The Racine Gas and Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 181.jpg) The Racine Gasoline Engine |
| /Fig. 182.jpg) The Racine Gas & Gasoline Engine |
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The engines of the
Racine Hardware Company combine some of the most recent improvements in construction. They are of the four-cycle compression type. All valves are of the poppet style. The regulation of speed is made by amiss-opening of the exhaust valve, by which a fresh charge is excluded when the piston cushions on the previous charge until the normal speed is reached, when the governor again opens the exhaust valve and allows a fresh charge to be drawn in. This company furnishes both hot-tube and electric igniter for all their engines, so that failures shall not occur by the disabling of one or the other of the igniting apparatus.
The governor is of the horizontal centrifugal type, revolving on the main shaft, and by a lever connection produces a lateral movement of a rolling disc attached to the lever of the exhaust push-rod. The lateral motion of the governor-controlled disc rides the disc on to or off the exhaust cam on the reducing-gear for a miss-exhaust. The gasoline pump is operated by a cam on a small shaft driven by the reducing-gear, and furnishes a surplus supply to a receiving cup over the mixing-chamber, with an overflow pipe returning the surplus gasoline to the tank by gravity. Between the supply cup and the mixing-chamber there is a sight-feed valve, by which the flow of gasoline to the mixing-chamber may be observed and regulated. Any surplus or overfeeding produces no dangerous conditions, as the gasoline entering the mixing-chamber in excess falls into the recess at the bottom and is conveyed back to the tank through the overflow pipe from the supply cup. It will be observed by inspection of the cuts (Figs. 181 and 182) that the exhaust pipe is jacketed for a short distance above the engine, with inlet holes for the entrance of air at the top and a neck from the jacket to the mixing-chamber below, so that the air is warmed before meeting the incoming gasoline in the mixing-chamber, where by an extended surface the gasoline is perfectly vaporized and mixed with air for best effect. The quantity drawn in for ignition is regulated by the index valve near the inlet valve, at which point a further admixture of air completes the proportions necessary for the desired explosive action.
/Fig. 180.jpg) The Racine Gas & Gasoline Engine |
At present these engines are built of 2, 3, and 4 B. H. P. They are well adapted for small electric-lighting plants, as shown in Fig. 180.
The Hornsby-Akroyd Oil Engine
/Fig. 183.jpg) The Hornsby-Akroyd Oil Engine |
This engine is of English origin and now built by the sole licensees of the United States patents—the
De La Vergne Refrigerating Machine Company—in all sizes from 4 to 55 H. P They are of the four-cycle compression type, using any of the heavy mineral oils or kerosene as fuel.
This unique explosive engine seems to be a departure in design from all other forms of explosive engines, in the manner of producing vaporization of the heavy oils used for its fuel and the manner of ignition.
An extension of a chamber from the cylinder head, somewhat resembling a bottle with its neck next to the cylinder head, performs the function of both evaporator and exploder. Otherwise these engines are built much on the same lines of design as gas and gasoline engines, having a screw reducing-gear and secondary shaft that drives the governor by bevel gear, the automatic cylinder lubricator by belt, and cams for operating the exhaust valve and oil pump.
/Fig. 184-186.jpg) Oil Injection & Compression |
The bottle-shaped extension is covered in by a hood to facilitate its heating by a lamp or air-blowpipe, and so arranged as to be entirely closed after the engine is started, when the red heat of the bottle or retort is kept up by the heat of combustion within. The narrow neck between the bottle and cylinder, by its exact adjustment of size and length, perfectly controls the time of ignition, so that of many indicator-cards inspected by the writer there is no perceptible variation in the time of ignition, giving as they do a sharp corner at the compression terminal, a quick and nearly vertical line of combustion, and an expansion curve above the adiabatic, equivalent to an extra high mean engine pressure for explosive engines. The oil is injected into the retort in liquid form by the action of the pump at the proper time to meet the impulse stroke, and in quantity regulated by the governor. During the outer stroke of the piston air is drawn into the cylinder and the oil is vaporized in the hot retort. At the end of the charging stroke there is oil vapor in the retort and pure air in the cylinder, but non-explosive. On the compression stroke of the piston the air is forced from the cylinder through the communicating neck into the retort, giving the conditions represented in Fig. 184 and Fig. 185, in which the small stars denote the fresh air entering, and the small circles the vaporized oil. In Fig. 185 mixture commences, and in Fig. 186 combustion has taken place, and during expansion the supposed condition is represented by the small squares. At the return stroke the whole volume of the cylinder is swept out at the exhaust, and the pressure in the retort neutralized and ready for another charge.
It is noticed by this operation that ignition takes place within the retort, the piston being protected by a layer of pure air.
It is not claimed that these diagrams are exact representations of what actually takes place within the cylinder; nevertheless, their substantial correctness seems to be indicated by the fact that the piston rings do not become clogged with tarry substances, as might be expected.
This has been accounted for by an analysis of the products of combustion, which shows an excess of oxygen as unburned air; which indicates that the oil vapor is completely burned in the cylinder, with excess of oxygen.
/Fig. 187.jpg) The Hornsby-Akroyd Portable Oil Engine |
In Fig. 187 is illustrated the adaptation of this engine for portable power. It is largely in use for electric work, for air compressing, ice machinery, and pumping. The United States Light-House Department has adopted this engine for compressing air for fog whistles. Traction engines and oil-engine locomotives for narrow-gauge tramways and mining railways will soon be one of the manufacturing departments of the
De La Vergne Company.
