coal trade bulletin - Clpdigital.org

38 THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN.
ville; O. A. Rothert, Louisville; A. M. Peter, Lexington;
D. C. Schonthal, Huntington; E. Drennan,
Jenkins; F. D. Rash, Earlington; H. S. Barker,
Lexington; F. D. Wood, Pineville; P. V. Cole,
Barbourville; W. C. Tucker, Benham; R. Dawson,
Hall; W. L. Moss, Pineville.
BALTIMORE & OHIO RAILROAD IS TEST­
ING COKE BREEZE IN AUTOMATIC
STOKERS ON ENGINES OF CONNELLS­
VILLE DIVISION.
Tests of great importance to the coke industry
are now being made by the Baltimore & Ohio railroad
which, if successful, will result in the utilization
of waste material. The officials of the
Connellsville division of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad
are conducting the first of a series of experiments
with coke breeze in the automatic stokers.
The first test, it is said, was a decided success,
although it will take some weeks to determine
whether coke breeze can be used to supplant coal
for fuel purposes, says the Connellsville Courier.
The utilization of coke breeze has long been one
of the most important problems facing the coke
manufacturers, but as yet no practical commercial
use has been made of it. Coke breeze is the
ashes and fine coke which cannot be used for
smelting purposes. Thousands of tons of it go
to waste annually.
During the tests of automatic stokers on the
Connellsville division of the Baltimore & Ohio
it was suggested that coke breeze might prove
more satisfactory than coal. A test was ordered
and it is now being conducted under the direction
of Road Foreman of Engines T. E. Miller. The
first locomotive using coke breeze for fuel was
sent out with Engineer J. M. Stimmel at the throttle.
No official report of the run has yet been
made but it was learned that the breeze proved
splendid fuel, working nicely in the automatic
stoking device and kept a good head of steam at
all times. One of the trainmen is said to have
declared that the coke breeze had better steaming
qaulities than the coal that is being used.
Engineer Stimmel first suggested the use of
coke breeze for fuel and prevailed upon the officials
to experiment with it. The test was made between
Connellsville and Smithfield. Usually a
locomotive consumed 11% tons of coal in that
distance. The locomotive used for the first test
was given two tons of coal, while a car of coke
breeze was attached to the rear of the tender.
Several Baltimore & Ohio officials from Baltimore
made the trip as far as Uniontown. Finding
that the coke breeze was steaming satisfactorily,
they left the train and went back to Connellsville.
The coke breeze, it is stated, is neither too
coarse nor too fine for use in the automatic stokers.
Later a locomotive on the main line was being
run with coke breeze as fuel. Further tests will
be made and a thorough investigation will be made
to determine whether the new fuel can be used to
supplant coal.
The coke breeze can be secured cheaper than
coal. It is a by-product of the coking industry
that is now without a commercial value, and at
every coke plant in the region tons of it go to
waste every day. This could be loaded and delivered
to the railroads at small cost and provide
a neat source of revenue for the coke operators.
Various uses have been suggested for coke
breeze, but as yet none of them has proved satisfactory,
from a commercial standpoint, and the
operators have not been justified in conserving tlie
waste. The outcome of the Baltimore & Ohio's
test is watched with interest, because if it proves
successful in supplanting coal where automatic
stokers are used, steady business for the coke
plants is assured in handling a waste product.
IDLE CARS SHOW INCREASE
AT OPENING OF THE MONTH.
The report of the American Railway association
issued Dec. 8, giving the car surplussages and
shortages, shows:
Surplussages:
Dec. 1, 1913 67,466
Nov. 15, 1913 46,059
Nov. 30, 1912 26,135
Shortages:
Dec. 1, 1913 10,212
Nov. 15, 1913 23,407
Nov. 30, 1912 62,536
These figures show a net surplus of 57,254 cars
as compared with 22,642 on Nov. 15, and a shortage
of 36,401 cars Nov. 30, 1912.
State Mine Inspector Jenkin T. Reese has asked
the Lackawanna county, Pa., court to grant an
injunction against the Peoples' Coal Co. of Scranton,
Pa., restraining the company from continuing
operations in the Oxlord mine. A suit in equity
was begun on behalf of the state and is based on
affidavits setting out that the mining in the Four-
Foot vein is unsafe and endangers the lives of 65
mineis employed in the workings in West Scranton.
A petition in involuntary bankruptcy was recently
filed against the Oak Leaf Coal Co.. of
Cordova, Ala. The petitioning creditors were:
The Hendon Hardware Co., J. A. Williams, Lantrip
Bros., and J. P. Higginbottom, all of Cordova.