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 DATURAL
LISTORY
MATHEMAT
X ICS X

COLLINS ELEMENTARY SERIES

LAND

MARINE ENGINE

EVERS

SOLENCE AND ART

CHEMIST
RY X
 William Collins, Sons, & Co.'s Educational Works.

COLLINS' ELEMENTARY AND ADVANCED SCIENCE SERIES ,

Adapted to the requirements of the South Kensington Syllabus, for Students in
Science and Art Classes, and Higher and Middle Class Schools.
ELEMENTARY SERIES,
Printed uniformly in Fcap. 8vo, fully Illustrated, cloth lettered, price Is. each.
1. PRACTICAL PLANE & SOLID GEOMETRY. By H. Angel,
Islington Science School, London.
2. MACHINE CONSTRUCTION AND DRAWING. By E. Tomkins,
Queen's College, Liverpool.
3A BUILDING CONSTRUCTION-STONE, BRICK, AND SLATE WORK.
By R. S. Burn, C.E., Manchester.
3B BUILDING CONSTRUCTION-TIMBER AND IRON WORK. By R.
S. Burn, C. E. , Manchester.
4. NAVAL ARCHITECTURE -SHIPBUILDING AND LAYING OFF. By 5.
S. J. P. Thearle, F. R.S. N. A. , London.
5. PURÉ MATHEMATICS. By Lewis Sergeant, B. A. , (Camb., ) London. 6. T
6. THEORETICAL MECHANICS. By William Rossiter, F.R.A.S. ,
F.C.S. , London. 7. AP
7. APPLIED MECHANICS. By William Rossiter, F. R. A.S. , London.
8. ACOUSTICS, LIGHT AND HEAT. By William Lees, A.M.,
Lecturer on Physics, Edinburgh . 8. ACC
9. MAGNETISM AND ELECTRICITY. By John Angell, Senior Science D
Master, Grammar School, Manchester. MAG
10. INORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By Dr. W. B. Kemshead, F.R.A.S. , Roy
Dulwich College, London. 10. INOR
11. ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By W. Marshall Watts, D.Sc. , (Lond. ,) Profe
Grammar School, Giggleswick.
12. GEOLOGY. By W. S. Davis, LL.D. , Derby. 11. ORGAN
Lectur
13. MINERALOGY. By J. H. Collins, F. G.S. , Royal Cornwall Poly-
technic Society, Falmouth. 12, GEOLOG
14. ANIMAL PHYSIOLOGY. By John Angell, Senior Science Master, Glasgow
Grammar School, Manchester. 14. ANIM
15. ZOOLOGY. By M. Harbison, Head-Master Model Schools, Newtonards.
16. VEGETABLE ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY. By J. H.
Balfour, M.D., Edinburgh University.
17. SYSTEMATIC AND ECONOMIC BOTANY. By J. H. Balfour,
M.D., Edinburgh University.
19. METALLURGY. By John Mayer, F.C.S. , Glasgow.
20. NAVIGATION. By Henry Evers, LL.D. , Plymouth.
21. NAUTICAL ASTRONOMY. By Henry Evers, LL.D.
22A STEAM AND THE STEAM ENGINE- LAND AND M
Henry Evers, LL.D. , Plymouth.
22B STEAM AND STEAM ENGINE- LOCOMOTIVE. T
LL.D. , Plymouth.
23. PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. By John Mactur
24. PRACTICAL CHEMISTRY. By John How
25. ASTRONOMY. By J. J. Plummer, Observa
London, Edinbur
 William Collins, Sons, & Co.'s Educational Works.
ADVANCED SCIENCE SERIES,
Adapted to the requirements of the South Kensington Syllabus, for Students in
Science and Art Classes, and Higher and Middle Class Schools.
Printed uniformly in Post 8vo, averaging 350 pp., fully Illustrated, cloth lettered,
price 2s. 6d. each.
1. PRACTICAL PLANE AND SOLID GEOMETRY. By Professor
F. A. Bradley, London.
2. MACHINE CONSTRUCTION AND DRAWING. By E. Tomkins,
Queen's College, Liverpool.
3. BUILDING CONSTRUCTION. By R. Scott Burn, C.E.
4. NAVAL ARCHITECTURE-SHIPBUILDING AND LAYING OFF. By
S. J. P. Thearle, F. R.S. N. A., London.
5. PURE MATHEMATICS. By Edward Atkins, B.Sc., (Lond. , )
Leicester. 2 Vols.
6. THEORETICAL MECHANICS. By P. Guthrie Tait, Professor of
Natural Philosophy, Edinburgh.
7. APPLIED MECHANICS. By Professor O. Reynolds, Owens College,
Manchester.
8. ACOUSTICS, LIGHT AND HEAT. By W. S. Davis, LL.D. ,
Derby.
9. MAGNETISM AND ELECTRICITY. By F. Guthrie, B.A., Ph.D.,
Royal School of Mines, London.
10. INORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By T. E. Thorpe, Ph.D., F.R.S.E. ,
Professor of Chemistry, Andersonian University, Glasgow. 2Vols.
11. ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By James Dewar, F.R.SE, F.C.S.,
Lecturer on Chemistry, Edinburgh.
12. GEOLOGY. By John Young, M.D. , Professor of Natural History,
Glasgow University.
14. ANIMA SIOLOGY. Bv J. Cleland, M.D., F.R.S. , Professor
of f Physiolo V.
15. ZOO Ra LA., (Oran..) London.
AT PHYSIOLOGY.
din By J H
NI
h BOTANY. By J. H. Balfour,

Food ARSM 2 Vols.

LL.D., Professor of App
lyn
ST enryEvers, LL.D., Plymouth
E. NGINE LAND, Man ,
C D., Plymouth .
John Young, MD, P
List
CVL
Ea
1
 Collins ' Elementary Science Series .

STEAM

AND THE

STEAM ENGINE :

LAND AND MARINE.

BY
HENRY EVERS, LL.D. ,
PROFESSOR OF MATHEMATICS AND APPLIED SCIENCE, CHARLES SCIENCE SCHOOL,
PLYMOUTH, AUTHOR OF " NAVIGATION," 66 NAUTICAL ASTRONOMY," ETC.
E

D
I

BO
A
N

LONDON AND GLASGOW :

WILLIAM COLLINS, SONS, & COMPANY.
1873.

186 . 64

g.
 PREFACE.

THIS book is intended to give beginners an insight into

the simple theory and arrangement of the Steam Engine.
It has been the chief aim of the writer to make the sub-
ject as easy, practical, and perspicuous as possible, by
omitting whatever is dry in theory, if not absolutely
requisite, or likely to puzzle and confuse.

The author has keenly felt that a work of this kind

was greatly wanted, and it has been his endeavour to
supplement the design of the Publishers, in seeking to
occupy a foremost place in supplying, in the best manner
possible, the want so widely felt, so as to bring the
Series of Text-Books, of which this volume forms one,
within easy reach of every Student of Science in the
Kingdom .
H. E.

January, 1873.
 CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

HEAT.
PAGE
Definition-Expansion of Bodies by Heat-The Liquid
and Gaseous States of Matter-Co-efficient of Expan-
sion-Energy of Atomic Forces- Practical Illustra-
tions-Temperature of Bodies, and Instruments for
MeasuringTemperature-Thermometers-Comparison
of Thermometers-Graduation of Thermometers-
Pyrometers-Capacity for Heat of Bodies - Calori-
meter-Conversion of Heat into Work and Work into
Heat-Consumption of Heat in Liquefaction and Va-
porisation-Convection of Heat-Methods by which
a Large Mass of Water may become Heated- Conduc-
tion of Heat-Good and Bad Conductors- Experi-
mental Illustrations , 9

CHAPTER II.

STEAM, SALT WATER, AND INCRUSTATIONS.

The Formation of Vapour and Steam-Boiling Point of
Fresh and Salt Water-Analysis-The Causes which
Influence the Boiling Temperature of Water-High
Pressure Steam-Measure of Steam Pressures by At-
mospheres-Steam when in Contact or not in Contact
with Water-The Relation between Pressure, Density,
and Temperature of Steam- Specific Gravity of Steam
Quantity of Water required to produce Condensa-
tion-Common and Superheated Steam- Analysis of
Sea Water, 31
 William Collins, Sons, & Co.'s Educational Works.

COLLINS' ELEMENTARY AND ADVANCED SCIENCE SERIES,

Adapted to the requirements of the South Kensington Syllabus, for Students in
Science and Art Classes, and Higher and Middle Class Schools.
ELEMENTARY SERIES,
Printed uniformly in Fcap. 8vo, fully Illustrated, cloth lettered, price 1s. each.
1. PRACTICAL PLANE & SOLID GEOMETRY. By H. Angel,
Islington Science School, London.
2. MACHINE CONSTRUCTION AND DRAWING. By E. Tomkins,
Queen's College, Liverpool.
3A BUILDING CONSTRUCTION-STONE, BRICK, AND SLATE WORK.
By R. S. Burn, C.E. , Manchester.
3B BUILDING CONSTRUCTION—Timber anD IRON WORK. By R.
S. Burn, C.E., Manchester.
4. NAVAL ARCHITECTURE-SHIPBUILDING AND LAYING OFF. By
S. J. P. Thearle, F.R.S. N. A. , London.
5. PURE MATHEMATICS. By Lewis Sergeant, B. A. , (Camb. , ) London.
6. THEORETICAL MECHANICS. By William Rossiter, F.R.A.S. ,
F.C.S. , London.
7. APPLIED MECHANICS. By William Rossiter, F. R. A.S. , London.
8. ACOUSTICS, LIGHT AND HEAT. By William Lees, A.M.,
Lecturer on Physics, Edinburgh.
9. MAGNETISM AND ELECTRICITY. By John Angell, Senior Science
Master, Grammar School, Manchester.
10. INORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By Dr. W. B. Kemshead, F.R.A.S. ,
Dulwich College, London.
11. ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By W. Marshall Watts, D.Sc. , (Lond. , )
Grammar School, Giggleswick.
12. GEOLOGY. By W. S. Davis, LL.D. , Derby.
13. MINERALOGY. By J. H. Collins, F. G.S. , Royal Cornwall Poly-
technic Society, Falmouth.
14. ANIMAL PHYSIOLOGY. By John Angell, Senior Science Master,
Grammar School, Manchester.
15. ZOOLOGY. By M. Harbison, Head-Master Model Schools, Newtonards.
16. VEGETABLE ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY. By J. H.
Balfour, M.D. , Edinburgh University.
17. SYSTEMATIC AND ECONOMIC BOTANY. By J. H. Balfour,
M.D. , Edinburgh University.
19. METALLURGY. By John Mayer, F.C.S. , Glasgow.
20. NAVIGATION. By Henry Evers, LL.D. , Plymouth.
21. NAUTICAL ASTRONOMY. By Henry Evers, LL.D.
22A STEAM AND THE STEAM ENGINE- LAND AND MARINE. By
Henry Evers, LL.D. , Plymouth.
22B STEAM AND STEAM ENGINE-LOCOMOTIVE. By Henry Evers,
LL.D., Plymouth.
23. PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. By John Macturk, F. R. G.S.
24. PRACTICAL CHEMISTRY. By John Howard, London.
25. ASTRONOMY. By J. J. Plummer Observatory Durham.
London, Edinbur Glasgow.
 William Collins, Sons, & Co.'s Educational Works.
ADVANCED SCIENCE SERIES,
Adapted to the requirements of the South Kensington Syllabus, for Students in
Science and Art Classes, and Higher and Middle Class Schools.
Printed uniformly in Post 8vo, averaging 350 pp. , fully Illustrated, cloth lettered,
price 2s. 6d. each.
1. PRACTICAL PLANE AND SOLID GEOMETRY. By Professor
F. A. Bradley, London.
2. MACHINE CONSTRUCTION AND DRAWING. By E. Tomkins,
Queen's College, Liverpool.
3. BUILDING CONSTRUCTION. By R. Scott Burn, C.E.
4. NAVAL ARCHITECTURE- SHIPBUILDING AND LAYING OFF. By
S. J. P. Thearle, F. R.S. N. A. , London.
5. PURE MATHEMATICS. By Edward Atkins, B.Sc. , (Lond. , )
Leicester. 2 Vols.
6. THEORETICAL MECHANICS. By P. Guthrie Tait, Professor of
Natural Philosophy, Edinburgh.
7. APPLIED MECHANICS. By Professor O. Reynolds, Owens College,
Manchester.
8. ACOUSTICS, LIGHT AND HEAT. By W. S. Davis, LL.D. ,
Derby.
9. MAGNETISM AND ELECTRICITY. By F. Guthrie, B. A. , Ph.D. ,
Royal School of Mines, London.
10. INORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By T. E. Thorpe, Ph.D. , F.R.S.E.,
Professor of Chemistry, Andersonian University, Glasgow. 2 Vols.
11. ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. By James Dewar, F.R.S.E. , F.C.S. ,
Lecturer on Chemistry, Edinburgh.
12. GEOLOGY. By John Young, M.D. , Professor of Natural History,
Glasgow University.
14. ANIMAL PHYSIOLOGY. By J. Cleland, M.D. , F.R.S. , Professor
of Anatomy and Physiology, Galway.
15. ZOOLOGY. By E. Ray Lankester, M.A. , (Oxon. , ) London.
16. VEGETABLE ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY. By J. H.
Balfour, M.D., Edinburgh University.
17. SYSTEMATIC AND ECONOMIC BOTANY. By J. H. Balfour,
M.D. , Edinburgh University.
19. METALLURGY. By W. H. Greenwood, A.R.S. M. 2 Vols .
20. NAVIGATION. By Henry Evers, LL.D. , Professor of Applied
Mechanics, Plymouth,
21. NAUTICAL ASTRONOMY. By Henry Evers, LL.D. , Plymouth.
22. STEAM AND THE STEAM ENGINE-LAND, MARINE, AND
LOCOMOTIVE. By Henry Evers, LL.D. , Plymouth .
23. PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. By John Young, M.D. , Professor of
Natural History, Glasgow University.
London, Edinburgh, and Herriot Hill Works, Glasgow.
-
 Collins ' Elementary Science Series.

STEAM

AND THE

STEAM ENGINE :

LAND AND MARINE.

BY
HENRY EVERS, LL.D. ,
PROFESSOR OF MATHEMATICS AND APPLIED SCIENCE, CHARLES SCIENCE SCHOOL,
PLYMOUTH, AUTHOR OF " NAVIGATION," " NAUTICAL ASTRONOMY," ETC. E

D
I

O
B
A
N

LONDON AND GLASGOW :

WILLIAM COLLINS, SONS, & COMPANY.

1873.

186 . 64.

д
 PREFACE.

THIS book is intended to give beginners an insight into

the simple theory and arrangement of the Steam Engine.
It has been the chief aim of the writer to make the sub-
ject as easy, practical, and perspicuous as possible, by
omitting whatever is dry in theory, if not absolutely
requisite, or likely to puzzle and confuse.

The author has keenly felt that a work of this kind

was greatly wanted, and it has been his endeavour to
supplement the design of the Publishers, in seeking to
occupy a foremost place in supplying, in the best manner
possible, the want so widely felt, so as to bring the
Series of Text-Books, of which this volume forms one,
within easy reach of every Student of Science in the
Kingdom.
H. E.

January, 1873.
 CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

HEAT.
PAGE
Definition-Expansion of Bodies by Heat-The Liquid
and Gaseous States of Matter-Co-efficient of Expan-
sion-Energy of Atomic Forces-Practical Illustra-
tions-Temperature of Bodies, and Instruments for
MeasuringTemperature-Thermometers-Comparison
of Thermometers-Graduation of Thermometers-
Pyrometers-Capacity for Heat of Bodies - Calori-
meter-Conversion of Heat into Work and Work into
Heat-Consumption of Heat in Liquefaction and Va-
porisation-Convection of Heat-Methods by which
a Large Mass of Water may become Heated- Conduc-
tion of Heat-Good and Bad Conductors- Experi-
mental Illustrations ,

CHAPTER II.

STEAM, SALT WATER, AND INCRUSTATIONS.

The Formation of Vapour and Steam- Boiling Point of
Fresh and Salt Water-Analysis-The Causes which
Influence the Boiling Temperature of Water-High
Pressure Steam-Measure of Steam Pressures by At-
mospheres-Steam when in Contact or not in Contact
with Water-The Relation between Pressure, Density,
and Temperature of Steam-Specific Gravity of Steam
Quantity of Water required to produce Condensa-
tion-Common and Superheated Steam-Analysis of
Sea Water, 31
6 CONTENTS.

CHAPTER III.
RADIATION, OXIDATION, ETC.
PAGE
The Radiation of Heat- The Absorption of Heat-Reci-
procity of Radiation and Absorption- Good and Bad
Radiators-Experimental Illustrations-Oxidation of
Metals-Effects of Galvanic Action, · 41

CHAPTER IV.
THE ENGINE BEFORE WATT, AND WATT'S ENGINE AND
IMPROVEMENTS .
Savary's Engine-Newcomen's Atmospheric Pumping En-
gine-Its Defects-The Discoveries of Watt-The
Separate Condenser- The Expansive Working of
Steam-Its Economy-Its Value in Regulating the
Power of an Enginé-Details connected with Watt's
Single Acting Pumping Engine-The Steam Cylinder
-Valves connected with Cylinder and their Action-
The Condenser-The Air Pump-The Foot Valve-
The Delivery Valve-The Snifting Valve-The Hot
Well-The Piston-Rod- Connecting Rod and Crank
Stuffing Boxes and Glands-Parallel Motion-
Method of Starting the Engine and of Regulating its
Speed by the Governor-The Throttle Valve-The
Cataract-Eccentric , 45

CHAPTER V.
BEAM ENGINE AND DETAILS.
Double Acting Condensing Beam Engine-Principle upon
which it Works, etc. -Details of the Various Parts
-Cylinder-How Constructed-Ports or Openings
into the Cylinder, etc. - The Form of Slide Valve in
Common Use-The Locomotive or Three-Ported Valve
-The Lap on a Valve-The Eccentric-The Lead of
a Valve-Cushioning the Steam-Clearance-Details
of the Piston-Metallic Packing- Rings- The Expan-
sion Valve and the Gear connected with it- The Sup-
ply of Water for Condensation- Slowing-through-
Gauges for the Condenser-The Barometer Gauge-
Method of Estimating Pressure by it-Errors in this
 CONTENTS.

PAGE
Method, and Correction of the Same-The Fly Wheel
-The Principle of an Equilibrium Valve-The Double
Beat Valve The Crown Valve-The Throttle Valve
-The Gridiron Valve-The High Pressure Engine
without Condensation- The Expansive Principle as
Applied in the Double Cylinder Condensing Engine, 66

CHAPTER VI.
THE MARINE STEAM ENGINE AND DETAILS.
Side Lever Engine-The Oscillating Engine for Paddle
Steamers-The Vertical Trunk Engine-The Gorgon
Engines The Object of this Arrangement-Other
Forms of Engines-Engines for Screw Propellors-
Direct Acting Engine with or without Multiplying
Gear-Penn's Trunk Engine-Maudslay and Field's
Return Connecting Rod Engine-Details of Parts con-
nected with the Working of a Marine Engine-The
Air Pump Bucket and Valves-Double Acting Air
Pump-India-Rubber Disc Valves- Cylinder Escape
Valves-Bilge and Feed Pumps-Expansion Valves-
Expansion Cams and Gear, 90

CHAPTER VII.
THE PADDLE AND SCREW.
Paddle Wheels-Feathering of the Floats- Disconnection
and Immersion of the Wheels-The Screw Propeller-
Various Forms-Length, Angle, Pitch, and Area of
Screw Blade- Disconnecting and Raising the Screw-
The Position of the Screw Propeller in the Vessel-
The Slip of the Screw-The Method of Receiving the
Thrust upon the Vessel- Soft Metal Bearings, 103

CHAPTER VIII.
BOILERS AND BOILER GEAR.
The Boiler-Flue or Cylindrical Boiler-Return Flue,
Cornish, Lancashire-Length and Diameter of Flues—
Thickness of Plates-Internal and External Pressure
-Marine, Flue, and Tubular Boiler-Gunboat Boiler
-Vertical Boiler-Blast Pipe-Waste Steam Pipe-
Steam Chest- Staying Boilers- Fusible Plug-Cloth-
8 CONTENTS.

PAGE
ing of Boilers-Copper Boilers-Testing Boilers-
Funnel and its Casing-Surface Condensation- Sal-
ter's Spring Balance-Bourdon's Gauge-Vacuum
Gauge Stop Valve-Glass Water Gauge-Reverse
Valve-Boiling Point of Sea Water-Brining Boilers
-Surface Blow out Cocks-Kingston's Valves- Salt
and the Boiling Point-Hydrometer and Salinometer
-Scale- Priming-Causes and Danger-Remedy-
Fire Grate and Heating Surface-Evaporation- Feed
Pumps and Giffard's Injector, 117

CHAPTER IX.
PRACTICAL WORKING.
Duties to Machinery when in Harbour and Getting up
Steam- Starting the Engines-Under Steam-Fires-
Bearings-Engines in Port, 143

CHAPTER X.
LAND ENGINES.
The Beam Engine-Horizontal Engine-Vertical Engine-
Portable Engine, 148

CHAPTER XI.
THE INDICATOR.
Description-Use-Diagram-Diagrams under Various
Circumstances , 151

1
 STEAM .

CHAPTER I.

HEAT.

Definition-Expansion of Bodies by Heat-The Liquid and

Gaseous States of Matter-Co-efficient of Expansion-
Energy of Atomic Forces-Practical Illustrations- Tempera-
ture of Bodies, and Instruments for Measuring Temperature-
Thermometers-Comparison of Thermometers- Graduation
of Thermometers-Pyrometers-Capacity for Heat of Bodies
-Calorimeter-Conversion of Heat into Work and Work
into Heat-Consumption of Heat in Liquefaction and Vapor-
isation- Convection of Heat-Methods by which a Large
Mass of Water may become Heated-Conduction of Heat-
Good and Bad Conductors - Experimental Illustrations.

1. Steam is an elastic, invisible fluid generated from

water by heat.
2. Steam is Invisible.-If we watch closely steam as
it issues from a safety valve, a steam whistle, or even from
the spout of a common kettle, we shall see nothing, or it is
invisible. It is only at a distance from these orifices that
it is rendered visible by parting with its heat to the air.
When visible, properly speaking, it is no longer steam,
but vapour ; although it is not always wise to separate
steam and vapour by such a hard and fast line. Some
authorities say when water passes away insensibly with-
out the mechanical application of heat it is vapour, but
when heat is directly applied to the water it passes away
as steam.
10 STEAM.

3. Steam is Elastic.-Take a cylinder or box, into

which is tightly fitted a piston, and fill it with steam. If
we now maintain the cylinder and steam at the same
temperature, and apply a sufficient force to compress the
steam into half the space, and then suddenly withdraw
the force, the steam will again expand and fill the same
space as before, driving the piston back again to its origi-
nal position. The piston is returned to its place by the
elastic force of the steam. Or we may illustrate the
elasticity of steam much better thus : Suppose our cylinder
full of steam, to be steam at a pressure of 15 lbs. on the
square inch, and let the piston be at A B, and that from
B to N be sixteen inches. If the
piston be forced half-way down, or
eight inches, to CD, then the steam,
occupying one-half its former space, its
pressure will be doubled, or on each B
A
square inch the pressure will be 30
lbs. Next force the piston to E F, α
four inches farther down, so as to re-
C
duce again the volume of the steam
by one-half, or to compress it into one- E F
quarter of its original volume, then C H
N
the pressure will be again doubled,
and will now be 30 x 2 or 15 x 4 = 60 lbs. on the square
inch. If it be forced to G H, two inches still farther
down, or the volume again decreased one-half, or occu-
pying one-eighth of the original space, the pressure is
now 60 x 2 or 15 x 8 = 120 lbs. on the square inch.
We see by this illustration that the pressure increases
as the space decreases. This is called Mariotte's or
Boyle's law, and is generally expressed thus : The tem-
perature remaining the same, the volume of a given
quantity ofgas is in inverse ratio to the pressure which it
sustains.
4. Latent Heat.-The heat not sensible to the ther-
mometer is termed latent heat or hidden heat.
5. Heat or Caloric.-When heat is applied to bodies
 CO-EFFICIENT OF EXPANSION. 11

they immediately expand, and when cooled they contract.

When the sun shines upon the air it expands, rises up,
and causes currents of air or wind. When the sun
shines upon the sea the waters expand at the equator, and
flow towards the north and south.
When heat is applied to bodies the molecules immedi-
ately begin to oscillate or vibrate to and fro-the quicker
the vibration the more intense the heat ; as they cool they
vibrate more slowly, or lose their motion ; hence heat is
motion—the motion ofatoms, and cooling is a loss ofmotion,
or decrease of vibration.
6. The Liquid and Gaseous State of Matter.-If
sufficient heat be applied to the solid hard substance iron,
it becomes a molten mass, and should a more intense heat
be continued, the iron will passoff as an incandescent vapour
or gas. The most familiar illustration we have of the
liquid and gaseous state of matter is the common sub-
stance water. It is presented to us as the hard crystal-
line solid substance ice, as limpid water, and as gas in
the form of steam, in each state it is endowed with per-
fectly distinct qualities. Our business is chiefly with
those qualities presented to us when it is in the condition
of a gas. Water, like every other substance (we will refer
to the exceptions presently), expands by heat and con-
tracts by cold. The liquid water itself expands by
heat, but when the water is transformed to steam it
occupies, in round numbers, 1700 times as much space,
or, more exactly, 1669 times its volume. A cubic foot or
cubic inch of water, evaporated into steam at the ordinary
pressure of the atmosphere, fills a space equal to 1669
cubic feet or inches.
7. Co-efficient of Expansion. -Already it has been
stated that all bodies upon being heated expand, and on
cooling contract.
The amount a body expands in length, on receiving one
degree of additional heat, is termed the linear co-efficient
of expansion.
The amount the surface of a body expands, in receiving
 12 STEAM .

one degree of additional heat, is termed the superficial

co-efficient ofexpansion.
The amount a body expands in bulk, on receiving one
degree of additional heat, is termed the cubical co-efficient
ofexpansion.
The superficial co-efficient is generally double the linear,
and the cubical three times the linear.
A gas or other elastic fluid, on being heated one degree
centigrade, expands about 003666 of its volume,
or for each degree Fahrenheit. Supposing we have
273 cubic inches of steam or gas in a vessel in which it
can expand, upon the application of heat sufficient to heat
it one degree centigrade, it will expand one inch, and
occupy a space of 274 inches, heated two degrees it
will occupy a space of 275 inches, three degrees, 276
inches, etc.
Co-efficients of Expansion.-The following are the
co-efficients of a few well known substances :- -
Substance. Linear Co-efficient. Cubical.
Zinc .. ⚫0000297 ⚫0000890
Lead.. ⚫0000284 ⚫0000890
Cornish Tin. *0000217 ⚫0000690
Silver ⚫0000191 ⚫0000574
Brass . ⚫0000185 ⚫0000554
Copper. ⚫0000171 ⚫0000512
Gold.. ⚫0000151 ⚫0000453
Wrought Iron... 0000118 ⚫0000354
Platinum. ⚫0000088 ⚫0000264
Glass ... ...... 0000087 ⚫0000254

8. Bodies Expand by Heat and Contract by Cold .

-The law is almost universally true, that bodies expand
by heat and contract by cold.
(a) The most familiar illustration we have of this law
is in the expansion and contraction of water when under
the influence of heat and cold. Take water at a tempera-
ture of 4°C.; after the heat has been applied for a short
time, it will begin to expand, and will continue to expand
as the temperature increases, till it reaches the boiling
point 100° C. After this, if we continue to apply heat,
 BODIES EXPAND BY HEAT. 13

no alteration will take place in the temperature of the

water. The additional heat that passes into the water is
employed in converting the water into steam. A cubic
inch of water will supply 1669 cubic inches of steam , or
nearly a cubic foot. The result of another experiment
was that a gallon of water, evaporated at 100°C. , produced
nearly 1700 gallons of vapour. When cold is applied to
this vapour it contracts to its original volume.
(b) In building such bridges as the Albert Bridge,
Saltash, and the Britannia and Conway tubular bridges,
spaces are left for the expansion and contraction of the
iron. The difference between the lengths of these bridges
measured during the extreme heat of summer and the
extreme cold of winter, is considerable.
(c) Experience has taught us that, in laying down the
rails for a railway, spaces of about two-eighths or three-
eighths of an inch must be left to allow the rails to ex-
pand in length. Were this not done, the molecular force
of expansion would be sufficient to draw the spikes or lift
the sleepers and rails out of their places.
Mr. Stephenson once stated that, in consequence of
laying three or four miles of line, near Peterborough,
with close joints, the heat of the sun on a warm day
caused such an extension that the rails and sleepers were
lifted in one place from the ballast so as to form an arch
fifty feet long and three feet high in the air.
(d) The simplest plan to separate a crank from a
shaft on which it has been shrunk, and, in fact, to dis-
connect any rust joint, is to apply heat, when the bodies
(being of different dimensions) expand unequally and
separate.
(e) Many other illustrations might be given, as, when
warehouses constructed with fire-proof floors, etc. , have
been destroyed by fire, the walls of the buildings which
were considered indestructible, have been thrown down
by the enormous expansion of the iron girders, tie-beams,
etc. Wheelwrights and carriage-builders, when they
wish to place the tire upon a wheel, expand it by placing
14 STEAM.

it in a fire, then slip it upon the wheel, and suddenly

cool it, when the molecular power of contraction holds
and binds the whole wheel firmly together.
9. Bodies Contract by Cold.-This may be illustrated
by most of the foregoing instances of expansion by heat.
A cubic foot of steam becomes a cubic inch of water
when contracted by cold. The ends of railway rails are
more widely separated in winter than in summer. This
point will be further illustrated under the heading of
Molecular Force ; but a goodillustration will be found
in the method by which collars are shrunk on a shaft.
A neat way of putting collars on heavy marine shafts
where the journals come, is this-bosses are turned on
the shaft, and two ribs, three or four sixteenths of an
inch high, are left on the bosses for the collars, which
must be prepared in the lathe, and heated and slipped
over the ribs, then, upon contracting with the cold, they
will firmly grip the shaft.
10. The Enormous Power of Expansion and Con-
traction.—When bodies expand, the molecules of which
they are composed are pushed farther asunder by the
oscillatory motion communicated to them. The heat may
be described as entering the substance, and immediately
setting to work to separate the particles. The power or
energy they exert to do this is immense. The following
are illustrations of the energy of molecular forces. We
have already mentioned several under the heads Expansion
and Contraction :-
(a) When a dry wooden wedge is driven into the
crevice of a rock, and moistened with water, the wedge
swells and splits the mass. Thus many accidents have
happened to grinders through the wedges swelling between
the axle and the stone, and causing the latter to burst.
Of course, in this case, centrifugal force assisted the
wedges.
(b) When a rope is moistened, the diameter becomes
larger, and the rope shorter, for the fibres are drawn in
by this enlargement. It is said that, in lifting the statue
 MOLECULAR FORCE, OR ATOMIC FORCE. 15

of Nelson into its place in Trafalgar Square, the ropes

had stretched through the great weight, and the blocks
were close to each other. The whole operations would
have failed, although the hero was within a very short
distance of his place, had not a sailor cried out, "Wet the
ropes." The hint was immediately taken, and the work
accomplished.
(c) Water is turned into steam by heat; this heat
endows the water with (atomic) force sufficient to drive
the locomotive, to propel the steamship round the world,
to work the mill, the forge, the hammer, the pump, etc.
(d) If the wall of a large building be bulging out, and
an iron girder placed in a proper position, the power of
contraction by cold will subserve the purpose of bringing
it into the perpendicular. It has been done on a large
scale in France. A girder (or girders) was fitted across
the building, with strong wall plates at each end, and
screwed up as tightly as possible. All along the girder
was applied a number of gas jets, and as it expanded by
the heat, the screws were tightened . The girder was then
allowed to cool, and the strain of its contraction was
sufficient, after repeating the process several times, to
draw the walls into the perpendicular.
(e) We may also add, that the Gulf Stream and the
trade winds are caused by the atomic force of heat (but
see Convection).
11. Molecular Force, or Atomic Force.-All molecules
are under the influence of two opposite forces. The
one, molecular attraction, tends to bring them together ;
the other, heat, tends to separate them ; its intensity
varies with its velocity of vibration. Molecular attrac-
tion is only exerted at infinitely small distances, and
is known under the name of cohesion, affinity, and
adhesion.
By the force of cohesion everything is held together.
Heat and cohesion are antagonistic to each other. When
heat predominates in liquids they become gases, when
cohesion solids.
16 STEAM.