The Climax Gas Engine
/Fig. 188.jpg) The Climax Gas Engine |
The Climax Gas Engine, made by the
Climax Gas Engine Company, is of the four-cycle compression type, with globular combustion chamber. The air and gas inlet is at the end of the globular cylinder head, to which is inserted and attached all the valves and valve gear. The valve-gear shaft is driven by a worm gear from the engine shaft, and carries a cam for operating the exhaust valve through a lever. A cam at the end of the cam-shaft operates an inertia governor, which by its momentum makes a hit-or-miss opening of the gas-inlet valve as required by the speed of the engine. The governor is made adjustable while the engine is running by turning a milled-head screw and tightening or relieving the tension of a spiral spring that controls the momentum of the governor bob.
The regulation of the gas flow is made by an index valve close to the inlet valve. The globular cylinder head has a water circulation. Hot-tube ignition, with automatic self-starting attachment, are on the larger size engines. The engines of this company are made in nine sizes for stock, from 1¼ to 40 B. H. P. Engines of any desired horse-power larger than 40 B. H. P. are made to order.
/Fig. 189.jpg) The Climax Gas Engine & Electric Light Plant |
These engines are well adapted for electric lighting, and the Climax Company guarantees the electrical output on the measured gas consumption.
In electrical light trials with this engine, the variation by the sudden shutting off of a quarter, half, or three-quarters of the number of lamps shows an oscillation of less than two volts, and with a gas consumption not exceeding 40 cubic feet per kilowatt per hour.
The New York Motor
/Fig. 190.jpg) The New York Motor |
This is one of the new style high-speed motors of light weight, weighing but 150 lbs. for a 1½ H. P. motor, including the fly-wheel. It is made by the
New York Motor Company. It is operated by gas, gasoline, or carbonated oil . The stationary style, as shown in Fig. 190, has the water tank directly over the engine on a frame, which also holds the battery and sparking-coil. By the direct and close water connection the water in the tank becomes warm, and by its rapid circulation keeps the cylinder at the proper temperature for economic consumption of gas or other fuel—the slow evaporation from the open top of the tank being sufficient to keep the water at an even temperature of about 180° F.
Several novel features are claimed in its construction. The crank is encased and runs in an oil bath, thus keeping crank and piston lubricated. The shaft has an outboard bearing, which counteracts the belt strain. The motion of the piston is made to produce an air circulation in the piston and lower part of the cylinder to prevent undue heating, thus keeping the piston and cylinder at a uniform temperature.
The inlet valve is so constructed that the new charge is conducted directly down to the piston, and on compression the spark flashes in the centre of the combustion chamber, making a quicker explosion and keeping the electrodes free from fouling.
The valve mechanism is very simple and of the poppet kind, consisting of one double valve, operated by one cam, one roller, and one slide. Both valve and igniter are operated by cams on a reducing-gear wheel. Both electric and hot-tube igniters are used, as preferred.
/Fig. 191.jpg) The New York Motor |
The gas and air charges are regulated by index valves, with an additional control of the gas charge by a ball governor running by belt from the main shaft. For a launch a friction-clutch for reversing the propeller wheel is used. This is one of the few very light-weight and high-speed engines adapted for small power and portability.
The Facile Oil Engine
/Fig. 192.jpg) The Facile Oil Engine |
Originally built by the
Britannia Company, Colchester, England, and now built in the United States by Mr. John A. Holmes, who controls the United States patents and is bringing out the general features of the English engine with modification and improvements derived from experience and the needs of a perfect motor, using the heavy oils and kerosene as explosive fuel.
/Fig. 193.jpg) The Facile Vertical Marine Engine |
In Fig. 193 we illustrate the vertical style as used for marine and vehicle propulsion. It is of the two-cycle compression type, and has but one valve, which by its peculiar construction operates as both inlet and exhaust valve. The valve is a ported piston, capped by a disc valve to hold the ports in their proper position and close the exhaust during the pressure stroke.
The crank chamber is closed, and by the downward stroke of the piston produces an air pressure that charges the combustion chamber at every revolution. It is self-igniting. The small pump seen in front, driven by a cam on the main shaft through a rock shaft and arms, with an adjusting screw to regulate the stroke, sends the oil into a small chamber seen in the extension below the combustion chamber, where it is vaporized by first heating the small chamber with a lamp to start with, after which the heat is retained by a tube extending up into the combustion chamber, when the lamp is removed and the operation of the engine becomes continuous automatically.
In Fig. 192 is illustrated a horizontal Facile engine, in which the two-cycle impulse is obtained by a differential action of the piston from its reduced size at the crank end operating through a stuffing-box, as seen in the cut. This engine has a separate valve chamber for the exhaust and inlet, which is controlled by a single valve, a combination of a ported piston and seated disc. Its operation is regulated by a secondary shaft and vertical centrifugal governor, which varies the charge.
These engines are built at present in a number of sizes, from 1 to 25 H. P., both single and double cylinder.
The Simplex Naphtha Launch Engine
/Fig. 194.jpg) The Simplex Marine Engine |
A new engine, designed especially for boat service, has just been put on the market by
Charles P. Willard & Co. These engines are of the two-cycle compression type, or with an impulse at each revolution of the crank. It is very simple in construction, receives its charge and exhausts through cylinder ports opened and closed by the movement of the piston at the end of the downward stroke.
