ch«n. '
1 efj elated ai <h« preeped of running
the little engine, though I had. ur

»«rvice They said

locate J and eliminated *>k worm"

I with It when it ley

the eccentric
vanccd ae far thai the por rer

half op And my mpnooiilimi

•nance of the cngioa •

and at a Icaa

raaa, I am unable at tb. late

to give com pa oat* of opcrs'ion

in J

the sating for the first month ww» SIS,

for >f best

me my fire! case of ssrclled bead in en-

gineenng

Hut the point I started In to illusf
and impress upon the reader is that the
central station could neve
gered the engineer's job In this mill.
the engine ' been

Hairs ma\ be aplll as to the proper
od of balancing charges, interest,
but it should not be forgotten i
eng:- set an who

the largest items of

innot be iugglcd by the
tral-statior ' a plar ady

in a building and the engineer
loses his I- <h the crowding out of

the central station. I am of
that he

Idea for those who would fight against
the encroachments of the cc-
woi: a society, and vote

to levy assessments for the support of
ose di. be to visit

such plants

sure that the encroachment is not -
ran- incompetency of the op-

era- -r. c-cinr

C HuoNta.
"

I 1 « i

M d

In ar jest ion asked by

the

lecting om separators, rebca-

staai

• «!i conne
mu the beeder

to the rcccuir or manifc

is !. t be eeed

•uld be
cpendmc on tbc amount of
densatior. and the sc
be .15 '

»aouM alsc
sea bo oc

bv long betsde aad all

Th*
« seps ee* ibield be

Inch

end aad should

pipe or bet the pfeeeut tame

sjeing we 'tea ussier

ttosss simfler te tiaeee eesBaed

780

POWER

May 16, 1911

Binding "Power"

I am much interested in the methods
used by many in binding copies of
Power. This is how I do it. I got my
idea from our daily report-sheet file.
One day while in the superintendent's
office I saw several catalogs which were
made up of loose sheets and bulletins
placed in substantial covers and held to-
gether by two pins or keys passing
through the covers and through the holes
in the back margin of the leaves. I
found several sizes. Some, however,
were just the size for such papers as
Power, Practical Engineer, American
Machinist and other magazines of like
dimensions. I selected a set of covers to
fit Power. Before binding the papers,
I removed the covers, binding wires
and advertising matter. Then I took
the pages of reading matter out
of each issue that I most desired to save,
and punched holes in the back margin,
using a templet and belt punch. I
put them in place and then tightly bound
them down.

As the book was made up of several
magazines, I could not use the page
numbers as printed, but numbered them
from 1 to 700, which was the size of my
file. An index was made of the names
of the articles and their page num-
bers, and they were grouped under such
heads as New Power Plants, Boiler Man-
agement, Boiler Tests and Testing Ap-
paratus, Pumps, Condensers and Connec-
tions, Engine Design and Theory, Engine
Management, Power Plant Management
and Economical Operation, and Gas En-
gines. Some articles which contained
matter coming under more than one head
were listed under two or three heads.
The list was then typewritten and pasted
inside the front cover. The cost of this
file was nothing except a little time. It
is easily worth S5, perhaps more. A
slip of paper pasted on the front cover
gives the dates of the first and last num-
ber the file includes. My file covers six
months.

One objection to binding the whole
magazine is that where several papers
are taken, there are often articles which
are nearly the same, so that the file
contains much duplicate matter. Such a
method makes a bulky file and handling
for reference difficult. I file only those
articles which present a new thought or
new phase of a subject or one that is
of especial interest. Selections from
several magazines makes quite a large
volume. After reading the articles, I
mark those I wish to save and mark
their classification. Then when I am
ready to do the binding I take the paper
apart and remove the pages marked.
These loose-leaf binders can be bought
for a nominal sum, but I would advise
going to the superintendent first. While
there are very few dull pages between
the covers of such magazines as Power,
Electrical World, Practical Engineer and

others of the same nature, I do not like
to waste time looking through several
bulky volumes to find something on a
certain subject.

J. Case.
Hyattsville, Md.

Belt Lacing

In the February 28 number, Thomas
Clark asks for information on belt lacing,
and as there have not been many replies,
I submit the following for his considera-
tion:

Some of the sketches and descriptive
material below I have written up in the
past, and some of the illustrations shown
I have copied from sketches found in a
power-plant office in this city. None of
the methods shown are considered fancy
lacing, but for -durability and efficiency
they are all right.

The lacing shown in Fig. 1 is known
as the hinge joint. It is all right to use

Stopping a Pound

C. B. Smith's article in the April 25
issue on the reduction of lead and com-
pression, induces me to tell how I in-
creased the output and decreased the
coal consumption.

Some time back I was employed in a
plant which had one 26x48-inch sin-
gle-eccentric noncondensing Corliss en-
gine running 90 revolutions per minute.
I was told when I took charge that
the engine was very much overloaded
and that it had a very loud pound but
that I was not to let that worry me as
there had been two men from the fac-
tory trying to locate the cause but had
gone away in disgust.

The boilers carried 125 pounds of
steam and whenever the steam went be-
low 115 pounds the engine would hook
up and the feed from the mill would
have to be removed until 125 pounds
could be maintained. The engine is five

Fig. i

Fig. Z

Fig.3

Fig. 4

Fig. 5

JLULJU

Fig. 9

Fig. 6

Fig.7

Fig. 8

on small pulleys at high speeds. Heavier
work demands a joint of which Fig. 2 is
an example. In making the joint shown in
Fig. 2, lace the outside holes first; the
pulley side of the belt will show four
short and three long straight lines. Fig.
3 is a good all-round joint; the lac-
ing is started at A A and finishes at E E.

Fig. 4 is often used and Fig. 5 is gen-
erally used on quarter-turn work. For
small belts running at average speeds,
use the method shown in Fig. 3. Figs.
7 and 8 are methods used for light and
heavy work.

Fig. 9 is a valuable tool to have on
hand when lacing belts. If the lace
hole is too tight, it is an easy matter to
insert the point of the tool in the hole
and start the lace through, and if the
tool is used carefully, it will not injure
the belt.

Belt ends should be cut off squarely
and the holes punched exactly opposite
each other; the first row on one end
should be opposite the first row on the
other end, and so on. Many prefer to
cement belt ends instead of lacing, but
this has the disadvantage of rendering
the taking up of stretch or slack a diffi-
cult matter.

James E. Noble.

Toronto. Can.

years old and has had two new crank
pins.

I applied my indicator and found that
the compression started when the piston
had made two-thirds of the stroke, which
carried it up to about 75 pounds. I cut
the compression down one-half but still
the pound was not affected. It could be
heard for a block around. I had several
indicator experts come out to take cards
and they all claimed that the conditions
could not be improved.

I noticed that the higher the boiler
pressure the louder the knock, but still I
thought the indicator showed a good ad-
mission line. I decided something must
be done, so I gave my steam valve enough
lap to let the piston travel about one
inch before the valves opened. This
stopped the pound instantly and the en-
gine began to run as smooth as any en-
gine in the city. The load that it pre-
viously carried with 125 pounds of steam
can be carried nicely now with 100
pounds. Today the engine pulls the same
load with a one-quarter cutoff that a
three-eighths cutoff would not handle
when I took charge. Thus by removing
the compression the engine developed
considerably more power.

J. W. Dickson.

Memphis, Tenn.

May 16, 1911

Hill Publishinj

- .ik «•

■pk

j»-». » ti

1. «4 ■■■
-IHI

MSS u.-. '. -

-•

* . '

I*av do moi

Urut«.

•••• <in»l

rl»>i mm!'- r. I >•

office ■•
Oder tor

■ ■

ft Hum'.-

( mtenti

i In

»l • -»»-

•n

MIU

An I

Haul

Hon -

*!!.« '

I
I

•

• I

:cn a

«**<. ant has

really no t

isolated-plant man starts in on an

r a gas-
rescnta-

well, when figu »ody

tys have a

hin. me-

is a forlorn
hop -end and his plight s

ind heroic rr, . i many

cases th unbolstered trt; iplc

and would be in' re effc.

than a

son of
umber of the

able ar.

coat

••

all V

<t a

■

i so

■

SO IK

iat a :

and a forced

■

ion of i
h our

thai

■ cdi

are

ed ' CM engine*

■■ coot of sawuihir

'i t h t» con-
-as ba» gb and

is and a%-

r ro-
ie same is»
though the isolate: f one hur

and horscp

cost

•s of •
po* shoved less than

»o is si mr ! Ill Ind

coal ascribed to the

plant high.

too lov and the coats
of ■
to the consumer aod of keeping Uses la

V it

It hi iN to kaov the

actual cost of po»<

•agee to be

■

rrr.ation in co-

«*•
- beatlr.

>t so Ten dinVt

r to <

■

r>er f

. * ■ . ■ ■ *

- s not ft

tiot > go *

v-h control tbc
;utnnc pooer Wear) n

i» vh

l<f<

•ie owner c<

U "» r- "r -,i!
4

tbc fight Into

782

POWER

May 16, 1911

There is a group of buildings in the
business district of a Western city, all
taking central-station current and paying
from five to eleven cents per kilowatt-
hour. The chief engineer of this property,
a capable man, has repeatedly brought to
the attention of the owner that concen-
trating the several different heating plants
necessary to take care of these buildings
and generating current at a central point,
using the exhaust steam for heating,
would result in a net saving of twenty
thousand dollars a year, but this has had
no effect.

It would seem to the ordinary in-
dividual that the owner, although already
a multimillionaire, could afford to take
the trouble to pick up this extra money.
It may easily be possible, however, that
he can well afford to pay twenty thou-
sand dollars a year for the privilege of
sitting in the same game with the financial
powers that be, the benefits of this be-
ing far greater (to him) than any petty
saving which might accrue from changes
recommended in his power department.

. Against this sort of competition the
operating engineer is working under a
serious handicap. It illustrates the ne-
cessity of being wide awake in every
respect and emphasizes the importance
of having every scrap of available in-
formation at hand, ready to use at the
proper time.

If the engineer knows, he has a chance.
If he does not know, he is lost.

Slovenly Language and Salary

As we have said before, it is neither
necessary nor to be expected that an en-
gineer shall be a shining literary light
or even a polished writer or speaker. It
is important, however, that engineers
should use language which means what
they intend it to mean and refrain from
inflicting upon more careful people a
mongrel jargon unworthy of the intellect
of a scavenger's assistant. Electrical
engineers and artisans appear to be more
reckless in this respect than other tech-
nicians. A common specimen of inac-
curacy is the use of the word "kilowatt"
alone when "kilowatt-hour" is meant.
This is not inelegant, of course; it is
merely an indication of either ignorance
or carelessness. A kilowatt is very far
from being a kilowatt-hour; it has to
exist exactly sixty minutes before it
represents a kilowatt-hour. It is highly
probable that every reader of Power
knows that simple fact. It is almost as
probable that many of them would un-
hesitatingly say that the cost of "current"
is so many cents "per kilowatt," which
is absolutely devoid of intrinsic mean-
ing. Such a statement is usually under-
stood by those familiar with the sloppy
habit of speech, but that is no excuse for
it. Current is neither power nor energy
and power is not energy and has no

value until it is combined with time to
make energy. A similar carelessness
characterizes references to horsepower,
the word being used alone when "horse-
power-hour" is meant.

The haphazard use of the word "field"
is another common cause of confusion
and mental irritation. In electrical en-
gineering the word has exactly one mean-
ing, no more. A field magnet is not a
"field"; neither is a magnet coil, nor is
a yoke ring, nor yet the exciting current.
Nevertheless, all of these are frequently
referred to as the "field" by men who
either ought to or do know better. Both
of these editorial pages could be filled
with such citations.

Now there is no direct relation between
exactness of speech and earning power,
except in literary work. But there is a
very strong indirect relation in all other
kinds of skilled work, A man who is
careful in one respect is very likely
to be careful in others and, al-
though it is not at all probable that the
mere avoidance of the class of errors
just referred to will produce an immedi-
ate increase in salary, it is almost certain
that cultivating the habit of accuracy —
not hair splitting — will ultimately in-
crease one's value to his employer. A
certain electrical engineer has a knowl-
edge of his particular branch of the
science that should enable him to earn
a very large salary. The fact is, how-
ever, that he is so slovenly in the appli-
cation of his knowledge that other men
who have less are drawing larger sataries
because of their greater accuracy. The
inaccuracy of this man is reflected in his
every utterance; "power" is always "cur-
rent" with him; "reactance" is "self-
induction," and everything about a ma-
chine except the armature and bearings
is referred to indiscriminately as the
"field" — and so on, down the whole list

Absurdities of a School of
Finance

The school of finance and commerce
attached to one of our large universities
requires neither scientific nor engineering
knowledge from its students at entrance
and does not teach either of these
branches in its courses. It is, therefore,
astonishing that last December the school
required each student to separately select
a manufacturing plant and make a series
of reports thereon.

The first report was to be a careful
study of the power plant, its installation,
cost of production and cost of distribu-
tion, involving a number of drawings and
a careful discussion of the suitability of
the power equipment for the particular
plant, comparing it with other possible
sources of power.

This was to be followed by a second
report dealing with the raw material, its
storage and handling. A third report was
to relate to superintendence, organiza-

tion, management, labor payment and in-
spection, the students to suggest improve-
ments and give reasons therefor. A dis-
cussion upon storing, shipping and sell-
ing the finished product was next in
order, and, finally, a report was to be
made upon "cost keeping."

The average student taking this course
has no conception of foot-pounds; he
could not define a horsepower, and would
be unable to distinguish between boiler,
engine and electrical horsepowers. He
has probably never heard of a B.t.u. and
knows absolutely nothing about the burn-
ing of fuel and the cost of power pro-
duction. He has never installed a power
plant; knows nothing of its power, and
has not had sufficient experience to esti-
mate depreciation.. Yet his teacher, ad-
vancing these tasks, believes these facts
can be obtained by merely "observing""
and asking a few judicious questions.

How can an untrained mind observe
fuel costs,, capital costs, repairs, etc.?
These are not elements of observation,
but matters of experience and operation.
Moreover, to whom shall the student ad-
dress "a few judicious questions"1? If
he obtains any information at all, is he
sure that his information is correct, and
how can he cheek it? As to cost keep-
ing, even though he has access to the
books and accounts of a particular plant;
it would require many weeks for him to
go over the vouchers, for,, say, the past
year, and ascertain whether or not the
accounts were properly and correctly
kept. Yet this student is to advise as to
the adaptability of the system of book-
keeping and to make suggestions as to
improvements.

Such a course is incongruous and
serves as a testimonial to the im-
practicability of those responsible for it.
Ff certain schools would confine their ef-
forts to the fields which they can legiti-
mately cover and not attempt things out
of their sphere, technical education would
be better served and there would be
fewer instances of its being subjected to
ridicule by the practical man.

If a man tried to sell a 1000-horse-
power Corliss engine for five hundred
dollars, any of us would naturally ask
him what was the matter with it. Why
do not all of us do that when another man
offers to sell cylinder oil at eleven cents
a gallon?

When you reach the conclusion that
you are too big for your job, it is a safe
plan to take a vote and see how nearly
unanimous that opinion is before yoi
shake the dust of that job off your feet
and tackle a bigger one.

After all is said and done, do you
really believe there is any good excuse
for a modern dynamo or motor to spark
at the brushes? We don't.

May 16, 1911

B t Pump I i - ned

What is a bucket pur-

B. P.
A bucket pump is one in which the
water passes through the piston a
the common house pump or as in the
cal single-acting jet-condenser air
pu-

/////// /// Stmfy/t- and {.'jin-
P'juiit! I >. tits

Which requires the higher vacuum, a
simple or a compound MfbM

C. E.

There is no difference in the require-
ments except as regards economical op-
eration, but it is customary to carry a
higher vacuum with a compound than
with a simple engine, as it is bch.
that it is more economical not to employ
so high a vacuum in simple engines
on account of the difference of tempera-
ture between the entering and the
haust steam in the simple engine, uhich
is much greater than in the low-pressure
cylinder of the compound engine and
nullifies the gain of a reduced back
initial condensation.

I • ! / //

Why are the tube ends of water-tube
boilers flared instead of being bead'

H f
Tubes arc flared because it is
cheaper and just as effective as beading
for the purpose intcn.!

/ n in Air Pump I '

Why does th< of an air pump

stan off fast and 1 near

end of the

P I
In tht an

acting air nder at

ining of the stroke contains a
water and also air at the ;
ing in the
of tv • c the piston r?

tsnee and. until tr •
to near'
linn of the ;

'inder rises the spec I
reduced and west as the water and

the air arc hcint: '.
discharge v i

// ) /'

If the bursfmr. , f a ho

shell (• MOO pound ch and

the yield
Strength, what '

Quv.sfiotm *re
not / unh

rnp.inicd by t/ir
MOM .inJ . ■ o/ r

inquirer, 77ns -t />

fotJOtk wficn ffal k

usv if

safe to apply? What is the rule
for finding the yield poir-

T P.
If the bursting pressure is fiOO pounds
per square inch and tl
one-half the tc rength. the

ing will begin at 300 pounds pressure

a factor of u
of five, the working pressure will
pou 1 the hydr. ^urc

applied 50 per . -*ing

M) poun :
low tl : sumably

safe. Thcr rule for determining

the

called. It can onlv be determined
nt

/ • / '
If a 4 inch air ; c con-

nected to a 4-inch »team pipe with

ind 100
■
would happi

;

that

J J M

The
the original pre»» uld f

steam r jrnc

and
air unless r .- of the

// /

of adiustn

In most high-speed automa'

the engirt'

■he lea '

What H efflcleno of a |

nginc of a few hundred h> -

W T M

according to sire and coawaltoa.

nt heal of

'arks A

of flOO as

ccn most ft

correct value? Wbieh
\alue i» use -(1

accural

C r> H
Receni ion has shown that

the total heat of a..

the o tnj

both the Mark
tab! . been revised in accordance

tables are use J i office PcaN

nf steam at

tmccn • im and rhe

the

M of the • e amount of heat

neci a pound C one

at 62 degrees while Pr
Marks ^

of heat 4 pound of

»atr rough the entire range

etannlne the best sue of

■

"c greateM econo Named

'w energ> lost to

and dep

ma, b< ch

ignored If the drop to the Una is st-
and

motors will not operate properly omf «
to nbtata ut

I candle r-o . the

line Jdition to an i

the question of regalottoo
f>lac< * ausnrton of laytog oot •

ismattaotoo Itoo or ooJI#tog the
ant snattosasa
C economy csmbo*

coo ooaafy he . Aedl for h» saooao

ess ami

I SSKh Off

• tha tow to

784

POWER

May 16, 1911

I I

Capacity of Ammonia Com-
pressors
By F. E. Matthews

Since the efficiency of ammonia com-
pressors is subject to wide variations,
both through diversity of design and
diversity of operating conditions to which
the same machine is often subjected, the

Pipe Connection

LJ To Refrigerator

Fig. 1. Arrangement of Piping for Weighing Ammonia

efficiency of the individual compressor
should be determined under its own op-
erating conditions. This can be accom-
plished most accurately by determining
the quantity of refrigerating fluid actually
passing through the system and compar-
ing this amount with the apparent amount
computed from the displacement of the
compressor.

The best way for determining the
amount of liquid refrigerant is to weigh
it. Fig. 1 represents a condenser, a pair
of weighing tanks and their connections.
For testing, crosses are inserted in the
inlet and outlet lines, and valves and
additional pipes are attached as indi-
cated. When using the weighing tanks,
the outlet valve D is closed or blanked
off and, as the valves in the new connec-
tions are closed, the liquid refrigerant
collects in the receiver. The weighing tank
A is filled by opening valves E and G,
after which valve G is closed and the
gross weight of the tank and- its contents
is determined. The weight of the re-

frigerant is then found by subtracting the
net weight of the tank and the liquid in
the bottom connections. While the liquid
in tank A is being weighed, tank B is
supplying the cooler through valve /. Al-
ternate filling and emptying of the two
tanks allow the operation of the plant to
proceed without interruption. When em-
ploying this method for weighing the re-
frigerating liquid, it is necessary that the
pipes connecting with the weighing tanks
be sufficiently long to insure flexibility to
the system. The liquid level should never
be allowed to rise to the pipes M and N,
as any liquid other than that vertically
over the drums will not be weighed cor-
rectly.

Assume that a test has been conducted
ui.der standard conditions and it has been
determined that X pounds of anhydrous
ammonia are evaporated per hour. The
number of heat units required to cool a
pound of the liquid is
S (t, — U) — 1 (90 — 0) = 90 B.t.u.

The heat units available from the evap-
oration of one pound of ammonia are
Rb.p. — S (t1 — t.) = 555.5 — 90 =

465.5 B.t.u.
The amount of anhydrous ammonia re-
quired per ton per minute is

200 2CO , ,

which is equivalent to 25.778 pounds per
hour or 618.7 pounds per day of 24
hours; where

'.■ ■ " — — - — : — : . .. ■ - — —

Atmospheric Line-'

Factor of Efficiency -=86.1x88.6=76.2 /o

■■■Y/////////////////M

n o, y

-4.22-100/0

Vacuum Line-^r'y////////////^

-X

Area = 4.22x0.575 =2.426

0.575x40
=23lb.
=100%

0.495x40
= 19.8 lb.
= '86.1%

factor of Efficiency = jrf=% - 76.2 /o p0Wsx

Fig. 2. Graphical Method for Determining Efficiency

Lay 18, 1911

PC»

■i

m 5 r

-• 1

: : : :

8 .-.S-

/ /■ r

888 H

". r' /

S — '

23S

;

3 8 S:

-2 "-:" : ::

:;■ ii

% 8 f

_ _ _

- - • -. -, ,

;

, .

■

3 8

5 3

•a i at 3i ai si a i ai ai n

ciflc h

tbe *■— 4
; or corrcopo- i

'17 pound*

beat of vaportiatioa of

deer*

•

• r.t!% per mm-

to ooc «oo

ition per 24 hoar*.

found by teal

hour fount h 0 f

•nprcosor running;
.lions r

ooUng pro-

The capa

' placement per min-
ute of the compre»*or pitto

. t

Piaton di»placemr- ■

/J —

IfLF- " 8B8H Hi

ammonia ga% p anted

>m ibr

*>llng effect per cabk foot of

iffltonn.

c of one pound of tbe atn-
•«gb tbe

■

In tbe m*

abb) lo

• Mi

786

POWER

May 16, 1911

such cases a somewhat less accurate esti-
mate of the efficiency of the compressor
can be made with the assistance of an
indicator. For all practical purposes the
weight of ammonia gas may be con-
sidered proportional to its absolute pres-
sure, and within narrow limits the
amount of refrigeration represented by
a cubic foot of ammonia gas will like-
wise be proportional to its absolute pres-
sure. From this it follows that anything
tending to reduce either the number of
cubic feet of gas that a compressor
handles or lower the pressure at which it
is handled, proportionately reduces the
capacity of the compressor. Graphically
this is illustrated and the actual amount
of the reduction in capacity is deter-
mined as follows:

Having taken an indicator diagram,
such as that shown in Fig. 2, draw the
lines a b and c d representing, respective-
ly, the actual back pressure in the suc-
tion pipe, as indicated by a gage, and
the line of absolute vacuum. Next, de-
termine f, the point at which the suction
valve first opens to admit cold gas to
the compressor cylinder. This point is
the intersection of the admission line e f
and the reexpansion line forming the heel
of the diagram. Draw a vertical line f g
through this point and other vertical lines
e c and b d through the ends of the dia-
gram. These horizontal and vertical lines
form two rectangles. The larger one
abdc incloses a smaller one ehdc
which, in turn, is made up of two still
smaller rectangles efgc and fhdg.

In the case under consideration the
cylinder back-pressure line a b scales 4.6
pounds above the atmospheric line / i,
making the absolute back pressure with-
in the cylinder approximately 19.6
pounds. The observed suction pressure
in the suction line is 8 pounds gage or

TABLE 2. DISPLACEMENT D IN CUBIC FEET PER FOOT OF
PISTON TRAVEL FOR VARIOUS-SIZED CYLINDERS.

Cubic Feet per Inch of Piston Travel.

Cubic Feet per Foot of Piston Travel.

Diameter, Inches

and Fractions of

Inch.

0 Inch.

', Inch.

J Inch.

f Inch.

Hi o

~ v.

5-s.d

5-a
3 p

0 Inch.

1 Inch.

\ Inch.

:; Inch.

1 . . .
2

3 '.'. .

4 . . .

5 . . .

6 . .

7 . . .

8 . . .
7 . . .

10 ...

11 . . .

12 .

13 ...

14 .

15 ...

16 . . .

17 . . .

18 . . .

1!)

20 . . .

21 . . .
22

23 '.'.'.

24 . .

25 . . .

26 . . .

27 . . .

28 . . .

29 ...

30 . . .

0.00045
0.00182
0 . 00409
0.00727
0.01136

0.01636
0.02227
0.02909
0 . 036S2
0 . 04545

0 . 05500
0.06545
0.07681
0 . 08908
0.10226

0.11636
0. 13135
0.14726
0.16408
0.18181

0 . 20044
0.21998
0.24044
0.26180
0.28407

0.30725
0.33134
0 . 35634
0 . 38225
0 . 40906

0.00071
0 . 00230
0 . 00480
0.00821
0.01253

0.01775
0 . 02389
0.03094
0 . 03889
0.04775

0 . 05752
0.06821
0.07980
0.09229
0.10570

0.12002
0.13525
0. 15138
0.16843
0.18638

0 . 20524
0.22501
0 . 24569
0 . 26728
0.28978

0.31319
0 . 33750
0.36273
0 . 38886
0.41591

0.00102
0 . 00284
0.00557
0 . 00920
0.01375

0.01920
0.02557
0.03284
0.04102
0.05011

0.06011
0.07102
0 . 08283
0 . 09556
0.10920

0.12374
0.13919
0. 15556
0.17283
0.19101

0.21010
0.23010
0.25100
0 . 27282
0.29555

0.31918
0.34373
0.369 is
0.39554
0.42281

0.00139
0 . 00344
0.00639
0.01025
0.01503

0.02071

0.02730
0 . 03480
0.04321
0.05252

0.06275
0 . 07389
0 . 08593
0 . 09888
0. 11275

0. 12752
0.14320
0.15979
0.17729

0.19570

0.21501
0 . 23524
0 . 25637
(l 27S42
0.30137

0.32523
0.35000
0.37568

0.40227
0.42977

1 . .

2 . .

3 . .

4 . .

5 . .

6 .

7 . .

8 . .

9 . .

10 . .

11 . .

12 . .

13 . .

14 . .

15 . .

16 . .

17 . .

18 . .

19 . .

20 . .

22 . .

23 .

24 . .

25 .

26 . .
27

29 .
31 . .

0 . 00540
0.02184
0.04908
0.08724
0.13632

0.19636
0.26724
0.34908
0.44184
0.54540

0 . 66060
0 . 78540
0.92172
1.0689
1.2271

1.3963
1.5762
1.7671
1 . 9689
2.1817

2 4053
2. 6397
2 . 8852
3.1416

3 4088

3 . 6870
3 . 9760

4 2760
4 5S70
4.9081

0 . 00852
0.02766
0.05760
0.09852
0.15036

0.21300
0 . 28668
0.37128
0 . 46668
0.57300

0.69024
0.81850

0 95760
1.107 is
1.26840

1 44024,
1 . 62300
1.81650
2.02116
2.13656

2.46288
2.70072

2 94S2S
3 . 20736
3 . 47736

3.75828
4 . 05000
4.35276
4 . 66632
4.99092

0.01224
0 . 03408
0 . 06684
0.11040
0 . 16500

0.23040
0 . 30684
0.39408
0.49224
0.60132

0.72132
0 . 85224
0 . 99396
1.14672

1 31040

1 . 48488
1.67028
1.86672
2.07396
2.29212

2.52120

2 76120
3.01200

3 27364
3 . 54666

3.83016
4. 12476
4.43016
4 . 7464S
5 07372

0.01668
0.04128
0 . 07668
0.12300
0.18036

0.24852
0.32760
0.41760
0.51852
0 . 53024

0.75300
0 . 88668
1.03116
1.18556
1.35300

1.53021
1.71840

1.91748
2.1274s
2.34840

2.58012
2 . 82280
3 . 07644
3.34104
3.61644

3.90276
4 . 20000
4.50816
4.82524
5. 15724

approximately 23 pounds absolute, of
which the 19.6 pounds is 86 per cent.
This means that on account of the fall in
back pressure, in passing through the
suction valves and pits in entering the
compressor cylinder, each cubic foot of
gas represents only 86 per cent, as much
ammonia by weight, as it would had no
resistance been encountered and the cyl-
inder back pressure had been 23 pounds,
the same as in the suction line.

The diagram shows that the com-
pressor from which it was taken had ex-
cessive clearance. Due to the reexpan-
sion of the high-pressure gases remaining
in the clearance spaces, the opening of
the suction valve is delayed until the
piston has reached point / in the suction
stroke. Cold returning ammonia gas can
enter the compressor cylinder only dur-
ing the time the piston is passing from /
to the end of its stroke. The full length

TABLE 3. CUBIC FEET F AND POUNDS P OF AMMONIA PER TON OF REFRIGERATION PER 24 HOURS.

Head Pressure, Condenser or Gage Pressure and Corresponding Temperature.

W = Weight per cubic foot .
BP = Back pressure.

100
Pounds.

63.5
degrees

110
Pounds.

68
degrees

120
Pounds.

72.6
degrees

130
Pounds.

77.4
degrees

140
Pounds.

80.3
degrees

150

Pounds.

83.8
degrees

160

Pounds.

87 4
degrees

170
Pounds.

90.8
degrees

180

Pounds.

93.8

degrees

190
Pounds.

96.9
degrees

200
Pounds.

100
degrees

Tempera-
ture,
Degrees
Fahrenheit.

w
BP

0 . 0556
0

0.4159

7.482

0.4199
7.551

0.4240
7.626

0.4284
7.703

0.4310

7.761

0.4343
7.812

0.4376

7.870

0.4408
7.929

0.4440
7.986

0.4470
8.041

0.4501
8.095

1 —28.5
/

0.0133
5

P
F

0.4122
5.636

0.4160
5.675

0 . 4202
5.732

0.4243
5.790

0.4271
5.826

0 . 4308
5 . 878

0 4335
5.914

0.4366
5.970

0.4397
5.999

0.4437
6.039

0.4458
6.081

\ —17.5

0.0910
10

P
F

0 . 4093
4 . 502

0.4130
4 . 543

0.4171
4 . 587

0.4204
4.625

0.4237
4.662

0.4271
4.698

0 4302
4 . 733

0.4332
4.766

0.4363
4.799

0 . 4392
4.833

0.4423
4.865

} - S.5

0.1083
15

0 . 4068
3 . 756

0.4106
3.791

0.4145
3.827

0.4186
3.866

0.4211
3.889

0.4244
3.918

0.4276
3.948

0 . 4288
3 . 975

0 . 4336
4.003

0.4365
4.030

0.4394
4.058

}"'

0.1258
20

0 . 4040
3.211

0 . 4077
3.241

0.4116
3.272

0.4158
3.305

0.4182
3.324

0.4214
3.350

0.4245
3 . 375

0.4275
3.398

0 . 4304
3.422

0 . 4333
3.444

0.4362
3.467

1 5 36

0.1429
25

0 . 4025
2 S19

0.4062
2 . 843

0.4102
2 870

0 4140
2.898

0.4167
2.916

0.4198
2.938

0.4229
2.959

0.4258
2.980

0 . 4287
3.000

0.4316
3.020

0.4345
3 . 040

1 11.5

W
BP

0.1600
30

P
F

0.4013
2 . 507

0.4049
2 . 530

0.4088

2.555

0 4128
2 . 580

0.4152
2.600

0.4184
2.615

0.4213
2 . 633

0.4243
2.653

0.4273
2.671

0 . 4300
2 687

0.4329
2.706

" 1 16.8

W
BP

0.1766
35

0.3991
2.260

0.4028
2.280

0 . 4066
2.302

0.4105
2.925

0.4130
2.338

0.4161
2 . 356

0.4188
2.373

0.4220
2.390

0 . 4249
2.406

0.4277
2.422

0 . 4305
2 143

1 21.7

W
BP

0.1941
40

0 3984
2 . 052

0 . 4020
2.071

0 . 4058
2 090

0 . 4098
2.111

0.4122
2.123

0.4153
2.139

0.4183
2.155

0.4211
2.175

0.4240
2.185

0.4269
2,200

0.4296
2.214

1 26 . 1

F =

144 X 2000

W [1440 /?b.p. — S{tl —t,)]

p =

144 X 2000

1440 Rb.P. — 5 (<! — t2)

May 16, 1911

7-7

of the diagram represents the full stroke
of the piston and a displacement of 100

.ent. of the full volume of the -
inder. In this case, however. 11.4
cent, of the volume is occupied b>

riding hot gas which reduces the
amount of cold gas that can enter the
-or to - cm. In other

the actual displacement of the
compressor in cubic feet is or -- per
cent, of the apparent displacement, based
or the cylinder dimensions only.

a, the 88.6 per cent, of the gas d
charged weighs only i rent, as

much as indica the pressure gage

on the suction line, so that the number of
pounds of ammonia actually dischar
by the compressor was or
per cent, of what would be discharged by a
compressor in which tf > clearance

or resistance offered to the gas in pass-
ing through tb< n valve

.iphically. the length a b of the large
rectangle ah J, repi Men-

tor cylinder volume, and the hight
he absolut. n-gas r

the return line outside the cornpre-
The product of a b and b d. or cubic feet
and ucight per cub ce the

•fit of a gas depends upon the it
lute rfc^urc rcr the apparent

; iaccment r e in poun

The lengt' I the small rcctar;

hat part of the com-
:ume fi :old

(as; and the hight g f. the absolute

re within the cylinder The
product and g f rep- the

iccment r-cr stroke in ;
or the apparcrv cnt minus the

panded hot gas reprcscr' the

h J g.
The displacement efficiency of the com-
! by the ratio of
-.mall to the Ian tgle

and vfll be found to be numer qua I

per cent regardless of the units
employed in measuring the arci

or using pound nt.

•

■■ T'

The apparent numbc
ammonia |a mute t

■
running at I ninute has

the Ind
|u»- that lb.

il num-
ber

multir
thermal u

the

This quantity '

>e number
of H thermal ur foot

was • and, u

star. :

of the ssor m

(ting at tl

not

otht

■

■ '

nmouia
displaced per mm-

compressor i
on at the rate of one tor

'« car »-

inch d. cssor of 76.19

* cjency ope

i bead and Id pounds back
xsra/ I

mtnut*

of constants have bee

tcrminc the tonnage ca fa doir

>or of rcrating

at a ous

f head and back re it

ate

■is.

linutc is the

valcnt of one ton the
tonnage car

be equal to the numb feet of

gas D actual! : accd per minute

icr-

mal <blc

Hut the actual J
met' -^c apparent d

met i the

and

nent cf!

aseumeJ

mir

the m

cquat

be.

■

•t 0

to the displacement

\ ^ ' !

ammo

bane

wh.

dating

int

. ■ •

N •

r a lot v • "

» the b

froet <

■,.,-.-• ' -

c open i* probably

piston into tb

elp some. Ni'

n the ba»< ition tbaf any

he bottom of thte

tiaebme.

The cjuj' ; ■» ; ; i *' • • '< < rx*x%-

tioa Ime to the
iiod that rbe

'tof

Wnc to tbe fCf

aid •«mU aloa

788

POWER

May 16, 1911

Z^"

J&.

"Hydromatic" Water Valve

The "Hydromatic" water valve consists
of a cast-iron body, a cast-iron cover
plate and a brass plunger which is made
in two parts. The lower part is screwed
into the upper and holds a rubber ring
E — or where required for hot water, a
lead ring — which seats in the valve body,
making a tight shutoff when the plunger
is down.

The brass plunger travels in a brass
bushing, and is fitted into it with a pis-
ton fit, requiring no packing. Small
tapered holes D are drilled into the top

What the in-
ventor and the manu-
facturer are doing to save
time and money in the en-
gine room and power1
house. Engine room
news

entering at A and passing between the

rubber ring and valve seat, passes down

around the ribbed valve to the outlet.

The valve is very sensitive in its ac-

Showing Details of the Hydromatic Water Valve

tion and permits a small inflow of water
or a large inflow of the total capacity of
the intake pipe, according to the amount
of water withdrawn from the tank.

This valve can be used for maintaining
water level in tanks, vats, laundry tubs,
cisterns, open feed-water heaters, water
towers and for a quick opening or clos-
ing of a large water main. This may be
accomplished by closing the valve in the
34-inch pipe, which instantly shuts off the
flow of water in the main pipe; the open-
ing of the valve in the 34-inch pipe in-
stantly starts the flow of water. The
shutoff valve in this 34-inch pipe may be
placed any distance from the hydromatic
value, as long as the hight of the 34-
inch pipe above the hydromatic valve
does not create a water pressure per
square inch greater than that exerted by
water in the main pipe. This device is
manufactured by the Cleveland Steel
Tool Company, Cleveland, O.

Miller Automatic Water
Controller

This device has been designed to
economically handle the distilled water
in an ice plant and assists in making
pure ice, free from oil and the objection-
able red core. The device is illustrated
and its action described herewith. A
small amount of waste water from the
skimmer fills the pan, causing it to drop
down a few inches and rotate the valve
stem, thus opening the valve.

of the plunger with a capacity for build-
ing up head pressure according to the
size of the valve. Into the head of the
valve above the plunger is tapped a 34-
inch hole, and from this a 34-inch pipe
leads to a pilot valve F, at the water level.
This valve is controlled by the operation
of a seamless-copper 5-inch float.

When the water in a tank reaches the
required hight shown by the location of
the pilot valve, the elevation of the float
closes the valve and shuts off the vent
through the 34 -inch pipe. A head pres-
sure is thereby built up through holes in
the top of the plunger, strong enough to
force the plunger down and shut off the
flow of water through the valve. As wa-
ter is withdrawn from the tank, permitting
the float to drop, the pilot valve F is
opened and the head pressure on the
plunger is released just enough to per-
mit the flow of water to restore sufficiently
the required level in the tank. The water

Showing Automatic Water Controller in Two Positions

May 16, 1911

A shaft is made to slip on over the
end of the valve- stem (locked there by a
pin and slot), and also serves a-
on which the arm ratal On

one end of the rocker arm is an
able weight and on the other end a small
pan with a hole in the bottom near the
outer end. This allows the ■-
flow from the rcboiler into the storage
tank.

After the uater in the reboi
been lowered an inch or so. the pan
returns to it-, normal position by the
action of the counterweight.

Th re, which rem.i

closed until the rebo again full

and goes to skimming, thus causing the
hot distilled water in the cooling

coil long enough to get the full benefit
of the cooling water. The
repeated every feu :ninir

The dt from complicated

mechanism and can be installed any-
where between the rcboiler and the stor-
tank and V iter sweet and

the ice clear.

It is manufactured by L. G. Millet
Son^ I .ordon Jackson. Tenn.

Bi adford Automatic Val

The principle upon which these \i.

• iaps most clearly shown
in the section of the nonrctun
I Upon a s|

780

In the valve pa««agc i» carried a ho

•lide* fi

i»
■ ■
scat through the por ■ and a

•mall mere* v i

:h it acceaaib tite

J to c jo.

passage In add > tbc controlling

J of the cor: .

top of

rawi he full
boiler ; .uoee

the to fc m up-

->agc for the flow
•h rough tfat and

'low be
as in case of an accident to
boil *j|| be carried t<

scar ■ ! be

rom slamming by the cushion-
on of r im in V.

t slowly through the con-
.
at.
In *n a protector va

ut off automatically the Row

I
n the main
normal

Jctcrmincd
am« per minute

■

to tear

app a combm

and bj

an affnooohartc r -

front all

■

n, T

■
. . .... ^

Comb: *osph!

rat

-hangeaMc The
J no.
street. Boston. Mass

■

I ' Tolin ; v tci

Th mpound ha

through th-

the mcta! of a '

pa off and the i cooled

a film to • '

lated. no - cdiment of

any kind i
The compour

■eak

an be blo»

boilers It »\%n hoij% th. 'orming

•cdiment in so
Water

and kk

and the manu'

miafion ol "c»

The compound c form o'

to the aajctloo tin* or

ind ft J to the
ector or pump
Tt-

Ceanper

Quite «c

ix i • o ' huatuadaTa^AA *

790

POWER

May 16, 1911

Institute of Operating En-
gineers in Chicago

Since the first of the year there has
been in process of formation a Chicago
branch of the Institute of Operating En-
gineers. Monthly meetings have been
held in the rooms of the Western Society
of Engineers and the movement is now
well under way. At the last meeting,
which was held May 2, it was decided
that there would be no further monthly
meetings until the fall, when a vigorous
campaign will be conducted and a sys-
tematic course of lectures arranged for,
all having a bearing on the problems
which the operating engineer must solve
in his everyday work.

Heating Boiler Explosion
Kills Two

Two men were killed and one injured,
probably fatally, when a low-pressure
sectional boiler exploded in the basement
of the supply house of the Union Elec-
tric Light and Power Company, St. Louis,
Mo., May 4, at about 9 o'clock at night.

The men had gone to the subcellar to
get some wire and, according to the ad-
vices received, found that the boiler was
highly overheated, due to lack of water.
One of the men opened a valve in the
water-supply pipe and when the cold
water struck the cast-metal sections an
explosion followed.

The low water was caused by some

Remains of Heating Boiler Which Killed Two Men

The Chicago organization will be
known as the T. J. Waters branch. Mr.
Waters was a prominent operating engi-
neer of Chicago and was for many years
chief engineer of the Board of Education.
He made a special study of heating and
ventilating problems and his work in
this connection received honorable men-
tion at the Paris Exposition.

Officers have been chosen as follows:
P. J. Fleming, branch chairman; W. L.
Jackson, lecturer on plant operation; I. J.
Bent, lecturer on educational subjects;
O. Monnett, secretary-treasurer. Address
of the secretary, 1214 People's Gas
building, Chicago.

derangement of the return pipes of the
heating system. The night watchman dis-
covered that the water of the return
tank of the system was overflowing, in-
stead of returning to the boiler.

Details regarding the exact nature of
the stoppage of water have not been ob-
tainable at this writing.

The Electrical Engineers'
Pacific Coast Meeting

The Pacific Coast meeting of the
American Institute of Electrical Engi-
neers was held at the Hotel Alexandria,
Los Angeles, Cal., on April 25 to 29
inclusive. Seven business sessions were

conducted at which the various papers
arranged for by the committees were
presented and discussed.

On Tuesday afternoon an excursion
was made to Redondo beach, where the
party inspected the power plant of the
Pacific Light and Power Corporation. On
Wednesday a trip was taken to Pasadena
and up Mount Lowe over the spectacular
trolley route. On Friday an all-day trip
was made to the Mill Creek power plant
of the Southern California Edison Com-
pany, about eight miles from Mentone
in San Bernardino county. A purely
pleasure trip was made on Saturday to
Catalina Island, starting from Los
Angeles at 9:50 a.m. About 300 mem-
bers and guests were registered.

PERSONAL

George W. Stetson, New England
agent for various manufacturers of
power-plant equipment, is now located
in the Oliver building, room 510, Bos-
ton, Mass.

Fred S. Hickey, formerly with the
Anchor Packing Company, has associated
himself with the Dearborn Drug and
Chemical Works, as salesman for their
feed-water treatment and lubricants, in
the loop district of Chicago.

On the evening of May 3, Col. E. D.
Meier, president of the American Society
of Mechanical Engineers, addressed a
joint dinner of the local members of that
society and the Providence Association
of Mechanical Engineers at the West
Side Club. These two organizations have
recently affiliated and Colonel Meier's
address was based upon this action.

Prof. F. R. Hutton, who is now presi-
dent of the Industrial Safety Association,
also addressed the meeting, speaking on
safety appliances.

W. M. White, formerly of the I. P.
Morris Company, of Philadelphia, has
become associated with the Allis-Chal-
mers Company as manager and chief
engineer of the hydraulic-turbine depart-
ment. During the past ten years, Mr.
White has been closely in touch with
hydraulic-turbine development in this
country and for the past five years has
had entire charge of the designing for
the I. P. Morris Company, in which posi-
tion he has designed the hydraulic ma-
chinery for some of the largest installa-
tions in the country. These include such
notable plants as that of the Hydraulic
Power Company and the Toronto Power
Company, of Niagara Falls, the Great
Western Power Company, Of California,
the Washington Power Company, of
Spokane, Wash., and the Shawinigan
Falls Power Company, of Montreal, Can.
Mr. White also designed some of the
large centrifugal pumps for the New
Orleans drainage system and those that
supply the water for the city of Duluth.

\i w m >kk. \i n

ON ral occasions th

devoted to attempts t<» impress upon
tin ' he in ' \ i"i k<

mpleti Is.

It mui me fruit,

we t>ut we do not intend ti ■

at that; we intend to keep right 01

then
the cati!

implel 'iir

post the) how wherein improvement

nd th- ii th< in

hi, i, k and whiU 1>\ which the engin<
<li tin claims «»t tin- central

smI:

Ii it is found to !»•

1 than it should, then th.
thing with the equipment «»r t

operation; otherwise th<

sllill a- In U 1\ l il

t iMii field Wl

Show \% :

W'lnl.

an ly hai 1 tiw

making and k<
plant Tl

■
t y pi

in tli.

with tl

Tl 'II

tin plant whi thoi

do not pi
tional moi frills.

it li tl
shall mpelli :in<l s

Tlu- question naturally am
do undei such
< H K . the ans*

upon t! nalit> m<l th. :lness

•

Had insult i

mmendation, tht
that it would -it

being <j med

Wh\ . then

[uall) :iil in hi th

tin- ii

tin It

.iihI In

■

I > I :

put

•It lit

111

lilt '

•

■

792

POWER

May 23, 1911

Novel Method of Supporting Stack

There has recently been completed for
the central power plant of the Oliver
estate at Pittsburg, a difficult en-
gineering feat in an addition to the
smokestack, as shown in the accompany-
ing illustrations. This plant supplies all
of the Oliver properties, including the
Oliver building, a 25-story office structure,
the McCreery & Co. store, a 12-story
building, and a number of smaller build-
ings, with electric lights, steam heat,
elevator service, refrigeration and com-
pressed air, and is large enough to take
care of any addition which may be made
to the property, including the projected
Hotel Oliver.

The plant is located in the basemenqt
of the Stevenson building annex, and
contains 3220 boiler horsepower. As
originally constructed, the stack was a
self-supporting steel structure 10 feet
63^ inches outside diameter, rising
through one corner of the building to
a hight of over 221 feet above the boiler-
room floor and 80 feet above the roof of
.he building, terminating approximately

By Cadwalder Evans, Jr. *

When it was decided to in-
crease the hight of the steel
stack of the Stevenson build-
ing in Pittsburg, it was
found that the corner col-
umn of the building would
not support the additional
weight; hence a steel tower
was constructed and the new
section of stack supported
from it on a cantilever.

♦Superintendent of central power plant of
Oliver estate.

the eighteenth floor in the Oliver build-
ing; hence, it was decided to raise the
stack. The first plan called for a sym-
metrical steel tower about the present

Fig. 1. New Stack in Place with 18-foot Section of Old Stack Removed

on a level with the fifteenth floor of the
Oliver building, from which it is distant
about 200 feet.

The gases from the stack caused con-
siderable discomfort to the tenants above

stack but it was found that the corner
column of the building was not heavy
enough to carry the load, so the present
overhung structure was decided upon.
This consists of a steel tower 83 feet 9

inches high supported on four of the
building columns and carrying the new
stack on a cantilever. The tower is 25
feet 4 inches by 21 feet 5 inches in sec-
tion and the center of the new stack
overhangs the tower by over 6 feet. The
new part of the stack is 124 feet high,
making the total hight of 345 feet 8^5
inches above the boiler-room floor and
323 feet 8§^ inches above the ground.

The new stack is entirely self-support-
ing, is lined with vitrabestos 2 inches

Fig. 2. Tower in Process of Con-
struction

thick and has an inside diameter of 7
feet 8 inches, which is 2 feet 6 inches
smaller than the old part. The details
of erection were very ingenious and com-
prised: First, the erection of the steel
tower to its total hight, which brought it
6 feet above the top of the old stack;
second, an 18-foot section of the old
stack was removed and lowered to the
ground, complete with its lining; third, a
smoke-tight 12xl2-foot wooden box with
side walls 8 feet high and open at the
top, was erected 14 feet above the re-
duced stack. This afforded a shield from
the smoke in which the men were able
to work while putting up the lower sec-
tions of the new stack. After this was
completed, the temporary box was re-
moved and most of the smoke was drawn
through the 18-foot open gap. rhe top
section of the old stack was then hoisted
back into place in one piece and the ex-
tension joint between the old and the
new sections was packed, thus complet-
ing the job.

May 23, 1911

;:r

:^3

Real Cause of a Flywheel Explosion

On March 1, l<*r?, at about 4 p.m., the
flywheel burst on No. 3 engine in the
Hotel Knickerbocker The

explosion of this wheel caused consider-
able property damage, and a a as
quite badly injured by a piece of the
wheel coming through the floor of the
barber shop where he was a -a
chair. The fragment of the wheel pa^
so close to the barber that he lost his
balance and fell through the opening in
the floor into the engine room bcl<

.s \*crc broken and the en-
gine-room force performed acts of \alor
ng the havoc caused by the cx-
; : on.

An account of the accident, which •-
f, as all information
refused, appeared in P<>» m at the ti
The facts as here stated *crc I
out in the c dan

Domini, at Astor a-

gan. I - is the na-ue of •' • in-

. and Recgan. the
e same day the accident oc<
*crc called in to learn the c.i
of the accident, and found t! 'nor

uheel v rincipal

damage to I

en the '• cr,

one of them in
urc had ui J a flau ap-

around the

ually dwlndlir to

not! om the ;

shown.

when the i«scmb!<

wheel had the appcarar.. I in

of all the fractures, and the

ng pa'

• from the wl
the weight arms

w« ft.

flan;

the other one being

■

ft. and
-ere ll

flan, Kan a-

• nge

It vat C

flaw w.i

• and this v«s Kiven fli

' the

.1 area

1 luhcrt 1 . ( ollins

safety <

i*>n fH&aa Hj

factor of

Mi CISC

ike
Knit

■

i
tit the time />/</

in tht

i I

link f>in bound //'

As in !K» or decrease* in pro-

the squ.. dag »elo

factor of safety on the speed la

i r -

the speed could
tea

1008

ie lirah
of - ii* consi:

through the fla* i

As a matter of ft

wheel is mi.

on. In considei
the na crosa

■

oint of the

ban ■ -y>\e

ngih of

conaidc
a of icel.

i! area

of Bi >nal

gh fla- ;arc

>unds.
The strength of the rim through the

the
ilas and process. -
■

In which

the : nan ; arc inch of

the rim ma und to

ne-
quaner of a solid wheel,

■

4
The fa,

n speed to

n asy other

rooa-sc

•he |c

ring

« pp. • • r>a of rim from anm «<» •'

e wheel
f ese

aaaaaa

■

-
* oa) ike

heel* v

.nad la

794

POWER

May 23, 1911

the same way as in the wheel in ques- tail in Fig. 4. Where this brass fused

tion. to the steel it left little ridges of metal.

Professor Benjamin tested wheels of By referring to Fig. 3, it may be seen

15 to 44 inches in diameter and made of that the two weight-arm links B and C

Join t"B" one Bolt sheared at one End 5

,< » both Ends broken off
„ i> " ■> " » intact

— >

i A.

v^ — \

— t—

i \J

\ T
i 1
i /\_

! XJ

)

i — i

was in service continuously up to the
time of the accident, close to fourteen
hours. No trouble was noticed until a
few seconds before the accident, when a
heavy pound started in the governor and
then the engine suddenly speeded up, the
generator making an ever increasing
screeching noise. The engineer on watch
started for the throttle and before he
could reach it, the wheel exploded.

The evidence showed that the link pin
was dry and had run hot. This had

III

ill)

= _ == —

POWER,

No. I. Point "A"broken against Crane Girder
No. 8. made Hole in Barber Shop Floor

No. 6 made Hole in Switch Board
No? 3,4,1?, II, 13 found below Shaft-

Fig. 2. The Broken Wheel Reassembled

No. 7 made Hole in
Hallway Floor

Power.

closer iron than the average. He found
the tensile strength of the iron to be
19,000 pounds, but on larger wheels it is
safer to allow 15,000 pounds, as was done
in considering this wheel. He also found
the maximum and minimum rim veloc-
ities at the bursting point to be 196 and
184 feet per second, respectively, that
is, the highest and lowest velocities at
which any of the wheels in his tests let
go. These tests verify the fact that the
wheel in question was well within the
limit of safety at its rated speed.

The acceptance test also brought out
the fact that the engine was governing
within its rated percentage as evidenced
by speed tachometers, and the valves
were covering the steam ports properly, as
shown on the indicator diagrams. The dia-
grams show that with the throttle wide
open and no load, the initial pressure
in the cylinder was 29 to 30 pounds less
than the steam pressure in the pipes and
with full load the drop from steam pres-
sure to initial was 2.5 pounds.

Real Cause of Accident

Having disposed of the flywheel prob-
ability, the real cause of the accident mayv
be investigated. Fig. 3 shows the gov-
ernor and wheel of this engine. The ac-
cident stripped the wheel completely from
the shaft, and after the parts were as-
sembled it was found that the link pin A
was scored and cut and some of the
brass from the link bushing had fused to
the steel pin. This pin is shewn in de-

are made fast to the eccentric by pin A.
This pin passes through one end of each
link. These links are brass bushed, and
on the inside of the link next to the ec-
centric were found the plain marks of
threads. Pin A made up tight in the boss
of the eccentric against the shoulder A,

Fig. 4. Link Pin Which Caused the
Accident

loosened the pin from the eccentric by
pinching it, and the movement of the gov-
ernor had gradually worked it loose until
it was still holding by two or three
threads; but there was still room enough
for the inside link to pound on the
threads between the shoulder A, Fig. 4,
and the eccentric boss. That it did so
pound is shown by the plain marks of
threads on the inside of the bushing on
the link. The pin was long enough in
the thread to still hold and allow this.

This was when the pounding occurred
a few seconds before the explosion. Then
the most plausible theory is that the pin
was pulled out of line enough to bind
the governor and cause it to stick and let
the engine run away.

Some criticism was made of the fact
that this pin had no lock nut. On the

CL of Rocker
Arm\Shaft

8P3

&£

•felg

-r

<il

Fig. 3. The Governor and Wheel as They Appeared Before the Accident

Fig. 4. This made it self-locking. The
two link ends fitted the large end of this
pin.

This engine had been put in service
at 2 a.m. on the day of the accident and

contrary, there was no need of such, as
it locked against the shoulder.

The final conclusion as to the primary
cause of the accident was that "the pin
was dry."

May 23, 1911

A Turbine Driven Roller Mill

The rolling-mill Held, looked upon as
one of the last and n; >ng-

holds of the reciprocating engine, has
been invaded by the steam turbine. An
installation at t .-rbank steel works

of James hunlop & Co. wa- sub-

ject of a pa; ntcd to the

cotland Iron and Steel In-
stitute by A. Quintin Carnegie, of the
Parsons Co: .

About the time that the Parsons u
rimenting with the "Vespasian," up-
on which it will be remembered the
j of the turbine was reduced to that
of the propeller through gears, the q>.
lion of the motive power for the new
rolling mill was up. and it was proposed
to use the exhaust steam from the ex-
isting mill engines for electrically driv-
ing the new mill through a la ure
turbine. Calculations showed that a fly-
wheel already on hand was large enough
to permit the rolls to be operated with
an almost constant load on the driving
engine, and the idea of - iting
gearing for an electrical reduction hc-

-1 7

turl

mill

will.

n the turbine and flywheel shaft :
sented itself. The electrical trans
sion would cost something like 12 per
cent, in transformation losses, whereas
the fractional loss, including that of the
bearings of the gearing, would not be
over I ML, while the gearing in-

volved a much smaller investment.
The turbine, of which the accompany-

produced from
The er and the halftone

I. from Engineering, is of the Parsons
re and runs at 2000
per minute, either »ith

at a pressure of 16 pounds

on the boilers si a r
♦50 pound*

Tbe

t mechan-
ism t cans of steam - and arc
arranged m i! to
<hc n. When the

insttAc
cquired is automatic
sup: gh-prcssurt tbe

ion of »een high-

I and exhaust stesm b<

speed. In
order i air from being drawn

in when tr a shortage of

n. a smal!
causes the low-pressure throttle to close
whenever the exhaust steam falls to
nearly atmosp'

areas are so proportioned that the
load may be carried atmospheric

pressure at the first row of low-pressure
blades, the high-pres*
case ninnir n steam ef atmospheric

796

POWER

May 23, 1911

pressure. When the whole load is taken
by high-pressure steam, the pressure in
the first row of low-pressure blades falls
to about eight pounds absolute, so that
the smaller quantity of steam is still
able to fill the blades and maintain an
efficient velocity ratio. Full power from
the turbine may be obtained from either
source of steam supply or a mixture of
the two.

bearings under a pressure of from eight
to ten pounds per square inch by a
pump driven from an extension of the
governor shaft, but the oil for the gear-
ing is delivered by a separate pump
driven from the intermediate shaft by
means of a Reynolds silent chain. This
pump draws oil from settling chambers
in the bottoms of the gear cases and
sprays it continuously onto the teeth.

20 times that of the turbine and gears,
it is evident that the latter are subjected
to a small fraction of the shock due to the
rolling mill. The flywheel shaft is con-
nected to the main pinion of the mill by
a pair of wobbling couplings. One of
these is of cast steel, while the other
is of cast iron, of such section as to al-
low its breaking in the event of any
undue strain on the mill. Four of these

iVi''v''''V ' TT~~Pfl

Low' Pressure
Steam inlet

Powes.

The turbine was designed to develop
750 brake horsepower, and this has been
found to be ample. The mill runs at 70
revolutions per minute, the turbine at
2000 revolutions and the intermediate
shaft at 375 revolutions. The high-speed
pinion is formed solid with its shaft and
is made of chrome-nickel steel. The
pitch-line diameter is 7.143 inches, and
there are 25 teeth, d>]/2 inches diametrical
pitch. The wheel into which it gears has
131 teeth and is 37.429 inches in diam-
eter, with a total face width of 24 inches.
The second reduction gear has a mild
steel pinion, with 23 teeth, 2 inches cir-

Fig. 2. Longitudinal Section of Turbine

The level of the oil is kept sufficiently
low to be quite clear of the bottoms of
the wheels. The arrangement of the gear
is shown in Fig. 3 herewith, also repro-
duced from The Engineer. Couplings of
the flexible type are fitted between the
turbine and the high-speed pinion shaft,
and also between the first and second re-
duction gears. These allow for small
errors in the alinement of the shafts, and
also give the necessary end freedom for
expansion of the turbine shaft.

Together with its shaft the flywheel
weighs nearly 100 tons. It is carried on
two adjustable gun-metal bearings, each

couplings are said to have broken in one
afternoon.

The Summer School of Engineering un-
der direction of the College of Engineer-
ing of the University of Wisconsin, opens
June 26, continuing for six weeks. Regu-
lar and advanced courses are offered in
direct and alternating currents, hydraulics,
machine design, descriptive geometry, ap-
plied mechanics, shopwork, steam and
gas engineering and surveying. Ele-
mentary courses adapted to the require-
ment of those not having preparation for
the advanced work are offered in me-

Chain Drive
in,

Oil Pump for Wheel Theeth-.^ I „,

for Oil Pump ((

g\ J W!>.

Flexible Coupling

ffo\

Fig. 3 General Arrangement of the Gears

cular pitch. The pitch circle diameter
is 14.912 inches, and it gears into a
wheel of 80.848 inches diameter, with
127 teeth. The total face width of the
low-speed gear is 16 inches. The double
helical teeth are at an angle of 23 de-
grees with the axis of the shaft. Both
pairs of gears are placed in cast-iron
gear cases with white-metal bearings
for the shafts. Oil is pumped into the

22 inches in diameter. One of these
bearings forms part of the lower-speed
gear box. The low-speed gear wheel is
keyed directly on to the end of the fly-
wheel shaft and is overhung from its
bearing. The flywheel, which is of cast
iron, is in two portions, connected with
the usual shrunk links. The external
diameter of the wheel is 23 feet. Since
the stored energy in the flywheel is about

chanical drawing, machine design and
shopwork, in addition to which oppor-
tunity is offered for laboratory work in
the electrical, steam and gas laboratories
for those who have had power-plant ex-
perience or correspondence instruction.
The teaching staff is taken from the
regular instructional force, and all labora-
tory equipment of the engineering col-
lege is available for students.

May 23, l'JIl

i K

Napier's Formula with Superheat

A short time ago, Mr. Harter presented
a paper, at a meeting of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers, setting
forth some incidental observations upon
the value of Napier licicnt with

superheated steam. The values rec<>
were for superheats between 45 anJ
degrees Fahrenheit, but unfortunately the
sciics was confined to a range of pi
surcs between 138 and 148 pounds gage,
rente care was taken in making all
observations and the probable error
within 0.2 of one per cent.

The same orifice vi in all the

and was formed in a -inch plate
with edges rounded to a 'i -inch rad
the contracted diameter being 12
inches. In figuring the I no cor-

rection was made for expansion due to
the temperature of the diaphragm, owing
to the smallness of the error arising from
this source.

The results arc plotted in Fig. I. in
which curve No. I gives the Napier co-
cnt corresponding to each set of
readings obtained in the t( I Calibra-
tion • • of the orifice for saturated
steam showed a coefficient of about 1
the difference between this and the or-
dinarily accepted figure of 70 being, no
doubt, due to the form of orifice. The

I
I

H ream flowing per

a s Area of the orifice in square
incr

Cur\ ibic feet of

jV too i*o ; )

D«3'««a. 8vp«r*«0f •■■*■

I NAfiee's Con

i A

1 >»<!

. <M »tr«m at p.. ■; lai

1 30? a

.• a, al p,. I« ■ i

-' 1

n «

• • i mn*J treat a. of mm p > ■» t p..

r determining Napier's coeffi-
I as plotted in cur\c No I

where.

N«; ' it;

T Teal pr^surc, absolute;

ccond for diflt
amount the retulta being

^asis of the avcra^
■ig the tests in oi
to make the volume discharged depend

•?,-

,-Sff

V'i

V"
■

.....

•«■

-i

ISO

a'a'a'a'a'a'a'a'.*

0«

per secof

In commc
suit-

» re-

9.ftt

■ NOXZLO UstD »• I

urn

OIU

i ■»

- •

798

POWER

May 23, 1911

suits with the theoretical values of
Napier's divisor deduced from the truly
adiabatic steam jet.

In Fig. 2, curve No. 1 represents Mr.
Harter's curve No. 1, while curve No. 2
shows the ideal value ef the Napier con-
stant. The calculation for the five points
along this curve is outlined in the accom-
panying table. The general data are: ini-
tial pressure pi equals 160 pounds abso-
lute; pressure in throat of jet p„ equals
92 pounds absolute, or 0.575 p,, for which
pressure the saturation temperature is
321.9 degrees Fahrenheit:

The steam quantities in this calcula-
tion were taken from an as yet unpub-
lished table of the properties of steam,

which differs from the Marks and Davis
tables by amounts lying within the region
of experimental indeterminateness.

The two curves in Fig. 2 show agree-
ment in form, and indicate a coefficient
of discharge of 0.97 to 0.98; this coeffi-
cient being the ratio of the ideal to the
observed value of N.

In this connection it is shown how the
coefficient of discharge works out for an
important set of experiments made by
Rateau, in 1900. Fig. 3 shows the noz-
zles and orifice used. In Fig. 4, curves
A, B and C correspond with nozzles A,
B and C, respectively. The curve N
is the average of these three, while D
applies to the sharp-edged orifice. The

pressure ratio is the ratio of the final to
the initial pressures, that is, p2 -r- Pi. The
ideal flow is based on the assumption that
when p2 falls below 0.575 p,, it ceases to
exert any influence upon the rate of flow.
These experiments show that it has a
small influence; the discharge is equal to
the ideal rate when p2 is the same as the
throat pressure p,„ but increases very
slowly as p2 falls. The coefficient of dis-
charge thus becomes greater than unity,
being about 1.02 when p2 equals 0.1 p,,
which is about the governing condition in
the tests reported by Mr. Harter. Curve
D shows a marked contraction of the jet,
which decreases, however, as p2 becomes
less.

Flow of Heat through Furnace Wall

A set of exhaustive investigations have
recently been completed at the fuel-
testing plant of the United States Geo-
logical Survey at Pittsburg, Penn., by
Messrs. Ray and Kreisinger upon the flow
of heat through furnace walls. A spe-
cially constructed furnace was used, all
temperature measurements were taken
by means of thermocouples and every
precaution was observed to insure ac-
curate results.

The temperature difference was taken
as a basis for measuring the relative heat
transfer, the nearly true assumption be-
ing made that there is no cooling effect
due to leakage currents of air through
the brickwork or into, out of or along
the air space. With this true, the quan-
tity of heat passing through an inner
part of the wall is exactly equal to the
heat passing through another part farther
out. For example, the quantity of heat
which is conducted through the inner
firebrick wall is exactly equal to the
heat which passes across the air space,
and is exactly equal to the heat which
is conducted through the outer common
brick wall, and also equal to the heat
radiated from the outside surface. If
this were not so, equilibrium would be
impossible; that is, if more heat passed
through ihe inner wall than through the
outer wall and over the air space, then
the heat would accumulate next to the
air space and would be accompanied by
a continually increasing temperature. Or,
if more heat passed through the outer
wall than through the inner one and
through the air space, the heat in the
outer wall would diminish and its tem-
perature would drop — an event contrary
to conditions of equilibrium.

The quantity of heat flowing by con-
duction from one plane to another
through any portion of the furnace wall
depends upon the difference of tempera-
lure between these two planes and upon
the resistance to the heat flow. With
the same temperature difference, if the
resistance is high, a small quantity of
heat flows through; if the resistance is

As a result of recent investi-
gations at the testing plant
of the United States Geolog-
ical Survey it has been
found that a solid wall is a
better heat insulator than
a wall of the same total
thickness containing an air
space.

low, a large quantity flows through. Or,
if the quantity of heat is to remain con-
stant, the temperature difference must
be large if the resistance to the heat
flo.w is high, and small if the resistance
is low. For example, if the temperature
difference between the faces of the fire-
brick wall is high, it may be said that
the resistance to the heat flow through
the firebrick wall is high; or, if the tem-
perature difference between the two sur-
faces on each side of the air space is
low, it may be inferred that the resist-
ance to the heat passage across the air
space is low. Thus it is possible to rely
upon the temperature difference as be-
ing a true indicator of high or low re-
sistance to heat flow between any two
planes which are parallel to the surface
of the wall.

The investigations particularly con-
cerned the air-space type of wall con-
struction as compared with the solid
brick wall or walls in which the air
space is filled with some solid material
of low heat conductivity. The results
showed conclusively the rather surpris-
ing fact that in furnace construction a
solid wall is a better heat insulator than
a wall of the same total thickness con-
taining an air space. This is especially
true if the air space is close to the fur-
nace side of the wall. In view of this,
where it is desirable to build the walls
in two parts, so as to prevent cracks

from being formed by the expansion of
the brickwork, it is preferable to fill the
space with some solid (not firm but
loose) insulating material. Any such
materials as ash, crushed brick or sand
offer higher resistance to the flow of
heat than an air space; furthermore, a
loose material by its plasticity reduces
the air leakage. It was found that one
inch of asbestos was more effective as
a heat insulator under the existing con-
ditions than a 2-inch air space.

There is a general belief that since
air is a poor conductor of heat, air spaces
built into the walls of a furnace will
prevent or reduce heat dissipation through
the walls. Although there may be in-
stances in which this is true, yet, as
a rule, the effect of the air space is
just the opposite. While the heat travels
very slowly through the air by conduc-
tion, it passes over the air space very
readily by radiation.

The quantity of heat passing through
a portion of a solid wall by conduction
depends upon the difference between the
temperatures of the two planes limiting
the portion of the wall, whereas the
quantity of heat that passes across the
air space in a wall depends upon the
difference of the fourth powers of the
absolute temperatures of the surfaces in-
closing the air space. It follows that, in
case the heat passes by conduction
through the solid portion of the wall, the
loss remains approximately the same so
long as the temperature difference of the
two limiting planes remains constant, no
matter what may be the actual tempera-
tures of the two planes. On the other
hand, the heat passing across the air
space by radiation increases rapidly with
the temperatures of the inclosing sur-
faces, although the difference between
these temperatures may remain constant.
The important point is that the air space,
which is advantageous in the walls of a
refrigerator because the temperatures
are low, is objectionable in a furnace wall
because the temperatures are high.

May 23. 1911

POW I k

A Perpetual Hydraulic Motor

About the middle of a warm holiday
afternoon in May. 18 — , in the western
corridor of an upper floor of a down:
office building in a city of the Middle
West, an elderly man dressed in a gray
suit was carefully searching for a certain
door. This was made evident by the
close examination he gave each door in
turn. Although he was apparently fifty-
five old and haJ uray
hair, his walk was firm and decided; his
face was clean shaven and he bore him-
self with a semi-military air.

)

At roo - after examining ll

on the glass, he tried the knob, bt
would not tun
by a man

A few pre s and the men -

acquair J to

u!t Hi the

former'* im that had

been his dream day and night for per-

-cam was r
dream to him his

his nation, ye*, to the
:d.

BaadCn i" i, ■ bis open || I

frank manner and

looked all

nest
and honorable, and sut

• ion as a con-
ing engineer, even though he was so
he had h< icJ in the

best schools, the school of theory, the

By 1 . W. Salmon

■

he
.'</ lift f; matU
rk. 111.
that Il-
ls that
■

school of practice and the school of ad-

ith's most intimate friend. Ham-
mond, had told him to find this man
Bandcox ar !n per-

fecting the invention; Bandcox had but

miv seen it

move. I know that the

;*. tad upon his

look than before. Henry, in i
good -by at the do< roualy i

his firm belief that no useful or profll
able purpose could be attained by spend-
ing money on or ■ c c crimenting »ith
such a :

The old man had for half a I

iea ths-

any man would be able to get power

soon as some cor.

show bow to i a again

under the bottom wheel aad mcdssalcs)
WOU rk on hit models,

friction to

-. •••»(
thev won Id rwogh tbt »bb

!*'"«•• •• irgc machine* when opt"

he woi

and be undertook.

-h folded ur aad

hi* p
on - abown

lajfch

pnaied b* his frWad Hammond.

designed aad a satitf
I made to snow to

800

POWER

May 23, 1911

placed at their disposal. Hammond
vouched for the excellent reputation of
Smith and assured Bandcox that Smith
would undoubtedly pay his bills for ser-
vices promptly. Moreover, Hammond
emphatically declared that he had seen
a model run, though it was roughly made
and very small. Bandcox, however, could

Fig. 4. Floats Built as Rollers to
Eliminate Friction

not reconcile this with his theoretical
knowledge.

During the discussion sketches as per
Figs. 2 and 3 were made. In Fig. 2 the
inventor arranged for a water-tight tube
in which the floats were to pass down-
ward. This was to nullify the objection
raised by Bandcox that in the earlier de-
sign the efforts on the various parts
of the chain were equally balanced.

In the design in Fig. 3 Smith thought
he had solved every difficulty. The floats
were open at the base of the cone so
that they would fill with water in descend-
ing. Bandcox explained that there was
nothing to cause them to rise on the as-
cending side.

Smith called later with pieces of the
apparatus that it was claimed had "run";
still, Bandcox claimed that the machine
was not feasible and advised against
spending money in models or patents.
But, Smith insisted that drawings be
made upon which an application for a
patent could be based. Finally, this was
done; the drawings showed a design very
similar to that in Fig. 4. Smith explained
that in this design the last objection of-
fered by Bandcox had been met, for
should any of the floats in descending
touch the side of the tube they would
roll and thus not offer the resistance
which was found so objectionable in the
design in Fig. 2.

After this, Smith often called at Band-
cox's little office, sometimes bringing in-
terested friends with him, and many

methods were talked over as to "the best
way to overcome the cussedness of the
thing," but Bandcox always protested
against the machine as not being feasible.
Still, Smith had several models made and
these altered from time to time but to
no purpose. So, gradually, his visits to
Bandcox became less frequent and finally
ceased entirely.

On one cold day of the following
spring, Bandcox sat in a little workshop
at a board on trestles in one of the back
rooms of the factory of — well, let's say
the Olivett Manufacturing Company, in
the small town of, say, Olivett. He was
a good engineer and a good student, but
he was neither a good "business getter"
nor a good "cash collector" so he had
given up his office with the last of his
little capital and "taken a job" on a small
salary with an expert "business getter"

Fig. 5. How the Machine Was Made
to Work

who reaped large profits from Bandcox's
labor and skill.

A letter in an envelop bearing several
"Forwards" was thrown in to him; he
shoved it in his pocket but later his
curiosity awakened, apparently, and he
opened and. read it.

What, was it possible! Smith's
machine a success — runs nicely and
gives greater power than even the
inventor claimed. A model had been
made by Thompson, the modelmaker on
Water street, and it was now in his shop
where it runs daily and is seen by hun-
dreds. The letter ran on, Smith wanted
Bandcox to come at once and make
the drawings and specifications, both for
the patent and for a larger machine. The
evident rectitude and honor of Bandcox
had so impressed Smith and Hammond
that they searched for him at this im-
portant time.

A few letters were exchanged and
Bandcox paid out his hard earned wages
for a ticket to go back to his home town.
When he arrived he went directly to the

model shop and found Smith waiting for
him, more erect than ever, cordial and
kind. Now what did Bandcox have to
say? There was the machine, just like
one of the sketches made in Bandcox's
office which he had always thrown down
as "not practical, no good, out of the
question." This model ran and it gave
power, yes, power. See it raise this
large weight when the clutch is thrown
in. Yes, Bandcox gives in, acknowledges
that it works, that it gives power but he
still insists that in some way or in some
detail not readily discernible it differs
from the sketches that were shown to him
some months before.

Smith and Thompson talked and acted
as though they thought Bandcox more or
less insane. "Would he not believe what
he saw with his own eyes?" Just pour
in a few drops of fresh water and the
machine would start, run and give power;
anyone could pour in the water that
Thompson would courteously hand him
when desired.

The young engineer was quite busy for
the next two weeks, examining the ma-
chine and its surroundings, measuring
the volume of water it took, the weight
it would raise and doing many other
things. At last, he had his report ready
to show Smith, Hammond and Thompson

Small /tir Pipe, about | "Diam.
for leading in Compressed Air

Fig. 6. Section of Machine, Showing
Air Supply

vhat he had found. How simple! For
months a man in Thompson's employ had
been drawing good wages for himself
and for Thompson working on the model.
The model worked because a small pipe
conveyed air into the water tank just
under the ascending buckets, as shown

May 23, 1911

PO\X

in Fig. 5. The duty of the man whom
Thompson employed was to work the
foot bellows and keep out of sight. The
air entering the bottom of the tank came
in contact with the floats on the up
as shown in Fig. 6, and caused the ma-
chine to work.

The exposure of Thompson's deceit
led Smith such great disappointment
that he gave up in despair his ctttrifl
dream of securing power without c<

Bandcox went back to his position in
Olivett, poorer in pocket but richer in

reriencc and wisdom.

It was but a short time ago that I
sat on one side of the fireplace in H<
Bar. home on a cold night and

Henry sat on the other. 1
ing our cigars after his family had re-

1 and we talked of the incident-
counted above. He went on to say that
it was a bitter ence and had coat

him a high price one way and another
but he learned many things For

ince, a young engine hing to

run a consulting office, must be ■
neas getter" as well as an engineer. He
should not pay out much of his own cash

mi the contrary . should
have i he cash for expenaee

at needed and balance
a client cornea along with fsmnhinf,
that is worthless, have nothing to do •

- •• :rop

it a from

only b

osc
that re; | part of some profitable

venture or • jn Although

scent willing to profit by
of f honorable men would not

to.

Economical Generation of Steam

Economy in a steam-power plant pri-
marily begins in the boiler room, anj
pends largely upon two factors: good
firing and proper care of the equipment.
It will not suffice to spasmodically clean
boilers, repair furnaces and occasionally
put the grate bars in good order.

How then arc the highest economical
results to be obtained in the boiler room ?
This question is partly ar. by

rig the boiler equipment in duplicate
or, at least, in having a sufficient number
of clean boilers M replace an equal num-
that have been running for some
time. The period during which a boiler
can be operated economically dcpcnJ
a great measure upon the quality of the

: water and also upon the itteni
the boiler receives while under steam.
If boilers are handled in the following
manner, they may be operate I
nomically or. at lea as good econ-

omy as conditions will permit

•he feed water should he filtcrcJ
and softened (If hard) a:
turc raised as high as possible before
it enters the boili cond. the bot-

tom blowoff should be J at a time

when the least ebullition is going on in
the water. This will occur at about the
time steam is to r J in the morn-

ing, assuming the boilers arc shut down
the night with bank.

ading the the bottom

blowoff should be md some water

alio- 'ank

1 for that purpose
have beet and t

the gfl
est amount found at

or near the blowoff; tl
poll imc

pccially if the innot be

•hut down regular | The

blow " sb< I at I poir

the boiler where the amount of

agitai present in the water at

should be independent of the fc<

•he bio
ild not be located at the same end
r
Another f 'iich has an in ;

-ing upon ec«' • '.can b

tubes; these should be blown frr

Bj William Kavanagh

AtU tin

■
nul Un k of tit

tifntu nt.

Rular intervals, as dust is a
good nonconductor of heat and -
ence on the surfaces of the tubes al -
denotes a loss of fuel. If th
of the horizontal tubular type the tu
.Id be - *c!l as blown and.

the water-tub the

tubes should be blown both horizontally
and vcr the mere thrusting of a

steam pipe be- uch tubes and al-

lowing the steam to blow for a
moments is little better than nothing at
all. In tl. it will be found that

the water-tube ;s difficult to •

the bl'
the dust from the tu' should

a right angle so a
enable a let of steam to I

net the aides of 1 : as

along their and k -*.

! to a
;

•

sing from one
beater to anott

oldest beater and the hot'
water the hottest heater, being si.

;re of the he

•

lllad

the

cable <

uch eovrccs as

■lee. 1

g from the main heater patoca
I eeonomUer and ihencr

Another fault often met
ticc is that of leaving the feed line
posed. Tl reaped

to steam lines, engine and pump e>

i and afea •>!*. A

containing steam should be covered when
possible vent radiation Furnace

linings should be tight, and hollo -
should not be alio -

and all cracks an.:
of tl -e stopped.

Tr be regular and in no

case should - rtolc of the incandes-

cent fuel bed be

coal I the beat method of firing

ine side of the fuel bed first

•

incandc

tmi- -.ate method of

'creocc of ophv
should be
- the
od. th.i
the fit a ihir this

The ob|ecdon to
c amount of cold
air adn furnac

i aid The opposite

so ob>
• nable bc\ 'ion of

ami

*ng I

method of

reft*
should be employed. There

o dour
the losses oc

ginatcs la the boiler
poor firtnj
poor boiler setting »r :'..•-» .<

t and ars. lows of

alio i ea and also by

aei o»i on the

f!«X>f !»' * « Jf Ul

{• n. ft
of nncommae) to tad a hedlv petted

boilr • matet be ni

high speed m eedee to ma >

802

POWER

May 23, 1911

Locomotive Tubes, Their Treatment

The tube industry owes much to the
railroads for its development; in fact,
the invention of lap welding may be
traced to the necessity which arose on
the building of George Stevenson's first
locomotive for a tube which would be
safer and stronger than the butt-welded
tube, the only one made at that time.
Since Stevenson's day the manufacture
of locomotive tubes has increased in
quantity and quality as the demands of
railroad service beeame more exacting
and the whole tubular industry was no
doubt favorably affected thereby. Seam-
less steel tubes were introduced about
1886 and established a new standard of
strength and ductility and endurance
under many conditions of service. Later
on, a satisfactory grade of soft steel was
produced which could be lap welded like
charcoal iron and this also has been
much improved, so that there are now
practically three classes of tubes for
locomotive service: charcoal iron (lap
welded), steel (lap welded) and seam-
less steel. Charcoal iron formerly was
made from a special grade of pig iron
made in a small blast furnace using char-
coal fuel. The product of this furnace
was charged into the refinery, where
about one-half of the impurities were
oxidized and fluxed away, the metal be-
ing subsequently treated in lots of 300
pounds or so in a slightly modified type
of the old Catalan forge with charcoal as
fuel. The use of so much charcoal has
necessarily been stopped and in many
other respects the manufacture of char-
coal iron for tubes has of late years
been considerably modified. Of those
changes we are not in a position to speak,
for, as it was evidently impossible for
obvious reasons to continue the manufac-
ture of charcoal iron strictly along the
old lines, we abandoned the making of
charcoal-iron tubes about two years ago
in favor of lap-welded and seamless
steel, which had by that time been proved
a fit substitute and in some respects de-
cidedly superior to the older material.

When steel is spoken of in this paper
the method of manufacture is referred to
more than the finished product, as the
steel used in the manufacture of tubes,
as a matter of fact, is a purer form of
iron than that made by the charcoal
process, and like the older metal cannot
be tempered.

A special grade of bessemer steel was
at first used in the manufacture of lap-
welded tubes, on account of its superior
welding quality, but later on had to be
abandoned as under some conditions it
was found to develop brittleness in the
beads after the tubes had been in ser-
vice some time. The substitution of
basic open-hearth steel low in carbon
and with less than 0.05 per cent, phos-

By F. N. Speller t

In which the author touches
on the main points requir-
ing attention, such as cor-
rosion, leaking, strength of
material, weldability and
uniformity of material.

*A paper read before the Pittsburg Rail-
way Club, April 28, 1911.

t Metallurgical engineer for National Tube
Company.

phcrus and sulphur has been found
after more than two years' trial to en-
tirely do away with any tendency of this
kind, and as now made there is little dif-
ficulty in securing a strong weld with
this steel. Seamless and lap-welded
steel tubes are now made from practically
the same grade of soft , basic open-
hearth steel.

It is a good thing for manufacturers
and consumers to get together and learn
each others' troubles. Perhaps out of the
discussion to which we are leading up,
something of value to both sides will re-
sult. Let us then take up what seem
to be the main points requiring attention
in the locomotive tube in order that it
may give the best service under modern
conditions.

Resistance to Corrosion

The manufacturer should furnish a
tube in the best possible condition to
withstand corrosion and pitting; that is,
the metal should be as uniform in com-
position and density as it is possible to
make it. Much can be done to lessen
the tendency to pitting by proper atten-
tion to the making of steel and the way
it is worked. We have been experiment-
ing on this problem now for several
years and have gone to considerable
trouble in the matter of testing and in-
spection of material and in the process
used for manipulating the steel so as
to produce a tube which will resist cor-
rosion as well as iron can be made to
do so, and, judging from the reports of
comparative service tests which have
been received, steel so made is, in this
respect, at least the equal of the best
charcoal iron.

After all, however, the solution of this
problem is largely in the hands of the
user. Iron or steel will corrode in spite
of anything that can be done if certain
material is in solution in the water, par-
ticularly dissolved oxygen or carbonic
acid. By the removal of these harmful
agencies corrosion may be reduced to
practically nothing. It is generally un-
derstood nowadays that water conditions

have everything to do with corrosion, and
the simplest solution of the problem is
to treat the water with the object of
making it as harmless as possible. The
development of the modern tube to with-
stand corrosion and the treatment of
water have together practically eliminated
this trouble, so that it is rarely the case
that tubes fail nowadays through pitting.

Leaking in the Flue Sheet
The construction and handling of the
engine has so much to do with the
trouble experienced from leaky flues that
it is difficult to determine how much, if
any, of the responsibility for this should
be placed on the tube material. If rail-
road engineers will tell us what qualities
are required in the tube to make it hold
tight in the flue sheet, we will be glad to
follow their suggestions as closely as
possible. At the present time the steel
tube is made as stiff as possible con-
sistent with the best welding quality and
ability to stand up successfully under
expansion and beading in the tube sheet.

Strength and Ductility of Material

The tube should be of such quality as
to stand repeated tightening in the flue
sheet without cracking or showing undue
evidence of fatigue, nor should these
weaknesses develop during the life of
the flue in service. The material found
best adapted to give these properties is a
special grade of soft open-hearth steel
carrying not over 0.05 per cent, phos-
phorus or sulphur.

Weldability

The quality of the metal and method
of handling are equally important in
safe ending. Soft steel has been found
somewhat harder to weld than charcoal
iron, but it has been greatly improved
in this respect. The necessity for a good
welding quality steel is of first considera-
tion in making locomotive tubes so that
they may be easily safe ended, and this
point has received a great deal of study,
especially in the manufacture of lap-
welded tubes where it is, of course, one
of the first essentials to manufacture.
Charcoal iron carries considerably more
impurities than soft open-hearth steel,
and these impurities form a self-fluxing
mixture which facilitates welding. Rail-
road specifications have been so tightly
drawn on composition in some cases as
to work against the production of a good
quality of steel for locomotive-boiler
tubes by calling for unnecessarily low
phosphorus and sulphur. There is now
very good reason to think that a mis-
take has been made in this direction
and that the general welding quality of
the steel would be much improved, and
the steel at the same time would lose
nothing in other respects, if the maximum

May 23.

- -

phosphorus and sulphur limits were both
raised to 0 - -h producer

gas, now generally used of i

difficult matter to keep the
average sulphur in the heat belo
per cent, and in order to rem'
sulphur in the open-hearth furnace the
steel has to be held and i in such

a way as to frequently K and

difficult to we

fore the steel can be welded in prac-
tice a fluid cinder must be formed on the
surfaces which arc to be united. If the
metal is heated too far above the point
at which th tt should flou

"umed and deattoyed. M nor

to have the range of temperature be-
tween the cinder- forming and burning
points in the steel as wide as : so

as to assist in lap welding and .
the largest margin of safety in safe end-
ing. Considering the variety of the re-
quirements it seems that the composition

■sod

sting of the body tube
Raring out the "tould K

a r

shop light,
case of

J to cool b

•ure and inserting
safe end the |
* ' '.-■■.'''

foil ody

tubt e furr .out

coo J or

burned be- J has k

ugh to -
sidera!"

again a risk of
I one before the othi

!f the body
tube is returned to the furnace *
red hot and the H at the same

time a gage or two hca\icr. there is. of

of the metal left la *nc<

r so ing or burr
far as is consistcr
fled »t.. the

be*' aJ*an

flniahed tube, w the

■

result* as the mai
be made to I.i

■ • to DM •

men prcaer • 'ing flur

are much more ak

ere

ild not be (

■

ch tbc

Meal tad chemical properties. There
to no diftV. to the average steel

tube nowsa

nade on one sample out
dred tube- osr.

designed a machine

on each end of every tube

'O the char-

thc me ach tod ■<

and a:> :ded ru--

as I eiag ».

one grade of •

no diuV ■ making

and tbc Master '

cha M oo one sample out of each

hundred hi •••

designed a machine la

make the flange, crushing- do* n and tat-

k tests or. end of eve'

as shown in tl n. This gives

assurance both acter of the

met.

in the cav ded tubes, as to

the !he ma

tub< »w made in one grade of mi-

her body rube or
safe en : of ends of tubes

used oo railroads hi
the tboved • bile

the »dy tuJ^ >oo»

0.03 per cent. «hr tbc tot

being in service a - so ahosrs 0.0P

aorhg oalphoi from the c»»<« •' ci »u«
get- -tie too

tate of
•leehanJca' rao>

00ft

•

* ' C Juf '

t-> cf M

k> as to

qualities.
Dtecua* •»

ng %a.
;' r

heat to one operation, arock the •
end la and continued the heatiiu •
coolinc

key had, '

loss rr°

— rptt— of ml*

P* tor.'

frasn the •

■uf •Nou'.J v<

toned that soon uha

• (J • •> COOl Kr

bbbV ' '

thot the sv4>

804

POWER

May 23, 1911

phur on the surface of tube heads reaches
a maximum independent of the original
sulphur contents. The cases of burn-
ing that he had seen were where the tube
is burned back on the body tube, rather
than right at the weld, in consequence of
the body tube being hotter to start with,
reaching too high a temperature before
the safe end attained the welding heat.

Angus Sinclair said that he remem-
bered locomotives with 6-foot tubes, and
had seen them grow to 22 feet, and
could not remember any time when there
was not trouble from leaky tubes. He
thought that the greater part of the
trouble came from gross negligence in
handling the engines, although there is
no doubt that inferior material has been
used for tube purposes to some extent.
In Scotland they had nothing but brass
tubes, but they had the same trouble.
The man on the dumping pit is the fel-
low who causes most of the leaky tubes.
He told how he got along very nicely
with an engine which had a bad reputa-
tion, by being careful with the feeding
and firing, always bringing the engine in
with plenty of water, closing the dampers
as soon as the fire was out and keeping
the cold air from running through. When
a blower is put on after the fire is out,
it is "beyond nature" that the engine
should keep from leaking.

Mr. Redding said that in the later-day
service the fireboxes are so big, and the
demands for steam so great, that they
had to fire with the fireboxes wide open.
The ash pans do not have dampers any
more, and after the engine starts for the
roundhouse there is no reason why the
cold air cannot get to the tubes. Tubes
are necessarily cooled down very quickly
after the fires are out.

A gentleman present stated that cases
are frequently cited where steel has been
subjected to a few hours' test with acid
and reduced perhaps 40 or 50 per cent.,
wrought iron a little less, and the so-
called ingot iron showed no depreciation
whatever. If this were a fair test, it would
indicate that we should return to the old
wrought iron, but the speaker doubted
the fairness of the test. He said that
they were building quite a number of
power houses, and for the smokestacks
had used different kinds of metal with
a view of ascertaining which would best
resist corrosion. They had something
like sixty power houses and were now
using open-hearth steel, his people con-
sidering it the most economical, for the
reason that when they specified wrought
iron, they paid for wrought iron and got
steel anyway. They did, however, use
charcoal iron for safe ends for tubes,
because they felt that they got a little
better weld between the charcoal wrought
iron and the steel tubes than they did
with steel safe ends.

Mr. Speller replied that a committee
of the American Society for Testing Ma-

terials had gone into this subject very
thoroughly, and their verdict, in which
they say that the acid test is unreliable
and misleading, will be found in the
Proceedings of that society for 1908 or
1909. The reason is that there is no
comparison between the action of acid
solutions and natural corrosion. The
very pure iron that the speaker referred
to as having stood the acid test is open-
hearth steel refined to the very last point,
so that it may contain as high as 99J/2
per cent. iron. So far the indications
are that ordinary soft steel, if properly
made, will stand up just as well, but it
will be some time before we have enough
tests to actually prove that point. They
felt that steel especially made for weld-
ing is as good as anything procurable at
present. They had watched this point
for several years. The usual method of
testing was to compare a set of tubes of
one material with another in the same en-
gine. They would then duplicate them
and reverse the position in the engine.
Sometimes railroad men preferred to take
several engines and put several sets of
tubes in. They had made tests on at
least twenty railroads, with the result
that they had found very little difference
between modern steel and charcoal iron.

Mr. Lovekin said that about ten years
ago he had fitted six steamers that were
built for the American-Hawaiian Steam-
ship Company, with the Shelby cold-
rolled steel tubes, and they have been
running with both coal and oil fuel ever
since, with no tube troubles. Since that
time they have built about twenty steam-
ships, all of them fitted with the Shelby
tubes. The small amount of trouble ex-
perienced in marine practice as compared
with locomotive practice might be due to
the fact that the marine men do not cool
and heat up their boilers as the railroad
people do. In a ship a fire is kept up
continuously, sometimes for sixty days.
With an oil-fired furnace no cold air en-
ters; the temperature is much more uni-
form and the conditions more favorable.
On the other hand, they had had trouble
in their power houses and blamed it on
the steel tubes (feed pipes?) which had
rusted out in six years. They now have
wrought-iron tubes and do not know
whether they will last six years or not.
He thought that the trouble was from air
in the feed line. He asked Mr. Speller
to explain what was meant by a Spell-
erized tube.

Mr. Speller replied that five or six
years ago they started to study the ques-
tion of corrosion in all its phases, and
found that the amount of forging and
working which steel received was a fac-
tor that had much to do with the dur-
ability of the material, so they got up a
process, which has become known by
the name referred to. It has a decidedly
beneficial effect, but it is not the only
thing by any means. Care must be taken
in the making of the steel itself. They

found that the lap-welded steel tubes
so made will stand up at least as well
as the best charcoal iron.

Doctor Unger said that the two points
which had impressed him in listening to
the paper and the discussion were — how
easy it is for the user to destroy ma-
terial that was initially good, and how
easy it is for the purchaser to insist on
specifications that do not have any value.
Anybody who is interested in the ques-
tion of corrosion can find a full dis-
cussion of experiments in the Proceedings
of the Iron and Steel Institute for 1908.
This fact, not previously known to metal-
lurgists, was found: If iron or steel is
heated to about what we call a blue
heat, or approximately a temperature at
which lead would melt, it would be cor-
roded much more quickly than if
quenched from a higher to a lower tem-
perature. It is easy to see how one in
welding tubes may get a condition such
as that described.

We know that our water supply is be-
coming much more impure. On account
of the coal developments the water has
become much polluted, and it frequently
happens that we have in the Mononga-
hela river as much as seventy parts of
sulphuric acid to a million of water. This
means that the plant to treat this water
requires a great deal of salts, and by an
analysis of the water used in the boiler
we frequently find that we are trying to
make steam from what one might call a
solution of brine.

The air in Pittsburg one hundred years
ago was much more pure than at the
present time. Vegetation is disappearing.
We are filling the air with poisonous
gases, with the consequence that roofs
made of iron and steel will not last as
long as formerly. You all know that the
tinplate made years ago was very much
better than today. The same is said of
galvanized materials. He also understood
that steamfitters must not use anything
but wrought-iron pipes, especially if they
go through ash piles, because they will
be corroded very much quicker. "There
is nothing lasts like old-fashioned
wrought iron." They had taken loco-
motives and put some steel tubes and
wrought-iron tubes in them, and after
about three years the wrought-iron tubes
were removed and found to be badly cor-
roded and pitted and would not hold
steam any longer, while the steel tubes
put in in the same way and at the same
time were in good condition. In order
to satisfy himself on this question he
had been carrying on experiments for
three or four years by immersing
wrought-iron and steel tubes for a per-
iod of a year, and then removing and
cleaning them to learn the results. They
afterward placed both wrought-iron and
steel tubes in an ash pile for fifteen
months, and had them removed and
cleaned. They now have tubes buried
in loam, and expect to allow them to

May 23, 1911

POWER

remain there for two years to see what
the effect will be. They had a number
of sheets of various material, besscmer
steel, two grades, open-hearth steel and
three grades of wrought iron. They cut
small pieces of these sheets and gave
them what is known as the acid test. In
on: case a good grade of wrought iron
Ived 30 per cent, slower in acid than
did the steel, but he found that the iron
that had dissolved so slowly in acid did
not resist atmospheric influences by one-
half as well as the steel sheet. The only
real test of corrosion today is an ex-
posure test under service conditions.

Mr. Conrad said that corrosion is due,
not only to impurities in the water, but
to expansion and poor circulation and low
temperature in the boiler. It has been
his experience on modern locomot
with tubes 20 feet and over in length,
that the tube corroded mostly from the
front tube sheet back about 4 feet,
conclusion was that this was due to the
fact that the circulation was poorer at
the front end of the boiler than further
back, and the temperature lower
solved oxygen and kj attack iron

at a low much more quickly than at a
higher temperature. On one case, where
an engine had run 101.000 miles with
both iron and steel tubes, there were
forty-six iron against fourteen steel tubes
that were pitted badly enough to be con-
ed to the scrap pi: three other
engines, which had made a mileage of

•0 miles, when laid up for ger
repairs the iron and steel tubes
which they were fit; ood up

equally well. Some years ago they had
had trouble with corrosion in condensers
and had tried a number of different kinds
of tubes. They Anally settled upon a
brass tube, which - corrosion

well, but the bottom of the condc
would have holes eaten into it. They
came to the conclusion that it wa* due
to poor circulation, and overcame it by
entering the steam at the bottom. He
found that in certain cases tubes had
i spaced too closely, impairing the
ilation and producing trouble. This
is especially true of an alkali water,
h has a tendency to pull away ft
lot sheets. He had seen ;on-

atrated by a model boiler i
tubes, filled with an alkali and

healed by alcohol. When the water be-
gan to circulate and becarm

c, the « quentl.

but only momentarily. This, of cot
had a tendency to loosen the tube ir
she •

A speaker «ald that they had been
using steel tubes for about t -
In J -hit had very bad »atcr They

used steel %afc end*. »ith the seamless
v In heating for welding in the
safe ends they do not depend upon
♦wedging t> hut ream it. thu*

Ing a bright surface They gjM

the safe ends with dies, which gives two

it surfaces of new metal to come to-
gether for tubes are

J by hydraulic pressure up to about
300 pounds, and seldom develop a leak.

-« not matter what kind of a tube
you bu n proper care.

In applying their tubes at fir*- ased

a roller, but are usinj; ow.

At the roundhouse the rolls have been
thrown away entirely.

It was stated that the superintend
of motive power on one of the railroad

.-ms had rcduc 'roubles

to a minimum g 10 r

below the pressure of steam alio,
that is, on boilers »hicl.
200 pounds, they carried only 180, and
the question was raised as to wh
would not be well to extend this pra^
to the railroads which were having b<
difficult.

Mr. Redding replied that they need
■•; ounce of power that they can get.
He had n and steel tubes

and found that the steel safe ends and
the steel tubes J more pur.

ment. On enc do not

very severe trcatmer if frequently

have tubes that last too long, for soma
of the they be

.ears,

'. Love- as the

of the copper ferrule between the tube
and tube sheet. I J that he

the works of the Babcock

Company abroad, and their manager

said that they h iblc

as they reamed all of the

holes and gt .-no

more than

lined that the reason
for the use of the co;
that material I fter bM ■

greater cocf ■-■ than iron.

It helps to make a joint a-
tube, maintaining the tube tighter He
has known of a case
been given on a railroad to extend the

the tube, i
tube was c

but the ' the copper u

the bea

' coal on specif
i needs to be followed up with at
tea of i

•
of school

board of I —nm been

r the school house* on

an>

ng the

- coal **• below the
quality A* a result of thii

•I.

pounds A

■rrA

the T'-'flntlwas
■

c, Incorpcr -aemitts and engj.

neerv of Boston. process the

final sa j

Tl -ample should

■ small
sho. from many pa

b*f| rssel M eing unloaded.

or froc

poss. ire being tal

to secure pra*.
from f and bottom of the

coal original sample thus ta<

should amount to 500
preferably 1000 to 2000
arate e should be t

thousand tons or leaa del
gross sample thus
contain the same proportion of lump and
fine coal a -he wbc

hould be protected from the
in order to or loss

and should be bM

n to a sma i rcording to

the following method:

The large lumpa of coal and im-
purities should be broken down on a
in, hard floor with a suitable

maul or slcdi hoe-

oughly should be formed ia a

con

the t»o opposite qua
and ) broken down to

a sma!
a conical pic »"-

sa should be continue
the lump* are or sma

and a -lal sample

I one or mora

gla** < tars and i

tea*

sizes alios ■

d the coal should
be '

The sample should be srorted dosrr.
as poaalble to avoid lean of tsoss-
-ougn exposure to th The

hou'd he plainly
* ed and a

The fo !>■■!<

accomran* ,hc ,a~ r r

. » «...

806

POWER

May 23, 1911

A Large Transformer

The Pennsylvania Water and Power
Company generates power from the Sus-
quehanna river at McCall's Ferry, where
it v/ill have an ultimate capacity esti-
mated at 100,000 kilowatts. At present
the power generated is transmitted 40
miles to Baltimore, and lines to other
large cities, of which there are several
within economical transmission distance,
are contemplated.

The Baltimore substation at present
contains four Westinghouse three-phase
transformers which are interesting be-
cause they are the largest ever built.
They are of the water-cooled shell type
and are used to step down the 25-cycle
line currents from 70,000 to 13,200 volts
for primary distribution. Each trans-

former is rated at 10,000 kilovolt-am-
peres. The appearance of one of these
transformers is shown in the accompany-
ing picture, but this does not give an
adequate impression of their size. The
tank is elliptical, having an overall length
of 15 feet 11 inches and an overall
width of 8 feet 8 inches. The hight to
the tops of the terminals is over 16 feet

A 10,000 KiLOVOLT-AMPERE TRANSFORMER

and the joint between the tank and the
cover is 1 1 Y> feet from the floor. The
weight of each transformer, complete
with oil, is about 145,000 pounds — nearly
75 tons.

It is difficult to get a mental grasp of
the magnitude of such a piece of ap-
paratus. If the output of one of these
transformers were delivered to 16-
candlepower tungsten lamps, it would
supply 500,000 of them; these lamps
laid end to end would form a "string"
31 Vi miles long. If suspended at inter-
vals of 10^ feet, they would illuminate
a pathway a thousand miles long. Using
arc lamps instead of incandescents, one
transformer would supply 25,000 lamps
and these would illuminate a boulevard
100 feet wide, reaching from New York
City to Toledo, O., or from Chicago to
Memphis, Tenn.

Grooving Commutators
By C. U Greer

It has for some time been a practice
in street-railway shops to groove or un-
dercut the commutators of car motors
but the practice does not seem to have
spread extensively to power-station ap-
paratus. From my own experience I be-
lieve that this practice would be helpful
in many cases of commutator trouble
with generators and rotary converters.
Where there is a tendency to high mica,
the undercutting of the commutator (cut-
ting the mica below the surface of the
copper bars) will greatly reduce and
sometimes completely eliminate sparking
at the brushes. I know of a 300-kilo-
watt motor-generator set which gave con-
tinuous trouble from sparking, making
frequent turning of the commutator nec-
essary. After grooving the commutator
the machine ran sparklessly and the com-
mutator took on the chocolate-colored
polish which follows perfect commuta-
tion.

I once had the care of a 250-kilowatt
three-phase rotary converter which gave
continuous trouble from sparking at the
brushes. The commutator developed
burned blackened spots at irregular in-
tervals around its circumference. In
some places six or eight bars were af-
fected and in others only two or three
were burned. The accompanying sketch
illustrates the results of the trouble. The
bar burned away from the mica, with bad
sparking at the brush as the bar passed
from under it. This kept the commutator
very rough, making frequent use of the

May 23,

a E R

807

sand-paper block necessary. Finally it
decided to groove the mica out at the
bad places, after which there w.>.
cided improvement.

ere no special means is provided for
grooving, the work may be done with a
hack-saw blade A new blade should be
broken, which !ca\cs a sharp tooth on the
broken end of one p: th this the

mica may be cut down easily. A straight-

edge ma> be taiJ along the mica and the
blade draun along between the b.i
ort-> • cs will produce a Kr nich

Ihc blade will folio* >• a

I have
i of an
•it. If. as in the case of m
r, the trouble
I had bars may be marked on the end
urning the commutator and •
a at the bad sp
Though rm experience with •

been I hclic\e ibl

and burn-
ing of the bar* fK

Alteraaton t<>r Waters heel

I )' l\C

Alternators direct -coup -cr-

ating under such hcaJs at are
common in modern h »cr

plants run at re If gh speed* and

operate under h make

rugged construction ncce*«ar> Hence
one nachim ally for

this class of service In general
turcs the vat alternator

does n<

I large eating steam en*

the cs arc in mecha:

cor

illustrates a polyphase alternator
built b >mpany

for u«>c in ' «urc

shows clearly that the shaft and bear-
illy massive; that the
shaft and base arc maJe extra Ion*:

.rmaturc
along the base far enough to unc<

the ' ad that the

•om thi
the altcrna and, ll al

alti

T> lagnct

arc prc\cnteJ from
arc
are lamina

■

msioitt. or
aod the check
the polar rawaaona utc . rnrliiad

flanges which support the cads of

The arma- up of .

• r segmc- •

M are doxctaiked to nb*

across ihc inner tmee of the houtinv m

poles a d to the spider riaa.

pole tha

run at suft low speeds not t

turc hoi pcnings

ugh th g and by apacea

th* •

«■ tha anr <

, ■ ■ •

808

POWER

May 23, 1911

insulated metal rings in order to prevent
accidental displacement or distortion due
to magnetic disturbances produced by
violent load fluctuations. Both the field-
magnet and armature coils are form-
wound and heavily insulated, of course,
before being put in place.

The bearings are self-oiling and in the
larger sizes provision is made for water-

A i '

1 - ^*>^8fr > 1

( j | .^lt»j!

■

.9*11

■ < 1 1 1

:^»i

Fig. 5. Part of Armature Face

cooling by means of tubes extending
horizontally through the oil wells; the
cooling water is circulated through these
tubes and takes out the heat from the
oil.

CORRESPONDENCE

Trouble with Series Incandes-
cent Lamps

We had a little experience with a lamp
on a series circuit which, although not
exactly in the usual operating engineer's
line, may prove of interest to plant op-
erators in smaller places who have more
or less to do with the outside distributing
system.

Our street circuit contains 67 series
incandescent lamps of 32 candlepower
each, supplied with a constant current
of 6.6 amperes controlled by a reactive,
regulator. We added one new lamp to
the*circuit and on the first night it burned
out. It was replaced the next day and
the burned-out lamp was found to have
a hole burned in the glass, but not much
importance was ascribed to this fact.
The next night the operation was re-
peated and the damaged lamp was found
in the same condition as the first one.
This appeared strange, as in a series, sys-
tem all the lamps get the same current
and it was not reasonable to suppose
that a lamp at any particular point could
receive any more current than the others.

Our next move was to take one of the
old lamps from another point in the sys-
tem, and try it at this point; it worked

perfectly. We next put in a new lamp
and it burned out in less than five min-
utes; it looked like a defective lamp, but
we decided to investigate elsewhere be-
fore trying any more lamps. An examin-
ation at the station showed that the cir-
cuit was getting a little more than 7
amperes. The regulator was adjusted
to pass exactly 6.6 amperes and another
new lamp was put in; after that no more
trouble was experienced. That was more
than six months ago and we have added
a number of new lamps since but have
had no more trouble with burnouts.

By way of explanation, there had been
no new lamps added to the system for
some time previous to the trouble and it
was known that the regulator could not
have been out of adjustment for any
great length of time.

Can anyone explain why the new
lamps would not stand the excessive cur-
rent and the old ones would?

G. S. Sprague.

Geneva, Neb.

Mr. Wilbraham's Interpole
Motor Trouble

I found Mr. Wilbraham|s article of
March 28 concerning brush setting on
interpole motors very interesting, but
cannot in all respects agree with hisn;on-
clusions. He states that he had compound-
wound interpole machines arranged for
variable speed by means of a combined
armature and field controller and that
after cutting out all armature resistance
the speed was 800 revolutions per min-
ute, which by field weakening could be
increased to 2800- revolutions per minute,
but some of the motors at about 2600
revolutions per minute would stop and
reverse.

While the armature reaction and flux
distortion are more or less as he outlines
them, the fact that the motor stops and
reverses is not due to a shifting of the
neutral point and with it the zone of com-
mutation but to the fact that the com-
pound winding is differential rather than
cumulative. As the magnetism due to
the current in the series winding is maxi-
mum and that due to the shunt field
current constantly decreases as the field
is weakened, the final result is reversal
of the polarity of the field-magnet poles
and consequent reversal of the direction
of rotation. Now if the series field wind-
ing were so connected that it assisted
the shunt field winding instead of oppos-
ing it, the action described could not
take place. Changing the direction of
the current in the series winding is,
therefore, to my mind the correct remedy
rather than shifting the brushes.

It is primarily an error to buy a com-
pound-wound interpole motor, for several
reasons. Trouble may be caused by it,
as already shown, and the compounding
adds uselessly to the cost. The series

winding on the interpoles of a shunt-
wound motor will serve the same purpose
as a main series winding; therefore, a
main series winding in addition to this
represents a duplication of equipment
subserving no desirable end.

H. T. Dean.
Cambridge, Mass.

Mr. Dean's idea as to the prevention
of the reversal of the motors by chang-
ing the series field windings from differ-
ential to cumulative is correct; that was
tried at the time but the commutation
was so much worse that it was abandoned.
Moreover, preventing the motors from
reversing was not the only thing to be
considered; the guarantees as to speeds
at different points had to be met and
with the series field winding connected
cumulatively the magnetic densities were
so high that a greater range of shunt
field adjustment was necessary to effect
the range of actual field strength that
was necessary. For this reason, as well
as because of the impaired commutation,
the remedy used was the only one that
was practical under the operating con-
ditions.

Mr. Dean's supposition that the inter-
pole winding serves the same purpose as
the series winding of a compound-wound
machine is entirely wrong. The inter-
pole winding adds no torque or counter
electromotive force whatever to the arma-
ture; a shunt-wound interpole motor
will have the same sort of speed char-
acteristic as the ordinary shunt-wound
motor, except that the speed regulation
will not be so good because of the addi-
tional resistance of the interpole winding
in series with the armature. It is to
correct this poor regulation that a dif-
ferential field winding is used. The only
use of the interpoles is to give good com-
mutation under conditions which would
cause sparking in an ordinary motor and
this is done by inducing in the coils that
are short-circuited by the brushes an
e.m.f. which reverses the current in those
coils and thereby prepares them for in-
sertion in series with the coils beyond
them. The interpoles exert no influence
upon the coils that are not short-circuited
and these are the coils that do the work.

R. W. WlLBRAHAM.

Philadelphia, Penn.

[The delay in printing the foregoing
letters was due to our inability to reach
Mr. Wilbraham, who was absent from his
office. — Editor.]

Bill Grimes tried t' get funny tother
day an' put wun over on yer Uncle Si;
he didn't get anythin' on me so ez it cud
be notised very much. He called me up
an' sed he'd lost th' vacuum on his con-
denser, an' ast me ef I'd loan Mm wun. I
told 'im ter use th' wun he carried in his
hed.

May 23, 1911

Gas power Department

\ Reversing Marine Diesel
Engine

The prejudice agai: >el mc

which still n shipbuilding

has to a great extent broken J
and recently it has become clear that
various shipyards are in position to b

d cng; e from faults and re-

liable in working, even vuth their present
equipment.

Hitherto the cngtnc has been

mad-.- almn nng.

As a rule, the four-stroke cycle has been
used, but recently the two-stroj
has come into prominence. The efforts
to utilize the engine for

ons and finallv for the pr :

en an im-
petus to the employment ible-
•ig engines both on the four-
ke and I. In fact,
leading owner*, having r<
ni/ed the great value of internal

engines, are already approaching
r> with ord
■
The constructor is now confront

/ v ri v tlni
n ^rth while m tin- t

engine and producer

industry n /// he T rv.U cd

hviv in ./ way tli.it i .in

/>c of list- to />/./<. ri
( d nit-n

Tb if the Diesel eng

for marine pu* n mpai

the steam c Jiffer a. the

•id the size of the

ut in . the following arc

the
and

But ll
line engines alto if

harbor* and th*

• E ' ■ '

Tl ■ -e Br*

mar ( to

■

t to
i to

■ •

bold

ma' the ma

rinc steam cng

•team

■

nance I

The . Mtimi»»i»n about

i.tion |e *«H ala« •* -••ai

r equlpmc

and the oppowtc bl

■

I of the engine

dMTjbk jaii

• of

810

POWER

May 23, 1911

The external appearance of the vessel
is similar to that of a steam tug, because
of the funnel provided for carrying away
the exhaust gases.

Fig. 1 shows the arrangement of the
power plant in the vessel and Fig. 2
gives an excellent idea of the appearance
of the engine. It operates on the four-
stroke cycle and the maximum speed is
360 revolutions per minute; at this speed
it develops 200 brake horsepower — 50
horsepower per cylinder — and drives the
vessel at a speed of about 10 knots.

The cylinder head is the largest and
heaviest casting in the engine, and on it are
collected all the principal valves! — the suc-
tion valve, the exhaust valve, the starting
valve and the fuel valve. All these parts
have to be got into a restricted area little
bigger than the piston diameter, and yet
to avoid unequal thicknesses of metal
reasonable spaces must be left between
the separate parts. This arrangement is
also necessary to insure equal cooling
and to avoid stresses being set up by un-
equal heating. Furthermore, an exceed-
ingly sound casting is absolutely essen-
tial, particularly at the joints and valve

cylinder head, but in engines of this size
no trouble in this direction has been ex-
perienced. The only real objection is
that that part of the valve spindle ex-
posed to the hot gases may wear more
rapidly than the remainder, which is wa-
ter cooled, but to reduce this objection
the lower part of the spindle is protected
by a cone from the direct impact of the
hot gases. In the case of larger valves
the employment of a liner is, of course,
recommended. In order to make the cool-
ing as effective as possible, the walls are
made only ' ? inch thick.

The reversing gear of the engine is
based on the principle of shifting the
cam shaft, on which two separate sets of
cams are fashioned, endwise, the valve
levers being raised just before this move-
ment takes place and lowered again when
it is complete. These movements are ef-
fected in the following way by the use
of a single handwheel: The shaft a,
Fig. 4, passes over all the cylinder heads,
being carried by the columns b, of which
there are two mounted on each head. To
this shaft are keyed the fingers c, one
over each exhaust and inlet valve, and

W^l^W

ff 0-0 0

>^MB-BB^M<

FMHB

IMMnnaKi

WB. .

Fig. 2. A 200-horsepower Reversing Marine Diesel Engine

faces and at those surfaces subjected to
the high internal pressure in the cylinder
or connected with the high-pressure air
supplv.

Fig. 3 indicates how all these require-
ments were met. As may be seen from
the engraving, the suction and exhaust
bends are separated from the two tubes
or passages which take the starting and
fuel valves. The exhaust bend is entire-
ly surrounded by water and is of such a
shape as to give an easy flow to the
gases. The exhaust and admission valves
seat direct on the cover, for in no other
way was it possible to bring them so
close together.

It may be objected to this arrangement
that dismantling is more difficult than
when separate valve cages are employed,
as it involves the removal of the whole

the lever d, linked by e to the curved lever
/, which, in turn, is linked to the piston
rod of the reversing cylinder; the latter
has pipe connections g and h extending
to the valve box beneath the handwheel.
Here either valve can be released by
movement of the J. lever /, which is ef-
fected by one end or the other of the
notched quadrant n coming into contact
with it; this quadrant is keyed to the
handwheel shaft. The valve being
opened, further movement of the plate
releases the lever and the valve again
closes. Owing to the form of the quad-
rant n and the notches in the quadrant
p, this movement can only be effected
in the central position //.

In Fig. 5 is shown a sector T which is
provided with the cam face which moves
the lever B, and thus moves the reversing

cam shaft N endwise. The sector is
coupled, by the link shown, to the shaft
w.

The action of the reversing gear will
now be easily understood. The hand
wheel is moved to the middle position
and is then revolved till the stop r on the
notched quadrant comes against the
quadrant p and stops further movement.
During this action the valve i would be
opened for a short time, allowing com-
pressed air to get under the piston k,
forcing it up. This causes movement of

Fig. 3. Cylinder-head Sections

the linkage and presses the valves down
into the cylinder. When they have
reached their lowest position the action
cf the cam T moves the cam shaft end-
wise. By that time the piston k has re-
turned to its starting position, lowering
the valve rockers on to the second set of
cams. The glycerin dashpot acts as a
brake to prevent reversal taking place too
violently.

Provision for lifting the rocker arms
of the starting and fuel valves off their
cams is effected, as indicated in Fig. 6,
by mounting the respective rockers on
eccentrics keyed to the shaft w. By turn-
ing the sleeve, the fuel-valve lever moves
away from its cam while the starting-
valve lever approaches its own cam; in
this position both levers are clear of their
cams and the shaft can be moved end-

May 23. 191 *

I K

wise. By further movement to the -• .r -om (he ma fl such good i -, - :

ing position, the fuel-valve lrver leaves t that when the

jam while the starting-valve lever engine crank* are on the dead center the short spa*. n which corn*

conies into actual contact with its own. DOawfPMOr crank is not. Consequently, bastion ha-

'.'I

••

Rotation is given to the
sleeve by means of the mechanism <»!
in 1 from which il ■*:'.: b

that it i* coupled by the rod /. to the
shaft M, U> which is also keyed the hand-
wheel bracket // This bracket, with the
hand wheel, can be moved to three t
ctpal position* on the notched quadrant
running, f -id neu-

tral and the third or ■felting.

Further not - half and slou

are alv mtrol is ef-

fected through the link J. which
upon the fuel-pump regulator rod.

•rifuga!
this rod, an clastic coupling in the '

-.->

I ■ I

of a flat aprtaf

stand, but in . ' the fact that the

engine mlfht run light II hj re-

d
The engin- i« «!»■
prc««cd air and the comprcs*

the - can be used as an air mo-

engine even though the

n the center, which.

>nal

clc\ II

K and i

J <

■»s

I/.

f 6. Am

out <■'"£ admitted

"«e piston <

• ced
•perate

being d infe

that position from

•••iMe for the p<

T»i >c fudger.

