Technikatörténeti szemle 4. (1967)

TANULMÁNYOK - Mináry József: Mérnökszemmel az első gőzmozdonyokról

Den Höhenpunkt seiner Laufbahn erreichte Stephenson anläßlich des Lokomotivenwettbewerbs, ausgeschrieben durch die Liverpool-Manchester-Eisenbahngesellschaft in Rainhill. Den 6. Oktober 1829 trug seine Lokomotive „Rocket" den ersten Preis davon. Diese Lok wurde unter Mitwirken seines Sohnes Robert Stephenson, Leiter der Lokomotivenfabrik in Newcastle, konstruiert. Am Wettkampf nahmen vier Lokomotiven teil, es .gelang jedoch bloß der „Rocket", den Anforderungen unschwer zu entsprechen. Der überwältigende Erfolg der „Rocket" läßt sich vor allem auf den Rauchrohrkessel zurückführen, dessen erhebliche Heizfläche die Erzeugung der erforderlichen Dampfmenge ohne Schwierigkeiten erlaubte. Der Kessel bestand aus zwei gesonderten Einheiten, u. zw. aus dem Langkessel und dem Stehkessel. Der Feuerkasten hatte noch keine Rohrwandung und sie schloß sich mit Schrauben an den Langkessel an. Wasser- und Dampfraum des Stehkessels waren mit denen des Langkessels durch Rohre verbunden. Prinzipiell besteht kein Unterschied zwischen dem damaligen und dem zeitgemäßen Stephensonkessel. Auf Grund der oben Gesagten liegt es auf der Hand, daß das Modell der „Rocket" unbedingt in die Sammlung des Verkehrsmuseums aufgenommen werden muß. Es versteht sich von selbst, daß man danach die Nachbildung der ersten Trevithickschen Lokomotive in Angriff zu nehmen hat. J. MINARY THE FIRST STEAM ENGINE FROM AN ENGINEER'S VIEW The Communicational Museum rebuilds in its workshop for its collection the 1 :5 model of Stephenson's „RoCket" steam engine, winner of the 1829 Rainhill engine competition. In the course of construction on basis of the English Victoria and Albert Museum's draft, experiments to realize mechanical transportation by railway at the turn of the 19th century came into the focus. These were started by road steam carriage ventures, horse-tram transportation followed, steam driven machines in industrial and mining plants continued in due course. It was R. Trevithick in 1804 who produced the first operating locomotive. The steam engine worked at high steam pressure (being 3 atm at the time). The boiler was of a flue tube solution and the only horizontal cylinder of the engine was built in the boiler. The drive had a flywheel and cogwheel transmission. The exhaust steam got to the funnel through the water tanks, thus the preheating of the feedwater was solved, too. Trevithick constructed his first engine taking into account the adhesive force. But the weak cast iron rails in use at that time broke under the engine. His second, flange-wheel engine, built in 1805 was still too heavy for the rails. In 1808 he displayed his last engine, with no flywheel and cogwheel transmission, after the selling of which he gave up engine building and went to SouthAmerica in 1816. In 1811 J. Blenkinshop appeared with his cogwheel engine, having a flue tube boiler as well. Some more locomotives were built of this type, but in spite of their economical operation, these were also short-lived due to cog- and rail-damages. In 1812 Wilhelm and Eduard Chapman attempted a chain-drive locomotive which proved a failure because of its very low mechanical efficiency. In 1813 Brunton produced a steam engine, the cylinder of which moved two supporting legs behind the locomotive with a complicated appliance. Hedley's „Puffing Billy" was built in 1813. This one had a good locomotive structure, its boiler was made of cast iron (the previous types were of forged iron), in other respects it resembled that of Trevithick's. Its run was the best compared to that of locomotives known till then. In 1814 G. Stephenson built his first steam engine showing structural solutions similar to Blenkinshop's and Hedley's, but used a boiler of a smaller heater surface, which proved unsufficient. Taking into consideration his former experiences he built new locomotives yearly. Due to his prestige he was appointed organizer of the partly public Stockton-Darlington railway, opened in 1825. His steam engine „Locomotion" drew the first train.