THE OIL FUEL COMMISSION.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 87, 29 August 1912, Page 4

THE OIL FUEL COMMISSION.

The news that a Royal Commission has been set up by the Imperial Government to investigate the subject of oil fuel, and that Admiral Lord Fisher has been appointed chairman, seems to foreshadow a greatly extended use of oil as a fuel for the ships of the Royal Navy. The advantages of oil fuel from a purely naval point of view are said to be overwhelming. Writing in the 1912 issue of the Naval Annual, Mr. Alexander Richardson marshals the points in favor of oil as against coal very comprehensively. He lays particular emphasis on the fact that oil, by reason of its greater steamproducing capacity than coal, weight for weight, takes up less space for storage. Even if the same space is taken as was formerly occupied by coal, in order to gain a larger cruising radius, oil still economises space, because it can be stored anywhere about the ship, and is often placed in the space between the outer and inner bottom of the vessel. In designing vessels to burn oil fuel, therefore, specified armament and accommodation can be provided on a smaller displacement than if coal were used. To attain the same speed with the reduced displacement Tequires loss powerful and less weighty machinery. As the furnaces which burn oil never get choked, and do not require raking out, the space in front of the boilers can 'be reduced. All this makes for a smaller and less expensive vessel without loss of efficiency. In the working of the ship there are also advantages. Running at 'full speed the furnaces never require clearing, and the maximum speed can be maintained as long as the fuel lasts. Oil requires no trimming or handling, either in the bunkers or while in use, and the engine-room staff can be greatly reduced. Fresh supplies of oil can be taken aboard in a fraction of the time required to load with coal,-a factor of the utmost importance in war-time, and as the flash-point of the oil is as high as 200 degrees Fahrenheit, .there ia little danger of its accidental ignition. Mr. Richardson's facts are taken from the actual experience of British naval officers on vessels burning oil fuel and 'have been verified by careful examination and comparison.