•ublcsomc

to oil con-
ic

It is noi re"

shown in Fig
obtained from this one. The

I atmospheres. The fuel con— mp
the test bench to
grami

•

T> -he engine

meets all l

formed of *

i MM

h»u»t » t 'c»'

nf «.*{■•,

toltat m root of s

812

POWER

May 23, 1911

steamship; they have therefore made the
premium the same as that customary for
steamships. The maximum speed of the

Fig. 9. Gudgeon-pin Oiler

Fig. 10. An Average Diagram

boat can be reduced, by regulating the
engine, from about 10 miles to about 3.8
miles per hour, the revolutions of the en-
gine being lowered from 360 per minute
to about 150 per minute.

Reversing is carried out with surpris-
ing celerity and smoothness. Tests car-

RESULTS OF MANEUVERING TESTS

• B

J « ■ &

c c > c

°oo fe

"ooSE

. c^g

S> 00 9>

rerichs.
9ra.,d
about
300; re
heel.

eam t
br. 4.
I.H.I

about
hand

otor t
18 m.
m. I
revs,
ing h

^~.

Seconds

Engine starts from

rest, ahead, about.

4-.">

2-5

Engine starts from

rest, astern, about

4-.r>

2-5

Engine reverses .from

beginning of mo-
tion, full forward

to full astern

Beginning of boat's
motion forward

from rest

Beginning of boat's

motion astern. . .

Boat comes to rest
from full forward

to full backward

II.

From rest to full

speed astern

ried out in comparison with similar ships
with steam engines have given the re-
sults stated in the accompanying table.

Comparison of Actual Gas

Power and Central Station

Figures

By Samuel W. Rushmore

The central-station people ha^e been
urging us to use their service for our
plant* having motors of a total rated
capacity of 350 horsepower, at the fol-
lowing wholesale rates:

CENTRAL STATION RATE FOR 20,000 KILO-
WATT HOURS PER MONTH

Primary charge per month $225 . 00

First 3,000 kw. -hours <& 3c 90 . 00

7,000 kw.-hours @ 2c 140 . 00

10,000 kw.-hours (or over) @ lc. kw.-hr 100 . 00

Total per month at present load .... $555 . 00

As we are using producer gas for
our japanning ovens, soldering-iron and
annealing furnaces and blacksmith forge,
if we adopted the central-station service
we would be obliged to purchase about
$125 worth of city gas per month, making
the total cost of station service for our
present load of 20,000 kilowatt-hours
per month 3.9 cents per kilowatt-hour.

We therefore made a test run of one
week, keeping the fuel bed in the producer
at constant level and carefully weighing
all coal used day and night. The switch-
board watt-hour meter had been cali-
brated and found to be accurate a short
time before; also, the water meter in
the connection to the vaporizer. The
producer is of our own construction, of
the common suction type with a shaking
grate; the fuel bed is 5 feet in diam-
eter and carried 5 feet deep above the
grate. The test was made with two
single-cylinder horizontal Korting en-
gines: one of 21 % -inch bore by 34^-
inch stroke, rated 140 horsepower at 160
revolutions per minute, and the other of
19J4-inch bore by 31T/-inch stroke,
rated at 100 horsepower at 155 revolu-
tions per minute. Business being rather
slack, the total load was only about 180
horsepower but of a very steady char-
acter.

In addition to the engines there is a
Sturtevant gas exhauster drawing the
gas from the producer for the furnaces;
this quantity is estimated at about 125,-
000 cubic feet during the week. The
plant was operated nine hours a day
for the first five days and four hours on
Saturday. The total energy delivered
from the switchboard was 5094 kilowatt-
hours, with following operating costs:

Total pea coal consumed during the test,
including all standby losses, 15,218 lb.

@ $3.15 per ton $21.51

7$ gallons cylinder oil (3>, 40c 3 . 00

5 gallons engine oil @ 25c 1.25

2 gallons kerosene @ 10c 0 . 20

8 lb. waste @ 10c 0.80

Wages, engineer and producer man. ... 33.00

Total $59 . 76

►Manufacturing acetylene-gas search lamps.

According to these figures the average
cost of labor and supplies was 1.17
cents per kilowatt-hour. If, however,
we credit the plant with $30, which would
otherwise be paid for city gas, the cost
comes down to about 0.6 cent per kilo-
watt-hour. Of course, these figures do
not include any fixed charges or repairs,
but with liberal allowance for these items
the cost directly chargeable to power
would not be much over 1J4 cents per
kilowatt-hour. Should we adopt the cen-
tral-station power, we would not throw
out the engine plant, so the comparison
was made on actual operating cost.

In this particular plant the cost of
repairs is practically negligible. The
100-horsepower engine has been in op-
eration for about four years, often day
and night, with no actual repairs. The
large engine has been running for over
a year with only the usual adjustments,
costing about $10 per engine (average
for two years) every sixty days. In two
years the producer has required no re-
pairs. We dump the fire only twice a
year and point up the brickwork with
carborundum cement. The producer had
been in continuous service without dump-
ing for three months prior to the test.

During the test the water meter showed
that the vaporizer had taken 91 cubic
feet of water, or about 0.38 pound of
water per pound of coal. The water was
all evaporated and passed through the
fire. The gas was of good quality through-
out and there was no trouble from clink-
ers. Noting the low water consumption
and having been told that the proper
ratio was 0.7, we tried to increase the
water feed, but this seemed to impair
the quality of the gas and the best re-
sults were obtained with the proportion
stated.

In our plant the exhaust gas is passed
through a special boiler from which we
obtain about 150 pounds of steam per
hour. Although this was not considered
in the test it forms a valuable addition
to our steam-heating plant and during
the summer months when the heating
boiler is shut down we use a large part
of this steam for distilled water in our
chemical work and for drinking in shop.
The jacket water from the engine ■ is
passed through pipes buried in the ce-
ment floor of one of the buildings, mak-
ing a further saving in coal for heating;
all things considered, therefore, we be-
lieve we are producing our power at a
cost, including all charges, of not much
over 1 cent per kilowatt-hour.

To the quoted cost of central-station
power must be added interest and de-
preciation on a $3000 investment for a
motor-generator — about $25 per month —
and at least $15 per month for attend-
ance.

We have two producers, each rated at
200 horsepower, but up to 225-horse-
power output we secure very satisfactory
results with but one in service.

May 23, 1911

PC) "A ! K

Readers with Something to Say

S me Test

Herewith are the results of a recent
boiler test with which I do not agr

In the first place, the test was started
uith what he ated as a "flying

start." which consists of running the
boiler to its utmost capacity for an hour,
getting the walls white hot. then winging
the Are back and forth on the grate
eral times and immediately staning to
weigh wau

The first thing he did after staning was
to rake all the coke and unhurried coal
from the ashpit that had been dropping
through the grate bars during the pre-
liminary run and put it on the fire, al-
though it was not weighed and no record
taken or allowance made. This perform-
ance was repeated three times during
the nine hours' run.

The log of the test shows 121 weigh-
ings of water. 37 readings of feed-water
temperature 100 readings of steam-gage
■s and 17 readings of stack tcm-
itures and dra'

The accompanying table gives, f •
the results of the test as a whole, and.
second, the md the

last half of the teat as shown bv the
detailed log and by memoranda' not form-
ing a pan of the official

The flrat reading of the steam pr
sure at the »tan was The

re kept going up until a maximum
of 148 pounds was reached within the
flrat 20 minutes and continued high for
some time. The highest pressure rcco-
for the last hour of the run u
pounds, from which it gradually de-
creased until the finish of th< ■ hen
it was B 'da.

At the stan there was a good, clea-

Pr.ii fu .//

information from t
m^n on the /oh A let

i 'i/ enough toprmi

re v>ill be p.tnl /.

Ideas, not mere words

mmntoo)

inch fire and at the finish there »as not
enough fire to barely cover the grate;
as was evidenced b\ the fact that it was
dead out and the walls black in ten min-
utes after the draft waa shut off and the
ie» coal was used in
the last thirty mimites. although the
steam pi is steadily falling; in

fact of coal IM weighed back

■
I have been present at or have con-
ducted ma- et teats, but I ne\cr

have been able, by fair mean-
increase thr evaporation in tf half

of a nd ma) iter

than in the first half »hcn the fire
new and clean and the walla red fa
the preliminar

Fa*
-water. Pent

Operatic Broken Valve

A pumpinff engine was shut d* -

i rencvk «ome rubber valve* and

make other minor repair*. When the

on this unit vas completed the

opened, and the

pun;

alve
at flr«t •

• rtrt is. Ill

Duration of m

I'nr

■'

111

tv»I |

■

• >o from »

,1 ||.»

tboafjM

at time that the threads on the stem

had the gear » heels,

box. glanJ
removed and lust bclo% tl

ed oil.
old fr.
let i nc
threads nc It

thai the pnmp
should be M <s soon as possible for

the -

to Of '. :

of oat off sod a

*n end to cod for

led rod. so that a nut could be

kf stem to hold

I sfttoo-n in

T ' put oa the artor raff

the rod for s nut Than the end ..th
*ded saroi
>nd flat

pla wooaVr . WW sa

ihe center through « Hich ca* raff eoaaj
pass «st made to it the pact log *

The phaf vu hasamrted la place saff
• not

814

POWER

May 23, 1911

and a rope fastened to it. From a beam
above, a tackle was fastened>„and con-
nected to the rope on the rod. The en-
gine was then started as usual and the
valve was gradually opened by means of
the tackle.

Some air leaked in around the rod
where it passed through the plug. As
this type of pump is given air on its
suction, to make it run smoothly it is not
necessary to stop the leakage. When
convenient the pump was shut down and
a new stem was put in place.

K. Lawrence.

Kansas City, Mo.

Tank Gage

Water is pumped from a well into a
tank several hundred yards distant from
the engine room. This tank is fitted with
a float indicator, but owing to the fact
that it was not in view of the engine
room an inconvenience was experienced.

To remedy this fault a pipe line was
run from the tank to the boiler room, on
the end of which was connected a low-
reading pressure gage. The gage was
placed on the wall of the engine room
beside the steam gage. Aside from having
a very neat appearance, it is accurate
and saves the attendant many useless
steps.

H. Ent.

Conejos, Colo.

Boilers Foam

In my plant there are five 78-inch by
18-foot return-tubular boilers. These
boilers are supplied with water from
three sources: First, from what is known
as table water from the mine; second,
drain tile water from the farm, and third,
deep-well water. The deep-well water
is practically the same as the table water
from the mine.

Trouble is encountered with the en-
gines taking over water from the middle
to the latter part of the week on account
of the boilers foaming.

Nos. 1, 2 and 3 are domeless boilers
and each has a 6-inch pipe connection
about the center of the boiler on top for
supplying steam to the main header. The
water line is carried about 18 inches
from the top of the shell.

No. 4 boiler has a 30-inch dome. In-
side the dome, in the upper sheet, there
are four 4-inch openings which allow
steam to pass into the dome and through
a 6-inch pipe to the main header.

No. 5 boiler has a 36-inch dome also
and an opening of 8x14 inches in the
upper shell inside the dome to allow the
steam to pass into the dome and from
there through a 6-inch pipe into the main
header.

The foaming trouble only occurs when
the hoist engines are in operation and,
sometimes, after they have been in mo-
tion a few minutes. Most of the trouble
apparently comes from the domeless
boilers. .

These boilers are washed out once a
week and the water is carried as low as
safety will allow.

Can any engineer suggest a remedy for
this foaming and state whether the dome-
less boilers are responsible for the
trouble?

James M. Stewart.

Elgin, 111.

Did Not Hook On

The diagram herewith is from the low-
pressure cylinder of a Corliss cross-com-
pound engine, one end of which did not
hook on.

Why does the diagram from that end
include any area? Why does not the ex-
pansion line follow back upon the same
line as the compression?

Furthermore, the expansion line for
the last half of its length runs practically
parallel with the atmospheric. What
holds it up?

suborlinates and the ordering of the in-
ternal management and working of the
engine-room and boiler-house staff.

The assistant engineers should look
upon their chief as a friend who is there
to be consulted and not, as is too often
the case, as a man who is holding down
a better job and is, therefore, to be envied
and, if possible, ousted. All repairs and
adjustments should be made by, or under
the immediate supervision of the assistant
engineers and their reports should be
passed on to the chief.

The rank and file, or the oilers, water
tenders and firemen, should be under
the immediate control of the shift en-
gineer with whom they are working, but
complaints of all kinds, whether from
the ranks or from the assistants, should
have the personal attention of the chief.

Everyone in the plant should have free
access to the "boss" at all reasonable
times. One of the surest ways to insure
friendly cooperation and smooth work-

Line of Zero Pressure Po"^

Diagram from Low-pressure Cylinder of Corliss Engine

The diagram was taken with a 12
spring.

Shall be interested to see the comments
of Power readers upon it.

S. E. Mead.

New York City.

Co-operation

The personal factors in a power plant
are, the proprietor or the board of di-
rectors, the chief engineer, the assistant
engineers and the rank and file. Each
of these has his own business to attend
to and any encroachment causes friction
and ultimate trouble.

The owner, or the board of directors in
the person of the managing director, is
the "boss." He superintends the mar-
keting of the power and has plenty to
do in interviewing and arranging terms
with customers and keeping an eye on
the net financial efficiency of the concern.

It is to the advantage of the chief en-
gineer to get up schemes for increasing
the efficiency and cutting the costs of the
plant operation. To him should be left
the purchase of fuel, lubricants and other
supplies. and stores, the examination of

ing is by the "boss" considering the
personal comforts of the staff by the
provision of good accommodations in the
way of coat cupboards, lavatories and the
like.

John S. Leese.
Manchester, Eng.

Blowoff Valve Left Open

The boiler equipment of a plant where
an accident recently happened, consisted
of two return-tubular boilers set in one
battery with the blowoff pipes connected
to a single pipe at the rear.

One boiler had been cut out for clean-
ing, and, after it was washed out, the en-
gineer went inside to examine the in-
ternal conditions. His assistant was left
in charge of the plant. When the usual
time arrived for blowing down the boiler
under steam, he opened the blowoff cock.

The cock on the dead boiler was still
open and as the steam filled the idle
boiler the engineer inside was scalded
to death instantly. This was the result
of carelessness on the part of two men
and, both should have known better than

May 23, 1911

POWER

815

to have gone about their work with the
blowoff valve open.

EowARtj T. Br.
Philadelphia, Penn.

Solvent! in Boiler \\ iter

In most methods of feeding solvents
into steam boilers the amount of the
solvent fed bears no fixed relation to the
amount of the feed water used and. al-
though the solvent may be fed in direct
proportion to the feed water, the amount
of the scale-forming matter in the water
often varies. Therefore, some means of
determining the strength of the solvent in
the water in the boik -irable.

Too much solvent in the water is a
waste and may also cause foaming; too
little solvent leaves scale- forming matter
that is not acted upon.

A simple test for compounds contain-
ing soda, soda-ash, or tri-sodium phos-
phate is phenolpthalcin. If the phenol-
pthalein, which can be purchased at most
any drug store, is dissolved in alcohol
and five or six drops of the
added to one-half pint of the water to be
tested the water will assume a red or
pink color, the shade depending on the
amount of soda in the water. A large
amount of the soda will produce a deep
red color; a small amount will produce
a lighter pink color.

If the sample of the water to be tested
is drawn from the water column, care
should be taken to blow out all condensa-
tion before taking the sample. The water
should be allowed to cool be tins

and the same r >ns of solur

water should be adhered to for uniform

If the engineer will apply ti >

the water in his boiler each day just be-
fore introducing the compound used and
the amount of the compound accord-
ing to the strength of that alrcad
• he boiler he will effect a saving in c
pound and secure better re

da. Colo

ikimmei ( luted B«'il<-r i

lie
There are t* in the plant

where I am en ,
power and one r capa-

Beforc a producer gas plat n-

stalled, the latv. ■ • * used to run

the works and the small r
for heating purpos.
fired extreme I) hard The
boiler had a boiler cleaner attached t
back of the boiler on the Inaidc for the
purpov of removing all the scum from
the water The small boiler had no

• ner

We cleaned the boiler* once a mo
and used the umc * both

undr -atmeni To the I

f all. the Ian

and nothing that wa»

done would prevent n. The small boiler

as a double bar.
of scale, and that was in the form of a
soft, white sludge that was easily washed
out. The same boiler compound was used
in both boi

After jf bard work. I decided

to take off the cleaner, and - -jine

may think it a queer thing to do. it turned
,nc There has been no more

trouble with scale and the tubes ar-

n as the day tl put in It ap-

pears that there was something in the
water that the cleaner took out that pre-
vented the boiler scaling when it got a
chance to wor

H. Vcstwooo.
o. Can.

( > »vcrnor Safety S<

The accompar i h sho*

**^ a governor which I

have had on a nch Corliss engine

that has been in coi.atant
years. This engine a Id-foot

GOVE* NO* TOf

built up weight

about 14 tone and has Neer r wervice

the journnf

mat I found that

shaft had worked out Had thi*
come Dti« • c «*e r-,r ■ - •■« •>.-
• ould havr

I eld •'

governor belt break a a* shown In the

'ward discarded tru range-

mem end fixed a s* itch on the

governor column, as she- | rh,%

b recta un: - i«ch

onncc!
the engine ■ motion. Upon at

>n< >f» out of

the path of the gi
as the go.
allows the governor full control.

belt should break or anything etee
should affc gearing The leech ts

the head while the
g stopped

k l_ Buu
Clasgc

I I Oil
The plant la re of is burn-

ing oo-

sists of a \5>-horv -amattc en-

gme a- foot t ch tubular

boiler Before I to born

ran the plant on two tons of sled
per day at

12 gallone each, of

* now burneJ The born-

I ire of the awn

into the burtir den enction of the

the

burner

The oil tank is located about 100 '
from tl ::ng and ha

I would like the
rfcc of other enj

J run on teee oil. and wbefbr
v a pump and a era

burner; would a beater be ncccw*

i'jola Ka

ItolH.llK I ,lll
After ar
luh ice their

am convinced tha- ocation

pon the m seoean cheot of

so pieced the tenv
' the oil remain* practically
■HMMM

If rtcator to located upon the

c of the eal
B the room.
d else
Th< re need In

not <xau*c the lew

c of thr oil enneee it to

ndency to taaM
'ore pert of the eel
• ch etrehe of the panes* to
cd been into the retetsoar before
Thto censea the
ghv suNe to) eteninJr,

proper feed es the elder try to *f to'

Tha t »•

the plu^cf ' ■ ' ■

▼arc.

816

POWER

May 23, 1911

Engine Running Under

In the March 7 issue in reply to an in-
quiry it was stated that the frictional
load on an engine is reduced by run-
ning an engine under instead of over.
This decrease, it is claimed, is made by
the diagonal thrust of the connecting rod
pushing the crosshead against the upper
guide with a pressure which is reduced
by the weight of the crosshead.

I cannot see how the frictional load
is reduced, as the connecting rod in order
to lift the crosshead must put a pres-
sure equal to the weight of the cross-
head on the wristpin and crankpin, there-
by reducing the friction in the guides but
increasing it on the wristpin and crank-
pin.

Russell B. Buchanan.

Leadville, Colo.

The Stuffing Box

The interesting "talks" on the stuffing
box which appear serially in the ad-
vertising space of the current issues of
Power are worthy of consideration. The
statements seem revolutionary, but I am
heartily in accord with them.

One of these statements, that the
square-bottomed stuffing box and gland
are more efficient than the beveled sort, I
have always believed. Any engineer may
test this by fitting babbitt rings to the
bevels. Then notice the difference in
gland tension required to cause ordinary

Power,

Fig. 1. A Case of Packing Rings

packing to become steam tight, as com-
pared with that necessary to make the
same packing steam tight, when the
babbitt rings are omitted. As every turn
of the gland nuts means increased fric-
tion on the rod, the experimenter will
at once question the advantages of a
beveled-bottom box. The life of the
packing is considerably prolonged, as less
of its elasticity is wasted when it is first
applied.

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articles, letters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

Another valuable truth expressed by
the writer of the "talks" rs that, the
temperature of the stuffing box being
lowest nearest the gland, the inner rings
of packing deteriorate faster than the
outer rings. The inner rings, I believe,
soon become nothing more than space
fillers in the box, so that something more
wearable and ultimately less expensive

Hole too
large

Cap too
Short to
catch

jh3 = _S Studs too
^^^ light
'" Too little Space

Walls too thin

Fig. 2. Common Faults in Design

could be advantageously substituted. To
test this, I once placed four well fitted
babbitt rings of good grade in a certain
stuffing box, which required six rings of
ordinary packing to fill. Between each,
a layer of asbestos was interposed, as
shown in the sectional sketch in Fig. 1.
Now this box when packed entirely with
soft packing required renewal of its con-
tents every six months, resulting in the
use of twelve rings yearly. After the
change was made the two soft rings A
were found to give satisfactory service
for four months, which now results in
the use of only six rings yearly. Thus,
at the expense of a little more labor,
a material saving of packing was ef-
fected. And I believe there exists less
total friction on the rod; though, prob-
ably, as all the friction is constrained
within a narrower limit, there may be

present a tendency to wear shoulders
more quickly. As yet, however, the rod
looks good, and shows no deleterious
effect from the change, though the pre-
caution of allowing more lubricating oil
and distributing it better was taken.
I heartily wish that the writer of the

Oil Space" =

Take up Spring
Dr'F

Fig. 3. Preventing Shoulders on Rod

advertisement would discuss some of
the evils of construction which at times
sorely beset the engineer. In Fig. 2, I
have endeavored to illustrate graphically
the most common faults, with the expec-
tation that they will be noticed by some
designers. The stuffing box should not
be cast integrally with the cylinder, but
rather it should be bolted on in such a
manner as to allow slight up and down
adjustment, which would permit the pack-
ing to enter freely and fit snugly around
a rod that is a trifle low of center. Even
where adjustments can be made in the
bull ring of the piston and the shoes of
the crosshead, it is not always con-
venient to take off the cylinder head. If
the rod is out of center with the stuffing
box, how beneficial to the packing it
would be, not only to be able to level
the rod, but also to drop down the stuffing
box to accommodate the new center,
while waiting for an opportunity to cen-
ter the piston.

I once ran across this improvement.
An engineer had had his rod trued up
and was fearful lest the packing would
again form shoulders upon it. To pre-
vent this, he bolted to the gland a small
extension casing which inclosed two
spring-tied metal rings; see Fig. 3. Be-
tween these he fitted a space ring which
he ground oil tight with the two split
rings, and into this space he led the oil
pipe, which supplied a thin mixture of
flour of graphite and cylinder oil. If he
made a good job at surfacing the rings,
it will be perceived that the rod is evenly
lubricated.

M. Cassidy.

South Framingham, Mass.

May 23, 1911

Dangeroui Boil

When reading Mr. Utz's letter in the
March 28 issu.-, entitled "Operating a
Dangerous Boiler." 1 was reminded of
an old boiler at this place, operated by
a railroad company. The boiler and en-
gine are an old "traction" engine
the wheels removed The back end of
the boiler rests on two tec-irons and the
front end is supported by railroad -
A hole dug in the ground under the back
end serves as an ashpit. The sheet around
the rivet* is wasted away to a dangerous
extent and the plates are and pit

ted badlv The r-oilcr leaks badly around
the mud ring and around the bolts that
hold the bearing lug to the boiler. This
lug supports the flywheel end of the
crank shaft. The boiler is fitted with an
old lever safety valve which is not in op-
erating condition.

This outfv „d to drive a cet

fugal pump which pumps water from a
creek into a large rc^ »nly

run when the supplv of water in the res-
ervoir gets low Anyone that can si
coal is allowed to run it. One evening
a few months ago. 1 happened alonv
the boiler house and saw the engineer

standing on the creek bridge a'
four rods from the boiler 1 asked him
what he -*as doing out then said

that he HI waiting for the steam to go
n asked how much steam he
had. he said that about two minutes ago
when he left "her" there was 140 pot.

viler. Ohio

W .iter \ l.unilicr

In reply to Mr l*a\ler's letter of
March 7. ir. which he a la water

hammer due to the presence of water
►: along the bottom of the pan

of a line of piping, or is it due to a
conflict between the cold air and thr
rushing hot steam which causes the
nt hammering"'" 1 think that \»atcr
hammer is due to the above two cau-

while the
ond cause helps it along, or In
due to it w'hen »tcam i» admitted into a
taming air at a lower temp
than the steam, part of the steam
•indensc cr hammer can re

'ie amount am co-

large enough to form a slug an.:
•lug travel* at a rapid rate through the
i'hen steam |g admitted into a
line ng containing cold air and

water King along the

me of the potential energy
of the steam t« Immed banged Into

kiru 'uthing steam tots

In motion the water that wa* there before
and the consented •team It i» the sodden
•topping of this - m elNv.

closed valve, etc . that cium«
hammering Again.

POTF.R

that th . chanced to

not
g enough a r occur

I > . ' I •< >u|>|

d something in that In
pened in a power station in which I
engaged some time t|
sure the

dashpots for
the steam-admission The pots

had tne regulation a ion va

attached, but in spite of these the pots
»ould slam under hcavt-load
If alter adc to adiust the air

vah :r.p the slamming, the pots

enough with light
or even normal loads T ustment

could not be made so as • • a rea-

—

::- ...,

sonable fluctuation of load and so the
cngincc- » on wi

•be rur
to attend t< *ung tfc i to

•nainta

c vertical and so the
Jasfj'^ • - and .car t.. be r.. tre-

at from at ! ■ '

rcgula* the

ry bras* pet «.
iw of leakage of
er packing and also
to admit air to the chamber when dra« Ing
oat the pot for overhauling These
cock» • or no us* as means

drop of the r
the pots either dropping
d •lamming or not dropping

817

the pet cock at the bottom be taken oat
and a c opening outward be

the
mrcaaa With the
cbev amming • as not quite

as bad as before, but with very be
l°aj ugh to be trouble-

some The ne»t mo. to ha-

globe re connected ap «

tbe s shown in the sccom-

The
ed could t -o a oiccty

and the best thing arv>ur

d be rt tun quite a range

■ad cha »n the upstroke of the

pot a cenain amount ad-

•hrough the globe the

Camber; when the r

gear r -he

tamed lit araa forced out of both the

and globe ringing the

This depended oa

the hight the pot had been raised aad

the amour.-

globe

much skill to
regulate the globi

an\ more than or

the engine- equipped in a sir

ot bothered in
that wa the best plan that

I ha arpose.

1 1 1 - 1 1 I ' ; > •

I noted fc «nmenf in the

srr. of

-aps to

heating main I must

Theoretican

conditions and the arrangi

a grc

I have a num'
in the place «bcre I am t
•id that the drip

Id. a afjor

i drop la

the

a-vd

> matte

818

POWER

May 23, 1911

suie traps are connected to the low-
pressure receiver by a vapor pipe which
carries the vapor only to the receiver, in-
stead of the whole condensation, the
results undoubtedly would be beneficial,
but if the whole condensation is led into
the receiver, I am very skeptical of
results.

The same thing in my opinion is true
when returning high-pressure drips to
the heating system. If the traps should
be lined up along the heating main and
piped at the outlet with a vapor pipe to
the heating main and a condensed-water
pipe to the heating return, I have not
the slightest doubt of the benefit to be
derived.

Condensed water when released from
under, say, 100 pounds to atmospheric
pressure or slightly above, as used for
heating, will liberate enough heat to evap-
orate approximately one-tenth of the
water. If this liberated steam is col-
lected from all over a large plant in a
common return with the condensation
and carried any distance, I am of the
opinion that it will recondense before
getting into the heating main.

At any rate, I would not recommend
to anyone to invest good money in an
improvement, which seems to me very
doubtful of beneficial results.

Victor Bonn.

New York City.

Water Coils Burn Out

Many good men have encountered the
difficulties described by R. A. Booth, in
the April -4 number. Coils placed in a
furnace require a continuous stream of
water circulating through them to pre-
vent pipes from bending or burning out.
The scheme of running feed water
through pipes placed in the combustion
chamber has been attempted with un-
satisfactory results.

An exhaust-steam feed-water heater is
probably the most economical method of
heating feed water; otherwise the ex-
haust is wasted. Exhaust from all steam
pumps and other engines should be
Utilized for this service with proper
heaters. Live-steam feed-water heaters
always proved to be a success where
they were properly installed and equipped.
Peculiar as it appears, it has been proved
that a decided economical advantage is
gained with live-steam feed-water heat-
ing over hot-water heaters separately
fired. Where I am employed, there were
three boilers directly fired for heating-
water purposes only; they were cut out
and a large live-steam feed-water heater
was installed. The heater received its
steam supply from a battery of steam
boilers already in use.

I hesitate to state the amount of fuel
saved for fear my veracity may be ques-
tioned. I will state, however, that the
saving in labor and fuel was considerable

and that the water supply was even more
satisfactory than in former times.

The pipe described by Mr. Booth
burned out or bent because the water
heated up to such a degree that an over-
pressure was raised, forcing the water
out of the pipes into the boiler and leav-
ing the pipes empty for a short period.
While empty the pipes were overheated
and ultimately burned out. If they lasted
four months with Mr. Booth they did ex-
ceptionally well.

In several cases serious accidents have
happened to boiler brickwork, due to
ruptures of the feed pipes in the furnace
space.

J. E. Noble.

Toronto, Can.

Indicator Cord Hooks

I noticed in the March 28 issue of
Power an article on indicator-cord hooks
by Julian C. Smallwood. I am using a
hook which is similar to the one Mr.
Smallwood describes, only I believe my
hook has his beaten for high speeds.
After numerous attempts with several
different kinds of hooks, I gave up the
task of trying to indicate a high-speed
engine, which was part of the power
equipment of my plant.

While searching the advertising sec-
tions of Power for a way out, I ran
across a small cut of a Trill indicator
with a cord hook attached. I sent for

w
w

Power

Indicator-cord Hook

the hook at once and tried it out. I was
both pleased and surprised at the re-
sults. The engine ran 220 revolutions
per minute, and I indicated it without an
error on the part of hooking on and
unhooking. The illustration shows the
hook and the method of attaching.

To hook on, hold the eye of the hook
lightly between the thumb and forefinger
and above the rod onto which you wish to
hook. Advance the hand forward so
that the hook will overlap the travel of
the rod about 1 1/2 inches. When ready
to hook, drop the hand suddenly so that
the rod may strike the lower part of the
hook.

To unhook, close the hand around the
cord and advance toward the hook until
at its extreme travel it nearly touches the
hand. When ready to unhook, suddenly
advance the hand forward about \lA
inches, allowing the forefinger to strike
the lower part of the hook.

John C. Pitts.

Cherokee, Okla.

Cleanliness in the Power
Plant

The editorial in a recent issue on the
above subject was interesting and cor-
rect. There is perhaps no one who does
not admire beautifully polished and well
groomed machinery and clean, orderly
power plants. It pays to keep them in
that condition.

A corner filled with filth and trash
invariably invites and receives more of
the same. Rusty and oil-stained bright-
work means more and continued rust and
stain, and a greasy and ill kept floor will
get into such a chronic state of deteriora-
tion that everyone who comes along will
take pleasure in adding to the general
mess.

Such conditions mean a slovenly crew
who are too lacking in pride and ambi-
tion to keep up and properly care for the
requirement in their charge, too indolent
to be concerned or interested in any-
thing but the clock.

Where the spirit of cleanliness and
order is lacking in the chief, it is apt to
be absent among the crew and the ten-
dency is toward the plant "running
down." In time this means a general
overhauling more costly by far than if
the care had been given in the regular
daily order of things.

It is very easy to keep a plant to the
top notch of cleanliness when once
started in that direction. The spirit of
neatness is infused into all hands and
becomes a habit. An employee, though
not directly interested, would look twice
before dropping a piece of waste or trash
upon a freshly scrubbed floor, and he
would be a great deal less apt to roughly
handle or mar the clean and shinfhg
valve gear than the rusty and oil-stained
one.

Cleanliness about the power plant
fosters thoroughness and carefulness in
the employee, and often leads to the
detection of flaws in machinery that might
go unnoticed were polishing and wiping
not attended to. It raises his self-respect
and develops his esthetic qualities.

Cleanliness always pays from the
standpoint of the engineer. Traveling
salesmen spread the fame of a power
plant, mill or factory of exceptional
cleanliness, and the name of the engi-
neer responsible for it becomes favor-
ably known over a wide territory. Better
positions have frequently been obtained
in this way.

A young man holding his first position
as chief in a small power plant was ap-
proached one night by a visitor who had
been admiring the spick and span condi-
tion of the little station and was asked
if he could keep a certain factory as
clean as he did that station. He gave an
affirmative answer and forgot the inci-
dent, but two years later he was sent
for by his erstwhile visitor and made
superintendent of the factory mentioned.

May 23, 1911

119

His cleanliness and good order *crc
-.ilent though eloquent recommenda-
tions.

In another case a hrm had been much
embarrassed by the insurance inspector's
reduction of ten pounds of steam from
the boiler pressure. A new engineer
cleaned the room and settings thorough-
ly, scraped the boilers inside and out
end the insurance company votuntai
raised the pressure to its former limit.

For a similar reason a fire-insurance

ector will frequently recommend a

teduction of rates on an otherwise bad

because of the good order and

cleanliness or "on account of manage-

mcr

Yazoo City, Mies. C Holly.

Piston Rin

I noticed in the April 1 1 issue of
.rgc H. Handles 's favorable
comment on a letter, contributed by me
in the March D the lap-joint

and diagonally cut piston rings. It seems
that his plan for leakage prevention in

s of the lap-joint order is not
actly faultless, though an improvement
when used in conjunction with t:

\v. Had

There are two ohjc to the use

ng as Mr. Handle
iys that care must be taken
hc tap

with thin .cnt

that the ring is undu J at an

xc Ur

already dc hat been

ll rcpr>; stances

rn and caused a ba '
drr a get

though thr a* strong a*

possible

In the second place, this docs not
render the ring at cak pr<

since leakage will occur past the bras*
plat- « becor m. This

leakage, ho .annot be so grea-

ic ring without the plate, because
the opening exposed is not so great and.
too. the steam has a more cot
and about" passage to cross <

before reaching the other

I the method I proposed

less mable, because the ring can-

not leak, if the cover plate is prop
made. The ring would not be weakened
much, even if a small hole were drilled
and a cur\ un-

derneath, a- ^t w'herc

as. Handlcy's plan, the ring is

much weakened by drilling across the
ring and more still b it on t

Lloyd V. h
lie. Tcnn.

( utral Station I I oltted
I'lant

Th confirmation of w\ J. Creel-

man's article under the above heading
in the ' i be re-

membered, however, that the conditions
at each place must be fully MM

nt can be passed. After
an ot id been passed, for

the installation or retention of b<
rooms unJ ».». the q

among business men arose as to whether
the purcha as

fon: : cr than

the running of a r- • :*n' The

ntral plar to are

among the largest in the count-
To purchase th

annual!) .uitc

an ed the

that it r to in-

stall th' plant, i

:.iing

mge

and ml the M

room on each flo*
to I

o«t
noticed that a

'ie olde

ailed "float-

and at places where

umbing

»r Boor hsd broken

•he

compi<

amounted to an additional MOjQOOl Since

annuall) over wt.
them had power
above pr

tre Dame, Ind.

OMI
at the

C S. Coti s

read so many arguments for sad
against the >uld

put in one word myself I post-
tbo isolated plant
installed and given a
chance. Too many plant*
get*

on.
One of th 'iich sboufc

look iat good ar;

ded ar

b cannot do it. put
hands of some good coo-
ler, by
all meai tcrr. of or

successful business is run -as the central
1 orte

em on tap. Then you r
fear the o .Ms K ;

as important a* the operation
We have been running here for seven

i shutdown for
to hoes

nig}

around and roduced elect-

cnen <wr.

I need annot touch

the iso I. <•-.

do.
The OOtptJt

•he running

tvour»

i«>;

•;n . •

IfM

«r»

last Flaaar

go trin'

as dsskiversd rtssi
bed ip. thtasJe' th*

kir. J u» rracaroni

el ra*

820

POWER

May 23, 1911

Causes of Pitting of Boiler Tubes

The tubes in my boiler are pitting
badly. The feed water comes from a
coal mine most of the time, but I use
rain water when I can get it. What
causes the pitting?

M. F. H.

The pitting is caused by sulphuric
acid in the water which comes from
the mine. The acid may be neutralized
by an alkali. Equal parts of unslaked
lime and crude soda ash dissolved and
fed to the boiler with the feed water will
stop the pitting. But just how much
to use can only be determined by ex-
periment. Blue litmus paper will turn
red in the water if acid is present and
the red paper will turn blue if there is
an excess of alkali. No change of color
will take place if the water is right. If
the water is passed through an open
heater, most of the solids will be de-
posited there.

The soda will serve to prevent some of
the scaie-forming material from deposit-
ing as a scale and will keep it in a con-
dition in which it may be blown out. An
analysis of the water will determine
whether soda or something else is better
for this part of the process. Heating the
water to 200 degrees or over will cause
most of the scale-making impurities to
precipitate.

Advantages of Butt-Strap Boiler
Joints

Why is a butt- and double-strap boiler
seam a better form of construction than
a lap seam ?

L. J. F.

The butt joint allows the shell to be
built truly cylindrical while the lap joint
prevents it. The pressure inside the shell
tends to make it round and this tendency
bends the lap-jointed sheet near the
outer row of rivets at every change of
pressure, however slight. As the pres-
sure changes at every stroke of the en-
gine, there are thousands of bending ef-
fects each hour. With the butt joint if
the shell is round at the start changes
of pressure do not bend the sheet.

Capacity of Rxpansion Tank

What capacity of expansion tank will
be required for a hot-water system of
30,000 square feet of radiating surface,
allowing 1.75 pints of water per square
foot, assuming that the water- expands
0.00043 of its volume for each degree of
rise in temperature?

J. J- B.

Questions are/

not answered unless

accompanied by thes

name and address of the

inquirer. This page is

for you when stuck-

use it

It will require 1.75 X 30,000 = 52,-
500 pints of water. Assuming a tem-
perature rise in the water from 60 de-
grees to 200 degrees, the increase in
volume of the water will be 0.00043 X
140 X 52,500 = 3160 pints, or 395 gal-
lons, and the expansion tank should have
this capacity. This is a little over 5
per cent, of the capacity of the system.
Heating engineers usually allow 10 per
cent, of the volume of the system for
expansion with a temperature rise of 120
degrees.

Safety Valve Blow Back
Adjustment

If a safety valve is set to blow at
100 pounds and stops at 90 pounds, how
can it be adjusted to stop at 98 pounds?

C. D. N.

In most pop safety valves there is a
supplementary ring surrounding the valve
disk which forms a huddling chamber,
increasing the effective area of the disk.
This ring is threaded and may be turned,
through the holes provided in the case,
increasing or diminishing the huddling
area. Increasing this causes more blow
back, and diminishing it causes less.

Flat Bearing Surface

Can a perfectly flat surface, suitable
for a bearing, be made on a planer? If
not, how can it be made?

P F. S.

A perfectly flat surface cannot be made
by planing. Such surfaces are obtained
only by scraping. For some kinds of
bearings planed surfaces are suitable but
not if extreme accuracy is necessary.

Producer Output

How much horsepower should a No. 7
Wood producer deliver, using Texas
lignite?

How many cubic feet of gas should
be delivered per pound of lignite gasi-
fied?

With gas of 135 B.t.u. per cubic foot,
how many horsepower should a 600-
horsepower gas engine deliver at the
belt- H. W. N.

A producer does not deliver horse-
power, but the horsepower that can be
developed from producer gas depends on
the quantity and quality of the gas and
the efficiency of the engine. With lignite
of 8000 B.t.u. per pound a No. 7 pro-
ducer will deliver about 25,000 cubic
feet of gas an hour containing about 125
B.t.u. per cubic foot; a good engine will
develop about 300 brake horsepower on
that quantity and quality of gas.

From 35 to 55, according to the char-
acter of the lignite and the way the pro-
ducer is handled.

Its full rating: 600 horsepower.

Reducing Direct Current Voltage
for Bells

How can I make a transformer to re-
duce the voltage of a 110-volt direct-
current circuit to about 5 volts for ring-
ing bells?

E. G. H.

You cannot. A transformer will not
work on direct current. If you have a
large number of bells, the best arrange-
ment is a dynamotor to take motor cur-
rent at 110 volts at one commutator and

II0~ Volt Circuit

1 10- Volt
Lamps

Battery

Snap.
Switch

Push

Buttons

Bell Supplied from 110-volt Circuit

deliver bell current at hy2 volts at the
other. If you have only one or two
bells, connect three or four 110-volt in-
candescent lamps in parallel with each
other and in series with three storage-
battery cells; then supply the bell circuit
from the terminals of the battery, as in-
dicated in the diagram.

May 23. 1911

821

I .-..'■ . V. !'.■•

Hill Publishing Company

JO*M A. HlLL, I — • ..:-«• k. -

* s~«»»l

and a.l :••■" of c

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I

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to ine lonoon

«V|ii.

SEE

Cable

'it-

IIi«b»i

•

A Sq . . • ■ D il ami l-.ftu

The manager was recounting t
van- it had j tlla-

inai enabled

;ght the
plant from on the one h

conomy on the of

L II -. I

" s

>th running and profit miking
H ill this, he »ound up ■

>rt rime
Bremen a small N ■
good performai : out what I

hid demonstrated
what tli

Jard and made
That is one

nanager m

•her he not

jrc de.i

tion amont en ma

in a % as a

■i or
another. h.i

i good re* ' a Arm

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to lo< I

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not a r

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tan «

hot

Inef

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connection » " i

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be ador

mention to

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the: n. and to tnoot

man i

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. etees gen-

aboi -t machine prohibiting

ip«>n respiring
(he provision*
reeled at i

inglement
or from a machine gone wrong, is the

• ■ ,

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thrown, it baa

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igment-

be the
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be shut down hi

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ght be

822

POWER

May 23, 1911

the usual safety cams on a Corliss en-
gine constitute an "automatic engine
stop," preventing as they do the hook-
ing on of the valves and the admission
of steam when the governor balls fall
below a certain plane. But this is really
a part of, an attachment to, the primary
governor and subject to derangement with
that governor. If the governor belt
breaks and the balls drop, it will act;
but if the belt slips, so that the governor
runs slowly enough to permit a late cut-
off, but not so slowly as to bring the
safety cams into play, there may be an
accident. It is a too common practice,
moreover, to leave in place, while the en-
gine is running, the pin which holds the
safety cams out of action while starting
up, although most modern engines are
fitted with latches which automatically
drop out of the way when the governor
collar rises away from them.

A rider upon the governor belt, ar-
ranged in any of the usual ways to shut
off the steam when the belt breaks and
the rider falls, might be construed as
satisfying the requirements of the law;
but it is far from a positive safeguard.

The law should require specifically,
and every provident engine owner should
install whether the law requires it or
not, a device entirely independent of
the main governor, which will positively
cut off the supply of steam when the
speed becomes excessive. The danger
in a mass of swiftly rotating metal is
very real, and destructive explosions of
flywheels not uncommon. There were
twelve reported in January, and four each
in February and March of the present
year. Such an explosion may be far-
reaching in its effects. The fragments
of a wheel fly for hundreds of feet and
are ugly and destructive missiles. People
who live and pass near industrial es-
tablishments, as well as people who are
obliged to pass their working hours with-
in the range of flywheels, should have the
assurance that something more than a
two-inch belt and a fallible ball governor
stands between them and eternity.

The Laborer Is Worthy of
His Hire

The manager of a small hotel where
an isolated plant has been in operation
for some time says that if he had it to do
over again he would install central-sta-
tion current and go back to his old low-
pressure heating system.

The plant in question is a model little
installation which is saving the company
twenty-five or thirty dollars a day net,
and paying about twenty-five per cent,
on the investment. It is not owing to
financial considerations that this man-
ager is so much dissatisfied. He claims
that it is impossible to get competent
help to operate his plant and that the
petty labor troubles to which he is sub-

jected are causing him more gray hairs
than the money saved will warrant.

He is always worrying for fear the
night engineer will get careless and ex-
plode the boiler, causing heavy damage
suits as well as property loss. All man-
ner of imaginary calamities haunt his
mind and he claims to have a constant
load of anxiety which he would be glad
to pay twenty-five dollars a day to get
rid of. This is one of the strong argu-
ments of the central station. It seems
to work out to perfection in this case.

As a matter of fact, he is trying to run
his plant with the same wages and class
of help that he formerly paid for janitor
service with his old low-pressure heating
system. It cannot be done. An elec-
trical plant delivering twenty-four-hour
service must have supervision of a higher
order.

If this manager would take two dol-
lars and a half a day out of his sav-
ings of twenty-five dollars a day and add
it to the wages of his day and night en-
gineers, dividing it in proportion to the
money they are now receiving, he could
get men who would operate his plant in
a first-class manner and there would be
no necessity for him to lie awake nights
waiting for something to happen.

And, incidentally, he cannot get rid of
that worry by putting in central-station
current, for he will have to have boilers
in operation all the time for hot-water
service, and a "low-pressure" boiler can
raise as much fuss as another when its
pressure accidentally becomes "high."

Technical Graduates and the
Public Service

A recrudescence of the disposition of
examining boards to look rather to where
a man got his knowledge than to what
he actually knows appears in an ad-
vertisement by the Municipal Civil Ser-
vice Commission in a New York daily
announcing an examination for the posi-
tion of mechanical engineer in the office
of the Commissioner of Public Works.

Candidates must be fjraduates of a tech-
nical school and have had drafting room ex-
perience on details of mechanical appliances,
together with at least three years' experience
in assembling and erection of units connected
with steam plants. They must show a fa-
miliarity with the details of complete me-
chanical equipments of public buildings —
plumbing, elevators, heating, electric lighting,
pumping and power systems.

We submit again that it should be no
concern of a civil-service commission or
other examining board whether a candi-
date get the knowledge requisite for the
position at an institute of technology or
at home on the kitchen table so long as
he has got it. It is for them to know the
kinds and degrees of knowledge which
he should possess and to determine by
examination whether or not he possesses
them; and if he does possess them and
can prove it, he ought to be as eligible
to the position as another of equal at-
tainments, whether he has gained a de-

gree in the classic shades of a university
or won competence in the school of ex-
perience.

Duplication in the Power
Plant

To insure continuity in the operation
of steam plant it is necessary to in-
stall considerably more apparatus than
is actually necessary.

Naturally, the character of the load
carried by the plant has much to do with
the character and arrangement of its
machines. A manufacturing plant gen-
erally contains just enough power units
to operate the works. No idle engines
are seen, the boilers are all under steam
and there is just enough auxiliary ap-
paratus to keep the plant in operation
with everything working satisfactorily.
If, due to an accident, such a plant is
shut down, it affects comparatively but a
few people.

But, if the plant were used for elec-
tric-lighting or street-railway service, a
more exacting service would be required.
In this case the public is to be served
and a shutdown becomes a serious mat-
ter.

Many of these plants were formerly
fitted with duplicate units throughout,
duplicate feed-water and steam lines and
apparently every precaution taken to
guard against a possible shutdown. This
practice, although expensive, has been
the means of preventing a tie-up of the
service, and accidents to the machinery
have been tided over by the duplicate
units without a break in the service.

Probably the weakest part of a modern
power plant is its piping system. Ex-
posed to varying degrees of temperature
in the steam main, the action of acids and
other deteriorating elements in the feed-
water mains, together with water hammer
and strains due to other causes, the pipe
lines of a power plant should claim the
particular consideration of the designing
engineer.

Formerly it was considered good prac-
tice in the larger plants to install dupli-
cate piping connections to the main units.
Due to the large initial expense, in-
creased radiating surface, double the
number of joints and valves to keep in
repair, the present-day engineer has
reverted to the single pipe line, both for
boiler feeding and for supplying steam
to the engines.

To insure continuity of service, such a
system requires good material, careful
designing and placing of valves so that
a break at any point in the header will
not interfere with the operation of a
single unit, for, if proper provisions are
made, steam may be obtained on either
side of the break. Although the sin-
gle pipe line has its disadvantages, it is
now considered preferable to the older
method of duplicate piping.

23, 1911

New power House Equipment

Union ( lam Shell Bucki

The Union clam-shell bucket is de-
signed for handling hard and soft coal,
sanJ .1, crushed stone and earth

. ations.

The bucket : so that the

closing drum does not sink into the
stance being dug. but revolves in f
bearings.

The advar.* of bucket

are as foil -ight of the

drum adds to its momentum when fall-
ing, and exerts a Jnunward force. Sec-
ond, the drum cannot sink into the ma-
terial being handled, t uring a full
load, and third, the bucket docs not

ontcnts when in transit, due to the
shields over the top of ection.

The design of the bucket shnun in
I and -.noun as class A and

.th a t: ne and flc •

head. This is used mostly for handling
coal and loose material. It has an un-
til) large read lit and I
Kle head room.

iss B has movabl' rting a-

and the bowls arc manipulate link

motion, and is J : for handling

cru me, sand, coal and light

cavation.

I « s built on the same print

St t hut is |

J for h<

Wb&t t:.

< cntor jnJ the manu -
turcr k> fosjvc

titne and money in the eti-

boutC Engine rot

ne** I

Teeth are furni-
kei wh<.
The drum is made of a
of the self-oili: and holds a; :

match one quart of oil. The bowls are
:c of flanged H "h flans

The arms arc and arc

bui ■ rand h The

shoes arc made so that they may be
I and arc of I
■ •
the -iuc.

N J

( I ivcrnor Valve < )il Rela>

!-rcla> r large

rating il and secondary ad*

argest size of

t
Tl of «t be

.om-

e H ire show

operating t

under the coetrol of the

The t. tfM rock sr

I), .i motior wnincd to

cording to

■
out with ii n load.

the pi! used or

al potu-
rrt»Mitt
from th nderrK

the relay ptsto-

. — • ■ •>-, -

ugh the passages / The

I located between the
■•ages so that lea*
the ntcd A drain

small

As aoon

nf ihr-

r .

: H H r A

■dgalaai • \ c in a Baed soaitioa Im
flrst turns about the Jotal

a* n

.' >h,

1 i

824

POWER

May 23, 1911

about J as the relay piston A begins to
move. As soon as the governor gives
the pilot valve B one direction of travel,
the following motion of the operating
piston will immediately reverse it, clos-
ing both ports and locking the valves
in a fixed position until further movement
of the governor takes place.

The motion of the relay piston A is
transmitted to the primary valve O and
the secondary valve P through the levers
M and N. The arrangement of the two
levers for the two valves will be found
the same, with the exception that the
secondary-valve linkage is provided with
an adjustable backlash at R so that the
time of opening of the secondary valve
may be changed by the operator. Or-
dinarily, this valve is regulated to open
at the moment the primary valve P has
reached its maximum port opening. To
overcome the friction of rest provision is
made for the fixed oscillation of the
plunger, which causes a very slight up
and down motion of the main operating
piston, and the main poppet valve. This,
however, is not sufficient to cause any ob-
servable fluctuation in the flow of steam

to the relay system. A spring-loaded by-
pass valve is provided in the pipe line
so that the oil in excess of that required
by the relay escapes through this valve.
This surplus oil together with the exhaust
from the relay is led to a cooler and
thence to the bearings as usual, whence
it is again returned to the reservoir and
back to the pump.

The poppet valve possesses some novel
features.

The valve is essentially a combination
of a poppet valve and piston valve, the
poppet-valve feature being in effect only
when the valve is closed, or nearly so.
When the valve is partially closed, the
opening past the valve seats is at all
times very much greater than the passage
through the ports. Hence wire drawing
of the steam will take place at the latter
point, where it can do no harm. The
valve ports are all of a peculiar form, so
as to admit constant increments of steam
for constant increments of valve lift.

In addition to the automatic throttle,
an auxiliary safety steam valve Q is
provided, receiving live steam at U. With
leakage of steam past the piston, it is

by heavy coil springs, as shown at Y and

Steam is supplied to the valves through
the strainer Z and the secondary receives
its supply through the primary valve. The
governor link F is provided with a com-
pression spring S. On shutting down the
machine, relieving the oil pressure, the
effort of the governor weights to come
together would tend to raise the primary
valve, which tendency would be resisted
by the main spring on the primary valve.
This would put a serious strain on the
governor linkage, but the interposition of
the comparatively light spring S in the
linkage absorbs the governor travel with-
out imposing any undue strain on the
regulating mechanism.

Should the oil supply to the relay fail,
the main spring would bring the valves
to their seats, raising the relay piston to
the highest position. The governor would
then have a tendency to open the valves
through the lever G. But as the spring
S is unable to operate against the more
powerful main-valve springs, it collapses
and prevents the lifting of the main valve
by the governor.

Sectional Views of the Governor-valve Oil Relay

to the turbine. The advantage of this
method is that the governor becomes
more sensitive, and the least move of the
governor produces its consequent change
of steam distribution.

The oil-relay apparatus will use more
oil than the steam-relay system, but
this oil is afterward used in the bearings.
The oil required for this apparatus in-
volves nothing additional in the turbine
system beyond the oil-relay mechanism.
The same pump is, as heretofore, pump-
ing the oil at a somewhat greater pres-
sure, and delivering a constant supply

held in a raised position due to the un-
balanced pressure. When the automatic
trip operates, the steam from underneath
this piston is exhausted through the out-
let V. Through external linkage, an oil
valve W is theh operated which relieves
the pressure above the relay piston and
admits the pressure beneath, correspond-
ingly forcing it to the top of the cylinder,
thereby closing the valve.

In order to relieve the turbine casing
of any strains due to the operation of
the oil-relay system, the steam chest is
mounted on the bedplate and supported

This oil relay is manufactured by the
Westinghouse Machine Company, East
Pittsburg, Penn.

Pete Blowoff kum inter my ingin room
tother day an' sed thet th' exhoust uv my
ingin sounded jist like th' pants uv a
fat pug dorg thet hed bin tryin' ter ketch
wun uv them Kansas jack rabbits. It
sorter riled me an' I landed on Mm with
wun uv my number tens jist ez he wuz
gettin' out uv th' door. Pete sez thet
he's bin havin' trouble with his main
bearin' ever sence.

May 23, 1911

Meeting of the American
chttion of Refrigeration

The second annual meeting of the
American Association of Refrigeration
ht Id in the east assembly room of
the La Salle hotel, Chicago, May 9 and
1<». Theodore O. Vilter, president, ;
g. In opening the meeting the pr
dent gave an account of the visit of the
American delegates to the second inter-
national congress of refrigeration, at
Vienna, and urged upon members of the
American association the importance of
making the coming international congress
in this country in 1913 a success. After
the report of the secretary and treasurer
the meeting adjourned in a body to the
blue room of the La Salle hotel, where a
luncheon was served to all those in at-
tendance, as guests of the association.

gates and American representatives of
the coming congress. The discussion of
is carr the

following day. when, after re, !>al-

on motions at to mo-

tions, it was flna! ro hold the

international meeting in Chicago,
plan as tent.r

Chicago Association of Commerce, in
connection

of the American Association of Refrigera-
tion, is to have the foreign delegates
gather at ' rk. leaving that

for Washington,
where, on September 15, t :ing

II be held and par

•he President of the
After the e s at Washington have

a completed the delegates will be
taken on special trains to Chicago, where
the ss sessions of the congress

x-wf/f.
ected sec
An organization to of the

congress was ;

officers as follows J

htcago,
trca*urcr-K-

E!ect»oc of
the other offi.

\ . I I . A. I

Tbt mmittce of the *

May II, at the ork office* a final

meeting before the coming convention.
The report of the v showed a

flourishing state of a" 400

new memr; re iJ:

V. \ > R' I U I V -

The following session was o
largely with the reports of standing com-
and with thr Jeration of

Anot'
h engai rablc Itl was

of the adverse legislation which is
i many Siate«
cial en- on

mean* ing

ocJ in detail.

on th< and

time for holding the third international
congrc«« geratl< as

MHed a* !J in *

pedal Invitation of the Unitr I
Government. A

bet-* hicagn for the

f entertaining the foreign d

'lcld *r

• pportu- the

app ■ the enor-

turr

ing >*cs in i ofw

' at
I

"
N

gross nee the loot

, * n of
over l<»

nvention
wee tated that the reg>-

e meeting

cure •

of supplement!*

•i-vt

* < ■

826

POWER

May 23, 1911

been appropriated as headquarters for
the New England section, the Eastern
New York section, the Pennsylvania sec-
tion, the Sons of Jove and any other
affiliated or auxiliary body applying for
such accommodation. The exhibition com-
mittee will also have its headquarters on
this floor and the subcommittee on
theaters, which will distribute the tickets
for the three theaters which have been
engaged for Thursday evening of the
convention week, May 29 to June 2.

The Public Policy meeting is to be
held on Wednesday evening, May 31, at
the New theater, when Secretary Nagel
will represent President Taft and deliver
an address. The report will be presented
by Past President Samuel Insull, of
Chicago.

The baseball game will take place on
Wednesday afternoon at the baseball
grounds in Brooklyn, which are very ac-
cessible from headquarters; the compet-
ing teams will be those of the Brooklyn
and Philadelphia companies.
... The regular meetings have been ar-
ranged to occupy some sixteen sessions
extending throughout Tuesday, Wednes-
day, Thursday and Friday.

A Memorandum Booklet

Charles C. Moore & Co., engineers, of
San Francisco, Cal., are getting out a
memorandum booklet for distribution
among the engineering fraternity and
managers of plants. The book, 3lAxl
inches, is bound in black leather, with
a pocket on the inner side of either
cover, and the pages are perforated into
five squares, each of which is large
enough to jot down a specific note or
engagement. As soon as the matter has
been attended to, the square may be torn
out regardless of any of the others. This
in itself Is a great convenience as it
saves the trouble of wading through a
miscellaneous collection of notes of no
current value to find what is wanted,
and for the same reason the live ma-
terial is more readily found. When the
pages are all used, new inserts, as they
are called, may be obtained by applica-
tion to the nearest branch office of the
company.

The several sessions of the delegates will
be held in an upper hall in the same
building.

The dealers and engineers, and, in
fact, everybody interested in the power-
plant industry in Philadelphia and
vicinity, have been invited to attend the
convention, and there is an assurance
that the exhibit hall will be well patron-
ized at all times.

An excellent program of entertainment
has been arranged, and taken altogether,
the outlook favors a most successful
meeting.

The A. O. S. E. to Meet at
Philadelphia

The twenty-fifth annual convention of
the American Order of Steam Engineers
will convene at Philadelphia from June
5 to 10. Every available foot of floor
space in the large auditorium of Odd
Fellows' Temple has been assigned to
the various firms in the engineering line
for the display of their goods and ap-
pliances. The committee are putting forth
their best efforts in devising ways and
means to accommodate the many late ap-
plicants, who are now anxious to secure
exhibit space, and it is feared that it
will be impossible to locate all of them.

A Correction

In the May 9 issue, page 718, the word
Keeler, instead of Kellogg, was inad-
vertently used in specifying the make
of the 175-foot radial-brick chimney for
the municipal pumping and power plant
of Orange, N. J.

PERSONAL

Gordon C. Keith, managing editor of
Canadian Machinery, The Power House
and Canadian Foundryman, has resigned
to join the editorial staff of The Canadian
Manufacturer.

E. Heinrich, M. E., who, with Doctor
Junge, has been writing a series of arti-
cles for Power upon "The Steam Tur-
bine," has given up his position upon the
designing staff of the Fore River Ship
Building Company to fulfil an assign-
ment of two years in the research depart-
ment of the technical high school at
Stuttgart, Germany, under Doctor von
Bach.

John F. Wallace, formerly chief engi-
neer of the Panama canal, who retired
after inaugurating the American work on
the canal and afterward designed the new
Chicago & Northwestern passenger ter-
minal at Chicago, which has just been
completed at a cost of $25,000,000, has
assumed active charge as president of
Westinghouse, Church, Kerr & Co., re-
placing H. H. Westinghouse upon the
latter's recommendation to the board of
directors.

SOCIETY NOTES

At the regular monthly meeting of the
Internal Combustion Engineers, of Chi-
cago, held on the evening of May 12, at
Fraternity halls, 19 West Adams street,
officers for the following year were
elected as follows: Charles Kratsch,
president; Wallace V. Pye, secretary, and
I. J. Babcock, treasurer.

On Thursday evening, May 11, Branch
No. 1, District No. 2 of the Institute of
Operating Engineers, New York City,
held its regular monthly meeting, at which
F. L. Johnson presented his paper on the
"Needs for Industrial Education." The
paper drew forth considerable comment
from the members and the discussion was

both live/y and interesting. About 50
members of the branch were present and
the interest in the Institute seems to be
growing constantly.

On Saturday evening. April 22, the
seventh bimonthly meeting of the Colonel
Goethals branch was held. A paper on
the "Theory and Operation of Hydraulic
Laws" was given by R. V. Madden and
a short paper on "Water in Pipes" was
delivered by W. R. Vernon.

On account of the interest manifested
on the subject of "Fuel Testing," con-
sidered at the meeting of the American
Society of Mechanical Engineers in Phila-
delphia on April 22, when a paper by
J. C. Parker of that city on the "Work
of the United States Fuel Testing Sta-
tion" was presented, the meeting on June
3 in that city will be given up to fur-
ther discussion of the same topic. The
Engineers Club, of Philadelphia, will co-
operate in the meeting.

The annual convention of the New
Jersey State Association of the National
Association of Stationary Engineers, will
be held at Newark, N. J., June 2, 3 and
4. The several meetings of the delegates
will take place in the New Auditorium,
on Orange street, and in the main hall
of the same building the mechanical
exhibit will be shown. On Saturday even-
ing, June 3, there will be a banquet at
the Continental hotel, and several promi-
nent speakers will address the diners.

NEW PUBLICATIONS

Eectric Power Plant Engineering. By
J. Weingreen. Published by the Mc-
Graw-Hill Book Company, New
York, 1910. Cloth; 431 pages, 6x9
inches; 291 illustrations; numerous
tables. Price, $5.

This book was written to fill the want
of a treatise upon present practice in
the electrical equipment of power plants.
The subject is divided into two groups:
direct-current apparatus and alternating-
current apparatus. In the first group
are taken up dynamos, synchronous con-
verters, mercury rectifiers, storage bat-
teries, direct-current motors and switch-
boards. The second group deals especial-
ly with high-tension transmission, switch-
ing equipment and remote control. In
each case the standard types of apparatus
are illustrated and explained, various
types of construction are shown, and
complete wiring diagrams are submitted.
A considerable portion of the text is de-
voted to illustrations of a number of
large central stations and substations
now in actual operation.

The book is in no sense a textbook and
does not go into any theoretical con-
siderations of electricity. On the other
hand, it represents present power-plant
practice and as such should prove of
great service to consulting and construct-
ing engineers.

si \\ v>kk, \i \v jo, i

SOME yeai
tin uptodati r hit-

tWO ni'l -it them t«» \\<>rk im-

doing rolls - 1 1 1 in :i.

•l tin thrift v by nature and

training; so was the other, but in a different

The first bo) untied the cords that
round the roll Is he was \\<»tkiiu '»>.

and carefully and painstakingly wound them
up in a ball to future u The wrap

ping paper ■•• preci ely fold< :i«l al
tenderly lain asid<

Thai !>• the

id and wrapping p it 1 1 i -— empl<

W'lun the second l n undoing his

bundles, he got <>ut 1 ocket knife, slash)
th< 1 with «iiu- deft sti uid while

pi the unwrapp ith

one hand
that sent it on th ind him.

That l"
ird and wrappi nd then a

:il. painstaking nutl
\\. it in • but tli.

ilthnt:

his employer in«»n than it v 'i in

doing 1 li- output "i usi ful

USl \' :it tli

omplishcd whil tinu

The othei I

in ns< ml

ind left the

pa] • »rd

nitoi
look it !•

w 1 1

! 1 t 1 :

lilt t
tin I ?

The nunc principle will apph I

Then

piikin. 1 out

low

ist in the lx>il

•

!"ir-t
1k»\ might

it hut tl.

with the ki

tir tlu

and let tin

ash hand! --^

lool

ash pi]

ith tl
hoh \m11 :

1 * ■

828

POWER

May 30, 1911

A Remodeled Street Railway Plant

One of the difficulties which the de-
signing engineer encounters is that of
looking ahead and providing for future
growth and demands upon the steam
plant. Frequently a power plant will be
designed with such a capacity that, seem-
ingly, it will be sufficient to meet all
demands made upon it for years to come,
when in reality two or three years finds
the plant overloaded and incapable of
economically carrying the load.

That is what occurred at the plant of
the Worcester Consolidated Street Rail-
way Company, which has recently been
remodeled to meet the greater demands
placed upon it. It is now constructed in
such a manner that from the present
plans its capacity can be increased three-
fold.

Prime Movers

The new power plant, shown in Fig. 1.
is situated on Providence street, Mill-
bury, Mass., a few miles out of Worcester.
It contains two 300-horsepower recipro-
cating engines, direct coupled to gen-
erators; these two units comprised the

By Warren O. Rogers

This power plant contains
the largest horizontal seven-
stage Curtis turbine that has
been put into service and
also four of the largest Edge
Moor boilers in New Eng-
land. The station has been
remodeled and provision
made for future expansion.

original power plant. There is also one
5500-kilowatt horizontal Curtis turbine
and generator, which furnishes electrical
energy at 13,200 volts. Space has been
provided for four additional units of the
same capacity, as demands may be made.
At the present writing, this is the largest
seven-stage horizontal steam turbine that
has been installed in a power plant by
the General Electric Company, although

several of larger capacity are being con-
structed; it is illustrated in Fig. 2. With
the exception of the seventh stage, the
machine is built along similar lines to
the five- and six-stage turbines.

The unit is self-contained. Oil is kept
in circulation from an oil tank cast in
the base of the turbine frame and is
supplied to the bearings at a pressure
approximating 15 pounds per square inch.
The bearings are cooled by water cir-
culating in copper coils which are em-
bedded in the babbitt bearings. The
turbine is connected to a Worthington
surface condenser which has a cooling
surface of 10,000 square feet. It is lo-
cated in the basement under the turbine
and connection is made by the usual cop-
per expansion joint. Water is supplied
by gravity from a canal by means of an
iron flume and escapes to a stream below
the power house through a concrete flume.
This eliminates the expense and trouble
of operating a circulating pump.

On the turbine-floor level are located
the exciter and air-pump units. The ex-
citer set consists of a Curtis turbine di-

Fio. 1. Engine Room of the Worcester Consolidated Street Railway Company's Plant

Ma> 30, 1911

rect coupled 10 a General Elect-
volt direct-current generator. The tur-
bine i*- ol 73 kilowatt* capacity and op-
erates at a speed of .1300 revolutions per
minute. The air-pump unit has 10 and
22 b] 18-inch cylinders and main-

mensi'.n*. irrancement

of t

*"c Mid
'.oor bo.
typt

loot Kellogx

I an h

D«»b >uppl.ol in the bo

room, tad bet red pipe* and thr

-ngth of the boiler
plant, but alto of conn*
oad ro« of N tome future tunc

tbc boiler
throuch a Wheeler h-

type, and it pumped by meant of

l ' '

Coal

hijth trest

An locomoti

»iding from the mala

>e eoa:
•cd by means of
tied b>
traveling locor cb dump* thr

co. . hopper of a w

n*. The arrat

of the c
the cot! drvrrnds into a Lam v.n: »•
a track extending over
the rnacea. The «

the coal » I trever needed. Thr
■the* from the drop mt<

lams a vacuun
der'

The turbine gcncratoi id

ard type, three-phase alternating current.
The ntilatcd ins of fan*

secured to thi

taken from the f the building

through a i :lt in the foun

dation and tbc machine at

- rature
high-tension switchboard it located on a
raited platform at one end of the fur
. the main »»itch i* electricall)
On th<
the necctsn c» and

■ of the switch-
board are the and lightning
arte

been altered and
enlarged Tin

hat been rcmotrtd a-

now insta! ' lb •

tteam 150 degree I' ! »fcam pre*
carr ■
Each h

■
■hat i«
wid » a mor

roof Under •'
It an ash rum
to constructed of r
run*

rat

j ;

been m«Je B>l ^»«* <rc

aarraaJQ

■ n .* . 'r\m

■

' thr

830

POWER

May 30, 1911

consist of two three-phase lines of No. 0 hight. There are two floors and a base- contains the transformers, which are
stranded wire. These lines are capable ment, the first floor being 27 feet high, shown in Fig. 6. They are arranged in

of carrying a voltage of 33,000. The the second floor 26 feet. A 20-ton elec-
transmission lines enter a brick lightning- trie crane has been installed in the con-

banks of three over a large concrete
duct. Each rotary converter is served by
one of these banks. Each is connected
to a motor-driven blower which draws
air from the duct below and drives it
through the transformers to cool them.
Each transformer has a capacity of 500
kilowatts and steps the voltage down from

Fig.

Coal-handling Traveling Locomotive

arrester tower, where choke coils, discon-
necting switches and lightning arresters
are located. From the tower the wires
pass under Madison street through un-
derground ducts to the substation, which
is made fireproof throughout and is con-
structed with a skeleton of steel with
wails of brick and concrete. The win-

verter room, and one of 10 tons capacity
in the second story. The supply circuit
from the lightning-arrester tower enters
the basement in two insulated lead-
covered cables, which are carried to the

Fig. 6. Section of the Transformer
Room

13,200 to 430, the potential at which it
operates the rotary converters.

These two converters are located on
the ground floor, as shown in Fig. 7. They
are each of 1500 kilowatts capacity. Space
has been provided for the addition of
three more converters with the neces-
sary transformers and oil switches. Each
machine has its separate starting switch-
board, which is on the opposite side of
the building from the main switchboard.
This panel contains the main rotary
switch, the reacting switch and the push
button controlling the oil switch. A con-

Fig. 5. Lightning Arresters and Oil
Switches

Fic. 7. Converter Room, Showing the Two 1500-kilowatt Rotary

Converters

dows, sashes and casings are also of top of the building where they connect stant voltage of 600 is transmitted from

steel, no wood being used in the con- with the busbars. In this same room the busbars to the outgoing lines,

struction of this building. there are four oil switches, which are The main switchboard has 27 panels:

This is said to be the largest substa- operated from the switchboard. These One station-instrument panel, two main

tion in New England. The building is 144 are shown in Fig. 5. rotary panels and a separate panel for

feet long, 35 feet wide, and is 60 feet in A separate room on the second floor each section of the feeder system, the

May 30. 1911

city wiring having been rearranged for
this purpose. This substation is the cen-
ter of distribution, as the outgoing cur-
rent from the rotary conveners and the
incoming current from the jont

W station are connected in
parallel at the suitchboard and -
onto the various lines.

rcctly under the rotaries, in an open
space in the foundation in the basement,
the negative and equalizer buses are
placed. Several lines of underground
return wires enter through tl :ent

walls and arc connected to the ncg..
busbar.

TIM ation is located at a point

practically in the center of the hich

makes the distribution of current with
but small loss a possibil.-

'I he- EflF« t ft \ SU uum at an

Altitude

In a rece: the qu

tion was asked, "At a flight of a mile is
the vacuum in an engine cylinder as ef-
ts at the sea level
id answered, ' !
In an effort to be laconic the editor
who wrote the answer failed to put him-
self into the mental attiti: ic man
who wrote the question. If the question
asked no more than if a given force is
as effective to move a piston in
Colorado as in New York his ar

t, but the question is rvt uorth an-

100
S7 5 es IOC

77 5 75

°67»

X575^55

235

•
^50

if"

i *
< ^

0 °

inch barometer, aa there might be at

the sea and tru

ight be
-e of a mile. To i
since we are not after abso:

to be equal
>ne po;
Then at the sea :h the JO-inch

barometer the atmospheric pre*»urc
would be 15 pounds and the abv
initia: pi ounds ; :are

inch.

th a 20-inch vacuum the absolute
essurc in • uld be

-hes of mercur
pou:

The ideal diagram would be A />
of Fig. 1. which, with a ratio of cxpan-
s a th mear

On the mountain, with th
barometer the a
be 12.5 and the absolute initial pi

unds. w'ith a 20-inch the

back pressure in the cylinder wouL

riches of r*
pounds absolute.

The ideal diagram would be a I
the dot-
ins as before, would give a
mean effect re of 4" -

2 7 per cent, more than in I e oi the

same engine with the sar*
sure i gage > and the same vacuum at
the sea level.

The effect of the condenser is to -
ducc the lower temperature U
crease the head or fall of the heat
i»ccn the temperature* of Mtf) Ufed

■n. A 20-inch vacuum on a moun-
tain means a lower absolute pressure and
a lower rature of n than

docs the s.i uum at

In the diagra

■
do in I it the area rcr

5
0

'ing. Adding tweni

round number*, ten pot
to the mean e"
wherever the engine may be,

•aken as the ;
in the question. The atmo-,
•
-ward at the higher a
• ppo*c an cniu
«urr | pound* gage and a •■ >•

7»*

id the the

wh< would re;

•n of best which mun be
pound of to ma*

into s pound ■

. resoure. Tbe area 4

831

Rsakiae cyck
rbe limits 338 aod 162
•» poun:

b barometer ». could cor.
o mechanical against

that convertible by a wmiiar engine work-
ing
greet i 100 pounds inches

bound c

\ I I

erable engineer recer.

incident •
dangerous esse of baggir

In tat an old plant that

considerably run down, tbe bo
re found to be r
of good boiler compound was procured.
Ord e fireman to use

raring! c first or

ming; then to increase the
until th should be removed.

Steed of paying attention to the*
dot the fireman got the of pro-

SM I I

j:.

too
,*ol

W.l

eeeding -.d for the fir»t

impound Is
the end ot

■

I becsrr

•usee

found

. .

ugh the osrts
*oeusuulsrhM of
tbe burning M sppsram
hole* for the time being ar

boiK

show* >o» Mm perfect sM hoik-

832

POWER

May 30, 1911

Letters Patent for Inventions

By D. Howard Haywood

There is much confusion in the mind
of the average man as to the nature of
the rights conferred by letters patent of
the United States. Upon their face they
grant to the holder, for a specified term
of years, "the exclusive right to make,
use, and vend" the invention claimed
therein. This would seem to grant to
the owner the right to make, use, and
vend the invention, coupled with the
right to exclude others from so doing.
Such, however, is not the meaning at
all. Letters patent grant no right to make,
use, or vend an invention, but only the
right to prevent others from doing so,
the so-called exclusive right being mere-
ly the right of exclusion. If the grantee
has the right to make, use, and sell the
invention, at the time he receives the
patent, then the patent grant makes that
right an exclusive one; but if he does
not have that right at such time, the pat-
ent does not give him such right, but
merely the right to exclude others there-
from.

This will be understood best by citing
a concrete example. Assume A to be the
original inventor of the steam engine; he
has a natural right to make, use, and
vend the same, regardless of any patent
right. He, however, applies for and ob-
tains a broad patent thereon and receives
the right to exclude others from exercis-
ing the right which they would other-
wise have had of making, using, or sell-
ing steam engines. Now assume that
B at some time later invents a specific
form of rotary steam engine, for the
novel features of which he obtains a pat-
ent. At the time of obtaining the patent,
however, A's patent is in force; hence B
has no right to make, use, or vend a
steam engine of any kind. B's patent
gives him no right in this connection, for
if it did the effect would clearly be in
abrogation of A's rights of exclusion, al-
ready acquired. B's patent grants him
the right to exclude everyone from mak-
ing, using, or vending the specific form
of rotary engine invented by him, and
nothing more; he can prevent others, in-
cluding A himself, from making, using,
or selling the rotary steam engine, but
having no right to the exercise thereof,
he obtains none in his patent. It is to
be noted also that B's right to exclude
A from making the rotary steam engine
that B invented, is in no way incon-
sistent with A's patent right.

The result of the foregoing may seem
somewhat anomalous, but it is no less
true that during the life of A's patent,
neither A nor B can make, use, or sell
rotary steam engines, except by permis-
sion of one from the other. Failing such
permission B can only wait until A's
patent right has expired, whereupon he
will be free to exercise his natural right,
and for the remainder of the term of his

.4 general discussion of
patent rights and the pro-
tection they afford; also
some useful hints as to the
scope of the claims to be
made in applying for a
patent.

Trom a paper delivered before the Amer-
ican Society of Mechanical Engineers, ;it New-
York on May !>.

own patent will likewise be able to ex-
ercise his legal right of restraint against
others.

Novelty Distinguished from Infringe-
ment

When application is made to the Gov-
ernment for letters patent of the United
States, a search is made by the Govern-
ment solely upon the question of novelty.
The applicant for a patent right describes
and claims what he considers he has in-
vented, and the Government, through its
officials in the Patent Office, proceeds to
search through prior publications, rec-
ords and patents, in an endeavor to find
anything upon which such description
and claims can be read, and if found, B's
application is refused. In the example
just given, however, there is no dis-
closure by A of any rotary steam engine,
but merely (say) of a reciprocating steam
engine, and it being assumed that no dis-
closure of a rotary steam engine is found
elsewhere, the patent sought for by B
is granted to him. The fact that A in
his application claimed, and in his pat-
ent was given, an exclusive right in re-
lation to all forms of steam engines, is
not taken into consideration by the
Patent Office at all. A search is made
for the specific thing that B has dis-
closed and is claiming and as this is not
found, a patent is granted to B.

Patent Rights Transferable in Whole
or in Part

The holder of a patent may remit
that right to one or more persons, firms
or corporations at will. There are in
general three ways of accomplishing this
result: (a) by assignment, (b) by ter-
ritorial grant, (c) by license. Assign-
ments may be of the entire patent right
held by the original grantee, or of a part
thereof If of the entire right the situa-
tion is simple, the assignee merely be-
ing substituted for the original grantee,
in which case the assignee assumes every
right the original grantee had at the time
he made the assignment. There is pro-
vision made for recording such assign-
ments, and a statute provides that when

recorded within a specified period, they
become and constitute constructive notice
to all of the transfer of title of the patent.
If, on the other hand, the assignment
conveys only a part of the right granted
by the patent, the situation is not nearly
so clear and is very often misunderstood.
Assume that A, the original grantee, as-
signs to X an undivided one-half interest
in the patent, such assignment being un-
accompanied by any partnership agree-
ment. A has now broken up the complete
right of exclusion and is sharing it with
X. But as the right of exclusion neces-
sarily carries with it the right of remis-
sion thereof, it follows that A and X can
now, each of them, and the one independ-
ently of the other, remit that exclusion
so far as anyone else is concerned, and
that neither can interfere with the action
of the other in this respect. The "exclu-
sive right" or right of exclusion is thus
utterly broken up and lost unless A and
X act in concert. Furthermore, in an as-
signment unaccompanied by any restric-
tions as to a partnership agreement, it
does not matter what proportion of the
patent right is nominally assigned An
assignment of a one-hundredth part con-
veys exactly the same right in this re-
spect as one-half or ninety-nine hun-
dredths.

But few words need be said in relation
to territorial grants and licenses. These
instruments do not convey an undivided
interest in the patent right, but the exact
nature of the interest conveyed is de-
pendent in each case upon the wording
of the particular instrument, the nature
of such interest usually being set forth
in specific terms therein.

Part ownership of a patent right may
also result from joint invention. In such a
case application must be made in the
name of the joint inventors and the pat-
ent is granted to them jointly. Each
owner may operate independently of the
other and may grant rights under the
patent without the consent of the other.

As it is the claims which determine
the breadth and scope of the patent pro-
tection granted, it follows that their word-
ing is of extreme importance. It is upon
the skilful drawing of the claims that the
whole value of the patent depends. They
should, where the nature of the invention
permits, be broad and comprehensive, so
that mere variations in structure will fall
within them; yet they must not be am-
biguous, uncertain or vague, for they
would then be liable to be declared in-
valid by the courts. Also the claims must
not touch upon any previously invented
structure, for in such case they would
be anticipated thereby and would have
no validity. The first requisite, then, in
the drafting of a claim, is an accurate
knowledge of what has been previously
accomplished in the same or similar lines,

May 30, 191 I

AIR

a knowledge, as ir is aptly called, of the

•e of the art.

The next requirement is a true ap-
preciation of the problem that the in-
ventor has solved. It is not sufficient that
one drawing a claim shall merely ur
stand the specific structure for *hich
patent protection is to be acqur
in such case he would not be in a proper
position to distinguish between the es-
sential and nonessential features thcr
To illustrate this, conceive an appliance
placed upon an engine such as would
operate in connection with the valve
mechanisms for both the inlet and the
exhaust of steam. invcnicncc the

inventor might apply it in th >ct

actually his probte nplctel'.

•he application of the device to the
means for admitting steam. A failure
to appreciate the fact that the applica
to the means for controlling the cxli
of the steam was mere surplusage, or
at best a convenience, might lead to the
drawing of claims in a wav that would
prevent others only from applying the
mechanism to both inlet- and cxh.i
valve mechanism, leaving them free to
place it upon the inlet-valve mcchar
alone, and thereby actually to attain the
benefits of the invention

•cr broad claims have been drawn
»uch as comprchcnsivcK the in

\ention generally, in such term* .t
include all reasonable variations of the

turc. it is then wise to mscr:
claims: First, to the general
structure shown, and ncoad, to any
part of the structure such as ma>
he deemed to be of particular imp'

Letters patent for inventions inn

>t, an apparatus, machine.

structure or a J ceea

icthod; third, a cooifN ual-

such as a chemical compound and.

rth. a design.
Under the first heading DOOM such 0
binations of elements as are included.

nstancc. in steam-heating i)
• team engines, auti nachilM

uding practically evervthmt; »hich

c» under the term mechanical
:nt drawn to the*
form for a combination of clcmc
The Suprenu I r of the

Mates has laid down t that the

cnts of claims mu-
gethcr to a single unit
thai the claims be patentable The most
famous case perhaps In thi- connect

dH Fabcr pei h a

claim covering the ordinar cad

pencil in use toda
thereon for erasing purposes »
unpatentable. A patent had been actuallv
granted upon this ! -cme

Court of the United State* declar.

c invalid The Court «j ! m effect
thai the pencil and the rubber each op-
erated independently of the other a* each
had th ilcd and that the

re assemhltnir, ol them mgOtl

(nT :J not con-

:c an inventive act. When so aggre
gated, the pencil was still used as a pc
rubber as an

not combine together for
result but. on d
trar separu

ndent and

i claim to b cments

- a fin.i
>d from that which
:d hav

lividu
binations.
ader the second heading come pi
cesses or methods, and in this con'

•hcult to sa> with am
Jeg- able of

being p patent right, and

wha' An> thing new in which there

is an elemental
capable of this p- ; while going

•e other e anything »

the mere I a machine is not

cap < the only pos-

ay of , g the proces-

method carried out in a machine being

; atcnt the machine itself

The requirement for patents under the

third c 'cr than novelty, is that

the- rata something more than a

I ingredients, with
e« result other than that which would
.rally follow from such a mixture
iH-sign patents are granted for BM
thing new in ornamental configuration.
Parts that have a new form merel> for
some mechanical purpose arc not cap-
able of pi under the design
branch of the patent law. the rcqi
ment being novel; ^namental
regard to ut

Paul I < onomtzei E Kpforion

of a Green* cconom

liing in the death of one man. recr

1 Pot-
I . .

• nnected to a
Lancasl I heatcJ

cd in IW7 It
Timed sinc<
rrcscntatlvcs of the
I good
< plosion In
I room wis hung a list

and the
foil printed theroon

caption "k ;

■I the pressure be taken of?

i. ! J'

tampers and food
I the heal to pa**

; rewsurr "

cht and HorsneU
the i ecoa

it rewu .

c as fo on the

bcf<

on dut). noticed that the ISCOOd
■ >m the end of the

•nnected the oconoo
boiler and emptied it by means of the
bio* |« then removed the

rubber
and .icing the CO

' 'se cconom .
At five o'clock the -corning hr

Ueved the cconom i.
mg

the spanner
on a branch pipe near the cover and

Howard
relieved at *i\ o

• hum be feast ad done to

the ng htm where he could

find the spam should be

aram necem 'ighten the nuts. At a

minutes past seven the explosion
earned and Horsb - found in the

spac K ranch pipe

■ nomixcr The spanner
found B let itta place •here

Howard ha - the 091 rred lo

on the ground and one of the
bolts which had h< 'oend t-

I
Thi -veld b^.

bolt ut three scars age Me-

standard on their
cconom ch bolt 'our

bolt

The I at I proaeerr

pounds per inch and the

Bcen<>"

g to the »'
men- the Inspection

panme- rose sr

• aese of the holts
had creased on account of

doubt as tr jf using two holts.

oat the pa— I
iles.

enough to

that, if <>nc the

■see to hold the eo» «
i •• • ..• borta la iIh r»cm ♦ on*
them being broke*, the other three
ild bo" n place The

all econorr

neb hah bv

The BOfl ■•' '• < Ml Jt«t >• tScfrfoft

a rules art laaued by rbt eatnt

about vfaaj tu do

•ad their s»ai use put ob~

ot ttv
t .'•■*'■*' ' •

834

POWER

May 30, 1911

Symonds — Emergency Engineer

John Symonds had a small office near
the business center of a New England
manufacturing town. On the glass of the
single large bow window, by which he
used to sit and think, or just sit if he had
no thinking to do, was written in modest
gold-leaf letters,

JOHN SYMONDS
Emergency Engineer

I had known Symonds a number of years.
In early manhood he was one of the en-
gineers in the fire department of his city.
I called on him to renew an acquaintance
which had been interrupted by my ab-
sence from the East. He had not changed
much, and except for a sprinkling of gray
in the hair about the temples, twenty
years had not altered his appearance. Of
medium hight and rather lean, he looked
like an athlete in perfect condition and
his keen, alert glance was friendly and
somewhat inquiring as we shook hands.
After the usual greeting had been ex-
changed I said, "Emergency Engineer,
what is that?"

"Oh," he said, "it is really a long story
but I can make it short by just touching
the high spots for I do not think you will
care for the minor details. The fire de-
partment is no place for a live engineer.
It is a soft job at fair pay, but the aver-
age man will go down hill both mentally
and physically from the day he enters the
service. I recognized this early in the
game and got out. There was no job
waiting for me so I advertised in a small
way among the engineers and owners,
that I was ready to substitute in engine
rooms during the vacation, sickness and
emergency absences of the regular man.
I got plenty of work at the prevailing
rate of pay. In many plants I found
many opportunities to improve the oper-
ating conditions, to do quick repair stunts
and a lot of first aid to injured machinery
work.

"Somehow I got the nickname of
Emergency Engineer, which stuck and as
I had some ability in getting out of close
corners I began to get calls to look after
repair jobs, make changes and the like,
which, with substituting, kept me pretty
busy. I rather liked the title of Emerg-
ency Engineer and determined to earn it,
so I stopped substituting and opened this
cffice.

"Owners wanted advice and wanted
work done. I was long on doing work
but short on giving or selling advice. I
loved to do things my own way a great
deal better than telling how they should
be done and though I could do a fair
business as a consulting engineer within
my limits I prefer that work which gives
me physical exercise and trains my
hands along with my brain. I have my
office, congenial work and make a good
living. What more can life offer?"

By F. L. Johnson

Some of the experiences of a
bright young engineer who
opened a ' ' first aid ' ; to
injured machinery consult-
ing office from which he
directed personally con-
ducted repair and replace-
ment jobs.

"But," said I, "what work do you do?
What kind of jobs come your way?"

"I do anything which anybody wants
done in a hurry in a steam plant. Why!
last week — " Just here the telephone
bell rang. After answering it he said,

Fig. 2

Fig. 4

Fiq.5

I _"

/ ::. ' &

,_ _!__;;';

Fig. 6

Power

"You asked what I do. A call has just
come from Brown's that the air pump on
the surface condenser has stopped. The
engineer cannot start it and the engine
will not carry the load noncondensing.
I do not know what is wrong but as it is
only around the block you can go with
me and see what is wrong."

We went. The piston had stopped at
about two-thirds of the stroke. Symonds
pushed the valve to the other end of its
stroke and opened the throttle slightly.
The piston moved back to the end of the

cylinder, the valve reversed and the pis-
ton started on the return stroke.

"Steam end apparently all right," he
said softly, as he closed the throttle. He
directed the engineer to take off the cyl-
inder head on the water end. This showed
why the pump stopped. The water piston
was and probably had been for some
months guiltless of packing. One of the
set out segments had dropped to the bot-
tom of the cylinder and had ploughed
through the bushing near mid stroke and
a sliver had rolled up, against which the
piston struck and stopped.

Whistling, "It Beats All What You See
When You Don't Have a Gun," Symonds
got into overalls, cut out the obstruction,
dismantled and took out the piston. Find-
ing a short crowbar he drove it between
the bushing and the cylinder wall at the
worn part crimping it so that it was easily
pulled out. He then calipered the cyl-
inder. Next he went to a near-by car-
penter shop and selected some soft-maple
stock of about lA inch thickness, from
which with the band saw he made three
packing rings for the piston. These he
took back to the plant, put the piston on
the rod, put in the wood packing, closed
the cylinder and started the pump.

When the exhaust from the engine was
turned into the condenser and everything
seemed to be going along all right he
said to the engineer, "This will run in
good shape for months but I will be here
Saturday at twelve o'clock to put in a
new bushing and I will need one man
with a sledge hammer to help."

On the way back to the office he said,
"this is an example of the kind of work I
have to do. It is my first call to handle
a job of this nature. It goes without
saying, however, that if all places were
filled by first-class men I would not have
much to do beyond a little substituting.
But there are not enough, first-class men
to go around and so long as such miserable
wages are paid for engineers' services
there will be little inducement for anyone
to become an engineer."

I did not reply, but instead I said, "that
pump was made out in Wisconsin and you
promised to put in the new bushing Sat-
urday. Today is Thursday. Do you ex-
pect to get it by telephone ?"

"Well, not exactly, but I expect to
make it tomorrow afternoon. Come
around and take lunch with me and then
we will make the bushing together if we
can find any sheet brass suitable for the
job."

After luncheon the next day he said,
" that pump cylinder is 12^ inches in
diameter and the piston is about 1/32 of
an inch less than 12 inches, which shows
that the bushing should be 3/16 of an
inch thick and 16 inches long. It will
take a strip about 39 inches long to go

UJ, 1911

•'.

-•'

around the insid.- of the cylinder. 1:
take up some in rolling so we will go over
to the boiler >hop anJ can

find."

At the boiler shop some sheet brass
8 inch thick was found and from it
he had two pieces cut. One r
inches wide a- inches long, one

end of which was afterward irimmrJ
agonally, see Fig. 1, and another
inches long bv I inch at one end and
at the other, sec Fig. 2

The li -ce he had rolled to ap-

proximately a diamct.r of 12 Ind

nd had the re. >ent to the

plant. While at the boiler shop he also
had made from a bar of inch octagonal
steel the two tools shown in
and

•er leaving the boiler shop we pa
at the corner after he had said that if I
still felt interested I would do well to
come around to the plant the next day
and se.- the job finis'ied.

As Symonds ted I arrived a'

plant soon after 12 o'clock and found

him already at work. The pump had

been dismantled and he was driving the

• bushing into the cylinder with a

faced hammer. When in place there

a tapering slot or gap where the

ccn trimmed. Into this slot he

the wedgc-sha? P until the

und of the hammer show.-d that it

was solid. This forced the side of the

ing outward against the cylinder

wall. Then with a lip.ht hammer he

cr the contact between
rider was ;
ied gave forth
same sounJ g that -igc had

n the bushing outward and

He then me.i om

the small end of the wedge to the inner
of thr -be

about an inch. \ n took the

shown in Fig. 4 and put the book over
the end of wedge anJ a strut of

wood between it and tr

ing. as ock

under th? outer end of the bar to support
ie helper with the uck on

the Kib of
blo\» ed out • !kc.

This, after a thorouc
dressed along one edge, narrow ing it about
a th accord-

ing - mons would allow

:th the same amour' to enter

three-quarters of an inch furthc

uarter of an inch for the final
ng It icn narrowed slic

at the widr end to alio- c upse*

effect of the final dm ing. It was smeared
on one side and both edges with a n
turc le lead and graphite to reduce

•on of
After accurately locating the bushing
and preventing a pos»
ment from the
■

ig and the nslde

*d. the wedge
the slot ar a heme with the d-

tool and sledge. Fig A.
email end of the

the inside end of the *>— *»*•£_ the
end l off lush with the cad of the

cd a httle but
or rtdgr along the jot .moods

removed with a scraper The pa?
reassemble-' p^a*«g

ston and the pumps tried, and as
J to be
ing ordr cd bac.

•s I one hand and a

mat

I needed It gare me the
iiy mental and phytic

-a. Sor :• c»

ng happens for i tee

to take a crossct to keep in

shape. m does not often happen.

■J steam ctiajlaca in this town

to hear from moat of them

inside of a > not keep a shop

and ha tools. I am •■ . j -

c to the use of any tools belong-

ing ' I happen to be

sor.

Just here a man came in who wanted
some a ' 'out the purchase end

» on an

«o I took my
-otnising to look in on are
tad

Driving Boilers at Economical Rates

\> \lpht' \. id

Th onorr.ical rate of

boilers, from the thermal and commercial
star differ because the

charges are some function of the num-
ber the

ra at a
.tin load per boiler anJ
of the number of r«>i!cr«> In
H< th the '

'ation it migh' fine

some of the terms

the term "overall" efl
denote that cf

■t and furr...

The eft

lit si 14

and this ratio may be lirt one

un-
afft I he fur-

♦ed as

//.

latter

grate and that dtapOf »hea.

*e efllcienc I the

overall eft*

1 .

■ < ... i •

■

- . • . . . ...

. / ..— . ■ „ rk .. • m.n. I

From the ' ' he s*

to measure

e com-
The overall edk><

rasing to •
mum at about

' heatir

-
cBclency of Importance, the i
aaejfc

roration of .'25
' w>t of heating i

»orpttoa of the
heal transmission being a functtoo of fee

tag. ihe man
meat of ihc

' • ■

836

POWER

May 30, 1911

bustion, as each particle has a well de-
fined path through the boiler, and the
formation of CO in the presence of O is
readily detected. As soon as the speed

f 40

J5 30

$ io

Adding the S900 for interest on the
boilers, to the $600 for fixed charges on
the building, the total fixed charge is
$1500 per boiler of 300 horsepower. The
assumptions are somewhat crude due to
the 4- and 8-hour schedules, thereby ig-
noring coal for banking and variations in
efficiency with variations in load. Pres-
ent central-station practice indicates that
reasonable results are arrived at by grant-
ing these assumptions, refinements in
figures being a matter of personal taste.
For convenience in plotting the curves,
the fixed charges are reduced to

1 500

3no

$5.00 per boilrr horsepower

v I 234 56789 10

Pounds of Water Evaporated per Square Foot of
Heating Surface per Hour from andat 212 Fahrenheit

Fig. 1. Effect of Driving Upon Overall
Efficiency

of the gas increases, the eddies formed
give the gas a turbulent action and a
more intimate intermingling results. The
overall efficiency is the sum of these in-
dividual factors, some of which increase
as the rate of driving increases, while
others decrease under the same condi-
tions.

In the analysis for a given plant, a
curve similar to curve No. 1 might be
drawn if accurate results are desired;
otherwise, the one shown may be assumed
as typical. For example, assume the fol-
lowing values:

Boilers at $15 per horsepower, or

s .< >o „ , ...

s — = $0.50 pet square loot ol heating surface
10 * • '

The total steam per hour from and at

212 degrees Fahrenheit is

Steam at given pressure and feed tem-
perature X factor of evaporation
= 24,000 X 1.0615 = 25,476 pounds
The number of boilers required at the

most economical rate of driving from the

coal standpoint alone is found from the

expression

-\S.47<>
3.25 X 300 X 10
which figures out to be three boilers, al-
lowing the customary 10 square feet of
heating surface per boiler horsepower.

By reference to curve No. lv the effi-
ciencies at the different rates of driving
can be tabulated as follows:

T\BI,E 1

Rate of driving in
pounds of water
evaporated from
and at 212 degrees
Fahrenheit per
square foot of boiler
heating surface. . . .

■»

Boiler efficiency

0 . 5 t

0.677:") 0.73

().7:i

0 . 70

0.65

0.5875

0.5175

0.44

0.36

$4500 for a 300-horsepower boiler; floor
space, 600 square feet per boiler; fixed
charges on boiler house,* $1 per square
foot, or $600 per boiler per annum; in-
terest, depreciation, maintenance and
labor at 20 per cent, of cost of boilers,
$900 per boiler per annum; coal at $3
and $6 per net ton; heat value per pound
of combustible, 14,600 B.t.u.; steam con-
sumption, 24,000 pounds per hour; steam
pressure, 150 pounds gage; feed-water
temperature, 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

Service and conditions of operation as
follows:

Coal at $3 per ton, 8 hours per day of
300 days per year; coal at $3 per ton, 4
hours per day of 300 days per year;
coal at $6 per ton, 8 hours per day of
300 days per year; coal at $6 per ton, 4
hours per day of 300 days per year.

*These values represent the upper limits
and are much higher than those met with in
the average plant. In the curves, however,
i he actual conditions for any plant may be
found by interpolation.

*> 28

„.J

"ost at l|

)50J.

^4-'"

<&&-

Cos

tof{

^arqf

er-

Zijrl

rsq.lt

ofHeatingSi

1 i

irface

01 234 56789 10
Rate of Driving in lb. Water per sq.ft. of Heating Surface

Fie. 2. Effect of Driving Upon Total
Operating Costs. Service, 2400
Hours, Coal $3 per Ton; Ser-
vice, 1200 Hours, Coal $6 per
Ton

The annual cost
plant will equal

of coal for a given

(

Steam per hour X B.t.u. per pound of steam\
X hours of service per annum. X
cost- per pound of combustible '

This for eight hours operation per day,
and coal at $3 per ton, is expressed in
Table 2.

TABLE 2

.era;

sal

d h

at. 3,

35 0) J-
> t* 60

if™

S *

Cost of -Coal per Annum

25,476X970.4X2,400X0.1765

14,600X0.54

25,476 X 970 . 4 X 2,400 X 0.1765
14,600X0.6775

[25,476 X 970 . 4 X 2,400 X 0 . 1765
14,600X0.7:!

25, 176 X 970 I X 2,400 XO 1765

14.600X0 7:;
25. 176X970. 4 X 2, 100X0. 1765

I 1.600X0.70

25,476 X 970 4 X 2,400 XI) I 76.".

I 1,600X0 6.)

1 2-,,476 X 970 . 4 X 2.400 XO 1765
14.600X0.5S75

25,176X970. 1 X 2,400 XO. 1765
14,600X0.517.)

[25,476 X 970. 4X2,400X0 .1765

14,600X0.44
25,476 X 970 4X2,400X0.1765

14,600X0.36

$13,300
$10,600
I t.830
$ 9,830
*10,200
$1 1,000
$12,200
$13,909
$16,300
$20,000

In doubling the cost of coal it is neces-
sary only to double the costs in Table 2,
or, halving the hours of service, will be
equivalent to dividing these costs by two.

TABLE 3

0 per
rface

fixed

sq.ft.

(D a;

aid

'". =

N 3

o ■

*> 60

o9 33

* 60

33 _

cost
.25 pe
rface

— £3

-„ oJ

_© 3

£<D

sS^m

& 2

ajS^ai

6&B

3*? 60

60s

3*5 60

.■a

a oi e

!2«_

a eo a

V
0

o .

1 an
arges
heati

2°

1 an
arges
heati

«a

a> c

«a»<

<» cr

33.a<~

y a

o°°

X 00

o°°

. X

$13,300

12,740

26,040

6.370

19,670

10,600

6,370

16,790

3,185

13,785

9,830

4,250

14,080

2,125

11,955

9,830

3,185

13,015

1,593

11,423

10,200

2,548

12,748

1,274

11,474

11,000

2,125

13,125

1,062

12,062

12,200

1 ,825

14,025

912

13,112

13,900

1 ,593

15,493

796

14,696

16,300

1,117

17,717

708

17,008

20.000

1 .274

21,274

634

20,634

(Heat value per pound of combustible X \
boiler efficiency )

The annual cost of coal given in Table
3 is taken from Table 2. The fixed
charges are determined as follows: At
the rate of evaporation of 1 pound of
water per square foot of heating surface
from and at 212 degrees Fahrenheit,
25,476 square feet of heating surface are
required. At a fixed rate of $0.50 per
square foot of heating surface the an-
nual charges become

25,476 X 0.50 = $12,740
For an evaporation of 5 pounds of steam
per square foot of heating surface, the

May 30. 19\ I

POWl \<

number of square feet of heating ->ur
face

Again, at the fixed rate of >0.50 per
square foot of heating surface the an-
nual charge becot:

.,-

In this way all the values in the (hirJ
column have been computed. By h
ng these values those in the fifth column
arrived at. this amounting to a t

On Costs

Hoi I

charge l per square foot of boiler

Seating surface.

By adding trn harges to the COM

■>f coal the values in the fourth and sixth
columns are obtained, these representing
the total annual operating costs. The
valurs in Tabic .1 arc plotted in a:

Bj doubling the tad using

the same number of hour- the

valut" in the second column. Tabl
become just double those of the second

•nn. Table 3 Th<
maining the same at r
and per squar. heating

surface, the values are arrived at as
forr These figures have been plotted
.urvc No

Assuming I2<»> hours .if service per
.ear instead of 2400 I • tn the

coating ion, the values in the I

ond column. Table 5>. arc obtained; these
are one-half the values of those in the
•econd column. Tabic the

main the same, and their

* In
the fourth and sixth columns, which are
total annual operating

• how* !'
•ne attention might be

ward the change in the
moat economical rate
the coal MM
low the rate of d- J incrr

the contrary, should the cost '
be high and ■

then the point of maximum (*•
flciency should be approached Cut
shows that there arc t-
can have l 'he MM emelcnc

altogether different rate* -ig For

instant it cnV !

, ounda and
raief per square foot of f
ing • hour.

•IJ|

The dotted lines on «.urxcs 2. -1 and 4
pas* through . COS*

.seful in
cMimaimg the MOM economical rate at
r than these a«
.us ! '»uld the ■•

■ *■ «wj&

*\ciency occur ••
pounds exap
would on. . c saint

• ould be MM
pou «Tooa obtained ra

Men though

the the m

■

MM ism

'. lo
g approximate:* the rate of driving

In conclusion it ma)
i only
no spare boilers ha.
When this Is the case, the

.
be somewhat of a reduction In the labor
charge. A
in s | hen |ixht load-

-irnace tetr .
atur Ml semngs and

I ) 111

quart c
ctioa A»v
racentl) presented so«r
on the Ammgfr* of fin
It is generally adtsTlMI
in t cause an

■anal % considerable

o the
ices under which such r
-ut the
draw number of

> produce fires by
steam . ma cootact who

comhu-: ' J'cni » were that in

steam ; bo« low the pM

sure, would m the coarse of time pre*
•>a! and that when this Mage
reached, pc

spontaneot. >n due to its p tea Mar

• ran

take place s

rtbermot coal formed at

a low temperature to ha

to* Ignition po

cstigaiors seem to think tbM

tin afl vbrr oa

<a! baa a better
opportunitv to absorb
I hot at alt tin

• general methods of

the ••»•

am rtffc e dl

838

POWER

May 30, 1911

The Cost of Industrial Power

It seems rather peculiar that all of
the information available on power costs
in industrial plants comes from the in-
dustrial engineers or sales engineers of
the central power stations. It may be
that these figures come from such sources
because these people are the only ones
sufficiently interested to go into the mat-
ter carefully and dig up figures which
they can submit to a manufacturer and
show him how enormously expensive his
plant is and how much more it is costing
him than it would cost if they were al-
lowed to furnish power.

In Mr. Hibner's paper the statement is
made that "Sometimes manufacturers re-
tain consulting engineers on the basis
of a percentage of the cost of the plant
if it is installed. The dangers of such
a practice are quite evident, as it is ask-
ing a good deal of human nature for a
man to lose a neat commission on the
sale of a plant by recommending the pur-
chase of power." Yet Mr. Hibner would
not hesitate to recommend this manufac-
turer to go to the sales agent or in-
dustrial engineer of a power company
for the same information. Is not this
latter method a far more dangerous prac-
tice? The consulting engineer does a
large amount of work for his money. He
not only determines whether or not it is
advisable to install a plant, but if to his
satisfaction and to the satisfaction of his
client he has proved that it is advisable,
he lays out the plant, supervises its in-
stallation and sees that it meets the re-
quirements of the manufacturer. Does
the sales agent of the power company
do anything in this line?

The figures given by Mr. Hibner would
not lead one to believe that his figures are
as convincing or as nearly correct as
would be likely if the figures were sub-
mitted by an engineer who was not biased
in either direction, and no good engineer
would be biased any more than would
a good doctor. A man with a broken leg
would not go to a carpenter because the
carpenter has all of the tools necessary
and knows how to saw off the leg or
knows how to make the splints. He would
go to a surgeon.

The question of whether to purchase
power or to generate it, depends entirely
upon the relative cost of the two meth-
ods. In most cases it is a question not
only of power, but also of supplying
steam for heating and other purposes in
addition to the power, resulting in the
plant operating noncondensing with more
or less back pressure during the winter
months. The steam economy is not as
good as would be expected from a con-
densing plant, but there is no reason why
the steam consumption should be ex-
cessive or an uneconomical type of en-
gine purchased.

By Henry D. Jackson

A rational discussion of
the charges to be included
in figuring the cost of in-
dustrial power, with special
reference to the attempts of
central- station men to boost
these charges, as shoivn by
Mr. Hibner's paper which
appeared in the March 2 1
issue of Power.

Amortization on (C) £

per cent. (50-year life) . 25.00

Fixed charge on heat- $2,230.00

ing plant 400 . 00

Additional for power . . SI ,830 . 00

Operating Cost of Power Plant
240,000 Kilowatt-hours
Coal at 7.39 pounds per
kilowatt-hour, 887 tons

at $3 82,661.00

Banking, 181 tons at

$3 543 . 00

Night heating, 202 tons at

§3 606.00

Engineer at $18 per week 936 . 00
Fireman at $15 per week 780.00

Water 100.00

Oil, waste, supplies 150.00

Repairs 200 . 00

$5,976.00

Operating cost of heat-
ing plant 2,305.00

Taking up the specific points of the
discussion, Mr. Hibner considers a shoe
factory of approximately 250x60 feet
general dimensions, four stories high and
built of brick. In the portion of the
country selected, that of Toronto, heat is
required for approximately seven months
in the year; and, according to his fig-
ures, an average of 45 boiler horsepower
is required, with 90 horsepower during
zero weather and probably considerably
over this during exceedingly cold weather.
According to Table 1, the coal required
for heating alone is 475 tons.

TABLE 1

Heating Plant Investment
Boiler, piping and auxiliar-
ies (A) $1500 00

Building and stack (B). . . 2500 00

Total investment $4000 . 00

Fixed Cost

Interest at 6 per cent, on

$4000 240.00

Insurance and taxes, 2 per

cent on $4000 SO . 00

Amortization on A, 4£ per

cent., 15-year life 67 . 50

Amortization on B, i per

rent . . 50-year life 12 . 50 $400 . 00

Operating Cost

Coal, 475 tons at $3 1425 00

Fireman at $15 per week 780.00

Supplies and repairs 100 . 00 2305 . 00

Total cost $2705 . 00

TABLE 2

Complete Power Plant Investment
Capacity, 100 kilowatts

Engine, generator,

hwitchboard, wiring

(A) $5,500.00

Boilers, steam piping,

auxiliaries IB) 5,000.00

Building. foundations,

stack (C) 5,000.00

Steam-heating plant . .
Additional for power. .

Interest, 6 per cent, on

$15,500

Profit, 5 per cent, on

$11,500

Insurance and taxes, 2

per cent, on $15,500. . .
Amortization on (A) 2

per cent . f 20-year life)
Amortization on (B) 4%

percent. (15-year life)

$15,500

4,000

00
00

$11,500

ower Plant

$930.00

575 . 00

310. eo

165.00

225 . 00

$3,671.00

5,501.00
0 0229

Additional for power. .

Total additional for
power

Cost per kilowatt-hour.

Cost per horsepower-
year 51.40

In Table 2, however, it will be noted
that 202 tons are allowed for night heat-
ing, leaving a total of 273 tons for day
heating. If it requires 202 tons of coal
for heating a plant which is entirely
closed, as a plant is at night, and where
no changes of air take place other than
leakage, it certainly would take more
than 275 tons of coal to accomplish the
same results where there is at least one
change of air per hour as well as open
windows, doors, etc. It would be better
to figure 475 tons of coal for day heat-
ing and 202 tons of coal for night heat-
ing, making a total of 677 tons of coal
for heating during the year. Therefore, it
will be noted that in estimating the cost
of heating alone, Mr. Hibner has neg-
lected the heating during the night, which
he has been very careful to consider in
estimating the heating in connection with
the complete power-plant equipment. In
Table 1, the investment and fixed costs
may be left as they are, but the operat-
ing cost will increase in the ratio of 677
to 475 on the coal, making a considerable
difference in the operating cost of the
heating plant. Table 1-A would repre-
sent the revised figures.

TABLE 1-A

First Cost and Fixed Charges Same as 1

Operating Cost

Coal, 677 tons at $3 $2031 .00

Fireman at $15 per week 780.00

Supplies and repairs 100.00

$2911.00
400 00

Total operating and fixed charges. . $3311 .00
There might also be added to this op-
erating cost, according to his own paper,
the cost of the coal required to generate
the steam which is required at high pres-
sure during the entire year, for which
no allowance has been made, although
the time of the fireman has been figured
for this period. Besides, it is advisable
to note that since steam at a high pres-
is required for industrial purposes,
-■e boiler plant, piping, etc., roust be
purchased for high-pressure service.

May 30, 1911

« - : \<

Now consider what it will actually cost
to install and furnish power from a
power plant.

! ■

»m brattnx plant

•

• ;•■

4ll ftl f 1

Tabic the fi-

charges and operating chargo according
to my estimate. There ccrtain!> sc
to be no reason why | !ant

C non, i and ap-

paratus moderate in ; Mould cost

- kilowatt; and. thho
:iay ap; nail to

cr, I ! istailcJ a 2

kilowatt plant at very nearly these rela-
as well as a number of

The profit item shown in these tav
planation. If the
be c at all. it should be con-

ting that a manufac-
ture . and in this* light,
anufacturcr* a
■
thing. Tin that
:i should not be 1*1 ac-
•it in tl ■ on the plant.

- an
.fit in
own plant, and not as a charge ag><
plant, u ' n a gr

illa-
•laking the installation ct I
ly a profit from ai

:
cen*
charge-*

•I charge for ;
MM

t..'

I , _ _ .

ing

An explanation ma> be Met

I an

a heating pla '« ■

er plant
era!

hence, a r 9 pounds

It would have been
better I -^ner given sot:

of the coal, as good
coal bably do

and poor coal might do ir
%e.

I have under observation three plants
requiring a ;m of 140 horsep<

age of about 1 10. all opera

of
.

>c plants op-
nsing with a back p-
ter months of
Tru
are of wood and he m all r

■
something less thai •' for di

of the fact that the coal coats
0 a tor v as k

rur It might be well

•her
ned in all of the
tame would be true in the fa.

unless he has
some means of dispo- 'her

more profi-

It i* hard to account for the
of the 181 tons of coal »h
cr has aaaur

of the
-. he
has all

the otr he

of
•.rposes. should

it b

meat a all cases.

to alio

figure^

to a

coal u;

that a go. be

ho«

ir,,- p x1 ' fc»t% and rc»u'.t» obtained

the

possfb

• hrn th« man

• ■ . ■

tne cor* *
M ttU'

upon the cost of power, not o
he ma-

chased from the

load and moat of them arc on a

alldinc -scale basis, ao arranged that the
coat of r purchasod Intruaaoa

far more rapu ha load facasff

sea than » ould the cost of poor
fenc

pet horsepower of
motors ins* nd other methods of

rging which call for *
ess of the po»
The . orsu lting engim ao

adt t -.4 out a plant th*

be operate i
a sufficient Icr. • <• to prove to the

estimate
w'"*! BBnCt COOdJtaOM M r^'- •****■-

and at the same rime so
range the plant that a power ins;

rcessary. This
arrangemer atkm a

ment of the b
ne

cess cost
have ov

M laid oat for

• more a

than a practi.j
• n man .

jghout the
>uld t-

e maiorttT
lave been op.
• d from a sing l c

utd^w n In
\ good

rom the posoflb*

-c hood

Ml I do Ml
not had P«

iod of time at least one

number af r »"'" '' w*»' htM ad] from
fror

Itoe* *" •*

"i the li*~

t»'t4

food, b

' ot S»

rata* f '^

840

POWER

May 30, 1911

An Endurance Test of Aero-
plane Engines

An official 24-hour test of aeroplane
gasolene engines was made recently by
the National Physical Laboratory, which
is under the control of the British gov-
ernment, though not relying entirely up-
on government support. All the re-
starch work of the official advisory com-
mittee of aeronautics is carried out at
this place, where a very fine testing
plant is gradually being amassed. Origi-
nally six builders entered the competition,
but only three actually presented their
motors for test. Two of these failed in
the endurance test, leaving a single com-
petitor to complete the full schedule of
the trials.

To prove the trustworthiness of the
engines it was stipulated that they should
make a run of 24 hours at full load with
not more than three stoppages nor a

Everything"
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
be of use to practi-
cal

men

more than 245 pounds; that is, 7 pounds
per brake horsepower. The weight, how-
ever, included not only parts necessary
for ordinary running, but also the cool-
ing apparatus with its accessories, such
as fans, etc. Neither gasolene, water nor
oil was reckoned as motor weight, nor
was the gasolene tank.

Among the most interesting and prac-
tical conditions were those relating to
the air current and the propeller thrust.
The test was made without propellers,

smoothly, doing 36 brake horsepower at
1443 revolutions per minute for two
hours. It was then discovered that a
copper oil pipe leading from the pump
to the oilwell was leaking. The maker's
representative decided not to stop, and,
after 20 minutes, disconnected and
blanked off this pipe while running. It
appears, however, that this change inter-
fered with the oil supply to the bear-
ings, for the engine commenced to run
irregularly and finally stopped at 4:13,
when it was found that the white metal
of one of the connecting-rod bearings
had melted. In accordance with the regu-
lations, the engine was therefore dis-
qualified.

The representative of the maker, how-
ever, expressed the desire to repair the
engine that it might again undergo a
24-hour trial. In view of the nature of
the failure and the value of having as
complete a test as possible of the engine.

■lZ^iHljl. JH3BB

sj^Hvhhmp

1 £»

- T" t '4m "~"1'

W£m$SP- ■ ■ J

Fig. 1. Thk Wolseley Engine

Fig. 2. The Humber Engine

total duiation of stoppages exceeding 30
minutes. While the engine was running
the only adjustments permitted were
those that could be made by the levers
for ignition and carbureter control.
Handling of the engine for any other
purpose was forbidden. Oiling by hand,
for instance, was not permitted.

An additional test had to be under-
gone to determine whether the motor
would work satisfactorily when tilted
about an axis transverse to the shaft.
Two runs of one hour each were made
at an angle of 15 degrees, first one end
and then the other being elevated.

The motors had to be designed to give
35 brake horsepower and not to weigh

but to represent the thrust an artificial
load of 175 pounds was applied to the
thrust bearing. To represent aerial con-
ditions the tests were made in an arti-
ficial air current of 30 miles an hour
delivered from a horizontal pipe six feet
in front of the motor and 4x4 feet in
cross-section.

In order that no possible bias may be
allowed to enter into the description of
the engine trials, the results are given
herewith as they appear in the official
report just issued (Government Booklet
Cd. 5453).

Wolseley Engine: After a preliminary
run the test was commenced at 1:11 p.m.
on September 12. The engine ran very

it was considered desirable to accede to
this request. A new bearing was accord-
ingly fitted and another trial was started
at 9:50 a.m. on September 15. The en-
gine ran very well for four hours and
then began to run irregularly. After
five hours of the test a stop was made
and a new spark plug was fitted to one
cylinder. This was repeated after an-
other hour's run but without improving
matters, the trouble being apparently due
to faulty action of the radiator.

After six hours of the test there was a
stop for 50 minutes. The radiator was
emptied and refilled. After restarting,
the engine ran for six hours and then
failed. After three more short runs, of

Mas .*>. IM1 i

I k

23 minutes. M2 minutes and 38 mm
respectively . it uas observed that the
cooling oater was rapidly disappearing.
The engineer in charge ther. J to

stop and examine the cylinder
applying water at about hvc pounds r
-ure to the jackets, it *js found that the
water was making to all four

cylinders through in their upper

The res)
tinned after a total run of IT and

41 minutes, including ag-

hours and IH minutes The
cylinders were taken to tlu the

next das. September Id. and
17 tlu. Voltete) compat
• imperii
Humt
engine was

and a prcliminarv run | I

September - the

maker*, representative •'•"

tall another radiator, as the
one sent with the cngi. nadeq.

