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Construction of railways
Construction of Railways.
431
changes their colour first to yellow and then to red, and that this acid can be neutralized by an alkali and the green colour restored. He regards these changes as modifications of one and the same colouring matter which he calls chromuLe,and asserts that it is the cause of the common yellow or red colour of the petals. These results are very erroneous. A leaf does not become green by any reagent; but when the foliage has become red, potash will change it to green, because the red colouring matter forms green compounds with that alkali. Rerzelius experiments chiefly. upon the leaves of the Pyrus communis gathered in a fresh state, after the colour had turned to a citron yellow. The leaves were maseratecl in successive portions of alcohol, and The latter became gelatinous on also treated with boiling alcohol. cooling, A granular substance was thus obtained, which had a tendency to crystallization, and also a yellow, soft, fatty substance which apthe yellow colouring pearcd identical with the grains. These contained as a yellow, fatty, unctuous mat:er of the leaves 9 which is described substance2 easily melted, and then on cooling becoming concrete, transparent, 01 a brownish yeliow, decomposable by heat, and leaving a residuum of charcoal. When rnoistencd with waterantl long exposed toair and light, it loses its colour completely and is transformed into a greasy matter, which is regarded by Berzelius as a peculiar substance, interHe names it Xmthophyfh (yellow mediate between f,rt pils and resins. leaves,) and is of opi!lion that the transformation of the green colouring matter of the leaf into a yellow, is ell’ected by a change in the or~auization of the leaf produced by frost which modifies the organization. Every etloort to reproc!uce the green from the yellow proved frui:less, nor could he succeed in changing the colouring matter to yellow. The with the yellow. brown colour of the foliage has nothin g in common It is protlnced by an extractire principle first colourless, and which, after the disorganization of the epidemics of the leaf, becomes brown by the action 01 oxygen, and communicates to the fibrous skeleton of the leaf a brown colour which cannot be removed by a weak solution of caustic potash, or destroyed by sulphurated hydrogen. The colouring matter of red leaves, Berzelius considers as probably He examined more particularly that identical with that of red fruits. of the leaves of the cherry and of the red gooseberry. It was extractafter distillation was separated by the ed from the leaves by alcohol, filtre from a resin and a fatty precipitate. The red matter after liltration was thrown down by neutral acetate of lead, of a beautiful grass green, which soon become a greyish brown. ‘J’he red colouring matter of the leaves, he names Erythrophyllc (red foliage.) \Vhen precipitated in parts by lime water, it subsides of green matter is colour while the fluid a paler red tint,- hence this colouring not originally blue. Jour. de Pharmacio Jo~lict 163 .
Construction ‘The Llanelly
of Rnilways.
Railway and Dock Company are adopting a new mode of constructing the upper works of railways, under a patent granted to Mr. “P’homas Parkin, who has delivered several lectures upon the subject in London.
Progress
432
of Civil iTEngineering.
As the subject Of railways is generally interesting, and must he f+peci. ally so to the inhabitants Of this part of South Wales, which, through the at no tiistant p~riotl, advnnccmcnt in science, FccmS tlcslincd to become, n very important seat for the manulitcturc of iron, we sl~l! not hesitate t0 give a particular tlescripcion of Mr. Parltin’s plan. The road, beitlg prepaxed of longitudinal hearer, c of k?~nnGctl oak, or other hard vvoo,l, from fi)nr to six ~lecp, dovclailctl
inches
in
the
!JilRe , !WO
into one another,
ill the top, or fhllr or tive feet thus forming n continuous line, with
nprisbts, twelve inches long and ilbout three in diameter, screwed lirmly height an(l Icvcl, in fit every yard inlo their bottom, are lixctl, at a proper trenches dug in I!IC road, from cigh~een inches to two feet wills: and tlcel~ The trericl~cs arc then filled with concrete, ComlkflSed Of gI.il\‘CI, san~l, ;IIIII when only the top Of the brarctr.3 Abertbaw lime, in proper propOrtioii~, ij vi:ible 011 tl~e surli~cc ot the ro:d, ali the rest being comlrletcly Ilurierl with the concrete, which immetii;~tt~ly sets and hardens, jn ;\ntl coni;olitl;lletl ;md in it short time I~ccomcli a salitl rock, the wltole length Of the road fOrmiOg,
as
20
crrgirlror
who
inspected
the
work
said,
Lb:in
everlasting
rail-