Chemical affinity is a form of molecular force that

greatly assists the engineer ; by chemical affinity the
various products of combustion in the air and the fuel
combine, and in the act of combination produce the heat
necessary for his purpose.
Adhesion is the molecular force exerted between bodies
in direct contact. When two pieces of lead have their
pure metallic surfaces laid bare, and are put together with
pressure and a twist, they become united so as to require
considerable force to separate them. When we come to
speak of the marine engine, and the way in which the
thrust of the shaft of the screw is received upon the
thrust block, reference will be made to the method first
adopted to receive the thrust, namely, on a series of discs,
which sometimes became so clean for want of attention to
the lubrication, that the pure metallic surfaces firmlyunited
by the molecular force of adhesion, and the shaft broke
at a distance from the discs.
Heat is another atomic force, which, by causing bodies
to expand and contract, exerts enormous power as already
illustrated.
12. Temperature of Bodies.-Temperature of a body
is the measure of the intensity of heat in the body. A
body may contain a large amount of heat that is not
sensible to a thermometer.
13. Thermometer is an instrument for measuring the
temperature or intensity of heat in a body. It is con-
structed on the principle that bodies expand and contract
when subject to cold and heat with a certain amount
of regularity within certain limits. The ordinary ther-
mometer consists of a closed glass tube with a capillary
bore, terminating at the lower end in a bulb, which, with
the bottom part of the tube, contains mercury or spirits
of wine, etc., the rest of the tube being a vacuum. A
graduated scale by the side ofthe tube indicates the amount
of expansion or contraction of the mercury. There are
three kinds of thermometers.
(1) Fahrenheit's, chiefly used in England and America.
 THERMOMETERS. 17

(2) That of Celsius, chiefly used by the French.

(3) That of Reaumur, used by the Germans.
14. (1 ) Fahrenheit's Thermometer. The increment of
expansion by heat and contraction by cold of mercury is
practically the same for all
temperatures for which a FAHRENHEIT CENTIGRADE REAUMUR
thermometer can be em-
ployed. Hence mercury is B -212° B -100° B -80
much better adapted for a
thermometer than water
or spirits of wine. Fahren-
heit named the greatest
degree of cold attainable
in his time by artificial
means 0° F. , and the F 32° F
freezing point 32 °. Hence
the graduation of his ther-
mometer commences at 32°
THERMOMETERS.
below the freezing point,
and between freezing and boiling there are 180°, so that
the boiling point is 212 ° F.
15. (2) Centigrade Thermometer. The freezing and
boiling points in the centigrade thermometer are 0° and
100° respectively. The method of indicating the measure
of heat, termed centigrade, is found so convenient that it
is fast superseding Fahrenheit.
16. (3) Reaumur, or Romer, introduced a much more
arbitrary division of the scale. He called the freezing
point 0°, the boiling point 80°.
We now see that in Fahrenheit's scale there are 180°
between the freezing and boiling points, in the centigrade
100°, in Reaumur 80°.
Rules to compare the reading of one thermometer
with that of another :-
(1) To convert Fahrenheit's degrees to centigrade-
Subtract 32°, then multiply by 5, and divide by 9.
(2) To convert centigrade to Fahrenheit-
Multiply by 9, divide by 5, and add 32°.
B
18 STEAM.

(3) To convert centigrade to Reaumur--

Multiply by 4 and divide by 5, or subtract one-fifth .
(4) To convert Reaumur to centigrade—
Multiply by 5 and divide by 4, or add one-quarter.
(5) To convert Fahrenheit to Reaumur, or Reaumur
to Fahrenheit—
First bring them into centigrade, then reduce to
Fahrenheit or Reaumur, whichever may be
required.
Exercises on the reduction of the number of degrees of
one thermometer to an equivalent number of another, will
be found at the end of the chapter.
17. Pyrometers.-Pyrometers are used for measuring
intense temperatures . It is evident to the most casual
observer that the thermometer will measure a degree of
heat but little beyond the temperature of boiling water.
To measure the intense heat of the kiln of the porcelain
manufacturer, the puddling furnace, the blast furnace, the
boiler furnace, flues, etc. , requires instruments of per-
fectly different construction. These are found in such as
Daniell's Pyrometer, Wedgewood's, the Sevres, Lavoisier
and La Place's, Houldsworth's, etc.
Daniell's Pyrometer consists essentially of a small
bar of platinum and a scale. A solid bar, in length
about eight inches, is cut out of a piece of black
lead earthenware, down its centre is drilled a hole
reaching nearly to the bottom. Into this is inserted
a tube of platinum reaching down to the end of the
hole, leaving room at the top to allow a small tube
of porcelain to be placed in, and to touch the end
of the platinum. This tube of porcelain is called the
index. The whole is named the register. When it is
desirable to ascertain the temperature of a heated body,
furnace, etc. , this is placed within the heat, and sufficient
time allowed for it to acquire the same temperature.
When it is withdrawn, it is found that the heat has
expanded the platinum, which, in its turn, has driven out
 CAPACITY FOR HEAT OF BODIES. 19

the porcelain tube a certain space, according to the in-

tensity of the heat ; the porcelain is prevented from return-
ing by a platinum strap.
The Register is, after it has cooled, next applied to a
scale properly graduated, to enable the observer to read
off easily the change in temperature.
18. Unit of Heat.-A unit of heat is the amount of
heat necessary to raise the temperature of a pound of
water one degree. Suppose a pound of water to be raised
from 10° C. to 20°C. , it has received ten additional units
of heat ; if five pounds of water be raised 5°, each
pound has received five units of heat, and the whole
twenty-five units. If we raise the temperature of half-
a-pound of water 10°, we communicate to it five units of
heat.
19. Capacity for Heat of Bodies. The capacity for
heat of bodies means their power of storing up heat.
To work the same change of temperature in different
bodies requires different amounts of heat. A given
quantity of heat put into one body will cause a greater
amount of motion than when put into another. Suppose,
for instance, we throw six balls, the same size, of silver,
tin, bismuth, copper, lead, and iron into boiling water,
each will soon acquire the temperature of the boiling
water, 100°C.; now take them out of the water, it will
be found that you can almost at once handle the bismuth
and lead, soon after the tin, then the silver, last of all
the copper and iron remain hot the longest. The reason
is this, that to raise the lead and bismuth to the tempera-
ture of 100° C. requires much less heat than to raise the
tin. Tin requires less than silver, silver less than
copper, and iron more than either ; and, therefore, having
more heat it takes a longer time to lose the motion.
If we had taken the same balls and put them upon a thin
cake of wax after heating them in boiling oil or water, it
would be found that the iron would melt and fall through
the wax first, the copper next, silver next, perhaps, if the
wax were sufficiently thin, while the lead and bismuth
20 STEAM .

would not get through at all. The reason is this, the iron
has the greatest specific heat, or it has stored up more
heat than the others , and, therefore, it has enough to im-
part to the wax to melt it. The same with the copper, while
the bismuth and lead, having a less capacity for heat than
the others, they have less to give up, or less motion to
impart to the wax to melt it and work their way
through.
20. The Calorimeter is not used to measure the tem-
perature of a body, but to ascertain the total amount of
heat in it, or to find the specific heat.
Two similar metallic vessels are placed, one within the
other, so as to leave a space between them. This space
is filled with pounded ice, while a discharge pipe proceeds
from the bottom of the external vessel to carry off all
water that may be produced through the liquefaction of
the ice by the external air. A third, and nearly similar
vessel, is placed within the second, leaving a space be-
tween it and the second vessel, which is also filled with
pounded ice ; a second discharge pipe (with a stop cock)
proceeds from the second vessel without communicating
with the outside one. Each vessel is provided with its
proper cover. It is obvious that the ice in the inner space
cannot be affected by the temperature of the external air
when the calorimeter is closed. The substance, whose
specific heat we wish to ascertain, is placed, after observing
its temperature, within the third or inner vessel. It is
perfectly clear that any heat the body may contain, will
communicate or lose its motion to the ice in the second
space, or the ice will take up the heat from the substance
as latent heat, and become converted into water ; this
is then allowed to pass through the discharge pipe
leading from the inner vessel, and is collected. This
water will at all times be proportional to the heat
stored up in the given substance placed within the
calorimeter.
By the calorimeter, it has been ascertained that to raise
the temperature of water 1°, requires thirty times as much
 THE CALORIMETER. 21

heat as would be required to raise mercury 1 °. Or the

same heat that would raise 1 lb. of water 1°, would raise
the temperature of 30 lbs. of mercury 1 ° ; and this is
what is meant when we say the specific heat of mercury
isor 03 that of water. Iron requires 33 more heat
than lead to work in it the same change of temperature ;
practically, this means that lead will heat 33 times quicker
than iron ; at the same time it will cool very much more
quickly than iron . It is obvious that to heat 2 lbs. of
water 1°, requires twice as much heat as to heat 1 lb. of
water 1°. The relative quantity of heat necessary to
produce the same change of temperature in different
bodies is their specific heat. We said the capacity for
heat of water was thirty times that of mercury ; hence
this latter substance is so well adapted for thermometers ;
we see at once how sensible it must be to the least acces-
sion or subtraction of heat. Again, the capacity for heat
of air at constant pressure, is about one quarter that of
water, or more accurately 237 ; hence 1 lb. of water,
whose specific heat is 1 , on losing 1 ° of heat, will increase
the temperature of ( 37 ) 4.2 lbs. of air 1 °. But water
is 770 times heavier than air. Hence if we compare
volume instead of weight, a cubic foot of water, on losing
1° of temperature, will increase that of 770 × 4 ·2 = 3234
cubic feet of air 1°.
Capacity for heat may be defined as the quantity of
heat necessary to raise the same weight of different sub-
stances through the same number of degrees of tempera-
ture ; but it must not be defined as the amount of heat
necessary to raise a pound weight of a given substance
one degree in temperature, or else we shall confound it in
the case of water with the unit of heat. Capacity for
heat is found thus : one, two , three pounds, ounces, etc.;
any weight may be chosen , of any substance, and heated
so many degrees, one, two, three, etc. (generally heated in
boiling water), and then put into the calorimeter, then
according to the quantity of ice melted we have the
capacity for heat. The quantity each substance liquefies
23
22

STEAM

.
is noted, the whole compared with water as a standard,
and the capacity for heat determined.
The following are the specific heats, or capacity for
heat, of a few well known substances :-
Bismuth, ...... '0308 Copper,. 0949 Air, 237
Lead,..... 0314 Iron, ..1098 Steam,. 4805
Mercury,. 0333 Glass, .1770 Ice, ... 504
Platinum,...... 0355 Sulphur, ....... .1844 Water, ..... 1000
Silver, 0557 White marble, 2158
21. Convection- Methods by which Large Masses of
Air or Water become Heated.-" Convection is the trans-
fer of heat by sensible masses of matter from one place to
another." Water can only be heated by convection ; it is
scarcely possible to heat it by conduction . Our rooms are
ventilated by convection, smoke ascends the chimney by
the same principle, and all our winds and currents, in
both air and water, are caused by this convection. The
wind-sails of a ship afford an instance in which this law
of nature is made available for ventilation.
If A B be a glass vessel or large Florence flask filled
with water, when heat is applied
B at A, the water near A is im-
mediately heated and expanded,
and becoming specifically lighter
rises up, and the colder water
from above falls down to supply
its place ; this continual change
goes on as long as the heat is
A applied at A, and is called con-
vection. If a little cochineal be
placed in the water, it will sink
to the bottom of the flask, and
heat being applied as before, the
cochineal directly leaves the bot-
CONVECTION OF WATER. tom, ascends up the middle, and
then descends by the sides, returning again to the heat.
By this simple experiment the action of convected water
is made visible to the eye.
 LATENT HEAT OF WATER. 23

Let C D be a large test-tube filled with water, and held

by an holder in the position indi-
D cated by the figure ; then let heat
be applied at D, it will be found
almost impossible to heat the
water in the test-tube, for the
heated or convected water rises
perpendicularly up from the heat,
confining itself to the top of
C the tube, and scarcely any heat
is conducted downwards, for, of
CONDUCTION OF WATER.
course, the convected or light
water cannot run down, or mix itself with, or rather
communicate its motion to, the heavier water below.
Large masses of water can only be heated by convection,
and therefore all furnaces should be placed as low down
in the boilers as possible, while below the bars there
should be but little if any water.
A patent fire-door is used for boilers, which is nothing
but the application of the principle of convection : the
doors are made with front and back plates, and hollow
within. In the front plate are a few openings, one to one
and a half inches in diameter, the back plate is thoroughly .
perforated with smaller holes. The air goes in at the bot-
tom of the front plate, and out at the top, carrying off the
heat, so that the front of the door is never heated to red-
ness, the current of convected air carrying off the heat.
In precisely the same way the funnels of steamers are
kept cool, and passed through the wood of the decks.
casing is placed entirely round the funnel, passing into
the engine-room, and sometimes spreading out over the
boilers. A stream of air then continually runs up be-
tween the funnel and the casing ; this air takes the heat
out of the funnel as it passes upwards, and keeps it from
becoming too hot. Holes are often made at the bottom
of the casing for the passage of additional air.
22. Latent Heat of Water (or Ice).-If a pound of
ice at 0°C. , be mixed with a pound of water at 79°·4C. ,
24 STEAM

the water will gradually dissolve the ice, being just

sufficient for that purpose, and the residuum will be two
pounds of water at 0°C. The 79.4 units of heat which
are apparently lost, have been employed in performing a
certain amount of work, i.e., in melting the ice or separ-
ating the molecules and giving them another shape, and
as all work requires a supply of heat to do it, this 79.4
units have been consumed in performing the work neces-
sary to melt the ice, and is termed the Latent Heat of
Water. If the pound of water were re-converted into
ice, it would have to give up the 79.4 units of latent
heat ; hence we see why it should be called the latent
heat of water, and not the latent heat of ice. The three
forms of water are, then, ( 1 ) a solid, as ice ; (2) a liquid,
as limpid water ; ( 3) a gas, as steam.
23. Latent Heat of Steam- The latent heat of steam
at a pressure of 15 lbs. , or thirty-two inches of mercury,
is 537°.20. We will describe an experiment which
will help to illustrate this point, and fix the fact in
the memory. Suppose that we have two very small
vessels connected at their tops by a tube. Let one con-
tain a pound of water, at the temperature of 0°C. , and
the other five and a half pounds, at the same tempera-
ture. If a spirit lamp be applied beneath the vessel
containing the one pound of water, its temperature will
gradually rise to 100°C. , when ebullition will begin, and
if the heat be continued , the water will not increase in
temperature, but will pass off as steam along the tube to
the second vessel, where the five and a half pounds of
cold water will condense the steam and absorb the heat,
which first enters and passes from the one pound, as long
as the spirit lamp is applied to it. This operation of
condensation and absorption will continue until the one
pound ofwater is all converted into steam and re-converted
into water. At the moment that the evaporation of the
pound of water is completed, the heat transferred by the
steam from one vessel to the other will cause the five and
a half pounds of water to boil. It will be found that
 CONDUCTION. 25

there are now in the second vessel six and a half pounds
of water, at a temperature of 100°C. As the 1 lb. takes
100 units of heat to make it boil , the 51 lbs. tako
5 × 100 = 550 units ; or, as there are 6 lbs. of
water in B, the total quantity of heat is 100 × 61 = 650
units of heat. The boiling water, the one pound, never
exceeded a temperature of 100°, all the rest of the heat
went to evaporate the water ; and as we know there are
650 units of heat in the 6½ lbs. , therefore the latent heat of
steam is 550. Exact experiments make the 5½ lbs. 5.372 .
Hence the latent heat deduced from the experiment will
be 5.372 × 100 = 537.2. This 537°.6 C. , or 966° .6 F. , is the
latent heat of steam. In making the experiment, ounces or
smaller quantities of water are employed, and not pounds.
24. Consumption of Heat in Liquefaction and Va-
porisation. This is but another way of putting the facts
connected with the latent heat of water and steam. We
have seen that the latent heat of water is 79 ° · 4C . , or to
liquefy a given quantity of ice requires this amount of
heat; to raise the water to its highest temperature con-
sumes 100°C. more ; next, to vaporise it consumes
537° 2C.
When heat is imparted to a body its atoms push each
other asunder, and the molecules commence to oscillate
more or less rapidly. The more intense the heat the
quicker the particles oscillate ; by raising the tempera-
ture you increase the oscillations, while cooling is a
decrease of vibration, or loss of motion.
25. Conduction.-If we place one end of a poker or
piece of iron in the fire, the molecules of the iron in the
fire immediately begin to oscillate, and each molecule
strikes its neighbour, passing the motion on, so that the
end of the poker out of the fire also becomes warm. The
process by which the heat is passed up the poker is called
conduction. There are good and bad conductors. The
metals are generally good conductors, and the earths, saw-
dust, ashes, stone, glass, chalk, etc. , bad conductors.
Silver is one of the best conductors. If we call its power
26 STEAM.

of conduction 100, that of copper is 74 , of gold 53, iron

12, lead 9, bismuth 2. A knowledge of this property of
heat will teach an engineer on what to bed or surround
his boiler, so that the least possible heat may be con-
ducted out of it ; also, in what he may case his steam
pipes, cylinder, etc. , to attain the same end.
The following are a few simple illustrations of the
principle of conduction :-If a short piece of iron and a
piece of glass the same length and size be placed in the
fire, a little time afterwards we may handle the glass at
the farther end, but not the iron, because the motion
of the heat has passed up the iron more readily than
up the glass. Again, if we obtain two short bars, one
of platinum and another of tin, and fasten along them,
by means of wax (which melts at 16° C. ), a row of small
balls, then bring the two ends together in the flame of a
burner, so that they shall be subject to the same heat, we
shall find that the balls will drop off three times faster
from the platinum rod, by means of its superior con-
ductibility, than from the tin. The same experiment can
be tried with rods of copper and iron, when they will fall
more rapidly from the better conductor of the two, copper.
As a rule, conduction is most strongly exhibited by solids,
particularly by metals. Dense bodies (not including
earths) are the best conductors, and light and porous ones
the worst-the latter being non-homogeneous and not
capable of communicating the motion or passing it on.
Feathers, down, flannels, fur, blankets, woollens, etc. , keep
us warm because they are bad conductors, and will not
allow the motion to pass from the body. On the same
principle a few sheets of newspaper placed on a bed keep
the sleeper warm. Liquids and gases are generally very
bad conductors of heat.
26. Conversion of Heat into Work and Work into
Heat.- Loss of heat is loss of work. It is the province
of the engineer to convert heat into work, and to let
none escape until it has done its duty. The most familiar
illustration we can give is the locomotive. Fire is put
 EXERCISES. 27

under the boiler, the heat converts the water into steam,
which drives the engine and train ; before the train can
be stopped the whole moving force must be destroyed,
which is effected by shutting off the steam and putting on
the brake, when the force that moves the train is re-con-
verted into heat, and sparks and fire issue from the brake.
So that the work, or moving force, is turned into heat.
When a carriage or waggon is going down a hill, the drag
is put on to destroy the moving force, which it does by
converting it into heat, and making the drag very hot.
We must remember, at the same time, that the horses
drawing the carriages convert the heat of their bodies,
supplied and constantly renewed by the food they eat, into
work, part of which work we have just shown is re-con-
verted into heat in the drag in going down hill.

QUESTIONS AND MATHEMATICAL ILLUSTRATIONS

FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. Convert 18° 5C. to Fahrenheit ( 1866).

Since 100° C 180° F. (between freezing and boiling)
... 5° C. 9°F.
.. 18°.5C. = 65°.3F.
9
5) 166.5
33.3
32 add so that the starting point may be 32° below
65°.3F. freezing.
2. What degree on the centigrade thermometer corresponds to
158° on Fahrenheit's ?
By the same reasoning as in the previous question, but sub-
tracting 32° to start from the freezing point,
158° F. 70°C.
32
126
5
9)630
70°C.
28 STEAM.

3. Reaumur's scale shows 45°, what is the corresponding tem-

perature (1) on the centigrade ? (2) on Fahrenheit's scale ?
Centigrade. Fahrenheit's.
80° R. 100° C. Instead of converting the 45°
4° R. = 5° C. R. to F. , we will convert to
45° R. = 56° C. 56° C. to F.
5 56° C. = 133° F.
4)225 9
561 C. 5 )5061
1011
32
133° F.
4. The linear co-efficient of expansion of iron is 0000123 for
1° C. I have a rod of iron 20 feet long, and heat it from 20° C.
to 290° C. , what is the increase in length?
The temperature is raised 290° -20° = 270°
For 1° C. each foot of iron increases 0000123 feet in length
For 270° C. 99 99 99 0000123 × 270
For 270° C. 20 feet 99 •0000123 × 270 × 20 99
= 06642 feet = 79704 inches, or over half an inch.
5. The co-efficient of expansion of gas is for one degree
centigrade, find the increase in volume of 100 cubic feet of gas
heated from 10° C. to 100° C.
The temperature of the gas is raised 100° 10° 90° C.
1 cubic foot on being heated 1° C. increases 773
90
1 cubic foot "" 90° C. 273
100 cubic feet "" 90X100
273
* = 33 nearly
.. Volume of the 100 cubic feet after being heated = 100 + 33
= 133 cubic feet.
6. Convert 100° C. to Fahrenheit. Ans. 212° F.
7. Express 28° F. in degrees centigrade. Ans. -2° C.
8. What degree centigrade and Fahrenheit corresponds to
80° R. ? Ans. 100° C., and 212° F.
9. What degree centigrade corresponds to 100° R. ?
Ans. 125° C.
10. The linear co-efficient of expansion of copper is 0000171 .
How much will a rod 10 ft. long increase in length if heated from
0° C. to the temperature of boiling water ?
Ans. nearly inch.
11. A brass letter is attached to the glass of a window, find
how much the amount of expansion varies between the extreme
heat of winter and summer, extreme of winter being -3° C.,
extreme of summer 35° C .; the co-efficient of expansion of glass
is '00000876, and of brass ' 0000185. Ans. 00444144 inches.
 EXERCISES. 29

12. The temperature of 20 cubic feet of gas is increased from

14° C. to 49° C. , find the increase in volume and present volume.
Ans. 2.56 and 22 ·56 cubic feet.
13. If 40 volumes of gas have their temperature raised 60° C. ,
what is the increase? Ans. 8.79 volumes.
14. Explain what is meant by capacity for heat and latent
heat. What is the latent heat of steam at the ordinary atmos-
pheric pressure ( 1863) ?
15. Distinguish between conduction and convection. Mention
some substances that are bad conductors, and state to what uses
they are applied in the steam engines ( 1863).
16. Describe the several methods by which heat is propagated.
Explain the terms capacity for heat and latent heat. What is
the latent heat of steam ( 1864) ?
17. What is meant by temperature ? What are the general
effects of adding heat to or subtracting it from a body (1865) ?
18. A centigrade thermometer marks 5°, what will a Fahrenheit
thermometer mark ( 1865) ? Ans. 41° F.
19. Describe Daniell's pyrometer. For what purpose is it
used (1865) ?
20. Define capacity for heat, latent heat, and unit of caloric
(1865).
21. Show how to graduate a thermometer.
22. Why is it necessary to take the height of the barometer in
account in determining the boiling temperature ( 1866) ?
23. Show how to convert degrees on a centigrade into degrees
on Fahrenheit's scale.
24. What temperature F. corresponds to 49° 5 C. (1866) ?
Ans. 121 ° 1F.
25. What is meant by latent heat ? Show under what circum-
stances heat becomes latent ( 1866).
26. What do you understand by conduction and convection as
applied to heat (1867) ?
27. What is the latent heat of steam ? How is its amount
ascertained ( 1867) ?
28. What is the distinction between sensible and latent heat ?
Describe an instrument for measuring the former (1868) .
29. Under what circumstances generally ( 1) does heat become
latent ? (2) does latent heat become sensible ?
30. What amount of latent heat becomes sensible when ice is
thawed into water (1868) ?
31. Show how a thermometer is graduated. Compare the
graduations on Fahrenheit's, Reaumur's, and the centigrade
scale. Reaumur's scale shows a temperature of 15°, what will
the centigrade and Fahrenheit's scales respectively show for the
same temperature ( 1868) ? Ans. 18° C. and 65° F.
32. What do you understand by the conduction of heat?
30 STEAM.

Mention one or two good, moderate, and bad conductors of heat

(1869).
33. How can it be shown that the temperature at which water
boils depends upon external pressure ? What is high pressure
steam ( 1869) ?
34. Under what circumstances does heat become latent ?
 CHAPTER II.

STEAM, SALT WATER, AND INCRUSTATIONS.

The Formation of Vapour and Steam-Boiling Point of Fresh

and Salt Water-Analysis—The Causes which Influence the
Boiling Temperature of Water — High Pressure Steam-
Measure of Steam Pressures by Atmospheres- Steam when
in Contact or not in Contact with Water -The Relation
between Pressure, Density, and Temperature of Steam-
Specific Gravity of Steam-Quantity of Water required to
produce Condensation-Common and Superheated Steam-
Analysis of Sea Water.

27. Vapour and Steam. -Steam was defined as an

elastic invisible fluid, produced from water by the appli-
cation of heat. So long as it is invisible some autho-
rities count it steam, and as soon as it becomes visible
they call it vapour. Others, again, give the term steam
to all vapour produced artificially by heat ; when water
passes away insensibly, as through the influence of the
sun or air, it is called vapour. Evaporation is the act of
converting water into vapour. Liquefaction is the act of
converting a solid into a liquid, or a gas into a liquid.
Ice is converted by heat from a solid state to a liquid
condition. Heat is the sole agent in the liquefaction of
solids ; on the contrary, cold will liquefy certain gases,
while it will render some liquids, as water and mercury,
solids.
28. Boiling Point of Fresh and Salt Water.- Speak-
ing of the thermometer, it was stated that 100° C. , 80° R. ,
and 212° F. , marked the boiling point of water respec-
tively on each system of graduation . The boiling point
of a liquid is defined as " that temperature of the liquid
32 STEAM.

at which the tension of its vapour overcomes the resist-

ance of the atmosphere." At the sea level, fresh water is
found to boil at a temperature of 100° C., and for every
1062 feet that we ascend in vertical space, water will
boil at a temperature of 1 ° C. less, the barometer standing
in such cases at about 30 inches of mercury. The reason
why water will boil at a lower temperature as we ascend,
is, that the tension of its vapour meets with less resist-
ance from the pressure of the atmosphere, and therefore
ebullition takes place earlier. Sea water is heavier than
fresh, in the proportion of 1 : 1.024 . In consequence of
this, salt water boils at a higher temperature than fresh
water, because the tension of the vapour has a greater
resistance to overcome in separating itself from the
water. Sea water with 3 1
30 of salt in it, at a pressure of
15 lbs. on the square inch, boils at a temperature of
100 ° C., with of salt it boils at 101 ° C., with 3 30
at 102 °C. , etc. Thus the saltness of the water influ-
ences the temperature at which sea water boils. As the
boiling point varies with the pressure of the atmosphere,
so precisely in the same way the pressure of the steam
upon the surface of the water in a boiler will have a
tendency to raise the boiling point, because the tension
of the vapour has a greater pressure or resistance to
overcome before it can free itself from the water.
When fresh water is used in a boiler, if we know its
temperature we can tell the pressure, and if we know
the pressure we can tell the temperature.

TABLE OF PRESSURES AND TEMPERATURES.

