Leakage

“ Where the rock is volcanic and badly fractured, or sandy, the leakage will be most rapid; and where the bed is made of clay or unbroken granite the leakage will be much more gradual. It will also depend on the depth of the sea, and will be greatest where the ocean is deepest, and quite insignificant in shallow water. A rapid rate of leakage would mean that large quantities of water quickly come in contact with the heated rock, and develop correspondingly great steam pressure in the crust which underlies that part of the ocean. ”

“ Under all circumstances, care should be taken not to place the end of the air-pipe under the floor or in an enclosed space, because leakage may occur, due to the bad seating of the air-valve, thereby producing a mixture which may explode if the flame leaps back, as we shall see in the discussion of suction by pipes terminating in the hollow of the frame. ”

“ Experiments have shewn that the flow of water causes a partial vacuum and insuction at the defective points. During intermissions of supply when the mains are partially or entirely empty, the danger of leakage into them is still greater. Coal-gas has been similarly sucked into water-mains. ”

“ It is an operation skill in which is easily acquired and applied. The escape of electricity cannot be detected by the sense of smell as can gas, but it can be detected by apparatus far more certain and delicate. Leakage not only means waste, but in the presence of moisture it means destruction of the conductor and its insulating covering by electric action. ”

“ In testing the apparatus for leaks, the greatest precaution is taken. A small air-pressure is applied and the variations in height of a delicate manometer noted. In cases of apparent leakage, all possible sources of leak are gone over with soapsuds when there is a slight pressure on the chamber. As a last resort, which has ultimately proven to be the best method of testing, an assistant goes inside of the chamber, it is then hermetically sealed, and a slight diminished pressure is produced. ”

“ If any breach is made in the pipe system, a leakage takes place, causing an alteration in the level of the mercury in the manometer, which may, if desired, be arranged to ring a bell. The manometer should in any case be observed regularly on the opening of the strong-room. ”

“ Whenever a number of open cells are in use, unless precautions be taken, electrical leakage between the cells invariably occurs. This leakage is due chiefly to the semi-conducting nature of the thin layer of moisture which frequently covers not only the glass containing cells, but the unimmersed parts of the elements, and even the shelves on which the cells rest. To prevent this waste of energy, the outside of the cells should occasionally be well cleaned and thoroughly dried. A little vaseline or tallow may then be rubbed over them to advantage. ”

“ However, the leakage was not large as yet, and if it got no worse would not be a serious thing. It meant some loss of oil, but it would be for only a few days, until they could get the line connected to the tank in Copperhead. ”

“ The great thing to guard against is leakage. If the pipes were simply buried in the ground, it would be almost impossible to trace leakage, or even to know of its existence. The income of the company might be wasting away, and the loss never suspected until the quarterly returns from the meters were obtained from the inspectors. ”

“ If the material be so porous as to permit a considerable leakage of air through it, there will naturally result a continuous change of air in the working chamber, and a corresponding relief of the men from the deleterious effects which are nearly always produced by over-used air. ”

“ There'll be some leakage in practice and we won't have time to build up that much negative potential every time we shoot, but if we only do half that well, we'll have a pretty thorough-going charge of lightning ... ”

“ In modern practice, an essential feature of working is to keep all the doors closed as much as possible, and, as will be indicated shortly, every means is taken to eliminate the heat losses from the causes just referred to. Air leakage is also occasioned by bad grating, which causes the formation of channels in a few parts of the bed of fuel, admitting excess of air at these places, instead of causing it to come regularly through the bed in all parts. ”

“ There is no such thing as absolute insulation, some heat leakage must occur through the very best insulation, and the reduction of this heat leakage to the minimum should be the chief object or factor for consideration. ”

“ If the usual flush applied immediately afterwards clears this off, the form of pan and the flushing power are satisfactory. By removing the wood-work around the w.c., leakage or spillings of slop-water around the w.c. can be detected. ”

“ The hydraulic test is a very convenient method of testing the tightness of the work in a new boiler, in conjunction with inspection to a greater or lesser degree, in the passing of new work. As a detector of leakages it has no rival, and its application enables faulty caulking to be made good before the boiler has left the works, and before a leak has time to enter on its insidious career of corrosion. ”

“ Wash in hot soapy water, and then rub the inside of the cover with sweet oil and a rag. Clean the outside with finely powdered whitening and polish with leather.
TO DETECT AN ESCAPE OF GAS
Never take a light into the room or look for the leak with a light. Soap and water mixed, and applied with a brush to the pipe will commence to bubble if there is a leak. ”

“ He was inclined to attribute the leak to dust in the air, a view which was strengthened by an experiment of J. W. Hittorf’s (Wied. Ann., 1879, 7, p. 595) , in which a small carefully insulated electroscope, placed in a small vessel filled with carefully filtered gas, retained its charge for several days; we know now that this was due to the smallness of the vessel and not to the absence of dust, as it has been proved that the rate of leak in small vessels is less than in large ones. ”

“ Leaks had been discovered from time to time, small tricklings and droppings of earth, which brought Cavanaugh and Henderson to the spot and caused the greatest tension until they had been done away with. The air had a tendency to bore holes upward through the mud. But these were invariably stanched with clay, or, if growing serious, bags of shavings or waste, the air pressure blowing outward from below being sufficient to hold these in place, provided the breach was not too wide. ”

“ To locate the leak the gas cock should be 58opened and the water allowed to run into the gas chamber. If this does not show the leak, force the water back into the acid chamber, which is done by attaching the air pump to the gas cock. Then taking a piece of soap and making a stiff lather, daub it over the cocks and cleaning and charging screw. When the leak is found the escaping air will cause bubbles to be blown. If the leak does not become apparent after the above process, the side boards of the generator should be taken off and the operation repeated on the seams. ”

