Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1906-08-18
LIQUID AIR.
Why This Marvellous Agent Has Been
"a Commercial Failure.


Charles H. rrlpler. the man who did
most To exploit liquid air aud to sim
pity the process of lis reduction. tin
ishrd his career after earning II success
that he could not make commercial.
says the Schenectady mon. lie was
not the first to accomplish the lique.
faction of the atmosphere. Professor
James Dcwar Of the Jioyal institute
Ia London aud Professor OlesZewski
are rival claimants for the honor.
Trlpler's apparatus was more practi-
cal than the others. lie used Il triple
engine of which the first piston brought
the air To pressure of sixty pounds
per square inch. cooled II aud reduced
the temperature still more 10y allowing
II to expand again IN n closed chamber.
\ second piston brought IL 10 pres
sure OF 100 pounds. and again II was
cooled by expansion. At the third com
preston it WAS brought To II pressure
of 1000 pounds per square inch. From
this state ii was released into a rcsen-
Grating chamber. where II portion was
allowed To flow through II coil of pipes.
while the remainder was diverted TO
expand in II closed compartment sur
sounding the pipes. thus reducing the
temperature to go degrees below zero,
ms commonly expressed. Al this tenn
pcraturc the compressed air in the pipes
was reduced 10 liquid and could be
drawn on through n tap
Here was Il wonderful product pos
Scssed 81 interesting physical properties
and capable of imparting new proper
ties Ia other Substances. Any cellulose
substance. sponge sawlust or even
wool saturated with liquid air becomes
at once a powerful explosive. Rubber
gum dipped in il becomes a. unelastic
and as frlahle az so much chalk Sheet
iron and steel can hc crumblcd In the
hand after being subjected to the low
temperature Il moment. \ pint Of
liquid air expanded in a coil OF pipes
could reduce IN area OF many cubic
feet to n zero temperature.
Tripler was a man OF large expert
ence in physics. but he seemed 10 lack
mechanical intuition. for lie expected
this agent to become ii source OF power
AMI useful IN thousand different
ways But after an experimental pc
Rod Of about sixteen years liquid air
IS still OF little use outside physical
laboratory. Although il is said 10 in
crease the electrical conductivity OF
copper fifteen times while il is in the
solution that property is useless ex-
ccpt as demonstration of phG-
nomenon. In liquid state ii repre-
sents "A substance having about 500 vol
umes Of the medium OF which IL rs
composed As the air ut the earth's
surface represents a pressure of nearly
fifteen pounds TO the inch. II is evident
that an Ascnt requiring a retainer
capable ~ wthstanding n pressure OF
more than 1000 pounds To the square
inch would be rather unuIanageable.
II would he transported about the coun-
try in open containers protected from
heat by vacuum chambers. thick felt
and its own vapors. but evaporation
was rapid under the most favorable
conditions The fatal defect. however,
is the lack of economy IN production,
even by Triplrr'S method. \ fifty
horsepower engine and apparatus
working ten hours could only produce
between forty and fifty gallons OF liq-
uid air Even II this did not require
retainers of prohbitive cost II would
be an economical failure AZ II source
OF power. which Tripler and his back
. SaaIual a nVarinpk
In a pound Of liquid mir are stored
10000 foot pounds Of energy. This
looks large. but II is merely the equiva-
lent Of four and onc-half horsepower
exerted for one minute II the work
Of a fifty horsepower engine working
ten hours could produce only +00 pints
Of liquid air II is mathematical GER
talnty that the power realized would
BE- but n fraction Of the power required
TO produce the liquid air.-Buffalo
News.