‘I’lie f’ouud;~tiori being complete, patent felt is laid upon the top 01 the benrc,r!: whereto bard of iron, two inches wide, and Il:rif an inch tlriclt, are lirmly Screwed, ilrltl the road is linkhed. The dimensions of‘ the trenches must bc regulated by the nature of the soil on which the r:lil\vay is m:lde, while the parties adopting the plan mzy u”e wood illIt iron of any size they ?‘he rails, as ilt prci;ent lixetl in iron chairs, mollntetl On think proper. stone blocks, at every yard, form unyicldirg points of support, and intc,rrnediiAtc licxiblc q)aces. ‘rhe carriages, of necessity, ;Ilteruately dcscentl below, and rise il!JOVC, the me:m line ot’ progression, and produce coucu3iOns on those poinCs, tlie severity of which is ;Iccortling to the degree of‘ v;iri;rtion f?orrl a straight line ilntl the wpkilly of‘ the mo!iOn. rlt a clkeed Of’ twenty-live miles per hour, they wo,~ld Occur ‘733 times in a minute. On the hlilrichestcr and 1,ircrpool line, Professor Garlow ‘6f’ourld the whole road to tremble;” and the detleclion in the rails so great as materi:1lly to diminish their strength, in conzcquence of their being pe~mn~zedl~ lixetl f0 the chairs. IJpon 3lr. Parkin’s plan, no vibration, of the Zeusi possiSle degree, is felt, the bars being screwed to contitzuorts wooden bearers, bedded upon ;\n unyielding ma 01‘concrete, of the strength and durability of which cement the Roman roads are irrrfragible evidence. Besides, the patent f1111, between the iron ilrltl the wood is tl non-conductor of Vibration, and aic!s ill Icssenirrg the trernrllous motion attend;iot on carriages running even on a perf&t plane. ‘l’be stone t)lOcks in the ordinary mode of conatructio0, !lcirq insulated iintl independent of each other, the preservation of‘s level surface [even if its attainment were practicable) i\nd of p~~rr;~llelism in the rails, is impos.Gble, as cliII‘erenccs in the subsoil must occur; and when ii block has Surlk, in ever so trilling n (lc:prec, below those next it, the next will either rerrr:iin in the permitneri : tlcxur~c, or be loose~~cti from the chair, or Iowcn the chair from the block, or hold the block in snspeti5iori. ‘I’he rails and chairs f’orrn a series Of levers and fulcra, the action and re-action at nhich are iucornp;itiblc will1 perm;inent Stability. Upon Mr. Parkin’s plan, iln cvf:O SUri;lCe and pnrI%llel lines may bcbhad, with almoat mi~tbernatical exactitode, which ncitttec the magnitude of the weights pa>ing on the rails, nor tlie rapidity of their motion, can tllsturh, degree of b~rdrie~e. W he3 il atier thr concrete bns acquired il proper block on one side of’ an Ordinary r;\ll,v;ly has sunk only in a slight &g-roe, WY.”
while the corresponding
one oppode
obtains
its position,
increased
weight
Consumption
of Coal in &-eat
Brilain,
will, of necessity, be thrown on the former, and its tendency to sink still further as well RS to be forced out of a parallel line be augmented, in . . . the ri\tio ot the smkmg. But with i?Ir. Parkin’s rails no such sinking could be anticipated, even were its occurrence possible. Wi’ith level parallel rails, scarcely any lateral pressure can be felt, ex_ cept in Cnrves, where means will he employed to meet the exigency of the ‘I’be absence of n plane and ot’ pnr:~llrlism in the rails, is the yrincj_ case. pal, if not the only, C~IISC of Intc,ral pres:‘ure, which could do no irijury to i\lr. Parkin’s road, unless it either reruovecl ont of its place one-half of the mass of’ concrete in which the bearers, with uprights a foot long at every yard. are bnrietl-made a breach in !he continuous line of bearers-forcetl the strong iron screws, by which the bars :lre secured to the bearers, from their hold, or burst the I:ars thenr*elvc~a ;isunder. As these bars are only halfan inch wide, and are thus secured to continuous bearers, they present no leverage for the flwch OT the wheel to act on, when any lateral pres. sure lakes place; whereas in ordinary r:tilwnys, the leverage is considerable (the wheels being elevated the height of”the rail. which is four or tjve inches above tire point of support.) and produces a corresponding tendency to force the blocks out of’a straight linp. L’pon such nn unyielding plane as Mr. Parkin’s railway present*, less trnctive power, as Professor Barlorv hap nbly demonstrated, is nrCcs*s:;\ry than on rail< which deflect between the points of scippnrt. while tile wear and tear of cnrriages and engines, and the necessity for limiting their weigh1 , are materially lessened. A locomotive engine weighs from ten to twelve ton3, ad subjects the rails to the process of a spc4es of’ rolling, when they split, and become only of the value of old iron. To sorb an extent was this the case ou the Xanchester line, that after five or six years it became necessary to have new ones, The less the vibration and concussion, the leas liable are tbr when supporfed on the softer sub. rails to receive this injury , especially Moreover. as hlr. I’nrkin’s bars only weigh ten stances of felt and wnod. pounds per yflrd, ins!eacl of sixty or seventy, the loss from such injury will Mr. Parkin’s plan m:ry be executed cheaper, even be prnportionably less. where stone blocks cost little, than any other. and with astonishing rapidity. It may In mn4 parts the saving, by its adoption, will be fully one half. works, especially in Wales, on very ad. be ~~~,+~i~~tft0 colleries and private We understand the plan has been recommended by vantageous terms. Sir. R~uneI for adoption by the directors of the Great tvertero Railway.-
Caenbrion.