A single eccentric on the main shaft operates, through a lever and two cams, the electric igniter alternately for forward and backward motion of the engine.
The valve seen on the cylinder regulates the charge from the closed-crank chamber, which is compressed by the downward stroke of the piston. The naphtha vapor and air are drawn into the crank case by the upward stroke of the piston, thoroughly mixed by the motion of the crank, and receives its maximum compression at the moment of opening the inlet port, when the compressed mixture rushes into the combustion chamber of the cylinder, while the exhaust port is still open to clear the cylinder of the products of the previous explosion.
These engines are built in sizes of 2, 4, and 6 H. P. The 2 H. P. engine weighs 300 lbs., and is suitable for a boat from 16 to 22 feet long. The 4 H. P. engine is suited for a boat 20 to 28 feet long, and weighs 500 lbs. All the engines run at a speed suitable for boat service up to 300 revolutions per minute.
The White & Middleton Gas Engine
/Fig. 195.jpg) The White & Middleton Gas Engine |
| /Fig. 196.jpg) Sectional Plan of the White & Middleton Gas Engine |
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This engine is equally suited to both gas and gasoline, and is made by the
White & Middleton Gas Engine Company. All their engines are of the four-cycle compression type, with the principal exhaust ports opened by the piston at the end of its explosive stroke, and with an additional or clearance-exhaust valve in the cylinder head.
The valves are all of the poppet type. The supplementary exhaust valve is operated by a lever across the cylinder head and a push-rod direct from a differential slide mechanism, which does away with the reducing-gear used on other engines. An arm on the push-rod operates the gas-valve stem, which is provided with a regulating adjustment.
The small roller disc on the push-rod mechanism is under the control of a centrifugal governor and a spring, being thrown out of gear with the shaft cam whenever the speed of the engine exceeds the normal rate, and thus failing to open the gas supply and the supplementary exhaust valve until the speed of the engine has returned to its normal rate. There is a relief valve opening into the supplementary exhaust passage for relieving the pressure in the cylinder when starting the engine. The whole design of the engine is exceedingly simple and its action noiseless.
When gasoline is used the gas-supply valve is replaced by a small pump, which is operated by the push-rod, and its hit-or-miss stroke is governed by the action of the push-rod and its governor.
These engines are built in nine sizes, from 4 to 50 B. H. P.
Petter's Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 217.jpg) The Petter Stationary Engine |
The Petter engine is an English design and so simple in its parts that we give it a place here for the benefit of our amateur friends.
As designed for a carriage for four persons, the cylinder is made 3½ inches diameter, 6 inches stroke; the inner shell of the cylinder of cast iron, ½ inch thick at the combustion end. The outer shell is made of thin tubing driven over the flanges and calked. When made for a stationary engine the outer shell may be made of cast iron and pushed over the inner cylinder, as shown in the sectional cut, Fig. 218.
The engine is of 1 H. P., actual, at 200 revolutions. The principles of both stationary and carriage engines are essentially the same. For a carriage, the cylinder is bolted to two parallel steel bars, which carry the main bearings.
/Fig. 218.jpg) Sectional View of the Petter Stationary Engine |
The crank shaft is balanced and has a bored recess for oil, holding sufficient for a day's run. The gasoline gravitates to the inlet valve A through a percolator G, Fig. 218, and atomized by the air drawn in through B by the suction of the piston. The exhaust-valve E is operated by a long lever from a cam on the reducing-gear.
The Trotter Oil Vapor Engine
/Fig. 220.jpg) The Trotter Oil Vapor Engine |
Among the later patents is the combination of a double area cylinder and piston -with a vaporizing chamber for the heavier oils for a two-cycle compression engine. Patent No.
575,661, to W. F. Trotter, Marshalltown, Iowa.
It will be noticed that the exhaust is by cylinder-port at the middle of the stroke, controlled by an exhaust-valve operated from the crank shaft. The charge of air is forced by the enlarged section of the piston, while the oil is fed to the combustion chamber during the impulse stroke.
By this arrangement the exhaust is opened at the end of the stroke and continues during half of the return stroke, while fresh air and vapor are being charged in at the head of the cylinder. At the half-return stroke compression commences, the hot vaporizing chamber acting as the combustion chamber and clearance space of the cylinder area. The vaporizing chamber is first heated to start the engine, when it continues in action by the heat kept up by combustion.
The Grohman Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 221.jpg) The Grohman Gasoline Engine |
The Grohman engine is the subject of a patent No.
574535
to C. L. Grohman, Hartford, Conn. It involves the principles of a two-cycle compression engine with a differential cylinder and piston.
Its details are worthy of study as described by the inventor. It is a type of the drift of later designs in explosive motors.
The piston is compound, comprising a working piston and a compression piston, and is chambered, though constructed as one member. It is of differential diameters to correspond with the differential diameters of the cylinder, and separates the chambered casing into a working compartment and a compression compartment.
The exhaust-valve is connected by a pivotal lever to an eccentric on the crank shaft. This pivotal lever is bifurcated at its inner end and is pivotally connected to an inverted cup-shaped sleeve, enclosing the upper end of the valve stem, so that on the downward movement of the sleeve the valve stem will be depressed to actuate or depress the valve member.
The valve seat constitutes the end of a port or passage opening into the working chamber when the valve is open, and communicating with a main passage which conveys away the products of combustion.
