Condensed peat may be prepared by machinery, which will weigh more than hard wood, bulk for bulk, and whose heating power will therefore exceed that of wood.
Gysser gives the following comparisons of a good peat with various German woods and charcoals, equal weights being employed, and split beech wood, air-dry, assumed as the standard.[14]
Beech wood, split, air dry 1.00 Peat, condensed by Weber's & Gysser's method,[15] air-dried, with 25 _per cent._ moisture. 1.00 Peat, condensed by Weber's & Gysser's method, hot-dried, with 10 _per cent._ moisture. 1.48 Peat-charcoal, from condensed peat. 1.73 The same peat, simply cut and air-dried. 0.80 Beech-charcoal. 1.90 Summer-oak wood. 1.18 Birch wood. 0.95 White pine wood. 0.72 Alder. 0.65 Linden. 0.65 Red pine. 0.61 Poplar. 0.50
Some experiments have been made in this country on the value of peat as fuel. One was tried on the N. Y. Central Railroad, Jan. 3, 1866. A locomotive with 25 empty freight cars attached, was propelled from Syracuse westward--the day being cold and the wind ahead--at the rate of 16 miles the hour. The engineer reported that "the peat gave us as much steam as wood, and burnt a beautiful fire." The peat, we infer, was cut and prepared near Syracuse, N. Y.
In one of the pumping houses of the Nassau Water Department of the City of Brooklyn, an experiment has been made for the purpose of comparing peat with anthracite, for the results of which I am indebted to the courtesy of Moses Lane, Esq., Chief Engineer of the Department.
Fire was started under a steam boiler with wood. When steam was up, the peat was burned--its quantity being 1743 lbs., or 18 barrels--and after it was consumed, the firing was continued with coal. The pressure of steam was kept as nearly uniform as possible throughout the trial, and it was found that with 1743 lbs. of peat the engine made 2735 revolutions, while with 1100 lbs. of coal it made 3866 revolutions. In other words, 100 lbs. of coal produced 351-45/100 revolutions, and 100 lbs. of peat produced 156-91/100 revolutions. One pound of coal therefore equalled 2-24/100 lbs. of peat in heating effect. The peat burned well and generated steam freely.
Mr. Lane could not designate the quality of the peat, not having been able to witness the experiment.