Piston machines have not satisfied progressive mankind for a long time. And the well-known inventor Felix Wankel, who was the first to create a real sample rotary engine was, it turns out, far from the first person who set himself the task of getting rid of the familiar and reliable, but, nevertheless, initially vicious scheme of a piston engine with a classic crank mechanism. There were other, no less brilliant inventors, among whom there are our compatriots. Of course, in this article, with all the desire, it will not be possible to tell everything, the presented machines are only a small fraction of known designs. So, get acquainted: rotary steam engines that existed both in drawings and in metal, unsuccessful and actually working.

BRAHMA AND DIKENSON'S STEAM ENGINE

The scheme of the vane steam engine is good for everyone - it is both reliable and provides good sealing. Only now ... it is inoperable at more or less serious speeds. Overloads create forces that far exceed the tensile strength of not only ancient, but also modern materials. Therefore, she found application only as a ... water pump. But it was not possible to create a working steam engine according to this scheme ...

CARTWRITE'S STEAM ENGINE

The inventor tried to cheat - he made the gates folding. Only this did not solve the problem of impacts, and the compaction worsened even more. Badly!

ROTARY FLINT MACHINE



Here the problem of "disappearance" of the gates at the moment of passage of the blade is solved more beautifully and rationally - by rotary dampers in the form of crescents - i and k in the diagram. But having improved one, the creator of this device could not cope with another problem - the sealing of the working cavities here is simply disgusting! The accuracy of processing in those days was not so hot, the materials also did not shine with either strength or wear resistance. The piston scheme creaked this “bouquet”, but forgave it, but the rotary machine could not. The result is an unworkable design.

ROTARY TROTTER ENGINE

Another attempt to get away from problems due to ... further complication of the design. Here the rotors are no longer one, but two - a blade and a ring. As a result, new seals, new friction surfaces, and unbalanced inertial loads. The result is predictable...

DOLGORUKOV'S STEAM ENGINE

But this is already a real car - it worked, turned the generator and even managed to visit International Exhibition d "Electricit. Where it was appreciated. It is understandable - its scheme, even today, is quite modern: it is a classic twin-rotor volumetric supercharger.

A pair of synchronized rotors mutually "runs" each other, compressing the working fluid and moving it from the discharge cavity to the outlet. The seal is tolerable, there are no jerks or bumps. Why shouldn't she work!

All images and partly materials are taken from the site npopramen.ru/information/story
If there is interest, this topic can be continued, but for now I recommend that you look at this site. You will not regret!

The modern world forces many inventors to return again to the idea of ​​using a steam plant in vehicles intended for movement. In machines, it is possible to use several options for steam-powered power units.

piston motor

Modern steam engines can be divided into several groups:

Structurally, the installation includes:

• starting device;
• two-cylinder power block;
• steam generator in a special container, equipped with a coil.

The process is as follows. After the ignition is switched on, power is supplied from the battery of the three engines. From the first, a blower is put into operation, pumping air masses through the radiator and transferring them through air channels to a mixing device with a burner.

At the same time, another electric motor activates the fuel transfer pump, which supplies condensate masses from the tank through the serpentine device of the heating element to the body of the water separator and the heater located in the economizer to the steam generator.
Before starting the steam, there is no way to get to the cylinders, since the throttle valve or spool, which are driven by rocker mechanics, block the path. By turning the handles in the direction necessary for movement, and slightly opening the valve, the mechanic sets the steam mechanism into operation.
The spent vapors are fed through a single collector to a distribution valve, in which they are divided into a pair of unequal shares. A smaller part enters the nozzle of the mixing burner, mixes with the air mass, and ignites from the candle. The emerging flame begins to heat the container. After that, the combustion product passes into the water separator, condensation occurs, flowing into a special water tank. The rest of the gas goes out.

The steam plant can be directly connected to the drive unit of the machine's transmission, and the machine starts to move when it starts working. But in order to increase efficiency, experts recommend using clutch mechanics. This is convenient for towing work and various inspection activities.

The device is characterized by the ability to work practically without restrictions, overloads are possible, there is a wide range of power indicators adjustment. It should be added that during any stop steam engine stops working, which cannot be said about the motor.

