Evening star., 1933-04-02

been deposed by tendency to decen-
tralize. "As an experiment" related
Mr.. Orrok, "the whole eastern half of
the United States, from Boston to Chi
cago and south to Pensacola, has been
synchronized and run as one vast single
system for half an hour. 1t does not
appear that such long-distance con-
nections are advantageous for actual
transmission, but the use Of any portion
| of the interconnected network Is pos
sible, and sections are being called into
daily service as needed"
And water power? Hydroelectric in
stallations were completed last year at
Safe Harbor, Pa, on the Susquehanna:
at Rock Island, Wash, on the Colum-
bia, with numerous smaller scattered
projects in New Hampshire. Montana,
Texas, Massachusetts,, California and
Florida. Developments now under way
at Flathead, Mont, and the Diablo
project at Seattle are scheduled for
completion in 1884
Meanwhile the Federal Government
is pushing its vast $165, 900 900 develop
ment on the Colorado River at Hoover
Dam. This project, which will provide
100000 kilowatts, was begun in 1929
to be completed in 1897, but work is
already year ahead of schedule, and
there Is a fair prospect now that the
PAAAU "AAA OC6Al W pump Out lbS tleC-
tricity early in 1896.
st. Lawrence Development.
In the offing is the st. Lawrence
River development which is to, be
financed jointly by New York State, the
United States Government and Canada
New York recently reorganized its pow er
industry as corporate agency to repre-
| sent its interests in the building and
, operating of the st. Lawrence dam and
plant. The full development Is esti-
mated to produce 100000 kilowatts,
half to be allotted to Canada and half
to New York-if the present program
goes through.
| Another vast scheme comprehends the
Columbia River, where it is said a po-
tental l,5OO, 900 kilowatts are going to
waste.
Finally, there is Muscle Shoals, on
the Tennessee River in Alabama. For
years there has been a proposal, or a
series OF proposals, to enlarge this
power plant under Federal auspices.
Despite these big projects and the 49,
OO0, 900 horsepower of harnessed rivers
already at work in the United States
and the estimated $4,000, 900 yet await
ing capture. Engineer Orrok is inclined
to believe that the future of power lies
with steam. Nearly go per cent of the
electric energy generated in the United
States last year was the product of
| steam. And the largest installation
made-a 800, 000-kilowatt addition to
the Hudson avenue station in Brooklyn
! was steam installation.
Where you can build a hydro plant
close to its load and on a stream that
is not subject to drought, and at an
initial cost not greater than an equiva-
lent steam plant, then that's the thing
to do" said Mr.. Orrok. But such
sites are scarce. The initial cost of
hydro installation is, on the average,
nearly double that of a steam plant.
Waterpower sites are rarely found in
populous regions where power demand
is greatest, therefore additional expense
must be entaialed to provide transmits
sion lines-which may cost anywhere
from $4,000 to ST 100000 a mile
"A modern water turbine, such as
those being installed at Hoover Dam.
will convert 80 per cent of the energy
of the falling water into power. It
therefore is very efficient prime mover.
There is no possibility of ever improving
its efficiency more than 10 per cent.
Steam Turbine Capacity.
| The best steam turbine, on the other
hand, is able to convert into power only
about 80 per cent of the heat released
in the burning fuel Thus there is op-
portunity for 10 per cent improvement
in steam ef1ciency-and this is one rea-
son why put faith in steam"
The fact that the electrical output
from the modern steam units utiliza-
tion of pound of coal has more than
trebled in the last IL years is evidence.
Mainly 1t is result of increasing both
| the temperature and the pressure at
which the steam turbines work
Other developments are pushing into
the spotlight. The publication Power
recently listed half dozen new steam
| mprovementS-one rotating boiler
which is integral with the turbine and
spins at 5000 revolutions a minute as
it supplies its whirling partner with a
torrent of superheated steam. Another
innovation, which comes from Ger
many, is high-pressure boiler which
generates its steam in a single coiled
tube one and one-half miles in length.
A new internal combustion engine which
burns hydrogen as its fuel was recently
perfected abroad.
Meanwhile, in America, the mercury
vapor generator has passed its testing
period, and now two plants are being
RESORTS.
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