Evening star., 1924-08-29
IDLE j. s. VESSELS
MAY SEE SERVICE
New Engine Tests Increase
Possibility of Ships Again
Flowing Seas.
BY. j. G. ROYLE.

BUFFALO, August 29.-The gray
ghosts of that part of the American
merchant marine which has been
closely shackled in the Hudson, the
James and other estuaries along the
coasts may be made not only to walk.
but to plow the SeveO seas with the
stems of a thousand ships.
That possibility was increased by
the results of tests of the new Diesel
engine developed here at the plant of
the Worthington Pump & Machinery
Company here. The developments s
will have a wide bearing on scores
of industries owing to Diesel fuel
two-cycle double acting Diesel engine
ever built in the United States.
Big Fuel Saving Claimed.
The Diesel engine is no new thing.
The principle involved, discovered by
DIR. Diesel, simply is that heavy fuel
oil fed into cylinder by a spray and
put under 500 pounds pressure de-
velops tremendous heat. This pro-
duceS combustion of the fuel with
consequent expansion of gases and
exertion of motive force on piston.
The older designs of Diesel engine
are of the four-cycle single acting or
the two-cycle single acting types.
The former delivers a driving impulse
piston, while the latter delivers its
power on every down stroke.
The newly developed Worthington
engine, however. delivers it's drive
on every upstroke and every down
stroke. Efforts to sell the larger
portion of the United States Shipping
Board fleet have been largely un-
availing, owing to the fact that
since they were equipped with steam
engines they could not compete
profitably with those of foreign ma
tions which had internal combus-
ton engines and were operated un-
der more favorable regulations than
those imposed by American shipping
laws. 1t is estimated that the Diesel
engine will produce from two to
three times as much energy as the
steam engine from the same amount
of fuel oil burned by each.
Will Convert IL United States Ships.
The Shipping Board has recognized
this fact and is now preparing to
convert at least IL of the idle yes
sells to motor ships Immediately. 1t
has been authorized to expend s25,-
10000 in this program. The trouble
heretofore with the older types of
Diesel engine was that they were
bulky, heavy and expensive. In some
cases Diesel engines large enough to
furnish the required power would
not go in the engine room space of
the old ships. and cargo space, which
means earning capacity, had to be
sacrificed.
The enormous weight involved also
lessened cargo capacity. Bulk was
unavoidable, for although it has been
possible to build small. light inter-
nal-combustion engines, provided
they were operated at high speed, ma
rine engines for freighters running
from 10 to IL knots an hour have to
run slow, since the most effective
number of propeller revolutions
range from 90 to 12O a minute. The
bulk and weight of the low-speed en-
gines made them expensive because
of the tremendous amount of high
cost steel which went into their con-
Struction.
Claims Drawbacks Obviated,
The Worthington engineers, how
ever. including o. E. Jorgenson, who
is responsible for many of the details
of the new engine, and DR.. C. Z.
Lucks, professor of mechanical en-
gineering at Columbia, declare their
product has obviated or lessened
these disadvantages. They say that
with the pistons exerting power on
every up and down stroke, the horse
power developed is nearly twice that
of an old-style engine of the same
weight and bulk, while at the same
time fuel economy and other operat-
ing advantages are retained, and sim
plicity of design. low first cost, short
ness and ease of maneuvering are
added
The importance OF the development
does not apply alone to the old
steamships, for practically all cargo
carriers now being
built are utilizing the Diesel type of en-
gine propulsion. Fuel economy has
led to wide use of the engine on land,
especially for driving electric genera
tors. The Government is now consid-
erlng bids on a Diesel-run power
plant at the Canal Zone, which will
consist of six units of $3.50 horse
power each.
May Draw on Idle Ships.
The bearing Of the recent tests on
every line of business throughout the
country may be realized by a review
OF the shipping situation. The Inter-
state Commerce Commission has sus-
pended operation of that section of
the merchant marine act which pro-
vides preferential rail rates on Amer
lean goods for shipment abroad, pro-
vided they are carried in American
vessels. 1t is believed the doubt as
to whether enough American ships
were in commission to handle these
shipments had a bearing on the de-
cision of the commission. With the
idle merchant fleet re-equipped this
objection would be nullified.
Any Increase in the use of internal
combustion engine naturally will
have an immediate effect on the oil