He formed that the comn.

might take a uch an

alteration and that the com pan
make ins alteration oi

.nor
was put on and. after a prelum
trial, the endurano
■

igntt

factory, a M

and a nc» spark plug pir
then ran stcadil
»cr at I2J4 ri
for lit hon en the cm

icnlv failed; <>n
•

■
alter the engine dui

Ihc addu 12

n hours after • rcmenccmenl

rrial and St) pints jn hour lal
ng da> thi
amincd more In d(
that, in addition t

holt

the :. imaged

■ the
iber engine t<- i

the i md

iced al

run

the Ignition, and aftr- run

f ten i

On
'he engine ran much h.
and -ling at

•

of the 24 hi

oolv attention to the en*

>ur» a'

the trial and a
hou:

■ 1' >...;

be maintained for seven ri
the *ar
' hauling engine

The

•n» per
mim

of an hour on the en-

gine when

irst one end j the other

lied • not

to run thi e at full load dur

laintained the load at
approximat

ran
noticed
that
pare-

The general eM and freed

from vibration of the engine »hen run
ninr »cre s«. marked that it -

■

* A * ' r - I '

the Volaeiey engi

tifjlfd for St
at lb* main consideration kept ta

siuciion o'
mot iginc »h»ch «&» ion lad

for the contest nod four cvUud

i urnkt and

>r 37 br
no*

and ail flip lag.

All the c on the aoasr

and operated r-
abeam in Hg
e of foi-

• tw 1 nr

On t.' the

engli >mg

pan* thorough

rod bca-

jppoarr •

^caring at end

alumlr-
through for about one
net cer-

•. ■

•

fine, the >.orrTr »»ter laikcti

•

tnd the
e o turn sod an
u«h rods from a
>« upper h
Toe outer poafc rod cam
upper end a ! i aaeaa*

■
it mo*T 'fcuretrr la ef tfce

t^^^Hr>"l

ported 01 ball Suortngi sf lai_

MMM
rat pa ">k» TV mm-

turned from •>

r- -at »r>r u> proitded tnreurgn tW badosu

Hat

842

POWER

May 30, 1911

connecting rods; the oil pump is of the
gear-wheel type. Complete with its pip-
ing and magneto the weight of this en-
gine is 232 pounds, and 42 horsepower is
developed at 1200 revolutions per min-
ute; the weight per horsepower is, there-
fore, 5.5 pounds.

It is an odd fact that the Green engine,
which made the best showing in the con-
test, was designed and built before the
recent developments in aeroplanes. It was

Fig. 5. A Green Cylinder

shown at a small exhibition as long ago
as 1905, but at that date was, of course,
regarded as a freak. It does not come
within the category of extra light engines.
The contest model, which develops 32
horsepower at 1220 revolutions per min-
ute, weighs 181 pounds with all pipes,
connections, carbureter and flywheel, but
excluding ignition apparatus; that is al-
most 5.7 pounds per brake horsepower.
Unlike the majority of aeroplane en-
gines, the Green motor is practically of
orthodox automobile design, the weight
being reduced by the judicious choice of
material and not by ingenuity in the ar-
rangement of the working parts. Each
cylinder, with its head, is cast in one
piece of steel and is machined inside and
outside. The water jacket is made of thin
polished copper and the greatest body of
water is distributed unobstructed around
the valves and the head. The cylinders
are offset with respect to the crank shaft
and the latter is provided with five bear-
ings. The lower part of the crank case is
made of sheet aluminum and makes a
tongue-and-groove joint with the upper
part of the crank case, which is a casting.

The crank shaft is made hollow for the
sake of lightness; for the same reason
the crank cheeks are grooved in an unu-
sual manner (see Fig. 5). One end of
the crank shaft receives the propeller and
from the other end the pump and mag-
neto are driven through spiral gears. A
vertical shaft inclosed in an aluminum
oil-tight case takes the drive to the over-
head cam shaft and down to the oil pump,
as indicated in Fig. 4. The cam shaft
is driven through bevel gears and runs
in four bearings in an oil-tight case; each
cam with its rocker arm is also com-
pletely enclosed. The valves are in re-
movable cages and are prevented from
falling into the cylinder by ledges below
the valve seat, as may be seen in the ac-
companying section of one of the cylin-
ders. Fig. 5.

One of the most interesting features
of the engine is the floatless carbureter,
designed to work equally well at all
angles. The supply of gasolene and air
is controlled by the engine suction. Fig.
6 is a sectional elevation of the car-
bureter. There is a small clearance be-
tween the head of the choke cone D and
the head of the gasolene valve Y. This per-
mits a tight joint between the gasolene

Fig. 6. Green Carbureter

valve and the end of its casing when the
valve is down. As soon as suction takes
place the choke cone, after taking up the
clearance, commences to lift the gasolene
valve from its seat, the force of the
suction determining the extent of the lift.
The gasolene is fed through the milled
channel C in the side of the valve stem;
this channel diminishes toward the seat
of the valve and therefore passes more
gasolene at high suction than at low, but
beyond a certain point there is no in-
crease in the opening. The spring S acts
in the capacity of a flexible stop for the
choke-cone sleeve when it drops.

Engineers for Gas Engines

By M. W. Utz

Mr. Hamilton's article on this subject
in the April 25 issue was especially in-
teresting to me, possibly because I hap-
pen to be familiar with a typical case
of the no-engineer fallacy. A small man-
ufacturing establishment was formerly
equipped with a 65-horsepower slide-
valve steam engine supplied from an 85-
horsepower tubular boiler, the excess
boiler capacity being used for steaming
raw material before manufacturing. This
plant was not very economical in opera-
tion, so when a gas-engine salesman be-
gan to quote figures on the cost of in-
stalling and operating a gas engine, the
owners were all attention, especially as
to the claims made by the salesman that
"the labor cost would be practically noth-
ing, because they would not need an en-
gineer; an ordinary laborer could fill the
oil cups and start the engine in a few
minutes, and this was all that would be
necessary till time to shut down again."
The salesman was also rash enough to
promise that the exhaust of the gas en-
gine would evaporate enough water to
steam the raw material.

The steam plant was taken out and the
gas engine installed in its place and
when everything was ready for operation
the steam engineer was discharged and
one of the owners undertook to look after
the gas engine and do the office work. A
man from the builder's shop started the
engine, which seemed to run very satis-
factorily, but the exhaust would not
evaporate enough water for their require-
ments, so they had to buy and install a
10-horsepower boiler. After a short time
trouble began, and finally the engine
could not be started at all, the compressed
air going straight, through. A man sent
by the builder promptly found the ex-
haust valve stuck open. Later on, the
cooling water stopped circulating and the
engine got hot, of course. When the
water was turned on again the cylinder
cracked; that meant a new cylinder.
When cold weather set in, the jacket of
the small engine which drives the air
compressor was not drained, so it froze
up and burst; the rotary pump which
supplied the jacket cooling water did like-
wise. At another time, after putting in
a new exhaust valve, the engine failed
to give the required power and when a
man from the factory was called to see
what was wrong, all he did was to grind-
in the exhaust valve, which they had put
in without grinding. So it kept on, a
man from the shop being called on to
adjust or correct some small matter which
a good engineer would have handled
without difficulty and saved his salary in
doing it.

The service became so uncertain that
the central station was appealed to and
motors were installed to drive the most
important machinery; the arrangement is

May 30, 1911

K43

such that when the engine balks the
motors can drive these machines only,
leaving the rest of the plant idle until
the engine can be starred again. It looks
- the central station will soon be run-
ning the entire plant.

Now. this engine is of a well known
make and would give good ser
properly taken care of i be

by a capable engineer. The man who at-
tends to it now. or tries to. is b
perienced and is the fourth one in about

Mr. He has so many other
to perform that if anything goe*
with the engine it is generally shut down
before he can get to

If this Arm had kept the old steam
ginccr, who was a practical man and
would have no doubt made a good gas
•;d not burdened him with so
many other duties that he could not have
given the engine proper attention
Id have doubtless been a success and
central station would not be supp!
•lere to-
In most cases, the steam engineer
es a success with the gas engine.
ng the advantage over t: -non

rer of a general knowledge of inl-
and c\; i in the en-
room of his steam plant.
Over 75 per cent, of the successful gas
riccrs that I have met were for:
•team engineers, and enthu*
at that, which, I think, leaves little doubt
as to u gag en-
gin*

( . in the Oil

I Ifllls

By H. rl DANKL

About the time when the gas enr

ng introduced in the ll of

. ania for pumping pu:
i led upon to maki B alt

sorts of engines, and some

•ncca vi
otht far fi -itcrtaining A

•it came ir.
the effect that a t *
had been recently installed did i
■arlsfaci I hen I

••e. a o
»ells n the

>t wood fire u:
the en; r up

art "

I investiga- that th<

on the air
screwed up »«

ear. ic mer the

-Ming on the tem

get the engine
star-

The tensi
>e prop

engine «uh the nccc*

advleed

-ok over the line foi
leal ;, he arrived at viper cup: most of the oil

•bandoned shanty which Mood be- impartially i

and the wells i
the rr ran he

a 1> on of the roof

about
walls at i of a dark o!

pon
ark ob-
not hurt much but
: and more badly sea

t;hti
and that the side outlet of 4

inct as open and out of this the

gas w.i . Sowing. A st<

been used la I I] .md when it

e detail of plugging the tec
had bt plugged

•ic eng

! Crank Pin Oiler

The accompanying ent
trate the method finally adop

■

•aid

■
hed at one

rod and at

Jrr hoosi- fuffing hot

*rg*

vn pi . ng i» u»cJ an. the •» »• « BM

J and o*

aat an.' eld in contact

rod of the
a for

c treed of the engine

I ■ ■

I to have effected an ansae hag rrduc
coaeaimpiion and to keep the

II ITERS

i > •

aajction ga»-produccr equipment of
lOO-horsepowcr units and three !',v
bor»epn»T engine*

arc used to charge storage

-portion has heva pwl to
to And ther or not I caa

e appa

%uggc»* . r ' method of doing t'

\'x swameieea eahawet

frasa other

■
be distill
<- honrpo* •

•xeael

'ara

. .aw at of

844

POWER

May 30, 1911

-4r

.. ML

Changing Generators from

Compound to Shunt

Wound

By H. R. Mason

In a large power plant in the West
which supplied a three-wire system at
120 -f 120 volts through a number of
shunt-wound rotary converters of a com-
bined capacity of about 1500 kilowatts,
the peak load increased recently until it
required the full capacity of the con-

" Series Field Coils -

Fig. 1. Oricinal Connections

verters and left no reserve to be used in
case of trouble.

Before the converters were installed,
the system had been supplied by engine-
driven compound-wound dynamos and
one of the units was left in the station,
but it was found impossible to operate
this unit in parallel with the rotary con-
verters; it would either pick up load
until it was dangerously overloaded or
else drop all of its load, when it would
reverse its polarity and knock out the
ntire system. The unit consisted of a
14x24-inch twin Corliss engine direct
connected to two 200-kilowatt, 120-volt
direct-current dynamos mounted on a
common shaft. A diagram of the elec-
trical connections as originally installed
is shown in Fig. 1.

In an attempt to make use of the twin
unit, the series field windings were dis-
connected and a load put on the gen-
erators, using the shunt field windings
only, but it was found that the field had
insufficient strength to maintain the volt-
age with more than one-quarter load. It
was found impossible to operate the
unit at a high enough speed to produce
the necessary voltage, so in its present
condition it was of no practical use. As
it became imperative that it be put into
operating condition, the construction of
the dynamos was investigated with a
view to making changes in them. The
shunt windings were found to contain

370 turns of No. 6 wire on each of the
eight poles and passed a current of 40
amperes at 120 volts when all of the
field resistor was cut out, making 14,800
ampere-turns on each magnet core. The
expedient of connecting the shunt wind-
ing of each of the dynamos across the
outside wires of the system, at 240 volts,
with additional resistance in series, was
tried, but it was found that the increased
current necessary to maintain the desired
voltage overheated the coils excessively.
The series windings had four turns
each and carried 1600 amperes at normal
load, making 6400 ampere-turns on each
magnet core in addition to the 14,800

Old Series Winding ,New Shunt Winding

w ~

—

Old Shunt Winding 'Old Shunt Winding

not changed

Po*C(

Fig. 2. Old and New "Windings

furnished by the shunt coil adjoining it.
Upon measuring the space occupied by
each coil of the series winding, it was
found that additional shunt coils could
be substituted for the series coils (see
Fig. 2), each containing 370 turns of
No. 8 wire. It was calculated that each
coil would contain 1480 feet, making
11,840 feet on each of the 8-pole field
magnets, and the wire table indicated
that about 20 amperes would flow through
that length of No. 8 wire at 120 volts,
allowing for the same temperature rise
as in the old coils. This would afford
7400 ampere-turns per pole to take the
place of the 6400 formerly supplied by
the series fields and would accomplish
the double advantage of enabling full
voltage to be maintained at all loads and
reducing the speed somewhat.

Accordingly, all of the series coils were
removed and additional shunt coils sub-
stituted, connected in parallel with the
old shunt winding, as shown in Fig. 3.
As the total field current was increased
from 40 amperes in the original wind-
ing to 60 in the two, the field rheostat

had to be remodeled and this was done
by using standard street-railway motor
resistor grids connected to the old face-
plates. Of course, care was observed
to connect the extra shunt field winding
in such a manner that the current through
it flowed in the same direction as in the
old one. When the unit was started it
fulfilled all expectations; it could be
caused to carry as much as 30 per cent,
overload at the maximum required volt-
age and one further experiment was
tried upon it.

Occasional interruptions of the three-
wire service were caused by short-cir-
cuits or by converters flashing and it was
thought that the service could be re-
sumed with less delay if this unit could
be caused to take up the entire load
upon starting, avoiding the delay neces-
sary to restart and synchronize the rotary
converters. The engines were capable
of carrying 200 or 300 per cent, of their
rated load in an emergency and, as the
generators seemed liberally designed, it
was thought that the load of 3000 to 3500
amperes would not damage them dur-
ing the few minutes they would be called
upon to carry that load, though 1600
amperes was their normal rating. The
120-volt field windings were again con-
nected across the 240-volt busbars with
additional resistance in series, but it was
found impossible to maintain the voltage
i

Fig. 3. Additional Shunt Coils Con-
nected in Parallel with Old
Winding

with a load of more than about 2500
amperes, or about 60 per cent, over-
load, as the field-magnet cores were then
practically saturated and further increase
of current through the coils had little
effect on their magnetism.

The unit has served to prevent several
serious interruptions to the service since
these changes v/ere made and has been
used to improve the station economy by
taking part of the load from the rotary
converters at times, allowing less efficient
units to be shut down earlier.

May 30. 1911

Regulation «»f Rotar] I i-
vertcn

Br R. ' ax

To allow the direct-current voltage of
a rotar - to be alu ad-

;ng the held rheostat or automatically
: compounding, a rcacta-

I the low-
on ter;-

>l the convener. \x

maintenance
of the same volt.t. full load as at

no load entail e leading

lagging currents and consequent!)

g in the converter arma-
ture, ui

•ant pot nail,

or the natural reactance of the
gh. If the
J a lagg:rg curret - up

which causes

actance coil. If the field is strength
a leading curr.
a rise of volt.t

Icr a heavy load, the scries
of a compound- wound coi Is to

produce leading curr ten-

improving th - of

■ ■

are
■

1 the •
rating of the i

r that at no l<

; Id be a take a c

rable lagg at no li

of
Held rmal l<

tig a good ind

cool run

tcrurban railway sc
-<*. the
about

id and I

the field rhc<
■
of the r

;

•

I
inc I

no loa !

cent. <

The no-load i of a

be mej *hen tbc

are
the »u

machine

adjustment of the transform and

I of the

» almost c
DMDPOUnJ* •.• _• conveners run *t"\c

• a high

- igcs at the

ng- anj if a

em ma-

r at tf

-e and six-phase con

'rom the trans-
formers on ac.

•urc
: he no-load alterna-
from th

at m

tbout the a

CORRJ 8PONDI N( I

P irallclii .• I i

I I Vltrrn

In th 1 1 if iu I

<»nc of
•vMh at dn

C field mind
and or

*;s

lion

coarx

rh*©*i

tbc

-- 1 co.T.per
I good

run a

fuse* or open the

iiAgraa

»-' - connect k

creator at the »ub-
oa-

steal r

••

unJ to be
Bor

108 MA* U\t in tome kj«» • % ' -J
ncces*ar> to Jjmpcn their ».• - by

' uad re -

cn<

ttorarr*

> a tubtta- pm\
• e raflca from itat

't-COWMCtfd

846

POWER

May 30, 1911

Inspectors Disagree

The conditions that prevail in Massa-
chusetts, whereby old boilers are allowed
to be operated so long as they hold their
shape and comply with the requirements
of the Massachusetts Board of Boiler
Rules, are again illustrated in the case of
a boiler owned and operated by a manu-
facturing company in that State.

The boiler is of the vertical tubular
type and is described by the inspection
certificate hung in the boiler room as
foilows: "Pressure allowed, 90 pounds;
age, 21 years; length, 17 feet 6 inches;
diameter of base, 60 inches; diameter
of waist, 43 inches; tensile strength,
60,000 pounds; number of tubes, 96;
diameter of tubes, 2J4 inches; length of
tubes, 14 feet; longitudinal joint, double-
riveted lap; per cent, of strength of
joint, 61 +; location of fusible plug, in
tube."

On April 15, a State inspector visited
the plant and ordered the boiler out of
service until the following repairs had
been made: A new ring in the frame of
the furnace door; all tubes renewed and
beaded; two patches put on, one on each
side of the furnace-door frame; and the
changing of the steam-gage pipe connec-
tion, which was tapped into the shell of
the boiler slightly abeve the ogee seam,
to be run from a tee at the top pipe
connection of the water column.

The owner, believing that the extent
of the repairs ordered by the State in-
spector was excessive, submitted the
boiler as a risk to the steam-boiler
insurance company whose inspector in-
spected the boiler on April 22 and recom-
mended the following repairs to be made
before the boiler could be accepted as a
risk by the company: Ten tubes renewed;
the ring in the furnace-door frame
strengthened by fastening a flat piece of
iron across the bottom (similar to a
dead plate); one patch near the furnace
door and the changing of the steam-gage
pipe connection as was ordered by the
State inspector.

These repairs being completed, the
certificate of inspection was issued and
so far as the parties directly interested
are concerned the incident is closed.

In view of any possible failure that
may occur to the boiler it looks as though
the State inspector had all the best of
the argument, inasmuch as he was en-
deavoring to give the owner and the
public the benefit of the lesson taught
by a recent disastrous failure of a boiler
of this type. It is regrettable that

Practical

information from the.

man on the job. A letter

dood enough to print

here will be paid for?*

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

when two eminently competent inspectors
disagree as to the extent of repairs nec-
essary to put a boiler in a safe work-
ing condition, that the law should be so
worded as to allow the least of the recom-
mendations to be accepted.

A rule that is printed in large type in
the instruction book issued to railroad
trainmen, "When in doubt, take the safe
course," might well be followed by boiler
inspectors when determining needed re-
pairs.

Joseph King.

Boston, Mass.

Clogged Overflow Pipe
Caused Trouble

The accompanying illustration shows
an oiling system that gave trouble. The
gage glass on the overhead tank would
fill to overflowing when oil was pumped
into it by the hand pump from the lower

a =£>

tank. As it was known that there was
not enough oil in the system to fill the
tank it was concluded that there must
be something wrong. In about 15 or 20
minutes the gage glass would be com-
pletely empty, although the oil was flow-
ing freely to the engine bearings.

The chief finally investigated and
found that the pipe leading from the
overhead tank to the lower tank, which
serves the double purpose of overflow
and air relief, had become stopped up by
the oily filter cloth that was on the
screen in the lower tank, thus making
the overhead tank air tight except for
the little vent hole in the cap of the gage
glass. As the oil was pumped up in the
overhead tank a slight pressure was
created which forced the oil up into the
gage glass, and made it overflow through
the vent hole; then, as the oil flowed
to the engine, a partial vacuum was
created in the tank, which caused the
oil in the gage glass to flow back into
the tank, completely emptying the glass.
Upon taking down the overflow pipe and
shortening it about 3 inches so it would
clear the filter cloth, the trouble was
cured once and for all.

Frederick M. Perras.

Mansfield, Mass.

Loose Setscrew Caused En-
gine to Race

Some time ago when first taking charge
of a small electric-lighting plant, I had
an experience with a racing engine.

■"/s-///77777777???7??^^

Piping to Tank and Filter

May 30. 1911

This plant ran from dusk in the even-
ing until the next morning. During the
first few evening! the engine ran nk_
then, one evening there came scs
sharp pounds from the front end of the
engine, and suddenly it began to I
the time I had reached the throttle the
voltage had got so high that the cfo
breaker tripped, leaving the building and
town in darkness. This, of course, reli
the engine of all load, which had been
gaining with every revolution. I

thought there was a yard of threads on
that throttU :j before 1 got the

valve closed and it seemed an age
fore the engine began to slow down.

By the time the engine came to a
standstill and two-thirds of the popula-
tion of the town had r !ant,
I had found that a eel which held
a pin in place in the link of the .
crnor had worked loose, allowing the
to work out of the link. This put the
governor out of commission, which al-
lowed the engine to take steam full
stroke.

Tt -nor was soon adjusted and

the engine started again, but the next
morning, after shutting down, the set-
screw was found to be louse again. 1
I a as told, had occurred before, so I
hunted up a Ml han

the old one and put on a lock nut. after
which there was no more I

- I never started that engine again
without first inspecting the |
be sure it was in good unrking c

nstcr. O.

Draft Regulation

A 12 tubular

boiler furnishes steam fot

The I m at »t o'clock

each night, and the setting on one
and the rear end I
door temperature A
the morning between 4 and

ng the night the leaking damper al-
lowed a draft
furnace and tube* wh
ting and the t cd the

•team ; I at

In order I coohng cf

the flue I the

•moke box and the dam;

same effect as th* flue

<t the boiler and furr
•o hot that no* there are gb
pound* more »tcam pressure In •'
ing than there w i
*ii ad K In

il \\ atcr ProMcm

Here la a problem that r
to my attention, which may
to readers of Pom I

boiler has two sources o!

ach one is an the

f the boiler for the greater pan
of the year, but for a month or two dur-
ing hot weather it is necessary to
water from both sources in order to
the required quar • • I >:■ .

from a stream and the other is from a
n the water from the •
M alone found necessary to

clean out the boiler ight wt

n the uatcr from the well
alone, the boiler has to be cleaned out
The quantity of water
to be used from the stream is 1600 gal-
lons in a given time, and the quant:-
be used from the well in the same time
and mixed with the stream water, is 900
gall1

The question is. in how mar

it the boiler be cleaned out while

he combination water, assuming

that quant ment, etc., remain

the same for both waters and that no new

elements occur from

At first sight this may appear dift
to som might let the problcn

can only be s<
not as difftcu
it looks and it may be » by arith-

!iffcrcrr
:iay be to of which arc

h. The first is as fol-
low -

Assu: it the d

in the I 'ain measure -

cleaning n. in one *

when usins the * m the

the and

when using the be

' •

the
o waters •-

may be taken In orJer l

' the stream ■
used for 16

in : i water

Mai

- ngflcld. Ma*s

. both w gel her

ng simpler It i* ea

a^Bfcr*

Assume that 1600 and 000. or 2S00

gallons of water, arc .-d for one

alone, one-
th of a full measure of dcp<
occur in on-
alone o men

c week. But when romMnlf
the •

'00 gallons, tf rtm

water

tad

of a full mea*
Then

of a full mca one ■

using both as of a

measure
- long, or Ave wee*

«ob-

lem be so! of some r

value .v

"
■

A Soil Pipe i

-al large build > ai
• he n employed as

are about

am town *

lather than al

O h pipe

►n beg'

I took a coll
% on band,
>n one

c building, an
sjjed

■g Into tbc

but upoo r

•boi. tie* I

to fit nn it-

bolt through both cap aad

pa I
ta* d
and th
tie disk and the end nf the
Ilk

> place w ith the r
of the bolt "tending through ihc halt

on ar.J HgbtctM i

ntnutcs were naedad m

848

POWER

May 30, 1911

Stopping the Engine Off
Center

A 24x48-inch single-eccentric Corliss
engine, direct connected to a generator,
had a habit of stopping on the center, due
to a tight piston, leaky steam and throttle
valves and lack of judgment on my part.
My predecessor had made arrangements
with several men in the mill to ring a
bell whenever he wanted help to move
the crank off the center and, believing
the arrangement to have been instituted
after other methods had failed, I con-
tinued the practice. But no amount of
bell ringing would bring anyone to the
engine room at shutting down, for the
men dashed for home as soon as the
whistle blew and would not reappear
again until it was time to start up. Thus,
about 15 minutes were lost, during which
time from 300 to 400 persons were idle.

One day when (from pure cussedness)
the engine had stopped with the crank
on the center twice in succession, I was

passes to the upright posts shown to
form a pivot. C represents two iron-
bound wooden eccentrics, the fulcrum
shaft of which passes through the bear-
ings, as shown, and is firmly secured
to the upright lever D. The club end of
the lever is hollow and is filled with shot
to form a weight. Its purpose is to
cause the planks A to bear against the
rim of the wheel with a certain tension
due to the amount of shot placed in the
head. It is supported in place by the
reach rod E, the head of which latches
to the upright F.

To the inside of the rim of the wheel
is attached the automatic detaching mech-
anism operated by lack of inertia. It
consists of a weight G, supported at a
certain position on a bent arm pivoted
at H, and more or less counterbalanced
by the small movable weight K. The
position shown is that assumed when
the flywheel is in motion. When it is
about to stop, the gravity of the weight G
overcomes the inertia and the arm drops

power

Details of Stopping Device

called to the manager's office and pre-
sented with a slip of paper on which ap-
peared a lot of figures arranged, "a la
Uncle Pegleg," as follows:

"This mill is operated 300 days in the
year; the engine is, therefore, started
600 times and stops 24 times on the
center. The average time spent in get-
ting started again in 15 minutes; there-
fore, the mill is idle from this cause a
total of six hours in the year. The pay
on the average to 300 operators is 20
cents per hour. Each man then receives
SI. 20 per year without giving its equiva-
lent in work, a total of S360. This is a
net loss. The loss in production is many
times this amount. Think this over and
see what you can do about it."

Think it over I did, and finally evolved
the scheme illustrated herewith. The
idea was obtained from watching the
showman stopping his swings. A repre-
sents two 7-inch planks laid side by side
and connected by a piece of 4x4-inch
joist B, through which a V/2 -inch pipe

to rest on the pin L. It will be easily
understood that the rim of the wheel
needs to travel but slowly to cause the
weight G to fly out. Secured to the bent
arm is the pin M, the purpose of which
is to slide under the head of the rod E at
the proper time and release the weighted
head D which manipulates the brake.
The latch head of the rod E is shown en-
larged at Z.

The right position on the rim for the
releasing governor, with reference to the
crank pin, was ascertained only after
repeated trials. My method of shutting
down the engine is as follows: After
closing the throttle, a half-inch valve on
a drip pipe leading to the valve chest is
opened. Then the brace rod N which
prevents the brakes from being set when
starting up the engine is released. When
the engine has slowed down to the speed
that is just sufficient to keep the weight
of the releasing governor in its outward
position, the half-inch valve is closed, and
the brake does the rest. The number of

stoppages on the dead center was greatly
reduced and the device, according to
the manager's figures, saves the com-
pany $270 yearly.

M. Cassidy.
South Framingham, Mass.

Screwed Down the Safety
Valve Spring

Recently a large fire flue collapsed in
a traction-engine boiler of the Scotch
type. The engine had been in service
for several years and was of 12 horse-
power capacity.

The engineer had been running the
engine for several years. Three days
before the explosion, he took the safety
valve apart to clean and after putting
it together he believed that he had turned
the screw down as many turns as it took
to loosen it. At the same time the steam
gage was out of order.

When getting up steam on the morning
of the accident, the engineer had turned
on the blower and when the safety valve
popped he started to shut off the blower.
Just then the flue collapsed.

An examination showed that the rivet
in the flange and lap seam of the flue
had given away and ripped most of the
rivet heads.

I got the safety valve and tested it
under a pressure of 205 pounds before
it opened. The engineer supposed he
was carrying about 120 pounds pressure.

C. E. Rudy.

Covington, O.

Engine Ran with Broken

Crank Pin

In a large cotton mill in one of the
Southern States there is a center-crank
engine which is used for driving a
dynamo that supplies the lights for the
mill. It runs at a speed of 175 revolu-
tions per minute. One morning a short
time before the engine-room lights were
due to be switched off, the oiler noticed
them dying out. Looking over at the
small engine, he saw that the drivewheel
which was belted to the dynamo had
stopped, while the other wheel, contain-
ing the governor and eccentric, was run-
ning along apparently the same as usual.

He shut the engine down, and on ex-
amination discovered that the cast-iron
crank pin was broken off flush with the
face of the disk on the side next to
the driving pulley. The other flywheel,
which carried the governor and eccentrrc,
had continued running the same as if
nothing unusual had happened, being
operated as a side-crank engine with only
one bearing. The break was almost
square across and flush with the face of
the disk. The only damage other than
the broken pin was a slightly cracked
bed between the pillow blocks.

S. Kirlin.

New York City.

May 30, 1911

POT

s4»

Questions Before the House

Sulphur f<>r 1 lot Bearings

In a note on page 639 of the April
I note that someone recom-
mends sulphur as being good for hot
bearings. During a scries of bear

condiK the writer, the

mar :lts not

pleasant under service conditions at k

.aring was

•lcn

loaded until the fnctional heat devel'

about : or about the tem-

perature at which an ordinary operator
would commence to get busy. Powdered
sulphur mixed with oil was then fed
into the box. with the result that the
motor was very soon stalled, and when
the blue brimstone smoke had cleared
away, the condition of the bearing
faces was the vorat 1

It would seem that the application of
a mild abrasive like sulphur is a matter
requiring good care and judgment, if a
hot ich a case,

the wrr

without shutting down the machine and
starting cold, using the sulphur
caut Aith large quantities of h.

cant. I would not use it in ar
unless :■ nl> thr

; available, on account lemical

it. once
•

A better n mmcnJ

eral cr- :cers of long

■

•have of? powder from a cake of sap

or Bon Ami. whichev

able, mix it with

thin mixtur- urcd ar

nto the bt • has been

•

L-membering at all that

spots you ire

■

than usual
ireatmc-

■i to b< running

warm becat
caused

tic* an old bearing will !

gun ases. a

pile .alt in the

cut out an am< Jin and corrui

that wt | opener

cool down quid

dilute i ivallabl

a similar t *%c«.

* :;iri)cnf.
</ ihh.iU- ttfxv Mfl

fatten sod edit-
orials wA/( h /),m- M
pared in previous

isstti i

ral lubrication should be emplo
I should

thcrs with hot b ally

with regard to the use of sulphur. A
from my own case. I have found men of

ncc

■UD.

I eed P Em sled

In looking thi the issue Ol

4. I noticed i

Sea:-,
had arr

K the boiler, the
sIe he : not have oc-

curred. T ar-

>o that
iter through t'

.:h the Then,

ild oni >mc

scaled, the

e at a com

the
plant.
I I
■

igh the
frorr runs

then ru the

it beet

'targed

»a»

bet-

■

ping to the old

W i irn l'li-

has noticed an n

of a

son as to the

of r

when the pla-
shut

eriencc
gard to
tht*-

In packing a

c the same trouble

T'
to know or not

s J

I i

I I

J on

--.
A f

MM of

I a

H-

'sen thr
t*ot off th«

850

POWER

May 30, 1911

Specialists

The letter entitled "Specialists," by
James Scotch, appearing in the issue of
March 21, is, in my opinion, too critical
and unwarranted. He blames the engi-
neer in the small plant for exposing the
mistakes of the specialists and dubs
these engineers as "dinkies."

Mr. Scotch is apparently mistaken in
reference to the object these engineers
have in writing of such mistakes. I be-
lieve they write to warn unwary engi-
neers of such pitfalls and not to pose as
pedants or to unjustly criticize any spe-
cialist. There is always the young engi-
neer starting in the business who will
profit by the simple letters in Power.
He must start at the bottom and read
carefully the simple questions asked in
Power every week — simple to those to
whom they are familiar.

The fact that the bricklayer or ma-
chine erector probably has been doing
such work for years, as Mr. Scotch states,
does not make him infallible nor does
it prevent the little engineer from know-
ing something about the business that
the specialist does not know or happen
to notice. To verify these statements
I will relate an experience I had with one
of these specialists.

An old locomotive-type boiler was to
be inspected for the first time after I
became engineer of the plant. I gave the
boiler a good cleaning out, removed the
grates, cleaned all the ashes and iron
rust from the furnace sheets and found
some very bad cases of rust on the lower
parts of the water leg. A light blow with
the peen of the hammer would dent the
sheets.

This boiler inspector was really an ex-
pert, or specialist; he had worked many
years at the boilermaking business be-
fore he became an inspector. Knowing
this, I believed it would not be necessary
for me to give him any instructions in
his line of business. However, "a hint
to the wise is sufficient" and I ventured
to tell him to be a little bit particular
and he might find something the matter
with her.

When he got through he said that
the boiler was all right except for some
oil on the rear head at the upper row of
tubes and told me that when I scraped
it off I might run her as usual with 105
pounds to the square inch.

I then called his attention to the water
leg. He started to pound it and feel for
the thickness of the sheet; then started
marking oblong figures on the sheets
with white chalk. When he got through
he took off his glasses, looked at me and
said: "Don't start that boiler until there
are seven patches on her and I have
inspected her again."

The boiler was not started but was

taken out and a new one replaced it.

My advice to all engineers in charge

of plants is to keep your eyes open

when other men are doing work in your
plant, and for your own protection see
that it is done right. The men doing the
work may be careless or inexperienced,
or they may be first-class mechanics but
crowded with work and anxious to get at
the next job or home on a short visit
after an absence of several months. In
any case, they are not infallible and will
bear watching.

It is not necessary to be an expert in
all branches of steam engineering in
order to be able to detect whether a job
is done right or radically wrong. Com-
mon sense, combined with the degree
of intelligence that every engineer ought
to have, should be sufficient.

James W. Blake.

New York City.

Isolated Plant Engineering

The article published in the May 2
issue of Power under the heading "Iso-
lated Plant Engineering" is undoubtedly
the strongest argument yet presented to
show the true conditions which engineers
in general have to face.

It is indeed a sad state of affairs that
a large majority of men employed in
steam plants are not permitted to know
what the various expenses connected with
the plant are, yet there are those who
are kept in absolute ignorance of the
price that is being paid for coal, oil, waste
and supplies in general. Under such
conditions as these, what chance has a
man to know what it is costing to do
certain work?

Furthermore, I would like to say that
a big mistake is made when managers
or superintendents who are not them-
selves engineers, but who have the hir-
ing of such men, try to tell these men
what to do, because any man who has
had the necessary experience to fit him
for the position knows far better than
this type of manager what his duties as
engineer are. Oftentimes much trouble
and friction could be avoided if these
men would allow the engineer to run his
own department, and then if he was not
doing his full duty in that respect the
cost of maintenance would very soon
make it known.

In regard to making suggestions for
the betterment of the plant, I would like
to say that many good engineering kinks
submitted by the engineer are often
credited to the manager later on when
the work is carried to completion.

A little experience of mine was as fol-
lows: I had charge of a very poorly
designed one-pipe heating system in an
uptodate office building and found that
a number of the rooms could not be
properly heated on account of poor cir-
culation. After considerable trouble and
thought, I concluded that to overcome the
trouble with the least expense it would
be necessary to run the returns from the

risers to a suituole tank and then pump
them into the boiler instead of putting
them into the sump, as had formerly been
the practice. I submitted this arrange-
ment to the agent, who took about a year
to consider whether it was worth the ex-
penditure of $100 or not, and after much
agitation he consented to let me proceed
with the work.

The work was completed just in time
for the commencement of the heating
season, and from the start the tenants
remarked how much more comfortable
their offices were.

After the installation had been work-
ing long enough to prove its reliability,
the agent brought in several of his friends
and explained how he had conceived the
idea of saving so much good, hot water
with a .corresponding decrease in feed
water as well as coal.

H. H. Burley.

Brooklyn, N. Y.

Writing for the Technical
Papers

Referring to the advice offered by Mr.
Williams, in the issue of April 25, to a
recent correspondent on this subject, it
would appear that the suggestions, in
the main, might be materially improved.
When you have a message, deliver it by
all means, but in the delivering there is
distinctly a right course and a wrong
one; wrong, not only in point of view
to the journal to which the matter is to
be forwarded, but a greater wrong to
oneself, inasmuch as each contribution
should be an improvement over the one
which has preceded it for personal bene-
fit of its author. If one is deficient in
some of the functions of letter writing
and the like, there is no time like the
present to endeavor to correct, and, in
exercising a little care in the preparation,
one not only has a possibility of having
an article accepted, but he has a positive
assurance that each one executed is help-
ing to better his Hatural condition, is
assisting in a general knowledge of the
proper usage of words, correct spelling
and the like.

Mr. Williams' statement, "Do not waste
your time in rewriting; simply make all
corrections in the first draft — " embodies
a wrong principle. All know that "time
is money," but time spent in a careful
preparation of copy is far from wasted.
Editors, as a rule, do not keep a "puzzle
department" and one of the most im-
portant essentials for a just considera-
tion of a contribution is its readable-
ness, its ability to be quickly deciphered.
A rough pencil draft should be made of
matter which is to be presented, which
one should try and divide into distinct
parts, as introduction, or head, descrip-
tion, or body, and end, or tail, instead of
a jumbled mass of material entirely out
of order. This method is easy and sim-

May 30, 1911

POWF.R

pie and will not only help the writer in
collecting what he wants to say, but will
help the reviewer for publication in learn-
ing if what he has to say is worth while.
In writing one should be brief and di-
rect, make the letter read with full com-
mon sense in the '. possible wo:
this does not mean "telegram'
but, as steam is usually supplied to an
engine by the shortest and best route,
so should words be applied to the manu-
script.

When matter is so collected in a rough
draft, it should be copied plainly, on one
side of the paper, of course, and with
all neatness possible. This is not time
wasted, this is time well spent. A re-
writing in this manner shows, many
>w arrangement and wording may
be improved, and it all helps; it st:
where one can "cut" or add to good ad-
vantage. A little reasoning, such as "if
I did not know this, would my reading
of this article show me plainly," in de-
scription work, will oftentimes r-
effective in bringing out little points not
thought of and which may be necessary
for completeness. Sheets should be num-
bered, as Mr. Williams states, but a
title on the first page with a name and
address on the last, and the whole held
;h a common paper fastener.
is far better and simpler than repeating
such on each particula-

An entire >ng idea is obtained

from "I>o not be afraid of pcll-

from this letter Because a man

is engaged in power-plant work in the

nd, is it an.
carelessness should be shoun in spcll-

an clemer
what his occupation dema- I here

any reason wh hould not be fully

as competent to spell simple is a

clerk or an

day is a cheap article, a small on
able to til al purpose*, may be

obtained for a triflinK
an easy matter and a com i ial miss;
ing of the same v> th no r

n, »h<>*s the viat om

alive to a ber 'ion.

k and private : ondence to al-

don't care" manner

neself M
once a spelling is known, espc-

dally « Is look ome

thereafter %crs ea

In a paper such as Powra there
always a place for an ar
be long or short. If tl
the matter is intere«ting
it going to heir ,f oae

know* something good, a kink, la

c. that he hat not seen in
•

is unlet* presented In i Mar-

Iv new tad Mght dress do not utuallv
find place I ullon

from both end* rtuV
poses; if it add* one dollar - hook

account, let it add many times this amount
in value in perfecting system, neatness
and an appreciation for the simp:
ments of the language ir.

author. These are some of the things
:h help in getting the job higher up.

Joe Smaht.
Angek

v il Defined

Bement has an interesting an

in the

umber, but I must protest

aga: >n of the - >al"

that pan of the fuel minus ash and

-turc for which the term pure coal

has been J I all right for

him to use the term "pure coal." if he

icrs call "ash-
and-moisturc-frce coa:

»t likely to be used with any other
meaning, but it is all wrong to take the
1 "coa h has had for hun-

dreds of years a well known mean
and limit it to mean only a pan of what
has hitherto been known as coal, and to

:it for the latter a new term or tef
such as "fuel n al fuel."

The mca
should . i commonly used word is

the meaning that is ordin.r en to it

in commerce •• and th.r

found as - mion definition in a

modern

Coal "Centii- ll

>r less '
fled mincra OB dark-

and
1 as a fue

~* earth left

n of ash after com-
ulphur is rareU if c

In ott

market. In the

->9. cig! aid that

that
ana

thir ll and '

■ <m the coal be

I "'mi

%i at I

ln-

•

In 5 issue I n't

nspectorv
•jueetJoo a
in an an Do

the boil*
■

rhat he
idc of a boiler until the
tpector has had an oppon^ tj • >

g condition Would not
■

inspector and not the
■
because some neglect to

mak< roost of our

att lams are passe : tws are

safeguards for t' c against

plosions.

e ago I a charge of a

plant which appart as*

on I found
a J This fa*? H ade

known to the office. The b

of leaking tubes and over the
fire the scam sh* burned for a

spa. of the circumference

of the eta tod a

k in the
of the iles to

plate, also a
sheet uhich was * ..•"

J out with hot plate*, sledges tad
flatters. The flange and of the

head it tad no

troi:

ones.
>n of - the

t from the
the
the b<
and thai

rector of the di»
re soon :

cam over the Are.

ant one tad

salaries of chief er.gi-
erefere. to compel

l five Sours
.■ wale off the team end tube

and soot in *■- fire

laffth* ealy

cleaned an J ■*; rd

r d up or
ths

I eaa ■

def toon ea a*

852

POWER

May 30, 1911

room. Only in one instance did it re-
quire more than an hour for an inspector
to examine our boilers.

Inspectors should be cultivated, for
they are great aids sometimes in getting
unsafe boilers repaired. Engineers should
care for their plants and see that the
boilers are kept clean and in a safe con-
dition, without having to be told to do so
by the inspectors. This is the best proof
of their ability and gives them a reputa-
tion, not only among the inspectors, but
keeps them in good standing with their
employers.

R. A. Cultra.

Cambridge, Mass.

The Benefit of Organization

Mr. Wallace, on April 4, opposing Mr.
Gotstein's plea of March 14 for an or-
ganization, said, "Organization never
raises wages." How, then, would he ex-
plain the substantial increases granted to
every mechanic, except the engineer, dur-
ing the last few years? I am positive
that men with intelligence, aware of
current events, would not honestly say
that organization never raises wages. In
one citv alone, through organization, the
wages of 68 engineers were raised $7 a
week, for an eight-hour day.

The history of industrial battles for the
last 50 years against oppressive methods
of employers, proves conclusively that
organization alone has reduced the hours
of labor and increased wages.

Wherever and whenever an organiza-
tion has had any semblance of strength,
there has been a demonstration of its
power. Surely no man is so lost to the
trend of the times as to believe that Mr.
Rockefeller, Mr. Carnegie, Mr. Morgan
and others of their class made their mil-
lions by their own unaided efforts. It is
a fact that will bear no contradiction that
our millionaires now hold their positions
by the aid of the most iron-clad organi-
zation the world has ever known.

Mr. Wallace states that engineers are
not like other mechanics, and work under
different conditions. Let us see if he is
correct.

An engineer depends upon the sale of
his brain and brawn for so many hours a
day for wages. With these wages, which
is the price paid for the use of that brain
and brawn for eight, ten, twelve or more
hours a day, he buys food, shelter, cloth-
ing, recreation, establishes a home and
educates his children. Other mechanics
sell the same things for the same price —
wages — and purchase the same essentials
for a normal working-class life. So far
as the sale and the reason for the sale
are concerned there is absolutely no dif-
ference between the engineer and other
mechanics. The wage received is ex-
pended in precisely the same manner.
Thus, there is a continuity of interests
between all mechanics of all classes in
both the sale of their brain and brawn

and in the expenditure of the price re-
ceived.

Mr. Wallace states that an engineer re-
ceives what he is worth without the aid
of organization and quotes a few ac-
quaintances who are receiving high
wages. This is not at all a wonderful
thing, confined alone to the ranks of
the engineer. The same thing is true wher-
ever there are unorganized mechanics.

In all important things of life the ma-
terial interests of all mechanics are iden-
tical. The sole difference between en-
gineers and other mechanics is that 90
per cent, of the engineers are holding
down one-man jobs while other mechan-
ics work in groups.

It is true that engineers are expected
to cover a wider range of effort than
other men, but this is due principally to
the isolation of their positions. Oftentimes
between whistle and whistle the engineer
performs the duties connected with a
dozen different trades. If he refuses,
or is unable to perform them, he is either
no good or lazy, or both.

This isolation, with the constant and
insistent calls upon his knowledge and
mechanical ingenuity, has bred in the en-
gineer an egotism that is monumental.
It is this very isolation that makes or-
ganization necessary for the engineer.

To be an engineer — a real one — re-
quires years of study and experience, a
close study of new mechanical devices
which are day by day being placed on the
market, physical strength, a cool, clear
head, nerves of steel, the ability to act
quickly, the courage to face death or in-
jury in the interest of his employer, the
endurance to work hour after hour with-
out rest or sleep and the willingness to do
so whenever necessary. And for these
attainments he is paid less and is obliged
to work longer hours than the members
of a dozen other trades which are organ-
ized.

Mr. Wallace, to prove the uselessness
of organization, points out one man who,
when he was not satisfied with his pay,
stepped out and secured a $6000-a-year
job. This is one man of abnormal abil-
ity. We are not, however, dealing with
abnormalities, but with the average nor-
mal, brainy, everyday engineer. Were
all engineers like the gentleman Mr. Wal-
lace cites, possessing just as much push
and ability, there would be no $6000-a-
year jobs. Wages are not based upon what
the highest-priced man receives but what
the most needy will consent to accept.

If organization is good for our em-
ployers, good for other mechanics, for
doctors and lawyers, why in the name of
common sense is it not good for en-
gineers?

Therefore, as we are now living in an
age of organization, from the lowest to
the highest, including billionaires and
tramps, it behooves the engineers of this
country to keep abreast of the times, and
organize.

Let me say to Mr. Gotstein that he
need not look around for an organiza-
tion; it is already at hand. Get into it.
Keep your eyes open and help to place
your fellow engineers where they belong.

George G. Hall.

Dorchester, Mass.

Standpipe on Heating System

In the letter published under the above
heading in the May 9 issue, the state-
ment is made that "The system is made
up of 1-inch pipe." The sentence should
have read, "The system is of the one-
pipe design." — Editor.

Remarkable Overload Boiler
Test

Referring to the article in the March
21 number on "A Remarkable Overload
Boiler Test," some data are given below on
a test of a Parker downflow boiler at the
plant of the Colorado Fuel and Iron
Company, Segundo, Colo. If the tests
published in the March 21 number are
considered remarkable for overload, the
test of the Parker boiler at 234 per cent,
of its rating should be of interest.

Kind of boiler Parker Water Tube

Heating surface, sq.ft 2,650

Grate, Roney Stoker (8'3"x7'9")

sq.ft 63.9

Duration, hours 7

Pressures (Average)

Barometer, inches 23 .3

Steam gage, lb 102 . 64

Draft gage, mchesj-^chbr... l.Jlg

Temperatures (Average)

Boiler room, deg. F 92 . 55

Escaping gas, degrees F 506 . 57

Feed water, degrees F 66 . 3

Fuel

Kind of fuel Frederick slack

Per cent, moisture 1.2

Per cent, ash of natural fuel 19.4

Evaporation

Evaporation from and at 212 de-
grees, per lb. natural fuel, lb ... . 7.90

Evaporation from and at 212 de-
grees, per lb. dry fuel, lb 8.000

Evaporation from and at 212 de-
grees, per lb. combust., lb 10.279

Evaporation from and at 212 de-
grees per sq.ft. grate, lb. per hour 335.21

Evaporation from and at 212 de-
grees per sq.ft. heating surface,
lb. per hour 8.08

Horsepower

On basis 34£ lb. from and at 212

degrees 621 . 16

Builders' rating for boiler, h.p 265

Overload, per cent, rating 234

Efficiency of boiler and furnace, per

cent 59.1

No account of steam furnished stoker and fan

engines.

The boiler tested is rated at 265 horse-
power, having 2650 square feet of heat-
ing surface. It is equipped with a Roney
stoker 8 feet 3 inches wide by 7 feet 9
inches long, 63.9 square feet. The dura-
tion of the test was seven hours, and
it was conducted by a representative of
the stoker company. Attention should
also be given to the fact that the coal
used in the test was of an inferior quality.

B. Dieckhaus,
Parker Boiler Company.

Philadelphia, Penn.

May 30, 191 1*

Hill Publishing Company

rm.«

!'e»rt

i.-«» r * l, * ^ ■ !■■

« part

Jer tbc

■ in' in. • *• from

( QtCntS

rum..

i al an \

Vara ,.«■

•

,11

Old rinw

The rclat en the

(he olJ and (he

mar. • • cam

plant is sell to the layman.

that are operated
•
in a ma ffcr-

n the old and the r. .
A man who operates a small steam
plat • . and attends to

ibout the placi not and

never will hold a \alted position

among his fell- Mc may be

all ripht for the r W in the engi-

neer

Ii in but natural that the modern e;

:
runner, who is al-
:hcr t> :ian

time methods in an old-'
plar.-
»nc ugh to hold a I

Although met >m-

• it a

it the

tan
r an ei 'al. arc

■
ind the old

ful

tch an not only unr

- UBc mould go to
• in MM

c and

' an at:
mar

S an engine and
not

One n

'►:'■..•• f solid -'-J-, r-it

it ha\ of

plc.i

ng that the benefit has b

about at en*

tome cagir.

•
no reason .-re should be log

on the pan of anyone that old co
are

Let them pa*^

the old
out of the door
and M take a r

plar- ">old down the

- before tbc engine
:

Radi • I 1

the insulating
effect of a hoi -ctmi to

... .

i»i

lr.it

» of the Coo-

■

i ilea

• of th

the

form or

rr. bagh atom,
•ocrrned Tm» .% fcocooao

■ i

ranchc% in
•loocra

••ie »
• her

• ledge lit Mm a I

' '• opinion and a morr ob-

csnaldirsd I

transmitted *

851

POWER

Mav 30, 1911

an open fire the heat is felt upon the
face, yet the temperature of the inter-
vening air may not be materially in-
creased; but if a piece of paper or other
shield is placed in front of the face the
heat will not be felt. This shows that
it is radiated heat. Also, the heat from
an incandescent lamp is radiated as the
bulb contains very nearly a perfect vac-
uum.

Some may find it hard to harmonize
this with the fact that there are certain
vessels on the market for keeping things
hot or cold, which have double walls with
a partial vacuum between. The fact is,
however, that the walls of these vessels
are polished and reflect the heat. If it
were practicable to do this with furnace
walls, one source of heat loss might be
greatly minimized. The whole subject
is one of unusual interest and should
evoke profitable discussion.

Room for Improvement

Ever since Newcomen started his first
pumping engine it seems to have been
understood that the engineer would stand
for more overtime and other undesirable
conditions than anyone else around the
piant.

It is taken for granted that he will be
the first on the job in the morning, the
last to leave at night; that he will spend
all day Sunday at the plant and work
for laborers' wages. This has gone on
until after two hundred years' of prece-
dent and practice the bargains that some
employers are able to drive with their
mechanical help seem almost beyond be-
lief. The following is an example:

This is the case of an "engineer" who
runs a machine in a shop. He is an
expert on the machine and, although
he has some other duties to look after, he
turns out nearly as much work as his
companions who keep steadily at their
tasks. These "other duties" consist of
wheeling the coal, firing, and hoisting the
ashes for a two-hundred-horsepower
heating boiler and attending to a gas en-
gine which runs the shop. The engine
runs night and day, shutting down a half
hour for the noonday lunch and a half
hour in the evening for a change of
shifts.

During lunch time the "engineer"
tinkers around the plant between mouth-
fuls and sees to it that the machinery
is started for the afternoon run. At night
he remains to put the plant in operation
for the night run. On Saturday after-
noons he works on the engine, getting
it in shape for the next week's work, and
comes down on Sunday to work around
the boiler, lace belts, rebabbitt the line
shafting or do any odd jobs of plumbing
on the heating system.

For his extra duties he receives twenty-
five dollars per month, which helps to
pay the rent, and he makes up the rest
of his living by hustling on the machine.

As an example of industry he is a model;
as an example of poor engineering con-
ditions his case could not well be im-
proved upon.

It has often been remarked that this
country affords a wonderful field for
activities of every description; that there
is scarcely a line in which one may en-
ter but what virgin soil may not be en-
countered.

This is particularly true of all those
organizations which have for their ob-
ject the betterment of the individual.
Each is endeavoring in one way or an-
other to better the" condition of its mem-
bers and incidentally the profession in
general, and in this work there is no
question but that great good is accom-
plished.

Much time and hard work are necessary
to dig down into the depths and reach
some individual cases, but with such con-
ditions as cited above existing the pos-
sibility of reward is always present; the
horizon is limitless; the field has hardly
been scratched.

All in the Spirit

One of the arguments frequently ad-
vanced in favor of the enactment of engi-
neers' license laws and ordinances is
that it will act as an incentive to the
engineer to study the fundamental prin-
ciples of his calling. This may be true
of the man who is an engineer because
accident led him to the power plant in
his search for something to do in order
to get a living and who still works for a
living and nothing else. It is not true,
however, of the engineer who follows his
vocation because he loves it. He strives
and studies not because of the spur of
the license but to fit himself for the
highest position possible. His ambition
is not alone to hold a license, but to be-
come better educated, a better engineer
and a better citizen every day of the
year. He does not expect that a law,
which unless properly administered will
not eliminate the unfit, will place an ar-
bitrary value on his services, for he aims
to give value received for every dollar
paid by perfecting himself in both the
theoretical and practical knowledge of
his work.

There were good engineers before the
days of license legislation and there are
good engineers in those States and cities
where there are no license laws. It
will be found, however, that it is the pro-
gressive and able engineer who is always
advocating the passage of license and
inspection laws. His knowledge of the
dangers attendant on the operation of
steam boilers and engines, his apprecia-
tion of the possibilities in the loss of life
and limb and the damage to and destruc-
tion of property and his regard for the
safety of others make him the foremost
of all advocates for rational license and
inspection laws and their administration

in the spirit for which they are intended.
He does not advocate license laws for
the purpose of limiting the supply of
competing workers in his field, for none
can be found more ready to give effort
and time to help another than the real
engineer, but because he loves and honors
his calling. It is his chosen work and he
gives to it the best that is in him and all
of it, because to him to be an engineer is
to live.

Boiler Horsepower

The new value for the heat of evap-
oration from and at 212 degrees throws
out the American Society of Mechanical
Engineers' standard for a boiler horse-
power. That standard is 30 pounds of
water at 100 degrees evaporated per hour
into steam at 70 pounds pressure above
the atmosphere.

Or 34y2 pounds, evaporated per hour
from and at 212 degrees.

Or 33,305 B.t.u. per hour. The first
two never did agree and with the cor-
rected heat values the evaporation of
34>2 pounds from and at 212 degrees
means 33,478.8 B.t.u. instead of 33,305.

Why not leave any consideration of the
horsepower of boilers out of the forth-
coming (?) report. It is an anachronism
and ought to have no further official
recognition. Let them be rated in direct
terms of the water which they will evap-
orate from and at 212 degrees per hour.
We do not buy condensers by tne norse-
power.

At the experiment station of the United
States Bureau of Mines, Pittsburg, Penn.,
several trial runs have been made with
an experimental gas producer, using coke
as fuel, with which limestone has been
mixed in varying proportions, the pur-
pose being to flux the ash, and form a
liquid slag, thus avoiding clinker and
ash troubles and consequent shutdowns.
Liquid slag has been readily made which
runs freely from the producer. The high
temperatures necessary are very efficient
in the generation of gas.

It seems that our numerous refer-
ences to the self-contained outfit which
the Europeans call the Locomobile and
with which they obtain such wonderful
efficiencies have had their effect. It is
said that a number of large American
companies are considering their manu-
facture.

The weather has now reached the point
where the back door can be kept open,
all ready for the speedy exit of the man
who tries to sell you one of those gas
engines that "require no attention."

Just because warm weather is coming
is no reason why you should close your
books and let your studies go for an-
other six months.

May 30, 1911

POWER

Inquiries of General Interest

Flow oj hrough an i

A vacuum of 7 , inches of mercur.
maintained in a tank while air rushes in
from the outside, passing through five

xh openings. Required the
of the air through the openings and the
quantity of air entering per minute.

G. H
The velocity in feet per second is ob-
tained from the equation:

where,

v = Veloc:

\tmosphcric pressure in pounds
per square f»>
p Pressure in tank, in pound-
square foot ;

* of Cc ' 'C

'063

C«

c»0X \95t\

C D

' air at at-

mos »»urc .i

rcn-

•IB'

With the bi

t :: .

foot

Corresponding to a vacuum i

Questions are>
nor rod unlc

aapanscd by the
ottne Midaddnti ei the

inquirer. TTtispage is

ior\v>u when §tm k
use if

The value of in the u

tureandthchu f the air

ing aside the effect of hu:v

cubic feet equals the volume of one

pound :cgrees Fahren-
heit: then

value of t '.. in equa-
tion ( 1

!'•«=

,-i -1

t L

V— y, ■ | fed prr

urne flowing per minute through
iK equal*

iir at r
pressure or at

tain t! at

md a tenir

ink;
then

■

fa — » —

He.

heat

»'»

ie tetr; r to

.--» and mar

•

bit K !ei

one of 22 ohma and < IS ohm*

connect i ind 1 10 sohs

J to the what v

be the

The c be

the sac r other

iree
*m-

nd 110
The
all t>

• t resistance

hms. or practu
ohn eototsn also be

the

cal -um Thu*. the r I of

The turn of these *od the

at is 7J8J

• m 00-inch '

in t' >ut 10P

grec

■ aporated into

>s*ible for the small ■mount of
a pna— ri

rrn\idir:r the Sn'ct he'd ' » ' ' ••*•'

•al being used a* fuc
O inch.

da cage

•

weald contain 60 peonda or «
Moor the

some '

'A boil so I

thin 25 mteoOto o*Mi

ch too*

856

POWER

May 30, 1911

Charging a Refrigerating

System

By F. E. Matthews

How should a refrigerating machine
be charged, and how is it possible to tell
when it is sufficiently charged; also, when
it needs recharging? What are the vari-
ous systems? What will prevent brine
from freezing in the pipes, and how can
they be opened after freezing?

Although not specifically stated in the
question, the machine is probably of the
compression type, and on this assump-
tion proceed as follows: Connect the
shipping drums of anhydrous ammonia,
one at a time (or more if the plant is of
large capacity or the initial charge is
being put in and one wishes to save
time), to the charging valve usually
placed between the master expansion
valve on the liquid line, where it leaves
the receiver, and the expansion coils or
brine cooler. This connection is most
easily made by a special fitting built
up with two swing joints, one end
threaded to fit the valves on the ship-
ping drums and the other provided with
a flanged or threaded end to connect to
the charging valve. When the connec-
tion has been made the air in the pipe
may be expelled by slightly opening
either the charging or the shipping-drum
valve and loosening the flange swing
joint nearest the opposite end.

The connection having been carefully
made, the main valve on the receiver is
closed and the low-pressure side is
"pumped down" by allowing the com-
pressor to continue operation after the
liquid has been shut off. By the "pump-
ing down" process the ammonia in the
expansion side of the system is com-
pressed and discharged into the com-
pression side of the system, where it is
condensed and flows to the liquid re-
ceiver which it may fill as well as the
lower pipes of the condenser.

When the low-pressure gage indicates
that the pressure in the expansion coils
has been reduced to zero, or atmospheric,
pressure, the charging valve may be
opened wide and then the valve on the
shipping drum may be "cracked," allow-
ing a small stream of the liquid to pour
into the system. The valve on the drum
virtually becomes the expansion valve of
the system and its manipulation should
be governed by the same rules that gov-
ern the other expansion valves when
the machine is in normal operation, ex-
cept that it is better not to carry the

back pressure quite as high as usual.
This pressure may be anything above
atmospheric, but it is not advisable to
go below atmospheric as the vacuum
would tend to draw air into the system
through the charging connection when
the drum is disconnected if the charg-
ing valves are not absolutely tight. A
considerable inrush of air is not so easily
detected as the slightest leak of am-
monia outward.

When an open connection is made be-
tween the shipping drum and the system,
the liquid is forced out of the drum into
the system by the pressure of the gas
above the liquid just as water is forced
out of the blowoff of a boiler by the
steam pressure above the water. The
only difference is that it requires a higher
temperature than that of the atmosphere
in the engine room to raise steam pres-
sure, while any temperature above zero
will give a pressure above atmospheric in
the case of ammonia. The pipe line
from the drum valve will frost while
there is liquid flowing. The melting and
dropping off of this frost is an indica-
tion that the drum is empty. Frost may
also appear on the bottom of the drum.
The end opposite the valve is usually
slightly elevated so that the liquid will
flow to the outlet pipe which enters
the head and turns down within about
an inch of the cylinder side. When one
drum is emptied, shut both valves and
disconnect the pipe connection; then
place another drum in circuit if more
liquid is needed.

In systems of medium and large capa-
city it will be found necessary to slow
down the compressor during the charg-
ing operation to prevent the pumping
of a vacuum.

It is easier to form an opinion as to
the amount of ammonia that the system
needs while it is operating than it is to
determine when a sufficient amount has
been added. Except in initial charges,
in which case the company supplying the
machine calculates the amount of am-
monia required from the number of feet
of pipe on the low- and high-pressure

sides, it is better to add a comparatively
small amount of ammonia and then oper-
ate the system for a sufficient length of
time to restore normal conditions. The
hight of the liquid in the gage glass of the
receiver, or the general performance of
the plant when no gage glasses are
used, will give the engineer an idea as to
whether more ammonia is required. There
should always be sufficient liquid am-
monia in the receiver to insure a solid
stream at the expansion valve. It should
be remembered that refrigeration is pro-
duced by the absorption of the heat re-
quired to change the liquid ammonia to
a gas and since it takes only a very
small amount of heat to raise the .tem-
perature of any gas that passes the ex-
pansion valve in company with the liquid,
little cooling effect can be expected from
the gas. The passage of gas with the
liquid can usually be detected by the
intermittent whistling sound at the ex-
pansion valve, the flow of the liquid be-
ing almost noiseless.

Refrigerating systems may be classi-
fied first, as to the working fluid,
and, second, as to the method of opera-
tion. The most common refrigerating
fluid is ammonia, the next is carbon
dioxide, after which come air, sulphur
dioxide, Pictet fluid, sulphuric ether and
a few others little used in practical re-
frigerating systems.

Ammonia systems are operated either
according to the compression or to the
absorption system, the former being far
in the majority. Either of these may be
operated on the direct-expansion princi-
ple in which the working fluid is con-
veyed direct to the rooms or tanks to be
cooled, or by the brine-circulation sys-
tem, in which the refrigerant is used in
a suitable brine cooler for cooling either
salt or calcium-chloride brine which is
then circulated through the rooms or
tanks to be cooled.

These systems might be further classi-
fied as to the type of apparatus employed
for converting the refrigerant from the
gaseous to the liquid state and the means
of utilizing the heat-absorbing power of
both the primary (the refrigerant) and
the secondary (brine) cooling media.
Where brine is employed as a circulat-
ing medium, it is usually chosen be-
cause it can be more conveniently
handled in the compartments to be re-
frigerated than can the primary refriger-
ant and because the primary refrigerant
can be expanded more efficiently in a
single brine cooler especially designed
for the purpose than it can in a number

May 30, 1911

BS7

of dissimilar expansion coils scat:
throughout the also, where

a brine-storage tank of large cap.

. mployed, it permits a c able

amount of refrigeration to
during the : - of operation of the

.m, to be Juring of

•
j to op incipal mcchar

equipment of the plant durir.
time only.

Brine ll employed instead of uater
(which we. -e be used on

count of its cheapness Jen-

may be so incrca- addition

-alts that it vill not I at the

•or coo
Aill transmit mor tion

per pound pumped than brir nay

scd where cooling at a high t.

la required and the operating
.• of the primary refrigerant can
be 10 in

•

;!d not be r in the mar

ses. as any pressure of the amn.
•

ahrenhcit. the freezing point of
:r temp l salt bi

.!. its maximum dt
sufficient to insure ai • at

itures a' re tank sys-

and it
in »n. M till low*. •

pcraturcs i

- at all

•ures a -en-

At their maximum salt

.;ht res;
salt an J

e a

will

ng M-.a
to ace that th

n the c.i able

*i the r ■'. of

»ct car* .ir.S. pot
occaaional I

I off tt the

■
Ing

In both the

i be

back pressures b<. the

n full opera

r to work on a safer

n a fact that

an be circulated at ii -ing

up to
from f he v

thar mL

. ri allowed to
the
coo:

coils a: -ig taken to

sec that the
than that of the i >nt so that

■Mai

• ■
not the h rant

Vilter \ • 1 Sin

\m: or

Compa

acting, am: c in

the ' a- eg and crank case

ictton and a low

., .
• wir tftoolnconi
a small amo

J cop*

ctx.n

fhi • on entering the * *'

•■<■ uridani la the »< • n*:

dra - c piston is of the

trunk desu: \g long port* bet*

ucitoo-gas
poir

I c compression end of the

•ranee

The *

n aa shown, ia nude of hammered
• ground •

hollowred out

fern to

rder to lighten

The disci

no the

proportion
to i >rion to

i of
inch i

'.cm opcr

n a han '

An oil

B the t c bond

i and lower Dan of th

auton rwated by

J fron
gage glaaa ia use e krd

A Benign is the

BCCCBSlb '.:. Bl • part* Bj t"-c rr-

and

.•:•

How

■
ripe ha« rnaeed

m»t BBBJM fl " " c "' 2< "' » BO

858

POWER

May 30, 1911

other hand, the temperature rises, the
air will no longer be saturated, and a
capacity for absorbing more moisture
will have been created.

The temperature at which air becomes
saturated to the point of precipitating
its moisture is known as the "dew point."
When drops of water appear on a cold
brine pipe, or, in fact, on a pitcher of
ice water, it is because the layer of air
immediately surrounding the cold sur-
face has been chilled below the dew
point and thus gives up a part of its
moisture.

In the case of a cold pipe insulated
with cork or other kinds of covering,
the liability of the air to be cooled to
the dew point is greatly reduced, since
the temperature of the outside of the
covering is not nearly so low as that of
the pipe. Nevertheless, a condition of
atmospheric humidity will sooner or later
exist when contact with a surface only
a degree or two colder than the air will
produce precipitation. If there is even
the smallest opening through the water-
proofing on the outside of the covering,
air will enter, and, since the further it
passes into the covering the lower the
temperature encountered, the more likeli-
hood of precipitation.

When the moisture has once been
precipitated in the small openings through
the waterproofing, it has limited ex-
posure to the air for reevaporation and
unless there is a rise in temperature to
increase the absorptive power of the
immediately surrounding atmosphere, it
will remain there. If the temperature of
the insulation finally falls below 32 de-
grees, the moisture is frozen and in so
doing expands, cracking the insulation
still further, and into these minute cracks
the moisture flows when another rise in
temperature melts the ice. A recurrence
of the freezing operation still further
tends toward the disintegration of the
insulation and the more the moisture
penetrates toward the pipe and the more
frequent the variations in temperature
the more rapid will be the destruction
of the insulation.

The place for the waterproofing, or
more accurately, air proofing, of all kinds
of cold insulation is where it comes in
contact with the air and not at the point
most remote from the point of attack, as
in the case of the application of water-
proof paper, paint, etc., next to the sur-
face of cold pipes, where the only pos-
sible function of such waterproofing
would be to prevent the pipe from rust-
ing after the insulation had been pene-
trated and rendered useless by moisture.

If the present pipe covering is badly
disintegrated and shows signs of being
frozen, it should be removed and re-
placed. If it only shows deterioration in
places, it can possibly be dried out. If
there is any time of year when the
pipes are not in service for a considerable
length of time, they may be disconnected

and the drying operation accomplished
by passing steam through them. When
the insulation has been thoroughly dried,
the outside should be given a good coat
of rubber sealing compound, supplied by
the manufacturers, or several coats of
quick-drying asphalt paint.

LETTERS

Corrosion in Refrigerating
System

In the issue for April 11, comments
are invited on the rapid deterioration of
a brine-concentrating coil and tank, such
as are used in connection with wet-air
coolers. The following suggestions are
offered for annihilating or at least great-
ly reducing the difficulty:

The first improvement that can be made
is to pass only hot water or at most
exhaust steam, not live steam, through
the heating coil, so that the temperature
of the brine will not exceed,, say, 110
degrees Fahrenheit. This will prevent
rapid formation of salt crystals on the
pipes.

Secondly, the tank should have a
large brine surface so that the surround-
ing atmosphere can absorb the rising
water vapor as fast as possible. Let
drafts of air pass over the surface, and
do the work of concentrating when the
humidity of the air is low. If the brine
can be kept in motion by means of an
agitator or circulating pump it will be an
advantage, as it hastens the process of
evaporation.

Third, arrange the heating pipes in
form of an upright coil in the pan over
the brine level, with a V-shaped dis-
tributing trough along the top, in the
same manner as with an atmospheric
type of condenser; and with a small
pump keep circulating the warm brine
over the coil until the solution has at-
tained the proper strength. It is evi-
dent that under this method the at-
mosphere has a good opportunity of as-
sisting in the work. With steam the
heating surface of the coil should not
be less than 0.11 square foot per ton of
refrigeration; with hot water this sur-
face may have to be doubled.

Fourth, for hygienic reasons it is ob-
jectionable to use the same stale brine
over and over again; a slight overflow
should be permitted to waste and this
must be replaced with fresh brine. This
can best be prepared by means of a
box or barrel fitted with a false bottom,
perforated. The water enters the barrel
below the false bottom, rises through the
salt above it and passes out as strong
brine at the overflow pipe near the top
of the barrel. This outlet must have
a filtering screen to prevent obstructions
from getting into the pipe. As it is fre-
quently the impurities which cause rapid
corrosion, the fresh brine should next be

passed through a filter so as to remove
these impurities. As a further precau-
tion, the brine should be allowed to set-
tle for some time in a tank of large
area, where more impurities will pre-
cipitate to the bottom. At this opportunity
it would be well to neutralize the cor-
rosive properties of the solution by add-
ing, in the case of salt brine, one to
two pounds of carbonate of soda per 100
pounds of salt used, or one-half pound
hydrate of soda per 100 pounds of cal-
cium used in the case of chloride of
calcium brine.

Fifth, as the expense for heating the
brine and evaporating the water is con-
siderable in a large plant, an economy
can be effected by letting the hot dis-
charge gas from the compressor pass
direct through the concentrating coil.
The coil should be made of extra-heavy
pipe, galvanized on the outside only, and
of sufficient cross-sectional area so as
not to impose undue resistance on the
gas. This plan will require very little
attention and saves heat and condenser
water.

Sixth, if this arrangement is not con-
venient the efficiency of the plant can
be improved by means of a heat ex-
changer, in which the cold brine coming
from the air cooler exchanges heat with
the warm brine leaving the concentrator,
in the same way as is done with the
liquors of an absorption-refrigerating
plant. In order to be able to advise as
to the surfaces needed for a heat ex-
changer, one must know the tempera-
tures and quantities of each medium
available per hour, also the relative den-
sities. In this connection it is well to
bear in mind that it is important to work
with brine just dense enough to prevent
formation of ice on the ammonia coils.
In order to see that this is the case, one
must test the specific gravity of the solu-
tion every day by means of a hydrometer,
and be guided by a table which gives the
correct relations between specific gravity,
freezing points and working tempera-
tures of the salt or calcium brine used in
the system.

Charles H. Herter.

New York City.

With reference to the article, "Trouble
with Refrigerating System," in the issue
of April 11, the author has had trouble
with brine rusting the boiling tanks and
coils. Most of the trouble is caused from
the fact that the brine does not let the
tank dry when empty and the air rusts
the moist iron. If the tubes fail at the
fittings, it is due to electrolysis in the
brine solution, which does not leave the
tubes when they are apparently dry. If
the tank is covered and copper coils
used or perhaps a jacket, the trouble
from corrosion of the tanks or from elec-
trolysis will disappear.

F. G. Wheeler.

Trenton, Mich.

May 30, 101 1

• W E K

The Ohio Society oi Mechani-
cal Electrical ami Steam

Engineen

The twenty-third meeting of the above
society was held at Youngstown on May
18 and 19, in the auditorium of the Elks
Club, the privileges of which were
tended to the visitors during their stay
in the city. Six excellent papers i
presented and discussed, of which those
of interest to Pouer readers will be
treated in the columns following and in
a later issue.

Inspection tri| made to the an

of the Youngstown Sheet and Tube Com-
pany and to the Ohio works of the United
States Steel Corporation, and outside of
the formal prograr: -e arranged

to the power station of the Youngstown
Consolidated Cas and Electric Company
of which Vice- t H. L. Patterson

is mechanical engineer, the works of the
William Tod Company and other local
industries.

The next meeting will mark the tenth

anniversary of the organization of the so-

and will be held in November at

Canton, where the first meeting took

place.

I [ydroelectri* I torelopmenti

in ( )hio
By Pall M. Linl< .

Reliability and continuity of suppl.
the first requisite for any power develop-
ment. In former years the grist mill or
sawmill was more or less common on
many of the streams in Ohio. These
itiotis required a comparatively small
amount of power, and the continuity of
supply was, under the conditions then
ting, not absolutely necessary for
SBCCSes. However, most of tl nail

developments of power have fallen into
disuse.

A study of the rainfall and runoff
conditions that apply to tl lie West

-scntial in arriving at a proper valua-
tion of water po* ■• table I s!
the mean rainfall and runoff as r
for the ' irtes-

ville. (> ■ -. the eight

year* or I8KN to 1895 and also »t
the average of the same quant.'
the tlm f IHH9. 1W4 and

tvi<-

r the three months of Augu»
tember and October, the runoff reaches
npsrstlvely low figure. A better ides
of the conditions w ill b<

ilch
show ir

thfc » and in solid lines the

the eight years Referring

c months of August. September and

October of the thr» be

noted that the average monthly mnoff

|| Inch ( ..n«,Jrring that

lhi» i« the average for nine m -hi

months of three different
I certainly not too radical to
assume that one cannot depend upon a
continuous amount of water at the mini-
mum flow of the stream of more thar.
inch per month. As s matter of fact.
quite probable that this estimate is hu
rather than ! -ban what

actually be obtair

The table shows that the average rain-
fall, if i equally throughout
the whole year, would amount to about

month and that the a
age runoff for the same conditions w.
be about I.I inch per month.

One square mile with a runoff of
inch per month, falling through a head of

Incbn

•

I ■ rw

ll'inofT.

•

■

•*u

1 foot. c a theoretical energy of

about o.oi horsepower. Taking into ac-
count the efiic. nf the watcrwheel
and such other apparatus as is neces-
sary to uti lent
that a continuous supply can be ob-
tained of not more than Kilowatt
for each square mile of drainage area
for each foot of fall over *hich this

I II I

mint \

water can be used for instan,
possible to obtain a

■00 square

•■■I fall, it would be possible
n a cont.nuous power St..

Ho* point Tt

small result but I ne» * %• true

vhw ooceded that a runoff of 009

foe cood per square mile b

that is available.

T! mg fit r a cesrtoaoBS

power supply. Aa a matter of fsct, St

is do not demasd s continuous
sop; ughout sll hours of the i

C - ■ • ' ■' - ' -r- ar.JcJ at

jin ho.. aad

for an ordinar g load s 30 to 40

ipected.
Only a relai our.t of poad-

*gc a coo-

manacd by a -• vf of 30 to

asc the
maximum power - - ould be a<

able at hours of t .on-

serving for the ider of

Jay. A .«ld

mean that pntinuous sap-

can be depended upon at the rr
mum dema

There are two plar be

adopted for ,:ion of such s>

power as flat

ill localities: The first
is to b rose of

J i n g t h • . ' i n g flood pc r ■

iods and rcless .: the lo

>ds; the sc 10 use »atcrp

plants as a >r steam op

» a

Referring to the I nedles,

increase the runoff aw neb

•nonth.
vent rage runoff ;r»e* la

the figure mJ a tr

what is necessary Th
low-flo. I of the stream, asr

■era
at the at raft flow p<
month and
amount of water -

4*cd during the summer moatae

r ' -

at records she ■

-.g such year* to thr ch par

month. In or J lis amount

of v aeosasery to aa>

-id an smot

area t h ■ account of

•Ion aad scepa, ■ >uld be acces*

ItC

-nachmen asast

The que st tea at
the .'irn of a

tlon ef at.

-c a part sf dat

nwst * at

860

POWER

May 30, 1911

therefore necessary to have a steam
plant that can carry the entire load dur-
ing such period. A brief consideration
will show that practically the only saving
that can be obtained by the operation of
a water-power plant as an auxiliary to a
steam plant is the saving of the fuel
which would be burned if the water plant
were not operated. The item of labor for
attendance will certainly not be reduced.
In fact, the attendant expense is apt to
be increased, since during a considerable
part of the year both plants would have
to be operated, necessitating practically
a double crew. Supplies, such as oil,
waste, etc., would not be reduced by the
operation of the double system, nor would
maintenance and repairs be reduced as
the upkeep on the steam plant is apt to
be even higher if run intermittently than
if run continuously.

Another feature which plays an im-
portant part is the load factor. The
lower the load factor, the smaller will
be the number of kilowatt-hours turned
out per kilowatt capacity of machinery
installed; also the smaller will be the
fuei bill per kilowatt of machinery in-
stalled. Table 2 indicates, in the first
column, the load factor, and in the sec-
ond column, the total number of kilo-
watt-hours which a plant will put out
for each kilowatt-hour of maximum load;
the third column shows the cost of the
fuel for each kilowatt of maximum load
at 0.5 cent per kilowatt-hour, and the
fourth column, the maximum amount of
money per kilowatt that should be put
into a water-power plant for the condi-
tions assumed. The figures in this col-

TABLE 2

Yearly Cost

Kilowatt-

of Fuel per

Load

hour per

Kilowatt of

Limiting Cost

factor

Year for

Capacity at

per Kilowatt

Each Kilo-

6.5 Cent per

of Auxiliary

Per

watt of

Kilowatt-

Water-power

Cent.

Capacity

hour

Plant

1750

S 8.75

$ 67

2630

13.10

100

3500

17.50

135

4380

21.90

169

distance from the market, therefore mak-
ing the cost of transmission high.

The figures in Table 2 were based upon
the assumption that the water-driven
plant will save all the coal. Reference to
the curves in the figure will show, how-
ever, that this is much more than can
actually be saved unless the stream be
developed for the minimum flow only. If
more than the minimum flow is developed,
all the coal that would have been used
by the equivalent steam plant could not,
of course, be saved. To correct for this,
the figures in the fourth column of Table
2 would have to be increased, the amount
of this increase running as high as 33 per
cent, for the conditions indicated by the
cross-hatching on the curve.

In conclusion, it would seem that where
load factors are low, the question of de-
veloping a water-power plant in a region
such as Ohio is one that demands a
very close scrutiny. The cost per kilo-
watt of a water-power development is a
variable quantity, but it seldom runs be-
low $100 per kilowatt, and sometimes
runs to four or more times this figure.
The amount spent in a water-power plant
can therefore easily exceed the economic
limit.

umn are arrived at by considering that
the annual fixed charges on the water-
power plant must not exceed the annual
fuel bill, if the steam plant produced all
the power. The fixed charges on the
water-power plant are taken at 13 per
cent, per annum, which is obtained by
assuming 5 per cent, for interest, 6 per
cent, for depreciation and 2 per cent,
for insurance and taxes.

In arriving at the cost of a water-
power plant, one should take into con-
sideration not only the hydraulic develop-
ment and the cost of the machinery but
also the cost of transmitting the power
from the plant to the market. This last
item is very often an important one, since
it is usually necessary to make the hydro-
electric development at a considerable

The Coming Chicago Con-
vention of American In-
stitute of Electrical
Engineers

The annual convention of the American
Institute of Electrical Engineers will be
held in Chicago on June 26 to 30, in-
clusive, in the new Hotel Sherman, the
most recently completed of Chicago's
group of modern hotels. While the list
of papers to be presented at the conven-
tion is not complete, the following partial
list of papers that will probably be pre-
sented shows the diversity of subjects to
be considered: "Economical Design of
Direct Current Magnets," by R. Wikan-
der; "Catenary Span Calculations," by
W. L. R. Robertson; "Currents in In-
ductors of Induction Motors," by H.
Weichsel; "Multiplex Telephony and
Telegraphy by Means of Electric Waves
Guided by Wires," by Major G. O. Squier;
"Electrolysis in Reinforced Concrete," by
C. E. Magnusson; "Induction Motor De-
sign," by T. Hoock; "The High Efficiency
Suspension Insulators," by A. O. Austin;
"The Electric Strength of Air," by J. B.
Whitehead; "Electrification Analyzed,
and Its Application to Trunk Line Roads,"
by W. S. Murray; "Telegraph Transmis-
sion," by F. F. Fowle; "The Cost of
Transformer Losses," by R. W. Atkinson
and C. E. Stone; "The Costs of Railway
Electrification," by B. F. Wood; "Induc-
tion Motor for Single-Phase Traction," by
E. F. W. Alexanderson; "Magnetic Prop-
erties of Iron at 200,000 Cycles," by
E. F. W. Alexanderson; "Electric Storage
Batteries," by Bruce Ford; "The Char-

acteristics of Isolated Plants," by P. R.
Moses; "Elevator Control," by T. E.
Barnum.

• New Coal Region Being
Developed

To those who are looking forward with
so much apprehension to the time when
the coal supply shall have been ex-
hausted, the announcement that a large
tract of land in Kentucky is about to be
developed will prove welcome news.

The Consolidation Coal Company has
recently purchased a tract of 100,000
acres of virgin coal land known as the
Elkhorn district in Kentucky, and is
building a railroad of its own from
Shelby to the mine. The Louisville &
Nashville railroad is also building a
branch to this district, and when these
two are completed there will be adequate
facilities for working the mines to their
limit; which, it is estimated, will occur
in less than two years.

Extensive borings have been made
throughout the entire region, and the coal
has been found to run in almost con-
tinuous veins of about 9 feet in thick-
ness. It is a high-grade bituminous coal
with about 37 per cent, volatile and pos-
sesses excellent coking qualities, making
the byproduct gas available for gas-en-
gine purposes.

Bill for Ventilation of New
York Factories

A bill has been introduced into the
assembly of the New York legislature by
Mr. Boylan to regulate the ventilation
of factories and workrooms in the State
of New York. This is a measure for
which a committee of the American So-
ciety of Heating and Ventilating Engi-
neers, D. D. Kimball, chairman, has been
working on for over a year.

The bill provides that a workroom must
be ventilated so that the air within does
not contain more than nine parts of car-
bon dioxide in 10,000 volumes of the air
in excess of the number of parts of car-
bon dioxide in 10,000 volumes of the
outside air, or so that there is constantly
supplied throughout the interior of the
room at least 1200 cubic feet of air per
hour per person and in addition 1000
cubic feet of air for each cubic foot of
gas burned per hour, the air to be taken
from an uncontaminated source. The
temperature must never be less than 55
degrees and, except in boiler rooms,
never more than 72 degrees wet-bulb
temperature, unless the wet-bulb tem-
perature outside exceeds 70 degrees,
when the wet-bulb temperature inside
must not exceed the wet-bulb tempera-
ture outside by more than 5 degrees.

The means for ventilation must be
provided for by the owner unless a
written agreement can be shown that
the occupier is to furnish the means.

May 30, 1911

POU I R

Illinoii N. A. S. I-., state
c onventioa

The seventh annual convention of the
Illinois State association of the National

oiation of Stationary' Engine,
held at Ottawa, III.. May \9 a: fter

opening with prayer by Kc\. ^*'. C I-
Mayor BraJ >ke briefly to the dele-

gates and W. H. Miller, also of Ottawa,
delivered a cordial address of welcome,
ronse was made by Raven,

national secretary.

i.anc, in speaking of the Na-
tional Association of Stationary Engi-
neers, made th< n that the State
iducational committee make an effort to
get into closer touch with the Univei
of Illinois at Urbana, and possibly hold,
during the coming fall and winter, a ses-
sion at the university, devoted to the
practical problems which the operating

Smith told of a new practice in I

re a chain-grate stoker is being used
under a marir. Kabcoo

nary hand-fired grate
located at * J of the boiler in

a manner that on heavy loads the
unburned fuel from the stoker will fall
onto the stationary' grate and bum; mean-
while the auxiliary grate car ked
and if it becomes necessary, to carry
the lo.i

Another subj : on

by the speaker, was the problem of burn-
ing low-uraJc fuel in pi. J form.
In an impr • .rm, a* uccd in
Europe, the procesa consists of bio i
the fuel upward into the furnace from
the center of the grate, under a brick arch.
It is claimed that by this method better
combustion has been obtained and that
boiler and furnace efficiencies frort
cent, are being realized.

highest be

ming grade being

The con\ cntioo indorsed

Joh of Chicago, for na-

ficers for the

John csi-

hn K Mo Chicago N

lis*
'effected accf aaanrer.

' the next convention
1 of the incom-
ing oflk

Ttic foDos ■■ Inns c \ ' •••c, \- c ' -
can Steam Pump Compos?

r Company.

Chi. Comf

.ago H

•
Regulator Compar

engineer is mcctini: •
•

I*. CoulJ, secretary' of the Central
>r» A-
paper at the opening
he outlined method* eh the

bibitors a; ccn 01 operate

to the benefit of all.
At lh< aflern

gave ■ tall

ntal la combustion an:

such lavs mu»i be obsr get

good result*

and nit- taken up

witr

,:en and »«
the

'ed in an unumual
man-

•peaking of
burning of coal u-

W. I
high school, addressed the n at

the Saturday afternoon meeting. '

■
crience in i
ig the young in t thing*

snggssrions a*
be guided
a pi

l>rog and Cbem-

tnpertani
ii demonstrations, using cher

•

ch
< pro-
MtjiMnsi Mnakbaard '

a • ■ c Company.

oea.

■

I
Ha Compound Comp

< hlengi ■ • v.t"ania Pnanj i **n-

• ' •
k Pom
• -nponnd
mat

Company. Cakag

Tort; Prnrfsroi Emgin-

862

POWER

May 30, 1911

Have you ever noticed
that in the famous Greek
statue of the Discus
Thrower the athlete
stands with his right foot
forward, ready to hurl
the discus?

For centuries the Greeks had thrown
it this way — it was a custom, a tradition
of their favorite national sport.

No one had ever stopped to think
whether or not there was a better way
of doing it.

But, in the 20th century — when dis-
cus throwing was more than 2000 years
old — Martin Sheridan, the American
athlete, went to Greece for the Olym-
pian Games and entered the discus
event for about the first time in his life.

He grasped the missile and threw it
in the natural way, with
his left foot forward, and
in one throw smashed not
only the ancient Greek
custom but also the
world's record.

In this little tale there
are several morals.

The men who have ac-
complished things and
gotten ahead of their fel-

A> department
-for subscribers
edited by tbe ad-
vertising service
department: of
Powejr

lows are nearly always
the ones who have had
the nerve and the brains
to break with old tra-
ditions and customs.

In these modern times
there have arisen newer, better methods
of doing things — in the power plant as
elsewhere.

And the man who puts his best foot
forward, no matter what custom has
decreed, is the man who will make new
records and get farther ahead in his
profession.

That most engineers realize this is
proved by the fact that most engineers
nowadays read the ads. in their techni-
cal paper.

They know that the newer, better
ways to do the old things are advertised

— and they follow those
ads. conscientiously, and
profit thereby.

The engineer who reads
the Selling Section of
POWER these days is the
man who is putting his
best foot forward in the
double-quick march of
Progress.

Are you one of them?

M W \( »KK. .11 \l

PPJ IBABLY few enj the

influence thai the mental attitude has

u]M)ii tlu-ir conditions and Burroundii
It : I that shortly before Jeffries nut John-
•i in the ring he remarked that he- wished it

the confid that I r beg* '

did not kn<»u. i,» liim tin- result
lOUbt and DC tail' t bed

for physique and agilit) . but

and fear 1< win.:

nfidence should rest.

He went into the conto I with in

his heart that dimmed hi nd drpr<

his spirit. Hi-, ixxly. under the contr

an unsound mi: Lfl infirm and unstable,

and his ineffective bit i tact i

brought 01. tiii defeat .

that tli. wide

tioti bet the reading of thi tm ga

and the !>'• point ol a in .

an engine i t lie- old valve bai

on tin- l>oil.

I><»ul)t and ignorai
tamper with tin

nfidence in that km

\plosi-
snuffed out more thai.
dest ! thou doll

Klinv

•hat 1

l*»rn of the teased on t

l . mething he only partially und

od imp md he

WT 1 tin strain .

down on the val and inn

tin- lx>ikr with over pn un

While it mattei little
which of two pu lias

the 1 i punch

nd the mor< pun-

ishment . the lesson, b
result of the mental

tude of nun at i

tin in tin- {jossi-

bilii idlings.

To the ws hi

and his plant . what it will d<> and

cost to

Ol the s» . has

station wirei will

insoo

in I

• 1 1« 1 t

864

POWER

June 6, 1911

A Really Low-Pressure Turbine

Much has been written about low-
pressure turbines, that is, turbines tak-
ing steam at a pressure equal to or lower
than that of the atmosphere, and also of
the great increase in economy gained
by the use of a high vacuum on high-
pressure condensing turbines. Attempts
have been made to show by diagrams
that the amount of energy available in a
pound of steam expanded from at-
mospheric pressure to a 29-inch vacuum
is approximately equal to the energy
available by expanding from a pressure

By Henry F. Schmidt

Fig. 1. Nozzle Block

of 150 pounds absolute to atmospheric
pressure. Likewise, the statement has
been made repeatedly that a large pro-
portion of this available energy is lost
in the low-pressure cylinder of a re-
ciprocating engine because release oc-
curs before complete expansion has taken
place.

So far, however, it has been necessary
to trust almost wholly to theory, and for
the benefit of those who are not yet con-
vinced of the soundness of the theory,
some tests and details are presented of a
turbine designed to develop 20 brake
horsepower when supplied with steam at
2 pounds absolute pressure and ex-
hausting into a condenser maintaining a
pressure of one pound absolute.

This turbine is of the impulse type,
having all the energy available in the
steam converted into kinetic form in the
nozzles. There are two "velocity drops";
that is, the steam first traverses one row
of moving blades and then enters re-
versing chambers where it is redirected
into a second row of moving blades
without a drop of pressure.

As shown in the view of the nozzle
block, Fig. 1, the turbine is of the total-
admission type; that is, it takes steam
around the entire circumference. The
steam after leaving the nozzles enters the
inner row of blades of the rotating wheel,
shown in Fig. 2. and after having passed
through the inner row enters the inner

A turbine designed to ope-
rate between an admission
pressure of 21-2 pounds
absolute and an exhaust
pressure of 1 pound abso-
lute. On a test this mach-
ine showed a Rankine effi-
ciency of 52 per cent.

row of passages of the reversing cham-
ber shown in Fig. 3. The steam passes
through the reversing chamber and leaves
it at the outer openings, reentering the
rotor and passing through the outer row

Fig. 2. Wheel Disk

of blades, after which it passes to the
condenser. This path of the steam can
be understood better by reference to the
cross-section in Fig. 4, in which A is
the steam inlet; B is the steam chest
extending completely around the turbine;
C is one of the nozzles; D the inner row
of blades; E the reversing passage; F
the outer row of blades and G the ex-
haust ports. Two exhaust ports were
provided, as this was an experimental
machine, and it was desired to note the
effect of taking steam away at different
points. The nozzle block, shown in Fig.

1, is represented by H in Fig. 4, and /
is the reversing chamber, shown in Fig. 3.

Construction

The bearings are of the standard bab-
bitted type with ring oilers, and the
glands, to prevent the leakage of air
into the cylinder, are of the snap-ring
type and water sealed. Water guards J J
are fitted to prevent any water escaping
from the glands and getting into the oil.

Fig. 2 shows clearly the way in which
the blades are attached to the disk. A
groove is turned in the disk and the
shank of the blades inserted, the latter
being secured in place by three Stubb's
steel pins driven in and riveted over.
This has proved a very satisfactory fast-
ening, and is easily made and very strong,
as is shown by the fact that this turbine
was run at blade speeds in excess of
600 feet per second without any ill ef-
fects, in spite of the fact that the blades
are unusually heavy. Furthermore, the
construction readily permits the replace-
ment of blades which may become dam-
aged, only a few minutes being required
to replace a blade.

A point in design which may be
criticized is the fact that the turbine is
not split horizontally, which fact makes
assembling difficult, as it requires un-
coupling and drawing off the turbine half
of the coupling before the rotor can be
removed. The reason for employing this
rather undesirable type of construction
was because splitting the turbine along
the horizontal joint would have involved
a rather complicated construction to in-

Fig. 3. Reversing Chamber

sure steam and air tightness — which, in
this case, is of the utmost importance.
It will be noted that there is but one
joint which can leak air into the ex-
haust chamber, and as these surfaces are
bored and turned, a tight joint was easily
obtained.

The side clearances are approximately
1/16 inch and the radial clearances are

June 6, 1911

POtt

large. As a matter of fact, the
longitudinal clearances are far greater
than they should have been, as lu 1000
is ample clearance in a turbine of this
capacity, and smaller cleara <>uld

have snown better economies than were
obtaint.

As there was no governor designed for
turbine, an automatic stop valve was

The turbine glands >»
water from a bar the pur::p

»hich d

to maintain a constant water pressure
in the glands, an overfl< / was

fitted and drained any excess water I
into the

As the gl.. -:ht,

all the leakage to the outside was caught

though " ilip»1

pounds absolute
and one pound at**

r a consu and

load to boracpower. One

the most .i the op-

on at ' iutions

steam inlet and the exhaust.
and

diflc ess thi inch

on-
chamber*. The y a

aust. but even
at that if ncr-

' pound
.: to a clear
>f aboi!

In Flga. ' boracpowt'

water r

If all M observations

are

total tater be Mr*

lines, m each as a stra

function nl the absolute
The closeness

:. which ci of the usual o

and a 2-inch
breaker, which, as the inlet r
sure to the turbine was always below
atmospheric pressure, uould shut J
the turbine be I ->uld reach a dan-

: Akh-

As shown in ; which

the turbine reaJ\ f>>r

d was absorbed by a small water
brake I) T1 c ' >ad on the brake was

and water •

// // ih valves to control the

the mercur m H and the steam

temperature bv means of the thermom-
Kradti 1 to

half a degree 7 in the

ne exhaust «i« me
mer 'umn A. ■•

•peed bct»

means of a
tacK necc*

the steam
pounds to a 2 m, a *

team lit
of the throttle to kr n satur

•nd • the » the

Jraminr
cau

The steam was condensed i- « *ur'>
OOOdcnscr an.l *icd In

tanks on ;
being c1

■

) S '

^Ki and

[ht ;me
of

I He p •"" •

lr !

ik-J

h»»r*T(

- . ,

-»r tW

866

POWER

June 6, 1911

the turbine consumed but 69 pounds of
steam per brake horsepower, or 56
pounds less than the guarantee of 125
pounds per brake horsepower.

The curve marked "efficiency" is for
the Rankine cycle, or the ratio of the
brake horsepower developed to that theo-
retically available for the given inlet
and exhaust pressures. Also the B.t.u.
theoretically available has been plotted
against the absolute inlet pressures.

The efficiency curve first rises and

iO
Q.
0)

value of a machine, however, is not its
output but the proportion of the output
to the maximum obtainable.

The maximum Rankine efficiency ob-
tained was 52 per cent., and varied from
this figure down to as low as 42 per
cent, under extreme operating conditions.
In tests on a number of high-pressure
noncondensing turbines of exactly similar
design and under varying conditions, the
highest Rankine cycle efficiency ever ob-
tained was 48 per cent. This shows that

5000^ 10°

C
■D
O
CL.

4000

D
O

■x >-90
J- c

o-jfc

CDUJ 70

1- of

8.3000 f~ 60

^ 2000

50
40

o
+-
o

1000

s o

ax 30

ts>

i-
o

L,
, CD

20
10

12 3 4 5

Inlet Pressure , Pounds Absolute

Fig. 6. Performance with High Yacuu

POWER.

tests do prove, however, that any de-
gree of efficiency which can be obtained
with high-pressure steam cannot only be
duplicated with low-pressure steam but
can be exceeded. Hence, it is only fair
to say that while the turbine tested was
not of a high efficiency, turbines of the
Parsons or reaction type can be built,
which over the same range would de-
velop a Rankine efficiency of 75 per cent.*
or better.

A Lentz Engine on the
Pacific Coast

Due to the construction of an annex
for the Hotel Alexandria, the leading
hotel of Los Angeles, Cal., extensive ad-
ditions are being made to the power
plant thereof. The plant will contain six
Stirling boilers of 1100 horsepower total
rated capacity. Provision will be made
for 700 additional boiler horsepower.

The present electrical generating equip-
ment consists of one 150- and one 250-
kilowatt Bullock dynamos, each driven by
a Skinner compound automatic engine.
To this will be added one 300-kilowatt
Fort Wayne dynamo to be driven by a
Lentz type poppet-valve engine built by
the Erie City Iron Works. This is the
first engine of its type to be installed
in this country west of Chicago.

The refrigerating plant will remain

reaches a maximum at about the inlet
pressure for which the turbine was de-
signed, and then gradually decreases.
The reason for the increase in efficiency
at first is due to the friction load becom-
ing a smaller proportion of the total
power developed, and the decrease in
efficiency beyond 3 pounds absolute is
due to the fact that the nozzles were
designed only for the pressure range
of 2]/2 to 1 pound absolute, and have
not sufficient divergence to efficiently
handle the higher pressure ranges. This
will be further observed from the tests
shown in Fig. 7 with 26- and 27-inch
vacuums. In these tests the point of
maximum efficiency has shifted to higher
inlet pressures, but occurs at approxi-
mately the same B.t.u. range as during
the tests at 28 ;4 -inch vacuum.

Conclusions

There are several points of interest
shown by these tests which, though they
have been known in a general way, have
never before, to the writer's knowledge,
been proved in the same conclusive man-
ner as by the tests on this small turbine.

Looking at the test results the reader
should not confine himself to the water
rates per brake horsepower-hour, but
should observe rather the Rankine effi-
ciency, which, after all, is the only true
criterion. Low water rates can easily
be obtained even with a poor machine,
if the operating conditions are made
favorable. The actual measure of the

v.*

130

| 120

110

5000 x 100

■D

o
°- 4000

3
O
X
i_
0>
CL

3000

>-90
u

fe-| 80

CD it

|1 50
-tt:

,70

° 2000

1000

Q-
<D
if>

40
30

Fig. 7.

\
k

Exl

laus

yv \

r Fressun

«\4

VS ExhausVPressikeA

Ot—f-

rfic

ency

-,uum
<

v 1 M

/*°

sip/

1 2 3 4 5 6

Inlet Pressure , Pounds Absolute

Performance with 26- and 27- inch Vacuum

2.00 i>

.75

1.50

1.25

m
SI

1.00 <U

0.75 S

0.50*:

0.25 J

PowtR

steam expanded at even the lowest pres-
sures can be utilized in a steam turbine
not only as efficiently but more efficiently
than high-pressure steam.

However, the writer does not wish to
be understood to have made the state-
ment that in every case low-pressure
steam is as efficient or nearly as efficient
as steam at a moderate pressure, for
there are conditions which arise where
for practical purposes it is impossible
to establish those necessary points in de-
sign to accomplish the best results. The

unaltered. There are a Stevens com-
pressor of 20 tons capacity, driven by an
electric motor, and a Vulcan Iron Works
compressor of 55 tons capacity, driven
by a steam engine.

The hotel is equipped with hydraulic
elevators which are operated by a 5,000,-
000-gallon Monarch pumping engine built
by the H. N. Strait Company.

A complete description of this interest-
ing plant will be published as soon as
possible after the finishing touches have
been made.

June 6, 1911

PO I ; H

The Value of Flue Gas Analysis*

Fuel is the largest single item of ex-
pense in almost c. .tin-power plant.
The fuel is often purchased without ref-
erence to or a check upon its potential
- value, and is burned, almost in-
variably, with an utter disregard for econ-
omy. The fireman is provided with a shovel
and allowed to have his own - tfa the
coal pile. If he can throw coal straight
enough for it to pass through the door
and keep up steam, he is a good fellow.
K attempt is made to instruct him
check is kept upon him. He shovels coal
in the same way that he is permitted to
-hip in this country, "according to
the dictates of his conscience." and as
a result wastes from 20 to 60 cents every
time he puts a dollar's worth of coal in
the furnace.

In order to insure the highest possible
furnace efficiency it is necessary that the
engineer or some other responsible per-
son should first ascertain the co-
method of furnace operation. No rules
can be laid down that will apply to all
plants except in a general way. Every
plant and. to a certain extent, every
boiicr, is a problem in itself. The engi-
neer, before he undertakes to instruct
the fireman, must sec to it that the boiicr
settings arc tight and the damper
order. Me must learn what draft should
be employed for the best results, how
thick the fires should be carried and vari-
ous other things of imponan.

^'hen the engineer knows his boiler
furnaces and exactly how they should
be managed to secure the best economy,
the next step is to make sure that the
fireman will follow instructions. This is
re the real difficulty comes in. but
the problem is an easy one if it is ap-
proached from the right direction.

The fireman should have explained to
him what the engineer ung to ac-

rlish; he must be shown how tnc
aces should be operated and what ar-
rangement* ha\c been made to keep a
«. upon hirr to him this

and do that an.: get all of the

steam possible out of cver\ pound of

crate the furnace*
according to these instructions, we shall

;it who
the he»t firemen arc in •

The fireman will exert I se-

cure rc%u!t» when he know* there is a
nuoui and rcliah! upon h

icn he
discover* that he i» in competition a

other operative In 'iirnace

room; that it i» a h ill racr

« the be*t man I nly

natural, and the man who «j
cannot handle flrert m a he

not under*t«rj human n
the thing up<>n ife of a sporting

and the flremr Jo the

n*t

B\ Joseph W. 1 1

//, iff.

ana \

> . Thi in

mucl . >
shov ti an*i htni

The average engineer is frightened
when the subject of engineering chen
is suggested. Me has never studied the

ncc. He is too old and perhaps lacks
the education necessary to tackh
Chemis- mpossible so far as h

concerned; therefore, how can he c>;
to apply the science in his boiler house
and reap some of the economies he has
been reading about- The chemistry that
the engineer ought to know. howc\cr.
invi little special kn<

The m nary fireman can under-

stand all that any practical man need
know about I

ppose is just an ordin.r

everyday fireman; CO. could not be
beaten into him in a thousand years, but
filled with chemistry without

-encc to a chemical formula Me
is discovered in the act of throwing coal
into the boiler furnace, and it will be
noticed that he i» careful to close the
furnace door when he is through firing.

to him u close

the door * 'hrough thr

ing in the fuel ? w'h> not

not take the door off and thro-
on the scrap pi osc

the door vou bj

take* time and mean- I might

bur fingers

infshed and proceeds to
onomlcal furnace

steam gage up thr | my

* arrow potr

pounds H • I

could hold steam If I !oor

•.-..!• .»• ■ and

rence where the races* •

■
I

•*« feel

*. These bare
cracks arc letting full) a* muc
to the furnace a* could possibly pass
the open fire door. Then the

I ci vked

•it and

A can J | found

•
there arc a hundred opening*

flame is draw The

•action at some of these hole-
strong enough to snuff out the
The plates about the Mo* holes an
out doors are loose. In many place
is poss;v c • msert the I
a return-tubular boiler, a bole or

area may be found around the
bio ■ be a water-tube hollar,

air leaks about the headers.

How much attention do the dam;
get in the average

W whatever to an. kind of damper
ran boilers
are no- .,■,*■->• alL

■cam plant shift

l a hair's bro
entire d Not one steam plant la

fift proper di

Not one plant tn a hi thai has

a gage makes a proper use > I
agcrs and i

ll consumption. It is too
high. They wond< >uble la

local

The boiler damper stand* in the same

relation to the furnace that toff

pic* to the engine The oao

ntended to of coal

consumption to the %tr

the other to s
n consump *>e power demands

upon th steam to waned at

the lost Is not Hltai

vaatcd -cam but coal

that was burned to g thto steam

I a question of fuel loss, first, last

In
an caeoaa of dra' oeided '

be *uAcient coal-

mg cap •> future

load* and all probable increase la the

I do more sa

•>ould act aaceea 10 per
Coat ant a* operated

per cent Enough air be •
furnace of the average bcNcr

the ceodaiooa of toad feraece practice.

table areaee eeeaaaeaatd
■Kb eaeeai aba**

■

«•>

868

POWER

June 6, 1911

as 15 per cent, of the fuel. Most steam
plants suffer from both excess air and
incomplete combustion. The losses due
to the first mentioned cause, however,
are usually about 10 times those due to
the latter.

When the draft pressure is increased
the time allowed the air to work its way
through the fuel bed and act upon the
coal is decreased. Excess air accordingly
finds its way into the furnace chamber.
If the fuel bed is thin, the volume of
such air excess is multiplied, and if there
are cracks or "rat holes" in the fire there
is another multiplication. When the draft
is increased the suction is multiplied at
every crack and fissure leading into the
furnace and the gas passages of the
boiler.

Increased draft usually means an in-
crease in the temperature of the escap-
ing gases. It also means an increase in
the volume of the gases flowing up the
chimney in a unit interval of time. When
the gases are diluted and the dilution
is followed by raising the temperature
of the escaping mixture, there is em-
ployed the most effective method that
has ever been discovered to increase the
coal bills.

If coal is to be burned economically, the
draft must be maintained in proper re-
lation to the load and to the fuel in the
furnace. If the dampers are manually
operated, only an approximation can be
expected of correct draft conditions, be-
cause, to have correct draft continuously,
the damper must be kept continuously on
the move in order to compensate for the
several variables referred to.

There are a number of good damper
regulators on the market, but there are
also a great many poor ones, and a poor
regulator may be worse than no machine
at all. Automatic damper regulators may
be divided into two classes for the pur-
poses of this discussion: First, the ma-
chires that swing the damper from the
wide-open position to the closed one
when the pressure rises, and back again
from the closed position to the wide-open
one when the pressure falls; second, the
machines that maintain the damper in
such intermediate positions as the varying
conditions of load may call for.

Machines of the first class may pro-
duce a perfect steam line on the gage
chart, but they may and often do obtain
uniform pressure at the expense of econ-
omy; whereas, machines of the second
class will secure economy, and uniform
pressure will follow in the wake of econ-
omy.

Regulators of the first class operate
the dampers as follows: Assume the ma-
chine to be adjusted to hold the pressure
at an even 100 pounds. The pressure
rises slightly above this point and the
machine immediately closes the damper
and shuts off the draft. Combustion is
interfered with because the furnace is
now receiving insufficient air, and the

pressure falls. This would be well
enough were it not for the fact
that insufficient air means incomplete
combustion and a loss of 10,000 B.t.u.
for every pound of carbon converted to
CO. If, on the other hand, the pres-
sure should fall below 100 pounds, the
damper is thrown wide open. The fur-
nace gets practically no air at all when
the damper is closed and all the air that
the chimney can pull through it when the
damper is open. The machine provides
the furnace one minute with a feast of
air and the next minute with a famine.

Regulators of the second class keep
the damper continuously on the move,
shifting its position in one direction or
the other with every little variation of
steam pressure.

There is one particular in which prac-
tically all damper regulators fail, by rea-
son of the fact that the machines,
whether they come under the first or
the second classification, are governed
by the steam pressure. When the fire-
man opens the fire door, cold air enters,
chilling the furnace and the boiler, and
causing the pressure to fall. This blast
of cold air reduces the furnace tempera-
ture, and the temperature drops all along
the line between the furnace door and
the top of the chimney. When the door
is closed the temperature rises again
rapidly. This means expansion and con-
traction, which is bad for both the boiler
and the setting, causing cracks in the
brickwork and leaks in the boiler. It al-
so means a loss of fuel, because coal
must be burned to restore the furnace
again to its normal temperature.

When the furnace doors are opened
the damper should be closed. Damper
regulators usually do the wrong thing
under such circumstances; they throw
the damper wide open. They do this be-
cause they are' governed by the steam
pressure.

There are four ways in which the fur-
nace and the fireman can waste coal:

1. A large portion of the heat energy
generated may be nullified by excess air.
Combustion may be complete to the last
atom of the combustible, and yet, if the
gases are cooled off as fast as manu-
factured they will be of little use to the
boiler.

2. Combustion may be incomplete. In
such cases a portion of the fuel passes
up the furnace in an unconverted condi-
tion. Smoke usually accompanies incom-
plete combustion, but not necessarily and
not always. There may be a great deal
of smoke and very little combustible mat-
ter in the gases or there may be no
smoke at all and a great deal of com-
bustible.

3. Much fuel may be, and some fuel
always is, lost with the ash and clinker.
These losses are often the fault of the
grate.

4. More or less heat will be radiated
from the furnace and some loss of this

kind is unavoidable. The only remedy
is insulation so far as it can be applied
to the furnace and boiler setting.

No one can look at a furnace and
say exactly how near to or how far
from the highest attainable economy it
may be performing. With a flue-gas
analysis instrument the efficiency of the
furnace can at once be determined, and
if coal is being wasted the cause of the
loss is ascertained and steps may be taken
to correct it. No other apparatus can be
substituted for the gas-analysis instru-
ment in this sort of an investigation, be-
cause nothing can be said about furnace
efficiency until all is known about the
quality of the escaping gases; it is these
gases alone that can tell the percentage
of excess air being heated and the pro-
portion of combustible matter discarded
to the chimney.

The gas-analysis instrument tells ex-
actly what is taking place in the boiler
furnace and with all of the certainty that
the steam-engine indicator reports upon
conditions inside the engine cylinder.

Anybody can understand and operate
an engineer's gas-analysis instrument.
Ordinary firemen can work it. No knowl-
edge of chemistry, whatever, is required.
Any man with sense enough to read a
scale can make a perfectly correct an-
alysis of the flue gases.

It may be explained to the fireman that
the matter of cold air should be fur-
ther investigated, and that here is a
machine that tells all about it. It has a
tube with a scale etched on it like a ther-
mometer glass. The tube is filled with
chimney gas until the water goes down
to the zero mark. Then the gas is passed
over into this other compartment which
is filled with lye. The lye soaks up all
of the coal gas and leaves nothing but
air. When the soaking operation has been
accomplished, the scale is read. It ought
to register 14 or 15 per cent, coal gas and
about 85 per cent. air. The more gas
found, the less air heated, and vice versa.
The fireman is interested; this is some-
thing he can understand, and in 15 min-
utes he is actually working the gas-
analysis instrument like an expert. If
any permanent and substantial benefit
is to be derived from flue-gas analysis
it is necessary that all of the firemen in
the plant should be interested. Place a
bonus on efficiency. This will bring the
men into line if nothing else will. The
results are most gratifying when the men
know what, the work means. It is im-
portant that the business of checking up
the furnaces and the firemen should be
made a part of the daily routine.

If the flue gases show around 14 per
cent. COi and no CO, the furnace and
the firemen are doing all that can be
expected of them. The percentage of
CO- can be determined in one minute
and the percentage of CO in five minutes.
The percentage of C02 is a recognized
measure of the volume of excess air.

June b, 1911

i W E R

The difference in economy between 14
and 1U per cent. CO; is around 5 per
cent, of the fuel; between 14 a: I
cent. CO.-, 23 per cent, of the fuel; and
between 14 and 2 per cent. < ! per

cent, of the fuel. Furnaces have been
worked with less than 2 per cent. I

The benefits that come from the
of gas-analysis apparatus in the boiler
room are twofold :

1. The apparatus, as already Mat
.noses the case of the boiler furnace
foi the engine

J. The apparati ; s a check on

the firemen and turns in a report at the
end of the day on each one of them. If
the CO.- results arc ; Jicre

the men can see them and a summar
the results at the end of the month, the
firemen will do the rest and the fuel
bills will go down as the percentage
CO.- come up. The bonus system has
been tried with good results in a num-
ber of large power plants. Pay the fire-
men a premium for high CO. avcr.i
The company can afford to give the fire-
man an extra dollar when he is saving
in the nature of man

to be more atteni -hen

- under on.

There arc hundreds of I
standing unused in the dark corners of
Bf plants. The trouble was not with
the machines but with the people
bought them and the others * ho sold
them. It is one thir.. ^scss a rc-

another thing to make pr
of the apparatus after its purchase.

In a larg. - plant equipped uith

I he machines

The manager complained that there vii
to be gained ft ing flue-gas

ana' that his coal I

as hca\ ;hc re-

d a
of charts and there was ■
among them. It wit then
iim that the busincaa of a I
10 rep
arc and not as the

was a
a preventable waste of nc.r
of the hi-. •: I Ipor gating ll

that the
of •■ chain-grat »ere

running half c; re run-

ninK lhOf1 unjer ill of IM

re all in ne<
cracks were ao lar. that

the flames could t .: In the

passe* of

■nd i-

It is one thine t<» an ■ rfficlcr

anothcr thine »•• ma:

• that can compete with a
1 hand-an.i

and building ut effl

rbtfi

efficient than i I

n. The

The

ig effi. haa been at-

In order to measure air leakage, gas
tt be simultaneously sa.- rom

pass of the b<
and the breeching The leakage ma
computed fron of the I

tent of the gases at these two places.
The ng apparatus can or.

at one place at a :• * not r

tical, furthcrnv -

at any place but the uptake or breeching
m of temperature and mixture
- hen a permanent
sampling t :he gas

passages of the bo:

Ir checking up a boiler furna^
ncccssa- each gas sample

analyzed with ob~ furnace condi-

I low there is a reason
for it and the cause must be four

iplc, a crack or a "rat ho: »ted

in the fuel. To what extent is the

The engineer wants

A Pair ics

The installation of a central power

Piar ami— ton of p

plant of Manufi

g Cot || -art.

-ring Com-
pany s plant No :

•Kincs out of rnmmiooluii which novo
c good

n sho-
<hc shop, and which have

mor- -hout being shut down during

•.ing hours to exceed a tout of one
and a half hour .l04.

Tr on

and had a JUed cutoff and throt-
tling c i 1882 the right -
hand one was fitted with the Hcaton
automat illustrated
in t rmber. I HMO. issue of f\>»

to know, at The M

man an obi It tak- | H<

auton

ing through thi same

fire- meet

man will b<

Phe Indicator

the speed | aad th«

restufc ' i'C * - - >-. ' ?%

detnarvi* for f » •

M been
•n do

■

mM, two pan

•<r> ..

'i 'i

870

POWER

June 6, 1911

Flow of Water in Clean Iron Pipes

In the preceding articles of this series
an attempt was made to show the re-
semblance between operations on a slide
rule and those performed on a three-
line diagram. The problems used as
examples were rather crudely worked
out, and the reader may conclude, after
perusing the present article, that the
order has been unduly reversed; that Is,
the theory should have been expounded
first and followed by the examples. How-
ever, as the practical man is inclined to
make light of "so called theory," it was
deemed best to adopt the method used.
With this as a basis the formulas may
now be put into a more concise form,
and their derivations explained.

In its simplest form the slide rule con-
sists of two duplicate scales capable of
being slid past one another. On each a
given number is represented by its log-

B
<-

7T<r

/ A
/ /
/ /

/ /

*4&.

Fig. 7

arithmic length measured from the origin
of the scale, marked "1," to the division
representing the number. To multiply a
number A by a number B, to the length
1 — A on one scale is added the length
1 — B on the other scale; the sum is
read directly on the first scale, but the
graduation of this scale is such that the
reading recorded is exactly A X B.
Division is accomplished by subtracting
one length from another.

Likewise, with three-line diagrams,
multiplication or division is effected by
the addition or subtraction of logarithmic
lengths of numbers, but with these dif-
ferences:

The number A is read on one scale, B
on another, and the result C on a third
scale. On the slide rule the logarithmic
length of one number is the same on each
scale, whereas on the diagram this length
may be different on each of the scales.
In short, a three-line diagram may be
considered as composed of three spe-
cially constructed "slide-rule scales"
properly spaced and set so that, by means

By Albert E. Guy

Concluding article of a se-
ries upon the development
and use of the " alinement
chart" as applied to the
flow of water in pipes.
The present chart gives the
horsepowers equivalent to
various quantities of water
at different heads.

of a straight-line index, an equation of
the form

AxBv = Cz

may be solved at one reading.

In addition and subtraction, the quan-
tities added or subtracted must be of the
same kind. To satisfy this requirement,
the scales of the diagram must be so
located that the index, placed in any
given position, will automatically reduce
the large scale and increase the smaller,
so that, as measured on the third scale,
the logarithmic length spaced off on each
v/ill be that of the same number.

The scales /IB, CO and £ F, Fig. 7,
are parallel and fixed, and no matter how
the triangle a b o is placed, provided its
base (ab = mj remains on the scale
A B, and its vertex o on E F, the inter-
cept (cidi = /rt2) will always be on scale
C D and its length will remain constant.

p°"« E The ratio — is a constant and

ItL-t

d + e

In Fig. 8, the logarithmic length of
the number 10 is mi for scale A B, m2 for
C D, and m3 for E F. This length is called
the modulus. It takes one modulus for
the number 10, two moduli for 100,
three for 1000, four for 10,000, and so
on.

