Chapter 841 The Purpose of Black Water
<"readability-styled"style=":inline;"xmlns="">However, it is quite rare for black water to converge into the "Underground River of Styx" like in the extreme south. According to Iron Ax's report, from the From the Throat Swamp to the Endless Cape, the viscosity of the River Styx continued to decrease, and the concentration of the dead fog became thinner and thinner. Among them, the Blackwater River Valley is the confluence of several Styx rivers. Standing at the height of the valley, you can even hear the dull roar of the black water impacting under your feet.
Roland speculates that the underground river Styx is also constantly changing its composition during its flow. For example, the dead fog described in the report is likely to be a poisonous gas volatilized by the black water itself, or it is caused by the reaction with some underground substances. Generated results. This may explain why, after hundreds of years of evolution, the Blackwater Valley has not turned into a huge brazier due to lightning or artificial arson, and there are rumors that people who enter the Throat Swamp have to die.
The dead fog covering the river Styx could not help but block the sand people's footsteps and also cut off the air, allowing the black water to flow southward steadily. In the vicinity of the cape, the underground rivers are nowhere to be found, and only a small part will be ejected from the surface due to the pressure. Some form a burning pillar of fire, and some turn into trickles and shallow depressions. At this time, the black water has no suffocating dead fog, and it is suitable for mining.
Facing such a strange crude oil, Roland didn't know how many oils it could decompose, so he could only order the chief alchemist to conduct an experiment first, and then make further plans after getting the results.
Judging from the isolated samples, the results are quite encouraging.
"Black water can indeed be used to make terrible weapons, but its uses are far more than that." Roland answered Kaimo's question while picking up the glass and looking at it carefully. "Only because of the high calorific value of combustion, There is a lot to do, and you will know later."
For this straightforward chief alchemist, hanging him with unknown new things is the best way to drive him.
Seeing the other party's dissatisfied appearance, he smiled secretly, "Let's talk about the experiment. If you really want to use black water, you can't just rely on a few retorts and condenser tubes. It's the same as the production of double acid. We have to figure out a way to mass-produce it."
The principle of oil separation is very simple, which is almost the most basic chemical knowledge - through heating, the oil is turned into steam, and then introduced into the fractionation tower, and the different boiling points of various oils in the mixed liquid are used to condense them sequentially, so as to obtain gasoline , kerosene, diesel, heavy oil and other finished products. This process is entirely a physical change, so it can be easily done under experimental conditions.
Although the subsequent refining technologies became more and more diverse, and the efficiency of crude oil utilization also increased significantly, the most classical distillation separation method can still work, and it is naturally the first choice when production costs are not considered.
It's just that once any process is enlarged, its complexity will increase exponentially. If you want to carry out industrialized fractionation, there will inevitably be many more things to consider. Kymer Struer should have a deep understanding of this point.
The old alchemist stroked his beard, "Hmm...I have to think about what you said for a few more days, and besides, I need the help of the Witch Union."
It is a good omen to start taking the initiative to use the power of witches to carry out scientific research experiments. Roland nodded, "If you have any request, send someone to tell me, and I will arrange it."
"Thank you, Your Majesty," Kaimo rolled his eyes, "Besides, I have a small request."
"Oh? Say it."
"When you use them to create new gadgets, can you let me watch them?" There was irrepressible curiosity in his tone.
In theory, the request crossed the line for the sake of secrecy, just as the engineer responsible for refining uranium ore wanted to know the entire Manhattan Project. However, Roland agreed to him after thinking about it for a while. After all, this would increase his enthusiasm for work, and at the same time, there was no opponent in this era who could compete with Neverwinter in terms of technological level.
"Then you'll have to work hard," he pointed to the cups of fractionated liquid. "The sooner you can produce them, the sooner you'll know the answer."
"Wait...you need all of these?" Kaimo asked in surprise, "Although they can all be used for burning, the black water distilled from the lower layer may not be as good as snow powder. The smell of smoke is strong and the fire is not strong. It’s too choking to light a lamp.”
This guy probably still thinks about explosives, and regards the inactive oil and residue as waste. Roland thought to himself, it is true that the upper layer of light oil burns more violently, but it is much more difficult to use in practice. Under such circumstances, a little carelessness will cause an explosion accident, which is not a goal that can be achieved in a short while. Instead, he favors diesel and heavy oil in the lower tier.
Not much to say about the former, excellent fuel for internal combustion engines can be used even if the process is not in place and it is mixed with impurities, but at most it will emit black smoke and pollute the environment-this is not a problem at all at present.
Heavy oil is of great significance to navigation and is the first choice for steam ships. After all, the efficiency of burning coal is too low, so it is not a problem to run in the inland river, but it is a bit powerless to put it into the sea. It is quite difficult to run from the fjords to the shallows of the western border. This is also one of the reasons why Roland established the Daqing Port in Endless Cape: to provide supplies for the steamships on the route. As for crossing the sea line and entering the depths of the ocean, you have to burn oil.
At the same time, it is also the one with the lowest requirements for secondary treatment. It can be used almost after being separated, and it doesn’t matter if it is mixed with asphalt residue. It is the least particular fuel in the petroleum family.
Of course, Roland would not tell Kaimo these things in advance, and he was not sure if he could do it before he made the finished product. If he said something serious and found out that the result was not the case, it would damage his omniscience. image. So he just shrugged, "All the oil, including the oil residue and debris left at the bottom, must be collected separately. I keep it for my own use."
"Yes, Your Majesty," the chief alchemist said, rubbing his chest.
"By the way," Roland stopped when he walked to the door of the laboratory, turned around and said, "Let's have a remedial class."
"What?" Kaimo was taken aback.
"Didn't I say to set up an agronomy course in the secondary education curriculum at the last agricultural conference, so that even if the Golden No. 2 is promoted to the whole country, there will be enough manpower to implement it." Roland elaborated, "Similarly, Opening a new factory also requires more skilled hands—many of them want to join the chemical industry after graduating from popular education, so we should gather together for training first, so as to avoid confusion and accidents after entering the factory.”
This approach is equivalent to advancing the division of majors after entering university to middle school. He has long considered that in the absence of time to cultivate all-round talents, the training of professional workers should be carried out as soon as possible.
"Your Majesty, shouldn't Mr. Scroll be in charge of this...?"
"She is responsible for recruiting, assigning classes, assessing, and paying salaries, but the tutor has to come from the Ministry of Chemical Industry, that is, you."
Kaimo heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed that as long as he was not allowed to give lectures, it would be fine. He had tried his best to recruit a group of alchemy apprentices in exchange for "Intermediate Chemistry" from Roland before, which was already his limit. "I see, Your Majesty. I think those alchemists from the royal capital are very good. Speeches and public appearances are what they used to be good at. What do you think?"