The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1878-04-25
GAS FROM WATER.

GAS FROM WATER.
While the possibility of making
illuminating gas from water has been
under discussion. some practical men
have erected works, and for year
past have supplied gas in this city
made from Croton water. Among
the establishments in which this gas
is burned are the standard, Fifth
Avenue, Wallack's Union Square. and
Park theatres, and Delmonico' s
Windsor, St. James, Fifth Avenue,
Buckingham, Metropolitan, st.
Nicholas, Parker and Prescott hotels.
The works are at Forty-sixth streets
and North river, and Mr.. FRANKLIN,
the manager of the Cunard line of
steamships, is the capitalist who has
supplied money for carrying on the
enterprise. 1t is said that 100000
is invested. The concern called the
Municipal Gaslight company, has
been in active operation more than a
year. A Sun reporter on Saturday
met one of the directors of the com.
pany, and asked him to describe the
method of making the gas, and the
prospects of the enterprise He said
that the company had carefully
avoided publicity, and did not desire
public attention. They had a cheap
mode of making gas, which nobody
else had yet adopted, and which there
fore gave them an advantage. They
were unable to supply the demand,
having now over two thousand APP.
plications on the books to which they
could not respond.
1.-The foundation of the discovery
that water is convertible into burning
gass,' this gentleman said, lis the
explosion of the old idea that water is
an original element. Water is a com.
position of oxygen and hydrogen, and
by subject to intense heat the water
is resolved into it's original constitu-
ents, yielding one volume Of oxygen
gas and two volumes Of hydrogen.
The process is a complicated one, but
inexpensive and the water gas does
not cost nearly SO much as the gas
made from coal and kerosene. The
first operation in the manufacture Of
this gas is to heat the water, and
next to superheat it to about one
THOUSAND degrees Fahrenheit. The
water is then passed into generators
filled with anthracite coal, by means
of which it is decomposed into its
original elements. The oxygen here
unites with the carbon from the coal.
and the product is carbonic oxide and
hydrogen. At this stage crude
burning gas is had, containing sui
phnr and carbonic acid. TO remove
this the gas is passed through
purifying boxes. which are immense
sleeves containing layers of lime.
The sulphate is deposited in the lime.
and carbonate is made by the acid.
These impurities removed, the gas
next passes into carburettes-iron
cylinders incased in water jackets. on
the glue-pot principle. These cylin-
ders are half full of naphtha. The
naphtha is vaporized by the heat. and
the gas takes up this vapor and car
rieS it into the retorts. In the
retorts the naphtha vapor is decom-
posed. and combined with the water
gas, and the latter is then burning
gas. but rot ready for the market. 1t
is next passed through condensers
and washers to remove any condensi-
bic vapors. The result is clear
white burning gas. entirely free from
odor or smoke. and far more brilliant
than ordinary coal gas. Its illumina-
ting power is 80 per cent. greater than
that of coal gas
How much gas do you make every
day :" asked the reporter.
About five hundred Thousand feet.
Isn't there about as much of other
kinds of gas in this mixture as of
what you get out of the Croton
wateri'
NO; the gas comes from the water.
We treat it wifi naphtha ,apor
simply to give it Illuminating power.
You go and try this gas. You can
place a sheet of white porcelain
within three inches of the fame. and
there will not be particle of smoke
in three MONTHS"
Are you selling it any cheaper
than the other c0mpaniesi'
mo; why should wei We can't
supply the demand for it. If we
sought customers that would be a
different thing. We can make a
profit from it now, and we intend to
do it,
The gas, is said. costs the company
only fifty cent per Thousand feet. and
they sell it for 42--EeD York Sun.