In the design, there is no need to install a gearbox, starter device, air filter, carburetor, turbocharger. In addition, the ignition system is in a simplified version, there is only one candle.

In conclusion, we can add that the production of such machines and their operation will be cheaper than cars with an engine. internal combustion, since the fuel will be inexpensive, the materials used in production will be the cheapest.

On April 12, 1933, William Besler took off from the Oakland Municipal Airfield in California in a steam-powered aircraft.
The newspapers wrote:

“The takeoff was normal in every respect, except for the absence of noise. In fact, when the plane had already left the ground, it seemed to the observers that it had not yet gained sufficient speed. On the full power the noise was no more noticeable than with a gliding aircraft. Only the whistling of air could be heard. When working at full steam, the propeller produced only a slight noise. It was possible to distinguish through the noise of the propeller the sound of the flame...

When the plane was landing and crossed the field boundary, the propeller stopped and started up slowly in reverse side by reversing and then slightly opening the throttle. Even with a very slow reverse rotation of the screw, the descent became noticeably steeper. Immediately after touchdown, the pilot gave full reverse, which, together with the brakes, quickly stopped the car. Short run was especially noticeable in this case, since during the test there was a calm weather, and usually the landing range reached several hundred feet.

At the beginning of the 20th century, records of the height reached by aircraft were set almost annually:

The stratosphere promised considerable benefits for flight: less air resistance, constancy of winds, absence of clouds, stealth, inaccessibility to air defense. But how to fly up to a height of, for example, 20 kilometers?

[Gasoline] engine power drops faster than air density.

At an altitude of 7000 m, the engine power decreases by almost three times. In order to improve the high-altitude qualities of aircraft, at the end of the imperialist war, attempts were made to use pressurization, in the period 1924-1929. superchargers are even more introduced into production. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain the power of an internal combustion engine at altitudes above 10 km.

In an effort to raise the "height limit", the designers of all countries are increasingly turning their eyes to the steam engine, which has a number of advantages as a high-altitude engine. Some countries, like Germany, for example, were pushed to this path by strategic considerations, namely, the need to achieve independence from imported oil in the event of a major war.

Per last years Numerous attempts have been made to install a steam engine in aircraft. The rapid growth of the aviation industry on the eve of the crisis and the monopoly prices for its products made it possible not to hurry with the implementation of experimental work and accumulated inventions. These attempts, which took on a special scope during the economic crisis of 1929-1933. and the depression that followed, is not an accidental phenomenon for capitalism. In the press, especially in America and France, reproaches were often thrown large concerns that they have agreements to artificially delay the implementation of new inventions.

Two directions have emerged. One is represented in America by Besler, who installed a conventional piston engine on an aircraft, while the other is due to the use of a turbine as aircraft engine and is associated mainly with the work of German designers.

The Besler brothers took Doble's piston steam engine for a car as a basis and installed it on a Travel-Air biplane. [a description of their demonstration flight is given at the beginning of the post].
Video of that flight:

The machine is equipped with a reversing mechanism, with which you can easily and quickly change the direction of rotation of the machine shaft, not only in flight, but also during landing. In addition to the propeller, the engine drives a fan through the coupling, which blows air into the burner. At the start, they use a small electric motor.

The machine developed a power of 90 hp, but under the conditions of a well-known forcing of the boiler, its power can be increased to 135 hp. With.
Steam pressure in the boiler 125 at. The steam temperature was maintained at about 400-430°. In order to automate the operation of the boiler as much as possible, a normalizer or device was used, with the help of which water was injected under a known pressure into the superheater as soon as the steam temperature exceeded 400 °. The boiler was equipped with a feed pump and a steam drive, as well as primary and secondary feed water heaters heated by exhaust steam.

The aircraft was equipped with two capacitors. A more powerful one was converted from the radiator of the OX-5 engine and mounted on top of the fuselage. The less powerful one is made from the condenser of Doble's steam car and is located under the fuselage. The capacity of the condensers, it was stated in the press, was not enough to run the steam engine at full throttle without venting to the atmosphere, "and corresponded approximately to 90% of cruising power." Experiments showed that with a consumption of 152 liters of fuel, it was necessary to have 38 liters of water.