Pressure in Temperature Pressure in Temp. Pressure in Temp.
lbs. per sq. in. Centigrade. lbs. persq. in. C. lbs. per sq. in. C.
15 lbs. 100° 55 142°•4 100 165°.3
20 lbs. 109° 60 145°.6 105 167°3
25 lbs. 116° 65 148° 4 120 172°.9
30 lbs. 121°.7 70 151°.2 135 178°.
35 lbs. 126°.8 75 153°.8 150 182°.6
40 lbs. 131° 80 156°.3 165 187°.
45 lbs. 135°.4 85 158°.8 180 190°.9
50 lbs, 139° 90 161° 195 194°.6
 POINT OF SATURATION. 33

The lesson to be learnt from the foregoing table is this,

that if we find that the pressure gauge of a boiler using
fresh water stands at 40 lbs., then the temperature of the
water in the boiler is 131 ° C.; or, on the contrary, if
by a thermometer we can ascertain that the temperature
of the boiler water is 131 ° C. , we know that the steam
pressure in the boiler must be 40 lbs.
29. Salt in Sea Water and in a Marine Boiler.—
As water evaporates, the steam passes away, leaving all
impurities behind— whatever solid substances may be in
solution in the water they remain in the boiler ; hence a
marine boiler using sea water becomes a large evaporat-
ing salt-pan, unless steps be taken to get rid of the
salt.
30. Analysis of Sea Water. -The principal substance
which is held in solution by sea water is chloride of
sodium, or common salt. The following may be taken
as a fair analysis of sea water : Out of every hundred
parts of solid matter in sea water
72 parts are sodic chloride
11 99 ,, magnesic chloride
6 99 magnesic sulphate
5 29 calcic sulphate
2 29 "" calcic carbonate
99 """ organic and other unimportant substances.
100

The substances most injurious to a marine boiler in the

above, are the calcic sulphate and calcic carbonate, the
second forms solid incrustations on the boiler, while the
other eats it away. The amount of salt, it is seen, is 72
parts out of one hundred. Again, if thirty gallons of sea
water be taken and evaporated, the residuum will be a
gallon of salt; so that when we consider the large amount
of water used by an engine, we can soon form an idea of
the quantity of salt, etc. , left behind, and how quickly
danger may ensue through carelessness or want of proper
precautions.
31. Point of Saturation .— It has been a problem for
C
34 STEAM.

the solution of marine engineers how to best get rid of

these impurities, especially the salt sodic chloride, as
it is present in the largest quantities. The only effectual
method of disposing of the salt is not to let the water in
the boiler become too salt. This is done by opening a com-
munication, called the blow-out valve, between the boiler
and the sea, and letting the water run from the boiler
into the sea, and then filling up the boiler with fresh
sea water. Sea water contains 30 of salt, etc. Suppose
we have a boiler containing a thousand gallons of salt
water, and one half, or 500 gallons, is evaporated, it is
evident that the remainder will contain double the original
quantity of salt, or . If one half of this be evaporated,
so as to leave only 250 gallons, these will contain 30 of
salt, after which, if no feed enter the boiler, the water
11
will soon reach what is called the point of saturation, 30,
and the salt in the water will fall down, for the water
is saturated with salt, or will hold no more. The usual
practice is never to allow the salt in the boiler to exceed
4 or to blow out from the boiler one-third the quantity
30,
evaporated. If 300 cubic feet are evaporated, another
hundred must be blown out, or as the 300 + 100 must
be equal to the total amount of feed water, of the latter
one quarter must be blown out. It may be illustrated
thus : Of every 100 gallons or cubic feet of water that
enter a marine boiler, 75 may be turned into steam ,
and the remainder blown out of the boiler into the sea.
Such a practice will prevent the boiler water exceeding
3 of saltness.
3032. Brining the Boiler.-The process of blowing the
brine out of the boiler is frequently called " brining the
boiler." It is a custom to blow out at certain given
periods, or after the engine has been at work, every 3 or
4 hours ; but it is evident that if we have intelligent
men driving our engines, they ought, by examining the
water, or by calculating how much feed they have used,
to know better than to depend upon such a rule of
thumb method when to brine the boiler.
 HIGH PRESSURE STEAM. 35

33. Incrustation of Land Boiler..- Land boilers

become incrusted by the deposition of lime, iron, and
other injurious substances upon the inside of the boiler.
Just as we see a kettle incrusted by " fur," so land boilers
are liable to the same thing, but to a much greater extent.
Water from off the oolite, chalk, and other formations
containing lime always incrusts boilers.
34. To Prevent Scale Forming in Boilers . It has
already been shown how this is accomplished in marine
boilers. In land boilers nothing will prevent the forma-
tion of scale but the use of absolutely clean water.
Many empirical receipts are given, but the most they do
is to throw down the substances held in solution in the
form of powder, which is simply a change of evils
without any compensating advantage.
35. To Clean Scale from a Boiler. This should
always be done with the chipping chisel. It is condemned
by many engineers as a vicious and bad custom, to throw a
few shavings into the boiler, which, by creating sudden
heat when set on fire, causes the inside shell of the
boiler rapidly to expand, and thus separate itself from
the incrustation.
36. Danger of Scale.--This will be fully treated under
the head of boiler explosions.
37. High Pressure Steam Does not Scald .- If steam
at high pressure be issuing from an orifice and the hand
be placed in it, it will not be scalded . The reason must
be that, as it issues into the air, the pressure is decreased
and reduced to 15 lbs. The steam, therefore, immediately
takes to itself the deficient latent heat from the air ; for
the latent heat of high pressure steam is less than that
of low pressure, and as steam, when it has issued into the
atmosphere, is under a pressure of only 15 lbs . on the
square inch, it must necessarily take to itself the re-
quired amount of latent heat for that pressure. If the
pressure had been 30 lbs . , the deficient latent heat would
have been 22°C. The steam is, therefore, busily employed
in taking these 22° of heat from the atmosphere, and even
36 STEAM.

from the hand placed in it ; and so, under the circum-

stances, will rather cool than scald the hand.
38. Measure of the Pressure of Steam.—The pressure
of steam is measured by atmospheres. Steam of 15 lbs.
pressure is steam of one atmosphere, of 30 lbs. pressure of
two atmospheres, etc. It is frequently used as high as six or
seven atmospheres ; but even ten, or 150 lbs . pressure, is
employed. Steam below two atmospheres is termed low
pressure steam, and all pressures above, high pressure
steam. This is one of the points, and really of no conse-
quence, upon which scientific men have no uniform
opinion ; what some consider high pressure, others consider
low or ordinary pressure steam, while some term steam
above one atmosphere high pressure. It is better, in the
unsettled state of opinion , to make no distinction , as
above, between high and low pressure steam, but simply
state that you are using steam of one, two, three, or
more atmospheres.
39. Superheated or Surcharged Steam.- It has
become a practice to allow the steam, before it enters the
cylinder, to pass from the boiler into a series of tubes, or
into a strong iron chamber in which a large quantity of
vertical or horizontal tubes are fitted ; in these the steam
is further heated to increase its elasticity by the heat
that is passing away up the funnel or stack, thus from a
given quantity of steam a maximum amount of work is
obtained with a minimum amount of fuel consumed. Ꭺ
simple method of superheating steam is to allow it to pass
from the boiler by means of a short pipe into a small
chamber round the bottom of the funnel, and thence let
it pass to the engine.
40. The Advantage of Superheated Steam is, that as
we increase the pressure the amount of work done by the
engine rapidly increases also ; but the quantity of heat
contained in high pressure steam is very little more than
in low pressure. For instance, the units of heat in steam
at 110° C. , pressure of 21 pounds, is = 640° C. , at 165° C.,
or 104 pounds pressure, it is 657° C. , or only 17° C. more.
 STEAM IN CONTACT WITH THE WATER. 37

Since it is heated by the waste products of combustion

passing up the funnel or stack, it is more economical than
ordinary steam, but it is by no means economical if this
heating is carried to excess. To ensure efficiency it
wants little more than drying.
In consequence of its great heat, superheated steam
does injury to the internal parts of the engine ; it burns
the packing, and eats away the cylinders , especially
having an injurious effect upon those of indifferent work-
manship. As steam is superheated so its elasticity is
increased, or the elasticity varies with the temperature.
In practice many engineers do little more than dry the
steam ; for this purpose a small chest, or outer casing, is
sometimes fitted round the bottom of the funnel, the
steam passes through a short pipe from the boiler to this
casing, and is then led away to the cylinder to do its
work.
41. Steam when in Contact and not in Contact with
the Water. - Remembering the large amount of latent heat
in steam, it is evident that the steam contains much more
heat than the water from which it is produced. When
steam is generated in a boiler and not allowed to escape,
as fresh quantities rise from the water the density and
elasticity of the steam must increase ; at the same time
the boiler is receiving fresh additions of heat. So then,
as the temperature increases so do the density and elas-
ticity, which arises from two causes ; first, the expansive
property of the steam , second, the continual additions of
fresh steam keep continually increasing the density and
elasticity, while the fire increases the temperature to cor-
respond with the pressure. Steam under such a condition
as this is said to be saturated , that is, it contains as much
vapour as it possibly can for its temperature.
As long as the steam remains in contact with the
boiler water, the pressure exhibited by the gauge always
corresponds to a certain temperature, and the same tem-
perature in the boiler will always correspond to the same
pressure of steam. If the steam be taken from the boiler
38 STEAM.

and further heated in another vessel, in which is no

water, we may increase its pressure or elasticity, by
increasing the temperature, to almost any extent ; but, by
doing this, we decrease its density, hence the great dis-
tinction between steam when in contact and not in
contact with the water is this : when in contact with the
water there is a constant ratio between pressure and
temperature, but the invariable connection between
pressure and temperature does not exist when the steam
is not in contact with the water. We may increase the
one without augmenting the other.
42. Specific Gravity of Steam. The specific gravity
of steam is its weight compared with an equal volume of
air. The specific gravity of steam is 481 , or less than
half the weight of the same volume of air.
43. Quantity of Water Required to Condense Steam.
-Already it has been shown that the latent heat of
steam is nearly five and a half times as much as the
sensible heat. Suppose, for instance, we place in an
evaporating dish a certain quantity of water, two, three,
or four ounces, at a temperature of 22° C. , to it we apply
the flame of a spirit-lamp , and it boils in 31 minutes, and
continuing the same amount of heat we find the whole
is evaporated when 22 minutes 23 seconds more have
elapsed. Let us see what we can gather from this :
The water is raised from 22° to 100°, or through
100° - 22 ° = 78° of heat in 31 minutes ; therefore we con-
clude that every 31 minutes heat sufficient to increase the
temperature 78° will pass into the water. Into 22
minutes 23 seconds the 3 minutes will go (2223 ÷ 3 = )
6-887 , therefore the total heat passing in after it begins
to boil is 6.887 × 78 ° = 537 ° .186 C. From this we learn
that to evaporate the water takes very much more heat
than to boil it, and that the latent heat of steam is
537° 2C. Again, when this steam returns to water it
gives up all its latent heat. We have now to inquire
what amount of water is sufficient to reduce this steam
immediately to water.
 EXERCISES . 39

Watt came to the conclusion that 224 cubic inches of

water would condense a cubic foot of steam, or the steam
formed from one cubic inch of water, if every atom ofwater
did all it was capable of doing. He reasoned somewhat in
this way: Suppose the latent heat of steam is 537° .2C. ,the
temperature of the hot well being 37 ° C., and that of the
condensing water 10 ° C. , therefore every atom of water will
have its temperature raised 37 ° -10° - = 27° C., and as there
will be left in the steam converted into water 37 °, the
cold water has to take up 637 ° ·2 - 37 ° -
= 600 ° .2 C.; there-
fore the total cubic inches of water required for condensa-
tion = 6992 = 22.23, or 221 inches. But as every particle
of the water cannot be made to do all its work, he allowed
for condensation 28.9 cubic inches, or a wine pint for
each cubic inch evaporated in the boiler, or, in practice, he
allowed about one quarter more than was theoretically
necessary.

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. State clearly the difference between vapour and steam.
2. On what does the boiling point of water depend ? State
the ordinary temperatures at which fresh and sea water boil re-
spectively. What influences the temperature at which sea water
boils.
3. What is high pressure steam? and explain fully the meaning
of the expression, " He is using steam of three atmospheres.'
4. What difference is there between steam in contact and not
in contact with the water from which it is generated ? What is
Mariotte's law ?
5. What relation exists between the pressure, density, and
temperature of steam ?
6. Give the numerical value for the specific gravity of steam.
Compare its weight with one or two other gases or fluids.
7. How is steam superheated ? What is the difference between
common and superheated steam ?
S. Of what does sea water consist ? Give its constituent parts.
9. What weight of injection water at 80°F. will suffice to con-
dense a given quantity of steam into water at 120°F. ( 1863) ?
Ans. 26'4 for each ounce steam:
40 STEAM.

Each given quantity of water is raised from 80° to 120° or 40°.

The whole heat in the steam is 967° + 180 = 1147° F.
When this is condensed we leave it at a temperature of 120°.
.. We have to put in the water 1147 - 88.
As each quantity of water takes in 40 °.
1059
.. Total quantity required is 40 -26.4.
10. The temperature of the injection water is 70°F. , what
quantity of injection water will be required to condense a cubic
foot of water turned into steam to a temperature of 150°F. ?
Ans. 12.86 cubic feet.
11. The hot well is to be kept at a temperature of 125°F. , when
that of the injection water is 80° F. , how much injection water
will be required ? Ans. 23 42 nearly.
12. The temperature of the injection water is 75°F. , and the
hot well is kept constantly at 127° F.; find the quantity of injec-
tion water that is being used. Ans. 20.2.
13. Two ounces of water at 60°F. are placed in an evaporating
dish, which is covered, except a smallopening, bya glass plate. The
flame of a gas burner causes the water to boil in 3 minutes, and
the whole is evaporated after 22 minutes more have elapsed .
What would you infer as regards the latent heat of steam from
this experiment ? What is the correct numerical value given by
a more exact process ( 1871 ) ?
In 33 min. there pass into the water (212-60) = 152°F.
1 , 152
"" ""
31
152 x 22
22 "" "" "" "" = 1003.2°F.
3/1
We, therefore, infer that the latent heat of steam is 1003° ; the
more correct value is 967°F.
14. The temperature of the injection water is 60°, the steam
enters the condenser at a temperature of 212°, the water pumped
out of the condenser is at a temperature of 110° ; what weight
of injection water must be supplied for each pound of steam
which enters the condenser ( 1870) ?
(The latent heat of steam at 212° is 966 6).
Ans. 21 37 lbs.
15. What is meant by superheated steam ? What advantages
are gained by its use (1865) ?
 CHAPTER III.

RADIATION, OXIDATION, ETC.

The Radiation of Heat-The Absorption of Heat-Reciprocity

of Radiation and Absorption-Good and Bad Radiators-
Experimental Illustrations-Oxidation of Metals- Effects of
Galvanic Action.

44. Radiation. " Radiation is the transfer or com-

munication of heat from the particles of a heated body to
the air or ether." It is a transmission of motion ; the
vibrations of the heated body, being communicated to
the air, sets it in motion. This motion is called radiant
heat.
45. Absorption. - Absorption is the transmission of
motion (radiant heat) from the ether to the particles of
any body. Thus when a body is placed in the path of a
beam of radiant heat, it partakes of its vibrations, and
is set in motion, i.e., it becomes warm, or absorbs the
motion.
46. Good and Bad Radiators.-All bodies have not
the same powers of radiating and absorbing the motion
of heat. Bodies possessing these powers in a compara-
tively high degree, are said to be good radiators and
absorbers, and those possessing them in a less degree bad
radiators or absorbers. Thus earths are good, and water and
metals bad radiators. Smooth polished surfaces radiate
and absorb much less heat than rough or dirty surfaces.
Cylinder covers should be kept perfectly bright, so should
teapots and kettles, except the bottoms of the latter, which
are required to be good absorbers. A stove for cooking
should be bright, while a stove or pipe for heating a
42 STEAM.

room or greenhouse should be rough from the casting

mould, and not painted. Radiation can be prevented by
clothing with non-conductors. Cylinders have a wooden
casing made for them; boilers are built into brickwork
with layers of ashes, sawdust, etc. , around them ; and steam
pipes are covered with matting, etc. , to prevent radiation.
47. Reciprocity of Radiation and Absorption. — It
is interesting to note the reciprocity which exists between
the power of a body to communicate the motion of heat
to the ether, i.e., to radiate, and its power to receive
motion from a heated body through the medium of the
ether, or to absorb. In other words, good radiators are
good absorbers, and vice versa. Thus the earth (rocks,
etc.) quickly absorbs the radiant heat of the sun, but no
sooner does the sun set than the heat radiates from it ;
while the sea slowly gets warm, and retains its heat much
longer than the earth.
48. Experimental Illustrations- Radiation.- Place
a common mercurial or other thermometer about a yard
distant from the fire, or any other heated body, and
instantly it will indicate an increase of temperature, the
motion having been communicated by the fire to the air,
and by absorption it has been accepted or absorbed by the
glass of the thermometer, and by conduction transmitted
to the mercury. The melting of ice when placed before
the fire, warming your hands, the sun heating the rocks,
and they in their turn warming the air, are all instances
of radiation from the heating body and absorption in the
body warmed.
Good and Bad Radiators.-Take two hollow vessels,
one of metal and one of earthenware, and fill them
with boiling water. If a thermometer be held outside
and close to the metal one, it will be found to show
a much less increase of heat than when placed outside
and close to the earthenware vessel, and the water in the
earthenware vessel will cool much more rapidly than that
in the metal one. As a rule metals are bad radiators,
and earths good radiators. A slate held before a fire
 GALVANIC ACTION AND OXIDATION OF METALS. 43

will receive or absorb much more heat than a brass plate,

and so on. Dry atmospheric air will absorb no heat
whatever ; in fact, the rays of the sun, or radiant heat
from artificial sources, may pass through it without alter-
ing its temperature. On high mountains the direct rays
of the sun may be almost unbearably scorching, while the
air is perfectly cold, and the traveller has only to with-
draw into the shade to feel the freezing chill of the atmo-
sphere. For the same reason, that the air is perfectly dry,
ice is often formed at night in the desert of Sahara, where,
during the day, the direct rays of the sun make it a fiery
furnace.
Reciprocity of Radiation and Absorption. -If when a
red hot ball be placed between two plates of pewter and
glass respectively, and the different temperatures of the
two plates and of the air immediately around them be
noticed, it will be seen that the glass not only receives or
absorbs much more heat than the pewter, but also that
the radiation from the glass is much more powerful than
from the pewter.
From the remarks accompanying the definition of
reciprocity of radiation and absorption, it will be seen
that where radiation is powerful we may expect good
absorption, and vice versa.
49. Galvanic Action and Oxidation of Metals.
Metals are subject to two kinds of deterioration gal-
Ivanic action and oxidation. When two different metals
come in contact, especially if they are constantly wet, a
galvanic current is induced which results in the decom-
position of one of the metals, or one destroys the other.
For instance, who has not observed that old iron railings
are frequently wasted away towards the bottom, close
against the lead that fastens them into the stone ? The
reason is, that a galvanic current passes from one to the
other, and the soft lead wastes away the hard iron. If
we take, in the following order, silver, copper, tin, lead,
iron, and zinc, we have these in their relative positions
as regards galvanic action, and the farther they are from
44 STEAM .

one another in this list the greater the effects of galvanic

action. Those coming first in order will destroy any that
follow them. Copper, when in contact with tin , lead,
iron, zinc, etc. , will waste them away, but not silver—
the silver will eat away the copper, tin, lead, etc. When
copper pipes are fastened by iron bolts or screws, the iron
is soon destroyed, especially in damp situations.
Oxidation is a chemical action. When iron rusts we
have an instance of oxidation. The oxygen of the air
enters into chemical combination with the iron, and forms
oxide of iron or rust. When the oxygen of the air com-
bines with the copper, we have oxide of copper or verdi-
gris. Zinc in the same waybecomes covered with a layer
of the oxide of that metal when exposed to the air. Thus
it is necessary that metallic substances should be covered
with paint, grease, etc. , when exposed to the air, or
otherwise oxidation may proceed with sufficient rapidity
to injure them.
Two other facts , which are closely allied to oxidation
and galvanic action, may be stated, namely :-when super-
heated steam is employed in jacketed cylinders, and much
tallow introduced, it is found that the tallow is decom-
posed, and carbonises the piston, so that it becomes more
like a piece of plumbago than anything else. Cast iron
long immersed in sea water may be cut with a knife.
 CHAPTER IV.

THE ENGINE BEFORE WATT, AND WATT'S ENGINE

AND IMPROVEMENTS.

Savary's Engine-Newcomen's Atmospheric Pumping Engine-

Its Defects -The Discoveries of Watt-The Separate Con-
denser The Expansive Working of Steam- Its Economy-
Its Value in Regulating the Power of an Engine -Details
connected with Watt's Single Acting Pumping Engine-
The Steam Cylinder--Valves connected with Cylinder and
their Action The Condenser-The Air Pump - The Foot
Valve-The_Delivery Valve-The Snifting Valve-The Hot
Well-The Piston-Rod -Connecting Rod and Crank-Stuff-
ing Boxes and Glands -Parallel Motion- Method of Starting
the Engine and of Regulating its Speed by the Governor-
The Throttle Valve-The Cataract-Eccentric.

50. Savary's Engine.-Savary's was the first steam

engine employed to pump water. He took out his patent
in 1698. His engine consisted of a cylinder, in which
steam was employed to produce a vacuum only, after
which he relied upon the pressure of the atmosphere to
raise the water. At the top of his cylinder were two
openings, each fitted with a pipe and a stop-cock. These
were so arranged that the same handle opened one stop-
cock and shut the other simultaneously. One pipe
communicated with a boiler and admitted steam to the
cylinder, the other with a cistern of cold water. From
the bottom of the cylinder a pipe led down to the water.
It acted thus : Suppose the handle of the stop-cock
moved, and steam admitted to the cylinder, directly it
was filled the handle was pushed back, and a dash of water
from the other cock condensed the steam and formed a
vacuum ; then the pressure of the air on the water at the
46 STEAM .

bottom of the mine forced the water up into the cylinder,

which was prevented from returning by a valve opening
upwards ; on a second admission of steam, its elastic force
acting on the water drove it through a valve in the side
of the cylinder opening outwards ; this steam was again
condensed as before, etc. We thus see the principle upon
which it acted. The water was first forced by atmo-
spheric pressure into a vacuum, after which the elas-
ticity of the steam, pressing upon its surface, was made
to raise it still higher through another passage. The
inefficiency of this machine is apparent. Its defects
were : that steam was used in a cold cylinder ; that
the steam was always in contact with cold water, and,
therefore, the greater part of it was lost ; that the
engine was limited in its range and purpose ; that it
must be always far down in the mine from which the
water was raised.
51. Newcomen's Engine. Thomas Newcomen was
a Devonshire man, and the first to work out the idea of a
piston (at least in England). His engine was used for
pumping. In fact, the one idea of the early labourers at
the steam engine was to adapt it, or to invent a machine,
to pump water out of the Cornish mines.
Newcomen placed his cylinder immediately above his
boiler, from which steam passed directly through a stop-
cock. As soon as the piston was at the top of its stroke,
a cock was opened and cold water admitted into the
cylinder to condense the steam ; a vacuum being thus ob-
tained, the pressure of the air, 15 lbs . on the square inch,
immediately drove down the piston, which was attached
by a chain to the end of a sway beam moving on its centre.
The piston being thus forced down by atmospheric pres-
sure pulled up the other end of the beam at the same
time, and with it the pump rods, water, etc. When
fresh steam was admitted it forced up the piston against
the atmosphere, while the weight of the pump rods, etc. ,
at the other end, assisted the steam. The weight of the
pump rods, etc., was generally made equal to half the
 NEWCOMEN'S ENGINE. 47

pressure of the air on the piston. This engine raised 7 or

8 lbs. for each square inch of the piston. Newcomen's
was a single acting engine, because the steam acted on one
side of the piston only.
In Newcomen's engine, as represented in the accom-
panying figure, A P is the ashpit, FP the fireplace, B the
boiler, SC a stop-cock to admit the steam into the cylin-
der H from the boiler B. The cylinder was bored as
truly as possible, open at the top and closed at the bot-
tom , being connected with the boiler by a short pipe con-
taining the steam -cock. A piston p was made to move
up and down in the cylinder, as air-tight as practicable,
by packing its edges with hemp and covering the upper
surface with water. The piston-rod r was attached by a
chain c to the circular arc c d, forming the end of the beam
e Cd, which was now for the first time introduced. The
beam worked on its centre C, and was formed of strong
α

C
O

H
m
pr
BW SC
n B
TO

S' FP
Pr

NEWCOMEN'S ENGINE.
timbers firmly put together and strengthened by iron
bars and straps. The whole beam was supported on a
strong brick wall, B W. To the chain e attached to the
48 STEAM .

other arc was fastened the rod pr of the pump to be

worked in the mine. The power of the engine was in
the down stroke. The pump rod was made heavy enough
to act as a counterpoise by attaching weights g to it, so
that it was heavier than the piston, piston-rod, friction ,
etc. When the cock S C was opened and air admitted ,
it would rise freely without violently jerking out the
piston p. A safety valve was placed on the top of the
boiler. The manner in which the engine worked may be
thus described :-
:-
The boiler B was filled with a proper quantity of water,
and the steam "got up " to a pressure a little above that
of the atmosphere. The cock S C was opened (supposing
the piston at the bottom of the cylinder), and the steam
entered the cylinder, when the piston ascended partly
through the force of the steam, but chiefly in obedience
to the counterpoise weights g. Just before the piston
reached the top of the cylinder, the steam-cock was shut
and another cock o opened , which allowed water from
the cistern S to flow through the pipe m and condense the
steam in the cylinder, producing a vacuum, when the
pressure of the external air, acting on the top of the
piston, caused it to descend with a force proportionate
to its area; and as this force amounts to nearly 15
lbs. on the superficial inch, it was fully competent to
raise the end of the beam e, and with it the pump rods
and water. We thus see that the real work was done
by the atmosphere, and why it was called an atmospheric
engine. All the 15 lbs. was not effective.
Originally, it was much less perfect than here de-
scribed, for the condensation was in the first instance
performed from the outside of the cylinder. The admis-
sion of water into the cylinder to condense the steam was
discovered accidentally, through some holes being in the
piston of an engine which permitted the water, placed
upon it to keep it air-tight, to run through and condense
the steam, although we must remember Savary had in-
troduced steam into his cylinder and condensed it in the
 THE DISCOVERIES OF WATT. 49

cylinder. The great difficulty of opening the cocks at the

proper moment was conquered by Humphrey Potter, *
who attached some strings and catches to the cocks of an
engine he was employed to work at Wolverhampton, in
order to release himself from the trouble of attending
""
them ; his contrivance gave the first idea of " hand gear.'
The greatest nicety and attention on the part of the
workman was necessary in turning the two cocks at the
proper moment ; for if steam were permitted to enter the
cylinder for too great a length of time, the piston would
be carried out of it or blown out of its place ; while, on
the contrary, if not opened soon enough, it would strike
against the bottom with sufficient force to break the
cylinder. The steam was liable to become mixed with
air which was disengaged from the injection water. This
air, together with the injection water, was discharged
by a pipe n into the cistern s'. The pipe n terminated
in a valve to preserve the vacuum, which valve, from the
peculiar noise it made, was called the snifting valve or
snifting clack.
52. Defects of Newcomen's Atmospheric Engine.—
We have already hinted that it was named an atmospheric
engine, because it depended upon the pressure of the
atmosphere to perform the down stroke, or to do the real
work. Its great defect was that the steam was used in a
cold cylinder and condensed in a hot one ; i.e. , it was
cold when required to be warm, and warm when it should
be cold. It has been estimated that, by condensing the
steam in the cylinder, three-fourths of the power of the
engine were lost.
53. The Discoveries of Watt, and Separate Condenser.
-Watt, having the model of an atmospheric engine,
such as we have just described, to repair, asked himself
the question, whether it were not possible to prevent the
wasteful expenditure of steam. He saw intuitively the
great defect of the engine, and set himself to solve the
problem of a separate condenser. In this he completely
* Millington's Mechanical Philosophy.
Ꭰ
50 STEAM.

succeeded, and never left the steam engine until it was

comparatively a perfect machine. The annexed figure
is a fair representation of the great improvements he
introduced.
AB is a large casting, within which is placed the
condenser C, the air pump A P, and the hot well H W.
V is the piston or bucket of the air pump, with its two
valves shut down, but shown by dotted lines as they will
appear when the piston V is descending. E P is the

CW
PAR

W W

HW
A B

W AP W
W
v

CONDENSER AND AIR PUMP.

exhaust pipe, to convey the used steam from the
cylinder into the condenser C. C W is a pipe bring-
ing cold water from the pump, v the foot valve, v′
the delivery valve. W W W W is water surround-
ing the condenser and air pump, to keep the condenser
cold.
Let us suppose that the steam, having been used, comes
from the cylinder through the exhaust pipe EP. The
moment it enters the condenser, it is met by a scattered
jet of cold water from the rose head c, and is condensed.
The condensed steam and water fall to the bottom of the
condenser, and pass or are drawn through the foot valve v.
 EXPANSIVE WORKING OF STEAM. 51

Then the piston or bucket V of the air pump comes down

into the water ; the pressure of water opens the two butter-
fly valves, and the water passes through the valves, and so
gets above the piston. When the piston is drawn up, the
two valves are closed by the weight of the water above them,
which is next forced or delivered into the hot well H W,
through the delivery valve v ', from whence a portion of it is
pumped into the boiler through d, a part of the feed pump.
As the air pump ascends a vacuum is formed in AP, at
least as good a vacuum as exists in the condenser C, so that
the condensing water passes by gravity, etc. , through the
foot valve v, or "follows the bucket.' As the air pump
descends, we see v must close, so must v'; on the contrary,
as it ascends, both delivery and foot valve will open.
All water contains air more or less. The heat of the
steam disengages the air from the condensing water, which
would rise through theexhaust pipe, and prevent the proper
escape of steam, and counteract its pressure ifnot got rid of.
The air pump was, therefore, added by Watt to his
invention of the condenser, to prevent air from accumu-
lating and obstructing the engine.
54. The Expansive Working of Steam-its Economy
-its Value in Regulating the Power of an Engine.-
By expansive working of steam is simply meant this : that
the steam from the boiler is admitted to the cylinder during
only a part of the stroke; this admission being stopped, the
steam in the cylinder has then to complete the remainder
of the stroke by its expansive property. By Boyle's or
Mariotte's law, the pressure of steam varies inversely as
the space it occupies. For instance, suppose we have a
cylinder full of steam at a pressure of 30 lbs. on the square
inch, if we compress it into one half the space, the pressure
will then be 60 lbs . on the square inch ; while, if we allow
it to fill another cylinder of the same size, as well as the
one it originally occupied, or, in other words, allow it to
double its volume, its pressure will be only 15 lbs.; i.e.,
compress it into half the space its pressure is doubled , allow
it to occupy twice the space the pressure is only one half.
52 STEAM.

