The Indianapolis journal., 1903-04-26
Anderson Man Has Discovered Pro.
cess of Burning Petroleum without
Any Process OF Refining.
INTENDED TO REPLACE GA.
SUPPLY TANK IN THE YARD TO
HEAT A WHOLE HOUSE.
Inventor Is Now Perfecting Device for
Introduction on Market-Cost
of the Scheme.

cTuOe OIL dVdlldDle lOr uOineSuS hCaeA6
purposes is now being perfected by Frank
lin NJ. Reed, of Anderson, Ind. The inven-
ton of Mr.. Reed Is the result OF fifteen
years experimenting with oil burners. and
those who have seen the burner In opera
tion in the Office of Judge d. c. Chapman.
OF Anderson, admit that 1t seems to have
solved the problem.
Mr.. Reed does not claim that his is the
only burner that will make use OF crude
petroleum, but he does assert for 1t the
ability to use crude petroleum economically
and to get from II more heat units than any
other burner; that 1t will not carbonize and
become obstructed. 1t Is also, he says, the
only oil burner that is fed from the top.
and consequently is without danger of car
bombing and becoming obstructed.
The invention of Mr.. Reed is looked upon
with much confidence, although 1t has not
Chipman's office. 1t has been on duty there
for ten weeks. 1t has furnished heat for
the office and has furnished, when tested,
more heat than Judge Chipman desired
even In cold weather. In it's simplicity and
economy 1t Is much like natural gas, and In
this lies it's chief claim to popular success.
The invention may be best described by the
record of the stove In Judge Chapman S
office.
SMALL SHEET-IRON STOVE.
This stove is a small sheet-iron stove.
1t is fed by a twenty-five-gallon tank Of
crude Indiana oil, which sets less than a
yard away. On this tank there is a ten
pound air pressure gauge and the air pres
sure is maintained by an ordinary foot
pump for filling bicycle tires. A pressure
of one pound will force the oil to the stove.
The tank is connected with the stove by a
rubber tube attached to pipe elbow. One
end of this elbow is needle pointed the
one-sixty-fifth of an inch. This point en-
ters the top of the stove and serves as
the feeding source.
The burner inoloses this feed pipe There
are two pipes leading from the top of the
stove to the interior, one inside the other.
In the interior they become globular but not
proportionately. At the base Of the globu-
lar part they cease an inch or more above
a plate. The other pipe is a down draught.
There are apertures at the top in the inner
pipe for down draught. Into this pipe the
needle-point pipe Is inserted and the point
Is about a foot above the plate in the bot
tom of the stove. A valve at the elbow
joint directs the flow of the oil. The oil
flows 10 the plate. By igniting 1t the fire
is started.
This is the beginning of the process by
which the real Invention of Reed begins.
The burning oil superheats the globular
parts of the pipe and the inner globe be-
comes superheated air chamber. The oil
from the needle point dripS through this
superheated air and Is Immediately con-
verted into gas at the point of combustion
midway between the base Of the globes and
the plate. 1t does not take many minutes
for the oil burning on the plate to accom-
plish the superheating of the air chamber
and then the oil ceases TO burn as oil and
burns as gas.
usual draught arrangement and this up
draught operates defectors and thus
carries the gas flame to the outside of the
exterior globe, thus heating the whole
stove.
SUCCESSFULLY PERFECTED.
This is the process which Mr.. Reed deems
has been successfully perfected in the stove
at Judge Chipman's Office. Mr.. Reed says
he has not adopted a formula with refer
ence to the adaptation of the burner to all
classes of heating stoves, but he is now
working at the pattern works of Jacob &
Co., on East Georgia street, to perfect his
invention. One of the things particularly
noticeable with the burner in operation in
Judge Chipman's Office is the noise ii
makes. The flame roars. and this sound
draught. The burner requires large
quantity of air, and the admission of a
larger supply of oil and air causes a roar
ing. Mr.. Reed says this is because the
waist of the stove Is too small. and the
noise may be so reduced as TO not be any
more than Is noticeable with natural gas
fire.
said Mr.. Reed, ''is that they fed from the
bottom by the retort process, and gradual
ly the burners became carbonized and use
less. They failed to utilize all the heat
units of the oil, and their success was only
II claim for my invention that it is a
process Of burning oil economically.
burners for many years. but this is the
first one / have felt fully confident was
salable In the market as a domestic utility
culinary purposes, but am not that far ar
advanced. Ii will be successful in domes-
tic. furnaces. My principal achievement is
in keeping the oil from heat before it's point
OF distribution from the feed pipe The
down draught OF cold air keeps the feed
pipe cool and prevents the carbonizing
The oil is converted into gas at the point
OF combustion, thus making gas fire.
HEAT UNITS OF OIL.
THE heat units of oil are greater thar
any other fuel. do not pretend that have
developed them all. But the process which
have invented will develop so much that G
stove OF small capacity will heat two large
or three small rooms comfortably"
Mr.. Reed then described the method that
would result from the general use OF tn,
invention. For an ordinary house the sup
ply tank would be buried in the yard anc
the fire connections supplied through pipe:
Just as natural gas Is. a twenty-five barre
tank should contain twenty barrels, tn,
rest OF the space being left for air pressure
The tank should be buried in the yard. bu
the air pressure gauge and the pump should
be In the house. The air pressure is all tha
Is needed to watch. In other respects tn,
fire Is just like natural gas; in fact tn.
houses now piped for natural gas coulC
utilize the piping for the crude oil connec
tons"
Mr.. Reeds invention is predicated on tn,
advent of crude oil as the coming fuel Tn,
inventor holds to the belief that the produc
tion OF oil is in its infancy and that IL 4.
likely the whole country will be producinJ
oil and in such quantities that II will b,
cheaper than coal. His present invention
gains 25 per cent. in economy over coal a
s. a ton. In convenience IL gains by havinG
no labor connected with IL and no dirt. i
has practically all the advantages OF natur
al gas at the cost OF little more In none,
and only necessitating vigilance as to tn.
air-pressure gauge.
A FLOW OF OIL
This vigilance implies no danger from tn.
lack OF II. The air pressure Is only neces
sary TO produce a flow OF oil. One poun,
will cause a flow, but greater pressur,
should be used. especially on larger tanks
Crude oil is nonexplosive II will burn ant
must be made secure from possible ignition
This Is best done by burning H. But Il 4
free from danger or explosion. The effec
OF the absence OF air pressure is that ther,