A Practical Manual On Sea Water Distillation
With A Description Of The Necessary Machinery For The Process

6o SEA WATER DISTILLATION. —i.e., in boiler working—these heating capacities may be reduced by 30 to 40 per cent, in ordinary work. TABLE H. Description of Fuel. Total Heat Units of Combustion (B.T.U.) Pounds Evaporated at 212°. Welsh steam coal, average, 15,564 16-11 Newcastle, average, 14,820 15-34 Derbyshire, 13,860 14’34 S. Yorkshire, „ 14,296 14'80 Lancashire, „ . ... . 13,918 14-40 Scotch, Coal (a mean of 37 specimens of various 14,164 14-65 descriptions), 13,006 11-34 Coke, 10,970 11-35 Charcoal, 12,000 12'42 Wood (dry), 6,582 6-81 Wood (ordinary), 5,260 5'45 Peat (fairly dry), 8,736 to 9,951 9 to 10'3 „ (ordinary), Petroleum—American (ordinary crude), 7,151 20,240 20’95 „ Refuse 19,240 20'00 „ Caucasian (crude), 20,138 20'83 Town gas, about 18,000 18-73 Note.—To this Table H may be added the heat of combustion of alcohol (spirits of wine), which, when pure, has a heat-giving power of about 12,000 B.T.U. for every 1 lb. of alcohol (sp. gr., 0’79) consumed. About I2| lbs. of alcohol would go to the gallon, and, therefore, 1 gallon of alcohol would be able to impart about 150,000 B.T.U. ( = 12,000 B.T.U. per 1 lb.), but the spirits of wine of commerce contains from 15 to 20 per cent, of water, so that its heating power would have to be correspondingly lowered in the same proportion—i.e., 15 to 20 per cent, less than 12,000 B.T.U. per lb. The heating power of alcohol may be taken as about equal to that of coal (weight for weight).