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).
Cooling system inefficiencies, electrolytic corrosion, and potential design improvements for radiators.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 15\1\ Scan144 | |
| Date | 21th August 1929 guessed | |
| -2- This means that even in a new car the system is least efficient when cooling is most required. It explains the phenomena of being unable to cool down easily once the radiator has been brought to boiling point by forgetting the shutters. It seems to indicate that the centrifugal pump in its present form is not the ideal combination with our type of matrix. (4) We have proved that it is the electrolytic action of the aluminium which causes the iron to corrode more rapidly when cars are fitted with aluminium heads. We find that it is most difficult to prevent this corrosion taking place. As we have no other filter the top row of tubes acts as a filter for this deposit. The disadvantage of this is :- The top row of tubes have, even with the 5 1/2 mm. tubes, less than 22% of the available area of the row in gaps. They are also difficult to clean. A grid in the top tank, well clear of the top row of tubes, having 50% of the available area gaps would take a great deal longer to choke and additionally, if an ordinary union were put in the back of the tank, could easily be cleaned by water or air pressure with the radiator inverted. | ||