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ee MARINE REVIEW. [January 4, RT ET ee eee sss EEE SUCCESSFUL APPLICATION OF MECHANICAL STOKERS. Reference has been made in the columns several times during the past year to the determined efforts of the American Stoker Co. of 145 Broad- way, New York, to successfully apply a special type of marine stoker to the big freighters of the great lakes, which are now being equipped in nearly all cases with quadruple expansion engines and water tube boilers. The New York company’s success during the past season of navigation with a mechanical stoker on the steamer Pennsylvania, an ore carrier of about 8,000 tons. capacity operated by Pickands, Mather & Co. of Cleve- land, has led to the announcement that they are now prepared to under take the equipment of vessels of all kinds with this special device. It may be of interest to note briefly a few results of tests of the stoker on the Pennsylvania, made by order of the bureau of steam engineering, navy department, by Lieutenants B. C. Bryan and W. W. White of the navy. A full report of the tests was published in the August (1899) number of the Journal of the American Society of Naval Engineers. Each of two boilers on the Pennsylvania contained 3,000 square feet of heating surface; allowing 10 square ieet per horse power, gives 800 each, or 600 in all. They were built to carry a gauge pressure of 250 pounds. The following “table is taken from four tests. The coal used was a cheap slack contain- ing 11,790 B. T. U. per pound of dry coal by a Mahler bomb calorimeter test. RATES OF COMBUSTION. Evaporation from and at 212 degrees. Pounds of water per pound of fuel. Trials Dry Coal. Combustible. dU oR For Sec ten = Era PR AS A) es Rett ea aE 9.24 10.96 Second 8.97 11.08 ON 08 Co Lis Se a ee ee 8.85 11,32 Fourth... Bee eis at 8 21 10.47 AV ORES OL as eievctusnnseseapaveces cuss 8.82 10.94 On three of these trials the engines developed an average of 1277 in- dicated horse power. On the four trials an average of 14.48 per cent. of the total steam generated was used by auxiliary machinery in operation, and the vessel made an average speed loaded of 10.8 knots. Seaton & Roundthwaite are authority for the statement that the rate of combustion and evaporation, at and from 212 degrees at the present day, in merchant passenger, mail and paddle wheel steamers, cruisers, battleships, torpedo boats and destroyers is from 6.6 to 9.25 pounds, or a general average of less than 8 pounds. On these tests 8.82 pounds of water were evaporated per pound of dry coal, notwithstanding this slack coal con- tained but 11,790 B. T. U’s., 19.46 per cent. refuse and 3.3 per cent. mois- ture. This evaporation represents an economy above conditions as they generally prevail of 9.3 per cent., to say nothing of the difference in price of run-of-mine coal and slack, which was 60 cents per ton. A circular from the American company dealing with the develop- ment of this stoker says: “The steamship of today seems to have reached the zenith of mechanical genius and skill; its every function has been im- proved or wholly revolutionized, but the one all important thing remains the same, and has since the beginning, namely the man behind the shovel. He is the uncertain quantity; there is 25 per cent. difference in his work. He is indifferent to all except one thing, the steam pressure carried. The dollars and cents that he unnecessarily shovels in the furnace concern him little. The purpose of the American underfeed stoker is to perfect the introduction of coal to the furnace. It feeds the coal to the fire from underneath, and may be considered a gas producer and burner combined. The coal is fed into the hopper, carried by the conveyor into the maga- zine, which it fills, overflows on both sides, and spreads upon the sides of the grates. The coal is fed slowly and continuously, and, approaching the fire in its upward course, it is slowly roasted and coked, and the gases released from it are taken up by the fresh air entering through the tuyeres, which explodes these gases and delivers the coal as coke on the grates above. The continuous feeding gives a breathing motion to this coke bed, thus keeping it open and iree for the circulation of air. Particular attention is called to the fact that every pound of coal ted into the hop- pers passes through this gas-making process, and there is no loss of coal through grates, by reason of the use of dead grates in the furnace, in place of open grate bars. The non-combustible is taken from the furnace in the shape of vitrified clinker. There is practically no soot, and with these results it is obvious that the combustion must be extraordinarily good. Lump coal is, of course, handled as well as the finest slack, as any lump that_can be fed into the hoppers will be crushed by the conveyor, there being provided a set of teeth, placed at the mouth of the conveyor, against which the coal is squeezed and broken. The absence of smoke, reduction in temperature of fiue gases and minimum waste are proof of practically perfect combustion. This is the only mechanical stoker successfully adapted for marin it can be successfully applied to the internal furnace. Its mechanism is simple and positive, and hand-firing can be resortcd to at any tine should emergency require it. The speed of firing is regulated at will by throttling the steam supply. A. dead fire may be kept indefinitely with little or no care, and heat can be produced that fire cannot stand. IMPROVEMENTS AT THE CRAMP PLANT. It is, estimated that the value of work which the Cramp Ship & En- gine Building Co, of Philadelphia has now under way for the coming year will amount to $19,000,000. In order to accomplish this work it has been decided to double the capacity of the plant, and when the improvements are completed the ship yard will rank among the largest in the world. Charles H. Cramp, president of thé company, has stated that it will be necessary to increase the capital stock in order to continue the work of improvements. He has also stated that in his opinion the ship building industry of the country will be conducted in the future by great com- binations or industrial corporations. At the present time the company is erecting a large plant for machinery exclusively. It will be one of the largest in the country and will be equipped with all modern devices. The Calendar issued by the Nickel Plate Road will be mailed to any- one who will send their address to the General Passenger Agent, Nickel Plate Road, Cleveland, O. No. 192. Jan. 15. PLANERS HAVING ONE OR TWO SIDE HEADS. WE are prepared to furnish Planers with E one or two heads on the cross rail. Also with side Neads counterbalanced, as shown in the cut herewith. These tools are of the most improved design. 7 We are also builders of a complete line of high grade tools for machine shop equip- ment. WAN itt Mn rv ‘a i DLN I > ae = pis ‘ NAAT TAN | 2/7 BUTT | il il 5 SN INNIS ——S == Ss —— TM pli er NTMTTI NTL NN a Tal i un a == oscars PLANER WITH COUNTERBALANCED SIDE HEAD. The American Tool Works Company, (fF Wort: CINCINNATI U.S Al NEW YORK OFFICE: 120 Broadway, Geo. Place, Agent. NEW ORLEANS: The Fairbanks Co. CHICAGO STORE: 68-70 South Canal Street. PHILADELPHIA: The Fairbanks Co. CLEVELAND: The Strong, Carlisle & Hammond Co. BOSTON STORE: 36 Federal Street. BALTIMORE: The Fairbanks Co. Supply Co. Finsbury, E. C. SAN FRANCISCO: Henshaw, Bulkley & Co. . DENVER AND SALT LAKE CITY: The Mine & Smelter LONDON: Alfred Herbert, Ltd., 7 Leonard St., ANTWERP: Nyssens Freres, 33 Rue des Peignes. BERLIN: de Fries & Co., Act. Ges., Kloster Strasse, 13-15. PARIS : Roux Freres & Cie., 54 Boulevard DUSSELDORF: de Fries & Co., Act. Ges., du Temple. Graf Adolf Strasse, 83-87, : MOSCOW: Alfred Stucken.