The Elk Mountain pilot., 1916-10-12
|GWSN|

Griffin. chief of the bureau of steam engineering
according to writer in the New York Sun.
These engines. which will be of the electrc-drive
type. are expected to push the 9OO-foot ships
through rough seas at speed approaching RI
knos that is, about four knots better than the
latest United States destroyers and ut the rate
of passenger train running n carefully
graded road.
When Admiral Griffin tells the story one roins
from his manner the impression that about nil
he had to do was to speak to Captain Dyson
about 1t and the design of these S6OOOOOO en-
gfnes sprnng into existence. but those who know
the admiral have their own opinion about that:
and 1t differs somewhat radically from the i'm
preston.
Yes" said the chief "at first 1t was rather
appalling when we realized the magnitude of those
engines. The largest In any OF our battleshps
give 25.OOO horse power those OF the Lusitania
were 10000; and 1t is said that those which drive
the English Tiger at about 30 knots are from So
900 to 10000. So can see that we had to
make leap and at first 1t seemed like leap in
the dark. to provide approximately 1000 horse
power. But somehow, when we got the conditions
right before us, everything seemed to unfold
Itself and fall the right place and there reaIIy
little difficulty.
ave at the outset that 1t was impossIble
to control and apply the power without adopting
oil fuel and the electric drive In the great
mercantile ships like the Aqultania and the
,Vaterand had examples of the 9OOfoot
boats with speed of % or 26 knots but It Is
the last few knots which difficult to get
Very roughly speaking. the new cruisers steam
ing at Is knots viii consume the equivalent of
100 tons of coal day and to attain somewhere
between "a and 80 knots will burn up the same
quantity in one hour; to put 1t another way the
coal required to drive of these cruisers at
full speed for day will drive battleship across
the Atlantic and back. If full speed can be main
tained steadily for three days and seven hours
It will take one from New York to Liverpool; but
as that would require 1000 tons of coal 1t Is
certain that such a run will never be attempted
coal fuel.
mo tell what the chemist engineer of
the future will do; but until something Is found
battle cruisers viii have to depend upon oil to
convert water into steam; and without that sub
stitute -hey cannot be driven many consecutive
hours 1t full speed. 1t would not be possible to
transmit much power one shaft or one
screw. Therefore 1t is distributed to four shafts,
each receiving about 10000 horse power, dou-
BILE the total power In superdreadnaught and
greater than that of any but the largest of the
modern merchantmen.
"If only low moderate rate of speed
required the old-style recprscatlng engines
would, because more economical, probably be
lected, but to secure the high rates turbines will
be adopted.
'T7e electric drive is not difficult to compre-
bend IL will think of the familiar trolley, sub
way or railway driven by electricity. The
power is created by the operation of steam-driven
generators or dynamos They produce the cleo
trio current. which is carried by wire to the many
small motors in the cars scattered along the sys-
tem The motorman or engineer turns the
power md the motor is driven ahead; he moves
his lever and the power is shut OFF; he shoves 1t
farther and reverses his motor. For many
small motors say several large and you have
the plan OF the ships electric drive. The turbines
operate the generators of the ,rrent for the mo-
tors, and the motors turn eaci Of the four pro-
peller shafts of the ship.