From the lower end of the working chamber leads a second port opening into the main port and assisting the outflow of the products of combustion from the chamber. This working chamber also has an inlet port slightly below the eduction port and in position to communicate with the chamber of the compound piston, by means of a port of the working piston, when this compound piston has reached the completion of its downward stroke.
The valves are of the poppet type, operated by springs, the induction-valve being actuated by the suction of the piston.
/Fig. 222.jpg) The Grohman Cylinder & Valves |
The vaporizer has within it a gas conductor provided with a spiral channel, leading from its upper to its lower end, so that the area of the gasoline is increased and its evaporation facilitated. The gasoline is led into the upper end of this vaporizer and flows down around the spiral chamber. The portion not evaporated collects in a trough at the bottom and is taken back to the reservoir by an overflow pipe.
The gasoline is first mixed with hot air, then with cold air, the supply of both being regulated by valves.
In the operation of this engine, the liquid having been conveyed to the evaporator and there vaporized by the hot air and then united with the cold air, and the action of the compound piston on its downward movement having caused sufficient suction to raise the valve—which is also somewhat assisted in its opening movement by the gaseous fluid beneath the valve in the evaporator—the gaseous fluid is drawn from the evaporator through the chamber of the valve chest to the compression chamber of the cylinder until the piston has reached the end of its downward stroke. At the same time the piston compresses the air in the crank chamber, and thus causes the air to rush into the chamber of the compound piston and through the port of the working piston, and into the working chamber by means of a port, opening into said chamber and communicating with the working piston-port when said piston has reached the limit of its downward stroke, and thus replace to a great extent the burned gases, the piston having previously uncovered the exhaust-port leading to the main exhaust-port, and permitted a portion of the products of combustion, resultant from the previous explosion in the working chamber, to pass out through said port, thereby assisting to clear the chamber and also to reduce the pressure on the exhaust-valve, in order to permit the same to be readily opened at the proper time.
The working piston is provided with a deflector, adapted to direct the fresh air upward. On the return or upward stroke of the piston the exhaust-valve is opened by means of the connecting mechanism, comprising the eccentric, rod, and lever, whereby the fresh air, admitted into the working chamber through ports from the crank chamber, forces out the remaining burned gases during the greater portion of the upward movement of the piston, to thereby permit the clearing of the chamber preparatory to the next explosion. This upward stroke of the piston creates a vacuum and a suction in the crank chamber sufficient to open the fresh air inlet valve and fill the crank chamber with fresh air preparatory to compressing the same and forcing it into the working chamber.
At the same time the piston during the major portion of its upward stroke greatly compresses the gaseous fluid previously conveyed from the evaporator through the valve-chest chamber to the compression chamber of the cylinder —and which substantially filled both the cylinder compression chamber and the valve-chest chamber when the piston was at the end of its downward stroke—back into the valve-chest chamber alone, thereby bringing it under great compression, the valve having been closed by its spring when the piston practically reached the end of its down stroke; and when the piston reaches a predetermined point in its upward movement and adjacent to the top of the cylinder and also practically simultaneously with the closing of the exhaust-valve the eccentric on the crank shaft is rotated into position and actuates the rod which operates the valve-actuator to release the valve so that the pressure of the gaseous fluid opens the valve against the pressure of its low power spring, and thereby permits the fluid to flow into the passages, where it is ignited and exploded in the working chamber to force the piston downward and again draw in a fresh supply of gaseous fluid, whereby the operations just stated are continued.
The Garrett Gas and Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 223.jpg) The Garrett Engine (Vertical Section) |
| /Fig. 224.jpg) The Garrett Engine (Horizontal Section) |
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This engine is also of a novel type, having a duplex diameter cylinder and piston by which the forced charge for a two-cycle engine is made regular and positive in quantity. It is built by the
Garrett Engine, Boiler, and Machine Works, Garrett, Ind. In this design the entire cycle of operation is accomplished without valve gear of any kind. The crank is enclosed in a shell in which a slight air pressure is maintained by the movement of the piston which draws air from the base of the engine through a light caged valve j and the passage k.
The gas or gasoline under a pressure sufficient to cause it to flow passes from the supply pipe through the adjustable needle valve a, and then intermittently through the valve b into the mixing-chamber, where it mingles with a sufficient quantity of air, and then passes the valve c into the cylinder D behind the piston as it advances. The suction caused by the advance of the piston opens the valves b and c. The piston reaches the end of its forward stroke and begins to return, and, as the valve c is closed, the mixture of gas and air passes through the passage e and by the valve f to the exploding chamber G, at the completion of this return stroke being compressed to about four atmospheres. Just before the completion of this return stroke, a projecting point at the back of the piston trips the igniter H, producing a spark which ignites the explosive mixture, causing a great increase of pressure, which acts upon the piston to drive it forward. The pressure, falling by expansion, continues to act upon' the piston throughout the forward stroke, and at the end of the stroke the port i is uncovered and the contents of the cylinder are discharged. In the meantime the air-tight chamber, in which are the crank and connecting-rod, has been filled with fresh air, entering through the check-valve j, and it has been compressed sufficiently to give a current through the passage k and by the valve
l into the cylinder and chamber G, sweeping out the products of the previous combustion and filling with fresh air. The complete cycle of operations, it will be seen, takes place during the two strokes of the piston, or one revolution of the crank, so that for each revolution the same may be repeated. It will be seen that the action will be just the same whichever way the crank turns, so that the engine will run in either direction without changing anything upon it, by simply starting it in the direction required. The governor, which is driven by a belt from the main shaft, acts by controlling the supply of gas or gasoline admitted by operating the small valve b.
