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The author first considers the style and arrangement of the seats, the position of the rear axle as affecting the rear kick-up in the chassis frame, and the position of the rear wheels as determining the distance from the back of the front seat to a point where the curve of the rear fender cuts across the top edge of the chassis frame. The location of the driver's seat and of the steering-wheel are next considered, the discussion then passing to the requirements that affect the height of the body, the width of the rear seat, and the general shape. The evolution of the windshield is reviewed and present practice stated. Structural changes are then considered in relation to the artistic requirements, as regards the various effects obtained by varying the size or location of such details as windows, doors, moldings, panels, pillars, belt lines, etc., and the general lines necessary to produce an effect in keeping with the character of the car.

The two broad divisions of aluminum pistons from a thermal standpoint are those designed to conduct the heat from the head into the skirt and thence into the cylinder walls, and those designed to partly insulate the skirt from the heat of the piston head. Pistons of the first type seem logical for heavy-duty engines; those of the second type are better suited for passenger-car engines. The objections of wear, piston slap, excessive oil consumption and crankcase dilution are stated as being the same for aluminum as for cast-iron pistons; and these statements are amplified. Piston slap is next considered and, as this can be overcome by using proper clearance, pistons of the second design tend to make this condition easier to meet. Many tests show that when too much oil is thrown into the cylinder bores, tight-fitting pistons and special rings will not completely overcome excessive oil consumption.

If at great altitudes air is supplied to the carbureter of an engine at sea-level pressure, the power developed becomes approximately the same as when the engine is running at sea level. The low atmospheric pressure and density at great altitudes offer greatly reduced resistance to high airplane speeds; hence the same power that will drive a plane at a given speed at sea level will drive it much faster at great altitudes and with approximately the same consumption of fuel per horsepower-hour. Supercharging means forcing in a charge of greater volume than that normally drawn into the cylinders by the suction of the pistons. Superchargers usually take the form of a mechanical blower or pump and the various forms of supercharger are mentioned and commented upon. Questions regarding the best location for the carbureter in supercharged engines are then considered.

The progressive decrease in the volatility of gasoline due to the insufficiency of the high-volatility supply has developed a problem of efficient utilization of internal-combustion-engine fuel that requires coordination between the engine and its fuel and a technical as well as economic adjustment between supply and demand. The three channels through which this adjustment tends toward accomplishment are stated and commented upon, consideration then passing to the three main resources from which the components of composite fuels can be drawn.

War service demanded that gasoline engines be absolutely reliable in minor as well as major details of construction; lightness of construction was second in importance. The war scope of the gasoline engine was so wide that engineers were forced toward the solution of unexpected and unrealized problems and a vast amount of valuable data resulted. This information includes recent determination of the quantitative nature of the factors governing thermodynamic performance in respect to mean effective pressure, compression ratio and the effect of volumetric efficiency; mechanical performance in regard to mechanical efficiency and internal friction; and engine balancing.

Flame propagation has received much attention, but few results directly applicable to operating conditions have been obtained. The paper describes a method devised for measuring the rate of flame propagation in gaseous mixtures and some experiments made to coordinate the phenomena with the important factors entering into engine operation; it depends upon the fact that bodies at a high temperature ionize the space about them, the bodies being either inert substances or burning gases. Experiments were made which showed that across a spark-gap in an atmosphere of compressed gas, as in an engine cylinder, a potential difference can be maintained which is just below the breakdown potential in the compressed gas before ignition but which is sufficient to arc the gap after ignition has taken place and the flame has supplied ionization. These experiments and the recording of the results photographically are described.

Some of the salient facts regarding the character of the engine fuel marketed within the past few years are shown in accompanying curves. The desirability of operating present-day experimental cars with fuel that is the equivalent of fuel that will probably be generally marketed two years hence is stated and various methods of meeting the fuel problem are then examined. A dry fuel mixture is desired to prevent spark-plug fouling, to improve engine performance in cold weather and to minimize lubricating oil contamination by fuel which passes the pistons. Various methods of obtaining a dry mixture are then discussed, leading to a detailed description of the construction and operation of a device specially designed to accomplish such a result more successfully.

