Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1890-03-20
MACHINE-MApE ICE.
No One Need Care Even IL the Natural
Ice Crop Fails.

no One Need Care Even III the Natural
Ice Crop Fails.
Herr Loschmidt, German scientist,
o few years ago advanced the theory
that, instead OF burning up, as has been
often predicted, we might some day
come under the influence of dead"
sun, which, greedy of heat would suck
the warmth out of our solar system,
leaving us climate so intensely cold
that the region of the Arctic zone would
be warm in comparison. Perhaps the
good German savant may be right about
it; but our present most remarkable
winter, following as it has one nearly
as remarkable for its average of un-
usually high temperature, 1ould seem
toward some dead sun we wore advanc-
ing on a mighty lively one, whose in
tense heat threatens to give us per
petual summer in the interval that it
takes to burn out and dissipate our sys'
tenn.
But to those who do not trouble them
selves about the dim future preferring
to combat present evils, the possible
failure of the ice crop offers a serious
problem for discussion. Following SO
close upon our late exultation at the
fall of the plumber the matter comes in
the nature of a disagreeaSle reaction.
Visions of being at the mercy of the icc'
man, who never gives quarter; Of the
time when we will flavor our bread with
yellow oil that in happier days and UNI
der other conditions was called butter;
and of the time when ice-cream and
Roman punch will be Bellamy-sort Of
fantasy, inspired by Looking Back
ward" through magnifying haze OF
fond Imagination, usurp our minds and
make US unhappy. That is to say these
visions would float through our minds
did we not know that invention, in this
event as in all others, has kept pace
with the requirements of modern com
fort
Ice can now be artiiicially produced
that is really better in many respect:
than the natural article, it being Of
Areater purity and of more compactness
lce-making is no new thing, and has TO
years been accomplished in the South
ern States, India, Peru and even undel
the equator, where ice was never befor
seen. The machines for producing arti
fetal ice are of different kinds ant
varied construction. One kind utilize
the fact that lowering of the tempera
ture accompanies the sudden expansion
OF compressed gas, and another make
use Of like thermal effects that resul
from tho volatilization of certain
liquids. In the first class air is com
pressed to three or four atmospheres ant
kept cool by circulating water around it
1t is then allowed to expand rapidly, tn
act of expansion drawing the heat con
tanned in the water and freezing it. Tn
other machines have their effectiveness
on the latent heat in evaporization. !
requires but slight vacuum to caus
evaporization sufficiently rapid for re
| frigerating purposes. The liquids to b
vaporized in these latter machines ma
be either water, sulphuric ether, bi-sul
phide of carbon, ammonia, sulphur
acid or other substances.
Ammonia seems to furnish the hes
results, and it is machines utilizing thi
chemical that company in New Yor
uses in an elaborate system of cold dis
tribution and ice-making. For the ice
making part of the business, tho grou n
floor of the plant has been fitted u
with large iron tank, divided into tw
parts by partition. Within the tank
are series of pipe coils, in which til
ammonia is expanded to cool the brin
with which the tanks are fillod.
. this cold bath are iron molds filled wit
. fresh water, which are frozen by tn
low temperature of the surroundin
}. brine, which requires much lowe
temperature than the fresh water t
! freeze it. The cakes of ice are 36X1S
; 70, and the present capacity of tn
machines is estimated at thirty tons
day. 1t will be sold in competition t
the regular ice trade. The Distribute
Of cold consists in forcing the brine, {
low temperature, through street main
to where wanted for refrigerating c
cooling purposes, and is already in su
cessful operation. -Boston Transcript.