A descriptive and historical account of hydraulic and other machines for raising water, ancient and modern : with observations on various subjects connected with the mechanic arts: including the progressive development of the steam engine . NO 174. Air Machine, from Decaus. An improvement upon the preceding machine is next given by form of the vessels is altered, and double convex lenses or burningglasses are so arranged on their covers as to collect the raies otthe sun within the said vessels, the which will cause a great healto the water, and by that means make it spring forth wit
A descriptive and historical account of hydraulic and other machines for raising water, ancient and modern : with observations on various subjects connected with the mechanic arts: including the progressive development of the steam engine . NO 174. Air Machine, from Decaus. An improvement upon the preceding machine is next given by form of the vessels is altered, and double convex lenses or burningglasses are so arranged on their covers as to collect the raies otthe sun within the said vessels, the which will cause a great healto the water, and by that means make it spring forth with great abun-dance, and also higher if it be required. (See the figure below.) It is,we think, in the range of probability that the lieat of the solar rays ma^yet be applied in some situations to raise water with effect. iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!!tii;j|iiiiiiiii;;iiiiiin!iii!!i:iiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiii!iii!iiii[iniiiiiiiiiiiiiii^ No. 175. Air Engine, from Decaus. Whether this appUcation of lenses to encrease the force of the sunin air engines, was a device of Decaus, we know not. The idea how»^vei Chap 2] Distilling ly the Suns Heat. 381 would natarally occur to any engineer of the time, engasred on .he improvement of such machines, because distilling by the sun both with len-ses and without them was a common practice with chemists in that ageand centuries before. Baptist Porta described the process in ihetenth book of his Natural Magic, and observes that the waters extract-ed by the sun are the best. See also Maisoii. Ruatique, Paris, 1574,page 211. Kirchers Mundus Hubterravcus, Tom. ii, 392. Other au-thors also describe the application both of convex and concave lenses toconcentrate the solar rays on distilling vessels ; a practice probably as oldas the time of Archimedes, or even older. We give
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1870, bookiddescriptiveh, bookyear1876
