Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1859, 1852-09-24

u
: would possess, in point of economy, no az
D vantages over the best constructed steam
engine. With it the advantages are in
r calculable
3 We have before stated that atmospheri
E air is first drawn into the supply cylinder
, whence it is forced into a receiver, anc
, that from this it p ocesds toward thu
working cylinder, before reaching which
: i; passes through the rcgenerator. Thl
structure is composed of wire net, some
!, what like that us d IN the manufacture oi
sicves, placed side side, until the series at.
tain a thickness say of twelve inches
: Through the almost innumerable cells
formed by the intersection Of these wires,
the air must pass, on its way to the work
ing cylinder. In passing throug h these it
is so minutely subdivided that the partl-
cles composing it are brought into close
contact with the metal which forms the
wires. Now, let us suppose what actually
takes place, that the side of the regenera-
tor nearest the working cylinder is heated
to high temperature. Through this
heated substance the air must pass before
entering the cylinder, and in effecting this
passage, it takes up, as is demonstrated
by the thermometer, about l5O deg, OF
the 4S0 deg of heat required, as We have
before stated, to double its volume. The
i additional 80 deg. are communicated By
the fire beneath the cylinder. The air has
! thus become expanded; it forces the pls-
/ ton upward it has done its work--vaivcs
and the imprisoned air, heated to 4s0 deg,
passes from the cylinder and again enters
the regencrator, through which it must
! lass before leaving the machine. We
have said that the side of this instrumen.
nearest the working cylinder is hot, and
1t should be here stated that the other side
Is kept cool, by the action upon 1t OF the
air entering in the opposite direction at
each up stroke of the pistons. Conse
Iucntly, as the air from the working cyl
inder passes out, the wires absorb its heat
SO ctfectually that. when it leaves the re-
generator, it has been robbed of it all, ex
cept about 80 deg In other words, as
! the air passes into the working cylinder it
gradually receives from the Regeneration
about $50 deg of heat and as it passes
out, this is returned to the wires, and is
thus used over and over, the only purpose
of the fires beneath the cylinders being to
supply the 80 deg of heat We have men
toned, and that which is lost by radiation
and expansion. Extraordinary as this
statement may seem, it is nevertheless
incontrovertibly proved by the thermome-
tor to be quite true.
The regenerator contained in the sixty
horse engine we have examined, measures
twenty six inches in height and width in
terrally Each disc Of wire com! -osing it
contains 6'6 superficial inches, and the
net has ten meshes to the inch. Each su-
peilicial inch, therefore, contains 100
meshes, which, multiplied by 616, gives
81 600 meshcs in each disc, and as 2OO
discs are employed, it. follows that the re-
generator contains 13,52O,000 mcshes,
and consequently as there are as many
small spaces between the discs as there
are meshes, We find that the air within is
distributed in about 27,000,000 minute
cells. Hence, it is evident, that nearly
every particle of the whole volume of air
in passing through the regenerator, Is
brought into very close contact with sur
face Of metal, which heats and cools alter
nately. The extent of this surface, when
accurately estimated, almost surpasses be-
lief The wire contained iii each disc is
LAO feet long, and that contained in the
regenerator is consequently 22S, 900 feet,
or i04 miles in length, the superficial
measurement of which is equal to the en-
tire surface Cf four steam boilers, each for
ty feet long, and four feet in diameter;
and yet the Regeneration, presenting this
great amount of heating surface, is only
about two feet cube--less than 1920 Of
the bulk of these four boilers.
Involved in this wonderful process, of
the transfer and re-transfer of heat,i is dis
covery which justly ranks as one of the
most remarkable ever made in physical
science. Its author, Captain Ericsson,
long since ascertained, anr upon this is ba-
sed the sublimest feature of his caloric en-:
CINE, that atmosphere aid and other perma-
nent gases, in passing through a distance
of only six inches, in the iftieth part of a
second of time, are capable of acquiring.
or parting with, upward of four hundred
degrees of heat. lie has been first to dis
cover this marvellous property of caloric,
without which, atmospheric air could not
be effectively employed as a motive power.
The reason is obvious. Until expanded
by heat it can exert no force upon the
piston. If much tine were required to
effect this, the movement Of the piston
would necessarily be so slow as to render
the machine inefficient. Captain Erics-
son lately demonstrated, however, that
heat riay be communicated to, and expan-
sion effected in, atmospheric air, with al
most electric speed and that 1t is there.
fore, eminently adapted to give the great,
est desirable rapidity Of motion to all kinds
Of machinery"
The greatest advantages Of this engine
over the steam engine, according to Capt.
Ericsson's showing are many and impor-
tant In the first place, the coal consul
med is only o'se-teath that Of the steam en-
CINE. 2. Only one.fourth as many hands
is required on board a vessel 8. The
4