Hongwu Survival Guide

Chapter 198
The person in charge of the standard steam engine model manufacturing project is called Zhong He. He is in his early thirties and is not tall, but he gives people a very capable feeling. Because he has been on the battlefield earlier, he joined the general as a division later. He is a standard craftsman. Born, good at making bows and crossbows.

Zhu Yuan picked someone earlier and found that he was a very thoughtful guy, and not only literate, but also able to draw various patterns.

So he was selected and quickly promoted to be the person in charge.

Compared with the production of the mini steam engine, the progress of the standard steam engine is slow. Zhu Yuan can also feel Zhong He's eagerness and even guilt, but he can understand it.

The main reason is that Zhu Yuan's own requirements are relatively high.

At the earliest time, according to the discussion with Lao Zhu, Zhu Yuan only hoped to make a set of the simplest steam engine model, which is roughly the kind where the boiler acts as a piston at the same time, and the vertical shaft is connected to a hanging cantilever. The expansion provides power to drive the cantilever to swing up and down left and right, and a hammer can be connected to the other side to complete the goal of 'strike iron'.

Anyway, just to demonstrate.

However, when I really started to do it, I felt that it is too meaningless to do these things. If you want to do it, you should do it better. Especially after adding the mini model project, anyway, there is already something that can be demonstrated to Lao Zhu, so there is no hurry here, take it easy do it slowly.

Do it in a practical direction!
The result is that the structure designed here has been tried several times, and if it doesn't work, then change it.

Anyway, the food is delicious, the materials are sufficient, the wages are not lacking, and there is no time limit.

Take it slow.

Obviously, Zhu Yuan is not in a hurry, but whether it is because someone rewards the mini steam engine craftsman with gold continuously or for other reasons, he is in a hurry here.

Arriving at the courtyard at the southwest corner of the mansion, before Zhu Yuan entered the door, he could already hear the faint sound of 'chug chug' from here.

Similar to later tractors.

Entering the courtyard, he signaled to Zhong He and other craftsmen that there was no need to be polite. Zhu Yuan looked directly at a standard steam engine model running in the middle of the courtyard. Next to him, Zhong He brought over an incense burner with a stick of lighted incense inside.

Zhu Yuan knew that the time for a stick of incense was about a quarter of a quarter, that is, the next 5 minutes.

I don't know how long this stick of incense has been burning, but it has lost a bit anyway.

Nodding slightly, Zhu Yuan looked at the steam engine again.

At first glance, copper!
Boilers, pistons and runners, etc., are basically made of copper, yellow and clear. Of course, pure copper is more purple. At present, it is the copper-zinc alloy that Zhu Yuan prefers.

Copper is money in this day and age!

Let's talk about the structure.

The horizontal cylindrical boiler is three feet long and one and a half feet in diameter.The lower part rests on a heavy cast-iron pedestal that forms the shape of a fire stove in which coals burn.

There are three openings above the boiler, one is the water inlet with a one-way valve, the other is the exhaust port, which is used to shut down the machine, and the last one is the copper pipe for outputting steam.

This time the copper pipe is far less thick than the previous one, with a diameter of about an inch. The long pipe is in the shape of a 'Ji'. It is connected to the boiler on one side and the piston on the other, and there is a valve in the middle.

The two interfaces can be described as where the technology lies.

In order to seal, all kinds of screws are made by hand, and good soft cowhide is also used for lining. I have tried to use glue before, or directly welded it to death.

However, the latter two have been eliminated.

Regardless of whether it is glued or welded to death, the seal is sealed, and it is probably disposable. Once it fails, it can only be scrapped as a whole.

Therefore, it is necessary to have replaceable and repairable moving parts.

What's more, according to Zhu Yuan's observation experience during this period of time, even if the seal is not so tight, as long as the steam pressure is high enough and the stream is continuous, it can actually be used.

But the efficiency of energy conversion and utilization is lower.

There is no need to worry about conversion efficiency for the time being.

At the other end of the copper tube is the piston.

It is three inches in diameter and two feet long.

One end of the piston is connected to the air pipe, and the other end of the shaft is connected to a two-foot-diameter runner through a movable joint.

Not a hammer for blacksmithing.

Anyway, as long as the core of the piston can run stably, you can connect whatever you want to connect in the future.

After Zhu Yuan looked at it like this, he just waited.

The repetitive and boring mechanical movements are not boring at all in the eyes of everyone around.

Zhu Yuan saw the future.

Craftsmen, what you see is the future.

Just like Zhong He, he has seen the multiple uses of the mini steam engine next door, and he can't help but imagine that in the future, if there are thousands of steam engines on the land of Ming Dynasty, then... it will be a world change!
chug-

chug-

After burning the stick of incense held by Zhong He, he waited for a while. The steam model not far away was still running. Zhu Yuan didn't intend to wait any longer. He nodded and signaled, "Stop it."

Hearing Zhu Yuan's opening, Zhong He confirmed it with a glance, then stepped forward in person, turned off the gas pipe valve with obvious reluctance, then turned to the boiler, and stretched a long wrench to open the valve of the middle outlet.

Suddenly a gust of hot air was discharged from the center of the boiler.

The whole yard was filled with mist for a while, as if entering a fairyland.

On the other side, some craftsmen also cooperated to shovel out the burning coal in the stove to remove the energy.

When all this was finished, Zhu Yuan was about to step forward, but was grabbed by He Xuan who was beside him: "My lord, wait a little longer."

He Xuan knew that this thing... would explode.

The big boiler here has not been blown up, but the mini steam engine next door. A craftsman was shocked with blisters all over his face.

"The pressure is gone, it's okay," Zhu Yuan said. After struggling, he couldn't break free, so he could only stop, and explained: "It's not that easy to blow up this thing. The neighbor next door... was cutting corners. His face collapsed, and I can't even say anything about him."

He Xuan didn't listen.

Zhu Yuan had no choice but to give up approaching, and while summoning Zhong He, he said loudly to the surrounding people: "Everyone is ten taels of gold!"

"Thank you sir."

"Thank you, my lord."

"Thank you, Master."

"..."

Thanks in disorder, all kneel down in a blink of an eye, even Zhong He, who had just moved, knelt down.

In addition to being happy with the reward, compared to the neighbors, this time, everyone finally got their face back.

When everyone stood up and Zhong He approached, Zhu Yuan smiled and asked, "Why did you become transparent all of a sudden?"

Zhong He grinned, pointed to the steam engine model not far away, and asked without answering: "Sir, you should be able to see it at a glance?"

Zhu Yuan looked over and said, "I just discovered that this time... the trachea is much thinner than before."

"That's right," Zhong He said, "I used to think that this steam engine was always running poorly. Maybe it was because the air pipe was too thin, so it was always made thick... Oh, to be honest, I read the ones next door and got inspired. , When I was young, I still thought this would not work, because they are so young, can they be the same? Recently...there is no other way, so I tried it with my brothers...It didn't work out, it just worked out. That's it, things It’s done, but the little ones don’t know the reason behind it.”

(End of this chapter)