The total weight of the steam plant of the aircraft was 4.5 kg per 1 liter. With. Compared with the OH-5 engine that worked on this aircraft, this gave excess weight at 300 pounds (136 kg). There is no doubt that the weight of the entire installation could be significantly reduced by lightening the engine parts and capacitors.
The fuel was gas oil. The press claimed that “between turning on the ignition and starting full speed no more than 5 minutes have passed.

Another direction in the development of a steam power plant for aviation is associated with the use of a steam turbine as an engine.
In 1932-1934. information about the original steam turbine for an aircraft designed in Germany at the Klinganberg electric plant penetrated into the foreign press. The chief engineer of this plant, Hütner, was called its author.
The steam generator and turbine, together with the condenser, were here combined into one rotating unit having a common housing. Hütner notes: “The engine represents a power plant, a distinctive salient feature which consists in the fact that the rotating steam generator forms one constructive and operational whole with the turbine and condenser rotating in the opposite direction.
The main part of the turbine is a rotating boiler formed from a number of V-shaped tubes, with one elbow of these tubes connected to the feed water header, the other to the steam collector. The boiler is shown in Fig. 143.

The tubes are located radially around the axis and rotate at a speed of 3000-5000 rpm. The water entering the tubes rushes under the influence of centrifugal force into the left branches of the V-shaped tubes, the right knee of which acts as a steam generator. The left elbow of the tubes has fins heated by the flame from the injectors. Water, passing by these ribs, turns into steam, and under the action of centrifugal forces arising from the rotation of the boiler, an increase in steam pressure occurs. The pressure is adjusted automatically. The difference in density in both branches of the tubes (steam and water) gives a variable level difference, which is a function of the centrifugal force, and hence the speed of rotation. A diagram of such a unit is shown in Fig. 144.

The design feature of the boiler is the arrangement of tubes, in which during rotation a vacuum is created in the combustion chamber, and thus the boiler acts as if it were a suction fan. Thus, according to Hütner, "the rotation of the boiler is simultaneously determined by its power, and the movement of hot gases, and the movement of cooling water."

Starting the turbine in motion requires only 30 seconds. Hütner expected to achieve a boiler efficiency of 88% and a turbine efficiency of 80%. The turbine and boiler need starting motors to start.

In 1934, a message flashed in the press about the development of a project for a large aircraft in Germany, equipped with a turbine with a rotating boiler. Two years later, the French press claimed that under conditions of great secrecy, the military department in Germany had built a special aircraft. For him, a steam power plant of the Hütner system with a capacity of 2500 liters was designed. With. The length of the aircraft is 22 m, the wingspan is 32 m, the flight weight (approximate) is 14 tons, the absolute ceiling of the aircraft is 14,000 m, the flight speed at an altitude of 10,000 m is 420 km / h, the ascent to a height of 10 km is 30 minutes.
It is quite possible that these press reports are greatly exaggerated, but it is certain that the German designers are working on this problem, and the forthcoming war may bring unexpected surprises here.

What is the advantage of a turbine over an internal combustion engine?
1. No reciprocating motion when high speeds rotation allows you to make the turbine quite compact and smaller than modern powerful aircraft engines.
2. An important advantage is also the relative noiselessness of the steam engine, which is important both from a military point of view and in terms of the possibility of lightening the aircraft due to soundproofing equipment on passenger aircraft.
3. The steam turbine, unlike internal combustion engines, which are almost never overloaded, can be overloaded for a short period up to 100% at a constant speed. This advantage of the turbine makes it possible to reduce the length of the takeoff run of the aircraft and facilitate its rise into the air.
4. The simplicity of design and the absence of a large number of moving and triggered parts are also an important advantage of the turbine, making it more reliable and durable compared to internal combustion engines.
5. The absence of a magneto on the steam plant, the operation of which can be influenced by radio waves, is also essential.
6. The ability to use heavy fuel (oil, fuel oil), in addition to economic advantages, determines more security steam engine in fire relation. It also creates the possibility of heating the aircraft.
7. The main advantage of a steam engine is to maintain its rated power with the rise to a height.

One of the objections to the steam engine comes mainly from aerodynamicists and comes down to the size and cooling capabilities of the condenser. Indeed, the steam condenser has a surface 5-6 times larger than the water radiator of an internal combustion engine.
That is why, in an effort to reduce the drag of such a capacitor, the designers came to place the capacitor directly on the surface of the wings in the form of a continuous row of tubes, following exactly the contour and profile of the wing. In addition to imparting significant rigidity, this will also reduce the risk of aircraft icing.

