NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS REPORT

3$53

PERFORMANCE OF THE COLEMAN INVERTED GASOLINE

LANTERN, T-53-5

by

Selden D. Cole

and

Paul R. Achenbach

Report To

Headquarters, Quartermaster Research & Development

Command

Quartermaster Research & Development Center

U. S. Army

<NBS>

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Sinclair Weeks, Secretary NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

A. V. Astin, Director

cover of this report.

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NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS REPORT

MSS PROJECT NBS REPORT

1003-20-4^32 December 30, 1954 3^53

Performance Of The Coleman Inverted Gasoline

Lantern, T-53-5

by

Selden D. Cole

and

Paul R. Achenbach

Heating and Air Conditioning Section

Building Technology Division

Report To

Headcuarters, Quartermaster Research & Development

Command

Quartermaster Research & Development Center

U . S . Army

<S>

U. s. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

The publication, repr

unless permission Isa 25,D,C. Such perm

1

cal ly prepared If thi

Approved for public release by the

Director of the National Institute of

Standards and Technology (NIST)

on October 9, 2015.

i part, is prohibited

idards, Washington

jrt has been specifiort for its own use,

PERFORMANCE OF THE COLEMAN INVERTED GASOLINE

LANTERN T-53-5

by

Selden D. Cole and Paul R. Achenbach

ABSTRACT

Tests were made of several specimens of a newly-developed inverted gasoline lantern, T-53-5,

manufactured by the Coleman Company to investigate

the pressures generated in the fuel tank in high

ambient temperatures, the ability of the lanterns

to operate satisfactorily on leaded gasoline, and

the likelihood of the lanterns exploding if the

pressure regulator failed to function* The tests

on four specimens showed that the majority of the

lanterns would not restrict the fuel tank pressure

to the desired limit of 50 lb/sq.in. in an ambient

temperature of 130°F when the tank was filled completely at the time of lighting. One of four failed

to control the pressure to the same limit in an ambient temperature of 110°F. The lanterns developed

tank pressures ranging from 300 to 45 0 lb/sq.in.

when allowed to burn uncontrolled without a pressure

regulator valve. The tanks did not explode and

remained pressure tight, but the lanterns were not

luminous for pressures above about 100 lb/sq.in.

and flames issued from the top of the stack on

the lanterns. The lanterns operated poorly on

leaded gasoline requiring cleaning of the orifice

every few minutes in some cases. In normal operation some of the operating knobs and the lantern

bail became too hot for manipulation with bare

hands.

2

1. INTRODUCTION

At the request of the Headquarters, Quartermaster

Research and Development Command, Natick, Mass, four

inverted lanters, T53-5, manufactured by the Coleman Co,

were tested in ambient temperatures ranging from 90°F to

130°F to determine the maximum temperature at which the

pressure regulator valve in the lanterns would limit the

fuel tank pressure to 50 lb/sq in. The pressure regulators

are preset at the factory to limit uhe tank pressure at

approximately 30 lb/sq in. by throttling the flow of liquid

fuel from the tank and allowing the gasoline vapor from the

tank to escape to the fuel orifice at the mantle through a

by pass tube.

Five specimens were also operated on leaded gasoline

to determine whether lead deposits would affect their operation and to observe the usefulness of the orifice cleaning needle.

In response to a subsequent request three of the same

specimens were operated without the pressure regulators

to determine whether they would explode or reach some

maximum fuel tank pressure in ambient temperatures up to

125°F.

2. TEST PROCEDURE

An unleaded gasoline purchased under Federal Specification VV-G-109 Gasoline, Unleaded, was used for these

tests to avoid possible variations in performance due to

lead deposits in the generator or orifice. Each lantern

was operated for two hours or more in an ambient temperature between 75°F and $5°F to ascertain that the pressure

regulator valve was functioning.

For the tests of the pressure regulators the four

lanterns were suspended from the ceiling of an insulated

test room with a one foot clearance at the top and 20 in.

between adjacent points of suspension. The temperature of

the test room was maintained at the desired level by means

of a thermostatically controlled electric heater.

A pressure gage was attached to the fuel tank of each

lantern through the gasoline fill cap and for some of the

tests a thermocouple was installed below the liquid surface in the gasoline tank of each lantern. Each fuel tank

was pumped up to a pressure of 30 Ib/sq in. before

lighting and again after the lantern was in full operation with a luminous mantle.