The engine is claimed to give the greatest amount of power for given floor space, weight, and cost, and with good fuel economy. Either the electric spark or the tube igniter may be used.
The Amateur Gas and Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 225.jpg) The Amateur Stationary Motor |
| /Fig. 226.jpg) The Amateur Marine & Carriage Motor |
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This engine has been designed by
Palmer Brothers, Mianus, Conn., for gas or gasoline and for stationary and marine power. They are of about one horse-power actual, a simple and easily constructed motor for amateur hands.
Palmer Bros. sell the castings and working drawings or the complete motor as desired. Fig. 225 represents the stationary engine with two fly-wheels, and Fig. 226 represents the marine engine which is of suitable size for a 16 to 18-foot boat or for a light motor carriage. A tank of water is used for cooling the cylinder of the stationary engine and a pump for water circulation is furnished with the marine motor.
These motors are built on the two-cycle compression system, with an impulse at each revolution of the crank. It receives its charge and exhausts through a cylinder-port opened and closed by the movement of the piston. A suitable valve regulates the charge received from the closed crank chamber in which the mixture is compressed by the downward stroke of the piston. Vapor and air are drawn into the crank case by the upward stroke of the piston, and thoroughly mixed by the motion of the crank.
The weight of the marine engine is 135 lbs.; of the stationary, 200 lbs. The height of the stationary engine is 23 inches, and that of the marine is 17 inches. The height from the base to the center of the shaft is 4½ inches.
The Monitor Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 227.jpg) The 2 H. P. Reversing Engine |
The engines of the
Monitor Vapor Engine and Power Co., Grand Rapids, Mich., are of the two-cycle class, exhausting the exploded charge through cylinder-ports which are opened by the piston near the end of its stroke. The crank is enclosed in a chamber into which the free air is drawn through an adjustable opening and check-valve. At the upper part of the crank chamber the gasoline vapor enters through a pipe and safety tube from the carburetor placed at the bow of the boat; it is drawn into the crank chamber with the adjusted quantity of free air through the regulator by the suction of the piston in its up-stroke. The air and gas vapor are mixed by the motion of the crank and compressed by the downward stroke of the piston; and at the moment of the opening of the exhaust, the charging valve opens by a cam motion and the compressed charge enters the cylinder under the head and in proximity to the igniter. The up-stroke of the piston compresses the charge and at the same time draws into the base a fresh charge of air and vapor. The volume of the charge is regulated by a cock and graduated lever in the pipe leading from the upper part of the crank chamber to the valve chamber. A separate cam operates the electric igniter by a push-rod, which lifts a lever and small rod moving freely through a socket, breaking contact of its end with an insulated electrode within the charging valve chamber. The water-circulating pump is operated by an eccentric on the main shaft.
/Fig. 228.jpg) The Single Cylinder Mogul Engine |
The smaller boat engines are built to run either way, the reversal requiring only the closing of the throttle valve to stop the engine, when, on turning the wheel the other way and opening the throttle, the engine quickly starts on the reverse. motion. The high stacks on these engines are for carrying the exhaust above the heads of people in the boats, but are not necessary, as the exhaust is also piped down and out at the stern. The engines from 2 H. P. up are also arranged with reversing propellers, the reversal of which are operated through a hollow shaft and sliding coupling, lever, and push-rod, as shown in Fig. 228, which shows the engine without the stack and as arranged for stern exhaust, and is named the "Mogul."
The 10, 12, and 16 H.-p. engines have double cylinders and independent crank chambers. There is but little difference in the design as between the "Monitor " and "Mogul," only that the "Mogul " is less finished and rates at a lower price. The working parts of the Mogul are first class.
The Monitor Co. also makes a line of stationary engines for gas and gasoline.
The Olin Gas and Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 231-232.jpg) The Olin Four-Cycle Gas Engine |
The
Olin Gas Engine Co., Buffalo, N. Y., and the
Titusville Iron Works, Titusville, Pa., are builders of the explosive motor represented in the vertical outline and horizontal sections, Figs. 231 and 232.
A four-cycle engine with the principal exhaust through a cylinder-port opened by the passage of the piston at the end of its impulse stroke H, Fig. 232; the exhaust continuing through the return stroke by way of an annular valve, carrying the charging valve with its spindle enclosed within a sliding tube, as shown in Fig. 232.
The exhaust from the cylinder and supplementary ports passes through the outlet J and around the tube containing the inlet charge and is thus used for vaporizing the gasoline charge which is drawn in through a double-seated disk-valve with an outer annular section to draw air from the base of the engine.
The governing is done by holding the exhaust-valve open through the operation of the centrifugal weights L L and a small bell crank and adjustable spindle which rides the push-roller on to or off the exhaust cam.
Six sizes are made of 10 to 35 horse-power.
The Otto Gas and Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 233.jpg) The Otto Gas Engine (with Electric Ignition) |
| /Fig. 234.jpg) The Otto Gas Engine (with Self-Starter) |
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The "Otto Gas Engine " is essentially a historic name, and as now built by the
Otto Gas Engine Works, Philadelphia, Pa., combines the fundamental principles first put in practice by Dr. Otto in Germany in 1867, and which is the basis of our best working engines. The four-cycle compression type seems to have become a standard, and in the workshops of the Otto Co. in the United States has been modified and developed into a most perfect action by improvements in the lines of the most approved details of construction.
