All the pipes used are of malleable iron, lap-welded, and of 5 in. internal diameter, having screwed coupling muffs for making the connections. At each engine shed, in addition to the main storage reservoir, there is a smaller distributing tank, which is erected at a sufficient height to supply the tenders, and very much resembles the ordinary water tanks. These distributing tanks are circular, about 8½ ft. diameter and 6 ft. high, and of ¼ in. plates; their inside mean area is calculated exactly, and a scale graduated in inches stands in the middle of the tank; a glass with scale is used outside in summer time. Each inch in height on the scale is converted into cubic feet, and then by means of a table is converted into Russian poods, according to the specific gravity at various temperatures. As it would be superfluous to graduate the table for each separate degree of temperature, the columns in the table show the weights for every 8 degrees Reaumur, which is quite sufficient: namely, from 24 deg. to 17 deg., from 16 deg. to 9 deg., and so on, down to -24 deg.; the equivalent Fahrenheit range being from 86 deg. down to -22 deg. Suppose the filling of a tender tank draws off a height of 27 in. from the distributing tank, at a temperature of say -20 deg.

R., these figures are shown by the table to correspond with 200.61 poods = 7,245 lb., or 3.23 tons, of petroleum. This arrangement does very well in practice; both the quantity and the temperature are entered on the driver's fuel bill at the time of his taking in his supply.

Engines

The engines used in the trials were built by Borsig, of Berlin, Schneider, of Creusot, and the Russian Mechanical and Mining Company, of St. Petersburg. Their main dimensions and weights were about the same, as follows, all of them having six wheels coupled, and 36 tons adhesive weight; as originally constructed they had ordinary fire boxes for burning anthracite or wood; cylinders 18⅛ in. diameter and 24 in. stroke; slide valves, outside lap 1-1/16 in., inside lap 3/32 in., maximum travel, 4-9/16 in.; Stephenson link motion; boiler pressure, 120 lb. per square inch; six wheels, all coupled, 4 ft. 3 in. in diameter; distance between centers of leading and middle wheels, 6 ft. 2¾ in.; between middle and trailing, 4 ft. 9¼ in.; total length of wheel base, 11 ft.; weight empty, on leading wheels, 12.041 tons; middle, 10.782 tons; trailing, 10.685 tons; total weight, 33.508 tons empty; weight in running order, on leading wheels, 12.563 tons; middle, 11.885 tons; trailing 12.790 tons; total weight, 37.238 tons in running order.

Tubes number 151; outside diameter, 2⅛ in.; length between tube plates, 13 ft. 10⅛ in.; outside heating surface, 1,166 square feet; fire box heating surface, 82 square feet; total heating surface, 1,248 square feet; fire grate area, 17 square feet;tractive power = 65 per cent. of boiler pressure × (cyl. diam.)² × stroke / diameter of wheels = 0.65 × 120 × (18.125)² × 24 / 51 = 5.383 tons. Ratio of tractive power to adhesion weight = 5.383 / 37.238 = 1 / 6.9.

Tender

Contents: water, 310 cubic feet, or 1,933 gallons, or 8½ tons; anthracite, 600 poods, or 10 tons; or wood, 1½ cubic sajene, or 514 cubic feet; weight empty, 13.477 tons; weight in running order, 28.665 tons; six wheels.

Petroleum Refuse - Comparative Trials with Petroleum, Anthracite, Bituminous Coal, and Wood, between Archeda and Tsaritsin on Grazi and Tsaritsin Railway, in Winter Time.