This figure will give a fair idea of the expansive work-

ing of steam, and its economy and value in regulating the
power of an engine. Suppose steam of 60 lbs. is admitted
to a cylinder 6 ft. long, and cut off at the stroke, then

A h

77

B 1 2

AN EXPANSION DIAGRAM (THEORETICAL . )

during the first and second feet the pressure is 60 lbs.; at

the end of the third foot, the steam will occupy one and a
half (3) the space, the pressure at the end is therefore of
60 lbs. = 40 lbs.; at the end of the fourth foot the steam fills
twice the space, the pressure is then of 60 lbs. 30 lbs.
So that from the end of the second foot to the end of the
fourth the pressure has fallen from 60 lbs. to 30 lbs. At
end of the fifth foot the steam fills two and a half (5) times
the space, hence pressure is of 60 lbs. = 24 lbs. Hence
we have steam being admitted at 60 lbs. , and
At end of first foot its pressure is 60 lbs.
"" second 99 60 lbs.
"" third ( of 60) = 40 lbs.
fourth 99 ( of 60) = 30 lbs.
99 fifth ( of 60) 24 lbs.
99 sixth (3 of 60) = 20 lbs.
We may say that steam of 20 lbs. , by giving it a great
initial pressure, and cutting it off at one third stroke,
has been made to do work equal to steam whose average
pressure is above 39 lbs. Again, during the first and
 WATT'S SINGLE ACTING ENGINE. 53

333
second feet the pressure of steam was 60+ 60 = 120 lbs. ,
during the remainder of the stroke the pressure = 40 + 30
+ 24 + 20 = 114 lbs., so that without any additional
expenditure of steam, by merely allowing it to expand,
we get almost double the work out of it when the steam
is cut off at stroke. We nearly double the work of
one-third of a cylinder of steam by mere expansion.
This sufficiently shows its superior economy. If in
our figure we cut off from gof its length, from h
, from i , from CD , and through the points draw
the curve fnm o p, then that curve will represent
the gradually decreasing pressure of steam. It is an
hyperbolic curve. We may partly see the reason for
the rule to find the units of work done by a piston in
one stroke, which is

qp +qp log.

where q is the portion of the stroke moved through

before steam is cut off, l is the length of the stroke, and
Р the pressure at which steam is admitted. For a proof
of this formula the reader is referred to the volume
on Steam in the Advanced Series.
55. Watt's Single Acting Engine. In this engine
A B is the cylinder, P the piston, PR the piston rod, S
the steam pipe, D leads to the exhaust, a b c are three
valves on one spindle, a the steam valve, b the equili-
brium, and c the exhaust.
The following is an explanation of the action of this
engine :-Steam comes along the steam pipe S from the
boiler, when the valves a b c, being in the position shown
in the figure, with a and c open and b closed, the steam
enters the cylinder A B in the direction marked by
the arrows with tails , and drives the piston down,
causing the pump valves at the other end to ascend.
Steam that may have been under the piston in E can
freely pass away to the exhaust D. The moment the
piston is at the bottom of its stroke, the valves move to
54 STEAM.

their second position, so that a and c rest on their

seats o, while b is opened. Then the steam that drove
the piston down can run
R throug h valve b, in the direc-
tion shown by the arrows
without tails, get under the
piston P, and assist in driving
it up. The pump rods at the
other end are balanced by a
P counte rweight to assist this ex-
panding steam. The action
is then continuously repeated :
a and c open, steam enters
through a, drives down P, and
E the steam under P escapes
through c, then a and c are
closed, and steam runs round
through b to assist the upward
B motion of the piston.
D 56. Snifting Valve or Snift
ing Clack was so called from
the noise of its action ; in Newcomen's engine,
page 47, at s' , was a valve for the escape of the
condensing water and air, through which they escaped
from the cylinder with a snifting noise. In Watt's
engine a snifting valve was also fitted which com-
municated with the bottom right hand corner of the con-
denser, so that the air might escape, but it was chiefly
fitted to assist in blowing through previously to starting
the engine ; the steam admitted by the blow-through
valve escaped by the snifting or tail valve, as it is
called. A blow valve is not always fitted now, because
steam of a much higher pressure is used. Hence
neither blow valve or snifting valve are so important as
formerly.
57. Double Acting Engines.- When steam drives the
piston both up and down, the engine is termed double
acting. All our modern engines are double acting ; but
 THE PISTON AND HOW FITTED. 55

Newcomen's was an atmospheric and single acting engine,

the piston being driven up by steam, but down by atmos-
pheric pressure . Watt's first engine was single acting ;
the steam drove the piston down, while the weight of
the rods, etc. , at the other end of the beam, brought it up.
58. Clearance. When a piston makes its stroke it is
not allowed to touch the top and bottom of the cylinder
for fear of knocking them off.
The space between the top and bottom of the cylinder
and the piston, when the latter is at the end of its stroke,
is the clearance.
59. Cushioning.—When the steam is shut in before the
end of the stroke, the piston acts against it as against
a cushion, and so is brought gradually (comparatively
speaking) to rest. Suppose the piston is in the position
A B when the steam is shut in, and
that from A to C is 12 inches. Let
us also suppose that the elastic force
of the steam remaining behind in A F
is 2 lbs. , when the piston gets to D, 6 B
inches down, by Mariotte's law its
elastic force will be 4 lbs. ; when at E,
D
9 inches down, it will be 8 lbs. , etc.
So we see at once the effects and ad- E
vantages of cushioning, and that it C F
must bring the piston gradually to
rest by destroying its momentum.
60. The Piston and how Fitted-Packing, etc.- As
the piston is a most important part of the engine, great
care and thought have been bestowed upon it. It must
be perfectly steam tight, and, at the same time, it is re-
quired to move easily within the cylinder. A cylindrical
piece of iron is chosen and turned about a quarter of an
inch smaller in the diameter than the bore of the cylinder,
and around it is cut a deep groove square in section ; into
this is fitted a metallic ring of brass or steel , but gene-
rally cast iron ; this ring either fits steam tight against
the cylinder by its own elasticity, or is forced against it
56 STEAM.

by springs or compressed air. Formerly " packing " was

much used, when some rope yarn was platted the exact
size of the square groove, the precise length was cut off,
and the ends neatly sewn together- care being taken
that no turns were left in the yarn. The whole was well
greased before it was fitted in. Metallic piston rings
are now most in fashion, the piston being composed of
two distinct parts-the piston proper and the junk ring.
The junk ring is bolted on to the piston by bolts tapped
into the piston and heads recessed into the junk ring. A
metal ring is next turned exactly the size of the cylinder,
and then cut ; when cut, we know such a ring will develop
its elasticity, and some force will be required to place the
ends in contact again. It thus forms a powerful spring,
and is placed between the junk ring and the piston ,
where a place has been left for it. The piston is now
complete, and the spring or metal ring, being compressed
into its proper position, the whole is placed within the
cylinder, forming a very steam tight easy piston.
Pistons are seldom packed now, but the air pump
bucket is ; because packing is cheaper, and also because
in this case it answers better, for a large amount of gal-
vanic action sets in and eats away the metallic parts of
the piston of the air pump.
61. Stuffing Boxes and Glands.-These are used in
several parts of an engine. A good example may be
seen in the fig. in page 69. The piston-rod enters the
cylinder through the stuffiing box s b; while the packing,
the part marked so dark within the stuffing box, is
pressed down in its place by the gland g d ; bolts pass
through the flanges of both, so that when the steam leaks
through the cover by the side of the piston-rod, we have
only to screw the gland down on to the packing, and the
leak is stopped by the packing, being forced against the
piston-rod. A depression will be seen round the top of
the gland close to the piston-rod, it is to hold oil or
tallow to lubricate the piston-rod.
62. Method of Starting the Engine. —The engine is
 PARALLEL MOTION. 57

started by opening the stop valve, which allows the steam

to run from the boiler to the cylinder ; when the steam
is in the cylinder it gives the required reciprocating
motion to the piston ; the supply is regulated by proper
openings and valves, to be afterwards explained. In
starting an engine, where the single eccentric is fitted, we
must notice which way the engine has to go ; then with
the starting bar move the slide up or down, according to
the direction we wish to send the crank, when the piston,
etc., will begin to move ; a stop on the shaft carries the
eccentric with it ; when in the proper position, the end is
dropped on to a stud or pin and fixed in its place, and
the engine itself works the slides. In explaining Stephen-
son's Link Motion, an effort will be made to render this
part of the subject a little clearer.
63. The Parallel Motion. - Although the parallel
motion has been almost superseded by simpler pieces of
mechanism, such as guides, quite as efficient, yet a
description cannot be wholly omitted.
If the end of the piston-rod g had been connected
to the end of the beam, the piston-rod would have been
bent alternately to right and left as the beam rose and
fell, and a continual jarring would be going on, constantly
destroying the stuffing box, and rendering the cylinder
leaky.
Let us suppose that the simple lines in the adjoining
figure represent the parallel motion, C h is half the beam,
h g is the main link, c d the radius bar or bridle rod. As
h moves up and down, it describes an arc of a circle with
its convexity to the left. Now c d, the radius bar, moves
on its fixed centre c, consequently the point d will describe
an arc with convexity to the right ; so h throws g h to the
left, and c d throws d e, and with it g h, to the right.
Therefore it is evident that if these links and rod be pro-
portionately adjusted, we shall have an arrangement that
will compel the point g, and with it the whole piston-rod ,
to move exactly perpendicularly. To accomplish this there
are joints at g and d.
58 STEAM .

To find the proper length of the bridle rod,

Divide C h in e, so that
Ce : cd : do : oe
where o is the point to which the air pump rod is attached,
gd or he: Ce : do : oe
..he : Ce :: Ce : cd
Ce²
.. cd- he

h e
凹。

PARALLEL MOTION.
The parallel motion will work most accurately when
the radius rod, from c to d, is about the same length as the
beam from C to h, they should therefore be kept as nearly
equal as circumstances will permit.
64. The Governor.-The governor consists of two balls,
A and B, fixed on the ends of two arms, and so arranged
that they can freely revolve round the spindle C D.
Motion is imparted to the balls either by a pulley, which
is driven by a cord passing over another pulley on the
main shaft by the side of the fly wheel, or else by a pair
of bevel wheels placed immediately below D.
When at rest, the balls will remain close to the governor
spindle, as in the figure, but when in motion the faster
it moves the farther the balls will fly asunder by centri-
fugal force. As they separate, the arms A C and BC will
extend outwards, and will bring up with them the short
arms GH and E F, which will move up the collars I, L.
when the arm M N will pull point N to the left ; P is a
fixed joint and PQ is firmly attached to PN, so that
point Q will be lifted up and close the throttle valve V in
the steam pipe S, by means of two arms, one of which, Q V ,
is shown in figure, moving the valve on its spindle. Thus,
 GOVERNOR AND THROTTLE VALVE. 59

the faster or slower the main shaft moves, the faster or

slower will the governor move, and close or open the
throttle valve and regulate the supply of steam, so that
the engine may always be moving at the same velocity.

O
GOVERNOR AND THROTTLE VALVE.
In flying outwards, the balls attain a certain vertical height,
which height, and the length of the pendulum, to vibrate
in a given time, are calculated, as shown in the volume
on Steam, in the Advanced Course of this Series. The
weight of the balls does not affect the action of the
governor at all, for if a heavy ball increases the centri-
petal force, it also increases the centrifugal in the same
ratio. It is called the conical pendulum or pendulum
governor, because its motions are regulated by the same
laws as those which regulate the ordinary pendulum.
65. Throttle Valve. From the last figure a good
idea can be obtained of the throttle valve. It is a circular
or elliptical plate moving on a spindle. Its opening, as
regulated by the governor, determines the volume of steam
that shall pass to the cylinder.
60 STEAM.

66. The Cataract. The cataract supplies the place of

the governor in the single acting Cornish pumping engines.
It consists of a small pump plunger a and barrel b c set in
a cistern of cold water A B; d is a valve opening inwards,
sɔ that when the plunger a ascends, the water passes
through d from A B into b c ; f is a cock opened and shut
by the plug e, moved by the plug rod g, worked by the
beam overhead. If the plunger be forced down, the water
will pass through ƒ in proportion to the opening of f.
When the beam has moved fully up, it liberates the rod
that works the plunger ; then as the chamber fills with
water through d as the plunger ascends, so when the latter
comes down the pressure of water will close d, and the
weight of the plunger will force the water through ƒ as
rapidly as the opening will allow. The way it is carried
away is not shown in the figure. If the cock be shut, the
plunger cannot descend ; if only slightly opened, it will
descend gradually, etc. As soon as a certain quantity of
water has passed throughf, its weight opens the injection

α
A B

CATARACT.
valve, and condensation takes place, when the engine can
complete its stroke ; for the engine can only make its
stroke as the water is supplied for condensation . It thus
 MARINE GOVERNOR. 61

regulates the speed of the engine ; for if the cock be fully

open, condensation takes place at once, and if only partly
open, condensation will be delayed till the water is
supplied.
67. Marine Governor.- Owing tothe unsteady motion
of a ship, arising from pitching, rolling, etc. , the ordinary
pendulum governors are unfitted to regulate the speed of
the engines. Mr. Silver has solved the problem how to
adapt a governor to a marine engine. He has employed
several arrangements for carrying out his ideas. The one
of which a section is here shown seems the best adapted
to the purpose.
AB is a small fly wheel about 18 inches in diameter,
on which are fixed two fliers or vanes, F. The faster the
engine goes, the greater resistance will these vanes offer to
the air. P is a pulley worked by a cord and fixed on the
spindle ss, while E is an eccentric and K a lever. To E
A

E K
a

S b sd e

F F

B
SILVER'S MARINE GOVERNOR.
at the top of the pulley, for the position given in the figure,
is affixed a spring. The engineer has to tighten up or
slacken this spring according to the speed at which it is
intended to drive the engines. K is the lever from which
62 STEAM.

the motion is conveyed to open or close the throttle

valve. Within CD are four pinions to communicate the
action necessary to affect the purpose of the contrivance.
Sometimes there are six pinions, one below b and d
respectively.
At the uniform speed of the engine, it revolves together
in connection with the engine as the motive power ; but
when accelerated by the running of the engine, as when
the screw is out of the water, the increased pressure on the
governor fans, or blades, causes the motion to act on the
eccentric E, and the lever K carried on the tube d e.
(We must understand de is not a continuation of s s).
Then the spring, attached to E or the arm to K, according
to whichever arrangement is adopted, acts to close the
throttle valve. The pinion b, keyed on the solid shaft
8 8, gearing in the wheel a, which runs on a loose pin a c,
transmits the motion to c and to d, a pinion keyed
on the tube d e, which acts upon the lever, regulates
the speed of the engine. It is excessively sensitive,
and the least increase or retardation of speed causes
it to act upon the valve. When the pulley is running
very fast, the inertia of the fliers and the resistance of
the air will not allow the fliers to go as fast as the pulley,
so the pinion a runs as it were back on b (or b overtakes
a), and acting on the spring at E and the lever at K, the
latter closes the throttle valve. In one arrangement of
this governor, the spring itself works the valve.
68. To Close the Throttle Valve. To maintain the
spring at the elasticity at which it is set requires a certain
speed, and when the engine falls below this speed, the
spring slackens itself, and allows the valve to open.
69. Eccentric. The eccentric consists of a disc of
metal encircled by a hoop or strap, to which is attached
the eccentric rod ; in the disc is a hole to pass it on to the
main shaft. The centre of the eccentric does not coincide
with the centre of the shaft. When the shaft revolves
it carries with it the disc, which, moving within the hoop,
gives a reciprocating motion to the eccentric rod.
 ECCENTRIC. 63

A B is the eccentric, B C the eccentric rod. a b c is

the solid disc that can move round within the strap or

E
a b d
•рл C

'p"
ECCENTRIC, ECCENTRIC ROD AND GEAR.
band def; o is the centre of the disc. S is the main
shaft, on which the disc is tightly keyed. As the eccen-
tric or disc revolves within the strap, it will be easily
seen that the point p, moving round, will come into the
positions p' p" and p'", and that the point C will be
thrown alternately to the right and left. CDE is a
bell-crank lever supported on D, a fixed point, and there-
fore since C moves alternately right and left, E moving
along the arc of a circle will give a vertical reciprocat-
ing motion, and alternately pull the slide 8 up and
down. The distance between the two centres o and S
(marked by a line in the figure), is called the throw of the
eccentric. The disc is generally keyed on one-sixteenth
of a revolution in advance of being at right angles to the
crank.
64 STEAM.

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. Give a description of the steam engine in use before the
time of Watt, with an account of his improvements ( 1863) .
2. Give a sketch of a blow valve and a snifting valve, and show
why these valves require no springs nor weights to keep them in
their seats ( 1863, 1864).
3. Mention the distinguishing features of the atmospheric single
acting and double acting engines, what kind of engine is generally
fitted to steam vessels, and what kind is best suited for land
carriage (1864).
4. The total pressure on a pair of equal pistons is 90 tons, at
the rate of 45 lbs. on each square inch, find their diameter ( 1866 ).
Ans. 53 4 inches.
5. Give an account of the steam engine in use before the time
of Watt with an account of his improvements (1866).
6. Explain the way in which the eccentrics of marine engines
are fixed on the shaft. Explain also the method of obtaining the
back motion (1866).
7. The area of a piston is 4876-84 square inches, find the
diameter of the air pump, which is half that of the cylinder ; find
also the capacity of the pump, supposing it similar to the cylinder
(1867). Ans. 39 399 and 1219.21 .
8. The area of a piston is 4476 square inches, and the diameter
of the piston-rod is th that of the piston, find it ( 1868).
Ans. 9:43.
9. What is the foot valve ? Is it a necessary appendage to a
steam engine. If it is not used, what arrangements must be made
in consequence ( 1867) ?
10. The pressure of steam is 15 lbs. on the square inch, and
that of the uncondensed vapour is 2 lbs. Compare the effective
force in the up and down stroke respectively (1868) .
Ans. 16:15.
11. Describe generally the improvements introduced by Watt
into the steam engine (1868).
12. What are the foot valve and delivery valve ? What is
meant by blowing through ? How is it effected ( 1868) ?
13. Describe Newcomen's atmospheric pumping engine, and
point out its defects (1869).
14. Explain the manner in which the steam acts in Watt's
single acting pumping engine. Why is this engine so much more
economical in steam than the old atmospheric engine ( 1870) ?
15. Why is it economical to cut off the steam before the piston
has gone to the end of the cylinder ? The length of the stroke of
an engine is 8 feet, the pressure of the steam on entering the
cylinder is 30 lbs. on the inch ; at what point should the steam be
cut off so that the pressure at the end of the stroke may be 5 lbs.
per inch (1870)? Ans..
 EXERCISES. 65

16. Describe the eccentric for working the slide valve of a

steam engine. How is it thrown in and out of gear ? How is it
attached to the slide rod in an oscillating engine ( 1870) ?
17. In what manner is the work done by steam estimated ?
What is the numerical expression for the work done when steam,
at an effective pressure of 20 lbs. on the square inch, forces a
piston 20 inches in diameter through a space of two feet against
a resistance ( 1871 ) ? Ans. 12566 4 units.
18. It was stated by Watt that neither water nor any other
substance colder than steam should be allowed to enter or touch
the steam cylinder during the working of an engine. Show that
this rule was not adopted in the case of the atmospheric engine.
and describe the arrangements by which Watt gave effect to it
(1871)?
19. What is done by the air pump in a steam engine ? What
are the foot and delivery valves, and where are they placed ?
Describe some gauge for estimating the exact pressure of the air,
or uncondensed vapour in the condenser ( 1871) ?
20. Explain the action of the governor and throttle valve in
regulating the speed of an engine ( 1869).
21. Describe the arrangement of the condenser and air pump of
a condensing engine, and the valves connected therewith.
E
 CHAPTER V.

BEAM ENGINE AND DETAILS.

Double Acting Condensing Beam Engine-Principle upon which

it Works, etc. -Details of the Various Parts-Cylinder-
How Constructed- Ports or Openings into the Cylinder, etc.
-The Form of Slide Valve in Common Use-The Loco-
motive or Three- Ported Valve-The Lap on a Valve―The
Eccentric-The Lead of a Valve-Cushioning the Steam-
Clearance-Details of the Piston-Metallic Packing-Rings-
The Expansion Valve and the Gear connected with it-The
Supplyof Waterfor Condensation-Blowing-through-Gauges
for the Condenser-The Barometer Gauge-Method of Esti-
mating Pressure by it-Errors in this Method, and correc-
tion of the Same-The Fly Wheel-The Principle of an
Equilibrium Valve-The Double Beat Valve- The Crown
Valve―The Throttle Valve―The Gridiron Valve—The High
Pressure Engine without Condensation - The Expansive
Principle as Applied in the Double Cylinder Condensing
Engine.

70. Definition. A double acting engine is one in which

the piston is driven both up and down, or backwards and
forwards, by the action of the steam . A condensing
engine is one in which the steam, after it has driven the
piston up or down, is led away to a separate place, where
it is condensed by the application of cold water to it. A
non-condensing engine is one in which the steam, after it
has driven the piston up or down , is allowed to escape
into the air, and is not condensed, as the locomotive.
Non- condensing engines are misnamed high pressure
engines, while condensing engines are erroneously termed
"low pressure" engines. Non-condensing or low pressure
engines were so named because Watt at first used steam
but little above atmospheric pressure, and in some cases
 BEAM ENGINES. 67

even below 15 lbs ; while , on the contrary, when steam

began to be used without condensation , being necessarily
much above the pressure of the atmosphere, such engines
were called " high pressure." But now steam of as great
a pressure is used in condensing as in con-condensing.
Hence it is better to divide engines into the two classes,
(1) condensing, (2) non-condensing.
71. Beam Engines.-Newcomen's was a beam engine
and so was Watt's, but the latter was far more perfect
than the former The crank was not patented in time
by Watt, he therefore used the sun and planet wheel
for a crank. The beam was so advantageous and so
thoroughly incorporated in the steam engine, that to early
engineers it seemed an inseparable part of it as much as
the cylinder and piston , therefore when it came to be
adapted to marine propulsion, the side lever was the only
modification that presented itself. The great advantage
of the beam engine is, that to the parts requiring it, it
gives a longer leverage, and therefore greater power ; a
long connecting rod is employed, and thus an immense
advantage is gained. Again, a fly wheel was used with
it to accumulate power.

H
M
K
BEAM ENGINE.
A B is the beam moving on its main centre C, sup-
68 STEAM .

ported by a frame and pillars, of which C D is a front

one ; B E is the piston-rod working in and out of the
stuffing box s, at the top of the cylinder E F ; G H is the
air pump rod ; H the air pump, with the condenser H K
(only part of which is shown) ; L M is the feed pump rod ;
M the feed pump, into which the plunger is seen descend-
ing ; NO is the pump to force up water for condensation ;
AR is the connecting rod ; R S the crank ; S the main
shaft, on which is firmly fixed the fly wheel V V.
The above are the essential parts of the engine, each of
which shall be described in detail as far as necessary.
The other parts are the governor, to open and shut the
throttle valve in the steam pipe, the slide and slide casing,
the starting gear, the parallel motion , the eccentric, etc.
(1) The Beam is a lever of the first kind, and needs no
description after an examination of the figure. The power
is conveyed into the cylinder which moves the piston, the
weight is the force conveyed by the crank, the fulcrum is
the main centre.
(2) The piston, the cylinder, the air pump, condenser,
and stuffing box have been already described.
(3) The Feed Pump is a force pump with a plunger to
force the water into the boiler.
A is a solid plunger , v, v' and v", are three valves ; b v″
is the pipe that brings the
water to the feed pump ; co
carries away the waste ; Cc
leads to the boiler, while c is
a cock to shut off the feed
C from the boiler.
It acts thus let us sup-
pose the plunger is raised
up, then a vacuum is left in
the valve box c d, therefore
dwater rises through the suc-
tion valve v". Let us sup-
FEED PUMP. pose c d is filled, then the
descent of the plunger will force the water through the
 CONNECTING ROD AND CRANK. 69

delivery valve v, and up the pipe C c to the boiler. But

suppose the cock c should be closed , then the great pressure
of water will force back the strong spring andopen the
valve v', so that the water
can pass down co. Some-
times, instead of this ar-
rangement for the waste
water, the pump rod is
disconnected when no feed
is wanted, and thus the
power necessary to work
the pump is saved.
(4) The Pump is an
ordinary pump for raising
water.
(5) The Connecting R
Rod and Crank have been
already partially described.
They are used for convert-
ing a rectilinear into a
circular motion. The con-
necting rod should be as
long as possible ; it is B
generally from three and
a half to four times the
length of the stroke, but
when cramped for room,
or otherwise, a much P
shorter rod is made suffi- S
cient. The longer the
connecting rod the greater V
its advantage. It has more
leverage, and therefore
does more work. A short A
connecting rod gives much CYLINDER, CONNECTING ROD, AND
CRANK.
pressure upon the guides
and a great strain on the crank and crank pin, but with
a long connecting rod this pressure and strain are avoided.
70 STEAM .

With a short connecting rod it is difficult to properly

adjust the cut off.
72. Cylinder and Crank.-The figure on previous
page is a representation of a cylinder with a locomotive
or three-ported slide. Cylinders are constructed of cast
iron, and bored with the nicest precision. They must be
perfect cylinders, the same diameter from end to end.
A B is the cylinder, P the piston, and P R the piston-
rod , CE the crank, and E a section of the main shaft
turned by the crank, and connecting rod C R , sb is the
stuffing box, and g d the gland ; is the slide, and r the
slide rod by which the engine moves the slide up and
down ; S is the end of the steam pipe which brings
the steam from the boiler to the cylinder; a is the upper
port, c the lower port, e is the exhaust port by which
the steam escapes from the cylinder to the condenser
after it has done its work.
73. How the Engine is Worked . Suppose the slide
is in the position shown in the figure, and that steam
fills the valve chamber V V, through the steam pipe S.
Now, it cannot pass the back of the slide into the upper
port a, because the slide is covering it over; neither, for
the same reason, can it pass to the exhaust e ; but it
can pass into the lower port c, in the direction of the
arrows, and drive up the piston P, while, as the piston
goes up, the steam that drove it down and filled the
cylinder on the upper side above the piston is escaping
freely through a, in the direction of the arrows, and
passing off to the condenser through e the exhaust port.
When the piston has arrived at the upper end of the
cylinder, or at the top of its stroke, the slide has
moved down lower, so that the lower port c is closed
against the admission of steam, and the upper one a
opened ; therefore steam will enter the upper port and
escape at the lower, in a contrary direction to the arrows,
the piston returning to the bottom of the cylinder.
74. Slides. The locomotive slide has been already
partially described, when speaking of the beam engine
 THE LONG D SLIDE. 71

and the way the steam is admitted to the cylinder. The

various slides used are the long D, short D, Seaward's,
cylindrical, gridiron, etc.
75. The Locomotive Slide is represented in the an-
nexed figure, in which the dark shaded
parts are the slide, and the ports are
marked port. c leads to the condenser.
The whole of the drawing is covered , a
over by the slide casing, and steam is
brought to the back of the slide at A Port
by the steam pipe (not shown). When 6
the steam is acting, it is clearly seen
that it presses with great force against
the back of the slide at A. The valve
rod is shown attached to the back of Port
the slide. When in the position as
a'
given in the figure, it is quite evident
no steam can pass into the ports and
go to the cylinder, as they are both
covered over ; but when the slide rod LOCOMOTIVE SLIDE.
moves the valve up, the steam can pass into the lower
port, and drive the piston up, while the
steam that is in the upper part of the
cylinder can come out at the upper
port, when the form of the slide com-
pels it to pass into b b' and through c,
which leads to the exhaust, hence c a
is called the exhaust port. When the
slide comes down again, both ports
are first closed, then the upper one is A B
open to steam and the lower one to
the exhaust, precisely the reverse
of the first case. As there are
three ports, two steam ports and
the exhaust port, this valve is d
sometimes called the " three ported
slide."
76. The Long D Slide is so called LONG D SLIDE.
72 STEAM.

because its cross section forms the letter D. The two

faces, a and c, fit against the ports. The body, or waist,
A B, is smaller than the parts a b and c d. The steam
comes along the steam pipe, and can pass freely round
the waist of the valve, and pressing against both back
and front it is almost an equilibrium valve. The steam
cannot pass by b, d nor a, c, because the two former parts
fit closely to the slide casing, and the two latter press
against the ports ; only when the valve A is lifted or
depresssd can the steam enter the cylinder from round
the valve. When the steam comes out of the upper
port it passes right down the slide at e to the exhaust.
This is the peculiarity of the slide, that the exhaust
passage from the upper port is through the valve.
77. Short D Slide may be described as consisting of
the upper and lower portions a and c of the long D, but
the passage is closed, and they are joined together by a
rod. The steam is still brought to the waist, but cannot
pass either a b or c d, unless the slide be lifted up. Its
action is somewhat similar to that of the long D, except-
ing that the way to the exhaust is not through the slide.
There are separate exhaust passages from the top and
bottom ports.
78. Seaward's Slides were first used by the inventor,
after whom they are named. There are four slides, two
for the exhaust and two for steam. A is the steam side of
the cylinder, and B the exhaust side. When the slides are
in the position shown in the figure, the piston is ascending.
Steam enters at C ; the upper port a being closed it
cannot enter the top of the cylinder, but it can enter at
the lower port b, and drive the piston up. As the piston
ascends c is closed and d open, so that the steam which
drove the piston down is escaping through d. When
the piston is descending, a and c are open, and b and
d closed. D is the way to the exhaust, and B is called
the exhaust side of the cylinder ; a and b are termed
the induction ports, c and d the eduction. The slides are
kept against the face of the ports by springs, so that any
 THE GRIDIRON VALVE. 73

water that enters the cylinder through priming can easily

escape.
79. Cylindrical Slide.-
These slides have been intro-
duced and fitted to engines

Exhaust
by Maudslay & Field. They a

Side
are cylindrical in shape. The C

Steam
slide faces are hollowed out

Side
concave, and fit on convex
nozzles. They are placed be-
tween the two cylinders,
being used in double cylin-
dered engines, and, when
raised, the steam is admitted
to the top of the cylinders,
and the down stroke fol- SEAWARD'S SLIDE.
lows ; and, when depressed,
steam enters beneath the piston, and the up stroke is
effected.
80. The Gridiron Valve. -The
gridiron valve is one of the most
effective contrivances to give a large
A
opening for steam by a very short
movement. Each port is sub-divid-
ed into two or more narrow ports,
while the valve face has openings to
correspond. The principle is the
same as that of an air grating in the
floor, we have only to give the top
plate a slight motion when it is open
or shut ; the same with this valve, B
except that the motion is rectilinear
and not circular. If A B represent
the ports of the cylinder, and the
dotted lines the slide face, it is GRIDIRON VALVE.
seen that, by simply lowering the
slide (face) the smallest amount, the upper ports, A, are
immediately open, and the lower, B, closed. When the
74 STEAM.

slide is pushed back, the lower ports will be opened and

the upper closed.
Full Steam is the position of the valve when fully
open, and the piston is continuing its motion.
Cut-off is the position of the valve when it has just
closed the port against the admission of steam .
Angular Advance is the angular measurement of the
arc described by the centre of the eccentric while passing
from the place it occupies when the valve is at half stroke,
to that which it occupies at the commencement of the
stroke of the piston.
Linear Advance is the distance which the valve moves
while the centre of the eccentric is describing the above
angle.
81. Lap and Lead of the Locomotive Slide.-The
width of the opening of the steam ports, for the admis-
sion or for the release of the steam at the beginning of
the stroke, is known as lead. On the steam side of a
locomotive slide, it is known as outside lead, or lead for
the admission ; on the exhaust side it is inside lead, or
lead for the exhaust. When the valve is placed at half
stroke over the ports, the amount by which it overlaps
each steam port, either internally or externally, is known
as lap. On the steam side it is named outside lap ; on
the exhaust side, inside lap. When the terms lap and
lead are employed, they are understood to refer to outside
lap and lead only.
The advance of the eccentric is a term used to denote
the angle which it forms with its position at half stroke,
and when the piston is at the commencement of its
stroke.
The locomotive slide, as seen in section in the following
figure, has neither lap nor lead, but did it extend to the
faint dotted lines b b' , it would have lap on the exhaust
side to both ports ; while, on the contrary, if it reached
to the dotted lines a a', it would have lap on the steam
side. Lap is chiefly used on the steam side. To see what
effect this will have, let us examine the top port, and
 LAP AND LEAD OF THE LOCOMOTIVE SLIDE. 75

suppose the slide going up. It is evident if the slide

reaches to the dotted line a, as it rises from the bottom of
the upper port, it will close it sooner
against the admission of steam than it
would be otherwise if the slide were
constructed simply as drawn in the a
figure ; therefore the steam that has
had time to get into the cylinder has Port
to perform the rest of the stroke ex-
pansively.
Lap on the exhaust or eduction side,
bb', is always less than that on the
steam side, and closes the port to the Port
exhaust sooner than it would other-
wise be, and thus prevents all the
steam from rushing out to the exhaust :
the steam remains behind, and the pis-
ton acts against it as against a cushion, LOCOMOTIVE SLIDE.
and all sudden jar and stoppage is
avoided. Sometimes there is no lap, and even less
than none, or negative lap ; then the valve cannot cover
both ports at once. When the slide has neither lap nor
lead, the breadth of the slide face is equal to that of the
steam port, and the travel of the slide twice the breadth
of the port ; but when the slide has lap , the travel of the
slide must be double the lap with double the breadth of
the steam port.
82. Lead.-Let us suppose that, at the instant the
piston is at the top of its stroke, the slide is in the
position shown in the last figure, but that it extends
only to the top darkly dotted line, then the port at
that instant would be open for the admission of steam :
this is what is called the lead of the slide. Remember
the lap is when the slide is at its middle position, but
lead when the piston is at the end of its stroke. The lap
and lead of the D slide are explained in precisely the
same way, but the steam slide is the inner and the ex-
haust the outer. There is always more lead required in
76 STEAM.