The change from the slide-valve to the poppet-valve system was a most marked improvement, and with the variable charge and automatic time firing has made this a noiseless and smooth running engine, combining the highest efficiency attainable and great economy in fuel consumption. With fairly good illuminating gas, the limit has now been reduced to 15 cubic feet per indicated horse-power; and with gas of high heating power the low record of 12 cubic feet per indicated horse-power has been made with these engines. Moderate compression and medium explosive pressure, so essential to the durability of the working parts, has been fully endorsed in the construction of the Otto engines.
The adoption of the nickel alloy igniting tubes has done away with the constant annoyance from the burning out of iron tubes at inconvenient moments.
In the engines of the Otto Co., among some of the minor improvements that have contributed to its noiseless running and wearing properties may be named the spiral gear for operating the valve-gear shaft, separate and removable casings for the valves, change-speed governors, and automatic oiler rings on main journals.
The cylinder oiling-device is also automatic and operated by a small belt from the valve-gear shaft. The crank-pin boxes and piston joints are also automatically oiled by a wiping oil-cup on the crank housing, the oil for the piston pin passing through the hollow connecting-rod.
The gas-inlet valve is operated by a two-armed rocker shaft, one arm of which, carries a pin and traversing roller-disk, which is guided on or off the step cam by a forked bell-crank lever connected with the governor, thus controlling a variable charge. The electric or hot-tube igniter is furnished at the option of purchasers.
The electric spark is made by breaking contact of platinum electrodes, one of which is insulated in the head of the cylinder, the trip being operated on the outside by a swinging push-blade driven by an eccentric pin on the end of the valve-gear shaft.
The horizontal engines are built in various sizes from 3½ to 100 horse-power. The vertical type of the Otto engines is built in a neat and compact form for both stationary and marine power—the single cylinder from 1 to 12 horse-power, and with double cylinders from 17 to 100 horse-power.
These engines are of the four-cycle Otto compression type, and equally adapted for the use of gas or gasoline fuel.
/Fig. 235.jpg) The Otto 3½ H. P. Vertical Gas Engine |
| /Fig. 236.jpg) The Otto Duplex Gas Engine (with Generator) |
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For electric lighting power these engines have given a most satisfactory test. Fig. 236 illustrates the vertical two-cylinder or marine type of the Otto gas or gasoline engine with direct connection to a four-pole generator with elastic coupling, which ensures freedom from unequal journal pressures, as between the motor and generator, as well as the elimination of belt friction.
The Otto Marine Engine
/Fig. 237.jpg) The Otto Small Marine Engine (with Reversing Gear) |
/Fig. 238.jpg) The Otto Duplex Marine Engine (Starboard Side) |
| /Fig. 239.jpg) The Otto Duplex Marine Engine (Larboard Side) |
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The small marine engines have a single cylinder from 1 to 12 horse-power and two cylinders from 17 to 100 horse-power. All sizes are made with reversing-gear or with reversible propeller blades, as desired. The same general principles of construction characteristic of the Otto type have been carried out in all the marine engines. The crank is enclosed in a case, and all wearing parts are oiled from sight-feed automatic oil-cups, so arranged as to be controllable and in view while the engine is running. The gasoline is forced to the cylinders in positive and regulated quantity by a pump situated low down so that there may be no annoyance from overflow by the pitching of the boat, the gasoline being fed to the cylinder under the control of the governor, the surplus flowing back to the tank from the small receiver on the head of the cylinder.
The reversing blade propeller is becoming a favorite device for controlling the speed or reversing for an engine that must run constantly in one direction; it is simple and noiseless and allows of a gradual change without a shock—a valuable feature in a pleasure boat. The fuel account, which is of great moment in a boat, has been reduced to one-tenth of a gallon of 760 gasoline per indicated horse-power per hour. A governor is provided on all the larger marine engines which controls the charging valves by the sliding of a differential cam on the valve-gear shaft, which operates the valve levers, the action being controlled by the governor through a bell-crank lever, as shown more fully in the illustration of the horizontal engine.
In the reversible screw the blades are centered radially through the center line of the shaft, giving the hub a clean-cut appearance, and with the least possible resistance through the water. The boats are furnished in all sizes from 13 feet up, the 13-foot boat having a brass engine of 1 horse-power.
The Hamilton Gas Engine
/Fig. 242.jpg) The Hamilton Gasoline Engine |
| /Fig. 243.jpg) The Hamilton Gas Engine |
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The engines of the
Advance Manufacturing Company, Hamilton, Ohio, are of the four-cycle compression type, as shown in the two views of the horizontal engine as arranged for gasoline.
A noiseless, smooth, and steady running engine equally adapted for gas, gasoline, natural or producer gas. It is very simple in its working parts and arranged for electric ignition with a governing-device that governs the speed of the engine by variable charges of fuel.
The valves are of the poppet style, the exhaust-valve being opened by a cam on the secondary shaft and lever. The mixture of gas or gasoline and air is drawn through a regulated valve by the suction of the piston, always proportional for the best explosive effect, and governed as to quantity by a throttle directly actuated by the governor.
In the gasoline attachment the pump is driven by a cam on the secondary shaft and draws the gasoline from the tank at a level below the engine, forcing it into a small receiver from which the surplus returns by gravity to the tank; the gasoline being atomized and vaporized by the action of the in-draft of air from the movement of the piston. The sparking-device is operated by a push-bar and eccentric pin at the end of the secondary shaft.
