HARNESSING THE SUN.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXV, Issue 90, 23 April 1913, Page 4

HARNESSING THE SUN.

Operations have been commenced in Egypt by a company with a capital of £300,000 for harnessing the rays of the sun for power purposes. The prospects are considered to be very good and the enterprise is being wat-

died with much interest. It appears that the rays of the sun arc caught and concentrated in great receivers,' shaped J ike ear-trumpets, which follow the sun on its diurnal course, and feed a boiler, which supplies the power. The first “heater” was invented six years ago. It was made out of a cigar-box in Philadelphia, and though the sun there is by no means so strong as it is in Africa, the inventor managed to run a toy engine with it with success. Larger machines were made, until at last a complete experimental sun-power pumping plant of thirty horse-power was erected at Philadelphia and successfully run for three months. Considering that the experimental stage had been passed, the inventor formed a company, a number of patents were brought out, and a complete sun-power irrigation plant of 100 horse-power was made and shipped to Meadi, a suburb of Cairo For a few days the invention was operated with great success, but the sun was actually too hot for the metal used in a certain part, and by fusing it disabled the plant. It is expected that the plant will bo working to its full power by June, and it is believed that the use of the invention in promoting irrigation will speedily quadruple the present area of arable land in Egypt. If all this is true, the possibilities are enormous.