MiningJourctnl. ___
.__.____
.____.~ ---
.
Consumplion of Cod iu Grerct Ihiluin. The quantity
of iron annually produced in Great Britain mny be takrn at 700,0(10 tons; and the quantity of coal rcqulrcc!, at nn averqe, to produce each ton of iron, including that used by engine.s, kc. n~;ty he eslimatrtl at 54 AC+ tons; giving a total of ‘&UGO,WO ton+ conqurned in the making of iron. cording to Mr. Icennedy, the quanti!y of coai consumed in lhe Cotton mitntlwcf the manufacture bar facture, in 1317, was upwards of 600,OO’J tOW, 1 since more than doubled; so that, allowing for grcilter economy. we tnRy f,\irly estiaate the conwmption of co:11 in the cotton trxle at WO,O tons linen, and silk trades cannot be Its consumption in the \voollen, consume 1”,1”x,u bO0,000 tons. The smelti q of copprr ores of Cornwall annually ahout 950,000 or 300,000 tons; and it iy supposed that the bt+nSRand Iu the salt works of Checopper nwnutgctures require nwrly a* much. 37 VOL. Xx.-No. G-Dnc~~uux, 163;.
431
changes their colour first to yellow and then to red, and that this acid can be neutralized by an alkali and the green colour restored. He regards these changes as modifications of one and the same colouring matter which he calls chromuLe,and asserts that it is the cause of the common yellow or red colour of the petals. These results are very erroneous. A leaf does not become green by any reagent; but when the foliage has become red, potash will change it to green, because the red colouring matter forms green compounds with that alkali. Rerzelius experiments chiefly. upon the leaves of the Pyrus communis gathered in a fresh state, after the colour had turned to a citron yellow. The leaves were maseratecl in successive portions of alcohol, and The latter became gelatinous on also treated with boiling alcohol. cooling, A granular substance was thus obtained, which had a tendency to crystallization, and also a yellow, soft, fatty substance which apthe yellow colouring pearcd identical with the grains. These contained as a yellow, fatty, unctuous mat:er of the leaves 9 which is described substance2 easily melted, and then on cooling becoming concrete, transparent, 01 a brownish yeliow, decomposable by heat, and leaving a residuum of charcoal. When rnoistencd with waterantl long exposed toair and light, it loses its colour completely and is transformed into a greasy matter, which is regarded by Berzelius as a peculiar substance, interHe names it Xmthophyfh (yellow mediate between f,rt pils and resins. leaves,) and is of opi!lion that the transformation of the green colouring matter of the leaf into a yellow, is ell’ected by a change in the or~auization of the leaf produced by frost which modifies the organization. Every etloort to reproc!uce the green from the yellow proved frui:less, nor could he succeed in changing the colouring matter to yellow. The with the yellow. brown colour of the foliage has nothin g in common It is protlnced by an extractire principle first colourless, and which, after the disorganization of the epidemics of the leaf, becomes brown by the action 01 oxygen, and communicates to the fibrous skeleton of the leaf a brown colour which cannot be removed by a weak solution of caustic potash, or destroyed by sulphurated hydrogen. The colouring matter of red leaves, Berzelius considers as probably He examined more particularly that identical with that of red fruits. of the leaves of the cherry and of the red gooseberry. It was extractafter distillation was separated by the ed from the leaves by alcohol, filtre from a resin and a fatty precipitate. The red matter after liltration was thrown down by neutral acetate of lead, of a beautiful grass green, which soon become a greyish brown. ‘J’he red colouring matter of the leaves, he names Erythrophyllc (red foliage.) \Vhen precipitated in parts by lime water, it subsides of green matter is colour while the fluid a paler red tint,- hence this colouring not originally blue. Jour. de Pharmacio Jo~lict 163 .
