From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Letter discussing material choices for a transmitter, focusing on the challenges of using steel versus aluminium alloys.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 136\2\ scan0407 | |
| Date | 13th March 1944 guessed | |
| In addition to these loads, there are of course other factors to consider:- The temperature inside the transmitter can be raised to about 300°C, by running at full throttle with a stalled output shaft for some time. The tensile strength, elasticity and linear expansion due to temperature of steel and aluminium alloy respectively all need consideration. With aluminium shells, the differential expansion between steel and aluminium would tend to give trouble at the joints, particularly at the crankshaft flange, turbine hub and starter ring. I am bringing these possible difficulties to your notice since we have experienced all of them in the past, although they may be overcome by the use of modern aluminium alloys and methods of which we know little or nothing. It is because of these difficulties that we are inclining to an all steel construction and we can continue the investigation of the possibilities in this direction while you study the possibilities of aluminium alloys. I wonder whether you would care to pay us a visit here and see the transmitter being made by the present methods. And, if you did, would you care to bring Everndon with you, as, I gather, he has watched both fluid flywheels and Lysholm-Smith torque converters being made in the States. I know this sound very like picking the brains of yourself and of your organization but may be justifiable if you eventually decide to make use of the transmitter yourselves. Apart from that, I feel that we have got in the transmitter something considerably in advance of anything else in the world of its kind, and, if it can be properly developed and manufactured in this country (without asking the Americans to tell us how) it might be of considerable value in the export trade of the country generally; it has a great many possible uses other than on motor cars. Yours sincerely, | ||