"Liquid Fuel and its Combustion" 1903

Published in 1903 this weighty tome is a fascinating look at how to use "Liquid Fuels" to power steam boilers and industrial processes. In 1903 this was a relatively new fuel system.

Petroleum fuel known at the time as "Texas Oil" was simply burned in bulk in existing boilers. However the best and most efficient way of doing so was not as simple as it seems. One of the fascinating parts of this book is the analysis of the combustion process of coal compared to oil and how the design of the firebox needs to be changed to accept liquid fuels.

Other sections deal with transporting liquid fuels, including sailing oil tankers(!), the storage and measurement of fuels and the best way to meter their use.

This book belonged to my grandfather and has the added treasure of several photos and postcards from the creation of the "Alcan Highway", now known as the Alaska Highway, in 1942. He worked on the highway while it was being constructed. He once told me that when he got off the plane to start work it was so cold the leather on his shoes snapped while walking to the hut that served as the terminal

Title
Liquid Fuel and its Combustion

Author
Wm. H. Booth
Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers; formerly of the New South Wales
Government Railways and Tramways of the Manchester Steam Users' Association, of
the British Electric Traction Company

Publisher
Archibald Constable and Co. Ltd
Whitehall Gardens

Date
1903

Keep your sightglass full, your firebox trimmed and your water iced.
KJ