The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-11-25
ABOUT MAKING GAS
FROM COAL DUST
Letter Sent by ]. Gardener Sanderson
to the Engineering News
COMMENT THAT CALLED IT FORTH
Editor of the News Asked What Kind
Of Gas 1t Is That Can BE Obtained
From Anthracite Culm in Such
Large Volume as 10000 Cubic
Feet Per Ton. SandcrsOn Gives
Him the Desired Information.

In relation 10 Ine 1riDuneS T''eHt
article relative to J. Gardener Sander
sons patent for producing gas from
anthracite culm, the Engineering News
of Nov. u, says:
The making of gas from anthracite Goa!
dust Is being exploited in Scranton Ia.
BY the Anthracite Gas Producer company.
Mr. }. Gardner Sandcrson. the inventor OF
the gas producer read paper before tne
Scranton board of trade on Oct. IL, de-
scribing the process in which he made the
following statements:
Now as to what we are aDle 10 40, WIFI
the millions of tons of waste coal scat
tered through the coal regions. After
working over the piles and extracting all
the marketable sizes, the earth will SIN
be cncumbered with millions Of tons OF an
marketable stuff. With this ! am pre-,
pared to make gas as valuahs ior luei
as the best prepared coal, and far more
efficient in power-usng gas engines than
the best of coal with steam engines. Spe.
cial devices are necessary IN 'Ht use OF
cum. 1t could not be made IN amy or the
producers before made. These
provisions being worked out, we are ah.e
to produce gas with this material without
more trouble OF cost than with lf?'trtd
coal. and this we have been dong Tor sew
cral months. By actual measurement: we
produce and store from $500, to 20 "CO
cubic feet of cas with one ten of I'M"
waste from the wd shng. With c,ilm from
the pile, sfte: takins out all the sizes from
DucKWhedI, We Eet aoout lio'"p Cu"i' ~
per ton. Fifty cubic feet Of ,,t' IN
gas engine is Il large allowa-ce for one
horsepower per hour, hence one ton OF
culm will furnish $500 horsepower per
hour, or $50 horsepower for ten hours.
and there IS no waste of fuel when the
power Is not in use. No boilers to care for.
insure or explode, and but little expensive
water required"
WHAT KIND OF GAS?
The figure $50 is probably Il misprint for
$50. 1t would be interesting to know what
kind of gas ii Is that can be obtained
from anthracite culm in such large vol
ume as 10000 cubic feet per ton, AMI the
statement that so cubic feet of gas per
horsepower per hour is a large allowance,
might also be made more definite If the
quality of the gas were stated. The num-
ber of pounds of coal to the ton Is not stat
ed but il we assume 2,2i0 We obtain the
following: 2,2i0 pounds culm furnishes
$500 horsepower for one hour, which is
equivalent to 2.2i0 divided by $500 equals
0S pounds of culm per horsepower per
hour This beats even what is claimed for
the Bates Thermic engine, described III
our issue of Oct. %, and we beg to he
excused from believing it without fur
ther proof than the statemnts of the in
ventor.
In reply to the foregoing article Mr..
Sanderson Il few days later forwarded
the following letter:
Scranton, Pa, Nov. Is, 1896.
To the Editors of Engineering News, New
York. n. Y.
Gentlemen: ! have received a marked
copy OF your paper calling my attention -
an extract from paper recently read
by me before the Scranton board of trade.
The slur you cast at "the inventor would
deter me from giving the article any at
tenton were it not for the request of the
secreary of the board of trade by whose
- raI "a
read. Aside from some verbal corrections
a portion OF the extract should be correct
ed to read, by actual measurement We
produce and store from 1lS,O0O cubic feet
to 10000 cubic feet of gas with one Ton
Of fine waste from the washery." The
$50 horsepower" you recognize as proba
bly, misprint for $50.
THE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS.
Your assertion that at would be inter-
esting to know what kind of gas 1t is that
can be obtained from anthracite culm in
such large volume as 10000 cubic feet
per tom shows great lack of knowledge
for critic. The chemical analvss aS
made at the labratory of the Lackawanna
Iron and Steel company is: