How to Keep the Wheels Turning
Page 33
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An Able and Well-balanced (2) Analysis of the Present and Future Positions of the Gas
Producer
HAVE read with profound interest the discussions which have been carried on recently in your columns on the subject of the propulsion of motor vehicles by gas—particularly producer-gas. I have, however, not ventured to enter the discussion until I read in your issue for January 20 a letter asking if producer-gas were only a temporary expedient, and I propose to attempt a reply.
After careful consideration of the subject from the operators' viewpoint, and in the light of my present knowledge, the answer is " Yes." I do not believe any operator would readily desire to change from a machine which requires comparatively little attention from the driver, as in the case of a petrol or C.I.-engined vehicle, to one which, equipped with a gas producer, does certainly need more attention.
An operator must realize that the adoption of the gas producer for vehicle propulsion has several drawbacks, as compared with petrol or oil fuel. It is true, as your correspondent mentions in your issue for January 20, that some time has to be spent in igniting the fuel in the producer and getting suitable gas to the engine before starting. Further, if stops he made to drop loads, and the duration of the stoppages exceed a certain period, fuel ignition has to be repeated.
• Summing Up the Pros and Cons • There is also a drop in the power output of the engine when run on producer-gas as against petrol. It is advisable to raise the compression ratio of the petrol engine. provided the hearings be suitable for the higher loading, but even this does not result in the same power output as originally produced on petrol.
There is also the necessary duty of cleaning the producer, filter and cooler, and it is very %important that . attention be given to this, as should dust or abrasive matter reach the engine it may result in higher maintenance costs. All this requires time and labour; therefore it results in more time being spent in the garage and on the road, as compared with the performance of petrol or oil machines.
To the above must be added, in some cases, loss of loading 'space. Concessions have been made by the Government on the matter of unladen weight, maximum speed with the higher unladen weight, etc.
The adoption of the gas-producer will depend, in my opinion, upon each or all of the following (1) Availability of petrol or oil fuel.
(2) Price of petrol or on fuel.
(3) Necessity of running vehicles to retain the business connections.
No attempt will be made to fix the relative importance of the above items. Each operator will have to decide the needs of his own case on its merits. I should, however, like to express an opinion or two on the above. , (1) Your correspondent writes: "Give me the good old petrol engine, etc." This, without fuel, is useless. to him, and in the event of more intense activity by the Services, it is highly probable that fuel will be more difficult to obtain, and the advent of the increase in Our "Air Arm" will lead to the same result.
There is every indication of greater fuel scarcity. Prices have already been advanced, and as our purchases from abroad increase, exchange rates may be affected, resulting in still higher charges for fuel. In my view, some economy in fuel costs can be secured against petrol by the use of the gas producer, and it may in some cases be worth while considering the gas producer for this reason alone.
The economy of producer-gas as against oil fuel is less attractive, and in view of the extra attention and time required by the gas producer, I do not, as yet, believe that any great advantage can be gained by a conversion from oil fuel. If further increases be made in the price of oil, then the value to the operator of the gas producer will merit. more consideration on grounds of economic• advantages.
(3) We hear that considerable diversion of pre-war road-transport traffic has gone to the railways. We are also informed that vehicles are idle due to lack of fuel and that trade is being lost by road-transport 'operators.
If this be correct, then an alternative fuel must be searched for, and any haulier whose business is, or has been, lost in this way would be well advised at least to consider the value of gas as a propulsion agent, and he will, if his routes be suitable, possibly be convinced that, in spite of its drawbacks, the gas producer is a good—if not the best—solution to his difficulties.
With the advent of war, the railway companies' "Square Deal" proposals have slipped from immediate politics, but you may rest assured that when conditions are such that we can return to more normal conditions than now prevail, the railways will have established a firm grip on traffic they did not handle before the war, which they will redouble their efforts to retain after, and, with the "Square Deal" legislation still to come before Parliament, they will then seek more firmly to establish their position.
• Importance of Retaining Connections • It is therefore, to my mind, incumbent on all road hauliers to see that they make every effort to retain their connections. If any form of gas propulsion be used, the Government has promised a five-year period free from rationing. All gas used for motor propulsion is home-produced—and you can obtain as much fuel as you require—so in your own, in the industrial and national interests, give the bagged, bottled and producer gas fair consideration and, as previously stated, if your operating conditions be suitable, you will, in all probability, decide upon a gas producer as offering the best alternative, I gave the answer as "Yes, a temporary eXpedient." The duration of the "temporary period" is indefinite. as we do not know when petrol or oil fuel will be as readily available or as cheap as before the commencement of the war.
Road transport must keep the wheels turning, and the gas producer offers what I believe, up to the present, is the best alternative way of achieving this
end. PRO BONO INDUSTRIA.