 -----+----+-----+------+---+-----+------+-----------+-------------+------+------------

| L | | | | | | | |

| o | | Train | | | | Consumption | |

| c | | alone. | | | | Including | |

Date.| o | | | | | | Lighting up.| |

1883.| m | |----+-----| | | | | Cost |

| o |Train|Num-| | Dis-| Car | | | of |Atmospheric

| t | |ber |Gross|tance|miles.| Fuel. |-------+-----| fuel |temperature

| i | | of |load.| run.| | | | Per | per | and

| v | |Loa-| | | | | Total |train| train| weather.

| e | |ded | | | | | |mile.| mile.|

| . | |cars| | | | | | | |

-----+----+-----+----+-----+-----+------+-----------+-------+-----+------+------------

| | | No.| Tons|Miles| | | | |Pence.|

-----+----+-----+----+-----+-----+------+-----------+-------+-----+------+------------

| 8 |32-23| 25 | 400 | 388 | 9,700|Anthracite.| 31799 |81.90|11.957|-17° to -18°

| |32-23| | | | | | lb. | lb. | | Reau.,

Feb.| | | | | | | | | | | equiv. to

8 | |24-21| | | | | | | | |-6° to -8½°

| 14 |24-21| 25 | 400 | 388 | 9,700|Bituminous |37557.5|96.53|14.093| Fah.

| | | | | | | Coal. | lb. | lb. | |

| 7 |26-29| 25 | 400 | 194 | 4,830|Petroleum | 9462 |48.77| 5.487| Strong

| | | | | | refuse. | lb. | lb. | | side wind.

-----+----+-----+----+-----+-----+------+-----------+-------+-----+------+------------

| 24 |32-23| 25 | 400 | 194 | 4,850|Anthracite.|12639.5|65.15| 9.512|-5° to -9°

March| | | | | | | | lb. | lb. | | Reau.,

6 | 21 |24-21| 25 | 400 | 194 | 4,850|Wood, in | 1071.8| 5.52| 8.5 | equiv. to

| | | | | | | billets. | c. ft.|c. ft| | 21° to 12°

| | | | | | | | | Fah.

| 23 |26-27| 25 | 400 | 194 | 4,850|Petroleum | 7228 |37.28| 4.188| Light

| | | | | | refuse. | lb. | lb. | | side wind.

-----+----+-----+----+-----+-----+------+-----------+-------+-----+------+----------- 

Prices of fuel:
Petroleum refuse, 21s. per ton; Anthracite and bituminous coal, 27s. 3d. per ton;
Wood, in billets, 42s. per cubic sajene = 343 cubic feet;
equivalent to 1.47d. per cubic foot.

Dimensions of locomotives:
Cylinders, 18 ⅛ in. diam. and 24 in. stroke; Wheels, 4 feet 3 in. diam.;
Total heating surface, 1,248 sq. feet: Total adhesion weight, 36 tons;
Boiler pressure, 8 to 9 atm.

The preceding table shows the results of comparative trials made in winter with different sorts of fuel, under exactly similar conditions as to type of engine, profile of line, and load of train. Two sets of comparative trials were made, both of them in winter. The three engines used were some of those built by Schneider. In comparison with anthracite, the economy in favor of petroleum refuse was 41 per cent. in weight, and 55 per cent. in cost. With bituminous coal there was a difference of 49 per cent. in favor of petroleum as to weight and 61 per cent. as to cost. As compared with wood petroleum was 50 per cent. cheaper. At a speed of fourteen miles an hour up an incline of 1 in 125 the steam pressure was easily kept up at 9 to 9½ atm. with a No. 9 injector feeding the boiler all the time.

Up to the present time the author has altered seventy-two locomotives to burn petroleum; and from his own personal observations made on the foot plate with considerable frost he is satisfied that no other fuel can compare with petroleum either for locomotives or for other purposes. In illustration of its safety in case of accident, a photograph was exhibited of an accident that occurred on the author's line on 30th December, 1883, when a locomotive fired with petroleum ran down the side of an embankment, taking the train after it; no explosion or conflagration of any kind took place under such trying circumstances, thus affording some proof of the safety of the petroleum refuse in this mode of firing. Although it is scarcely possible that petroleum firing will ever be of use for locomotives on the ordinary railways of coal-bearing England, yet the author is convinced chat, even in such a country, its employment would be an enormous boon on underground lines.

[2]Abstract of paper read before the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.