Fig. 24.
The desire to add to the strength of boilers by lessening the diameter of the shell led to the construction of the Plain Cylindrical boilers. They were made first with flat ends of cast iron, which frequently cracked and gave way when exposed to the fire, as described in many of the early American explosions. The flat ends when made of wrought iron, as shown in [Fig. 24], are exposed to the same strain as the bottom of the balloon and wagon boilers, and are constantly springing with variation of pressure like drum heads, causing injury to the angle-iron joint. They also require long stays through them to hold in the ends, and these are subject to so much vibration that they seldom continue sound for long together, especially when joined with forked ends and cotters.
Fig. 25.
As the flat ends of such boilers are always being sprung by each alternation of pressure into a more or less spherical shape, as shown by the elastic model exhibited, this consideration no doubt led to the ends being made hemispherical, as shown in [Fig. 25]; and plain cylindrical boilers with these hemispherical ends are now so commonly used that they far outnumber any other form of boiler. Their shape renders them very strong, as the whole of the iron is in simple tension, and internal pressure has no tendency to alter the shape, as is shown by the elastic model exhibited. There is one circumstance very much in favour of the plain cylindrical boilers, and that is that they can be so easily cleaned and repaired, as a man can stand properly at his work at every part and the whole of the interior surface is exposed equally to view. They are of course exposed to all the evils of boilers externally fired, the part under greatest strain being weakened by the action of the fire; and the bottom is also exposed to injury from accumulation of mud and chips of scurf, which cannot be prevented from falling there, and lying upon the part exposed to the direct action of the fire. When made of great length, such as 70 or 80 feet, as is the practice for applying the waste gas from blast furnaces, these boilers are also liable to seam-rips or "broken backs," owing to the greater expansion of the bottom exposed to the fierce flame for its whole length, than of the top which is kept cooler by exposure to the air; and it would therefore be better to have a succession of short boilers, rather than only a single one, where great length is required.
Fig. 26.
One boiler has been seen by the writer where extreme length was avoided by curling the boiler round until the ends met forming a Ring or Annular boiler. This boiler is shown in [Fig. 26], and is 5 feet diameter with 25 feet external diameter of the ring, or a mean length of about 63 feet; it has been found to work well for some years, although exposed to the heat of six puddling furnaces.