By joining point A to the point repre-
senting 10 on E F, and E to that repre-
senting 10 on A B, the two lines intersect
precisely on the point representing 10
on C D. From this the relation between
the three moduli can be obtained.

As in Fig. 7,

d -\- e m, d

d ' mz e
Whence,

d + e .m

— = , and —

m2 e m

d = e — -

and

e =

— (d -f e) -^ = (e — 1 + e )— 2 =
(- + -)

\wa JIJ,/

and

From this

m, m3 m2

<i6)

m3 — ms

ml m3

tnl m2

(17)

Wj — tn 2

The position of the scale is determined
by equation

d mx

e ~m3
With these formulas the problem is en-
tirely solved.

To test the correctness of the diagram
thus established, join point 100 on A B
to point 10 on E F; also, 10 on A B to
1000 on E F; the corresponding readings
on CD will be respectively
1000 = 100 X 10 and 10,000 = 10 X 1000
From this it may be inferred that the
product of any number on A B by any
number on E F will be read on C D with
the degree of accuracy aimed at when
the diagram was established.

As explained in the preceding articles,
the products just obtained are the log-
arithmic sums as read on CD of the

e m«

parts spaced off on the other scales.

Thus,

1000 = 2 m, (on A B) + m3 (on E F) =

2m2 4- m2 (on CD)
and

10,000 = m, (on A B) +3 m3 (on E F)
= m2 4 3 m2 (on C D)
Usually the datum line A E does not
appear in a finished diagram.

The graduations of the scales will de-
pend upon the equation represented and
may be different from those of Fig. 8;
for example, let the equation be
G = P'R3

June 6, 1911

POU

171

: Jo

—

\—3J

ft
O

^3
^3

looo ,

~- — 6

— 3

*«

440 :

J*#_j

■•

872

POWER

June 6, 1911

the value P being read on A B, R on E F
and G on CD. Selecting, for example,
a value of the equation where P equals
12 and R equals 8,

2 3

G= 12 X 8= 144 X 512
In order to , find the value of G it
would be necessary to join point 144 on
A B to point 512 on E F by a straight
line cutting C D precisely at G. But these
numbers, 144 and 512, are not at hand,
and it is precisely for the purpose of
saving the trouble of figuring them and
the more difficult task of reading them
accurately on the scale that the whole
diagram is established. Hence, the scale
of R should be made with a modulus Af,,
such that when a number as R (= 10) is
used, although this point on the scale
would read only 10, it would correspond

to a value of 10, or 1000. And, although
it might be stated that the modulus of ft
is M3. this being equivalent to the log-
arithmic length of the number 10, at the
same time it would be well understood
to equal three times the length of m3, be-
cause on scale E F, 1000 equals 3 m3.
Likewise, the modulus of P, on A B,
would be Mi (equal to 2 m,) because on
A B when P equals 10 or Mx; in
reality it represents

P*= YQ'= 2mi

The general form of the equation
solved with a three-line diagram being

Ax By = Cz

and adopting m as the modulus or log-
arithmic length of the number 10, this
equation, treated by logarithms, becomes:

x log. A -4- y log. B = z log. C
and

x A mx 4- y B m3 ■= z C m.
If the scales are to express the true

value of each function, such as Ax> al-
though simply marked A, the moduli
adopted for the three functions may be

Mi for Ax, Ms for Cz, M, for B,J , and the
general equation will be:

[AXBV= Cz] = [xAmx 4- yBm,,, =
zCm2) = [AMt+ BM3 = C M 2]

If this reasoning be applied to the
calculation of Chart No. 2, shown in the
preceding article, the ease with which the
necessary elements can be established, as
compared with the somewhat laborious
process followed before, will be at once
apparent.

Neglecting the constant, the equation
in connection with this chart was

Q = D2V
Q being on the first scale, V on the
third, and D* on the second. The equ-
ation may be written

Q M, = D M3 -1- V M,

It was found convenient to use the
moduli M, = 83^ millimeters, and M,
= 125 millimeters, with d -f- e = 170
millimeters.

Applying equation (17)

m.>

Mi
2

whence,

M2 :

Then,

_ MxMa _ 83^ x 125 _
~M: +M8~83i-r- 125"

50 X 2 = 100 millimeters

Water horsepower

G.p.m. X head

3960

(18)

d
e

83*.
125

2
3

d = % e, d -{- e=% e + e= 5

e = = 102 millimeters

170

/ wi, m^ \

v m, 4- m., /

d = 170 — 102 = 68 millimeters
The location of the constant depends
upon the conditions of the problem, and
also upon the most preferred arrange-
ment of the scales on the diagram. When,
as in Chart No. 2, the constant is intro-
duced on the second scale, either of
two ways may be followed. At the in-
tersection DJ on CD of a straight line
joining two points Q and V, selected on
A B and E F, the value of the constant,
expressed with a logarithmic length of
modulus m,, is spaced off on C D, either
above or below D2, as the case may be,
and the scale is then laid out with D1 lo-
cated at the point just found. Or, the
equation may be solved with the con-
stant, as has been done, for a given value
of Q and D2, thus obtaining the corre-
sponding true value of V. A straight line
joining these Q and V intersects CD at
the exact location of D", and the scale
of the diameters (D) is laid out as in
the first instance.

Horsepower Chart

When a quantity of water Q weighing
W pounds is raised through a hight H
feet, the power expended, independent
of frictional losses, is

W X H foot-pounds

The quantity is expressed in cubic feet
or ia gallons. In matters concerning
waterworks or pumping installations, Q
is expressed in gallons per minute
(g.p.m.), in million gallons per 24 hours
or in cubic feet per second. The engi-
neer usually deals with gallons per min-
ute; hence, when estimating, the other
values are transposed into gallons per
minute.

One United States gallon is equal to
231 cubic inches or 7.4805 cubic feet.
One cubic foot per second equals
7.48 X 60 = 448.8 g.p.m.
or, with sufficiently close approximation,
450 gallons per minute may be used.
One million gallons per 24 hours equals
1,000,000

24X60 = 69444-s
approximately 700 gallons per minute.

It is usual in calculations to assume
the weight of one cubic foot of clear
water at 62 degrees Fahrenheit to be
62.355 pounds.

The water horsepower (w.hp.) corre-
sponding to Q x H foot-pounds of work
done is:
G.p.m. Y H ' y 231 X 62.355 _ G.p.m. X H

1728 x 33.000 3958-9

With the constant in round figures, this
becomes:

The hight H is usually termed the head.
When the water is discharged against a
pressure of P pounds per square inch,
the corresponding head is

P X 2.309
Equation (18) transformed, becomes:
log. {w.hp.) = log. (G.p.m.) -f log.
(Head) — log. 3960

After a few trials it is found most con-
venient to put the head on scale A B with
Mi equal to 250 millimeters, G.p.m. on
EF with the modulus M3 equal to 250
millimeters, and the w.h.p. on C D with
a modulus M,..

Equation (17) gives

M, Mg _25o X 250

"==«,

M, 250 + 250
millimeters

= 125

d -f- e is selected equal to 143 milli-
meters; hence, since

d_M1 _
e ~ Ma "~ X

143
2

71.5 millimeters

The first and third scales are each
laid out with a 10-inch slide-rule scale
250 millimeters long; then, after solv-
ing equation (18) for one set of
values of G.p.m. and of H, a line is drawn
joining these two points on the A B and
E F scales, and intersecting CD at the
precise corresponding value of the horse-
power. The w.hp. scale is then drawn
with a 10-inch slide-rule scale of squares,
125 millimeters long, the number on the
scale coinciding exactly with the num-
ber at the point just determined on C D.

This chart is made to read directly on
C D the water horsepower corresponding
to a head ranging from 10 to 100 feet,
with a quantity varying from 100 to 1000
gallons per minute. Should the head dealt
with be greater than 100 feet, say 265
feet, for example, while the gallons per
minute are between 400 and 1000, then
the water horsepower corresponding to
26.5 feet should be read on the middle
scale, and this reading multiplied by 10
would be the required horsepower.

For a quantity greater than 1000 gal-
lons per minute, say 7550, the water horse-
power corresponding to 755 gallons per
minute would be read on the middle
scale, and the reading multiplied by 10
would again give the water horsepower
required.

The process would be the same for
heads and quantities simultaneously
greater than the scale limits; thus for
265 feet and 7550 gallons per minute,
the reading obtained would be that cor-
responding to

26.5 X 755
3960

and that, multiplied by

(10 X 10) = 100

would be the required water horsepower.

June 6, 1911

How Mat Made Good and Then Lost

Let me assert that if I ever read an in-
teresting bit of literature it certainly
the editorial which appeared on the first
page of Power for March 28. It is real,
true and practical — and the admonitions
it contains should unquestionably actuate
the average engineer who, through long
years of trudging in the same old ha-
has forgotten himself and laid his sti.

le long ago; that is, if he studied at
all.

It would be well for all of us to read
that same editorial again and thoroughly
absorb its wholesome advice.

Health is quoted as being a valuable
asset, for an engineer. The followir
the story of two engineers; it illustrates
what an important part health plays in a
man's career.

Matthew Ella was the son of a very-
poor couple, totally ignorant of the I
lish language and just emigrat
Canada He was full of ambition and
energy; and possessed a bulldog deter-
mination to succet

only aftsr he arrived in a certain
gland city, he secured a small
as carpenter's helper. Soon after
this he made the acquaintance of the r

an of the F. K. B. Company, and
came regularly to spend his evening
the plant with his friend, cleaning out
furnaci
The steam-engineering field seemed al-
ig to this young man. and he got all
the | .Id on boilers anJ aux-

iliaries from his new frienJ. He aS
veil on qui *hich might be

J during an examination. In-
hc would remain and •
until midnight, in spite of the
fact that his regular work during the day
•
After a couple of months — worn and
pale as a ghost— he app

and got it lm-
' atcly he took charge of a fireroom in
a large cotton mill

ontal tubular boilers. But after a
week '

coal

"make good." Tl

hln him

nee J

Thrr ' befoi

Mcadwa

mained in this poe -
month* During ' -' some-

what entangled in -

tied the fatal V
this tin cd ano«

for m ••■
out a que

incessantly on a own

ac-
quired an c. - ' rcaslnc

I . Luk< Vfaricr

H'.'"

rcali

■

Mtit Ij up

Mtit f>. i aim

■
idly llhin //• //..

in the tongue also

th a p- -uctor who

gave him many "good pointers" or

crc called. These

"\c* i a mighty important pan

igth he was examined for a

-s engineer's license, which he

ccame assistant engir
in the M - mills, where he made him-
self valuable in in.
one plant while nadc h

quarters at tin TOW the

road, pcrh.i minutes' walk a -

It was on a Thursda

•

be-
pullcd it from

•h a
■'i a
fro* i look i

is good for an ' the

run the r
any better or any m<

an. at the

hose smile had instJ

■

get it son

f and < '• be-

gan

"
; l '

the

'itiTs' MM) he i! c »ccn n an en-

fror

«JJeJ morning and nigh'
leed h<

began to feci considerable
dignity and soon required a Urge

>ns from the upper pan of his reel
to allow for ci

purchase of a
horse and bug, -ached the

goal of his ambtiion and - a mood

- fro-r :

things about run then

■ mind became
mak ght would see

the rounds o' .qnnlat-

I them
in which tl i hand some profit,

some 5<J pc

sale. This formed a ton of aide busi-
"•<••' P ro ved

- he neref
sent less thar te the hen>

l business did not adiurt

toon g<
• ■

• me one day that
he was no- M he i

rati *ins»

- :-

• *>ett

the plant mas tat m and

.
time he purchase-
horse and buggy. It became mighty dubV

bit of

clam

cooked a ■ ■

moon » "

sed hi-

he » ■ heed,

-old me thai he had worked

so he J J H

aths sJtppeO aatd

n r ■

•m inssia *o latl

I n J f X •

874

POWER

June 6, 1911

tandem-compound Corliss engine. I ob-
served that the eccentric strap held by
merely the top bolts, the bottom bolts
had fallen into the oil tray below. Fur-
ther observation showed that cylinders
were cutting; boilers were in need of re-
setting; the other engines needed as
thorough an overhauling as did the Cor-
liss; the condensing system was in very
poor condition; in a word, everything
was on the verge of complete dilapida-
tion.

Finally, after being in charge for 22
months, Mat took sick and two weeks
after died. Poor fellow, but perhaps
this was as fortunate for him as to be
suddenly destroyed by a bursting cylin-
der head. His headquarters were directly
abreast of the high-pressure cylinder of
the tandem-compound Corliss engine, one
of the eccentric straps of which held
only by the top bolts.

Mat had often boasted that it would
be quite a difficult matter for the com-
pany to find a stranger to run his plant
successfully should he ever leave, since
this plant was so differently constructed
than any other he had seen.

"My dear friend," I said, smilingly,
"should you leave this job this very min-
ute, there would be a dozen capable ap-
plicants ready to fill it in half an hour."

He smiled and could not believe it.

At any rate, this is just the condition
of affairs which existed when he died.
Some ten or fifteen good, capable men
applied. The one who was selected was
a brilliant sort of fellow, level-headed,
well read — a gentleman, one you may
meet in every hundred engineers, one
who attends strictly to business. This
man was an engineer worthy of the
name; always on the alert, always at-
tending to even the most trivial things
with care and precision; he was a
master. He remained in charge for some
18 months, during which time he over-
hauled everything from sump pit to chim-
ney top. The finest thing about this
gentleman was that his head always re-
mained at its normal size.

When finally he moved up another
rung, he accepted a job as chief engi-
neer in New Bedford, Mass., for some
SI 5 a week more than he was receiving
at this place.

Vapor Heating Systems*
By Thomas G. Mouat

About twenty-six years ago a journey-
man steamfitter remarked to the writer
that vapor was the coming heat. Upon
being asked what he meant by the term
"vapor," he replied that it was steam
slightly above atmospheric pressure. In
those days it was deemed necessary to
carry from 1 to 10 pounds of steam pres-

•From a paper delivered before the Ohio
Society of Mechanical, Electrical and Steam
Engineers, at Yonngstown, Ohio, May 18,

sure in order to heat a building success-
fully with the ordinary gravity low-pres-
sure system without the means of pro-
ducing a partial vacuum; and most boiler
manufacturers still set the pop valves
to blow at 15 pounds.

This steamfitter's prophesy has been
tealized, and, although it is a long step
from 10 pounds to 2 ounces pressure, it
has been practically demonstrated that a
building can be heated in the coldest
weather with from 2 to 3 ounces pres-
sure, and the term "vapor heat" is now
applied to a steam-heating system which
operates under this very low pressure.

The main object of vapor heating is to
provide for a system that will operate with
just a little heat turned on each radiator,
enough heat to be comfortable without
overheating in moderate weather and
plenty of heat for the coldest days, by
simply opening the supply valves a little
further. Several attempts were made
from time to time to perfect a system,
which would permit the partial heating
of the radiators, but in each case they
met with failure, due to the inability to
control the pressure with the ordinary
diaphragm damper regulator and devices
of this character, where the steam pres-
sure was directly applied to do the work.
It was not until the direct application of
steam in connection with a diaphragm
was dropped, and the agency of water
plus the steam pressure was employed
that a system permitting positive and
practical graduation was perfected. The
graduated admission of steam to each
radiator may now be accomplished in a
properly constructed vapor system by
the use of a sensitive pressure and dam-
per regulator attached to the boiler with
fractional valves and special return fit-
tings on the radiators, and an opening
in the return pipe near the boiler to per-
mit the escape of air. No air vents are
used on the radiators.

The regulator must be so constructed
that it will open or close with the varia-
tion of an ounce of pressure. This re-
sult has been obtained by a regulator op-
erated according to the principle of a
hydraulic balance, water being forced out
of a stationary tank into a movable tank
p'aced at the end of a lever which causes
the movable tank to tilt downward and
close the dampers. When the pressure
has dropped an ounce, part of the water
leaves the movable tank and returns to
the stationary tank; the former is then
tilted upward by the aid of a counter-
weight and the reverse operation occurs.

There is also a regulator on the market
operated by a float in a tank placed along-
side of the boiler. When the water is-
forced out of the boiler the float is raised
and the drafts are closed. When the
water in the tank drops back into the
boiler again, the float descends and the
dampers are opened.

The graduating valves are constructed
so as to permit a small amount of steam

to enter the radiator, so little that it will
be condensed in heating a small portion
of the radiator; or, on the other hand,
they may be opened still farther and
heat the entire radiator. The valves are
furnished with stop screws so that they
may be set to heat the entire radiator
without permitting any steam tc pass
through the radiator into the return pipe.

Water radiators are used, which heat
horizontally along the top first and thence
downward according to the amount of
steam turned on. The return fitting is
placed at the opposite end and is con-
nected to the bottom connection of the
radiator. This return fitting is constructed
with a small water seal which presents
a full opening for the flow of condensa-
tion into the return pipe, and a restricted
opening for the escape of air into the
same pipe. This restricted opening and
water seal retard the flow of steam into
the return pipe. The air and water travel
together to a point near the boiler where
an opening for the escape of the air is
provided in the top of the return pipe.
From this a pipe leads to the chimney
flue, where a slight reduction in pres-
sure is produced, tending to help the re-
moval of the air. The water separated
from the air falls to the boiler.

The ordinary steam-heating system
with its variable pressure, uncertain regu-
lation and the tendency toward a vac-
uum will not permit of any graduation
A sufficient reduction of pressure in the
radiator would immediately fill the
radiator with water through the return
pipe; or in a one-pipe system the radi-
ator would gradually fill with water if
the supply-valve area was materially de-
creased. No vacuum can be produced in
a vapor-heating system of this type be-
cause, as has been already stated, it is
open to the atmosphere. With the ordi-
nary steam-heating system the supply
valves must be either turned on full or
shut off tight, which frequently makes
the rooms either too hot or too cold,
causing waste of fuel and discomfort.

With the vapor-heating system, how-
ever, the pressure is generally much
higher in the supply pipes than in the
radiators. It may be 2 ounces in the
pipes and only a small fraction of an
ounce in the radiators, due to graduation
and condensation. The water of con-
densation returns to the boiler at a very
low temperature, averaging about 85 de-
grees Fahrenheit, and with some vapor
systems the return water may be reheated
bv means of the waste gases.

There are many other reasons which
recommend the vapor system to the pub-
lic. The very low pressure at which the
system operates reduces the cost of
maintenance to a minimum. It is noise-
less in operation, and is economical
due to the sensitive regulation, the
very low pressure and the graduation.
Furthermore, it is capable of keep-
ing up a steady heat from 10 to )2 hours

June 6, 1911

with hard coal without attention. There
are no air vents to leak, sputter, or emit
odors into the rooms, and it is much
quicker to act than hot-water heat, and
the danger from leakage or freezing
reduced to the minimum. The radiators
•re smaller than those used for hot water,
and about 15 per cent, larger than those
required for the ordinary steam systc
w'hen natural gas is used for fuel, the
regulator is attached to a butterfl
on the gas-supply pipe, which prc\.

pressure and makes the system al-
most automatic, with the -ion of
turning the valves on and off at the
radiators.

ilcr ami I'l\ u heel Ex-
plosion! ill AllHTK

It may be of interest to read what our

sh contemporary, the v En-

as to say in regard to boiler and

rlosions in the United St.i

incidentally a few side remarks on

American recklessness.

The United States maintains its un-
ible position as record breaker in
•o accidents from the working of
pomer plants. According to T mo-

a little p the

Hartford Boiler Inspection and Insurance
Company, there occurred last year no
let* than .Mi explosions of boilers, kill-
ing 2*<i persons and injuring 506 ott
As compared with the rate of fa1.

country the figures arc astounding,
moreover, arc in no »i)>
tional. There were 550 explosion]
1909, while the average for the previous
four years su

portion of killed and injured It
cult to compare these f . ■

ar ones in thi* country, because the
t number of boiler* in the States
is not known, uhilc the aho\c Bf
only refer to the results of cxplosioai
of boiler shells and do p

' minor fatalities i iing

cases ariMng from the failure of %team
pipes and subordinate detail* of "tcsm
apparatus, which, ind

•her on land or afloat in any vessel
frying t sh flag, come ur

purview of the B *ct.

•fid hence are included in the annua
turns

the overage num^ 'be

past ten -. rars on'

snr

sjcl

as arc emhodsod kl I
rurr led in the »««•

oar contempor
be grcv

Ine the comparison l« 'WO-

nuoibet
boilers In the

bow man-. It Is ImpocoJbtc though

If we assume hrlct I
liberal cstlma- "Phr •

recklessness and absence of lap trillion
in the Stateo which is serious.

nilar reel lesaneoa -s to cv

■■g of engines as of

-corded by our contemporary dur-
ing 191

ins of

accidents as ->uBciently Im-

jnt to notice in the press.

f 07 sccidents of

ng the deaths of 16 |

sons, snd more or less serious injur

28 others. A perusal of the details,

where these could be obtained, show that

in a grest cases the sccidents

were due to the I govern-

mcchanism, though we csnnot help

feeling that tb< '^c*% of

• ttcd to prime mo.
in the and the correspondingly

smsll msrgin between safe and bur*
spec responsible in considerable

measure for the frequency of failure.

Duffj Wanti I • '

Doolin.
boss »..

me to take out a license an' be the c
necr as Cogan is dnnkin* aga ■■

"An why not'"" asked Doolin. **yoi.
teen th rs doln'

thst ar mowi

to get

1
Old an* question* about bilers

told one must know all aboi
ing an' I'm no biler maker at l

makin' is one of the grsndest

reason,
snnything msd »n that for

»t an
An' the older
ccome* fl »u'd need

» no
■

-:«ng

questions from a book snd
look at the am - find out If you are

«*i i ■ ■ i fnun,

k *

. u no MM H ■) out

■
•

to find ll

fd Dor

'n h

■i on some
proceeded to lay ovt ae
folios

cssnre

Rsdhsso

rneile strength of pU
t bole;
■ bole;

*• in s pitcb;
Shearing strength fas

x£

= L#ss**4<

x WP

' Mid
"the data, so as to spook, of lop

■

* steel ntj »keu

at 56.000 fS snd ng

of gl O0 posindi

to finding / drop the large

figures snd
inch Ic ma«

an* P % nches. or

at is tbe taaciency of this, ye will
>*k well.

•hat PE and
sre cqusl Son -r the ploas

over tr^

■

the

roll* ie r<»ch by

SO much >ou reJucc the calculated B
of the |oir SO

these matters until vosir bond is futl

no."

%hat » ■■ "to use f^r • g'»efl 't*

rpHed Pasta*.
'tis this war VMi ploat

bao cHoa

876

POWER

June 6, 1911

is important. Suppose we lay out a
straight line to be the pitch line, we must
now find the distance from this line to
the edge of the plate for the joint might
fail by crushing out in front of the rivet.
Ye should allow \V2 diameters of rivet for
this distance an' if you use T X 2 for
the diameter the matter of the plate
crushing out will be properly taken care
of."

"What is the allowance for steel plate
crushing in this way?" inquired Duffy.

"The rule to find this," said Doolin,
"is

DXTX 95,000
With the 5/16-inch plate and >4-inch
rivet hole, this equals 22,266 pounds,
showing it is stronger than the shear of
the rivet. In designing one must look
after this crushing detail the same as
the rivet shear and the net plate efficiency;
so bear that in mind. The City Hall
bunch may spring this on ye so it's well
ye go over it and absorb it in your sys-
tem."

"I will," says Duffy, "but there is one
thing else I never understood. How do

you find the distance between pitch lines
on double and triple rows? Tell me
that."

"Well," said Doolin, "the authorities
vary on this point also. For instance, many
rules ignore the matter, important as it is.
In this country we use zigzag riveting
exclusively and each shop is a law to it-

RIVET VALUES IN POUNDS PER

SQUARE INCH

42,000 Lb. Single — 78,000 Double Shear

Shear

Diameter of

Rivet Hole

Area

Single

Double

a" = 0.5625"

0 . 2485"

10,437 lb.

19,383 lb.

1" = 0.625''

0 . 3068"

12,885 lb.

23,930 lb.

ii " = 0 . 6875"

0.3712"

15,590 lb.

28,954 lb.

f" = 0.75"

0.4417"

18,551 lb.

34,460 lb.

U" = 0.8 125"

0.5185"

21,777 lb.

40,443 lb.

I" = 0 . 875"

0.6013"

25,254 lb.

46,901 lb.

W> = 0.9375"

0 . 6902"

28,988 lb.

53,8 43 lb.

1" =1.000"

0 . 7854"

32,986 lb.

61,261 lb.

1,1," = 1.0625"

0 . 8866"

37,237 lb.

69,155 lb.

li" = 1 . 125"

0 . 9940"

41,748 lb.

77,532 lb.

1^"= 1.1875"

1 . 1075"

46,515 lb.

86,385 lb.

\\" =1.25"

1.2271"

51,538 lb.

95,722 lb'

1tV'= 1.3125"

1 . 3530"

56,826 lb.

105,534 lb.

1|" =1.375"

1 . 4849"

60,365 lb.

115,822 lb.

If "=1.4375"

i . 6230"

68,166 lb.

126,594 lb.

l 2 — i . O

1.7671"

74,218 lb.

137,833 11).

self on this subject. A safe rule to use
for common plates is,

Pitch X 0.7

for double and

P X 0.65

for triple riveted. In the joint we have
discussed this would give the distance as
2 inches and it represents good practice.

"The lap of these joints, ye will remem-
ber, will equal the distance from center of
rivet hole to edge of plate times 2 plus the
distance between the rows. Here is a
table of rivet values that covers all sizes
an' will save your pencil an' temper.
Ye will need to work out various sizes,
etc., to be able to answer anny question
they may spring on ye."

"I know," replied Duffy; "I'll do it, too,
.for I want the picture in the frame and
the extra money the job will pay. But
what does this double shear mean in the
rivet table?"

"When ye understand," said Doolin,
"the lap joints which are the single shear
I'll put ye wise to the butt-strap joints.
It will be another story."

Air Required per Pound of Coal

Some experts are of the opinion that
a high percentage of CO- is always accom-
panied by a correspondingly high loss due
to incomplete combustion, that is, the
formation of CO. In the writer's opinion
this is usually not the case, although in
some instances while forcing the fires for
the purpose of obtaining a high percent-
age of CO., this holds true. Under or-
dinary conditions, however, with the stok-
ers running normal, a high percentage
of CO, is indicative of a high furnace
efficiency.

With the usual boiler setting it is dif-
ficult to obtain an average CO, above 12
or 13 per cent., without considerable
loss, due to the formation of CO, un-
consumed carbon in the ash, increased
weight and temperature of the escaping
gases, and the potential energy contained
in the unconsumed combustible consti-
tuents in the smoke.

Recently, in a certain plant, while the
CO- recorder was showing good results
and the stokers were running normal, a
complete analysis of the gases was made
and the pounds of air per pound of coal
and the loss due to the formation of CO,
were calculated. Observations of the
flue-gas temperatures in the breeching
showed them to be 10.43 per cent, lower
with an average of 14 per cent. CO, than
with an average of 12 per cent., which
represents a saving. Further observa-
tions showed that the gain due to the re-
duced weight of the flue gases and like-
wise increased percentage of CO, was
balanced by the loss due to incomplete
combustion. The accompanying chart
shows an autographic record of the per-

By Charles M. Rogers

Some reasons tending to
show that, as a ride, a high
percentage of C02 indicates
a 'good furnace efficiency.
From the results of actual
observations the amount of
air per pound of coal is
calculated in detail.

case referred to, an analysis of the gases
for four hours showed 14 per cent, of
CO., 0.68 per cent, of CO and 6.02 per
cent, of O. For convenience in figuring,
100 cubic feet of flue gas will be as-
sumed. The respective weights per cubic
foot of the component gases are: 0.1234,
0.C781 and 0.0893 pound. Then the total
weight of each gas in 100 cubic feet of
flue gas are:

CO, 14 X 0. 1 234 = 1 .7276 pounds

CO 0.68 X 0.0781 = 0.0531 pound

0 6.02 X 0.0893 = 0.5376 pound

The atomic weight of carbon is 12 and
of oxygen 16; then a unit of CO, con-

,o / , 2 X 16

tains j ( equal to -, — — — rr

14 V 12 + (2 x 16)

) part

.0.5

-*w-_ .

~^J

A — li

Boiler No. 2, 500 HP Stirling ■ lb Samples per Hour

■^ \r

A M:

5
P M

Chart Showing Draft and Percentage of CO,

9 10

Power

centage of CO,, and the corresponding
draft.

In order to determine the number of
cubic feet of air supplied per pound of
carbon, it is necessary to determine the
total weight of oxygen from the follow-
ing analysis, and knowing that air con-
tains 23.1 per cent, by weight of oxygen,
the air supplied per pound of coal can
be readily calculated. In the particular

by weight of oxygen and H of carbon.
Then in 1.7276 pounds of CO, there are

1.7276 X ft = 1-2564 pounds
of oxygen and

1.7276 — 1.2564 = 0.4712 pound
of carbon.

In one unit of CO there are $ (equal
16

12 +

—z) part by weight of oxygen
10/

June 6, 1911

POUT K

B71

and If of carbon. Then in 0.0531 pound
of CO there are

531 X It = 00303 pound

of oxygen and

%31 — 0.0303 0.0228 pound

of carbon. In 100 cubic feet of the flue
gases there are

0303 :<i = 1.8243

pounds
of oxygen and

0.4712 1X0228 0 ;i->40 pound

mula 36 1 M 0/8). This, how<.

would amount to less thin one. and is
negligible for practical work. 1 -hout
knowing the ultimate analysis of the coal
it uould be somewhat difficult to cal-
culate the heat lost in the escaping ga
when carbon burns to CO; there are
Bi.u. pr< consequently.

n it burns to CO. producing or
B.t.u.. there is a loss of 10.190 h
Then the loss due to the formation of CO
is found by multiplying the number of
pounds of carbon to CO by lo,-

t Marine [\irbii

In •
made in the in .
cial

ing Compa

has d . to

the manufacture of • turbine

(or war vessch a sup-

ple: e»t tur-

'his Arm. the sma
ng the type employed for a scout
: the la
ban: The accompa

•

B FOR BATTlf-SHIP

irbonVThcrc arc thcr "40 pound

of carbon for - of

,:cn or. for • ; ound of

bon. tberc arc gen.

I parti of

.en, this anal'. that

: 100

where .V rcr-r ' air

supplied per pound of carbon. Th:

found to b \s the coal

contained onl> nt. carbon, the

and dividing the product
calorific value of the coal; that is.

the forma: CO.

Th ip-

- an
the the
requirement of 1 1 54 pou > 40

.:ood
no mistake should be maJ

5 are re -he foi

inr. data arc r >rs of these

sets:

differ from

•

ijr*t* -it"

pound il used

The hydrogen at

a tlight
n com-
gen
and formt watc
of b fl r",;'

combustion and n > u <• ' ■' r for

C of

tiding the co. 1

II •

1 bo* n

' 1

hre awaka

"
it ii" ^<>l 1 f'

3*1 ma-.

fen me't

; I 1

<-e% th nt> rx

r' • ' ' » '' • »i r. •■■..■»< Kr r-( '

»'-..f t.

878

POWER

June 6, 1911

Types and Connections of Al-
ternating Current Generators

By Norman G. Meade
Classification of Generators

Alternating-current generators may be
divided mechanically into three classes:

Belt-driven machines, entirely self-
contained, with two or three bearings, a
shaft and a pulley; direct-driven ma-
chines, having one or two bearings and
a shaft arranged for direct coupling to
the prime mover; engine-type alternators,
consisting of the field magnet and arma-
ture without bearings or shaft, the field
magnet being the revolving member and
arranged to be mounted on the extended
shaft of the steam engine or other prime
mover. These three types are illustrated
in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, respectively.

Alternators of small capacity are built
in two forms, one with a revolving arma-
ture and a stationary field magnet and
the other with a revolving field magnet
and stationary armature. The latter has
come into general favor with manufac-
turers because of its more simple me-
chanical construction and the greater
facility with which the extra insulation
necessary for a high-tension armature
winding may be provided when the arma-
ture is stationary.

Especially^

conducted to he of

interest and service to

the men in charge*

of the electrical

equipment

Fig. 4 shows the elementary connec-
tions of a single-phase revolving-arma-
ture alternator and its exciter. The con-

nections of a revolving-field alternator
are exactly the same in all essentials, the
only distinction being that the low-ten-
sion current for the field winding passes
through collector rings and brushes, be-
cause the magnet revolves, and the high-
tension armature current does not, be-
cause the armature is stationary. The
exciting current for the field winding of
any standard alternator may be sup-
plied from any constant-potential direct-
current circuit of about 125 volts.

Electrically, alternators may be also
divided into three types: Single-phase,

Fig. 2. Alternator for Direct Coupling

Fig. 1. Alternator for Belt Drive

Fig. 3. Alternator for Direct Mounting

June 8, 1911

POU! k

170

two-phase and three-phase. There was
formerly a fourth type designated the
"monocyclic," but that is no longer man-
ufactured. Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram
of a single-phase armature winding for

s-ee

each other and i arc also

iinct. The circuit one

of the general system
the other. In

and tl

of using

and the

ons of

The mon
for . n» whe part

of the load cons ghw

but

alto to a number i

illy a i ate nu

an auxiliary armai h to

used or.
mot'

g. 10 shou sections or

I 'F SlNCLE-PHAst Al

an alternator having ::cld-ma:

poles. As alternators are gencralh
signed to deliver a high voltage the c
arc connected all in series and the
ends arc connected to two collector rings

Ah-

on the -lg-armatur' ma-

chine, at heri mal

blocks or leads on the re
' machine.
.: 'I is a diagram of the most common
•iding. which v

rv f

tcp.i al con-

a common
is shown r
in I This arrangement is seldom

a modern platv
The three-phase alternator furnishes
three electromotive I ' ring in

phase I- <f a

complete c. i is a,

i ng the armature with three

rot

■

of -

and the J

arc •

•>-...

mor crator and Fig. II sbows

the arrangement of the -ma-

.
main winding and the smaller one the
auxiliar commonly

calk:
gra: the electro: : 0f

•

and

»cr ie mora modern volt*

age of tester -

pect
A and /i. .i
Bect'-J respective 1\ to the c»t«-rnal cir- MMposJaf K Jf'

al com

the Ma

tod I m

• r.-n r*cH

4 the t*d

880

POWER

June 6, 1911

the main electromotive force, as indi-
cated by the voltage figures. This e.m.f.
also differs in phase from the main
e.m.f. and it is this feature which en-
ables an induction motor to start auto-

those used on compound-wound direct-
current generators. The main winding
is supplied with direct current from the
exciter and the other winding is supplied
with rectified current from the armature

Alternator
Rheostat

Power.

Exciter

Fig. 12. Complete Circuits of Single-phase Compensated Alternator and

Its Exciter

matically when supplied from a mono-
cyclic alternator.

Small single-phase generators are
usually provided with compensating field
windings by means of which the field

A, r

of the alternator, causing the excitation
of the field magnet to increase when the
load increases. The current flowing
through the compensating winding is
rectified by a commutator and is reduced

Series Transformer

Field Winding

'Ttf^G.v.l-MOSOTSOT

Main Field
Winding

Generator
Field
Rheostat

r'lOOOOOOOWDOOOi

T^-J

Exciter
Field Rheostat

Exciter power.

Fig. 13. Complete Circuits of Two-phase Compensated Alternator and

Its Exciter

excitation is made to vary automatically
in proportion to the load and thereby
compensate for the voltage drop in the
armature winding. The field magnet is
equipped with two windings similar to

to the proper voltage by means of a
series transformer.

Fig. 12 shows the connections of a
single-phase alternator with a compensat-
ing winding, and Figs. 13 and 14 show

respectively the corresponding connec-
tions of a two-phase and a three-phase
alternator.

Switchboard Connections of a Single
Generator
Figs. 15, 16 and 17 are diagrams of
the connections of single-phase, two-

Ground Detector
Lamp

Voltmeter

Single-Phase
Generator

Fig. 15. Circuits and Switchboard

Connections of Single-phase

Alternator

phase and three-phase alternators, re-
spectively. The usual switchboard ac-
cessories of a single-phase machine, as
indicated in Fig. 15, consist of a pair of
fuses or a circuit-breaker, an ammeter,

Voltmeter

Ground Detector
Lamp

I Switchboard
ciMMMMMMoJ Transformer

f UMOOMMMM )

A, B, A2 B£

<xl

" Ground
Detector
Key

Sround

■QPQ0Q0Q00Q00QQCOQ.QJ

Fig. 16. Circuits and Switchboard

Connections of Two-phase

Alternator

a voltmeter, a ground detector and its
plug receptacle, a field rheostat and field-
connecting plugs and sockets; the exciter
is connected to the generator field wind-
ing by means of these plugs and sockets.

June 8, 1911

POU

For low-tension generators of about 600
volts and under, a lamp supplied through
a transforms l indicate grou

The ground-detector receptacle is pro-
vided with three holes and by means of

phase. By means of the voltmeter re-
ceptacle a single voltmeter may be con-
nected to cither phase; with the plug in
the center and right-hand holes it is con-

*>*-

On/.

■tor

*<B»

I 17 C HBOARD

Oh THKtfc-PH

A: or

a double plug the lamp can be connected
to cither side of t' 'ting

the left-hand and center holes or
in the right-hand and center holes. Tfv
lepi ssed when the plu.
in one of the I is and if t

be a ground it is then indicated by the
burning of the lamp.
■
> of a two-phase low-voltage alter-
nator. With ll f macl:
am: ire necessary, one for each

TmO'f

FlC. Ifl Cll ONS OP

Hi' OR

nasc A. The ground-detector

iat the
nd-dctcctor lamp can I
eitht- f cither phase.

The connt :agc thr

phase alternator arc shown in I :r 17. The

mlar to those of the

; tion

that three ammeters arc necessary, one

for each phase, and the tcr and

re arranged
a little

read of

J con-
al-

- •
i

■

nly in that a voltmc

J of a Iat .ating grounds

and the rci.t |g connected to

the alternator through a trans-
fort;

IJ 1 I KRS

I lentil: • • Mtrrnatii

and Dire* I ( .rrrnt
The device *ho»n in (he accomr

drau ■-■■:•■.• . c ' •

in testing house wiring but in cor
and

alter md dir

nsidcr.
sion in l ron

core be brought near . an

alternat ng. a lo

ise of |

1 be a >en the

• •

Mr. D Ipliin

tanV stem, which appeared on

9 bat

from the i
c float comae

The

'• '

882

POWER

June 6, 1911

lw# ¥¥ \»-* J

, 1 i ,fif I 1 I a I gr-* g I

Peat Gas Power in Germany

By F. E. Junge

Scarcity of resources and density of
population force the German engineer to
reduce to the utmost the cost of power
in industrial production. In most Ger-
man industries the power cost is an im-
portant item in the total cost of manu-
facture and, unlike wages and interest
rates, it can be lowered by scientific en-
deavor without harming the income of
either capitalists or workmen.

Fuel Supply

While there is a sufficiency of high-
grade coals, like anthracite, bituminous
and lignite, in the country, it has been
found more profitable to use these fuels
wherever possible at the mouth of the
pit than to transport them by rail or
canal to the power houses. In combined
iron- and steel-smelting plants and coal
mines, for instance, gasification in coke
ovens and producers is most practicable,
the coke and gas produced being utilized
in the furnaces of the plant, the valuable
byproducts, tar, benzol and ammonium,
being marketed while the surplus avail-
able energy is distributed by high-ten-
sion electrical systems to neighboring in-
dustries, cities and agricultural districts.
Unfortunately, the German coalfields
are not distributed symmetrically over the
whole country; they are located partly in
the extreme east and partly in the extreme
west. Consequently, industries which are
located in the middle or northern regions
suffer from the natural discrimination
by lack of cheap sources of power. This
disadvantage is being gradually over-
come, at least in some sections of the
country, by utilizing the peat bogs, which
are abundant, for the generation of power.
These bogs have an average depth
of 3 meters (9.8 feet). Assuming that one
cubic meter of raw peat yields about 150
kilograms (330 pounds) of dry peat, the
quantity of dry peat available in Prussia
for purposes of power production can be
estimated at some eleven billion tons. In
Germany, labor is comparatively cheap
and reliable. Hence, when installing a
power plant we can figure on fetching
the raw peat by hand from the field and
transporting it by rail or cableway to the
power house, which is built in the im-
mediate vicinity of the bog and located
below the surface level so that the peat
can be dumped from the cart or bucket
right into the producer.

One laborer with an average pay of
75 cents a day supplies about 1800 kilo-

grams (3960 pounds) of dry peat per
day, 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) costing
about one-twenty-fifth of one cent. For
purposes of large-scale power genera-
tion, automatic dredges are employed.
Such a machine weighs about 3000 kilo-
grams (6600 pounds), is run by one at-
tendant and produces 6 tons of dry peat
per hour. The detail cost of operation
is 3.5 cents for fuel (benzol), 0.25 of a
cent for lubricant, 1 cent for wages,

but a number of valuable byproducts
besides. Thus the Woltereck process pro-
vides for the utilization of ammonium,
which is produced in considerable quan-
tities when a mixture of air and steam is
passed above a stratum of carbon. Frank
and Caro, having adopted an improved
Mond process, utilize not only the bypro-
ducts but also part (15.5 per cent.) of
the potential heat energy of the peat.
Ziegler makes coke, gas and byproducts
in special peat-coke ovens. But it is
obvious that all these processes, interest-
ing though they are, are rather compli-
cated, requiring both mechanical and
chemical skill and making the enterprise
often unprofitable, especially when mar-
kets for the disposal of byproducts are
not at hand. The direct combustion of
peat on special grates under steam boil-
ers has also not proved a complete suc-
cess, because, in most cases, ordinary

The Heinz Peat Gas Producer

making the total 5 cents per ton of peat
turned out. This obviously does not
include interest, amortization and repairs
to the dredging machine. The capital
invested in peat bogs need not be
amortized because in most cases good
fertile soil is laid open to the plow,
whereby the value of the land increases.

Utilization of Peat

There are various processes which en-
able one to utilize not only the peat gas

steam coal must be mixed with the peat
in order to evolve the necessary heat.

By far the greatest practical success
has been attained with the direct gasi-
fication of raw, air-dried peat in pro-
ducers, the gas being used for the de-
velopment of power in gas engines and
no utilization of byproducts being at-
tempted. Being both porous and light,
peat is by nature well suited for gasi-
fication in producers. These qualities
permit a deep bed of fuel to be used

June 6, 1911

which, in turn, offers a large surface to
the air, whereby the oxygen rinds ample
opportunity to unite with tlu n of

the peat. The chief diP
to dispose of the tar-forming constituents
and of the high moisture contained in the
peat and the only practical way s<>

.loped is to eliminate both within the
generator itself. To attain this some :
due .-ners employ tuo /ones of

combustion, the same as when ij
lignite, the gas prod.. tally

withdrawn from the middle, between the

hem draw the gas
which is produced in the upper zone
through a into the lower zone,

the gas being cooled on its vi
and the jpor condc

>ome heat lost cooling

and. furthcrm- fficult to main-

tain combustion in the upper zone when

because the heat

'atcd by the combustion below docs
not materially assist the combustion

at. being a very poor conductor of
heat, does not yield its moisture con-
tents casil> warming up. It
has been observed in practice that fr<
lumps of peat aftc 'or three b
in the combustion zone of the generator,
'c thc\ to a tempcra-
of some tigradc.
n taken out were inca- I on the
but still frozen within, there be-
i zone of moisture bctwci utcr
rs and the kernel.
Anoth in
n of peat producers con-
J in arranging so that the gas was
taken out from the ncrator
wall. There the fuel is generally looser
than in the center of the bed; hence, the

e fuel • iss-

age of .i M and combustion

tecs burn out near the
wall, through which the air enter
•no the
■x an>
leads to opera-
•

thai the

it loads cannot be balanced It
that there mi;

Kf . f ■ • r r f i t ' * f • iir c n t c r i n i? Above t%inl

•

c gas during ain

the »an
on ll

and at a-

the

gat generator will be

♦ ill en* 'h of leatt

■

:ion of the fuel beds. There is no

tinty of operation and the output of

the uns in ften

far bcl<

THr

All of the
to ! :n a peat pro-

thc
C6r in '

to afford the most
J of utilizing peat for
the purpose lopment.

like the double

above and the gas Jrawn from the

on chamber below.
Ga> of the fuel tak

one <n only, and the

the walls of the .
J to enter the inne
of the fuel bed. The heavy gases pro-
duced in the upper -he fuel
are for igh the in-
candescent zor

' up and :nto light and

Jcinz prodi:
consists in tin utilization of

the ! in the processes of

rication. T

■ • . .
I of the air for the generator
from the pit beneath it, which
also contair itet and the

gas-del D 1'irt of the a

dra A and tbc

heater / of the

column down

igh the fuel bed in > reach

the gas outlet belou. The remainder of

, ace be-
* of
Jiant !
and under norma!

through the the

n char:
■ •

nan
•

.: the fK
modcr.1' unrni*'

that almost all of

■

If the

g • ■*<
c near i

and

soon at the attcndi

Thus

on top of • bed tbc purge pipe F

J off and
normal procct- By

can be ga>

per

be only suftV
r and no combut-
gas e produce.:

t1 sumption
nr becomes some.
gre- a norm.

from trout-
In
ing from i iWtl

up ■ combustion ch.

bcr anJ

.-an. w'nh conrinoou
nig!

ment on tr

.an be done at

it, under cor

• an
aver

• |

om-

■

The effic
alone is ah | of

I ORR1 SPOND1 \( l

Make an<

this '
teats foi

fin J \vjrv p. red f'T '

• bet
-id it ion 1 right.

.-inesav

ratio*

J not r

•4 I

bttb-trmSSM

•tar tba la rht

nr rooan |tjat ■ eaav*

rations of personal bet

884

POWER

June 6, 1911

i i h I 1 « %~i^ £3 |L x? ^% i= % W

cr^

Filing Clippings

Although most of the articles appearing
in Power will be found to be interest-
ing, few will be of such a nature that the
average man will want to keep them, for
what interests one man, another already
knows.

If the card index of the articles kept
for reference is used, a good plan is to
give not only the title of the article but
also information regarding the text.

I have been clipping articles and filing
them for the last ten years and, after
trying out all other ways, I believe this
to be the best.

In order to keep the articles upon dif-
ferent subjects separate from each other
they should be placed in heavy manila-
paper folders, which should not be folded
exactly in the middle, but so that one
side will project y2 inch above the other
side. This will furnish space upon which
to write the title or number of the file.
Tne best way is to use numbers and to
have one number placed in each corner
of the folder. By means of an alpha-
betical index written on a sheet or sheets
of paper and kept in the file it will be
easy to find the proper folder at any
time, as this index will give the number
of the folder as well as the type of the
articles to be found in it.

Instead of filing the folders alpha-
betically a better plan is to place all of
those referring to closely related sub-
jects together. As an example, all of
the articles referring to engines, although
they might be in several folders, would
be so placed that the folders containing
them would follow each other. Then
there should be several numbers left
vacant so that if other folders contain-
ing matter on engines, but not contained
in any of the first folders, are added
later there will be space for them at the
proper place. After the space left for
added folders there should be several,
folders covering boilers and their various
parts. The file should be made up in this
way until all of the subjects have been
covered.

In order to be able to turn quickly to
the right folder without having to turn
over a number of them before reaching
the right one it is well to have what
are known as guide cards. These are
made of stiff paper and are placed be-
tween each ten folders. They should
project about }£ inch above the folders
and this *A inch should be cut away
for four-fifths of the distance across the
tops. The projecting tabs, after the rest

Practical

information from the

man on the job. A letter

good enough to print

here will he paid forr*

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

has been cut away, should be staggered
so that they will not be directly behind
each other but each will be one-fifth of
the distance across the top to the side
of the one in front. Then the guide
cards numbered 10 and 60 will be directly
behind each other, as will 20 and 70, and
so on.

G. H. McKelway.
Brooklyn, N. Y.

Making Smokestacks in
' Manila

The accompanying photograph shows
how two smokestacks were rolled on
three rollers made out of old pipe. One
was a 58-inch stack for a crematory and
the other was an 11 -inch stack for a
road roller. One of the pipe rollers is

are easily turned by means of a chain
pipe wrench. A piece of strap iron is
placed between the pipe and timbers.

J. M. G. Toney.
Manila, P. I.

Air Compressor Lubrication

Having noted that considerable interest
is being taken in the subject of lubrica-
tion by readers of Power, I am giving
the accompanying data which may be
of interest. It is a report of the use
of lubricating oils in the three air-com-
pressor plants of the Isthmian Canal
Commission for the month of February,
1911. It shows the number of revolu-
tions, square feet covered per pint of
oil, output in cubic feet of air and the
cost per million square feet covered.

Las

Empire Cascadas Rio Crande
Air Air Air

oils Used: Compressor Compressor Compressor

Valve oil . . . 87?- gal. 22 gal. 38 gal.

Stationary-
engine oil. 1571 gal. 35 gal. 60 gal.
Air-compres-
sor cylin-
der oil. ... s7 J gal. 23 gal. 45 gal.
Reyolutions per gallon of valve oil:

236,458 29.-».65o 217,650

Revolutions per gallon of stationary-engine oil:

131,532 185.840 137. M5

Revolutions per gallon of air-compressor cylinder
oil:

236,458

2 S 2, 800

1S3,GS2

How Smoke Stacks Are Made in Manila

not shown in the photograph. Any old
pipe and timber which happens to be
on hand answers. The rolls are adjusted
by turning the nuts on the bolts that
pass up through the four corners of the
frame with monkey wrenches in the
hands of the two natives.

A part of the 58-inch stack is shown,
but the 11 -inch stack was sent out before
the photograph was taken. The rollers

•Square feet covered per pint of valve oil:

1,041,107 1,392,597 1,025,122

Square feet covered per pint of air-compressor cyl-
inder oil:

1,354,971 1,837,513 1.028,152

Cost per million square feet covered (surfac

$0 . 0234

1.0175 $0.0237

Valve oil.. .

A i r-c o- re-
pressor
cylinder. $0.0134 $0.0098 0176

Output of free air, cubic feet:

378,879,661 118,770,526 151,20

June 6, 1911

P O \X E R

KV^

In the air-compressor plants at Empire,
Las Cascadas and Rio Grande, there are
14 compressors, each of 425 horsepower
and all operating at a steam pressure
of 125 pounds. The engines are simple
twin cylinder. The comr are of

the double-cylinder cross-compound type.
The area of the two steam cylinder

square feet; the area of the low-
pressure air cylinders is 15.17; the area
of the high-pressure cylindt -
square feet. The of these com-

pressors is from 127 to 137 revolutions
per minute.

D. E. Irwin.

Empire, Panama.

Adjusting c wt<>tf of O "'■
Engine

When about to adjust the cutoff of a
Corliss engine, of the short-range cutoff
gear, start the engine running very slowly
and loosen the check nuts on the reach
rod, and see that the governor is down
on the stops. Then lengthen the rod until
the knockoff cam starts to disengage the
valve stem; screw the rod out until the
knockoff cam will not disengage the
hook; or. in other \mrds, until the en-
- the valve. After setting the
cutoff cam set the head-end cam in
the same way.

In the case of a long-range cutoff
r, shorten the reach rod until it car-
alvc and then lengthen the
rod until it will ju gage the hook.

Then adjust the knockoff on the second
\alvc or one on the head-end in the same
manner.

All Corliss i with short-range

cutoff gears should carry the valves with-
out disengaging when running slowly. A
engine with a long-range cutoff
ngagc the hooks at all tin
if not, the steam will blow through the
engine.

W. R. Boufrs.
Cleveland. O.

I [omemade I Aibru •

S\ stent
The a llustrat

•>ya-
tcm I have

The oil tank Jc of .i

in length,
with the ends car: '■
there is a 2

cap screws and h J a

?c aho<
flange - for a door ttand

the tar
At the bntto' ink a hole

drilled anc

• incf

and
valve i« screwed if ' the

tee ' a Jra

valv. -ewed and the wal

condcrmru: pipe is a" >

connected to a steam pipe. This con-
densing pipe must not be less than 2
the highest point to which
oil is to be dt In case the boil-

are below the engine level run the
up above the highest point of oil
and then down to the tank; the
on the top of the tank should have
inch and one 1 4 -inch dr
hole. The larger hole is to be t
for filling. It r to have a short

- of pipe with a valve screwed into
this hole, but a plug ma\ he us<.J la-
id. The .-inch hole should have a
short nippk n and a i4 anj

ich tee to the

opening of the tee which is at-
tached to the upper end of the gage

Dm*

glass. The low the

■

. . .

the
•p opening

mi it*

close ll

cor.dcr. »cd « > ' ■ " highest BSSSS

e all vah the branch (iocs

and then open tr. the

oil line at the tank and loosen a union

at the most - point to allow air to

esc;t:

make the 1
cators arc rJkSS ced.

Los Angeles. Cal.

A S vsful Muni< 1p.1l
tn .nt

1. ha* at mur

pai o»- 5 a fa:

omc cases, but not in all. I be

that when a municipal ek ^hi and

to produce a -
for the city, the ca. ier mis-

managemer aft and possibl> both.

That one nit:
era:. -r and plants success-

fully is shown hgures giver

with.

After years, with an annua
turc of n=<<)00 for
citi/ J with the rate of

.cms a light, or -^ per »

watt-hour, the coun>. the

plant from tat for

the sum of and ran it un

pal rule for about a
was found that the equipment and
-ere entirely inadequate
■ f the
■

ror and one 9

Therefore a :

••.••> mi rc boilers and

'he cov

■

and a oard -

■Ian intti'' i>i»ntwriii

pov

I ' '

fw>uf

aad miata

886

POWER

June 6, 1911

the erection of the new plant, this cost
was further reduced by the establishment
of a sliding scale which ran from 12
cents per kilowatt-hour down to 8 cents,
according to the amount consumed.

Under municipal rule, and in spite of
the reduced rates for power, the plant
has netted the city a good profit. Be-
sides taking care of the indebtedness of
a few thousand dollars, incurred at the
time the new plant was erected, keep-
ing up the necessary repairs to the ma-
chinery, paying salaries of the employees
and other necessary incidental expenses,
the commission now has on deposit the
sum of $10,000, which, although a por-
tion came from the water works, was
largely made up from the revenues of
the electric-light plant.

I believe this plant is doing as well
as most of the privately owned plants
and better than most of the municipally
owned plants.

H. B. Adcock.

Newnan, Ga.

No Water — Burnt Sheet

The following paragraphs tell about
what might have been a disastrous boiler
explosion had the boiler in question been
cut in on the header at the time of the
accident. The boiler is one of seven, all
of which were connected into one com-
mon header.

This boiler was washed out on a Sun-
day and was filled with water to the sec-
ond gage cock and left for the night fire-
man to steam up and cut in on the
header for work Monday morning.

The boiler was fired about ? o'clock
a.m. When the day crew came on duty
at 6 o'clock a.m., one of the firemen
noticed that the boiler had only 75 pounds
pressure and opening the fire door to
put in a fire discovered that the sheet
over the fire was red hot. He closed
the door and had gotten about 10 feet
away when the rupture occurred.

The boiler exhausted itself of what
steam and water there was in it in about
four minutes. It was then noticed that
there was still two gages of water in
the glass, and upon investigation it was
found that the bottom water-column con-
nection was closed. The ruptured sheet
was down 8 inches and the diameter of
the bag was about 10 inches. Thje open-
ing in the sheet was 6 inches long and
the metal was drawn until the thickness
at this point was but 1/16 inch thick.

The fact that this boiler was not cut in
is perhaps all that prevented a disastrous
explosion. The safety column was a
hindrance as the water in the column
sustained the float and kept the pres-
sure on the controller-valve diaphragm
which prevented the cold water being
pumped in an the hot sheet.

I write this letter merely to show how
some of the so called mysterious boiler
explosions occur. If this boiler had ex-
ploded violently, anyone who might have

seen it five minutes before the accident
could have sworn that there was but 75
pounds of pressure indicated by the gage
and two gages of water at the time. In
reality there was 75 pounds pressure
and practically no water.

H. R. Rockwell.
Alton, 111.

Worn Governor Links Cause
Trouble

At the plant where I am employed, a
new, medium-speed cross-compound en-
gine of an uptodate make was installed.
When I indicated the engine I got a card
that showed an unequal distribution of
the load. I made adjustments but found
that when I got the cutoff equal on both
ends, I had interfered with the lead. As
I believe that proper lead is more im-
portant than equal cutoff I put the valves
back where I found them.

The governor of this engine is fast-
ened to the shaft by means of set-
screws set into the holes in the shaft.
If one wishes to move the governor it

Faulty Piping and Careless-
ness Wreck Engine

The Corliss engine in a mill plant be-
came overloaded and a new high-speed
engine was set up to take care of the
lighting load.

Not wishing to install an extra con-
denser or to exhaust to the atmosphere,
it was decided to connect the exhaust as
shown in the illustration. The engineer
wished to connect the engine direct to
the condenser, but the makers of the en-
gine connected it as shown. The engi-
neer also wanted an automatic relief
valve put in the pipe line, but the valve
B was used instead.

The lights were on but a few hours,
morning and night, and this small engine
had to be cut in to the receiver connec-
tion while the mill was running. It was the
custom to open the valve B in the morn-
ing and leave it open until the lighting
engine was started in the afternoon. Then,
while one man closed the valve B, an-
other would open the valve A, which was
placed where the back-pressure gage

Exhaust from
Corliss Engine

Exhaust from
Piston Valve Engine

H .

,-fracture

To Atmosphere

To
Receiver

Diagram of Piping

would be necessary to move the hub an
inch or more in order to find a new place
for the screw and this would set the
eccentric too far ahead or behind to give
the proper lead.

After this engine had been running
about a year it would speed up when
the load was thrown off. It finally got
to racing so badly that I would have to
cut out the condenser in order to prevent
a dangerous speed.

I located the trouble in the governor-
link bearings which connected the weight
to the eccentric. They were badly worn.
The stud pins on which the link worked
are of brass, but the link is made of
wrought iron. This wearing allowed the
weights to move out to their farthest posi-
tion without carrying the eccentric with
them, thus allowing the valves to open
a small amount. This, combined with a
27-inch vacuum, caused the engine to
race. I put in new links and this stopped
the trouble.

A. W. Griswold.

Adams, Mass.

Power

could be watched. It was, therefore, an
easy matter to open the valve and keep
a nearly even pressure.

A few days ago, however, the valve B
was left closed in the morning, or worked
closed during the day. The engine was
started and a smash-up resulted. The
irregular line shows where the exhaust
pipe burst.

It is my opinion that the valve A was
open just enough to allow the pipe to
partly fill with water, thus causing the
trouble. The engine had hardly turned
over when the crash came. It is not
strange that the exhaust pipe burst, but
just why the engine was smashed so
badly is puzzling. The engine accident
indicates water in the cylinder while
running at full speed, but the exhaust-
pipe fracture would suggest water ham-
mer.

Exeter, N. H. _ L. Johnson.

How to Condense Steam

I am working in a small steam plant
where the drinking water is not fit to use.

Can some Power reader give me an
idea of how to get up a cheap, con-
venient device to condense sufficient
steam to get a couple of gallons of good
drinking water a day?

E. G. Eldred.

Ellensburg, Wash.

June 6. 1911

Smoke Abatement

I agree with !). Jackson, in the

April II on preventing smoke by

the coking method of trial used

the coking method with good
prefer it to t g or alternate

method for most kinds of coal. With this
method »c have had har smoke.

hng the boilers be
their rating, and then we did not have as
much smoke as when other methods of
firing ucrc used. When burning run-of-
minc coal we have had to resort to the
spreading method for over the peak,
which sometimes amounted to cent

overload; otherwise the coal burned too
slou

Of course, no hard and fast rule can be
laid down for fin: m the Beet

plant the coking method can be used to
advantage, although the fireman ob
to it on account of the inter it he

l work in while pushing back the in-
candescent coal. If the bo:
were introduced and the fireman could
sec a few extra dollars in it. he would do
It as cheerfully as going to a Sunday ball
game.

I do not mean to say that firemen are

:e shirking kind, but -'icy are

paid a scant \l\ for a 12-hour

shift in a hot. dirty boiler room, with little

o chance for advancement, the in-

cment to save coal

The coking method of firing and the
bonus system of payment arc certainly

rth consideration.

M. W. U :

Minster. O.

\ i( uura i leaner

ige
068, asks f rmation upon boa

construct a vacuum cleaner I

ne room I uill explain as *cll
a* I can how to construct a cleaner wl
be found ■ ful in »»ccr

the floor and cleaning the walls and also
■
ling of ir %cat«.

h scats It GM '• used «
there is an air pt r a cor. !

•ake a f *>ly

the
length ess tha

I ne end vtttl a cap hat ng a

Inch pipe connection
opposite end as shown in H
Make a hac d strong matr

i» that aril] Bl
Inside the not cor

'if ,

.<n<] debate (i(hv -us

art nd edit-

orials M .'//< fi }i.i\ t- ,tp-

pearod in previous
issui i

closer to th n than ti or b

Thi top faring and

uple of

n rim: of the flange.

sack is to catch the din and d

and is to be inser rich

the flaring top to be clamped

. n the halves of the flange union. To

clean the bag. simply take it out and

s^~

d go

uum chamber

and br

convenient loc.<
and connc. ' the

air

c connection being made

the tor »hould be a I

'ic flange union, or a pipe
m the Range union around

a sh«

. s Mf-

scd

Th.

-ise of the brus?
as to form a slot about ' , to »« inch

air will dt e hose

slot of cot

through the wood of the brusr

nose may be mode from
a piece of pipe s.

be ne cowry to c
•

J
Oil Citv. Penn

S lution to < t I

I
In the April II issue, page

Th
to other coi cod i

good

to r tgo

•
Then 1 thoug be p

pla:

•on the pure 'rum

htng d I got but the

' and ' the

conomi:

I de-
formed a
of the aid accom*

I took the
mar

mmenJ isc of a

>rm socb a »

mad : r •

allowed
to go throe,
by .i -n the iroo

and food for the following tc

■

>ot H<
olution a».'

...

UfrJ SM

'» ece

cooriog
pope* and makes oo

So oat
been renewed and. oo

at iv

>, ■ led to Ma snot

*• •• t ' < T

888

POWER

June 6, 1911

pure water, no scale continues to form
appreciably. Before, the scale was formed
principally from the iron itself. I have
applied the same treatment to one or two
other machines where similar trouble
showed, with success and no further com-
plaints of corrosion.

H. G. Brinckerhoff.
Boston, Mass.

Cooling Hot Bearings

On the inquiry page of the April 18
issue of Power, H. C. B. asks for the
best way to cool hot bearings while run-
ning and the answer is, "Use graphite and
oil." I am aware that this mixture is
what may be termed the standard cure
for cooling hot bearings but, according
to my experience, a good deal depends
on other things. The best way to feed
this mixture has always seemed to me to
be through the oil or grease-cup hole,
using a plug of wood to stir it through
and having the mixture slightly warmed
so that it runs through easily. Then, if
the oil grooves in the bearing are cut
on the small side or are shallow, this
method of cooling off will not be so effi-
cient as it will be if they are deep and
of generous proportions. The same re-
mark applies to short grooves leading
"nowhere" which are not to be compared
to crosscut grooves.

Another factor in the successful ap-
plication of the graphite-oil mixture is
the material of which the bearings are
composed. Babbitt or antifriction metals
are not as quickly cooled by the graphite-
oil mixture as are gun-metal or bronze
bearings. For antifriction metal bearings
I prefer to use flake mica mixed with a
good lubricating oil in the proportions
(by weight) of 16 parts of oil to 1 part
of mica. This mixture has indeed always
seemed to me to be at least as efficient,
if not more so, as the graphite-oil mixture
in curing hot bearings, although I do not
advocate its continuous use. I have been
successful with the mica-oil mixture in
cases which the graphite-oil treatment
would not look at, and am acquainted
with a railroad engineer in the running
department of one of the largest rail-
ways in this country who advocates its
use for locomotive hot boxes, although
he uses more mica in his composition
than I do for ordinary bearings — I think
his is a 10 to 1 mixture.

Only a few weeks ago a friend of mine
was having trouble with the gear box of
his 25-horsepower automobile. This would
run very hot in spite of all he could do
and even the thickest oil he used would
become thin enough to run out through
the ball bearings and make a nasty mess
in the undershield. The gear box has
been back to the makers twice but has
been returned, each time running hot
again. The ball bearings are not the
cause of the trouble, which appeared to
originate with the gear wheels of the

fourth speed, which is indirect and which
my friend uses most of the time to save
his engine. After he had tried oils and
greases of all kinds and consistencies,
including all sorts of graphite mixtures,
I proposed giving the mica-oil mixture a
trial. He did so with perfect success
attending the experiment. The mixture
was 15 parts of Vacuum Mobiloil, "C"
grede, to 1 part of flake mica. I am in-
clined to the opinion that flake mica —
more so than flake graphite — forms a
more substantial cushion between the
bearing surfaces, be they journal and
brass or tooth against tooth, and it is
not so easily squeezed out.

I have a case on hand at present of a
6-ton motor lurry, in which the steel tim-
ing wheels at the front of the engine
make a loud buzzing noise in spite of
their oil-tight casing being filled with
lubricant of good repute and the right
consistency. Encouraged by the suc-
cess attained by it in the gear box above
mentioned, I am going to give the flake-
mica mixture a trial in this case. Were
the gear-wheel case open to the engine-
crank case I should hesitate before try-
ing a mixture of more than 1 part of mica
to 20 parts of oil because, the engine
being provided with forced-feed lubrica-
tion with drilled crank shaft, connecting
rods, etc., I am afraid that the small
passages in these parts might become
choked with the flake, with perhaps seri-
ous results to the engine.

John S. Leese.

Manchester, Eng.

The Position Higher Up

Mr. Miles' article on the above sub-
ject in the May 2 number contains some
good points and moves me to submit a
few comments on the subject of advertis-
ing for positions and answering em-
ployers' advertisements.

In writing an advertisement for a posi-
tion it seems to me it should contain a
brief description of ability, an offer to
refer to past employers, a mention of
sobriety, and, last but not least, a will-
ingness to accept the position on trial.

I have always found it an easier mat-
ter to write an intelligent advertisement
than to answer one of the ordinary kind
placed by many employers. Even after
corresponding with them it is a difficult
matter to get them to state the full par-
ticulars of the position in question.

Several years ago I placed an advertise-
ment for a position that would pay not
less than a stated amount, and received
an offer as head engineer in a 600-barrel
flour mill in a small town of a few hun-
dred inhabitants.

On asking for full particulars they in-
formed me the mill operated day and
night, I would be expected to do my own
firing, and the plant consisted of two
boilers and one Corliss engine.

I accepted the position and on arriv-
ing found two boilers, one Corliss engine,

one high-speed engine driving a gen-
erator furnishing lights for the village
and the mill, and one engine running the
elevator. In addition there was a geared
locomotive used for switching purposes
to be kept in repair.

I refused to remain under those condi-
tions, and was therefore out the expense
of a 500-mile trip that could have been
avoided had they given me the full par-
ticulars.

We often see an advertisement reading
something like this: "Wanted: First-
class engineer to take charge of complete
steam-power plant. State experience and
salary desired. References required."

There is nothing intelligent about such
&n advertisement. Possibly it is a 6000-
hcrsepower plant and again it may be
only a 1000-horsepower plant. If one
were to make a price to fit the former
and the plant was of the latter, possibly
he might lose just the position that would
suit him best. It might have been an
uptodate plant in the locality he desired
and had he known it could have made the
price accordingly. The chances are the
letter would never be answered.

Joseph Stewart.

Hamilton, O.

An Engineer's Views

Referring to the editorial on the first
page of Power of February 21, it is only
too true that a great many of us do be-
come so absorbed in the routine work
that we fail to see the advantage of
adopting some new method or appliance,
and at other times we realize the ad-
vantage but wait for some favorable
opportunity to explain our views, and
while we are waiting some specialist
comes in and recommends that such and
such be done. It also often happens
that when the engineer does advise the
purchase of some new machine or ap-
pliance, he is not prepared to show just
what the advantages are or what the sav-
ing will be, while the expert is loaded
with the necessary data to prove all
that he claims. It would be unreasonable
to expect the operating engineer to be
as well posted on all subjects connected
with the power plant, as half a dozen
specialists would be on the different sub-
jects.

The engineer and manager should be
on friendly terms and should understand
each other and the conditions under
which the plant must be operated. The
engineer should endeavor to prove that,
while he is a necessity, he is the most
valuable man on the place, not by doing
all the dirty jobs that no one else wants
to- do, but by keeping up with the times,
being posted on the latest and most im-
proved methods, and last but not least
by putting his knowledge into effect. A
few years ago the engineer was the one
called on to do all the odd jobs that no
one else was willing to do, while today

June 6, 1911

PO\X

there are hundreds of plants where the
engineer is highly respected and has all
the authority he wants. There are hun-
dreds of managers and owners looking
for men capable of assuming the re-
sponsibility of their plants and making
a success of them.

The refrigerating engineers have re-
cently organized the Practical Refrigerat-
ing Engineers' Association, for the pur-
rose of educating and elevating its mem-
bers, and their constitution plainly states
that the association shall at no time take
part in any strike or anything that will
in any way interfere with perfect har-
mony between its members and their em-
ployers. Owners and managers are eligi-
ble to associate membership and are wel-
come at any and all of their meet:

the earnest desire of the associa-
tion to create a more friendly feeling
between its members and their cmplo
than generally exists.

J. B. Embrey.
reveport. La.

\\ .iter C Mils Burn (Jut

page 534 of Po»tK, April 4 issue,
is an article by R. A. Booth about water
- burning out. I would suggest that
all the return bends be taken off and
manifolds substituted. It is evident, with
the coils burning out so rapidly, that
the pipe is not always filled with water.

pposc the boiler is being fed lig)
then the water having a slow but f<

ilation would gradually increase in
, craturc until steam was get
.lid, of course, allow the
turned.

obtain proof of this. Mr Booth
could attach a thermometer cup to the
line after it leaves the coil to enter the
bo i

If the feed pipe, after leaving the
does not come out of th
... it would probably be an easy mat-
ter to extend the pipe and return
that the temperature of the wat<
he taken. | this Mr. Booth might

alto obtain an answer to his second q
tion. "Do these coil* increase the efll-
ciency or capa

Mr. Booth also asks what advantage
the coils ha\e 'her kit

water heater I l that

can be best worked out individua'l-. If
Mr. Booth has plenty of exhaust steam
that it going to waste, then vMMM a
doubt a good first-class exhaust steam
heater would rai%c the temperate

1 water to aroun .! Icgreca and

would be a good investment If the tem-
perature Of the 'be
rai%r J economical
then I should think 0
the advantage.

e ago. at a plant »tcrr I
worked, it " 'he

crx wcr
hard and were fir anthracite coal.

Everything went along smoothly for about
a month; then came the climax in the
shape of a return bend bursting. Both
Joors were blown open and hot water,
ashes and coal enveloped one of the
coal wheelers, badly burning and scald-
ing him. The brickwork inside the fur-
nace had to be re:

G. H. Handlbt.
Newburgh. N. V.

The Line Shaft Breaks

The question in reference to the break-
ing of line shafts in Po» m for Ma
comes under my observation and pra.
generally with the following
H<.mp - continually expanding or

contracting with weather and

on the single-rope, or what is better
known as the indcpcndcnt-ropc. drive
always . rouble from break-

age of the shafting. Take Fig. 1 for an
cxampK ntral wheel

with bearings placed a considerable
tancc from the hub The shaft is sure
to break sooner or later. By moving these
bearing the hub. the danger

of breakage is greatly lesser

The tension of the rope causes a
continual springing of the shaft, an.'
further sustain this statement, the shaft
iriably breaks in damp weather when
the >uld be the tightest. Another

rcas that the rims of large rope

whe k

of the I believe this also tends

to spring the shaft and compels '
yield when the bearings arc placed as
far apart :is shown in lig. I. By mo

would always occur a >n one oc-

casion the hub was bored out up to

x>re and a No

X'hether
a prac-
Poatib
ing » a> secured that was D

I believe that Mr. Rathma fiad

that hi*

2. A

on and such lack of bearing support
as will pre .ing of thr

The mere fact that a placed

near the sheave wheel docs not aN
assure the wheel of proper suppor
many bearings are to loose
that they do n< .rpoae.

Baltimoi

In th number. K Kaih

- the probable cause of th-
ing shafting, also a rand

the '

a much better »upr

\itc I i both In belted

-ken u ^a«w

at the vent

a long countertwrr

*Mlag

the tin

be
res-otutl

•f

*t alt* of

890

POWER

June 6, 1911

Seeing that the shafts are carrying rope

sheaves they should be proportioned for

head shafts. Applying a rule used by

Jones & Laughlin for cold-rolled iron

shafts of this class, hangers not more

than 8 feet .apart, the following formula

is obtained ■

Dia.3 X r.p.m.

ti .r . — .

IOO

It will be found that the 2^-inch shaft,
to transmit 50 horsepower, must run at
a speed of not less than

-52 — l — = iq8 revolutions per minute

2 15 3 J

1 G

In the same way the 217(i-inch shaft,
to transmit 20 horsepower, must run 138
revolutions per minute. If the shafts run
slower they are overtaxed. When shafts
are so loaded and supported that the
deflection amounts to more than 0.01 inch
per foot of clear length between bear-
ings, they are apt to break. To guard
against this use hangers at shorter in-
tervals and, if possible, place a hanger
close to each side of a sheave. If the
full power is delivered by one sheave
located in the middle of an 8-foot span,
the 2i | -inch shaft ought to be increased
to 3j3e inches.

It is stated that the shafting is in
line; but while this may have been the
case once, it should be verified period-
ically, especially after an accident, and
the anchor bolts of the hangers tightened.
Care should also be taken to allow suffi-
cient end play, the shaft collars and
couplings being set to allow full sway to
expansion resulting from heating. A
shaft 245 feet long will, in warming up
from 60 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit, in-
crease one inch in length.

If the shafting suffers from irregular
vibrations, it might be advantageous to
place a few small flywheels on it for
equalizing. Keyways are known to weaken
shafting and to affect its alinement. The
diameter should therefore be increased,
or split .pulleys and couplings used,
which are merely clamped to the shafting
and strengthen instead of weaken it.

If the path of the ropes is not steeper
than about 45 degrees from the floor
up, the drive may, as a last resort, in
some places at least, be changed over
from the American system with its one
continuous rope, to the English system
with a number of independent ropes. In
this way the shafts may be slightly re-
lieved and in case one rope breaks the
others will carry the load until oppor-
tunity permits making repairs.

Charles H. Herter.
New York City.

the shafting is suspended from the ceil-
ing by hangers. I have seen hangers
sprung out of line considerably by belt
tension, thereby causing the very trouble
of* which Mr. Rathman complains. This
can easily be tested by taking a broom-
stick, driving a wire nail into each end,
the whole being long enough to reach
from some point near and to just touch
the shaft when stationary. Put the shaft
in motion and the stick will show any
bending or nonalinement.

I would next look at the distance from
center to center of the bearings on each
side of the driving wheels and would
endeavor to place them as close as condi-
tions will permit. If the bearings are as
close as possible, then a new shaft should
be installed with a "swell" of at least Vi
inch where the driving wheels go and let
the larger diameter extend some dis-
tance on each side.

I have in mind one shaft which had
given a lot of trouble 'and had been re-
placed several times. Increasing the size
did not overcome the trouble. When
the broomstick method was tried it was
at once apparent that the supports on
the ceiling were not rigid enough to
stand the strain when the shaft was in
operation. The shaft was then placed
on proper foundations on the floor, and
no further trouble was experienced.

C. F. Sampson.
Philadelphia, Penn.

Judging from the sizes of shafting
given by Mr. Rathman and supposing
that they run at a moderate speed, the
shafts should easily deliver the power
mentioned without being strained, but
the fact of their breaking is evidence of
a strain beyond their power to withstand.

From the article it would appear that

If Mr. Rathman's shaft is in line and
is not overloaded. I would suggest that
a hanger be placed near the sheave.
Without much doubt the distance between
the hangers is too great, and when the
shaft is carrying the load the strain
is at the sheave.

Albert T. Guilman.

Stafford Springs, Conn.

Installing Oil Burner

On page 694 of Power, May 2, E. W. E.

asked for a little information on install-
ing oil burners.

Having had some seven years' experi-
ence in that line of work, I would say
that the answer gives him the little in-
formation, and very little at that, espe-
cially if he is in no way familiar with oil
burning.

The proper arrangement of a furnace
for the economical burning of crude oil
depends on several conditions, one of
which is the kind of boiler under con-
sideration. As he does not state this, I
will suppose he means a standard return-
tubular boiler of the class usually em-
ployed in stationary work and 66 inches
in diameter by 16 feet in length. In
this case the bridgewall should be entirely
removed and the grates should not be
less than 24 inches or more than 36
inches from the shell of the boiler for
economical results. The combustion
chamber should be filled up with earth
to within 16 inches of the shell at the

back end of the boiler and continued
on an incline toward and meeting with
the back end of the grates, and may be
rounded slightly up toward the side walls.
The entire surface should be covered
with firebrick, including the grates, ex-
cepting a space 12x18 inches in each cor-
ner at the front of the furnace. These
will admit a sufficient amount of air for
most cases. Aside from this the interior
of the furnace need not be changed from
what it was for burning wood or coal.

The blowoff pipe should be protected
by a firebrick pier built up in front of
it to where it enters the shell. The
burner should be set in the center of and
extending into the furnace 4 inches be-
yond the door-jamb line. The distance
from the top of the firebricks on the
grates to the center of the opening in
the burner should be 6 inches. Be sure
to set the burner exactly level. If it is
allowed to slant downward, the flame
will strike the bricks and reflect against
and injure the boiler shell. If it points
upward, the oil will not burn steadily and
the boiler, as in the other case, will be
injured:

The opening in the burner tip should
be of a sufficient width to just allow the
flame to reach the side walls when work-
ing at its full capacity. If this plan is
followed, no damage will result to the
boiler under the heaviest firing. How-
ever, care should be taken not to crowd
the fire until the setting has become
thoroughly heated up.

Charles F. King.
Portland, Ore.

Buying Coal on B.t.u. Basis

I have followed with a great deal of
interest the numerous articles in Power
from the scientific writers who have been
urging that a little more science is all
that is required to make everything lovely
in the power house, but I am afraid that
these writers too often overlook the prob-
lems of human nature and established
commercial conditions.

For instance, I have been greatly im-
pressed with the arguments in favor of
the purchase of coal on a B.t.u. basis, so
I decided hereafter to buy heat units
instead of mere carbon and ashes, and
solicited bids from numerous mines for
a shipment of 400 tons of pea ccal for
gas producers, payment to be made on a
basis of B.t.u. Practically every mine
on the line of the Central Railroad of
New Jersey (to which we are bound hand
and foot) replied in effect that they did
not take any stock in heat units and I
could buy the coal just as they offered it
or go without, as I chose.

I agree in the abstract with everything
that the scientific men have written, but,
unfortunately, very few of their sugges-
tions can be carried out under present
conditions.

S. W. Rushmore.

Plainfield, N. J.

June 6. 191J

hill Publishin npany

L, l*r- t W.

Si •<

M Dtctmn).

the poet
>rW. ui

N ^

I I,

■

nmmh-

Mil n

IV. f ■

Maka

H«

I he Oil I fine

ich
r less like
°* ian in engineering

are continual pparatu-

sjJ bet im.

- ago by those vers*
the scicnt:

-fore fully

t was is.v . «uth>

s of th
effons. while laudable and practical
in a \ could n

It in transatlantic steamboats be-
^e a boat could not enough

to keep up -
a long trip, even if the t J be

made to run contim.

s»or La
■

■ '
'ssiblc to make an ei

•ht and md the

The ».i

high-compression o
In the fir

■ ■

■

1 COSt IT

■

nsutpe. '
— ' into u»c

Mft.
!•> of horsepower, an-*

w men who I
-ved th

K possible and express a cor

that A

M.ithcm.itu - and tl

h .m-

par.T arc

mat'
taininK llfel

c most

ithema-
talent ;r
and on of moving machir

mat'

'j'J't
■Ot a*

MCtMfl

a position on the

. . . »

cd the
■ and

■

-ancr <

' ' ' -ntts.

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a'tcbra or rri

W«

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r'Hti la Mi

rh* rnfi^r*' J.J Sta* h-aft
J tW

892

POWER

June 6, 1911

tackled the problems man-fashion and
mastered them.

If he would pursue the same course
with mathematics he would be surprised
at the shortness of time in which for-
mulas that previously seemed hopelessly
complicated became clear.

No investment that an engineer can
make will pay such dividends as time
spent in the study of the elementary
branches of the science most nearly re-
lated to his work.

Practice and Theory

At the recent meeting of the American
Society of Refrigeration, in Chicago, it
was said that when a need arises in this
country for some application of refrigera-
tion, when something needs to be done
and done quickly, we go ahead and do
it and then send to Germany to find out
how we did it.

The one illustrates practice, the other
theory. Seemingly they do not always go
together. For instance, theory says that
we should always keep the fire doors
closed; that air, admitted over the fire,
results in cooling the gases of combus-
tion and therefore decreases efficiency.
But many firemen who never heard of a
heat unit have discovered that leaving
the door cracked open immediately after
firing results beneficially.

Careful experiments with pyrometers
in boiler settings have verified the fact
that the temperatures are actually higher
and more water is evaporated when the
door is opened slightly immediately after
firing, than when the door is kept closed.

The nontheoretical fireman who first
found this out was satisfied to know what
he knew without knowing why he knew it,
but the man who made the pyrometer ex-
periments was not so easily satisfied. He
called on theory to explain and theory
responded with an explanation.

Of course, after practice had pointed
the way it was easy to show that on ac-
count of the large amount of volatile mat-
ter being distilled from a freshly re-
plenished fire, better combustion could
be obtained by allowing some air to en-
ter directly over the fire and burn the
gases, which otherwise would not get suf-
ficient air through the grate and would
pass off unburned. Theory did not lead
the way in this, however; it was practice
which first demonstrated it.

The moral is: Do not be hedged in too
closely by the theories that you already
know; by trying something that seems
to be contrary to those theories you may
do something better than it has ever
been done before, and the theoretical law
governing the case will be promptly
brought to the front. But do not take
this as advice to waste time and money
on things that clearly violate fundamental
natural laws, such as perpetual-motion
schemes.

The Passing of the Piston

Eight years ago we published an edi-
torial under the above title. With the
passing of the years the tendencies which
were the theme of that article have be-
come more marked. For large electrical
work nobody thinks of anything but the
steam turbine which is now built in units
of twenty thousand kilowatts, with no
indication that the limits of capacity or of
efficiency have been reached, and is de-
veloping a horsepower-hour on less than
ten pounds of steam.

More than four million kilowatts ca-
pacity have been sold by the three large
companies, the far greater proportion of
it since the editorial in question was
written. The small steam turbine is
making serious inroads into the field of
the high-speed automatic engine. The
turbine pump is continually winning fa-
vor even for pressures as high as those
required for boiler-feed service.

And now comes the centrifugal blow-
ing engine to contest the field with the
massive air tub driven by a slowly run-
ning reciprocating engine. A sixty-thous-
ond-foot centrifugal blower turbine
driven with condenser complete can be
had for sixty thousand dollars. A gas-
engine driven blowing engine of the
same capacity would cost two hundred
thousand. Is the greater efficiency of the
gas engine worth this difference in cost?

Chimneys

A subject about which the average en-
gineer knows very little is that of chim-
neys. He may have a somewhat hazy
recollection of having been taught that
the principal factor affecting natural draft
is the difference between the weights of
the column of gas within the chimney
and that of the outside air; but if called
upon to calculate the size of a chimney
he would probably be all at sea.

Both Rankine and Peclet attempted
to solve the problem from a theoretical
standpoint, but their formulas were more
or less involved and it was found hard
to apply them to practice. . Later author-
ities have formulated empirical rules,
but their constants have differed widely
and the results, as a whole, are far
from satisfactory.

The design of a chimney is much more
complex than determining the dimensions
of a steam engine to produce a given
power at a given steam pressure and
piston speed. In the case of the steam
engine most of the quantities are fixed
or under complete control, whereas, with
the chimney, so many variables enter into
the problem as to make it indeterminate
except for assumed conditions. If more
coal is to be burned per square foot of
grate surface it means a larger volume
of gas passing up the chimney, which
must be provided for by increasing either
the area or the velocity, the former re-
quiring a larger diameter of chimney and

the latter a greater hight. Furthermore,
different thicknesses of fuel bed require
different intensities of draft, or a wind
blowing over the top of the chimney may
produce suction and increase the draft.
The length of flue, number of bends
and the path of the gases through the
boiler, all have their effect upon the
draft.

With such conditions, it may seem
strange that so many chimneys are built
which successfully meet the conditions
of service. The fact is, however, that
chimney designers, while employing em-
pirical formulas to a certain extent, really
depend more upon their experience and
the large amount of data at their dis-
posal than upon the formulas.

A Good Suggestion

At the Illinois State convention of the
National Association of Stationary Engi-
neers, a valuable suggestion was made
regarding the possibility of the organiza-
tion cooperating with the University of
Illinois in educational work. The Il-
linois State Association has an educa-
tional committee the duty of which is to
promote, in one way or another, interest
in engineering subjects among the dif-
ferent local associations.

This has been done by issuing, period-
ically,-a list of questions to be answered
by the associations, with a prize for the
highest grade during the year, and by
giving lectures on various engineering
topics at different points in the State.

The suggestion was to consider the
possibility of arranging with the uni-
versity an annual meeting extending over
perhaps two days and one night, at which
lectures would be given and tests run
on various power-plant equipment avail-
able in the laboratories, the subjects be-
ing such as would appeal especially to
men engaged in the steam-engineering
field.

There is no doubt that the university
would welcome any such arrangement.
A great deal of the information now
gathered by the university is ineffective
merely because of the failure to get it
into the hands of the proper persons. One
of the former professors, happening to be
in the engine room of a power plant
and noticing some bulletins of the uni-
versity on the desk, asked the engineer
how he came to get them. The reply
tells how a great deal of this material
goes to waste: "The university sends
the bulletins to the superintendent; he
throws them into the waste basket and
I pick them out!" Undoubtedly there
is too much of this waste-basket circula-
tion.

It is to be hoped that there will in the
future be more of an organized effort
on the part of engineering societies to-
ward closer relations with the various
institutions of learning, not only in Il-
linois, but elsewhere.

June

P O NX E K

BB3

Inquiries of General Interest

Steam Engine i latum

I have a inch Corliss engine

which takes stean full stroke a large
part of the time. If I change the length
of the knockoff rods to give a lonRcr
cutoff, the engine lags and seems to t
iittle power. What can be done to im-
prove the regulation?

It appears that your engine is cither
overloaded or the valves are not prop-
erly adjusted and should be -

Place the wristplatc in the middle of
travel; adjust the valve connection-
that the steam -*■ 1 1 1 ha\'. nch

lap, and the exha; pen

2 inch. Block the governor 3 H> inch
e the rest, and with the engine turn-
lowfy adjust the knockoff rod
hat the head-end valve will unhook
and the crank-end valve hook will just
touch the knockoff block.

Changing the length of the rod as you
do will only throw the governor out of
adjustment, without helping in any «
and may be the ca a runaway cn-

i with a light load.

Pit h of Grates

M'hy are the grates in a boiler furnace,
pitched toward the back of the furn.i

, H

Grates are inclined toward the briJ
wall for the purp« -Making it easy

lo distribute the fuel and to rake and
•lice thi tends to make the

fuel bed thicker at the back of the fur
nacc where the air tends to pass l
fret

VUn h R

We have a Corliss engine the
the steam vah *hich - lo

such an extent that it if feared it may

ik The rod to the exhaust vah
not vibrate. The rod at the

:nch. 'A
and remedy for the vibration

^ration in the reach rod*

frcqucnt!\ caused

cicnt lubrication of the Mca-

nually moM n first

hour's run I the rod

are carefully calculat gncr

and arc. at a rule. *af
have to do. Th<

'tanging a small weight to the middle
of the length of the rod by a
will alio*- It to twing clear 'loor.

or by a light tru»» on the ui Jcrsld-
the rod 1 far a- « kn

Questions are>
not answered unless
M c or/if j.mied by theu
name and address of the

inquirer. This page t3

for\v>u when stu<
use it

no record of the breaking of one of these
rods from e -^ration.

If the \ibration is severe and attention
ition docs not remedy it,
the matter should be taken up with the
cngr

Dnf. I1 >>.'■ I
ncrcasing lost motion of a valve
i duplex steam pump lengthen the
the piston from
the hc.i

o. w. P.

Increasing the lost motion of a v.i
in :\ :mp lengthens the

ke.

In the duplex pump as the piston ap-
proaches the end of the -

the cxhauv am.

>ton
:. at

laaagc from the steam to

c at
c amount of com-
rcgulating the fl< 'cam

ugh the pasta,

/ / ' tmos

r a

mj armature 80

Jrfrre*: comnu.-i- - ind ^uthev 10 J -

I and
grc

/ ' ./■ J i

//.
When an incandescent lamp hat be
-e a long time, dc* <.* more

-•nt or less tha- when new. and

It passes less current, because the I
mer-

ing :on and *

crea andlep'

decreases more raf in the fT.ament

-o that the current
pater than when -
A 16-candk

new will take ab< of an arr;

after burning HX) hoi.

Bf will be reduced to ab the

current per canJIc. there'
of an amp*. -
an ampere after burning 5O0 hours.

(

out an ovcrloa
•n cngi: itor

■
beln

Co.
M. It to

make the pui: - rata

the mo- normal

to the normal speed of tb
small a

.f the motor -
regulate thi

•
and ihi

Why A D

Why It Jgc al!o»c '

i - '
of a stean-

the conjoi
nt passes and

00 ajaaj aa aa.

894

POWER

June 6, 1911

Baffles for Curtis Turbines

On the vertical Curtis turbine, a baffle
similar to that shown in Fig. 1 is used
between the oil pump and the step bear-
ing. The oil, entering at the left, passes
through a sieve of wire gauze and then
through the threads of the helix A to the

Inlet (

Allan & Son for 16 to be cast in man-
ganese bronze to the same pattern. They
cast one-half of these, and out of the lot
of eight only two remained tight under the
test pressure. They admitted their in-
ability to fill the order and asked to be
allowed to substitute for the manganese
No. 2 Allan metal, an alloy consisting of

Fig. 3 shows one of the finished cast-
ings attached to the ram for testing. The
ram is capable of exerting a pressure of

, I' Pipe
i Outlet
^ --Optional

food J

Wire
Gauze

.-Blowoff
Fig. 1. Baffle Used between

outlet. By screwing the bolt B further
into the helix the latter is driven to the
right and the tortuous path of the oil
shortened. It serves, in effect, as a throt-
tle valve for the oil, and prevents its
sudden escape backward and the conse-
quent sudden dropping of the step in
case of the failure of the oil pressure.
These baffles are ordinarily made of
cast iron, and at a station where they
are used under a pressure of 1500 pounds
per square inch they failed after a year

ft, «

■ J* V i '■" *

r*2*"*|

for Adjustment

Oil Pump and Step Bearing

66 per cent, copper, 25 lead and 9 tin.
Permission was accorded and out of 14
made in one cast 1 1 successfully with-
stood the application of the 3000 pounds.
Five of these are now in use, and it re-
mains to be seen whether they will en-
dure the stress of continued service bet-
ter than the cast-iron prototypes.

Fig. 4. Allan No. 2 Bronze Magnified

45 Diameters and Reduced from

2)4 Inches

10,000 pounds per square inch, and is
used for taking armatures off from and
putting them on to the shafts.

The characteristics of the metal are
given in the accompanying report of a
test by Professor Pryor of samples, one
from the commencement and the other
from the end of the pour.

Fig. 2. Working Drawings of Bronze
Baffle

or two of service. An attempt was made
to cast them in bronze to a pattern made
to conform to Fig. 2, but out of a lot
of 20 only one was found to withstand
the required test pressure of 3000 pounds
per square inch.

An order was then placed with A.

Fig. 3. Baffle Made of No. 2 Allan Metal under Test

June 6, 1911

P O U 1 R

905

F.D BY
■K PRY(
Designation of m»t<

l ta» I 170

i •

4 «

ib.

....

• i

A microphotograph taken by Prof. Wil-
liam Campbell, of Columbia Univer

■ • N 2
d to Show
Grain of Alloy

and reproduced in Fig. -ic den-

and character of the metal. The

difficulty is not so much one 'Rth

as of impcrviousness or lack of pop

and it is expected that the and

tin will furnish the required strength and

a matrix for the lead, which will

the rv

I ngine Shaft Breaki

Quite recently a remarkable accident

irrcd at the Anderson plant of the

Americ.i and Wire Company. The

a rope pulley in diameter and

30 inch. r^clt pu

- inches The

and 18-
inch trains of rolls in the rod mill and
ran at : r minute. The

- :nch pulleys are clamped to the
shaft uith the rims fitting tightly to-

c of about
tweefl the hubs, and it w.i
this space that the shaft broke. On ac-
count of the rims fitting together so

e for the pul-
to drop into the pit and no further
dam.. :he en*:

The •_ ated that, when the

shaft broke, it made a r. ry much

like the ng of one of the pinions

-khich the rolls art. He shut

doun the engine and waited for orders
from the millwright who has charge of
the pinions. The millwright, wondi
at the stop and denying that anything
>ng in his department, gave orders
The cngi: started and

ran almost up to before it was

Jed that the trouble was in the en-
room and an investigation started
■
I :th the ent ttcr

e born lucky than r:

Boiler Expl< «i< >n .it \r\ adia, I .

O:
to drive a I mill no :ia. La.,

oded. killing one man and seriously
injuring a:

Tli- - was of the locon re.

t long. with a barrel 3 feet in
diameter, and mounted or a small

engine. ! was

known, but from all account-
's to have been o\er t ■> .ars old.
hundri cssurc was
known e been ugh
there .•; ccn no s.i

nn atta The

so high

■ prewurc li macnIBed bi •■•. fact thai

The crow

rupture ng len>.

markablc that vc

of the threads on the staybol-
though some of r
.-aten away from an o

nal diameter of eh to that of a

>tc

■

ucre singit 1 »ith .-inc."

These cond -ogether %ith •

that the cr

dence of having been overheated

to the conclusion that the M «as

caul low water.

ttor which wa I after I

alves set '
ing water to the althou.

to the statement of - red

man. he ha r to the

•h the intention of Ml
on when tt -ed.

Th« r had been leaking around

the stay-bolts in tl

ad attemp*
.

bolt- ^h the top of th«

shell and some pieces of rubber be It i k
were used a- *» .> "iuts

tnt lea*

main shaft on

' »« en*

wa* running u?

Wa« r and

ion occurred,

' c
entire hi. ! .

896

POWER

June 6, 1911

Improved Pressure Tubes for
Recording Gages

The action of pressure on a tube or
spring in a gage forces the sides apart,
resulting in a greater radius of curvature,

Fig. 1. Showing Helical Gage Tube

following the motion of the free end.
The principle of the helical form, shown
in Fig. 1, is identical, for it is, in effect,
a series of tubes placed end to end.
When pressure is applied, it causes the
tube to untwist and the free end to move
a distance in proportion to the pressure
applied.

In the improved helical pressure tube

Fig. 2. Bellows Diaph.ragm

for pressure above six pounds, a sim-
ple but substantial support has been de-
vised which supplies an axis of rotation,
resulting in the precise travel of the
pen over a definite predetermined arc.

What the in-
ventor and the manu-
facturer are doing to save
time and money in the en-
gine room and power
house. Engine room
news

This support eliminates many of the
possibilities of accident, as the support
gives the required protection and rug-
gedness.

For minute pressures requiring reading
in inches of water, a series of diaphragms
built up into the form of a bellows are

Fig. 3. Exterior View of the Gage

employed as shown in Fig. 2. Applica-
tion of pressure tends to elongate the
tube, but this motion is converted into a
multiplied lateral motion by means of
restraining coils secured to one side of
the side of the tube. The motion thus
obtained is transmitted through a very
simple and effective device to the pen

in conjunction with the diaphragms. It
contributes to a marked degree to posi-
tive action of the recorder, at the same
time giving strength and freedom from
mechanical disturbance. Although de-
signed for extreme sensitiveness and ac-
curacy, the improved form insures great
rigidity and durability under service.
The exterior view of the gage is shown
in Fig. 3.

These instruments are made by the
Industrial Instrument Company, Foxboro,
Mass.

"Durabla" Gage Glass

There is a demand for a gage glass
that will be equal to the conditions now
found in steam plants, and a gage glass
to fill the new conditions must withstand
high pressures and severe tests.

The Durabla high-pressure gage glass
of the German navy has just made its
appearance in America. This glass is
used by such large plants as the Krupp
iron works and the Hamburg-American
line. The Durabla glass is claimed to
be a peculiar scientific compound all its
own.

As an example of its properties, the
following results of an experiment made
by a large testing station in this country
may be of interest:

The glasses were immersed in oil at
a temperature of 350 degrees Fahren-
heit, and then dropped into water at a
temperature of 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
The experiment was repeated fifteen
times, after which the same glasses were
put into use on high-pressure boilers.

It is. the mixture of different materials
which gives certain glass the power to
resist sudden changes in temperature,
the action of steam, alkalis and impurities
in water. It is the power to resist
chemical action which keeps a glass clear
for a long time under all conditions.
The power to resist sudden changes in

Durabla Gage Glass

arm in such a way as to produce a uni-
form scale throughout the range of the
chart. The feature of support similar
to that employed with helical pressure
tubes is of importance when it is used

temperature reduces the possibility of
accidents to a minimum.

The Durabla gage glass is manufac-
tured by R. G. Von Kokeritz & Co.,
114 Liberty street. New York City.

June 6, 1911

Oil Cooling Devi< Steam

Engines

This device consists of a flexible pipe
entering the engine frame as Ills
with a series of coils lying in the crank
casing partly submerged in lubricating
oil. A current of cool water is circu
through the pipe, after which the >
may be discharged to the heater. The
de\icc is intended for application to in-
closed, self-oiling engines. By regulating
the amount of water flowing through the

At the end of the extension of (
the loop / like projection

made fast to the rear stem of the

ten being brought
jgh the rear head for this purr
The stem is in thi n shown when

The operation of
the appara- ia follou

Closing the stop valve causes the rear

. jtion of
the am *ith

ii. This le the link / when

the valve is in a nea: position

'•-«

r-V

■
and clii 'i a in the liability

of hea'

This d< J.

efc. Foster buildir.. ;kcc.

Automatic Vacuum Breaker

A new design of automat ;um

rratcd I
with. A

r vacuum pump and is capped
with a brass head on the upper en.!

The top of the cap is closed

Mich
the soft-rubber nni; or scat
I) The pressure of the atmosphcr
• on of the vacuum holJ cap

n on the *eat . n running nor-

mally. The c.i, ' Js back at

on the .
The spring // ha-
the extension ant
COd is made fast to the ten
ment J which

on the cap H an.!
in t md acting as a r t to

■

to as to nearly countcrhalant.

can be .i

K !') this
the vacuum the

the
f the -hat

greater %o a« • r on

the - h

and uhen it has the e to

the velocity of the steam rushing through
the stop valve. The force of the blow
with which the ikes the link /

the

the cap

• :ik ft*, now

ng nothing

pul! of th wn,

opening the

on C with it a ng the head A so

that wt

■

seat, cutting tl am off from com-

mut atmotp

cad of
■

I by
the Aui :op Company,

Ian, w

Bicalkj R * I an Ventilai

The

ii
ture for its a.

but

fan does not

n tempera-
a rotating fan

■

A 'ar;

m a

- i .-.

ties an

penl

C m: I

Joing a -

ing

» opened by n

brought

• coma

fat

the •hec! .

898

POWER

June 6, 1911

the building, in no way interfere with
each other.

As no motor is required to operate
this fan, there is no cost for repairs, and
no power bills to pay.

The fan wheel is mounted on ball
bearings running in oil, which require
lubricating once a year.

This fan is suitable for ventilating any
kind of a room or building. It is manu-
factured by the Bicalky Fan Company,
Buffalo, N. Y.

Cyclone Blowoff Valve

The body and yoke of the Cyclone
blowoff valve are made of cast iron and
are connected by steel studs and nuts.
The sheet packing is housed in a recess
in the body neck flange protecting it from
a blowout, and is compressed by a pro-
jection on the yoke flange.

The stem C is made of a bronze com-
position and is cut with a square thread.
The packing is secured and regulated by
the pusher gland D which is operated by
the outside screw nut E above the bridge
of the yoke.

rr r~u

Cyclone Blowoff Valve

The disk and holder are made of non-
corrosive bronze. They have two faces
and are regrindable, reversible and re-
newable. The plunger disk holder G is
of bronze composition, and is milled to
receive the lower collar on the stem. This
holder G, fitting snugly in the bed, is
given a centrifugal motion by the steam
striking the spiral grooves cast around
the sides, when opening and closing the
valve. This motion of the plunger tends

to keep the inside walls of the valve
clean and does not give scale or sedi-
ment a chance to collect. In closing the
valve, the plunger, in passing the inlet
orifice, shuts off all the steam before the
disk reaches the seat and the vacuum
created by the rush of matter through
the valve prevents the lodgment of scale
or silt.

The seat H is made of white bronze
and is reversible, regrindable and renew-
able. The expansion and contraction of
this metal are said to coincide with that
of the iron casting, assuring a tight joint
of the seat and body at all times. Each
valve is tested to 250 pounds hydraulic
pressure.

The valve is manufactured by the
William Powell Company, Cincinnati, O.

Schutte Balanced Trip and
Trip Throttle Valves

These valves are intended as emergency
shut-off or engine stop valves, and may
be operated either by hand direct, with an
electric solenoid and push button or au-
tomatically by the governor attached di-
rect to the engine.

The trip valve is used in the steam-

pipe connection to the engine and is op-
erated independently of the throttle valve.
The trip-throttle valve combines the fea-
tures of a trip and throttle, thereby avoid-
ing the necessity of two valves. It also
has the advantage of being handled daily,
thus assuring its being in operating
condition; and will not, through lack of
attention, or use from time to time, fail
to operate when required.

The trip and throttle valve, shown here-
with, when locked open, can be operated
as a screw-spindle throttle valve. The
screw is carried by a sliding trunnion
that is connected by a lever and, when
latched, forms a rigid connection with the
yoke. The valve is then free to be op-
erated by the handwheel and screw;
should the valve be open or partially so,
it may be instantly closed by tripping the
latch G, either by a pull on the rod H or
the handle L.

The balanced trip-valve locking device,
shown at the right, is locked open by
moving the handle lever until the catch
on the same engages with the lever G
that supports the upright bar. After the
valve is open, steam pressure acts on
the area of the piston F, shown at the
bottom of the valve body, with a con-
tinuous downward force, which causes

Three-trip Device of the Schutte Balance Trip and Trip-throttle Valves

June 6, 1911

the valve to close as soon as the catch
is released. A hand lever M is attached
to the rod H and the same rod extended
to any desired location will permit op-
erating the valve promptly and without
effort.

These valves are manufactured by
Schutte & Koerting Company, Thompson
and Twelf'. Philadelphia. Penn.

'I Ik Short Flexible Stuffing
Box

The Short flc 'uffing bo\ shown

in Fig. 1 is packed ready for the gland.
The spring cases on the outside are fit-
ted with caps of a standard size. When
used for high pressure, or ammonia, the
caps can be removed and oil fed to the
roJ>.

_3&

-/£-

View op the Short

ut through
the center anil if the four

working bars. These bars arc under the
control of four master bars which arc
led at both ends and when the gland
presses against them they slide on the
20-dcgrcc plane toward the center, tak-
ing four other bars together with the
•igs with them, leaving no opening
racaM in which packing can catch.
The n of the swings in relet

he bars is also shown. The bars

POU

are connected to the springs by means
of a rod whic: stantly pulling on

them at an angle When

it is necessary to repack, the gland is
backed off and the springs pull the I
ible parts back to pla

Fig. 3 shous an end view of the gland

Fie. Box

and how it i The

master bars have a flat face against the
packing and set; the bars to which the
spn attached have two flat ■

that are at right angles with the packing

ir-.a

)

■ ■ -

rings. Thi in contact

with the pa so es to form

a circle These bar* come in contact

with the master I th their right-

»ng a fea

ncnt from
the ot | a steam-

tight joint.

parts into an < ?Bng b*'

a P >team chev
shown in I

Th manu* : by W.

I. >ilermak;eri c onvention

M.lll.l

Pleasing and c!abor.t
marked the annual

convention of the Ir
Boiler > Aaaociatior. at

ihlman
w of ificr which i

mineoi commercial and railroad
of the ors.

A number of the leading members of
the association responded, thanking the

of Omaha for their corJ
come, and thev were heartily seconded

• \ \ :

address.

As the nice: . r four

is arranged to have business
sessions only in the morning, tearing
the members free in the afternoon
take advantage of the liberal enter
ment r' invention com-

iture run
l during the »ta
Omaha. und to be a <*

arrangement.

Rcpor- ia comrr

the greater of the busineaa tea*

ccts having to dc
railroa t mean

-ub-

the 'rocess V«

program

as -

and »r "'* about tn<

ic most MX

900

POWER

June 6, 1911

Iowa State N. A. S. E.
Convention

Ottumwa was the scene of the eighth
annual State convention of the National
Association of Stationary Engineers of
Iowa, the dates being May 25, 26 and 27.
The opening exercises included invoca-
tion, by Rev. W. D. Spiker, and addresses
by S. H. Harper, mayor of Ottumwa,
and M. B. Hutchison, president of the
Commercial Association. F. W. Raven,
national secretary, responded on behalf
of the National Association of Stationary
Engineers, after which C. A. Orr ad-
dressed the meeting for the local enter-
tainment committee. E. P. Gould, secre-
tary of the Central States Exhibitors' As-
sociation closed the opening exercises,
with a few remarks on the possibilities
of cooperation between the engineer and
the supply man.

rived from a license law, while others
were called upon for five-minute talks on
subjects of special interest to the mem-
bers of the association.

Sioux City was chosen as the place of
next meeting, the officers for the ensuing
year being elected as follows: D. A.
Coulson, of Sioux City, president; A. E.
Powell, of Burlington, vice-president;
Abner Davis, of Cedar Rapids, secretary,
and George H. Beebe, of Marshalltown,
treasurer.

The following firms had exhibits at
convention hall: American Steam Gauge
and Valve Manufacturing Company, Bos-
ton; Anchor Packing Company, Chicago;
George B. Carpenter Company, Chicago;
Commercial Lubricating Company, Phila-
delphia; Crandall Packing Company, Pal-
myra, N. Y. ; Dearborn Drug and Chem-
ical. Works, Chicago; Fisher Governor
Company, Marshalltown, la.; Garlock

Ottumwa, la.; Trapp Pressure Control
Company, Sioux City, la.; Under- Feed
Stoker Company of America, Chicago,
and Viscosity Oil Company, Chicago.

Special Charter for Museum
of Safety

A special charter has just been granted
to the American Museum of Safety by
the legislature of the State of New York,
thus putting it in the same class with
the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the
Museum of Natural History.

Among the trustees of the museum are
E. H. Gary, Philip T. Dodge, James
Speyer, Thomas Lynch, Arthur Williams,
Edson S. Lott, Frederick L. Hoffman,
George F. Kunz, Charles Kirchhoff, T. C.
Martin, Charles A. Doremus, Louis L.
Seaman, Frederick R. Hutton, William H.
Tolman.

The exhibits at the museum include

State Convention Group at Ottumwa, Iowa

An illustrated lecture on "Petroleum —
Its Products and their Manufacture," was
given by W. A. Converse, of the Dear-
born Drug and Chemical Company, and
H. H. Dewey, of the General Electric
Company, delivered an interesting talk
on "Alternating Current Machinery."

The social features were well arranged
and ample in every particular and cul-
minated in a banquet given at the Hotel
Ballingall, with Mayor Harper as toast-
master. One hundred and twenty dele-
gates, their wives and visitors, sat down
to the tables and partook of the full
course dinner provided, after which F. W.
Raven spoke on "The Objects of this As-
sociation." E. J. Doolittle, of Sioux
City, was then called upon for some re-
marks in regard to the benefits to be de-

Packing Company, Palmyra, N. Y.;
Greene, Tweed & Co., New York; Hawk-
Eye Compound Company, Chicago; Hills-
McCanna Company, Chicago; Hulson
Grate Company, Keokuk, la.; Jenkins
Brothers, New York; H. W. Johns-Man-
ville Company, Milwaukee; Lunken-
heimer Company, Cincinnati; Lyons
Boiler Works, De Pere, Wis.; McMaster-
Carr Supply Company, Chicago; Murray
Iron Works, Burlington, la.; National
Engineer, Chicago; Osborne High-Pres-
sure Joint and Valve Company, Chicago;
Ottumwa Iron Works, Ottumwa, la.;
Penn Oil and Supply Company, Oil City,
Penn.; Power, New York; Practical En-
gineer, Chicago; The S. C. Regulator
Company, Fostoria, O.; Standard Oil
Company, New York; Stoersel Oil Works,

protective devices for the safeguarding
of human life in almost every field of
lator, from the turning of a grindstone to
the moving of a freight train. The col-
lections are of interest even to the ordi-
nary observer, and of great value to the
manufacturer, for, at present, annually,
in the United States, over 500,000 men
are wiped out from the ranks of the wage
earners.

A Correction

On page 762 of Power for May 16,
bottom of third column, the 90-inch boil-
ers under discussion in Mr. Dean's arti-
cle are credited with having tubes 18
feet long. The tubes are 20 feet long
and this figure should have been given
in the table.

June o. 1911

N. A. 8. 1.. to Meet at
Cincinnati

The Cincinnati members are planning
to make the convention of the National
Association of Stationary Engineers, to
be held in that city in September r
the best in the history of the organ
tion. The headquarters' hotel will be the
Sinton and the meetings will be held
at the Music Hall, in one wing of which
the Exhibit ition will have

lunch will be served in the
buildinR to preclude the necessity of go-
ing back and forth between the hall and
the hotel at noontin.

The program as tentatively laid out is

as foil'

On Monday evening a reception at the
ton, followed by dancing.
On Tuesday the formal opening of the
convention with addresses by the gov-
ernor and mayor.

Wednesday the \ ■rill be the

of the Lunkcnhcimcr Company
will take them to the Government
dam at Fernbank on the steamer "Island
en" and from there to Coney Island
BR a barbecue will be held.
B Tuesday and Thursday even
there will be entertainments at i
Hall, one under the at of the

local committee and one under the
pices of the Exhibin wriation.

and on ning a ball, also at the

MttSiC Hall-

has been made for

the entertainment of the ladies whi'.

CO! sstun.

PERSON VL

fornu th the

ap-

•cd manager of the branch hou>c of

the Mine and Smelter »mpany

alt Lake J I ftah.

Messrs. Lucke lad « >phuls have *
a partnership and have opened an i
at *> Chur for

the pra 'f engineering COOIM

tallation. operation and main-
tenance r,f br and

Dftking plants and other mam •
ing

ent of heating at the

and

| ■
cnt n with tt

itman and I

the firm name <>f Hern,
panv. enr and (

healing and ventllsl ''carl

mrcet. Bov " itfk

ri:oon and H. W »*

Comp.i at At-

general wholesale and retail electrical-
supply business and will represent a
rumber of manufacturers of pou
tion equipment. Mr. Burgoon was former-
ly chief engineer of th. al building,
Chicago; and I was
sociated with the Westinghouse !
and Manufacturing Company as an elcc-
il engineer.

Fay Woodman-.. I J >n and

E. t ons announce their associa-

tion under the firm name of Woodman

Incorporated.
..itional Bank building. Chica
. Woodman see tot nine years has
xen associated with Sargent & Lu
as electrical engineer. C. J -son

for thir* las been in charge of

the power-plant department and steam-
heating department of the ikee
Electric Railway and Light Company, in-
cluding during tl iod consulting
work in St. Louis and other cities where
the North American Compar. in-
E. O is for twenty-three
rs has been as- I with the Gen-
eral Electric Company in its engineering
and sales depanmer-

It is the porposc of this firm to act
in a consulting an rig capacity

in all branches of mechanical and elec-
trical ei including

■
tions. hydroelectric equipments, trans
sion lines, electrical d
and mechanical re'

pr< ; and appraisals will be made

and particular attention will also

NKW PUBLICATIONS

TH:

shed

the Tccht !>ing Com-

■

and - .en pages

inches; r. and

loth, 1».; leather.

ntainlng much
valuable data ■ .rrcnt pi

: at
the the

i! cquir
eral k>

•
Juring •

shown where the subject of lettering is

■.important.
The book can be - recom-

mended to afll who would become effi-
t in the p: I subjc

Notes on " By

Hor

-hough this booklet is but an intro-
duction to mechan

be v and thorough for that •

on. Above all. it should not be
rational in dealing with pi

H be left large:
though the book is ir for spc

The author clai attern j

the Rcinha-
. ■

throughout thing but

the Rcinha Briefy, the book

lore careful re\ision than it has
so far

Gardner

Heath

par

■ •

■

Thoma-

man. 1'
Publishing Com pa i -ton. Pc

174 illustrations, nu
Pru et.

This is the fourth edition of Professor
manual dca

> the mech.t uch

n» has
0 amplified and * upto^

The
and sp

the manufacture of water ga». burn-
of natural r.a
furnace gas a;

tion nv ''Hs.

analysis of iron a
aspha

om-
sold

c book for any

Loo

-u!J not hi

oth<r

Corvp . i

C*'

«lue and enha

the
. to

tatter's ssstMa

902

POWER

June 6, 1911

subject. It is our opinion that to be
benefited by this book, it is first neces-
sary to have a considerable understand-
ing of algebra; more of an understand-
ing, perhaps, than would be needed to
make use of logarithms.

Granting that the user has the neces-
sary familiarity with algebra, this book
fulfils its purpose admirably. Inter-
spersed throughout are illustrative prob-
lems and the answers thereto. These
add greatly to the worth of the book.

reference book for practising engineers
whose catholicity of ready knowledge
has been impaired by specialization.

Applied Thermodynamics for Engi-
neers. By William D. Ennis. Pub-
lished by D. Van Nostrand Company,
New York, 1910. Cloth; 450 pages,
6^x9 • inches; 316 illustrations.
Price, S4.50.
Nothing could better proclaim Pro-
fessor Ennis' natural genius for the
systematic exposition of scientific prin-
ciples than this work. It is at once the
most thorough, most lucid and simplest
treatise on the subject that the reviewer
has seen. There are numerous minor
defects, of course; the days of miracles
are long past. 'On page 7, for example,
it would have been advisable to explain
that the symbol for heat received is posi-
tive and that for heat rejected negative,
in the general formula for heat transfer;
on page 19, air is referred to as a gas and
gases are said to "follow" Boyle's law;
on page 20, Charles is properly given
credit with Gay-Lussac for the law:
PV

= constant

but nothing is said of how he derived
it; on page 33 and elsewhere, specific
heats are represented "in proper units"
by the unusual symbols k and I and the
letter R is given both the correct value
of 53.36 (for air) and the inconsistent
one of 53.36 -4- 778, in conformity with
the statements on page 37 that "no at-
tention is paid to the ratio 778 as af-
fecting the numerical values of constants
in formulas involving both heat and
work" and "the student should discern
whether heat units or foot-pounds are
intended." This is slovenly and cannot
fail to blunt the student's regard for ac-
curacy; it is the most serious lapse in
the book.

It will be apparent from the foregoing
that the flaws are not glaring; nearly all
of them, in fact, are negligible in im-
portance.

The book is very broad in scope. All
known cycles are described and thor-
oughly analyzed (and the Rankine and
Clausius cycles are not confused as is
usually done in textbooks) ; the thermo-
dynamics of all heat-converting engines,
both positive and negative, are treated,
and the relations between the abstract
science and the actual conversion ma-
chines are very clearly presented. The
book differs from most textbooks in be-
ing both an excellent tool for the col-
lege professor and a highly satisfactory

Steam Turbines. By Joseph Wickham
Roe, M. E. Published by McGraw-
Hill Book Company, New York,
1911. Cloth; 143 pages; illustrated.
Price, $2.
The author, who is assistant professor
of mechanical engineering at the Shef-
field Scientific School, Yale University,
has produced an excellent little work
adapted to the needs of the engineer who
wishes to inform himself on the princi-
ples and general design of turbines as
well as for a textbook for a short course
upon the subject. He who has wondered
what all the velocity diagrams and veloc-
ity-pressure schemes so often published
in connection with turbine discussions
mean will find them explained here in
all simplicity, requiring the possession
of only a little elementary trigonometry
for their comprehension. Each division
of the subject is followed by a list of
practical examples the solution of which
requires the application of the principles
which have been explained and the use
of the formulas deduced, and a list of
references to other works for those who
wish to pursue that phase of the sub-
ject further.

The first chapter is devoted to the ex-
planation of the energy in a jet. The
consideration of the velocity derivable
could have been improved by giving some
of the simple formulas for the energy
derivable from a pound of steam,
which are precise within the limits of
precision of the steam tables which are
necessary for the working of the approxi-
mate formula which he gives.