Construction ‘The Llanelly
of Rnilways.
Railway and Dock Company are adopting a new mode of constructing the upper works of railways, under a patent granted to Mr. “P’homas Parkin, who has delivered several lectures upon the subject in London.
Progress
432
of Civil iTEngineering.
As the subject Of railways is generally interesting, and must he f+peci. ally so to the inhabitants Of this part of South Wales, which, through the at no tiistant p~riotl, advnnccmcnt in science, FccmS tlcslincd to become, n very important seat for the manulitcturc of iron, we sl~l! not hesitate t0 give a particular tlescripcion of Mr. Parltin’s plan. The road, beitlg prepaxed of longitudinal hearer, c of k?~nnGctl oak, or other hard vvoo,l, from fi)nr to six ~lecp, dovclailctl
inches
in
the
!JilRe , !WO
into one another,
ill the top, or fhllr or tive feet thus forming n continuous line, with
nprisbts, twelve inches long and ilbout three in diameter, screwed lirmly height an(l Icvcl, in fit every yard inlo their bottom, are lixctl, at a proper trenches dug in I!IC road, from cigh~een inches to two feet wills: and tlcel~ The trericl~cs arc then filled with concrete, ComlkflSed Of gI.il\‘CI, san~l, ;IIIII when only the top Of the brarctr.3 Abertbaw lime, in proper propOrtioii~, ij vi:ible 011 tl~e surli~cc ot the ro:d, ali the rest being comlrletcly Ilurierl with the concrete, which immetii;~tt~ly sets and hardens, jn ;\ntl coni;olitl;lletl ;md in it short time I~ccomcli a salitl rock, the wltole length Of the road fOrmiOg,
as
20
crrgirlror
who
inspected
the
work
said,
Lb:in
everlasting
rail-
‘I’lie f’ouud;~tiori being complete, patent felt is laid upon the top 01 the benrc,r!: whereto bard of iron, two inches wide, and Il:rif an inch tlriclt, are lirmly Screwed, ilrltl the road is linkhed. The dimensions of‘ the trenches must bc regulated by the nature of the soil on which the r:lil\vay is m:lde, while the parties adopting the plan mzy u”e wood illIt iron of any size they ?‘he rails, as ilt prci;ent lixetl in iron chairs, mollntetl On think proper. stone blocks, at every yard, form unyicldirg points of support, and intc,rrnediiAtc licxiblc q)aces. ‘rhe carriages, of necessity, ;Ilteruately dcscentl below, and rise il!JOVC, the me:m line ot’ progression, and produce coucu3iOns on those poinCs, tlie severity of which is ;Iccortling to the degree of‘ v;iri;rtion f?orrl a straight line ilntl the wpkilly of‘ the mo!iOn. rlt a clkeed Of’ twenty-live miles per hour, they wo,~ld Occur ‘733 times in a minute. On the hlilrichestcr and 1,ircrpool line, Professor Garlow ‘6f’ourld the whole road to tremble;” and the detleclion in the rails so great as materi:1lly to diminish their strength, in conzcquence of their being pe~mn~zedl~ lixetl f0 the chairs. IJpon 3lr. Parkin’s plan, no vibration, of the Zeusi possiSle degree, is felt, the bars being screwed to contitzuorts wooden bearers, bedded upon ;\n unyielding ma 01‘concrete, of the strength and durability of which cement the Roman roads are irrrfragible evidence. Besides, the patent f1111, between the iron ilrltl the wood is tl non-conductor of Vibration, and aic!s ill Icssenirrg the trernrllous motion attend;iot on carriages running even on a perf&t plane. ‘l’be stone t)lOcks in the ordinary mode of conatructio0, !lcirq insulated iintl independent of each other, the preservation of‘s level surface [even if its attainment were practicable) i\nd of p~~rr;~llelism in the rails, is impos.Gble, as cliII‘erenccs in the subsoil must occur; and when ii block has Surlk, in ever so trilling n (lc:prec, below those next it, the next will either rerrr:iin in the permitneri : tlcxur~c, or be loose~~cti from the chair, or Iowcn the chair from the block, or hold the block in snspeti5iori. ‘I’he rails and chairs f’orrn a series Of levers and fulcra, the action and re-action at nhich are iucornp;itiblc will1 perm;inent Stability. Upon Mr. Parkin’s plan, iln cvf:O SUri;lCe and pnrI%llel lines may bcbhad, with almoat mi~tbernatical exactitode, which ncitttec the magnitude of the weights pa>ing on the rails, nor tlie rapidity of their motion, can tllsturh, degree of b~rdrie~e. W he3 il atier thr concrete bns acquired il proper block on one side of’ an Ordinary r;\ll,v;ly has sunk only in a slight &g-roe, WY.”
