4 Comments Posted by Robkat

Not a flywheel at all. The outer part is a cage which also has magents. The inner part spins by another source, perhaps one of the steam engines. This then is an electric generator.

Yes this is a reciprocating steam engine driving an electric generator. This type of engines appears to be what is called a uniflow but without closer looks it is hard to tell. It is a good looking engine and does look like everything is there. It could probably be run on steam if it were properly drained of the condensate when they stopped using them

The insulation on the pipes are in fact to keep the steam inside at a high temperature. If it loses temperature then it starts condensing back to water. It has nothing to do with not heating the room or not burning someone. It is entirely a matter of making the equipment run correctly

These are obviously reciprocating steam engines. The jacket is insulation so you do not lose heat. When you do lose heat you lose efficiency and the engine then runs poorly and is costly to run. About the question on heat of steam. Heated water under pressure at 200PSI is 400 degrees hot. The steam in turn can be superheated to 750 degrees and more depending on the type of superheater unit. It is amazing that these old engines are still in place