engines that are driven at great speed , than in those

which work slowly. Again , in engines that travel fast,
it is best to open the exhaust passage before the end of
the stroke, or else the cushioning will act injuriously.
83. To Reverse the Engine with the Single Eccentric.
-When an engine is fitted with a single eccentric, the
engine is reversed by hand. The engineer notices whether
the piston was moving up or down ; if moving up, he takes
the starting bar and admits steam to the top of the piston,
so that it immediately descends, and the shaft begins to
move in an opposite direction. The eccentric is fitted on
to the shaft, so that it can be moved halfway round, or
rather there are two stops on the eccentric, and one on
the shaft. The shaft revolving, as we have just said,
moves without the eccentric, so that the stop on the
shaft leaves one of those on the eccentric, and when the
shaft has moved halfway round, it comes against the
second stop on the eccentric, which will be then in its
proper position for working the slides, and so the motion
of the engine is continued. To throw this eccentric in
and out of gear, a recess is cut in the eccentric rod (care
being taken that it is in its exact position), to this a pin
is fitted to connect it with the slide rod or gab-lever pin.
When the engineer has started the engine by hand (by
lifting up the slide with the starting bar), and wishes to
attach the motion of the eccentric to it, he watches his
opportunity and lets the rod fall on the pin ; the pin will
in half a stroke fall into the recess. It is kept in its
place by a bar or strip of iron placed over the entrance
of the recess, held there by a spring.
84. The Double Eccentric, or Stephenson's Link
Motion. This contrivance, used both in the locomotive
and marine engine, was invented by Stephenson to enable
the engineer to quickly reverse his engine, and so go back-
wards or forwards at pleasure.
It consists of two eccentrics, H and G, with their rods
A D and C E, the one called the forward, the other the
backward eccentric. The two are connected by a link,
 STEPHENSON'S LINK MOTION. 77

D E, with a slotway in it. In the slotway moves the

block P, fastened to the end of the valve rod a.
The bell crank lever, DE D, is to move the link up or
down. When the forward eccentric is moved, so as to
work the valve rod, it moves the slide, and the ship or
locomotive goes forward ; but when the backward eccentric
works the slide rod, the engine is reversed . The link
motion is thus a simple and effective mode of revers-
ing the engine expeditiously, and almost without trouble
to the engineman .
When we consider that the forward eccentric rod, A D,
sends the engine one way, and the backward rod, C E,
sends it the other, we see that the travel of the slide has
been reversed, as it were. Again, if the pin and link be

STEPHENSON'S LINK MOTION.

placed in the position shown in the figure, the slide has

then but little travel, and we can see that this travel is in-
creased just in the same proportion as the bell crank
lever, D E p, moves the link D E up or down from the
mid position. As the amount of opening for steam de-
pends upon the motion of the slide, by leaving p in
different positions in the slot we open and close the port
at and during varying times. This is done by not placing
the block at the extremity of the link, but at a distance
from it, and resting the lever in its proper place. For
this purpose an arc or sector with notches in it is attached
to the link motion, to fix the handle in and secure the
required opening the engineer may deem best for the
78 STEAM.

speed required. This is not expansion, but rather

wire-drawing the steam. In fact, Stephenson's link
motion cannot properly be used to give different grades
of expansion, it only alters the travel of the slide ; for
when the pin is in the middle of the link, the motion of
neither eccentric is imparted to the slide rod. The pin
being at the end of the link, the slide rod will receive full
motion, and full steam will be given to the cylinder ; but
when the block lies nearer to the centre of the link, less
and less steam is given to the engine, and consequently
it moves the more slowly. This point is more completely
illustrated under the heading " The manner in which the
Link Motion distributes the Steam," in the chapter on
the Locomotive Engine in the Advanced Work on Steam
in this Series.
85. Expansion Gear for Marine Engines. Various
plans are adopted by different makers. Some use cams
placed on the shaft in such a position that, when the
valve is connected with the cam, by an arrangement of
rods, levers, etc. , steam can be admitted into the cylinder,
but when not so, the ports are closed against the admis-
sion of steam. The great objection to this arrangement
appears to be, that when the roller comes off the cam, it,
together with the valve, drops with a sudden jar, which
causes a very unpleasant noise in the engine-room, and also
a great amount of wear and tear in the machinery itself.
The best plan appears to be to have an eccentric, to
which is connected a sliding valve in the steam chest.
This eccentric is fixed to the shaft in such a position, that
when the valve is in connection with it, it shuts off steam
at the required portion of the stroke. The different grades
of expansion are regulated by a lever with recesses in it.
This is among the connections of the expansion gear.
Care is taken, when throwing it out of gear, that the ex-
pansion valve is not closed, or else the engine will stop.
In some cases the throttle valve is used as an expansion
valve, under which circumstance the full benefit of ex-
pansion is not gained, for that requires the total cut-off
 METHOD OF CARRYING OUT EXPANSION 79

of steam, which the common throttle valve cannot do on

account of its shape, but it wire-draws the steam.
86. A Method of Carrying out Expansion . The
principle of expansion is now carried out in all engines .
The end is attained either by cutting off the steam from
the cylinder by means of lap on the slide valve, or by
valves called expansion valves preventing its ingress to
the slide jacket. The expansion valve is so placed that
the steam has no communication with the slide jacket
except through the valve.

Teseses

B P Fig. 1.
A
B

Fig. 2.
EXPANSION VALVE.
The valve now in general use in marine engines, and
which is finding most favour with engine-makers, is the
gridiron expansion valve ; its construction and name
being easily understood from figure 2. It consists of a
series of ribs FFF, between which are the apertures
EE E, through which the steam passes when these aper-
tures are over those of figure 1 marked e e e. For the
gridiron valve in figure 2 works on the face of DC, the
ribs F corresponding to f, and opening E to e. The
steam passes through Ee, Ee into the slide jacket B B
 80 STEAM .

below, and thence through the ports PP, etc., into the
cylinder, when the slide valve, of which 8 8 is the rod, is
in the proper position to allow it to do so. If this slide
valve covers the ports PP, of course the steam cannot
pass on; 88 with its valve receives motion from the ordi-
nary double eccentric, but 2 is moved by the expansion
eccentric figure 3. The expansion valve is of this parti-
cular construction, the gridiron, to give a large area to
the opening with a short stroke of the valve ; for, with
a short stroke equal to the breadth of one of the ribs or
faces F, we have an opening = E + E + E, or e + e + e.
The motion of the expansion valve (2) is derived
H
k.

E K

Fig. 3. WORKING OF EXPANSION VALVE.

from an eccentric keyed to the main shaft, and is
transmitted to the valve by means of the simple arrange-
ment in figure 3. We will state again how the steam
passes to the cylinder . The top or cover of slide casing
is wholly removed in our figure 1, the end of the steam
pipe comes to C D, but the steam cannot pass to BB
until the valve (fig. 2) , being moved , will allow the steam
to pass into B B, even then the steam will not enter the
cylinder if the ports are covered by the valve ( which is
removed from the ports A A), and of which the spindle is
ss ; but when this valve is shifted so as to uncover the
ports , the steam has free ingress to the cylinder. By this
plan it is evident that valve 2 will give any amount of
expansion by stopping the supply of steam to valve A
(removed).
 AMOUNT OF WATER REQUIRED FOR CONDENSATION. 81

Fig. 3. Here E E is an eccentric keyed on the shaft

S to work the levers of the valve. H is a handle to screw
up or down the block through which the pin n passes by
means of a square threaded screw, as seen in the figure,
working in the block at n, and h is to jam or keep it in
its place. When n is moved nearer the handle, the grade
of expansion is greater ; when screwed down, the opposite
is the case. F is the weigh shaft supported by two bear-
ings, not shown in the figure. Gi is a short lever an-
swering to the gab lever keyed on the shaft F ; to the
end G is attached a pair of links to allow for the motion
of G not being in a straight line, of which GO is one ;
to the end O of these links is fastened the valve rod
Ok. The end of the eccentric rod n moves H F back-
wards and forwards on the centre F, which moves G i on
the same centre, and this gives the reciprocating motion
to GOk, and the slide with the requisite amount of
expansion. The grade of expansion is marked along the
edge at a a. While the arrangement here described is
giving the required amount of expansion, the ordinary link
motion is admitting the steam, or cutting it off from the
cylinder (fig. 1) by means of the valve removed from A.
87. The Amount of Water Required for Condensation.
The proper temperature at which to keep the condenser
is as near as possible 100° F. or 38° C. At this tempera-
ture the steam is sufficiently condensed, while the air
pump has relatively the least quantity of water to raise ;
or, with a maximum amount of useful condensation, we
have a minimum amount of water to lift.
Let us suppose the condenser is to be kept at 100 ° F. ,
and the temperature of the condensing water is 50° F. ,
then out of every unit of water 100° - 50° = 50° of cold
are available to condense the steam.
Watt assumed the total heat in steam to be 1112°F.
(latent and sensible heat of steam we have called 637°.2 C.
or 1147° F.) ; therefore there are 1112 units of heat to be
overcome, which will take 1112 = 22.24 units of water ;
or it will take 224 more times water than is turned into
SI F
82 STEAM.

steam . As a cubic inch of water produces a cubic foot

of steam, it will take 224 cubic inches of water to con-
dense one cubic foot of steam.
Watt allowed 28.9 cubic inches, or about a wine pint,
for every cubic inch evaporated.
In this calculation we have given the result arrived at
by Watt. We will now perform the calculation, using
degrees centigrade, making allowance for the heat which
will be left in the condensed steam, and using the more
accurate number, 637 ° .2 C.
Suppose the temperature of the condenser is to be maintained
at 38° C. , and the temperature of the condensing water is 10° C. ,
what amount of water will be required for condensation?
The total amount of heat in a given unit of steam is 637.2
units C.
The amount imparted to each unit of water is 38 - 10 = 28
units C.
Of the 637:2 units of heat in each unit of steam, it must give
up 637 2-38-599.2 units :
.. the units of water required = 5992 = 21 ·4.
Or, a cubic foot of steam, as it is produced (very
nearly) by a cubic inch of water, will require 21 ·4 cubic
inches of water to condense it. More is always allowed,
because it is impossible so to arrange the condenser that
every drop of water shall at once consume its allotted
amount of heat.
The temperature of the condenser will always give an
idea as to the vacuum. If the temperature of the con-
denser is above 100 ° F. , then more water must be supplied
for condensation ; if it is below 100° F. , then the cocks
must be closed a little, as too much water is being used,
and the air pumps will have too much work thrown upon
them. When the air pumps are labouring too hard, it is
one sign that too much condensing water is being used.
A thermometer therefore inserted in the condenser will
show the state of the vacuum. Generally, the engineman
trusts to his vacuum gauge to tell him the state of his
condenser. If the vacuum gauge is low, too little water
is being used, and he must remedy the defect accordingly.
 MERCURIAL GAUGES. 83

88. Blow-through Valve.- The blow-through valve

of an engine is used to drive out all water from the
cylinders, casings, and condensers before starting. It is
placed at the bottom of the slide casing so as directly
to communicate with the condenser. But sometimes ,
in the case of the locomotive, one is placed at each
end of the cylinder, and worked by a handle from the
starting platform. Some engine-makers fit a small
locomotive slide and ports for the purpose, which can also
be used to start the engines. Before the engine begins
work, steam is admitted through the blow-through
valve, and the cylinder first cleared of air and water ; the
steam passing on clears the condenser in the same way, so
that, as soon as the engine starts, a good vacuum is
obtained in the condenser. This last is the chief object
for which blow-through valves are fitted.
S P is the steam pipe ; the steam having been brought
to the back of the slide cannot enter the cylinder unless
the long D slide be lifted up or down,
neither can it go to the condenser un-
less the blow-through valve B be opened Port
sLong
Dlide

by means of the handle h. When the

valve B is lifted off its seat, then SP
steam can freely pass to the condenser,
and blow out all air and water that
may be in it ; when no blow-through
valve is fitted, by the tedious process Port
of alternately letting the steam pass
to the top and bottom of the cylinder,
and by raising and lowering the slide,
the steam may be sent to the con-
denser, from which it will in time BLOW-THROUGH
expel the air and water. VALVE.
89. Mercurial Gauges. - Mercurial gauges are and
have been used to show the pressure of steam and the
vacuum. But as they are very cumbersome, and nearly
obsolete, it is useless to describe them, but we may say this
much-
 84 STEAM .

( 1 ) The Long Barometer Gauge. The pressure of

air corresponds to very nearly 30 inches of mercury,
which being about 15 lbs. , 2 inches of mercury indicate 1 lb.
pressure. A bent tube in the shape of a U, partly filled
with mercury, was taken, and one end inserted in the
boiler ; as the pressure of steam increased , it would drive
the mercury down the one part of the tube, in communi-
cation with the boiler, and up the other ; a graduated scale
of 2 inches to the pound showed the pressure of steam in
the boiler.
(2) When used as a vacuum gauge, the mercury would
follow the vacuum, and rise up the part of the tube con-
nected with the condenser.
(3) The Short Barometer Gauge was used to show
the vacuum . It was of similar construction to the last ;
but between the legs, communicating with both, was a
reservoir of mercury. As the pressure was taken off the
reservoir the mercury fell down one arm, which was short ;
for as the vacuum between 10 and 15 lbs. only was
wanted, the arm was made short, and would remain full
of mercury till the pressure fell to 5 lbs. only ; so that
when the mercury stood 10 inches high, we should have
5 lbs. pressure of air in the condenser ; when 8 inches
high, 4 lbs., etc.
The mercurial or barometer gauges are old-fashioned,
and are hardly used now or fitted to new engines ; there-
fore we have given no figures, merely a short description
of them. To these gauges there are scales graduated to
every two inches, so that by looking at them the engine-
man can tell at a glance the condition of his vacuum. If
the mercury stands at 20 inches, then there is 20 = 10 lbs.
vacuum, or (15-10 = ) 5 lbs. pressure of air in the condenser.
If the mercury stands at 24 inches, there is a vacuum of
24 =
12 lbs. , or the pressure of air in the condenser is
(15-12 = ) 3 lbs. Another form of vacuum gauge is this :
An iron tube is fixed into the condenser and bent up-
wards. At the bottom near the condenser is a cock, to
open or close the communication with the condenser.
 FLY WHEEL. 85

Just above the cock is a small bowl for holding mercury,

the tube passing right through the bowl, so that the
mercury is round the bottom of the tube and outside it ;
the top of the tube is open. A glass tube, open at
the bottom and closed at the top, a little larger in the
internal diameter than in the outside diameter of the iron
tube, is taken and placed right over the iron tube,
the open end coming down into the mercury. When
the communication with the condenser is opened, there
being a vacuum within the iron tube, the pressure of the
air on the outside pressing on the mercury will cause it to
ascend between the two tubes ; and, of course, the higher
it rises the better the vacuum . It will ascend two inches
for every pound. It is graduated, and a scale placed by
its side ; but as the mercury will sink in the bowl as
it rises between the tubes , a pointer or piece of wire is
attached to the scale, the end of which, bringing the scale
lower with it, must be placed on a level with the mercury
before the state of the vacuum is read off. Unless this
precaution is taken, the reading is liable to error.
90. Fly Wheel. -The fly wheel is an accumulator of ""
power, and assists the crank over the " dead centres.'
When the crank and connecting rod are in one straight
line, as they must be twice in each revolution, the crank
is said to be on its dead centre, because there the force of
the piston is dead or ineffective. It is evident that when
the crank is at right angles to the connecting rod, that the
latter has most power on the former, but when the top or
bottom dead centre is reached there is no reason why it
should not remain there ; but the action of the fly wheel
then shows itself, for having on it a certain accumulated
velocity, it cannot stop, but goes forward, carrying with it
the crank over the dead centre. We thus have through
the momentum of the fly wheel no perceptible variation
in the velocity of the engine, but the unequal leverage
of the connecting rod is corrected, producing a steady
and uniform motion . The fly wheel, it must be remem-
bered, is a regulator and reservoir, and not a creator of
86 STEAM.

motion, and when no fly wheels are used, as in marine

engines, we must recollect that smoothness of motion is
not an absolute requisite, and that the momentum of the
engines themselves carries the cranks over the dead
centres ; but far more generally a pair of engines work
side by side, whose cranks are at different angles, so that
one assists the other at the critical moment. The
accumulated velocity of the fly wheel, where the motion is
required to be excessively equable, should be six times
that of the engine when the crank is horizontal. The
efficiency of the fly wheel, in producing uniformity of
velocity, is materially modified by the motion of the
machinery which the engine is required to drive, and
regularity of motion is of much greater importance in
some cases than in others ; so that in proportioning a fly
wheel to a given engine, attention must be paid to many
particular circumstances which cannot be given in a
general rule.
―-
91. Equilibrium Valves. Equilibrium valves are
those upon which the steam presses with equal force (or
very nearly equal force) both upon the top and bottom,
being ready to move easily when required . The following
figure will give a good idea of an equilibrium valve :-
S is the steam-pipe, through which steam is introduced
into the valve-box
A B; a and b are two
conical valves on one
valve spindle cd, S
kept in its place by
the socket d. The
steam is required to
pass at intervals
along C. This it will
do with full force
when the valves are
but slightly lifted
upwards. It is seen EQUILIBRIUM VALVE.
that if a and b be very nearly equal, the valve is in
 ESCAPE VALVE. 87

equilibrium, and only a small force is required to lift it,

for the pressure of steam on the top of a is counter-
acted by that on the bottom of b.
92. Cornish Equilibrium, Double-beat, Crown or
Drop Valve.-A B is the valve-box. Steam enters it,
let us say, from C, and is
required to go along D, after
passing the valve. It might A
with equal propriety be sup-
posed to come from D and
be passing down C. The
part drawn with cross lines
or section, is a cylindrical B
piece of iron fitting down on
two rings, bb and b' b'. The
small squares are the sec-
tions of the rings ; suppose
these to go all round. It is CORNISH DOUBLE BEAT VALVE.
evident that when the valve is down on the rings no
steam can pass, but as soon as lifted it can rapidly pass
through the two openings marked a in the paths indicated
by the arrows. These openings extend all round in a
circle. A very slight movement gives a large opening
for steam. The seats bb and b' b' are called the beats.
Sometimes these valves are made with three or four
beats.
93. Escape Valve. The escape valve should have
been noticed when describing the cylinder. They are
fitted in the top and bottom of the cylinder, being kept
in their places by weights or springs. Water that gets
into the cylinder through condensation or priming, as
it is incompressible, would inevitably break something,
were not provision made to allow it to escape through
the escape valves. They are loaded with a weight or
spring greater than the pressure of steam in the boiler.
Test or pet cocks are also fitted to the tops and bottoms
of the cylinders in marine engines for the same pur-
pose. They are opened on starting the engine, and shut
 STEAM
888

.
when properly under way. The escape valves are always
ready to act, and are held in their places by weights,
which keep them closed only so long as the pressure in
the condenser is below that in the boiler.
Strap, Gib, and Cutter. The ends of the connecting
rod are not, as it were,
part of the rod, but are
es built up upon the end
of the rod itself.
2 Let us take the
a annexed illustration,
which is the smaller
c с end of a connecting
rod; a a a a is the end
91 of the rod with a hole
၊

in it ; first upon the

a
end are placed the
two brasses 1 and 2 ,
R

in which a circular
hole is left for the
crosshead pin to pass
through ; round the
STRAP, GIB, AND CUTTER. hole is placed the
SMALLER END OF CONNECTING ROD. strap ss ; then into
the hole is placed the gib g g (in this case we have two
gibs, gg and g'g' ) ; then the cutter or key cc is driven in
tightly, so that the whole is held firmly together. Some-
times c is also held in its place by a screw and nut.
 EXERCISES. 89

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. In what way is steam admitted into the cylinder. How is

the apparatus worked ( 1865) ?
2. How is steam admitted into the cylinder? Describe with a
sketch the usual mode in marine engines for working the gear
connected with the slide ( 1868 ).
3. Describe with a sketch some form of slide valve as con-
nected with the steam cylinder of engine, and explain its action
(1869).
4. Draw in section the cylinder and slide valve of a double
acting engine, and explain the manner in which the valve regu-
lates the admission and exit of the steam.
5. Describe with a sketch the single acting engine (1871 ).
6. Describe the long D slide ( 1867 ).
7. What is the use of the expansion valve ? Show by a
diagram the pressure of the steam in different parts of the stroke
when worked expansively (1867 ) .
8. Describe the barometer gauge in common use (1867).
9. What is meant by the terms cushioning and clearance ?
10. Does the amount of clearance above the piston of a side
lever engine usually increase or diminish as the engine wears
(1868). See next chapter.
11. Describe the Cornish double-beat valve (1868).
12. Describe the method of working a slide valve by an eccen-
tric ( 1869).
13. There are three valves connected directly with the steam
cylinder in Watt's single acting condensing engine, name them.
During what portions of the up and down strokes of the piston
should these valves be respectively open or shut ? and for what
reason (1871 ) ?
14. Valves used to close a passage through which steam or
water under pressure may be required to pass are so constructed
as to be capable of being lifted against this pressure with a very
small expenditure of force-sketch a valve of this kind, and
explain its action ( 1871 ).
15. Describe some form of slide valve as fitted to the steam
cylinder of a double acting engine. Sketch the valve in section
with the opening over which it slides, and give it some amount of
lap on the steam side. How is the face of such a valve made
truly plane ( 1871 ) ?
16. For what purpose are escape valves fitted to the cylinders
of marine engines ? How are such valves kept closed, and what
determines the least amount of load which must be put upon
them (1871 ) ?
 CHAPTER VI.

THE MARINE STEAM ENGINE AND DETAILS.

Side Lever Engine The Oscillating Engine for Paddle Steamers

-The Vertical Trunk Engine The Gorgon Engines-The
Object of this Arrangement-Other Forms of Engines-
Engines for Screw Propellors- Direct Acting Engine with
or without Multiplying Gear-Penn's Trunk Engine- Mauds-
lay and Field's Return Connecting Rod Engine- Details of
Parts connected with the Working of a Marine Engine-The
Air Pump Bucket and Valves-Double Acting Air Pump-
India - Rubber Disc Valves - Cylinder Escape Valves-
Bilge and Feed Pumps-Expansion Valves- Expansion Cams
and Gear.

ENGINES are first divided into two classes :-

(1) CONDENSING ENGINES, miscalled low-pressure.

(2) NON-CONDENSING ENGINES, miscalled high-pres-
sure.

We should avoid the use of the two terms high and

low pressure, as they are scarcely applicable to engines of
the present day.
94. Marine Engines are generally divided into two
classes-those adapted to drive the paddle wheel, and
those best suited for the screw. The chief difference
seems to be, that engines to drive the screw are direct
acting, i.e., their piston-rods are directly attached to a
crank on the shaft ; while in the case of paddle wheels
they are not always direct acting, but the motion is con-
veyed through the intervention of side levers. In the
direct acting engine, it is often a prime object with the
 THE SLIDE LEVER ENGINES. 91

engineer to obtain a long stroke. To gain this end, many

of the various modifications in marine engines have been
suggested.
But let it be well understood that no particular engine,
perhaps with the exception of the side lever, is entirely
confined to either class. Every student should seek
opportunities to examine the engines in his neighbour-
hood as minutely as possible. An hour spent in this
way will sometimes add more information to the student's
repertory than days at his books alone.
95. The Side Lever Engines.-The first engine em-
ployed to drive the paddle wheel was a side lever, in
which the ordinary beam pumping engine was modified
to obtain the requisite rotatory motion, and the beam
placed by the side of the cylinder, condenser, etc. , to
stow it into as compact a space as possible. In the ori-
ginal side lever, the end A of the beam A B is worked up

SIDE LEVER ENGINE.

and down on its centre C by the side rods A D, while to
the end B is attached the fork head a a of the connecting
92 STEAM.

rod cc, which works the crank rr, giving the circular
motion to the paddle shaft s s.
A A shows the cylinder with the piston within indi-
cated by dotted lines. The piston-rod comes through the
stuffing box b, and is attached to the cylinder crosshead
DD, working the levers A B as previously stated.
The slide casing is seen at d, and the slide crosshead
is e e. The eccentric is attached to the gab lever f, which
gives the necessary motion to the slide side rods and
slide.
E is the air cone standing upon the top ofthe hot well H.
P is the air pump with its side rods u u joined by the
air pump crosshead. The piston of the air pump works
through the usual stuffing box, as seen in the figure,
taking the water from the condenser, which lies imme-
diately beneath the engine, extending from the bottom of
the slide casing to the bottom of the air pump. The
water is driven into the hot well H, and out into the
sea.
In connection with the slide side rods, are the weigh
shaft, the back balance v, and the valve lifter.
96. Oscillating Engines are a triumph of engineering
skill. They have been brought to their present perfection
chiefly through the ingenuity and skill of Penn. Mur-
dock, in 1785, attempted an oscillating engine ; but the
accuracy of our present fitting shops, and the skilful con-
trivances of modern machinists, were not at his command,
so there is no wonder he could not perfect his ideas.
In oscillating engines, instead of the connecting rod
oscillating to the motion of the crank, the cylinders
oscillate and the connecting rod is dispensed with. It
possesses many advantages ; among others, it occupies but
little space, consists of but few parts, and is easily acces-
sible for repairs.
The two cylinders A B and C D vibrate each upon two
trunnions, only one of which, a, is shown in the figure.
These trunnions are placed about the middle of the out-
side. The steam enters through the outside trunnions, or
 OSCILLATING ENGINES . 93

those nearest the sides of the vessel, whilst the exhaust

steam escapes at the opposite sides, or into the condenser
placed below and between the two cylinders. The air
pump is within the condenser, and is worked by a crank
on the " intermediate shaft." The shaft that stretches
over the engines from cylinder to cylinder is called the

H
FL

OSCILLATING ENGINES.
intermediate shaft, the slide valves are worked by eccen-
trics on this shaft, but the particular mode of working is
explained in the next paragraph. We must not omit to
mention, that the steam first passes into a belt c d on the
cylinders, and then, after going partly round, enters the
ports at the proper time. E and F are the piston-rods,
G H and K H the cranks turning the main shaft H.
97. How the Slides in Oscillating Engines are
Worked . In oscillating engines of small power, the
oscillations of the cylinder are made to work the slide
valve .
94 STEAM.

It will not do to connect the eccentric rod in oscillating

engines on to the slide valve rod, on account of the
motion of the cylinder. The difficulty here encountered
is overcome by having a sector B B' sliding in between
two upright rods A A'. The eccentric rod C C' is attached
to the sector by means of a pin C', so that motion is given
to . the sector by the eccentric. Within the sector slides
Α A'

H Hac
B

O
D

WORKING OF THE SLIDES IN OSCILLATING ENGINES, AND DETAILS

OF SLIDE GEAR.
(The letters in eachfigure correspond).
a block O, to which is fastened the gab lever a a' (right
hand figure), the spindle of which rests on a bearing a'
attached to the side of the cylinder H ; to this also is
attached the valve lifter ss', which gives motion to D,
the slide valve rod, so that the movement of the eccentric
is thus transferred to the slide valve. The slotway in
the sector is an arc, the centre of which is the centre of
oscillation of the cylinder . The motion of the cylinder
cannot, therefore, have any effect on the slide valves if
the block of the gab lever pin move freely in the sector,
which it does. In this manner, therefore, the eccentric
works the slide valves as in ordinary cases.
98. Steeple Engine.-Steeple engines have been intro-
duced largely on the Clyde, they also find much favour
in America. They are direct acting engines, very
 STEEPLE ENGINE. 95

serviceable and compact, and found to answer very well

as river steamers.

R
apr

Cy
AP

STEEPLE ENGINE.
They have not, in consequence of the high erection
they require above the deck, found any favour as sea-
going vessels, but the objection against them from this
cause seems more theoretical than practical. They do
certainly present a surface to the action of the wind, but
this action may very often be in favour of propulsion ,
while the surface is but small. They acquire their name
from the high erection a b, which serves as a guide for the
end of the connecting rod, which is above the crank.
Cy is the cylinder ; P the two piston-rods, as shown in
the figure, move the guide block G up and down between
the guides a b. G C is the connecting rod converting the
reciprocating rectilinear motion of G into a continuous
circular motion by means of the crank C R, which is thus
96 STEAM.

conveyed to the shaft marked dark in the figure. AP is

the air pump, apr air pump rod, worked by means of
the air pump lever c D, which receives its motion from
the guide block.
99. Maudslay's Twin Engine, or Siamese Engine, or
Double Cylinder Engine.-There are two cylinders, A and
B, and two piston rods, a and b. These rise and fall
simultaneously, carrying with them the large crosshead
CD in the form of the letter T. The part E F descends
between the two cylinders, the sides of which serve as a
guide, so that the guide block F is compelled to move
perpendicularly, and so preserve the parallelism of the
piston-rod. To F is attached the connecting rod F G,
which moves round the crank G H, carrying the main
shaft H.
H

E
D

α b

A
AP
K

DOUBLE CYLINDER ENGINE.

The air pump AP is worked by the lever D I, reci-
procated by the end D of the crosshead, and moving on
its centre 0. The condenser is low down at K-this
has proved an objection under certain circumstances.
This engine is only fitted for driving a paddle wheel.
100. Beam and Geared Engine.-Some engineers do
 TRUNK ENGINES. 97

not admire driving their engines at a high speed of the

piston, although it is necessary to have a high speed at
the screw. A beam engine is often put into the ship
which works a large spur wheel , from which is driven a
smaller pinion. A moderate speed of the crank shaft may
be kept up, which will give a very fast speed to the screw,
on account of the smaller size of the screw shaft pinion
compared with the driving wheel.

PR

cy.

