Patent GB-766649-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to heating gases and vapours
Inventor: MACCORMAC MICHAEL
IPC: F28C3/14
Filed: 1953-11-24
Abstract: 766,649. Water-gas; oil-gas. GAS COUNCIL. Nov. 18, 1954 [Nov. 24, 1953], No. 32629/53. Classes 55 (1) and 55 (2). [Also in Group XIII] Three distinct heat storage beds used for heating gases or vapours to a high temperature follow each other in turn through the same three-phase cycle, in which a bed is heated by passing through it in one direction products of combustion of gaseous or liquid fuel, and then passing first the gas or vapour to be heated and later air through the bed in the reverse direction ; the air is used for combustion of fuel to reheat a second bed, at the same time as the third bed is heating the gas or vapour. In the apparatus shown, comprising three regenerators 11, 12, 13 containing the heat-storage beds, steam and process air are heated and used immediately in the same regenerator to make oil gas from heavy oil. The regenerators 11, 12, 13 are connected by pipes 30 to a reversing valve 14 which comprises two U-shaped crossover pipes 38, 39 rotatable about a vertical axis so that they can be brought into positions in which the pipe 38 connects two regenerators, and the pipe 39 connects the third regenerator to a conduit leading to a gas wash-box and an auxiliary stack pipe 50 which allows purge gas at the beginning of the make to escape to atmosphere and allows burning out at the change-overs. The pipes 38, 39 are carried by a triangular frame 48 having wheels running on a circular track on a base-plate 34 resting on a frame which can be raised and lowered by screw jacks. In the lowered position, the ends of the pipes 38, 39 rest on the upper ends of the pipes 30, 35 (not shown), which project through the plate 34. In the raised position, the pipe ends disengage so that the pipes 38, 39 are free to be rotated. Pairs of pivoted plates 52 may move to cover and protect the seals surrounding ends of the tubes 30 when the reversing valve is raised, or the seals may be protected by water films. The seals may be of rubber seated on annular cooling water channels, or may be rubber tubes filled with cooling water. Each regenerator comprises a cylindrical steel shell lined with fused alumina 17, sillimanite 18, and insulating materials 19, 20, and contains a bed 16 of rounded pebbles of fused alumina, or checkerwork which may have a top layer of pebbles. An annular curtain wall 28 of concrete or firebrick backed by a steel cylinder 29 keeps pebbles away from the openings of a blast air pipe 24, process air pipe 26, steam pipe 25 (not shown) and stack pipe 23 connected to the wall 22. A combined fuel oil atomizer and make-oil sprayer 32, and a tube 31 for optical pyrometry sighting, are provided at the top of each regenerator. The regenerators are heated from cold by gas pokers inserted through doors 33 on the pipes 30. When the regenerators are connected as shown, air from the pipe 24 is heated in the regenerator 13 and passes through the pipe 38 to the regenerator where it supports combustion of fuel from the atomizer 32 to heat the bed 16. Steam and process air are heated as they flow up through the third regenerator 11, and react with the make-oil sprayed in at the top to make gas which flows through the pipes 30, 39, 35 (not shown) to the wash-box. While carbonaceous material left in regenerator 13 by the previous gas-making phase is burnt off at the start of the air-heating phase, secondary air is supplied to the top of the regenerator 12. Specification 740,482 is referred to.