Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1916-08-03
Farm Motor Fuel Problems Are Now Easily Solved

gine was first thought OF, gunpowder
was tried as the fuel, but it proved
to be unsuccessful and expensive
Gasoline was next tried, because it
was inexpensive, could be handled
easily and when vaporized and mixed
with air it formed very explosive
mixture, The success which was at
tanned Is self-evident when one con.
siders how many engines are now in
use, Gasoline vaporizes quite readily
especially II it is atomized, or broken
into fine spray, as is done in all
present-day carburetors
Kerosene, which is the next most
used motor fuel, consists OF the parts
of the crude petroleum which will
distill off at slightly higher tempera-
lures than the gasoline, 1t is a con-
siderably heavier liquid than gaso-
line and is not as volatile 1t is
cheaper fuel than gasoline because it
represents much larger part Of the
crude oil. in most cases over 50 per
cent, and because its satisfactory use
as an engine fuel involved greater
difficulties for the engine designers
than did the use OF gasoline,
A kerosene engine must have some
device Tor heating the charge before
it enters the engine cylinder; other
wise the fuel would not be vspor-
lied and would not burn, This is
done by one OF thres ways or by a
combination Of these ways. On some
engines the intake pipe is arranged
to draw its air from a jacket about
the exhaust manifold The air is
heated enough by its contact with the
exhaust pipe to cause it to vaporize
the oil readily. On other engines the
bowl Of the carburetor is surrounded
by a water jacket through which the
engine-cooling water circulates, keep
ing the kerosene in the carburetor
hot. The third type OF engine has
the inlet pipe or mixing chamber be-
tween the carburetor and the engine
jacketed and heated with the cooling
water so it warns the mixture OF
kerosene spray and air on Its way
from the carburetor to the cylinder.
In some engines two OF these pre-
heating schemes are used, d.
A Kerosene engine must either
have q lower compression pressure
than a gasoline engine or else must
have an arrangement whereby a
small amount OF water can be ads
mitted to the cylinder with the kero~
sene. The trouble with kerosene Is
that it contains more heat units per
gallon than do the lighter oils and
It will pre-ignite at lower pressures,
which will cause the engines to
pound and work hard,
If water is admitted Its cools off
the gases and prevents the trouble
from pre-ignition even at gasoline
engine pressures. There Is considera-
bic difference of opinion as to just
what the action OF the water Is
Some engineers and designers main
tain that the only effect Of the water
is to cool the gases sufficiently to
allow higher compression pressures
and consequently better combustion
and more power are obtained Others
maintain that the water is chemically
broken up during the explosion and
actually helps with the combustion.
So far as we know, there have been
no experiments which would definitely
indicate which of these assumptions
is correct
1t is hard to tell what will be the
fuel in the far-distant future. Alarm
lists tell US that the supply of petro-
leum is limited and we must find
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