The second chapter deals with the
utilization of the kinetic energy in steam
and shows by means of the velocity dia-
gram how this energy is absorbed by the
wheel. The method of finding the tra-
jectory of the steam is also explained.
About 30 pages are then devoted to "Cal-
culations of Turbine Blading." »

Under the title of "Mechanical Prob-
lems," the author takes up centrifugal
strains but says little or nothing of
critical speeds and balancing. Bearings
and governing are treated in this section.
Chapter V is hardly a "Comparison of
Types," but a description of the Curtis
vertical, Terry, Kerr. Rateau, Zoelly and
Allis-Chalmers machines, and of the
Rateau regenerator and mixed-flow tur-
bine.

The effect of superheat and vacuum,
but not of pressure, is considered in the
next chapter, which contains also a de-
scription of the Parsons augmentor. The
concluding chapter deals with "The Posi-
tion and Field of the Steam Turbine,"
giving the formula for potential efficiency
and tables of test results and potential
efficiencies of engines and turbines. The
advantages and disadvantages of the tur-

bine for various lines of service are con-
sidered and the fact pointed out that up
to February, 1911, the sales of the three
foremost manufacturers of large tur-
bines in the United States had aggre-
gated 4,100,000 kilowatts. Scarcely a
dozen of the machines are over a dozen
years old and the majority have been
built within the last five years. The vol-
ume concludes with a heat-entropy chart
and a summary of the bibliography of
the subject.

BOOKS RECEIVED

Good Engineering Literature. By Har-
wood Frost. Chicago Book Company,
Chicago, 111. Cloth; 422 pages, 5x7^
inches; indexed. Price, $1.

Power. By Charles E. Lucke, PH. D.
The Columbia University Press, New
York. Cloth; 316 pages, 5)4x7^4
inches; 223 illustrations; indexed.
Price, S2.

Monoplanes and Biplanes. By Grover
Cleveland Loening. Munn & Co.,
New York. Cloth; 331 pages, 5'ix8
inches; 278 illustrations; indexed.
Price, $2.50.

Vacuum Cleaning. By Thomas D. Perry.
The American School Board Journal,
Milwaukee, Wis. Paper cover; 44
pages, 4^x6T4 inches; illustrated.
Price, 15 cents.

Steam Turbines. By Joseph W. Roe.
McGraw-Hill Book Company, New
York. Cloth; 136 pages, 6x9 inches;
77 illustrations; tables and plate;
indexed. Price, S2.

Seven Follies of Science. By John
Phin. D. Van Nostrand Company,
New York. Cloth; 231 pages, 5x7)4
inches; second edition; 34 illustra-
tions; indexed. Price, $1.25.

Hydro-Electric Practice. By H. A. E. C.
von Schon. J. B. Lippincott Com-
pany, Philadelphia, Penn. Second
edition; cloth; 383 pages, 6^x914
inches; 140 illustrations. Price, $6.

Storage Battery Engineering. By
Lamar Lyndon. McGraw-Hill Book
Company, New York. Third edition;
cloth; 601 pages, 534x9 inches; 298
illustrations; tables; indexed. Price,
$4.

Electric Crane Construction. By
Claude W. Hill. J. B. Lippincott
Company, Philadelphia, Penn. Cloth;
313 pages, 6x9 inches; 366 illustra-
tions; 23 tables; plates; indexed.
Price, $8.

A Treatise on Transformers. By Her-
mann Bohle and David Robertson.
J. B. Lippincott Company, Phila-
delphia, Penn. Cloth; 356 pages,
6x9 inches; 332 illustrations; 18
plates; tables; indexed. Price, $7.50.

NEW lORK, JUNE 13, 1"11

J i ST w h it di •• tnd •••' il ;- •• n"t ate

•i..n that fa the minds

men <>t i nd if tl fini-

■vhirh ha- D had only l» :ij>iKd

rould I most intei

A '■ ined

nid filling it." and
this iroold ftppi II sufficient.

Tin speaker in Uhxsta ;iti<»ti

th.it tin question of m<
age- layman to constitute th«
ohitely inmi md that

his duty in men a mam*

CM than tin
\vh". tin.

l.ii million d ompai

tin

ill but fl

:i .1 <|l:

n. .tin:

>.i\**> as

neat |oa]

■

skill and '► H la. I th

: ' : ; . •'■

mbordin il

kn t what to

loma fi

\\ 1 -

lihr.irv of
all tl

All •

•

n tin •
I upon tin

• I

.n read tl

tin li:

time if th ;nt

I |*ixs:

had

a sneers

wer pJ

in ! '•

904

POWER

June 13, 1911

Horsepower of a Fan Blower

A problem frequently met with is that
of finding the horsepower of a fan blower
when the diameter of the rotor, width
of vanes at the tip, etc., are known. This
typical problem may be solved only when
the necessary data embodied in the "etc."
are known; otherwise it may be readily
shown that two fans, having the same
inlet and outlet diameters, the same width
of blades, revolving at the same rate of
speed and delivering the same volume of
free air per unit of time, may produce
widely differing pressures. Thus, with
the lower pressure, the air horsepower
would be almost negligible, while with
the higher pressure, which might be an
extreme for the class of fan considered,
the air horsepower, and consequently the
shaft horsepower, would be matters of
prime importance. This discrepancy is

By Albert E. Guy

The results of some tests
showing the influence which
the form of the vanes has
upon the horsepower and
the head produced. Form-
ulas are given showing the
approximate velocity of flow
and horsepower developed.

specified speed. To determine the capa-
city of the fan and to obtain the curve
showing the relation of volume to head,

Fig. 1. Impellers Used Showing Curvature of Vanes

due simply to the fact that in either case
the vanes, although of the same width,
must be designed to suit the required con-
ditions of pressure.

About two years ago the writer, to
show the direct applicability of centrifu-
gal-pump formulas to the design of fan
blowers and to prove that a complete line
of standard apparatus could be designed
without making preliminary and special
experiments for obtaining so called coeffi-
cients of correction, chose two extreme
sets of conditions and designed special
apparatus to meet them.

It was proposed in one case to fur-
nish 7000 cubic feet of free air per min-
ute at a static pressure of 22 inches of
water, and in the other, 5250 cubic feet
of air per minute at a pressure of 5 inches
of water, the speed being 3600 revolu-
tions per minute in both instances. A
spiral form of casing was designed, and
an impeller fitted into it, each set of con-
ditions being met by a special impeller;
but to add to the difficulties and to render
the proofs more conclusive, the inlet and
outlet diameters, and the width of the
vanes, were kept the same for the two
impellers. Fig. 1 shows the principal
dimensions and forms of the impellers.

When completed, the apparatus was
connected directly to a steam turbine and
the high-pressure impeller driven at the

the speed was kept constant while the
volume delivered was progressively in-
creased by changing the nozzle areas at
the end of the discharge pipe. The head
was recorded simultaneously with the

The steam and exhaust pressures at
the turbine were recorded for each point
of the curve, not for the purpose of as-
certaining the steam consumption, but in
order that later on, the blower being dis-
connected and replaced by a prony brake,
the same steam and exhaust conditions
could be reproduced at the proper speed
and the corresponding brake horsepower
recorded. With the latter data the effi-
ciency of the apparatus was obtained and
is represented by curves covering the
useful range of the impeller.

The low-pressure impeller was tried
next, but on account of the small amount
of power required to drive it and the
unsuitability of the turbine for the pur-
pose of measuring that power, it was not
possible to ascertain the efficiency with
sufficient accuracy to permit representa-
tion by curves, as was done with the
first impeller. However, it was observed
that for the point aimed at in the de-
sign, the efficiency was not less than 60
per cent.

The curves A to H in Fig. 2 are for the
high-pressure impeller and curves K, L,
M are for the low-pressure impeller. It
is apparent that neither impeller was
suitable for the requirements of .ordinary
work. The usual requirements are that
a practically constant head be maintained
for a wide range of volume variation. In
the present case such a condition could
have been met only by varying the speed,
and the turbine was not well adapted for
such a speed variation.

However, a comparison of the capa-
cities of these two fans is interesting. At
3600 revolutions per minute 7000 cubic
feet of free air were delivered against

1000

2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000
Cubic Feet of Free Air per Minu+e

0
0

PowEH

Fig. 2. Characteristics of the Two Impellers Tested

volume to which it corresponded. Vari-
ous speeds above and below that speci-
fied were tried in the same way, the re-
sults being shown by the series of curves
given in Fig. 2.

a head of 21.8 inches of water by the
high-pressure fan, while the same quan-
tity was delivered against a head of 1.6
inches of water by the low-pressure fan.
The air horsepowers were nearly pro-

June 13, 1911

<*,iS

portional to the or in the ratio of

to 1. At the same and for

a volume ol cubic feet of free air

p.r minute, the brake-horsepower ratio
would be about 4.5 to I.

The impellers illustrated by Fig. 1
not recommended for practical work. The

J of 3600 revolutions per minu:
too low for the high Her,

or, the latter*! diameter is too small for

the reversed form
of vane is not desirable, as it entails a
tl frictional loss, and wlii!e it is theo-
retically correct for turbine work,
not so for pumping purposes. Tl

<600 revolutio: minute is far

too high for the lou -pressure impeller;
the vanes are consequently too leng and
entail a frictional loss out of proportion
to the head workrd i

t r

■ «■■!«■■■— i I w* '

Tl;. I impellers, howc\cr.

to demonstrate the ; ttoa as in-

tended and further illi. is fact that

-siblc to determine the horse-
power required for a given blower, when
only the diameter, width of blades and
the number of n per minute

are known. It .ilso

: and outlet ■•
the equation of the and the cqua-

arcas of passage from the
f the i-
U i cert. i

standard machines n is p<>ss - the

manufacturer to establish I ap-

• imatc ' are

in-
■

the fan takes the air from the
and dc and

part

ure tic ap; the ap

par.i air ba at a

•cnt
nee :

rltot anoT pre**'

a gla>
! of thr

Ibe ;

low

infti: c gage

should '

one-sixth the diameter and turned so that

the

the . If the tube is not so pi.

:hc 11 not be c

ace the
ii the h umns of

ubeshowsthc velo^
the flow in tlu Discon:

the Pilot tube from the glass gage
and measuring the hight r

will indicate I -sure head

against which the air tgsfa

connecting the Pitot tube and discon:

will show, by the
difference in the hights of the water col-
umns, the total 1 the
fan. This total head <>sed of the
c head m< the pressure

viown when
the two tubes are used togett

Call'tg the velocity of flow ■ feet per
second, the velocity head h inches of
water, and the static pressure head //
inches of water.

whi

r Pressure in pounds per square

fo.
d M'ciKht. in pounds, of 01
• of free air at
Fahrcrv
406.7 Inches of water -ponding

:itmosp> cssurc

Knowing the inside diameter /). in
incK ume

r secor,

But this air is at a pressure // and the

•un-

• ;> =

The

04 of v tghs 6.'

ials

•

N
i

As s jt

abou
nor-

appro* imar >r*epo«cr nec-

e»»* .n the I Jmg

the gag. on-

««*r- en the

low of air is unif.

The gage and p

that of the

te, for which reason it is prrferable
to use a U-tube of rather small dun

The formulas tended

for approximate work onl density

of the air depends so much upon the
temperature that the method would not
apply to hot-blast work, for instance

ons should also be made for I
tude and hi; .per

ned to suit a g
illation, the formula as modified
ild be found \cr\ useful.

■»

I> IB Welded I

In a r scntcd at the May mc

of the Iron and Steel Institute

•m

• ■

tad f»

906

POWER

June 13, 1911

other an arc weld, the observations of
which serve to substantiate the stand
taken by many consulting engineers in
steadfastly refusing to employ welded
flanges.

A welded pipe flange may be obviously
mechanically imperfect, or it may be ap-

'iss*'

« *

'»'*•■ >

m »*', *»
.« *

»*> .

■ •• *

* «? % *

.* * * *

• *

#
*

I *

Y. "*

* *

= a *

**.* *

_ *

. * * A

> *

• 4*'

Fig 3, Slag Along Track of Weld

Fig. 4. Arc-welded Flange after Being
Sawed and Roughly Filed

Fig. 5. Arc-welded Flange Showing
Demarcations

parently perfect and capable of with-
standing hydraulic-pressure tests. In the
latter condition ignorance as to its in-
ternal condition produces a peace of
mind which knowledge is liable to de-
stroy.

Fig. 1 shows the segment of a wrought-

iron flange nominally welded to a mild-
steel pipe by the coke-fire process. As
shown, it has been stripped away by the
use of a drifting tool, and as there is no
fusion of the metal it is only nominally
welded. Fig. 2 shows another portion
of the segment in which the pipe has
not been mechanically forced away from
the flange. The clear demarcation of the
area shows that there has been no
fusion of the metal. Fig. 3 shows, at*
one hundred magnifications, an accumu-
lation of slag in the form of silicate along
the track of the weld.

A segment of an arc-welded flange on
a steel pipe is shown in Fig. 4, just as
it had been sawed and roughly filed. It
will be noted that the weld is only partial,
over one-third of the area of junction
having an air space. This pipe would
probably have passed a reasonable
hydraulic test and its defects would have
been discovered only in service.

Fig. 5 represents the same view of the
segment after polishing and etching. The
excessive action of the corroding medium
upon the area on which the arc has
played, and the abrupt termination of
these areas, are clearly shown.

Determining the Most Econo-
mical Vacuum

By Thomas H. Brockman

Assume a vacuum of 28 inches in the
condenser. If this is reduced to 24 inches
there v/ill be a difference of some 40
degrees in the temperature of the hot-
well. If this difference could be added
to the temperature of the feed water it
would mean a saving of about 3I/> per
cent, in the amount of fuel required to
evaporate the same quantity of water.

Reducing the vacuum reduces the mean
effective pressure in the cylinder and in-
creases the temperature of the feed water.
One means a loss and the other a gain.
At what point do gain and loss so bal-
ance that an increase or decrease of
the vacuum means loss? This question
appeared in Power a while back. In my
spare moments I have been endeavoring
to figure out what it all meant. The re-
sult shows the relation that exists be-
tween the temperature of the steam and
the pressure.

Assume an indicator diagram as shown

in Fig. 1 with the following:

Pi = 91 pounds absolute;

Vi= 1, Vs = 4, Vs = 0.5, Vc = 0.04;

r= Ratio of stroke to cutoff = 4;

re = Ratio of volume at exhaust

closure to clearance volume

= ** = 12.5; -

0.04

Px — Some vacuum to be assumed ;

P?/ = Some vacuum to be assumed.
Then, the mean effective pressure of the
indicator diagram equals

/P1Vl (1 +log.r)-PxV4 — P1Vc — Px\

v (V* - vt) log- r /

(V2 - Vc)

Now, suppose that the vacuum has
been reduced to Py. Then the per cent,
loss due to the increased pressure in
the condenser will be,

/P, V1 (1 + log. r) - PXV4 - Px Vc - Px\
l(V2-V4)hg.rc-(P1V1(i-{-lcg.r)—)
\PyV4 —P.Vc — Py (V2 — V4) log, r )/

(P1V1 {x-hlog.r) — PxV4 — P1Vc-\
V Px (V2 — Vd log. tc )

which reduces to,

4.725 Px — 4-7^5 Py . . , t

h— = per cent, loss of mean

213.26 — 4.725 Px

effective pressure (1)

If H= total heat in the steam at 91

pounds, and tx = temperature of steam

k— -v,— -x

VsT

■v,

1 Power

Fig. 1

corresponding to pressure Px, ty = tem-
perature of steam corresponding to pres-
sure Py, and assuming that the tempera-
ture of the feed is the same as the tem-
perature of the hotwell, the per cent,
gain of fuel required to evaporate the
same amount of water will be,

H — (tx — 32) — (H — (ty - 32)
H-(tx- 32)

1 pound, H = 1113.1, tx = 102;

If Px

therefore,

102

1043

per cent, gain in fuel (2)

2.4
2.3
2.2
2.1
2 0
1.9
1.8
1.7

" 1.6
1.5
1.4
1.3

. 1.2
1.1
1.0
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3.

\ -

fc8

\r-

-t>/

;■

V-o

.7
1 /

v/~

[■*

*>A

v*/

a\^

3 2 I
Per Cent. Loss

12 3 4

Per Cent. Gain

Fig. 2

By choosing values for Pv above and
below 1 pound absolute in (1) and (2),
the curves (A) and (B) in Fig. 2 were
drawn. It was found by using two or
three values for Px that the curve (A)
remained a straight line, while (B) only
shifted to the right or left as Px was
increased or decreased. It will be seen

June 13, 1911

007

by referring to Fig. 2 that there are
two pressures at which the loss and gain
are equal, at 1 pound and at 2.11 pounds.
Any pressure below 1 pound means a
loss and any pressure above 2.11 pounds
means a loss. Therefore, halfway be-
tween these two poi-
where Iom and gain so balance that any
increase or decrease of pressure means
a loss. This is shown by the two curves
that pass through 1.56 pounds. They
were platted by taking Px equals I
and choosing values of Py above and
below P

Curves (A' and < li > show at a glance
between what . -es a vacuum

be maintained without a loss. Of coi.
the forccninc is theoretical. The tem-
perature of the hotwcll is never the tem-
perature of the feed water, but a few

:ve this relation.

\\ ive Motors and Compression

"T e bald-head section. I I

segregated these specimens for the pur-
; i of collecting data on the growth of
hair on J the "Old Man" to a

companion, as he swung open the door
of our "box stall" one pleasant winter
day. The door swung back as he passed
on and it was not noticed that someone
had entered, until, with a pleasant
Hampshire drawl, the visitor sa:

"I suppose that is the way John \
c\rr<-'^ "iir cf-

to keep on the pay roll. Well
soils will r. both hair and brains

at the same time." [1 and

I trim, well-dressed figure cut

face, alert glance and half satirical smile
looked good to all After shaking

hands all around, exchanging the Bl
mid- Kfcctinns and

Mis attention was monopolized by
the l>can. uliu .i!*a\s takes upon !.
self offhand all qu , fi-

nancial, social and ethical. He elli
cr fellow by starting in
and keeps at it until all of tl
time, as well as the listener
I

•| im that Professoi
t ■: by ».i en most of

the uind <>iit of the sails of the noncom-
;

ind DwtltJ

%ays in
issu> and again in that

ism that" Ju«t here MM Bl «he
counter girls ann< that a gentle-

man was »«jt<nc in the library to see the

old friend of mine at

lant

to me and said a* ll

Power

doubtless have not forgotten what I told
>ou of boyhood cxper: cars ago at

the foot of Gas House road. One of our
rs was ma jading a 50-gallon

tar barrel with about 400 pounds of
.r and running jver

a si J around a drum fastened to

the overhead timbers of the coal sh.

'-. counterweight made by filling a
bag with sard was fa to the end

of the rope which passed over the drum.
On one end of the drum shaft there was
a crank from which a connecting rod
led to the handle of a twin-cylinder force
pump. The whole apparatus was like
this ie talked along, he rapidly

sketched a ; if his boyhood ach. .

ment in the wave-motor line.

"The pump was submerged for the
purpose of making it rcliab: air

leaks in tlu n pipe could inter

with the flow of water to the cylinders,
nor could air collect in the clearance
spaces anJ r out.

ny movement whatever of the pump
ns for. • r up through

complex, and the same provision is r.
for all sons of movement of the floats
-h furn power that I had, only

are more elabor.

plained the o; to

and gave me some of the details. He
said the floats »cigh a
pou Jt the six floats would.

•

an ou!
of 120 No

me any stock and I came away men'
computing ho - could be

Torn the fall of six 3000-pound
floats through a distance of two

i a mir.
that tlu up was that

of falling from the hight to w!
ua\ I cor.. riat the

claim of 12»> horsepo ma-

chine was about 20t> higher

than a reliable dynamometer would reg-
-."
Ji: the dean returned and »M be

was about to start in again at the point

-aid to f]

! [ i]

Hoy hcm

the dischar
later

J be drawn to
run a small

■

and fall of th

•• ■

taj or i'

f a
the
of
a spa

pun-, »ould J

' about

the machine h

both o* <*n.

Vgins '
aw docs not a

steam and the ! duction* from

in has be

the

i
may not be economic >

id ftO lo' , I'

engine* ■

tc»t erefci arrurvent t° ciff '

908

POWER

June 13, 1911

while not one of all the talented and edu-
cated gentlemen who believe otherwise
has ever made even laboratory experi-
ments, nor do I think they ever will.

"Something along this line may be
done by the United States Geological

Survey, but by any educational institu-
tion now flooding the country with sheep-
skin mechanical engineers, Nit.

"I am sorry I cannot stay the rest of
the afternoon and tell you of several

but I must leave you for today." And
without giving the dean, who had been
on nettles all the while Sawyer was talk-
ing, time to put in a word, he winked to
Rogers as he buttoned his overcoat and,

interesting little experiences in this line, saying good-by, went to the elevator.

Overcoming a Pound in the Cylinder

The power equipment of a newly
erected electric-railway generating sta-
tion included a cross-compound con-
densing Corliss engine. About a week
after .his engine had been put in com-
mission for regular service, a peculiar
pound was noticed, but could not at first
be located in any particular part of the
machine. The pound was indistinct and
scarcely noticeable at the beginning, but
became more and more pronounced as
the days passed. The various adjust-
ments of crossheads, wrist- and crank-
pin brasses, main bearings, etc., having
all been carefully attended to without
producing any mitigating effect, the engi-
neer finally decided to refer the trouble
to the firm which supplied the engine. The
manufacturers, accordingly, despatched
the designer of the engine, together with
a machinist and the engineering sales-
man, to look into the matter. By the
time this trio appeared upon the scene,
the pound had so increased as to leave
no doubt that its origin was somewhere
on the high-pressure side of the engine,
with the indications pointing strongly to
the cylinder end of the structure.

After pottering around for some time,
the coterie of experts concluded that
the source of the trouble lay in the con-
nection between the piston rod and the
crosshead. The rod was accordingly
disconnected, the operation involving
much time and labor, owing to peculiar-
ities of construction, and then the parts
were carefully put together again. How-
ever, when the engine was started again
the pound was just as prominent as
before. As this unit was the only one
available for service at the time, it was
imperative that it run until the next day,
when the experts again went at it. This
time they removed the caps from the
main bearings, took out the quarter boxes
and, finding nothing wrong, put them
back again and started up, but with the
same result. This procedure went on for
several days, the experts tinkering first
with one part and then with another,
taking out the piston follower and pack-
ing rings and putting them back again;
tightening every bearing, etc., but with-
out any abatement of the pound which,
on the contrary, continued to increase.

The high-pressure cylinder, which had
a diameter of 24 inches, contained a
steel liner, as shown in Fig. 1. It was
claimed that this liner, which was \]4
inches thick, had been set in the mold and
the cylinder barrel cast around it, the

By A. J. Dixon

A pound caused by a loose
liner in the high- pressure
cylinder was stopped by
placing setscrews between
the end of the liner and the
cylinder head, thus keeping
the former in place.

steel thus becoming fused with the molten
cast iron. The engineer advanced the
supposition that this liner was probably
the cause of all the trouble. The de-
signer and his associates declared this
to be utterly impossible, stating with
much emphasis that inasmuch as the
steel iiner was not separate from the
iron cylinder barrel it could not be the
cause of the disturbance, as the mere

fcJpj

i-iP

«7

^-j

n - I*

Fie. 1. Section through Cylinder be-
fore Making Repair

fact of it becoming loose would mean a
broken cylinder.

Nevertheless, the engineer steadfastly
maintained that as every other part of
the machine, in which a pound of this
nature might possibly originate, had been
inspected and nothing had been found

Fig. 2. Cylinder Showing Setscrews
Holding Liner

amiss, the only logical thing to do was
to inspect the liner.

As the pound continued to increase at
an alarming rate, keeping pace with
the strokes of the piston with oc-

casional muffled lapses as it apparently
missed a stroke, the engineer finally con-
cluded to take the matter into his own
hands. Accordingly, he removed the
cylinder head, ran out a timber with a
screw jack behind it, between the edge
of the bushing and the wall of the room,
tightened up on the jack, and, as antici-
pated, the liner was found to be loose.
Consternation reigned for a moment
among the engine company's representa-
tives, for it appeared at first that the
only way to restore the engine to good
order was to put on a new cylinder. The
designer soon recovered his equilibrium,
however, and began to devise plans for
a serviceable repair with the least pos-
sible expense and delay. It was finally
decided to patch the cylinder as shown in
Fig. 2.

The edge of the liner was drilled at four
equidistant points, the holes threaded by
\s-inch standard taps, and case-hardened
setscrews secured with locknuts, were in-
serted as shown. The liner was forced
firmly against the shoulder at the crank
end of the cylinder, and then the set-
screws were so adjusted that their heads
bore solidly against the face of the cyl-
inder head, at the same time permitting
steam-tight contact in the ground joint
between the head and the cylinder. This
was a rather delicate adjustment and
necessitated a dozen or more removals
and replacings of the cylinder head be-
fore completion.

The engine continued in service and
ran fairly well with this arrangement,
but the engineer had a tedious job on his
hands every Saturday night readjusting
the setscrews after the previous week's
run, for the thrust on the liner at each
return stroke of the piston naturally
tended to ram the screw heads hard
against the cylinder head, wearing re-
cesses in the comparatively soft metal
and permitting a slight shuttling of the
liner and the reappearance of the original
pound.

A 16-horsepower internal-combustion
motor is being tried for underground
traction in the Langlaagte Deep mine,
Transvaal. A special form of exhaust
condenser is used, in which part of the
cooling water is used to condense the
products of the explosion, so that the
vitiation of the air is stated to be less
than would be the case if the many men
required to deal with the load were at
work.

June 13. 1911

W I K

Test of a High-Duty Pumping Engine

The supply of water for the city of
Toronto is drawn from Lake Ontario, the

~ing through a steel ;
from the intake to Toronto island and
thence through a large concrete tunnel
under the bay to the well at the main
pumpin; The tunnel is some

tance below the bed of the bay so a
avoid seepage from the bay.

Tlu .-s of the main pumping N

tion deliver din the mains, but the

to the fact that

a reservoir forms pan of the

and is located at t: e of the

from the pumping station. The

pressure maintained on the discharge

majn by the pumps at the main station

•I pound .;uare inch.

The pround r idily from the bay

Prof. K. \\ . Angus

■

n f>um(
at tl.

r :

-•

•

■ ■ ■ J

so rapid within the last

rs, ho waa found

.isc th«. : of

the the addition of

that
ent art

5*i

« •

northward through tin and at the

northern pan. due to the high c

water pressure is so far J as

necessary to pn »me

means of it: rder

to furnish a m*
Hence, it

*.:

. •

, -

in which the pump

c mains
pomplng station, a- I
Separate «v»tcm mhich •cne* ulon

nan ' ,n«

T^ • engine » .1 the

into, at
n crank and

plungers and ha* a

. : gallot

cing

J at a t "-»%urc

cam

■

pa%-.c» • ' 1 ' ' •' c corrr*" ■ '■

p, boile

pressor ..!■: .;"jcJ'.C«

clotinc the

t .' c
*or

a: J

:•.--..'.-

mat

s»

ajMoja*

r*l»

.g plungers
dia. ach

and a 2
the water pumped r-»SN<^ through

suf in

engine .1

mension* of t e

A engine -

conducts

-1

•U 'V f-iirx • »• tm

tfce engine and •
' caeeaie aw

»tr » - »•• J *■ 1

910

POWER

June 13, 1911

moisture and to have a pressure of 150
pounds at the boiler, this pressure corre-
sponding to. 148.5 pounds at the engine.
Without going fully into the method of
making the test it may be stated that
great care was taken in getting the
exact diameters and strokes of the sev-
eral plungers, and special care was taken
with other quantities used in computing

the duty so as to insure accuracy in the
results.

The water pressure averaged 74.92
pounds on the discharge main and 20.02
pounds on the suction main, and as these
pressures were maintained very steady
and the readings -taken at five-minute in-
tervals during the trial, these readings
represent quite closely the true results.

Table 1 gives the principal results of the
trial.

This represents an extremely good per-
formance in view of the fact that the
power of the engine was so small, due
to the low net water pressure. A set
of combined indicator diagrams is given
in Figs. 2 and 3 which show very good
steam distribution.

Corrosion of Steam Boilers

Water in a natural state always con-
tains a great many other things than two
parts hydrogen and one part oxygen.
Sometimes it contains free nitric and
sulphuric acids. River water, as a rule,
is heavily loaded with vegetable and
organic matter; nearly all lake waters
contain limestone, and artesian and
spring waters often contain soda as well
as other foreign matter. These mineral
substances are dissolved by the water
in passing through the soil. The weight
of the impurities in water varies greatly,
but in moderately good water it is often
from 20 to 50 grains per gallon. An
analysis of a certain feed water showed
it to contain the following impurities:

Grains per
Gallon

Silica 0.105

Oxide of iron and aluminum 0 . 362

Carbonate of Magnesia 13. 794

Carbonate of lime 11.481

Sodium and potassium sulphate 3. 569

Sulphate of lime trace

Sodium and potassium chloride 3. 300

Total solids 32.611

The total solid matter amounted to 4.65
pounds per 1000 gallons. A grain is
0.007 of a pound; hence, a steam boiler
evaporating 600 gallons per hour (about
160 horsepower) would collect a deposit
of

6oo X 4.65

1000

2 .80 pounds

This is the approximate amount of im-
purities collected in one hour. Part of
this would form sludge and the remainder
would be converted into hard scale. If
this boiler were worked a week of 60
hours, 168 pounds of solid matter would
collect, and in less than three months
this would amount to more than a ton.

The following table shows the princi-
pal impurities to be found in waters,
some of them being in all waters and
all of them being in some waters:

Impurities

Causing

Sulphate and bicarbonate
of lime

Sulphate, chloride and bi-
carbonate of magnesia

Chloride of sodium and
carbonate of soda

Bicarbonate and peroxide
of iron

Dissolved carbonic acid and
oxygen

Sediment, mud, clay, etc.

Organic matter, scwage.etc.

Grease

Nitric and sulphuric acids

Hard incrustation

Incrustation and cor-
rosion

Priming, foaming and
incrustation

Incrustation and cor-
rosion

Corrosion

Incrustation
Priming and corrosion
Corrosion
Corrosion

By Walter C. Edge

Some of the common im-
purities joundinjeed water,
their corrosive and scale-
forming qualities, and the
simple methods of treat-
ment.

The scale in a boiler is formed by
lime, chalk and iron. While these solids

are in solution m the original waters and
cannot be detected by the eye,, yet they
are always left behind by the steam, and
accumulate rapidly unless some means
are taken to get rid of them.

Some of the evil effects of impure
feed water are loss of fuel, loss of power
and danger. The loss of fuel caused by
a coating of scale on the heating sur-
faces of a boiler varies considerably, be-
cause it depends on the composition of
the scale; some scales resist the trans-
mission of heat many times as much as
a boiler plate of the same thickness. It
has been estimated that there is a re-
duction of from 2 to 4 per cent, a week in
the quantity of water evaporated per
pound of coal, due to the accumulation of
scale. According to this, a boiler after
working for four weeks would probably
evaporate 8 to 16 per cent, less water
per pound of coal than when in a clean
condition, thus showing how important
it is for the boilers to be kept clean.

If the feed water is of a corrosive
nature it is advantageous to permit the
formation of very thin scale as a pre-
ventive against corrosion. Corrosion, or
the wasting away of the plates, is caused
mostly by gases absorbed by the water,
such as sulphurated hydrogen, and car-
bonic acid; grease and organic matter al-
so promote corrosion. Even the purest
waters when containing air, will cause
pitting. More or less air is found in
all waters, and this air escapes into the
steam space when liberated by boiling,
and being heavier than the steam, col-
lects in bubbles, forming a layer between
the water and steam and rapidly corrod-
ing the plate in the vicinity of the water
line. The engineer should be careful to
prevent the feed pump from drawing air,
and should also be on the alert to pre-
vent valve steins, etc., from leaking water

on top of the boiler, as a great number
of cases of external corrosion have been
caused by a little neglect or carelessness
regarding small leaks.

No doubt much corrosion in boilers is
due to galvanic action; that is, when two
different metals are placed in a solution
capable of acting chemically on both of
them an electric current is set up. The
metal which is rapidly attacked and
wasted away is known as the positive
electrode, and in a galvanic battery, iron
is always positive in the presence of
copper. The inactive plate is known as
the negative electrode. Iron is both posi-
tive and negative in the absence of other
metals. In the presence of zinc, how-
ever, iron becomes negative.

Zinc then effectively protects iron from
one form of corrosion. The presence of
a small quantity is sufficient, a good pro-
portion being a 12x6x"/2-inch slab for
every 70 boiler horsepower. These slabs
are usually attached to a stay, and should
be renewed at regular intervals. Gal-
vanic action is not nearly so common
as some people seem to think, and it is
doubtful if the action on the zinc slabs
is always electrical, yet, if the corrosion
of the boiler plates is lessened, their use
should be continued even though the
action is not fully understood.

In every section of the country the
water has a different class of impurities,
but the most common are the lime and
magnesia. These substances are the prin-
cipal cause of incrustation (hard scale
formation) in boilers. Carbonate of lime
(marble) and magnesia are almost in-
soluble in pure water, but dissolve readily
in water containing carbonic-acid gas.
This gas is driven off by boiling, and the
lime and magnesia, before held in solu-
tion, are thrown in the solid form as in-
soluble deposits. A part of the mineral
matter is deposited in the form of a fine
powder, which forms mud, and the re-
mainder settles on the plates of the
boiler as hard scale.

The impurities are not all set free from
the water at the same temperature. Thus
the carbonates of lime are precipitated
when a temperature of from 300 to 400
degrees Fahrenheit (corresponding to
about 150 pounds pressure) is reached.

The small solid particles when set free
remain for a time suspended in the water,
being carried around by the circulation,
but they settle down gradually on the

June 13, 1911

P O W E R

tubes, plates and other internal surfaces.
The lime matter then becomes scale,
which soon bakes to the plates, and if
no means of prevention are used a crust
from fr inch to . inch thick is formed
on the inner surface of the boik

A good feed-water heater will s^
to keep out the impurities which precipi-
tate at temperatures in the neighborhood
of 200 degrees Fahrenheit; this inch
both the carbonates of lime and mag-
nesia. The water will not hold these
solids in solution when it is at .

s or more, and consequently they
are precipitated. But they arc still
held suspended in the water, and,
unless given time to settle, will go to

the boiler just as they would if still in
solution. For this reason all pur:'
should have space for from 5 to 15 min-
supply of feed water.
Soda is the common antidote for car-
bonates of lime and sulphates of lime,
the two most common impurities of water.
Under the name of soda several sub-

<>f scale
•cam N' The chi :nd most

common is carbonate of soda, commonly
*n as i. When soda as'

rig in water, it bc-

soda, which is synony::

witt g soda. Caustic soda is made

by heating carbonate of soda with slacked

solution of c.i -oda in

watt as sod. .ary

unds of soda ash, 00 pounds

il soda or it of caustic soda

.illons of ■ II be suffi-

l to precipitate most of the sc

forming ma*

T) n soda

»f soda
SB grair.
pha

If there are an

should be nc ni!

soda. \n excees of soda ' the

:ning fa lino ha.

corr feet or

dica1 foaming te

- of sodium oo. ugh the

Boiler Plant Considered as a Factory

hoiltr plant may be considered as a
factory for making steam, from which
standpoint an increase in boiler efficiency
represents a decreased cost of production
of the finished product steam.

The raw materials supplied to the
steam factory are coal, water and air.
Of these, coal is expensive; water is
expel n some cases, but as the

amount of water used is the same per

tzr

IB.

CZE

1 —

■*T

.. . .... i

• D)

n or

M Air

■ team tum ally

• f the method of operating the

plnr.- he om

at tr %ion; flnal-

•ht third material thing

H\ Paul A. Banccl

ami .; materials

ami fieam a hed

luct, tlh

ill llh ' •

I h< value
i ' ndi

it i nc. tlh

lh< ss of making steam may best

be anal the com-

bination of the coal and air to form hot
gases; second, the transference of the
heat in the hot gases to the boiler
faces, thence to the water and the forma-
im.
As with any other process of manu-
facture, there arc wastes o | in
both BM These waste*
ur Juc to t! ' the
machine e of the
materials, the formation of a pro-
duct and the fact that th f labor
■relets, The >r lossc
in the , - of making hot gases

oal and air. n umnia-

he average plant at folio -

■

As it sec ■ "f all these lose**

amount

> the hot ga«c%
the
* ^ of 90 p.

•ec-
<ieeee of steam ma

-ire that is fot ause of

low cm*

T thin a bo: .: some

temperature near 400 degrees Fa.1
The hot Rases part of their heat

the water within the ind are

cooled down an amount d
the amount of • If bo

ven be pos-

cool the gases to nearly the u
;urc of the steam an

to put so
much surface into a and gases

arc en:
pcraturcs near fu) or t5f)«

cit. Thus the hot gases formed in
the first part of t1

making steam ur.J

iture h.

Com:

gases a -

not ncccssa

in a

the N

•pccUk
The tpeciAc heat

depends on how

> hum the coa

of I

:<••• n

method of Jctcnrtr.irn the amour- . •?

912

P O W E R

June 13, 1911

heat in the waste gases would be to
take the temperature of the gases going
up the chimney and to measure their
weight for each pound of coal burned.

The weight of the gases going up the
chimney, however, cannot be readily
measured and it is difficult to determine
just how much coal is actually being
burned at any time corresponding to the

corr.uustion. Coal consists of carbon,
hydrogen, ash and minor constituents,
the first two entering into the process of
combustion, the latter being mineral ma-
terial not combining with the oxygen and
not developing heat. The carbon in the
coal combines with a definite amount of
oxygen to form carbon dioxide gas or
CO,. Furthermore, it is an established fact

a part of the oxygen, together with all
the nitrogen, must go through the coal
without entering into the process of com-
bustion. The products of combustion con-
sist then of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and
also a supply of uncombined oxygen. If
twice as much air and oxygen as is
theoretically needed were supplied, then
as shown in Chart C, the volume of car-

Figs. 3 and 4. Daily Charts Showing Percentages of CO, and the Flue Temperatures

moment at which the weight of the gases
is taken. There is no direct means,
therefore, of measuring the amount of
heat in the waste product emitted from
the steam factory, or boiler plant. On
the other hand, an indirect means of ob-
taining the weight of the waste product
per pound of coal burned lies in the

Fig. 5. Uehling Waste Meter and
Recording Gages

measurement of the carbon dioxide con-
tained in the flue gases.

Air consists of oxygen and nitrogen.
Only oxygen is necessary for combus-
tion, but the nitrogen must be carried
along with the oxygen into the furnace
without entering into the process of

that when a cubic foot of oxygen com-
bines with carbon to form carbon dioxide,
the volume of the carbon dioxide formed
is also one cubic foot, the temperature
of oxygen and carbon dioxide being the
same. As the volume of all the gases
varies in the same way with the tempera-
ture changes, any volumetric relations
holding true when the temperature of
the products of combustion as 500 or 603
degrees will also hold true when their
temperature is that of the atmosphere.
Referring to Chart A, Fig. 1, assume
that the coal consists of carbon only
and below the coal bed a certain amount
of air consisting of oxygen and nitrogen
is supplied, the coal burning so that the
products of combustion consist of carbon
dioxide and nitrogen. If the combustion
were complete with just enough air sup-
plied to effect complete combustion, then
as the carbon dioxide displaces the
oxygen, the volumetric relations of the
gases in the products of combustion
would be the same as the relations of
the gases in the air. The percentage by
volume of oxygen in the air is 21, and
with theoretically perfect combustion of
carbon, the products would consist of 79
per cent, of nitrogen, 21 per cent, of car-
bon dioxide and no percentage of oxygen.
Charts B, C and D, Fig. 1, show the
relations when more than the theoretical
amount of air has been supplied. The
amount of coal burned being the same,
the same amount of carbon dioxide must
be formed. But as more than the theo-
retical supply of air has been furnished,

bon dioxide formed would be half the
volume of the oxygen originally in the
air. The percentage of carbon dioxide
in the gases formed would then be, in-
stead of 21 per cent., one-half of 21 per
cent, or 10;/> per cent.

These relations may also be shown
by the charts in Fig. 2. The area of the

'^///M//////////?//////////,
Fig. 6. Diagram Showing Principle of
Uehling CO.. Recorder

circles in each case represents the amount
of gas going up the chimney for one
pound of carbon burned. As it requires
a definite amount of oxygen to burn a
pound of carbon and a definite amount of
carbon dioxide is formed, the volume of
carbon dioxide remains the same in each

June 13, 1911

POU

913

case, shown by the small shaded area.
In the case of Chan A, all the o* .
transformed into carbon dioxide and all
the remaining area is nitrogen, the ;
centage of carbon d :n the

gases beinc t. In Chan B the

total volume has incr the amount

of nitrogen being increased and the
the amount of available for burn-

ing one pound of carbon int.- the

amount of carbon dioxide formed
mains the same as in the first ca-

Just as the factory manager can look
and note the value of
raw materials, the cost of manufacture,
the ; >f the finished product, the

• t, the value of the waste product,
so can the engin rd, in con-

nection uith the plant load, the draft,
thldu kind of labor, coal

burned, amour.* cra-

ture of the flue gases and of

carbon dioxide; and thus be gi.

run: . so as to turn

out .d product at the least

cords of carbon d. tnd

turc a:.

rom a Uehling o
bint c and pyrometer, or

atcr
plant of the Corn I' g Com-

■
• here also the i ^ gages can be

• n the board. The rccord-
.uum-rccording
gag*.

>th carbor. . and M

per;r :um.

Jent

gages a- and

also thai casurement is ob-

-d.

Ri to the sketch of rhc

flue gas is draun through the two *;
l A and B by constant suction pro-

The nc!
in chamber Q remain constant so

long as the • of gas pastes

sorbed in two

ape:

All tha- r to

mcu > to

-•ing

I waste on

can

proJ to the

pat:!^

coal, kind !

Progress in Return Tubular Boilers

In:; in lh« ri of !:•

zontal tubular boilers and settings I
n slow as compared with othe-

been made
in l.i •

uith staggered tut
middle venical row of tubes, pla.
manholes above and below the tul

— i

p ■

-n

— *

1 VNO

By William K.i\ ,m.

ti:<il //.. in tlh

et dui

in the rear
heed, tt of the bU>

■gainst ovcrhca- the

•n dome a- - on

rollers or

what may be I
an ng in uhich the feed

I. repres
.gh the lo-
ot the front head. aN on-

'i is
.: of
asK •

In the bl< i protected

•ion of

watt m feed

race
-r at some

tancc belou the ■

A -tep toward u' I -c

» astc heat and pr

and fallint: arche*

shown in I Both front and

mat

rear ar ted to the

hot ga»c» ri"

V '

•

e bottom sheet, di- thence into the h< '■•••■

he f' arged through • perforated r-r* "' ■"

hed to atUe) ol

PtC 3. w*ATm A" and V

letter

r he

914

POWER

June 13, 1911

main- blowoff repaired. Previous to the
use of auxiliary blowoff valves there was
no way of making repairs to the main
blowoff cock without shutting down the
boiler.

The boiler shown in Fig. 4 embodies
the good points gained through many
years of experience and represents prob-
ably the most uptodate practice with re-
turn-tubular boilers. The lugs rest on
rollers allowing free longitudinal expan-
sion and contraction of the boiler and
both front and rear water arches are
fitted. The rear wall has a door permit-
ting inspection and cleaning of the rear
head. The steam is taken from the rear
of the steam space and passes through
a superheater extending the whole length
of thj boiler, thence to the main header
which is also connected directly to the
steam space of the boiler. Both an or-
dinary steam gage and a recording steam
gage are fitted.

The furnace is hand fired and at the
rear of the grate is a dead plate used for
banking and cleaning the fires. The
damper shaft is carried on roller bear-
ings which permit a very sensitive regula-
tion of the steam pressure. A surface
blowoff is attached at the front of the
boiler and an improved arrangement of
regular blowoff, similar to that shown in
Fig. 3, is fitted at the rear.

The water column is fitted with both
a high- and a low-water alarm in addi-
tion to self-closing gage-glass valves.
Also, the water connection to the column
is fitted with a tee and brass plug for
use when cleaning the connection.

In raising steam the valves W W are
first opened to allow a circulation of
water through the superheater and after
the desired pressure has been reached
they are closed and any water in the
superheater is blown out at the rear,
through the valve /. Near this valve is

placed a small valve J, used to indicate
the quality of the steam in the super-
heater. When this valve shows dry or
superheated steam the main valves E E
are opened, and the boiler is put into
service.

The boiler-feed pump should be fitted
with a safety valve to prevent excessive
pressure on the feed line; also, a bypass
allowing the pump to run at practically
constant speed, any surplus water being
discharged back into the suction line.
The check valve on the feed line should
be placed between two globe valves, thus
permitting repairs' at any time.

An essential feature with the foregoing
equipment is that all pipes and fittings
are extra heavy and the connections al-
low movement and compensate for ex-
pansion and contraction. Furthermore,
no expansion joints are used, the con-
nections being so arranged as to screw
and unscrew in the direction of the stress.

Determining the Value of Fuel

Discussions upon the subject of fuel
have, in general, advocated some par-
ticular theory as to the best method of
determining the value of the fuel to be
purchased, the best method of com-
bustion, or a reduction of the smoke
nuisance, etc., rather than a sincere
desire to ascertain the facts in the
case. There is the man who is bent
on the elimination of smoke and who has
tried to show that all the profits go up
the stack in the form of smoke. As a
matter of fact, the visible element in
smoke amounts at most to but a- very
small percentage of the total heat and it
is easily possible to have absolutely
smokeless combustion and far from eco-
nomical operation, although from certain
standpoints the elimination of smoke is
desirable.

There are others who maintain that
the B.t.u. in the coal is the proper basis
of purchase, attempting to class the
whole carload or more from a sample
weighing a gram or less. The contract
of a certain concern which proposes to
purchase coal on B.t.u. specifications,
provides for certain penalties for ex-
cess of ash, a deviation in the proxi-
mate analysis from that specified, an
excess of sulphur and for deficiencies in
the heat contents. But might not the
coal vary rather considerably in each
particular and there be no marked dif-
ference in the actual results obtained?
Also, if these penalties and bonuses ap-
ply, how are the amounts to be deter-
mined for the variations? Certainly the
penalties and bonuses should represent
not arbitrary amounts but only real varia-
tions in the worth of the coal to the con-
sumer.

Again, there are those who are op-
posed to the scientific analysis and buy-

By R. L. Ellis

It is pointed out that the
method of purchasing coal
upon either the analysis
basis or upon an evapora-
tion basis alone, is inade-
quate, but a combination of
the two has been found to
give excellent results.

ing of coal; they contend that the only
measure of the value of a coal is the
quantity of water it will evaporate per
pound. There is a measure of truth in
each treatment of the subject, but the
solution of the problem lies in a com-
bination of the practical and the scientific
methods. It is desirable to eliminate
smoke but it is more important to secure
economical combustion. It is important
to obtain a high percentage of CCX in
the flue gases but one may get too much
for the overall economy. It may be de-
sirable to know the character of coal
used and its heat contents, but for the
particular furnace conditions in which
the fuel is to be used this may not fur-
nish a true guide as to the desirability
of the coal. On the other hand, with-
out the analysis one may fail to get the
proper results from a really economical
coal and discard it as worthless on ac-
count of not being able to interpret
the facts furnished by the scientific
analysis.

The real measure of the value of coal
for commercial use is its cost per unit

of finished product. The total cost of
the coal includes its cost at the mine, cost
of delivery, unloading, stoking and
handling the ashes, together with any
other expense due to the use of the coal.
The finished product may be supplying
a certain number of square feet of radia-
tion at a given temperature, yards of
cloth made, kilowatt-hours, etc.

Coal as usually specified by analysis
contains a certain amount of moisture,
volatile matter, fixed carbon and ash, with
a separate determination of the sulphur,
and finally, a certain number of B.t.u. per
pound. Usually with the dealer this means
a mine sample or a sample taken by cross-
cutting the seam and a careful elimina-
tion of any dirt above or below the seam,
but with the purchaser it should mean
an average car sample, which is an en-
tirely different proposition.

Some contracts make deductions for
moisture, but unless the coal be weighed
at the point of delivery this is mani-
festly unfair for the reason that the ex-
cess moisture may represent water in
the form of rain which fell after the coal
left the mines. On the other hand, if
the coal be shipped in fair weather and
remain several days on the road it
might be flooded with water at the mine
and be practically dry upon delivery,
which would afford the seller a very large
advantage. Unless the quantity of coal
is sufficient to warrant scales at the
point of delivery, it is inexpedient to
make any provision for correcting for
moisture in the • coal. About the only
thing that can be done is to weigh an
occasional car under different weather
conditions to ascertain whether the mine
owners are attempting to act unfairly in
the matter and, if so, it has been the ex-
perience of the writer that the sooner

June 13, 1911

POWFR

•IS

a contract with a concern of such char-
acter is broken the better.

In the proximate analysis it is de-
sirable to know if the volatile matter be
determined with or without a previous
drying-out process; the - may be

markedly different in the two cases. Fur-
tiicrmorc. it should be known whether the
volatile matter is all combustible and
whether it .: off quickly or sl<>

These affect the adaptability of the coal
for a particular furnace unless the fur-
nace be designed to handle economically

•. of widc!> different charac-
but very few of the commercial forms
are so arranged.

At the plant with which the writer
.onnected. the average cost of coal
stoked and the ash removed wa
per ton, and the coal per kilowatt-hour
averaged for the year 8.60 pound-
this information at hand, several carloads
of coal were ordered and placed in the
bin. samples being taken during unload-
These samp!- sealed in quart

jars, labeled by car numbers and sent to
a chemist for an The coal

then burned under the boilers and data
taken as to the evaporation and the kilo-
watt-hours delivered at the switchboard.

Having done this, the question then
arose as to what had actually been ac-
complished. It was known that a certain
amount of coal had been burned per
kilowatt-hour at a certain cost per ton
of coal fired. But what of it ? The re
suits were not h a character a

determine whether the coal was or was
not desirable for the particular ci

It was known that the coal ran
about 8 per cent, in a per cent, in

volatile and -c7 per cent in I ^on.

with less than I per cent, of sulphur and
a heat content of but the

actual performance of the coal c
not be correlated with tin i of the

ana! furthermor iria-

rom day to da
the actual th ap;

in load or weather
Mai
tion of the fireman and other f.i

end. a the- ter was pla

another in the
Fptt k. a ga ling ap-

paratus in t rack and at

several place* in the fur-
it apparati:

ntcgrat
the i ard re

A watc appara

• lied on the feed-water line
coal scales

•ne more coal »a» bought and
the plant -

'•
that coal ft

n the boiler, an |
ord' • and most

that i

ly handle coal of - iation in char-

r. This work too- \me.

but finally a furnace was produced that
would - fully handle coal varying

all the wav from coke to the highly vola-
tile coal from the Alabama fie

It is now the practice at this plant
when purchasing coal to take a sample
from each car for ana In a da

after the fireman has become famil-
iar with the coal, results are noted. Of
cour rds of all conditions are taken

daily but the results arc J to be

poor with a given coal until the fireman
has learned to handle it properly; Ik
stimating the value of the coal tl

netting days are eliminate
•er the fireman has become familiar
with the coal, frequent readings are taken
of the thermometer in the uptake, also
frequent determinations of the flue gas.
J-hour sample. The tem-
perature of the - so nearly
-tant at 212 d I ahrenheit that
not recorded and onK checked oc-
to sec that the heater is in
good working order The amount of
ter fed to the boile >tcd at the
of each 12 hours and corrected for
difference in the level of water in the
boiler. The coal is also corrected for
the amount on the firing floor at the
end of each 12 hours. Readings are
taken on the integrating wattmeter as are
also readings on the indicating met
to ascertain if the l< arc
al.
Having pr
'omical CO in the
flue ga* • the particular coal.

rly as pos
It has been found unncc to make

•mplctc an the flue gases

•irnacc effl-

tcnt up to a certain r

• this is a v
minor no

i i->i ih

s' .. I

and k

,: and c

iar-

. const '

■

: be seen

cross b numb n

combination micht pronarlv be

the mine i g to guarantee

as an average car-sample a
The fir rfca mine

- for a continuous supply of c
■
as to what may reasonably be c
•he coa

coal from a Held that l . n good

ally possible to purchase with the

l open and lo

.ompar-

n other

words, at so n >ur for

coal OB

In making up an estimate as to the
line of the coa -oposcd

e of the coal plus the ' be coot

of unloading the coal a- cost of

handling the ashc* for each p
of ash in the coa! are cons
total is the number i

The result is it ace the

costs are per ton and th.

B com-
i figur
from other

•.•termination of the
of the coal in com pari so 'them.

the tii coal com-

mercial arc good, the

• are ar
the mine ana! and the

If the
al! told show that able

md pra

arc

'ions « I

■irnished si
differ mate

same »i

In the pa'

e urn;
not

rpectfle • the ash hahtfm

ccc >' J the I

•al and cancel

r a r. tv

the

the or

^^^■e of the

m he v
the condition* are chectr

■J I. ^ '

r< ' r over and • * > >cd whether st

916

POWER

June 13, 1911

A New Interpole Dynamo

The development of heavy electric trac-
tion and large factory equipments has
created an extensive demand for direct-
current dynamos that will work spark-
lessly under widely and rapidly fluctuat-
ing loads and abnormal overloads and
for meeting such requirements the inter-
pole construction, now well known, is ad-
mirably fitted. The accompanying en-

Especially^

conducted tobe of

interest and service to

the men in charge^

of the electrical

equipment

terpoles. The brush rigging is set ac-
curately at the factory and the field-mag-
net yoke and the ring which carries the

Fig. 1. Interpole Field Magnet

gravings show the essential features of
a machine of this type which has been
recently brought out by the Westinghouse
Electric and Manufacturing Company for
direct mounting on the extension of the
prime-mover shaft.

Fig. 4. Commutator End of Complete
Armature

brush holders are marked so that this
position can be duplicated instantly when
the machine is erected in its working
position. The magnet yoke ring is of cast
steel and only a little wider than the
magnet poles; consequently, the field-

yoke ring and the brush rigging is sup-
ported by one of these frames, as shown
in Fig. 1.

The main magnet poles are built up of
thin steel sheets riveted into a solid mass,
as indicated in Fig. 2; these are bolted
to the inner face of the yoke ring, which
is machined smooth all the way around
and across the face. The interpoles are
solid steel blocks, also bolted to the yoke
ring.

The armature core is built up of an-
nular segments dovetailed to ribs on the
central spider and the latter is cast with

Fig. 5. Rear End of Complete
Armature

internal ribs also, instead of being solid
down to the shaft. Fig. 3 shows this
construction; the barrel projecting toward
the observer supports the commutator,
forming the drum and one flange of the
commutator core. The armature core is
provided with spacers at intervals along
its length, as usual in large machines,
forming ventilating ducts between the

Fig. 2. Magnet Pole

Fig. 3. Armature Spider and Commutator Core

Fig. 6. Brush and Holder

The complete field magnet is shown in magnet coils extend beyond the yoke adjacent laminations of the core. The

Fig. 1, from which it will be evident that edges and their heat is readily radiated, core is, of course, slotted to take the

the brushes are not provided with the The projecting portions of the coils are coils, which are form-wound and in-

means for adjustment which is always protected from mechanical injury by a dividually insulated. The winding is of

found on ordinary generators without in- skeleton framework at each side of the the straight-out or barrel type, leaving

June 13, 1911

POTFR

the heads of the core open to the sur-
rounding air, as H«v 4 and 5 si

i indicate how clean-cut and
well ventilated the armature and com-
mutator are.

The brush holders might be cha-

as '"the usual pocket but

there are several details which, though
relatively minor, .il con-

sideration. T ■ r cxan

which is of flat copper-wire braid, is at-
tached to the frame of the brush ho
by means of a large thumbscrew and to

the brush by means of a through bolt;
mor. so located that

nnot foul the spring or inter!,
the movement of the brush, although
r rcm«
ch attaches it
to the brush passes through the ends of

aH j strap whic* the

end of the brush and affords a seat
ihe end of the pressure finger; the

lattc a roundc :

h touches the brush along

a line, no matter what the position of

the brush, and it docs not

to tilt the brush or jam it against the
of the pocket The pressure finger
d against tru fUt

on of »

idle and lever.

c machine* are built in sues rang-

and of
standar

J to gl

lis in

National Electric Light Convention

The thirty-fourth convention of the
National Electric Light Association was
held this year at the headquarters of that
body, the Engineering Societies building.
New York. The convention was opened
on May 30 with the usual formali-
the delegates were welcomed to the

lohn Purr<> hell,

the president of the association delivered
.innual address and several important
committee* presented their ri

O ON

Tl ■• of the committee on over-

head-line construction was an admirable
rk, embracing detailed
ins for materials and methods to be
used in building overhead line 400-

volt alternating-current distribution and
for street-lighting .iuse of

Ihe completeness of these specifics!

impracticable to abstract or sum-
marize them beyond stating that thes
r the ■ and appearance

leMnut. white-cedar and pine

pole and quftlit) of r

-ess and and

quality of «»oden and metal insulator
pins, pole-steps and
aluminum and
and cablet, bare and
of putting up poles and stringinj
are als Mustrated. The

em line

•tantial >: i<> *

stant re fere-

The r "cc.

pre

»f the

the pra

an early nunv

In a paper of

it the
lcn»ic.n i • -• .
pmir
plained how a-
quentlv oc *een 111

and

The fundamental reaso: break-

son occur simultaneously
with disturbances on the high-tension
tern, he said, is that transformers act
to a consider*! test as condensers

of the interleafing of the sec-
■ of the winding; that is. the high-

is one set of
condenser pla- I the low-tension

• » as the other. Under such con-
an alternating difference of po-
tential between the high l -tern
and the ground will induce a corresp

difference of potential between the
^tem and grou-
The amount of potential difference I
n the low-ten nding and the

Con

■

I on th<

and

"K and

from gr

times •

m the

c feme
Icntion winding* f ihr ••» %'

thereby | otcntial

an easy and harmless path instead of

g it a chance to break down the
sulatior. . rrasing the :ion of

the lo» -tension w
it n ascs the relation I

the primary -sccon: and the

capacity between the low-tensio-

- and the ground.

i as to increase the dangerous »•
potential between the low -tension »
ings and the »

Laynu

sented an intc
tion of a t\pe <
^e moto-

:cnts of

n. Tb

the other a polar

through a commir ^rusho

-re*
M laeceetJ
reed an autor

• inding

torn

ron the equipment r

■

to meet
In the C< r^uipmcnt than

I lev p.

Meet to* is to sssesr the eft— I

' r J HMO f

one c*jir»a!cni le Itw SMBfg) ;°*J aod t**r

917— A

POWER

June 13, 1911

other equivalent to the combined leading
and lagging wattless load.

The wattless component of the load
may be a demagnetizing component, such
as required by induction motors and in-
ductive loads in general; or it may be
a magnetizing component supplied by
overexcited synchronous motors or static
condensers.

A distinction should be made between
raising the power factor by increasing
the energy load and by decreasing the
wattless load. While the former is de-
sirable the latter is more desirable, since
a low power factor is a positive detri-
ment only when the load is a maximum
and station capacity is at a premium,
while a decrease in the wattless load is
always of advantage, since it means an
increase in operating efficiency.

Practically all loads supplied by cen-
tral stations have a demagnetizing com-
ponent. Power factors above 95 per
cent, are obtainable only when the load
consists of synchronous motors or rotary
converters. Power factors of 90 to 95
per cent, can be expected only when
the load is entirely noninductive or when
synchronous motors are supplied together
with a relatively small proportion of in-
ductive apparatus. For the average cen-
tral station carrying a lighting and power
load, 80 per cent, power factor should
be assumed [in considering the station
equipment]. For a plant to supply a
large proportion of induction motors, arc
lamps and other inductive apparatus, 70
per cent, is a fair estimate.

It is necessary to estimate the power
factor of the load in order to choose the
relative rating of the generators and en-
gines intelligently, because the engine
rating should correspond to the generator
ability in true power at the power factor
that will be imposed by the load.

When it is a question of adding new
load to an existing station the probable
power factor of the load may be esti-
mated as follows:

Rotary converters, shunt
wound.

Kind of Load
Incandescent lighting
with small trans-
formers.
Alternating-current in-
closed arc lamps with
const ant-current
transformers.

Direct -current metallic
arc lamps with recti-
fiers.

Single-phase induction
motors; squirrel-cage
rotors. -2'o to 1 horse-
power.

Single-phase induction
motors; squirrel-cage
rotors, 1 to- 10 horse-
power.

Polyphase induction
motors; squirrel-cage,
1 to 10 horsepower.

Polyphase induction
motors; squirrel-cage,
10 to 50 horsepower.

Polyphase induction
motors: phase-wound
rotors, 5 to 20 horse-
power.

Polyphase induction
motors; phase-wound
rotors, 20 to 100
horsepower.

Probable Power Factor

From 90 to 95 per cent.

From 60 to 75 per cent.,
depending upon the
proportion of full load
on transformers. An
average figure would
be 70 per cent.

From -~i^ to 70percent.,
depending upon load
on rectifiers. An av-
erage figure would be
65 per cent.

From 55 to75percent.;
average 68 per cent.,
at rated load.

From-75 to 86 percent.;
average 82 per cent.,
at rated load.

From 75 to91pencent.;

average 85 per cent.,

at rated load.
From 85 to 92 percent.;

average 89 per cent.,

at rated load.
From 80 to 89 per cent.;

average 86 per cent.,

at rated load.

From 82 to 90 per cent.;

average 87 per cent.,
at rated load.

Small heatingapparatus.

Arc furnaces.
Induction furnaces.
Weldings transformers.
Synchronous motors.

Rotary converters, com- At full load the power
pound wound. factor can be adjusted

to practically 100 per
cent. At light loads
it will be lagging, and
at overloads slightly
leading.

The power factor can
be adjusted to any de-
sired value, and will
be fairly constant at
all loads with the
same field rheostat ad-
justment. Rotary

* converters, however,
should not be oper-
ated below 95 per
cent, power factor
leading, or lagging, at
full load or overload.

The power factor of the
load is practically
unity, but the distri-
buting transformers
will lower it to some
extent.

From 80 to 90 per cent.

From 60 to 70 per cent.

From 50 to 70 per cent.

Adjustment between
practically zero pow-
er factor leading, to
zero power factor lag-
ging.

From the foregoing table it is evident
that the only kind of load which affords
any control over power factor is the
synchronous motor. This fact has led to
an increasing use of synchronous motors
by central stations in order to improve
the power factor of the system. Un-
fortunately, the complication of a sep-
arate exciting source and the ability to
start only under a comparatively small
load restricts the use of synchronous
motors largely to location at the station,
where skilled attendance is at hand, or
to motor-generator sets.

Synchronous motors have been op-
erated without load to improve the power
factors of systems but it is more eco-
nomical to utilize the motors to do me-
chanical work at the same time. The re-
quired capacity of such a motor is the
vector sum of the required wattless and
energy inputs; that is, the total input
in kilovolt-amperes is equal to the square
root of the sum of the squares of the
wattless kilovolt-amperes and the kilo-
watts. For example, if the wattless in-
take from the line be 600 kilovolt-am-
peres and the energy intake, converted
into mechanical work, be 800 kilowatts,
the total intake will be 1000 kilovolt-
amperes.

To determine the proper size of syn-
chronous motor to use for effecting a
given improvement in station power fac-
tor and to do some mechanical work also,
it is necessary to consider the character-
istics and size of the station load.
To the existing station load must
be added the true kilowatts that the motor
will require to do the mechanical work
and supply its own losses. From the
desired power factor and the total load
in kilowatts the total kilovolt-amperes
and the future wattless kilovolt-amperes
are obtained and subtracting these from
the existing wattless kilovolt-amperes
gives the wattless component to be sup-
plied by [to] the motor.

For example, with a load of 1200 kilo-
watts and a power factor of 70 per cent.,
\he wattless kilovolt-amperes will be 1220

[1224 is the theoretically accurate figure.
— Ed.]. If the synchronous motor is to
do work (including its losses) requiring
240 kilowatts intake, the future energy
load will be 1440 kilowatts. If a power
factor of 90 per cent, is to be obtained,
the future wattless kilovolt-amperes will
be 698 and the difference between 1220
and 698 being 522, that is the number
of wattless kilovolt-amperes for the motor
to take. The total intake of the motor,
then, must be

V 2402 -f-5222 =575

kilovolt-amperes. In general, it will not
be found worth while to raise a station
power factor above 90 per cent., since
the investment necessary is seldom war-
ranted by the improvement in operation.

Power Required by Industrial Ma-
chinery

The report of the committee on power
should be of immense value to central
power stations. It contains an extensive
list of industries which are operated by
electricity from central stations in various
cities widely distributed about the coun-
try, in which the kind of machinery, type
of drive, service hours per week and
kilowatt-hours of actual service per year
are stated; also, an astonishingly full
list of motor ratings for industrial ma-
chines of all kinds and sizes, from a y%-
horsepower pamphlet stitcher up to a
250-horsepower stone crusher. In be-
tween are printing presses, wood-working
machines, cement machinery, boiler-shop
machines, textile machinery, laundry
equipment, etc.

Ventilation of Turbine-driven Gen-
erators

A paper on this subject was read by
R. B. Williamson. The author pointed
ouf that alternators driven by steam tur-
bines are very small for their output,
because of their high speed, and that
therefore the problem of getting rid of
the heat developed in the windings is a
difficult one. Forced air circulation is the
means commonly applied in this country.
The generator is completely inclosed and
the air is conveyed through passages to
the parts where heat is evolved.

Theoretically, the cubic feet of air re-
quired to be passed through the machine
per minute for each kilowatt of loss in
the machine would be equal to 1650
divided by the temperature rise in Centi-
grade degrees, but as all of the air is
not uniformly heated and the heat-de-
veloping parts of the machine are hotter
than the discharged air, a larger amount
is necessary. For the usual limit of tem-
perature rise, cooling air should be sup-
plied at a rate of from 100 to 150 cubic
feet per minute for each kilowatt of in-
ternal losses; 125 is a fair average figure.

The total internal loss will usually be
from 4 to 6 per cent, of the rated kilovolt-
ampere output, being larger for the

'une 13. 1911

smaller machines. As a rough estimate,
therefore, the allowance of cooling air
may be taken as 5 to 7:. cubic I
minute per kilovolt-ampere of rated out-
put. In some cases from 4 to 6 cubic
teet per kilovolt-ampere will be suffi-
cient, but the larger allowance Ar-
able, especially if the turbine has to
crate in a hot loca

In order to handle such large quant,
of air, careful attention must be paid to

nount of din within the machine.

cloth filtering screens over the

intake or in a box in Mt are a

xood means of g out dust. These

that -
can be fre -re-

quiring too much time an:

A number of methods of forcing the

■iff through the generator have been

J hut the most common one is to

e a centrifugal fan at each end of the

the pipes through which it is supplied and
the uld be as clean and cool as

Me. In some cases it may be
drawn directlv from the basement, but

uld not be done if the space be-
thc gcncr.r J by au

hich heat the air. Good
have been obtained by partitioning off the
generator end of the basement so that
the heat from the auxiliaries will be con-
fined to the steam i

In case cool air cannot be obtained
from the basement, a pipe or due

outdoors and the opening :
tected so that rain i e drawn

might as nos-
and of >n that the

air ••

feet r^r !' When awn

damper* arranged to that

emery, be aeetnen'

•ed tb-

j wnall
n a

rotor, the I r on the rotor

The a the fans n

^ed through the machine with
it rapidity and . fi manner that

all par* >>e reached and the heat

carried off. 7

'riction is by no mear e in

and any attempt to
rough long
.issages will :

The greatest loss is in a on and

i is thence
bin* action of the

method of ventilating

crator*. b<
ran*.

im on

caches the

ly cooU
The arrange
ti that il

k the core duct* through
MMfM
into the o the

An not ar-

d bottom of the
al *cction

would seen

The B-

or si Jt

•igement; an j

' the bottom of the hoos-

This mul' od of

net has a number of ad-

»r rw

"he grt

..
I comp

anJ -speed ma t depend*-

done in th< c the rotn- »n hot

•re rea-
■ilutlons use of a nu
I

■ !

gtvea ore**
peaeed It
rounding miu of metal, it is mpitVv con- < - »chln* rem all

med

•Sr

918

POWER

June 13, 1911

it enters until it leaves the machine, does
not have to pass through a long path and,
being divided into a number of parallel
streams, the velocity in the ducts is very
moderate compared with that in the two-
path arrangement. The whole mass of
iion directly behind the teeth and coils is
maintained at a low temperature and any
slight inequalities in temperature are
equalized by the ready flow of heat in
the plane of the laminations. Exten-
sive tests made with this arrangement
show that machines of large output can
be cooled very evenly.

Prime Movers

The committee on prime movers pre-
sented an extensive report which contained
a good deal of important information. As
the committee had no new types of prime
mover to investigate, it confined its at-
tention to the performance of existing
types in the stations of the member com-

fered to make such changes as were nec-
essary in the machines. An abstract of
the report on steam turbines will be
printed next week.

Very little new development has been
found in gas-power apparatus, and like
steam power the general tendency has
been toward the perfection of the appara-
tus. A detailed report on that subject,
prepared chiefly by J. B. Klumpp, of the
committee, formed a part of the general
reports; this special discussion will be
printed in abstract in the Gas Power De-
partment next week.

Protection from Lightning

In its annual report, the committee on
protection from lightning stated that
those transmission lines having overhead
ground wires seem to suffer the least
damage; in fact, one operator reports
that the troubles from broken insulators,
shattered poles, burned-off wires and

Fig. 5. Stator Equipped for Multipath Air Circulation

panies, or such of them as could be pre-
vailed upon to supply the desired infor-
mation.

No troubles which would seriously af-
fect continuity of service have been re-
ported in steam power plants. A num-
ber of minor defects have been men-
tioned which are discussed in the report,
but it would seem that insofar as steam
turbines are concerned this type of ap-
paratus is rapidly reaching a standard
which ieaves very little room for criti-
cism in the way of economy of operation
or reliability of service. The auxiliaries,
however, were the subject of some criti-
cism from the operating companies, and
these criticisms were referred by the
committee to the makers of the various
machines, who either announced changes
in design to correct the troubles or of-

crossarms on lines protected in this man-
ner are less than 20 per cent, of those on
the lines without this type of protec-
tion. Similar results are reported in
a great many other cases, and, in fact,
the importance and value of the overhead
ground wire is now so firmly established
bv experience that in almost every case
where new lines are constructed provi-
sion is made for it.

In some particular cases, where an
unusual amount of trouble was experi-
enced from insulators spilling over, spe-
cial devices have been developed as an
alternative of the overhead ground wire.
One of these devices is in the form of
a grounded metal ring for each insulator.
These are reported as being effective,
though the use of them has not elimin-
ated all line disturbances and is no pro-

tection against the direct stroke. In some
ether cases a grounded spark gap has
been provided for each insulator; still
another form is that of installing a
grounded wire on each pole and carrying
this wire well above the top of the pole.
Some of these devices are used in con-
nection with and others without the over-
head ground wire, so there are few defin-
ite data at hand on which to base judg-
ment as to their relative value. These
experiments are reported as being more
or less successful, and especially to the
end of reducing the interruptions to the
service, but it is still a question if the
expense of installation will be justified
in all cases.

In some few instances attempts have
been made to protect the transmission
lines by the installation of arresters at
points far removed from the stations, but
in most cases these experiments have re-
sulted in failure. The tendency of the
older type of arresters to arc over and
short-circuit the line and the frequent in-
spection and care required for the elec-
trolytic type reduce their usefulness to
a minimum for use at remote points.

A special device known as the arcing-
ground suppressor is now being experi-
mented with for the relief of transmis-
sion-line troubles, due to an arc around
the insulator. This device is designed
to be used at the busbars of the principal
station, to take care of the entire system.
The arcing-ground suppressor consists
essentially of an electrostatic and electro-
magnetic selective relay. This selective
device picks out the faulty phase and
closes the release circuit of a single-pole
oil switch which is connected between
the faulty phase and ground. The oil
switch shunts out the accidental arc at
the insulator and opens up again imme-
diately. If the insulator is properly de-
signed, the arc will invariably take place
around the porcelain skirts, and, there-
fore, the arcing-ground suppressor will
entirely eliminate the trouble. If the
insulator should be punctured, the switch
of the arcing-ground suppressor is again
automatically closed and thereby prevents
the high-frequency oscillations in the cir-
cuit which would otherwise result, due
to the make-and-break of the arc at the
faulty insulator.

The committee recommended that
where lines are operated separately each
line should be provided with a lightning
arrester, installed beyond all station ap-
paratus; where several lines are inva-
riably supplied from common busbars, a
lightning arrester at each busbar is suf-
ficient. In addition to lightning arresters,
the committee recommended the use of
choke coils on every circuit leaving a
generating station. For stations to be
equipped newly with lightning arresters,
the committee favors the electrolytic
type; also for stations where other types
of arrester have not afforded satisfactory

June 13, 1911

POWER

protection, if investigation shows that the
arresters have been properly installed
and maintained.

Lightning arresters on distribution
. ms do not usually protect any ap-
paratus that is appreciably more than
. • distant. On four of the larger
ms, where arresters are installed an
average of 2000 or 3000 feet apart, the
minimum distance being about l»*x) feet,
the losses of arresters vary from 0.07 per
cent, to 0.7 per cent, of those installed,
while in other places, where the spacing
is about one mile, the losses run as high
as 3 per cent, of the arresters installed.

Election of O

The annual election of officers held on

the final working day of the convention

ilted as follows:

John F. Gilchrist, of Chicago, pr.

dint. Frank M. Tail, of Dayton, Ohio,

•.-president; Arthur S. Hikv. of

Oklahoma, second rfc lent; T. C.

Martin, of New York, secretary; George

H Harries, "f Veebingtoa, I). C., treas-

c onduit Wiring Data

Hi O. B. Arla

Although the National Board of Fire
Underwriters and various municipal in-
ion bureaus have established cxtcn-
loroughly covering the quality
and thickness of the rubber insulation, as
well as the strength of braiding, for in-
r light and power conductors in-
stalled in unlincd metal conduits, as a
rule, tlu e the p: uch

cond rncnt of the individual

engn contra

This is an important matter and one

that is not always sufficiently appreciated.

the frequent that, through

. a conduit
•o small an internal diameter is used,
causing tn 1 1 c conductors and I

insulation by reason of 'ric-

on the g and tensile streseet

Imposed upon the while

hauled into such a condi;
A table of conduit wiring data based
on an experience and
cral the *

in : personal use and has

e been successful several

contractor* an tion men

This table has b< car

and J on th cnts

of the National Hoard I

ring
tit*) !•
here In

diameter and
*• the first

(ISC

od pr.«
to use so id conductors ' larger

than N< arpc garr

Although than

permltt' under-

writers for this class of work, two smaller
B arc given because they arc fre-
quent! gnaling systems.

The carrying capacities of wires with
weatherproof insulation are given in the
fourth column of the table for conven-
e in other work. This kind of in-
sulation is not permitted in conduit work.
The diameters s| : in the fifth

column in thirl of an inch are

the over-all measurements, outside of the
-lid.

n up to 21 condu. The cor

diameters ftl al-

though, as a r f 4 inches

internal diameter arc the limit of <
nar nch condu also

n. but these are ; J only

A sup; s added in the

loui -hand corner, shoving how

mar \ S.

gag ables can safely be |

si! : s

• .'.

— ■

1 2

III!,'

i i

1 :,

II lil

•

II 2

-*l »

« a

2*1 **°

1 9

■

■'I •
3| 4

4 •

S 5

1 't • » i

•

}» i

at 4

4| 5

• as

■

•-

i' la

2 34 4

1 '

44 5

1
1
1

• a

a a

':. a

\s a

a
a
a
a
«-.

taw

a a a

of any de*
ber

■

l> l.i .

thrr

nc ctwii

xkr

a larger

nut-

ncd on

on.

'be same •
i coodu

douMr the

ttM

'f ttw

• '■'.

920

POWER

June 13, 1911

Taking Gas Samples with an
Aspirator

By J. C. Parmely

An aspirator may be used to good ad-
vantage at times around a gas-producer
plant; I once found it very convenient,
for example, in making a test of a suc-
tion producer and engine. In this test
it was desired to operate a Junkers
calorimeter to determine the heat value
of the gas made by the producer. The
usual method of taking samples of gas
by the use of aspirator bottles could not
be employed in this case because a con-
tinuous sample was required and be-
cause, in addition to taking the sample
from the suction main, where it was at
a pressure less than that of the atmos-

JSverything"
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal men

eter apparatus could be applied. This
was easily provided by the use of a few
pipe fittings, as shown in Fig. 1. A piece
of 6-inch pipe A was cut about 8 inches
long and threaded on both ends, which
were capped, as shown; a hole was
drilled and tapped in the side about two
inches from the bottom, into which a
long nipple of '/S-inch pipe was screwed;

pipe in the other. This pipe reached
nearly to the bottom of the separator
chamber and provided a water seal which
would prevent the leakage of air into
the gas main in case the water supply
for the aspirator should fail.

The arrangement was connected up as
shown in Fig. 2 and its operation was
essentially as follows: The aspirator,
operating like an injector, drew the sam-
ple of gas from the main and this gas
passed into the chamber A mixed with
the water. In the chamber the gas sep-
arated from the water, rose to the top
of the chamber and passed out through
the ^/6-inch connection D to the calorim-
eter. By throttling the water outlet of
the chamber at the valve B, pressure was
applied to the gas to force it througn the
calorimeter. The apparatus was tried by

Scrubber Water Line

PorttK

Power

Fig. 1. Aspirator and Separator

Fig. 2. Complete Equipment for Continuous Gas Sampling

phere by about two inches of water, a
pressure of nearly 0.3 of an inch of
water was required to force the sample
through the meter and other parts of the
calorimeter outfit. It was decided, there-
fore, to use an aspirator to take the sam-
ple from the main.

As the aspirator operates upon the
principle of the injector, the gas it draws
from the main passing from it with the
water, it was necessary to provide a
chamber in which the gas could separate
from the water and where the pressure
necessary to force it through the calorim-

an angle valve B v/as put on its outer
end and into the upper outlet of the
valve was screwed a jX-inch nipple long
enough to reach about half-way up the
6-inch "barrel." Just below the upper
cap another hole was drilled and tapped
in the side of the chamber to take a
T<<-inch nipple D, which provided a con-
nection for the removal of the gas from
the chamber. A hole was drilled and
tapped in the center of the top cap and
a plug was fitted in this hole, the plug
affording sufficient metal to take the
aspirator outlet in one end and a ^-inch

connecting U-tubes containing mercury
to both the suction E of the aspirator
and the outlet D of the separator. By
adjusting the valve C the suction pres-
sure shown by the column attached at E
could be varied within the necessary
limits and the pressure at D could be
varied by adjustment of the valve B.
When the tube E was left open, the pres-
sure at D could be maintained, as before,
and the air taken in through E escaped
in the form of bubbles in the water.

Having constructed the apparatus and
being convinced that it would operate

June 13, 191!

po\x

\t tas- < install

it at the p'.ant to be in a place

re it would be readily accessible, be
safe from damage and not in: rith

the operation of the plant own in

Fig. 2, the wet a: -.crabbers i

loca ie and it -

to place the apparatus on the top of the
jbbcr and take the sample from
the main conn -he two scrubs

It was found to be necessary to pre

itform across the top of the scrubber
so that the vibrations of the top of the
scrubber due to the varying r
within it would not affect the appar.t

>hown in the sketch. in-

serted in the scrubber water line and
the aspirator and separator

temporarily by UN
ing them to i: A sampling tube

similar to fiat u-<. J with a steam calorim-
eter main and rub-
ber tubing was us-cd to make all con-

ons. One-inch pipes carrying fun-
in their open ends were uxvd to
carry away the water from the sampling
apparatus and the calorimeter.

:c to the fact that the water i;
in this plant was J from a tank

upon the roof of the building, the head

n the apparatus did not I 15

feet at any time during the tests and
was only sufficient to give a ;
of about two-tenths of an inch of water
.as at the me- ch was

somewhat below that desired; but it was

ient to operate the calorimeter
cent fully, though slowly. With -

of one • i:ing

of the burner, the calorimeter was

ghoul thrct
hou-

Oil : Miips

At the spring meeting in London
the Institution of Naval Arch

a paper on "Diesel
•i which
that, apart from the rcla-
cost and f '

md coal. » rnal-

sscsses
marlr

mpara-

are

•
be none wit'i tar
Cortipi-

Ma* at ''cat

value, occupies less space, can be
■<xn* and oi
coal and care

loaJc ! abor

of coaling

ginr the dcvclnpeJ horse power ha

Overcome >' ■ am,

to work the fuel pur:., > compress

the air necessary for
in the t also

to work tr. p. Tr.

Mr. Milton po: >.c up more of

the gross power than do the access*
of a steam enf -illy, a less

proportion of the ir
trar. rea-

son, the power of a

pressc- s of h'

On the basis of 0.4 pound
of oil consumed per brat,
hour u •

power, and assuming i i a modern

steam engine a

of coa! itcd

hor>

cor: to about 1.47

brake horscpowcr-ho-.: weight of

fuel to be for the same ve-

in a vessel fin

will be only 2* ight

am po
is the more important
au\ ves

propelling ma ear;

whistle; donke rc and Are

mach.
;:n-hca: walcr-

venr r assent

'or the
' and heat-
appliances are
scparai

at work at sea for all these purposes;

■ust
gasc g then th an au

iary b<> k suffi\ cam

for the purpose

*%cd air

J be made larger ♦
pose
say*
oft

off \-

: the
marine

ing '

in both t

balance wn-

cetacJdencc (bat | the

a pap<

• Ham-

of ic show for

apec

cost is not so import.

•ns can be nscd in C

a mode
teg.-

•Mi
engines of 150 to Itft) total borsepc

4 ■

creased

k.3000 -.
Compound st-
ated to £1200.

nowing a J
the oil

ing the consumption 1 pound

per hor»'.

hor powada

-old
MM

for IN i cost of

coa: ted horse p

>our at
be aboi: »r a sir- iod. 1>

:ost of
:d be i

former.
on act ira cargo o

and less lab the

total to £88 below the c<

i ' ;

iIm

is much ncarc
the '

the

for

( , nd Oil 1 - in IMiop-
Minin

Tv ••■.-•

pear*, to b* the

r ■ ;

; v, v ,- com-

J 4

j m

hor*er

■IIMflll

lent aet-r Feet M*-
eagftaai
PcbMc Phosphate Ceeapax
law record J *e tft

ed report af tbetr perfareaaaro

922

POWER

June 13, 1911

Air Pump Valve Froze

I once had occasion to use a double-
acting pump for mine purposes, using air
at 90 pounds gage pressure. But I was
continually bothered with the valves
freezing, which stopped the pump.

Then it was the old story of burning
a piece of oily waste to thaw them out
and get the pump started again. This
method, however, has often caused
cracked and broken pumps, due to the
unequal expansion.

I finally tried the scheme of tapping
a ^-inch connection on the discharge
pipe, near the pump, and leading the
same around and over the air chest,
branching off over each chest. Then I
put in a M-inch pet cock about 4 inches
above each chest so as to get a small
stream of warm mine water to flow over
the top of each valve chest while the
pump was working. This ended the

trouble.

W. Cooke.

Chignecto, N. S.

A Puzzling Oil Trouble

I once had an unusual experience with
an engine using the splash method of
lubrication.

It ran with very satisfactory results
for about six months.

The crank case holds about seven gal-
lons of oil. It was my custom to empty
all of the oil out of the crank case every
three weeks and renew with new oil.
The dirty oil was filtered and used on
the other engines.

On one occasion I had changed the oil
as usual and after running about three
hours a bad pound developed on the
crosshead pin. This became so bad that
in about half an hour I had to shut down
and key up the brasses.

I started again and in two hours the
engine was pounding like a steam ham-
mer. This time I took out the crosshead
pin and boxes and found that while there
was nothing hot and. no apparent cut-
ting, the oil grooves in the boxes had
completely disappeared. I dressed up the
boxes and the next day I had to stop
three times. The third time I removed
the pin and brasses and found that the
oil grooves were gone again, and the
pin so badly flattened that it had to be
turned up. This trouble continued for
some time. I changed oil again and again,
but the pound still remained.

I was badly puzzled, and, while looking
in the side door in the frame, I saw tiny
particles of zinc floating on the oil.

Practical

information from the,

man on the job. A letter

dood enough to print

here will he paid forr

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

I stopped the engine and keyed up
again and after getting some oil from
one of the other engine rooms started
again, and, presto, the trouble was gone,
and the engine ran nine weeks before
the crosshead pin needed keying up
again.

I then suspected the cause of my
trouble and, procuring some barium
chloride, made a test and found the oil
strongly impregnated with sulphuric acid.

The crosshead boxes were of a com-
position containing about 90 per cent,
zinc, for which sulphuric acid and water
have a strong affinity.

On starting up with the new oil there
was no water present and in consequence
the contained acid remained inert. The

I ran this engine for about 18 months
after that, and never had a recurrence of
the trouble, as I took the precaution to
test each barrel of oil. I rejected two
which I found contained traces of acid.

On taking up the matter with the
chemist of the oil works which furnished
this oil, he stated that through some
error the acid had not been properly
neutralized after the oil had been
bleached.

The babbitted bearings of the engine
did not show any ill effects and I do
not think any such trouble would occur
without this particular combination of
zinc, acid and water, as this oil gave
perfect satisfaction when used on Corliss
engines with babbitted bearings.

C. A. Green.

Cleveland, O.

Radiators Give Trouble

The accompanying illustration is of a
heating system with which I have been
having trouble because three radiators on
the second floor fill up with water.

When I open the drain from the trap

Radiators and Piping

metallic packing on the piston rod al-
lowed a little water to escape and travel
along the rod, whence it dropped down
inside of the engine frame and mixed
with the oil.

After a couple of hours sufficient water
accumulated to form a corrosive mixture
when combined with the acid, and this
combination is what caused the brasses
to waste away so rapidly.

the water drains out and the system

works all right for from 8 to 15 hours

before it will fill up again. The radiators

on the first floor give no trouble. The

1-inch line from the boiler to the first

radiator is 80 feet long. Can any reader

of Power tell me how to remedy the

trouble?

B. E. Thomas.

Seattle, Wash.

June 13, 1911

Slovenh Pumping Plant

Shortly after my arrival in this country
I got a position as fireman in a pumping
station not far from Philadelphia.

The plant contained five water-tube
boilers, two 5,000.000- gal Ion pumps, two
centrifugal pumps and a 15-kilowatt gen-
erator direct coupled to a Mfl
engine. The working for
into three shifts, each being made up of
an engineer, fireman and a man to look
after the filters. Only two boiler
under steam and it was a hard job to
keep up the pressure.

After a while I began looking around
and I found that the whole outfit was in

bad condition. The pumps ■
running with the drip cocks wide open,
and the centrifugal pump made a n
like a triphammer. To keep the h>
cool and save oil. <ch water fa

was supplying a stream of water to
them.

The engineer in charge paid absolut.
no attention to the temperature of the
feed water. The blowoff cocks leaked
so badly that the water ran out of the
blo«off pipe in a small stream.

I kept the job until the end of the
season and then I left. A year later I
passed by this same plant and. looking
in. I saw the same chief sitting in the
same rocking chair. No change was
apparent in the conduct of the station,
pi that it was more dirty and n<

The chief did not propose to kill him-
se'l a month, i en days

a week.

Patcrson. N J.

W l».it ( the Pipe to

W .r5

On a hydrau! . c used for harbor

work, the firM «V) feet of the discharge
m the hydrau

runt along or. the

Ige in a horizontal position anJ i
;h the pipe leading to I
into which the material i

The pipe wa ics

it after being in
lontha it began to leak at several
On examin.r
the pipe »a» found to h.i
to a thickness of bin M along the

igth; the bottom, h
jr.

material h the

•lation of mud and

sand and the pump discharge* against a

•

the »rar mmr* ,>:■ •' • r
>f on |l m

talizing Pipe cm S r<>r

Put a funnel into the neck of a bo*
iff. I, and pour water into it. The
uatcr will run :nto the bottle for

'•

!'.

M; but. if the joint at A is tight so
that no air can escape, the air in the bot-
tle will soon become ieed until
uals the head of water in
the funnel and then the flow will stop or

an of the tra;
full of steam of the same ;
that in the separator If a s'.ug

>n betveefl
im spaces of the tra
arat >ff and

Teck o'
in the trap nave

air in

flow of the wa peded and

. I

I ! i trouble from

in a numtn stances by cooaec?

the top of team space

ot the separator or whatc
ing tra; . an c g pipe

- the mater Jcwt n A

to push the steam or gaseous contents of
>und through -
ng the o fall I the

at.d the trap to i and

energetically to its full
more, it takes of (he

ling of the ti g the necessity

of gctti:

rouble which n • from ncg

• nd. O.

I ' • normtion t Boi

Br> plosions continue to occur

dail • -he reasons and t

them arc numcroi;

n an ad an boil

clean water .me I ■

foul water, and fa
•hat ma

-laa

pla'

>i«- >, <

t long cmored

from a

forme*

wat >f lirtlc or oo

ist such condition* a*

the co the «uc

'rem eaeae
roe boiien recer
the testate ha c steel

head »a» of good, tough it ■

on 0 Tee •*

tVattl the r«e

aging "*« Nce"*"c »<■•

Jer-rnds ea*sa m+*i -t
-t« and tie *N»se H reo
-MMtlc were ny
-ondition • 'hei fermn

i •tea- -o state! k

924

POWER

June 13, 1911

the rivet holes, due to small cracks. It
was found necessary to remove the heads
and upon examination it was discovered
that the cracks reached out from the tube
holes. In the tube a hard, fllint-like scale
was found from ^ to V% inch thick on
the interior of this tube and the header
was also badly coated.

Pitting is another element of deteriora-
tion. In one instance the top of a boiler
was covered with asbestos. Upon un-
covering the boiler in order to reset it
in a new battery, it was discovered that
pitting had occurred on two of the top
sheets. The dome connection was also
in the same shape. The original thick-
ness of the plate was ^ inch and some
of the pits were 54 inch deep.

A coat of graphite will form a surface
under the outer covering which will pre-
vent the metal from being attacked in
this way.

C. R. McGahey.

Baltimore, Md.

Furnace Questions

Why is it that more letters are not
written regarding the CO? question?
There have been many articles on the
theoretical side. Now let us hear from
the men who plug up holes and crevices
in the boiler setting, and who crawl
around in furnaces studying grate areas
and fire arches. They should know some-
thing about the question. Talking of
furnaces, how much can the air spaces
in the dumping plates of Roney stokers
be reduced without danger of burning?

How can I stop or reduce the leakage
of air through the joints of the big
doors at the rear of a Babcock & Wilcox
boiler?

If a return-tubular boiler has an air
space in the setting, does not air leak
into the furnace from the air space? Has
anyone tried filling up the air space, and
what was the result?

William E. Dixon.

Maiden, Mass.

Cleanliness in the Power
Plant

One of the most important details
about a power plant is cleanliness. The
chief engineer of a plant has much to
do in this regard, because others con-
nected with the plant will follow the
example set before them.

A young man starting in as an oiler is
quick to acquire the habit of smoking a
pipe and chewing tobacco if his engineer
does. He will spit on the engine-room
floor if he sees the engineer do so. He
will acquire the habit of sitting around
reading newspapers just because the ex-
ample is before him in the person of the
engineer. He will go around the bearings
regulating the oil without the sign of a
piece of waste. He will fill his oil cups
without paying attention to wastefulness,
forgetting to wipe the can before setting

it down. The result is a general smear
just because the fellow has seen his en-
gineer do so and probably because he
belongs to the class of men v/ho are not
naturally clean.

Some fellows learn by experience to
keep clean, others do not. The slovenly
have usually been brought up that way
and never possessed any horse sense.
No plant can be successfully operated
without system, and the sooner the young
engineer thoroughly comprehends its
meaning and applies it to cleanliness,
the better it will be for himself and all
parties concerned.

Thomas M. Stirling.

Middlebranch, O.

Feed Water Regulation

In the power plant where I am em-
ployed there is a vacuum feed-water
heater connected as shown in the accom-
panying illustration. The pump that sup-
plies this heater also furnishes water
for an outside line, on which it is neces-
sary to carry as high as 80 pounds pres-
sure per square inch. Since assuming
charge of the plant, I have had some
interesting experiences with the heater
and the duplex boiler-feed pump.

heavy rush of water into the heater as
the regulator valve A opened, and the
inability of the exhaust steam to prop-
erly heat this sudden supply of water.

Here were two difficulties to be over-
come, but a third one appeared. Every
time the regulating valve A was about
to close or open it would chatter so
fiercely that it could be heard some
distance outside of the plant and also
caused a commotion in the water pipes
running to the office building some dis-
tance away. To remove the first diffi-
culty, the heater was raised about 40
inches, and there has been no further
trouble with the feed-water pump. In
removing this trouble all complaints' com-
ing from the fireman were silenced and
a saving in fuel was also made.

The 3-inch globe valve B, placed just
beyond the regulating valve A, had .al-
ways been kept wide open. This put the
whole line pressure on the regulating
valve and caused it to chatter, as men-
tioned. Then as the regulating valve
opened there was such a rush of cold
water into the heater that the tempera-
ture of the feed water to the boilers
varied greatly.

This difficulty was removed by simply

• • — "" ■ \n~"

Heater and Duplex Boiler-feed Pump

Originally, the heater was set so low
in relation to the pump that there was
not sufficient pressure to lift the intake
valves. When the water was hot this
condition caused steam pockets to form
and the pump "kicked." The engineer
or his assistant would have to step lively
and close the throttle valve on the pump,
and then admit some cold water to the
heater to relieve the trouble. This was
not pleasant for the fireman, for it kept
him continually guessing as to the feed-
water temperature and was also far from
economical with the fuel supply. In ad-
dition to this the feed-water tempera-
ture fluctuated greatly as the demand of
the boilers varied, this being due to the

closing the 3-inch globe valve until it
would admit only water enough to sup-
ply the heater with the regulating valve
wide open. The globe valve had to be
adjusted occasionally to meet the varying
demand of the boilers, but this was very
easily done. The chattering of the regu-
lating valve is only a memory and it is
now possible to maintain the feed-water
temperature above 200 degrees Fahren-
heit.

These were very simple remedies, but
they may be of some service to the read-
ers of Power in solving other difficulties
that may arise.

C. D. Eldredge.

Fairport Harbor. O.

Jime 13.

Prevented Water Hammer

Under the above heading,
tells on page 573 of April II Po
hou- he drained the water from an
haust pipe under vacuum. The apparatus
he employe . crude and must re-

quire considerable attention. The same
thing can be done automatically b
of a return trap such as is used for
boiler feeding.

A check valve should be provided in
the drain from the exhaust main to the
trap and a second check valve in the
ection to the feed tank. The former
valve should open touard the trap and
the latter away from it. In operation the
condensation comes down to the trap
through the drain pipe, equilibrium be-
ing ieJ through a vent pipe con-
necting the trap with the exhaust main,
en the full, the float rise*.
operating a ilvc which closes the
and adn

ure to the interior of the trap. The
check valve in the drain closes and the
other or o that the water in the

trap is forced out until the lowering of
the float moves the in the

positc d lishes connec-

tions with the exhaust main.

U'. T. Meinzer.

Brooklyn.

as a Scale Preventive
la. n his a

n he praises the use
of graphite in boilers p the scale

ll.
persona e and a;

lion I know that
Kale f r 11 so !

s a
great h ig their

boiler* clean.

In a power plant ol tabcock &

I
daih the oth

Cleaned. After being thoroughly clc«:

-e equally

is of each

boiler, the ' put

ten
drained out and opened up. con* I
scale mas found in the mud drum, and
when the cleaner was run through the
c was rcn
lining the scale the era; uld

be seen clinging to the tin I
Ing that
ing

nt,

upon wine

r:t-

ariatt v\7//( /; / p.

pea red in prt

i&stii s

I he ( rid( ings I n pne \ al

Regarding .. I

larks o
ers who h.i some experience with

the and C

Cab -cr in I

quite clear, but there is no reason for the
;pt notch in the compression line.

▼bile : •. I am

I took

cr had
engine n an offset

the dia-
the

incc m I

»i »ti

c compression

ll g of

of the

iggesiion of having a I

g and | to

good. I alvava fitted the new engine*

S-<, || OUt . ,v '' i Iff .»• fr- Tfit for

■ -
I st d

toMMssar ■"•i I "ten

>n tin i

r* who fall •»
the IMi! squarely on
the hc.i v many would-be cngi-

-. when caught
son* on
the watch, !h. t I irac on

someone el

IT
can afford to fall asleep on bis job. The

as arc
not to bla

cm on his Job.

ng are not
are en:
s and Wori

c so t 11 com-

pect as the work of

nay be asked why

do c now

-sea arc oo

trouble
ends f oats

It v: n told by bin.

ned an J "tea the **bo**~

a* been posted and
ucb coj

iot ma

e CO .

oond of eo*l nerd? Wbat do
you any reports *ho»ing

ich may tend

■ '

' vou vent to be"

You arfl

ftdittOM

Tba toslatc
laoletcd-plant engineer
Tbto to as age of e

abreast wltb tb* lea

ft ^cbs s

eWag.

all right. Bag the

926

POWER

June 13, 1911

Measurement of Smoke
Density

The construction of the smoke tintom-
eter, as mentioned in the April 25 issue
of Power, is essentially the same as that
of the smoke meter described by the
writer in the London Engineer of Janu-
ary 31, 1908. I believe, however, that
my instrument has superior qualities, one
of which is that its simplicity permits
it to be more readily made by anyone
who may wish to possess a smoke meter.

As shown in the cut, the Kunze smoke
meter consists of a metal tube 6 inches
long and 1 inch in diameter, at the
end of which is a disk similar to that
•of the smoke tintometer. I made the first
disk of glass, but finding this expensive
and easily broken, I used transparent
celluloid. Only four tints were employed
as the grades "clear" and "black," corre-
sponding respectively to 0 and 5 of the
Ringelmann chart, were unnecessary to
operation. The grades 3 and 4 are most
vital, as they constitute a violation of
city ordinances as usually drafted. If
the smoke appears darker than grade 4, it
may be recorded as 5, and if no smoke
is seen the record 0 may be used.

The Kunze Smoke Meter

At first I tinted my disks by painting
them, but I found it difficult to get a flat
tint without streaks or spots. A better
way is to tint the disks by photography.
The four segments of a large circle drawn
on a sheet of bristol board are tinted
corresponding to the grades 1, 2, 3 and 4
of the Ringelmann chart; this is then
photographed and printed on a sensitized
celluloid disk. By using an arc light for
printing, one can time the exposure so
accurately as to secure uniform grades
of tints for any number of prints, and
the tints after being fixed are not easily
destroyed through use. Should it be de-
sired to further protect the tinted surface,
it can be done by having the celluloid
disk turned out, leaving a small rim
around the edge and, after sensitizing
and printing the inner surface, covering
it with a glass disk, in this way pro-
tecting the glass from breakage by the
celluloid. In calibrating the different
tints with the Ringelmann chart the in-
strument is used in its usual manner.

In employing any of the methods of
tint comparison, including that in which
the Lowdon instrument is used, a diffi-
culty arises in that so many conditions
may change the appearance of the smoke:
the condition of the background, the
color of the sky, the time of day, the posi-

tion of the sun and many other conditions
which will widely alter the effect of the
observation. This trouble is mostly due
to the fact that the eyes of the observer
are not concentrated upon the smoke and
the tint with which it is being compared,
but are influenced by foreign conditions
such as those named. This objection
was overcome in the Kunze smoke meter
through the use of small holes in the
center of the tints as presented in front
of the tube. In using the instrument the
observer looks through the tube with one
eye, and closes the other. The smoke
will be seen by the naked eye through
the small hole in the center of the tint
and as all background is cut off there
will be no disturbing influences and an
exact comparison can be made. The disk
is turned around its axis until the shade
of smoke proper corresponds to the tint
on the disk, or most nearly to it. If the
smoke is darker than the surrounding tint,
a dark spot will appear in the center. If
the smoke is lighter, the spot will ap-
pear to be quite light in comparison. The
contrast is great until the shades cor-
respond to. one another, at which time
the contrast suddenly ceases to exist
and the tint at the end of the tube is un-
broken.

The use of this instrument need not
be confined to smoke observations but
may be used to compare color tints as
ieadily as it does shades of grayness.
Edward J. Kunze.

East Lansing, Mich.

Standpipe on Heating System

With reference to Alexander Dolphin's
letter under the above title in the May
9 number, I do not think that the stand-
pipe would give satisfaction. I think that
the system would always be filled with
water and that there would be violent
water hammer. There could not be good
circulation and the service would be poor.
If it would be convenient to get below
the return line a water seal in the shape
of a U-bend would make a good form of
trap. I have used a U-bend for a trap
on low-pressure lines with success. It
is bound to drain all the water out of the
line, and it will not permit any steam to
escape. There would be an objection to
this trap for Mr. Dolphin's system which
carries as high as eight pounds pres-
sure, in that it would be necessary to ex-
tend the bend down about 18 feet below
the return line in order to prevent the
steam pressure from overcoming the
weight of the water in the trap and thus
allow steam to escape.

William Swope.

Tiffin, O.

In the May 9 number of Power
Alexander Dolphin seeks information
concerning a standpipe on a heating sys-
tem. There is this objection to a stand-
pipe. If he has a single-pipe system,

every time the steam pressure goes off,
the water in the standpipe will run into
the radiators below the level of the water
in the standpipe, and when the steam
comes on again it will blow the remain-
ing water out of the standpipe and cause
severe pounding in the radiators. Then
the water in the radiators must be re-
moved, and this is no easy matter.

If he has a double-pipe system the
steam pressure will clear the radiators of
water but will cause much pounding and
if there are any pockets he will find that
the radiators behind the pockets will be
flooded.

Then, too, with either system of pip-
ing, he will have a job to keep the proper
head of water to balance the steam pres-
sure. Five pounds on the steam mains
will require 11.5 feet of water in the
standpipe, measured above the lowest
point in the steam mains; eight pounds
will require 18.4 feet of water.

If the end of the pipe were in plain
view it would be possible to put on a
valve and throttle it, using it as a bleeder.
Another way would be to use a water
seal which can be made by taking two
34-inch pipes about 20 feet long, laying
them parallel and connecting them at one
end with two elbows and a short nipple.
Then place them upright and connect
one end of the U-bend to the return
main and let the other end discharge to
the tank. This trap will keep the ra-
diators clear of water and will prevent
steam from blowing through.

Roy V. Howard.

Tacoma, Wash.

To Engineers Who Write

Much advice and exhortation have been
devoted to those engineers who do not
write. Just a word to those who do.

Many hesitate to write because they
fail to see that what seems commonplace
to them is just what some other fellow
is aching to know. Others hesitate on
account of lack of confidence. Then,
too, a proposition reduced to black and
white usually loses much of the force
and luster it had while it was only an
unexpressed thought. All these and more
may account for the fact that some
writers of letters stop right in the midst
of their story.

For example, take the letter of C. B.
Smith on page 646, April 25 number, on
"Reduced Compression and Lead Saves
Coal." Now, I happen to know the two
engines of which he speaks. It also hap-
pens that I am running three engines of
the same make. Naturally I am in-
terested. Mr. Smith found it possible to
save 3000 pounds of coal per day. If we
could turn the same trick here, it would
give us great pleasure. But here is the
hitch. I know how my valves are set;
but Mr. Smith has failed to show how
his were set, either before or after ad-
justments. Possibly my compression is

June 13, 1911

POW

the same as his after adjusting, or my
lead may be the same as his before ad-
ng. 1 do not know; he has left me
in the dark.

A set of cards taken as the eogfa
were originally and another set as they
were when saving 1 . tons of coa!
day would be relevant, or measurements
of lap and' lead and compression might
be given. With such information the let-
ter might be mad<. valuable to the
many who are operating Rice & Sargent
engines. Without it, all we know
one man used a wrench and saved coal.

I have taker smith's letter, not

to cast any doubt or reflection upon it ,
but because it is easier to make »■
meaning plain by using a concrete
ample. His fault is quite common. Let
every writer trv to put himself in the
place of the "other fellow" for whom
he is writing.

The admonition "Be brief." frequently
given to writers, may be the reason for
some of these letters which contain only
half th We readers do not like

to wade through a lot of verbiac

it an idea. We want the ideas clear-
ly set forth; but uc want all of them. It
may n< I le to do that and be

'; so I say, be em Get all the

essential fa - J then prune.

W:;i

Maiden, Mass.

( I I defined

In my letter under the above hcaJ

U appeared in the May 3<> number

I neglected to cross out the * ion-

clemcnts" in the last cqua-

of Table 2. The equation should

read:

Purr Coat = (

Will:
Nc

Befit »n

dcr the a

I II, there appeared an sri

.ailing attention to an orgSfi
of Bremen
be I

•asocial purr-"-

fit the ; :ant

r as a i

ha* been
• n
Operating ! I' » organixai

• tociated
r plar- that

alt power-plant

passer up wil: ully be ngi-

■eer
can

«e of the I*
Ing era hat beer ' at

a and i« '
ganl/at <-nglnecr »j

Through h m of |< grades

and cenificates, the apprentice may be-
come in time an operating engineer and
in turn his certificate of ma

iting cngir.
The present standing of the average
pan at least, to his
isolation and his short-sightedness. He
has been left out of il :bu-

tion of rewards and is therefore com-
pelled to accept a lower wage than some
n he has - ion.

When th. .irds set by the In-

:te of Operating Engineers are es-
I be a rccogni.
n the engineer in charge
of a 25-horsepowcr plant and the chief
of s large central

The man who will be able to obtain a

ficatc of master operating engineer.

will have in his possession a paper of

value and his sen-ices will be in demand.

compensation will be in accordance

with his ability.

J. P. F
Chicago, III.

The V i idenl .it Amogkeag
Milk

In reading over the account in the

Jent
at the Amoskc.i.

death of three men. it seemed almost
incredible that the two men on the en-
room floor to get out
of the r
thc V

ids oru : r how I

•<;
The only mi en is the

:hc basenv If

•

The hascmcr

c total
Ar ' the (I

a b reasurc pound*

. -

O *i atmosph

it atmosph* -<>uld be

»Kmcrt and engine
Id mea
ninnies the i

second'

been caught before they
J grope the

HAND.

I mp Pi Mem

'r rump problem

-'*» number assume

■ connecting red be
four times the length of the

be five
crank n the center of the

crank i of a plunger

the sske of argumen- j!1 s Bfsssl

length one volume, the stroke will equal
two vofan

Tl the connecting roda and

the

a number of tr ngth of

the center side of the

usee meav >m the center of

the crank shaft, it may be
how far | end of ll get has

iblea
and the rule that the sides of a gle

are : op-

• ...

fshasss

the of

placed
he son

volume an " < ' ■ .*'• '"• > umssl and the

so p<

The asan lr
te shorter the t

r tii rrniM tSw

and

flllc \

ifl

lie the

d srstn •

•team in a
weco-

unable to

928

POWER

June 13, 1911

Value of C02 Recorder

In the issue of May 9, H. S. Vassar
presents diagrammatically the results of
a number of boiler tests for the pur-
pose of confirming his disbelief in the
value of flue-gas analyses in general,
and automatic CO- recorders in par-
ticular. He starts out by placing these
instruments in a class with pies and
puddings — which are unnecessary, if not
indeed harmful, luxuries — and clinches
his arguments by citing a fable which
represents all those who are spending
time, effort and vocabulary in an earnest
endeavor to show the true relation be-
tween CO- and efficient combustion, and
to convince the power producer of the
economic value of a continuous automatic
record of CO-, as "strangers glib of
tongue" who are enticing the foolish
managers of power plants into ordering
these instruments "at a fabulous price"
and all those who for many years have
been spending time, money and patient,
toilsome effort to perfect such instru-
ments as "weavers of airy nothingness
from nothing."

Mr. Vassar's presentation of experi-
mental data is not without value.

First, because it shows how easy it
is to draw false conclusions from in-
sufficient data.

Second, it gives an opportunity to dis-
cuss the subject of 00- from a new view-
point.

Third, and most important, it sets
those who are, or should be, interested
to thinking.

Valid conclusions cannot be drawn
from the meager data presented. It is
necessary to know the draft, rate of com-
bustion, feed-water temperature, steam
pressure, the percentage of superheat or
moisture in the steam and, above all, the
temperature of the flue gas and the per-
centage of coal left in the ash and clinker.

It is absurd to condemn the value of
an automatic CO2 recorder from the re-
sults of a series of tests in connection
with which no such records were made.
An average sample may be quite mis-
leading because it cannot reveal what
has happened during the sampling period.
In an average sample showing 11 per
cent, of CO- the flue gas may have varied
between 5 and 17, 8 and 13 or 10 and
12 per cent., and unless these variations
are known, valid conclusions cannot be
drawn as to the economic value of CO-.

Furthermore, the ordinary method of
sampling by drawing the gas into a bottle
billed with water and allowing the water
to drain off gradually does not give a
true average sample. The flow of gas
varies inversely with the draft, and di-
rectly with the loss of head in the bottle,
causing the flow to become less and less
rapid as the bottle empties. Until Mr.
Vassar gives assurance to the contrary,
there is justification in doubting that he
obtained true average samples.

Mr. Vassar says nothing about the
temperature of the flue gas and, since
the loss of heat up the chimney varies
directly with the temperature of the es-
caping gas, no valid conclusion can be
drawn without this knowledge.

The loss of coal through the grate bars
is another factor which may vary be-
tween 1 and 5 per cent, and must there-
fore be taken into account. Without a
knowledge of these factors it is absurd
to draw a general conclusion. There
are certain fundamental principles and
natural laws with which experimental
results must harmonize, and if they do
not so harmonize, there is something
wrong with the results or the manner
in which they have been obtained.

To burn 1 pound of carbon to CO-
requires 11.6 pounds of air, forming 12.6
pounds of combustion product composed
of 21 per cent. CO- and 79 of nitrogen
by volume. If 50 per cent, excess air
is supplied the products of combustion
will weigh 18.4 pounds and contain 14
per cent, of CO.. With 100 per cent,
excess air the products of combustion
will contain 10'. 2 per cent. CO- and
weigh 24.4 pounds. With 200 per cent,
excess there will be 7 per cent. CO- and
35.8 pounds of flue gas; and with 300
per cent, air, 5.25 per cent. CO- and 47.4
pounds of flue gas. Thus the weight of
the flue gas increases as the percentage
of CO- decreases.

In burning 1 pound of carbon 14,500
B.t.u. are liberated, and this quantity
of heat remains the same whether the
coal is burned to CO- with the theoretical
minimum weight of air required or with
an excess of 300 per cent, or more. There
is therefore a definite quantity of heat
available from every pound of carbon
burned, irrespective of the excess of air
supplied.

To raise 1 pound of dry flue gas 1 de-
gree, requires 0.24 B.t.u. If the tempera-
ture of the escaping flue gas is assumed
to be 500 degrees above atmospheric tem-
perature, 1 pound of flue gas will carry
away

0.24 X 500 = 120 B.t.u.

Therefore there must be loss of heat up
the chimney. The following gives the
losses for various percentages of CO- in
the flue gas and also the percentage of
these losses to the total heat produced:

C02, 21.0% 12.6 X 120 = 1512 B.t.u. or 10.4%

C02, 11.0'; 18.4 X 120 = 2208 B.t.u. or 15.2%

CO,, 10.5'; 24.4 X 120 = 2928 B.t.u. or 20.0%

COa, 7.0-; 35.8 X 120 = 1296 B.t.u. or 29.6%

CO,. 5.25',' 47.4 X 120 = 5688 B.t.u. or 39.2%

These are minimum figures for the
stack temperature assumed, and can be
reduced only by reducing the stack tem-
perature.

The loss up the chimney may be and
generally is greater than shown in the
table, due to various causes: First, higher
stack temperature; second, unconsumed
combustible gases, and, third, water
vapor.

Abnormally high stack temperature
may be due to dirty and insufficient heat-
ing surfaces and excessive driving. With
a properly constructed furnace and in-
telligent firing, appreciable quantities of
unconsumed gases will not occur when
40 to 50 per cent, of excess air is used.
Water vapor is always present, due to
moisture in the coal and the air and to
the combustion of hydrogen.

In all cases high or low C02 means
high or low efficiency, and when, as
some of the tests in Mr. Vassar's dia-
grams indicate, 5.25 per cent. CO- gives
a higher efficiency than 8 per cent. (Fig.
J ) and 8 per cent, is more efficient than
\2'/2 (Fig. 2), there is something wrong
either with the percentage of CO- given
or the determination or computation of
the other data.

While it would be preposterous to say
that a CO.. recorder is a sure cure for
all sources of loss in the boiler room,
it is none the less true that it is the
most available and most reliable, and
hence the best, guide to efficient firing,
and in combination with a recording
pyrometer gives a correct measure of
the loss of sensible heat up the chimney.
When it is considered that this constitutes
from 60 to 90 per cent, of the total waste
in generating steam, its importance must
become evident to all concerned in boiler-
house economy.

Edward A. Uehling,
President Uehling Instrument Company.

Passaic, N. J.

The Line Shaft Breaks

In the issue of May 2, A. Rathman
writes that the shafts break in the hub
of the sheaves. That is the weakest
place, as the keyseat is cut there.

An uptodate factory which had been
installed but a short time was operated
by a rope drive. The generator was
driven by a Corliss engine of 1500 horse-
power.

One night during a rain storm the
wheel pit was flooded and the rope got
wet and began to shrink. It was then
slacked off all that was possible on the
tightener. The stress was so great that
a coupling on the generator shaft was
sprung, cracking one bearing, and the
rope drive had to be cut out to keep it
from pulling the generator off its base.

Mr. Rathman does not say whether the
plant was run 10 hours or 24 hours, but
.1 infer that it is operated in the daytime.
At night the drive is apt to get damp
and contract, causing a heavy strain or
even springing the shaft. The remedy I
suggest is to keep the drive as dry as
possible. A gr»od belt dressing might
be a help to prevent moisture, if applied
when running slowly just before shutting
down.

O. L. Sherman.

Duluth, Minn.

June 13, 1911

POWER

1 : V. • •,..;. '. s t ••

Hill Publishing Com].

ceaaarllj

Inland a* awoo«!

indcr lb

BwtMH T<-li c- i[)h t ..!•-.

Sank urn

*> intents

i mm in II

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tllBfl

ulafl'in

|'r«-.|

lUmm
1 1<- ■•

an
m

loason of an

I he National Electro I :ht
( onvention

nc of the features of tl

cntion recently held in '
might be profitably ado;
r national
The committee the

t important of the» about thirty

ri the program relating to i
nccrinj; ~ of cen-

tral-station work. nir. J of

commit:

far and than ar

the papers the remaining

n deta.
sufficient t! true, which is inJ

table. Tho that are of

high merit arc tl

alm> effort cral

committees ma m; this is a

.client general reason
the e than the average

paper. Of arc other rea-

myonc in? can c.i

discover most of the
The committee r
i much hi. -han

the natural result of

earn

things and hand g the ■ an-

nual uphca\al» T

■
were r:

informal «old

centra:
•

i mean- timale

that th*

■
mo*' vo and

on-
ram ma-
that a con-

■'■iti a ic<x>

not be i snored
thai so-

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fftftf HftC CStt D9 tj f 4 -

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kinds. T): a a

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Prt'^rcvs or S icthin

As a ; :he Americans am

be proir to a J

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:oes no*

When an idea is
cjucntU ad )

processes and r

are
dail ire adopted almost

as a matter of course on the assumption
that that u • be N

than tii.i
In thi

suit
mental ana

ill-
1c the of

instruction

...

manner th.v
of a

forced.

» in tri

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mm
t nortc— bat. T^.-u^n h aaar +*

feaH^ttiKIa? I Hall at f "*< . ft a? If

930

POWER

June 13, 1911

is better than one with separate flanges, it
is of paramount importance that the con-
struction be safe beyond the possibility
of suspicion.

When two pieces of iron or steel are
to be welded together the surface must
be clean so that the pasty metal may be
rolled or hammered into perfect con-
tact, and when the slag is not entirely
removed from both surfaces this is im-
possible. There is always more or less
difficulty in welding when one of the
members is much thicker than the other,
and this is aggravated when the sur-
faces to be joined are comparatively
broad or long.

Between the pipe and the flange there
is a considerable difference in thickness
and the form of the joint is such that
the removal of all of the slag and oxide
is problematical. A joint of this kind
though to all appearances perfect out-
wardly and may withstand a mild hydro-
static test, may be so imperfectly joined
within that the stresses and flexures of
even a short service will pull it apart.

The strength of a perfect weld may
be approximately calculated, but the un-
certainty of the continuity of the union
between the pipe and the flange in a
welded joint has led conservative engi-
neers to discourage the use of the welded
pipe flange, not because of the lack of
strength and rigidity when sound, but be-
cause of the uncertainty of the nature
of the union between the pipe and the
flange.

Ignition in Gas Engines

It has been universally true ever since
the early days of electrical engineering
that electrical auxiliaries used with ma-
chines not themselves electrical are re-
sponsible for most of the troubles ex-
perienced in the operation of the ma-
chines, until the makers of them "wake
up" and put the proper quality in their
electrical auxiliaries. The gas engine is
no exception to the rule — in fact, it is
a shining example of its truth. It has
been stated that more than two-thirds of
gas-engine troubles are due directly to
the ignition equipment; it is our opinion
that the proportion is much nearer ninety
per cent.

