Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 254 Let's go to Jiangnan again.

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With this in mind, Liu Ye no longer questioned the tech enthusiast's actions and declared righteously, "You know, I've always been a strong supporter of your technological innovations, providing funds and manpower as needed. Since you believe in launching this project, I wholeheartedly agree! We are men who aspire to build the strongest navy in Asia, and we cannot be content with the status quo!"

Liang Xiaoming was very satisfied with Liu Ye's statement: "That's more like it! Heavy artillery and giant ships are the future direction of the navy. We can't give up because of a little difficulty. Moreover, science and technology are not isolated. Overcoming this problem will also benefit the future casting of other cannons, especially heavy cannons, and can significantly reduce the scrap rate of large-caliber artillery. If we mass-produce coastal defense guns or naval guns of 24 pounds or more in the future, we will inevitably encounter the problem of uneven internal and external cooling leading to cracks. The larger the caliber of the cannon, the more prone it is to this phenomenon..."

Liu Ye chimed in, playing the straight man, "So how do we overcome this problem?"

"This problem has also been solved. We just need to copy the achievements of our predecessors. Back when we frequented military forums and online communities, everyone knew about Rodman's cannon casting method. Even newbies could recite it by heart..."

"Rodman? The Bulls' Big Three, the one who helped Jordan grab rebounds?" Liu Ye asked, somewhat bewildered.

“I knew you’d misunderstand.” Liang Xiaoming pursed his lips. “This Rodman is not that Rodman. This refers to a technique used by Thomas J. Rodman, a Union Army major during the American Civil War, to cast heavy artillery.”

Liang Xiaoming explained that because of its larger surface area and faster airflow, the outer layer of a heavy gun with a thicker wall cools faster than the inner layer, leading to the aforementioned cracking problem. Therefore, U.S. Major Rodman devised a solution. Since water has a much higher specific heat capacity than air, water cooling is much faster than air cooling. To ensure the inner layer cools before the outer layer, water is used to cool both the inner and outer layers simultaneously, or even cool the inner layer first. This inside-out cooling method, with a higher density inside than outside, not only prevents cracking but also increases the overall strength of the gun barrel, increasing the lifespan of the heavy gun fivefold. This method is therefore called internal mold water cooling technology.

The principle behind this method is simple, but in practice, it's not about directly injecting water into the red-hot bore, as this would only cause the barrel to crack. Instead, during the barrel casting process, the mold used as the inner mold is replaced with a hollow one, with a cooling water pipe installed in the middle. Then, cooling water is injected into the barrel. Of course, this cooling water pipe must be designed to be circulated to ensure a stable inner lining temperature. For example, a U-shaped pipe can be used to inject water from the inside, allowing for continuous circulation and cooling.

"It doesn't sound too complicated, so why are you so worried?" Liu Ye asked, puzzled.

Liang Xiaoming sighed: "The difficulty lies in controlling the cooling rate; the water circulation rate is crucial. If it cools too quickly, the inner tube will crack; if it's too slow, the desired effect won't be achieved. It must be done at the right pace. Rodman took 10 years from proposing the theory in 1844 to experimentally proving the scientifically sound technical parameters. Back then, these specific parameters couldn't be found online, so he had to guide the craftsmen to experiment slowly. He's already ruined several cannon barrels. That's why you haven't seen me lately; I've been busy with this..."

Liu Ye comforted him, saying, "No rush, take your time."