The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1902-01-04
CAN II BE UTILIZED AS A SOURCE
OF PoWER2


IdG Ing Temperature With Depth-Mode,
r., Scientists Don't Think the World
Centre 10 o Molten Mass.
by all odds the greatest amount {
Mechanical power generated to-da
Tor Industrial purposes comes frol
ne burning coal. And inasmuch as til
~ unmlned supply Of that material ha
us limitations and Is likely to b
a used up inside of a couple of centuries
u II not sooner, engineers and philosc
at phers have begun to cast about 70
le other resources. The substitutes 70
be coal which are generally suggested
d are railing water, the wind, sunshin,
u and the waves and tides. But Pro
q 1essor L. O. Mendenhall, in CASTER,
J., Magazine, makes a somewhat move
70 ADDITION to the list. Referring to the
interior heat Of the earth, be says that
- IL Is worthy Of most serious consider.
% ation as a possible and reasonable
J, source OF power. Its Importance will
De greatly enhanced when we are able
to transform heat directly into cleo
tricity on large scale and with econ.
omy. avoiding the great waste which
necessarily accompanies the use of the
steam engine; and this must soon come
about"
Ire earth is a globe nearly 5000
niles In diameter, and except for a
tnln shell, Is probably hotter than any
furnace yet devised by human skill.
hstlmates differ as to the thickness
OF this crust Temperature increases
With descent, In mines and oil wells
at an average rate Of one. degree Fab.
renheit for every fifty, or sixty feet
Assuming that the mean for the
earth's surface is something like finy
degrees above zero, the boiling point Of
water (2l2 degrees) would be reached
at a depth Of about 5000 feet. And 1t
Is believed that between thirty and
fifty miles down the heat is sufficient |
TO melt the hardest known substances
clay, lime. carbon and the like. It
would probably not be wide Of the
mark to say that at this distance tenn
peratures of 5000 and 5000 degrees ex.
list.
The Old notion was that the interior
OF the earth was molten, and the pbe.
nomena Of volcanoes tended to
strengthen that belief. Modern writ.
ers' however, incline to the theory of
potential Elasticity" That is to saw
they think that the heat there is ade-
quate to melt the most refractory |
materials, but that melting does not |
actually take place owing to the pres 7
sure OF superintendent weight
q moments reflection will satisfy
0ne that II this source Of energy should =
ever become available, 1t would vastly =
transcend in value wind power, water p
power sun power and tide power. =
even the coal deposits Of the earth -
consumed and unconsumed, would be n
nconsiderable in comparison. Were h
ne internal heat drawn off by arti- .,
lclal means-the conversion into other -
or1ns OF energy for mans use-the
oolng OF the globe, which is already
omg on, would be accelerated, and the e.
arth would be reduced to the cold -,
ead condition Of the moon a little 81,
ooner than otherwise. Thus the yery ~
OF the human race might D,
ossibly be abbreviated q few tho,,. =,
I'D years by climatic changes. Still s ~
the great heat reservoir here under ~
were once tapped in a Co,
ltlsfactory manner, it would be o ~
'aetically inexhaustible bank account ~
draw upon. az
PROFESSOR Mendenhall outlines No ~,
an Tor utilizing the earth's heat be. 49,,
nd a suggestion that it might he ~ ~
inverted directly into electricity ~,
uncut the intermediate use of stear ~,
lere is much to commend this idea wo
1t is necessary to go down 5000 feet W. o
oroef to make water boil, it would tot,
necessary to go down 1000 more No,
generate steam at useful pressure, two
100 to 200 pounds to the inch 80,
ne sure, were some more volatile IN
'stance than water employed to pro- fro,
1e The motive vapor, a lower tenn it;o
azure would suffice. This in the Nv.
nc1ple Of a new motor In GERMANY 40,
len Just now threatens to work a ao.
es Tho 49, pu seherasion' 1t tagi
AN engine, at temperature of
ut 100 degrees, vaporizes Herewith IT
le sulphur dioxide, and thus gets hea,
Re than third as much mower nc In q
. Muc,pal engine develops. This find,
would otherwice be wasted. A said
'nur dioxide engine might be run bod,
,sssAu 'y' ~ lar as temperature lides
!, aione are concerned, at The
u OF mile, which has more than anyt
} been attained by oil wells. Cors
lie principle Of the thermo.electric that
lie Is very simple. When a change Britt
occurs at the junction q vic
Wv, '.lpS " olsslmliar metals an sicia!
Tic current is excited in them. was
n'eu'ols nave tried to turn Wond
phenomenon into account. Cla- it in
quilt up hollow cylinder out Of waite
$50 layers VI tln and an alloy ing /
80 an'illony' and heated the down
- WIZ d gas name around a heard
49,. ear'nenWare tube. Harry then
So WA VI hartford, a few basin
ago constructed a somowbo+ tb;no