A History of the Growth of the Steam-EngineThurston, Robert Henry
History
A History of the Growth of the Steam-Engine
Thurston, Robert Henry
Steam-engines -- History
Smeaton erected one of these engines at the Chasewater mine, in
Cornwall, in 1775, which was of very considerable size. It was 6 feet
in diameter of steam-cylinder, and had a maximum stroke of piston of
9-1/2 feet. It usually worked 9 feet. The pumps were in three lifts of
about 100 feet each, and were 16-3/4 inches in diameter. Nine strokes
were made per minute. This engine replaced two others, of 64 and of 62
inches diameter of cylinder respectively, and both of 6 feet stroke.
One engine at the lower lift supplied the second, which was set above
it. The lower one had pumps 18-1/2 inches in diameter, and raised the
water 144 feet; the upper engine raised the water 156 feet, by pumps
17-1/2 inches in diameter. The later engine replacing them exerted
76-1/2 horse-power. There were three boilers, each 15 feet in
diameter, and having each 23 square feet of grate-surface. The chimney
was 22 feet high. The great beam, or "lever," of this engine was built
up of 20 beams of fir in two sets, placed side by side, and ten deep,
strongly bolted together. It was over 6 feet deep at the middle and 5
feet at the ends, and was 2 feet thick. The "main centres," or
journals, on which it vibrated were 8-1/2 inches in diameter and 8-1/2
inches long. The cylinder weighed 6-1/2 tons, and was paid for at the
rate of 28 shillings per hundredweight.
By the end of the eighteenth century, therefore, the engine of
Newcomen, perfected by the ingenuity of Potter and of Beighton, and by
the systematic study and experimental research of Smeaton, had become
a well-established form of steam-engine, and its application to
raising water had become general. The coal-mines of Coventry and of
Newcastle had adopted this method of drainage; and the tin and the
copper mines of Cornwall had been deepened, using, for drainage,
engines of the largest size.
Some engines had been set up in and about London, the scene of
Worcester's struggles and disappointments, where they were used to
supply water to large houses. Others were in use in other large cities
of England, where water-works had been erected.
Some engines had also been erected to drive mills indirectly by
raising water to turn water-wheels. This is said by Farey to have been
first practised in 1752, at a mill near Bristol, and became common
during the next quarter of a century. Many engines had been built in
England and sent across the channel, to be applied to the drainage of
mines on the Continent. Belidor[32] stated that the manufacture of
these "fire-engines" was exclusively confined to England; and this
remained true many years after his time. When used for the drainage of
mines, the engine usually worked the ordinary lift or bucket pump;
when employed for water-supply to cities, the force or plunger pump
was often employed, the engine being placed below the level of the
reservoir. Dr. Rees states that this engine was in common use among
the collieries of England as early as 1725.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account