[rollei_list] Re: OT - Steam vs Diesel
- From: Ardeshir Mehta <ardeshir@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: rollei_list@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 27 Jan 2005 22:30:59 -0500
On Wednesday, January 26, 2005, at 04:16 PM, Marc James Small wrote:
> Steam turbines have been used for ninety years to power ships by
> generating electricity but this has always been a bit of an inefficent
> exercize: the US Navy was the largest single employer of such plants
> and the trade-offs were immense. In the end, the only major commercial
> use of such gear was with reciprocating Diesel engines generating
> electricty. The current use on warships of such designs is all over
> the board, though the Royal Navy's COSAG ("Combined Steam and Gas")
> was the standard for forty years.
The reason steam turbines are not as efficient as diesels is simply a
question of temperature. The steam is at a much lower temperature than
the combustion gases in a diesel's cylinder. And this brings into play
the Second Law of Thermodynamics!
Cheers.
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