Our Illustrations

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXXVII, Issue 14, 6 October 1906, Page 37

Our Illustrations

THE MAHENO. The Union Company’s turbine steamer Maheno, which arrived in Auckland on Friday on her first visit to this port, was the subject of considerable interest, and was visited by a very large number of people. The chief point of interest was, of course, the turbine engines. What strikes one most on entering the iengine-rooin is the small amount of space taken up by the turbines. The engines are encased in three large steel drums which take up the full length of the room, and stand about five feet high. Beyond the steam pipes leading from the four boilers and the propeller shafts, practically nothing else is visible. The turbine machinery working inside the drum is li! e a series of wheels, with blades attached to the rims, revolving round a big axle, and is set in motion by the contact of the steam with the blades. In the three drums there are 374,966 blades, which travel at an enormous speed, and with the object of counteracting the friction in the bearings, special lubricating apparatus is supplied, which is worked by powerful pumps. The only working parts of the turbine that are visible are the ends of the shafts and the levers, which make one double turn to every ten revonltions of the turbines. The Maheno is capable of steaming 171 knots, which is somewhat over 20 miles an hour.