April 20, 191 1] 



NATURE 



26' 



geared turbines, the propeller, shafting, and boilers re- 

 maining the same. On again testing for economy a gain 

 of 15 per cent, was shown over the original machinery, 

 and subsequent minor alterations have increased this gain 

 to 22 per cent. There are two turbines, a high pressure 

 and a low pressure, each driving a pinion at 1400 revolu- 

 tions, gearing into a main wheel on the screw shaft 

 making 70 revolutions per minute. The gearing is entirely 

 enclosed in a casing, and is continually sprayed with oil 

 by a pump. Ordinary centrifugal governors on the turbines 

 control the speed, and because of the enormous angular 

 momentum of turbines (some fifty times that of an ordinary 

 marine engine) the acceleration is so slow that the 

 governors have time to act, and consequently no racmg 

 has ever occurred in the heaviest weather, and it is certain 

 that if geared turbines come into use there will be no 

 more cases of broken screw shafting as has hitherto been 

 common with reciprocating engines. 



The vessel has now been carrying coal from the Tyne to 

 Rotterdam for about a year, and has covered about 20,000 

 miles and carried 90,000 tons of coal across the North 

 Sea. The pinion on the lecture table was specially re- 

 moved from the vessel last week for this lecture, and shows 

 a wear on the teeth of under 2/1000" in this time, and its 

 life will therefore be equal to or greater than that of a 

 vessel. 



Gearing promises to play an important part in war 

 ■•' -^cls for increasing the economy at cruising speeds. We 

 lined the difficulty in obtaining good economy at the 

 „[i-pressure end of marine turbines, and in replacing such 

 portions by geared high-speed turbines we have a complete 

 solution. The Turbinia Company are now constructing 

 two 30-knot destroyers of 15,000 horse-power, wherein 

 the high-pressure portion and cruising elements are geared 

 in the ratio of 3 to i and 5 to i respectively to the main 

 low-pressure, direct-coupled turbine. Their use will in- 

 crease the radius of action of the vessels at cruising speed 

 to a very considerable extent over that of any similar 

 destroyer without gearing. Similar gearing is proposed 

 for warships, with similar prospective advantages. 



Gearing may also find a place in cross-Channel boats 

 and liners for the high-pressure portion of their turbines, 

 but the greatest material gain will be in extending the 

 use of turbines to vessels of slow speed. 



Gearing enables very high coefficients to be used in 



marine work at full speed, and good coefficients at all 



speeds without much increase in weight, and under such 



conditions a geared high-speed reaction turbine is much 



more efficient at the high-pressure end than the multiple 



impulse wheel or wheels we have considered, and will 



probably dispense with their use generally. Gearing in 



marine and land work promises to give to the turbine a 



level consumption curve like that of the gas and oil engine. 



Half a century ago nearly all screw vessels had mechanical 



gparing, one element being composed of wooden teeth, for 



ing up the speed of the engine. Subsequently the 



1 of engines was increased, and gearing abandoned. 



a very slow-speed turbine is an impossibility, and 



irately cut steel gearing seems to be a permanent and 



-factory solution. 



Low-pressure turbines worked by the exhaust steam from 



other engines are coming into general use on land under 



name of "The utilisation of fxli.-mst st(\un," for they 



-e what was formerly a wa^t'; product, the exhaust 



n from non-condensing fMi!:^inis. 



A ,ii'- ;4in'r.ill\- <nipk)\i'd in the generation of elec- 



■. <ir in thf working <if hlast-furnace blowers and 



rifiigal piini])s and gas forcers, but recentlv nn exhaust 



'.\\c of 750 hf>rsc-po\viT lias been applied to driving an 



plate mill in Scotland. 'I he turbine revolves al jooo 



>!utions per minute, .ni'l la a donhle r.ihieiion of 



al gears dfives the mill ai 70 r> \^ohit ions, A |1\-- 



! of 100 ton-. Wei^;llt l-e\olvi n;.; \\\ ill' -am'' sp, , i] .-is 



rolls r,|ua!i--. the -p.eil. Dm-iii- .leM ...Mie- the 



•!- an. I ilvvvli-.l coll. , ;iv. Iv •■■,■ 11 uh. ve,-, 



t on 



ems 



th. 



■(! in tlie future foi- .... , 



NO. 2164, VOL. 86] 



There are at the present time just above 6,000,000 horse- 

 power of marine turbines completed and building, and also 

 an equal horse-power of land turbines of the compound 

 reaction type. 



