POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

Steam engine by Forth Banks Works used to power Sydney ferries

Object No. B681

The triple expansion engine is a stage in the evolution of the steam engine which began with the Newcomen atmospheric engine. In this type of engine the steam was introduced in to a cylinder at low pressure and temperature and condensed. This formed a vacuum in the cylinder which allowed the weight of air above the piston to force the piston down. The next development was to use the steam positively in association with the condensing action. Again the steam pressure was relatively low as was the temperature. Over the succeeding decades the steam pressures and temperatures increased. This led to lighter , faster engines which were more efficient and used less fuel. The increasing steam pressure required a concomitant improvement in the method of construction of steam boilers. However, the use of high pressure steam was still generally considered unsafe and in the late 19th century a member of the British Board of Trade expressed concern for steam pressures above 70 lbs per square inch in merchant ships. Even so, the need for greater economy in the operation of steam engines; especially on ships where coal bunkerage was limited, required an increase in steam pressure. In the late 18th century experiments had been carried out with the use of high pressure steam on existing low pressure engines by placing a high pressure cylinder alongside the low pressure one on the engine. The experiments were successful with increases in power output. With a different understanding of steam ; as an 'elemental force' instead of a vapour, innovators in the 19th century began to use steam expansively, first in the high pressure cylinder and then exhausted into a low pressure cylinder where it continued to expand. This process was known as compounding. This was a very successful way of using more of the power of high pressure steam to effect economies in fuel and water use. Compounding was used on river vessels as early as the 1820s but it was not until the 1870s that compounding became popular on sea-going ships. The next evolutionary step was to introduce a third, and intermediary, cylinder between the high pressure and the low pressure cylinders to use more of the expansive power of the available steam. Known as triple expansion, this type of engine appeared in 1880. The final evolutionary stage in reciprocating steam engine development was the introduction of quadruple expansion in the 1890s. R. & W. Hawthorn began the manufacture of triple expansion marine engines in 1885 and in 1886 joined with the Hebburn shipyard of Andrew Leslie to form R. & W. Hawthorn, & Leslie Co. It may be coincidental that in the year prior to the manufacture of the 'Pheasant' engine (1889) the colonial navy had fitted Hawthorn-Leslie made triple expansion engines in three of their vessels under construction by Armstrong's. The vessels were: Katoomba (engine number 2125); Mildura (engine number 2126); Wallaroo (engine number 2127). The use of the Parramatta River and Sydney Harbour as a means of public communication began with the 'Rose Hill Packet' in the late 18th century and has continued to the present day. The engine draws together the period of the private company operating the river service with a large capacity ferry and its assoociated steam tram service from the wharf to the heart of Parramatta, to the establishment of Sydney Ferries Ltd., and its takeover by the New South Wales State Government in 1951.

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Summary

Object Statement

Triple expansion marine steam engine and parts, full size, engine No.2136, metal, made by R. & W. Hawthorn, Leslie, & Co, Forth Banks Works, Newcastle on Tyne, England, 1889, used to power Sydney ferries 'Pheasant' and 'Karrabee' 1889-1936

Physical Description

Triple expansion marine steam engine and parts, full size, engine No.2136, metal, made by R. & W. Hawthorn, Leslie, & Co., Forth Banks Works, Newcastle on Tyne, England, 1889, used to power Sydney ferries 'Pheasant' and 'Karrabee' 1889-1936 Inverted vertical marine triple expansion steam engine. Fitted with three green-painted cylinders with slide valves. Piston rods, connecting rods and valve rods are bright. A green-painted condenser forms part of the cylinder support casting. The dimensions of the cylinder bores are: 279 mm (11 inches), 432 mm (17 inches) and 660 mm (26 inches). The stroke is 508 mm (20 inches). The operating steam pressure was 1102 kPa (160 pounds) and the engine developed approximately 40 nominal horsepower or 30 indicated horsepower.

DIMENSIONS

Height

4000 mm

Width

3000 mm

Weight

9144 kg

PRODUCTION

Notes

This triple expansion marine engine serial number 2136 was manufactured in 1889 by R. & W. Hawthorn Leslie & Co. Newcastle on Tyne, England, at a cost of 2088 pounds 19 shillings and 4 pence against a contract price of 1115 pounds. Marine engines had been built at the Forth Banks works but this production was transferred to their St Peters works, opened in 1871. However, this engine, serial number 2136, was manufactured at the Forth Banks Works, the last engine manufactured there.

HISTORY

Notes

The engine was ordered from Hawthorn Leslie and Company by Mr Charles Edward Jeanneret (1834-1898) , Partner in and Manager of the Parramatta River Company. When received in 1889 the engine was installed in 'S.S Pheasant' a triple deck, single ended ferry capable of carrying 489 passengers. The 'Pheasant' was built by J. Pashley at Balmain in 1889. The engine was reputed to have been displayed at Sydney's 1879 International Exhibition. However, the engine was manufactured seven years after the Exhibition was destroyed by fire. Also, there is no reference to either "Hawthorn Leslie" or to large triple expansion marine engines in Norman Selfe's report on the machinery section of the 1879 Sydney International Exhibition. The 'Pheasant' was sold along with the company to Philip B Walker who ran the company until 1893 when it was recapitalised as a limited liability company; "Parramatta RiverSteamers and Tramway Company". In 1900 the 'Pheasant' was sold to Sydney Ferries Ltd and was converted to a lighter in 1914. The engine was removed from the 'Pheasant' at this time and transferred in the Sydney Ferries Ltd newly built ferry, the 'Karrabee' that same year. In 1936 the 'Karrabee' was reengineed with a diesel and the triple expansion steam engine donated to the Museum.

SOURCE

Credit Line

Gift of State Transit Sydney Ferries, 1936

Acquisition Date

18 November 1936

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