The remedy in all cases where the en-
gine is small is to equip it with the best
quality of ignition apparatus and wiring
that money can buy. Large engines,
however, suffer the unavoidable handicap
of relatively slow complete ignition, no
matter how good the equipment, because
of the distance through which the flame
must travel and the very small quantity
of mixture in contact with the spark
made by the igniter.

The Diesel engine has been perfected
mechanically to such an extent, we are
told, that it is operated in Europe by
unskilled labor. Does anyone suppose
this would be possible if the engine had

to depend for ignition on the kind of
apparatus commonly applied to gas en-
gines? The fact that the air in the cyl-
inder is hot enough to ignite the oil as
it is injected undoubtedly accounts for
the conspicuous operating success of the
Diesel type of engine, now that the rub-
bing surfaces, crank shaft and nozzle
have been made practically fool-proof.

Builders of gas engines will do well to
take this lesson to heart. Ignition by
means of a minute spark at one or even
two points on the circumference of a
large cylinder is inefficient, and attempted
ignition, at one or forty points in any
cylinder, by means of cheap apparatus is
an insuperable obstacle to satisfactory
operation.

Gathering Them In

"Twenty-nine steam plants in one
town; twenty-seven of them are shut
down and the other two are on the run."
This is the substance of what the chief
engineer of a central station in a pros-
perous Massachusetts manufacturing
town told a Power representative re-
cently.

Why have the owners of these twenty-
seven steam plants found it to their ad-
vantage to close them, unless it is be-
cause electrical energy is sold to them
at a lower cost than the steam plants
can produce the same power?

This is not a proof that the isolated
plant cannot produce power cheaper" than
it can be bought from the central station,
but it indicates that some engineers are
so operating their plants that they can-
not compete with central-station rates.

There is not enough attention given by
private-plant engineers to the undeniable
fact that their positions are in peril. They
do not seem to realize that their em-
ployers are going to get power where it
will cost the least. There is no senti-
ment in business. The owner of a steam
plant sees no poetry in the roaring fur-
nace and revolving flywheel, and just
as soon as it is determined that the cen-
tral-station rate is cheaper than isolated-
plant operation, out goes the small plant
and with it the engineer.

When the operating conditions of some
isolated steam plants are noted it is a
wonder that they have not been super-
seded by the central station long ago.
Some engineers are woefully ignorant
about the machinery in their plants. Re-
cently the man in charge of a four-
valve engine could not tell his visitor the
maker's name until he had looked at the
nameplate. In another steam plant the
engineer was operating a cross-compound
engine. Each cylinder was provided with
two exhaust valves and each steam valve
was fitted with a riding cutoff valve. The
engineer stated that each cylinder had
but four valves.

With such men in the small steam plant
it is no wonder that the central station

is putting them out of business. An iso-
lated plant, in order to withstand the
competition of the central station, must
be operated by an intelligent engineer.

Two steam plants in operation out of
twenty-nine is a commendable record for
the central station, but what a mighty
poor showing on the part of the twenty-
seven engineers! A fact worth noting
is that the engineers of the two live
steam plants are readers of power-
plant journals.

Is it not about time to wake up ?

High Voltage Transmission

At a meeting of the power-transmis-
sion section of the National Electric Light
Association during the recent convention
the question was raised as to what is
the maximum voltage that can be car-
ried economically on transmission lines.
Although there were a number of promi-
nent electrical engineers present and the
question evoked considerable discussion,
there appeared to be no definite opinions
upon the subject.

At one time it was believed by many
that distance was a factor dependent only
upon the voltage; that is, power could
be transmitted almost any distance pro-
viding a sufficiently high voltage could
be employed to avoid excessive copper
losses. The chief difficulty then lay in
obtaining insulators which would with-
stand the high tension; but this now
seems to have been overcome and with
the introduction of the suspension type
of insulator 'it is probable that this phase
of the problem will be met for any volt-
ages likely to be used. Another factor
to contend with, however, is the breaking
down of the dielectric strength of the
air, resulting in objectionable leakage
from wire to wire through the intervening
air.

In Colorado, transmission lines carry-
ing current at one hundred and ten
thousand volts are in successful opera-
tion at altitudes of ten thousand feet
above sea level, and a one hundred and
forty thousand-volt line is being con-
structed in Michigan. This represents
an increase in voltage about tenfold dur-
ing the past fifteen years. What then
appeared to be unsurmountable difficulties
have been successfully overcome and it is
probable that like progress will be made
in the future. Nevertheless, definite data
upon the subject of leakage through the
air would be of great value to engineers
engaged in power-transmission work.

It is expected that in twenty or
thirty years all of the water power in
Bavaria will have been developed. There
is a total of some three million horse-
power, about one-half of which is owned
by the government. One of the first large
projects to be undertaken under govern-
ment auspices is that at Lake Wal-
chensee.

June 13, 1911

P O \X F. R

031

Inquiries of General Interest

/ //'. / r / ntram ; > Man-

ni> /.' >s.

Why docs not the feed water enter the
water leg of a Manning boiler as in :
tical boiler-

The feed water enters the Manning
boiler M it should all vertical boi
well up toward the top of the water, in
order to gi\ contained air a short

pass to the steam If the water

enters the boiler anywhere in the com-
paratively cool eg. tlu n in
the air leaves the water slowly and col-
on the sta and in-
jures them by COt 1 while if
free in the hot water near the top. it
goes directly into the steam space and
thence to the engine, where it can do no
harm.

I ' <

at arc the comparative valuta of
soda ash and soda i
softenir.

1 I
Ja ash and soda crystals arc on the
market in such degrees of impurity that
a definite answer to your question is im-
Ic.
Ja ash runs from nt.

alkali, and soda my-

where from 20 per cent, of »

the largest kali

: for the m
cent, soda ash is boi:

| ■
How is sulphur
bearings, and is it suitable for al

Pu
flowers of sulphur

preferably cylinder

>f about I of sulphur
of oil. Tl :rc is a[

ally and

// /

What would horscp' an

i stean
ng together the spaed

■

Th«
found by n
of tl

area of the
the mean r1

Questions .//
not answered unh
accompanied by the
daum and* h (>/ the
inquirer. This ,-

for wu when stuck-

use it

cd as a formula the rule

:hc va
com

\i ■ r

Can the power in a three-phase ■
cuit be measured with a s

int to •
nctcr I -o. what is the

constat

t with If the

cuit is tec balan.

L«l l».

II A

meter .\ .ted •-

in t

• i

power in tl

r^owcr In or MM I ' r HM

c ir*' inc purpose Of Bffli

' the p<

■

/ '

The B per second

on tl

of r

a mac! poles

- second (900

'rem of
second, b*

/ /

full loa

It it the bi c a

for*

ie speed up to

the no-loaJ »j
dinarilv cause bad -

I re-r.me the scale from the
' a gas engine • so

small that is ot be used in

the

g solution
of • «oda and run the engine v: •

•I too v

and ru -

■ •

NMMmat m If It la ru\i\ and d "

aft'

%hing soda

through asain and folio* » •'

/
I >
i

1»mto at
it to that

Inch and d

•ding to the fen
' r tan
lion of rotation.

932

POWER

June 13, 1911

The Westinghouse-Leblanc

Water Refrigerating

Machine*

This machine rests on the principle of
producing cold by evaporation of an
aqueous solution in a vacuum. But it
differs essentially from the old machines
of Leslie and Carre and from the vac-
uum machines now employed in America
in that the water evaporated, instead of
being absorbed by concentrated sulphuric
acid, is removed by mechanically draw-
ing off. This leads to a great simplifica-
tion since there is no longer any need to
trouble with reconcentrating by dilute
sulphuric acid. If this expedient had
not hitherto been devised, it was be-
cause it seemed impossible, practically,
by mechanical means, to remove the
enormous volumes of water vapor evap-
orated at low temperature (since the boil-
ing point of water at atmospheric pres-
sure is 212 degrees Fahrenheit, is much
higher than that of other liquefied gases
used in compression machines, viz., 14
degrees Fahrenheit for sulphurous acid,
— 13 degrees for methyl chloride, — 31
degrees for ammonia, and — 108 degrees
for carbonic acid). This was, in fact,
quite impossible with piston pumps and
could not be accomplished except by re-
course to entirely different apparatus,
such as ejectors, which, by reason of the
enormous velocities attained by the liquid
in them, allow a considerable flow of
steam. Yet it has been necessary, in order
to obtain the requisite high vacuum or
low absolute pressure of 0.12 of an inch
of mercury to get a refrigeration to 23
degrees Fahrenheit and less than 0.039
inch to reach 28 degrees, generally to
combine with a steam ejector a special
water ejector fed by a sort of reversed
turbine. These two appliances, which
separately would be insufficient, give the
desired result when they are coupled in
series.

The Westinghouse-Leblanc refrigerat-
ing machine permits the refrigerant to
be employed more simply than in com-
pression machines. While in the latter
apparatus the evaporated refrigerant
liquid, such as ammonia, cannot generally
be employed directly and serves only to
cool a brine, in the Leblanc machine it is
the brine which is directly cooled and
constitutes the refrigerant liquid. At the
same time it is concentrated by the
natural action of the vacuum machine.

This peculiarity avoids the need of con-
centrating by heating the brine, which be-
comes quickly hydrated by contact with
the moisture of the air and the substances
that are being cooled. Here, on the
contrary, it is always necessary to add a
certain quantity of water to the heated
brine before sending it to be cooled.

When the Leblanc machines were first
built, the water vapor removed from the

possible the design of powerful refriger-
ating machines for low temperatures,
which would not have been practicable
with the simple ejecto-condenser ap-
plicable only to small installations for
quite high temperatures.

The accompanying illustration is a dia-
grammatic sketch of a Leblanc refrigerat-
ing machine, with a mixing countercur-
rent condenser, such as that installed
at the Bethune mines. All the other in-
stallations are of nearly the same type,
except that the condenser may be of the
surface type. The heated brine coming
out of the refrigerator R passes to a
dilution tank S D, where a cock with a
float brings fresh water when the level
in the tank falls below a certain point.
The brine, suitably diluted, is thence
drawn up through the pipe S C to the top
of the evaporator A, by reason of the

.sc " — vc

Diagram of Westinghouse-Leblanc Water Refrigerating System

♦Translated from an article by Ch. Jacquin
in ha Technique Mod erne.

brine was condensed in the water ejector
itself. This arrangement was applied
only in one installation, in the Gillet
Chemical Works, at Lyons, to cool a dye-
works product to 46 degrees Fahrenheit
only. In all subsequent installations the
water vapor removed from the brine has
been condensed in a separate mixing or
surface condenser, the vacuum pump of
which is formed by a liquid ejector. This
new arrangement has rendered easily

vacuum existing therein. This evaporator
is formed of a cylindrical body B, carry-
ing at the top a finely perforated plate,
through which the heated brine falls in
slender jets. Under the influence of the
vacuum which prevails in the evaporator,
this brine in falling liberates water vapor,
which escapes by the annular jacket sur-
rounding the cylindrical body B and rises
to pass through the short pipe A E. At
the same time the brine, cooled by con-

June 13, 1911

P O W E k

centration, falls 10 the lower pan
of the evaporator A, where a centrifugal
pump Pi it to the refrigerator K.

The air and water vapor removed from
the brine, at low pre nter at A /:' the

periphery of the steam e). which

contains a - es J folio

by a converging and ng cone

which comes a flow of hot steam
from the pipe I lich can be at at-

Thc hot steam
e nozzles ./ and draws along
with it into the cone J' the a oo!

vapor coming from the brine. T:
tore passes out at the lower part
of the steam ejector and into the 1"
pan of the co:

drawn upward b) ibe vacuum
in the pipe A I. In r dcr

of cold «a:cr coming from the h
Q and s through a finely perfor-

platc / In contact with this w
the water vapor of the mixture
and falls with the

bottom () of the the

combined waters are discharged at
pump ' The air
which .a- contained in the rising gaec
mixture, with the water vapor from the
brine J through the upp

> into tl I /

Th<. :cd in A I, at the

iter cje
/ mtaining a cor

water, at very high «
the turbine pump P F . The liquid in-

nto the
«c / / iK nit sucked from
the condenser and falls into K
In the eje lachim.

n the figure to a direct c
'mur Me has., cam

; A I of th

at / the wau

or tank, but

under pressure In the
machine ■ separate conJ

the turbine pump
fcJ with ll ng thr-

the dilution tar and

returning there at K whenever the
in i e tank

nothing further to c
the priming of the '.;quid ejt
star- hen th

c there is no need
water for the operation

and

c tank
The liquid ci ant

vacuum, equal '»n of the ■*

rature
omc lr
The steam

gur

tain in the » final «b»

•cm-
peratur 'uld be

cooled; for cxamp 2 inch of r:

:h of mer-

when ;

:u la ting
the bri; charging t

and PF th aier

arc
-::u!! el cam

motor M

The Lcbla age

of being built on!;. >ng par-

cel to rapid »c
absence of noise is alto in ccnain caws
a valuable on the

and on the seven lar.
x of th.

application of - line

for cooling an. n maga The

J in the re: >inc

.ooling to a tempi of a

ren-
heit, the air entering an air cooler and

e-nt-

for driving
essar> for
rather less than the mechanical p

ia large

wor

of t.

r as to cause an ei

the

ill

Anoth

a pressure gage and oil
tbk

ugbt out in a
i repon of the Hntish Board of Trade
At the Moorficld Chemical Vor»
ham. England, an old La

long b J as a still for ma

I ammonia from crude am-
The bo
■
long, an J

■•

ii &h

Old

The Vesting'
well ad..

cool b

■

i cool I used to hasten

quit

a »tean
alone Miffk

C COfldc

e pump arc then

< cuum machine con
sumes »

compression machines

>en the

and •

• - i

angle irons Double angle

•or I he fror pair

inning i
>e n.i ; son in the

■
A on pipe foe

« of Hot

fitted oncj. '■'<»■- r pea aad a I' . •
inch vapor pipe led from the croon in

peaacd through the boiler croon and
connected to an Instroal pipe, the open

rbon bettg about
abc • holler and r»

»wn c* dned to iw

*- •• ' «Sc bo*l«f Mi • '-•-'v»l< » .

934

POWER

June 13, 1911

provided at the top, through the cover
of which was drilled a 34-inch hole for
sounding purposes; the latter was closed
by a wooden plug. The vapor pipe also
contained a J4-inch hole for ascertain-
ing the strength of the gas, and, like the
other, this was closed by a wooden plug.
No pressure gage or other mountings
were fitted.

The method of working the distilling
apparatus was as follows: When the
boiier was to be charged, the cocks on
both branches of the vapor pipe were
closed. The ammoniacal liquor was then
run in from the settling tank, up to with-
in 3 feet of the top of the boiler, and then
about 4 to 6 inches of milk of lime was
introduced by means of an injector. The
charging cock was then closed and the
steam valve opened, admitting steam into
the boiler and boiling the liquor.

The gas evolved was led to the con-
densers, where it was condensed to liquid
ammonia. There were two condensers,
it being the usual practice to pass the
gas to one condenser for 20 hours, one

,. Main Run on 10— Floor Ceiling

I \" I" lk"
^-

The rear head was also torn at its con-
nection to the shell for about four-fifths
of its circumference, and the boiler was
projected backward about 2y2 feet. The
attendant was so severely injured that he
died a few hours later.

An investigation after the accident
showed the relief pipe to be completely
choked and as there was no pressure
gage nor safety valve attached, an explo-
sion was inevitable.

Air in Ice Water System

By Charles J. Johnson

I inclose herewith a blueprint of an
ice-water system that is giving consider-
able trouble by mixing air with the
water, causing it to become milky. As
very few people know the real cause of
this color, I am troubled with constant
complaints.

I have thought out a remedy for this
in the following manner. Put an air trap
on the supply pipe A, or disconnect the
line at this point and put in a direct line

\ ' Valve

Typical
Connection

4'-

-7

.v>

-f.

jfc

I'.'i

z j-*

-5

pt^

-4

---*•

--i-

Y—a —

; Circulating 'Pipe on
?™ 'Floor Ceiling

Valves

Typical
Connection

Pressure RelieF Valve "**• . /J »

Centrifugal Closed^Refrigeratmg

Pump

Tank

Deep Well

Circulating Pipe on 2— Floor Ceiling \

_4'_ I

All Risers are valved at Top and
Bottom to adjust for Regulation

Piping Diagram of System

cock being open and the other shut. The
cocks were then changed and the gas
led to the other condenser, which, after
working for another 20 hours, exhausted
the charge in ;he boiler. The spent
liquor remaining in the boiler was run
off by means of the cock at the bottom of
the boiler, after which recharging took
place. It required about one hour to run
off the spent liquor, and another hour
to charge the boiler. It was customary to
open one of the outlet cocks on the vapor
pipe at the same time as the steam was
turned on to the boiler.

At about midnight on the night before
the explosion the boiler was due for
recharging and, according to custom, the
man on duty should have opened the
steam valve and the vapor cock, the latter
of which he apparently neglected to do.
For, about two hours later, a violent ex-
plosion occurred, blowing out the front
head, the rivets connecting it with the
angle-iron ring having been completely
sheared off and the tie-rods ruptured.

from the tank. Either one or both can
be done, if necessary, but would like to
hear from Power readers first.

Purging the Absorption

System

By H. Westergaard

To get the best possible results from
an ammonia-absorption system, the foul
or permanent gases collecting in the top
of the absorber must be drawn off at reg-
ular intervals. A purge connection with
a shut-off valve is provided at the top
cf the absorber for this purpose in all
installations of this kind, and the usual
way to proceed when purging is to sub-
merge the open end of this connection in
a pail full of water. Then the purge
valve is opened slightly and the gases
are allowed to escape through the water.

The permanent gases will rise through
the water and escape into the atmos-
phere, as they are not absorbed by the
water. Most of the ammonia vapor which

is mixed with these gases is absorbed by
the water. This water is generally thrown
away and the ammonia absorbed in it
lost.

To avoid this loss of ammonia the
writer employs the apparatus illustrated
herewith.

The poor liquor from the exchanger
enters an upright cylinder A at B and
runs down over a number of perforated
pans suspended at equal distance through
the length of the cylinder. The lower end
is connected with the top of the absorber
by a pipe C. The purge pipe is connected
to the top of the cylinder and is provided
with a valve. The gases collecting in the
space E of the absorber flow through pipe
C and in the cylinder come in contact
with weak and cool aqua ammonia, which
presents a large surface and rapidly ab-
sorbs the ammonia gas present. The foul
gases being insoluble under the existent
pressure flow to the top of the cylinder
and may be removed through the purge
pipe.

The apparatus above described has so
far proved successful, and it is my belief
that it will not only save ammonia but
will furnish a lower absorber pressure

Scheme to Avoid Loss of Ammonia

than would be possible without it. Wheth-
er I am right the operation of the plant
this summer will show.

One of the few points of advantage of
the absorption system over the other re-
frigerating systems is that it is better
adapted to maintain low temperatures,
but it can only accomplish this result if
the absorber and other parts of the sys-
tem are kept free from permanent gases.

Analyses have shown that the foul and
permanent gases purged from an absorp-
tion system contain besides air some gas-
es which have been formed by the de-
composition of ammonia, and practical
experience seems to indicate that this de-
composition increases with the tempera-
ture in the generator or still. It is, there-
fore, of great importance to provide that
part of the plant with an abundance of
heating surface, properly distributed so
that the temperature of the liquor in the
generator can be maintained at a fairly
low point when the machine is operating
at its maximum capacity.

June 13. 1911

POU 1 H

Spring Meeting Mechanical Engineers

It has been 27 years since the Ameri-
can Society of Mechanical Engineers last
met at Pittsburg before the spring meet-
ing of this year, which was held there
fron. «) to June 2. The exter-

mechanical Interests attaching to 1'
burg and the large membership of the
society in and about that city justified
expectations of an especially profitable
gathering which were fulfilled by the
The attendance was large and the
program replete uith inter- ellcntly

arranged and admirably carried out.

Those who arrived on Tuesday had an
opportunity to and

Machine Company exhibit installed in
connection with the convention of the
National mdrymt. Association,

which had taken place the ;
In tl ng an informs on was

held at the I nley, during which

er was presented with
an engrossed testimonial in commemora-
tion of his seventieth birthday, the

•ntation being made by J. H
bur)', as folio-

'ic flight of time is so noiseless that
quires anniversaries to mark
». and at a meeting of ci l in

Boston a few vn-cks ag is rcmar

that you would have a notable anniversary
on this occasion which ought to b-.

i in a manner similar to that of the
•iticth binhdav of several <>f your
associates and r. sors. and the mat-

ter was placed in the hands of a com-
>ir fellow n
rarts of this courv

J a notable
one in loing many th:

and doinu t .11.

'"In the sei
both cavalry and trtilk p becan

pan of of national

In the rcorKa*

your State. \ <>u N^.irnc a force in the
maintenance of law sad

"Ir ,
of peacd thai
In touch >ur career as an er.

•ton, inJ i maklr

mcnt« in baUng tru atcrial. in •

and also that of the
machinery which produces the finished
prod'

•ranspo-

Hon you ha\c been DOSHM

and rail* av manager

engineer as an
■

self In • < in

idica!
istion cnr.
•hi* rr deeds .nc

l« trtc in comparison with that of the
respectful tribi.
sterling manhood has endeared

self to those with whom you have
been associate

then, this engross-,
monial bru -ing ou nations;

and this will be followed in due time
by a folio containing the names of those
ng pan in th: onial. and we

ask vou to | nings to an a

whose portrait! be worthy

of the subjec

The M -c held in the n

ie Car- itc. that of

Wednesday mornir J to the

subject of t

The Committee on Standardization of
the rking in conjunction

tnllsr com- National As-

ition of M.i and Hot Water

Julc of stand-
: fittings and extra-
heavy flanged Julc
will be presented in an early issi

In the :r n the visitor*

taken ft of the Universal

land Cement Company a: rsal.

and returning s visit to the

the session at
was .: the

machine ic the gas-power sec-

held a

!ic halls of the Carnegie Technical
ols. T the form of

a .:

son R H

: of

furnaces. ! and

ncc- !k W.

the speakers • that a pause

■

«:a» cn-

gss

H. b

d the

ng cos-

ie pnx

n an early issu

«ea>
sion s papc bing tome of

tc*. by

'l s
lone | BSaSBjatJSI ' .»•• ' • ' 'iv ing i V. ,rr' ,

are h 8 fee gth

i '
1

sn ear

•> ei

■ • .

n progress
a proo >uch a high

cspsc-'
mui iscd and by the use o'

flux-. ash a:

and dra«n off ,g The

tion of slag ai

for ■ of producer gas and

in tl has

bOa

the ' cnt.

1. how-

• of

gss per square foot of fuel bed have

prod i. r hour having s heat

value of a' :c foot.

bed area, and no at
ite the prr>
rate.

e local co pared a

th the la-
large ;
the

'•osc at Cai ^car

Duqoesne

par

Johns*

rrc nrcn to

the \
Tr

-
of a

a column having

r '

ial fa

• i

• «

TWse f **•

S-

•»J en th<
el vjuarr INKS)*. . tfea

of r «• - of the ooissM Fsnmtfs

939

POWER

June 13, 1911

ratio - is less than 221 and formula
r

(2) to cases where this ratio is greater

than 221.

Next came "The Purchase of Coal," by

D. T. Randall. This paper is presented

in the columns following this report.

"Energy and Pressure Drop in Com-
pound Steam Turbines," by Prof. F. E.
Cardullo gives a graphic method of tak-
ing into account the transfer of heat
which occurs from the higher to the
lower stages by friction, eddy, etc., caus-
ing a departure from the condition of
constant entropy ordinarily assumed.
Professor Peabody submitted a table for
the same purpose.

In the "Pressure-Temperature Rela-
tions of Saturated Steam," Prof. Lionel S.
Marks explains the recent work of Hol-
born and Bauman and deduces a modi-
fication of the Van der Waal formula
which expresses the pressure-temperature
relations very satisfactorily from 32 de-
grees to the critical temperature. The
values of the pressures derived from
this equation have a maximum differ-
ence from the best experimental values of
about one-tenth of 1 per cent, in the
range from 212 to the critical tempera-
ture (706.1 degrees Fahrenheit). Below
212 degrees the maximum difference is
0.196 per cent, at 50 degrees correspond-
ing to a pressure of 0.00035 pounds per
square inch.

The formula is
log. p = 10.515354 — 4873.71 T-1 —

0.00405096 T + 0.000001392964 V.

"A Pressure Recording Indicator for
Punching Machinery" was a description
by Prof. G. C. Anthony, of the applica-
tion of the steam-engine indicator to the
punch, obtaining diagrams showing the
variation of pressure during the stroke,
the maximum pressure for which punches
should be designed, the point of maximum
stress in the punching of plates, the ad-
vantage to be derived from the use of
shearing punches, the effect of clearance
between punch and die, etc. The lower
die rests upon a piston, the pressure of
which is communicated to that of the
indicator hydraulically. One of the dis-
cutants thought that the stress could be
taken upon a spring beam which would
weigh it more directly.

On Thursday afternoon a portion of
the members visited the National Tube
Company's works at McKeesport, while
the rest were taken by boat up the
Monongahela river, calling at McKees-
port on the return trip for the others.
This excursion proved to be a grateful
interim in a rather strenuous program,
affording at the same time an opportunity
for physical rest and social intercourse.

On Thursday evening a reception and
dance was given by the local members
in the new ball room of the Hotel Schen-
ley which was hurried to completion for
this occasion.

The session of Friday morning, al-
though designated upon the program as
a "steel works session," developed con-
siderable interest from the power stand-
point through a debate upon the com-
parative merits of gas engines and tur-
bines for blowing purposes which oc-
curred in the discussion of R. H. Rice's
paper upon the "Commercial Applica-
tion of the Turbo-Compressor, and Re-
ciprocating Blast Furnace Blowing En-
gines," by Professor W. Trinks. We shall
have more to say of this in a subse-
quent issue. Mr. Rice's paper is pre-
sented in this issue.

The concluding paper of the meeting
was by Bathold Gerdan, of Diisseldorf,
Germany, and George Mesta, and was
presented by Herr Gerdan in person.
It dealt with steam-hydraulic forging
presses of which he is the inventor and
which are manufactured in America by
the Mesta Machine Works.

On Friday afternoon the visitors had
the option of a visit to the Duquesne
works of the Carnegie Steel Company
or a trip to the Mesta Machine Com-
pany's works at West Homestead, both
of which excursions were well attended.

A new feature in an American Society
of Mechanical Engineers' program was a
smoker, given in honor of the visiting
societies by the Engineers Society of
Western Pennsylvania in the Union Club.
George H. Neilson, the orator of the
evening, found no difficulty in making
light of the rather heavy subject of
crucible steel, and numerous speakers,
including a local monologuist, together
with an excellent quartet, brought out the
funny side of engineers and engineering,
and wrought the audience up to a condi-
tion of good fellowship which made an
effective closure of the week's program.

Too much cannot be said of the work
of the local committee. Every facility
was placed at the command of the
visitors for access to the many industrial
and engineering attractions of which
Pittsburg is the center, and every at-
tention paid to their comfort and con-
venience. The ladies were kept busy
with special receptions, luncheons, drives
and visits, and for each of the principal
trips an illustrated pamphlet had been
prepared with details of the program for
that event and descriptions of the prin-
cipal things to be seen.

Although the selection requires con-
formation by the council, the expression
in favor of Cleveland as the place for
the next spring meeting was so unanimous
that it is practically certain that the next
year's meeting will be held in the "Forest
City."

The total output of all the air-compres-
sor plants employed on the Panama Canal
work during the year ending June 30,
1910, was 7,227,203,513 cubic feet of
free air and the average cost was 4.03
cents per 1000 cubic feet.

The Purchase of Coal*
By D. T. Randall

Large savings may be made in the
boiler room along two distinct lines: First,
by burning the fuel at the highest prac-
ticable efficiency; and, second, by choos-
ing fuel of a character suited to the
plant conditions.

The coals of the United States vary
widely in character, some being high in
fixed carbon and low in moisture, volatile
matter and ash, while others are low in
fixed carbon and high in other con-
stituents. An analysis reported "as re-
ceived" represents the composition of the
coal just as it is delivered at the labora-
tory. An analysis reported on the "dry
basis" represents the composition of the
coal after having been dried for one
hour at 105 degrees Centigrade in a spe-
cial oven. Moisture is an inherent con-
stituent of the coal and an increase in
its percentage decreases the heating ca-
pacity of a given coal proportionately.
This constituent is weighed and paid
for on an equal basis with the combustible
portion of the coal, and therefore its
determination is of importance in ascer-
taining the value of coal.

The ash in coal is, like moisture, an
inert constituent. It may be distributed
in small particles in such a way as to
make separation from the coal impos-
sible, or some of it may be present in
larger pieces, owing to carelessness in
mining and preparation. An increased
percentage of ash decreases the heating
value proportionately and causes addi-
tional expense and loss in efficiency due
to extra labor required to handle it. The
fusibility of the ash governs the amount
of clinker that will be formed and con-
sequently some attention should be given
to this feature.

The B.t.u. or heating value of coal de-
termines its value as a fuel. When coals
of the same character are under consid-
eration the heating value may be taken
into account as a correct measure of the
value of the coal, but when coals of dif-
ferent character are to be compared, the
character of the coal as well as the heat-
ing value must be considered.

There is often considerable variation
in the quality of coals from the same dis-
trict; this is due principally to impurities.
On account of economy in mining and in
marketing coal, it is common practice
for one company to operate a number of
mines and to ship coal from all of these
mines to its customers. It is only
rarely that coal is equally good in all
the mines and, therefore, the customer
will receive some good coal and some
inferior coal.

The influence of volatile matter upon
the efficiency depends on the design of
the furnace. With a poor furnace and
indifferent firing, coals containing about

♦Abstract of paner read before the Amer-
ican Society of Mechanical Engineers.

June 13, 1911

PC'

OCT

\H per cent, volatile matter may give re-
sults 10 or 12 per cent, higher than coals
containing 30 per cent, or more volatile
matter. With furnaces adapted to the
kind of coal burned, ho
little loss of combustible ga

The size of coal is important in many
cases. If it doc> not coke and
there may be cor leakage

through the when burned on

stokers with inclin tee or on hand-

fired urates at rates that require fre-
quent breaking up «»f the fuel bed. The
of the coal also a <>my

which it may be fired. If the coal is
■:iorc air is admitted tha:
and if the fuel bed cannot
n thickness to overcome
there will be a loss of
If the coal is fine and the J

off the grate compk

burneJ. Fine coal which cakes and
forms a por nay be burned with

good cP If the coal docs not

n the fuel v
I, if not in . ure

a uniform it all parts of the

poor, owir
an excess of air at a and a

lack of air at othc-

without rt
pment may be valued
on the basis of their available ho
value. It to

burn almo fuel

• hen
based upon the available heat of the I

'. with tan
l and In

a rule, in? can be

bought much n their 1

value than

dect t' the

■
can be bu

rofitabl

lack

or coals which arc below the average

•akc
•
Coal when automat
•

n burnt;
arc the qu i

and should be reful ati

coal dcalr-

MucnccJ Mange*

qua

inner in » hicti ■

the
manner m hall be a:

h 'air to *

: In
manner l small

portmn w\\

of the entire 1

The problem of purchasing a supply
of r ., to ob-

tain coal that is au

and one that
it of
for each dollar tich

and an intimate

• the
different chara, the coals a\

able at reasonabi. s. The

nform.i mid be i

. on
the - 1 1 for a pla

a of boilers and fur-
nac.

b Load

i ft available and how cor-
als offered or
availab:

del

ition
to

c amoi. Iphrr •

al;

i! to
the cqi:

I
Afl what '►

•nam that

h bt : %< be

the b has I

ed as tt 'posal and

baaed on *

e some

it a

■

at the tame

I |

■

»f' tr>"J i '* " > ■" ' '

■

V "tcte H

oaaJ

lb*

* inj f< i

ir should pra
ance each of

blamed the specification

coal opcraiora

able

:ht on an

•al.

Tr i specification

■ i the

disposition

d '.

■

the

the co.

■ ■ -i • --ill .1111 ll»C I

poses to fun

\ a? COal I Ha%6 all •

-base I

>a! ari % to do ao

' a Kim

the

coal

aaalyata, a- - >• : c- , re* can

maki

■a*

iff

poor 'he consumer aad

• a " M

cd ana

the r

se c

roam »

Inter rr

be4 be«

938

POWER

June 13, 1911

Commercial Application of the
Turbine Turbo-Compressor*

By Richard H. Rice

The General Electric Company recently
put in operation at the Oxford Furnace,
N. J., plant of the Empire Iron and
Steel Company, a turbine-driven air com-
pressor for blowing the blast furnace.

The unit consists of a six-stage com-
pressor operating at a normal speed of
1650 revolutions per minute and driven
by a direct-connected four-stage Curtis
steam turbine. The design is such that
this normal speed produces a blast pres-
sure of 15 pounds per square inch. The
unit, however, is designed to regulate
the volume of air delivered per minute
so as to keep the rate of discharge con-
stant at any value, determined by the
furnace superintendent, within its capa-
city. The construction of this unit, as
well as the method of regulation, was
given attention in a description of the
plant which appeared in the March 7,
1911, issue of Power so that the opera-
tion of the unit will be considered only.

Both turbine and compressor attain
their best efficiency under similar condi-
tions as regards rotating speed, making
the combination a logical and efficient
one. Under conditions usually met with
in blast-furnace operation involving pres-
sures of blast of 10 to 20 pounds per
square inch, the efficiency remains sen-
sibly the same. A curve of efficiency at
varying volumes is shown in Fig. 1 and
above this has been drawn a curve of
speeds and pressures which, taken in
connection with the first named curve,
shows the variations of efficiency with
pressure, at rated volume.

This latter curve shows graphically the
variation of pressure with change of
speed, which follows the law of squares;
that is, doubling the speed gives four
times the pressure, etc., from which it
will be seen that only moderate changes
in speed are necessary to give consider-
able changes in pressure. It is these
changes in speed, increasing or decreas-
ing the blast pressure, which are utilized
to maintain a constant rate of flow of
air into the furnace, against the varying
resistances set up in the tuyeres and
furnace by varying furnace conditions;
as, for instance, clogging of tuyeres and
changes in the size and composition of
the charge, temperatures, etc.

The means by which these changes
of speed are produced in the manner
necessary to keep up a constant rate of
influx of air per minute was fully de-
scribed in the previous article.

At the time this blowing unit was put
in operation, it was not expected that
the volume of air required by the
furnace would be at such a low
figure as turned out to be the case,

the machine having been designed for
a normal volume of 22,500 cubic feet per
minute. On putting the machine on the
furnace, it was found the volume re-
quired was only about 15,000 cubic feet
per minute and the pressure correspond-
ing to this volume under furnace con-
ditions ranged from 10 to 12 pounds.
Under these conditions, it was found that
pulsations were met with in the pressure

.210
Q
SO

70 0
w

§60

| 50

„40

S 30

&
20

10
0

\ Discharge pressure Ib.sq

.in.

gage

Rated \

pressure

3ha

't ef icieucy

2000

1500

p ii

.ftn

constant value

of 22500

CU.ft.Ull

1 I 1

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Fraction of full load Quantity for constant speed

Fig. 1. Efficiency and Pressure Curve
with Constant-volume Governor

line, this pressure fluctuating about 2
pounds, and in order to overcome this
pulsation it was found necessary to throt-
tle the inlet opening. Since this time,
a convenient butterfly valve-throttling
mechanism has been designed and ap-
plied, which is found to eliminate these

2000 26

1800 24

1600

** 1100 20
'8 1200 1 18

Q ttf>

1000 '3 16

sure. At any given volume they occur
at a certain critical pressure and at all
higher pressures, but do not occur at
lower pressures than the critical. As
volume is increased, critical pressure
increases also. The critical pressure is
slightly affected by the density and the
humidity of the air.

Fig. 2 gives the characteristic critical
pressure-volume curve of this compressor.

Fig. 3 is the curve of pressure and
volumes for this compressor at constant
speed.

At the time this was written the blast
pressure at Oxford Furnace varied from
10 to 14 pounds during the day with
volume constant at 16,000 cubic feet per
minute. The speed varied from 1500 to
1600 revolutions per minute. The aver-
age steam pressure was 135 pounds.

The figures in Table 1 are taken from
a typical station log, showing the varia-
tion of pressure and volume during the
24-hour period of operation.

The apparatus used for blowing the
furnace before putting this machine into
operation consisted of two vertical re-
ciprocating blowing engines built by the
I. P. Morris Company, each of the fol-
lowing dimensions: Steam-cylinder diam-
eter, 54 inches; blowing-cylinder diam-
eter, 72 inches; stroke, 72 inches. Blow-
ing-cylinder displacement, 339 cubic feet
per revolution each. Maximum speed
rating, 30 revolutions per minute each,
giving 20,300 cubic feet per minute total

10000 12000 14000 16000 18000
Quantity - cu.f t.per min.

20000

22000

24000

Fig. 2. Curve of Breakdown Points from Factory Tests

♦Abstract of paper presented before the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

pulsations without appreciable loss of
efficiency.

The pulsations in pressure above noted
are an inherent characteristic of all cen-
trifugal blowing apparatus of similar con-
struction, and they occur when the ap-
paratus is operated at loads and pres-
sures widely differing from those for
which the apparatus is designed; that
is, from normal full volume and pres-

displacement. Actual maximum speed,
23 revolutions per minute each, giving
15,000 cubic feet per minute total dis-
placement. The average blast pressure
was 8 pounds.

Judging from the revolutions of this
engine, it was thought that the volume
used was about 14,500 cubic feet. On
putting the centrifugal compressor into
action, an immediate increase in the

June 13, 1911

pov;

amount of iron melted by the furnace
experienced. The output went up
from an average of 139 tons per
hours in February, 1910, to 176 tons in
April, 1910, and the iron was found to
be of a more uniform character and the
operation of the furnace was impr<
A gradual increase in the amount of air
since taken place and the correspond-
ing increase in ; quired to force
air through the furnace has been
necessary as was to be c
increase of air has resulted in an
crease in the production of the furnace
from 17t> tons on starting to the present
age of about 19<> tons. The machine
is now operating with cubic feet
of air and the lion of ore
tons per 24 hours average. It is prop.
to continue thi- increase t<-
per 24 hours, the limit of the charging
apparatus.

The dimensions of the furnace arc as
follows: Diameter at bosh, 17 ft
inches; at hearth. 11 feet; at top throat,
12 Feet; hight from hearth to dun;;
rin;

The condensing apparatus is of the
barometric type Tnli was dc
howevcr, in the March 7 numv

Tini.-

I 1

the
• that the m*cl
ing far and

curate h amount

w .iter un I

It
■
air than ll es. a*

denccd rn thr
of the furnace Bi
atlng with -

boilers arc more easily »orked than when
ating with the . .

: making com-
mons of the performance of tv
of blowing unit with reciprocating
eith- i or gas driven, o-

the ahs actual test figures, si

none have been published which permit
of accurate and sat is facto i parison.

: the results have been ob-

tained from all sources as to the actual
performance of such machines and from
actual e rhb this machine and

-istcr machine installed at the North-
ern Iron Compan

been made in the fa.
-hat the are

correct in r

for
blowing blast furnace

That the output of the furnace is in-
creased on account of the greater steadi-

re uniform con-
. furna.

Ii!

— .«^__

bM K»

•

;»

That the qua

That •

ess th.i

■
room B|

needed
.i: ■

Milwauk

That r on oo the pan of

pre n all pans of the

enactment of license

> is proved
offlinoa Counc

■
an ordir.ar.ee making it unla -

charge of any
ponion of anv stcam-p

horsep rt locomot

... . ..

■
i for heating in which
i leae than 15 pounds
squa-
lt
point a chief examiner who may select
an a ssi ting a board

of '. »ch

and

To be on an I

■■it mu-- in of age; of good

l of

;ad not leaa than
I a rr
'he constru
on of »tcam c

baaed on i rr of

rises arc unlimited a

the h
a tl

horsepower. But any

ko\cfin( ?*>e

! prior

■

' :

'cvti. urvd or

engir

than *

'nam «n»

furna

r board oard
cboaen • I

nera

•

B r »tfiKj n-.f ■ in v j

' to

i-d nr •<> «•'<

' •••>

940

POWER

June 13, 1911

It was the intention of the Common
Council to give the city a rational license
and inspection ordinance which, admin-
istered in the spirit if not in the exact
letter, will benefit the engineer, the owner
and the public by eliminating the in-
competent engine runner and the unsafe
boiler.

In one particular the board of examin-
ers is allowed no discretion. It is manda-
tory that the board see that each and every
boiler plant in the city is at all times
during its operation in charge of a duly
licensed engineer.

Ohio Board of Boiler Rules

Following the example set by Massa-
chusetts the legislature of Ohio has
passed a bill creating a Board of Boiler
Rules, consisting of the chief examiner
of steam engineers, as ehairman, and
four members appointed by the governor.
Of these four it is intended that one
shall be an employee of the boiler-using
interests, one from the boilermaking in-
terests, one from the boiler-insurance in-
terests and one an operating engineer,
but the governor may at his discretion
make these four appointments from any
class of citizens.

With the exception of boilers of rail-
road locomotives, portable boilers used
in pumping, heating, steaming and drill-
ing in the open field, for water, gas and
oil, and portable boilers used for agri-
cultural purposes, and in construction of
and repairs to public roads, railroads and
bridges, boilers on automobiles, boilers
of steam fire engines brought into the
State for temporary use in time of
emergency, boilers carrying pressures of
iess than 15 pounds per square inch,
which are equipped with safety devices
approved by the Board of Boiler Rules
and boilers under the jurisdiction of the
United States, all boilers in operation in
the State must be inspected at intervals
not exceeding one year.

Rules for the construction, installation,
inspection and operation of boilers, for
ascertaining the safe working pressure,
for the construction and sizes of safety
valves, locations for fusible plugs, and
other appurtenances are to be formulated
by the board.

Public hearings on complaints, recom-
mendations and for the examinations of
inspectors will be held quarterly and at
such other times as may be necessary.
Changes in the rules may be made after
any hearing, such changes being subject
to a further hearing which shall have
been duly advertised. All changes in the
rules which affect the construction of
boilers become operative six months after
being approved by the governor.

Boilers of special design may be in-
stalled by permission of the board if
after an examination of the drawings
and specifications such boilers are deemed
safe. The chief examiner of steam en-

gineers is ex-officio chief inspector of
steam boilers and is authorized to ap-
point, with the approval of the governor,
an assistant inspector and ten general
inspectors for service in the different dis-
tricts into which the State is divided. He
may also appoint as special inspectors
employees of any company authorized to
conduct boiler insurance and inspection
business in the State, provided such em-
ployees have passed the examination re-
quired by the Board of Boiler Rules.

By a system of fees for boiler inspec-
tions and for the examinations of appli-
cants for certificates of general boiler
inspectors the department will be partial-
ly self-supporting.

Punishment by fine or imprisonment
or both for the violation of any of the
rules of the board by the owner, user or
operator of boilers is provided for in the
bill which makes the rules of the board
operative on January 1, 1912.

In creating the Board of Boiler Rules
the legislature of Ohio has closely fol-
lowed the Massachusetts precedent and
it is confidently expected that the same
salutary effects will result that have ob-
tained in the latter State in the eleva-
tion of the standard in boilermaking.

Stumpf Auxiliary Exhaust
Port

In the operation of the uni-directional-
flow steam engine of Prof. Johann Stumpf
it has been found that the compression at
starting and during overload periods is

D.n

w= - — If

Stumpf Auxiliary Exhaust Valve

sometimes excessive and to remedy the
effect of which an auxiliary exhaust valve
has been designed.

To each end of the cylinder there is
attached a pipe B leading to the valve
box D and controlled by a cock C. In
the valve box there are two valves, E and
F, mounted on a common spindle.

Under ordinary working conditions the
cocks C C are closed, but if for any rea-
son it is desired to reduce the compres-

sion they may be opened by means of
the rod G.

With the cocks open and the piston
traveling toward the left, steam will be
admitted to the valve box and the pres-
sure will close the valve F and open E.
This allows the steam to escape until
the compression is high enough to close
it or until admission takes place and it
is closed by the pressure of steam from
the boiler. When the other valve opens
Ihe process is repeated at the other end.

PERSONAL

H. J. K. Freyn has resigned his posi-
tion with the Illinois Steel Company to
take charge of the gas-engine department
of the Allis-Chalmers Company.

Tom Oakes, who has been identified
with the valve interests for the past
thirty years, is now connected with the
New York office of the Nelson Valve
Company.

Reinhard Kunz, who is well and favor-
ably known among the engineers of Wis-
consin, has been appointed by the mayor
as chief of the board of examiners of
engineers for the city of Milwaukee.

SOCIETY NOTES

The Engineers Blue Club of Jersey
City will hold its annual outing at
Eitners park, Staten Island, on July 9.

On May 26, the American Institute of
Steam Boiler Inspectors held a meeting
at the United Engineering Societies build-
ing in New York City. The major part
of the evening was devoted to mechanical
topics. J. S. Lane, of the Engineer Com-
pany, read a paper on "Combustion and
Balanced Draft," which was followed by
a lively discussion. F. L. Johnson spoke
forcibly on the value of thorough in-
spections to the engineer in particular
and to the public generally. James Win-
ters read a paper on the physical and
mental qualifications required to make a
successful inspector and pointed out that
this field was no place for weaklings.
The next meeting of the society will be
held at the same place on the last Fri-
day of September, when the regular
monthly meetings will begin and be con-
tinued throughout the season.

That there is considerable water power
in Iceland is denoted by the following
announcement: Two English experts have
recently visited Iceland in order to sur-
vey the large Dettifoss fall, on the river
Iokulsa, which is calculated to have a
capacity of 60,000 horsepower. Another
less known fall, the Vigaberg fall, is
estimated to have a capacity of 50,000
horsepower.

June 13, 191!

PO\X

V'A \ . \. S. I .

c invention

The twentieth annual convention of the
Jersey State Association of the

National Association of Stationar>' Engi-
neers took place at Newark
and 4. There was an exceptionally Is
attendance of dele. ind at the n

;ons considerable important bu>
was tra The mt all

held in the new auditorium.

Friday at twelve o'clock the
hibition hall in the new auditorium
opened with a short address
Jacob Hsusslini

neers and their u and

congratulated the ;ion upon the

splendid exhibit of the supplymcn. Mors
than seventy booths occupied the main
hall, which was neat and

the displa> -t in the

'f the N
tion.

The first scs^ the del-.

called to oi ternoon. at

halt Jcnt

J. C. Savage, who welcomed the dele-
gates and their friends to the ci'
Savage then introduced Ham I) Coi
one of the org.: national as-

sociation and its first nat Jcnt.

•
•ncc in the National ition of

Stationa

ngrat
te Association upon
•>. It was in the engine room of Mr.
nun house at Pi
dencc. K 1 , m the ftMt hat the

National Al rationar

nccrs was organized. Me is no* chief

neer of the court house at Newark ,te|

After the appointment of the ncc- J
essary co: . ral repons national pt

re read and adopted, the sc. (in J Callah >

repon showing the organization to be in r
a healthy financial condition. oca! and instru

JIAIl

On I- en joy. i
■
hall, in

The program was arrar rank
•in.

rataf * h.i * as

largely attend. -he laJ

Johnson oP

maJ
Joh:

mon counc. I na-

tional ; I H. >

natinna

At the

i an a*-
■nal \

rbs officer
J as

1 1,
cha ■

942

POWER

June 13, 1911

Newark was again chosen as the place
for holding the next annual meeting.
The following firms had exhibits:
Acheson Graphite Company, American
Steam Gauge and Valve Manufacturing
Company, V. D. Anderson Company,
Ashton Valve Company, Cling-Surface
Company, Couse & Bolten, Crandall
Packing Company, James W. Crane,
Crane Company, Cryer Return Line Sys-
tem Company, M. T. Davidson Company,
Dearborn Drug and Chemical Works, R.
& J. Dick, Dixon Cascade Pump Com-
pany, Engineers Blue Club of Jersey
City, Garlock Packing Company, Greene,
Tweed & Co., Greenpoint Fire Brick Man-
ufacturing Company, Griscom-Spencer
Company, Hampson & Marks (American
Engine Company), Harrison Safety Boil-
er Works, Hewes & Phillips Iron Works,
Home Rubber Company, Homestead
Valve Manufacturing Company, Iron
Works Company, Jefferson Union Com-
pany, Jenkins Brothers, The Henry John-
son Company, E. Keeler Company, Ken-

Kentucky State N. A. S. E.
Convention

After opening the ninth annual con-
vention of the Kentucky State National
Association of Stationary Engineers with
prayer by the Rev. J. H. Young, C. E.
Fertig, chairman of the convention com-
mittee, introduced Mayor W. O. Head,
of Louisville, who delivered a warm ad-
dress of welcome. Frederick L. Ray,
State president, followed with the presi-
dent's annual address, after which R. W.
Brown, secretary of the Louisville Con-
vention and Publicity League, spoke, his
subject being "Our City." He enlarged
upon the beauties and advantages of
Louisville as a commercial, residence and
convention center and greatly impressed
the visitors with the hospitable words
of welcome so characteristic of the native
Kentuckian. Response was made by
Osborn Monnett, of Power.

F. W. Raven, national secretary, then
spoke on "Our Order," outlining its aims

the Ohio river, given by Louisville Na-
tional Association of Stationary Engi-
neers association No. 1, a special invita-
tion being extended to the visitors.

Exhibitors at the convention were as
follows: Ahrens & Ott, Louisville, Ky.;
V. D. Anderson & Co., Cleveland, O.;
Andrew Cowan & Co., Louisville, Ky. ;
James Clark, Jr., Electric Company,
Louisville, Ky. ; Crandall Packing Com-
pany, Palmyra, N. Y. ; Dearborn Drug
and Chemical Works, Chicago, 111.; Gar-
lock Packing Company, Palmyra, N. Y.;
United States Graphite Company, Sagi-
naw, Mich.; Greene, Tweed & Co., New
York City; Hawk-Eye Compound Com-
pany, Chicago, 111.; Hills-McCanna Com-
pany, Chicago, 111.; Home Rubber Com-
pany, Trenton, N. J.; Jenkins Brothers,
New York City; H. W. Johns-Manville
Company, Milwaukee, Wis.; Kentucky
Consumer's Oil Company, Louisville,
Ky. ; Laile Company, Louisville, Ky. ;
Lunkenheimer Company, Cincinnati, O.;
Lyons Boiler Works, De Pere, Wis.;

Group of Kentucky Engineers at the N. A. S. E. State Convention

nedy Valve Manufacturing Company,
Keystone Lubricating Company, Lagonda
Manufacturing Company, Jacob Levi
Company, Lippincott Steam Specialty and
Supply Company, Ludlow & Squier, Lun-
kenheimer Company, McLeod & Henry
Company, W. B. McVicker Company,
Macknet & Doremus Company, More-
head Manufacturing Company, Mutual
Supply Company, Nathan Manufacturing
Company, National Oil and Supply Com-
pany, Nelson Valve Company, Newark
Brush and Scraper Company, New York
Lubricating Oil Company, New York Belt-
ing and .Packing Company, Norben Oil
and Supply Company, Ohio Blower Com-
pany, Otis Elevator Company, Peerless
Rubber Manufacturing Company, Phila-
delphia Grease Manufacturing Company,
William S. Pitts Company, William
Powell Company, Power, Clement Restein
Company, John A. Roebling's Sons Com-
pany, David C. Seymour, W. S. Sheppard,
Simmons Pipe Bending Works, Millard
F. Smith, C. E. Squires Company, Stand-
ard Oil Company, Standard Regulator
Company, Strong, Carlisle & Hammond
Company, Under-Feed Stoker Company
of America, H. B. Underwood & Co.,
C. Yingling & Son.

and purposes and explaining to the mayor
and visitors the high ideals which
actuate the association in all its af-
fairs. At the close of the morning ses-
sion, W. L. Osborne, of Chicago, formal-
ly opened the exhibit with a few words
of greeting to the delegates.

Owensboro was chosen as the place
of next meeting, the new officers being
as follows: John H. Oelze, of Owens-
boro, president; J. L. Shrode, of Hopkins-
ville, vice-president; J. L. Harpole, of
Hopkinsville, secretary; Edward Kocken-
rath, of Louisville, treasurer; C. Carroll,
of Louisville, conductor, and William
Cummings, of Henderson, doorkeeper.

A smoker, tendered by the Central
States Exhibitors' Association, was a
social feature of the meeting, while on
Saturday afternoon, after lunch at the
Willard hotel, as guests of the Louisville
Convention and Publicity League, the
delegates and visitors were taken for an
automobile ride, visiting the Louisville
Lighting Company, the Louisville Rail-
way Company power house and Chero-.
kee park, this also being through the
courtesy of the public-spirited citizens.

The meeting came to a close with
the annual moonlight excursion on

Moran Flexible Steam Joint Company,
Louisville, Ky.; E. D. Morton & Co.,
Louisville, Ky. ; National Engineer, Chi-
cago, 111.; National Smoke Prevention
Company, Louisville, Ky.; W. H. Neil
Company, Louisville, Ky. ; Osborne High-
Pressure Joint and Valve Company, Chi-
cago, 111.; William Powell Company, Cin-
cinnati, O.; Power, New York City;
Practical Engineer, Chicago, 111.; J. J.
Reilly Manufacturing Company, Louis-
ville, Ky. ; Standard Oil Company, Louis-
ville, Ky. ; Sterling Boiler Compound
Company, Louisville, Ky. ; Charles C.
Stoll Oil Company, Louisville, Ky.; Henry
Vogt Machine Company, Louisville, Ky. ;
Wickes Boiler Company, Saginaw, Mich.

The installation of a large electric-
power station at Vemark, in the province
of Telemarken, Norway, was started dur-
ing the early part of May, the Rjukanfos,
or Foaming, falls supplying the power
for the machinery. This fall, which is
one of the magnificent sights of Norway,
has been changed so that now there is a
straight drop of about 400 feet, where
previously the drop was 800 feet. By
this means 145,000 horsepower was made
available.

\l \\ ^inkk, Jl \l 20, 1

Till!.:.: ■ : : ; ■:■•:■ to think thai
he h tablished an operatu

utine in hi^ j >hmt nothing special
mains to tx in the way of in< i

onomy. That if he keeps hi ml in
mmerci il shape and the l>ilh run aloi
about on an av« videnl the lal

raomy is being maintain! Record k« <
ing is irksome and as l"1 plant

1m.ui the same, month in and
month <»nt . he i tisfied.

Hut if he would <li into his 1«

nditions, know more about which

surround him, he would probably find th
tli. n re circumsl in - m with

hi of which .id . >uld L>

obtaining an in. fficieni

1'. rhaps t \\<» engine
load when one will do ti
nth; an air l< ak in thi

all :i(>UU(

tie in it the boilt i

pid transmission o lib-

in il other possibilil he

the plant in

ntinui

will

111 tK u

the I'urn.i. om ti nd

allow them '
ppetite in it will

in-

in th.

I' 1 in in
opera til

Without them,

Kin |

Knowing thinj

n much in
He m
mation t< a what h< -. prith

■

.miitlv ind ! win

remain in obscurit

In other columns of tin
the st<

inipl. huttr

the
thernv

buildii

This was not i:

in
i which had

cam: irposscci

thi

TI:

ll tli-

...

with I

944

POWER

June 20, 1911

Pennsylvania Terminal Service Plant

One of the most important problems
connected with the layout of the new-
Pennsylvania terminal station in New
York City, was that of supplying service
power, light, heat, etc.

The main power plant for the entire
system is located at Long Island City,
where the facilities for handling coal and
the abundant supply of condensing water
make it possible to generate electricity at
a minimum cost.

While it would have been feasible to
have supplied the passenger station with
power and light from this source, there
were other factors which had to be con-
sidered. Refrigeration was required in
connection with the restaurant service;
compressed air was necessary for the
switching equipment and for the ejection
of sewage; a high-pressure water system
for fire protection was desirable; and
most important of all, was the necessity
of providing an adequate heating system.

By A. D. Blake

.4 plant of over 2500 boiler
horsepower supplying the
yu w Pennsylvania railroad
terminal in New York city
with light, power, com-
pressed air, refrigeration
and heat through an in-
direct system. During peri-
ods of no heating demand,
electricity is taken from the
Long Island power house.

at the Long Island power house. This
arrangement also serves to guard against
the terminal being without light and

power should anything happen to the
machines at either plant.

The service plant is located on Thirty-
first street, opposite the station, with
which it is connected by underground
passages. The building is of steel and
brick, faced at the front with granite to
match the exterior of the station. It ex-
tends four floors above the street and
three below. The street level is occupied
by the boilers, the railway rotary con-
verters and transformers and the various
switchboards. The first level below the
street contains the pump room and the
direct-current switches; the second level
the turbo-generators, air compressors,
hydraulic-elevator pumps, ice machine
and ash conveyer; and in the basement
are located the sewage ejectors, ventilat-
ing fans for the service plant, part of
the coal-handling apparatus, the storage
battery and the refuse destructor. There
is also an intermediate gallery contain-
ing part of the switch and bus structure.

Fig. 1. Service Switchboard, Alarm Switchboard and Exciters

These, together with several other fea-
tures, proved to be governing factors;
hence it was decided to build and equip
a service plant to meet the needs of the
great terminal. The building also con-
tains one of the railway substations sup-
plying motive power to the trains.

According to the general scheme
adopted, electricity for service light and
power is generated during the winter
months by noncondensing turbo-gen-
erators, the exhaust from which, together
with that from the air compressors,
pumps and other auxiliaries, is used for
heating the station. During the summer
months, however, when there is no heat-
ing demand, or at times when the ex-
haust from the compressors and pumps
is sufficient to meet the demand, the
turbines are shut down and electricity is
taken from one of the 60-cycle machines

Fig. 3. Exterior View of Service Plant

The floors above the street level are
occupied by the economizers, the coal-
storage bin. offices and store rooms.

FlG. 2. TURBOGENERATORS

June 20. 191 r

• i'abcock

shaking grates and designed to carry
a steam pressure of 2'*» ; al-

though they arc usuallv ran at about 160

ad-
the same • be

am in-
I to the plant being in the
heart of tf and th

to the smo.

.oal; hence
.oal wa •cd and

hand firing cmr
A radial

■n

aNn\c

n of a
gl makt cocsaar-

ent

the grates and the nu »«p-

nented with force

-j—

> I

• • .

946

POWER

June 20, 1911

by two Sirocco blowers direct connected
to high-speed engines and capable of
maintaining a pressure of 2l/2 inches of
water in the ashpits.

The gases before reaching the stack
pass through Green economizers, of
which there are two, each containing
32 sections of 10 tubes.

The feed water is pumped from the
hotwell to a feed-water storage tank of
about 25,000 gallons capacity; from
whence it is taken by the boiler-feed
pumps and delivered to the feed-water
heater, thence to the economizers where
its temperature is raised to over 200 de-
grees Fahrenheit.

The heater is of the induction type and
is located on a branch of the 18-inch
line into which the auxiliaries exhaust.

The Holly system is employed to re-
turn the drips to the boilers.

Coal and Ash Handling

Fig. 7. Hydraulic Elevator Pumps

Coal is brought to the service plant in conveyer to two skip hoists. These lift over the boilers. From here the coal is

cars over the Pennsylvania railroad and the coal to the top of the building and delivered through hoppers and automatic

dumped from the track level, which is discharge onto a motor-driven belt con- weighing scales to the floor in front of

one level above the basement, into a hop- veyer which distributes it along a stor- the boilers. A significant feature of the

per from which it is carried by a belt age bin of 1000 tons capacity located coal-handling apparatus is that, from the

SOft. for Initial
Installation,
' I OO ft. Final

Fig. 8. Sectional Elevation Looking toward Front of Service Plant

June 20, 1911

m ■.

■

SB4 ^

lime the coal leaves the cars till it

the bin. under the control of one

man.

dcr each ashpit there is a hopper
through which the ashes are discha:
into hand cars and u heeled et a

large r<

located under tl <alk. This em;

onto a belt conveyer which, in turn,
charges into gondola cars and the ashes
arc carried away over the same tracks
oal is brought in.

r light and power in
passeru .is well as the ser

plar rom the

hed

sons ti. g at 1800

•c and generating
three-phase currc: ta. The

Is from these gencrat

ics. the:
■
esc connc
the ligl rncls of tl ard

*hich three cad

i numN

mel bo. i
> arranged

as to bi ic load be-

es. M ception of a

tungsten lamp
and «>rhcc i to far

■

motor i

'rom tr

.igh a

■ .

•

948

POWER

June 20, 1911

Fie. 12. Refrigerating Machines

000. It then passes over to the other ing part of the year current is taken

bank of transformers where it is stepped from the Long Island power house. This

down to 420 volts, and from here passes is brought over at 11,000 volts and after

through another disconnecting switch to passing through the high-tension switch-

the 420-volt busbars; these supply the
power circuits.

Although this arrangement may at first
seem cumbersome, its flexibility becomes
apparent when it is considered that dur-

ing structure, the circuit ties in between
the two banks of transformers; here it
divides, part being stepped down to 240
volts for lighting and the remainder to
420 volts for power.

There are two motor-generator sets for
furnishing excitation to the generators.
A 60-cell 400-ampere-hour storage bat-
tery supplies excitation when starting the
turbo-generators and also supplies emer-
gency lighting circuits around the plant
as well as the fire-alarm circuits.

Direct current for charging the motor-
driven baggage trucks and automobiles
is supplied by two motor-generator sets.
The electric elevators and dumbwaiters
are operated with direct current at 650
volts, taken from the rotary converters
supplying the train motive power.

Air Compressors

There are three principal uses for
compressed air about the terminal: the
electropneumatic switching and signal
system, sewage ejection and brake test-
ing. Compressed air for the first two
services is supplied by two cross-com-
pound, two-stage Nordberg compressors,
each having a capacity of 2000 cubic
feet of free air per minute and compress-
ing up to 90 pounds per square inch.
There is an intercooler between the air
cylinders and an atmospheric aftercooler
located on the roof.

For testing the brakes on cars, however,
a higher pressure is required and for this
purpose two motor-driven compressors
are provided. These have a capacity of
100 cubic feet of free air per minute and
compress to 125 pounds per square inch.
Their operation is entirely automatic;

Potential Frequency

X Transformers ■ Meter

Engineer's Return
Signal Gong Coi/-^Q

Power Factor
/ Meters

Lighting Busbars ..Current Transformers.
' 4000/5 Amperes

Power Busbars

Exciter

40-Kw. Motor-driven

Exciter,
420/^ Volts

Out-^jjfig-Alarm
: H SB

1000-Kw. 3-Phmse, 240-Volts
60Cycle Turbo Generators

Fig. 13. Wiring Diagram of Sbrvice Switchboard

June 20, 1911

unable
ro maintain che
sure, the ol illy st.:

and continues until the upper limit of
pre*

r the hydraulic elevator tank-
taken from V '^crg t

at W) pounds an:
pounds • raiU

*ors mounted on the wall |l
hind the 1«- -nprcss-.

number, and clc\cn of the passenger
itors are of lh<

•:g at a water r.
poti

three
one a Hcislcr high-dui heel pui

•
gallons per minute; ll id is .1

1 gallons capa-
and 1

.1 capai ons

utc. The maximum load can be

•

A JOOO-gallon pressure tank, a .*XB)-gal-
lon tank and a

tank form pan

moot a 1

reraturi these b«'

and ooleJ
belnr circu

The

fire
igh an
inch main to tf 1 1 a r hea

ng a total he f about

• square feet
steam main also It

to the hean ade for

usir.

c con-
'rom the heat> •• to

the h •
Th< - igh

:lated r
|al pumps through a ex-
tern of I

■
fans ar

regular ary-

the ma
and a- pcratur iter up

mum air • it

In ad •
'able

rd.
The total steam

nty
pouoda.
room

fro:

Water . protcctio usbed

rVO sic. 1 :mp». each having

a capacity of

mater frotr

■»' I In or :

nea be

t running contini;
at a ite. a u iter

froca the

filter cool

'..

up rcaaora

'.000
It ll

tun omatk

raaed air Into

and
b— atmnt, Tb

Tn.

* - I J * i ■ ' •■

r I
•he

950

POWER

June 20, 1911

sumps are located in the pipe tunnels
under the station and yard.

Substation

The substation, which is located in the
service-plant building, furnishes motive
power to that section of the electrified
system which is within the vicinity of
the terminal. Twenty-five-cycle, three-
phase currents at 11,000 volts are gen-
erated at the Long Island power house;
these are stepped down at the substa-
tion, converted to direct current at 650
volts and delivered to the third rail. Sixty-
cycle, three-phase currents at 11,000 volts
are also supplied and are stepped down
to 420 and 240 volts for (alternative) ser-
vice power and lighting and to 2300
volts for the primary circuit of the signal
system. The substation equipment consists

of nine single-phase 750-kilovolt-ampere
air-cooled transformers, delta connected
and supplying three 2000-kilowatt rotary
converters. The latter are started by in-
duction motors mounted on the same
shaft with the rotor. These starting
motors are supplied with power through
a set of three transformers connected to
the 11,000-volt line.

There are also three 1 1 ,000-2300-volt
transformers which supply current for
the train-signal system.

The high-tension switch and bus struc-
ture is of selected buff brick with soap-
stone barriers and cement slabs. All the
oil switches are solenoid operated and are
controlled from two switchboards on the
main floor. There are two sets of bus-
bars and the arrangement of switches is
such that any feeder or section may be

cut out for repairs without interfering
with the rest of the equipment or inter-
rupting the service.

The direct-current switches for the
train feeders are all motor-operated and
are located on the floor below the con-
verters, although they are controlled from
the same switchboard as are the high-
tension oil switches.

In all, there are five switchboards, but
these are arranged so that one operator
can attend to them all.

At present the load is such that only
two rotary converters are required to be
in service at a time, the third being used
as a spare; but space has been provided
for three additional machines.

The entire plant was designed, built
and equipped by Westinghouse, Church,
Kerr & Co., of New York.

Analysis of Industrial Power Costs

The cost of producing, a unit quantity
of power from small steam plants, such
as are usually found in city manufactur-
ing buildings, ranging from 100 to 400
horsepower in capacity, presents a sub-
ject which, although by no means new,
is ever interesting owing principally
to the widely varying results which
may be obtained for a given case, de-
pending largely upon the object for which
the calculation is being made, and also
I'pon the skill of the investigator.

If the unit cost of producing a given
quantity of power is being sought for
the purpose of making a direct compari-
son with the cost of purchasing the same
amount of power, as a finished product,

By M. Oswald Jenkins *

The items chargeable to the
cost of producing power in
an isolated plant from the
central- station viewpoint.

--12

° 1 1

4-10

/r-

V S

L 3
<- 8
2 7

-•>

•>

<£

sy-

(«&

- Q

a> 5
o

p£

<u 4
3
2

*New York lOdison Company.

in the cost of operating a power plant
only as affected by its inherent effi-
ciency, which includes only the actual
cost of operation, such as fuel, labor,

chaser is a tenant in the building and
as such is obliged to pay his pro rata
share of the plant investment and other
fixed expenses in the form of rent, irre-
spective of the power requirements.

Such an indirect power charge is
usually of necessity in proportion to the
floor space occupied by the purchaser,
rather than in proportion to the demand
on the power plant; the latter being a
more just method of fixing the price.
Thus, the cost of power as expressed in
terms of cents per horsepower-hour or
kilowatt-hour, or dollars per horsepower
per year, and considered to be the total
cost of producing power, may represent
only that portion of the total cost known
as operating expenses of the plant, and
may be misleading. The total power cost

"5 6 7 8 9 10 II 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Years of Service p°"*%

Fig. 1. Per Cent, to Be Set Aside as a
Sinking Fund

from an outside source, such as a cen-
tial station, the character of the investi-
gation and the cost items concerned would
be quite different than if comparison
were being made with similar power-pro-
ducing plants.

Operating and designing engineers as-
sociated with power-plant work in gen-
eral, and those identified with the smaller
plants in particular, are interested in the
efficiency of operation, and consequently

1UUU

900
S-o 800
t-fc 700
U GOO

■=o 500

lff9

*& 400

° u 300
2^ 200

> 100

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

■o

o I

100 I
200 5 1

» 1%

0 o^

0 -g a

600 "- =

700 J §

800 tr>

900 2
1000 -^

8 9 10 II 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Years of Service Po~m

Fig. 2. Chart Showing Present Value of Plant

water and repairs. These constitute what includes other items of expense to which
might be termed factory costs as dis-
tinguished from total-production costs
end the selling price of the manufactured
article. They are quite sufficient for
purposes of comparison with similar
plants, revealing as they do the exact and
complete results from the viewpoint of
economy in design and operation. They

particular attention is herein directed.

Since the general introduction of elec-
tric power from a public supply for man-
ufacturing purposes, comparison betweei
the cost of purchasing electric power de-
livered to the premises, and of producing
power by a steam plant on the premises,
requires a more comprehensive view of

are also sufficient for determining the the plant costs and a better understand-
selling price of power where the pur- ing of a correct and proper method of

June 20. 1911

POW

determining them; failure to do so often
leads to erroneous conclusions, with re-
sults likely to be unfair to both producer
and consumer of the public supply.

The power-costs account should rightly
include 'cm pertaining to the plant

presence and operation. Both items and
accounts are to be determined on the
basis that the power-plant operation is
an entirely independent business than
that primarily engaged in by the owner,
and as such is to be dealt with accord-
ingly. As an> tial department of

not free from risk. say. 15 per cent,
over and above all • .m» of

pense.

In order to ar aj ihc vari-

costs genera s fixed

charges on a plant, some method of ac-
ting must be emplo>ed. In c
case a manu-

facturing a commo.: ntal

to the general bus ;h may-

be purchas a pub the

important thing is to be able jkly

f the sinking-fi.

■•

determine the ability or inability of the

T IBLI l.

idattoru

•

:
OtMOMSCPOCV C

IfaU r« --

L Oil InTpwl llmiil of S fc*

. ' . .

0
II

•
II «• 1

tl .-• «
II 1

•

fiC a'i'I lif *' •* -*,.-*-»■

•

t'.r

Hid po».

a well organ h a

cr plar • ' puhl

available i mutt be

own ac ant.

and even more ••
•
•mure ' and all

emergencies It mu»t OMM do em-

for at man
factory aril . and above all n

* a rcrui

- manu I

and the — tbod
of accoi i iich

an be p«.
in be mam.
• r '

n it
J be who
: roduct
coet of a p>

i at

iishcd for i ;
these two accoi.
equal to U
of thete may a.
following i
■
'it, the

Mid at all time* be

■

ided aa to the

amount indi-

: conattt of

e or ma

and that chargeable to obtoleaccncc, the

:cn the
: talva.

« »riar--'-*- •«•«

The original capital invcttment of |
cesaful ope nutt be returned from

I accor
ear.s of a sinking-fund :
1 sole! amor

-h case [ of

separately, or both
amortization may be

■■I
pla: ■ ti account for ob-

.s reasons usually verves be
poses a be to conv

The process conaista of setting aside a

age of the carningt c
year to ested in a aafe tec

:b at compound iniercst wi'
original investment in a given num-
r* according: t of lbs

plant.

>»t the amount in per cent,
to be act a tide

from fl
year*, a

provide a for a return

' compounded anr.
account thu*

and amor-
don tended to provide for

tenancc or repa ich

>r for

and thould be treated as original

In COflflr

not r d a©

<ical ab

.: vtances bearing on b
growth location, management and coot
from a public tupr-lr may
renj iteleoa long ' J ace

mai * gee*

perieucr ea-

. i, rule the life of tSe a»cragr ra~! Hd

«m the cun

sa ft

'c e4

ll i . • < •

952

POWER

June 20, 1911

might be constructed in a similar way
corresponding to different lengths of plant
life. Having in this manner fixed the
present value, other values may readily
be determined when the question of
abandoning the plant is being considered.
If, as cited, after 10 years' opera-
tion the plant were to be abandoned,
the new power account should assume
responsibility for the difference between
$4000 and the salvage obtainable. In
other words, the amount due to obsolesc-
ence would be chargeable to the new
power account as an investment charge,
when by the operation of a new sinking-
ing-fund reserve it will be returned as

and is arranged for the purpose of show-
ing the exact average yearly cost at any
time during the life of the plant. The
average yearly cost is important to con-
sider, and it is absurd for one to say
that the plant has paid for itself, and
now costs nothing except the operating
expenses of labor, coal, water and re-
pairs. The fact is that the former yearly
average cost may have been slightly re-
duced or increased by reason of con-
tinuous operation, but could never
be reduced to nothing even if the plant
were to operate indefinitely.

There is perhaps little need of calling
special attention to all of the items ap-

TABLE 2. ELECTRIC-POWER COST REPORT

Including Lighting and Heating. Foh Factory <>i

Name Address

Industry Per cent, of individual drive

Motor Equipment First Cost

No. of motors ....

Wiring

Belting and shafting

Average horsepower

Total horsepower.

Total for complete installation

Obsolescence charge on old steam plant to be carried
Total amount as investment charge

Annual Cost for Electric Power
Item Chargeable to Investment Account

Cost

1 Interest on investment of $ <« per cent

2 Depreciation on equipment values Life

years @ per cent.

:{ Taxes, owing to increased valuation (« per cent,

I Insurance due to motor equipment

Items Chargeable to Operating Expenses

per kilowatt-

•"> Electrical energy for factory . . .kilowatt-hours ("

hour

6 Electrical energy for lighting . . .kilowatt-hours o* . . . .per kilowatt-

hour

7 Lamp renewals

9 Gas for lighting

10 Repairing and maintaining motors, shafting and belting

Items Chargeable to Steam Heating

Required to provide annually pounds of steam for building

heating and pounds for manufacturing purposes

Value of old or new boilers for heating $.

11 Interest ami depreciation on boilers (a per cent

12 Coal tons (n per ton

13 Labor months @ per month

14 Water cubic feet (» per cubic foot

15 Removal of ashes months (« per month

16 Repairing and maintaining boilers and heating apparatus.

17 Gas for heating

Total cost for all light, heat and power

original capital. In fact, it could not be
otherwise, for, partly due to the ability
of the new account to carry the obsolesc-
ence charge, it proves its claim to the
right to replace or supersede an existing
plant. In the many cases where large
power companies replace comparatively
new machinery with larger, more efficient
and more expensive machinery, and
where large, beautiful buildings are be-
ing replaced with larger and more mod-
ern ones, a like method of determining
the amount chargeable to obsolescence is
employed with good effect.

Table 1 will serve to show the items of
expense involved in operating a plant,

pearing under the heading of "Annual
Cost of Steam Power" since each appears
to be a proper charge. However, items
Nos. 6 and 22 may require further con-
sideration. Item 6 provides for, first, the
time and thought given to the plant af-
fairs by the head of the establishment
and the superintendent of the factory,
who must assume the responsibility of
keeping all things going, directing the
buying of coal, lamps, oil and supplies,
engaging engineers and firemen, and
seeing that repairs are made; second,
a power plant is not an essential part
of the business but an independent busi-
ness and should be able to show a profit

on the money invested in it over and
above bare interest. The profit to be ex-
pected should be at least equal to the
profit of the principal business engaged
in; otherwise the owner would be much
better off if the plant investment were
in the form of a safe security paying
only 5 per cent, and the factory were pur-
chasing power from the public supply.

Item 22 refers to the loss of output due
to a variation of speed at the driven
machines, thereby affecting the output.
It is plain to be seen that if the aver-
age speed of a productive machine were
5 per cent, below the maximum, due to
such variation, the output would suffer;
or, in other words, by the use of pur-
chased power — presuming that its amount
would be constant — nearly 5 per cent,
increased output could be obtained with
the same factory equipment and labor.

Table 2 shows an electric-power cost
form corresponding to the steam-power
form. As inspection will show, it provides
for every item of expense likely to be
incurred for light, heat and power supply.

It is believed that such a method of
accounting for power costs will produce
results which are fair to all parties con-
cerned.

Compression

Steam is let into the cylinder of a steam
engine for the sole purpose of turning
the crank shaft at a predetermined speed
against resistance. When the legitimate
resistance is augmented by avoidable
friction the possible efficiency of the ma-
chine is not reached.

To turn the shaft, pressure is applied
to one side of the crank pin and what-
ever reduces the pressure upon this side
of the pin or adds to that upon the other
reduces the total output of energy at
the flywheel and decreases the efficiency
of the engine.

Compression of steam on one side of
the piston reduces the effective pres-
sure of the steam on the other side and
decreases to this extent the pressure
available for turning the crank shaft or
the engine.

When the pressure of compression ex-
ceeds the pressure of the expanding
steam the energy required for the work
must be taken from the flywheel, reduc-
ing the amount of energy available for
useful work.

Compression reduces the area of the
indicator diagram, showing that for any
given point of cutoff less work will be
done in the cylinder when compression
is used.

Though compression fills the clearance
space with steam taken from the ex-
haust pipe instead of from the boiler, it
takes steam from the boiler to run the
engine to do the compressing, and if
there is no other loss the friction of the
engine during the period of compression
is the price that must be paid.

June 2U. 1911

,'•»'* IK

Flexible Operation with Oil Fuel*

It is well known that the capa
modern water-tube boiler depc
within fairly wide limits, upon the
amount of fuel burned per hour
tral plans have been proposed and u
to increase the grate area so that more
fuel can be burned, but the only practical
plan for doing this necessitates firing
from both ends; this requires ir..
space and additional s for coal

handling, el

The load on the rt station

of the Consolidated Gas. Electric Light
and Power Company of Baltimore has
well defined peaks of compara- -non

duration, and these considerations led to
riments with fuel oil for supplement-
ing the coal fires and obtaining the
sired increase in boiler output

After trying several settings the fur-
nace arrangement shown in Fig. I was
Anally adopted, and ; >o satisfac-

tory that it was decided to equip the
oiler plant in this way The
boilers are of the standard Babcock &
Wik e and arc rated at 650 horse -

er. The space back of the usual coal
grate is made into a large combustion
th the oil burners at the
c rear end. This combustion cham-
ber is separated from the boiler tu
abo\ tiling and from the coal grate

by a low hndKcwall. The hot ga»"
the burning oil pass over the coal gi

\ [crbeit A. \\

At tin II

nui in
i
handlii

■
tinu

and iugb the first pass in the

usu abcock ft »'t.

ling jc J around

the rte side of the

con

Tb<

reMttfV and i» atotr. .
in c

g lean than
1 p amour

the boi

oal or both ba used

changes from i nary b

are ght anj • -.

spa. if burr cadi

furr.ace \s used as a pilot and for the

equivalent of a banked coal fv ep-

the b< to steam. These

• or banking Derated

from a separate o: ngle

n f i

—

i ki ii ti "p*

An.

valve in the mam be used

"mi: any number of

» •
igement of pipim
sho-

ma« 1 and control the

g burrr a group of

mannc

') group
gro ig fire" the

•he angering
»cb-
board •

•

L^L^L^L^k ho

a • to the na-

ind the trovp of hum

the

"TB»

■ae of <

954

POWER

June 20, 1911

more marked. It lias been found that
2000 kilowatts of station load can be
carried by each boiler when using coal
and oil together, with as much ease and
certainty as 1200 kilowatts per boiler can
be carried by coal alone. This shows,
under operating conditions, a gain in ca-
pacity of 66% per cent, by the use of oil,
or a saving of 40 per cent, in the cost
of the boiler plant for a given capacity.

It is under emergency or peak-load
condition, however, that the advantages
of fuel oil must be considered, and the
durations of load under such conditions
are usually too short for any compari-
sons by the usual boiler-test methods.
Tests were made, therefore, under regu-
lar operating conditions to determine the
minimum number of boilers which could
be used to carry actual peak loads. The
best record obtained in past operation at
the Westport station with coal was 16,888
kilowatts carried on eleven boilers; this
is equivalent to 1535 kilowatts per boiler.

The same station operating in conjunc-
tion with a hydroelectric-power transmis-
sion line recently carried a load of 11,100
kilowatts for two hours with four boilers
fired with coal and oil. This represents
a load of 2775 kilowatts per boiler of
650 horsepower rating.

Tests have shown that a cold furnace,
with water in the boiler at 142 degrees
Fahrenheit, could be made to steam at
175 pounds pressure in 25 minutes with
oil fuel as compared with 42 minutes
with coal.

The cost of fuel oil at Baltimore is
43 per cent, more than coal, per heat
unit, but in spite of this difference the
actual cost of "banking" is less with
oil than with coal, for the reason that
the oil is burned efficiently while the
coal is necessarily burned very ineffi-
ciently.

Fuel oil shows its advantages as com-
pared with coal most markedly when
used as fuel for operating steam plants
in connection with long power-transmis-
sion lines from water-power plants.
Owing to conditions which, up to the
present time, are inseparable from high-
tension transmission lines, steam auxil-
iary or standby plants are a necessary
adjunct to such lines where power is used
to supply the various needs of a large
community. Such steam plants may be
required mereiy to supply power during
brief interruptions due to transmission-
line troubles, or to supply part of the
power for peak loads, or to make up for
deficiencies in the water flow during dry
seasons.

In Baltimore the local company pur-
chases at present about 15,000 kilowatts
from the Pennsylvania Water and Power
Company. This is transmitted over 40
miles of transmission line at a pressure
of 70,000 volts. The local company gen-
erates by steam all power for peak? over
the 15,000 kilowatts purchased. The
steam plant is operated in parallel with

the water-power plant, and normally car-
ries a constant load of about 2000 kilo-
watts, and as much over that amount as
peaks may demand. In addition to this
the steam plant stands prepared at all
times to take the entire load should the
transmission-line power fail.

So far during six months of operation
there have been few interruptions on the
transmission line. With but one excep-
tion these have been due to the failure of
relays to operate properly. Such fail-
ures as have occurred, however, have
thoroughly tested the value of fuel oil
for quick steam generation. A few of
these severe tests will be mentioned.

December 4, 1910: The transmission-
line service was suddenly interrupted,
throwing a load of 10,500 kilowatts on
five 650-horsepower boilers. Oil was
turned on under these boilers, which
were at the time operating with coal,
and steam pressure was held until the
transmission-line service was restored.
Moreover, the primary voltage at the
substations was held within 1 per cent.

January 28, 1911: With the steam
station carrying 2000 kilowatts on three
650-horsepower boilers, using coal, with
three firemen on watch, the transmission-
line service was suddenly interrupted and
the load on the steam plant was increased
to 8500 kilowatts. Oil was turned into
eight additional boilers, and, although
the steam pressure dropped from 175 to
165 pounds, it gradually came up to 175
pounds during the next 15 minutes. This
drop in steam pressure was well within
the range of automatic voltage regu-
lators to maintain the primary voltage
at the substation within 1 per cent.

May 12, 1911: The steam station was
carrying 2000 kilowatts with four coal-
fired boilers in service, and four addi-
tional boilers banked by means of one
oil burner under each. The transmission
service was suddenly interrupted and a
load of 7600 kilowatts thrown on the
steam plant. Oil was turned onto the
four boilers in service and the four
banked boilers; the steam pressure was
maintained and in four minutes the boil-
ers were blowing off.

Lignite Deposits in the United
States

In an address on lignite, delivered be-
fore the American Philosophical Society,
at Philadelphia, Penn., on May 5, by
Joseph A. Holmes, director of the Bureau
of Mines, the extent of the lignite de-
posits in the United States was shown
by the accompanying figures, giving the
areas in several of the States.

In several of the States in the Rocky
Mountain region there are large areas
of coal that represent a transition be-
tween typical lignite and bituminous
coals. For these the name "subbitumi-

nous coals" has been suggested, and is
tentatively used by the United States
Geological Survey.

While the lignite beds in Alabama,
Mississippi and Tennessee represent a
transition between peat and the more
typical lignites of the Dakotas and Texas,
little or no use has been made of the
lignite beds in these three States.

The lignites in Texas and Arkansas
have been used to a limited extent, as
have also the lignites of the Dakotas
and eastern Montana. In this latter field
the lignites contain 20, and in some cases
more than 40, per cent, moisture. They
slack badly and rapidly on exposure to
the atmosphere, and this quality serious-
ly interferes with their use and value for
fuel purposes.

"The outlook for the utilization of
lignites," said Mr. Holmes, "is favorable
along three lines: First, in gas producers,

LIGNITE DErOSITS IN UNITED STATES

Lignite. Subbituminous,
square miles square miles

Alabama 6,000

Tennessee 1,000 ....

Louisiana 8,800

Arkansas 5,900

Texas 53.000

South Dakota 4.000

North Dakota 31,000

Montana 7,000 8,800

Wyoming 21,360

Washington 1,100

New Mexico 5,000

Colorado 5,910

Idaho 1,200

Total 116,700 43,370

without either drying or other treatment;
second, in boilers of special construction,
such, for example, as that installed more
than a year ago at Williston, N. D., by
the United States Reclamation Service,
where lignite is used in its natural con-
dition almost immediately after being
brought from the mine, and, third, made
into briquets. In this case the lignite
should be thoroughly and finely crushed
and dried to a moisture content of from
5 to 10 per cent., and then compressed
while still warm into briquets."

Limited quantities of lignite from Cali-
fornia, North Dakota and Texas have
been made into satisfactory briquets at
the Government mine-experiment station
at Pittsburg, using the full-sized German
briquetting press, which develops a pres-
sure of from 20,000 to 25,000 pounds per
square inch. In the cases just mentioned
the briquets were made without the use
of any binding material, a sufficient
amount of tarry material remaining in
the crushed and dried lignite to serve as
a bond to hold the particles together in
the briquet.

"It is believed," said the speaker, "that
the investigations of the Bureau of Mines
along this line will demonstrate that the
lignite in Texas, the Dakotas and Montana
can be made into briquets on a com-
mercial scale, and that in this form the
lignite can be used as a substitute for
other domestic fuel in these regions."
There is sufficient raw material in these
States to last for some time.

June 20. I

P O \X' F. R

Electrical Department I

Electrification < 4 I extile
Mills*

By Cr^k i P. Cilmobe

The application of the electric drive
to textile machines has reached the si
where many manufacture- rintend-

ents. engineers and mechanics are Riving
it much time and attention and I expect
to see in the near future a large increase
In its use. One result of the mill men's
study of the question will probably be
that textile and power-machinery manu-
facturers will make many alteration
the design and construction of their ma-
chines with a view to making them as a
unit more adaptable one to the other and
both to the requirements of textile manu-
facturing.

In my opinion, too much that is not
true has been said about the cost of in-
stallation of electric power, its main-
tenance and economy, as compared with
mechanical power, for the best Intel
of electric power, and too little regarding
its real advantage.

Prime Movers

The steam turbine as a prime mover

for the generation of electric power has

no rival. It has none of the irregularities

of the reciprocating engine, is more cco-

Ical than a I ng engine.

hen the engine and

operating at its most economical point
of cutoff, and requires less floor space,
oil and attention. ugh

speed, the generator is smaller and con-
sequently costs less and the exhaust
steam from the hit in be use J

:ng low-r
steam, as it contains no oil.

I 1500. kilowatt turbine has

shown an economy of 11 i of

water per kilowatt-hour at full load and

>unds at . cent. o\erload,

equivalent to \2M pound* per h

r at full load and

cent, overload. Immediately after
test the turbine \u» ruf
at BO per cent, overload; then temp

' the generator were taken and
the windings showed a rise of 20 de-
grees Centigrade.

Thanks largely to the insurano
panics, who have c*tahli»hed a code of
- for t' .tallation

trical equipment, it is practicable to sup-
ply current from the generators to motors
and lamps so that there is no danger
of fire or of shock to operatives. In fact,
there is much less danger from a well

in from a me-
chanical

The Motors

dcrn motors arc efficient, rue.

and reliable and requ: ire;

can stand hea Moads for long

ds without injury in fact. I ran

fts. In view of res
tained from one large in-
the motors coupled to the

I am of the opin
arv to change the

■ c as often as has
been th<

Table I ■ shows the results of

n at a constant spindle speed
on h >aroe s - In

counts varying from 10 to 120 as com-

'rom belted ma.

I of rings. T)
increase shown in the production of 10s.
was largclv due to the fact that the me.
chanica! -op-

erly equipped or fitted to spin

-INC Costs

The following figures co
of an installation using ti.
gencrar or* on ;

•

Twt-r

.. .....

S 1

M •

• ■

months, developing
and not or 'icm

mas be placed in a or Iocj

and arranged to J-

zontal or il or at any at,

■

ma-
lt! !

oraep© -

hes ar
root

C J i' ' *" J IK * * * - * ' * '

■
resistance may be u*

c si van m

and gr

boa tape. ga, fly

frames, mi. spoolers. The

■

i' .

.• i " i » ■ ■> at the pc

repairing
foundation* aaaler

956

POWER

June 20, 1911

ways to and from the power house, cost-
ing $10,343.

It was originally intended to group-
drive the ring spinning frames, but after
the purchase of the frames it was de-
cided to use individual .motors and as it
was impossible to get motors of the cor-
rect size for the number of spindles per
frame, the nearest standard size, which
was 25 per cent, larger than necessary,
was used, thus increasing the cost per
spindle for installation and decreasing
the efficiency of the motor.

The costs of installation for frame
drives were:

Per

Spindle

Ring spinning, individual drive $0.53

Ring spinning, group drive 0.35

Ring twisting, group drive 0 60

Ring twisting, individual drive 0.80

TABLE 2. COMPARISON OF INSTALLA-
TION AND OPERATING COSTS FOR
RECIPROCATING ENGINE AND ME-
CHANICAL DRIVE AND TURRO-
ELECTRIC PLANT
Installation

Engine and Turbines and
Mechanical Electric
Drive
3,000 Kw.

Drive

Plant capacity 4,000 Hp.

Installation invest-
ment $258,860

Operation
Mechanical

Interest, 5% $12,943

Insurance, 2\% 776

Depreciation, 5% 12,943

Taxes ■ 2,790

Fuel ($4.50 per ton) . . 46,476

Wager 6,796

Repairs 1,000

Supplies 960

$84,684

21.17

$345,160

Electrical

$17,257

1,035

17,257

3,726

46,476

7,546

1,100

600

$94,997

23.7

Cost per horsepower
per annum

Relative cost, per

cent 100 111.2

Installation investment includes buildings,

chimney, shafting, belting, motors, boilers and all

power machinery and equipment.

TABLE 3. COMPARATIVE COSTS OF PRO-
DUCTION FOR AN ENGINE AND BELT-
DRIVEN SPINNING ROOM AND ELEC-
TRIC INDIVIDUAL MOTOR-DRIVEN
SPINNING ROOM. TO SPIN 38,362
POUNDS PER 58 HOURS OF NO.
46 COMBED PEELER YARN
Data Mechanical

Spindles 51,840

Horsepower 864

Floor space, square

feet 50,100

Yarn per spool per

58 hours (pounds) 0 74

Labor and expense

per pound . . $0 . 02663

Power per horse-
power pet annum. 21 17

Electrical

46,000
767

Total Costs per

Interest. 5%

Insurance;

Depreciation, 5%.

Taxes

Power

Expense

44,390

0.83

$0.02342

23 75

Annum fob Spinning Only
Mechanical Electrical

$14,076.00

844 . 00

14,076.00

3,042.00

18,290.88

51,070.00

$12,228.00

733 . 00

12,228.00

2,646.00

18,216.25

44,922.00

Total $101,407 .88 $90,973.25

Cost per pound. . . 0.0508 0.0456

Saving, per cent . io 2.'(

Mules are a group-drive proposition as
the great variations in power required
during each cycle of their operation
would require a very large motor, making
the cost and efficiency prohibitive. In
one case I applied an ammeter to a
200-horsepower motor driving 22,288
mule spindles and found the load vary-
ing from 125 to 250 horsepower.

For comparison of power costs between
plants driven by reciprocating engines
through mechanical transmission and
those driven by turbines through electrical
transmission, I have used the actual cost
of the 3000-kilowatt plant previously
referred to for the electric drive and
carefully estimated the cost of an engine
and belt drive of equal capacity, using
figures submitted as prices by power-
machinery manufacturers at the time this
proposition was under consideration.

The fuel, repairs and supplies for the

of the cost of production; therefore, if
the production were increased two-thirds
of 1 per cent., the 11.2 per cent, excess
in power costs would be balanced.

In Table 1 I have shown the increased
production of various counts obtained in
one plant where the electric drive has
been installed. Taking the results ob-
tained on the count for which this mill
was laid out as a basis for the compari-
son of a mechanical and electrical driven
spinning room, the figures in Table 3
are obtained.

TABLE 4. RESULTS OF TESTS MADE TO DETERMINE THE POWER REQUIRED TO
DRIVE VARIOUS MACHINES AND PER CENT. SPEED LOST IN TRANSMISSION

Drive

Motor Horse-
power

Spindles

R.p.m.*

Percent-

Operation

Rated

Actual

Per
Horse-
power

42.81

65 23

Per

Frame

Total

age of

Loss from

Drive to

Spindle

Ring spinning .

Bicycle Group
Tight side of
drive

150

5
150

100

115

145

240

280

4,900

9,120

240

6,208
5.720

274

7,880
7.732
7,854

5,573

Shaft Mch.
486

3 6

King spinning

Ring spinning

Ring twisting.
Ring twisting .

Loose side of

drive

Individual

Bicycle Group
Loose side of

drive

Tight side of

drive

* twist

5.4
0.0

2.7
Shaft to

.lack frames

Group

Mch.
1.8

*In computing the spindle speed £ inch was added to whorl and cylinder.
Notes:

Ring Spinning Group. Drive. 12"
Ring — 2g oz. per bobbin — full
bobbin. Avg. counts 30
Combed Yarn.

King Spinning Ind. Drive. Yarn
30 P. Co. B. T. Special Combed
Peeler. 2g oz. 12" Ring.
Full bobbin.

Ring Twisting Group Drive. 2i"
Ring, 3| oz. per bobbin. Avg.
Counts 50|2 P. Co. Full bob-
bin.

Mule Spinning

Minimum

Mean

Maximum

Individual Drive

Bale breaker

Self-feeding opener

Breaker lapper

Finisher lapper

Motor Horsepower

Rated
200

Actual

125
185
250

3.22
1.61
9 65
3 6

Number of
Spindles

22,288
22,288
22.288

Spindles per
Horsepower

120.4

No.

64
24
16

Machines

Cards

Combers

Lappers

Moron Horsepower

Rated

Actual

45
15
15

Horsepower
per Machine

0.703
0.625
0.93

Nmi.. — In mule spinning, average counts 12 hank, combed Egyptian— 76 silk.

Note. — Peeler cotton was being opened during test on bale-breaker, opener and lappers.

electrical plant and all figures for the
mechanical drive are estimated. The ef-
ficiencies of the two types of drive are
assumed to be equal. (See Table 2.)

From these figures it would seem to
be necessary to find some material bene-
fits to be derived from the electric drive
over the mechanical to warrant the extra
expenditures necessary for its installa-
tion and operation. In these figures I
have tried to be conservative and, if
either, favor the mechanical drive.

It is generally understood that the
power costs amount to about 6 per cent.

It was found that an operative at-
tended the same number of spindles at
their increased production as before, that
there was less breakage of ends, because
of the constant speed and absence of
belt slip; consequently better yarn was
produced with less labor. The breaking
of ends is not caused by the creeping of
belts but mostly by short jerky slips
such as occur when dry or hard spots
in the belt get on the small driving pul-
leys.

Table 4 gives the results of tests made
to determine the power required for dif-

June 20, 1911

I k

it machine*, a
instrument-, and the loss due to slipr
of b between the di

and the spindle I: uas found that the

.eh added i
compensated for the bar
individually dr nning fi I

nning requires about 60 pt
of the po\» J in a mill it

strange that it ha- d more atten-

tion than other processes an.:
is in a more a
ment than the other d-

Aa The advantages of eU

trical engineers and
manufacturers in many papers on the
subject, but ar fully und

and appreciate-

and meet

cc with it and have a better
chance of tl
•

qualified to
Among the id
nf r ned

the • and

and mil'

a wide ran.

•pet ;ing the pr

i charge of uatcr from the
boiler: maximum
;

rate kn

d and

ii :
belt race and

;uircd for a |
because of

•
f the a'

■
ncrcased [
■rrani

ncsa; cav

and the
as an

<nt

re»'

I i-

the average I

\ plar •

• at

ng of all c

* and ;

■

that
are not iK

Lafc

r at ; ■
■
machinery hav

In thi

c. manager
;
that ■ ' of

a* be<

in :

oskeafl

► I • ' . c '

an t<>

r rn •- ■

pp«»nc oak'

tfciek
a place
be kci
at a shop or carnage -I

-ing on ' should

be fattened to the tv

in br r

j "j

•

oard • ' r being

in i. or longer It

H at any ttn
ch an arrangement can also he o«

;

ae>
seed nr

motor the contractor rave the same :

the u»'

ijj<

• •»»<• J thai a

■% m tat ttetnng

958

POWER

June 20, 1911

%*J JL JL It

Hot Tube Ignition
By Olaf Olafsen

In these days the hot tube is tabooed
and not even given consideration by
many intelligent men in the gas-engine
industry. However, there are thousands
of hot-tube igniters in use and a good
many are built and sold yearly; conse-
quently, there must be a number of men
to whose lot it falls to take care of gas
engines equipped with hot-tube ignition.
From personal contact with many me-
chanics, I know that the hot-tube igniter
is not universally understood and this
article is intended for the benefit of those
who are not clear on the subject.

The drawing represents what is most
common practice in hot-tube construction
today. Mounted upon a pad A on the
cylinder head or cylinder proper is a
flanged bushing B, into the upper open-
ing of which is screwed a tube C with
one end closed. Surrounding this is a
chimney D, usually of cast iron with an
asbestos lining and a boss on one side
for the entrance of the bunsen burner E.
Around this boss are air holes for the
admittance of air to prevent the gas flame
from smothering in the chimney or from
going to the top to get the oxygen nec-
essary to complete combustion.

The bunsen burner is usually made up
of a short length of brass tubing with a
drilled plug forming the gas orifice at one
end. A number of small holes arranged
circumferentially about the tube, at a
distance from the end about equal to the
total length of the orifice plug, forms
the air inlet. The amount of air admitted
is regulated by a small sleeve F which
is arranged either to screw or to slide
over the holes.

The adjustment of the bunsen burner
is one of the most frequent duties of the
trouble man. It should never consume
more than ten feet of gas an hour for
any size of engine and in most cases six
feet should be sufficient. Usually an at-
tempt is made to regulate this consump-
tion by means of the cock G. This is en-
tirely wrong in principle because it cuts
down the pressure and therefore the
velocity of the gases flowing through the
orifice, and as the amount of air drawn
in through the inlet holes depends on this
velocity it follows that the air supply
will also be cut down and it will be diffi-
cult to secure a proper flame.

The proper way to remedy excess of
gas is to peen the orifice partly shut and
then ream the hole with a fine taper
reamer until the proper amount of gas,
that is, that just sufficient to heat the

Everything"
worth while in the gas
engine and producer
industry will he treated
here in a way that can
he of use to practi-
cal

men

tube properly, is allowed to pass. These
reamers, ranging in size from a fine
needle to a darning needle, may be
bought at most large hardware stores for
an insignificant sum. A piece of octagon
tool steel drilled at one end with a com-
mon lathe center drill forms an extreme-
ly convenient and mechanical set for
closing up the orifice of a burner such
as the one shown in the sketch. When
the flame hovers at the top of the chim-
ney it is a sure sign that too much gas
is being burned or that either the air in-
let holes in the burner or those in the
chimney are clogged with dirt or that the

Sectional Elevation of a Typical Hot-
tube Igniter

air sleeve F is not properly adjusted and
is admitting too much air. It is impos-
sible for the manufacturer to make the
gas orifice just right, as local gas pres-
sures vary to such an extent. Should the
bunsen tube cause trouble by burning
back at the orifice it is probable that
not sufficient gas is being delivered and
that the orifice should be made larger,
or else that the air sleeve F is not open
far enough. Of course, this may happen
in lighting the burner if the flame is ap-
plied before the mixture has had suffi-
cient time to fill the tube E and attain
some velocity through it.

In piping the burner to the source of
supply, it is best and often necessary to
take the gas from the illuminating pipe
line; if taken from the power-supply
pipe, it must be drawn from the meter
side of the gas bag to avoid the fluctua-
tions in pressure set up by the inter-
mittent suction of the engine. In certain
cities a gas bag is prohibited and small
gasometers are used which are sealed
with oil. To prevent starting the engine
with the main gas cock closed and there-
by drawing the sealing fluid out of the
gasometer into the pipes, the hot-tube
connection is taken off between the shut-
off cock and the gasometer, on the meter
side of the engine; this insures that the
tube will never be heated sufficiently to
start unless the main gas cock is turned
on.

The chimney D is a simple casting.
The asbestos lining should always be kept
intact, as the proper heating of the tube
is assisted by it. The tube is usually
made of a piece of wrought-iron pipe
with the end welded over or a piece of
nickel-steel rod having a hole drilled al-
most its whole length. The nickel-steel
tube is far preferable, its life being from
six months to a year, under average con-
ditions, while a wrought-iron or mild-
steel tube may last only a few days or
weeks. The thread is usually either l/%
or ;4 inch, gas-pipe size. In former
times, porcelain and platinum tubes were
used, the former being abandoned prob-
ably on account of their brittleness and
the latter on account of their cost.

A very important, although apparently
minor, part of the hot-tube apparatus is
the bushing B. First it would probably
be best to explain the manner in which
the ignition is timed with a hot-tube
igniter. I can see the younger gas-en-
gine men smiling at this, but I have seen
many hot-tube diagrams showing a reg-
ularity of successive explosions which
compared favorably with any of those
produced by a engine equipped with
electrical ignition. It will be evident
from the sketch that there is no chance
for the tube and the hole in the bush
ing to be scavenged on the exhaust
stroke; therefore, when the piston starts
back on the compression stroke with a
full charge of fresh gases in the cylinder,
these will be forced up through the bush-
ing, compressing the burnt gases ahead
of them and possibly mixing for a cer
tain distance beyond the line of contact
with them, but this is unimportant as
the amount would be practically con-
stant. When the piston has advanced

June 20, 1911

PO\X f K

far enough to cause the fresh gases to
to that pan of the tube which is at
the ignition temperature, they will be
ignited and will shoot a tongue of flame
down into the charge in the combustion
chamber and ignite it.

Calling the part of the tube and bush-
ing below that point which is heated to
the ignition rature the cool length

and the part of the tube above that point
the hot length, and bearing in mind the
fact that the movement of the fresh gases
up the tube will be nearly proportional
to the piston d nent at each pan

of the stroke and that the length of the
column of burnt gases will shoncn some-
what under the compression, it is clear
that a longer bti til other condit

remaining the same, will cause ignition
to occur later in the compression stroke,
because thi >f hot length to total

length is smaller; on the other hand, a
longer ignition tube will cause earlier
igni' .ausc the ratio of hot length

Of course, this
mill not conform r to the laws of

compression, as there are too ma-
ablcs; the r he J

rimcntally for c.< ;gn of en-

gine. Fun that

enlarging the bore of the bushinn will
e later . the bore of the tube

rema inching

ample of how these dimens
work out in practice is given in the ac-

;nablc to give the
n tube a^
flange here, although
one inch i>< the center ol the tur-
th or r
c char.
Iocs not come up to tlu
• rmano. iblc

•sir

M it to Mil
* prop<

It IS .1

not

unless he is nakc a

rl ing

ireful
gim

than hat
inent of the bun»cn burner anJ

will
■

akc
late an

has

T 111!

ha«tcn the n*c to maximum pressure
and a lean

bowr

The bushing B is an important pan of
the .r .r further reasons.

; on one occasion I was ca
amine an engine which usual!

about • the

full load was applied, the shutdown be-

accompanu ^r. it ions

and ba. Upon reaming the hot-

and that it was made

of a

a flange and that the joint bet*
the flange and the packed

with a heavy asbestos gasket. There was
also about ' ( inch clearance all an
the tube in the passa^ ;on-

Aith tbc The tube had

scaled and

thin, al that it had often been

abo The cure in this case

n flange
ing in *ith the same size of

hole and of the same length, made of
sufficicr to fit the hole

*all and having a
cad of packed one.
rig the heat to be con-
ducted away to the water jacket and
ring the

unless caso .

■

■
so that

iing
race a:
liable to n

•weep

. if
. large the

VI'

made at po c of hot-tube It

a v.i

ing I hot • the

tageotts or

t on «a*r

MOC o<

■

I J»,).

i.. I - c '

tube

h an installation should r
be alio- abend

g. such at might be used

for a small trge

II < >ll

•tr>r

The economj of operation of g
power plar

n to be con side
that of steam-power r
those

of large: sixes and meet

2000 bt -

gas- po -

1 charges of s*

:
that t!

p lants should not be I
▼hat may be considered one of

Juction

are for use in ate

»uch a of

and '

nee.

'. and x

coa!

this country ano abroad

used

ch tension

proJ I It to • mam

n • *cd for

• • -i or
■

>rv coasflicntf
tbe adefKtc

en-

ht% i

960

POWER

June 20, 1911

facturers have so designed producers
that the tar will either be consumed in
the fuel bed, or if appearing in the re-
sultant gas, will be removed by means
of special tar extractors. Producers of
this type are being made updraft, down-
draft and double zone forms and it is fair
to say that for a perfect utilization of the
fuel at hand, certain modifications must
be made in the design and operation of
each type of producer to suit the local
fuel conditions. In Europe, where the
use of gas-producer plants has become
more of a general proposition on account
of the relatively high cost of fuels and
low cost of labor, the adoption of the by-
product installation is more prevalent
where bituminous fuels are used than
it is in this country. From such by-
product installations a relatively high re-
turn can be made from the residuals in
the shape of tar and ammonia, but this
factor has not been seriously considered
in this country, owing to the relative
cheapness of fuels and expensiveness of
labor; also on account of high cost of
the plant necessary to work up these
residuals.

During the last few years the design
of the gas engine has been simplified in
many ways and, while there have been
no radical changes in the general type,
the construction has been improved by
added refinements in the details of the
mechanism, and more particularly in the
adoption of high-grade materials and the
appreciation of the resultant strains and
stresses that take place in these ma-
terials. This general tendency to im-
provement has enabled the manufacturers
to lighten the engine, reduce the number
of working parts, simplifying the ma-
chine as a whole and at the same time
this general improvement in design and
construction has increased the reliability
and reduced the repairs of gas engines.

Changes in valve gear have been made
by some German manufacturers in re-
turning to the throttling governor. In
the same country they also show a ten-
dency to adopt the Lodge system of igni-
tion, which system has no moving parts
to the spark plugs, the current being
supplied from storage batteries and in-
tensified by Leyden jars, producing a
system similar to the ordinary automobile
system of ignition.

One of the objections to installing gas-
engine units, introduced more particular-
ly by the industrial people, has been the
want of auxiliary steam for heating and
other purposes, which auxiliary steam is
so convenient when a steam-power plant
is installed. The opportunity to increase
the economy of a gas-engine plant by
utilizing the waste heat of the engine
jacket water and engine exhaust is ap-
parent and the attempts to do this so
far have met with more or less success,
but further developments must be made
before it can be said to be successfully
accomplished.

In discussing the internal-combustion
engine, we must not omit those engines
utilizing a liquid fuel directly in the
cylinder. Such types of engine will al-
ways be in demand where the liquid fuels
are obtainable at a reasonable cost. The
gasolene engine may be included in this
classification (this engine having its own
special functions, when the high cost of
fuel does not prohibit its operation), but
in this discussion the heavy-fuel-oil en-
gine only is considered. The method now
generally adopted of obtaining power by
the combustion of this liquid fuel creates
excessive internal pressures in the engine
cylinder, which necessitates a high-grade,
expensive and heavy engine being built
to withstand the pressures. Their use
in the past, however, has been very sat-
isfactory, and improvements in design,
now constantly taking place, are reduc-
ing both their weight and cost. Many en-
gines of this type have been installed
during the past year by the American
Diesel Engine Company, recently reor-
ganized and now of St. Louis, and the
De La Vergne Machine Company, of
New York City.

In submitting this report it is desired
to bring before the association the fact
that development on this line of con-
struction is progressing, and that there
are many instances where the gas engine
and producer may be installed for our
own' central-station practice that will
prove beneficial to the operator by the
economies that will be obtained. The
introduction of gas engines for central
power purposes will be continued where
gaseous fuel is obtainable, either as a
byproduct, in the case of coke-oven op-
eration, or where natural gas is available,
as the installation of such engines will
give economies far exceeding the utiliza-
tion of the same fuel when consumed
under steam boilers. But when such
cheap gaseous fuels are not obtainable,
the installation of a power plant in each
individual case should be carefully
studied and the installation, whether gas
or steam, should be made on its own
merits.

LETTERS

Inspection Plugs for Poke
Holes

Mr. Lee's inspection plug, mentioned in
the issue of May 16, is worthy of more
than passing interest. It is a new ap-
plication of an old method used by brick
and tile manufacturers to determine the
temperature of the brick and tile on the
inside of a kiln. It had been suggested
while the mason was sealing up the kiln
door. A piece of 1^-inch pipe 12 inches
long was set in the brickwork through the
door and when the job was completed a
thick piece of window glass was ce-
mented over the outer end of the pipe.
This soon smoked up from the dampness

of the brickwork and the fresh green fire
and the cement cracking allowed the
glass to drop from the end of the pipe
The pipe was then plugged with clay
until the fires were built up and the con-
tents of the kiln began to turn red; then
the clay plug was removed and the glass
replaced. This proved very successful
and several peep-hole plugs were made
in the other kiln doors as well as side
walls. We could not obtain mica in
those places and the glass had to serve
the purpose. The length of the pipe
seemed to be such as to provide sufficiem
dead air insulation to prevent the heat
from cracking the glass. I have since
seen peep-hole plugs of this kind in
use in forge shops for watching the
"heat" temperature rise on the work
within the forge without opening the
door, which would chill the work on the
side nearest the door

k. A. Cultra.

Cambridge, Mass.

Corrosion of Water Cooled
Exhaust Pipes

In reply to the inquiry under this head
ing in the May 9 issue, I would say ths
the preferred method of cooling the ex-
haust pipe of a large gas engine is by
means of a closed water-jacket around
the outside of the exhaust pipe proper,
the cooling water discharge from the
engine jacket passing upward through
the pipe jacket. The diameter of the
inner pipe should be 10 to 30 per cent,
larger than that of the engine exhaust
valve to allow the pressure and tem-
perature to drop rapidly. For the first
10 feet of pipe from the engine gray
cast iron is most suitable. If bends are
required, they must be of large radius.
As ample provision for expansion is re-
quired, slip joints and rollers under the
pipe are necessary.

If internal water injection is applied
corrosion is bound to follow, but it can
be much reduced by using, as far as
possible, extra heavy glazed vitrified
acid-proof sewer pipe. Possibly the
vitrified portland cement conduit shells,
made in halves, in sections three feet
long, described in Power of April 11,
can be utilized for this purpose. To
enable this type of conduit to withstand
the pressure of an occasional explosion
in the exhaust pipe, the conduit may be
enclosed in a cast-iron or steel pipe, the
space between being filled with portland
cement grouting; or a thick inclosure of
concrete alone will probably hold. Con-
crete conduit without any protective lin-
ing will not stand up as well as it is
porous and likely to disintegrate. No
matter what construction is used, pro-
vision must be made for expansion and
for cleaning and draining.

Charles H. Herter.

New York.

June 20, 1911

POWER

Check Valve in Blow off I'

A few years ago I was engineer in a
plant containing two 60-inch by 16-foot
return-tubular boilers, set in one bat
The blowof* : connected to a single

in the rear which led to the
Boiler No. 1 was cut out for cleaning.
When I entered the boiler I forg' I
close the blowoff After

ing the inside I had just ( out

when the fireman o; the blowoff

oiler and steam and
hot water rushed into No. 1 boiler.
I been a minute later I would ha
scalded. The r.ext week I got

rig check valves and put one in each
e so that the va
to the scu

The fireman said it was only wast
brass putting them in. He is now t
neer at the plant, and on i day

was in fireman

opened the blowoff 01 The hot

water and steam rushed up the blowoff
pipe and the disk closed the

check in the blowoff pipe of No. 2 b

: me that the check valve had
saved ! as he was dil

the blowof cxamir cs and

braces. His candle was e> and

:gh hot water and steam got by the
check to scald his arm si:.
check is a! en and docs not inter-

fere with the blowing off of the

e pressure in the
jn to c

ow.
Camd-

I rii tion I «oftd I > ran

•
presented in Fig. I art
of study. They were taken from a-

Ames eng rig a I

ton rod; the engine ran at iutions

per minute diagram* are of the

\n out* 1 1 I

was used with a <-
motion »a% of the pendulu;
the ind: *as ab< ng

no reason I
the diagrams do n
n of the stea
though tome unsus-

lood
running

diagram* idef on

different d.i teems,

the rr '- « of the crank r J J i

gram arc due

Pnnfji .//
information from the
m^n on t: A '< ■

toprint
c will be paid forr
Ideas, not mere «»
nani

heat interchanges bet -
the steam ■ That

pcrty set for normal load

ease K

'torn the
sion lir crosses it. Assum-

»r Friction Load

ing the diagrams ap-

pears that some exhaust steam is trap
in the crank :er and

. pressed du

It also seems that
steam la admitted t<> ank

as the pressure do< as

high as o

cad of
g, at the beginning of the If

work is done In the crank end. the pis

ion vn!Dprf»«<« • ■ i .»» »tcam »hich In
Joes n e %ork

end horsepower la bIsmh M a« the
I njsfejnrer «• the o«h<r c-j . it:

gram suggt

U Bi doc

of '

ram line fall vena;.
tnaason KM cros> f.c

why doe*

Compression ..• . -

less tha £ the r.

■

At or plant of which I »a»

• as i

I ahspe for

an of the w«
Instsllation of new p

60-inch blowing en

gine fl\
blocked and I sss ai no move-

some of the men

r. c •• c .

a the

rngine room I nocked that
d been r conned and loot

• -r.r of tfr

eel to ;

commotion n»ide a

■ men managed to break the

eld him down

tubed out When the

ot ootsidc he bolted for the door

iv or henrd

■on
10 minute* more I had |s«t got the heis
to work blocking rho ehsil once mare,
when tha ngal ~«ct*

ing rod into soasrieo on on* of the ether

one ce '

inches <

982

POWER

June 20, 1911

I read an account some time before
this occurred where two engineers were
killed because they neglected to properly
block a flywheel while working in a cyl-
inder.

D. L. Fagnan.

New York City.

Putting in Gage Glasses

When putting in gage glasses I have
noticed that in nearly every case the
little washer that is furnished with the
connections is put in the bottom of the
nut on top of the gasket.

The proper place for it is between the
gasket and the threaded end of the con-
nection.

The washer in this position makes a
division between the gasket and the con-
nection and the nut can be turned with-
out the gasket sticking and bunching up
in the connection, as it is almost sure to
do if the washer is not properly placed.

I have found it good practice to smear
the glass and washer with finely powdered
graphite, before putting them in place.
This prevents the gasket from sticking
to the glass, which will crowd the glass
and possibly cause it to break. The
graphite should be put on dry, as oil
will rot the rubber.

James W. Little.

Fruitland, Wash.

Faultily Marked Corliss Valve

A simple 16x24-inch Corliss engine
pounded badly. Each shift engineer took
a turn at setting the valve according to
the data given by the factory blueprint,
and they had failed to stop the pound.
The bearings were carefully taken up,
but the trouble still continued.

The chief engineer was advised of the
trouble and after noting the action of
the engine decided it was due to improper
valve setting, notwithstanding the fact
that the valves were set as per instruc-
tions.

The blueprint gave the lap with the
wristplate in mid travel as 3/16 inch for
the steam valves and 1/16 inch for the
exhaust valves, and the lead with the
valve gear hooked up and the crank on
the dead center as 3/32 inch.

The chief got out his indicator and
took a diagram and then adjusted the
cutoff rods and took a second diagram.
The lack of compression and also the
fact that the exhaust was late, causing
the toe of the card to point decided him
to advance the eccentric. Another dia-
gram was taken which indicated that the
engine needed more of the same medicine,
but the steam was being admitted too
early and caused a hump on the top of
the card; also advancing the eccentric
alone a reasonable amount would not
give quite enough compression. He,
therefore, lengthened each exhaust-valve
rod a turn and the steam-valve rods a
turn and a half each and then advanced

the eccentric another J4 inch on a 6-
inch shaft. As a result the pound had
disappeared.

Upon examining the factory marks on
the valves and eccentric, the steam valves
had -)6-inch lap, and the exhaust valves
had ^-inch lap when the wristplate was
in mid travel. Then the engine crank was
placed on the dead center and the steam
valves had 3/32 inch lead as per factory
direction.

The eccentric had been advanced on a
6-inch shaft so that it stood -)4 inch, by
the old marks on the shaft, ahead of its
original position.

H. P. Porter.

La Fundicion, Peru.

A Boiler Explosion Averted

"Some years ago," said an old engi-
neer, "I took charge of a newly installed
power plant. There were two 70-inch by
16-foot return-tubular boilers.