“ The tubing must be dry before it can be heated to soldering temperature. Leaks in places not readily accessible usually require the services of a plumber and sometimes of both a plumber and a carpenter.
Tanks
Leaks in tanks are usually caused by corrosion. Sometimes, a safety valve may fail to open and the pressure developed will spring a leak.
While a leak may occur at only one place in the tank wall, the wall may also be corroded thin in other places. Therefore, any repair should be considered as temporary, and the tank should be replaced as soon as possible. ”

“ Where the flame of the torch is drawn inward there is an air leak. Plaster up all air leaks and repair the brickwork around door frames where necessary. You should go over your boiler for air leaks once a month.
In regard to best methods of firing soft coal, see Technical Paper No. 80 of the Bureau of Mines, which may be obtained from your State Fuel Administrator.
Dirty heating surfaces cause low efficiency because they prevent the heat in the hot gases from getting through into the water. ”

“ As the mass of rags is tossed and shaken about the loosened dust is carried away by the suction of the air, which draws the dust particles into tubes furnished with suction fans. In most modern mills the rags are carried forward from the “duster” on an endless belt, and a careful watch is kept upon them as they emerge to detect the presence of unchopped pieces, buttons, or other foreign substances. ”

“ There are secret conduits or rivulets of the liquid matter, which communicates fire and heat into all parts more or less, and melts the stones and cinders by fits in those places where it toucheth them, over and over again; where it meets with rocks or houses of the same matter (as many are) , they melt and go away with the fire; where they find other compositions, they turn them to lime or ashes (as I am informed) . The composition of this fire, stones, and cinders, are sulphur, nitre, quicksilver, sal ammoniac, lead, iron, brass, and all other metals. ”

“ Here, then, we have the first source of danger in a flour-mill. A thick cloud of this dust, when conveyed through a spout by air, will burn in an instant if it takes fire; and, if there is any considerable amount of dust, as there would be if there were a dust-room, an explosion will follow which may become general if it stirs up a thick dust-cloud throughout the mill. ”

“ For example, the particles of coal dust in the air of mines, and the smoke from factory chimneys; particles of steel and grit given off in grinding; organic dust or fluff in shoddy and flax mills; the dust in potteries, china works, pearl button manufactories, in polishing and cement works, in brass works, in marble and steel polishing works of various sorts, especially where emery is used; in all of these cases the solid particles are inhaled and tend to produce disease in the lungs and air passages. ”

“ Great care should be taken not to expand the flues too much, for by so doing you are likely to loosen other flues and cause more leaks than you had in the first place. Small leaks inside a boiler are not particularly dangerous, but they should be remedied at the earliest possible moment, since they reduce the power of the boiler and put out the fire. ”

“ It may be asked, How is the decay, or fermentation, of vegetable matter, such as farmyard manure, caused? or rather, To what is it due? Decay of any substance is just its slow combustion or burning. When a substance unites with the active chemical element in air—the oxygen gas—it is said to be oxidised. Now, this union of a substance with oxygen is the explanation of burning, and the phenomena of burning and decay are explained by the same chemical operation. ”

“ Fire-damp and dust explosions are caused by the presence of marsh-gas in sufficient quantity to form an explosive mixture, or by a mixture of small percentages of marsh-gas and coal-dust, and in some cases by the presence of coal-dust alone in the air of the mine. ”

“ If coal gas, foul air, or other pollution is suspected of having injured the varnish, an artist chemist, learned in varnishes of the different schools, must prescribe; but if the surface is injured, or the colour scales off, no amateur can repair the crack ”

“ Once I had gone to the mat with a plumber that was looking for a gas-leak, and the boss came in and got us both by the collar and threw us down the stairs like a pair of old shoes. I thought I was a goner for sure when he [102] sent for me to come to the office that night and asked me who started the trouble. I told him the plumber said whenever he found gas-leaks in jobbing houses he always reckoned somebody was getting ready to collect the insurance. ”

“ From these facts and from the experiments and observations of Sénarmont, Daubrée, Delesse, Scheerer, Sorby, Sterry Hunt, and others, we are led to infer that when in the bowels of the earth there are large volumes of matter containing water and various acids intensely heated under enormous pressure, these subterranean fluid masses will gradually part with their heat by the escape of steam and various gases through fissures, producing hot springs ”

“ Fragmentary materials, which are sometimes discharged in enormous quantity and dispersed over a wide extent of country, the finer particles being transported by upper air-currents for hundreds of miles. These materials arise either from the explosion of lava by the sudden expansion of the dissolved vapours and gases, as the molten rock rises to the surface, or from the breaking up and expulsion of portions of the walls of the vent, or of the lava, which happens to have solidified within these walls. ”

“ Part of the trouble was a leak.
"Don't be alarmed, ladies and gentlemen," said the mate; he was coming quickly down from the group forward, followed by a dozen clamorous passengers. "We've found a leak in the hold. A barrel of explosive stuff went off, but they're getting the best of it, all right. The engineers are working. The shock's disabled the machinery a little. It'll soon be fixed. Don't be frightened." ”

“ It may be likened to a leak in the roof of a twentieth-century dwelling. The roofs of twentieth-century dwellings were supported by rafters, and whenever a leak occurred, the water ran along these rafters and seeped through the ceiling in unexpected places. ”

“ The corrosion of one of these sheets occupies from three to six weeks, during which time it is repeatedly uncoiled and scraped. Litharge, or flake white, is nothing more than the densest and thickest scales produced in the manner just described. It can be obtained in a pure state from the dealers in paints, whereas the white lead of commerce is most commonly adulterated with chalk.
6. Spanish brown, yellow ochre, and terra di sienna, are earths impregnated with iron in different degrees of oxydation. Red ochre is yellow ochre burned. ”