The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-07-21

use of the gas producer means also
rapid strides in electrical development
within the next few years. Now that
it is commercially possible to transmit
electrical power for distances Of $50
miles or more, the location of immense
power plants will speedily follow. "A
central plant could distribute such
electric current for a distance of 500
miles that is. $50 miles either side of
the plant, thus covering an area of al
most 200, 900 square miles, an area near
| ~ four times the size Of the state CT
| Illinois. With ten or rWelye of these
great central plants located at the va
rious mine centers, the great railroads
| of the United States can send their
trains speeding from the Atlantic to
the Pacific coast.
at would seem to some chimcrical TO
predict the doom, in the near sUture, of
the steam locomotive, yet one of the
officials of the New York Central rail-
road has publicly stated that in his
/ opinion there will be no steam locomo-
, t1ves operating on the New York Cen
| trail road in ten years. Already the
/ New York Central is arranging u sub
| stitute electric power on its lines from
New York City to a point fifty miles
| from the Grand Central station, and
! extensive tests in the use of the cleo
| trio locomotive are being made between
Rochester and Buffalo. The Pennsyl-
vania is now operating electric trains
between Atlantic City and PhiladeI-
phia with much success. The New
York. New Haven & Hartford railroad
is operating its trains from Stamford,
/ Conn.,, to New York by electric power.
Leads to Capitalization.
These rapid changes are leading to
one end-the Capitalization of power
development and distribution They
point to the time, and at no distant
| day, when great central plants will be
| located at the various mine cen:ers
and the electric power will be trans
| mitted and distributed t. railroads, In
| dustrial plants, cities and the various
| institutions where electrical energy is
/ needed. The great railroads will cp-
! crate their trains by electricity, and
/ the passengers Will be freed from the
annoyance of smoke and cinders: and
the railroad locomotives and the rail-
road yards which are now the most
unsightly places in our cities will be-
come comparatively clean and free
! from smoke. Furthermore, the intro
/ ductiOn of cheaper electric power viii
displace the scores of smoke -belching
chimneys and the befogged atmosphere
of our cities will be cleared, and the
/ city clean and comfortable, will be-
come a reality and not a dream"
| Professor FernaId but recently com
pleted an estimate showing the differ
ence i'm cost and operation of a 500
horsepower steam engine, also the
| difference between the cost and opera
| ton of a 5000 horsepower internal
/ combustion engine and 5000 horse
power steam engine. In Offering the
estimates, Professor Fernald declares
he has made the best possible showing
for the steam engine, while that of the
producer gas plant is but a fair fig
ure. In conclusion he ADDS: I believe
/ that the producer gas plant can better
/ the figure given, but l doubt very
much whether the steam plant figure
can be excelled, even if it can he
| reached"
| Professor Fernald gives the cost of
the 500 horsepower gas plant at S4S,
600 and the steam plant at 10000, a
difference of $1,000 in favor of TIE
steam plant. Operating both plants 300
days, twenty-fOur hours a day, the to-
| tai cost for coal in the producer gas
plant would be $3.50; in the steam
| plant, $3.50. The total operating cost
and fixed charges for the gas producer
plant for the year is s16,262; for the
steam plant, $21,37S The total saving
per year by operating the producer
gas plant Is given at S0,llO. with Tie
| increased cost of the gas producer
plant over the steam plant, it is esti-
mated that il would take nineteen
months of operation of the producer
plant to pay the difference by saving
in operating expenses.
Professor Fernald finds there is no
difference in the cost of a gas producer
/ plant of 5000 horsepower and a steam
plant of the same horsepower, the
cost being placed at $4,000 Running
these plants continuously FOR one year.
| the gas producer plant would require
| p, 900 tons of coal at $3.50 a ton or S52.-
| 500, while the steam plant would con-
sumo AZ, 600 tons at a cost IF $105, 900.
| The total operating expenses and fixed
charges of the 5000 horsepower gas
producer plant are given ut $1i1, 715
while the steam engine would cost
s219,535. The total saving per year by
operating the gas producer plant of
5000 horsepower over the same horse
power steam engine is placed at ST.
| $50, surely a figure that would appeal
to the big manufacturers.
Enormous Waste.
That the United States has not taken
up this question too soon is shown in
the agitation now going on in Europe
against the waste of fuel. The gas
engine has already obtained high de-
velopment in Germany, and England