while the corresponding
one oppode
obtains
its position,
increased
weight
Consumption
of Coal in &-eat
Brilain,
will, of necessity, be thrown on the former, and its tendency to sink still further as well RS to be forced out of a parallel line be augmented, in . . . the ri\tio ot the smkmg. But with i?Ir. Parkin’s rails no such sinking could be anticipated, even were its occurrence possible. Wi’ith level parallel rails, scarcely any lateral pressure can be felt, ex_ cept in Cnrves, where means will he employed to meet the exigency of the ‘I’be absence of n plane and ot’ pnr:~llrlism in the rails, is the yrincj_ case. pal, if not the only, C~IISC of Intc,ral pres:‘ure, which could do no irijury to i\lr. Parkin’s road, unless it either reruovecl ont of its place one-half of the mass of’ concrete in which the bearers, with uprights a foot long at every yard. are bnrietl-made a breach in !he continuous line of bearers-forcetl the strong iron screws, by which the bars :lre secured to the bearers, from their hold, or burst the I:ars thenr*elvc~a ;isunder. As these bars are only halfan inch wide, and are thus secured to continuous bearers, they present no leverage for the flwch OT the wheel to act on, when any lateral pres. sure lakes place; whereas in ordinary r:tilwnys, the leverage is considerable (the wheels being elevated the height of”the rail. which is four or tjve inches above tire point of support.) and produces a corresponding tendency to force the blocks out of’a straight linp. L’pon such nn unyielding plane as Mr. Parkin’s railway present*, less trnctive power, as Professor Barlorv hap nbly demonstrated, is nrCcs*s:;\ry than on rail< which deflect between the points of scippnrt. while tile wear and tear of cnrriages and engines, and the necessity for limiting their weigh1 , are materially lessened. A locomotive engine weighs from ten to twelve ton3, ad subjects the rails to the process of a spc4es of’ rolling, when they split, and become only of the value of old iron. To sorb an extent was this the case ou the Xanchester line, that after five or six years it became necessary to have new ones, The less the vibration and concussion, the leas liable are tbr when supporfed on the softer sub. rails to receive this injury , especially Moreover. as hlr. I’nrkin’s bars only weigh ten stances of felt and wnod. pounds per yflrd, ins!eacl of sixty or seventy, the loss from such injury will Mr. Parkin’s plan m:ry be executed cheaper, even be prnportionably less. where stone blocks cost little, than any other. and with astonishing rapidity. It may In mn4 parts the saving, by its adoption, will be fully one half. works, especially in Wales, on very ad. be ~~~,+~i~~tft0 colleries and private We understand the plan has been recommended by vantageous terms. Sir. R~uneI for adoption by the directors of the Great tvertero Railway.-
Caenbrion.
MiningJourctnl. ___
.__.____
.____.~ ---
.
Consumplion of Cod iu Grerct Ihiluin. The quantity
of iron annually produced in Great Britain mny be takrn at 700,0(10 tons; and the quantity of coal rcqulrcc!, at nn averqe, to produce each ton of iron, including that used by engine.s, kc. n~;ty he eslimatrtl at 54 AC+ tons; giving a total of ‘&UGO,WO ton+ conqurned in the making of iron. cording to Mr. Icennedy, the quanti!y of coai consumed in lhe Cotton mitntlwcf the manufacture bar facture, in 1317, was upwards of 600,OO’J tOW, 1 since more than doubled; so that, allowing for grcilter economy. we tnRy f,\irly estiaate the conwmption of co:11 in the cotton trxle at WO,O tons linen, and silk trades cannot be Its consumption in the \voollen, consume 1”,1”x,u bO0,000 tons. The smelti q of copprr ores of Cornwall annually ahout 950,000 or 300,000 tons; and it iy supposed that the bt+nSRand Iu the salt works of Checopper nwnutgctures require nwrly a* much. 37 VOL. Xx.-No. G-Dnc~~uux, 163;.