Here’s a diagram that I found on Wikipedia that shows how simple a steam engine is. If you think twenty-two-inch wheels impress people, wait until steam engines catch up again, and you roll up with that big magnum of a flywheel spinning for all to see.
The second I had to do supplementary research on the fly and start re-drawing diagrams to try and make sense of them, I should have known it was a failing endeavour for both myself and the entire technology. Water isn’t totally out of the automotive equation, however, as it still provides a nice coolant for both internal combustion engines and electric motors. However, I’m not too focused on cooling this week, as my next internal combustion alternative is a hot one. Really hot. Steaming hot.
The Stanley Steamer is probably the most famous automobile that utilized steam power, but steam power was more commonly found in locomotives and tractors. What makes steam power so much better than separating and burning the raw elements of water? Quite simply, it worked centuries ago, there’s no outside electricity required, and it can be made to run off of any fuel. Want an electric steamer? Bolt on a big old battery pack that runs a heating element in the boiler, and there you go. Want a diesel-powered steamer? A diesel heater can easily warm a garage in minutes (and burn the eyes and throats out of everyone inside), so it can easily heat a tank full of water. Gasoline, kerosene, oil, coal, propane, LNG, even wood could be used. If you have a method of heating water that works, you can power a steam-driven engine, making steam power the most versatile power for transportation. Not only is steam versatile, but it also makes consistent power, similar to an electric motor. There’s no specific rpm or powerband that makes more power than any other. Why did the internal combustion engine replace steam? Probably big oil money, but it also could be the fact that steam power took up a fair bit of space in the vehicle way back when. Not only that, people were afraid of it. With all that pressure in boilers of archaic design, an explosion was always a possibility, especially in a crash. Sure, explosions weren’t that common, but people tend to remember tragedy ahead of triumph. The Goodyear blimp is famous, but the Hindenburg is the one that sticks with everyone to this day. The best part of steam power, though? Teaching young people where old expressions come from. When you tell someone to “pour the coal to it” in a steamer, you mean it literally, just like in the old days.
Have a question or comment for Kelly? Post it at lmtimes.ca/kirk