The same four lanterns and one additional specimen were operated on leaded gasoline in ambient temperatures of approximately $0°F and 130°F to observe

whether or not the fuel orifice became stopped up and

to evaluate the effectiveness of the orifice cleaning

needle

,

For the investigation of the explosion hazard the

lanterns were installed one at a time in a concretelined half-underground chamber designed for such tests,

A pressure gage was mounted in a safe place and connected

to the fuel tank by means of a small bore copper tube,

A thermocouple was used to remotely observe the temperature of the liquid fuel in the tank. These tests were

made without artificially heating the chamber because

preliminary trials showed that very high pressures would

be generated without high ambient temperatures when the

lanterns were operated without the pressure regulators,

3, TEST RESULTS

The results observed during the tests are shown in

Figures 1 to $ in which the ambient temperature and the

fuel tank pressure and temperature, when observed, are

plotted for the duration of the test period.

Effect of Quantity of Fuel in Tank on Pressure Rise : Figures 1 and 2 provide a comparison of the results obtained on two specimens when the tests were started with

the fuel tank three-fourths filled and completely filled

respectively, in an ambient temperature of 130°F. When

starting with the tank three-fourths full lantern No, 1

attained a maximum pressure of 39 Ib/sq, in, and lantern

No. 2 a maximum of 31 Ib/sq, in, in two hours operation,

after which the pressures in both decreased steadily for

the next 3-1/4 hours to a value of 12 Ib/sq ,in. At the

end of 5-1/4 hours of operation both lanterns were pumped

up to a pressure of 30 Ib/sq, in. The pressure in both

fuel tanks began to decrease again after the pumping operation, This sequence of events is shown in Figure 1.

“ 4

N

\

When the tests of these same two lanterns were

initiated with a full tank of gasoline and a tank

pressure of 30 Ib/sq.in., specimen No. 1 exceeded a

pressure of 50 lb/sq. in. three times, the first time

occurring 1-1/4 hours after lighting as shown in Fig. 2.

In each case when the pressure reached 50 lb/sq. in. the

lantern was removed from the hot room and placed in a

room at a temperature of about £0°F until the pressure

decreased to 30 lb/sq. in. after which it was returned

to the hot room. Lantern specimen No. 2 reached a maximum pressure of 40 lb/sq. in. after 1-3/4 hours operation

and then decreased gradually to a pressure of 13 lb/sq. in.

after 5-3/4 hours operation*

A comparison of Figures 1 and 2 indicates that the

amount of fuel in the tank had some effect on the pressure

rise in both specimens. In the case of specimen 1 the

pressure exceeded the specified limit three times when

the test was started with a full tank of fuel. The effect

of the quantity of gasoline in the tank on pressure rise

could be explained on the basis of the difference in the

amount of tank surface exposed to liquid fuel on one side

and hot flue gases on the other side around the central

flue. Presumably all of the liquid-backed tank surface

around the flue would be evaporating surface for the liquid

fuel.

Effect of Ambient Temperature on Pressure Rise : Because one of the two specimens used in the first two

tests developed excessive tank pressures in an ambient

temperature of 130°F when started with a full tank of gasoline, four specimens were used for additional tests at

ambient temperatures in the range from 110°F to 130°F.

These results are shown graphically in Figures 3 to 6,

inclusive. Figure 3 shows the pressures developed in the

four lanterns when filled with gasoline and pumped to a

pressure of 30 lb/sq. in. and placed in an ambient temperature of 130°F.

Lanterns Nos. 1, 3 and 4 exceeded 50 lb/sq. in. pressure

in approximately one hour, at which time they were turned

off and removed to a room ambient temperature of approximately S0°F to cool off. In about one hour the lanterns

were lighted, pumped to 30 lb/sq. in. pressure and allowed to

burn for about one hour at an ambient temperature of $0°F

at which time they were returned to the hot room®

Lanterns Nos. 1 and 4 again exceeded 50 Ib/sq.in.

pressure. Lantern No. 3 reached a pressure of 43 lb/

sq.in® after which the pressure gradually decreased to

a value of 25 Ib/sq.in. at the end of the test. Specimen No. 2 never exceeded a pressure of 42 Ib/sq.in®

during the entire test®

Figure 4 shows the results obtained when the four

lanterns were started in the same manner as for the

preceeding test but placed in an ambient temperature of

110°F. Lantern No. 1 developed a pressure in excess of

50 lb/sq.in. and when removed to a cooler space, went

out, and could not be relighted. The maximum pressures

developed in the fuel tanks of lanterns 2, 3 and 4 were

2$, 37, and 41 lb/sq.in., respectively.