The indicator was an important factor in the early development of the internal-combustion engine when engine speeds were low, but on high-speed engines such indicators were unable to reliably reproduce records because of the inertia effects of the moving part of the pressure element. The first need is for a purely qualitative indicator of the so-called optical type, to secure a complete and instantaneous mental picture of the pressure events of the cycle; the second need is for a purely quantitative instrument for obtaining an exact record of pressures. The common requirements for both are that the indicator timing shall correctly follow the positions of the crank and that the pressure recorded shall agree with the pressures developed within the combustion space. Following a discussion of these requirements, the author then describes the demonstration made of two high-speed indicators, inclusive of various illustrations that show the apparatus, and comments upon its performance.

The author advocates the use of the fragile aluminum crankcase as a spacer, running crankshaft bearing bolts clear through the crankcase and the cylinder base, so tieing the bearings firmly to the castiron cylinder-block and using the through-bolts also as holding-down studs for the cylinders. The results of experiments on six-cylinder engines with reference to the satisfactory utilization of engine fuel now on the market are then presented. The problem is how to carry the fuel mixture in a proper gaseous state from the carbureter into the cylinder without having the fuel deposited out meanwhile. The power developed at engine speeds of 400 to 2800 r.p.m., with and without hot air applied to the carbureter, is tabulated, the proper location of the intake manifold is discussed, and the necessary features of a satisfactory engine to utilize present-day fuel are summarized.

Among the problems before the designers of plowing tractors, none is more important than that of ascertaining the most economical plowing speed at which to operate a tractor to give first-class work at a minimum cost. The solution must be right from both the maunfacturer's and the farmer's standpoints. A variety of soil resistances, different speeds, widths and depth of cut, types and shapes of plows must be considered. The recently published draft data of Professor Davidson of Iowa State College and those of the Kansas State Agricultural College are used. They indicate in general that in each kind of soil, whether heavy or light, with speed increase there is a corresponding increase of draft, the amount of which is dependent upon the speed, shape of plow and nature of soil. The further experiments made relative to increased speed and draft and to the area plowed at different speeds are described and discussed, the results being shown by charts.

The annual report covering transportation by the largest British air-transport company laid particular emphasis upon the greater value of the faster machines in its service. Granted that efficient loads can be carried, the expense, trouble and danger of the airplane are justified only when a load is carried at far greater speed than by any other means. A reasonable conclusion seems to be that we can judge the progress made in aviation largely by the increased speed attainable. It is interesting and possibly very valuable therefore to inquire into the relations of power and resistance as applied to small racing machines with aircraft engines that are available.

A tendency exists in most shops to assume that brazed joints cannot be successfully heat-treated. As a consequence, many fittings used in aircraft work and assembled by brazing smaller parts together are finished and installed without being heat-treated after the brazing operation. This practice causes parts to be used that not only do not develop the available strength of the material, but which are in some cases, under internal stress due to the heating in the brazing operation. Recent experiments made at the Naval Aircraft Factory show that the assumption mentioned is entirely erroneous. The author considers this matter with a view to specifying the use of steels and brazing spelters which will permit the subsequent or perhaps the simultaneous heat-treatment of the parts.

The paper defines properties that describe the performance of a radiator; states the effects on these properties of external conditions such as flying speed, atmospheric conditions and position of the radiator on the airplane; enumerates the effects of various features of design of the radiator core; and compares methods that have been proposed for controlling the cooling capacity at altitudes. Empirical equations and constants are given, wherever warranted by the information available.

The very complete laboratory tests of airplane engines at ground level were of little aid in predicting performance with the reduced air pressures and temperatures met in flight. On the other hand, it was well-nigh impossible in a flight test to carry sufficient apparatus to measure the engine performance with anything like the desired completeness. The need clearly was to bring altitude conditions to the laboratory where adequate experimental apparatus was available and, to make this possible, the altitude chamber of the dynamometer laboratory at the Bureau of Standards was constructed. The two general classes of engine testing are to determine how good an engine is and how it can be improved, the latter including research and development work.

The feeling that a truly heavy-duty engine for truck and tractor service was not available led the company represented by the authors to commence the development of an engine that would be capable of high speed as well as have ability to develop maximum horsepower and torque at low or medium speeds. Five specific requirements are stated for a tractor and three for a truck engine; the requirements of a universal truck and tractor engine are then specified under six headings. The special features of design of the engine developed are described in minute detail and illustrated by photographs and charts, seven definite features being mentioned as having been productive of the desired results. The testing apparatus is described and power and torque curves, a timing diagram and capacity curves of the water and oil-pumps are presented. Gasoline was used as fuel, although the engine is designed to use either gasoline or kerosene and is said to be adapted to the use of the heavier fuels.

The free, resilient, self-expanding, one-piece piston-ring is a product of strictly modern times. It belongs to the internal-combustion engine principally, although it is applicable to steam engines, air-compressors and pumps. Its present high state of perfection has been made possible only by the first-class material now available and the use of machine tools of precision. The author outlines the history of the gradual evolution of the modern piston-ring from the former piston-packing, giving illustrations, shows and comments upon the early types of steam pistons and then discusses piston-ring design. Piston-ring friction, the difficulties of producing rings that fit the cylinder perfectly and the shape of rings necessary to obtain approximately uniform radial pressure against the cylinder wall are considered at some length and illustrated by diagrams.

Iron ranks first of all the metals; copper, lead and zinc come fairly close together in tonnage; tin ranks next; and aluminum is fifth of the non-ferrous metals. The place of aluminum in the automotive industry is shown in a diagram and another brings out the production of copper and aluminum, both receiving comment. The metallography of aluminum alloys is discussed in some detail, as well as the phenomena of growth and aging, charts and photomicrographs being shown and commented upon. The effect of alloying on physical properties is treated in a similar manner in considerable detail and a comparison of aluminum with other metals follows. Forging alloys are described and some miscellaneous aluminum-alloy forged parts are pictured. The advantages of forging alloys are enumerated and many of their present uses specified; other contemplated uses for the newest alloy are for cast disc-wheels for passenger cars, differential carriers and cast rear-axle housings.

The author views in perspective some facts from a purely scientific standpoint, and then shows their application to problems of the automotive industry. After reviewing the present facilities for measurement and the ability to make measurements of distances both infinitely small and large, as an aid toward a proper conception of the ultimate structure of matter, he applies this scientific knowledge in the direction of a solution of the fuel problem, which is a fundamental one because it involves the limitation of a natural resource. From 1918 and 1919 statistics, the amount of gasoline produced was something like 20 to 25 per cent of the crude oil pumped; 8 to 10 per cent is kerosene and 50 per cent is gas and fuel oil and a residue carrying lubricating oil, paraffin and carbon. Kerosene demand and production are practically fixed quantities; gasoline demands are increasing.

The adoption of the present system of feeding a number of cylinders in succession through a common intake manifold was based upon the idea that the fuel mixture would consist of air impregnated or carbureted with hydrocarbon vapor, but if the original designers of internal-combustion engines had supposed that the fuel would not be vaporized, existing instead as a more or less fine spray in suspension in the incoming air, it is doubtful that they would have had the courage to construct an engine with this type of fuel intake. That present fuel does not readily change to hydrocarbon vapor in the intake manifold is indicated by tables of vapor density of the different paraffin series of hydrocarbon compounds.

A large number of tests were made in the altitude laboratory of the Bureau of Standards, using aircraft engines. The complete analysis of these tests was conducted under the direction of the Powerplants Committee of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. Many of the engines were of the same make, differing in compression ratio or dimensions. The testing program included determinations of the brake-horsepower at various speeds and altitudes, or air densities, and the friction power, or the power required to operate the engine with no fuel or ignition at various speeds and air densities, with normal operating conditions of oil, water and the like. Some tests included determination of the effect of change of mixture ratio and of air temperature, and of different oils. The difficulties caused by the necessity of using indirect methods to ascertain the effect of various factors are outlined. The test analyses and curves are presented.