Now this experimental steam warship has not met the actual requirements for long-distance voyages, and there is still a lot of work to be done later, especially the two huge paddle wheels. It should not be a big problem to drive in coastal areas. However, during the long-distance voyage, paddle wheels still lack the stability and storm resistance of the battleships, and the existence of paddle wheels is also a burden in naval battles.

In addition to the steam engine, steam warships also need to be improved and improved, the cancellation of paddle wheels is also an important link. Replacing paddle wheels with propellers to become the pushing action power of the warship is a proven direction of progress in later generations. After watching the trial voyage for half an hour, Zhu Yicheng put forward this requirement for Huang Luzhuang.

Huang Luzhuang is an excellent engineer and a qualified scientist. After carefully thinking about Zhu Yicheng's suggestions, he showed a thoughtful expression, and then nodded with emphasis.

"This is a good idea, but this involves structural adjustment of the machinery. After I returned, I organized personnel to develop it."

"By the way, have you ever thought about the ironclad ship?" Zhu Yicheng asked suddenly.

"Iron armored ship?" Huang Luzhuang was stunned and then asked in confusion: "Your Majesty, do you mean to cover iron armor outside the warship?"

Zhu Yicheng smiled and shook his head: "It is indeed a way to cover iron armor outside the warship, but don't you think it's more appropriate to directly use steel instead of wood to build the hull?"

"This..." Huang Luzhuang was about to say how is this possible? How can the steel be so heavy? How can it be used to build the hull instead of wood? The hull built in this way falls into the water and sinks directly?

But before he could say anything, Huang Luzhuang suddenly thought of a problem, that is, the Academy of Sciences' research on material resources and calculation of buoyancy. If, theoretically, building a closed hull with steel is completely different from directly putting steel into water, because the hull has space and air in the space, and the air originally has buoyancy. If this buoyancy includes the density of the hull that is greater than the water, then what Zhu Yicheng said is not impossible to achieve.

For a moment, Huang Luzhuang was a little stunned. He even forgot that Zhu Yicheng was by his side. He stood there and thought blankly. After a long time, Huang Luzhuang came back to his senses, but at this time Zhu Yicheng had already left the platform.

After completing the trial voyage of the first steam warship, Zhu Yicheng did not return to the capital immediately. Finally, he took this opportunity to come out, and Zhu Yicheng planned to take a good look in Tianjin.

When Zhu Yicheng was inspecting Tianjin, Huang Luzhuang did not accompany him, but led a few people to the Tianjin branch of the Academy of Sciences. After a whole night of trouble, early the next morning, Zhu Yicheng had just gotten up at the Tianjin Palace when Huang Luzhuang rushed over.

When Zhu Yicheng saw Huangluzhuang, he was startled. He saw his hair was scattered and his face turned yellow and his eyes were red. He looked like he had not slept all night.

"The Emperor! The Emperor! It's done! The Emperor!"

Huang Luzhuang was giggling with joy, holding something in his hand. Zhu Yicheng saw carefully that what he was holding was actually a dark ship model.

"What happened?" Zhu Yicheng asked in confusion.

"Iron Craft Ship! It's done!" Huang Luzhuang couldn't wait to put the ship model in front of Zhu Yicheng. Zhu Yicheng reached out and touched it and understood why the other party brought this thing over, because the ship model was actually made of iron sheet.

Huang Luzhuang pointed to this thing and explained to Zhu Yicheng that he took people to work hard all night yesterday and drove out the model. Although this model looks simple, it was made completely according to the proportions of ordinary ships. All the materials are made of iron sheets, and small pieces of iron are also embedded on it for load testing.

After finishing this, Huangluzhuang put the model into the pool to test whether it can float on the water surface and fight against certain wind and waves.

After a simple test, it was shown that the model made of the iron sheet can not only float safely on the water surface, but also has a stronger ability to resist wind and waves than the wooden model. In addition, the load test also proves that there is no problem with using steel to build an ironclad ship, at least in theory and preliminary tests, the actual results were obtained.

"Emperor, I have carefully calculated that the ironclad ship is completely feasible. Not only can it be, it is also much better than the hull made of wood."

Looking at Huang Luzhuang, who was extremely excited, Zhu Yicheng was also very happy. With the steam warship and the iron-clad ship, the Ming Dynasty's dominance over the ocean could be further improved. By then, the Ming Navy would be the most powerful navy in the world, and would be invincible in all directions.

While he was happy, Zhu Yicheng asked if he could build a real ironclad ship, if the current technology was possible. When asked this question, Huang Luzhuang's excited expression faded slightly. He pondered for a long time and told Zhu Yicheng frankly that although there was no problem with the principle of the ironclad ship, it is probably impossible to actually build an ironclad ship at the Ming Dynasty.

There is a huge difference between the model made of iron sheets and real warships. A series of problems must be solved before building a real ironclad ship. For example, steel is the selection of steel in various parts of the hull. Not all steel can be used as ironclad ship material.

Just like railways, railway tracks, locomotives, carriages, etc., the steel used in each environment is different, and the materials of cannons and ordinary muskets are also very different. The material problem is a big problem, and these require a long time of comparison and research to be determined.

In addition, steel will corrode in water, not to mention seawater that is more corrosive. This also has certain requirements for the material of steel, including the outer coating. Otherwise, the hull will be corroded by seawater within one or two years after the ironclad ship is launched, and the ironclad ship will naturally be useless.

After the steel plate is built, it is also a problem. According to Huangluzhuang, riveting can basically be used. Riveting can also be used, which is the disadvantage of riveting, that is, the riveting part is relatively fragile, which will damage the risk resistance of warships, including ordinary ships.

The redesign and detailed calculation of the hull require precision and long-term development, and it will definitely not be done in a short period of time. In this regard, Huangluzhuang probably wouldn't be able to build a primary version of the ironclad ship in less than three or five years. If a real ironclad warship is to appear, the time may be twice or even three times more.

"Don't say three to five years, I can afford to wait even five to six or even ten years!" Zhu Yicheng directly looked at his attitude and said to Huang Luzhuang solemnly: "The development of ironclad ships and steam warships is the top priority. Once successful, it will be a subversive change for the Ming Dynasty and even the entire world. This matter will be handled by Huang Qing personally, and Huang Qing will directly report it to me."

Zhu Yicheng's words directly gave Huang Luzhuang a reassurance. Although the amount of funding granted by the Ming Dynasty to the Academy of Sciences is not small, with the continuous expansion of research institutions under the Academy of Sciences in recent years, the expenditure of various projects is also quite large. Whether it is ironclad ships or steam warships, these are large-scale projects, and the proportion of expenditure accounts for a very heavy level. If you want to invest it with all your strength, the current allocation is simply not enough.

Now that Zhu Yicheng has expressed his full support, Huang Luzhuang is completely relieved. With the support of the court and the emperor, funds are not a problem, so it depends on his ability next.

In addition to financial support, Zhu Yicheng immediately asked Huangluzhuang to choose a suitable place for research and development. Although Tianjin is in a good geographical location, Tianjin Port is currently one of the major ports in the Ming Dynasty. It was a sloppy trial of the primary steam warship here before, but once it devotes itself to this place, it is not suitable.

Therefore, Zhu Yicheng planned to ask Huangluzhuang to find a new place and find a more suitable place. In addition, Zhu Yicheng would send Jinyiwei as an armed force for alert and prevention to ensure the confidentiality of the research institutions.

Huangluzhuang naturally had no objection to this, so he immediately accepted the order with a smile.
Chapter completed!