There is, of course, also whole line other technical difficulties in the operation of the turbine on the aircraft.
- Nozzle behavior at high altitudes is unknown.
- To change the fast load of the turbine, which is one of the conditions for the operation of an aircraft engine, it is necessary to have either a supply of water or a steam collector.
- Known difficulties are also presented by the development of a good automatic device for turbine adjustment.
- The gyroscopic effect of a rapidly rotating turbine on an aircraft is also unclear.

However, the progress made gives reason to hope that soon steam propulsion will find its place in the modern air fleet, especially on transport commercial aircraft, as well as on large airships. The hardest part in this area has already been done, and practical engineers will be able to achieve ultimate success.

STEAM ROTARY ENGINE and STEAM AXIAL PISTON ENGINE

Steam rotary engine (steam engine rotary type) is unique power machine, the development of production of which has not yet received due development.

On the one hand, various designs of rotary engines existed in the last third of the 19th century and even worked well, including for driving dynamos in order to develop electrical energy and power supply of all objects. But the quality and accuracy of manufacturing such steam engines (steam engines) was very primitive, so they had low efficiency and low power. Since then, small steam engines have become a thing of the past, but along with really inefficient and unpromising reciprocating steam engines The steam rotary engines, which have a good prospect, are also gone in the past.

The main reason is that at the level of technology of the late 19th century, it was not possible to make a really high-quality, powerful and durable rotary engine.
Therefore, of all the variety of steam engines and steam engines, only steam turbines of enormous power (from 20 MW and above) have successfully and actively survived to this day, which today account for about 75% of electricity generation in our country. More steam turbines high power provide energy from nuclear reactors in combat missile-carrying submarines and on large Arctic icebreakers. But that's all huge machines. Steam turbines dramatically lose all their efficiency when they are reduced in size.

…. That is why power steam engines and steam engines with power below 2000 - 1500 kW (2 - 1.5 MW), which would effectively operate on steam obtained from the combustion of cheap solid fuel and various free combustible waste, are not now in the world.
It is in this field of technology that is empty today (and absolutely bare, but in great need of a commercial niche), in this market niche of low-power power machines, steam rotary engines can and should take their very worthy place. And the need for them only in our country is tens and tens of thousands ... Especially small and medium-sized power machines for autonomous power generation and independent power supply are needed by small and medium-sized enterprises in areas remote from large cities and large power plants: - at small sawmills, remote mines, in field camps and forest plots, etc., etc.
…..

..
Let's take a look at the factors that make rotary steam engines better than their closest relatives, steam engines in the form of reciprocating steam engines and steam turbines.
… — 1) Rotary engines are power machines volumetric expansion - like piston engines. Those. they have a low steam consumption per unit of power, because steam is supplied to their working cavities from time to time, and in strictly metered portions, and not in a constant plentiful flow, as in steam turbines. That is why steam rotary engines are much more economical than steam turbines per unit of output power.
— 2) Rotary steam engines have a shoulder of application of operating gas forces(torque arm) is much (many times) greater than reciprocating steam engines. Therefore, the power developed by them is much higher than that of steam piston engines.
— 3) Steam rotary engines have a much greater power stroke than reciprocating steam engines, i.e. have the ability to convert most of the internal energy of steam into useful work.
— 4) Steam rotary engines can operate efficiently on saturated (wet) steam, without difficulty allowing the condensation of a significant part of the steam with its transition to water directly in the working sections of the steam rotary engine. This also increases the efficiency of the steam power plant using a steam rotary engine.
— 5 ) Steam rotary engines operate at a speed of 2-3 thousand revolutions per minute, which is the optimal speed for generating electricity, as opposed to too slow piston engines(200-600 rpm) of traditional locomotive-type steam engines, or from too high-speed turbines (10-20 thousand rpm).

At the same time, steam rotary engines are technologically relatively easy to manufacture, which makes their manufacturing costs relatively low. In contrast to the extremely expensive steam turbines to manufacture.

