Lesson 2. Derangements likely to occur in operation of engines

Notes:

Upon first sight the Diesel engine is apt to create the impression that it is a very complicated mechanism, but a little analysis will reveal that it is actually more simple than the steam plant. Comparing the two it should be born in mind that the steam engine alone is not a usable machine; to be able to use it we must have a boiler and all the attendant mechanisms, including pumps, piping, water tanks, condenser, etc., and the complete steam plant becomes quite a complicated thing. The Diesel engine, on the other hand, may be arranged so that all of the apparatus required in its operation as a power plant may be attached directly to the engine itself.

Perhaps the most striking difference in the problem of maintenance of the Diesel engine as compared to steam engine maintenance arises from the fact that the steam engine can be allowed to fall, more or less gradually, into a very bad state of disrepair and will continue to run but the Diesel engine must be pretty nearly right or it will not run at all.