The unshipping of a small lever noticed on the valve gear stops the fuel flow and the engine by closing the inlet throttle valve.
The Mietz & Weiss Gas and Oil Engines
/Fig. 244.jpg) The Mietz & Weiss Gas Engine |
| /Fig. 245.jpg) The Mietz & Weiss Oil Engine |
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The gas engine of the Weiss patents is built by August Mietz, No. 87 Elizabeth Street, New York City. It is of the two-cycle type, taking an impulse at every revolution. It has an enclosed crank chamber with a supplementary small cylinder containing a free moving piston counterbalanced by a spring. An opening into the crank chamber under the piston produces compression of the gas in the upper part of the small cylinder by the air pressure in the crank chamber during the impulse stroke and so feeds the gas charge with equal pressure with the air charge made by the outward stroke of the piston. The air charge enters through a port in the cylinder opened at the inward stroke of the piston, which produces a slight vacuum in the crank chamber and thereby causes the air to rush in while the port is open. The return or impulse stroke compresses the air in the crank chamber, which in turn compresses the gas by the movement of the small free piston.
By the opening of a charging port in the cylinder by the piston at the end of its impulse stroke the compressed charge of air and gas enters the cylinder. A larger cylinder-port opening just before the end of the stroke exhausts the cylinder of the products of the burned gases. A projection or deflector on the piston directs the incoming charge towards the head of the cylinder. The charge of gas is made through a small poppet-valve operated by a push-blade, rock-shaft lever, and an eccentric on the main shaft.
The governing is by the inertia of a weight adjustable as to its position on the push-blade arm by a screw thread, and by the motion of the arm the weight rides up an incline and is released at the top of the incline to fall by gravity and catch the blade of the gas-valve.
An excess in speed sends the weight too high to catch the valve stem and a mischarge is made. The hot-tube igniter is a novelty in its line. The tube is made of lava 4 inches in length and perforated with a central hole from end to end. It is held in sockets with asbestos washers and a screw clamp; the chimney being held by a lug with a clear opening at the bottom for the in-draft of air, at which point the gas jet is located, as shown in Fig. 244.
The kerosene oil engines are built on the same general plan of the gas engine, only displacing the ignition device in the cylinder for a conical internally flanged vaporizer and igniter, upon the flanges of which the oil is projected in small and definite quantities by the action of a small plunger held back by a spring and pushed forward by the governed push-blade, as in the gas engine. A small valve at the pump cylinder terminus, held back by a spring, limits the amount of oil injected to the exact volume of the plunger stroke. The air charge is exactly the same as described for the gas engine.
To start the oil engine the conical vaporizer is heated by a lamp to the proper temperature to induce ignition of the internal mixed vapor and air by the increased heat of compression, when the engine becomes self-acting by a turn of the fly-wheels.
In the experimental work of Mr. C. W. Weiss, he has carried the compression in the kerosene engine up to 400 lbs. per square inch, at which pressure a very strong engine must be used; but with runs at 100 and up to 250 lbs. compression pressure, a remarkable economy in fuel has been obtained; the combustion being so perfect that no residues are found in the combustion chamber, cylinder, and exhaust.
The Fairbanks Gas and Gasoline Engines
/Fig. 246.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine with Electric Igniter |
| /Fig. 247.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine with Hot Tube Ignition |
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/Fig. 249.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine with Secondary Regulator |
| /Fig. 250.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine with Gasoline Lift & Feed Pump |
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Ever onward is the progress of improvement in the design and construction of the explosive engine. The latest comes from the
Fairbanks Company, 311 Broadway, New York.
In the production of the "Fairbanks" the best points in former constructions and experiments have been adopted that would tend to perfection in running regulation and economy, as well as to make a light and strong motor. In appearance it is a finished machine.
These engines are of the four-cycle compression type with screw-geared cam-shaft, which is thrown in and out of gear by the action of the ball governor, which is located just forward of the main shaft and driven by the screw gear on the shaft. The governor operates a friction-clutch in contact with the screw on the secondary shaft, causing it to stop at the moment of over--speed. The main exhaust is through a port in the cylinder at the end of the piston impulse stroke with a supplementary exhaust through a poppet-valve near the cylinder head, which is operated by a cam on the side shaft. In Fig. 248 is shown a sectional plan of the engine in which is delineated the relation of the cylinder exhaust-port and the supplementary exhaust-port and passage of the products of combustion directly to the exhaust-pipe, thus greatly saving the overheating and wear of the exhaust-valve caused by its exhausting the entire contents of the cylinder.
/Fig. 248.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine (Sectional View) |
In the section, Fig. 248, is also shown the location and arrangement of the electric igniter and the hot tube.
The supplementary regulator is operated directly from the governor and is delicately adjustable, through the rod connecting a small and independent throttle in the gas-inlet pipe.
/Fig. 251.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine (Gasoline Supply) |
The gasoline supply consists of a small lifting pump seen in front, Fig. 251, which draws the gasoline from a lower level and forces it into the small cup reservoir at the right, from which the smaller pump seen at the rear and left forces the liquid in adjustable quantity into the air pipe, where it is vaporized by the in-draft of air by the suction of the piston. The surplus gasoline flows back to the main tank by gravity through the overflow in the receiving-cup.