SO, SUMMARY OF THIS ARTICLE - a steam rotary engine is a very efficient steam power machine for converting steam pressure from the heat of burning solid fuel and combustible waste into mechanical power and into electrical energy.

The author of this site has already received more than 5 patents for inventions on various aspects of the designs of steam rotary engines. A number of small rotary engines with a power of 3 to 7 kW were also produced. Now we are designing steam rotary engines with power from 100 to 200 kW.
But rotary engines have a "generic flaw" - a complex system of seals, which for small engines turn out to be too complex, miniature and expensive to manufacture.

At the same time, the author of the site is developing steam axial piston engines with opposite - oncoming piston movement. This arrangement is the most energy-efficient power variation of all possible schemes piston system.
These engines in small sizes are somewhat cheaper and simpler. rotary motors and seals in them are used the most traditional and the most simple.

Below is a video using a small axial piston boxer engine with opposite pistons.

At present, such a 30 kW axial piston boxer engine is being manufactured. The engine resource is expected to be several hundred thousand hours, because the speed of the steam engine is 3-4 times lower than the speed of the internal combustion engine, in the friction pair. piston-cylinder» — subjected to ion-plasma nitriding in a vacuum environment and the hardness of the friction surfaces is 62-64 HRC units. For details on the process of surface hardening by nitriding, see.

Here is an animation of the principle of operation of such an axial-piston boxer engine, similar in layout, with an oncoming piston movement

The steam engine throughout its history has had many variations of embodiment in metal. One of these incarnations was the steam rotary engine of mechanical engineer N.N. Tverskoy. This steam rotary engine (steam engine) was actively used in various fields of technology and transport. In the Russian technical tradition of the 19th century, such a rotary engine was called a rotary machine. The engine was distinguished by its durability, efficiency and high torque. But with the advent of steam turbines, it was forgotten. Below are archival materials raised by the author of this site. The materials are very extensive, so for now only a part of them is presented here.

Trial Scroll compressed air(3.5 atm) steam rotary engine.
The model is designed for 10 kW of power at 1500 rpm at a steam pressure of 28-30 atm.

At the end of the 19th century, steam engines - "N. Tversky's rotary engines" were forgotten because reciprocating steam engines turned out to be simpler and more technologically advanced in production (for the industries of that time), and steam turbines gave more power.
But the remark regarding steam turbines is true only in their large weight and overall dimensions. Indeed, with a power of more than 1.5-2 thousand kW, steam multi-cylinder turbines outperform steam rotary engines in all respects, even with the high cost of turbines. And in the early 20th century, when ships power plants and power units power plants began to have a capacity of many tens of thousands of kilowatts, then only turbines could provide such opportunities.

BUT - steam turbines have another drawback. When scaling their mass-dimensional parameters downwards, the performance characteristics of steam turbines deteriorate sharply. The specific power is significantly reduced, the efficiency drops, while the high cost of manufacturing and high revs the main shaft (the need for a gearbox) - remain. That is why - in the field of capacities less than 1.5 thousand kW (1.5 MW) effective in all respects steam turbine almost impossible to find, even for a lot of money ...

That is why a whole “bouquet” of exotic and little-known designs appeared in this power range. But most often, just as expensive and inefficient ... Screw turbines, Tesla turbines, axial turbines and so on.
But for some reason, everyone forgot about the steam "rotary machines" - rotary steam engines. Meanwhile, these steam engines are many times cheaper than any bladed and screw mechanisms (I say this with knowledge of the matter, as a person who has already manufactured more than a dozen such machines with his own money). At the same time, the steam “rotary machines of N. Tverskoy” have a powerful torque from the smallest revolutions, have an average frequency of rotation of the main shaft at full speed from 1000 to 3000 rpm. Those. such machines, even for an electric generator, even for a steam car ( car-truck, tractor, tractor) - they will not require a gearbox, coupling, etc., but will be directly connected with their shaft to a dynamo, wheels of a steam car, etc.
So, in the form of a steam rotary engine - the “N. Tversky rotary engine” system, we have a universal steam engine that will perfectly generate electricity from a solid fuel boiler in a remote forestry or taiga village, on a field camp or generate electricity in a boiler house of a rural settlement or "spin" on the waste of process heat (hot air) in a brick or cement plant, in a foundry, etc., etc.
All such heat sources just have a power of less than 1 mW, and therefore conventional turbines are of little use here. And other machines for heat recovery by converting the pressure of the resulting steam into work - the total technical practice doesn't know yet. So this heat is not utilized in any way - it is simply lost stupidly and irretrievably.
I have already created a "steam rotary machine" to drive an electric generator of 3.5 - 5 kW (depending on the pressure in the steam), if everything goes as planned, there will soon be a machine of 25 and 40 kW. Just what is needed to provide cheap electricity from a solid fuel boiler or waste industrial heat to a rural estate, a small farm, a field camp, etc., etc.
In principle, rotary engines scale well upwards, therefore, by mounting many rotor sections on one shaft, it is easy to multiply the power of such machines by simply increasing the number of standard rotor modules. That is, it is quite possible to create steam rotary machines with a power of 80-160-240-320 kW or more ...