P
GEARED ENGINE WITH BEAM.
Cy is the cylinder, the piston rod (PR) of which gives
the necessary reciprocating motion to A B, moving on its
centre O. B C is the connecting rod, RC the crank
turning the spur wheel S W, which works the pinion
P, keyed on to the main shaft s. It will thus be
seen that one revolution of the spur wheel S W (or one
stroke of the engine) will give several revolutions to the
pinion P, or to the main shaft.
101. Trunk Engine.-Watt first gave the idea of a
trunk engine, but it was not fully developed till Penn
produced the direct-acting horizontal marine screw engine.
Each engine is generally worked by two cylinders. The
cylinder A B is laid on its side ; and down the centre,
passing through both ends of the cylinder, goes a large
trunk a b, on which (all in one piece) is cast the piston
SI G
98 STEAM

cd, so that the effective working part of the piston is an

annulus or ring. The trunk is fitted steam tight by means
of stuffing boxes. The connecting rod is attached to a pin
o, fixed in the middle of a trunk, while the other end
engages and works the crank cs, where s is the main shaft.
E

a C HIW
ō.
P

B
TRUNK ENGINE.
CD, the rectangular figure to the right, is the condenser,
divided into the condenser proper, the hot well, and
the pump barrel. The large pipe EP is called the
eduction pipe ; its purpose is to bring the exhaust steam
into the condenser, where it is condensed at the bottom,
after which the double acting pump p delivers the water
into the hot well H W.
102. Gorgon Engines.- Gorgon Engines constitute a
class by themselves. They are adapted for driving paddle
wheels. We will endeavour to explain the principle
of their construction. As a class, they have been strongly
condemned by some eminent engineers, while others
approve highly of them. Their length is less than that
of a side lever, while the connecting rod is short-
a great evil. The shaft is often very high, which acts
disadvantageously. They have an ordinary cylinder,
piston, piston-rod, connecting rod, and crank ; the steam
is admitted in the manner indicated in the article on
Seaward's slides. From the exhaust side of the cylinder
the steam is led to the condenser, the arrangements for
which with the air pump, foot valve, delivery valve, and
snifting valve, are much the same as explained under the
heading Watt's Improvements, Its distinctive features
 GORGON ENGINES. 99

are the manner in which the steam is admitted to the cylin-

der, and the parallel motion. On the top of the hot well
is fitted a vertical frame, named the "rocking standard,"
the lower end so connected as to allow the top to move or
rock backwards and forwards through a very small arc ;
to the top of the rocking standard is attached the "rocking
beam," one end fastened to the end of the piston-rod,
the other to the intermediate rod at the end of the pump
rod. To this rocking beam is attached the bridle rod,
the other end being secured to the frame of the engine—
the whole forms the parallel motion. The air pump rod
is kept vertical by guides, but the piston-rod by the
bridle rod, rocking beam, and rocking standard. The
object of the arrangement was to secure compactness, so
that the engine might take up as little room as possible.

B
Co

P
7

AP
E F

GORGON ENGINE.
E is the cylinder, P the piston with its piston rod
attached. Steam enters the cylinder by way of S, in
100 STEAM.

the direction of the arrows, and drives the piston up.

The steam that drove it down goes out, as shown by the
two arrows on the right hand, to the condenser at F,
where it is condensed, the water passing the foot valve v,
after going through the air pump bucket b, is delivered by
the air pump AP through the delivery valve d into the hot
well H. The piston-rod is joined to the connecting rod
AG, which works the crank G K, turning the paddle
shaft K. The parallel motion is CD AB. CD is the
bridle rod, A B the rocking beam, and B H the rocking
standard. The point B describing a very small arc,
which may be considered a straight line; the end a compels
the piston rod AP to move perpendicularly and thus pre-
serve its parallelism. C D = A D = DB. S is the
steam side of the cylinder, and the right hand is the ex-
haust side.
103. Air Pump, Bucket, and Valves.-Many kinds of
valves are used for the air pump. Metallic valves are
frequently objectionable in consequence of oxidation, but
chiefly because of galvanic action. They are generally
packed with hemp, metallic rings being unsuitable. In
the engines first constructed, the ordinary " butterfly
valves" were used ; but as engines in course of time
were made more powerful, a greater weight was thrown
upon the air pump, and other forms of valves were
adopted. One of the best for the purpose is the
India-rubber Disc Valves.These are employed,
especially in swift running
engines, for air pump valves,
E instead ofthe common butterfly
or clack valves. They are con-
B structed with a ring or disc of
D India-rubbercovering agrating.
A B is a circular piece of good
thick vulcanized India-rubber ;
CD is the grating over which
INDIA-RUBBER DISC VALVE. it is fixed ; the arrows show
the direction in which the water passes. The grating is
 DOUBLE-ACTING PUMPS. 101

very similiar in construction to those employed for air-

gratings in floors. E is the guard full of holes to keep
the India-rubber from collapsing into a heap. All these
are bolted together by the bolt a b. When water has
passed through the apertures in CD, and the pump ascends,
the pressure of water on and above A B lays it flat on CD,
so that none can return. But on the down stroke, the
India-rubber being pliable it gives way, and the water
passes above the valve.
104. Double Acting Pump.- A double acting pump
is one that delivers water both by the forward and back-
ward stroke. Penn's trunk engine is always fitted with
two of these air pumps, one to each cylinder ; each is
worked by a rod which passes through the piston and
cylinder cover, and there are, of necessity, two suction
(foot) valves, and two forcing (delivery) valves. The
feed and bilge pumps are worked in the same manner.
Let us suppose the air pump piston is at the end of its
stroke to the right, then the space in front of it, or near
the cylinders, will fill with water from the foot of valves
12 ; when the piston moves to the left it will carry with
it the air pump piston by means of the rod r to the left,
so that the water filling o will be forced through the
delivery valves 3 and 4. As the piston moves to the left
a vacuum is left behind it in p, so that water rushes
through the suction valves 5, 6, while forcing valves 7, 8
close by pressure from above. In a similiar manner,
but by opposite action, the stroke delivers water into
the hot well H W, as the piston moves from left to
right.
Another kind of double acting pump is a simple
arrangement, by which the same pump can be made to
force water either in or out of the ship, or in or out of
the boiler. The pump is worked by the usual arrangement
of valves ; but there are two tapheads placed in the valve
box which turn two circular spaces. When turned in
one direction, the suction acts to bring water into the
ship; but when turned in an opposite way, water is forced
102 STEAM .

out by simply changing the direction from whence the

water can get beneath the valves.
105. Bilge Pumps.-A bilge pump is fitted to relieve
the ship of the water that, by leakage or otherwise, may
gain access to the bottom or bilge of the vessel. A
bilge pump is generally fitted with a plunger, as shown
in the feed pump in the article on page 68. It has a foot
valve, through which the water comes when the vacuum
is made, and a delivery valve, through which it is driven
when the plunger descends into the water. The plunger
is generally worked by the air pump crosshead, and the
water driven overboard through a pipe fitted on purpose.
Sometimes arrangements are made so that the bilge water
can be used for condensing purposes ; this of course can
only be employed, and then it would be of great service,
when the ship springs a leak. There is always a risk in
using bilge water, lest chips, oakum, etc., should get in
and injure the valves, or prevent them properly working ;
but if the entrance to the pipe be well protected and
looked after now and then, this risk may be reduced to
a minimum.

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. Describe some form of engine for driving a screw propeller.

Define the terms pitch and length as applied to a screw propeller
(1870).
2. Describe the general arrangement of a pair of oscillating
engines for a paddle wheel steamer. Since the slide valve oscil-
lates with the cylinder, how should it be connected with the
eccentric upon the fixed shaft which drives it ( 1871 )?
3. Describe the general arrangement of the trunk engine for
driving a screw propeller. Describe also that of an oscillating
engine suitable for a paddle wheel steamer ( 1869).
4. Describe generally the side lever marine engine. What is
the object of the blow valve, and where is it placed ? Which
parts of the engine are made of brass, and which of cast or mal-
feable iron (1870) ?
 CHAPTER VII.

THE PADDLE AND SCREW.

Paddle Wheels- Feathering of the Floats-Disconnection and

Immersion of the Wheels-The Screw Propeller-Various
Forms-Length, Angle, Pitch, and Area of Screw Blade
-Disconnecting and Raising the Screw-The Position of the
Screw Propeller in the Vessel- The Slip of the Screw-The
Method of Receiving the Thrust upon the Vessel- Soft Metal
Bearings.

THERE are various methods of propulsion, but up to the

present time only two have done good work-
(1 ) PADDLE WHEELS.
(2) THE SCREW.
In addition to these two, the "Waterwitch" is driven
by a kind of turbine or hydraulic propulsion, which shall
be explained .
Vessels in every case are propelled through the water
by leverage. The only fulcrum obtainable is the water
itself, which cannot offer any resistance to the slightest
pressure applied to it without yielding to a certain extent.
The amount of yielding will vary with the pressure and
the quantity of water acted upon. Without this yielding
property of the water, no vessel could progress through it
at all. The problem to be solved in marine propulsion,
is to arrange the floats, screw, etc. , that with the least
amount of slip we may attain the highest speed of pro-
gression.
106. Paddle Wheels consist of two large wheels moving
on the end of the engine shaft. They are made with iron
104 STEAM.

arms attached to two large ring , on to which are bolted

the paddles or floats. As they are turned round, the
resistance offered to them by the water causes the vessel
to move, acting precisely on the same principle as a boat
oar ; by them the inertia of the water is made a means of
locomotion. In using this appliance as a motive power,
its advantage mainly depends upon the amount of im-
mersion. When the water approaches the centre, or
reaches above, it is obvious that the greatest waste of
power will ensue. It is quite as obvious that the greater
the diameter of the wheel the greater the leverage, and
the greater is the effect obtained . The floats are generally
made of elm or pine. There are various kinds of paddle
wheels, such as ( 1 ) The ordinary radial wheel ; ( 2 ) the
cycloidal ; (3) Morgan's feathering paddle.
107. (1 ) The Ordinary Radial Wheel has the floats
fixed on the radial arms. It is to be observed that in this
arrangement the floats enter the water with the whole of
their faces presented to it ; the same action takes place as
they come out. From this arises a great loss of power,
for they should evidently offer the greatest resistance to
the water when at their lowest point, and none when
entering or leaving. From this cause, and the yielding of
the water, the ship does not move so fast as the wheel.
The loss is called slip, and is generally allowed to be 20
per cent.
Slip is the difference between the speed of the wheel
and the speed of the ship. The percentage is calculated
on the speed of the wheel.
108. (2) Cycloidal Wheels.-To obviate the difficulties
and disadvantages of the ordinary wheel, other forms have
been suggested, as the Cycloidal, which merely consists
in dividing the float into two strips longitudinally. The
one farthest from the centre is behind the radius, and the
other in front of it. The intention of this arrangement is,
that the floats may meet the water with more uniformity.
It is a very good form of wheel for large vessels.
In order that the floats may enter and leave the water
 MORGAN'S FEATHERING PADDLE . 105

with the least possible resistance, they should enter in a

tangential direction to the curve which is being described
by any point in the wheel. This is, as is well known,
the cycloidal curve.
109. (3) Morgan's Feathering Paddle.-A wheel of
this kind was first patented by Galloway in 1829.

MORGAN'S FEATHERING PADDLE.

The figure at a glance gives us a good idea of the prin-
ciple of the feathering paddle. The floats are seen sup-
ported on spurs attached to the rim of the wheel. The
long levers a a a, etc. , move the short ones a' a' a', etc. , on
their centres bbb, etc., fixed on the spurs. The levers
aaa, etc. , proceed to a centre C, while o is the centre of
the wheel. Thus the centre of the floats is not coincident
with that of the wheel. The centre C is either driven by
an eccentric on the ship's side, or "by a rigid bar which
"
springs from a solid ring" By this plan the floats are
always moved on their centres, so as to enter and leave the
water very nearly perpendicularly, and also offer the
greatest resistance at the lowest point. The floats are, in
fact, constantly at right angles to the surface of the water
* Goodeve's Mechanism, p. 251.
106 STEAM.

when immersed. Feathering the paddles simply means

arranging them so that they shall enter and leave the
water in a vertical position.
110. Immersion of Paddles.-The great difficulty with
paddle wheels is to secure a proper immersion. As the
ship proceeds on its voyage and consumes its store of coals,
the vessel becomes lighter, and, consequently, its draught
of water decreases. Therefore, supposing a paddle is pro-
perly immersed at the commencement of a voyage, it will
be nearly out of the water at the end. At the commence-
ment of a voyage the paddles must be too deeply immersed,
at the middle the proper immersion will perhaps be
attained, while there will be too little towards the end of
the voyage. It is usual to allow from twelve to twenty-
two inches of water over the top of the floats, according to
the size of the ship ; but in river steamers the usual plan
is to allow only about one inch over the floats, or that they
should be just awash. A system of reefing the paddles
exists, i.e. , at the commencement of the voyage the floats
are reefed, or unbolted, and fixed nearer the centre, and
as the coal is consumed they are shifted outwards to the
end of the radii.
111. Disconnecting the Paddle. -When the wind is
fair for sailing, and the ship is placed under canvas, it is
usual to disconnect the paddle wheels from the engines,
and allow them to revolve in their bearings by the resist-
ance of the water. Several plans have been proposed
to permit this action, as Maudslay's plan of sliding the
paddle shaft with the nearest crank out of the crank pin
by means of a worm wheel.
Braithwaite's, which consists of a cast iron disc keyed
on to the paddle shaft ; surrounding the cast- iron disc
is a strong wrought-iron hoop, which will slide round
the disc. A projection, into which is bored an eye for
the crank pin to pass through, is forged on to the hoop ;
on the opposite side of the hoop it is enlarged to cover
a brass cushion ; this cushion is driven by a key tightly
against the cast-iron disc, when the friction is so increased
 THE SCREW. 107

as to cause the disc to carry round the hoop, and with

it the crank, and so motion is communicated to the wheels.
Of course, if the key be driven out, then the hoop and disc
revolve independently, and the wheel is free to move by
the resistance of the water.
112. The Centre of Pressure.-In Morgan's feathering
paddle, as each paddle is always perpendicular to the water,
they progress with the same horizontal velocity, therefore
we may safely say, that the point of maximum resistance,
or centre of pressure, is in a line passing longitudinally
along the centre of the float. But in the radial wheel
this cannot be the case, for the outside edge of the float
moves much faster than the inside ; the point where these
two average each other is taken at a distance of one-third
the depth of the board from the outer edge.
113. The Rolling Circle is that circle described by the
point in the wheel whose velocity is equal to the velocity
of the ship. It is evident that the centre ofpressure moves
faster than the rolling circle ; the resistance which this
difference of velocity gives, is that which propels the ship.
"To the full power of the steam engine, and a certain
draught of the vessel, corresponds a certain rolling circle,
which indicates the maximum performance of the vessel.
Under no circumstances whatever can this maximum
efficiency be obtained if the centre of the float of a paddle
wheel is placed on the rolling circle. Wherever beyond
the rolling circle the floats of a paddle wheel may be
placed, and however great the slip of the float, so long as
the rolling circle is kept at this maximum, slip, under
such circumstances (as, for instance, in a small float placed
at a distance from the rolling circle), is no loss of power,
and does not lessen the efficiency of the engine. ” *
Paddle-wheel steamers are best adapted for propulsion
on shallow rivers and lakes, where the draught of water
is limited.
114. The Screw.-It need scarcely be said that the
paddle wheel was the first mode of propulsion used, and
*
Engineering.
108 STEAM.

that paddles possess certain advantages, under peculiar

circumstances, by which they still retain a strong hold
upon marine engineers.
115. The Screw or Propeller, or Screw-Propeller.-
The form is that of the screw of Archimedes , or it is a
spiral similiar to the geometrical staircase. It acts at
right angles to the paddle wheel, and is fixed in the dead
wood at the stern of the vessel, a large rectangular hollow
being constructed on purpose for its reception.
The propeller is of the same construction as the common
screw, but the narrow thread of the latter is expanded into
the large thin plate in the former, while the central
cylinder of the screw becomes very small, and only a very
small part of a convolution is taken, as it has been found
that one-sixth part of a convolution is much more effective,
and will do more work, than the whole. Propellers are
generally made with two blades, but they have been used
with three, four, and six blades. The former are found to
answer best, being fixed on a spindle passing through a boss.
116. Pitch, Thread, Angle, Length, Blade, Diameter,
Slip. We may suppose a screw to be formed thus :-
Take a piece of paper in the form of a right-angled
triangle, as A B C, and wrap
it round a cylinder, such as
a large lead pencil or ruler.
Let us suppose that when it
is wrapped round, the point
C touches B, or the side B
C exactly fits round once.
B Then A B is the pitch, B C
is the circumference, A C the thread, and A C B the angle.
The thread on our supposed screw is only a line ; let us
suppose this, as was said above, to become a wide flat
plate wound round, and that the cylinder becomes small,
and that of the whole thread only two bits are taken
opposite each other, we shall then have as good an idea
of a screw as can be given.
The Pitch is the distance that a complete convolu-
 NEGATIVE SLIP. 109

tion takes upon the cylinder ; or the pitch, as in

the common screw, is the distance between two threads ;
or, thirdly, the pitch is the distance that the screw would
go if turned once completely round in some unyielding
substance.
The Thread is the distance along the edge of the
blade.
The Angle is the inclination of the thread of the screw.
The Length is the fraction of the pitch actually used.
Blade.- Each propeller consists of two or more parts,
which are called blades. The area is the surface of the
blade.
Diameter is the diameter of the cylinder from which
the screw is taken, or it is the perpendicular distance
between the extreme outside points of the blade.
Positive Slip is the difference between the speed of
the ship and the speed of the screw. Slip varies from
10 to 30 per cent.
Negative Slip. - It is a curious fact that vessels have
been propelled faster by the screw, than the screw would
have gone had it been working in an unyielding substance.
The difference between the velocity of the ship and the
screw under this circumstance is called negative slip. It
has been suggested that the lines of the ship were such,
that a large body of water followed the vessel and re-acted
upon it, assisting the screw to send the ship forward. If
we consider the condition of the water around the screw
and behind it, we shall see a better reason for this singular
fact. The water is thrown outwards and backwards by
the propeller in the form of a hollow cone. Obeying the
usual laws of nature, the water follows to fill up this
hollow, and it thus comes again to the screw in two
directions. First, that which follows in the wake of the
vessel ; and second , that which attempts, as it were, to
fill up the vacuum near the centre, caused by the centri-
fugal action of the propeller. Both these bodies of water
will impinge upon the screw, and cause an additional
thrust. From this we can conceive that negative slip
110 STEAM .

may exist when these two forces reach a maximum, and

act under peculiar circumstances.
There are many varieties of screws , such as Griffiths',
who bends the ends of his blades forward a little, and
makes them broad at the boss. He discovered, in com-
mencing a series of experiments, that when he placed a
hollow globe, one-third the diameter of the screw, as the
boss, that thereby a positive gain was effected . The
blades of his propeller do not spring from the shaft,
but from this hollow sphere. The reason for such an
apparently anomalous arrangement will be found in what
follows. To move the central portion of the screw and
blades, absorbs through their inertia and resistance nearly
twenty per cent. of the power of the engines, while these
parts do little towards the propulsion of the vessel. For
they are nearly in a line with the shaft, or at right angles
to the water, and so cannot effect such a displacement
of water as shall react on the ship. Griffiths constructs
his blades to incline forward, the curve beginning from
the centre of the length of the blade, and reaching to its
point towards the ship.
Different engineers have given their blades the most
varied shapes. The object has been to get rid of the
vibration which communicates itself to the hull of the
ship, and is the cause of that disagreeable tremulous
motion experienced in screw vessels . This vibration
must result from the screw striking the water at intervals,
and not acting as it should with a continuous pressure.
The unequal pressure is frequently caused by the blade
being too wide across the top. Were the speed of the
ship the same as that of the screw, this " shivering" would
not occur. Engineers round off and spoil their screws to
make them cut the water instead of striking it, when they
should make the pitch finer in relation to the diameter,
and the blades narrower, but retaining their natural form .
The greatest resistance of the water is " across the pro-
pelling side of the front surface just across the middle, and
the forward side of the leading edge of the back surface."
 DISCONNECTING AND RAISING THE SCREW 111

117. Feathering Screws.-Several methods have been

proposed to feather the screw, such as Maudslay's and
Bevis' methods. To feather the propeller is to resort to
such an arrangement that the two blades can be turned
into a line with the keel of the ship, or in a fore and aft
direction, when she is under canvas. Bevis' method
feathers the screw by means of two levers working in a
boss on the screw shaft ; the levers are moved by a
sliding rod passing through the hollow stern shaft. The
sliding rod is worked by a nut on the shaft, while the
whole apparatus is easily accessible in the shaft tunnel.
118. Twin Screws. -Twin screws consist simply
of two screws, one on each side of the rudder, instead of
one screw in the dead wood in front of the rudder. One
screw turns to the right hand, the other to the left. It
is claimed for this arrangement that the ship can be very
quickly turned within a small space.
119. Disconnecting and Raising the Screw. - We
have stated that Maudslay makes provision for feathering
his propeller, or for arranging it so that when the ship is
under sail, it shall offer no resistance to the water. It
has been found before now, that when a ship has been
under sail and steam at the same time, that the velocity
of the ship has outstripped the velocity of the screw ;
hence the screw has dragged or become an obstacle to the
progression of the vessel. Cases have been known in
which the screw has actually been broken off backwards
or away from the ship by this dragging force. The screw
also requires to be sometimes taken out for examination
and repair, therefore a necessity exists for providing
means both for disconnecting the screw from the engines,
and for raising it out of its place. Merchant vessels are
generally brought alongside a quay at high water, and at
low water the screw is examined or taken out-the process
often involving considerable expense from loss of time, etc.
But in men-of-war more complete arrangements exist.
The screw is fixed in the centre of a frame, supported on
a short shaft. The main screw shaft can be withdrawn,
112 STEAM.

and thus the screw is disconnected from the shaft, and is

at liberty to revolve ; by an arrangement of slots, it and
its frame are also perfectly free to be lifted out vertically.
This is effected by means of ropes and other appropriate
tackle, or by a rack and worm.
Admiral Hall has proposed a simpler and less expensive
plan for shipping or unshipping the propeller in any
harbour without entering a dry dock. *

ARRANGEMENT FOR LIFTING THE SCREW.

The screw is fixed in a frame A B, and the screw shaft
can be withdrawn. A is the crosshead of the frame
through which pass two rods, a and b, which are screwed
into the tops of the bearings at d d
' ; c is a strong chain
to hold the screw. First of all, the propeller is raised as
high as possible from the place shown by the dotted lines
to the position as seen in the figure by means of the
screws. Then tackling is fixed to each end of the blade,
and c is also fastened on. Next the rods a and b are
*A full description will be found in Engineering, Vol. VIII. , p. 43,
 THRUST OF THE SCREW. 113

unscrewed and taken out, when c sustains the propeller.

The tackling fixed to the ends of the blades is supported
by guys, so as to run clear of the sides of the vessel.
Next c is let go, and as the right chain-tackle is slackened,
the left is wound up, bringing the propeller out sideways
and carrying it on to the deck. To ship the screw, these
proceedings are reversed.
The same figure will also give us an idea where and
how the screw is fixed in the dead wood, and its position
as regards the rudder R.
120. Thrust of the Screw.--When we consider that
the screw acts by the resistance offered to the surface of
the blades by the inertia of the water, which is driven
sternwards by the screw, we perceive at once that the
whole force moving the vessel is transmitted to the end
of the screw-shaft. Methods must therefore be provided
to prevent the force or motion from being converted into
heat by the enormous amount of friction necessarily
transmitted. The more
heat we allow the end of
the screw shaft to gene-
rate, the more power we
lose. The dynamical and
A B
modern theory of heat is,
that heat is motion, and
therefore the more heat
we allow to waste or de-
velop at the end of the
shaft, the more motion we
lose.
The thrust of the shaft,
or the reaction of that (2)
C
force which pushes the
ship through the water,
is received on a series of (1) THRUST END OF SHAFT.
metal discs completely (2) LOWER END OF THRUST BLOCK.
immersed in oil. Several discs are employed to distribute
the friction, and should two or more set fast, by two pure
SI H
114 STEAM.

metallic surfaces coming in contact, others may be still

free to move. By far the best arrangement for receiving
the thrust consists of a long 'plummer block, having in it a
series of circular depressions with a square section, into
which fit a series of collars turned on the end of the shaft.
A B is the end of the shaft ; 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5, etc. , are the
collars turned on it. These fit into the plummer block C.
This figure C is a representation of the bottom half only
of the plummer block. The cap, which is removed, is
similar in section, and contains the corresponding semi-
circular spaces to fit the collars. The plummer block is
hollow, water circulating within.
121. Thrust of Screw-Continued. If two pieces of
lead have their pure metallic surfaces laid bare, and are
then put together with a slight pressure and twist, they
unite and become almost as one piece ; so will dissimilar
metals, as iron and lead, or steel, brass and lead, or even
two pieces of steel, or two pieces of glass truly flat and
clean. When lead bullets (as they are made at Woolwich,
entirely by compression, by driving the dies into the solid
lead) are being manufactured, the lead will unite to the
steel die, unless oil or grease be employed to interpose
between the two metals : the pure metallic surfaces unite
under pressure by the power of cohesion. Before the
thrust of the propeller was received on a thrust block, as
indicated above, it was received on a fixed piece of steel,
against which the shaft directly worked. After wear,
when the oil had been worn off, and the two surfaces had
scraped each other so as to present mutually to one another
pure metallic surfaces, the two perfectly united, and
united so firmly that the shaft twisted and broke, not
directly where the thrust was received , but elsewhere.
122. Area of the Blade.- The area of the blade means
the surface acting upon the water, it is generally expressed
in square feet. Its resistance offered to the water depends
not alone on the surface, but upon the angle of the thread
and the diameter of the screw from which it is cut.
123. Soft Metal Bearings.- Soft or white metal is
 EXERCISES. 115

put into bearings to lessen the friction. It consists of

an alloy in many different proportions ; one of about two
parts of tin, two of antimony, and one of copper answers
very well. It has been found an effectual remedy for hot
bearings, and wears away very much less than would be
expected ; but if it be not effectually confined in the brass,
it is liable to be forced out, or to " flow out " owing to its
softness. In locomotives it has been used successfully in
the axle-box, and in the bearing at the large end of the
connecting rod, and sometimes in the coupling rod. The
' bush or brass to be lined with it, is cast with a receptacle
for the soft metal, and is then properly prepared, and the
metal is attached to it by being poured upon it in a molten
state. Frequently such composition is called Babbit's
metal.

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. What is the nominal horse -power of a pair of engines ( 1867) ?

Given :
Diameter of cylinder ....... 60 inches
Stroke of piston....... 5 feet 4 inches
Number of revolutions .. 38. Ans. 243.2.
Nominal H.-P. = 60 × 60 × 53 × 2 ×38
6000
= 243.2
2. The pitch of a screw is 20 feet, it makes 40 revolutions per
had minute ; find the speed of the ship in knots.
20 x 40 x 60
Speed = 7.9 nearly.
and 6080
If the slip is 10 per cent. , find the speed.
As 100 79 :: 90 : 7 · 11
Cano 3. What is meant by the nominal horse-power of an engine,
and how is it determined for paddle-wheel vessels (1868) ?
ends 4. Describe the common screw-propeller. Define the terms
pitch, length, and angle of the screw, and slip. A ship is required
read to steam at the rate of 12 knots, and the engine crank is to make
76 revolutions, what must be the pitch of the screw if 20 per
cent. be allowed for slip (1868)? Ans, 20 feet.
116 STEAM.

These 12 knots represent the speed of the ship, which is less

than that of the screw ; 20 per cent. or has been taken off the
12 knots, therefore the 12 represents .. = 15.
pitch x 76 x 60 = 15
6080
15 × 6080 = 20
pitch =
76 x 60
5. Describe the screw-propeller. Define the pitch and length
of a screw-propeller. Howis the thrust of the propeller received
upon the vessel ( 1869) ?
6. Describe some form of engine adapted for driving a screw-
propeller. Define the terms pitch and length, as applied to a
screw-propeller (1870).
7. Define the screw-surface, and the pitch and length of a
screw-propeller. Describe the general arrangement of the boilers,
engines, screw, shafting, and propeller in a vessel. How are the
engines relieved from the thrust which propels the ship (1871 )?
 CHAPTER VIII.

BOILERS AND BOILER GEAR.

The Boiler-Flue or Cylindrical Boiler-Return Flue, Cornish,

Lancashire-Length and Diameter of Flues-Thickness of
Plates-Internal and External Pressure-Marine, Flue, and
Tubular Boiler- Gunboat Boiler- Vertical Boiler- Blast
Pipe-Waste Steam Pipe- Steam Chest-Staying Boilers-
Fusible Plug-Clothing of Boilers- Copper Boilers- Testing
Boilers -Funnel and its Casing -Surface Condensation-
Salter's Spring Balance-Bourdon's Gauge - Vacuum Gauge
Stop Valve-Glass Water Gauge-Reverse Valve-Boiling
Point of Sea Water-Brining Boilers - Surface Blow out
Cocks -Kingston's Valves-Salt and the Boiling Point—
Hydrometer and Salinometer - Scale - Priming- Causes
and Danger-Remedy- Fire Grate and Heating Surface-
Evaporation- Feed Pumps and Giffard's Injector.
THE boiler is the vessel in which steam to drive the
engine is generated. It has received various shapes from
early and late engineers, such as haycock or balloon,
waggon, sphere, hemisphere, ring or annular, flue, Lanca-
shire, Cornish, return-tubular, Field's, etc. The early
boilers were very defective in their construction, being
actually made of cast iron with leaden or wooden tops,
and even with wooden shells hooped like barrels, and
often with flat surfaces-the weakest of all forms ; but
then no danger arose, for the pressure seldom or never
exceeded twelve or fifteen pounds on the square inch; but
now, when boilers have to submit to ten or twelve times
that strain, care, thought, and diligent enquiry are abso-
lutely necessary.
If, in the construction of steam boilers, strength alone
were studied, the spherical form would be adopted, be-
118 STEAM.

cause it is the strongest or all forms in which a vessel can

be made if it is to resist either internal or external pres-
sure; but although such boilers have been used here and
there they will never come into extensive use, because
they have not a large amount of heating surface. The
cylindrical form is next to the spherical in point of
strength, and superior to it in respect of superficial area
or heating surface, hence this form is very generally
adopted.
124. Flue or Cylindrical Boilers (external pressure).-
These approach the true shape of a truly efficient boiler.
They consist of a large cylinder with one or more flues
passing through their whole length, which are generally
built of plates of the same thickness as the other parts of
the boiler, but experiments prove this to be a vicious
system.
Flue boilers assume many different arrangements as
regards the flues. This figure shows the return flue boiler.
At first the flue went right through, the fireplace at one
end and the chimney at the other. It was a great
improvement, and early introduced, to let the flue curve
round at the further end and return to the front, so that
chimney and fireplace were both at the same end. The
fireplace is seen to the left, and the chimney on the right
of the front, while the dotted
lines show the course of the
flue in the boiler.
When the boiler has but
one tube running from end
to end, it is generally called
a Cornish boiler, and when
two it receives the name of
Lancashire boiler ; but we
RETURN FLUE BOILER. have explained a little fur-
ther on with an illustration the real distinctive features
of a Cornish boiler, and it must not be left unstated that
we may speak of a two-tube Cornish boiler ; but still it
is a very common mode of distinguishing boilers of one
 THICKNESS OF THE PLATES. 119

and two tubes from each other, especially in the Midlands,

calling them respectively Cornish and Lancashire boilers.

LANCASHIRE BOILER. CORNISH BOILER.