/Fig. 252.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine (Gravity Feed) |
In Fig. 252 is shown the arrangement for a gravity feed from an elevated gasoline tank. The plunger at the right opens two minute ports, governed by the motion of the cam, that feeds a stated quantity of gasoline to the force pump at the left hand, which further regulates the quantity by the adjustment of the plunger throw and by the suspension of the cam motion by the governor.
/Fig. 253.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine (Crank Pin Oiling Device) |
Fig. 253 shows the wiping-device for oiling the crank pin. The centrifugal action of the crank draws the oil from the wiper to the bearing without waste.
/Fig. 255.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine (Bronze Bearings & Ring Oilers) |
The oiling-device on the main shaft bearings consists of a bronze ring, which rides on the shaft in a channel through the middle of the box, and dips down into a reservoir of oil. Each revolution brings sufficient oil to keep it thoroughly lubricated; any excess of oil flowing back into the reservoir.
/Fig. 254.jpg) The Fairbanks Gas Engine (Rear View) |
A small glass gauge attached to each reservoir shows the quantity in it. The
Fairbanks Company is prepared to make their engines in 12 sizes, from 2 to 100 horse-power, actual.
The Watkins Gas and Gasoline Engine
/Fig. 256.jpg) The Watkins Gas and Gasoline Engine |
The engines of the
F. M. Watkins Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, are of the four-cycle type, in which the gas and air mixture is regulated outside of the combustion chamber by a single combination gas and air valve controlled by the governor. The gasoline engines are provided with a pump that lifts the gasoline from a lower level outside of the building, returning the surplus to the tank. A vaporizing-device is used for starting the engine in cold weather.
/Fig. 257-258.jpg) The Watkins Gas and Gasoline Engine |
The large size engines are provided with a self-starting apparatus. They are now making six sizes from 2 to 25 actual horse-power. A peculiar feature of these engines is in the use of a magneto electric generator for ignition. It is shown as the "Sumner " generator in Fig. 45, page 95. The commutators are hardened tool steel. The brushes which bear on the commutators are of softer material and self-adjusting.
The armature is encased in a brass box, made to ensure freedom from dust. The armature in the smaller sized engines is geared to the main shaft, and in the large size is geared to the reducing screw-gear shaft, which also operates the governor, by belt and the pump of the gasoline engines from a cam.
The armature is charged by a permanent magnetic field with a current sufficiently strong to produce an ignition spark by the turning over of the fly-wheels for starting and produces a brilliant spark at full speed. Both contact points are movable from the outside and can be cleaned while the engine is running, by simply pushing the spindles with the thumb, they being held back by a spiral spring.
Trial of a Nash Gas Engine
/Fig. 259.jpg) Trial of a Nash Gas Engine |
Fig. 259 represents a 20 horse-power Nash gas engine directly coupled by a friction-clutch to a six-pole compound wound generator, of the
Riker Electric Motor Co., rated at 125 volts, 120 amperes at 300 revolutions per minute. The action of the engine is of the four-cycle type, with cranks at 180° and the valve gear arranged for an impulse at every revolution.
Gas used was of 701 heat units per cubic foot. Friction of engine and generator, 3.83 horse-power, without air compression.
Consumption of gas per brake horse-power, 17.62 cubic feet, including burner ignition, which was .25 cubic foot per hour per horse-power.
The following tables show the conditions of the test:—
/Fig. 258A.jpg) Test Results Table |
/Fig. 259A.jpg) Test Results Table |
The Russ Motor
/Fig. 265.jpg) The Russ Motor |
| /Fig. 266.jpg) The Russ Duplex Motor |
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The motors built by Maxwell, Wyeth & Company, 65 Delavan Street, Brooklyn, N. Y., are of the two-cycle type, having a closed cylinder and stuffing-box around the piston-rod with guide-slides. The design is in the inverted vertical form and very compact, with a special view of its use for a marine motor. All the parts requiring adjustment are exposed and easy to handle. The cylinder has an exhaust-port uncovered at the end of the impulse stroke; a charging port also in the cylinder opposite to the exhaust-port, and a supplementary charging port at the head of the cylinder with a self-acting valve in a communicating passage outside of the cylinder to the compression end, where also enters the charge of vapor and air from the mixer and governor-valve.
The downward stroke of the piston compressed the charge drawn in by its upward stroke; at the moment of the exhaust relief by the opening of the exhaust-port, by the descent of the piston, the compressed charge beneath the piston is instantly transferred through the side passage inlet port and supplementary valve at the cylinder head to the impulse end of the cylinder; is compressed by the return stroke and ignited by the electrode.
The governor is located in the fly-wheel and regulates the inlet charging valve by a rock shaft and connecting-rod to a rotary-valve in the single cylinder engines, and by push-rods and throttles in the duplex engines. The single cylinder engines are built in sizes from 3 to 15 H. P.; the double cylinder engines in sizes from 10 to 25 H. P.
The Secor Oil Engine
/Fig. 268.jpg) The Secor Oil Engine |
One of the special features in the design of this motor is the absence of a water jacket by which it is claimed a large economy is obtained by carrying a higher heat of combustion throughout the stroke with a higher mean pressure. The valve gear is very simple and effective, the inlet and exhaust being positively operated by direct push-rods from cams on opposite sides of the reducing-gear. The engine is of vertical style and intended in design for an economical shop power.
John W. Quincy & Co., 98 William Street, New York City, are the sole agents for its sale in the United States.
Information Sources
- Gas, Gasoline and Oil Vapor Engines, by Gardner D. Hiscox, 1898, pages 256-346