Abstract
IN a recent note on “The Future of Steam Propulsion”, reference was made to a paper on the relative merits of steam and oil engines for ships (NATURE, 137, 267; 1936). The subject is one of considerable importance at the present time, when a period of increased ship construction is imminent, and a new and different ‘battle of the boilers' such as occurred at the time of the introduction of the water-tube boiler into H.M. Navy may be anticipated. Two papers dealing with the matter were read before the spring meeting of the Institution of Naval Architects in April last. In one of these, a “Review of the Present Position of Marine Steam Boilers”, Eng.-Rear-Admiral W. M. Whayman dealt with large highspeed ocean-going mail steamers and passenger liners; he holds that these services constitute practically an exclusive field for steam machinery. Asserting that oil is, at present, the only suitable fuel for such installations, he points to the fact that, where speed and passenger comfort are the main consideration, oil-fired water-tube boilers have been adopted for ocean liners in all countries, and he gives details of the boiler equipment of many well-known ships. Whereas pressures on shore approach 1,500 lb. per sq. inch at 900° F. the tabulated figures show that 400-450 lb. per sq. in. and 650°-740° F. constitute the generally accepted limits for high-class sea installations at present. It is suggested that by reason of the more severe conditions of sea service, these pressures and temperatures may be expected to remain fairly steady. It should, however, be recognized that since these special sea conditions must always exist, marine practice, while necessarily following land practice at a safe distance, will steadily advance as quickly as new methods, machinery and means of operation have been proved to be sufficiently reliable for service at sea.
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The Marine Steam Boiler. Nature 138, 213 (1936). https://doi.org/10.1038/138213a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/138213a0