Anna circled the sample twice and accurately stated her first feeling.

“It’s really... small.”

“But there’s an indescribable beauty,” said Seline, “especially the dense pipes around it, which are like tentacles.”"

Roland couldn't help but laugh, the two people's viewing angle is completely different, but the conclusion is particularly apt, can be described as concisely expressing the characteristics of the new machine.

Compared with the first cast iron steam engine made by Anna, the size of the prototype was more than ten times smaller, which was the reason for the great leap in processing technology, but the most important thing was to save the boiler.

At present, the steam engine in Winterfell has developed to the fourth generation, but the boiler part has not changed much - whether it is charred charcoal or firewood, or heavy oil, a huge combustion chamber and steam furnace are inevitable.Now, it is only a rectangular steel box that is one meter long, half a meter wide and less than 20 centimeters thick.

This box is also the core of the whole system.

Although it is simply to put the Rubik's Cube and water into a container to achieve the integration of combustion and evaporation, whether it is a near-harsh sealing requirement or a high-pressure piping shell, it is not the border town at the beginning.In other words, even if the relics of the radio family can be obtained at that time, it is estimated that the role can be played is no different from that of others.

The steel box is set side by side with three sacrificial cubes, which serve as a source of machine power, and the bottom is a layer of lead to block excess rays.The top of the smooth shell is neatly arranged with more than ten hot tubing, through the secondary water tank and the heat sink condenser after returning from the bottom, the "heating-energy-cooling" cycle is completely closed, no exchange with the outside world, if the equipment is reliable enough, theoretically use scrap and no need to add a new thermal conductivity medium.

Of course, this size is not the limit of the new steam engine.

Water is only the most accessible and cheapest thermal conductivity medium, and if replaced by other more efficient mediums, such as liquid alkali metals, the volume can be made smaller at the same power.

Only the principle prototype mainly verified the feasibility of the program, Roland finally resisted the impulse to take a step in place.After all, in the event of a heat leakage accident, the alkali metal in the steam state is mixed with the water vapor, I am afraid that the entire test institute will be blown up.

The pipe sticking out from the heating box can continuously transfer the heat generated by the Rubik's Cube until the secondary water tank is boiling, and the next process is the same as the ordinary steam engine, using the technology that has long been mature in Winterfell.

The most appreciated part of Celine is the condensate that is evenly distributed on both sides of the body - in order to obtain a large enough heat-dissipation area, each pipe is twisted and twisted, turning a thousand times, saying that the tentacles are not in violation.

If the current steam engine is stupid black and coarse, this principle prototype can be called small and exquisite, especially the silver-white core box and those that are enough to reflect the face of the brown red heat pipe, from the color, the degree of light is much more dazzling than its predecessors.Even a layman who knows nothing about industry can distinguish its level at a glance.

In terms of technology alone, it is enough to play the title of art.

“Then... start it?”Roland looked at the two of them.

Anna nodded, reached out on the lever, "Come along."

Celine hesitated, and finally dropped the master's beard and gently placed it in the hands of the king and queen.

"Magic Cube Steam Engine Principle Prototype Test, Three, Two, One, Start-"

With Roland's countdown, the lever was pulled to the maximum limit, the linkage mechanism simultaneously pressed down the switch of the three Rubik's Cube, and the landmark new generation of power sources began its first operation.

There was silence, and nothing seemed to happen.

“Oh, did it fail?Looking at the unresponsive machine, Seline hesitated.

"No, let it burn a little longer."Roland returned calmly.

Almost two minutes later, the core box trembled slightly, and a "indicator" on the pipe also gave a soft yellow light - that is a pressure gauge made of matchmaker relics, which indicates that the pressure inside the tube is changing.

The heat transfer process is obviously much slower, and wait for nearly five minutes, the secondary water tank finally gushing out of steam and pushing the piston to slowly operate.

With the gradual increase of the temperature in the tube, the speed of the steam engine flywheel is getting faster and faster, and it also drives the pump of the condensing system - the main function of the latter is to increase the speed of the fluid circulation in the tube, and the heat transfer medium with reduced temperature is re-extracted back to the core box.At this point, the new machine has completed a complete cycle and officially entered the operating state.

"It seems to work well," said Anna, with a shallow smile on her face, "is that the start-up is slower."

"This is also a common problem of the steam engine," Roland nodded, heat transfer takes time, even if replaced by a more efficient heat medium, it is not better than the internal combustion engine that can be activated by fire.In addition, because at least three tanks are theoretically required to maintain the cycle, how much smaller it is than the internal combustion engine.Coupled with the fact that the flaminating of the fidelity of the festival consumes uranium tablets too fast, resulting in almost no practical value for this prototype.

But any industrial product comes this step by step.

As long as Celine can solve the problem of durability, its obvious advantages can not be ignored - mature technology allows it to be quickly put into operation, lightweight enough to be placed on most vehicles, popular without increasing fuel burden and so on.Even if the durability problem cannot be improved for a while, ships built on the basis of new power sources can save a lot of space for fuel hoarding, thus loading more cargo or weapons.

Half an hour later, the steam engine reached its limit, the whole body was trembling, and the snoring of the exhaust port became a sharp whistling sound.Obviously, the core box composed of the three Rubik's Cube has some excess power for this steam engine, and Roland pulls the operating rod back to a gear, which is equivalent to closing two Rubik's Cube before the prototype stabilizes again.

This is followed by a long reliability test.

This step will last for about a week, but also the most likely to expose the problem of the link, after all, the principle of the new machine is very simple, want to make it move is not difficult, difficult is long-term and stable operation.

It was a very boring thing to keep in front of a steam engine that was constantly clattering, but it became a decompression method for Roland.Sitting with Anna in the yard, chatting and paying attention to the dynamics of the prototype, as if the two had the first time they knew each other, relaxed and peaceful.

I don't know when, Seleen quietly left the laboratory, and only he and Anna were left in the yard.

The latter rested his head on his shoulder, and the noise of the machine seemed to be very far away.

“If it succeeds, we’ll be one step closer to the world you’ve ever been in?”

“Well, it would be much shorter—knowing that world has not yet implemented a similar technology.”

“Can you say that kind of four-wheeled car that can be driven by a person can also achieve it?”

"Well, if you like, I can design a simple one for you to try."

“All right!”Anna's voice was a little louder, "Yes, what name are you going to give this machine?"

“Must there be a name?”Roland laughed.

“Certainly.”Her face was incomparably serious.

“Well, Black Tech One and Rubik’s Cube Power, which one do you choose?”

“Where it’s dark... really, I chose the one behind.”But how do you distinguish between different models?”

"Simply, a festival cube represents a cylinder, and the principle prototype is called a three-cylinder Rubik's Cube power, how about?"

"It's always strange."

“Don’t worry about the details.”

The laughter of the two men was mixed with the sound of the machine, forming a long-lasting melody in the yard.