St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-11-07
WATER.GAS.

Owing to our long winters and the extraor-
dinarily high cost of fuel in this locality.
there is no city in the country which has
more direct interest in the success of Prof.
LOVES new experiment of making gas
from water than the cities Of st. Paul and
Minneapolis. During the recent Novelties
exhibition in Philadelphia, which closed
last Saturday evening after successful run
of six weeks, among the exhibits of the
recent efforts of inventive genius the most
striking and the one that attracted the
greatest amount of attention from thought
full people was the display of LOVES fuel
water-gas for heating, lighting and
power purposes. The Philadelphia
papers say that the exhibit was com
plete in every respect and showed conclu-
sively that the gas could accomplish all that
was claimed for it by its inventor. The
gas is made from pure water and is intended
to supplant coal, wood and other solid fuels
as means of furnishing heat for cooking
and other purposes, and of supplying man.
ufacturers with power for their mills and
factories. In response to the numerous
questions which were propounded to him,
as to how this could be done and how it
would compare in cost with the present
methods, Prof. LOWE delivered lecture in
the annex of the exhibition in which he
undertook to explain the claims this gas has
of becoming the fuel of the future. On the
platform were erected for the occasion a
complete water-gas works and all the
appliances necessary to illustrate the
lecture. The professor explained that
the method of making the gas was by con-
verting the water into steam. This steam,
after being highly super-heated over fire
brick surface, is passed through bed of
incandescent coal, which has been heated
at the same time with the friedrich. This
treatment changes the oxygen of the water
into carbon non-oXide, which with the hy-
drogen becomes conbustibe gas 1t is
then washed and purified, and conveyed to
holder. when it is ready for distribution.
Prof. LOWE asserts that this gas can be
furnished to the consumer at 80 cents per
1000 feet. In proof of this he showed that
four tons of coal, employing the labor of
one man. would generate $50. feet. So
far as st. Paul is concerned we would
be perfectly willing to allow the profess
sor a double estimate and then think
that our stars were lucky if we got
gas at cost of 60 cents per 1000 feet. The
professor next illustrated the method of
generating water-gas by means of the APP
Daratus on the platform, and as steam
could not be had for the purpose, he pro-
ceeded to make the gas from block of ice
which was at hand. The tanning up of the
coal in the generator, and the gradual rising
of the little holder as the gas passed into it,
were observed with intense interest by all
present; and when the lighted jet at the top
of the holder showed that what was ice a
few moments before had been changed to
gas, there was applause. The applica-
ton of an incandescent jet to the
burner produced brilliant white light;
the light of diamond light, which gave an
effect similar to that of electricity, and the
illumination of the hall by an immense
chandelier containing sixty incandescent
burners followed. Speaking of the water
gas exhibit the Philadelphia Record says:
''There has never been scheme proposed
that offered a more secure investment for
our surplus capital and promised greater
profits than the formation of a syndicate
for the introduction of this fuel gas into
this and every other city and town on the
continent of from I, 900 inhabitants up. 1t.
introduction will be eagerly welcomed by
housekeepers and manufacturers. for. aside
from the fact that it is much cheaper than
solid fuels, the knowledge that it will dis
pense with the handling of wood and coal
and will leave no ashes to dispose of will
commend it fayorably to every community.
The manufacturer who uses steam, in esti-
mating the cost of his productions, will adj
init that fuel absorbs considerable share
of his expenses. In the district where nat
ural gas abounds, the factories that use
coal cannot compete with those that use
natural gas as fuel. and the time is not far
distant when the manufacturers of the
East will be unable to compete with those
of the West, unless some means of obtain
ing cheaper fuel is assured them. The