Part of the
Acorn Archive
Hearts of Oak
Coal &
Ships
Index - Temperley Transporter Co
SS Mooltan
1860
The drive was
on to design a fast, reliable,
and economical
ship and engine combination.
Not all
innovation and invention was as successful as at first considered.
The
Times – 27th November 1861
Southampton,
Tuesday. This vessel, respecting the performances of which on an ocean voyage,
great interest has been felt in nautical and engineering circles, returned to
this port last night from Alexandria. One of the most novel features is the
smallness of her horse power as compared with her tonnage, and the reduced size
of her boilers, which are constructed on Mr. A. Lamb's patent, and which are
only about half the size of the tubular boilers employed in ships of the Royal
Navy for the supply of steam to engines of the same nominal horse-power. The
effect of the principle adopted in the Mooltan, if successful, will be to
materially reduce the consumption of coal, and hence to lessen the expenses and
difficulties attendant upon ocean steam navigation. It appears that the most
remarkable and successful results have been accomplished in this respect during
the recent voyage of the Mooltan to and from Alexandria. On the outward voyage
she was 286 hours under way, running 2,951 miles, with an actual consumption of
305 tons of coal and coming home she was 236 hours under way, consuming 325
tons of coal. The total quantity of coal consumed, therefore, during a voyage
of nearly 6,000 miles. has been 630 tons, against an expenditure of about 1,200
tons in other ships of the same tonnage employed on this line. This is a saving
of very nearly half, while an average speed has been maintained out and home of
10.64 knots.
The
average expenditure of coal per hour was 2,574 lb, and the average power taken
by the indicator, every watch, 1,230 horses. During the voyage the Mooltan's
draught of water was 19ft. 4in; average midship section at this draught, 558
ft; and average displacement at same, 3,335 tons. The boilers supplied
abundance of steam at 20 lb; surface condensers, average vacuum, 27.5 inches.
These results must be very satisfactory to her engine-builders, Messrs.
Humphrys and Tennant, and to the patentee of her boilers, and all others
concerned, while they are of vast importance to every one interested in
steamships. It is important to observe that these results have been obtained,
over a run of nearly 6,000 miles, with the ordinary coal used by all the
company's steamers, and with the ship's own stokers; and hence they should not
be compared with those obtained at the trial of a ship at the measured mile, or
on a few hours working of her engines at moorings, because these short trials
are always made under the most favourable circumstances, with picked coal of
the best quality, clean fires, and stokers of the greatest skill.
SS Mooltan - Lithograph by T.G. Dutton
MOOLTAN
Built
1860 by the Thames Iron Ship Building Co, Blackwall, London for P & O.
2,257
grt; 1,627 nrt
370ft
x 39.1ft
Engines
Humphreys & Tennant, Deptford; the company's first compound; single screw;
12 knots.
Clipper
bows, single funnel, three masts (rigged for sail), iron hull.
8th
March 1861 Registered.
At
the initial sea trials, she jumped and rocked, not achieving her designed 12
knots.
20th
July 1861 [ Pre Suez Canal] Maiden voyage: Southampton to Alexandria.
She was later transferred to the Suez to
Calcutta route.
Her designed narrow beam produced
severe rolling in cross seas and she was never successful.
1866
In spite of it’s economy, the new type
of engine was found to be unreliable.
New engine and boilers installed.
15th
November 1874 Laid up, London.
14th December 1880 Sold: Elles & Co,
Liverpool.
1883
Sold: J. J. Wallace, London.
1884
Sold: J. Pedley, London; renamed ELEANOR MARGARET; converted to a four
mast barque.
1888
Sold: J. D. Bischoff, Germany.
28th
June 1891 Sailed from Newcastle-upon-Tyne for Valparaiso; Missing in the North
Atlantic.
Raymond
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