Figure 5 shows the results obtained when lanterns

Nos. 2, 3 and 4 were operated in the same manner as before except that the ambient temperature varied between

110°F and 126°F, during the first four (4) hours, leveling off at 120°F after that time. Lantern No® 1 could

not be started for this test. Lantern No. 2 did not exceed a pressure of 32 lb/sq.in. and in general the pressure

followed the variations in ambient temperature. Lantern

No. 3 exceeded a pressure of 50 lb/sq. in. after one hour

and ten minutes and dropped to a pressure of 10 lb/sq.in®

in less than one-half hour when placed in an ambient temperature of approximately S0°F. When returned to the hot

room the pressure immediately increased and in less than

one and one-half hours had exceeded 50 lb/sq.in. Lantern

No. 4 increased in pressure to 45 lb/sq.in. in 1-3/4 hours

but then decreased steadily in pressure until the end of

the test.

Figure 6 shows the results obtained when Lanterns

No. 1 and 4 were placed in a room at a steady ambient

temperature of 130°F with a full tank of gasoline. In

approximately 1-.1/2 hours both specimens had exceeded

a pressure of 50 lb/sq.in. and when removed to an ambient

temperature of $0°F the pressure dropped to 20-25 lbs/sq.in.

After returning the lanterns to the hot room, the pressure

of both reached 40 lb/sq.in. and then decreased steadily

with time for the remainder of the 6-1/4 hour test.

6

Figures 3 to 6 show that three of the four specimens would not limit the fuel tank pressure to 50 lb/sq.in.

in an ambient temperature of 130°F and one of the four

would not limit the pressure to the same value in an ambient temperature of 110°F. These figures also indicate

a relation between ambient temperature and maximum fuel

tank pressure even when the 50 lb/sq.in. limit was not

reached.

Exchange of Pressure Regulators: Prior to test 7

a thermocouple was placed in the fuel tank of each of two

of the lanterns previously tested, Nos. 1 and 2, and the

pressure regulators were exchanged. During the earlier

tests lantern No. 1 had failed to control its fuel tank

pressure for ambient temperatures of 110°F or above whereas

lantern No. 2 had controlled its pressure for all ambient

temperatures up to 130°F. The pressures and temperatures

recorded during this test are plotted against time in Figure 7 ®Lantern No. 1 reached a fuel tank pressure of 50 lb/sq.in.

in 3-1/4 hours and was moved to an ambient temperature of

approximately $0°F until the pressure decreased to 30 lb/sq.in.

It was then returned to the hot room, but it did not again

exceed a pressure of 30 lb/sq.in. Lantern No. 2 did not increase in pressure at all above the initial value of 30 lb/

sq.in., but operated for 6 hours at pressures between 25 and

30 lb/sq.in.

The temperature pattern in both lanterns followed that

of the pressure. The temperature of the fuel in lantern

No. 1 rose steadily to a value of 293°F corresponding to the

fuel tank pressure of 50 lb/sq.in. After the lantern was

cooled off and was returned to the hot room the temperature

rose briefly to a value of 265°F and then decreased gradually.

The fuel temperature in lantern No. 2 rose steadily during

the first 2 hours of the test to a value of 235°F after which

it remained between 235°F and 240°F for the remainder of the

test.

A comparison of Figures 2 and 7 indicates that lantern

No. 2 did not produce fuel tank pressures in excess of

40 lb/sq.in. with its own pressure regulator or the one

originally installed on lantern No. 2, whereas lantern No. 1

produced pressures in excess of 50 lb/sq.in. with both of

- 7 -

these same pressure regulators. These results indicate

that the pressure regulator was not the significant factor

determining pressure rise in these two speciments, and

suggests that other differences in construction between

the two specimens were responsible for the differences in

pressure rise.