"These boilers had been put in with
the idea of superheating the steam by
bringing the hot gases back over the
top of the shell, as shown in the illustra-
tion, the stack being located at the rear
end of the boiler.

"Things went on apparently well for
a few weeks, but one day I noticed water
oozing through the brickwork near the
top of the setting.

"It called for an investigation, and
upon going in on top of the shell, it
was found that in the seam nearest the
fire, the rivets had begun to shear, some
having been sheared over % inch. The
plates had been left entirely unprotected
and as there was nothing but steam on
the inside, the seam had begun to give
way.

Temporary Valve Repair

An emergency repair job was recently
made on an 8-inch gate valve that was
in a water line and split, as shown in the
illustration.

The valve was drawn together by four
5^x1 Yi -inch iron clamps A, shrunk on as
shown. A yoke piece was made to fit
r.round the neck of the valve, the ends

How the Valve Was Repaired

being threaded for nuts which held a
cross piece B in place on the cracked side
of the valve neck. The clamp C was
used to hold against the other four
clamps. This arrangement completely
closed the crack.

W. E. Dean.
Superior, Wis.

A Drip Problem

There are two lines of steam piping
in the plant where I am employed, one
a 12-inch heating main, the other a 2J/2-
inch auxiliary steam main; each pipe is
fitted with a reducing valve in the engine
room. The boiler pressure is 110 pounds
per square inch and is reduced to 5
pounds for heating purposes and 70

Powtf?

Showing Where Rivets Sheared

"A boilermaker was called and the
r.eedful repairs made, after which the top
of the shell was covered with fine loam,
and no more trouble was experienced.
The other boiler was also taken off and
the same conditions were also found to
exist on the end plate."

Edward T. Binns.

Philadelphia, Penn.

pounds for the auxiliary steam lines. The
piping was arranged as shown in Fig. 1
before making the change, the drip be-
ing piped as shown at A. It was made
up of 1-inch pipe, taken out of the bot-
tom of the 12-inch ell. A 54-inch drip
was taken out of the tee on the 2V2-
inch line, with valves placed as shown;
both drips were connected to one outlet.

June 20

POWER

In
hose

valve

order to drain the 12-inch main, a
connected to the 1-inch drip
and discharged out of doc

the buildings ran a distance of 20
from D and 8 feet underground in a
inch conduit made of i water

- alto .i h return run-

ning overhead at F, hut not enough r
sure in the 12-inch main to force the

|
i

I. Original Akk

opening thi imctimcs rcqi;

Jrain ih ;nch

: was shut all the time and the

•team in the h line took what

another
In the engine room t!
*n a distance and

ran out through the wall into a cor.

into an>
where .( ran

nga 1
an unhands and dangerous .. cnt

ncccsMi.no! ;".•••. ' 'in\ vkiih the bOM
and drawing tl r out through the

•
•n of r
at A would n

IU»C

chat

0/«^

1 and a

•

Under •' floor

•

that

■

anJ tunneet

ranged

I broke the elbow at £ and ar-
. as shown. I also
d and lapped a hole in the bottom
I, and made a connec-
ts the auto?- The

return pipe and set to b!o .

. so th.. ig shoi.

■

als* of condense-

J raining r- one

■

tML

M • i re I fscd in B

Anders.

AnJ m called

to I

J of u for

the botes while

the ng poured, some old

This r

■of ffphff

hen the hot metal

'. and

964

POWER

June 20, 1911

Did Not Hook On

1 submit the following to S. E. Mead,
regarding the indicator diagram from the
low-pressure cylinder of a cross-com-
pound engine which appeared in the
May 23 number. While the diagram from
the end which did not hook on shows
area, it is negative area. Starting with
the piston at the beginning of the stroke,
the pressure at this point is due to the
compression of the steam trapped by
the exhaust valve on the preceding re-
turn stroke. While the engine is pass-
ing the center this steam loses some of
its heat and therefore the expansion line
does not follow out the compression line.
In this case the expansion line is the
lower line of the diagram. The steam
on the forward stroke will have to ex-
pand to the point of release, which would
give a constant drop in pressure if no
more steam was admitted to this end of
the cylinder. The area of the exhaust
port for a velocity of 4000 feet per min-
ute would be about 200 square inches or
for a velocity of 6000 feet per minute
about 135 square inches.

At the middle of the expansion stroke
the steam below the exhaust valve is

Comment,
criticism, suggestions
and debate upon various
articlesjetters and edit-
orials which have ap-
peared in previous
issues

rnder discussion, the exhaust valve open-
ing, and the pressure in the cylinder
raises to that in the exhaust pipe connect-
ing with the condenser.

On the return stroke this pressure
holds nearly constant, rising a little with
the velocity of the returning piston until
the closing of the exhaust valve, when
the steam is compressed to the highest
point of the diagram, losing some heat
and pressure as the pision is nearly sta-
tionary when the crank is passing the
center.

Lester Fitts.

West Fitchburg, Mass.

Mr. Mead asks why this diagram has
any area, why the expansion line does
not follow back on the same line as

Line of Zero Pressure Pow«

Diagram from Low-pressure Cylinder of Corliss Engine

about 5 pounds higher than that in the
cylinder. Taking the smaller area,

135 X 5 = 675 pounds

lifting this valve from its seat. I be-
lieve this exhaust valve lets a little of
this steam into the cylinder and holds
i-p the expansion line.

After the compression begins in the
opposite end of the cylinder the con-
denser removes the excess pressure
down to the upper line of the diagram

the compression, and why the expansion
line runs practically parallel with the
atmospheric line.

In experimenting with an indicator a
few weeks ago, I prevented one steam
valve from hooking on and took an exact
duplicate of Mr. Mead's card except
that mine was from the high-pressure
cylinder.

Consider the diagram to have been
taken from the head end of the cylinder

and start the diagram just as the piston
starts to move from the crank end;
steam is then exhausting into the con-
denser through the head-end exhaust
valve. This subjects the cylinder and
the indicator connected to the head end
to the pressure existing in the condenser,
which is practically constant and there-
fore accounts for the line parallel to the
atmospheric line which Mr. Mead calls
the "expansion line," when it really is
the exhaust and compression line. When
the exhaust valve on the head end closes
for compression this line takes an upward
turn; this is the compression line which
ends as the piston reaches the head end
of the cylinder.

As the piston starts on the return
stroke the steam valve does not open,
the exhaust valve is also held closed, the
small amount of steam compressed in
the head end condenses and expands
rapidly, as the volume increases, until
it reaches a point lower than the pres-
sure in the condenser; just how much
lower this will be than the pressure in
the condenser depends on the tightness
of the valves and piston.

The area represented by this diagram
is work done in moving the piston against
the unbalanced pressure between the
condenser and the head end of the cyl-
inder. This work is done during this
stroke by the flywheel.

A consideration of the different events
and their relation to the diagram should
make the diagram plain.

C. B. Hudson.

Lowell, Mass.

Getting a C02 Recorder

The article in the issue of May 9 on
The Value of the CO2 Recorder, written
by H. S. Vassar, was very interesting.

I am the mechanical engineer for a
Nevada concern engaged in the mining
and reduction of copper ores. We have
a 10,000-horsepower plant, 160 miles of
railroad and extensive shops, employing
about 2000 men. The plant is four years
old and has been very successful
throughout.

I have been given a free hand in op-
erating the plant, the management only
demanding that the cost per horsepower
per annum be as low as was consistent
with proper upkeep.

As coal costs about $6 per ton in Nev-
ada, I have been very keen about any-
thing which would reduce its consump-
tion per indicated horsepower, and so

June 20, 1911

(ell an easy victim to the COr-machine
-nan when he appear

I was getting an evaporation o
from and at 212 d i ahrenheit with

;oal which analyzed as folio.

Free carbon, 53.5 per cent.; vola-
. ash, 4.8; *a total. 100 per

:ent. This ga\ ; B.t.u. per pound

if coal and indicated a boil.

records of coal
tnd water were kept, recording thermom-
were placed in the hotwei!. the
heater, the econnomizcrs and the Bi
«nd I also had recording ; re gages

on the stack, the forced draft and the
*tcam header. The CO; recorder, seem-
ing to be the final touch required to .
plele data on the plant and put me in

• position to evaporate the last pos
Jrop of water per pound of coal, I placed

• requisition for one forthwith. Three
months later the machine arrived, with-
>ut instructions for assembling, piping
ir operating. I sent for the instruc-

hich were ■ couple of

months later. Then I cd that

tome of the ground-glass connections
*cre loose enough to leak and not loose
enough to get in any packing, but after
some experimenting I found that a mix-
ture of glycerin and litharge would seal
the opening and not dissolve under the
action of the fluids used in the machine.

Then I found that the rubber tubing
*as old and leaky. It was replaced. The
marking pen was poorly made, and after
fooling with it for some time I replaced
th a thin sheet-silver pen which we
made at the plant. Next the draft ob-
tained by bypassing the economizer
cd too small to pull the gas sample
through, and this I corrected by putting
in an aspirator worked by cor:
air It then developed that the an-
of draft must be regular
narrow limits: too much pulling the
solution through and too little ga\c no
results nt all. this feature causing l

^le than anv other one thing about
the machine.

Of course, there were incidental oc
rences along with these, the
thread between the float M nter-

the night and re-
sulted in mixing i
then mi

choking up th<

I Anally got so i make ll

ir a fe . at a

something would ! it a

I r

the
rest of the : riant, and in that -

•
Isi going for I at a time

At a result of mv spending ar>
time In I improved the

tern of firing In togas, made tome

ash handling, and some air leaks

in the flue e :h were cooling the

gases passing through the econom
None of these impn is, howc

due records from the

machir

ds in

! would

the different methods of firing, keeping

n the meantime of the rate of

•und of coal. I was

able to spot a few of the

ate in t

moveme

uld not get ar n between

rage of
I

McGil' '■

I fated Plant \ (

•

im time to time I have noticed in
the columns of < articles, both pro

and con, rcg.i -he isolated power

plant. After . these articl

believe that both the arguments in favor
of and against the isolated plant have
little real bearing on the

s is a matter which
as each
g case has its own chara

I which must be considered
and which enter largely into its d
mination.

For instance, in :
imorc cites a case as an example
where the isolated plant is a great deal
cheaper than buying power from a cen-
tral station a' :ing
figures claims One
cent per kilowatt-! .crtainly cheap
for power rroa

tain g con; >uch

as using part of for

poses other than powr

getting

•

tain i do

thai

ompetr
he wc

ttft<

•<> point
•04
the better proposition.
be to In a majority of

p of vW

we gave up generating our own poi

n a power company.

V: x>k charge

gines. two of

and tnd 20 rescu

making a total of 150 be
used natural gas, getting it from the
local gas comp.

and the ft. one of the line »

on ' n floor was

located ir. the ,c a:, v* as diflk«ll of xc
ceev ; to

ing the tr.a.

ad some ten
all sma Mould be. st

throughout the shop t< achines.

The cngi: of all of i

plus about :ch be

managed to put in on some pretext or

other. Qu nan as to the

operations of his engine he told

me that tht

run down and I need of a thorough

overhauling. I also learned, much to my

ann>

star* gines In the morning

» ere only running ain|

ly • sc of losing over

tank used

ad be in the engine

room pulling a* a. at the belts, trying to
turr In addition, we

'. regular com;
to t- m one or two of our tenants

on floors who needed p

for

of bctn

flgur the si. decided to

in a and sc

he had to agreed to furnish

us r ■ ■:

i shmore Is

the

■
all d abo

mum v per twwmb. hsm

*0.

h>
i chsngmt ore

nc losses under the
old system so ws had the entire bv

on thr ' saachines

The •♦•em p«t t«e

w r '< J upon tl i

cau»« < pens* Is*

OS »'e t CttrTrM SSe4r->

Vhlls this incussiid the
tssx hot the

« sapsnss.

rsy ssY

963

POWER

June 20, 1911

the current actually used and instruc-
tions were issued to always stop the
motor when changing work on the ma-
chines, etc.

Our tenants' agreements guaranteed
a total minimum power charge of $50,
thus reducing ours to $100.

After the new installation was com-
pleted, we disposed of the old engines,
generators and motors as well as the
engineer. Summing up the whole situa-
tion, I found that our .tenants were per-
fectly satisfied and that we were get-
ting better power service than ever be-
fore, and at no increased cost. We
were also able to run one or more ma-
chines overtime as our work occasioned,
without the necessity of operating a 50-
horsepower engine to run a 10-horse-
power motor and pay a man in addition
to watch the engine.

I do not deny that it might have been
possible to fix up the old plant so that
we would have had practically as good re-
sults, but I doubt that it could have been
done as cheaply, and I also doubt that
the cost of our power would have been
any less. The installation of an entirely
new plant, modern in every respect, would
undoubtedly have given cheaper power,
but with a small concern such a large
outlay of money as this would entail is
a serious question.

I give this example merely to show
that "circumstances alter cases."

Everard Brown.
Pittsburg, Penn.

affect the worth of the idea, but which
cause the embryo author to take a course
around the block to reach the house next
door. I do not deny the value of writ-
ing and rewriting; then rewriting and
setting the manuscript to one side, per-
haps to be entirely rewritten at a later
date. I consider this time well spent,
but the new writer, the one I am after,
has neither the time nor the patience
to do this, though later on he will, if
ambitious and properly inoculated with
the desire to write.

Before one can run he must learn to
crawl and then to walk. The best way
for the new writer telling his first story
is to tell it in the same way he would re-
late it to one of his mates. If he has a
message, the editor will come back at
him to get all he has left out. Of course,
this takes time, but Power has found it
worth while to do this.

A. D. Williams.

Cleveland, O.

Writing for the Technical
Papers

I quite agree with Joe Smart, whose
criticism on my advice to writers is based
upon the axiom, "If worth doing at all,
do it well." However, there are alto-
gether too many who are deterred from
telling us many interesting facts be-
cause they are afraid of their ability and
of the labor involved in avoiding mis-
takes in diction and spelling — and fear
that the editor will turn them down.
If there is a good story in your system,
get it out. When you have got the first
one out, others will follow more easily.
Of course, it would be real nice if each
one of us had a typewriter, an Encyclo-
paedia Britannica, and a Century and a
Funk & Wagnalls dictionary. But once
having seen some of his ideas in print a
few times, and found out how nice the
water really is, he is a dead one indeed
if he is not bitten with the idea to im-
prove himself. It is at this stage of
the game that the suggestions outlined
by Mr. Smart should be adopted. The
main thing is to get the first message
out.

Too many good stories die stillborn,
because the writer endeavors to make a
literary monument of them and is
smothered in the mass of detail raised
by his own hand, details which do not

Belting vs. Electric Trans-
mission

Replying to the communication of
Henry D. Jackson, which appeared in
the May 2 issue of Power, I am disap-
pointed, to say the least, that he regards
my letter in the issue of March 21 as
"taking exception" to his article in the
February 14 issue.

A perusal of my letter will, I think,
satisfy any impartial reader that the gen-
eral trend of its subject-matter is in
corroboration of Mr. Jackson's expose
of cases where owners of shafting trans-
mission have been "flim flammed" by
adopting motor drives.

There is no occasion for commenting
en his enlargement and confirmation of
several points suggested in my letter.
But I do wish to disclaim having at-
tempted to make so thorough an enumera-
tion of advantages of electric drives as
to demand designation of a "tabulation of
advantages."

As to the additional advantage of motor
drives pointed out by Mr. Jackson — that
by their use greater uniformity of speed
is obtained than by shafting transmission
— it is a fact that this is not true in all
cases. Occasional drop in voltage and in
speed of motors is liable to be experi-
enced with current supplied from the best
power plants due to variation in speed
of engines or other prime movers, though
speed may be corrected more quickly
and more easily than with shafting trans-
mission.

The influence which slip of belts has
on "production factor," mentioned by
Mr. Jackson, cuts a small figure in the
average manufacturing plant having
properly designed shafting transmission.
If speeds are found to fall away from
intended ratios, what is easier than to
adopt ratios of pulley diameters which
will compensate the slip?

One advantage of electric transmission
which has not been referred to is that,
with or without economy for power, it
has wiped out of existence many poorly
designed systems of shafting transmis-
sion.

Viewed solely from the standpoint of
economy for power, the advantages of
electric motor drives cannot materialize
by the insertion of motors up to the point
where the cost of power by shafting
transmission balances the cost for power
by motor drives. Beyond that point we
may confidently look for economy in
favor of the motor drive; but no hard-
and-fast rules can be laid down to be
safely used by tyros in determination of
that point. Each proposition for sub-
stitution of shafting drive by motor drive,
or choice of initial installations, must
stand on the merits of conditions, and
for successful determination the condi-
tions require intelligent and disinterested
engineering analysis.

Average American manufacturers pride
themselves on their alertness in adopt-
ing improvements that are conducive to
economy, but when it comes to inaugurat-
ing improvements they are seldom moved
to engage advice beyond their own organ-
ization. It is not until mistakes have
become unendurable that they are
brought to realize that something different
might have been.

Franklin Van Winkle.
Paterson, N. J.

The Need of License Laws

There have appeared in recent issues
of Power several articles on how the
average engineer might better his con-
dition and fit himself for promotion. I
hearily agree with the suggestion that
each State or city adopt license laws. If
an engineer were compelled by law to
satisfactorily discharge his duties, many
of the accidents occurring today would
be avoided. During a visit to a small
country town a saw and cider mill, which
also boasted of a small grist mill, came
under my observation. There was a small
slide-valve engine, about 10x22 inches,
running, or trying to run, at about 120
revolutions per minute. While examining
the engine I was accosted by the engi-
neer, who was also the owner, the saw-
yer and the mill operator. Upon learning
that I was an engineer he proceeded to
enlighten me regarding his experience, to
the edification of several spectators, as
follows:

"So you be an engineer, be ye? Wal,
what dy'e think of that fer an ingine!
Never laid out a dollar on her in 15
years. No, siree; never had the cylinder
head off. The feller that fixer her up
fer me told me not to let anybody
monkey with her but myself, and, b'gosh,
I ain't either, and she's better'n she ever
was.". I remarked that she must be a
pretty good engine to run that length of

June 20. 1911

time without any repairs. "Wal. the fel-
ler that t:\cd her up was a mighty good
mechanic, but he did have a job to rig
her. Yer see, when ther ingine first come
here ther blamed stuff that goes in the
cylinder was all broke ter pieces and was
sent in a pail. That feller h? ' some job
? them pieces together. He said he
had to buy a bigger biler as ther old
thing was leaky and didn't hold steam
enough."

I said that probably the piston was
down and that steam might be blowing
through to the exhai:

He replied: "No. iow in thunder

could the piston get down? It was a
tight fit alter the feller had got all ther
pieces together, for he had wired them
all up. As he hadn't taken ther cylinder
head off how in thunder could ther
durned thing cum J

As I watched him he prepared to saw
a log, having obtained the necessary
steam. As soon as the log approached
the old engine ! up ba

He explained this hv saying that, "Ther
governor took some little time to |
hold on her; she didn't always work that
wa

• those who oppose the passing of a
license lau vi a plant as the

e and I am confident they will cease
n.
Conn. H Tvior.

I ' • i Kin

In Llo>J V Beets' n packing

rings in the " Mr. Handlcy's

sketch showing side plan I on

the ring lap with small screws is a poor

for a joint and there is not much

• in the lap joint offer
beets. I have had these same

I '•

pair an
that holjs •

n a

PO\X

practical point of view are useless and
afe.

-;. I shows one of tr ays

of making a tight piston, the block £
at the bottom of the piston being simply
t section turned to fill the groove
a well formed ring making a joint l
on eitt be no doubt

sbout making a satisfactory job. I have
seen til of ring g.

ting in use

for a period of 10 to 12 year* 11m ten-
sion of the ring keeps thi in con-
tact until the ring has been compU
rn out.

r method of mak-
a good ring joint. A bronze plu.
• into tl as she*

a b< ieath it to te<

As t teed beneath the plug,

ther- and

the
had side so

that the ring n too far.

•

and
a cross- sec

In
liart urn the

■

•law. of vtikh
et fro- NNtOSB enj

n-.r

mi n.mtion Is « J The atrraec M ■■'

lr in the

Iteoe of A; * high

steam eeaeaaptioa of i foe cn-

tuggeet V e cloae

steam and ,, open the

^h-pro
plain to
• I
of this engine It not the long drip pipe
tut cs.

no doubt I
pris. irn that the lees due I

age amounts, in many case*
per cent, or more of the steam need.

( --ntr.il I •

The failure of . m sen

or of Providence

cumeet
in favor of the isc. int.

. h an

t of Philadr
irly mr-
to th

u ^i I e the actual I Jamagc
. small

A--

many small mini

nachines end had to
im th em In seme

eible to run

■ stofea the

leas of po* r:bt-

' ncccs u»rend

i a io*% of abestt

•

■ g their

r '

its

*t the pp»

■

JcpecsJc

I Horn

968

POWER

June 20, 1911

Effect of Eccentric Advance

What effect has increasing the angle
of advance of a plain slide-valve engine
eccentric on the amount of port opening?

C. N. M.

It does not affect the port opening be-
cause it does not change the valve travel.
The effect of angular advance of the ec-
centric is to bring all of the events
earlier in the stroke. Lead and compres-
sion are increased and release and cutoff
hastened.

Momentum of Railway Train

A railroad train weighs 600,000 pounds
and is running on a level track at the
rate of 45 miles per hour. Suppose the
steam shut off and no brakes applied.
How far will it run before coming to

rest?

J. McC. C.
The train velocity in feet per second
would be

45X5380^66^

3600

The energy stored in the train would be
WV2 600,000 X 662

• = 40,634,328 foot-

Questions are/

not answered unless

accompanied by the;

name and address of the

inquirer. This page Is

for you when stuck-

use it

2 X 32.16

pounds
The sum of the products of the average
resistances into the distances through
which they are overcome must equal this
number. Each axle bearing, for example,
has a certain resistance to turning which
depends upon the weight it carries, its
diameter, its condition as to smoothness,
temperature, lubrication, etc. This re-
sistance measured in pounds applied at
the radius of the bearing and multiplied
by the number of feet through which a
point on the surface of the bearing would
travel would be the number of foot-
pounds absorbed by this particular bear-
ing. Then there is the rolling friction
of the wheels on the track, the friction
of the engine pistons, valves and connec-
tions and the windage, a very important
resistance when the speed is high and
diminishing as the speed increases.

The subject of train resistance is a
complex one and not enough is known
about it to solve the present problem with
the information given.

Opening of Drain Cocks

Should the drain cocks on the cylinders
of a duplex pump be open when starting
up?

E. S. H.

Drain cocks are provided on steam cyl-
inders for the purpose of drawing off

any condensation that may interefere
with the proper action of the machine.
While no material damage may result
from the starting of a direct-acting steam
pump, as would be in the case of an en-
gine, the pump will start more easily and
more quickly with steam than with water.
Some engineers allow the drain cocks
on steam pumps at the end of long steam
lines to blow a little all the time to make
sure that water does not accumulate in
the cylinders and make the pump action
irregular.

Alternating-current Ge?zerator
and Motor Speeds

Does the speed of an alternating-cur-
rent generator affect the speed of an in-
duction motor taking current from its
circuit?

H. E.

Yes; the speed of the .motor is directly
proportional to the frequency, under any
given set of operating conditions, and
the frequency is determined by the gen-
erator speed.

Transformers

How many kinds of transformers are
there?

H. E.

That depends on what you mean by
"kind." There are single-phase and
three-phase transformers; also con-
stant-potential and constant-current
transformers. Any of these may be
of either the core type or the shell type.
Read Mr. Meade's article in the issue of
March 29, last year.

Effect of Pulley Coverings

Does covering a pulley increase its
efficiency? Is canvas a suitable cover-
ing? What kind of cement is used to
hold it? Can a steel pulley be covered
as effectively as a wooden one?

E. L. D,

Pulley coverings increase the friction
of the belt; consequently the power that
may be transmitted is also increased.

Canvas is frequently used and is secured
by glue. Steel and iron pulleys may be
as readily covered as wooden pulleys if
the metal is cleaned and painted.

Object of Two Eccentrics

What is the object in placing two ec-
centrics on Corliss engines?

O. T. E.

An additional eccentric was first put on
Corliss engines for the purpose of get-
ting an early opening of the exhaust
valves without reducing the range of cut-
off. Incidentally, it is used to provide
for a range of cutoff beyond half stroke.

Water and Oil in Compressed Ah

We have been experiencing trouble
from water coming through with the air
from our compressor. Sometimes small
particles of oil will pass. The air, as it
leaves the compressor, is warm and it
occurs that if this air were cooled to a
point lower than it would again become
and drained at the point of lowest tem-
perature, that it would not again form
water.

O. J. B.

An aftercooler, as it is called, buih
something after the manner of a closed
feed-water heater, or a surface con-
denser, will lower the temperature to a
point where most of the water will sep-
arate from the air. From the aftercooler
the air should go to a large receiver with
inlet at the top and outlet about half way
up on one side. Here the remaining
water and oil will fall to the bottom and
may be drawn off.

Curing Premature Ignition

A single-acting gas engine runs
smoothly at light loads but thumps badly
from premature ignition when fully
loaded. The compression can be changed
by screwing the piston rod into or out
of the crosshead block; will that help
matters?

E. B.

Possibly, reducing the compression by
screwing the piston rod into the block
one or two threads may cure the trouble.
It is possible, however, that your igni-
tion is advanced too far for full-load con-
ditions. Better try adjusting the igni-
tion for less advance before you make
any such fundamental change as altering
the compression. Also examine your ex-
haust gas and see if it is black and sooty;
if it is, the premature ignition is due to
too rich a mixture.

June 20, 1911

Issued Weekly by the

Hill Pubiisl

in -

C •-:

0) «^a.

OORHMMlsOM Rlitftbta f'.r !^- i
and j»*i
•• and adilma of correapoo
. :i — not necmmnlj

ption prVe I
:.ce. to sor post office

tt.

. do roooer i

rtaav

■Mi

' m aerood clue ma

at the post office at

of Marc i.

QabtoaddrcaB,''Powrt

i TaJeertpb Cod*.

rryularly, no returns from
mctet companies, no bo<k num> arcs

■ '

fVonaylrariia Terminal I

tu MO

Comjir^MlMn Ml

Operation with Oil Fu. ; MS

llcnlir I 954

- Igoltl- ■ '•"»

lB^. | l|..|r. MO

Corroalon "f Wai pea

T
Lasd I '.>;rimi .... R«-

tttag

In ••'>»•■ '

■Jon . . Teasi

I
Ino
Otsrnaslon l • I

Recorder ... 1«

Ike

oea \m

I: • ■

. .M4-O07
IMtTO

Hot II • na- OytoeM a »<i -

•i BS • !>!••

•n

lets »?4

A 1 [eating and Ventilation
I department

For some time there has been a de-
mand for a ventila:

articles on these subject* e to

time, but there has ru n a definite

location in the paper to Jers

interested in such matters could turn and
find all the material contai: any

one issue.

•h this issue the new de-
ll alternate with the refrigera-
tion department, therefore appearing
_k. Material such as will
be useful to the practical operating: en-
gineer is specially solicited, although
some cons n of the fundamental

und § and directions

figuring the amount of heating surface

ired. the amount face

necessary t not be

out of p!a.

- all

•cat that is necessary for the present,
but nou stem in

shape for next fall. Tell the other
low the troubles you have had and what
you arc rhem. We

need this I il to make the

department a •>•.

Th I itr.il Station \
i»t

The article on "Ana futtrial

Pou

iral-
stat '

ma» st of p

charges; items of

j re ignored, and a* a
nts the
com or

as a r

are no' the game '

are employed ia ord<

MM*

The I

I J c« 0M ''*• • • pi» high a
■' e«l letters

A mmA M

I coat tod upkeep of an
elab

Ai >rts of the Pu

.1 operating

Yor'» >rms only twer

half c total coat of pro

tior and

one -half per :ng made up of

thermor >mpam

tied at over four hun
lars ' rated

it a small upf.
be installed for about one hundred dol-
lars

» of the foregoing,
it would make If some

of the arguments of station

peer its.

tltfc atement will be found to the

effect that tenants jilding are ob-

liged to pay a /•'■' '&* share of the plant
tment and other t

when comparison is to be
bctuccr- op-

ing ant be charged

again ■ m* of

%hen comparison is to be

educed.

.-onteeded lha
plant should sho turn ope* the

age manu' c bualnaM. Thss Is

^lea we

have s«cd opinions on

.ifftce 10 My that 1MB
Me only vfeea • sjmm

In prsMata a

plant using

■osision is made

Q to the mar
ment of th

tu-h rrpf- a

1 from a J a

beodag dse

adea oaM

t the oappltre and optrattoa as

c aearty

t it i ai^ej . a« . »

■ i ■

burdened ing Ttis

fe*

970

POWER

June 20, 1911

where the requirements of the building
laws and the Fire Underwriters' Code
are met, it has no effect upon the rest
of the establishment.

Perhaps the most absurd contention of
all is that which refers to the loss of
output due to a variation in voltage in
the case of the isolated plant, and a
consequent charge against the plant to
cover this loss. While it is true that few
small plants are equipped with voltage
regulators, still, with a good engine gov-
ernor and a watchful attendant the volt-
age should be kept within two or three
per cent. If it varies as much as five
per cent, there is something wrong with
the equipment or the method of opera-
tion, but the isolated plants as a class
should not be held accountable.

Where there are a number of cus-
tomers supplied from a central sta-
tion by a feeder of considerable
length, it is impossible for them all
to receive current at the same voltage.
If the regulation at the switchboard is
effected so as to supply those nearest
the power house at the specified voltage,
those at the end of the line suffer, and
vice versa. In any event, there is a
significant drop in voltage which is apt
to be greater than that in the average
isolated plant.

As there are two sides to every argu-
ment it is only fair that both the central-
station and the isolated-plant advocates
be heard. However, the intelligent engi-
neer or superintendent will not be mis-
led by unreasonable claims of either side
but will select the sound arguments and
formulate his opinions thereon.

Ignorant or Careless?

One State and one municipality have
this year taken steps forward in the
matters of engineers' licenses and boiler-
inspection legislation. On the other hand,
bills providing for such supervision have
been turned down by the legislatures of
Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Iowa,
Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey,
New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania and
Rhode Island. Just why such reactionary
and unsound views should be held by the
legislators of these States is not clear.

We have been reliably informed that
since the creation of the Board of Boiler
Rules by the legislature of Massachusetts,
there have been installed in New Hamp-
shire, Connecticut and Rhode Island boil-
ers that have been forbidden entry and
installation in Massachusetts because they
were manifestly unsafe for power-plant
purposes.

By what mental process a Connecticut
law maker arrives at the conclusion that
a boiler which is unsafe in Massachusetts
is safe in his own State is not easily
imagined. Why a New Hampshire legis-
lator is willing to have his State called
the dumping ground for worn-out Massa-
chusetts boilers or is opposed to having

it known as a commonwealth where some
regard is paid to the common safety of
its people is also very obscure. In
fact, it is incomprehensible that any class
of men could be so completely forgetful
of the duty they owe to society as to
deliberately sidetrack or kill any proposed
measure to enhance public safety.

It is not to be expected that legislators
should know all about these things with-
out being shown, but it would seem that
the most ordinary degree of intelligence
and common regard for human life would
prompt them to investigate the merits
and meaning of measures of the kind
under discussion before condemning
them. It is assumed that legislators have
ordinary intelligence; if this assumption
is justified, then some of them evidently
do not care anything for the hazard to
life and property represented by an unin-
spected or improperly operated steam
boiler.

Opportunities for Self
Advancement

There has never been a time when the
young man had more or better oppor-
tunities for self-advancement than at
present. Few consider the strides that
have been made within the last twenty-
five years or that will be made in the
future. Each succeeding generation of
young men holds the mistaken idea that
the day of opportunity and possibilities
to succeed belongs to the past. They
lose sight of the fact that success is
attained by earnest, hard work.

Looking back twenty-five years, many
of us can remember when a boiler carry-
ing one hundred pounds pressure of
steam per square inch was out of the
ordinary. Men saw the need of high
steam pressure and boilers were de-
signed to meet the requirements.

It is but a few years ago that the elec-
tric light was in the experimental stage
and the electrically propelled street car
was unknown. But the opportunity was
at hand and as a result artificial daylight
has been obtained and street cars are
counted by thousands.

The gasolene engine is another in-
stance. The possibilities of this type of
prime mover were made apparent, and
from the once unreliable unit used to
run a wood saw, gasolene engines are
now built in capacities ranging as high
as 5400 horsepower.

So fast have been the developments
along mechanical and scientific lines that
we take a new discovery or invention
as a matter of course, exclaim "What
next?" and go on with our work. Men
pay the toll for a wireless message much
the same as they would for a shoe shine,
and seldom consider the thought and en-
ergy which have been expanded in per-
fecting the wireless apparatus.

An engineer may say, "I am not an
inventor." He does not invent, it is

true, but every engineer can discover
some method whereby power can be de-
veloped cheaper than under old condi-
tions.

Every man has his opportunity. Some
profit by it, others do not see it at all and
others think it is not worth while.

One thing to remember is that when
the chief engineer of a plant wants an
assistant he will not select the man who
has not shown that he has qualifications
for filling the position.

Every chief has his eye on his subordi-
nate, and unless the man can show that
he is capable and willing, has original
ideas and exercises them, besides having
a practical knowledge pertaining to his
work, he cannot expect that he will be
the fortunate candidate for advancement.

It is not a bad idea to learn to work,
but one cannot do that while looking at
the clock with one eye and for Saturday
night with the other. One of the mis-
takes made is to assume that a certain
work is beneath one's dignity. The suc-
cessful men are those who have formed
the habit of doing the best they know
how, no matter what task has been given
them. A capable workman will not be
asked to do the common work after he
has shown his worth. Giving a dollar's
worth of work for eighty cents' worth
of wage is a practice that leads to ulti-
mate success. It is the man who fears
he will give more than he receives who
fails to see the opportunities as they
appear.

There are opportunities before you
now. They will be before you tomorrow.
Wake up and make use of some of them.

In all phases of the steam engineer's
vocation there are efforts and resultant
achievements and the intensity and in-
telligence of the efforts determine the
value of the achievements. Perfunctory,
half-hearted effort never "gets any-
where"; neither does ignorant groping
around, however vigorous.

Have you noticed how some men neg-
lect the oil supply and then wonder why
that bearing ran hot?

Have you ever noticed how overbearing
some chiefs are with the firemen and
ashmen?

Recording instruments in a power plant
are valuable instruments, but if you do
not know how to read and handle them
they might just as well be in the other
man's plant.

Leakage past a solid plug or piston
valve is a hard matter to determine, but
that there is leakage is well known. The
amount depends on many things; prob-
ably the first is the quality of the ma-
terial of which the engine was built; the
second, possibly, the accuracy with which
the engine was built; and, thirdly, the
care with which the engine is handled.—
The Engineer.

June 20, 1911

POu:

The National District Heat-
in] ti m

The third annual convention of the
National District Heating Association
was held at Pittsburg. Pcnn.. on Ju:
7 and 8. The sessions were held in the
banquet hall of the Fort Pitt hotel, the
first being called to order at two o'clock
on Tuesday afternoon, when Pi
George W. Wright, of Baltimore, pre-
sented his annual address and the as*
sociation was welcomed to the city by
representatives of the mayor and the
Chamber of Comn L. J. Kcifer. of

Easton, Pcnn.. re-

port of the committee on data and the
committee was continued to complet
work, which has been largely preparatory.

this and subsequent sc the

following ptpei several

of which with their J will be

ted at length in other colunms and

;ct: "I: ion of the Trans

of Meat through Radiati:
by Prof. Jo H King

• turi
and lectric '

1 Heating ar.

icnts of the City I:
York ( / J. B

Holbrook; "The Preparation of a
•

"Handling

-. of Radi II
:iy and I

When Fed from a

me; Mire for hot
wat

the delegates a
■ irs were at the

On U
were taken to the W
and in the evening a t n was g

the I

iluminar '

rnpany at
The election rc*u!tcJ in the choice of
the folio* ing off:

A I)
dent; U' Pttl

ccond

dent

il H ?«■•

The next place of meeting is fixed by
the executive committee, but Chicago
was favorably considered.

\ I 4 W Iter I Ic.itr ins

and Mcthi ' (

ti ii to i District

1 Irir tcm*

By A. C. Rogers

To illustrate this paper a number of
diagramma: been made

the different '.g. but be-

fore

be well to I district hot - atcr

heating is a thai the I

Its and

all radiators.

some more that M as a

than a regular

■

:i of hf

!i good for b

>g and is larg<
•II com pa: ma/

iy acooi

In-

•

bo I1

>m a d

-n to wonder bow
•hougbt of or accom-

;

more aornt year* age than now. aM^ovgh

out and
good r
rs is taken ofT at the top of the mala
and ttu e side of the

main. In t! iual

drop in iture as the water Sows

along the mair oled »

in the radiators J back into the

main, and the be fig

for this drop t
The method of adjusting for distr
ing in this case is as follows: The boiler
it out by putting low

and rctutr blank flanges or

ons as at I
the cut off

or by irring or plugging the leads to

'ie ten

main at J and K. are

alw.i t on the net -de of the

wall a- c H

laced on the - pc iuat

•
adj'. e rc«u

to all that v - accomplished by local

In a system the tame

and nstalled on

hot? -o eqva •--

•
...

and the

A fan I Si

. ■

as at

•
is other* »«■ " •' c ■ ':,e

ed
gra\ i *

opposing fl The

the
The mala*
bal-
ance to the I- *• •

usee far

io r«c j "ce •■ o«-e

f •■ c ■ t.n*

' -»fl

- of
«•' »eas, ar

972

POWER

June 20. 191]

p"ia )

'ig?

F.g.3

f'9-«

Fig.fc

Fig.8

g.9

•4. — Heating company's service pipes into

building.
B — House system feed main or flow pipe.
C — House system return main.
D — Radiator supply and return branches.
E — Valve or blank flange on boiler feed

to flow main.
F — Valve or blank flange on return pipe

to main.

pOWM

O — Service valves on district supply ser-
vice inside building wall.

H — Heating company's regulating valve
on return pipe of service.

J — Connection of service flow into B.

K — Connection of service return into C.

L — Drip or drain connections.

•if — Regulating cock or valve on return
branches.

Fig. 10

N — Small pipe bypass In system, Fig. 6.

O — Disk or regulating cock bypass in sys-
tem, Fig. 8.

P — Bypass of full pipe witb radiator
branches taken off with y's or
branch tees.

R — Secondary garage service.

S — Bypass with customary three valves
to form it.

June 20, 1911

POWER

headers being shown. When this work
is encountered the following con:
are made: Tap the main flow header at
J and tap each return marked C at K,
tiling a cock M for regulation on
each unit; the bo blanked off as

before at E and F; by adjusting M
an opening in each to suit the dis-
balance is made and short ng pre-

:. 6 is a one-pipe forced- feed aei
system for district work o:
shov a sma the

pipe being smaller than the main fa
a flow through the radiator; next a
pass with a cock for adjustment or a
union with a disk with a hole of pr
size, shown at 0; and next a full (-.pass
as at P with branches taken off

gs or branch tees; there arc some
as in Fig. 11. where this is the
arrangement possible, but for b<
or residence work this system is not now
allov

7 shoms a forced-feed hca-

such as for factory and garage work ;

the connected to the bottom of

the coil and the return is taken out at the

>d a full pipe is as*

-clf-frccing of air,

all i n out and no air vents

I needed; the sketch shows a coil

■ing along the wall with a

;h and a continuation thr
to another room; headers cannot be used
in t: rk on account of short-circuits

and a return-bend coil is u Mere

a header Cfl • s or cocks

for regulation in each coil ol arc

oecessa

shows a method i
garage after ! the

gara is shown and marked P.

rem being cut in •

thrc method

the garage wanted «r

en the gar

regulator // is ope- larger fccJ and
.

andard l I prcssurc-gra.

■ « the i
osed

results, is and balar

no dr.i
■ ugh and a <■

m supp

•h amp
lari-

Incl 1 1| the

same system for location* the

ltors are placed In a na ne;

a three-pipe btJl I
•

gara a serlr-

i and coils both A - located

on the floor aho\e ■• »'■■ 'root

garage tevtaf

also a »idc do-

belt to be car: r the o*

i formed and while not
•
for safety vlM >stem is shut off

jff poir
Two othc ms should be

In both the J to

the top of the if and fed d<

•
The runs of the but

or the radiators are

fcrcnt. In the first a sinj. making

al scr .>cd in all

itors on x re ta series.

In the oth. hes are

in multiple a
all r

the cooled water from t
ators. Both can be used on ;

urge

the both | and

n eat systems

arc recomr ^s of more

than three :h and where attic

main.

I in} • Hcatii -in

I consider-
ably on oi system, and have
finally got it . ok it ought to be
to J

iuced to a mimrr. .

~>r enwigh to break the vacuum

and.
as the rJjnp

as sbovo at

To ; found

» » use M

COOOOCtOd

which

• i

uu or

1 as folio -
ie sum

• es D and B arc closed and (be
r - : '■:;.-
Ing water from lb

B arc
•

ough the pipe C and to

! : - s a • -
a Boa-

k>» om the heater to

id a flat seat attached to the r-

•roub'.e. as tbt
I not close it agaioat the water
l I made a oc ■

g to F rlece of

Ing // . ■ •

p » a»

974

POWER

June 20, 1911

and a brass plunger / was turned to the
form shown and fitted to the brass tub-
ing so as to work freely. The holes K
and L were drilled at a proper location
and the stem screwed into the plunger.

Water enters the port M, in the plunger,
and the water finds its way through the
holes L into the space N, which sur-
rounds the plunger, and exerts its pres-
sure upon the plunger both ways, and
thus keeps the plunger in balance. The
float has only the weight of the plunger
and lever to lift. When the water in
the tank gets below its level the float
pulls down on the plunger until it passes
by the holes K, when the water from the
heater will pass to the tank through the
passage M and holes L and K.

The arrangement at O, Fig. 1, is made
as shown in Fig. 4 and needs no ex-
planation other than that a brass packing
nut P has been made and screwed into
the pipe bushing, as vapor arising from
the tank was a nuisance.

The floats had to be made in sections,
because the tank had already been made
with the heads riveted on and only a
5-inch hole in one head.

Fig. 4 will give an idea as to how the
floats were made. Five of the floats
were connected together with a rod after
placing them, through the 5-inch hole in
the tank, after which the stem R was con-
nected to the float lever.

Referring again to Fig. 1, S is an over-
flow to the sewer in case the floats get

Power

Fig. 3. Sectional View of Valve

stuck or something else happened to flood
the tank. Fig. 4 shows how the sewer
communication was attached to the tank.
I found it necessary to put in a needle
valve for regulating the injection water
as, with a globe valve, I could not get a
fine enough adjustment and there was a
loss of heat due to an excessive amount
of injection water. The finer the water
can be sprayed the better, as it then takes
less water to keep the vapor down, and,
consequently, less heat is extracted.

With this arrangement I can feed the
water to the boilers at a temperature of
198 degrees. If another pump were avail-
able the water could be pumped from
the return tank into the heater and the
water heated to about 210 degrees. I
was convinced, however, that the cost of
an extra pump and the steam it would

Fig. 4. Details of the Float

consume would cause a greater loss
than the cost of the coal it would take
to furnish the difference of heat units
between 198 and 210 degrees.

Running Condensing on the
Heating System

An interesting experiment has recent-
ly been made at the First National Bank
building, Chicago, in utilizing the heat-
ing system of the building as a surface
condenser during nights and Sundays,

$ 35
o

c 30
o

•o

v E5

o 20

U">

c
o

It is obvious that this arrangement can
only be used when the heating system
is partially filled with steam. In prac-
tice it has been used when the tempera-
ture of the outside air ranged from 40
to 60 degrees and it is estimated that
during the months of March, April,
October and November conditions will be
favorable for its operation.

The heating system is an ordinary
Webster installation, controlled by
thermostatic valves operated by com-
pressed air, and the method of proceedure
is merely to shut off the compressed-air
control, which has the effect of opening
all the radiator valves of the building
to the exhaust. The vacuum pumps then
pull a vacuum of 12 to 21 inches through
to the engines.

The accompanying curves show the
coal consumption and kilowatt-hour load
for the month of March. The experi-
ment was not started until March 11
and it is easy to note on the curves what
the effect has been.

On March 9 with a load of 2400 kilo-
watts the coal consumption was 38 tons.
On the next Sunday with the heating
system used as a condenser and a load
of 2200 kilowatts, the coal consumption
dropped to 26 tons, showing a saving of
twelve tons for the day with practically
the same electrical load.

It will be noted that on the following
two Sundays the conditions were prac-
tically the same, each showing a saving
of approximately twelve tons of coal
over that obtained before the change was
made.

Another point is worthy of remark.
On March 6 with an electrical load of
6600 kilowatts the coal consumption was
49 tons, while on March 19 the heaviest
peak of the month, 7000 kilowatts, was

7000
6500

r -
\

1 ,

1 /

. 1
\ 1

/l
/I

/ 1
1

1 \

;

\ s

I
1

\
\

I s

'-~

\
\

1
1

\
\

/ 1

;

/ 1

1
1

if
1

1
1

I
1

1
1

I
1

1 1

1
1

i
i

\\'l

1
1

i
i

,. /

Kw.

6000

5500

123456789

5000 £

o
4500 ^

t
4000 |

3500 ~

3000

2500
2200

Power

10 II 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Days of Month

Chart Plotted from Daily Log

when the heating requirements were not carried on a coal consumption of only
severe but when, nevertheless, electrical 44 tons. This shows in a striking man-
current must be furnished 24 hours a ner the economical effect of the arrange-
day. ment.

June 20, 1911

POW

Reciprocating Blowing: Ensrines

B) W. I rinki

During the past twenty years, An
can blowing-engine practice has assumed
rather set forms; certain types o:
and engines have dominated the mar-
ket, and their operation furnishes today
the blast for more than 90 per cent, of
the pu'-iron in. jountr>

feu ago, however, the contcnted-

l of American builders and users of
blowing en;. .is rudely shattered by

a double European invasion: the gas en-
gine and the turbo-b

The gas engine, although more eco-
nomical o' fuel than the steam engir.
more t>

the cost per horsepower, high p
speed must be employed; thus the
ton speed has been increased from the
300 feet per minute, heretofore con-
sidered standard in steam-driven bio.
ect per minute in modern A:
can gas-driven blowers. In Europe re-
ciprocating blowers run at pistor
of 750 feet per minute, the gas engines
for the generation of power running at
speeds very close to 1000 feet per minute

An understanding of the rattOl
the standar of American blowing

are so - *ul at medium

speed* and what their shortcomings are
at high speed* wW be facilitated I
study of the valve motion and of the
throttling losses through the vah .

As a high velocity through valves is

harmful, the tendency is to keep the

at a fair: ant tow value;

and the piston of an engine has

nearly harmonic motion, it fol
that the houlJ also have harmonic

moi • on

if the itrokc «nJ close SI the

en J

ucr t:

J Hi . :
. 1 u
although

I ssme idesl disgrsm
on a time basis. It that

the curves intersect the b.i
an angh that if the*,

motion curves arc rcalned th<
strike .i The

of the

• design
gnd .Moss so

otion -

)

»en% !?u

•'

g loading. The lover the rou
J and I

the spring losd closing the
near » the • the

rt of the crank. Testa
and rd

American blowing-engine p-

osc so
for all jrposcs the be

nan ,» back of the air and

the hammering of
The behavior of the

hat of the inlet
two

tion or Oci

cr.ee or. N>th

the >'

s are show

SOJOI J j, ■-

: ■
aides of

indh

on a

■

or. to ?*-<

a give*

cos
The prrtmure drops

cloor pron

M ^c

loos of »<■'••

(he * •- * C 4r ^

lUae lo«

976

POWER

June 20, 1911

and for various ratios of valve area to
piston area. In this chart the valve area
does not mean the so-called free valve
area, which is a rather imaginary or con-
ventional quantity, but rather the area
actually offered to the flow of air at the
narrowest part of the valve. It is as-
sumed that the valve has harmonic mo-
tion and that the coefficient of discharge
is 70 per cent. For a number of valves
this latter figure was found to agree
closely with the tests.

As long as the clearance volume of
the engine is small, mechanical opera-
tion of the inlet valve is scientifically cor-
rect, because the opening and closing
points of the valve remain practically
fixed in spite of variations of blast pres-
sure. Conditions are quite different with
the outlet valve. Its correct opening
point varies with the blast pressure and
losses occur if the valve opens at a
fixed point and if the blast pressure dif-
fers from the one for which the engine
was designed.

Naturally, the experiment of running
the standard types of valve gears at
higher speeds was tried. Comparatively
little trouble was experienced with the
mechanically operated inlet valves, ex-
cept that in some of the designs the
throttling loss was much greater than
might be expected. At 600 revolutions
per minute the standard valve gears gave
throttling losses ranging from 0.4 to 1
pound per square inch, and engineers
were trying to increase inlet-valve areas
up to 20 per cent, or more. At the dis-
charge end serious troubles occurred
with an increase in speed.

If the American standard valve gears
are used for piston speeds of 600 feet
per minute or above, inlet-throttling losses
of 3 to 6 per cent, of the ideal blowing
work occur, and outlet-throttling losses
of 7 to 12 per cent, of the ideal blowing
work. Besides, power for mechanical
operation of the valves increases and
other troubles of wear, breakage or regu-
lation appear, depending upon the valve
gear.

For piston speeds up to 600 feet per
minute and for rotative speeds up to
65 revolutions per minute, the Slick tub,
employing a movable cylinder, has been
very successful. The design has been,
severely criticized as "wagging the dog
and holding the tail still" and the author
confesses that he felt the same way when
he saw the first Slick compressor more
than ten years ago at the Edgar Thomp-
son Steel Works, but the ingenuity of
the design is forcibly impressed upon
anybody who attempts to produce the
same combination of large areas and
small clearance space in some other way.
If 65 revolutions per minute are exceeded
with this type, trouble begins. The inertia
forces of the heavy cylinder are hard to
take care of and heat the eccentric which
moves the cylinder.

Engines employing the Mesta combina-
tion inlet and outlet valve have been
very successful up to piston speeds of
820 feet per minute. In this type rocking
valves, two for each head, control both
inlet and outlet; the inlet passes at the
side of each valve, the outlet through
the center of the valve. Automatic cup
outlet valves are located beyond the rock-
ing valves and are protected against the
return closing slam by the mechanical
closing of the rocking valves. This lat-
ter design has been used on vacuum
pumps and compressors for over 20 years.
Its adaptation to high-speed blowing-en-
gine practice required doubling the valve
equipment for the purpose of obtaining
large areas without excessive diameter
of rocking valve. The pot outlet valve is
cushioned very little and is loaded lightly

+■ = a- 3

?&» Z

Its

e °v 1.5

.Sec ,

CLo'+-
oV o

■o " 0.5
<ug.y u
i_ a.?
= w §

„<

Ce£

___^-

ZOPe^

'S^f

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900
Mean Piston Speed, Feet per Minute

Discharge Valves Pona

to c

O O

f"1

,*><

\zo PerCentj_

<u £>
c <s> —
a> o - p

£l> 1.5

~— **-

!J Is 0.5

olgE 0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900
Mean Piston Speed, Feet per Minute

Inlet Valves ,w*

Fig. 4. Pressure Loss through Valves
Due to Velocity Head

so as to fly out of the road of the blast
without fluttering.

In Europe the high-speed blowing en-
gine is an accomplished fact. There the
problem has been attacked along alto-
gether different lines. European engi-
neers long since realized that the harm-
ful kinetic energy stored up in a valve
is proportional to its mass and to its
travel, and that both should be cut down.
Furthermore, European engineers do
not hesitate to use large clearance spaces
if by so doing other advantages can be
gained, and they meet with success. Mat-
ters are different in this country. Clear-
ance in a blowing engine seems to be an
eyesore to the American furnace man.
The influence of clearance can be
summed up in a few words.

a Clearance volume increases the nec-
essary size of blowing tub for a
given weight of air to be pumped
per stroke.
b The larger size of blowing tub re-
sults in a small increase of friction

work and, therefore, in a larger size
of power cylinder.
c The influence of the increased heat-
exchanging surface on the true
volumetric efficiency is small.
On the other hand, clearance allows
the use of very large valve areas, which
decrease throttling work and cause bet-
ter filling of the air cylinder and also
allow higher piston speeds, or in othei
words, a smaller and cheaper engine.
The higher piston speed makes possible
the use of a more efficient prime mover,
namely, the gas engine. When the truth
of this is realized, recognition of the
merits of the modern European high-
speed blower should present no diffi-
culties. The plate valves are so light in
weight and the spring load can be made
so small that for the greater part of
their working time the valves rest against
the guard or stop; this, of course, greatly
reduces fluttering. Furthermore, there
are no wearing parts and no sliding sur-
faces or sticking or binding from gummed
and dusty oil. The low lift does not al-
low the valve to acquire destructive veloc-
ity in closing. If a sufficient number of
valves are used the pressure loss through
the valves is small and the filling of the
cylinder is almost perfect. The life of the
valves is long, provided that they are
made of the proper high-grade steel and
that the spring loading is properly pro-
portioned. If a valve should break, it
can easily be replaced because the valves
are light; besides, the inlet and outlet
valves are alike so that only a few. need
be carried in stock.

Particular emphasis is placed upon the
almost silent operation of these valves,
both by users and builders. No sep-
arate cushioning means are employed ex-
cept that in the Hoerbiger-Rogler valve
an elastic plate softens the impact of
the opening stroke before the valve
strikes the guard. This cushioning alone
does not suffice, but another circumstance
comes in helpfully. Thin films of oil
coat the valve plate, cushion plate and
guard. The squeezing of the air and oil
between these plates provides a sufficient
cushion to prevent injury to the valve.

From a study of the various types of
valves and valve gears, it appears that at
the present time the low-lift, alloy-steel
plate valve promises to become the stand-
ard valve for high-speed blowing engines,
because there is neither wear, binding
nor sticking; no lubrication is required;
there are very small throttling losses; it
can be used for the highest speeds; it is
inexpensive; and it does away with me-
chanical gearing, oiling and adjustment.
No matter with what valves a recipro-
cating blower is equipped, its delivery
remains discontinuous; that is, it delivers
air impulses comparable to a constant
delivery, over which is superimposed a
wave motion or vibration. If the blower
discharges directly into the blast main,
then vibrations are transmitted with un-

June 20, 1911

POTF.R

WTT

diminished strength and shake the whole
line. In steam-engine practice this evil
was cured long ago by placing a large
steam or water separator near the en-
gine to damp the vibrations of the ;
line. If a similar request is made of a
furnace man for the air line, a gi
deal of resistance is encountered. The
author knows of only one furnace plant
in this country' where a large tank or
equalizer was installed for each bio
engine. The pipe lines thus conm
are practically free from vibration.

In conclusion it may be said that the
reciprocating blower has made wonderful
ies in the past decade toward becom-
ing a successful high-speed machine.
While the increase of piston speed was
started by the gas engine as a matter of
neces it has also benefited the

steam-driven blowing engine, and isolated
furnace plants can now work with
air cylinders instead of three, because
one will si: !ly blow a furnace in

case of emergency, or else three smaller
units may be use

The combination of the higt

eating blower with the blast-furnace
gas engine makes the use of the latter
profitable even in the
where coal is cheap. The latest group
of furnaces in this region ha

J with slou-spccd reciprocating
Steam-driven blowers. If a high-speed
gas-driven blower had been on the mar-
ket, the result would probably have been
different.

A gas-driven Mowing engine with a ,
ton speed of 800 to 900 feet per min-
ute and a high rotativ the
most formidable competitor of the turbo-
blower, if European i cc may be
taken as a guide. There are c-
in this country* who have already car
Into practice higher piston speed*
gas engines for electric power, and in-

ting developments in this lln
work may be expected in the nest five
years.

The following discussion app
both Mr Trinks' paper and that of
. printed in the June 13 issue

v accepted
that the turbo-blo-* i more effi-

cient at low pressure* than at hU
•ares, wherca* ll iting bl

ing engine Is n t at big

sure* A condition in the J
latter is that the air cylinder mu*t be
large enough for the greatest volume

c handled, and strong soot
the highest pressure* attained
suit* in the large and massive consti
tion «hlch make* such m.i so

•
Ti i the other ha

suffer* because it must V iges

enough H furnn1 ehe*t pressure

-ed, althouch. in
narv ODStM nay be

. *m«H ;

Therefore, the best and cheapest blow-
ing engine is a co n of these two
types: a turbine-driven bio*
ing air, partly compressed, to a reciprocat-
ing Mo >mpress
it to t: cam
fro: i cngirv ! be

In general, the valves of a blowing
engine arc a source of difficulty, it being
almost impossible to get an live

to fill without heavy loss by s and

at the same time be quick enough to

■- at the speeds re-
.cu in moocm en.

The advantage of maintena: un-

doubtedly ■ o-blower, s* corn-

par, ng eng

Hou the mat ma-

is | ring | mly
compressed air. .. - of
Inlet- vs' --ally elimi-
nate ig denser air ui

e governing of such s combined
unii The ordinary

.rnor on lh all that is

necessary and no governor other than
ent r» | on the

turbine. The steam from the engine
passes dire. ne, and ss long

as conditions remain constant, the speed
of the tur I remain unchanged.

If. however, the pressure required by
the furnace increases, more is

admitted to the cngir rnor

and this increased quantity of steam

~es the tut ricreaee

slightly an r air at a

higher pressun automatical^ com-

I for a ht lag due to the

greater lginc and for the

lower volu:

eating blowing engine at h
sur

/ / it i/ It U a. ••11 in rriM

.»r that the mi

la comprei
' ■
■ and has Mag »ur

am-
;

bo-compnrssors manufactured

>re made
n accord in t
iom and pre**ure The general prin-

reed impel
J in t
cooled hot1

and
vitv intt

j.i ,'•'-,-« if H »'-af "f a cf.tnf',:

not appear necessary to as*
or 3D pound* aef

square inc. bo-blower boilt on

Rat r «000 to 12.300 cubic

r per minute at arass
of 8 to IJ pounds and speeds of

to 390i i . . , c . . .

I against th -

pressures of 80 to ISO pone: am

necessary to employ mora than van to
fifteen stages.

has shown
ressors

-x minute and
rom 70 to 80 per cent

cs of 3000
- cicncict arc from 6i
to TO p cmcfcncio

ise to less than 50 per cent, at
half and quarter loads.

of i turbo-blower In eaa
I compressors
England. The
compressor was coupled to s
turbo-r autt from the

r^ passing to lbs

steam turt
air at *

it and discharges to the
compressor

up to 60 pour >mbination has

donbled | o» n s

net gain of 17 per ce: leb

wou secured had an addi-

tional redproc
sta!

se of an addition to the Hrf»dfng_
. h would have been necessary on
count of the large space occupied
an additional compressor.

Taking all factors laso
n condition* of
fuel cost, - bo-blower is a close

second to the ga*
fuel oonsumpti be latter

a nu
•

i> » UI in

eJeac volumetric cOcicncy

the
*e ■aViincin is

be
aft daciency of

on*peeaston eascseacy is
of ' rrd to

c Meeriaj •

the
b

rqu.rrd in

the bta** »; ■ ■ * tsai isaasjaaj

e inertis and friction
•r»e frktion of
log through the
snd to

The vohnaet*

•f the

K
Of

r SSI M

the t *V

978

POWER

June 20, 1911

The mechanical efficiency of the blow-
ing tub is not easily determined, but was
estimated at 90.4 per cent. These make
a total shaft efficiency of 75.8 per cent,
which may be compared with 68 to 70
per cent, efficiency for the turbo-blower.

Mr. Cardullo: Builders of blowing en-
gines could take lessons from the pump-
ing-engine manufacturers, and build en-
gines with smaller discharge valves. The
valves illustrated by Mr. Trinks are 18
or 20 inches in diameter and of a type
which is unsatisfactory in water-pumping
work. Although they will be more sat-
isfactory in air work than in water pump-
ing, the objections are of the same char-
acter and at high speeds are of the same
validity as the objection to similar valves
in water pumps. The difficulties could
be overcome by substituting a large num-
ber of small valves of suitable material,
about three inches in diameter.

Mr. Freyn: As far as thermodynamics
is concerned, the turbo-blower indirectly
uses two and one-half times as much gas
as the gas-blowing engine. Regarding
the relative cost of the two types of in-
stallation, based upon actual figures, con-
sider four or five 100-ton blast-furnace
plants, with eight gas-blowing engines in-
stalled, six operating the furnaces and
two spares, and six turbo-blowers, four
operating the furnaces and two spares.
Under such conditions it will be found
that, taking the thermal efficiency, the
constant operation and the fixed charges
into consideration, the gas-blowing en-
gine is in the lead, even with coal at
$1.80 per long ton.

In isolated blast-furnace plants, how-
ever, where the gas has no value, the
turbo-blower is the proper installation,
especially in plants having one or two
furnaces where a constant supply cannot
always be depended upon. But for any
large plant, particularly blast-furnace
plants connected with steel works, it is
out of the question to put in turbo-
blowers.

There is no doubt that in large steel
works it is possible to have electric in-
stallations which furnish power at a very
cheap cost to the municipalities and in-
dustries in the neighborhood. In this
connection the gas-blowing engines lead
the turbo-blowers.

I cannot see any opportunity for turbo-
blowers, with the exception of the one
case which Mr. Johnson pointed out, but
I have, however, a better suggestion to
offer. This is to utilize the waste heat
from the gas engine for generating low-
pressure steam by which turbine blowers
may be run to compress the blast for the
furnace.

Mr. Ehrhart: In Mr. Rice's paper is
to be found the statement: "The pulsa-
tions in pressure above noted are an
inherent characteristic of all centrifugal
blowing apparatus." I believe that in a
machine which is not a positive pushing
machine, like a reciprocating engine, this

pulsation should be avoided if possible.
This is especially important where two
machines are delivering air into the same
line, in which case they should have the
same characteristics.

Furthermore, in the case cited by Mr.
Rice, the efficiency at one-third of the
rated volume is about 45 per cent. In
some blowers with which the Westing-
house Machine Company has been ex-
perimenting for the past five or six years,
it has been found that by merely altering
the shape of the blower the efficiency has
been brought up to nearly 70 per cent, at
one-third load. I do not believe this point
has been brought out before, but blowers
are now on the market in which the light-
load efficiency is within 5 per cent, of
what it is at full load.

Discussion on "Purchase of Coal"

The discussion of Mr. Randall's paper
upon the purchase of coal, which was
published in the June 13 issue, is here-
with presented.

Mr. Rice: It is important that a plant
be designed to use coal of lower quality,
and all attention should not be directed
toward the method of buying coal, the
effect of which is to defeat the conserva-
tion of our natural resources. The em-
phasis of this paper, unwittingly perhaps,
is to direct purchasers to be more par-
ticular with the coal dealer; hence, the
latter tries to meet the specifications, with
the result that he uses the best coal and
negbcts to find a market for the poor
coal.

Mr. Baker: Quite a number of plants
in the East are successfully burning a
very low grade of fuel, which it would
be impossible to burn by ordinary meth-
od. This is accomplished through the
use of the steam jet, which, from the
thermodynamic point of view, is perhaps
bad engineering, yet it enables the fuel
bed to be kept cool enough to prevent
trouble from clinkers.

Professor Carpenter: I do not see how
the ideas that have just been expressed
constitute an argument against the neces-
sity of testing coal and of purchasing it
by analysis. I have lived for a great
many years in those districts bordering
on the anthracite-coal regions, where we
have had to take the poor stuff that no-
body else would use. The coal operators
are anxious not only to dispose of their
coal, but also some of their heaps of
slate, some of which reaches the breakers
and rock crushers; and, no doubt, thou-
sands of dollars have been paid by the
consumer to help dispose of these slate
piles.

Professor Goss: I want to emphasize
the statement to which Professor Car-
penter has called attention. The coal op-
erator must take much more responsibility
for the suitable preparation of his coal,
and everything should be done to en-
courage him in improving the product de-
livered to the consumer. The inferior
coal, of course, should be brought out

of the ground and should be saved; but
before it is delivered to the consumer
the operator should wash and sort it or
otherwise put it in proper form.

Mr. Barker: If the plant can be so de-
signed and low-grade fuels are available,
it is profitable to change the equipment
to use the low-grade fuel. However, the
variation in the low-grade fuels is such
that it is not profitable for the average
plant to attempt to burn them without
special attention. For instance, the small
size of anthracite which comes to the
New England market contains from 14
to 24 per cent. ash. It may be conserving
some of our natural resources if this
24 per cent, of ash can be burned at all
efficiently, but if the ash can be kept
down to 18 per cent., the coal can prob-
ably be used to advantage. It may be
either burned alone or mixed with a
good grade of bituminous coal, but if
this coal comes to the market with a
variation of 14 to 25 per cent, of ash,
there should surely be some correction
for this variation in quality.

Mr. Baker has suggested the use of the
steam jet in burning low-grade fuel. The
steam jet is a very efficient piece of ap-
paratus where a small size of anthracite
is burned, providing the fireman is
familiar with the apparatus. However, I
have found a number of cases where the
steam jet was a very inefficient piece of
apparatus in a power plant, on account
of improper regulation.

Pennsylvania State Convention

The Pennsylvania State Association of
the National Association of Stationary
Engineers held its twelfth annual con-
vention at Johnstown on Friday and
Saturday, June 2 and 3, Cambria Associa-
tion No. 21 being th: host. The dele-
gates and visitors were welcomed to the
city by Mayor Wilson, to whom a fitting
response was made by Past President
Charles A. Garlick. Addresses were made
by C. W. Leitenburger, chairman of
the local committee; Past President
Joseph H. Carney, National Treasurer
Samuel D. Forse, and State President
F. M. Zimmerman.

On Friday afternoon a visit was made
to the Cambria mills. On Friday even-
ing a banquet was given at the Mer-
chant's hotel at which Mr. Forse acted
as -toastmaster and George D. Yohe. the
first president of the Pennsylvania State
Association; Martin S. Corbett, president
of the local branch, and the speakers of
the morning, besides several of the repre-
sentatives of the Cambria works, made
addresses.

The election resulted in the choice of
George Bu. Miller, of Pittsburg, as presi-
dent; D. N. Arms, of Johnstown, vice-
president; Thomas C. Green, of Pitts-
burg, secretary; D. E. Seely, of Du Bois,
treasurer; John G. Louis, of Sharon, con-
ductor; E. H. Nettle, of York, doorkeeper.
The next convention will be held at York.

June 20. 1911

• »

Convention of the American

Order i I St \xn Enginec

The twenty-fifth annual convention of
the supreme council of the American
Order of Steam Engineers was held at
Philadelphia, Penn., during the ■
commencing June

There was a large gathering of J.
gates from the several councils connc
with the organization, the mi be-

ing held in the Parkwa Jing on

.t.
The large auditorium on the main floor
of the building ru tastefully decorated
and was uniformly and illy ar-

ranged for the exhibit of the Amcr
Supply-men's Association. The exhibit
year was the lar. and

the demand for booths was so great that
many of ttx

on the star . h was fitted up as a

n room, ar . J to be one of

■ pular places in the hall.
The convention was a lively one for
the delegates. There were seven sessions
of the supreme body, and c ible

important business conducive to the wel-
fare of the association was transa
At the Wednesday morning a a

aken and permission gran1
U ■ ' . Lc Cot:

:hc floor. Mr. Lc Compte
•tated that he was the bearer of con-
gratulations from his firm to the members
of the American < ngi-

nccrs. and in a neat speech presented
lo the supreme council a han.:

mounn . and to each

ar gave
mounted, in commemoration of ||
anniversary of the organization.

There was a program of

tainment. Or. afternoon a

: was made to the new John U'ana-
maker on on the

Delaware river took place on Tuesday
afternoon. Dancing and other enjoyn

re indulged in, and abundant refrc
ments »erc

I
i sealed at les. ir the

ner had been served, George

lardson. the toattmi

Mi-

dmonds. of the Boaro

n Odd I

On Thursday afternoon the dcleg .1
and guests to. .ars for

a fam;

outdoor c f all k;

the fun ending in 1 h IK 1 be-

neers and the supply-men.
The big feature of the enteriainment

banquet
on Wedne- i

•cs An- ~ecr*' <

veiling a r

ncnt •-

Companv. tnonoiog

Armour mcs anJ rcot

980

POWER

June 20, 1911

George C. Gray, Watson & McDaniel
Company, Scotch songs; Mr. Ryder, Bird-
Archer Company, magic; George C.
Davis, Thomas Warley & Co., songs.

At the Thursday morning meeting of
the delegates the following supreme of-
ficers were elected:

Lewis G. Schlehner, chief engineer;
George W. Goodwin, first assistant engi-
neer; Florian J. Armbruster, recording
engineer; C. F. Noble, corresponding en-
gineer; Thomas J. Donovan, treasurer;
T. M. Montgomery, senior master me-
chanic; F. S. Miller, junior master me-
chanic; Walter Long, chaplain; Richard
Sullen, inside sentinel; William Eccles,
outside sentinel; William Parient, trustee.

It was voted to hold the next annual
convention at Allentown, Penn.

At a meeting of the American Supply-
mens' Association on Thursday morning
the following officers were chosen for the
ensuing year:

Harry Winner, Garlock Packing Com-
pany, president; Frank Martin, Jenkins
Brothers, vice-president; Fred L. Jahn,
Watson & McDaniel Company, secretary;
John W. Armour, Power, treasurer.

The following gentlemen comprise the
executive committee: F. V. Stein, H. W.
Johns-Manville Company; George C.
Davis, Thomas Warley & Co.; J. F. Bore-
land, France Packing Company; S. Mc-
Cullam, McCullam & Co.; Albert Schade,
Schade Valve Manufacturing Company;
Charles A. Hopper, Keystone Grease
Company; Charles P. Sanville, McArdle &
Cooney Company; Harry E. Souders,
John R. Livesey Company; Charles
Camp, Strong, Carlisle & Hammond
Company; Arthur L. Rice, Practical En-
gineer.

The exhibition hall was formally
opened on Monday evening at nine
o'clock by A. R. Foley, president of the
American Supplymen's Association, who
introduced Charles E. Carpenter and
Supreme Chief Frederick Markoe, who
made appropriate addresses.

There were 81 exhibitors occupying
84 booths. Their names follow: Ameri-
can Engineering and Manufacturing Com-
pany, American Order of Steam Engi-
neers, American Steam Gauge and Valve
Manufacturing Company, American
Pulley Company, Anchor Packing Com-
pany, Ashton Valve Company, H. Bel-
field Company, Bird-Archer Company,
Cyrus Borgner Company, A. B. Botfield
Company, Brogan & Co., Cancos Manu-
facturing Company, Corbett Supply Com-
pany, Crandall Packing Company, Dear-
born Drug and Chemical Works, R. and J.
Dick Company, Engineering Equipment
Company, Fairbanks Company, France
Packing Company, Frick Grate Bar Com-
pany, Garlock Packing Company, Greene,
Tweed & Co., Harrison Safety Boiler
Works, Home Rubber Company, Home-
stead Valve Manufacturing Company,
E. F. Houghton & Co., Huhn Metallic
Packing Company, Paul B. Huyette Com-

pany, Jenkins Brothers, H. W. Johns-
Manville Company, Keasbey & Mattison
Company, Keystone Lubricating Com-
pany, Lagonda Manufacturing Company,
John R. Livesey Company, George W.
Lord Company, Lunkenheimer Company,
Mason Coal Company, McArdle & Coo-
ney, McLeod & Henry Company, W. B.
McVicker Company, Michigan Lubricator
Company, National Tube Company, Nel-
son Valve Company, Ohio Blower Com-
pany, Parkersburg Iron Company, Peer-
less Rubber Manufacturing Company,
Philadelphia Bourse, Philadelphia Elec-
trical Construction Company, Phila-
delphia Grease Manufacturing Company,
Power, Power House, William Powell
Company, Practical Engineer, Pringle
Electrical Manufacturing Company,
Quaker City Rubber Company, C. J.
Rainear & Co., William C. Robinson &
Sons Company, E. J. Rooksby Company,
Roto Company, Sarco Fuel Saving and
Engineering Company, Schade Valve

New York State N. A. S. E.
Convention

The delegates from the several branches
comprising the New York State Associa-
tion of the National Association of Sta-
tionary Engineers assembled at Albany,
N. Y., to hold its sixteenth annual con-
vention on June 9 and 10.

The Globe hotel was the headquarters
and in German hall, situated a short dis-
tance away, the sessions of the conven-
tion were held, as was also the mechan-
ical display.

On Friday morning, June 6, at 10:30,
the convention was called to order by
Charles Schabacker. After the reports
were read and the various committees
appointed, an adjournment was taken.

There were two additional sessions of
the delegates on the morning and after-
noon of Saturday.

On Friday afternoon a resolution was
passed that a committee be appointed

«t 1

. I

a m

P£jMf

m ' ' ntorf Mm

W^^m

mLmm\

u «k r • |

I /*

v..

*"^*^ iWk

'.' '. t

At the N. A. S. E. State Convention, Albany, N. Y.

Manufacturing Company, S-C Regulator
Company, Smooth-On Manufacturing
Company, Southern Engineer, Frank H.
Stewart Electric Company, Strong, Car-
lisle & Hammond Company, Trill Indi-
cator Company, Under-Feed Stoker Com-
pany of America, H. B. Underwood &
Co., Vacuum Oil Company, V. V. Fittings
Company, R. G. Von Kokeritz & Co.,
Thomas C. Warley & Co., Watson &
/VlcDaniel Company, Warren Webster &
Co., Elisha Webb & Sons Company,
Whetstone & Co., Wise & Bailey, Wil-
kirk Electric Company, O. F. Zurn Oil
Company.

The loss of power in a gas engine
owing to its installation at considerable
elevations above sea level may be rough-
ly estimated at about 3^ per cent, for
each thousand feet. The decrease in
barometric hight is about one inch for
950 feet of altitude.

to request Senator Seth G. Heacock to
use his influence to get the State license
bill out of the hands of the committee
and introduced into the senate on as
early a date as possible.

An earnest appeal to the members
was made by J. Douglas Taylor, secre-
tary-treasurer of the life and accident
department of the National Association
of Stationary Engineers, requesting them
to use their best efforts to induce the
members of their local associations to
join this excellent insurance organization.

The unanimous support of the dele-
gates indorsed James R. Coe as State
deputy for appointment by the incoming
national president of the main body at
Cincinnati in September next.

The election of the State officers th<
resulted in the following selections:

B. C. Dunsmore, Buffalo, president;
George O. Kaley, Brooklyn, vice-presi-
dent; E. E. Pruyn, Rochester, secretary;

June 20, 1911

• W E R

William Dowries, New York, treasurer;
Harry Bache, Syracuse, conductor; James
T. Fitzgerald, Little Falls, doorkeeper;
Matthew Bender, Albany, chaplain.

Yonkers was selected as the city in
which to hold the next annual meeting,
subject to the approval of the Yonkers
association.

There were many features of entertain-
ment, including trolley rides to the places
of interest about the city and visits to
many of the large plants.

On Friday afternoon the assemblage
was given the opportunity of calling at
the executive chamber to shake hands
with Gov. John A

On Saturday afternoon the delc»;..
had a delightful sail on the Hudson r

At Kecler's hotel on Saturday evening
a banquet was held to which the ladies
were invited. Covers were laid for fully
two hundred. There was a varied pro-
gram of toasts, songs, stories, recita-
tions and instrumental music which was
highly appreciated. The address
made by the following gentlemen: Arthur
L. Andrews, Charles Schabacker, Hon.
Judge T. McDonough. Edward H Kear-
ney. William B. Jones. Hon. John Wil-
liams, Counselor James H. Quinn.

The entertainers were Joe McKcnna,
Jenkins Brothers; Frank Corbet-
solidated Safety Valve Company; Jim
ns. Peerless Rubber Manufacturing
Company; Billy Murray. Jenkins Broth-
ers; Jack Armour. P<>u.'

A pleasing diversion to the ccrcmor
occurred when toastmastcr Hugh 1
Coubrie called for P.; Jcnt

Schabacker and presented him a hand-
some mantel clock on behalf of the J
gates o.' the State association.
Schabacker made an a ate re-

spor

The exhibits were well locatcJ in
main a- m on the second floor of

the co: . hall. The booths were

unusually large and comfortat
were r> the following Arms:

Albany Belt and Supply Company. Al-
Chamber < '

Compan.
Compa' J- Archer Compar

Engine Company, Crandall P.
par '. Comf

. Drug an: i .ical w
banks Company. Cariock Pa
par Tweed & Co., Harrison

H
Packing Company, Home R om-

par estead

Company. Jen-
Ma* ' »mpan
Company. Lunkcnhci-

I
par

Compa

in g Comp i

I
ber Manufacturing Comp.

ring Company,
J L. Quimby
8c Co., Roto Company. Royersford
Foundry and Machine C< uth-

em Engm> - Company,

Strong. Carlisle & Hammond Company.
W. N. Swarthou- rgc H

Thacher & C -ram Pump

Company, Yar:

SOCIETY NO IKS

The Amer ig and

•ilating en wilt hold its semi-

annual meeting in Chicai; on July

The third annua i-ntion of the

Enj- lanitors' Association of the

ic Schools of iic will

be held .use on Friday and Satur-

day at Fobcs hall.

onal building, corner of 'i
Cenesec and Nonh Clinton streets. The
association was organized two years ago
in Albany, and within that period two
cities in the State have ha 'on bills

passed to aid the janitors in their
ing Other save had their

boards of awakened to the

fact that the engineer-janitors of their
schools were not g a just com-

pensation for the re4 of them

and have tried to • cm what was

due them as far a

PERSONAL

irtin G. Langguth. Portland, ore.

has been apr -.-charge

of the power plan: ouae at
Salem.

a dlnr n to O

in honor of his »cvc at

iux Ar
on Ma. .ccs of the Heine

him a com-
prcsc; m a

fine Zeiss telescope ar
Among those present were men
star- formed

rs ago
A?

•sburg ' preside at the sp

c a a r. i

M W I'M I I( \l K )\

Tut

at H

pcr'nT'* ••»( f iSc I'r h'i '

tetln describe* a scries <

pr- J rrcSltf •• •»'J ifcl |SB*f»Vr ■

rrnil sowoss of beat.

such ss contact with steam pip pa. hot

■ and the impact of large masses

e process of unloading, hight of the

vision;

pounds, such as iron pyrites. An histor-
ies' review of the upon the

be obtained gratis upon application
to W. e engi-

neering-experiment station. University of

^ana. I

I Li bi

The facilities offered by the library of
Sneering Societies, at 29 West

are

been called to our
formed from the

m Institute of
American
chanical Engineers end the
14 Institute of
and OOi thousand

for rcf( to the general publ

out ch.i

The libra applied

i all th<

and . and has a lined it

iff.

York <
and ited to use

nological s v is on the

.d. Those who art

nc*s engagements ma\ nc<fn'r!ct« re
c assistant *epared to

ices or
MM at s diati

pho?ocrar--:c reproductions of J igri-t
and maps. For such
a moderate cha

Fort \

I ml

On Jane I. the Port Wa>ae Esse*

at to he

: n •

»• >«

tuition of n i

c -«

982

POWER

June 20, 1911

The priest who had been sum-
moned in haste, as a substitute,
to officiate at a funeral, was mak-
ing a few remarks about the
deceased. Wishing to make some
allusion to the departed one, he
suddenly realized that he didn't
know the name or even the sex of
the one in the coffin. To get the

necessary information, without letting anyone know
his predicament, he turned quickly to Pat, who was a
mourner, and asked, under his breath, "Pat, is it a
brother or a sister?" "Neither," replied Pat, "it's a
cousin ! ' '

All of which shows that there are times when one's
name and identity are important.

The other day the Under-Feed Stoker Company of
America sent us the clipping from their Power ad. and
the envelope which are reproduced here.

Some engineer, in Salem, Mass., read their ad. in
Power and was so interested in their proposition
that he sent in the coupon asking for all 20 of their
booklets and
even offered
to pay for them
if necessary —
but, he failed to
give his name
and address.

No doubt he
is still wonder-
ing why the ad-
vertiser hasn't
made good his
offer to send
the printed

matter.

And this oc-
currence is not
so unusual as
you might
think.

Perhaps it isn't often that the
reader neglects to give his name
and address, but in a great many
cases he fails to answer nec-
essary questions which the adver-
tiser asks — answers to which he
must have before he can send out
intelligent information.

Readers should realize that the ads cannot tell all
there is to be told about a product.

The complete story is left to the catalogs, booklets
and letters which the advertisers have prepared to
send to all who become interested through the adver-
tisements.

It is this expansive modern way of doing things
that has made advertising a great educational force.

The advertiser does his part at great expense of time
and money —

You do your part by reading the ads. and giving
the advertiser a fair chance to send you intelligent in-
formation on
how his pro-
duct will bene-
fit your plant.

forget

^^^^^-^^^07

And don't
to say
who and where
you are.

We have
printed this
case because it
contains a lit-
tle "moral" for
our readers —
and also in the
hope that the
Salem engineer
will read it,
realize his mis-
take and send
along his name.
and address.

\l W ^()RK. II \l 27, !

BSERA E thi urpi

lh< h. Jr

Why is Al K> I?

mply l- he has just eaten on

apple; that's .ill The pained expression is tin- result
the apple I en him. his stirjn

he didn't

* • *

litth- while ><>n read about <one a>

■.tally sh<

Itws I I

■nth i boat W

as a result t idiot srhin

that h< ' knem itunin

Al
poisilii!. n apples da ih«

fort h<
ihip

•In- unintenti

know it w.i-
loadrd. tin- fut'
sad or solemn

fool (tfdfl t I

tuns nf his foll\

tn tin
pica that )

••'. •. ::• He mt •

■

lllst t]

unkn<
boil*

■
drllU ratrl

lv operates

ind t!
■
inj :.; -jt

it pegs

Mul

I1U. ill

that the cue

tng a

loanHc

^■i mt

tnl-

\£iu*Atur

984

POWER

June 27, 1911

The Steam Turbine in Germany

The Bergmann ElektricitatsGesellschaft,
of Berlin, builds steam turbines of the
pure impulse type, combining velocity
and pressure stages. The steam enters
the inlet chest at full pressure and ex-
pands in the nozzles down to a pressure
of about one atmosphere. Such a high
degree of expansion, permitting the
formation of a compact steam jet of
equivalent velocity without loss, requires
the employment of conically divergent
nozzles. In cylindrical nozzles the steam
does not expand further than the critical
ratio, which is a ratio of the pressure
in front of the nozzles to that behind
the nozzles and this, with dry saturated
steam, is about 0.58. Whether the steam
pressure before the nozzles be increased
or that behind the nozzles diminished,
the exit pressure -will never be less than
0.58 cf the initial pressure; hence the
velocity of the steam will never be higher
than that proportional to the critical pres-
sure drop.

This critical velocity is practically
identical with the velocity of travel of

By F. E. Junge

and K. Heinrich

A description of the Berg-
mann turbine, the important
features of which are: a
small number of stages; a
high degree of expansion
before the steam enters the
turbine proper; solid attach-
ment of blades, and avoid-
ance of the critical speed at
which vibrations of the shaft
are set up.

out considerable loss. By thus expand-
ing from the boiler pressure down to the
condenser pressure velocities of 4000 feet
per second and higher are attained.

Fie. 41. Two 1500-kilowatt Bergmann Turbines

sound in steam of corresponding density;
namely, about 1476 feet per second. If
the pressure in the space behind the
mouth of the nozzles is kept below the
critical pressure, the steam emerging
from the nozzle assumes the pressure of
the surrounding medium; but the energy
of this further expansion is entirely ab-
sorbed by the breaking up of the jet and
by the formation of eddies and stationary
fluctuations. A compact jet of definite
direction and higher velocity can only be
attained by means of a conical prolonga-
tion of the cylindrical nozzles in which
the expanding steam converts the whole
of its energy contents into velocity with-

in the admission nozzles of the Berg-
mann turbine, expansion is carried down
to one atmosphere, giving velocities of
from 2600 to 3000 feet per second, and
temperatures of about 300 to 340 de-
grees Fahrenheit. The diagrams in Fig.
42 show the relation of pressure and
velocity. One row of blades being in-
sufficient to utilize the whole velocity of
the steam at normal blade speeds, the
steam after leaving the first row of run-
ning blades is reversed in the following
series of stationary blades and impinges
upon a second row of runners at a suit-
able angle. In this second row the re-
maining velocity of the steam is utilized

or absorbed, leaving just enough to ef-
fect its onward movement and issue. The
process of energy conversion and also the
process of regulation are the same, es-
sentially, as in the turbines of the Allge-
meine Elektricitats Gesellschaft, pre-
viously described.

Before entering the nozzle chamber the
steam passes a valve, controlled by the
governor, which throttles the steam ac-
cording to the requirements of the load.

Fig. 42. Relations of Pressure and
Velocity

But as throttling involves a loss it is
desirable to have the full steam pres-
sure at all loads in front of the nozzles;
therefore, when entering the nozzle cham-
ber, the steam is made to pass a num-
ber of valves which give admission to
the various groups of nozzles, each group
containing a different number. By com-
bining various groups any number of
nozzles are made to operate on the tur-
bine. In this way both the cross-section
and the quantity of steam admitted are

Oil |5

£^£110
tot- o
°I00

U 4 ? *

Electrical Output in Fractions
of Normal Load

Fig. 43. Results with Different Means
of Regulation

adjusted to every condition of the load
and the unavoidable losses at partial
loads are reduced to a minimum (see
Fig. 43).

In some turbines the nozzles are dis-
tributed symmetrically over the whole
circumference of the casing. But there
is the disadvantage in such an arrange-

June 27, 1911

POU

n>S

ment that the blade channels must be
filled and emptied behind each nozzle,
involving losses through shock and

and by a symmetrical arrangement
c losses are multiplied; uhr
concentrating all the nozzles into one
closed segment the losses are minim .

the whole circumference of the disk.

•>»t running *
two ro»i of r naming

pressure drop nto so

many stages that the velocity of the
steam in each stage remains belo*
sound, which is the ur

46 and

c so t
can K

of the casing- The bubs
of the running whee :ned to

shaft in the

bub botes of

fori; of steel •

'■

shows the details of a nozzle
icnt for a turbine
running at 3000 revoltttioi minute.

The latter arrangement. has

advantage that the I

the high temperature of
rhcat occur only in a COtnpai II
small section, which can be designed

«OM

due consideration cssures

and aturca without sffecting

other casting* of the turf-
After lea-
of the I '°*

suc-
ceeding blades can he J »tributed around

• of the velocity attained by steam

The latter arc,

n than

and the

shock and friction losses are much

smaller at In the pi

.. .

A B

naione he drop of pres* .. •

OCCi. guiding i-

NXh sides of the fl
ning »hcc • M the

or row T'rrc t the cxher

rx
III

The guloV

'* rcsiti «

■

986

POWER

June 27, 1911

exact position. A running wheel of the
pressure stage with blades attached is
shown in Fig. 48.

In order to avoid atomizing and ed-
dying in the jet, the blade channels of
the velocity wheel are accurately pro-
portioned to the weight of steam flow-
ing; this requires blades considerably
thicker at the middle than at the edges.
Until lately these blades were made of
a special bronze but are now made of
25 per cent, nickel steel. In the simple
pressure wheels the danger of atomizing
is less imminent, wherefore the blades
of nickel-steel plate are found to give
satisfaction. Their method of construc-
tion is primarily dictated by the demand
for light weight; yet they must be rigidly
fastened on account of the stresses due
to centrifugal force and possibly to

Power

Fig. 48. Running Wheel at Pressure
Stage

friction with the stationary part of the
system. The attachment of the blades
is a special feature of the Bergmann tur-
bine, being covered by a German patent.
Blades subjected to stress on the testing
machine show a resistance to dislodg-
ment of 4600 pounds for each blade.

The arrangement of the frame and
bearings is similar to that of the Allge-
meine Elektricitats Gesellschaft turbines.
The two back bearings are cast in one
piece with the casing, there being no
possibility of any except rotary motion
between the fixed and movable parts. The
front bearing is centered into and bolted
on the cover of the turbine casing, which
is a steel casting; hence, there is no
possibility of unequal expansion through
influx of heat and the unavoidable play
between the fixed and rotary parts can
be accurately provided for. This is of
importance especially where the hubs

of the running wheels pass through the
bushings of the guide disks, and where
the turbine shaft passes through the
stuffing boxes in the heads of the casing.
The radial clearance between the fixed
and movable wheels is only a few thou-
sandths of an inch; nevertheless, it is a
source of loss, because the steam which
passes from one side of the disk to the
other renders no useful work. It is
therefore important to keep this clearance
not only as small as possible but also
as constant as possible. The same holds
true of the packing boxes.

Another reason for maintaining rigidity
of construction and true concentricity
of position of the fixed and rotary parts
lies in the movement of the shaft. Shafts
of normal dimensions making 3000 revo-
lutions per minute and over, usually run
above the critical speed. The latter cor-
responds to the number of revolutions at
which the deflection due to the centrifugal
force acting on the unbalanced masses

Dimensions

in millimeters

in such a manner that with a decreasing
deflection the critical speed increases.
Therefore, in order to get practical speeds
the deflection of the shaft must be kept
as small as possible. But the deflection
grows in direct proportion to the load and
as the cube of the distance between bear-
ings; hence, the weight of the rotary
part, and especially the distance between
the bearings, must be kept as small as
possible. The Bergmann construction of
blades satisfies the first requirement of
light weight, while the combination of
one velocity wheel with from three to
five pressure wheels results in shortening
the distance between the bearings, so that
the shafts are moderately heavy and the
critical speed lies far above the nor-
mal. Unless these precautions are taken
the actual steam consumption of turbines
will be considerably higher than the con-
sumption ascertained in shop tests, up-
on which guarantee figures are generally
based.

Fig. 49. Details of High-pressure Stuffing Box

of the shaft produces the maximum
vibration. Heavy shafts running above
the critical speed are apt, when passing
through that speed, to vibrate badly, in-
volving serious wear upon the bushings
of the guide disks. If, in addition, there
is a fault in erection or a shifting be-
tween the shaft and the casing owing
to unequal expansion, the clearance may
become so large that the steam consump-
tion is increased excessively. It is de-
sirable therefore to let the turbine run
below the critical speed, even when the
normal speed is 3000 revolutions per
minute. This means that a shaft should
be designed for a critical speed of about
4000 if one takes into consideration
momentary increases and unavoidable
deviations of practice from calculation.

The critical speed depends solely upon
the deflection of the shaft through its
own weight, plus the weight of the wheels,

The packing of the Bergmann turbine
is of the labyrinth variety, both on the
high-pressure side, where the pressure
is about 15 pounds above the atmosphere,
and on the low-pressure side, where the
packing separates the vacuum space
from the atmosphere. The rings on the
cover which project into the annular
grooves of the bushings on the shaft are
divided into two groups of different
sizes, the space between them connect-
ing from the high-pressure to the low-
pressure stuffing boxes. Detailsof the high-
pressure stuffing box are shown in Fig.
49. Thus the steam emerging from the
first is used in the second as a packing
medium against the influx of air from
without. At light loads, when there is
not sufficient surplus steam in the high-
pressure box, live steam can be intro-
duced into the connecting pipe, while at
heavy loads the surplus steam not

June 27, 1911

PONX

B87

utilized in the low-pressure packing box
is discharged into one of the middle
stages of the turbine.

The construction of the bearings does
not differ from the ordinary. They are
lubricated with oil which is supplied
under about two atmospheres pressure
by a rotary pump. After passing the
bearings the oil is collected in a tank
where it is filtered and used over again.
The bearings arc cooled partly by means
of a water-jacketed worm pipe Inset
between the oil pump and the bear
and partly by water cooling the bear
themselves.

The same worm gear which drives the
oil pump also serves to actuate the ver-
tical shaft of the governor. This is of

sion valve automatically when the speed
certain lin

mmarizing the notable features of
the Bergmann turbines, they will be found
fair: -.- of the standard con-

struction of steam turbines in Gcrm.t

are as follows : Far-reaching
pansion and cooling of the steam before
it enters the turbine proper. -
moderate ic - in the casing are

secured; the smallest number of stages
compatible with moderau there-

fore short length of machine; avoidance
of the critical speed and of vibration and
other troubles connected therewith; the
construction of the casing and bearings
in one piece on a common frame plate
and accurate concent: -ion of the

Metal WcldL < -many

C- ara, of

That there arc mi
i of n rams made

and
ing apparatus ha

recent • gen-

eral ng of •

the ipparatL pro-

cess not < bttf also more

general

ation is

In the ca vstem. the

calcium car

The cost of ac. gas thus produced

f ym 1

tie Hanung type and n
ic main admi e through a bai-

rn The latter

- ,- .

.•rniriK putnn i iatteruJ <>n the

i the thrott

il» autom.r
within certain load r.i

atmuch an one or more t'

-neflt ol
re behind the t1

'ic in'-

•afetv regulatoi lmls-

*chment of

■

ct>lcnc gas IS

. • ■ ■ ■ < , '

■

i (•• p »ntc

- •

Kr mr'.Al

J ► . ,% . ' •

• «r the scetfleae c««

988

POWER

June 27, 1911

Schedule of Flanged Fittings

The committee on standardization of
the society working in conjunction with a
similar committee of the National As-
sociation of Master Steam and Hot Water
Fitters presented the following report on
standard weight and extra-heavy flanged
fittings at the spring meeting of the
American Society of Mechanical Engi-
neers:

Standard or extra-heavy reducing el-
bows carry the same dimensions center
to face as the regular elbows of the
largest straight size.

Standard or extra-heavy tees, crosses,
laterals or Y-branches, reducing on run
or outlets, carry the same dimensions
face to face and center to face as the
largest straight size.

If flanged fittings for lower working
pressures than 125 pounds are made they
shall conform in all dimensions except
thickness of shell to this standard, and
guaranteed working pressure must be
cast on each fitting.

Companion flanges for these fittings
must be standard dimensions.

Where long-turn fittings are specified

TABLE 1. SCHEDULE OF STANDARD WEIGHT FLANGED FITTINGS

1% inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..

Number of bolt holes...

Diameter of bolt holes..
1 t.j inch

(enter to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..

Number of bolt holes...

Diameter of bolt holes..

2 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle. .
Number of bolt holes...
Inn meter of holt holes..
21/. inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle.,
Number of bolt holes...
Diameter of bolt holes..

3 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle.
Number of bolt holes. . .
Diameter of bolt holes. .
314 inch

('enter to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle.
Number of bolt holes...
Diameter of bolt holes..

4 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle.
Number of bolt holes...
Diameter of bolt holes..
4% inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle.
Number of bolt holes...
Diameter of bolt holes..

5 inch

( 'enter to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle.
Number of bolt holes. ..
Diameter of bolt holes..

6 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of Dolt circle.
Number of bolt holes...
Diameter of bolt holes..

7 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange....,
Diameter of bolt circle.
Number of bolt holes...
Diameter of holt holes. .

El-
bows

-I1.

45-
Deg.

El-
bows

74
8

1 ,,

8*
8

11
1

124
lft
10|

44
4
31
4

■n
4

4
'9"

7±

44
16' '

IB
16

84
8

11
1
94

12',
1 ,"'„
101

Long
Turn
El-
bows

04
4

"84'

7
4

'9"

j s
1 b

7
'&

11
' 9 i '

• 1

12
16' '

1 r,

ii' '
1
94

8
7
5

m
124'

lft
10|

Tees
and

Cros'es

3*
74
44
4
3i

'.)
6

4f
4

64
13
9

I .-,
16

84
8

8
16
11

84
17
124

1*
lOf

Laterals
or Y

Br'n'h's

84
44
4
35
4

104

f
41
4

94
12

10
13
74

1 s
6
4

114
144

7
4

124
154

134

15
1 6

84
8

It1,

94
8

16i
204

124

lft

10J
8

S inch

Center to face

Face to face

I >ia meter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle...

Number of bolt holes. . . .

I tiameter of boll holes. . .
;> inch

( enter to face

Face to lace

1 tiameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle...

Number of boll holes ....

I tiameter of bolt holes. . .
Ki inch

( 'enter to lace

Face to face

I tiameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of boll circle...

Number of bolt holes. . . .

l tiameter of bolt holes. . .
12 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle...

Number of bolt holes....

Diameter of bolt holes...

14 inch

( enter to face

Face to face

I tiameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..,
Number of bolt holes....
Diameter of bolt holes...

15 inch

Center to face

Face 1o lace

Diameter of flange

Thickness of tlahge

Diameter of bolt circle...
Number of bolt holes....
Diameter of bolt holes...

16 inch

Center to face

Face to face

I tiameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..,

Number of bolt holes....

Diameter of bolt holes...
is inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..

Number of bolt holes....

Diameter of bolt holes...
20 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..

Number of bolt holes....

Diameter of bolt holes...
22 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..

Number of bolt holes. . . .

Diameter of bolt holes...
24 inch

Center to face

Face to face

Diameter of flange

Thickness of flange

Diameter of bolt circle..

Number of bolt holes. . . .

Diameter of bolt holes...

El-
bows

134
H

HI
8

13 i
12

1 h
144
12

12
1

If
18J
12

1 s

224
if
20
16

45-
Deg.

El-
bows

234
lft

214
16
14

164

25
lft

221

16
13

274

1 J_!_

25
20

294
lti

274

20
H

32
If

294
20
14

13*'

if
HI

i.V '

133

16
lft

H
17
12

18f
12

224
If

16
U

234
1ft
211

84
2o' '

lft

221

274'
144
25
20

li
10

294'
14*

274
20
li

32' '
II

294

20
li

I-ong
Turn
El-
bows

13*'

14
111

i.V '
14
131-
12

16' '
IA
141
12

19' '

14
17
12

2l" '

is
181
12

224*

20
16

234'
IA
214
16

H
30

25' '

IA
221
16

144
25
20

294'
141

274

20
li

32"

1$
294
20

Tees

and

Cros'es

18
13$

11:
8

10
20
15

14
133
12

11
22

1 h

ill

12
24
19

14
28

If
18|

14*

224

If
20
16

15
30
234

IA
214

164

22 f

16
li

18
36

274
144
25
20

20
40
294

274
20

44
32

li
294
20

Laterals

or V
Br'n'h's

Jc: '11

rencc only to elb
nade in two d o be kn

jng-turn elbows." the

All s- 4ht fittings must be
gua-
hea

.ind each fitting mu-1

some mark . jting the maker

and guarar- rking steam pi

A: 'ittings a^J fla

gs and flange-
be r

Bolts to h
than bolt h<

lsion r . corre-

iron or

Mi r<>..c*-Hzc\ ♦,.jr.t;c»
eOMtoH ftfl H <, Stott.

■:

•on.
•^crinE

the
porttion c

rrc>;Jc-.t ■•? :hc !

••!

•

■ ■

•

:';

990

POWER

June 27, 1911

Training Mr. Duffy
By Danny Hogan

"Daly do be trainin' me," said Duffy,
"how to set a slide valve."

"An' what," asked Doolin, "is a slide
valve? Ye have a cylinder an' a piston
— to let in the steam and to let it out
again at the right instant is all 'tis for.
Tis easier than layin' out an 18-inch
stack. Them engineers, Duffy, get
worked up over simple matters and get
stuck on others. Ask Daly when you
meet him how would he indicate a tur-
bine engine an' tell me what he says."

"About the butt-strap joints," said
Duffy, "Daly said the City Hall bunch
would ask all kinds of questions, as this
biler matter is considered greater than
the engine."

"An' right he is for once," replied
Doolin. "The steam biler is the most
important machine in the world. The
lap-joint seam is discarded in respectable
society as ondecent and the butt joint is
now the rage. To explain why, Duffy,
'tis only necessary to say the lap seam
is not a true circle and when pressure
is on it results in a bendin' action along
the seam. As the pressure varies, so
does the bendin'. Ye may bend a piece
of steel back and forth but at last it will
break. Now the butt joint, properly
made, is a true circle and hence the
bendin' action is absent. To avoid bendin'
stresses the shell must have all parts truly
cylindrical. It's a simple truth, is it not?
Now to rivet the ends of the circle
together we must have straps — one inside
and one outside. The common rule is to
have each strap 1/16 inch less in thick-
ness than the plate, and this is safe
practice. The common practice also
makes the pitch in the outer row either
double or four times that in the inner
row or rows. Ye noted in the table I
gave you that a steel rivet in single shear
is allowed 42,000 pounds per square inch
and in double shear 78,000 pounds, for in
the latter the rivet would be cut in half
in two places and but one in the lap
seam. Ye would think one could use
very much smaller rivets with a butt
joint as the rivets are near double as
strong, but, mind ye, in all the problem a
tight job is needed. True, we don't need
the diameter to be

T X 2,
but within ordinary practice we find this
a good rule:
7x2 — 1/16 inch = diameter of rivet

hole
and gives a tight job at that.

"Suppose, now, ye have a ^-inch plate
of 56,000 pounds tensile strength, an' you
want a butt-strap joint triple riveted.
The straps would each be 7/16 inch
thick and the rivet hole 15/16 inch. In
a section of the joint there would be four
rivets in double shear and one in single
shear an' the shear value is

53,843 X 4 + 28,988 = 243,560 pounds

"Now note, Duffy, in the single-shear
joint the value of the rivet is less than
the tensile strength of the plate and
hence must be taken in account. But in
the butt joint commonly used the shear
exceeds the plate value. Therefore, we
need only find a section in the outer row
of rivets to give us the desired efficiency.
Suppose we want an 86 per cent, joint,
the outer row is the weakest section at
the net plate, as the shearing value is
high. If

P — D

— p — = efficiency of plate

then

Diameter

I — efficiency
The diameter is 0.9375 and

pitch

Q-9375

= 6.696 inches

1 —0.86

Call it 6% inches as the nearest common
fraction. Then,

6.7s

= 86.1 per cent.

6.75 — 0.9375

The value of the solid plate is

6.75 X 0.5 X 56,000 = 189,000 pounds

The shear of all the rivets is 243,560

pounds.

"This rule applies on a double, triple
or quadruple joint provided, of course,
ye use, within reason, the proper size
rivet. The rivets in double shear will
have a pitch either one-half or one-
fourth of the outer row of rivets, de-
pendin' on whether the joint is double,
triple or quadruple, for by the pitch
found by this rule is meant always the
outer row. For instance, say ye want
the K'-inch plate of 56,000 pounds ten-
sile strength with a butt, quadruple-riv-
eted joint with an efficiency of 94 per
cent. Then,

O QS7S

= 1 5 .62 5 inches

1—0.94

for the outer row. The next row is
7.8125 inches and the inner row, the sin-
gle pitch, is 3.90625 inches. In a double-
riveted butt joint say we want an 80 per
cent, efficiency. Then,

Q-9375

= 4.6875 inches

1 — 0.80

the outer pitch, the inner being 2.34375
inches, or 4-j-g- inches and 2\\ inches.

"Another method is to find the pitch
ratio an' multiply this by the diameter
of the rivet hole. The formula, Duffy, is

= pitch ratio

1 — efficiency
for any thickness of plate.

"Suppose an 80 per cent, joint is
wanted. Then.

1 — o . 80

= 5

and

0.9375 X 5 = 4.6875 inches
the desired pitch for this efficiency and
this rivet hole in the outer row, or the
double pitch. Mind you, Duffy, the
double shear is greater than the tensile

strength — and by finding the total shear
an' comparing this with a pitch section of
the solid plate you may design with any
thickness of plate and any tensile
strength, for any rivet the bull will drive.
But, in shops not building Scotch marine
bilers with heavy plate, they find it im-
practicable to drive, with a 100-ton bull,
rivets much above 1J4 inches an' get a
tight job. The marine shops require bulls
up to J50 tons, an' ordinary shops stop
at 100 tons. ' The rivet must fill the hole
an' be allowed to shrink under pres-
sure. True, a steel rivet don't swell
when heated as an iron one did, an' in
some shops the hole is but 1/32 inch
smaller than the rivet instead of 1/16
inch. In this case it's easier to fill the
hole."

"An' how about the distance between
the pitch lines in a butt joint?" asked
Duffy.

"Well," replied Doolin, "ye get good
results by multiplying the pitch by 0.65
to get the distance between the rows in
the inner rows of rivets in double shear.
Mind that the plate edge should be planed
square so that it butts solid together.
This is important in allowing \y2 diam-
eters from the edge of the plate to the
first pitch line. For the other distances
from pitch line to edge of plate, see you
have the same allowance. For the rivets
in single shear, lay out so the rivet head
will clear the outer strap an' leave clear-
ance for the die. Mind, in laying out
the pitch by these methods 'tis better to
have the diameter of rivet

T X 2 — 1/16 inch
an' the straps

T — 1/16 inch

But, in 14 -inch plate make the straps J4
inch, so they won't buckle and bulge
when bull riveting. Indeed, it's a dis-
puted argument among intelligent biler-
makers about the thickness of the inner
strap, as some claim it should be the
thickness of the plate, owing to the
stresses it must carry. Be that as it
may, one thing I hold true, the straps
should be absolutely true arcs of their
respective circles in order that bending
action will be eliminated. Another thing,
Duffy, is that in practice the pitch of the
rivets must be divided up so as to come
out even in the given length of plate,
else one section will be weaker than the
rest. To do this it's best to measure
the length and bring the odd pitch near
the girth seam for, at this point, the shell
is stiffened and strengthened by the hoop
or girth-seam lap. In the girth seam
the total lap should be three rivet-hole
diameters. The gain in strength is then
one diameter, or 33 per cent., at the
girth as regards the cylinder, at this
point. An' there ye are, Duffy, in lay-
ing out butt-strap joints, the City Hall
bunch won't have annything on ye if ye
get this soaked into your system even
if ye be only a sub for a Chink."

Jure 27. 1911

Energy Drop in Steam Turbines*

There are three general methods open
to the designer for determining the prop-
erties of steam during its passage through
the turbine. He may make use of em-
pirical equations giving the relation bc-
Hi the heat content, entropy and tem-
perature or pressure of expanding steam,
as was suggested by Doctor Steinmt
He may make use of Mollier's total hcat-
cntropy diagram which gives the relation
between the total heat, entropy, pressure
and quality of steam. Or he may make
use of a table like that of Professor Pea-
body's giving the relation between the
temperature, entropy, total heat, quality
and specific volume of steam. The last
two methods are more simple and more
accurate than the first one and are to
be preferred.

Assume that a turbine is to be designed
having n stages and that the diameters
of the moving elements of each stage are
the same. The heat drop per stage will

be - of the total heat drop. Were there

no retransformation of work into heat,
it would be necessary only to find from
an entropy table or diagram the entropy
and total heat of the steam as it enters
the turbine, and the total heat, at the
same entropy, of steam of the terminal
pressure, to subtract the second quantity
from the first in order to obtain the total
heat drop, and then to divide this drop
•he number of stages to obtain the
heat drop per stage. The pressure
each stage would then be found by sub-
tracting the heat drop per stage n times
from the initial heat content and finding
from the table or diagram the pressure
team having the heat content so
found, at the given cntrop> rhil method
may be illustrated by the following pi
lem:

Assume that the initial steam pressure
i* 164.8 pounds per square inch and the
final pressure is 1.005 pound* per square
inch; that the steam is initial), dry and
saturated, and that the numbi ' tges
is N eabody's ti

the initial entropy is found to
and the initial heat content 1
The heat content of steam of I 56 en--
at the terminal pressure is H7I 1 I'.
The difference between the initial and
final heat content, or the heat Jr
322 ie heat drop per tfagi

one-half this or 161 I llm P heat
content of the steam entering the »c
stage

1 I
The presiu cam having this heat

content and the entropy 1 '

•ids. which wou!J he «hc abs<

cam a cm the

steam chest of the »e

rwtmtUw

H\ I . ( .irclullo

I h- ; jim

■
ami th- am

bine and

I
in the hit- > 1

/>/m< <il formula i> />» '

quantity

<>/ Z1" . ■ >
rtagt

tian

■
mot-iint:

Iral

In the actual steam turbine, however,
the quantity of heat transformed into
work is 4<> to 70 per cent, of the heat
theoretically available for transformation
by isentropic expansion of the

missing energy has been retransformed
into heat by eddying, fluid friction, blade
leakage, etc., and appears in the steam,
increasing its entropy. Assume that in
actual practice 60 per cent of the energy
theoretically developed in the first stage
of this turbine, or Bl mid be

transferred to the rotating member, and
about 4 cnt .. or 64.5 H <uld

be retransformed into heat, making the
heat content of the steam entering the
second stage.

96.6 - 1066.7 Htu

This would g of the

steam at the ; 18.4

the value l.< ' r heat content of

m of I 655 cntrop) and 1.005 pounds

hich gives for
the heat drop in thr 4ge

I Of*

This is more than fi it. grtJt

than the he first

plain that in order to equ.i
•

range no«t be

■ ■

It wl! md by trial and

heat ti-
llage, u

. be r

be
. hkh »

an j lb* qua

■

umber of stage* A f7

total heat drop the- able

by adiabatic expansion between the initial
and terminal pressures, and £ the prob-
able thermal eflkien,
The value of E may be obtained from the
equation

• \

S being the probable steam consumption

horsepower-hour of ll

In the under consideration this

as been ■asjumul as 0.60. the

heat drop i and the nam-

ber of stages to be t»

je»,

QutO)

The probable hca! Irtp per stage vfll
therefore be

•

Allowing tr -he first stage, the

heat content after the fir*-

pansion

lit 1026 3 Hsu

From the entropy ie pressure of

the steam entering the second stage will
be 16.86 pounds, since this is th

ponding to the entropy I 56
and the heat content 102* -cc the

efficiency of th
the heat transformed into work U 60

' the ihr
the heal to work per stage

■

'rom the
heat conic heat content of the

ond Mate of the

• 1066.0

Hence the enrn | *>e

ing • *U.

ng the second set of no tiles
I0M.6 167

d to be 1.006 pound*, whic
■ complete check on the work atvf
ci • ' * to be cofr
If J to find o«l« the p-

<m. the folio*. rg arocealura

mat **< t r ' ' '

Coatr -•• «"» iHracf »h«

anal write

992

POWER

June 27, 1911

From the temperature-entropy table de-
termine the pressure of steam of the
initial entropy, having for its heat con-
tent Hj, which will be the pressure of
the steam entering the second stage. Now
subtract from H« the quantity

n L

£[i -f- 0.00056 (2-_3) AH (:-£)]

= ft,

(3)

and obtain

Hs — hs — Hs (4)

The heat content, H,., together with the
initial entropy of the steam, will deter-
mine the pressure of the steam entering
the third stage. The pressure of the steam
entering the fourth, fifth, etc., stages is
obtained in a similar manner except that
n — 5 n — 7

the quantities

etc., must

n — 1
be substituted for the quantity in

(1) to obtain the quantities /z?,, ht, etc.
When performing this operation in the
case of any particular turbine, it will be
found that the value of h is greater than

for the - high-pressure stages, and
n 2

less than — ■ for the low-pressure
11 2

stages.

Pressure Temperature Rela-
tions of Saturated Steam *
By L. S. Marks

Relations between the pressures and
temperatures of saturated steam are ac-
curately known for temperature ranges

♦Abstract of a paper read at the spring
meeting of the American Society of Mechan-
ical Engineers.

of 32 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Within
this range the experimental values of
Regnault and other investigators agree
very closely with the recent work of
Scheel and Heuse and of Holborn and
Henning. At higher temperatures and
pressures, however, there is no such
agreement between the results of the dif-
ferent investigators. Of the later in-
vestigations within this higher range, the
results of Holborn and Baumann appear
to be the most authoritative. These
covered a range between 400 degrees
Fahrenheit and the critical temperature,
indications pointing that the latter con-
dition is reached at 706.3 degrees Fah-
renheit with a corresponding pressure
of 3200 pounds per square inch.

The measurement of vapor pressure
may be by either the statical or the
dynamical method. In the statical method
the liquid and its vapor are maintained
at a constant temperature and the corre-
sponding pressure is measured. In the
dynamical method the pressure is kept
constant and the corresponding tempera-
ture is measured. The pressure is main-
tained by air or gas acting on top of the
liquid, which is heated continuously, and
the vapor which forms is condensed and
returned by gravity.

The work by Holborn and Henning on
saturation temperatures from 120 to 400
degrees Fahrenheit was by the dynamical
method, and that of Holborn and Bau-
mann by the statical method. As car-
ried on by the latter investigators, water
was contained in a steel vessel sur-
rounded by a constant-temperature bath;
absolute measurements of the pressure

TABLE 1. EXPERIMENTAL AND CALCULATED PRESSURES OF SATURATED STEAM

FROM 400 DEGREES

FAHRENHEIT TO THE CRITICAL TEMPERATURE

Deviation of Formula from

Pressures

, Pounds per Square Inch

Holborn and Baumann

Temperatures,

Degrees

Cailletet ami

Holborn and

Pounds per

Fahrenheit

Colardeau

Baumann

By Formula

Square Inch

Percentage

400

247.1

246.99

247.10

+ 0.11

0.044

410

276.4

276.34

276.47 '

4-0.13

0.047

420

308.4

308 . 33

308 . 47

+ 0.14

0.045

430

3 13 . 2

343 1 s

343 26

+ 0.08

0.023

440

380.8

380.92

381.02

+ 0.10

0.026

450

421

421 .85

421.87

+ 0.02

0 . 0047

460

165

465 . 95

466.04

+ 0.09

0.019

470

573

513.65

513.66

+ 0.01

0.0019

480

565

565 . OS

564 . 93

—0.15

—0 . 026

490

622

620 . 18

620 . 05

—0.13

—0 . 021

500

684

679.26

679 18

—0.08

— 0 012

510

751

742 . 55

742 56

+ 0.01

0.0013

520

822

810.31

810 37

+ 0 06

0.0074

530

897

882 . 58

882 . 82

+ 0.24

0.027

540

977

959 . 85

960 1 5

+ 0.30

0.031

550

1062

1042.2

1042.6

+ 0.4

0 038

560

1152

1130.2

1130.3

+ 0.1

0 . 0089

570

1247

1223.7

580

1349

1323.0

1322.9

—0.1

—0 . 0076

590

1458

1428.3

1428.1

—0.2

—0.14

600

1574

1539.9

1539.8

—0.1

—0 0065

610

1697

1657 8

1658 1

4-0.3

0.018

620

1827

1782 9

1783 . 3

+ 0.4

0.022

630

1965

1915.3

1915.9

+ 0.6

0.031

640

2111

2055 1

2056 . 0

+ 0.9

0.044

650

2265

2203 1

2204.2

+ 1.1

0.049

660

2482

2359 . 2

2360 . 5

+ 1.3

0 . 055

670

2599

2523 . 4

2525 . 6

+ 2 2

0.067

680

2697 . 1

2699 . 7

+ 2.6

0.096

690

2882.3

2883 . 3

+ 1.0

0.035

700

3080 . 4

3076 . 8

—3.6

—0.117

706.1

3200.0

were obtained by means of a weighted
rotating plunger; and the volume of water
could be varied either continuously at
an approximately uniform rate, or in-
termittently. It was noted that the water
acted on the walls of the steel vessel and
that after repeated heating to over 570 de-
grees, a small quantity of iron went into
solution, the water becoming discolored
upon standing exposed to the air.

Table 1 gives the results of Holborn
and Baumann as compared with those of
Cailletet and Colardeau and those com-
puted by the formula

log. p - 10.15354 — 4873.71 T~* —
0.00405096 T + 0.000001392964 F

where p is the absolute saturation pres-
sure corresponding to the absolute tem-
perature T.

TABLE 2. EXPERIMENTAL AND CALCU-
LATED PRESSURES OF SATURATED
STEAM FROM 32 TO 400 DE-
GREES FAHRENHEIT

Pressure, Pounds

Deviations of

per Square Inch

Formula from

Tem-

Tabulated Values

pera-

From

lures,

Marks &

Degrees

Davs'

Pounds per

Fahren-

Steam

Square

Per-

heit

Tables

Formula

Inch

centage

0 . 0886

0 . 088563

— 0.000037

— 0.042

0.1780

0.17765

— 0 . 00035

— 0.196

100

0.946

150

3.714

3 . 707

— 0 . 007

—0.188

200

11.52

11.504

—0.016

—0.139

250

29.82

29. SOL1

—0.018

— 0 . 060

300

67.00

350

134.6

134.60

400

2 17.1

247.10

The agreement of the pressures cal-
culated from this equation with the ex-
perimental results of Holborn and Bau-
mann is very striking; from 400 to 650
degrees the difference is less than -^ of
1 per cent., and from 650 degrees to the
critical temperature the maximum differ-
ence is slightly over -fa of 1 per cent.

Below 400 degrees Fahrenheit, the
agreement of this equation with the ex-
perimental results is shown by Table 2.
The experimental results are those of
Holborn and Henning from 120 to 400
degrees Fahrenheit and of Regnault and
other investigators for temperatures be-
low 120 degrees. The differences are
very small, as expressed in pounds per
square inch, but amount to nearly TA of
1 per cent, in some cases. This, how-
ever, is not greater than the variations
among the best experimental values in
this part of the temperature range.

According to a recent French patent,
an aluminum solder may be made by
first making a fusible alloy — which will
melt in boiling water — of three parts of
tin, eight parts of bismuth, and five parts
of lead. The solder itself is then made
by taking ten parts of the fusible alloy,
300 parts of zinc and five parts of
aluminum. This is said to make a strong
solder. A softer one is made by taking
160 parts of the fusible alloy, 80 parts
of zinc, 25 parts of aluminum, and 80
parts of tin.

Jur HI

POT

Hfl

An Old Time Tide Mill

When an engineer u
tard or other seasonings for bis meat
at dinner, he docs no: think that

the poucr to grind out i

furnib an old-tin:. :iill.

In lature I a bill

which permitted the damming of the

of the
and upon look-
ing up

r a period of
in of I

cost of
amounts to p-
■
T>. -.pice n- > ai bought

Fie. I. I

rough th< •
and Hi The mil

The
structure a: >f the tide wh<

and the water escaping from them t->
■
Tl arc four in number

and get jl of 1

i meter, and
These
>n each
and a day and n ».ept

at * Then the mill

eration, the men a
mat

no lots ol

tl a m !>a» r-c.

'iung. «•

gate*, which rt -urn

at tl

' a* toon a
it a nt difT< • the

water on t

The flow of *
Mat gat
low from the p-

ir penstock* -
wa-

- VStC'

:c brothers, a;
<^ompat ■•*.

\\ Let 1 tioiu

' tian

t'e pr.r.w.ples
C f>ot pounds

of the In*

compressor h* - ioeh steam

ders and a common » inches,

■

e method of accc

almost yerhsiim from

the 1

of v

pro-

JuccJ .^-. compress „• • car thl »e t \x
of * the specific I

pra.

nder mast
be . to the

to the

hea-
take

e to

'
A

•• .

-Jcr.
than

or Ts 1 M

994

POWER

June 27, 1911

umetric efficiency of the indicator card,
which, of course, was not absolutely cor-
rect."

"There was also a discrepancy due to
the radiation of the outside air to the
water jacket, but this was very slight, as
was shown by the fact that the tempera-
ture of the water leaving the jacKet be-
fore the compressor was started was the
same as the temperature of the cold
water in the main."

"It was at first thought that there was
something wrong regarding these results,
as they showed about 20 per cent, of the
total indicated work in the cylinder to
be given up to the jacket water; accord-
ing to this considerably better than iso-

thermal compression should be obtained,
which, of course, would be impossible.
The explanation is as follows."

"Very little heat is given to the water
jacket while the air is compressed, be-
cause the compression begins at a low
temperature, and the maximum tempera-
ture is not reached until the end of com-
pression, and while at the maximum tem-
perature, the piston is traveling very fast
and there is not much chance for heat
to be given up. After the discharge
valves open, however, a great deal of
heat is given. to the jackets because dur-
ing this period the air is at its maximum
temperature and it also comes in inti-
mate contact with the jacket of the air-

cylinder head in passing out through the
valves; in addition to this, the piston is
traveling at a comparatively slow speed
toward the end of the stroke. Some heat
is also given to the jacket while the
air is passing out through the discharge
passage."

"This explanation is sufficient to account
for the large amount of heat given to
the jacket, and it shows that jackets
really do more good than is usually sup-
posed. Of course, heat given to the cyl-
inder jacket while the air is discharging
does not reduce the work in the cylinder
but merely lowers the temperature of the
air and raises the temperature of the
jacket water."

Inertia Effects and Shaft Couplings

The influence of inertia in the starting
of heavy masses into motion is well
understood in installations using electric
power. An electric motor under such
conditions will show disturbances at the
commutator, and the abnormal current
consumption can be plainly noted at the
switchboard meters. Special methods of
winding field and armature coils, together
with the introduction of resistance or
controlling devices, are made to enable
the motor to pick up the load of a trolley
car, elevator, or other heavy starting
loads. Such installations of motors, when
of sufficient magnitude, are well studied,
the data are reasonably exact and the
results satisfactory. But with the oc-
casional installation, where the data are
not definite, the possibility of poor op-
erative results insures a careful investi-
gation and a recommendation from the
builder of the motor.

In ordinary power-transmission work,
either by belt, rope, gear, shaft or clutch
drive, little thought is usually given to
inertia. Horsepower capacities of driven
machines are either assumed or obtained
from the catalogs of machine manufac-
turers. These are roughly taken as a
basis, to which may be added some ad-
ditional values dictated by experience,
or, as ofttimes happens, simply an extra
haphazard allowance to increase the fac-
tor of safety.

In general, to engineers and those con-
versant with power-transmission ma-
chinery, belts, ropes, gears and shafting
are easily figured for a given duty be-
cause the strength of material is well
known, and with a proper choice of cross-
section a factor of safety can be taken
which will be ample for even extraordi-
nary overloads. Speed merely increased
the capacities of any of these transmis-
sion members, and so long as the most
efficient speeds are maintained or the
safe limits not exceeded, speed is not a
disturbing factor in the calculations. If
the transmitting machinery is to start
with the engine or motor, the inertia

By H. J. Smith

The various factors en-
tering into the choice of a
suitable clutch are con-
sidered and a table giving
horsepower ratings and
equivalent shaft diameters
is presented.

loading will be overcome gradually, pro-
vided the limits of safety of the ma-
terial are not exceeded by the stresses
developed. If there is no breakage or
slippage, then as the speed increases the
inertia stresses decrease, until at the
regular speed all parts are under the
least stress. The duty thereafter imposed

Horsepower Ratings and Equivalent
Shaft Diameters

Horsepower at

Equivalent Shaft

100 R.p.m.

Diameters

1ft

2ft

2jf

3ft

3*1

110

4ft

140

175

230

350

480

625

875

1300

on the parts varies only according to
subsequent work performed.

While these calculations are relatively
simple and reasonably effective for the
transmission machinery mentioned, there
are no such reliable formulas in the
choice of a friction-shaft coupling. The
latter is a great convenience not only be-
cause of the flexibility attained in the

system whereby a part (or parts) may be
operated at will but because it stands
between the work to be done and the
engine, waterwheel or motor, and re-
lieves the latter from heavy starting
stresses. A gas engine in power-trans-
mission work must either be under a
very light inertia load at starting or be
started with no load at all. With most
gas engines a clutch coupling is de-
sirable. The waterwheel receives a full
draft of water from the steam, and the
motor its increased current from the gen-
erator. All that is required of either are
strength and endurance to meet the shock
or strains of starting and carrying loads
to their ultimate capacity with con-
tinuous motion; variations of load are
met by governing devices.

In the transmission of energy through
a friction-clutch coupling, there is no
automatic device to meet overload condi-
tions. The clutch must rely on a fixed
pressure which can only be regulated
when the mechanism is at rest, while
every time it is engaged it losses some of
this pressure through wear at the fric-
tion surfaces and thereby has its capa-
city reduced; yet to operate successfully
the clutch coupling is expected to prac-
tically take care of itself, and to be al-
ways reliable and not the cause of shut-
down.

In the usual application of a friction-
clutch coupling the power end of the
transmission machinery has already been
brought up to normal speed and is op-
erating under the governor, and ready for
any load within maximum limits. The
load end is at rest. The friction-clutch
coupling must then stand the brunt of
the starting load. Half of it at this
moment is at speed while the other half
is at rest. The full shock, therefore, of
starting a great mass at rest into mo-
tion, overcoming the total friction of
rest, the distortion of parts, and often
in addition a part or even the whole of
the maximum load resistance, is required
of the friction-clutch coupling. The

June 27, 1911

whole work must be accomplished by the
friction surfaces of the clutch which can
only be under partial clamping pressure
to allow a constant slip until both mem-
bers of the clutch coupling are at the
same speed. This slip, which may be of
short duration for light inertia loads or
extend over a considerable period of
time in starting heavy loads, is the one
indefinite factor in any calculation in-
volving friction-clutch couplings. While
under pressure a slip of the friction sur-
faces (which in power-transmission mech-
anism are usually hard dry maple on
cast iron) produces abrasion and heat
which rapidly remove the wood in pro-
portion to the amount of work done and
to the length of time the slippage con-
tinues. If either or both are very great,
then it is quite possible that the wood
surface may be so worn away that the
clutch, while able to start the mass into
motion, may fail to bring it up to speed,
or if it does, may slip when a later
loading is placed upon it. Unlike other
mentioned power-transmission members,
the question of sufficient strength to
transmit a given horsepower is not the
main consideration. A clutch can be
made large and strong enough in
to do any stated work; but it must also
have the prime requisites of large fric-
tion surfaces to resist wear and an easy
means of renewing or readjusting the
friction surfaces. The pertinent questions
then in determining the size of a friction-
clutch coupling are:

First, the normal running load.

Second, starting inertia load.

Third, the speed of either member of
clutch coupling at the time of engage-
ment.

Fourth, the number of engagements in
a given time.

'th, the diameter of the shaft (or
shafts) on which the coupling or cither
of its members is moun'

Considering these headings in brief
detail it is fairly easy to fix on the nor-
mal running load of a machine, although
its capacity to consume power is often
underrated. The total power for more
than one machine is not exa. por-

tional to their number, but i* something
less, depending upon the inertia stored
up In the revolving parts of the machines
and transmission machinery. This inc
or flywheel effect, equalize* the flu,
tion of del. r, and the:

of direct assistance to a clutch coupling
then in motion.

In starting, however, the flywhc

ntlrely potential or even ncga'

resist* the action of the clutch coup

M the mast in motion II
ance Is slight, then the clutch can be
engaged in a minimum time ar
will be very litt!c wear
surfaces. If the rr«i«ta-
then the time of clutch enk
protracted, the wear is great and thr
MM frequent adluatmcnt of '

tion surfaces is essentia! If the resist-
ance to starting is abac
duration of clutch engagement
ply ted by the total loss of clamping

•ion surfaces oc-
casioned by the actual burning of the
wood shoes.

From the last paragraph it is obvious
that in the choice of a proper clutch
coupling the number of engagements is
an important factor. anJ pro-

portional to the severity of the sc

Recognizing the fact that the size of
shaft chosen is an • the char..

of the work done, manufacturers of
clutch couplings have given an "equiva-
lent shaft" rating to e e of clutch
used on a standard of 100 revolu-
tions a minute and a reasonable fac-
tor of safety for both. ap-
proximate proportioning does fairly well
in practice, it must not be assumed that
the clutch is really of equivalent strength
with the shaft under all conditions
homogeneous steel shaft has a greater
factor of safety in its ability to resist
on than the cast-iron clutch, while
the latter, because of its inclast
still less capable of withstanding shock.
Therefore the "equivalent shaft" rating
of CASt-iron clutch couplings is simply a
convenient >;uidc to prevent under
mating the size of the clutch coupling.
There are usually more reasons to make
the clutch larger and vcr o make
the size of clutch coupling smaller than
in the accompanying table.

The ratings of clutches when based
on actual prony-brak at a speed

of 100 revolutions per minute show a
considerable factor o' as far as

actual strength is concerned but the fac-
tor of endurance without readjustment
it much less. Within usual limits of
Speed each clutch can easily star-
rated load from rest with a sufficient
• f endurance In practice the or-
din.i t cap*

as than for the working-load
ul there a in-

ations Mia load at

•ing excee
the clutch. A clogging of macb
gears that bottom, abnormally tight belts.

attempt to too
heavy masse*. proO

n* and decrease the er. : -
•

The installation that

formation tTSfntr of the clutch

curarr JeductiOflM of the asss on

catalog

dgment ma> be some
■
%m hecau* loposee

tsss for an on-

nioa

A 400-horsepower gaa engine b
to a the

lattc

h mill sna

of the lack shaft sod had to be con-
so • u!d be »t-
light ar | by

ns of t'

r of the load was sc .d con-

of a b 7 large

attrition mills. The** BaDaS, on
of gb

liability in to be

clogged condition in starting,
inertia-loading cor
sible t< dsS first

«s to r -'«e of

clutch coupling on the diameter of the

en shaf
ence of the mil: r

horsepower c uphng is the

minimum size, but a large -
able on account of the shock load and
the larger friction surfaces. H

;- horse; ft coup

could not be used because of the pc

cral speed (4950 feett of its friction
surfaces exceeding the maxima
speed of 3000 feet per mini,
this speed, wood '

rapidly when the clutch to engaged", sad
secondarily because the outer pc
of the clutch exceeded the safe speed
limit of >n a mile a minute For

these reasons a 140-norsepo - Jtch

choser
sur' > 4500 '

The conditions in this

tion point the moral of iner-

•
100 revolution* per mint.

ri large cnoug I the speed

of i itadtai

handled the running load without the
least symptom of trouble ; but the he

load a- ated by

high speed of l

IM) stood shoes so
the assistance of a mill hand pulling on

•OS Basil
and at e lime to

n good coodhioo for sub-
sequent losds

reed of mill aha'
cho* »t place, would hare

utch of smplr
for the a portphen

■

i ■

first

been cm

nc w fit.

f u«

BSJ

) tm

fireman how it t

<4 sod ho

•■re ht

sole

to hoep so

TH.

•

v '•

mot

hod

• v>

»'•

996

POWER

June 27, 1911

Air Cooled Choke Coils

It is sometimes convenient to mount
choke coils on ceilings so that the in-
sulating-coil supports hang pendent and
at other times it is preferable to arrange
them so that the coil rests on the sup-
ports, as shown in the engraving. The
new Westinghouse choke coil, which this
engraving illustrates, can be mounted
either way, because the insulating "pet-
ticoat" columns can be removed and in-
verted on the supporting rods.

The choke coil consists of an aluminum
rod bent into a helix of about 15 inches
diameter and containing about 30 turns.
Bracing clamps are provided to give me-
chanical strength to the helix. The alumi-

- ~

w-M

W/L

M-M

U 1

Air-cooled Choke Coil

num rod used is of sufficient cross-section
to safely carry 200 amperes.

Each of the two insulating columns is
made up of porcelain insulators which,
except the end pieces, are interchange-
able. The number of insulators used
in the column depends on the voltage of
the circuit in which the coil is to be used.
For floor mounting, the parts are ar-
ranged as shown here.

These choke coils are intended prin-
cipally for the protection of transformers
and should not be used for generators.
Where greater reactance than is afforded
by a single coil is desired for the higher
voltage circuits, it is recommended that
two or more coils be connected in series.

Factors in Good Service on
Transmission Systems*

By M. Hilgen

Absolutely uninterrupted service from
a transmission system is impossible. Good
and commercially acceptable service can
be obtained, however, from any system
which is properly designed, constructed
and operated. For maintaining continuity
of service more can be done before the
system is constructed than at any time
thereafter.

The most important factors in securing
good service are insulation, mechanical
strength, general design of the system
and methods of operation.

Insulation

Probably more line shutdowns have
been produced by insulator failures than
by any other cause. The general reason
is that, although other engineering struc-
tures are ordinarily built with factors of
safety ranging from 4 to 10, insulators,
for some unaccountable reason, have
been considered adequate if they had a
factor of safety of 2 or possibly 2*/>
notwithstanding the fact that the stresses
which insulators are called upon to stand
are probably more variable and uncer-
tain than those encountered by most
other structures. The higher the line
voltage the less the factor of safety can
be. For a 100,000-volt system a factor
of safety of 3 under unfavorable con-
ditions (with the insulator wet all over)
gives excellent results. For 50,000 volts
the factor of safety should be 4 and
for 20,000 or 30,000 volts I believe a
factor of safety of 5 is about right. The
reason for this is that insulators rarely
fail due to the normal voltage of the
system, but rather to abnormal voltages
caused by lightning and power surges;
these abnormal voltages are greater in
proportion to the normal voltage for a
low-tension than for a high-tension sys-
tem.

•Extracts from a communication presented
at the New York convention of the National
Electric Light Association.

To obtain a proper factor of safety
for a 50,000- or 60,000-volt system with
pin insulators is difficult; for a 1C0,000-
volt system it is practically impossible.
This fact led to the design of the sus-
pension insulator, the introduction of
which marked an important advance in
high-voltage line construction. For volt-
ages of 20,000 and above, no other in-
sulator should be used.

Mechanical Strength

For straight construction in level
country, the stresses to which a line will
be subjected can be predetermined with
a reasonable degree of accuracy and
proper factors of safety allowed. For
extra long spans or sharp angles the
stresses can also be determined in ad-
vance and special pole structures or
towers can be constructed to meet the
conditions.

Where a line traverses rough and
mountainous country for many miles,
however, and no two spans are of the
same length and no two towers or poles
are of the same hight, each span and
tower should theoretically be treated as
a special case, which is obviously impos-
sible; general rules must be formulated
for the construction of the line as a
whole. Towers or poles must be selected
which are sufficiently strong to stand in
the most unfavorable places and these
guyed, when necessary, as an extra pre-
caution.

If wire larger than No. 6 Brown &
Sharpe gage is used it should be stranded.
For No. 4 a three-strand wire gives ex-
cellent results, the strands being so large
that no individual wire is liable to be
broken by abrasion. For sizes of from
No. 2 to No. 0000, seven-strand wire
should be used. Six-strand wire with a
hemp center exposes more surface to
wind and ice, is less flexible and tends to
crush out of shape in the wire clamps.

Hard-drawn copper wire should not
be drawn too hard with the idea of get-
ting great tensile strength. Wire having
an ultimate strength of 45,000 to 50,000
pounds per square inch and an elastic
limit of 26,000 pounds per square inch
is strong enough. Stronger and harder
wire than this is liable to become nicked
or scratched in stringing or injured by
the wire clamps so that the actual
strength of the wire when erected will
be less than the actual strength of a
softer wire.

Wire clamps for suspension insulators
should be connected to the insulator by

June 27. 1911

POU

a hinge joint located as near as possible
to the» wire so that there will be little
tendency to turn the body of the clamp
and bend the wire when the insulator
pulls in a direction other than perpen-
dicular to the \»

The insulators should be hung so that

can swing freely in an *ion.

If the connecting Joes not allow

red freedom of motion it is liable to

be broken.

General !

Transmission lines feeding an .m-
portant load center should be in dupli-
cate or triplicate. If they come from
the same power plant they should prefer-
ably follow different routes. If th
impracticable on account of the c

of right-of-way and patrol, the dif-
>u!d at least be mou
on separate I far

enough apart to prevent the possit-
of one line interfering with another

r convenience in locating trouble,
all ! • means

outdoor air-break switches, located
about twenty miles apart and at patrol-
men's headquarters if
long duplicate lines should I ded

pitching station
•he middle of the line with the
i so arranged that one-ha!'
ie may be cut out and the rcrr
ing section continued in operation

•ation may be an
fair with air-hrca- the

charging current of half of one line can-
not be broken by air-brea
bre;i d and installed

• >rs or
If the load ccnu i

; aratc and independent plants
the >ns art the

char
terns being out at the same

In any case uherc • norc I

sup"" - cr to the MRU

ntrolle.:
irrcnt relaw The greater the
■ming lines the better the

•han

the

great majority of line M On a

ih a g-
nd causes a si
md taki

caton l
rent relays arc of great* n a

• than on a dc •
m On a \< Ma-

ine having
large line capacity, a ground-
take a hca\ it and thl«
I i of I
and the rc«l»ta-
sent trur r

with an cttcnJr ' and n

plants i uallv a

or delta

Trouble from lightning can be guar :
aga. high insulation, one or more

'head ground wires i
am t the hit:

-lopment >et att.< n lightning

arrester coi n. The grour

:ld be of ample
at t

Ot ON

In the operation of a transmission l
tern eternal vigilar of con-

tinuous amount of a

matic apparatus can take the place
good operators.

.V ators should first be pla

in the smaller and less important stations
or substations of the n; as i

pro. and as vacancies oc-

cur, they should be trar I to the

larger and more importar

plan the men have aU
something to look forward to and do not
lose interest in their work. Only the
mcr, n the more im-

am stations, and the men in the
larger stations have n< -on-

and are »cll ac-
quainted n> th the operation of
their o- ling
connections and method of operation of

• -he other stations of ll
tern.

the -Io «

ably be located at the ;
■
i through a r 'ie sys-

tem as uell as the pu'
one is available the

.her m.i be the operator

in char
The fr

ancc of I hi

urc. An old woo' line *a

r-c pat-
othc r to an

tani load OMMtni

lied
only once I

rtain p.;
attention than
■

month. not at all. A

nam than i bi a amalll

»v a nor

record of the movement* of
men can content-

<u* rot
a time scale on the base and a
• ■

rol houses and '
on ihr

location along

the The pr< rol-

man on the en not iota

on the chan through
drav cM of a train ia

shown on a ra

Pa- <j proor

■ one or
a section of line at and

as c

■ about as good as no patrol at
all. In one j that a

patrolman had

patrol of

line at JO t. •
the adiaccni an the

I and thorouL moo of

a line once a mom i sharp loo*

to J igns o'

broken

ltd, uneven sags in sp-
'ootings. loosening of
good than
:h-specd inspection da
On a lar^

.:oing from one
to another

• ng ail >es» and n

rolmcn and
recoo-

CORK I SPONDENCE

[nterpolc M • M

)< usaion of Messrs.

motor*, ap;

•

o toreoe c* elec-

tromotive forc<

seel

e iotereokt vtedhag to added
• aassyreve oeaaaa*-; >

998

POWER

June 27, 1911

and this tends to increase the speed of
the motor.

The spee'd curve of a shunt-wound
motor always droops as the load increases.
With an interpole winding the speed
curve will not droop so much; it may rise
and in some cases the speed may become
dangerous when load is put on. For
this reason it is the practice of motor
builders to take a speed-characteristic test
on all interpole motors. Motors having
a rising speed curve are not passed for
shipment until the trouble, due to too
powerful an interpole field, is remedied,
usually by shunting part of the current
around the interpole winding.

I believe that Mr. Dean is right in
saying that the trouble was due to wrong
connection of the series winding, and I
think if Mr. Wilbraham had reversed
the series winding, leaving the interpole
winding connected as at first, he would
have had no trouble from sparking. From
my own experience and from inquiries
which I have made, I should say that a
motor with a variable-speed ratio of more
than 3 to 1 and with a differential com-
pound winding is poorly designed and
likely to run away when load is put on,
as at the high speed the weakened shunt
field would be easily overcome by the
series field.

I can hardly agree with Mr. Dean's
broad statement that "it is primarily an
error to buy a compound-wound interpole
motor" as there are undoubtedly cases
where a differentially connected series
field winding is desirable and safe for a
constant-speed motor and there are other
cases where a cumulative connection,
giving a decided droop to the speed curve,
is very desirable. Such cases, however,
should usually be referred to the de-
signing engineer.

The accompanying chart showing char-
acteristic speed curves will help to ex-
plain my statements.

C. A. Call.

Schenectady, N. Y.

Central Station Service vs.
Isolated Plant Operation

I have been very much interested in
the various items appearing in Power
regarding the relative cost of isolated-
plant operation and central-station power.
Mr. Rushmore's article in the May 23
issue, to which I have referred in detail
elsewhere in this issue, is but one ex-
ample of the incompleteness of many
of the reports made by the isolated-plant
operators. On page 819 of the May 23
number, for example, A. P. Hyde states
that his plant is producing electrical en-
ergy for 1.06 cents per kilowatt-hour
and gives comparative coal and load data
for three months of the year. If he gave
a complete year's operation an intelligent
comparison could be made, but the com-

parison as given is so incomplete as to
be of little value.

Reliable and complete data of this kind
would be of very great general interest
and value. I believe that under certain
conditions the isolated plant can produce
its own power, heat and light at a lower
figure than the total cost to the plant
would be if taking central-station power
and making low-pressure steam for heat.
Under other conditions the reverse will
be true. As these conditions of opera-
tion undoubtedly affect the result 'to
such a very great extent, unusual care
must be taken in accepting data, even
when in complete form, and no snap
judgment should be reached until the
conditions have been thoroughly analyzed.

I should like to see the discussion of
the relative value of the central-station
service and the isolated-plant service
continued even more thoroughly and in
greater detail than it has been, but I
would suggest that care be taken to see
that no data are published which are not
reliable and which do not consider all
the elements of cost entering into the
production of power.

R. D. DeWolf,
Ass't Mech. Engr., Rochester
Ry. and Light Company.

Rochester, N. Y.

Parallel Operation of Alter-
nators Driven by Water-
wheels

I wish to submit to practical readers
of Power a problem that has recently
occasioned considerable study on my
part.

We have a 200-kilowatt 2300-volt
three-phase alternator of the revolving-
field type coupled to a hydraulic turbine,
the speed of which is controlled by a
Woodward governor. The exciter is belt-
driven from the main shaft of the al-
ternator.

On the switchboard there are three
ammeters, one in each lead of the gen-
erator, and a voltmeter which can be
connected across any two leads. There
are also a voltmeter and ammeter for
the exciter as well ■ as a field rheostat
and a field switch with discharge resist-
ance.

This unit supplies current for both
power and lights and it is quite up to its
capacity. In order to increase the out-
put it is proposed to install generators
to be driven by two smaller waterwheels
at adjacent water sites. There have been
ordered one 60-kilowatt unit to be placed
about a mile from the largest installa-
tion and a 36-kilowatt machine to be
located a mile farther down stream.

The question at issue is this: Is it
necessary to supply the small units with
governors or will the one on the 200-
kilowatt outfit be sufficient? We desire
the two new units to work at maximum

capacity constantly and thus relieve the
large unit of a substantial portion of
its load. What additional instruments
will it be necessary or desirable to place
on the 200-kilowatt switchboard and
what are necessary at each of the two
small power houses?

What is the proper sequence of opera-
tions in throwing either of the smaller
machines on the line when either or both
the others are in operation? And, in re-
verse order, how may one unit be shut
down without disturbing the other two?

H. T. Dean.

Boston, Mass.

Starting Large Motor
Generators

Sometimes it is found that a large
motor-generator consisting of an inter-
pole generator driven by a synchronous
motor, when started from the direct-cur-
rent side, takes excessive starting cur-
rent. In such a case, if the generator rs
compound wound the best way to re-
duce the starting current is to reverse
the connections of the series field wind-
ing so that the machine will operate as
a compound motor, increasing the field
excitation and thereby the starting torque
per ampere of armature current. A
double-pole double-throw switch can be
easily connected in the series field cir-
cuit for this purpose.

C. J. Fuetterer.

Thomas, W. Va.

Sheet Steel Magnetized by
Rolling?

Can any reader explain why sheet
steel becomes magnetized while passing
through the rolls? In the rolling mill,
cold water is run over the rolls while
the billet is "roughed down" and also
during the subsequent passes which re-
duce the metal to its final thickness.
After the sheet is passed through the
"flattener" it is cut up, and some of it is
magnetized and other parts are not. We
have never detected any magnetism in
steel that has been rolled without the
use of water on the rolls.

I will appreciate any suggestions as
to the cause of the magnetization.

A. R. Coffman.

Scottdale, Penn.

A new method of coating various sub-
stances with metals, the invention of a
Swiss engineer, consists in reducing
molten tin, zinc, copper, lead, aluminum,
or other metal or alloy to a state of
pulverization by pressure of an inert gas
— nitrogen or hydrogen — and in that state
driving it against the surface to be
covered from a flexible tube with a tip
like that of a large vaporizer for handling
liquids.

June 27, 1911

PO\X

Gas power Department

Some Instructive Indicator
I )i igrama

By J. C. Pakmely

The accompanying diagrams were taken
from a horizontal single-c> Under single-

Fie. 1. Normal Stop Diagv^

acting gas engine working on the four-
Ice cycle and shou plainly the

effect of changing the point of ignition on
light loads. The cyliod

7 inches. The
engine is rated at 100 horsepower and

£\ cr \ thu
n orf/i while in the i,

engine and producer
industry will be tr<

here n> j r}i.tr t an

be of u n ri-

ll man

part of the suction s prob-

ably due to the inertia of the incoming
gases.

shows a diagram taken, with a
K having a true scale of 1 S

inch*, when the engine was

carrying a very heavy load The cxplo-

pressurc on this diagram is about

at the opening of the exhaust valve

Is abou* ;ch and

the s out ited

hor* car-

a load an hot:

the govern'

-training diagrams %
taken * engine

10 shorn tanging

of the These diagrams .

x 120-pound spring and under
f steady load with t

Umb

the jacket arge was

■

n that
there is no ri> %sure due to com*

■
« ahead o* 'or both of

fe-aa

r minute at full
load. The con.;
square inch. The engine is v

the mixture cntc

M is accomp v,y a butter-

alvc in the passage between the n
c and cylinder, cot

irec diagrams sho*
ation of the engine under norm.i

diagram taken

left *90P*mdi

r* ' SMI

a I o pound spring an! 'hat the

cs arc ad: the

"*t a trifle The

rite rom a \

Is very small, being slight!'. one

pound, and n
garded The

■
a diagram taken with a

inch * igram was taken at a i

■

s is in.!

r squarr

a lig! •

and the

s a

•ismissi

a mear

It
IM com;
diagram is pounds per

■
g action of the tost

also be

at the top ridoobtedly doe

ram the tbo

- was poor and did not btira i

•o drop

ution. causing

t loads, ncii > r I *

are rery common.

Ph. 7.

! .

g position. obJcf

of the dead center Ac*

occurred i (
and I

about
probobty d«

■ •. ■

TW
st of

1000

POWER

June 27, 1911

the jacket water, decreasing the volume cheaper and more satisfactory to have a to the following Monday morning are

of the gas until the moment when igni- . short water-jacketed section cast with not included.

tion occurred. flanges at each end of it than to have a The cost of the plant will be approxi-

Immediately after taking this diagram jacket fitted to the existing pipe, although mately as follows:

the spark was advanced ahead of the I have seen the latter method applied

normal operating position to 30 degrees with success. In multicylinder exhaust

early. The engine did not run steadily manifolds the piping may be arranged as

at this point but speeded up and slowed in Fig. 2, with or without the standpipe,

down alternately. Fig. 7 shows this ef- according to necessity.

Producers, 400-horsepower at $12

Engines and auxiliaries, 240-horse-
power at $45

Foundations, settings, piping, etc., for
producers and engines, 400-horse-
power at $12

Building, 400-horsepower at $12

S4.800
10,800

4,800
4,800

feet in the different areas of the two
cycles which were recorded.

LETTERS

Corrosion of Water Cooled
Exhaust Pipe

In Mr. Wild's letter under the above
heading in the May 9 number, he does
not say whether or not the exhaust pipe

Another way to cool the gases and
secure efficient muffling, usually adopted
primarily for the latter purpose, is to
provide a series of iron chambers to al-
low for the continuous expansion of the
gases.

John S. Leese.

Manchester, Eng.

Total

.$25,200

•Standpipe
Open at Top

In a gas-engine plant of this char-
acter it is conservative to figure deprecia-
tion at 8 per cent., interest at 5 per cent.,
taxes and insurance at 2 per cent, and
profit on investment at 7 per cent., mak-
ing total fixed charges of 22 per cent.,
or $5544 per year. It is unnecessary to
refer to the items on interest and in-
surance and taxes, as these are conserva-
tive. A plant owner would also hardly
consider investing $25,000 in any branch
of his business unless he expected to

Water Inlet

FOWE"!

Mr. Rushmore's Operating
Costs

In the issue of May 23, on page 812,
appeared "A Comparison of Actual Gas make some profit on the investment and
Power and Central Station Figures," by 7 per cent js a very conservative figure.
Samuel W. Rushmore. I cannot agree prorn a number of tests on operating
with some of the general deductions plants, three cubic feet of cooling water
j^ reached by Mr. Rushmore, which seem per kilowatt-hour is a good average fig-
to be more or less in line with the arith- ure During the six-day test referred to
metical errors which he has made. He t>y Mr. Rushmore he would probably use
gives the total cost as quoted by the 15,280 cubic feet of water, which, at 90
central station as $555 per month and cents per 1000 cubic feet, comes to
states that it would be necessary to use $14.75.
$125 worth of gas per month; this makes
a total of $680, or 3.4 cents per kilowatt- be:
hour. Mr. Rushmore figures this at 3.9
cents per kilowatt-hour, an error of l/2

The corrected operating costs will then

water or ash removal, and makes a very cooling water! '.'.'.'.'.'.'.'..'.'.'.'.'.'.'.'..'...'. uiis

Coal, 15,218 pounds $21 . 50

Cylinder oil 3 . 00

cent per kilowatt-hour. Mr. Rushmore fgfjj^1 J;§§

Fig. 1. Water Jacketed Exhaust Pipe includes no charges for repairs, cooling Waste 0.80

, , Labor 33 . 00

and muffler are drained to remove the
water of condensation formed when the
engine is not running. If the acid liquid
cannot be readily discharged it is sure to
eat rapidly through the metal. In any
case, care should be taken to adjust the ^
water feed to the exhaust pipe so that no
excess of water is admitted; only enough

Standpipe
open at Top

Water
Outlet

should be allowed to pass to insure the
water all being converted into steam. If
the engine runs on a constant load, this tjK
should not be difficult of attainment, but
if the load is variable, it will probably
be found impracticable to vary the water
supply accordingly and in this case the
minimum amount of water feed will prob-
ably pay best in the long run.

A good way to cool the gases is to

Regulating
Cock

Fig. 2. Arrangement of Piping for
Multicylinder Exhaust Manifolds

Total $74.50

Kilowatt-hours generated, 5094; op-
erating cost per kilowatt-hour, 1.463
cents; fixed charges per week, $106.50;
fixed charges per kilowatt-hour, 2.09
cents.

Mr. Rushmore has also figured the
cost of central-station power for a rated
capacity of 350 horsepower, whereas the
power delivered by his gas engine was
only 180 horsepower. Neither has he
made any allowance for emergency ser-
vice or breakdown service. A number of
instances have come to my notice of gas-
engine plants installed within the last
few years where the emergency ser-
vice has been very expensive, in spite of
the efforts of capable operating engi-
neers and a large amount of time de-
voted to the matter by the plant owners.
To quote the words of the owner of a
2 240-horsepower gas-engine installation:
( "Our electricity did not cost us very
much when we had it, but it cost us a
whole lot more when we did not have it,
and each time the wheels stopped going
around the central-station service looked
more attractive than ever, so we have

general assumption in regard to the fixed

charges.

Apparently the standby losses included sold the plant, and you can see how the

water-jacket the exhaust pipe, as shown are only the night losses during the work- factory is running."
diagrammatically in Fig. 1, if the water ing days of the week; in other words, If Mr. Rushmore's plant were located

is available It will probably be found the standby costs from Saturday noon in Rochester, we could give him a rate

June 27. 1911

PO\X

1001

based on his six-day plant test very much
lower than 3.6 cents per kilowatt-hour.
I am afraid he is leaving out many of
the items entering into the total cost of
his power when he makes the statement
that it is not costing over one cent per
kilowatt-hour. If he were considc

operating charges alone, and making
no charges for repairs, or ash removal,
or overtime on the pan of the plant op-
erators, and crediting the operating
for the week, as shown above, with
$30 for purchased gas, his net cost per
week would be $44.50, or 0.874 of a cent
kilowatt-hour. The fixed charges on
top of this makes a total of 2.964 cents
per kilowatt-hour, instead of "not much
over I cent per kilowatt-hour" as stated
Mr. Kushmorc.

K A

Ass't Mech. Kngr.. Roche
Ry. and Light Company.
Roche V

Mr. Dc ^"Ifs criticism of my figure

of 0.39 cent per kilowatt-hour is cor-

: I find I divided the total cost by

the previous month's meter J of

on *) kilowatt-hot.

Mr Dc Wolf aying that

»l included no charge for rcpa -atcd

that our repairs and adjustments for a
'>d of • ars had n cded

10 per engine every sixty days.

I made no charge for cooling water
because \»c ha\c our o»n water supply
and the engine consi a small

pan of our total pumpage. The coal
handling and ash removal are include
the wa» r man; the coal

is dumped d:- from the railway

tie into the producer charging car,
and contractors filling in land call for
and remove the . hargc.

hat as ild not

dismantle the gas p«i*cr plan- 1 we

adopt central^ re I

did not include the other- iportant

items of inter*. n or amortl-

zat

I neglected to state that the central-
station figures ucrc based on the in-
stallation of a I5< .r alternat-
ing-current motor to a dr
rent generator, n not based on
the full use of the .*N> hors.
rating of our motors, although the
engines used in the test Iota

Repairs, d-
tcrc on a motor-generator

cm I may have overlooked
in prcscr-

Although these two engines

Hani set any serious

shutdown since first unst ■ lore

than four and the cars

ago. wc have an aJdmonal 7<- horsep
reserve ga« engine and a
steam plan' operate Juring the

heating season.

We have no

service, yet, with the two Korting
gines alone in our machinery has

operated during the last three years
no more interruption than suffered by
other shops in this J supplied by

the central station.

I was a pioneer in the a I of

producer gas more than eight years ago
I have been through all the ha

nam and my present plant invest-
ment is probably twice as great as
be required today for equal resu:

re now to make a fresh stan in
localit uld unhes in-

stall gas equipment and with the full
ectation of producing power at less
than half the central-station flgu-

Of course, I regret that I am unable
to hook on to ' Wolfs busbars at

Rochester, for nearh -.one knows

that in that favor central-station

power is much cheaper than in most other
localities.

Plainf J

( - I'- 'Jin tion from Crude

Oil

Ri ncs' p.

at the > meeting of the

American * ngi-

necrs and printed in P 2. I

was somewhat note that

Jones went to the expense of compressing
air • cssurc for the

the
partial combustion of the oil

with an oil gas gener •
rind it unnecessarv but prefer to
steam, as the cncrg\ to atomize the

Mi us nothing

and the

gcncrat< down the

ntcnt away be Jones'

figur per cent An economizer in

-Must ga i us all the enc

reqt. aton

heat that M be lost

gen in
steam, but I
r that i aniagc H I

h. of the Smith
stated in a paper

isolene I
jtion t' ever

known of a single authentic case

rnce of hjm,-

lion of an engine on which the cams.ru
sion vss run up ctperhnei)'

per s..
.as contshdng

' free hydrogen, without any

' ; •• .

er.ee agree ■
ire now distributing to several thou-
etnd consumers Illuminating gas
pressure, by means of pumps driven by
rngtaee running on crude oil gas la

on of which we use steam ss

g age:
igahior. position

on •

spark plug has been in use -
at a time sad on being etamie
been returned for funh

I >il

•il channels of gas-engine
!s snd other means of keeping

cuons seem to be
■

; es of

tempts in that
ire not aUSV

■ry. The

ft. The c
psrsgraph in a recent issue of Posrta
on the head
thst splssh
class ss hoi tube ignition.

I hsvc handled several makes of gas

lengi economical

method is to use

?% and dr. the

ugh a • the

nder h.

the
ed to th
van a con- for

II uid ftg

then collect ail of the

aid and

thai thr ad pa the

There are \arioi which ofl

go to •

v-rsnk disks are not c
and i ft created by the mono

the piston will throw the oil oa the ty-
• heels In a great m»

vision for
around of the engine ar

e channel
by foundation bolt bosses. Is such s
ease, s neat lob caa he made

edg annel supported by cHaa

made of sheet Iron. shooM

ftare up si the edges sad three se four

an be Isid on the
clips so that oil si
ncl by cap*

is oil has a tenesner la ueet
he hsartag aJong rhs et-

■ tprto,

gme esse sen dat abaft se t
•la into the chess*

White these ssssple auggi
crude, they ere estecefee as

1002

POWER

June 27, 1911

This Engineer Made Good

While working in a colliery as a ven-
tilating-fan engineer, a young man was
sent to the power house to take the place
of one of the engineers. He was not
skilled in running electrical machinery
or steam turbines, but started in to do
his best.

There were two 100-kilowatt turbine
sets, the bearings of which were being
melted out at the rate of three or four
a week and costing the company $15 for
each bearing. Vanes were also broken
and the shafts were sprung.

He first cleaned the dirty oil cups that
oiled the bearings. As a result, during
the first month only three bearings
seized, but not seriously, and they were
scraped and put back. He refused
to take heavy oil the storekeeper gave
out and by using a lighter grade reduced
his oil consumption from 12 to 7^ gal-
lons a week.

One of the centrifugal condenser
pumps refused to pick up after being
shut down. It was packed and repacked
by half a dozen different men, but was
not improved.

The young engineer, having concluded
that a porous casting caused the trouble,
gave the casting one coat of quick-drying
iron oxide and two coats of shellac.

When the engine-room force came on
at 6 a.m. the pump was working well
and the trouble ceased.

A few weeks later the lights went out
from loss of vacuum and low steam
pressure. The regular engineer struggled
along with a 15-inch vacuum and the
voltage was reduced from 500 to 420. It
was believed that the plant would not
work under 120 pounds steam pressure.

When the regular engineer went off
duty the young man noticed that the feed
pump was running overfast, and that
the condenser pump was running too
slow. He speeded it up and got a 27-inch
vacuum. As the pump had a peculiar
sound he concluded that it was not get-
ting enough water. A boy was sent to
the canal to clean the strainer which was
found to be covered with a mass of
weeds. The result was that the feed
pump was slowed down, the voltage was
back to normal and the machines carried
their loads with ease.

This experience goes to prove that it
pays to always be on the alert and find
out the why of things about the plant.

J. P. Hughes.

Toledo, O.

Practical

information from the

man on the job. A letter

dood enough to print

here will be paid forr-

Ideas, not mere words

wanted

Pump Used Compressed Air

Some time ago I was employed in a
plant where iron barrels were occasional-
ly tested, an air pressure of 10 or 12
pounds per square inch being necessary.
The foreman said he had thought of
using a small duplex pump, but he
could not pump over 4 pounds of air
pressure. I told him I could get all the
pressure he needed and, to prove my
argument, devised the scheme shown in
the accompanying drawing.

The barrel to be tested is first con-
nected by a hose to the open-air outlet

Compressed
Air Outlet

/>y/////#////////////, ' ,rw!%

Piping from Pump to Tanks

valve on the receiver. The drain valve is
closed. The pump is then slowly started
and when primed the air valve on the
suction line is opened just enough to
prevent the pump from entirely "losing
its water." By proper regulation of this
air valve the pump will take in a large
volume of air with each stroke and just
enough water to keep the plungers and
valves fairly well sealed. When a pres-
sure of 8 or 10 pounds is reached the
air valve on the suction line is closed, the
pump takes water and the receiver is
nearly filled. This forces the air out of
the receiver into the barrel being tested
and increases the pressure at the same
time.

Should more pressure be desired the
air-outlet valve is closed and the receiver
is drained into the suction tank. The
small valve shown on top of the receiver
admits air when the receiver is being
drained. The operation mentioned is
then repeated.

Incidentally it is not the most eco-
nomical way of compressing air.

Louis T. Watry.

Pueblo, Colo.

Filing Engineering Articles

One of the inconveniences in filing
magazine clippings is that of having
two or more articles, on different sub-
jects and desired for filing, printed on
one sheet. This precludes the collecting
of all articles on one subject under a
single head. The easiest plan would
be to purchase as many copies as there
are articles desired; but, unfortunately,
few men can afford this.

The envelop system has several dis-
advantages: It is bulky and much time is
expended in getting a clipping out of its
envelop, which if used frequently is
soon destroyed.

Clippings laid flat between covers and
held in place as in a book are preserved
with the least wear and tear. A very
convenient file for this purpose is that
commonly known as a loose-leaf grip
file. This consists of a piece of tough
manila paper, folded to form a cover.
To this is securely fixed a flexible metal
cup with two needles, over which the
papers to be filed are placed after being
perforated with a punch supplied for the
purpose. The needles are then bent
down and outward, the locks secured,
and the filing is complete. The files,
which take up only the room of the
papers themselves, have expanding backs
to accommodate the growth of the con-
tents; each file holds about 300 papers.

These files are made in several sizes,
but I find the 12x9-inch size the most
convenient.

It is not always advisable to cut away
the reading matter surrounding an arti-
cle; some of these pages should be left
intact and the reading matter not re-
quired crossed out. These marked pages
may then be used as a background upon
which to paste small clippings.

The files should have a complete and
reliable index, the card index being the
most suitable for this purpose. This re-
quires blank cards on which to record
the articles, a set of alphabetical guide
cards, for locating the index card on

June 27, 1911

POWER

1003

which any article has been recor :
and a box in which to keep the

To ill' the use of tl fin,

.me that it is being started with one

flic < marked At, and ;

the article cntit'. for

Steam Engines and Turbines." by Frank

in Pouer for December,

Having cut it out of the magazine,

punched and tiled it, and numbered the

page : he next step is to

index the clipping. This will require

four cards as folio

Article: Condensers for Steam En-
gines and Turbir
Frank Foster. Pou er, Decem-
ber

File: A. Pages: 1

Art: I ^incs and Turbines. Con-

densers for Steam.
I Frank Foster, Power, Decem-
ber. 1906.

File: \ Paces: 1-4.

Article: Steam Engines and Turb
Condi • >r.

cm-

File: PaCBS!

Article: Tur Condensers for

ijines and.
Frank Foster. P Decem-

ber. I"
File: A.

The titles Artic: I 1 U and

>s on the cards should be made
nguishablc from I of

the ndcrlining. the

of a different . ink or by the

i rubber stamp. All that remains
then is locating these four cards in their
alphabetical order under their rcspc
guide card- S and T, in the index

ca*

The initial C i a system la

Jr.
0.

Sump s • m ; <r ( )il S

n nort!
■ ■
have been
luted b the

many industrial plants in the vail'.

Tl. -hern Pacific KailroaJ ha»

been an especially large loser. »• '
the

after repeated expenrne
solved the problem by lh«
a «imple sump system at the shops

>ng the bank of the I
the «hop«. a trend) - r about

ivating,

•i accu
of many vcar%' »a»tc. * hlch pc

through the soil and emerged into the

im from the bedrock,
con^ n samps to

engage the oil «

arrant, is skimmed from I
face of the water. For temporary
men! these ave been con-

I of sacks of sand, but the method
has proved so successful that c
tank ; to act as a po»

catch basin for all seepage.

To give an idea of i on

of oil from this plant the compar
in a single week re
gallons ming process. At the

reduced cost of r -he rail-

road, this amount is almost sufficient to
pay for any c lation.

W. A. Lai
Los Angeles. Cal.

Thin I

method of obtaining economical

M carry the
fun -»ugh to c

the gm ,;ht and often,

'he coal a chance to bum. I
admit enough air through r Joor

baffle plates to get ; lion.

remen keep the a 'ors SO

adjusted that there ■- an opening

into the as' 'th of the area

of the flue space for the admission of
air. I find this to be ■ »od method

of regulating the air. and

W. T. Hird.
O.

( ( r G

pou-

s I atood looking at t

uum g.i ippcd *

■ad paste J "ti i ; •• " r - ■«

; : on

running as happen

I of mud and slime I

a result

I got 20 inches of n — n on the gage.

The condensing »

north branch of

to a large Three snot

go down to tf

r the condenser as he could

and the
I » i four. -.gi •

if from condenser to the engine

for icv found n good

n at if c con-

cr pur

I the superin-

had asked me to come in and

help oui -.d that sometimes

then o
I started the pump and it ran a*
lay pump could and the quick
slow ending of
showed that it was producing a good
condc- The pointer

on I ium gage never moved, how-

ngtneer that he would
find thi

Cage and COOdeav
When he too* re down be found

ill of slime j- J
cleaned out a J he had

ium showing on the
.■ •
trouble

ceee

at to retain a compile ni en-
gineer he must at he is worth

to I" ■

i not then be neccsw

I Sll.ltt K

e plant
employed srhen the mam
« a -

coupllm

turtxJ

weak! have
artn

•The pumr

a good

J let me know
ubk must be befeen the con

I took J P«.

That

la J tuehes where I
has Oh*'
dew* the en-
of

1004

POWER

June 27, 1911

had to come off all the ropes unspliced,
as well as taking off the driving pulleys
for the other room.

The repair job was begun by taking
out the section of shaft B, on which were
two flange couplings and to which the
coupling on the broken piece was bolted.

The flanges were removed from this
shaft, and the flange C was then pressed
on a longer section of shaft D, which
came up to the point where the shaft
had twisted off.

A compound rest was then taken from
a lathe and rigged up on a staging along-
side the shaft and that part of the tapered
shaft at E was turned down to a diam-
eter of 3 inches.

This turning was done during working
hours, with the other room running at full
speed, the shaft making 270 revolutions
per minute.

A keyseat was cut at night in the
broken shaft with a portable keyseating
machine, and the two shafts were then
connected by a box coupling, as shown
in the lower view.

Robert A. Bond.

New Bedford, Mass.

Corliss Valve Setting

Methods of setting the valves of a
Corliss engine have often been described,
but nothing has been said that would be

POWE-R.

Fic. 1. Diagrams Taken from the
Engine

of service to the average engineer if,
after having set the valves according to
laid-down rules, factory marks or blue-
prints furnished by the manufacturer, the
engine would not work satisfactorily. In
my experience factory marks and blue-
prints have often been disregarded and

the valves set to suit the indicator as
well as to obtain smooth running.

One engine, of the heavy-duty type,
38x40-inch cylinder, was direct connected
to two double-acting 20x40-inch ammonia
compressors, working against 160 to 180
pounds discharge pressure. The indicator
showed an initial pressure of 110 pounds
per square inch. The steam valves were
of the slotted type, that is, live and ex-
haust steam traveled through the valve
instead of over it. The directions for
setting these valves were as follows:

Set the steam valve with y2 -inch lap,
exhaust valve % inch lap and give the
steam valve tV inch lead. The blueprint
showed the amount of travel for each
valve and length of rods from the wrist-
plate to the bell crank. After the valves
were all set according to directions and
the eccentric fastened, the engine was
turned by hand to the opposite center and
the lead adjusted to suit the TVinch
mark which, of course, altered the lap
slightly. The engine was started up, and
if one ever heard a bad running machine
this one was it. An indicator was attached
and a diagram produced, as shown in
diagram A.

I stopped the engine and examined the
diagram. The thump occurred after the
piston had traveled 2 inches from either
end, and I wondered why the thump was
not at the beginning of the stroke. If it
was due to lack of compression, the
thump would have happened before it
reached the end of the stroke; if it were
due to too much lead, it would have
happened at the beginning of the stroke;
but coming when the piston was 2 inches
from either end, when the steam valve
was nearly open, I will admit I was
puzzled.

I reasoned that the thump was due to
concussion by having full steam pres-
sure admitted to the cylinder too late, as
the indicator showed. I advanced the
eccentric slightly and the thump les-
sened, and advancing the eccentric a lit-
tle more the thump ceased, but the ex-
haust valves rattled slightly. I took an-
other indicator diagram and B was the
result.

I had followed the marks on the valves
and cylinder, also the blueprints and in-
structions of the builder and I had no
compression, even after altering, so to
get the shaft, bearings, crank and cross-
head running quietly, I started to
lengthen the reach rods on the exhaust
valves until both valves had iHs-inch lap.
Then, to get both ends alike, I lengthened
one rod until one exhaust valve had j\
inch lap, obtaining diagram C.

This adjustment produced a smooth-
running engine, but the speed could not
be changed more than 10 revolutions
per minute, and in this plant the ice ma-
chine should run at 25 as well as at 70
revolutions per minute. The regulating
arm on which the weight hung for chang-
ing the speed was changed from its

original shape to look like that shown in
Fig. 2. Then a weight of equal size was
put on each side. This arrangement
worked all right at speeds from 38 to 50
revolutions per minute. I next attached
a spring, as shown. This spring attach-
ment solved the problem and the engine

Fig. 2. Spring Attached to the Gov-
ernor Arm

can be run from 10 to 50 revolutions per
minute, with the throttle wide open and
with a steady cutoff.

W. Noeyes.
Kansas City, Mo.

Reinforced Crank Pin Brasses

The crank-pin box on a small steam
engine gave trouble by heating. On ex-
amination it was found that the brasses
were so lightly made that under heavy
loads they would spring. There was a
center rib on each against which the rod
end and adjusting wedge bore, and metal
on each side of this rib was left very
thin. As a consequence this rib was
forced against the crank pin, causing the
center of the brasses to wear faster than
the outer ends.

The cavity on each side of the rib was
cleaned, turned and then filled with hard
babbitt metal. This gave a full bearing
for the rod end and adjusting wedge.
After making this change the box gave
no further trouble.

James W. Little.

Fruitland, Wash.

June 27, 1911

I * 18

Size of Turbine Exhaust
Pip

William Kent says that my formula,
given in Pos : u of March 28. appears
to be defective insofar as it docs not
include the length of the pipe and the
allowable drop in pressure between the
condenser and the turbine.

As to the length. I will be pleased to
con- tor making the area

of the pipe vary with variation in the
length if I am shown that this is Bel
sary or desirable. My present opinion is
that the length affects the desirable area
very little if at all.

Consider an exhaust pipe 10 feet long
and of any reasonable sectional area.
This pipe costs a certain sum of money,
and the space it occupies mav cost some-
thing. If »c w.rc to reduce the sectional
area of the pipe, we would reduce the

The friction of the pipe causes the
vacuum at the exhaust cnJ of the tur-
to be less than the vacuum at the
condenser and the difference in the vac-
uum will depend on the area of the p
The pressure required at the turbine
it, say. P. To obtain tf re, a

lower pressure. s.i B main-

tained at the condenser; and the differ-
ence in pressure, or P t.-nds on
the area of the exhaust p

If we were to reduce the area.
..'d increase P P ; and. there'
to maintain P constant, we should re-
quire to reduce P and this would in-
volve increased initial cost of condens-
ing plant, or increased running char,
or both. What la required is to deter-
mine the diameter iich the
rate of

reduction in area will just equal the rate
of increase in . . nsing plant

»ith redact area.

We have r-ccn cons 10

feet long but, if one only 8 feet lot
taken, the

reduction in area would be iutt half,
while the IncreaM in f the con-

densing plant would also lust be
so that the best tl ot pipe

lid be | 'he same as the best

area for the I . ipe It there

appears that the length of •

require takes Into accou

As re> 'r Kent'* otto

to my formula, namelv. that it J
Include the allowable drop In pre*
it VOVJd, I cnr«ider. be f
one to state an allow i
earc without oofljetdertas] the eeet ef ee*

I :n:iicrt(,
.trxl dchaie t//xv) various

BtticksJettett ondedii

peered in previa

issui i

taining this. The formula is intended to
determine the area which will give the
drop of pressure which it best in any
case. p will, of course, be

much greater for a long pipe than a
short one. For a Jrop

ought to b -all because it can

be kept all at a trifling coot. For a
pipe twent. . ould be

unreasonable l to the

same amount, as I I >nly be

complished by multir >na!

area of the pipe m.v c« and the

would he cno- . reascd.

As >ncnt 0.4 of the

factor f in my formula, meet formulas
for the flow of fluids through pipes of

ular section make the friction
as the square of the volume of fluid
passing a given p
minute, and also make the friction
as the fift - of the diameter of

the ;
may be, and often is, substituted for

ime in the formula If P denotes the
on, ii the volt. :ic diameter

I A df note

the internal *< * of the r

tttf (laid

root of

.,
■'>e pip- »• leaf ccttonal

root
i • ■ •■.■■■

for
pipes of dissimlla reft— 0.

I the friction •
superficial area per foot length, or »«n-.

f deeetee the periph

of tbe shape of the
tior. jind of an area

of one square foot, then for all pipes of
one square foot settlor

The

l
In my formula W ithc total weight of
steam per hoi- employed for con-

lead *

G d.

Did Not II »m

he following i to the

I as given in
the "

im from a Corliss engine
>t hook

am from that cad
-
Be movement of the piston

that end ol

Deaaeteaetaai and expanse H

>t the expansion line fol-
low back upon the same line as the com-

and 'hte ead of the

e coote ■

d. thus losing r

gra.l

el srtlh
•o pressure Then whoa

i •
to meet the Hoe of lowest prewsorr
ed by the coedcni

ilsirsr
aeeeeiss to

the nrJ *'• >'ri

aasiss cane is rkv
. caches •eereet

cerrs is the eeeer eee er the

oaeeer flat J a

• r M lit dlSfi" »f

1006

POWER

June 27, 1911

This is because the exhaust valve is open
and the piston moves against the lowest
vacuum attained. Then as the exhaust
valve closes, this charge of low-pressure
steam is compressed, thus raising the
pressure highest at the end of the stroke.
In answer to Mr. Mead's last question,
I would say that the expansion line can-
not be lowered as it represents the very
best possible vacuum attainable with his

engine.

Charles F. Clark.

Hartwick, N. Y.

Boilers Foam

In the May 23 number, J. M. Stewart
asks for opinions about his foaming boil-
ers. I have had the same trouble with
domeless boilers connected to hoisting
engines, and have noticed that sometimes
they do not furnish dry steam even on
more regular service.

I believe that something serving the
purpose of a dome is necessary on a
horizontal tubular boiler, but I would
not want a dome connected in the usual
way, as it greatly weakens the shell to
cut out the area necessary for the rivet
holes and steam passage.

I would prefer a horizontal drum con-
nected to one end to the boiler by a
thimble and flange joint, and at the other
end resting freely on a support made by
riveting thimbles of the proper length to
the shell of the boiler and drum.

A drum connected in this way will
cause some loss from radiation but if it
is properly covered the loss will be small
and the extra- steam space is a great
gain to a boiler connected to a hoisting
engine.

Mr. Stewart's trouble might be in his
feed water, but if he will boil samples
of it in an open vessel, he will be able
to tell by its behavior if such is the fact.

H. L. Turner.

Bartlesville, Okla.

Receiver Pressure

L. Johnson, in the May 16 issue, as-
serts that the most economical receiver
pressure is that which causes the gov-
ernor to revolve in the highest plane,
basing his conclusion on the fallacy that
the earlier the cutoff in the high-pressure
cylinder the smaller the steam consump-
tion. The fact is, early cutoff in the
high-pressure cylinder does not neces-
sarily mean less steam consumption, and
furthermore it is possible with no change
of cutoff to vary the steam consumption
within considerable limits, say 10 per
cent., simply by changing the receiver
pressure.

The steam in the cylinder at cutoff is
made up of two parts, a small amount
left in the cylinder at the closing of the
exhaust valve, and a larger amount which
flows in from the chest while the admis-
sion valve is open. These two volumes

of steam mingle in the cylinder, but
they can be kept separate for purposes of
reasoning. The steam left in the cylin-
der at compression is sometimes called
cushion steam. Its volume is constant
but its weight is variable depending on
the density, which in turn varies with
the receiver pressure. With high re-
ceiver pressure the cushion steam may
be 15 per cent, of the steam at cutoff,
while with low receiver pressure it may
be as low as 5 per cent. These figures
are based on 5 per cent, clearance and
one-quarter cutoff and are to be regarded
as approximate values for average con-
ditions.

The steam consumption is measured
by the steam that comes in from the
chest and joins with the cushion steam
to make the volume present at cutoff.
Calling the weight of steam at cutoff
100 and the cushion steam 5, the bal-
ance, or steam consumption, is 95 corre-
sponding to low receiver pressure. Call-
ing the steam at cutoff 100 and the
cushion steam 15, the steam consumption
is 85 for a high receiver pressure. In
this case the steam consumption is
changed 10 per cent, by variation in
the cushion steam, brought about by
alterations in the receiver pressure and
not by a change of cutoff in the high-
pressure cylinder.

Experience tends to confirm the truth
of the foregoing reasoning. A good il-
lustration is to be found in some forms
of pumping engines having no governor,
where the high-pressure cutoff can be
set by hand. Under these conditions
with a steady load, if the receiver pres-
sure is lowered the engine gains in
speed, showing that it is using more
steam and doing more work. If the re-
ceiver pressure is raised the engine loses
speed, showing that it is using less steam
and doing less work.

The simple rule quoted by Mr. Johnson
is sure to lead to too low a receiver
pressure and hence to poor economy.
There is reason to fear that many engi-
neers are following it, not knowing the
unsound basis on which it rests. A final
argument against the rule may have
weight with those who do not follow the
theoretical reasoning. It is that, in all
trials of compound engines where the
steam is measured and the best perform-
ance is desired, the highest economy is
obtained with a receiver pressure giving
but little drop in pressure at the end of
the expansion in the high-pressure cyl-
inder.

E. H. Lockwood.
New Haven, Conn.

Who Is Responsible?

After a man has worked for you for
six months or a year and shown you
that he possesses the ordinary amount
of brains, then when the water column
becomes clogged, instead of getting word
to you, unscrews the plug in the col-

umn tee and rams a rod through into
the boiler, cleaning out the obstruction
and also — well, you can imagine the
rest; who is responsible? I know men
to whom you can talk and explain till
you are blue in the face and they will
say "yes, yes, I know," and yet by only
the fraction of a minute did I save one
of them from the disastrous results of
taking the top from a check valve be-
fore he had closed the globe valve in
front of it. However, is there a man in
the business who cannot point to some
fool thing he has done at some time or
other.

C. A. Scott.
Wales, Wis.

Relative Size of Compound

and Simple Engine

Cylinders

In Power for April 25, C. E. R. asks,
"What would be the comparative diam-
eter of the low-pressure cylinder of a
compound engine to develop the same
horsepower as a simple engine at the
same speed and steam pressure?"

The answer to the question begins
with the remark: "If the work done is
to be the same in both cases, the num-
ber of expansions must be the same."
This is equivalent to saying that all
steam engines of the same power, speed
and steam pressure have the same num-
ber of expansions, which, of course, is
erroneous.

The reply then continues: "Conse-
quently, with the same initial and ter-
minal pressures, the diameter of the low-
pressure cylinder of the compound must
be equal to the diameter of the single
cylinder of the simple engine." This
is approximately true, barring the ter-
minal drop in the high-pressure cylin-
der ^nd other losses. The question
must have been misunderstood. One of
the main reasons for compounding is to
increase the number of expansions with-
out shortening the cutoff beyond the eco-
nomical limit, and the terminal pressure
in the low-pressure cylinder of a com-
pound may be, and practically always
is, considerably lower than that of a
simple engine working between the same
pressure limits.

As an example, assume a simple non-
condensing engine of 500 indicated
horsepower, with 140 pounds absolute
initial pressure, 16 pounds absolute back
pressure; a clearance of 5 per cent, and
compression at nine-tenths of the stroke.
Cutoff at one-fourth stroke is common
for the rated load of such an engine.
Then with a diagram factor of 0.85 and
a piston speed of 750 feet per minute,
the cylinder is 22 inches in diameter.
A compound, noncondensing engine of
the same power and piston speed, with
the same pressure limits, clearance, com-
pression and diagram factor, but with

June 27, 1911

P O NX E R

1007

a terminal pressure of 20 pounds abso-
lute, would have for the diameter of the
high- and low-pressure cylinders re-
spectively, 17 and 29 inches. Or, using
Tribes tables with a still lower terminal
pressure, the cylinders would be 18 and
30 inches in diameter.

Twin engines are sometimes convert
into compounds by replacing one of the
cylinders by a low re cylinder, the

of which depends on whether a
condenser is used; but in all cases
larger than the cylinder it repla.

•E.
racuse.

Water in Oil

R. C. Montcagle recently made a state-
ment about water in fuel oil putting out a
fire and overflowing from the fur-
onto the fire-room floor. In externally
fired boilers there is danger of such an

Jcnt only when starting the I
the brick is cold. It is then necessary

atch the burner closely, as the flame
may go out and allow oil to flow into the
furnace. If the torch is applied there
will be, of course, an ion, as the

combustion chamber and tubes will be
filled with oil vapor. After the oil has
burning for some time, water may

•he fire out. but the oil will instantly
ignite, as the brickwork is at a white
heat. Thcr ->omc water in

fuel oil, but not enough to interfere with
the operation of the fire.

\ir. Jr.

Cooling I I<>t Bearin]

In regard to the cooling of hot b

uld like to submit my cure
h has : ! and which works

kcr than anything I have trk

alf and half by volume No. 6
case and ammonia and feed
igh the oiler as fast as pos
pa. If No. fl grease I avail-

able, common engine oil wii: ;t it

have to be ! almost con-

tinuously.

TiiEODOte I
Pascoag. R. I

h a coat

c it :

a bearing which is operating ur

would mod .ompositior

portions of antimo:

80 parts lc -.- a bet

metal that for light higL
will be found

n that has given good
service ur one

compo*
cent, ant 1 *7 per

hibitivc on account of the cost, a; I
alio run loose for any length of

tim<.

tight on the journal at alt times,
that ugh to run

be found to be all right.

Another composition that will gi
.
not too great consists ol
tin. and 65 per (

lead. I- g qual-

if the metal is covered
of fine charcoal d >e

the me

I. B. Gri

The Institute f O

There has been
of the Institute of Or
but if I f

of the - certa

and along the nc has

the homemade

good kind, and

p him to be

mg that

anyone is ■ '•> mam;'

The
hon '! be a

and look out for >

■

The ansoc an opp< ■

K to

rung on th I'

shea

I would advise him not to attempt making
a homemade a" _iurr. -clean -

mill cost can be bought

own fa
much damage to get and <

I common sigt
•ound »ork • ►; at gen-
tors and moti JlaJodfe

from a compressor. A brusb fitted

to a long hand jh Is hollow and

lined to the

hose will soon removi -om the

nigh »r
tact all right for the

a J 'ush or

s collected
and to the hose and an

haust bio*

'•
Toronto. Can.

: i

«»uc an engineer staled
that he had a grcr ouble •

scale in the fc In

which I hi

pipes of Heine and
•abcock

taken from the same
cd a gr

i mostly cartonasse and

In on

»f brass and gave no troubta,

•

ast pi; the

sarr, 1 there »a« r»o fur-

a short length
became pint f holes from

"ic aarna Baa-

' ock ft M
rfha ni'-rf » '.tri hra»» I" » '" • • " • •■ dM

Antifrii ti«»n M

In the May Irt number of I'
' hu i letter M
ailed antifriction metals which Wl
unusual interest to me. c»r the

pan in which he Mates that •
ro«llion for a nonfrktion

I cannot understand how
Tavlor is going to make this -lrtal stand
mder all cond .ha

cted that a hearing running at a
fair «peed. and *ith littl
• III need the same qualil

a good r

it no oocaasoi

■ ■

R M« < . I

irr

•' ■

i quo- est he

nam cleaner and

considcrwd taw «

I hart neve
the scale did not
pipe JM to the Iron papa, hwt hi

•« tad awt wwf

• logaaot rhat rha

.hirh

1008

POWER

June 27, 1911

an idea as to whether or not this will
solve his difficulty.

J. Case.
Hyattsville, Md.

I am interested in several letters under
the above title and think there is quite
a little to be learned. I do not agree
with Mr. Jahnke as to his two-pipe sys-
tem, especially the one connected to the
blowoff pipe. Combinations usually
mean complications. The following sys-
tem is better than any other which I
have seen or heard of:

It is unnecessary to have two sep-
arate feed lines to a boiler, but take
care of the one. Always enter the feed
pipe somewhere on the top of a return-
tubular boiler, as it is perfectly acces-
sible, both inside and outside. If hot
or warm water is used all the time, it
is unnecessary to have a long pipe in-
side, as it is apt to cause more trouble
than it is worth. Run the pipe down to
the flues, then use an elbow and a hori-
zontal piece of pipe not over 3 feet long.
To avoid depositing the impurities which
the heaters and purifiers have failed to
collect, on the flues or sheets, fasten a
pipe of not less than 3 inches diameter
to the flues so that the feed pipe will
discharge into it, carrying in with the
discharge a quantity of the boiler wa-
ter. The impurities will collect inside
of the large pipe and may be easily re-
moved on cleaning day with a hose or
hammer. Let the feed pipe enter the
large pipe only a couple of inches; the
large pipe should be not less than 4
feet long. If a pipe above 4 inches in
diameter is used, place the collector pipe
at an angle so that the water will take
a spiral course through it.

Ray Gilbert.'

Virginville, W. Va.

Boiler Design

Having read with interest "Desirable
Improvements in Boilers," on page 761
of the May 16 number, it would seem
that the correctness of the title in every
particular might be questioned when
viewed in the light of practical experi-
ence in boiler operation. Mr. Dean
has adopted an old form of longitudinal
joint which he believes is best for boiler
work. It has overcome one disadvantage
in the former style of joint he recom-
mended in reducing the pitch of the
rivets along the calking edge, for this
must have been a disadvantage in manu-
facture even when using heavy butt
straps.

While it is hard to see any real ad-
vantage in Mr. Dean's new selection of
joint over the kind of butt-strapped joint
in common use in the United States, it
would be interesting to know if such
a form of joint really shows under test
the calculated strength he gives it. The

committee of research on riveted joints
of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers
found that to obtain the full strength of
a double-riveted lap joint it was re-
quired that the two rows of rivets be
sufficiently separated to prevent the joint
breaking zigzag, and making sure that
the joint would break straight across;
the net section of metal measured zig-
zag should be 30 to 35 per cent, in ex-
cess of that measured along the seam.
While Mr. Dean's joint omits the fig-
ures to determine whether the zigzag
distance is what is required or not, it
appears to the eye as if he had neglected
to consider this fact in designing his
joint, and that he had bunched the rivets
too nearly together girthwise.

Mr. Dean's attack on the Manning
boiler seems entirely unwarranted; it
is true that the ogee flange as originally
designed was very thin and of such
shape that all the movement due to pres-
sure was concentrated along one line
around the flange. A few of the flanges
of this design cracked in service, but
after the thickness was increased and
its form changed none have failed;
therefore, his remarks on this score do
not apply at all to the Manning boiler
as now constructed. Anyone of experi-
ence can take direct issue with Mr. Dean
when he says that the Manning boiler
is unquestionably dangerous. It is only
dangerous in the sense that any steam
generator is dangerous, and it is far
safer than the average boiler. Mr. Dean
speaks of the behavior of the ogee flange
on a destructive test of this type of
boiler, and he doubtless refers to the
test made at the Bigelow plant last sum-
mer. The writer had the pleasure of
witnessing this test and he distinctly re-
members that the center of the ogee
flange rose only about J4 inch under a
pressure of 700 pounds, while at 450
pounds the movement was not measur-
able. As a check on this the overall
length of the boiler did not change until
after a pressure of 400 pounds was
reached, and it amounted to less than
Y% inch at 700 pounds.

As boilers of any type are rarely op-
erated for general purposes at pressures
exceeding 200 pounds, I think Mr. Dean
is drawing entirely on his imagination
when he asserts that the explosion at
the Amoskeag mills was caused by pres-
sure on the ogee flange. I am ignorant
of any facts that will establish his claim,
and the long record of the Manning
boiler with a minimum of accidents ab-
solutely refutes his statements implying
that this boiler has inherent structural
weakness as constructed today.

If Mr, Dean was versed in practical
boilermaking he would hardly suggest a
coned sheet in place of the ogee flange,
for any boilermaker can tell him of the
difficulties encountered by the introduc-
tion of such a shape. While Mr. Dean's
intentions are good in advising that many

more tubes than customary may be put
in horizontal tubular boilers, I think he
is considerably exceeding good practice
in this direction. It is a well known
fact that a large body of water directly
over the fire is desirable in this type of
boiler, aside from the need of room suffi-
cient to permit ready access below the
tubes. With the number of tubes he
recommends for the different-sized boil-
ers, the required space would not be
available at this point. The water line
in his layouts would also be consider-
ably higher than practice has demon-
strated to be required for good service.
With a 1-inch space between tubes it
is difficult to clean a scaled tube sheet,
and reducing this distance by 25 per
cent, would certainly make it much more
difficult, besides weakening the bridging
between tubes. I hardly think many en-
gineers will agree with Mr* Dean that his
suggestion along this line can be con-
sidered an improvement in boiler de-
sign.

J. E. Terman.
New Haven, Conn.

How to Condense Steam

In answer to E. G. Eldred's question,
"How to condense steam," I think the
best plan is to take a barrel that will
hold water, fix an overflow to it and let
the water enter through a pipe at the
bottom of the barrel. Then make a coil
of K'-inch or 34-inch pipe of a few
turns that will go in the barrel easily.
Put the bottom end of the coil through
the side of the barrel with lock nuts
and connect the top to the steam pipe.

I have tried this method and con-
siderable steam can be condensed in a
short time. If the water is allowed to
drip a few inches through the air it
will get some air in it and help the taste
of it.

E. V. Chapman.

Decatur, 111.

Oil Fuel for Steam Boilers

In the May 16 number Mr. Collins
says that in burning oil a boiler can be
brought up to 150 pounds steam pres-
sure from cold water in less than half
an hour if necessary. This may be pos-
sible, but it is certainly not the right thing
to do. In an externally fired boiler it will
take half an hour to get the furnace hot
enough for economical combustion. In
my experience with burning oil I have
found that it takes from two to four
hours to get up steam to working pres-
sure from cold water. I do not agree
with his statement that 35 per cent, more
capacity can be obtained with fuel oil
than when burning high-grade coal. This,
at least, has not been my experience.
Andrew Blair, Jr.

Norborne, Mo.

June 27, 1911

POWi

iiwy

I .■ . v... ... •, :■ .-

Hill Publishis lupaiiy

Jo»» A. II I LI, fr^«. lul Tt»». Bui

• . York.

ilk MUfcliM li*'»<i fMin—

• ■■■»■*. imm, UK a a

r «M U>4>* 11-BrfSt, ft V. T.

rrespondence suitable for the col-
umns of Powu solicited and pet
Ntme and iddmi of correspondents
must be elves — not nanr— rtly for pub-

Subscription price %2 per year. In
».l i anre. to any post ofhee In tbe United
• ■i or the possess tont of tbe United
-« and Menu H to Canada
to any other foreum country.

Pay no money to solicitors or aeenta
unless they ran show letters of authoriza-
tion from this office.

'>er» In Great Britain. Europe
>loniee In lb* )
my send their subseni
be London Office. Price .

..JlCv

Entered as second class matter. De-
remb^r 20. 1910. at tbe po»t office at
York, under tbr

Cable address, " Po» r

craph Code.

CIRCULATION kTlTLULST

' ctjplrt mre I

Your irnl free rr-jmlarly, I M from

r-,m|.(ini<», no back numbci
lotion

ntcnts

TAOB

■.-.1

8ch<
Tru'

Sat-

•>»•«

Wat<

i<i*- ji iii. ....... .......

'.>■'«'.

sl
I'lan

*t«l

Par.

Hta

•

m ll« i 11' M

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mi
III

Boss' la

I *l a »,' ' n i'

1
1

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f T

Made Good I

!
-

I ■

I* Rassseasi
Art i Wati

.-n II

dees* Hiram. ...

VbIt. fe-Mlox

Crash

Qti ami Education

There are two movements in which the
cngincc >er consciously or uncon-

sciously interested, for they touch hi*
vocation in vita! These move-

ments are industrial education and the
prevention of industrial accidents.

industrial education is meant that
vocational training which Rives the work-
er a knowledge of the principles under-
lying his trade or calling as well as the
definite and complete manual skill which
marks the difference between the master
workman and the unreasoning routine
drudge. The growing importance of the
work of the engineer in the industries of
production, transportation ar bu-

tton is beginning to be rccogn
the general public and by those
Intel recognition manifests

f in attention given to license and
cction legislation and in the esiab!
ing of schools, classes and dips

in univ. and other ons for

the purposes ol instruc-

tion in stcart plant operation.

It is plain that the or

should be. Intel n this as it tends

to put within easier reach than r
fore the systematic education needed to
advance him in that intimate know]'
of his vocation ihi lccese.

This relates d
of accidents in an industry that is as

as the continent Steam bo
under pressure ar<

^competent or than is d

mite in the bar

owtedge of the c foi of

■n, of the potc ' a mens

of highly heat a boiler and

of the inherent ucaknees of
forms of cons
to calculate ngih of mate*

• l- eeeted
distortion* of the shell of the lap %<»r

on
and discotirsfes Its Inst*

With c familiar wttti the

weakness ol • and with

tbe courage that comes - v ledge

opposing lbs ' and Installlag

such appan ' the operation of -

J. one
j ' * ■■ • •' ' ■

These are su
be lightly dropped; on tbe cr>

ment If tbe great body of englnr
•ires if it ion o'

gine operation in the position, in the es-
timation of tbe public to which it is
entitled b. portsnee.

It ling that confers dig

o give to it the beet tbst
is in the

Th York F ( m-

I Aih merit

The siuestion c md plant

^rwwnlng a

ing one the country over. Engines

arc ed by motors, engineers by

very

plant shut Jo»n or pr

means losses of sales of

-p». heaters sad

auxiliaries to comme and of

sorts of supplies
'herefore little
for the cer :on amoof

'iting eng:
of materia! used in isolated plants. Tbe
followir. rived.

mar a of tti • of sympa

.f Hftj

»1ss»

*..

Tc have res

iJr- "ft t "fit *• i TiSi '

then
T)

|"tr> the

«dy saey eesse at rse

.-iitblug that ke sast
ka rse her

can bu> i* •"• price »-•

1010

POWER

June 27, 1911

or utterance in the reading columns.
What Power says editorially is based
upon the best information obtainable,
and inspired by the ambition to offer the
best in the way of analysis, suggestion
and observation which its editors with
their facilities and in the light of this
information can produce. It is by these
utterances and not by what appears in
its advertising columns that the attitude
of a paper should be judged. And what
has been the editorial attitude of Power
upon the central-station question? Have
you read the "Foreword," October 25,
1910; "Central Station versus Factory
Plant," February 14, 1911, and March
21; "The Cost of Power," "Interest and
Sinking Fund," March 21 ; "Will an Iso-
lated Plant Pay?", "The Marginal Prin-
ciple," March 28; "The Central Station
versus Isolated Plant," April 18; "The
Central Station Could Not Meet His Fig-
ures," April 25; "Isolated Power Plant
Makes a Good Showing," May 9; "The
Cost of Industrial Power," May 30;
"Foreword," June 6; "Central Station
Failure," June 20, and the "Central Sta-
tion Viewpoint," June 20. These are only
a part of the references which might have
been given, but a reading of the above
articles will show the stand we have taken
on this subject.

We take it that even the members of
the I. A. of E. (we regret that we do not
know what the initials stand for) recog-
nize that there are places where the
central-station service can be used to
advantage, and that their organized op-
position to the extension of that service
applies to situations where power can be
produced cheaper than the central station
can legitimately supply it. In opposing
the aggressions of the central station
beyond its legitimate field; in opposing
rate discrimination and subterfuge where-
by additional load is taken on at less
than the cost would be if charged with
its proportion of the fixed charges, as
are the services of the small consumer;
in exposing the sophistries of the solicitor
whose gentle job it is to convince a
customer that he can make money by
buying current for more than he can
make it, the engineers and manufacturers
of the whole country — for the question
is not a local one — will find Power with
them all the time, and if our unknown
correspondent has anything which will
help in the process we shall be glad to
see it.

Peat as gathered contains a large per-
centage of moisture. To dry it by ex-
posure to the sun and air takes a long
time, and to dry it artificially takes a
good deal of heat. An attempt has been
made at Emden, Germany, to utilize this
heat by drying the peat in a closed vessel
under pressure, the steam driven off be-
ing available for power and other pur-
poses.

Engineering Graduates

Once more the season of college com-
mencements is at hand and hundreds of
young men are about to start on an en-
gineering career. The increasing popu-
larity of the engineering courses, as com-
pared with the older professions, gives
rise to the remark so often heard: "The
field is being overcrowded." Some will
contend that such overcrowding is sure
to result in fewer opportunities for ad-
vancement and lower salaries, while
others will argue that there is always
room for good men in any field.

Among the large number graduated
every year there are undoubtedly many
that fail to make good. This, however,
is usually attributable to one of two
causes: either the individual has not
the qualities that make for success, in
which case he would have failed in any
other line of work, or he has chosen
engineering without seriously consulting
his natural inclinations. In this connec-
tion, it may be said that fully fifty per
cent, of the students when entering col-
lege do not really know what line of
work they want to make their life's voca-
tion. A course is often chosen because
it appears popular, its name is attractive,
or some friend has had success in that
particular line.

A factor responsible for this condition
is the age at which the average student
enters upon a technical course. If those
who intend taking up engineering would
spend two or three years, after leaving
high school, in shops or construction
work before entering college, they would
soon find wherein their inclinations lie;
they would get more out of their college
course, and would be better prepared to
attack practical engineering problems
after graduation.

It would appear then that some are
doomed to failure through causes in-
dependent of the supply and demand;
but to offset this the demand for tech-
nically trained men has greatly increased
during the past few years.

Very often the mistake is made of ex-
pecting too much of the technical grad-
uate, and much misunderstanding and
criticism of the whole educational system
result.

Inefficient Equipment

Economy is the watchword in the
power plant where the management and
the engineers are wide awake. In others,
economy is a meaningless term, and ex-
travagance takes its place.

Most men will have the hole in their
pocket sewed up as soon as it is dis-
covered, for fear that a few cents may
be lost, but these same men, if owners
of a steam plant, will contentedly watch
a fireman shovel dollars into a boiler
furnace and make no effort to save any
of them. A growl will be heard when
the amount of the yearly coal bill is as-

certained, but beyond "jumping on" the
fireman no effort is made to detect and
remedy the cause of excessive coal con-
sumption.

Power plants of less than five-hundred
horsepower contain engines, pumps,
heaters and other power-plant apparatus
which are wasteful in the extreme. But
the engine turns the wheels, the pump
manages to keep water in the boiler and
the heater warms the water a trifle above
its normal temperature, all of which
seems to satisfy those "higher up."

For years the feed water in a certain
electric-light plant was sent to the boil-
ers by means of an injector, the water
passing through a heater which had be-
come so foul with scale that the water
entering the boilers received practically
no additional heat above that imparted to
it in passing through the injector.

In another small steam plant an old
cylinder heater, about ten feet long, lies
on the floor alongside the engine. It is
inefficient and, although it does take the
chill from the water, much of the heat
in the exhaust steam that could be
utilized if a proper heater were used
escapes to the atmosphere.

These two instances illustrate the man-
ner in which the operating costs of a
steam plant can run above normal when
apparently everything is all right. But
if the men who were financially inter-
ested in these plants had taken the
trouble to look into the matter of feed-
water temperatures, as obtained under
the conditions found, and compared them
with the temperatures obtained in other
plants, their eyes would have been opened
to the waste of heat and coal.

Thousands of people are ailing more
or less — few are physically whole — but
they do not know it. When they do, a
doctor is consulted in order that the
trouble may be removed.

It is the same with steam plants. Few
are operating under economical condi-
tions in every particular, and many are
"real sick." Their case is not diagnosed,
and their ailment is allowed to grow
worse day by day.

When power-plant owners and engi-
neers look upon a steam plant as a
source of expense, as not producing a
finished product, and make up their
minds that it can be operated efficiently,
the central station will loom less promi-
nently before the engineer's vision and-
the owner will have the satisfaction of
knowing that he can produce power in
his own plant cheaper than he can pur-
chase it elsewhere.

The Institute of Operating Engineers
has the support and indorsement of able
and clear-thinking men. If you are an op-
erating engineer or hope ever to be one
it might be worth your while to investi-
gate it. The secretary's office is in the
Engineering Societies building, New York
City. He answers questions.

June 27. 1911

1011

Inquiries of General Interest

Fiywhei /'■ ■: 'is

1 have a side-crank engine 1
inches which is direct coupled to a fan
and which I wish to reinstall to drive a
laundry requiring 45 horsepower. The
engine is designed to run at 120 revolu-
tions per minute but can be adjusted to
run faster. The steam pressure
pounds.

I have two wheels 66 inches in diam-
eter. 15-inch face, weighing about I
pounds, and would like if possible to use
one or both of them. I have applied sev-
eral formulas found in handbooks and
none of them agree within several thou-
sand pounds. The speed variati"-
not important and it would be pos-
to run the engine at a higher speed than
stated to permit a lighter wheel.

I. C. R

Flywheel formulas vary according to
the conditions under which the wheel
is to be used, and which must be known
before the proper one can be seK
flywheel suitable for a plain slide-valve
engine driving a stone crusher might be
only quarter heavy enough for a <
engine of the same power in an e
lighting plant. For a plain slide-valve
engine doing ordinarv work, use the
mula

in which

J Meter of the cylinder in

incf
S = Stroke of the piston in Inc?
I) Diameter of the wheel in (
K Number of re iin-

ut,
W the wheel in pour

ring the numerical values in the
equation it reads

the weight required in a f

If the

the
nun

(

//
Ho» can I tell »
lran»formcr i

■teondai
on

If it regulate* properly, a
current tra-

Questions arc/

not un> / unless

.h c ompaoied by the
name Mtdsddnm tV the
inquirer. This page .

WOfJOQ when §tm k
use if

in the secondary windings because tne
secondary cur jctically

constant at all loads. The primary »
ing can be overloaded the

t a good
deal beyond that for which it was in-
tended; this will cause the current in the
lding to ir ond the

irrcnt. Vhcn the se.
cuit is opened, an excess
induced in the secondar : ng be-

cause the transformer automatically in-
creases the as the sec-

n ordc
keep the current constant. The cv

the aeconj
• s dowr

Effect

iat effect, if .. a shaft II

inch low from a I *n through the

center of the c\lmder and | avc

on a si:

J M

Or -

•

it »ould ITI an one-half of

not be
even measura'

M i

When t»o n

the other a d

J
unbalanced n, one •

and the to a

1 Jepcods on

load conditio
nected to the lightlv loaded side of the

Ml *c functtor

When the two aid

equall> loaded, hoth machines •

;er.

hen

jwai

in r*r»!!cl »ithout dime.

argc machine cavi

smaller one to carry the I
drops from 125 to about

d then
to normal When the ar

om the
runs a| id the range of the

er. What is the cause and ho*
it be remov

W. H
governor on
small cr.gmr It seer

inj the bar doe*

The remedy

the

* i; r r
r':cd

•
era used to connect a i np*

to a prima-

lo*cd j
onnected in Be-

out using i

n order to put

■ of the the

econd. in order to
m of thr urrrM.

pa could be sup-
roctly fror .100- to!-

hy
■Ml

hi kept rracttcallr
con»tar ans former, no mot tar

»ieh or
burning or
OOOIc >ut

/ )

conrve. - -c OOO-

■ mot on ar

it circuit of the aeaae *

.- tho eoooactiaoM trill oot poo*

•rd res tor

rvsaai lootntctsasM

: mm hr

•few

1012

POWER

June 27, 1911

Double Pipe vs. Atmospheric

Condensers
By R. P. Kehoe

The popular favor with which the
double-pipe type of condenser was ac-
cepted, was not due to increased effi-
ciency nor cheaper first cost, but because
it was something new and it looked nice.
The water was not visible; no pan was
necessary; and the condensers could be
placed anywhere in a building. Further-
more, the water enters at one end and
the ammonia at the other, introducing
the countercurrent principle and thus
promising extraordinary results.

It was these facts which gave the chief
impetus to the sale of double-pipe con-
densers, and while there is no question
about their advantages under a few favor-
able conditions, it is usually a mistake
to adopt them on account of the disad-
vantages which are herein pointed out.

Faults of Double-pipe Condensers

One of the worst features of this type
is its inability to handle river water that
is not absolutely free from vegetable mat-
ter or sewage. If only a small percent-
age of such impurities are contained in
the water they will quickly collect in the
fittings and pipes, causing a rapid de-
crease in efficiency and final stoppage if
the pipes are not frequently cleaned.

A formation of the same thickness of
scale on the atmospheric condenser and
in the double-pipe condenser is more
serious in the latter case. The scale in
the atmospheric condenser gathers on
the outer surface of the pipe and
consequently increases the cooling sur-
face, while the scale in a double-
pipe condenser forms on the inner
surface of the water pipe and decreases
the cooling surface. Furthermore, less
scaie is required to form a certain thick-
ness of deposit on the inner surface than
on the outer surface of a pipe. The de-
crease of the transverse area of the
water pipe from scale in a double-pipe
condenser requires an increase in power
to circulate a given quantity of water
through it, or else if more power is not
available, the quantity of cooling water
is decreased. In an open-air ammonia
condenser cooling water simply overflows
the slotted-pipe gutter, and whether the
scale is heavy or light on the pipes, the
free flow of water either to the distribut-
ing gutter or over the condensing sur-
face is not affected.

With the atmospheric condenser any de-
posit on the pipes is quickly perceived

Principles
and operation of
ice making and re-
frigerating plantr
and machinery

and may be readily scraped off, even
while the condenser is in operation,
whereas the double-pipe type must be
discontinued from service while it is be-
ing cleaned.

In a cooling tower advantage is taken
of the reduction in temperature result-
ing from the evaporation of some of the
water to be cooled by a natural or forced
air current. The more the evaporation the
greater is the amount of heat carried off
in this way. This principle is employed
in an atmospheric condenser and figures
largely in its high efficiency. This ad-
vantage is lost in the double-pipe type.

Also, in view of the great affinity of
anhydrous ammonia for water, a leak
in a double-pipe condenser may remain
undiscovered for a long time.

During a recent winter, the engineer of
a large brewery failed to drain all the
water from a battery of double-pipe con-
densers when the plant was idle, and
the water froze, resulting in many split
pipes and fittings, and making it neces-
sary to practically rebuild the condensers.

This type of condenser is usually
placed inside the building, while at-
mospheric condensers are installed out-
side. In this respect, the latter natural-
ly secure an advantage from the cool-
ing effect during cold weather which is
almost entirely lost by the former.

The efficiency of the double-pipe type
can be maintained only by forcing the
condensing water through the pipes at
a fairly rapid rate, and due to the fric-
tion in the pipes a large amount of power
is required for this purpose.

First Cost

The comparative first cost of the two
types f.o.b. cars at the factory is ap-
proximately as follows:

Atmos- Double-
pheric pipe

Type Type

Diameter of pipes, inches. . . 2 1J and 2

Number of pipes in hight of

standard condensers 24 12

Length in feet 20 18

Square feet of cooling sur-
face 300 80

Approximate cost of one con-
denser SI. 50 $150

Cost per square toot $0.50 $1.87

From these figures it will be seen that
the first cost of the double-pipe con-
denser is nearly four times the cost of
the atmospheric style per square foot of
cooling surface.

The number and size of sections of
both types usually furnished for each 100
tons refrigerating capacity per 24 hours
are as follows:

Atmos- Double-
pheric pipe

Type Type

Number of sections 8 8

Number of pipes in hight. 24 12

Length in feet 20 18

Total cooling surface, square

feet 2400 640

Total cost S1200 S1200

Comparative Efficiency

In spite of the many faults previously
mentioned, the double-pipe condenser has
a high efficiency when operated under
favorable conditions, such as good water,
clean pipes and a high velocity of the
condensing water. Good water, however,
is available only in certain places; clean
pipes are seldom found except in new
plants and the velocity is naturally lim-
ited by a reasonable amount of power
for pumping and the use of a reason-
able amount of condensing water.

Giving the double-tube type the bene-
fit of the most favorable conditions in
practical operation, the comparative ef-
ficiency of the two types expressed in
the number of B.t.u. exchanged per
square foot of cooling surface per hour
is as follows: Atmospheric, 60 B.t.u.
per degree difference; double pipe, 100
B.t.u. per degree difference, with cooling
water flowing at 250 feet per minute.

This greater efficiency makes it pos-
sible to use about 40 per cent, less sur-
face but this is offset by the fact that
the cost per square foot is increased
nearly 300 per cent. Furthermore, in
the average plant this efficiency would
not be maintained because the tubes are
not kept clean enough.

Advantages of Double-pipe Con-
densers
In small plants up to 10 or 15 tons
capacity it is often advantageous to use
double-pipe condensers. They are small
and compact, can be located close to
the machine and, in view of the saving
of connections and a condenser pan, are
cheaper than the atmospheric style. Fur-
thermore, when using city water that
must be paid for, its merit is apparent, as
no dirt is accumulated and the water
consumption can be reduced to a mini-
mum. It also has a field where the water
is used again for other purposes.

June 27, 1911

After fairly summing up the advan-
tages and disadvantages it is apparent
that double-pipe condensers arc not the
type to adopt in the usual refrigerat-
ing or ice-making plant except u
special conditions. The practical fa
alone should be sufficient to condemn
them especially in ice plants, where all
the apparatus is subjected to rough usage
and where great cleanliness is not often
practised. The simplest and most a^
sible apparatus should be preferred and
while open-air condensers are not as
pretty to look at, their simplicity is un-
questionable.

There are several designs of the latter
type which will be discussed.

ATMOSPHtRIC T> !

The cheapest design of condenser is
that in which the hot ammonia ga*
led into the highest pipe in each stand
and the liquid drawn off from the 1om>-
It is also the least efficient
,uare foot of surface but
in the head pressure maintained. The
term "cheapest design." however, must
not be misunderstood; it mere!
to the cost per square foot of cooling
surface.

One of the most important considera-
tions in the efficiency of a condens'
the head pressure. A few pounds dif-
ference in this pressure against which
the compressor must work ma\ mean
hundreds of dollars ear either

saved or thrown away. The heat trans-
fer square foot affects only the
cost and a few dollars more or less
in the initial expense is not as vital as
a loss that might go on year after year
through high head pressi.

The pressure in a condenser is con-
sistent with tin aturc at which the
ammonia begir

therefore, in an cflrU -. to

make this temperature as low as possible.

in which the ga-~
the c the condensing water is at

first heated by the absorption of the
superheat in the hot gas coming d
from the compressor. It is only after
this heat has been removed that the am-
monia can be brought down to the ;

jucfaction, but then the temperature
c water has risen co and

the ammonia must liquefy at a rclai
high temperature The result is i

sure than »ould be atta the

rature of the water had been
• ghi to bear on the ammonia at
t of liquc'i
Anoth ' condense*

stru -h the gas entering the

>m »h.
four pipes and then passes tbro-n:
star. i the high- The

monla then proceeds downward and
liquid is led off from the fl ft*
the bottom. The theory upon - hkh
this condenser Is ba»< it the '

lower pipes (called the forecoo!

POM

remove all the superheat and bring the
gas very nearly to the point of lique
tion be!

the gas co-count coldes- and

'her at the lowest pos-

ire. The practical fa

arc that the four lo

or the foreco innot be depended

uP<>n to jusi :he superheat.

nsidcr ;n the amount

of gas to r

cap.! ped. the differ

temperature of the condensing water dur-
ing all seasons of the ■•id the
ations in superheat of the gas in c
plant. As thi theory un-
questional --hi be well to
into the

all thi not rcmo.

the balance must be taken out after the
gas has risen to the top and the

same fault then o some extent

as when the gas enter

from the compressor The op
tion is much worst if the con-

-i these I
h remains p«>
terfcres uith the flow of gas until con-
ditions change and it hi rcgasified. To
P*" ,ult some designs

a small connection from
lo» precooler to drain off the

Uqa This sp

drain r : to the

main.

Reverting to the pie of I

des • he object of t' oler

to deliver the gas | pe at or

near the point so that

it would liqucfv it the loo-oaj poss
temperature I- -rroduction of
special n adm fault of

liquid forn .

the t temperature

As a result, this liquid must
head pressure because
plat • mpcra*

The-
sign i :

•ure
of the war condenser and

not

ecooler conde
the concurrent

G Atsm» <

t.i s*f as

As alrcodv pointed out. the doub

and • ■ernperaiure of

possible to the initial temr

■tmospr

;

>••#. «..,.

V'c MMaOfCUl

1013

superheat is removed in the lo»er pipe*

I the prccoole- gas

ascends it encounters the effect of colder

and co There is no space

flows off a' forms.

■ COOdc ry COO-

n and can be depended upon

to | ■ should

be es in bight, ss more than

are superfluous on account of the

tnVsSUC] of the cour.rcr.uffcnt erV.t

'aci the hight may bi the

of the water Is high.

be an advantage to make the

or M pipes high and pro-

tnunbet

BOJ the head p
because
amount of work sccomplished by the

long ago a -rtment along

tempted by the t
engineer of a e plant

rent atmospbt

d and the cood
sure was found to be
l.at

form

I these new
on the
dropped from 10 to 20 pounds.

A co: r test of the

atmosp' --Jcr.se -nc gas eo-

d the
rent ^c4, «,n

•he
30 per
condensing the

of con e head

0 pounds.
HaU04 ountercurrent

icoonmy under all coudl
• oni If watc- iixo

good riOaVJt

>k. k

d cut

of "-e

g the '"»

tin. The

found that
,:c packing houses
countr* uk the oper-

design shnosf
Some of these plants have one bun in i

entering the tor ;
and msintsining a bigher bead pre —sire
necessary. The «
that tbe operator- bsceane

:stosned to thi* a ad do not Mhe

to char;

e m potent
method far ■aductasu of aauunonae

he pssseg ni%tuf< ins.

gen and nitrogen c
oaniiem or ureadana, or other
s- mast rial T
•ed under aboot 1900

1014

POWER

June 27, 1911

LETTERS

Cutting Packing Over a
Wooden Mandrel

In the April 25 issue selling section,
I read with interest the talk on pack-
ing, by "Old Bill," of the Thermoid Rub-
ber Company's advertisement. The wooden
mandrel is all right and there should be
several in every engine room, one for
each machine, as the mandrel saves time
and money.

In the plant in which I am working
we have two ammonia piston rods of
different sizes; one is 1/16 inch smaller
than the other. I got a mandrel made

'.End for ^Depth of >

^ Vice j Stuff inq Boa

out of hardwood, like the accompanying
Fig. 1, for the ammonia piston rods and
one like Fig. 2 for the steam piston rod.

The smaller ends of the mandrel shown
in Fig. 1 will serve to put in the vise, and
also the small end of Fig. 2. The en-
larged parts may be as long as the stuff-
ing boxes are deep. The diameter is to
be 1/32 inch less than the diameter of
the piston rod, so that there will be some
space between the ends of the ring, when
it is cut and placed over the rod. When
the packing is warmed up, expansion will
bring the ends together. In case the
packing fits tight in the stuffing box, the
space between the ends should be a lit-
tle more.

The mandrel may be marked, for ex-
ample, "No. 1 Machine; depth of stuff-
ing box, 8 inches; nine rings of 24-inch
spiral." When cutting the packing, put
the mandrel in the vise, take a thin
wire nail and fasten the end of the spiral
packing to one end of the mandrel, wind
the former around the mandrel until it
is all covered and fasten it with another
nail at the end of the last ring. The
packing may be cut straight across or
on a slant.

For pumps the mandrel is very handy.
It may be made to suit the size of the
plunger, piston rod and valve stem. When
packing the plunger with duck packing,
more space must be allowed between the
ends, and the follower plate should not
be screwed up too high. The mandrel
can be made in a short time by any en-
gineer who has a lathe and knows how
to use it.

William L. Keil.
Philadelphia, Penn.

Air in Ice Water System

It is my opinion that Mr. Johnson's
suggestion to prevent air in his ice-water
system will not remedy the trouble. On
account of the hight of the building, say
100 to 110 feet, and the design of the
piping system, air will be drawn into the
piping under certain conditions of op-
eration. No means is provided to rid the
system of this air and it is churned
around in the centrifugal pump with the
water, causing the latter to become milky.
My suggestions would be: First, to get
rid of the centrifugal pump and put in
a triplex pump. Second, to discharge the
cold water into a tank as high above the
main on the tenth floor as possible and
feed the system from this tank. A float
should be provided in this tank to regu-
late the supply of fresh water taken in
from the supply tank. The cold-water
supply tank should be made flat like a
pan and insulated. This will give a large
disengaging surface for the air.

Fred Ophuls.

New York City.

Opening an Ammonia Joint

At a certain plant my assistant engi-
neer was instructed to break an ammonia
joint. It was necessary to take out an
ell and replace it with a tee and flanged
valve so as to extend the coils in the
cooling rooms. He claimed that the coils
had been thoroughly pumped out.

I gave him a helper and he took all of
the bolts out of the flanged ell and was
prying the joint apart with a small bar,
when it let go with a loud explosion and
a shower of oil and muddy substances.
A yell from the engineer followed and
the next thing I knew he was all in a
heap on the floor, choking with ammonia.
I grabbed him and made for the open
door.

The room was full of the fumes of
ammonia and a hissing sound denoted
a serious leak. I rushed for the valves
in the engine room to isolate that coil
and found one valve partly open. None
of us was ever able to account for that
open valve. My assistant had mistaken
the valves and pumped out the wrong
coil.

I started the machine and pumped
some of the ammonia from the coil into
the system, but soon stopped as I did
not want to get air into the system.

As the engineer's lips, eyes and tongue
were badly burned by the ammonia, he
was taught a lesson which he will not
forget.

The moral is, never remove all of the
bolts on a joint at one time, but loosen
them all a little and break the joint
gently; then in case of a serious loss
of ammonia, the bolts can be tightened
up with safety and an investigation
made.

D. L. Fagnan.

New York City.

Clearance in Compressors

In designing ammonia compressors it
has been the practice of most of the
manufacturers to cut down compressor
clearance to the smallest possible de-
gree in order to obtain what is common-
ly believed to be t'Re maximum capacity per
cubic foot of compressor displacement.
Several other factors, however, should
be considered in this connection which
tend to militate against the successful
working of a compressor under the above
conditions. Prominent among these are
safety of operation and the superheat-
ing of suction gas as it enters the com-
pressor.

Dwelshauvers-Dery has demonstrated
that the cylinder walls of a compressor
have a very considerable thermal in-
fluence upon the working medium, which
influence depends in amount on the con-
ditions of operation and not upon the
size of the compressor. It is a well
known fact that, although clearance re-
duces the apparent volumetric efficiency,
the horsepower necessary to compress
1 cubic foot of gas in a compressor with
reasonable clearance remains the same
as in a compressor without clearance.
The reason for this is that the cylinder
walls of a no-clearance compressor will
superheat the gas more, and thereby
reduce the capacity to a greater extent,
than will a compressor with clearance
reduce the apparent capacity. It is the
effect of cylinder superheating which
must be fully understood before the
proper size of the clearance can be
determined upon in the design of a com-
pressor.

E. A. Murphy.

New York City.

Temporary Can Repair Kink

The following method was 'employed
by an ingenious engineer to solder leaky
cams. It is inexpensive and has pro-
longed the lives of cans as much as two

Ice Can

Gas Burner and Stand
years. The materials used are an equal
mixture of turpentiine and beeswax.

To apply this mixture a gas burner
made from a 1-inch pipe the same length
as the can to be repaired is used. The
pipe is perforated with small holes and
mounted on a rack which is also built
to hold a can in such a position that the
corner will be directly over the jets. The
mixture is poured in hot so that it will
penertate the smallest crevices.

Edward T. Binns.

Philadelphia, Penn.

June 27, 1911

POW

1015

New power House Equipment

Improved Flow M<t

The General Electric Company. Sche-
nectady, N. Y., has developed several

l of flow meter of appro
and high efficiency. These include both
the recording and indicating types, the
former making a continue

rd of the rate of flow and the latter
giving readings of instantanc ucs

of the same. The unit of measurement
varies with the commodity measured,
being pounds per hour for steam, cubic
feet per minute for air and gas and gal-
lons per minute for war

The recording water-flow meter, shown

in Fig. I. comprises a nozzle plug for

to the pipe at the point where

the flow is to be met thus being

■ scd to the pressure of the water, a

meter clement which mca

set up in the nozzle plug and a rc-
mism which makes a
graphic n the rate of flf>

The n< >ias

i: the lea J lo-

J parallel to its axis extending across

main and facing t!

and the trailing m K of three

holes located on ll of the

.; near the middle and at right ar

n .'.' . ' r h<-
)tor.i/)if the rnunu-
rurrr ai <
tuiK- .//;</ money in the en
gitic rootn m r-r

bouse Engine roum
in

to its a> B two sets of orifices open

into separate longitudinal chambers I-
ing to the outer I plug. The

nozzle r 1 for u~ :her

:c\ clops therein a
-sure equal to the static pressure plus
a prct»

the longitudinal chambers k

"J of the ping. The

- pressure* are communicated to

the meter through pipes attached to the

outer end of the plug and

u
trod i. no ap

drop in n at i

rates of fli.

consists of ■
r boll Jers eon-

■
to i ^f the

• r
to more aboi
e edges Mtc an a. r can-

Mrnnti ;

i.arcr

amount in
anbslanced ■
■lances the

•*••

•v«

"«"*1

>
■

motion

<he reea

m, se i'
'aire1 •<

1016

POWER

June 27, 1911

The standard paper furnished is cali-
brated for a rate of feed of 3 inches per
hour, but paper for feeding at a rate of
1 inch or 6 inches per hour can be sup-
plied if desired. The meter is equipped
with a spring-operated reroll device cap-
able of holding one complete roll of
paper.

Although the meter is calibrated to
record the rate of flow in gallons per
minute at 39.1 degrees Fahrenheit, suit-
able means are provided for readily set-
ting it for different temperatures, pipe
diameters and rates of flow. In order to
measure the flow under normal condi-
tions in any number of different pipes,
it is only necessary to use nozzle plugs
of sufficient length to extend across the
pipes and record paper of suitable cali-
bration range.

This meter is useful for ascertaining
the output of pumping plants, the total
amount of water consumed by a munici-
pality or the amount distributed to dif-
ferent sections thereof, the input to water
turbines and their loss of efficiency, the
amount of water consumed in manufac-
turing processes, the amount of feed
water delivered to boilers,, the amount of

Fig. 3. Indicating Steam-flow Meter,
Showing Scales

cooling water used in condensers, the
slippage in pumps due to leaky plunger
packing or worn-out valves, and for dis-
covering losses due to leaks in water
mains.

The recording air-flow meter, suitable
also for measuring steam and gas, op-
erates on the same principle as the re-
cording water-flow meter and is prac-
tically similar in all details of construc-
tion.

The indicating steam-flow meter, shown
in Fig. 3, is designed for testing work
and other purposes, such as locating
trouble due to leaks, determining effi-
ciency of boilers, etc., where accurate,
instantaneous readings of the rate of flow
are desirable.

This type of meter operates on the
same principle and employs the same type

of nozzle plug as the recording meter,
but differs considerably in details of con-
struction. It can be readily adjusted
for various rates of flow and indicates the
instantaneous rate of flow in pounds per
square inch of pipe cross-sectional area
for steam, or in cubic feet of free air at
70 degrees Fahrenheit, for air.

An Oil Eliminator for 66-inch
Exhaust Pipe

The accompanying illustration shows a
steel shell oil eliminator of the right-
angle type recently built by the Hoppes
Manufacturing Company, of Springfield,
O., for the Milwaukee Electric Railway
and Light Company, Milwaukee, Wis.

This apparatus is designed to remove
the oil and water from 385,000 pounds
of exhaust steam per hour before it
passes to and is used in the operation of
two 7500-kilowatt low-pressure turbine
units. It embodies all of the Hoppes
principles of construction for this type

Boiler Explosion at Alton, 111.

By H. R. Rockwell

A serious accident recently occurred
at the power plant of the Illinois Glass
Company at Alton, 111., in the shape of
a rupture of a 66-inch by 18-foot hori-
zontal tubular boiler. This boiler was
one of a battery of four of the same
class, all connected to one common 12-
inch header. The shell plate was of Y%-
inch steel. The writer was unable to
find any brand on the plate signifying
its tensile strength, but from the appear-
ance of the ruptured plate it seemed to
be of first-class material. The longi-
tudinal seams were of the double-strap
butt type triple riveted and the boiler
contained 54 four-inch tubes.

The boiler is composed of two 9-foot
sheets. The front plate was split from
end to end, and 43 rivets were sheared
on the girth seam and 23 on the head.
About one-third of the flues were pulled
from the front head and several were
jammed through the back head of the

Large Oil Eliminator in Course of Shipment

of eliminator, having large internal areas
for the free and unrestricted flow of the
steam and being thoroughly equipped
with intercepting troughs partly filled
with water to catch and remove all en-
trainment. The cylindrical shell of this
machine is 10 feet in diameter and 23
feet long and when in place will stand
vertically. The exhaust steam from the
reciprccating engines enters at the side
near the top ar.d the purified steam
passes out at the bottom.

Some idea of the enormous capacity
of this machine may be had from the
fact that the exhaust inlet flange is 5
feet 6 inches in diameter, the eliminator
being installed in an exhaust pipe line
of like dimension. The large special tee
at the bottom for connecting to the tur-
bines is not shown in the photograph.

boiler, which was raised bodily from its
setting and badly damaged a steel roof
truss about 20 feet above it. One of the
other three boilers was thrown out of
its setting and the remaining two were
twisted enough to break the 12 and 12
by 6-inch tees which connected them to
the header.

Two men were seriously scalded and
one of them has since died. The accident
happened just at 6 a.m. as the night
and day shifts were changing. This
very probably accounts for no greater
fatality.

The man who was in charge of the
boilers claimed that about 15 minutes
prior to the accident he blew down the
boilers and walked along the front and
blew out each water column. The water
rose to its proper level' in each boi'.^r.

June 27, 1911

The writer had charge of the plant and
upon his arrival, about one hour after the
accident occurred, he found that the
water-column connections on the
ploded boiler were open and the blowoff
valve was closed just as they should be.
theory of the accident is that a
large quantity of scale was precipitated
from the shell and tubes of the boiler
and settled on the lower sheet over the
Are. which allowed the sheet to become
overheated sufficiently to start the initial
rupture. Some seem to think that the
explosion was a case of no water, but the
damage to the boiler was too great for
me to think that there was not plenty
of water in it at the time.

W atrr \\ nrks .Wo* i.iti<>n
v onvention

About Ave hundred delegates and
guests attended the thirty-first annua!
convention of the American Water Works
Association at Rochestei N.

\t 10 o'clock on Tuesday morn-
ing. Mayor Edgarton gave a cordial wel-
come to the association in the banquet
hall of the Powers hotel, to which John
W. Alvord. president of the association.
>nded.

•ne seventy manufacturers of water-
works appliances were r. ;J with
which inds and lined
the r ind sample l After
the rou: si was despatched, the
presentation of papers relating
to water works was begun

Thomas McMillan read a paper on

pumping- station management in which

he traced the ' >f the Milwaukee.

from i to

I of

the adJ

Of the cost of
-ition for each ten-year period. The
in the purchase and
han.: coal w

as »erc also the boilers and the dc
of •

am a

perature of trn
the installation an
oilin.

snees for making and handling r
manner in wh

managed in th.
iting and i

Tucsd.i

'» apr«

ing

' th«

PONX

sanitation methods instituted to make

:h that the men emp:
are be:

the canal will be finished much sooner
than ex On June I. 19IJ. it

be practically complete, and on that date

-els of 20-foot draft will be ab

h. Tr rlfl thor-

oughly test out the canal until January
I. 1915, »hcn the formal opening to all

>ela will be ma

- ES

W. P. Mason, speaking on the ab
subject, said that when the water sup-
ply of a municipality is chang.
the common practice to allow the old
connections to remain as an emergency
ich practice may reduce in-
■ACC rates, bu- ; hoid

->, and the question becomes -
better to lose, a hous.. re or a

life from ■

mcrous instan
the use of an en lake in the

case of fire was folio,
of typhi tuse of the polluted water

pumped into the regular water

mail

\no Ca i Watbk P

Th was discussed by Allen

en. When lar. amc

available their fitnt n the man-

turc ol ater mains

»ts about two-thirds as
equal strength
and

while J • s malic

uch nv ■

sett

• ■

■
add"

that

In I ttston.

;

i on the ground thai i

tested

of meter on a apr

-ould choke the ami
i be caught by the meter, and
a though it stopped the rotation of the

low
citinguts'
i the favored
meter the mat- uld choke the

• ould pens the meter on

adc of a specific ca»
» no meter in the
g to a room was

choked as soon as a few sprint

sing a property lees of about

nojtno

i -

■or on

the troubles that come from rusty hot
water, due to the corrosion of iron and
ripes. t nd ho;

' cause

■ ••■! Hot ■' • i • j m N M ft ■• cJ>
- or soda ash and the us

i
T( ie subiect of a

of ' iirm bod

>f wholesome

proper-
germs of

par.'
from the air. and in so to the

J soluble ma*

lion, which p

tgh
<ouch due to a kMOt.

•

and sand

■■» he IH*

1018

POWER

June 27, 1911

that it is the most suitable practical
system for water purification.

Oxonation has never been practically
tested on a large scale, and sterilization
has had only a limited application, the
first time it was ever used in a con-
tinuous process being at Boonton, N. J.,
in 1908. However, the sterilization pro-
cess marks a great step in advance on
account of cheapness, simplicity, effi-
ciency and certainty.

Wisconsin N. A. S. E. Con-
vention

Eleven years ago Milwaukee was the
scene of the national convention of the
National Association of Stationary En-
gineers. During those eleven years there
has* been wonderful progress in the
growth of the organization and it was
freely said by those who had attended
the national meeting that the late State
meeting held there June 8, 9 and 10
was larger and better in many ways.

H. J. Mistele, chairman of the local
committee, presided at the opening ex-
ercises and introduced Mayor Emil Seidel,

concise statement of what this important
piece of equipment should be and of
some of the defects which are commonly
found in its operation.

On Friday afternoon a visit was made
to the plant of the Richardson-Phenix
Company. The smoker given by the Cen-
tral States Exhibitors' Association in the
main dining room of the Plankington
house on Saturday night was presided
over by Royal D. Tomlinson, and proved
a great success in promoting good fel-
lowship and good cheer between the en-
gineers and the supplymen.

On Sunday morning a baseball game
between the engineers and supplymen
was the principal event of interest; the
game was won by the former by a score
of 12 to 3.

Officers for the ensuing year were
elected as follows: William Classman, of
Milwaukee, president; Henry Hoist, of
La Crosse, vice-president; Robert Fenn,
of Sheboygan, secretary, John Murphy,
of Madison, treasurer; H. Breitbach, of
Stevens Point, conductor, and Dan Dreger,
of Manitowoc, doorkeeper. The place
of next meeting will be decided by the
State officers.

Vilter Manufacturing Company, Wadhams
Oil Company, Western Iron Stores Com-
pany, Wickes Boiler Company.

Identification of Power
House Piping

The committee of the American So-
ciety of Mechanical Engineers on the
identification of power-house piping re-
cently turned in the following report:

In the main engine rooms of plants
which are well lighted, and where the
functions of the exposed pipes are ob-
vious, all pipes shall be painted to con-
form to the color scheme of the room;
and if it is desirable to distinguish pipe
systems, colors shall be used only on
flanges and on valve-fitting flanges.

In all other parts of the plant, such
as boiler house, basements, etc., all
pipes (exclusive of valves, flanges and
fittings), except the fire system, shall
be painted black, or some other single,
plain, durable, inexpensive color.

All fire lines (suction and discharge),
including pipe lines, valve flanges and
fittings, shall be painted red throughout.

The edges of all flanges, fittings or

The Wisconsin Delegation at State Convention

who delivered the address of welcome. Exhibitors at the convention were as valve flanges on pipe lines larger than

The response was by State President follows: Allis-Chalmers Company, Amer- 4 inches inside diameter, and the entire

A. A. Schroeder, of La Crosse, following ican Steam Gauge and Valve Manufac- fittings, valves and flanges on lines 4

which Fred W. Raven, national secretary, turing Company, J. Andrae & Sons Com- inches inside diameter and smaller, shall

spoke on the "National Association of pany, V. D. Anderson Company, Chase be painted the following distinguishing

Stationary Engineers." Brothers Company, Crandall Packing colors:

E. P- Gould, secretary of the Central Company. George B. Carpenter Company, XGri?HiyG COLORS T0 BE USEO

States Exhibitors Association, was al- G. M. Davis Regulator Company. Dear- v 0N VXLVES fl\nge> and

so called on for a few remarks regard- born Drug and Chemical Works. Gar- FITTINGS only

ing the business end of convention work, lock Packing Company, Greene, Tweed steam division [ High pressure — white

and R. D. Tomlinson, of the Allis-Chal- & Co.. Philip Gross Hardware Company. - Fr?snUwat1r.aio1w"prUef-

mers Companv, who is a past national Hawk-Eve Compound Companv. Hills ' sure — blue

„ . . .« „ „ \, . ii- ' Fresh water, high pres

president of the organization, gave a McCanna Company, Hoyer Metallic water division -' sure boiler feed lines

short address. Packing Company, Jenkins Brothers. H. \ Saftlu^|terWplplng—

Educational work was prominent dur- W. Johns-Manville Companv, Kevstone _ sn-een

,, ,v, . . , . ^ T ' Delivery and dis-

mg the convention. John W. Lane, Lubricating Company. Lunkenneimer oil division < charge — brass or

editor of the National Engineer, in an Company. Lyons Boiler Works, Mechan- p^^^ division xh p'spef— ^tlV

address on the subject, gave many valu- ical Appliance Company, Milwaukee Fac- ' City lighting service

• . . . , o ^ »»• ,_• t u • aluminum

able suggestions for increasing the value tory Supplies Company, Michigan Lubn- Gas division < Gas engine service-

of this department to the organization, cator Company, National Engineer, Os- flaneesred

"Heat and Ventilation" was the sub- borne Hieh-Pressure Joint and Valve Fuel oil division All piping— black

ject of a lecture by B. J. Miller, of Mil- Company, Perfection Heater and Purifier stripes alternately

waukee, some of the fundamental prin- Company, William Powell Company, Refrigerating system. . •; on jang^ and^fit-

ciples of this subject being taken up and Power, Practical Engineer, Richardson- black

explained in detail. Another lecture, that Phenix Company, Scott Valve Company, < alternately on

on the "Nonreturn Stop Valve," by E. P. Fred Sprinkman & Son, Steam Appli- Electric lines and feeders j {J™{j?* a^'j^

Gould, of Chicago, contained a clear and ance Company, Swift Fuel Company, I black

tit*

•■ ^

TJ
1

P7
v.33

^^n'* rroR4

PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE
CARDS OR SJJPS FROM THIS POCK

UNIVERSITY Of TORONTO UMAIY

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