But, in addition to medium and relatively large steam power plants, steam power circuits with small steam rotary engines will also be in demand in small power plants.
For example, one of my inventions is “Camping-tourist electric generator using local solid fuel”.
Below is a video where a simplified prototype of such a device is being tested.
But the small steam engine is already merrily and energetically spinning its electric generator and is generating electricity using wood and other pasture fuel.

The main direction of commercial and technical application steam rotary engines (rotary steam engines) is the production of cheap electricity on cheap solid fuel and combustible waste. Those. small power - distributed power generation on steam rotary engines. Imagine how a rotary steam engine will fit perfectly into the scheme of operation of a sawmill-sawmill, somewhere in the Russian North or in Siberia (Far East) where there is no central power supply, electricity is provided by a diesel generator on a diesel fuel imported from afar. But the sawmill itself produces at least half a ton of wood chips-sawdust per day - croaker, which has nowhere to go ...

Such wood waste is a direct road to the boiler furnace, the boiler gives steam high pressure, steam drives a rotary steam engine and it turns an electric generator.

In the same way, it is possible to burn millions of tons of crop waste from agriculture, unlimited in volume, and so on. And there is also cheap peat, cheap thermal coal, and so on. The author of the site calculated that the fuel costs for generating electricity through a small steam power plant (steam engine) with a 500 kW steam rotary engine will be from 0.8 to 1,

2 rubles per kilowatt.

More interesting option the use of a steam rotary engine is the installation of such a steam engine on steam car. The truck is a tractor steam car, with powerful torque and using cheap solid fuel - a very necessary steam engine in agriculture and in the forest industry. When applied modern technologies and materials, as well as the use of the "Organic Rankine Cycle" in the thermodynamic cycle will make it possible to bring the effective efficiency up to 26-28% on cheap solid fuel (or inexpensive liquid, such as "furnace fuel" or spent machine oil). Those. truck - tractor with a steam engine

and a rotary steam engine with a power of about 100 kW, will consume about 25-28 kg of thermal coal per 100 km (cost 5-6 rubles per kg) or about 40-45 kg of sawdust chips (the price of which in the North is take away for nothing) ...

There are many more interesting and promising applications of the rotary steam engine, but the size of this page does not allow us to consider all of them in detail. As a result, the steam engine can still take a very prominent place in many areas. modern technology and in many branches of the national economy.

LAUNCHES OF THE EXPERIMENTAL MODEL OF A STEAM-POWERED ELECTRIC GENERATOR WITH A STEAM ENGINE

May -2018 After lengthy experiments and prototypes, a small high-pressure boiler was made. The boiler is pressurized to 80 atm pressure, so it will keep operating pressure at 40-60 atm without difficulty. It was put into operation with an experimental model of an axial-piston steam engine of my own design. Works great - watch the video. In 12-14 minutes from ignition on wood, it is ready to give high-pressure steam.

Now I am starting to prepare for the piece production of such installations - a high-pressure boiler, a steam engine (rotary or axial piston), a condenser. The units will operate in a closed circuit with a circulation of "water-steam-condensate".

The demand for such generators is very high, because 60% of the territory of Russia do not have a central power supply and are sitting on diesel generation. And the price of diesel fuel is growing all the time and has already reached 41-42 rubles per liter. Yes, and where there is electricity, energy companies are raising tariffs, and they require a lot of money to connect new capacities.