160 OIL FIELDS OF TEXAS-LOUISIANA COASTAL PLAIN, [bull. 212. 
PRACTICAL TESTS IN STEAM RAISING. 
The most thorough practical experiments, with the view of testing the 
full value of the Beaumont petroleum, have been made by Prof. James 
E. Denton, of the Stevens Institute of Technology, Iloboken, N. J. 
These tests were made in the plant of the West Side Hygeia Ice Com- 
pany, of New York. From the data thus obtained it appears that this 
petroleum has an evaporative powe r - : of 15.29 to 15.55 pounds of water 
per pound of oil used. Of the steam generated 3.1 to 4.8 per cent was 
used by the burner in spraying the oil. There was thus left available 
for use the steam from 14.74 to 15.16 pounds of water per pound of 
oil used. Buckwheat anthracite coal used under the same boilers 
evaporated from 8.75 to 9.17 pounds of water per pound of fuel. In 
other words, Professor Denton has demonstrated that in boilers well 
proportioned and carefully handled 78.5 percent of the entire calorific 
value of the oil was made effective. In ordinary practice, without the 
use of special precautions to guard against waste, 13 pounds of water 
should be evaporated by 1 pound of Beaumont petroleum, as com- 
pared with 6 to 6.5 pounds of water evaporated by the bituminous 
coals of Indian Territory, 8.7 pounds by Pittsburg coal, and 9 by Penn- 
sylvania anthracite. 
COMPARATIVE FUEL VALUE OF COAL AND BEAUMONT PETROLEUM. 
The relative fuel value of petroleum and various standard coals 
may be obtained by comparing the amount of water evaj)orated by, 
one pound of the various fuels. Taking 13 pounds as the amount] 
evaporated by 1 pound of* Beaumont petroleum under ordinary con- 
ditions, and 6.5 pounds as the amount evaporated by Southwestern, 
bituminous coal under similar conditions, the ratio — '- is 2. If a bet- 
6.0 
ter grade of coal is used, the ratio will be smaller. Thus, with Pitts- j 
13 
burg coal, which evaporates 8.7 pounds of water, the ratio — would 
8.7 
would be 1.5. 
The average specific gravity of Beaumont petroleum is about .921, 
so that it weighs 7.68 pounds to the gallon, or about 322 pounds to the 
barrel of 42 gallons. 
Taking the first ratio, 2, obtained above from the comparison of! 
the evaporation by Beaumont petroleum and southwestern bitumi- 
nous coal, 'it will be seen that 1,000 pounds of petroleum is required 
to do the work of 1 ton of coal of 2,000 pounds; or, since 1,000 pounds 
is equivalent to 3.1 barrels, 1 ton of Southwestern bituminous coal 
may be regarded as having the same fuel value as 3.1 barrels of 
petroleum. The following table gives the value of Beaumont petro- 
leum for steam-raising purposes compared with two standard grades 
of coal at prices varying from II to $7 per ton. 
