In a message dated 9/30/2004 6:23:57 PM Mountain Daylight Time, tsterpka_@_mindspring.com writes: << was that the first new steam engine purchased in the US since the late '40's-early '50's? >> Dear Tom: I am not sure about old-technology orders, but there have been several innovative steam locomotives proposed and a few built in the US since the 1950s. In the mid-1980s ACE (American Coal E???) had developed a condensing reciprocal steam locomotive fueled by powdered coal that was containerized (like wood pellets) with containerized water. We (where I worked) was partly involved with low-sulfur coal for trials. There were several versions proposed, but ACE 7000 seems to stick in my head for some reason, but that was not the unit that was built. These were in response to the oil shortages of 1973 and 1979. There was even a condensing steam mini-van (bus), but there were some safety concerns. I also got to work on a triple expansion reciprocating steam engine (CE Enterprises) that was built and operated for a time. But it was only about 1800 HP, and could fit in a cab-over truck. It, like other US innovations, seem to start here and move overseas, and then come back as imports, although the original research and development was done and paid for here in the US. Sometimes it seams we just invent stuff, and other countries figure out how to market it. That is what happened to the whole area where Erie and EL once ran, it seems. H Haines ------------------------------
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