When a current of air is passed over the surface of gasoline it
becomes carbureted or charged with its vapors to saturation. Air thus
charged is somewhat heavier than pure air, and when passed through an
Argand or bat's wing burner, it burns with a brilliant white flame.
Nothing would seem easier than to make a machine that would force
a current of air through, over, or on some material saturated with
gasoline, and this apparently simple process has led many into
attempts to make a successful gas machine. Many fortunes have been
spent by the unscientific in the chase after this, to them, _ignis
fatuus_. The stumbling block which has wrecked so many enterprises
in this line has been the cold produced by the evaporation of the
gasoline. One pound of gasoline, in passing from a liquid to a vapor,
requires about as much heat as would be required to melt two pounds of
cast iron. It is therefore obvious that where no heat is supplied,
the gasoline, air, and machine must soon become very cold when any
considerable quantity of gas is being made. The heat must come from
somewhere, and as none is supplied, it is taken from the apparatus,
air, and gasoline, making them very cold. A beautiful and simple
experiment to illustrate this refrigeration can be made as follows:
Place a gill of water in a common washbasin, then pour over it
one pint of light gasoline; shake the basin, and blow the liquids
vigorously, when very soon the basin will become intensely cold--the
water will freeze, and may be taken out in the form of a snowball.
If the water and basin are hot, and the experiment performed in a hot
room or in the sun, it is much more striking.[1]
This refrigeration operates upon the gas as follows: Air will take up
and hold in suspension any volatile liquid in proportion to the square
of its temperature, so that when the temperature of the gasoline and
air have fallen off one half, the quantity of gasoline in the air has
fallen off three quarters, and the light is destroyed. The quality of
the gas in such machines varies from a rich smoky flame to a pale
blue and blowing flame in a short time. Every change of quality in the
liquid, temperature of the apparatus, or number of burners used causes
a vexatious change in the quality of the gas. If heat is applied at
the right time and in the right quantity it is not so bad, but too
much heat, or neglecting to regulate it properly, converts the machine
into a still, the condenser of which is the pipes of the building
lighted, when danger is added to vexation. About ten years ago a
machine was illustrated in these columns that obviated all these
troubles; it was the invention of the well known mechanical engineer,
Hiram S. Maxim, of this city. His machine was on an entirely new
principle, and has since gone into general use. It was intricate and
somewhat expensive, but it performed its work well. Messrs. A. T.
Stewart & Co. use them largely in their mills and hotels. Mr. Maxim
made one of six thousand burner capacity for the Grand Union Hotel,
Saratoga Springs, it being the largest gas machine ever built. It has
supplied gas of an unvarying quality for six years, and is as good as
new to-day.
To reduce the cost as far as possible, Mr. Maxim has designed a new
machine on another principle, which we herewith illustrate. Fig. 1
shows the machine in perspective, and Fig. 2 is a sectional view.
The vertical cylinder is a common gas holder of sheet brass. It is 36
inches in diameter for a thousand burner machine. The operative parts
of the machine are best shown in the sectional view, which represents
the portion of the machine called the injector. A is a steam chamber
supplied with four or more pounds of steam through the pipe, K. B is
the gasoline supply pipe, and C the air supply. D is an index valve.
The operation is as follows: Steam being in the chamber, A, the
descent of the holder opens the valve, M, and allows the steam to
[_Continued on page 4._]
[Footnote 1: This experiment should not be tried in the vicinity of
a gaslight or fire.]
* * * * *