125. Length of Flues.- Sometimes flues are made to
run the whole length of the boiler, twenty or thirty feet,
without any supports. Three tubes were taken, four
inches in diameter, of the same thickness of iron, sup-
ported at the ends by rings, but respectively nineteen ,
forty, and sixty inches long. Pressure was brought to
bear upon them, and they collapsed at 137, 65, and 43 lbs.
on the square inch. This clearly demonstrates that the
strength of similar tubes to a collapsing pressure, is in
inverse proportion to their length. Two boiler flues,
forty-two inches in diameter, three-eighths of an inch
thick plate, and twenty-five and thirty-five feet long,
collapsed the former at a pressure of 97, and the latter
at 27 lbs. on the square inch.
126. Diameter of Flues.-The greater the diameter of
a flue or cylindrical boiler, the weaker it is. Its strength
varies inversely as the diameter, i.e. , double the diameter
the strength is diminished by one half. From experi-
ments : three five-feet tubes, four, eight, and twelve
inches in diameter, about of an inch in thickness,
collapsed at a pressure of 43, 20.8, and 12.5 lbs. on the
square inch respectively.
127. Thickness of the Plates .-The strength oftheflue
is augmented with the thickness of the plate in a little
120 STEAM.

greater proportion than the square, i.e. , if a plate one-

eighth of an inch thick bear a certain strain, then one
double the thickness, or one-fourth of an inch thick, will
bear a strain = 22:19 or more than four times as great.
The greater the diameter of a tube the weaker it is, and
because, also, the strength of a plate increases with its
thickness, therefore the thickness of a tube plate should
be in proportion to the diameter of the tube, or the plates
of a two feet diameter flue should be, within certain limits,
double the thickness of those of a one foot flue, or, if the
plates of a one foot flue are one-fifth of an inch thick,
those of a two feet flue should be nearly two-fifths of an
inch thick.
Mr. Fairbairn, to whom we are indebted for these
important experiments, and from whose valuable work,
Useful Information for Engineers, these facts are culled,
proposes a remedy and modification in tubular boiler tubes,
which have hitherto been constructed without a correct
knowledge of the laws of nature. He proposes that
strong rings of T or angle iron shall be riveted at inter-
vals of 10 feet or less along the flues, thus practically
reducing them to several tubes of short length, and,
therefore, considerably increasing their strength. He
also proposes that they should not be formed with the
usual lap joints, but with riveted butt joints, and longi-
tudinal covering plates.
128. Boilers' Internal Pressure. The tensile strength
of a boiler plate is nearly the same whether torn
asunder in the direction of the fibre or across it ; and
heat does not affect their strength up to 315°C. ,
above which they rapidly become weaker. Riveting
reduces the tenacity of a boiler, or the bursting pressure,
from 23 tons per square inch to 15 tons. Cylindrical
boilers made of the same thickness of plates throughout,
are more liable to give way along the sides than at the
ends.
The external shell of a boiler is three or four times
stronger than the flue, if both are constructed in the
 MARINE TUBULAR BOILER. 121

ordinary manner ; or, the outside shell more easily resists

the bursting pressure than the tubes the collapsing.
But if the flues are divided into lengths of 10 feet or less
by strong ribs of angle iron , their resistance is enormously
increased. Cylindrical boilers must be strengthened in
the same way, but are considerably weakened if made
elliptical instead of cylindrical. The tube of a boiler is
made in several small lengths by bending the plates over
into a circle overlapping along the edges and welded ; the
short tubes are joined together by rivets to corrugated
hoops, or between any two ends is a small ring consist-
ing of two flanges with a small arch between ; the flanges
are riveted on to the tubes.
129. The Marine Flue Boiler.-In this boiler the fire-
places are within the shell, and the flues wind backwards
and forwards until they discharge the remaining heat up
the funnel, the furnace (or furnaces) being at the end of
the boiler, below the middle of the water. The heat
first descends to the bottom of the boiler and towards the
farther end, it then winds back towards the furnace, and
turning up and back comes now to the bottom of the
funnel, near the centre of the boiler.
130. The Marine Tubular Boiler.-In tubular boilers
the heat is allowed to pass into and through a series of
tubes which run through the water. They are chiefly
employed in locomotive and marine engines.
The figures on next page represent ( 1 ) a longitudinal
section of a marine tubular boiler ; (2) a front view
-partly in section, to give a better idea of it— and show-
ing four furnaces F P, with the ashpits A P. The small
circles represent the ends of the tubes, W W is the water
in the boiler, www the water around the tubes, the spaces
between them are the tubes themselves, w L is the water
level. In the left hand figure F P is the fireplace, B the
bridge. The coal is first thrown on to the dead plate D to
warm, it is then pushed on to the fire bars a a. The fire
bars are in lengths, and the ends are not close together,
to allow for expansion. B the bridge is to prevent the
122 STEAM.

fire from getting too far back in the furnace ; the bridge
sometimes forms part of the boiler itself—a very bad
practice -but is more frequently built of Stourbridge
fire-clay bricks. The heated air and gases pass over the
bridge through the lower tubes cccc into the fire box F B,

WL WL
W
SB W
W
w
W FB W
FP B W
D
000
AP 000
W AP AP AP
W

1. Longitudinal Section. 2. Front Elevation.

TUBULAR BOILER.
then through the tubes eeee into the smoke box S B, and
up the funnel or uptake F. The smoke box has a door
opening into the engine room, that the tubes may be
cleared out should soot, etc. , lodge in them. They also
slant a little the short ones towards the fire box, the
longer ones towards the smoke box-that the heat may
receive more resistance in passing through, and have
a better chance of communicating its motion to the water.
The next figure is another form of marine tubular
boiler which has been much used in compound engines.
The boilers just described are not constructed to bear avery
great pressure of steam, but those on this principle are.
In this figure the references are the same as in the
last. FP is the fireplace or furnace, A P is the ashpit,
W the water, w L the water line, cccc the tubes, F the
funnel-the bottom of which in this arrangement answers
both for firebox and smoke box. Each fireplace has its
 VERTICAL BOILERS. 123

own boiler, which can be kept perfectly distinct, as will

be explained when speaking of the communication valve.
A B is the superheating apparatus ; the steam leaves the
steam chest by the passages a a, and passing in and out
through the tubes within A B becomes further heated

SP
WS

B
a a

WL WL
W F W
FP FP
AP W W AP

SECTION OF MARINE BOILER.

by the heat passing up the funnel, and is carried off by
the steam pipe SP to the cylinder. At W S the waste
steam returns through the exhaust pipe, and rushing up
the chimney creates a draught, answering better than a
blast, and giving the engine-maker a chance of making
his furnace small.
131. Vertical Boilers. Vertical boilers assume
many shapes internally, although their outward appear-
ance corresponds very much to the following figure.
Vertical boilers are used in steam cranes, hoists, and
often in portable engines, and in Samuel's express
locomotive. In this figure F B is the fire box ; the
letters W W show the water spaces, w L the water
line. It is seen that tubes leave the boiler immediately
above the fireplace, and rejoin the water at the crown of
the furnace. Evidently, from this arrangement, the
124 STEAM.

convected water will have a free rise, and a given

quantity of heat will produce a
fair amount of evaporation . In
vertical boilers vertical tubes are
used, as in Samuel's locomotive
mentioned above ; but vertical
tubes by no means constitute a
vertical boiler.
The Blast Pipe is a pipe leading
from the boiler into the funnel to
create a draught while getting up
steam ; but when the engine is
W moving (noncondensing engines),
the waste steam passing through the
W waste steam pipe performs this office.
W The steam rushing up the funnel
leaves behind a vacuum, when the
air, rushing through the fire bars
to supply its place, gives up its
store of oxygen to combine with
the other products of combustion,
wL and intense heat is produced. It
F.3. was this contrivance that so effi-
ciently assisted Stephenson to win
the prize of £500 at the memor-
VERTICAL BOILER. able competition at Rainhill, when
his engine, the " Rocket," now in the South Kensington
Museum, defeated the " Novelty" and " Sanspareil." He
also used coke and a tubular boiler.
132. Waste Steam Pipe.-The waste steam pipe is
placed immediately over the safety valves to carry off the
waste steam; it runs up by the side of the funnel, and has
frequently a steam trap at the top from which a drip pipe
runs to carry off whatever may have accumulated in it.
The Steam Chest is either a dome above, the boiler, or
else the upper part of the boiler. It is a reservoir for steam,
and should the engines be using steam faster than the eva-
poration of the boiler, there is a supply to fall back upon.
 CORNISH BOILER. 125

133. The Cornish Boiler.-The Cornish boiler is a

long cylindrical one. Its peculiarity is in the internal
arrangement of the flues, which can be best understood ·
by well examining the annexed figures.

S. c.
WL
x
a FP

க
d AP
D
Longitudinal Section.
CORNISH BOILER.
D is a longitudinal section, E a cross section. The
lines of shading in both figures show
the water. c d efis the flue, in the
right hand of which is the fireplace
and ash pit. Immediately behind
the fire bridge B is a large tube a' a
running beyond the end of the boiler
to a, and suspended within the flame
AP
and burning gases. It communi- E
cates with the rest of the boiler at Transverse Section.
g and h by means of two copper pipes. Sometimes the
pipe is not at g, but leads from the end a into the top of
the boiler at b. wL is the water level, and it will be
observed that there is a very large steam chest sc , and
that the surface of the water is large. It is for this
reason that there is no priming in Cornish boilers—the
steam having plenty of room and a large surface to rise
from. The fire and heat play everywhere within the flue,
and are brought right round under the boiler, and pass
along by D to heat the water in the bottom space dh e.
The whole is set in masonry, and the arrangements are
so good that very little heat can escape by conduction
126 STEAM .

or radiation, while the heating surface is very great.

From having such a large amount of heating surface, it
has been calculated that a pound of best Welsh coal, in
a Cornish boiler, will evaporate 11 lbs. of water.
134. Staying of Boilers-Boiler Stays.-Boilers are
stayed to give them additional strength. In cylindrical
boilers a few stays run from end to end for support.
Any flat part of a boiler must be stayed ; it is generally
found better to use a number of small stays than three or
four large ones. The furnaces in marine boilers should
always be stayed by means of these. The staying of
boilers is a matter of vital importance.
Boilers are generally fitted with man-hole and mud-hole
doors. The man-hole is frequently in the top of the boiler,
and is fastened on with bolts and nuts. Its purpose is
to give ingress to the interior of the boiler, so that any a
necessary repairs may be made. The mud-hole door is fitted
in the bottom to allow of the boiler being easily cleansed
from accumulation of mud, salt, etc. This particularly
applies to marine boilers, and boilers in river steamers.
The mud-hole door should be fitted on inside, and the heads
of the bolts inside, and the nuts outside. Through inatten-
tion to these points several accidents have happened . The
nuts have become loose and the mud-hole door given way,
when the whole body of water and steam have been driven
into the engine-room and the men scalded to death.
135. Clothing of Boiler.-Instead of boilers being
allowed to come in direct contact with the brickwork
around them, they are embedded in some non-conducting
substance, as wood, fine cinders, etc. , so that a minimum
amount of heat may escape by conduction from the
boilers. For the same reason, cylinders are clothed and
jacketed, while the top of the boilers are frequently
covered, i.e. , clothed with wood, haircloth, etc. , and
painted to prevent radiation.
136. Copper Boilers.-Copper boilers are considered
by some more efficient than iron boilers ; their first cost
being so very much greater than those of iron, they
 SURFACE CONDENSATION. 127

have not been used to any great extent. Copper being

a better conductor than iron, the heat more readily
passes into the water, and consequently there is more
economy exercised so far as heat is concerned. They are
not quite so strong as iron, in the proportion of 16 to 23,
but they do not waste by scaling ; and, therefore, they
retain their original strength for a long time, while the iron
ones are continually getting weaker and weaker. In
consequence of its great conductibility and not wasting
and burning at the joints, it is used for the furnaces
of locomotive boilers. Copper is seldom used now for
boilers, as experience has taught that they are not quite
so efficient as might have been expected. It is soon
damaged in the furnaces by the use of sulphurous coal,
and when a leak appears it rapidly becomes weaker in
the neighbourhood of the leak.
137. Funnel and its Casing. The funnel is the
chimney of the marine boiler. It consists of two parts,
(1) thefunnel, (2) the casing. The funnel is made of large
plates of iron, and all the waste products of combustion
are carried up them into the air. They must not be too
wide, or the draught is not sufficiently strong. A rule is
sometimes adopted in marine chimneys of allowing six
square inches of flue section to each horse-power of the
engine. In the chimney or funnel is fitted the damper,
consisting of two discs, which, when shut down, will allow
no draught ; they can be raised so as to give any amount
of opening, and regulate the draught according to the
judgment of the engineers.
Round the funnel, at the distance of a few inches from
it, is placed the funnel casing ; as the funnel gets
heated by the gases passing up it, it communicates the
motion to the air, which becomes rarefied and ascends. A
continual current of convected air is rapidly passing be-
tween the funnel and the casing to keep the former cool.
Holes are left in the casing near the deck for air to pass in.
138. Surface Condensation. -Surface condensation
consists in exposing the hot steam to large cold surfaces.
128 STEAM.

Watt tried it. Hall's surface condensers consist of an

immense number of vertical tubes or pipes placed in a
large tank. The steam, after being used in the cylinders,
passes through these pipes. Water surrounds the tubes,
and is forced through the tank in among the tubes, either
by pressure from behind or by creating a vacuum in front.
The cold water enters at the opposite end to the steam,
and goes out at the end where steam enters ; thus the hot
steam meets the warmer water first and the colder last,
by which arrangement the water is made to carry off as
much heat as possible.
139. Appendages to the Boiler.-The necessary ap-
pendages to a boiler are the safety valve, the gauge-
which may be the old fashioned mercurial gauge-Salter's
spring balance, or Bourdon's gauge, the reverse valve,
the glass water gauge, or else gauge cocks.
The safety valve is a lever of the third kind, the ful-
crum at one end, the weight at the other, while the power
is exerted between the two.
It is a conical valve, fitted steam tight on its seat, and
kept down by a weight. The weight is so proportioned
that when the steam exceeds a certain pressure the valve
will lift and the steam escape, and so prevent the boiler
bursting, by keeping the pressure below a fixed maximum.
Its area varies with different makers, but some engineers
follow the rule of allowing half an inch of area to each
horse-power of the engine. The weight is fixed by the
engine-makers, and no increase should be allowed without
their express sanction . Every boiler, when there are two
or more to the same engine, must have its own safety
valve. Some safety valves are kept on their seats by
spiral springs.
140. Salter's Spring Balance is used especially in loco-
motives to exhibit the pressure of steam. Its principle
is a steel spring, well tightened, which, according to the
pressure of steam, extends after the manner of the spring
steel yards used in public byour ragand bonemerchants ; or
else the increased pressure of steam acts against the spring.
 BOURDON'S GAUGE. 129

An adaptation of the spring balance to safety valve is

shown by the figure in the margin, where A is screwed
into the boiler, or into a pipe in free communication with
the steam, so that steam can enter the cylindrical body
B ; if we suppose the dotted lines at A form a piston, it
will act against it to drive it down, which the pres-
sure of the spring will not allow it to do until it
overcomes its resistance. The greater the force of the
steam the more will the spring be compressed, and the
more of the graduated part be shown. Acting on this
principle it is evident that, if it be properly graduated,
the pressure of steam in the boiler will be correctly
indicated by the scale. When used to keep down a safety
valve, it is evident that the piston must open a vent at a
certain point of its stroke, or else the valve must be able
to rise considerably on its seat before steam
can escape ; this is the exceptional arrange-
ment, as Salter's spring balance is used in
a simpler manner for a pressure gauge, and
not to keep the safety valve on the seat.
141. Bourdon's Gauge. -This gauge is
produced in many shapes--we give one of the
most portable and convenient in the figure
on the next page. A B is a circular plate,
fitting steam tight in s, but still readily
moving with the least pressure . s is in B
free communicatio n with the boiler, by way
of E ; therefore the pressure of steam below
will cause the plate to ascend, when the
rod r will move the lever a b on its centre b,
25
and with it the rack c d, which moves the 20
pinion p from right to left, and with it the 10
pointer P, which will indicate the number 5
of pounds pressure in the boiler on the arc.
The use of gauges, it will be gathered
from what precedes, is (1 ) to tell accurately SPRING
the pressure of steam in boilers when water BALANCE.
is hotter than 100 ° C.; (2 ) to indicate the variation
SI I
130 STEAM .

in the pressure of steam from time to time. When

we consider how much depends upon a knowledge of
these facts, the following instance of-to say the least—
carelessness and thoughtlessness will astonish us :—-Out
of 52 gauges tested for the Royal Agricultural Society,
upon the occasion of their exhibition being held at Man-
chester, only nine were correct. If this be a fair average,
the deplorable fact comes to light that only 17.3 per cent.
of the gauges in common use give correct indications of
the state of the boiler pressure.
142. Vacuum Gauge. The same figure will illustrate
the vacuum gauge and its principle. The vacuum gauge
is to show the state of the vacuum in the condenser, and
so is an appendage to the condenser and not to the boiler.
E is fitted into the condenser.
If A B be air tight, there being
30 a vacuum in the condenser, when
20 40 the cock V is opened, the piston
will descend by reason of the
pressure of air above it. If the
pointer be directed to a particular
point when the air is acting
freely on both sides of the piston
B A B, then, as the vacuum in-
creases in the condenser, the
pointer will move from left to
E right. When the gauge is
used to show a vacuum the
graduation only extends from
1 lb. to 15 lbs. The teacher
must accustom his pupils to
drawthe figures clearly, pointing
BOURDON'S GUAGE. out the difference of action, when
used as a vacuum gauge and as a steam pressure gauge.
143. Communication or Stop Valve. The purpose
of the communication or stop valve is to allow the steam
to pass from the boiler to the engine. When it is wished
to start, a handle is turned round, which lifts generally
 GLASS WATER GAUGE. 131

an ordinary conical valve from its seat, and the steam

passes at once into the steam pipe to the slide casing, etc.
A communication valve is fitted to each boiler, so that
when an engine has several boilers, any one or more can
be used without the other. The regulator in the loco-
motive corresponds to the communication valve in the
marine and land engine.
144. Glass Water Gauge.-The best contrivance to
ascertain the height of the water in the boilers is the
glass water gauge ; whereby, at a glance, the engineer
can see the height of the water. Gauge cocks are
also used ; they consist of three ordinary cocks-
the lower one placed below the level of the water, and
from which water should al-
ways flow when it is turned ;
the middle on a level with the
water, from which steam and α
water should issue ; and the
third above the level of the
water, from which steam should H
always issue when turned. To
bring the gauge cocks within
reach of the engineman, they WL
are placed low down or in a
line, and tubes lead up inside
the boiler to the required
heights, and to a part of the
boiler where the ebullition is
least.
The figure will exhibit the
principle of the glass water
gauge, which is often carried
out by a more elaborate system
of cocks to prevent the gauge B
from choking, and to clean it H
out. W is the water in the
boiler, and w L the water GLASS WATER GAUGE.
line, A B the glass gauge in communication with the
132 STEAM.

boiler at a and a'. It is seen that the height ofthe

water in the gauge will show the level of the water in
the boiler, and whether it be necessary to continue or
discontinue the feed water. There are cocks at the two
ends A and B, as well as at H and H, to clean out the
gauge.
145. The Reverse Valve - Vacuum Valve, Internal
Safety Valve, or Atmospheric Valve- for it has all these
names is to prevent the boiler from collapsing through
the external pressure of air. When a boiler has been in
use, we will suppose the engine stops, and that the stop
valve, safety valve, etc., are closed. Then, as the water
cools down and steam condenses, a vacuum will exist in
the boiler ; and if means are not taken to prevent the
external pressure of 15 lbs. on
the square inch from taking
effect, danger will ensue to it.
AB shows the general appear-
ance of the valve, S leads to
the boiler. The air pressing
S

upwards in the direction of the

arrows will lift up the valve V
and open it, when the internal
pressure is at a certain stage
B below that of the atmosphere ;
then passing into the boiler
REVERSE VALVE. through S, will restore equili-
brium, or, at least, partial equilibrium. It is generally
made of such a weight that it will lift with an external
pressure of 5 lbs. The pressure in the boiler can get
below that of the atmosphere when the supply of steam
is insufficient for the engines (if there be a good vacuum),
or if a sea were to break over a ship and suddenly con-
dense the steam in the boiler.
146. Boiling Point of Sea Water.-An analysis of sea
water has been given on page 33. In consequence of
some of the solid substances being chemically combined,
and the others mechanically suspended in sea water,
 BRINING THE BOILERS. 133

especially because of the latter, and its specificgravity being

greater than fresh water, it takes considerably more heat
to boil it than to boil fresh, spring, or river water, and of
course, as ebullition continues and the steam is used, the
water will get salter and salter ; no salt can possibly pass
away with the steam, and therefore the amount of heat
required to convert the water into steam will have to be
increased in proportion to the density of the water, while
the water itself will become saturated with salt , or it will
be incapable of holding more salt, which will be pre-
cipitated and form a crust on the boiler, separating the
iron boiler plates from the water : thus the boiler plates
can actually become red hot, and danger is imminent; for,
the plates being softened, they are liable to collapse.
147. Boiling Point of Salt Water.-Salt water con-
taining part of salt (it has been usual in all works on
steam to say ), will boil at a temperature of 100° & C.;
if the proportion of salt be doubled or 30 it will boil at a
3 4
temperature of 101 ° C., if 30 or the boiling point
will rise respectively to 102° C. and 102° C.; when
there are 30
12 of salt in the water, the boiling point rises
to 107° C. 18
30 is the point of saturation, when the
water is so full of salt that it will hold no more, and it is
therefore rapidly precipitated. It will assist the memory,
perhaps, to state that in each gallon of sea water there
are more than four ounces of salt, and if two gallons be
boiled down to one, it will contain double that amount,
or more than eight ounces.
148. Blowing out or Brining the Boilers.- Generally
the saltness of water in the boilers must be kept below
three or four-thirtieths. To effect this , and to have them
as free from salt as is consistent with the economical
consumption of heat, the practice of " blowing out " is
resorted to. For the purpose blow out cocks are fitted to
the bottoms of all marine boilers, and from the cocks pipes
lead into the sea. Every two hours, but generally less,
the blow out cocks are opened, and the supersalted water
violently forced out of the boiler, by the pressure of
134 STEAM.

the steam, into the sea. Much heat is lost by this

blowing out, and many methods have been devised to save
it. Before showing how this is accomplished, we must
give other modes of getting rid of the impurities which
collect in a marine boiler. The brine is sent overboard,

(1 ) BY BLOW OUT COCKS (already explained).

(2) BY BRINE PUMPS.
(3) BY SURFACE Blow out anD SCUM COCKS.
149. (2) By Brine Pumps.-To many engines are fitted
brine pumps, which at every revolution of the engine
extract a small portion of brine from the boiler. The
size of the brine pumps must be such that the quantity
of water drawn off, added to that evaporated, shall be
equal to the quantity introduced by the feed pump. If
the water ejected from the boiler is to contain 30 of salt,
or three times as much as the feed water, then, if the
feed pump supply n gallons in a given time, the brine
pumps must extract gallons in the same time. The
rule is, blow out from to the amount of feed water.
150. (3) Surface Blow Out and Scum Cocks.- The
foreign substances in a boiler are always buoyed up to
the surface, where they not alone prevent ebullition, but
the formation of steam. The steam rises from and
around them, and they remain at the surface for some
time, when they gradually descend and form a scale
upon the tubes and flues. It is therefore found quite as
advantageous to blow out from the surface as from the
bottom of the water. It is done by means of scum cocks,
which are inserted on a level with the water, and are
kept constantly about one-eighth open the whole of the
time, so that as fast as dirty scum and other impurities
rise to the surface they are expelled .
151. Kingston's Valves. -Every orifice in a ship's
bottom should be fitted with one of these valves. The
hole in the bottom of the ship into which one of these
valves is fitted is conical and larger on the outside than on
the inside. The Kingston valve, likewise conical, corre-
 SALT AND THE BOILING POINT. 135

sponds to the opening, so that when it is screwed

up the pressure of water outside, on the larger end
of the cone, tends to tighten it and keep it in its place.
They are liable to set fast on their seat, hence one of
the duties of the engineer is to frequently test them to
see that they do not stick.
152. Salt and the Boiling Point.-There are several
methods of ascertaining the amount of saturation of the
water in a marine boiler :—

(1) By the THERMOMETER.

(2) "" HYDROMETER.
(3) "" SALINOMETER.

From what has been said it will be gathered that the

boiling point of water depends upon the quantity of salt
in it and its specific gravity. The strength of a solution
of salt and water has always a fixed and well ascertained
relation to the boiling point and specific gravity.
For water with
or 1° of saltness in it boils at 100° C.
3 or 2° "" "" 101° C.
or 3° 99 "" 102° C.
or 4° 99 29 102° C.
3 or 5° "" 103° C.
10 or 10° "" 106° C.
22233

or 12° 99 "" 107° C.

And also as fresh water when the barometer stands at
27 inches boils at a temperature of 97°.2C.
28 "" 98°.1 C.
29 99°.1 C.
30 100° C.
31 27 "" "" 100°.8C.
we see at once the truth of what was said above, that the
boiling point of water depends upon its weight or specific
gravity and the pressure of the air.
If, then, water be taken from the boiler, and boiled in
the engine room under the ordinary barometric pressure
of the air, and it is found by using the thermometer that
its temperature at the boiling point is 103° C. , we must
136 STEAM.

at once conclude that there are 5 degrees of saltness in the

water, and that salt is being precipitated, and blowing
out must be resorted to at once. But if by the same
process it is ascertained that the water boils at 101 ° C.
(in the engine room), it is known that the boiler is com-
paratively safe and in good working condition.
153. The Hydrometer tells us the amount of salt in
water by showing its specific gravity. The figure in the
margin represents one. B is a hollow ball of brass or
other metal, from which rises a stem C D, graduated ;
A is a second globe filled with mercury to make the
whole swim uprightly in the water. A acts in precisely
the same manner as the lead on a fishing line. The
lead keeps the float upright, so does A the hydrometer.
The stem CD is graduated that we may
read off how far the stem sinks in the
55° water. The greater the specific gravity
of the water, or the more salt there is in
it, the less it will sink, so the density is
thus made a test to exhibit the amount of
salt. We read off (not the density, but)
C the saltness of the water. Each hydro-
meter is graduated to a particular scale,
generally 55° ; i.e. , when placed in distilled
water at a temperature of 55° the hydro-
meter sinks to the point marked 55 °. This
is much too low, for when water is taken
A
from the boiler, the experimentalist has
HYDROMETER. to wait a considerable time for the water to
cool down before he can test it. 90° C. would be a far
better temperature to select. Thus we see the hydrometer
is an imperfect instrument without the barometer ; so use-
less is the one without the other, that we frequently see
attempts made to combine the two, as in the salinometer.
154. Salinometer. -The salinometer has been presented
in several shapes. In one it consists of a thermometer
and hydrometer combined in a copper vessel ; in another,
Seaward's salinometer, of two pith balls. Mr. Seaward
 PRIMING. 137

affixes a glass tube fourteen inches long, in a similar

manner and in a corresponding place to the glass water
gauge, so that when attached to the boiler the water rises
up from the bottom of the boiler through the lower cock,
and remains in the glass tube at the same level as the
water in the boiler. The taps are then closed and the
upper one opened , and two small balls of glass or metal
are dropped into the water. The specific gravity of the
first ball is such that it will sink when there are five
degrees of saltness in the water and swim when more,
the other ball will sink when there are less than three
degrees of saltness , but swim when four or more. By
this method the state of the boiler is soon ascertained.
155. Scale. Whatever care and precaution are adopted,
scale can hardly be prevented from forming on the boiler
plates. A careful and attentive engineer can always
reduce it to a minimum. When scale is formed on the
boiler plates, it prevents the passage of heat into the
water, for salt, gypsum, lime, etc. , are exceedingly bad
conductors of heat, and will not allow its motion to pass
to the water, and therefore a waste of fuel must arise.
When water is saturated with salt, etc., through neg-
ligence or otherwise, it becomes heavier, and therefore
takes more heat to boil it, which is another waste of fuel ;
again, the scale is occasionally so hard and solid that the
plates become red hot, and are liable to be burnt as well
as to give way from internal pressure. Ammonic chloride
and other chemical substances are sometimes put into
marine boilers to prevent scale, but the utmost they do
is to precipitate the foreign ingredients as powder, which
must still be removed by blowing out. The more of these
substances there are in the water, the more work the heat
has to do to lift them, and therefore the more heat is re-
quired for ebullition, which is waste of motion and
power.
156. Priming. When the steam comes from the
boiler mixed with water, in the shape of spray or froth,
it is said to be primed. Priming exists under most
138 STEAM.

diverse circumstances ; its cause cannot at all times be

clearly traced.
157. Causes and Danger of Priming.- Priming takes
place more in new than in old boilers ; when there is but
little water in the boiler ; when the spaces between the
tubes and flues are contracted ; when there is fierce ebul-
lition, this cause may be said to accompany all priming ;
in passing from fresh water to salt or salt to fresh ; when
the water used is muddy, dirty, or slimy ; when there is
too small a steam chest ; when a safety valve, being situ-
ated near the steam pipe, is suddenly opened . The risk
arising from priming is very great, and should therefore
be most anxiously guarded against. We shall see its
danger and injurious effect, if we will but consider that ,
when it gets into the cylinder, and is there condensed
into incompressible water, something must give way
should the test cocks and escape valves act improperly.
Priming impairs the vacuum ; in consequence of this,
more water will have to be used for condensation , which
will throw a greater load upon the air pump, and more
feed water will also be required.
158. Remedy for Priming.-As priming is generally
accompanied with great ebullition, obviously the most
effectual remedy will be to enlarge the steam chest. It is
found that boilers with plenty of water surface, or with
a large steam chest, seldom or never prime. Cornish
boilers with their large water surface give no trouble by
priming. A remedy much practised with locomotive
boilers, is to open a safety valve remote from the steam
chest and pipe. Other temporary remedies are to partly
shut the throttle valve ; to work the steam at a high
pressure ; to open the furnace door, thus checking the
fierce boiling ; to put down the stop valve so that the
steam rushes against it, and the water is thrown out ; to
inject tallow into the boiler by means of the donkey
pump or a syringe fitted on purpose, this is the favourite
remedy, but it is found in some boilers to increase the
priming. Another remedy is to fit a steam pipe full of
 FEED PUMPS. 139

small holes in the boiler, and inside this another similar

pipe, but to take care that the perforations of one pipe
are not opposite those of the other. The steam in enter-
ing dashes against the inside pipe, and the spray falls
out. Any thing that checks furious ebullition, or allows
the steam plenty of space to rise, checks priming. When
the steam chest has to be enlarged, it is better to fit a
second on the top of the old one. Priming, arising from
the use of impure water, may be obviated by liberally
blowing off from the surface until the nuisance is abated.
Boilers sometimes prime when the ship passes from
salt to fresh water or fresh water to salt. It has been
suggested that in passing from salt to fresh water the
cause is this : fresh water being lighter than salt, is upon
its admission to the boiler more easily thrown about by
the ebullition, and therefore more spray is flying ; but as
the same boiler will also prime in passing from fresh to
salt water, this reason evidently will not hold ; we have
yet to seek the true cause. May not the change of
water cause a serious change in the existing condition of
the boiler, and this change being accompanied by a general
disturbance of the equilibrium of the water, much more
spray is thrown off than usual, and priming follows.*
When new boilers have primed, a good plan adopted is
to run into harbour and blow out the boiler several times
in succession. This has often effectuallyprevented priming.
159. Feed Pumps.-The feed is supplied to the boilers
in one of the following ways : (1) By boiler hand pumps ;
(2) by the donkey engine ; (3) by the feed pump proper;
(4) by Giffard's injector.
(1) The boiler hand pumps are fitted to marine boilers,
so that when there is no steam up men may fill the
boiler by hand, providing it is not sufficiently below the
level of the sea for sea water to run in freely when the
Kingston valve is opened.
(2) The donkey is a small steam pump in the engine-
* See Causes of Boiler Explosions-Spheroidal Condition of
Water, and Water Purged from Air.
140 STEAM.

room that can be set to work

to fill up the boilers when the
engines are waiting for orders.
The donkey has always the steam
piston and pump piston at oppo-
site ends of the same rods.
(3) The feed pumps which
have been already explained .
In stationary engines part of
the warm condensing water is
driven into the boiler as feed ;
the rest, by far the greater quan-
N tity, being allowed to run away.
But the feed pumps should at all
times be capable of supplying
much more water than the boiler
in its normal state will use.
E The capacity of the feed pump
is generally about 1th 40 that of
the cylinder, it can supply
more than three times as much
as is required. While the steam
pipe should be attached to the
highest point of the steam chest,
the feed pipe should be fixed as
low down as possible, that the
cold water may gradually rise.
In Government vessels the feed
and donkey pumps are generally
made of brass.
160. (4) Giffard's Injector.
-This is a novel contrivance
for feeding boilers, fast super-
seding all other methods of
feed ; but no convincing ex-
planation of its action has yet
been offered.
GIFFARD'S INJECTOR. We will suppose it properly
 EXERCISES. 141

attached to the boiler, it then works in the following

manner :-
GI is the injector, N is attached to the boiler. Steam
can pass into the injector at N. When the handle d is
moved up, steam rushes through a i at i, where it meets
the water supply coming into the injector at E. The
steam drives the water through n, and beyond the valve
s, into the boiler. When there is sufficient water in the
boiler, the valve s is forced upwards, and no more water
can pass it ; the waste water can then pass through the
overflow pipe L. The steam to work the injector must
be taken from the highest part of the boiler, and must
not be primed. The water driven through it may be
taken from a cistern overhead, or from a tank in the
ground ; but the distance from the level of the water
below, to E above, must not exceed 5 feet. Now it is
found that the pressure of steam will actually drive the
water into the boiler, although it has to force it against
the pressure of both the steam and water inthe boiler.
A jet of steam, moving with perhaps a velocity of
1700 feet per second, is instantly condensed in perhaps
twelve times its weight of water. The combined jet will
then move, by the momentum imparted to it by the
steam , at one-thirteenth its former velocity, 131 feet per
second-the motion of the steam being wholly imparted
to the water. Thus the jet properly directed enters the
boiler, and we can find an explanation of the action of
the injector by simply considering that it acts solely by
the momentum imparted to the water by the jet of steam.