AUSTRALASIA}^ ASSOCIATION FOR THE 

 ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE. 

 nPHE Australasian Association for the Advancement of 

 Science held its thirteenth meeting at the Sydney 

 University on January 9-14 inclusive, in a short article 

 in our issue of February 23 last (.vol. Ixxxv., p. 558) a 

 brief outline of the proceedings at the meeting was given. 

 We have now received from Mr. j. H. Maiden, the per- 

 manent honorary secretary of the association, an extended 

 account of the meetings and presidential addresses delivered 

 in the various sections, and are glad to publish a fuller 

 report of what proved an important and successful gather- 

 ing of Australasian men of science and their friends. 



rhe president for the year. Prof. Orme Masson, F.R.S., 

 professor of chemistry in the University of Melbourne, 

 presided over the meeting, which was attended by more 

 than 500 members, the membership being above 800. 

 Every State in the Commonwealth was represented, and 

 also the Dominion of New Zealand. 



The president gave a garden-party in the afternoon of 

 January 9, and delivered his address in the evening in the 

 Great Hall of the university. His Excellency the Governor, 

 Lord Chelmsford, was in the chair. 



The work of the meeting was divided among eleven 

 main sections, each with its own president, vice-president, 

 and secretary. The following is a list of sections with the 

 name of the presidents : — 



Section A, Astronomy, Mathematics, and Physics : Prof. 

 T. H. Laby, professor of physics in Victoria College, 

 Wellington, N.Z. Section B, Chemistry, Metallurgy, and 

 Mineralogy : Prof. B. D. Steele, professor of chemistr\ in 

 the University of Queensland, Brisbane. Section C, 

 Geology : Prof. I^. Marshall, professor' of geologx in the 

 University of Otago, Dunedin, N.Z^ Section D, Kiolo-y : 

 Mr. F. M. Bailey, Government botanist at Hris- 

 bane. Section E, Geography and History; Prof. G. C. 

 Henderson, ' professor of history in the University of 

 Adelaide. Section F, Anthropology and Philology : Mr. 

 Edward Tregear. Section G — two departments, (i) Social 

 and Statistical Science: Mr. V.. W. H. h'owles : [2} Aeri- 

 culture : Prof. W. Angus, late director of agriculturi; in 

 Adelaide. Section H, Engineering and Architecture : Mr. 

 Ellwood Mead. Section 1, Sanitary Science and llvei,ne; 

 Dr. W. Perrin Norris, Commonwealth Director of Ouaran- 

 tine, Melbourne. Section J, Mental Science and Educa- 

 tion : the Rev. E. H. Sugden. 



Prof. Masson spoke first of the earliest attempts to bring 

 about a visit of the British Association to Australia. In 

 1909 the matter was brought under the notice of 1! N * !- 

 asian Association, of the universities and scienli' 



of Australia, and of the Federal and States Go\ >. 



All united in cordial support of the proposal, and old 

 financial difficulties were dispelled by the far-sighted 

 generosity of the political rulers. The Government of the 

 Commonwealth, acting ofTicially for all Australia, sent a 

 formal invitation, which was unanimously accepted by the 

 British Association for the year 19 14. Prof. Masson said 

 it was his good fortune to attend the Sheffifld m<v-ting last 

 September, and to speak there with tlie lli,i;li Commis-ioner 

 as the inviting deputation ; and he bore lotimonv to the 

 heartv feeling that prevailed and to th" -.troiig desire shown 

 hv many ol Hritain's mo-t tli-tineuiNJi.-d unai ol silence 

 to protit hv this opporlunitv ol .serine .An ' ■ -^tudx' 



its science on the spot, .Hid to pla\- a ]' will 



surely prove a great event in the histoiv ol .,,., unity. 



He went on to describe recent .id\ani.s m <henii-tiv. 

 He dealt first with the atomic theory, .u\(l pro. ! ! to 

 explain with great clearness ionic dissociation, <• 

 through gases, molecular collision, the periodic ! 

 activity, and the ■,■'•'.■ ". •:..■ 



end of his addr^ ^j>oii- 



tnneons transftirm. .;.".,- .». .. l<inds 



of atom, 'mhIi electrical and ;. ■ d. sonv 



of the latter having but a ■ y in turti 