A pressure of 50 lb/sq.in. was observed in lantern

No. 1 after one hour operation in test 2, see Figure 2,

whereas 3-3/4 hours elapsed before this same pressure

developed in test 7, see Figure 7. This difference is

probably accounted for by the difference in the initial

ambient temperature in the two tests. The test was started

in an ambient temperature of 72°F in Figure 7, whereas it

was started in an ambient temperature of 120°F in Figure 2»

Operation With Leaded Gasoline : The four lanterns

used for the previous tests were operated on a leaded gasoline in an ambient temperature of 130°F } and these same

four lanterns and one new and unused specimen were operated on leaded gasoline in an ambient temperature of S0°F.

to determine whether lead deposits would obstruct the fuel

orifice and to observe the functioning of the orifice cleaning needle built into the lantern. Table 1 summarizes the

results observed in the two series of tests.

Each test was started with a fuel tank pressure of

about 20 lb/sq.in. and the orifice cleaner was used whenever

the luminosity indicated obstruction of the orifice. The

pressure regulator valves on lanterns 1 and 2 remained

interchanged for the tests with leaded gasoline as they had

been for the last preceding test and lantern 4 was tested

without a pressure regulator valve.

The results in Table 1 show that only lantern No. 1

operated as much as 1 hour on leaded gasoline without

clogging of the orifice. The other lanterns required

cleaning at intervals ranging from 1 minute to 40 minutes

to maintain a suitable luminosity. Lanterns 2, 3, 4 and

5 went out completely one or more times during the tests

and the orifice cleaning needle was bent and inoperable at

the end of the tests in lanterns 3 and 4.

TABLE 1

SUMMARY OF TESTS WITH LEADED GASOLINE

Lantern No. 1 2 3 _4 5

Ambient Temperature 130°F

Initial Fuel Charge, cc $50 10$0 750a „ 900

Duration of Test, min.

Pressure Range, lb/sq.in

60 60a 5$a > c 14

25-30 2$-33 20± 20-60

No. of Times Orifice was

Cleaned 0 2 6 0

Range of Time Increment

Between Cleanings, min. —

5-17 1-23 —

Ambient Temperature $0°F

Initial Fuel Charge, cc 10$0 10$0 10$0 900 10$Q

70 ° Duration of Test, min.

Pressure Range, lb/sq.in

220 l 95a 39a , 0 44a > c 21-26 30-34 20-34 20-47 20-32

No. of Times Orifice was

Cleaned 1 3 $ 4 5

Range of Time Increment

Between Cleanings, min. 1$ 35-40 2-$ $-19 9-24

a. Lantern went out at end of test.

b. Lantern went out three times during test period.

c. Orifice clogged and needle bent at the end of the test.

- 3 -

Lantern No. 4 without a pressure regulator developed

an excessive fuel tank pressure in an ambient temperature

of 130°F, but the fuel tank pressure did not exceed 47 lb/

sq.in. during the several short periods of luminous operation in an ambient temperature of $0°F.

These tests showed generally unsatisfactory operation

on leaded gasoline.

General Operating Characteristics: When a lantern was

burning normally at all times the operating handle of the

eccentric stem assembly on the orifice cleaner was too hot

to handle with the bare hand so a pair of pliers was used

to turn it to clean the orifice. It was also observed that

when the lantern was left standing for 24 hours or longer,

after prolonged burning, that the eccentric stem assembly

froze so that the eccentric rod would twist rather than

turn in the packing gland. When this happened there was

no sure indication of the relative location of the cleaning needle tip to the orifice except the manner of burning

after lighting.

It was also observed that the lantern bail became

too hot to handle with the bare hands when the lantern

was suspended by it from a ceiling hanger. Furthermore,

the air pump handle became excessively hot requiring

some protection for the hands if additional pressure was

reouired in the fuel tank a few minutes after ignition.

Explosion Tests : -three of the lanterns used for the

preceding tests were operated on unleaded gasoline without

pressure regulator valves to determine whether they would

explode or reach some limiting fuel tank pressure. Lanterns 1, 3 and 4 were used for this purpose.

This series of tests was conducted in a concrete

chamber 4 ft. wide, 4-1/2 ft. high, and 8 ft. long located

partially underground for just such purposes. A door 30 in.

wide and 30 in. high provided access to the interior of

the chamber. The lanterns were operated one at a time in

in the -chamber with the temperature and pressure in the

fuel tank being measured remotely by means of a thermocouple and a pressure gage with a capillary tube connection

to the tank.

