Mohave County miner., 1901-02-16

therefore attracting a vast amount of |
attention. Leading newspapers and |
magazines throughout the country
have telegraphed their representatives
to rush photographs" and the eastern
tourists now swarming into the south
all visit the devise and regard it as a
great marvel.
Naturally it is attracting the notice
of men interested in western. develop
ment, for any means of furnishing
cheap power must exert tremendous
influence in this field. Among those
who have studied it very closely and
are apparently ready to stake their
| reputation on the prediction of great
results to be realized from this inter
esting device, is William f. Smythe
who, as founder of the Irrigation Con
gress, for many years editor of the Ir.
rigation Age, and author of The Con
quest of Arid America, is we'll known
TO many of our readers. He has fur
nished our CORES spondent with the fol-
lowing statement concerning the Solar
Motor:
The unique feature of the Solar Mo.
tor is that it uses the heat of the sun
to produce steam. As no fuel is
cheaper than any fuel, the saving to be
effected by this device is evident.
When the solar rays have heated the
water in the boiler so as to produce
steam, the remainder of the process is
the familiar operation of compound
engine and centrifugal pump.
The reflector somewhat resembles a
huge umbrella, open aud inverted at
such an angle as to receive the full
effect of the suns rays on 1888 little
mirrors lining its inside surface. The
boiler, which is l3 feet, 6 inches long,
just where the handle Of the umbrella
ought TO be. Thi, boiler is the focal
point where the reflection from the sun
is concentrated. If you reach long
pole up to the boiler it instantly be.
gins to smoke and in few seconds is
aflame From the boiler flexible me.
tallic pipe runs to the engine-house
near at hand. The reflector is 33 feet
6 inches in diameter at the top aud Il
feet at the bottom. On the whole, its
appearance is rather stately and grace
ful, and the glittering mirrors and
: shining boiler make it decidedly bril-,
J liant.
In the morning the machine i,
thrown into focus by few turns of a
hand crank In about an hour the
gage in the engine house indicated
$50 pounds of steam pressure. The en-
) CINE may then be started and allowed
e TO run all day without attention. A
| clock-wOrk arrangement keeps the re-
/. flector following the sun around auto
2 matically; the engine is self Oiling; the
5 water passes back from the condenser
, to the boiler, so that the latter is al
] ways full. The present model runs q
lO.horse power engine and lifts l4OC
. gallons per minute, equal to l55 min
e er's inches, II feet from an under,
e ground tank.
70 1t is expected that under the nearly
+ vertical rays of the summer sun thC
e present model will develop from 10 tC
t 20 horse power But this is by M
e means the limit, since several retlec
1 tors may readily be grouped abou
e a central engine and made to prOduC,
b 100 horse power, and perhaps mucl
e more. The Solar Motor is simply tn,
cheapest possible means of producing
/. steam because it saves all expenditur,
5 for fuel and labor 1t is available TO
f wherever steam power is needed. |
= can be used to generate electricity anC
the power then stored in electric bat
j. teries. Other and cheaper means o
t storage may be devised in time. An.
d attempt to predict possibilities in thi
b field would be mere guess work, but
e is safe to say that solar power will b
= one of the great influences of the ne,
e century and will make the arid region
g of the west, and other parts of tn
e world the theater of the greatest in
IT dustrial revolution of the future.
,