The Mechanical Era - 176 Workings Of A Locomotive

Kant looked outside the window of his carriage. He sees that the city has undergone a great transformation. The once-fresh air has been replaced by a slight fog, with the architecture of the old slowly rotting away, replaced by the new Architectural style of Arteco, using materials such as steel, cement, and concrete, allowing for greater heights.

He also started to spot a lot of “for sale” signs being hung up on some buildings. Places that appear to be going out of business thanks to the increased competition of the corporations. Some of them were being visited by men in brown, most likely government agents from the department of housing, to buy up the land and turn it into housing.

As he rode along the carriage, he thinks of the situation that he is in. Kant had managed to get multiple firms to work together under a new corporation, called the ‘SteamLocomotive Company’. Though they did not own the patent, as it was Kant himself that did, they will use this entity to design and build a train.

The firms consisted of mainly steam engine companies, like HeklorKloch, SteamerPile, and Duser Steam Engines. They were all rather eager to send in lots of talent to the firm to learn about this wonderful mechanical machine so that they can learn to build one for themselves.

The carriage soon stops in front of a 5-story reddish-brown building, with glass windows with white curtains on the sides. Kant soon dropped off the carriage and walked inside the building. On the inside, he found a polished wooden plank floor and a few candle lanterns on top.

The entire building appeared to be refurbished with tons of specialized equipment, for designing, building, and testing the train parts. The building was filled with ‘mechanical engineers’, ‘draftsmen’, and ‘project managers’ all of who used to work for large firms like HeklorKlotch, Duser Steam engines, and Steamerpile. They were all wearing long-sleeved shirts, with contrasting ties, black pants, and brown shoes.

The entire building, which used to be filled with the sounds of artisans chattering, turned silent as Kant entered. He had someone go and order the workers upstairs to come down and line up. Once they were all there, Kant began to speak.

“Hello everyone. I simply came by here to help out with the creation of the steam-powered locomotive, or a train, by explaining to each one of you how it works.

I believe that it is important to implement a common framework inside all your heads, for how this machine operates, as it could help clear out any confusion you may have, so you won’t make any mistakes that could cause problems down the line.

I will also be here to help answer any questions that may pop up in your head. This will clear out any confusion you all might have around this marvelous project that we are undertaking, to connect humanity closer together, ” Kant proclaimed.

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One of them raised their hand and led him upstairs. There, he saw more tables, with cabinets, bookshelves, clay modeling benches, and so on. They were there to allow the workers to get a scale of what they would be working with, and whether parts could theoretically fit other parts.

Eventually, Kant was led to a blackboard, and settled in a well lite room, with a bunch of tables, chairs, and furniture in the way. To make sure that everyone had room, the tables were all rearranged so that the crowd of engineers can listen.

“Alright. Thank you.” Kant picked up a white chalk and started drawing on the board while the others watched. Kant goes on to draw a simple blueprint of a steam engine train, before turning to the crowd of designers.

“As you all know, a steam engine locomotive is a machine that moves thanks to the power of a steam engine, meaning that it works on the same principles as a normal steam engine would.

Now, on the left side of the diagram, is the steam locomotive itself, where the boiler, the sand dome, and the cab are located. Connected to the steam engine itself, is the tender box, which holds the fuel and water inside for the steam locomotive to use.

The coal is used to run a fire inside the engine, inside what is known as the firebox. The firebox itself is a compartment located at the rear of the locomotive’s boiler. To access the firebox, there is a mechanism called a fire door that is used to open and close the firebox.ραпdα `nᴏνɐ| сom

A fire door is a door that is designed to prevent the spread of fire and smoke within an area, in this case, the cab where the drivers will be seated. This is because the smoke is intended to go out through the smokestack, which we will get to later.

The firebox sucks up air from underneath the train to keep the fire from starving, because remember, the air is a vital component in keeping a fire going. The solid fuel sits on top of the grates; a metal grid is located at the bottom of the firebox. It allows air inside and ash to fall.

The ash itself falls downs down into the ashpan, which is another compartment just located below the firebox and the grates. The firebox allows heat and smoke to escape the chamber to these things called firetubes, running the length of the boiler.

The boiler itself wraps around the firebox and firetubes, thus heating the water inside to boiling point, and creating steam. As more water evaporates, steam builds up inside the boiler, creating pressure. Inside the steam dome, steam can find its way out of the boiler towards the cylinders here.

The amount of steam that is allowed to enter the cylinders is controlled by the regulator valve, which can be opened and closed by the driver using a throttle inside the cab of the steam engine. Now, in the case that the boiler could explode as too much pressure would be stored inside the boiler builds up, a safety valve can be opened to relieve pressure.

Now, keep in mind that there are two sets of cylinders on a steam engine locomotive, one on each side of the machine. On each set of cylinders, are two cylinders, coming to form a reciprocating piston engine setup. Inside the larger cylinder, are a piston and a driving rod, connected to the driving wheel.

Above this cylinder, holding the piston is the sliding valve, which allows fresh steam to enter, and used steam to exhaust out from the piston cylinder. This way the piston is pushed once from both sides to complete one rotation, creating that reciprocating motion, which is used to run the drivewheel.

Once the steam has left the piston cylinder, it moved through a tube to the smokebox, where it will join any smoke coming out of the firebox to escape out the chimney. For the locomotive to stop, the driver applies the mechanical brakes, found in the steam tram, to come to a stop. This is the basics of how a steam engine locomotive works.” Kant explained.

Once Kant finished explaining the way the locomotive is supposed to work, he turns to the workers themselves. They all had that look of curiosity among them, listening to him explain how it works.

“Now,  the key components of the steam locomotive that you have to design are the boiler, the engine itself, the wheels and axels, the brakes, and the fuel and water supply. These are the main components of how the steam engine will allow the locomotive to function.

The boiler is the heart of the steam engine locomotive. It is responsible for producing steam to power the engine. The design of the boiler needs to take into account factors such as the size and shape of the locomotive, the type of fuel used, and the desired operating pressure and temperature.

The engine converts the energy from steam into mechanical energy that is used to drive the locomotive’s wheels, so you will need to find the perfect size for the engine to function. Now, remember, the higher the horsepower, the more the train could carry.

The wheels and axles allow the locomotive to move along the track, which is the whole point of the device. The factors that should be taken into consideration are the weight of the locomotive, the speed it will travel, and the type of track it will operate on.

The brakes are what allow the locomotive to stop. The design of the brakes needs to take into account the size and weight of the locomotive. And finally, the design of the fuel and water supply. The design needs to ensure that there is sufficient fuel and water on board for the locomotive to operate over its intended distance without needing to refuel or refill.”

“Now, do any of you have any questions?” he asked. Several hands flew up in the air, all having their own question regarding the matter.