- 9

-

Each lantern was checked for its burning characteristics and mantle formation by being lighted according

to prescribed methods and allowing it to burn under observation until a fuel tank pressure of 50 lb/sq.in. was

indicatedo After this preliminary operation the lantern

was filled with gasoline and placed in the explosion chamber where it was lighted according to directions and

pumped up to a pressure of approximately 30 lb/sq.in. to

start the test. All tests were conducted in the existing

ambient temperature of 50°F and lower since it was observed that the ambient temperature was not critical.

Figure 8 shows the pressure and temperature in the

fuel tanks of the three lanterns plotted against time.

Lantern No. 1 had not previously been operated at a fuel

tank pressure in excess of 50 lb/sq.in., but during this

test it reached a pressure of 300 lb/sq.in. and a fuel

temperature of 400°F in approximately 2 hours after which

both the temperature and pressure decreased.

'I During a previous test in the explosion chamber

lantern No. 3 attained a tank pressure of 300 lb/sq.in.

after which it was completely dismantled for inspection

as indicated in Figure 9* During the second test of

lantern No. 3, the results of which is plotted in Figure 8 , a maximum pressure of about 320 lb/sq.in. was

attained in 50 minutes after lighting and a maximum temperature of 445° F about 69 minutes after lighting.

During two previous trials in the explosion chamber

lantern No. 4 attained a fuel tank pressure of 300 lb/sq.in.

after which it was partially dismantled as indicated in

Figure 10. During the third test of lantern No. 4, the

results of which are plotted in Figure 8 , a maximum pressure

of 450 lb/sq.in. was attained in 45 minutes after lighting

and the fuel temperature was 550°F, 47 minutes after lighting and still rising.

In all cases the pressure dropped rapidly after the

maximum had been reached due to depletion of the gasoline

supply in the fuel tank. The temperatures did not start

to decrease as soon as the pressure decreased. The pressures and temperatures did not rise quite as rapidly during

the first test of lanterns 3 and 4 as shown for the tests

10 -

on Figure 3. Presumably the pressure and temperature

rose more rapidly in the second and third tests because

of the contact between the stack and the bulges in the

fuel tank.

Figure 10 shows clearly the six bulges on the inside surface of the tank around the stack. It is believed that these distortions started at a pressure of

about 125 lb/sq.in. because the inside wall of the tank

hit the stack with a resounding crack as each bulge

occurred. The contact between the inside wall of the

tank and the stack was so tight that the stack had to

be forcibly pressed out of the tank in lantern No. 3.

The top of the fuel tank was also bulged slightly but

this is not as clearly visible in the photographs as

the bulges inside the tank. A new undistorted tank is

shown in Figure 11 for comparison.

All of the fuel tanks were pressure tight at the conclusion of the tests. In all cases the lanterns burned

with a white light until some pressure between SO and

100 lb/sq.in. was reached, after which the gasoline

burned in the glass globe breaking out at the top of the

stack at a pressure between 100 and 125 lb/sq.in. where,

it assumed the appearance of a gas stove burner. Small

candle size flames appeared also at the valve handle

fittings, at the air pump, and at the gas fill tube cap.

4. CONCLUSIONS

The tests made of several specimens of the Coleman

inverted lantern T-53-5 indicated the following conclusions

a. The lanterns were not uniform in their performance at elevated ambient temperatures. Three

out of four specimens tested failed to limit

the fuel tank pressure to 50 lb/sq.in. in an

ambient temperature of 130°F and one out of

four specimens failed to limit the pressure to

the same value in an ambient temperature of

110°F. These results did not appear to be

caused by failure of the pressure regulator

valve.

11 -

b. The quantity of gasoline in the tank at the time

of lighting the iantern affected the tendency

for excessive pressures to develop.

c. The lanterns did not operate satisfactorily on

leaded gasoline.

d. The orifice cleaner needles were easily bent

during the cleaning operation and the stem of

the operating cam was inclined to freeze in the

packing gland.

e. The operating handles of the air pump and the

orifice cleaner and the lantern bail were too

hot for the bare hands during normal operation

of the lantern.

f. The fuel tanks buckled but did not explode nor

develop leaks when operated without the pressure

regulator valves although tank pressures up to

450 lb/sq.in. were observed. Flames issued from

the top of the stack at tank pressures about 100

to 125 lb/sq.in. thus entailing some fire hazard

if located near combustible material.

g. Further development of this item is required to

make it satisfactory for military use.

FUEL

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Jo ‘3ddlVH3d IN 31

TIME,

HOURS

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TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE IN FUEL TANK

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FIG. 9

FIG. 10

FIG. 11

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