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. What is a circular inch ? A safety valve seven inches in
diameter is loaded to 6 lbs . on the square inch, what would be
the load on each circular inch (1867) ? Ans. 4.7124 ft.
2. What is the usual boiler used for marine engines ? Describe
it. Why is the arrangement peculiarly useful for marine pur-
poses (1867)?
142 STEAM.

3. Describe the safety valve. If a circular inch be allowed on

the area of a safety valve for every 20 square feet of heating sur-
face, what must be the diameter of a valve for a boiler whose
heating surface is 1200 square feet ( 1868) ? Ans. 7.74.
4. Describe the safety valve of a locomotive boiler. Explain
Bourdon's gauge for ascertaining the exact pressure of the steam
in a boiler (1869) .
5. Describe with a sketch the marine tubular boiler.
6. What is the object of a reverse valve, and how is it fitted ?
7. How is a vessel protected from the heat of the funnel (1869)?
8. Describe Kingston's valve. Show how to ascertain the
degree of saltness of the water in a marine boiler ( 1869).
9. In the old-fashioned waggon boiler a vertical open tube,
called a stand-pipe, passed through the shell of the boiler, and
dipped below the surface of the water inside. If the steam pres-
sure inside the boiler were 4 lbs. per square inch, at what height
would the water stand in the pipe (1870) ? Ans. 9.06 ft.
10. A cylindrical boiler with flat ends is 30 feet long, 6 feet in
diameter, and has two internal flues, each 2 feet in diameter.
The pressure of the steam in the boiler is 40 lbs. on the inch,
what is the whole pressure on the internal surface in tons ? How
is the strength of a cylindrical boiler related to its diameter, the
material being unchanged (1870) ? Ans. 2596 95.
11. Describe and explain some form of vacuum gauge which
would enable you to ascertain the pressure in the interior of the
condenser of a steam engine ( 1870) ?
12. Describe a method of ascertaining the degree of saltness of
the water in a marine boiler (1870).
13. Describe a cylindrical boiler with internal flues. State the
advantages of this mode of construction. Which is the weakest
part of the boiler, and how is it strengthened ?
14. Sketch the boiler in transverse section with the flues,
showing the probable level of the water (1871 ).
15. Describe with a sketch the glass gauge for showing the
height of the water in a boiler. Point out the position and use
of the three stop cocks. For what purpose are gauge-cocks fitted
to a boiler (1871) ?
16. Why is it necessary that some of the hot water in a marine
boiler should be continually got rid of and exchanged for water
from the hot well? In what way does a thermometer inform you
as to the amount of salt contained in the water of the boiler (1871) ?

A
 CHAPTER IX.

PRACTICAL WORKING. *

Duties to Machinery when in Harbour and Getting up Steam-

Starting the Engines - Under Steam- Fires - Bearings-
Engines in Port.

161. Duties to Machinery when in Harbour before

Getting under Steam.-When an engineer takes charge
of the machinery of a boat, his first attention ought to be
directed to his boilers ; for, being the source of power,
they may become the source of great danger if not pro-
perly looked after. In inspecting the boilers three things
require especial notice :-(1 ) The thickness of the plates
above the fires and other places of importance ; (2) the
state of the stays ; (3) the position of the gauges, viz. , the
water gauge cocks, and glass water gauges.
(1 ) Respecting the first, a general plan is to drill a
small hole through the plate, and thus find its real thick-
ness, for it is often the case that a boiler plate may be far
thicker at the seams than in the middle. At the seams
the proper thickness cannot always be correctly ascertained
on account of the way in which they are caulked, by
which a plate may appear considerably thicker than it
really is. After the hole has served its purpose, it is
tapped and plugged tightly up again.
(2 ) As regards the stays, they require a great amount
of attention, for they are very apt to get eaten through
near the plates by oxidation.
(3) The gauge cocks are often placed just above the
highest row of tubes. Now this is a very dangerous
* Written by a Working Man.
144 STEAM .

practice , for it is possible for an engineer to lose his

water, let him be ever so careful, when great danger
follows ; while if the cocks were placed a little higher,
the loss of water would not be necessarily followed by so
much danger.
162. Duties to Machinery when Steam is Getting up.
-The water in the boiler when the fires are lighted ought
to be just above the bottom of the glass. In a large,
or even moderate sized boiler, the water will expand
slightly, and there is also not so much water to heat at
first ; and we know, by reason of conduction and radiation,
that small bodies of water are heated comparatively more
rapidly than large. On first lighting the fires they should
not be kept too large, but just sufficient to cover the
bars. A large thin surface of fire is found to be the most
effective on getting under weigh.
When the fires are lighted, and the steamer is going on
a long voyage, it is the practice to rub the polished parts
of the engine over with a composition of tallow and white
lead. This prevents any rust forming on the rods, etc.,
from water dropping on them which may have been used
for keeping the bearings cool.
The discharge valve is also opened now, or else on
starting the engine something will give way. Several
accidents have occurred by neglecting to do this.
The safety valves are now to be inspected to find out
whether they are fast corroded to their seatings. If so,
they must be freed and made ready to act before starting.
It is a good plan, and one much practised , to give the
engines a good blowing through whilst the steam is get-
ting up. This warms the cylinder, and trys any joints
that may have been made since the engines were worked
last. It also saves the steam, for if not done now (when
the engine is started), a great amount of steam is wasted
in heating the cylinder instead of imparting its elastic
force to the piston. It is thus that boilers are sometimes
taxed beyond their powers, and the steam pressure
reduced to perhaps a very dangerous point.
 THE BOILER. 145

163. Starting the Engines. -All ships are now

fitted with the double eccentrics, or Stephenson's Link
Motion, by which the engines are started, or rather by
this the slide valves are under the command of the
engineer, and can be worked back or forward as com-
mand be given, by either a bar, lever, or generally, in
large engines, by a wheel.
The handle, by which steam is turned on and off, with
the injection cock handles, are placed beside the wheel,
so that one man can now generally start the engine.
Some large ships have a steam piston so fitted that it
rises and falls by steam admitted above or below, thus
raising or lowering the link in its motion. This is what
is called steam starting gear, and is very handy when the
link is of great weight. There is always hand gear fitted
as well, which can be used in cases of emergency. In giving
injection to a common condenser, it should be opened just
after the steam is turned on to the cylinders, or else, if
going slowly, the condenser may become too full of water,
and the air pump not able to perform its work properly.
In starting an engine that is fitted with surface con-
densers, the only thing requiring attention before going on,
is to open both valves communicating with the sea above
or below the condenser, viz., suction to the circulating
pumps and delivery from them.

DUTIES WHEN UNDER STEAM.

164. The Boiler. -Continually look at the water level

in the glass gauge This is oftentimes a source of great
anxiety, for some boilers require the water to be kept at a
certain fixed level. If water be too high they will not
keep steam, and if too low the steam will generate too fast.
Some boilers require a high water level , others a low one ;
in fact no general rule can be given for the water level,
nothing but practice can determine it. A safe rule is to
keep the glass water gauge about two-thirds full.
The fires require much consideration. A furnace is
SI K
146 STEAM .

best worked with a heavy fire, but not too heavy,

thicker towards the back than front. The fresh fuel
should be placed in front, and then pushed back after
being thoroughly heated . Every four hours (at the least)
the fires should be cleaned out, as large clinkers or
refuse of the coals adhere to the fire bars and prevent the
draught, making the fires burn dead, especially towards
the back of the furnace. Sometimes the slag will stick
fast to a furnace bar, and cannot be removed from it.
This causes a great amount of trouble, as in trying to
remove it the fire bars are occasionally pulled out of
their places, and the greater part of the fire falls through,
causing much waste and often danger.
The principal thing to pay attention to when the
engines are under steam, is to keep the bearings cool and
the glands steam tight. Oil is generally used for keeping
bearings cool, but when larger ones are working hard, a
jet of water is kept playing upon them. This is found
to answer very well when the water is turned on before
they have had time to heat. It should not be used after
they have been allowed to get heated, for it may crack
them by too sudden contraction. A good stream of water
should be kept running on the thrust block from the time
of starting, this with the tallow, which is always put into
it before starting, keeps this all-important bearing cool.
The cap of the thrust block requires great care in adjust-
ing. If screwed on too tightly it is almost sure to heat
or fire, as it is termed, and if not screwed down sufficiently
tight, the unpleasant jumping shake, so often experienced
in our screw ships, is sure to follow.
In new fast running engines, castor oil is a very good
thing to use on first starting. When new brasses have
been fitted into the bearings , till they form a good bearing
for themselves, the same should be used. It appears to
have a much firmer body in it to lubricate than all other
oils have. The difference in the cost of the oil is not very
much , coarse castor oil being very little dearer than good
machine oil,
 EXERCISES. 147

165. Duties to Machinery when the Ship has Arrived

in Port.-The white lead and tallow should be rubbed
off with a piece of oily waste, and then the bright work
of the engines will give no trouble by rusting.
The engines should have a good blowing through to
drive out all water in the condensers, then the Kingston's
valves, communicating with the sea, should be shut, next
open the condenser drain cocks , which will drain out all
the water left in them. This is allowed to run into the
bilges, which can be pumped out by the donkey pump, or
the hand pumps if no steam is left in the boilers.
Some engineers always blow out their boilers after
steaming, others do not, the latter only let the fires out
and shut the valves in the steam pipes ; both plans have
their advantages and disadvantages. Perhaps the majority
keep the water in the boilers, only blowing out when
repairs or an examination of the boiler is required. An
engineer should always examine for himself whether all
the fires are properly out, and not take the word of the
stokers for it. A great amount of damage may be done
by the fire not being properly put out in the ash pits.
A frequent practice is to get a heap of hot ashes together
and dash some water over it ; this makes it black outside
and leaves it burning inside. The ashes should rather be
spread out evenly, and then water thrown over gradually
and gently to put the fire out effectually, and to create as
little dust and dirt as possible.

EXAMINATION QUESTIONS.
1. Describe briefly the duties to the machinery, when in
harbour before getting under steam, that require the attention
of the marine engineer.
2. To what must an engineer particularly direct his attention
while getting up the steam ?
3. When a vessel is under steam, what will then claim the
especial attention of the engineer ?
4. When a ship is to be laid up in harbour, how must the
engines be left ?
 CHAPTER X.

LAND ENGINES.

The Beam Engine-Horizontal Engine-Vertical Engine-

Portable Engine.

166. The Beam Engine. -The student is referred to

Chapter II.
167. Horizontal Engine.-In this, which is one of the
most convenient and compact form of engine, the general
arrangement is as illustrated in the figure given, although
they vary in detail with the caprice of the maker

FW

HORIZONTAL ENGINE.
AB is the cylinder lying horizontally on its side, v is
the valve to admit the steam from the boiler by way of
the steam pipe SP ; the head of the piston-rod is seen
at g, the crosshead of which works within the guide or
guide bars a b, and to the crosshead of the piston-rod is
attached the connecting rod g c, which works the crank
cr. The main shaft is shown at r, darkened, this carries
the fly wheel FW ; f is the band working the governor
G by means ofpulleys, the driver being on the main shaft;
 VERTICAL ENGINE. 149

of course the work is taken off the main shaft r. The

whole is generally supported on firm masonry CD.
168. Vertical Engine. - In many positions vertical
engines are very much better fitted to accomplish the
work required than horizontal. They seem specially
adapted for cranes and such like services.

B B

SIDE VIEW ELEVATION

W

VERTICAL ENGINE.
The letters in both figures correspond.
C is the cylinder, from which proceeds the piston-rod p.
The head or crosshead of the piston-rod g moves in guides
gg, the connecting rod is gc, working the crank cr. The
shaft is r, which carries the fly wheel F W ; the motion
is taken from the end of the shaft at S, or sometimes
FW is used as a drum, and the work is conveyed by
an endless band ; the governor is placed at G, and the
manner in which it works is seen in the right hand figure.
150 STEAM .

E is the eccentric working the slides at s; B is the boiler,

to which the framing of the engine is attached, the boiler
is generally a vertical tubular one. It is evident from the
circumstance of the engine being attached to the boiler,
that this class is not intended to give out powerful work.
Vertical engines are frequently used where space is an
object, but they have to be rigidly supported to prevent
vibration. The slides of vertical and horizontal engines
are worked in the usual manner by eccentrics upon the
main shaft. Horizontal engines have expansion valves
very frequently, which are worked by separate eccentrics ;
of both kinds of engines the boiler and boiler appendages,
such as safety valve, communication valve, pressure gauge,
vacuum gauge, gauge cocks, and arrangement of the fire-
place, are all the same. Vertical engines are generally
non-condensing, and the escape steam is utilized for the
blast. Horizontal engines are used both as condensing
and non-condensing, but generally the former.

FP

PORTABLE ENGINE.
169. Portable Engine.-A portable engine differs in
 EXERCISES. 151

no essential particular from an ordinary horizontal engine,

excepting that provision has to be made to carry both
boiler and engine on two pairs of wheels.
C is the cylinder, the piston of which works the rod p,
the crosshead moves in guides or else is kept parallel by
guide bars ; ce is the connecting rod to work the crank es,
the main shaft being s, to the end of which is attached the
drum or pulley F W, which also acts as a fly wheel ; the
slides are worked in the same manner as in ordinary
horizontal or other engines by the eccentric ; the fire-
place is at FP, and beneath it is the ash box ; BB' is
the barrel of the boiler, which is of the class multitubular;
at B' is the smoke box, and H is the chimney. The
boiler in a good many points resembles the locomotive ;
the waste steam is directed from the boiler to the funnel
to create a draught, but the cylinder is generally on the
top of the boiler, and not under the smoke box. The
cylinder, with the pipes connected with it, is sometimes
placed inside the boiler, which certainly prevents rain,
frost, etc. , from condensing the steam in it. The shaft
with its pulley or drum, communicates the motion of the
engine, by means of an endless band , to whatever machine
it has to drive.

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. Give a description of a beam engine. Upon what principle

is it constructed, and how are the slides worked ?
2. Describe a simple and effective form of horizontal engine.
What advantages are gained by the use of such engines ?
3. How does a vertical engine differ from other engines ?
State the distinctive arrangements in each case. When may
vertical engines be advantageously employed ?
4. Describe a simple form of portable engine adapted for agri-
cultural purposes. State clearly how the slides are worked, and
how the work is taken off the engine.
5. Explain the manner in which the steam acts in Watt's
single acting pumping engine. Why is this engine so much
more economical in steam than the old atmospheric engine
(1870)?
 CHAPTER XI.

THE INDICATOR.

Description-Use-Diagram- Diagrams under Various

Circumstances.

170. The Indicator, an instrument invented by Watt,

is used to ascertain the internal condition of the engine,
the state of the vacuum, the amount and variations in
the pressure of steam at every stroke, the cushioning, the
condition of the slides , whether there be too much or too
little lap or lead, whether they are leaky or properly set,
whether ports are closed and opened at the proper time,
in fact, it tells us the power and all the faults by which
that power is impaired. It may also be attached to the
air pump, the hot well, the condenser, etc. , when it will
tell us the nature of the pressures there existing. It
has been very much modified since the time of Watt,
to better adapt it to its purpose. The figure given of
it is from one of Richard's indicators, with all the latest
improvements .
In its simplest form, the indicator consists of a cylinder
with a piston, the top being open to the atmosphere, and
a spring to keep the piston down to its work. A diagram
is taken on a piece of paper to tell us all we wish to learn .
This piece of paper is fastened round a barrel, which
moves through nearly a whole revolution and back again
as the engine makes one stroke.
In Richard's indicator, A is a screw to fasten the
indicator into the cylinder. The handle is to open
the connection between the cylinder and the indicator,
 INDICATOR. 153

and thus allow steam to enter BD, the cylinder of the

indicator. The piston a and piston-rod b of the in-
dicator are shown by dotted lines. The slanting dotted
lines are intended for the spring which keeps the
piston down, and against which the steam has to act

Z M

H
15

INDICATOR.
in forcing up the piston a. In the actual indicator, the
piston is not so simple as shown here, but is conical and
truncated ; BC is the barrel round which the paper is
wrapped. The graduated scale is to measure the pressure
of steam and the vacuum . Within this barrel is a spring,
so that when it has moved nearly round once while
the piston goes up, the force of the spring causes it to
return as the indicator piston goes down. Round the
154 STEAM .

pulley fG passes a string to give motion to the barrel.

This string is attached to the crosshead of the cylinder
(or the radius bar), and the motion is reduced in its travel
to suit the card barrel. While the piston of the indicator
moves up only one to two inches, the piston of the cylinder
moves several feet. The barrel has to move round four
or five inches in the same time. The motion is reduced
by levers when taken from the piston crosshead. If the
length of the diagram be three inches, and the stroke
three feet or thirty-six inches, we have only to proportion
the levers as 3:36 or 1:12 , and the required motion
is found. The indicator barrel is moved round by the
string (shown in the figure, being attached to its proper
relative position on the lever, and) actuating the pulley
fG, and with it the barrel. The arm HH is to carry
the parallel motion I L M, the pencil being at p. The
reason of this arrangement (i.e. ) of having a parallel
motion, is that while the stroke of the indicator is (say)
only from 1 to 2, the pencil is required to move up
and down from the lower fifteen to ( say ) twenty.
The head of the indicator piston being attached to the
lever M L at Z, multiplies the motion of the indicator
in the proportion of M Z to Z L. In Richard's in-
dicator this multiplier is about three and a half; in fact,
this is the essential difference between Richard's and other
indicators, such as M'Naught's, Maudslay and Field's,
etc., that the motion is magnified, and therefore the pencil
more sensibly indicates the least variation of pressure or
action.
The action of the indicator must now be traced. Sup-
posing the indicator is attached to the cylinder, but not
placed in communication with it by turning the handle,
and that the cord c is fastened to the lever at the head
of the piston-rod, then it will move the barrel from right
to left, and a straight horizontal line will be drawn by
the pencil, as A B in next figure-it is generally custom-
ary to let the pencil mark this line several times. The
line is called the atmospheric line, because it coincides
 INDICATOR DIAGRAM. 155

with the atmospheric pressure ; all parts of the diagram

above that line show pressure above the atmosphere, all
parts below it show the vacuum, hence the top part of
the diagram is called the " steam " and the bottom the
"vacuum." Again : supposing the barrel were still, and
the steam admitted to the indicator, the pencil would be
driven straight up, or a vertical line would be traced.
We see that if the barrel only move, a horizontal line
is traced, while if the indicator piston only move, a
vertical one is made ; therefore, when both move together,
we shall have a line compounded of the two motions, and
if the one is continually changing, it will not be a diagonal
motion.

SC

LC
EC
F

DIAGRAM.
Let us suppose the indicator is attached to the top of
the cylinder , and that steam enters the upper port e as
the piston comes to the top of its stroke. The moment
steam enters the cylinder it drives the piston down, but
156 STEAM.

at the same time it enters the indicator, and drives the

piston of the indicator up.
Let us suppose the pencil (when air is in both sides
of the piston) stands at A on the foregoing figure, then
the line A B, which will be traced by the barrel moving
nearly the whole way round, is the atmospheric line.
Now let us suppose the top port e opened at the instant
the tap of the indicator is turned, then steam will rush
in, in the direction shown by the arrows ; in the direction
y to drive down the piston, and in the direction z to
drive up the piston of the indicator. Steam coming in
instantaneously drives up the pencil, and the line from
A to C will be drawn (C is called the starting corner).
Now steam continues rushing in at its normal pressure
and the piston of the engine goes down, while on the
indicator piston the pressure is continuous, so therefore
the pencil remains at the same height, and as the barrel
moves round, the line from C to D is drawn. When
the pencil gets to D the slide has come down again and
closed the port, * so that the steam is left to expand ; and
of course as it expands its pressure decreases, the engine
piston continues to go down, and the pressure, becoming
less and less in the indicator, the pencil gradually falls
lower and lower to E. When it gets to E, the slide still
falling, the upper port e is opened to the exhaust, and the
steam rushes out in a contrary direction to the arrows,
the pencil therefore immediately falls to F (the eduction
corner). Now there is a vacuum above the piston of the
engine, and below that in the indicator, and the engine
piston begins to rise up ; all the time it is rising, there
being no steam or pressure in the indicator (or less than
no pressure), the pencil, having fallen to its lowest point,
is still, and traces the vacuum line F G to the lead corner
G. Against the pencil gets there, the piston has arrived
at the top of its stroke, the cushioning then takes place,
* We are supposing a long D slide is used. In reading the
paragraph, the student must consider both this figure and the
last on page 153.
 INDICATOR. 157

and the pencil rises at once to A, or else the lead comes

into action by the rising of the slide, and drives the in-
dicator piston, and with it the pencil, to A.
The action of the indicator has been traced through an
up and down stroke, or a complete revolution of the
crank, and we see that the varying pressure in the cylin-
der is faithfully translated by the indicator, and rendered
visible to the eye.
The indicator is absolutely necessary if we are to know
the pressure of steam when it is performing its work.
The Bourdon gauge or other contrivance, when correctly
graduated, will always tell the boiler pressure, but it
must be well understood that the boiler pressure seldom
or never corresponds to that in the cylinder, it is less.
This diagram is supposed to be taken from the top of
the cylinder, and the arrows show the direction in which
the piston of the engine is moving when that part of the
diagram is being traced. The dotted diagram represents
one taken from the bottom of the cylinder.
The corners of the diagram are the points to which
attention must be directed to find out any defects. In
the diagram from a non-condensing engine, the whole of
the curve is above the atmospheric line ; but in a con-
densing diagram part is above the atmospheric line and
part below.
This is the normal indicator diagram, and all condensing
engines in good working order, with slides properly set
and rods of correct length, should give a similar diagram.
We will note what the change would be under certain ·
conditions.
If the curve in starting from A ran to the left of C
instead of vertically, then we should know that the
steam was late in its action, or the slide (the long D)
was not high enough at the proper moment. If the
curve at E were a little higher and a little farther to the
left, the exhaust would take place too early, or the upper
part of the slide would be too low. Both the changes
would take place through the slides being too far down
158 STEAM.

in the casing, or if the slide rod or eccentric rod were

too long. Such an evil would also be shown by the
diagram being fuller at G, or coming a little farther to
the left, and the steam would be cut off too soon at D.

EXERCISES CHIEFLY FROM EXAMINATION PAPERS.

1. By what apparatus can you obtain a diagram on paper

which will inform you as to the amount of the pressure of the
steam or uncondensed vapour in the cylinder during each portion
of the stroke of the piston. What would be the probable form
of the diagram in a condensing engine ( 1870) ?
2. Describe the indicator. Show how it may be used to find
the effective horse-power of an engine (1868) ?
3. Draw a nominal indicator diagram ( 1867) ?
4. Show by an indicator diagram the advantage of expansive
working over throttling ( 1867) ?
 INDEX.

ABSORPTION, 42. DANIELL'S Pyrometer, 18.

Advantages of Superheated Steam, 36. Definition of Steam, 9.
Air Pump, 50, 100. "" Temperature, 16.
Analysis of Sea Water, 33. Discoveries of Watt, 49.
Angular Advance, 74. Double Acting Engine, 54, 66.
Appendages to Boiler, 128. "" Pump, 101.
Atomic Force, 15.
ECCENTRIC, 62.
BAROMETER Gauge, 84. "" Double, 76.
Beam Engine, 67. Engines-
Bilge Pump, 102, Beam, 67.
Blast Pipe, 124. Beam and Geared, 96.
Blow-through Valve, 83. Double Acting, 54.
Boilers, 117. Gorgon, 98.
Appendages to, 120. Marine, 90.
Clothing, 126. Maudslay's, 98.
Cornish, 119, 125. Newcomen's, 46.
Copper, 126. Oscillating, 92.
Cylindrical, 118. Savary's, 45.
Diameter of, 119. Side Lever, 91.
Flue, 118, 121. Single Acting, 53, 56.
Internal Pressure, 120. Steeple, 94.
Lancashire, 119. Trunk, 97.
Marine, 121. Watt's, 53.
Staying, 126. Engine to Reverse, 76.
Thickness of Plates, 119. Equilibrium Valve, 86.
Tubular, 121. Escape Valve, 87.
Vertical, 123. Expansion, Co-efficient of, 11.
Boiling Point, 31. "" Gear, 78.
Brining Boiler, 34. by Heat, 12.
Expansive Working, 51.
CALORIMETER, 20.
Capacity for Heat, 19. FEATHERING Screw, 111.
Cataract, 60. Feed Pump, 68.
Centre of Pressure, 107. Fly Wheel, 85.
Clearance, 55. Full Steam, 74.
Co-efficient of Expansion, 11. Funnel and Casing, 127.
Condensation, 38.
"9 Water required for, 81. GALVANIC Action, 43.
Condenser, 50. Gauges, 83, 129, 130, 131.
Conduction, 25. Gear, Expansion, 78.
of Water, 23. Governor, 58.
Connecting Rod and Crank, 69. Marine, 61.
Consumption of Heat, 25. Gridiron Valve, 73.
Contraction by Cold, 12, 14.
Convection, 22. HEAT, 10.
Cornish Boiler, 125. "" Capacity for, 19.
Cushioning, 55. "" Latent, 10, 23.
Cut Off, 74. 22 Unit of, 19.
Cycloidal Wheel, 104. Heat and Work, 26.
Cylinder and Crank, 70.
Cylindrical Slides, 73. INCRUSTATIONS , 35.
160 INDEX.

Sea Water, 33.

LAP and Lead, 74. Silver's Governor, 61.
Latent Heat, 10, 23. Single Acting Engine, 53, 55.
33 of Steam , 23. Slides, 70.
"" of Water, 24. Cylindrical, 73.
Linear Advance, 64. Locomotive, 71.
Liquid State of Matter, 11. Long D, 71.
Locomotive Slide, 71. Oscillating, 93.
Long D Slide, 71. Seaward's, 72.
Short D, 72.
MARINE Engine, 90. Slip, 109.
Governor, 61. Snifting Valve, 104.
Mercurial Gauge, 83. Soft Metal Bearings, 114.
Molecular Force, 15. Starting the Engine, 56.
Morgan's Feathering Paddle, 105. Steam-
Chest, 124.
NEWCOMEN'S Engine, 46. Contact with Water, 37.
Cut Off, 74.
OSCILLATING Engine, 92. Definition, 9.
Oxidation of Metals, 43. Elasticity, 10.
Expansive Working, 51.
PACKING, 55. Full Steam, 74.
Paddles, Disconnecting, 106. High Pressure, 35.
"9 Immersion of, 106. Invisible, 9.
Wheels, 103. Measure of Pressure, 36.
Parallel Motion, 57. Specific Gravity, 38.
Piston, 55. Steam and Vapour, 31.
Pitch of Screw, 108. Superheated, 36.
Point of Saturation, 103. Steeple Engine, 94.
Power of Contraction, 14. Stephenson's Link Motion, 76.
"" Expansion , 14. Strap, Gib, and Cutter, 88.
Pressure and Temperature, 32. Stuffing Box and Gland, 56.
Pump Bilge, 102.
"" Double Acting, 101. TABLE of Pressures and Temperatures,
Pyrometer, 18. 32.
Temperature, Definition, 16.
Thermometer, 16.
QUESTIONS, 27, 39, 64, 88,102, 115, 141. Throttle Valve, 59.
RADIAL Wheels, 104.
Radiation , 42. VALVES-
Reaumur's Thermometer, 17. Cornish Double Beat, 87.
Reciprocity of Radiation and Absorp- Crown Valve, 87.
tion, 42. Disc, 100.
Rolling Circle, 107. Double Beat, 87.
Equilibrium, 86.
SALTER'S Spring Balance, 128. Escape, 87.
Salt in Sea Water, 135. Gridiron, 73.
Salinometer, 136. India-rubber, 100.
Savary's Engine, 45. Snifting, 54.
Scale, Danger of, 35. Throttle, 59.
" to Clean, 35. Vapour and Steam , 31.
to Prevent, 35.
Screw, 107. WASTE Steam Pipe, 124.
"" Definitions, 108, 109. Water-
Disconnecting, 111. Boiling Point, 31.
99 Raising, 111. For Condensation, 31, 81.
Thrust of, 113. Watt's Improvements, 49.
Seaward's Slides, 72. "" Engine, 53.

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